I don't own K-ON

Another "Growing old with you" story this time it's Ritsu's story. A fanfic before I make the sequel to Yui and Nodoka's story. Anyway here it is chapter 1. I hope you enjoy :)

Note: Aside from the popular characters in this show, I will use three new characters from class 3-2 that's never or rarely been used before; Mika, Akane and Eri. Refer to Season2-Episode18, Season2-Episode25 and the movie (15:30) to know who they are.

It's Friday afternoon, the day before summer vacation – Ritsu just witnessed two of her friends kiss and confess their feelings for each other. It's a never before seen real life incident; almost like a scene from a manga she thought. And that heart stopping experience in just waiting if whether Yui would be able to catch Nodoka in time or not was so memorable; everything was so perfect – yeah, it was planned by a crazy genius but that kiss, their confession and their love for each other; they were all real. Ritsu listened to her classmates cheer and shout for joy for Yui and Nodoka, I'm glad they feel the same way as I do.

It's an unforgettable day for Ritsu and for everyone else who saw the ultimate confession of the century. It was indeed an amazing day and it made her a bit envious; deep down she wondered if she too would be able to find love. Having someone to love and being loved must be nice…

"Come on! Let's hang-out and have our own celebration for Yui and Nodoka!" Ritsu invited feeling too happy and not ready to go home yet.

"Ah…sorry Ricchan my parents won't be home tonight so I have to entertain the guest(s) that will be arriving later," Mugi said.

"I can't come either," said Mio feeling a bit uneasy. "I…uh…I promised mama that I'll help her with chores tonight."

"Eh?! Then how about you two?" Ritsu asked shifting her attention to Ui and Azusa.

"Sorry I can't Ritsu-san I have to go home and make dinner," Ui said with a smile.

"And my parents wants me home early today," Azusa added.

"Ehhh~ you guys are so boring," Ritsu expressed her disappointment.

After seeing that there's nothing she can do, Ritsu just let her friends go in the end. Celebrating alone is just plain weird and miserable and boring, she thought while walking around stopping by from one shop to another. After half an hour, Ritsu decided it's time to head home before she noticed that her drumsticks weren't in her bag. Where is it?! She panicked a bit while thoroughly searching her bag. Then she remembered that she left them under her desk at school; she immediately turned around and makes her way back to school. Good thing the sports clubs always stays late.

Phew! Got it! Ritsu let out a deep breath after retrieving her drumsticks. She still didn't feel like going home so she chose to roam around for a while. I wish Mio was here; it'd be fun especially with in this creepy atmosphere, Ritsu thought as she walked through the empty wooden halls of the school. She stopped when Yui suddenly came to mind; she imagined how fast Yui must've ran all over the school just to find Nodoka – she's not the type to have that much stamina…and yet she was able to do what was originally impossible for her. Is that what you call the power of love? And once again Ritsu wondered, how does it feel to love and be loved?

The sound of balls bouncing interrupted her thoughts and the energetic shouts of the sports clubs' members. Hm? I didn't realize I was already near the gym. Might as well check out how good our athletes are, she thought since she was already in the area anyway. Fortunately the door was open so she freely watched the activities in the gym. The volleyball club's the only one here, Ritsu noticed as she took a quick look around. Minutes passed and Ritsu found herself entranced by how intense the players were playing. Man! They're really taking practice very seriously, she thought after seeing their coach yell at them every time they make a mistake. Makes me feel a little embarrassed about our laxity. But…it's really amazing how they could jump that high and do a spike, how the other team could catch that fast moving ball and be able to return it to the other side. Really amazing, now I can understand why Mio really likes to watch spo –

"WATCH OUT!"

In the Infirmary

"…well… - eeds…rest…

ugh…

"…thank… -u sens…

ugh…my head..

