The Next Knight in the Area: Chapter 13

Training Camp, A Captain's Past :Previous Chapter«Home»Next Chapter: Japan vs France, A New Friend & Couple
==Hiroki & Ryo==
A new day of this weird week for the Aizawa siblings. While Keiko was away at training camp, Hiroki, Ryo and Koichi were continuing their lives as usual.
Thursday May 27th, morning;
"Ohayou, Kei-nee." Ryo said through a yawn when she woke up. She then saw Keiko's empty bed "Right. She's away 'till Saturday." After getting dressed, she went to the boys room the wake them up "Come on, Hiroki!" said Ryo as she tried to shake him awake "We're gonna be late if you don't wake up! You too, Koichi!" Just as Koichi woke up, Ryo gave Hiroki a pinch on the cheek and he woke up at last.
"Alright, alright." said Hiroki as he got up "Every morning."
"Sheesh. You're worse than Papa." said Ryo with her hands on her hips "Hurry and get dressed." Ryo left the room. The boys got dressed and went downstairs "About time!" said Ryo when they entered the dining room, just as Ryo and her parents started on breakfast.
"Ohayou, Mom, Dad." said Hiroki through a yawn as he and Koichi sat down
"You better eat quickly." said Nana
"Onee-chan's still at camp?" said Koichi
"Keiko won't be back until Saturday." said Nana
"That reminds me." said Kakeru "Keiko called yesterday and told us that she will be taking most of tomorrow off from camp to play in another match with Nadeshiko Japan. They're playing against France this time."
"Maybe we can ask permission to skip school tomorrow so we can watch." said Ryo earnestly
"If not us, maybe you can, because your father and I will be too busy tomorrow to watch." said Nana
Just then, the doorbell rang and Michiru's voice was heard "Hiroki-kun, Ryo-chan, time to head to school you two!"
"We'll take Koichi, so just go on." said Nana
"See you later!" said Ryo, grabbing her bag and heading for the door, Hiroki behind her.
On the way to school;
"So Keiko-chan's got another match tomorrow?" Michiru asked while they walked to Kamakura Middle
"Uh-huh. France this time." said Ryo
"As I recall, both the men and women teams are also known respectively as 'Les Bleus' and 'Les Bleues'." said Hiroki as they approached the school gates
"Maybe I'll skip school to watch as well." said Michiru
"We're asking for permission, Michiru-senpai!" said Ryo "You better do the same." Just then, Ryo walked into Hiroki, who had stopped walking "What are you stopping for?" Ryo saw, almost immediately, what caused Hiroki to stop. Right as they entered the gates, Hiroki spotted, fellow first year and classmate, Saki Takasugi, whom Hiroki has had a crush on since fourth grade. "Say something to her." Ryo told him earnestly
"I-I-I-I can't." Hiroki stammered
"You're hopeless."
"Geez, if my brother can get a girl, so can you." said Michiru
Without further discussion of Saki, the three of them went separate ways. After a fulfilling morning practice, the twins went to class. Ryo and Hiroki, along with Saki, were in Class 1-C, while Michiru was in 2-D.
Even though they were twins, the pair of them were seated on opposite sides of the room. Once Ryo had sat down, she noticed an envelope in her desk that hadn't been there yesterday.
"Is that a love letter, Ryo-chan?" said Hikaru Natsume, one of Ryo's classmates
"It's gotta be." said Rika Arima, another classmate
Ryo opened it. "It is, girls." said Ryo "He's telling me that he's liked me for a while, and is asking me to meet him at the park after school."
"A first meeting at a park. A good setting, don'tcha think, Hikaru?"
"Nothing better, Rika-chan."
"This again." Ryo thought as she read the letter again, her hands trembling, the memory of what happened on Monday night still fresh in her mind "Forget it!" Ryo crumpled up the letter and threw it in the bin, much to the surprise of her friends
"You're just gonna ignore it?" Rika asked
"I can't take the chance." Ryo replied
"What are you talking about?" Hikaru asked
Ryo hesitated in answering. She hadn't told anyone that she had been raped by a high schooler not even three days ago. She was spared from having to answer by the timely arrival of their teacher.
Lunch time;
Ryo get out her bento and went to sit with Hiroki. The two of them always had lunch together. Rika and Hikaru joined in too.
"So why didn't you want any part of it?" Hikaru asked again as they started eating
"Do I really have to tell you?" Ryo asked
"Only if you want us to leave you alone." said Rika
"Just tell them." Hiroki said simply
"Fine. But this does not leave this circle." Rika and Hikaru nodded
"WHAT!?" Rika yelled when Ryo finished telling them
"Shhhhhhhhhhhhh!"
