Saturday 3 September 2016

恋のシグナル - aqua - ch 07: A Sudden Declaration of Love


Tsubaki is sitting quietly in Sanada Dojo, its weekend and the morning starts with a very loud monotone noises here. Everyone just return from the running and now its time for the indoor practice. Everyone swinging their wooden sword in pairing practice. It is a noisy morning yet Tsubaki sitting on the floor, both her eyes closed and her breathing is steady.
She thinks back to when Ryosuke and Yuto walked her home.
It was dark, and hardly any other passenger but them. Tsubaki sighing as both Ryosuke and Yuto exchange a cold and intense glare. 
“ah, we’re here.” She says sound a bit cheerful and get up from her seat. Her bag in front of her. Not before the train makes a stop, Ryosuke and Yuto keep looking at each other with annoyed look.
Tsubaki walks closer to the door and soon the two of them following her.
Before the door open, from the train door, she can see the reflection of them both, Yuto spinning his drum stick and Ryosuke look the other way, his brows slightly knit. 
“just what is happening between these two?” she asked herself, to be honest this intense silent has make everything feels very uncomfortable. 
“where do you live?” Ryosuke asks once they step out of the train.
“just 10 minutes walk from the station.”
They continue to walk in silence. Tsubaki has  no idea who to talk to in time like this, remembering the last time he talked to Ryosuke, Yuto casually slides and interrupt them, making Ryosuke obviously displeased.
“I don’t want that to happen again… do I…? Somehow I got a feeling Kota-san… arranged this.”

“where do you live Yuto?” as Tsubaki lost in her thought, Ryosuke voice breaks their silence.
“turn left in that intersection.” Tsubaki look from her shoulder, Yuto answering while his eyes fixed on the road under his feet
“hmm…” Ryosuke put a small smile as he nods, as Ryosuke move his eyes away from Yuto, his eyes meet Tsubaki. Ryosuke looks a bit startled, blush a bit and the shy smile of his return. 
“D-does your home near the station Yamada-san?” Tsubaki uses the chance to join the pep talk to vaporize their awkwardness. 
“in 15 minutes walk.” He nods with a smile.
As they enter the intersection, a bicycle passes through them, pedaling in speed.
“Junpei!” Yuto quickly cried, the boy on the bicycle is not mistaken it was Yuto’s younger brother. Before he finish sighing his cellphone ringing. He picks it up and looks especially disturb. 
“that was my mother, looks like Junpei had a fight with my dad, and I have to look for him.” 
“should we help you?” Tsubaki’s eyes quickly follow as Yuto starts running. 
He turns, shakes his head with a faint bitter smile. “Nah, we always ended up making a scene. I don’t want you to see that.” He looks at Ryosuke for a moment, an obvious doubt paints his face.
“I promise to walk her home.” Like he was picking up Yuto’s confusion, Ryosuke with a firm nod reassuring him that he’ll escorts Tsubaki safely. 
“thanks, bye Tsubaki.” With an awkward and forceful smile, Yuto turns and start sprinting across the empty road.
Ryosuke sees trouble at Tsubaki’s face, she makes a small shake before look at him. “shall we?”
“yeah.” Ryosuke gives a more sunny reply now, his smile wider and he give a confident nod and walk on her side this time. 
“This… is where I live.” Five minutes later, they stop.
“This house?” They stop in front of Sanada Residence, it was an old looking home, with huge gate hiding the house inside.
“its…huge…” Ryosuke sounds and look amazed, for common people Sanada residence does look more to tourist attraction rather than a normal living place.
“I start every morning with a nice morning sprint around the house before getting ready for school.” 
“…actually I feel like I can see you… your hair is flying wild and you’re running as fast as you can… with a slice of toast in your mouth…”
“…I don’t run with toast in my mouth! Who even does that, outside of anime?”
