Behind a Smile: 03: Yakimochi Kesshite Ii
Author's notes: Hiya! Ano ne…
Domo arigato gozaimasu for Midaoru-san's comments!!! Arigato! Your comments have helped me so much with your remarks and I'll try to improve the story for you guys. Thanks so much!!
Hah! I feel so inspired as I listen to my RK collection of Mp3's… hearing Misao's Ice Blue Eyes and Sou-chan's Journey over and over again made me feel so good and made me write this chapter earlier than expected…heeheehee…Let's go make Misao-chan blush, ne?
Disclaimer: A. Pikachu does not own RK or any of its characters. The plot is taken from a similar plot made by Megori, taken from the fan fic 'For the Sake of Friendship'. Some differences may occur from my fic and from Megori-san's. Arigato gozaimasu.
**
03::Yakimochi Kesshite Ii//Jealousy is Never Good::03
**
The next few days flew by pretty quickly, with Makimachi Misao swooning over the famed Shinomori Aoshi every single day. Hiding his true feelings behind his smile, Soujiro's emotions started to trouble him even more as Misao stared dreamily outside the classroom window, probably daydreaming about Aoshi for the hundredth time that week.
Their next teacher, having hair of corn-yellow and a Kansai accent, entered their classroom. Prying his blue eyes away from the girl staring out to the autumn landscape, Seta Soujiro focused on his teacher. Sawagejo Chou closed the classroom door behind him, silencing the class as he leaned on his table right after he dropped his book on it.
"Okay, alright," said the teacher, trying to quiet down the noise his class was starting to produce. "You all know that the first soccer match will be tomorrow, Saturday, right?"
The class nodded.
"And of course, our own Seta Soujiro, star soccer player, will participate!"
The group of teenagers cheered and hooted as Soujiro only smiled at his classmates.
"Oi, oi, oi…first off, the College Soccer team would watch practice today – they're going to observe our team members to see who's going to be a college soccer team member next year." Chou explained to his class, making the whole lot of teenagers whisper to each other, wondering who would get in.
"But of course, we wish our star soccer player the best of luck, don't we, class?"
The class rooted for Soujiro, hooting loudly as a few girls screamed in favor of the blue-eyed soccer star. With a beaming group of friends, he only smiled again and started to look at Misao.
Soujiro's smile faltered for a very short while, seeing what his best friend was doing. Apparently, the emerald-eyed girl had no plan of listening to the teacher – she made plans to stare out the window all day to dream about Aoshi. She didn't even grin or smile at him, as she would usually do whenever he was praised – she just sighed as her dreamy eyes cast themselves over the grounds of the campus. Feeling slightly disappointed, the aforementioned soccer star adjusted his mask of a smile and turned to their blonde teacher.
"Alright, enough about that – get your books and turn to page 110, to the Reformation during the Meiji Era…"
**
With the autumn wind playing across the huge school campus, Seta Soujiro tied his shoelaces out in the open field, strands of dark brown dancing over his eyes. His fanclub were seated on the bleachers, with Kaoru, Kenshin, Megumi, Sano and Misao seated on the front row. Meanwhile, on the other side of the soccer field, the college soccer team was seated quietly, a few having notepads to observe the high school members.
Watching silently as his fellow teammates kicked the checkered ball around the field, kicking it with swift movements, Soujiro's blue eyes strayed over to his friends. They were chattering animatedly, with Sano and Megumi bickering out loud as Kenshin smiled sheepishly. Kaoru, on the other hand, was talking to Misao.
"Seta Soujiro."
With his name being called, Soujiro smiled as he went up to the soccer ball a few feet before him. Delivering a last glance to his friends and fans, which were screaming by the way, he started to kick the ball across the field as the autumn sun lazily beamed upon him.
*
"AAAAH!!!"
"SETA-SAMA!!!!!!!!"
"GO SETA-SAMA, GO!!!!!!!!!"
"KAKKOI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"
Misao and the others winced lightly at the shrieks of Soujiro's fans. They were much different than Soujiro's…uh, normal fanclub – they were girls who were absolutely smitten with their soccer star friend.
