Author Notes
This is my first fanfic ever; or at leat the first one I've ever published. I usually make up crazy scenarios in my head and this is the first one I wrote down. I don't know if I'm any good yet so please comment! I don't know how well I grasped Sakuno's character but there it is. Just to be clear, she is about three months into her first year of high school.

Chapter 1: The Slackers' Chat Room

Sakuno snapped her laptop shut with a grateful sigh. It was four in the morning, and she had finally finished her Literature essay. The assignment had been to pick a character from Romeo and Juliet and explain how they related to the character. They also had to analyze the character and explain how their words and actions defined them, and if they themselves did or said similar things, and why or why not. They were to include quotes with page numbers, so that they wouldn't be tempted to just get their answers off of the internet. They were to conclude the essay with their thoughts on how this character's behavior at the beginning of the book differed from their behavior at the end, and if they personally had ever gone through such a change, and if so what; and how exactly does it relate to Romeo and Juliet. It was all very tiresome and, like the rest of her classmates, Sakuno had left it until the night before it was due.

Sakuno grinned to herself. High school was really nothing like she thought it would be. She had studied very hard for her high school entrance exams, and as a result, she had gotten into all the schools she applied to, and in all Advanced Placement classes. She had chosen Seigaku High School, because the prospect of entering a brand new school and not knowing anyone had frightened her quite a bit. Although, the way things turned out, it was like she had gone to a foreign high school.

Sakuno had done very well on her entrance exams. Very well. So very well, that she had, indeed, been put into AP classes. However, she was the only one from her middle school class that had.

Okay, that was an exaggeration. There were three or four other students from her old class who had made AP classes. However, Seigaku High School had two AP classes for each year, each class with only ten students in it. This was so that the students could have more face time with the teachers, there were fewer kids to compete with, and they could have group discussions, and other things; it was a very nice system, and it had worked well for many years. The faculty had also decided on two AP classes so that the students could get to know each other better. With so few kids, everyone was bound to become acquaintances, at the very least. The teachers weren't cruel though; they didn't want to ostracize the students. So they tried to split up the kids from the same schools, so that instead of, say, all four students from one school in the same class, there were two in each. Every year the teachers were careful to evenly divide the students from each school. The idea was that everyone knew someone but nobody knew everyone and so they were forced to mingle.

This all worked very well; except for one year. One year, five students from Seishun Gakuen Middle School had gotten into the Advanced Placement program. The secretary was the one in charge of dividing up the students on the computer. She had glanced at the screen, saw there were five students from Seishun, and automatically decided on three and two. Except when she was typing in the numbers, her finger slipped. Instead of three students in AP1, and two students in AP2, there were four students in AP1, and one student in AP2. The secretary hadn't even realized she'd made a mistake. No one had realized, until the first day of classes in September.

Sakuno leaned back in her chair and closed her eyes, thinking back to her first day of High School. She had walked into the classroom and taken a seat in the front. She twisted around in her seat and glanced around, looking for a familiar face. She froze. She scanned the face of every student in the room, and then she did it again, a horrible squirming sensation starting in her stomach. Maybe not everyone's here yet, she had thought desperately, but another look around the room confirmed that every seat was taken.

She remembered slowly turning around again and staring blankly at the board. I don't know anybody in here. She knew she had the right room, as she had triple checked both her schedule and the number outside the door. This was her classroom, and these were her classmates, and she didn't know anybody.

Sakuno remembered she had closed her eyes and taken deep breaths, willing herself to calm down, but her face was red and her hands were shaking and she didn't know anybody.

Tomoka Osakada, her best friend, hadn't been put in AP classes, but Sakuno had thought that somebody, anybody from her old school would be here. That was why she had chosen this school; to save herself the embarrassing and scary prospect of interacting with strangers. But here she was, in her new school, with her new class, and she didn't know anybody.

Sakuno didn't know what she would have done (Screamed? Pass out? Both seemed plausible at the time) had the person sitting next to her not leaned over and tapped her on the shoulder. Sakuno jumped slightly and turned around to face the stranger. The stranger was a girl; she had long black hair that didn't quite reach her elbows, smooth porcelain skin, and big blue eyes that were currently focused on Sakuno. Her mouth had formed into a tentative smile.

