Prince Of Tennis Fan Fiction ❯ Translate This ❯ The Singing Chicken ( Chapter 13 )

“Oh my…” Tenaya gasped, looking down at the little sheet of paper in her hands. “…what?!” she finished.

 

 

 

“What?” Ryoma asked, taking the paper away from her and peering down at it himself. His eyes widened. He turned to look at her.

 

 

 

“The talent show is in 3 days!!”

 

 

 

“I know!” She turned to look back at him. “That's like, 2 weeks earlier!! What the he-“

 

 

 

“Due to uncareful planning?” Ryoma read off. “That's their excuse?”

 

 

”Oh man.” Tenaya rested her forehead in her propped up hand. “We were going to do something right?”

 

 

 

Ryoma shrugged. “We don't have to…”

 

 

 

Tenaya got up from her seat at the lunch table. “But I promised Fuji that I would. And you promised me that you would perform with me.” She picked up her tray. “So there.”

 

 

 

He groaned. “But what are we going to do? We don't even know our talent yet!”

 

 

 

She half placed, half slammed her tray back down onto the table. “I'm playing the guitar remember? And weren't you going to sing or something?”

 

 

 

He looked mortified. “Not by myself! I don't wanna sing by myself!”

 

Tenaya sat down next to him and rolled her eyes. “You big wimp. Fine, how about I sing with you? Or better yet, get some teammates to sing with you?”

 

 

 

Ryoma made a face at her. “Like who?”

 

 

 

She shrugged. “Anybody. Kikumaru, Momo, Fuji. Whoever you want.”

 

 

 

He sighed at picked at his mashed potatoes. “Fine. I'll do it. But you ask the guys okay? You can pick whoever you want.”

 

 

 

She smiled, and picked up her tray. “Deal.”

 

 

<> <> <>

 

 

 

“Psst.” Tenaya glanced around her history class, making sure the teacher was busy. Ryoma was sitting next to her, reading his text book, and Oishi was sitting diagonally to the right of her, taking notes.

 

 

“Hey!” She whispered as loud as she dared. “Oishi!”

 

 

He turned around slowly to look at her with a puzzled look on his face. As soon as he did, Tenaya threw a rolled up piece of paper, and Oishi stumbled to catch it, almost dropping his eraser in the process.

 

 

 

He looked at her strangely, but opened the note, reading what it had to say.

 

 

 

“-Oishi.

Me and Ryoma are planning to do a talent show act together. I'm playing an instrument, and Ryoma's singing. But Ryoma doesn't want to sing by himself so I was wondering if you wanted to sing with him?”

-Tenaya”

 

 

 

He smiled, and then blushed. He had always been a fairly good singer, but was too shy to do it in public. He took a deep breath, and wrote a small yes on the paper, before passing it back to Tenaya. He watched out of the corner of his eye as he watched her read it and smile, before turning back around. Despite feeling slightly giddy, he turned back to his notes. Who knew Oishi could sing?

 

 

 

<> <> <>

 

 

 

“Come on people, RUN!!!” Tezuka yelled after the stumbling Seigaku team. Tenaya winced, for she was standing only a few feet away from him. It was a wonder that he never lost his voice

 

 

“Hey Tezuka?” She walked over to him, her half ponytail swinging softly as she walked. “I have a favor to ask.”

 

 

 

He turned to look at her, and pushed his glasses up his nose. “Yes Tenaya?”

 

 

 

“Um…I was wondering if you wanted to sing with me, Ryoma, and Oishi at the talent show?”

 

 

 

He blinked. “Sing? As in, the music sing?”

 

 

 

She nodded.

 

 

 

He frowned. “Well, I'm not that bad at it…so I guess.”

 

 

 

“Yay!” Tenaya's face brightened. “We're gonna rehearse tomorrow afternoon, since there's no tennis. Do you know where my house is?”

 

He nodded.

 

 

“Alright, see you then!”

 

 

 

<> <> <>

 

 

“You can't sing?” Tenaya pouted.

 

 

 

Kikumaru shook his head, drying off his neck with his towel. “Nope, not to save my life. Sorry to disappoint you.”

 

 

 

She smiled at him. “Oh, no big deal, it's fine! As long as you come to watch us.”

 

 

 

He smiled and nodded. “Of course!”

 

 

 

<> <> <>

 

 

 

Tenaya walked around, looking for Fuji. Practice had just ended, and she was patrolling the tennis courts, looking for Fuji-san. “Ah.” She said, spotting a blob of brown hair behind the water faucets. She strolled over, and leaned on the side of the sink, waiting for Fuji to finish washing his face.

 

 

 

“Hi!” She said, greeting him.

 

 

 

He smiled at her while drying his neck. “Hey. What's up?”

 

 

 

“Well I wanted to ask you something.”

 

 

 

He nodded, signaling for her to continue.

 

 

 

“Okay remember the talent show? Well Ryoma doesn't want to sing by himself so I was wondering if you wanted to sing with him? Tezuka and Oishi-san have agreed to sing too.”

 

 

 

Fuji pondered on that for a second. “I don't see why not…”

 

 

 

“Great!” She said, reaching over to give him a quick hug. I'll see you tomorrow then? We're gonna practice at my house.”

