Chapter Five: A Date: Part 2, An Odd Feeling

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"Don't you dare take her!" Aota began "or else…"

Kaede still had no reaction. He didn't reply, and he didn't also stop. Aota was rather irked by his actions.

"I said…!" he paused, seeing Kaede glare at him. Then Kaede let go of Haruko, and faced Aota.

"So, you really want to fight…!" Aota continued. "Very well, Mr. Popular… let me show you what Judo could bring you…!" He began to attack Kaede, and he dodged it with one quick side turn.

"What the---"

He almost gasped. "Try this!" he did a quick somersault, but he was still slow for Kaede.

"Stop it, Aota-kun!" Haruko yelled. But Aota was just filled with the green monster of jealousy. Haruko ran to her brother, "Big brother, stop them!"

"I just can't." Akagi said, looking tensed. "They're too vicious."

"Sakuragi-kun!" Haruko came to Sakuragi.

Sakuragi was busy watching and concentrated. "No way, now that the fight just became better…!" he said, putting his hands on his pocket. "My bet is Rukawa would loose!" He seems to enjoy it.

"Okay! Okay!" Ryota yelled. "Give your bets here! Who thinks Rukawa would win? Place your bets now!"

Ryota took the opportunity.

"Hey, Aota here!" Mitou said, on the other side. Turmoil quickly spread.

Captain Akagi came to Ryota and gave him a back slam. "What are you just doing!" he roared.

"N-Nothing!" Ryota said, quickly keeping his paraphernalia. Ayako entered the scene, and slammed Ryota with her large paper fan.

"Liar!" she yelled out.

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Kaede's cold Chinese eyes stared annoyingly at Aota. Then he began to attack him. With few kicks and dodges, and some punches, he finished the mess Aota created. The rest were jaw-dropped. Rukawa is sure a sporty guy. And a fighter.

"I LOST----!" Sakuragi shouted, making the whole crowd and his teammates stare at him. Then he stopped for a while.

"… THE BET!" he continued, and they were sweat dropped.

"Hn, stupid monkey." Kaede murmured.

Then Kaede was surprised when…

"Amazing!" Aota cried out, clinging to Kaede. He tried to avoid him, but he sticks like a jellyfish. "You could join the Judo club! Leave that basketball team! Come join us!"

"No way."

"But, Rukawa… you have an extraordinary inborn skill!"

"I studied that."

"What do you mean?" Mitsui asked. Amazed as well. "You entered a school of Yakuzas?"

"Dad wanted me to study kickboxing, martial arts and some self-defense techniques." It was such a long explanation for him.

"C-O-O-L!" Aota cried out. "You are suited to the Judo Club! If you join, you'll be our instant President."

"No."

"Pretty please?" Aota asked.

"No."

"Oh, c'mon!" he insisted. Then Kaede pushed him out of the way. He looked behind him, and found Haruko.

"Are you alright?" she asked.

He nodded. "Let's… go out now." It was a longer response. The "Rukawa Rejects" yelled at his bravery but deep inside felt ultimately jealous about Haruko. Some newspaper people who were around at the said event took some pictures. Akagi took their cameras.

"He's dating my sister for club purposes." Akagi said. "It's nothing personal."

He did this because articles might release that Haruko was dumped in case he stopped going out with her. Of course it will be his fault. Akagi knew that Kaede agreed for his need, not because he is interested in his dearest sister. But still, because he knew that Haruko likes Kaede a lot, he hopes that he could learn to like her.

"Anyway, it's just a crush." Akagi began to think, "She might not be seriously in loved with him, isn't she?"

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Haruko shyly walked with Rukawa Kaede. Being with this certain guy sure gives her this indescribable feeling. Mentioning of his name makes her blush, and what more if she's beside him? She tried her best not to be nervous, but it's of no avail.

Kaede seems to notice this. He doesn't understand why girls are like that. Except Ayako, he had never met any girl who doesn't appear that way in front of him. He shook that idea about girls.

Since when did I think about girls in my mind?

"Rukawa-kun? Are you okay?"

Rukawa's eyes meandered around the establishments. "Yeah. I'm just hungry."

"I haven't eaten yet too."

"Let's eat… lunch." He said. "Is fast-food okay with you?"

Haruko took a long time before she answered him. He's asking her decision. Rukawa-kun is a very nice guy after all… she thought, and she smiled. And he talks about 8 words continuously…

"Haruko?"

