Cruising Together

Chapter Three

“I wonder what they’re talking about,” Kawamura asked out loud making the rest of the players look to the direction where and were standing.

Fuji turned his attention to the new comer who sat beside him.

“So how are you Echizen-san?”

“Not too bad. Oh! Can I have that?”

“Sure…” Fuji reluctantly said since Ryoga had already taken a stab at Fuji’s grilled chicken.

“She doesn’t look too happy,” Ootori noted when raised both of her hands at who just twirled her hair and smiled.

“That’s how they you usually are,” giggled as she took ’s previous seat and took a bite out of her plate of food.

“ ! Get the hell off of my seat!” barked at the younger girl from behind. immediately stood up with a piece of spaghetti hanging off the side of her mouth.

“Now now , there is no need to-”

“You! Sit down and zip it!” ordered to who looked surprised but obediently took a seat that Jackal offered her.

Silence filled the tables where the players were sitting. Nobody dared to make a noise that might anger the girl who sat on her seat and continued with her meal.

“-chan! How about a little stroll after lunch?” Ryoga asked cheerfully from the other table. His eyes met ’s glare and his face immediately showed fear. He turned his head towards who just shrugged and smirked. patted Ryoga on the back to try and comfort the boy. Ootori gave a nervous glance at the fuming girl sitting beside him. Shishido raised an eyebrow while taking a sip of his pineapple juice.

“So… How is that kid doing?” asked while casting a nervous glance at .

“Echizen? Well, we haven’t heard from him either,” Kawamura replied with a sheepish grin.

“Oh? Chibisuke? He’s sleeping in his room. What happened to him anyways? He’s lazier than usual,” Ryoga asked while shifting an eye to who completely ignored him.

“Long story short, the brat almost drowned because of that guy,” Shishido pointed at Inui. Inui continued to carefully eat his greens and stared innocently at everybody’s accusing eyes.

“Oy oy, you’re kidding right? I thought you guys were supposed to take care of him,” Ryoga chuckled but was quickly silenced when he saw that everybody on the table had serious faces on. He shook his head in disbelief and decided not to say anything else in case Inui is planning to do something to him as well.

“Is there trouble in paradise for you two?” Oshitari dared to ask. stopped mid way from her eating to glare at the blue haired kansai.

“You don’t seem to happy that -chan is trying to get you two to hang out,” Gakuto added. Ryoga took a glance at , who dropped her fork and stood up from the table.

“Excuse me,” mumbled and quickly walked away from the group.

“Oy! I’ll accompany you!” Ryoga yelled out and chased after the angry girl. The rest of the boys and the two girls watched as Ryoga tried to put and arm around ’s shoulder which she immediately rejected and continued to stomp off.

“Are you sure that they are going out?” Marui inquired. The rest of the boys were equally confused to the scene that was portrayed to them.

“It’s a long story,” sighed dramatically. glanced nervously at the older girl. She knew that was ready to have one of her overly exaggerated story and have the boys hang on to every word that she says.

“Well, it all started when-”

“I do not think it is polite to speak about Kuroban-san’s past when she is obviously unhappy about the situation,” Tezuka interjected causing the girl and the rest of the boys to look at Tezuka in disbelief. It was rare to have Tezuka to interrupt anybody that was speaking.

“It is not very classy for somebody to be gossiping about another person in high society,” Atobe smirked while running his hand through his hair. glared at both Tezuka and Atobe. She felt embarrassed to be targeted and ridiculed in front of a large group of people.

“Yamashina-san, we are not trying to be hurtful. We are just trying to be respectful towards others,” Sanada reasoned to the fuming girl.

“L-let’s just finish our lunch and get back to our training,” Jackal said nervously, casting a glance to the red-faced girl. was debating whether to comfort the girl or let her be just in case snaps at her.

“After lunch, maybe you two can come and watch us practice,” Fuji suggested nicely. smiled and looked to with hopeful eyes. ’s face lit up slightly and tossed her hair to the side.

“Or you can come watch us train, it would be a lot more interesting compared to theirs,” Kirihara challenged Fuji who just smiled sweetly.

“-chan, I think it would be nice if you joined our training for today,” Ohtori smiled. immediately blushed at the invitation from the taller boy. cleared her throat and rose from her seat.

