Silver Lining

Closer

She heard her mother’s voice out of nowhere. Maybe you’ve made a wrong decision. Maybe he’s not the one for you. And then suddenly, friends came joining in: He doesn’t care. Look at him.

And this time, she looked. She took a peek at his furrowed brows as he stared into the distance, walking side-by-side with her, seemingly unaware of her existence. Why was he even frowning? Wasn’t he happy that they’re walking together?

She didn’t normally care, but somehow, his stingy attitude started to hurt her. She didn’t know why it suddenly started bothering her. Perhaps, for once, she just wanted to be genuinely treated as a girlfriend. . .

“Stay close.” She wasn’t even sure she heard him right. Nevertheless, without even looking, he caught her hand and held her to his side. Impatiently, she recoiled.

“Why?”

She didn’t even realize that she’d suddenly stopped in her tracks, her mind hazy. She wasn’t even sure why she was asking the question.

She sensed a quick movement on her left and before she knew it, a ball was heading to her direction. It took her a nano-second to close her eyes and wait for the impact on her face. She didn’t care. She wasn’t even in the right mind to care. But it never came.

Instead, in the next second, she felt something enclose her head and something swift wheeze past her hair. She felt it enclose her so harshly, so selfishly, yet gently, at the same time. Something was comforting in that sort of embrace, as she realized that it blocked most of the light and the sound as well as her senses as her head rested on this hard, immovable surface. Everything happened so fast she didn’t even have time to think.

Sorry! She suddenly heard a guy’s voice, but it was all so distant. Midorima’s hold was still strong and she could hear his heartbeat. (Fast.)

You guys alright?

She would not have been.

Hey, hey, sorry ‘bout that! He-he.

Sorry? That could’ve killed her.

She’s pretty sure as he was that it could have. Amidst all the confusion, she somehow managed to catch sight of the dangerously visible crack on the wall from the impact of the baseball—now she knew. That wall could have been her skull. Her mom’s, her friends’ words all came swirling around in her head, but she didn’t care. The only thing she was aware of at the moment was Midorima’s all-too-familiar scent; the only familiar thing that she managed to hold on to so tightly apart from the fabric of his uniform. She closed her eyes. Just for one, more second.

“You OK?”

Midorima’s voice carried a hint of worry but his face was as impassive as ever. He was holding her shoulders, looking at her squarely. He scanned her face with his eyes. “You don’t look alright. . .” he grumbled, more so to himself.

“I’m—I’m fine.” She cleared her throat.

“You look pale.” Maybe it’s the crack on the wall. Maybe it’s the heat.

She looked up and he was frowning again. She fidgeted at the way he seemed to glare at her, but she knew his mind was somewhere else. She knew he still couldn’t let go of what just happened.

He finally sighed as a way of letting it go. But she knew—even as they started walking again—he was still uneasy as he grabbed her hand and held on to it tightly. She squeezed his hand to reassure him that she was fine. To her surprise, his facial features eased up, and when she saw the tiny smile he gave her from the corner of his mouth, she knew:

She never made the wrong decision.