Post
by QuietlySomething » Wed Apr 26, 2017 2:44 am
"Before you all leave, I expect the answers for those problems by Monday."
That's no doubt every student's least favorite ending to a day of class, especially considering the frantic last-minute festival preparations everyone is bound to be doing today.
Mutou is obviously aware of this, but shows no sign of sympathy as the entire class sighs in response. I suspect he is trying to teach us a lesson about slacking off. One that I would do well to learn as well, at that, considering that I need to finish the work the same as everyone else.
Almost everyone in the class piles out through the door almost immediately, evidently prioritizing festival preparation over their classwork, to Mutou's dismay. With no festival work of my own to do, I hang behind to finish the problems in the classroom.
The room becomes several degrees quieter as it empties out, and within moments there is nobody left but me, Naomi, Natsume, and Hanako. Naomi and Natsume chatter quietly to each other, and Hanako- seated right next to them, unfortunately- shifts around uncomfortably at the disruption.
I don't mention it, of course, and do my best to focus on getting my work done. Still, I can't help but notice that Hanako isn't even working on the problems from the board, and she quickly pulls out a book to distract herself from the two girls beside her. She must be waiting for Lilly, which still seems to me like a strange thing to do.
A couple of minutes pass as I start on my work, but just before I am able to knuckle down and get into a rhythm, a hand appears over my paper to interrupt me.
"You got any plans?" Naomi asks loudly, now looming over me.
I glare up at her with some irritation, as it should have been obvious that I was trying to work.
That said, I don't have any plans, and I don't want to reject the possibility of having something to do this afternoon, so I let it slide.
"None," I reply with a shrug, setting my pencil down. "Why?"
"Because we're going to get something to eat, and you should tag along."
Naomi jabs a thumb in the direction of Natsume, who straightens her glasses and shrugs at me. "I assume Naomi is getting tired of my company, now that she's on good terms with a boy from our class."
Natsume seems proud of herself for that, though Naomi doesn't even seem to notice that it's a joke at her expense.
"Don't you guys have club work to do or something?" I ask, glancing between the two of them.
"You were there yesterday afternoon," Naomi says impatiently. "You already know the answer to that."
"Yeah, I guess I do. But I wanted to get these problems done so I didn't have to worry about them later."
"Oh, come on, Hisao. You would seriously rather sit in silence by yourself than hang out with us?"
Once again, I notice that this comment, oddly, comes off less like a taunt and more like a genuine inquiry into my personality. Always the analyst, this one…
I almost point out that I wouldn't be here by myself, since Hanako is still here, but I decide against drawing attention to her. I glance toward the back of the room again- I think Hanako is actively hiding behind her book. No doubt Lilly won't be here for at least a little while longer, and I'm not eager to hang around her in awkward silence.
With a reluctant sigh, I push my chair back and stuff my papers into my bag. "Fine. Where are we going?"
"A teahouse called the Shanghai, in town. Have you been?" Natsume asks, looking intrigued for some reason.
"No… actually, I haven't gone into town at all since I got here. I guess I haven't had time…"
"Well, it's probably better that you have guides going in, then. Naomi and I haven't got anything to do today anyway."
Natsume flashes a friendly smile, prompting a loud, over-the-top scoff from Naomi, who throws up her hands and leans back against the empty desk next to me. "Hey, don't volunteer me for an entire afternoon! I just said we were getting food."
"I'm not volunteering you; I'm only volunteering myself. I just know that you are not one to be left out."
Naomi narrows her eyes as though she objects to this characterization, but she can't seem to come up with an adequate retort and so gives up. "Yeah… fair enough. There's really not a lot to see, though."
"Says you."
It seems like they are about to start arguing for no reason, but I can't gauge whether or not it's playful. Natsume has a very calm and measured way of speaking, such that any of her humor would come off as completely deadpan. It's hard for me to tell when she's being serious.
"I appreciate the offer. I was probably just going to wind up wandering around by myself otherwise," I cut in, finally standing from my desk in order to get us out of the classroom.
