A/N: Ya-hoi! Hi everyone! I've been working on this story on and off again for a little over a year and I thought I'd summon up the courage and post it here!! Granted this is just a little story where boy meets girl. As much as I love the boy/boy kink, and we all know how easy it is to slash Prince of Tennis, this story is not. So, please don't hate me too much. But, I would appreciate any feedback, comments or suggestions that you may have, even if it's to tell me how Mary Sue I am. I take it all in stride! Thanks for looking! loves

(Chapter 1)

It was hard not to notice him. He sat right in front of her in English class, back bent over his work, arms diligently working on the problems written on the board. She, however, couldn't concentrate on the board. All she could do was sit and stare at his back and get lost in her thoughts. When class ended she would sit and watch him pack his things and quietly slip out of class, avoiding the crowds and the constant calls and squeals coming from the overly-peppy female population in the class. He was just way too cool for her.

She wasn't like the other girls in her class. They'd follow him around and whisper and giggle behind his back. If he heard them, he never made comments or any reaction of that matter. And because he never made any notion to acknowledge the girls that followed him that made them work twice as hard to get his attention. When one of them would be brave enough to separate herself from the pack and make a comment or ask him a question, he would stare at her hard, politely answer then abruptly turn around and leave the girl speechless in awe. It brought her some sort of grim satisfaction. No, she simply watched at a distance and admired him from afar. She wasn't a big talker herself and the thought of displaying outward affection at a sickly-sweet caliber was far too much. She'd rather be simple. Yes, simple. She was also very realistic. She was pretty sure he didn't even know her face or her name, even though they had been in the same class at Seigaku for two years now.

She sat at her desk during break like always. While her classmates would get up and walk around, talk to each other, she simply sat and worked ahead on her English homework. She liked English; she could speak it fairly well. Her mother used to live in America when she was younger and so English was spoken from time to time at home. Her father, on the other hand, knew very little English, but, would sometimes try to hold a small conversation with her in the foreign tongue. On this particular day, however, she was listening to her latest CD mix while working on English nouns and pronouns. She liked listening to music in English too. It helped make everything click. She was humming along to the lyrics, not really paying much attention to her surroundings when a shadow fell across her desk. She stopped and looked up. Her eyes widened and a light blush crept to her cheeks. He was standing right there in front of her!

"You are singing in English." He said simply. She blinked.

"I was? I didn't realize." She replied sheepishly. She looked around the room. No one else was paying her any attention. "Was it bothering you? I'm sorry." He shook his head.

"It wasn't very loud, but I heard it." He stated back as he took his seat in front of her. She stared at his back and thought. Those were the first words ever exchanged between them.

"Did you understand any of it?" she asked before she could stop herself. She watched him straighten his back and turn slowly around to face her. She blushed some more. Mentally she cursed herself for the redness in her face.

"Some of it," he paused and looked at her, his face turned slightly to the side. He really did have a nice face. She thought absentmindedly.

"Do you want to be conversation partners during class?" he asked suddenly. She must have given him a weird look because he narrowed his eyes as if she was a strange creature on display.

"Excuse me?" she sputtered. He was asking her?

"During English, would you like to be my conversation partner?" he asked again a little slower this time in case she couldn't understand the words that were coming out of his mouth.

She weighed her options. One, she could say no and then live to regret not getting the chance to talk her current crush or two, she could be cool and nonchalantly accept his offer. Because, it was he who was offering, right?

"Sure." She said finally shrugging her shoulders.

"Good." He replied obviously pleased, although it was hard to tell, he was a stoic person most of the time.

"Mmm, I feel like I should know your name, but I don't. What is it?" he asked.

"Oh, uh, Ito Uma." She said slightly deflated. Of course he wouldn't know her name! He never turned around in his desk, he barely knew she had been there in the first place. Well two can play at that game. She thought. Summoning up some bravery she answered back,

"You are Kaidoh Kaoru correct?"

Kaidoh raised his eyes in surprise. Surprised that she didn't know his name either!

"Yes, I am. Well, Ito-chan, I look forward to see how well your English really is." He said as he turned back around. Uma smiled.

"As I you." She retorted as she put away her CD player. "Most definitely."

"Good morning, Uma, how are you?"

