Matchmaker: Yukimura Seiichi (Chapter 6)

Chapter Six: What I Love

Marco had actually thought today will be a good day. He had managed to clear Akaya’s schedules, planned the training menus with the green eyed player’s coach, confirmed his client entry to the last Grand Slam event—and other tennis tournaments— and checked Akaya’s sponsors for his next matches. He smiled as he inhaled the deep aroma of coffee and settled in to his chair to enjoy the view of Paris.

Those weeks after Akaya’s injury was definitely tiring him.

Too bad Akaya isn’t here, he thought and sipped his coffee slowly. The two of them had arrived in France early to practice for the France Open and now, thanks to a few robbers, had made Marco canceled Akaya’s involvement. The media and fans had pressed the issue but Marco ignored them and announced that Kirihara Akaya, the ambitious player who is currently World No.3, was taking a break.

Marco gazed at the sceneries and closed his eyes, putting the memories of his fatigue weeks behind his mind. He thought that maybe, just maybe, he should take a holiday too…

Unfortunately, today was not his good day. His cellphone rang and Marco absently took it. He decided to ignore the call but glancing at the name on the LCD, he sighed.

“Hello?”

*

Akaya grinned at the receiver, hoping that Marco can detect his eagerness. “Oh, c’mon Marco,” Akaya said. “It’s just a commercial.”

“I thought you didn’t want to do any,” came Marco’s stern reply. Akaya always think he was rather uptight.

His fingers idly tapped the table when Marco continued, “You said you wanted to be the number one—I practically had to beg you to agree for those sponsors. And now you’re telling me you wanted to do a commercial?!” The phone went silent for a moment. “It’s not even tennis related!” his manager added heatedly.

“Well, I will be number one,” Akaya answered simply and stopped tapping the table when Ayaka shot him a glare for disturbing her daughter’s nap. “It’s my friend, and I was thinking of helping” he offered and heard Marco scoffed.

“A friend,” he repeated.

“Yeah, Marco, friend,” Akaya replied.

“Akaya,” sighed Marco. “I thought I told you to rest.”

“I’m feeling relax,” Akaya stated and the receiver let out angry grunts. Akaya stared at it and blinked when he heard a loud clunck at the other line. It sound like someone placed a cup on a table rather angrily. “Um, Marco?”

“You’re impossible,” his manager said. Akaya caught hearing sounds of movements. Was that a bag being thrown on the floor? The receiver clicked and Marco lazily added, “I’ll get down there. We’ll talk about this later.”

“Expect me sometime this week,” Marco pointed out.

“Sure, Marco,” Akaya grinned in satisfaction. He nodded at Marco’s remarks as he replied them and placed the phone down on the table. He found Ayaka regarding him closely.

“You’re going to pay for that call,” his sister declared.

Akaya shrugged and headed towards the living room and watched his niece taking baby steps towards him. He squatted down and grinned. “Aoko,” he cooed as he expanded his arms, ready to catch the small girl. “Come to Akaya-niisan!!!”

“Don’t you lie to my daughter, Akaya,” Ayaka said, looking straight at him from her position at the love seat beside the television. “You’re ojisan, remember?”

Akaya showed his tongue. Aoko had reached Akaya and she touched his leg to steady herself. Akaya hugged her and Aoko giggled at her uncle.

He picked her up and snuggled to her cheek. The girl laughed at the contact patted his cheeks. “Ka-ya! Ka-ya!,” she mumbled and Akaya smiled. He touched her nose and said, “Say Akaya-niisan is cool.”

“Ka-ko! Nii-san!” blurted Aoko and Akaya laughed. “No, it’s kakkoi, Aoko-chan! Mou ichido,” he said and Aoko tried, her voice mixed with laughter as Akaya tickled her neck.

Ayaka studied her brother and after a few minutes, Akaya noticed. He raised his eyebrow at her. “You’re not admiring my good looks are you? Because that would be gross.”

Ayaka suppressed her desire to throw him a couch pillow. “No, definitely not. That’s disgusting. You can’t even match up with Kenji, Akaya! I was thinking that maybe,” she trailed off and watched as Akaya lifted her daughter up and down. Akaya would make a good babysitter, an idea in her head said.

He sat down then and took a few toys he had bought that laid scattered around the room. Ayaka had given up cleaning it. Obviously, her work was in vain if her brother and daughter decided to play with it more than three times a day.

