@Minami-chan: I am glad you like the story. To be honest, this isn't a pair I would usually ship. But this idea popped up in my head after reading the other RisaAoi fic, so I decided to write it.
A/N: Hello everyone! This is the third part of the RisaAoi multi parter.
It ended up being longer than I originally intended, but that's what happens when you write whatever comes to mind.
There will be one more part after this one.
Enjoy!
Why Do I Love You? - Part 3 [RisaAoi]
Aoi woke up the next morning tucked in her bed in her own bedroom. The sunlight was creeping in from the slightly parted curtains, and it was shining directly at Aoi’s eyes. Aoi groaned as she got herself out of bed. She remembered how she got home yesterday.
---***---
Minami woke up Aoi at the end of the school day, yesterday. She came to collect the girl to make sure that she would get home safely. There was a small pink pouch left on the table beside the bed that Aoi was sleeping in. There was no note left behind by the sender, but it was obvious that the pouch was meant for Aoi.
Aoi collected the small pink pouch and her own belongings from the classroom before leaving the school grounds with Minami. Minami did not notice that the girl had been crying earlier as they walked home together. Aoi did not show any signs of change either as she was still being childish in front of Minami. This behaviour left Minami with a sense of relief. Minami believed that Aoi was recovering rapidly.
Once they reached Aoi’s house, both girls entered the house. Aoi was forced to go rest in her room by Minami. Aoi’s mom came out from the living room to greet Aoi and was surprised to see that Minami had visited the house. Minami sat down with Aoi’s mom and explained what had happened in the incident earlier in the day.
Minami assured Aoi’s mom that Aoi was fine and that she was recovering rapidly. She promised that she would deal with Risa and that she would protect Aoi from Risa. Minami ended the conversation with her promise as she had to go home herself.
---***---
Aoi tried to clear the tiredness from her eyes as she walked over to her desk. Even though she had plenty of sleep, Aoi’s face looked like a complete mess. She had a heavy feeling in her chest. The pounding in Aoi’s head also did not help with the heavy feeling.
The small pink pouch was sitting on top of Aoi’s desk. It was left in the exact condition that Aoi found it in. Aoi grabbed the pouch, opened it, and reached her hand inside of it. She pulled out a small box of medicine. Aoi examined the box. The wording on the box stated that its contents were for headaches.
The pounding in Aoi’s head suddenly intensified. Aoi threw the box of medicine on to her desk so she could clutch her head with both of her hands, knocking over the pouch that was sitting on the desk. A small folded square piece of paper fell out of the pouch. The piece of paper flew off of the desk and landed under Aoi’s bed, just out of normal reach. Aoi did not notice the paper disappearing under her bed as she was in pain from her headache.
Minutes passed before the pounding in Aoi’s head subsided. Aoi looked at the box of medicine, but she decided to not drink them. She was cautious of a stranger giving her medicine. She picked up the pouch again and reached her hand inside of it. Her hands found nothing as the remaining contents of the pouch had fallen underneath Aoi’s bed earlier.
Aoi placed the pouch back down on her desk and walked over to her closet to grab her uniform. She crossed in front of her standing mirror and stopped in front of it. A photo that was taped to the frame of the mirror caught Aoi’s attention. Aoi walked over to the mirror to look at the photo. It was a purikura that she had taken with Risa in their final year of middle school.
---***---
“Ne, ne, ne, Risa let’s go over there,” Aoi pointed at the purikura booth as she pulled on Risa’s arm.
Risa and Aoi were on an outing alone together. It was the middle of summer vacation, so their friends were busy doing their summer homework. Aoi finished her summer homework at the beginning of the summer vacation and helped Risa with her own homework. This left only the two of them available for an outing.
Risa had called Aoi the day prior to arrange the outing. Aoi was excited to receive the invitation from Risa. The both of them had the same feelings as they looked forward to the outing. They both knew that it would only be the two of them.
“Fine,” Risa groaned aloud, but in reality, she had already planned to take a purikura with Aoi the night prior.
Aoi skipped the whole way to the purikura booth. Risa was following behind Aoi, observing the girl. She smiled as she watched Aoi skipping along and enjoying herself. Risa’s heart suddenly fluttered, shocking her.
“No, no, no. This doesn’t mean anything. These feelings are normal,” Risa thought to herself as she shook her head to get rid of the thought.
“We are here!” Aoi suddenly yelled, breaking Risa out of her train of thought.
The two girls walked into the purikura booth. They both sat on the lone stool in the booth. Aoi started playing around with the display. She selected different effects and colours to decorate the purikura they were about to take. Risa smiled as she watched Aoi childishly enjoy herself while playing with the display.
