Hapyp spring, numisma!
Title: Baby, it’s fact.
Recipient's name: numisma
Rating: PG
Pairing(s): Kirihara Akaya and Tachibana An
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created by Konomi Takeshi. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
Warnings: Warning for my lame sense of humor.
Author's notes: I hope you like this one, Numi. Thanks P and O for the encouragement and help along the way, oh, and for putting up with my crap.
If there was one thing that Kirihara Akaya knew about women it was that they were evil and manipulative; at least, that’s what Niou-senpai told him that day he had come to practice with a big red mark across his cheek. Of course, he’d already known it was true; his own mother was the Queen of Manipulation. ‘Akaya, you can’t have dessert until you clean the dishes. Akaya, you won’t get your video games back until you finish your homework. Akaya, don’t put glue on the cat’s fur!’ Ok, so that last one didn’t really fit as an example… but he’d never had to deal with a girl his own age that was as scheming until he found himself face to face with Tachibana An, the (cute) younger sister of the Fudomine Tennis Team Captain, victim of Kirihara’s superior tennis skills.
All he’d done was physically collide with her on the street and start a polite conversation (read: harassed her about her team). Not one to let an insult pass, she retorted and accused him of being a dirty slime ball. But strangely, she stopped mid-sentence and stared at him long and hard as if contemplating what to do with him. It unnerved Akaya because a.) Girls did not normally stare at him (as adorable and cute as he was) b.) This particular girl hated his guts and was probably thinking up ways to get him run over by a car and still have it look like an accident. It had only been a few weeks since the Senbatsu training camp and things between them hadn’t exactly gone too well; he was a bit confused as to where this left them.
“What? Is there something hanging out of my nose?” he twitched nervously. As she stood there, Akaya swore he could see gears turning in her head.
Finally, she spoke, “Let’s go on a date!” She had her hip cocked and a grin on her face so bright he almost blurted out ‘yes’ immediately; luckily for him, his common sense and confusion caught up to him.
Unfortunately ‘Huh?’ was the most intelligent thing he could manage as she started pulling him down the street by the hand. He would have chewed his hand off to get it freed from hers but he remembered what Yukimura had been teaching him about self control.
They came to a stop in front of what many players affectionately called “the street courts”, a popular hang out for the local tennis bums. For a second, Kirihara thought he was in love, that is, until he spotted two figures on one of the courts, rallying a ball back and forth. His hand still in her possession, he had no choice but to be dragged over to the two Fudomine players.
Tachibana Kippei and Kamio Akira stopped playing as An greeted them; Akaya wished he could turn invisible with the looks the both of them were throwing him. Tachibana’s was silently inquiring and suspicious; Kamio’s was a bit more vocal.
“What the hell are you doing here?!” he shrieked, nearly throwing his racket down in his quasi-tantrum, “Wha-who- How dare you touch An-chan!”
“Akira, stop,” Tachibana was pretty impressive, Akaya would give him that. The way he was able shut that idiot up with just a word was definitely worth some respect.
“An, what are you doing?” His eyes locked unwaveringly with his sister’s, hidden messages passed between the two that the others would never be able to decipher in a million years.
“I’m on a date,” she smiled sweetly in reply. Kirihara felt particularly smug since she was still holding his hand; Kamio nearly combusted, his face turning even redder than his hair.
“I thought it would be nice if you could have someone else to play against, Onii-chan,” that smile was still plastered to her face as she let go of Akaya’s hand and pushed him forward.
What a scheming minx. But Kirihara’d be crazy to turn down a rematch against Tachibana now that the newly blonde Captain was healed. Besides, he owed Tachibana a chance to try to defeat him and gain back the dignity he no-doubtedly lost.
“Let’s play, Tachibana. That is, unless you’re scared?” he smirked, shrugging his tennis bag off of his shoulder. He’d just come from practice so he was already prepared for a hard match.
“You wish,” Tachibana’s eyes narrowed dangerously.
