Note:

Flashbacks and thoughts in italics

I do not condone or encourage any behaviors in this story. It is simply a fictional story.

"The Art Of Water"

CHAPTER 10

Bear Hugs and Peach Cheeks

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Mai kicked a stone and lazed about by the side of the empty classroom. The long windows resembled pieces of KitKat, stippled with shadows of leaves. The violet leaves turned greyish in the reflection, casting hues on the walls. It wasn't a flowery month, but new day's joys sprang up here and there in the tired grass. Mai wore a hat on her head, had mud on her boots, and a smile on her face. Momo was the same old girl, except she attended classes with Mai no more. Hints of nostalgia flashed through her mind, but Mai didn't express it. She considered herself a big girl who knew she wasn't saying goodbye to her friends forever.

She gripped the skateboard tighter in her arms. But, God, did she miss them. She missed Miwa, and that was why she was chirpy today. The tires of a bicycle crushed the dew underneath, gliding towards her. Mai snickered. Her blonde friend almost slammed her bike against the walls at a ridiculous angle, clutching her skirt with one hand while the other fumbled to hit the brakes. Mai pinched her cheeks before helping her off her position and laughed away the grumpiness with which she accepted her help. Mai reached into her friend's bike basket to grab those yummy juice boxes.

"Don't eat the box and leave some for Miwa," Momo snorted. It felt like a lot of time had passed. She looked down, unsure if they would ever hang out like old times again. Time flew fast, and it hurt to think of growing out of love with little joys like these. Momo knew she wouldn't be able to do it, even if all her friends did. They had not video-called Miwa, but they kept in contact as much as they could over the past six months.

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Miwa arrived in a sleek car while they were examining the corrected papers of the Periodical examinations at Kyoto Jujutsu High. Mai gasped, her feet bouncing while the other gaped at her appearance. The cloth skirted her, beautiful folds blooming at her feet like the bottoms of cypress trees in Texas. Momo would say she looked "dignified," even if that would be the wrong word to describe the intensity of her change. Kasumi held her breath and couldn't keep her gaze from flittering around like any anxious teen. Momo then understood it was the same Miwa but in a different costume. She had changed a lot. Sure. But she was still her dear old friend. Momo abandoned her bike and dashed to Miwa, jumping to hold her in a bear hug. "Missed you so much, you idiot!"

Miwa laughed when Mai brought her arms around the two of them, ruffling their hair and flicking their heads. Despite being the youngest, Mai was surprisingly more mature than them, but that doesn't give her the right to do what she just did. The short girls whipped their heads, throwing her a glare and pinching her cheeks until they turned peach.

Momo trudged to the hard lumpy ground beside the grill fencing and bent down to tie her loose shoelaces properly with her chubby fingers. Her irises grew wider because it was the charred spot under the sun's wrath. Her skirt was the same blue as the stripes and stars on her socks. There was never a day she missed wearing these matching things. Miwa's eyes softened at this comforting familiarity. Even after spending months in her new home, she felt more at home with her friends than where she was now. Yakushima was her new home, and she had to accept it. It was understandable, though. Mai teased her for her traditional appearance, and she jutted her chin, irritated. "Even if it's annoying, I look good! You know how long it took for me to get into this!"

The brunette stopped poking fun at her, but not before making a sarcastic face. All day long, they hung out in the neighbourhood they knew inside out, with its grocery stores and bakeries, their mouths stuffed with melting popsicles. Miwa sat on the back of Momo's bicycle as they talked and babbled about everything they didn't during these past months, all the trivial things, even how distasteful the exam had been for Mai. They asked her how Yakushima felt, and Miwa promised to invite them one of these days! And not just the girls, but everyone. Kokichi. Kamo. Todo. Everyone!

New first years have joined this year. Hopefully, their senpai, who has finished training now, will get to join them on missions, although only occasionally, as they are now professionals who don't necessarily have to help out on the premises of Jujutsu schools. As for Miwa, she will be transferred to the third year because of the days spent in the Ashiya clan under their wing. When Mai jokes about how Miwa is now trapped forever inside a Clan, Momo doesn't like it. She elbows her, and the proceeding "it's not funny" is left unspoken.

The hot day cools in the evening, and her friends say goodbye before leaving home. The Ashiya clan has set up a strict "no entry" policy for strangers or outsiders on the island. People who come without prior permission could enter without injuries, but the Clan decides whether to send them back or beat them up and lock them in a room without food and water for days. However, there's no need to worry because they would not starve to death and would probably be sent back after being bathed and fed if the Clan decides they have been cleansed of their sins. Only in the worst cases will the Clan resort to scheming on how to kill most painfully and entertainingly. If Miwa did not know before, she knows now that clans are crazy, and clan bullshit is serious shit. It has only been six months, and Miwa's eyes and ears are still new to the inner workings of the Ashiya clan, with all sorts of things happening inside that she is either aware of or unaware of.

Thinking of Kokichi, Miwa realizes that she's yet to call and meet up with him, maybe have dinner and stay the night in their dorms, playing card games with him. She immediately shakes her head, snapping herself out of that thought, and slaps her blush-streaked cheeks. As Miwa walks down the lane, a car swishes past her. She watches as it slows down and comes to a halt on the side. She treaded forward to find the windows lowering, and her curious gaze couldn't help but follow the movement.

Author's Note:

I just wrote it, so tell me if you see any mistakes.