Chapter 2: The Familiar Boy

One month later…..

"NYA! OISHI! Let's go out to eat!"

The red head exclaimed as he glomped his doubles' partner. Oishi momentarily sat on the ground, gasping for breath after he was released from the deadly hug.

"Wait! Why don't we all go out for sushi? How about it Kawamura-senpai?" Momo asked.

Kawamura blushed as everyone turned their attention to him.

"…W-well, I don't know….The shop's closed for renovations so we'd have to-"

"Oh! Why don't we go to that new restaurant?" Kikumaru asked bouncing around excitedly. Practice had just let out and dinner was welcome to their hungry stomachs.

"Yeah! I heard they have really great food! Let's go there!" Momo replied rather loudly.

Momo's mouth watered just thinking about it. He heard they had fantastic burgers and he couldn't wait to try them out! Everyone turned to Tezuka waiting for a final answer. His stoic expression gave away nothing as he agreed.

Momo and Kikumaru rushed all the way to the restaurant while the other Regulars desperately tried to keep up with them. They raced across the sidewalk, weaving through the crowds and not even giving a passing glance to nearby stores.

"Eiji! Slow down! We'll get there in plenty of time!" Oishi yelled after his doubles partner.

He was lagging behind the others and Kikumaru didn't hear him. They all finally arrived at what seemed like a pretty mediocre place. It was surrounded by department stores- just the place where any food diner would want to be. In the front was a wide opening that took place of a door. On top, there was a large colorful sign that read, "Burger Blast".

Burger Blast? Ah, no wonder Momo wanted to come here. Oishi thought as he walked through.

After Oishi took a couple steps in, he took a look at the restaurant. It had a simple layout. Windows lit the place up and most of the booths seemed to surround the inner walls. The wallpaper was a soft yellow, adding to the natural effect of the sunlit place.

Rectangular tables filled the center and at the far right corner was where the kitchen resided. Waiters piled in and out, serving any customers they found. To his left, Oishi saw a bar with a couple of drunken men, hooting and hollering at a couple of girls opposite them.

Oishi was still in his daydream when suddenly a hand grabbed at his wrist and dragged him to the booth in the right hand corner, right next to the kitchen. Oishi grabbed a window seat as all the Regulars crammed into the station. Kikumaru and Momo grabbed the end seats. Tezuka, Inui, Kaidoh, Fuji, and Kawamura were shoved into the middle.

The seats went all around the table with its back to the window. Oishi leaned back, enjoying the cushioned seat. All that running had taken a lot out of him. He only just realized how hungry he was when Eiji started complaining about Momo's rumbling stomach.

"Momo! Will you tell your stomach to be quiet?" Kikumaru whined.

"Sorry Eiji-senpai, but it won't shut up until it's fed….. it just won't."

"Baka! You should be respectful of your senpais."

"What was that, Mamushi? You wanna fight?" Momo asked while abruptly standing up.

Kaidoh was about to follow suit when Oishi stepped in and solved this.

"Stop fighting, you two! We're in a public restaurant!" He admonished them, looking around to see how many people they disturbed.

Luckily it wasn't many and Oishi calmed down.

"Gomen, Oishi-senpai." Momo and Kaidoh said in harmony.

Their heads snapped back to glare at each other before sitting back down. Oishi let out a sigh of relief. He was glad that no one had gotten hurt in this particular showdown because there were much worse times-

"Ne, what do you want to drink?"

A silky voice asked, interrupting Oishi's train of thought. The regulars all jumped and turned to look where the voice came from. At first glance they thought it was a girl but with further inspection they saw it was a boy. He couldn't have been older than ten or eleven.

He had a muscular build and held himself well. Silky green tinted locks spilled around his heart shaped face, housing almond shaped eyes. But what caught the Regular's attention was the usual color. It was a golden hue, with a certain fire to it. Just seeing the boy, they felt like he was familiar. Where had they seen him before?

He blinked back at them irritated that he was being ignored.

He glared at them as he said, "Excuse me?"

It was Momo who first came to his senses. He, like the rest of the Regulars, thought the boy was familiar, but he wasn't the one to go crazy over knowledge. That was the Data Man of Seigaku for ya. So he snapped out of it. Besides, he could tell the boy didn't like being ignored.

"Hey, kid, are you lost or something?"

