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Chapter 19

Princess Nine

Yotsuba kept her promise and came to Izumi-sans's place after school, and just as the famous tennis player promised she gave Yotsuba her very first tennis lesson.

What surprised her though was when she discovered that Izumi-san's private home was also the headquarters of her very own tennis club, built by her father after she had turned pro and presented as a birthday gift when she turned twenty-one.

Thanks to this massive tennis facility Izumi-san started the lesson by teaching Yotsuba about the different tennis court surfaces followed by the rules of the game. After that they started working on Yotsuba's forehand and backhand stroke. Remember her badminton days, Yotsuba was to adapt quite quickly and with Izumi-san's careful instructions she was able to swing her racket effectively like a tennis player should.

"How about we take a break?" Izumi-san said after a while, "There are still some things I wanted to discuss with you. Remember?"

Yotsuba wanted to continue but knew it was important and followed the former tennis player to the bench.

As they did, she looked at the red and black tennis racket in her hands. When she first picked it up a strange warmth seemed to flow up through her arm and into her body. For some strange reason she felt... connected to it. She couldn't understand why, but what surprised her even more was how much she was enjoying this sport so far. She had played many different sports over the years, but none had this kind of effect on her.

Setting down the racket she sat down on the bench and accepted the cold bottle of water and the towel Izumi-san handed her. She had worked herself into quite a bit of a sweat so the cool sweet water was refreshing.

Izumi-san remained standing, taking a large sip herself, and looked down at the girl wiping her face and neck with the towel.

"Have you thought about what we talked about yesterday?" she asked.

Yotsuba froze. Beneath the towel she sighed. A small part of her had hoped they wouldn't talk about those today, but that whole point of her being here. Stifling another sigh she looked up at the older woman.

"I have," she answered.

She lifted a brow, "And?"

Yotsuba took a moment to gather her thoughts.

"I... i meant what I said. I want to be with my sisters again before we graduate from high school, because it'll be the last time we'll be together. I don't want things to remain like this, a huge abyss separating us. I..." she swallowed, "I also want to change. I want to become a better person. I want to do... something with my life. Something on my own. Something I can be proud of and not be filled with regrets."

Izumi-san nodded, "So what's stopping you from doing it?"

"Because I don't know how. I don't know how to become a better person. I don't even know what I want to do with my life," she finally sighed again, "Everyone was right. I really am a coward because I'm too scared to face the outside world."

"And you felt that you'd be better off by just having someone take care of you instead."

"Yes," she admitted, "That too."

The older woman paused for a while then said, "Yotsuba, the problem isn't that you don't know how. The problem is that you've never been in a situation where you've actually had to try."

Yotsuba looked up at her in surprise.

"All your life you've been spoiled. And protected. Over protected. The reason why you're such a mess is because no one has taken the time to guide you. You're irresponsible because you've never had to take responsibility for anything in your life. Like you said, your sisters have done nothing but take the blame themselves whenever you got into trouble and have not taught you anything important in life. That's why you became the way you are. That's why you did the thing you did."

She bit her lip bitterly. It was clear that no one was blameless in this situation.

"I spoke to your sisters this morning," Izumi-san then said.

She looked up at her in shock, "You did? How?"

"I invited them over for breakfast. Except for Nino, they all came. Chihori was also here. She wanted to speak with them too," she let a moment pass, "Your sisters now realize that they've been treating you rather poorly, and they regret it. Especially Ichika."

"Ichika?" Yotsuba couldn't contain her disbelief.

Izumi-san nodded, "I believe she feels ultimately responsible. I could see in her eyes that she deeply regrets having bullied you."

Yotsuba let that sink in and shook her head.

"It wasn't her fault. It was mine. I just wasn't able to let it go."

"Have you tried telling her that? Have you tried talking to any of them?"

She shook her head, "They won't even look at me. Why should they? I hurt them all because of my selfishness."

"Yes, but they also let you down by not taking real good care of you. However, that applies to all of you."

Yotsuba frowned, "What do you mean?"

