Well after you've gone home, Junpei discovers that you've left something behind...
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Junpei is deep in thought as he brushes his teeth. His thoughts are consumed by you, of course. How could he think of anything else? Even though it had only been a single glimpse, he'd seen something astonishing tonight. And definitely unexpected. How is he supposed to act around you at school tomorrow? Finishing dinner was nearly impossible with you directly across from him. His eyes kept drifting down to your chest repeatedly.
He spits in the sink and rinses his mouth, shaking his head to hopefully clear his mind of the vision from earlier that once again refreshes itself like a web browser page.
"Stop it!" he scolds himself, embarrassed by his imagination.
He knows that you must go to great lengths to keep your secret hidden, and he doesn't want to be the one who makes you self-conscious about it. He shouldn't be thinking of how your chest looked before you'd covered up with your hands. The soft and yielding way your skin curved- No!
He groans with frustration to himself. "Stop it! Fushiguro is a boy, don't think of him that way. He's brave and strong and a little scary...and...and..."
His voice trails off as he spies something out of the corner of his eye draped over the edge of the bathtub. It's your shirt. And your binder.
In your rush for the night to end, you'd been all too eager to leave as soon as Toji voiced that he was ready to go. You'd grabbed your backpack from your friend's room, forgetting your shirt and binder in the bathroom.
Junpei is painfully aware of how loudly his heart is beating. You're going to need that back, he's certain. He knows he should bring it to you tomorrow. No big deal, just reach down and pick it up. It's two shirts. Well, one and a half shirts. The smaller one is what you wore tightly over your chest.
That thought gives him great pause. It would be like indirectly touching you, wouldn't it? He reasons internally. No, it's a shirt. Stop putting meaning behind it like that. No matter what he says to himself, he finds that he feels greatly intimidated by this little article of clothing.
Then Junpei thinks of how upset you'll probably be when you realize you don't have it. That makes him bolster his courage. He reaches down and picks up the binder, noticing immediately how thick it feels between his fingers. He carries it back to his room along with your shirt, tucking the latter into his backpack. Your binder he keeps for now, sitting on his bed and experimenting with its elasticity. It seems...incredibly tight. That must get uncomfortable for you. Especially when you're fighting someone. Fighting for him.
A little voice of mischief whispers to his subconsciousness: breathe it in. He brings it to his face immediately before he loses his nerve, inhaling what he recognizes as your scent. Your name slips off his tongue, and he smiles softly into the fabric. There's a single moment of wonder and youthful curiosity before a sound outside catches the boy's attention. In a panic, he shoves the garment under his bed. An obvious hiding spot, but he can't think of anywhere else. When he turns around, he freezes, mouth hanging open in disbelief.
You had climbed the fire escape outside his window. All nineteen floors. Your raised hand is preparing to tap, but seeing he's already noticed you, you wave instead.
He blinks rapidly to make sure he's really awake and not hallucinating that you were there, leaning precariously from the fire escape scaffold across to his bedroom window. Your voice is muted through the glass, but he can read your lips.
"Let me in."
He doesn't move at first. What're you going to do once you cross the threshold? If you saw what happened, would you strangle him for behaving like a gross pervert? The possibility is on the table, he's seen your temper. But if he doesn't let you in, he'll be in worse trouble in the morning.
He gulps and leans over to unlatch the window. It squeaks open with a mild struggle, the rails caked by years of dust from never being opened before. When you duck your way into his room, you boldly step across his bed with your shoes on before hopping down lightly to the floor.
"Umm, hello. What, uh... what are you doing here?" he asks, not entirely puzzled. He knows what you came back for.
"Did you find my... my shirt from earlier? At dinner? I spaced out when we were leaving. I need it."
Junpei looks flustered momentarily.
"Oh, sure. I, uh, put it in my backpack to bring to you!"
He reaches under his bed discreetly to grab your binder in one hand, while pulling your t-shirt from his bag. You notice, but don't say anything. You're only focused on getting your property back.
"Great. Give it." You snatch with lightning speed and tuck them into your inner coat pocket, already paranoid that you're going to somehow forget them again.
Back at home, you had sat up in bed, full panic mode, and realized your mistake. With no way to contact Junpei outside of being face to face with him, you thought this would have been a simple way to recover what you left behind. It seemed like a good sign when you discovered the fire escape going up right by his bedroom window.
"Want to tell me why you didn't just use the front door like anyone else would?" Junpei inquires.
"There was no one to buzz me in. I asked someone who was leaving to hold the door for me, but then he shut it on purpose to keep me out," you huff.
