It's Not a Date!
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Post by Fuukami I. Iryna on Jan 13, 2013 17:47:37 GMT -6
Friends of mine? Friends of mine... that I can enjoy some nice snacks and have some girl talk together... I've never had one. Those of my age tend to keep a distance from me since I was young, most likely because I was born into wealth. I've never had person about my age whom I can consider as a "best friend". The ones that I can freely converse to are my mother, my butler Katsura-san, and the house workers. My father... there are still a long distance between me and him, even though he's the one who provides me everything I need for my sports ambitions. He's rather aloof and rarely comes home early, if he can even go home at all. That birthday party I planned for him... I know it's selfish for me to demand his presence, but... I tried to hold myself back during the phone call, and then Ayumu-kun came along, I couldn't restrain myself anymore. I'd never thought... I'd expose such vulnerability in public like that.
That incident just keeps popping up in my head. I never forget the cloudiness of my eyes, the chilly feeling throughout my body, the warm sensation of his body, like a pillow, the scent of a cheap air freshener in that taxi. I was... helpless. Like a lost kitten caught in the rain.
Thinking about it makes my heart throb again. I clutch my chest by reflex and keep looking down at the table, taking heavy breaths. Maybe I'll have a checkup again, just to make sure everything is all right.
While trying to catch my breath, I utter a reply: "Well, maybe, if I manage to... have somebody. A girl, of course, so we can all talk about feminine topics. If that's the case, you cannot come along, got it?"
I'm not sure if that sly remark were necessary. I could have stopped at just "somebody" to make myself clear. Or is it because I want to focus away from my recent train of thought?
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Post by Mizukami Ayumu on Jan 19, 2013 16:03:01 GMT -6
"I cannot?" he said, acting out mock surprise before shifting to sincere amusement. "Well, if the two of you absolutely insist so."
For a moment he was almost worried about her there... she did not react immediately to what he said, but perhaps it was just his imagination. Ayumu's imagination tended to be at fault with most things, like thinking girls actually liked him. Well, for all of Fuukami-san's mercurial temperament, at the very least she did not go the opposite spectrum and tell him he was disliked, like some extreme versions of the archetype he had outlined were prone to.
He sighed. They'd already left that topic, and he kept falling back to that. She had said he was... a friend, and he was special. Maybe he was special because he was a friend... maybe this girl needed more friends than admirers.
Ugh, I'm not cut out for helping people like this, but I can't just ignore it...
He did not have many friends either, but he liked to think he fulfilled the minimum quota of socialization. Fuukami-san did not overtly seem to mind it too much, but perhaps she was a little... lonely? Well, it was an assumption again... but it couldn't hurt for her to have some more somebodies. Yasuda-san would warm up to her quickly, probably... the only problem would be... I wonder if Fuukami-san could handle her...
But that was for the future. The present was... he said what he had been thinking, just a while ago.
"Shall we be going?"
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Post by Fuukami I. Iryna on Jan 23, 2013 17:27:27 GMT -6
"Um... yeah. We really should." At least I'm finally back in reality. Time sure flies when one engages in a conversation like this.
Even though there were quite a number of awkward moments, it was actually fun. Looks like I've gotten a bit closer to him now. I have found someone outside of my household I can open myself to. It's a good thing, right? He's... well, rather reasonable, calm and collected most of the time, unlike me, who is prone to fits of emotional outbursts. It sounds like we are yin and yang, not just in gender, but also in personality. Well, it's rather refreshing, considering I have to frequently face my rival, who is even more of a hothead than I am
The parfait is good, too. I'll probably consider coming here again next time, by myself or not. Looks like there are some interesting food and drink I can explore.
And... the most important part. The bill. I almost forgot about that until he said it was time to leave. I insist on paying the whole bill myself, since I invited him.
"And that's final, okay? I pretty much made you come along out of the blue, so at least let me pay for the whole thing. I know guys tend to pay for the girls when eating out together, but it's because guys usually are the one who ask their partners out in the first place. And, you... are, technically, my guest today, and guests don't have to pay, get it?"
Before he has a chance to say anything, I quickly move to the counter to pay my dues.
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Post by Mizukami Ayumu on Feb 3, 2013 21:29:29 GMT -6
"Ah..."
He forgot... about paying, until she mentioned it. A small sign of embarrassment betrayed him, crossing his face like a silent wave.
