Rima is pretty convinced that the person who moved in next door was her stalker.
An eighteen year old blonde was pacing back and forth in her bedroom within her apartment, a phone on one hand and a frying pan on the other. She bit her lips as the phone to her ears rang for the third time, wishing it won't go to voice mail; if it did go through voice mail though, she knew who to blame.
"That perverted cat cosplayer better not be doing anything to Amu" Rima said on the fourth ring, almost ending the call on the fifth when her call was suddenly answered by a breathless speaker "Hey Rima"
Rima narrowed her eyes at nothing in particular "Amu, what were you and Ikuto doing just now?"
"D-Doing?! What do you m-mean? We weren't doing a-anything at all!" Amu said stuttering "Besides, what makes you think Ikuto is here?"
"Oho" Rima said "Besides the fact that you and he sleeps in the same bed every night?"
"We don't even do anything!" Amu said exasperatedly from the other line "What are you calling for anyway?"
Rima remembered. "Okay, remember I had a new neighbor last two months ago?"
"Which apartment of yours are we talking about now? That one penthouse or the other one which is stupidly expensive?"
"The one that is stupidly expensive" Rima said.
"Oh, you mean that guy who you think is stalking you?" Amu said, a smile evident in her tone. Rima scowled "He really is!"
"What proof do you have?"
"I knew you were going to ask," Rima said, "You might want to sit down and Ikuto, go away"
The other line was noisy for a while, Amu was obviously trying to take the phone from her tall boyfriend "Don't take too long chibi"
Rima rolled her eyes "I won't keep her away from you"
"That's my girl" Ikuto said before tossing the phone, making it noisy. Rima can hear Amu shooing him away before she spoke "He's gone, spill everything"
"First of all, the first day he moved next door, he knew my name—"
Rima heard keys jingling from outside her apartment and she recalled the landlady telling her when she arrived that there was a new person who would move in today. The apartment building had 9 floors and each floor has two apartments each with four rooms inside; complete with a kitchen, a masters bedroom, guestroom, two bathrooms and a lounge.
'He's a handsome young man' the landlady said, winking at her suggestively 'You would look well together,'
'What?' Rima asked when she opened her mail slot for letters. The landlady didn't say any further comments.
Rima poked her head out of the door and saw a tall guy who's back was facing hers, since their doors were on opposite sides. The guy was wearing a black fedora hat and was dressed fashionably casual with black jacket and jeans.
"Hello" Rima said. The guy stopped fiddling with the keys and turned his head half-way, his face still unseen because of the hat.
"Good Evening Rima" the guy smiled, finally unlocking the door and entering his own apartment.
"That nosy landlady might have mentioned it to him then"
"He smiled though! Like evilly! It was so scary that I had to lock my door three times to make sure!" Rima said
"You're over-reacting"
"Second, he talks about me to the landlady!"
"What kind of talk are we talking about?"
"Just listen!"
Rima dropped her bag on the ground beside her feet with an ungracious thump before she opened her mail to see if there was anything new for her. Rima got the ten or so and only picked up four before shoving the others in her bag.
"Love letters from countless suitors again Rima-chan?" the landlady said, her eyes shining in amusement. The landlady was wearing a large pink bow in her curly hair today. Rima stopped herself from rolling her eyes.
The landlady was a flirt.
"There's your neighbor too, he stands there for five minutes with an envelope in his hand before chickening out and leaving" the landlady sighed "I wish I was as pretty as you. I sure would love the attention from that dashing young man"
"What?"
"He won't stop talking about you, he won't" the landlady repeated "He told me how it was normal for you to get so many letters from boys, it wouldn't be a surprise if one of them was a rich 'bastard'"
Rima opened her mouth, speechless.
"He also told me you never had any romantic relationship with anyone"
"Excuse me?" Rima scowled and tossed her hair behind her "He wouldn't know that"
"He knows a lot about you" she sighed dreamily "He looks like a rich 'bastard' too. I'd take him for you if you don't want him"
"You can have him" Rima said, picking up her bag from the ground harshly.
"Wow, okay, that's pretty believable now"
"Shh Amu, there's more. Third, he waters my plant for me and leaves a note afterwards!"
"Are you dating anyone right now?" one of her fanboys from her university asked.
Rima didn't bother looking at her unwanted guest "No"
"Then that note…?" the fanboy trailed and Rima looked at the direction he was pointing, at her expensive hanging and potted plants by the entrance of her apartment door.
"What note?" Rima asked, frowning.
"By the door" he said "I need to go, see you tomorrow Mashiro-san"
Rima waved back without looking, she was reading the sticky note on her door. she scowled when she realized the note was placed exactly at her eye level. Whoever her stalker was, he knew her well.
'You forgot to water them this morning –I'
"I? Do you know any I?"
"I know Ikuto"
"Impossible" Amu replied almost instantly "Can't he just have a green thumb?"