Those were the same eyes that glared at him from across the net as a ball sped towards Kirihara’s face not ten minutes later. Evidently, this newly reborn Tachibana did not appreciate inattention during a match. Akaya should have seen the ball coming but he was distracted from the match with the action going on off court; that damn redheaded speed freak was sitting with An, obviously trying (and failing) to flirt with her. She only laughed out of pity! Unfortunately, the ball was unforgiving and slammed straight into his face.
Being knocked flat on his back on the tennis court and with a dull throbbing starting in the middle of his forehead that was sure to bruise; Kirihara Akaya didn’t think it was turning out to be a very fun date at all. Sure, tennis was always an awesome way to spend your time but getting pounded in the face by your date’s obviously mentally unhinged brother was not.
“I’m sorry,” Tachibana had crossed over to his side of the net and loomed over him, giving him a cool stare, “but my pride wouldn’t allow me to let what you’ve done to me slide without any retribution. You understand right?” His eyebrow quirked mockingly and he took a step back. Returning his racket to his bag as Akaya to sat up and wobbled to his feet, “This doesn’t make us even, but for now, I’m satisfied,” he sent a meaningful glance toward his sister and motioned for Kamio to join him. The redhead hesitated, looking between his captain, An, and Kirihara before reluctantly, silently following him away from the street courts.
They’d left in such a flurry that Kirihara couldn’t even get a last word. He just stood there, his mouth probably flapping like a goldfish. An patted his shoulder and told him to have a seat while she went somewhere, he wasn’t paying attention; his head was starting to throb and he just slumped down onto the bench.
“Here,” cool, wet metal pressed against Kirihara’s forehead, causing him to flinch and sit up, eyes snapping back open. An had returned, offering him a can of juice. He took it and placed it carefully back up against the bruise forming on his face.
“My brother really got you good, huh?” She smiled pitifully, sitting next to him on the bench, “Sorry about that; sometimes he can be just as petty as everyone else.”
“What, this? This is nothing compared to what my vice-captain can do,” Kirihara laughed it off even though there was probably going to be a huge lump in the morning. He sobered for a moment, feeling the atmosphere turn serious, “I deserved it.”
An ‘hn’ed, either in agreement or sympathy, he wasn’t sure but it really didn’t matter.
“…You can hit me too if you want, I know you wanted to,” they both knew exactly what he was referring to. He glanced over in time to see a pang of guilt flash across her eyes.
“I’m actually glad we ran into each other,” She said softly, opening her own can of juice, distracting her hands, “I’ve been wanting to talk to you since the camp ended but I didn’t have the courage to approach you.” She flicked at the can’s tab and he watched her fingers, waiting for her to continue, “I’m kind of ashamed of my behavior at the camp. I accused you of things and I misjudged you and I’m sorry.”
Out of everything she could have possibly said to him, an apology was not something he was expecting. She had all reason to be suspicious of him at the camp; his track record wasn’t exactly clean and anyone would have been wary of him. Besides, he had nearly wrecked her brother’s tennis carrier; if anyone had any right to hate him, she did.
“You don’t have to do that. Apologize, I mean. I deserved it,” Akaya rolled the slowly warming can across his forehead, looking up at it and not at her, “I know I’m not the most popular guy around and that I’ve done some pretty bad stuff to people, but I’m trying to make up for it.”
An cut in, “I know. I mean, I do now. That’s why I wanted to apologize. I saw your match against Echizen, I saw that you really have changed. I felt horrible for saying those things to you, and you even got hurt because of me!”
“So, you’re just trying to clear your conscience?” Kirihara jibed, sending her a sideways glance.
“No!” she protested adamantly, “It’s not like that…” he could practically feel her deflate next to him.
“Okay, fine. So it’s not like that. Why did you really bring me here then?” He popped open the tab of his juice and took a sip as she laughed.
“You caught me,” she brightened, sticking her tongue out, “I suppose I can’t just get away with saying I wanted to spend some quality time with you?” She laughed as he gave her a funny look, “I wanted my brother to have some closure. What you did to him, it affected him more than he thinks. He needed to be able to get past it so he can become stronger.” Her expression turned somber, “I suppose I should apologize for manipulating you too, shouldn’t I?”