"I can not believe that you were raped." Hikaru whispered
"It happened." said Ryo "It was horrible."
"I bet it was." said a voice behind them. It was Michiru "Can I join you?"
"What's an upperclassman doing here?" Rika asked as Michiru sat down with them
"I don't recall there being a rule saying you can't eat in the classrooms of other grades." said Michiru "Besides, I'm friends with these two. Their big sister is my big brother's girlfriend." Michiru then noticed that Hiroki was staring at Saki, who was eating by herself "Checking out Saki-chan, huh?"
"I am not!" Hiroki retorted
"Why don't you just talk to her already?" Ryo asked
"I get my tongue tied when I try to talk to girls."
"Oh, and you have no problems talking to us?" said Hikaru
"Aizawa?" said a male voice behind them
"Yes?" Hiroki and Ryo said together as the five of them turned to the boy
"Ryo Aizawa."
"What is it, Hidehiko-kun?" Ryo asked
"Can I talk to you in the hall?" Hidehiko asked and Ryo obliged
"What do you want?" Ryo asked, rather coldly
"I saw that you threw away the letter I left you."
"So it was you. I should've guessed."
"I really meant it. I've liked you for a while." said Hidehiko "You're really popular you know, not to mention cute. And you're a member of the Girls Soccer Team. So... so would you..."
"Hidehiko-kun, stop." Ryo interrupted "I don't wanna hear it."
"But...." Hidehiko tried to continue, but Ryo put up her hand
"Do you realize that you're the eighth boy this month to ask me out? Well, I give you the same answer I gave all of them. 'No'." Ryo went back into the classroom
"I couldn't hear anything, but I could tell that you were harsh." said Michiru as Ryo sat down with them again
"Shut up." said Ryo
"By the way," said Hikaru "The qualifying rounds for Inter-High begin on Monday, right?"
"That's right. And we're gonna support our big sis any way we can."
"Oh, that reminds me." said Hiroki
Hiroki and Ryo went to the staff room where their teacher was eating lunch himself.
"Hanasaku-sensei?" said Ryo
"Yes?"
"Um, the both of us would like permission to skip school tomorrow." said Hiroki, catching the attention of a couple of other teachers
"Skip school? What's this about?"
"It's our older sister." said Ryo "She's a player on Nadeshiko Japan."
"So I've heard. You two have also received a bit of attention since she joined."
"Anyway," Hiroki continued "They have a match tomorrow, and we want to go cheer her on."
"Then you have permission." Hanasaku-sensei told them, and a few teachers nodded as well
"One more thing." said Ryo "I have an appointment this afternoon, so could you please tell Noriko-senpai that I won't be at practice today?"
"I'll pass the message."
"Can you believe our luck?" Hiroki asked as they made their way back to class
"Well, our family name is so well known that it commands a bit of respect." said Ryo
After school;
"More letters from boys." said Ryo when she opened her shoe locker, out fell six letters
"Why is it that you get all the letters while I get zilch?" Hiroki asked as they changed their shoes
"Because Ryo-chan's more popular?" Michiru suggested
"That's not funny!" said Ryo as she threw the letters away
"I still can't believe that the boys team has today off." said Michiru
"Neither the Coach nor the Captain could make it for afternoon practice today." Hiroki told them as they walked out of the building
"Hey, look who it is." said Ryo, pointing at the pool area. It was Saki. Saki was a member of the Swim Team, and had a reputation as one of the best of all the first years. The team also had off today, but she seemed to be practicing on her own. "Go talk to her. We'll go on ahead." Ryo told Hiroki
"B-b-b-but, Nee-chan said not to go around the streets without each other."
"She's a Prefecture away right now. What she doesn't know won't hurt her. Plus, Saki-chan's alone. This is your chance!"
"But...."
"No 'buts'! And don't worry about me. I have Michiru-senpai here." And the two girls went off without another word
"♫I predict a confession.♫" Michiru sang to Ryo as they left.
Mustering up his courage, Hiroki walked into the pool area while Saki was in the middle of a lap. Hiroki stood at the end of the lane Saki was in, waiting for her to finish. When she did, she took a breath before realizing Hiroki was there.
"Oh! Hello." said Saki when she realized Hiroki was there
"H-hi, Takasugi." Hiroki said back nervously
"So you know my name huh? It's Aizawa-kun, isn't it?" Saki asked as she got out of the water
"Y-you can call me 'Hiroki'."
"Alright then, Hiroki-kun, if you don't mind, could you grab that stopwatch and time me for 50 meters?"
