🌸Cherry Blossom Palette🎨
🌸Chapter 27: Mawk Three🎨
Written by EmtenDew
Edited by P. serrulata
Author's note:
ED: You're in for a little bit of sentimental junk. Naoto needs to complete his cathartic exercise. I wonder how many people will get the meaning of the chapter title. PS needed to explain it to me like I was a child, and it wasn't that he was talking down to me.
Ask us anything, and we'll add a Q&A section in the next chapter. I would be happy if you ask questions.
Please enjoy what I wrote.
Monday, July 8, 2018
Naoto Hachioji had decided to sit with his good pals, Shuu Aisho and Tohru Hijikata, for lunch.
He hadn't been ignoring his buddies, but he'd not seen much of them either, so it was good to hang out with them. Spending some time with Sakura Inori and Hana Sunomiya was only a small step short of magical, but the girls had each other that day, and when he'd mentioned the idea of seeing his boys, they'd kindly shooed him away.
Naoto suspected "girl talk" was about to happen, whatever the Hell it consisted of. He was curious about what the girls got up to when he wasn't around, but he was probably better off not knowing.
That day… he felt okay. The negative parts of the weekend seemed largely like a distant memory, and after his "self-medicating" session the night before, he'd slept like Jenny did in Forrest Gump, dreaming of nothing but clean air, clean water, sunshine, butterfly farts, and the hills being alive with the sound of music.
Yeah…! He felt Hella okay that day.
At the present time, as was not unheard of, Shuu and Tohru were harping on about something.
Tohru stared flatly at Shuu. "You keep going on and on about Inori, dickweed… Y'know, she joined the Videogame Club last fall. You could've joined and cozied up, and you wouldn't be fiending like this."
"What are you talking about, you midget?!" Shuu shot back at the boy of 160 cm. "And I'm not 'fiending'. I haven't said a thing about Sakura since… last week."
"It's only Monday, I guess." Tohru held the tiniest smirk. "Maybe the echo of it is still resounding around the cafeteria."
Shuu burst out, "But since you brought it up, short-stack, and to answer your question, I didn't join the Videogame Club for the same reason you didn't join it. And it's still the same reason we didn't join up when we first came here. Those guys are a buncha weirdos."
"Who are you to call anyone a wierdo?" Tohru actually "fully" smirked, unusual for him.
"I'm not a weirdo… at least not that bad," Shuu reasoned. "And neither are you. You know that."
"Well, neither of us joined any club, and it's kinda late for that anyway," Tohru said.
Shuu eyed Naoto. "But look at Nao-kun, here."
Naoto grimaced, knowing Shuu was (very likely) about to say something both unnecessary and foolish. "What about 'Nao-kun'?"
"You somehow got Sakura to hang out with you, and you're worse with girls than either of us!" Half-joking about both of these concepts, Shuu pointed at himself and Tohru.
"Go pay a feedee to sit on your face, Shuu," Tohru thundered. "You've got no idea what you're talking about."
Shuu ignored the small fellow, more concerned with Naoto than the insinuation that he was a few steps beyond mere chubby-chasing. "And you've got your old president's little cousin in your club too."
"Sakura-san isn't a member of the Art Club, Shuu, if that's what you're getting at," Naoto clarified. "Sunomiya's the only other member. And we're not just 'hanging out'. We're studying for finals. Have been since last week."
"I thought Sakura had joined the Art Club," Tohru put in. "I know a lot of stupid stuff's still been going around about her the last couple weeks, but I thought that was true."
"It's not true," Naoto said, poking at his bento, hoping to find one last morsel of last night's pork cutlets. "I can't believe this crap… That rumor only started over the weekend, and it's gotten this far?!"
Shuu interjected, "But it is true that Sakura and that Sunomiya chick became friends all of a sudden, right?"
"Don't call Sunomiya a 'chick', Shuu." Naoto didn't like that. "But yes, they seem to be getting along really well. They've been having a lot of fun together."
Tohru shook his head. "Women are strange, man… They say opposites attract, but…"
They're not all that unalike… Naoto wanted to say, but he'd rather they move on to something else.
Final exams were beginning one week from that day!
Was that something worth talking about?
…!
Probably not…
And there wasn't much else immediately worth talking about either, at least as far as Shuu and Tohru were invested!
The school's rumor-mill, always grinding out some dreck, had somehow, over the weekend, caught wind that not only had Sakura been getting friendly with the Prez's "equally weird cousin", but she was hanging around the Art Club and studying with the Sunomiya girl for final exams.
