PLEASE HEAD OVER TO THE "Falter" REMAKE INSTEAD.

I've been majorly distracted by Hisa's second round centrefield match at the nationals, amongst other things. Check out Saki chapters 76 - 78 on my site for my translations, if interested. Oh, and my version of Usagi ni wa Tokubetsu na Koto is there as well. (See, I haven't been just slacking off... I spent my time very productively.)

And a bit random, but Itou Shizuka's second album's going to be out on February 23rd. Squee!

Hisa bit into another skewer of chicken karaage, now cool enough without needing to blow on it between every bite. She munched on it, enjoying the crunchy exterior as she took another sip of cheap tea. The blandness of the tea was precisely what one would expect from a hot tea dispenser, but still preferable to the alternatives — it was either the money-sucking vending machines again, or mooching soft drinks from that tall lanky girl, Inoue, from Ryuumonbuchi.

She glanced at Yuuki a table down. The last few days, Yuuki had been getting really chummy with Inoue despite their continued rivalry, developing an unlikely friendship with Amae Koromo along the way, and perhaps somewhat less surprisingly, with Ikeda Kana as well.

Hisa observed with mild interest as Yuuki and Ikeda began to, rather vocally, fight over a skewer of what had to be tako karaage. Although she couldn't clearly see the dish in question, she had a feeling the two were fighting over a piece where there was sure to have been enough to go around. Yuuki was crazy about the stuff, but tako karaage had to be less in demand than the shrimp or chicken ones, for one.

As their fight for possession of that one piece escalated, Hisa came to the conclusion that the two were very similar types of people who expressed their personalities in different ways. Perhaps it was best summed up by the difference in how they acted around their crushes — Yuuki was brash, antagonistic, and in-your-face where Ikeda was protective and loudly supportive, despite both being forthright girls with a heavy streak of impulsivity.

Though, as Hisa took a bite from her aubergine karaage, it may be due to their standing and relationship with their respective crushes more than anything else. After all, with Yuuki, you could say she was being provoked constantly — and Ikeda was just as rough and brash when she'd been provoked over something where Fukuji-san was concerned.

And though Hisa wasn't quite sure why she'd gone out of her way to aggravate Ikeda earlier, she felt a bit like she'd overdone things. Having witnessed Ikeda's outburst and Fukuji-san's subsequent response, it became fairly obvious how things stood between the two. She was quite confident Ikeda's affections toward — ... Mihoko, seemed to run much more deeply than just hero worship, but that it also suffered a fate arguably worse than outright rejection — as Mihoko seemed to be blithely unaware of those feelings, despite how obvious Ikeda was.

But then again, maybe Ikeda herself was just as unaware of those feelings as her crush. It seemed possible, with her personality. Hisa eyed Ikeda, now proudly presenting a mangled piece of tako karaage to Mihoko, and she smiled inwardly. To think that Ikeda of all people were to be a fellow comrade in arms... Not that she wasn't a nice kid in her own right, but why couldn't it have been someone else with more potential, like Mihoko instead?

Hisa turned her attention back to her plate, swishing a piece of cabbage in the dipping sauce before drizzling it over the rest of her veggies. It amused her briefly to imagine Ikeda as a potential girlfriend. Sparks would surely fly between them, though probably not the kind conducive to any kind of romantic relationship; there was no love lost between them, that's for sure. Ikeda probably considered her a threat to the time she could monopolise from Mihoko, and Hisa frowned at the thought. Mihoko wasn't someone who socialised with others a whole lot to begin with — it seemed a little childish of Ikeda to want to stop Mihoko from making other friends.

But rather than considering that kid's personality or unpromising love life, there were more pressing, personally relevant matters for her to worry about. The nationals continued to loom overhead, and, as Ryuumonbuchi and Mihoko both agreed, Eisui and Shiraitodai would be two difficult hurdles they'd have to cross. But before that, there was still Amae Koromo, and the rematch she had been waiting for. And even before that, there was Mihoko, and the mystery of what she wanted to give her.

Just thinking about Mihoko made her break out into a grin. Hisa covered her mouth with the back of her hand to hide her smile, as she reminisced over Mihoko's embarrassment just by hearing her own name that morning. Aside from leaning in to whisper into Mihoko's ear, it was really too adorable how flustered she had gotten over something so simple.

Not that, really, she was one to talk. Since she too had felt self-conscious when Mihoko called her 'Hisa-san'... The form of address sounded cute, and despite the formality, perhaps even intimate, considering it was from Mihoko. It was too bad that Mihoko reverted back to 'Ueno-san' so quickly, as much as she had gotten used to hearing her old name. With how reserved Mihoko was, it seemed unlikely she would call her by her given name again without at least a bit of nudging.

