Fight for Love!
29th Fight: Round Two - Busted
We waited.
It had already been half an hour since Nobara and Kitsuneme had left the udon shop. Koko and I had finished our meals and we just sat there doing nothing but staring at our dear pals' udons turning cold. Even Koko had taken the last tempura which I had wanted him to reserve for his friend or maybe Nobara if she wanted. Trying to ward off the awkwardness, I reached out to the empty plate and Koko's bowl, and then stacked them on top of my plate.
"Thank you," Koko muttered softly as he glanced away from me and leaned back. "Why are they taking so long?"
I gulped. "Probably they're still talking."
No, Nobara was still seducing Kitsuneme.
"They can't be talking for so long, right?" Koko grumbled. "Oh yes, Mi-chan. I suddenly remembered what I wanted to say to you."
"What is it?" I asked with a smile.
"Why the hell did you keep adding that girly suffix after my name?"
I frowned. "Why not? You're the one who keeps calling me 'Mi-chan'!"
"That's because you keep calling me that!"
"That's because you keep calling me 'Mi-chan'!" I argued, feeling slightly annoyed yet so amused by his response.
I did not know why but I was beginning to enjoy seeing him getting all worked up over the suffix. I knew it was bad but I did believe in the idiom 'an eye for an eye'. Koko glared at me, not speaking anymore. He raised up his hand and the waitress came rushing to him.
"You can clear these plates." He pointed at the two empty plates and his bowl. "But you can leave the other two here first. My friends may be back anytime soon."
The waitress nodded and cleared the empty plates and the bowl from the table. After she left us alone again, silence took its place around us once more. I could not believe it. While Nobara was working hard, I was here playing with my fingers awkwardly in front of my target. I had promised Nobara that I would leave Koko with his spilled beans in my palms. But apparently, there was no progress in my seduction mission ever since I had failed.
Where had I gone wrong?
Did I really look like a freak staring seductively at Koko?
I bit my lips and stared anxiously at him. Maybe I should go for Round 2 as quickly as possible. I stood up and dusted my skirt, staring intently at him. Koko was staring back at me, curious at my sudden behaviour. Seeing him crook an eyebrow, he probably thought that I was going to do some freaky moves again or he was expecting something amusing from me.
You can do it, Mikan! Win his heart and obtain that stupid information!
I walked over with feign confidence and plopped down next to him. He was taken aback this time as he wore an uncomfortable look and shifted towards his right side, away from me. The side of my mouth twitched slightly. As if he was going to escape from me that easily!
"Koko-chan," I tried to purr but I didn't know if it sounded seductive just like how I wanted it to be. "Are you still hungry?"
"What the hell...?" Koko said in a harsh tone as he moved even further from me. "I know you're trying to make me pay for the bills!"
"Koko-chan," I whispered his name softly, giving a 'you-are-mistaken' look. "Would you like..."
Koko blushed and snapped, "No."
"I haven't say anything yet! Listen to me." I placed my palm on his thigh and tilted my head with a pout. "Alright?"
He gulped, staring at my hand on his thigh with wide eyes. It was no doubt that I was blushing too. It was my first time touching a boy like that! I felt his muscles tensing beneath my palm and that made me stun and blush even more.
He gulped again. "No..."
"Koko-chan..."
"No, stop it."
"Koko!"
He stiffened and glanced at me. His cheeks were getting even redder, even his ears were beginning to turn pickish. I didn't know that calling him without the 'chan' suffix would get him even more embarrassed.
"Wha... What... is it?" he muttered softly, avoiding my gaze.
Yes, he finally decided to listen to me!
"Would you like me to turn up for the tournament... to give you support?" I began.
He lowered his head, allowing his fringes to cover his eyes as he answered softly, "Whatever."
"I guess I will turn up then," I said and leaned even closer to him. "I hope to see you win."
"Of course, I will win!" Koko exclaimed loudly as he looked up and stared at me sternly. "I will win everyone. Everyone, including that stuck up Hyuuga!"
"Ah! It's you again! Welcome back to our shop, young man!" I heard the waitress voice calling from the entrance but that didn't stop me from trying to seduce Koko.
Anyway, other customers would have thought that Koko and I were a couple so it was all right for me to continue my act. With a forced smile, I wrapped my arm around Koko's arm which also became tense from my touch, and then I showed him a thumb-up with my free hand.
"You can do it, Koko-chan!" I said in a high pitched voice, so high that I felt myself acting like those fangirls who kept chasing after Natsume and Ruka everyday in school.