"The reason why this happened was because you girls weren't looking out for each other the way you should have. You've been allowed to do whatever you want without any restraint. It's all due to a severe lack of parental guidance. Your mother died when you were still children and your stepfather has done nothing but spoil you since then."

Yotsuba thought back to when she first spoke openly with Maruo after breaking up with Fuutarou.

"Well... we did treat him rather poorly after Mama died," she said.

"Yes, I know, but that doesn't excuse his failures as your guardian. He knows that now. The thing is, everyone played a role in this disaster. Including Itsuki."

Yotsuba blinked, "Itsuki?"

"She betrayed your sisters worse than you did."

Her jaw dropped, "What? How?"

"You are aware that it was her who came up with the plan to have Fuutarou choose one of you, correct?"

"Yeah. I mean, I wasn't for it but it was what we wanted."

"So it seemed, but that wasn't what Itsuki had in mind."

From there she told Yotsuba the real reason why Itsuki had come up with that plan and she felt about the others when it came to their relationship with Fuutarou.

"You mean..." Yotsuba was at a loss for words, "She did for me?"

"No, she did it for herself. She saw an opportunity to do something... motherly. Did you know that she was jealous of Nino because she had become the overprotective mother of the family?"

Right away she remembered that confrontation between Ichika and Itsuki.

"Yeah, I remember Ichika accusing her of it," she said, "So that was true after all. How did the others take it?"

"Miku was deeply hurt. Ichika was very angry with her, and understandably so. I can only wonder what Nino's reaction would've been."

Most likely she would've slapped her, Yotsuba could see it happening, and Itsuki would fully deserve it. It would've been payback for the time Itsuki had slapped Nino because of her behavior.

Yotsuba never imagine that Itsuki would go that far. Not only did she try to help Yotsuba with her feelings, she had given up her own for the sake of Yotsuba's happiness, the very thing Yotsuba hadn't been able to do. It was a brave but careless decision, and it did more harm than good. Now she was living with the shame of it.

"I don't believe it..." she whispered "I've always thought Itsuki was too good of a person to do something so reckless. I never imagined she would do something so... selfish."

Izumi-san chuckled, "That's rather ironic, coming from you."

Yotsuba ignored that and sighed, "You know, when Itsuki actually confronted me one time and asked what I really wanted I ran away."

"Yes, she did mention that."

"I never wondered until now why she didn't chase after me. I mean, isn't that the logical thing to do? Why didn't she?"

"Because she's too soft, just like you."

Yotsuba looked at her, "Too soft?"

"The thing about you and Itsuki is that you don't like confrontations. You both prefer to avoid them as much as possible and you prefer to follow the leader instead of expressing your thoughts and opinions. In your case you avoided conversing with Fuutarou out of fear of being exposed. In Itsuki's case she avoided having confrontations because it causes tension among the family."

"She confronted Fuutarou and Nino," Yotsuba stated.

"Only because she had to. Fuutarou was an outsider while Nino was behaving very badly. She had to confront Nino after she went too far, and it hurt her to do it. Otherwise she wouldn't have gone to Fuutarou's place."

Yotsuba remembered that time, "It was the right thing to do."

"Yes, but you have to remember how close Itsuki was to your mother. Her number one priority was making sure that the five of you stayed together, just as you promised. Nino isn't afraid to confront someone when it comes to serious matters, including her own sisters. Itsuki doesn't have the courage to do that."

"Because she's too soft?"

"Kind would be a better word for it. Your mother was just like that, too kind for her own good. She didn't like confrontations either," Izumi-san's then face turned sad, "We always told her that she was too soft and forgiving towards others. We kept trying to warn that if she wasn't careful someone was going to take advantage of her. Sadly, that's exactly what happened, and cost her everything."

Yotsuba saw the woman's eyes grow distant, as though she was looking at the past. It was here she realized just how little she and her sisters knew about their mother. When she was alive she had never talked about the past. They'd always assumed that it was too painful for her, but now Yotsuba found herself wondering what her mother's life had been when she was their age. Before she became pregnant with them.