"…sorry…but I…

huh?...someone's talking…

"…don't wor - …

"Oh my, you're awake already? How are you feeling?" someone asked but Ritsu didn't answer. She was staring at a ceiling and took a minute to realize she's in the infirmary. Her whole head was throbbing especially her forehead. She put a hand on the side of her head as she slowly sat up in bed. "Don't push yourself…" Again Ritsu didn't respond but the voice sounded familiar. She looked to her left to see who was talking to her and stared at the person sitting on a chair beside her bed with squint eyes.

"Stop staring at me like that, as if you don't know who I am. Don't tell me you already have amnesia just from a little hit on the forehead."

Ritsu took a few seconds to recognize who it was, "Mika…? Sorry still a bit drowsy…"

"How's you're head Ricchan?" she asked with a smile but still looking a bit worried.

"It hurts…but I'm fine…," Ritsu said while rubbing her forehead.

"I'm really sorry about that, Akane could really have a very powerful hand sometimes."

"It's okay. It was an accident so don't worry about it."

"So why were you in the gym anyway? And all alone? You're always with Mio-chan and the other light music club members, so seeing you there was a rare sight."

"Well I forgot my drum sticks so I came back for it. I did want to celebrate with them, you know for Yui and Nodoka but they all had things to do, so I just randomly decided to check out the gym when I heard some people playing."

"Oh I see. That's too bad then, you guys weren't able to hang-out and celebrate."

"It's fine. Maybe we could do it tomorrow with Yui."

"But they're both amazing, aren't they? With the confession and everything. They're really perfect for each other and I'm just so happy for them. Though I was surprised at first but in a good way," Mika expressed happily.

"I know what you mean! I feel the same way," Ritsu agreed. "Made me a bit jealous of them."

"Really? How so?"

"Well they have all those years of friendship as a foundation to support what they have now. It's like their relationship with each other is so strong nothing can tear them apart already. How do I put it? In other words, it's already perfect even before they started dating," Ritsu explained as she scratch her head. "You know?...Sorry it's kind of hard to explain."

"It's fine, I think I understand what you mean," Mika said with a reassuring smile.

"That's why it sort of makes me want to be with someone too…," Ritsu said blushing and feeling embarrassed.

"But you have Mio-chan don't you? Aren't you guys childhood friends too?"

"Huh?! Yeah but no way! We're just friends," Ritsu laughed at the idea.

"I'm sure Yui-chan and Nodoka-chan said the same thing before they confessed to each other."

"Well…that makes sense…but Yui and Nodoka are different from us," Ritsu said putting a hand on her chin as she looked down.

"You two are a great combo – since you're always together. Just like Yui-chan and Nodoka-chan," Mika said with a smile.

"I did have a crush on Mio when we're in elementary but that's it, nothing more. My feelings didn't even reach middle school."

"Well it was just a suggestion."

"So where's the nurse by the way?" Ritsu asked and changed the subject.

"Oh she said she needs to go to a staff meeting," Mika explained.

"I see. Aren't you going back to the gym and practice with your team?"

"You don't want me here?" Mika asked teasingly.

"Ah no! That's not it! I just thought that you guys are really practicing hard and I don't want to get in your way or something," Ritsu explained.

"Well we do have a game coming up in two weeks but it's fine, I need a little break anyway. The coach is really strict whenever we have a game," Mika said and slouched on her seat.

"So you're using me as an excuse just get out of practice?"

"Well I guess you could put it that way but that the nurse also said to look after you while she's gone so it's sort of a win-win situation. I get out of practice and you have someone to look after you," Mika said happily.

No matter how I look at it she's the only one benefitting in this…well I guess I do have someone to talk to for a while…

So the two of them spent almost an hour just talking about club, school, friends, sports, music and other random stuff. They're in the same class but this is the first they get to talk to each other like that – both having a good time learning about each other. And before they knew it, the sun was already setting.

"It's gotten pretty late, I guess I should go home," Ritsu pointed out.

"Are you feeling better?" Mika asked again to make sure.

"Yeah, thanks. You should go back to practice too."

"Yeah I should."

"Good luck with your game. Where will it happen by the way?"

"Here at our school."

"Oh. Then maybe we could watch and cheer for you, plus Mio really likes to watch sports."