"Th... Thank you."
"And..." I paused and looked at him with wavering wide eyes, as if I was deprived child who was going to beg him for something - a technique which I had learnt at the last two chapters of the book on seduction. "Could you tell me how you're going to win this thing? There must be a special move or something."
"Ah, that... I... er..." Koko stammered but his eyes darted to the side and widened instantly. "I... don't know... so yeah..."
I frowned. "What do you mean?"
"This is not the right time, alright?" he lowered his voice as he tried to push me away from him.
Frowning even deeper, I tightened my arm around his and poked his cheek. "Aww, don't be shy. Just share with me!"
"No, Mi-chan... I..." He began trying to pry my arm off his. "Not now."
I didn't know what went wrong with my seduction. Why was he rejecting me? Earlier, he had called me freaky. I thought I was doing even better for my second try but I didn't! I managed to make him blush but he was pushing me away! Where had I gone wrong?!
Just then, I heard the waitress' voice again, "Young man, what are you... no... stop..."
As soon as I heard a loud gasp, something cool and oily was splashed onto me. No, not only me but also Koko. My whole face and clothes were drenched with the liquid and some strands of the soggy udon noodles were stuck on my forehead while the rest were resting on my blouse. I yelped and immediately let go of Koko. Who in the world just threw a bowl of cooled udon on us? That was disgusting!
"Hyuuga-san!" Koko suddenly shouted and stood up. "What's up with you?"
Eh? Hyuuga?
I wiped my face with my hands and turned to look at the person standing right at the opposite of us. Just then, I understood why Koko's eyes had widened when he had looked away from me earlier. The 'young man' who had just entered the shop was actually Natsume Hyuuga.
Natsume put the emptied bowl back down on the table and stared at Koko emotionlessly, then to me. Did he just throw Nobara's bowl of udon on Koko and me? No doubt that he did! I angrily stood up as well and glared at him. I had no idea why he had done that and he was being rude for goodness sake! Didn't he already make me feel miserable after saying that Koko wouldn't fall for me? He had even apologised to me after that! But he was back to his evil side again. What was up with him?!
"Disgusting," Natsume muttered.
"How dare you!" Koko growled and stood before me. "You just threw Mi-chan's friend's udon! And she hasn't paid for that bowl yet!"
Having a deadpanned look, I gently tugged Koko's shirt and said dully, "That's not the point, Koko-chan."
"What's the point? The noodles are soggy anyway and I don't think her friend wants to eat that," I heard Natsume speak.
"You... you!" Koko pointed accusingly at his rival, fuming with anger.
"So, this girl is trying to seduce you, huh..." Natsume continued nonchalantly as he tilted his head to take a good look at my horrible self. "And Kokoro Yome is your target?"
I glared at him. Was he going to spill everything he knew about the seduction book?
"Hyuuga-san!" Suddenly, the store owner came out of the kitchen and approached Natsume angrily. "How could you do this to our customers?!"
Natsume just crossed his arms and snorted. The store owner forcefully grabbed Natsume's arm and called him to apologise to us but he refused to do so. That stubborn jerk! He really hit my nerve!
"If you don't apologise, I won't give you any udon for breakfast! Well, except for your father," the store owner warned.
Natsume frowned as he returned the store owner's stare. I saw his eyes slowly drop to the owner's hand which was carrying a red plastic bag with two round containers inside, and he smirked contentedly.
"Thank you." Natsume swiftly bend his body forward and took the plastic bag from the owner's hand. "Seems like both my father and I will have udon for breakfast today."
Then, he placed the money on the shocked owner's palm as if he hadn't done anything wrong. I mentally scowled. Well, I shouldn't be surprised. This guy here was really a jerk who liked to piss people off. I brushed the soggy noodles off my clothes and hair, grumbling about how disgustingly oily my whole body was. On the other hand, Koko stepped closer to Natsume and grabbed him by the collar roughly.
"Apologise," he growled as his eyes narrowed at the raven-haired boy.
Natsume narrowed his eyes as well but a smirk suddenly appeared on his face as if to mock Koko's words. He grabbed Koko's hand which was grabbing his collar and pushed it away. For a moment, I thought Natsume would irritate Koko further with his smirk and horrible tease but I was wrong. No, he didn't apologise but instead, he took a step back and wiped the smirk off his face. Then, he turned and walked towards the entrance without saying a word.
