The teams have gathered with their peers on the field as rounds of refreshments were served to them. As expected, Team 2 won the second event by a landslide. They were in the lead with 370 points. The third team got second place having a total of 280 points. The first team and the fourth team tied in the third place by 250 points. The fifth team scored next having a total of 180 points. The sixth team was last with 170 points.
Tomoka's teeth gritted in frustration. "Damn... That stupid 10 points..." She hissed.
The battle heated up in the second half because of the enthusiasm and strategic play that the second team showed. Even so, some of the campers were not quite satisfied.
"But seriously..." Momoshiro said as he crushed his second can of soda. "I didn't know that Ryouko's group would try out such clever tricks."
"Not to mention that stunt. It made me stop and watch whenever Tooyama jumps off from his cavalry." Kamio commented.
"Right, right..." Momoshiro said with a grin. "It was just like a circus-stunt. We got a lot of our headbands stolen by them because of that but it still entertained me."
Kamio gave a short laugh. "And that double act with Ryouko. That was just awesome."
"Yeah. Maybe we can ask them to show it again?" Momoshiro replied enthusiastically.
An began to whisper to her brother's ear. "Momo-kun and Kamio-kun are unusually getting along with each other. Onii-chan, can you ask Ryouko-chan and Tooyama-kun along with your other teammates to perhaps display the stunt again?"
"It seems like that is not necessary." Tachibana Kippei answered and gestured at his left. An looked at where he is pointing at.
"And then Shiraishi will estimate my falling ground and catch me from there so he can volley me back to the cavalry." Tooyama Kintarou was excitedly explaining the logic behind their team's offensive attack. He bullied Yukimura, Shinji, Yuuta and Shiraishi into helping him with the demonstration.
People began to gather and watch them closely.
"That looks like a lot of fun..." Kikumaru said enviously as he swayed side by side in his seat, watching Kintarou sail through the air.
"Then would you like to try it?" Kajimoto asked, overhearing his comment.
Kikumaru's cat-like eyes lit up. "I can?"
"Sure." Yukimura said. He, Shinji and Kajimoto played the role of the cavalry. Shiraishi after all had become a master catcher after all those practices and the actual game experience.
"Yay!" Kikumaru yelled and jumped off of his seat.
"That is such an innovative stunt." Inui commented as he looked at his teammate joyously maneuvering expertly through the air. "Who thought of it?" He asked.
"Ryouko-san did, senpai." Ritsu answered.
"Ryouko?" Inui repeated. "Really?"
"Almost all of the strategies you saw in the game came from Ryouko's head. I know that she's smart but I didn't know that she can be witty as a fox as well." Mizuki said from the other side, twirling the lock of hair at his temple.
"If only we also prepared that much, it would've been a more competitive battle." Mami said in frustration. She let her team spend the last few hours before the event started in whatever ways they wanted. Their meeting didn't even last thirty minutes.
"I agree. Well, we can't deny the fact that the second team deserved this win, but we could've put up with a better fight if we prepared seriously in the first place." Miyako commented, sipping from her can of milk tea.
"The problem is... there's no prize in this event. How can we be fired up if there's no prize?" Tomoka told them.
"Oh? Haven't we mentioned it?" Ikeda said, interrupting them. "There's a prize for the winners of the second event. And this time, there is no consolation prizes. Only the top winners are guaranteed with a prize."
"Eh????" The people who overheard him said in unison, their heads swerved towards him.
"What do you mean by that, Ikeda-senpai?" Kachiro asked.
"Each member of the winning team would be given gift certificates that can be used in any mall that the Atobe Industries operates. It's a voucher worth 10,000 yen and it's convertible to cash." Arai answered for him. "The Atobes sure are generous..." He added as the eyes of the people around him almost popped out of their sockets.
"Te-te-te-ten thousand yen?" Tomoka stuttered. "You can't mean, per person?"
