Freely and Fluidly

"Okay, dismissed!"

The tennis club quickly saluted their captain, Tezuka Kunimitsu, and filed out of the courts. It was a normal Tuesday at Seigaku, and the regulars were heading in the direction of the changing rooms. Kawamura Takashi was chatting with Fuji Syuusuke when he noticed Ryuzaki Sumire's granddaughter talking to another girl. She was short; barely reaching the other girl's height, and a set of thin glasses were perched delicately on her nose.

"Taka-san?"

Kawamura was jolted out of his thoughts by his friend and fellow team mate. The eldest Fuji son looked strangely at him, before following his line of vision to see Ryuzaki Sakuno and her companion. A small smile graced his lips, as he leaned to whisper into Kawamura's ear.

"Cute, isn't she?"

Blushing furiously, Kawamura waved his arms and protested. Fuji was chuckling under his breath as he watched his friend spazz over one comment. However, Fuji had never seen that girl at Seigaku, and wondered if she was a new student.

**********

"When will you be starting school here?" Ryuzaki Sakuno smiled as she asked the other girl. Her light brown hair fell around her shoulders, complementing her button-like nose, a feature which she admittedly liked about herself. Her eyes were sky blue and she wore very feminine clothing. There was a package in her hand that she was gently cradling to her chest.

"I want to start... as soon as possible, so... probably tomorrow." She answered, reaching up to adjust her glasses. It took her a fair amount of time to answer and she often paused in between words. Sakuno smiled, nodding her head.

A shout prompted the girls to turn their heads and they saw Osakada Tomoka running to greet them both, waving her hand erratically in the air. They were surprised that her arm didn't fall off, or worse, create a tornado.

"-CHAN! YOU'RE BACK!" She exclaimed as she threw her arms around the girl. The latter dropped her package, giggling as she returned the embrace. Tomoka let go soon after, her eyes sparkling as she gazed at '-chan'.

"It's nice to see you again... Tomo-chan. It's been... awhile, hasn't it?" -chan asked, picking up her package, before turning to the girls. Her voice faltered a bit on some of the words. Tomoka gaped at her, pointing an accusing finger as -chan sighed inwardly.

"Awhile? You've been gone for an entire year!" Tomoka screeched, making the other two wince. Then, Tomoka glared at -chan. "Do you know how much Sakuno-chan and I have missed you? Never ever do that 'studying abroad' thing again!" -chan laughed, nodding her head.

"Alright, you have my... word Tomo-chan." She giggled, clutching her package. The words seemed to flow slightly better now and Tomoka nodded in satisfaction as she grabbed Sakuno's arm.

"Hurry up! Sakuno-chan! Ryoma-sama might be leaving already!" The other girl blushed and sputtered incoherently, and -chan giggled beneath her breath. As Tomoka dragged her best friend away, she looked over her shoulder and winked at -chan, before jogging away. The other girl shook her head in exasperation, before hurrying home.

**********

"Kawamura, you're late. 10 laps." Tezuka said, turning his gaze to Kawamura. The latter rubbed his head sheepishly, bowing to his captain.

"Sumimasen, Tezuka-buchou." He apologized, before turning to run his laps. As he was about to go, a girl wandering around the courts caught his eye. It was the same girl he saw yesterday; only today, she was wearing a Seigaku uniform. A smile crept up on Kawamura's face as he realized that they attended the same school. Shaking his head, he tried to focus on his laps, but his thoughts kept on wandering to her every now and then.

In fact, he was so disoriented that Fuji had to walk up to him and stop him from running. The tensai had a somewhat worried look on his face.

"Taka-san, you've already finished your ten laps." He pointed out, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder. Kawamura blinked in surprise, before laughing awkwardly and rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. He ignored the strange look Fuji gave him.

"Ah, I did? I didn't even notice." He commented, before walking to a bench to take a sip of water. Fuji followed. His tennis racket clacked as he placed it on the bench, turning to his friend who was currently gulping down some water. Kawamura was pointedly avoiding Fuji's gaze.

"Are you alright? You've been out of it since yesterday." Kawamura waved it off, smiling. It was forced, and Fuji knew that something was up.

