🌸Cherry Blossom Palette: Summer by the Sea🎨
Chapter 25: Flower Girls [Part Five]
Sunshine Arc
Written by EmtenDew
Edited by P. serrulata
Author's note:
ED:Naoto and the girls finally part ways for the day, but first, Naoto gets to see something pretty amazing.
This chapter isn't overly long, just under 5K words. Like I said, last chapter got bigger than I wanted, and it was good to split it and spend more time on what you're about to read.
The "cliffhanger" from last time wasn't planned. It was just the best place to end that chapter.
The beach material is close at hand! Chapter 27!
I want to get well ahead of the release schedule again. My work has died down some, but PS's work has ramped up, seeing as he's already been harvesting and will be doing so until sometime in October, so I hope he can spare a few hours a week to help cobble together CBP as Naoto's summer takes on a life of its own.
…
Just putting this out there:
*If anyone is interested in creating art for this story, me or my editor would love to hear from you. We can't pay you, but we'd love to have you on board.*
…
My editor posted a Nagatoro meme recently, and it got deleted for some reason. It was a little mean, but it wasn't that big of a deal. Considering what other online denizens get away with, favorites are played, and it's a game of pick and choose.
It's a series about a mentally and physically abused girl who mentally and physically abuses an unfortunate boy, who come together in an unhealthy, blossoming relationship in the first place, so I guess it might be hard for some to draw boundaries.
…
Speaking of my editor, apparently, getting a copy of the Metalocalypse movie is really hard. People are spending more than $50 on eBay for it.
PS preordered a copy as soon as he could, so he had no problem getting one.
Maybe I'll beg him for his digital code so I can see it too without having to hunt around for it.
…
I know I complain about the canon series a lot, and I should just stop, because I'm sure it turns off some of my readers, but it's like with Game of Thrones, which I didn't see but know about from people I trust.
Even when the series was floundering and spinning down the drain, many that loved but came to hate it went down with the ship too, because they just wanted to see what would happen.
I know what Nanashi is doing or what he thinks he's doing with the story. I just think it stinks.
On top of what I wrote about canon last time, I have a few other thoughts.
Orihara and Machida have already peaked in their skills. They're never going to get better than they are now.
They are good, but they threw away everything of actual value for something neither is even GREAT at, and they won't be able to win in the end. Their hard work and pointless sacrifice can't take them any farther, and their skill definitely won't.
Neither has friends, and nobody truly likes them, which must be awful. I highly doubt this is a new thing in either of their lives though. I get the impression that's what constitutes their lives.
That's probably why throwing it all away was easy enough for them.
If Nanashi does allow them to reach the pinnacles of Olympian and great artist, it's unrealistic, neither good enough to stand on that stage. But it's a cartoon, and the pornographer will do what he wants.
It would be greater than Donald Trump could ever hope to make anything if that annoying Aihara goon walked up to Naoto and said "no hard feelings" or "$hit happens", and Naoto knocked his empty block off.
And it would be REALLY great if Naoto just totally skipped out on Nagatoro's dumb tournament and instead spent the entire day painting Machida's striptease and was later caught in the act by everyone that cares about him and Nagatoro becoming one flesh.
Naoto and Nagatoro have the talent to go all the way, but each has such low self-esteem and self-worth and are so easy to discourage, all it takes is a small hiccup, and they're easily able to ruin themselves.
Nagatoro lost one match to a moron, and it took her years to get back on the horse.
Naoto just lost to another moron, and we'll see how well he handles it.
But even if/when Nagatoro fails her side of the confession/kiss deal, whether she ever gets to face Orihara or not, she still has that silly coupon, which could streamline and maybe even end the series. There won't be anything else for Nanashi to do once they're a couple, because he refused to build a proper world around the side characters.
Nanashi could get a few more years out of the series if he took advantage of the fact there are still two semesters before Naoto graduates, but if he wants to end it, he can go back to drawing more porn, I guess. If the series ends, maybe I'll get more readers~.
And I'm still waiting for Nanashi to put all the worst characters in a van and have them drive off a cliff, ending in that fiery, squalid wreck I've mentioned. I think nine seats would be needed, but I could probably make sure of that by checking.