That asshole was unnecessarily rude to leave a kid out in the cold at this hour. Where was the concern?
Junpei only giggles at your frustration.
"You really climbed all the way up? I thought you hate heights."
"Sure, when someone is going to push me. Everyone hates heights then. I just had to keep my eyes on your window the whole time. Going back down is a different story. That's gonna blow."
"I can just let you out, it's no trouble. Try to be quiet though. My mom's sort of a light sleeper," he advises.
You mime the act of zipping your lips and twisting a tiny lock shut. You're not here to get him in trouble, especially when you have no excuse for being here this late. Junpei carefully twists open his bedroom doorknob, and leads you to the living room. He carefully slips his shoes on and takes the housekey off its hook on the wall. True to your word you make no loud noises as you tiptoe out the door behind him. He locks the deadbolt tentatively.
"Sorry again to make you get up," you whisper sheepishly.
"You're fine. I wasn't asleep yet." He smiles, with an odd tone to his voice.
You make your way to the stairwell, and Junpei walks with you down all nineteen flights of stairs to the front entrance.
Grateful for his help, you hug his neck tightly.
"Thanks again, I really appreciate you!"
Awkwardly he puts his arms around you too, praying that you can't tell he's breathing in your scent again one last time.
"See you tomorrow!" You wave your farewell and begin the jog home.
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The next day of school is one of the most boring days of your life. Since yesterday's commotion had quickly escalated and gotten the adults involved in your affairs, you have to be on your best behavior. Being sent to the principal's office during your first week of class has labeled you as problematic right off the bat. Word must have traveled quickly, because other students stare at you as you pass them through the hallways, whispering to each other behind open hands. It sincerely irritates you. If they have something to say, they should have the balls to say it to your face.
When your math teacher Mr Yamashita hands back the pop quiz from the day before, you see an enormous 0 at the top. You imagine digging a gigantic hole shaped like that zero and flinging your stupid self down into it.
Junpei leans across to see how you did.
"...Oh."
Your eyes are watering up slightly, but you sniff your tears back, wiping your face with the sleeve of your uniform. You'd have to hide this bad mark from Toji. He'd come down on you like hellfire if he knew you started your school year off with both fighting and failure. He only expected one of those things from you, and you've never let him down before.
"It's okay," Junpei chides softly.
"Like I said, I'll tutor you over the weekend. Don't worry."
You look with envy at your friend's high score. He had only missed one of the questions it looked like. And even then he got partial credit for showing his work. You had turned in a nearly blank sheet.
"I hope you can work miracles," you grumble.
Art class goes a little better for you. When the dismissal bell rangs, you handed in your portrait of Junpei. Mrs Hama's black eyebrows practically skyrocketed up to the white bun sitting on top of her head.
"You did this?!" She croaks, pointing at the paper enthusiastically.
"This is...this is...phenomenal! The pink highlights and the subtle blue shading. You understand color theory don't you?"
"Uhh, sure. I guess. I know all my colors." What is she talking about?
She clicks her tongue, studying your drawing up close. Absently she accepts the other students work in her opposite hand without so much as looking at them.
"So much talent... You shouldn't be fighting, you should be an artist!"
You shrug off her compliments awkwardly, shouldering your backpack.
"I like the art of war."
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"Pick up the pace, runt. We're not going to miss the previews because of you," Toji barks from up ahead without turning around.
You are dragging ass on purpose though. The sounds of popcorn popping intermingled with the lazer chirping effects of arcade games lining the walls. Going to the movie theater is a rare treat for you. So rare that Toji has never taken you before. With good reason too.
"Jesus tap-dancing Christ...They charge 700 yen for popcorn here, Toji!"
"That's right, and 500 for drinks. So don't ask for anything. You're not getting shit," he shoots back.
"Little brat. You should be grateful I paid for your tickets too."
"Gee, thanks ever so much, Daddy Dearest." You bat your eyes sarcastically at him.
He was touchy for sure. Annoyed at having to foot the bill for...for...
It's still impossible for you to fathom what this is. More so, it's awkward and gross to acknowledge that you are accompanying Toji for a date with Junpei's mom. And Junpei would be along for the ride as well.
There's a residual knot in your stomach from the entire notion of this nightmare scenario. When he told you to get dressed because you were both going out, you had laughed thinking it was a joke.
"Where would we go? The stockyards? Or the railroad? We don't dress up to go out, old man."
"We do tonight. I've got a date with Nagi-"
"THE FUCK YOU DO!"