Naomi immediately takes the hint and heads for the door, and Natsume follows suit shortly after. Hanako looks relieved to see us go, from as far as I can tell. I feel a twinge of guilt for taking as long as we did to leave, though I realize I probably shouldn't.
The halls are densely packed with students even despite it being the end of the school day, and a number of classrooms are regardless filled with students doing last-minute festival preparations. Though it feels odd not to be involved in such a large activity for the school, I have to admit that it is nice not to have any obligations while everyone else frets about getting their work done in time.
Naomi takes the lead as we head out through the lobby of the academic building, and I immediately notice shouting echoing from the track a ways away- presumably, it's packed with athletes from the sports clubs. The noise quickly fades once we pass through the gate and begin to head down the road, just going to show how condensed the students are on campus. I imagine most people have work to do due to the festival, but that aside, it makes me wonder how often people actually bother taking walks off of the school's grounds.
Having lived in the city for my entire childhood, it strikes me as a waste to have such a quaint and relaxed locale and not bother to take advantage of it.
---
Naomi isn't wrong, as it turns out- there really isn't very much to see in town. It's small, quiet, and underpopulated, particularly for a Saturday afternoon. There are some little houses up on a hilltop, a park and a few storefronts that seem interesting, but overall nothing that really catches my eye. In a way, I prefer it that way, though. Nothing flashy. I like the quiet atmosphere here.
The three of us end up spending much longer than I would have expected just wandering around in town, and though Naomi doesn't seem to have much patience for it, a scolding glare from Natsume is enough to keep her from complaining.
Before long, it occurs to me that this has been more prolonged exertion than I've had in some time, and the walk starts to seriously take its toll on me. I'm irritated with myself for getting tired from something as mundane as a stroll through town… even considering my heart, I should be in better shape than this. Worse still, Naomi and Natsume don't pay it much notice even as I am forced to slow down my pace to take longer breaths. For some reason, the idea of having to bring up my condition even in passing to them really bothers me.
My irritation with myself morphs into derision as I come up with an excuse to sit down. "So, are you ever going to show me this teahouse, or are we just going to spend the whole afternoon getting lost?"
Naomi skids to a stop just to glower at me. "Wow, this coming from the guy who we were kind enough to do the favor of escorting in the first place?"
"I thought you only wanted to do this to get food, anyway."
"I did. But you didn't."
She raises an eyebrow at me. I should probably be more careful about framing my words as criticism toward her.
"If you two are finished with… whatever this is, we are only a block from the Shanghai," says Natsume, unimpressed. "We made almost a full circuit through town."
"Oh." Naomi looks up and down the street, a little surprised. "So we did. I guess your timing is pretty good, then, Hisao."
I look over her shoulder to the far corner of the road. Sure enough, there is a small café that looks comfortable enough. I'm surprised I didn't notice it before; it is a welcome sight indeed.
Naomi and Natsume walk through the entrance together, giving off the air of regulars. I get the impression this is their go-to destination in town, odd as it may seem considering how tiny and easy-to-miss it is.
A bell over the door rings three times as we enter, signaling our arrival to what seems to be nobody, as the entire place is apparently deserted. Naomi murmurs something to Natsume that I don't hear as I take a look at the café's strange interior. It's some odd amalgam of traditional Chinese architecture and modern furnishing… I guess it's supposed to be trendy? I've never been to a place like this before.
After a few awkward moments of the three of us bumbling around in the entrance, a door opens somewhere behind the counter, and, defying all my expectations, Yuuko of all people appears in an employee's uniform.
"Hey, Yuuko!" Naomi calls out, cheerfully raising a hand in greeting as Yuuko approaches us from behind the counter.
"Oh, it's you both… hi, girls," Yuuko says timidly, eyes darting around self-consciously. After a second, she lays her eyes on me and becomes unreasonably startled. "Oh, and, um, you as well; I didn't mean…"
"Uh." I tilt my head a little, not sure if she recognizes me. "Hi, Yuuko. I didn't know you worked here."
"Mhm, yes, well… anyway-!" She slows to a stop, eyes settling on Naomi and Natsume again, and then flings herself forward into a dramatic bow. "Welcome to the Shanghai! May I take your order?"
