Disclaimer: I don't own Hikaru no Go. It belongs to Hotta Yumi and Obata Takeshi.
Unexpected Person
Hikaru opened Touya Kouyo's Go salon door and greeted Ichikawa who returned his greetings in the same cheerful manner.
As usual, after school ended, Hikaru would go to that Go salon to do his frequent game with Akira.
"Maybe today you should wait in line to play against him," Ichikawa smiled as she took Hikaru's bag and placed it at the shelf.
"Huh? Why?" Hikaru raised his brows.
Still smiling, Ichikawa glanced at a direction. Hikaru followed to the place where her eyes pointed. He saw Akira sitting at the usual chair with his usual serious expression, facing the usual Go-ban, but the seat which Hikaru should've been at was taken.
Hikaru wouldn't be mistaken in recognizing the person who was invading his place from his white suit and his broad shoulders.
He stepped lightly approaching those two with a bit upset feeling towards the unexpected guy.
"Ah, Shindou…" Ogata smiled to Hikaru as Hikaru stood near the table, "We were just discussing your last game at the Meijin league."
"Ogata-san pointed out an obvious mistake you made. He agreed with me about that one," Akira looked up to Hikaru.
"We already discussed about it yesterday, moreover, I still won the game," Hikaru tried to show that he had enough and didn't want to discuss about it anymore. "Now is a new day for a new game," he grinned, this time he tried to sound that he wants Ogata to leave his seat.
"I hope you won't make the same mistake you did," Ogata stood up and smiled.
Hikaru pouted inside noticing that Ogata was actually mocking him.
"Well, see you tomorrow Akira-kun, Shindou…" Ogata insert a cigarette between his lips. Even though he excused himself to both Akira and Hikaru, but it was obvious he was glancing only to Akira.
"You'll be here again tomorrow?" Hikaru couldn't help asking to hear the word 'tomorrow'
"Yeah, and I hope that time we'll be discussing an excellent game from you, Shindou," Then Ogata left after throwing an odd smile but somehow charming.
"He always gives me the creeps," Hikaru sweatdropped staring at Ogata's distancing back. "Anyway, Touya, you didn't say that he'll be here." Hikaru turned to Akira.
"I didn't know he was coming. He said suddenly he felt like dropping by since he wasn't doing anything today." Akira said while he was clearing the stones off the Go-ban.
"He's a little bit unpredictable guy, isn't he?"
Akira smiled softly, "Not exactly."
Hikaru got silenced for a while to hear that and to see Akira looking like that while he was saying those words. Unsurprisingly, it seemed that Akira has known Ogata pretty well that he could say the line.
After the Go-ban cleared, they did a nigiri to start the game for that day.
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"Lately, you seemed getting closer with Touya, don't you think?"
"Huh?" Hikaru lifted his face to Waya sitting in front of him at the ramen shack.
"It's just the way I see it," Waya grinned, "You don't have to look so protesting."
'I am?' "I was just surprised," now Hikaru really looked protesting, "I don't think that's weird. I mean, I spent more time with him almost everyday… playing Go," he added.
"Well, to know that you guys are rivals, I think that's suitable enough to be called weird."
"Everything changes," Hikaru replied carelessly.
"To what?"
Hikaru stared at Waya annoyed. He could see clearly a grin at Waya's eyes.
"What's with you? You usually don't like talking about Touya," Hikaru was back with his ramen again didn't bother to look at Waya's face.
"Curiosity I guess."
"Curiosity kills the cat."
"Fortunately I wasn't one."
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Hikaru threw his bag on his bed and dropped himself beside it. Downstairs, his mother was saying something about taking a bath.
'Lately, you seemed getting closer with Touya, don't you think?' Waya's words echoed in his head.
'Really? I seemed closer with him?' Hikaru didn't think it was such a big deal that Waya should bring it as a subject. Suddenly Hikaru wonder does Akira think about the same thing too.
"Maybe I could ask him tomorrow at the Go salon," he said.
Hikaru stood up and left to take a bath, but the word 'tomorrow' made his face changed remembering an unexpected guest will be there too.
tbc