"Yep. It's ten thousand yen per person." Ikeda answered. "The rich sure spends lavishly. I won't give away that much money if I have such an amount. It's a total of 180,000 yen you know. Then again, that might be only mere change to them since the Atobes are millionaires."
At that instant, Ikeda and Arai were attacked by the campers. "Why didn't you announce that? We didn't hear anything about a prize money!" They yelled.
"Kaneda! Arai! Where's your sense of comradeship? Are we from the same school or not? You should've at least told me that information personally." Momoshiro complained.
"That's pathetic, seriously... Stop whining." Kaidoh commented from the side, his arms crossed on his chest.
"Shut up, Mamushi. It's ten thousand yen that we're talking about here. Do you know how many meat buns I can buy with that?" Momoshiro replied irritably.
"You're gonna spend all that money on meat buns?" An said with an exasperated smile.
"Of course not." Momo replied. He started to count with one hand. "There's that family restaurant that I always pass on my way home. They've got that amazing lunch set that I can't buy unless I save up a month's allowance. Then there's that Chinese place down the alley at the side of the school. Their buffet is great. And there's also that meat restaurant, they serve laaarge servings of beef as thick as my arm." He made emphasis on the 'large' part, gesturing like a child. "And maybe I'll get myself a new racket and grip tape."
An stifled a laugh. "He is such a musclehead. 90% food and 10% tennis." She said to herself in a whisper.
"Sometimes I'm proud that Momo-senpai is my senior but..." Kachiro said.
"There are moments that you feel embarrassed just by being acquainted with him." Horio finished Kachiro's sentence. Mizuno laughed uncomfortably, agreeing with his peers inside his mind.
"Otoko dane, Omoshiro-kun. (You're such a man, Omoshiro-kun.)" Sengoku said, hooking an arm over Momoshiro's shoulders. "I would probably use that money to spend on dates. I'll call on several friends and throw a mixer, then we'll go to a fancy restaurant for dinner and impress the girls."
"Playboy." The girls all thought in annoyance, glaring at him. Sengoku felt their gaze and decided that it might be the time for him to shut up.
"Have you told the winning team about their prize?" Nio asked, joining them.
"I think so. Hayashi went and told Ryouko so she can announce it to the members, but he said she's kinda busy. Aoi-kun is doing several rounds of dogeza in front of her." Arai answered.
"Dogeza? Doshite desuka? (Why?)" Mizuno asked.
"Well..." Ikeda said, scratching his head. "Only a few people noticed but Ryouko-chan almost ran into trouble at the cavalry battle earlier."
"The coaches even got offstage in fright." Arai added.
"What kind of trouble?" Inui asked.
"Do you remember the last time she and Tooyama jumped off during the game, senpai?" Ikeda said.
"Yeah. It was during the last five minutes of the battle. What about it?" Inui answered.
"Well... Aoi bumped into a cavalry on his way and he didn't make it to the spot where Ryouko-chan landed. If she wasn't lucky that someone else caught her, she would've suffered an injury." Ikeda said.
"That was really nerve-wracking. The guys and I rushed down from the stage and considered running there to intercept her but the distance is too far." Arai told them.
"It really is a good thing that Atobe-san made it in time to catch her." Ikeda said.
"Atobe? I thought it was Echizen." Arai said in confusion.
"It was Atobe-san. I saw it with my own eyes." Ikeda told him.
"No. I was pretty sure it was Echizen." Arai scratched his head, trying to remember better.
"Baka. How can Echizen catch her with that small body of his? He would be squished to a pancake." Ikeda reasoned.
"Well, sorry for being small, senpai." A voice said from behind, sounding quite irritated.
"Echizen!" Momoshiro said. "Where have you been?"
"Just places." He answered. He turned to Ikeda. "I hate to burst your bubble Ikeda-senpai, but I believe I'm strong enough to be capable of catching Ryouko. Besides, I'm still growing. Don't call me small." He said.
"So was it you who caught her then?" An said. There was no doubt that her tone is coated with teasing.
