It's Not a Date!
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Post by Mizukami Ayumu on Oct 2, 2012 23:06:31 GMT -6
The order is here. What a relief. I get caloric reinforcements.
"Thank you for the food." he said, echoing his companion, before inspecting what he had ordered. Surprisingly enough, parfaits didn't look as foreign as he had imagined; it looked more like a sundae than anything, except... more elaborate.
He prodded the top with the proffered utensil before he scooped a little. Normally he would have consumed the dessert ravenously, but Fuukami-san was messing with him in ways both conscious and unconscious, and so he opted to eat just the one spoonful before turning his attention back to their conversation.
The parfait was good, but his mind was incapable of dwelling on the taste. He somewhat envied the girl, as he found himself watching her savor the treat, the frozen delight grazing her lips; she did not seem to be completely aware of the discomfort she was causing (not that he was showing it) with the exception of her teasing about those... outfits.
"At skating... good at skating." he murmured uneasily, hoping he did not look like he was ogling. After all, what else would she be good at? Did one get good at catching eyes, or something? "What do you mean... that I am a boy after all?" he asked, a little too late, and a little rhetorically. He used his second attack on the creamy concoction as an excuse to avert his eyes from his pink-haired assailant.
He wondered if he would even be able to accomplish the goal he had in mind; the manga and the pointed statements had not been very effective (admittedly he was not good at implying things).
Then again... perhaps a part of him wanted Fuukami-san to enjoy this, just a bit more.
"You or Aizawa-san?" he continued. "That's an unfair question...it sounds bad if I say you're just about even, you'll probably get angry if I say Aizawa-san, and if I say it's you..." he trailed. What was it she would do? That was... his worry, right?
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Post by Fuukami I. Iryna on Oct 3, 2012 12:37:36 GMT -6
"Good at skating". Sure. I know he was going to say that. I just wanted to have some fun with him by making him give me a specific enough answer. It feels quite similar to interrogation, now that I think about it.
"Well", I switch to a matter-of-fact tone, "I've heard that teenage boys are rather interested in the looks of their female peers". Well, at least that's what I've learned from some school comedy shows, like a skit featuring a group of boys check out the bodies of their female classmates during swimming class. Their girl-crazy attitude kinda reminds me of those who enjoys following me around and buttering me up. Ayumu doesn't look like them, but I'd like to know whether a calm, nearly emotionless guy like him has any reaction when seeing girls in provocative outfits, just to clarify whether all boys have that "basic instinct". If so, I can use that info to my advantage.
On the other hand, he manages to have a rebuttal to my other question. I only planned to wait for his answer first and react accordingly afterwards, as I wanted to put him in a dilemma of choosing. But when he put it that way... Well, I think I may be upset if he says Aizawa Shouko is more attractive than me. The "both of us are the same" option seems more like a "diplomatic" solution, if not indecisive. If he chooses me, well... I'll be more than happy. He really makes my question sound like a lucky draw here.
"I-I will be glad, of course." I reply to him. "You can say what comes to mind, though. Because... I've never asked a boy my age that question before." Finally found an excuse. "You know, my parents, my grandparents, even Katsura-san say I'm the most beautiful on the ice, and I... want to find out the answer from... a different perspective." Yes, that's right. Outside of the family and those loony fans is definitely a different "perspective". "D-Don't worry... I won't bite."
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Post by Mizukami Ayumu on Oct 9, 2012 9:21:39 GMT -6
"And their female peers are interested in their looks, too." he retaliated, having a little good fun despite his compromised situation. It would have been nice if this was just a chat after he had finally acquiesced to watching the girl on the ice, without this possibilities floating about in his mind, like storm clouds brewing in a nonexistent horizon. He took another spoonful to banish the images; he was only partially successful.
Still, despite his bravado, he flushed; it was not like he looked for charm points in the appearance of every woman he met, but certain conditions have... err... conditioned him to notice them. Usually such revelations would be out of the blue, and would go away just as easily as they came; mostly because he did not dwell on it. However, this time he was concerned, and Ayumu had this bad habit of dwelling on things.
