A/N: Alright! This is it, the final chapter! Thanks for reading, and reviews are always nice!

The limo pulled up in front of an elaborate hotel where the ball was being held. The driver stopped the vehicle and came around; opening the back door. Sakuno's eyes lit up and practically sparkled when she saw other guests who were dressed up making their way inside. She waited until all of the others inside the limo had gotten out before she started to slide toward the door. Atobe held her hand firmly and she turned to look at him with a confused expression. He gave her a small smile and moved past her so he could get out first. The Hyotei tennis captain then turned and leaned his head into the doorway of the limo with his hand outstretched to her. Sakuno smiled brightly and grabbed it without hesitation. She got out slowly and stared at the tall hotel as she heard the car pull away behind her.

"Oh!" Eiji cried out with an excited expression as he grinned.

Tomoka squeezed her fists as though she could barely contain her excitement. She finally let out a loud excited squeal and Sakuno stared at the ground with an embarrassed look.

"Tomo…" she trailed off in a disappointed tone.

Momo shook his head and adjusted his tie as he grabbed Ann's hand.

"Looks like it's going to be a good time, eh Kabaji?" Atobe said in a deep voice.

"Yes!"

Sakuno giggled as they started toward the hotel entrance. She kept glancing around for anyone else she knew. In truth, Sakuno was really nervous about running into Ryoma. Every encounter that had occurred between them since the practice match when Atobe had given her his number had been awkward. Sakuno wasn't sure what Ryoma was thinking. She didn't know if he was jealous or if he didn't care. She had been infatuated with him since the day they met when she gave him the wrong directions to the tennis courts. It wasn't her fault that he never returned her feelings or acknowledged her existence for that matter. She was bound to move on and she had. The group entered the front door and approached a desk that was taking down the players' and their guests' names. Atobe walked up confidently and pulled Sakuno along.

"Keigo Atobe from Hyotei, and my guest is Sakuno Ryuzaki from Seigaku."

"How many in your group?" the woman running the counter asked.

Atobe turned and did a quick count, "Seven."

"Okay, you'll be at table number four, and if I could get everyone in your group written down," she said, motioning to the others to come forward.

Momo, Ann, Eiji, Tomoka, and Kabaji all checked in and were listed under table four. When they entered the ballroom Sakuno gasped as she saw people already dancing. There were tables assorted about the great room and each one of them had a center label indicating the numbers. The group found table four and sat down.

"Oy! Senpai, when are the others getting here?" Momo asked Eiji who shrugged.

"Captain Tezuka is probably going to show up fashionably late!" Tomoka said with admiration, "And no doubt everyone else will follow his lead!"

Atobe chuckled and Tomoka snapped defensively, "Don't look down on Seigaku! We may not have as much money as you Atobe, but we obviously have the superior tennis team!"

"Tomo!" Sakuno exclaimed with a shocked look.

She turned to glance up at Atobe but the Hyotei captain was still chuckling with an amused expression. He didn't seem upset at all and Sakuno let out a sigh of relief.

"There's my brother!" Ann suddenly said with a smile on her face.

The group turned and looked over to the door where the line was getting longer as more people were arriving. Tachibana saw his sister and sent a smile their way. He stepped aside to reveal that Kamio and Ibu were behind him. Kamio's eyes landed on Ann and a disgusted scowl covered his features when he saw Momo. Sakuno looked up at Atobe who was staring down at her with a small smirk on his face.

"And so the trouble begins," he muttered quietly but loud enough for her to hear.

"Ann! Don't invite Kamio over here!" Momo pleaded.

"I'm not! There's obviously not enough room for them anyway," she said with a frown and then hit him on the shoulder, "And you will be nice when we talk to them. Don't be a jerk."

Momo gave her a wounded puppy dog face but said nothing. He watched with a wary expression as the Fudomine trio approached them.

"Hello," Tachibana greeted them with a nod.

The group greeted him back and he turned to Momo, "You'd better treat my sister well tonight Momoshiro, because if you don't I'll hear about it."

Momo shrank in his seat, "I will! I wouldn't treat Ann bad!"

"Don't give him a hard time," Ann smiled at her brother, "He's been great so far!"

Kamio let out a growl and Ann gave him a grin, "Hi Kamio! How are you this evening?!"

"I've been better," he grumbled.

"Have a good evening," Tachibana nodded and left with his group to go to their table.

Atobe lifted his arm and wrapped it around Sakuno's shoulders. She looked up at him with a questioning expression but he was staring at the entrance. She turned in her seat to see what it was he was looking at when her eyes fell upon the Seigaku group entering. Instantly, a nervous pit formed in Sakuno's stomach and she shifted uncomfortably. She felt Atobe squeeze her and then she saw Ryoma walk in the door.

