The morning went perfectly fine for Luka and Hitomi as they met with the others and chatted for a while before they went to their respective classes after Luka received her bento, which she completely forgot to make and bring, earning her a look of reproach from Hitomi.
I am seriously wondering if she is the elder sister figure in the family and not me. Luka thought to herself.
Upon arrival at her classroom, she saw that most of the students (mostly girls) inside were abuzz and seemed to talk about one topic, even when she was walking down the hallways; the chatters were loud with excitement, followed by squeals from some girls with their overly high pitched voice. And the subject of the matter revolves around a student who is returning to school from hospitalization and therapy, namely; Yukimura Seiichi the famed 'Child of god'. Unbeknownst to Luka though, it was the person whom she composed a song to, but she still remained oblivious to that fact and resumed her daily routine without a care in the world.
She then took her seat and prepared the materials needed for the first period subject from her bag. After preparing, she propped an elbow on the table and placed her head on her palm. She then began writing down some lines that popped into her head earlier that morning, for her next novel.
While she was writing, she overheard a group of girls talking about a certain someone, accompanied with a blush on their faces and high pitched squeals. It's not like she wanted to listen to them, rather she doesn't have much of a choice since the group of girls are very close to her table. So whether she likes it or not, she will hear whatever it is they're talking about.
"Is it really true that HE is coming back today?"
"Yes, it's true; almost everyone in school is talking about it"
*Squeals loudly*
"We're so lucky that he is in our class"
"So true, he might just notice me *sighs*"
"In your dreams…I am the one he will notice"
"Duh…girls, have you forgotten about the club's rules?"
"yeah yeah we know… it's just that we can't help but hope that he might notice us and if he does, it's not gonna be our fault…. Besides I made sure to be even prettier than usual"
"Me too… so how do I look?"
"You look prettier; your cheeks are wonderfully done"
"I know right….I can't wait for Yukimura-sama to come here *squeals*"
"YEAH…" the rest of the girls chorused then another set of *squeals*
Hahhhh….. I can't focus in making a progress with this story with them squealing like there's no tomorrow. I should just listen to some music. Luka though and sighed inwardly.
Luka quickly took her headphones and music player out of her bag and listened to some music until their homeroom teacher came with a smile on her face.
Seriously?... even the teacher is smiling and blushing. She looks excited but also nervous… Okay, whatever…..
"Okay class, as you may have heard, a classmate of yours is finally returning from hospitalization… let us welcome him and help him with the classes he missed… so, you may come in now Yukimura-kun" the teacher said with so much enthusiasm
"hai, sensei" said the person outside the door
As Yukimura entered the classroom, the girls tried to look poised and graceful in order to get his attention. However, they failed miserably not only because Yukimura did not take notice of them but also because they looked like rabid dogs waiting for its prey.
"Hello everyone, I have just recently been discharge from the hospital so I may need some assistance with regards to the lessons that have been discussed, so I'll be in your care" Yukimura said with his calm voice followed by a curt bow and a serene smile.
By doing so the girls went crazy and squealed loudly while the boys, including Luka, covered their ears. The teacher, on the other hand, was blushing furiously and tried to compose herself. After a while the commotion had finally stopped and Yukimura was instructed to take his seat beside Luka.
Is it just me or, did he just stare at me earlier…. It's probably just my imagination.
As Yukimura walked towards his seat next to Luka, the girls openly drooled over him with their imaginations running wild. They also felt envious and spite towards Luka, who is seated next to Yukimura thinking how lucky she is. Luka, on the other hand, felt a foreboding feeling as she glanced at Yukimura walking towards his seat. She felt as if something she did not expect, was going to happen and take her by surprise. She did not like the feeling, but she tried her best to keep her expression neutral.
What is this? I feel like something unexpected is going to happen. When I looked into his eyes, it felt as if he can read my very soul and trap me into the very depths of those deep blue orbs. Luka thought.
Yukimura had finally reached his desk and sat down on the chair. Meanwhile Luka tried to keep her eyes on the teacher and focus on the announcements being made. Much to her surprise, when she thought that Yukimura would just ignore her, the guy himself initiated a conversation to her.