"-and you're coming along so you and your friend can entertain one another," he continues, ignoring your outrage.
"No! You can't make me! I don't wanna...help you score!" you gag over the words.
Toji had narrowed his eyes at you from the doorway, a disgusting smile on his face.
"So you're fine with Junpei coming along...on his own?"
You grit your teeth in silent fury, staring resentfully up at Toji through your furrowed brows. The son of a bitch was too quick to learn your weaknesses. He knew you wouldn't doom your friend to witness his mother in a romantic setting on his own. Especially with Toji, who is intimidating as fuck in presence alone. Junpei is going to need your support, and you need his, too.
"We're not seeing the same feature. You can forget it," you mumble.
"Like I wanna see any of this crap. These days everything's too censored for my liking. It's all boring to me," he complains.
"Then why did you agree to come here!?" you demand.
Now he grins mischievously, looking straight ahead,
"Because some things are worth it, kiddo. You'll get it one day."
Following his stare, you spot Nagi and Junpei coming in through the main entrance doors. You grimace and swallow to fight another wave of nausea. Nagi had chosen to wear an orange blouse that hung loosely at her shoulders paired with a deep red mid length skirt. And a pair of very skinny high heeled shoes.
The way Toji is smiling at her makes you want to run to the nearest toilet to puke. He could at least tone it down a little until the two of them were alone. Though that thought didn't make you feel much better.
Wearily you meet Junpei's gaze, who looks as woeful as you. Good. Misery needs company afterall.
"Hey, Junpei," you murmur weakly.
He grimaces in response, his attempt at a greeting.
Nagi is ever oblivious to her son's stress levels.
"I'm so excited! I've been asking Junpei to see a movie with me for months, but I guess it's not "cool" to go with your mom at this age."
She adds the last part with a teasing shake of her son's shoulder. He groans with embarassment.
"It's not that. You don't pay attention and I end up having to explain things to you over and over. People used to shush us!"
Toji produces a pair of movie tickets from his pocket.
"This is what you wanted to see right? The...Flowers of Time?"
The scar at the corner of his mouth twitches ever so slightly. He's suppressing his own gag reflex.
A snort of derisive amusement comes from you. That sounded like the perfect movie for Toji. Something really sappy and cringey would annoy him for an hour and a half. Payback.
"What are we seeing?" Junpei asks you.
"They only had one other playing at the same time at theirs. I think it's older, the theater's just showing it for an anniversary screening. The Final Destination."
"Great pick! I've seen all of the others in the series. They're all good." He looks genuinely pleased.
Uh-oh. Series?
"Oh, there's others? Do I need to know what happened in those?" You don't want to be asking questions the whole time. Especially if that annoyed your friend.
"There's not much to know. Death is an entity that follows a group of people around after they survive a major disaster. They gradually all start dying, figure out why and try to stop it. Every movie in the series is basically the same. They just invest alot in the effects to make it more gruesome with each new one they make."
"Sounds good," Toji comments, sounding envious.
You can't help feeling a little smug about him having to sit through a boring romance film just to make a lady he barely knows happy. Take that, baka!
He must be sensing your cockiness, because the next words out of his mouth to Nagi are:
"How about we get some popcorn?"
Your head turns in a slow creak. Did he just volunteer to spend more money? You're still in disbelief as they leave the you both behind and head to the concessions.
Junpei sighs heavily.
"This seriously sucks ass..."
You giggle just a tiny bit. You've never heard Junpei swear before.
"I know, and I'm sorry. Why don't we try to forget about them for a bit, and find our showing?"
The two of you make your way to theater six. A poster portraying a gruesome looking skull shattered into fragments teases the film. It promised gore, and brutality. A million times more enthralling than The Flowers of fucking Time. No matter how forced or lazy this writing may be, at least it isn't love centered.
Before you can reach for the handle, the door flings open, nearly smacking right into you. A girl with long brown hair wearing a pink sweater blusters through, balking when you nearly collide.
"Whoa! Watch where you're going!" she snaps.
"Seriously?" you retort,
"You think this whole place was built for you or something, princess?"
She glares daggers at you, then her attention shifts to Junpei, who had sidled around behind you in the commotion. Her brows raise and an odd frown passes over her glossy lips
Now it occurs to you that this girl looks strangely familiar, but this encounter has gone on for far too long.
"Excuse you."
Brushing purposefully past her, you make sure to knock her shoulder slightly. Not hard, just enough to make her wobble on her high horse.
