"Slow Burn" (def.): an attraction for someone that is not instant, but grows over time.
-x-
Chapter Six: Shakespeare and Soccer Players
-x-
"No, it's your line, you idiot!"
"I just said my line!"
Mimi let out a frustrated growl.
What was more irritating was the fact that all they had to do was get through a two scenes of a play and her partner was less than cooperative. She wished she had never been paired up with Taichi for this assignment.
"No, Tai. You have to continue on to say—"Excellent wretch, perdition catch my soul
But I do love thee! And when I love thee not, Chaos is come again." She pointed at their book.
Tai squinted down at it, "Ah, yeah. You're right." He admitted guiltily.
Mimi just rubbed a hand over her face. "We can take it from the beginning, I guess." She was at her wit's end.
"Wouldn't it be better if we just waited to practice until the rest of the group could meet also?" Tai suggested hopefully. "I mean, we're missing like two important characters—really messes with the mojo, ya know?"
Mimi gave him a withering stare, "They're practicing on their own, as well." She said with a click of her tongue.
Tai just opened his mouth to argue when the empty gymnasium doors opened, revealing a redhead accompanied by a blonde.
"What are you two up to?" Sora asked with a smirk, as the pair came closer to the two brunettes.
Mimi sighed, shutting her book knowing that any chance of getting any practice in now would be impossible. "We were trying to run through our lines for a class project." She said grudgingly.
"A project that isn't even due for a whole month!" Tai protested.
"What's it about?" Matt asked interestedly.
"Othello. We have to memorize and perform it in front of our class." Mimi explained. "Currently, getting through the second scene is a task."
"Let me guess, you're the fair Desdemona?" Matt raised his eyebrows.
For some reason, the way he said it and the look on his face made Mimi flush a little. "Yes." She said in a small voice.
"And I'm the all mighty Moor." Tai puffed out his chest animatedly, earning a laugh out of Sora.
"Where are you guys right now?" Sora asked, "Maybe we can help you." She said brightly.
"Well, I was in the middle of accusing Mimi of adultery and calling her a whore. Basically." Tai said flippantly.
"Eloquent." Mimi said flatly. "The only way you could help is if someone could replace my lead." She glared at Tai.
Tai just laughed, "The lady doth protest too much." He waved off.
"Wrong play." Matt snickered.
Mimi just shook her head, as Tai and Sora began arguing over something. Matt hung back by the bleachers, his looming figure towering over Mimi's smaller frame as she was sitting.
"Tai'll come through in the end." He assured her, in a low voice.
He always did, after all.
Albeit, it was usually in the nick of time—right at the buzzer.
Mimi just pulled a hand through her hair. "He just never takes anything seriously." She said, chewing on her bottom lip.
Matt nodded, "He'll get it together."
As Tai boasted about something which prompted Sora to say "Yeah, right. Prove it!"
It was most likely sports related, because a second later they took off in a mad dash towards the equipment closet.
Matt laughed at the two of them, as he took a seat beside the brunette. "What's really bothering you?" He knew her well enough to know that there had to be more to it than a class assignment.
She let out a long, frustrated breath. "This is supposed to be my major, you know?" She blew up a strand of her hair. "And I wanna be good at it, and I wanna be taken seriously." She disclosed.
Matt listened intently, as the entire thing began to make more sense.
"And this is the first assignment that has to do with acting and I know it's so small and shouldn't mean anything but it does… to me." She said, her voice was tiny as she hid behind a cascade brown waves.
"It would matter to anyone." He said quietly. "And I'm glad it matters to you." He said honestly.
Her shoulders perked up at that. "You, you are?" She asked, still not looking at him.
He shifted his body, so he was angled towards her. "I am, because it means you're serious about this." He reached out a hand, sweeping a glance at Tai and Sora who were busy in a game of HORSE.
Tentatively, he reached towards her, letting his fingers brush against the ends of her hair. When she didn't flinch or pull away, he tucked the loose pieces of hair behind her ear, catching a glimpse of her slightly somber profile.
In that moment he realized something extremely powerful, Mimi Tachikawa was absolutely beautiful.
And it wasn't as if this should have been news to him, on an objective level he had never had any trouble admitting Mimi, his best friend, was a pretty girl. But there was something that struck him then, like a lightning bolt straight down his spine, awakening his senses to an all new kind of splendor. One he was hard pressed to find a comparison to.
"I just want to be good."
Matt could empathize with that, "Do you want me to practice with you?" He asked.
Her eyes snapped up, "You, you would do that?" She asked, and the question felt stupid as it left her mouth.
Why wouldn't he, they were friends and he was a really good friend at that.
Of course he would want to help her.
Matt just gave her a look of slight disbelief, "Mimi." He said a bit sternly. "Do you even need to ask?"
A smile overwhelmed her features, "No." She said and a second later, without any warning, she launched herself into his arms.
And Matt caught her hug with a chuckle, with a hand around her waist and the other threaded through the hair.
-x-
"Please, can you come?"
