So, I have a new idea (again). Let's just hope this won't be one of those ideas I write and then never touch upon again... I got the idea spontaneously when I was brushing my teeth, and I just had to write it down! I hope you like it. It's not really going to have a defined plot, and this fic is only a bunch of one-shots I'm writing when I'm bored. To sum the story up, a series of unexpected rainstorms is hitting Japan (insert insane author powers that can control the weather), and for some reason, everyone but Tsubasa keeps forgetting their umbrellas, leaving the poor eagle blader at the mercy of all those who have forgotten to bring an umbrella.
For the next few weeks, while the rains happen, Tsubasa finds many people asking to use his favorite purple umbrella he always keeps with him in case of emergencies, and although he'd rather not, he grudgingly gives them the umbrella.
Unknowingly, though, he sets off a chain of events called "Tales Underneath a Purple Umbrella."
"Oh look, it's raining outside," Hikaru turned around and noticed a few drops of water leaking from dense, blanket-like clouds. She and Tsubasa stood on the tiled floor of the 39th story of the WBBA, and both of them had their eyes glued to the massive, perfectly polished window before them. The occasional leaf fluttered by, and Tsubasa tracked the movement of the yellow and orange specks of plant-matter that hurtled by outside.
"I hope you brought an umbrella, it doesn't look like it's going to clear anytime soon," Tsubasa remarked. He turned his body slightly to face a purple umbrella that was tied up on his desk.
"No, I didn't bring my umbrella. I didn't know it would rain today," Hikaru let out a sigh. She didn't have a car and took the bus to work everyday, but most of the time, she walked to a bakery or something during her lunch break. Not today, though, it seemed. What a shame, most days, she remembered an umbrella. Why did she have to forget it today out of all days?
They stood in silence for about five minutes, each of them listening intently to the pitter-patter of the rain as it picked up. The light drizzle Hikaru saw before was now pelting down, hard. There wasn't any thunder or lightning, but at the moment, walking outside without an umbrella seemed unreasonable.
"Tsubasa," Hikaru noticed the purple umbrella on Tsubasa's desk. "Do you think I can borrow your umbrella? I need to go out really quick."
"Well," Tsubasa took a moment to think. Through the crashes and bashes of rain outside, he paced around. Hikaru knew he was wondering if he should let her borrow the umbrella or not.
"Come on, it'll only take half an hour," Hikaru pleaded. She scooted over to Tsubasa's desk, and she wrapped her hands around the umbrella.
"Okay, fine," Tsubasa grumbled, crossing his arms. "What's the worst thing that can happen?" he whispered to himself.
"Alright, thanks, I'm off," Hikaru stepped out of the sliding metal door, and she hopped in the elevator. After a minute of waiting, she heard a ding, indicating that the elevator was on ground level. Stepping out of the elevator, Hikaru headed towards the automatic sliding doors that lead to the outside. Hikaru strolled out of the building, and she opened up Tsubasa's umbrella while walking out.
A cold gust of wind hit her as soon as she took the first stride out. Her hair went spiraling in all directions, and she tightly gripped the umbrella handle to prevent it from blowing away. Hikaru narrowed her eyes because of the spray of rain that flew by her, her blue jacket threatening to go with the wind.
"Maybe I should've just packed lunch today," Hikaru grunted. Barely anyone dared to take a walk in this weather, and Hikaru saw why. Still, she pressed on for three blocks, turned left, and continued to look for somewhere to have lunch.
A long while later, Hikaru found a place that served sandwiches and pastries tucked away in the corners of an alleyway. Hikaru didn't expect to find a bakery door while passing through an alley, but there she was, standing in front of a rickety wooden door with a rotting wooden sign that said "Basement Bakery" hanging on it. With curiosity getting the better of her, she gently opened the door and paced in.
She nearly tumbled down a set of steep stairs when she entered. The sign wasn't kidding when it said the bakery was in a basement. Hikaru folded in Tsubasa's umbrella, gripped the stair railing, and did her best not to trip on her way down the stairs. The walls were covered in pale green and peeling paint, and they had a damp, musty smell. As she headed down, the air around her became warmer. When she stepped down the last step, the scent of baking bread reached her nose.
"Is anyone here?" Hikaru asked to no one in particular. The wooden floor beneath her creaked as she walked on it, and, clutching Tsubasa's umbrella, she came across another door. This time, the door was still made out of wood, but it had a smooth layer of white paint on it. It contrasted sharply with the door she used before. On the other side of the door, there was a room dimly lit with flickering lamps on the lavender wall-papered walls. The wall paper had elegant floral designs, which blended in nicely with the oak-wood furniture. There weren't any windows since the bakery was literally in a basement, and the place was rather small, but Hikaru felt quite cozy and safe when she entered.
"Oh, hello," a young waiter who looked about 20 years old turned around to face Hikaru. He wore a suit, probably a uniform, and directed Hikaru to a place to sit. "Are you eating alone?"
"Yeah," Hikaru nodded. She sat down on a highchair in front of a marble counter, and the smell of baking bread grew stronger.
"Here's a menu," the waiter gave Hikaru a sheet of laminated paper. The waiter disappeared through a small door in the back of the room so that Hikaru could have some time to think of what to order. The menu didn't have too many things on it, just some sandwiches, salads, and soups, but they all sounded good.
A few minutes passed, and the waiter returned through that back door with a pad of paper and a pen, "What would you like to eat and drink?"
