“Okay guys! Lunch time! Be back in an hour and we’ll practice the whole routine again!” Meisa clapped her hands to get her tired students attention. They needed to perfect this dance routine since they had a showcase in a week’s time. The youngsters all groaned in relief; some leaving the studio to get refreshments. Meisa had just turned around, rummaging in her bag for the bottled water she already had when excited whispers came from her remaining students behind her inside the room.

“That’s him!”

“Isn’t he hot…”

“He looks gorgeous…”

“Hey…” The last line was sent straight to her ears, hot breath causing her body to shiver and tingle. She turned around to see what was going on and almost mashed her lips with Jin’s! He was standing so close that she was sure he could feel how fast her heart was beating right now. She pulled away just as Jin continued smirking at her.

“Jin-sensei, what are you doing here?” she needed to be formal in this situation, moreover that her students were watching them like die-hard fans for a very entertaining television show.

“Isn’t it lunch time yet?” Jin asked, also pulling away. He’d fortunately noticed how the youngsters were looking at them. “Why don’t we grab a bite to eat?”

Meisa scowled slightly at him. She pulled a small towel from the contents of her bag, wiping the sweat off the back of her neck before answering. “I won’t be eating lunch today…”

“What? That’s not healthy Mei-tan.” Jin said mockingly, shaking his pointer finger.

“We need to finish with this routine and if you don’t mind I have to perfect some of the moves…” Meisa walked away to the center of the room and started practicing. From her peripheral view, she saw the glum expression on Jin’s face who could do nothing else but nod and exit the room. She didn’t know if she was being harsh or not but they needed to be careful, this relationship of theirs was hard enough as it is and she didn’t want anyone finding out. She didn’t see the mischievous and clearly interested looks some of her students were giving.

=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=

“Maki-nee I’m going to be late!” Mirai yelled, hoping that her loud voice could reach Maki’s bedroom. Today was orientation week at Meiji and she really hated being late for these things. She hated being late for anything! It was such a pity though that her older sister was Horikita Maki who sometimes took years to get prepared when going out. Downstairs, the café was in full swing with Kazuya handling the kitchen while Suzuka took care of the register. It was still morning and people wouldn’t literally be zooming inside Wits until lunch time.

“Okay I’m here I’m here!” Finally Maki showed up from that room of hers. She was still checking up on the stuff inside her bag. “Cellphone, check, wallet, check, keys, check… okay let’s get going!” She fixed her glasses before it slipped down her perfect nose. She was the first to go down the stairs while Mirai followed, shaking her head amusedly.

“Kazu we’ll be back after lunch I turst you can handle things here?” Maki peeked her head over inside the kitchen, smiling expectantly at her new employee and immediate friend.

Kazuya nodded his head, smiling as he was fixing up a side dish of potatoes and raised a thumbs up. “Hai, things will be okay when you get back.”

Maki laughed. “I hope so! Thanks again!” She disappeared from Kazuya’s sight turning to Mirai who had also just finished talking to Suzuka.

“Ready?” she asked, smiling at her sister.

MIrai gave a determined nod of her head. “Un! Ikou!”

Of course Mirai had already been to Meiji; she’d been there for Maki’s graduation and her entrance exam but up to now she was still slightly nervous. It was a very prestigious school and she had a lot of pressure put on her since she knew that Maki was one of the honor students.

“Mirai are you listening to me?” Maki asked as they sat inside the bus.

“What?” Mirai snapped out from her thoughts. She didn’t realize she was spacing out. “Ah gomen Maki-nee what were you saying again?”

“I said, that boy over there keeps smiling at you, do you know him?”

Mirai slowly turned her head over to her shoulder. There, two seats from where they were, was Ryosuke, looking relieved that she finally looked his way. With a large and handsome smile on his face he waved at Mirai who scowled and turned away grumbling.

“I think I’ve seen him before, isn’t he--”

“He’s no one…” Mirai grumbled, completely cutting Maki off. She was still grumbling since she could feel Ryosuke’s eyes still boring down on the back of her head. Maki couldn’t say anything more since she started plugging in her earphones.

The path to Meiji was closing in about 15 minutes of the ride. Maki gently tapped Mirai, catching her attention.

“Mirai-chan we’re here…”

“Ah hai…” Mirai removed the earphones, tucking them back into her bag. Out of curiosity she looked back and saw that Ryosuke was standing up too. He was going to go down here too! She suddenly remembered that he was also a student of Meiji.

