A/N: Oh shit I'm late I'm late I'm late
Sorry I'm sorry I'm soooooo soooo sorry
Anyways, now that I have all the apologies aside, I'd like to present Project YosNao Birthday, a one-shot written for Miss Hanamura's birthday.
Which happened to be a week ago.
Yeah, my bad for that, I take a long time to write my stories. I dunno, I just do. Don't ask.
But, Miss Hanamura, I hope you like it, and for all you other readers, I hope you like it, too. I'm not that knowledgable on this Yosuke x Naoto pairing, and I my only real experience with Persona 4 is Persona 4: Requiem, so I'm kinda inexperienced with this game and pairing. But, it's Miss Hanamura's favorite Persona pairing, so I tried. Hope I did good. Wish me luck, even though I've already finished writing this.
The quickening sound of my footsteps hitting the pavement easily matched the pace in which my heart was beating. In fact, if you looked at me from a spectator's point of view, you would probably think that I was late to something.
Well, I am. I checked my watch, feeling the panic set in as I realized I might not actually make it on time.
10:57 PM. Three minutes left.
"Shit!" I yelled, attempting to move my legs even faster. "I gotta make it! I have to, I have to, I have to!" I began to rouse the being that rests within my mind, trying to get it to assist me in my goal. "Jiraya, Tarukaja!" I yelled, feeling my legs become engulfed in tornadoes. With the speed I was going at, I might make it after all.
As I was running faster than what should normally be possible, I began to wrestle with my panic. Various thoughts flew into my mind, but I brushed them all aside with an air of confidence.
I got this, was the only thought that made it past my mental barrier as I pushed on faster. Well, that and me complaining about how my backpack kept hitting my butt as I ran.
My mind was in so many places that I almost didn't see that I reached my destination. Slowing my legs down to a standstill, I took a deep breath, and looked at where I was to double check I had arrived. It was a small brick building, about 20 feet tall, with a small, copper-colored door to the bottom left corner of the tiny structure. The building itself made me feel like a giant, as its walls almost adjacent its neighbors, which was expected of the crowded Inaba Central Shopping District. I almost felt bad for the owners of these shops, always scrounging for cash in a rural town in which Junes is at the top of the food chain, but as my dad always said, life thrives on an eat-or-be-eaten policy, and we as humans are always striving to not be eaten.
However, there are just some things that cannot be bought at your local Junes. Taking a deep breath once more to calm my nerves, I pushed the door open, walking right past the shelves, in order to reach the only one person I needed to talk to.
The only one I wanted to see at the moment was in fact an old man, with short, orange auburn hair circling around his head, and dark, orange eyes. His head is almost bald, with a giant bald spot covering the top of his head. His sideburns are attached to his moustache, making it seem like there's nothing about him that isn't connected together in some way. His large, X-shaped scar covers his face, and it seems to draw anyone's attention: after all, who wouldn't look at any giant distortion to one's body? To top it all off, this old geezer is wearing a white thick towel tied into a bow on his head, a white shirt with a brown obi, and white pants, making him look like someone that likes to do the dirty work: he probably wouldn't like it any other way.
"Hey, Daidara?" I asked, not caring about anything and anyone else that was in the building. "You got what I ordered?"
"Yeah, I got it," he replied, pulling out a cardboard box, about a foot measuring both it's length and width, with it being a few inches tall, making it sort of a thin box that you could hold a thin object in. Brown packaging tape was everywhere on it, covering up every small nook and cranny available. "You sure you need this? I mean, you don't look like the kind of person that would really use this kinda thing, and I don't want any of my work or your money to just… get wasted and all that, you know?" He gave me his usual smile, a sort of… mischievous grin, like someone who was just about to pull a prank. Handing me the package, he patted me on the back, causing me to wince a little at how much it stung. "Make sure you take care of it, I worked 3 days in a row just to custom make that for you."
"I know, I know," I assured him, hugging the package close to my chest. "Besides, it's not for me, remember?" I smiled a little bit myself, despite the panicking state of mind I was currently in.
"Oh, right!" He exclaimed, patting me on the back even more. "Well, I guess that's another thing you gotta take care of, then." His grin grew even wider, hitting from one side of his cheek to the other. "And stop freaking out, alright? She's gonna love it, don't worry about a thing." The grin that he was wearing was so carefree and laid back, that I couldn't help but relax a little, feeling my shoulders drop down and my grip on the box start to loosen.
"Alright, I got it, I got it!" I replied back to him, grinning a bit more every second. "You know, you should be a counselor for a school or something. It's really easy to relax just talking to you." I took off my backpack, a nice, one strap grey messenger bag with a bright red vertical stripe down the middle, and stuffed the box inside. The less items in my hand, the better.
