Happy Chinese New Year to all who celebrates the festivity! Did you have loads of fun? I always love the food part that comes with it! (lol)

Thanks for the review, favs and follows :)

Here's the new chapter. Hope you'll like it, and if you do, let me know in the reviews. Any grammar errors, please do let me know too! Ta!

[CLOSED] Poll result (Updated on 11/4/ 2014):

Yukimura - 9

Atobe - 5

Sanada - 3

Yagyuu - 1

The rest (Kirihara, Marui, Jackal, Niou, Yanagi) - 0

Let's read on ~

(The next day…Akemi's free period…)

A small smile tugged at her lips.

Standing behind the safety of the railing, Akemi couldn't help but smile at the ongoing PE lesson down below. Even from the rooftop garden, the messy dark hair of Kirihara was easily recognisable.

Well, it wasn't as if the girls from his PE class weren't screaming his name on top of their voices.

Note that sarcasm?

That, and the fact the girls from his class were screaming his name on top of their voices as he carried the baton during his leg of the relay race.

After watching him successfully pass on the baton to his teammate, she turned away from the railing and plopped down on the bench.

She gave the school's newspaper beside her a pensive look.

Akemi had earlier read it several times until the words were embedded in her memory. She would be lying to herself if she said she wasn't impressed by Yukimura.

Taking up the entire front page was an article written by the president of the journalism committee himself.

'Exclusive: Yukimura Seiichi, Captain of Rikkaidai High School's Tennis Club (Boy's Division) Speaks Out On New Manageress!' - the headline glared back in all its black ink glory.

She smirked. 'Using journalism to turn the whole rumour mill around…he truly is shrewd.'

Not only had he dispelled all the nonsensical rumours in the interview with the president, he'd also clarified the reason she was given the position, rallied comments from the rest of the regulars (Akemi was astounded at seeing Niou's) that placed her in a positive light, and finally requested the public (i.e. the entire student population) to leave her in peace or face the disciplinary committees (mostly Sanada; actually very certain him alone would suffice) for invading a student's privacy.

The smirk morphed into a smile.

So far, it worked like a miracle.

Though there were the few who glared at her in the corridors, Akemi didn't have to endure a whole morning of questions, begging and confession letters raining down her desk.

Silently praying it would last for the remainder of her high school years, she brought the newspaper up to the light and studied the pictures that accompanied the article.

The smile plummeted to the ground.

She scowled at one particular picture.

Hers...or not?

Though the size was incomparable to that of Yukimura's*, whose mere forehead (Akemi was so used to seeing him with his usual headband, that the captain looked a bit…umm, bare in the picture) took up about a couple inches of space on the front page, the editor obviously wanted to publicise her image without compromising the captain's by cutting out the rest of the crew and magnifying the cropped picture of her face.

As a result of his 'brilliant' effort, she could no longer tell the difference between her nose and mouth as they have merged into one in the picture.

On the bright side, her anonymity outside the high school department was preserved.

So that's one good thing out of it…

Just one…

Deep creases appeared across the page.

Her knuckles were white from clutching the newspaper tightly.

Akemi had initially wondered how Yukimura managed to persuade the president into an interview session with the whole tennis regulars on such short notice, when she realised he must have had slipped the group picture taken back at Kasai Rinkai Park underneath the table in addition to using his reputation/popularity.

Sly

Oh, sly Yukimura.

Would a curly moustache add more dignity to the captain?

The library's paper shredder? Oh yes, turning his shoe locker into a nest for hamsters appealed very much to the seething girl.

But…

With a heavy sigh, Akemi set the newspaper beside her on top of a green plastic container.

'I shouldn't be angry with him after what he's done…' she told herself, propping up her elbows on her lap and then laying her head on her hands. 'He must have gone all out to achieve this…even if he did use such a dirty trick,' she added crossly.

The image of the blue irises resting on her study desk back in her bedroom briefly flashed through her mind.

Her eyes strayed to the container. It's packed to the brim with caramel brownies she had baked last night.

For a brief moment, Akemi contemplated on giving the brownies to Marui last. No doubt the sugar-addict would try to grab everything for himself, and (if they're lucky enough) leaving only the crumbs for the rest of the regulars.

The corner of her mouth twitched, picturing the chaos that would follow.

'Poor Genichiro-san will have a field day.'

She brought her hand up to stifle the giggles, but her joviality did not last long.

Brown eyes snapped to the foliage beside the shabby garden shed. The leaves quivered faintly.

Who could it be?

Yukimura?

He did suggest they have lunch again with the other two (i.e. Sanada and Yanagi) here.

But...

...something just didn't seem right at all.

Frowning, she glanced down at her watch.

'Strange. It's only 12:17pm…lunch isn't until 12:30pm,' she narrowed her eyes suspiciously at the foliage. 'It will still take them at least five to ten minutes to get here, considering the size of the queue at the cafeteria and all...'

Seconds later, her gaze sharpened.

She leapt to her feet, and backed away a couple of paces from the bench (if anything, the furniture could be used as a barrier), never tearing her eyes from the vegetation.

