Prince Of Tennis Fan Fiction ❯ The Sound of Two Heads Crashing ❯ Ch. 7: My Experience As A Stalker: Part 2 ( Chapter 7 )

Okay I am really, really sorry this took so long. And then this chapter is shorter than all the others too, which just make things worse. I'm sorry. But here it is. Finally. I hope you like it. It's going to be a little more dramatic than all the others to make up for the shortness. And thank you for all the reviews.

 

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Chapter #7: My Experience As A Stalker: Part 2

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“Can you see them?” Oishi asked, squinting across the street from where he was trying to hide behind a lamppost.

“I can see Momo, but Ochibi's too far into the store,” Eiji replied, squatting down behind a bench

“Well, they're not doing anything anyway so I suppose it doesn't matter,” Fuji said from his spot behind the bench next to Eiji.

Agreeing with him, Eiji sighed. “This is getting boring. They're not doing anything.”

“You think we should just go home?” Oishi asked, looking down at where his boyfriend was squatting.

“No,” Fuji said stubbornly, narrowing his eyes at the oblivious Momo across the street. “They've done nothing to prove that they are together, but they've also done nothing to prove that they aren't together. We stay.”

“What are you doing?” a confused voice asked from out of nowhere.

Eiji, Oishi, and Fuji all turned at the sound of the voice. Behind them, Kaidoh was looking down at them curiously, a confused frown on his face. Inui, at his side and looking as calm as always, seemed not to need an answer. He already knew.

Calmly squatting down next to Fuji, and dragging a protesting Kaidoh down with him, Inui got comfortable behind the bench and asked, “Are things going well?” It seemed like he was going to join them.

Fuji forced a small smile for the other boy. He didn't like being wrong or having his plans not work and it seemed both were happening right now. “I'm afraid we've been having a little trouble finding anything in their behavior that points to a success.”

Inui hmm'd and looked across the street at the still oblivious Momo. Crouched next to him, Kaidoh grumbled angry things under his breath and got comfortable. Unable to believe their plans were being canceled so that they could spy on the idiot, he also knew better than to speak up.

“Have you tried forcing them into situations that would give you your answer?” Inui asked.

“We don't want to risk them seeing us,” Fuji explained, looking back across the street. “We've been keeping our distance since we began.”

“Of course,” Inui said with a calm nod.

“Hey, I think they're getting ready to leave,” Eiji noticed. Across the street Ryoma had joined Momo in the front of the manga shop. The two had a short conversation, Ryoma seeming to be asking about something that was just out of their line of sight. Either way the question looked like it freaked Momo out, but then he was back to normal and approached the counter to buy his chosen manga.

Eiji sighed. “I wish we could tell what they were saying.”

Inui nodded calmly once more. “Yes. That would be rather helpful.”

“Oh. There they go,” Oishi noticed and Eiji looked up to see Momo and Ryoma exiting the shop. “Are we going to follow them?” Oishi asked, turning to Fuji.

Fuji nodded, a determined look crossing his face as he stood up to follow the two younger boys across the street. “We will get our answers.”

 

 

Momo and Ryoma got to the street tennis courts to find them rather busy with all the regular people. It seemed like they would have to play doubles then. So they got in line.

Not that Momo was going to be of any use, he had to admit to himself. His nerves were still somewhat rattled by his rather unexpected coming out of the closet and he was distracted. Had he actually just told Ryoma he was gay? Like, truly gay? Wasn't that a bit premature? He had only just realized it himself. Shouldn't he have had at least a couple more days to get used to the idea before going public with it?

But no. He'd been unable to keep it a secret for even one day, never mind three. He'd just blurted it out, just like that.

Maybe it was just because it had been Ryoma who'd asked. Maybe he wouldn't have been quite so open with anybody else. Because if anybody else asked him right now what he thought of boys, he most definitely wouldn't blurt out his sudden love of cock and, oh God, had he actually just thought that? Did the word cock just honestly come into his mind after the words `love of'?

Momo wasn't sure he was ready to be quite so gay. Maybe he should tone it down just a little before he started to flame any worse. Next thing he knew he would be wearing sequins and talking with a lisp.

And was it significant that he was attracted to Ryoma of all people? Ryoma, the really short kid with the baby face? Was he going to grow up to be that sick pervert down the street that molested little boys? Parents wouldn't be able to leave their kids within ten feet of him without him wanting to get his dirty, gay hands all over them.

“Momo-sempai?”

Oh God, he was sick. He needed to be taken away from society and shot before his presence could corrupt it any worse than it already was.

“Momo-senpai?”

Quick. Did he like any other boys? Was he going to suddenly start lusting after Horio? Or worse, Horio's little brother? The kid was seven years old!

