It has been five long years since that fateful day when the Prince of Tennis left Japan. One would think that within those time, everything would have changed already. But in the case of Ryuzaki Sakuno, it didn't completely change... at least, a small but significant part of it. The reason was a promise. A small promise of a certain boy's coming back.

"I'll be back." she can still remember his words. It was made more nostalgic because right now, she's cleaning her bedroom. The small powder pink box that used to stay inside her closet has found itself in her lap. A small smile adorned her face as she sorted out the things inside.

"I wonder if he's doing okay..." the compiled letters in her hand were still crisp, a proof of it being unsent over the past years it was firstly written. She refused to mail them. Since she had the idea that the tennis prince may be too busy, and that it would only trouble him.

She gingerly opened one of them.

Dear Ryoma-kun,

Today, I became a junior at Seigaku. Kaidoh-senpai became the captain of the tennis team, while Momo-senpai took the vice captain role.

We all look forward to your events, Ryoma-kun... Whatever you do, please take care of yourself and do your best.

P.S.- The weather's nice, so the cherry blossoms came to full bloom today.

-Ryuzaki Sakuno

The famous 'accidental picture' was lying at the bottom of the box. Her upper body huddled to the eye-patched boy as their Momo-senpai bumped into her. Shiba, the reporter, originally was about to take a picture with Ryoma. But due to the unprecedented chaos, the reporter was replaced out of the photo completely by Sakuno, who had her eyes closed in a worried expression as she leaned to Ryoma, who looked at her curiously.

It was a nice photo that perfectly captured the carefree days of their middle school.

Later on, it was also Shiba who delivered her a copy of that picture. Since then, the girl considered it a treasure-- actually hiding it in this box where she keeps mementos.

With a brighter mood, she carefully put back the letters and the picture. The said container was also carefully placed back to her closet.

"Ne, Ryoma-kun... what's taking you so long?"

She knew that thinking that way may have been so selfish on her part. After all, he's busy on conquering his dreams. He has done more incredible feats than a person their same age. And surely... surely, he must have been very busy. But the fact that Ryuzaki Sakuno has failed to confess her feelings for the last time, probably made her think that way.

Still, she remembered his promise. And she looks forward for the day to come when she can finally tell him her bottled up feelings.

"Sakuno!" a call from her grandmother put Sakuno out of her reverie.

"Hai, 'Baa-chan!"

She rushed out of her door. From upstairs, she glanced down the staircase, wanting to know what it was all about.

"A letter arrived for you!"

"Who could it be from?" She wondered if she sent any letters the past days. Sakuno had no recollection of doing so, but nonetheless, she found herself interested. She descended downstairs to see her grandmother holding a white envelope, and a short-haired woman wearing corporate clothes. They were both sitting by the living room.

Her grandmother gestured fo the girl to sit beside her. Sakuno had no idea what was happening, but she followed the older Ryuzaki.

"Sakuno, this is Ada Thompson." Sumire introduced the visitor, "She's a family friend."

"Nice to meet you, Thompson-san," the girl greeted.

Ada Thompson had a gentle smile on her face. Despite the surname, her features were Asian. It left Sakuno thinking about their family connection with a foreigner, and the letter she appeared to have delivered.

"Nice to meet you, Sakuno-chan," the woman sounded familiar, "I have something for you."

Ryuzaki Sumire, who didn't look much different from five years ago, had an excited smile as she handed the envelope over. It was enough for the girl to be curious as to what that letter behold. A bit clumsily, she ripped the envelope at the end, minding for the content to be safe.

"Tho--Thompson University?!" Sakuno's hand trembled as she processed the shock, "The elite school in US?!"

"Hai, Sakuno-chan," there was warmth in the voice of Ada Thompson, "I'd like to invite you in taking your college degree there, for free."

Those words continued to ring in her ears. It was a wonderfully rare opportunity. She's always wondered what it felt like to study overseas. Within the past five years, she's been interested in languages and foreign literature. She wouldn't say it out loud, but she had this childish phase back then where she studied English language religiously. Even applying to be a library rep in middle school in order to feel closer to him. But her original plan backfired. Once she realized how wonderful studying languages and reading books were, a small dream sprouted in her. And she might not look like it, but she would have loved to study about that in college.

And now, just graduating high school, she has already made plans to attend Seishun University with Osakada Tomoka. Instead of choosing other universities in Tokyo, she preferred to stay near their house. She didn't want her grandmother, her guardian since her parents died, be left all alone.

The opportunity given by Ada Thompson would've required leaving her grandmother and breaking promises with her best friend.

She felt conflicted.

"What's wrong, Sakuno?" Sumire asked, "You've been silent."

She turned her head up, not really sure when did she look down.

"Ah, gomen," she apologized, "I lost myself for a second there."

"It's okay, Sakuno-chan," Ada Thompson had a worried look, "You can think about it. I'll send you the details later, so Ryuzaki-sensei can just confirm with me."

The buzzing in her pocket distracted the Thompson for a moment. She pulled out her phone and read a message. Her expression suddenly turned frantic, and she faced the Ryuzakis for the last time that day.

"I'm sorry, Ryuzaki-sensei, Sakuno-chan. It seems like I need to go now."

A few goodbyes and they accompanied the Thompson outside their gate as she got inside her car. As the car went away, Sumire touched Sakuno's shoulders.

