The Annoying and the Angry
A/N: I would like to at least try fantasy on this one.
Synopsis:
Energy Management Center university's Sakurada Hiromu is close to get his degree on Advanced Physics. He hails from the wealthy Sakurada Clan, one of the major stockholders of Enetron in Japan. In another two years, he will succeed his father as Dainan District's Director of Energy Management Center.
Hiromu takes after his father's pleasing appearance and hyper intelligence, which makes him an easy prey for obsession and envy. He has been blessed with everything that defines the renaissance man…
Except that he will die when he reaches the age of 22.
To prevent death, Hiromu had to do what his father and previous male ancestors did. Before reaching 22, he had to make a woman fall in love with him genuinely. If reciprocated, his lifespan will be prolonged. If he chose any woman with only the woman falling in love with him, he'll get extra 30 years. Hiromu's previous ancestors (except for his father) died exactly at the age of 55, after marrying a woman they did not love. The problem with Sakurada males is that they barely fall in love given their stoic nature. 99% of Sakurada males wed women they did not love.
And so, Hiromu, had fall to in love and get someone to fall for him before he reaches 22. Time runs mad as there are only five more months to go.
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Day 1 of 150
Nick, Hiromu's favorite buddyroid from EMC, had ten portfolios of prospective wives prepared for his own choosing. The buddyroid's light foot steps became heavier as he was pacing back and forth. From the corner of his eyes he saw Hiromu, who leisurely sipped from his black coffee. Why is he this relaxed as usual? The buddyroid thought. From the time when Hiromu reached sexual maturity, the Nick had been persistent showing him portfolios of likely candidates with breed and character. Yet, Hiromu seemed disinterested with romantic affairs. He had no criteria for his ideal woman either. If there is one thing that he loved in addition to physics, it would be books.
Setting aside thoughts that Hiromu would be marrying books, he addressed the young man who was now scanning the pages of the present portfolio, "ne Hiromu, how about a criterion for your ideal woman?"
A sigh was released from the lips of the young man as he tossed the portfolios carefully at another pile of portfolios previously prepared by Nick. The buddyroid thought he sensed a slight frustration from the young man's face. But instead of retort, Hiromu just said,
"I don't mind dying, Nick," in a casual tone.
"Don't say that! We can't lose hope now!" the buddyroid riposted, waving his hands in frustration. He knew he needed not give Hiromu words of encouragement for the young man feared nothing (except for chickens!). Seeing how Hiromu is accepting his fate unconcernedly, Nick only wished Hiromu would spend the remaining days of his life socializing with people and not with books or laboratory parts.
Before Nick could give his traditional sermon, an unremitting sound was heard from Hiromu's phone. Hiromu took the phone and recognized immediately the sound of mechas going through test drive from the end of the line…
"Otosan?"
"Hiromu, son, we need to talk" Hiromu need not to guess the sense of urgency from his father's way of talking. He immediately reached over for his jacket which was neatly hanged at door and left.
Youko Usami, 17 years old, is a freshman of EMC university taking up Advanced Physics. She was one of those privileged few who accelerated in academics. Her acceleration was due to the influence of her mother who works as one of the best pilots that Dainan ever had. What Youko did not know, is that her mother had a deal with Center Chief Sakurada. Hiromu and Youko are arranged to be engaged, even if both have not consciously laid eyes at each other so far. When Youko heard about the engagement deal, she couldn't believe that her acceptance at EMC was politically maneuvered.
"Doushite, okasan?" she asked, her eyes welling up with confusion and sadness. Her fists had eagerly flattened the pleats of her skirt.
Yoriko Usami could not do anything but to lay her hands gently on her daughter's shoulders, "I know you are mad at me and I give you the liberty of honoring your feelings. But you have to understand...the center chief has good intentions for our family. I don't know till when do I have to live given my medical condition. It has been costly for us to keep me alive. It is a selfish thing to offer my daughter's happiness in exchange for her future. Yet—"
Youko knew that her mother has a weak heart but strong will. One of the major veins of her heart had stopped functioning. Through the years her mother had injected herself with supplements that will keep her whole body from getting frailer. Fearing that Youko will be the same like her, she pleaded Center Chief to inject Youko with EMC's vaccine program that will make her achieve superhuman abilities. The Center Chief also injected the same vaccine program to Hiromu, hoping that it will remove the curse. But his efforts were in vain.
"Okasan," Youko interrupted, smiling a bit to convey that she had realized how indebted their family is to the Sakuradas, "I would…try to understand."
She rose from her seat, bowed at her mother who was now confused with the sudden shift in her countenance and hurried to the door.