"Coffee, black," Natsume responds curtly. "And… something sweet. Pie? Lemon meringue pie."
"Yes, yes, absolutely… and you?"
Yuuko turns to Naomi, who raps her fingers along the counter thoughtfully. "Mm… is it too late to get lunch…? If I order a sandwich, is that, like, a whole sandwich or just a half?"
Yuuko freezes for a moment, intimidated by the question. "That would be a whole sandwich- cut into halves, that is- but they aren't very large, so it may not be enough for a full lunch portion on its own…"
"So, in that case, if I were to order two, do you think that would be too much food?"
"Oh! Well… of course, however much you want is fine… but… the sandwich itself is not a lot of food, but then, the thing is, that would come with soup… so if you were to order two sandwiches, that would also come with two soups, so… all of that food might be too much for one person… but… on the other hand, if you were to only get one- no, I'm sorry, I'm just making this more confusing; that's my fault…"
"Alright, calm down a little, Yuuko," Naomi interrupts, laughing patiently. "Your suggestion was very helpful. Thank you."
Yuuko seems beyond relieved just by this small reassurance, and takes her first breath since she began her whole rant. "Oh… good… you're welcome!"
"Just one sandwich. Turkey. With the soup, that should be enough food." Naomi gives Yuuko a minute to take it in before proceeding. "And a coffee for me, too, with lots of cream."
So the newspaper girls are coffee drinkers, just like me. That seems to fit their aesthetic somehow, like dedicated workers that run on caffeine. Funny how we're eating at a teahouse, and yet none of us is ordering tea.
Processing Naomi's small order, Yuuko nods frantically and bows twice, still wound up.
I speak up after a moment, at the risk of scaring her. "Just a coffee for me too, please."
Naomi laughs out loud, resting one arm on the counter. "Oh, so you complain about wanting to come here right away, and then you don't even order food?"
Honestly, getting tired from the walk basically killed my appetite, but I'm not eager to bring that up. I just shrug.
"I think he's just trying to torment us for a laugh, Natsume," Naomi says loudly. Natsume shakes her head dismissively, like a disapproving parent.
Relieved to have our orders taken care of, Yuuko scurries off through the door again. Naomi and Natsume take a seat at the first empty table, which is not hard to find considering just about every table is empty.
They sit on opposite sides from one another, and without thinking I slip into the booth next to Natsume. Naomi pouts- I think jokingly- at the fact that nobody sat next to her.
"I'm glad you mentioned you hadn't been into town before, Hisao," says Natsume, sliding a little over in the booth to look at me. "It was nice to have the opportunity to go for a walk on a day like today, while the weather is nice."
Naomi rests her elbows on the table, flagrantly yawning without covering her mouth. "And it's uncrowded. It's smart to take advantage of being the lucky few who don't need to stress about the festival."
"-Yet," Natsume corrects seriously. "We'll have our fair share of stress come Monday."
"Don't remind me. You're going to start sounding like Hokuto."
"Yes, well, you may not like to hear it, but honestly he makes a good point about our own preparations. We don't even have a complete itinerary for tomorrow yet, and we were supposed to have been finished with it before we met yesterday."
Naomi lets out a loud groan. "Having a whole itinerary planned out isn't a big deal. As long as Takashi doesn't blow us off, we can basically just split up and everyone will be able to see everything no problem."
"But that's assuming Takashi doesn't blow us off."
"Fair enough."
It's the first time I've seen Naomi unenthusiastic about something newspaper-related. I imagine it must be annoying to turn something that's supposed to be fun, like the festival, into a homework assignment.
At the first pause in conversation, Yuuko appears and cautiously sets down everyone's food and coffee. Before I even get a chance to say thank you, though, she has already bowed and dashed back into the kitchen at lightning speed.
I take a sip of my coffee. It's the right temperature, but a little strong, so I reach over to grab a couple packets of sugar only to be preempted by Naomi, who grabs a fistful of them for herself.
"What's on your itinerary?" I ask as I stir my coffee.
