Today, chapter 2

So here you are, in your room sitting on your bed with a purring Karupin on your lap. The purring is as a soothing lullaby to your confused and pained heart. You wish now you had looked back this afternoon, so you would have known his expression and maybe his feelings towards you. You'd prefer a broken but knowing heart, instead of this confusion. 'Ryoma!' you hear your mother call, 'You have a guest.' As you walk down the stairs and towards the door you wonder who it is.

You look at the open front door and you see him….

He's standing in the doorway with a tennis bag over his shoulder. 'Echizen.' And he nods at you and you just stand there not knowing what to say. 'Echizen? Would you like to play a match?' he asks after a moment of silence.

Your heart skips a beat as you wonder how he can sound so, so,….you don't know the right word for it but you like the way his voice shatters silence so quiet but clear. 'Uiiis. The same court?' He nods and your heart skips another beat.

As you gather your stuff you wonder how he feels about this afternoon, about you kissing him. When you finally have all your things, your Oyaji keeps asking if you're going on a date, I wish, you think. He keeps nagging and nagging, keeping you from leaving, so you turn Karupin loose on his pervert magazines.

You're back at the front door, cap in place and ready to go. He looks at you and quirks his eyebrow as if he asks about the source tearing, yelling and muttering sounds. 'Karupin is tearing up Oyaji's magazines.' Is the answer you give him. Not another word is said as the both of you walk the way to the Haruno clay court. You keep sneaking short glances at him, still wondering how he feels.

The court is familiar as you make ready, but the tension, your tension that is, isn't.

'Your serve.' He says as he tosses a ball to you. At the start of the first game you're distracted by thoughts, hopes and fears, but slowly you forget everything and give it your all in your play. After what feels like an eternity the last ball falls onto your side of the court and the ball rolls back. The Zero-Shiki Drop shot.

You stand front of him, net between you and you shake hands. You try to let go of his hand but he holds on so you look up, straight into his eyes. And before you've realized and can react to it he leans down and presses his lips on yours. You freeze, you don't know what to do and you can hardly breathe. Then he pulls back and looks into your eyes, serious, but warm and he says, 'I like you too, Echizen.' You're quiet as you take off your cap, but then you look up at him with your eyes gleaming and a true smile on you face. He looks at and with the smallest, but happiest smile he leans down and kissed you again. And this time you kiss back.