[Epilogue: Day 7]
[The following occurs in the evening hours of Asuka's seventh day on the island, after everything's been wrapped up and she has started home.]
Manjoume watched from the pier until he could no longer see Asuka's boat on the horizon, only vaguely aware that the majority of the school was behind him, waving and cheering and trying to make their yelling of fan-ish adoration reach her ears. He, himself, admittedly waved a little, but was content to just stand and watch in silence. After all, he'd already said goodbye to her in person - there wasn't much else to say.
He didn't leave even when the rest of the school slowly filed out, all of the students making their ways back to their respective dorms, even staying until he was the only one left. At that point, he opened his hand to look at the small object Asuka had given him before she left - a folded post-it note, upon which a single phone number was written. Her private number - "I'd like it if we could keep in touch, Jun-kun," she had told him.
"So when are you going to call her, Aniki?" Ojama Yellow, ever popping out at the opportune time to ruin the moment, said with the tone of someone seeking out the latest gossip.
"That is none of your business," he replied sharply, waving his hand toward where the spirit floated in the air in an attempt to make him go away. Just because he accepted that he needed them didn't mean that they were necessarily any less annoying, after all. "Now come on, we're going back to the dorm."
"Which dorm, Aniki?"
"Which one do you think?"
----------
There was a thin layer of dust on everything, seeing as how no student had occupied the room in several months now. If it got too hard to breathe without sneezing constantly, Manjoume decided, he would have to do something to clean it up, but for now, he didn't pay it any mind.
He didn't proceed two steps into the room before he heard hushed expressions of curiosity and disbelief - "I don't believe it..."; "Could it really be true?"; "Is it really him?", among others. To his left was a table, near which was a box filled haphazardly with cards he had no intention of actually using in his deck but which he kept anyway for various reasons.
And he had apparently walked in in time to interrupt those various reasons' game of Poker, or something akin to it. More specifically, Don Zaloog seemed to be trouncing Chick the Yellow in a round of it, while the other Scorpions were sharing a bottle of cheap sake with The Unhappy Maiden, Petit Angel, Dark Plant, and several other low-attack monster spirits, with Outstanding Dog Marron sleeping underneath the table.
He didn't have to announce his presence, however - the Ojamas popped out of their cards and did so for him. "Hey, everyone! Aniki's back!"
Manjoume barely had time to wave a little bit before the spirits let out a loud cheer that would have awoken anyone sleeping in Osiris Red - if they could hear them, anyway. Mostly variations of "You're back, Manjoume Thunder! We missed you so much!" Some of the (drunker) ones tried to leap and tackle him with a group hug, but he easily dodged.
"Yeah, I'm back," he said nonchalantly, making his way toward his bed, taking off his coat and hanging it on the bedpost, and reaching toward a pair of earplugs - something he hadn't had to use in months. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got class in the morning." And with that, he shut his eyes to the spirits partying around him, fastened the earplugs into his ears, and laid down.
Tomorrow would be a new day, but for now, he would sleep.
Fin
Manjoume watched from the pier until he could no longer see Asuka's boat on the horizon, only vaguely aware that the majority of the school was behind him, waving and cheering and trying to make their yelling of fan-ish adoration reach her ears. He, himself, admittedly waved a little, but was content to just stand and watch in silence. After all, he'd already said goodbye to her in person - there wasn't much else to say.
He didn't leave even when the rest of the school slowly filed out, all of the students making their ways back to their respective dorms, even staying until he was the only one left. At that point, he opened his hand to look at the small object Asuka had given him before she left - a folded post-it note, upon which a single phone number was written. Her private number - "I'd like it if we could keep in touch, Jun-kun," she had told him.
"So when are you going to call her, Aniki?" Ojama Yellow, ever popping out at the opportune time to ruin the moment, said with the tone of someone seeking out the latest gossip.
"That is none of your business," he replied sharply, waving his hand toward where the spirit floated in the air in an attempt to make him go away. Just because he accepted that he needed them didn't mean that they were necessarily any less annoying, after all. "Now come on, we're going back to the dorm."
"Which dorm, Aniki?"
"Which one do you think?"
----------
There was a thin layer of dust on everything, seeing as how no student had occupied the room in several months now. If it got too hard to breathe without sneezing constantly, Manjoume decided, he would have to do something to clean it up, but for now, he didn't pay it any mind.
He didn't proceed two steps into the room before he heard hushed expressions of curiosity and disbelief - "I don't believe it..."; "Could it really be true?"; "Is it really him?", among others. To his left was a table, near which was a box filled haphazardly with cards he had no intention of actually using in his deck but which he kept anyway for various reasons.
And he had apparently walked in in time to interrupt those various reasons' game of Poker, or something akin to it. More specifically, Don Zaloog seemed to be trouncing Chick the Yellow in a round of it, while the other Scorpions were sharing a bottle of cheap sake with The Unhappy Maiden, Petit Angel, Dark Plant, and several other low-attack monster spirits, with Outstanding Dog Marron sleeping underneath the table.
He didn't have to announce his presence, however - the Ojamas popped out of their cards and did so for him. "Hey, everyone! Aniki's back!"
Manjoume barely had time to wave a little bit before the spirits let out a loud cheer that would have awoken anyone sleeping in Osiris Red - if they could hear them, anyway. Mostly variations of "You're back, Manjoume Thunder! We missed you so much!" Some of the (drunker) ones tried to leap and tackle him with a group hug, but he easily dodged.
"Yeah, I'm back," he said nonchalantly, making his way toward his bed, taking off his coat and hanging it on the bedpost, and reaching toward a pair of earplugs - something he hadn't had to use in months. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got class in the morning." And with that, he shut his eyes to the spirits partying around him, fastened the earplugs into his ears, and laid down.
Tomorrow would be a new day, but for now, he would sleep.
Fin