Strawberry: OMG OMG. THIS IS A LONG CHAPTER.
THAT'S WHY THERE WILL BE TWO PARTS! ;D This is the first part~! ;-; and the other Saturday will be done today quickly -_-
I'M GLAD WITH ALL THE REVIEWS I'VE RECEIVED. THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH.
TT-TT I'm very happy that I'm crying…
Please enjoy this chapter! And reviews are much appreciated! ^ ^
~Seven Days~
Chapter six: Saturday (Part 1)
Ikuto had a kendo training meet up with the other upperclassmen students. They were just practicing 'Kata' with some of the lowerclassmen students from elementary school. When it finally finished, Ikuto was relieved and changed to his school clothes.
He was standing near the school front gate and took out his cell phone from his pocket. He went to his contact list and scroll down to find Tadase's name. But then, he heard someone calling his name. "Ikuto-senpai~!" Ikuto looked behind. He smiled.
There he saw a small student running up to him. She was in her 2nd year maybe and she had very short hair. "Good work today!" She said patting his back. He smiled. "Aren't I supposed to say that to you?" He said. She giggled.
"Well thanks for coming to give the kids the Kata practice! They would really need it when they come to high school! So thanks!" She said, cheerfully.
"No problem." He said. She looked at him closely. "So what's up?" She asked.
"Nothing much." Ikuto kept scrolling down to find Tadase's name on the list. She stared at him. She didn't want the conversation to end so she came up to him really close.
"Are you free right now Ikuto-senpai? Want to go somewhere together?" She asked calmly. Ikuto looked at her eyes. He looked at his phone screen and smiled. "I'm sorry. I'm meeting someone." He said.
She looked upset but then, "Ah! The rumored weekly girlfriend?" She said. Ikuto looked uneasy when she said that.
'Well… Girlfriend isn't it… But…'
"I see!" She said cheerfully. "Then I'll wait until the day after tomorrow, it'd be fine…" She looked at Ikuto's face. He showed a very different face like he wasn't very interested in her. She looked scared. "Huh? Wha-?"
'Does he not like me?' She thought. Ikuto finally saw Tadase's phone number and looked at her. "I'm very sorry, but can I make a phone call?" He said. The girl looked surprised. "Well! Of- Of course! Why not!" She said.
Ikuto walked away and the girl just looked back. 'Did I say something wrong?'
Ikuto held the phone near his ear. But then he could hear a distant sound coming from outside the school. He recognized it and chased after it. When he got outside, there he saw Tadase with the phone in his hands. Tadase looked at him and smiled.
"I thought I heard something like your voice." He said. Ikuto sighed in relief. Then Tadase also added, "Waiting at home was really boring so I thought I'd come here to wait for you."
'Here to wait for you…' Ikuto thought as he heard Tadase saying that with a very cute face.
'It's too cute.' Ikuto blushed when he thought that.
'But… Yesterday… Tadase was acting really weird on the way back.' Ikuto looked at Tadase. Tadase was looking at the road. Ikuto just stared at him. But then he heard footsteps approaching from behind him. He saw the 2nd year again.
She looked surprised. "OH! I see! You were meeting up with Tadase! I'm so sorry! Forget what I said then!" She said. Ikuto looked at her. "Yes. I'm sorry I had to reject the offer you have given me."
The girl smiled. "No worries!" She came close to Tadase. "Hey~! You should've come to the training! Then we'd get more students to join the club!" She said cheerfully.
'But what does that do then?' Thought Tadase and Ikuto. Tadase smiled a little. "Well… I would, but I'm not good myself."
"Don't worry! It'll be fine! You have to show up more often!"
"But kendo training doesn't start till next week."
"Who cares? Just come on by! It'll be fun!"
Tadase smiled and she grabbed his hands. "You have to!" She said. They both were chatting away while they just left Ikuto in the cold. He glared at both of them with what you may call it…
'Jealousy.'
'They're talking way too much. Aren't they a bit too close?' He thought angrily. Ikuto kept staring at them. Tadase turned to look at Ikuto. Confused he looked at Ikuto's eyes closely.
When Ikuto realized, he looked shocked. "Ah…" He backed away from both of them.
'What kind of expression did I show? If… If it was a horrid, terrible face then...
'AHH! Jealousy is scary…' Ikuto thought hiding his face. Tadase and the 2nd kept staring at him.
After Tadase and the 2nd year had finished talking, she went ahead to get back home, Tadase and Ikuto were left alone. Ikuto though kept thinking, 'Calm down… Calm down…'
But Tadase said something that made him forget what he was thinking.
"What was the 'forget what I said' just then…?" Tadase said softly but in a very different tone. Ikuto looked at him. "What…?"
"Rika… She asked you to forget something…"
Ikuto thought for a moment. "Ah… If we could have lunch together." He said looking up at the sky. Tadase looked at him with a very unpleasant face. He got angry that he kicked a pebble across the road. "What, so you were charmingly invited… Ikuto, don't cheat on me." Ikuto was surprised.
"Wahh~ I'm so hungry~ Can we got eat something?" Asked Tadase as he looked back. He saw Ikuto with a weird look in his face. "Ah… Ikuto? Are you OK?" He asked.
Ikuto smiled at him. Tadase blushed. Ikuto walked ahead and sang out, "Don't cheat~ He said." Ikuto looked behind. He came close to Tadase and whispered softly against his ears. "Say it one more time."
