I fled the moment I heard Keigo-kun together with Izumi. I am not ready to go back into the past. I ran straight into the nurse outside the infirmary.
"Ishiki-kun," she looks worried as I stared at her. "Is something wrong?"
I shook my head and ran towards the roof where nobody will find me and sat there for the whole day.
"Where's Izumu?" Oshitari asked when he didn't see her in 3-C by the end of the day. Shishido said that she went to the infirmary in the middle of the class and wasn't back yet. Oshitari wanted to ask Izumu to wait for him until practice ended before going home together, to make up for leaving her in the rain yesterday when he was called in by the hospital because his sister was in a car accident. Thankfully, it was a false emergency and she only got away with a few scratches.
"See you in practice then," Oshitari said to Shishido and went to look for Izumu before he goes to practice. He tried calling her number, but she didn't pick up nor is she replying to the e-mails he sent her. He was starting to get worried because the clouds are also getting darker outside. He walked towards the infirmary, but no one was there. He checked the library and everywhere else, but she wasn't there either.
He knocked on the student council room and walked in. He saw Atobe, Kabaji and a girl who looked like Izumu.
"Ah, Oshitari. What nice timing. Let me introduce you to Izumi."
"Hi, I am Ishiki Izumi, it's nice to meet you, Oshitari-san."
"Ishiki… Izumi?"
"She's Izumu's sister. She's here to do the same thing you do, that is… to watch over Izumu."
"Right… Nice to meet you… I am Oshitari Yuushi, third year."
"Now, state your business, Oshitari. It's not every day you show up in the student council room without a reason."
"No particular reason, I am looking for Izumu. She wasn't in her class when school lets out," he explained, glancing sideways at Izumi. He was wary of that girl. Although her sister and she don't look that much alike, the resemblance is obvious. His eyes flicked towards Atobe again.
"She is… missing?" Atobe asked carefully.
"Shishido said she went to the infirmary somewhere around fourth period, but hasn't come back yet."
"Fourth period? Infirmary? Keigo-kun, we were there around that time weren't we?" Izumi asked. Atobe nodded and thought hard. They didn't see her there. Only Izumi, sensei and himself were there and they he left sometime during lunch. Izumi stayed to sleep and recover from her jet lag and left around right before the last bell rang, same time with the sensei.
"We didn't see Izumu during the time we were there, did we?" Izumi asked, asking aloud the question that was on Atobe's mind. He nodded again. Izumi noticed the worried crease of his eyebrows and placed a hand on his elbow.
"Oshitari, Kabaji, go to practice first and tell kantoku I'll be late."
"Usu."
"What do you plan on doing, Atobe?"
"Look for Izumu, what else?" Atobe replied. Izumi clutched his elbow tighter. Atobe turned to face her. "What is it?"
"If the reason Izumu disappeared is because of what I think it is, then it's better if you or I don't see her now. We might be the last people she wants to see right now."
"What do you mean?" Atobe asked, puzzled at Izumi's deduction. He understood why Izumu might not want to see him, but why Izumi too?
"I'll tell you later, for now, let Oshitari-san and Mune-chan look for her. They might provide better companionship for her right now."
"But…"
"Keigo-kun, trust me. I know my sister." Atobe nodded once and turned to Oshitari and Kabaji.
"Look for her… please."
Oshitari nodded, "Don't worry so much, we'll find her. Explain things to the coach for me." He then left after patting Atobe's shoulder. Kabaji followed after him with an "Usu!" at Atobe.
Before I knew it, the last bell of the day rang. I raised my head from my knees and looked up at the sky. It was getting cloudy and looking like it'll rain. I wiped the tears away from my eyes and straightened my sitting position. My bones cracked at being stretched and let loose. I sighed and leaned back against the wall, willing the rain to fall already. The wind was blowing pretty hard and I was getting pretty chilled, but I couldn't find the need to care. I wrapped my arms around myself and brought my knees close to my chest again, finding some warmth from within me. There was none.
