@JFC -
@strawb3rrykream - Eri pwns everyone...even Chuck Norris
@SxY - Possibly?
Read and find out! Thanks.
@Sancho - OMG I was wondering when somebody was going to mention that saying!
@Haruka - I'm hoping to expand the main focus in each chapter the further into the story I get, so tyr and stick with me until then
@Hamzy - I wonder who you
want to support. Hehe, Miki the perv strikes again?
@r-h (ringo-hime)- Thanks, hopefully more Miki will appear
Sorry for the wait! Everytime I tried to write I kept drawing a blank but today I sat down and said to myself "Yosh, today I'm going to write the next chapter!" and I did
So, yeah, I'm pretty happy
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Second Thoughts
“You’ll be fine; you just stretched a muscle,” Miki said patting Eri’s leg.
“Thank-you, Fujimoto-sensei,” Eri replied.
“Please, you don’t need the ‘sensei’. I’m only four years older than you.”
“O-Okay, Fujimoto-s-san?” Eri tried. Miki smiled.
“Great, then I’m going to call you Kamei-chan.”
Eri nervously fidgeted on the bench. Was the teacher coming on to her?
“You know, you’re really fast at running. You should try out for the track and field team,” Miki suggested while crouching down in front of Eri.
“I’m not sure…”
“Come on, you’d be a great addition! Just come to one of the try-out’s. If you don’t like it then you don’t have to join,” Miki persuaded with an innocent voice.
Eri looked at Miki and felt her face blush.
‘
She’s so pretty.’
“Well?”
“W-When are the try-out’s?” Eri asked.
“Tomorrow.”
“So soon?”
“Yeah… there’s a tournament coming up so we want to train the team as much as possible before then,” Miki explained.
“Mmm… Well, I’m not busy tomorrow, so I suppose I can come…,” Eri trailed off nervously.
“Great! I can’t wait,” Miki happily exclaimed as she stood up.
“Are you the coach?” Eri asked.
“Yeah, Yoc-chan is as well. Why?”
“I-I was just wondering!”
Miki eyed Eri who attempted to smile innocently.
“Oh, really?”
“H-Hai!”
“So you aren’t just afraid to have me as your coach?”
“N-No, not all!”
Miki stroked her hand across Eri’s flushed cheeks. Eri froze at the touch.
“You’re really cute.”
Miki backed away from Eri and began to walk away as she held up a hand.
“See ya tomorrow.”
Eri let out a sigh as soon as Miki was out of sight.
‘
Why am I getting so flustered? She’s my teacher!’
Leaning herself against the wall behind her, Eri relaxed. She knew that she needed to be careful around that teacher.
“Eri~!”
Eri lifted up her head and looked at Sayumi who came bouncing in.
“You seem awfully happy,” Eri commented as her best friend sat down next to her.
“What are you talking about?” Sayumi asked, her smile never leaving her face.
“You spoke with Ryou, didn’t you?”
“Ehehehe.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“Good job today, make sure you sleep well tonight,” Abe advised right after the final bell of the school day rang releasing students. Placing several books and papers on top of each other Abe picked them up and began to leave the room.
“Oh, don’t forget up clean-up duties!” she reminded.
Everybody stopped what they were doing to look at the board to see the two people who were on duty. Sighs of relief could be heard when students realized that they weren’t the cleaners for the day. Eri joined them and sighed in relief. She had already done so much today that the dormitory room seemed like a haven now. Quickly and messily, Eri stuffed her work into her bag and rushed out of the classroom. Reaching the stairs within seconds, Eri grabbed the handle and began to ascend the stairs. She rushed by people who gave her odd looks as she barely touched them. Taking off her school shoes, Eri grabbed her outdoor ones and slipped them on. She tapped her shoes on the ground to make sure that they were comfortably on her feet.
“I wonder if it’s locked…,” Eri wondered out loud as she thought of the observatory.
Sliding her school shoes into her shoe locker, Eri dashed out of the main building and reached the observatory in a minute. Reaching out for the door handle, Eri pulled it and the door once again opened.
“E-Excuse me… is anyone here?” she asked the darkness. She was greeted with silence.
Stepping into the run-down building, Eri gently closed the old door behind her and walked the same way she had in the morning. She stretched her hands out looking for the switch that turned on the stars. Running her fingers over the button, Eri pushed it. A loud whirring was heard before light beams shot out onto the ceiling. Eri smiled as she sat down and titled her head back. A small yawn escaped her mouth.
“High-school is tiring…”
Looking around before she lay down, Eri double checked that no-one was around. She lay down on the curved bench and stared up at the stars. Her mind whirled in memories as she closed her eyes. Suddenly, she could feel the soft green grass tickle her. She could feel the cool summer night breeze. She could feel her head lie on her mother’s lap as she stared up at the speckled sky. The soothing sound of her mother singing her song calmed her as tears slowly fell from her eyes.
