Chinami sat on the bleacher, watching practice once again. She's happy to see the boys training for the Nationals. She heard from them that the tournament will be held in Tokyo and since they will stay there until the Nationals was over, they will be able to get a hotel provided for them. She was excited to go since she loved shopping there.
When practice was finally over, she went over to the regulars with fresh towels.
"Towels and drinks are here." Chinami said with a smile on her face. "Good work, everyone."
"Nee-chan, why don't you come and play with us sometimes?" Kintarou said after grabbing a towel.
"Um...I don't feel like playing. It's fine, I have fun watching you all play seriously."
"Apple-chan is such a good little kid! So cute~!" Koharu cooed, trying to glomp her but he landed on the floor when Chitose pulled her to the side.
"He shouldn't glomp so much..." Chitose sighed. "Anyway, you okay with just watching us?"
"Yep. I have no chance of winning so it's okay really." Chinami looked around to see Kenya wasn't around. 'Where is he?' She wondered to herself, feeling worried again.
Kenya was sent to do some errands for Osamu. Osamu always sent Kenya out to do petty errands because it was so convenient since he's so fast when it came to running.
"Coach, I wish you would send someone else to do your errands. It's not appropriate for a student to pick up your laundry."
"It's fine, Kenya is fast-"
"I am telling you to stop it." Osamu can feel some sort of evil aura from her. He knew his life was in danger if he tried to push any further.
"Okay, whatever you say...I will send the Baka Pair instead."
"Thank you." Chinami was happy to hear that.
"Hey guys~! Osamu-chan, your laundry!" Kenya was finally back. His practice of the day was finished since he carried the bag full of clothings back.
"Kenya-senpai, you're back!" Chinami was happy to see he was back again. Knowing he was back put her heart at peace.
"Where else will I be if I don't come back?" Kenya smiled at her, "You miss me again?"
"Hm." Chinami nodded, "I did."
"You're surprisingly honest. It's cute when you're like that." Kenya was happy to hear her say that she missed him. He's only gone for a while but that's okay, it's good to hear her honest words.
"I don't like it when you're gone for so long..."
Kenya blinked and blushed. "W-was I gone for long?"
"An hour late."
"I see. I'll try and be back for you next time, okay?"
Chinami smiled at his words, handing him a towel, "For you."
"Thanks! Say, where is Shiraishi?"
"Eh? Buchou?"
"Huh, I wanted to tell him something...Chinami, you think you can find him for me?"
"Sure." Chinami went find Shiraishi right after that. She wondered where he could be...
From quite far away, Shiraishi was busy telling this girl he's turning down her confession.
"Kuranosuke-kun, I don't understand! I can wait after the Nationals so..." The girl with long brown hair looked up at Shiraishi with the cutest look she can pull. She has always watched Shiraishi from afar, she has plucked up the courage to change herself in order to get the confidence she needed to confess. Now that she has came close to confession, Shiraishi was rejecting her? She's not having that!
"I don't see you that way, I can't sugarcoat something that isn't going to happen, I am sorry." It's not something new that Shiraishi would get a confession from a girl; being popular has its downside too, having to put down the feelings of another without hurting the other. It would be great if there's such thing as turning down a confession without hurting another, but life wasn't that fair.
"Kuranosuke-kun, is it really because of the Nationals or is it because of that red haired 2nd year?"
"Chinami? What does this have to do with her?"
"You don't know? Everyone is saying that she's using her problems to get attention from the tennis club. Why else do you think she's living with Oshitari-kun right now?"
"Who has been saying that? That is not true at all!" Shiraishi can't believe people would think that about Chinami! They don't have a clue what's going on in Chinami's life right now, how can they make up something that is not true behind her back? "You don't know anything about Chinami, don't pretend you know when you know nothing about her!"
"You ever thought she is fishing the attention she is getting?! She is away from her abusive Father now, yet she keeps getting so much attention from you guys. She is fine now, yet all of you treat her like she's some special girl!"
"Chinami needs me! That is all there is to it!"
