A/N: Thanks for the reviews.
It's been a while. Yeah. I'm lame like that. Lol I hope the length of this chapter would suffice during my absence.
Fools Rush In: Where Angels Fear To Tread
Chapter 5
So Natural
"We always believe that our first love is our last, and our last love is our first."
"Wa-wait!" A 25-year-old Tainaka Ritsu called out after the running toddler. "Chi-chan, come here." She asked the little girl who was running around the big house like a normal 2 year olds would do—well maybe she was slightly hyper than other kids her age—run havoc and leave places as if a tornado had just hit the mansion.
It all started this morning when Ritsu was trying to dress little Chiaki and the girl suddenly decided to play tag all over the incredulously large house—which in Ritsu's opinion was way too big for a three-person family. Ritsu sighed contently when she heard the blissful giggles of Chiaki from the little girl's playroom.
"Come on, Chiaki, princess." Ritsu cajoled as she peeked through the door of the room. "You need to get dressed. You're visiting mommy's big sister today, right?" Ritsu looked at the girl who located herself inside the pink Playskool house she got from her mommy's parents.
"Mama?" Chiaki gurgled as she tilted her petite head to her left.
"Come on, princess." Ritsu smiled tenderly at the giggling little girl. Chiaki's big dark blue eyes stared at her innocently. "Come on, come out of your little housey. Come to Ricchan." Ritsu offered her hand in which Chiaki took hesitantly. "Gotcha!" Ritsu immediately pulled Chiaki into a bear hug once the little girl's hand touched hers, causing the girl to chuckle and wriggle out of her arms.
"Plaaaayy! Plaaay! Iya-iya[1]." Chiaki shrieked enjoyably when Ritsu nuzzled her nose at the nook of her neck. The squealing came to a stop when the two brunettes, lying on the carpeted floor, squirming, heard someone clearing their throat. A pair of amber and blue eyes looked at the door. A woman in her mid-twenties was leaning casually at the doorframe with her arms crossed. Ritsu cannot help but stare in awe at the woman in front of her. Ritsu openly admired how the young woman looked so good in a plain and simple white v-neck shirt paired with a black frilly mini skirt.
Simple is really beautiful, huh?
"Are you giving Ricchan a hard time again, Chiaki-chan?" She asked the little brunette as she crouched down to Chiaki's height, effectively making Ritsu look back to the little girl that was once wrapped in her arms.
"Licchan! Play! Asobu!" Chiaki tried her best, in small steps, to walk towards her mommy.
"Mou, Chiaki-chan, it's not Licchan, she's—" whatever she was going to say was interrupted when Chiaki suddenly giggled before placing a sloppy kiss on her mommy's cheek. "Why, thank you, sweetie." She smiled down lovingly at her young one. "Now shall we make you neat and pretty?"
Chiaki stared at her blankly, then to Ritsu, as if asking the older brunette for her suggestion. "Yup, gonna be all pretty like your mommy." Ritsu told the young girl with a smug when she noticed the Chiaki looking at her. Ritsu's grin widened when she noticed the light tinge of red across the cheeks of the other adult occupant of the room.
"Ara, I thought I told you to prepare too, Ricchan?"
"Eh? I am ready. Just waiting for you guys to get dressed so I can drive you," Ritsu replied as her eyes drifted to Chiaki who was idly playing with her mommy's long, wavy hair.
"Really now?" she looked at Ritsu humorously from head to toe in which the older brunette followed.
"Wha-!" Ritsu yelped. "And it took me half an hour to get ready too!" Ritsu's once neat clothes were now crumpled and her hair was dishevelled after running around the house, playing.
The woman giggled before placing Chiaki back down on the floor, "Wait for mommy, quietly okay, baby?" she asked Chiaki, earning a nod and a soft hum. She watched Chiaki sat down beside the pile of her dolls before she walked towards Ritsu. "Here, let me." She tried to smooth down all the rumpled places. After making sure that everything was neat and smooth, she helped Ritsu fix her collar before fixating on the brunette's facial feature. "Oh, not wearing glasses today?"
"Nope, got my contacts on."
"Headband?"
"Right he—huh?" Ritsu reached up when she realized that her bangs was hanging loose only to find no familiar headband. "I must have dropped it a while ago."
"Fufufu. Just leave it like that then," she replied then looked at Chiaki. "I've been thinking of bringing Chiaki-chan to a playgroup. She's at the age where she plays as much until she can't anymore. I don't think I can satisfy her with all the running around she's been doing." She giggled. The little girl had been very active lately.
"You would bring her?" Ritsu's eyes travelled from Chiaki to the woman standing inches away from her. "How about work? Do you need help? I can bring her for you." Ritsu offered kindly.
"I'm sure I can manage. Thank you for the offer, though." She smiled. "I think I need to spend more time with her, a mommy-and-daughter-bonding."