"Don't worry Fuji-san. I'm fine." Kawamura stood, grabbing his racket. "YOSH!! LET'S GET PRACTICING!!!"

Fuji chuckled as Kawamura sped off onto one of the courts.

**********

'Hmmm. Maybe I should have asked Sakuno-chan or Tomo-chan to come with me.'

The girl named '-chan' sighed, as she wandered the courtyard of Seigaku. She had come early in the morning to speak with the principal and see if she could get a feel of the school, but unfortunately she had gotten lost while doing so. It would be some time before class started, so she figured she could find another person for help. -chan jogged around a bit before stumbling upon someone washing their face at the tap.

"Anou... sumimasen..." She began, walking towards the other person. He looked up from washing his face, blinking at her. She blushed. "I'm... kind of... lost, and I was hoping you could... lead me to the tennis courts? A friend said she'd... meet me there to show me a-around." The other boy straightened up, grinning. If he took any notice of her pauses or the slight stutter then he didn't show it. His hair was kind of spiky, and he towered over her.

"Of course! My name is Momoshiro, but you can call me Momo-chan." Momoshiro Takeshi greeted, holding out his hand in greeting. Bowing, -chan introduced herself after shaking his hand.

"My name is... . I just... came back to Japan from... studying abroad in America. Pleased to... meet you." straightened up, smiling softly at him. "I'm a third year." Momoshiro nodded, grinning once more.

"It's nice to meet you -senpai. Welcome back to Japan!" Momoshiro said, before gesturing to the tennis courts. "The tennis courts are this way. Please follow me." She did as told, letting him lead her past bushes and trees to a paved area and the sound of tennis balls and rackets. Momoshiro quickly bid her good-bye, going into the courts to begin arguing with a young boy. looked around for a bit, checking her watch to find she was a few minutes early.

observed the people playing tennis, smiling to herself softly as she watched them work diligently. She wished she was just as determined as them to do what she wanted to, but her body was unwilling to co-operate with her as it was. often wondered what it would be like to be a normal girl, living a normal life. Unfortunately, that seemed to be virtually impossible right now. But someday... someday in the future, she hoped her dream would come true.

"-senpai!"

"-CHAN!"

vaguely heard Sakuno chastising Tomoka for forgetting that she was a student at Seigaku now, and that she was in a higher grade. Tomoka seemed to think about that for a second, before nodding and turning to 's direction once more.

"I MEAN -CHAN-SENPAI!"

could hear Sakuno sigh, and the former laughed as they approached her. Tomoka pounced forward, hugging her older friend as Sakuno smiled. reciprocated both gestures, steadying herself. Tomoka let go soon after, and Sakuno stepped up to scrutinize her older friend. She didn't seem to see anything wrong physically.

"How are you feeling today -senpai?" Sakuno asked. grinned brightly, showing her a thumbs up. The smile was bright and sunny, and Sakuno understood then that she was perfectly fine. However, she couldn't help but feel that something wrong was about to happen.

"Great! Better than... I've felt in... years!" She managed to say with a somewhat louder tone. Tomoka gave her a worried look, clutching her school bag. She leaned forward, biting her bottom lip uncertainly.

"Do you still have to go to the hospital?" The younger student asked. 's grin faltered, and she looked down to the ground. It was a touchy subject, but she knew that they were just worried about her. They were probably the only people, aside from her parents and relatives, who didn't avoid her just because of her disability.

"Just for... check-ups. Nothing... serious." She admitted. A sort of melancholy air surrounded the atmosphere, until the Freshman Trio had walked into them. Horio was in the middle and, as usual, bragging about one thing or the other. Kachiro and Katuso were on either side of him, looking at each other worriedly and hoping their friend didn't get himself or them in any trouble with his schemes. They bowed to Tomoka, Sakuno and .

"Ohayou." They all said, and Horio eyed with distaste. The latter didn't like the look he gave her, but maintained her composure and managed to still remain optimistic and cheerful.

"Who are you?" He asked rudely. If was offended, she let no one know. The older girl merely turned to the three newcomers and bowed.

