"Eeh?! So Shishido-san's moving?!"

's ears rose at the sentence, though she knew she must not eavesdrop on other people's conversation. But the dialogue between the two persons beside her just happened to be... surprising.

    "Huh? So you didn't know? I thought Shishido always tells you things like this first before telling us, Chotarou," a redhead said with a poke on a grey-haired's shoulder. She easily recognized them as Shishido Ryou's teammate – specifically, the taller one was his doubles partner.

    "When will he be moving?"

    "Well... I think he said something like... the end of September."

Courage

    "...As my memory rests, but never forget what I lost... Wake me up when September ends...⁽¹⁾"

    "Ara, -chan, it's rare to hear you sing by yourself," 's neighbor plus childhood friend, , opened the door and asked suddenly, so sudden that almost fell down her own chair.

    ", what are you doing here?! And didn't I say to knock on my door before coming in??" she said, tapping her chest while letting out a sigh. "I thought some yakuza dropped by my place... or something."

shook her head. "Your imagination is amazing as usual. And oh, for your information, miss , I did knock your door. In fact, I knocked too hard that your mom told me to just come in."

raised an eyebrow. "Ah, is that so?"

    "Yup, that is so," patted 's head as both of them flung themselves down to the bed. "What's wrong? Is there any problems at school?" had to stare at her friend after she said that. She didn't even go to the same school as she did. just smiled. "You didn't hear me when I knocked your door. And you were singing."

    "Is it that strange for me to sing?" asked dryly. laughed insensibly and slapped her back a couple of times.

    "Believe me, it is. I mean you sing every... two years or so. And just every time you have tough problems."

's eyes widened. "For real?"

finished her laugh, then nodded deliberately. "For real! And... what were you singing just now? It was a western song wasn't it?"

's head moved up and down. "It was. Green Day's... What was it again? Wake Me After September Ends... or something like that."

    "Actually, it's Wake Me Up When September Ends. And man, -chan, that song is way out of date."

    "Doesn't matter to me, I'm not a music freak or anything. I just felt like singing it after getting the lyric and the translation from the net," she sighed. "It's just some random song I downloaded when I typed 'September' in google."

's eyes narrowed. "What is up with 'September'? Your birthday is on May isn't it? And I don't recall any of your family member's birthday being on September. Or could it be... Ah, I get it now," her lips sculpted a smile of victory. "It's got to be related to your class' Shishido Ryou-kun, isn't it?"

    "W-why should it be related to Shishido-kun?!" shrieked, and could notice a barely perceptible blush on her face. "It's not like... Well, it isn't... I mean, it – I don't think of him like that."

    "Ah, sou?" smiled mischievously. "So what is up with Shishido-kun?"

    "He's moving away!" she suddenly cried miserably. "He's moving away! Isn't that sad, ? I mean, when I haven't really talked to him and –" 's words were stopped instantaneously as soon as she realized the look on 's face, which had made her face flushed a shade of scarlet. "B-but it's not what you think – not at all – I just, well, y'know, think that... err... he just got his regular position – well, not really "just", it was some months ago but I mean – well, moving away would be a waste for his efforts all this time... Getting trust of his doubles partner, teammates, and all... And not to mention, he's going to graduate in one semester anyway..."

    "Right. You're the one that always watches him practiced, anyway," mumbled, and added a question before her friend could ask what she had said, "When will he move?"

As soon as that sentence her very ears, her eyes were filled with tears again. "The end of September!"

    "I... see. So that's where that Green Day song came from," nodded. "But wait... Isn't September like, next month?"

    "That's what I mean! Next month! Not to mention that now's already the thirty-first... only thirty more days left..."

    "I see..." she nodded again, placing her right hand under her chin.

    "Then shouldn't you plan something special for him? Like throwing a good-bye party, getting your classmates signatures for him or... confessing."

    "! I told you that's not it!!" hissed loudly (if one could actually hiss loudly), and had to duck from 's famous pillow attack by then. "Though, well... I kinda agree with the 'planning something special' part – except the one about confess – I mean, the third option," she corrected her sentence quickly before started teasing her again.

    "I see," grinned amusedly for some reason. "So you'd do it right? That third option, I mean."

sighed.

It was May one year ago.

It was the time first knew Shishido. She was randomly walking around the school, and passed by the tennis courts by coincidence. She stopped for a second when she saw her music teacher (she was told later that he was also the tennis club's coach, to her surprise) announcing something that sounded like "the chosen regulars for now". Feeling somewhat curious, she walked closer so she could hear and see better.