He waved it off, “It’s not a big deal. I figured something was up. But just so you know, most guys don’t want to go on a date with a girl if their brother is going to be there too. Especially, if he’s going to beat them up,” He frowned and poked at his forehead, testing how far along the bruise was coming. The sound of her giggling was enough to make the pain worth it.
“If you want, I can kiss it better,” An joked, leaning over to inspect the damage. She was suddenly too close and Akaya panicked, scooting across the bench and turning pink. That only amused her more; she laughed behind her hand and he just stared at her, like she had grown three more heads. Girls were weird.
“Well, this was fun, but I should be heading home,” she stood, stretching above her head. It was getting dark and Akaya needed to find a bus back home and hopefully not fall asleep on it again, “We’ll have to do it again sometime. I’ll see you around,” she laughed, turning to head home.
“Next time, I’m picking the place!” he jumped up off the bench and yelled after her, completely serious. He hadn’t realized that she was just humoring the situation. What he did realize was that he really had meant it when he offered.
“Uh, I mean, next time I’ll treat you or something, ‘cause I’m a good guy now and that’s what good guys do.” He was grasping for straws to keep his dignity and not completely embarrass himself. “Besides, you suck at picking dates,” He scuffed his shoe across the surface of the court. Peeking through his bangs he could see a faint blush on her face, even from the fifteen foot distance.
She hesitated; the corners of her mouth curled into a sweet smile, “Sure, you can pick. It’s a date,” She laughed, and turned, continuing on her way home with a bit more of a spring in her step.
Akaya watched her with a stupid smile on his face until she turned the corner out of site; he continued to stare until his phone vibrated against leg. He dug it out and read the display screen to see it was his mother calling, no doubt to yell at him to ‘get home right now or else you wouldn’t be able to watch that movie with your friends this weekend!’. Scrambling for his stuff, he shoved his phone it his tennis bag and made a run for the nearest bus stop. Girls liked watching movies, right?
Recipient's name: numisma
Rating: PG
Pairing(s): Kirihara Akaya and Tachibana An
Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created by Konomi Takeshi. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
Warnings: Warning for my lame sense of humor.
Author's notes: I hope you like this one, Numi. Thanks P and O for the encouragement and help along the way, oh, and for putting up with my crap.
If there was one thing that Kirihara Akaya knew about women it was that they were evil and manipulative; at least, that’s what Niou-senpai told him that day he had come to practice with a big red mark across his cheek. Of course, he’d already known it was true; his own mother was the Queen of Manipulation. ‘Akaya, you can’t have dessert until you clean the dishes. Akaya, you won’t get your video games back until you finish your homework. Akaya, don’t put glue on the cat’s fur!’ Ok, so that last one didn’t really fit as an example… but he’d never had to deal with a girl his own age that was as scheming until he found himself face to face with Tachibana An, the (cute) younger sister of the Fudomine Tennis Team Captain, victim of Kirihara’s superior tennis skills.
All he’d done was physically collide with her on the street and start a polite conversation (read: harassed her about her team). Not one to let an insult pass, she retorted and accused him of being a dirty slime ball. But strangely, she stopped mid-sentence and stared at him long and hard as if contemplating what to do with him. It unnerved Akaya because a.) Girls did not normally stare at him (as adorable and cute as he was) b.) This particular girl hated his guts and was probably thinking up ways to get him run over by a car and still have it look like an accident. It had only been a few weeks since the Senbatsu training camp and things between them hadn’t exactly gone too well; he was a bit confused as to where this left them.
“What? Is there something hanging out of my nose?” he twitched nervously. As she stood there, Akaya swore he could see gears turning in her head.
Finally, she spoke, “Let’s go on a date!” She had her hip cocked and a grin on her face so bright he almost blurted out ‘yes’ immediately; luckily for him, his common sense and confusion caught up to him.