There were a few minutes of comfortable silence before Ritsu started to fidget uncomfortably. "So… we are visiting Aoi-chan, huh?" Ritsu sighed softly after earning a nod from the other woman.
"…and then we'll see Seiji-kun." Ritsu could not help the fixed emotions that built up within after the mention of her cousin's name.
I wonder how the three of them are doing.
"Woah!" Yui exclaimed in surprise when she found Ritsu inside their special VIP area at the Kallistēi bar her sister owns. Ritsu just stared at her childhood friend blankly before another girl with black hair stepped inside the room.
"Wha-! Ritsu?" Azusa gasped, looking questioningly at Ritsu. "What are you doing here, senpai?"
Ritsu scowled at her friends, "What, I can't be in here? I have the rights to be here, too! Ui-chan said so." Ritsu replied childishly as she took a sip on her Sex on the Beach.
"Heh~" Azusa looked amused at her before taking the seat in between her wife and Ritsu. Yui immediately scanned through the song list and entered a very familiar song she knew into the karaoke system. "They're already starting to party downstairs you know," Azusa continued as she looked at Ritsu who was laughing at Yui's antics.
"I know. I heard the loud music when you opened the door." Ritsu placed the now empty glass of cocktail on the table.
Azusa looked down at the table, noticing the three empty tall glasses of god knows what Ritsu had been drinking before she and Yui got there. "I heard Ui-chan had been asked for you downstairs, too. 'Taicchan', they say." Azusa continued, deciding to leave the commentary on Ritsu's drinking for later.
"Ehhh?" Ritsu looked at Azusa smugly. "Now you want me downstairs and meet the girls?" Ritsu looked back to the flat screen TV when she realized that the petite girl won't answer. "I don't feel like socializing downstairs tonight." Ritsu unconsciously reached for her empty glass and sipped. A frown formed on her face when she realized that it was already empty. As if on cue, Ui entered the VIP room with their foods and drinks.
"Another one?" Azusa asked Ui when the youngest Hirasawa handed another glass of cocktail to Ritsu. "Did you drive your motorbike here, Ritsu senpai?" Azusa looked at Ritsu.
"Hmmm?" Ritsu hummed before taking a sip on her Tequila Sunrise. "Nope," Ritsu shook her head. "I took my car tonight." Ritsu grinned at her kouhai.
"Well, just leave it here for tonight, we'll drive you home." Azusa said, not bothering to wait for Ritsu's response.
"By the way, Ricchan," Yui plopped herself beside Ritsu, bumping her fellow brunette in the process. "School's off this week right?"
"Yeah. You're late, Yui. It's already Wednesday. Classes will resume on Monday."
"Tehe~ So? Any plans or are you just going to cave in your room, scribbling away the sorrows of your lonesome self?" Yui asked smugly, earning a playful chokehold from Ritsu. "Give up! Give up!" Yui laughed as Ritsu released her.
"You're going to visit you family home for the weekend, right?" Ui suddenly asked, earning a knowing, haughty look from the other three occupants of the room. "Wha-what?" Ui fidgeted under the stares as she held the tray closer to her chest.
"How did you know that, huh?" Ritsu asked with a grin.
"Gusu gusu[2]. My Ui-chan's all grown up." Yui wiped her tears away with the tissue Ritsu had offered.
"O-oneechan!"
"Heh~ It's nice to know that you two still go along well." Azusa alleged making Ui flustered more.
"So? What else did my blabbermouth brother told you?" Ritsu's grin widened when she saw the light blush on Ui face.
"I-it's not like that, Ritsu-san! Oneechan!" Ui looked hopelessly at her crying sister.
"Yeah, right, sure." Ritsu winked at Ui. "My brother's a good catch, you know."
"Well, true that. Though Ui will have to wait since Satoshi's still in med school." Azusa agreed.
"Like I said, it's not like that!" Ui vainly reasoned.
"Yeah right!" They all laughed at Ui's tomato red face before Ritsu noticed the time. "Ah! I need to go now." Ritsu stood up and, surprisingly or not surprisingly, made to the door without stumbling down on her own.
"Eh? Already?" Yu whined just when Ritsu tried to open the door. "It's only 9! Ricchan, I thought you said we'll be together eternally?" Yui looked at Ritsu teary-eyed while Azusa just sighed on her partner's ridiculousness.
Ritsu smiled tenderly at her childhood friends before waving. "Yeah," Ritsu exited the room without bothering to play along with Yui's antics. Ritsu weaved through the bodies dancing and grinding each on the floor. There were a few girls who stopped Ritsu on the way, only to be told, "Next time, ladies."