Why an "in-crowd" second-year gal was booking with the oddball first-year girl beggared the imaginations of the multitude, and some unpleasant explanations were moving about. Naoto didn't even care to think about them, but the gist was that Sakura was messing with Hana.
This was not at all the truth. Sakura had asked him for help and Hana had followed up with the same request. Nor was Sakura trying to harm Hana in any way.
Naoto dearly hoped a bunch of assholes wouldn't show up at the Art Club that day to check out the gossip's accuracy.
Shoot, for all he knew, the girls were "on exhibit" that very moment, being harassed by a bunch of lowlifes invading the clubroom.
But he quickly cast that fiction aside, knowing that Sakura wouldn't tolerate that happening to Hana, or at least knowing that the gal would (possibly but hopefully not) locate and cry out to him, bleating like a lamb for his assistance.
Regardless, giving fantasy its day, how messed up would that be?
Naoto envisioned a distraught Sakura stumbling into the cafeteria—tailed by a calm and collected Hana—and in full view of all present, draping herself over him, an angry mob with torches and pitchforks breathing down her neck. Then it'd be him that got crucified on the steps of the school, with his being the ringleader and all.
Ludicrous, though the foolish narrative seemingly had no foundation to even start with. Plus, life wasn't an anime. It's not like the Journalism Club or some other meddlesome herpes-scabs were camping out, waiting to catch a glimpse of the S. inori and H. sunomiya in their unnatural habitat.
Additionally, and oddly enough, Naoto again found himself outside of the dumb rumors pervading the halls. Apparently, Sakura and Hana were "mentoring themselves". He was the Art Club president, guiding the two girls along, and it was like he didn't exist.
He knew the same mixed emotions of not being recognized for this phenomenon as he'd gone through when nobody knew it was him who'd dragged Sakura away to the "shame corner".
Still, being realistic, it was best that he remained anonymous… in both things. Continuing in the vein of reality, he was also quite glad that the people in the know weren't correcting any of the misconceptions.
Since they weren't in an anime, he wouldn't be crucified, at least not literally, if he was found out, but there'd still be Hell to pay.
Yep… Naoto didn't exist, and even if he did, he certainly wasn't lording over a powerful gyaru and/or the strangest girl (the strangest that wasn't otherwise mentally defective, like some people~) in school.
At any other time in the brief past the two lasses had shared, Naoto might've worried about Sakura and Hana hearing the malarkey spoken of them, but he'd come to know better.
The two girls were friends. They were good friends. They were an odd couple, absolutely, but as Tohru had just said, "opposites attract."
They certainly could!
Naoto didn't want to say that the girls had needed each other, but they probably had. They'd needed a friend each could be herself around, and thankfully, they'd by hook or by crook clicked and meshed and interlocked like the well-oiled, good, old-fashioned Japanese engineering in a 1980's Mazda pickup truck (best compact pickup truck ever built! -PS).
He felt kind of sappy for his notion, but the two girls seemed to share one of those pure and innocent, loving friendships one only did see in equally sappy anime and manga. In this case, it just happened to be real, or at least as close to the real thing as he'd ever observed.
So, yes, it pissed him off quite a bit that people were at all choosing to appreciate the girls' relationship as anything twisted, and it also bugged him that Shuu would insinuate—even in jest—that he, Naoto, would be doing anything untoward to have brought them to him or to keep them close.
It reminded him fleetingly of Nagatoro mocking him for "trying to date two girls", or whatever the blue, flyin' fuck she'd said during one of her sadistic forays on Saturday, and it stung.
…
Meh… Naoto had fallen away from certainty again, and he directed his consciousness back towards awareness, having made it a goal to wander less mentally.
Not all that astounding, Shuu and Tohru had ably been able to keep each other company without him, but that was nothing new.
"What's Sakura look like in a yukata~?" Shuu ruminated, mostly to himself. "Man, I wonder!"
Tohru had no negative response for that. "I… wouldn't mind seeing that myself. There are others I'd rather see first, but that sounds pretty awesome."
"Doesn't it~?!" Shuu oscillated.
Naoto shook his head, mildly amused. If you two play your cards right, you'll probably get to see all the girls I know… and not just dolled up for the festivals.
The summer festivals were coming up. And as with the beach, Naoto planned to drag both of his dudes along on these outings.
He'd get to see all the girls in their swimsuits! Yet again!
The beach…! Summer festivals…!
Maybe Nagatoro's siblings will be busy all those days… Naoto entreated Heaven, a Lilliputian queasiness tickling the walls of his tender tummy.
Pushing all that to the back-burner, Naoto gave the future situation no more significant thought. He'd resolved to keep his eye on the prize.
