teach me
the charm
that will
set love
in motion
[indie hayasaka akari]
#bxdhead #akarih
the charm
that will
set love
in motion
[indie hayasaka akari]
#bxdhead #akarih
semi-hiatus
■■■ - It all happened so fast. The poor unlucky boy had no time to react, just a second to realize that he was heading to the road of deep excoriating pain, if he didn’t space out to hear his classmates’ warning or dodge the killer ball in time. Unfortunately, he was unable to do either. The loud crack the ball made upon hitting his head was deafening loud, that or his crying yelp of pain, made everyone on the field and in the stands pulled in a collective gasp. Mochita went down immediately, collapsing on the spot with tears and blood on his face, close to passing out. Now, there are currently two emotions filling in right to the poor unlucky boy: pain and embarrassment. But pain takes the back seat. No matter how much pain you’re in, if people around you start smiling and laughing, you just can’t help but to force a w- weak fake laugh. To make this situation worse, his two friends even made took wonderful opportunity as a game and carried him to the clinic like a child. He swore that he could hear the girls laugh from the distance. Guh. Talk about embarrassing.
‘Just lie down and rest till the headache is gone.’ is what the nurse instructed him as she treated his wounds and bruises and left. It wasn’t major, just a few bandages around his face and taking some painkillers is enough reduce the pain. As much as he loved sleeping surrounding with pure silence, he tossed and turned on the bed numerous times, but sadly sleep never seemed to arrive His mind is filling up with the image of a certain classmate of his — Hayasaka Akari is her name, was it? Well, that what Natsuki told him. God, why is she in his mind all of a sudden lately? The two barely even talked in the beginning. Oh, the irony that that woman was the culprit who brought him to this painful situation, actually. This is truly strange. Why this happening all of a sudden? She’s honestly the main reason why he was spaced out in the field, but surprisingly, he didn’t feel any rage or upset towards the female — he honestly doesn’t think he could. Could you blame him? Have you seen that bright smile? Her warm laugh…her sweet voice — W- Wait!? What!?
The day seemed to pass by quicker than usual, and soon every student was either gone or playing back on the field by the time the after-school bell rung long ago. Light from the setting sun trickled through the windows of the clinic, setting an orange hue to the broad, empty room. Giving a long defeated sigh, the boy slowly sat up and got out of bed, scratching the back of his head. Perhaps he could just rest at home, that sounds like a good plan. At least the headache lessened, that’s a good start right? Before he could even reach out for the door handle, the door opened before him, only presenting a familiar long haired classmate from the other side.“A- Ah- Uh- H- Hey. It’s you.” Oh, how much he slapped himself mentally on the head for stuttering. What’s with this awkwardness all of a sudden!? What is she doing here anyway? “The nurse already left hours ago.” he spoke, trying to avoid any eye contact with the face. “…Y- You’re…not hurt are you?" Embarrassing.
✿ —— Ah. He knew who she was. Somehow, his recognition made her feel like a complete and utter criminal. The tiny hope she had been holding that he hadn’t seen the face of his assailant flew away. Nerves crackled with guilt and embarrassment and anxiety and plain old shyness.
So taken aback was she about his unexpected concern that she stopped for a moment, blinking and unsure what to say. “Eh—are you sure you should be asking me that? I’m the one who injured you…” said she as she found that her mouth was finally working again. Why was he being so nice? It was making her feel worse. Then again, it was also a relief. If he yelled at her, she would probably burst into tears, which would not be good at all.
She just knew that she was only going to embarrass herself and look stupid in front of him. Her family knew, and so did Natsuki and Miou. She herself knew it most of all. Guilt, to put it plainly, always messed her up. Having to apologize for serious things made her feel very flustered, which really didn’t help situations. Her crime this time definitely counted as a serious thing.
Lifting her gaze from the floor to meet his, she declared her reason for dropping by, “I’m not looking for her. I’m looking for you.” A pause, then, “I came here to apologize.” Well, duh. What other explanation could there be for her presence? Certainly, she hadn’t made her way here to hit him again! Stupid Akari. “I’m not very good at sports… I should have been more careful. Or maybe I shouldn’t have played at all. If I hadn’t, you wouldn’t have gotten hurt.
“I know that apologizing won’t make your head hurt less, but it’s only proper for me to say sorry. Because of me, you got hurt, and uh…” She pointed at the bandages that the nurse had fixed around his face. “Wow, um, that looks painful. I caused that.” You think he doesn’t know that? “Aha, I’m dragging this out, aren’t I?” A weak laugh. A hand reached up to scratch her head—a gesture she relied on whenever she felt nervous. There was a whole set of them, really, but she found herself doing this one most of all.
“Gomen!” she blurted out suddenly, followed by a mumbled “I should have started with that…” Fiddling with her fingers, she forced herself to continue despite the burning humiliation rushing through her veins. “I was wondering if there’s a way I can make it up to you. I couldn’t really think of anything else, so, um, if you don’t want something else maybe I can treat you to that new ramen place? It’s near our houses, right?” Natsuki told her about the new joint that morning, along with some complaints about how she had to pay for Yuu’s meal, too, because she had somehow turned her confession to a rehearsal. (Akari didn’t even want to know how that happened.) “And I can make you a bento for tomorrow…” Normally she didn’t brag about her cooking skills, but she knew that her food was good enough. “I know it’s not much, but I don’t really know what to do…”
sᴏᴍᴇᴏɴᴇ's ɪɴ ᴛʀᴏᴜʙʟᴇ!
ᴘʀᴀʏ ᴛᴇʟʟ, ᴍᴏᴄʜɪᴛᴀ-ᴋᴜɴ—
ᴡɪʟʟ ʏᴏᴜ ᴇᴠᴇʀ ғᴏʀɢɪᴠᴇ ᴍᴇ?
Sneakers pounded across the pavement, strands of purplish black trailing behind in fluid succession. Not a soul occupied the hallway; indeed, a glance at the clock and the dusk creeping across the sky warned that night was just by the corner. Few dared to stay in school at this time, usually to play sports with their peers. Akari had been one of them just a mere minute ago, but then it happened, and after the ice rooting her to the ground finally melted she found herself sprinting towards the entrance.
No sign of the boys—but it was a no-brainer. Where else were you supposed to head if a clumsy girl accidentally hit you with a tennis ball? Guilt and anger warred inside her; it was all her fault! Why did she have to be so useless at sports or anything that demanded physical exertion? If only she had had better aim, then this wouldn’t have happened! Next summer would be spent for self-improvement, and she would enter university a different person. One who wouldn’t hit someone with a tennis ball by accident.
Familiarity met the victim’s name; he was Mochizuki Souta, more commonly known as Mochita. Dark-haired boy, film club member, same class as hers and childhood friends with her best friend Natsuki. Always found with a striped scarf wrapped around his neck. Fingers touched the hollow of her throat. Her own scarf was supposed to be resting on her shoulders as well, but in her haste she had left it back in the courtyard. Alas, there was no time to retrieve it. The door to the clinic stood in front of her, bright light leaking out of the tiny opening. Trembling hands pushed it back, and she slid partway through.
✿ —— “Mochizuka-kun?” The voice that came out of her lips was seconded only by a whisper.