Ritsu just started her car when she heard a familiar voice called out to her. "Ricchan!" Ritsu glanced back to see Yui running after her. She slowed down a bit so that the overly happy woman could catch her up. "I'll drive you home." Yui offered in between pants.
"Hmmm?" Ritsu glanced at Yui sideways. "I'm fine, I can drive." Ritsu was about to go to the driver's seat when Yui blocked her way.
"Come on, Ricchan. I'll drive you. I'll bring your car back tomorrow." Yui smiled at Ritsu before snatching the keys off the hands of the unsuspecting brunette. "Your car's so cool!" Yui beamed excitedly.
Ritsu mock-sighed before humorously saying, "You know, I'm more worried for my life with you driving than me driving like this."
"That was cruel, Ricchan!" Yui faked a hurt expression making Ritsu laugh as she walked around the passenger seat. The drive 20-minute drive was silent as Ritsu drifted off and on throughout the ride towards her condominium complex.
"So you're finally visiting your home? You haven't seen you parents for, what, almost a year, huh?" Yui started to ask as she pulled over at the front of the tall, glass façade building.
"Yeah. Well, my mom actually reached me and I really think I should go home this time. You know how she is. " Ritsu giggled at the memory of her mother and her motherly instincts before walking towards the building. She took a mental note to kindly speak to her brother about babbling about her new home number to their mother. "I better go see her before she send a search party after me." She added jokingly as she walked to the main doors.
"By the way, Ricchan," Yui called through the open windshield of the white sports car.
"Hmmm?" Ritsu stopped and glanced back over her shoulders.
"Try visiting her family too when you got there, okay?"
Ritsu raised an eyebrow before replying, "Hai. Hai. Hai."
I knew I'm gonna die this weekend. Ritsu playfully told herself when she mentally listed the people she needed to visit.
Ritsu was humming tipsily when the elevator door opened on the 15th floor, revealing a very striking Miyako. The young lady was wearing a blank tank top and a very revealing mini skirt.
"See anything you like, Taicchan?" Miyako purred on the intoxicated brunette who can't take her eyes off her.
"Miyako," Ritsu finally acknowledged the presence of the beautiful girl. "Going out tonight?"
"You could say that. I'm surprised you're already done for the night." Miyako stood inches beside Ritsu.
"Maa… With your boyfriend?" Ritsu spared another side-glance at Miyako.
"Hahaha. I told you many times already, he's-not-my-boyfriend." Miyako answered, poking Ritsu for every word. Ritsu eyed Miyako suspiciously this time. "It's true, you know!"
"If you say so," Ritsu hummed.
"Of course! I say so myself."
"He's always at your apartment for long periods of time. Now don't tell me you just talk inside, doing innocent things you've thought of with your naïve minds." Ritsu smugly looked at her companion. "God knows what you're really doing inside that love nest of yours." Ritsu earned another chuckle from Miyako. "You're so casual Miya."
"You're one to talk." Miyako mumbled, well aware of her friend's casual flings, before looking at Ritsu mischievously.
"What?"
"Hmmm? Nothing."Miya shook her head. "Casual's just my thing, no? But I would definitely go exclusive with you, Ritsu." The playful tone on Miyako's voice was long gone as she looked directly into Ritsu's amber eyes.
Ritsu smiled at her before turning to look towards the closed elevator door. "You know, right? About my situation, I mean."
"Hmmm?" Miyako tilted her head to the side as she looked at Ritsu. "About her who-must-not-be-named you mean? Yes, I know of her."
"Then, what are you saying that for?" Ritsu smiled at Miyako.
"Waaah! This is the second time you rejected me Taicchan. That's not very good for my confidence, you know. If I ended up being single for the rest of my life, I'm blaming it all on you."
"Hahaha! I doubt about that would happen, knowing you." Ritsu winked at Miyako.
"But, seriously, is that woman really the reason why you can't go exclusive?"
"You well know it's far more complicated than that." Ritsu mumbled so softly that Miyako did not hear her.
"Or someone else?" Ritsu looked at Miyako as if the girl was blabbering the most stupid thing in the world. "What was her name again? Mina-chan? Minako-chan? No. Miura? No, no." Ritsu's eyebrow twitched when she realized where Miyako was going with this conversation. "Hora, you know, the girl I met last time. Miko-chan? Oh! Miyu-chan!" Miyako exclaimed with a victorious smile. "What's this? You have a thing with girls that's got their names start with the letter 'M?' Hey! My name starts with an 'M' too!" Miyako winked back at Ritsu.
"Just what are you doing, Miyako-san?" Ritsu looked at her, pocketing her hands deep into her hoodie's pocket. "I don't even know any girls with those names you just mentioned."
"Really? And I was pretty confident with Miyu-chan, though. So?" Miyako paused, "What's her name again?"
Ritsu looked away from Miyako. "I don't know who you are talking about."
