When Yukari introduces Minako to Junpei - albeit reluctantly because they happened to be walking straight towards him and there was nothing she could do about it - the two hit it off too well for Yukari's taste.
"Into games?"
"Definitely,"
"Got a playstation portable?"
"Sure do,"
"Wanna hang out?"
"I'd love to."
From the look on Junpei's face, Minako passes his mini questionnaire with flying colours.
"Yuka-tan, why didn't you tell me about her sooner?!" He probes lightly, wrapping an arm around Minako's shoulders and fist bumping with her as a sort of initiation code.
Yukari shrugs him off with a wave over her shoulder, seemingly unperturbed that Minako's attention was drawn all on Junpei. Yukari doesn't acknowledge the fact that it bothers her.
She insists to herself that it doesn't, and just so that she could prove to herself that it's true, she lets them go to bond over silly games and tells Minako she'll see her back at the girl's dorm.
Yukari tucks herself into bed that night and can't help but feel kind of miserable. When she hears footsteps clack just outside her door, she listens to the sound of Minako heading into her own room across from hers.
She hasn't seen Minako since earlier this morning.
As she pulls her blanket up to her mouth so she won't get cold, Yukari realizes something as she eyes the clock on her nightstand - 12 am.
She doesn't like sharing.
"Dude, did you know your dorm is going co-ed?"
"What?" Yukari yelps, unable to hold her surprise and as a result, begins to choke on her food.
Junpei pats her on the back with a grin, misinterpreting her reaction as glee.
"Oh, why?" Minako, the more neutral of the two, probes casually as she pokes at her ramen with her chopstick.
They're sitting in a small restaurant, seated at a four-member table with Yukari and Junpei across from Minako. Junpei had suggested hanging out together for food and while Minako had jumped at the idea, "food, ohmygod food," Yukari had tagged along because Minako was going.
She wasn't about to lose some inner battle (that she made up herself) against Junpei.
"Eh, dunno. Something to do about providing more space for transfer students." Junpei raises a hand and ushers for more food to their table. "And since your dorm still has plenty of room for more, some of the boys will get transferred there next week."
Yukari swallows the ball of food before attempting to speak. She's almost afraid of what Junpei will eventually say. Minako doesn't seem to notice her obvious displeasure as she continues to prod at her ramen.
"So, are you implying -"
"That we'll all be in the same dorm? Hell yeah!" Yukari winces at Junpei's obnoxious yell, ignoring the other patrons and their pointed stares.
Minako and Junpei fist bump over their bowls and raise their dishes to tap them together, before chugging down their respective meals as a sign of united brotherhood. Whatever that is, Yukari thinks almost bitterly, suddenly losing her appetite.
What bothers her more than the offending glares from the rest of the patrons is the fact that it isn't just her and Minako anymore.
"Hey Yuka-tan,"
"Oh, hey."
Junpei plops down beside her, not too close so their legs could touch, and not too far to dismiss their friendship. Yukari flips a page of her clothing magazine as Junpei pulls out his game console from his pocket.
It's 8pm and the sun's still out, but Minako is currently knocked out on the sofa opposite from them, her hands folded beneath her left cheek as she sleeps. Tennis practice had been rather brutal on her, with their tournament coming up this weekend. It doesn't help that her fellow teammate was such a slave driver either - Rio, was it?
"Can't believe she manages to look so peaceful like that," Junpei utters amiably, glancing at Minako briefly before resuming his game. "She always comes off as loud and boyish. It makes me forget that she's still a girl."
Yukari merely side-looks Junpei and then at Minako before humming approvingly.
"Maybe that's the point," she says after some thought, "it is certainly easier to talk to her when she's like a brother to you."
"Huh..."
There aren't many students loitering about in the lounge anymore. Not much give her the weird creepy stares either, and the rumour concerning her and Minako isn't floating around so much too. At least, it isn't shoved up in her face like the previous weeks anymore.
All in all, it's been quiet, and Yukari wouldn't have it any other way.
"She's drooling." Junpei points out, amusement lacing his voice.
