"What's wrong, Genichirou? I've never seen you look so morose, ever" Yukimura sat down next to Yanagi in the school courtyard.
The sky was clear and the birds were chirping. Cherry blossoms were flying through the air sometimes landing on the roof. Yukimura unwrapped his bento, his mouth watering at the sight of his mother's rice balls.
"She rejected me" Sanada replied, looking up at Yukimura.
"Who? Rika-chan?" Yukimura asked.
"Who else would Sanada have feelings for, Seiichi" Yanagi said sarcastically.
"Rika-chan rejected you? Why? Did she give a reason?" Yukimura was rather surprised to say the least.
"She just said that we wouldn't be able to work out and she'd rather let me know now than later when it would be damaging" Sanada replied.
"You have to give her credit to owning up to it now. You would have been devastated if she told you later and you were in too deep" Yanagi pointed out.
"I thought she really liked you, Gen. I'm sorry" Yukimura said.
"You don't need to apologise for anything. I just wish she would have given me the reason why she rejected me" Sanada said.
"She must have her own reasons, Genichirou. No need to linger on it for long" Yanagi said.
Yukimura nodded and then looked down at his food. His appetite had vanished after hearing the news. He stood and excused himself to go to the toilet. As he walked along the hallways by himself, he heard a sweet laugh from one of the classrooms. He looked up and smiled. It was Rika-chan's classroom. He turned to peek inside and spotted Rika with her best friend Chiharu.
Yukimura examined them from the slightly open doorway. Chiharu had never really been much of a traditional Japanese beauty like the way Rika was. Chiharu had short brown hair with large brown eyes. She was tall and athletic, the star of the school's swimming team. Chiharu gestured wildly as she spoke to Rika which made Rika laugh even more.
I should leave them alone, Yukimura mused and then turned to return to the courtyard and finish eating his bento.
"I'll see you tomorrow then, Chiharu-chan!" Rika called out, waving wildly.
"Bye Rika-chan!" Chiharu ran out the gates and got on the bus.
"It seems like you're happy today" Yukimura said as he approached Rika, dressed in his school uniform.
"Both of us passed our History tests. I thought I would fail but it seems that tutoring Akaya has made me a genius" Rika replied, smiling up at him.
"I need to catch the next bus to Fudoumine Middle School" Yukimura said.
"Isn't there tennis practice in a few minutes?" Rika asked.
"I was excused because I wanted to request for Fudoumine to have a practice match with us" Yukimura replied.
"Oh. Have fun then"
"Would you like to come?"
"If you don't mind, Yukimura senpai"
"I don't mind at all, Rika-chan. It's nice to get a change of scenery once in a while" Yukimura said.
They boarded the bus to Fudoumine. Rika knew that Fudoumine was a rather unknown school when it came to the tennis circuit but at this moment of Nationals just beginning they were said to be a rather formidable opponent despite being unseeded. Yukimura hummed to himself before spotting an empty seat on the bus. He gestured to Rika who took the seat.
They got off a street away from Fudoumine and walked towards the school. It looked like a simple school but Rika could see it was in need of a paint job. The windows on the top floor were broken and the grass needed mowing. Yukimura took Rika's hand and led her along the back of the school to the tennis courts.
"Have you been here before?" Rika asked quietly.
"I came here when I was picking schools. I was dead set on Rikkai but my parents wanted to spread my horizons so I could make a good decision" Yukimura replied.
Rika perked up when she noticed the Fudoumine tennis team hard at work. There were only seven players but she had to admit that they were skilled. Not as skilled as Rikkai players but good enough to make it to Nationals. She hung back while Yukimura approached the black haired, dark eyed captain.
She distracted herself by watching the rest of the players but then noticed a few female tennis players by the fence. One girl in particular caught her attention. Her short brown hair and large grey eyes were beautiful. She was dressed in a female tennis uniform which meant she was athletic as well.
"Rika-chan, come here" Yukimura beckoned her and Rika came forward obediently.
"This is the captain, Tachibana Kippei. Tachibana-kun, this is Kirihara Rika" Yukimura said.
Tachibana smiled warmly and Rika immediately felt the older brother vibe coming from him. She smiled back at him and bowed to him to show her respect for him.
"Is she the angelic sister of Kirihara Akaya?" a red head asked, wandering over to them.
"Yes, Akaya's my twin brother" Rika replied.
"I'm Kamio Akira, vice captain" The red head said.
"We should conclude practice soon. An-chan has to sleep over at a friend's house today so I'll have to walk her there" Tachibana said.
"Are you sure you can't make it for the practice match?" Yukimura asked.
"I am sorry, Yukimura-kun. We have a week long training camp starting from next week. I apologise for any inconvenience" Tachibana replied.
"We could try asking Hyoutei instead. They'd probably be up for it" Rika suggested to Yukimura.
"Atobe has already informed me of their exams next week and so they won't be able to participate. I suppose we'll have to just continue to practice on our own" Yukimura replied.
"Onii-san!"
Rika could feel a funny feeling bubble in her stomach as the girl with short brown hair and grey eyes came up to them. Her smile was beautiful, lighting up her whole face. Tachibana gave her a one armed hug which made Rika's heart drop. Was this girl Tachibana's girlfriend? No, she had called him 'Onii-san'.
"This is my sister, Tachibana An" Kippei said.
"Nice to meet you" An chirped.
"I'm Yukimura Seiichi and this is Kirihara Rika" Yukimura said.
"Nice to meet you too" Rika said quietly.
"I absolutely love your hair. It's so thick and curly" An said and Rika blushed in embarrassment.
"Thank you" Rika replied with a shy smile.
"Anyways, we should be going. Tennis practice should be concluded by now" Yukimura said. He took Rika's hand to lead her out, an action that was noted by everyone.
"Is she Yukimura's girlfriend?" Kamio asked curiously.
"She's nice but really shy" An commented.
"The polar opposite to Kirihara Akaya" Tachibana said.
"She's rather interesting. I can't wait to get to know her better" An said.
"An-chan, remember that you can't force someone to be friends with you" Tachibana said.
"Don't worry, Onii-san. I just think that she's really adorable and cute. We could go on shopping trips"
"Just don't go overboard, okay?" Tachibana patted her head.
"Yes"
Thank you to everyone who reviewed or favorited this story. It's made my cousin and I really happy.
Onyxinlife.
