A Day In Thier Shoes
Ryuji Sakamoto x Ann Takamaki; Part One
July, Evening
As the night fell, the starlight provided the only lantern to gleam onto the homework pages. The summer wind could be heard outside the windows as whispers passed between the two, desperately hoping to pass the exams the next day. Some would gossip, frankly Ann didn't really care if they did. What she did care about at the moment, however, was Art, History, Science, Japanese, and in this particular case-
"Awww, what the eff, I'm never gonna pass these stupid exams!"
"Shhhh! You think I want my caretaker to hear you?!"
"Why are they even home?! I thought they were never home?!"
"I said shut up you stupid head!"
"Stupid head? Really? That's the best you've got?"
Every. Single. Time. He doesn't pay attention in class, yet he expects to learn English in just three days. What a jerk-off.
"Have you at all considered that it's your fault?"
"Eh, what are you trying to say?"
"That it's your fault."
"Ah...right."
Ryuji dumbfoundedly chewed on his pen as he read the words on the page, each one fracturing between ideas of gibberish and nonsense. What the hell was he supposed to make of all of it? He could barely read Japanese! Let alone English!
"How come it's so easy for you?!"
"Because it is easy!"
"You're like, half American, so obviously it's easy for you."
"That doesn't change anything. Ren and Makoto get better grades than I do in English and they're completely Japanese!"
"You can't compare me to them, they're uber smart. Weren't they in like, the top ten scores?"
"Top five. But that could be y-"
Ann looked at him a moment, still chewing on his pen, ink spilling onto his purple jacket, seeping his jeans with black. His eyes shifted; he had noticed just as soon as she had. Reaching for pink towels and blankets scattered on the floor (all of which belonged to the beautiful blonde model before him), he proceeded them all with watercolor and without care.
"Nevermind. You're hopeless."
He smiled, that stupid attractive foolish smile that could only further boost her vexation to the maximum...it should've! And yet...his stupid attempts to fix the situation only drew her in even more.
"Oh come on! Let's go back to the flashcards...uhhh...what does…'idiot' mean?"
"Ryuji?"
"Yeah, I walked right into that one."
She rolled her eyes, smiling suddenly and wiping her blanket on him, softly now, black ink covering her clothes now, even in her hair a little bit, caringly wiping it off of him like a mother would a child.
"Th-thanks...Takamaki-chan~."
"Don't start with me...look...it's obvious that we're not gonna get anywhere tonight."
"Yeah...kinda figured that myself. In case you haven't noticed...English isn't my...uhh…"
"Forte?"
"Oh come on! Not another language!"
Once again, she giggled, softly prodding at his chest, pushing him to begin laughing as well. He was hilarious, even if it was never intentional. If you can make a girl smile…
"Ann! Who's up there?!"
"Oh shit-"
The two blinked, horror blending with hilarity as they looked at each other, terrified as once again they began to laugh hysterically.
"Come on- we gotta go-"
There was only one way out: when you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen. As they climbed from Ann's window, Ryuji was surprisingly the more steady of the two, even with his messed up leg. She was much more clumsy, each step taking valuable seconds that weren't necessary in the slightest. As he hit the ground, she was still considerably high.
"Awww come on Ann! Hurry up!"
"I'm try-"
The footing gave way, suddenly Ann was falling, moving in slow motion right before Ryuji. The fall wouldn't have killed her; only a few stories would've given her a broken leg at most. Nevertheless, he felt a pang in his heart as he watched her fall from the skylight, rushing forward to catch his longtime friend in a heartbeat. She crushed him of course, bruises swelling from the damage he took over her, blood spilling from cuts resulting from her fall on top of him, and his subsequent crack on the ground.
"Owww…"
"Ryuji!"
Though her embrace was welcome, it really only caused more pain.
"Come on, that hurts!"
"Oh...sorry!"
He looked up, the smile on her face beaming in the moonlight that caressed them both. He could still see the ink on her clothes, now soaking onto her alluring skin, pulling him closer for a moment. His heart began to beat faster and faster; what was he feeling? Truly, his only intention that night was to study, yet, she glowed before him like no girl had ever done before. He no longer saw the girl that had wolfed his food at the restaurants or clumsily knocked him over during middle school: he saw a gorgeous young woman that he had just rescued, out of breath, and appreciative. He liked it.
She could only reciprocate; she may have hit her head, but she knew her savior when she saw him, his dirty blond hair unmoving, his cocky smile annoying, his touch course. None of this was particularly attractive, but what he had inside made it all shine. Ryuji was an idiot, this was without a doubt...and yet...his loyalty, his heart of gold. It drew everyone around him ever closer. And in this moment? Even Ann, closer than she had ever expected.
"Ann…"
"Yeah?"
"I'm not...uhh...the smartest guy out there. Not really the best with words either. But we've known each other for a while...you're pretty cool, I'm pretty cool. And, I think-"
"I would love to."
His dumbfounded face continued to stare as Ann just smirked. She knew she was beautiful, without a doubt, but she never thought in a million years she would ever give him the chance. Perhaps turning over a new leaf was for the best. After all...she had never had any more fun with anyone besides him.
Ryuji (finally) gasped, before smiling subtly. The hurt disappeared completely, instead being replaced by complete perplexed thinking. He'd asked a million girls, hot, smart, nice, cool, none of them had ever said yes. How'd he ever get so lucky with someone like Ann?! Three out of those four things she had covered. And it's not like Ryuji had any smarts to spare. What was the catch…?
"Come on. Let's go."
"Wha-...where are we going?"
"Our first date."
"What?!"
There was the catch.
"I need to get a good shot of us for my Insta, so you're going to hold my phone."
"Wait, hold on!"
"No waiting! Inokashira Park sounds good right?"
"Good for what?!"
"Awesome, let's go!"
As Ann suddenly whirled Ryuji's hand, he grunted in both excitement and desperation at the same time. His wildest dreams had just come true; and he was regretting it already.
To be continued...