The façade of maturity
A Hojo and Hamaguchi series
Tip #1 on becoming a fine, matured lady: Ditch the hair clip.
It was officially spring. The crisp, fresh air that swiftly entered the classroom and the famous emergence of soft pink petals pirouetted through the window; it was no doubt tell tale signs of new beginnings. A set of faded, dark burgundy eyes intently stared at the gentleness of each motion- looking as if to find deeper meaning and reasons as to why. Hojo continued to analyse by the window frame until she picked up on muffled whispers behind her.
'Kyahh! Is that Hojo? She's so cool..'
'I know right! She's so mature, I could totally see her on a magazine cover!'
'Hey do you think she does modelling?'
Hojo continued to stare at the school premises below her classroom window, waiting for her eager classmates to move away as to not see her reflection. Once she knew she was in the clear, her smirk widened into a brimming grin. Soft chuckles of delight seethed through her teeth as she mentally patted herself on the back.
'Goal for today is accomplished, get others to admire how mature I am, fufufuu..' she thought pridefully. If you can't already tell, Hojo enjoys taking care of her image and how people perceive her. Its her pride and joy. She practically thrives off of people's commendation; its the only thing that keeps her going. She knows that this motive may be egotistical in ways but in her eyes, its motivation for her to do better. She's improved in style, improved her grades, and her interaction skills?... uhm maybe that isn't the best example. Hojo always strives to be a better person of herself and one way she does that is by applying the advice that popular teen girl magazine 'Ichigo Girls!' offers.
The short, wavy haired girl remembers that she bought the latest version this morning and hastily returns to her seat located at the very centre of the classroom. Its a shame she couldn't be at the back corner of the class, next to the window she often thinks; she thinks that it would totally suit her image. Whilst cursing Nishikata mentally, she subconsciously flicks to her favourite part of the magazine. Page 12 entitled ' Kokomi's Tips on how to become a refined, beautiful lady' had her eyes dazzling. She quickly dove in to the page, her eyes scrolling through each paragraph until she spots a certain tip in the fashion section.
'From my recent trips to Shibuya, I had the pleasure of observing the annual youth fashion show! From the colourful designs to suave models, it was pure bliss to experience. If there was one thing I recognised, there was a lack of hair clips than previous years. Shibuya and Harajuku are well known for their possession and usage of hair clips; but for some reason it felt muted this year. One thing to take away? Ditch the hair clips!'
Hojo had a pang of shock and reached up to feel the purple hairclips intertwined in her light brown hair. She gulped in frustration as she scanned furiously ahead to see if there was any exceptions only to sigh in defeat. Sweat dropped from her cheek as she glanced upwards towards the clock. 10 minutes until the teacher comes back from break , she gritted. Carefully, she stood up, shovelling around her school bag to find her makeup purse, before dashing to the toilets.
One blink, then a couple more ensued as she analysed herself in various angles in front of the bathroom mirror missing her staple accessory. Do I look strange? She contemplated with pursed lips, continuing to run her fingers gently through the section of her hair that was once embezzled. Reluctantly, she backed away and decided not fuss any further, quickly gathering her possessions and bolting out of the restroom, her shoes scuffling against the floor as if they were hesitant.
As she swayed into the classroom, she failed to notice the quick realisation Hamaguchi plastered on his face as he immediately tracked her arrival towards her seat. His eyes narrowed at the lack of character she seemed to carry, knowing immediately something was missing. Finally, he landed on her hair, missing the vibrant lilac bars it always seemed to have present. He continued to stare at her, calculating the myriads of possibilities as to her decision. Of course, it didn't make any difference in degree of how much he liked her, however after the countless years they spend together, he knew something was up. Once she turned her head, he did too, brisk in movement with the exception of unrelentless blushing. Hojo could feel the presence of eyes, and as much as she wished it was him she mentally swatted away such desires to focus on the teacher conducting the class. The pair of purple clips that she removed were fidgeted in her left hand during the English lecture- it seemed that the level of Hojo missing her hair accessories transferred to her actions. After quick fidgeting, her hand abruptly paused in the horrific realisation that they had broke right then and there. Finger tips shaking, lips quivering before she clenched the fragments in her palm cursing at her idiocy and hoping no-one saw that totally childish reaction. Unbeknownst to her, her childhood friend had been watching the entire time, stifling a gentle chuckle.
