Tsumugi Tsukahara's POV:
"You're awake early," Mom noted first thing Sunday morning.
"I'm working on a little something for Shiina," I replied, flashing her a petite smile. "Her concert has been set a month from now and Kiharu and I want to do something special for her. We're brainstorming a bunch of ideas, and it was all so exciting I couldn't sleep!"
A frown cut into her cheeks. "That's splendid news, honey, but you're already falling behind with cram school. If you let your academics slip any further—"
"I know, I know. I won't be able to get into the college I want," I finished, long accustomed to the lecture. Being the only child, my parents were understandably hard on me. They wanted the best for me and therefore set high expectations. I'd adjusted to the pressure over the years, though I'll admit, when I was younger, it was insufferable. "School is my priority, Mom. Always. But—but, this is Shiina's first concert! I have to be there for her one hundred—no, one thousand percent!"
Possibly because I'd shouted it, she snorted.
"What about Kiharu? The girls' soccer team is competing for a gold medal, aren't they?"
"Yes! The game is next week. Shiina and I have another surprise for that—two, actually, depending if Kiharu wins or loses."
"You're such a marvellous friend to the both of them, Tsumugi. They better be returning the favour." She snagged her purse from the couch on her way out the front door. "After my appointment, I'll swing by the shop to help your dad. Remember to bring in the mail when it arrives."
With a short glance at her watch, she sauntered out the door. Loitering by the entrance, arms folded across my lengthy skirt, I gnawed the inside of my cheek.
Unlike Kiharu, I wasn't the captain of the soccer team with infinite athletic medals, trophies, and ribbons under my belt.
Unlike Shiina, I didn't have a powerful singing voice or remarkable musical talents, nor did I single-handedly hold the affection of a handful of boys.
Mom said they should 'return the favour,' but I didn't have any feats or achievements to celebrate. All I had going for me was the fact that I was good in school. That being said, I wasn't the smartest and could hardly compete against Hachiko or Keiko, the top students in our grade. I suppose it was an honour in and of itself that somebody as plain as me got to interact with Kiharu and Shiina regularly. I didn't mind supporting them from the sidelines. In fact, I loved to. They were incredible. I'd do anything for them.
I only had myself to blame for my uninteresting personality and nonexistent love life. Often, I worried I wasn't doing enough to make the most of my life. The fear that Kiharu and Shiina would forget all about me once they struck it rich and found boyfriends kept me up at night more frequently than I'd like to admit. Eventually, we would grow distant, until we stopped talking altogether. . .
I vehemently shook my head.
I meant more to them than an occasional wall to talk to or somebody to copy homework off of. They both needed me. I was sure of it!
Shoulders slumped, I dragged my slippered feet into the kitchen. In no time at all, I whipped up a simple meal with random ingredients from the fridge and leftovers from yesterday. Accustomed to the tranquility of the house, I flickered on the television. Munching on breakfast while rewatching Rin Mizota programs and performances brightened my morning right up. It boggled my mind that Shiina and him were childhood friends. She seriously was the luckiest person on the planet!
When I finished cleaning my dishes, I slipped outside. The mail hadn't yet arrived. However, spotting the flowerbeds Mom had planted in the front yard and taking into account the humid weather, I meandered to grab the watering can. I spotted it in the middle of the backyard. Although it was light to the touch, by the time I filled it with water and attempted to haul it to the front yard, my noodle arms struggled to muster the strength to hold it. Following much trial and error, I finally hoisted it up, and toddled my way over to the flowers.
A bike bell sounded.
"Go—good morning!"
It was a clumsy, and a very much bashful, greeting. When I rounded the bend, the first thing I spotted was the bike in question. A white t-shirt and sweatpants next. It must've been the paperboy.
"Good morni— Aoyama?"
My shock couldn't be contained. In fact, identifying the paperboy as the classmate that'd been on my mind as of late, knocked all the oxygen out of my lungs. Coincidentally, my foot caught on the front walkway. I tripped face-first, but not without releasing the watering can. It was in the air for less than several seconds but the water inside of it flung quite the distance. Splashed Aoyama's head and clothes, as well as the bundle of newspapers in his front basket.