Daidara started to scratch the back of his neck, his eyes never stopping to be so carefree. "Naw, the kids would just focus on my scar too much, ya know? Can't have the kids having nightmares about it when I'm supposed to be helping them, right?"
I chuckled a little. "I guess so. Well, I better head out then, wouldn't want to be late again, huh?" I started to head out the door, giving a sort of a salute back to Daidara, as I walked out of the building.
"So long, kiddo!" Daidara called out to me, his voice full of the enthusiasm that I didn't expect less of. "Hope it all goes well!"
"Oh, it will!" I yelled back, before opening the door and running out.
As soon as I left the building, I checked my watch again.
11:23. I need to be there by 12:00.
I really didn't have any need to be back home, as I kinda told my parents that I would be at Yu's house for the day, helping him watch Nanako. To Yu, I told him my plans for the evening, and that I would probably swing by his house late at night in order to sleep. I kinda feel bad lying to my parents for that, but I felt like this was something that needed to be done, no matter the risks I had to take in order to get this done.
But, as of now, I just needed to chill until it was time, so I decided to walk around the city, staying relatively close to my destination. However, after realizing that it was really boring to run around with all the speed in the world available at the simple shout of two words, I decided that I would go shopping at the Shopping District.
Then, I realized that all the stores were closed. Time to mark that off the list.
Now, what time is it? I needed to make sure I wasn't late, or else I'd feel like I just failed on one of the greatest tasks assigned to me by the gods.
11:48. Damn, how did I kill that much time? Oh well, I guess I need to start to head towards my destination, then.
Feet… Where did my feet go? Man, I'm so nervous, I can't even see properly. All the depressing thoughts began to roll through my head once more. Will she like it? Did I pick out the wrong gift? Will she be fine with it? Will I be fine with it?
Without knowing it, I reached my destination. It was a huge, black mansion, with a nice, white trim, about the same size as the behemoth Junes itself. The mansion was pretty fancy, with large, magenta curtains covering both the outside and, if I looked closer, the inside, as well. All in all, it was your typical looking Elizabethan mansion: fancy, large, and looked like it was about 200 years old, showing off it's vintage outlook.
Taking a deep breath, I doubled checked my watch yet again.
11:58. Gotta head inside. No, I can't go through the front door; what would you say if you saw a boy in front of your house, smack dab in the middle of the night? No, it's time to take the… scenic route. Yeah, that's a good way to put it. Scenic route.
I walked up to a nearby tree, and, using a branch low to the ground, I swung myself up onto said branch. Repeating this a couple of times, I quickly became level to the second floor, my eyes peering through the curtains to see what was inside.
Nothing. Good. Time to sneak in, then.
I hopped onto the windowsill, and, with a quick "Jiraya, Garuda!" I flipped open the lock of the window and pushed it open thanks to the power of wind. Vaulting myself into the building, I quickly shut and locked the window and hid behind a dark and solid object, afraid that someone heard me essentially breaking and entering.
Well, this isn't much of a robbery, because I'm not planning on taking anything.
Hopefully.
Adding a little smirk to my face, I quickly inspected my surroundings. Sure, it was dark, but I could still see a little. There was a desk in the middle of the room, filled with a bunch of computers, and the thing I was hiding behind happened to be a cardboard box, full of… I think computer supplies? The darkness isn't letting me see what's inside: the contents of the box were all black, to add even more suffering to my poor eyes.
Carefully came out of my hiding place, I made sure to check my watch again, just to be sure I wasn't gonna be too early or too late.
11:59. Gotta hurry.
Trying to be quick as possible, I left the room and snuck around to one of the far corners of the estate. I memorized the entire map of this estate, which took a crap ton of hours and pride just to accomplish, sadly. You know, sometimes I wish I didn't do this. Would've saved me the time, money, pride, and confusion.
But… it's all for her, right?
I don't know why I do all of this, I don't know why I barely question myself for doing this, but… if I knew one thing for sure, it's that it doesn't feel wrong doing this. If it's all for her… I'd be willing to do anything.
Why would I do all of this, anyway?
You know, it'd probably be that shyness. She's just… so shy, it's really cute. Whenever she's the target of something embarrassing, she would always hide her head behind her cap, and when she's calmed herself down, she would just… act like nothing happened. I find it too cute to believe.
Also, I guess it's because of how mature she tries to act. It seems… odd, for me to describe it, but I can't really say it in any other way. She's just too cute for me to handle.
Oh, shit. Barely noticed the door I happened to be looking for was in front of me for a second there. Taking a deep breath, I tried to calm myself down, by looking at my watch.
12:00, Midnight. Time to make my move.
Inhale, exhale, real quick right in front of the door. Slowly, I took a deep breath, and knocked.
Knock, Knock.
"Come in!" A feminine voice called out to me, to which I complied. Walking in, I was met with a girl.