"Hello," she had said. Sakuno had noticed how she had a nice voice; clear, but not as loud as Tomoka's. "I'm Misaki," she continued. "I'm new. I mean, everyone here is new," she had said with a laugh, "but I mean, I don't know anybody."

It was then, in that split second between the end of the girl's-Misaki's- introduction, that Sakuno realized several things all at once. One, everyone in this room was in the same boat she was. Every face was new, and if they wanted to change that, they were going to have to grow a pair and introduce themselves, the way Misaki had. Two, maybe not knowing anyone in her new classes would be a good thing. She could reinvent herself, become a better person. To this girl sitting in front of her, Sakuno was not the constantly blushing, stuttering, lovesick (but she wasn't going to think about that), shy little girl. With this girl, with these people, Sakuno could finally be someone different. And without him around (but she wasn't going to think about him) it could be so much easier. And three, Sakuno liked this girl, Misaki, quite a lot. She was nice and had an honest face, and Sakuno could see being friends with her.

All of these thoughts ran through Sakuno's mind in an instant. And in that instant, she was able to relax. The blush faded from her cheeks and her hands stopped shaking, and she could feel her panic about being in this new place fading away. Already, in that instant, she could feel herself becoming a new person.

Even though this had been a life changing moment for Sakuno, it had happened in a barely perceptible pause. Misaki, Sakuno's potential friend, hadn't even noticed.

Sakuno remembered she had exhaled, once, letting her fears leave her once and for all, before she responded to the girl. "Hello, I'm Sakuno. It's really nice to meet you," she said, thrilled at her newfound confidence, and marveling in the loss of her trademark stutter. "I don't know anybody here either," she went on, "so I'm really glad you introduced yourself." Sakuno smiled hesitantly, wondering if maybe she shouldn't have said that last part.

But Misaki beamed at her, and actually looked quite relieved. "Thank god. I was so afraid I wasn't going to make any friends, and I'd be all alone on my first day. I kind of panicked when I walked in, but then you came in and you looked so nice, so I thought, 'Hey, I've got nothing to lose!' So I introduced myself and here we are!"

Sakuno laughed. Misaki was easy to talk to. She was about to confide how nervous she had been, when another tap on her shoulder made her turn around. Misaki turned too, and they were both surprised to see two boys standing there grinning nervously at them.

"Hey," one of them said. He had shaggy brown hair, chestnut eyes, and was currently smiling in an almost sheepish way at the two girls. The black haired, bespectacled boy beside him wore an identical expression. Sakuno recognized it as a mixture of friendly, nervous, and slightly embarrassed, and she had a feeling she was going to be seeing that look a lot today.

"I'm Kenta," the shaggy haired boy said, "and this is Hikaru," he gestured to the bespectacled boy.

"I'm Sakuno," she had introduced herself.

"Hi, I'm Misaki."

The two boys nodded. "We're from Rikkaidai Middle School," Kenta said, "and besides ourselves, we don't really know anybody."

Sakuno smiled wryly to herself. That seemed to be the phrase of the day.

Over the next twenty minutes, the class introduced themselves to each other, and Sakuno found to her surprise that she quite liked everyone. As the teacher rushed in twenty minutes late, apologizing and telling everyone to take their seats, Sakuno found herself smiling hugely. So much for not knowing anybody.

By the end of the second day of school, Sakuno knew all the names of her nine classmates (Misaki, Kenta, Hikaru, Takeshi, Kimiko, Sayuri, Kyo, Yumi, and Seji), and by the third day she was good friends with all of them, although she was closest with Misaki and Kenta. By the second week, they all ten of them had become the members of the Slackers' Chat Room.

People always assume that the brainiacs in AP all started their assignments as soon as they were handed out, and finished them weeks early. This could not be farther from the truth. While they could not speak for AP1, the kids in AP2 could safely say that being smart didn't mean you had good time management skills. What usually happens is they wait for the night before something is due, work their asses off, and end up doing really well. Being smart actually inspires procrastination, because you're good enough to get away with it.

