CHAPTER 5: Penguins on a Sunday
Hayase woke up slowly, as a beam of sunlight moved across her face from one of the windows. It took her a moment to get her bearings because she didn't recognize where she was at first. As she shook the sleep fog from her brain, she was aware of something around her waist, holding her.
She moved her hand down to feel a warm arm there, clearly not her own, then her mind realized that this was Senpai's arm. She groaned a little as if to sound like she was waking up, "Hmmmmm, Naoto? Are you awake?" she said softly, hoping he was still asleep.
"Yeah, I am," a gruff response from him came back, his voice sounding a bit scratchy. "You sleep okay? You were tossing a little bit last night, but then you calmed down after you wrapped yourself around me."
Hayase's face turned bright red as she remembered the nightmare from the night before, of her parents not allowing them to be together, and screaming for him as they carried her away. "A couple of times you were calling me to save you, so it must have been those vampires again," he said, gently stroking her side.
She didn't want to tell him about that fear she had, so she just hugged him, "What time is it?" she asked. He reached for his phone, "Just after 8:30, we have time for breakfast and we can drop off your bag at your house before we need to be at the train station. It won't take that long to get there, maybe an hour or so and we can spend the day there before we have to come home."
She stretched and snuggled into his warmth. "I know I said I wanted to see the penguins, but I'd rather stay curled up with you," She kissed him on the neck and laid her head on his chest. Senpai smiled, "I wouldn't mind it either, it's just…"
Before he could say more, the alert tone on his phone went off. "Huh?" he grabbed his phone again and scrolled through the alert. "Oh no!" he exclaimed as he sat up, reaching for the TV remote. "Naoto? What's wrong?" Hayase asked as she sat up as well. He turned on the TV where the local news was on.
"Once again our top story this morning, The Yokohama Aquarium is closed temporarily after an electrical fire damaged the building's power supply. According to Aquarium officials, emergency backup generators are currently keeping the aquatic residents safe and protected until the main generators can be repaired."
Hayase gripped Naoto's arm as they watched video footage of the fire department moving through the building checking for damage and billows of white clouds streaming from the back of the location. "Oh, No, I hope the penguins are all right," she said, her voice cracking.
He reached over and squeezed her hand, "I'm sure they are all fine and safe, Hayase," she leaned on his side, a tear or two slipping from her eyes. "Come on, let me make you breakfast, and we can do something in Enoshima. I know it's not what you were hoping for, but let's make the most of it, okay?" she nodded and stood up with him, following him into his kitchen. Fifteen minutes later, a sumptuous breakfast was ready.
"You're really spoiling me, Senpai, I will need to train extra hard to work off all this food," she said, jokingly. Naoto blushed, "I-I just want you to be at your best for your next tournament, especially since you're facing Orihara again," He mentioned her name and Hayase flinched. "Hey, remember our deal? You beat her and I kiss you?"
She looked at him, "But I know you love me, and the deal doesn't matter now," she said. She wondered why he mentioned it.
"I still plan on keeping my word on your match with her, but I'll do it in front of everyone at the tournament, so there's no doubt to anyone who loves who." there was something about Naoto's face that told Hayase he was serious, he wasn't blushing.
She touched his face, "You don't have to show off to the school, Naoto, I know you love Me, and you know I love you, it doesn't matter who else knows, what matters is that we know." She put her hand on his chest, and felt his heart begin to beat faster, making her blush. She laid her head on his chest, with her ear on his chest hearing it beat. She wrapped her arms around him, sighing as his heart beat faster. "I love that you want to do this for Me, thank you, Naoto."
He held her as well, "you're welcome, Hayase. But to be honest with you, there's a reason why I still want to make good on your wish." He let her go for a moment and stood in front of her. "When we met, I was a walking shut-in, I had no way of making friends and all of the things that meant something to me were the things that I could do alone and away from others."
He paused for a moment as if he was searching for the words he wanted to use. "I didn't realize at first that the day we met in the library, my life would change, because at the time, I didn't understand what was happening. After years of hiding myself away, you came in and started to tear down the walls I had built up. I don't know why, but a part of me got excited, the part that I had protected from the bullies for all those years. I think that part of me wanted to be rescued from the prison I created."
Naoto was tearing up as he continued his confession. "It took me a year to finally come to terms with what I was feeling. When I had lost my way between the stones at the shrine, I had a vision of what my life would be like if I didn't tell you how I felt," he paused for a moment, realling those still vivid images of an adult Hayase getting into another man's car and driving away out of his life.
"The thought of losing you from my life scared me. I couldn't let that happen, because I had to admit to myself that I was in love with you. I have been for some time, but when you asked me to forgive you, I knew I had to tell you how I felt, there was no turning back now, I needed to tell you the truth, and now I have you in my life and I will do everything I can to keep you happy with me."
