It had been a while since Analyn had ridden a bicycle - how long had it been exactly, about 2 years or so? She could no longer recall the last time she had done it, but she was gratified to find that she still had the hang of it. Even better, it was almost as if it hadn’t even been two years since she last rode her bike, which was back at her family’s house in the Philippines, probably rusting away in a corner of the garage, or if not, being used by her brothers.
As Ana zipped down the street on the bike one of her flatmates had lent her, (she was still pretty bad at remembering their names - all she knew was that it was the pretty, rich girl and apparently, this wasn’t the only bicycle she owned.) she found that there was very little difference between riding this bike and riding her own. The way the handlebars felt in her hands was such a familiar feeling and the movement of her feet on the pedal felt liberating for some reason. The wind on her cheek as she turned a sharp corner and sped along the side of the road felt refreshing and just like the wind back at home, when she would ride her bike around the village every afternoon with her friends, laughing and talking and relishing every moment as they watched the sunset sweep past them on the distant horizon.
Unfortunately, the wind here was accompanied by a torrent of rain which Analyn could barely see through and the loud, rumbling sound of thunder. Yes, the girl was currently riding her bike through a storm. Why? The answer lay in her lumpy sling bag, which rested in the bicycle’s front basket, whose top was covered by a small tarp to keep it from getting wet. Ana herself had a large raincoat wrapped around her body, the hood up to protect the top of her head from the fat raindrops falling from the dark gray heavens, along with a pair of black rubber boots on her feet and just in case, the handle of an umbrella could be seen jutting out of the front basket.
But as stormy as the weather was, the young girl found that she really didn’t mind that much. Sure, she was probably already soaked to the bone and who knew how long this storm was going to last, but Analyn loved every moment she spent on her bike and she was actually enjoying it so far.
Until she failed to pay attention to where she was going and crashed right into a pole that she didn’t have the foresight to dodge. She let out a cry of pain as she fell down the wet pavement, her bike crashing down beside her.
She sat there in the middle of a large puddle for a moment, cursing through gritted teeth at the scratches and bruises the fall had caused her, along with the sore pain still shooting across her limbs - before her mind was suddenly filled with the thought of her sling bag and its contents. She wasn’t even aware of the girl who had just approached her, holding a hand out for her. Managing to get to her feet by herself, she stumbled towards the basket and completely tore the tarp off to peer inside.
“Oh thank God!” She breathed in relief as she grabbed the bag and quickly tucked it away under her raincoat. Turning back to the bike, she grabbed the umbrella in the basket and shook it out, holding it over her head before finally giving her full attention to the younger girl. She pursed her lips, glancing back down at her bike, before turning back to the girl and asking her, “You don’t happen to have a garage where I can put this, right?”
✿ —— Akari could only recall a few memories spent outside during the rain. She had gone out in the rain a lot when she was younger, but that eventually stopped when she grew up. Those moments were associated with laughter and jumping on puddles and catching raindrops in her mouth. Nothing like the current circumstances. Some things were the same, like water sticking her shirt to her back and the way that the rain looked like sparkles if you looked at the ground. But it was different now, because this time there were no sounds made by other children’s shoes hitting the wet ground, no teasing voices mingling with the sound of rain. Her parents wouldn’t have let her out in weather this bad. And instead of reveling at the chill she felt when the water soaked her skin and her clothes and her hair, she was shivering and she wanted nothing more than to go back inside and fix herself another cup of coffee.
She dropped her hand when she noticed that the other had already gotten up by herself. Ears that heard the voice that didn’t belong to her and brown eyes now used to the distortion the rain created were able to identify that the biker was a girl with short dark hair. Apology colored her tone. “Gomen. My house is too far to walk to in this weather and I don’t know if the people living in these parts will be able to hear us over the rain.” She had to exert effort to be audible to someone who was a foot or so away. It would be much harder, with walls absorbing sound and the doors being meters away from the gates.
“You’ll have to settle for the flower shop. I work there. I’ll lead you and help you bring your bike, if you want." There was a porch roof above the entrance, sloping down from the rest of the roof. They could bring the bike there and tie it to one of the pillars that stood on either side of the door. Placing the bike inside the shop itself just wouldn’t do. "My boss won’t mind if she finds you when she gets back. She’s really nice.” Except for that time when she and Akari’s co-worker had endlessly pleaded with her to take this shift. That wasn’t very nice. Look where it got her. But, she supposed, there were a few good things about it. Where would the stranger have gone if she hadn’t gone out of the flower shop to help? Selfishness wasn’t a flaw that she wanted to have, and being upset about the situation when there was somebody else in the equation was selfish, wasn’t it?
