Chapter 2
I don't own Reborn! It belongs to Akira Amano.
A good mood is like a balloon. One prick is all it takes to ruin it.
One year later
"One cup of coffee with a dash of cream," she says softly as she places it in front of the customer. A nod of acknowledgment and she gives them one of her usual bright smiles. She sighs in defeat when they almost run away from the counter, cheeks flushed.
Are my smiles really that scary?
Sadashi rings up for the next person in line and catches sight of a tiny baby in a suit. A tiny briefcase is in his hands and he lugs it forward. Her heart melts.
She kneels down and picks him up. He looks even cuter up close, with big, black eyes and a tiny orange striped fedora with a chameleon on it.
(She ignores the niggling feeling of familiarity-)
"Are you lost?" She asks gently. The baby looks almost irritated for a second before the angelic smile comes back on his face. "No, I'm here for an espresso."
"Aww, sure," she coos at him when she realizes that his parents must have sent him to get their espresso to humor him. "One espresso, coming right up," she cheerfully exclaims. She starts the machine as she observes him curiously. "Why are you wearing a suit?" She asks in a sudden bout of randomness. He smirks.
"Because I'm in the mafia."
She stills as a scene flashes behind her eyes. A scene of a ginger-haired girl asking the same question to the exact same baby.
Her body goes on autopilot (espressos used to be her favorite drink from Before, she could probably make one in her sleep) as she contemplates the consequences of picking up Reborn and cooing at him. He's probably going to put a bullet through her head when she's asleep tonight. Panic fills her and she takes a deep breath. Her sister's advice echoes in her brain.
When you are in a situation you don't want to be in, ignore it.
She places the cup in Reborn's tiny, chubby hands and hesitates for a moment before shrugging. She's got nothing to lose if he's going to kill her anyway. "How cute!" She pats his head and smiles brightly. She is relieved when he doesn't run away like the others. Instead, he narrows his eyes.
"Be careful, okay?" She tells him as she ignores his twitching fingers.
He stares unnervingly at her for a moment before leaving.
Her shoulders sag and she goes to the staff room, taking off her labeled apron. Sadashi makes her best puppy dog eyes. "Please take over for me, Hikari-san?"
Hikari rolls her eyes but quietly puts on her apron and leaves the room, flicking Sadashi's nose.
Sadashi leaves the cafe, walking towards a building beside it. She enters it, making sure not to smile at the receptionist and instead gives her a friendly wave.
She trudges up the stairs and into her apartment. Her shoes are kicked off and she stumbles in, not bothering with the lights. She tiptoes past her cat, making sure not to wake him up. Her warm bed is waiting for her and she drops into its fluffy embrace, dozing off.
Her eyes snap open a minute later. She leaps up from the bed and towards the window, locking it securely. She reverts to her previous position, letting out a blissful sigh.
What.
Her eyes widen as she looks at Reborn through the glass window of the cafe.
I thought that was a one-time thing!
But she smirks, because this time, it's not her problem.
She slings her bag over her shoulder and waves to Hikari, who shoos her away. As soon as she is out of the cafe, her shoulders hunch and her face bows down slightly. Her body language screams 'ignore me!'. Her feet barely make any sound on the pavement as she speeds up her pace and starts jogging. She makes eye contact with a boy talking to a fish and she slows down, stopping right in front of him. They both stare at each other awkwardly for an uncomfortable amount of time before the boy fidgets nervously. "I- uh, I was, um-"
Her blank stare flusters him even more and she remembers the first time she met Hikari. Did she look like an idiot too?
Whatever. She sighs as she completely ignores him and continues her jog.
She makes sure to avoid eye contact with anyone else until she reaches Takami High.
She ducks into the classroom and takes her corner seat. The bell rings and the teacher enters the classroom, shushing the noisy class. Sadashi flips on her hood and shoves her earphones into her ear. She clicks the play button on her phone and her recording from the previous day starts playing. She listens as she doodles in her notebook.
