~ SHIRO ~
By the time we wrapped things up, it was already 7:00. I was actually kind of satisfied with how much work we've done. The bulk of the assignment was somewhat completed, so what was left would be pretty easy to finish.
After packing up, I walked Kenma to the door. "Good work today." I commended him. To be honest, he wasn't hard to work with. Surprisingly, he was really cooperative, and listened well.
"Nah. You're the team carry." He replied with a smile. Sounds like something applep1e would say. "Thanks for helping me. I mean it."
"Anytime." I mirrored his kind expression. "It's getting quite dark, are you okay to walk home?"
"Yeah, I'll be fine." He shrugged casually, pulling on his red jacket. "Besides, I live around here. If I get lost, I can always call Kuroo to come find me."
"You two must be close." I remarked. It must be nice having a friend like that, someone you can depend on.
"Uh, I guess you could put it that way. He's still a real pain in the ass, though." His face scrunched up in a small grimace, reminding me of an angry little cat.
I laughed softly at his comment. "Can't be too bad."
At that, Kenma visibly cringed, which I found more amusing. "Oh, trust me, it is."
"Well, at least you've got a friend." I pointed out.
Suddenly, I felt the mood change, and he seemed to jolt alert. Did I say something wrong? He looked at me with dead seriousness. "So do you."
"Me? Friends?" I scoffed, as I shook my head slightly, brushing away the idea. "As if."
Then I was startled when Kenma reached out and held my hand in his. "I'm your friend." His feline yellow eyes stared sincerely into mine.
"You are?" This was hard for me to process. I mean, who would want to be friends with me? I was a loser.
He simply nodded in response, giving my hand a gentle, reassuring squeeze. All the while, his golden gaze never left me. But for some reason, his prolonged stare didn't unnerve me, unlike the usual ones people gave me at school. Instead, I felt a strange tingling warmth blossom in my chest.
I have a friend...
"Thank you..." I breathed, as a small subconscious smile formed on my face.
"No worries." He smiled back. "See you at school."
"Yeah, see you." I returned.
He slowly let go of my hand, but the oddly pleasant sensation of his touch still lingered in my palm. As he began walking off, he briefly turned back again, reinitiating eye contact. "Bye, Akari."
I waved, as I watched Kenma's pudding-coloured hair disappear into the night.
~~~~
It was late Sunday night, and I was snuggled up lazily in my bed. After an hour of gaming, I started feeling a little hungry. Then I realised I hadn't eaten all day. I had been so caught up with grinding that new game I got, I'd forgotten the basic requirements of living. I mean, do I really want to keep living though?
I headed downstairs, into the kitchen. Let's see... I opened the cupboard to find it empty, save for pieces of wrapping. You're kidding. I checked the fridge. It was also empty, much like my stomach. What even... I swear I stocked up only a while ago.
Lately, I'd been gaming way too much. I was so caught up with keeping my Minecraft inventory full, that I'd failed to notice I was running low on real life supplies.
Perhaps I should wait until tomorrow. Surely I could last one night. But a low grumble of protest told me otherwise. Then, another sickening thought hit me like a shotgun pellet to the head. I had school tomorrow. How is the weekend already over? It's only been like, what, two days? Oh... right.
That left me no other choice. I reluctantly threw on a hoodie, and left the house. I hated going out, especially at night, but this was the only option. Subconsciously, my mind was already formulating a game plan. Head to airdrop, avoid enemies, loot, and get back to base.
With that in mind, I walked to the nearest convenience store. It was only about one kilometre away, so I got there pretty quickly. Heading straight towards the junk food aisle, I got right into stocking up on snacks. I always kept snacks in my room. You never know, you might get hungry halfway through a ranked match. Esports can get tiring, and require lots of energy. At least that's what I told myself. Then I decided to get packets of instant noodles. These were going to be my breakfast, lunch and dinner. That was meal-prepping done for the week.
After paying, I left the store, with a bag full of supplies. This should be enough. I began walking home, feeling rather satisfied and happy with myself. Mission success.
"Oh my god, is that... Shiro-chan!" An annoying voice shouted to me. Nakamura Eito's voice. I mentally slapped myself for jinxing it.
I quickened my pace. Don't look. I don't know him. Keep walking. Don't look.
"Aw, come back, Shiro!" I heard him call out again, this time, followed by approaching footsteps. "Don't ignore me."
Oh, god, why? I must've had the trashiest luck in the world. I shouldn't have left the house. The one time I took a step out of my safe haven, this shit happened.
Suddenly, I felt a hand on my shoulder, stopping me dead in my tracks. Fuck. With a forceful nudge, Eito spun me around to face him. "What's the hurry, Doll-face." He leered down at me. I visibly cringed at the weird nickname.
"I'm sorry, I really have to go." I tried to dismiss him politely. But as I turned to leave, I felt a hand grab firmly onto my wrist. "Hey, let go." What does he think he's doing?
"Aw, don't be like that. Stay for a while." He smirked, as I felt myself unwillingly dragged closer to him. He seemed to relish my uneasiness at our uncomfortably close proximity.
I attempted to pull my arm back, struggling against his surprisingly strong grip, but to no avail. "Eito, for god's sake, let me go!"
His hold of me only tightened, as he continued with his taunting. "Come on, let's have some fun, Shiro." Eito leaned down from his towering height, as his other hand prevented me from moving away. His grey eyes bore into mine and his lips curled into a truly unnerving smile. Oh, no. What is this creep up to?