"You don't have to worry about me, Sakuno." her obaa-chan said assuringly, "I'm not that old to not be able to take care of myself, you know?"

She wasn't sure what to reply, but she hugged her grandmother.

"You don't have to worry about me." she heard her murmur.

"What do I do, Tomo-chan?" a moping Ryuzaki Sakuno helped Osakada Tomoka settle the tray of snacks and juice by the living room table of the Osakada house. As per their plan for that day, they were to watch a live telecast of Seigaku's once Prince of Tennis in a match for a certain tournament.

Truthfully, over the years, it has been their tradition to watch the few live broadcasts of Echizen Ryoma that the bestfriends could watch with their free time. Though the intense enthusiasm of the once loudmouthed girl, Tomoka, eventually declined to normal, they still watched.

Before lounging on the sofa, Sakuno had already shared her worries to Tomoka.

"Mou, Sakuno, it's not like I won't miss you or anything," she responded, "But it's Thompson University!"

"Girl, it's a once in a lifetime kind of opportunity!" Tomoka continued, more fired up than Sakuno expected, "I know more than anyone that you'd die to be there. You've been mentioning that university as one of your dream schools, right?"

"That's true, Tomo-chan..." in contrast to her bestfriend's energy, Sakuno only said glumly, "But it would mean that I can't stay with Obaa-chan for years possibly, and I won't get to see you too as often."

"It's not like I won't see you ever again, right? Plus, at our age, we should be pursuing our dreams! Taking the necessary next steps to our future!"

"Of course, we'll see each other again." the girl pouted, "But I'm worried about Obaa-chan too."

To that, both of them turned quiet. The energetic Tomoka also took a while before she replied, "Well, how did Ryuzaki-sensei react with that offer?"

Now that she thought about it, her grandmother had an almost suspicious smile in her face as she handed her the envelope. She can't actually remember that her grandmother looked sad as she revealed the letter's content.

"She looked like she already expected it." Sakuno muttered, "Was it possible that Obaa-chan knew about it before I did?"

"It's a possibility," Tomoka replied, " If Ada Thompson is your family friend, then it might be true."

"But Sakuno, always remember that I would support you on your decision, okay? You don't have to worry about me."

"Thank you, Tomo-chan." she sounded like she would cry.

"Have you decided, Sakuno?" Ryuzaki Sumire called upon her granddaughter as they finished up their dinner.

After Sakuno's hanging out at her friend Tomoka's house, the older Ryuzaki worried that her grandchild may not consider the scholarship offer. Truthfully, she was already aware of the letter's contents when she called over Sakuno earlier. Ada Thompson have been contacting her about that proposal for a long time now. Since she knew that her granddaughter have dreams of studying there, she immediately agreed.

That's why, if ever Sakuno turns down the offer because of her, she would be sad. She's known that the girl can be a worrier. Her being soft-hearted is a fact known by everyone.

"Obaa-chan, would you be okay by yourself?" Sakuno replied, her voice sounding troubled, "I wasn't sure whether I should accept Ada-san's offer. I worry about you."

"Sakuno, I can handle myself," Sumire can't help but smile at the girl, "I'm not that old, you know?"

"Demo, obaa-chan..."

"No buts. Trust me on this, Sakuno," the grandmother said with finality, "There's a reason why I haven't retired coaching middle school boys yet."

To her grandmother's reason, let a smile. She knew that her grandmother is serious, but the way she tried to convince her was amusing enough.

"10 AM Flights for departure to New York. Please proceed."

The bustle and hustle of the airport made Ryuzaki Sakuno jittery. She was nervous, yet somehow, she can't help but feel emotional. The announcement cued for her departure.

"Gambatte ne, Sakuno." her obaa-chan was proudly smiling, "Take care of yourself, okay?"

"Hai!" she replied as she started to walk away. She can already feel tears welling up. But she doesn't want to look sad.

"Bye-bye, Sakuno! Don't forget to email or call me whenever!" Tomoka yelled, to which she turned to see.

"Bye, Tomo-chan! Don't worry, I'll never forget." Sakuno giggled, cheered up because of her best friend's unrelentless energy.

"Say hello to Ryoma-sama for me!" Tomo added, making her blush almost immediately.

"Mou." she pouted, "It's not like I'll see Ryoma-kun..."

It was just a very Osakada Tomoka thing to do, teasing her in public. She would've denied and called her out, but all she felt was a sense of nostalgia.

"It's so hard leaving your friends and family. I wonder if Ryoma-kun did feel like this when he left."

She only waved goodbye, trying to look as cheerful as possible so they wouldn't worry. She knew she looked nervous, after all. But deep inside, Sakuno felt a sense of excitement. A feeling that this was just the first step to a new period in her life.

So as she sat by her designated seat inside the plane, Sakuno looked for the last time at her home country through the window. She relaxed herself on the seat and pulled out a piece of paper from her memo pad.

Dear Ryoma-kun,

Tomorrow, I'm coming to see you.

-Ryuzaki Sakuno

She didn't think of it much, because she just felt like writing it. For her, going to America doesn't really mean that she'll be going to see Ryoma. After all, US is a pretty big place. But if ever they cross paths again, it would've been nice.

A/N: Edited/Rewritten July 2020