Junpei follows closely behind at your heels, keeping his head down. You may not have recognized Tsubasa outside of school uniform, but he knew she spelled trouble wherever she went. She isn't going to let this slight go by a longshot either. For an "innocent" high school girl, she's a manipulative schemer. Dread envelopes him like a blanket.
You shuffle sideways through the aisle of your choosing. The house lights have already been lowered, so you have to pick your seats in the dark. There aren't many other people, just a few couples here and there, and a group of three girls in the very back. You're willing to bet that's where that rude bitch is going to be sitting when she returns. You glance over at Junpei, who looks more tense than ever.
"You alright?" you whisper, leaning closer.
He keeps his voice low, not wanting to be overheard.
"That girl we passed...That was Tsubasa."
You don't make the connection right away.
"Oh...And?"
He twists in his seat anxiously, glancing over his shoulder to look back at the gaggle of girls in the back row. They must have recognized him coming in, too.
"I just know she's going to start drama. It's what she does."
"Pfft. Is that all? Come on, do you really think I'd let that happen?" you ask, feigning to take offense that he would consider the thought.
He peeks up at you through his bangs, looking slightly alarmed.
"You mean... you would fight Tsubasa?"
"Well, yeah. I wouldn't hurt her though. Not physically. Theres more than one way to go to war, Junpei."
You smile mischievously at your friend. He looks relieved to hear that you don't always resort to violence. He has no idea what you're capable of outside of the ring.
The opening credits begin. The trailers are all for movies that have long since been released since this is a showing of an older film. You've heard of one of them, but the rest are news to you. Junpei comments with the beginning of each one, boasting to have seen them all.
"That one was terrible. Anyone would see the ending coming...That one was okay, there was one actress who really carried the entire film for them...Aww, that one is garbage, I forgot it even existed!"
You can't help smiling at him. The guy has really seen everything. It's nice to see his spirits lifting. It falters when the theater doors slam shut and Tsubasa comes walking back up the aisles carrying a large soda cup. She makes eye contact with you as she passes with a seemingly innocent smile. You don't buy the act for a minute. Junpei's right. You can sense her malice.
Not wanting it to affect your experience together, you immediately change the subject.
"It sucks that Toji is so cheap. I really wanted movie snacks."
"Oh! I've got something." Junpei leans forward and reaches beneath the back of his shirt. He looks quite proud of himself when he produces a small box of what looks like little chocolate candies.
"You snuck food in?" You're amazed he'd be a rule breaker of any kind. Even you glance around to make sure no one else saw him.
"Yeah, well. They shouldn't charge so much. All my allowance goes to paying for tickets. I have to say I'm an adult so they don't report me for being out of school."
So he's a liar too. And a truant for skipping classes. You're impressed to learn there's a side of him willing to abandon society's expectations and do as he pleases. It's refreshing in fact. You hold your palm open for him to pour some of the chocolates out for you. Upon closer inspection, you can tell they're actually pink on top. They're sweet and milky, with a hint strawberry, melting away quickly on your tongue.
There's a tittering sound of whispers coming from behind you, but neither of you pay them any mind. It's nice being here together, even under such circumstances. Junpei is a great friend.
Opening credits for the movie begin.
Before the first 10 minutes are up, you find that it's precisely what you expected it to be. A collection of truly impossible deadly events that could probably never happen in real life. Spectators are decapitated by rogue tires flung from a racetrack speedway, then squished beneath collapsing solid concrete beams rattled into pieces by mere sound vibrations. It's corny to say the least, and hilarious in a sick way. You keep stifling fits of giggles whenever someone is annihilated on screen. This earns you a cocked eyebrow from your friend, who in turn only starts laughing at you and your gross sense of humor.
"You're awful," he snickers.
"You're laughing too!"
"At you, you sick bastard," now he's choking back his amusement even harder.
A couple sitting behind you shushes you loudly, which only makes the two of you completely lose it. You cackle from the absurdity of the situation.
"Oh, my god. You're worse than my mother!" he hisses, not being any more quiet than you.
When another person shushes the two of you, much louder than the first, you're nearly in tears.
"I'm going to fucking die, Junpei. I can't. I need a minute."
You stand up to leave the aisle, crouching over to avoid any more heckling from audience members. Junpei follows right after you with a hand clamped tightly over his mouth. You make it into the foyer before erupting in more raucous peels of laughter.
"Oh, man! That was too much! I'm sorry, I didn't know it was going to be that hilariously bad."
Junpei is doubled over, trying to keep it together by holding both his sides, and giggling uncontrollably.
"They're not supposed to be funny! You're just a weirdo." He grins up at you, wiping tears from his eyes.