A glance at the bike that was sprawled on the pavement. Lips opened to release the countless questions— “Why were you riding your bike in this weather? Didn’t you watch the weather report or see the sky?” But she pressed them together just in time to stop the words from filling the damp air between them. They could be taken as rude, and she could pry for answers when there was warmth around them. For now, it would be best to focus on the situation.
“Yeah, nice to meet you too.” He returned her greeting halfheartedly, letting go of her hand as he did so. He paused, gaze lingering on the girl’s face before shrugging and asking her uncertainly, “You don’t, by any chance, have a teacher with the last name of Morinaka, do you?” Another pause before he continued, “Morinaka Suzuka. Yeah, that’s her whole name.” He held up the plastic bag he had been holding in his hand the entire time, which was filled with numerous, assorted snack items. “See, she asked me to buy these for her and deliver them to her in the staff room.”
He had to admit though that he usually didn’t go along with any of his sisters’ demands just like that, and when he did, it was almost always because they had threatened him or had promised him a reward afterwards. In this case, it was the former. She better keep her end of the deal. He thought crossly to himself.
✿ —— Most of the teachers in Sakuragaoka were fine with being called a shortened version of their last name added with the honorific -senpai, so embarrassing as it was, she didn’t know most of her teachers’ full names. Morinaka Suzuka was unfamiliar to her. “I don’t recognize her name,” she told him apologetically. “But I can lead you to the staff room if you like.” Another smile. Leather shoes made no sound as she began to make her way to the building entrance, expecting the boy to follow.
It was lunch time, so the students were taking the opportunity to rest for a while after eating and a few greetings were warranted here and there as they passed the other pupils. She had excused herself early to take care of some business in the art room, and had been about to go back to the bench where she and her friends usually ate lunch when she encountered him. But she didn’t mind helping.
“What subject does she teach, Ameyori-kun?” Maybe if she finds out, the identity of this teacher will come to her. “And how do you know her?”
「✦」▬♦ She nodded as the stranger spoke. “—Oh, alright…” she replied, feeling kinda bad for leaving the bike there after she took it and all. “(Bye, bye, bike.)” She thought to herself as the stranger tugged at her hand.
“Please be careful!” She exclaimed, noticing the stranger almost slipped a few times— it wasn’t like she could be one to talk, though, seeing as she completely trashed a bike just a few minutes ago. Once inside the building she smiled happily. “Thank you for helping me, I really appreciate it.” She exclaimed— unwrapping the scarf from her neck she set it on coat rack. “—It’s okay for me to put this here, right?” She asked softly.
"—-You’re name is really pretty, Hayasaka-san.” That was the right way to go about pronouncing someones name in Japan, right? “I— I did say that right, right? Japanese isn’t my native language… Aha..” She asked with a nervous chuckle, twiddling her thumbs. "Oh, my names Ninny.” It had just occurred to the girl that she hand’t introduced herself— extending her hand out regardless of how drenched the two girls were.
A worm smile adorned her features as her the girl asked if she’d like tea or coffee— she wasn’t that big a fan of coffee, it was too bitter for her. "—Ahh, what types of tea do you have?” She asked.
✿ —— The girl’s smile made her own wider, warmth filling her chest as she realized that she had contributed to the stranger’s happiness. Eyes flickered to glance at the dripping scarf and the puddle that was forming underneath. Indeed, it would be best if it was placed on the coat rack. "Sure.”
“Arigatou!” she replied, pleased by the compliment. She supposed it wasn’t really something to be proud of; after all, she hadn’t even decided on that name for herself. That had been her parents’ doing, so technically, they were the ones who deserved points for naming skills if someone thought her name was nice. But regardless, it was nice.
It wasn’t everyday that you met someone whose native language wasn’t Japanese. Well, in this country, at least. “Ah, really, Ninny-san?” It was all right to call her that, wasn’t it? After all, she didn’t give a last name. “Hai! You said it right. What’s your native language?” Optics surveyed the other girl’s visage, her clothing, searching for clues about her history and birth country.
Akari rarely raided the cupboard for tea; she was more of a coffee girl, so she was unaware of what types were available and had to check before answering. Some of her co-workers preferred tea, though, so she was aware that they had some. “We only have sencha.” Way to be stereotypically Japanese. And in front of somebody who didn’t have the same native language, too.
