Author's Note: Firstly, I need to thank you for reading this story and continue to read Chapter 2 XD
Also thank you so much for the reviews, I was surprised of how quick I could finish this chapter. Lols. All thanks to you guys and reviews ^^
I have to say, this chapter kind of devoted to Shinjiro, Lols. I'm sure all you Shinjiro fans would be pleased. But don't be jealous Akihiko fans! 'Cus next chapter would be Akihiko's! (I'm trying to balance it out XD)
So yeah, as I said in previous chapter, I'm still deciding whether it should be Hikaru/Akihiko or Hikaru/Shinjiro. I'll try to keep it balance for now.
For Shinjiro fans, I'd say I hope you enjoy this chapter :3
For Akihiko fans, please bear with me and wait until next chapter! I promise Akihiko would have more actions! X3
As always, thank you for reading. I hope you all enjoy the story and please review so I could improve! ^^
P.S. Pardon me if my grammar and spellings are not good. English is not my native language. I'm still learning! ^^
Disclaimer: I do not own Persona
Chapter 2 Kindness
1F Dorm Lounge – Daytime
Hikaru woke up quite early to finish her homework. When she walked downstairs, there were only few people in the lounge, including Akihiko, who turned around at the sound of her footsteps.
"Good morning, Akane. Going out today?" He asked in a stern voice.
"Yes. Just stuff I need to take care of. What about you, senpai?" She said, gathering something in the kitchen.
"I think I'll stay in today. I still need to catch up on my studies and continue with my training in the afternoon." Akihiko replied, referring to the pile of books and his boxing gloves on the dining table.
"Okay." She smiled back, opening the front door. "I'm off!"
Iwatodai Station Outskirts
Hikaru walked from the dorm to Iwatodai Station in less than fifteen minutes. She took a sharp left turn into the station outskirts. It was quiet, as usual. Her ruby eyes took a quick glance around the area, a gentle smile then stretched across her face when she saw a cat walking up to her.
"Hey.." She greeted softly, scratching the back of its ear. The cat purred in satisfaction, facing upward, eyes closed. "I brought you something today too. Here." She said while going through her bag, finally pulled out a colorful package labeled 'Super Cat food'.
The cat made a meowing sound, big round eyes staring at her. Hikaru gave a warm smile, tearing the package and put it down. She slowly rose up to her feet, eyes watching the cat devouring the food happily.
Her eyes then catch a sight of a tall, familiar figure standing in the corner not far from her, looking so deep in thoughts that he didn't notice her presence at all.
"Aragaki-senpai?" The voice caused the owner of the name to lift his head up, puzzled at the sight.
"What the hell are you doing here?" That was the first thing Shinjiro could come up with at this point. His brown eyes were staring at Hikaru intently.
"I should be the one saying that, senpai." Hikaru looked as surprised as he was. "And there I was wondering where you are all morning and afternoon, now I know you're hanging around here." She teased, knowing that it would irritate Shinjiro at a certain degree.
As she thought, no respond from Shinjiro, only an intense stare, as if he was trying to get her to answer his question.
"This isn't a place for someone like you to be around." Shinjiro finally spoke, still not taking his eyes off her.
"Right back at you on that one." She replied quickly, eyes studying his face.
"Hmph, you surely know nothing about me." He answered bluntly; the expression on his face was unreadable.
"How can I know anything about you when you keep everything to yourself?" She countered, had no intention of backing down in this situation. "Oh, and to answer your earlier question, I came here to feed the cat."
Her words caused Shinjiro to look at the cat, which was now full and rolling on the ground, making happy sounds.
"Kind.. It's just your nature, isn't it.." Shinjiro murmured under his breath, making it almost inaudible.
"Did you say something?" Hikaru curiously asked.
"Nothing." He replied abruptly, his eyes gazed up to meet hers. "You should go back. It's not safe here."
"So why are you hanging around here then?" She replied back, looking curious as usual.
"Why are you so interested in me? You should have more important stuff to focus on." Shinjiro avoided the question, throwing one back at her instead. Hikaru made a face.
"Why, you ask? You're a member of SEES. I'm a leader. Isn't it my duty to make sure every member of the team is safe and sound? And I mean every member." She stressed on the word 'every' on purpose, her red eyes staring at him, showing that she's serious.
"Tch. Fine. What do you want?" He sighed in defeat, looking annoyed while Hikaru flashed a smirk, only for a moment.
"Lunch?"
Iwatodai Strip Mall 'Wakatsu' Restaurant
"How come I have to have lunch with you?" Shinjiro muttered, looking slightly annoyed.
"I already gave you the reason, so I won't repeat it." Hikaru answered, sitting down at a table, causing Shinjiro to sigh in defeat, sitting down as well.
"You eat here often?" He asked, trying to change the subject while looking around as if observing the surroundings.
"From time to time." Hikaru replied, still focused on the menu, not meeting his gaze. She ordered a lunch set, passing the menu back to the waitress, only to see that Shinjiro already finish ordering and sat there silently, making an 'I wish I'm dead' face. "Come on now, senpai. Having lunch with me won't kill you. Just one day off your regular routine."
