"speech"
'thoughts'
POV of a character
TENZAI
Chapter 5
Not A Waste
"See? I Told You!" Kikuchi berated her..
It was still raining outside. You can see the raindrops falling outside through the windows and hear the sound of water hitting a puddle formed in the ground. There are no people swimming that day due to the continual raining. No one came out of their houses, afraid of getting sick or worse, getting struck by lightning.
"But -sneeze- it felt good!" Kanzaki shouted in between sneezes.
Kikuchi had just entered the room, being informed by their guardians that his partner has a cold, as expected.
"What? Getting sick?" He asked sardonically.
Kanzaki folded her arms like a child and said,
"Funny. It's the running in the rain I'm referring to!"
The boy approached her bed while saying,
"I know, I know. But I told you you'll get sick in the process!"
"It's okay, actually. Kanzaki Urumi doesn't get pulled down by a simple cold."
This time, she looked at Kikuchi proudly.
Kikuchi rolled his eyes and said,
"Yeah, right. Whatever."
By that time, he was already sitting on a bean bag beside the bed. They both stopped talking as they watched the rain, almost admiringly.
-Kanzaki-
I love the rain. Really. It soothes my soul. I don't know why.
Some people say that the rain is a disaster. A bad omen, even. I don't know where they got that ? Where did they get that stupid assumption? From legends, maybe. But no one can say if legends are true so why should we believe them?
They say it destroys lots of lives and property. Does it? I mean, occasional raining won't hurt. It's when the rain becomes something bigger, a storm maybe, that it becomes destructive. A little rain won't hurt.
Besides, it's the people's fault that storms become too detrimental. Sometimes even Storm Signal No. 1 destroys millions worth of property. Why? I think it's punishment. It's just the nature's way of a comeback for what we, people, do to it.
On the other hand, there are those who believe that the rain is a blessing.
Take the Chinese, for example. If two people are vowing their love for each other, getting married, I mean, and it rains, the people will rejoice. They believe that the rain is a symbol of good luck. Good things will pour like the rain to the couple.
Anyway, I love the rain. I don't really care about the beliefs of other people. Definitely, I don't think rain is a devastating thing. Neither do I believe that it will bring me pieces of good fortune.
I just find it soothing. Comforting. It's like a friend who doesn't talk but soothes. Just the mere presence of it makes me feel relieved.
But here I am today, sick and in bed, because of the rain. I don't care at all.
-Kikuchi-
I wonder what Onizuka and the others are doing now.. And I wonder what Onizuka's third goal is. Sometimes he can be the most cunning dumb guy in the world. He seems really stupid but hey, there are some problems only he can solve.
'Coz he has his ways.
Like when he planned that motorcycle ride with Kanzaki.
I bet he knew from the beginning that she will concede. She's not yet prepared to die. And even if she didn't protest, I know Onizuka would not let her fall. He'll find another way to make her admit that she's afraid of death like most of the people in this world.
I wonder what'll happen if Onizuka didn't pull that stunt. Maybe Kanzaki's still that self-dependent stubborn girl who bombs places for her own enjoyment.
But she's still stubborn.
That's why we're here today. It's actually a waste of time.Instead of doing something for our research, we're here, sitting, and.. Well, drifting to our own worlds.
But maybe this 'waste' of time is not such a waste. It could be our rest day. They will probably postpone the research if they knew. But I honestly think we've had enough rest. The jobs they allot each day are pretty easy. Those tasks could probable even be squeezed into two or three days but we're staying here a lot longer than that.
But still, getting the whole day for yourself is nice, isn't it? It's very rare that I get the chance of having a day wherein I can do anything I want.
But what do I want? What can I do in this place that'll suit me? Hmmm.. Since this is the beach.. I can go swimming.. I ca even tour the place.
But doing that without Kanzaki could be boring. Erm.. Let me rephrase that! Doing those alone could be boring.
So to achieve both things.. I'm referring to overcoming boredom and spending time with her. Er.. What the hell am I thinking? Of course it's overcoming boredom and not being lonely in the process.
Maybe I could just stay here and watch over her. I'm sure it won't take long before she recuperates. I can read a book or two while doing that. I just hope I don't get bored in the four corners of this room.
But wait..
Kikuchi turned his attention from the rain outside to the girl beside him.
"Have you eaten your breakfast, Kanzaki?"
This shook her out of her own thoughts.
"Uh.. Not yet, actually."
"You want me to get you some food?"
The question shocked them both.
'Since when did you start serving food to a girl?' He thought.
Since Kanzaki was pretty hungry, she thought.
'Oh well, maybe I look really sick that he offered to do that kind thing. Might as well grab the offer. Hehe'
"Sure, Kikuchi. I'd love that."
Kikuchi, who was still battling himself for being kinder than normal, just nodded and started his way to the kitchen.
Kanzaki smiled at the retreating form and lay down on the bed.
- Kikuchi -
Sigh. I closed the door behind me and leaned on it. Maybe rubbing my temples would help me even just a bit. This is getting worse.
What's happening to me?? First, I start thinking about spending time with Kanzaki and now, I'm offering her some help. It's like practically saying that I'd take care of her while she's sick. What's next?
