Chapter 9. Let's talk later

"No way, are you sure you are not Doraemon?" I asked Gakupo watching him take out something again from his backpack as if in reply to my whining about ice cream being all gone and that I was definitely going to be dead soon.

But honestly, first the phone, then he said he did take our swimwear, now again something. Is this ice?

"Yumi gave me this," he thought it was enough, turned towards me and attached that thing to my forehead. Cold waves cooled my overheated body. Cooling plaster - yay! - I thought I was in heaven.

"She suggested I put you in the fridge in emergency and gave me this."

"Ideal woman," I sighed wearily and feeling Gakupo pull one of my hair strands I added, "okay, okay, and you are an ideal man "

I realized if I struggled more I'd definitely pass out and someone would have to carry my body back to hotel. Sad but true, so I managed a few steps towards the nearby bench, even though the sea was already very close. When I finally could lie down I felt much better. Gakupo sat down near me.
It was already night time, and so quiet around that I could hear the sea noise; those annoying street lights were right at my tired eyes; but I did not feel sleepy at all. I only kept wondering if Kamui actually knew how to swim, sure there were no beach rescue at that hour.

Thinking all that, I turned around and he said, "I see your highness is ready to continue our journey," honestly he said exactly that! As if to a child. Actually I am an adult here!
"My highness does not mind staying here a little bit more," I replied in tune, closing my eyes.

Who said I didn't want to go to the beach? It would be stupid not to try; usually sea is so warm at night.

"Dare to offer you my lap as a pillow," Kamui chuckled.

What? I widen my eyes in surprise. I even got up on my elbows and saw him only nod in reply. I was baffled and lost at what to say.
"Sorry, you are not a girl, I bet it won't be comfortable at all," I mumbled, hope he didn't see my troubled face.
"You won't even try?"
Ah, the hell...
"Nope"

He sighed and got up, I stayed listless. He would not go far anyway.
It didn't take him long. He decided he would make me get up and grabbed me under arms.
When I finally could stand, my body of course had to fail and I staggered. If Kamui decided to let me go at that moment, I'd had to hold on to him, not to fall down.
I blinked looking at all those dark spots in my eyes and ignoring his worried sighs; cursing my developers in my mind, I managed to move away from his clingy arms. Then I started walking towards the beach.

Still feeling angry at my developers I noticed that Gakupo walking behind me was too quiet. Well, it was not like I got worried Fine, I was worried.
"I am okay"
I got only 'hmm' in reply, so I thought I'd add something.
"I am not annoyed."
At that he chuckled, a bit sarcastically. I finally managed to relax my stiff shoulders, hope he was smiling, even though I didn't see his face. What else I could say?
"I am sorry"
Now, why this, Kaito?

"Why?"
Those couple of seconds he took to catch up to me, seemed like eternity.
"I don't know," maybe I also felt guilty that I rejected his help just now.
When he stopped and pulled me again in embrace, I thought we would never get to the beach like this.
"So you are worried about me," his voice sounded so satisfied and happy.
"About your feelings, you crazy guy!" I replied trying to sound very serious. "We sing about love all the time, but vocaloids usually don't fall for each other, because we are family. So I have no idea what's going on in your head "
"Something really crazy and desperate I tell you. So you never loved anyone?" he confirmed, "all the better, I am gonna be your first. I'll feel a bit less jealous"

Jealous. Of what on earth? Of my undying feelings to fridge and ice cream? The latter made my mouth water, that cooling plaster barely helped.
I closed my eyes and tried to think that Gakupo who was hugging me too tight now, was some kind of ice statue. It didn't work of course. Okinawa is this kind of place; here even court samurais get overheated. And I felt really nervous that it became normal to hug like this all the time.
"I feel hot..."
I didn't see his face, and could not say what he was thinking, but it took him some time to let me go.

Looking for a place to change became some kind of adventure. At first Kamui looked around, said that the beach was empty and started taking off his shirt. I had to pull it back and hiss like what the hell he was doing. His puzzled face clearly showed the Eggplant didn't even think what was wrong in changing outside where anyone who loved night walks just like us, could see something they were not supposed to.