“…oh, right.” Ryosuke’s tone a little brusque, and he’s looking the other way when he says it… staring at the night sky. She glances over at him. his face in profile looks a little bit nervous. “he seems the type that can easily shy…” 
“And my hair isn’t wild either.”
Ryosuke smiles at that, Tsubaki to his smile at least likes it very much, it gives her a calm, warm feeling. His smiles is captivating, and she cant quite look away…
“…Huh? Is something wrong?”
“Wha…? Oh… I couldn’t help but look… at your smile…” she’s a bit embarrassed, but she goes ahead and tell him honestly. 
“A-at my…?!” Ryosuke looks even more shocked than she’d thought he might be.
“forgive me…that was rude, wasn’t it.”
Ryosuke looks really flustered, blushing deeply. And she winds up stammering out an apology. Then, just as they had both slipped back into silence again…
“I guess… this is goodbye.” He looks away, just a bit, speaking quietly… “…If you want to… I’ll stay here till I see you get inside….” He looks back at her again.
Tsubaki find herself meeting his eyes, gazing steadily back at him…
“See you… thank you for walking me home.” Tsubaki open the gate and say her farewell with half her body behind the gate. 
He nods, his expression softening, before slowly turning away.
“…B-Be careful on your way back!” 
Ryosuke turns slightly, giving her a little wave. She only catches a glimpse of his face, but he’s still got that shy smile…
Tsubaki went into her house, removes her shoes and went to living room to greet his father, when…
“K-Kota san?!”
The one she found sitting on the tatami in her living room is the man she just slapped earlier.
“what are you doing here?”
“my mom asked me to deliver some souvenir for your dad, and suddenly he has to go out and I was told to wait until he comes back.”
“I see…”
“don’t worry about me, go ahead and take a rest.” Kota takes a glass of tea, he probably has served for himself.
“I will then.” 
Splish splash
Returning home… Tsubaki enjoying a relaxing bath, she brings the water to her face. 
“This feels so good… alright…Guess its time to get out.” As Tsubaki stands up, from the corner of her eye, she notices something move.
“Was that what I think it was…?” Cautiously, she looks up and on the ceiling is…a huge spider.
“Ahhh!!!” Right after she screams, she hears the sound of the door opening.
“What happened? Running out of soap or something?”
“What?! Kota San is trying to open the door to the bath?!”
“I-I’m naked! Pervert!” she pushes again the door with everything she’d got. But then she sees the spider creep along the ceiling. 
“Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeek!”
“Stop screaming…what is it?”
“A-A spider…! I’m…I’m naked…!”
“…”
“The ceiling…! Oh, no, its d-dropping d-down…”
“…calm yourself. I’ll take care of it. I promise I wont look. Open the door.” Kota says this in a calming voice, and she feels a little better. 
“very well… I’m opening the door.” She slowly opens the door, and before she looks at Kota’s face, he wraps a towel around her body.
“There. Not so scary now, isn’t it.” Kota looks into her eyes gently.
“The spider…on the ceiling… its coming closer!”
“Ok, Ok I know.”
Kota scoops her up in his arms, the towel still wrapped around her, and carries her out of the bathroom. “uh…um..Kota san?” Tsubaki couldn’t form any words, she was either too embarrass looking like this or too surprise with the sudden gesture. 
Kota is taller, even than Yuto, so being lift in his arms feels like Tsubaki is flying into the air. Kota took her to her room, and slowly put her down but not before he brings his face just inches away from her neck.
“you…smell really nice… milady.”
“w-wha…?!” Tsubaki reaction was to move backwards and cover her neck, she’s not ticklish well at least not there. 
He smirks before brings his hand to ruffle her hair. “I’ll go get the spider out.”
“Ahh, that was awful…! It creep me out just thinking about it…” now Tsubaki has put on her pajama and slumped on her floor.
“you’re Ok now, right.” Kota walks in after threw the spider to the garden.
“Yes… forgive me for making such scene.”
“you should be.”
