Dinner (Part 1)
Tokyo Bay, Buckingham Hotel Atobe.
The winter night was cold and chilly, but the multi-functional hall on the hotel's rooftop was warm and inviting, with cheerful laughter echoing throughout the space.
People were dressed casually in their own clothes, gathered in twos and threes, some chatting in beanbag chairs, others laughing and joking around the pool table and game consoles, creating a relaxed and lively atmosphere.
After winning the Davis Cup, Atobe hosted a celebratory dinner on the rooftop of his house.
The dinner sounded quite formal, but the coaches and professors very conscientiously left after the meal, leaving the place for the younger generation. Before leaving, they also called Tezuka out, saying they had something to tell him.
Without constraints, the music and lighting at the banquet hall changed very appropriately.
At this moment, under the warm yellow light, upbeat music started playing, and many people nodded and clapped along.
In a relatively quiet corner, Kazusa leaned against a giant beanbag chair, holding a cup of tea, listening to others chat.
The room was warm, and she was wearing only a loose French-style shirt with a warm brown cashmere cardigan over it. The soft fabric and her long, flowing purple hair softened the effects of her week-long work spree.
A rare moment of relaxation.
She took a sip of her lemon soda and almost burst out laughing again, remembering the helpless look Tezuka gave her as he walked out with the coaches.
He had previously mentioned that he was mistaken for a teacher when he was in junior high school, but you really can't blame the other person for making that mistake. When he stood next to those teachers, he didn't look out of place at all!
So you can't blame her for laughing out loud just now.
It's simply because his aura is so upright and dignified that it inspires awe in people.
But even so, he...
Kazusa felt as if the warmth of his fingers still lingered on her cheek, and she unconsciously raised her hand to rub the same spot—it was a little hot.
Does he even realize that his eyes can speak?
He Zou lowered his eyes to look at the ice cubes floating in the glass, his eyebrows curving upwards.
Because of those eyes, she was happy all night long. She kept laughing, her heart felt like a glass of bubbly soda with ice, and her body felt liberated, making her want to jump around.
So she thought the upbeat music was wonderful.
"Yagyu?"
"Hmm?" Kanade calmly snapped back to reality and looked at the person who called her name—it was Kobayashi, the intern doctor from the University of Tokyo.
After Hezou helped her out of a predicament at the training hall last time, the two gradually became familiar with each other.
She sat cross-legged next to Hezai, staring at her with wide eyes.
"So, you actually disassembled your own arm to study it before?" Kobayashi asked curiously, still holding a potato chip in her hand.
Somehow, the topic has shifted from the matches of the past two days to her nonsensical match with Sanada, clearly her "feat" has once again shocked others.
He Zou: "...Hmm." Everyone has a chuunibyou (middle school syndrome) phase.
Has the casual chat devolved into a process of exposing each other's embarrassing past?
He Zou winked at his cousin, signaling him to change the subject.
Yagyu Hiroshi glanced at his sister, who had been grinning foolishly all night, adjusted his glasses, and ignored her.
Niou leaned over and vividly described the scene to everyone, concluding, "Puri~ That scene is now ranked eighth in our Rikkai University's classic horror legends. By the way, Sanada Takeken's black face when he was knocked away is also on the list, but he narrowly lost to Kanade-sama and is ranked ninth."
What kind of ridiculous ranking system is this...?
Sanada's lips twitched almost imperceptibly as he glared at Niou.
Yukimura added with a smile, "But ever since then, Rikkai University students have been exceptionally polite to Yagyu."
They were more than just polite; they were practically afraid she'd suddenly transform. That's when the nickname "Wakana-Sama" started.
He Zou glanced at him sideways. Thanks to that nonsensical competition, her campus life finally returned to peace.
Yukimura Seiichi smiled and raised his teacup to toast himself.
Marui seized the opportunity to start his吐槽 (tu cao, meaning to roast or criticize) mode. Although they were not familiar with Yagyu and Kanade, they had quite a few interactions with each other.
For example, Yagyu Hiroshi is actually just as much of a siscon as Yukimura. Because his cousin deliberately distanced herself from him because she found the tennis club troublesome, he was very distressed and even asked his club captain for help on how to ease the tension between the siblings.
