notes:
finally here is part two! and I'm saying this now even though it's pretty obvious: Karma is in-love with Manami and Manami as we know, is still grasping at straws on what to do about knowing this (we'll get to that part later). I can safely say self-aware flirting karmanami is much more fun than one-sided flirting karmanami. also, I need to stop having long titles and notes that doesn't follow the laws of grammar. buckle up friends!
[Rule of 72—a calculation used to estimate the length of time it will take to double one's investments]
i: Rule of 72
It's when the clock ticks off another important minute that Karma decides he's done waiting, pushing off of the bench and striding inside the campus with purpose.
It wasn't that Karma was impatient. He was plenty patient; patience was an important virtue after all, and all her classes end at 3:30 pm. The catch was, no one would leave campus grounds until it was 5:30 pm (sometimes, Karma thought with dismay, even later than that). Oku Tokyo dedicated two hours of their time to prepare for the sectional research presentation on November—according to what the school manual said anyway, which Karma may or may not have borrowed from Manami, and as was the rest of the student body, Manami adhered to this practice. Enthusiastically so.
Sometimes he waits for her as early as 5 pm because his classes end an hour after hers. Sometimes Karma invited himself inside the school grounds when she went past their agreed meeting time.
"Hello, Kunugigaoka-san!" Sometimes, the braver ones who pass him by would greet him. This one looked familiar, ah, maybe she'd been the one on Tuesday? "Manami-chan's on lab 4A, at the Yukawa building. She's with Riko and Kouichi-kun. Need me to take you there?"
"Nah, I'm good, but thanks. You are…" Karma squinted, trying to name the face. Manami had four main friends here, and Karma was currently only familiar with Yotsuki and Ayasegawa-san, aka Riko-chan according to Manami. "'Daimonji-san'?"
She hums in a pleased sort of way. "Very good, Kunugigaoka-san. I'm off then, see you!" He's already walking towards the building on the right, and Karma gives her a two-fingered salute as he walks away, freely making his way into the building, smiling shamelessly along the way.
Unlike Kunugigaoka, with its rules and regulations made of iron, unless you are neither student nor faculty of the school, the gates remain closed on you for security purposes and besides, there were security cameras on each and every nook and cranny; not that 3-E was included on that benefit. Oku Tokyo allowed in visitors starting at 11 am on weekdays and 8 am on weekends because they had an actual science museum.
Visitors weren't exactly allowed into the academic buildings during visiting hours, but they didn't have cameras inside the buildings—something Karma's exploited for a number of times now.
Besides, no one is bothering to rat him out. They all like you too much, Ayasegawa-san had said to him; he exploits that too. So he smiles at each wide-eyed female and nods at passing males and skillfully works his way around an incoming teacher or two until he's sliding the lab 4A door open, startling two out of three of its occupants. Immediately, Karma's eyes zero in on the petite figure seated between her friends who didn't look his way, and pouts.
"Kunugigaoka-san!" Ayasegawa-san jumps out of her seat, slightly distorted behind her face mask. "Put a mask and a coat on before you come any closer."
The person on Manami's right teased, "Okuda, your boyfriend's here." Karma liked this one. What was his name again? Yamaguchi? "Yamamura, Kunugigaoka-san."
"Not her boyfriend," Karma hums. Taking his time with laboratory safety procedures, he stared at the back of Manami's bent head, unresponsive to her surroundings; Karma liked watching her like this, even if it took her attention away from him for long periods of time, even if she was too deep into a world of her own to realize the people around her was talking about her.
Ayasegawa-san hums, "But you want to be."
"It's not impossible," the words muffle as he settles a mask around his face, smirking behind the felt obstruction and approaching at Ayasegawa-san's nod of approval. "I mean, look at you and Yamamura-san~ I sure can feel the unresolved tension you have in here! I appreciate that you're considering Okuda-san's presence in the room~"
Karma snickers at their simultaneous blushing. They weren't actually together, but they look like they're together. Now, he thinks, doesn't that sound familiar… Karma slides towards the other end of the table, across the bubbling chemicals and nauseating fumes that revealed Manami's intense scrutiny and her rapid writing. He paid no heed to Yamamura-san's knowing smile and the unimpressed stare Ayasegawa-san was making as she looked at them back and forth.
