this is a hell-spawn of a semester im dying
i had time to write this and it's already been a month.
please enjoy
EDIT: thankyou for pointing out that maRi instead of maKi! love you!
It was a stupid decision, really. Maki wondered why she even bothered to pick it up in the first place. It was a spur of the moment kind of thing, she told herself. Her eyes just landed on the title then her hand began to take it off from the shelf and before she knew it, she was already at the front of the cashier, paying for the damn book.
No, it wasn't for that tiny gremlin.
No, not at all.
Maki firmly believed this was all for herself and nothing more but the nagging voice inside her head told her otherwise. If it were a person, it would most certainly roll their eyes from the redhead's constant denial.
"I just want to wipe that," Cute. No. That's not it. "infuriating look on her face." She whispered to herself.
Ah, yes. That must be it.
She wanted to even the score. Maybe that way, the senior wouldn't be so obnoxious all the time. Maybe then, she won't be such a child and keep annoying her. And maybe, just maybe, Maki would have the last laugh.
She remembered how the President made Nico apologize to her again because of what happened with her hands. Nozomi was there as well. Nico explained to her what happened and that it was all a mistake and she didn't bully Maki but Eli was far more concerned about the safety of their junior. Maki eased the punishment for Nico, speaking on her behalf because it was just an accident and that Nico didn't bully her into accepting. They let it go, eventually, and the tiny senior gave her a small pat on her shoulder.
Thanks for backing me up there.
"It was nothing." She replied.
She expected her to begin her incessant demands of showing her the best Nico Nico Nii but they hardly saw each other. She often went home early.
The redhead was walking to her classroom, book in hand. She removed the cover and replaced it with one of her novels to avoid any unnecessary explanation to her friends. Or Nico. Or anyone else for that matter. And also to save herself from the embarrassment.
It was a well-conceived plan. A simple but effective solution.
"Maki-chan nya! Good morning!" Rin's usual greeting came along with her throwing herself at the pianist. The cover almost slipped but her long fingers covered the title part and quickly put it back to hide the evidence. Hanayo followed after her energetic friend as she did every single day.
They exchanged greetings and everything was going so smoothly until Rin just had to point out that the size of the cover was not appropriate for the book. Maki felt her confidence crumble.
She didn't think this thoroughly enough.
"Isn't the cover a bit too big nya?" she asked.
"You're right, Rin-chan." Hanayo said.
They both looked at the redhead and she was quick to reply. "It's a temporary cover. I accidentally switched it with my other books when I was cleaning my shelf. I'll take care of it later."
Nice. That was a convincing lie. Hopefully they bought it.
But of course, her lie was seen right through as the orange-haired girl read the title. Maki rebutted, telling them it was just a mistake in the printing of the title but the brunette told her it was bad to lie. She relented after Hanayo gave her one last push and trudged towards her seat as the bell began to ring. Hanayo and Rin wore smiles on their faces at Maki's sweet but not intended gesture.
The vibration of the speaker reverberated inside the room and she was lucky the place was secluded so that no one can be bothered by the noise. She placed her hand on top of it, feeling the ups and downs of the waves but it was a futile effort.
She entered the video in fullscreen, paying close attention to the movement of the lips. It closed. It opened. It formed an 'o'. A slight parting of the lips. A shout. A little whisper. Then a smile. Her eyes absorbed every little thing, understanding the words as her hand tried to figure out how to distinguish the different sounds.
Why did it have to work like that?
Was there a trick to it?
She opened her mouth and felt the low rumble from her chest to her throat. What sound did she make right now? Was it correct? She replayed the video again.
From the start.
It opened wide; there was a big jump on the speaker. There was a slight tremble before the lips closed. It opened once more followed by rhythmic words flying out of the mouth. The pattern was memorized after the fifth replay and she wrote down in a notebook the things she learned.
She felt a draft of air from behind and she instinctively glared to whoever disturbed her concentration. The heavy footsteps accompanied by the steady tip tap on the floor, she already knew who it was. It was a routine. She was used to it.
She turned it off and a new set of trembles occupied the room.
She sighed. She hoped she made a beautiful sound. Then packed her things. It was getting late.
Since there was no point in hiding to her two friends, Maki decided to dump the obviously failed plan of the book cover and opted to just read in silence. It was more on pictures than it was with words. Like a children's fairy tale book. Only that it isn't about fairies. Nor is it all about fantasy. But the more she stared at it, the less she understood.
"I think it's meant to be read with a partner," suggested the soft-spoken girl as she grabbed another rice ball from her box. Rin flipped the pages, turned it upside down, and flipped some more before returning it to the redhead.
"Kayo-chin's right nya. It's pretty hard when you do it by yourself."
The girl in question shrugged her shoulders. "I could do it in front of a mirror. There's no need for another person." Plus there was an option to watch videos if necessary.
"Wow, Maki-chan. You're really smart nya!" she complemented. "I can't wait to see the look on Nico-chan's face when you tell her all about it."