"... ... Pleased to meet you." She answered, stumbling over her name a bit. Kachiro and Katsuo looked at each other curiously, and Horio raised a brow at her strange speech patterns. He didn't notice, but some of the other regulars had decided to drop by behind them seeing as practice was over.

"Why do you talk weird?" He asked bluntly, and Tomoka had punched him in the arm roughly. She was glaring at him distastefully; seemingly more offended then her senpai. Horio yelped, reaching upwards to rub his arm in pain as he glared at her. "What was that for?" He exclaimed. Tomoka turned her back to him, Sakuno trying to calm her best friend down.

"That was for being rude to your senpai!" Tomoka growled, walking over to . The other girl was giggling slightly, but then she started to cough and Sakuno then immediately dug into her bag for a bottle of water. "!" Tomoka exclaimed, worried as she patted the other girls back. smiled through her coughs, shaking her head and accepting the water from Sakuno.

"Should we take her to the nurses' office?" Fuji Syuusuke asked, walking forward with the other regulars. Kawamura Takashi stood behind him worriedly, and on the other side was Tezuka and Oishi, the latter looking extremely worried.

"No... no… I'm... fine." said between pauses after she took in a bit of water. A blush lit up on her face and she waved her hands. The regulars could see her taking deep breaths, trying to calm herself down. "It's just... a normal... fit that I have... frequently. Nothing to worry about." Tomoka narrowed her eyes at her friend, wagging her finger.

"If there is anything wrong then you have to go straight to the infirmary. We can't compromise your health." blushed, nodding before turning to the regulars.

"I'm sorry for... not introducing myself... earlier. My name is ... . I am a third year here at... Seigaku. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu." bowed to the regulars, smiling. Sakuno and Tomoka also greeted their senpai-tachi. turned to them both. "Should we... get going to class?" She asked. Sakuno and Tomoka nodded, and Tomoka took her hand. Sakuno told them to go ahead, and as they disappeared out of sight she turned to the tennis members.

"Senpai-tachi, Horio-kun, Kachiro-kun, Katsuo-kun; I'm sure you've figured out that there's something... off about -senpai." She began, and the others nodded. Sakuno's gaze directed itself to the floor, and she shifted around nervously. "-senpai... is speech impaired. She was in an accident when she was quite young, and her vocal chords were crushed." Sakuno heard a couple gasps, and she knew that Horio was probably feeling a bit guilty. "She had surgery to get them corrected, but something went wrong a year later and her parents decided to go to America for intensive therapy. She's all better now, but she has problems speaking. Tomo-chan and I can't watch her all the time, so if it's not too much trouble-,"

"You can count on us Sakuno-san." Sakuno looked up, smiling at Kawamura. Her hands were clasped in front of her, and she bowed low to her senpai-tachi. Her braids dangled down, the tips of her hair touching the ground. The regulars and the Freshman Trio were surprised at the sincerity in her voice.

"Hontou ni arigatou gozaimasu." She straightened up, smiled, and then ran off to catch up with and Tomoka. The group of students watched her run off, quicker then they had ever seen her run before. Her braids disappeared around a corner, and the tennis members looked to each other in confusion.

Just who was this ?

**********

"Are you abso-posi-lutely sure that you'll be alright?" Tomoka asked, eyeing the other girl. giggled quietly, nodding. They were standing outside 's homeroom class and Tomoka and Sakuno were getting ready to leave. "And you promise to go to the nurses' office if you feel something is wrong?" Tomoka prodded, crossing her arms. nodded again.

"Hai. I promise... Tomo-chan, Sakuno-chan. I will be... fine. Please don't... worry." Tomoka and Sakuno looked at each other, before the former sighed and nodded. Sakuno stepped forward, putting a hand on the other girls shoulder.

"If you need any help, then you can go to the senpai-tachi." Sakuno told her. blinked, before tapping her chin. Her eyes glazed over, and Tomoka and Sakuno knew she was trying to remember something.

"You mean... those other boys... I met today?" She asked. Sakuno nodded, and smiled brightly, nodding. "Ryoukai!" The two younger students smiled, and headed off to their homeroom. "Ja ne!" They heard her call back.

