“Bet you can’t seduce him!”

Ayame blinked, eyes frowning beneath her frameless glasses.  “Who said I wanted to?”

Ann clicked her tongue, swinging her legs freely outward, allowing her heels to land solidly on the concrete they were sitting on.  “Wanting to isn’t the point Ame-chan,” she replied, giggling with an evil lilt.  “The point is the challenge.  And Fuji Syusuke is possibly the biggest challenge out there!”

“Then why don’t you try it?” Ayame bit back, her face coloring.  What has gotten into her today?  She asked herself.  Whatever it was, she just prayed the passing fancy would leave her best friend’s mind as quickly as it had come.

The honey blond girl slanted her best friend a mischievous grin, complete with tilted back head and flashing blue eyes.  “Because I’m not the one harboring a secret but HUGE crush on my senpai, that’s why.  Come on!  You have to do it!”

“No way!”

“But you don’t deny that you like him huh?”  This statement was accompanied by a little cackle of glee that sent shivers down Ayame’s spine.  She knew that laugh, and that laugh meant no good for her.

She hadn’t know Tachibana Ann since grade and not picked up on most of her character traits.  She could tell when the girl was angry, upset, happy, frustrated… and feeling particularly evil.  Like she was at that moment.  Ann had a particularly devious side that easily matched her caring and protective side.  In a lot of ways the girl was a lot like the topic of their conversation.

Sadly, it was true that she had a crush on the tennis genius Fuji Syusuke.  Had since junior high.  She would have lied about it, except that Ann almost always saw straight through her lies.  This was partially because Ann was just that insightful, but it was also because she was a horrible liar.  The guilt was always written all over her face.

Problem with the aforementioned crush was that it was impossible for it to be reciprocated.  Fuji Syusuke saw her as a little sister – one that needed protection above all things.  He treated her like he treated his little brother, minus the teasing.  It was frustrating at first, but over the last year she had come to accept the situation for what it was.  Fuji was her friend, and would always remain her friend.

“He-llo?  Ame-chan?  Anyone there?”

Ayame shook her head, coming out of her stupor.  “Huh?”

Ann’s eyes narrowed, but her lips quirked, a knowing look crossing her face.  “Not the sister thing again.  If I’ve told you once, I’ve told you a thousand times.  Guys’ minds can be changed extremely easily.  Even if he does see you as a sister – which I’m not convinced he does! – it doesn’t mean he’ll see you that way for ever you know.”

“Whatever, I’m not doing it.”

“Oh yes you are,” Ann said sternly, pushing Ayame a bit.  “I have it all planned out.”

Oh lord, Ayame moaned inwardly, only imagining what kind of deviousness Ann had up her sleeve.  This is Ann-chan we’re talking about here… is there really any way out of this?

“Ah, Ann-chan, Ame-chan!  Good afternoon.”

Apparently not.  Ayame’s fingers bit into the concrete wall under her, her knuckles turning white in the process.  She had to hand it to Ann, the dark-blond girl had really out done herself this time.  “Hello, Fuji-kun.”  Ayame said, smiling at the boy that had appeared in front of them, standing on the concrete between them and the match on the tennis court.

Ann was gloating, in her devious sort of way.  Ayame could feel the aura.  Careful not to alter Fuji to her actions, Ayame swung her leg so that her ankle came in contact with Ann’s.  She hoped it look like an accident.

Ann said nothing, even masking the wince with a bright grin.  “Good afternoon, Fuji-kun.  I’m glad you could make it!”

I hate her…Ayame groaned inwardly, though in reality she didn’t know why she was so upset.  It wasn’t like she didn’t see Fuji outside of school all the time, or that she had never met him during their rare free time.  She figured it was more that she saw right through Ann’s set up attempt, and feared the outcome.  Obviously she was going to have to take the challenge.

So, when Fuji was called from the court, by those he knew that were either involved in the game currently going on, or those who were watching, Ayame took the opportunity to turn on her friend, fire in her violet eyes.  “Fine!  You’re on.”  She really didn’t like losing, and since she couldn’t participate in sports like she wanted to, she was stuck doing less physical, more mental things.  She refused to fail in contests of intelligence or cunning.  Particularly to Ann, who would take advantage of it.

Ann just grinned, leaning closer to her and lowering her voice.  “I knew you would see it my why.”