Izumi-san seemed to have read her mind and smiled.

"Your mother was a very different person back then. You girls knew her as a strict yet devoted teacher and a stern yet caring mother. We knew her as one of the nicest and the most courageous person we ever knew. In fact, she was very much like you, Yotsuba."

Yotsuba blinked in surprise. That the last thing she expected to hear.

Izumi-san then changed the subject.

"There's something I want to ask you. Why is it that you never tried to seek any help when you knew you had problems?"

Yotsuba frowned, "I told you. It was because-"

"I'm aware of that, and I understand all that. What I mean is, why didn't you try to talk with anyone? If you couldn't talk to them why not someone else? Like a counselor, a teacher, or even a friend? Why is it that you don't trust anyone, Yotsuba? Why can't you, just for once, be honest in your life? Why is it always so difficult for you? Can you tell me why?"

It was a question Yotsuba herself had been asking lately. Why couldn't she be honest? Why was it always so difficult for her?

A long time passed before she finally answered.

"Because... I'm just not strong enough to be honest. I feel like... if I start being honest, about anything, I'll fall apart. I'll shatter. There'll be nothing left of me," she scoffed at herself, "I know, it sounds stupid, but that's the only way I can explain it."

She looked up at Izumi-san, wondering what her reaction would be, and to her surprise the older woman actually smiled.

"I don't think that's stupid at all," she said, "It makes perfect sense. In fact, I had a feeling that would be your answer."

Yotsuba stared at her in confusion as she lifted her tennis racket, spinning it around in her hand.

"You know, Yotsuba, you remind me a great deal about myself when I was teen. You also remind me of my mother and my relationship with her back then."

Yotsuba stared, "I do?"

She nodded, "Like you I also had a childhood friend that I was in love with and didn't want to let go, but unlike you I once a very strained relationship with my mother," she paused for a moment before asking, "Have you ever heard of the Kisaragi Nine?"

The sudden question made Yotsuba pause.

"I think so," she said, "They were a baseball team, right?"

"A girl's baseball team. One of the few that existed in Japan during the 90s. Do you follow baseball by any chance?"

"A little."

"Are you familiar with a player named Hiroki Takasugi?"

"Yeah! Everyone knows him. He's one of Japan's top players. Doesn't he play in the Major Leagues? For the... Bears?"

"Cubs," Izumi-san corrected with a grin, "The Chicago Cubs. The Bears are their football team."

"That's right, the Cubs," Yotsuba then remembered, "Didn't they recently win..."

Izumi-san's grin broadened, "A World Series? For the first time in over a hundred years? Yes, they did. I know. I was there. I was standing beside his wife and children when it happened."

"You were? So you know him?"

"He was my childhood friend, and the man I loved until I reached the point where I had to let him go. I also once attended the Kisaragi School for Girls before I transferred to Kurobara. I also played a role in forming the Kisaragi Nine."

Yotsuba gaped at her, surprised to hear all this.

"Let me tell you a story, Yotsuba. It's about a girl who had everything, except for two things she wanted more than. Through a series of events she tried to take them by force and she came close to destroying everything around her," Izumi-san then smiled fondly, "It's also the story of how she would one day meet and become good friends with your mother."

Twenty-One Years Ago

When I was fifteen years old I was already one of Japan's most promising tennis players, with an equally promising career ahead of me. At that time my only goal was to become the best tennis player in Japan. I hadn't even thought about going pro yet, but everyone believed I would. At the same time Hiroki Takasugi was becoming a rising star in the baseball world. By the time he was fifteen he had become one of the greatest sluggers the sport had ever seen. By the end of Middle School we were already celebrities.

Izumi walked down the hall alongside her childhood friend Hiroki, holding one of her cherished tennis rackets in her hands. They had been told earlier that a pair of reporters were waiting for them outside, obviously wanting an interview. They both knew how important it was for appearances.

Pausing at the door they looked at each other and grinned before stepping outside.

