fic: [mekakuni] Memories of the Future ch. 14
Entirely no time to write with JLPT looming around the corner and essays to churn out, but I'd hate to be dropped from the challenge! I posted a rough draft of this before. Please ignore that. For everyone who gave me their address in my card post, I got your address safely! Cards will be sent out late December. I kind of have only been skimming my flist these days, so if I missed your card post, let me know?
Memories of the Future
A Namiki-centric fic for 30_kisses
Disclaimer: Mekakushi no Kuni belongs to Tsukuba Sakura. I'm making no profit from writing this piece of fanwork.
archive: lj | ffnet
word count: 1853
-----chapter 14: #2 news; letter-----
The next few days passed by in a blur. After the frenzy that surrounded the school festival, the students now had to settle down and direct their thoughts back to school. Summer was soon to come, but before anyone could relax, there were exams to be taken care of.
When Masahiro visited Kanade that afternoon, he did not expect to see Kaichou at the door too. Her hand was still in the middle of knocking when both of them blurted, "What are you doing here?"
"Same reason you're here, I bet," answered Masahiro. He was here to help both Kanade and Arou with their studies. Especially Kanade. Kanade's scores weren't terrible, but they could use improvement. He wanted to make sure there was no chance Kanade would have to attend extra classes during the summer. Summer meant going to the beach and playing in the waves. It didn't mean staying holed up in the classroom. They'd have to postpone their plans to the beach if Kanade didn't pass her exams, since he certainly wasn't going to go alone with Arou. He wondered, however, if his vision would come to pass, and he'd see that easy smile spread across her face in his presence.
"Don't you have your own studies to worry about?" asked Kaichou, breaking him out of his thoughts. She peered at him curiously, her surprise at seeing him already gone from her face. Her voice was strong without a single waver, her gaze direct and true. He wondered if she had forgotten his little confession, or if she still didn't understand what his power meant. Even her younger brother had been wary of him at first. Masahiro wouldn't begrudge Kaichou for feeling some degree of unease.
Masahiro quickly waved her worries away, never one to dwell on his schoolwork for long. "I have a few projects and one exam, but they're nothing to worry about."
Kaichou frowned, causing him to pause. Why was she frowning? It couldn't be what he had just said--his schoolwork was simple, and he was ahead in his studies, though not by much. He could even say that his classes were almost boring him. Was she finally remembering what they had last spoken about? He should ask her if his vision of her future with her brother that day had come to pass...
"You always-" she started.
Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, the door opened before Kaichou could finish her sentence. He tried filling in the blank with little luck. He always...joked around? Brushed things off? Spoke cynically? Masahiro could only guess at what she had been trying to say.
"Both of you are here!" exclaimed Kanade, her eyes darting between the two of them. She opened the door wider and gestured. "Come on in!"
Kaichou held up a small, white box tied with pink ribbon. "I brought some cake too, in case studying gets too frustrating."
Kanade clapped her hands together. "Oh, with cake, we'll all definitely have enough energy to get through studying!"
"Just don't let Marota get to it. He likes sweets." joked Masahiro, pulling on Marota's leash as he spoke, remembering the time Marota had slobbered over a wrapped piece of candy. It was strange that the puppy had held the candy inside his mouth for so long, only to drop it in front of Masahiro. Masahiro liked to think that Marota was thinking about him when he did that. It made him feel that perhaps he wasn't such a bad owner after all, even though he still felt that Marota was stupid for picking him over Kaichou and her brother.
The two girls laughed at his words. Marota barked as if he knew they were talking about him, his little tail wagging happily.
Masahiro watched Kaichou bend down to rub her hands through Marota's fur. She spoke to Marota, her lips quirking up at Marota's reaction. Masahiro expected her to be brimming with questions after being told something as outlandish as being able to see the future, but instead she was acting fairly normally.
Perhaps too normally.
