@ringo-hime: Me? A meanie? *Looks both ways* *blink* *innocent*
@JFC: Me too. I don't like ultra noisy places. I like the current way my ears function
@strawb3rrykream: Agreed. I love Frosted Flakes
@Kuji-san: I don't even wanna think what happens to Risa when she goes drinking in real life *tries to block thoughts*
@Sukoshi: Eri just has this image of being able to fall asleep anywhere so hee hee...I had to write that in. Kinda anti-climax huh
@KK: OMG KK! Incest? Gosh, you had me laughing hard there
@Shiichan: I should be making Eri do something soon. She has been in the background for quite a while
@kRisZ: Ai does seem like a coward here but then again, she still isn't sure of her own feelings
-----
Merry Go Round Chapter 11"Ow....Ouch....GAH!!!"
Yelping in obvious pain with every step that she took, Sayumi leaned heavily on Jun Jun as the taller girl helped her over to the living room couch.
"Don't let water touch your feet."
It took some time for Sayumi to comprehend what Jun Jun was saying. The native Chinese's Japanese language skills were still a little rough around the edges in spite of having spent two years living in Japan.
"I think you meant ankle. But thanks for taking me to the doctor and home."
Bowing to acknowledge Sayumi's appreciation, Jun Jun straightened back up and just stood there for a moment. The two girls remained in awkward silence until one of them decided to speak.
"Michishige-san, I know it's not my place to say this but you should move on. Loving someone doesn't mean possessing them. Sometimes just watching them from the shadows and seeing their happy smile is enough."
Her little speech left Sayumi stunned in more ways than one. She hadn't expected any of the kouhais to come out in the open and talk about this topic let alone start giving her advice.
“Jun Jun...”
“Goodnight Michishige-san!”
Bidding her senpai goodbye hastily, Jun Jun scrambled to gather her belongings before running for the exit. She bowed a few more times then proceeded to slam the entry shut leaving Sayumi slack jawed and staring at her closed door in a daze.
“What the...”
After focusing her thoughts wholly on the 8th generation member and scrutinizing her daily behavior in her mind’s eye, it finally occurred to Sayumi the possible reason behind Jun Jun’s outburst.
Could Jun Jun be in love with one of the members?! -----
The clam shell device vibrated and twirled about on the nightstand, its lights flashing intermittently as a call was being made to it. Trying to reach for the object from the other end of the queen-sized bed where she was lying, Risa struggled to drag herself nearer the piece of wooden furniture located next to the bed.
Clutching at the sheets with trembling hands to pull herself slowly forward, she unintentionally knocked a couple of uncapped bottles off the bed. The white plastic containers fell to the floor and scattered their contents everywhere. The pills in various colors lay strewn about as Risa finally managed to clasp her phone.
Click.“Gaki-san!”
Wailing into her cellphone, Sayumi cried out dramatically, complaining to the first person she thought of to notify about her latest discovery.
“I think Jun Jun likes someone!”
“Who do you think it could be?”
“What if it’s Eririn too?”
“What do I do Gaki-san?”
It wasn’t long before Sayumi realized that the sub-leader wasn’t answering her. Thinking that Risa wasn’t paying her any attention, Sayumi pouted even though there was no one around to see it.
“It really isn’t much fun speaking to yourself.”
Tilting her head and resting an elbow on the arm rest of the sofa, Sayumi waited for a reply. Instead of an answer in the form of words, a strange sound entered her ears. Sitting up in her seat unconsciously, Sayumi strained her hearing to recognize what the noise was.
“Gaki-san? Gaki-san what’s wrong?!”
However, Sayumi never got an answer as the line got cut off after a deafening thud…
-----
Ai didn’t know how many hours had passed since Eri dozed off. She only knew the time she had spent watching Eri sleep had been both serene and confusing. After staring at Eri's sleeping face for the entire duration, she still didn’t know which category the love she felt for the turtle fell into or which direction she should be steering their relationship.
“The one I love is you…right?”
Before she could reconfirm her thoughts, the bulge in her jeans pocket quivered. Thankfully she had switched her phone to silent mode beforehand or the abrupt ringing would have woken Eri. Stretching one leg out so that she could access the device with greater ease, Ai pressed on the green accept button to connect the call.