"Oh! Here they come!" they heard one say.

Two men in suits and wearing "Press" arm bands around their arms rushed forward, followed by a photographer. One held up a microphone while the other opened his notebook.

"Takasugi-san! Himuro-san! We have some questions. Do you mind?"

Izumi smiled and politely nodded. From the corner of her eye she saw Hiroki shrug nonchalantly. He personally didn't care about these interviews while she on the other hand didn't mind them so much. It had become a routine after all.

The reporter cleared his throat, "As two teenage star athletes attending sister high school, there have been some rumors about the two of you. That you might be dating."

The two looked at each other and smiled.

It was a natural assumption by all those around us. Here you had a handsome young man who was popular with the ladies and a beautiful young woman who was considered unreachable. We were already stars at an early age, but more importantly we were childhood friends who have known each other all our lives. What person would assume otherwise ?

"The two of you grew up together, right?" the reporter went on, "Some people say that your... boyfriend and girlfriend. Is it true?"

"Well," Hiroki replied in his smooth voice, "Since both Izumi and I have a lot of young fans, I think we'd rather not comment on that right now. Right, Izumi?"

"Yes," she agreed, "I have no comment on that either."

The reporter was disappointed but laughed it off.

"The son of the Takasugi business empire and the daughter of the Chairperson of the Himuro Group. I guess you two thoroughbreds are used to dealing with nosy reporters like us. I hope you don't mind if we take a picture of both of you together."

The photographer stepped and forward and knelt down while the two teens shifted closer to each other. Right after he was finished a black limousine arrived and an attractive older woman stepped out.

"Hey!" said the reporter, "It's Keiko Himuro!"

Izumi felt her eyes harden.

My mother was the President of the Kisaragi Schools back then. She was an ambitious woman who would go to any lengths to accomplish her goals. She was, as many said, a force to be reckoned with.

"Chairperson Himuro!" the reporters rushed over to her, "As the Chair of the Board of Directors for both of the Kisaragi Schools we have some questions for you! Do you think your schools will be at the center of high school sports this year?"

Keiko Himuro, holding a file in her hands, crossed her arms and gave a rather chilling smile to the reporter.

"Oh, yes," she replied in a husky voice, "But perhaps not for the same reasons that you're thinking of now."

Izumi frowned while the reporter looked at her mother in confusion.

She was also known to be very cold and mysterious. It was honestly scary when she was like that.

"Um... what's that mean?" asked the baffled reporter.

The woman let out an amused chuckle, as though she was enjoying this.

"Let's just say that I'll be making an interesting announcement in a few days."

Izumi heard herself gasp.

"An announcement? Wh-What is it?"

Her mother said no more and left the reporters behind. She passed by Izumi and Hiroki without giving them a glance.

There was a look in her eyes I had never seen before. Already I was worried.

"They say that Himuro-san is a real tigress when it comes to attacking the status quo," Izumi heard one of the reporters say, "If she says that it's interesting that mean there's going to be fireworks."

"Yeah," said the other, "We better not take our eyes off her."

Izumi followed her mother inside the school building.

"Mother?"

Keiko stopped before her office door.

"Yes, dear?"

She ignored the impatient tone in her mother's voice.

"Just what kind of announcement were you talking about out there?" she asked as gently as she could.

There was a pause before she said, "It has nothing to do with you, Izumi."

"But-"

"Just play your tennis and don't worry about it."

Her mother went inside her office before Izumi could say anything else.

It was always like this between me and her. For as long I could remember she always held me at a distance, and it wasn't just me. She also treated my father and my two older brothers the very same way, but it was more prominent when it came to me. It wasn't as though she hated me, or even resented me. It was more like she just didn't want anything to do with me. It was as if my very existence bothered her and I couldn't understand why, for I had done nothing to offend her. I felt, as I described it, like a canary in an invisible cage.

