“I’ll spend a day with you, but no more than a day.”

His low but sturdy voice stopped her from walking away. A day? Did he think she was promiscuous? Her mass of red hair brushed against his chest as she turned.

She intended to come across as furious, but his gaze melted the beginning of a fiery stare. How…how could someone like him be like that?

Miscommunication

            “! ! !”

            “I can hear you.”

Yukimura frowned slightly as she scanned her friend’s expression. Today was same, empty eyes...a blank expression. Where did the happy girl had known disappear to?

            “Hey Grumpy-chan, the teacher asked us to deliver this to class A-2.”

The redhead scowled at her before walking up to the front of the class. sighed and looked around the room. knew their classmates learned long ago to not mind the actions of .

            “Coming?”

asked rudely, accompanied by a firm frown. She picked up the box on the desk and made her way out the door, not even bothering to wait for her best friend.

She stopped walking as soon as she entered the empty hallway, and decided to wait.

            “Thank you so much for waiting.”

rolled her eyes at the sarcasm in her voice and let walk ahead of her. Her navy blue hair swung according to her movements, reminding her of another Yukimura. The one she didn’t want to see anymore.

The classroom they were sent to belonged to the third years. That meant climbing about 3 flights of steep stairs. When both girls reached the closed door, was panting a bit. However, ’s breathing pattern was perfectly normal.

            ‘That’s what happens when you’re sister to a tennis genius?’

opened the door and entered. The redhead raised an eyebrow. Her friend would never enter a room without knocking. She was a polite girl.

As she followed in, a wave of dread washed over her. She realized who was in that third year room.

It was the flash of blue that caught her eye. Curious to see who it was, she found Yukimura Seiichi. The sun was pouring in through the window and pooling around him, the Rikkai Dai student looked like an angel.

His complexion was as pale as ever; no matter how much he exercised in the sun, his skin would not get darker. The hand gestures he made as he talked with the vice-captain of the tennis team were smooth, causing her heart to flutter at a memory. It was the same man she had fallen for and spited.

Blue eyes locked onto hazel ones. A soft smile lit up his face, making him seem more angelic than ever. She frowned and looked away, dropping the item in her arms onto the teacher’s desk. With a graceful turn on her heels, the girl was out the door.

            “Oi, Yukimura, wasn’t that the girl who you said you’d go out with?”

The male tore his gaze away from the door and towards his friend and team mate, who sat next to him. The other eighteen year old was looking at the doorway as well. Niou Masaharu waved to Yukimura junior as she exited the room.

            “I don’t recall saying anything about her, Niou.”

Niou didn’t bother too look back. With a light smirk plastered across his face, he replied,

            “You don’t need to.”

***

didn’t quite understand what was wrong with . Ever since summer break ended, was completely different. She was no longer the always cheerful girl. With a hand placed on the girl’s shoulder, asked,

“What’s the matter?”

            “Your damn brother!” replied ferociously.

jerked her shoulder away from her friend. She had known since she was five. That meant she knew Seiichi for just as long. He was a sweet boy who carried an ability to attract people to his side…

            “?”

’s hurt tone made the other realize the damage. Biting her lip, the redhead turned. Many people attempted to forge friendship bonds with because of her relationship with the tennis regulars. was proud to be a girl who saw for and not as ‘Yukimura’s sister’.

Though, she harboured a deep secret from . The said male tore his gaze away, the subject of Seiichi being a crush never popped up in any of their conversations.

            “My…brother?”

frowned. shook her head. The damage was done.

            “Is…that why you’ve stayed friends with me?”

Her tone was low but firm. Without getting an answer, the young Yukimura turned and walked away. Never before had the level of regret been so high for .

***

            “Seiichi, would you mind calling down for dinner?”

A woman in her forties asked her only son as she set five plates on the table. Yukimura, who just walked through the doorway, nodded and removed his shoes. He kissed the woman’s cheek as he passed by and walked up the staircase behind her.

To say he was tired would be a lie; with the High School Nationals coming up, the team would have to work harder than they did in middle school. But his team mates shooed him away from the courts when they realized something was on his mind.