"Maybe I did, maybe I didn't." Ryoma told her. He felt quite irritated at the fact that some people actually think that it was Atobe who saved Ryouko, but even if someone else takes the credit, the fact that it was him who caught her from that fall would not change. "And the most important part is... Ryouko knows that I'm the one who saved her." He thought.
"Heh." An said, shrugging. "Whatever you say."
"And where is that all-important Ryouko now, I wonder. Is Aoi still doing the dogeza in front of her?" Inui said.
"She's at the coaches' building, getting scolded by Ryuzaki-sensei and Tezuka-buchou by doing such dangerous stunts." Ryoma replied, taking a can of soda from the table.
"Hey, that's mine!" Yohei complained.
"The early bird gets the worm." Ryoma told him and opened the can. "Besides, your name isn't written on it."
"Sheesh. Is it that hard to go to the serving table and get one yourself?" Yohei mumbled as he left to fetch another drink.
"It will be a long scolding then. Ryuzaki-sensei won't let her off for half an hour or so." Kawamura commented, smiling in exasperation.
"I guess I have to go and inform her about tonight's event in person." Arai said. Before anyone could ask what he meant, he continued talking. "Ikeda, Hayashi, you guys take care of this side." He started to walk away.
"Event? What event?" Mizuno and Kachiro said together.
"Well, just like how we celebrated the victory of the third team for the first event, we will be throwing a celebration to honor the victory of the second team in the second event." Hayashi answered.
"Will there be another buffet for dinner?" Momoshiro asked excitedly.
"Shut up about food already. You sound like a damn glutton." Kaidoh growled from the side.
"What was that, Mamushi? Are you picking a fight?" Momoshiro retorted, snarling at him in response.
"Stop it, you two or I'll have you confined to your cabin for two hours." An told them sternly.
Both boys kept quiet and fumed in silence, their backs onto each other.
"Is that how you've handled them all this time, An-san?" Fuji asked, smiling good-naturedly.
"Yep. They hate each other's company yet they go at the other's throats quite delightedly whenever they have a chance. It's conflicting really. I don't know if they hate or love each other." An answered.
"It's a love-hate kind of thing then. I can't imagine what would become of Seigaku once those two are in charge..." Sengoku said and snickered.
"Seriously, we wonder about that too..." The Seigaku seniors thought silently.
"Hayashi, you can continue with what you were saying." Kawamura said, urging for him to go on.
"Yes, senpai." Hayashi said and continued. "Well, it's not going to be a buffet by the organizers this time but it does involve tonight's dinner. All six teams will be dining together inside the main hall. Of course, the food would be made by the campers designated with cooking duty. Each team is required to bring dishes that can feed 50 people. Those dishes would be shared among the six teams." He explained.
"Then we'll get to have a taste of what the other teams have brought with them, is that right?" Horio asked, his eyes shining.
"Yeah. That's basically the point of the joint dinner. I think it's a great idea. There would be no seating arrangements and it is allowed for those belonging to the same school to dine with their original teammates if they want to, regardless of what team number they are in." Ikeda told him.
"Yay! That means Seigaku can have a get-together for the night!" Kikumaru said enthusiastically and hooked an arm around Oishi's shoulders, the other on Fuji's.
"Yay! We get to eat Ryouko-san's home-made dinner!" Horio said, throwing his hands in the air.
"Ryouko is in charge of cooking in the second team?" Fuji asked.
"Yes, senpai." Horio answered. "Yohei that jerk kept on blabbering about how good their meals are, trying to make us envious." He added with bitterness in his tone.
"Well, Ryouko-san's cooking really is superb. Ibu-san and Kajimoto-san are also supporting her well." Ritsu told them.
Kamio and Sakurai approached him. "Shinji? In the kitchen?" They chorused, their eyebrows jumping to their foreheads. An blinked in surprise. "Shinji-kun can cook?" She said, quite shocked.
"Why? Is there a reason why I shouldn't be in the kitchen?" Shinji said from right behind them.