“Momo-senpai. Are you okay?” Ryoma asked, looking up at him with something like concern and Momo was made suddenly aware that he had stopped moving. The people in front of him in line had moved ahead and he was still stuck someplace a few feet back. But he also wasn't sure he could do this anymore. He couldn't keep pretending everything was okay, because everything was not okay. Everything was horrible. He wanted to die. Maybe when he got home he would take the easy way out and commit suicide.

“I feel sick,” Momo said, putting his arms around his middle. “I think I need to sit down.”

“I told you not to eat so much,” Ryoma said somewhat irritably as the two of them exited the line for the courts and he walked Momo back over to the bench. Without Momo, Ryoma didn't have a partner so he would just have to sit on the sidelines until either he could find another partner or Momo started feeling better.

Momo decided not to tell Ryoma that his sudden illness had nothing to do with all the burgers he'd eaten. “I know. I know,” he said instead as he slowly eased himself down onto the bench and then put his head in his hands. He almost wanted to just go home and get the suicide over with, but Ryoma would probably wonder why he was in such a hurry to get home when he'd previously been so adamant about staying out for as long as possible. Feeling ill wouldn't be an excuse.

Momo sighed and Ryoma sat down next to him to watch the matches, which was just great. He could feel the younger boy next to him even if he wasn't exactly looking at him and that was just playing hell on his libido and feelings. He could remember what it was like to kiss him from the Truth or Dare game—thank you Fuji—and he could remember the feel of Ryoma's body pressing into his in the closet—and again, thank you Fuji—and, now that he thought about it, this had to all be Fuji's fault. That was probably who had written the letter that started all of this and that was who had probably been the one with the idea to shove him and Ryoma into the closet. And, actually, now that he thought about it, the events of the last two weeks suddenly seemed to make a lot more sense.

Fuji did it all. He'd probably been the one to tell the others to keep pushing Ryoma into him. He'd been the one to orchestrate the whole Truth or Dare game. Hell, Momo suddenly wasn't so sure that Eiji and Oishi really had had a fight and broken up naturally. Fuji had probably been behind that as well. Lord knows why, but that was the only thing that made sense. Oishi and Eiji just didn't fight like that.

Starting to get angry now, Momo scowled and took his head out of his hands. “Fuji-senpai,” he muttered angrily, narrowing his eyes at the players on the court and gritting his teeth.

Fuji was the reason he had started questioning his sexuality. Fuji was the reason he was currently in love with his oblivious best friend. Fuji was the reason he was currently sick to his stomach at the thought of what he was going to become. Fuji did it all!

And for what? A few laughs? No, he'd probably wanted Momo to start questioning things. That was the only explanation. He'd wanted Momo to know he was in love with Ryoma when Momo had been so much happier being oblivious to the whole thing!

“Momo-senpai?” Ryoma asked, looking at him with some worry now. Momo didn't blame him. It wasn't very often that Momo ever got angry and never just out of nowhere like it probably seemed to Ryoma.

Momo suddenly stood with only the briefest of vague explanations before storming off. “We need to find Fuji-senpai.”

 

 

Ryoma had to admit, if only to himself, that he was worried. Momo had complained of being sick, but had then all of a sudden gotten incredibly angry and stormed off. Hurriedly picking up both of their belongings, Ryoma had, of course, followed and had been trying to figure out what had made Momo so angry ever since, but he hadn't had any luck with asking. Momo had just hissed an angry, “It was all him. All him. Fuji did it all,” before continuing on. He seemed to be looking for something, but other than that Ryoma had absolutely no idea what was going on. Obviously Fuji had done something, but what Ryoma had no clue.

“You!” Momo finally shouted, pointing at an innocent bush across the street and storming over to it, thankfully remembering to use the crosswalk.

Now even more worried that Momo had finally lost it, Ryoma followed his obviously crazy best friend, trying to make Momo see sense. “Momo-senpai, it's a bush.”

“No,” Momo growled as they approached closer and Ryoma could finally see what Momo had obviously already seen. There were figures crouched behind the bush. Very familiar figures. Five of them. “I just remembered it a couple of minutes ago. You remember when you thought you saw Fuji-senpai hiding behind a bush?” Momo asked Ryoma tightly, obviously trying for calm but only coming across as psychotic when he then smiled. “Well, here's why.”

Confused, Ryoma looked at his senpai. “They were following us?” Eiji and Oishi at least had the grace to look apologetic, but Inui just looked calm and Fuji smiled innocently. Kaidoh tried to pretend like he wasn't with them.

“Yes,” Momo hissed out, obviously only getting more enraged by this fact. “They were.”

“But why?” Ryoma asked, still confused.

“You remember when they were pushing us into each other?” Momo asked tightly again, obviously trying to restrain himself from doing anything drastic. “Or that Truth or Dare game where they kept daring us to kiss?”

“Yeah . . .” Ryoma said slowly, starting to get the feeling that he knew where this was going.