He listened as she stated why he wanted his opinion... she had... always been consistent with that; her excuse had always been that she needed somebody else for an opinion. He did not want to repeat the obvious follow-up, since he had asked it before: why me, of all people? She had answered, all right, but he had found her answer lacking... and he had even theorized that maybe she did not understand why... or maybe she had a different reason, a reason she could not so easily voice out...it was the crux of his current conundrum...
"I'll answer that in a bit, but in turn I'll ask you a question." he began, getting his act up again. Perhaps this attempt would fail whimpering like the first one, but he had to try... and this will use what the first attempt had already made.
"I would say you, although just this time; I think some other time you and Aizawa-san would tie." he answered, sincerely, though not in a detailed manner. She can go think that her leverage was Aizawa-san's bad condition a while ago... not his state of mind.
"I'll go with my question then." he continued, not waiting for her to agree; it was not often that Ayumu did this, and he was a little scared himself, although being scared already made it easier not to get scared any more.
"You saw the manga a while ago, saw the characters, the heroine, the bodyguard, the villain..." he shifted the topic back, and then trailed off... this was his chance, and yet again he was hesitating. If he was going to make more attempts than this, he should maximize the time they were spending! (Somehow that did not sound right.)
"You asked me if I saw you in... as the heroine, and I said that, yes, a bit, at times." Here goes another try...
"Do you... see me... as the bodyguard?"
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Post by Fuukami I. Iryna on Oct 12, 2012 10:19:17 GMT -6
Ayumu said that girls were also interested in boys' looks. Well, at least that statement is not unfounded, even though I don't want to be lumped together with the other girls in my class, who go gaga over their good-looking male celebrities. I have a feeling that those girls go to concerts just to have a good long look at their idols rather than paying attention to their performances.
"I would say you, although just this time; I think some other time you and Aizawa-san would tie."
It's a rather strange answer. According to him, Aizawa's appeal and mine vary depending on the situation, like the approval ratings of political candidates, a prime example of something not being concrete. He really is indecisive, isn't he? But fine, I already promised him I wouldn't get upset, so I'll let it slide.
Without waiting for my reply, he asks me back. About that manga again. A similar question to my earlier one. Do I see him as that bodyguard character? That... is a good question.
I have to admit, the reason we are sitting in the same table now is because I made him my sidekick. I wanted to make him my company. I only just skimmed that comic book, but it seems the heroine enjoys her bodyguard's presence by her side as well, according to the supporting characters' comments. And... she relied on him when being emotionally overwhelmed... My heart still beats like crazy when I recall that encounter. So... that's another reason for him to show me that book, right? Even though he is not actual bodyguard, his relationship with his "mistress" is eerily similar to this situation the more I think about it.
"Yes, probably so", I try give my answer as firmly as I can. "Because... you are my sidekick after all."
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Post by Mizukami Ayumu on Oct 26, 2012 0:56:00 GMT -6
Forward, backward, forward, backward. That was how the conversation had gone. He took another spoonful to conceal, to suppress, his frustration. Did she understand what she was admitting to? Well, after all, the bodyguard and the heroine were mostly in a contractual relationship rather than anything else, but... would he really have to be completely overt to get her to realize?
"So... I am your sidekick, your bodyguard...huh?" he muttered, not really sure where he was going with his pronouncements. "You once told me that I... that you found me special... that I was somehow different from other guys... an opinion that I could not see... how it was true." he rambled on, his slight confusion fueling his babbling; after all, this was probably one of the few situations where the Mizukami would allow the words of his thoughts to leak out... "I guess I'm not as social as other people, and sometimes I can be a bit strange, but..." ...but I don't really think that could make me 'special', was what the white-haired lad implied. How could someone like me that way?
He played with his spoon, at one point tapping the cup with the dessert with it, producing a sound not unlike a small bell. He looked pensive.