“Gomene Ai-chan for calling so late. I would have gone to check on her myself but my ankle…”
“Slow down Sayumi. What are you talking about? Check on who?”
Speaking as softly as she could so as to not disturb the blissfully snoozing girl, Ai covered her mouth and bottom portion of her phone with one hand whilst leaning further away from Eri.
“I dialed Gaki-san and the call got through but she didn’t speak. Then the line went dead and I can’t get her ever since. I’m worried something might have happened.”
“Perhaps her battery went flat?”
Attempting to calm Sayumi down with a reasonable explanation for the seemingly bizarre occurrence, Ai coaxed Sayumi to go to bed. She should be resting early to hasten her recovery. There was an upcoming Morning Musume concert and it wouldn’t do Sayumi any good if she were to miss too many rehearsals. The delay could disrupt or affect her other job assignments.
“I’m sure it’s nothing. She probably fell asleep.”
The rokkie wasn't completely convinced by Ai’s reckoning. Nevertheless, she chose not to second guess the leader. If Ai said that there was nothing to worry about then she was probably over-reacting. In any case, the older woman should know Risa best after having spent more than eight years with her. Pushing whatever doubts she had out of her mind, Sayumi hanged up the phone and shuffled clumsily into her bedroom.
As she lay on the bed in her darkened room, the bunny could not stop her mind from wandering back to how her phone conversation, if it can be considered as one, with Risa ended. Something was definitely wrong. Slamming her fists on either side of her body, Sayumi pushed herself up with her elbows from her sleeping position and snapped on the ankle guard that the doctor had ordered her to wear for at least a week.
I won't be able to get any sleep tonight unless I'm certain Gaki-san is alright.-----
"Ummm..."
Twisting and shifting herself nearer to the warm body she was lying on, Eri murmured softly as she breathed out heavily, evidently sleep talking as she slumbered.
"Eri feels so happy to be with Ai-chan."
Hearing the touching confession by her girlfriend, Ai chewed on her lower lip to stop herself from weeping. Eri was clearly that much in love with her that she even thought of her in her dreams.
Carefully tucking a stray strand of hair that had fallen across her face back behind her ear, Ai began to wipe with the back of her hand the tears which had started to fall from her eyes.
"I don't deserve your love Eri. Especially now when I can't even tell if you're the one."
Slightly later, Eri had roused from her sleep and urged Ai home. She felt bad for keeping the elder from receiving her own well deserved rest. It had been a hectic day for all of them not to mention the unbelievable drama which had played out right in the dance studio.
Despite Ai's claim that it was perfectly fine for her to stay the night, Eri was adamant that she leave. The turtle girl was a staunched believer that one's own bed was the best instrument for a good night's sleep.
-----
As Ai walked along the pavement leading away from Eri's apartment, her thoughts fleeted back to the various happenings which had taken place over the previous few days.
~Flashback~ "You will stay back to clean up after rehearsal."
"I expected better from you Gaki-san."
"It's best if you settle whatever problems you have with the kouhais
before coming to work. This is the second time something has happened because of you."
~End of flashback~ In every memory that Ai had of Risa, it was obvious that her best friend’s brown eyes were filled with a sad sorrow which demonstrated how deeply hurt she must have been by her words.
"Was I too callous and unfeeling?"
Kicking a small pebble forwards with every step that she took, worry lines soon began to etch themselves onto Ai’s forehead. The Morning Musume leader deeply regretted speaking to her second in command so harshly. Before she knew it, she found herself in the vicinity of Risa's apartment. She must have unwittingly walked the short distance from Eri’s apartment here.
Lifting her gaze to the window on Risa's floor, Ai stared unmoving at the unlit glass panel until the screeching of tires from a car speeding pass broke her out of her reverie. Looking both ways as she stepped onto the tarred road, Ai jogged in the direction of the entry of the upper middle class apartment block. There was something she had to do tonight, there was someone she had to see.
"I'm so sorry for treating you this way."
Topic: Merry Go Round - Chapter 23 (110615) (Read 80722 times)