Mimi sighed loudly, shutting her calculus book with theatrical flare. "I really don't want to. I literally had the most mind numbing rehearsal session with Tai. And I have all this homework and then class and practice tomorrow." She hated saying no to Sora.
It was seldom that the redhead ever asked for anything.
And if she did, it was never anything big or terribly inconveniencing.
"It won't be long, in and out, I swear." The redhead promised.
"I seriously would rather not, Sor."
Sora looked at her through slightly disappointed amber eyes, "Really, Meems?" She asked.
She got off the bed, "Obviously not, Sora." She conceded almost immediately.
Mimi had thought to make her work for it a little more, but it was like disappointing her mother when Sora looked at her that way.
A brilliant smile split her face, "It won't be for too long. Just dropping in to say hi." She repeated quickly.
Mimi nodded, "Yeah, yeah. Whatever, Takenouchi. If I'm wingmanning tonight, just remember you owe me one." She went over to the closet.
"You have my word."
Mimi knew she didn't need to call in any favors though, their friendship didn't work that way. She'd do anything Sora needed her to do (within reason) and the simple knowledge that the redhead would reciprocate was all that was necessary.
She quickly pulled a cute, floral tank top over her head. She looked searchingly into her closet, before finally making up her mind and grabbing a thin cardigan. It was the end of September, which meant the weather was still relatively warm—but the nights were breezy and she was cold more often than not.
The car ride to the soccer house was both longer than she remembered, but still too short. As they neared the driveway, she was getting a little nervous. While she had the expectation of being entertained by Ryo, she was apprehensive.
What if he had a girl there already?
Or worse, what if he had Taylor there?
She couldn't risk running into the Cheerleading Captain, she didn't want her life to be hell on the team before she had barely begun.
And from the few and far between interactions she'd had with the dark haired girl, Mimi already got the impression that Taylor Fujiyama could hold a grudge.
"Are you okay?" Sora peered at her, as they got out of the car.
Mimi nodded immediately, "Yeah, of course." She said.
Sora stared at her a bit longer, but didn't say anything else.
"Thirty minutes, max." She said honestly. "Sam's been asking me to hang out for ages."
They rang the doorbell, while Sora held her phone to her ear. It had barely been a second, before Sam's grinning face was seen through the screen door. "Come on in." He said, opening it for them.
The house looked different, but she imagined it would considering the last time she'd been here was under the circumstance of a party. It was a lot less cluttered, obviously, and much more quiet. No one was in the sitting area, nor was there anyone in the kitchen. She figured it was a Wednesday night, so they must all be in their rooms.
"Practice ran a little longer than it was supposed to." Sam said, as he led them through the house.
The sitting room slash den area was surprisingly clean, for the amount of single boys that lived here. She was expecting the floor to be littered with rolling papers, beer cans, dirty undergarments (female ones more likely than male, she would've guessed) that sort of thing. But she was met with a large, seventy two inch flat screen TV that was mounted above a wood burning fire place. There were game consoles (Xbox? Play station?) and controllers, as well as an extraordinary stack of games. The couches were actually stainless and though they weren't anything special or particularly expensive looking, at least she was sure she wouldn't catch any diseases from sitting on them.
She sunk into the worn out leather, Sora beside her who was already immersed in a conversation with Sam about something relating to Soccer.
Mimi quickly realized that Sora didn't actually need her to be there (though she wasn't sure if the redhead had realized that yet) she had only needed her to actually get there. Other than that though, she was carrying on perfectly fine on her own.
Sora was warm and she was caring and she was expressive to the people she loved, it was easy to be around her. It was easy to love her.
But Sora, like Matt, was also guarded, in a way that was almost imperceptible if you didn't know her personally. Unlike Matt, though, she did a very good job of seeming perfectly approachable and open.
With Sam, she was wary. But less doubtful than she was of every other guy she had come in contact with post-Joe. She wasn't sure if she saw anything lasting with him, but at the very least, she was under the impression that he could be short term.
None of the other ones had even made it that far.
Mimi pulled out her cell phone, the air becoming oppressively more 'coupley' by the second and the feeling that she was third wheeling as oppose to wingmanning was getting harder and harder to ignore.
She chewed her lip, as her thumb scrolled through the A's in her contact list.
Akiyama, Ryo.
Her thumb hovered over the name, she felt incredibly desperate texting him—he had all but made her give him her number that day at the beach, but except for a hello text to give her his, she hadn't heard from him since.
Not that he was any different towards her when they were in person, whether it running into him on campus or practice, he was always his usual charming and flirty self.
Outside of the face to face, by chance, default interactions though, he made no effort to try to talk to her or get to know her.
Which that, in of itself, spoke volumes about his interest level.
She was what he wanted when he saw her, but barely an afterthought in the day if he didn't.
She was more than okay with letting someone like get away.
Mimi excused herself, getting up to get a drink from the kitchen out of sheer boredom. She was kind of hoping Sam and Sora would just get on with it and make out or something so that they would go to his room, at least then she could turn on the Tv and it wouldn't be terribly rude.
