ALL OF ME [WMATSUI] CHAPTER 4/25 LAST UPDATE MAR-04-2019

[firebird123]

Author's note:
Hello, it's been a while since I didn't post anything here, but actually I've been writing a wmatsui fanfic this whole time (about two years since my last wmatsui fanfic I posted her) which is the one I'm going to start posting now.

So actually, this fanfic is alredy finished and published BUT in spanish, so what I'll be posting here is basically the translation from that original version wich you can find here
I'll be posting the chapters right after I finish translating them, I think it can take around a week or two per chapter, but it can take longer depending on the chapter.

So that's it, hope you all enjoy this fanfic   

CHAPTER 1

"Can you help me with something?" Rena asked timidly, and although it was an innocent question that can lead to a million possibilities, she never imagined that she would be asking this kind of thing from her best friend.

"Sure" Jurina replied very calmly, she was used to Rena coming to her for any kind of things, the shy and introverted personality of her childhood friend, made that most of the time she had to help her get out of troubles "Do you have a presentation or something?"

"Not really" Rena looked away preparing for what she was about to confess, but to who else could she go to if it wasn’t Jurina, she has the necessary experience "Promise you won’t laugh" She warned, knowing Jurina, she could already imagine her loud laughter.

"Just say it, you're making me nervous" As Rena kept playing with her hands and the fact she had a slight blush didn’t give Jurina a good feeling about it.

"Well you see, it's just that ..." Rena's words were barely audible being heard as a murmur, despite of the effort she had to put on to pile up the courage to at least ask Jurina, and now the words just don’t come out like she rehearsed them.

"What did you say, Rena speak a little be louder, it's me to whom you're talking with?" Jurina was already feeling irritated, she thought that from a long time ago they had already gone through that stage in which Rena could hardly modulate three words.

"I ..." Even Rena was getting exasperated with herself, she had to say it, surely Jurina would help her.

"Rena I don’t und-"

"I LIKE SOMEONE AND I NEED YOU TO HELP ME TO LIKE HER TOO" Rena raised her voice as she never had in her life, leaving Jurina perplexed not only by Rena's tone, but by the sudden request.

"Eh?" Her astonishment couldn’t be more, at what moment the modest and subtle Rena had fallen in love, at which moment she lost sight of her, who was the person who had stolen her heart, and why she felt her chest aching suddenly "Who do you like?"

"Her name is Furukawa Airi, she's from class 3-2" Why did her face lit up when she said her name? Jurina had never seen her in this kind of state before.

"Why do you want me to help you?" Jurina couldn’t help but wonder more and more, everything happened very quickly, and it was definitely something she wasn’t expecting.

"You've had a lot of countless girlfriends Jurina, you know a lot more about this than me" Certainly Jurina was popular, but her longest relationship didn’t last more than 3 months, she never felt love for any of them, there was always something missing or maybe it wasn’t who she really was looking for.

"Are you sure you like her?" She didn’t know why she ask those stupid questions, of course Rena liked that Airi girl, that brightness in her eyes told her enough, but deep down, and not even knowing why, Jurina wanted all this to be a simple joke of bad taste.

"Very sure" Rena blushed at the thought, she had decided it was time to act, she didn’t want to keep watching from afar any longer.

"Okay" Jurina replied sharply, apparently angry, not even she herself knew why she suddenly felt enraged, Rena hadn’t done anything unusual for a seventeen years old girl, and although the knot in her throat wanted her to answer a resounding no, she would never refuse helping Rena with whatever she needed, after all she promised to herself to protect her from everything and everyone.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you" Rena couldn’t contain her excitement, so much that she rushed on Jurina to hug her, surely she could make Airi notice her, Jurina would definitely help her "You’re the best"

Rena's happiness contrasted terribly with Jurina's state, so much that she herself doesn’t know how to describe it, maybe she was just surprised, she should feel happy for her friend, right? But as much as she tried she couldn’t, she didn’t like the mere thought of Rena together with someone else.


It was already 1:00 am, it was not time for a 17-year-old girl to be awake, and much less when the next day she has school, but even so Matsui Jurina was wide-eyed despite the late hour, she had been tossing and turning in her bed for more than an hour, the incertitude was taking away her sleep. Furukawa Airi, she had heard her name a couple of times but doesn’t really remember anything about her, Jurina had been visiting the girl’s social accounts but they were all on private.

Jurina look at the time on her cell phone, she had resigned herself to the sudden insomnia when the name of the perfect person came to her ideas, knowing that person would still be awake she dialed her number, but not without making sure not to make a lot of noise, her parents would kill her if they find out she is still awake.

One two and three rings were what she had to wait for the other girl to answer her cell phone.

"What are you doing calling me at this time Jurina?" It was the greeting with which she answered on the other side of the line.

"Even so you were also awake" Jurina could even hear the sound of the TV over the phone, surely she must be playing a video game, it was what Jurina thought "I need you to do me a favor"

"When not, what do you need?" Jurina smiled at how easy her friend agreed.

"All the information you can get from Furukawa Airi" Being her friend a computer geek and technology in general, it shouldn’t take her too long to find out everything about the girl.

"What do you need that for?" Jurina thought about telling her, but she backed down instantly. She didn’t think Rena would like her to tell everyone she liked someone, and Jurina herself didn’t feel able to say it out loud, not yet.

"Don’t ask" She thanked her friend didn’t insist on the topic, that's what she likes most about her, she knows when to give space to people.

And just as she thought, in less than 10 minutes in which they talked about any random topic, she got an email with basic information about Furukawa Airi.

"There you have it, don’t ask where I got it" She didn’t think to so either, Jurina learned that it’s better not to know some things.

"Thanks Mayu, see you tomorrow" She said goodbye to the latter to focus all her attention on the mail that had just arrived.

Furukawa Airi, 17 years old Sakuragaoka school third year of high school, apparently the girl came from a more than wealthy family, her father owns a hotel franchise, besides this she has the best notes in her class, and belongs to the arts club and if all that wasn’t enough already, she’s also pretty.

This was all the information there was, now Jurina remembered where she had heard her name. Airi had won a manga contest last year, but since Jurina is not very interested in that kind of things, she quickly forgot about the event.

Along with the information, there were a few pictures of Airi, where you could see her luxurious lifestyle. So it is that kind of people who liked Rena, although Jurina knew her best friend wasn’t pursuing Airi's money, she was clearly someone successful, who also seemed charismatic. Jurina threw her phone to the other side of the bed in frustration, even without knowing Airi, she could feel she won’t like her.


Since she was a kid Jurina has always had this facility to talk to people, she has always been the center of attention no matter what she did, just by crossing two words with her you were already fascinated. Jurina always liked all the attention she got, at the young age of 8 years old she already knew how to use her natural charisma in her favor, for her it was easy to make people (including adults) do what she wanted with just a smile, all except for the transferred girl.

"Nice to meet you, my name is Mastui Rena" The black-haired girl introduced herself to the class, Jurina's first impression of her was that she couldn’t be more plain and normal, she was somehow insipid, simple and because of how hard it was for her to lift her look up, Jurina deduced she should be the shy type.

"I hope you all treat her well, sit next to ... Jurina" Concluded the teacher.

The new girl walked as fast as she could to the position assigned to her by the teacher, once in her seat Jurina watched her for a moment, up close she was kinda pretty, her skin was very pale, so much it made Jurina wonder if she was sick or something.

"I hope we can become good friends." Jurina smiled at her, acting the same way she does to please everyone, as everyone supposes Jurina is, but the girl next to her did nothing but nod her head.

The days passed and Jurina kept trying to get closer to Rena, only to be rejected again and again. She offered her sweets but Rena didn’t take them, she tried to start a conversation but the long-haired girl only answered with a sharp yes or no, Jurina even got to offer her favorite juice, but the answer was always the same. Jurina was already beginning to feel irritated, why this girl is so apathetic, wondered Jurina. In her mind couldn’t fit the idea that there was someone capable of rejecting her.

"Today we will play dodgeball" Informed them cheerfully their physical education teacher. Jurina could not be any more excited, nobody was better than her in the game, but she could almost hear a groan from Rena, although she thought at the end she thought she had just imagined it.

The teams were formed in alphabetical order and the game was started. Jurina felt she was playing alone, her team wasn’t doing anything at all, she was the only one who had managed to hit a couple of opponents, but for each opponent she hits, 3 from her team were beaten.

By the time she noticed, the rival group was almost complete, meanwhile in her team the remaining ones were only her and ... Rena, who seemed to be at the verge of tears. Jurina didn’t know how in the world Rena had managed to get that far, and the terrified look in Rena’s eyes woke up something within Jurina. She didn’t enjoy at all to see her like that, and couldn’t explain why.

Fear spread through Rena’s face when she saw the rivals were about to throw balls right into her face, Rena's reflexes were squatting and covering her head, she was ready to receive the impact of the rubber balls, but they never arrived; When she dared to look up, all she saw was someone’s small back who was apparently protecting her from all the balls.

"Just stay still there" Jurina didn’t know what she was doing, she was putting herself in danger just to protect Rena, but her body moved by its own when she saw the balls speeding towards a defenseless Rena.

She barely managed to dodge the balls without letting them get to Rena either, but there were many being throw at the same time and one escaped her by the side. Rena was out of the game, and when Jurina turned to see if she was all right, a ball hit her, the game was over, and she had lost.

