I looked down at my watch . Geez , where is he ? It's already been 10 minutes from the time that we were suppose to meet . He told me not to be late and he's late ! Sigh . I stood in front of the station and looked around . I can't believe i'm actually here . I mean , i'm really happy that he asked me to play tennis with him . But , i'm really bad at sports ! No , I don't know how to play tennis at all !
"Why are you spacing out ?" A voice came from behind . I turned around and saw Ryoma standing there . He was wearing a red collar T-shirt and black shorts .
"Ryoma ! Hey ! You're late !" I shouted and walked towards him .
"No , you're just too early .."
"No , look you told me to meet you at 10 am . Its 10.10am now ! See !" I showed him the message that he sent me last night . He looked at it and sighed .
"In any case , i'm here now right ? Come on lets go .." he said and started to walk away . He's always doing things his own pace . But , I guess that's what makes him Ryoma . Hehe ! I chased after him and walked beside him .
"So , you really have no knowledge about tennis ?"
"Not entirely . I've watched some tennis matches on television . I just don't play it ."
"Well , I guess that's better than not knowing at all .."
"Hey !"
Geez , he's a real bully alright . After walking for some time , we reached the tennis courts . Ryoma went and opened the gate that leads to the inside of the court . He walked in and I followed . He placed his tennis back on the ground and took two tennis racket out .
"Here .. You can use my spare racket .." he passed one to me .
"Okay ." I took it . "Er , Ryoma ? How do you hold it ?" God , I look like a complete idiot right now . He stared at me in disbelief .
"You seriously have no idea ?"
"If I do , then I won't have asked !"
"Sigh , you hold it like this ." He showed me while holding his own racket .
"Erm , like this ?" I tried doing the same but , it doesn't feel right . Eh ? Why does it looks different from how Ryoma is holding ? Eh ? No , its not like this too .
"Baka .. not like this .. Like this ." He came over and helped me . When his hands touched mine , I felt the weird sensation again . "There , got it ?"
"Y-yeah.." AH ! Get a grip on yourself Chiyo ! You're making yourself look stupid ! Just act normal !
"So lets start .."
"Okay !" That's right . I'll just be my usual self !
Ten minutes later …
Hmm , that's not right . Just what am I doing wrong ? I've been trying to hit a ball for the last 10 minutes ! But I can't seem to hit one at all ! Even if I do , it'll either go out of the court or it'll hit the net . Ryoma served the next ball . This time , I have to get it right ! I swung the racket and I hit it ! But .. my hands slipped and the racket flew out of my hands and headed towards Ryoma .
"Whoa !" He dodged it and the racket flew passed him .
"Ah ! Ryoma !" I cried . What am I doing ?!
"Are you trying to kill me ?"
"Sorry ..Are you okay ?" I ran to him .
"I'm fine .. and besides , you're doing it all wrong !"
"Heh ?"
He came over and tapped my legs with his racket .
"Bend you knees more when you swing .Your shoulders are too open and your hips are too wobbly ."
"Geez.. you're a devil ..."
"Then , you're an idiot ..."
"Well excuse me for being an idiot ! I'm trying my best already.. You don't have to be so mean .."
"I know . Lets carry on ." He patted my head and smiled at me . I don't get him . First he teased me . Then , he calls me an idiot . Now , he smiles at me . I could feel my face getting hot . Ah I don't get any of this anymore !
"What are you standing for ? Come on , lets continue !"
"Ah right !" I shouted and made my way back to my side of the court . The both of us continued practicing tennis . After one hour of it , I bent down on the floor and panted . Who'd knew tennis would be so hard . Even the swinging of the racket is hard enough and Ryoma swung it like it was nothing !
"You okay ?" Ryoma asked as he bent down beside me .
"Yeah ..i'm fine .." I stood up and wiped the sweat off my face . Ryoma stood up as well . "Here , thanks for lending me your racket !" I held the racket out to him . He looked at the racket and then at me .
"Keep it ." He pushed the racket back to me .
"Huh ?"
"You don't have a racket right ?"
"Well.."
"Just keep it so next time I won't have to bring an extra out . And besides , I want you to have it ..."
I stood there and stared at him .
"Stop staring at me already ! Just take it ."
"Hehe ! Okay , thanks ! I'll treasure it !" I smiled and hugged the racket . Ryoma walked back to his bag and kept his racket . He walked back with his bag and handed me a towel . "Use it to wipe your sweat dummy ."
