"Oogami-san, today was fun! Going to all the stores and stopping by the pet shop to look at the animals, and getting some sweets afterwards… This has been a really nice birthday." Ishimaru smiled over at the tall, muscular woman laying beside him in the grass.
"I'm glad you enjoyed yourself, Ishimaru-kun," she murmured, glancing over at him, a small smile on her own face. "Perhaps sometime in the future we could go out on a day-long excursion like this again."
"Ah, yes, I would enjoy that!" Ishimaru grinned and rolled onto his stomach, looking down at the scarred face of the girl he was now almost practically laying on top of.
Sakura laughed as he rolled into her, folding her hands behind her head and staring up at the night sky. It was a beautiful dark blue that bordered on purple, wonderfully illuminated by the stars and moon. A soft sigh escaped her lips as she glanced back over at her friend.
"Ishimaru-kun, why are you staring at me?" she chuckled. "The sky is beautiful tonight, roll onto your back again so you can appreciate it."
Blinking, the boy let out a laugh and nodded, rolling over and staring at the sky. He couldn't help himself from staring at her. She was… Beautiful. More so than the night sky. He would rather stare at her than all these stars. Her smile would light up a room, even more efficiently than these stars lit up the sky. She was not traditionally beautiful in the way that she had a thin face and a small body and a big chest, but she was stunning. She had the most captivating eyes, the kind of laugh that you couldn't help but grin when hearing. She had a wonderful personality; kind, gentle, and generous. She was a large woman, taller than himself, but she just seemed perfect to him in every way. Her hair contrasted in the most fascinating way against her skin. And still, despite all the muscle, and the scars that lingered on her face and arms, she still had that air of femininity about her. She was strong, independent, didn't seem to cave in to peer pressure (or any pressure, really)…
Sakura, only a few feet away, was having thoughts of a similar nature. She had been ecstatic to have been able to spend all day with him today. Sure, he had stopped to talk to a few of his friends that had wanted to give him their well-wishes, but for most of the day it had just been the two of them. They had walked around, gotten him a new uniform that he had been admiring for quite a while, stopped into the pet store upon his request to pet the tiny animals, and had gone to get cupcakes after. Of course, he refused to accept being given anything else after the uniform and cupcake, but it had still seemed like he had really enjoyed himself. And that made her happy. Despite how serious she usually was, he always seemed to be able to make her laugh. He made her feel really, truly happy. Sure, she couldn't help but think his addiction to rules was a little ridiculous, but he was funny and sweet.
She noticed herself starting to drift to sleep and sat up, running a hand through her hair. "Ishimaru-kun, I think it is time for me to head home and get some rest. You as well. It's late." She gave him a little smile and started to pull herself to her feet.
"Ah, I will… I think I'm going to sit out here and admire the stars for a little longer, though."
"Alright, if you would like to, I'm not going to stop you. I'll talk to you tomorrow, Ishimaru-kun." She brushed off the back of her skirt, waving a little as she turned to walk home.
"Ah, Sakura-san?" he called after her, blushing slightly.
She stopped, blushing at the use of her first name. She glanced back over her shoulder at him, noticing the blush on his face as well. "Yes?"
"Please, call me Kiyotaka…"