Jurina was frustrated, she had never lost a dodgeball game, but at that moment something more important seemed to occupy her thoughts.

Still in the middle of the gym, Rena was still squatting even after the game was over, Jurina worried and approached her, fearing that maybe the ball had hit her in the face.

"Rena are you okay?” She hurriedly asked, but wasn’t prepared for what happened next.

Rena raised her head, a tender innocent smile curved her lips, and her eyes seemed to shine, Jurina was speechless at the dazzling scene she was witnessing.

"Thank you so much for protecting me." With that, Rena placed a soft kiss on Jurina's cheek and then ran towards the teacher who was calling them.

Jurina stood still in her place, stunned. She felt how her cheeks or rather her whole face was beginning to warm up, her hand went to the place where Rena's soft lips had been "She looks so cute when she smiles" was the only thought that crossed through Jurina's mind.


On the following morning Jurina had no other choice but to wake up for another day of school when the alarm on her cell phone rang, she wouldn’t have slept more than four hours and she knew she would have to drink more than a cup of coffee to survive the whole day.

"I don’t know how you do this every day Mayu" Jurina commented after a long yawn when she found Watanabe Mayu at the entrance of the school "You always stay up all night but the next day it seems as if you had slept all night"

"It's called experience" The shorter one answered very proud of herself. Jurina's dark circles could be seen a kilometer away, and every once in a while she yawned as if it were her only mission in life "You look terrible"

"I didn’t sleep well last night"

Both began to go to their classroom, which was on the third floor as they were in the last year, but even though if it was only a few stairs, the way to their classroom always took longer than it should, the reason, in each corner there was at least one girl waiting to say good morning to the star of the tennis club, Matsui Jurina.

"I don’t know how can you stand it" Mayu complained, since somehow she always end up finding herself trapped in the middle of Jurina’s fans, and crowds are pretty much at the bottom of the things she likes.

"It's called experience," Jurina replied with a mocking smile.

When they finally made it to the third floor and therefore to their classroom, Jurina only had to step inside to remember the reason for her insomnia. In a corner of the room was what most would describe as an invisible girl, that type of girl who always goes unnoticed and doesn’t seek to be recognized by anything or anyone in particular, but for Jurina was the opposite; whenever she laid her eyes on Matsui Rena she looked as if she shines, her eyes always managed to find her no matter how many people were around her, almost as if she were a kind of magnet, who never fails to get her full attention.

Jurina had attributed to this the fact she has always looked for Rena's safety, because Jurina simply felt it was natural to always be aware of all the movements of the other Matsui, so it was normal that no matter when or where, her attention was always stolen by her.

"Good morning" Jurina walked straight towards Rena ignoring any other greeting

"Good morning." Along with Rena's smile, Jurina felt her day was finally beginning. "You didn’t sleep well last night," Said Rena mockingly as she noticed the big circles around Jurina's eyes.

"You're so clever," Jurina replied sarcastically.

"You didn’t forget ... that issue, right" Rena whispered to Jurina.

And there it is again, that throbbing pain in her chest and that strange feeling in the pit of her stomach, Jurina had been feeling this way since Rena's unusual confession.

"Yes of course" Jurina forced herself to respond with the best smile she could find, she didn’t even know what she was supposed to do.

"Jurina, Rena" Someone called their names, when turning around Jurina realized it was her other two friends, Miyazawa Sae and Suda Akari together with Mayu. Jurina thanked internally the good timing in which they interrupted.

"We'll talk about this later"

Together with these four people, Jurina felt she could be herself, there was no need for false smiles, nor did any of them expect anything from her, because apparently, everyone she knows puts her expectations in her, either in her sports competitions or in the studies, and although at the beginning she liked how other people seemed to praise and praise her whenever they could, the time when she got tired and everything became overwhelming ended up coming.

"You owe me a rematch in today's practice Jurina" Sae challenged her once again.

"I'll beat you whenever you want" Jurina replied happy to have a rival who won’t give up.

While Jurina talked with Sae and Mayu, Akari and Rena were at one side. At some point those two had become good friends, and Jurina couldn’t be more grateful, Rena had never been good at making friends, but in high school she started to open up a little bit more, in small steps, but worse is nothing.

“Good morning everyone, please go to your seats" The teacher arrived, to which all the students did what they were told to, then the tall and elegant woman began to hand them information on different subjects; which teacher couldn’t come and what paper work they had to submit "And please don’t forget, the admission exams are close" She reminded them once again that they were in third year, and that it was time to make decisions.

"Lately even the soup reminds me of the admission exams" Mayu who was sitting in front of Jurina complained, but Jurina seemed to have a mind full of other things.

"Jurina please come for a moment" The teacher called her while leaving the room, apparently no one else could hear them. "Your scholarship is already being discussed, and is on a good path" She said with a smile.

Jurina couldn’t be more excited, she knew since entering high school she would have to apply for a scholarship, even if her parents didn’t tell her, she knew that paying for the university career she wanted was somewhat complicated for her parents' budget .

"Thank you very much Shinoda-sensei" Jurina didn’t think twice before bowing, her teacher is the one who had been helping and advising her the most.

"It could even be better, but I better don’t tell you until it's confirmed." It was the last thing the tall woman said before starting to walk away.

The rest of the afternoon went by as normal, one boring class after another, the only thing that stands out was Rena’s the odd behavior, who during the whole day didn’t stop sending her those knowing looks, almost like remembering her with her eyes every time she could they still have a pending issue.

"So?" Rena asked approaching her, seeing that at the end of the day they hadn’t spoken once about the subject, and that Jurina still was packing her things without the intention to do so.

"I'm sorry, we'll talk about that tomorrow, I have a club practice" Jurina felt she had dodged a bullet, although she felt a burden of conscience too, Rena seemed very enthusiastic about the idea and she had already told her she would help her.

"I also have club, we’ll talk on our wat back home" Rena took Jurina by surprise, she had never heard before that Rena was in a club.

"Since when?" Jurina asked curiously, this was good news, Jurina had always tried to convince Rena to join one, assuring her that it was a good way to meet other people, but it always ended on a refuse.

"Starting today" One could see the happiness and excitement shining in Rena's face.

"Which club?"

"To the art club" Suddenly Jurina's happiness seemed to diminish as she remembered who else belongs to the arts club, who apparently was the real reason.

"I didn’t know you were into art" Jurina tried to disguise the uneasiness that the news produced.

Rena simply smiled playfully, she knew Jurina couldn’t do everything for her, so she decided to start doing her part as well. She really was trying, never before had she been in a club, and having to introduce herself to a new group of people without Jurina's presence gives her goosebumps, but she can’t depend on her for everything, especially for this.

"Then you’ll pick me up once you finish with practice?" Rena asked once they arrived at the changing rooms and would have to part ways.

"Yes… don’t worry" Jurina saw the good side of the issue, this way she’ll be able take a look at that Airi.

[sophcaro]

At first, when I read the title, I thought you were publishing this new fanfic you talked about.
But then, when I checked the introduction, I realized it was in fact the translation of your Spanish fanfic, and I felt a little disappointed as I already read it and hoped so much for new content

I think it's a good idea to translate your fanfic into English  . It will enable readers who don't understand Spanish to benefit from it. You can put in your first post the link to your Spanish fanfic, I don't see any problem with that.

[firebird123]

I'm taking a short break before posting and working in that fanfic but it makes me happy to know you're looking forward to it 

[Minami-chan]

I read it in Fanfiction.net

[firebird123]

CHAPTER 2

"A kid could’ve done better than you today, Jurina" Sae complained, recriminating her and reminding her her bad performance at today’s practice.

Jurina's mind was in the clouds, and every time it returned to earth, the ball was already in front of her face. Everyone who was in the place, whether it's practicing or just watching, couldn’t believe Jurina’s lack of concentration, who at the end managed to excuse herself by saying she didn’t felt well, but the true problem was in the art club.

When she finally could escape from the lecture that her coach and friend were giving to her, about how important it was to take care of her health, and the rest of things she already had memorized, Jurina headed her steps to the art club’s room, which by the way were oddly faster, and it’s just that the only thing that was going through her mind was Rena being alone with Airi in that room.   

Her steps stopped abruptly when what her imagination pictured was happening in front of her eyes, looking like a scene coming out from manga, apart from her friend and the pride of the arts club there was no one else in the room that was illuminated by the light of the evening, in the air was present the youth and romance feeling that revolted her stomach. Jurina couldn’t quite understand why she was hiding, looking from afar like some kind of creep when all she wanted was to cut with the strange scene.


Rena couldn’t seem any more nervous, she kept playing with her fingers and looking anywhere but at who she was facing. On the other side Jurina could only see the back of Rena's companion, who was apparently drawing something, or rather someone. Forcing her eyes a little Jurina realized that Airi was portraying Rena, which explains the awkward silence between them and the anxiety of her best friend, as Airi's gaze scanned every corner of Rena’s face, scanning each faction without missing a single detail.

Furukawa didn’t take more than a minute to finish with the portrait, Jurina could only watch from afar as Airi revealed the final work to her model, to who her eyes lit and smiled beautifully, making Jurina have a strange feeling seeing how that smile wasn’t directed towards her, and when Airi reached out to put behind Rena's ear a few locks of hair that escaped, Jurina didn’t hesitate any longer to make her appearance before Airi could touch her friend's skin.

