As he opened the door to the fast-food burger place, Oishi was met with a wave of busy voices that threatened to knock him off his feet and back onto the similarly busy sidewalk. Everywhere he turned there was action, so much that he nearly missed the frantic waving from the furthest corner table. Oishi smiled and waved back, then began to carefully weave his way through the crowd.
There was a compacted human pile-up right around the tills and Oishi blushed as he squeezed past a very pretty college-age girl, unable to avoid a lot of rather embarrassing body contact, which she either didn't mind or notice. Oishi did, however, manage to reach the place where Taka was seated with a minimal amount of pushing. He thought briefly that maybe it was a little odd to be meeting like this. He hadn't seen Taka for weeks, then suddenly meeting up twice in the course of two days; but then, this was a scheduled meeting, a direct result of... Oishi stopped thinking suddenly and studied his seated friend. "I hope you haven't been waiting too long."
Taka smiled and shook his head, "No, I just managed to get a spot." He gestured to the cup at the spot across from him as he pulled his own closer to him, "I got you a cola...I didn't know if you'd want anything else."
Oishi sat down slowly, like he was testing bath water with a single outstretched toe, "No, that's just fine, thank you," he replied skittishly. They looked at each other for a moment before Oishi took a sip of his soda and shifted his gaze away. He realized belated that this was probably going to be very difficult. Neither was the talkative type, where personal matters were concerned, and generally relied on one or more of their more gregarious friends to supply conversation.
The pause began to multiply itself, growing steadily more uncomfortable, then, "You really don't mind meeting with me on you day off?"
Oishi looked up, straw still in his mouth, and gave a questioning "Eh?" before he took a moment to replay what Taka had said. He smiled a little. "No, not at all. I know you've been very busy lately."
Taka chuckled nervously, "But I still feel kinda bad having you meet me on my break."
"Even though I'm the one who insisted we meet today?" Oishi strained against his falling smile.
Taka let the conversation rest for a moment then changed the subject, "I see you're still near the top of the class. What was it last test? Fifth?"
Oishi looked away and let his head sink back into his shoulders, "Something like that," he muttered. He had been third actually, a fact which hadn't even registered with him as he glanced at the class ranking sheet on the way to practice; and in fact, it was only now that someone had mentioned it to him that he even formed any sort of realization of his own success.
His jump in grades hadn't really surprised him, but then, not a lot in recent weeks had; time had become disjointed and his classes consumed him. He would start out for school then realize three steps later he was there, or begin studying after dinner then glance at the digital clock on his desk and notice that he needed to be awake and heading to school in three and a half hours. Only tennis practice seemed to drag on through the space of small eternities, each day more painful than the one before, and that certainly didn't surprise him.
But that had all changed today.
Oishi had been surprised when he was able to catch the subway; surprised when he found the agreed upon spot at the agreed upon time; he'd even been surprised he managed to pull himself out of bed this morning. Oishi's expression turned from embarrassed to utterly blank in the space of moments, his glassy eyes obviously not seeing the tall paper cup he was rolling back and forth between his palms.
If Taka noticed the look on Oishi's face, a combination of confusion and a rare form of shellshock that he'd only ever see occur between doubles partners, he pretended not to notice. "Still, it's wonderful that your grades are so good." Just like he pretended not to notice yesterday. "That's what I'd expect from our old vice-captain." Just like he pretended not to notice lots of things.
A small, genuine smile played at the corners of Oishi's lips as he responded with a soft, "Thank you."
Then Oishi eyes blinked open and watched as the generally mild tempered boy began to twist roughly at his napkin until it started to tear, while worrying his bottom lip between his teeth. Taka took a deep breath then looked directly at the boy opposite him, then jumped as Oishi said his name, voice rising in question. Taka put aside the napkin then took a deep breath of preparation before looking up and pushing forward. "Oishi, I know you don't really want to talk to me here; I mean, I'm probably not the one you should be talking to about this." He looked back at his soda, "I think...well, Fuji would be a much better person, because...well, you know..."
Oishi blinked. "Taka-san?" he prodded with his voice when it became clear the other boy had sincerely hoped to let the conversation end with that.