When Mimi entered the kitchen she let out a squeal of surprise, before shoving her hands over her mouth wishing the sound never came out.
There was a boxer clad male standing at the faucet, who turned around at the sudden commotion.
In all his shirtless, pantsless, carved like Adonis reincarnated, glory was Ryo and the look on his face further amplified the mortification she was already feeling.
He leaned back against the sink, arms crossed over his chest with a smirk dangling off his lips.
Mimi felt incredibly uncomfortable as she tried to look everywhere but his almost naked form. She knew it would be childish to cover her eyes at this point, but she had to literally ball up her fists to stop herself from doing it.
"I was just thinking about you."
"I'm gonna go."
She knew that in a house full of boys (especially ones who played sports and had bodies that belonged in museums), this was probably the dress code, but it didn't mean she wasn't totally embarrassed to be standing in his presence right now.
"Come up to my room?"
Mimi's eyes widened "Excuse me!" Her annoyance flared at his slight insinuation, momentarily forgetting her discomfort. "What sort of girl do you take me for?"
Ryo had the nerve to broaden his smirk, "I didn't mean it that way." He assured her. "I just meant so I could show you around and what not." He clarified.
Mimi rolled her eyes, "I'm leaving." She said, before turning on her heel.
She wasn't sure if he made a move to stop her, she was out of there before he could say anything else.
When Mimi returned to the sitting room, she found it empty. Her phone was still sitting on the armrest, she picked it up to check it. Sure enough, Sora had texted her:
In Sam's room, he's gonna show us some old vinyl records he's got.
Another one came after that,
Where are you? Come up! Should I come get you?
Mimi let out a snort through her nose, there was no way the only thing they wanted to do was listen to some old songs and Mimi was never one to cock block, especially when she had come here with the sole purpose of doing the exact opposite.
Still, she knew if she didn't answer Sora would actually come down and get her, so she quickly sent out a reply:
Don't! I'm fine, ran into Ryo… we're hanging
It was partially true, Sora didn't need to know the details.
:( Fine, but we really are ONLY talking so pleaseeeeee come if you get bored
Mimi shook her head at the text, before giving a small laugh. Sora was actually the most guilt ridden, selfless person she knew.
Afterwards, she spent the next ten or fifteen minutes scrolling through her various social media accounts, and after she had checked her email and class work, she grew increasingly restless.
She walked around the den aimlessly, peering at photographs disinterestedly, and examining various medals and trophies from some of the guys that lived here.
She noticed a cute little photo booth picture of Davis and Kari, leaning against a trophy for the dark haired boy. With a wicked little smile, Mimi let it process that Kari probably strategically placed the picture there as a message for any girls that should be wandering about the house—the boy was hers.
Who would've thought that sweet, little Kari had it in her to be so cunning.
She bent down, searching through the stack of magazines the boys had, wondering if she would be able to find something that was unrelated to female nudity or cars or sports (though she knew the chances of that were unlikely.
He took a second, just to check out her glorious, perfect bottom, before quickly dropping his gaze and clearing his throat.
Mimi looked up to find a fully clothed Ryo Akiyama, standing at the threshold of the room. She straightened up immediately, meeting his green eyes fully this time. "Glad to see you're decent." She said curtly.
"Did you need something?"
"Not really." She said easily. "Just trying to kill the time." She said with a shrug.
He walked further into the room, as he came closer Mimi couldn't help but notice how nice he smelled. She also didn't fail to catch that his hair was limper, looking damp—inwardly she recognized that he had gone and showered for her and made an effort to be relatively presentable.
It was kind of cute.
So, she decided not be a bitch to him tonight.
Besides, it wasn't as if she was swimming in options.
She didn't hate Ryo, not by any means. Nor did she even dislike him, though sometimes it did come off that way, she just didn't know him. She also didn't really care too much to get to know him—she had him pegged.
At least, she thought she did.
He hadn't done much to refute her original impression of him anyway.
"Do you want anything to drink?" He asked, breaking her out of her thoughts.
She shook her head, but he was already heading through the opening that connected the den to the bar area.
He came back with a beer in one hand, glass of white wine in the other. "It isn't anything spectacular." He warned her, "Though I'm probably a bit of a wine snob, my step mom's from Italy." He explained with an ease she wasn't used to hearing when addressing blended families or broken homes.
Mimi took the glass, "Thanks." She said with a small smile. "Have you been a lot? To Italy, I mean." She asked for the sake of conversation.
He motioned for her to have a seat, as he took the one across the coffee table. "We used to go frequently, practically every summer." He opened his beer. "I haven't been in two or three years though." He said with a shrug. "How about you? Tell me you've gone."
She was glad he sat across from her, as oppose to next to her, it was a lot more casual this way. "I went once, with my family." She told him. "We did a tour of Europe over a summer—Italy was gorgeous. I fell in love with Roma." She couldn't help but gush about it as her mind wandered back to villas situated along hilly ocean-sides, clear Mediterranean waters, the beautiful Italian coastline and the undeniably delectable cuisine.
