Yudan sezu no ikou (Don't let your guard down)

Chapter XVI

[time skip after match]

"H-hey Echizen-chan!" I turned around to see Dan run up to me. I swear he looks a lot like Ryoma.

"Hi Taichi-kun, Jin-chan isn't with you?" I asked noticing his eyes widen.

"Jin-chan?! Haha" Dan laugh so much, his face was becoming red. "Hehe, Akutsu-senpai went to get a drink. He said he'd be right back and asked for you to wait for him." I tilted my head and thought for a second.

"Hmm, okay!" I smiled as Dan and I sat on a bench together when the Seigaku team walked up to us. My smile faded as I looked at all their solemn faces, and Tezuka's face...You could see the heart break written all over his face.

"Ryo-neesan..." I looked at Ryoma, he looked so mad. "Are you going finally going to explain?" I sighed, nodding my head slowly.

"I'm sorry I left. Tezuka," I saw him tense. "I lied about Keigo-er, Atobe. I went out with him for a while, a long time ago. I ended up in an incident where I was hospitalized for a month. Remember what I told Inui? The reason why I stopped playing tennis? There's more to that..." I sighed and began piecing all parts of the story together for them. "I met Atobe in England a few years ago, where we dated for a few months. During that times I was supposed participate in the US Open. The day before my game, my belongings were trashed. I thought nothing of it, people are bullies ya know? So the next day, when I was warming up for my match I was knocked unconscious."

"Ryoko!"

"Neesan!"

"Ryo-chan!"

"Echizen!"

"Let me finish." The team, and dan, nodded at me as I continued. "I woke up hours later in the hospital. I don't know what happened, but someone really wanted me to quit tennis. I was delivered a note saying if I didn't quit, my family as well as myself would be hurt. I can't have anything happen to them. So if not playing tennis means keeping my family safe, then I don't mind. I never told anyone, just to be safe. Afterwards I fell unconscious again, which is when Atobe came to my room and stayed till I woke up. That's when he told me he loved me, but I already had somebody else I loved." I sighed shifting my eyes. the team waited for me to continue, taking a deep breath I told them the rest of my story. "when I ran away, I went to America. I stayed with my old coach, he's like a second father. He was upset I wasn't playing tennis anymore so he brought me to watch his team play. I was impressed with their skills and couldn't help but play. That was a bad idea...my coach went to get a drink. I was left alone with his team. And I saw someone I had never seen before. His name is Smith. Tall, strong build and black messy hair covering his devil black eyes. He walked up to me when the team wasn't looking and hit me in the face with his racket. He repeatedly hit me as the team pried him off of me."

"You bitch! You were supposed to stop playing tennis! I guess you want to die huh? A month in the hospital is nothing compared to being six feet underground!"

"He said that to me. Right there I knew he was the one that had been ruining my life. I lost it, I took a nearby racket, and hit the side of his head. He went into a comatose state, and I was almost charged with murder. When he woke up he revealed that he had been trying to kill me, so what I did was looked as self defense. I was able to go free but was monitored for a month by police. Finally I was able to leave, and I came here a month ago. I didn't want to tell my family because I felt ashamed, so I rented an apartment and started working part time. That's when I met a friend and decide to stay with him until I was ready to go home." I sighed finally finishing my long rant.

"Ryo-neechan. Who were you staying with?" I looked away from Ryoma and stared at the ground.

"Me." my head shot up to see Jin standing near the Seigaku team.

"Jin-chan!"

"Akutsu-senpai!"