Yukari raises a curious brow as she peers over to Minako. The poor girl was getting saliva on her sleeve. What shocks her is when Junpei gets up from his seat and grabs a napkin on the centre table before walking over to her.
Yukari is pleasantly surprised when she sees how gentle Junpei is when he wipes the corner of Minako's lips.
Something prods inside her and she can't help but ask, "Do you like her?"
Because Minako is cute and adorable and charming and kind, and what guy in his right mind wouldn't like her? Junpei chuckles as he wipes the moist end of Minako's sleeve before standing up to throw away the tissue.
"'Course I do," he takes aim at a nearby trashcan, posturing himself like a basketball player. "There's no reason not to," he shoots, his arm craned in the air. It hits the rim of the basket before falling to the floor.
Yukari smiles wryly as he picks it up and successfully throws it in.
"Then..." she starts, but can't bring herself to finish her thought.
Junpei's slightly smarter than she gives him credit for, not that he bothers to really remedy that, and finishes the thought for her.
"She's a bro." He settles down beside her again, resuming to play on his console as Yukari fixes her gaze on Minako. "A fellow bro in arms. I don't date bros."
Yukari quirks a brow, taking in the odd brotherhood definition and questions about her place in this weird threesome.
"Then what am I?"
"A sis," he states smugly, watching her face contort with distaste at their supposed brother-sister relationship. "I don't do incest. Unless you want to," Junpei wriggles his brows, as if the action would make it any less unappealing.
Yukari blanches at the mere thought.
"No."
"Just checking,"
"Duuuude~!"
Yukari turns the page of her fashion magazine, sitting casually on the couch facing away from the staircase. She lifts her legs so it rests under her.
She already knows the immediate response to the obnoxious greeting. She counts until footsteps tap down the stairs, and a much lighter, softer voice, fills the air - with as much enthusiasm as the first.
"Juuuuun~!"
"Ugh." Yukari sighs, exasperated.
Yukari can already picture them doing their signature handshake at the bottom of the staircase.
She scoffs to herself when she hears the all-too-familiar 'owie~!' at the end of their bro code greeting; apparently they switched back to chest-bumping instead of the usual fist pounding.
"Sheesh Mina-tan, if you can't handle that, you're not a bro."
"Hey. You wanna feel the equivalent on your hotdog?"
"...Never mind,"
"Thought so."
Yukari rolls her eyes, flipping another page of her magazine as the two approach her from behind. She can feel their gazes glaze the back of her head, and suddenly, Yukari realizes just what she's about to get into.
"Group hug!" Yukari winces at the volume of Minako's voice, feeling thin strong arms wrap around her shoulders.
Yukari responds with a dry cough, pretending to be unaffected by Minako's antic as the latter rubs her cheek against her own.
"Uh," Yukari feels affection gradually rise in her chest as Minako continues to pull her infinitely closer, their cheeks squeezing together. "'Morning,"
"What? No hug for me?" Junpei asks, clearly unabashed despite Yukari's heated glare. "I thought this was a group hug!"
"Sorry Jun-Jun," Minako moves so her chin rests atop Yukari's head instead, "I realized that I much prefer having Yuka-tan all to myself, if you don't mind." She finishes with a sly wink to prove her point.
Yukari scoffs, pretending that Minako's words don't make her warm, and shoos Junpei away with a wave of her hand. She pats Minako's arm gently as a sort of gesture to show that she's heard - that she's flattered - and that she doesn't know what else to do.
"Besides, I wouldn't want any part of you, stupei."
Junpei raises a brow and Yukari realizes her mistake.
"Unlike Mina-tan's parts, mine are essential."
"What is that supposed to even mean?" Minako yelps, clearly unsure of whether to be offended or not.
Yukari doesn't complain as they continue to verbally assault one another, with herself stuck right in the middle of the crossfire. She doesn't offer her own opinion on the matter as she watches them with curious eyes.
Despite not always being on the same page as Junpei - which for her own sake, thankfully doesn't occur often - and having to go back to the dorm sometimes alone because Minako was out with him, she feels slightly content with how they're like now.