As is well known at this point in the story, final exams began a week from that day. The young artist had two friends, his valued kohai, under his wing for a little while longer, and with a good night's sleep behind him, he felt even better about life as a whole than he had on the eve of that day, and he'd felt pretty friggin' good as he'd dozed off~.
…
…
…
Naoto, Sakura, and Hana wound up calling it a day at 5:00 p.m. that afternoon. Having worked through the "lesson plan" the two older students had thrown together at the noodles shop and tackling the questions brought to the table, each of them figured they'd be able to use the extra time to go home and relax or study and do workbooks independently.
The three of them locked the Art Club's door, changed into the street shoes, and FO'd for the day. None of them were burned out, but they were a little stir-crazy, so leaving early was appealing to begin with.
Sharing the first leg of their respective routes home, they pleasantly ambled along, chatting.
While Naoto would've been content in basking in the knowledge that their studying was going well, Sakura had more interesting designs.
"Senpai-kun, did you hear that I joined the Art Club~?" the gal chirped.
Naoto sighed, "Yes, I've heard that one and a bunch just like it, Sakura-san."
He was grateful the stupid rumors were the only thing hounding them; no one had intruded upon the art room or bothered its "residents" the entire day.
Shortly bored with his lack of desire to play, Sakura tried Hana. "Hana-chan, what do you think of that?"
Quite serious, Hana replied, "I'd love it if you'd join the Art Club, Sakura-senpai. But you're already in the Videogame Club, and if you're not that interested in art, there's no real reason to join."
Naoto noticed Sakura deflating, a comically stricken expression falling across her face. Hana's line had been pretty harsh at par value, but it was just her applying logic to something kind of foolish.
But Hana wasn't totally clueless, and she saw Sakura's air escaping.
"Please don't misunderstand, Sakura-senpai," the younger girl said. "I just don't think anyone should take something they don't want or need. If I don't want or need tissues, I'll pass right by anybody handing them out. There are always others that could use them."
The reasoning didn't make the most sense to Naoto, but he saw Hana's point.
Still, he wouldn't mind more interested members in the club… even for lip service. There weren't any other people apparently in need of his club.
Hana finished with, "We're having fun anyway, Sakura-senpai. You don't need to join to spend time there. We really love having you. Isn't that right, Hachioji-senpai?"
Derp! Naoto saw that Hana had turned his way, but she held no ill intent of any sort.
It wasn't like she needed to ask him though; he said to Sakura, "Of course!"
Sakura gave a melancholy little smile. "Thanks… I'm glad… though I didn't ever think otherwise~."
Naoto regarded the gal.
Really… what does she think about some of those other rumors? I know I said I wasn't worried, but…
It was clumsy, sure, but he had something he wanted to say.
"I wish people would just keep their mouths shut about things they don't understand," he stated, breaking out into the subject. "I can't stand some of the stuff I've heard today."
In unison, both girls apparently got wind of his meaning; he could see it in their faces.
Naoto wasn't too surprised that Sakura had gotten it, but he was slightly surprised that Hana got it.
"Thank you, Hachioji-senpai," Hana spoke, breaking the short but awkward silence. "It does hurt, hearing some of the things people are saying."
Sakura said nothing, appearing mildly upset. "…"
Hana took the gal's hand. "It's okay, Sakura-senpai."
Sakura nodded, squeezing Hana's hand in response. "I know, Hana-chan…"
As Naoto watched the girls let go of the other's hand, he felt all the more he was seeing a beautiful thing between his two kohai.
Sometimes, one never knows where a good friend might turn up.
For the third or fourth time since he'd found himself hunched up Saturday night, crying in the shower, cursing his own useless prick and his cowardice, etc., etc., he felt his eyes heat up again.
Oh, cut it out, Naoto! He tried to think of anything else.
And it wasn't brooding over Nagatoro or what a loser he often thought he was that had almost got him going. It was that heavy feeling he'd taken to the night before, thinking about all the good things he had going for him, Sakura having woken him up a little.
He'd been having all sorts of bitter-sweet thoughts that day, and if he was caught off-guard with one, he might actually start blubbing.
He was a big bowl of mush!
On the contrary, he was really happy that he was able to feel this way.
So many blessings…
Not long after, Naoto spotted the intersection where they'd normally separate. He'd go southwest, and the girls would go northwest, towards the coast.
He had a little extra money in his pocket, having expected to pick up lunch for himself, parting with the girls after their Sunday study-session. Sakura had instead insisted on feeding him, so…
"Girls, let's get some ice cream," he proclaimed, the shop coming into view. "My treat today!"
They had been spending too much money on junk food and had all been eating too many sweets, but—
"Why not?" Sakura beamed.
