A series of one-shots as told through Iori's perspective.

Wallflower

One. Loud

He never did say a whole lot. He was quiet by nature; usually only spoke out if spoken to or asked a question. He was never one to start a conversation. Some regarded him as odd, but he was just reserved; an introvert, wallflower even.

His father, whom had been killed in the line of duty as a police officer, taught him manners from a young age and to treat others with respect, especially your elders. His grandfather, who took over as the male role model in his life when his father passed, taught him discipline and humility. His mother taught him to be kind and passionate, even if he couldn't always find the words to say.

He had always been the youngest in his social group. His best friend, a girl three years older named Miyako, talked enough for the both of them when they were together. She was loud, opinionated, and impulsive. Her hair was colored a ridiculous shade of purple that drew a lot of attention -which he assumed was the whole point. She always wore black polish on her nails and often got in trouble with her parents for constantly challenging her siblings. She enjoyed iced caramel latte's with three extra pumps of caramel flavor, extra ice, and whipped cream and caramel drizzle on top. Leggings were a fashion statement and she had exchanged her iconic, round glasses for smaller, more square, thick-rimmed ones. She sometimes wore a skirt over her blue jeans and often pulled her hair back in pigtails with multi-colored ribbons. People would describe her appearance as "hipster" but he knew she just liked to stand out from the crowd.

The pair had been friends since they were kids. They were older now, she was twenty two and in her final year of university and he was freshly nineteen, in his second year on the road to becoming an attorney. Things hadn't changed much, aside from maturing and getting taller. He was still quiet and she was still loud.

"You're going to make a great lawyer," she said one day while fidgeting with everything on his bookshelf, "So focused and dedicated to your studies."

She often did that -fidgeted absentmindedly- when she was bored or needed to vent about something.

"That's the plan," he responded, never looking up from his text book. He had an exam coming up and needed to study but she wanted to socialize and he was too nice to tell her to leave.

She picked up a box off the shelf and examined it before finally blurting out what she came over to talk about, "My dad is giving the family business to Momoe."

That caught his attention. He put the pen down on the desk and looked up at her.

"She has no idea how to even run a business," she continued, a hint of annoyance in her tone, "My dad thinks because she's the oldest she deserves it or some crap reasoning that's as equally annoying."

Miyako's parents own a corner market/pharmacy in Tokyo. She'd been helping run the business since she was a kid. She knew the ins and outs of the whole thing, unlike her siblings who knew much less and basically only ever ran the register or stocked shelves when needed. She prided herself on learning how to run the business, the others could honestly have cared less.

"I guess I should have known it would play out this way. I'm the youngest so I never get the first of anything. It just irritates the crap out of me because I bust my ass helping them run that place and then he decides to go and give everything to the sibling that barely knows how to run a cash register."

Miyako's oldest sister Momoe was not the business running type. She was a self-proclaimed feminist; often prided herself on it. She did a lot of protesting in college and currently had a career as a freelance journalist. She always claimed she was "too busy" to help with the family business. Iori figured she'd just take over as a figure head and then have everyone else run it while she profited, which is what he knew bothered Miyako the most.

"My parents haven't even asked her if she wants to take over. They just assume she will without question," Miyako stated, "And why wouldn't she? The business is successful. She can sit back and let someone else do all of the hard work while she makes a pretty penny."

Being the youngest in the family by quite a bit, Miyako didn't get along that well with any of her three siblings. There were Momoe and Mantarou, the twins, that were the oldest at thirty two and then another sister named Chizuru who is twenty eight. Miyako, being so much younger, didn't relate much to any of them. Her bold and impulsive nature often created tension as she had a tendency not to think before blurting out her thoughts. Her words are often taken as offensive and therefore start fights.

"In all honesty, they should let Mantarou run it. He's the one with a business degree after all. But I guess his entrepreneur work makes him look too flaky since he's always moving on to the next project. I guess I should just be thankful they didn't consider Chizuru. I'm not even sure what continent she's on right now."

Chizuru was the "free spirit" of the family. She made her living doing things that her family was too scared to ask about and often couch hopped. She enjoyed smoking marijuana and traveling for concerts, often sleeping in tents outside of venues to ensure the best spot for the upcoming event. Her piercing phase never ended and she even went so far as to get a tattoo sleeve. The family "disappointment" as Miyako often says, though she secretly admired her rebellious nature.

She continued to ramble on about how unfair the whole situation was and how her dad would end up regretting the decision in the end. Iori listened, which is what he did best, but knew he wouldn't be getting any more studying in so he suggested an alternative.

"Frozen yogurt?"

He watched her spirits lift, "I could go for some froyo."

He hated portmanteau words; slang as well. When people used words like "YOLO" and "Swag" it got under his skin so badly but he let it go; not wanting to fester on something so insignificant.

The two walked to the yogurt shop together. The streets were busy, as usual, and Miyako continued to vent about how unfair the family business situation was. Iori knew that once she got her sights on some frozen yogurt, all would be forgotten and she'd be in a better mood.

Iori cringed at the line inside the yogurt shop. Apparently it was the place to be that night. Lines and crowds didn't phase Miyako but they made Iori uncomfortable, especially in tiny spaces.

He watched as her face lit up at the topping bar. She always got so exciting over the littlest things but it made him glad seeing her happy. She was all about the fruit toppings and cheesecake bites, they were her favorite.

The line didn't take as long as he thought it would and soon the two were on their way. Due to lack of seating, they took their yogurt to go and ate on the walk back to Iori's apartment.

"Thank you for this," she said as they began to cross the street, "You always know the perfect way to clear my head."

He didn't have time to respond because a car came screeching to a halt right next to them. The driver got so close that Miyako had to jump back or he would've bumped her. The guy made her drop her spoon and that's when all hell broke loose.

"WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING, MORON!" She shouted, loud enough to draw attention from anyone standing within a quarter mile radius.

"It was an accident, lady, calm down," the guy said back.

"YOU COULD HAVE KILLED SOMEONE!"

She then proceeded to throw the remainder of her frozen yogurt at his windshield. It splashed everywhere; semi-frozen fruit and cheesecake bites slowly dripping onto the windshield wipers.

"You crazy bitch!" The guy shouted and started to get out of the car but Miyako charged him and he got right back in, driving off as quickly as he could.

"That's right! You better run!"

Iori didn't know whether to be embarrassed or proud. People were cheering. Miyako had cooled off enough to see that she'd caused a scene but went with it, bowing to her audience. The two then rushed off the street before someone actually did run them over.

Once they were safely out of harms way, Iori lost it. He started laughing uncontrollably. Soon, his sides began to ache. Miyako just stared at him like he'd lost his mind.

"Are you okay?" She asked, truly concerned.

He controlled his laughter long enough to get out, "Have I ever told you how much I love being your friend?"

His laughter was contagious.

They continued to laugh all the way back to the apartment and then after.

Miyako was anything but subtle. She was loud, opinionated, and sometimes psychotic.

And he wouldn't have it any other way.

To be continued.

Next up: Roses.

Thanks and please review!