The kid snapped his attention to Momo and glowered at him.

"No." He responded icily, confusing everyone.

If he wasn't lost then why was he at their table?

Fuji, whose eyes were still open, realized it first. He was perhaps the only one of the group who had heard what the boy had said before.

Saaa…this is interesting. He thought.

"Are you our waiter?" He asked politely, closing his eyes and smiling.

His smile widened even further when the kid replied, "Yes. Now what do you want to drink?"

The Seigaku Regulars, except Fuji, shivered as they saw his smile. He only smiled like that when he saw something interesting or when he intended on getting revenge. The last time they had seen him like that was when he pulverized another tennis player that had hurt Kikumaru. The Regulars couldn't help but feel sorry for the young boy.

Fuji, meanwhile, had asked the boy to list off the drinks that they sold. The boy began to recite the drinks, annoyed. Fuji watched, practically glowing as the boy pouted. He thought it was cute.

"…Water, Ponta, any Coke Products, Juice-"

"Did you say juice? I'll have juice, please!" Kikumaru, recovered from the staring bout, exclaimed.

The boy winced but nodded.

Hmmmm….He must have sharp ears. There is a 96% chance that he has sharp eyes also….Inui calculated, staring at the aforementioned boy. He had to find out where he'd seen him before.

The kid nodded and went on to the next person. Fuji, Tezuka, Inui, Kaidoh, Oishi and Kawamura all ordered water whereas Momo ordered Coke. When they were finished, the boy turned to leave.

He had only walked one step when Kikumaru waved after him and said, "Arigato, Ochibi!"

The boy stopped mid step and turned around.

He asked, "Who?"

The Seigaku Regulars wanted to know that, too. It wasn't everyday that Kikumaru just randomly named someone off the bat though it occurred to them that their friend might have just nicknamed their waiter.

Kikumaru blinked at the waiter before saying, "Ochibi, of course."

Confusion appeared on the boy's face. Fuji decided at that moment to step in and explain. Besides, he wanted to see the boy pout again.

"I think he means you, waiter-san."

Fuji smiled, as the boy noticeably twitched.

He glared at Kikumaru before saying, "My name's not Ochibi."

He then walked off into the kitchen not looking once behind him. Kaidoh watched him leave.

Brat. He shouldn't be so rude to his elders.

Kikumaru pouted. He thought that Ochibi would like his nickname. He made good nicknames, right?

"Ne, Fujiko, do you think Ochibi's mad or something?"

Fuji chuckled and replied, "He probably doesn't like your nickname for him."

Kikumaru grinned. Soon, everyone joined into the conversation and they were laughing and smiling before they knew it. They were so immersed they didn't even realize that a certain boy was watching them with a sort of longing.

It wasn't until they saw that their drinks and menus had arrived that the boy snapped out of it. Inui had caught the boy staring at them with a flicker of emotion but then it had disappeared in a flash. But to Inui, it was still good data. Too bad he had left his notebook back in his tennis bag.

"Hey Momo, what are you getting?" Kikumaru asked.

Momo grinned and replied, "I'm gonna get a double cheeseburger. It sounds good."

He started to drool just thinking about it, he was so hungry.

"Hey baka, stop drooling in a public place!" Kaidoh hissed.

"What did you say, Mamushi?" Momo retaliated.

"Fshhhhhh…" Kaidoh glared menacingly at him.

Momo glowered at him, the noise grating on his nerves. He was feeling particularly irritable today and for that reason, his arm sailed forward and gripped Kaidoh's collar.

"You wanna repeat that?"

Oishi attempted to break them up but they were too into it. They had started to attract attention by now with the constant angry retorts. One by one, other customers stopped their conversations to see what all the commotion was.

They were all so fixated on the fight that they didn't see a certain boy grab a tray with a cup of water on it.

No one noticed when he crept towards the fight. He kept himself out of sight and angled his body to the right trajectory he'd need for the water to hit home. After that was set, he purposely tripped himself and let the water spill on the two buffoons who were in the middle of the fighting.

The water hit its target and the Regulars watched in slow motion as the water zipped by them and splashed onto Momo and Kaidoh. They were completely drenched as they both fell on their backsides, rubbing their eyes and spitting out the excess water.

Laughter filled the restaurant. Fuji's head snapped to the direction the water came from.