She suddenly recalled her daughter’s room situation on Akaya’s first day in Japan and decided that the thought of Akaya babysitting Aoko was probably like wishing for a tornado to hit her home. No way in heavens, she’ll let him baby-sit her girl.

Akaya glanced at her from admist his playtime with Aoko. “What were you saying earlier?” he asked and Ayaka shook her head immediately.

*

Satsuki headed to Atobe’s office first when she came to work the next day. The older man was already seated on his desk, looking through a few files. He didn’t look up when she entered and Satsuki smiled pleasantly at him.

“Good morning, Atobe-san,” she began and watched as he spared her a glance. “I’ve got the model,” she continued. “He’s a sportsman you know,” she smiled proudly.

Atobe cocked his head as he placed his pen down. “It better not be Echizen,” he replied.

Satsuki smiled wider, remembering the cat-eyed man that had gave Atobe slight difficulty in the past. “No, it’s not him.” Satsuki paused and handed a file to her superior. “It’s Kirihara, and these are the rough drafts of how the CM will be,” she explained and Atobe took the file and studied the pages inside it.

He smirked and put the file down. “Well, for the one complaining at first, you sure come up with things quick, Yukimura,” he commented and rested his chin in his palm. “This looks fine,” he said and turned his attention back to his previous work. “Kirihara agreed to it?” he inquired, without looking up from his documents.

She nodded, “Yes, we will hold a meeting with him and his manager. It will be within this week, Atobe-san.”

“Then,” Atobe said, “I shouldn’t keep you here so much longer when you have works to do. I expect reports for every updates, Yukimura.”

Satsuki smiled and gave another nod before exiting Atobe’s office. Her testimonial looks good from here…

*

Yukimura returned from Venice on Thursday. On Friday evening, Akaya met him along with his wife. He gave them a smile as Yukimura waved at him, inclining him to join his table.

The ex-Rikkai students were having an alumni meeting that evening and Akaya spotted his seniors, already seated comfortably at the same table. The chair beside Niou was empty and Akaya sat beside him. They held the reunion at a yakiniku restaurant and Akaya grinned, as he smelt the fragrance of savory flavors in the air.

“You’re late, Akaya,” Marui said and popped a stick of bubblegum into his mouth. He blew a bubble as Jackal turned to Akaya. He was sitting beside Yanagi who sat in front of Niou. “We already ordered the drinks. Is tea okay?”

Akaya glanced at Sanada. The older man was always fond of tea and he would make sure everyone shared the same likings even back in school days. Akaya nodded, wondering if Sanada still give people physical punishment in present days.

Yuna smiled at Akaya, “Well, you’re lucky that the food hasn’t arrived yet, Akaya-kun. Marui-kun said he was starving earlier.” Akaya eyed his redheaded senior smugly. “We better place another order for the meat; Marui-senpai’s stomach is bottomless.”

“Speak for yourself, brat! You can eat food in the speed of light!”
“Actually, he devours food in the approximately, two minutes and fifteen seconds,” corrected Yanagi as he thanked the waiter that handed them their teas. Niou grinned at Yanagi. “Ah, always a Master, will forever be a Master, eh?”

“I accepted that compliment, Masaharu,” Yanagi said, smiling lightly at his friend. Another waiter had arrived and she placed three plates of meat on the table. She later returned and gave them two sauces for each. They began to grill the meat and Yukimura smiled when a few of his school friends congratulated him.

“So Akaya,” Jackal started, “What have you been up to?” Akaya swallowed his meal and grinned, “What people in holidays do, relaxing.”

Sanada scoffed, “You should train. Tarundoru.”

“Maa maa Sanada,” said Jackal, “he’s still injured. He shouldn’t push himself.” He looked at Akaya.

Akaya smiled sheepishly, “Actually, I agreed to do a commercial here soon,”

Niou raised an eyebrow, “A CM eh?” he asked. Akaya nodded, “Satsuki is in charge of a new product of her company, and she asked if I would like to do it,” he explained.

Yukimura nodded his head, “Ah I heard. It’ll be good to be working with you again Akaya,” he smiled. Akaya blinked his eyes in surprised, and wondered confusedly.

“He owns an advertisement company. He’d probably be doing the CM with you and Satsuki,” Yanagi explained.

“Speaking of which, where is Suppi?” Niou asked. Yukimura smiled, “She’s not coming tonight,” he said. Yuna nodded her head, “We asked her to come, but she wanted to finish the preparation for the meeting with your manager,” she said looking at Akaya.

Akaya looked at his tea, “She’s as hardworking as ever huh,”

“Just like you,” Yagyuu said, smiling softly. Akaya nodded his head, still looking at the content in his teacup.