"Heeeh~ Playing innocent, huh?" Miyako grinned. "Well then, let me refresh your memory. The mysterious girl, Miyu-chan! You know, the girl with long black hair…? Shy type… and very cute, I must add. The one who was with you that day Sanae-san and I saw you." Miyako looked at Ritsu, no reaction. "You know, the Miyu-chan who slept in your apartment…?" she paused, but received no reaction from Ritsu yet again. "Just the two of you… no one else around… and I quote 'god-knows-what-you're-doing' and then Sanae-san told me that she also saw Miyu-chan again on your apar—"
"Mio," Ritsu mumbled, effectively cutting what Miyako was saying.
"Huh? What was that?" Miyako's grin widened when she noticed Ritsu blushing. What she wasn't sure though is if it was because of Ritsu's intoxicated state or something else.
"I. Said. Mio. Her name's Mio not Miyu."
"Ah! Yes, Mio-chan! So you do know her! Mou, Taicchan." Miyako giggled.
"Urusai, she's just my student."
"EH?" Ritsu winced when Miyako shrieked; it's not helping that she was feeling light headed too.
"Don't be so loud."
Miyako gasped. "So that's what you like, huh? Well, I can definitely see the thrill. Ah… The beauty of forbidden love."
"Baka," just on cue, the doors of the elevator opened at the top floor. "Well, I'll see you around Miyako." Ritsu waved goodbye as she walked out of the lift.
"Taicchan!" Ritsu looked back when she heard the blonde girl called out. "Maybe I should just go to your room tonight." Miyako teasingly offered.
"Hahaha. Tempting, Miyako-chan. But I'd have to decline. Off to you boyfriend now." Ritsu playfully shooed Miyako before walking away from the elevator. Ritsu laughed heartily when she heard Miyako said, "He's not my boyfriend!"
Ritsu spent a good five minutes outside her apartment door, trying to find her keys, before she finally got to come in. In her tipsy state, Ritsu did not even realize that her apartment door was already unlocked.
"I'm home," Ritsu automatically said as she tried to kick off her shoes.
"Ah! Welcome home," a voice coming from her living room greeted her.
"Ee," Ritsu absent-mindedly acknowledged the other person inside her apartment as she walked into the living room, just stopping dead in her tracks in front of the black couch. She was greeted by the sight of Mio, together with Yuko and Emi, sitting on the black leather couch. Yuko was grinning widely; Emi was trying to stifle a giggle while Mio had the big sorry-for-troubling-you-look on her face.
"Yo! Ricchan, welcome home!" Yuko greeted the baffled brunette standing in front of them.
"Huh?" Ritsu tilted her head as she stared at the three girls sitting in front of her. "This is my house, right?" Amber eyes carefully surveyed the area. A slight panic crept in when the thought of suddenly entering someone else's house crossed her mind. A sigh of relief escaped her mouth when she looked at the familiar furniture. Ritsu looked back down at the three girls. "So? What are you guys doing here?" Ritsu glanced at the clock. It was almost ten in the evening. "This late, too."
"We're camping here tonight!" Yuko unreservedly exclaimed.
"Gomen, sensei," Mio apologized when Ritsu looked at her.
Ritsu sighed before squishing herself in the little space between Mio and Yuko. "Honestly, what are you guys doing? Entering someone's house like that?" Yuko moved to give space for her teacher as she silently wondered why her teacher would squish herself in the middle when there are empty spaces on the couch beside them.
"Gah, Ricchan! You reek of alcohol, you drank?" Yuko asked the teacher beside her, pinching her nose.
"Just a little. At any rate, how did you guys get in?" Ritsu looked at Yuko who was sitting on her right. Yuko in return looked at Mio; Ritsu noticed that Emi was also looking at the obsidian haired girl. She then, in return, looked at Mio expectantly.
"The …s… ag" Mio mumbled, looking sideways.
"What's that?" Ritsu asked.
"The keys under the rag," Mio repeated shyly, a little bit clearly this time.
"Eh? How did you know about that?" Ritsu asked softly that Mio was the only one who heard it. "Anyway, I know that I told you guys that you can come anytime like this is your own house. But come on~!" Ritsu plopped her head on Mio's shoulder innately. Yuko and Emi just brushed this action off, seeing as it had been natural for the past few days they spent with the young teacher. "What if I brought a girl with me tonight, huh? You have to consider the time and day too." Ritsu murmured before closing her eyes. She inwardly sighed when she remembered Miyako offering to spend the night with her. "And also my needs." She mumbled softly.
Talk about cockblock.
"What!" Emi and Yuko shuffled their faces closer to Ritsu, crushing Mio on the process. "You have a girlfriend?"
Ritsu inwardly smirked when she noticed Mio faintly stiffened before she opened an eye to look at the curious faces staring down at her. "Nope. Not really," she answered softly and shortly.