Taka looked back at Oishi in response, eyes gleaming and his voice louder then he had anticipated, "Well, you did just want to know more didn't you...about Kikumaru-kun and Kimiko-san."
Oishi looked away. "Taka-san, I..." he began apologetically, but Taka interrupted him with a brief wave of his hand.
"No, its fine Oishi...sorry," he gave the other a reassuring smile, "it's just that when you insisted that we get together as soon as possible right after you saw Kikumaru-kun with Kimiko-san it was pretty obvious what you wanted to talk about."
Oishi stared blankly for only a moment at Taka's smile before the blood visibly drained from his face. "I'm sorry for taking your time. I should go now." It came out in a torrent of words as Oishi tensed and attempted to leave. He managed to make it halfway to standing before Taka's hand shot out. His long fingers easily circled Oishi's wrist. "Wait," the interjection came out strongly, "Stay for a bit...please." His face softened as Oishi looked down at him, halfway standing and leaning precariously across the table. Once he felt some of the tension in that wrist leave and was sure Oishi wouldn't run, Taka dropped his wrist. "At least finish your soda." His smile was gentle and Oishi realized as he slowly sat back down that he'd always had a massive weakness for smiles.
"I'm sorry, I've been rude, Taka-san." He bowed his head toward the table.
"No, it's fine," he waved it off with both hands and a shy little smile, "I can understand why this sort of development would keep you pretty preoccupied."
Oishi said nothing, just sat back and studied the place where his straw intersected the lid with a vaguely polite smile on his face that felt like it was slipping off.
Taka took another breath and continued, eyes carefully monitoring the other's face, "But I understand why he wouldn't want to mention it to you."
Oishi's head lifted suddenly and he stared into Taka's face unable to keep his eyes from narrowing into a uncommonly emotional expression. "Why? I don't understand," his eyes flashed, "Explain it to me...please. Please explain it to me." Oishi sensed something inside himself slip and strange liquid that felt like begging bubble up within him
Taka blinked and pulled his head back at Oishi's expression unused to seeing face twisted like that, "Well," he ventured, voice tentative, "I guess it's because you'd be jealous."
Oishi's heart gave one hard thud that rang through his entire body then subsided into echoes that overlaid the rapid palpitations in his chest. "Jealous?" He strained to steady his voice hoping for nonchalance but he ended up sounding defensive anyway.
Taka's brows furrowed at the question. "I guess, well," he searched for an explanation to the obvious, confusion written on his face. "Eiji is dating a really popular and cuteāno, more pretty really...and she's a third year and you guys are partners and, well...you, you know...don't have...a girlfriend..." Taka's voice trailed off as he hesitated over every word, growing steadily more embarrassed as he stated the truth.
Oishi's heart immediately ceased its half-time rhythm and he tried to let out the breath he'd been holding indiscreetly. He looked away, a bit of nervous pink shading his cheeks. "I wouldn't be like that," his voice was persuasive as he talked softly to himself.
The motion of Taka's hands being smacked against the table made Oishi jump as the other boy leaned forward. "I know!" he exclaimed, eyes round and mouth firm with conviction. "You'd be try to be happy for Kikumaru-kun, that you'd want to know that he found a girl he liked so well, I'm sure, but he just kept insisting that nobody say anything to you!"
Taka stoppered his words quickly but his mouth hung open just a little, like he was hoping that they would take the hint and fly back into his mouth.
For an intensely drawn out moment there was silence between the two boys, even the incessant buzz of the restaurant seemed to fade behind the blood roaring in Oishi's ears.
After a good long while, the noise of the other customers returned in full force; Taka started to stammer explanations, but Oishi's own words cut his off sharply.
"So Eiji didn't want me to know, huh?" He could barely make out the sound of his own voice over the high pitched tittering of three school girls behind him. His eyes didn't leave the table top.
Taka made a vague noise low in his throat that could have been interpreted as some sign of assent, but before he could muster a defense of his red-headed friend Oishi interrupted him a second time.