"Oh, sure." Hiroki grabbed the stopwatch she had indicated while Saki got in staring position. Hiroki couldn't help blushing when he saw her like that, and in a one-piece swimsuit to boot. He also noticed, for the first time, that her breasts seemed to be the same size as Ryo's and Keiko's.
"Hiroki-kun?"
"Oh! Ah... go!"
Saki dived in on Hiroki's signal, and Hiroki couldn't help admiring how she looked while swimming. She swam as though she was gliding through the water, but Hiroki knew better than to think she was some kind of mermaid. The pool was 25 meters long, and Hiroki stopped the watch when Saki touched the wall after 50.
"How'd I do?" Saki gasped when she finished
"2 minutes, 40.67 seconds." Hiroki told her as she got out of the water again
"Geez, no better than yesterday! My time's not improving at all. And we've got a big meet next week." said Saki as she sat down on the ledge with her feet in the water "Lately my legs have felt like lead. And I really hoped it wouldn't bother me."
"That what wouldn't bother you?" Hiroki asked
"My parents. They're divorcing. My dad's going to live with his 'new woman' in Hiroshima, while I'm staying here in Kamakura with my mom. I never really got along with my dad in the first place so I thought it wouldn't bother me. I thought I would be thrilled, guess I was wrong." Saki then realized that she was still talking to Hiroki "Oh! I'm sorry. I hardly even know you and I'm telling you all this."
"It's all right." Hiroki told her, suddenly feeling more relaxed, but his heart was still beating rather fast "My parents sometimes get into a disagreement now and again, but they laugh about it afterwards."
"I envy you. But enough about me. Any particular reason you came over here?" Saki asked
Hiroki flinched when Saki asked this, and he got real nervous again "Oh! I... uh... I wanted to... I wanted to...."
"You wanna swim with me?" Saki suggested. Hiroki's entire mind when blank at this. "Swimming's fun you know. But, then again, I guess a top-notch soccer player wouldn't know how to swim."
"I can too!"
"Then there should be some spare swim trunks in the boys changing room. Race you 50 mete-"
"Saki-chan!" said Hiroki, causing Saki to stop talking. This was the first time Hiroki had called her by her given name "The reason I sought you out today; I was wondering... would... I-I... (takes deep breath) I've liked you for a really long time! Please, will you go out with me?" Saki was stunned at Hiroki's sudden confession
Meanwhile at Kamakura Central Hospital;
Ryo was having her appointment with Ayaka Mine while Michiru waited in the lobby.
"You seem to be over what happened Monday night." said Ayaka after chatting with Ryo for a while
"Not completely." Ryo confessed "I'm still a little nervous around boys, particularly upperclassmen. I even threw away every letter I've got this week, sometimes without reading them. As a love letter is how I got into that situation in the first place. I even turned down a boy who tried to ask me out today. Rather harshly too."
"I understand your nervousness, and that you don't want to end up in the same situation again, but you shouldn't let it destroy your ability to trust."
"You're right. Maybe I should listen to what the boys have to say. After all, they're middle schoolers just like me."
Both of them laughed at this
"Well then," said Ayaka "I think that will conclude today's session. We'll continue on Tuesday next week. Any questions?"
"Yeah. I've been needing to ask." said Ryo "Why are you so good to us?"
"I beg your pardon."
"I mean, first Koichi, now me. Why do you go out of your way to help us?" Ryo asked
"Mostly because of the relationship I had with you father and uncle." Ayaka told her
"Papa and Uncle Suguru?"
Ayaka nodded "Before your Uncle Suguru died, I was his mental health counselor. Having the eyes of the world on him from the age of ten was pretty stressful for him, so he came to me for counseling."
"And Papa?"
"After Suguru died, Kakeru became my patient to help him deal with any trauma from the accident. Plus, he was in the same accident that killed your uncle, and required a heart transplant, which Suguru was the donor-
"Stop." Ryo interrupted "I don't need to hear any more."
"You're right. I'm sorry. I guess all that is a little much on the mind of a 12-year-old girl."
"Well then, I guess I'll get going." Ryo said grabbing her bag and making for the door
"By the way, the qualifiers for Inter-high begin on Monday, right?" Ayaka asked
"Yes. And Kei-nee has a match against France with Nadeshiko Japan tomorrow. Hiroki and I are going to watch and cheer her on."
"Tell your sister I said 'good luck'."
"I will."
"And one last thing thing."
"Yes?"
"Watch your sister closely. I saw her match against Greece and, if you ask me, she's a bit like your uncle, as well as your father."
"What the heck was she talking about?" Ryo asked herself in thought as she walked back to the lobby "Does she know something about our family's past that we don't?" Ryo found Michiru near the front desk
"How'd it go?" Michiru asked
"Very well. Shall we go?" said Ryo
Michiru walked Ryo to her house before setting off for home herself.