There were three persons chosen from her grade. Atobe Keigo, obviously, she knew he was great though she had never really seen him in person. He was all the girls in her class had talked about that time – his amazing play style, his astonishing looks, and of course, his incredible house. The second one was Oshitari Yuushi, her classmate. Well, she didn't know much about him, he was a transferred student from somewhere in Kansai, and he'd never talked much in class either. And the third one was...

narrowed her eyes. She didn't know him (to be honest, she barely knew anyone outside her class). But he was... amazing. She didn't know why, but he looked so... what was the word? Astounding? It didn't sound quite right... The feelings she felt the second she saw him was... indescribable.

They had their practice as usual after that. His techniques were even greater than she had imagined before. She realized afterwards, he was one of seven persons chosen out of two hundred tennis club members, he had to be great.

When she found out the next year that him and her were placed in the same class, she couldn't hide her joy. She hugged a random friend of hers without saying anything and just laughed (which had make her friend went, "are you okay, -chan?"). She couldn't stop saying "Omigod I can't believe it I can't believe it I can't believe it!!" to when she was at her house. She thought it would be the most wonderful year of her youth.

But things didn't go that smoothly. She rarely talked to boys before, therefore she never had enough courage to start a conversation with him, even she never greeted him a good morning though their seats were only two tables away.

She heard a shocking news some time later, that Shishido had been kicked out from the regulars. She knew the rule of the tennis club that if a regular once lost in a official match, he would be dropped out. So that meant... Shishido-kun had lost? That great Shishido... lost? But against who?

He looked down the next day. Atobe didn't say anything to him though he and Shishido were teammates and classmates. Boy, how wanted to say "don't give up! Do your best!" to him that time... But she was aware that probably it would make him even more depressed. Getting words like that from someone you never talked to before... wouldn't it sound like she was mocking him?

When she heard that he had got the regular position again three weeks later, she remembered her tears almost came out from her eyes. She knew, she watched, Shishido-kun had been training non-stop with his kouhai, Ootori Chotarou. He got hurt here and there, there were scratches all over his body. She was glad that his efforts were paid off.

Three weeks passed so quickly.

Before she knew it, there was only five days left before Shishido's moving day, yet she hadn't prepared anything for him.

She sighed. She should drop by the bathroom and wash her face – she knew she looked miserable now. And so she stood up from her seat and made her way there. She was walking at the corridor when suddenly...

    "Ouch! Watch that!"

She blinked her eyes. She bumped into someone. And that someone's voice sounded like... Shishido-kun's!

She bowed a couple of times, felt her face heated up by every second. "Aa – err – so-sorry, Shishido-kun, I wasn't looking, I –"

    "Watch where you're going," he said as he gave her a tap on her head walked away, three people tailing him behind.

    "Oi Shishido, do you know her?"

    "Well she's... my classmate."

had to sigh again. Shishido did not even know her name. She shook her head after the foolish thought. Well, she had never talked to him, how would he know her name? She quickly strolled to the bathroom and washed her face, then went back to the class.

    "Right! This Friday's Shishido's birthday isn't it?" was the first thing heard when she entered the class. She blinked her eyes. Birthday? Shishido-kun?

    "Well – yeah," the blue-capped boy answered rather lazily. "I don't even wanna care. There's so much stuff 'kaa-san told me to pack up. I think she forgot my birthday. Not like it matters."

    "It does, Shishi-chan!" an orange-haired boy – Akutagawa Jirou – exclaimed sympathetically. "It's so sad when your own mom forgets your birthday..."

    "Then," Mukahi Gakuto said with a smirk. "Let's throw a party for him, Friday after practice!"

    "Huh?" Shishido raised an eyebrow. "What the – What are you talking about? I don't need it! I've got things to do at home anyway! Aniki would kill me if I don't help him packing our stuff..."

But Jirou and Gakuto, being Jirou and Gakuto they were, once they had decided on something, they would hear nothing else but their own plans.

    "Ne Jirou, about the cake, how about the one from that store in front of the train station? They have this really great cheesecake! Shishido, you like cheese don't you?"

    "Ooh, that cheesecake, I've tried it before! It's soooo yummy!!"

    "And we can decorate the clubhouse!"

    "Ooooh! Sounds great, sounds great!!"