A side effect of Youko's vaccine program is the immediate loss of calories. Because of this, she had to carry with herself a purse full of sweets. But her recent confrontation with her mother made her forget to bring her necessities.
Youko was absorbed in deep thoughts on love. Although she had not yet fallen in love, she believed that marriage should be grounded on love and the decision to stay. Yet, she could not disregard the indebtedness of her family to Sakuradas. With her father gone, she and Usada were the only ones her mother could rely on. She decided that between the matters of the heart and her family, the family should be prioritized first.
She wondered how Hiromu is like. Her classmates had different interesting stories about him. They said he was very popular due to the merits of his credentials. She had not tried to see him or research about him. So she asked Usada instead. When asked about it, Usada described him as "siscon" or with sister complex. Youko almost choked on that description.
As she was walking to the field, she felt her legs getting weaker like jell-o. The weakness spread to her body and in an instantt she felt herself falling to the grass.
THUMP.
The grass smelled like the morning dew. But there was another scent lingering…
…the scent of a young man who had caught her before she felt her face on the grass. The young man smelled like peppermint and musk. To her disappointment, she looked up to see this young man who had no emotion etched on his face. It was as if he was a robot.
Instead of hearing "are you okay?" the young man queried instead, "Did you just pretend to faint?"
"HUH?!" Youko felt insulted.
"If you did pass out, either you're unconscious or your eyes are not that alive."
She couldn't believe how this young man listened to logic than empathy. What an idiot! She thought. She opened her mouth to retort, but he spoke again so soon,
"Your move is outdated." He said, his forehead creasing, "Some admirers of mine did the same thing, pretending to faint in front of me. The only difference though is the projection. Your fall seemed real as an actual fall."
"Excuse me," Youko interrupted, biting her lip in frustration, "I am under the vaccine program, I am supposed to fall if my battery is out. And since my battery is out, I have to eat. But I forgot my snacks at home."
The young man's cheeks turned pale red as he remembered being under the same vaccine program too—his weak point resulting to fear of chickens. Others thought his weak point was contrary
He remembered that he is under the same program too, with the weak point resulting to fear of chickens. Others thought how contradictory it was to his cool nature. Cool nature or not, he shrugged the idea by searching for a candy in his pocket. Sweets from admirers were helpful this time around. He removed the wrapper of the mint candy and helped Youko to consume it.
As soon as she felt the sugar in her body, she quickly released herself from the young man's hold. The latter was surprised by her quick recovery and eagerness to match his confident stance.
"I apologize" he said, bowing his head low to her.
She didn't seem consoled by what he did. She crossed her arms and neared herself to him, eyes on the same level as his. He felt uneasy by the sudden intimate proximity of their faces. He could see the intensity in her eyes but could not figure out well as to why she acted differently than the other girls who conversed with him. That curiosity flickered the gears in his head.
"Even if you are the last man on earth, I would never fall in love with someone as cocky as you—"
They were interrupted by two buddyroids which rushed forward to meeting them. The red one was a cheetah walking upright and the yellow one a rabbit.
"Youko-chan," the buddyroid called Usada said, "You know each other already?"
"What do you mean, Usada?" Youko asked, her stares shifting from Usada to the red cheetah and the other guy, We both have buddyroids, That's strange. I thought only I and Ryu-san have.
The red cheetah who called himself Nick coughed to initiate the introduction.
"Youko Usami-chan" he said carefully, "you just met your fiancé, Hiromu Sakurada"
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Day 5 of 150
Youko was seen at the laboratory, randomly discussing with friends about internship in their second year, when Hiromu showed up looking rather furious as usual. He bowed at Youko's friends who tried their utmost to suppress their giggles while Youko looked displeased with his sudden appearance. Her eyes shifted to the yellow plastic bag that he held up high to her nose. Youko's nose twitched when she smelled freshly made chocolate bonbons.
"How many times should you be told not to forget your snacks, Usami?" He dropped the bag gently at the table while Youko's friends-one by one-discreetly vanished from the scene.
"In case you forgot, I am an adult, Sakurada. I can look well after myself." She pouted the way she always did as she dipped a hand inside the plastic bag and popped bonbon into her mouth. Hiromu was reminded of squirrels when Youko took another five to fit in her mouth.
He shrugged at the idea of Youko acting like an adult, "A child, maybe. And I've always wondered how you got into this university when a simple thing like bringing your snack is forgotten. You are a child, Youko, needing an adult like me to always remind you." Blunt as he could, the words: university, child, and forgotten were emphasized that Youko's pale cheeks immediately reached the shade of scarlet.