"Rena is time to leave" Jurina entered without caring to have interrupted the ridiculous scene, ignoring Airi’s altogether, who stopped her hand abruptly halfway once heard the imposing voice of Jurina.

Jurina’s gaze was penetrating and fierce towards the artist, which made the latter feel threatened, as if she were facing a lion defending its territory. Airi took a couple of steps to the side away from Rena, no words were needed to quickly understand the message that the ruthless look of Jurina was giving her.

"Jurina" Rena quickly stood from her seat, her cheeks were a little bit flushed and she had trouble speaking without her voice trembling. She was grateful that Jurina had arrived, since she was starting to feel that she couldn’t stand the nerves of being alone with Airi in that situation, and it was a good time to introduce her friend to the person she told her about "She’s Furukawa Airi," she finally said.

"Matsui Jurina" She extended her arm to shake hands with Airi while looking at her from head to toe, the artist although somewhat hesitantly accepted the gesture.

"Nice to meet you" Jurina's grip was clearly stronger than necessary, she didn’t hesitate to use the strength she had gained from the years she’ve been doing tennis; she had to make it clear to Airi that Rena has someone to take care of her.

The atmosphere between them couldn’t be more tense. To be honest Jurina didn’t know what was happening to her, never before in her life had she acted in this way in front of someone she had just met; usually she was always friendly, the opposite of the hostility she was emitting, but she just couldn’t help it, as if it were an instinct Jurina wanted to get Airi away from Rena if she felt the artist could hurt her.

Rena was in the middle of what seem like a battle of gazes. Rena was expecting Jurina would say something, she’s used to the other Matsui helping her to establish a conversation with strangers, Rena always feels safe when she is with Jurina, but her friend was now unrecognizable, Rena had never seen that kind of gaze in Jurina’s eyes before, reason why she decided to intervene.

"See you later, Furukawa-san, thank you for the drawing" She said taking her bag along with Jurina's arm to drag her out of the room, her friend had been acting very strange since morning "What was that?" She asked once they were far away from Airi's ears.

"What are you talking about?" Jurina decided to ignore what happened shamelessly, but it’s just that even she didn’t have an answer for what had just happened, and she was frustrated with herself for that fact. Jurina couldn’t recognize herself for how she acted a few minutes ago, and although she was used to pretend to like someone, it was impossible for her to do so with Airi.

Rena sighed as let the issue pass, she knew it was useless to try to argue with Jurina as she is the stubborn person she’ve been knowing for years, instead, Rena simply decided to focus on the drawing she had in her hands. Rena couldn’t believe her ears when Furukawa really Airi had asked her the favor to pose for a portrait, and although it had been little and about irrelevant subjects, Rena managed to speak for a few minutes with her, and that fact made her feel kind of proud of herself.

"Let me see that," Jurina told her, tired that Rena was paying more attention to a piece of paper than her.

As she took the paper between her hands her blood began to boil; the drawing was perfect, it highlighted the delicate features of Rena's face, giving her that sophisticated and elegant touch that she has, capturing all the splendor and purity in her eyes, there were no doubts that Airi was an incredible artist, but there was no way for Jurina to accept it, at least not out loud.

"I've seen better." When she gets home, Jurina would have to take a bath with cold water, her mind wasn’t working well as it seems it had disconnected from her tongue.

"Of course not," Rena contradicted her immediately.

Jurina did nothing but clicked her tongue, she knew she had no chance of winning that absurd argument that she herself sought, even knowing from the start that her defeat was imminent.

"Could you please already tell me what I'm supposed to help you with?" She changed the subject quickly to the one she had been avoiding it all day, but Jurina thought it would be best to end this once and for all.

Immediately Rena turned her gaze away, it was still embarrassing to talk about it with her friend "You know ... what I should do"

"What do you mean with what should you do?" Jurina calmed her tone and her thoughts as she saw Rena's restless face, apparently she was really having a bad time with her thoughts.

"I want to get closer to Furukawa-san, and you know start to like to her" Rena lowered her voice more and more and began to play with her fingers, she was more than nervous but at the same time determined, and Jurina was soon aware of this.

The slightly taller one remained silent for a moment, trying to find an adequate response, but she had been through what Rena is going through, she had never been the one who was on that side, in which she sought to attract the attention of someone she likes since all the relationships she has been began because the other person is the one who declared, and she, although in reality she didn’t feel more attraction beyond the physical, ended up accepting, but something like that is impossible in the case of Rena, she couldn’t imagine her best friend declaring herself, with her everything has to be with patience.

"Since you talked to her for the first time" Jurina started saying "I guess the next thing is ... to ask for a date" Jurina felt the last words burning her tongue as if they were poison, and in her mind began to roll scenarios that triggered her anger again.

"H-how am I supposed to do that!" Rena's eyes widened, she had barely managed to talk about a couple of things with Furukawa-san today, think about asking her for a date was still very far from her possibilities.

"Just tell her casually to go to the movies NO! a park sounds better" Jurina quickly retracted her first suggestion, a cinema is very dark place and can be given to the artist the thought of try to overstep the mark, the best would be a place with enough people around (and that secretly can keep an eye on them).

"You make it sound as if it was piece of cake" Rena complained, she still didn’t feel confident enough to do that kind of thing, after all they barely met each other this afternoon, surely if Rena was someone like Jurina there would be no problem, since her friend is very self-confident, the opposite of how insecure she is.

Jurina glanced at Rena and could easily deduce that she was having an internal battle with herself just by looking at her face. Although for other people Rena always had a serious and empty expression, Jurina noticed every change or alteration her friend goes through since she has been watching her closely for more than 8 years, memorizing each corner of her face as if it were the palm of her hand, admiring day after day the brightness that appears in her eyes every time she is moved by little things, Jurina could assure without fear of being wrong, that there is no other person who knows Rena as much as she does.

"You don’t have to do it yet, you can wait till you feel confident enough, meanwhile keeptalking to her, and get to know each other better" Jurina said, fully understanding the problem, she should remember that Rena is a special case in terms of social relations.

"Yes, that'll do" Rena smiled at her, now more satisfied with the plan.

"Go to your own peace okay” Jurina tenderly caressed Rena’s head, causing the latter to feel warmer in the cold afternoon and to her heart to calm down.

"By the way, my mom asks if you want to come home on Sunday," Rena commented, her mother had reminded her more times than she could count that morning to not forget to ask Jurina, she had even sent her an e-mail in the middle of a class.

"Of course, it’s been a while since I saw Kyouko-san"

"Believe me I know that, you won’t believe how long she has been asking me to invite you, sometimes I think she loves you more than me" Rena said jokingly, but at the same time with a hint of reality.

"What can I do, I’m irresistible you know" Jurina replied with a flirtatious wink.

"Of course you are Jurina-sama" Rena's tone couldn’t be more sarcastic, trying to imitate the shrill voices of her friend's fans. There was no chance that Jurina lost to flatter herself, although Rena had to accept that her reasons she had.

Jurina did nothing but smile, none of her tricks worked with Rena, she has never managed to make her friend feel intimidated or even flinch when, even if it was playing, she tried to seduce her. Rena just seemed immune to all kinds of the effect that Jurina produced on other people.

"I see you then on Sunday" Jurina said goodbye when their paths separated.

"Sure." Rena continued on her way, still Jurina stared at her figure, watching it slowly move away until it disappeared from her sight in the distance.


Jurina ran from one side of the court to the other under the scorching sun. Jurina felt her legs melting more and more with every step she took, but her conviction was stronger than the fatigue that had accumulated with the passing of the minutes, she could already feel like the grip on her racket became weaker and weaker, as well as the blows to the small ball thrown at her by the machine, although for the others it was a simple training, in Jurina's mind it was the final of the junior youth tournament that she would be playing in a week.

"Enough" The strong voice of the trainer made her finally give the deserved rest to her limbs.

The drops of sweat made their torturous path from her forehead and contoured her fine features until they reached her jaw, where they fell one after another to the hot ground, her chest rose frantically from lack of oxygen, her fatigue was so much that it reached the point where her vision was clouded, but despite of what her body was screaming at her, it seemed not to reach Jurina’s stubborn conscience.

"I can still go" Jurina assured. The trainer walked towards her without even blinking, her gaze didn’t say anything to Jurina, but the words were not necessary when, in front of her, the woman with a slight touch on her knees with a racket, made Jurina’s knees fell to the ground.

"That's not what your body says, I could see your knees trembling" Said the trainer as she helped Jurina to stand up, after that there was no way Jurina would keep insisting. Her coach helped her walk to the bench, where she brought her a bottle of water "You’re overworking your body a lot"

"I'm fine, really," Jurina said with the smile that never left her lips.

"You even have your exams next week too, are you sure you don’t want to take a day off?" The trainer was more than surprised by the 14-year-old. Jurina had the best grades in her class, she was impeccable in every tennis match she had, making it to the final of one of the most important junior tournaments in Nagoya.

"Yes, please don’t worry about me" Jurina said before taking her things and leave the field "Thank you very much for today" She lean forward her body in a small bow to finally leave the place.

Jurina walked to the lockers room as quickly as her exhausted body allowed her, she could not let anyone see her in such a state, what she didn’t know was that, from the window of the second floor, the quietest girl in the school was observing every step she took.

