A/N: Okay guys, I'm sorry its taken so long to update. I've been super busy the past few weeks, and also been struggling with inspiration. *sigh* It comes and it goes. Anyway, I'm not sure if this is my best chapter, but I'll try to get chapter 3 up shortly and not wait as long. I hope you guys like it though! Leave me a review so I know what to work on! :D
As Yaya walked along side her pink haired underclassmen, she noticed the younger girl bouncing about in excitement. She had been in a good mood all morning. Tsubomi hadn't even argued with her when Yaya tried to pick fights. It felt stranged, like she was being ignored or something. "What's up with you today? You didn't even get mad at me when I said you would get fat eating those sweets this morning." A smirk played at the corners of Yaya's lips, hoping she could get a reaction from her friend. But no such luck graced her.
Tsubomi smiled brightly, not even letting the older girl's words register. "Don't play dumb. You know exactly what today is." There seemed to be a light skip in her step. She hadn't even complained that Hikari left her alone all day with Yaya because of Etoile duties.
"Actual, would you mind reminding me again? I have no clue why you're so happy." Tsubomi's smile faded when she saw her companion was serious.
"Yaya… it's parents' day remember? Its supposed to happen every year after the Etoile elections are over with. I can't believe you didn't remember!" Tsubomi was bewildered by the dumbstruck girl beside her. "You seriously didn't know?"
"Well…" Yaya rubbed the back of her neck like she was uncomfortable with where the conversation had turned. "I guess I just forgot. Anyway, I have to be somewhere. So I'll see you around okay?" She didn't even wait for the younger girl to respond. She darted away toward the dorms at lightning speed. Tsubomi shook her head in frustration, but figured Yaya had to clean up her room before everyone got there so she continued on to choir practice.
It was early afternoon when Yaya finally emerged from her dorm. She hadn't wanted to deal with today's stress, so she went to take a nap after calming down. Since today was an event, all the girls were wearing their uniforms, even though it was a Saturday. The dark haired girl wasn't pleased by having to wear the tight fitting clothes, but she obliged so she could still go out and about to the booths that had been set up. It felt more like a cultural festival than a parents' day. Food booths and club booths littered the wide walkways, and girl's and their families stretched out in front of Yaya for as far as she could see. It would be impossible to find any of her friends in this mess. She doubted any of them would have time for her anyway.
She caught a momentary glimpse of light pink hair float through the crowd. Within seconds Tsubomi emerged from the cluster of people quite a bit flustered. She didn't seem to be looking around for her family, so maybe they hadn't come. A smile pricked at Yaya's nervous mouth. She didn't want to lose the chance to be with a friend.
Coming up behind the younger girl, she yoinked her up in a tight embrace. The pink head struggled frantically until she heard unrestrained laughter from the taller girl behind her. Yaya placed her back on the ground, but didn't remove her arms from around Tsubomi's waist. Her grip only tightened with every person that passed by them. "If you squeeze any tighter you get to see what I had for breakfast!" Another fit of laughter emanated from the older girl.
"What's wrong Tsubomi? Can't handle me today? This morning you wouldn't even listen when I was talking to you. It's like you were a different person." The pink haired girl ignored the comments when she saw a group of four coming toward them.
"Baka! Let go of me!" Yaya was surprised by how hard Tsubomi was fighting to get lose, and ended up letting her slip away. "Baka baka baka! Don't grab me! Stupid baka!" Her face had turned so red it made her hair look watered down. What was going on with her today? One minute she would be the happiest person in the world, and the next she was screaming baka over and over again.
"Tsubomi? Who's this?" Yaya looked up from the younger girl's enraged eyes to see two men and two women staring at her intently. She staggered back from shock. The two women both looked like older versions of Tsubomi. One of the men even had some of her facial traits.
"Uh… this is… well…" Her red face hadn't dulled whatsoever. It seemed to get darker by the second in fact.
"Yaya! You're going to be at the performance tomorrow right?!" Tsubomi and Yaya turned to some girls passing by that frequented choir practice to listen to the dark haired girl sing. She had gained quite a few fans that year because of all the solos she had received. Yaya nodded lightly. She gave a light wave, making the three girls squeal happily. "We're looking forward to it! See you at tomorrow's practice!" They ran off giggling and glancing back to her excitedly.
"So is Yaya one of your friends Tsubomi? She's quite tall for your age huh?" The older woman smile sincerely at Yaya almost immediately.
"Uh… Mom this is Yaya Nanto. She's a friend from choir. She's actually a third year." Tsubomi shifted her attention to Yaya in annoyance. "Yaya, this is my family. My mom and dad, and my sister and her boyfriend."
"Its nice to meet you. I'm sorry I interrupted. Please accept my apologies." Yaya bowed her head, quickly trying to scamper away before Tsubomi dug into her.
"Yaya wait a minute!" She froze in place. She knew it was no use. This girl would hesitate to chase her down if she thought something was wrong. "Where's your family at? I introduced mine didn't I? Or is Hikari only special enough to meet them?" A small pout formed on the younger girl's bottom lip. It was probably the cutest thing Yaya had since her do.
"Well… um…" She rubbed the back of her neck in embarrassment. Her face turned five shades of red and she diverted her eyes from her underclassmen. Tsubomi's jaw almost dropped open when she saw the way Yaya was acting. Yaya never got embarrassed. Not even in front of new people like her family. Then it dawned on her.