"We're supposed to cover the festival as thoroughly as possible, so basically everything important," Naomi explains, emptying her fifth sugar into her murky drink. "All the different booths, the mural, performing arts stuff, food…"
"That sounds like fun, not work."
"Then you should join the club!" Naomi shoots me a look, genuinely waiting for a response, but I have none.
"Fun or not, my point is that it's something that needs to be planned," says Natsume, after a pause.
Naomi rolls her eyes and half-empties her cup in one swig. It must taste more like candy than coffee at this point.
I find myself regretting a little that I didn't order anything to eat, since I know I'm going to end up twiddling my thumbs while the two of them finish up. I'm left looking around absentmindedly while they dig in.
Now left with a pile of empty sugar packets, Naomi absentmindedly rolls one of her fingers around in one while she eats with her free hand. It's just ordinary fidgeting, but it makes her seem kind of erratic, like a dog that loses its focus every time it spots a squirrel. I'm not even totally sure why I'm paying attention to that… I guess Naomi just has a lot of mannerisms that draw your attention. I wonder if that's intentional.
…At any rate, she is a lot more expressive than Natsume, who remains comparatively still as she tends to her own food.
Eventually Naomi works her way through her sandwich and turns to her soup, lowering her head to test its temperature out of her spoon. When she does, I spot a patch of blonde from somewhere over one of the table dividers… I guess I hadn't noticed it before, even though it is a shade brighter than Naomi's own bleached-blonde hair. I can only think of one person that it could belong to.
Without saying anything, I lean out of the booth to get a better look- but as soon as I do, I nearly smack my head into someone just as they turn the corner. A quick glance up reveals an androgynous-looking woman in a suit, with the same blonde hair that I spotted across the room.
The woman laughs and gives me a quick apology before brushing past, leaving me to my embarrassment. Naomi doesn't even bother pretending not to laugh at me.
After scowling at her, I slip out of the booth just enough to glance across the room. Sure enough, there's Lilly, sitting alone with a cup of tea and looking forlorn about something. I probably wouldn't be tempted to invite her over without asking the others, but she looks so lonely sitting there by herself that I can't help myself.
"Hey, Lilly!" I call out from the middle of the room.
She seems startled for a moment, but collects herself quickly. "Hm? Oh, is that… Hisao?"
I meander towards her table just to get within speaking distance. "Yeah. Good to see you."
'Good to see you'… oops. Damn. Thankfully, she doesn't seem to notice.
"I heard another group come in a while ago, but I hadn't realized you were a part of it. I'm glad you came to say hello," Lilly says earnestly.
"You're here by yourself?"
"Now I am, I suppose." She cups her hands around her teacup, frowning. "I was having tea with my sister, who just left."
"Oh, I think I saw her… the woman in a suit? I almost smacked into her getting out of my seat."
"Yes, that's her. She can be a bit… brusque… at times, but I promise she is well-meaning."
Lilly lets out a quiet but obvious sigh. She seems much less bright than she did the last time I talked to her.
"Do you want to come sit with us?" I ask, glancing over my shoulder at my table. "It's just me and two girls from my class, Naomi Inoue and Natsume Ooe."
"Oh? Thank you, Hisao. I would appreciate the company."
"I probably owe you one for the tea from the other day."
With an appreciative smile, Lilly grasps her teacup in one hand and gets out of her seat. I hesitate for a moment, unsure exactly how to guide her to the other table, but before I get the chance, she pulls her retractable cane from the bench and walks over on her own. Apparently it was easy enough to tell where to go from the noise we were making.
Trying to navigate around her blindness makes me tense, particularly because she never seems to talk about it.
"I hope I'm not intruding," Lilly says politely, standing in front of our table to make introductions.
Natsume shoots me a tired look as I take my seat. I probably should have asked them before bringing a guest over, but I don't feel guilty about it.
Naomi, on the other hand, seems enthusiastic to greet her, and quickly begins speaking for the table. "Of course not. Do you want to take a seat?"