What the hell is wrong with this guy? She rose from her seat to match his stance.
"What did you just say?" She asked with the same level of coldness, "a child?"
Hiromu had increased her annoyance by nodding.
Youko gathered every urge to punch Hiromu in the face. Not only was she humiliated by him—calling her a child—but his annoyance was that of Usada's. Just as her fist rose in the air, a man in a laboratory gown rushed forward to prevent her from launching at Hiromu. It was Ryuji Iwasaki, a brother figure of Youko's. He was watching from the other side of the room when he sensed the atmosphere building up.
"Ryusan!" Youko remarked, pleased with the appearance of an old time friend who happened to be a system engineer at EMC. She gave him a tight embrace to which he reciprocated. From his peripheral vision, Ryuji thought he saw Hiromu winced slightly. But when he looked back again he saw nothing but a blank stare.
"Good to see you Youko-chan" Ryuji said, releasing himself from Youko's hold, "It made me really proud that you got accepted in this university"
He shifted his gaze at Hiromu and dipped his head in recognition, "Iwasaki Ryuji. System engineer. You can call me Ryuji." Hiromu knew who Ryuji is, for he had to learn every name and face of professionals in Dainan. Part of the protocol, however, is introduction.
"Sakurada Hiromu." Hiromu replied, extending a hand. As they exchanged hands, Ryuji got amazed that the young man had no air in his head despite his status as future center chief of Dainan (his future boss, by the way). But he couldn't dismiss the thought why Hiromu gripped his hand too tight.
"So you're the fiancé of Youko-chan! Well, you seem like a good kid" Part of Ryuji's nature was to be overprotective of Youko. He had made a complete research on Hiromu and found nothing ill-reputed but his stoic nature. Some employees had remarked that though emotionless, Hiromu could be very kind.
"Unfortunately" Youko said in a huff. Her stare was deadlock on Hiromu that Hiromu thought to himself, why is she angry? Her confident stare penetrated to his soul that he felt a slight pang to his heart. Whatever that pang is, he had no idea.
Ryuji shrugged as to how the two communicated, I should look after them. I'm the older one. He raised his hands and dropped them to their heads, shaking every tension off from their countenance. Hiromu backed slightly, unused with the sudden brother intimacy.
"Your Usada has been updated." Ryuji blurted, changing the topic, "Demo! His stubborness can't be lessened. That's what you get for a data analyst"
Youko made another face at Ryuji this time. All her life, she hoped that through technical updates, Usada's stubbornness will be lessened. Yet Ryuji was right, Usada being a data analyst makes him a perfectionist. So instead of whining back, she replied instead, "arigatou, Ryusan"
Ryuji smiled as to how Youko was getting better in her psychological development. Sensing that he's not needed anymore, he excused himself, leaving the two alone inside the laboratory. Youko packed her bags and glanced at Hiromu once more. She headed to the exit with Hiromu trailing after her.
"Are you following me? "she asked, shifting her body 180 degrees with an arm blocking the doorway.
Hiromu raised his eyebrows and crossed his arms, "This is the only exit, isn't?"
He got a point, she thought, her cheeks flushing from embarrassment. No counter arguments can be ever made again. Why did she have to blush in front of him now? She gave another hmp and turned her back at him, commencing in her walk.
"Usami,"Hiromu called, when her back was 5 meters away from him
"Hai?" she answered, not moving from her position.
"Why are you always angry at me?"
Youko paused to think. Clearly, there isn't any reason why she should be. The engagement after all is not only a burden to her but to him as well.
"Because you're sometimes annoying" she replied. And clearly, his coolness never helped. She had thought that his coolness would contradict gentleness but she herself had witnessed Hiromu's acts of charity to acquaintances and strangers. Regardless the many times she tried to hate him, his helpful nature had made a fan out of her. Mou! He's still annoying!
Her figure becoming smaller in the naked eye, Nick the buddyroid popped out from HIromu's side and rested a hand on his shoulder. Hiromu jerked a bit for the interruption in his thoughts.
"Quite refreshing to see someone who doesn't swoon at you, eh?" The buddyroid remarked with an awe. He saw how the two bickered earlier even the slight change in Hiromu's emotionless face when Ryuji appeared.
"I would say my list of interesting things added up another member, Nick."
Nick looked at him in wonder. Although of course the buddyroid can't change emotions in the face.
"And I don't know why" Hiromu added, placing his hands at his back. Truly, Youko always flickered the gears in his head. Maybe there are things more interesting than books and laboratory equipment.