"Oh? Well, it's not like it's surprising that you have one, seeing you're quite popular at school. Teachers and students alike." Yuko stated as a matter -of-factly. "But, Ricchan, how old are you again?"
"Hm? 26, why?" Ritsu asked back, her head was still resting comfortably on Mio's shoulder.
"And you don't have a lover? My, I'm worried about you, Ricchan. You might not be able to get married at this rate." Yuko teasingly added, making Ritsu sit up properly and look blankly at Yuko. Yuko, for a moment, felt uneasy under the stares of Ritsu. Thinking she asked something that was taboo for the oldest girl.
Ritsu cleared her throat when Yuko looked away. "A-anyway, stop talking about my love life… How about you girls?" Ritsu looked at each of the girls. "Your parents sure trust you, huh? Sleeping over like this, I mean."
"Well…" Emi trailed off.
"We're together with everyone and we also said that you're with us, anyway." Mio finished as Yuko nodded in agreement.
"Hmmmm," Ritsu hummed. "For all they know you could be with your lovers." Ritsu smirked at the three girls who all blushed identically. "Speaking of that, I don't think I've seen you guys with one before." The three girls looked anywhere but Ritsu.
"No boyfriends?" The three girls shook their heads hastily.
"…Girlfriends then?"
"None," Mio answered softly for the three of them.
"Eh?" Yuko hooked an arm around Mio. "What are you talking about, Mio? You have one, right?" The last statement piqued Ritsu's curiosity. Emi and Yuko exchanged knowing glances.
Mio has a lover? Didn't see that coming. Wait-actually not really surprising. Considering the kid got her own fanclub. Kowai. Ritsu shuddered inwardly.
"Really?" Ritsu asked softly as she looked directly into Mio's obsidian orbs.
"Yup! It's senpai, right?" Emi asked Yuko for confirmation.
"That's right! Sok—"
"Wha-what are you saying?" Mio clamped Yuko's mouth, effectively silencing her childhood friend's blabber. "Aha ha ha ha," Mio laughed awkwardly.
"Heh~" Ritsu gaped at Mio, making the younger girl fidget under her gaze. "Anyway, you guys can stay at my room." Ritsu immediately evaded the topic. "If you don't fit in the bed there's also a sofa bed." Ritsu stood up from her seat.
"Where are you sleeping?" Mio asked thoughtfully.
"Oh? I need to finish some stuff for work so I'll be staying at my office." The three girls nodded as they watched their teacher drag her feet across the room. "Ja, goodnight."
"Goodnight."
"Huge," Emi gaped as they ready for bed. She looked curiously around Ritsu's bedroom. "Wow! She's got projected clock, too!" Emi beamed as she touched the cold wall of Ritsu's room where the clock was projected. Mio sighed as she watched her overly curious childhood friend pry into each and every nook and corner of their teacher's room.
"Ne, Mio-chan." Emi called out to Mio as they walked inside Ritsu's walk-in closet. "You think Ricchan-sensei's hiding porn somewhere?" Emi mischievously asked.
"Wha-! What are you saying?" Mio immediately blushed. " Of course not, Sensei's no—"
"How cuuuute!" Yuko squealed from outside the walk-in closet. "Hey guys, come here." Yuko peeked inside, motioning the girls to come out. "Look what I found." Yuko pointed to the black digital photo frame by Ritsu's bed. "Ricchan's pictures when she was young."
"Wow!" Emi marched closer. "That's Ricchan-sensei during high school!" Mio peeked over her friends shoulder and surely, it showed Ritsu in her Sakuragaoka's uniform together with another brunette. They laughed when the picture changed showing the same brunette with Ritsu. This time, however, the two was covered in white foams as Ritsu hold a fire extinguisher in her hands.
"She's not that tall during high school." Yuko commented when another picture popped out. It was a picture of a 17-year-old Ritsu together with a sophisticated blonde haired girl.
"Oh! She looks exactly like you, Mio." Yuko called when the frame showed Ritsu together with a black haired kouhai wearing twin tails.
"You're right." Emi mused as the two looked back in forth from Mio and the picture.
"You think one of these girls is her girlfriend?" Yuko suddenly asked as they all watched the picture change. It was a picture of Ritsu and four other girls. One girl was playfully pouting her lips on Ritsu's cheeks.
"But sensei said she doesn't have one." Mio reasoned softly. Somewhere inside her, she wished none of these girls were Ritsu's lover.
Why do I even care?
"Hello? Chizu?" Ritsu greeted the other person on the line as she tilted her chair on its two hind legs. She glanced at the time when nobody spoke. It was already two in the morning and the three girls on the other room had gone silent hours ago. "Moshimoshi?"