She gets a bad feeling about what’s coming next and look at Kota. Despite the gentleness she saw in his face moments earlier, she now sees a mischievous look playing in his eyes.
“what…?!” 
“A Lady of Sanada who is brave and strong… still terrify of spider, you really are still a little girl. Making such vulgar scream.”
“v-vulgar scream! I don’t even have time to think but scream… I cant help it… its most your fault too for putting a spider toy inside my clothes whenever we played!”
Tsubaki seems surprise with how loud the voice she makes, and quickly covers her lips. 
“yeah… those days were hilarious, you would scream and cried and I ended up being scolded by Yukito san dan Nobue san.” Kota laughs, a light of happiness as he showers with nostalgic feeling,
“say…Kota san.”
“hm?” kota fall himself into the floor and sits next to her.
“did you make Yuto and Yamada san run to each other on purpose?”
“I do.” He nods with any bit of guilt.
“why did you do that?”
“No personal intention, those two need to get along better for the sake of council board and Kitagawa.” 
“well, that’s the good reason, the bad one is… I just want to see them getting more intense about her.”
 “hmm…is that so…?”
As tsubaki’s turn feeling warmth closer to her, she founds Kota has leaning in, closer to her. The tip of his nose is brushing her cheek. His every movements feel so slow, and Tsubaki find her air stuck on her throat.
“and besides, as I said before it’s a common sense for a guy to walk a girl home.”
“I’m fine, I can take care of myself.” She turns her head away.
“said the girl screaming to a spider.” he chuckles and take his head away, leaning behind. “no matter how strong you are, you’re still a girl Tsubaki.”
“I know that, that is why I train harder than anyone to gain my respect.” Knits her brows, Tsubaki turns and stare at him with a powerful gaze.
“oh… really.” The smile on Kota’s face banish, then…
“Ah!”
Suddenly he moves closer, wrenching Tsubaki’s arm behind her back, immediately, the world starts to spin. Kota holds down her shoulder with one of his elbow.
“huh?!” Tsubaki eyes widen and her breath stuck in as she’s pinned into the floor.
“it takes seconds to understand whats going on, right. And you cant even reacted.”
“don’t make me slap you for the second time today.” Tsubaki replies with a clear anger, looking behind from her shoulder. 
“while you fight to gain respect, one day you’ll ended up getting this.”
“Let go!” Tsubaki somehow manage to free herself from his locking position and with the intense train she has got, it wasn’t hard to turn the table, and Kota sees the room spinning before him. 
“auch…! God you really are taking after your dad…that brute strength…” Kota tries to get up, rubbing his back after hitting the floor hard. 
“what is wrong with you?!”
“nothing, I just try to remind you. The bullies.”
“bullies…?”
“if one day… the bullies got to a point like this… no matter how strong you are, ask for help.”
“…”
“don’t do things on your own.”
“its like you council people actually helping anyone.” Her voice was rather quiet and distant. She looks down, frowning. Imagining all her Fujiwara friends, she was lucky she’s strong enough to fight back or probably lucky for knowing some people in the council, but what happen if it was someone else… what would happen then?
The atmosphere soon turns into an awkward silence, both of them lost the will to either talk or see each other’s face.
“I’ll wait for your father at the living room.” Tsubaki hears rustling noises as Kota pushes himself up and head to the door.
“yeah…” she answers flatly and her sliding door closed. That day things ended up not so very well for them.
“Miss Sanada?”
“yes?” Tsubaki open her eyes after a momentarily meditation and found one of her student crouching on her side.
“someone is looking for you.”
“me?” tsubaki’s eyes following the boy’s eye line, at the entrance Yuto standing his eyes looking around the Dojo like he was supervising it.
“yuto…?” Tsubaki’s tone was bit disbelief, after their breaking up Yuto has rarely came to the Dojo, so seeing him there was quite a surprise. “Yuto, its been a while seeing your face here, are you here to practice again?”
“uh, no… I came for this.” Yuto lift some books he kept under his arm.