"Oh sure no problem…thanks. As long as you're free on that day."

"Then it's set," Ritsu said with a smile as she finished fixing her stuff.

"Check us out during our practice while you're at it. And you're welcome to join if you like," Mika said.

Ritsu laughed and said, "I'll probably refuse that last one; I'm not that good in sports."

After getting out the infirmary, Mika walked Ritsu to the school gate before going back to the gym.

At the gym

Mika took a very deep breath and prepared herself before going in. Alright! Here goes, Mika took one step in the gym and almost immediately her friends jumped on her.

"MIKAAAA! So how was it?!" Eri asked excitedly and put an arm around Mika's shoulder.

"How was what?" Mika tried to keep her cool.

"Come on don't play dumb. I'm talking about your special alone time with Ricchan."

"What do mean special? We just talked."

"Hoo~? You guys sure took your time with just talking," Eri teased.

"Jeez, stop it Eri; we really just talked."

"But you guys were in the infirmary. Things should happen in there, I mean it's a classic setting for getting to know each other and making l –…you know…stuff. You should thank Akane for that and her epic fail spike."

"That's mean Eri!" Akane commented.

"Anyway, what I'm trying to say is the time you had with Ricchan was like a once in a lifetime chance for you and you didn't take full advantage of it. I mean, you've been wanting to have her alone with you all this time don't you?"

"Well yeah but try to be real Eri; it's not like we're even close or anything. And we did get to know each other by just talking," Mika pointed out.

"She has a point," Akane joined in. "I think it's already a good thing that Mika got the opportunity to even talk to Ricchan, considering the fact that she's always with her friends."

"Well…I guess you're right. At least now, things could finally start moving between you two," Eri said with a grin on her face. "Shall we help you in your pursuit of your prince, princess?" Eri teasingly asked.

"What? Princess? Where'd that come from?" Mika asked looking very confused.

"Didn't you say you wanted to be a princess?" Akane reminded

"In a play, yes," Mika clarified.

"Say, why don't we suggest doing a Romeo and Juliet play for the festival?" Eri said happily.

"Yeah! Then we could have Ricchan as Romeo then have Mika play the princess," Akane said.

"Thanks but you guys seem to be forgetting something," Mika said. "Mio-chan…come on if Ricchan's going to be the prince there's no doubt Mio-chan will be the princess…always. We all know that."

"That's true but Mio-chan seems to be the shy type so there's still a chance," Akane encouraged.

"Yeah that's sti – " Eri suddenly stopped from what she was going to say because of an evil presence she felt behind her.

Mika and Akane felt it too making them all paralyzed in their spots.

"So? What are you guys think you're doing? I don't remember giving you three a break."

The three friends turned around with fear, "C-Coach…? W-We just – "

"20 LAPS AND DON'T YOU STOP!"

"R-Roger!" said the three and started running.

That night in Ritsu's room

Ritsu lay on her bed with her hands behind her head still thinking about the highlight of everyone's day. She then recalled her conversation with Mika earlier in the infirmary:

"But you have Mio-chan don't you? Aren't you guys childhood friends too?"

Childhood friend…Now that I think about it, when we were in elementary, what was it that I liked about her?...I can't remember. Ritsu tossed and turned in her bed trying to remember the reason why she liked her friend before. After an hour, she stopped thinking and ended up with a slight headache. She took out her phone and dialed Mio's number. Maybe I'll remember if I talk to her, it was ringing but she wasn't answering. That's weird, Ritsu glanced at her clock, 9pm…Mio's usually free during this time. I wonder why she's not picking up, is she still helping with chores? She stayed on the line until Mio's voicemail was the one answered her call. She thought of calling their house but decided against it, I don't want to disturb her parents at this hour. I guess I'll just talk to her tomorrow.

To be continued...

I hope you enjoyed that :)

Again, if you don't know who Mika, Akane and Eri are please refer to Season2Episode18, Season2Episode25 and the movie (15:30).

Feel free to review, comment or whatever :)

Stay stuned for chapter 2 :)