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Day 15 of 150
Hiromu had been invited over to have dinner with the Usamis. Usada and Youko were not that excited about it, and they thought of plans how to ridicule the guy discreetly. Yet, Youko had to be extra careful not to get her mother's ire if she finds out that she's sabotaging her fiancé. Given her mother's condition, disappointment is never a choice. Youko had decided to give Hiromu a warm welcome to her world by messing with his weakpoint—on fear of chickens. She prepared chicken balls with mozzarella cheese. In her mind, a weakened Hiromu would be a huge disappointment for Yoriko Usami.
To Youko's suprise, the situation went the other way around.
Hiromu never backed away from trying all of Youko's dishes, even the one in chicken and mozarella. Hiromu stiffened but struggled all the way to chew the white meat in his mouth. He earned another respect in her seeing him concealing his pain.
"Daijobou,Hiromu?" Yoriko Usami asked worriedly, looking as to how the boy was struggling to eat while his other hand clasped the end of the table.
"Please don't worry Yoriko-san" Hiromu said, stopping himself from being tempted to wash the meat with water
He took another chicken ball and popped it with grace in his mouth.
Good impression was inevitable on Youko's part. Hiromu knew that Youko prepared the dish in purpose to embarrass him. But no words of malice were heard from his mouth. Instead, he began his stories about Dainan, how the two famous system engineers—Jin Masato and Ryuji—were about to release three new mechas patterned after the vaccine program. At Dainan, only her, Hiromu, and Ryuji were injected with the vaccine, making them gain super human abilities.
"Does that mean only you, Ryusan and I would be piloting those mechas?" Youko asked excitingly. It had always been a dream for Youko to pilot EMC's state of the art mechas.
"Hai" Hiromu replied, "Messiah corp is about to release their mechas too, Alpha, Beta, and Gamma." Messiah corp is a private company headed by recently married couples Enter and Escape. They've been competing with EMC for the mecha franchise. Jin Masato has assured though that there's nothing to worry about ill intent despite Enter's attempts of pirating their system engineers.
_
That very evening, the sky was crying very hard that Hiromu was asked to stay the night with them. Yoriko had asked her daughter to prepare the common room for Hiromu's retirement while she and Usada left them to enjoy their privacy. Youko dragged the spare futon to Hiromu's feet. Hiromu was seated uncomfortably, trembling and coughing consistently. Youko felt instantly bad for pranking him with the chicken dish.
"I'm really sorry, Sakurada" Youko said, gaining every difficulty in trying to avoid his gaze. Every time she feels sorry, her head would be dipped down in embarrassment.
Hiromu examined her pained expression and got enlightened by her implicit confession.
He waved his hands at her, "oh is this about the dish? Quite brave for you to pull that one but I'm alright, you see"
Youko gave him a nod and prepared next the bed covers and the pillows. He helped her flatten the edges of his futon.
"Arigatou, for not telling on me" she said, still not looking at him for fear of being embarrassed.
"Do you really hate me that much?" he asked, his tone lightening. Youko looked up to see that he was wearing a grin. It was another rare expression by the famous Hiromu Sakurada. The guy was stoic as a robot, yet he smiled like any other entertainment idol. Youko felt her heart made a leap.
"You smiled!" she said, dropping an index finger at him. She couldn't help but to reciprocate his grin, "It's my first time to see that side of you!"
"You too" He chuckled, pointing to her face as well.
"But I tend to smile" she said through-her-now-forced-grin, stressing the word "tend" for him to hear. She took a small pillow from her right and whacked his face lightly with it.
Hiromu raised his hands again, signaling defeat this time. He had never admitted defeat to anyone except to his Rika neesan. This had earned him the monicker, siscon. He wondered at himself for surrendering to Youko. Though he hated to admit it, he had found his match.
Youko rose from kneeling and went to arrange the drapes of the common room. She felt that she had to retire too for there will be school the next day. She said her farewell—and apology—and headed straight to the door of her room which was only at the opposite of the common room.
Hiromu sat up and called out to her in a tone that only she could hear.
"Hai?" Youko replied, her head peeking from her door.
Hiromu's eyes were fixed on the covers as he blurted out the words,
"Would you mind if we call each other by first names?"
Youko raised her eyebrows at his suggestion, "I don't mind" she answered.
Hiromu cannot decipher if she liked the idea or not. He slipped under the covers and left his head poking out. He failed to meet her gaze again.
"I thought it would be weird to still call you by last name once you've become a Sakurada" from the covers, he shifted his gaze at the night light that was at the far end of the room. Youko could not figure if Hiromu was blushing or it was the reflection of his red shirt.
