Of tennis and love ( PRINCE OF TENNIS YUKIMURA SEIICHI FF )

CHAPTER 6 - Marui's dilemma

"WHAT?!"

I sighed before facing him, replying "I hate tennis. I'm not playing tennis anymore."

Marui stared at his childhood friend. She was different now. She looked broken. She didn't have the glimmer in her eyes or that usual annoying antics. She looks afraid and unreachable. She was right in front of him but it felt like she was miles away.

"Did this have something to do with that incident which made you hospitalised a few months back? I heard it from my parents, what happened?" Marui asked, noting the slight flinch of Ayumi's body.

"I just don't find tennis worth it anymore," Ayumi admitted, turning away from Marui. I gripped the jacket tighter, as I heard him sigh.

"I-" Marui was about to continue, but someone shouted for him. He turned to the voice, shouting a reply, before turning back to me.

"You should go. Bunta, I... I appreciate seeing you here." Ayumi muttered, offering a small genuine smile. I walked away, as Marui stared at my back, hair swaying in the wind.

''Ayumi...'' He whispers, voice fading away with the wind. He didn't notice Niou who walked up to him. Niou draped a hand on Marui's neck, before looking at his hyper teammate's moody face.

"Puri~ Kirihara is looking for you," Niou says, as they begin to make their way to the courts. Niou could not understand what happened to Marui on his way to the washroom, he was excited about facing Kirihara before that but now- Marui was listless, and... sulky.

"Marui-senpai! I hope you're ready to challenge me." Kirihara declared, grabbing his racquet and a ball.

"Ah...Kirihara, let's play another day. I'm not in the mood for it anymore." Marui replies joylessly, slouching his back as he dragged his feet to the bleachers.

The Rikkaidai tennis members turned to Niou, curious to know what made him like that. Was it a prank that Niou pulled? No, Marui would be angry. Was it a girl who rejected him? He didn't like anyone at the moment.

"I don't know, puri. He was looking into blank space when I saw him." Niou replies, shrugging his shoulders.

"Tarundoro! Marui! Run 50 laps right now!" Sanada bellowed, looking at the gloomy regular. He too, was curious to what had made Marui so listless and so distracted, although he wasn't going to mention it.

Marui left for his run wordlessly, head deep in thoughts. The regulars hurdled around, deciding to ask Yukimura for his opinion.

"We should ask Marui later. I'm sure he would reply to us, but the rest of you should get back to practice." Yukimura answered a serene smile on his face- promising a horrible death for those who did not get back to practice. The regulars flinched before running back to do what they were previously doing.

Practice soon ended but before Marui could leave, he was stopped by Jackal- his doubles partner. "Marui, what happened to you at the washroom? Is anything a problem?" Jackal asks, blocking off the only exit. The other regulars stopped what they were doing, Yanagi opened his notebook, while Sanada adjusted his hat.

Marui sighed, sitting back on the chairs that were scattered inside the clubroom. He ruffled a hand through his hair, before looking at the other regulars, eyes drifting as he made contact with a blue-haired buchou.

Yukimura smiled, however, it was one that promised pain if you were to not comply with instructions. Marui sighed again, as his head hung low before speaking.

"I found out my best childhood friend quit playing tennis."

25/5/20