"Izumu!" The faint voice of someone was calling my name, carried by the wind. "Izumu!" It called again and again. My cellphone rang, first with a call, then with a mail, then another call. I ignored it and kept my head bowed towards my knees again. The tears wouldn't fall anymore, no matter how much I wished I was crying.
The voice called my name and again. It sounded like Oshitari-san. Was he looking for me? Was he worried about me? I wanted him here, yet at the same time, I didn't want to see anybody. Didn't want to be with anybody. The cellphone rang again and again and again. It vibrated against my blazer's pocket, tickling my hip, but I still didn't take it out, because I know that if I did, I would pick up the call, and I wasn't ready to be with anybody at the moment.
I was thankful for the distraction the phone calls and incoming emails brought me. It kept my mind from remembering. Remembering the times I was smaller and was still a kid, and how Keigo-kun would not notice me at all and spends all his time with Mune-chan and Izumi instead, like I wasn't part of their group of friends anymore. Like I didn't mean as much as the other two did to him.
Mune-chan was still nice to me at least. He still asked along to play even though Keigo-kun will scold him later on for doing so. He still accompanies me sometimes on the lonely walks home, not saying a word and just keeping me company. He was quiet and a good listener and I liked him for that.
On the other hand, it's as if I didn't exist anymore to Keigo-kun or Izumi. We were close sisters before second grade. Then one day, I just lost Keigo-kun and Izumi the same way. She would stop coming to my room or ask me to come along with her to the Atobe residence. She would always make plans for only the two or three of them, never the four of us. She's also Daddy's and Mommy's favourite, I know. Since she is older and is next in line to the Ishiki fortune. It was obvious with Mommy, she always fusses over her and adores and spoils her, giving her everything she wanted and I always ends up with things she doesn't want. Daddy still looks after me and pays attention to me, but he still spends more time with her, teaching her the ways of the corporation.
I hated her at one point for monopolizing Keigo-kun and Mune-chan, but that slowly disappeared as I moved here five years ago. We never exchanged a word or anything during that five years, and now she's suddenly here again. She's more like a dream, an existence that doesn't bother me too much. What's her deal anyway? Did she come just to be with Keigo-kun again? Not like I care anymore about Keigo-kun or who he hangs out with, but there. I just don't care.
I can faintly hear the creak of the door being pushed open. I wasn't sitting anywhere visible from the doorway, so I wasn't worried someone might see me. Then I felt the presence of someone standing next to me, his shadow blocking out the light. I looked up from my eyelashes and saw Mune-chan. My head instantly snapped up. He knelt beside me. I bit my lower lip and felt tears pooling my eyes again.
"Mune-chan!" I cried out and cried into his chest. He wrapped his arms around me. Although he was smaller than me, he has really grown now. I felt like a child again being in his arm and cried freely, letting the tears flow down as they mix with the rain which decided to fall right there and then.
"It's raining really hard right now, Shishido-san," Ootori said to his doubles partner as he heard the constant beating of the rain against the roof and windows of the indoor tennis courts.
"I brought my umbrella along today, so don't worry," Shishido said as he played with the strings of his racket. They were both sitting in the bench, taking a rest from the game they played against Hiyoshi and Mukahi. They won of course, but that's not much of a big surprise. Yuushi came in a minute later, dripping wet and walked towards their captain, saying something Ootori can't catch. Yuushi went to change to his jersey in the clubroom. Ootori followed him closely as he saw Yuushi almost walking into the wall. He seems out of it. Well, he wasn't the only person around whose mind is not with practice. Ootori glanced at their captain.
Atobe opened a file on the tennis club, but stared at the same spot of the same page for thirty minutes before closing it, sneezed, and then decided to open it again and kept staring. Ootori nudged his senpai's shoulder.
"What?" Shishido asked. He was watching a match between Taki and some other member. Ootori shared his troubles about Yuushi and Atobe with him, but Shishido just shrugged it off. "What are you? Their mother? They are old enough to take care of themselves, don't worry about them."
"Demo… Shishido-san, aren't you worried at all? The Captain looks like he caught a cold."
"Not really…"
"Mou… Shishido-san! You're so… uncaring," Ootori pouted.