Nanashi isn't funny. I've never actually found any of his stuff funny, which might sound odd because I think that Yoshi is best girl. I actually like Yoshi because she's the only character besides Naoto with a working moral compass in the series.
Naoto and Yoshi are the only characters with any redeeming qualities. The rest have all become crap.
And Nanashi still doesn't seem to know how relationships actually work.
People give him far too much credit. I think that's why my editor gave up on the story. He thought a lot of Nanashi, like many think of Oda and Miura, and then realized Nanashi is just an unfunny pornographer that doesn't know how things work, which surprises me, because PS is one of the smarter people I know.
(Sorry, dude, but we joke about that kind of stuff~.)
I know the measure of funny. My editor is funny. PS is REALLY funny. His mind is an even stranger place than the manatee tank that generates Family Guy jokes.
Try stacking up to THAT, Nanashi. You'd perish in the process.
…
Please look at the Q&A section I set up at the end of the chapter. Ask us anything and we'll add another section in the next chapter.
It's good to know that you keep reading, so I would be happy if you drop comments and ask questions.
Please enjoy what I wrote.
Friday, July 27, 2018
"¥5,000 for a pair of slides?!" Sakura Inori muttered in disbelief, the chewed-up straw of her grasshopper milkshake wagging around in the corner of her mouth. "Really…?"
"I never knew they cost that much…" Hana Sunomiya spooned her frozen chocolate custard, drizzled with caramel and riddled with plump, salted cashews. "I didn't buy them; I wasn't even there. When she asked what I wanted, I just told Mother to get me something pink in my size."
With his two kohai, at a table-for-four in the kickass air-conditioning of the ice cream shop adjacent to the bus stop, Naoto Hachioji was enjoying the Neapolitan banana split the girls had treated him to.
Hana on his right, Sakura on his left, and no one across from him, he wouldn't complain verbally about the girls' topic, if only because they'd treated him to a banana split.
He DID wish a swift end to Sakura's grievance though, finding it quite trivial…
Among everything else, the gal had been looking for a new pair of slides for herself, just something to wear outside around her family's property and maybe the neighborhood or to visit the corner store, and she'd been excited to see the same sort of pink Adidas slide Hana owned, what the younger girl had worn for the pool cleaning.
She'd been less enthusiastic at the price, astonished that anyone would pay ¥5,000 for some pink, synthetic sandals.
She'd just thought they were super cute, the soft pink and white Adidas stripes…
Hana emphasized, "You got something else for a good deal, Sakura-senpai. Be grateful for that."
Sakura had found a nice pair of Nikes, plain black, save the white swish across the metatarsal, for less than a third of the price of the Adidas in pink.
"But they're men's slides, Hana-chan…" Sakura bewailed. "They didn't have anything in my women's size…"
"Sakura-senpai, when it comes to those slides, they're all the same thing, men's or women's," Hana attested. "There wasn't anything bigger than my size at all; the store was so picked over, and that staff-member said the truck with their new weekly shipment broke down in Zushi on Wednesday, so don't worry about it."
"It's the principle of the thing…" Sakura insisted, not at all chill with the reality of it. "I don't like when I have to buy men's shoes… It's rare it happens, but sometimes, I just can't find women's shoes that fit me… or they're sold out…"
'La-la-la-la-la…' Naoto tried to keep his mind otherwise occupied, in no temperament to learn what the blonde's shoe-size was, if indeed she was about to share it, which he doubted she'd do when he was around. 'Why can't you two talk about your makeup or something…?'
She'd GROWLED at Gamo-chan for bringing it up—tales of fabled European size 40 tootsies, two days prior, and he wanted no part of that…
Also, he recalled that the gal already had a pair of wooden slides—his, from when he was a lot younger, obtained the day after she'd slept at his house, giving her something to wear on the way home.
She'd never returned them… or the socks… or that old t-shirt… not that he really cared…
…
In case one was wondering, the three of them HAD gone through with the "bikini show"…
Naoto hadn't passed out, and he hadn't blacked out.
It just seemed like a waste of time for the reader to slog through an extra thousand-plus words, enfolding the many realizations Naoto had come to, secluded with Sakura and Hana in the back of the sporting goods store…
The girls had changed together, Naoto waiting outside, and it had only taken some mild encouragement—namely, Sakura leading her out by the hand—for Hana to show her dearest of senpai what she and Sakura had selected for themselves.