"Hmph!" Hana enthused, also pleased at the prospect.
There was nothing wrong with a little morale booster, and they'd completely forgotten to assign one of them to Monday "snack duty".
…
…
…
The ice cream shop had a new flavor that week, "Juicy Orange Sorbet".
Something about it really struck a chord with Naoto, so he ordered a small dish of it for himself. Sakura and Hana got the same flavor.
It put Naoto out about ¥1,300, but his friends were worth a lot more than that to him.
The sorbet easily lived up to its name.
Juicy, refreshing, citrusy, sweet, tart, and freezing cold, it was the best thing Naoto had tasted in a long time.
What a fine, July afternoon this was!
It wasn't overly hot, there was enough cloud cover to ease the eyes, and a nice breeze brought the salty smell of the sea over the Miura Peninsula.
The three teenagers sat in a place that had come to mean a little something to all of them, the kids' park across the street from the ice cream shop.
A few young families were using the favored swing-set, so Naoto, Sakura, and Hana sat in the shade on a bench.
"Oh, this stuff is the bomb~!" Sakura gushed, slurping up the portion of sorbet that had melted in her cup.
Hana shuddered, having given herself a sub-lethal brain-freeze. "So cold…"
The older girl was sympathetic but couldn't help cackling. "You gotta be careful with this stuff, Hana-chan~. They keep it colder than dairy-based soft-serve because it just goes to water if they don't."
"Rrrrrrrr…" Hana resounded, pressing her tongue desperately against the roof of her mouth, shaking like a leaf.
"You can't eat the stuff so fast, Hana-chan!" Sakura covered her mouth, quaking with mirth. "You silly~!"
"Be quiet, Sakura-senpai…!" the other blithered in protest, barely able to speak.
Sakura couldn't hold it back anymore, and she guffawed, laughing so hard that tears came.
Hana, for her part, glowered at her senpai, bucking her legs in her substantial discomfort.
But the gal—roaring by now—proceeded to put an arm over Hana's shoulder, pulling her close in an affectionate hug, drawing a little snort and an infinitesimal, reluctant smirk out of her writhing kohai.
Naoto tried hard not to laugh himself, taking in the girls' banter. He'd already made it through his dish, ordering a small size, while the girls each got a jumbo size.
The girls, having tried a tiny sample of the sorbet, had leapt at his offer to get them each the largest size available.
Oh, he just loved the Hell out of seeing Sakura and Hana enjoy themselves so much!
Damn, was he happy to be there!
Once Sakura had finished guiding Hana towards a world without brain-freezes, she turned to Naoto. "Oh, Senpai-kun, did Hana-chan tell you about her grandparents' party yesterday?"
Naoto immediately came to attention. "No."
Sakura prodded Hana. "You didn't show him?"
Hana was taking a more leisurely pace with her tub of frozen treat. "We were busy earlier, and I wanted to wait until we could sit for a while. I was planning to show Hachioji-senpai a few minutes ago, but…"
"But Hana-chan froze her brains~!" Sakura chuckled.
"Yes," Hana responded curtly; she turned to Naoto. "Hachioji-senpai, would you like to see the pictures we took yesterday?"
Would he?! Her grandparents' 50th wedding anniversary?!
He attempted to play it cool. "I'd like that, Sunomiya."
Sakura was sitting in between Naoto and Hana, and she stood up, pushing her senpai towards their kohai. "Here, Senpai-kun, you take the middle~."
Naoto chuckled as the gal pressed him into Hana. "Hey, take it easy, Sakura-san."
"You're gonna love this~," Sakura promised.
He was sure he would.
Hana had pulled out her phone and was navigating. "Sakura-senpai and I went through this over lunch."
Beginning to scroll through the images, she held up the phone in front of Naoto, bidding he take it. "I think you know the Sunomiya family takes care of the shrine."
"Yes, your cousin told me," Naoto replied, the phone before his face.
"Grandfather has been maintaining it since he was just a little older than you, Hachioji-senpai."
Naoto had been through the shrine's grounds a couple of times, and he even recognized a few things as he began to scroll.
Sakura bubbled on the other side of him, "Ooh, wait until you see the next bunch of pics!"
It was something to see.
"Those are my grandparents, Hachioji-senpai~." Hana's voice held a warmth Naoto had rarely—if ever—heard.
An elderly man, still ruddy and full of cheer, stood beside an elderly woman, sharing his smile, both of them in kimono. Despite their lively countenances, one word came to mind: "dignified".
"Oh." Naoto was reminded of his own grandparents… if they were a little more dignified… and the kimono…!