"Sou-chan, ganbatte!!" shouted Misao at the top of her lungs, making Soujiro's fans glare at her and stop screaming.
Whispers began to buzz throughout the huge Soujiro fan club.
"Hmph, who does she think she is, calling Seta-sama 'Sou-chan?"
"Noisy little brat."
"She's not even pretty enough to be close to Seta-sama."
With a twitching eyebrow, Misao tried to sit down as Kenshin and Kaoru tried to calm the emerald-eyed girl.
"Calm down, Misao-dono…" Kenshin said, gently trying to make the enraged best friend of Soujiro sit on the bleachers.
"Don't listen to them, Misao-chan – they don't know what they're talking about."
One fangirl tapped Kaoru's shoulder. "Uh, excuse me, like, we DO know what we're talking about! How dare that girl," she pointed at the infuriated girl before her. "Call our beloved Seta Soujiro-sama 'Sou-chan?!'"
Sanosuke, getting a hint of what was going on, calmly stood up before Soujiro heard anything as the blue-eyed boy kicked the ball around.
"Oi, oi…" Sano started, waving his hands as if it could do anything to calm the two girls down. "Back off a little before she explodes…"
With her fists clenched, Misao turned around, irritation written all over her. "Why you…"
The fangirl scoffed, flipping her straw-looking black hair behind her. "Hah, what are you going to do, you little –
"I'M HIS BEST FRIEND, YOU BAKA!!!" Misao screamed, trying to break free of her friends' grip. Kaoru, Sano and Megumi winced at the loudness of Misao's voice, while all Kenshin could get out of himself was a startled 'Oro?'. Soujiro, meanwhile, hearing the shrill yell, stopped and looked curiously at his best friend.
"Misao-chan?" said Soujiro in a loud voice, making sure Misao calmed down and heard him. "Daijoubu ka?"
The mentioned girl turned around to wave and smile at her best friend. "Aa! Daijoubu! Just go on and we'll root for ya!"
As he smiled, his fangirls squealed. "Arigato, Misao-chan."
But at the sound of the name, the fangirls glared again at Misao. Misao, meanwhile, only stuck out her tongue.
"I told you I'm his best friend." She said, making the girls shut up as she sat back down.
Makimachi Misao blushed furiously as she noticed who was looking at her from the other side of the field. A certain ice-blue-eyed 20-year old was staring at her, with his short locks of ebony swaying with the wind. A smile was formed on his lips, and even though Misao couldn't tell, Shinomori Aoshi was completely amused.
"Oh my gosh…" murmured the awe-struck Misao, getting the attention of her four friends who were busy watching Soujiro practice.
"Misao, what are you gawking at? Soujiro's going to make the shot any minute now!" said Sano, his brows knotted together in confusion. Kaoru and Megumi, meanwhile, only sighed; knowing whom Misao was staring at.
"Misao-chan, aren't you going to look at Sou-chan…?" Megumi said, somewhat irritated of Misao's behavior.
"It's him…" Misao muttered, her eyes completely locked on one single form. And that form didn't belong to Soujiro. "Shinomori Aoshi… and he's smiling at me!!! Oh my gosh, I can't believe it!!!"
Misao started to rant, clinging on an irritated Kaoru's sleeve. They were there to watch Soujiro pass the screening – not to gawk over some college sophomore! Sano and Megumi were getting a annoyed of Misao's actions little by little, as Kenshin only placed his eyes on Soujiro as he tried to push the squealing sounds of Misao far away from his mind. Kaoru sighed and tried to watch Soujiro pause for a moment.
Looking back at his friends for one final while, Soujiro's small depression grew into a huge dejection. His best friend and somehow infatuation wasn't looking where she was supposed to be – she didn't even pay attention to him and the soccer ball. Her shimmering emerald eyes were focused on the figure on the other side of him. Little by little, the weird feeling of jealousy started to eat him up inside, his eyes slowly drifting to the ground below him.
"Oi, Seta." Said his coach a few seconds later. "Seta?"
With a small shake of his head, Soujiro concentrated on the ball and pretended it was Shinomori Aoshi's head. Using the newfound but strange rage coming from within, Soujiro kicked the checkered ball as hard as he can – sending the goalie diving for it, making the ball spin on its own with such velocity as it smashed against the net.