As soon as the words, once you've become a Sakurada registered in her mind, Youko felt rigid in an instant. "Right," was the only word she could muster at the moment.
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Day 60 of 150
Jin Masato, the designer of the three newly released mechas of the vaccine program yanked a hand on his hair while listening at the bickering Hiromu and Youko during the simulations. The simulations had been going for a month. It was to prepare the three pilots for their new posts soon.
"I say we skip manual calculations and go for automatic mode" Youko said, crossing her arms while suggesting a quicker way for the combining operations of the three mechas.
Hiromu shook his head in disagreement, "No. we have to try both in case the data for the automatic mode gets erased" His stare was as penetrating as ever, making Youko climb to her pride once again.
Jin marveled at the thought, are these two really engaged?
"I would have to agree with Hiromu, Youko-chan" Ryuji said, meddling his body in between them, "We always need a backup"
Youko hesitated, "Demo! we three have to be in sync! Its either you and Hiromu or me and you that are in sync" True enough, in the combining operations simulation, Youko and Hiromu have never been in the same rhythm together. This had escalated the tension between the two. Hiromu winced away as Youko began blabbering her arguments at him.
"Ah! enough you two!"Jin said, dragging Ryuji away (just like what he does with his self-conceited buddyroid, J) and getting in between the bickering couple, "no other person is qualified for this job, only you three. I have faith in your abilities but enough with the fighting!"
Hiromu and Youko were silenced without delay. Ryuji tried his to keep his face from laughing. In his mind, he thanked the two for driving his sempai mad.
Jin took Hiromu's right hand and clasped it with Youko's left. Both shrieked with, "Nani?!" for they've never been this close before. Electricity had shot through their bodies. To make the matters worse, Jin placed the last accessory to his plan-handcuffs.
"You would only release your hand from one another at the end of the day. I hope this will get you two in sync. My buddyroid J will be watching you. Now get along kids" he gestured the two to exit the simulation room.
They were walking with care at the corridors, trying to avoid the amused stares of those who've seen their hands together. Hiromu suddenly felt the urgency of the nature.
"I have to go to the restroom" he said.
Youko's face contorted with mortification. Sharing the whole day with Hiromu would mean having to bear each other and the need to satisfy both normal routines. One of those normal routines in biological life is to clean one's bladder.
"Ah mou,i can't go to a male restroom" Youko whined. She felt the atmosphere get creepier as they were the only ones left.
"There's one room for the disabled, both of us can fit there" Hiromu suggested, pointing the direction of a cubicle across the empty hall.
Youko partly obliged. They looked around again to check for tattle tales. Seeing none, they carefully proceeded inside. What they failed to see was Nakamura and Morishita were tasked to monitor the security in the said hall.
Morishita supported Nakamura who almost fainted for having witnessed what transpired before her. She was a good friend of Youko's.
Inside the cubicle, Hiromu was struggling with one hand to undo his zipper. The room was humid and not helpful with their compromised situation. Worse, Youko was muttering nonsensical things in crescendo.
"Be quiet or someone will hear us" he whispered, frustration hinted in his voice.
Youko closed her eyes.
"I'm not ready to explain in case others would see us. I'm not ready to see their contorted faces when they see us in handcuffs. I'm not ready to see what I shouldn't see!" These were said hurriedly, from a panic-stricken Youko Usami. Her last line made Hiromu's face redder than a freshly ripe tomato.
"Then don't peek!"Hiromu said, his voice getting louder like her as he successfully undid his zipper, "you will see this in one day of your life anyway!" He thought about slapping his face later on for being too blunt about their compromised situation.
"Waaa!"Youko wailed, covering her eyes with her free hand.
Knock knock!
"Hiromu?" A voice was heard outside the cubicle. It was the voice of the center chief. Nakamura happened to contact the center chief to confirm her suspicions of any ill-intent activity by the two.
Hiromu hurriedly finished what he should do and dragged Youko to the sink to wash his hand. Youko winced in pain as she was dragged again to the door.
The door opened revealing the flustered faces of the two. The center chief could only carry himself with an amused expression. With him was with commander Kuroki, a good friend of his and a father figure to Youko. Commander Kuroki was like Ryuji, overprotective of Youko for she had grown under his care and supervision.
"You seem to get along well" commander Kuroki said, giving Hiromu a shot of his glare, "what in the world did Jin do this time?"
"He needed us to be in sync for our manual combining operation" Hiromu answered confidently.
"In sync? Inside the rest room?"
The center chief took a rolled newspaper from his lab gown and whacked the head of the commander with it.