“There’s a condition,” Ayame hissed, glancing to make sure Fuji was still busy.  “If I make an attempt, then you have to do the same to Mizuki-san.”

The other girl’s face fell into some kind of incredulousness.  “Mizuki-kun?  Bu-but he’s so… gay.  You just want to embarrass me!”

Ayame shook her head, a stubborn set to her jaw.  “Not anymore than you, me.  Those are my terms.  Besides, I don’t hear you objecting on the grounds you don’t like him.”

“You’re getting so martial, Ame-chan!”  Ann lamented, circling an arm around Ayame’s shoulders and side hugging her.  “I’m so proud.”

Blushing a bit, Ayame pushed up her glasses, wishing not for the first time, she had a normal best friend.  One who wasn’t on the mischievous and manipulative side.

Fuji had turned back to them by then, and was raising an eyebrow at the display.  Ayame sighed, shaking her head a bit, while Ann hopped down from the concrete divider.  “Don’t mind us Fuji-kun, just making a deal is all.”  She waved her hand dismissingly, sticking out her tongue a bit.  “Now I’ll just leave you two alone, bye bye!” And with that she did just that, walking away, her hands behind her back.  “Yanagisawa-kun!  Might I have a word with you?”

Now normally Ayame was extremely comfortable in Fuji’s presence, having placed in him many of her most secret confidences.  Such was her trust in him.  However, at that moment, she had never felt as awkward with anyone in her entire life.

Twisting her hands in her lap, she stared at the concrete ground some foot beneath her swinging feet.  What to say?  Why did Ann have to go and make everything so awkward?

As if he didn’t notice anything amiss, Fuji leaned beside her, his arm brushing hers.  “Have you been well?”

Crap, he was talking to her.  She closed her eyes briefly in attempt to steady herself and make sure she didn’t stutter.  Stuttering would not help the situation, quite the opposite in fact.  Stuttering would only alert him to the fact that she was trying to do something… he was just as clever as Ann was after all.

“Yeah…” she replied, forcing herself to look over at him.  “Busy, high school is more work than junior high after all.”

“Mm,” he agreed with a slight nod.  It seemed as if his entire attention was on the match on the court, though from experience Ayame knew that most of his attention was likely on her.  He was like that – watching people when they thought his attention was elsewhere.

How was she supposed to go about ‘seducing’ him?  Seducing as in admitting that she was half in love with him and… maybe asking him on a date.  That’s at least what she hoped Ann had meant.  But then, who knew with her.  Not even Ayame, her best friend could tell half the time. 

Needless to say, that was only how far she was going, though that was entirely too far in her books.  She would likely lose his friendship… in the way that mattered anyway.  She doubted that he would stop being her friend simply because she had hit on him.  No, their friendship would end on her part, seeing as her shame would be so high that she doubted she could ever talk to him again.  The thought saddened her.

“Ann-chan said you had something to tell me?”

It was obvious to her that her confusion and discomfort was obvious to him.  That was why he had just come out and said it, though he was unusually blunt about it.  Generally if he wanted to know something, he’d coax it out of the person in a round about way that made you feel like you were being swindled somehow.  It was yet another area of commonality between him and Ann.

His bluntness worried her.  What if he suspected what she was going to say?  What if he had already picked out the kind, but condescending words that would reject her in no uncertain terms?  If that were true, why didn’t he just come out and say it?  Maybe that would be easier to take…

“Um… well I guess I do…”  Was what she finally came up with, grasping unsuccessfully at the right words to say.  Damn you, Ann-chan.

He finally turned his head to look at her, pulling himself straight as he did so.  “Come on, we’ll go for a walk?”

Ayame nodded her assent and hopped down from the divider, grabbing her small backpack-purse as she did so.  She followed a bit behind, not entirely sure what to do with her hands.  Finally, she settled with shoving them in her capris’ pockets, not unlike what he had done with his hands.

God this was awkward.  How could he not know what she wanted to say?  With so much tension between them, it had to be glaringly obvious.  If only Ann had not brought it up in the first place.

“I haven’t seen you around,” he said finally, glancing back at her before frowning a bit.  Slipping his right hand out of his pocket, he reached back and gently guided her so that she walked beside him completely.  “Have you been avoiding me Ame-chan?” 

Now he was teasing her, she could hear it in his voice.  She couldn’t help but smile, laughing softly.  “No,” she replied, “Just busy.  I’m in cram school now… on top of managing the girl’s team at school.”

