AN: hello i'm glad everyone liked the chapter even though it was kind of gross (periods are awful and icky but thats life). i have to apologize to everyone because there seemed to be a misunderstanding. i LOVE writing hot intense make out scenes with tsubasa and sanae, i just didnt like the way wrote it i wanted more touching and intimacy if you know what i mean (i wrote them a smut fanfiction for gods sake) so yeah, i very much like doing them, just not the way i showed it.

Thao Nhi- yes that was chapter i was talking about! im also jealous that sanae has a boyfriend like tsubasa. everyone needs someone like him in there life. technically this isnt a story for kids, since as you see i drop swear words here and there and the heavy sensual scenes are boom! Ayame having the wrong timing will be a running gag throughout the story so keep your eyes peeled on when she ruins everything again lol. she should be prepared when people start doing it to her (also thanks for reading Nights Like These. to be honest, im not exactly over 18 yet so dont worry, im worse than you lol)

Hana2- yeah, having them recognize these feelings in their age. its just a little disappointing really that takahashi-sensei didnt explore their relationship more by these years because its a little disappointing that it was only sanae who seemed to be the only one really missing tsubasa. i mean i know tsubasa was busy playing in brazil but i would have loved to know more about his struggles in there and whether or not he thought of japan just as much as japan thought of him, specifically if he missed sanae like she did (although the proposal was cute at the end of WY, it caught me off guard. i have a theory that the reason he proposed really is because he couldnt keep his hands off of her anymore just wanted to make sweet sweet love to our dear anego lol *is shot*)

mimii- hey, thanks for reading! im glad you loved last chapter, and i dont necessarily dislike writing chapters like those (i have a field day when i write make out sessions tbh) i just didnt like the way i wrote it. i think this is the first time you reviewed right? anyway, thanks again for reading and hope you review more!

Guest- oh dear, i hope nothing bad happened to you. as much as i love people reading my stories, please dont get into an accident. that would be awful. yes possessive tsubasa is the shit man, like i could write possessive tsubasa all day. i wanted to portray teenage life as realistic as possible because come on, even if theyre fictional, they have to experience normal things dont they. dont worry, when sanae and tsubasa goes all the way, i assure you ayame's very very far away.

wow, long ass beginning an

yeah i dont own captain tsubasa

Chapter 17: Dates

She pulled her scarf around her neck tighter. Was it just her or was winter arriving earlier and earlier? It wasn't this freezing at this time last year. She just hoped it still wouldn't snow until by December or something. That way she wouldn't freeze her ass off so early in winter. She was never fond of the cold.

"You okay?" she heard Tsubasa ask her from where he walked beside her.

She hide her face behind her scarf and put her hands inside the pockets of her coat. "Just cold," she answered. "I just don't really like freezing. It only makes me want to go bed even more."

He chuckled and grabbed her right hand before shoving both of their hands in his left pocket. "I'll try and keep you warm."

She smiled and walked closer to him, trying to grab of the heat his body was oozing. It was nice thing she had a portable heater she could bring everywhere.

They were walking towards the train station, heading to Yokohama to watch a friendly match between Japan and Spain. She didn't know how he managed to get tickets for an event like this, or how he even managed to afford them, but he refused to tell her. He just asked her one day if she wanted to go with him and watch the game, and knowing her and her huge crush on Kagawa Shinji* (don't worry Tsubasa knows her crush/borderline idolization of the man and was even amused by it), she couldn't refuse. She tried to pay him back for her ticket, but he wouldn't accept her money at all. She asked him why he just wouldn't let her pay him back, but as always he laughed it off and kissed her on the cheek.

"So I'll pick you up at 8 on tomorrow?" she remembered him asking her in the classroom. Class just ended and they were about to go to their own clubs to practice.

She sighed in defeat and gave him a smile while nodding. Immediately, he brightened and grinned widely.

"It's a date then," he exclaimed before giving her a wink and hugged her tightly before letting go, quickly dashing out of the room.