"That's none of my concern." He said in his usual tone, blunt, straightforward.
"What's with that attitude then? Hanging out with teammates is good. Or a leader, in your case." She teased.
"Heh." Shinjiro chuckled softly, eyes studying Hikaru's face. "Fortunately you're a reliable leader, so I won't argue with you on that one." A smile crept up his face. "Aki and Kirijo seem to be fighting better than what I last seen them too. Your power helps them adapt to your fighting style and command." He paused. "Your power is great."
"I hope so.." She pondered, causing Shinjiro to smile slightly.
"Have some confidence, you're doing well." He said with a gentle smile. Hikaru then felt her face heating up for some reason, her red eyes avoiding his gaze.
"Thank you, senpai." She said softly, still not looking up.
"Oh, and another thing." He paused, waited until she looked up at him. "Drop that senpai bullshit. Better yet, the formality too."
"Huh?" Hikaru arched up an eyebrow, surprise painted across her face.
"I haven't been at school for too long that I lost count. It's annoying to hear people calling me 'senpai' all the time. It's bad enough to hear it from Yamagishi, Takeba and Iori. I don't need to hear it from you too." He said in a deep, kind of irritated voice.
"Then what should I call you?" She asked out of curiosity.
"Shinjiro" He replied immediately.
"No way!" She blurted out, and then realized the volume of her own voice. "It's too weird.. Calling you by your first name.." She trailed off, thinking about how close people should get before using the first name basis, and snapped back to reality when her eyes accidently met his.
"Like I care. I'm not going to school, so I'm not your senpai." He argued, it's his turn not to back down in this situation.
"You're still older than me and you're friend with Sanada-senpai. Which make you my senpai either way." She countered, not that she would hate to call his name, it's just weird.
"You're one stubborn brat." Shinjiro let out a low sigh, but he was smirking for some reason. "Fine fine. Do what you want. You're the leader."
"Don't tease me!" Hikaru pouted, sticking her tongue out at him. Shinjiro only looked away, acting as if he was ignoring her, but wearing a faint smile on his lips.
Iwatodai Dorm – Evening
"I'm back." The familiar voice caused Akihiko turned his head toward the door, a smile stretched across his face at the sound of her voice.
"Welcome back. Where—" Akihiko suddenly stopped when he caught a sight of two figures entering the door at the same time. One of his eyebrows rose up. "Shinji?"
"Good evening, Sanada-senpai." Hikaru greeted happily while taking off her shoes. Shinjiro made no respond. "Where's everyone?" She gazed around the lounge, surprised to see only Akihiko and Koromaru presented.
"Yamagishi and Takeba are upstairs, doing their homework. Mitsuru said she's going to be late tonight. And I believe Iori is helping Amada with his research." Akihiko answered, though his eyes not a second off the two of them.
Hikaru nodded in acknowledgement then noticed the curiosity in those grey eyes. She took a quick glance toward Shinjiro.
"Oh.. I ran into Aragaki-senpai earlier, so we had lunch." She said, answering the unspoken question in those eyes.
"More like you dragged me there." Shinjiro corrected, walking pass the hallway to sit on the couch.
"I'm not going to start on that again." Hikaru glared at Shinjiro, who made a chuckle sound in his throat.
"Like hell I ask you to." He countered immediately, ignoring her, only to make Hikaru glowered at him, irritated.
"You're-! Arghh—!" She groaned out of frustration, her eyes glowered as if she was ready to eat him alive at any second, if she could that is. While Shinjiro, who was totally aware of her reaction, pretended to gaze into the distance, amused.
"Sounds like you guys had fun." Akihiko commented, amazed by the atmosphere around the two of them. They seemed close, and that made him feel a little uneasy inside.
Hikaru made a face at Akihiko's words. She looked at Shinjiro from the corner of her eye then stumped her way up the stairs, saying nothing more. While Shinjiro only glanced in silence as she disappeared to the second floor, a smirk painted across his face. He chuckled, muttering softly.
"Brat."
Shinjiro gave a long sigh before turning his head, only to see a pair of eyes looking in his direction. He arched up an eyebrow.
"You look like you have something to say." He stated, meeting his friend's gaze. "What is it, Aki?"
"You two.." Akihiko paused, trying to arrange the words in his head in order not to sound weird, but no luck. "Um.. Nothing. Never mind." He sighed, looking puzzled.
Shinjiro's eyebrows turned into a knot, his brown eyes studying his friend's face.
"If you have something on your mind, just spit it out already." He sounded slightly annoyed, crossing his arm, still staring at Akihiko.
But before Akihiko could respond, Hikaru suddenly made her way down the stairs again, her eyes intently avoiding Shinjiro.
"I'm going to take Koro-chan for a walk." Hikaru stated and as soon as she said 'walk', Koromaru suddenly ran up to her, wagging his tail happily. "Hey, good boy." She greeted him warmly, scratching the back of his ear before walking to the front door.
