"I heard he's dating that girl from N High."
"Ehhh!? No waaay…"
"But isn't he going out with our school's Nagano?"
"Ehhhh? The tennis team's star player?"
"Uhn! I saw them this weekend near the R- district and they were quite lovey dovey…"
"Don't tell me they…you know?"
Giggles.
...
Gou closed her eyes as she walked past the group of girls.
Whatever he does was none of her business.
Still, she could not help but fight a shiver.
...
Disgusting.
"Gou-chan!"
She looks up from her clipboard to find him running towards her panting.
"Kisumi-kun?"
A warm pair of lips grazes just past the corner of her own and she flushes into the most vibrant shade of red. She flusters and pushes him away.
"Wh-wh-what was that for!?" she stutters, body trembling slightly as she repeatedly rubs her lips with the back of her hand as if to remove the remnants of the inexistent kiss left by the sudden contact.
He stands back, hands in his pockets and smiles sheepishly at her, eyes crinkling with amusement.
"Eh? But I thought you wanted me to kiss you…" he says teasingly.
She scowls and pounds her fists mercilessly against him as he stealthily dodges them, laughing.
...
Damn cheeky bastard.
Gou doesn't know why and how it came to this point, but they are friends anyway.
He was there when she's in need and didn't know what to do, when she was stuck and there was no one else to help her.
Even now when everyone seems to be leaving, he was always there.
...
"Hey."
He arrives a little bit later than she had hoped, traces of liquid already showing in her eyes.
She turns to him pouting – half-smiling half-frowning because she didn't know which emotion she should feel at the moment— and exclaims.
"Where were you? You're late!"
He raises his hands in surrender and smiles at her with his usual cheeky grin, something she thought suited him perfectly but didn't dare tell him out loud.
"Hey, I'm here now am I not? Chill out Gou…"
He moves toward her and wraps her in a comforting embrace which she initially fights but in the end surrenders.
"Still, you're late."
Her voice was muffled and ragged, and between the rawness of her voice and his now damp shirt, he knew that she was crying. He smiles as he gently strokes her hair.
"Okay, I'm sorry I'm late. Happy now?"
She doesn't reply but she knew that he already knows.
He knows that she's broken and hurting and most likely knows the reason why. Even without telling him anything, to a certain extent she knew that he understands. He understands that's why…
"Hey… Why hadn't you asked him to stay?"
…He can be so harsh and damn blunt in saying things sometimes— like dumping alcohol over a fresh wound to disinfect it. But as much as she knew that he's doing it because he cares, she was hurting so much that she can't help but snap back.
"As if I could… We both know it's impossible. Especially now that….."
She retorts bitterly, her hands unconsciously clenching tighter on Kisumi's shirt. She receives a small flick from him in the forehead catching her off-guard for a moment before she eventually responds with a glare. She was about to snap angrily at him, hurtful words hanging at the tip of her tongue, when she saw him with that look. Immediately, her mouth clamped shut. Her hand loosened its grip on his shirt and eventually it fell down to her side.
"Now, now Gou… Don't you think it's too early for you to say that?"
He gives her a grin and she cringes and thinks of just how much she wanted to rip it off his face. It was just like looking at her own pitiful self, except it was through that person's eyes. After all weren't they on the same boat? Of course he knows…because he's just like her. And it dawns to her just how similar their situations are that she almost laughs—they are kindred spirits and it scared her to think that with such a short amount of time, they had already grown this close.
...
Remember that time when I said I won't ever want to deal with the likes of you?
I guess, I'm eating my words now.
Just look at us!….
And now I'm scared.
How…did this all happen?
"Ki…sumi?"
She calls out to him more timidly than usual, her voice faltering as if she were unsure that it really was him that she's seeing.
He stops a few steps after but not turning to face her. Several moments passed and she was getting nervous. She was about to call him again when he turns to face her— just a brief nod and a smile, then proceeds walking out the school gates with his beautiful companion in hand, leaving the stupefied redhead by the building's entrance.
As if on cue, the wind picks up and thunder roars in the distance.
She clenches a fist near her heart.
...
What is this painful feeling?
She already knew that he was the worst womanizer with absolutely no morals when she first met him so she didn't know why it came as a shock when she saw him again surrounded by his fanclub/harem. He was ignoring her and it irked her to no end.
Sure. He was a flirt, a pervert and a goddamn skirt chaser but he was her friend. At first she didn't know how important he was to her but now that he's gone, she realizes just how much she misses him. And though it pains her to admit it, it seems like she needs him in her life after all.
...
"Kisumi."
The sound of her voice echoes throughout the gym and he momentarily freezes.
She approaches him cautiously, each step wobbly and unsure, wishing and praying that she had the confidence of the girls who could just casually approach him. Fists clenching on her sides, she steels her resolve and speaks.
"You've been ignoring me."
Her voice was small and timid just like that day when she called out to him, when scalding heat seared through her chest at the sight him and another girl, and how she just wanted to slap her forehead and hide herself in a huge hole because of just absurd she thinks she is being.
Kisumi stops dribbling and she fidgets. He turns to face her and smiles, though she notes that it lacks the usual warmth it had in them.
"Eh… No I'm not. I was just busy…"
"Yeah, busy flirting and playing around with those girls," she murmurs under her breath, cheeks tinged pink as she glares to the side.
Her comment does not go unheard by the male, and he brightens. He casually approaches her, a flirtatious smirk adorning his face.