"Wh-who are you, and what do you want?" she blurted, jabbing a finger towards the bush.

The leaves suddenly grew very still.

Akemi blinked.

Was it another squirrel?

But no...

...a figure appeared.

Hands shoved deep into his pockets, he ambled towards her with the air of someone who had all the time in the world.

He stopped in front of the bench. "Yo! We meet again, Noda," he drawled.

"Y-you're -" she whispered hoarsely.

He grinned disdainfully; a mad glint in his eyes. He threw his arms far and wide beside him as though presenting himself in front of an audience.

"Me"

"Y-you're…" Akemi repeated.

Then it suddenly dawned on her.

"…who are you again?" she politely asked, looking every bit confused.

Stumped by the unexpected reaction, he nearly collapsed onto the ground.

As it were, his arms fell back to his side like dead weight as he stared at the girl in complete bafflement. Was she for real?

"Mmm…so many things have been happening lately. My memory isn't as sharp as it used to be."

She placed a finger on her chin in a contemplative manner, eyes raised to the sky, as she rattled on about this and that.

"C-cut it out with your stupid act!" he barked hotly, snapping Akemi out from her thoughts. He raked a hand through his brown hair. His lips parted in a shaky but maniacal laugh as the madness took hold of his eyes once more. "Do you know how much trouble I've been going through with my parents and the school ever since that idiot Sanada reported me to the discipline head?" he whispered hoarsely.

Akemi stiffened in horror as everything came back to her. 'He's that second year – Takeda or something - who tried to knock me to the floor at the supermarket!'

By the looks and sounds of it, he's out for blood...

...hers that is.

Akemi took a tentative step back.

"H-how did you find this place?" she asked in an attempt to delay whatever he's planning to do. "And aren't you supposed to be in class?"

He snorted derisively, and held up a corridor pass for her to see before tossing it to the ground like it was a piece of junk. "I saw you standing on the rooftop garden yesterday, though it did take me a whole two hours to work out precisely where-" he broke off, suddenly realising what she was trying to do. Feeling his blood boil at that thought, he emitted a roar and lunged at her.

'Oh, deary me. I've made him angrier,' she lamented, expertly leaping back from his hands. Although Akemi was able to dodge his attacks with complete ease, months of neglecting Karate training meant that her reflex and techniques were sloppier. "Please! We can settle this with words!" she pleaded, side-stepping the bench as he tried to pounce on her. 'Why am I trying to talk sense into him!?' she frantically glanced around.

Ah! An opening!

Before she could make a dash for freedom, Takeda appeared out of nowhere and threw his arms out to block the only exit.

"Not a chance!" he hissed, lashing out again. He made to grab her wrist but missed, nearly tripping over the bench. Flustered and enraged by all the failed attempts, he emitted another roar and threw a fist.

Akemi blocked it with a swift kick before his fist could make contact with her stomach, shocking him momentarily before he continued the onslaught with renewed fervour, all the time muttering curses which were getting more and more revolting to her ears each time he opened his mouth.

"…just a girl-"

Her gaze sharpened.

"Don't think I'm easy pick just because I am a girl!" she retorted hotly, blocking a kick that was aiming for her head. In a flurry of movement, she dropped to the floor on all fours and swept her leg under his, sending him collapsing onto his side with a grunt.

A thunderous crash startled Akemi for a moment until she realised it was only the bench. Most likely, it was accidentally knocked onto its back by her.

'Oops. I hope Yukimura-san isn't emotionally attached to the bench.'

She regarded the mess before her with a grimace. There were a few loose pages from the newspaper and several of her brownies scattered across the grass. Never mind the newspaper, her efforts in making those brownies were now wasted.

Suddenly, something hard smashed into her back, knocking the breath out of her lungs.

Tears immediately welled up in her eyes, clouding her visions as she felt fingers curling around her throat.

Akemi fought against the choking hold even as she was lifted off the ground; her feet dangling a few inches from the ground.

A glint of something metal from the corner of her eyes caught her attention.

At Takeda's feet was a long metal pipe.

"Y-y-you c-c-c-c-coward!" she managed to spat, glaring menacingly at him. She clawed at his hands. But either his pain threshold was extremely low or the overwhelming derangement clear from his eyes was dulling the pain, for he didn't bat an eye as he carried her over to the railings.

He sneered sinisterly and tightened his grip around her neck, causing her to wheeze in agony

Her fingernails had stopped trying to form gorges down his hands then. It felt like someone had set fire to her lungs and heart as she strained to breathe.

He snickered darkly, clearly enjoying watching her struggle. "If I am a coward, then I wouldn't have risked my life by going back to the tennis courts with those worms lingering around. Frankly, I was so disappointed with myself when I missed my target twice."

Akemi stiffened in shock.

"Th-that was you?" she rasped. "You were the one who threw that rubble…" Through the sound of blood pounding in her ears, Akemi might have heard a scream, but there's a more pressing matter right before her. "And you were there - back when the first years and I were looking for the tennis balls. You intended to let me fall off that tree and make it look like an accident. Didn't you?"

He threw his head back and laughed hysterically, giving her a full view of his neck.