Hayase was tearing up as he told her about his vision in Kyoto, now understanding how much he truly loved her. "That's why I still want to kiss you after your match with Orihara, but now, I want to kiss you regardless of whether you beat her or not." She stood up, tears in her eyes and hugged him, "You really know how to win over a girl, silly Senpai, even though you already got the job."
They held each other for a good minute or two, their lips locked together as well. As they broke the kiss, she patted his chest, "Come on, Senpai, we have Penguins to see in Enoshima, remember?" She patted his chest gently, feeling some muscle definition she hadn't before. "He's been working out more, he's making himself into someone he can be proud of, or I can be proud of," she thought as they cleaned up the dishes from breakfast. "You know, you're not the only one who had a revelation about our relationship, Naoto-kun," she said as she leaned on his arm.
"Oh really? When did you have yours?' He asked as he scrubbed down the wok. She paused for a moment, gathering her courage to show the boy she loved her own vulnerable side. "Remember about a year ago, when I fell asleep on the couch in the art room, and you covered me with that sheet to keep me warm?" He smiled at the memory of him showing her a small act of compassion as she slept. "I do," he said simply, remembering how she woke up with a start.
"You remember how I suddenly woke up and looked around, right?" her face was beginning to blush as she recalled that nightmare that still pops in her head on occasion. "I dreamed I walked into the Art room, but you were ignoring me, then Gamo and Yoshi showed up and asked you out, to which you said yes, leaving me behind in the room."
He stopped and looked at her, and immediately saw her little shudder as her mind brought that feeling back to her. "It was the thing I feared most, that you left me behind, and when I woke up, you had taken care of me. That's when I started to change how I felt about you. I realized I wanted to be around you a lot more," she said, looking down, as if she was ashamed of admitting to her fear. She was at her most vulnerable at this moment, her swagger and her cockiness were gone, she was showing him the real her that she kept hidden from everyone, the scared, insecure girl that just wanted to be loved by him. Naoto, put his arm around her, letting her feel his touch, something she was quickly growing to crave. "It makes me feel safe when you hold me, that my fear of being left behind is going away, for now…"
Those last two words hung in the air, a reminder that their time together at school was not going to last forever. Naoto was graduating in six months and they still had the most important times ahead for the young couple to deal with, Christmas, New Year's, Valentine's Day and White Day. "Well, we will make the most of that time, before our circumstances change," He said. "Now, we've got some penguins to go see in Enoshima, so let's get going, shall we?"
She nodded, "Sure, Senpai, let's go." They shut off the light in the kitchen and headed out. As they walked to the station, Hayase held onto his hand tightly, as if he was Orpheus leading Eurydice out of the Underworld, but determined not to get pulled away from him. They got to the station, and Hayase put her overnight bag in a locker for the day while they were out. Naoto got two tickets for them and they boarded the express bus to Enoshima, arriving less than a half hour later.
They walked off the bus as it stopped in front of the Aquarium, heading in together as Senpai traded the tickets to Yokohama for admission to Enoshima's venue. It helped that the aquariums in the region had a reciprocity agreement where if something happened that forced a venue to close, the other venues would honor their tickets. "Come on, the ticket seller said they were going to be feeding the penguins in about 20 minutes," Senpai said. Hayacchi squealed and took his hand, making a beeline for the penguin habitat.
A trainer was addressing the crowd as they arrived. "Well, we're happy to announce that one of our penguin couples is expecting their first offspring, " The crowd applauded as she moved near one of the openings to the habitats the penguins used and pointed to a pair of penguins who seemed to be squabbling. "Well, it seems that our parents-to-be, Hachi and Toro, are at it again. Toro loves teasing Hachi, but the two have been paired for some time now," Hayase squeezed Naoto's hand and leaned over, "Sounds familiar, huh?" Naoto chuckled, "Yup." in the back of Naoto's brain, a small thought formed in his head, something he would talk to Hayase on another night, further down the road.
They spent the entire time watching the penguins get fed and Naoto surprised with a Special behind the scenes tour of the penguin habitat, where she got to meet the birds up close. She came back after an hour with the biggest smile he'd ever seen on her face. She hugged him like he was returning from a war, "Naoto-kun! Thank you for such an incredible present!"
She kissed him hard, making him blush, "Why didn't you come in with Me?" she asked. "It was one person per tour, and I wanted you to have the experience," he said, looking down a bit, "This was all for you, Hayase." she hugged him tightly, "I love my Senpai so much, he makes me feel so special." They walked off to explore the rest of the aquarium, arm-in-arm. He relaxed as they journeyed through the aquarium, for once not worried that their friends were stalking them, even if it was with the best of intentions.