"She doesn't need you! Have you seen the way she always come to our classroom looking for Oshitari-kun during breaks?!" Shiraishi wanted to deny that but he found it hard to dispute; Chinami has been looking for Kenya a lot more often. There were times when Kenya was out of the classroom and she came and ask him for Kenya. Shiraishi honestly didn't mind that; Chinami and Kenya were close friends so obviously she would ask for him when she saw him missed. "Kuranosuke-kun, she is only hanging out with you because it's convenient for her to find Oshitari-kun!"
"That is not true! I know Chinami better than you do!"
"Kuranosuke-kun!"
"And don't you call me by my given name either! We might have been in the same class for 3 years straight but I don't remember giving you the rights to call me like that." Shiraishi didn't want to sound too harsh but he felt this girl took things too far by saying bad things about Chinami. "I'm not talking about this anymore. Don't you address me by my given name ever again!" Shiraishi walked away from the girl, choosing not to talk to her anymore since it will not go anywhere now. When he turned the corner, he was bumped by a small girl.
"Ah!" Chinami was about to fall back but Shiraishi caught her and pulled her into a hug. "B-Buchou..."
"Got you. What are you doing here?"
"You were gone, Kenya-senpai came back and he said he wanted to speak to you so he told me to find you."
"Oh, he's finished with getting Osamu-chan's laundry?" Shiraishi found her really cute when she's not complaining about being in the hug, the way she's looking up at him with her innocent eyes was the cutest thing ever. "Is it just me or you look cuter than usual?"
"I do?"
"Yep. It makes me want to hold you all day."
"But if you hold me all day, I won't be able to walk properly." Shiraishi chuckled at her words and he let her go.
"Shall we go back then? Let's see what Kenya want to talk about..."
"Okay."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Chinami had no idea that by hanging out with Shiraishi and Kenya, she's irritating the girls who had their eyes on Shiraishi. Chinami's close with both of them, she saw them both as people who were important to her so it's only natural for her to see them during breaks, no? She would often go to Kenya's and Shiraishi's classroom with Zaizen so no one dared to confront her about it but today Zaizen was held back for being talking back to the teacher so the girls had the opportunity to confront her about it as she's on her way to class 3-2.
"Sakurahime-san, aren't you being a bit too greedy recently?" Chinami was surrounded by four girls in their 3rd year and they were not letting her go anywhere until they talk things out.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Chinami really had no idea what they were talking about.
"Don't play dumb! Our friend here confessed to Kuranosuke-kun and failed because of you! You're distracting Kuranosuke-kun from tennis and social life!"
"Stop fishing for his attention by using Oshitari-kun!"
"Yeah!"
The girl who confessed to Shiraishi the other looked teary about it but she angrily nodded too. "You're being selfish! You're already safe from your Father, why are you still pretending as if you're still victimized?!"
"I...I'm not doing anything like that." Chinami reasoned.
"Oh yeah? Then what are you doing? Amuse me."
"I don't have a lot of friends...they are people important to me-"
"Kuranosuke-kun is important to us too!"
"Yeah!"
"Did you ever ask him if he wanted to associate with you? You didn't! You're already their manager, you don't need to see him during your breaks!"
"I am not doing anything." Chinami reasoned once again, "Not just Shiraishi-buchou, everyone in the tennis club is important to me!"
"You're only their manager, don't overstep the line!"
"They don't need you in the Nationals! You don't even play tennis!"
"I am a member of the boys' tennis club too! Shiraishi-buchou and Kenya-senpai told me that-"
"Seeing you lie makes me sick!" The girl slapped Chinami across the face without hesitation. "Stay away from Kuranosuke-kun, you attention-seeker!"
Chinami touched her now red cheek, looking at the girl with a displeased look.
"What? What are you looking at me for? Don't look at me like that!" She was about to hit Chinami again but the hit was stopped because Zaizen grabbed the girl's wrist.
