iii. the hunt for the silver stars (2)

Yui was practically vibrating in excitement as she regarded the pile of bread she and Aoi had purchased on the table. Soon, Iwaizumi would come over and add his bread to the pile, too, and she was looking forward to opening them all up together.

Aoi, as per usual, had her nose buried in a history textbook. Yui tilted her head, checking the cover. Or not. It was the diary of a dead general from the Sengoku era. More interesting than her usual reading material, but dry nevertheless.

Straightening, Yui lit up when she saw Iwaizumi making his way through the crowd with a lunch tray, which was occupied by a bowl of teriyaki chicken udon and the bread he had promised. "Ah, Iwaizumi-san!"

Aoi looked up from her book, her expression souring almost instantly when she saw just who was with him. "Oh, great. It's that pretty boy."

"Eh?" Yui glanced at her friend, a smile on her face. "You mean Oikawa-san? They're best friends, Minacchi! Did you know that?"

"Oh, I know that. And believe me when I say that Iwaizumi-san can definitely do better."

"Ehh? You think so?"

"Okabe-san, Aoi-san," Iwaizumi said in lieu of greeting as he sat down, lowering his tray on the table. Beside him, Oikawa was chewing on some Star Bread. He smiled and waved, only for Aoi to glower at him. "Do you guys mind if Oikawa sits here, too?"

"Yes," said Aoi.

"Nah," Yui said at the same time.

Oikawa laughed lightly, rubbing the back of his head and sitting down beside Iwaizumi. "Pardon the intrusion. We've never talked before, have we? I'm Oikawa Tooru."

Aoi's lips pressed in a thin, disapproving line. "I'm Aoi Minako," she said curtly, lifting her book higher to cover her face from him.

Smiling slyly, Oikawa turned to Yui, who had sat through Aoi's tense introduction with a pleasant, almost oblivious demeanor. "And you're..."

"Oh! Sorry, I'm Okabe Yui. It's nice to meet you, Oikawa-san."

Aoi harrumphed. "Yeah. Nice to meet you."

Oikawa was still wearing a smile, though it had half-transformed into a smirk. He looked at her. "Sorry, Aoi-san, but have I done something to offend you?"

"Shittykawa," Iwaizumi warned.

"Ahh, I can probably explain," Yui said, still relaxed. "You're just so not Minacchi's type, y'know? Minacchi likes guys who puppy-like and soft. Totally loyal to her. You're kinda flirtatious, aren't you, Oikawa-san?"

"You make it sound like I want a dog, not a boyfriend!" Aoi exclaimed, horrified. "Besides, that's not the reason at all! I don't like this guy because... because he doesn't deserve her!"

"Who?" Iwaizumi, Oikawa, and Yui all asked in unison.

"Who else? Makoshima Naoko!" Aoi slammed her book down on the table. "How are you even dating her? She's the most terrifying underclassman ever! How did you get her to look twice at you when I can't get the totally average guy that I like to even look once at me?"

"Th-this is an even worse reason!" cried Yui and Oikawa.

Iwaizumi seemed baffled. "Aoi-san... you're jealous of this guy?"

"More like I'm envious of how the world always seems to turn with him." Aoi sat back, crossing her arms and sighing through her nose. "Sorry. I know this is horrible, but..." She stood with her lunch tray, sighing irritably. "Sorry for disturbing the peace. I'll leave you guys to it."

"Minacchi, wait!" Yui called after her, but the bespectacled girl was gone. "Minacchi..." She started to stand, but Oikawa got up first.

"Don't worry," he promised, taking another bite out of his bread, "I'll go after her."

"You better not say anything shitty," Iwaizumi threatened.

"Have some faith in me, Iwa-chan~!"

"So..." Iwaizumi trailed off, awkwardly fiddling with the peel of his mandarin. He'd never spoken to Yui one-on-one before—the dynamic had always included Aoi in the mix.

"So," Yui repeated. She unwrapped another bread, the third last one in the pile. "Shoot. Another golden star. I haven't gotten a single silver star so far..."

He would never admit it out loud, but there was something attractive about Yui that he couldn't quite describe. It wasn't as if she were ugly—if she'd just comb her hair a little, she would have been stunning, though—but this attraction was something different. And, as he pretended to be occupied with his food, it was bothering him more than he had anticipated.

Shit. Why the hell am I like this? Frustrated, Iwaizumi reached for the last bread in the wrapped pile, something in his brain short-circuiting when Yui's hand landed on top of his. He glanced up to meet her wide-eyed gaze.

Then she leaned back, a smile on her face. "You beat me."

He blinked. "What?"

"Hm? You get the honor of opening the last one, Iwaizumi-san."

Fuck. "Right." Hastily, he unwrapped it to hear Yui gasp in delight.

"Iwaizumi-san, you did it! It's a silver star!"

What do you know? Iwaizumi held up the sticker. So it is. He passed it to Yui, who was grinning. "Here."

"The first one," Yui marveled, holding it up high as if it were something very special. "I'll treasure it forever. Well," she reconsidered, "Until I mail it to the bread company for the prize."

"Prize?" Iwaizumi parroted. "So you actually get something from this?"

"Seven of 'em, yeah. It's just a small prize, but... I wasn't kidding about the wish you know."

Iwaizumi popped open a carton of milk that he had bought along with his lunch of chicken curry and Star Bread. "What is it, anyway? Your wish."

But Yui merely put a finger to her lips, a mysterious smile on her face. "That would be telling, Iwaizumi-san. Anyway! Let's go find Minacchi and Oikawa-san. I hope they're both still intact."

"Intuition says that Oikawa isn't," Iwaizumi said immediately.

"Same. Minacchi could totally tear him apart if she wanted to. She threw one of her history books at a guy once because he dog-eared the page before returning it to her."

Iwaizumi barked a laugh. "Of course she did."