Lazy to reply to all the comments, mostly because a crazy group chat on AIM is sapping my attention.
Next chapter of the Nanchatte Renai series~
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Bridge"Itai!"
Glaring after the obviously foreign person that had so rudely barged past me, brows furrowed into a thick line, I pursed my lips in a disapproving frown. No, don't make fun of my eyebrows. I know what you want to say.
Regardless, I dust myself off carefully and pull my bag tighter into myself. It felt strange to be in Tokyo on my own, without an escort. Well, Yokohama wasn't a small city either, so I wasn't exactly a country bumpkin unused to the hustle and bustle of city life, but Tokyo seemed a lot more
concentrated somehow. It wasn't too unnerving, but it
was different.
Ai-chan must have been so out of her depth when she first came to Tokyo... I smile to myself at the thought, remembering the quietly boisterous soul I had met so many years ago, thanks to my cousin. I might be slightly provincial, that much I would admit, but Ai-chan had always been a country girl. Granted, she had been living on her own in Tokyo for the last 5 years, but to me, she would always be the same girl I met at my cousin's place 7 years ago. A little different, a little unsure, but always stubborn and determined to do whatever she had decided on.
Ah, forgive the digression; I have yet to introduce myself, haven't I?
My name is Niigaki Risa, age 19. What am I doing in Tokyo? Well, let's just say that I wanted to try living a life somewhat independent of my family. My very rich, very influential family.
I suppose if I had really wanted, I could have lived out my life in idle, protected luxury in Yokohama, or anywhere else, for the rest of my life. I would never have to lift a finger to do honest work should I chose not to. That was the extent of my family's wealth, and more.
I was one of several children in the extended Niigaki family, born to the second wife. Yes, second wife. Apparently the first one died of illness. Guess even us rich folks aren't immune to mortal concern. My father remarried shortly after the demise of the first, and I was the result.
I suppose being one of the legitimate children had its perks. For one thing, we could live on the estate, or in any one of the many residences scattered around Japan. We also had the benefit (and curse) of bearing the Niigaki name, which could open many doors in society, but also burden us with the family's image.
Fortunately, I had mostly lived my life out of the public eye, since I was less given to outrageous acts that grabbed the headlines of gossip magazines eager to spill the beans about the lives of wealthy socialites.
Then again, despite my lack of newsworthy shenanigans that would make headlines, I did have a less than publicised secret that would almost instantly catapult me into fame (or infamy) should it ever be discovered.
For I was dating a girl. And not just any girl. Hers was a face that had graced many a magazine cover, and was the front for many other ads. Not only that, she had a budding acting career as well, so I could still see her on screen even when she was too busy to come visit me due to work.
Yes, her name is Takahashi Ai, and we've been dating for little more than a year. I would never have thought as a child that I would grow up to have same-sex tendencies, but life did have a way of throwing curve balls at people. And Ai-chan was one of those shots I never saw coming until I turned a corner and it hit me in my face.
Like I said, I have already known her for many years, before she had ever decided to head out to Tokyo for a career in showbiz. Technically though, the truth was that I met her
after she had decided that her life belonged to the stage, since she was already training rather intensely in dance, and was a member of the choir when I first saw her at my cousin's house.
I'll confess that I wasn't too impressed when I first saw her. She was small, but then again I wasn't very much bigger at the time either. She was older, but acted almost like a child. She also looked
and sounded very much like a country bumpkin, and for someone who was raised in an elite family like I was, she seemed like a joke. At that time, I had wondered what a person like that was doing in my cousin's home. I'm ashamed to admit that my first assumption of her was that of a servant.
To later find out that not only was she
not a servant, but also a friend and schoolmate of my cousin, came as a shock to me. Give me a break; I was 12 at the time. Besides, who would have thought that a country girl like her would have made it into the Sugiyama escalator school system? A private academy like that was only open to those who were rich or otherwise incredibly accomplished.
As I was to find out, Ai-chan might not have been rich, but she
was accomplished. Whatever she had, she earned through her own efforts. She was not particularly talented in her studies, though she did reasonably well in academics through a lot of hard work. Most of her focus though, had always been in the performing arts. It had been on that basis alone that she had been admitted into the school, and she always made sure that she deserved her place there, according to my cousin.
I might not have been impressed with her at first sight, but I eventually grew attracted to her sheer difference, like a breath of fresh air into my stuffy private life. The fact that we had totally different upbringings was a bit awkward right at first, but we worked around it eventually.