Soft, warm, burnt orange rays adorned the school- signalling the end of the school day. It shone through the glass entrance doors, enchanting everyone basking in the light but making Hojo seem like an ethereal goddess, Hamaguchi thinks to himself. What used to be harsh bustle, now quietened down to only a few voices echoing across the school and as Hamaguchi walks down the stairs, he brightens up seeing Hojo take her shoes out the shoe locker. Once she closed her locker, she jumped at the sight of Hamaguchi at her left vision. He simply pulled a goofy grin that Hojo barely managed to keep herself from being flustered about.
'What do you want?' she curtly spoke, staring right into his eyes.
'U-uh.. I was wondering if you wanted to go somewhere with me before we head home, If that's okay?' He happily shut his eyes, scratching the back of his head as a sweat drop appeared at his temple- attempting to awkwardly chuckle at the end. Much to his surprise, it seemed as though her eyes widened and her cheeks turned ever so slightly pink.
OH MY GOSH! Is he asking me out on a date? Is this a date?- her thoughts ran frantically around before mentally slapping herself. Pull yourself together!- Hojo scolded her fantasies once again.
She coughed, bringing her clenched hand to her face in hopes she had disguised the on coming blush. 'I suppose.. Only if it won't take too long'.
She was surprised that they were walking towards the high street, but didn't complain, simply happy by being next to him as they made their way through the crowded streets. She was even more shocked as they ended up in front of a white store front that sold high quality hair accessories. Her eyes glistened in curiosity (and partly the abundance of jewels embedded onto each piece) but turned to look at Hamaguchi, who was already smirking right back at her. In true nature, she scoffed and retorted at him 'Hey? Is this your secret hobby or something? Do you like to collect accessories? Are you a crossdress-'
'WHA.. NONONO-' Hamaguchi interrupted in an instant; his arms flailing around to emphasise that he was not in fact a collector. He was in such a rush to deny that it made Hojo allow a bellowing laugh erupt from her mouth and float gently into the atmosphere. He paused, taking in time to look at her genuine smile and her finger wiping the corner of her eye, and eased softly into a chuckle of his own, before landing a small content smile. He loved seeing her so carefree, just like when they were little; he often reminisces of times like those. There was a whole other person to her that people in school had no idea of- he planned to keep it that way. It meant that he could cherish these moments to himself, as if it was a gift granted only to him.
A tinker of a bell rings as the two enter the store, greeting the cashier by a respective bow and 'good afternoon'. Hamaguchi attempts to find what he came in the store for originally in secret, not disclosing anything to Hojo. She, confused by his actions and how abruptly he left her, brushed it off and perused the store, narrowing her dusty burgundy eyes at all sorts; from berets to tinted sunglasses. Temptation mocked her face, but the empty wallet she knew she had in her pocket mocked her harder. She felt a sweat drop fall down her temple, before deciding to check up on her childhood friend.
'So why did you want to come here in the first place?' Hojo placed herself to the right of him, hands behind back and facing the wall he was. The wall had racks upon racks of clips in quite adorably packaged transparent plastic bags.
Hamaguchi was about to respond, when he held up a pair of clips to inspect. Hojo knew it was serious as he cupped his chin with his thumb and index finger with his other hand. The design was super cute but suave as well, to Hojo's standards; it was her signature lilac colour, but no longer encapsulated in the form of bobby pins. It was barrettes, with a curved, elongated triangle cut out in the middle. It had a tattersall pattern that incorporated darker shades of purple. He turned to her, studying her mesmerised face before asking,
'Do you like it?'
With no hesitation, she nodded in approval and seemed to fall right into his trap, as he held onto the item. He also held another one that she couldn't quite work out its appearance. It was as if realisation hit her like a bullet train, but before saying anything she saw him paying at the checkout.
'Thank you, please come again!' Another chime of the bell resounds as the two leave the store.
The pair scuffled along the empty neighbourhood route to their houses, both occasionally looking up from their slow paced walk to the approaching dusk sky.
'You still didn't answer my question...' Hojo pouted, interrupting their silence.
What she didn't expect was warm laughs emerging from his mouth, seemingly brightening their surroundings in a warm glow. For some reason, she felt flustered and looked away, her pout becoming even more evident. As his laughs settled down, he leant in and spoke in a snarky tone.