What he saw was enough to open his eyes. He saw their waiter sprawled on the ground with a partially wet tray and empty water glass. But he didn't focus on that. He gazed at the boy's expression.

The boy's lips were twisted into a smirk as he looked at Momo and Kaidoh who were still attempting to dry themselves.

His eyes were lit up and joyous until he saw Fuji looking at him. His eyes flashed with alarm and his smirk turned into a straight line. He quickly looked away.

Still on the floor, he gracefully picked up the tray and empty glass causing everyone's attention to switch to him, Kaidoh and Momo included.

They glared at him while he stood up and produced an innocent frown.

He looked at them, widened his eyes a little and said in a small voice, "Sorry, I slipped."

It worked because Momo and even Kaidoh softened up. Only Fuji remained unaffected because he knew the real story. He marveled at the kid's daring. The kid had obviously tripped himself on purpose so that Momo and Kaidoh would receive the full stream of the water.

It was brilliant thinking on his part and Fuji prided himself in thinking he was the only one that had seen it. Then he saw Tezuka. Tezuka's face was in the exact position Fuji's was. That was when Fuji knew that Tezuka had seen what really happened.

He caught his eye and raised a questioning eyebrow. Tezuka nodded and confirmed Fuji's suspicions.

Fuji's attention swiveled back to the boy who was now taking their orders for food. Fuji was so distracted that he didn't notice when his turn came up. Tezuka had to snap him out of it. The boy was looking at him, bored with his hands in his pockets.

Wait his hands in his pockets? How's he taking our orders?

Fuji told him what he wanted and watched the boy to see if he wrote anything down. He didn't. He just nodded and went onto the next person.

Fuji decided to voice his question.

"Waiter-san, how are you taking our orders?"

The other Regulars looked at him and back at the boy, confused, until they saw what Fuji meant.

"Yeah, Ochibi, why aren't you using a pad and pencil?" Kikumaru asked, curious like the rest of them.

The boy twitched again but replied, "There's no need."

And once again, the Regulars were confused. They sat in bewildered silence until their meals came, but it wasn't the boy from earlier who brought it; it was a man. He had a huge mustache that made up for his balding head. He was quite large and puffy as he smiled at them.

Fuji asked where the kid was and the guy responded in a gruff voice, "Oh, that boy? I sent him home already. He seemed to have a rough day."

He winked at them before leaving them to their meals. That just left the Regulars more puzzled than ever. They knew little about the boy as it is. It was then that Fuji realized that they had never gotten a name from him.

Fuji chuckled. Yes, that boy really was something. He hoped to see him again.

"Ryoma-san, how was your day?" Nanako-san asked him.

He grunted as he passed her on his way up to his room. He had had a terrible day and those rowdy teenagers had done nothing to help. In fact they had made it worse, especially that one with the creepy smile.

Ryoma knew he'd seen the stunt he'd pulled but he didn't seem mad about it. Actually, he seemed rather amused. He reached the top of the stairs and walked through the gap.

He plopped onto his bed and closed his eyes.

Echizen Ryoma had a secret.

He was the famous "Prince of Tennis" that had breezed through national tennis tournaments with ease. Wimbledon, U.S Open, you name it; he won them all. But that was it. He was only known as his title, no one knew his real name.

No one had ever seen his real appearance. They'd only seen the tennis disguise that he wore for matches and public appearances. The only thing they knew about him was that he was a twelve year old boy.

He was known yet unknown. He lived a double life some would say. Sometimes when he had breaks between tournaments, he would attend public schools but he was mostly homeschooled.

He traveled often and learned a few languages while at it. He became fluent in so many; he sometimes would start talking in several at once. He had been living a life that he wanted.

But that all changed a few weeks ago. He and his family were driving home, about to get ready to pack for Japan when it happened. He remembered it all in such gruesome detail. If only he could forget.

Ryoma leaned against the leather seat. It had been a long day with the press conferences and he just wanted to get some sleep. He slouched in his chair and pulled a blanket over his head.

He sighed in content. This was the life. He just sat there for a few more moments when he first heard the deafening roar.

He felt the car swerve to the right as he was pushed against the window. He instantly recoiled back to his seat with the blanket still stuck over his head. That was what saved him.

The car screeched to a halt, tires digging into the black asphalt but it was not enough. The car veered off the road, slamming into a tree headfirst. The impact was bone rattling. Ryoma lurched forward, headfirst into the seat in front of him.