“Ah why me Kami-sama why me?” she whispered while looking up.

“What’s wrong?” Maki asked curiously. She shook her head. She’d rather not explain to Maki that this boy was hitting on her the other day.

“Ohayo Mirai-chan.” Mirai turned her head and saw that Ryosuke was standing at the aisle beside her. He gave another winning smile.

“Ah ohayou mou Maki-san.” Ryouske remembered his manners, also smiling at Maki who took the bait.

“Ohayou mou.” Maki replied. “Gomen demo, I don’t seem to remember who you are…”

“I was a customer at the café and I got to talking to Mirai here… Yamada Ryosuke desu.”

The bus stopped right in-front of a pathway leading to Meiji. Mirai chose this moment to stand up almost knocking Ryosuke over. “Onee-chan this is our stop, ikou…” She quickly jumped down the steps. Maki bowed, apologizing to Ryosuke for her sister’s behaviour. Even with that, the boy had a smile plastered on his face, even allowing Maki to go ahead of him. The morning sun was shining brightly on the road as they all got down from the bus. Mirai still had that scowl on her face as she waited on the street curb a few feet already away from them. She shook her head and walked along realizing that Maki wouldn’t be jogging after her.

“So are you also a student here at Meiji?” Maki asked Ryosuke as they followed closely behind Mirai.

“Mm, I’m a literature major this starting term.” Ryosuke replied as he swung his bag back and forth beside him.

Maki did a double take, turning to the young man beside her. “Eh? Maji de? (really) would you believe that Mirai is also a literature major? You two would probably be classmates in a lot of subjects.”

This time it was Ryosuke who did a double take, looking at Maki for a minute before bowing his head, which Maki realized, he did so to hide the smile growing on his face. Maki knew that Mirai was pretty and she wasn’t going to deny that fact but she also knew how allergic to guys Mirai was.

“Ganbare (Goodluck) then Ryosuke-kun.” She said, patting the young man’s arm. She walked a little faster so she could catch up with Mirai, leaving a very dazed Ryosuke behind.

=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=

“Why do you seem so excited?”

Erika flipped around to see her fellow instructor and friend, Junpei, expectantly looking at her. “Ah, excited about what?” she asked as they walked together.

“About going home.” Junpei said in a voice as if he was pointing out the obvious. “You keep smiling.”

“N-nandemonai.” Erika wasn’t very good at hiding her emotions. The minute she said those words, a contradicting smile erupted on her face. Junpei stared at her, stil wondering what she was so happy about.

“Well, this is my stop Junpei! I’ll see you tomorrow!” The bus came, braking right in-front of Erika before the doors opened with a ‘swish’. She climbed up, holding unto the rails and bounding up. She waved to the still confused Junpei who waved back unsurely. Taking her seat by the window and getting comfortable, she looked at the sights the bus passed by. Even though she saw these sights every day, something about them were always different. Somehow she herself was feeling different. Was this the effect of being excited with seeing Kazuya. She made a mental note to kiss Maki later and thank her for hiring the man right away. So what if it was just infatuation for the man’s soft handsomeness? Yes that’s what she calls it, “soft handsomeness”. Kazuya’s face was somewhat soft and feminine and she wondered what got her so attracted, she normally liked guys who were on the goofy-looking but still cute side. Before she knew it the bus was at her stop. The café was full right now. Oh yeah, it’s lunch time. She saw Suzuka trying to juggle the cashier and orders at the same time. Poor girl. She decided to save the day. She was a waitress at some point in her life when she was still looking for a full-time paying job.

“Need any help Suzuka?” she asked, passing through the counter. She didn’t even wait for an answer as she started putting on an apron.

Suzuka, who was still busy at the register could not help but sigh in relief. ‘AH Erika-nee you’re a life saver!” not wasting any more time, she concentrated on the register.

Erika made her way over to the small window separating the kitchen and the dining area just as she heard Kazuya from the kitchen. “Hai grilled cheese and mashed potatoes order please!”

“Arigato!” Erika said, giggling as she took the trays.

Kazuya peeked back at the window, first with a surprised look on his face before it turned to a small smile. “Erika! I didn’t know you were home…”

“Just got inside.” Erika replied, winking. “Jaa, I have to deliver these…” she was out to the dining room even before Kazuya could reply.