■■■ - He’s an idiot. A big stupid idiot. First and fore most of all, he called the girl before her by her first name without any permission- !? Talk about being rude!? Secondly, raising his voice and avoiding eye contact out of no where, would give him an upsetting aura, thus obviously make the girl misunderstood the whole situation. She’s apologizing repeatedly for doing absolutely nothing wrong, for heaven’s sake! And lastly, keeping this grumpy and withdrawn attitude would lead this to nowhere. This is a one in a million chances that these two teens would actually start a conversation, but now he’s thinking of running away again!? “…A- Ah. Hey, no- It’s alright.” He waved reassuringly, hoping that she knows she didn’t cause any major trouble at all…Ba-thump. But deep inside the irritation on why he is beginning to feel this sickly feelings makes the boy want to scream and run, but ceased when — [ Maybe we can watch it together. ] “…..!?” W- Wait. What? What!? He covered his face with his hand to hide the blush started to creep across his poor face. Akari Hayasaka - asked him do something — together!? S- Stop all of this already or he’ll just fall for you more, god dammit! As much as he hates to admit it, he was quite relieved, but very disappointed when she withdrawn the offer. “Yeah, we’re definitely not into that…r- right.” Such a lousy lie! He and the others are part of the film club for heaven’s sakes! Also, isn’t he out of the three boys who enjoys that genre? Pfftt- Disgusting liar that will have his pants on fire! “But If you’re free, I don’t mind going ou-" Oh god, what is he planning to do now? Mission abort! mission abort! "….O- Oh, wait. You’re part of the art club, right? Yuu asked me if our club could borrow some paintings from you guys for our next project. Well, if that’s not much trouble.”
✿ —— “Arigatou…” Genuine happiness pulled the corners of her lips up. A hand reached up to scratch her head, a sheepish gesture that undoubtedly wasn’t helping her already messy hair. “I was afraid that you were mad at me… Does that mean I can call you Mochita-kun again?”
“That’s too bad…” A thoughtful look crossed her face. She’d heard many stories from the other girls. Some of them were apparently fond of dragging their boyfriends to watch chick flicks with them. Her thoughts turned to her friends, Natsuki and Miou. She wondered if they would do that to, if they ever got together with Yuu and Haruki. Maybe it would be a double date—nah, a group date. They would feel bad about not including her and Mochita. Wait—did that mean that she would be going out with Mochita? They were the only ones left alone, after all. A blush spread across her cheeks again, but it wasn’t one of embarrassment like the last one. “Eep!” she accidentally released, hands flying up to cover her mouth. She needed to stop wondering so much about love. It gave her such weird thoughts. “Um, gomen,” I seem to be saying that a lot today, “but can you repeat what you just said?" She knew that he had been saying something while her mind was thinking of strange things. Now she had missed it because of the direction her brain was intent on wandering.
"Ah, yes! Eri-sensei usually lets me handle things like that. But I’ll ask her later, just in case. Ninety-nine percent, she’ll say yes.” she remarked, happy for anything that distracted her mind. Her hand slipped in her pocket, closing around the tiny key that led to the art room. As president, she was trusted with it and she brought it everywhere to ensure that it wouldn’t get lost. “I’m actually heading there to prepare for this afternoon’s meeting. Do you want to come with me and look at the paintings?”
Shouhei uttered a frustrated sound as he ran a hand through his messy hair. “For the last time, I do not want her to draw it!” Whoever she even is. But seeing that the other was obviously not listening to him, he sighed and decided not to push it any further. Maybe if he looked disinterested enough, she would get the message.
Before he had time to respond curtly to her comment, saying that he really did not think it was cute, she had already introduced herself, hand held out in front of her. The teen hesitated, before taking it and muttering, “Ameyori Shouhei. And no, I’m not a student here. I just came by to visit someone…”
✿ —— “Eep! Gomen!” she exclaimed, bowing a little. She’d made him uncomfortable and probably made the school look bad. Guilt made her eyes look down, facing the floor and not his face. She couldn’t bring herself to meet his eyes. Such were the effects of a troubled conscience. “I went a little out of line…”
But when he took her head she looked up, lips curved into a smile once more. He couldn’t be that mad if he introduced himself back, could he? “Nice to meet you, Ameyori-kun! Who are you visiting?” Head titled in curiosity. “Maybe I can help you get to them.”