Somehow I managed to reason that we better look for a changing stall or something. We had no luck at first. And he kept trying to undress me on our way; it also didn't help at all. Finally I spotted some bright yellow looking hut a bit far away. So I ran there forgetting that my swim shorts were still in Gakupo's backpack. I didn't run fast anyway, my slippers, which I forgot to take off, kept getting stuck in the sand. I even lost my balance couple of times but cool breeze from the sea helped a bit.
"What, you've bumped into this thing?" Gakupo asked in surprise, grabbing my shoulders and pulling me away from the cool yellow wall of the changing stalls (I thought it was not a bad idea to stay like this a bit, my forehead against the cold iron wall). It did look weird I believe, but felt good.

By the way, where the plaster disappeared? It was nowhere around, so maybe it got lost while I was running.
Gakupo tried to get into the changing stall with me, but failed, of course, and I could calmly put on my swim shorts.
Then it was his turn and I waited outside drumming some rhythm on the wall with my fingers.
"What are we going to do with this?" He was already out and I watched him while he looked blankly at his backpack. Oh, did I start lagging or what...

"Leave it there somewhere," I waved my hand to the beach.
"What if it gets stolen?"
His concern was understandable.

"Once I saw with my own eyes two ladies pick a 500 yen coin and take it to police, so that they look for the owner." I told him, but realized it was not good enough story for him and I added a bit annoyed, "What's in there so important?"
"Well, if I forget about our clothes, money and my phone, there is " he stopped at that, and in the feeble light from the foreshore above I noticed he was rubbing his neck self-consciously. I lost all desire to know about that precious thing.
Then it started - most difficult thing for me. I couldn't come up with anything to avoid getting into the water. So biting my lips I had to follow Gakupo, who was talking about something excitedly. I could actually get in but that was all, going deeper felt impossible. I wish there were some waves at least, it would be easier.
While I was suffering like that, trying to make my stupid body walk a bit more, Kamui was already far. Why he wouldn't walk further without turning around, at least until I manage to plunge into the water somehow. No way! He probably could not hear splashes behind, so he did turn around and walked back to me, asking me loud what happened. Man, it is your first time on the beach; forget about me at least now!
"Water " I started and right then stopped, thinking what to say next. I could say 'it's cold' but I could also lie and say 'hot'
"What's with that?"
I barely kept from hugging myself. There would be left only chaste eyes to the side and red ears - Blushing bride on her wedding night, what a picture, damn. What the hell was I thinking about?
"Cold!" I managed tensed reply.
"What, can you say louder?"
Okay, let's say he was still a bit far from me and didn't hear it well. But I hate to repeat myself. I gathered all my love for the cold and with an all-out effort walked that distance between us, shivering I hold on to his shoulder making him bend down a bit. Then I gasped right in his ear,

"Water. It's cold."

Gakupo would not be Gakupo if he stayed baffled for too long. But his words 'your error does suck' made me even more enraged. I know, right! His own error is no better!
Not wasting any more time he grabbed my hand and pulled further saying that we were going to splash a bit. So I followed like a dumb idiot.
Reaching some place where water was about his waist high, Gakupo nodded happily and said that this was good enough. When I finally realized what he was going to do now, I hurried to pull my hand from his and tried to run away in panic from this 'good enough place'. Well I could not escape though, because right then he caught me. After some struggle I ended up underwater, cursing him in my mind. Well at least I closed my eyes and mouth and did not get to swallow sea water.
He kept me underwater for about half a minute, then finally pulled me up back to the surface and let me rub my eyes. Sure, my angry face and shivering body must have impressed him, because he gulped nervously.

"Hold on, you brat!" I hissed warning him, still remembering about my manners. The next half an hour we played the game of fierce water wars. Well I admit it's not possible to play like this with our delicate girls. Even it is so funny to see their gorgeous hair become all messy underwater. They cannot handle even my slightest attempts to drown them a bit and of course none ever tried to win against me, even Len. But Kamui kept pulling me back like a go-go. So bit by bit, the ice cold water started feeling warmer.