Traveling all the way from Ichiōji to Kodakira twice a week just to see her for an hour or two was nothing compared to the thought of not seeing her at all. Had Karma gotten his way he would've come to her everyday regardless of ticket expenses—except Manami hadn't allowed it, so they compromised and he would go twice a week. Still worth it.
Karma catches her moment's distraction as her eyes blink, losing their intense focus on the boiling chemicals, until they settle on him. Her hand twitched and she gave a little jolt. Finally.
"Karma-kun!" Her eyes squint as she beams under the mask. "You're here! Why didn't you say anything?"
Because you wouldn't have heard me regardless. "Ah, senpai finally noticed me," he lamented, head cradled with his hands as he watched her pout. The Bunsen burner was carefully shut off, however, Manami glowered at him when he tried removing the mask: do not remove that. Karma consents with a smirk and shrugs. "Because I like watching you."
She blinks at him, "Watching me write?"
Watch you be amazing, instead, Karma grins and leans back. "Irrelevant. I came to get you, milady. It's already…" The watch strapped to his wrist blinked 6:00 at him. "…6 pm."
"Crap, really?" Yamamura-san gasps, frantically digging through his pockets. He came up with his phone and visibly paled. "I'm dead! Okuda, we're done for today, yeah?"
Ayasegawa-san shook her head, "Still can't believe you have a curfew of all things," she teased as Yamamura-san shoved textbooks and notebooks into his bag. Manami giggles along as she affirms his earlier question, and he sighs in relief.
"Well, I still can't believe we're not together yet, so how's that?" came the wry retort. This is what amuses Karma, and he laughs at Ayasegawa-san's embarrassed blush. Yamamura-san shook his head with a smirk, "Cat got your tongue, Riko?"
"Rack off," she mutters hotly. She turns to Manami, squeezes her shoulder. Behind her, Yamamura-san lingers, eyes going back to her every two seconds. The look of a longing soul. "It's not like he'll leave without me, so I guess I'll be going too. I'll take today's results and transcript them at home. Want help cleaning up, though?"
"Thank you, Riko-chan. I'll be fine, Karma-kun can help me," Karma chuckles at this. Of course he will—he'll help her with anything she wanted to have him do with her.
Ayasegawa-san sends him a look. Karma raised a questioning brow at her. She smiles teasingly, "Take care of Manami-chan," and hauls an amused Yamamura-san out the door after she throws a See you tomorrow, Manami-chan! over her shoulder. It left him and Manami, and Karma sagged forward again, chin cradled in one hand.
"I'm sorry," her giggle was sheepish as she put away the mixtures and sealed them up, and Karma stood to join her wash the used flasks and rods. "Did you wait long?"
"I wouldn't be here if I hadn't," Karma handed her a cylinder, following her to a cupboard, stowing away unused beakers. "Cruel of you."
"I didn't realize it got so late."
"Obviously~"
"But how did you know I was here?"
"Ah… your friend told me," Karma thoughtfully narrowed his eyes. Damn, he already forgot her name and her face again. "You know… The one who looks like Nakamura?"
Manami carefully stows away each item he gives her. "Daimonji-san?"
"Or whoever she is," Karma snickers. He stuck his tongue out at her narrowed eyes. "You forget I don't really know who your friends are."
Manami playfully scoffed, swatting his arm and removing her mask with the other, "But you get along with Yotsuki-kun!"
"That's because his girl's in my school, and he's one-half of my favorite new math term, Mana-squared." Manami took on an endearing flush, and Karma smirks as he approaches her, purring, "Though… I am arguably very biased when it comes to preferring the other value."
Very biased. That was one thing Manami knew very well herself even without his saying it.
Laughing at her flustered silence, Karma shook his head and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, pulling her close to an embrace. He felt her tug on his jacket, and Karma pulled off his mask to kiss her forehead. This is happiness, he thinks, of being able to finally do this after so long, and she was letting him. Sometimes seeing her twice a week did not just cut it. Karma missed her every time—no, Karma always missed her.
Manami fidgets shyly in his embrace, cheeks flushed and eyes unable to meet his as he squeezed her close. She's shy from his affection, but she'd held on to him, and it takes her a few seconds to clear her throat and speak.
"How was your day?" The question is low and soft, muffled and pressed against his chest as a pleasant tingle ran through his senses when he heard this. Interest, sincerity, curiosity. Manami looks up at him with a small grin.