This girl had short, blue hair, with grey eyes and a slightly tanned skin tone. Being late at night, she wore a pair of a white pyjama shirt and pants, littered with blue question marks at all angles. Seems suitable, considering she was a detective, and a bluenette nonetheless. However, what I did notice was that her signature blue hat wasn't on her head. Meh, it was probably hanging in her room somewhere.
As to the room, the room was a pretty big room, as was expected of a giant estate. There was a queen sized bed placed against the wall, with two nightstands bordering the sides. As to the rest of the room, it was bare, except for what I think is a standing coat hanger, which had her hat hanging on it, as I expected. This girl never struck me as one of those "decoration" people, so I didn't expect really anything else.
While the sight of this girl brought a smile to my face, apparently, the sight of me brought a scream to her lips. Who would've known that a guy sneaking into a girl's house in the middle of the night would cause panic? I sure didn't.
Lies.
Quickly, I clamped my hand over her mouth so no more screams would be emitted. As soon as I felt no more vibrations going through my hand, I relaxed my arm, only to be met with a slap to the face.
Damn, that hurt.
"H-Hanamura-san! What are you even doing here?" The girl asked, still in panic mode, from the looks of it.
"Calm down, Naoto-chan. I'm not here to kill you."
Hopefully.
"B-Bu-Bu-Bu-" She stuttered, trying to calm herself down.
Oh, dear. Looks like I've caused her to not even speak properly. Time to calm her down even more.
Taking off my backpack, I took out the box, and forcefully ripped open the packaging tape, revealing a bunch of styrofoam inside. Slowly, as to not frighten her, I handed Naoto the box.
"Happy birthday, Naoto-chan." I grinned a bit more than I should've, but at that moment, I didn't really care if I looked like a stalker or not.
"B-Birthday? B-But… My birthday is tomorrow…" She exclaimed, her face becoming a different shade than it was before. Probably red, by the looks of it.
"Um, no?" I replied, still grinning. "Check the time." I pointed to the digital clock on her nightstand.
12:01. Right on time.
"O-oh," she replied, her face further turning into that different shade.
"Take it out," I told her, motioning towards the box.
"Okay…" Naoto began to stick her hand into the box, her eyes lighting up in wonder of what may be inside. Before she could pull it out, though, I grabbed her wrist, causing my face to light up.
"Wait a second," I told her, smirking. "Guess what's inside."
"Um…" She pondered, her mind running circles around what it may be. "A… book?"
"No. Think harder."
"Um… Clothes?"
"Nope. Guess again."
"Hm…" Her face stayed like that for another minute, before lighting up once more. Looking at me with a curious expression, she made a finger gun and shot it at me.
"Damn, thought it would be a lot harder." I scratched the back of my neck, still grinning. "Alright, you win. It's a gun." I motioned for her to finally take it out, causing her to pull out from the box a black handgun, boxy in shape, yet still looks like it can kill anything. "It's a P250," I said, smiling a bit more than I really had to. "I got Daidara to make this thing, much to his disliking. You like it?"
"I…" Naoto seemed to choke up on her words a bit, as though trying to keep away tears. Judging by the way her head is angled to the ground, that's probably the reason.
"What did you say?" I asked, trying to sound concerned, else it would sound like sarcasm. "Can't really hear you."
"I… I love it!" She quickly raised her head up, her eyes overflowing with tears of joy, and glomped me. Unfortunately, no matter how hard I prepared for this moment, it turns out she's stronger than she looks, and I was immediately knocked to the ground, creating a loud thump that made both of us freeze up in terror. Hastily getting up, I looked at her and smiled with relief.
"Thank goodness," I said, wiping off some sweat from my forehead. "I mean, I didn't have enough money to give you a cake along with this, and I didn't really know what books you liked and whatnot, and-" I was cut off by Naoto leaning forward and pressing something pressing against my lips. Shit, what's she doing to me? She's not poisoning me, is she?
When the unknown object retreated after about a minute, Naoto leaned back to her normal standing position and gave me a big smile, her cheeks still red.
"Thank you, Yosuke. This is the best birthday gift I've ever been given. Now, I think you should leave, before someone finds you in my room." She leaned forward once more, and again I felt something foreign touch me, this time on my cheek, only for a short while. Returning to her normal position, she waved at me, still smiling. "Goodbye, Yosuke. See you tomorrow."
"Ah, see you, Naoto-chan." I quickly snuck out of her door, and taking the route that I used when entering, made a hasty retreat out of the Shirogane Estate and started to head home.
Wait, can I even be home at this time? I checked my watch.
12:45.
Yu's house it is, then. I made a 270 degree turn and started to head over to Yu's.
Only halfway there did realizations hit me.
"Wait… Did she stop using honorifics…?" I stopped in my tracks.
"And… Did she just kiss me?"