"Hana-chan, Hana-chan!" Sakura rocked on Naoto's other side. "Tell him about the picture~!"
The very slightest red creeping into her face, Hana yielded, "These kimono… they wore these exact same ones on the day they were married."
"What else, what else~?!" Sakura badgered.
"Do you want to tell him, Sakura-senpai, or can I tell him?" Hana leered.
Sakura gave a low squeal, "Fine, just please go on! I wanna hear this again~!"
Naoto wasn't sure why the gal was getting so worked up. Sure, this is nice, but—
"Hachioji-senpai…" Hana cooed.
He'd… never heard Hana coo.
"Yes, Sunomiya?"
Hana radiated, "That willow tree behind them… Grandfather proposed to Grandmother under that very tree on New Year's Day in 1968~."
…!
Okay… now Naoto knew what Sakura was getting all starry-eyed over.
Hana continued, urging he continue scrolling.
She said, "Yesterday was so lovely… Half of our family showed up. One of my uncles and his wife flew in all the way from Sapporo. I was hoping to see more of my cousins, but it's still the schoolyear for most of the children in the family. Sana-neechan couldn't make it, but we're all going out to Tokyo in a couple of weeks to see her."
Moving along with the pictures, Naoto felt… honored. He was flattered and honored that his kohai was sharing this with him!
Hana nearly giggled, "My mother and Sana-neechan's mother were arguing whether to have a more formal or a more informal meal, but my aunt won, and we had a barbeque. My father and uncle—Sana-neechan's father—were up before dawn getting all the meat started."
Yeah, so now Naoto was starting to feel this. He saw Sakura squeeing, the gal peeking across him.
Uh-oh… if I'm not careful…
"We all took this next picture too," Hana said, instructing Naoto keep scrolling. "The willow tree is also where their wedding photos were taken. We took the one I already showed you early in the afternoon, but we waited for the whole family to arrive for this one."
And Naoto saw it:
In the photo, underneath that impressive willow, Hana's grandparents were surrounded by no less than 50 members of their family… four generations.
Hana waxed, "After we'd eaten, we all walked out to the willow tree and took this picture."
Naoto swallowed hard, oblivious of the fact his eyes were beginning to reheat; he chortled, impressed, "W-wow…!"
Far from shocking, Sakura was grinning, barely able to contain herself. "…~!"
Oh, great… What now? Naoto worried.
The blonde couldn't keep her mouth shut, "Hana-chan, please show him the video you showed me~!"
"I was going to." Hana blinked, not entirely unannoyed by the older girl. "It's for him as much as it is for you."
For him?
Hana took the phone back.
While Sakura swayed with anticipation, Naoto knew something big was coming.
After finding the video, Hana handed him the phone again. "I gave my grandparents yours and Sakura-senpai's regards yesterday… and they wanted you both to see this. It's not long."
…
On the screen appeared the blessed couple.
Grandfather and Grandmother both bowed.
Taking his wife's hand, Hana's grandfather said, "Mr. Hachioji… Miss Inori… we wish to thank you for your kind words on this special day. They were most welcome."
"Miss Inori," his wife smiled, holding back a chuckle. "You sound like an interesting girl. Hana seems to have taken a real shine to you, so please continue watching over her. We wish both you and Mr. Hachioji the very best in your exams next week."
"Mr. Hachioji," the elderly man expressed. "Hana tells us you're planning to follow a path similar to our granddaughter Sana's. We wish you good fortune in your entrance exams and the rest of your time as a high school student. Treasure these days; they are a blessing."
Hana's grandmother expressed with a bow, "And thank you both for taking such good care of our granddaughter. It seems she's found some wonderful friends since starting high school."
"We're rooting for you." Her husband bowed once more. "Thank you both again for your thoughtfulness. Be well."
…
"…!" Naoto could scarcely believe what he'd just seen and heard.
All he'd said to Hana was, "Do give them my best."
He'd been a physical wreck when he'd made the request. He meant it, absolutely, but he'd felt pretty low.
And in return, they'd given him that.
That did it. There was no holding back after that, his emotions so near the surface in the last day.
Naoto choked up, becoming a sniffling mess.
Funny thing, he didn't care very much… not in front of the girls. It was very cathartic, and his worries became a little lighter yet. On the side, he was pleased to not be wearing his glasses; they'd be spotted with saltwater of his own making.
Sakura rubbed his shoulder. "Senpai-kun?"
"I'm okay," he said wetly, glancing her way.
She smiled, a little misty, her eyeliner beginning to run, "I know you are~. It got me too. Had to reapply my face over lunch."