With Junpei, it's gotten a lot more homier. Not that she'll ever tell him that, of course.
"Minako, please," she's watching with utmost devastation as her leader wolfs down the bowl of noodles, shuddering when Minako merely continues to slurp loudly, blatantly ignoring her best friend. "Just -" Yukari winces as her leader reaches for yet, another bowl of ramen. "- Just stop being such a guy for once!"
"See?" And Yukari groans from hearing Junpei's obnoxious voice, "even Yuka-tan says you've become a total man!"
It's automatic for her when she slides down a chair - away from Stupei, and desperately tries to meet the leader's ruby eyes. Minako only shrugs, not taking her eyes off her bowl.
"Just because my eating habits -" and Yukari watches with mild disgust as Minako wipes off a smudge from her lips - with her hand - "isn't exactly very feminine," Yukari scoffs, avoiding crimson as she turns her head away, "it doesn't make me any less female."
"You're right," and Yukari feels like hurling at Junpei's impish grin, "you still have those little mountains on your chest."
Yukari's slightly impressed that Stupei manages to avoid her fist.
Minako only laughs, standing up to put her empty bowls in the sink, seemingly unaffected by the boy's words.
"Yeah yeah," her voice is slightly muffled from the water as she begins to rinse her dirty plates, "thankfully they're small. It doesn't hurt much when you run."
Minako sends a grateful smile when Yukari walks beside her to assist with the dishes. Yukari only rolls her eyes when she hears Junpei's voice over the running water and clinking platters.
"Huh..then what about you, Yuka-tan?"
"I am not participating in this kind of conversation."
She can imagine the boy's obvious disappointment without needing to hear his overly dramatic groan.
"Let's hold hands."
Yukari stares like she's seeing two heads on her friend's shoulder.
"Uh -" she sputters, uncomfortable with the way Minako returns the look with innocent curiosity. "Can you repeat that again for me?"
Junpei peers over the game magazine he's reading to watch the odd display of friendship across the lounge of their dorm, his legs resting comfortably over the couch's arm.
"Let's hold hands." Minako states again, bumping her knuckles lightly against Yukari's for added effect. "Why not, right?"
"Uh," Yukari realizes that her vocabulary had gone down a notch considerably as a result. "I mean, we could, totally." She rambles almost nervously, visibly uncomfortable with the topic. "But like, do we have to?"
"Does it count if I want to?"
Yukari rubs her arm to ease herself of tense muscles. She's unsure of how to respond, what with how Minako stares at her like an oblivious child who wanted candy but needed permission first.
Minako scratches the side of her neck when Yukari takes a second too long to respond, backing away from the topic entirely by walking forward toward the entrance of the dorm, glancing at Junpei with a grin. The atmosphere clearly shifts and Junpei's impressed with how Minako manages to handle it with ease.
"Hey, wanna go hang out with us?"
Junpei stares just a little longer than necessary at Yukari and sees her bite the bottom of her lip before returning Minako's smile with a small one of his own. Girls are weird.
"Count me in," he says, standing up from his seat and turning the magazine into a roll.
Yukari visibly slows just a step behind them once they get outside. Junpei notices that he's in between two popular girls with cute faces - what more did he need? - but it bothers him more that they aren't the ones beside each other.
Junpei doesn't understand girls.
"So where to, ladies?"
He almost expects the silence that follows him, his words fading into the air so slowly that it makes him want to retreat back into the dorm and remove himself of such awkward tension.
"Wherever Yukari wants to go,"
"Whatever Minako wants,"
They speak simultaneously, bombarding Junpei and keeping him teetering on the edge between two decisions he doesn't want to make.
"Uhh," is all he manages to utter, his eyes flitting between the two girls beside him. He fiddles with the front of his cap as he ushers himself on, slowing his steps so that the two girls would be remotely closer together. "So...what do you both want?"
He's almost speechless when Yukari's hand reaches slowly toward Minako's, the latter completely oblivious as she stares at some merchandise at the other side of the street. Junpei sees Yukari's fingers curl hesitantly around Minako's, as if looking for permission, before she receives a reassuring squeeze in response.