Ba-dump. It was calm and steady at first. Ba—dump. Then he heard that carefree laugh — Ba-dump.Ba-dump.Ba-dump.Ba-dump.Ba-dump.Ba-dump.Ba-dump.Ba-dump!?!?!?!?
■■■ - “A- A- Aaaa—Uh- Akari-!?” He strutted and panic is starting to fill the poor boy’s mind. What with everybody and sneaking up on him lately!? And out of all people that has to hear his complaint, it has to be HER. Why now? Why this?! Why must the gods hate him!? ‘Do you like somebody?’ her question continued to repeat in his mind. Oh the sweet irony, for the answer of that question is right in front of him. Too bad he’s still a coward. Tsk. Tsk. Tsk. "N- No.No.No.No.No. It’s not that! I- It’s just- I just heard in class about this new drama coming out and- I dunno- I’m not really into the romantic and — Ha. Hahaha.” The discovery though that the female before him interested about love, caught his interest though. Does she like someone? Did someone confess? A love letter? A new student? Numerous questions started to fill his mind. “I…see.” que laughter and scratching the back of his head. ‘Who do you like?’ is the one he wanted to ask but- …no. that’d be just plain obvious and hopeful of him.
✿ —— Oblivious as she was at times, the boy’s surprise did not go past her. Pink embarrassment dusted her face she bowed, eyes shut tight. ”Gomen! Gomen, Mochizuki-kun!“ She wasn’t sure if he would appreciate her using his nickname after what she had just done. Better to be safe. "I didn’t mean to shock you.” Ngggh. How embarrassing. It was only common sense. People were bound to be surprised if you sneaked up behind them.
One eye opened to gauge the other’s reaction. He didn’t seem mad… Eh?! Was he avoiding her eyes? Was the red spreading across his cheeks a result of anger? She really hoped it was okay between them. His real name felt strange on her lips, like it was a word from a foreign language. She didn’t want him to hold a grudge, and she didn’t want to call him that forever. She wanted to call him Mochita-kun again.
“Oh, okay.” She smiled sheepishly at him, both eyes open again. (Her right eye was starting to hurt.) “I’m not into drama, but I think romantic movies are nice. Do you remember the name? Maybe we can watch it together.” Wait, what? She needed to rephrase that, quick! If he misunderstood, it would ruin everything! It wouldn’t do good to have him running away from her, would it? “O-On a second thought, I don’t think you and the other boys will like it, so I’ll save it for a girls only hang out.”
■■■ - “…Sheesh, this ‘love’ stage is a very troublesome thing, if you ask me. I just really hope this is some sort of a phase.”
✿ —— “Why’s that, Mochita-kun? Do you like somebody?” A clueless laugh was heard. “I’ve been wondering about love, too, but I don’t think it’s so troublesome.” In fact, she might actually… want it.
「✦」▬♦ The girl skipped happily as she walked in the rain. The weather was atrocious but for some reason she enjoyed it. She didn’t have much of anywhere to go to so she just kinda wandered around wherever she pleased. Yawing the girl continued to walk noticing something shine in the stormy weather.
Curiosity overwhelming her, she made her way to the shining object— soon noticing that it was a bike that was near the dumpster. “(Whoa! A bike!!)” An exciting smile adorning her features as she looks over the bike— contemplating taking it. “(Well… it’s in the trash.. so it should be okay…)” Biting her lip the girl took the bike, and began to ride it— she was off to a bit of a rocky start but eventually she got the hang of it.
Of course, to anybody that couldn’t see her this probably looked extremely odd. A bike moving on it’s own? People would probably think that they’re going crazy— or seeing things due to the weather. “(Riding in the rain is really difficult..)” The girl thought to herself, finding that her feet would slip off the pedals every so often— but aside from that she was enjoying her ride quite nicely.
That is until one of the bolts that helped the bike steer properly came loose and eventually fell right off the bike. The girl was oblivious to this, though, as she was enjoying herself far too much. Until suddenly she lost control, heading straight into a pole.
B A M!!
“Owie…” The girl muttered rubbing her head, her body aching quite a bit— especially for someone who didn’t feel all that much pain. “(Oh no! The bike!)” It was ruined by this point, completely totaled. “(I guess I can see why it was in the garbage now…)” She thought to herself— snapping out of her thoughts as she heard someone call out to her.
“….Huh…?” The girl said softly reaching out for the strangers hand nonetheless.