Sakurai, Kamio and An turned around to face him and laughed uncomfortably. "No." They said in unison, shaking their heads.
"Tch." Shinji said in silent annoyance, seeing through their obvious lies.
Hayashi shrugged and continued his talk. "Well, in a way, this dinner is also an unofficial competition. Which team wll be able to bring out the most delicious dishes, I wonder?" He turned around to leave.
"Do your best everyone. The coaches and the camp managers will be tasting those dishes as well. Please don't disappoint. See you at exactly 7:30 in the evening." Ikeda told them, winked and joined Hayashi as he went away.
"Yosh! I'm fired up now!" Tomoka said, clenching her fists.
"Me too. I'll bring out every skill I have in this dinner." An commented, smiling confidently.
"This is not just a dinner. This will represent the pride of the girls in each team." Miyako added, putting her hands together.
"Except for me of course. I don't cook." Mami said, shrugging her shoulders in a nonchalant way.
"W-what should I do? What if I mess up?" Sakuno thought worriedly.
"We'll be leaving this matter to you girls then. Feel free to call your team members for some assistance." Inui told them.
~~~
Since he wouldn't be helping in the preparation for dinner, Ryoma spent the next hour pelting two tennis balls at the outside wall of the prestigious white tower near their campsite. He is already marking it as his very own territory.
Playing tennis there is tricky since the tower is cylindrical and the wall is not flat. The angle that the tennis balls are bouncing off is always irregular and has no definite direction. He busied himself with predicting the flight of the ball, sharpening his senses in order to return each of his shots. Rallying with two tennis balls had always been a good distraction tactic to him, and this is one of those times when he really needed to be distracted.
"This is good practice." He grunted as he pelted the first ball back to the cylindrical wall. As he returned the other tennis ball, someone popped inside his mind. "Is that the best you can do?" Ryouko said with that matching smirk of hers that he knew all too well.
He missed the timing and the ball bounced off the wrong spot, sending it ricocheting to the edge. He watched it fly towards the forest. He groaned and dragged his feet towards the direction it landed.
He wondered what was going on between Ryouko and Atobe Keigo. He recalled that one time when she mentioned visiting the Atobe mansion for business matters. The CEO, Atobe's father, is said to be fond of Ryouko. Ryoma had been hearing that rumor since the camp started. It made a lot of sense too since Ryouko had been experiencing special treatment in the camp, suddenly being appointed in a sort of leader role despite her age and the fact that she doesn't even go to Hyotei Academy.
Just how deep does the roots of the friendship between the Atobe Industries and Zenbonzakura Corporation run for the families to be acquainted that much? Ryoma was pretty sure that Ryouko and Atobe did not know each other before that little run-in on the Seigaku tennis courts. They couldn't possibly know each other personally.
On the other hand, Ryoma and Ryouko's roots of acquaintanceship were their parents. Ryouko's mother, Rika, went to the same university that Rinko, Ryoma's mother, finished her pre-law course. Rika was taking Architecture and switched mid-year to Design. They were on the same tennis club as part of their extra-curricular activities and their friendship was furthered by the fact that they played a lot of games as a doubles pair.
Ryoma and Ryouko doesn't know much about how their fathers met but they were pretty sure it also had something to do with tennis. Nanjiro always made snide remarks at Ryouichi about their past as tennis buddies especially when they were drunk.
Ryouko told Ryoma that when she asked her mother about how her father and Nanjiro were acquainted, Rika always told her that she didn't have to know. Rika, who is usually confident in answering questions, always had that uncomfortable smile on her face when her husband's past with tennis was being mentioned. Young Ryouko did not like seeing her mother that way and she felt that she shouldn't ask anymore.
Ryouko always made it a habit to ask when curious ever since she was young. Ryoma only does that to people he is close with. No matter how curious he is of something, if the person he need to ask is not acquainted with him in any way, he would just keep that curiosity to himself. That was one of the few differences that they have.