Taking in a deep snuffle, Naoto turned to Hana. "Thank you, Sunomiya."
Hana, her aspect hard to read, appeared slightly surprised at his waterworks, but she patted his arm and gave a tiny smile. "You're welcome, Hachioji-senpai. I'd hoped you would like that."
Maybe "like" wasn't the right word…
Naoto remembered something he'd heard fairly recently, and he knew it verbatim. Sitting between the girls, he recited it.
"You know how sometimes you just need to cry?" he asked. "It's just gonna happen, and there's nothing you can do to stop it? It's coming out at some point, no matter what you do?"
Sakura leaned on him. "I think we all know what that's like… Don't we… Hana-chan?"
Hana met Sakura's gaze behind Naoto's head; she turned down, looking to her own lap. "…Yes… I know it too."
Naoto leaned back. "I wish I could say those were my words… They're not."
Sakura opined, "Yeah, that didn't sound very 'Senpai-kun-ish'~."
"Maybe he saw it on TV," Hana guessed, pulling a giggle out of Sakura.
Naoto sputtered laughter at the girls' lines. Oh, these two!
He wished he hadn't broken down like that, though the world seemed a little saner… and made a little more sense.
"Ah, I'm sorry, girls…" He wasn't exceedingly ashamed, but he hadn't meant to bring things down. "Here, you're just trying to enjoy yourselves, and I…"
"It's all good, Senpai-kun~…" Sakura soothed.
"I'm glad you're feeling better, Hachioji-senpai," Hana said.
Naoto blew out a breath, "I am, Sunomiya… thank you."
"That's our senpai~!" Sakura jostled them both.
This particular senpai pulled out a pack of tissues, took a few, handed the rest to Sakura (Hana wasn't in need), and wiped his eyes.
He blew his nose, standing up. "I need to go clean my face. You two finish your sorbet before it's melted to nothing."
"What about my face~?" Sakura ribbed.
"You look fine, Sakura-san, but no one's stopping you," Naoto called back, already moving.
"While you're out, bring me back a straw, would you~?!" she joked.
Hana had a genuine request. "Please bring me a new spoon. Really, I dropped mine in the dirt when Sakura-senpai jostled us…"
…
Returning with a fresh spoon for Hana and a straw for Sakura (just in case), Naoto came upon a rather charming sight.
"Is that high enough, Sakura-senpai?" Hana asked.
"That's great, Hana-chan, right there…" the gal answered. "Thank you~."
Hana was holding up Sakura's pocket mirror while the older girl cleaned up her face with the trusty makeup removal wipes that she always seemed to have so many of. Her makeup had started to bleed. She'd also finished her sorbet.
Naoto just watched a moment.
Hana noticed him first. "Ah, he's back."
Sakura rotated her eyes towards him. "That was quick."
Naoto sat back down, handing Hana the spoon. "Here you go."
"Thank you." She took it.
Sakura opened up yet another wipe.
Her face was still quite a mess, her warpaint in complete disarray…
"Why didn't you just visit the public restroom to clean up, Sakura-senpai?" Hana pondered, repositioning the mirror.
"I'm just cleaning up." Sakura waved it off. "If I was gonna reapply my makeup, I would."
"You're not going to put on fresh?" Hana was perplexed.
Mopping under her eyes, Sakura giggled, "Again? It's gonna be 6:00 p.m. soon. Why bother?"
"Could you help me with my makeup again sometime this week? Maybe over the weekend?" Hana put forth.
"You know you can practice on your own," Sakura reckoned. "That's why I gave you some beginner stuff to try."
"I… don't want to waste it," Hana admitted.
"It's practice, Hana-chan," Sakura laughed, not unkindly. "The stuff's meant to be used. You don't get it right away, but with your steady hands, it'll come."
"Mm…" the other mumbled, strangely uncertain.
Sakura sighed, "If you want to, sure, we can practice later this week… if Senpai-kun gives us a little downtime~."
The girls' senpai shook his head, defending himself. "We take plenty of breaks…"
Hana proposed, "Sakura-san, how about this weekend?"
"I'm sure we can do that." Sakura finished with her face, balling up the last of the wipes.
Naoto—as with so many things—would never say so, but the two girls looked so different side-by-side, especially without Sakura being dolled up.
Hana sans cosmetics was reminiscent of a Greek goddess, and Sakura… looked better than she had the fall prior, but she still looked like she'd been baking under a UV lamp more than was strictly healthy.
The gal inquired, "Senpai-kun, have you chosen any colleges to apply to?"
He jarred slightly, coming out of his rude inner-commentary. "I've thought about it… but not much."