"Akane." The voice made her froze, looking back with wonder. It was Akihiko. "Would you mind if I come along? I could use some fresh air."
"Sure, Sanada-senpai." She replied with a gentle smile before going out the front door. Akihiko paused for a moment, looking back at Shinjiro.
"I'll get back to you later, Shinji." And that was his last sentence before Akihiko disappeared into the darkness of the street, closing the door behind him. This resulted in Shinjiro sighing deeply, eyebrow scrunched together.
"What's with him..?" Shinjiro muttered to himself, but he couldn't focus on that too long before his mind wandered into another subject. He couldn't help but think back on the irritating reaction from Hikaru, when she made a face at him, as angrily as she might be; it still brought a smile to his face. He leaned back on the couch, wearing a gentle smile.
Naganaki Shrine
Hikaru and Akihiko walked up the stairs into the shrine. The minute they set feet on the shrine area, Koromaru ran off, wriggled his nose and sniffed around the area, leaving the two people alone in silence.
"The weather is so nice." Hikaru started a conversation, closing her eyes while breathing in deep, full of refreshing air.
Akihiko said nothing to that; he just gazed at her peaceful face, feeling quite funny inside with no reason. He thought back to the time when he saw Hikaru entered the dorm with Shinjiro, he felt a sudden pain in his chest. He felt hollowed, like something inside him was missing, it was the weirdest thing. Not once he ever felt this way before, and it was his best friend she was with, not any stranger for that matter. Not to mention the feelings he got when two of them arguing, it wasn't worry, he knew it was nothing serious. Shinjiro was teasing her, but they seem so close, like he couldn't come between them.
"Sanada-senpai, are you alright?" Her voice pulled Akihiko back to reality. He blinked rapidly, trying to get his mind straight.
"Ah, yes. I'm okay." He forced a smile, still not ready to face her yet so he avoided her eyes. Suddenly, an old question popped up in his head, a question he was about to ask Shinjiro if Hikaru didn't come down. He thought over it several times, his eyes then glanced at Hikaru.
The girl caught that sight and smiled warmly at him, causing his heart to skip a beat. Since when her smile had this much effect on him, he wondered.
"You and Shinji.." Akihiko trailed off.
"Hmm? What about me and Aragaki-senpai?" Hikaru asked innocently. While Akihiko, who just realized he said his thought out loud blushed deep red, unable to respond.
"Oh..! U-Um.." He started to panic as Hikaru just stared at him, eyes full of wonder, looking as innocent as a puppy. Great, those eyes just took the words right off my mouth. He thought to himself, still blushing. "I-I was just.. wondering.. W-When did you and Shinji become so…close?" And right after he said it, he just wanted to bit his own tongue for saying something like that.
"Hmm.. It depends on how you define the word 'close'." Hikaru didn't notice any meaning behind the question; instead, she took it so serious and pondered. "It's just… I don't know. From what I see, he always creates some kind of wall."
"A wall?" Akihiko repeated, raising his eyebrows.
"A wall to seals himself within and to blocks other people from getting too close to him." She explained, looking deep in thoughts. "Somehow, I feel an urge to destroy that wall." She giggled then her face was suddenly serious. "He's kind. I know it, and I know I'm right. He can act all cold and heartless, but I know that deep inside, he's a kind person. I don't know the reason, but he seems like he doesn't want to get too close to anyone, even if he wanted to."
Akihiko could only stare at Hikaru, speechless. He knew that Hikaru's ability of reading people is great. She was sharp. However, he didn't expect her to see through Shinjiro in an instant, when he himself still understood very little about his friend.
One side, Akihiko was happy, that someone finally understands Shinjiro, so that someone could help Shinjiro bear his burden, even for a little. But on the other hand, it pained him to see how much Hikaru cared for Shinjiro. He knew it's wrong to think this way, but that's what was on his mind right now. He felt guilty, for even allowed this thought to cross his mind, but he was jealous. He wished it was him, who she cared so deeply, who she could talk about so passionately.
He wished it was him, who Hikaru would think about, all the time.
"Sanada-senpai?" Hikaru said softly, her face full of concern since Akihiko was quiet for a long time. He turned to face her, his grey eyes looked deep into those ruby eyes of her, showing a part of his hidden feelings without a word. He then realized this and looked away.
"*Bark* *Bark*" Before either of them could say anything, Koromaru, who was done playing suddenly ran back to them, still wagging his tail happily.
"Hey boy. So, are you done playing?" Akihiko said to the dog, receiving a nod as an answer, he then turned to Hikaru. "Let's go back to the dorm then, it's getting late."
"Yes!" Hikaru replied cheerfully. She was totally unaware of the atmosphere and the hidden feelings of her teammate. "Come on Koro-chan! Let's race!" She said before running down the stairs, causing Koromaru to follow her quickly. While Akihiko just smile to himself, eyes following the brunette girl.
Hikaru..