I turned my head away, straining my neck to get as far away from him as possible. Squeezing my eyes shut, I brace myself for whatever the hell was coming next.
"Back off!" A dark-haired boy, who I had never seen before, approached us, sending Eito a threatening glare. The tall stranger stopped beside me, resting a firm hand protectively on my shoulder. "Leave her alone."
"Yeah? Or what? What are you gonna do?"
But the boy didn't let Eito's taunts affect him. "I mean it. You should leave now." His voice didn't waver, not the slightest, and neither did his intense eye contact. The tension was overwhelming, as the seconds of unbearable silence ticked by at an agonisingly slow rate.
To my relief, Eito finally released my wrist, and with one last menacing sneer, he left. Thank goodness.
The unknown boy then turned towards me, his penetrating, metallic blue gaze softened, regarding me with tenderness and concern. "Are you okay? Did he hurt you?" He asked, placing both hands on my shoulder.
"No, it's alright. I'm fine." I looked up at my saviour with grateful eyes. "Thank you... for helping me out."
"You're very welcome." He smiled gently, before adding. "Let me walk you home. It's quite late, and a girl like yourself shouldn't be out here alone."
"Oh, no, really it's fine. You don't have to." I quickly interjected. "I've already bothered you enough."
"Nonsense. I'm walking you home." The boy calmly insisted.
"Oh, uh... okay then. Thanks..." I couldn't really turn him down. Truth be told, I did feel a lot safer with the tall male accompanying me.
But why was he helping me? Didn't he get a look at my face? Well, I suppose it was quite dark. Or maybe he was blind. I didn't expect anyone to voluntarily offer assistance to someone like me.
"By the way, I'm Akaashi Keiji." The boy introduced himself, turning to me with expectant eyes. "What's your name?"
"Akari... Akari Shiro." I found myself stuttering nervously.
"Shiro... that's a pretty name." He remarked. "Can I call you Shiro?"
What? 'Shiro' literally meant 'white'. How was that a 'pretty name'? But nevertheless, I replied. "Yeah, of course."
"Then you can me Keiji." He gave me a small smile.
Who is this guy? Even more, why was he being nice to me? As we walked on, I snuck a glance at the tall boy beside me. His tousled black hair partially covered his forehead, leading down to half-closed, deep azure eyes. Woah... I let my eyes trace along the beautiful lines of his features, to his finely sculpted jawline. He's... attractive. My gaze wandered down, landing on the printed letters of the jacket that hung loosely on his slender figure. Fukurodani Volleyball Club.
"You go to Fukurodani..." I whispered without realising.
"I see you've noticed." I was a little surprised when Keiji replied ever-so-casually.
"It's a volleyball powerhouse school, isn't it?"
"Well, yeah... I guess you could say that. Still, we've got plenty of weaknesses, especially our captain." He laughed softly. "What about you? What school do you go to?"
"Oh, um... I go to Nekoma High."
"Really?" An hint of amusement flickered across his face. "Some of my friends go there too. Is there any chance you're friends with some of the Volleyball Club members?"
"I don't really know them." I shook my head. "Well, I'm only friends with one, but we don't hang out much."
"Oh, that's a shame. They really are an interesting bunch."
"I... I'm not exactly good at making friends." I admitted, fidgeting with the hem of my shirt.
"You do seem like the shy type." He pointed out. "But you're doing just fine right now."
I regarded him with slight confusion. "What do you mean?"
At that, he shrugged. "I mean, we're having a decent conversation aren't we? And... I'm finding you very likeable."
Huh? Me? Likeable? That was the biggest oxymoron I've ever heard.
"I'd love to be your friend." He turned towards me with a warm smile.
I looked at him with wide eyes. "Really?"
"Yeah. Of course."
For the rest of walk, we chatted idly about the random things that came to our minds. Keiji was really easygoing and I felt rather comfortable talking to him. Finally, we turned the corner and arrived at our destination.
"Hey, my house is just here." I told him, gesturing to my right.
"Is no one home?" He asked, no doubt already noticing the dark windows.
"No, I pretty much live by myself. My father's rarely home." I explained, before expressing my gratitude once more. "Thanks again, Keiji, for helping me out of that... situation. And for walking me home." I winced a little, as I remembered the awful encounter with Eito.
"No need to thank me. Besides, I really enjoyed your company."
"I should be the one saying that." I smiled at him, before walking towards my front door. "Well, I hope I see you again."
"Oh, about that..." He quickly stopped me, as I was about to head inside. "Do you think I can get your number? I'd love to get to know you more."
What is this? A hot guy is asking for my number? He must really be blind. "Um... sure." I stammered, not knowing how to respond appropriately to these type of situations.
His expression brightened and he handed me his phone. I entered my first name, along with my number, before returning it to him.
"Thanks." He flashed me a brilliant smile. "I'll text you. See you soon."
"Yeah... bye..." My mind was still in a state of shock, as I bid him farewell.
Well, this is new.
~~~~
Hi guys! This is a quick update to make up for whatever the hell I was doing before. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, I accidentally made a lot happen, so it's really long.
But yeah, so now Akaashi's in the picture, what's going to happen next? I don't know either. Hopefully I figure is out soon.
~ krypto