He didn't even let her process what he said! She continued to stare before her and finally blinked. Then, realization hit her just as her face flushed a bright pink.

It was going to be a date. Their first date.

Holy shit.

She remembered walking out of the classroom frantically and searched for her best friend, who was just walking down the hallway, talking fervently with Misaki-kun about something. She didn't know what they were talking about; they were speaking French and Ayame seemed to be very opinionated about it.

But she didn't think about it and sort of rudely pulled her Ayame out of their conversation while saying sorry to the guy that looked very confused.

"Tsubasa just asked me out on a date," she declared a little panicked. "Help me!"

Ayame looked at her in surprise before turning to Misaki-kun and said something to him French. She turned back to face her and dragged her by the arm, out of the school. It was a good thing that the Fall Interhigh was done (which they won by the way. Toho and KitaGaku didn't really participate since like Shikogo thought the tournament was too small for them. Though, she was sure Noriko-chan and Saya-chan would have done everything in order to participate). They could leave easily without any repercussions.

It was a good thing she had a fashion obsessed cousin who made sure she didn't look stupid today. If it wasn't for Ayame, she didn't know how she could have remained calm throughout everything.

She peered up to Tsubasa and smiled to herself. Actually, now that she got over her panic, she was actually pretty excited for today. They might act like they've been dating for years, which they weren't. But having an actual first date made her heart flutter because it made meant that he does notice these little things. Not that she was angry that he never took her out in an official date (okay, their nights in Hikarigaoka Park did not count), but it was nice to know that he cares.

"You look happy," he remarked once they arrived at the station. Her hand was still in his pocket, and she couldn't help but relish in his warmth. It was a good thing that nobody recognized them, him more so, because they didn't really want to be mobbed by people. The beanies they were wearing seemed to have done a good job letting them be unknown.

And to be honest, she was not letting all of his fangirls get too close to him. Her Tsubasa was taken, so they need to back off.

But then again, they weren't really out to the public yet. They didn't want rumors to start flying.

She hummed in agreement, stepping closer to him. "I get to watch Samurai Blue* after all."

He chuckled and squeezed her hand. "Samurai Blue? Don't you mean Kagawa Shinji*?"

She gave him a light glare. "That's not true," she denied with a pout. "I've always supported Samurai Blue! Not just Kagawa Shinji." Then a thoughtful expression made its way to her face. "Although, maybe he is one of the reasons why I'm even more excited. I can't believe Dortmund* let him come back for this friendly."

"Maybe they wanted to impress people? They called Honda Keisuke* back too, as well the overseas players," he replied.

"Really?" she asked in disbelief. "Wow, they're actually putting a lot of effort into this match."

He shrugged nonchalantly, "World Cup season is coming. I think they're doing qualifiers next year so I think they want to make a good impression for the World Cup."

She didn't realize her lips turn into a small frown.

World Cup huh?

She couldn't help but think about their own tournament. Japan never really did manage to do that well in competition like these. Sure Nadeshiko did a great job winning the Women's World Cup three years ago, but even then, nobody really expected them to win. Who's to say that it was just a fluke after all?

Was that what was going to happen to them? Even if they did great in the first round, could they still keep it up?

"Do you think," she found herself saying, "Do you think we really have a chance in Tournament? Our Tournament?"

Tsubasa turned to her, puzzled by her sudden question. He knew they already talked about this, and he remembered what he told her, that they're going to do great in this tournament.

But when he saw her face with that worried look, he figured out why she thought that in the first place. Japan would be lucky enough to get past the Asian Qualifications, and she was thinking that maybe that was what's going to happen to them. He didn't exactly know what was going to happen, but he believed that they're going to do better than just qualifying. They were the best players Japan ever saw after all.

He squeezed her hand in his pocket tightly. "Of course we do," he assured her. "We're the Golden Generation of Japanese Soccer. We don't have a chance, we're going to win this tournament."

She looked up to him, a few strands of her hair falling from her beanie. "But, what if we don't? What if we don't even get past the second round after all?"