Ryoma scanned the ground for the lost tennis ball, going back to his earlier thoughts. Atobe and Ryouko. The annoyance he felt back in the field came rushing back to him. "He hugged her?" He scoffed. "Why?" He said aloud to the leaves and trees.
It was only then that he realized how it always irritated him whenever Ryouko bickers with Atobe. They looked so... so... How should he describe that?
"They looked so comfortable with each other." His subconscious provided the answer. Ryouko never bickers wth anyone like that except for her cousins and him, Echizen Ryoma. Even with the Seigaku regulars, she doesn't talk if not being asked. Both he and Ryouko share that queer quality of being too quiet and looking too arrogant.
She had absolutely no reason to fight with Atobe about such minor things, unless she liked bickering with him. The mere idea of Ryouko possibly enjoying Atobe Keigo's company was irritating beyond belief. And the concern in Atobe Keigo's eyes when Ryouko almost had an accident seemed real to Ryoma's observation.
He took a twig and started swinging it moodily over the tall blades of grass that were blocking his eyeview. He just wished that he was swinging that twig at Atobe's face. Ryoma actually gained a bit of respect towards the Hyotei captain because of the experiences of battling with him on the court. That respect is starting to ebb away in the heat of his thoughts.
"I just knew that we would not get along since the moment I met him. That arrogant young master..." He told himself. "As expected, first impressions don't lie."
~~~
Atobe Keigo sat by the window of his room in the cabin, narrowing his violet eyes at the sun that was starting on its journey of disappearing to the horizon. He breathed in deeply and gave a huge exhale. He repeated that as he crossed his arms over his chest. He had to evaluate the situation logically.
First, he saw the Fujioka rich girl in trouble. Second, he went there to lend his help.
That was perfectly logical. It was normal human reaction. After all, if she gets injured in a camp hosted by the Atobes, it wouldn't be good. Then again, he knew that he just thought of that matter after the incident... It didn't even cross his mind while it was happening. So why did his feet moved by themselves and rushed there to help her? It just did not make any sense.
Third, he wasn't the one who caught her from that fall. Thinking about it, Atobe couldn't even remember who it was. Minor detail. He should not waste any brain cell in remembering that. The important detail happened when he saw that she was safely on the ground. He felt such an overwhelming sense of relief.
Relief? From what? What is it to him if she gets injured? That part also did not make any sense.
Fourth, after he made sure that she was fine, he— Atobe's thoughts got cut off in the middle as he realized a very important fact.
"I..." He pointed at himself unbelievingly. "I hugged her?" He scoffed. "Why?" He said aloud to the lampshade and bedside table.
Atobe laughed a very uneasy and confused laugh. Now that did not make the littlest, tiniest, atom-sized sense of all the things that didn't make sense in the world. He behaved really strangely that afternoon and it looked like it would drive him crazy trying to figure out the reason for it.
He shook his head. "Forget the hug. Forget it. Focus on why you saved her. Find out the reason." He thought. He replayed that particular incident in his mind-theater in the right sequence of events.
One, he asked her if she was fine.
Two, she answered.
Three, he hugged her.
Four, she fit exactly right into his arms like a glove. And she was so tiny, like a breakable china doll. He only noticed back then how long her hair is, the way the strands slip through one's fingers like silk. She smelled of sweat yet it was fragrant. How can someone so small be so perfe—
Atobe Keigo caught himself staring off in space and he abruptly stood up, pacing the room in a half-crazed manner. He laughed again. "What on earth am I thinking about?" He asked himself. "Did I just... towards that girl..." He said unbelievingly, running his fingers through his hair. He saw his reflection in the full-sized mirror and stopped pacing. He looked at himself.
"What is happening to you, Atobe Keigo?" He said, boring an intense gaze onto the reflection of his purple eyes. He sat down on the bed and pulled the top drawer of the bedside table, opening it. He fished something from inside. A wrist band, blue with red zigzags. The thing that Fujioka Ryouko gave to him in exchange for that ring he mistakenly bought.