Unfortunately ‘Huh?’ was the most intelligent thing he could manage as she started pulling him down the street by the hand. He would have chewed his hand off to get it freed from hers but he remembered what Yukimura had been teaching him about self control.
They came to a stop in front of what many players affectionately called “the street courts”, a popular hang out for the local tennis bums. For a second, Kirihara thought he was in love, that is, until he spotted two figures on one of the courts, rallying a ball back and forth. His hand still in her possession, he had no choice but to be dragged over to the two Fudomine players.
Tachibana Kippei and Kamio Akira stopped playing as An greeted them; Akaya wished he could turn invisible with the looks the both of them were throwing him. Tachibana’s was silently inquiring and suspicious; Kamio’s was a bit more vocal.
“What the hell are you doing here?!” he shrieked, nearly throwing his racket down in his quasi-tantrum, “Wha-who- How dare you touch An-chan!”
“Akira, stop,” Tachibana was pretty impressive, Akaya would give him that. The way he was able shut that idiot up with just a word was definitely worth some respect.
“An, what are you doing?” His eyes locked unwaveringly with his sister’s, hidden messages passed between the two that the others would never be able to decipher in a million years.
“I’m on a date,” she smiled sweetly in reply. Kirihara felt particularly smug since she was still holding his hand; Kamio nearly combusted, his face turning even redder than his hair.
“I thought it would be nice if you could have someone else to play against, Onii-chan,” that smile was still plastered to her face as she let go of Akaya’s hand and pushed him forward.
What a scheming minx. But Kirihara’d be crazy to turn down a rematch against Tachibana now that the newly blonde Captain was healed. Besides, he owed Tachibana a chance to try to defeat him and gain back the dignity he no-doubtedly lost.
“Let’s play, Tachibana. That is, unless you’re scared?” he smirked, shrugging his tennis bag off of his shoulder. He’d just come from practice so he was already prepared for a hard match.
“You wish,” Tachibana’s eyes narrowed dangerously.
Those were the same eyes that glared at him from across the net as a ball sped towards Kirihara’s face not ten minutes later. Evidently, this newly reborn Tachibana did not appreciate inattention during a match. Akaya should have seen the ball coming but he was distracted from the match with the action going on off court; that damn redheaded speed freak was sitting with An, obviously trying (and failing) to flirt with her. She only laughed out of pity! Unfortunately, the ball was unforgiving and slammed straight into his face.
Being knocked flat on his back on the tennis court and with a dull throbbing starting in the middle of his forehead that was sure to bruise; Kirihara Akaya didn’t think it was turning out to be a very fun date at all. Sure, tennis was always an awesome way to spend your time but getting pounded in the face by your date’s obviously mentally unhinged brother was not.
“I’m sorry,” Tachibana had crossed over to his side of the net and loomed over him, giving him a cool stare, “but my pride wouldn’t allow me to let what you’ve done to me slide without any retribution. You understand right?” His eyebrow quirked mockingly and he took a step back. Returning his racket to his bag as Akaya to sat up and wobbled to his feet, “This doesn’t make us even, but for now, I’m satisfied,” he sent a meaningful glance toward his sister and motioned for Kamio to join him. The redhead hesitated, looking between his captain, An, and Kirihara before reluctantly, silently following him away from the street courts.
They’d left in such a flurry that Kirihara couldn’t even get a last word. He just stood there, his mouth probably flapping like a goldfish. An patted his shoulder and told him to have a seat while she went somewhere, he wasn’t paying attention; his head was starting to throb and he just slumped down onto the bench.
“Here,” cool, wet metal pressed against Kirihara’s forehead, causing him to flinch and sit up, eyes snapping back open. An had returned, offering him a can of juice. He took it and placed it carefully back up against the bruise forming on his face.
“My brother really got you good, huh?” She smiled pitifully, sitting next to him on the bench, “Sorry about that; sometimes he can be just as petty as everyone else.”
“What, this? This is nothing compared to what my vice-captain can do,” Kirihara laughed it off even though there was probably going to be a huge lump in the morning. He sobered for a moment, feeling the atmosphere turn serious, “I deserved it.”