"Konnichiwa, I'm Yukimura Seiichi. I'll be your seat mate this year, I look forward to working with you" Yukimura said with an enigmatic smile then extended his hand for a handshake.
Though bewildered, Luka kept her face neutral and managed to smile genuinely at Yukimura while reaching for his hand.
"I am Megami Luka, I look forward in working with you too" Luka said and smiled sincerely to Yukimura.
"I'll be in your care then"
"likewise" Luka said then proceeded to attentively listen to the teacher's words
I have a very bad feeling that some people are glaring at me….
Luka glanced around only to find a few pairs of Female eyes are glaring daggers at her.
I guess I better prepare myself for the wrath of his fans….. what a bother.
Time went by and Luka (tried to) concentrate on the discussion of the teacher, only to be disrupted by Yukimura's sudden questions on the topics he did not understand. At first, Luka thought it was only natural because he missed a lot of classes when he was hospitalized. But he started to initiate conversations with her during breaks, which she found a little the same time, the glares she's receiving from his fans have been getting sharper and sharper every time Yukimura talked to her.
Unbeknownst to Luka, Yukimura's eyes would always soften every time he looked at her. He would have that small gentle smile when he talked to her and Yukimura would always take a glance at her during classes.
*School bell rings*
When he bell rang indicating that it is lunch break, Luka immediately packed her stuff and stood up, when she was about to leave the classroom Yukimura suddenly called out to her. At the same time making the heads of his fangirls turn to her.
"Megami-san, are you going to the canteen to eat lunch?" Yukimura said with hint of hope in his voice which was not noticed by Luka.
"I'm not sure….I was just about to meet my friends outside because we always eat together,but it is still undecided where we would eat" Luka explained while looking straight into Yukimura's eyes.
"Okay…..I see…see you later then" Yukimura said with a bit of unnoticeable disappointment but still smiled at Luka thus causing a few girls to glare at Luka and fawn over Yukimura.
Woah (*she sweatdrops*)… the difference in treatment is so blatantly obvious…hahahahahaah, this is interesting.. might be a good reference material for my stories. Luka thought while keeping her expression neutral.
"Yeah, see you later…." Luka said. This is really getting weird.
After that, Luka proceeded to meeting Hitomi, Kaori, and Kasumi at the music room.
"Yo! Lu-chan you're a little late, did something happen?" Kaori asked with a cheerful expression and a smile
"Oh yeah, it is quite unlike you, even if it was only for a few minutes" Kasumi added with a curios expression.
"Sorry for being a little late, nothing much happened but I will tell you about it later….so.. where are we going to eat our lunch?" Luka said with a small smile
"hmmmm, you right, we should find a place to eat first" Hitomi added
"by now the canteen is already full, so that is not an option" Kasumi stated
"Yeah well, it would be great if we could eat somewhere quiet" Kaori said
"Well then, why don't we eat at the rooftop garden. It's quiet with a pleasant view" Luka suggested
"oh yeah, that's a great idea…..but before we go, can we buy drinks first at the vending machine in the canteen?" Kaori asked cheerfully.
"that's fine by us….. let's go?" Hitomi
The group then proceeded to the canteen and bought the drinks of their choice. After a few moments, when Luka was about to take her drink from the vending machine, loud female shrieks permeated throughout the canteen thus making Luka, Hitomi, Kasumi, and Kaori to wince slightly due to the high piercing voice of the female population inside the canteen. With a sigh Luka bend down to take her drink from the vending machine, when she finally stood straight drink in hand, she was suddenly poked by Hitomi. Luka turned to look at Hitomi with a questioning expression and asked "is something wrong?"
Hitomi did not reply though but pointed behind Luka. Curios, Luka turned around to look at what Hitomi was pointing at only to find out it was Yukimura Seiichi walking towards their general direction with the rest of the regulars behind him. At first she thought that Yukimura would just walk past them, but much to her surprise he DID NOT. He stopped in front of Luka and smiled, which in turn made several girls squeal in delight and most girls glare at her direction.