I took the towel from him and thanked him . I don't know how tot thank him for today . Oh I know !
"Ryoma ! You want to go get a drink ? Its my treat for teaching me tennis !" I asked .
"Heh..sure.. I could use a cold drink after all that sweating ."
"Lets go !"
Ryoma...
I never thought I would actually teach tennis . This is a first for me . Well , it was kind of fun , even though I almost got killed . How can the racket actually fly out of her hands ? The both of us headed towards a vending machine that was nearby . God , i'm thirsty . Well , at least I got a free drink .
"Here !" Takanishi-san handed me a can of cold drink .
"Thanks .." I took it from her . Hmm , Ponta . She really knows what I want . Well , I guessed that's obvious . We've spend so much time together that we know each other so well . She opened her can of green tea and gulped it down .
"Ah , that really hit the spot !" She exclaimed and took another sip . I didn't say anything . Instead , I just stared at her .
"What ?"
"Nothing .."
I opened my can of drink and gulped it down . Then , my phone rang . Hmm , I wonder who's calling . I took out my phone and saw Kaidoh-senpai on the callers ID . I answered it .
"Kaidoh-senpai ?"
"Echizen , where are you ?" he asked .
"Huh ? I'm at the tennis courts near my house..why ?"
"Tennis court ?! You're really at the tennis court ?!"
"Y-yeah ?" what's this ? Why does he sound so shocked ? My sweat dropped .
"Echizen , lets meet up ! There's something I want to discuss with you ."
"Now ? Erm .. sure.. I guess . Where do you want to meet ?"
"You know the burger joint that we used to go back in Middle school ? Meet me there ."
"Okay .." I hung up the phone . What's with Kaidoh-senpai all of a sudden ? Asking me to meet up with him . The burger joint is just around this area . Maybe I can go there first .
"Was that Kaidoh-senpai ? What does he want ?" Takanishi-san asked . Wait , that's right , I forgot about her !
"Well , he asked me to meet him at the burger joint that's nearby . You want to come along ?"
"You sure ? I won't get in the way ?"
"Nah , its probably nothing ..."
She nodded at me and the both of us made our way towards the burger joint . When reached the place , I looked around for kaidoh-senpai .
"Echizen ! Over here !" I saw kaidoh-senpai waving at me from a corner of the restaurant . We headed towards him and sat down .
"Oh chiyo ? You were with Echizen ?" He asked with a surprised look on his face .
"Yeah , Ryoma t-" before she could continue , I used my hands and covered her mouth . If Kaidoh-senpai finds out that I taught her tennis , he'll know what's going on .
"Never mind that , what is it that you want to discuss with me ?" I asked . He placed a piece of paper on the table and pushed it in front of me . What's this ? A tennis team tournament ?Hang on , this is the prestigious tennis tournament that's held every five years . Hmm , the winning team will get to represent Japan in the main tournament held in London . What's this got to do with me ? I stared at him .
"Echizen , actually , Ryuzaki-sensei asked me to hand this to you .."
Ryuzaki-sensei ? That coach ?
"She's setting up a team for this tournament ."
"So ? What's that got to do with me ?"
"She wants you on her team ..."
What ?
"Why ?" I asked .
"She saw your match with Momoshiro .. and she thinks you will be a strong support for the team ."
I said nothing and stared at him . A tennis team huh … I don't know about this … All of a sudden , his phone rang . He picked it up and answered the phone . After about a minute or so , he turned to look at me .
"Echizen … Ryuzaki sensei is on the line ..She wants to speak with you ..." He passed the phone to me . I looked at him and stared at the phone . I hesitated . Takanishi-san touched my hands and gave me a smile . I looked at her and thought about it for a while . I decided to answer the call so I took the phone from Kaidoh-senpai .
"..Hello ?" I said .
"Ryoma , it's been a long time .. how are you ?" A familiar voice asked .
"Ryuzaki-sensei ...i..."
"I know your still a little hesitant to join my team , but won't you think about it ? You skills as a tennis player is extraordinary . I can't ignore it . And , think about it , joining this tournament will help you in your future as well . Scouts from all over the world will be there to watch ."
My future ? What's my future ? To be honest .. I don't know ..
"Ryoma , isn't it your dream to become a tennis player ? You love tennis right ?"
My dream ?