Three days later, just as she promised, my mother made her announcement to the Board of Directors. The Kisaragi Girls' School would be forming a girls baseball team. Not Softball. Baseball. What's more, she announced that the team would go all the way to Koshien, the famous baseball stadium in Japan that held the High School National Championship. Naturally this caused quite an uproar. Kisaragi already had a prominent baseball team at the Boys' School. Why did they suddenly need one for the girls? The entire Board said that the very idea was ludicrous, but once my mother made a decision she was dead set on it and nothing would deter her from it. I was just as surprised as everyone else, but at the time I paid it no mind. I did have my tennis to focus on after all. Whatever my mother wanted to do was her business.

Soon after the announcement she began recruiting potential players by offering them scholarships. This only caused more tension between her and the Board. You see, Kisaragi was very much like Kurobara. Before it became co-ed the two schools were separate, and like Kurobara it was a school made for the elites. Only prestigious students attended there and the girls my mother was recruiting were anything but that. For instance, one had been a star track and field athlete before becoming a dropout and living on the streets as a thug. Another was the daughter of a fisherman who had actually played baseball on a boys team until her identity was discovered and she was kicked out. There was also a player who was completely aloof and had a "alien" friend that she always kept with him.

And then there was her...

Izumi was going through an intense practice session. She was facing off against two male players at the same time. Her coach had started this routine as a way to teach how to play doubles effectively, finding gaps and openings and such.

A crowd had gathered to admire the Princess of the Tennis Court, clapping when she hit a smash that bounced over the heads of both players. Then they clapped again when she hit the ball with a backhand slice that tapped the top of the net and sent it in a different direction, taking both players by surprise. The boys were giving it their all but they just couldn't match Izumi's skills. The next serve came fast and to the corner but Izumi was able to return it when a powerful forehand swing that neither boy was able to hit back.

"She's so cool! Go Izumi!" she heard her fans say.

On the next point she hit the ball with a two-handed backhand swing that was so powerful it knocked one of the boy's racket right out of his hand. A slight smug smile came to her lips as she straightened her wrist band. She looked up at the fence and saw Hiroki standing there. She was about to greet him when she realized he was standing beside someone else.

Her name was Ryo Hayakawa, a pretty little thing and very sweet, despite having a temper. She loved the sport of baseball and would soon become the team's ace pitcher. And let me tell you, she threw an incredible fastball that was so fast it was referred to as the Lightning Ball. It was something she inherited from her father. Even the greatest sluggers in the Major Leagues would have a hard time hitting it. She would also become Hiroki's wife several years later, but none of us knew it at the time.

"Hey, look! Who's that strange girl walking with Hiroki?"

"I don't know! I've never seen her before!"

"She was holding Hiroki's hand!"

It wasn't the first time I had seen him with another girl. He was a lady's man after all. It never really bothered me, but on that day something changed. When I saw the way he was looking at her something inside me stirred. For the first time in my life, I was jealous. This had never happened to me before, and I didn't know what to do about it.

"Um, Izumi?"

She looked over to see three of her fans standing there.

"We think we know she is."

"Oh?" Izumi raised a brow, "Tell me."

"Well, okay," one of the girls said in a snooty voice, "We think she might be interviewing for your mom's baseball team."

"Ah," she looked back at the girl who was staring at her with wide eyes.

Then one of the other girls whispered, "Go on! Tell her!"

"Yeah, Izumi! Tell that tramp to keep her hands off Hiroki!"

"Cause if you don't we will!"

The three of them started to move when Izumi gave a sharp, "Hold it!"

They stopped and whirled back around, flinching when they saw her glare.

"Don't you dare embarrass me," she warned, "Got it?"

They lowered their heads in shame and apologized.

Izumi looked back at the girl again. Hiroki said something to her and with a gasp she ran off towards the main school. It seemed that she was late for her interview.

"Hey, wait up! Oh, Izumi!" Hiroki called over to her, "I'll catch you later, okay?"

She gave a quiet nod and watched as he chased after the girl, yelling that she was going in the wrong direction.

Later that day I did something foolish and confronted my mother about her.