I stabilized myself in the nick of time, giving me a hot minute to come to terms with what had occurred. What I'd caused.
Aoyama's dark hair, now curling at the tips, clung to his forehead. Water dripped down cheeks and nose. His soaked t-shirt, now see-through, clearly outlined his toned upper torso. It was a disaster. Apologies fastened to the roof of my mouth. Mortified and desperate, I scrambled to articulate the best one.
He beat me to the punch.
Unexpectedly, with a bashful laugh and smile.
"That was cold."
My heart skipped a beat. I blamed it on a variety of reasons; the most prominent being that I hadn't expected it. I'd splashed the majority of the papers he was delivering—drenched him, this early in the morning. In class, we hadn't interacted once. He kept to himself and never stood out. Now that we were as close as we were, now that I'd witnessed the oddity that was his stunning smile, I had to wonder why that was the case.
"Oh. . . that's because I filled it up moment ago to water the plants—" Heat blossomed across my cheeks. My shoulders leaped. "I—I mean, l-let me grab you something to dry yourself off with!"
Embarrassed beyond reason, I stumbled on my way inside my house.
His chuckle that followed added to my nerves.
The only option I could find was a brand new wash towel—bright pink and decorated in hearts as it was. Knowing I shouldn't keep him waiting, and dreading the idea of going back out there to own up to my actions, I forced myself back outside. The summer sun was warm on my blazing skin.
Unable to bring myself to make eye contact, I bowed, extending it out for him.
"I—I'm sorry!"
"It's all right, Tsukahara." His soft utterance of my name gave my heart another excuse to pound. "I was thinking about how hot it was this morning. More than that, I'm shocked your house is first I had to deliver to."
He dried his face as he spoke, words muffled by the cotton.
My eyebrows skyrocketed when it settled in.
"You're new to the job?"
"I officially started today. Honestly, I was super nervous. I fell off my bike a handful of times on my way here." Another gentle laugh escaped him. "This ironically has cooled me off. Thank you."
My pulse quickened.
"But, the newspapers. . ."
"It's really fine. Because of the weather, they're drying super quickly. See?"
My lips quirked upward. I had assumed his unsociable personality would make it difficult to approach him. That was the impression I got at school, anyway. But, he was relatively talkative. Not to mention nice.
"While I'd love to stay and chat some more, I'm technically supposed to pass these out in a timely fashion." Returning the towel as well as offering a newspaper, he gripped the handlebars and put his foot to the pedal.
"Good luck!" I said. "And—and be careful."
What was I saying? I was the klutz he had to be careful around.
As if of a different mind, Aoyama flashed me a heart-stopping grin. He was off with a wave. Unsteady as he was, he zoomed right on by to the next house. Then the next. Soon, he was out of sight.
Although it was a small, banal conversation, it was something I started looking forward to every day.
There were no opportunities for us to talk at school or between classes. Yet, every morning, we chatted at my doorstep. About homework or exams. Our favourite hobbies. Pet peeves. One morning, I even offered him a lunch box since I'd cooked myself extra.
It felt like we had our own secret. A secret only we were privy to.
"Ya' keep staring into space." Kiharu snapped me to my senses, waving vigorously before my eyes.
"We've been calling your name," Shiina added.
Seated on the bench as we were, lunches in hand, I stiffened. They'd practically finished theirs, all the while I'd hardly taken a bite out of mine.
"S—sorry," I said. "What were we talking about?"
"That new drama you've been begging us to watch," Kiharu said, "we finally got around to finishing the first episode."
"No way! Really! You should've said that sooner! What did you think of it?"
My burst of enthusiasm was met with deadpanned stares.
"If you weren't off in your own universe, maybe you'd know. You've been acting strange these past few weeks, girl."
I flinched.
"Is everything okay, Tsumugi?" Shiina concurred. "You can tell us anything, you know that, right?"
"Aw, Shiina. . . !"
Kiharu sighed. "What're you doin', giving her a new reason to fall for you?"
"I'm being a supportive friend. Learn from example."