"Can I have water and a tuna sandwich?" Hikaru requested. She leaned in closer so that she could get a closer look at his name tag, "Your name's Itsuki, right?"
"Yeah," Itsuki scribbled down the menu items, swerved around on his heels, and walked away to put in the order.
"I didn't think I'd end up here today," Hikaru whispered to herself when she thought no one was there.
"It's a good place, I come here pretty often," a familiar voice chimed in from behind her.
Hikaru turned around, widened her eyes, and gasped, holding her hand up to her mouth in surprise, "Kyoya! I didn't expect to see you here..."
"I didn't think I'd see you here, either, the Basement Bakery isn't a very popular place," Kyoya leaned back in his chair, propping his feet on the table. He sat at a table meant for two, and he was on a chair made of woven wood. The chair stood next to a deep amber-brown, wooden table, and there was a small flowerpot that had a shriveling, lone red rose in it. Kyoya had already gotten his meal, a bowl of noodles and soup. Kyoya lifted a spoon up to his mouth to take a sip of soup. "So why are you here?"
An awkward silence settled between the both of them. The pair just stared at each other for who knows how long, and Hikaru shattered the eerily quiet atmosphere at last, "Well, I'm on lunch break right now, so I just wanted somewhere to have lunch. Curiosity of the place got the better of me when I saw a door in the middle of an alleyway, so I decided to go in."
Kyoya nodded, and he took another sip of his soup.
They sat in silence once again, and the only sounds that could be heard were the clanking of the spoon Kyoya held against his soup bowl and the bawling rain outside.
Suddenly, Itsuki set Hikaru's order in front of her. "Your order, ma'am."
"Thank-you," Hikaru smiled at the waiter before he left. She took a bite of the sandwich and commented, "You're right, the food here is good."
Kyoya smirked in approval before sipping even more of his soup.
The two ate without talking, them both being too concentrated on their food. When Hikaru and Kyoya finished their meals, they turned to look at each other.
"So, I think both of us will be going soon," Hikaru stuck her hand in her pocket to dig around for some money to pay for the meal, and she fished out some yen.
"I'll stay here," Kyoya brought his coffee up to his lips and took a sip.
"Why, did you forget an umbrella?" Hikaru questioned.
"If you think I'm saying that I don't like getting wet, you've got it all wrong," Kyoya grunted. He looked down and drank more coffee. "Today's a rest day for me. I don't train every day, you know. You have to give your body a break sometimes." Kyoya's tone sounded quite harsh and annoyed, but Kyoya's voice had a soft undertone, as if he didn't want to be a grouch in front of Hikaru.
Hikaru giggled a bit and stood up, "Well, if you want, you can tag along with me back to work."
"Fine, whatever," Kyoya grumbled and abruptly stood up to push in his chair. "What are you waiting for, then? Let's go." Kyoya shoved his hands in his pockets and stomped out. Hikaru rolled her eyes and followed Kyoya. They both paid for their food on their way out and carefully climbed up the stairs. Kyoya followed Hikaru who prepared to open the umbrella, and when they left the bakery, Hikaru held the umbrella up to keep them both dry.
"We're going to the WBBA, right?" Kyoya asked.
"Yeah," Hikaru answered. Their feet tapped along the water soaked pathway. Hikaru poked her head out of the alley, and she turned right. Kyoya followed. The rain was pouring down was hard as ever. Hikaru and Kyoya's shoes absorbed some water from the puddles on the ground. They walked through the same three blocks Hikaru strolled along earlier, and they heard raindrops in the background.
"The rain's beautiful," Hikaru smiled. She looked at the raindrops that glittered in the light of the streetlamps, and the calming sound of rain hissing was rather soothing.
"I guess," Kyoya shrugged. That only made Hikaru laugh, and soon enough, they reached the WBBA.
"Do you want to go in with me?" Hikaru closed the umbrella so that the umbrella's circumference didn't block her from entering.
"Okay," Kyoya stood next to Hikaru, and they, side by side, trod inside. Hikaru took one last look at the rain and lead both of them inside.
"So..." Hikaru wound up the umbrella and clasped her hands together. "Are... you planning on staying?" A speck of hope tinged her voice, and she kind of wanted for Kyoya to stay behind for a little while.
"Alright, I'll stay," Kyoya agreed. "If you want me to."
"Great!" Hikaru grabbed Kyoya's hand and practically dragged him to the elevator. She grinned broadly and sounded quite happy Kyoya decided to stay for a while. "Come on, we have to give Tsubasa his umbrella back!"
"Alright, alright, hold on," Kyoya tried to anchor himself from being dragged by Hikaru. "I feel like you're stronger than you're letting on!" There was no point in stopping Hikaru, though, for she intended on keeping Kyoya around for company.
"Tsubasa wanted to talk to you, anyway, something about not destroying the stadium every time you bey battle," Hikaru explained.
Kyoya gulped, "Wait, did you say Tsubasa wanted to talk to me...?" Hikaru felt Kyoya's palms grow sweaty, but Hikaru pushed that aside.
"Don't worry, I'm pretty sure Tsubasa's in a good mood today," Hikaru attempted to calm Kyoya's nerves.
"What do you mean by that?!" Kyoya shouted. It was too late. He was already in the elevator next to Hikaru.
I hope you enjoyed the first chapter! Sorry if the ending was kind of weak, I couldn't think of anything else. My writing is kind of rusty, so please point out anything I can improve on. See you next chapter! :)