Evening all! I'm happy to report i've got the next two chapters written :)
If people are interested you can follow me on twitter at Oraeliaa, where I do post updates (such as me losing the chapter where Gai and Hayami finally kiss and having to rewrite it) and you can ask me anything or submit suggestions ect (such as wanting to see a date), i'm always happy to hear from people :D
Thank you to all our new followers, to Mikomi121 and our guest for the review, and to Yurei Hanatsuki for the private message!
The sun blared through the window as Hayami Ake tried to be significantly less awake than she currently was. Last night had been the best evening she'd had in a long time; but their beer had turned into beers, which had become beers and sake; which had then turned into three or four whiskeys before they left and she had vague memories of them carrying each other home as Gai insisted he would protect her from wrongdoers with his drunken fist.
Oh god sitting up was a bad idea. She lay back down and scrambled on the side table for what she knew drunken Hayami will have left her- some cold peppermint tea and pain killers. She wondered if Gai would be the same next door but imagined he probably jumped from bed shouting about youth and setting about to do some pullups to get the blood pumping.
Well her blood could stay right where it was thank you very much.
She had at least 2 stupid romance books and her favourite pajamas- she'd be fine having a day off training.
Speaking of the devil, she wondered if he could hear her...she grabbed the book from the bedside shelf and threw it at the connecting wall.
"Gai!"
No answer
"GAI"
A second book joined it's comrade, sacrificed to the overwhelming might of the wall.
A muffled reply, surprisingly groggy "...yami?"
"Not coming to training!" she shouted through the wall,
A noise of questioning responded. Followed by a muffled thump. Followed by a weird dragging noise? She lay back, pulling the spare pillow over her head, hating herself not only for the state she was in but also how pathetic it was, though she consoled herself with the fact it had been months since she'd last really gone drinking.
Was that? She frowned under the pillow, it sounded like her window opening...that explained the dragging noise-must have been his own window on the opposite site. Yep there were definitely footsteps in her bedroom. She wanted to say surely he wouldn't have essentially broken into her bedroom like a green clad pervert, but knew better than to think he'd recognise the boundaries he was currently crossing. He was so adorably oblivious.
"If you're here to kill me do out swiftly, put me out of my misery, have mercy" she whimpered in pathetic jest.
A laugh, and the steps stopped at the foot of her bed
"I'm not getting up" she groaned into the pillow, replacing it and patting the bed, not caring enough to be shy or embarrassed. It sank under his weight as he violently landed face first beside her.
"We can't cancel training because the teachers had too much beer" he groaned into the pillow.
She paused, brain beginning to grind into power as she considered her answer. "it'd be the most youthful thing you've done in years?"
He groaned in increasing volume for a few seconds in response to her statement and finally leapt up, her protective pillow in hand. He turned slightly green before posing valiantly; making her laugh. "I am going to go to work, and give a fine example of perseverance to our team!"
Dragging herself up, she couldn't help but smile widely back to him, mirroring with a more feeble thumbs up of her own. "You're own your own Gai, I only have a date with a cold shower and my books" she said, gesturing to the shower and the books, discarded against the wall.
"Should I wait in case you need rescuing?" he teased
She only threw the other pillow at him in response.
She'd always been amazed by the confident ease of romantic books; and this was no exception. In her books there were no awkward moments. The women were never sweaty, they glistened. If the weather was bad it only created tighter moments taking shelter from storms huddled in each other's arms. They were often damsels in distress, finding themselves in ridiculous situations needing to be swept up into safety by the muscled arms of their saviors. The irony of it all wasn't lost on her by a long shot; but she was not the effortlessly beautiful and unkempt heroine; and Gai certainly wasn't the dashing, debonair pirate captain confidently wooing her with reckless abandon.
She marked the page and slipped backwards in the book to the previous chapter, finding the meticulously highlighted passage describing the valiant and dangerous pirate captain, instantly noticeable with it's bright orange overlay.
She imagined Gai as the pirate captain as described in the passage- shirtless, scarred chest spattered with salt water, loose pants tucked into boots as he swung from the rigging, slightly longer hair flowing behind him in the sea air, and couldn't help a small squeal, rolling on her back and dropping the book to one side. She imagined herself in the role of heroine, all luscious curves and soft spoken pleasantries, chest heaving in a soaked dress as her hair blew wild, but somehow also perfect. A seductress, rather than the awkward introvert she knew she was.