"You do know the writer's going to have the bodyguard and the heroine together by the end of the story, right? At least that's what I think." he said, offhandedly...or at least as offhandedly as he could. He was trying... again. Implying that... that implication... that he had been trying to get through since the beginning...
Similarly, as nonchalantly as he could, he spooned some more of the sweet treat and swallowed it. Scoop too large. Slight brain freeze. He frowned, hopefully in an imperceptible manner.
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Post by Fuukami I. Iryna on Oct 29, 2012 15:31:30 GMT -6
Special... Yes, I've felt something special about the guy who is currently sitting in front of me, questioning my intentions. It's a weird feeling that I cannot describe by words. I harbor no interest in other boys my age, despite many of them try to gain my attention. And yet, I've been drawn to this boy, unconsciously. It's a nagging feeling that urges me to see him, but I have kept it at bay until a number of "incidents" happened. But will he be able to accept this answer? Maybe I should take a more rational approach.
"You... are not like the other boys. You don't go crazy about me, stick around me like gum on my shoe, or try to butter me up in general. I think... you are a sincere person. Even though you are not a social butterfly, at least you are not pretentious... That's what I see anyway."
Then suddenly, he suggested that the two main characters of that manga are very likely to be... hooked up with each other. Wait, what? What is he insinuating? Is he using them to refer to... us? If it's true, then... does it mean...
He is asking me out???
Wait! Wait! Wait! Wait a minute!!! Is this... is this too sudden? I mean... we haven't known each other well enough. I am still in progress of finding out more about him. It's early! It's too early!!! Wh-What should I say? This kind of relationship is not a trifling matter. You cannot just fast forward it. Does he really like me to the point that he can't wait to be my boyfriend? Why... why does he have a tendency to make my mind all messed up and my face hot as a running steam engine? He's a dummy... for constantly making a girl embarrassed and flustered like this.
I try to answer him, with a low volume (there's no way I can speak loudly with all the people around): "Well... m-maybe they will get together... but the story hasn't reached that point yet... and there are still more to come, right? Do you... want us... to be like them?"
That's all I can say for now, and I think I have emitted enough heat to vaporize any leftover ice cream in my glass.
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Post by Mizukami Ayumu on Nov 10, 2012 0:19:13 GMT -6
The situation went his way... and then it went waaaay too further than that.
She had supplied him with a more elaborate description than before, of himself, of what she said had drawn her to him. While all that she said was true, there were plenty of male students in their school, male people about their age, who, as she had said herself, weren't 'crazy about her', as he was. There were plenty of people who weren't pretentious, as well. Why, of all the non-crazy and non-pretentious people, did he stick out? He did not usually stick out, anyway...
And then, at that point, before he could ask for further details, all hell broke loose.
"U-urk. Uff, uff."
Maybe he had... actually... gone too far. He had made the mistake of taking a spoonful at that critical moment, and had almost choked on the dessert when she blurted what she thought he was thinking, with that remark... and come to think of it, that was a perfectly valid reaction to his 'smooth' move. She... she didn't seem to be thinking of what he thought she was thinking, what the black-haired trickster thought she was thinking...
"Wait, let me get this straight--uff, uff." he muttered quickly, as soon as he had recovered, which reduced him to not-being recovered, coughing again. "No, I don't want... to be like them, yet---" Okay, that pronouncement somewhat implied that he might want to, in the future, but it might be too harsh to say outright that he didn't want to... so that was not what she thought about him, yet...
"I mean, I thought you were... what your classmate said..." Agh, he was making no sense. "I mean... that I do not either want or not want the two of us to be like them at this point in time..." he wondered if that was too wordy to make sense. He floundered about, one hand with a spoon, looking more flustered than he had ever before, before Fuukami-san.
Perhaps he had been... preemptive.
Perhaps she liked him, but not that much yet.
Girls were confusing.
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Post by Fuukami I. Iryna on Nov 12, 2012 11:16:41 GMT -6
"Er... Are-Are you okay?"