The sun was starting to set over the ocean when they emerged from the aquarium, another giant penguin plush in Hayase's arms, courtesy of Naoto winning the "Penguin Lottery" once more. They crossed the street past another pair of teenagers. The two looked similar to Hayase and Naoto, except the boy was taller and his hair cut shorter, while the girl was tall and willowy with a bunny hair clip attached to the back of her hair. They were walking the opposite way, talking about some kind of movie, as they headed towards the train station. Hayase and Naoto took the stairs down to the beach and stood at the water's edge, Naoto standing behind her as she clutched the penguin. "You know, the last time we were here we were going to hug to end our date," she said. "But I want the other option I gave you that day." she gave him that wicked toothy grin of hers that he loved.
"So, if I recall, the options were a hug," Senpai said, looking at her, "Or a kiss, and since we're not doing the hug…" he started, but she finished his sentence by dropping the penguin to the sand, throwing her arms around his neck and kissing him deeply. His arms wrapped around her and pulled her up as the waves lapped at his feet. The two were lost in the kiss, what seemed like an eternity. The reverie was broken by her text alert going off.
"Sis and I are almost home, are you and Senpai still out?"
It was Ichiro, checking up on her. She returned the text.
"We're at the aquarium in Enoshima, we'll be heading home after dinner, are you on the train?"
"Sis is driving us back, do you want us to pick you up?"
She looked at her boyfriend, "My brother wants to know if we want a ride home, they're driving back from Osaka."
He looked at her, "Do you want to ride home with them?' he asked, hoping he knew her well enough that she'd say no.
"No Way!" He smiled at her, knowing she'd say that. He nodded, "Tell them thanks but we're going to dinner first before we head home."
She nodded and sent the message. "Okay, have fun, see you at home, little sis." he responded.
Hayase smiled, "Okay, so where are we going to dinner, my beloved Senpai?"
He took her hand, "Let's get on the bus and go to that little ramen place by the station. I feel like having a quiet dinner with you."
Out on the highway, Ichiro Nagatoro closed his phone and looked out at the lights of the surrounding countryside as his elder sister, Haruna, kept her eyes on the road. "So are they home yet?' she asked as she passed a delivery truck. He chuckled, "They're going to dinner before they go home. You sure she's all right, sis?" Ichiro had met Senpai before, but like all older brothers, he didn't trust any guy around his little sister.
Haruna laughed, "You've met Senpai before, 'Chiro. He's a good boy, he loves our sister and would never do anything to make us an aunt and uncle…" she said, grinning wickedly like her younger sister. Ichrio rolled his eyes, "Ugh, please, sis, don't make me want to puke in the car."
Haruna laughed as she continued to tease her younger brother. "Relax, 'Chiro, you might as well get ready to start calling him "Naoto-Gikyodai*", the way things are going with those two," she said as they drove on.
(*Gikyodai = Brother-in-Law)
An hour later, they were sitting in the little ramen shop ordering dinner when Hayase nudged Naoto gently, "Look who's here," she said as she pointed to a corner booth. He looked over to see their friends, Sakura and Hana Sunomiya, sitting and talking over a couple of ramen bowls.
"Well, there's something you don't see every day," Senpai said as they observed their friends talking to each other. She had a very strange look on her face, one that in all the years he had known the Sunomiya cousins, he had never seen before. Hana, it seems, was smiling.
Hana looked in their direction and her eyes went wide as she spotted Senpai and Hayase, the smile went away as her eyes went wide.
"I think we've been Spotted," he said as he waved reluctantly. Sakura smiled and waved, walking over to them. "Hayase-Chan, Senpai-Kun, what are you two doing here?" she asked, as she hugged Nagatoro from behind. "We're having dinner after going to the aquarium again." Hana joined them after stopping one of the servers and saying something to her. "Oh like the last time, when Hana and her cousin followed you," Sakura said as Hana joined them.
"Good evening Hachiouji-Senpai, Nagatoro-Senpai, I hope you are enjoying your dinner tonight," Hana was never anything other than herself. Naoto smiled, "We are Hana, I'm surprised to see you and Sakura out tonight," he said.
"Sakura-Senpai and I were having, I believe she called it, "A Girl's Day Out," since Gamo-Senpai was needed at her family's establishment today and Yoshi-Senpai was going to a dog show in Yokohama, so it was the two of us," she said, with a touch of pride in her voice. "May I ask what you two have been up to today?"
Nagatoro hugged Senpai's arm, "We went back to the aquarium in Enoshima today, like our first date last year," she was proud to say it was a date with her boyfriend.
Hana excused herself and walked back to their table, her face blushing as she recalled the events of that day, still feeling embarrassed by her and her cousin's actions that nearly ruined their date. "Oh I think she's embarrassed about the last time," Nagatoro said. She excused herself and went over to talk with Hana while Sakura took the chair.
