Okay, so thanks for all the reviews! I'm happy since lots of you replied to my question~! I'm making this story more Friendship-oriented, with implied romances here an there. I'm posting this chapter along with my other stories new update, and another special one - please check my page for that one~! Enjoy~
Pairings : Undecided
Warnings : Teikō Middle School Days.
Disclaimer : I own only the OCs.
Chapter 6 - Like the passing wind
With all the weird encounters Yume's been through, she can't help but be alert as she waits for Momoi to come.
Yume is standing by the gate, waiting for Momoi like she told her to. She's obviously anxious as she glanced left and right, probably so she won't have another unwanted meeting.
"Yuu-chan!"
"Eep!" Yume yelped in surprise as she flinched, then she whirled to see Momoi with a happy face. She can't help but pout uncharacteristically.
"Sat-chan..! Please don't do that..!" Yume whined a bit.
Yume is sensitive to loud sounds, including sudden sounds like the surprise Momoi just did. She can feel her heart thumping irregularly.
In contrast to Yume's slight annoyance, Momoi gets even happier when she saw how Yume is pouting. It's a rare occurrence she never though she'd see this soon.
"Maa, maa~ Let's go, Yuu-chan!" Momoi gushed in delight as she hooked her arm around Yume and pulled her past the gate excitedly.
Yume sighed a bit, but she let herself be pulled along with Momoi as she smiled a tiny minuscule smile. She's getting used to Momoi's bubbly demeanour.
She feels envious how Momoi's cheery disposition always manages to brighten everyone's day. If only she was like Momoi, perhaps her parents would still be here?
"Today will be fun, Yuu-chan!" Momoi squealed as they walked the streets. "We will be playing hard until we drop!"
Yume sweat dropped at that. She can't do that, she'll still need to do today's lesson revision.
Momoi turned to Yume with a happy face as she tilted her head. "Ne, Yuu-chan. Do you have a place you want to visit?"
Yume thought for a while, but no such place comes to mind. She's new to Tokyo, and she basically spent her time with part-time works and school, so she is pretty much clueless about these kind of things.
"No.." Yume shook her head. "You can decide, Sat-chan. I don't go out much, so I wouldn't know the best places to go."
Momoi expected that, so she had prepared a list of places to visit. After all, Yume doesn't seem like the type of girl that roams the town to shop.
"Ja!" Momoi cheered. "First, we will shop around cute stores in the next street! Then, we'll replenish ourselves with ice cream and crepes! And~, if we're still up to it, we will go karaoke~!"
Momoi has done plenty of researches on places to go with your bestfriends, girls-only. Game centre is fun, but Momoi's been there often with Dai-chan, and that's not a 'girly' hang out, so she'll leave it for next time.
"What do you think, Yuu-chan?" Momoi questioned with a smile, she wanted to know Yume's take on her plans.
Yume's not quite sure how to answer, the ideas seem great, but she's not sure she's up to it. So, she only smiles - and Momoi takes it as a 'yes'.
"Great!" Momoi smiled in relief.
The list she made is really a list of places she wanted to go with her 'girlfriends'. Her childhood friend just wouldn't be a fun companion to go shopping with. He would just grumble all the way through and ran to anything basketball then food.
With their arms still linked, Momoi talked animatedly how fun this 'date' is going to be. Yume only listened attentively while giving a smile and short responses here and there.
It should have been fun. At least that's what the impression gave off. Although, Yume now had to reconsider.
Momoi's been dragging Yume from one store to another, had her tried so many clothes she lost count. On a side-note, Momoi has a good artistic sense, and back to the main point, Yume is drained of energy.
Besides, Yume isn't exactly wealthy and redundant in her allowance; she had to work part-times so she could meet her day-to-day needs. She doesn't have a lot to spare for clothes and stuffs.
Yume sighed as she leaned back towards the bench she is sitting on and relaxed her tired legs.
Momoi is trying bundles of clothes while Yume is waiting for Momoi to come out so she can gave Momoi her opinion.