"Why my dear Gou-chan? You jealous?" he teases her and leans over, cupping her cheek with one big calloused hand.
She blushes into a deeper shade of scarlet and scowls.
"W-What!? No! Of course not! Why should I even be jealous?"
She was surprised when he pulled back his hand and slowly turned his back on her. He was already at the exit of the gym when she finally found her voice.
"Kisumi?"
He pauses before turning back to look at her in a smile that made her heart clench.
"I was just teasing Gou-chan. Well then, I've got to go. See you later…"
As the door of the gym shut close, in a way it felt as though he was closing himself off to her too. Gou bit her lip and closed her eyes. It was raining quite heavily outside but inside the closed gym, she's standing in a downpour.
...
What is happening to us?
Why does it feel like you're leaving too?…
Please…
Don't go.
The door opened and purple eyes widened in surprise as he met with familiar burgundy ones.
"Gou-chan, what are you doing here!?" he exclaims pushing the door open revealing a shivering drenched redhead.
"I got locked out of the house," was her short reply.
He stared at her frowning, eyebrows scrunched together as he frowned at her in disbelief. She sneezes and he realizes that it was in fact raining very hard outside. He gives a huge sigh and rubs the back of his neck, a mannerism Gou notes he does when uncomfortable, and she almost smiles.
"Fine, come in."
And she follows him inside, welcoming the comfortable warmth that thawed the chill on her skin.
...
Gou was thankful that Kisumi did not shut the door to her face. She was half-expecting that he would if their recent interactions were any indication. Instead he treated her with care just like he had used to, as if nothing had happened and for that she was relieved. She had feared that he would continue to ignore her regardless of whether she was drenched or not. She smiles thinking that it was stupid of her to think of him that way. She knew that through and through, Kisumi was a good guy and whether he was indeed ignoring her, she knew that he won't ignore someone in need. He was not heartless after all.
She goes out of the shower humming, her hair wrapped in a towel. As she was about to change, she blushes seeing the change of clothes he provided. Apparently there was no woman in the house which just leaves Kisumi's own oversized T-shirt for her to wear. She pauses, contemplating on whether to wait until her clothes dry off first but then she sneezes again and the idea immediately gets thrown out the window. Hesitantly, she slips it on with little difficulty, then proceeds to look at herself in the mirror.
It wasn't that bad. It went halfway through her thighs—not too short, not too long. It was actually pretty decent as if she was wearing a short little cotton night gown. But it was Kisumi's, and that thought bothered her. If he were her brother's she would have no problems parading the outfit around the house, but it wasn't Rin's. It belonged to a boy who, while she was very close to, had a very infamous reputation with women, and as much as she wanted to trust him, the fact remains that he is a player.
A soft knock interrupts her thoughts as Kisumi tells her that dinner is ready. She answers with a soft "Okay" and heads toward the door of the bathroom. She stands there for several moments, hand hovering over the doorknob before she finally goes out to the living room where Kisumi was setting up the table.
...
"No."
He refused to meet her gaze as he looked to the side. She stands up from her seat and almost slams at the table.
"Why can't I?" she argues. "Please… Just for one night? It's still raining and besides, mom won't be home until tomorrow morning. I promise I'll behave myself…" she looks up to him pleading.
He scratches the back of his neck in annoyance and frowns.
"Look Gou. I only let you in because it was raining very hard outside."
"But-"
"Have you tried Hana-chan's?"
"She's in Tokyo right now visiting her relatives…And-"
"What about Haru' or Makoto's place? It's much nearer than here."
Gou felt her cheeks flush as anger boiled within her.
Why can't he just understand?
"Look, I just wanted to stay with someone I'm comfortable with and someone who I think could be trusted," she muttered grudgingly under her breath, a faint pink dusting her cheeks. "If you don't want me staying here in the first place, you shouldn't have let me in."
She probably struck a nerve because she was surprised when he raises his voice at her.
"It's not that I didn't want to let you in Gou! It's just not appropriate. This is not appropriate. We're no longer kids! You're in your last year in high school and I'm in college. And you do know my reputation… This is…"
"Liar." She snaps at him, unable to hide the hurt in her voice anymore. "It's not like you've cared before when we were still both in high school."
"Just admit it! You don't want to have anything to do with me anymore."
He groans out loud, clearly exhausted as he turns around and ruffles his hair messy with both hands.
"Argh! Gou… Please don't make this hard for me than it already is…"
She bites her lip and refuses to close her eyes, knowing full well that the dam in her eyes would overflow at any moment.
"Then why? Why are you doing this Kisumi? You did nothing but ignore and avoid me these past few months and don't you dare deny that you weren't because we both know you were!"
"Gou…"
"Why Kisumi? Did I do something wrong? Tell me…" she approaches him no longer able to hold back her tears, and she feels them burn a trail on her cheeks.
"Tell me... If you hate me, tell me what I did wrong… If there is anything I can do to make it right… Just please…"
They were less than a foot away when she tugs the hem of his shirt. She closes the gap between the two of them and she rests her head on his back, letting her tears fall on his shirt.
"Please don't leave me Kisumi…"
A/N: Republished (and edited) from my tumblr acct yukixhif . tumblr . c o m ... Already writing part two, but due to my tendencies to get side-tracked and procrastinate (I only have 1 day to rest, dammit!), part two will be published indefinitely... So, like it/ hate it? :/