“Thank you for your invitations, but we will reject it for now. We will see you all for dinner,” said. She took a hold of ’s hand and began drag the younger girl away. was obviously confused and annoyed that she is being pulled away from Ohtori but did not argue since was not in the mood to be pitied by the boys.

“See you later…” Ohtori waved to as the two girls disappeared.

“What’s wrong with her?” Shishido sniffed.

“She’s probably just annoyed that all the attention is being concentrated on and ,” Oshitari concluded as he adjusted his glasses.

“Who would want to pay attention to somebody so fake?”

The boys all turned around to see that Jirou had was the one who had said the line.

“She was obviously jealous too,” he added, “Yuushi! I want that piece!”

Oshitari sighed as Jirou took a jab at his barbequed steak and happily chewed. He was not somebody that would judge another person out loud let alone in front of a large group of people.

“We shall return to our practice schedule now. We will see you all later for dinner,” Tezuka said as he stood up from his seat and signaled the rest of the Seigaku members to follow him.

 “Sanada, we have to go too if we want to keep to our schedule,” Renji suggested. Sanada nodded in agreement and bowed to the Hyoutei team. The Rikkai Dai team also left the table to return to their training. Atobe raised an eyebrow.

“Nobody gets ahead of ore-sama. Let’s go Kabaji.”