"UWAAAAAHH!"
Yume jerked forward in surprise. It's muffled, but she could hear a terrorised shout from outside the store, said store is encased with glasses and tightly shut, so the fact that she could hear the shout means that whoever was screaming had quite a pair of healthy lungs.
Yume could see a golden-haired boy zoomed past the store as he ran in a speed of light that he's leaving trails of dust, and after him is a train of girls.
Yume blinked in bewilderment. She couldn't truly comprehend what just happened. What's more, It happened so fast Yume could only believes it's real because the clouds of dusts are still there.
"Yuu-chan! How do I look?"
Yume turned at the sudden sound and saw Momoi with a sweet one-piece, sleeveless, white in colour and with flowers pattern. She looks stunning.
Yume smiles sincerely in approval as she gives her most honest opinion. "You look wonderful, Sat-chan."
Momoi looks ready to glomp Yume to death by suffocation. The good news is, she's restraining herself.
"Then I'm taking this!" Momoi whirled in absolute joy as she skipped towards the cashier.
Momoi paid for the dress Yume complimented her on, and left the other clothes back to the shelf. Momoi decides she only need the dress Yume said suits her, and she's very very satisfied with that.
"Now let's get the crepes and ice cream, Yuu-chan!" Momoi cheered as she pulled Yume, a little too tight in her joyful mood.
Yume couldn't even utter a protest without biting her tongue, so she refrain from doing so. At least she could fill her stomach with the needed glucoses to replenish the ones she lost after Momoi's shopping rush.
Momoi clinked her spoon to the glass cup as she finished her treat, before she began her announcement. "Okay, now that we're done eating, we need to blast off these calories with Karaoke Extravaganza~!"
Yume is strongly opposed to that theory and she stood up from her seat to express her disapproval.
Except, Momoi seems to take it wrongly.
"Let's go~!" Momoi yanked Yume's arm by surprise, it's easier to pull Yume along as she was standing instead of sitting.
It's simply a case where disapproval taken wrongly and even assist the case further.
Yume couldn't even get a word out and she can now only resign to whatever plans Momoi had in her sleeves. It's probably for the best.
"Ah!" Momoi exclaimed as she recalled something. She then turned to Yume who was trying to keep up with Momoi's strides. "Yuu-chan, you don't have to worry about the place being crowded, because I specifically make sure that the place is desolated around this time~!"
Yume can feel a burst of relief washed over her when she heard that. Things about Karaoke is, they are usually crowded and loud - but they are the best place to sing for students like her.
Besides, Yume trusts Momoi's data, it's haven't been proven wrong, yet. Momoi has also told her about the hidden music room and other unique stuffs. It's trustworthy.
"We are here!" Momoi sing-sang as she pushed the door open. "Wait here for a while, okay, Yuu-chan?"
Yume nodded as Momoi sauntered to the front desk. As Momoi talked to the clerk, Yume looked around the place to find it human-less like Momoi claimed it to be.
"Yuu-chan~ I'm done here~!" Momoi called over, prompting Yume to turn and jogged over to Momoi.
"I book the room for an hour. Yuu-chan will be studying after this right? I can't get you tired.." Momoi smiled wryly. She feels bad dragging Yume here and there.
On the other hand, Yume is touched. She only spoke once to Momoi, about how she's reviewing lessons everyday after school. She didn't expect her to remember.
Also, it's not like Yume is unwilling to go play with Momoi. Today's been tiring and exhausting, but it's fun nonetheless.
"..No, it's fine, Sat-chan.." Yume muttered shyly, her cheeks a bit flushed as she smiled. "I have fun today.. Thank you, Sat-chan.."
Momoi is astonished by Yume's absolutely adorable reaction, but she's also happy, blissful, even.
"J-Ja! Let's get the karaoke started, Yuu-chan!" Momoi stuttered a bit as she then pulled Yume towards the room they booked.
Momoi is so happy that she is grinning from ear to ear. Yume is not that different, she probably had the biggest smile ever on her face as she nodded and hummed.