He didn’t understand the meaning of their words until he was halfway home, but tomorrow, they would regret their words.

Yukimura snapped out of his thoughts when his foot missed a step. Collecting himself, the eighteen year old shook his head and returned his usual smile. How could he tell her friend was causing him problems?

Without giving the door a second glance as he passed by, Yukimura knocked on the door. He didn’t bother trying to open it; he knew it would be locked. He called out to ,

            “Can you come down for dinner, .”

            “Go to Hell!”

Because of his status as captain, the teen experienced many hate acts committed by jealous peers. Even so, no words hurt more than the words of his sister.

His lips curved into a small ‘o’ and his eyebrows a small frown. Why would she say something like that? Curiously, Yukimura calmly asked her the question on his mind.

            “Go away!”

            “ Please let me in.”

            “No!”

            “I’m going to break the door down if you don’t let me in.”

            “GO AWAY!”

Her shout was so loud that he stepped back. His calm facade disintegrated and anger filled his eyes. Within two seconds, his tennis bag was on the floor and the door was open. His heart sank when finding his sister’s form crying into her pillow.

            “? What’s wrong?”

Yukimura walked over to her bed and seated himself next to her. The sixteen year old jerked her shoulder away when he tried to place his hand on it. With tears in her green eyes, the girl lifted herself off the pillow and looked at him.

            “Why did you have to be my brother?”

She didn’t realize the impact of her words for her brother was left in shock. Closing her eyes, jumped off her bed and ran out of her room.

***

Little brothers weren’t her favourite people in the world, thought. Even if her family thought they were the most adorable little things on the planet, they were far from it. Especially when they thought taking her bras and sticking it around their ears was a funny thing to do.

            “Nah, nah, look what I got on my head!”

The older of the two boys stuck his tongue out at the girl and ran up the stairs. Before could chase after him and retrieve her garment back, a ringing tone echoed throughout the house.

            “I’ve got it! Don’t either of you dare to answer the phone! Hello?”

She expected it to be after seeing the call display. thought she might want to talk about the whole brother thing. She didn’t want to tell that her brother was rather…immoral. If he said a day was reserved for her, then who else would he have said it to?

But it was probably best if her best friend finally found out about the type of brother she had. knew pretty much worshipped her brother and vice versa. But it was finally time to voice the events of the time prior to summer break.

            “-san?”

Before she could slam the phone down, the devil himself started to talk.

            “... I don’t know where she went or why but I’m sure that her best friend would know.”

Her eyes were wide as could be after Yukimura finished. He didn’t think would run out of the house, so he didn’t go after her. When his mother told him about the situation, he called the only other person who knew the girl as well as he did.

            “I’ll…I’ll meet you at the park in a few minutes.”

Before he could say anything else, hung up on him. She closed her eyes, gathered her thoughts and sighed. What had she gotten herself into?

***

Yukimura couldn’t believe how low the temperature dropped in the evenings nowadays. He left home with a jacket, scarf and gloves. As he waited for to arrive, the male thought how lucky he was to be standing in the cold without fainting.

He was lucky to play tennis too. And have a great and supportive family – minus the one member who was currently mad at him – and great team mates…He was also lucky to have another chance with her.

He never explained his motives to . And thinking back to three years ago, Yukimura thought he was selfish to even offer her a day when he knew how much she liked him. If offered him a day with her at the present moment, the tennis player knew he would be crushed.

When she told him about her attraction, Yukimura didn’t believe it. Now it started to dawn on him that meant more to him than just ’s friend.

            “Yukimura-san.”

A shaken voice called out from behind. As he turned, the teen found a cold . She was wearing her hair in a ponytail and wore only her school uniform. Her hands were rubbing her upper arms in a constant rhythm. Yukimura’s lips slightly parted. What was wrong with her?

            “You didn’t bring a jacket.”

            “Why, Yukimura-san, I didn’t realize.”

The pale boy sighed at her sarcasm as he walked towards her, unbuttoning his jacket in the process. Her body gave off warning signals not to get any closer, which he ignored. She ignored his extended arm with the coat and started to walk past him.