"So, shall we go in?"

Startled, jumped and twirled around to come face-to-face with Fuji and Kawamura smiling at her. She blushed and looked down, nodding. Fuji reached forward, laying his hand on the small of her back and pushing her gently into the room. Kawamura followed soon after, his eyes trained on Fuji's hand pressing against 's back. His eyes held a sort of longing to them.

**********

"We're really sorry!" Tomoka and Sakuno shouted, bowing down to .

"Daijoubu." She said, waving her hands. The girls looked at each other, before bowing once more and running off. watched them go, still smiling.

It's been two months since started school at Seigaku. A few times a week, Tomoka would need to go to a meeting with her fan club, and Sakuno would need to rush home and do chores. Every time that happened, each of them would apologize profusely to before running off. It gave her a feeling of happiness, knowing that those two cared so much about her health, but she hoped they wouldn't have to worry so much. A lot of their time was spent with her, making sure she was well.

Sighing, decided to head to the tennis courts for a bit before heading home. She had become fond of the place and she liked watching the members of the tennis club rallying with each other in the courts. It gave her a sense of longing of wanting to join them. Alas, with her disability, it was close to impossible. So instead, she just contented herself with watching them play. Fuji and Kawamura often came over to chat a bit before Tezuka ordered them to go back to practice.

knocked on the gate of the fence, waving and smiling to Oishi as he whirled his head to look at her. The boy smiled, before unlocking the gate and allowing her inside the courts. Tezuka watched them from the corner of his eye, standing a little bit ahead of them.

"Konnichiwa, -san." Oishi greeted, bowing slightly. returned the gesture.

"Konnichiwa... Oishi-san. I'm sorry for... sitting in on your... practice again." said, bowing her head once more. The other student waved his hands, shaking his head.

"Oh no trouble at all! It's a pleasure to have you here." He said, and she smiled happily. Inui walked over, scribbling in his notebook and then taking note of . Stopping in mid-step, he turned to .

"Ah. -san. Good, you're here. I believe I finally found something that will help you speak better." Inui took out a small vial he tucked in his jacket, and handed it to her. looked ready to puke as she saw the strange, purple liquid in the tiny vial. Inui pushed the bridge of his glasses up his nose, the lenses flashing. "If you put aside the rather strange taste, it's actually quite good." Inui then turned on his heel, walking away and muttering calculations under his breath again. Oishi and exchanged queasy looks as Inui left.

"I'll go dispose of this for you." Oishi said, twitching as he plucked the vial out of her hand and walked off. sighed in relief, before making her way to a chair situated near the gate. Settling herself into the chair, her eyes swept over the many people bustling around in the courts. First years were walking along picking up tennis balls. Horio was gossiping with Kachiro and Katsuo as usual.

"Ah! -san, you're back." turned to the direction of the voice, smiling and nodding her head slightly at the newcomers. Fuji and Kawamura were both sweating slightly, water bottles in hand, while Fuji held both his and Kawamura's rackets in hand. made a move to get up, but Kawamura stopped her with his hands. "You don't have to stand." He told her, and smiled kindly at him.

"Kawamura-san, I am… speech-impaired, not… bodily disabled." joked, standing up and bowing to the two tennis players. "I already have… two mother hens. I don't… need two more." Fuji smiled at her statement, and nodded. Kawamura looked a little hesitant, but smiled and nodded as well.

Tezuka shouted for them to get back to practice, and they bid the girl goodbye. Walking off, Eiji joined them smiling brighter then a Cheshire cat.

"Taka-san likes -chan!" He exclaimed, and Kawamura quickly put his hand over the acrobatic player's mouth, blushing bright red. Eiji shoved the hand off of his mouth, sticking his tongue out at the other player. "Don't deny it Taka-san! Eiji-kun always knows!" He said brightly, winking. Fuji was quietly chuckling at his friend on the side, and Kawamura was hiding his face in his hands.