The blanket cushioned the hit, but he still felt the bubbling pain.

Glass exploded everywhere and showered on the passengers in the car. Ryoma, protected by the thick blanket, didn't receive more than a few scratches but the same couldn't be said for his family.

All was silent except for the occasional bird. Ryoma sat there petrified. He didn't even pull the blanket off of him, fearful of what he would find. And he had a right to be. A strong breeze flew in and knocked the blanket off his head.

His hands flew to his head and he was surprised to feel something wet. He examined his hand and saw red liquid. Blood.

His eyes widened as he looked hungrily around him. His family…..they weren't moving. They weren't breathing. They were…no, no! They couldn't be! They would wake up in a second and laugh at him for falling for their joke!

His oyaji would tease him and kaa-san would comfort him and Ryoga would just laugh and….. But deep down he knew that wasn't true. He knew this wasn't just a random nightmare where he could wake up and everything would be fine.

This was real, but he didn't want to accept it.

Even as fresh blood oozed out of their prone bodies, Ryoma tried to deny that they were gone. But this hollow feeling gnawed at his stomach. His heart began to throb painfully as he went from person to person trying to shake them awake.

But all he got was their blood on his hands. It felt like a knife had run him through. No, worse than that.

They had been his life and now they were gone. He had depended on and loved them and now they were forever out of his life. They were dead, never to be seen again.

He would never hear his oyaji teasing him about getting a girlfriend or kaa-san kissing him goodnight. If he had realized how important it was to him he would have asked for it everyday.

But wait. What was stopping him from joining them? What? He couldn't think of anything but could he really do it? Could he really kill himself? He shakily picked up a piece of glass. He held out his arm and placed the glass into position.

But some invisible force stopped him. His arm wouldn't follow his brain's instructions. His hand shook and he dropped the glass. Why? He thought. Why them? Why them and not me? He collapsed to the ground and for the first time in his life, he cried.

He felt empty as the hot tears poured out of his eyes and down his face. He sniffed and clutched his head. The tears gradually stopped falling and what they had left was no better than an empty shell.

Echizen Ryoma just sat there, unmoving with an unfocused look about his eyes. Silence and darkness reigned in his mind. When his family had died they took something with them. They had taken his happiness; his will to continue living.

He now saw no point. He no longer cared what happened to him. It might actually benefit him if bad luck came his way; that is if it was in the form of his death.

He shuddered. That had been a scary phase. He still remembered all those dark thoughts he had about suicide. But now he had a reason to live and it was all thanks to Nanako.

She had helped him in his time of need and he was doing the best he could to repay her. So he got a job.

It wasn't his ideal job, but it paid reasonably well. He probably could have just gone back to his "Prince" lifestyle but he felt that was cheap.

Sure he had a lot of money stored away in a bank account but if he accessed it, people could track him down and force him back into his old life.

Yes, one day he would go back, but now he wanted to help Nanako.

Besides, the public seems to like all the drama, Ryoma thought, sourly.

So for now he would stay in Japan.

After the accident, Ryoma had packed his bags and he and Karupin caught a plane to Japan. Karupin was all he had left of his family and he was determined to keep her safe. He couldn't loose her, too.

He was already living without his family and that was painful enough. If Karupin was taken away he really would not be able to bear it. He knew for sure. Nanako had taken him in even though she had college classes to attend.

Even if she was preoccupied most of the time, she still saw that Ryoma walked around and acted like a zombie.

So one day she had talked to him about it but he yelled at her and stormed away. Later, feeling awful at what he had said, he had gone to apologize. But instead he was met with an image of Nanako attempting to play tennis.

She was playing with a man. He had brown hair, not the usual black color. Ryoma had to guess that he was foreign. He had a European look. He made her chase ball after ball and she was totally exhausted. Ryoma could see that much.

She breathed heavily as she clutched the tennis racket, waiting for the man to serve. The man smirked evilly and hit the ball hard.

It hit Nanako in the face and she toppled to the ground. She struggled painfully to get back up and she muttered something almost inaudible. She said two words that resurrected the old Ryoma.

She said, "For Ryoma."

She stood up, with determination in her eyes and grabbed her racket.

Ryoma stared at her, open mouthed.

For…..me? She was getting hurt for me?