“traveling brochures and tourism catalog?” Tsubaki takes few of it and look at it one by one.
“the teacher asked us to pick a spot for the field trip, remember.”
“ah yes… so it does.”
“we have to come up with the decision this Monday.”
“so it seems, very well then. Please wait for a moment.”
After cleaning herself, Tsubaki sets up the folding table, and they sit down to study, facing each other. 
“we have chose the destination, whats left is to chose the spots to visit.” Yuto says while places all the books he’s been holding. He takes a pencil and opens his notebook. 
“hm, what about the old temple? Field trip supposes to be educational and fun.”
“hahaha, I know someone who thinks visiting a temple is fun.”
“you do?” Tsubaki’s answer was rather dry, she too has busy taking one tourism brochure and starts checking things out.
They go back and forth in arguments.
“oh this looks good, we could have a group lunch here.”
“hm? Where is?”
Yuto slides himself to one side, and now they sit side by side.
“oh yeah, I saw that spot on tv before.” Yuto face lights up, as he points the sceneries at the travelling booklet.
“right, and I’m sure everyone will enjoy it.”
“lets see if the entry pass could fit into our budget.” Yuto takes his calculator and Tsubaki starts describing the expenses rundown.
They were so focus into their task, unconsciously that their shoulder has touching. Yuto handed the calculation to Tsubaki, she study it, expression serious.
Yuto now come to his senses that they’re touching. He tries to move away but he stop himself, instead he lean slightly so their shoulder touching even more. Tsubaki is too busy to notice this and continue with her work. 
“oh!” as she exclaims a bit sudden, Yuto quickly pulls himself and sit straight. “look at the time!” she look up to her watch. “its nearly dinner, I guess we’ve been working so hard.” Tsubaki says turning her head towards Yuto, she blinks looking puzzle when Yuto has this faint blush on him, he looks away and answer a bit nervous.
“y-yeah…”
“and our work has not yet done, why don’t you have dinner with me here?”
“sure…”
“I’ll let you know when dinner is ready.” Tsubaki smiles and leave the room. 
As she left, Yuto finally could breathe in relief, he brings his hand to his chest, the beating feels like making a whole in his chest. 
“come on self…control yourself.” he went slump and his head fall to the table. 
While Tsubaki is cooking the phone in her house ringing. Her father told her he’ll be staying over at his friend house after attending a golf tournament with his fellow retirement polices outside the town.  
Tsubaki serves a simple dinner, the two of them eating with complete silence. Tsubaki has her mind going elsewhere… she cannot wait for Monday so she can see and check the last junior that hasn’t leave Kitagawa. Between all of the Fujiwara students she seems to put up with the bullies quite well, but Tsubaki has to make sure she’s fine.
Yuto on the other hand, keep his mind busy by thinking about the field trip but every now and then his mind slips and think about Tsubaki and Ryosuke once again. 
“How about some coffee?” Tsubaki’s offering after dinner.
“sounds great.”
“I’ll go make it, so wait in my room.”
“here’s your coffee.” Minutes later, Tsubaki return with two cups of steamy coffee in her hands. 
“thanks.”
The two of them sit together side by side sipping their coffee.
“…”
“I cant believe its so late already.” Yuto says after looking to his wrist watch. A sporty model with digital numbering.
“yes, times sure goes quickly when we’re busy.” Tsubaki gives a nod and a smile, agreeing what Yuto said.
“its probably because I’m spending it with you.” Yuto glances her way, smiling slightly.
Seeing his face like that, Tsubaki felt her heart almost jumped out of her throat and the coffee cup slips from her fingers.
“HOT!!”
“S-sorry!!!” In her moment of panic, she has spilt her coffee all over Yuto’s white shirt. 
“W-we have to wipe it off!” she scans the table, fishing her handkerchief out of her pocket. When she doesn’t see the cloth. A large coffee stain is gradually spreading across Yuto’s shirt.