Gasping, Kiharu dragged her into a playful chokehold. "You did not say that to me! Who do you think is the central pillar of this group? The one holdin' us goofballs together?"
"Me, duh."
The erupted into laughter.
"What's the plan after school?" Kiharu said promptly after releasing her. "We're still on for visiting that board game cafe right?"
"Yep. Right after my band practice," Shiina said.
"Tsumugi's got cleanup duty, right? Guess I'll be waiting quite a while." Kiharu cocked a brow. "Oi, earth to Tsumugi?"
I jumped. "Y—yes?"
This time, their patience was paper thin.
"You're zoning out again," she accused.
"Sorry!" I apologized. "I was— I was—"
Desperate to divert the topic, I flailed my hands, but both had caught what had attracted my attention: the group of boys conversing across the courtyard. Specifically, Aoyama and his friends.
Shiina squinted. "Who's that?"
"Background Characters E, F and G."
"Is that how you remember our classmates?"
"They get a name if they're worth remembering," Kiharu excused. "Or if they're hot. Both of which isn't applicable here."
"Aoyama is hot!" My mouth moved instinctively. "He has a good sense of humour, and his smile is stunning. He's a tad awkward but it's relatively endearing. And—and he's very attentive."
Prior to finishing my spiel, matching smirks upturned their lips. My face scalded.
"Hmmm."
"What's this? What's this?"
"U-Uchiya h-has his virtues too," I stammered, hastily. "He takes charge during class discussions. And Yaotome! He's the star player on the school's swim team!"
"Girl fell for him so hard she memorized his friend group too," Kiharu cooed.
"We're all classmates!" I denied pathetically. "If you paid attention, it's the bare minimum to be aware of, actually!"
Shiina laughed. "I mean, I don't mind Aoyama. He's one of the few people who treat me normally; even now that students know about my friendship with Rin-Rin and bow at my feet. As long as he'll treat you right, you should go for it."
"He doesn't seem assertive, though," Kiharu responded. "Tsumugi isn't either. If you ask me, it's a match made for disaster."
"Really? In my opinion, somebody mellow and subdued would suit Tsumugi most. Imagine how adorable they'll be."
What kind of conversation are they having?
"You guys have the wrong idea," I said, skin blazing. "Aoyama and I are classmates. Nothing more, nothing less."
"That's boring," Kiharu remarked.
"Boring or not, that's the facts," I asserted. "There's. . . no way Aoyama would have feelings for me, anyway."
They prodded for more information, however, the answers I gave weren't adequate to satisfy them. At the end of the day, Aoyama and I were hardly acquainted. Sure we chatted, but at most, it was classmate-related small talk that took place outside of school.
Aoyama didn't have feelings for me.
Of course, that didn't mean I wasn't teetering on that thin fence. We had small conversations, and I looked forward to them so much. My delight was unparalleled whenever I saw him. Then, when we weren't together, my thoughts roamed to all sorts of places. I was dry as dust. But, Aoyama made me feel like I was the most interesting person on the planet. He hung on to my every word. Talked on and on as if conversing with me was the highlight of his day.
He was so, unbelievably nice.
Could I do it?
Could I allow myself to fall in love with him?
In the distance, the chaos was perfect. A herd of students crowding and shouting about whatever nonsense that had attracted their attention. Ordinarily in this situation, somebody like Aoyama would be perfectly obscured from sight. Noticing him would be like noticing a needle in a haystack. However, like a magnet, my gaze was drawn to him first. His friends had merged with the chaos, so he was on his own. And his eyes were fixated on me.
My heart jumped.
We're this far apart. My eyes are playing a trick on me.
While that was what my conscience desperately scrambled to rationalize, I got hit with a text message notification. From Aoyama.
You've been staring at me all lunch.
Somehow, I get the idea that I'm more fascinating than your whatever you're eating.
Lowering his phone, a smile emerged, and he waved at me.
He noticed.
He noticed.
He noticed.
Squeezing my eyelids shut, I clutched my device to my chest.
"Tsumugi! What's up? You're bright red," Shiina said.
Too absorbed in their conversation, my friends were oblivious to what had happened.
Down the rabbit hole I went.