"Yaya…" She made the older girl look at her, not being able to hide the concern on her face. "Your parents didn't come…?" Her voice had dropped so low, it was barely more than a whisper. Now she understood why Yaya hadn't remembered what day it was that morning, or why she ran away so fast when she asked why. Yaya didn't want to remember. She knew ahead of time that her parents wouldn't be attending.
"Well… my dad got transferred over seas a couple months ago. So… my family couldn't make it back for just one day. Its not a big deal. Its whatever." She shrugged her shoulders, but still couldn't look into the younger girl's face.
"Why don't you be with us today then? We'll be a makeshift family. No sense being all alone today." Tsubomi's sister placed an arm around her younger sister's shoulders and stared at Yaya invitingly. As much as Yaya would love to go along to pester the first year, she didn't want to ruin Tsubomi's fun when she was obviously excited about seeing her family.
"Thank you very much, but I actually have something I have to do. I was on my way there when I spotted Tsubomi. Thank you again though." She bowed once more, managing to slip away this time without the little pink head trailing after her. She walked toward the chapel at a snail's pace. She was positive no one would be there at this time because of all the guests getting shown around.
Tsubomi laughed happily at her father's joke. They were eating a late lunch in the cafeteria, but mainly killing time until Tsubomi could figure out what else to show her family. "So you're in the Spica choir right? What made you join? I mean over the other clubs around campus." Tsubomi's sister thought Astrea was the most fascinating school she had ever been to. She had of course went to a regular co-ed high school, so she didn't get the same experience.
"Well… I actually joined because of Yaya." She poked at her food nervously, trying not to make eye contact.
"So you joined just so you could be in a club with your friend?" Her father didn't seem very pleased with that answer.
"No, but she was the reason I joined. I got to hear her singing unfiltered, and it was amazing. I thought maybe choir could teach me to sing like that, and Yaya could tutor me or something." Tsubomi felt a hand on her shoulder and jumped instantly.
"Yaya would be a great teacher if you asked her." Hikari smiled brightly at the younger girl and her family.
"Mom, Dad, this is Hikari. She is one of our Etoiles, and also best friends and roommates with Yaya." Tsubomi's cheeks reddened when she realized she had been caught by Hikari, talking about Yaya.
"I think she's actually in the chapel right now. She's been practicing in there for a couple hours, but I think she's just nervous about her solo tomorrow." The pink head's eyes sparked at the idea of going to see Yaya singing.
"Would you guys like to see the chapel? I'm sure Hikari could show us around, right?" Hikari shook her head regretfully, explaining she had to find Amane for their duties. "Oh, well I hope you have a good day Hikari!" Tsubomi bounced up from her chair, practically dragging her family out of the building behind her.
As they reached the chapel, she let her family admire their surroundings while she frantically searched for the singer. She didn't hear a single sound throughout the chapel besides her roaming family trying to keep up with her. Her sister opened a side door that lead to a long corridor and a set of wooden doors at the end. Tsubomi jumped in realization. Yaya loved the back of the church. That was even where she first heard her, why shouldn't she check there?
She tried her best to walk as she excitedly reached the end of the corridor. Her family walked up behind, but stayed quiet with the sound of singing coming from around the corner. Tsubomi stopped happily when she spotted the older girl. Yaya leaned against the side of the building nonchalantly, focusing on the sheet music in her hand.
Her voice lilted through the air in radiance, creating an ambience around them that cut them off from the rest of the world. Tsubomi soaked in the floating notes as they passed by, her heart fluttering more and more with each breath Yaya took. Her vocal cords must have been like silk if they could let out the most entrapping sound the group had ever heard. Yaya normally had to restrain herself during choir practice so as not to over shadow everyone, but out here by herself she let her voice flow freely. It was all Tsubomi could do to keep her trembling knees from buckling.
"Maybe I should make that note higher…" Yaya still hadn't noticed her audience several feet away.
"I think it sounds perfect." Yaya jumped in surprise at Tsubomi's voice. She turned to see the group with staring at her with sparkling eyes. She had only seen Tsubomi stare like that at Hikari when they practiced, why was she staring like that now? Hikari was no where around.
"Really? It sounded a bit off to me." She handed the paper over for the younger girl to look through.
"Maybe instead of a strong note, make it a sharp. That way you don't change the note, but it'll still be higher." She handed the paper back, but turned her head swiftly to keep Yaya from seeing her blush. "Baka, couldn't you figure that out?" It took a minute for Yaya to come out of her shock, but she cheerily glomped her pink haired friend in thanks. Tsubomi's face lit up like fire when she felt the brunette snake her arms lightly around her waist.
"Thanks Tsubomi! I'll definitely do that." She gave a cheesy smile to the struggling girl, releasing her quickly. "I better be going. I promised Hikari we could have dinner together tonight. Amane was leaving this afternoon for a competition. So I'll see you later pipsqueak!" She gathered her bag hurriedly and turned to Tsubomi's family. "It was very nice to meet you, and thank you for letting Tsubomi come to Spica. She tends to keep me in line when I need it." With a quick wink, she disappeared around the side of the building.
"You keep her in line?" She couldn't stop her face from burning.
"That baka would sleep all day if I let her! A-And she would be in bed sick all the time if I didn't make her eat right! S-So I guess…" She rolled her eyes at her snickering sister and scurried off back into the chapel.