“Mm,” he hummed, acknowledging her.  “Still going to be a doctor hm?”

“Yes!”  It was the only subject besides tennis that truly made her excited.  “I can’t wait… I want to study medicine at University of Tokyo… maybe even do my sports medicine specialization in America.”

He smiled at her excitement.  “That’s quite the goal, one I have no doubt that you’ll reach one day.”

They lapsed into silence again as Ayame was once again lost as to what to say, and Fuji didn’t seen overly inclined to start a conversation.  They hadn’t walked very far… out of the street tennis park, down the street a bit.  It didn’t matter, since they weren’t really going anywhere anyway.

Just get it over with!  Her inner voice chided, a voice that sounded suspiciously like Ann.  At least then you won’t have to agonize over it.

She could do it.  How hard could it be?  Yes or no, it seemed so simple.  “Na… Fuji-kun?”

“Hm?”

Ayame took a deep breath.  “Fuji-kun… I…” Lord, she was going to sound like one of his fan club members.  Fuji-kun, I love you… I really do!  Nope, that wouldn’t do at all.  Send him running… or worse yet, would just make him pat her shoulder and smile like he did with all those other girls that had declared their undying love for him.  And they were many.

“I…”

She couldn’t do it.  But she couldn’t lose the dare either… she’d never live it down if Ann succeeded where she failed.  Of course, this was ignoring that Ann had a fundamental personality trait that allowed her to speak her mind whenever and wherever she wanted.  It was a trait Ayame didn’t have.  It just wasn’t in her most of the time, to blurt out her true feelings on matters.

She wanted to scream and bang her head against a tree.  Why was this so difficult?! 

He was part of it.  He wasn’t making it any easier, just standing there (they had come to a stop) smiling at her with that same benign smile that hid everything he felt and thought.  The same smile he had been smiling since for two and a half years.

“Ame-chan.”

She looked up then, and realized that his eyes were open and he in fact wasn’t smiling that smile.  It was a different sort of expression, one that was rare, and precious, one that expressed emotion that was normally banished from his face.

His lips tilted a bit in a different kind of smile, and one of his hands came up and brushed the side of her cheek.  “I’m sorry.”

Her heart was torn.  On one hand, the words weren’t exactly encouraging, but on the other hand he was looking at her in a way he hadn’t before.  What was he sorry for precisely?   “For what?  I haven’t said anything yet…”

He chuckled, stepping closer to her.  “For making you suffer,” he said, his smile becoming a bit slyer.  He leaned down, cupping her cheek with the hand that had brushed her, and brushed his lips over hers.

Ayame was far too dazed to think clearly… or at all.  What…?

“I knew what you wanted to tell me,” he whispered against her mouth, kissing her at the end of the phrase before separating their lips again.  “I wanted to see if you could tell me.”

Though the feeling of his repeated kisses distracted her, she couldn’t help the frustrated anger that built up in her.  If he knew, why in the hell had he not said anything?  Particularly since it was obvious he did not see her as a sister figure.  “Why would you… how long… when..?”

She couldn’t even finish a sentence without him interrupting her with a kiss – it was frustrating, but she couldn’t find it in her to actually be frustrated.  He was smiling, she could feel it against her mouth.  “Ame-chan is fun to tease,” he chuckled, shifting a bit to place butterfly kisses along her cheekbone.  “I overheard your bet with Ann-chan, and figured it out.”

Her face was burning, and she knew it.  Why was she not surprised?  He was a bit sadistic…  “And you…?”

Fuji chuckled again, dropping his hand from her cheek in favor of wrapping it around her waist.  “I’ve always liked you,” he murmured into her temple, holding her against him.  “Junior high school just wasn’t the time.”

“Oh.”

“Now you can tell Ann-chan you won hm?” His other arm joined its partner around her waste.  “Tomorrow.”

“A-ah.”  He was really good at that… whatever it was he was doing to her.  She shivered lightly.  “Tomorrow?”

“You’re busy today… we’re going on a date.”

“A date?”

Fuji laughed softly, finally pulling away from her.  Instead, he caught her hand squeezing and pulling her along.  “Mmhm.  Anywhere you want.”

Ayame couldn’t help the glow that transformed her very being.  He hadn’t patted her shoulder… He hadn’t said those words she feared more than anything!

“Well… in that case…”