"…"
"A-ano? Sanada-sama?" Ritsu stuttered, she knew all too well that she's gonna get it from the other woman on the line after making this call on an ungodly hour.
"What do you want?" An irritated Sanada Chizuru finally answered. "Do you have any idea what time it is, huh, Ritsu?" Ritsu inwardly winced when she heard the woman call her name without honorifics.
Oooh. She's mad.
"We-well… You see I need you to send the reports and proposals by the engineers and interior designers." Ritsu nervously stated. Chizuru had always been working under her wing ever since she started at the company. Chizuru was the only girl flexible and patient enough to keep up with Ritsu's spontaneous working hours and unorthodox working ethics.
"It's not due till Monday so what's the hurry?"
"Well, I'm going to visit my folks for the weekend. So... yeah." Ritsu scratched her cheek timidly.
"Really? I haven't heard any of this."
"Ye-yeah. Well, I forgot, sorry."
"You shouldn't forget about this thing, I'm your secretary. Who, by the way, also substitutes for you on meetings and whatnot. And did I mention that I'm also the one being scolded whenever you don't show up?"
"Hai, and I thank you for that. Really. Well about the files…" Ritsu trailed off.
"Anyway, I already sent it, Ritsu-san. If there's anymore problems just call me. But please, don't forgo sleep."
"Yes, thank you, Chizu. You're a life saver." Ritsu immediately looked at her messages after letting go of her secretary. The brunette stretched after checking that every file she needs was already there. "Maybe I should go take a rest."
After taking her contact lenses off, Ritsu decided to check on the girls first before going to bed herself. She was on way her to the master's bedroom when she noticed someone sitting on the living room. The room was dark but Ritsu can vividly make out the form of the girl.
"What's wrong, Mio? Can't sleep?" Ritsu smirked when she saw that she had scared the bass player.
"Well…" Mio trailed off as she looked at Ritsu. "How about you?" Mio asked as she watched her teacher plopped beside her.
"I just finished the things that needs to be done by tomorrow." Ritsu laid her head on Mio's lap without asking the girl's permission. "Ah, this feels good. My body's all stiff from hours of sitting." Ritsu's body sprawled over the couch. Her feet were dangling idly on the other side of the couch while she used Mio's lap as a pillow.
"What are you doing?" Mio asked when Ritsu closed her eyes.
"And here I thought you're the smart one." Ritsu grinned. "As you can see, Akiyama-san, I'm trying to rest."
"I see. So that's what it's called. I never fail to learn something new everyday from you, sensei." Mio responded humorously, stifling a giggle. "But why here? There are a lot of other empty spaces." Mio looked over the empty love seat then back down at Ritsu's peaceful face. The freshman fought the urge to touch Ritsu's face when she noticed the faint under-eye circles. Mio was taken aback when Ritsu's enticing amber orbs suddenly greeted her. Mio was thankful that the room was dark, hiding her now heavily forming blush. She swore she would never see the end of it if her teacher caught up on her blush.
"Mio's comfortable," Ritsu smirked at Mio. "And it's not like you're going to sleep right now. Right?" Ritsu looked at Mio hopefully.
"Ye-yeah." Mio stammered before looking away from Ritsu.
"So? Who is she?" Ritsu urged after a few minutes of silence.
"Who?" Mio looked back down at Ritsu who had closed her eyes once again.
"The 'senpai' your friends are talking about."
"Why do you want to know?" Mio cannot help the smile forming on her face.
"Nothing, just curious," Ritsu opened an eye. "So?"
"I don't think I'm required to answer that." Mio avoided Ritsu's gaze. "You always ask questions about me but I never got to ask questions." Mio fought another blush when she realized that Ritsu might think she's interested.
"Fair enough. Then how about for each question I ask, you could ask me too. Of course not too personal either." Ritsu negotiated as she shifted on Mio's lap. "So?"
"Isn't this personal?" Mio rested her right hand on the couch, just beside Ritsu's waist.
"What? Isn't my question something trivial?"
"If it's trivial, then why do you have to know?" Mio cleverly questioned back. She sighed when she saw Ritsu pouting. "Fine, we've known each other since middle school."
"Heh…" Ritsu hummed. "That's it?"
"What do you mean that's it?" Mio paused before continuing, "If we're dating?" Ritsu inwardly gasped at her student's retort teasing, but nodded anyway. "No, we don't. I get three questions, right?"
"Wha-! Why, aren't you a cunning little girl?" Ritsu laughed. "Shoot." Ritsu intertwined her hands on top of her stomach.
"You said you have another work, right? How come you don't go to work there or something?"
"Hahaha. Well, I do work for them, technically. It's just that I get this special privilege. I can work on my own place and pace as long as I get the job done in time."
"That's convenient." Mio mused at her teacher's revelation. "Second question, what's your real job?"
