Summary: Horio was walking home one day when he overheard a phone conversation that he shouldn't have. Being an innate busybody he told the old crowd and thus initiated a campaign to find out with whom their tennis prodigy is going out. With three persons in suspicion can the old regulars find out Ryoma's real lover?

Rating: K+ for mild mature contents.

Pairings: I am not saying what the pairing is. This story is still (when I have written otherwise?) Ryoma-centric. So for now the pairing is RyomaX?

Disclaimer: I DOn't own Prince of Tennis or any of its character. If I did it would officially become a yaoi anime and well… use your perverted imaginations!

Warning: This is a yaoi story. It has boy x boy love here so for those who can't appreciate such thing you are warned. This chapter is fairly safe. No real adult contents to be worried about.

AN: This is my attempt at some humor people. This story is relatively short (compared to any multi-chaptered stories I've written), composed only of six chapters. And I'm bringing out the first chapter to you and compared to my other stories I have finished typing this and is stored safely in my computer (and my flash disks for safety) so the update will be entirely up to my availability to go online…

The timeline for this chapter is two years after the end of the manga/anime. The first years are now the seniors, Ryoma stayed to finish junior high and he is the captain of the Seigaku Tennis Club. The other regulars are all in high school, but they still have contacts with each other, especially because they are all in high school department of Seigaku. That's the whole setting!

Any comments or suggestions will be greatly welcomed! So read, enjoy and review!

RYOMA'S LOVER

by nicki-gurl

Chapter One: Revelation

It was a warm, pleasant Sunday morning. The birds were chirping harmoniously as if personifying a well-established choir and the air was thick with fragrant scent from the array of blooming flowers. It was a perfect morning, and anyone who woke up to this welcoming atmosphere would surely have a very pleasant start to his day.

But one junior high senior was trudging lackluster at a path going through one of the public tennis courts of the city. He kicked aimlessly at a random stone on his path, wondering why he was out in this ungodly hour of the morning, coming to the beck and call of his older sister.

"When I grow up and have my own life…"

Horio's words were mumbled deeply, like he was afraid someone would hear his words. Which he was, actually. He wouldn't let it pass his sister to have some sort of Horio-radar or something of the like. As he walked through the familiar path something caught his eyes and he stopped to take a closer look.

"That's Echizen!" exclaimed to himself.

Horio settled himself far away enough as not to disturb his classmate but near enough to see him perform first hand. The next intra-school tournament is coming up and Horio hoped he could get a few pointers to help him finally achieve a regular's spot by watching Echizen.

Echizen wiped the sweat off his brows. He fixed his cap once more and took a frighteningly accurate serve to hit the leaf that fell from the tree. Calculatingly accurate. When he is in this mode practically nothing and no one could distract him. Concentration this intense was one of his specialties. Horio watched his classmate in awe as Echizen took another aim with great success.

A sound emitted from the lump that was Echizen's bag and Horio ignored it, knowing full well that the captain of the Seigaku Tennis Club would only pay no attention to it. He had seen it countless of times, how practically nothing could sway his captain's attention when he was totally concentrated with his tennis, which he was at the moment. But boy was he surprised when he saw him walk towards his bag and fished out his cell phone.

"Hello?"

He could clearly hear his captain's voice. Curiosity perked, Horio was torn between giving his captain his well-deserved privacy and his very own innate habit of breaking common courtesy to find out something he can gossip later. The latter won out in a landslide.

"Yes?"

"I was practicing, thank you very much. You know my schedules; you purposely called me at this time to disrupt my practice."

"Like you would live it down when I ignore your call."

"You're calling me for that? Maybe I should just hang up."

"I don't have anything to wear there! Wait… I thought I lost that. You were the one who took it?"

"Why am I cursed to have a boyfriend like you? And to think you present yourself so well in the public."

"Fine, I'll just finish my training and I'll come over your house."

"Yeah, yeah. Just go already. And yeah, I love you too."

Echizen hang up and gripped his racket again, checking the strings more out of habit than necessity. When satisfied he returned to his previous position and while walking back Horio caught glimpse of his captain's face. Echizen's normally impassive face was showing a hint of a smile. Not a smirk, but a true and genuine smile.

Horio stayed frozen from his hiding place, not entirely believing what he had just heard. His captain did not just smile. And he certainly did not hear him speaking with what seemed to be his 'boyfriend'.

He went out of his hiding place and walked seemingly in a daze. He did not know where he was going, the words of Echizen still etched in his mind. After walking around for minutes his mind was lifted off from the clouds when he heard his name being called.

"Horio! Horio! Come here."

Horio looked to his left only to see the former regulars of Seigaku at their favorite fast food chain, sitting at the outdoor part of the restaurant. He shook his head to clear his confusion and entered the establishment. Momo moved to give him a space to squeeze in. Next to Momo were Kaidoh, then Inui. Taka, Fuji, Kikumaru and Oishi sat opposite of them. Tezuka was as usual absent from the outing.