“Okay, I’m done. Risa say ‘cheese’,” Aoi said as she wrapped her arms around Risa’s body.
The camera on the display suddenly flashed. The finished product displayed on the screen. Aoi was smiling while Risa had her signature poker face expression. Anyone who looked at the photo would think that Risa did not enjoy taking the picture, but she was actually ecstatic about taking the picture, but she did not want Aoi to know about her feelings.
“This picture could be better, but I guess it is fine,” Aoi said as she pressed the print button on the display.
The two girls walked out of the booth. Aoi grabbed the two photos from the slot on the outside of the booth. She examined both photos before smiling widely. Risa was happy that Aoi looked like she was happy with the photos.
“Make sure you hold onto this forever,” Aoi said as she gave the other copy of the purikura to Risa.
“Yeah, yeah. I won’t lose it,” Risa replied in her usual cold tone as she took the photo from Aoi’s hands. She was happy that she finally had a picture of the both of them alone together.
---***---
Aoi did not feel a sense of joy as she remembered the time that she took the purikura with Risa. Her heart felt empty as the memories played in her head. Aoi pulled the photo off of the mirror frame and tossed it aside. The photo landed in the garbage bin beside Aoi’s desk.
Aoi finally grabbed her uniform from her closet and put it on. She walked over to the washroom to finish her morning routine before making her way downstairs. Her mother was preparing her bento in the kitchen. Aoi walked into the kitchen and sat down at the table.
Aoi’s mother greeted Aoi when she heard her sitting down at the table. Aoi put on her normal cheerful expression, but her mother could see through the façade. Her mother did not want to pry into her daughter’s problems in the morning, so she continued preparing the bento as if nothing had happened. She made small talk with Aoi to see if her daughter was willing to tell her anything at that moment, but all she got in return were short replies, which were different from her usual cheerful replies.
Aoi’s mother finished preparing the bento and was able to make some breakfast for Aoi as well. She placed both items on the table in front of Aoi. The girl ate the breakfast in silence, placed her dishes in the sink, grabbed the bento on the table, and walked out of the house after bidding her mother farewell. Aoi’s mother sighed as it was clear that something was wrong with Aoi.
Aoi’s walk to school was rather peaceful. The pounding in her head subsided greatly which made the walk bearable. Her expression was rough as the heavy feeling in her heart did not subside. She eventually reached the school after making her way through numerous streets.
Morning classes passed by rather quickly. Aoi felt the pounding in her head suddenly spike throughout morning classes, but she was able to mask her expression from showing any pain. She could not be any happier once she heard the bell ring to signal the start of lunch break.
The class let out a collective sigh of relief and began to rearrange their desks around. Aoi moved her desk towards Minami like she usually did. She sat down and pulled out her bento box. The two girls began to eat lunch.
“Minami~ I missed the latest episode of ‘Pretty Cure’ last night,” Aoi whined in her usual childish manner.
Minami sighed, “You should really stop watching that show. I’m starting to get worried about your future.”
The two girls continued to chat while eating their bentos. Aoi acted like her usual self and was showing her cheerful expression to Minami. Everything looked normal to Minami at first, but she slowly began to notice a slight change as Aoi continued to talk. Aoi was being her usual cheerful self, but her actions felt void of emotion. It felt like Aoi was replaced by a robot.
“Hey Aoi are you---” Minami began to ask, but she was suddenly interrupted by the appearance of Risa.
Risa walked up to the pair and began to speak, “Aoi, did you get my no---” She was interrupted by Minami suddenly standing up.
“Oi Risa! How dare---” Minami began to yell, but she too was suddenly interrupted.
Aoi turned around to face Risa. There was an angry expression on her face as she responded in an uncharacteristically aggressive tone of voice, “What do you want, Risa?”
The rest of the classroom went silent as Aoi’s response to Risa echoed throughout the room. Everyone was surprised to hear Aoi speaking in an aggressive manner. They were so shocked by Aoi that they failed to notice how Risa addressed Aoi by her name instead of an insult. No one knew what to do in response to Aoi’s sudden change in character.
Risa and Minami were speechless as they both stared at Aoi. Risa stared directly into Aoi’s eyes as they stared back at her. Aoi’s eyes reflected the emptiness of her heart. It was as if her heart was a flame that was about to be extinguished. Risa could not see any emotions behind those eyes except for a tiny hint of feeling betrayed.
Risa was shocked at the response that Aoi gave her. She knew that it was her fault that things ended up this way. She knew that she was in the wrong, but it still hurt to get the cold shoulder from Aoi. What hurt the most for Risa was that it felt as if Aoi became a completely different person.