"I'm home!" Ryo called when she walked in the door and removed her shoes
"Welcome back." said Nana when she entered the dining room "Your timing's perfect, I was just about to put out dinner."
"How was your session with Mine-san?" Kakeru asked as Ryo sat down next to him
"Very well." Ryo then noticed that Hiroki wasn't present "Where's Hiroki?"
"Onii-chan doesn't want dinner." said Koichi
"He doesn't?"
"Odd." said Nana as she finished placing the food "He came home, ran to his room, and won't come out."
"He's usually the first to the table for meals too." said Kakeru
Ryo, being Hiroki's twin, knew something was wrong. She finished dinner first and went to the boys room to check on him.
"Hiroki?" Ryo called as she knocked on the door "Hiroki, it's me. Open up."
"Go away." Hiroki called back
"You're gonna be stubborn huh?" Ryo whispered to herself "At least take a bath later." Ryo called to Hiroki and went back to her room. Once inside, Ryo closed the door, stripped, laid down on her bed and waited.
"Did my breasts get bigger again?" Ryo thought to herself as she felt her breasts after waiting an hour. "Even Kei-nee's weren't this big when she was my age. I think." Ryo then heard the door of Hiroki's room open and close "Finally." She whispered to herself as she wrapped a towel around herself. She then heard the bathroom door open and close as well, waited a few minutes, and went in herself. "Shall I wash your back?" Ryo asked Hiroki, closing the bathroom door behind her
"Not now, Ryo." said Hiroki, but Ryo threw her towel aside, rinsed herself with the showerhead, and began scrubbing Hiroki's back "Geez, have you no decency?"
"We're twins, so it's fine." Ryo told him "And you've seen me naked plenty of times. Of course I'd be embarrassed to be naked in front of non-related boys."
"Of course you would." said Hiroki, still refusing to look at Ryo
"Your back and shoulders are so broad." said Ryo
"Is it?" Hiroki asked dully
"It is. And I think my breasts might getting bigger. I was such an early bloomer, unlike Kei-nee. Also, you've kept your hair neatly short while I'm letting mine grow down my back. Even though we're twins, it's remarkable how different we appear now. I remember, early in elementary, we looked so much alike hardly anyone could tell us apart even though we're opposite genders."
"Yeah, I remember." Hiroki said dully
"Come on, Bro. Tell Onee-chan what happened." said Ryo, hugging Hiroki around the neck
"'Onee-chan'? I was born first, Idiot! And would you back off, I can feel your boobs!"
"You can feel them huh?" Ryo said pressing her bare breasts against Hiroki's back even harder "Don't tell me that feeling your own sister's boobs are making your heart race."
"Would you cut it out. I'm not in the mood for this."
"Sheesh." said Ryo as she got off Hiroki's back "I'm just trying to cheer you up."
"Is that all?" Hiroki asked sarcastically "You don't even know what the problem is, not that there is one."
"C'mon, Hiroki. You've been acting weird since before I got home. What happened?" Hiroki didn't answer "Was it Saki-chan?"
"I plucked up my courage, thanks to you." Hiroki told her at last "She asked me to time her for two laps, then we got a good conversation going. Then, she asked me to swim with her." Hiroki's voice was beginning to crack "What's so fun about swimming anyway? Just splashing around in the water like little children. Sure she's making a career out of it, but still. Then I plucked up my courage even more, but...." There was no getting another word out of him as he suddenly started sobbing and was overcome with tears. Not that Ryo needed Hiroki to say any more, she understood perfectly; Saki had rejected him.
Hiroki was so overcome that he turned to face Ryo at last, embraced her, and cried into her bare chest. Ryo also gently cuddled her brother's head. "Hang in there." Ryo whispered to Hiroki, who was still crying his eyes out in her chest.
Ryo rinsed Hiroki and herself off, wrapped them both in towels and escorted Hiorki back to his room. Ryo helped Hiroki into his pajamas, then went to her room to get on her own. When she came back, Hiroki had fallen asleep, having cried himself to that point. Not wanting to leave Hiroki alone, she turned out the lights, got into Hiroki's bed with him, pulled the covers over them, and slept beside him throughout the night. "What was Saki-chan thinking? She turned down a really good boy." Ryo thought to herself an hour later
"Saki." Hiroki said in his sleep, tears dripping from his eyes "Saki."
"Calling her in your sleep? You really love her, don't you?" Ryo thought to herself as she gently stroked her brother's hair "Hang in there Hiroki. Maybe watching Kei-nee's match tomorrow will cheer you up."
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