No one else but Naoto would be seeing them… that day…
Hana had been nervous, but she was no worse off than Naoto, and she'd done okay with it, her blanch reducing to a crimson blush.
Sakura—no surprise—had been a vision.
Hana had been beautiful, and there was really no better way to put it.
Naoto had been looking forward to seeing some serious skin on Sakura again, but he could dig what she'd purchased, something more modest to be on-level with Hana.
Of the six suits Sakura had been carrying, only two of them had been for her, though Naoto got to see both.
The other four were for Hana, and he also got to see two of these.
The girls had debated buying both bikinis each had displayed, but they'd settled on one apiece.
Sakura had gone for a lavender bikini, paired with an ocean-blue beach-skirt, and Hana had selected an orange bikini, with a fiery-red skirt.
Naoto did like a beach-skirt on a girl~. *koff! koff!* 'Nekoba!'
The girls weren't quite matching, but their suits were of the same convention, and they made quite a pair~.
…
Yes, Naoto had come to a few conclusions, seeing Hana in a way he'd never seen her…
Down to the studs, he found he'd been perturbing himself more than had been merited, the whole affair ending inoffensively, though it was nevertheless some pretty unwieldy stuff.
It was cringey stuff at that, plenty of it and far more so than he wanted to remember:
Let's see… there WAS the realization that Hana wasn't a little girl anymore, not that he hadn't known for a good while… so it was a RE-realization…
Then, there was the notion that Hana could STILL be his friend and kohai and YET be a ravishing maiden, even without bringing in any sort of temptation or things becoming screwed up between them…
And… he'd wanted to whoop and holler like an idiot, seeing Hana try something "different", changing her hair and wearing ribbons in it, but he just couldn't get as excited about seeing so much skin on her, seeing her in a modest but very bikini-ish bikini…
…
"…!" He shuddered.
Yes, it was all VERY cringey…
…
But~! He'd told Hana she was pretty, and he was as sure of himself as a blackout-drunk taking a sprint at a dry slip-and-slide on a hot day, even if he'd flushed and fumbled to a small degree.
Sakura had been more theatrical, trilling and squealing over how much she loved this "cutie of all Creation" she'd helped to make so darn cute~.
And Hana had smiled shyly, just enough to prove that she was smiling, and she'd thanked them.
…
Naoto could go with how things had turned out.
Here he was, flanked by his two lovely study buddies, having some excellent ice cream to close out a respectably marvelous day~…
They'd secured their best haul at Etsuko Ootori's store, and while the other places might've yielded more summer wear, they'd done alright.
Getting to MEET Etsuko—and Urumi—had been the cherry on top~…
…
Speaking of Etsuko and Urumi—
Well, just Urumi, actually…
"Urumi-san is only 19?" Hana expressed surprise at Sakura's words.
Naoto had missed the INITIAL words…
"Yeah." The gal nodded. "Her birthday's July 1st. You wouldn't think it, but she just graduated high school last spring."
Naoto had been certain that she was older than that, though it could be hard to tell with young women.
He wouldn't say she could pass for a MIDDLE-SCHOOLER, but… she probably could…
She could also pass for a cute secretary~, so said he, barring her unique presentation and fashion-sense.
…
Sakura was still yakking, not that pertinent data could be called such.
"Yeah, she went to high school a few towns over," she imparted. "A couple different places…"
"She went to different schools?" Hana blinked. "She transferred in the same town?"
Sakura winced. "Uh… yeah, she did… Something like that…"
"…?" Hana sucked at the caramel on her spoon.
…
Naoto must've missed even more, because—
"You got her contact info, Hana-chan?!" Sakura rebounded with a guffaw. "When did you do that~?!"
"When I showed her pictures of my cousin's Alfa Romeo," Hana stated matter-of-factly. "If he's okay with it, I'm going to put the two of them in contact… or at least let her know when he'll be out here again. He travels a great deal, visiting mechanics and dealers, so there's a good chance he'll be out again this summer, especially if he has a reason to visit Yokohama. I think he'd enjoy meeting Urumi-san."
"Yeah, that'd be cool~," Sakura voiced.