"Our summer home is in Rome, actually." He said and it wasn't in a way that sounded arrogant or boastful, "My favorite thing about it was that from our balcony you could see the Trevi Fountain. I remember me and Zoe would sneak out around dawn, just to see the sun rise over it because it was just so much more fascinating without the lights and the tourists and the whole show." She could tell he wanted to say more, but he stopped abruptly, shifting his feet.
Mimi wondered if her expression had mirrored the shock she had felt, hearing that small degree of appreciation for something cultural like art or history. She would've guessed his favorite thing would be the women or the weather or something else equally as shallow or predictable.
"It was one of my favorite things too." Mimi recovered quickly, "That and the Riviera." But in truth, she had loved everything about Italy, it was easily one of the best places she had ever visited in her life.
"When did you leave Japan?" He changed the subject.
She thought on it, "When I was around ten or so." She told him. "The company my father worked for opened a branch in New York that they wanted him to be the head of." She never blamed her father for taking the opportunity.
She knew it was what had been best for her family.
She wished that he had been around more, her mom too, but she didn't hold it against them.
"What's he do?" Ryo asked with genuine interest.
Mimi was asked this question often enough where she should have a rehearsed answer, but she had never been entirely clear on what it was her father actually did, "He runs the New York office of a telecommunication service." She answered vaguely.
"Really? Which one?"
Mimi sighed, "SoftBank." She answered, which was a big deal, she supposed, but it didn't just leave people impressed, it also made them probe further and she hardly ever had perfunctory answers to questions that required more than surface specifics.
As expected, Ryo did look mildly impressed. "Wow, tall order." But it was all he said on the matter.
Mimi took a sip of her wine, it was sweet but nothing unbearable. "Well, what about your family?" She asked.
She knew they had money, it was expressed by the way Ryo dressed and the car he drove, by way of Zoe's entitled attitude and expectations.
"My father is on the Board of Directors at Sumitomo." He said with such indifference that the delivery just as much as the news itself made her almost drop the glass of wine into her lap.
No wonder he wasn't clamoring over the fact that her father worked at SoftBank—his father was basically top of the chain at one Japan's (and quite possibly the world) largest financial services.
They didn't just have money, they were rich, as in filthy. It was no wonder that he had a flashy, sports car, and took vacations on exclusive islands and had girls two years ahead of him falling over themselves for him.
He was gorgeous, he was in line to inherit millions and talented.
Mimi swallowed the sip she had taken, trying not to seem terribly affected. "Wow, that's certainly remarkable." She mentioned.
If Ryo cared about what his father did, he definitely didn't show it. "Yeah, him and Tai's dad are pretty tight over there." He said with a shrug of his shoulder. "It's how me and Kamiya got close, aside from Soccer. We were always being thrown together at these stupid black tie events and shit—would've been insufferable without him." He shuddered for emphasis.
"Had to go to quite a few of those myself." She commiserated, "Though I felt more like a show pony than anything else." It came out a little more bitterly than she wanted.
But she hated every minute she was paraded around like a prized mare at a buyer's auction.
"That's how it is for girls, isn't it." He said with recognition. "Though I can't say Zoe hated the attention." He chuckled lightly.
"We're different, me and Zoe."
She didn't know why she made a point to say that, but she did.
"I know that."
And she didn't know why she was glad to hear him say that, but she was.
"So Tai's dad, works at SMFG too?" She hadn't known that, before she left she had heard his father had gotten a relatively good job offer.
She had no idea it had been there though.
Ryo nodded, "He's head of Risk Management." He said with no real insight on the positon.
And while she was no business expert herself, she knew the position was a prestigious one at a bank as large as SMFG.
"So you had your choice of any university." She began. "Why TU?"
"Why not?" He challenged. "It's as good as any other university that had offered me entrance and they wanted me to play for them." He said. "And it's close to home, which isn't that big of a deal but it's always convenient to be thirty minutes from your parents should you ever need them." And it wasn't until he said that that Mimi realized he was definitely right about that.
Suddenly the thought that her own parents were on the other side of the world overwhelmed her, what if she needed them in an emergency? They were a nineteen hour plane ride away.
She pushed the anxiety out of her mind, forbidding it from crushing her. She wasn't sure how it had been for Ryo, but her parents weren't around much to begin with as it was, so even if she had stayed in New York for her advanced schooling, there was no guarantees they would be there if she needed them anyway.
"Does your dad travel a lot?" She asked softly.
Ryo shook his head, "Nah, he has people do it for him." He said offhandedly, "Mostly my old man just golfs."
"Tokyo County Club?" Mimi raised an eyebrow.
"That's the one."
Her parents had been members prior to their relocation.
"My dad used to go every Sunday." It was nice, when they lived here as a family.
Ryo nodded, "See, would you look at that? We have so much more in common than you originally thought." He said, with twinkling green eyes and an annoyingly charismatic smile.
Mimi smiled back, not to be out done. "I suppose so, but you can hardly blame me." She said sweetly.