"What do you wanna do after art school, Senpai-kun?" she pressed. "What are you hoping to be when you finally finish growing up~?"
"Uh…" he ho-hummed.
"I'll bet he wants to be an art teacher, eh, Hana-chan~?" Sakura elbowed her kohai.
"I think he could do it," Hana said at once.
Zoop! Naoto mentally tottered.
Him? A teacher?!
"Him, a teacher?!" Sakura essentially echoed the young man's thinking.
Hana seemed far surer of it than either of them. "Yes. In middle school, he taught me almost all I know."
Naoto would never dream of claiming that. "I dunno about that… your cousin—"
"She taught me very little I couldn't figure out on my own," Hana disclosed. "She feels art, but she can barely explain it. Her technique is excellent, but she fails to communicate effectively."
You're going too far, Sunomiya… Naoto felt he'd learned quite a lot from the Prez.
Even Sakura went to plate for the Prez. "Hana-chan, Senpai-kun owes a lot to your neechan."
Hana was adamant. "But she didn't teach me, Sakura-senpai, Hachioji-senpai did."
Naoto was floored. "Sunomiya…"
She looked him in the face. "Hachioji-senpai, I think I want to be an art teacher one day. That's my goal."
"…"
"…"
"Huh…" Naoto wasn't scorning her; he just wasn't sure what to say.
Hana… teaching art…?
It didn't seem impossible, but… wow…
Sakura seemed far more interested in the younger girl's statement, "You really wanna teach art, Hana-chan~?"
Hana nodded.
"I think that's neat~!" the gal sang.
"Do you know what you want to do after high school, Sakura-senpai?" Hana propositioned.
"Oh, Heavens, no!" Sakura groaned. "I don't even know what color I wanna paint my nails tonight!"
"When we do my makeup, can we do my nails too?" Hana asked.
"I guess," Sakura decided. "A manicure doesn't take that much time~."
Naoto smiled, chuckling.
There they go again… I'm just an old senpai playing third wheel…
He knew this wasn't true; he was just having a little degradating fun at his own expense.
But with the girls wrapped up, he gave a moment of thought to his own future.
What do I wanna do?
Naoto supposed teaching art was a realistic goal.
The issue was that there were plenty of people studying art to teach it, and there were only so many positions available.
Only so many people could be art teachers.
But truly, what else could he do with an art education? Curate? Be a critic or a writer? Be a mangaka?! These were far harder to break into than teaching… more competitive… even fewer positions…
The Prez, he could not picture teaching art. Demonstration was one thing, but communicating effectively—as Hana had stated—at least as far as instruction went, might've been out of her cousin's reach.
Naoto assumed the Prez might easily fall into curation or critiquing, but knowing her, she could probably be a professional artist. She was highly talented, she already had something of a following, and her larger-than-life personality wouldn't hurt her chances either.
Sana Sunomiya… professional artist!
Naoto Hachioji… (blank)!
Indeed, he needed to think about what he wanted to do. A college education of any kind could help land him a job, and it wouldn't be a bad job, in that he could make a living at it.
But did he want to be…
Naoto Hachioji… salaryman?!
Nope.
He wanted to be…
Naoto Hachioji… (blank) art(ist) (blank)!
He would have to make some decisions soon. Maybe he needed to do that before he started applying seriously to schools.
…
Outside of Naoto's little world, Hana said something to her lady senpai he didn't quite make out, and he "came to".
"I dunno if I'd even go to a community college around here, Hana-chan…" Sakura didn't seem too keen on college. "But there's definitely no way I could go to a university…"
"Don't say that," Hana admonished. "You can raise your grades and study like anyone else."
"It's not grades," Sakura clarified. "I just don't wanna spend that much more time in school. I think I just need to find something I enjoy and go to vocational school or get on-the-job training."
Naoto rolled that around in his head.
He had thought about vocational school. It would be simpler, briefer, pretty much lead to a career path with a transferable skillset… The problem was that he didn't really have anything he wanted to do besides art…
Bweh… Naoto pushed this thinking aside too.
He'd have plenty of time to contemplate his future—a whole summer of it—so as with some other things, it could wait.
The future could wait.
Nagatoro could wait… at least what he'd do regarding his own feelings and wishes. She was her own person, and he hoped she was working hard and getting good and ready for finals just as he was.
He'd seen her only once that day, in passing.
She'd smiled at him warmly, waving, and he'd done the same, from the heart. He still had a bit of a sour feeling, deep inside, left over from the weekend, and he'd practically tasted it coming up upon seeing her.
Hana's devotion, Sakura's advice, and his own relatively levelheaded thinking had saved him, but it wasn't in him to purge all of his negativity over what Nagatoro had put him through.