‘
Far, far away, there’s a swaying sea of rice grains
Raise the sails, raise the sails, and go to the memories that we aimed for
Do we still remember all of the sad things up to today, or have we forgotten them?’
“Mama…come back…” Eri pleaded the woman through her tears. The woman didn’t look at Eri or even acknowledge that she existed. Eri reached out her hands.
“Papa… I miss you too…” Eri said to the man next to her. Again, no reply.
“Is it my fault that you died?” Eri breathlessly asked them. Tears began to overflow from Eri’s eyes when her mother only continued to sing.
‘
Even in our little hands, since when has there been strength that’s overtaking us?
We walked from the days when we cried beneath the ripe grapes.
Even if our hands are small, even if we’re separated, we’ll go down this road.
On the day that will come sometime, we’ll treasure our greatest memories.’Blurred images were all that Eri could see through her tears.
“I love you…”
Slowly drifting away from her paradise, the one place where her parents were alive, Eri couldn’t help but feel at ease. She had seen her parents, even if they hadn’t replied to her, and that was all that mattered to her. Inhaling, a sweet smell filled her nose. Her eyes fluttered open. Her whole body stiffened at what she could see. Looking up, she realised whose lap she was lying on. She realised who was singing
her song.
“That’s
my song,” she breathed out.
“
The seasons shift-“
The boy looked down at the now awake Eri. Her breath caught. The two stared at each other for minutes, neither one sure how to react.
“It’s about time you woke up, sleepy,” the boy remarked. Eri puffed her cheeks.
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means that you’ve been sleeping for a while now.”
“Eh? Really?” Eri asked in disbelief, “How long?”
The boy glanced at his watch.
“I’d guess about nearly three hours now,” he said.
“Three hours?!” Eri exclaimed shooting up from his lap.
“You’re really an idiot, aren’t you,
Kamei-san,” the boy said, putting a mocking emphasis on the way he addressed her.
"Why are
you here,
Ryou-kun?” Eri asked while fighting back. If he was going to be rude to her, then why couldn’t she be rude to him?
“To watch the stars. Why else?!”
“Oh, I don’t know, because you came here to annoy me?!”
Both students glared at each other. Ryou broke the contest by smiling. Eri blushed.
“
What?” she asked, questioning his random behaviour. He looked up at the ceiling.
“You know, no-one ever really bats an eye to the beauty of the night sky anymore.”
Looking at a relaxed Ryou, Eri felt herself relax as well.
“Maybe if stars only ever appeared every couple hundred of years, don’t you think people would appreciate them more?” Ryou asked. Eri nodded her head in agreement.
“You’re right…”
“I guess that when you have something there all the time, you never really realise how important it is to you until it disappears.”
Eri’s parents flashed through Eri’s head.
“…Have you ever lost something important?” Eri asked curiously. Ryou looked at Eri for a second before looking back up at the stars. In that mere second, Eri felt as if she could feel his pain and loneliness. She saw a weakness in this boy.
“Yes,” was all Ryou replied.
Seeing his pained eyes, Eri didn’t press him any further and simply joined him in star gazing.
“Why did you run away earlier?” Ryou asked breaking the silence. Eri felt her body begin to go stiff again.
“Taiyou-kun thought that he had insulted you,” Ryou informed the girl.
“He didn’t offend me! Not at all!” Eri burst out.
“Then why did you run away?”
Silence.
“..
Because I was embarrassed,” Eri timidly replied.
“Embarrassed? Why?”
“Because he drew something so beautiful; it wasn’t me.”
“It was you alright,” Ryou assured the girl. Eri shook her head.
“I’m not beautiful. I’m boring.”
“No, you’re not!” Ryou blurted out. Eri stared at the boy in shock. A blush made its way onto Ryou’s face.
“…Y-You have a c-cute face,” he admitted while never making eye contact with Eri. A smile shaped Eri’s lips.
“T-Thank-you, Ryou-kun,” Eri shyly appreciated.
An awkward silence yet again fell upon the pair. Ryou suddenly stood up making Eri slightly jump.
“Come with me,” Ryou ordered as he grabbed Eri’s bag and her arm.
“Ehh?!” Eri squealed in shock. She began to stumble after Ryou who had a firm yet gentle grip on her arm.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
They left the observatory and Ryou took them through a back door into the main school building. Eri felt her heart race and a nervous sweat form on her neck. She had never been this alone and close with a boy. After climbing up a few flights of stairs, Ryou pushed a door open and the pair walked through the door onto the fourth floor. Still holding his grip on Eri’s arm, Ryou led them down the hall to one of the classrooms. Eri instantly realised where they were.
“The art classroom,” Eri said in recognition. Ryou nodded his head. Pulling the door open, Ryou pulled Eri into the room. He placed her on one of the seats.
