(After School)
"Yo, Misaki," Daisuke greeted. "I don't see Kou, but… you've got practice today, right?"
"Yup," I said with a nod.
"Haha, you're really getting into it," he chuckled.
We worked on layups today. I was getting better at it, at least. I glanced around and saw that Kou wasn't here. Huh. Something probably came up.
I spun the ball on my finger for a second or so before I started practicing my layups again.
"Man, I'm beat…. Let's call it a day!" a player said. He and his friend walked away. I frowned at them. They don't even try….
I practiced for a bit more, then left.
I walked out to the front and passed by Kou's locker. I stared at it for a while before peeking inside. His shoes were still in his box. Is he still at school? I decided to look for him.
I found Kou on the rooftop, laying down with his legs and arms spread out.
"Hey. Practice over already?" he asked as I sat down next to him.
"You've got some nerve…" I muttered with a shake of my head.
"Haha…. C'mon, man, cut me some slack." He forced a laugh, then sat up. "I don't know if I like basketball anymore." I stared at him.
"What?" I asked.
"It's not my family, I got their blessing, they told me I can do whatever I want," he continued, sounding depressed. "It's funny…. They were all so dead set against me playing ball…. And now I can do anything. So I shot a few hoops this morning…. But I wasn't feeling it. I wasn't feeling anything." He looked at his feet. "It wasn't fun, it wasn't boring, it was just… nothing." He went silent for a while, then looked up at the sky. "I've been here since class got out. Then I heard all the sports teams starting to practice…. And I wondered, why does everyone look like they're having so much fun? I felt so distant…." He was silent again. "Ooh, a bird," he said out of the blue. "Birds have the life, man…. They can fly as high as they want. But me, I'm feeling like I've sunk to the bottom of the ocean." I smiled brightly.
"Let's go do something fun, then," I suggested.
"Maybe we should go to one of those group blind dating things. Whaddaya think?" he asked.
"Haha, no," I deadpanned.
"C'mon! Chicks totally dig guys who are all chilled out and intellectual, right?" he asked with an ironic smile.
"Well…" I muttered. "Most of them just go for the looks." I shook my head in disappointment.
"Anyway, I'll be at the next practice, so don't worry.
"Did you come up here just to find me?" he murmured. "… Thanks, Misaki." He grinned widely, and I gave him a bright smile in return. Kou looked in front of him. "I think I'll stay up here a little longer. I got some relatives coming over tonight, but I'm still not ready to meet 'em. I'm pretty good at putting up a façade, but it gets old sometimes.
"Sorry, I just need a little space right now," he apologized. I stood up and said, "It's all right. Don't stress yourself out too much, okay?" He didn't answer, so I left him staring at the sky and went home.
(Evening)
Dojima was home tonight, so I nodded to him, then went up to my room and finished reading "Office Work Manual."
Sunday, 5/22 (Daytime)
I wonder how Kanji's doing… I thought as I headed downstairs.
"Good morning," Nanako greeted me.
"'Morning," I yawned. She was staring at a plant, looking troubled. "Huh? Is something wrong, Nanako-chan?"
"Um, we're growing veggies at school," Nanako answered. "The teacher gave us 'seedlings,' and told us to try growing them at home. I asked Dad, and he said I could plant them wherever I want. I don't know where's good though…."
"Hmm…" I muttered, putting a hand to my chin. "Hey, there's an open plot of land on the side of the house…. Wait, is that Dojima property?"
"The place next to the house? Mmm-hmm. We don't use it, but it's our yard," Nanako replied with a nod. "Is that where we're gonna plant the seedlings?"
"Yup! Follow me," I told her.
We stood in front of the plot of land.
"Is this where we're gonna plant the seedlings?" Nanako inquired. I nodded, and she beamed. I walked up to the plot and examined it.
Let's see….
There were some bricks and wooden planks against the wall to the left, along with a trashcan and some other things. There was also a bucket full of gardening stuff and a shovel. I glanced at the pile of dirt in front of me.
"Hmm…" I muttered, settling into my "thinking pose."
I can make a small square or rectangle with these bricks and fill it up with dirt….
I knelt down, put on a pair of gloves, and then began to work.
I grabbed a few bricks and started putting them into a line around the mound of dirt. About eleven bricks down, I turned them and went down about five bricks. I changed directions again and went down the same amount that I did for the first line, and changed directions, putting down the last few bricks.