            “Please take my jacket.”

Neither wanted to look at the other. continued to walk on. The sound of the rocks being kicked as she walked annoyed Yukimura. In a quick motion, he caged the girl against the low brick wall by his arms and body.

Spitting unladylike words at him, the redhead struggled to get out of his grasp. He attempted to apologize before but the young woman never gave him a chance. Maybe it was the lack of listening which irritated him.

She kept going on for a good ten minutes. It was rare for someone like Yukimura to lose his temper. forgot he was the type to lash out.

            “Stop it!”

And she did. He applied pressure to her wrists but instantly let go when her breath hitched. As the senior stepped back from her, his anger faded. She couldn’t bring herself to look him in the eyes.

’s eyes grazed over her arms and stopped at her wrists. The skin was turning light purple, indicating bruises. Was she that weak?

            “I-I’m sorry…”

She didn’t know if he was being sincere or not. She only looked at him when he turned around. His head was tilted down; his eyes were on the ground beneath him. As she took a step, her ankles brushed against cloth.

Looking down, she found the grey jacket was lying on the floor. She bit her bottom lip hard, making it bleed a rich red before picking it up and placing it around her shoulders. made sure to keep a good distance between them and kept silent; she didn’t want to get hurt again.

Yukimura’s eyes roamed the area and stopped at a diner’s parking lot. It had been half an hour since day had melted into night. A figure in shadows sat against the diner’s wall. Her knees were held against her chest with her head resting on top of them.

As his brotherly worry set in, he failed to notice another, larger figure seated next to his sister. He stopped when hearing ’s voice telling him to.

            “Someone’s already beat you to it.”

When looking back, Yukimura found looking over to the side, trying not to look at him. True to her words, was talking to someone else. Who, they both didn’t know but explained it might be better if someone else talked to her. probably wouldn’t want to listen to either of them.

            “…would you mind telling me what’s going on?”

She turned away and dropped his jacket before running off. Yukimura blinked, confused. Why girls running away from him now?

After taking a look at the two figures, the male ran after her.

***

            “Do you understand now, ?”

            “Hai…”

            “For your sake, both of them tried to hide their attraction. Although, -san is not the best at doing that…”

            kept her eyes trained on her knees and nodded. She didn’t want to, but she understood.

***

            “Please. Stop. Running.”

            “…Please put me down.”

            “You’re probably going to run away again.”

            “I assure you, Yukimura-san-”

            “Please don’t call me that. I don’t understand why girls start adding ‘san’ to one that refuses them. But I didn’t exactly refuse you, you know. Shi-chan, you were the one who refused the day.”

As he finished his mini speech, Yukimura smiled and couldn’t believe he used her nickname. It was one had made up when the both of them entered middle school. Even if she didn’t like using it, she wouldn’t be able to run away.

            “…Put me down.”

Along with the smile, he closed his eyes, “No.”

            “Please put me down?”

            “Does it feel so wrong to-”

            “YES! People can probably see-!”

She stopped yelling and her face coloured a deep crimson. Then, of all the things to do, she started to struggle which placed him in pain.

Her movements caused his back to rub against the metal monkey bars, which he was laying on top of. At an arm’s length, he held , parallel to his body. His hands were positioned just underneath her developing chest.

            “You shouldn’t have worn a skirt.”

He smiled again, aggravating her once more. Instead of moving, the girl yelled words he didn’t like. Opening his eyes, Yukimura started bending his arms at the elbow, having the girl protest.

He thought back to a moment ago. It hadn’t taken him long to catch up to her running form. He watched her climb onto monkey bars and watch the dark sky. Using his speed, Yukimura followed her. Thus, their present position was formed.

            “I have a confession to make, Shi-chan.”

She finally stopped moving.

            “Remember that day before the break?”

            “…”

Why else would Seiichi think she was mad at him? Because he forgot her birthday…? Speaking of which, he never did call her like he had been for the past eleven years. The girls at school would always tell her how mature Yukimura was. If he was so mature, then why hadn’t he called?

            “-I’m sorry…will you forgive me, Shi-chan?”