Maki looked away. Embarassed. Hanayo spoke, "Nico-senpai would really appreciate it." Maki's cheeks felt hot.
"Hey, hey, Maki-chan." Rin leaned over to her side while stealthily taking one of her octopus hotdog. Maki saw it but let it go. She was finished anyway. "Once you're done, teach us about it too. I wanna talk to Nico-chan more and I bet she'd be suuuper happy."
Happy.
Would something like this make her happy?
Rin pointed her a certain page. Happy. Move your hands up and down in altering directions. Your hands are showing how your body is moving with happy energy. It is also the same sign for fun.
The orange-haired girl followed the steps. "It's like this nya?" Hanayo copied it then Maki. "It's pretty easy once you get the hang of it."
Maki turned a few more pages before a smile appeared on her face.
She might need a little bit more time though.
She stared dazedly at the lips of her teacher then the writings on the board. While her eyes were busy studying what's in front of her, her hand was tapping at a timed pace. There were two distinct noises. A soft one and a slightly louder one.
TAP TAP
tap TAP
TAP tap TAP
tap tap
A four second pause. Rinse and repeat.
Before she realized it, a paper was tossed to her desk. She picked it up and threw it behind her. After a couple of seconds, it was back with another comment. They discretely exchanged notes and her hand had stopped the tapping.
You're distracting the whole class, it said.
I'm not even doing anything, she wrote.
Someone on your mind? :3c
Don't worry it's not you.
You wound me.
It stopped after that. She looked down at her desk and saw the scratch marks for her pencil. Oh. She was doing it again. She didn't even notice it. Was she really that distracted?
She saw her classmates stand up and she quickly slid out of her chair to bid farewell to their teacher. The others scrambled and went away while she fixed her stuff. A figure stood in front and hands gestured for her attention. She stared at her lips and hands, waiting for her words.
"You were thinking about Maki-chan, weren't you?"
A low gruff. She felt air come out of her mouth. She knew she made a sound. Was it a good one?
No, I wasn't, she signed.
"Aw, Nicocchi. You know what happens when you're not being honest with yourself." There was it. The signature claws. The all-knowing smirk. She furiously waved her hands in surrender. No. Please. Anything but that torture.
"You were tapping her name, see?" she demonstrated it. "You forgot we learned that together."
Damn Nozomi. She's too good with this kind of thing. The dark-haired girl waved her off as she continued in stuffing in her materials into her bag. They were alone in the classroom by now. She'd better hurry up. That Russian chick may not be able to wait for long.
She felt someone walk towards them and it was no surprise that it was Eli. Speak of the devil. She saw her lips move fast but she caught the gist of her words. She thought Nozomi went ahead without her so she checked. It's like she had her on a leash.
Nico slung her bag to her shoulder and adjusted her favourite pink cardigan. Eli smiled to her as always.
"Will you go on ahead?" she asked. "Or will you wait for us? It might take long."
The tiny girl yawned and told them she'd wait. Mama texted her she was home already. She had time. Nico saw Nozomi cup her hand around her mouth, preventing Nico to see what she was telling Eli. The blonde raised her eyebrows and laughed. Then she saw the shape of her lips and Nico punched Nozomi on the shoulder. Not too hard. Just a playful shove. The blonde was quick to catch her.
"Nico, don't do that." Eli scolded. Nico scoffed.
What lies were you spouting again?
"Me? Lie? I would never lie." Nozomi faked. "I just told Elicchi you were thinking about Maki-chan during class," She looked over to Eli. "Isn't she so adorable? She kept on tapping her name like this, you should've seen it." Nico hit her again. Hard.
"Nico, don't hit her like that." The dark-haired girl signed, Keep her under control or so help me I will personally shut her up! Eli looked at the suspect. "And you, stop teasing Nico. She'll keep hitting you if you do that. Also we're late. We have a meeting."
"Okay okay. Sorry, Nicocchi." She apologized. She affectionately rubbed her head. "I'm just glad you found a new friend." It was a sincere smile. Nozomi hardly smiled like that these days so Nico accepted it. The two went to the Student Council room, reminding her that they'll be a little late. Nico went to the vending machine at the south of the building and took two cartons of milk.
She thought about staying in the Idol Research Club room to wait but when she saw a flash of red inside the Music room, her body turned and followed it. She stood on her tiptoes to peer inside. She silently watched her play.
Nishikino Maki.
It was a nice name. It suited the owner. An only child. An heiress to the largest hospital chain in Japan. A princess.
She partially knew her from the stories of Rin and Hanayo but other than that, she was a complete stranger. She was a bit moody. She always looked bored. She rarely smiled.
However, when alone with the piano, Nico can see a whole new different side of her.
She's smiling.
She's having fun.
She loves playing.
It was like she was another person. Not the Nishikino Maki everyone knew and talked about.
The tiny senior's legs grew tired after some time and went inside. She saw her junior jump and accidentally slammed her hands on the keys. Maki winced at the cacophony of mismatched notes but Nico wasn't bothered. She couldn't hear it, after all.