"Don't you think it's a little...strange?" Oishi questioned, his voice painfully strained but tentative at the same time, a toxic mixture of emotion and uncertainty laced in-between the syllables. When it became clear that Taka couldn't think of a way to respond Oishi nearly swallowed the remaining words right then. His heart beat so hard he felt as though he were going to shake apart into a thousand pieces at the very thought of this betrayal. His head swam with the need lash out and hurt in a way that he couldn't believe of himself. "I mean," he continued, his voice shaking, "don't you think it's strange? Eiji going out with a girl of all things."
He glanced up searching Taka's face for an encouraging reaction and saw only confusion etched there. He swallowed, "I mean, doesn't it strike you as strange, because..." the words stuck in Oishi's throat, nerves bleeding away his anger, "Eiji is...well, you know..."
Taka watched as Oishi let his head fall forward and his words trailed off into nothing. He sighed as he racked his brain for a response then nodded slightly in agreement with himself before he gathered the courage to reply. "I know you think that Eiji's a little immature to be dating," he gently tapped the lid of his soda, "I had my doubts right after they started dating too, but..." he trailed off considering his next words carefully, "Eiji's really been...different lately."
Oishi searched himself and found he had nothing to respond with to such a simple truth.
"And I guess," Taka continued on, attempting to fill Oishi's desperate need for information, "if they've been going out for nearly a month now you have to admit that something about them works."
Oishi's straw bent in half. Taka pretended not to notice and took a long gulp of his soda; hoping to moisten his vocal cords before they pulled so tight they'd snap under the strain of the words he needed to say. His breath was deep and it rasped wetly in his throat.
"Kimiko-san asked Eiji go for a Sunday walk in the park with her nearly a month ago. After about a week it became pretty clear they were officially an item. Kimiko-san doesn't have a lot of time, well, more than most third-years because she's not planning on attending any sort of college, I think..." He paused for a moment, considering where he needed to go next, "From what I understand of the rumors it's all been pretty innocent. They were spotted holding hands by the lake in the park earlier this week but that's about it." He sighed and thought about what Oishi wanted to hear and then he considered the truth, "It's just his first girlfriend."
Taka looked at the top of Oishi's head and frowned, then set his hand down on the table a little more firmly then intended. They both jumped a little at the sound Taka shocked by his own audacity and Oishi just surprised by the noise. Taka, confident that he now had the other boy undivided attention, looked aside and cleared his throat, the blush on his cheeks faint but there. His eyes grew gentle as he turned them back to Oishi's face and he leaned across the Formica tabletop as his voice grew soft and warm.
"No matter how much he seems to like her, she's just his first girlfriend," he repeated gently, "chances are it's not really going to last all that much longer, because...well that's just how these things usually go." He took another sip of soda then continued, "But once she's gone there'll probably be another one set to take her place," a hint of conspiracy crept into Taka's smile, "or maybe you'll be the next one to get a girl." Oishi's eyes widened, but Taka only grinned back before his face turned serious again. "You two will always be the Golden Pair, but you can't cling to tennis forever." Warm brown eyes fixed intently on shocked green, "You understand, right?"
The stiff bottom edge of Oishi's paper cup tapped twice against the table as he looked down, visibly gathering his thoughts. "I suppose you're right," he conceded vaguely. He took a deep breath then forcibly pulled a smile across his face, "It's not like I can marry Eiji."
Taka's breath caught at the painful joke and his face fell as he took in the agonized look on Oishi face. Taka spared a moment to wonder if Oishi realized the pain around his eyes combined with the strained smile created an expression that was bordering on hysterical.
"Oishi, I..." But the words found no path to take, lost in the woods of uncertainty Taka let out a sigh, "I have to get going." He put his straw to his lips and slurped up the remainder of his soda. He stood and tossed the cup in the nearby garbage then turned back to face the slight confused tennis player.
Oishi wondered as he watched the paper cup disappear into the trash when Taka had managed to finish his drink. His own sat before him, barely touched and very nearly forgotten about. With a little start he noticed Taka making for the exit and started to stand to join him, only to be stopped by an insistent voice.
"No, it's alright, Oishi. You should sit here and finish your cola." He paused for a long moment, his expression the very best version of helpful he could muster, then continued, "You need take a moment to think." He smiled down at Oishi's tense form. "We should do this some other time," he suggested softly, "when I can stay for a bit." He started to walk away then turn and called back over his shoulder, "See you later."