Her eyes roamed to his chin. An idea suddenly hit her. Taking the brief moment of distraction, she kicked her feet experimentally in the air, formulating a plan as she did so.

'Please! Let this work!'

XXX

The sun was being ruthless to the freshman as he cooled off with a water bottle. But the heat was not enough to wipe off that large grin from his face. The same could be said for his three teammates.

They and the rest of the class were waiting with bated breath as their PE teacher, who had the bulk and hulk of a rugby player (well, he did play for his old university's team), flicked through the papers on his clipboard.

"Congratulations Team Kirihara," the PE teacher finally said. His students leaned in closer. "Not only you lads have finished first, you've broken the record for the 4 x 100 relay race that was previously held by class 1-C by…" He glanced at the stop watch, inwardly steeling himself for the reaction. "…0.3 seconds."

His eardrums were nearly blown off by the cheers from his students.

Kirihara rubbed the back of his head with a sheepish laugh, uttering thanks to his classmates who immediately crowded around his team as they were showered with pats on the backs and shoulders. His ears perked up when one of his team mates piped up.

"Neh, what's going up there?" he asked, lifting a finger to point at something above and behind the crowd.

Curious, Kirihara shifted his gaze to where his team mate was pointing at. He squinted at the two small figures on the rooftop garden, feeling a sense of foreboding beginning to make his way down his spine.

A few of his classmates turned around as well, realising two of the record breakers' attentions were elsewhere.

A pair of green eyes widened in alarm. "Isn't that?" Kirihara gasped in horror.

Without a second thought, he wheeled around and, ignoring the shouts from his PE teacher, ran towards the school building with his heart beating rapidly against his chest. 'I hope I can make it in time!'

XXX

The laughter died in his throat when a pair of hands grasped his wrists. The second year raised an eyebrow at Akemi, who stared back at him through cold eyes.

"Do you know?" she began in a low whisper. Though her voice was calm, her heart was beating uncomfortably against her chest. She would need to make this quick. "There is a type of people who I despise with every fibre in my body." She tightened the grip on his wrists, feeling no remorse when her assailant yelped in pain. "Bullies like you!" she exclaimed.

Using the wrist as some sort of pivot, she swung her legs back then forth, tucked her legs together over her chest, and building on the momentum, did a back flip through the gap between his arms, yanking them off her neck as she did so. The sole of her shoes struck Takeda on his chin, sending him soaring backwards and collapsing back onto the ground with a satisfying crash.

Curious of where he had landed, Akemi raised briefly her eyes off her landing spot as she descended through the air.

And, that's when things started to go wrong.

The moment her feet touched the railing, one of her feet accidentally caught the other. Thrown off balance, all she could do was flail her arms hopelessly in the air as she struggled to keep her feet on solid ground.

But, the toes of her shoes were barely touching the edge of railing and her back was arching perilously over nothingness.

Time seemed to slow. It was a strange and almost surreal sensation. Her mind was conscious of the fact that she was falling to her death. Yet, here she was, looking as though someone had pressed the pause button. Her soft brown eyes wide with the shock, reflected the blue and white abyss above, and her arms were stretched out before her in a feeble attempt to catch something…anything.

A shrill scream that seemingly came from another world tore through the air, snapping her out of the trance. At the same moment, as if someone had pressed the play button, she suddenly became all too aware of the sky that was swiftly drifting away from her grasps.

Two pairs of hands shout out from nowhere and grabbed her arms.

"Oh, no you don't!" the voice of Marui exclaimed from her left. "Altogether now, Jackal!"

"Osu!" his double partners responded from the other side.

Biting back a scream, Akemi clenched her eyes shut as she felt her body propelling forwards. For a heart stopping moment, the grips on her arms vanished, sending her free flying through the air until she collided with something solid, but soft.

Before succumbing to the darkness, the subconscious part of her mind remembered the feeling of being wrapped in a tight embrace by a pair of strong (and not to mention, muscular) arms.

XXX

"Nice catch, buchou!" Kirihara cheered, punching the air in celebration.

"Th-thanks, Akaya-kun," Yukimura chuckled nervously from his spot on the ground. A couple of missteps, and he would have to bid farewell to an eye. That sharp corner of the bench's leg was too close for comfort.

Fully aware of the limp body in his arms, he slowly heaved his back off the ground to sit up. Feeling her head lolled onto his shoulder, he glanced down at the girl in his arms.

"Ahhh! Akemi-chan! Don't die!" Marui wailed, falling onto his knees the unconscious form. "I'm so sorry! If we had held onto -!"

"She fainted, but well and alive, Bunta," Jackal sighed in exasperation, though his eyes only showed relief. He patted the redhead on his shoulder in an attempt to calm him down.

"He's right," Yukimura added helpfully, loosening his arms around Akemi, so that they could have a full view of her face. But by doing so, the red marks around her neck were exposed. Something akin to cold fury fleetingly flashed through his eyes at the grotesque sight. Judging by the lack of response, only he had noticed it. He plastered a grin on his face. "Look, she's breathing isn't she?"