"So Senpai-kun, are you two enjoying your weekend together? Quite bold to have her sleep over last night," sakura said with a smile. Senpai's eyes went wide, "Sakura, Nothing happened!" He said in a low voice. She smiled, "I know, Senpai-kun, you're not the kind of boy who does that, you're one of the good ones. I know you and Hayacchi didn't do anything naughty," she said with a bit of a smirk. "She loves you too much to risk messing things up," She patted him on the back, "I'm going to give you two some space, see you tomorrow in school, Senpai-kun."
She patted him on the back and joined Hana and Hayacchi at their table, she gave Hyacchi a quick hug and sat back down as she left the two girls at the table and returned to the seat next to her boyfriend. "I think she now knows that I've forgiven her for that little incident," she said as she sat down and returned to the rest of her dinner. Twenty minutes later, the two left the little restaurant, and after retrieving her bag from the lockers, headed to her home.
"Tomorrow's going to be fun, isn't it, Senpai?" She asked as they walked home, her penguin clutched in one hand and Naoto's hand in her other. He squeezed her hand softly, "Every day we're together is fun from now on, Hayase-kun." She blushed as she leaned her head on his arm as they walked the last mile or so to her house, arriving just as her siblings pulled up in Haruna's car.
"Well, hello you two, did you have fun today?" Haruna said as she got out of the car and walked over. "Oh look, you got another penguin for your colony," she grinned as Hayase squeezed it reflexively. Come on, Ichiro, let's give your future Gikyodai some privacy so he can say good night properly to Hayacchi like young lovers should," She said as she headed inside. Ichiro was red-faced as he walked past them, saying nothing.
Once the door was closed, the two embraced each other. "I hate that we have to say goodnight, Naoto, I really loved being with you this whole weekend." He kissed her deeply, "I did too."
Suddenly, his eyes went wide as he remembered something. "Oh No, do you think we should tell your siblings about dinner next weekend?" She hugged him tightly, "We might as well get it over with now, but come tell them with me? I need your strength to deal with both of them." He nodded and followed her into her house.
"Haruna? You got a minute?" Hayase called out. "In the kitchen, sis, you want me to make you one of my Marlowe…" she stopped mid-sentence as the two appeared in the kitchen, "I thought you had headed home, Senpai-kun."
He pressed the bridge of his nose, "Well, actually, the other night, My mother invited your family to dinner next Sunday, so…" Haruna squealed, "Oh Good! Dinner with the In-Laws!" Ichiro called from the second floor, "Sis, what's all the noise?" she stuck her head out of the kitchen doorway, "Don't make any plans for next Sunday, we're having dinner with Senpai's family!" Ichiro ran down the stairs, "We're WHAAAAT?!: he shouted as he literally parkoured over the railing to the floor and ran to the kitchen, finding his sisters and Senpai standing there. "What do you mean, Dinner?" He asked in the same accusing tone he used when they first met.
Naoto took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, "Mom talked to Hayase Friday night and invited your family to have dinner with us, so she can meet you all." There was no stutter in his voice, Even Haruna noticed this, "I completely understand if you don't want to go, but your sister wants to make a good impression on my mother, and having you there will help her."
Hayase squeezed his hand as he spoke, encouraging him without saying anything out loud. Ichiro looked Senpai over, as if he was seeing him for the first time, "What happened to you? When did you get so bold?" Haruna smiled as she finished one of her desserts that Hayase liked, handing it to her, "Hayase-chan happened to him, 'Chiro. She's officially dating him now." Ichiro's face went pale, as the news seemed to drain his body of every drop of blood in his veins.
Hayase slapped him with her noodle arms, "Hey, 'Chiro, wakey wakey! You're starting to make a creepy face that's making Senpai look cooler every second!" Naoto blushed, partially over her defense of him, but also feeling bad for Ichiro. Being an only child, Senpai had no comparison to how Ichiro felt regarding his dating his little sister. But he understood that Hayase was the baby of the family, so he was going to be very protective of her.
"I think I should get going, I need to get home soon," Naoto said. Hayase took his hand, "I'll see you out, Naoto," and walked him to the door. They walked outside to the gate and she hugged him. "You know the drill Senpai, call me when you get home, okay?" he nodded as she put her arms around him and kissed him deeply. A car's light shone on them as it turned into the driveway.
"HAYASE! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!"
Hayase clutched him tightly, "I'm sorry, Naoto, looks like you're going to get to meet my parents."
AUTHOR'S NOTES: I appreciate all of the feedback on this story, however, this will be the last chapter in this story for 2022. I am taking a hiatus from my writings due to my family moving to another state during the Christmas Holidays. But rest Assured, The Day Things Changed will continue. HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE!