The best thing about Tachibana An was that she was unpredictable. Even though he was a data man, and normally detested unpredictability (it threw off his data and thus his tennis), something about it in her made it seem attractive. She was interesting, like a scientific experiment you observe as it changes and does something strange.

It helped that she could be as cruel as he could be.

She was sneaky, hiding manipulation and intelligence behind a smiley, slightly-ditsy facade. That too was attractive.

The package was attractive as well, lithe and thin, hair the color of liquid honey and eye the color of sapphires. She made him think poetically.

It was safe to say that he liked her, more since he had started hanging around the street tennis courts. What had started as a purely data gathering activity (Fudomine, Hyotei and St. Rudolf were known to frequent the courts) turned into something else. Going not only to observe his rivals, but also to observe her in all her intricacies. He had even talked to her on occasion.

She was smart.

He didn't think the other boys that frequented the tennis courts gave her enough credit for how smart she really was -- with exception of maybe Fuji Syusuke. They all seemed to treat her like an object to win over, or to show off in front of. It annoyed him.

It was for this reason that he had sought her out to speak with her more often, or at least that's what he told himself. It was his excuse and he didn't question it.

He had something planned for her today -- she had left hints that she would be there today. He figured, with her devious mind, she could help him develop new and potentially dangerous (but healthy!) Inui Juice. He grinned at the thought. He had a vision of her being an exceedingly good chemist, though he had no actual proof of that. She just seemed the type.

"Inui-san!" A female voice called while its owner followed it in a dash towards the be-speckled boy.

Inui looked up from his notes to see that An had almost reached him, dressed adorably in a tennis skirt and a blue, sleeveless top. He felt his cheeks heat a bit at the sight of her.

"Ah, Tachibana-san, hello. How are you today?"

An smiled brightly as she came to a stop just in front of the bench he was sitting on. "I'm good! Are you well?"

"Ah," he pushed his glasses up nervously, clutching his notebook towards himself. "Tachibana-san, I was wondering if I could inquire after your assistance."

"Hmm?" She replied, tilting her head.

"I thought perhaps you might have some ideas on how to improve my Inui Juice."

Her eyes lit up as he spoke, something that looked like mischief flashing through them. Her smile widened a bit and she rocked back on her heels, her hands behind her back. "Oh I think I could come with a few things. Do you have a place at Seigaku to work?"

He nodded as he let out the breath he hadn't realized he had been holding. "Do you have time now?"

"Yup!" She hopped a bit, turning in the direction of Seigaku, her hair flaring out as she did so. "Oh, and Inui-san, you can call me An-chan now."

An's smile transformed into a mischievous grin. She couldn't see his face, but she was sure he was blushing.

The best thing about Inui Sadaharu was that he was secretly shy.