Hana dug around her sundae. "I guess she doesn't have a Line account though…"
"No… no, she doesn't… same as me," Sakura blew out a breath. "It was nothing but trouble for both of us…"
…
Naoto's consideration was still on the fritz.
'How awesome would it be if URUMI-SAN showed up at the beach tomorrow~?' he ruminated.
He could stand seeing that, the tiny Urumi in a reasonable-ish bikini… with a cute beach-skirt!
She'd be a SIGHT~! And she'd probably need even more sunblock than HIM!
…
"Senpai-kun?"
…
'Urumi-san could prolly give a couple of the other girls a run for their money~…'
…
"Hachioji-senpai?"
…
'Imagine HER calling you from the bath, trying to fuck with you but accidentally switching to video~…'
…
"Paging Mr. Hachioji~."
…
'Mmph~! 155 cm of snow-white, true Japanese beauty~…' *guttural Naoto-noises*
…
"Yo, Senpai-ku~un~."
…
'Yeah~… and FUCK tan-lines~! Etsuko-san sure didn't have any~… and I STILL wanna see Etsuko-san in a two-piece~…'
…
"Uh, Hachioji-senpai…?"
…
'I wonder if URUMI-san has any tattoos~… though she prolly couldn't pull it off as well as Etsuko-san…'
…
"He ain't listening, Hana-chan. Just LOOK at 'im."
…
'Oh, I hope they don't have any tattoos on their feet and/or ankles! That'd break my heart, seeing that shit… especially if they have pretty feet to begin with~…'
…
"Wake up, Asshole-kun! The procurers of your banana split are talkin' to you~!"
"Don't call him that, Sakura-senpai…"
"It's fine, Hana-chan; it always gets him to move… and it beats kicking him~."
"Well, yes, we can't have that."
…
"Duh…" Naoto returned to the realm of air-conditioning and ice cream. "Huh?"
"Good to have you back, buddy~," Sakura burbled. "Would it kill you to listen?"
"Oh, no… I'm good." He sat up straight.
Hana was also at attention, at peace with Sakura's third(?) favorite moniker of their senpai, given the circumstances. "…"
"So, we're each gonna lend Gamo-chan some manga~," Sakura discoursed. "Hana-chan's copies of Living Room, Senpai-kun's Berserk, and—if she's willing to let them out—my mom's old Slam Dunk books."
"Hmph~!" Hana was down with it.
Sakura gleamed. "Let's give her the first two volumes of each; that'll prolly give her enough to decide whether she likes something or not~."
"Hopefully, everything can stay dry…" Naoto wasn't gonzo about bringing manga volumes to the beach.
Hana volunteered, "No worries, Hachioji-senpai! I'll bring some big zipper bags, the kind you use in the freezer. That will keep them safe."
"Problem solved~!" Sakura chirped.
Naoto was satisfied. "Well, alright."
…
The three friends shot the shit for a bit longer, and soon, they'd finished their frozen treats.
Hana checked the time. "It's 3:30, Sakura-senpai. We should go."
"I don't wanna go outside yet…" Sakura carped. "The temperature's skyrocketed since we left the sports store."
"We don't want to risk missing the bus, Sakura-senpai."
"But the stop's right outside. We're good for a while." Sakura schmoozed.
"Very well," Hana settled. "But 10 minutes and no longer."
She'd been adamant about making the 3:55 bus back to the girls' neck of the woods.
Stern, Hana could be…
"What's the rush?" Naoto asked.
He knew their day was over, but he'd figured on lounging around in the restaurant another half-hour or so—even if he had to purchase another treat, so he couldn't be accused of loitering and given the boot.
Not that the shop was all that busy…
Sakura piped, "We got some girly stuff doin'~!"
"Oh." Naoto wasn't shocked. "Okay."
"Wanna come~?" she tittered. "I don't think Hana-chan would mind."
"You would be quite welcome, Hachioji-senpai," Hana joined.
Naoto was sorely tempted, but he was also very ready to go home… and he liked giving the girls their time together.
"Thanks, but I'm okay." He wanted the girls to have fun. "Sunomiya just got home, so I'm sure you two wanna catch up."
"Oh, poo!" Sakura jeered. "You don't know what you're missing out on~."
He trusted that it was something girly, but if he later regretted missing it, he'd deal with it when it came to light.
"Hey, I'm still tired, Sakura-san…" he garrisoned. "I wanna get back to doing nothing."