"I am doing well, Kaoru, thank you. And how are you?"

"Okay."

"Um, Kaidoh I don't think 'okay' is a good enough answer." Uma said lightly as she flipped ahead a few pages of their textbook. As requested, she and Kaidoh paired up for conversation partners in class. Uma could feel the steely jealous looks of all the females in the class at her back. But she paid no mind. What was the point? Nevertheless, she felt butterflies in her stomach every time she looked into those dark eyes and wondered what he was thinking. He was the guy she had been crushing on for two years after all! Who could pass up a chance like this?

As they practiced phrases and conversations out of their book, she concluded that Kaidoh was good at English, better than the average student, but using it in the correct context was presenting him with a challenge.

"I'm sorry. I will try harder." He replied in English. Uma looked up at him and smiled faintly. His accent was really cute.

"That was pretty good." She replied back in English. He gave her an amused look.

"You are very good with your English." He said.

"Well, my mother used to live in America. She speaks English very well. We use it at home sometimes." Uma replied nonchalantly while inwardly glowing from his compliment. Kaidoh nodded slowly.

"I see."

"But, you have a pretty good grasp at English." She stated back to him. Kaidoh shrugged.

"I try. Echizen can speak English, so whenever he does, I listen."

"Oh that's right! I knew that!" She said lightly as she slapped her head and laughed. Echizen Ryoma, he was that outstanding little freshman tennis player she kept hearing about in the halls. She laughed to herself. Kaidoh looked at her strangely. Some of the kids turned around and stared. Uma stopped and looked around.

"Sorry, I tend to get carried away when I get excited." She muttered in Japanese.

"Please, say it in English." Kaidoh said softly. Uma blushed and repeated her statement.

"Good, I will remember that." He said back in English. "You speak English better than anyone I know. And I….recognized the melody that you were singing before class."

Uma blushed again. What was up with all this blushing? "Oh really?" she asked.

"Yes, it is a CD that you listen to a lot, right? Sometimes I can hear the music through your headphones."

Uma slumped slightly in her seat. She never realized how loud she turned up her music. It was just her way to relax and work. "I didn't realize that it was so loud." She mumbled. Kaidoh leaned forward to catch her softly spoken words. She shook her head and sat up. She wasn't being a very good conversation partner. He gave her a confused look.

"Sorry, I said, 'I didn't realize that it was so loud.'" Kaidoh made a silent 'Oh,' and nodded.

"That is okay, no big deal." He said shrugging. "Everyone has a favorite song they listen to…." He paused and gave her a sideways glance. "Is…all your music in English?"

Uma nodded. "For the most part. It helps me work on my English and it's good study music when I do my homework….you know…" she paused, wondering what had gotten into her. "You…could borrow some of them or come over and listen to them, if you'd like. Maybe they'll help you too."

It was Kaidoh's turn to blush. He was really cute too when he blushed. She thought vaguely. All of him is pretty cute. She mused. Suddenly, she sat up and mentally slapped herself in the face. What had she done!? She barely knew this boy and already she was asking him to come over to her house. Before she could stammer an apology for being so forward the bell rung ending class. Quickly she jumped out of her chair, grabbed her things and exited the room as fast as she could. Kaidoh sat in his seat with a slightly baffled look on his face before he slowly gathered his things and left the room as well, his usual crowd of fan girls following closely behind.

"Idiot! What in world were you thinking? I know you like this boy, but, geez! He barely knows you and you him. Oh God what did I do?" Uma was muttering to herself all the way down the halls and to her locker. She quickly grabbed her shoes and sweater swapped some books out for tonight's homework and made her way outside. She steadied her breathing and willed her beating heart down.

"No, no, it's okay, he probably didn't understand. I said in English…but still! Oh Uma you are a work that's for sure!" she conceded as she stepped outside. She wrapped her sweater around her and shivered. It was spring, but the weather still a little cool. Uma never liked the cold anyways. She started off on her way home.

It had become a habit of hers. She always made her way past the tennis courts after school. Uma liked tennis, played it occasionally, and was a pretty good athlete, but she wasn't involved in club activities. She never had much desire to do so. Sure, she enjoyed sports but she wasn't serious enough. During P.E. several of the clubs' coaches would come up and ask her why she didn't join a sports club. She simply answered that she did not have the fighting spirit required to compete at such a level then she would bow and excuse herself. Still, they persisted. It was really quite annoying.