He shouldn't be asking himself about what is happening to him. He should ask someone else. "What are you doing to me, you witch in princess clothes?" He told the wristband.
All of a sudden, he remembered his past curiosity about what she said when she gave him that wrist band. She was supposed to... give it to Ryoma. Ryoma. Echizen.
"That's right..." He breathed. The image became clearer in his mind. It was Echizen Ryoma who caught Ryouko from that fall.
Atobe's lips pursed into a frown as he recalled some details. Three details to be precise.
One, Echizen Ryoma caught her from the fall.
Two, he was hugging her.
And three, she was hugging him back.
~~~
Before the sun went down, there were both orderliness and chaos going on inside the kitchens of each team's main cabins. The girls mostly shouted orders at the boys. The males have finally realized just how scary females can be. Osakada Tomoka's voice was ringing clear to the ears of the people in the neighboring teams as she scolded someone who seemed to accidentally place radish in the curry that she is making.
"Girls are monsters." Daisuke and Akihiro mumbled to each other as they carried a pail full of peeled potatoes to the counter.
"Kora! (Hey!)" Miyako shouted. "Jikan wa nai! (There's no time!) Get that over here and start chopping, unless you want me to chop your heads instead and put it in the soup!" She growled at them.
Kurihara Miyako whom they've thought is the most ladylike among the six representatives had been acting like a tyrant from the moment she held the kitchen knife. She made it a point to make them understand that she is taking this seriously.
In Team 3, Ryuzaki Sakuno is doing her job well, except for a few minor mistakes which included tripping over random things and splashing the water she used for washing vegetables over Ishida's head.
"Gomennasai, Ishida-san." She bowed over and over again, quite close to tears.
"No, no, it's fine. Just concentrate on the stove and have us do the minor work." He told her in exasperation.
Inside the Team 1's cabin, Momoshiro still had the notion to fool around. He balanced a pineapple on the top of his head, walking to the counter with a grin on his face.
An took a knife and a swishing sound passed by above Momoshiro's head. The pineapple split in two and the upper half slipped down and thudded on the floor. "Stop. Fooling. Around." An said with a half-annoyed, half-angry tone of voice, putting emphasis on each word.
Momoshiro was frozen solid in shock. He gulped. "Yes ma'am." He quickly said and picked up the pineapple from the floor.
"Momo-kun. Enough of that or she'll cut you next time." Saeki told him in a whisper, smiling good-naturedly.
"I know that without you telling me, Saeki-san. I sensed an intent to kill when the knife went through the pineapple. She must be mentally aiming at my neck." Momoshiro whispered back.
"Enough chatting and get to work!!!" An's yell made them jump in fright.
"Yes, ma'am. We're right onto it ma'am." Saeki and Momoshiro said simultaneously.
The second team, however, is having a smoother pace compared to the others. Ryouko handled the stove while she gave orders in a calm manner. The morning's slip-ups were not visible at all. She was in total control of everything.
"What are you making, Ryouko?" Kajimoto asked, peering at her work.
"Something fancy." She answered. Suddenly, she took hold of a green wine bottle.
"Where did you get that?" Shinji asked, blinking in confusion.
"It was inside the stock warehouse. I saw it when we were picking our groceries. It might come in handy so I took it." She replied.
"What on earth is a bottle of wine doing inside a warehouse with groceries supposed to be used by junior high students?" Kajimoto said.
"Who knows?" Ryouko shrugged.
"The organizers of this camp are crazy." Kajimoto thought. "And a twelve-year-old picking that wine among all those groceries is even crazier."
"Are you using that for the sauce?" Shinji asked, breaking through Kajimoto's thoughts.
"Yep. I'm making seafood vongole." Ryouko said. "With a little Fujioka magic." She kissed the bottle right on the label and winked at them.
"This girl is just full of charms. Anyone would fall for her if they see that." Kajimoto whispered at Shinji's ears.
"Well, did you fall for her after seeing that?" Shinji responded, giving him a side glance.