Arg.. Sigh First things first.
I went down to the kitchen to do what I'm supposed to do, only to see Ryoko-san with a tray of food in her hands.
"Oh, you're back! I was just about to bring this to your friend."
It's amazing how someone's eyes could continue glinting even if somebody staying with her under the same roof is sick.
"Actually.. I went down to get her some food, Ryoko-san."
"Well then, bring this to her for me."
She said, as she handed me the tray.
"Thanks a lot."
I said, as I took the tray from her.
I turned around immediately and went back to the room. It's already nine in the morning. I might as well hurry up.
Kanzaki was lying quietly on the bed when Kikuchi arrived. She turned her head to the door when she heard it open.
"Oh, you're back.."
The said guy just nodded again and walked to her bedside.
"Here."
He placed the tray down the side table and looked at her.
"You're fast."
She said.
"It's because when I got down, Ryoko-san was just about to bring you the food. So, I didn't spend time in choosing and preparing what to bring."
"Well then, thanks"
She said.
"No prob. Besides, the sooner you heal, the sooner we get to work on our research again. The sooner we go back to Seirin."
Kikuchi replied, walking to the bean bag he was sitting at earlier.
'Yeah, the sooner we go back.' Kanzaki thought.
'Why? Am I not a good company? Of course! I'm not even used to having company! Is that why he's helping me? And here I thought he actually cared. Oh well..! Go back to reality, Kanzaki!'
She thought as she shook her head.
Seeing her reaction, Kikuchi asked her,
"Is there something wrong?"
Kanzaki was a bit shocked, but she stopped shaking her thoughts away.
"No, no, nothing. Just a minor headache, that's all."
With that, she stood up and walked to the desk to eat.
When she was about to start, she stopped a bit.
"Hey, who's supposed to 'guide' us today?"
"I heard it's Sakurai-sensei."
Kikuchi said as-a-matter-of-factly.
"Sakurai? The chairman, eh? The job today must be tough."
Kanzaki said, before she took her first sip of the soup.
"Yeah. It's the major part, actually. Today, we're supposed to bring the device to the ocean and test it."
Kanzaki stopped and looked at Kikuchi.
"Really? My getting sick must be a really big obstacle, then."
Kikuchi's eyes assuaged.
'She must be blaming herself.'
"No. It's okay. I've already called Sakurai-sensei and told her about what happened."
"What did she say?"
"She said it's okay."
Kikuchi answered.
"Okay then. I don't think I'll stay like this for a long time, anyway."
Kanzaki said, drinking hot chocolate from her cp after.
"I think so, too."
Kikuchi said, leaning on the wall.
"Yup. I mean, It's just a freakin' cold. It won't get into me. I'll probably be back to normal later."
Kikuchi sighed and said,
"I hope so."
They stayed quiet for the rest of Kanzaki's meal. When she was through, she went back to her bed and continued gazing at the rain. Kikuchi pulled out a book from his pocket and started reading it.
About an hour later, Kanzaki was already lying on her bed. She looked at Kikuchi and inquired,
"What are you reading?"
"The Little Prince."
Kikuchi answered, his eyes glued to the book.
"Oh. I haven't read that yet. I heard it from Tomoko, though."
She said.
Kikuchi closed the book and placed it beside him.
"Figures. You know at first I wasn't interested because a lot of 'normal' people read it."
"Hmm?" Kanzaki started. "And what brought you to read it?"
Kikuchi removed his glasses and placed his elbows on his knees, rested his chin on his palms.
"In the beginning, I said, 'It won't hurt reading these stuff, right?' Besides, they say you can get even a single piece of something from any book. So I started reading it. It looked pretty lame outside. With that rugged-looking boy and a portrait of the world in the cover."
"Uh-huh. I have seen the cover, too. It's like a drawing of a child."
Kanzaki said, turning to her side to face the guy she's talking to.
"Yes, and even in the beginning, there're drawings that might seem stupid at first. But when I read it, I found out it's not really shallow. If you try to understand things more, it's more of figurative. Plus,"
He said.
"Hmm?"
Kanzaki said a bit sluggishly.
"The thing that attracted me in the beginning is its criticisms of the older people. It's quite funny but true. Funny that somebody would actually publish that deliberately. It said older people tend not to notice important points about things anymore. They focus on such things like money, unlike young people who look more on the beauty of things."
He continued.
Kanzaki, being the it's-the-elder's-fault type, said,
"Sounds interesting..!"
Kikuchi turned his head to her and said,
"You should read it. It's not as stupid as it seems. I'll lend it to you, if you want. I've finished it already."
He handed her the book and she gazed at it, observing the features and summary written at the back.
"It won't hurt reading it. You could even read it within an hour."
He said.
Kanzaki placed the book beside her pillow and said,
"Well then, I'll read it. If a smart guy like you appreciated it, I think it deserves to be read. I'll read it, but not before I get some rest."
"Okay. I'll just go to my room and fix some things. I'll prepare the device since it got wet yesterday."
Kanzaki just nodded 'coz she's already half-asleep by then. He exited the room and went to do what he said he'll do.