Marui bobbed his head.

"Good," the captain said appreciatively; the smile returning to his eyes once more. In a fluid movement, he looped an arm around the back of her legs and stood. Though he remained careful not to drop his load certain his head would have a lot of answering to should that happen as he carried her over to where the rest of the regulars were crowding around the twitching form of their ex-member.

Niou was poking his head with a stick, not bothering if he was scarring his face. For once, his best friend did not admonish him.

Meanwhile, the Data Master was engrossed in examining the imprint of a pair of shoes on Takeda's chin with great interest.

Sanada snapped his eyes up at the sound of approaching footsteps. "How is she?" he asked, restlessly.

Yukimura paused in his steps to give him a reassuring smile. "Fine; just out cold." The vice-captain heaved a sigh of relief. "But, I suggest taking her straight to the nurse's office," he added with a serious tone, gesturing towards her face which was contorted in pain, and then to her neck. "I have an inkling her neck wasn't the only place Takeda had inflicted damage on."

"That will be the case without a doubt," Yanagi stated in a calm voice, holding up a metal pipe in his hand. "You'll need to shift your arm a bit lower, Seiichi," he instructed after doing a quick deduction.

Niou and Yagyuu scurried away as soon at the murderous intent emanating from Sanada.

The vice-captain swooped down, grabbed a fistful of Takeda's blazer, and proceeded to drag him across the grass. He paused before the bush to peer over his shoulder. "Marui! Jackal! Akaya!" The aforementioned regulars jerked at their names. "Come with me to the principal's office! I need witnesses," he added the latter with a low and menacing growl.

"UNDERSTOOD!" The Trio chorused with a salute before running after their vice-captain.

XXX

(An hour and a half later…)

They had a glimpse of an unforgiving Mr Takeda hauling his son away by the ear, with Mrs Takeda trailing a few steps behind them, her expression stony, before the door was shut.

The morbid atmosphere, since the arrival of the police and Takeda's parents, diffused straightaway. There were a few slumped shoulders, and sighs of relief echoed throughout the room.

Principal Yoshizawa Tsutomu cleared his throat, prompting the other occupants in his office to turn their attentions to him. "Well, that settles everything then," he exhaled wearily. "Unless there's something any of you want to say?" he probed, peering over his interlaced fingers at the students.

There, lining up along the wall, were the three infamous tennis regulars, better known collectively as the Three Monsters, who had brought so much pride and fame to Rikkai for the past few years.

The Principal had earlier requested Yukimura, Sanada and Yanagi to remain behind after dismissing the other regulars back to their respective classes, and the police left with their full reports on the incident recorded down. The three had sidled to one corner and kept to themselves when Takeda's parents apologised profusely to Akemi's parents for their son's inexcusable behaviour, pledging to keep a very close watch on their child.

Sanada tensed, causing the muscles on his upper arms to bulge. He would gladly lend a hand if need be.

"Umm…if I may," Mrs Noda piped up. "I hope you won't mind hearing this again, Principal Yoshizawa. This is about Akemi's past life back in Britain."

The principal was silent for a few seconds, but alas, nodded in understanding and motioned her to continue with a wave of his hand. As Mrs Noda began to spoke, he grabbed a pen and paper, and proceeded to draft an official letter for Takeda's dismissal from his school.

"I'm not sure if Akemi have mentioned to you boys that she's a black belt in Karate?" Mrs Noda asked.

They nodded; she more or less demonstrated it a couple of times before (three in Sanada's case).

"Do you know why she took up Karate in the first place?" When they shook their heads, Mrs Noda sighed in exasperation. "I thought so," she scowled. "That child –still likes to keep secrets even 'til this day." At the puzzled looks, she said, "If you hadn't brought her home and told me about the mugging incident-" The principal paused in mid-writing and looked up sharply from the draft; that was one piece of information he had not heard. "-the likelihood we would ever hear about it from Akemi would be zero."

"What do you mean, Noda-basan?" Yukimura politely enquired.

"She lied about that stray tennis ball didn't she?" When he told her about the rubble incident, livid didn't quite cover how she'd felt.

"Perhaps we should start from the beginning," Mr Noda interjected smoothly, resting his hand on his wife's shoulder. When Mrs Noda eventually yielded to his silent plea, he smiled fleetingly in gratitude before turning his eyes to the three boys before him.

Seeing where this was going, the Principal returned to writing his draft.

"Throughout her life back in Scotland, Akemi grew up relatively alone." The reactions from the students were predictable. He vented a sigh, and in a more solemn voice, he said, "My wife and I are partly to be blamed for that. We were hardly at home due to work. Before moving into to the city centre, we used to live in the outskirts where the community is smaller…"

The Three Monsters remained in complete silence as Mr Noda described to them how, at a very young age, Akemi was extremely shy, and despite the teachers' and their encouragements, she would hardly make any attempts to socialise with the kids from her old primary school, or join any clubs and activities, even if her life would depend on it.

