Prince Of Tennis Fan Fiction ❯ When Tezuka Had Fallen For Her ❯ Act iii ( Chapter 3 )

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Author's Note: Yay, Act iii! Listen, I'm really afraid that you might feel bored, so I'm not making chapters too long. But this one will be quite longer than the first two chapters. But don't worry, I'd made it as short as possible, just for the sake of your enjoyment, guys. Thanks for reading!

 

Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I don't own PoT; just wishing that I do.

 

 

^_^

 

 

Please REVIEW.

 

 

 

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“In the end, neither Tezuka nor Ryuzaki-sensei ever showed up,” said Eiji to Oishi, as the two of them emerged from the clubhouse after they changed into their school uniforms.

 

“I know, I know!” said Oishi tersely, looking as though he might die in nerves.

 

“Calm down,” piped up Fuji as he caught up with them with his ever-closed eyes and wan smile. “You're overreacting, Oishi.”

 

Oishi looked at him incredulously. “Overreacting? Why, it's our Buchou and coach that are missing!”

 

Fuji caught Eiji's eye and both of them fell silent; nobody can calm their Fukubuchou when he is in a frenzy.

 

Oishi was so much busy worrying that he didn't even notice when they entered the building, and are already walking along the senior's floor corridors. It was Eiji's voice that snapped him sharply out of his deep reverie.

 

“Ryuzaki-sensei!” came the voice of the redhead, causing him to look up quickly.

 

Indeed, Ryuzaki Sumire's form bobbed in from the crowd of seniors filling the hallway, though something is definitely wrong about her. She was not holding her usual composed expression, but an exhausted, worried one that Oishi often sees when something is terribly not right. The sight did nothing but deepen his anxiety.

 

The coach looked at their direction and seemed to jolt at the form of three of her club members.

 

“Eiji! Oishi! Fuji!”

 

“Why aren't you at practice, sensei?” Oishi said at once as Sumire approached them. “Is there something wrong? Where's Tezuka?”

 

“Get a grip on yourself, Oishi,” said Sumire, then blinked blankly. “Wait, what do you mean, `Where's Tezuka'?”

 

Oishi merely gaped at her, his mouth slightly open. It was Fuji who answered the hanging question.

 

“Is Tezuka not with you, sensei?” he said calmly. Miraculously, he wasn't smiling anymore.

 

“What?” the old woman said in confusion. “I don't know where he is. Did he attend club practice?”

 

“No,” said Eiji, for the first time sounding a bit worried. “We thought you were together, nya.”

 

“How can that happen?” said Sumire, her brows contracting in confusion. “Hadn't he contacted any of you?”

 

“I tried a while ago,” said Oishi. “But he won't answer it.”

 

Sumire looked as though she was fighting the urge to run her hands on her hair in frustration. “Now this is what I just need, another missing charge. Try to get in touch with him again at break.”

 

The school bell suddenly rang to announce the beginning of first period classes, making the coach jump in surprise.

 

“Quick, you three! You're late. Meet me at lunch.”

 

Before any of the three regulars could reply, she had already dashed off to the direction of the faculty room.

 

“Wait,” said Eiji to Fuji, as the two of them ran to their class, Oishi already having entered the first classroom (he was on a different section from them), “did sensei say `another' missing charge?”

 

 

 

 

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“Please wait here, Harinozuka-san,” the seemingly friendly secretary told Ringo, before disappearing from behind the principal's office door.

 

Ringo sat nervously on the couch. This is a lucky day, she thought sarcastically. My uniform is wet and muddy, and I'm late in our meeting. So much for a good impression; I even fixed my hair this morning. She reached a hand to her damp pale-brown hair in irritation.

 

Her eyes then fell on her lap, where she had neatly folded Tezuka's blazer. I hope Tezuka-senpai had made it to class. He even forgot to get his blazer from me.

 

She observed the uppercase letters spelling the word SEIGAKU across the backside of the blue-and-white garment. Beneath the highlighted letters were a set of small characters that read TENNIS CLUB.

 

Interesting…

 

She looked up as the door swung open again to reveal the friendly secretary.

 

“You may enter now,” she said, standing aside to give her access to the door.

 

“Hai, desu.”

 

Ringo stood up and made her way to the door, only to meet the secretary's rather curious stare. She realized that she was looking at the blazer in her arms.