All of a sudden I realized I was out of breath and energy. It was when I tried to escape again from Gakupo's arms and kept hitting his chest with my hand but my hands felt weak.
So, I just gave up and fell down in shallow water where we were playing before and I stayed listless. Gakupo joined me and for a few minutes we were trying to recover breath looking blankly at the rising sun. In Japan it always dawns early, but still it seemed way too fast.

And way too fast I remembered that the sun rising meant heat rising again. Gakupo understood why I jumped nervously and sighed a bit sadly. So I felt like an ultimate evil ruining his holiday like this.
Still when again he tried to get into the changing stall with me, I didn't hesitate to kick him out, though it was getting really hard to avoid his eyes.

"So we did go out overnight," Gakupo said softly and putting one arm around my shoulders he rumpled my hair. Closing my eyes I thought that my hair fetish was more than satisfied. I always try to ruin everybody's hair, but no one ever does it to me.
Feeling thrilled at his touches, only a few seconds later I realized that he actually pinned me to the nearest wall and kept looking at me from his height, his hands blocking mine.
"What?" I blinked and said that, not knowing anything smarter to ask.
"I thought you like it "
"When you pin me to walls?" I uttered trying to turn it again to a joke.
"When I touch your hair like that," he corrected me softly.
I just couldn't help it and averted my eyes, feeling somewhat annoyed with myself.
"Well Umm Let's say, I do a little bit," I admitted reluctantly.
Chuckle. I just felt like killing him then.
"You are so cute " I wished he stopped looking at me like that, "I love you."

"Everybody loves me," it was of course, controversial and far far from truth, but I had to invent this fast, trying not show how my heart thumped at his words. It was so sudden. "because of my nice voice."
"Everybody, you mean people or vocaloids?" Gakupo got curious.
"Both," was my evasive reply but he didn't even dodge. Most probably, he was just enjoying the situation.
"I heard once," he started, not paying attention to my raised eyebrows. Vocaloids rarely share rumors. "that you failed initial sales."

"Well, it's not a lie. Anything else?"

That issue used to be quite sensitive to me, but not anymore. When I remember about it I feel even less nervous than now, when I get to hear him confess.
No sense even asking him where he got this from, actually the infamous and a bit shortened story has been out since forever in the Internet.

"You won't tell me?" so odd, his voice faltered.

"You won that time. You can order me. And before I used to "

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to," Gakupo interrupted me hastily, and added, "You can do whatever you want."

"Yeah, I do. I'll tell you everything you will be willing to hear. Later. Tomorrow actually already today."
"Why not now?" pouting, like a kid.
"Because I am tired." I noticed that he wanted to start arguing again, so I raised my voice, "I'm older than you! Actually, 2 years older, but it doesn't matter."
"You remember about your age only when it suits you," he muttered disappointedly, then moved away from me and walked ahead, "Old jeezer"
"Little one"
"I am taller!"
"It doesn't matter," I flinched; I still don't understand why they made him so tall. "Your brain is that of a kid."
"Fine, you've got anything else nice about me?"

"If you get CPR you'll think it was a kiss,"
"I could go get drown a bit " I didn't like his thoughtful voice at all, but luckily he changed the topic, "you didn't forget that I am against bunk beds?"

Who could forget with a guy like him?

"When we are back at the hotel, you can ask that girl at the counter"
"Can't you do that?"
"But I'm so tired, sweetie," my voice sounded wearily but I probably managed to make most touching face in my life.

Unlike me, Gakupo gives up right away to something like that.

"It's just she kept looking at me in a weird way,"

"Same. Usually fans stare like that before they tell me that I look like Kaito."

"I want a big bed," Gakupo repeated sadly, "I want to squeeze Kaito in my arms so tight "

Why he started talking about me as if I was not there?

"Bad idea, I cannot regenerate during sleep. Are you actually shy around girls?"

"You don't feel jealous?" Again he sounded a bit disappointed.

"You won't cheat on me,"

Good that I couldn't see into the nearest (about half a year) future.

Meanwhile there was not a single taxi around. It looked like we'd have to walk back to the hotel using his map.

"Where's that plaster you have?"

tbc.