As the voice of his friend faded from his ears Oishi was left surrounded by the noise of the customers all around. He waited at the empty table for slow count of ten then stood cautiously and tossed soda cup into the trash. The wet thunk of it hitting the back resounded loudly in his head as he walked through the double glass doors and out onto the sidewalk.
Oishi was immediately and willingly swept along with the crowd as he glanced down at his watch, confirming that it was indeed a bad time to try getting anywhere, but the mass of people he was caught up in seemed to be rolling along at a decent clip to the nearest station. Caught up in the swiftly flowing current of foot traffic and not needing to pay attention to where his feet were taking him, Oishi allowed himself to consider exactly where it was he was going.
There were so many things that needed his concentration right now, not the least of which was his studies in preparation of entrance exams. He faltered a bit in his stride, right toe catching slightly on the pavement, as he realized just how soon he'd need to start considering such things. He looked up at a tall building in the distance as if seeing it for the first time and smiled. Oishi felt himself mature right there, with each step he left something of his childhood behind. Now was not the time to be clinging to stuffed bears and ice cream cones, he assured himself, forward motion was necessary to grow into a young man who could contribute to his community and family.
He counted his steps as he descended the stairs down into the subway and realized as he reached the bottom that the odd pain in the pit of his stomach must be hunger. Oishi peeled himself off from the crowd and his forward motion stopped dead once he'd pulled himself from the flow. He felt the odd urge to brush the dirt that wasn't there from his clothes, but resisted as he walked over to a nearby vending machine and pulled a few coins from his pocket, realizing that once away from the main path of traffic the station was surprisingly empty.
He stopped in front of a machine that looked fairly promising, rolling his money between his fingers as he considered the brightly colored packages. One slick gold 100 yen piece slipped against another and went bouncing across the cement floor with a gentle ringing clang.
A soft exclamation left Oishi's mouth as he reached out his hand towards the deserting coin as if he expected it to come back to him of its own device. His feet kicked in after a moment and he chased after it, bending deeply at the waist, fingers outstretched. The coin stopped before he could reach it, rolling in successively tighter circles until it flipped on its side and wobbled for a moment before coming to rest right in front of a strange sort of alcove that might have at one time had some purpose but was now simply another darkened corner in a downtown subway.
As he reached down to grab the coin a flash of flesh tone moved deep in the shadows off to his right. Every highly trained muscle in Oishi's body tensed with nearly enough force to pop his joints as he braced for flight, before he realized that no immediate threat existed here.
The instantaneous adrenaline shot was replaced by shock of a much more indignant sort as he realized that there were two high school students making out in the subway with an audacity that made the first-year student want to stamp his foot. He had been bare instants away from opening his mouth to say something when the hinges of his jaw suddenly became unstuck.
He recognized that pink backpack.
He recognized that bright red hair.
Nothing on earth could have stopped Oishi from leaping away quickly folding himself back into the crowd at the base of the stairs getting pulled by the fluid human mass inexorably toward the subway. His subway pass trembled but managed to slide it into the slot anyway. Oishi caught it on the second grab as it popped out the other side.
He grasped a support far overhead and stared intently at the hair line of the neck of the twenty-something business man in front of him. The car gave an unexpected jerk about halfway to his stop as Oishi realized that he'd just lost 100 yen.
Oishi was against the rather tall man by the insistent press of human bodies as the subway lurched to a shaky halt. The first-year, along with a dozen or so others, pushed forcibly through to the doors, while the rest simply shifted aside to make room for the oncoming passengers. Forced out through the door and onto the mostly empty platform; Oishi suddenly felt very alone as he let his feet walk him the few blocks to his house.
He must have responded to his mother as she called to him from the kitchen, because she informed him of the state of the evening meal as he plodded up the stairs to his room.
Darkened green eyes rested briefly on his racket bag where it leaned up against his closet door, then on his desk strewn with books before he stepped forward and fall face first into his bed, arms reaching out to clutch the soft white pillow to his face. He took a deep calming breath and realized that his mother must have done laundry as he dug his face deep into the clean softness. Oishi felt the fabric around his mouth grow warm with his breath and he closed his eyes against the light that streamed through his window.