He would never get used to the blinding perfection of her features, especially the way they were accentuated by that unfailingly stunning smile.
He was staring at her, and she felt her face starting to heat up at the intensity of his gaze. For once, his eyes weren't filled with mirth, there was no smirk dancing on his face. "W-what?" She cursed her speech for faltering, as she consciously raised a hand to her face. "Did I say something?"
Ryo shook his head instantly, "Honestly, I'm so sorry for staring like that." He apologized a little awkwardly. "I didn't mean to, it's just… and I mean this in the least creepy way possible—you're really beautiful, Mimi."
And Mimi couldn't help but blush at the sincere compliment, she'd heard it before but it was different coming from someone who quite literally could probably have any girl in the world (or at least in Japan), who's flawless sister was practically a model.
"Thank you." She said demurely.
"I don't want to be too—
Sora's voice could be heard distantly calling her name, and with every syllable it got closer. "Oh good, you're where I left you." She said, peering into the den with Sam trailing behind her.
Mimi stared from the redhead, back to the soccer star. Whatever he was going to say had died in the back of his throat as he cleared it, setting his now warm beer on the coffee table.
"Ready to go?" Sora asked earnestly.
Mimi looked at Ryo, who didn't make eye contact. "Yes, of course." She affirmed.
Ryo got up from the armchair he had been sitting in as Mimi lifted herself from the couch, "Well, it was really good talking to you." He gave her a hug.
"You too."
Mimi stole a look at his profile, all humor and superficial charm were gone. Instead, all she saw was a pensive green gaze and a frown lines creasing his forehead in what looked like a dazed expression.
She could succinctly agree with the sentiment.
Who would've thought she would actually feel let down because of how abruptly their conversation had ended.
And she found herself more than curious to know what he would've asked her, had Sora and Sam not showed up.
-x-
She had been dreading the next day and it was every bit as annoying as she had expected it to be. Calculus was a bore, as usual and so was her History class.
By the time it was time for practice, she was ready for a nap.
The routines seemed simple enough, as Mimi and all the other new girls watched the veteran cheerleaders show them dances from last year. She was wary of it all though, making sure not to get too complacent—she knew nothing was as it seemed.
"When I'm captain, we're going to have a way higher standard for who gets allowed on the squad." She heard Zoe whisper to one of her minions. "I mean, seriously, just look at Mina's form." Distaste dripping from every syllable.
Mimi rolled her eyes at the cattiness, keeping her retort to herself. She wondered what gave the blonde the idea that she would be captain, ever?
Out of the corner of her eyes, she saw the field doors open at the end of the gymnasium. The boys came bustling in, sweaty and propelled by endorphins and adrenaline, making a ruckus as usual.
She saw as Taylor Fujiyama's amethyst gaze fell on a certain jersey clad defenseman, her usual control and poise faltering almost immediately. "Alright, that's it for today." She said distractedly. "Sophia, call it in." She delegated, before getting off the floor.
She made a shameless beeline for Ryo, whose green eyes were most certainly not on the cheerleading captain.
"Okay, girls. We're done for the day. You guys can go get changed, don't forget that we have a game Thursday, then the Welcome Back Banquet on Saturday!" She called out to them, as the girls began getting their things together.
Mimi got up from the gym floor before dusting off the back of her red practice shorts.
She had come here with the intention of maybe striking up conversation with Ryo, last night had left her kind of intrigued by him. But she also knew that there was no chance in hell she could do that now. She made a mental note to never talk to him at practice, unless she wanted her head chopped off by a certain cheerleading captain.
"Tachikawa, wait up!" She heard a familiar voice call out to her.
"Hey, Tai." She slowed her step, allowing him to catch up.
He did with ease, falling in rhythm beside her. "I was hoping to get a word with you." He said.
"I'll give you two."
"I'll need a couple more than that." He grabbed the water bottle out of her hand.
She waited with an impatient hazel gaze as he squirted some out into his mouth. "Anyway, like I was saying." He wiped his chin with the back of his hand. "I heard you got me for your Boy Draft thing." He wiggled his eyebrows.
"Unfortunately, you were the best of a bad situation."
Tai chuckled amicably. "Careful, Mimi. I've been told I have an ego. You're dangerously close to expanding it with such flattery." He winked at her.
She rolled her eyes, grudgingly smiling at the soccer player.
"What's your point?" She raised an eyebrow.
"Do you want a jersey?"
She hadn't thought about that.
"I, I guess." She said, with a small shrug. "It's customary, isn't it?"
"Well, don't sound so enthusiastic about it."
Mimi straightened her posture, "You're right, sorry. Of course I want a jersey." She smiled sincerely.
Tai, whose attention span didn't allow him to bear grudges, grinned. "I'll get you a washed one."
"Truly, how'd I ever get so lucky."
"For the Banquet." He continued. "I can pick you up? Or you can come over the loft and get ready there." He offered.
Mimi thought about it, she hadn't really even given any of it much attention until now. "I'll come to the loft, why not." She decided. "Not like it's a date." She added.
"Heaven forbid!"