That is a reflex question. It will be one hell of a trouble if he suddenly passes out right here. So the appropriate action definitely is making sure there's nothing life-threatening... something like that.
At least, it looks like he is slowly regains his breath, after some coughing fits.
So, if what he says is totally true, he just wants to find out whether I have a romantic interest in him, and this was sparked by the incident at the ramen stand not too long ago. It was when that classmate of mine tried to tease us, and I made a scene due to being overwhelmed with embarrassment still fresh from that rainy day. I should have handled it better... Anybody would have questions after witnessing a sudden outburst like that, and he is directly involved.
Using a comic book is a rather strange way of asking whether someone has the hots for you. It's like in those romantic comedy shows. Then again, I can't think of any subtler and less risky way to ask that kind of question. Seriously, handling that topic is like treading on eggshells.
So, in the end, even in a meeting with just the two of us like this, that girl is still involved, huh? It's funny how a small action can cause such long-lasting consequences.
Wait a minute, did he just say "yet"? Why did he has to use that word??? Is that some kind of a slip of the tongue or something? Why do you have to keep making me embarrassed?
This is getting really awkward. I have to say something.
"Ok, ok, I think I get you. I see you as a friend. Can we just... talk about something else?"
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Post by Mizukami Ayumu on Nov 21, 2012 23:43:50 GMT -6
"Yes, yes, let's... talk about something... else."
Well, even if he had declared his assent with feverish hurry, it was not like he could immediately think of something else to talk about. The pronouncement had merely been his way of agreeing that, yes, the two of them mutually disliked the constricting atmosphere that had formed upon his inquiry. It was his fault, for making the air viscous... but he did not know any other way to ascertain the nature of his little conundrum.
Sometimes, including this time, Ayumu wished he could read other people's minds; while that was a different can of worms altogether, with privacy and all that, at least misunderstandings on his part could be averted... maybe everybody being able to read each other's minds would be better... maybe not... perfect communication, huh?
That little bit about wishes and mind-reading might be poor conversation material... what have they been discussing before he had gotten themselves into this awkward mess? Manga... but that would be too near the dilemma in question, as it had been his vessel for his implication... the thing about how she chose him... it might still be too near? Skating... was uncomfortable to him for different, vividly visual reasons... and so, for a bit he said nothing, as he was wont to do, with substantial effort willing the flush from his cheeks to dissipate, as he tried to eat another spoonful.
Oh well, let's go back to skating. I'm the only one who has a problem with that, anyway.
"So..." he started, into the yawning chasm of silence, "...what's the deal between you and Aizawa-san?" he asked, in an attempt to break the ice. How apt. Well, I was the one who flash-froze the situation in the first place...
He tried not to focus on her quailing eyes.
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Post by Fuukami I. Iryna on Nov 30, 2012 16:23:54 GMT -6
My relationship with Aizawa Shouko? Well, at least I mentioned her earlier, and at least this is one of the topics I'm comfortable with.
"Me and her? You really are observant, aren't you? Just by seeing us together on the first time, you've already got a clue."
I've never thought he could figure that out on his own so quickly. Then again, we were trying to outshine each other earlier. It was probably intense enough for an outsider to sense some vibes of rivalry in the air.
"Me, and Aizawa, have been training together since a long time ago". I take a sip of my last bit of ice cream, which is now technically milk. "I've always tried my best to improve myself. But in the official competitions we have thus far, that girl has always been more favored than me. She's always got the higher score. Even if it's just about 0.01 points. And..." I've never talked about this stuff in details to anyone other than my family. "She's more... popular among our group. The other girls enjoy sucking up to her. They never talk to me. Only the coaches talk to me, and one of them is my mother."
I fiddle with the spoon, while trying to take a gulp from the complimentary water a waitress just gave us. My throat suddenly gets dry very quickly.
"It's like climbing a mountain. I try to surmount it, but that mountain just keeps growing like a tree, the top is never within my reach, no matter how much I climb. I'm always on that steep, rocky surface, where I can barely stand. But all I can do is to keep climbing."