"Good shot, Seta!" The college soccer team coach exclaimed, clapping his hands as his fans cheered, with the inclusions of Kenshin, Kaoru, Sano and Megumi.
Pushing the depressing thoughts of Misao to the back of his troubled mind, Soujiro looked up from the ground and smiled at the two coaches. "Arigato gozaimasu."
Noticing that the crowd around her was screaming with admiration, Misao snapped out of her Aoshi-filled daze. "Huh? What happened?" she asked dumbly, staring at Kenshin who was grinning and clapping (Very good shot, Soujiro-dono!). Kaoru was shouting praise at the blue-eyed boy (Go Soujiro-kun!); Sano who was waving his fist in the air (Show 'em what you're made of, Soujiro!); Megumi who was very amazed of the boy's skill with the ball (Excellent, Soujiro-kun!); and lastly, Soujiro's fangirls were screaming their lungs out, absolutely stunned at seeing the one-hell-of-a shot.
From the looks of it, she was the only one sitting down. Standing up abruptly, seeing that Soujiro waved his hand towards their direction (sending most of his fans swooning), Misao chose to ask Kaoru what happened.
"Oi, Kaoru-chan, is Sou-chan's turn over? What did he do?" Misao asked, poking Kaoru on her shoulder. Kaoru meanwhile, turning to the girl and answered her question, a hint of surprise etched on her voice.
"Didn't you watch? He kicked that ball HARD!" Kaoru said in pure amazement. "The College Coach was impressed!"
Misao was wide-eyed.
"Yeah! His ball even span on the net! How come you didn't see that?" Sano exclaimed, still stunned at the shot executed by their friend. "Now I know why he's a soccer star!"
The girl was still amazed.
Megumi narrowed her eyes suspiciously at the girl, wondering how Misao could miss watching Soujiro kick the ball and amaze everyone. Hell – she was his best friend! "What exactly, or who, were you looking at, Misao-chan?"
Misao turned around to meet Kenshin's inquisitive gaze.
"Ah…I was looking at Aoshi-sama." Misao answered, glancing quickly at the other side of the field, catching a fast glimpse of Aoshi. Soujiro meanwhile, was walking quietly, his head bowed down, troubled head brimming with unidentifiable emotions as he headed towards the locker room. He only smiled as his teammates and the College team praised him for his wonderful shot.
Kenshin blinked a few times. "So you never really saw what Soujiro-dono did?"
Misao bowed her head down shamefully. "No…"
Megumi placed her hand on Misao's shoulder. "It's alright, Misao-chan. Soujiro-kun will understand. Besides, it's just one shot."
"But it's his shot! I'm his best friend – I'm supposed to see it and I didn't." murmured Misao guiltily. "I'm his best friend…"
*
With a mask of a smile plastered on his lips, a fresh-looking Seta Soujiro approached his group of friends, his duffel and school bag slung on his shoulder.
"Ara," said Soujiro, looking at the group of five seated on the bench. "How come you guys are so quiet all of a sudden? Something wrong?"
Kenshin looked up to the soccer star. "Oro?" he said, clueless. "We're quiet?"
Soujiro nodded, playing with his soccer ball a few times. "Yeah, quieter than usual. In fact, you guys are never quiet."
Kaoru smiled sheepishly and waved her hands defensively before her. "Ahahaha, don't mind that, Sou-chan. Let's just go home, ne?"
Misao interrupted her. "I'm so sorry Sou-chan, I missed your shot and I didn't see it. I was looking at Aoshi-sama."
Soujiro kneeled down to Misao's eye level, pretending that his smile widened. "It's all right. It's just one shot. Besides…" he looked down for a moment, raising Misao's chin to make her look at him, although his next set of words were painful to say. "If you saw your Aoshi-sama, it's alright."
Beaming happily to her 'understanding' best friend, Misao hugged the boy unbeknownst to his hidden delight. "Oh thank you, Sou-chan! Thanks so much!" Letting go of the soccer star, she turned to everyone else. "Let's go home!"
The rest agreed quietly, rising from their seats and proceeding to the main gate of the school.