Mimi giggled behind her hand, "Anything else, golden boy?" She asked.
"Just this last thing, promise me you won't give Akiyama a dance?" He asked, with puppy dog eyes and a mock pout.
A full blown laugh escaped her lips at this, "You're ridiculous." She flicked his ear.
"I'm serious! It would irk him so bad and it'll be so funny."
"Well, keep me occupied and I won't." She said simply.
"Of course. Don't let this rough exterior fool you, I have a private school finish."
"We'll have to see then, won't we?" She said and she knew that the challenging tone of her voice was only going to spur the brunette on. "I'll have to warn you, my parents made me take ballroom for three years." She told him.
"How could they inflict such a harsh punishment on such a fair creature?" He pretended to be horrified.
"Go home and work on that play, Kamiya." She said, trying to keep her voice stern. "Don't think I've forgotten about that poor excuse for a performance you gave yesterday."
"Aye, aye captain." He saluted her playfully.
-x-
"You should date."
Matt turned his head, "Gee, thanks for the sage advice Sora. Write down life coach on your list of career goals." He said to the redhead beside him.
Laying on the grass outside of the Astronomy building was something they'd done since they were Freshmen.
Tai had acclimated to college from the second he stepped foot on campus. He had never been one for school, but it was like he had been made for University. He was carefree and couldn't maintain a schedule if his life depended on it, so for him this was the perfect setting.
And on top of all that, he got to play Soccer.
It was win-win.
For Matt and Sora though, it hadn't been as smooth of a transition. And one night when he had done particularly shitty on a Chemistry exam, and she had been wallowing in her (nearly six month old) break up with Joe, they somehow wound up at the same spot.
"I'm serious, jerk." She pushed his shoulder. "I mean, it's been forever since the whole mess with Lucy whatshername." She continued.
"Heartfilia. Lucy Heartfilia." He reminded her casually. "And wouldn't this be the pot calling the kettle black. Or something along the lines of stones and glass houses?" He raised his brows.
"Touché, Ishida." She deadpanned. "But I'm dating…ish."
Matt gave her an unconvinced look, "If that's what you call entertaining Ichijoji's attempts at flirtation, I guess." He smirked.
"Get that look off your face, at least I'm putting myself out there." She refrained from shoving him again. "Besides, it could be something with Sam—it's why I'm taking it slow." She told him, amber eyes on the night sky.
"Ah, so there's potential." He noted quietly.
"Potentially." She said with a grin.
"There's slow, then there's snail's pace."
"Do you blame me?" She arched an eyebrow.
He shook his head, "Not entirely, no." He said honestly. "They're good guys though, Sam and Ken. I don't think he'd hurt you." And she knew he meant it, Matt was protective.
He wouldn't have said it if he didn't think it was true.
"Back to you, rockstar." She turned her gaze towards him. "I mean, why haven't you at least tried with anyone, since 'she-who-must-not-be-named.'"
Matt kept his eyes on a twinkling star that seemed to burn a little brighter than the ones around it. Every time he looked away, it was as if that same star demanded his attention, dancing and sparkling its way out of his peripheries and into the center.
The star reminded him of something… but he couldn't place what.
"You make our break up sound more tragic than it was." He said absently. "It was mutual."
"I know." She said gently. "It wasn't my point. It was more that she's moved on and it's okay if you—
"It's not about that and you know it." He cut her off.
"Well it was for me." Sora shrugged, removing her eyes from his profile. "When I heard Joe was dating again…" She abstained from mentioning who it was, "It kind of gave me the forceful kick I needed to get out of my funk."
"It isn't about Lucy." He said again, "I loved her, and she was great. She was never the problem." Truthfully, he had let her go before he gave it a chance.
He was self-sabotaging that way, sometimes.
"Then, what's it about?" She prodded.
"I mean, it's not that easy." He said darkly. "And even though the shelf life on "my parents are divorced so I have commitment issues" has expired, I can't just turn them off you know." It got old, and girls didn't really get it as much when they realized it happened over a decade ago.
He shouldn't still be scarred over it, so it was probably just an excuse.
"Commitment issues, was it? Hi, I'm abandonment issues, how nice to meet you." She playfully extended a hand towards him.
"Don't be glib." He muttered.
"Sorry." She said with half a smile. "But all the the same, "my dad left me at four years old so I have trouble trusting the male gender as a whole due to a psychological disturbance from zero paternal attachment" isn't a great ice breaker either." She told him pointedly, hints of resentment creeping into her statement. "But you have to at least try."
Matt nodded empathetically, "Maybe we should just date each other." He mused.
Sora chuckled, "There's a bright idea." She said sarcastically. "We would be the most miserable couple of history."
"Dark and moody."
"And don't forget broody."
Matt folded his arms behind his head, "All jokes aside, It would never work." He had always known it, he was glad they never explored it.
He'd never had a sister, but he figured Sora was the closest thing to it.
And that relationship was infinitely better, he'd decided that a long time ago.