Standing up, I grabbed a shovel and started to distribute the dirt evenly across the rectangle I made. After about 20 minutes, I finished. I stood back and admired my work.
"Wow! Can we plant the seedlings now?" Nanako asked excitedly.
"Yep!" I answered.
I showed her how to properly plant the seedlings. We finished after about 15 minutes.
"Do you think the veggies will grow?" Nanako asked.
"Of course!" I replied. "If we work hard, that is."
"Mmm-hmm. I'll do my best to take care of them!" she exclaimed, looking jubilant. Suddenly, her eyes lit up. "Hey, I want to make a sign!" I tilted my head to the side with a confused look. "No one will know what we planted until the veggies grow. I gotta write down that there are veggies growing here."
"All right, let's make one," I said.
"Yay! Thanks!" she cried.
We began to make the sign. She drew a tomato as I wrote down the words. After a moment's hesitation, I put down the English translation, too.
I stabbed the sign into the ground and stood back.
"We did it!" Nanako exclaimed, jumping around happily. "I'll be in charge of watering the plants!"
"I'll help too," I told her.
"Okay! We planted them together, so we should grow them together too!" she said, grinning so wide, I thought her mouth would literally crack in half. "If a lot of veggies grow, will our house be like Junes? I can't wait!"
I couldn't stop the laugh that escaped my lips. Oh… the innocence of a young child….
After I stopped laughing, I brought the gardening tools inside they wouldn't get more ruined than they were now and headed out.
"Well, hey there," a housewife in farming clothes greeted. "You need some seedlings for your garden? These are the ones I have right now. Which kind do you want?" She showed me the seedlings. One was a Tiny Soul Tomato seedling and one was a Return Daikon seedling. Honestly, judging from her description, I would've renamed the Return Daikon the Returnips [can't resist the pun. BTW, a daikon is a turnip, sooooo yeah XD].
"I'll get both," I said, getting out my wallet. I paid her for the seedlings and left.
"Oh, Misaki-chan," Yukiko said when she saw me in front of the bookstore. "I don't see you here very often."
"Wanna hang out or something?" I offered.
"Okay," she said with a nod. "I have to buy something from the book store…." She went inside, then came out a few minutes later. In her hands was a book about job certifications. "Thank goodness. That was the last one," she sighed. "Sensei recommended this book to me because it has details on a bunch of different job licenses."
"Going to apply for one?" I asked.
"Uh-huh…. That's right." She looked embarrassed. "Inside the T.V…. The 'other me' said she didn't want to inherit the inn. I think… those were my true feelings. So I've decided to be a little more true to myself. I… I refuse to inherit the Amagi Inn!" she yelled. "When I graduate… I'm leaving this town!" I blinked at her.
"H-Huh!?" I exclaimed.
"I said it," she sighed. She was silent for a second before breaking into a large smile. "I said it! So in order to live on my own, I'm thinking of getting a job license. I was thinking something along the lines of an interior decorator... What do you think?"
"Sounds good," I answered with a nod.
"It's cool, isn't it?" She beamed at me. "But it's hard. It costs money to get a license. And of course I can't tell Mother…." Yukiko glanced at the sidewalk. "If only there was a part-time job I could do discreetly…." I frowned and put a hand on my chin. Suddenly I thought of something.
"You can make envelopes!" I suggested. "You can do it in your room."
"Really…!? I'll go check the board, then!
"Thank you for keeping me company today," she thanked me. "I was a bit nervous about telling the others how I feel, but… I think I'll be all right."
"That's what friends are for, right?" I asked. Is it, really? What are friends for?
We parted ways.
(Evening)
Dojima was home today, too.
"I hear you and Nanako set up a little garden," he said. "Well, if you're gonna start something, make sure you do it right, okay? I'll help out a bit when I can." He gave me a small smile. I nodded and smiled back at him before heading to my room.
I picked up a book. The title read, "Off Today."
It was about some weak-willed teacher who had a hard time getting his students to learn.
What bad students… I thought, flipping the page.
Monday, 5/23 (Morning)
"Should halt class and take a nap?" the King screeched. "Shape up, a**holes! Where's your dignity!? The first-years are slacking off because you guys are slacking off! Kanji Tatsumi is a perfect example! That lazy punk is always ditching! I'd expel his a*s from school if I were his homeroom teacher! You may not think it's any of your business, but it is! You could all be expelled just as easily! Cause any problems, and you earn a one-way ticket out of this place! You'd best keep that in mind!"