Hana didn't mind. "That's fine, Hachioji-senpai. I know you could've had a quiet day at home, so… thank you for coming out with us."
"…!" Naoto caught the pink reappearing in the girl's cheeks, and he felt his own heating up. "Hey… I… I was glad to do it, Sunomiya."
Her grin was barely perceivable, but it was there. "This was fun~…"
And she felt a little more comfortable in her own skin, though in a different way than she was familiar with…
"…~" He grinned right back. "I'm glad I came. But now, I just wanna go relax…"
"No problem~," Hana breezed, enjoying being where she was, when she was.
"…"
"…"
"…"
…
"…?" Naoto had been noticing something, something he'd noticed a few minutes after they'd entered the ice cream place.
Until mid-afternoon, the weather had been seasonably cool, making for a pleasant time in the downtown, and none of the little party had been sweating their asses off.
But since entering the little café, Sakura had begun to sweat like an Okinawan day-laborer.
And she'd lost her bronze, going a bit pale, though not nearly as pale as Hana had been, gearing up to show him a couple of bikinis, simply because she WAS a bronzed girl…
Naoto had been trying to ignore this, thinking little of it, but the gal had become increasingly nervous and twitchy, particularly when she wasn't keeping herself occupied with food, drink, or chit-chat.
It had become too much to ignore…
"Uh, Sakura-san?" he motioned.
"What's up~?" She was being overly chipper too, every time a silence was broken at her expense.
He wasn't disturbed, but he wondered, "You good?"
Sakura was fighting something, but candor won out, and she hadn't given it much effort anyway, her struggle.
"Well…" she mused, denying nothing, her energy depleting. "I dunno…"
"What is it?" Hana devoted herself, unaccustomed to seeing her lady senpai perspire with no apparent cause.
She'd been wondering too, about Sakura's manner, but she didn't always give words to her alarms.
Sakura could barely reject Naoto's apprehensions, and she really couldn't say "don't worry about it" to Hana, above all, when her kohai was so earnest, which was at least 95% of the time.
"I guess I'm ready…" she murmured. "We only have so much time, but… it's enough."
Her friends saw very plainly that this was something important.
"…?" "…?" Naoto and Hana were rapt.
Sakura set her wallet-purse before her and went about opening it.
Naoto and Hana watched. "…? "…?"
And… Sakura chickened out, her hands retreating to her lap.
"Sakura-senpai?" Hana leaned forward, mild concern etching her features.
Sakura mulled, staring at her empty shake cup and gnawed straw, "Sorry… I'm just a little scared, I guess…"
"…?" Hana could see no reason for it, but it wasn't like she knew all the ins-and-outs of her friend's mind. "Why are you scared?"
Naoto kept mum, though he was getting rather anxious himself. "…?"
"You two'll prolly think it's silly, when you find out." Sakura shook her head. "I know I might… prolly."
"No, we won't!" There was Hana's earnestness, on full-display.
Naoto said the same, "Me too."
Even if he WANTED to, he wouldn't…
"Well, I… I guess I'm not exactly scared… but I've just never done this before."
"Never done what?" Naoto took this one.
A big, cagey smirk cracked Sakura's uneasy face. "Well… I have something I wanna give to Hana-chan."
As she said this, she turned to their kohai.
Hana blinked. "You do?"
"Yeah…" Sakura swallowed hard. "I prolly should've waited… or done it some other time, but… I wanted Senpai-kun to be here for it."
Naoto sat up straight. "…?!"
Sakura chuckled at his reaction, "Sure enough, buddy… and I do have something for you as well, but… it won't be ready for a while, so don't feel left out or anything, okay?"
"It's cool," he said immediately, wishing to encourage the beleaguered gal. "Go on, what do you have for Sunomiya?"
"Kinda pushy, huh~…?" Sakura jested. "You can't let this happen at my pace~?"
"Sorry…" He was.
Hadn't they been on a schedule though…?
Sakura giggled, "Hey, we're good, Senpai-kun… Thanks~…"
"Uh… you're welcome," he accomplished.
He was pleased to see that the gal's color was no longer faded, her normal hue fast returning.
Sakura faced Hana. "Hana-chan, I do have something I wanna give you today."