He doesn't miss the shy look Yukari sends Minako before his eyes dart away to miss how the latter responds. It was getting too intimate even for him.
"Girls." Junpei scoffs, but he pulls down the front of his cap to hide smiling eyes.
"You're wet."
Minako raises a curious brow, dusting herself off of the wet red jacket she has on and mutters almost amusedly.
"Yup."
Yukari doesn't say anything else as she takes the coat from Minako's cold hand and hangs it on the rack. She watches Minako wipe at her eyes, blinking away the rain as she speaks, her voice heavy with fatigue.
"You're still up?"
"Mhm," Yukari mumbles lightly, refusing to acknowledge that she was worried that the other girl hadn't returned to the dorm until 12 in the morning. What had she been doing? "Just reading,"
Minako hums quietly, clearly beginning to doze off as she stumbles out of her shoes, Yukari having to keep her upright.
"Didn't think you read," Yukari almost scoffs at Minako's small grin, but doesn't reprimand the girl as she leads her up the flight of stairs. "What was it about?"
"A dumb girl who stayed out in the rain for too long and got sick," Yukari says lightly, Minako's quiet chuckles enveloping her right ear.
"I can relate," Minako replies gently, her eyes slowly drooping as they close in on her room.
She needs to get her key, but her left arm is draped over Yukari's shoulders and her right hand refuses to even flinch. Yukari can feel Minako's weight begin to grow heavy against her, so she shuffles with her right hand and picks into the girl's pocket despite how uncomfortable this whole thing is.
Minako's left cheek rests against her shoulder when Yukari fumbles with the doorknob, hissing when the keys slips from her fingers as a result of the rain.
Yukari readjusts her hold on Minako as she bends down, reaching for the keys once more. Minako's dark auburn hair tickles against her neck as she fiddles with the knob again and pushes it open.
"You're heavier than I thought," Yukari mutters gently, but doesn't expect any reply as she listens to Minako's steady breaths under the silence of her room.
She settles Minako on her bed, keeping her sitting upright and shakes her lightly.
"Come on, you need to get dried up and dressed."
"Mm..." Minako merely mumbles beneath her breath, her head lolling to Yukari's collar bone; her forehead resting against her skin.
Yukari grabs the towel hanging on Minako's desk chair and releases the pins and hair tie to let wet dark auburn fall over the drowsy girl's shoulders. She pulls the chair so she can sit right in front of Minako.
"Geez," Yukari sighs half-heartedly as she kneads the towel over Minako's head. "You're just going to let me do everything, huh?"
Despite the show of reluctance in her voice, Yukari continues to comb her fingers against the towel, attempting to dry her hair as much as possible.
"You don't..." Minako attempts to move from Yukari, trying to keep herself upright. "...You don't have to," she only manages to lift her head from Yukari's chest for several seconds before dropping back on her again.
Her warm breaths tickle Yukari's skin and Yukari struggles to keep from shuddering, occupying herself with the towel above the sleepy girl's head.
Yukari laughs quietly, replying in a voice she herself hardly recognizes. It's too warm. Too soft. Too caring. She hopes it doesn't show.
"...Whatever,"
Yukari tucks her in, having convinced Minako to keep awake long enough to dress herself. She brings up the blanket so that it reaches Minako's chin before heading for the doorway.
Yukari can't help but steal several glances back at Minako before shutting the door gently behind her.
Minako smiles in her sleep.
A/N
I like Junpei. I really do. Which is why I placed him in for chapter 4. :)
'Kay so clearly, I haven't made edited chapters of 2 and 3 but did so for chapter 1. I realized how much my writing sucked (so horriblyomgwhyisituphere) so I figured I'd make this story a teeny bit more appealing and easier on the eyes with some editing (which I've only done so far for chapter 1).
As many of you may have noticed (or not, it's okay, my writing still sucks and I won't stop working on it), my writing has changed (hopefully for the better) and ... yeah, that's it. You can compare it between 1, 2, 3, and now 4.
And yes, this story still has no plot line.