 

“Where did you get that Seigaku blazer?” she asked, pointing at it.

 

“A senpai lent it to me,” Ringo said cheerfully.

 

“Oh, I see,” the older woman said, smiling. “I was just curious. I am a fan of the boys' tennis team in this school, you see. But as the principal's secretary I must look authoritative, don't I? Unfortunately I can't just jump in front of them and ask their autograph. ” Her eyes began to look dreamy at that moment.

 

“Are they good?” asked Ringo.

 

“Why yes, they are!” said the secretary excitedly. “They had just won the District and Kantou Tournaments! Sugoi, ne?”

 

“Impressive,” agreed Ringo.

 

“Of course it is!” said the woman eagerly. Only did she calm down when someone from inside the open door cleared his throat loudly, as if reminding her that she is still on earth.

 

“Oh, get inside now, Harinozuka-san,” she said quickly, blushing in embarrassment. “Principal's waiting.”

 

Ringo gave her an understanding smile before entering the Principal's office, and she felt her nervousness return in an instant.

 

She found herself in a medium-sized air-conditioned room, with an office desk positioned before the blinded windows. An old man in a suit was seated behind the study desk. She supposed that the man is none other than Seishun Gakuen's Principal, as he was the sole person in the room.

 

“Good morning, Harinozuka Ringo-san,” the man said, smiling kindly. “Welcome to Seishun Gakuen Middle School, or you may call as Seigaku. My name is Takeuchi Yagami, as you can see.” He extended a hand to indicate the name plaque on his desk, where his name was engraved in elaborate letters. “I am the principal of this school.”

 

“Good morning, Principal Takeuchi,” Ringo said as she sat on the chair before him self-consciously.

 

“What happened to you?” Principal Takeuchi asked concernedly, spotting what a mess she is.

 

“Ah…it's hard to explain,” said Ringo sheepishly. “But to make it short, I…err…slipped.” Of course it was a stupid lie. Who would just slip and get wet from head to foot? It was a sunny day, so the roads aren't wet.

 

Takeuchi seem to be thinking along the same lines as well, but he thought the better of it. Instead, he said worriedly, “Would you like to go to the school clinic and get yourself checked up?”

 

“No, no, I'm alright, principal,” said Ringo reassuringly.

 

“Are you sure?”

 

“Definitely.”

 

“Well, if that so, then it's alright for you not to go to the clinic anymore. However, we can't let you sit in class dripping wet. I say you ask my secretary, Ayako-san, to fetch you a spare set of uniform.”

 

“Thank you, Principal.”

 

“Don't mention it, Harinozuka-san. I hope you find our school facilities as satisfying as those in United Kingdom, where I believe you came from?”

 

Ringo nodded in reply.

 

“Also, Seigaku is a largely populated school, so don't you worry; you'll find friends as soon as you step out of here. You won't have trouble in directions, then. Furthermore, club membership is required in our curriculum, so you ought to decide which club you wish to join within this week. There is quite a great variety of clubs to choose from.”

 

“Yes, Principal.”

 

“So, we already had enough for this brief introduction! I don't want you to completely miss your first period, do I? Unless you have any questions, Harinozuka-san, you may go now and join your new classmates.”

 

Ringo stared at the smiling principal with confusion. “Er…Principal?”

 

“Yes, Harinozuka-san?”

 

“Aren't you going to ask for my papers and everything?”

 

“Ah,” the old man said, his fatherly grin widening. “Ryuzaki-sensei had fixed the papers with me just a while ago.”

 

“Oh…what?” said Ringo, not quite registering what has been said. “But…how? I mean…she doesn't have any of my documents…”

 

Takeuchi chuckled good-naturedly. “You're quite a matured child, aren't you? Worrying about adult stuff like papers and all…” he said. “You should change to your uniform now, or you might catch cold.”

 

And with that, he raised a hand to dismiss a still-confused Ringo.

 

 

 

 

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“Okay class, we will pause from our discussion for a while for a very important announcement,” said the teacher suddenly, which brought the 2-D class out of Dreamland.

 

Momoshiro Takeshi, with his mouth still bulging with food, was forced to look up from his bento box, which was hidden from the teacher's view by his History book. Amane-sensei, the infamous History teacher, rarely stops from droning on and on about historic wars that no one is interested in, unless if it was a matter between life and death.