"Spare them with your thoughts, they mean to say about the mechas' manual combination" the center chief's face was equally flustered as the commander's. Good thing that the young pilots were too innocent to decipher what Kuroki was thinking.
"Oh,i apologize. You know Jin. Crazy ideas come from its crazy inventor"
The atmosphere was too awkward that the young pilots earned their immediate dismissal from the two big bosses of Dainan. They hurriedly searched for a cafeteria outside the university grounds to satisfy another biological need—to eat.
J found his observation rather interesting.
Hiromu and Youko had been patient with one another, the odds between them lessening. They cooperated dutifully, as if learning the value of team work. At a cafeteria nearby, Youko assisted Hiromu who was right handed, by shoving the food carefully to his mouth. Hiromu reciprocated by holding the mug of coffee for her. She did notice that Hiromu was not touching his glass of water and that he seemed preoccupied with thoughts.
With this she commented otherwise, "You're not a fan of water aren't you?"
Hiromu remained still while his eyes were locked down at his own coffee mug. Heaving a big sigh, Youko took the glass of water and neared it to him. "I may not know the reason why you are marrying so soon, but at least take care of your health. Otherwise I would look so bad."
For a moment there she took him by surprise by holding the glass close to his mouth. Without another retelling, Hiromu finished the entire glass. He thanked her and they resumed again with their food in silence.
Youko couldn't get more excited in her first day of meeting RH-03.
In the vast field of Dainan, she waited alongside the final meet with her co-pilots Hiromu and Ryuji.
"Your buster machines have the vehicle and animal modes. But yours Hiromu has an added feature, the gobuster ace mode." Jin said through the intercom
"I won't be surprised by that," Ryuji said, winking at Youko, "Hiromu aced the simulations after all"
Hmp. Youko said under her breath. She used her peripheral vision to scan at Hiromu who was in his usual confident mode. Annoyed by being impressed with his charm, Youko dismissed being a fan by using her super human jumping ability to get to RH-03.
"Seems Youko doesn't want to get beaten by you, eh?" Ryuji blurted, which got Hiromu's full attention.
"She's naturally competitive" were all the words Hiromu could say as RH-03 beautifully rose in the air
"Ryusan!" Youko called from the intercom, "how about Usada and I tour you to Tokyo tower? Like in the old times?"
Youko? Why say these things in front of your fiancé? Ryuji sweat dropped. He used his peripheral vision to glance at Hiromu who was still looking at RH-03.
Ryuji thought he saw Hiromu's face frown, but when he blinked again his face was blank.
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Day 120 of 150
If there's one woman in the class that Youko didn't like, it would be Reika Saionji. Reika had been Youko's rival in both academics and extracurricular since middle school. Being in the same university with her annoyed her to the full. And adding to that annoyance is Hiromu's obstinacy about her calorie intake. Hiromu was back in the picture of her life again-reminding her about her snacks-when Reika interrupted.
"I'm sorry to interrupt. But I wouldn't miss this opportunity of introducing myself to the future center chief of Dainan" Reika extended her hand to Hiromu's direction, "Saionji Reika. Among the candidates you've rejected."
Hiromu received her hand without guilt from Reika's remark. Youko suddenly appeared confused about the whole candidacy thing.
"Oh you chose alright, but could be better though" Reika added, resting a palm under her chin. Youko read this as a signal for trying to be in good terms with him. Here she goes.
Youko likewise thought that Reika was a more suitable candidate than her. Not only did she excel in her chosen discipline, but she also did well with the affairs of the heart. Her first step in the university had gained her a population of admirers. She's like another version of Hiromu, only that she's proud and more obvious about herself.
_
Simulations were to happen again when Youko's rival appeared, looking elated as ever. She dismissed her stare at her and hooked her arms to Hiromu's neck. A frown etched in Hiromu's face as he struggled to break free.
"arigato for helping me ace my exam,Hiromu!"
What was that? Youko thought.
Her world stopped for a moment.
She thought that the picture before her was perfect. Her rival, linking her arms to Hiromu's neck. They look so perfect together. A smile creeped in her. She can hear no sound. Everything around her vanished except the picture before her. Her heart which had raced in eagerness had stopped from beating. Air was releasing from her lungs. She couldn't breathe. Numbness spread all over her body, until she heard Jin from the intercom.
"Resume to your posts, brats"
She dragged one foot forward to break from her thoughts. Slowly, her body was resuming from numbness. While her steps increased, she raised a hand that Jin may recognize.
"I need to go to the infirmary" she said, her breathing becoming hoarse.
Silence consumed her again for she didn't hear that Hiromu was offering himself to assist her in her predicament. She passed by him, leaving him confused. She only had ten steps forward when she felt her body becoming heavier than usual.