Risa’s plan yesterday was ruined when she heard the conversation between Minami and Aoi in the infirmary. She got frustrated and decided to come back a few hours later. She placed the pouch on the bedside table when Aoi was sleeping and no one was around to see her. She thought for sure that Aoi read the note that she left in the pouch. None of what was currently happening was part of Risa’s plan.
Risa clutched her hands firmly close out of frustration, “Never mind, it’s nothing.” She then began to walk toward the exit of the classroom.
Aoi turned around once she saw Risa leaving the classroom. The rest of the classroom returned to their lunches when it looked like the confrontation was over. The pounding in Aoi’s head returned with vigor. She clutched the side of her head with her hands as the pain became too much for her to handle. Her expression showed clear signs that she was in pain.
“Aoi, are you okay?” Minami asked in a worried tone.
“Un. I’m fine,” Aoi replied in a half aggressive and half cheerful tone of voice.
Yuuka and Akane both witnessed the confrontation between Risa and Aoi. They both looked at each before nodding at each other. They both instinctively knew what the other wanted to say. Akane stood up and began to walk towards the exit of the classroom, while Yuuka stood up and approached Aoi.
Manaka watched as her best friend walked out of the classroom. She was worried for her friend who was acting unusual ever since yesterday. She stood up to go after Risa, but she suddenly felt someone put their hand on her shoulder. Manaka turned her head to find Akane staring in the direction that Risa left.
“Don’t worry, I will go after her,” Akane said as she removed her hand from Manaka’s shoulder and began to walk out of the classroom.
Minami’s expression was slowly become more worried as Aoi’s headache was not subsiding, “Aoi, I think you should seriously go to the clinic.”
Aoi shook her head as her expression continued to show that she was greatly in pain, “I told you, I’m fine.”
“No, Aoi you sh---” Minami began to insist, but she was interrupted by Yuuka walking up to them.
“Aoi-chan, can I talk to you in private for a moment?” Yuuka asked with a sweet smile on her face.
---***---
Akane looked both left and right as she entered the hallway. Risa was nowhere to be seen. There were no traces of where she could have gone. Akane decided to go right and started running in that direction.
Akane searched the whole floor before heading down one floor after being unable to find Risa. She searched the new floor but was still unable to find the girl. Akane was a faster runner than Risa, but she did not know where the girl went. She stopped in front of the windows and looked outside.
“Where did that girl go?” Akane sighed.
Akane got a glimpse of a girl running towards the back of the school just as she was about to leave. She could not see the girl’s face, but she was certain that it was Risa. Akane ran down the stairs and headed towards the back of the school. There, she was finally able to find Risa.
Akane approached Risa who was facing away from her, “Hey Risa, are you okay?”
“Leave me alone, Akane,” Risa said in a weak voice.
“Risa, I know you think I’m being stubborn, but I am here for you,” Akane softly spoke.
Risa’s shoulders slightly shook, “You don't get it, Akane.”
“Risa, I won’t be able to understand what is happening if you don't tell me,” Akane replied as she took a step closer to Risa
“Just leave!” Risa yelled as she turned around with tears in her eyes.
Akane was shocked to see Risa with tears in her eyes, “Risa?!”
Risa fell to her knees as she covered her eyes with her hands, “It's too late already.”
Akane walked over to Risa, squatted down, and patted Risa’s back, “What do you mean?”
“What have I been doing these past two years? I’m so stupid. Why am I so stupid? It took me this long to realize it,” Risa explained as she started crying.
“Is this about Aoi?” Akane asked.
Risa nodded her head, “I gave her a note to explain everything, but it's already too late. You saw what happened,” She clenched her chest as her heart screamed out in pain, “I know I deserve this, but it hurts. It hurts so much even though I thought it wouldn’t hurt. Why, Akane? Why does it hurt so much to hear Aoi speak like that?”
“Risa…” Akane’s voice trailed off.
---***---
Aoi followed behind Yuuka as they left the classroom. Yuuka led Aoi through the hallway and to the stairs. They walked up the whole entire flight of stairs until they reached the roof of the school. The door was unlocked and the two of them walked onto the roof. Yuuka took a seat on a bench that was nearby followed by Aoi who sat next to Yuuka.
“Aoi-chan, how are you feeling? That hit yesterday must have hurt,” Yuuka asked Aoi.
Aoi shrugged, her cheerful expression and voice returned as the pounding in her head subsided, “I’m doing fine. It didn’t really hurt that much.”
Yuuka smiled at Aoi, “That’s good to hear.”
“So Yuuka, what did you want to talk to me about?” Aoi asked with a curious tone.
“Can you tell me what happened between you and Risa?” Yuuka blatantly asked.
Aoi’s cheerful expression was replaced by an emotionless expression, “Who cares about her?”
Yuuka was surprised, “What?”
“I said who cares about her?” Aoi repeated herself. “I could hardly care about Risa.”
Yuuka was still shocked by Aoi’s response, “But both you and Risa were so close during middle school.”
Aoi scoffed at Yuuka statement, “That was the past. We aren’t close anymore. If Risa wants to ignore me then that fine. I am not going to waste my time with someone who doesn’t care about me any longer.”
Yuuka noticed that Aoi’s words were filled with a feeling of emptiness, “You cannot tell me that you are over Risa. I know you, Aoi-chan. I could tell that there was something going on between you and Risa.”
“Yuuka!” Aoi began to yell, but she calmed down herself before continuing. “The Risa and me that you knew in the past are no more. I have realized that I’ve wasted the past two years on a pointless dream. I don’t need or want Risa anymore. Heck, I could care less if I ever see her again.”
“Aoi…” Yuuka’s voice trailed off.
---***---
The end of the day quickly came about. After both discussions took place, Yuuka, and Aoi returned to the classroom just as the lunch break finished. Akane returned to the classroom a few minutes after the bell rang. She came into the classroom by herself as Risa was nowhere to be seen.
Akane shook her head when Yuuka made eye contact with her. Yuuka also had a grim expression on her face. Both girls knew what the other was trying to say. The situation was far worse than they had originally thought.
Aoi still could not focus during afternoon classes. Excluding the periodic spike in her headaches, she could not get the earlier confrontation with Risa out of her mind. It was eating at her even though it was what she said she wanted. She could not tell what her thoughts were trying to tell her.
“Aoi? Class has already ended you know,” Minami said as she walked up to Aoi’s desk.
Aoi broke out of her trance. She looked around her and saw that everyone was getting ready to leave for the day, but she was still in her seat with her books out on her desk, “Ah, you’re right.”
“I want to walk you home today, but I have club activities to attend to today. Gomenne, Aoi,” Minami said as she clapped her hands in front of her face while bowing down slightly.
Aoi put on a cheerful smile, “You don’t have to worry, Minami. I’m fine now.”
“Are you sure?” Minami asked with a worried expression on her face.
“Minami, don’t worry about me. I’m fine, trust me,” Aoi replied while maintaining a gentle expression on her face.
“Okay, if you say so. Go home right away and send me a LINE whenever you get home,” Minami demanded before leaving.
“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Aoi replied as she put her books into her bag.
Aoi walked through the school gates and began her trip home. Her mind was blank while she was walking down the street. Her thoughts were everywhere as her heart was in a state of duress. She was walking aimlessly around.
Aoi suddenly felt a presence behind her and turned around to face it, “Who's there?!” She did not see anyone behind her and continued walking down the street, “Must have been just my imagination.”
A figure appeared out of the shadow from where Aoi was looking at, “That was close.”
The thoughts of the earlier confrontation with Risa returned to Aoi’s mind. She was feeling conflicted about the whole situation. Her heart was telling her that she did the right thing, but there was a slither in her heart that said it was not right. Aoi tried to get the feeling out of her chest, but it was persistent and wanted to stay.
“Why do these thoughts keep coming back? I don’t care about her anymore,” Aoi asked herself.
The return of Aoi’s thoughts about Risa brought on a new onset of pounding in her head. Her headaches were more intense than before. She had to stop on the side of the sidewalk to let the headaches subside. They only subsided slightly before Aoi continued walking even though it was causing her to be unable to comprehend her surroundings.
Aoi was brought to the downtown core of the city by her feet. There was traffic of people and cars everywhere as business men and women were making their way home for the day. The traffic lights rapidly cycled as people and car progressed through the afternoon traffic. Aoi felt lost in this sea of people.
Aoi stopped at the edge of an intersection to wait for the pedestrian light to turn green. Her headaches had substantially decreases as her mind shifted away from the thoughts about Risa and focused on the pain of her headaches instead. Her mind was still foggy even though the pain had substantially decreased. However, she was finally able to comprehend her surroundings.
Aoi suddenly felt a sharp pain in her head as she was waiting at the intersection. It was an excruciating pain that caused Aoi’s mind to fall unconscious. Aoi’s legs suddenly moved forward into the intersection as her mind lost all sense of her surroundings. Aoi’s regained consciousness as she heard the people around her suddenly yelling.
The sound of a car horn entered Aoi’s ear as she turned to see a car driving right at her.
Topic: 444's K46 Fics - I Am Not A Stalker I Swear - Finale [OdaPon] (2018-08-11) (Read 41088 times)