He knew he should broach the subject soon. He was usually blunt and straight to the point. He wasn't one to sugarcoat his words. But somehow, the timing didn't feel right, and he found himself stalling again.
He waited until Kaichou entered the house before following after her. He murmured a quiet, "Sorry for the intrusion," before stepping up into the house and removing his shoes.
-----
Arou was already at the table when they entered the room. Books and loose papers were spread all over the surface, almost covering the entire table. He had an intense look of concentration as he stared at a passage in his textbook. He didn't seem to notice the newcomers.
Kanade glanced at Kaichou and Masahiro and put her finger against her lip. "Shhh." She picked Marota up and tiptoed towards Arou. When she reached his side, she held Marota next to him.
"Arou!" she exclaimed.
"Wha-"
He got a face full of doggy slobber the moment he turned around. Marota yipped happily, his tail wagging wildly.
Arou smiled exasperatedly and held his arms out. Kanade transferred the puppy to him. As Arou petted Marota, he glanced up at the other two in the room, nodding his welcome.
Masahiro had the feeling that Arou's gaze lingered on Kaichou a few seconds longer than necessary. When Arou looked his way afterward, Masahiro immediately understood what Arou wanted to say just from his gaze.
Masahiro rolled his eyes.
Arou was such a busybody. Masahiro didn't need Arou pushing him every step of the way. Hadn't he already taken the first step?
-----
As they settled down to study, Kanade's mom brought over the teapot. She spotted Kaichou, who was easily a head taller than her. "Oh, who's this?" asked Kanade's mom curiously as she set out the teacups. Namiki immediately reached over to help her out.
Kaichou bowed politely. "I was in the same class as your daughter last--"
"Oh, are you by any chance Namiki-kun's girlfriend?" asked Kanade's mom excitedly.
Kanade almost wanted to blush from her mom's straightforwardness, but she couldn't say she wasn't curious about where this was heading. She noticed that Namiki fumbled the teacup he had just picked up. It was a good thing there wasn't any tea in it yet. He quickly straightened the teacup and looked up to see if anyone had noticed. Kanade tried looking away innocently, but she doubted she had escaped Namiki's attention. She was terrible at keeping what she thought out of her expression.
"Uh, no I'm uh not..." replied Kaichou. Her entire face was red, all the way up to her ears. The color contrasted greatly with her pale hair. Kanade quickly began pouring tea for everyone in hopes to keep the huge smile off her face, even though she was unable to keep herself from blushing after all. Kaichou could be so adorable at times.
"Ah, was I mistaken?" asked Kanade's mom with a large smile, her hand on the side of her face. "I'm sorry!"
"No, it's all right..." said Kaichou as she glanced between Kanade's mom and Kanade, hit by their similarity. Kanade relaxed, glad that her mother hadn't made things too awkward.
Suddenly, Kanade's mom clapped her hands together much like what Kanade had done at the door.
"Well, do you like him then?"
Kanade's eyes widened. "Mom!" she exclaimed. Inwardly, she was giving her mom a thumbs up, but she also wondered if this was perhaps pushing things too much. Kaichou's blush had returned full force, and Arou was pounding Namiki on the back to stop his coughs from choking on his tea.
As Kanade steered her mother away from the living room, she caught the last snippets of their retorts.
"Droopy-eyed here? Unlikely, no offense," managed Kaichou.
Namiki snorted. "You're way too skinny. Gain some weight first!"
"And who're you trying to convince?" interjected Arou.
They both fell silent.
Kanade shook her head in amusement.
-----
"If you add this here and do this..." explained Masahiro with a yawn.
"Namiki-san! Have you been getting enough sleep?" asked Kanade.
Masahiro covered his yawn and threw another stack of papers in front of Kanade. "No need to worry about me. Worry about yourself first. Look at those red marks!"
Kanade hurriedly directed her attention back to the problem sets.
He didn't know when he drifted off, but the next thing he knew, he was on the couch. He didn't open his eyes immediately, instead marveling at the softness of Kanade's sofa. He really needed to furnish his apartment better, and get some real sofas instead of the junk he had.