I want a one-way ticket out of this class… I thought. King Moron should be renamed King A**hole… or the King of Bullsh*t. I glanced at his buck teeth. Or King Gopher. I tried not to laugh, but failed anyway. I earned a glare from King Moron, and wanted to melt into my seat.
(Lunchtime)
"Misaki! My buddy! My pal!" Yosuke greeted. "You've got free time today, don't you? Don't you!?" I stared at him. He sounded desperate.
"I'll think about it," I answered with a firm nod.
"You gotta be kidding me!" he groaned. "Well think about it, please! I'll be waiting for you after school.
"Oh, Misaki-chan," Yukiko said, walking up to me. "If you're not busy after class, would you walk me home? I'd be happy if you would consider it. See you later…."
I stared at her. When did I get so popular?
(After School)
I fused Gurr (since I didn't have a Jester Persona) and went to Junes.
Ha! I knew I'd find Adachi here!
I bought some seedlings and then went up to him.
"Hm? Oh, it's you," he said. "Good timing. Wanna hang around and talk for a while? That way, it looks more like I'm—err, strike that, okay?" I eyed him suspiciously, then laughed.
"Sure," I answered.
"Good for you! You're a good listener. The kind who gets promoted!" he praised. "What are you doing? Shopping for dinner?" I shrugged and then nodded. "I live alone, so taking care of dinner can be pretty tedious."
"Why?" I asked.
"I guess a high school student wouldn't get it. I just get so tired after work." He sighed. "So I make some cup ramen or something."
"No one makes you dinner?" I asked him.
"You mean like a girlfriend? I had a girl until a little while ago. It kinda didn't work out. She looked great, but her attitude was—Hey, I'm not talking about this!" he yelled, and I laughed.
"So what's your preference on girls?" I inquired jokingly.
"Cute girls are the best. Though I go for the real knockouts, myself," he answered. Did he forget I'm a girl?
"I see," I said.
"The most important thing is that they should be good cooks. Everything else, I can take or leave…." I had to laugh at that.
"Really!? They have to be good cooks?" I gave him a playful smile. Suddenly, an elevator door opened, revealing an old woman.
"Tohru-chan! Is that you?" she called. Adachi quickly spun around and muttered, "Sh*t…. she found me."
"Are you off work?" the old woman asked. "I hope you're not doing anything dangerous!"
"Oh…. No, I'm still on the clock. I was just on my way back to the station," Adachi muttered.
"I'm so happy to see you working hard," the woman cried. "I brag about you to my neighbors all the time! I'll bring you some nimono, okay? You have to take care of yourself! By the way, I saw this detective show on T.V. the other day…." She kept talking to him for a bit before Adachi interrupted her.
"Um…. I need to get back…" he muttered.
"Oh, is it that time already? I hope you day goes well, then," she said, hobbling away.
"Finally…" Adachi sighed. "I guess her son has the same name as me. Maybe that's why she's been hanging around me ever since she found out. I don't know. She always brings huge heaps of that nimono to the station! And she'll talk your ear off if you let her…. It's so annoying."
"She cares about you…" I began. "But then again, it does seem pretty annoying."
"Doesn't it? She's like that practically every day." He sighed. "She's the exact opposite of my parents, so I can't relate to people like that. She's lonely, I guess. I don't think she has any relatives. I can't just ignore her, either. It's part of my job. The police have been busy lately, so I'm the only one who can deal with her." Despite his griping, Adachi looked fairly happy. Is the "other side" of Adachi? "Though I wish I shared a name with her grandson instead! I'm still only 27, after all," he continued. "Well, I should head back, or Dojima-san will really chew me out. See you." He walked out of Junes, and I went home.
(Evening)
I continued to read "Off Today." The weak-willed teacher eventually psyched himself up enough so that he could finally control his students. He really changed throughout the book, going from "I give up" to "I can do this."
About thirty to sixty minutes later, I finished it. I was filled with tender feelings.
A/N: Two chapters in one day!? Yeah, I had some free time today, so I decided to upload. XP
If you didn't read my update in my latest filler (Filler 3), then read it!
Thanks for reading! *bows*