“And then there was that day Oishi-senpai and Eiji-senpiai fought. And then that day with the letters. And then the closet. And then now. It was them all along. All part of their sick little plan to make me lose my mind!” This he shouted at the small group of guilty senpai. Again, only Eiji and Oishi, had the grace to look apologetic.

“Now Momo,” Fuji began calmly as the lot of them slowly stood.

But Momo wasn't to be calmed. “Do you even know what you've done?” he shouted. Random people out walking the streets were starting to be attracted to Momo's loud voice and they began to gather in a curious circle around the small group of teenagers.

“We were trying to help!” Fuji said, only just starting to look a little worried. He obviously hadn't been prepared for Momo to be this angry.

“Help?” Momo repeated incredulously. “HELP?” he said again in a louder tone of voice. “How is what you've done helpful?!” Momo shouted, his face getting red as he continued to create a spectacle and people continued to mill around. Ryoma had never seen his friend like this. It was kind of scary.

“We just wanted you to be aware of your feelings!” Fuji replied.

Your feelings? Ryoma wondered even as he said this. What did he mean by feelings?

“Because of you I am going to grow up,” Momo started, obviously trying to calm himself, “lonely and alone and depressed and with a taste for SMALL CHILDREN!!”

This made the growing crowd around them murmur amongst themselves and the senpai to blink, obviously confused.

“Wait, what?” Eiji asked.

“Have you looked at him?” Momo shouted as he pointed a finger straight at Ryoma's face. “He looks like a little kid! Couldn't you have a t least waited until he grew into his face first?!”

Ryoma blinked, more than confused himself. How had this turned to his appearance? What was going on?

“I told you this was a bad idea,” Oishi murmured.

“His face?” Fuji said, obviously not quite sure what to do with this new knowledge. “That's what bothers you? His face? Not anything else?”

Momo crossed his arms over his chest, sure in his opinion. “And he's scrawny.”

Ryoma frowned, not quite sure what was going on but knowing that he had just been insulted. “Hey.”

Fuji still looked confused. “But it's alright with you that he's a guy?”

“Well,” Momo said, obviously calming down now that he had gotten all of the screaming out of his system. “I'd prefer if he wasn't, of course, but I'm not homophobic.”

“Interesting. Good data,” Inui muttered, whipping out his notebook to write this down.

“Wait,” Ryoma said, only getting more confused. “Why does it matter that I'm a guy? And why does he care what I look like so much?”

Fuji ignored him, still talking to Momo. “So you're angry at me because . . . ?”

“Because it's too early, dammit,” Momo said, almost whining now. “Why couldn't it have waited a few more years until he at least looked the right age?”

Ryoma frowned again, starting to get impatient. “Will someone tell me why what I look like matters so much?”

At this, Momo finally turned to him irritably. “You mean you haven't figured it out yet?”

“No,” Ryoma told him just as irritably, “I haven't. So why don't you tell me?”

Momo just looked at him for a moment then finally decided, “I don't think I'm gonna. I wanna see how long it takes for you to figure it out.” And then he smirked.

Ryoma scowled, not too happy with that decision. He wanted to know what was going on and he wanted to know now.

“Well, Momo,” Fuji said calmly, bringing them back on topic, “I'm sorry if you weren't ready, but you were just taking too long. I've known about this for over a year now. We all have.”

Momo turned back to that conversation. “But did you ever think that maybe I was happy being oblivious? That maybe I wasn't ready to know what I feel?”

“But you could be just as happy knowing. Even happier, I bet!”

Knowing what? Ryoma thought, trying to think furiously of things Momo could be happy about. Nothing was coming to mind.

“And just how could I be happier?” Momo asked incredulously. “What on Earth would make me happy about knowing I love him?”

Love him? Ryoma's mind repeated. Then: Oh . . . Suddenly everything made much more sense. Why his appearance mattered. Why Fuji had done all of those things. It was because Momo loved him.

Oh . . .

Fuji suddenly looked sly. “You haven't figured out the last bit of it.”

Momo was brought up short. “There's more?” he asked, sounding confused. Then he frowned. “Wait. What? What is it?”

“I think you're going to have to ask Echizen that,” Fuji said, smiling cheerfully.

“Echizen . . .” Momo said slowly as he finally remembered that Ryoma was still standing there, horror starting to grow on his face as he slowly turned to face his friend. Then, taking in Ryoma's expression, he said, “Oh . . . Oh shit.”

Ryoma was frozen. He hadn't moved since the realization. Momo loved him. Momo loved him. Momo loved him. Momo loved him!

No matter how he said it, it just didn't seem real. This couldn't be happening.

“Echizen . . . Echizen . . .” Momo said, trying to get his attention. “What you heard . . . I didn't mean it. It was just a joke. You know . . . ha ha?” Even Momo didn't look like he believed himself.

Ryoma couldn't take it. He turned and bolted.

“Echizen!” Momo cried after him.

 

TBC.