"Hey, what are you guys doing here?" Horio asked.

"We did an early morning practice and decided to have breakfast together," Momo answered. "What about you? It's a weekend so you don't have practice today."

"Yeah, you seemed preoccupied out there," Oishi commented. "How's the team?"

"How is Echizen coping with the captaincy?" Fuji asked.

Horio still looked a bit dazed but he answered nonetheless. "The team is fine; we just advanced to the regional. And Echizen is doing great with the team."

"Hoi, hoi! Ochibi's doing a fine job then," Kikumaru said happily.

"But why do you seem distressed?" Oishi prodded.

Horio did not know what to answer. It seemed he has two options. He could either answer the question with a lie and keep this new information to himself, or share this yummy tidbit and discover its mysteries that were starting to frustrate him. The decision was very easy to make.

"It's Echizen…" and he proceeded to tell them what he just overheard.

"Ii, data," Inui said, scribbling away in his notebook at a lightning speed.

"It's not very nice to listen to others' conversations," Kaidoh said after Horio finished his story.

"Are you sure you heard it correctly?" Taka asked.

"Yes!" Horio screeched in his usual manner.

"It seemed inevitable, doesn't it?" Fuji put in. "Girls have never been his interest."

"Hoi, hoi, Ochibi's growing up so fast, nya!" Eiji interjected.

"But Echizen is…" Oishi trailed. "He still is…"

Eiji patted his partner's shoulder soothingly. "There, there. You don't have to worry about him Oishi, nya!"

"But it is kind of strange, isn't it? Who could interest him so much like that?" Momo wondered out loud. "I mean he always had tennis in his head, 24/7, seven days a week. And I've been hanging around him lately and Echizen hasn't even given a hint that he was interested in someone, much less that he is actually seeing someone."

"Fshuuu… Maybe he doesn't trust you enough…" Kaidoh drawled tauntingly.

"What did you say mamushi?" barked Momo.

"You heard me, peach butt!" Kaidoh retorted.

"Hmn… if my calculations are correct I would say that Echizen is definitely seeing someone from the old tennis circuit," Inui suddenly announced out of the blue, eyeglasses glinting frighteningly.

The statement ultimately put a stop at the inevitable fight between Momo and Kaidoh, which consequently would surely get them kicked out of the restaurant, albeit it being a fast food one. Fuji tilted his head a little to regard Inui with his smiling countenance. But it was Kikumaru who voiced out the inquiry most of them had thought of.

"Nani? What do you mean Inui, nya?" Kikumaru asked clueless.

Then again maybe he didn't actually voice out their questions right.

"It means that Echizen is probably seeing someone we know Eiji," Fuji clarified in his sweetest, most saccharine voice.

A collective, involuntary shiver ran through a number of the people at their table, meaning it was only Fuji and Inui who remained collected and composed at the moment. The cause of shiver, whether it was due to the revelation or Fuji's voice, was still undetermined.

Inui took another look at his very trusty notebook, one of the many, which was now sporting three pages worth of new data. His theories, hypothesis and conclusions are yet to come.

"There is a 90% chance that his boyfriend is also a tennis player and a 93% that he would turn out to be one of the tennis players we already know."

"Nani?" was the collective response.

Fixing his glasses (for the added drama, Fuji noted with amusement), Inui deigned an elaboration. "To be able to interest Echizen that much he must be well versed with the boy's way of life and tennis is a very prominent part of it. And only someone who knew him beforehand would countenance his initial persona of being proud and anti-social."

"Huh?" Momo and Kikumaru chorused.

Fuji allowed a chuckle to escape his lips. "What he meant was that Echizen's boyfriend must have known him for a long time to be able to stand his personality and at the same time interest him."

"But who could he be?" Oishi muttered under his breath.

"Does anyone have any idea?" Taka asked in the general vicinity.

Everyone suddenly hushed, contemplating for a moment. Everyone, that is, except Horio, who was looking at his senpais in absolute shock and delight. Shock because he was overwhelmed by the whole turn the conversation had taken and delight because he felt like he had been inducted to a members' only clique he had always harbored a deep longing of being accepted.

Fuji decided to offer his opinion first, doing so with his eternal smile still intact. "There is the probability of him hooking up with Tezuka."

Everyone turned to him sharply.

"You're right," Momo agreed. "We actually talked about that possibility years ago, right Eiji-sempai."

"You're right, nya!" Kikumaru affirmed.

"Or there is Atobe," Oishi offered contemplatively. "Ever since the Nationals, ever since the practice matches at Karuizawa before the Kantou Taikai on our senior year actually, he has been a keen observer of Echizen."

Kaidoh presented his own thoughts on the matter, much to the surprise of some of them. "There is also that Yukimura," he pointed out shyly. "I mean Echizen has always been interested in him ever since he learned that he was dubbed the 'Child of God'."

"What do you think of it all?" Taka asked, turning towards Inui.

Inui appeared to be calculating the variables in his mind, muttering under his breath now and then about 'the probability of attraction' and 'the factors of lust and sexual tension'. The vague monologue caused Oishi to come closer to a serious hyperventilation.