He felt someone brush against him, covering him with a thin blanket. Masahiro reached out and grabbed that person's hand. It was too hot for blankets.
He cracked open his eyes, surprised when Kaichou came into focus. She didn't pull away from his touch, instead pulling the blanket up some more.
"Go back to sleep, you dolt. Clearly, you haven't been getting enough sleep, no matter how easy you say college is," she said. "You never take good enough care of yourself."
Masahiro almost laughed. She was one to talk! Instead, he squeezed her wrist lightly.
"You don't mind?" asked Masahiro, the last vestiges of sleep making him forget all of his silly qualms.
Her eyes wandered over his grip. "I mind that you're probably cutting off my circulation," she quipped.
He let go of her as she spoke, still waiting for something to go horribly wrong. He couldn't be this lucky.
His eyes widened when she reached out and took back his hand, weaving her fingers with his. He didn't flinch, but his breath almost stopped.
"Clearly you mind," she commented, and she was right. He tried to be nonchalant about the whole thing, tried to convince himself that he'd have lost nothing if Kaichou chose to ignore him, or if she ended up wary of him. She was just another person at Kanade's school, wasn't she? But he found that he cared. He cared so much more than he thought possible. She was far from a mere acquaintance, far from just a mutual friend.
"I talked to Shiya right when I got home that day," murmured Kaichou. "It's hard to wrap my mind around this, especially when you joke so much, but..." She paused and smiled at him widely.
"I believe you. And I really don't mind." She squeezed his hand, as if telling him, See? I'm touching you, aren't I? I'm not scared of you.
This was the best news he had heard in a long, long time.
Outside the living room, Kanade's mom put a hand on her face in suprise.
"Ah, it looks like they're about to kis-!" she exclaimed.
"Mom!" chastised Kanade, hurriedly clapping her hands over her mother's mouth. "Don't ruin the mood!"
Kanade peered into the living room, smiling at the sight. They were just holding hands, but that spoke volumes for Kanade, and she knew it meant a lot for Namiki-san too.
-----
to be continued
Next chapter: #29 the sound of waves
Memories of the Future
A Namiki-centric fic for 30_kisses
Disclaimer: Mekakushi no Kuni belongs to Tsukuba Sakura. I'm making no profit from writing this piece of fanwork.
archive: lj | ffnet
word count: 1853
-----chapter 14: #2 news; letter-----
The next few days passed by in a blur. After the frenzy that surrounded the school festival, the students now had to settle down and direct their thoughts back to school. Summer was soon to come, but before anyone could relax, there were exams to be taken care of.
When Masahiro visited Kanade that afternoon, he did not expect to see Kaichou at the door too. Her hand was still in the middle of knocking when both of them blurted, "What are you doing here?"
"Same reason you're here, I bet," answered Masahiro. He was here to help both Kanade and Arou with their studies. Especially Kanade. Kanade's scores weren't terrible, but they could use improvement. He wanted to make sure there was no chance Kanade would have to attend extra classes during the summer. Summer meant going to the beach and playing in the waves. It didn't mean staying holed up in the classroom. They'd have to postpone their plans to the beach if Kanade didn't pass her exams, since he certainly wasn't going to go alone with Arou. He wondered, however, if his vision would come to pass, and he'd see that easy smile spread across her face in his presence.
"Don't you have your own studies to worry about?" asked Kaichou, breaking him out of his thoughts. She peered at him curiously, her surprise at seeing him already gone from her face. Her voice was strong without a single waver, her gaze direct and true. He wondered if she had forgotten his little confession, or if she still didn't understand what his power meant. Even her younger brother had been wary of him at first. Masahiro wouldn't begrudge Kaichou for feeling some degree of unease.
Masahiro quickly waved her worries away, never one to dwell on his schoolwork for long. "I have a few projects and one exam, but they're nothing to worry about."