Rima ignored her and kept talking, "Fourth, he started leaving notes on my apartment door, greeting me!"
Story
"…He might just be very thoughtful"
"Why are you defending the stalker! You're on the wrong side of the coin here"
Both of them were silent for a while, both not knowing what to say. Rima sighed and dropped the frying pan beside her reluctantly and spoke again "…Lastly, he left a bouquet of my favorite flowers by the doorsteps yesterday, greeting me an advance happy birthday!"
'To the mysterious creepy stalker,
Thank you for your unwanted kind thoughts and for the unnecessary help in watering my plants. Your help is no longer wanted'
Rima smiled proudly at the post-it she placed on the door parallel to hers before she capped her sharpie and pocketed it. She turned around and made her way to her apartment. Exams were finally done and there was a long break ahead of her.
She hummed happily the next morning, thinking about how the stalker would stop stalking her, until she opened the door. Rima almost stepped on it, she wished she did.
There was a bouquet of pink marguerites and chocolate cosmos on the floor, Rima picked it up reluctantly and searched for a note. She found one.
'You're Welcome. Advanced Happy Birthday
From your mysterious creepy stalker'
Rima crumpled the card with neat handwriting in silent annoyance and slight anger, but her eyes softened at the sight of her favorite flowers. Rima sighed and went back inside to take a pen and a note.
'Thank you. Please stop'
"Speaking of that, Happy Birthday! Did you receive Ikuto's and my present?" Amu said merrily. Rima glanced at the piles of presents she received on delivery today from her old friends and smiled "I did, I haven't opened it yet— focus Amu! And then he had the nerve to reply with another note right after I asked him to stop! I asked nicely! What else—"
The buzzer of Rima's apartment rang and she ignored it until her best friend asked her to answer it.
"Open the door! It might be him just wanting to greet you a happy birthday!"
"Or a killer, a robber, a rapist, a—"
"You watch too much movies Rima" Amu said.
Rima sighed, "I know"
"Are you making your way to the door right now?" Amu said
"…No"
"Mashiro Rima, get your butt off that chair and open the door right now!"
"Why do I have to?" contrary to what Rima is saying, she's already making her way to the door. She's not even sure if the person was still outside. He only rang the doorbell twice; Rima didn't put the phone on hold because she knew Amu would want to know what is happening "Coming"
Rima turned the knob and opened the door, first looking down before looking up and then dropping her phone in pure shock.
Well, the shock came first, then the almost close-to-none-existent pleasant surprise, and then pure anger "You!"
The person standing before her, in his all perfect glory, was Nagihiko Fujisaki, the same person who was always a head taller than her, who had annoyingly long silky purple hair and the very same person who calls her cute in pure (and sick) amusement because he knew she hated that word very much.
"Me" He said smiling down at her.
"You creepy stalker!" Rima started "Who gave you the right to water my plants or the stay at the room across mine?"
"The landlady—"
"Don't you dare answer that question" Rima hissed, "What do you think you're doing here?! We thought you were dead or something! You didn't even finish the first year in high school"
"Didn't I tell you?" Nagihiko said "I'm pretty sure I did, you just refused to talk to me"
Rima opened her mouth to reply and then frowned. She might have done that "Didn't give you the excuse to stalk me!"
"I wasn't stalking you" Nagihiko chuckled "Utau actually gave me your address when I met her. I haven't yet asked her and she gave me the note"
"Yet!" Rima said "Why are you tormenting me! Does it give you joy to see me annoyed you sadist!"
"I've passed by you countless of times at the hallway when you're on the way to school" Nagihiko commented "You seemed to ignore and block out all boys"
"You can't blame me"
"I know" he smiled "Happy Birthday"
"Really?" Rima rolled her eyes sarcastically and took the gift. The mood was shifting in a fast pace in between them. She waited for Nagihiko to leave and when he didn't Rima raised a brow at him "Now?"
He nodded.
Rima opened the small box and saw a key "To what?"
"My apartment"
"That sounds very wrong purple head. Even more than that hentai-neko"
"I've got a room filled with a lot of gag manga"
"Well why didn't you say so? Welcome back purple-head, excuse me I need to be at that heaven, they speak to me in my head, calling my name" And just like that, Nagihiko chuckled and Rima sauntered pass him, willingly entering his apartment to get to the room filled with her most favorite thing in the world.
"Oh by the way Rima, I almost forgot, remember Nagihiko?" Amu's voice joked; sounding blurred "He said he would come back on time for your birthday"
THIS STORY IS DEDICATED TO MY FAVORITE READER WEIRDYTHEFANGIRL because you're not trash bby. If you are, I'm trash with you! I love all of my readers! I love your supports! I love Rimahiko! This ship is so strong it will not sink. Ever.
*Rima thought the note says '–I' when really it was '–N' IDK just check Nagi's name in kanji and take the third character. It translates to I and not Na.