Whew, I'm tired but here's the next chapter. haha, douzo!
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"I mean, like I have feelings for NyanNyan, you like Acchan.""No..." I whisper it as if it's the worst thing in the world.
How can she say that? I stagger backwards. I want to curl into a ball and hide, get away from here. Away from Yuko who continues filling my ears with things I don't want to hear.
"Your face says yes. When I see you two together, you look like you're the happiest person in the world. Your eyes are always sparkling around her, and you smile at just the mention of her name—even if she's not mentioned, you're still smiling unconsciously over her."
Nooooo. I groan inwardly in frustration. She sees me. I feel like I've been stripped away of any privacy, my fears breaking through. I thought I'd be able to hide it longer. I thought if I had fun and acted normal, everything would be all right. I tried to keep my thoughts to myself, and lock them from my mind. I tried to forget, make the pain go away. Hide my anxiety. There were hardly ever hints. No one would ever know. Not even me. That's how hard I tried to bury it.
Though, now I find that even if it's out of mind, actions will still reflect.
To make things clear, freaking yes, I like her. I have these strange feelings for her that only cause pain. Love does that, right? I never said I didn't like her. She's really pretty, she's amazing, absolutely wonderful, and anyone would be lucky to have her.
But me? No, we can only be friends. I don't want her to find out, because I value our friendship. I don't want to lose her. So when I realized it, I decided to lock my feelings for her away. Even if the point was to hide it from Acchan, I also didn't want anyone else to know too.
"Come on, Takamina. What's with your face? You look as if your soul just left you."
Oh it has. Anyone finding out was the last thing I ever thought could happen.
I don't say a word to Yuko at all. I just stare into empty space.
"Oi. Earth to Takamina. If you're worried about rejection, then you're perfectly fine. I accept you, and you know I like NyanNyan. We're all the same here and I'm sure Acchan feels the same way too."
I look at her. "That's impossible."
"Which is why I'm going to help you. So she will."
The idea of Yuko helping me doesn't sound appealing.
"Don't."
"Just try! You don't have to confess or tell her anything! Hear me out." She pleads.
"...You have 15 seconds to explain."
"Oh! Well, all you have to do is make her fall in love with you. You know, do all that cheesy romantic stuff. I'm sure you'll get her!"
That was about 10 seconds.
I roll my eyes. "Yuko, I—"
"I know you said 15, but I'm not finished. If you don't want to do that, you should at least ask her out to the upcoming dance."
"What dance?"
"Didn't I tell you? It's part of the festival. After the tournament, there'll be a huge formal dance. You can go with anyone."
I only heard about the tournament and she tells me this now?
"Think about it. Please?"
Acchan’s image suddenly appears in my head. I see her smile, that bright seemingly innocent one she always gives me. Also her laugh, which never fails to makes my day. I see her hardworking, giving it her best at whatever she needs to do, no matter how hard or tired she is.
"...I'll see."
"I'm not hearing a 'no' so I'll take it as a yes!"
"I said 'I'll see,' I never said 'yes' either."
She doesn't listen to me though.
*sigh*
"Hey... can you leave me up here to myself? I need time for a while."
Understanding, she teleports out to who knows where. I wish I could do that. I could escape here easier.
I walk beside the railing, sliding my hand across the bar. I look up at the clouds, not seeing the shapes go by like I used to. They're all disfigured. Just like me. I don't know what I'm doing anymore. I'm floating through time, just a passing phase soon to cease existing, as life all does.
I try to think about what Yuko said. I have to make her fall in love with me? I don't know if I can. Why would she like me? What's to like? I don't mind though this sad feeling of mine, because if she's happy, I'm happy too. Cliché I know, but it’s how I feel.
It was a miracle just meeting her. I'm thankful enough that we see each other in class. Though, I do wish we could spend more time together when we're free at least.
Ugh. I feel so conflicted! I go bang my head against the rooftop door several times. The hinges break, the door falling with a loud thud. Yay~ something else to worry about. I need to work on controlling my strength more. I close my eyes to calm down and relax a bit.
Oh! My eyes open, I just realized something. I almost forgot about it.
I crack a smile, my lips tugging up.
I have an idea.
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Acchan's POV
I keep glancing behind me towards an empty desk.
No Takamina.
I slouch in my desk, pouting. Takamina's still not back since she left with Yuko. I don't feel like listening to sensei anymore.
I doodle in my notebook, drawing little figures. One of them is a little drawing of Takamina, a cute ribbon on her head. I smile. She's so cute. Next, I draw Yuko and NyanNyan. I've taken a liking to Kojima-san's new nickname. Chibi Yuko is hiding behind a pole, grinning at the unsuspecting chibi NyanNyan. I chuckle softly at my drawings. Hm... My Takamina chibi looks lonely. I draw a chibi of myself standing beside her. I erase a bit and redraw it to where we're holding hands. Much better.