Seiji and Kyo were the ones who had come up with the Slackers' Chat Room.

It all started about two weeks into the start of the year, when the AP kids were all starting to realize what AP stood for. As it turns out, it does not mean "Advanced Placement." It actually means, "Agonizing Papers." Being in AP classes doesn't just mean you look at harder material than the other students. It means that you write papers about it. You write papers about your science labs, you write papers about your history topics, you write papers about your math problems, and, of course, you write papers about your books. There is a never ending supply of reasons to write papers when you are in AP classes.

One day during their break time, the students of AP2 were hanging out in their classroom. Sakuno happened to overhear Kimiko and Yumi talking about the history paper they had due tomorrow, and how both had left it for that night. Sakuno and Misaki confessed that they too had left it for the last moment. Kenta and Sayuri admitted to procrastinating as well, and it turned out that everyone else had too.

Now in every class-even in one with only ten people-you have your designated class clowns. They're the ones who're quick to tell a joke, the first ones to laugh at other peoples, are usually in trouble, and are generally of the good natured humorous type. For class AP2, the ones who filled that role were Seji and Kyo.

They actually reminded Sakuno of Momo-chan-sempai and Eiji-sempai, the way they were always smiling and joking ad laughing. And loud too; they were very loud.

Anyways, so Seji suggested that since they had all left the assignment for that night, they should all go on a chat room. They could keep the chat room open while they typed their essays, and they could use it to compare notes and share ideas and give advice. Kyo jokingly suggested that they could call it "the Slackers' Chat Room."

Everyone laughed and said it was a great idea, so that night they all logged in and joined the chat room created by Seji and Kyo, which was of course called, the Slackers' Chat Room.

It actually turned out to be a huge success. With the help of their fellow classmates, they were able to get their history papers done much faster, and they all turned out much better. And it wasn't cheating; they weren't writing the essays for each other. They were just sharing advice and resources, really.

The chat room worked so well for the history paper that they decided to try it again for the next one. And then the next one. And then the one after that. Within the first month of school, the Slackers' Chat Room had become official. The night before an assignment due, all ten students from class AP2 would sign on to complain, curse the teachers, compare notes, and help each other in any way they could. If someone didn't understand something, then they had nine people there, ready to help them. They used the chat room for tests too, and projects and any other assignments. And it really did work. Class AP2 had the best grades in the entire school, all thanks to the Slackers' Chat Room. And the whole school knew it.

This was partly Sakuno's fault. She hadn't meant to, but she should have known that by telling Tomoka, she was basically telling the whole student body.

Sakuno couldn't deny that having literally no classes with Tomoka had distanced them. Sure, they ate lunch together every day, and they called each other a lot, and they hung out most weekends. But it wasn't exactly the same anymore. Sometimes Sakuno missed Tomoka; they didn't get to talk as much, so when they did get together, they had a lot to say. Once, Sakuno went a whole week only speaking to Tomoka during lunch, so when she went over her house the next weekend, she was so excited to see her again, that she just told Tomo-chan everything she'd been doing that week. And that included the Slackers' Chat Room.

Sakuno had been really worried when she'd let that slip; she wasn't really sure if it was supposed to be a secret or not, so she wasn't sure if she should tell her not to tell anybody. So she didn't. Oops.

The next day, everyone knew about it-everyone. When Sakuno first heard the whispers about it in the hallway, she had braced herself for an onslaught of insults, teasing, and inquiries. What actually happened was shocking. The entire student body (and the teachers too!) knew that the freshmen in class AP2 had created a slackers chat room for themselves to help them with their homework, and the entire student body thought it was-cool.

Really. They thought it was just the coolest things. The older AP students were impressed and jealous ("Why didn't we think of that?"), the freshmen were astounded by their daring, and everyone else just thought it was so funny and so cool. Sakuno wondered what he thought-but no she didn't care what he thought.

The downside was that everyone wanted to join the chat room. They politely but firmly told them that it was only for AP2; too many people would make it too confusing, and they had different classes than them anyways, they reasoned. Eventually everyone backed off, but there were a number of "Faux Slacker Chat Rooms" going around, as Kimiko called them.