"Why don't you ask her out Kawamura-senpai?" The three seniors turned to see Momoshiro grinning brightly at them, tapping his racket against his shoulder repeatedly. "I don't think she'd refuse." Kawamura looked a bit hesitant, but when he turned to Fuji, the tensai nodded his head.

"But… where will I take her?" He asked nervously. Eiji gave him a nice hard slap on the back, earning an 'oof' from his fellow player.

"Anywhere! Take her to watch a movie, or go shopping! Girls like to go shopping." Eiji observed, nodding his head. He paused for a moment. "Oh. But us men don't like shopping." He then grinned brightly, shrugging. "You can take her out to lunch, or dinner! Maybe to an amusement park! Everyone likes amusement parks!" Kawamura seemed to consider those ideas, but still seemed a bit hesitant. Fuji then discreetly slipped his friend his racket.

"BURNING! YOSHI! I WILL DO IT! I CAN DO IT!"

looked over, smiling as she saw Kawamura's alter ego emerge, waving his yellow racket as hard as he could and spouting encouragements to himself. It made her wonder what made him so excited though, to be waving his racket around and shouting over and over again. Apparently, it was much louder and longer then any of his other bouts of excitement, because Tezuka ordered him to quiet down and run 20 laps.

**********

"I can't do it." was the first thing out of Kawamura's mouth as he saw sitting in her chair in the tennis courts, smiling slightly and watching all the other members play. Sakuno and Tomoka had their own business to attend to once more, and his fellow regulars had pushed him to ask the girl today.

Eiji rolled his eyes, nudging his friend to the direction of the .

"Come on Taka-san! This might be your only chance! You can't back out now!" He encouraged. Kawamura still hesitated. Eiji bristled in anger. "Go!" And he pushed the boy forward, propelling him to . Stumbling slightly, Kawamura blushed as he met the gaze of .

"Kawamura-san! It is nice to… see you again." greeted, bowing slightly in her chair. Kawamura reciprocated the gesture, an awkward grin on his face. "Can I… help you with something?" asked. Kawamura fidgeted for a few seconds, nodding.

"Ano… I was just wondering if… um… if you'd want to… well…" Apparently he was taking to long to ask, so Eiji, who was obviously eavesdropping had decided to cut in and speed things up.

"-CHAN! TAKA-SAN WANTS TO GO OUT WITH YOU! SAY YES! SAY YES!" Oishi had quickly covered his team mate's mouth, smiling sheepishly at them. Eiji bit his hand, and Oishi let go with a yelp of pain. blinked, looking at Kawamura. He was blushing brighter then she had ever seen someone blushing, and refused to look her in the eye.

"Kawamura-san… is that true?" asked. Kawamura nodded, afraid his voice would betray him and he would end up looking like a fool. A bright smile flashed upon 's face. She giggled as she stood up, lightly grasping one of his hands in hers. Surprised at the sudden contact, Kawamura looked at .

"… san?" nodded her head.

"I would love to go out with you, Kawamura-san."

Fuji quickly shouted his friend's name, tossing him his racket. Kawamura caught the racket easily, and then chaos was unleashed.

"BURNING! YATTA! SHE SAID YES, SHE SAID YES! OH BABY!"

giggled as the rest of the regulars tried desperately to take the racket from the rampaging Kawamura, only to realize in the end that their buchou had ordered all of them to do 50 laps. Kawamura shot her a sheepish smile as he began his run, and just laughed softly.

**********

Kawamura's younger sister blinked, watching him zip around his room as she peeked in. Clothes were scattered all over the floor, and he was busy looking for a shirt. His hair was in its usual form, and she watched as he grabbed a yellow t-shirt off the floor, putting it on over the long-sleeved white shirt. Rushing downstairs past his sister, who followed him down at a much slower pace, he grabbed his running shoes and began to hastily put them on. His blue jeans made slight noises as he stood up and grabbed his wallet.

"Kawamura!" Someone called. It was his father, smiling and waving a few bills in the air. "Here's some extra money." He said, handing it to his son. Smiling thankfully, Kawamura stuffed them in his wallet, which he then stuffed into the back pocket of his pants, and rushed out of the back door of the sushi restaurant.