She quickly changed her sports clothes for the school uniform once she took a shower, in which she could realize in the silence how much she was making her body suffer, but what else could she do, the whole school had her hopes in her, the illusion of having the prefecture champion had never happened, and there wasn’t a day in which her teammates didn’t cheer her up and assure her that she would be the champion, she had to meet everyone's expectations no matter what.

Jurina directed her steps to her classroom because she still had to study the last subject of the chemistry class, she has always preferred to study at school than at home, since she always ends up worrying her parents, but in the same way that with her classmates, Jurina had to face and meet the expectations of these but in the studies, they always strive to give her the best education, and Jurina couldn’t ignore that fact, so she always seeks to reward them with the best grades.

When Jurina entered the room she realized there was still someone else staying until late at school, she wasn’t surprised to see that Matsui Rena was the person sitting at the last desk in the room, her best friend could be very stubborn, even if she had already told her that she didn’t have to wait for her, she kept on doing it every day without fail.

"Rena, it's too late, you should go home" Jurina tried to convince her, but the serious expression of the other Matsui made it clear without the need for words that she was going to wait for her.

"You should go home too, Jurina." Rena's soft, delicate voice reminded her, almost as if she was scolding her, but of all people, Rena was the one who least Jurina wanted to disappoint, so by gathering all the strength she had, Jurina forced one of her best smiles towards the long-haired girl.

"Please don’t worry, there’s just one week left" She didn’t have time to see what kind of expression was showed in Rena's features, because no matter how hard she tried, Jurina could never fool her with her false smiles.

***

There was only one day left for the big event that would even be broadcast on television, and the school was turned into a chaos. Journalist from all over the city came asking about the promise of tennis, who with just a couple of hours left them fascinated with her charming personality, a girl with only 14 years’ old that could even capture the attention of those who were used to see the most beautiful celebrities.

But it is a pity that the cameras couldn’t go beyond appearances, being unable to capture the real thoughts of Matsui Jurina. In her mind everything was blurred and she felt as if her head was about to explode; Jurina had been feeling the same way for a couple of days already. Jurina attribute her condition to the fact that she hadn’t been sleeping practically anything, so she thought that the pain on her temples would go away after ignoring it for a couple of hours, but what happened was the opposite, and now the flash of the cameras only help the pain intensify.

"Jurina, the exams are about to begin" She heard the voice of her classmate calling her, she had been with the journalists all morning, and had forgotten for a moment that the exams were that day.

Jurina was grateful that she would no longer have to simulate her smiles when she left the room where they were interviewing her. But she didn’t understand why the corridors seemed to twirl, Jurina had to rub her eyes a couple of times because her vision was way too clouded.

Once she entered the classroom she felt a penetrating gaze following each one of her steps, it was not until she reached her seat that she knew that that gaze belonged to the other Matsui, who was looking at her with her eyes half closed, as if she were watching beyond what the senses can reach.

"Are you okay?"

"Sure, I'm better than ever" Jurina lied, not wanting to worry her best friend.

Jurina didn’t wait to get another response from Rena, because the reality was that the letters on the sheet of the exam seemed to mix, more than once she had to take a deep breath to calm the pain on her temples that didn’t allow her to think clearly about the answers, her hands trembled and drops of cold sweat outlined her features.

Jurina began to feel nervous, she was running out of time and she didn’t feel confident enough with her answers, as if her mind blocked everything she had been studying and decided to focus on the pain that was hammering. The clock marked the moment in which they had to handed the exam sheet to the teacher and Jurina had to answer randomly the last 3 questions. The anxiety began to take control of her body, so without giving opportunity for anyone to see her in such a state, Jurina took her bagpack and walked quickly to the exit of the school, she was grateful that during exams days they can leave earlier.

"Jurina, wait for me." She had to stop her steps when she heard Rena running after her, why out of all people it had to be Rena.

"I have to get home quickly" Jurina try to run away knowing that Rena hates quick walks, and much more when Jurina intended to run with everything she had left once she was out of Rena’s vision.

"I'll walk fast, let me go with you." Unfortunately for her, Jurina underestimate Rena, who seemed more than determined to go with her.

No having any further excuses Jurina had to agree. They didn’t talk much during the whole trip, Jurina preferred to concentrate her attention on her steps, because each time she took a step she felt as if she were falling into the void. Once in front of her house Jurina had to grab to the fence to keep her balance, just one more minute in which she would have to pretend that everything was fine, please hold on a bit more, she repeated to herself over and over again.

"See you tomorrow" Jurina said goodbye.

"Please take care of yourself," Rena said looking at her with eyes fill with concern, the same that Jurina’s been avoiding to confront, because it was at that moment that she realized she couldn’t fool Rena, she had seen completely through her facade.

Jurina didn’t say anything else and headed her steps to the entrance, throwing everything she had on her hands on the entrance, walking with the last drops of energy she had and allowed her body to fall on the soft mattress of her room, and in less than she could imagine, Jurina fell into a deep sleep.

When the sun came out the other morning the situation didn’t seem to improve, it even got worse since Jurina couldn’t wake up in time and had to leave home in a hurry without eating any proper meal to give her energy.

Jurina heard a ton of voices as if they were screaming right into her ears like an incisive and intense sound. The court was completely surrounded by spectators, her coach was telling her something but Jurina listened her words far away, as if she were at the bottom of the sea. Despite of the burning sun over their heads, Jurinas’s body kept on trembling even if she did everything possible to control it, her skin was pale, and the sun penetrated her eyes like knives, something clearly was not right, but she would have time to complain once she had the trophy between her hands.

Everything happened very fast, the first serve was given, Jurina hardly managed to return the ball which speed seemed faster than what she’s used to, but once she gave the order to her legs to run to the other side of the court to counteract her opponent’s first attack, her muscles didn’t respond correctly. At another time it would have been easy for her to reach the ball, but her body reached its limits first, and when she tried to run to the other side of the court to reach the attack of the opponent, her legs gave up and everything went black after she collapsed.

The game ended when it hadn’t even started, Jurina lost by default by not being able to continue the game.

***

"It seems she didn’t come today either," someone mumbled when they saw one of the empty desks.

"She may still not recover"

"Poor Jurina-san, I hope she comes back soon"

Rena listened to the conversation from her seat. Jurina hadn’t returned to school after the game, the only thing the teacher told them when they asked about her, was that she had overworked her body to the limit, and that she would need some days to recover her strength. On several occasions Rena had tried to visit her, but Jurina’s mother always told her that she was sleeping, which clearly was a lie. Rena would try again that afternoon, and this time she won’t leave until she talks with Jurina.


"Jurina, Rena came to see you" Her mother told her from behind the door, but all she wanted was to stay hidden under her blankets. Jurina didn’t dare to face her best friend after the shameful way in which she threw overboard everyone's hopes. Even if from couple of days ago she had already recover, Jurina still didn’t feel have enough courage to go back to school.

"Tell her I'm asleep" Was her clear answer, but yet Jurina hear the door opening followed by an extra weight on the edge of her bed, maybe her mother wanted to convince again to talk to Rena "Mom I told you that- " The surprise made her words get stuck in her throat, because Rena was the one who was sitting next to her, and from the doorway her mother smiled at her warmly to then walked away “What are you doing here?"

"Good thing it seems you're feeling better" Rena ignored the irritated tone of the other Matsui, since from the beginning she knew what she would find "Everyone is waiting for you to come back"

"I see no reason, I lost the final in a humiliating way" Jurina wasn’t able to look Rena in the eye.

"I think that's the least important"

Maybe it was the anger with herself and the frustration with which she had been carrying all these days, because not only was the tennis final, her grades had also fallen. Jurina had already reached her peak, and unintentionally the tone of her voice came out louder than she intended to

"Of course it matters, I made a fool of myself. Don’t you see I disappointed everyone in the most shameful way” 

Before she realized it, thin arms surrounded her, a sweet essence flooded her senses, her heart that was beating painfully in her chest found the warm she was longing, finally feeling at ease in the comforting embrace, leaving her mind blank and appeasing the storm of guilty feelings that were eating her away.

"I know how hard you’ve been pushing yourself, you don’t need to pretend with me Jurina, I know you gave it all, you’ve done more enough, now don’t continue carrying everything alone"

Rena's words seemed to be the only thing that she needed, all the frustration disappeared and without being able to avoid it, her face filled with tears. Jurina finally let out everything that was tormenting her, at the end all she wanted was someone to see her for what she is, just a 14 years old girl who wasn’t able to continue carrying so much pressure.

Jurina could finally cry as hard as she had wanted to do for a long time, confirming once again that only in front of Rena she can be her weak self freely. Since that day Jurina swore to herself, that from now on the only thing for which she will strive is to fulfill all of Rena's wishes and expectations, Jurina understood that the only thing that matters was making Rena happy and no one else.

[firebird123]

CHAPTER 3

The wind played with her hair as the speed increased, her voice hummed the song ringing in her ears through her headphones, trying to enjoy the scenery of abundant trees surrounding her but no losing the concentration as she hit the asphalt to push her penny-skateboard, even though she had already crossed the main entrance for a while already, Jurina still couldn’t see her destination in the distance.

Jurina never ceased to be amazed by the amount of hectares that make up Rena's "house" if it can be called like that. The father of the latter owns a company that produces all kinds of raw materials and food, which explains the endless rice fields that Jurina crossed. On the other hand, Rena's mother, well she is a more special case.

