Prologue
He stared at the girl dressed in a black dress. She sat on the floor neatly, her hands resting on her lap. Beside her was Nanjirou, his father, and the one closest to Sumire. He had never seen him so serious in his life that he couldn't help but stare.
But what truly caught his attention was Ryuzaki Sakuno.
She didn't have that usual glow about her, and Ryoma knows the obvious reason. It was their coach's funeral, Sakuno's grandmother, her only relative. He looked over his shoulder and watched the loud-mouthed girl walked weakly towards Sakuno. She was visibly in tears as she hugged her friend.
Ryoma watched them for a while, noting the absence of the lively and twinkling spark in the two teenagers' eyes. It was enough to make Ryoma feel like he's in a whole other world suddenly.
The atmosphere was making him uncomfortable that he quietly stood up from his seat and walked out of the room. He felt like he was suffocating in there, so he decided to get some fresh air outside. He took this time to think about Ryuzaki Sakuno.
There, he remembered her first name.
He regarded her as an occasional friend, sometimes popping up on one of his games, other times she's there in the sushi shop with them. Of course, that's because the coach would drag her along, he thought. And sometimes he would be asked to coach her with tennis.
Ryoma knew Sakuno as a timid, yet strongheaded girl when she decides to. How she appeared now was far from her usual demeanor. Ryoma felt his chest tighten, more than being sad because of his coach's departure from the world, he was slightly affected by how the girl felt. He wondered who would be looking after her now that her grandmother is gone.
"Echizen," he heard Fuji call him from behind. A few of the regulars followed behind him and they circled around the boy.
"Hey, Fuji-senpai," he greeted, hands in his pockets.
All of them were as quiet as Tezuka. Losing their best coach was unbearable for all of them. The success of the tennis club wouldn't be possible without Sumire's guidance. It somewhat bore a huge hole in their hearts. But it was inevitable given her age and how she suffered from pneumonia for years. They could only pray for her soul.
"How will Sakuno ever cope from this?" Momoshiro thought out loud. Kaidoh, who was behind him, nodded. It was one of the rare times that they didn't argue. They set aside differences for another day and decided to call it truce in respect for their former coach.
Ryoma turned back and leaned on the railings. His senpais followed suit. They were now a line of guys facing the dark view of the mountain.
"I heard that her parents are already gone," Eiji spoke with a sad voice.
"Really? That's horrible..." Kawamura cried. He was one of the guys who is soft-hearted. And knowing how Sakuno was always helping the team, he felt terrible and restless.
No one said a word after that. The heavy silence muted them.
After a while, they heard a loud cry inside the room. The guys returned and witnessed as Sakuno sobbed in front of the casket. It was the last night of the viewing, and she couldn't contain her sorrow that she needed to let it out one last time. The visitors were crying with her quietly. It can be said that almost all of the people were pitying the now orphaned girl. Ryoma, who was at the back of his senpais stared at her shaking back as Rinko held her.
His family supported the girl the whole days of the funeral. Sakuno's closest friends visited the wake, including the freshmen trio who were obviously not freshmen anymore. Of course, their homeroom teacher knew about this that he didn't mind. He even visited on the first day.
Ryoma looked at his father who was muttering something besides Sakuno. Ryoma couldn't make out the words, but he saw that Sakuno stopped crying and turned to look at the old man with wondering eyes. Ryoma's brow arched in curiosity.
What was that about?
After the cremation, the guests visited the Ryuzaki household. Rinko had prepared a catering for the people since Sakuno is in no condition to even think about that. The girl could only thank the older woman.
"You don't have to worry. We're here for you," she offered words of comfort. Sakuno hugged her like how she would embrace her own mother. Rinko was momentarily surprised, but she returned the warm hug.
Sakuno sobbed against Rinko's chest, seemingly letting out all sorrow and pain brought by her grandmother's passing.
After all the guests left, only Tomoka, the freshmen, the Seigaku regulars and Ryoma's family remained in her house. They were all seated on the living room in a circle. After a few chats, they were able to lift Sakuno's spirits a little. Although she was still devastated over her grandmother's death, she knew that these people will always be there for her.
She looked over to where Ryoma is seated. To her surprise, she met his gaze. Sakuno offered her warmest smile to the boy, and he nodded to her. Sakuno stood up silently without interrupting her friends' chattering and stood in front of Sumire's portrait by the stairs. A tear made its way down her cheeks as she thought about those bittersweet moments by her grandmother's deathbed. She recalled the last words Sumire told her.
"Sakuno, when I'm gone, I want you to move on and live the life you want. I love you so much, my granddaughter."
Sakuno grabbed the portrait and wiped a few dusts from the glass. She smiled, mirroring the person's expression on the picture.
"I love you, too, grandma."
To be continued.