Great! it feels like my peaceful high school life is now ruined. Those dangerous glares are really sharp. Hahahaha
"Megami–san, what a surprise to see you here, I thought you were going to eat somewhere in school" Yukimura said.
Believe me, no one is more surprised than I am. Why do you keep on approaching and talking to me? Luka thought
"Yukimura-san, what a coincidence to see you here, is there something you need?" Luka replied
"No… not really, but if you don't mind me asking, where are you and your friends eating?" Yukimura said while looking directly into Luka's eyes.
"Oh… we decided to eat at the rooftop garden. We just came here to buy some drinks" Luka said while struggling to keep her eye contact with Yukimura
"Oh.. it's the same for us….. we just bought some food from the canteen and was about to go to the rooftop garden to eat. If you want to….we can just go together" Yukimura said while his smile grew a little wider and his eyes danced with something that Luka couldn't identify.
"Oh no…. We wouldn't want to intrude. We can just go find somewhere else to eat" Luka immediately replied.
"No its fine…. You aren't intruding at all."
"Bu-but….." Luka tried to object and pry her way out of it, but was interrupted by him.
"I insist" said Yukimura while wearing a very persuasive and resolve breaking expression.
"*sigh* okay, if you insist, but I will have to tell this to my friends first" Luka replied in defeat.
She then turned around to face her friends. And as expected they had the same bewildered expressions with a hint of dread on Hitomi's.
"Yukimura-san asked if we could go to the rooftop garden together. If you're not comfortable with the idea then I can just decline his offer. So what do you think? Do you want to go?" Luka asked calmly with a small smile.
The girls (Hitomi, Kasumi and Kaori) took a moment to look at each other, for a silent communication. Then Hitomi answered for them.
"It's fine by us, but we aren't intruding or anything right?" Hitomi asked still a little skeptical
"No, Yukimura-san said that we aren't intruding at all. He actually insisted"
"I see….. then there are no objections on our side"
"okay then, we should be going now"
Luka then faced Yukimura and his group of friends again and told them that her friends had agreed to eat lunch with them on the rooftop garden.
As they were walking towards the rooftop garden, Luka and her friends were receiving deadly glares from envious girls, or should I say fangirls, of the aforementioned tennis regulars. Though they did not mind it that much, it was still an uncomfortable situation. With that in mind they all sighed inwardly and unanimously thought 'why us?'
At the same time the boys were oblivious to the girl's predicament. They continued to talk with the girls while they were walking towards the rooftop garden. Thus making their fangirls even more envious.
When they finally reached the rooftop garden the girls sighed , inwardly, in relief. They then went to their desired places, but all in all, they formed a circle.
[Position in a circular shape: Yukimura, Luka, Kaori, Kasumi, Hitomi, Yanagi, Akaya, Marui, Jackal, Niou, Yagyuu, Sanada, then back to Yukimura.]
They brought out their lunch and started to eat while having small talks. At first the girls felt weirded out and confused, because they never really did expect for something like this to happen. I mean…. How often do you find yourself talking casually to the school's popular group of guys? Not always right? So it would be a natural reaction for them to feel that way.
After a while the girls relaxed a bit. But they were thoroughly surprised to find Luka and Yukimura talking to each other animately. The same goes for the other regulars. Kaori and Kasumi were surprised and amused, while Hitomi felt apprehensive but still maintained a calm demeanor. On the other hand, Yanagi was writing something on his notebook, Sanada kept a stoic face and just ate peacefully, Marui and Jackal had curios expressions and would sometimes take a glance towards Luka and Yukimura … then look at each other as a form of silent questioning. Meanwhile, Yagyuu was astonished, seeing his captain talking to a girl so casually with a smile….. of course he did not show it on his face and just ate because it was ungentlemanly to pry. The same goes for Niou, though, he did not show it on his face and just kept an aloof expression. But Akaya on the other hand was staring so blatantly at the scene before him, which made Luka somewhat uncomfortable, but she did her best not to show it. However, Akaya did not stop there because he suddenly spoke.
"So….Megami-san, what is your relationship with the buchou?" Akaya straightforwardly asked without thinking of the consequences that will befall him.