However, as she walked by the courts she saw the Seigaku tennis boys warming up. She paused briefly when she caught sight of Kaidoh. He was wearing that green bandana again. Uma thought he looked really good in that color. He was warming up with Momo. Whenever Uma saw those two together they were always arguing and threatening each other, but she saw through their ruse. Uma knew that those boys really cared about each other, but were too egotistical to admit it. It was really kind of charming in a sick twisted way. Uma chuckled to herself as she continued to watch the boys play.

"Hey, Tezuka-senpai, who is that girl over there?" asked Ryoma as he and the other regulars stood watching the practice match between Kaidoh and Momo. Tezuka glanced over to where Echizen was staring. He frowned. Usually nobody bothered them during practice. But the girl was standing far away from the courts and looked like she was just passing through and had gotten distracted.

"I don't know." He replied blandly. "You should be concentrating on the match, not the spectators." She was standing too far away to get a clear look at her face.

"Oh-ho! I know her! She's a second year like Kaidoh and Momo-chan." Kikumaru said suddenly as he bounded over and propped himself on Echizen to get a better look.

Echizen growled, he didn't like being Kikumaru's foot stool. "Well, who is she?"

"I think her name is Ito-something, uh, uh," Eiji scratched his head thinking. "Oh! I know! Ito Uma, that's her name. I think I heard Kaidoh mention her name to Inui before practice." He replied energetically.

"Who did I mention to Inui-senpai?" asked a soft deep voice. The boys turned around. Kaidoh and Momo had obviously finished their match. Kaidoh was staring hard at the trio, especially Kikumaru.

"Now, now, Kaidoh-kun, I just mentioned that it was Ito Uma standing off there by the courts, that's all." He said quickly. He never did like Kaidoh's intense stares.

Kaidoh turned and looked around. He was right! There stood Uma. She must have noticed the boys were watching her when she quickly turned and rushed off. He raised his eyes in surprise. What was she doing here?

"So, what's that all about?" Momo kidded lightly. Kaidoh turned to him.

"What are you talking about? She's just a girl in my English class." He hissed as he walked off the courts and grabbed a towel. Sensing that the boy wasn't going to supply anymore information, the rest of the team turned back to the remaining matches.

"Just had to make it worse, didn't you? Now what? Oh god, and then I just rushed off like some jittery fangirl." Uma whimpered as she quickly picked up her pace to put as much distance between herself and the school. She hadn't meant to stand there and continue watching, but it was so interesting! Kaidoh was an amazing player; after all he had to be he was a regular.

Shaking her head, Uma gradually slowed down her pace until she was walking normally. Once she got home, she quickly made her way upstairs to her room so she could relax before dinner. It didn't last long.

"Uma-chan! You have a phone call!" called the voice of her mother from downstairs.

Uma had been reading in her Literature book. She sat up. Who would be calling her now? She really didn't have that many close friends and even then they rarely called each other on their house phones.

"Who is it, Mama?" She called as she mindlessly smoothed her pleated skirt and adjusted the collar on her polo shirt. She hadn't bothered to change out of her uniform and it was making her itch.

"It's a boy, a Kaidoh-kun, or something like that." She replied back. Uma stopped at the top of the stairs.

Kaidoh? What does he want? She thought frantically. Somehow she found herself holding the receiver.

"Hello? This is Uma," she heard herself say. On the other end there was a heavy silence, broken by a low hiss. "Hello?"

"Ito-chan, this is Kaidoh." He replied in English.

"Yes, Kaidoh, what can I do for you?" She really could pass for a robot. You need to relax! She shouted silently in her head.

Silence.

"Kaidoh-san? Are you still there?" She tried again in English. Maybe that would pick up the pace of the conversation.

"In class today, you mentioned you had music in English."

"Yes…"

"I was wondering if I…" Pause. "Well, would it be alright if I…" Another pause. Uma didn't realize she was holding her breath. She exhaled loudly into the receiver. Then she quickly covered her mouth. Get a grip Ito! She thought angrily.

"Could I maybe borrow one of your CDs to listen to? I would really like to do well in English." He finished after some more hesitation.