But this was bothering him minimally, and the cry he'd just had, so susceptible to what Hana had shown, had pushed most of the other unwanted crap out of his mind anyway.
If he saw Nagatoro the next day, he'd try to talk to her, even if it was just to say "hello".
He didn't need to stop being her friend until the end of the term. He just needed to stop torturing himself over her.
She was his friend, and he loved her.
…
…
…
Once Hana had finally finished her great vessel of orangish goodness, her empty dish joined the other two, and Naoto pitched them in the trash.
After 6:00 p.m., it was high time each of them headed home, not that they'd be late; they'd planned on finishing up studying at this hour anyway.
As they began the last legs of their journeys home, they considered what was waiting on the dinner table.
"Mom says she's making pork cabbage-rolls~," Sakura thrilled. "One of my all-time comfort foods!"
Hana wasn't displeased with her own situation. "We have leftovers for days at my place. Father and Uncle made far too much food, but I won't complain about barbeque again tonight or in my bento tomorrow."
"Bring in some more smoked chicken wings~!" Sakura begged. "I'll trade you for some cabbage-rolls!"
Naoto was glad for the girls. Him? He was on his own again that night.
Leftover pork cutlets were a favorite of his, but he'd always associated grilled food with his parents being there, eating alongside him. It kind of sucked to eat such a dish by himself.
Still, he looked forward to Wednesday. His parents were home early that night, and he'd offered to cook for them!
This meant missing an afternoon studying with the girls, but they'd all manage to survive.
It wasn't long at all before they reached that little fork in the road, separating Naoto from Sakura and Hana.
"Hachioji-senpai, thank you for working so hard today," Hana said, bowing. "And thank you for the sorbet."
He beamed at her, "Oh, I'm happy to do it, Sunomiya. And thank you. I'll see you tomorrow."
"Yes." She nodded.
Sakura bubbled, "Thank you, Senpai-kun. Today was another good day for us!"
He became aware of a fervor inside, killing the persisting "sour" provoking his viscera. "Yeah~. Thanks, Sakura-san."
Hana turned on her heel and walked northwest.
Naoto faced southwest, but he felt a light tug on his sleeve. Turning, he saw that Sakura had held back a moment.
Her doing this barely even elevated his heartrate at this point; he asked, "What's up?
"We really do have it pretty good, don't we, Senpai-kun~?" Her face shone in the early evening sun.
It knocked Naoto for a loop. "Yeah…"
He must've blushed or something, because she tittered, her own face reddening.
"I'll see you tomorrow~," she susurrated.
All he could get out was, "Yeah… see ya."
The gal turned away, glowing, and sauntered after Hana.
For a moment, Naoto watched her hips swing back and forth, widening the distance between the two of them.
Before any excessively adulterated fancies entered his noggin, he made his own way, losing sight of the girls.
Nevertheless—
…!
O sweet Creation, did he love the way a woman walked! That still got his heart pumping!
One may call Naoto a pig, but he was nothing of the sort.
In his younger days, girls had been gross. It wouldn't be a stretch to say that he'd hated women, the forbidding, perplexing, unattainable creatures they were.
That hadn't stopped him from marveling at the feminine structure!
The way every part of their bodies shifted so pleasingly when they moved! The tapering and flaring and tapering of their legs as those gorgeous appendages turned to ankles to feet! The delicate feathering of the hair at the base of the scalp! The funny little spot—under the arm and behind the breast—where the serratus anterior was exposed! The hourglass shape that existed at the core of every woman! The dimples and curves and nooks and crannies and mounds and crevasses…!
He loved all those things and much, much more!
But any stupid son-of-a-bitch could drool over the female anatomy! Any asshole could choke the chicken, living in some stupid fantasy world where women were object as much as his pocket-pussy or Fleshlight, and worth no more to him than what he habitually and ceaselessly discharged into their greasy, cornstarch-laundered walls!
Naoto wasn't just some stupid son-of-a-bitch, and he wasn't just any asshole!
Yes, he'd largely disliked women in his more foolish days, but he hadn't known many! And he'd never given them a chance.
Meeting and befriending and learning about womenfolk had opened his senses.
He loved women.
Some of his best friends were women!
Like the cap blowing off a shaken bottle of soda, he wanted to cry out in joy!
Life is good! Naoto heard a little voice calling out in the back of his mind.
As he'd reflected on Saturday, eating lunch with Sakura and Hana, he felt again like an old man, thinking that way, but there was no way around it.
Life was good. It was good to be alive.
Please look forward to the next chapter! Thanks for reading!