"It's what I liked about Lucy." Sora admitted. "She was ditzy and annoying but she brought out the fun side of you. You laughed more, when you were around her and she got you to do things you never would have done otherwise."
"Don't go there, I know you're talking about those horrible school dances and I still have nightmares."
"The point is, she was good for you. You guys balanced each other out." She said nostalgically.
"Are you trying to get me to break up a happy home, Takenouchi?"
Sora laughed, "No, idiot." She rolled her eyes. "I'm just saying that's what you need."
Lucy had been a bit of a princess, somewhat spoiled and a little entitled at times (she came from money, what did anyone expect?) but she had a heart of gold. She had fierce loyalty to her friends and those she loved and an overall sunny disposition.
Of course, until you got her mad, then the protocol was duck and cover because she was downright terrifying.
But she had lightened up the blonde's life considerably, making him smile at stupid things with her childish humor and brightening his day with her constant bursts of energy.
A thought struck him, "She was a lot like Mimi, huh?" He had never made the connection before.
But now it was downright undeniable.
A slow, knowing smile spread over the redhead's features.
"You don't say…"
-x-
The first thing he noticed when he walked into the loft was a pair of feet propped up on the wooden table, he followed them up to the slender legs they were attached to. Sitting with her honey colored locks swept up in a messy pony tail, tendrils of hair touching her face, clad in a white tank top and gray sweatpants, looking as if she owned the place.
Wait a minute… were those his sweatpants?
"To what do I owe pleasure?" He asked tonelessly
Mimi's eyes snapped to him, "Finally." She huffed. "Took you long enough." She rolled her eyes for good measure.
He set his bag down, removing his feet from his shoes. "Didn't know I was being waited on." He shrugged.
"Well, where were you?" She asked expectantly. "You know I've been here since eight thirty, it's eleven now." She told him.
If anyone else had the gall to be so demanding, acting as if he owed them an explanation, they would have been met with a sneer and dry remark. But she was different, and he hated that, but it was undeniable. "With Sora." He muttered.
She patted the open spot next to her, "I rushed over here right after practice." She said, waiting for him to occupy the empty space.
He sighed, "Should I even ask why?" He walked over, complying with her request.
Mimi turned to face him, her knee brushing against him as she did. "Do I need a reason?" She raised an eyebrow.
For some reason, the proximity was unnerving. "Of course not." He shifted subtly, so they were no longer touching. "But is everything alright?" It was late, and it wasn't like her to show up unannounced.
She tucked a wisp of hair behind her ear, "I…" She chewed her lip, averting her gaze. "I just missed you, is all." She mumbled sheepishly.
He couldn't stop the smile that tugged at the corners of his mouth, "Is that all?" He murmured, in a low and gravely tone that seemed to reverberate from his chest.
She wouldn't meet his icy gaze, "Is that a crime?"
Matt chuckled, "I missed you too." He said honestly.
Her eyes lit up at that, and he would never, ever get used to how easy it was to make her happy. He wondered why people didn't do it more often
Why he didn't do it more often.
"I thought we could hang, maybe some Netflix and chill." She said, a bit cheekily.
He shook his head with half a smirk, "You do know what the chill part refers to, don't you?" He raised his brows.
Mimi's wind-chime laughter echoed through the air, "Don't even go there." She said amicably.
"You went there, not me."
"Whatever, so what'd you do with Sora, anyway?" She asked attentively.
"Talked." He shrugged a shoulder.
"Wow, Yamato. Bore me with the details, why don't you."
"That's all it was."
"About what?" She probed.
He gave her a sideways glance, "Life, Mimi. Nothing worth mentioning." He waved off. "How was practice?"
"It was alright." She answered. "It's going to take some time to getting used to." She added honestly.
He nodded, "Tai said something about being your escort to some ball or something?" He asked quietly.
Mimi felt a weird feeling in the pit of her stomach when he mentioned this, she wasn't sure why but for some reason, discoing this with Matt felt… awkward.
It shouldn't have been though, so she pushed the feeling away as best as she could. "A dinner, actually. But yeah, luckily I drew his number and not anyone else's." She said, as nonchalantly as possible.
Another slow nod, "Well, have fun." He didn't sound even the least bit sincere.
And she had absolutely no idea why this would bother him in the slightest.
"My preference would've been to attend these things with my best friend." She bumped his shoulder with her own, a playful gesture to lighten the mood.
"Hn. Sora must have been so disappointed when it didn't work out that way." Came his sarcastic reply.
"Matt." She said reproachfully, "I meant you, silly." She turned her face completely, so she was looking stilly into his turbulent blue eyes.
He searched her eyes for honesty, for truth, for surety.
Did she still think of him as her best friend the way she had before?
It just all felt so different since the moment she got here, he wasn't sure what they were anymore.
And it drove him absolutely insane sometimes.
He shook his head of her gaze, "What do you wanna watch?" It was all too vulnerable and unchartered and he couldn't venture further into this unknown territory.
He needed familiarity.
Mimi let out a long, melodramatic, sigh—but said nothing else on the matter. "I've been browsing for ages, haven't found a single thing worthwhile." She grumbled, setting back into the sofa.