"A lot of students have asked me that already. So I'm giving you the same response I gave them: 'guess.'"
"Eh? Well then… Hmmm." Mio pondered as she looked around the living room. "An architect?"
"Bzzt bzzt."
"A draftsman?"
"Bzzt bzzt."
"No? Then an engineer?" Mio paused. "Oh wait, I don't think you have the attention span on doing something so complicated." Mio laughed, earning a playful glare from Ritsu. "Then some sort of a designer maybe? You seem to draw for a living."
"I guess you could say that. Next question?"
"That's a very vague answer." Mio narrowed her eyes on Ritsu. "Anyway, why do you always wear that same yellow headband of yours?" Mio curiously asked.
Ritsu paused for a few moments that Mio thought the brunette had already fallen asleep. "Someone gave it to me. It's very special and memorable, I guess."
"Ritsu's girlfriend?" Mio asked once more.
"I guess you could describe her best as my best buddy." Ritsu smiled at the little recollection of her friend. "Oh, my turn! How old are you? 16? 17?"
"Nope… 15," Mio answered curtly.
Ritsu immediately sat up on her position and looked at Mio like the young girl had grown another pair. "Seriously?" Ritsu had assumed that Mio was already at least 16, but learning the girl was a year younger irked her like there was so much difference between a 15-year-old and a 16-year-old high school girl.
"What's with that reaction?" Mio giggled but after a few seconds that it dawned to her, her face turned into a light frown. "Do I look old?" She placed a hand on her cheek self-consciously.
"What? No! No!" Ritsu said defensively. "It's just that…" Ritsu trailed before going back to her comfortable position lying on Mio's lap. "I just thought you're 16 or something. Wow, you're not even on the marrying age, huh?"
Mio raised an amused eyebrow at her teacher's apparent dilemma. "And why would that concern you, Ritsu?" She looked down to face Ritsu.
"H-heh? No-nothing! I just-just you know… Telling you… and stuff…" Ritsu mumbled as she shifted her head so that she was now facing Mio's abdomen. Ritsu's eyes travelled down along Mio's slim and petite arms then to the hand that was resting beside her.
"Hai, hai. Well, you don't look like your age either." Mio followed Ritsu's gaze.
"Really? How old did you think I was?" Ritsu absentmindedly took Mio's hands into her own, startling the younger girl at first.
"I thought you're at least 20 and then 23 at top." Mio admitted.
"Heh~" Ritsu mused as she placed Mio's hand, palm face, against her own. "You've got pretty big hands, don't you, Mio?" Ritsu said, fighting the urge to close her eyes.
Mio immediately pulled her hand away from Ritsu, blushing heavily. "U-urusai! I-I already know that!"
Ritsu laughed at her student's embarrassment before taking Mio's hand back. "Mine's bigger, though."
"Of course. You're way taller than me."
"Hahaha. True that… true that… You're really warm." Ritsu trailed off as her body finally surrendered to exhaustion and sleepiness.
Ritsu snapped her eyes open, used to the odd sleeping pattern she has. She slowly sat up, careful not to wake the pillow she used. The amber-eyed woman blushed when she realized that their fingers had become intertwined. She smiled tenderly at the sleeping girl before glancing at the clock. It was already five in the morning and the 30 minutes sleep she'd gotten was enough to get her going for the day. Ritsu admired the sleeping girl before gently shifting Mio so that she could lie on her back.
Sweet dreams, Mio.
"..chan." Mio stirred in her sleep.
"Mio-chan, wake up." Mio slightly opened her eyes. "We're here." Mio watched as her brunette guardian stepped out of the car. It confused the 15-year-old girl at first. One moment, Mio was chatting leisurely with her teacher back in Tokyo. The next, she found herself with her guardian on some part of Kyoto for her guardian's work related business.
Mio looked around her, and took note how dark it has gotten outside. She took her Tommy Hilfiger sports bag and followed the older woman inside the house. Mio admired the contemporary style of the 2-storey house, which reminded her of Ritsu's penthouse. Mio blushed immediately at the thought of her teacher. Last time was the closest they had ever been, that Mio once describe it as intimate.
"There's only three bedrooms in this house, go choose whichever you like."
"A-are you sure this is where we're staying? It seems like this is occupied already." Mio asked as her guardian walked inside the kitchen.
"Oh, no! No one's staying here at the moment. I always use this house whenever I stay here in Kyoto." Her guardian came out with a glass of water. "The big boss owns this place. His kids sometimes stay here when they have trips or something. Souichiro-san's wife just likes to make it home-y that's why there are a lot of their personal things." She looked around the living room. "Anyway, I'm going to my room and rest, I've got to get up early for my meeting with Souichiro-san. I'll be back by noon though. Well then, goodnight."