"…!" Hana wasn't used to receiving gifts from friends.
She'd had so very few… until recently…
Sakura went back into her purse, dug around a few seconds, and pulled out what looked like two straw-colored straps.
Upon closer inspection, it could be seen they were woven… of SOME fiber…
Hana's eyes were at full-mast. "…?"
Sakura motioned to hand over whatever she had, but…
"Hana-chan…"
"…! Yes?"
Now, Sakura blushed.
She led, "Yesterday, when we were by the school pool… we were talking about our names…? That we're both named for flowers…?"
"Yes…?"
Sakura rolled the weavings between her fingers. "Until yesterday afternoon, I wasn't sure of how to finish these, but I got the idea on our way home. Once we parted ways, I turned to that little kiosk near the bus stop. The one that sells accessories and stuff?"
"Yes."
"They sell jewelry-making supplies too. I couldn't find the Japanese characters on beads I wanted, but I was thinking about doing these in English anyhow, and they did have the three emojis I was looking for anyway, so…"
"So…?" Hana harmonized.
"These are something I made," Sakura enlightened. "Hemp… That's what they're made of. It was fun to work with, and once I knew how to finish, it didn't take long at all. I made one for myself too. They're… they're a pair, you see…"
"…Sakura-senpai…?"
The blonde leaned forward and slid the two items across the table to her kohai. "Yours is the one with the hibiscus… Mine's the one with the cherry-blossom."
"…!" Hana reached out and pulled the two objects towards her.
She read the words—in English, and she saw the emojis, both knit into straight lines across the woven lengths of hemp:
…
"🌸Flower Girl❤️"
"🌺Flower Girl❤️"
…
"…!" Hana looked up. "Sakura-senpai… what are these?"
Sakura shone. "They're friendship-bracelets, Hana-chan~…"
"They're… friendship-bracelets…?" Hana inclined her head.
"Or rather, they're 'friendship-anklets'."
"Anklets?" Hana's features bugged.
"Yeah, they go around the ankle," Sakura refined. "They would've been bracelets, the way I started them, but since I went with English text instead of Japanese characters or just the beads I was originally considering, they wound up being way too long for our wrists."
"Sakura-senpai…" Hana breathed.
"Hana-chan… you told me a few weeks ago… that… that I was your best friend." She kneaded her hands together. "I'm sorry that I didn't know what to say back to you."
"It's… that's okay…" Hana replied.
Sakura's hands squeezed in emphasis, eyes upon the spot on the table between her wrists. "But I was really, really happy that you said that."
"…!" Hana took this in.
Inhaling shakily, Sakura let out, "I… don't think I've ever had a best friend, at least not one I can remember…"
"Sakura-senpai…"
"I guess I never said it to you, but… I've always had trouble making friends, Hana-chan… at least since I started middle school."
"You… do?" Hana had never set her senpai up on a pedestal, but…
"Pfft!" Sakura snorked. "Yeah, you wouldn't think it, but… I do… a lot…"
It pained the younger girl. "…I see…"
"…" Sakura took a deep breath. "Hana-chan, I…"
She remembered Nobuo Takata… and a whole lot else.
…
'I REALLY wrecked a good thing with Nobu-kun…'
…
"After breaking up with my boyfriend, I felt like a real piece of garbage… that all the crap I did finally sorta just… fell apart. I was scared that a bunch of people would finally… get back at me… give me what I deserved… so I mostly just wanted to be alone while things blew over… until I was able to go back."
…
'I was terrified that weekend… that nobody would give me another chance… or ANY chance…'
…
"When Senpai-kun and my ex talked, you made sure they had their space, going so far as to shoo me to the park."
…
'I thought it was WEIRD at first, but…'
…
"After that, I could tell how much you cared about our senpai… and I wanted to get to know you a little better, so I tried talking to you. You even came to lunch with me that Thursday, but I was kinda starting to wonder if you just didn't like me… once Friday rolled around…"
…
'I wouldn't blame someone for not liking me, even WITHOUT all the other crap I did…'
…
"But you came up to me that next Monday… when I was feeling so awful… You even bought me that parfait, just to try to cheer me up~. That was the first time we really started talking."