"Are you in the mood for anything particular?"
"Ice cream." She smiled sweetly.
He held back a laugh, "I was talking about movie wise, but there's some Ben & Jerry's in the freezer." He motioned towards the kitchen.
She yelped in excitement and he couldn't contain the chuckle that escaped him, she really could be such a child sometimes. "Half baked?" She asked dreamily.
"Would I ever disappoint you with anything else?"
She was off the couch and bounding towards the kitchen in an instant.
"Are those my sweatpants, by the way?" He asked pointedly.
Mimi, who didn't seem to look the least bit ashamed that she'd been caught, simply shrugged. "I mean I needed something to change into after I showered." She said as if the question was entirely ridiculous.
"Obviously." Matt drawled. "My mistake."
"Besides, you took forever as it was." She complained ruefully again.
Matt ran a hand through his hair, "Hey, so where's Tai?" He asked, it was unlike his roommate (or loft-mate) not to make his presence known if he was home.
Tai was the self-proclaimed life of the party.
Regardless the size of the party.
"Beats me." She said, digging through the drawers for a spoon. "Last I saw of him was at practice." She grabbed the pint and two spoons.
"Actually though, now that I think about it." She came back to the couch, "I did see him talking to Sophia Lang when I was leaving." She told him, tapping her chin thoughtfully.
Matt's eyebrows shot up, "You're kidding." His interest had peaked. "She's a senior." And she was hot.
The both of them, Taylor Fujiyama and Sophia Lang—they were kind of the girls that underclassman fantasized about.
Mimi gave him an unimpressed look, "Wipe the drool off your face, Ishida."
"I wonder if she's as good at—"
"Don't finish that, whatever it is." She held up a hand.
"Did we decide on a movie?" He effectively changed the subject with an unabashed grin.
"Should we just watch Drive, again?" She suggested defeatedly.
"Drive it is."
"Here's to stepping out of our comfort zone, huh?" She held out a spoon full of ice cream out to him.
He clanked his spoon against hers as a toast.
She kicked her legs onto the couch, so he was laying horizontally, placing them in his lap. Matt's initial reaction was to tense up, he couldn't help it, the maneuver was so quick, he hadn't been expecting it.
"Chill, Ishida. We're supposed to be relaxing."
He settled back, letting his arm hang off the back of the couch.
"I'll be honest with you, anything Ryan Gosling will always have my vote." Of course she started talking the second the movie started.
And even though there was probably no one more annoying to watch a movie with, he couldn't imagine feeling more at ease in anyone else's company.
"Hey, hold on a second… how'd you even manage to get in here?"
-x-
A/N: SORRY DON'T HATE ME!
I've been sporadically writing other things though, if that helps any?
To be honest, this was done over the weekend but I have been going back and forth with it for the past three (four?) days because I wasn't entirely sure if I wanted to include everything that I wrote in it. I just couldn't really make up my mind about what to cut (originally I wasn't going to include the Ryo and Mimi scene but something about it wouldn't let me delete) so I just left it all and hope it works.
Seriously though, thank you guys so much for all your really great reviews its seriously what keeps me writing and gosh I am so glad you like this story—seriously YOU ALL MEAN THE WORLD TO ME (showers everyone with rainbows and unicorns and skittles)
Speaking of reviews, I got a mixed bag this time. Thank you for the constructive criticism as well as the compliments both are appreciated beyond measure. I have taken your concerns into account and hopefully applied them as best I could. Got some weird ones too, like someone saying how they liked my style of writing but I should write for a different fandom where it will be appreciated because this is a sinking ship. This confused me a tad, because it made me ponder as to why this person would want to discourage another person from writing for a ship they were CLEARLY READING. Sorry, dude but Mimato is too legit to quit ;) thanks, though?
To the person who asked me if I review everything I read—the answer is generally, yes. I try not to read without reviewing (it does happen once in a while, we're all busy people after all) but I make a conscious effort to review whatever I read all the way through.
The guest who asked me how I got the idea for the boy draft—One Tree Hill. I probably should have mentioned that in the prior chapter but it was really late and I completely forgot. But yes, it was not mine and if you guys have read my previous works, you'll know that show is extremely near and dear to my heart (even after all this time)
References:
Lucy Heartfilia (not mine) if any of you have watched Fairy Tail you know EXACTLY who I'm talking about. If not, it's not really important (shes got blonde hair and brown eyes) but you can google her if you'd like : ) Her personality (while more irritating) reminded me so much of Mimi's.
Softbank: A telecommunication service (cell phone service), in America they bought out Sprint and now own it.
SMFG: Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, one of the largest banks in Japan.
LASTLY (and if you haven't read anything else of this A/N READ THIS): One of the best stories I've come across so far is Fukushuu by SincereFriendship; Do yourself a favor and read it YOU WILL BE HOOKED!
Alright, that's it for this needlessly long, rambling, pointless thing. Read, review enjoy and I hope to hear from you guys soon!