"That's it? He's going to leave like that?" Koko muttered to himself angrily. "Such a coward."
I placed my palm on Koko's back and shook my head. "He must be having... what girls always say, PMS."
"Such gayness," Koko remarked with a snort.
I snorted too and said, "Let me talk to him, that little piece of..."
"You don't have to, Mi-chan." Koko stopped me from proceeding with an arm held in front of me. "I'm going hit his arse during the tournament. I will make sure that both of us will make it to the semi-finals and face each other."
My eyes lit up. "How?"
"Somehow," Koko replied with a smug.
Oh great. He was never going to tell me his plan. But most importantly, I needed to catch up with Natsume! Natsume had already left the shop... Wait... Probably he knew the plan as well! I should ask him too!
"Sorry, Koko-chan. I'm going to look for Hyuuga-senpai." I bowed to Koko and threw some money notes on the table. "Let me pay for everyone's breakfast, yeah? My treat. And you can keep the change."
"Wait! What?!" Koko yelled.
"Tell Ibaragi-senpai that I have gone to look for someone so she can go home first."
"Why are you..."
Before he could finish his sentence, I dashed out of the shop and chose to take the route on my right. I didn't know where he had gone or headed to but I trusted my intuition. For some unknown reason, I just knew he was walking down the route on my right. As I walked briskly down the busy pavement, I received weird stares and soft whispers in regards to my drenched appearance. I guessed I even smelt like udon soup. Argh!
"There! Natsume-oniisan!"
I stopped walking and frowned. Natsume?
A few children ran past me and crossed the road without caring about the green headlights. A few passers-by and I were gasping in horror upon seeing how reckless they were but when those children reached the opposite side of the road safely, I heaved a sigh of relief. At least there were not many cars on the road at this time of the day. The children headed to a playground next to a high rise apartment flat while shouting Natsume's name. I smiled sheepishly. What a coincidence - Natsume was sure a common name.
The smile lasted no longer than five seconds when a familiar figure appeared from behind the slide. Carrying a plastic bag in one hand, he used his free hand to pat a small boy's head and squatted to his eye level. All the children crowded around him, wearing a bright and cheerful smile on their faces. What made me giggle at the scene was when a child poked his cheek a few times and pinched it. I would have expected him to ignore that adorable treatment but again, he did something which was the least expected, especially when it came from him.
He smiled. That genuine smile which reflected his soft heart.
Soft heart...? Scratch that! There was no way a heartless person could have a soft heart, not even a hard heart!
The children slowly dispersed and ran to the nearby void deck, leaving him all alone in the playground. He turned to face the old empty playground and stood still. Although his back was facing me, I didn't understand why but I got this feeling that this old playground was something which he held so dear. I could see his shoulders relax as he stared at it, perhaps reminding him of his younger days.
I could feel my heart palpitating at the sight of him - the gentle and peaceful side of him. Such vulnerability was so unlike him, the hypocritical jerk. Just then, he started to leave, causing me to panic. What had I been doing? I was supposed to talk to him!
After making sure that there was no more incoming car on the road, I dashed across the road and made my way to the old playground. As I got nearer and nearer to the playground, I began to feel something weird and heavy building up in my chest. It felt so depressing but at the same time, nostalgic. I had never been to this playground before because it was so far away from my house, but I had no idea why this playground felt so familiar, as if I had hanged out with someone here before. What was even stranger when the name of a mysterious person, which had been bugging my thoughts since a moment ago, brought tears to my eyes and made me shout with so much angst and bitterness without thinking.
"Don't go, A... Aoi!"
Hi, everyone! Thanks for reading up to Chapter 29.
Special thanks to the reviewers:
- Dwmalove
- sweet little
- Ayame-hime 11d7
- Mystery555
- Anilissa
- PureInnocence3
- Gabsterela
- JIKOL
Lastly, I would also like to thank those who had story alerted and favourited this story. :)
Brief preview of the next chapter:
30th Fight: Mouth-crash
"Where are you taking me, Hyuuga-senpai?! You, kidnapper!"
"Somewhere where you can get yourself clean up! Now, shut up!"
When I felt myself being pulled even closer to him, I closed my eyes and shrieked, "Nooooooo-"
Probably shrieking was the worst move ever...
... because he stopped me with an equally and horribly bad move.
A kiss.
.
.
.
"Do you want me to mouth-crash you again?"
Please don't forget to review this chapter and tell me how it is! Thanks! :D