Somehow water tastes so delicious right now.
"Aizawa, I have always wanted to beat her, just to prove that my training is not for naught. I have to show her that I am not to be trifled with. If I cannot beat her, I cannot reach any new targets. I... have to be the best. At least, once I'm the best... I can be acknowledged as someone more than just a rich girl."
I'm always known as a "princess", in one way or another. It's not that I don't like that title, but I don't want it to be the sole aspect of my character.
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Post by Mizukami Ayumu on Dec 20, 2012 22:46:39 GMT -6
With an effort, he attempted to return himself to the conversation. It was made slightly easier by Iryna's ethusiasm to talk about... well, it seemed like he was partially right with his hunch... her rival, Aizawa Shouko.
As the girl turned her attention to the remnants of her order, so he did likewise. Unsurprisingly, the state of his dessert was similar, if but a little more in volume from not eating much due to the tension he had unwittingly placed himself under. Heaving a little sigh at the now-more-milkshake-than-ice-cream, he raised the cup that contained it to his lips, gingerly when his brain self-consciously realized a second later that he might appear a little uncouth. With that, he sipped, of the melted concoction, of her stream of words.
He continued to listen, accepting the proffered glass of water that was part of a pair the waiter had offered, when the gracious manservant had noticed that they were nearing the end of their sweet meal. So she was always the underdog, huh... that is... something I find unexpected. Aizawa is better than her in skating? They seemed about even, but perhaps it really was indeed Aizawa's condition that evened the scales...
The rest of her spoken paragraphs were mostly to emphasize that general fact, but the Mizukami, who was slowly recovering from the tumult that had been his machination, hung to a singular detail. "The other girls enjoy sucking up to her. They never talk to me."
Perhaps sucking up was a rather harsh term... well, Ayumu guessed that perhaps Aizawa was... more approachable than the pink-haired girl, who seemed to be in a different league, socially, to the other skaters? Then again, Aizawa-san was not without her idiosyncrasies... a certain meeting by the drama club room came to mind. He wondered if it was all right that this was the approach that she was taking... that she sought to beat the girl who seemed to take all the attention... yes, there was also the proficiency in their art, but...
"You make it sound like it's Aizawa-san's fault..."
Ayumu's experience was that it was not necessary to be popular, to have many acquaintances... but having not a single one among one's hobby group? That seemed... lonely. It almost defeated the purpose of being in the group.
He toyed with the spoon, clinking it to his cup, wondering if they would be leaving soon, though, as with most of his wondering (which was helping getting his mind off the recently unmentionable happening) he did not voice it out. Instead...
"Have you... tried talking to the other girls?"
Implications aside... the white-haired lad had a hunch that she acted much differently in front of him than with others.
So... from insinuating romance... to counseling. What am I doing?
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Post by Fuukami I. Iryna on Dec 24, 2012 8:58:04 GMT -6
"Talk to them? You're kidding, right?"
Sure, I think he is trying to help somehow. But that is totally out of the question.
"Those girls, as far as I remember, don't even try to cheer me on like how they do to her. They don't let me join in their conversations. Even gossips. They even badmouth me behind my back, calling me a self-centered midget. How am I supposed to talk to them, with them keep shunning me?"
Looks like all my pent-up frustration has been released, even though I was in such a good mood not long before. Never thought I could talk about my situation in the skating team to anyone other than the members of my household. It's a totally new experience. Especially when the one I'm talking to is not an adult.
Then I suddenly realize that I raised my voice a bit too much, and there are a couple of eyes looking at us curiously.
"S-Sorry." I give a rather sheepish apology, then turn my attention back to my companion.
"It's just that, if I could actually talk to them, I would have done so long ago. And the only thing I could think of to show them is beating the current Number One. Uhm... Sorry for bursting out like that."
Still, maybe because it's him, I can show more of my emotions. Maybe. Urgh. Hope I didn't make a scene like the last time I met him. It was simply too embarrassing just to think about it.