“Ah! Its everywhere. I’ll never get it out with a handkerchief. If we don’t wash the shirt now, its really going to stain. And not just the shirt, I got it all over Yuto himself, too…”
“I’m really sorry Yuto! Why don’t you take a shower? I’ll wash that shirt for you!”
“our shower is kind of old, so I’ll show you how to work it, okay?” Tsubaki turns toward the shower, still speaking to Yuto, standing behind her.
“…”
“Watch closely, okay?”
“…” Yuto isn’t answering her.
“Yuto, are you listening?” when she turns, her breath catches. Yuto is standing right in front of her, in the middle of getting undressed… she catches a glimpse of lithe, supple body under the layers he’s taking off.
“I-I wasn’t expecting this…!! Wh-what should I do with my eyes…?” Tsubaki jerks her head down, staring at her feet.
“Oh, sorry. I was busy getting undressed, so I missed that just now.”
“Oh, O-o-o-o-o-okay…”
“will you show me how to use it now?”
“s-sure.” The inside of her head is a bright blur as she turns back to the shower once again. “First, if you twist this, you can get hot water, and you can adjust the temperature.”
“uh-huh.”
“And when you finish, you can pull this lever to get the shower.”
“Okay, I think I’ve got it. Let me just try it out to see. Um, so…first you twist this faucet…and you pull here…”
SHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!
“Whoa!” Yuto jumps back as the water running from the shower head.
“C-cold!” Cold water rushes out of the shower head, completely drenching both of them…! “I Just showed it to you, Yuto!” she stands in front of him, scowling. “??”
Despite the water, Yuto actually staring at her.
“what?”
“…”
“What are you looking at?”
“Tsubaki…” Yuto brings his finger slowly and point at her body.
“what?”
“your shirt. Its soaked through.”
“wha…” looking down, she’s instantly struck silent.
“!!!!!!”
“Yuto can completely see my bra! As if the embarrassment with Kota san is not enough, now this?!”
Tsubaki quickly turns away and run from the bathroom, slammed the door behind her.
Even with the cold water running, soaking his body, Yuto brings his hand to his face, covering the heat gradually stronger, his whole face, his ears even neck starts to get hot… the only thing keeping him warm right now. “…this…is getting worse…how much longer can I hold myself…”
Today, after school Tsubaki made a promise with Mika to hang out at their favorite spot after school. But Tsubaki wants to see the last junior before that. So Mika waiting patiently at Kitagawa school gate. 
“Hanayo, thank you for waiting.” Tsubaki says as she sees a girl in a long braided hair still sitting in her chair, in 2D. 
“is something wrong?” she asks half worry.
“are you… alright?” Tsubaki stands in front of her. Hanayo’s wide eyes blink couple of times before she cocks her head to one side. “I’m…fine?”
“Did, you get… bully?”
“oh, you’re asking about that… yes I do like most of Fujiwara students…my bento often found in trash bin, or I left alone to clean the room, like now hehehe, one day I even found all my books inside the school well…” she tousles her hair behind her ear, she looks really shy and fragile, how can she keep with all the bullies, Tsubaki thought to herself. She’s thin, she always speaks while hanging her head low, and her hand wont stop tousling her black hair. 
“its hard, but I used to get bullies since well… since I enter a school.” She laughs bitterly, her effort to remain calm, tight a knot in Tsubaki’s chest. “so… I can handle this… for my brother.”
“your brother?”
She nods, this time, she look up, her face softener with a gentle smile. “my younger brother, Yahiko he always wants to enroll to Kitagawa, it’ll be two more years so… I’d do anything to save this school, to make him happy.”
“you truly love your brother.” Tsubaki smiles along, radiant of love coming from her. She knows what sibling love is, since she felt the same way with her older brothers. 
“I do, so…its only few more months… I can do this.” She smiles, again but this time, with more confident look. 
Mika standing with cellphone on her hand, scrolling through a blog.