The bell rings, school is over. I sigh, packing up my things. I'm about to walk out when Yuko appears in front of me.
"Hey Acchan! Have you seen Takamina? She wasn't on the roof where I last saw her."
I shake my head. "She hasn't been back to class. I thought you were with her the whole time."
"Err... I was, but then I left her for a bit and when I came back, she was gone. The door up there was broken too."
"Did something happen?? Where is she?"
"I don't know, that's why I was asking you. Let's look for her."
We look through the gym, the practice halls, the cafeteria, and dorms. Still can't find her. Where did she go?
"Ah! Last time, she said she was at the library. She's probably in there again."
We start heading to the library. As we're walking through the halls, we see the midget we're looking for, exit through the library doors.
"Takamina! This is where you went after I left? Why didn't you go back to class?"
"Ah hehehe, I was just checking out something." She awkwardly smiles.
"Oh. Did you find what you looking for?"
"Hm... Yes, I did." Her face gives off a new look that I've never seen. She looks certain, like she's accomplished something.
"Oh yeah, I almost forgot. Why was the door broken when I found it?"
Blush appears across her cheeks, she looks embarrassed.
"Oh, um, that was nothing. I accidentally...broke it."
What was she doing up there to do that? I thought she had a handle on her strength.
"Niceee ok, let's go to the dorms now! I'm tired! I want to see NyanNyan tomorrow as soon as possible!"
She says that, but she hangs around, walking with us instead of just teleporting ahead to their room.
I like this. When we all can just walk together. Not really saying anything, but enjoying each other's company. It's moments like this that are special and so there's a need to cherish them more. Where you don't have to do activities, or go out somewhere to have fun or make memories. I like to just remember each moment spent with my friends. Even not doing anything, there's a peace I can get, being content with just having them around beside me.
I smile, looking at them. I feel they'll always be here for me. That there'll also be many good times together ahead.
~~~~~~2 weeks pass~~~~~~~
Still Acchan's POV
Arghhhhhh! What is she doing? Where is she always going??
These pass couple weeks, Takamina hasn't been showing up at lunch or attending class very often. Yuko seemed very pissed about Takamina's absences, she was mumbling something earlier about "love" and considerations and something about a plan. I also heard from Yuko that she doesn't show up at the dorm until right after dinner. And her excuse is that she's just been walking around.
I hit my head to my desk. Whyyyyyyyyy? I don't want to be here if Takamina isn't here. Well, at least I can always talk to Yui or NyanNyan. It's not the same though.
I'm lucky if I can see her at least once a day, if not at all. She's always gone.
*SIGH*
The door slides open suddenly really fast, revealing Takamina who looks really tired and out of breath.
Everyone looks at her, though she ignores them and moves to her seat.
Class continues, and I glance at Takamina who appears to be writing in her notebook. She's trying to catch up, huh?
I turn my attention back to the board, smiling. I'm happy she's back.
A few minutes later, a paper crane lands on my desk. I look back to see who tossed it here and when I look at Takamina, she whips her head away from me trying to look innocent.
She's such a bad actor.
I open the crane, to find a small note written on it.
-If you're not busy after school, would like to come with me somewhere? I want to show you something.
-Takamina <3My face lit up, a grin appearing. I feel so excited and I really like how Takamina added a heart there. Haha, it's cute. Where are we going though? We get to spend time together! Oh! This is like a date! Omg.
I turn towards her smiling, nodding yes. She looks pleased with my answer, grinning happily. She mouths 'Yosh!' while making a motion with her arm. I smile again at her cute action.
I patiently wait for school to end, looking forward to our 'date.'
When school finally ends, Takamina comes over and takes my hand.
"Let's go!" She looks really excited and drags me out of the classroom.
We walk through familiar hallways, wait. Are we going where I think we're going..? She stops in front of the library doors, holding them open for me like a gentleman. So sweet, but this is the library. Really? I've been here before though, what does she want to show me? A new book? Ah, I shouldn't have gotten my hopes up.
With a bitter smile, I follow her through the rows of books, heading deeper into the library. We reach a table in the back. Don't tell me she wanted me to help her study or something.
"Wait here."
She walks away from me up to a bookcase against the wall. I watch shocked, as she starts pushing it away.
"What are you doing?! We're gonna get in trouble! You don't just move school property!"
She ignores me and continues to move it, showing me a secret passageway behind it. No way.
"Shhhhh." She takes my hand again and leads me inside. We walk through the passage, I can faintly see a door at the end. I watch as Takamina puts her hand on what looks like a dial, and turns it to a blue color. She turns to me, her eyes sparkling with excitement.
