Tennis no Ojou-sama: A Prince of Tennis Fan Fiction

CHAPTER 139: An Eventful Christmas

"I will," Ryouko replied with a gentle smile. "Hang up now, I have to wrap up all the gifts."

"Okay," Ryoma answered and bit his lower lip lightly before proceeding. "Love you," he said finally, smiling slightly.

Ryouko also smiled warmly from the other line and recalled their conversation yesterday night. After opening up to each other on their insecurities about dating, they both thought of setting up a guide for them to follow. The start up of their dating guide book began with a first set of five rules. Rule number three stated that the words 'I love you' must be said at least once a day. They both laughed at how cheesy the rule is but agreed that they wanted it on the rule book. After all, hearing the person you love tell those words everyday doesn't only help eliminate any trace of uneasiness and doubt but also adds reassurance and trust to a relationship.

"Love you too," Ryouko murmured back. After that, the call hanged up yet their words still lingered in each other's ears.

Still smiling gently, Ryouko played with the ends of the long glossy ribbons and anticipated the Christmas celebration. It's quite strange... They have only been separated for several hours but she wants to see him again and feel the warmth of his hands on hers.

As she went back to her task, Ryouko suddenly remembered Jessica's words from last night. She called her blonde friend to extend her holiday greetings to Kevin and her family just before she went to sleep. The gesture was mostly out of guilt as she recalled that she never called Jessica again after seeking advice from her.

As expected, Jessica sounded mad because she hadn't heard from Ryouko about any news in the progress of her relationship with Ryoma and mercilessly wrung out information with an in-depth interrogation at which Ryouko obediently surrendered.  They ended up talking for a couple of hours and Ryouko couldn't get to bed until two o'clock.

Overall, Jessica was sincerely happy for them and sounded quite amused whenever Ryouko showed signs of embarrassment and euphoria as she recounted the events that took place for the past few two weeks. However, her blonde friend found it necessary to throw in a couple of advices by the end of their conversation and one of the things she said is that dating might only be sweet during the early stages and once Ryouko had gotten accustomed to it, she may not feel the same giddy feeling whenever she and Ryoma openly expresses their feelings for one another.

However, Ryouko doesn't agree with her. Both she and Ryoma are not vocal people and the fact that they openly say sweet words to each other is a miracle in itself. She would never tire of hearing those words from him nor would she get accustomed to them or take him for granted, not in the years to come nor in the far future. What her future holds is a mystery but this is one thing that Ryouko is certain that would remain as an unchanging variable.

Meanwhile, Ryouko was so immersed in her thoughts that she didn't realize that someone is standing near her.

"Goodness gracious," she exclaimed, dropping the scissors in her surprise. "Since when were you there?" she added immediately.

"I've been calling you for about thirty seconds now, Oujo-sama... And please don't daydream while handling sharp objects," the red-headed butler said, pointing at the scissors on her lap.

Ryouko picked them up. "Don't worry. I'm not a little kid to carelessly injure myself with scissors," she remarked. "Is there something you want to tell me?" she asked, changing the subject.

"I just wanted to inquire whether Ryoma-obocchama's parents and cousin have any food allergies. I wouldn't want to include anything in the menu that can pose a health threat," Licht told her.

"I'm not sure about Nanako-san but I'm pretty positive that Nanji and Rin-chan doesn't have food allergies. And you really don't have to go out of your way to prepare a full-course menu. Ryoma said they're also preparing food in their house. If we bring too much, we won't be able to finish everything. There's only seven of us," Ryouko answered.