"You gave that girl a scholarship!?" said an exasperated Izumi.

Keiko merely looked up from her teacup and raised a brow.

"Now why would I lie to you about such a thing?" she calmly asked.

"But why?" Izumi was trying her best not to sound obvious, "Why would you let that girl enter our school, Mother?"

"And why shouldn't I, dear?"

"Because she's not the right kind of person for this school!"

"No?" her brow rose even higher.

"Of course she's not!" Izumi insisted, "Can't you see? A girl of that sort is going to cause trouble for us! With... you know... boys or something."

Right away she kicked herself for saying too much and looked away, but that only made it even more obvious.

"You're... jealous," she sounded genuinely surprised.

"Of-Of course I'm not!" Izumi sat down on the couch opposite of her, trying to hide her embarrassment, "But why does Kisaragi have to have a girl's baseball team anyway? We already have lots of sports! We have an award winning tennis team! Isn't it enough that your daughter is going to be a star tennis player?"

The moment she mentioned that Keiko looked away.

"I bought a different kind of cake," she said after a while, "Have some."

This was the part of her that irritated me the most. Whenever I talk about myself or my accomplishments she would just ignore me. It was as if she didn't even want to acknowledge that I had done things that would normally make a mother proud.

"Mother!" Izumi raised her voice, "Please, get real! There's no way a girls baseball could compete at Koshien Stadium anyway!"

Keiko stood up stiffly, turning away from her.

"I've never stopped you from pursuing your own dream at tennis, Izumi," she then turned to face her, "But this baseball team is mine!"

She left the office, leaving Izumi alone to ponder.

And so the days passed. More players were recruited, the baseball team grew, and the girls were accepted into our school despite all the objections from the Board. A couple of our own students also joined the team including the Principal's daughter, although she had to keep a secret for a time since her father was against the team.

One day Hiroki took me out to see an opera performance that his father was sponsoring. Neither of us were interested but we had to go because we were expected to make an appearance. We were bored by the end of the first act and left early. Then Hiroki suddenly told me to take a cab and left me behind. I could see that there was something bothering him so I followed instead.

To my surprise he went to Ryo's place, an Oden shop that her mother owned and ran by herself with her daughter usually helping out after school. I later learned from Hiroki that he had first met Ryo when he saw her pitching and challenged her. He was able to hit her pitch at the cost of shattering his bat. She became injured in the process and he carried her home. From that moment on he was enamored by her and he enjoyed teasing her by calling her "The Tofu Girl", which she hated.

I followed them to the baseball field where she often practiced and while hiding I listened in on their conversation.

"I've been getting the feeling that you've been trying to avoid me lately."

"It's not like that! I just..."

Hiding behind the wall near home plate Izumi, still dressed in her formal gown, listened to what Hiroki and Ryo were saying. She heard two different forms of footsteps. It sounded like Hiroki had started to approach the poor girl and she had backed away.

"That's sure looks like avoiding to me," she heard him say.

"I just don't want... Izumi to misunderstand our relationship."

"To misunderstand?"

"Uh... yes. I mean, you and Izumi are..."

"Engaged? You actually believe that stupid rumor?"

"Rumor?"

It was a rumor that had been going around for some time, created by our fans who assumed too much. I later learned that some of my fans had approached Ryo and told her to stay away from Hiroki because of our supposed engagement. I wasn't happy about it and I threatened to have them expelled if they ever did something like that again.

"Yeah," Hiroki laughed, "I've never been that serious with anyone, let alone Izumi. I mean, our parents are great friends and we practically grew up together. Izumi's... well, she's more like a sister to me. I love her, dearly, but not in the way you're thinking."

"I see."

The thing was, I already knew this. I had always known how he really felt about me, but deep down I was still hoping, even praying, that one day he would see me as more than just a friend. However, I also had to accept the possibility that Hiroki may never see me that way. As much as I loved him I had to respect his feelings. I already suspected that he had become smitten with Ryo and I was prepared to move on if he did confess his feelings to her, but then everything changed when I discovered the real reason why my mother was so obsessed with creating this baseball team.