✿ —— Bent metal, some pieces torn off—the sight made her wince. It was only a pole, yet the vehicle was completely destroyed. Whoever produced it should work on making more high-quality bikes. It was like the stranger had gotten it from a dumpster or something.
The feeling of another hand wrapping around hers made her tear her gaze away from the bike, if you could still call it that. So the rider had decided to trust her, after all. “We’re going to have to leave your, uh, bike here. Get ready to make a run for it!”
She tugged at the hand and ran for the entrance, almost slipping a few times. Once she was safely under the roof, she let go of the other’s hand. Head tilted to the side in curiosity, she perused the biker. A girl who looked around her age, with long dark tresses and a scarlet scarf wrapped around her neck. Akari was aware of the rainwater on her clothes and the way her own hair hung limp and stuck to her skin. But the other girl was more drenched. Aware of the cold that clung to them both, her hand reached out to adjust the heater. A sigh of relief escaped her as warmth enveloped the room.
Shrugging her rain-soaked jacket off, she introduced herself— “My name is Hayasaka Akari." she would extend her hand for a handshake, but she didn’t want either of them to get more wet than they already were. After the jacket was hung on the coat rack, she turned to face the other. Lips curved in a friendly smile. "Tea or coffee?”
Ib glanced back down at her sketch and rubbed the back of her head. “Thank you.” she then tilted her head to try and see the scenery behind the female. “I don’t mean to rude but can you step aside?”
✿ —— “Gomen! No worries,” she hastened to assure, palms up in what she hoped looked like a reassuring motion. Akari quickly moved so that she was no longer blocking the subject of the sketch. She settled on the surface beside the girl. “Can I watch you sketch?”
The smile of the other was returned, even though there was a glimmer of surprise rushing over the females eyes at the others way thanking her. After all, you didnt meet somebody talking japanese on the streets everyday. Actually, to be honest, she hadnt met anyone talking japanese in her whole life and barely even understood a word of that language. “Youre welcome–” She finally replied, not caring that the other word could have meant something completely different. “Perhaps, you should be more careful the next time, miss.”
✿ —— The phone was warm from the hand of the girl who had returned it. Her smile took on a sheepish turn upon hearing the stranger’s words. “Gomen! That’s, er, sorry.” A finger began to twirl a dark strand of hair. “You’re right.” Indeed, there was no point in denying it. What was that going to do, anyway? It wasn’t going to stop her from being careless and absentminded. The right thing to do was to try her best from now on not to be so… distracted, maybe? She couldn’t pick a word. “You really helped me out of a tight spot, there.”
✿ —— The warmth from the half-full mug of coffee (which is honestly more like milk with coffee, and not the other way around) does well to chase the chill away from her bones, but it doesn’t do so much in the boredom department. Watching the raindrops slide down the glass window in the employees room of her workplace isn’t very entertaining, either. The tiny TV’s just plain annoying; the storm must be tampering with the signal. She can’t get a channel without the screen breaking apart in static every few minutes.
But she has already agreed to take this shift for a co-worker. Working on rainy days is positively horrid; and this one doesn’t even look rainy. It’s stormy. She doesn’t want to go back into the main part of the shop. She’ll just get splattered with water. Besides, who in their right mind would go shopping for flowers in this weather?
So she just resorts to sitting by the window, fingers flying over the screen of her phone as she sends messages of complaint to Miou and Natsuki. Most of the messages fail to send. With a sigh of resignation, her gaze flickers towards the foggy window.
The sight she sees almost makes her choke on her beverage, which she barely manages to swallow in time.Because behind the shop, a biker has just crashed into a pole. What kind of insane person would go biking in this weather?
Finally, after a few minutes of negotiation, the angel on her right shoulder wins and she dons her jacket and a pair of yellow boots at least two sizes too big. A deep breath, and she heads out. The features of the stranger are obscured by the thickening mist, but that doesn’t deter her. Introductions can be held inside, preferably in front of a heater.
“Take my hand!" Goosebumps rise everywhere, as raindrops assault her body.
Ib sat in front of the art museum once the sun began to set over the horizon. she sketched the scenery with her stencils, glancing up every now and then to see if she got a certain part just right. She stopped when a sudden shadow loomed over her. She blinked and looked up at the stranger.
✿ —— Art drew Akari in like flame did to a moth. The urge to be around it, to create it, always filled her. It only made sense that one of her favorite haunts would be museums holding various beautiful pieces of art. Curiosity brought her in front of the girl sketching outside. Her gaze flickered down at the penciled picture. “That’s a nice sketch.”
