"Cerise, just call him Sasuke and Sasuke, just call her Cerise, okay?" Naruto said.
"Nice to meet you, Sasuke." She said in accented japanese as she offered her hand for me to shake. She was definitely raised with western customs.
"You too." I said as I awkwardly shook her hand.
"So Cerise, why did you transfer school during senior year?" Naruto asked.
"My family moved to Japan from France last year because of my dad's work. I had a private tutor to catch up so I could join school this year." Cerise answered.
I was wondering what the pink streaks in her hair was for.
"Why do you have pink streaks in your hair?" Naruto asked, as if reading my thoughts.
"Actually, I'm more of a redhead with some blonde mixed in that my hair would look pink when left in the sun for long. But since transferring here, I was worried my hair would stick out so I colored it black but then I got into cosplays that one of my new friends introduced me to last summer and I realized weird hair was in so I thought why not?" She said and absently fingered her hair.
"It looks good on you." Naruto praised.
She did look good, different but good. I was silent all this time observing her, letting her and Naruto carry the conversation.
Just then the bell rang, and we went to the assembly.
It was just our luck that we found out that all of us were classmates. I was seated on Naruto's right and Cerise was seated in front of Naruto, diagonal to me.
The classes went on as usual, until it was lunchtime, and we all headed to the cafeteria. Cerise followed Naruto and me.
I hung back a little watching Naruto and Cerise talk, wondering whether we'd exist as a trio starting today. It bothers me and is made even more bothersome that other boys were eyeing Cerise and that the girls who follow Naruto and I were also eyeing her.
Cerise went ahead and saved our usual table for us. Naruto and I went in line to get our food.
"Oh! I forgot to ask you. What were you supposed to tell me last night?" He asked.
"Oh that. Nothing much, I was just going to ask how your summer went. I was just excited that you're back." I said.
"Whatever bastard, I missed you too, especially when we were in the hospital. I was bored out of my mind." Naruto said.
"Like I'll believe you, loser. You were probably scared out of your wits." I mocked him.
"But I'm okay with things now." He said seriously. "Although far-fetched, I was sort of hoping you'd tell me you met a girl last summer."
"Well I did." I said unsure whether to continue.
"Really? Has the ice prince found his princess?" He teased.
"Typical Naruto to think like that." I thought.
"Maybe you could double date with me and Cerise" He said.
"Oh? Have you asked her?" I asked doubtfully.
"Not yet, but soon. I think this is it Sasuke. She's the one I've been waiting for." Naruto said, sounding sure of himself.
"Good for you then." I said, unsure. Naruto must really be into her to say that.
"So what does your princess look like?" He asked.
"Pink." I said, thinking of her.
"Pink? Pink what? Like her dress? Nail polish? Lipgloss? Hair? How'd you meet her then?" He asked, when I refused to answer.
"The first day of summer, on the train." I said, recalling the memory.
"So what's her name?" He persisted asking.
"Sakura." I replied evasively.
"So you met a pink girl named Sakura last summer? Are you making this up?" Naruto asked amused.
"Have I ever lied to you? Just leave it alone." I said, as we approached Cerise.
Naruto sat across from her while I was forced to sit beside her when Naruto spilled his drink on the seat beside him as he sat down. He handed out our drinks and the sandwiches.
"Too bad, no ramen and I just spilled my soda." Naruto complained, which made us all laugh.
Cerise was kind enough to give him her drink saying she doesn't drink soda anyway and preferred water or juice.
As we were eating, I noticed Naruto would steal glances at Cerise and smile while they talked about what to expect senior year.
Out of the blue, Cerise's hand reached out and held mine under the table. I was surprised with what she did but I tried to keep it low. I did not want Naruto to know. I tried to free my hand but she only held on so I squeezed her hand hard to let her drop mine. She did not even flinch, instead she smiled at me.
I was eating my sandwich one-handed and so was she. Naruto did not seem to notice.
The bell rang signalling lunch was over and I quickly let go of her hand. We headed back to class, and on went the lectures.
I was looking at Naruto who was busy looking at Cerise while Cerise was focused on the lesson.
I was wondering where all of this is heading. The school year has just started but I was already missing summer.