Uma let out another puff of air that she had been holding.

"Oh sure, sure! Not a problem! I can bring you a couple tomorrow for class!" She practically shouted into the phone. She wasn't speaking in English but it didn't seem to matter.

"That would be good. Thank you. Good night." And he hung up abruptly.

Uma stood there and listened to the dial tone, her mind racing. Did this conversation just happen? Shaking her head she walked back upstairs to her room. Well, well, things were looking up. She spent the rest of her evening searching through her CDs.

He really didn't know what possessed him to call her. But, after he hung up the phone, he was slightly glad he did. That music he heard her listening to today sounded good, and if it was in English then maybe it would help him with class. She had offered to lend him her music. Kaidoh thought to himself. She wasn't like the other girls at school. She was sincere, laid back, slightly aloof, and refreshingly honest. She didn't follow him down the halls like the others girls did, she was like him and kept to herself most of the time and she seemed very down to earth. He was also secretly pleased that she really didn't know who he was at the beginning. She was overall a pretty good conversation partner at school. She had been helpful with his English pronunciation. Maybe, he thought as he went upstairs to change and get ready for bed, maybe this Ito Uma is worth getting to know. He couldn't wait until English class.

Habits are hard to break. And being habitual by nature, Uma found herself once again sitting at her desk during break, CD player in hand, English book open and her pencil writing out sentences in neat English letters. Her favorite song was playing at the moment and as was her subconscious habit, she was unknowingly humming along, spouting a few lyrics here and there.

"'I can't breathe and I can't sleep when he's not around….everyday, is bluey-gray when he's not in town….'"

"Good afternoon Uma-chan."

Uma snapped to attention and looked up, cheeks burning. Kaidoh was once again standing above her. She sputtered a quick hello while Kaidoh silently slipped into his seat and pulled out his textbook.

"You sang that song yesterday, I recognized it," he mentioned without turning around.

Uma gulped and nodded knowing that he wouldn't see her reaction. She had been. She didn't mind that he heard her singing; the problem that lied within it was the guilty pleasure of singing that song and thinking of him whenever she heard it. Even though he didn't know the reason behind the song, he did know she listened to it a lot.

"It has a good melody," he was saying as Uma struggled to concentrate on his words. He was speaking slowly, in English. "You will have to sing it to me in whole." Uma blinked in surprise. So did Kaidoh. He froze in his seat. Did he just say that? Neither one of them was expecting him to say something like that!

"Um, o-okay…" she replied shakily knowing full and well that if he ever figured out what all the words of the song meant he might get suspicious. As she muddled in her thoughts she suddenly became aware that Kaidoh had turned in his seat and was looking at her. Knowing very well, that the look on her face was of one spaced out, she shook her head and focused her eyes back on that lovely profile in front of her. Fighting back the will to say something stupid, Uma reached into her bag and pulled out the CD out she had chosen for Kaidoh. She held it up for Kaidoh to see.

"Here," she said quickly. "I'm good to my word. I brought this CD for you to listen to. Even if you can't understand all the words right away, the music is great and very relaxing; perfect study music."

He reached up and took the CD case from her. "Who are they?" he asked as he stared at the cover. Uma smiled despite herself.

"It's 'Talk on Corners' by the Corrs. They're one of my favorites. The song on my CD is from this album. I think you'll like it." She spouted eagerly. Kaidoh nodded slowly then carefully placed the CD in his bag and turned back around. Class was about to begin.

"Hey, hey, there she is again! She's walking by the courts!" Eiji pointed out excitedly as the boys finished their warm up laps. They looked over and sure enough, Uma was making her daily trek home via the tennis courts. This time, she didn't bother to slow down and watch. It was way too embarrassing.

"She always walks that way when she goes home."

"Huh? What'd you say Kaidoh? You need to quit mumbling."

"You all need to focus!" interrupted Tezuka.

Kaidoh hissed under his breath and grabbed his racket. He walked onto the courts with Momo. They were paired together for the next tournament and they would be practicing with Eiji and Oishi. Right now he didn't want to be the center of attention especially about something as trivial as a girl.

She was just his conversation partner in class. He thought as he took a few practice swings to loosen up. Simple as that….Right?