After brushing her teeth Izumi was ready to go to bed. She passed by her mother's private study and noticed that the door was and that the light was on. She peeked inside and saw her mother dozing in a chair.

"Oh, it's just you, Mother," she came in and quietly approached, noticing how peaceful she looked when she slept, "Why can't you smile at me like that?"

She picked up a blanket and covered her mother's body.

"Sweet dreams, Mom."

She turned to leave but stopped when she saw a locket lying on the table. She knew right away it was her mother's. Without even thinking she picked it up.

"I've never seen this one before."

Then, whether by her hand or by some mysterious force, the locket opened.

Inside was a picture of a young man in a baseball jersey.

Naturally the first thing that went through my mind was that my mother was having a secret affair, and this man was her lover. I went to bed that night with that locket held tightly in my hand. Who was this man? And why did she have a picture of him?

The next day I spoke to our butler. He had known her since she was a child and I knew that he knew all her secrets, but he was very loyal to her and would not say a word no matter how hard I tried. I then spoke to the baseball coach, a sleazeball and a bit of a drunk but a good coach nonetheless. Since he and my mother knew each other I imagined he would know who this man was. He didn't tell me, but he did reveal something that completely shocked me. The picture in the locket had been taken over twenty years ago. This left me mystified. Why would my mother be carrying such an old picture of her lover?

While this was all happening Ryo was trying to persuade me to join the baseball team. By this time the team was almost complete, but they were still short one player and they needed another power hitter. They also needed someone to fill the fourth position of their lineup, the cleanup batter. They were about to have their very first practice game and they were growing desperate. I was the only candidate capable of filling that position and so Ryo reluctantly approached me. Obviously I scoffed at the very idea of giving up tennis for baseball but she was persistent, and it was because of her that I would finally found out who the man was.

Izumi sat alone on the bench, looking at the locket that was cradled in her hands. The last two days had been torture for her.

Who the hell is he? I can't ask my mother. This is driving me crazy!

"Himuro-san?"

She looked over to see Hayakawa standing there. Immediately she became annoyed.

"What do you want now?" she said impatiently.

"Actually, I was kind of hoping I could talk to you about joining our baseball team again."

Izumi almost growled, "I already told you no."

"I know that, and I also know how outrageous it is to ask such an excellent tennis player like you to join us. I know I'm completely out of line, Himuro-san! But I know you can do it and I've got no choice but to ask you!"

She finally lost her patience, "And I'm completely sick of your nonsense!"

"Yes, I know," Hayakawa calmly replied as Izumi stood from the bench, "but you're not going to scare me off so easily, Himuro-san. I won't go away until you at least talk to me in a civil fashion."

Izumi glared at her. How did this girl get under her skin so easily?

"Don't you know when to quit?" she spat.

"No," the girl smiled proudly, "That's one of my good points!"

"Why won't you just leave me alone?!"

She held up her hands innocently, "Not until you listen to me."

"I got bigger problems! Go away!"

She slapped Hayakawa's arms away and the locket went flying out of her hand. It opened as it hit the ground. The girl reached down and picked it up.

"Here, I don't think it's-" suddenly she gasped and looked closer at the picture, "Dad?"

Izumi froze and everything went silent. The world swayed as she repeated the word in her head.

"Wh-What did you just say?" she gasped.

Hayakawa stepped closer, holding up the locket.

"This is my father," she explained, "Why do you have his picture?"

I didn't answer her. I snatched the locket from her hand and ran straight to my mother's office. It was time I finally got some answers.

Keiko heard the commotion outside her office doors before they were flung open by none other than her daughter.

She'd been expecting this. The moment she woke up and found that her locket was missing she suspected that Izumi might have it and had seen the picture. It was only a matter of time before she discovered who it was and confronted her.

"Izumi-san!" her butler came into view, "What is the meaning of this intrusion?"

Her daughter's eyes narrowed, never leaving her face.