The other thing that happened as a result of Sakuno telling Tomo about the chat room was that everyone called them "the Slackers." Literally everyone. Sakuno had no idea how the entire student learned all their names and faces (although she had a feeling Tomoka was behind it) but they did, and it was rare for someone from AP2 to walk down the hall without someone calling, "Yo, Slacker!" Even the teachers addressed them like that; "Okay Slackers, take your seats."

It was slightly embarrassing, but Sakuno didn't really have a problem with it; she actually thought it was kind of funny. And it was kind of gratifying to have everyone in the school know who she was; even for something as silly as this. Thankfully her classmates felt the same way. She had apologized profusely for blowing their sort of secret, but they had all waved her off, saying they didn't mind, for which she was extremely grateful.

Sakuno opened her eyes and glanced at her alarm clock. Four thirty. Too early to take a shower; the bathroom was right next to her parents room, and the sound of the shower would definitely wake them up. But after three cups of coffee, there was no way she was going to bed. Sakuno had pulled an all-nighter with the rest of her class, writing that brutal Romeo and Juliet essay. They had all been a huge help on the chat room; she never would have finished without them.

But Sakuno was feeling nervous now. These were the moments she hated. She had nothing to occupy her mind with. That meant that soon he would enter her thoughts once more. But she would NOT think about him, she told herself firmly. But she knew it was inevitable. Usually she was able to keep her mind busy with school and her friends and tennis (she was much better now, and had made the girls team) and chores and finally, sleep. But there would always be those moments when her mind wouldn't be fully occupied, and he would sashay into her thoughts, smirking like he owned the place. Which he did, in a sense. Sakuno put it off for as long as she possibly could, but he was here now, in her mind. And whenever he entered her thoughts, Sakuno was forced to remember why she tried so hard to keep him out…and then she would go back two years ago…and relive that day…

She ran down another hallway, and then another, peering into all the classrooms as she sprinted along. Still no sign of him. Her long auburn plaits whipped from side to side as she climbed yet another staircase and looked into all the classrooms on yet another floor.

Sakuno skidded to a halt, panting and wringing her hands. Where could he be? And then she remembered. Of course.

She turned around and sprinted down the hallway, running up the staircase as fast as she could. Please be there please be there please be there she chanted to herself as she pounded up the steps. Finally she reached the top. She flung the door open, and was at first blinded by the sudden brightness. Squinting, she scanned the rooftop, and then she saw him. He was lying on the ground a little ways away, his hands behind head, white Fila cap covering his face, and a tennis bag on the ground beside him.

"Ryoma-kun!" she gasped, clutching the stitch in her side. It was true! He was back! she exulted.

"Hm…" he grunted, slowly rising to a sitting position. The white cap fell from his face. He ran his fingers through his green-black hair and rubbed the sleep out of his hazel eyes, stifling a yawn. He looked around, seemingly surprised by his surroundings. "Gonna be late," he muttered, gathering up his things. Pulling the cap back over his head, he got to his feet and started heading towards the door. He only then seemed to notice the girl with the long plaits, slightly bent over, clutching her side.

"Ryuzaki," he said in bored tone that was only barely surprised. "What are doing here?"

"R-Ryoma-kun," she stuttered. She had managed to catch her breath, but her words seemed to tumble over themselves as she looked into his cat-like eyes.

"Hm," he said, barely interested.

"R-Ryoma-kun, is it t-true? A-are you m-moving b-back to-to Japan? Y-you're b-back at Seigaku?" she managed to get out.

"Hm," he said yet again, this time coupled with a slight nod.

"I-I'm so happy," she said smiling at him. Ryoma made a move as if to walk around her out the door. "W-wait!" she exclaimed, holding out her arms to stop him. "I…I n-need to t-tell you something, R-Ryoma-kun."

Ryoma was now looking impatient, so Sakuno quickly gathered up all the courage she had. Her face turned beet red at what she was about to do. Her hands were shaking and she felt like she might pass out, but she took a deep breath, looked Ryoma in the eye and said, "I-I l-love you Ryoma-kun! Ever since the first time I met you! I-I love you!"

There. She had said it. There was no going back. She waited, feeling petrified, but also thrilled that she had let her feelings go.