    "Oi, you guys..."

blinked her eyes. Birthday? Shishido-kun? Was his birthday... this month? Wait a sec, she distinctively remembered his birthday... September 29? Ah! That's it! No wonder she'd felt that she'd forgotten something... How so very stupid of her! She was too focused on Shishido's-moving-away thing that she even forgot his birthday!

But then again... what could she do for his birthday anyway? Well, she would give him a present if she could... She knew Shishido liked billiards. And dogs. She knew really well that he liked the color red. Then his birthday present would be... A red dog-necklace with billiards motive? No, that didn't sound quite right...

Something hit her. A letter! Yes, a letter! She could congratulate him a happy birthday and...tell him about many things. Why hadn't she thought of that before? She could slip it into Shishido-kun's shoe-locker, and he would read it on his way to wherever he was moving to...

That was too perfect.

    "It's done, it's done!" said satisfactorily at a piece of paper in front of her. There were written words had thought for three days. Finally today she'd give it to Shishido-kun – well, via shoe-locker.

She read the letter again, making sure she didn't make any stupid mistakes, like writing the kanji "Shishido Ryou" wrong, or scribbling something unrelated and off-topic of what she wanted to write in the first place.

She nodded again. The letter was perfect. She only had to slip it into Shishido's shoe-locker while he was having his birthday party in the clubhouse.

She would and shall never meet him again.

did not get enough sleep the next two days. Had he read her letter? How far had he gone away by now? Was he alright? What did he think about her letter?

She ended up not sleeping at all on Sunday night. Thinking that the next day, she wouldn't meet Shishido-kun... It was too much for her. But that was life, was it not?

She got up from bed and took a look at her alarm. Still 6 AM. She sauntered to her cupboard and took her uniform, then made her way to the bathroom. She cooked up an egg, toasted a bread, and drank a full glass of milk. She left a message in the dining room that she had gone to school earlier due to some extra stuff she had to do.

When she had arrived in front of her classroom, she took a look at her watch. 7:04 AM, she was one and a half hour too early. She hesitated a bit when she was about to open the door, but braved herself to do it.

    "Yo, ."

Wait. Wait wait wait wait wait wait.

She blinked her eyes. She pinched her cheek. Ouch! That hurt. She was not dreaming?

    "Yo, ," the blue-capped boy greeted one more time, waving his right hand a bit and stood up from his seat. couldn't believe her eyes and ears.

    "Shishido... kun?"

    "Yeah, that's... me," he said, a bit awkwardly, looking aside while scratching his head.

    "B-bu-bu-but wh-why are you here?" Everything in 's head went into circles. Did Shishido have a twin brother? Wait – that was way impossible.

    "Oi oi, isn't this my class?" he answered with a frown while adjusting his cap.

    "B-but..." she still blinked her eyes. "Weren't you going to move?"

    "I did, my house is now farther from the train station."

There was a long silence after that.

finally broke it, "Wait – does that mean that – that – that you only moved to a new house but not to another school?"

    "HUH? Who the heck said I was moving to another school?!"

...

Wait.

This was too much. So did it mean that she was wrong all this time? That when that redhead teammate of his – Mukahi Gakuto – said that Shishido-kun was going to move... It did not mean that was moving to another school? He was still going to be in Hyoutei? Then, she was depressed for a month... over nothing?!

    "Anyway," Sishido spoke up, looking aside uneasily with a slight blush on his face. "I've read your letter."

    "Eh?" 's face reddened. "Ah, bu-but... How did you know it was from me?"

    "You're the only one I've never talked in class. And I..." he had to look down to hide his blush. "I just have the feeling that you were the one who wrote it."

What should she do now? What should she do now?! She had never thought that Shishido would ever come back, she had never imagined how embarrassing it would be when Shishido meet her again after he had read that letter...

    "Ano saa," he called up abruptly, making 's face even redder. "I – about the thing you wrote in the letter... W-well, I haven't known much about you but I've watched you for some time now and I –" he stopped, then looked up and gazed directly to 's eyes. "If it's possible... Like you said... Let's start from being friends."

felt tears nearly came out from her eyes. Everything was like a dream to her.

The next thing she knew, she already had him in her embrace.

period.
akira @ 20061001

note:
(1) Lyrics were taken from Green Day's Wake Me Up When September Ends. Much thanks to Dhira for the song and Wahyu for the lyrics! ^^