"Oishi!" Eiji waved wildly with excitement on his face.

"Feh! Looks like that viper decided to take that rag off his head," Momo said with a smirk.

Atobe shook his head, "The real fun won't start until Hyotei and a few of the other schools get here, right Kabaji?"

"Yes!"

"Sakuno let's go say hi to the guys!" Tomoka exclaimed.

Sakuno gulped, Tomoka was completely oblivious at the moment. She looked at Atobe with an apologetic expression.

He nodded with a smirk, "Go ahead."

Sakuno stood up slowly and followed her best friend over to another table where the Seigaku members were sitting down.

"Hi Ryoma!" Tomoka exclaimed.

He gave her a small nod of acknowledgment and sat down. Sakuno awkwardly stayed behind her friend and avoided eye contact with the dark haired boy. She glanced at him briefly and saw he was wearing a navy suit with a white undershirt and matching navy tie.

"Ryuzaki," Fuji nodded at her, "How's your evening so far?"

Sakuno blinked and answered, "Oh! Fuji senpai! It's been good, thank you for asking!"

Tezuka suddenly spoke to their table, "Everyone be on their best behavior tonight. Be kind and courteous to the players from other schools. If I find out anyone was being rude or causing trouble, I'll discipline you."

Sakuno and Tomoka visibly shrank at his stern voice.

He turned to them and said, "If you two could deliver that message to Momoshiro and Kikumaru…"

"Yes captain!" Tomoka exclaimed, saluting him.

Sakuno smiled sheepishly, "Of course."

The two girls scurried back to their table and delivered the message promptly.

"Whew, the captain can be so harsh!" Momo said, relieved he didn't hear the message first hand.

"Aww, he doesn't trust us? Who would we be mean to?" Eiji pouted.

Momo shot a glance across the hall to where Kamio was sitting and shuddered. It seemed that most of the guests had arrived because the tables were filling up. Waiters from the hotel brought out a variety of snack trays and placed them on tables which were off to the side against the wall.

"Let's mingle," Atobe said, grabbing Sakuno's hand and standing up.

She stood up after him and Kabaji did the same. Sakuno waved to her table and followed Atobe to a nearby table where his Hyotei teammates were sitting. Some of the guys had girls with them that Sakuno didn't recognize but she smiled in greeting.

"Sakuno!" a cheerful voice cried out.

Her eyes quickly went to a grinning Chotaro and she smiled back, "Hi!"

Atobe released her hand as she moved forward to socialize with his teammates on her own. He watched in approval as she and Chotaro laughed and talked with one another. Kabaji stood loyally by his side and was quiet.

"Oshitari," Atobe nodded, "How are things here?"

The dark haired tennis player stared up at his captain through his glasses, "Fine."

Oshitari wrapped his arms around his date and gave his captain a knowing look. Atobe's eyebrows shot up and he smirked. Oshitari was the dark and mysterious one at school. He knew that numerous girls found that image to be attractive so he wasn't surprised that Oshitari had managed to bring one of the most attractive girls from Hyotei. Atobe looked up at Sakuno again who was still talking to Chotaro but Shishido had leaned in and was now taking part in the conversation. He was surprised when he saw his usually serious teammate with a genuine smile as he talked to Sakuno.

"Is Sanada here?" Atobe asked, turning back to Oshitari.

"Yeah, he's over there," Oshitari nodded pointing at a distant table where many of the Rikkaidai players and their dates were sitting.

"I'd better go say hello, right Kabaji?" Atobe winked and walked around the table so he was behind Sakuno.

"Yes!"

He leaned down and whispered in her ear, causing her to jump in surprise.

"Oh! Keigo! You scared me!" Sakuno exclaimed.

"Let's move this way," he nodded in the direction of the Rikkaidai table.

Sakuno nodded and waved goodbye to Chotaro and Shishido. She and Kabaji followed the Hyotei captain across the room where they became face to face with the Rikkaidai team. Sakuno blinked in surprise as she looked at Sanada. She had only ever seen him with his hat on but it turned out that he cleaned up nicely.

"Sanada," Atobe greeted him with a firm handshake.

The Rikkaidai captain gripped his hand back and shook it, "Atobe."

"Hey! Aren't you that girl from Seigaku?" Kirihara spoke up, his green eyes staring at Sakuno.

"Um! Yes, I'm from Seigaku," Sakuno said awkwardly.