“Better don’t mess it up again with her,” Marui said, as he blew a bubblegum. Akaya glanced at his senior. “She let you accomplish your dream, now let her,”

Akaya narrowed his eyes. Were the seniors actually thinking that he would couple up again with Satsuki? It had been a long time. 5 years since they broke up.

Their feelings were mutual now.

“I won’t,” Akaya said, nodding his head. “I have to reach no.1 remember?”

*

“Well?” Akaya asked as he got into the car with his manager.

Marco looked at him, gesturing their driver to start moving at the same time, “Well what?”

“You haven’t spoken a word since the meeting ended,” Akaya said. Marco pushed his glasses up his nose and smirked. “I’m just still surprised that you’d do this CM,”

The young tennis player shrugged. “It’d be fun,”

His manager, a man of his late thirties, looked at him. Marco is Japanese as well. His real name was Sato Maruko, but being raised oversea, he was accustomed to be called Marco instead.

“I thought only tennis was fun,” Marco said. Akaya glanced at him. “Of course. I just thought I want to do something while I’m taking a break. It gets boring you know.”

“Besides,” Akaya continued, looking at the view out the window. He could see tall buildings surrounding him with huge billboards and LCD screens displaying many advertisements.

“It’ll be the first one I’d do here,”

Marco looked at him weirdly, “You’re acting suspicious,” he concluded. “Two months ago, you were determined that this would be your year to conquer the top, and now, here you are, feeling proud of your soon, first national CM,”

“Did your sister hit you in the head or pushed you down the stairs again?” Marco asked, his voice stern and his eyebrows furrowed.

Akaya snorted, “I’m fine,” he grinned. “I thought, it’d give me more reasons to hang out with my old friends,” he looked at his manager.

“You know that feeling? That for one moment you left them, the next you returned, you missed a lot of things that happened during your absence. I want to know about those things.”

It was actually true. For one thing, he didn’t know that Yukimura owned his own advertisement company. He didn’t know Sanada had a high position in the police force. He didn’t know Yagyuu’s sister is dating Niou’s brother. He didn’t know that Jackal had only returned from Brazil two years ago. He didn’t know Yanagi had published his own book. He didn’t know Marui was dating the part time waiter at the bakery he and the red head would visit together during their school time.

And he didn’t even know that Satsuki had study in New Zealand and had finished her masters there as well.

Marco looked away. He knew what Akaya meant by the missing gap, but he would always ignore it when felt it. He would focus more on his dreams and maybe Akaya should have too.

Two weeks resting in Japan has made the player forget what he had been working hard for the last four years.

“I don’t have a problem with you doing the CM,” Marco said. Akaya looked at him and raised an eyebrow. “But?” he asked.

“As long as you don’t astray from what your goal is, then its fine with me,”

Akaya smirked, “I won’t forget to become number one.” Marco nodded, “It is lonely if you are the only one on the top,”

The black haired looked at him, “But I got you along with me,” he grinned.

Marco nodded his head. Then he narrowed his brown eyes, “And who would be standing beside you?”

Akaya looked at him curious. “Huh?”

“That woman, Yukimura Satsuki, she is your friend am I right?” he asked. Akaya nodded. “She’s a fine woman. Beautiful, intelligent, cautious, organized, disciplined and perfectionist.” Marco desribed, “Everything that you’re not.”

“Oi,” Akaya narrowed his eyes. “I know about your past with her,” Marco continued and Akaya kept quiet. “If this is one of your ways to try and reconcile with her, then I would suggest you decline the offer,”

“There is nothing wrong with having relationships,” Marco added. “I didn’t said anything when you went for dinners with those ladies, including Lana, but—”

“Think of it only after I’ve become number one,” Akaya continued. Marco nodded his head.

“Always get your head in the game, sport, always.” Marco told him.

Akaya nodded his head and looked at the view outside of the window again. In two days he heard of the people around him telling him not to think of having a relationship, especially with Satsuki.

Its not like he planned for it. He didn’t even think about it until his seniors mentioned it last night. And even when they did, he doesn’t even think of doing it.

They were together when they were high school students. Everyone knows how long that puppy love relationship last.

Beside, Marco was correct. His goal is the top. To become number one. Nothing else should disturb him, not even while he’s resting.

The title is far more important than any relationship right now. It’s tennis that he loves the most after all.

TBC

~to be continued after mid semester exams ends. wish me luck! -ra1~