"Nope. I'm more than an average guy to fall for a girl that easily." Kajimoto answered. For a moment, he thought there was a slight hostility in Shinji's glance. "But I do admire her. She's so young yet she's that capable." He added.
"Hmm. Admire, huh?" Shinji said and continued watching Ryouko.
Ryouko popped off the cork from the mouth of the wine bottle, swiftly pouring a small amount on the pan. The pan was engulfed with flames.
"Whoah!" Both boys said as they stepped back, their eyes wide.
The flames subsided as Ryouko continued to stir the sauce in the pan.
"Where did you learn that?" Kajimoto asked.
"One of my uncles is a chef. I learned everything I know about cooking from him. It's sort of a long story but I didn't ask him to teach me cooking for the sake of learning how to cook. I did it to overcome a weakness of mine." Ryouko answered as she dropped the clams on the pan.
"You? Weakness? That doesn't seem to merge well." Kajimoto jokingly replied.
"Why, you got a good eye to notice that, Kajimoto-san. I have to admit that I seem perfect but unfortunately, no one is perfect. Everyone has weaknesses." She told him with a sugar-coated tone of sarcasm. "Even me." She added, smirking.
Kajimoto laughed. "No one can beat that confidence." He said.
Ryouko gave a small smile. "I hope so." She thought. Lately, she had been having problems regarding her confidence in herself and in other people. Despite her inner turmoils, she does have one thing that she is completely confident about, and that is doing a good job in hiding her insecurities.
"You learned cooking to overcome a weakness? What do you mean by that?" Shinji suddenly asked, going back to the earlier topic.
Ryouko paused as she threw the pasta in the pan and started mixing the sauce with it. She seemed a little hesitant to answer. As she plated her first batch of vongole, she finally spoke. "I couldn't go near the kitchen when I was younger. I couldn't go to bonfires and firework displays either, and no one was allowed to light a candle in front of me."
Kajimoto and Shinji looked at each other questioningly. "You can't mean... You were afraid of fire?" Kajimoto asked.
Ryouko subtly nodded. "An extreme case of pyrophobia." She told them as she started on the next batch of pasta, watching the flames dance under the sauce pan.
"From what incident did you get it from?" Kajimoto asked, quite curious.
Ryouko looked at him. "What do you mean?" She asked back.
"As far as I know, phobias don't surface that easily. Something must have triggered it." He answered. Shinji looked from Kajimoto to Ryouko, waiting for her answer.
Ryouko smiled and gave a shrug. "Smart. You're correct." She told him and sautéed garlic on the sauce pan. "But I won't answer that question since it's not exactly a comfortable topic." She added.
"Oh." Kajimoto said abruptly. "Sorry." He felt almost embarrassed. He must've stepped on a landmine of some sort. They were not close to her enough to be asking something personal.
Ryouko gave a carefree laugh. "There's no need to apologize, Kajimoto-san. I'm the one who made the conversation swerve that way."
"But it's alright now, isn't it?" Shinji suddenly said. "The phobia, I mean."
"Yep. I'm fine now." Ryouko replied, her eyes reflecting the glint of the firelight. "Well, this one anyway... I'm not sure about the other one." She added.
"You mean, there's another phobia?" Shinji said, quite surprised.
"Yes. I have two extreme fears. I got over the first one, but the second one... No one's entirely sure. Not even myself. I'd like to believe that it's gone though." She answered.
"Um. What kind of a phobia is it?" Kajimoto said cautiously.
Ryouko smiled at the boys. "It's almost 7 o'clock. We better hurry." She told them.
Both of them were not dense enough to not know that the sentence meant that she is closing the curtain on that topic. But as they work on the preparations for the dinner, they couldn't help but dwell on her words.
Fujioka Ryouko and her two phobias. There must be a story behind that. It sparked their curiosity, yet they know that they shouldn't pry into it. Little did they know that the story would come into light inside the campsite, only a day from that moment.
To be continued... hehehe
This is extra long because I missed last saturday's update. XD
Vote and comment please!