"I think it looks very nice on you, Chota-chan!" The third years of Hyotei heard Kamiko compliment her taller year mate. The two second years seemed to get along well, and Kamiko was currently trying to get Hiyoshi to warm up to her.

"How do you get involved with these people?" Shishido asked grumpily.

Hitomi laughed when Hiyoshi and Ootori looked bewildered at Kamiko, the girl had probably made a statement and spoke about it in her brash American way, "Mizuki Hajime of St. Rudolph looks into street matches to recruit people. Kamiko found him because they went to the same school, Sai found her when she showed up, and she came with Sai to ask me if she could stay." She added after a second, "I thought an American tennis player would shake up the others, and the fact that she was a girl threw them all off. The only reason she can keep up with guys tennis is because she has extreme talent and extreme training. Girls need one or the other to be able to compete with men, so my decision to let Kamiko play was easy."

"Which case are you?"

"Neither."

"You were at the top, weren't you?" Gakuto asked. Whenever someone was at the top it usually meant they were the best! At least, that's the way Hyotei had made it.

"I didn't deserve the title- Sai was always around to help," Hitomi admit to her friends, "Besides, the way I got to the top was mostly luck."

"Yeah? How come?" Jirou asked.

"Acting," Hitomi shrugged, "A sexist bastard doesn't take a little girl seriously, and after a little acting manipulation she's got him beat. That, and I was lucky enough to have Sai and his friends with me. Sai was really the head, it was just more intimidating to have me as the face of the empire he and I built."

"It was all luck..." Oshitari added.

Hitomi nodded, and smiled when Kamiko threw Hiyoshi off balance by tackling him into a hug (a thank you for when he agreed to let her call him Yoshi-chan), "I think I left that place in capable hands, anyway."

"Should be capable, seeing that she trained Seigaku and they beat us out this year." Shishido replied in a crude tone.

"Speaking of which, where is that captain of ours?" Oshitari looked around.

Hitomi looked around as well, wondering silently why the boy with the biggest ego had just slipped out of the limelight.

"Who knows? Now that we're out of the tournament it's not like there's a point for the third years to play anymore." Shishido grumbled out with resentment.

Jirou yawned, as the captain's disappearance was enough to jolt him from his afternoon nap, "But Atobe won his match against Tezuka, that's a pretty big thing already right? He should rest some..."

"Oi! Don't fall asleep mid sentence!" Shishido barked out, Suzuki blinked with wide eyes as Jirou had fallen asleep on her lap.

"J-Jirou-kun!" She tried her best to hide her red face.

"Wha-...? Suzuki-chan why are you so red?"

"You fell asleep on her lap you idiot. Stop acting as if that's normal behavior!"

'They really don't know the real reason...' Hitomi was surprised when the others around her were so concerned about why Atobe suddenly seemed to disappear. She stood up, "Kamiko, I'm heading out now. I'll meet you at your final match tonight."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, you're still goin' to those things?" Shishido glared at Oshitari, and would have glared at Suzuki had Jirou not been blocking his view, "What the hell?!"

"I'm not participating, I'll just be observing. It's... personal."

"Hai~, Mi-chan! I'll see you there!" Kamiko happily smiled, and she frowned at the Hyotei team, "We would invite all of you, but this one is a personal match and it's not very fun this time around."

"And the other times are?!" Shishido couldn't believe this crazy girl from America!

"Mhm! That's why we play in the first place!"

Hitomi chuckled to herself as she walked away from the courts. She could imagine their faces now: Shishido's disgruntled with disbelief, Gakuto's eyes and mouth open in shock and a little bit of fear, Jirou's awe, Oshitari's poker face, Ootori's uncomfortable smile twitching with fear, and Hiyoshi's composed blinking at Kamiko as if she were crazy. Hell, with how upbeat Kamiko had made her statement Hitomi assumed that even Kabaji would be shocked.

As Hitomi strolled through the school grounds towards the exit she thought about how odd her current actions were. With all the uncivil banter and snarky tension between the two, she still managed to know where exactly the prideful Atobe heir would be. It was odd, she supposed, that she had never felt as close to her group of friends, including Atobe, as she did now than in the years before- the Hyotei captain especially. The building Hitomi was looking for wasn't even two blocks from the school grounds, and as such the walk had only taken her about ten minutes.

"Now how did I know that you would be at one of your own family gyms?" Hitomi asked from the entrance of the private gym.

Atobe didn't falter in his exercise, "H~n, ore-sama never pegged you as the stalker type."

"You can cut the crap, Keigo-kun. I'm an actress, remember? I can tell when someone's acting to cover up how mopey they are." If Atobe wasn't going to ask her how she got in, she wouldn't answer. It wasn't a pleasant story anyhow. She stood beside the weight lift bench, and waited for his reply.

"No one's moping." He replied, he barely even glanced at her.

Hitomi's brow rose, "You went up against Tezuka-kun, and even with his injury he managed to keep up with you till a tie break. And you're ditching almost all your responsibilities as tennis captain to exercise in a gym to strengthen muscles that help you in tennis? I would say you're moping. Productive moping, but moping nonetheless."

And that was the last straw. She knew just how to annoy Atobe enough to rile him up, but she underestimated just how angry he would be. After letting the lift bar crash loudly down against its resting area, his dark eyes honed in on her and narrowed in anger. As uncomfortable as she felt about his staring she didn't waver, or show him that she was uncomfortable with how close he was and with how he towered over her.

"I know a way that'll help you stop moping, and it'll help you get better too." When his already narrowed eyes dared to glare even further Hitomi quickly explained, "I'm just trying to repay you for your help."

His anger seemed to dissipate when she finished speaking, and this time it was Hitomi's turn to stare at him. He had to let her repay him, right? Hitomi wasn't dumb, she understood that he had no obligation to help her and as such was helping her for whatever reason the haughty captain saw fit. Maybe she could even figure out that reason... She bit her lip at that thought. Why would she even want to concern herself with Atobe even more than she already had? Wasn't this interaction enough? Wasn't it supposed to be overbearing and unnecessary?

"If it has anything to do with the little peasant, as it usually does, I'll meet you tonight at your little kingdom of a warehouse in five hours." He seceded, throwing his towel over his shoulder and walking out.

Hitomi was left by herself, and she turned around, not liking the fact that he had basically read her and told her what they were going to do despite the fact that it was her idea.

She was so affected by his accuracy that she hadn't noticed how he had dropped his arrogant honorific.

A/N: It's been a while, ne? I apologize for the lack of updates, I really have no excuse other than it's a bit busy and it's hard for me to stay on top of it! I do feel ashamed though, so here's to hoping updates become more often~!

Disclaimer: I do not own any characters/plot/etc., of the PoT manga/anime.