"Hey," he started as he let go of her hand and cupped her face with both of his hands. "Those are just what ifs, love. We don't what's going to happen in the future. Maybe we won't be able to get pass the second round, maybe we will. But I know that if we just give it our best, we can take on the world."

He gave her forehead a lingering kiss, before looking down to meet her eyes again. "So, don't lose hope, okay? Those wide open skies might look scary, but I believe that we can be able to soar through them easily."

She stared at him for a few moments, before breaking into a grin and nodding her head. That's more like it.

They turned back to face the platform, waiting for the train to arrive. They held each other's hands tightly and never let go.

He stood in front of the two story building, gulping as it towered over him. He didn't know why he was here. Scratch that, he knew why he was here. He just couldn't understand why he went.

He never intended to meet his mother, not when he saw how happy she was with her new family. And maybe he did resent her for that reason, knowing that she was content with her new life while his father was still trying to put back the pieces of their life together while looking after him. It just wasn't fair.

That's why he went with his dad to France, that he was Misaki Taro, always was and always will be.

But when his half-sister, the sister he saw on the other side of this very same gate years ago, appeared before him after the finals of the Fall Interhigh. He was surprised when she introduced herself to him. He didn't expect that she would be the one to approach him first, that they would come to him first. He was positive that they didn't want anything to do with him and his father. Taro knew he didn't.

But when Yoshiko told him how much their mother misses him, how much she wanted to see him badly, to know how he was doing. Not a day passed by without her thinking about him, her sister told him.

So Yoshiko asked if he would visit them, just one day, for their mother's sake.

He wanted to tell her no. that he didn't want to see the person who abandoned them, his father, him, just because Misaki Ichiro couldn't support her.

"I'll think about it," he found himself answering. Why did he say that? Why, when he vowed to himself that he wouldn't meet her, never will.

He could only remember Yoshiko's relieved grin, before she gave him her number, telling him to call her if he finally made a decision. Taro badly wanted to tell her that he wasn't going, but something in him stopped him, and it frustrated him why his heart just wouldn't let him be.

Yoshiko left him, and he was suddenly alone. He watched her form disappear from his view before he turned around to suddenly find Ayame standing there.

"I didn't mean to hear anything," she told him. "I needed to pee and I had to go and when I got out of the rest rooms you both were there and I didn't want to interrupt and I just, I didn't mean to listen in okay?"

He smiled, amused at her panic and concern over whether she was accidentally being nosy or not. Trust her to be able to make him feel better in such a short amount of time.

"But I think," she bit her lip uncertainly, "I think you should go, visit your mom. I know I don't have any right to say anything, but she's still your parent. She just wants to be close to you. Don't push her away."

He almost felt offended by those words, even if she recognized how rude it was to but in with his affairs, but he couldn't say it, not when her eyes suddenly misted and her voice, her voice dropped so low he was lucky to hear the next part.

"Don't make the same mistake I did."

He didn't know what she meant by that, and he couldn't get an answer from her because she already left him, leaving him in the hallway to think to himself.

It took him a week to make a decision, Yoshiko and Ayame's words in his mind the whole time. He even talked to his dad, and it didn't even really surprised him that he would tell him to go. After all, he was the one who originally wanted him to stay with his mother when his dad was leaving for France (he was a little bit angry at his father for that, but he already forgave him a long time ago).

So he decided to go, on one condition.

"Are you just going to stand there and stare at the house? I'm freezing and it's going to be all your fault if I get hypothermia," Ayame said to him while burying her face in her scarf and shoving her hands in her pockets.

Yes, she was with him. But that's because he wanted her to be there. She was the first one to tell him to go after all, so she should take all the blame if it didn't go well. At first she resisted, she didn't really have anything to do with his family affairs, but he was adamant that she come with him, or else he wouldn't come at all. And she didn't want that. So she didn't have a choice and went with him.

Besides, she was the only one he could trust that could pull him together and reel him in when everything starts to fall apart.