…
'And I was thinking it was too good to be true…'
…
"And when we really started talking, I realized… it was okay to not put on some stupid show… to just try to be myself. I realized I didn't need to fake it for you… I know we got a little nuts that afternoon, but I had so much fun that day~!"
…
'I hadn't romped around like that since I was 11-years-old~…!'
…
Hana bent towards her gal-pal. "Sakura-senpai…?"
"You're my best friend too, Hana-chan~!" the gal declared, cheeks crimson. "It's only been a month, but… you are… and it's been so fun~!"
"…!" Hana juddered, also quite red.
"I, uh…" Sakura twirled at her hair. "I know it's not much, but I really wanted us to have bracelets… anklets… like this! I know it's normally something little kids would do, but… I've never made any… and I always wanted to make a pair~… but I never had anyone to do it for…"
"…"
"…"
"Can I put it on…?"
"…!" Sakura twitched. "What?"
Hana repeated, "Can I put it on? Sakura-senpai…?"
"…!"
"…Sakura-senpai…?"
"Of course, you can~!" the blonde blared. "I'll put mine on too~! But you first!"
"…Okay…" Hana weighed the two hemp anklets in her hands. "What do I do?"
Naoto (yes, he was still there~) presumed it was obvious, that Hana should just tie it around her ankle, but he thought better of it.
These were friendship-bracelets…
Hana might've suspected something more ritualistic, he decided.
He'd decided right, because Sakura gleamed, motioning to Hana.
"Here… gimme yours~." She beckoned. "And you take mine~."
"Why?" Hana asked inoffensively.
Sakura squirmed in delight. "We're gonna put them on each other~! I once saw some other girls do it with their bracelets, and I thought it was just the bee's knees~!"
"Umph~!" Hana could get behind that, and she handed her anklet to the other girl. "Okay!"
"Now—on the spare chair." Sakura pointed at the empty seat, the one on her left. "Put your foot here, where I can reach."
Hana did so, hiking her right leg up, planting her bare foot, Achilles down, where instructed.
"…?" Naoto (he was still there) hazarded a glance under the table, finding that Hana had slipped off her Birkenstock sandals.
They had been walking a lot… probably wanted to be more comfortable…
Just when he caught himself, primed to be accused of "lookin'", he found that Sakura didn't give a darn about it.
"Ooh, me too! Me too!" she chirruped.
She pried off one of her Toms, and her left leg joined Hana's, crossing over Hana's calf, her little boater-sock slightly askew.
At least they hadn't put their feet up on the table…
Naoto wouldn't put such a thing past either girl. "…!"
"Now, Hana-chan, you know how to do a square-knot?"
"I do."
"Then let's tie away~!"
"Yes~!"
"Not too tight… You wanna be able to get a finger or two underneath."
"Understood."
Orientating the anklets to be read right-side-up, each girl set about tying the hemp treasure around the other's lower-leg.
"I thought about using clasps on the ends, Hana-chan," Sakura commented. "But it's just easier to tie them like this. And you can adjust the length any way you want that way~!"
"There's nothing wrong with simplicity," Hana permitted.
With that, they were done, each Flower Girl admiring what she had around her shapely shank.
Hana, happily rotating her foot, checking out the gift from multiple angles, burbled, "Oh, thank you, Sakura-senpai! I love it!"
"I'm glad you do~!" Sakura waggled her own foot in retort. "It was so fun to make these~!"
…
And Naoto (having never left the building~) was stunned at what he was seeing, and not because the girls—particularly Hana—were twittering like a couple of birds.
Something was missing…
What he'd seen…
This had all the hallmarks of a Sakura sob-fest…! And perhaps Hana would do the same…!
But the girls hadn't fallen into this.
Maybe they were just too happy to cry~…
All the same, he was sure he'd just seen something very special. "…~!"
And at the same time, it was totally surreal…!
…
Back in actuality, Sakura was explaining, "I preshrunk the material, Hana-chan, so it shouldn't shrink much anymore, but it might, if it gets wet and dries in high heat."
"…Like at the beach…?" Hana concluded.
Sakura bonked her forehead. "Ooh…! I wasn't even thinking about that. I meant putting it through the clothes dryer on accident or leaving it in the sun for a long time, but… hmm…"
"…"
"…"
"We be careful…" Hana reasoned, nodding with gravity. "We learn…"
Sakura chipped, "Yeppers~! We can figure out that sorta thing tomorrow~!"