Yukimura gave the pair a soft smile, "It's nice to see a couple that doesn't go to the same school."

Marui blew a bubble with his gum and stared at the pair skeptically. Nio narrowed his eyes and reached over his date, hitting his teammate in the shoulder.

"Don't chew gum in a setting like this!" Nio growled.

"Well," Atobe stated, "It was good seeing all of you."

They nodded at him and Sakuno followed him as they made their way back across the room. She looked around recognizing quite a few people. She saw Fuji's brother Yuta and Mizuki grabbing snacks from one of the tables. It looked as though Mizuki was trying to strategize how they were going to go about getting on the dance floor. Yuta looked utterly baffled by what his senpai was telling him. She also saw a table where the over energized Kintaro looked like he was already about to bounce off of the walls. The pair stopped at their table and Atobe picked up his drink, taking a sip. He put it down and turned to Sakuno with cocky expression.

"What?" she squeaked out.

"Let's dance," he stated frankly.

Sakuno looked around and noticed that a lot of the players and their dates were on the dance floor. Classical music was playing and the pairs seemed to glide across the floor gracefully.

"I already told you I'm one of the most skilled ballroom dancers," he said to her with a smirk.

Sakuno smiled at him and took his hand. He led her out onto the dance floor and they began dancing. They swayed back and forth as a pretty piano piece played. Sakuno let out a sigh and relaxed, allowing Atobe to lead her wherever he wanted. After a few songs Sakuno told him that she was thirsty and walked back to the table to take a sip of her drink. Just as she took a gulp she saw someone out of the corner of her eye.

"Ryuzaki."

Sakuno's eyes popped open and she turned around quickly to see Ryoma staring at her with a frown on his face.

"Ryoma! Hi… Um, how are you?" she stuttered out.

He shrugged, "I've been better."

Sakuno's eyes shot over to Atobe who was talking to Kabaji near the Hyotei table. He made eye contact with her and didn't look away. She gave him a small smile, signaling that she was fine and he returned her gesture with a nod; continuing his conversation.

"Would you like to dance?" Ryoma asked in a low voice.

Sakuno opened her mouth in surprise, "Oh, sure, that's fine. Keigo is talking with his teammates and I'm sure he won't mind."

Ryoma curled his lip at the thought of needing Keigo Atobe's permission to dance with Sakuno. He nodded for her to follow him and they moved to the center floor. A soft song came on and the pair moved gently with the music. Sakuno avoided eye contact and she felt extremely awkward.

"So… you and Atobe, is it serious?" Ryoma asked after a few silent moments.

Sakuno's head shot up, "Y-yes, we're seeing each other if that's what you're asking."

"Hm," Ryoma mumbled, looking away and a small frown forming on his lips.

"I did…" Sakuno started and then stopped.

Ryoma eyed her skeptically, "What?"

"I did like you," Sakuno finally said in a quiet voice, "But you always ignored me."

"I'm not good with stuff like that," he mumbled back, looking away.

"I hope that we can still be friends like always…" Sakuno trailed off.

"Why wouldn't we be able to?"

"Oh! I thought you didn't like Keigo…"

"I never said that."

They both stared at each other and the song ended. She took a step back from him and smiled.

"I'm glad, I'll still cheer for you at your matches of course!" Sakuno told him.

Ryoma nodded, "Okay."

"Mind if I take it from here Echizen?"

The pair turned to see Atobe giving them a charming smile. Ryoma shook his head and turned; walking away with a final nod at Sakuno.

"Is everything okay?" Atobe asked as another song began.

Sakuno blushed, "Yes, everything is fine."

"He didn't try and steal you… did he?" Atobe asked, raising an eyebrow.

Sakuno giggled, "No, not at all. We're friends and you and I are together. He's fine with it."

"That's good to hear," Atobe replied and then grinned, "He lost a golden opportunity."

Sakuno flushed crimson and the Hyotei captain leaned down and planted a chaste kiss on her lips. Sakuno's eyebrows shot up in surprise as his warm lips pressed against hers and she instantly pushed into him. After a few moments they separated and Sakuno took a quick gasp for air. Atobe smirked at her and she stared at him in shock.

"Are you overwhelmed by my prowess?" he teased her.

Sakuno shook her head to snap out of her trance, "N-No!"

Sakuno stared up at him and thought to herself how good things had been since that fateful day at the practice tennis match. He had tended to her when she was sick, introduced her to his team, invited her to his house, and now was dancing with her at a wonderful ball. Ryoma was the prince of tennis but Atobe was definitely the king and she was his queen.