"I have something to ask my mother," she coldly declared.

Keiko nodded, "Let her in, and shut the doors."

"As you wish, Madam," the butler allowed Izumi to enter before closing the doors, leaving them alone together.

She clasped her hands together and placed them under her chin as Izumi approached.

"What do you want to talk about, Izumi?"

Her daughter placed the locket on her desk, opening it to reveal the picture she had held close to her heart for so long.

"I want you to explain this," she said, "I also want the truth. The whole entire truth. No games, no lies."

She looked at the picture then back up to her.

"What do you want me to explain?" she asked.

Izumi slammed her hands on her desk.

"I told you not to play games with me!" she snatched up the locket, shoving it into her face, "I know who this is. It's Ryo Hayakawa's father. From twenty years ago! Now why do you have it? Answer me, Mother!"

A long moment passed as Keiko thought back to those days.

"He was... the spring of my youth," she said, "His name was Hidehiko Hayakawa. When I met him he was a promising young pitcher who had just joined a professional baseball team after an extraordinary victory at Koshien. The two of us... dated for about two years."

She went silent after that.

"And then what?" Izumi impatiently asked.

"That's all."

Her daughter's eyes narrowed into shards.

"You're lying."

"No, I'm not. After we broke up... I never saw him again. He passed away ten years ago."

But she could see that Izumi didn't believe her.

"No, you're definitely lying. There's more. I can see it in your eyes. Why can't you, just for once, be honest with me? With anyone? Why do you always have to keep everything a secret? You still love him, don't you?"

Keiko sighed deeply, "Yes."

"More than father?"

She flinched, but said, "Yes."

"If you loved him that much why did you break up with him?" Izumi's eyes then went wide, "You didn't break up, did you? He left you, and you still haven't gotten over it."

A chill went down her spine but she kept her composure by placing her hands on her desk.

"It doesn't matter anymore," she said bitterly, "He's gone. Nothing will change that. But when I saw his daughter pitching I decided that I wanted to see her standing on the mound at Koshien. Just like her father."

"No!" Izumi snapped, "That's not what this is about and you know it! This whole baseball team is nothing but an excuse to get close to his daughter, because she's the child of the man you love! You're using her for your own selfish desires!"

She flinched as though Izumi had actually struck her. She never imagined that her daughter could be so sharp.

"I have nothing more to say to you," she said.

"You mean there's nothing more you will say," Izumi was breathing heavily now, "You've said enough anyway. You've kept this picture all these years, kept secrets from your own family. You establish a baseball team and then you bring his daughter here to this school!" she turned away, unable to look at her, "I understand it all now, why you've always kept us at arms length. Why you can't stand the sight of me! My father, my brothers, myself, we all love you so much! Yet you won't return any of it because you gave it all away to that man!"

"N-No," Keiko's voice shook, "You know that's not true."

"Then where's the proof?!" Izumi whirled back around and waved a hand, "Look at your desk! It's completely bare! There's not a single picture of me, my brothers, or your husband! None! There's not a single picture of us! Your own family! The family you and father created! Together!"

The tears finally came and she turned for the door.

"I didn't want to believe it, but now it's obvious. You don't love us, you never have, because we're not the family you wanted."

Keiko felt as though her heart was being pulled out.

"I don't think you can understand," she choked, "Not right now."

"How could I understand! You treat my father and my brothers as though they don't exist while you've kept a set of bars between us my entire life! All I ever wanted was for you to acknowledge me. As your daughter! To be proud of me! To give me love and support like a mother should! But you just can't do it, can you? Because you don't see me as your daughter! All I am is just a canary in an invisible cage."

Keiko could only watch as Izumi opened the door.

"I used to think you were an extraordinary person, someone I could look up to, but now I see you for who you truly are. You're nothing but a cold, selfish, unloving coward who's still stuck in the past! I'm ashamed to call you my mother. You don't love me. You love his daughter. It's her that you want as your child. Not me."

The poor girl left and all Keiko could do was sit there with her face in her hands.