These blissful expressions are hidden from both of the girls' knowledge, though - as Momoi had her back on Yume.
The girls are now sitting on the couch in the karaoke room. Momoi is browsing for songs to sing as Yume looked around.
Yume doesn't particularly like loud place where sounds echoes like Karaoke, but she likes singing. It's the only music she needs no money to play.
"Yuu-chan, why don't you sing the first song?" Momoi offered kindly as she extended the mic to Yume.
Yume smiles as she nods and takes the mic. "Sure."
As the music began to fill the room, and the intro comes to play, Yume hummed before she starts singing - beautifully.
Yume's voice is sweet and gentle, it blends with the instruments and comes out clear as ringing bell chimes. Momoi is frozen and entranced in awe. She never heard such godly-voice before. Dai-chan? He's a terrible singer.
When the song comes to an end, Momoi immediately clapped enthusiastically with wide eyes.
"T-That's so amazing, Yuu-chan! You could win those Karaoke or even Singing contest hands-down!" Momoi exclaimed in amazement.
Her whole life, she never heard such a melodious voice into play. She mostly went to the karaoke with Dai-chan, whose voice so low that he can't hit the tunes right, he might even be a tone-deaf in Momoi's opinion.
"That's not true." Yume shook her head humbly.
Her grandparents always compliment her on her singing voice, but that's about it. A melodious voice isn't all it takes to be a good singer; there's the range, pitch, breathing and more. Yume only sings well.
"It's your turn now, Sat-chan." Yume smiled as she handed Momoi the mic. Momoi took it eagerly and Yume can't wait to hear Momoi singing.
Thing is, Yume had no idea what to say as she is frozen speechless when Momoi sang.
Momoi's voice is...for the gentle words...not made for singing. Her high-pitched tone threatens to pierce Yume's eardrums.
It takes all of Yume not to curl and cover her ears tightly. After the song ended, Yume is at a loss of words when Momoi approached her with a wide grin and asked.
"How was it, Yuu-chan?"
Now how should she answer this..
"E-Eh, a-ah.." Yume wheezed hesitantly as she tried to drag the time so she could think. Momoi's eyes sparkles and Yume can't bring herself to deliver the harsh truth.
"...I think Sat-chan sings slow and low, baritone songs better..."
It's not essentially a lie, Momoi will have the range covered in baritone songs, and she won't make high-pitched, off-tunes squeaking sounds.
"Really?" Momoi squealed in joy. "I never try singing slow and low-pitched song before, but I'l try! Only because Yuu-chan said so!"
Yume sang so good that Momoi thinks Yume is a certified critic, and Yume could only smile at the absolute trust Momoi shows her.
Thankfully, Momoi took Yume's advice to heart, and thus Yume's hearing is still intact. Momoi even did surprisingly well singing low-pitched songs like Yume suggested her to. Songs after songs are sang, and then the little alarm rings, signalling the one-hour time is up.
"Aaaah!" Momoi wailed a bit. "It's over.."
Momoi stretched her arms upward as she lamented the ended-one-hour karaoke.
"We can go again sometimes, Sat-chan." Yume smiled as she tried to cheer Momoi while pushing the door open.
"Mm!" Momoi nodded happily.
They exited the room, and about to walk out, but Momoi heard something - a faint boyish voice, singing in the room next to them.
The reason why this Karaoke place desolated is because it's old and outdated. The songs are up to dates, but the room, sound systems and the likes are pretty old stuffs; including the diminishing sound-proof walls.
"Eh, he's quite good!" Momoi hushed as she walked towards the next room.
Like Momoi said, the boy did sing fairly well. It's a little high for a boy's voice, so he might not reach puberty just yet. What curious is that the boy is singing oldies - around 3 decades before his generation.
"Sat-chan.. It's not nice to eavesdrop.." Yume tried to pull Momoi back, but Momoi is stronger and she's pulled forward instead.
"Just a peek, Yuu-chan~" Momoi chirped as she creaked the door slightly open.