"Nico-chan! W-what are you doing here?" she stammered.
The dark-haired senior was about to sign but she remembered Maki wouldn't be able to understand so she took her trusty notebook and began to write.
Just passing by.
She took a seat beside her and she could see Maki's face grew red. She examined her hands and gave them a pat. It was better now. It healed properly.
They don't hurt anymore?
"Yeah." She smiled. That was good. Her hands create music. It's an integral part of her to be able to play the piano. "Is N-nozomi not with you today?"
She's busy with student council duties.
"It must be important then."
Nico nodded.
It felt like she was forgetting something. Nico put a finger on her chin and hummed. She took her notebook and checked the tally sheet. She saw Maki's score and her eyes twinkled in amusement. Ah, that's it. She saw Maki tense up. So she knew. Nico laughed.
Nico leaned her face and gave a smug look. Maki bit her lip. This too, was another side of her. Being shy and nervous. "W-w-what do you want?" Nico must admit, she looked cute.
What do I want? You know what it is.
"I don't know what you're talking about." She played safe.
Ahhhh Maki-chan. You're so forgetful now but I'll make you remember. Nico shook her head. I still won the bet and you owe me your best Nico Nico Nii.
Maki buried her face in her hands. She saw her mouth open. Nico wondered if she was screaming. She enjoyed her reactions. Nico removed her hands and gently grabbed her face, making the pianist stare at her. Maki's amethyst eyes were a bit watery and her face was flushed.
Oh no.
Why is she looking at her like that?
She's looked too cute.
It was unfair.
Here. It's simple. Nico controlled her hands. She was jealous at how big they were compared to hers. She then placed it above her head and snickered.
Maki looked even more ridiculous than ever before.
Now just say the magic words, Nico Nico Nii!
"Just this one time, alright."
This one time.
"Never again."
Never again unless you want to.
"Why would I- uuughh! Let's get this over with!"
Maki closed her eyes and Nico took the opportunity to fish her phone out of her pocket to capture this once in a lifetime moment. She saw Maki's lips quiver and how her signature phrase was spoken.
A little opening for the Ni with the lips almost forming a smile and the tongue touching the roof of the mouth
An 'o' for the Co with a hard clack
Nico instinctively copied it. It was her name. It was her catchphrase. It was a part of her.
She hurriedly closed her phone when Maki was finished and she gave her a harsh glare. Nico innocently gloated with her victory.
"Are you satisfied now?!"
I thought we agreed on your best Nico Nico Nii? That was hardly your best. You didn't even smile.
"I don't care anymore. Take it or leave it, I am not doing that again." She said.
Boy, was she so fun to mess with. Nico clapped and reached into her bag to give her the other milk carton. She's done humiliating her for now. Maybe another time.
Fine. You've done your part. Next time, you won't leave until you've mastered the art.
Maki grumbled but took the offering with a smile. Thank you, the redhead signed to her.
Did she?
Did she just?
Nico couldn't believe it. She remembered. She remembered how to do it. She remembered what Nico had taught her weeks ago.
Apart from Nico's curiosity about her, Maki was one of the first to actually tolerate her abrasive nature. Most people would actually avoid her because of it but this redhead was different.
She wasn't like the others who evaded her like the plague.
She wasn't like the others who purposefully throw harsh words at her to hurt her feelings.
She wasn't like the others who think she isn't capable of doing anything else other than to sit quietly and read.
She may have not realized it by now but Maki didn't treat Nico as someone who was special because of her disability. She treated her with the same kind of straight-forwardness and regarded her as an equal and that was something Nico couldn't ignore.
As to why their daily exchanges were special to her.
The tiny senior felt her phone vibrate from her pocket and checked that Nozomi sent her a text that they'll be leaving soon. Nico pouted. She wanted to spend time with her nerdy junior a little more. She showed the redhead the text and got up.
Bye for now, she wrote in her notebook with a smile. I had fun but don't think this will be the last.
Suddenly, Maki tugged at the sleeve of her cardigan and Nico almost tripped from the pull. The tiny senior glared and cocked her head, waiting for her lips to move and form a shape but the redhead did something that made Nico's heart stumble and beat fast.
I won't let you win next time, you shrimpy, Maki signed to her with a smirk.
She could feel it. Her heart pounding rapidly in her ribcage.
She could sense it. The sheer joy of having someone to banter with.
It was absolutely wonderful.
It was difficult to explain.
The dark-haired girl laughed loudly and the pianist thought she had made a mistake. Nico grinned wider and wiped the tears from her eyes. She took out her notebook and gave Maki a point. It was a well-deserved one, at that. The pianist's ears were tipped in red. The tiny senior showed her the result of her effort.
Don't think I'll go easy, you nerd!
this time, i experimented on nico's pov
what do you guys think? dont hesitate to tell me if there's something wrong!
also, thank you very much for the wonderful reviews! they are the reason why i write
xv22shasokais: nico would be an awesome shinobi :3c
Happy holidays everyone!
LET 2016 END ALREADY! and may it be a prosperous 2017