"Yes; thank you." Lilly folds up her cane and sits in the booth next to Naomi, who immediately slides over to the end to make room. "You're all in 3-3, yes? I don't know if we've really been properly acquainted. I am Lilly Satou. Naomi and Natsume, is it?"
"Oh, I think we've spoken a couple of times," Naomi replies with a shrug. "I can't speak for Natsume, though."
"No, you can't," Natsume says with a small sigh. "But it's nice to meet you, Lilly."
"Likewise," Lilly says calmly, raising her cup to her lips. "Forgive my lack of memory, Naomi."
"It's fine. I think it's been a while. I just keep track of people pretty well," Naomi dismisses. "So you and Hisao are friends, huh?"
Glancing between Lilly and I, Naomi shoots me a very shady look, one that I don't even want to know the meaning of. More than that, I feel very uncomfortable taking advantage of Lilly's blindness to communicate through body language, so I do my best to ignore her.
"I would be flattered if Hisao considered me a friend, but we only met several days ago. Then again, that must be true of everyone, given that you are a transfer student." Lilly directs that statement at me- or in my general direction, at least.
"Basically. But… yeah, we're friends, I guess," I say uncertainly. I do like Lilly, to be sure, but I'm not sure if it would be worse to risk being rude or to risk being presumptuous.
Naomi raises an eyebrow at that, and I suddenly become very eager to change the subject.
"Er, did you talk to Hanako at all today, Lilly?" I ask hurriedly, to follow up.
"Hanako?" Lilly seems intrigued by the question. "Yes, just briefly. Why?"
"She stayed behind in the classroom today, along with the three of us. I had assumed she was waiting for you, so I was kind of surprised to see…"
I trail off, in response to a bizarre, anxious glare from Naomi. I really wish she would stop making faces at me so I could stop feeling like I'm tiptoeing around Lilly.
"I came by the classroom, but she was the only one there. You all must have left before then. I had already made plans with my sister, as I mentioned, so I believe she went off to the library. You needn't worry, Hisao."
Lilly smiles at me and returns to her tea. She can clearly sense that I'm still feeling uncomfortable about Hanako, so I'm glad to have her patience.
Not so for Naomi, however, who seems displeased with me for bringing up the subject of Hanako. Considering the two of them sit right next to each other in class, I would be willing to bet that Naomi has had about as much luck with her as I have. Hanako is probably not very receptive to being questioned about her interests and personality, after all.
Naomi thumps her hand on the table, all of a sudden filled with some newfound enthusiasm. "So, what will the big-shot class rep be doing for the festival?"
Lilly, taken by surprise, chuckles at the phrasing of that. "I take it you are referring to me."
"Unless there's another class rep at the table."
"I will be spending tomorrow waitressing. Please come by the stall; everyone has put in a lot of work to make sure everything will be running smoothly tomorrow." Lilly says that with some exhaustion, and I am immediately reminded of how Shizune was hounding her about it a couple days ago.
"Spending the whole day working? Man, you just can't catch a break, huh?"
"I have to admit, sometimes it really feels that way."
"You and your cousin both. You guys are like two peas in a pod with this festival stuff."
Huh? Whose cousin-?
"Funny you should say that, as I have been feeling quite the opposite lately. I'm surprised you even knew we were related."
"Like I said, I keep track of people well."
Naomi shrugs again, which seems odd considering Lilly obviously doesn't know she's doing it. I glance over at Natsume, who seems to barely even be paying attention. I suppose she is less interested in Lilly than either Naomi or I am.
"Sorry, who is your cousin…?" I ask tentatively, at the risk of embarrassing myself.
Naomi looks at me with disbelief. "…You're kidding, Hisao."
Lilly seems a little surprised. "Shizune Hakamichi. Your class representative. I could have sworn you mentioned that you knew her."
…Well, that certainly adds some layers to their rivalry. I am clearly wearing my surprise on my face, as Naomi seems eager to make fun of me for it.
"Yeah, he knows Shizune, Lilly," Naomi says, not taking her eyes off me. "Hisao, Hisao… friends with both Shizune and Lilly and you didn't know they were related? You sure do keep interesting company."