"…in the later years, she grew fond of books –something a few kids thought was laughable," Mr Noda scoffed in derision. He was delighted his daughter picked up the habit at such a young age. In fact, he showered her with books on the whim, until baking took over most of her past time. "You can imagine all the ridicules she got from them. They called her a 'loner', a 'bookworm' – but our Akemi was never troubled by those nicknames…" he trailed off, growing more sombre. "…that was until she kept coming home with various forms of injuries. 'We were only playing rough, papa,' she would say. Of course, we suspected otherwise, considering her shyness and all." Mr Noda sighed. "One of the things Akemi dislike above all else is worrying others."

Something in their minds clicked at that statement. That clearly explained yesterday's outburst.

"She's quite mature in that sense," Mr Noda chuckled, glumly. "But it's an irritating trait of hers. Once, she appeared at the doorstep of an elderly couple, whom Akemi frequently visited, covered from head to toe in glorious mud. She was quite adamant that she'd tripped over a tree's root on the way to their farm whilst she had her nose stuck in a book. But we knew it wasn't that simple; a neighbour saw a kid pushed her into a muddy pool."

He rubbed his chin pensively. "Then the unexpected happened. She was about eight when, on our way back home from a trip in the Scottish Highlands, she suddenly expressed a strong desire to learn Karate. We knew where she was going with this, so enrolled her into a local dojo in the city centre."

"I was opposed to the idea at first though," Mrs Noda added, crossly. "But agreed in hopes joining a dojo would help her open up to people more when she had no choice but to interact with the other practitioners. I was not entirely wrong, but I do wish it was more than just her senpai," she added, flatly.

"Poor Linda, they used to call Akemi her shadow because she was much revered by our girl," Mr Noda chortled. Then at the blank expressions on their faces, he calmed down enough to say, "Linda's a local. At that time, she was studying for her masters at the same university I worked at. A bit of a feminist, she helped Akemi build confidence throughout her years at the dojo, though she was disappointed every time she refused to participate in tournaments –especially their sensei. He had high hopes for her when she started doing very well in lessons and rose through the ranks."

Sanada could completely understand her sensei's sentiments.

"Anyways, the bullies stopped bothering her altogether a year and a half later after that trip. But the years of torment also left her distrustful of strangers. It became a problem when we moved to the city for her secondary education. She was alienated by her classmates and teachers found her very difficult to deal with.

The plus side of living in a bustling city though, made her less wary of people. Unfortunately the communication problem in school remained. In the end, we pulled her out at the end of her second year of Junior High and she was home schooled from then on until we came here.

Considering her inquisitive nature and an entirely different culture, tradition and people, we took a huge gamble to move back to Japan and enrolled her at Rikkai. Of course, we did ask for her opinion before we did that. 'Yes, I'd love to study in a proper school,' she said. When I pressed for a reason, she replied, 'Like you papa, I have my dreams and aspirations.' We were happy when she told us that, but worried the same problem will arise again."

"Yet, look at her now -" a weak smile graced Mrs Noda tired features. She studied each of the young faces before her. "-surrounded by such fine group of people, who not only voluntarily became her friends, but cared so much for her wellbeing." Her eyelids fluttered shut as a single tear rolled down her cheek. A warm arm wrapped around her shoulders in a comforting hug. She opened her eyes; the corner of her lips twisting upwards into a grin.

"For that, we thank you so much from the bottom of our hearts."

XXX

As she drifted on and off, a small part of her subconscious was aware of the hushed whispers that followed her, of someone gently laying her down on a soft bed that lacked the previous warmth, and lastly, of a slightly callused hand brushing away the strands of hair from her face, and its owner whispering 'rest well' into her ear before she eventually surrendered to sleep.

She didn't know how much time had passed since, when her eyelids fluttered open on their own accord, revealing a pair of soft brown eyes that were slowly filled with a mixture of confusion and shock.

She rubbed her eyes furiously, and blinked several times at the two figures hovering over her. A frown appeared on her forehead as she glanced from her parents to the whitewash ceiling that looked remarkably familiar to her.

The moment Mrs Noda noticed Akemi had woken up, she wasn't able to control her emotions, and threw her arms around her precious daughter in a bear hug.

"Y-you silly girl!" her mother scolded, sobbing into the pillow and muffling the rest of her words.

"How's our fighter today?" Mr Noda grinned fondly at her, taking the opportunity to tousle his daughter's hair.

"J-just dandy," Akemi gasped. "A-a little h-help here, please?" she pleaded, gesturing at her mother with her head. "It r-really hurts."

Chuckling, Mr Noda walked over to his wife's side and placed his hand on the small of her back, muttering a few comforting words.

Eventually, Mrs Noda was forced to step away when a matronly nurse briskly marched over, and (to be put it gently) shooed both the parents away so that she could check up on her patient.

Akemi resisted the urge to shake her head at her mother's overreaction as the nurse pulled down the skin below her eye with one thumb, and shone a light from her metallic pink torch pen.

As the nurse shifted her attention to the other eye, there was a nagging suspicion growing inside her head. She had a feeling they'd met before.

"Am I still at Rikkai?" she asked the nurse, unable to keep the curiosity at bay.

The light vanished with a click.

Akemi blinked several times to get rid of the dancing spots.