So Karma pinches her cheek. "How about I tell you while we have dinner?" Karma did not care where as long as it was with her. He'd never had the time to explore Kodakira, since the only thing he came here for was her, but Karma was curious where she spent some hour or two with her friends (and Manami had once mentioned this cafe he'd like—that, he swore, was going to be a date for another time) whenever he didn't come by. This was the perfect opportunity to get around the city, score a date in the long run.
"Is it okay?" He lets her go eventually, swiping her bag away when she tried to reach for it. Manami sinks back to her feet with another pout and Karma laughs. "We'll be home late! Won't it be too much trouble?"
"It's okay, as always~ Besides, I wanna know how your day went, too."
On the way out (sneaking, actually, since he was an outsider inside the academic buildings and that was illegal and all), Karma waits for it. It starts slowly, building up his anticipation without meaning to. He's so finely attuned to Manami that it's natural for him to walk in the same strides as she was. Her height's improved a teeny-tiny bit, too; a month ago, she came up to his sternum and now the top of her head brushed his shoulders. Still so tiny and Karma was perfectly sure he wasn't done growing, but Manami was the perfect tiny. He could hold her hand without trouble, lead her where to go.
She could reach for his hand without trouble, like what she's currently doing right now. A small palm brushing against his wrist, too shy to actually slip into his. This is new to her, Karma would remind himself every time she'd hesitate—minimum of twice, maximum of five times. Taking it slow, baby steps. One at a time, just as promised.
"Do you like somewhere specific?"
"Surprise me, Okuda-san!"
They are nearing a crowd, entering through it. At the end of the large congregation her hand is firmly clasped with his. Karma hums a little tune of victory and knows without looking that Manami is pleased with herself as they make it down the streets. He swings their hands together with barely contained glee.
"Here, Karma-kun," she tugged on his hand as they stopped in front of a diner, and through what little gap the sliding doors had, the most mouth-watering smell of spice and broth and oil wafted through. "This is my favorite diner! Yamamura-kun and Riko-chan introduced me to it."
Karma gawked at the sign stationed above. "Okonomiyaki? I didn't peg you for the type," he whistles, impressed and seriously eager to go in. Surprise him she did. The smell was damned good, and if it was this good, he wondered how the actual food would be. Ten times better at least!
"Ah, that's because you can't be choosy around Yamamura-kun, see," Manami giggles, sliding the door open, and Karma feels the warm air of cooking food and bustling activity blast them inside the fairly crowded diner. "And he insists on finishing everything we ordered, even the drinks! He won't let you go until your plate is completely empty."
"That's actually positive influence. Ain't good to let one drop of rice go to waste, wouldn't it?"
Manami's voice hushed as she leaned closer to him, voice teasing, "Fortunately, Yamamura-kun has good taste so it's not a problem most of the time." Karma laughs.
On the counter in front three seats were made available as a group left, and with their finely sharpened navigational skills honed from junior high it was easy to get there immediately without losing it to the other customers. In front of the counter meant they were smack in the middle of all the activity, which meant heat, and Karma shrugged off his jacket, loosening his tie and his cuffs, rolling them to his elbows like a seasoned businessman on his lunch break. Manami had also taken his cardigan off and retied her braids into a bun that hung high on her head; she almost didn't look like herself, and she was cuter than ever.
"Okuda-san," he calls after she ordered for the two of them, chin cushioned on one fist, smile cheeky.
Manami blinks from patting her face dry. "Yes?"
"When are you not cute?"
"When you don't think about it," she says with no pause, calmly and sort of smugly. Karma isn't done though; she may have gotten better with her comebacks, but she was still easy to fluster.
"That's too bad, I always think you're cute," Karma leaned further forward, into her, smirk growing as she leaned back. "Actually, I always think of you, in general."
There it was. She was starting to fidget. "T-Then you must be distracted most of the time."
Weak! "There is a difference between managing my time for you and being distracted because of you. Either way, I don't really care as long as Okuda-san is also making the same effort, see~"
"Hmph," came the less enthusiastic and more embarrassed reply. Translation: I lose and you win.
"Cute."
"S-So are you going to tell me about your day or not?" She flailed, looking at everywhere but him, and Karma relents with a grin as he proceeds to tell her how today had been a curve ball—a surprise quiz on a completely new topic in Social Studies, and it turns out Asano had received prior tutoring because the teacher had been on the same cram school he goes to, and Asano had the nerve to rub his 99 on his face. Karma swore it on his 95 that he would study two new lessons ahead of every subject. Karma also took full pleasure at Manami's look of disapproval because it meant more sleepless nights, and her fussing over him.