And then, there was the unforeseen added bonus of annoying that Ikeda with the fact they were on a first-name basis — she could only imagine the look on the kid's face if she heard them calling each other 'Mihoko' and 'Hisa-san'... And maybe, it'd even spur Ikeda into confessing. Mihoko didn't seem to give off homophobic vibes, but then, you could never be too sure. If the chance was right, maybe she could test the waters for the kid, just as a gift or show of comradeship, their differences not withstanding.

Then Hisa breathed in and stretched, looking up from her plate and making eye contact with Mako sitting opposite her. She flashed her a grin, but Mako only shook her head slightly, likely already presuming whatever in her mind could only be another zany, half-baked scheme.

Mako simply knew her all too well.

After the karaage dinner, Hisa noticed Mihoko loitering in the dining room listlessly and uncharacteristically, occasionally gazing in her direction, then looking away almost as soon as eye contact was established. Sensing her request as clearly as if it had been spoken out loud, Hisa made a show of getting her first-years to help clean up. Nodoka readily complied, and a chain of volunteers followed — Saki first, and Yuuki second, grumbling happily along the way. Amae Koromo followed her newfound friends' lead, and the rest of Ryuumonbuchi naturally stayed behind to help as well, along with a few students from both Tsuruga and Kazekoshi, unwilling to make the two schools do all the work.

Having successfully directed mostly everyone's attention to cleaning up, it was all but guaranteed that it'd take much longer than if two or three people had done the task instead, as it would now be interspersed with friendly chatter and other worldly distractions. The last remaining obstacle was Ikeda, who was, as Hisa marvelled, diverted by Mihoko rather quickly and effortlessly. It would not be an exaggeration to say that Mihoko had got the kid wrapped around her finger.

Mako then gave her another look, probably sensing something was up, to which Hisa responded with a small smile and flippant wave of her hand. It probably wasn't anywhere enough to assuage any concerns Mako might've had, but she slipped away regardless, leaving the room quietly and waited for Mihoko in the hallway. The lengths she and Mihoko were going to for this meeting made it almost feel like a tryst, and she smiled, recalling having done something very similar with Yuuko during breaks at school to slip away from their respective circles of friends. And it further piqued her interest — what sort of thing would require such secrecy, and necessitate a private one-on-one meeting?

Mihoko slipped out of the room a few moments later, offering a small smile and suggesting they move further away from the dining room. Hisa complied and followed, keeping her curiosity in check. They entered an unoccupied room, and Mihoko slid the door close behind her, taking in a deep breath and exhaling audibly.

More than just reserved, Mihoko seemed much more nervous than usual — she was gazing down at her hands hesitantly, barely making eye contact now that they were alone together. Hisa smiled lightly, feeling as though it had been much longer than one short week ago where Mihoko acted like this, so very distant and shy —

— and for a moment, nothing seemed to give the picture of vulnerability as much as Mihoko did, then.

Hisa closed her hand reflexively, pushing away the small whim to ease Mihoko's nerves by brushing her soft blonde bangs back or to cup her cheek. It would only embarrass Mihoko and increase her discomfort, Hisa decided. As much as she loved teasing Mihoko, she couldn't bring herself to, at this moment.

Instead, Hisa murmured fondly, "Mihoko?"

The person in question raised her gaze, eyes flickering to and fro.

"... U-Ueno-san, I..."

Hisa's breath caught, fascinated by the complementary blue and rosewood red of her eyes — and by the delicate blush that coloured Mihoko's cheeks entirely.

… really, why couldn't it have been Mihoko instead of Ikeda?

They remained like that, probably for several seconds longer than appropriate, before Hisa reluctantly spoke up.

"... what is it?" Hisa asked softly. Her voice echoed oddly in her own ears.

"I — I wanted... wanted to thank you for organising this camp for everyone," Mihoko said quietly. "— I think... it's... it's made — everyone... very happy."

"O-Oh, is that it?" Hisa stalled, but she couldn't help but feel a bit let down by the turn of events. What was she expecting, really? A love confession or two —? And it wasn't like she had a thing for Mihoko, really —

"Y-Yeah —"

"Well, you all helped out a lot, so it's not like I did it singlehandedly, you know?"

"Still," Mihoko said. She hesitantly took out a small, delicately wrapped gift from inside her yukata.

"You shouldn't have," Hisa protested.

"It really isn't much — please accept it, Ueno-san." She emphasised her words by holding the present out slightly further.

"Well... um, alright." Hisa took the small gift and heard a muffled clink as she grasped it in her hands. Directing a small smile toward Mihoko, she asked, "Can I open it?"

Mihoko nodded.

Hisa picked at the corner of a piece of tape and took it off, opening her present with care. The wrapping paper was a shade of dark grey, with cute little Monokuro Boo all over. Hisa opened the pouch up along the top, and pulled her present out with its pink braided strap.