The nurse nodded curtly in affirmation. Placing the torch pen in the breast pocket of her white lab coat, she pulled out a ballpoint pen and a clipboard from underneath her shoulder. "The nurse's office, to be precise." She paused in mid-scribbling to peer over her glasses at Akemi with her sharp blue eyes. "You do remember who I am."

It wasn't a question.

"O-of course," Akemi chuckled nervously, scratching the side of her face. 'We only met once and she still remembers me. I'm not sure if I should be relieved at all,' she pondered, recalling the day she was sternly reprimanded by the nurse before her for starving herself. In her defence, she had slept through the entire lunch period. It wasn't as if it was done on purpose, and she had no intention of letting that happen again if she could help it after that embarrassing outburst in front of her whole class (A/N refer back to chapter 2).

Mrs Noda scowled at the brisk exchange. She was about to open her mouth to speak but paused before the words could form in her mouth after noticing her husband shaking his head in a subtle manner.

'Not now,' he was telling her.

Sighing inwardly, she reluctantly complied with his request.

"Umm…why am I here? Why are you here for that matter?" Akemi added the latter with her head titled to the side at her parents. She made to sit up, but no sooner had she tried to prop her elbows on the bed, she collapsed back onto the pillow with a weak cry, feeling as though her back was suddenly set on fire.

"Don't move around too much," chided the nurse, pausing in mid-examining her patient's neck to glare at her. "That bruise on your back isn't going to heal in a heartbeat." She crouched down and turned the crank that was attached to the side of the hospital bed until the top half of the mattress was raised to a level such that Akemi was in a comfortable sitting position.

"Wh-what bruise?" she rasped, reclining her head deeper into the pillow.

"You…don't remember?" prodded Mr Noda, calmly. His hands were firmly holding back his distraught wife when she was this close to knocking the good nurse aside to get to their daughter.

Sensing the questioning look, the nurse stood back up and turned to face him. "There's no visible sign to say she has suffered a blow to the head. Does your head hurt at all, Akemi-san?" she glanced at her patient.

Said person experimentally pressed a hand around her head. "Nope…" she trailed off, shifting her gaze to the opened window beside her bed.

Sighing in relief, Mr Noda dragged a couple of chairs over to the bedside, and helped Mrs Noda onto one before seating himself.

The nurse nodded, satisfied with her observation and the current state of her patient, she left the family alone and returned to her desk. Setting the clipboard down on the wooden surface, she wheeled out her chair and sat down. No sooner had she done that, she snapped her head up, narrowing her eyes disapprovingly at the faint noise from behind the closed door. After a brief moment of deliberation, the nurse rolled her eyes in exasperation and turned her attention to the clipboard.

Meanwhile back at the hospital bed, the events at the rooftop garden were slowly working its way back to her as she stared out the window.

Biting down on her lip, she gingerly felt the back of her shoulders where Takeda had hit her with that metal pipe, wondering for how long she would have to endure the soreness (and not to mention bruise). She made a mental note to ask the nurse later as she folded her hands over one another on her lap.

The longer she stared unblinkingly at the sky, the more flashbacks she was getting.

She closed her eyes, at that moment she felt the rush of wind even though it was all in her mind, and then there was the picturesque sky. 'Just like this one…' Akemi noted after opening her eyes. '…except it was lighter then.'

Curious, she briefly glanced over at the wall clock on the opposite side of the room. She quickly turned back to the window; her eyes wide in shock. 'I was out cold for three whole hours?'

After recovering from the shock a few seconds later, she returned to the task of recollecting her thoughts.

It started with the moment when she lost her footing on top of the railing, and (she had come to realised) nearly falling to her death. If Marui and Jackal had not been quick enough, she would have…

She clasped her hands, squeezing them in an effort to stop the shaking at the mere thought of it….of remembering the hopelessness numbing her whole body.

'Is this what near-death experience means?' she shuddered, even though the air-conditioner was not on. She sighed shakily, banishing away those thoughts with a few shakes of her head. 'I'm alive. I may need someone to carry my bag for a while, but Noda Akemi is alive, and that's what matters,' she nodded in determination.

Mr and (a-now-calmed-down) Mrs Noda, who had remained silent as they observed their daughter's body language, inwardly sighed in relief at the positive change. The patriarch was holding his wife's hand in a comforting gesture, something which she was grateful for.

They probably should have done the same for Akemi, who was now conversing animatedly with her mother (more like bombarding her with questions), but thought best to leave her alone with her thoughts.

Intervening had never worked on their headstrong daughter.

'At least when we are the ones doing the 'intervening',' Mr Noda smirked. The opposite seemed to have an effect if her tennis friends were involved.

"Alright, that's it!" the voice of the nurse suddenly snapped, startling the Noda family when she slammed her hands on the writing desk. She kicked the chair back as she stood up. "Enough is enough!"

They looked at her in bewilderment with the same question going through their heads. 'Is it us?'

But the nurse's narrowed eyes were not on them. Instead, she marched around her desk to stand beside the doorframe where the hinges were, and raised her hand to twist the doorknob. "Don't you kids have more important things to do than eavesdropping?" she yanked the door towards her.