She fainted. Hiromu had caught her in time.
"YOUKO!" Hiromu bellowed.
The clock struck at 8 in the evening when Youko regained consciousness. She couldn't believe her eyes to see Hiromu, standing by her side, preparing what seemed like a bento box. She blinked again to confirm if it was him. As if reading her thoughts, Hiromu answered, "Good. You are awake"
She mustered all strength to be seated.
"How many times should you be told to eat before your simulations?" His voice sounded stern as he left his gaze from the bento to her. His stare was so confident and intense that she looked away, heat starting to build up from her cheeks.
"And how many times should you be told that I'm old enough to remind myself?" she retorted back
"You're one stubborn child"
"You're one stubborn adult" she replied, returning the intensity of his gaze back at him.
They looked at each other in silence…
Until Hiromu broke the silence by laughing. His laughing was so good and refreshing that Youko couldn't resist herself the pleasure of laughing with him.
Youko thought she'd ask for apology until Hiromu shifted to someone who is in deep pain. He sat at the cold floor and coughed several time. Youko thought the scene looked familiar for she had also witnessed him in this state when he stayed at her house one night.
"Hiromu?" she called unto him, gently.
He was not responding to her. Instead took the handkerchief from his pocket and tried to suppress the sounds of him from coughing. In his mind, he found the resolve not to tell Youko about his sickness. No, he thought, she deserves to be happy.
"Daijobou? Hiromu?"
Repeating what happened to her earlier, Hiromu's body hit the floor with a great thud. Youko jumped from her bed to reach him. When she touched him, she couldn't believe the sight before her. It was as if silence was swallowing her once more.
"No..."
Hiromu's plain white handkerchief was now soaked in blood.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Day 150 of 150
His curse was rapidly filling up his body. He did his utmost concealing his weakened state from day 120. But as obstinate as he is, Youko had been curious about his condition, checking upon him every few hours to see if he's regaining in health or not. Hiromu was firm in his resolve not to tell her about his sickness. Part of his resolve was to call the engagement off, for Youko cannot be an instrument for him to live. He cared so much about her happiness that he realized it was only a little sacrifice for him to let her go.
On the day of his birthday, Youko had invited him to celebrate his birthday at the EMC orphanage. This had delayed his plan to tell her about calling the engagement off.
Youko had hoped that the presence of the children will improve Hiromu's condition. True enough, the vibrancy of youth had helped him clear his mind. He had been stiff with them at first, but slowly, he broke the ice by playing with them. Some played blocks with him. Others rode on his back.
Youko watched them as she cooked food for them. One of the smaller children tugged at her apron. She turned her full attention to the child.
"Neesan,you and oniichan look kawaii together"
She smiled at the child and patted his head. Hiromu had heard about the child's remark and looked wistfully in their direction. In his mind, he thought about Youko as a good home maker.
"Oniichan says you are engaged to him. You must love him so, is it right neesan?"
Hiromu's ears perked again. He had not heard any confession from her though he denied to admit that he's asking for one. Youko closed her eyes for two seconds and opened them again. Before she could reply, Hiromu rose from his seat and pointed his head at the large tree nearby. He would rather not hear about something that he would regret later on.
"I'll catch some air outside. I'll be back" he said.
Meanwhile, Ryuji appeared from the orphanage's doorway with a box of toys. The kids hurried to the box as Hiromu exited.
"Did he tell you about his curse?" he asked her. From Ryuji's face, Youko knew that Ryuji had something important to tell her.
"What curse?" she asked, restraining the fear from her voice.
Ryuji told her everything she had to know, even Hiromu's resistance to marrying her in the future. Youko gasped in horror when she heard that today was Hiromu's last day. She took her apron off and rushed to the doorway. She had to find him.
He's hesitant to tell you the truth because he didn't want to force you with his burden.
Youko ran faster than she could. The cold wind was piercing through her skin, leaving every fiber of her in deep anxiety.
He's very willing to call the engagement off, thinking how it would be unfair to you if he takes your happiness in substitute of his life.
Her eyes were getting watery. Oh how she needed a handkerchief right now! She wiped her eyes with her sleeves instead.
You had his gears working. That guy's an idiot for not knowing his feelings for you.
She reached her destination by the large tree. Hiromu was there, panting heavily as the sun was beginning to set. Usually Hiromu would sense her presence with his sensitive ears. This was enough evidence that he's about to fade soon with the stars. Youko called unto him with a flustered face. Hiromu responded to her by rising from his position. He leaned his back on the tree for support.