From above, he looked very…innocent. His green eyes were as clear as could be. A heartfelt grin lit up his face which was framed by her long tresses. Both teens didn’t realize the amount of space reduced between them.

felt guilty. She was too busy thinking about her birthday to listen to what the other said. What was he apologizing for?

            “…Want to say that over again?”

The good feeling that surrounded dropped like an avalanche. The fact that his expression was still the same – minus the amount of feeling – was most frightening. Discomfort surrounded like a dark cloud.

...Not only that but noise itself seemed to be terrified of the captain of the high school tennis team for not a thing was heard. She really did have bad timing.

            “You-Want me to…-Say all of that…-Over again?”

After nodded awkwardly, a frown fashioned across his forehead. The hands which held her up tightly left her sides and she was dropped onto his chest. She gasped and took a few seconds to gather what had happened.

In that time, Yukimura used his arms to embrace her tightly.

            “Aisheteru. I like you.”

The top of her head became a cushion for his chin. She heard a grunt of pain, which was considerably loud since his throat was at her ear. The chill of the metal bars ran up exposed legs. But as she felt his warmth through the fabric, her heart started beating in the same way it did months ago.

            “I’m sorry for saying I’d spend a day with you. Back then, I didn’t understand what it meant. I’m sure though, you thought something different. But there were responsibilities required of me and accepting your confession wasn’t something I could do. Even after…”

He sighed.

kept her eyes on his right shoulder and wanted to place her head on it. Her vision became foggy as eyelids began to close, making her think. Why was she willing to forgive him now?

            ‘I’ll never forgive him!’

Is what she said after he proposed the offer. Did he still have a spot in her heart?   

            “Niou’s words pushed through the invisible barrier; do you know what I mean?”

            “Hmm…”

            “, I suppose I’ve been meaning to ask for a while, will you give me another chance…? I promise I won’t hurt you…again. ? Are you sleeping??”

            Annoyance crept into his voice. Here he was, on top of monkey bars school kids play on, with on top of him, opening a door to his mind. And the girl was sleeping through all of it!

            “!”

            “What? Whoa!”

In frustration, Yukimura sat up and loosened his hold on the girl. She slipped through his arms and landed on the gravel ground below with a thud. He could’ve kicked himself for dropping her, right after promising no harm would come to her.

            “Seiichi no BAKA!!”

After yelling, quickly got up and ran away. He wasn’t aware of someone watching him from the school’s parking lot as he hit his forehead then jumped off the bars.

            “! I’m sorry!”

She turned her head at him. She was furious.

            “You promised me you wouldn’t hurt me! How do I know you won’t push me onto the street when we go on a date?!”

When the words were processed in his mind, the male smiled. He picked up speed and opened his arms to grab around the waist.

She yelped as Yukimura spun around once before placing her on the ground, breathing heavily. The reason they were out here in the first place flashed across her mind.

            “What about ?”

The smile disappeared when his sister was brought up. ’s anger turned into shame. Pulling her into another hug, he started explaining a discovery he made.

            “I don’t think you used her to get close to me, right? So if we explain this to her, I’m sure she’ll be okay.

He pushed her away and grinned. “Thank you, , for being her friend.”

She blinked and looked away, hiding a small grin. “You don’t have to thank me at all. She was my friend before you were my crush. And Seiichi,”

He tilted his head, waiting for her to finish. “If you ever hurt me again, I swear I will never forgive you.”

With her final words, she gave him a hug of her own, which he gladly returned…a little too enthusiastically.

            “Seiichi! You’re hurting me!”

After shoving him hard in the chest, causing his breathing to seize momentarily, she ran away from him once more. Yukimura closed his eyes, rubbed his temples and sighed. Why did he always go wrong with her?

            “, hold on!”

***

Leaning against a lamppost, watched the two run from the end of the street with crossed arms.

            ‘If they are the two most important people in your life, then wouldn’t you wish them the best?’

She could forgive them, she was sure. They were her best friend and brother, after all. But she wasn’t sure if she ready to see them together yet. Turning around, made her way to the diner not too far from her home.