"Tch, you're the one who cares too much. How lame."
"Shishido-san! We are all teammates, so we should look out for each other!"
"Mukahi-san, is it just me or do they look like they're having a lover's quarrel?" Hiyoshi asked when he heard the commotion.
"Leave them be, they're always like that anyway," Mukahi said when he realized what Hiyoshi was talking about. He was more worried about Yuushi at the moment anyway. It's not every day he shows up to practice late. He ran after Yuushi to the clubroom.
"Gomenasai, Mune-chan. I am such a mess. I am sorry for worrying you," I said after I had calmed down. Mune-chan shook his head and sat next to me, in the same crouched position I was in. It was almost ironic how he looked. I took out my cellphone from my pocket and flipped it open. As I had guessed, all the calls and emails were from Oshitari-san. 12 emails and 27 calls to be exact. I sent him back an email to assure him I am fine and that I was with Mune-chan.
"Mune-chan, don't you have practice?" He nodded. "Shouldn't you go?" He shook his head. "Why not?"
"Was told to accompany Izumu-san."
I smiled. "Then let's go together." I stood up and walked indoors. We were both already drenched wet anyway, so there's no reason to move fast and escape this rain.
When we reached the gym, I sat on the secluded part so people won't notice me. Mune-chan walked towards Keigo-kun and pointed at my general direction. He stood up and looked at me, and after some time, relief floods his face.
"You worry me so much," Oshitari-san said as he walked towards me. Practice had ended and he dashed over to me the moment he noticed me sitting in the corner.
"Sorry, but I sent you an email saying I was okay."
"You didn't reply instantly, I was so worried! If something happened to you, I can't even-"
"Oshitari-san, I am okay. Don't be such a worrywart," I said rolling my eyes. I couldn't see Izumi anywhere, so I guess our talk has to wait till I get home.
"Come on," he said.
"Where?"
"Just come, we need to get your out of those wet clothes."
"I didn't bring a spare uniform."
"I do," he said. "Come on."
I shrugged and followed him. He led me into the clubroom. It was my first time being inside the clubroom. It was spacey and too luxurious to be a normal clubroom. There was no one there and I was going to voice that question, but Oshitari-san pointed to a door on the far side of the room.
"This is Atobe's private clubroom. He mostly uses the one he shares with us, but it's just here for his convenience. I'll get some clothes for you next door, the shower is through that door," he said and pointed to another door.
"I am not staying here."
"Atobe won't mind if it's you."
"But I do. I don't want to receive his help."
"Would you rather be in the normal clubroom with everyone else?"
"Well… no… but…"
"Just stay here, go take a shower, I'll leave your clothes outside," he said and left without giving me a chance to protest further. I debated about just leaving, but never came to a decision when a huge wave of sneezes attacked me. Oh well, as long as I don't catch a cold.
Keigo was still not feeling well even after practice ended, not to mention the cold weather outside was not helping his case. When he ran to Oshitari outside, Oshitari gave him a bundle of clothes and told him Izumu was in his private clubroom, taking a shower and to take the clothes to her.
He doesn't know what Oshitari was thinking, but he was quiet desperate for a reason to see her, and before she went home, Izumi had explained to her why Izumu might skip classes for the rest of the day and disappeared on everyone. He felt really guilty. He knew he had brought lots of misery to Izumu, and although he regrets all of that, there is nothing he can do to change his past. All he can do now is hope Izumu will accept him back to her life and make her happy in the future.
"I am not entirely sure, but there's a huge probability that Izumu was acting that way because of us."
"What do you mean?" He had asked.
"Her childhood with us was not a happy one. It's filled of memories of you and me ignoring her. How do you think she will feel now that I am back?"
Keigo was confused. The way he acts towards Izumu was nothing like the way he acts to anyone else no matter how close they are. She was able to make his entire rational thinking fly out the window and make him panic and lose his cool every time he heard she's having problems from Oshitari.
He sat down on the couch in his club room and contemplated. He knows he loves her, but maybe he was in love her. He hasn't really decided yet.
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