“Usu.”

~~~

“Aw come on !”

ignored Ryoga’s complains and continued walking ahead of the older boy. She pressed the elevator button and waited patiently for it to stop on their floor.

“ made me do it!” Ryoga pleaded. He tried to give her his puppy dog eyes which clearly were working as tried to hide a smile. She was not surprised that had managed to out wit him into joining her little scheme. The elevator bell rand signaling its arrival. and Ryoga both went inside and the elevator doors closed.

“Where are we going?” Ryoga asked.

“I want to check up on this boy that almost drowned today,” replied.

“You mean my little brother? Bah! He should be fine. He’s stronger than he looks,” Ryoga said.

“I am surprised that you had a little brother and you never told me,” said. The elevator doors opened letting the two out. They walked down the well-lit hallway and stopped in front of Ryoma’s designated room. Ryoga knocked on the door and waited for an answer. stood behind the taller boy as the door opened.

“Yo, egghead! How’s chibisuke?” Ryoga greeted. elbowed him and gave an apologetic smile to Oishi.

“How is the little guy doing?” asked politely.

“He’s napping right now. He just needs some rest,” Oishi replied with a small smile.

“You should go and get something to eat. What is your name? I don’t think we have introduced ourselves before you left to help Echizen-kun,” asked.

“Oh I am sorry! Oishi Syuichirou, vice-captain of the Seigaku tennis team,” Oishi quickly bowed.

“Kuroban . Nice to meet you Oishi-san. You can go get some lunch while Ryoga-kun and I stay and watch his little brother,” suggested. Oishi nodded gratefully. He allowed and Ryoga to enter and took his cell phone before he left the room.

“I will be back in less than fifteen minutes!” Oishi said and closed the door. Ryoga took a seat on a large couch and turned on the television. shook her head and went to see how the younger Echizen was doing. She stood by Ryoma’s bed, where he was curled up and tucked in nicely. He was quietly breathing and his face looked almost angelic. smiled and giggled. Ryoma looked nothing like his older brother, but little did she know that they when they are on the tennis courts, they both have the will and determination to win that their father has passed down to them.

“Ryoga-kun, your little brother looks so cute compared to you,” teased. Ryoga made a face and threw a pillow at her. caught the pillow and took a seat beside Ryoga. The two watched a tennis match in silence as they observed the players. They debated who had the better foot work and serves while trying to keep their voices low in case Ryoma wakes up. The door suddenly opened and five people came into the room.

“Shut up Mamushi! I can beat you in Mario kart!”

“Anything you do, I can do better you stupid powerhouse!”

Momoshiro and Kaidoh were the first to enter since Momo had the key to the room.

“Hoi! You two should be quiet!” Kikumaru interrupted, “You know I can beat BOTH of you in Mario Kart!”

“You guys should really keep your voices down. Echizen’s resting and-” Fuji stopped in mid-sentence to see two pairs of eyes staring back at him.

“Eh? -chan and Echizen-san?” Kawamura said with a confused face. Kikumaru, Kaidoh and Momo stopped arguing to look where said people were sitting. gulped and Ryoga smirked back.

“Do you guys mind? We’re a little busy here,” Ryoga said with an arrogant voice that could compare to Atobe. He put his arm over and pulled her in towards him. rolled her eyes and gently pushed Ryoga away from her, but Ryoga refused to release her.

“Ryoga-kun…” silently growled but he ignored her low threat.

“Echizen-san. I do not think that -chan really appreciates that,” Fuji said and slowly walked up to the two.

“With all do respect Echizen-san, if -chan does not like to be treated like that, please respect her wish,” Kawamura added. Ryoga glared at the younger boys, but eventually let go of . was surprised that Ryoga actually let her go but was even more surprised that these two boys that she has just met were trying to protect her.

“What’s with all the commotion?”

The group turned to see Ryoma sitting on his bed and rubbing his eyes.

“Why is everybody here?” he asked sleepily. Ryoga smiled. He stood up and started to walk towards the door.

“I was just leaving. Call me later . I’ll kick your butt later chibisuke. See you guys later!” Ryoga waved and left the room. sighed.

“Are you alright, -chan?” Kikumaru asked as he jumped on the couch and sat beside her.

“Yes I am alright. Thank you,” she replied back with a smile.

“Is he always like that?” Kawamura asked with a worried look on his face.

“Nah, he’s just being dumb,” rolled her eyes again. She reminded herself to call Ryoga and try to convince him to drop the role of her boyfriend.

“You shouldn’t be going out with a guy like that. He doesn’t seem to respect you very much,” Fuji noted. nodded and looked up to smile at Fuji when she was met with a pair of turquoise colored eyes. She didn’t say anything or more like she couldn’t because she was deep in daze with Fuji. Fuji, who obviously noted that she was staring at him, closed his eyes and smiled. He thought it was cute how she just suddenly went blank after looking at him. shook her and laughed nervously.

“I should really be going. I hope that you feel better, Ryoma-kun,” babbled as she quickly got up and walked towards the door. She almost crashed into Oishi, who has just finished picking up his food from the restaurant.

“Ah! Kuroban-san! I brought some food for you and Echizen-san to thank you for watching Ryoma for me,” Oishi said.

“It’s alright, Oishi-san. Thank you. I have to go and meet up with and . I’ll see you all later!” said and sprinted down the hall.

Kikumaru tilted his head in confusion.

“What was THAT all about?” he asked.

“I don’t know,” Oishi replied, equally confused.

“I’ll eat what you bought her, Oishi-senpai!” Momoshiro yelled as he nearly tackled the older student to get to the food.

“You shouldn’t be so disrespectful to Oishi-senpai, stupid,” Kaidoh hissed. The two started another argument and were shoving fists at each others face while Oishi tries to calm the hot-headed boys.

“I wonder why she ran out like that,” Kawamura said.

“Saa…” Fuji smiled. The two stared at the door while Oishi was holding the food above his head so it would not spill as Momoshiro and Kaidoh continued to bicker.

“I am supposed to be resting you guys…” Ryoma mumbled. He sighed and lay back on his bed while covering his head with a pillow to try to block out the commotion that was going on in the room.

~~~

The elevator doors opened and jumped in. She let out a breath of relief after the little staring contest that she had with Fuji. She chuckled to herself as to how she was so easily swooned by a pair of ocean-colored eyes. She decided to go check out the tennis courts to help her relax and see if she can reserve a court to practice for later. The elevator stopped on the second upper deck where the tennis courts were located. She stepped out of the elevator and walked towards the end of the hall where the tennis courts were. She was immediately swallowed by the sounds of tennis balls bouncing and hitting against people’s racquets. She smiled and followed the sound where she arrived to the entrance for the courts. She opened the doors and was greeted with an attendant that sat behind a small booth.

“Welcome! Would you like to- Ah! -san! I haven’t seen you for a while! Your father reminded us that you will be arriving earlier than he is and-”

“Shh!!!” quickly covered the attendant’s mouth and looked around her. She released the attendant who fixed his visor and cleared his throat.