"Oh… we're just classmates in the same class and sits right next to each other" Luka replied calmly, unaffected by Akaya's misleading question.
"I see….." when Akaya said this his gaze went to his captain….. and then he flinched and froze in fear….. because he saw his captain's menacing sweet smile that truly spells BAD NEWS for him. After that he continued to eat quietly while dreading for the possible punishment his captain may give later in tennis practice.
"So Megami-san, when did you and your friends transfer here?" Yanagi asked
"We transferred at the start of our third year in middle school" Luka answered.
"No wonder you guys don't look familiar" Marui said.
"hmmmm, most of the students here in Rikkai started from first year. So its a rare occasion to have transfer students" Jackal said.
"Really? Why? Isn't it normal to have transfer students?" Kasumi said.
"Yes, it is normal for other schools….. but for Rikkai it isn't, because the transfer exams are quite difficult to pass, not to mention, the standards of Rikkai's education is really high and some of the questions are on high school level. That is why it is rare in Rikkai Dai to have transfer students" Yagyuu explained.
"Wow….. we never knew that. We thought that the exam we took was the normal standard….We never thought that it was already difficult" Kaori said with honesty without a hint of arrogance.
"Well it isn't much of a surprise since the one who tutored us were Luka and Hitomi" Kasumi said.
"Oh yeah…. Now that you mention it" Kaori replied.
"Seriously? You forgot about that?...*sigh* knowing that, it makes me wonder how you passed the exam" Kasumi said while feigning a look of utter surprised which in turn made Kaori pout.
"Excuse me… I'll have you know that I am relatively smart despite my appearance and behavior….. right? Lu-chan " Kaori said while turning her head towards Luka and made a puppy face .
"Hmmmm…." Luka acted as if she's pondering about it.
"Lu-chan~" Kaori said while having anime tears.
"hahahaha, just kidding….. it is true though that Kaori is fairly smart even though you usually find her playing her violin and reading musical scores"said Luka with a hint of mischief in her voice.
"hear that? Ka-chan" Kaori said while having a smug look on her face.
"Yeah yeah, whatever… but the fact doesn't change that you have a rambunctious personality" Kasumi deadpanned
"geez" Kaori said while pouting
"okay, okay… that's enough for the both of you…. Continue eating your lunch or else you won't be able to finish it before the bell rings" Hitomi said calmly while mildly chastising both of them.
The girls immediately stopped their small banter, but without harshly turning their heads away from one another accompanied with a 'hhmmmpp'. They then proceeded to eating their lunch quietly.
Luka laughed softly at her friends' antics. While looking at them interacting with the other regulars she had a gentle smile on her face. After some time, her train of thoughts was disrupted by the man on her right.
"Your friends are quite something huh?" Yukimura said while looking at the scene with a smile on his face as well.
"Yeah…. They've always been like that, ever since we were young"
"I see … they are quite rambunctious aren't they?" Yukimura said which a soft laugh.
"Oh no… this pales in comparison when all of us are gathered" Luka replied then looked at Yukimura in the eye.
"eh?... what do you mean by that Megami-san" Yukimura questioned Luka curiously.
Although Luka and Yukimura's conversation was by no means loud, it isn't hushed up either. The current topic they treaded upon garnered the attention of their friends: the regulars being curios and the girls being reminiscent upon the matter at hand.
"well…. Actually our group is still not complete…the others are still doing something important that's why they aren't currently here." Luka explained.
"Really?!... then how many people are still not here then?" Marui asked.
"Hmmmm…. There are four members of our family that is still absent"
"REALLY?!... that's really surprising… to think that 8 of you actually passed the exam in Rikkai…..where are they anyway?" Jackal said.
"well…. they're taking care of some personal business so… we can't really disclose it to anyone." Hitomi replied.
"I see….. don't worry we understand….. we just got acquainted today anyway.." Yanagi said after he wrote something down to his data book.
"I'm really sorry…" Hitomi said.
"But one thing is for sure though… they will be back by next week at most…." Luka said while smiling.
"Really?!... I can't wait to meet them." Marui said excitedly.
"and I'm pretty sure they will be surprised and pleased as well" Luka added.