Her voice stops for a few moments as she tries to remember the plot. Sadashi takes this time to observe her doodles and stifles a gasp as memories flash behind her eyes.
(Stress, heavy breathing, migraines,
an outlet for it all, a world of fantasy,
the faint smell of ink, a fresh page turned)
A lump forms in her throat, making it hard to breathe. She releases a harsh breath as a thought forms in her mind. Maybe they exist here too!
A genuine smile spreads across her face. Her cheeks hurt and it is then she realizes that this is the first time in her (second)life that she has ever smiled honestly.
She bounces excitedly and freezes when she notices that everyone's eyes are on her. Yamada-sensei looks at her, clear amusement on his face. "Does my subject really excite you that much, Sadashi-chan?"
She blinks slowly, not understanding. "I don't think it does, Yamada-sensei."
He lets out a laugh. "I already know you don't listen during class, but at least try to pretend that you're interested!"
She opens her mouth and closes it, before shrugging.
Weird people.
She slings her bag over her shoulder, ready to leave the room to have her lunch when someone blocks her way. She looks up at the person, trying to remember his name so that she can tell him to get out of the way. "Sadashi-san," he rubs the back of his neck sheepishly as she stares at him questioningly.
"I've noticed that you get through all our tests very easily. So, could you please tutor me for the next one?"
"We have a test?"
He sweatdrops.
Kusabana Hoshita, karate club captain, Vice President of the student council and all-around nice guy, has a problem.
His grades have been steadily dropping as he focuses on the next karate tournament and it's only a matter of time before they find out. He can clearly imagine their words.
'I told you to choose someone else, Mori!"
'I knew you were completely useless!"
'Why didn't you listen to me, Mori? Your son is unfit to be-'
He snaps out of his thoughts when he hears a clicking sound. His eyes flick towards the source and almost gapes. Sadashi, the one with the highest grades in Class 2-A, and also nicknamed 'Robot-Sadashi' due to her apathetic, blunt reactions to everything, actually has a smile on her face. He blinks to make sure that he is not hallucinating.
He has thought of asking her help before, but frankly, she terrifies him. Her expression is so blank that she looks like she'd probably stab you with a pen and not even bat an eyelash.
But today is different. She, for once, looks like she's in a good mood and that steels his resolve to approach her.
"Wait. You want me to tutor you?"
"Yes, Sadashi-san."
"I'm sorry but I don't think I have enough time for that." She shoves past him, hungry and impatient. Her slight headache from the memories is also increasing.
He scrambles to catch up with her as she fast-walks away. "W-wait, please!"
Sadashi turns to him with fiery orange eyes and he cowers back, the worst of his nightmares coming true. "Look," she spits harshly, "I'm very tired and very hungry-"
He ducks his head retreats back into the class before she can even complete her sentence. Her brows furrow and she tilts her head, confused. She shrugs and starts to walk away.
She peeks at Stranger Dude's seat as she sneakily shifts in her chair. He is facing away from her and she cannot help the rush of guilt that floods her.
I shouldn't have been so harsh on him.
She finally catches sight of his face and wilts at the kicked-puppy look. The bell rings and she is the first one out of her seat, darting out of the classroom. She resolves to apologize to him the next day as she squeezes through the throngs of children, hastily escaping.
I... don't actually have a beta. I use Grammarly! :)
And the reason why she is perceived as apathetic... well, everyone behaves differently when they are in a public place, right? Or am I making a fool out of myself and it's just me?
I usually don't know what expression to put on(If I smile, will it look mocking? If I frown will people think it's directed towards them? Urgh, so frustrating) so my face just ends up being either completely blank or in a weird mix of emotions.
And about the quotes at the starting, anyone I tell them to doesn't freaking find them funny! Like, people, where is your sense of humor? (Or is it just me again? It probably is, isn't it?*sigh*)
Thank you to all those wonderful people out there that Favorited and Followed! :)