"Maybe best to dry off in the shade…" Hana settled, considering their options.
"That might do it~!" the other affirmed.
…
And Naoto couldn't tell if they were joking around or not.
It could've been called either way…
…
'Wow~!' Naoto's face was strained, his smile was so tremendous, it stretched the limits of what a face might do.
He was as happy as a…
"…!" He was happy~.
Okay~?
He was also missing a lot of things, not that this was unfamiliar.
There were gaps aplenty, within and between, in his recollections of these swell times with the girls…
Naoto really could've been giving better heed to that around him, and he knew it.
Had he had his wits about him, he would've caught wind of what Sakura and Hana were getting up to, and he might've stopped it.
However, he had nothing but blissfulness clouding his perception, so he missed Hana moving to the chair across from him, shuffling it over so that Sakura could drag her chair in beside Hana's.
And had he remembered the Steven Spielberg movie Jaws, he might've appreciated the (probably) unwitting reference the girls made to Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss, playing Quint and Hooper, showing the other the scars gained from messing with various ocean creatures.
The table rattling and shifting under his hands rendered him conscious.
…
Naoto saw, no doubt, what he'd failed in every way possible to discern.
Channeling the shark hunter and the marine biologist, the girls' legs—the ones with the anklets, lay crisscrossed atop the edge of the table…!
'Oh, God bless Texas!' Naoto shat himself, faced with a sole from the foot of each girl, one socked, one bare. "What are you two DOING?!"
And why weren't they doing a better job of protecting their modesty?!
He hadn't made any goal of it, but he was at mortal risk of seeing up their skirts.
Sakura had a response, as could usually be expected~…
"Taking a photograph~…" Slouching heavily in her chair, she had her phone out, and she did so, snapping a pic of hers and Hana's ankles, hiked up on the tabletop. "What's it look like~?"
Hana gave a smirk, descending into the slouchiest slouch she'd ever slouched. "…~"
At least it LOOKED like a smirk…
Naoto sputtered, "You wanna get us thrown outta here?!"
"Hey, no one's lookin'~…" Sakura snickered. "'Cept you~."
"Bwah…!" His peepers scanned the whole of the restaurant.
He saw nobody, and before he was able to raise any further rejection to this mess, Sakura slid her phone to him.
"Now~…" She put her arm over Hana's shoulders, the hand raising a peace-sign on Hana's left. "Get a pic of us~."
"Yes, do." Hana thought the concept a terrific one, and she cozied up to the blonde, same such following suit with her arm and hand. "While no one is looking."
Still searching their surroundings, Naoto expected their server to come over screaming, but his fumbling hands collected the phone, and he righted it.
"Sweet~!" Sakura warbled; she eyed her kohai. "Guns blazin'~?"
Hana nodded. "Guns blazin'."
With their free hands, they made guns of them, brandishing them and making cute at the camera.
'What a world…' Naoto lamented, waiting for the auto-focus to stop trying to home in on the girls' feet.
Still, he got focused on their faces and the proper distance, and—
*snap! snap! snap!*
He captured a few pictures, Sakura grinning like a hyena and Hana coming into court more-or-less as she normally did.
What a world~…
Q&A Section
Today, we have a few questions from jonathan_kentway:
Is Naoto going to interact with Rabi-chan, since in the canon he hasn't had no interaction?
ED: Rabi-chan will be making another appearance soon, and Naoto will definitely interact with her over the sumer.
Will Shikki appear in the fic along with her two lackeys as a cameo...?
ED: If we didn't know about characters in the story at the beginning of the new semester, don't count on seeing canon characters introduced after Hana was introduced.
The fic begins very soon after we meet Hana, though there's a bit of a time skip to the end of the semester, where not much happened in between.
Will be more art in your fic...? It would be interesting if there was a drawing that shows a moment like in the light novels.
ED: I haven't heard from one artist we worked with in a couple months. He did some of the art you see in the chapter covers. My editor hasn't heard from him either. We've seen nothing of him online for two months.
The other artist that has done art for the story is no longer doing commissions, though we will likely see more art from him, just not necessarily related to this story.
I really appreciate all the hard work they put in.
Please look forward to the next chapter! Thanks for reading!
Questions and comments are welcome!