“hey, you’re a Fujiwara right.” A cheerful tone disturbs her, she looks up and found three boys stop near her. 
“yes, I’m waiting for a friend.” Mika nods, the three of them look cute, but especially one catches her attention even more.
“oh, you’re the one who always ride the same train with us, Yamada Ryosuke right?”
“ah, are you the one who always with Tsubaki, are you here for her?”
“yep, we promise to hang out today.”
“ah that sengoku girl, Yuto’s girlfriend!” Yuri replying with a sunny smile while looking towards Ryosuke and Keito.
“wait, what do you mean with Yuto’s girlfiend?!”
“Tsubaki is Yuto’s girl, right, didn’t you know that?” Yuri, looking curious turns at Mika, his eyes widen a bit.
“I don’t know what that Yuto say to you, but they were over a year ago! that Yuto dumped her!” Mika’s now looking extremely annoyed, she pouts her lips and knits her brows.
“so, she’s single?” Keito the one asking this time.
Mika only nod as her answer.
“she’s single.” Yuri’s elbowing Ryosuke who stands there, seem to be a bit shock, he barely breathing. And suddenly he turns back toward the school and start running.
“w-where did he go?” Mika’s wondering, as Ryosuke sprint leaving trails of dust behind. 
“so…want to go get some juice, Tsubaki might takes a while.”
“huh…?” Mika’s cock her head, but Yuri’s cuteness seems to melt her usual stubbornness. “this guy has a devilish smile that is impossible to resist!”
While Yuri “kidnap” Mika temporary along with Keito. Tsubaki just finished talking to Hanayo, she reliefs that Hanayo seems to be able to keep up and settle in despite all the bullies she had.
One last breath and Tsubaki picks up her bag and walk to the door when…. Suddenly a long arm covering her way, Ryosuke hanging his head low, breathing rapidly, sweat even hanging on his forehead.
“Yamada san?” tsubaki’s voice sound between curious and concern.
Ryosuke finally standing, wipes his sweat with his sleeve. Tsubaki look to her skirt to fetch her handkerchief, but… Suddenly Ryosuke leaning, his movement was unexpected and Tsubaki move backwards cornered to the wall behind her.
Ryosuke is standing right in front of her, her back touches the cold wall behind. The sound of his hands hitting it on either side of her head causes her to jump, eyes fixed right on her. His gaze is powerful, intense, sharp…
“Wh-what…?!” and he’s definitely standing in her personal space now. Fixed with that unwavering gaze, tsubaki’s heart starts hammering in her chest. But… his eyes aren’t frightening. Its more like… his gaze feels… sincere.
“I like you…?”
“huh?”
“What did he… just…?”
The words were so sudden, so unexpected… Tsubaki freeze in place, mouth still hanging slightly open in shock. 
“Um…I…I always see you…on the same train since jr high,…and…” He speaks haltingly, voice low… Tsubaki can see the barest hint of a blush on his cheeks as he talks to her.
“s-so…i-if you don’t date anyone…maybe…I can…”
“…” Tsubaki who was holding her bag across her chest, holding to it ever so harder. 
Tsubaki look into his deep and powerful gaze, feels like she can be pulled into it. 
“I’ll make you fall in love with me.” 
“I-I don’t believe that any of this is actually happening! D-did Yamada san just said what I think he said?!”
Tsubaki still cant entirely wrap her mind around the situation. She doesn’t know what she should say, or how she should react… Ryosuke bring his head down and hang it on her tense shoulder.
“…that’s a promise I will keep.” His sweet, low whisper sends a shiver down her spine that makes her heart feel like it might burst.
On different place, getting ready for his drum practice. Yuto is suddenly frozen in his track. He has a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach… he looks confuse with it but decides to shake it off and continue entering the studio. Smile on his face, he’s no longer fighting to forget about his ex, instead now, it becomes a bit of remedy that kept him going, a reminder that he would come to her once again, one day.

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