Broken Prince

Busted

Broken Prince

Disclaimer: If you recognize it then I don't own it.

Summary: A match in the past leaves a then ten year old Ryoma Echizen with several permanent health issues that leave many questioning rather the Prince of tennis can even continue playing. When Ryoma moves to Japan he knew hiding those injuries from Seigaku was going to be hard and that being caught was not an option. Why can't he just play tennis?

Chapter one: Busted

He knew he should have stayed home today. Nothing good ever happens on this day every year. Almost as if the day were cursed...

... Knowing his luck it probably was.

Today was the day he realized he was different from the rest of the kids in his class, the day the bullying started, the day he started worrying that his Oyaji wanted to replace him, the day Ryoga first complained about him, the first day Ryoga abandoned him because having your younger brother around wasn't "Cool", the day Ryoga walked out on their family, the first time his Oyaji actually called him Ryoga, the day his world was cut in half...

...And now it was going to be the day that the tennis world was closed off to him.

He had been kicked off the tennis teams back in America when one of his old coaches found out about his injuries (Which also had happened on this day). Ryoma just couldn't understand why everyone made such a big deal about it but being dragged to the nurse's office by Eiji-senpai surrounded by the other regulars makes his stomach start to fill with dread.

All he wanted to do was play tennis.

After his physical he wouldn't be allowed to. Why did they need one anyway? Inui-senpai would know immediately if something was wrong with any of them. When they reach the door to the office the twelve year old ties to make a break for it.

Keyword? TRIES

He doesn't make it more than a few steps away before he feels cold metal encircle his left wrist and hears a definite clicking sound.

Buchou is holding the door open, a glare on his face that tells them all to stop messing around and get inside. Oishi-senpai is looking at him worriedly from where he was standing halfway into the office. Eiji-senpai is bouncing on his heels in front of the mother hen looking at him with wide worried eyes. Momo-senpai, Kaido-senpai, and Taka-senpai are already in the office. Inui-senpai has his notebook out scribbling in it rapidly and Fuji-senpai is standing behind him with his blue eyes open and a sadistic smile on his face...

... Holding a handcuff whose twin is conveniently locked tightly around his wrist.

Ryoma's body slumps at the knowledge that escape was well beyond his grasp. Fuji-senpai tugs on his end and drags the unstruggling yet definitely NOT helping either twelve-year-old into the nurse's office before locking his end of the cuffs around one of the bedposts.

Momo-senpai and Kaido-senpai are finished with their physicals so Buchou sends them to do laps (the decision helped by the two sighting over some nonsensical thing or another) and Eiji-senpai goes next to "Show Ochibi that it wasn't that bad Nya!" After him Oishi-senpai and Taka-senpai go before Oishi-senpai leads them out of there to "Check on Momo-kun and Kaido-kun.", leaving him with Buchou, Inui-senpai, and Fuji-senpai.

As the nurse jots down notes and sets everything back up Buchou speaks for the first time since the announcement that this torture was going to be administered today.

"Is there a reason you tried to run Echizen?" His voice is emotionless and the room goes silent besides the nurse's shuffling (which seems to be taking longer than it had between the other physicals) but Ryoma flinches all the same. Diverting his eyes from his three present senpais he shakes his head negative.

"No Buchou." He responds, voice lacking the self-confident, cocky, boredom it usually had.

"There is an 85% chance that he just lied-" Inui-senpai goes to continue but is interrupted by Fuji-senpai who is now sitting down next to Ryoma on the bed,

"Saa Ryo-chan, why are you shaking?" The tensai asks and said boy curses in his mind. Unable to stop himself from trembling in fear of what he stands to lose because of his body, tennis was his life and he was actually enjoying having friends. To lose both at the same time simply because of some demon-styled jerk a few years ago wasn't something he thought he could stand.

"Echizen-kun is next." The nurse says approaching the youngest regular. Everything goes fine, to the relief of Ryoma and the surprise of the three spectators....

...Until they get to the vision test.

"I want you to cover your right eye and read from the lowest line you can from the sign over there." She instructs and slowly Ryoma does as he was told biting the inside of his bottom lip so hard the coppery taste of blood floods his mouth.

"I can't." He says softly, closing both his eyes in defeat and shame as he drops his hand into his lap. After all...

...Japanese sight signs were different from the ones he had memorized back in America.

Hello everyone!

I hope you like this so far though it could probably have been written a lot better. So what do you think? Comments... suggestions... ideas for the future in this story... requests for what you want to see in an upcoming chapter...? I don't know unless you tell me. Until next time...

...Bye!