With cries of surprise, a barrage of bodies fell through the door and onto the tiled floor in a messy pile at the nurse's feet.

Akemi gaped unashamedly at Marui, Jackal and Kirihara as they struggled to disentangle themselves from one another. She closed her mouth and shifted her gaze behind the Troublesome Trio.

A few more familiar faces poked their heads in with a mixture of exasperation and amusement at their fellow colleagues. Niou whistled appreciatively at the mess.

"If you want to visit," the nurse started, glaring down at the three disapprovingly and then at the students at the door. "I'm afraid you'll have to wait. We can't have too many visitors in at once. This isn't a large ward."

"That's okay, Sakamoto-san," Mr Noda said, rising from his seat with Mrs Noda soon followed his movements. "We're thinking of leaving soon anyway. I need to run back to the university. "

Mrs Noda nodded in agreement and turned to give her daughter a quick peck on the head. "Behave yourself, understood?" she cautioned.

"Yes, mum," she sighed in exasperation, but smiled in farewell as her parents made their way towards the door.

"GEROFFME, PEHSENS!" a muffled voice from underneath the human pile demanded.

Mr and Mrs Noda paused beside the doorway, and stared down at the wobbling mound that seemed to be growing higher and higher. Perplexed, the nurse stepped away from them.

A hand slipped out from under the first year's chin, startling everyone and scaring Kirihara senseless. After a couple of attempts, it managed to find the side of a now-petrified Kirihara's face, which was as white as sheet, and gave his head a hard push.

With a grunt, a very familiar purple head poked out from within the tangle of limbs.

Akemi felt her eyes widened in disbelief at the seemingly sudden apparition of the sole heir to one of the world's most exclusive company, who was currently elbowing his way out from his rather unfortunate spot at the bottom of the pile, careful not to damage the bouquet of white roses he was holding close to his chest with his free arm, while muttering insults at the three Rikkai students pining him down.

Oh the…

"-indignity!" he barked, nearly gasping in the effort. "Ore-sama -!"

"Keigo-san?"

Akemi twisted her neck to get a good look at him. Yet, she was uncertain if the boy on the floor was real, or perhaps she did knock her head on something during the fall. After all, Akemi never expected him to be here at her school of all places.

For a brief moment, his mouth was wide opened in the middle of forming another insult when he froze at the sound of her voice.

Then, with almost inhumane strength, he heaved the entire mass of tennis regulars off his body as if he had not spent a dubious excruciating amount of time wrestling with the many limbs.

"You!" Atobe shouted, wriggling to his freedom.

Akemi bit back a cry when he suddenly reappeared right before her, slamming his fists, one of which was clutching the bouquet, down beside her head.

Wide brown eyes stared into the dark blue eyes that were narrowed in anger. Their noses were nearly touching when he leaned in. A fact she was well aware of.

"Is there a limit to your stupidity!?" he demanded hotly, fighting the urge to shake some sense back into her. "You could have died, idiot!"

She scowled darkly at the words 'stupidity' and 'idiot'.

"I'm not dead am I!?" she swiftly retorted.

At the doorway, Mr and Mrs Noda exchanged glances, and as though there were messages passed during that fleeting moment, they bade farewell to the unimpressed nurse and turned on their heels.

There were murmurs of greeting as those who stood beside the door stepped back to allow Akemi's parents through.

As he swept a glance around the corridor, Mr Noda's gaze lingered on the Three Monsters, who nodded solemnly in unison. With a last grin, he waved his daughter's friends goodbye before guiding his wife down the passageway.

"I'm glad we made the right decision to move back to Japan," sighed Mrs Noda as they descended the stairs. "Who knows if Akemi would completely break out from her shell if we'd stayed in Scotland for the rest of our lives."

"She eventually will. I'm sure of that," Mr Noda put in, confidently. "Though it'd most likely take decades for that to happen," he chuckled gravely. "But you're right. I'm just happy her friends are a good bunch – a bit odd, but they're alright in my books."

His eyes were glazed over, recalling back to the conversation back at the principal's office…

"We'd like to ask a favour from the three of you."

The Three Monsters briefly glanced at each other then back at Mr Noda. Yukimura, being the buchou, nodded for him to continue.

"Please do not - and I mean, do not - ever let her or anyone know we've told you about her past." He scratched the back of his head, looking slightly guilty as he did. "Akemi will most likely stop talking to us, but I'm more concerned she might break your arms and legs over it too. She's quite sensitive about it," he added the latter as an afterthought. He waved his hand. "Well, as long as you lot keep this to yourselves, no harm will befall on you."

A ghost of a grimace crossed his features. "Th-thanks for the advice, ojisan," Yukimura chuckled sheepishly. "We will keep that mind."

Mrs Noda giggled out of the blue, snapping him out of his thoughts. "Have you noticed the look in the young Atobe boy's eyes?" At the blank look from her husband, she rolled her eyes in exasperation. "Oh, never mind."

XXX

After being declared fit by Nurse Sakamoto, it was already way past the time since club activities started.

