Chasing Time

二 (Ni)

I looked at him and saw him smiled at me with enthusiasm displayed in his eyes. He had short auburn hair cropped slightly on the sides with jagged cut layers styled on top of his head, with soft features giving him a playful look along with pair of rounded dimples at each side of his lips.

I noticed that his eyes sparkled as he stared at me which I didn't even want to think about. I just smiled a little and averted my gaze right away, scolding myself for recalling again what happened earlier.

"And this is Hideaki Seiji," the landlady continued on and gestured to the other guy. At that time, I couldn't even muster myself to smile at him because of too much embarrassment.

His elbows rested on his knees while one of his hands was holding an ice bag over his forehead. He glanced my way for a second but I didn't miss the annoyance in those eyes.

His medium-length hair, in contrast with Ryusaki, was raven black which is scattered messily over his head with bangs that almost reached his eyes. Along with a piercing on his left earlobe, there's something on his eyes that gave him a dangerous look which I couldn't put on.

"Or maybe it's because he was just too angry with you," the little voice in my head stated.

Shaking my head, and ignoring the thought I turned back to the landlady.

"Ryusaki-kun, Hideaki-kun... This is Yoshikawa Hinako. I hope you'll get along with each other," I heard the landlady said and after a couple of minutes, she faced me. "Maybe you're wondering why I chose these two as your roommates."

When I stayed silent, she went on. "Well, the other people who inquired were either a family or too many to occupy this unit. So I thought that since they're just two people, they would be perfect roommates for you. And besides, I suppose you're all in the same age."

I couldn't help but wonder if my grandfather knew that my two roommates were guys. Although I didn't see him as an overprotective grandparent, having two males as roommates was enough for him to go berserk. Probably.

As if she could read my mind, she added something that almost made me fall off the couch, "Don't worry, dear. This was not just my decision. Your grandfather has spoken to them and approved of them as your roommates."

What?

Why would my grandfather do that?  

Was there something wrong with him? 

I swallowed the lump that formed on my throat. I didn't think I can still go against this decision if my grandfather was the one involved. Perhaps I would just wait for some miracle to occur for us to get along.

After chatting for a while, I walked her to the door and thanked her again. When she was gone, I shut the door and locked it. I turned to go back to the living room when I suddenly bumped into something hard causing me to yelp and took a few steps backward.

When I looked up, I saw Ryusaki standing in front me. I had to raise my head high just to see his face clearly. I didn't expect him to be this tall. The top of my head barely reached his chin.

"Am I that tall?" he joked and stepped backward, offering his right hand to me after. "Ryusaki Toshiro. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu."

I returned his smile, took his hand and bowed slightly. "Yoshikawa Hinako. Yoroshiku."

"I'm sorry if we barged in without notice," he said apologetically as we started to walk towards the living room. "Honestly, I didn't know that you'll be coming home tonight. It's already eleven in the evening."

"It's okay. It's no one's fault, actually," I replied and when I was near Hideaki, who was still sitting in the sofa, I summoned my courage and faced him. "Umm...I want to say sorry for earlier. I think I've hurt you... kinda."