An ‘hn’ed, either in agreement or sympathy, he wasn’t sure but it really didn’t matter.
“…You can hit me too if you want, I know you wanted to,” they both knew exactly what he was referring to. He glanced over in time to see a pang of guilt flash across her eyes.
“I’m actually glad we ran into each other,” She said softly, opening her own can of juice, distracting her hands, “I’ve been wanting to talk to you since the camp ended but I didn’t have the courage to approach you.” She flicked at the can’s tab and he watched her fingers, waiting for her to continue, “I’m kind of ashamed of my behavior at the camp. I accused you of things and I misjudged you and I’m sorry.”
Out of everything she could have possibly said to him, an apology was not something he was expecting. She had all reason to be suspicious of him at the camp; his track record wasn’t exactly clean and anyone would have been wary of him. Besides, he had nearly wrecked her brother’s tennis carrier; if anyone had any right to hate him, she did.
“You don’t have to do that. Apologize, I mean. I deserved it,” Akaya rolled the slowly warming can across his forehead, looking up at it and not at her, “I know I’m not the most popular guy around and that I’ve done some pretty bad stuff to people, but I’m trying to make up for it.”
An cut in, “I know. I mean, I do now. That’s why I wanted to apologize. I saw your match against Echizen, I saw that you really have changed. I felt horrible for saying those things to you, and you even got hurt because of me!”
“So, you’re just trying to clear your conscience?” Kirihara jibed, sending her a sideways glance.
“No!” she protested adamantly, “It’s not like that…” he could practically feel her deflate next to him.
“Okay, fine. So it’s not like that. Why did you really bring me here then?” He popped open the tab of his juice and took a sip as she laughed.
“You caught me,” she brightened, sticking her tongue out, “I suppose I can’t just get away with saying I wanted to spend some quality time with you?” She laughed as he gave her a funny look, “I wanted my brother to have some closure. What you did to him, it affected him more than he thinks. He needed to be able to get past it so he can become stronger.” Her expression turned somber, “I suppose I should apologize for manipulating you too, shouldn’t I?”
He waved it off, “It’s not a big deal. I figured something was up. But just so you know, most guys don’t want to go on a date with a girl if their brother is going to be there too. Especially, if he’s going to beat them up,” He frowned and poked at his forehead, testing how far along the bruise was coming. The sound of her giggling was enough to make the pain worth it.
“If you want, I can kiss it better,” An joked, leaning over to inspect the damage. She was suddenly too close and Akaya panicked, scooting across the bench and turning pink. That only amused her more; she laughed behind her hand and he just stared at her, like she had grown three more heads. Girls were weird.
“Well, this was fun, but I should be heading home,” she stood, stretching above her head. It was getting dark and Akaya needed to find a bus back home and hopefully not fall asleep on it again, “We’ll have to do it again sometime. I’ll see you around,” she laughed, turning to head home.
“Next time, I’m picking the place!” he jumped up off the bench and yelled after her, completely serious. He hadn’t realized that she was just humoring the situation. What he did realize was that he really had meant it when he offered.
“Uh, I mean, next time I’ll treat you or something, ‘cause I’m a good guy now and that’s what good guys do.” He was grasping for straws to keep his dignity and not completely embarrass himself. “Besides, you suck at picking dates,” He scuffed his shoe across the surface of the court. Peeking through his bangs he could see a faint blush on her face, even from the fifteen foot distance.
She hesitated; the corners of her mouth curled into a sweet smile, “Sure, you can pick. It’s a date,” She laughed, and turned, continuing on her way home with a bit more of a spring in her step.
Akaya watched her with a stupid smile on his face until she turned the corner out of site; he continued to stare until his phone vibrated against leg. He dug it out and read the display screen to see it was his mother calling, no doubt to yell at him to ‘get home right now or else you wouldn’t be able to watch that movie with your friends this weekend!’. Scrambling for his stuff, he shoved his phone it his tennis bag and made a run for the nearest bus stop. Girls liked watching movies, right?