Well, he could excuse himself that it was all due to the excitement of their metaphorical ride, but it seemed she suffered from that, too (and while he roughly estimated that he had taken more than she, you could never know with just your point of view). Besides, he did not want to think about that until he had recovered from it, and he would only recover from it given time, or at least he thought so.
Of course, if he had been ready for her proposition, he could have made all sorts of objections; for one, while this was his first time going out with just one person, and a girl, even (little sisters do not count), and he would really have wanted to pay the bill... while Fuukami-san was obviously far more well off than him, it was not like the parfait cost so much, and it was not like they would do this everyday. Or at least he could pay for himself... but a little hiccup of slowness, a little lag, and off she goes, shelling out the contents of her purse to the cashier.
"Uh... okay?"
Her back as she trotted off, her pair of tails made of rose-colored hair fluttering... (unfortunately, he still kept noticing those little things...) She used her forceful manner (of making him come along) as an excuse for yet another forceful action (of making sure he did not pay), how ironic.
A guest, huh?
Then again, she was nowhere as forceful as any of the exaggerated caricatures in the books that Ayumu read... she had certainly treated him as a guest, if in a slightly eccentric manner, and most of his tribulations were from his preconceptions... she was both familiar and not so, she both affirmed and denied... a stereotype, and then a person...
...he sighed.
If he kept thinking like this, he would think about what the black-haired trickster said, about the patterns he found in Fuukami's ways, when he had decided to put that in the back burner for a while... after all, real people aren't always as clear-cut as fictional characters...
He waited until she had finished, and accompanied her out of the shop.
"So this is goodbye, for now, Fuukami-san? Hm... more appropriately... see you again?"
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Post by Fuukami I. Iryna on Feb 25, 2013 22:37:15 GMT -6
You can end this, Saz. Hmm, the price is not really expensive for two desserts. So, it wouldn't make much of a different if this was a "Dutch treat". Then again, it's still much more convenient to just have one person pay for the whole thing, so at least the change hassle can be avoided.
So, this... meeting of ours has come to an end. Even though I insisted on paying right away, there's still a lingering feeling inside me that wants it to last just a little bit longer. Is this what it's like to have a close friend? It feels... refreshing. Strangely refreshing.
The sky has already turned golden. It's time to go. I reply to his parting words:
"Yeah. I'd like to see you again, too. It... was fun. Thanks again for coming to see me. You've made my day."
I couldn't help but break a smile while trying to diver my gaze from his, as if to prevent heat from flowing to my face again. Yet I feel so... happy. Embarrassed, but cheerful. A peculiar yet enjoyable feeling.
"Maybe... after the tests are over... we can go somewhere again." I continue while folding my hands behind my back, take one step backwards while still tilting my head to the right, looking at the pavement. "We... can go to the manga café you mentioned, or... some karaoke. I'd like you to hear me sing. Or... anywhere you like".
I just can't deny the fact that I really want to hang out with him again. And those words come out on their own as a result.
I put on a nonchalant, happy-go-lucky face to pull myself together again, saying my parting words before running off to the bus that just arrived.
"Anyway, you don't have to escort me home today. I'm fine on my own. Bye."
While finding a seat on the bus, I can't help but think about the places I can go with him in the future. I've never looked forward to hang out with somebody outside of my family before. The only possible problem is whether a classmate of mine, or his, or anyone we know, saw us together in that café. If there is, there's gonna be lots of explaining to do. It's not a date, just a... casual meeting.
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Post by Mizukami Ayumu on May 12, 2013 15:28:13 GMT -6
Well, not everyday that someone says something like that. There was something about being complimented by her that made him happy, even if he still was not so sure how his meager self could have made her day (and she was the one who ended up paying, to boot). Perhaps... doing this once in a while wouldn't be bad.
He reflexively scratched his head. "Hm... that might be good. Although I might be a little embarrassed with karaoke..." he confided, sheepishly. They were just finishing, and they were already making plans for the next one! It was taking him all of his temperance to keep from thinking about the unresolved paradox of Fuukami-san. Her smile feels like another compliment. Maybe I'm allergic to compliments or something. In a good way... maybe?
"Very well then. Again, goodbye."
He watched her retreating figure, the pink-haired girl with the double tresses, vaguely wondering if he should walk home or stay a little more... he wondered if he should have offered to come, even part of the way, even if she did expressly say it was not required... he wondered... what she thought of this little meeting.
Maybe only later on will I find... if this was a date or not.
Sorry for the shortness, i'm a little out of it. X.X
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