*
The short walk was unusually silent. Misao was ahead, skipping happily; following her was Kenshin and Sano, talking about how great Soujiro's shot was; and lastly, Kaoru, Soujiro and Megumi walked behind the two.
"Gomen ne…Sou-kun." Said Kaoru, glancing at the blue-eyed boy after Megumi's explanation.
"This must hurt you a lot." Megumi remarked quietly, her eyes cast sympathetically over Soujiro's face. The supposed-to-be Tenken, meanwhile, only smiled and chuckled; although deep inside him he didn't feel like it.
"No, it's alright. Besides, I'm her best friend – why should it hurt me?"
His response made Kaoru and Megumi's eyes widen in surprise.
"If seeing Shinomori-san makes Misao-chan happy – happy enough to slightly forget about me – it's alright. As long as Misao-chan's happy." Muttered Soujiro, the complacent smile pasted on his face.
"Tell me one thing, Sou-kun." Megumi started, looking sideways at the soccer star. "Are you –
A squeal stopped Megumi from continuing her query. Curious, the group looked up to see their friend, Makimachi Misao, blushing profusely in the arms of a 20-year-old college sophomore. It seemed that as Misao was busy daydreaming and skipping happily that she bumped into the 'man of her dreams'. Losing her balance, Misao squealed, making Aoshi bend down to catch the falling girl in his arms.
"Ah, Makimachi-san, we meet again."
Soujiro immediately lowered his gaze to the immobile soccer ball in front of him. He clenched his fists tightly, telling himself that he should control the indescribable rage that started to eat him up inside. Unconscious of what he was doing, and out of the rage of jealousy, the soccer star kicked the ball as hard as he can.
"OROOOOO!!!!"
Thud.
"Kenshin!"
"Ken-san!"
"Oi, Kenshin!"
Looking up, he immediately realized that he had just hit the back of Himura Kenshin's head.
Author's notes: waaai! A longer chapter! I finished this at…hmm…10:56 pm, June 2, 2003. Started at June 1, 2003, 12:56 pm. Heeheehee…
A. Pikachu would like to thank rei_chan for her wonderful advice! Arigato!!
Wai! I hope you guys liked the chapter!!! I'm listening right now to 'Tactics' by the Yellow Monkeys, the 1st ending song of the RK series! Heeheehee!!!! And of course, to my wonderful reviewers…
Special notes for special people!
Midaoru-san: *takes notes* Sou desu ka? *nods* I was thinking that Soujiro, on some level, knows what those emotions are – but he never felt what it was. In some explanation that Yumi told Soujiro when he was a kid, Yumi tried to explain what those emotions are. Heeheehee. *takes notes* Wai! My portrayal of Misao-chan's good? Arigato! I hope I improved somehow!
White Witch-san: Wai! Pinoy ka rin!!!! Pero Shishio was kinda good in this ficcie…taking Sou-chan under his wing and everything. Here's the next chap, and I hope you enjoyed!!!
Yuriko-san: Thank you very much! Misao-chan would end up with Sou-chan, although…uh… yeah, no spoilers! *wink*
Cat H-san: Wai! Pinoy ka rin!!!! Taga san ka naman? Ako taga-Manila. Ara, Sou-chan is TOO polite? O.O Did I make him better in this ficcie? I hope he's not TOO polite here ^^;. But what about Misao-chan? Is she too perky, or needs more perky-ing?
Violettegal345: It does? Wai! Thank you very much!!
Phoe-chan-san: Hoeeee?! Wai! You reviewed!!! *very happy* Sou desu ka? I was kinda thinking that they're out of character sometimes…hmm. Anyway, I hope I can, and thanks so much! Besides, you deserve the comments! ^^ Hope you can update your ficcie/s and I'll review them!
Raei Dagger (no need for a –san): Binasa mo ba talaga yung ficcie? O.O Anyway, I'll go write the X ficcie as soon as I can…heeheehee…
jap_girl-san of Bishoujo: Trust me, Sou-chan will get…uh…poorer, if that's the word. He'll just suffer more…heeheehee…
TO everyone else: arigato gozaimasu!
A. Pikachu