“Wait here.”
He finally let go of her arm as he walked into the storage room. Eri nervously fidgeted as she waited for Ryou to reappear. The sound of Ryou moving different things about echoed throughout the two rooms. Holding a canvas, Ryou appeared. Placing the canvas down on the stand in front of Eri, Ryou backed away. He then disappeared back into the storage room. Eri stared at the back of the blank canvas. Seconds later Ryou appeared with a handful of pencils, chalks, charcoals and drawing materials.
“What are you doing exactly?” Eri asked as Ryou sat down in front of the canvas, blocking him from Eri’s view.
“I’m going to draw you of course. What else do you think I’m doing?” Ryou questioned.
“Huh? Why?” Eri protested standing up. Ryou’s head peered out from behind the canvas.
“Because I want to. Now, sit down. I can’t have you jumping all over the place,” Ryou scolded as he disappeared behind the canvas again.
“Fine. But if you’re going to draw me then at least let me see you so that I don’t feel like I’m talking to no-one!” Eri wailed. Ryou sighed but gave in and turned himself and the canvas at an angle.
“Happy?”
Eri nodded her head.
“Ok.”
Ryou began to sketch the main silhouette of Eri as she determinedly sat still.
“You want me to draw that face?”
Eri pouted.
“Taiyou-kun said the same thing! Is there something wrong with my face?” Eri moaned. Ryou laughed.
“Well, I don’t think that
this face,” Ryou said as he copied her face, “would make a good portrait.”
Eri blushed in embarrassment.
“My face does
not look like that!”
“It does!”
Eri and Ryou both laughed.
“You know, you’re not so bad,” Ryou commented. Eri pouted then smiled.
“You too.”
Eri glanced out the window and felt her smile grow even bigger.
“It’s a really beautiful sunset, isn’t it?”
“It is…”
Eri turned back to Ryou.
“I love the sun and the sky. They always cheers people up; no matter where in the world, the sky and the sun are the same.”
Ryou looked at the girl in amazement before smiling back.
“You’re right.”
Eri cutely titled her head to the side, happy that Ryou had agreed with her. Ryou felt his heart skip a beat and he instantly began to sketch Eri.
‘
Beautiful…’ Ryou thought to himself.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Less than an hour later Ryou felt happy with his drawing. He took a deep breath in completion.
“I’m done,” Ryou informed Eri whose eyes instantly lit up in excitement.
“Really? That was quick!”
“Yup. You ready to see it?” Ryou asked. Eri nodded her head quickly. Ryou could help but smirk at the childish side Eri was showing. He picked up the canvas and faced Eri. Eri held her breath. Ryou turned the drawing around so that Eri could see it. Eri’s eyes shot open.
“W-What do you think?” Ryou nervously asked the quiet Eri.
“It’s beautiful…” Eri breathed out. Ryou let out a breath on the inside.
“Is that really me?” Eri asked in disbelief.
“No… this is nothing compared to you,” Ryou said.
Eri stared at the drawing for minutes, examining every detail. Ryou looked out the window at the sun. It was beginning to disappear under the horizon.
“It’s time we left. I don’t want Sayumi worrying about you,” Ryou announced. Eri blinked and took her gaze off of the drawing. She nodded in agreement. Ryou quickly packed up the art appliances and wrapped a cloth around the canvas. Eri picked up her bag while Ryou picked up the canvas under his arm.
“Let’s go.”
Ryou began to walk out of the room until Eri stopped him.
“You’re taking that with you?”
“Yeah, I drew it, so why can’t I take it?” Ryou asked.
“Mmm…”
“Anyways, I’m not planning to take this back to my dorm.”
“Well, why are you taking it?” Eri questioned.
“This is for you. It is a portrait of
you after all,” Ryou explained. Eri felt guilt take over her when she thought of Sayu.
“I-I’m sorry, but I can’t take it,” Eri apologised.
“Why?” Ryou asked confused.
“I…I can’t say…,”
“…Ok. I understand,” Ryou acknowledged. Eri bit her lip; either way she felt guilty.
“It’s not that I don’t like it! I love it!” Eri instantly assured Ryou. He smiled at her.
“Don’t worry, I understand.”
Eri pursed her lips.
“Really, don’t worry. Let’s go.”
Shutting the door behind them, Eri let Ryou go ahead of her.
‘
Sayu…I’m sorry.’
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Eri smiled in satisfaction now that her stomach was full. Luckily for Eri there were still some shops open selling food. Ryou paid for both of their yakisoba’s much to Eri’s dissatisfaction. She had money to pay for the meal; it just hadn’t been with her...
“Ahh, this is my dorm,” Eri informed Ryou as she stopped walking.
“Ok, I’ll see you tomorrow then.”
