Chapter 3 – Meeting again

Note:

[i] [/i]- thoughts
Suki – I like you

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It was almost dark and Kei stood shivering in front of the Docomo shop at Roppongi, giving out fliers to by passers. It was almost winter so the weather was expected to be cooler; however Kei forgot to bring a jacket with him when he left the share house this morning. It was still warm when he left for work, so he didn’t bother to go back and fetch his jacket.

"Achoo! I hate my job” he complained under his breath. He has to stand there outside until he finishes giving out all of the Docomo fliers to the people. Kei place the fliers under his underarm and he began rubbing his hands together trying to unfreeze his fingers. He blew warm hair onto his hands as he feels the numbness go away. [i] Ah...that feels good.[/i] Suddenly he felt a small tap on his shoulder. When he turned around he was surprise at who he saw standing behind him.

“Yo!” Naomi greeted as she made a peace sign with her fingers.

“Oh…….” Was all Kei could say back. He was shock to see her again so quickly. It has only been four days since he last saw her at the reunion. Well for him four days seems like a year. He can’t believe how fate allowed them to meet again.

“How did you know I was here?” he asked her.

“I didn’t. I was just passing by.” She told him honestly.

"Souka...."

When he saw a man about to pass by them, he immediately stepped forward, and greeted the man. He gave him a flier. The man nodded as he took the flier from his hand. Kei gave him a slight smile as the man walked away.

“What are you handing out?” Naomi asked suddenly.

“Umm, they’re promotional fliers. I work at Docomo.” Kei pointed at the shop behind them. She nodded as she scanned the store from top to bottom.

Naomi turned her gaze back to him again. "Well?" She stretched out her hand towards him.

"Huh?" Kei stood there puzzled.

"Aren't you going to give one?" She asked him with a grin.

"Oh, here." When he gave her a flier, their fingers brushed against each other, and both of them blushed. He immediately snatched his hand away from her hand and Naomi did the same thing. Their sudden kiss during the reunion made them feel awkward with each other.

Kei was embarrassed for touching her hand, but deep inside he actually liked it. He wondered if Naomi felt the same way, but he didn't dare to ask her. He was too embarrassed to ask.

"It sure is cold today." Naomi commented as she broke the awkwardness between them.

"Yea....." Kei agreed.

“Ano, what are you doing here?” he asked.

“Oh, I’m heading over to—to my friend’s house.” She said nervously.

“Ah, sou…..”

Both of them became silent again. Kei doesn't know how else he could continue the conversation. Everything just became more awkward.

“Well, I guess I’ll see you around. Bye.” She smiled and slowly walked away.

Kei smiled back as he uttered a soft ‘goodbye’ to her disappearing figure. *sigh* [i] There she goes again…...I wonder if I’ll get another chance to see her again? [/i] Kei closed his eyes and he folded his hands together praying and wishing intently to see her again.

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*ding dong* the sound of the doorbell rang after Naomi pressed the button. She stood patiently outside of an apartment. She examined the elegant maroon door that stood in front of her. A couple of seconds later the door opened and she was welcomed by a tall young man wearing light grey cardigan sweater and a white dress shirt underneath it. When he saw her he immediately gave her a peck on the lips and they went inside.

“What took you so long?” he asked her.

“Ah, gome the train was late so I couldn’t get here earlier.” She explained to him.

“Souka. I could’ve picked you up you know.” He said as he helped her take her sweater off.

“I didn’t want to bother you.” She said shyly.

“But I’m your boyfriend.” Koji lifted her chin up so that their eyes met each other. “You’ll never be a bother to me.” He said grinning at her. She couldn’t help but smile back at his cute smile.

“Well, let’s go eat dinner now.” Koji led her to the dining room and he pulled out the chair for her like a gentleman. Naomi thanked him as she slowly sat on the chair.

The two kept silent as they ate their dinner. They didn't talk much with each other, instead they spoke with their eyes. They would look up and smile and nod from time to time whenever their eyes gaze at each other. It’s like the two of them have their own way of communicating with each other.

The first to break the silence was Koji. “How was the reunion?” He suddenly asked.

Naomi choked on her food when she remembered what happened during the reunion. She immediately grabbed the glass of water beside her and coughed after drinking it.

“Naomi are you alright?” Koji asked worriedly. When he was about to get up from his seat to help her, she motioned him that to sit down.

*cough, cough* “I’m ok” she smiled sheepishly.

“Did something happen during the reunion?”

Naomi took a minute before she answered him. She felt guilty about what happened during the reunion, but she didn't want to worry him. [i] Should I tell him the truth? No, I can’t tell him the truth. I won’t ruin our relationship just because of one stupid mistake. [/i] After another second or so, she shook her head.

“I was just chewing too fast, so I choked a little bit.” Naomi didn’t look at him in the eyes when she told him that. Her eyes are always wondering off whenever she tells a lie. Koji didn’t notice anything peculiar at all. He just nodded and continued eating.

[i] I let my emotions get the better of me that night. I can’t let that mistake happen again.[/i]

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[Share house]

Ruka laid on the couch with her legs crossed watching Zettai Kareshi (Absolute Boyfriend), while Takeru slept soundlessly on the love seat adjacent to the couch.