"What do you think you're doing...?" The look on his face was very different from usual; he usually has a face that spelled out 'Everyone is an idiot except for me' but this face was a very dangerous one, the anger in his eyes were evident, it was as if a demon has arrived and possessed him.
"Hikaru..."
"L-let go!" The girl he grabbed tried to remove her hold but Zaizen gripped harder, to the point where pain can be felt.
"I asked you what do you think you're doing?" Zaizen repeated, "How dare you try to hurt Chinami in front of me..."
"Zaizen-kun, you're hurting me!" The more she spoke, the harder Zaizen squeezed her wrist, making her screech because of the pain.
I saw it. I saw her get hit right before my eyes. I don't know what it was, but the moment I saw her getting hurt, I lost it. It was as if the pain was sent my way instead.
I don't care about another girl, whatever happens to another girl, I don't care about it. She is the only girl who should not be hurt. Only Chinami can get me riled up...I want to protect her, I won't let anyone hurt her, be it a man or a woman...I will get rid of anyone who dared to lay a hand on her.
"Hikaru, stop!" Chinami was hugging Zaizen's spare arm, trying to pry him away from hurting the girl any further. "Hikaru!"
Zaizen looked at the person tugging his free arm with an icy look. However, the moment when his dark green eyes met her emerald green eyes, the ice in his eyes warmed up and he realized she was begging him to stop.
"Please stop..."
Zaizen wanted to hurt the girl much more but he let her go for Chinami's sake. "You're lucky Chinami is begging for mercy on trash like you. You're as ugly on the inside as you are on the outside." If he can't hurt her physically, he might as well destroy her will to live with words. "Girls like you are the type who can only get attention from guys by opening her legs, so you pick on girls like Chinami to avoid the realization that once your youth is used up to the point makeup won't cover it up anymore, you will become trash that men would pay for one night stands. How is that, did I predict your future for you?"
"Hikaru!" These words were very hurtful! "It's enough..."
"Tch..." Zaizen walked away from the stunned girl, who stood in shock as people around them talked about how badly burnt she was and how she needed ice for that burn...
Chinami took Zaizen to the rooftop because she thought he needed to cool down.
"You shouldn't have done that." Chinami said to him, "No matter how wrong she was, you shouldn't have hurt her with pain or words."
"So? It's only her." Zaizen honestly didn't care if he was seen as a horrible guy. To him, the opinions of others meant so little to him because he cared only for Chinami. "Why are you defending trash like her?"
"It's wrong no matter how you try to justify it."
"I don't care. She can disappear tomorrow and I wouldn't bat an eye about it."
"Her parents and friends would care." Chinami reasoned.
"Chinami, girls like that doesn't need sympathy."
"How can you say that? That is horrible..."
"I am horrible?" Zaizen really doesn't understand her problem with this issue at all.
"I don't want to see you hurt anyone."
"You really think I care about other people in this school? Everyone can disappear for all I care, just you remaining is fine."
"W-why would you want that?"
"Because I care about you. If I didn't step in, you would have ended up hurt by her."
"But when you stepped in, you've hurt her more than she hurt me..."
"She deserves it."
"Two wrongs doesn't make a right, Hikaru."
"If it was the usual you, you would have slapped her with the paper fan. I don't feel like I am talking to the usual you anymore!" Zaizen looked at Chinami, frustrations were clear in his eyes, he's finding it difficult to reason with her. He can't admit he's wrong over something he felt was right.
"I would rather walk away rather than see you hurt someone in my place!"
"You walk away? Just like the way you walked away from your Dad's abuse? Oh wait, that's now what you did!"
"Don't talk about my Dad!!" Chinami slapped Zaizen across the cheek for bringing up her Father. She didn't think about her Dad until he brought him up. "Ah...!"She looked at her own hand and then back at Zaizen, regret was in the air. "Hikaru..."
He has a perfect record of being free from the hit of the paper fan but he's holding the number one place of being slapped by her hand. The physical pain on his cheek was nothing compare to the pain in his heart; Chinami doesn't care about him...
"...fine, do whatever you want, I won't protect you anymore!"