Lilly smirks gently, trying to hide her amusement at that.
I throw up my hands. "Hey, nobody told me. I'm still new, you know. It's not like I would think to ask."
"It's fine, Hisao. It shouldn't make any difference to you," Lilly remarks.
"No. I, uh… I guess it doesn't."
Lilly raises her cup to her lips again only to find it empty. A little pensive, she lowers it and turns her head away from the table somewhat. "It is probably beginning to get late, isn't it? I have been here for a while now."
Everyone else immediately looks out the window. Sure enough, it's already sundown. We must have spent more time wandering around in town than I realized.
"The sun is starting to set," says Natsume quietly.
"Yes, I thought as much. Then I think I should head back to Yamaku about now," Lilly says definitively, getting out of her seat and rifling through her bag.
"That's probably not a bad idea," I add, earning another suspicious glance from Naomi.
"I'm going to have another coffee. Let's go back after," she says with pursed lips.
"That works, too."
"Then we'll meet again later. As I said, please take the time to come by my stall. I would appreciate the break." Lilly sets down the money for her tea on the table, giving a polite wave. "Thank you for the company, you three. Have a good night."
Everyone chants 'good night' in unison as Lilly departs the Shanghai. That leaves Naomi, Natsume and me as the only three people in the building, besides Yuuko.
"That was interesting," Naomi hums, rapping her fingers along her empty coffee cup. "Thanks for introducing us, Hisao. You sure seem to like her."
"Yeah, she's nice. Sorry if I imposed a little bit." I shrug, as I'm not really all that sorry.
"Liked her enough to want to leave with her, anyway."
Natsume cracks up a little but says nothing. I guess I missed something somewhere along the line.
All of a sudden I find myself blushing. "What are you getting at?"
"Nothing, nothing. Just a little intrigued by your interest in her." Naomi throws up her hands innocently. "Like I said, you keep interesting company. You're an interesting person."
"I don't have interest in her, alright? She's a friend. I've only known her for, like, two days. Not everything needs to be a big scandal."
"You can't tell me you don't think she's pretty."
"I didn't say that- I- that doesn't make any difference! What are you on about?"
If I wasn't blushing before, I definitely am now. All of a sudden I'm on the witness stand, and Naomi is particularly harsh on the cross-examination.
By all accounts, I do not know Naomi well enough to be getting questioned like this… but then, she definitely seems much more forward than most. That doesn't pair well with her curiosity, it seems.
"So you do think she's pretty," Naomi replies, leaning into her hands.
"Sure. So what? You read too much into everything."
"You sure seem eager to deny it."
She grins, reveling in sadistic pleasure.
I have had more than enough of this, and take the only out I can think of. "…Aren't we only still here because you wanted another coffee?"
"Oh, yeah." She sits up suddenly, having apparently genuinely forgotten about it. "But Yuuko hasn't come out in a while."
"I think she waits for the bell on the front door to come out and greet customers," says Natsume. "She should really be more attentive, considering we're the only customers here."
"Don't let her hear you say that. You'll give her a panic attack." With a sigh, Naomi climbs out of her seat and wanders away from the table, towards the counter. "Hey, Yuuko!"
There is a distant crash from somewhere through the doorway.
A moment later, Yuuko appears, looking disheveled as ever, and rushes to take Naomi's order at the counter.
I take a deep breath, enjoying my one free moment from the controlled uproar that seems to follow Naomi around like a cloud of dust.
Natsume leans into the table, watching Naomi carefully. We make brief eye contact, which I break to avoid staring at her discolored eye.
"…So you like blondes, huh, Hisao?" Natsume asks with a quiet chuckle.
For the love of-
"Oh, nobody asked for your opinion."
"Tsch."
Natsume relaxes back into the bench without another word, straightening her glasses. Thankfully, she doesn't seem as intent on interrogation as Naomi, but even still… today is not my day.
I don't even have plans yet, but it's hard for me to imagine that the festival could possibly be as exhausting as this.
I've just recently lost my beta-reader to a concussion (bless her) so I'm currently without an editor... but that may be subject to change.
