"Of all places, why would you eat at this open-air restaurant?"

"Oh hush, you. I know you like the food."

Ayaka continues on slicing small hunks of her steak as she responds to Chuuya's remarks about the food. The male glares at her momentarily, before stabbing his fork in the sliced meat and raising it to his mouth.

The girl glances at him momentarily, observing quietly as Chuuya chews and swallows the meat. He blinks in surprise.

"It doesn't taste as awful as I thought it would be." He muses, and Ayaka chuckles as his reaction, making the male turn to her with a scowl. "What? Why are you laughing?"

"Nothing~" Ayaka chirps, placing down her knife and fork on the plate as she finishes her meal. Dabbing at the corner of her lip with a table napkin, she directs another grin at his direction. "Don't underestimate my tastes~ I have class too, you know~"

"Huh, yeah right." Chuuya scoffs as he places his utensils on the plate too, reaching out and sipping at his flute of champagne.

"Hey, what's with that?" Ayaka protests and pouts, before leaning against the chair she was sitting on, narrowing her eyes at the male who merely shrugs and refused to comment further.

She sighs, her gaze drifting to the group of jazz musicians onstage. Chuuya follows her gaze. The restaurant was quiet that night, a minimal number of guests present.

"What?" He inquires, and the girl merely smiles before turning her gaze back at him.

"Mhm~ Nothing~" She replies as she takes a sip from her own glass too, enjoying the bubbly liquid on her tongue before she swallows it down her throat. She places it down the table, folding her hands in her lap as she observes her male companion.

"Say, Chuuya, I never got around to asking this earlier…" Ayaka starts, and Chuuya turns to face her. "…did I manage to impress you with my music?"

The question catches the male off-guard and he nearly chokes on his champagne. Ayaka chuckles at his slip-up, ignoring the particularly scathing glare he sent towards her direction after that and instead enjoyed the sight of his reddened cheeks.

"Y-you're not that bad." Chuuya stammers out after that, and he coughs once to clear his throat. "…your skills would've landed you in a scholarship abroad, at least."

Ayaka blinks for a moment at his words before she giggles. That's probably as close as a compliment he could get. "I'll bear that in mind, but for now, I'll content myself with Yokohama."

She could feel Chuuya's questioning gaze upon her, his movements suggesting his desires to inquire something about her, but the band suddenly begins to play before he could open his mouth.

The lyrics were in English, but it sounded like a love song. People slowed down, enjoying the warm mood that the music settled in the room.

The night breeze sweeps in, bringing in the scent of the salty air of the sea. Ayaka breathes in, closing her eyes and smiling wistfully.

The song continues and a few couples had stood up from their tables and heading out on the dance floor, swaying slowly to the beat. The brunette observes them before a bright idea suddenly seizes her mind.

Pushing back her seat, Ayaka bends down to undo the straps on her heels, making Chuuya look questioningly at her.

"What are you doing?" He queries, and the girl responds by undoing the bun on her hair, letting her thick, brown hair fall to her waist in soft waves.

Ayaka looks up, and smiles at his confused expression, tossing her heels on top of her chair before she speaks. "Let's dance."


What is this situation?

The girl was in front of him now, one of her hands resting on his shoulder, the other clasped around his left hand. Her body close against his body, Chuuya could feel the heat wafting of Ayaka's skin, coupled with the alluring, sweet scent of her perfume.

His gaze locks on to her face, observing how her brown locks fell into place, framing her heart-shaped face just right. Her blue eyes, as if sensing his gaze, turns to face him, a small smile curling up in her lips.

"You're good." She refers to his dancing, and he merely scoffs before twirling her around and pulling her close back again.

"Of course." Chuuya remarks, this time smirking at her to which she returned with a sigh. His gaze drifts to her bare feet on the grass-strewn ground. "Why'd you take off your shoes, though?"

"For us to be at least the same height, duh." Ayaka retorts quickly. "It'd be awkward if I'm taller than you if you're leading the dance, right?"

For once, Chuuya didn't refute her claim, opting to grumble instead. The girl chuckles at his reaction, apparently amused. They continued dancing in silence, finding comfort in the silence that they now shared.

The music reaches its zenith and ends, the other couples starting to halt in their swaying. Chuuya stares at the girl in front of him and at the sight of their interlocked hands. He tightens his grip a bit, pulling her closer to his chest, surprising the female in front of him. She looks at him, her blue eyes wide with unspoken surprise.

"Chuuya?" Ayaka whispers, squeezing his hand gently. "What's wrong?"

Chuuya blinks his eyes, suddenly aware of what he was doing. He pulls back harshly, easing his hands away from their grip on hers. "It-It's nothing…"

What the hell is wrong with me tonight, damn it. Chuuya curses in his head, hand reaching up to ruffle his hair in annoyance.

Ayaka tilts her head in confusion, about to comment on his odd actions, but before she could, the tell-tale drops of rain started to fall on their heads.

"Rain…?" Ayaka mutters and reaches out her hand, palm outstretched to catch the falling drops as they hit her skin.

What started as a light shower soon developed into a steady downpour. Diners quickly scrambled to the indoor portion of the restaurant and servers were busy ushering the soaked guests inside. The musicians quickly pack up their equipment, rushing to find cover.

Ayaka and Chuuya were left behind in the dance floor, their bodies thoroughly soaked by the pouring raindrops.

"Shit." The male curses under his breath at the situation and he reaches out for Ayaka's wrist, attempting to pull her to shelter. "Come on, woman, let's go—"

"Nope." Ayaka quickly shuts down his offer, slipping her wrist out of Chuuya's grip.

"Hah?" Chuuya blinks in surprise at her refusal, then suddenly dropped his jaw open as Ayaka runs toward the flower gardens, twirling in her thoroughly soaked dress.

She laughs, the sound reminding Chuuya of tinkling bells, as she spins around in a weird dance.

"What the fuck are you doing, woman?" Chuuya calls out, rushing towards her direction, but Ayaka only pulls him closer by the lapels of his tux, her blue eyes wide with childish glee as she addresses the male. For a moment, the male was mute with surprise at her forward gesture.

"I've never danced in the rain before." She breathes out, a grin on her lips. "I've always wanted to try once."


Idiot, reckless, nutcase, weird, unbelievable.

Those were the words that were running through Chuuya's mind at her statement. Standing in front of him was a woman whose waist-length brown locks were thoroughly doused, whose dress was clinging to her skin like a second skin, and whose feet were barefoot on the ground as she prances around in the pouring rain. Her blue eyes glowed with glee under the night, her full red lips stretching out into a beaming smile, not caring about the looks people sent her way.

Standing in front of him was a girl who could not hold her liquor, who was unbelievably irksome with her off-hand comments on his stature, his fashion sense, his grumpiness, and a girl who captures hearts with her piano-playing. She drew people to her like a storm with her charming personality, her goofy grins and her honest eyes—and Chuuya was caught up in her tempest.

Even though Kurosawa Ayaka was looking very much like a drowned cat with her look at this moment, one word crossed his mind as Chuuya stood in front of her, equally drenched in the rest of his evening attire.

Beautiful.