He forced to smile at her. Kami-sama, give me enough strength to face her. He had not prayed to any higher being until now.
Youko broke the silence. "Why didn't you tell me that you were dying?" She asked, her expression pained, her eyes building up with tears.
"It would be unfair to your happiness if I did." He replied softly, looking rather amused at her pride than fear what she had to say.
Youko took steps forward. Hiromu looked for more support from the large tree.
"How could you just throw your life away like that? how can you not be sensitive about the feelings of people you will leave behind?" Tears were running down from her face. Hiromu broke himself from her intense stare. He couldn't look at her.
"I'm just a speck in this universe, Youko. The world can go on without me. You can live without me." He chuckled at the last words, "Look how much you hated me."
Hated you? Youko took a grip of herself by rolling her hands into fists.
"Idiot! You're a complete idiot!"
Her words were like ice that struck his weak heart.
"Why are you so angry at me, Youko?" He asked, his breathing becoming uneven while processing how much anger she had on him. It was a torture. His face had given away.
She rushed towards him and placed her hands on the sides of his face.
"And why must you be so annoying Hiromu?"
She tiptoed and placed her mouth full on his. Hiromu leaned more his back on the tree as Youko's strength overwhelmed him.
What?
The sound of the waves from the sea and the whistles of the air had vanished.
He had never imagined that he would be suspended in time. No book or laboratory equipment had ever paralleled to what he was feeling at the moment.
Youko pulled away, her mouth first then her hands. Hiromu's sensitive senses returned, hearing first Youko's breathing becoming ragged and her heart drumming crazily in second.
He stared back at her, his expression wild. Premises were running like gears in his head. Youko had shared the same expression as him, but only she had the answers to his assumptions.
"I love you, idiot" she said finally.
The next day, center chief Sakurada was doing the necessary preparations for his only son's funeral. He had respected his son' s last will to spend the remaining day of his life celebrating his birthday at the orphanage. He thought it was an irony-birth and death on the same date. He had never expected that Hiromu would be the first to die from the curse.
He and his family were bundled together, mourning over Hiromu's picture which taken only a year ago. Soon, they have to spread the word to the rest of EMC of their loss.
"He must have loved Youko-chan" Nick said, doing sounds of grief, for a buddyroid can't express emotions on the face
"Oh I did" a voice from the doorway said.
Nani?
The Sakuradas looked behind them, only to see Hiromu standing at the doorway, smiling widely like he never did before. He was as Rika neesan thought, glowing.
Yesterday was supposed to be Hiromu's birthday.
But it felt like they were the ones who received a generous gift from life.
The Sakuradas rose from their seats to embrace the miracle of life.
Hiromu was eating at the university cafeteria when Youko joined him with her jelly bun.
His cheeks instantly reddened as he tried to consume his soup in peace. The incident yesterday had a rewind from his mind countless of times. He even forgot to sleep.
"Haha you do love me" Youko said, giving a hard slap on his back. Hiromu thought he'd choke on his soup.
She never waited for him to say the words. She felt contented sitting comfortably beside him with her jelly bun.
But Hiromu was a no-brainer. He himself was full of surprises.
"It was my birthday yesterday" he said, regaining his confidence back. Youko raised her eyebrows as if telling him, and so your point is?
"I give gifts to people during my birthday" True enough, it was part of Hiromu's tradition to give away items to celebrate his life.
"You needed not to give me anything, Hiromu." Youko said. Your life is already a gift to me.
"But to show how thankful I am—"
He took a red velvet box from his jacket and placed it in front of her. Youko knew what's inside the box. Throughout their engagement period, she had received no ring. She couldn't believe her eyes now that it's already transpiring before her. Always the suspicious type, Youko remarked, "You're marrying me because I saved your life? This is how you're thanking me?"
Hiromu couldn't believe how little Youko thought of herself.
"Life has no value if not given. I'm giving my life to you." Hiromu rose from his seat and knelt in one knee, "Besides, I'm quite the traditional type"
He took the ring from the box and neared it to her index finger. His gaze was ever hopeful.
"Marry this annoying idiot who is madly in love with you, Youko Usami."
Those were the words she only waited in her life. She obliged in his request by taking the ring from his hand and inserted it to her index finger. No jelly bun could measure to what she's feeling right now. She knelt with him and locked him in her arms.
"Only if you accept my happiness, Hiromu Sakurada"
…
He's very willing to call the engagement off, thinking how it would be unfair to you if he takes your happiness in substitute of his life. - Ryuji
I'm giving my life to you. - Hiromu
Only if you accept my happiness. - Youko