Maybe that's why he just wasn't interested.
She knew the sight of her nude had distracted him back when it first happened, but honestly he hadn't even tried to hold her hand last night! There had been nothing but amazing, fantastic friendship. She wasn't going to kid herself by saying she'd give up; knowing that she still hoped constantly that there was something there, but their friendship was increasingly becoming something she cherished...it wasn't worth ruining that by confessing whilst he seemed content to just be her friend.
She rolled back to her front on the thick blanket, and went back to the book; excited to see what the author had planned for Isabelle now she was trapped within the pirate ships gallows.
She'd always been able to lose herself and her worries in a book, and today would be no exception.
By the afternoon she knew she had to try and eat and so put her book down, enjoying the warmth of the midday sun on her face. She was glad that she'd dragged herself from her house to her favourite spot next to the river hours before, the fresh air always made her feel better.
She'd decided on a relaxed yellow sundress, one of her lesser worn favourites, which was currently doing a great job of keeping her cool. She could hear the distant noises of various teams training around her, and regretted skipping out on the team and leaving Gai to handle it alone. She'd always been strong and determined when injured, persevering through- but throw a sniffle or a hangover or a sickness bug at her and she knew fully well that she turned into a groaning toddler.
She nodded, stashed the book in her beaded fabric bag and setting off to collect her team for sustenance. It had been so long since she'd had a day off. Before she had to pay rent and bills and such the team worked regularly but also ensured they were regularly having down time-something Inoki had insisted upon growing up. She'd always loved water, and the team would often swim and fish, using their days off to enjoy freshly grilled fish and foraged fruits and vegetables whilst playing in nearby lakes and rivers. Looking back some of their most simple relaxed days were the best memories she had.
The memory warmed her as she moved forwards, away from the dumpling van she was originally planning on pardoning and towards the forest- determined to enjoy the beautiful day with the people rapidly joining the close circle she considered "family"
It was Gai that spotted her first as she entered the clearing and her heart leapt into her throat at the sight of him. He was warm, that much was obvious as a slight sweat collected on his brow and his lips held slightly parted from exercise. He'd scraped his hair back from his face with one hand, highlighting his chiselled cheekbones and soft brown eyes. His cheeks were flushed, likely also from the heat, she suspected, and she waved gently, calling out her hellos.
"Hayami-sensei you look lovely today, Gai said you weren't well but you, well, you look like a radiant daffodil!" Lee enthused, running over. She must have been practically burgundy with the intensity of her blush and thanked him quietly, hoping that Gai possibly felt the same and worrying that she looked ridiculous…
"you look lovely, but think I preferred the patterned pyjamas from this morning, what were they, frogs?" he teased, causing her blush to deepen. "I'm surprised to see you up" he laughed.
"Gai sensei what were you doing in Hayami's bedroom?" Tenten asked, a smirk adorning her pretty features.
Hayami spluttered in shock, realising how it must have sounded. "nono, it's not like that! Gai climbed into my bedroom this morning not out of it!"
Three shocked looks met her as the three students tried to make sense of what was being said.
"Oh god no I mean, I didn't feel well so got his attention through the wall but he wanted to check on me so somehow got in through my bedroom window"
Tenten looked at the Gai, horrified. "Sensei did you force entry into a woman's bedroom?!"
Neji, who had been a silent observer, stoic as always, just shook his head and laughed softly. "you should work on being a more responsible adult"
"Stop! Gai did nothing wrong, he can come into my bedroom whenever he wants!" Hayami interrupted, not able to stand them thinking he was doing anything wrong. Then she realised what she said as even the oblivious man himself looked taken aback.
Silence.
Then raucous laughter.
When it settled, she lifted her burning face from her hands and pointed back the way she came. "I didn't just come to embarrass myself… would you like to take the afternoon to play in the sun?"
Their faces lit up like gleeful children, and they turned to their sensei, who nodded. "training isn't just for our bodies, it's important to train our hearts as well! Let's make youthful memories that burn into our hearts forevermore!"