"All in good intentions," he shrugged distractedly, watching the cook prepare their orders with barely contained delight. "If I let Asano one-up me twice a row, that would be shameful. I don't do shameful, Okuda-san." From 2nd to 10th place real quick; a mark below 90 for the first time of his life and it had been extremely humbling in the end. He considered it to be one of the darkest points of his life.
"Please don't forget to rest!" Manami scolds, tugging on his arm insistently. "Doing better against Asano-san at the cost of your health will not be worth it."
Karma chuckled. Her concern was heartwarming; he reached for her and ruffled her hair, smiling fondly. "I know, I know. I'm not that irresponsible to put my health second. But I appreciate your concern; you do care for me after all."
"Of course I do," her voice was barely above a whisper, and she cleared her throat as his hand made its way down her head to drape along the low back of her chair. "You're my friend."
Karma smirked. "Just your friend?" Her answering glance was still meek, but meaningful. She knows what he means; it was ironic how she could understand him and also not. That was okay, too. Karma still wanted her and no other, all the same. So Karma slides her chair a little more closer to his until he could brush his fingers on the far side of her waist and finally asks, "How was your day?"
In the train, there was little room to move around in from the 8 pm rush hour crowd that is packed into the cab. For Karma, it doesn't matter if he was standing and tolerating the mass of people that swayed and shoved against him so as long as Manami was properly protected from wandering hands and ill intentions. They stood near the doors facing each other; idly, he wondered if Manami realized they made a scene straight out of a shoujo manga—if she even knew what a shoujo manga was. Karma was more than willing to give her some recommendations or three if she didn't.
His hand slid from the compartment wall to play with her right braid, and Manami looks up. "Dinner was great. What about your folks?"
"Ah, they usually get back at around ten, so they eat out most of the time. Why do you ask?"
"Ten, huh? I'm wondering if they're wary of me yet," Karma snickered. "I do keep their only daughter out so late at night for like, twice a week. Don't they worry?"
Manami giggles quietly. The train jostled for a moment. "They do. But they said as long as I get home at all, safe and sound, it's fine." An indulgent smile lit her lips. "And I think dad likes you too much."
"No kidding?" He blinked, surprised and barely above preening. What do you know, not even official but I have his approval. That was generally a difficult feat for most people.
She grinned at his awed expression, "Uh-huh," and then shrugged. "He goes on and on about you, thanking you for 'finally getting me outside like a normal human,' …hmph," her face had a look of mild, embarrassed offense; it looked like she didn't mean to say that out loud. Now Karma preened, smirking at her as she indignantly pursed her mouth. "W-Whatever. Mom is a bit more harder to sway. She worries more, and is not particularly fond of you because of it."
Well, that is easily arranged. If he could charm other school ladies into not ratting him out and cash registrars to give him discounts on every priced item he bought, a worried mother was nothing troubling. And since this was Manami's mother, he would make himself extra polite and forthcoming for whatever wariness she had for him, and win her over. It wouldn't do to have a negative first impression. Plans and schemes being made, Karma restrained his smirk.
"That's only natural, but I have my own oath to keep you safe when we're out later than usual." And besides… at the end of the day, what right do I have considering the nature of our relationship, to keep you to myself? Karma let out a wry chuckle, waving off her questioning stare. Limits, he reminds himself.
The train ride is always disappointingly short; Manami's stop was now a minute away, and his was the next one after hers. One train ride away. Hinai Station… Hinai Station… Karma blinked when a finger prodded his stomach area; looking down, Manami is smiling gently at him, and twitched in amusement when he halfheartedly swats her finger away.
"What?" He asked, genuinely curious.
Her hands drew back and weaved behind her. "One of these days, will you have dinner with us?" Though she hid it, Manami twiddled with her fingers behind her—a nervous habit. "Only—only if you want to!"
Manami's thinking about him again; of going home to a perpetually empty house that, despite what she thought, he was used to experiencing. Looking back, it was somehow a sad thought. But no matter how indulgent his folks were about their travels and his freedom, they never fail to be there at the most important events of his life, or how they would come back as soon as Karma called for them, even if for no reason at all. They were not flighty people; at the very least, they never forgot how to be good parents.