Though I'll admit that the way she would budget for things amused me to no end back when we were younger. Now, I view it as no more than just another adorable quirk that she had, part of that precocious bundle that was wholly
mine.
Granted, I didn't get to see her very often, it being mostly a long distance relationship at best. I guess if I had really wanted, I could have gone to Tokyo everyday just to see her, but Ai-chan had wanted to avoid scandal. I could see where she was coming from, and I was myself just as eager to avoid being on the front page of a tabloid.
Shaking myself out of my thoughts, I decided against braving the hassle of public transport and flagged down a taxi. Ai-chan had work at the moment, which was why I was out on my own in the first place.
The first two weeks of being in this new place had been a little unusual, to say the least, and was compounded by the fact that I still rarely got to see Ai-chan at all. She was still as much of a workaholic now as she had been back then, and the fact that she was also busy rehearsing for an upcoming play meant that I ended up spending more time at home than she did in these two weeks. Not that I stayed in there on my own a lot, given that I was mostly out browsing around and taking my time looking for a job. I didn't
need a job, but I wanted something to do. That was why I was here in the first place.
There was another reason why I wanted to be here though. I wanted to see her,
be with her, instead of feeling like we were simply cell phone girlfriends that exchanged sweet messages without ever meeting face to face.
It had all come from a very innocent question from my cousin, she being the only one who knew about my clandestine relationship with Ai-chan.
Do you know what she does outside of work?The question had given me pause; what
does Ai-chan do outside of work? I was well-informed about her work...as well-informed as any of her fans, that is. That annoyed me to no end, for some reason. I was her
girlfriend, for goodness sake. I should know things about her that the public doesn't know about! Just the mere thought of it made me indignant, and now here I was.
The things I do for love...
Concrete scenery flashed past the window, carrying my fleeting thoughts with them. The ride was deceptively quick, but then again Ai lived in a prime district, so I hadn't had to travel far to begin with. She must really be doing well to be able to live in such a place.
Distractedly, I paid the fare and step out. The streets were dyed gold in the setting sun, and I check my phone instinctively again. Ai-chan's last mail had said that she would be back earlier today, so I was looking forward to spending some quality time with her.
The trip up was uneventful, and when I finally found myself outside the door of the apartment, I realized something crucially important.
I forgot to bring the keys! The inconvenient part about learning to live outside was the fact that I had to remember all sorts of niggling little details. For someone used to being waited on hand and foot, it was certainly a difficult task.
Pacing around outside the door, I wondered if Ai would be long in returning. It would be awful to have to wait outside like a fool. I was just about to shoot off a quick mail to ask her about that, when the sound of a footstep behind me made me turn around.
It was not Ai-chan, but someone about the same size as her. Every inch of her somehow screamed "yankii", and she was looking at me with one raised eyebrow, as if I was some kind of interesting specimen. I was ready to turn back and ignore her, before I realized that this was the end of the corridor and the only apartment was Ai's...
"So,
you're that Gaki-san." Yankii Girl said out loud, making me jump and stare at her with even wider eyes. How did she know my name? More importantly, how did she know how Ai-chan called me? A friend of Ai-chan? Or a stalker? How could
I have a stalker?
"Ai-chan mentioned you a few times." She replied in answer to my unspoken bafflement. Quirking her lips, she added. "She was right about the eyebrows....and the forehead."
Instinctively, my hand went to cover the aforementioned parts defensively. How rude! I wondered how Ai-chan even got friends like that. This girl was certainly pretty enough, but she had absolutely no breeding.
"Aren't you going in?" She asked me, and I frowned slightly, not wanting to admit that I had forgotten to bring the keys. When I didn't respond, she snorted and shoved past me none too gently, reaching behind a hidden spot to reveal a spare key in her hand.
"How did you..." I blurted out, even as she casually unlocked the door. She ignored me though, and just entered without a backward glance. Grumbling to myself, I followed her in, all while wondering just who this girl was to Ai.
"Just who are you anyway?" I asked her again when we were inside. That insolent yankii put her bag down on the couch, lifting her eyes only briefly to acknowledge my question.
"A friend~" The voice that answered was neither of ours. I turned to see Ai waltzing in as if nothing had happened. Her eyes were bright as she locked gazes with that yankii girl.
"Reina! I haven't seen you in weeks." The girl called Reina huffed quietly and prodded Ai in the shoulder.