"When we look at all the variables I came up with a very interesting reckoning. The three aforementioned people have the highest probability of hooking up with Echizen, each having 30% chances of being the mystery boyfriend."

Kikumaru suddenly sprang to his feet, almost toppling the chair he was using if Fuji hadn't employed his magnificent reflexes and caught the thing before it made contact with the concrete.

"I won't be satisfied until I find out who Ochibi's dating, nya!" he declared passionately. "Seriously, we have to find out who he is."

"Let's calm down for a bit, shall we?" Fuji quipped in.

"Well, let's analyze this a little more," Momo suggested. "Let try to see how compatible they are to Echizen."

"Well, we do know Tezuka pretty well and if we really entertain the thought he does suit Echizen very much," Oishi said contemplatively.

There was a collective nod in agreement of the statement. Fuji further reiterated, "Yes, he is the only one who could really control him when he is in his most obnoxious. Tezuka can be the one who reminds Echizen that sometimes he needed to take things seriously."

"How about Atobe?" Taka asked.

"Their similarity is so uncanny," Momo stressed out. "I mean have you seen those two together? In the same area? They are like the double act of cockiness, with their pride-meter skyrocketing even more at each other's presence!"

"Saa… The seemingly perfect match. Atobe Keigo brings out the devil in Echizen," Fuji added.

"And Yukimura?" Kaidoh prodded.

"Well, Yukimura is kind and soft and sociable," Inui recited out from his notebook. "He is so very different from Echizen."

Fuji offered another insight. "But he can also balance the anti-socialness of the boy. He actually completes him, personality wise."

Horio offered his first opinion since the discussion he inevitably started in the first place began. "So does this mean all of them can be his boyfriend?"

Kikumaru shook his adamantly. "No, no, no! I will not rest until I know for sure who he is."

"But aren't we going to disrupt Echizen's privacy if we dwell on this matter?" Taka asked worriedly. "I mean he has the freedom to tell us who he has been seeing. If he wanted us to know he would have said it sooner."

"But this is Echizen we are talking about!" Momo insisted dramatically. "What if he is actually seeing someone we don't know and it turns he is nothing more of a pervert? Have you heard the rise of pedophiles and child molesters now-a-days? We need to protect our kohai and it starts with the people he hangs out with."

Everyone turned to the former fukubuchou, who was the unofficial leader of the group whenever Tezuka was not in presence. It wasn't hard for Oishi to make up his mind, nor did it require Kikumaru to further motivate his long-time boyfriend. He has been won over since the word 'pervert' has been mentioned.

"Yes, we'll solve this mystery once and for all and protect Echizen!" Oishi expressed with craze, fist raised in a determined manner.

"Ii, data"

X

X

X

"So this is the plan," Oishi announced, the unproclaim team leader of the mission. "We'll split the surveillance amongst ourselves."

He looked over the heads of his troops seated at his family's living room, with only one notable absence. Fuji was not present, after excusing himself with the reason being that Yuuta was coming home and thus he wanted to spend the rest of the day with his younger brother. The glint in Fuji's eyes was enough to scare even the bravest of man so even though it was their first official meeting for their mission Oishi had allowed him to leave.

"Saa… you can just assign me the supervision of Echizen. He'll never know I'm tailing him," Fuji had said to make up for his absence before another smile lit up in his face and he bade them all farewell.

"As requested by Fuji he will be in charge of tailing Echizen," Oishi continued under the rapt attention of the others. "Taka, you're in charge of Tezuka. Make sure you take note of all interactions between him and Echizen. Eiji will help you.

"Momo and Kaidoh, you see after Atobe. Inui can take care of Yukimura since he is friends with Yanagi. I'll be helping him if the assistance is needed. Inui will also be in charge of the overall evaluation and assessment. I'll be the one overseeing the operation. Any questions?"

Momo raised his arms quickly. "Why do I have to partner with Mamushi?"

"You have anything against it, peach butt?" Kaidoh growled.

Momo sent him a smirk. "Of course I do. Who'd want to partner a mamushi like you?"

"Why you…"

"Stop!" Oishi exclaimed. He began his customary monologue. "Please remember that we are doing this for the benefit of Echizen, to keep him from being used by someone perverted. He is still a young boy, he needs constant guidance. And since we are now in high school we can't offer that to him regularly. That is why we need to this and show him that he has friends there to support him and guide him. This is for protecting him and assessing the person he is seeing right now. This is our duty as his sempai-tachi. For Echizen's welfare we'll overcome all obstacles to reveal his identity! We'll know for sure who has placed himself in a special part of our Echizen's heart!"

Along the streets of Tokyo one person in particular sneezed.

TBC…

I hope this chapter isn't too confusing or too… pointless. The idea just came to me and I just let my imagination take the reins of my body. Feel free to speculate who Ryo-chan's boyfriend is. You can tell me by posting a review… V^^V

nicki-gurl