Kaichou frowned, causing him to pause. Why was she frowning? It couldn't be what he had just said--his schoolwork was simple, and he was ahead in his studies, though not by much. He could even say that his classes were almost boring him. Was she finally remembering what they had last spoken about? He should ask her if his vision of her future with her brother that day had come to pass...
"You always-" she started.
Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, the door opened before Kaichou could finish her sentence. He tried filling in the blank with little luck. He always...joked around? Brushed things off? Spoke cynically? Masahiro could only guess at what she had been trying to say.
"Both of you are here!" exclaimed Kanade, her eyes darting between the two of them. She opened the door wider and gestured. "Come on in!"
Kaichou held up a small, white box tied with pink ribbon. "I brought some cake too, in case studying gets too frustrating."
Kanade clapped her hands together. "Oh, with cake, we'll all definitely have enough energy to get through studying!"
"Just don't let Marota get to it. He likes sweets." joked Masahiro, pulling on Marota's leash as he spoke, remembering the time Marota had slobbered over a wrapped piece of candy. It was strange that the puppy had held the candy inside his mouth for so long, only to drop it in front of Masahiro. Masahiro liked to think that Marota was thinking about him when he did that. It made him feel that perhaps he wasn't such a bad owner after all, even though he still felt that Marota was stupid for picking him over Kaichou and her brother.
The two girls laughed at his words. Marota barked as if he knew they were talking about him, his little tail wagging happily.
Masahiro watched Kaichou bend down to rub her hands through Marota's fur. She spoke to Marota, her lips quirking up at Marota's reaction. Masahiro expected her to be brimming with questions after being told something as outlandish as being able to see the future, but instead she was acting fairly normally.
Perhaps too normally.
He knew he should broach the subject soon. He was usually blunt and straight to the point. He wasn't one to sugarcoat his words. But somehow, the timing didn't feel right, and he found himself stalling again.
He waited until Kaichou entered the house before following after her. He murmured a quiet, "Sorry for the intrusion," before stepping up into the house and removing his shoes.
-----
Arou was already at the table when they entered the room. Books and loose papers were spread all over the surface, almost covering the entire table. He had an intense look of concentration as he stared at a passage in his textbook. He didn't seem to notice the newcomers.
Kanade glanced at Kaichou and Masahiro and put her finger against her lip. "Shhh." She picked Marota up and tiptoed towards Arou. When she reached his side, she held Marota next to him.
"Arou!" she exclaimed.
"Wha-"
He got a face full of doggy slobber the moment he turned around. Marota yipped happily, his tail wagging wildly.
Arou smiled exasperatedly and held his arms out. Kanade transferred the puppy to him. As Arou petted Marota, he glanced up at the other two in the room, nodding his welcome.
Masahiro had the feeling that Arou's gaze lingered on Kaichou a few seconds longer than necessary. When Arou looked his way afterward, Masahiro immediately understood what Arou wanted to say just from his gaze.
Masahiro rolled his eyes.
Arou was such a busybody. Masahiro didn't need Arou pushing him every step of the way. Hadn't he already taken the first step?
-----
As they settled down to study, Kanade's mom brought over the teapot. She spotted Kaichou, who was easily a head taller than her. "Oh, who's this?" asked Kanade's mom curiously as she set out the teacups. Namiki immediately reached over to help her out.
Kaichou bowed politely. "I was in the same class as your daughter last--"
"Oh, are you by any chance Namiki-kun's girlfriend?" asked Kanade's mom excitedly.
Kanade almost wanted to blush from her mom's straightforwardness, but she couldn't say she wasn't curious about where this was heading. She noticed that Namiki fumbled the teacup he had just picked up. It was a good thing there wasn't any tea in it yet. He quickly straightened the teacup and looked up to see if anyone had noticed. Kanade tried looking away innocently, but she doubted she had escaped Namiki's attention. She was terrible at keeping what she thought out of her expression.