=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=

 Meiji looked grand as always. Maki remembered when she was just 18 and walking through the premises of such a prestigious school. She admitted she did well during her studies here.

“Horikita-kun?”

Maki and Mirai ceased from walking when they heard the voice. At first Maki had squint since she couldn’t see clearly who had called but when the figure got closer, so did her eyes widen in realization.

“Amano-sensei!”

The young woman, Amano-sensei as Maki called, smiled before raising up her left hand to show the gold band around her ring finger. “It’s Esumi now, I got married a few months ago!”

Maki’s eyes crinkled up in joy and happiness for her old professor. “Omedetou gozaimasu! I haven’t seen you in a long time!”

“Well how about you!” Amano-now-Esumi-sensei said, looking at Maki from head to toe with a small smile. “Any success with that café you were planning?” Although other teachers would rather encourage Maki to pursue something in the business world because of her Math major, Esumi-sensei was different, she believed that everyone had a dream they could fulfil no matter what.

“Happily running a café just a bus ride away from here.” Maki announced proudly. She turned to her sister, wrapping one arm around Mirai then pulling her forward to the university professor. “Sensei, this is my younger sister Mirai, she’s going to be studying here too!”

Politely, Mirai smiled and bowed her head though she was getting nervous because she knew what would come out from this. She knew how situations like this put up. The older sibling was smart so the younger one was smart too and blah blah blah.

“Ah welcome to Meiji, Mirai!” Esumi-sensei shook the younger one’s hand. “I hope you enjoy studying here, not that everyone enjoys studying all the time!”

Mirai had to laugh. This professor was cool, she hoped she could get her in one of her subjects.

“Ah, but it’s nice seeing you Maki-chan really.” Esumi-sensei held Maki’s hand as if having a nostalgic flashback. “I have to run but I know I’ll be seeing you again.” She winked at Mirai as she said this.

“Oh it was so nice seeing you again sensei!”

“Kochira koso! (same here)” Esumi was already jogging away but not forgetting to wave back. Once she was out of sight, Mirai slowly turned to Maki with a knowing smirk on her face. Maki stared back innocently.

“What?”

“Am I going to have a tough time living up to your past professors expectations?” Mirai uttered it in a joking manner.

“Silly.” Maki laughed as she pulled Mirai closer with her arms still around the younger one’s shoulder as they continued to explore Meiji before the orientation started.

“Can we go eat first onee-chan?” Mirai asked rubbing her stomach. She just remembered that her breakfast was only coffee, if you could even call that a breakfast.

“Sure, I’m kind of hungry myself…”

Studying for years in Meiji, Maki knew every nook and cranny there was around the place. She chose the cafeteria near the courts.

They already had their food with them and were sitting down but Mirai wanted to get extra pudding, leaving Maki all alone at the table.

Maki was picking bits of her macaroni and cheese, slowly eating when she saw a shadow forming at her right side. She immediately snapped her head, ready to reprimand whoever that was standing so close beside her but she lost her voice when she saw who it was.

“Sho?”

“Glad to see you still remember me Maki-chan!” Sakurai Sho invited himself, sitting adjacent Maki at the table as he removed his thick-rimmed glasses off.

“You’ve changed!” Maki blurted out in a happy tone. Sakurai Sho sort of, well to put into words, evolved! He was two batches earlier than Maki and was the super geek of Meiji. But now, all the pimples were gone and his baby fat went away too!

=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=o=

Mirai waited patiently until the pudding was served to her, she accepted with an excited smile but when she turned her expression changed.

“Is that for me?”

Did she have a magnet for Ryosuke? Because everywhere she went he was there.

“What are you doing here?” She asked sourly, making her way back to their table.

“I’m here with coach, going to eat you know…” Ryosuke explained. But then he and Mirai stopped mid-way when they saw Tomohisa at the middle of the cafeteria with an angry expression on his face as he watched Sho and Maki talking to each other.

============================================================================================

AN: Chapter 4 here! ohohoh! Junpei is Mizobata Junpei! I love him, he's such a cute actor and he looked like a little brother to Erika in Boss. Esumi, well I imagined Esumi Makiko haha! I was watching Bull Doctor a while ago and she looked so perfect for the professor. and Mirai is so pretty in Bull Doctor! well she's always pretty but there she just always sparkled! I'm a girl but I was literlly drooling while watching her :p and yes Sho is here! I know he's the smart type and his character would be perfect for this! hope you enjoy the chapter! :D