"I love it."
Something about the way he says it sparks a fluttering in your chest.
"Wanna go check out the arcade?" he offers.
"I have some spare cash on me for a game or two."
"Hell yeah! I think I saw an air hockey table out there." You lead the way, eager to show off your skills.
It's been a while since you've played. You haven't really had the extra money for something as frivolous as an arcade game. Junpei in the end is only able to score 2 goals past you and no more. You finish strong at goal 5, and he smiles as he watches you cheer for your victory.
"Okay, I get to pick the next game," he announces, and approaches the classic The House of the Dead shooting booth and picks up the plastic blue rifle.
"C'mon! I bet I can kill way more zombies than you," he boasts.
"Dream on!" you counter, taking the red one. You twirl it around your finger by the trigger like a cowboy.
He adds coins to the slot and you press the start button. The familiarity of the horror theme music and the growls of the killer ghouls popping up around every corner are oddly comforting. Lots of things have changed for you over the years, but The House of the Dead hasn't. The clumsy movements, the crummy pixel count, and blocky corpses of the monsters are all impervious to the upgrades of modern video game designs because of their system's obsoletion. But there was an incomparable satisfaction that came from defeating a game that used to give you endless trouble whenever you encountered it as a child. You could probably get the job done blindfolded back when you were in your gaming prime. Before you lost everything you owned...
"You're incredible at this!" Junpei exalts, taking a moment to reload.
You finish the game together, both of you getting killed simultaneously by the massive fireballs of the final boss gollum. It's frustrating to die on the final opponent, but you did better than you thought you'd do for being rusty. Junpei acts as if you'd beaten the game, cheering your name loud enough for everyone else in the arcade to hear.
"You're the best zombie killer I've ever seen!"
Seeing him so excited for you makes you blush. He's never beamed like this before.
"Should we go back to the movie?" See some more stupid people die ridiculously?" you ask.
"Absolutely," he smiles.
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Even picking up from the middle of the film, you enjoyed every minute remaining. A particularly hysterical scene with a killer automatic car wash got you both going with another fit of laughter. Luckily the shushes from fellow audience members no longer embarass you. This night feels like it's just for the two of you. Junpei completely forgot about the girls from school sitting behind you the entire time. You'd kept him far too distracted to be worried about them.
He holds the door to the main exit open for you, and you step out into the cool night air.
"This was fun! I'd love to do it again sometime," he offers.
You eagerly agree,
"For sure! We can make it a regular thing if you-"
You cut yourself off midsentence because of what you see on the bench by the walkway of the theater. Junpei follows your horrified stare, then matches your expression when he sees Toji and his mother. Their movie must have ended before yours. They're sitting quite close, with his arm draped over her shoulder. It looks like he's leaning in for a kiss!
"Oh, no. No, no, no," Junpei repeats uselessly, clutching the sides of his face with anxiety.
Thinking quickly, you spy a tree growing just a few feet away along the cement path. Normally a flowering plum, this was their fruit bearing season. You pluck one off the lowest branch, aiming as well as you can in the dark, knowing if you missed, you'd be in serious hot water. You throw the plum right at Toji's smug face.
Normally his reflexes would never allow you to pull such a juvenile prank. He should have seen you coming. He should have been keeping his guard up. Aren't those the same lessons he drilled into you? But Toji had other things on his mind unfortunately, and he took the hit directly to his cheek.
There's a gasp from Nagi as she pulls away from the red splattering juice now dripping from his chin. In the split second when he's assessing whether or not he's just been sniped, you dart back across to Junpei. He's got both hands clamped over his mouth and his face is crimson. Your movement catches Toji's attention. His face becomes a mask of absolute outrage.
"Oh, my goodness! Are you okay?! I saw it! Some angry member of the theater staff. Did you not tip them? Oh, the terrorist! They ran that way! It was a run by fruiting!" you cry.
Junpei's mother takes a handkerchief out of her purse and offers it to clean his face. He takes it, but doesn't break eye contact with you. You've dug yourself a very deep hole, you're certain of it.
"Hey, Nagi. You know what might be fun?" Toji asks her without turning away from you.
"If I take the boys camping in the mountains this weekend."
She looks perfectly delighted. Junpei looks perfectly nauseous.
"That sounds like lots of fun! He would love that! I have a twelve hour shift anyway, and hate to leave him at home alone."
"Please, leave me at home alone," he begs pitifully to no avail.
Toji grins triumphantly at you, baring his fangs.
"Fantastic. I really. Can't. Wait."