"Uh, no I'm uh not..." replied Kaichou. Her entire face was red, all the way up to her ears. The color contrasted greatly with her pale hair. Kanade quickly began pouring tea for everyone in hopes to keep the huge smile off her face, even though she was unable to keep herself from blushing after all. Kaichou could be so adorable at times.
"Ah, was I mistaken?" asked Kanade's mom with a large smile, her hand on the side of her face. "I'm sorry!"
"No, it's all right..." said Kaichou as she glanced between Kanade's mom and Kanade, hit by their similarity. Kanade relaxed, glad that her mother hadn't made things too awkward.
Suddenly, Kanade's mom clapped her hands together much like what Kanade had done at the door.
"Well, do you like him then?"
Kanade's eyes widened. "Mom!" she exclaimed. Inwardly, she was giving her mom a thumbs up, but she also wondered if this was perhaps pushing things too much. Kaichou's blush had returned full force, and Arou was pounding Namiki on the back to stop his coughs from choking on his tea.
As Kanade steered her mother away from the living room, she caught the last snippets of their retorts.
"Droopy-eyed here? Unlikely, no offense," managed Kaichou.
Namiki snorted. "You're way too skinny. Gain some weight first!"
"And who're you trying to convince?" interjected Arou.
They both fell silent.
Kanade shook her head in amusement.
-----
"If you add this here and do this..." explained Masahiro with a yawn.
"Namiki-san! Have you been getting enough sleep?" asked Kanade.
Masahiro covered his yawn and threw another stack of papers in front of Kanade. "No need to worry about me. Worry about yourself first. Look at those red marks!"
Kanade hurriedly directed her attention back to the problem sets.
He didn't know when he drifted off, but the next thing he knew, he was on the couch. He didn't open his eyes immediately, instead marveling at the softness of Kanade's sofa. He really needed to furnish his apartment better, and get some real sofas instead of the junk he had.
He felt someone brush against him, covering him with a thin blanket. Masahiro reached out and grabbed that person's hand. It was too hot for blankets.
He cracked open his eyes, surprised when Kaichou came into focus. She didn't pull away from his touch, instead pulling the blanket up some more.
"Go back to sleep, you dolt. Clearly, you haven't been getting enough sleep, no matter how easy you say college is," she said. "You never take good enough care of yourself."
Masahiro almost laughed. She was one to talk! Instead, he squeezed her wrist lightly.
"You don't mind?" asked Masahiro, the last vestiges of sleep making him forget all of his silly qualms.
Her eyes wandered over his grip. "I mind that you're probably cutting off my circulation," she quipped.
He let go of her as she spoke, still waiting for something to go horribly wrong. He couldn't be this lucky.
His eyes widened when she reached out and took back his hand, weaving her fingers with his. He didn't flinch, but his breath almost stopped.
"Clearly you mind," she commented, and she was right. He tried to be nonchalant about the whole thing, tried to convince himself that he'd have lost nothing if Kaichou chose to ignore him, or if she ended up wary of him. She was just another person at Kanade's school, wasn't she? But he found that he cared. He cared so much more than he thought possible. She was far from a mere acquaintance, far from just a mutual friend.
"I talked to Shiya right when I got home that day," murmured Kaichou. "It's hard to wrap my mind around this, especially when you joke so much, but..." She paused and smiled at him widely.
"I believe you. And I really don't mind." She squeezed his hand, as if telling him, See? I'm touching you, aren't I? I'm not scared of you.
This was the best news he had heard in a long, long time.
Outside the living room, Kanade's mom put a hand on her face in suprise.
"Ah, it looks like they're about to kis-!" she exclaimed.
"Mom!" chastised Kanade, hurriedly clapping her hands over her mother's mouth. "Don't ruin the mood!"
Kanade peered into the living room, smiling at the sight. They were just holding hands, but that spoke volumes for Kanade, and she knew it meant a lot for Namiki-san too.
-----
to be continued
Next chapter: #29 the sound of waves