"Ittekimasu!" He called, running as fast as his legs could carry him. His sister stood in the doorway of the back door; blinking strangely as her father stood behind her wearing the largest grin she'd ever seen him wear in her life.

"Otousan." She spoke up. He turned his head to look at her, still smiling.

"Hai?" Shuffling nervously on her feet, the young daughter of the Kawamura's turned her head to look up at her papa, tilting her head curiously. The owner of the sushi shop began to get a bad feeling.

"Can I go on a date?"

His face promptly hit the floor.

**********

Kawamura panted as he slowed to a steady walk, ignoring the faint yell coming from the direction of his house. Both he and had agreed to meet up at the park, and then decide what to do from there. Not wanting to be late, Kawamura broke off into a slow jog.

When he arrived, was smiling absentmindedly to herself, sitting on the swing sets. She caught Kawamura's eye, and stood up, waving.

"Ohayou… Kawamura-san." She said slowly, bowing. Kawamura bowed back, rubbing his head sheepishly.

"Ohayou, -san. Ah, did I keep you waiting long?" He asked. shook her head.

"Iie. Sakuno-chan and Tomo-chan… were worried that something… would happen to me. They walked me… here and waited with… me for a bit before… leaving." explained. Kawamura smiled, and held out his hand with a blush on his cheeks.

"Sou ka. Well, shall we go?" nodded, taking his hand with a blush as well, and they began to walk. "So where would you like to go?" Kawamura asked, and thought for a bit.

"I would like… to get some ice cream." She said. Kawamura smiled, and led her to an ice cream stand.

"What kind would you like?" He asked her, and she took a few seconds to think about it.

"Green tea." She answered, and he bought one green tea and one chocolate ice cream. Then, he led her over to a vacant bench and they both sat down. It was silent for a while, before looked up from her ice cream. "Kawamura-san?" Kawamura looked at her, blinking in curiosity.

"Hai, -san?" She looked down at her ice cream.

"Did… did you ask me out… only because… Kikumaru-san… forced you… to?" Kawamura's eyes widened, and he rapidly shook his head.

"Chigaimasu!" looked at him in surprise, and he blushed, directing his gaze to the floor. "I… I was just really shy about asking you out and… Kikumaru-san just encouraged me so I could have the confidence. In the end, he asked for me, but I really do like you!" Kawamura exclaimed, staring at her. He realized what he just said, and his entire face lit up a bright cherry red.

sighed and turned her gaze back to the ice cream cone. It was going to start dripping soon. Uncertainly, she sent him another glance.

"Are you… sure?" She asked softly, and he turned to her in confusion. "I have a… speech disorder and… many people tend to… shy away from me because… I speak strangely." She said. "I don't want to… get into a relationship… where you will start to avoid me… as well." admitted, as a tear rolled down her cheek.

"Of course not!" He protested. "There's nothing wrong with you, -san." Kawamura grabbed one of her hands, blushing. "And… I wouldn't have you any other way."

Her eyes widened, and she looked at him in disbelief. Kawamura nodded, as if reassuring her that he was being honest and heartfelt. Smiling brightly, bowed her head to Kawamura. Startled at the unusual gesture, Kawamura reached forward, touching her shoulder.

"-san?" He asked. looked up at him, this time her eyes shining with happiness.

"Kawamura-san." She said, and his blinked. "I… am still confused about… my feelings for you." He seemed to wither at that comment, but perked up at the next. "But… I will give this… a chance… and I think… that one day… I will be able to… say that I… love you too."

A smile broke up over Kawamura's face, until began to cough harshly, dropping her ice cream cone and hunching over.

"-san? -san!" Kawamura shouted, gripping her shoulders as she coughed. "Water! I'll go get you some water!" He shouted, leaping up and preparing to take off. A hand grabbed his though, and he turned back to see clutching his hand like her life depended on it.

"Stay" was the only word she was able to utter before breaking out into another coughing fit. The coughs didn't seem as though they would stop anytime soon, so Kawamura quickly devised a plan. He knelt on the ground, looking over his shoulder to .