"I was busy, and so were you." Her eyes swivelled over quite deliberately to regard me. I suddenly felt quite uncomfortable for some reason. Squishing that feeling, I drew up to them, feeling oddly like a third wheel for some inexplicable reason.
"So who is this exactly?" I ask again, trying to keep my tone polite. Something about this Reina made me uneasy. I wasn't sure why or what though. It was just a feeling.
"Gaki-san, this is my cute kouhai, Reina. We work together sometimes." Ai-chan ruffles Reina's hair playfully, prompting a little growl from the younger girl.
"She's your colleague then..." I say out loud, as if to reassure myself of something, I know not what. They exchange a look, and something unreadable pass between them so fleetingly that I would have missed it, had I not been staring straight at them.
"Ai-chan was my mentor before I debuted officially." Reina added on quietly. There was an undercurrent in her voice that seemed to say volumes, but I was unable to read its content. Ai, on the other hand, had a strange look on her face, an expression I had never seen before.
"Yeah, you were such a wild kid back then..." I seem to be missing half the conversation. Making up my mind to question Ai later, I smile at them. It was a bit forceful, that much I would admit.
Before I could open my mouth, Reina cut in quickly.
"I'm just here to get something, then I'll head out. Wouldn't want to
intrude." There seemed to be a hidden barb in her words, and I think I was the only one who saw Ai-chan grimace slightly at it, since Reina had already turned her back on us to saunter into Ai's room.
"You let your kouhai call you Ai-chan?" I broke the moment with a quick question, and Ai-chan turned to look at me.
"Why not?" At my sceptical look, she hastened on to add.
"Reina's a good kid. Don't judge her by her appearance." My forehead crinkled together some more at the protective tone in her voice. This feeling, was it jealousy? Was I jealous of that rude, scrawny yankii?
As if on cue, Reina emerged from the room while putting on a pair of earrings. I blinked. I had seen those on Ai's dresser before. What was she doing with them?
"Couldn't find these so I came over to look." Reina said offhandedly as she fastened them on. Ai looked amused. I...wasn't sure how my face looked. I think I need a mirror...
"Don't stay out so late, we have a joint shoot tomorrow morning." Ai-chan still had that oddly bemused expression on her face, as if she were elsewhere. Reina smirked.
"I know how to work on short sleep, unlike
you."
They share a grin, Ai's somehow sheepish and Reina's smug, and a muscle twitched in my jaw. I had to take a few deep breaths to keep from clenching my fists. For some reason, Reina's very presence raised all my hackles. It was all I could do to keep from clinging on to Ai-chan immediately to proclaim my territory.
"I'll be off then. See you tomorrow." Reina waved flippantly as she exited. Ai only shook her head at the departing girl, an indulgent smile playing on her lips.
"You two seem close." I stated flatly, crossing my arms. Ai turned back to look at me.
"We've been working together for a while. She's a good friend." Her answer was diplomatic, and her face carefully blank. Which only made me all the more suspicious, but I suppressed my inner jealousy. I didn't want to play the stereotyped part of a jealous girlfriend. That was just...not me.
"Don't pout, Risa-chan~" She suddenly leans in and plants a soft kiss on my nose. I blush, not used to the intimacy. I might have made the first move in confessing, but I had never initiated much of any intimate contact. I think we've only gone as far as kissing and a bit of groping, but never further than that.
I was still a little shy about going that far, but I had mentally prepared myself for the eventuality that something might happen since I was staying with her. After all, wasn't it normal for couples to be intimate? I certainly didn't want to be some sort of a prude...
"I think I'll go make dinner now." She withdraws, and I can't help but feel mildly disappointed.
"Do you want help?" I ask, trailing behind her. She shoves at me lightly, making me sit down on the couch.
"No way, I want my kitchen intact afterwards!"
"Hey I'm not that bad!"
"Oh really? I still remember what happened the last time when we were over at Sayu's house..."
I flush. "That was Sayu's fault!"
She laughs at me, tapping her finger lightly at the centre of my forehead. The uneasiness I felt from before evaporates, and I look up at her in anticipation.
"Can I have your omu-rice???"
"Sure thing. Just stay put."
Her smile washes away my doubts, and she rewards me with another kiss on the forehead before entering the kitchen. I watch her with adoring eyes. I'm really lucky to have such a wonderful girl by my side.
And I'm never going to let anyone take her away from me.
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There.
A Gaki chapter.
*flees*