A/N:

Sera Alchemiss: You are absolutely magnificent! I'm so glad you enjoy the story and the reason this last chapter was so short was because, after updating it a couple days ago, I had meant to post two chapters right after to make up for it. I got stuck, though, trying to fix up the timeline that my younger self had ruined. Thank you for your wonderful words :)

"Please don't make a big deal about it." Hitomi whispered to Jirou during class.

At break, everyone outside of the tennis club was amazed when they saw the usually sleeping Jirou running from his class and straight to Atobe's room, where the other regulars met today to discuss a change in practice regimen. After his night at the warehouse, Atobe was showing up to tennis practice regularly again. Jirou heaved the door open, made eye contact with his friends and pointed in the hall.

"Jirou, what the hell?" Gakuto asked. The tennis regulars weren't expecting Jirou to come. Hell, Atobe had already made certain that Suzuki had a copy of the schedule changes to give to the narcoleptic. Jirou was supposed to be napping right now.

A rhythmic pat of the ground started becoming louder, and in a few minutes Hitomi appeared, looking at Jirou with a look of exasperation as she rested on her crutches. Upon further examination they could see the bandaged ankle... and calf... and knee.

"I tripped." She lied, because others were around. She crutched closer to them because she saw Shishido's sneer, Ootori's look of concern, Gakuto's open mouth, Oshitari's lips pressed together in disappointment, Hiyoshi's eyes wide in observation, Kabaji's shy but curious expression, and Atobe's observant glare.

Oshitari stood so she could take a seat, but she refused.

"It was my fault," She explained, "I got in his way last night after his meeting went wrong..."

"So he breaks your leg?" Shishido scoffed, "Che."

"It's not broken!" she insisted in a whisper, "He was drinking, and I know better than to get in his way when he's been drinking."

"But your leg!" Jirou was bewildered at the amount of stupidity coming out of his usually smart friend.

Hitomi frowned, because she was starting to sound desperate, "It's just sore. I was going to tell you all, I promise, but Jirou ran ahead of me."

"How long till he's sobered up?" Oshitari asked.

"I don't know... I think he'll be fine today. Tomorrow he has another business meeting, he likes to be at his best for that, so he'll prepare for it today."

"And when the meeting's over, if it doesn't go well he'll take it out on you." Gakuto finished the unspoken part. Hitomi cringed, because it was what everyone was thinking.

"That's not true!" Her eyes narrowed at him, "He was just drunk after blowing all his money on his clients and they didn't take the deal. Anyone would be angry! Besides, he apologized today."

"Just because he apologized doesn't mean that he'll stop though, does it, Yuushi?" Gakuto gave up on trying to speak with sense with Hitomi.

Oshitari didn't answer, rather, he didn't answer verbally. His look towards Hitomi explained it all. She refused to stay any longer, and the tension in her jaw told them she was holding back loads of anger.

"Just don't make a big deal out of this," She sighed, "It's a big step for me to tell anyone in the first place."

She crutched away, and prayed that her day would get better soon, or else she would be suffering both at home and at school.

Hitomi was wide eyed when she saw the white limousine in front of Hyotei's gates. She was even more surprised when her father stepped out.

It was a wondrous change, Hitomi would even call it miraculous, when she compared her at home father to the man that stood in front of her now. Gone was the loosened tie and unbuttoned dress shirt, now all she could see was a well fit black suit on him; the belt that was usually held in his left hand was now tightened around his pants, polished to a fault with the metal shimmering gold rather than being tainted with red. When she had arrived at the gates there was already a crowd forming. The limousine had called for the middle school to believe that there was a celebrity inside, and when her father stepped out there may as well have been.

Her female teachers were enamored with her father as he charmingly spoke, his voice projected out and Hitomi could hear his compliments lure everyone in.

"What a stunning campus," She heard, as a female teacher unabashedly began to introduce herself to Hitomi's father, "To accompany the magnificent staff, I'm sure." He interjected, stunning the staff into silence.

It gave Hitomi's father a chance to look around for her, and in response she hid behind a corner, leaving Suzuki standing out in the open.

"H-Hitomi-chan?" Suzuki asked in concern; Hitomi's breathing was becoming erratic, "We should hide somewhere."

"You need to leave, Suzuki, before he sees you with me." Hitomi shook her head. If Hitomi's father saw Suzuki there was a chance that her friend would be endangered. It was bad enough that he knew of Hitomi's close relations with the tennis team.

"Hitomi-chan, he's going to find us if we stay here!" Suzuki gathered the courage to take action, and propped up the crutches before practically pushing Hitomi into the closest classroom that Suzuki thought was safest.

"I-I think we can wait until he's got-gotten to the principal's office." Suzuki panted, catching her breath.

Hitomi sat down in the nearest seat because she felt her arms were burning. After a deep breath, she finally calmed herself down enough to see which room Suzuki had taken her to. Her eyes narrowed at her shy friend instantly.

"This room, Suzuki?!" Hitomi leaned back into the couch, "This is the first place that the teachers show off to any visitors!"

"N-Nani?!"

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