And yes, it got lonely sometimes, but it was tolerable. Karma still had people he can be with. People like Nagisa… like Manami.
Affection and gratitude welling in his chest, Karma cupped her jaw and grinned. "I'll even bring some of our special family recipes over." It was worth seeing a sparkle light up her eyes as she nods.
The train slowed as it approached the platform, and Karma tugged the cardigan properly over Manami's shoulders, fixed her scarf. It was still cold mid-April. This cardigan had been his, and it suited the all-navy of her sailorfuku. Karma remembered that day a little over three weeks ago, when she asked him to accompany her to Oku Tokyo for miscellaneous paper submissions. When they had met up in the station she was in full uniform, shivering but smiling, thinking the winter variant and a thin scarf was enough in the cold spring chill. He remembered feeling tad displeased, and also a little amused.
"H-How do I look?"
Intelligent. Happy. Cute. Cold. So Karma laughs and insists she take the cardigan he wore under his coat. In the sailorfuku, Manami was a sight to behold. But Karma wasn't really fixated on her uniform—it's the fact that his old cardigan was on her. His heart thumped. His.
"That looks great on you," Karma grins. "I'll give it you, so use it well~ And you can't say no and return it."
Without pause, "Sure!"
Karma had meant the whole thing to be a joke. He didn't expect her to actually accept. She had this really big smile that made awful aches of affection to well up in his chest that Karma had to look away. He adored her so badly it hurt.
How do I look, she said. Karma wanted to say, you look mine.
"I can do that on my own."
Karma shrugged. "I nurture."
"Like a nurse?" Manami teased, giggling.
Far from it. He smirked back, purring, "Like a boyfriend," and had the full satisfaction of seeing her blush furiously. Karma chortled at her weak push against his chest, wrapping an arm around her and squeezing her close, murmuring, "I'll walk you home, but I know you won't let me."
Manami reminds him gently, "Because we had a deal."
"And I do have my honor," Karma sighed. No matter how much he wanted to do what he pleased with her, Manami's influence was overpowering what he wanted. Pressing a peck on her temple, Karma reluctantly lets her go as the doors finally slide open, a burst of cold air making him stiffen. He pulls her aside to let the others pass first; Manami is still blush-cheeked as she looked up at him, stare expectant and Karma finally relents, smiling, "I'll see you on Tuesday."
"Yeah," Manami sniffs, and her nose was pink. "Please take care on your way home!"
"Always~"
She's out of the car in three steps, behind the yellow line in five before Manami turns, grins. "I'll call you when I get home." The doors slide close then, and she waves as Karma smiles and he does the same until the train moves, faster, until he can't see her anymore. Karma remains standing in front of the doors with tingling cheeks and the memory of Manami's warmth in his hands as his smile drops.
"And I was wondering if you could accept my confession, and make me yours."
Karma had sincerely thought he had been obvious enough. Those phone calls, the outings they do together, alone, the things he does for her and with her. The insistence of making her his assassination partner, the constancy of his presence in the lab after classes. And he'd given her his second button, too, so, Karma thought that to be enough reason for everything if she ever needed confirmation of what his intentions were. Manami is a smart girl, he'd reasoned. She would have figured it out after the second button gig.
Her 'but I don't understand why it's that important' nearly broke his heart until he remembered that the girl he fancied had been socially challenged and so, naturally, had no knowledge on social trends. Maybe not so much as now, but it just further endeared her to him, even if it goes without saying that sometimes…
There was beauty in the pleasure of being able to understand Manami through her transparency, though sometimes it hurt. Was it so hard to believe that he had feelings for her?
There was little room for anything else when ambition took up most of her heart. He'd listened to her dreams and wondered often to himself if he had his share of space; it was possible that Karma did, if she was always so willing to hold his freaking hand, accepted his company and generally liked his presence. Liked me. Karma knew she liked him without realizing that she did. She wasn't aware of the fondness in her eyes and how lovelier it made her look when that fondness crept to her cheeks and curved her mouth to the smile that was his when she looked at him, up at him, and how Karma had to fight himself to keep it together and not kiss her because he knew she wasn't ready. Taking one step forward and two steps back when eggshells cracked.
But Karma was patient. He was plenty patient; patience was an important virtue, especially when good things awaited at the end.
His end just happened to contain an Okuda Manami, and for that end, Karma was willing to wait.
on mornings spent swaying to and fro on the train is also found under chuunihans for the series one train away on ao3.