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Post by Mizukami Ayumu on Dec 25, 2012 5:38:21 GMT -6
Ah... change the road, and she shifts gears like a car...
It was strange that he... well, that he found the protesting Fuukami-san much, much less threatening than the embarrassed Fuukami-san; maybe he had managed to regain his cool, or perhaps this was simply more... familiar. The girl had been a bit bossy when she had first met him, and it had been the more predictable side of her... to see it coming back, perhaps, was a relief. Still...
"It's okay, it's okay." he reassured, waving his hands before him, slowly. "I guess you don't like those girls too much. I don't know everything about the situation, so I guess I don't have the right to say anything about it..." and what he said was what he sincerely thought.
True, he was concerned that the girl opened up but to him, not only in their school, but also in the venue of her passion, but there were things that he would not be sure he could understand. He could picture being wealthy, having pride in what one has been given and wishing to uphold it... but it was an image, and like one reading a book, it stops there... the reader merely imagines, and never really becomes the protagonist...
"I just thought that it might be good if you talked like how you talk to me... to other people, be friends with them... you're... an okay person, Fuukami-san..." If a bit odd, but I've no right to point any fingers...
"Ah... what am I saying..."
This little excursion had been rather eventful... it had its good points, but the eventfulness had prevented him from enjoying his food. "I guess we could go back here again sometime..." he said without thinking, his eyes a little cloudy from introspection, until...
Wait... did I imply that we would be coming together here again? "Uh, I mean, since the cream melted before I could eat all of it... not that I particularly want to come again here with you... not that I mean that I don't want to..."
Agh, I feel like the tsundere here.
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Post by Fuukami I. Iryna on Jan 2, 2013 13:53:38 GMT -6
"I'm okay", eh? At least he doesn't show any signs of hating me like some other people, so I guess he's "okay" too.
In fact, having a male friend to talk to like this is way better than being surrounded and/or followed by a bunch of loony male sycophants, while being shunned by the females.
It's not that I... like him, in the romantic sense of the word, but I don't regret choosing him as a sidekick. We still haven't seen each other quite often, but he has helped me on more than one occasion, even though he also tends to make me embarrassed, too. He's... a good person. He's listened to all I have to say, he's endured my bursts of emotion, he's come to see me, he agreed to go along with my antics. At least, he may be someone I can rely on.
It's good to hear him saying he'd like to go back here. Then he tries to "explain himself" regarding that statement, which is pretty much the contrary to me. I can't help but giggle:
"Ahaha. You sound so weird. It's fine if you want to return here. Of course you can invite me, but anyone is fine. You don't have to come here with just me, you know. You can introduce this place to your friends, too."
This is probably the first time he has done something to make me laugh.
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Post by Mizukami Ayumu on Jan 2, 2013 22:07:21 GMT -6
Ah... I haven't seen her like this before.
The Mizukami returned the small girl's smile cordially. It was not as if he had not seen her make a similar expression; he had seen quite the assortment of smirks from her, but this particular giggling facade of hers seemed to lack any sort of her habitual cunning, or pride. She was merely pleased... or more appropriately, in this case, amused. Again, it was at his expense, but it did not seem too much a sacrifice, when the reward was seeing her happy in that manner.
He could only hope she had heeded her other words, and not just his fumbling... he had no way of knowing if he had tuned out those statements of his, since he did not give a particular reply to them. He was not inclined to repeat them verbatim, but perhaps he could repeat them in some way or another...
"You could come with other friends, too. Friends of yours." he chimed in.
If she was putting it that way, he might as well put it that way, too. It was nice that she seemed to... rely on her, but it would be nice if she could have some other people she could be like this with... he did not consider his tolerance something unique to himself, and as such he hoped she might find others of willing temperament, of similar perspective...
He sipped the rest of the melted milk into his lips; afterwards, he took a tissue (it had been placed there when their orders had been delivered), and with it, wiped away any stains that might have managed to get themselves into the corners of his mouth.
He was finished; was his companion done, too?
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