the downward spiral to romance

9. The Aftermath

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9. The Aftermath

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One can’t deny that the best times for the best naps would be after eating a hearty lunch.

Echizen Ryoma, the boy who has since then lived by that fact, currently spends the last 45 minutes of lunch break at the rooftop. His eyes are closed as he lies near the wall in order to shield himself from the intense summer heat. He yawns lazily, mind wandering about the latest stuff that he has to do and remember. 

“Echizen.” 

The familiar voice of a senpai prompts him to open a single eye and check. 

"Fuji-senpai," he recognizes, but he doesn't move from his spot. “What is it?”

“We won’t have any tennis practice after school, but there will be a meeting for the regulars.” Fuji says, walking towards the railing by the rooftop, “And… Tezuka is back.”

“Tezuka-buchou?” At the mention of the name, Ryoma lazily sits up from his lying position, “His pro events overseas are already finished?”

“That’s what I heard from him,” Fuji smiles, “Maybe he’s just resting a bit… It’s hard being a tennis monster like him.”

Ryoma doesn’t immediately reply, wondering why his senpai suddenly decided to go back to Japan. But then, if he’s back for good, it would be a shame. The only reason why he stayed out of the professional scene for the meantime was that his mother insisted that he finished high school first.

“In a way, you’re the same tennis monster as Tezuka, Echizen…” Fuji chuckles.

“Che.” Ryoma rolls his eyes, “Like you’re one to talk, senpai. You just don’t like to pursue being a pro at all.”

Fuji only turns his head back to the view of the school grounds below before he says, “Maybe. Though that really isn't my style at all."

The senpai glances back to Ryoma, wearing his usual amused smile, "Putting that aside… How have you been lately, Echizen?"

Skeptical at how his senpai changes the topic, he stands up, "The usual." 

"I see." Fuji answers, fishing a small-sized paper envelope from the pocket of his polo uniform, "I keep on forgetting to give you this."

"What is it?" Ryoma asks. He doesn't have the slightest idea as to what his senpai might be giving.

Fuji hands him the crisp paper envelope, "It was the photos from the festival." 

Ryoma recalls that festival from two weeks ago. It wasn't really the most pleasant memory.  Hesitant, he accepts them from the tensai.

"I was supposed to give those to Horio and instruct him to give these out to you first years," Fuji shrugs, "But I figured that you probably would like some of the photos for yourself."

Frowning, Ryoma opens the envelope. It contains some of the photos that Fuji-senpai took since preparing for the festival. One photo was a picture of Kachiro and Katsuo holding up buckets of paint, another was a photo of him and Horio as they painted one of the props. The next photo was a picture of him and Ryuzaki, with Ryuzaki smiling at him while he was annoyed at the paint on his cheeks. 

It made his stomach churn in uncomfortably.

There are more photos after, but he decides to not look at them for now.