Momoi sees a tuft of golden singing oldies song perfectly in sync, moreover, she recognised the Teikō's student uniform!
With her curiosity taking over, Momoi leaned closer as Yume tried to pull her back, this cause Momoi to lose her footing and she fell, bringing along Yume with her.
"Oomph!"
"Ah!"
The boy flinched and stopped singing as he whirled towards the door and the intruders.
"That hurts..! Are you okay, Yuu-chan?" Momoi rubbed her sore spot as she turned to Yume.
'I know we shouldn't do this..' Yume inwardly grumbled.
She's been unlucky these days, nothing is going according to plan. She's thankful her part-time works are not disrupted, though that may changes soon.
"Hmm?" The boy raised his brow in a quizzical manners. He then pointed to Yume in recognition as he gaped a bit. "You're the girl with the panda pouch!"
The girls stood up and dusted themselves, momentarily ignoring his remark. They then bowed as one.
"We are sorry for eavesdropping on you."
Momoi stopped there, but Yume continued.
"..and yes, I'm that girl." Yume confirmed.
Momoi blinked at that before she whispered to Yume. "You know him, Yuu-chan..?"
"He helped me pick my fallen pouch before." Yume whispered back.
"Ehh.." Isn't this a coincidence? "This is the popular guy I was talking about earlier, Kise-kun."
"Aa.." Yume mumbled in disinterest.
She never cares for these kinds of superficial things. Yume took Momoi's hand, before she bowed again.
"I'm really sorry for disturbing you. Please excuse us." Yume spoke, then she pulled Momoi out of the room, bewildering the latter.
"E-Eh, Yuu-chan?" Momoi squeaked. She then hurriedly say her farewell as she is dragged away. "A-Ah, goodbye, Kise-kun."
Soon after Momoi said that, the door to the room is shut closed, leaving him alone in the room. 'Kise' is baffled as the girls were gone with the wind.
He then shrugged it off and continued singing the oldies, enjoying it. He sings it perfectly, although his boyish appearances certainly doesn't match the old themes.
This time, Momoi is the one panting as she tried to catch up with Yume's for-once speedy legs.
"Y...Yu..Yuu-chan..." Momoi panted. "Wh-Why the sudden marathon..?"
Yume took another few steps before stopping. She's tired, too. She took a breath and out to relax her breathing.
Though, Yume's not sure what to answer to Momoi's question other then 'don't know' or 'just feel like it'.
At the lack of answer, Momoi pouted, but she waved it off. "Forget it then. But...this is it for today, eh, Yuu-chan?"
Momoi smiled sadly, she is unwilling to part with Yume and end the day. She knows all things eventually come to an end, but today is just so fun she wishes to prolong it.
"I'm taking the bus.. Are you walking, Yuu-chan?" Momoi asked, trying to lift her mood.
"Yes." Yume nodded. "I live quite near."
Yume's apartment is two to three blocks away from Teikō, and since the street they are in now is the street next to Teikō, she's not that far off.
Momoi blinked. "Does that mean Yuu-chan live near the school?"
Yume smiles at that. Momoi is perceptive. "Mm."
"That's so cool!" Momoi gushed. "Can I come visit sometimes?"
Momoi always wanted to visit her friend's home, all this time, it's only Dai-chan's - his house is next to hers. She doesn't want to impose on Yume and her family, though.
"Sure." Yume smiled, also excited at the thought.
Like Momoi, Yume always wanted her friends came over to her home, or coming over to their homes. Back in Kyoto, she lives with her grandparents, and Yume just didn't want to intrude on their private spaces. That changes now, she's in Tokyo.
"Yayy!" Momoi cheered in delight. She then quieted down, before smiling softly. "I had fun today."
Yume also found herself smiling. "I had fun, too."
The two girls shared a smile and a friendship moment as they stood there with the setting sun as the background.
If before, they didn't understand, they do now. They are bestfriends and each other's first friend.
Though, in Momoi's case, it's first girlfriend.
Author's note:
So yeah, how is it?
Read and Reviews~