"So how about it Ryoma ? Will you join my team ?"
I don't know … I ..
"Ryoma .. its okay .. You don't have to be afraid anymore .. Just do what your heart tells you to do . I can tell that you really love tennis . So why not give it a try ?" Takanishi-san held my hands . That's right .. I love tennis . There's no way I could ever hate tennis .. Maybe .. I can do it after all . I patted her head .
"Sensei .. Thank you .. I'll … Join your team .."
"Really ?! Great ! Thank you Ryoma ! I'm really glad you'll do it ! Then come to school ..The tennis club room"
"Huh ?"
"A meeting will be held there and the people on the team will be there . There's something I would like to discuss with all of you ..Well , i'll see you there !"
"Ah..." I said and she hung up . What the hell ? Was this a last minute thing ? No , or maybe , She already predicted that I was going to say yes ? Or was she going to register me anyways ? I don't get that coach at all !
"I'm happy for you Ryoma !" Takanishi-san smiled at me .
"..Baka.."
"Heh ?!"
I laughed at her expression . Really this girl never fail to surprise me .
"Ryoma ! Lets go home together !"
"Ah , wait . I can't ."
"Heh ?" She looked confusedly at me .
"I need to go to school . I have to attend the meeting for the tournament .." I explained .
"Then , i'll wait for you !"
"Huh ? You don't have to , weirdo ..why don't you and kaidoh-senpai go home ?"
"Erm , Echizen .. actually .. I'm part of the team as well ." Kaidoh-senpai told me . I looked at him with my eyes wide open .
"You .. you never told me ."
"I wanted tell right after I showed you the piece of paper , but I was cut off by Sensei's call .."
So , kaidoh-senpai is a part of the team as well . At least now I won't feel lonely . Geh ! What am I saying ?! I sound like i'm gay ! Geez .
"Aren't the two of you going to go to school ? Come on lets go ! I'll wait for the both of you !"
"You don't have-"
"I don't want to go home alone . Its lonely . And besides , the school is just around the corner ! I don't mind waiting !"
"You never change , do you ?"
The three of us walked out of the burger joint and headed for school .
At school ..
Ryoma , Kaidoh and Chiyo have reached the school . They walked towards the tennis club room . As they were walking , they bumped into someone .
"Oishi-senpai ?!" Kaidoh shouted . Ryoma eyes was wide open and Chiyo just looked at him . They ran towards him and greeted him .
"What are you doing here Oishi-senpai ?" kaidoh asked . Oishi stood there and smiled at them .
"I'm going to the tennis club room .."
"You too ?!" Ryoma and Kaidoh shouted at the same time . They thought perhaps Oishi was also selected to be in Ryuzaki-sensei's team . "We're heading there as well ."
"Oh ? Then lets go there together !" He said . They walked and reached the entrance to the tennis club room .
"By the way Oishi-senpai , what's your business coming to the club room ?"
"Eh ? Well , I received a call from Ryuzaki-sensei and-"
The door opened before Oishi could continue . There stood Ryuzaki-sensei . She opened the door and smiled at them .
"Looks like you're here . Come on in ." She invited them in . Oishi , Kaidoh and Ryoma looked at each other . As they were about to go in , Chiyo called out to them .
"Erm , i'll just wait here okay ?"
Ryoma walked over and handed her his bag .
"Take care of this for me when i'm gone .."
"Eh ? Okay ." she took the bag from him and Ryoma patted her head . Recently , he's been patting her head a lot . But that seems to make Chiyo happy . She likes it when Ryoma does that . Chiyo gave Ryoma a smiled and Ryoma made his way into the club room . Once they were inside , they met the other team members .
"Looks like all of us is here .."
Tezuka , Fuji , Inui , Kawamura ,Kikumaru , Oishi , Momoshiro , Kaidoh and Ryoma were all in the room .
Okay , this chapter is finally done ! I spent the entire day working on this . And i'm going on holiday tomorrow ! Yays ! Okay anyways ! I hoped all of you enjoyed this chap ! So Ryoma has decided to Join Ryuzaki-sensei's tennis team to compete in the tournament ! And the regulars of seigaku , I mean , ex-regulars are in this team ! What's going to happen in this meeting ? Next Chapter ! Read to find out ! :D Thanks for the reviews . Love you all ! Hearts ! Hope you'll keep on supporting me !
Disclaimer : I do not own POT :D