"Oyasumi." Mio looked around her; there was one big picture of whom she immediately recognized as the head of TNK Studio hanging on the wall. She saw quite a number of pictures of the man from her guardian's album back home. Mio's eyes then fall to the slightly smaller picture frame.
"What a beautiful woman." Mio said in awe as she stared at the picture of a woman in her forties. The woman's hair was a long silky dark brown hair, so dark that Mio thought it was black at first. But the woman's hazel brown eyes was what lured Mio in the most. It looked at her softly and tenderly.
Mio fought back a yawn before deciding to go to bed and leave the exploring of the house for later. She looked at the two unoccupied rooms before picking the room with white bed frame and more girly than the two. Mio plopped down lazily at the comfortable queen sized bed. Not even five minutes had passed and Mio immediately dozed off. Who can blame the young girl though? Mio had been up until four in the morning, chatting with her teacher. And at nine, she was woken up by Eri to have their much due band practice. In addition, to her disappointment, Ritsu was already gone for an emergency meeting when they woke up. Mio took a mental note to lecture Ritsu about too trusting in regards of her home's security.
"Kyaaahh!" Mio screamed at the top of her lungs when she spotted a small bump under the blankets on her room. The obsidian haired girl recalled the time that morning when she left for a stroll to pass time until her guardian comes back from the meeting. She remembered that she made sure to lock all the doors and windows of the house. Then how? How did this intruder got inside the house without using any force? As if on cue, her guardian ran into the room, panting.
"Wha-what's wrong, Mio-chan?" she asked in between huffs. Mio pointed at the lump, in the middle of the bed, that started to stir. Tears were slowly swelling up on the corners of her eyes. The thought of someone breaking in the house, that they did not even own, was just plain terrible.
"Who-who's that?" Mio jumped on her place when the trespasser moved under the blankets once more.
"Argghh… What happened?" the prowler yawned as she sat up, rubbing her eyes. The three stared at each other in silence for a few seconds before their brains fully processed what was going on.
"Ah! It's you." Mio's guardian was the first to break the silence as she pointed at the woman sitting on the middle of the bed.
Mio instinctively looked at her guardian. "Sawako-san, you know her?" Mio asked her brunette guardian who nodded.
"Ara, Sawa-chan?" the woman looked directly Mio's guardian.
"Hey there. Long time no see."
[1] Iya-iya: Japanese baby talk for no-no, apparently. Lol
[2] Japanese onomatopoeia for soft crying.
[3] Dame dayo: somewhere along the lines of 'no good'.
CHARACTER PROFILE IV
Name: ? Chiaki "Chiaki-chan" "Chi-chan"
Birthday: August 8 (3 y/o)
Family/ Relatives: "Mommy"
Hair colour: Brunette
Eye colour: Blue
Height: 100cm
Blood Type: B (lol for those who are trying to figure who's child Chiaki is, here's another clue ^_^ Figure it out by the blood types I've given. lol)
CHARACTER PROFILE V
Name: Yamanaka Sawako
Birthday: January 31 (27 y/o)
Family/ Relatives: Akiyama Mio (cousin's daughter)
Occupation: Composer/Musician
Height: 178cm
Blood Type: B
A/N: I think this is my longest chapter for this story or my RituMio/Mitsu fanfic for that matter. It got like 17 pages without my usual rambling. Lol Anyway, for those who got confused, the first part was a scene from the past; a year ago, to be precise. I refused to re read this chap after the second time since it just keeps on dragging on and getting longer. Lol so yeah. I hope there are minimal errors in this chap.
Some of you might think why the hell everybody likes Ritsu. Well, I dunno, somehow it left me just like that. And I think Ritsu is a very likeable character. Though I have to admit, K-On characters are somewhat, let's just say, average? Don't get me wrong, I love K-ON! But it just dawned to me while writing this chap that the character's personality is just a so-so (in my opinion anyway. Please don't kill me). Lol I mean, it's hard to write this story the way I want it to be without getting too OOC. Anyway, I think the next chapter would be out sooner than this one. Maybe… *mumbles* ^.^
Who thought that Mio's guardian would be Sawa-chan? Actually, when I first thought of this story, I had Azusa as Mio's relative but changed my mind after. And mind you, I change my mind A LOT. There are two new character's introduced in this chapter, Sawako and the girl named Aoi (Ritsu mentioned her name during the flashback scene)
I hope you liked this chap, I particularly liked writing the small and not-direct flirting scene between Mio and Ritsu. ^_^ There's like some scenes that came to mind but it just somewhat did not fit the character of the two so I did not put it. For those who've read my Hopeless Romantic story you'll know what I mean.
P.S I have a lot more to say but I doubt someone reads my notes. Wahaha Feedbacks! I want feedbacks. Yeah. I'm demanding like that.
Adios amigos, gracias.
ありがとう