As a result, he was tricked by the minister into tutoring Kirihara, which caused Yagyu Hiroshi to lose control of his emotions, further straining the relationship between the siblings.
For example, the unsolved mystery of the feud between Yagyu Kazuna and Yukimura Seiichi.
One Valentine's Day, the two were ambushed and hid in the rooftop garden to skip class. Afterward, they were punished by standing for another class – probably the only time they were ever punished during their student years. At the time, rumors circulated that the two were dating, but it turned out they weren't dating, they were fighting, and the reason remains a mystery to this day.
Harmony: Drinking Tea.gif
Yukimura: Smiling.jpg
"And that year in my second year of high school..." Marui paused, glanced quickly at Kanade, and then abruptly changed the subject, "Speaking of which, she did share a lot of the firepower with Yukimura every year."
Gakuto, perched on Oshitari's shoulder, listened with an "O" shape to the rare amusing anecdote from Rikkai University, but was also shocked by Marui's audacity in bringing up Yukimura's embarrassing past to make fun of him.
He also secretly glanced at Yukimura's expression, and to his surprise, Yukimura ignored Marui and was seriously drinking the barley tea in his hand with his eyes down.
Meanwhile, the members of Rikkai University picked up where Marui left off, continuing to reveal their own family's dark history.
The atmosphere was still lively, but perhaps it was just Yue Ren's imagination, but the liveliness seemed a bit forced.
So, what happened in my second year of high school?
Yue Ren looked at the people from Rikkai University, then at He Zou.
Shinobu looked at Kazuna, whose smile remained unchanged, sighed inwardly, pulled Gakuto over and made him sit obediently on the carpet, put a pastry on his plate, and drew his attention away from Kazuna.
Just then, Hezou looked up and their eyes met.
She wouldn't be swayed by a single sentence, but she was still grateful for their thoughtfulness. Looking into Shinobu's calm eyes, she nodded silently in thanks.
Fuji, holding a bag of wasabi-flavored potato chips, pondered: "It seems there's something that Rikkai and Hyotei know, but Seigaku doesn't?"
Atobe propped his head up with one hand, leaning against the only single sofa here (←moved over by Kabaji-kun), listening to the gossip from Rikkai University, unusually silent.
After a moment, he turned his gaze to Hezou, a fleeting, unnatural glint in his grey-blue eyes, and finally said, his voice slightly quickened, "Manchmal wei? man eben vorher nicht, was man wissen müsste."
Um?
The other person's sudden use of German startled Kanade, who realized the sentence was directed at him.
This is a line from the famous German film "Run Lola Run"—"Sometimes, people don't know what they should know beforehand."
In the movie, this line is used to subtly express apology. So, what does Atobe Keigo mean now?
After Atobe finished speaking, he turned his face away and stopped looking at her. His fingertips, which were propping up his cheek, habitually touched the beauty mark at the corner of his eye, as if the words he had just spoken had not come from his mouth.
After thinking about it briefly, He Zou understood the hidden meaning in his words.
Seeing his awkward posture, where he clearly wanted to express his apology but still held his head high, Wazou couldn't help but smile and replied with a proverb: "Man soll die Dinge nicht auf die Goldwaage legen (No need to put things on a gold scale)."
She is not a petty person.
The words weren't spoken loudly, but they were enough for Atobe to hear. A satisfied smile played on his lips as he finally turned his head, raised the wine glass in front of him to Kazusa, and said no more.
Kobayashi, who was sitting next to Kazusa, watched their interaction and whispered in Kazusa's ear, "Yagyu, what were you two talking about just now?"
He Kanade smiled and shook his head: "Atobe-kun is praising the music."
Just then, the music switched to a fast-paced hip-hop song with clear drumbeats and a strong infectious energy.
"Ah! It's this song!" Kobayashi excitedly tapped the chorus. "This song is super popular right now, and the choreography is amazing!"
Yes, the quiet Xiaolin is a Hip-Hop enthusiast.
As she spoke, she kept tapping her head to the beat of the music, showing that she had indeed been learning to dance quite a bit.