Ryou began to walk away but Eri called out to him.
“Wait! I have something for you and Taiyou-kun!”
Eri ran over to the boy and pulled some sheets of paper out of her bag.
“Math homework,” Eri explained as Ryou took the papers.
“Math? Ugh…” Ryou complained.
“It’s just a small review type thing, it’s really easy,” Eri told him.
“If you say so. Thanks,” Ryou said. Slowly the two began to get further and further.
“Tell Sayumin I say ‘hi’!” Ryou yelled out to Eri who nodded.
“Only if you tell Taiyou the same message from me!”
Ryou nodded back.
“Night!”
Eri watched the boy walk off before heading into the girls’ dorm and to her room. Opening the already unlocked door, Eri was greeted with a smiling Sayumi.
“I had a feeling that you were back,” Sayumi said as she pulled her friend into the room, closing the door behind her. Eri nervously smiled.
“Where did you go? You just suddenly disappeared at the end of the day…,” Sayumi trailed off.
“Gomen ne, Sayu. I was just looking around the town,” Eri lied.
“Oh…ok! Take me next time though so that we can go shopping!” Sayu exclaimed.
“Of course,” Eri replied. Suddenly Sayumi leaned against Eri.
“You smell of yakisoba,” Sayumi noted.
“Y-Yeah, I bought some on the way home.”
“Mou, I didn’t even eat because I was waiting for you to come back so that we could eat together.”
“Ahh! Sorry…” Eri weakly apologised.
“It’s ok! When Eri’s hungry she eats. When Eri’s sleepy she sleeps. When Eri’s running she’s fast. I’m not going to get in the way of that cycle,” Sayu teased.
Eri smiled and hugged her best friend.
“Eri?”
Sayumi was surprised at the random display of affection.
“I love you, Sayu.”
Sayumi hugged the girl back.
“I love you too, Eri.”
The two girls sat on the bed never once letting go of the girl in their arms.
“Smoochie time!” Sayumi suddenly squealed.
Eri instantly began to try and distance herself from the younger. Sayumi leaned into Eri and tried to kiss her but Eri kept dodging the attack.
“Just
one kiss!” Sayumi playfully pleaded. Starting the attack again, Sayumi missed Eri several times before managing to plant a kiss on her then smiling in victory.
“Eww, Sayu!” Eri giggled as she wiped her cheek with her sleeve. Both girls laughed together as they lay on the bed. Sometimes they acted more like their shoe size than their age but they didn’t care, it was fun.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Ryou sighed as he reached his silent dorm room.
‘
Welcome home, Ryou-kun,’ a voice in Ryou’s head greeted.
‘
Tadaima, Taiyou-kun,’ Ryou replied back.
‘
Ooo, what’s that there under your arm?’ Taiyou playfully asked.
“Nothing and enough with the telepathy talk,” Ryou said. Taiyou smirked.
“Seemed like you and Eri had fun,” he remarked.
“She’s nice.”
“You like her?”
“No.”
“Uh huh.”
“I don’t like her, ok?” Ryou reinforced his statement.
“Ok, more of you for me then,” Taiyou said.
“Lucky you.”
“Are you going to eat dinner?” Taiyou asked.
“No, I already ate. I’m going to bed,” Ryou replied.
“Ok, sweet dreams.”
“You too.”
Ryou closed the door to his room once inside and let out a sigh. Carefully placing the canvas against the wall, Ryou took off the cloth covering it revealing the drawing. Falling onto his bed, Ryou stared at the portrait with pride. He had outdone all of his previous works of art.
The expression on her face, the angle of her head, the sunlight spilling over her; it was perfect. But even so, Ryou couldn't help but think that he hadn't done justice to the real person. A drawing could never capture the beauty of that moment.
He reviewed what exactly had happened that day. He stopped when he reached the time when he went into the observatory. Eri had been sleeping when he found her. She wouldn’t wake up no matter how many times he tried to awaken her. He sat down and placed her head on his lap. That’s when she began crying. Crying in her sleep. That’s when he began to get flustered. He had never really dealt with crying girls. So, he did what always made him calmer. He sang
his song. He never really liked to share his personal things, but he made an exception since he couldn’t think of what else to do. His thoughts came to a screeching halt when he recalled Eri’s words ‘That’s
my song.’.
“Since when was it
her song?!”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Eri sighed out as she lay in her bed looking up at the ceiling. She felt her eyes grow heavy again. She opened her mouth wide and let out a huge yawn. She closed her eyes and slowly began to sing her song to put herself to sleep quicker.
‘
Even if our hands are small, they’ve been overtaking us since some other day.
The day that finally came opened a new season.’
Eri’s eyes shot open and she abruptly sat up.
“How does
he know
my song?!”
Topic: Mechaike Academy [Ch. 4 - Second Thoughts] (Read 10060 times)