Oh my god, he called me by first name! She was so glad. They were being close at that moment, as Haruko was thinking. She slowly nodded her head, and they both walked towards a street called Shouku Street.

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"Can I apply again?" the girl from last time, Erin, asked. "Please, my bio-data was mailed somewhere, and I don't know maybe there was an error or something…"

"But Miss, you must present another copy." The man said.

"C'mon, sir. It's just urgent. And I came from a long way here!"

"Miss, no bio-data, no interview. Besides, the missing slots were replaced now. I'm really sorry."

Erin turned back. "Great, I will have to make another of it." She told herself. "This is just so annoying!"

Her mood was quite changed. She was depressed about the happenings, and she does not know if she's still gonna find that bio-data or make another of that hassle.

Why does she need a job anyway if she'll grumble?

Erin wanted to leave her rich family. She hates them asking her to do what they want. They always compared her to her older sister, Mako, and she always appears wrong in front of her parents.

"I tried to please them, but nothing happens. I need to apologize again to grandma." She sighed.

Right now, she lives at a mansion with an old woman whose family members are at USA. The old woman which she calls 'grandma' and her family were close to her up to now, and that family treated her right as she knew: they all were pleased at her and they welcome her to their home. She was also like a family to them, and that's the way she feels too.

As she opened the door of the Kouya fast-food with her disappointed gestures, she suddenly hit someone in front of the door…

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"Owww!" Kaede interjected. He knew he was busy looking at the girl behind the glass door. She seemed familiar, but he does not know her, or when and how did they met. He felt that seemingly unending palpitation again.

Erin was shocked on what her careless gestures had done.

"I'm sorry!" she apologized and bowed down, and then walked away like nothing had happened. Kaede was feeling a bit bizarre about his reaction when he saw that unknown girl.

"That's odd," he murmured. "I think… I know her…"

"Does it hurt?" Haruko asked with her utmost concern.

"It's nothing," he said, going in the fast-food. The female employees greeted them cheerfully. Kaede was still thinking about the girl from a while ago. He was just unconsciously walking, and Haruko pulled him away from colliding to the flat wall.

"Did that bump on the door caused you to act that way?" Haruko suddenly said. With that, Kaede came back to normal.

"Uh… no," he simply said. The female employees are all arguing on who will be the one to take his order.

As soon as he and Haruko had said their orders, they are to pay the food.

"I'll pay." Kaede suddenly said when he saw Haruko taking her wallet out.

"Okay," she was quite blushing.

Kaede put out from his coat his wallet, and then… he saw the bio-data he had kept a while ago. He suddenly stopped moving.

"I knew it!" he suddenly said. Haruko was surprised by his odd actions. Suddenly, he gave her a wad of cash from his wallet.

"I'm going out for a while, excuse me…" he said quickly. Haruko was frozen at that moment.

"Miss, the payment…" the cashier asked.

"O-Oh… here," she get the money Kaede had placed on her hands. It was more than enough. She kept it on her hand. When she glanced back, Kaede was really nowhere to be seen.

"What's going on with him?" she asked herself. "He's just… weird…"

"Here's your meal. Enjoy eating!" the cashier said. Some male employees helped her carry the tray. The female employees were so sad when they couldn't see Kaede not in there. Haruko remained silent as she was being led to a seat.

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"I'm heading home, grandma.." Erin said, talking using her cellular phone. "Yeah. I didn't…"

"Go home now and I am cooking something special for you." Grandma said on the other line. "As special as you are to me."

"Really? Great!" she exclaimed happily. "Now my mood has changed. Thanks a lot, grandma."

Then a bus came, and she hurriedly got in.

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Kaede continued running along the sidewalk, looking around.

"That girl is the one who owns this bio-data." He looked at the picture.

He continued his search, crossing the street and running fast, then ended up in a bus station. He looked around everywhere, but the girl was not in there. He concluded that the girl had already ridden a bus home.

"I missed." He murmured.

Again, he glanced at the bio-data. Then he read the name of the mysterious girl.

"Machino Erin." He said softly. He smiled, for the first time, but no one could actually see it. No one's around the bus station. Then…

"Oh yeah, I left her…!" Kaede looked at his watch. Luckily, only 15 minutes had passed. He hurriedly came back to the fast-food, with an unusual happy expression…