Ryoma looked at her for a minute. Finally he opened his mouth, Sakuno's stomach lurched and he sad, "I know." For a second, for one glorious second, Sakuno's heart soared and she felt as though a balloon was being blown up inside of her, and she wanted to run to Ryoma and throw her arms around but then-

"I don't feel the same way."

The balloon popped.

"W-what?" she gasped, hoping against hope that she had misheard.

"I don't feel the same way," he repeated, slowly and clearly so that she would get it. She did. I told Ryoma-kun that I love him and he doesn't feel the same way. She felt numb.

"Sorry," he said with a slight shrug if his shoulders, still looking as impassive and unfazed as ever.

She didn't even know what to say. What could she say? She felt like if she opened her mouth she might hurl. So she kept it closed and just kept staring at him.

Ryoma glanced down at his watch, and now he really looked irritated. "Che, I'm really late now," he muttered, and brushed past her on his way down the stairs. She still didn't say anything. She didn't watch him as he left. She just kept staring straight ahead, at the place he had been standing. When he rejected her.

And just then it hit her. She sank to her knees, and let the tears fall. She curled up in a ball on the roof and sobbed and sobbed until she thought her heart must be broken, his words must have wrenched some crucial part to it out and threw it after the boy. If he wished to, he could fix her, repair the missing piece, but he wouldn't. Because, "He didn't feel the same way."

She cried and cried, and when she was sure her tears were gone, she managed to produce more. She wasn't sure how long she lay there, curled up in a ball, crying over broken heart. Maybe hours. She had no way of knowing, but it was dark before she found her body couldn't produce any more tears, so she gave a few dry, heaving sobs before pulling herself up into a quivering hiccoughing semi sitting position.

Now that she was finally done crying, Sakuno felt she was able to think rationally now. She took some deep breaths. Ryoma-kun doesn't love me, and probably doesn't even like me. I just grieved that, and now I have to accept that. But Sakuno realized that she already had. If she had thought there was still hope, then she wouldn't have cried like that in the first place. The thought gave a gentle pull at her heart, at the place where the missing piece went. The piece that was now his forever.

And now she thought, taking another deep breath, an exercise that was becoming a habit, now, I have to get over him.

That was so much easier said than done. Could she get over him? Could she possibly? Yes she decided. She would have to.

So she made herself some ground rules. She wouldn't talk to him. She wouldn't look at him. She wouldn't go watch him play tennis.

The hole in her heart tugged a little at these thoughts, hating them, not wanting to abide by them.

But you have to she told herself. For your own sake.

Just one more rule. She wasn't allowed to think about him, about this. Ever.

And so it went for two years. She followed her rules to the letter. Except for the unavoidable occasions when she would accidentally break the last rule. Times like now, she though, bringing herself back to the present.

Sakuno sat her desk, feeling thoroughly miserable. It wasn't fair. Why should he still have this hold on her? It's been two years. Why can't she just forget about him already?

She knew the answer to that. It was because he kept the missing piece to her heart. He kept it with him at all times, even though he didn't know it. If she wanted it back she was going to have to ask for it.

She snorted, getting up from her desk and heading over to the bathroom. It was five-fifteen now. A perfectly acceptable time to be up.

She turned on the hot water and stepped into the shower, and immediately a thousand thoughts filled her mind like someone had flipped a switch. Her brain was performing the usual task of pushing Ryo-him out of her mind. He smirked mockingly at her. I'll just be back later he warned. You can't get rid of me.

Shut up you! Her brain snarled, shoving him out of her thoughts, for a while at least.

Sakuno thought of all the things she had to do today with a slight groan. The coffee was wearing off and she was dead tired. She was glad the rest of her class would be as well; they could gripe together.

Sakuno grinned to herself, stepping of the shower and wrapping herself in a towel. She really did love being in the AP class.

So what'd ya think? Comment, review it, or whatever please; I wanna know! I really loved writing this, so I'm defintely gonna finish it. The next chapter's gonna be from Ryoma's point of view. Wanna make bets on how badly I'll screw it up? I'll try but it is really not easy trying to crawl into Ryoma's head. Tell me what you think!