It was a colourful cell phone strap with a cute little charm at its end; upon further inspection, Hisa noticed the little leaves on its bottom, realising the trinket had to be one of a peach. A small white flower decorated the little peach's forehead, and Hisa brought it up close, tapping its cute peachy cheek.

"It's really cute, Mihoko." Hisa looked up. "Thanks."

"I — I'm glad you like it," she said, relieved.

"I'll put it on my cell phone as soon as I get back to my room," Hisa promised.

"There's no rush to it..."

"It's too cute not to, though, don't you think?" Hisa said, smiling. She shook the charm by its strap slightly. It felt off balance and heavy for its size. Hisa looked it over again curiously — was there something more to it?

"A-Anyway —!" Mihoko said suddenly. "Um, I'm really looking forward to," she finished lamely, "... tonight's match..."

Hisa looked up from her observation of the charm and slipped it back into its pouch. "Oh, me too. I promise I won't fall asleep on you tonight, though," Hisa said with a little grin.

Mihoko nodded mutely.

"So, how did you like dinner today? I noticed Ikeda fighting over some tako for you."

"Dinner was wonderful — I think everyone really enjoyed it." Mihoko paused. "But — well, I rebuked Kana about her behaviour at dinner today — I'm sorry she was like that this morning too," Mihoko said apologetically. "I think she's a bit riled up from the excitement of the camp..."

"It's alright. And I should apologise on Yuuki's behalf as well. … but you know," Hisa fingered her gift, "let's forget about them for a bit. You still owe me something, don't you?"

Mihoko looked at Hisa. "You mean...?"

"I mean, I've been calling you 'Mihoko' the whole night, but it seems like you're still calling me 'Ueno-san'," Hisa said with a smile as she leaned in slightly.

"Um..."

"Though," Hisa said softly, "maybe I should let you off the hook just this time...?" She turned her gaze and gestured lightly to Mihoko's open right eye, now widening with surprise.

Hisa's heart thumped at the closeness and with the exhilarating thrill of flirtation before she realised what she was doing.

Then she pulled back —

What the hell was that supposed to be?

Mihoko was going to think she was some kind of weirdo if she kept that up — she was lucky she even had her personality to fall back on as an excuse.

Hisa willed herself to remain a rational, sane being.

"... U-Ueno-san...?" Mihoko asked with a furrowed brow, "Is something the matter...?"

Now, if only Mihoko would stop being so cute.

—

Hisa was sure that someone would very soon realise that they were gone. That was the trouble with heading their respective clubs, and perhaps just as third-years in general. Coupled with Mihoko's tendency to help everyone out, their simultaneous and unnatural disappearances would soon be questioned — by Ikeda at the very least, if not anyone else.

But it wasn't like they were doing anything they shouldn't be doing. She'd sat Mihoko down, brushed off her inquiries over whether anything was wrong, and asked the somewhat bewildered girl to talk with her. About baking and cooking, about anything. It would've been nice to iron out the details of their suggested match with Miyu, but she had an urge to get to know the Mihoko that she'd gotten a glimpse of, when she peeked in on her making the sandwiches.

There was surely much, much more —

Mihoko spoke with reservation at first, but Hisa encouraged her, and soon, she was talking animatedly about her elder brother, Fukuji Takashi; how she'd make desserts to sate his sweet tooth; how she'd cook for the family occasionally on the weekends; how she'd make batches of baked goods for everyone in her club —

Hisa cupped her cheeks with her hands as she listened. Why didn't she ever notice the gentle, euphonious quality of Mihoko's voice before? The way her cheeks flushed with interest and excitement when she talked about what she loved? Or her soft, delicate hands, or the way she gestured lightly as she spoke?

Mihoko, she realised, was very beautiful. Both she and Yuuko could be called the soft-spoken type, but Mihoko had something warm, inviting, and supportive about her that put people at ease. Maybe it was that part of her personality that led her to spend so much time with second-years and first-years, perhaps? She couldn't remember seeing Mihoko really interacting with any third-years apart from with her.

Then Hisa gazed at Mihoko — her nose, her rosy cheeks, her delicate eyelashes, her bangs framing her face — and at her lips.

She wondered how it would feel to kiss her.

"— are you listening, Ueno-san?"

Hisa smiled at the hint of insecurity she could hear from Mihoko's voice, even if she were too mature to actually give a pout.

"Of course I am," Hisa said easily. "You were talking about how you made a triple batch of macadamia chocolate chip cookies for your club, but didn't realise you only added the original amount of sugar in until the first batch was already baking. Then you decided I wasn't listening and gave me a cute sulky pout."

"I wasn't pouting..."

Hisa grinned at Mihoko, and silently thanked herself for being able to multitask so well.

Because she still wanted to know how it'd be like to kiss Mihoko on her lips.