'I saw you break your clips today...'He allowed his sentence to hang in the air, before allowing himself to smirk at her reaction. With her eyes propped open, her hands flew to her mouth in utter disbelief. Cheeks started to fade into a light crimson as she stared at Hamaguchi with horror plastered all over her facial expression. Naturally, he bellowed a mighty laugh that echoed across the neighbourhood causing her to instinctively punch him in the arms, several times in a playful manner.
'Don't you dare tell anyone of that incident, or you are dead...' she grumbled lowly, facing him with eyes averted. Her annoyed expression didn't stay for long, as she took sight of the clips she saw earlier in her peripheral vision. Hamaguchi held it out to her face, signalling her to get it.
'You look pretty when you wear clips..' His eyes shut closed in expectation of her teasing, but to no avail. Cautiously, he flicked one eye open, only to see her as flustered as ever. Excessive blush airbrushed across her entire face and her soft lips parted ever so slightly. No words came out of her mouth, and neither did he- and the pair of them stood like that for a while. Hojo made sure to take her time staring at the clips now in front of her, laying in her palms that were cupped together. The highlights in her eyes grew bigger, displaying her fascination.
He got these.. for me?
Her thoughts were interrupted with the sound of Hamaguchi beginning to walk forward, causing her to whip her head around, eyebrows furrowed, blush arising and sweat dropping once again. Irises dotted everywhere before she muttered something under her breath, and took a deep inhale.
'Can...Can you put these in my hair?' Clearing her throat, and pursing her lips tightly in embarrassment. Hamaguchi's head rotated slowly, eyes wide open and his reddening cheeks increasing by the minute. Pausing in disbelief, his mouth gaped open, wanting to say something. Finally, mustering the words to say, he averted his pupils,
'Sure..' he nervously replied, whilst gesturing her to come closer. After their quick exchange with clips, he began to clip the barrettes in her usual placement, delicately on the left side of her hair. She seemed to catch her breath, and was unable to see him directly. She was quite insecure of her forehead, and thought she looked strange whenever she'd look up. Not to his jurisdiction however. He enjoyed being able to be in such proximity to her, taking whatever chances to glance down and appreciate her face- every feature looking 10x more breath taking upon further inspection. As he finished fastening the last clip in place, he steadily tucked her hair behind her ear and brushed his fingers across her jaw, almost caressing it; prompting her to readjust her attention to him with broad, perplexed eyes. Her tiny mouth, quivering with nerves before opening it to deliver her appreciation.
'Thank...you.' Timid-ness riddling every word escaping her mouth.
'Oh before I forget..' Hamaguchi starts, reaching into his school bag to reveal a lime yellow cloth pouch, wrapped in a dark brown satin ribbon. He seems to handle this one to her with extra care, in which she receives by mirroring his caution.
'Open that one at home..' He spoke in subtle command, that she found herself agreeing with. She reaffirmed her gratitude towards him and the two continued to leisurely stroll home, the distance between them disappearing in an instant.
The constant whirring of the blow-dryer came to a halt as Hojo realised the present Hamaguchi gifted her on the way back had yet to be unboxed. Reluctantly, she reached for the glasses she swore no-one else except her family and Hamaguchi could see herself wearing, on the night stand and carefully retrieved the pouch from her school bag. She glanced at the window opposite hers, Hamaguchi's window, wondering what he gave her. Luckily for her, the curtains at his window panes were closed, meaning she could stare at his window for as long as she wanted. However, she stopped herself, due to childlike hypotheses such as 'What if he thinks I'm creepy?'. As she untied the ribbon, a beautiful iridescent metal claw clip, studded with tiny gems was pulled out from the bag. It was a bigger claw clip than the ones she normally has, but she didn't care. She figured, maybe she should experiment with different types once in a while. Once again, she gazed at his bedroom window, feeling her face getting warm and the corners of her mouth pulling into a subtle smile. She figured she'd wear that clip tomorrow at school, and consequently formed her opinion that..
Hey, clips aren't that bad, are they?
A/N-
Hello! Thank you so much for reading this chapter, it means a lot that you kept on reading! Phew, it's been a while since I've written, so I hope this was a good piece to get back into the swing of things :)... I may or may not continue this book, depending on the response I receive and how much free time I have. Let's hope I get to! Thank you again, and I hope everyone reading has a good day or good night.
Toodles!