Finally she sight the wooden structure at the end of the road, Jurina had always loved the architecture of the ancient Japan, and there is no other way to describe Rena's mansion, even if her best friend was uncomfortable saying that she lived in a mansion she doesn’t really have how to denying it when there is even a small lake in the yard.

Jurina took her penny-skateboard and put it on the side of the door, fixed her hair because it was a little messy due to the wind and she made sure that her outfit was in perfect condition, which consisted of a white shirt with shorts and a plaid shirt tied around her waist along with boots; once she confirmed that everything was in order her finger pressed the bell.

Jurina didn’t have to wait long until the door opened, revealing behind this a young woman in a maid costume, the girl tilted her body ninety degrees accompanied with a warm smile.

"Welcome Jurina-sama, the Rena-sama will come soon to welcome you" Informed the woman letting her come through the door. Jurina feel a little bit uncomfortable with the situation, even if she knew all the maids since she began to visit Rena since they were children, this lifestyle didn’t fit her well.

"Thank you very much," Said Jurina crossing the door, just as she put one foot into the house, she heard desperate footsteps on the ceiling that followed a path to the stairs in front of her.

Jurina felt as if the time began to run in slow motion when she first saw her profile, Rena had her hair tied in a high ponytail giving full permission to her eyes to enjoy the beautiful view of her elegant neck, her cheeks were a little red due to the small race she did from her room, after all Rena had never been good at sports and the slightest effort always left her breathless; she wore a simple white dress but in she it looked like the finest of the suits.

An involuntary smile appeared on Jurina's lips, after all some things never change, and Rena will always be the most beautiful girl Jurina has ever seen, even if her best friend doesn’t have the slightest idea she is.

Rena ran clumsily, as is natural in her, in her direction. Her face expressed a great hurry as if she were escaping the worst of the storms, and before Jurina could step out from her fascination for the other Matsui, Rena took her by the wrist and began to drag her stairs up.

"What a nice way to say hello Rena" Jurina said between giggles, seeing Rena doing so much physical activity in such a few minutes happened once a year.

"Shhhh, don’t talk so loud or she'll listen to you" Jurina already figured out what was all about, and certainly her encounter with her supposed a couple of uncomfortable situations for both of them, after all Rena's mother is a little bit ... eccentric.

Finally they saw at the end of the corridor the door of Rena's room, they could almost claim victory, but Jurina felt something was out of place, everything had been very easy. Usually she wouldn’t even reach the stairs before being caught, nor did she hear any footsteps chasing her like lightning, nor maids trapping her, and what is even more suspicious, hadn’t yet heard the slightest bark from the gigantic San Bernardo that Rena has as a pet, which always betrayed her, everything was eerily quiet.

At the end they managed to enter the room, quickly closing the door behind them. Rena let her body slide down the wall completely exhausted with her eyes closed, trying to catch some air while Jurina saw her with a mocking smile. "You do know it won’t take too long for her to find me right?”

"Give me a break." Rena slowly opened her eyes once her soul had returned to her body, but once her eyes fell on the figure behind Jurina, it rushed away from her bones again. How is it possible? Rena was sure there was no one in her room when she came out when she heard the doorbell.

Jurina saw how in a matter of seconds the look in Rena's eyes abruptly changed, from being quiet to being as if she had seen a ghost, a ghost that seemed to be standing just behind her. Next, Jurina saw some hands begin to wrap around her shoulders, and she didn’t even have to turn her head to know who was the cause of the astonishment in Rena's eyes.

"Juuuuurinaaaaa" Finally her body was locked inside a tight hug that someone gave her from behind, at the same time the same arms that caught her shaked from side to side as if to squeeze every inch of her "But look how much you've grown up" Then Jurina was released from the embrace, but quickly the woman made her body turned to face her, and without waiting for a second caught the cheeks of the youngest between her palms.

"What a pleasure to see you Kyouko-san" Jurina said even with her cheeks being crushed without any mercy by the older woman "I see you’re as beautiful as ever" mentioned the youngest, showing her coquettish nature.

"But look how flirtatious" Finally Rena's mother left Jurina free, but without first looking at the latter from top to bottom "And you don’t stop surprising me with how beautiful you grow"

Once the presentations were made, Jurina turned her head to look for Rena, not being surprised to find her best friend covering her face with her hands, after all she had always been ashamed of her mother's behavior with Jurina, that and a couple of questions that the oldest Matsui loves to do that exceed the levels of discomfort of both; luckily, they will be able to dodge them once again.

"How did you get into my room?" Were the first words that came from Rena once she recovered her composure and lifted her body off the floor "You could be a perfect thief you know" Then Rena opened the door, allowing to come in to a huge canine with long white fur and brown spots, which didn’t doubt for a second throwing himself over Jurina "You even beat Kinue at finding Jurina"

Mrs. Matsui did nothing but let out a giggle that apparently tried to be malevolent, but since her height didn’t even reached 160cm, it only produced the contrary a malevolence "I will never reveal my secrets to you, my daughter." Said once her attempt to look scary ended "Join me in the dining room Jurina-chan, the food should already be served, and since I know you like spaghetti so much, you don’t want it to cool down" Next they heard the women heels moving away from the room.

"Your mother is just as energetic as always", said Jurina as she stroked the silky fur of the canine with the name of Kinue, who seemed to fall asleep at any time while enjoying the caresses.

"I know; it seems that the years don’t have any effect on her" A subtle smile appeared on the lips of Rena. She and her mother were completely different, being the younger one rather shy and introverted, always hating being the center of attention, doing everything possible to go unnoticed; whereas Matsui Kyouko was the great producer of one of the most successful idol groups of the moment, always loving the cameras and the attention that the media gave her, even so Rena wouldn’t change her mother for anything in the world.

"I think it's better that we go down now, it's not like Kyouko-san has a lot of patience" Suggested Jurina lifting her body off the ground and then standing in front of the other Matsui with just two steps, she still had something to do. Without any more waiting, Jurina bended her body a little forward, sneaking her hand behind the neck of Rena and gently placing her lips on the smooth skin of the latter’s cheek "I hadn’t greeted you properly" Said Jurina with a mischievous smile.

"Come on or my mom will go crazy" Rena didn’t comment any more, and turned her body towards the door.

In the same way, Jurina said nothing more and started to follow her friend through the corridors, which seemed to be part of a labyrinth instead of a house; even after so many years, Jurina still finds it difficult to orient herself, and there probably still are corners and hidden rooms that since she was kid she’s been dying to discover.

The tour ended in a large room where Mrs. Matsui was waiting. The women seemed to be very focused on the Tablet between her hands, her eyes completely focused on what looked like sketches for some costume while her hand added details with the small pencil designed for the device, her concentration was such that Rena had to intervene and get the woman's attention.

"Mom, I think we're ready to eat"

Upon hearing the voice of her daughter, Mrs. Matsui returned to reality and in an instant put aside the Tablet "Sorry, I was just finishing some small details" She apologized to then make a hand gesture to the butler to tell him it was time to bring the food. During this one they talked about minimal and everyday things, how the school was going and of course the great changes they will see once their school year is over.

Once the dishes were empty, Jurina felt somewhat curious about the producer’s work; whenever she turned on the television there was at least one member of the famous group of idols, no one could deny that what these girls did was one of the best shows that exist

"Was that a sketch for the next single?" Jurina asked while she finished eating the last bit of the strawberry dessert.

The producer's eyes lit up as if she were seeing the biggest of the diamonds, and somehow Jurina could already foresee what would happen next, she should have thought a bit more before touching the work of Matsui Kyouko

"It is, c’mon take a look. The video will be recorded in Thailand, the girls will be surrounded by fans, and you won’t believe it but some of them will be riding an elephant, also ... " It was at that moment that Rena gave Jurina one of her best murderous gazes, there was no way to stop her mother once she begins talking about her idols.

"Sounds pretty funny" Jurina commented when the woman seemed to have been left without any more to say, at some point she even talked about the B-sides that will be included in the new single.

"I know right, ... by the way, Jurina-chan." At the moment Jurina received the knowing gaze Mrs. Matsui was sending her, Jurina and even Rena who remained silent, knew what would be the next thing to come out from the older woman’s lips. “Wouldn’t you like to join the group? I'm sure the fans would love you, and maybe you can even convince Rena to do so too."

"Please don’t start" Rena's soft voice was heard complaining

"It’s a real waste that that face of yours is not seen by thousands of people" said the older woman as detail the features of Jurina's face, who tried not to be rude by faking with discomfort a half-smile.

"Yes ... I don’t think being idol is my thing" Jurina had already lost count of the number of times she had to reject such offer, there is no more persistent person than Matsui Kyouko.

"You heard her mom, you know that what Jurina wants to study is far from being an idol" Rena tried to come to the rescue of her friend, she’s the first one who has had to deal with her mother's desire to make her an idol throughout her life.

"Pfff I guess I'll give up this time" She said resting her cheeks on her palms, as if of a 5-year-old girl who was denied her favorite candy.

The room was silent for a couple of minutes, both girls just watched as Mrs. Matsui finished drinking her tea while watching each one fixedly for a certain time and then move on to do the same with the other. When the glass was put back on the table, a malicious smile adorned the woman's face

"So?"

"So what?" Rena said when as saw her mother didn’t seem to have the intention to finish the sentence, as if she wanted them to guess what she was thinking.

"You know what I mean" Mrs. Matsui's smile grow more and more.

"No I don’t know, that's why I need you to tell me what you mean" Rena's tone was already irritated and she used all the reserves of patience she had, sometimes it was very exhausting to have a talk with her mother.

Seeing that her daughter and her best friend didn’t seem to take the hint, she had no choice but to give a long sigh and say it directly. "What I want to say is that if finally you two are already dating"

Jurina was completely frozen in her seat, her eyes widened and her heart began to beat a thousand times an hour as if she wanted to run out of that place, trying to control the blood that rose to her cheeks and she didn’t dare to look at Rena. How is that despite hearing the same question every time she visits Rena's mother, she still can’t avoid having the same reaction.

"Kyouko-san Rena and I are only friends"

Somehow she replied, hiding her nerves with a half-smile. Once Jurina came out from the stun of the question, she to turn her face to see Rena, and wasn’t surprised to see that she had not been unfazed, always with an impenetrable expression "Right? Rena” I'm looking for her friend to support her.

Rena didn’t answer, her mind seemed to have traveled elsewhere, her eyes were fixed on her mother's with a frown, as if she wanted to say something to her through these, something probably not very good. For this reason, Jurina had to give Rena a light side stroke to bring her back

"Ah yes, that's right" Rena finally said, and next thing she quickly stood up from her seat and took Jurina by the wrist "We will go to my room, there are some animes I want to show to Jurina" Rena then began to pull her friend upstairs, looking to escape from the heavy, incredulous look of her mother that laid on their backs.

Jurina didn’t dared to say anything to Rena once they got to her room, the long-haired one seemed to be in a bad mood, the heavy footsteps she made as they climbed the stairs and the way she subtly grumbled as she searched through her movie collection, gave all the necessary signals to Jurina to know that it was better to give Rena some space for a moment.

"Don’t get mad at your mother, it's not like she has bad intentions, it's just her curiosity talking" Jurina dared to speak once she saw Rena seemed a little calmer. Jurina sat on the edge of the bed once Rena had found the movie she was looking for "To be honest I don’t feel so uncomfortable when she asks that kind of things" Jurina kept saying as Rena placed the small disc in the player "I mean, I already know how your mother is" She was running out of arguments, but when Rena turned her body towards her she could release a sigh of relief when she saw that her friend’s face was now relaxed.

"I know that, it's just that ... sometimes she talks a bit more than enough" Rena laid down next to Jurina with the remote control between her hands to start the film, which showed the Ghibli studio logo on the screen "Right now I just want to see The memory of Marnie"

The youngest didn’t object, on the contrary, she placed her head in Rena's lap, who began to caress her hair. That was their favorite position whenever they saw movies, Jurina enjoyed the caresses of Rena, while the later loved to bury her fingers in the silky hair of her best friend.
*
*
*
Jurina gently patted Rena's back, who kept sobbing in her arms "Come on Rena, how is it possible that after watching this movie so many times you still cry" Jurina tried to comfort her, but it had already been five minutes since the credits at the end of the movie had ended and Rena still didn’t calm down. It was amazing to see how Rena, who is impossible to decipher their thoughts and is completely imperturbable, could break into tears so easily when anime was about.

Little by little her breathing began to calm down and finally the tears had stopped. "It's my favorite movie, you can’t expect me not to cry every time I see it." Rena justified herself.

Even if it was no longer necessary, Rena remained in Jurina's arms, she liked to hear the beating of her heart, and somehow her body relaxed, there was no need to say anything, silence is not uncomfortable only if it is with Jurina "Airi asked for my phone number yesterday" She said after a moment, and for some reason she felt as Jurina's heart began to beat stronger.

"That's a good thing" It was the only answer she got "And did she already texted you something?"

"She did, but I'm not good at texting, I think she thinks I'm bored." She replied as she remembered the previous night, although she did her best, the conversation ended quickly, and is just that Rena becomes the sharpest person when it comes to talking through text messages.

"Don’t worry about that, conversations are more important when you are face to face, and I'm sure Airi will realize how charming you are." Jurina encouraged her as she tightened the grip around her waist.

Rena couldn’t help but laugh, her spirits had risen, and that was something that only Jurina could do.

"Thank you very much, you always have to help me, I feel like I only bring you problems, if at any time you think I'm a nuisance please tell me immediately" Rena couldn’t help feeling embarrassed, she had already lost count of how many times Jurina had got her out of trouble because of her introverted personality.

"Rena, it’s totally okay, you can always count on me," said Jurina, tucking Rena's hair behind her ear.

And once again there was the same expression that Rena put in the afternoon, the one that seemed not to see anything but at the same time as if she saw everything, as if she immersed herself so much in her thoughts that she forgets everything around her.

"Stay here to sleep tonight" Rena suggested without commenting on anything said by Jurina and hiding her face in the neck of the latter "It’s kinda late already, and I'm too comfortable to let you go" She justify your little whim.

"But there’s school tomorrow" Jurina pointed out the small inconvenience.

"I can lend you one of my uniforms, plus you have left clothes here so there's no problem about that"

Jurina was thinking for a moment, but it was impossible to deny something to Rena, and a lot more when she pleads with those big eyes of hers "Just let me call my mother" Concluded after a sigh.


She finish arranging the last canvas in the corner of the room and turn to check one last time that everything was in place. She took a look at the time on her wrist watch, there were still fifteen minutes left till the bell that would indicate the beginning of the classes rings. She didn’t know why but she always preferred the lonely mornings to give free rein to all her creativity, being surrounded by many people her imagination used to get blocked, so she always resorts to drawing self-portraits and practicing in its different techniques.

She approached the window from where she had the best view to the entrance of the institute, several students came through this one, some in a hurry, others yawning and some with their eyes fixed on the notes of their notebook, reminding her that the exam period is about to start; but it was a luxurious black car that caught her attention. She didn’t know of anyone to whom such an opulent car would bring her in the morning, and even though it parked something away from the entrance, probably to not be noticed, from the top floor of the building where the club room was located could be seen perfectly.

Pray of her curiosity, she fixed her eyes on the car waiting for the person who came out of this, to her surprise it was not one but two students who stuck their heads out of the car. Forcing a bit her eyes she quickly recognized the face of one of them. As she tried to recognize who the other person was, her attention was stolen by a hand that stealthily slipped through her own to entwine their fingers.

"What are you doing? Classes are about to begin," The other girl whispered as her chin rested on her shoulder.

"I just got distracted" She replied without taking her eyes off the other girl who was accompanying the new member of the arts club, until finally when looking through her memories, the name of Matsui Jurina appeared "Akane, do you know Matsui Jurina?"

"Are you kidding?" The other girl looked at her incredulously, but after seeing that her girlfriend's honestly eyes told her that she had no idea who Matsui Jurina was, she had no choice but to explain the obvious to her. "She's probably the most popular girl in the whole school, it's the ace of the tennis club and it's the first place of our course, but since Furukawa Airi is always immersed in nothing but her world, I'm not surprised you do not know her"

Airi listened intently while with her eyes followed the behavior of the two girls, how they shared smiles of things that probably only they understand, the way in which although several girls approached Jurina, she ignored them and continue with her conversation with Rena, as if she were the only person in the world, or at least in hers "Is Matsui Jurina dating Matsui Rena?" She had to ask.

"Well, I'm afraid my dear artist, even though everyone thinks the same, they are just childhood friends," Akane replied with a mocking tone.

"That doesn’t make much sense" Airi was always good at observing people, art has taught her that there is always something beyond what is seen, something that simply can’t be described with words. She continued with her eyes fixed on both of them, and a single glance from one of the Matsui confirmed what her sixth sense told her, and it never made a mistake "I think I've discovered something very interesting" Apparently Matsui Rena is not such a simple person as she had thought at the beginning.

[firebird123]

CHAPTER 4

Jurina had her eyes fixed on the people coming and going on the main street, the pavement seemed to become liquid and it didn’t fit in her head how those men in suits didn’t fall unconscious due to the heat, spring was coming to an end faster than she would have liked. She took a long sip from her drink without taking her eyes off the walking people, almost as if she was enjoying the fact that she was completely fresh inside of the air-conditioned cafe while the people outside melted under the sun.

"Can I know what are you looking at?" Someone else's voice brought her back from her thoughts "You've been looking at people come and go for ten minutes already, maybe your brain has already melted" Jurina turn to see her friend who was sitting in front, not being able to not have to stifle a laugh once again after she saw how her friend had the skin of her arms completely red as Mayu was wearing short sleeves, you could perfectly see the difference in colors.
"I can’t take you seriously when you’re looking like Canada’s flag" The girl sitting in front of her frowned irritated "You’re the most delicate skin person I know Mayu" Jurina had to calm her laughing as her friend was about to throw fire through her eyes, and if there’s something Jurina wants to avoid, is having to deal with Watanabe Mayu angry.

The latter did nothing but sigh and drink from her glass of water

"I hate summer"

She said in a deep voice that almost sounded sinister, which didn’t match at all with Mayu's doll-like appearance, actually nothing from her personality did "Could you tell me already why you made me leave my comfortable and fresh home"

"I just wanted to go somewhere and it's been a long time since we didn’t go out together just the two of us, is that so weird? You know, spend quality time"

Jurina replied quiet naturally, it certainly wasn’t a lie and had no ulterior motives, even so Mayu didn’t seem to be completely convinced with that idea by the way she looked at Jurina with her half closed eyes.

"As far as I know, whenever you want to go out the first one you call is Rena, so sorry if it seems weird that it's just you and me" Mayu pointed out without biting her tongue, to which Jurina couldn’t help but feel a bit surprised with the honesty of her friend "Even more ... lately I see you acting a little weird every time Rena is mentioned, you’re not hiding something, right… Jurina-chan"

Jurina has always hated how keen Mayu is, always managing to unite the loose ends; but to be honest there’s also some moments when she’s actually grateful for that part of Mayu, since it makes easier to communicate with her by not having to tell her everything with hairs and details for Mayu to understand what’s happening.

"You're just imagining it, what if we go to a game center?"

Jurina was quick to change the subject, because she knew that when it comes to Rena she’s always at a disadvantage. She still hadn’t told anyone about the situation of Rena and Airi and how she is in the middle of everything, and she can’t deny that lately she feels a bit strange with the presence of her best friend, even the simple fact of hearing her name it produced a strange sensation that she still couldn’t put in words, for that reason Jurina decided that the best thing would be to spend some time with someone else besides Rena, that way maybe she could clear her mind a bit.

Although Mayu remained clearly skeptical about the whole situation, she couldn’t prevent her eyes from lighting up when she heard game center, suddenly she didn’t care so much about deciphering what Jurina was hiding, because she was definitely doing it, but that could wait since her favorite place was waiting for her "You pay" She said getting up quickly from the table and walking towards the exit.



 
Jurina looked around with a tint of fear in her eyes, her expression was probably just as stunned as the people who were gathering around her. She swallowed loudly when the eyes of what now looked like a beast stared at her from the machine opposite. It hadn’t been more than thirty minutes since they arrived at the game center and they were already the center of attention, well, Mayu was the center of attention. Jurina couldn’t help but be astonished at the sudden change of personality her friend had once they began to play Monster Hunter; the tiny girl wouldn’t stop laughing shamelessly whenever her character killed a monster the same was Jurina had only seen in the movies, and in Mayu’s eyes the voracious desire to win was present.

At some one point Mayu suggested playing Mortal Kombat, and although all of Jurina’s instincts were telling her that she shouldn’t, her competitive soul made her accept, she had to make a mental note to never do it again. All her pride had been dragged across the ground and then thrown to the sharks. Mayu hadn’t let her even reduced half of her life, and apparently it was still long from her to be satisfied, because every time Jurina tried to talk to Mayu to tell her that they should leave or at least play something else that didn’t involve a direct competition, her friend wouldn’t listen and instead reinsert a coin to start another game.

Already tired of being defeated again and again, Jurina took a moment when Mayu took a little longer looking for the other coin, to sneak out of the machine by taking one of those who were watching them play by the shoulders and sitting him on her seat to escape "Good luck buddy, it’s finally your turn".

Taking advantage of her escape, Jurina went to the vending machine to buy any snack, both pressing buttons and seeing her character die again and again had left her hungry, and she still couldn’t leave the place without Mayu, so the best option for her was to find a comfortable couch to be ready for the wait. While she debated what should she buy, someone else stopped by her side in front of the drinks vending machine, luck didn’t seem to be on her side because the other person was neither more nor less than Furukawa Airi, and she didn’t even have the time to try to leave pretending she hadn’t see the artist, because their eyes met the same instant she saw her.

"What a surprise Jurina-san" There was no escape and an uncomfortable situation was imminent at this point, and worst of all, is that Jurina is unable to fake the slightest smile in front of Airi, which became obvious to her when she tried and even without seeing herself in a mirror Jurina knew that she had only managed to make a kind of grimace.

"The same thing I say Furukawa-san" Jurina took advantage that the place didn’t have the best lighting to hide her tense expression that surely was also seen in her eyes "I didn’t know you liked these kind of places" She tried to find a topic of conversation, hoping that the other will also strive to end this encounter as fast as they can.

"In fact I’m a videogames lover, it's my other passion aside from manga and anime, you could say that I bring the complete otaku package" The artist answered while taking her drink out of the machine "To be honest I really didn’t expect it coming from you, don’t take it wrong, but you seem more like the kind of person who prefers to be surrounded by many people at a karaoke party than by video games geeks" Airi said looking at Jurina sideways and then taking a long drink.

Jurina couldn’t do more than laugh, a laugh that clearly could be seen that was to try to keep away the silence. Although it’s not like Airi is completely wrong, certainly she often goes to Karaoke or other places more frequently but it’s only because she gets invite, the truth is that she prefers simply to be with her true friends regardless of the place

"It's Mayu who really enjoys videogames a lot, so that's why we decided to come here, but don’t get me wrong, I also enjoy it"

"Mmmmm"

Airi didn’t comment on the last thing said, which led to the point that Jurina so much wanted to avoid, in which the only sound between both were the potatoes that Jurina was eating and the machines, even you could hear the gas that came out from the artist's drink "And where's Mayu?" Airi managed put an end to the awkward silence.

"Probably ending with the illusions of the other players, you don’t want to play Mortal Kombat with her unless you want to be humiliated" Jurina replied trying to be a little funny, but failing miserably "I can’t keep up with her, so I'll just wait till she gets tired so we can leave"

"I see ..."

And once again there was nothing more but silence between them. Jurina thought that it already seemed like a good moment to get out of there, but Airi seemed to have other plans. "How about you and I play something, for the amount of people I see gathered around Mortal Kombat, it doesn’t seem that Mayu will finish any time soon?" She suggested looking her in the eyes, that way the artist could see that Jurina didn’t actually seem very excited about the idea “It won’t be anything serious, just an Air Hockey game, what do you say?"

Jurina had to think for a second, the desire that was beginning to born within her to beat Airi was something she hadn’t felt even in the most important tennis finals match and it wasn’t normal. She wanted to step over the artist and show her that she was better. Jurina still didn’t understand why and somehow she was afraid of that strong and somehow foreign feeling, so she hesitated to accept immediately, but at the end she had to do it or she won’t be able to sleep well tonight

"Sure, I don’t see why not"

The tension between them was already at the clouds by the time they reached the Air Hockey machine, which to their luck was completely empty as well as its surroundings, it could be assumed that Mayu attracted all the attention of the place and that's something Jurina appreciated.

The game started quietly, Jurina didn’t hit the disc very hard not wanting to show her true intentions because even she found them alien, but she could tell Airi was also holding her strength, as if at the slightest neglect their true emotions and thoughts could come to light. Slowly but steadily the blows to the disc began to intensify, neither of the two allowing theirselves to loosened nor being intimidated by the other.

"Can I ask you something Jurina-san?" Airi spoke in the middle of the game and without taking her eyes off of this one "It's something that really intrigues me"

Jurina was already getting impatient, she didn’t know how much longer she could stay controlled, Airi turned out to be better than she expected "Go ahead" She answered without losing concentration, a single oversight and there was no doubt that the artist would score.

"I've noticed that you're very close with Rena-san" The artist started by saying and just by hearing Rena’s name Jurina's blood began to boil inside her veins, and she could already predict that nothing good was going to come out of this "Do you like her?" Just by hearing those words coming out from Airi's mouth it could be hear the tinkle that indicated a score point, and by the stunned expression of Jurina you could know who had scored.

The taller one had to use all her concentration to get her mind back in the game, that question had taken her off guard, but now that she's losing she didn’t intend to keep on holding

"I think you're misunderstanding our relationship" She began to explain once she returned to the game "We’re friends from childhood and I have always taken care of her, that's it" Somehow those words tasted bittersweet, as if something inside her didn’t agree.

By changing the pace suddenly, Jurina could take advantage that Airi didn’t expect it and mark the point that would put them again tied. The game resumed again and you could see that neither of them was repressing anything any longer

"Listening to that gives me peace of mind" Airi said while Jurina could feel like a kind of anger was beginning to be born within her "I was afraid to approach her because of that".

"What are you implying?" Jurina was already reaching a level of irritation high enough that she couldn’t control it, because from the latch of her eye she could see a smile accompanying Airi's lips, and that made her even more angry. Jurina didn’t quite understand why she felt that way and she didn’t even care to know, the only thing she knew was that she didn’t like it.

"Rena-chan is really pretty, isn’t she?" Despite everything, Airi seemed to keep her composure, while Jurina was already reaching her limit and at any moment all her thoughts would explode.

"Would you mind getting to the point please?" Jurina's patience was running out every time Airi said Rena's name. She had to win she had to do it, the game was so fierce that Jurina could barely see the disc and it were her instincts that made her body move.

"There’s no point, now that I know you're not in my way I have the free way to act" The other admitted shamelessly making Jurina flying off the handle, reaching the point where she hit the disc so hard that impact took it out of the barriers; but still none of them seemed to have the intention of going to pick it up, on the contrary their eyes were fixed on those of the other, their eyes were merciless, there was no longer room to pretend to be friends

"I hope to have your approval" Airi smiled cheekily then took a look at her cell phone, from which she read a message that Jurina clearly couldn’t see from her position "I have to go, it was good to talk to you, see you later Jurina-san"

Jurina stayed in her place watching the artist move away more and more quickly until she was completely out of sight. Her knuckles were white due to the force she was imprinting on hier fist and her jaw tensed, Jurina hadn’t noticed but her breathing was also agitated, in less than 10 minutes the artist had completely disturbed her, since despite the fact that game had ended in a draw, Jurina clearly had lost.