Tadase was going red. "UWAH! YOU! YOU MASOCOHIST!" He cried walking away, fast. Ikuto chuckled. But his smile disappeared when he saw Tadase walking away to the distant.
'I don't want to imagine it.' He thought sadly. He looked at Tadase from this far distance. 'After all. Even though he's next to me right now it's a given, to think that it'll all change tomorrow…'
Tadase looked behind and called Ikuto's name. "Ikuto! Come on!"
Ikuto looked at the young boy calling him. He smiled and chased after him.
'I don't want to imagine it.'
They both settled in a fast food restaurant and ordered some foods and drinks. Ikuto looked at the time. "It's 2 already…" He said. "What to do…"
Tadase looked at him. "I just want to laze around." He said. Ikuto smiled. "Ah… Want to come over-"
"No thanks." Answered Tadase quickly. Ikuto saw a very strange aura around Tadase. Ikuto looked worried. "Ah… yeah sure OK. Let's forget about that…" He said.
There were silences between them. Tadase looked outside the window.
"Hotori…"
"Huh?"
"She'll be there again right? At your house (I mean mansion)." Asked Tadase. Ikuto thought for a moment.
'Seems like she is back together with my brother…'
"Yes. She might be there." Ikuto said. Tadase looked pissed. "Definitely not going." He said. Ikuto looked surprised and bit his lip. "I'm sorry about yesterday. She's… She's just like that to everyone. She is." He said.
Tadase slumped down in his seat. "It doesn't matter. It's fine…" Tadase looked outside again. Ikuto smiled. "She doesn't mean any har-…" Ikuto stopped all of a sudden. Tadase turned to look at him.
"What's wrong? Why'd you stop?" He asked. Ikuto didn't know what to say. "Ah… Umm…"
'Why did I stop?'
"What was I saying…?" Ikuto said desperately. Tadase looked at him and turned to the window again. Ikuto looked at him, upset.
'Just somehow, I thought I saw Tadase's face look a little pained.'
Ikuto ate some of the French fries. 'I don't think it was me though…' But then he heard something. Something that was much unexpected. "Want to come over then?" Ikuto's eyes looked shocked. He looked up to the boy who turned slowly towards his face.
Tadase looked at him as if he expected an answer. He smiled sadly. "Don't want to…?"
Ikuto nearly choked on his French fries. "No! I'd love to come over." He said. Tadase showed an unexpected look on his face and soon, he smiled. "Ok. Then it's decided."
~oXXo~
Both of them stopped at the DVD store to rent a video that Tadase was 'dying' to watch. Tadase took the DVD to the cashier. He turned to Ikuto. "One day rental is OK, right?" He asked.
"Yeah." Tadase turned to the cashier and he looked at him. "That'll be 300yen." Ikuto wanted to go through his bag to get his wallet but before he could, Tadase went through his pocket and took the money out already. "I can pay this much." He said.
Ikuto looked at him. 'It's like his treating me now.' He thought.
"Please return this by 11pm." Said the cashier.
Tadase smiled. "Ok!"
Ikuto stared at him and he remembered something that Tadase told him yesterday the day he was heading back to the station.
'Why don't you go with someone you'll like, Ok?'
'No… Not with someone else…' Ikuto felt really uncomfortable. 'I.'
"Ikuto?" Ikuto jolted. Tadase waved the DVD at his face. "Look! It's done~. Let's get going." Tadase stared at Ikuto's face. Ikuto showed a very uneasy face. Tadase smiled.
"Look. If it's the money, it's OK. It's my treat today." He said. Ikuto looked at him and smiled.
Ikuto followed Tadase from behind. They walked on a bridge and Tadase pointed him the way. "Come on. It's this way."
Ikuto was far away from him. He looked down.
'That's not it… But. Getting mad. Laughing. Being happy…' He looked at the buildings. Tadase looked at him. "My house is just over there." He pointed it out. It was small but Tadase didn't care.
Ikuto kept staring at it.
"It's a nice place to live. The area is, and it's not far from the station." Tadase looked at him and came towards him. "Well, I'll tell you this, my house is just a normal house. Unlike yours." He said smiling. Ikuto chuckled.
'How should I invite him…? It's all so complicated.'
When they reached Tadase's house, Tadase opened the door and cried out, "I'M HOME!"
Tadase and Ikuto got in the house. Tadase's mother came in. "Ah! Tadase, me and Hisa are going to your papa's house, and after that we're…" Tadase's mother saw a handsome young figure entering her very house.
Tadase took his shoes off and Ikuto did as well. When Ikuto saw Tadase's mother he smiled at her. "Hello." Tadase's mother went bright red and ran back to the kitchen.
Ikuto looked shocked. "Did… Did I said something wrong…?" Tadase laughed. "She's not used to new people." He said. Then a little girl peeked out from the kitchen. She saw Ikuto and blushed. Ikuto saw her and waved. She blushed and ran back.
Ikuto chuckled, but Tadase didn't seem to realize. When they both enter Tadase's room, Tadase put the DVD CD in the DVD player. Tadase turned to him. "Sit down!" He said patting on the bed.
Ikuto blushed. "What about you. You're sitting on the floor." He said. "It's fine! This is my house." He said. Ikuto sighed. He sat beside Tadase anyway. Tadase smiled. Ikuto saw that face and he couldn't turn away.
'I really do… Like this person.' He thought.
END OF CHAPTER SIX: SATURDAY (part 1)
PART 2 is coming! OTL