"I hope they would bring a lot of souvenirs for us" Kaori said.
"is that all you ever care about? (Kashmir sweatdrops)... even without you asking for it… I'm pretty sure they'd buy you souvenirs" Kasumi deadpanned.
" Geeze ….. can't I at least say something without you interjecting?" Kaori said with a pout.
"Okay…. Okay… you're starting up again so quit it… okay?(insert: dangerously deadly smile)" said Hitomi.
Kaori and Kasumi immediately froze with Hitomi's silent warning. But then they immediately stopped shaking in fear after they heard a soft giggle…. They turned their heads towards Luka who was still giggling. After a while the rest of the girls laughed as well and boys followed suite.
After they stopped laughing, the group continued to eat their lunch in merriment: chatting about various things here and there and then laugh when something funny comes up. It is unmistakable that both parties enjoyed themselves in the others company and wished that it would continue to be so. But soon the school bell rang indicating that lunch break was up. The group immediately gathered their belongings and exited the rooftop garden going to their respective classes.
Yukimura and Luka went back to class together since they are in the same class, obviously. When they arrived at the classroom they proceeded to their seats and sat. Of course, at the same time the girls openly drooled on Yukimura again. But when Yukimura started to talk to Luka, since the teacher is still not there yet, the girls openly glared daggers at her.
"Having lunch together with your friends was quite pleasant, I do hope we could do it again" Yukimura said while turning towards Luka giving her his full attention and at the same time smiling gently at her, which could have melted any girls heart.
Luka was of course, surprised at Yukimura's suggestion, but she didn't show it on her face. Instead, she smiled as gently as Yukimura and said:
"That would be lovely indeed Yukimura-san…. But I have to discuss it with the girls first, so I can't promise anything."
"It's fine…. But please do consider" Yukimura said while making a slightly disappointed face.
"Don't worry, I will" Luka said with a small smile.
Before Yukimura could utter another word…. The door suddenly opened as a teacher came in.
"Okay class….. go back to your seats and sit down so we could start our class"
Yukimura and Luka immediately sat properly facing the teacher. Both of them were attentive in class and would talk during intervals between subjects. Time passed by rather quickly and the afternoon classes ended.
"Well… I have to go do my club activities now so I have to go" Yukimura said while packing his things.
"Yeah…. I have to go home early so…. Goodbye and good luck it has your club activities." Luka replied.
"See you tomorrow then…Megami-san" Yukimura added while turning around to face Luka and give her a very gentle smile.
"hmmnn…. See you tomorrow Yukimura-san" Luka said it with a smile as well.
"ohhhh… and please do address me with a –kun from now on because when you address me with a '-san'…. It feels too formal for me so… can you? But if you feel uncomfortable with it, you may not" Yukimura asked.
"I see….. I understand Yukimura-kun…. Don't worry about it. You may also address me as Megami-chan if you don't mind" Luka said with soft smile gracing her lips.
"Oh…. I don't mind at all….. I was the first one to propose it anyway….. so see you tomorrow Megami-chan" Yukimura said then turned towards the door.
"Yeah…. Sayonara Yukimura-kun"
With that Luka also went out of the classroom and went to the music room on the first floor and met with other girls. After some time the girls walked back home and went on to their daily activities. However before they went to sleep, the girls talked about what had happened today, especially about the certain tennis regulars.
Author's Note:
I AM REALLY REALLY SORRY. I was not able to release the second chapter sooner. I apologize for the slow update, truly.
I got totally busy with school stuffs and extracurricular activities that the progress of the second chapter was really really slow.
I mean….come on….. I was bombarded with a lot of projects each subject And the Exams were also coming up then, the teachers still gave us homeworks and conducted quizzes. It felt like a freaking ETERNITY with all those things that we needed to do with the deadlines nearing. I could not even find some time to relax and my sleep became less and less.(haggard much is my face hahahahhaha)
I swear I just became a living zombie with all the stress piling up and my eyebags becoming darker.
THE STRUGGLE WAS REAL
But nowI can say…. I SURVIVED hahaha
Other than that
Please do look forward for more chapters to come. (I hope)