There's a reason this song became so popular: its catchy rhythm makes it irresistible to dance along.
Kikumaru Eiji, who loves to dance, couldn't resist and darted over like a nimble cat, performing several difficult moves to the music.
His cool move drew cheers and applause!
Gakuto Mukahi, who didn't get along with him, was not convinced and jumped over as well, followed by Marui...
This little corner suddenly turned into an impromptu dance floor, and more and more people joined in.
Amidst the enthusiastic and flamboyant atmosphere, even the music was turned up louder.
Kobayashi finally couldn't contain herself any longer. She jumped up, excitedly grabbed Kazusa's hand and shook it: "Yagyu, let's go over there too!"
He Zou was pulled up by her, and she found it amusing but helpless, "I can't."
Kobayashi patted her arm and said confidently, "This dance is super simple, but the moves are both cool and cute. I'll teach you!"
"Thank you, Mr. Kobayashi." As soon as she finished speaking, Kobayashi pulled her to the edge of the crowd, where quite a few people were gathered together, clamoring to learn cool moves from Kikumaru.
Ms. Kobayashi breaks down the movements for Kanade, her arms and feet moving in rhythm, making it look simple yet beautiful. What's even more beautiful are her bright eyes.
It is said that youthful spirit is a non-renewable resource... Standing here, Kanade can understand why the professor and the others left first.
He Zou watched her and tried to do it a couple of times. At first, her hands and feet couldn't keep up, but her memory and body coordination were excellent. After a few eight counts, she actually managed to learn the set of movements quite well.
Occasionally, when she can't keep up with the rhythm, she'll burst out laughing. Her movements aren't very skilled, but the slight swaying of her long hair with each movement brings a carefree and unique kind of coolness.
"Yes, yes, that's it! Yagyu, you learn so fast!" Kobayashi synchronized with her movements, and didn't forget to encourage her from time to time.
Her dancing wasn't very standard, but the other person gave her so much emotional value that she couldn't help but throw her head back and laugh heartily. The happiness she felt all night seemed to have finally found an outlet.
Amidst this joyful atmosphere, the hall door was gently pushed open.
Tezuka is back.
As soon as he opened the door, a wave of heat and noise hit him, causing a thin layer of white fog to form on his glasses. He took off his glasses and wiped them.
Once his vision cleared, his gaze habitually swept across the entire area before settling on the figure at the edge of the dance floor.
Wearing casual clothes, she looked somewhat different from before, having lost the calmness and focus she had shown in recent days.
Now, she dances freely under the lights, relaxed and at ease.
She was smiling, her movements powerful yet clumsy like a beginner's, which was somewhat...adorable.
She was trying to keep up with the suddenly accelerated pace, and when she failed, she wasn't annoyed. Instead, she would laugh freely, and strands of her unbound hair would occasionally brush against her cheek.
Tezuka stood quietly in the shadows of the entrance, lost in thought. A soft, uncontrollable emotion, already somewhat ingrained, began to spread through his heart.
Sometimes when her shadow was seen by others, he would turn to the ground beside her—where the light cast a blurry, lively shadow of her, swaying merrily to the rhythm of the music.
The shadow will not notice his focused gaze, nor will it reveal his thoughts.
But a shadow is still a shadow, and when his gaze is unobstructed, he can't help but try to capture the smile on her face.
As Hezou took a step to the side, he inadvertently caught a glimpse of that familiar, slender figure at the doorway.
Seeing that he was looking at her, the smile on her face instantly became even brighter.
Suddenly, a sly smile appeared on her lips as she raised her right hand toward him, thumb raised, index finger extended straight out, the other fingers slightly curled up... It was a shooting gesture.
The music burst forth with a powerful drumbeat, and she swiftly flicked her wrist—
"Bang!"
In the void, her joy struck his chest as if it were a tangible reality.
After performing one of the standard moves in the choreography, she continued dancing to the music.
Her rhythmic movements carried a childlike smugness she had never shown before, amplifying her current pride with unparalleled clarity.
Across the crowd and the cheerful atmosphere, Tezuka met her bright gaze. After a few seconds, he was the first to look away.
He tilted his head—
A pair of burning eyes were reflected in the glass window.
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