Airi walked quickly through the crowd trying not to collide with anyone, she had lost for a moment the notion of time and had completely forgotten about Akane, who was waiting a few blocks up. Finally and after inevitably having crashed with at least five people, Air could see her girlfriend sitting on a bench looking at the cell phone and playing with her foot restlessly.

"I'm sorry Churi, I'm really sorry." Airi was short of breath due to the small rush and the fact that they were at 29 degrees didn’t help either. The other girl stood up when she saw her arrive, luckily she didn’t seem to be upset.

"It was only 10 minutes, don’t worry" Akane smiled and thanks to this Airi could be more calm "But it's strange from you to be late, what were you doing?" Her girlfriend asked curiously as they intertwine their hands and began to take their way to the movie theater.

As she remembered the past 20 minutes, Airi couldn’t help but bring her free hand to her eyes, things went of her hands. Airi didn’t intend to take the conversation to those extremes with the younger Matsui and she has to admit that once things calm down, she will have to apology to Jurina-san

"I think I did something I shouldn’t" She said as she massaged her temple, there was no going back, she would have to continue with whatever she just started. She is consoled only by the fact that she has no bad intentions, in fact, it was the completely opposite.

"Let me guess... you got involved in someone else's relationship" Akane said with a mocking smile, she knew her girlfriend too well to even know which movie she would choose.

Airi couldn’t do more than nod her head. She had nothing to hide from Akane, nor did she intend to do so, they have been together for a long time and she proudly can say that they are in that level of confidence that only some privileged couples can reach.

"I couldn0t help it," Airi admitted.

"Just don’t get into trouble, okay?" Said her girlfriend as she laid a quick kiss on her cheek, thing that helped to calmed down, "Sometimes you don’t know your limits. And well, tell me what is happening "

Airi smiled, although Akane doesn’t want to admit it, she's as meddling as Airi "I think you already know half the story"




"It’s been a while since I have so much fun" Commented Mayu stretching her limbs that wer somewhat numb due to the long time she spent sitting. At the moment she and Jurina were on their way to a McDonals, the night was already beginning to fall and both were hungry and not willing to cook "Although I think I should have bet, I would’ve earned enough to buy a new game"

"Aham" It was the only answer she got from the taller one, who didn’t seem to be entirely focused on the conversation, in fact, she didn’t seem to be concentrated not even on the road.

"I also made you dust" Mayu said trying to make her friend react, Jurina has always hated losing so Mayu never fails to take the opportunity to mess with her when she manages to beat her.

"Yes ..." But provoke her didn’t have any effect either.

"I'm sorry I made you wait so long" She then tried to apologize, maybe Jurina was just mad at her, although the probability of that happening was lower than winning the lottery, she has never seen Jurina angry before.

"Ok" Now Mayu did started to worry, this definitely wasn’t normal.

"Jurina ... you're stupid"

"Aham"

"You’re terrible at tennis"

"Aham"

"You’ll give me your entire Kill la Kill collection, including the special limited edition"

"Yea- wait no, of course not that will never happen" Finally Mayu managed to bring Jurina back to earth.

"What’s going on? You've been like that since we left the game center, when I went to look for you, you didn’t have the best of the faces" Mayu said remembering the terrifying look on Jurina's eyes.

"It's nothing you should worry about" The tallest replied with that stupid smile that she clearly doesn’t want to do, that's something that always makes Mayu angry, the fact that Jurina is unable to think about herself and always pretend around everyone, she still remembers how because of that she didn’t used to like Jurina at the beginning "Get us a combo number two, I'll go to the second floor to find a table, find me there"

And then Jurina leaved her with the words on the tip of her tongue once they enter the place, Mayu has always preferred not to meddle in other people’s problems, but something tells her that this time she should insist. But right now she had no choice but to stay in line. Once with the tray with the tray on her hands, Mayu went up to the second floor where she quickly found Jurina due to the place was almost empty.

They ate in complete silence. Mayu kept on debating with herself and with her principles if she should bring the subject once again, to say something like I'm your friend Jurina you can always count on me, but that was never going to happen, it was way too cheesy for her to even try to say it.

"Mayu" At the end it was Jurina who spoke up first "What do you think about Furukawa Airi?" The sudden question left Mayu somewhat dumbfounded, she expected everything but that the artist would be mentioned, after all, what does she had to do with Jurina.

"W-well, I admire her work, I've seen her drawings and they’re quite amazing"

"I mean to what kind of person she is"

"I don’t know her to that point, I only know she's a very reserved person, despite of having everything to be one of the most popular girls, she prefers to keep a low profile, that's all I can tell you." She answered with the only thing that she actually knew; Mayu has never been interested enough on the girl to look for a more intimate relationship beyond simple acquaintances.

"I see ..." Vaguely said Jurina as she took the last potato into her mouth.

"Does she have anything to do with you?" Mayu asked, this seemed like the right path to start knowing what was happening with her friend.

"Perhaps. I should go home now, I don’t want to be too late "

Mayu had no choice but to agree, at least she could get a small clue.




Jurina arrived at her house around eight o'clock, her father probably had already returned from work and was already asleep, so she tried to make as little noise as possible by opening the door and removing her shoes. Stealthily she walked down the corridor was under darkness; but as she passed by the kitchen, Jurina saw her mother who was preparing some tea, she then changed the direction of her steps and approached the older Matsui.

"Hi mom," Said after quick peck on her forehead. "You don’t have to make me dinner, I've already had something with Mayu," Jurina informed her.

"Did you have a good time?" Hier mother asked with a smile.

"Yeah, it's always fun to see Mayu"

"By the way, Rena-chan called you recently" Jurina froze at the mention of Rena, as it reminded her of the small meeting she had with Airi a few hours ago.

"Okay, thanks for letting me know" Without saying anything else, she headed her steps once more to her room on the second floor.

Jurina let her body fall heavily on her softness of her bed’s mattress, she wouldn’t mind falling asleep there and now, but her murky thoughts wouldn’t let her. In one hand was the theme of Airi and Rena, and on the other was Mayu. Jurina was well aware she had made her friend worry and that made her lose her own peace.

She rummaged her pockets in search of her cell phone, and indeed she had a call from Rena. Jurina couldn’t help but smile when she saw the photo she had assigned for Rena’s contact; in this the girl was peacefully asleep, it was a photo that Jurina managed to take the other day that she stayed to sleep on Rena's house and she had fallen asleep on her shoulder in the middle of a movie; when the other Matsui saw it, she forced Jurina to delete it, but little Rena knew that Jurina had sent it to Mayu as backup.

"I'm sorry, I didn’t hear it when you call me, I've been somewhat distracted"

Jurina wrote a text message and it didn’t past more than five minutes when her cell phone began to ring "So big is your desire to hear my voice that you couldn’t wait until tomorrow?” She playfully replied to the call.

"Ha-ha-ha" She heard Rena's delicate voice over the phone and for some reason she felt her body begin to relax "Where were you Matsui? I was looking for you "

"I went out with Mayu, did you need me for something?"

Rena sighed and Jurina could already imagine her frowning. "My mother asked me to help her with her work, I thought maybe I could use the excuse that I already had plans with you but I guess you'll know how all ends’"

Jurina laughed sincerely imagining her "Let me guess ... she forced you to wear one of the new costumes" She didn’t get an immediate response from Rena, which actually helped her to easily confirm her theory that then made her increase her laughter.

"Don’t make fun of me, it was very embarrassing. My mom dragged me with the pretext that she needed a model urgently and didn’t have time to call anyone else" Rena said in a whiny and plaintive tone "It was only when I took off the costume that she admitted it was a lie, I guess the guilt made her accept it”

"That's something I would like to see, you must have a picture right." Knowing Rena's mother, she had probably taken so many photos as to make an album.
"Well, yes ... but don’t hope I'll send you one, you'll just make fun of me"

"I won’t I promise"

Silence was heard for a couple of seconds, to then be interrupted by a heavy sigh from Rena

"Okay, wait" No more than a minute passed when Jurina received the message "Don’t you dare to send it to anyone else"

Jurina ignored what Rena had said and hurried to see the picture. She was paralyzed for a few seconds, and there were those irregular beats again and that silly smile that curved her lips. Rena looked like a whole idol, she had a light makeup that made her long lashes and pink lips stand out, her skirt allowed her elegant and slender legs to take the spotlight and her somewhat shy expression adorned her face.

Without realizing it, the blood began to rise to her cheeks and she had to take a deep breath to calm her heart, what’s happening with her it’s just Rena.

"You look truly beautiful." The mocking tone had completely disappeared and the words slipped without her even notice it, but if she was honest with herself, even the words could not describe how dazzling Rena looked.

"You just say it to make me feel good," Rena said in a low voice.

"I'm serious… very seriously" There was nothing but silence on the other side of the line, Jurina would pay to see what kind of expression Rena had at the moment, but she had to settle for listening to her breathing

“I have to go now, mom’s calling me for dinner" And with that, Rena quickly hang up, and Jurina might imagine it but she thought she felt a bit of nervousness in Rena's voice, but the odds for that to happen were pretty low.

Jurina turned to fix her eyes on the ceiling, her body felt lighter and she no longer had that feeling of helplessness and anger, it was amazing how a simple conversation with Rena could raise her spirits, this and considering everything that happened through the day, made Jurina wonder who really depended on who.