 

“I am glad to say that today you will have a new classmate. I hope you welcome her warmly and make her feel at ease.”

 

The class murmured in excitement as a girl entered the room and came into a halt in front of them.

 

“Hi, my name is Harinozuka Ringo, thirteen years old. I just came from United Kingdom to live here in Kantou temporarily. It's nice meeting you all, and I hope we become good friends.”

 

Momoshiro blinked. She had long hazelnut hair and dark brown eyes, and is quite too short for her age. She looked like a freshman, he thought, while stuffing more rice balls in his mouth. I think she's around Echizen's height. But in fairness, she's pretty.

 

He hadn't paid attention when Amane-sensei greeted and introduced himself to the new girl named Harinozuka and assigned her a seat, and didn't realize that she would be sitting right next to him until she had already placed herself in the desk by his right.

 

“Okay,” said Amane-sensei, clearing his throat. “Class, you can lend your notes to Harinozuka-san during your free time for her to be able to catch up with our discussion. Back to the lesson, then. As what I had said earlier, during the Tokugawa Era…” And the class went back to its usual stupor.

 

Momo noticed that Harinozuka was looking over at his bento box curiously. He smiled at her widely, then saw something in her that caught his interest. She was holding a Seigaku jersey. He took a quick glance at the teacher in front, then, seeing he is too busy to look at his direction, wrote something in a piece of paper from his notebook, crumpled the paper, and threw it at the girl, who caught it by surprise. He watched her as she straightened the paper and read his note:

 

Yo, my name is Momoshiro Takeshi, but you can call me Momo—almost everyone does. Please don't tell Amane-sensei that I'd been smuggling my lunch during his period. I just can't wait for lunchtime, and I don't like History that much.

 

Harinozuka smirked and hastily wrote her reply, then threw it back at Momo. He opened it eagerly.

 

Hi Momo! Don't worry, I understand you completely; I know History is boring. By the way, just call me Ringo…I'm not used at being addressed by my surname.

 

The paper was crumpled and thrown again at Ringo's desk.

 

No problem, Ringo. But I'm just curious…where did you get that Seigaku jersey? You know, I belong to the Seigaku Tennis Club.

 

The note was thrown to the other side again and vice versa.

 

A certain senpai had the kindness to lend it to me, because I had wet my uniform a while ago. And did you say you're in the tennis club? That's cool!

 

The crumpled paper traveled back and forth.

 

Wow, thanks for saying I'm cool. And who is this senpai who lent you his jersey?

 

There and back again.

 

He said his name is Tezuka Kunimitsu. Do you know him?

 

Momoshiro did a double take as he read her reply.

 

What?! Buchou?

 

Ringo looked at him blankly once she received his note and was about to reply when the school bell rang, signaling the end of the first period.

 

 

 

 

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“Excuse me…let me through…sorry…”

 

Oishi wound through the jam-packed cafeteria, not caring a bit even if his shoes were already filthy after a series of attacks from other students' feet, and even if he had tripped for what seemed to be the hundredth time. All he thought was to get straight to the tall figure that stood out among the crowd, who was making his way out of the cafeteria.

 

“Tezuka!”

 

The tall figure swiveled at his direction, wearing his usual impassive expression. He watched as Oishi came to him.

 

“Y-You're here!” the fukubuchou wheezed, his face breaking into a strained smile. “I was worried sick when you didn't attend our morning practice.”

 

“Don't worry, Oishi,” Tezuka said. “My absence won't go overlooked. I shall make sure I would pay the consequences. I'll run fifty laps during practice later.”

 

Oishi blinked at him, then allowed himself a little laugh. “That's not what I'm talking about, Tezuka.”

 

The captain continued to stare at him calculatingly. That was one of the reasons why people shy away at his presence; he always had that shrewd, unfriendly look on him. However, the Seigaku team was an exception to this. That is just what Tezuka Kunimitsu is like, and they accept the way he is.

 

“Anyway, why aren't you at practice? Did something happen?”

 

Tezuka didn't immediately reply, but continued his way out to the school grounds. Oishi, clearly used to this treatment, silently followed him.

 

“By the looks of it, something did happen.”

 

“Nothing so important,” said Tezuka indifferently.