"Get on, I'll take you to the hospital!" He exclaimed, and struggled slightly but eventually did so. As soon as she was comfortably on, Kawamura began to run off in the direction of the hospital. It wasn't too far off from the park, thank goodness.

**********

"Where is she?" Sakuno and Tomoka exclaimed frantically, 's parents running behind them. Kawamura turned to look at them, his expression solemn.

"The doctor told me to wait here, and that he'd come back to tell me the situation." He answered. 's mother covered her face with her hands, breathing a sigh. Kawamura stared at the ground. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked her out." He whispered. 's father shook his head, smiling.

"You shouldn't be." He answered. "She was so happy when she came home, and she couldn't wait for this day to come. Thank you, for giving my daughter a little happiness." Kawamura looked up in surprise, and saw the four smiling at him gratefully. Soon enough, the doctor came by.

"Doctor! Is she alright?" Kawamura asked. The doctor nodded, his expression neutral.

"Yes. But first, are you her parents?" He asked, directing his comment to the two adults, who both nodded. "I'm afraid that for now, only her parents will be allowed to see her, I'm sorry. It's hospital protocol. If you would please follow me…" He gestured, and the two adults began to fall into step behind the doctor. 's mother turned back.

"We'll fill you in on the details later." She said, and continued walking.

The three students of Seigaku each took seats and waited.

**********

She was going to be all right. That was what her father said when he came down to speak with them. She was going to be just fine.

Kawamura had never felt so relieved. He was told he could come tomorrow to visit her, but for now only her immediate family was allowed. Relieved, but disheartened, Kawamura drudged home and walked straight to his room, ignoring his family as he plopped down on his futon and slept.

**********

"It's for the best."

shut her eyes tightly, letting the tears fall as she choked back a sob. She was sitting up in the hospital bed, in the dead of night, her body shaking as she cried. Fisting the sheets in her hands, let another sob past her lips, biting her lip.

Didn't she get a say in this? Wasn't this her life?

It just wasn't fair. It wasn't.

In the dead of the night, she screamed.

**********

"I'm sorry, you can't go in."

Kawamura was puzzled. He was standing in front of 's room, and a nurse just told him he couldn't go in. He asked why.

"-san needs her rest, and her parents specifically asked to let no one in except themselves and the hospital staff. I'm sorry."

Once again disheartened, the Kawamura went off, hands tucked deep in his pockets as he exited the hospital. He didn't see until a few days later, at school.

**********

"I need to talk to you."

The voice was clear, and rang throughout the tennis court. Kawamura stared at the sad , and shoved his tennis racket into Fuji's hands. He followed to a small batch of sakura trees. He knew something bad was going to happen.

"-san, your voice…"

"Temporary." She said to him. "Only temporary, for a few weeks." turned to him, her eyes trained on the floor. "Once those weeks pass… I'll become permanently mute."

A great pain filled Kawamura's heart, as he gazed at the solemn looking girl standing across from him.

"W-what?" closed her eyes, turning away.

"I'm leaving for America." She told him, hugging herself. "Okaa-san and Otou-san… they think that attending therapy and having surgery in America will correct my lungs and vocal chords, so that I can speak again." She paused. "But there's a low chance it will work."

"How low?" He asked, dreading the answer. paused for a long time, before turning to him with sad eyes.

"A ten percent chance… that I will regain the ability to speak freely and fluidly."

Kawamura saw the glistening tear that ran down her cheek, and his heart broke. He stepped forward, gathering her in his arms. She cried.

told him how scared she was that he would forget her once she left, that he would avoid her when she couldn't talk. His arms tightened around, holding her closer to him.

"I'll never forget you. Not ever." He whispered into her ear. His voice and his words soothed her, and she went lax in his arms, clutching desperately onto his tennis shirt.

"And you'll wait for me?" He nodded. "Even if I come back mute?" He nodded once more. "Promise?"

"Of course. I promise."

They stood there, holding each other for the longest time.

==========

CHOOSE YOUR ENDING:

Ending 1: Saying I Love You | Ending 2: Action Speak Louder than Words

==========

##########

October 19, 2007
Written by: Snowflake
Edited by: LeiLei