She opens the door, revealing darkness. She nudges me forward, encouraging me to go in. It doesn't look like I have a choice now. I carefully walk through, Takamina's hand assuring me it's safe. It's cold here and feels closed in, like we're underground. Pulling out a flashlight that she really should've pulled out before, she shines it around to guide us. I look around and I was right. We are underground, the walls dirt and brown, it's hollowed and formed like a tunnel. We soon reach a ladder heading up.
"After you."
I slowly climb up the ladder, Takamina following. A hatch is at the top. I take the handle opening it, and pull myself up through it.
Its night, but the sky is bright. I stand, staring unbelievingly at my surroundings. The hatch lead to a grassy field. I see purple trees and orange bushes. There are multiple flowers across the field, their petals all green and brown with their stems shown in a variety of colors. What gets me though is the breathtaking view of the sky. It's a mix of dark blue and purple, with an orange highlight streaking across the expanse. The sky is covered by countless bright stars, and if I'm not wrong, a comet is just passing by. A gray-blue planet is clearly seen, very close to here. It shadows another planet that looks pink with a dark red outline. I see a broken yellow moon orbiting it, bits of it floating in space. It's so unreal. What is this place? I take a step forward in wonderment, but I end up stepping up in the air. I float down though, landing back on the ground. There's not much gravity here! I giggle and try jumping, my figure leaping up high, then slowly falling back down.
I look back to see Takamina watching me in amusement. She gracefully bounds over to me, moving around so easily.
"So...I take it you like it?"
"What's not to like? This place is absolutely amazing. How is this possible? Where are we?" I breathe my words. This is like a dream.
"The door. It's like a portal, it leads to here. I don't know exactly where we are, but I guess somewhere in the universe, on a planet strangely similar to earth, but it's obviously different. It has a better view."
Yeah. I fall back down to the ground, looking up at the sky. Takamina lays beside me looking up at it too. It's so quiet and peaceful here, like there's nothing to worry about.
Takamina breaks our silence.
"I'm sorry I haven't been around much. I was probably worrying you. I've been spending my time here though, exploring this beautiful place. It takes some time to travel around since there's less gravity, but it's worth it. This place is unbelievable. I was like you when I found it."
I don't answer. Wow. She's been here all this time?
After a while, Takamina gets up.
"Come on, there's one more thing I want you to see."
I get up and we bounce, floating to our final destination. It's actually quite a long way. After passing through the field, we move through a forest, the purple trees giving off a sense of tranquility. I feel safe here. We come to a clear river and somewhat walk along it, up to a wide waterfall. Takamina walks in front of me and goes through the waterfall. Unmoving, I just watch the place where she went through. She pokes her head through it, all drenched.
"Aren't you coming?"
I hesitate going through the waterfall. I don't want to get wet. Oh wait. I can just phase through it. I don't want to keep her waiting though, so I hurry through.
We're in a cave! I notice that gravity is normal here. I follow her through it, I see a light ahead. We come into a cavern where a crystal surrounded lake laid. The walls are glowing and the ceiling is coated with gems of all sorts, the water below reflecting it to sparkle in different colors.
My eyes wander to a blanket on the ground. Takamina sits there grinning with a basket of food waiting.
"I thought we might have dinner here."
I laugh. "And I thought it couldn't get any more perfect."
I sit while Takamina takes out some sandwiches, sushi, rice balls, and a canister filled with tea. This seems more like a really late lunch. I'm not complaining though. I still get to eat.
We enjoy the food and chat, talking about several useless things and random topics.
"Um, Acchan?"
"Hm?"
"You know the festival is next week right?"
"Yeah, I guess. It'll be a lot of fun."
She looks really nervous all of a sudden. Like she's trying to come up with the right words to say, but failing.
"Err... If we win the tournament… will you go to the following dance with me? Ah eto um, you probably don't want to, but I mean, if we win though." She laughs nervously.
Interesting. Why would she think I wouldn't want to? Hahaha, "And if we lose?"
"Uh um...well, you don't have to and you can go with someone else if you prefer. You can do whatever."
She's so cute like this! I just want to hug her!
"Sure, I don't mind." I'd love to go with her. I act indifferent towards her though.
"Really?! Ah yatta..." She falls to the ground, relieved. I laugh at her, she's really something.
"That's if we win the tournament though."
"Hai! I will do my best!"
I like her determination. She really wants to go with me, I feel all bubbly inside now.
"Let's head back now, it's getting late." I check my phone, the dorm will be closing its doors soon.
"Ah! Yeah, let's go!"
We pack up our little picnic, laughing and talking together as we travel back, hand in hand. I'm starting to realize this new feeling I've felt growing inside me the past weeks. I don't feel the need to worry about it though. I have hope.
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Topic: The 3 Classes - COMPLETED (Read 42823 times)