 

 

 

He nodded and smiled at her. “Sounds good.”

 

 

 

She turned to leave, before remembering something, and cursed under her breath. She turned back to Fuji and opened her mouth to start when he interrupted.

 

 

 

“What is this `shit' that you say?” He asked, wondering about her choice of curse words.

 

 

”Huh?”

 

 

He laughed. “Nevermind. Continue.”

 

 

 

Tenaya smiled. “Okay um…well since this is kinda short notice, I don't have a song yet…so I still needed to write it. I know Ryoma was supposed to go out to eat dinner with his dad and cousin today, so I was wondering if you wanted to come over now and help out.”

 

 

 

He nodded. “Now?'

 

 

 

“Yep. Are you ready?”

 

 

 

Fuji wiped his face one last time and stuffed the towel into his tennis bag. “Yeah, let's go.”

 

 

 

<> <> <>

 

 

 

Ryoma grumbled under his breath. “Stupid tie…” he mumbled, trying to tie his tie. He sighed. “Stupid dinner party…” He slipped into his shoes, and walked downstairs stiffly in his new suit. Just because some friend of his dad's came into town, meant another formal dinner party for the Echizens. Great, just great.

 

 

 

“Ryoma?!” Nanjiro called. “We're leaving in ten minutes okay?!”

 

 

 

“Alright dad!” Ryoma replied, then after getting an idea, added “I'll be right back!” Before heading out the door towards Tenaya's house. She just had to see him in a suit, considering how rare of a situation it was.

 

 

 

He rang the doorbell and stood waiting on the steps.

 

 

 

After hearing cries of laughter and running footsteps from inside the house, the door opened and a breathless Tenaya stood in the doorway. Her eyes widened at the sight of Ryoma in a suit. “Hey!” She smiled, leaning forward to give him a hug. “You look great!”

 

 

 

Ryoma smiled. “You think so? I really don't want to go to this dinner party but my dad's making me.”

 

 

“Oh well, you'll have fun. Just a family get together right?”

 

 

 

He shrugged. “Sort of I guess. So yeah, sorry about not being able to help you out with writing the song. I feel bad for making you do it alone.”

 

 

 

She smiled and waved it away. “Oh no, it's fine. Plus I'm not doing it alone.”

 

 

 

He frowned. “Who's helping then?”

 

 

 

At that moment, Fuji stepped breathlessly into the doorway next to her and pretended to start tickling her. She laughed, and writhed away, playfully pushing Fuji. “Fuji offered to come over and help. Except, I admit, we haven't really gotten anything done yet.” She laughed and dodged Fuji's swift hands.

 

 

 

Ryoma looked from Fuji's royal blue eyes, which were twinkling with mirth, and Tenaya's misty grey ones, which shined with laughter. His hands clenched at his sides, all of a sudden even more angry with his dad and his stupid dinner parties. “It should be me with Tenaya now,” he thought to himself. “Not Fuji.” But he forced himself to relax and even forced a smile onto his face. Surely acting jealous in front of the two would only show his feelings for her.

 

 

Not that they weren't obvious enough already.

 

 

 

Tenaya spotted a nerve twitching in Ryoma's jaw, and frowned. She waved Fuji away, and said to him “Go wait for me in my room, I'll be right there.” He smiled at her and nodded, and padded down the hall to her room. Tenaya turned around and stepped onto the porch next to Ryoma and closed the door. Ryoma watched as her inky brown, almost black hair turn lighter as she stepped into the sunlight. Now it was a medium, dark hazelnut brown, with small traces of golden and black highlights. She smiled and turned towards him, and squinted a little, as she was facing the sunlight. Just as her hair color had changed, her foggy grey eyes turned a clear, grey-ish blue.

 

 

 

“Ryoma? Are you alright?” She asked in a concerned voice.

 

 

 

Ryoma kept his jaw painfully clenched and was careful to keep his gaze from meeting hers. He hated how he always lost to Fuji. Fuji was a better student, more popular with the rest of the students, pretty much best friends with the tennis captain, and a favorite among the teachers. It was really his fault, considering he was some what of a genius child, but it still bothered Ryoma. The only thing in which he was slightly better than Fuji in was tennis, and even then not by much. Fuji constantly won against him.

 

 

 

His thoughts were cut short as Tenaya placed her hand on his tuxedoed arm. His clenched fists relaxed, and he looked up to her face. She smiled slightly at him, and he couldn't help but smile back. A grim smile, but still a smile.

 

 

 

Tenaya leaned forward to give Ryoma a hug. “Have fun alright? Or try to. The song will be good, I promise.”

 

 

 

“I know.” He whispered and smiled at her. He gently pulled back and walked down the steps, waving a goodbye to Tenaya. She waved in return, and he turned back around. By the time he got to the end of the driveway, he had heard her go back inside, and could already hear her voice conversing with Fuji. “It's okay, they're just friends.” He reassured himself as he started down the sidewalk. “Completely platonic.”

 

 

 

Yeah right.

 

 

 

 

 

<> <> <>

 

 

 

 

A/N: Well, sorry once again for not updating soon. But things haven't exactly been going that well for me lately…Hope you guys liked this chapter, even though it's kinda short.