 

“But it caused you delay, and that means something,” said Oishi, somewhat slyly. “I know you; you don't just let things ruin your schedule.”

 

There was a short pause.

 

“What did Ryuzaki-sensei say?” Tezuka asked, ignoring his compliment. Oishi decided not to push the subject further. It is very unwise to piss Tezuka Kunimitsu.

 

“Well, she wasn't at practice either,” he said in wonder. “I think she had gone to an urgent errand. But of course, she was a little frustrated to find that you were absent.”

 

“I'll apologize to her.”

 

They continued walking in comfortable silence. On their way to the school building, though, they bypassed the tennis courts, and familiar voices reached their ears together with the sound of the tennis ball hit back and forth.

 

“Ryoma-sama!!!” said a screechy girl's voice loudly.

 

“T-Tomo-chan…” replied a second girl's voice, though hers was soft and tentative.

 

“You can't watch quietly, can you?” said an annoying boy's voice irritably.

 

The two seniors turned to see the freshmen standing before the fence that enclosed the tennis courts. The first girl to talk was Tomoka, the self-proclaimed president of Ryoma's Fan Club, and beside her stood Ryuzaki Sakuno, a shy girl whose long red hair was braided and who also happened to have a big crush on the freshman regular. The owner of the annoying voice was Horio Satoshi, who stood out from other freshmen in the tennis club because of his bright green orange-striped shirt. Kato Kachiro and Mizuno Katsuo, two other freshmen who joined the boys' tennis club, flunked Horio as usual, wearing helpless expressions as Tomoka and Horio began to bicker again.

 

“Oishi senpai! Buchou!” said Kachiro as he spotted them, thankful of having found a way to disrupt the heated discussion.

 

Oishi raised a hand in greeting, smiling as the freshmen bowed to them. Tezuka, as usual, didn't show any sign of recognition, but otherwise he looked at the kouhais.

 

“Who're you watching?” asked the fukubuchou, as he and Tezuka approached the underclassmen and looked over at the courts.

 

“Ryoma-kun and Momo-chan-senpai are having a practice match,” replied Sakuno, her eyes glinting in excitement.

 

Indeed, Ryoma and Momo were having a match on Court D. It looked like it was now Ryoma's turn to serve. He did his very infamous stance, and hit the tennis ball skillfully with his Twist Serve.

 

“Twist Serve!” the freshmen shouted in unison.

 

The ball was so fast that it was barely seen as it traveled over the net to the ground before Momo, who had a smirk on his face as he prepared to receive Ryoma's serve. The ball landed before him, and it had been a split-second before it bounced off sharply towards him. Any player would have been tricked by the ball's delayed bounce, but Momo wasn't just any player. Why, he is the rascal player of Seigaku, and a twist serve is not enough to intimidate him.

 

He quickly raised his racket before his face. Twist Serves are aimed on your face. As expected, he ball made contact with his racket.

 

Ha!—

 

But no, the force of the ball was great—in fact, so great that it caught Momo off guard. His racket flew off his hand, and the ball soared past the side of his face, grazing his cheek. There was a rattling sound as the yellow-green ball hit the fence boarders, together with a faint clatter as Momo's racket landed two feet from him.

 

“Yay!” exclaimed Tomoka, jumping up and down on the spot. “That's my Ryoma-sama!”

 

“Sugoi Echizen!” said Horio happily, in a voice as loud as Tomoka's.

 

That Twist Serve is much sharper than the usual, thought Tezuka, as he watched the freshman dig a hand in his pocket to get another ball.

 

“Service Ace! Fifteen-Love, Echizen to serve,” announced a voice.

 

“What? There's an umpire?” said Oishi, surprised, looking over at the high chair along the side of the court. “Who could it be?”

 

Tezuka looked at the high seat as well, and his mind did a double take as he recognized the girl sitting on the umpire's seat. Even his face betrayed his emotion—his mouth had fallen slightly open.

 

 

It was Harinozuka Ringo.

 

 

 

 

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Author's Note: At last, I finished it!!! I was too busy doing school stuff that I didn't have time to finish this! Sorry for the delay! And….THANK YOU SO MUCH for the reviews…I really appreciated it! XD…Please Review, for those who had just read this. I want to know if I would continue doing this! Bye!!!!