"It's not even that cold yet," he replied to her. "I don't think you're going to get hypothermia at this temperature."

"If we stand here any longer, I will be," she argued. "And I'm not even supposed to be here. You're the one who dragged me out here. I could have been in my bed, drinking some hot chocolate or cappuccino."

"Well, you're the one who told me to come and I didn't even have to come," he retorted as he fixed her scarf, tightening it to give her more warmth.

"But I still don't see why I have to come," she asked. "Your family won't even care about me. And I've already asked so many times you still won't answer me, and I'm getting annoyed and I'm even thinking about just leaving you here and grabbing a latte at Starbucks-"

"I need someone to support me," he blurted out. She looked at him with wide eyes, surprised by his outburst. To be honest, he was as well.

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Look, I don't know what I'm doing okay. I don't even want to be here, but someone thing in me was telling me to come, and then both you and Dad told me to go so here I am. But I'm confused and scared because I don't know what's going to happen."

He lowered his voice and looked away from her, "And you're the only that I could think of that could really help me."

He didn't see the way her eyes softened, nor noticed her taking her hand out of her pocket.

"You could have send that earlier," she told him, grabbing onto one of his hands and looking down on it. "I would have understood."

He looked down to her just as she looked up to him, making their eyes meet. There was something in them, something tender that he couldn't put a finger into. Suddenly they narrowed slightly.

"You owe me a latte," she declared and tugged on his hand. She held onto his hand as she went towards the doorbell. "Come on. We might as well get this over."

He stared at her incredulously, unbelieving at what she just told him. How could she switch so fast from being tender and kind, back to her bitch like self?

But in all honesty, he felt a surge of confidence go through him, as if just this simple act of her holding his hand was enough to show him that she would give him all her support.

"What are you waiting for?" she demanded. "Ring the doorbell. I'm seriously going to freeze out here Misaki."

He softened his eyes and smiled, squeezing her hand.

"Okay, okay," he said as he neared the doorbell. "I'm doing it. Chill out."

"Oh yes, because chill out is just what I needed to hear when I'm already 'chilled' enough to feel my lips turning blue."

He couldn't help the laugh that bubbled out of him.

Her hand never left hers as they waited for someone to open the gate for them.

End Chapter

AN: i hope you guys liked that scene with ayame and misaki. i figured its about time i write about other people than just tsubasa and sanae. i was about to write a scene between shiori and wakabayashi but i couldn't find a good place to fit it. the chapter is called dates after all. also, i wrote misaki a little bit bitter about his parents divorce. i mean if you guys read Boku wa Misaki Taro you can kinda see my point. he was crying when he saw his mom with her new family while he watched the scene with his dad. so yeah, i figured he was a little bit unsure about his family affairs. and i plan on explaining ayame's situation with her family in the future. theres more to her living with sanae than what is told. stay tuned for that.

also, dates are so cute, and tsubasa's adorable

*Samurai Blue is what they call the National Men's team of Japan. i think its cool

*Kagawa Shinji is one of the members of Samurai Blue, currently their central midfielder wearing the no 10 jersey. he is also part of Borsussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga with the no 7. he's a pretty cool guy

*Honda Keisuke plays midfield for AC Milan but he's a forward in the national team. he has cool hair and he's to married to a kindergarten teacher which i think so cute

*Dortmund or Borussia Dortmund, or BVB as it is commonly called, is as i said a team in germany in the bundesliga. theyre pretty good i think. lots of yellow and black

well thats it for this chapter i hope you guys enjoyed it and i have few more chapters left until i start the second round, which hopefully is more soccer orientated this time (probably not)

anyway, thanks for reading and please review!

PS. i dont know if you guys noticed but i just posted two new fanfiction Why Don't you Stay at Mine Tonight? an AU that deals with Misaki and Ayame being apartment neighbors in Paris, and Nights Like These, a self-indulged smut fanfiction between Sanae and Tsubasa. if you were unsatisfied with their make out sessions here (like me), head on there lol