Suddenly a bubbling rage took over Ryoma. He glared menacingly at the guy that kept hitting his cousin. So he stepped out of his hiding place and challenged the man. Nanako looked at him and saw something that wasn't there before.

There was a fire in his eyes, a burning determination. She smiled weakly; she had done it and it was worth all that pain because Ryoma was back.

Ryoma wanted to glare at that man so bad, but he had to control himself.

Instead he asked, "Do you play tennis well?"

The guy looked over at him and smirked.

"Better than any pro." He replied arrogantly.

Ryoma had to refrain from smirking.

"Can you give me a tennis lesson?" He asked, trying to sound innocent.

The guy sneered and responded, "Sure, kid. I'll tell ya what. You and I'll have a match and if you can get a game off of me, I'll teach ya. Deal?"

Ryoma smirked inwardly. That man had no idea what was coming to him. Ryoma pretended to be delighted and agreed. He borrowed Nanako's racket and stood on the baseline. But something happened.

Images of his oyaji came up and tears started to well up in his eyes. He caught his breath and pushed them back hard. But one escaped. He pulled his hat down so no one would notice. He felt weird.

His heart throbbed as he vainly attempted to push back the images clouding his head. He couldn't play tennis like this. What if this happened every time? Then it hit him. How could he play tennis if his oyaji couldn't?

How could he stand to play when his oyaji wasn't there to play with him? He dropped the tennis racket. He couldn't play.

Even if his oyaji mocked and teased him so many times, he couldn't bring himself to do the same to him. He collapsed to the ground, crying. The man yelled at him some but quit once he saw there wasn't going to be a match.

So he calmly walked away, not looking back once. Meanwhile, Nanako watched her cousin collapse to the ground in tears.

She was shocked to say the least. She had never seen Ryoma like this. She had never seen him so…so weak. He was usually so strong, not letting anything get to him but now….. Nanako decided that even the strongest people break down at one point.

She crawled over to him and put his head in her lap. She didn't know what was happening but she did know that Ryoma didn't deserve all this pain and suffering. He was so young and inexperienced.

How could he deal with this on his own? Nanako felt for Ryoma, she really did, but what could she do?

How could she help him? It occurred to her that she could give support and try to get him to talk about his problem but how could she know if Ryoma would be willing to open up to her?

She didn't, that's how. But she could at least try.

"Ryoma-san, what's wrong? Why are you crying?"

He paused and looked up at her, tears falling steadily.

"Oyaji….." He whispered.

Nanako's eyes widened. Suddenly she understood everything. Ryoma couldn't play when Uncle was dead. He was Ryoma's pillar of support whether he intended to be or not. Nanako stared at Ryoma. He needed to know something and Nanako was about to tell him.

She gently calmed him down and told him, "Ryoma-san, even if Uncle is gone physically, his spirit will always be right here, in your heart."

She laid a hand on top of his heart, hoping he would understand. Then she helped him stand and left to give him some space. Ryoma wiped his face and thought back on Nanako's words.

"Even if Uncle is gone physically, his spirit will always be right here, in your heart."

He touched his heart and grabbed the racket. He squeezed it and stared at it hard. The feeling was coming back but Ryoma analyzed Nanako's phrase again. Then the realization hit him.

Instead of grieving for oyaji, I should honor his memory by finishing his dream. He would want me to keep on playing tennis no matter what!

He bent down and picked up the yellow tennis ball. He settled to hitting it against the brick wall and letting himself loose, just like the old days. He decided that from now on he would play for oyaji. He would play for kaa-san.

He would play for Ryoga, even, but most importantly, he would play for himself.

There was nothing holding him back. Just because his family was gone doesn't mean he is, too. His happiness doesn't depend on them, it depends on Ryoma himself. Tennis is fun and tennis is his happiness. It's his light in the darkness.

"Tennis is fun." He repeated.

Suddenly, he fell to the ground as he felt something inside him…open. He looked down at his hands and saw that they were glowing!He felt a breeze ruffle his hair. It felt good. Hefelt good. Somehow, he sensed he was different; like something great had been released inside him.

Power coursed through his veins. The painful feeling disappeared and was replaced with this ecstatic emotion. He felt…..free. He walked onto the court and ball flew faster than he had ever hit it before. For the first time in weeks, Echizen Ryoma was happy.