“Haha, check out that robot. He’s trying to land a kiss on her.” Ruka pointed out laughing hysterically as the girl tries to run away from a guy.

Suddenly she heard Takeru mumble something in his sleep. At first she thought it was nothing, so she just ignored it. But then a few minutes later he began mumbling stuff again. Curious, she sat up and moved her ear closer to his face listening intently for him to mumble again. Within moments Takeru began to mumble again.

“…..suki…..d~~~” he mumbled. Ruka couldn’t catch the last part, but she was pretty sure he said ‘suki.’ [i] suki? Huh? [/i] Ruka scratched the back of her head confused. [i] Is he talking about Michiru?[/i]

“Oh well.” Ruka just shrugged it off and went back to watching TV.

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Thirty minutes later, Takeru woke up from his deep sleep. He sat up and stretched his hands over his head. Then he noticed Ruka sleeping on the couch. He looked up at the wall and checked the time. [i] It’s only 5pm. [/i] They’ve been living together in the share house for a long time and he never saw her sleeping this early; at this time she’s either at work or at home watching TV. “This is a first.” He thought.

Takeru stared at her sleeping figure. He smirked when he saw her shiver. He heads over to the closet and takes out a spare blanket. He walked over to the couch and he gently placed the blanket over her shivering body. As he covers her with the blanket, he couldn’t help but stare at her peaceful sleeping face.

“Who knew she could look so pretty sleeping?” He chuckled as he continued staring at her face. Although they’ve lived together for a long time, he never saw her when she's asleep. He never thought that watching someone sleep can make him smile like this. He’s like an innocent lovestruck teenager.

Suddenly Ruka move her face closer to his face. His eyes widened and his cheeks blushed when her face was just a few inches away from his. His eyes fell right at her pink lips. He was staring intently at it. He slowly moved his face towards hers. But then he realized what he was about to do.

Takeru immediately stood up and paced back and forth his hands cupping his red cheeks. He can’t believe how close their faces were. For a second he thought about kissing her. Takeru stopped on his tracks and he shook the thought away. [i] Why am I acting so weird? [/i] he thought. When he looked back at her his heart skipped a beat.

“Muri……zettai muri…...(impossible......definitely impossible……)”

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“Yeah, I was just finishing up work.” Kei waved to his
co-worker as he exits the Docomo shop.

“Party?” he asked curiously.

“Yea we’re having a party right now, here at the share house.” Takeru explained on the other end of the line.

“Why are you guys having a party?”

“You know my new girlfriend right? Michiru?”

“Who?” Kei stood outside trying to figure out who Michiru was. Then he remembered that woman at the share house four days ago. “Ah, yea. I remember now. What about her?”

“She just moved in to the share house! She asked me a couple of days ago if it’d be alright for her to live at the share house. Ruka said it’s ok for her. Ah! I forgot to ask you if it was alright. Your cool with it right?”
Kei sighed for he knew he has no other choice but to say ‘yes’ since she already moved in. It’ll be very rude of him to refuse now. He sighed and he told Takeru that it was alright. Suddenly a familiar figure across the street caught his eyes. [i] Ah! There she is again! [/i]

“We’re celebrating her moving into the share house.” Takeru explained.

Kei ran to the end of the sidewalk and he began pressing the button on the walk sign vigorously. His silence made Takeru worried. “Kei? Are you still there?”
“Yea, I’m here.” He replied as he frantically searched for her on the other side of the road.

“Why do you sound like you’re in a hurry?”

“Umm……hey, can I bring someone over at the party?” Kei ran across the road as soon as the traffic light turned red, he didn’t even waiting for the walk signal.

“Yea sure! Bring as many as you want! The more the better!”

“Ok, I’ll be there shortly. Jaa ne!” Kei hung up before Takeru could say goodbye. When he got to the other side of the street she saw her turning to the corner. He ran as fast as he can to catch up with her.

When he was only a meter away from her he stopped when he saw her walking aimlessly. He slowed down and he followed quietly behind her. He knew that she was in deep thinking right now. He could tell from her posture; her eyes staring at ground, her hands folded behind her back and her feet dragging on the ground. He knew that she’s probably dealing with a problem right now. He didn’t want to disturb her because he knows how cranky she’ll get when her thoughts are interrupted. ‘He knew’…….’he knew’…….’he knew’……..Knowing all of these traits about her made him feel so close to her, yet he’s not.

Their relationship has drifted apart ever since he left. He promised her that he will come back for her after he finishes college, but he never did. She waited six years for him, and yet he never came back. When he did come back, she has already left for Tokyo. And just like that their relationship ended. He knows he has no right to force her to come back to him. And now their relationship was back to the way it was before, before they started dating; following her from behind and only being able to look at her from afar. Once again, they are strangers to each other.

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A/N: Hey guys! Sorry for the late update. I got a little busy with school stuff ^^ I hope this chapter wasn’t too boring. I wanted to introduce Koji to this chapter. I also wanted to reveal some of Naomi and Kei’s past.

Comments would be very much appreciated. Stay tune for the next chapter! :D