“Sorry. Nobody is supposed to know that I am here yet,” said sheepishly. The attendant nodded. These kinds of situation have happened before but he was not aware that was to go under an alias during this trip.

“So, what is your alias this time?” he laughed. sighed.

“Kuroban ,” she mumbled. The attendant nodded again.

“Well then, Kuroban-san. Your court is available as usual. Should I send the waiters to do their other duties so it won’t be obvious?” he asked.

“Yes please,” answered with a small smile. The attendant nodded. thanked the attendant and wandered off to the tennis courts unknowing that a shadowy figure was hiding behind the wall and has heard every word that spoke with the attendant.

~~~

went to one of the private change rooms where her usual tennis clothes were already laid out for her. A freshly ironed white tennis skirt and white sleeveless top to match it were on the table and three of her racquets were beside it, newly strung and ready to be used. A pair of new running shoes fit to her size was on the floor next to the couch which was especially fitted and customized for maximum comfort and mobility for the player. A mini fridge was set up beside the couch that held half a dozen bottles of water and half a dozen sport drinks.

She quickly changed her clothes took a bottle of water from the fridge. She grabbed her tennis racquet and quickly left the change room. After everything that had just happened, all she wanted to do was strangle and Ryoga. She couldn’t wait to get rid of all her frustration by playing tennis.

~~~

The same day, Poseidon’s Grace, second upper deck, tennis courts, court B, 4:42 p.m.

“Come on Niou! Your shots are too easy!” Marui yelled at the younger player.

Niou grinned and returned the next shot close to Marui’s foot. Marui was surprised and jumped up to avoid the shot. Jackal was already behind Marui and returned the shot back to the other side.

“Puri~,” Niou said as Yagyuu returned the shot to Marui and Jackal. Kirihara was playing against Sanada on the court beside them and was panting really hard while Sanada looked fairly composed as he prepared to serve.

“You’re late, Yanagi.”

The data man of Rikkai Dai walked on to the court and nodded to his vice-captain.

“Sorry Sanada. I got lost around the change rooms,” Yanagi apologized.

“No excuses. We may have a game with the other teams soon. Go warm up,” Sanada grunted as he smashed the ball back to Kirihara, who barely returned the shot.

“Hai hai…” Yanagi sighed and slowly started to jog around the court. As he was jogging, he saw a familiar red-haired girl towards where he was warming up. He smiled and decided to drop by and say hello.

“Hello Kuroban-san,” Yanagi said politely.

“Oh! Hey, err… Yanagi-san?” asked slowly not wanting to insult him.

“Yes you are correct. Kuroban-san, or should I say -san,” Yanagi smiled.

froze on the spot. She chuckled nervously and smiled back at the data man.

“What are you talking about Yanagi-san. You know that my name is Kuroban. I never told you that my name was-”

“Indeed. You never told us your name. Yamashina-san introduced you to us. I presume that she was the one who have thought of the name and the whole situation between you and Echizen-san,” Yanagi concluded. remained still due to the shock the information that Yanagi has just told her.

“I knew you looked familiar, a 78% chance that I have seen you somewhere, but could not put my finger on it until I overheard your conversation with the attendant,” Yanagi continued, “But I do understand why you do not want to be identified by the other passengers because of your high status. There are many travelers on this ship that want to become potential business partners with your father and would do anything to attain it.”

looked down and nodded and head slowly. Her secret was out and she knew that everybody would be treating her differently from now on. She sighed silently.

“Do not worry,” Yanagi said and put a hand on the girl’s shoulder, “Your secret is safe with me.”

looked up wide-eyed.

“Really?” she asked with a hopeful voice. She did not want to things change with the other players. She knew that her secret would leak out eventually, but she wanted to enjoy it for the time being.

“On one condition,” Yanagi smiled. 's face changed from hopeful to nervous.

‘This man is dangerous’ she thought.

“What is it, Yanagi-san?” asked quietly.

“Do not worry. I am not as sadistic as you think I am,” Yangi’s smile grew even wider. He waved good-bye to the girl and continued with his warm-up. gulped as she watched the Rikkai Dai player take his leave.

‘Are ALL tennis players like this?

~~~

Babybel

Edited by Kashii