Clutching the bouquet to her chest, Akemi walked alongside Sanada, Yukimura and Yanagi in a comfortable pace.

Up ahead, noises of ongoing matches drifted from the tennis courts.

The vice-captain had earlier ordered Niou, Yagyuu, Marui, Jackal and a recovered Kirihara to supervise the warm-up exercises while they waited for Akemi to sign a couple of medical paperwork.

She glanced down at the white roses in her arms, feeling a smile forming on her lips.

Apparently, the Hyotei captain was notified of this incident by one of the school's security guards, who incidentally worked for his father's company, while he was holding a meeting with the rest of the student council members.

'Imagine the looks on their faces when he ran out of the door,' she remarked, dryly. She gripped her chin in a pensive manner. 'I wonder where did his helicopter land. I don't remember seeing a helipad around here. Well, at least not in the high school part of Rikkai,' she corrected, brushing one of the white roses with her hand.

Atobe had been horrified (though that might have been an understatement) when he realised some of the petals and stalks were bent out of shape, most likely from the crush. But Akemi waved it away with a sincere grin, saying it was the thoughts that mattered.

After exasperatingly promising him for the umpteenth time she would not do anything 'stupid' again, Atobe had taken out a strange device from his pocket, pressed a button, climbed up the ward's window ledge (to the shock of everyone, especially the nurse) where a rope ladder rolled into existence as though it had been waiting outside for him, and jumped out into the opened air with one hand grasping for the ladder before being hoisted away as his helicopter departed for his school.

'The way he did…I'm not surprised he has done it countless times before,' she rolled her eyes in exasperation, though they were filled with mirth as she smothered a giggle behind a hand.

A few paces behind her, the Three Monsters shared amused looks between themselves, having noticed it.

The moment the four of them stepped into the courts, they were met with showers of confetti, banners bearing Akemi's name, and cheers that startled them to a halt.

"Aneki! Welcome back!"

"We're glad you're okay, aneki!"

"Seeing you walking it's a relief, aneki!"

"ANEKI!"

"ANEKI!"

There was only one person in the sea of black and yellow that fitted the term, 'aneki'.

Looking very much like a deer caught in the headlights, Akemi cautiously backed away from the fifty something members of the boy's tennis club, nearly stepping on Yukimura's left foot in the process if the captain had not caught her by the upper arms.

He didn't break the promise, so he would pretty much prefer his feet in one piece.

"Hmmm…the news spread quicker than I thought," Yanagi observed, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Although, considering the number of students in Akaya's class, I'm not surprised," he shrugged.

"WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS!?" Sanada barked, effectively silencing everyone with his foghorn voice. "WHY DON'T I SEE ANY MATCHES!? TARUNDORU!"

"Eh? B-but, didn't buchou and fukubuchou wanted us to prepare a surprise party for Akemi-senpai to celebrate senpai's discharge from the nurse's office?" Urayama ended up squeaking words out under the cold, hard stare of the aforementioned fukubuchou.

"Where are the other regulars?" Yanagi asked, glancing around them. He had a hunch a certain silver-head had something to do with this whole get up.

"In the locker room," Urayama replied, pointing at said building not far behind the gathered crowd.

Was it just her, or did Akemi hear screams and yells coming from one of the opened windows?

One of his eyebrows twitched violently at that.

"Enlighten us," Sanada growled. "Why?"

"W-we don't know! After telling us about the surprise party, Niou-senpai disappeared. But we did see Akaya-san, and the other senpais heading to the clubroom not long after."

There was a pause, as Sanada processed the information.

At the crack of his knuckles, everyone, except the three he arrived with, dropped everything they have in their hands and scampered far away from the menacing aura as much as possible.

The Data Master caught the bags belonging to both Akemi and Sanada when the latter threw them his way.

"Be right back," Sanada grunted and started towards the locker room; his pace, slow and deliberate.

The door burst opened as all five of the regulars, including Sanada's target, spilled out from the building.

One look and Marui knew reasoning with the vice-captain was futile.

"RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!" the redhead screamed shrilly.

Yukimura sighed. "At this rate, we will never get through today's training menu before the sun goes down."

"Ummm…you can let go of me now, Yukimura-san," Akemi said in a flat voice. There was no other polite way to ask the captain to remove his hands from her arms. There was something oddly familiar about that pair of roughened hands before he slipped them away with an apology, but shook it off as she followed Yukimura around as he began to reorganise matches.

Yanagi watched the two in a contemplative silence with one raised eyebrow. After a moment of deliberation, he started after them, the corner of his lips twitched up into a knowing smirk.

'Interesting.'

References:

*For Yukimura's picture, I was thinking of something similar to the album cover art of his character song, 'Shinjitsu'.

*Aneki = Big sister

So how was it? Finally, Atobe makes a reappearance! And oh my, what did Yanagi find that was interesting? :D

I hope it isn't very confusing, especially with Akemi's past, which took me a really long time to actually write it down. But if it is, don't hesitate to ask me! I'm more than happy to reply ;) This is just one-side story of her past, but what about from Akemi's perspective?