All the students in the gym hold their breath, as Yuri prepares himself for a jump. They are having a high jump session for their P.E class. Most of the girls in the class are straightly focus on Yuri. Their expression is full of admiration and cheer for the boy who just started his turn. He easily lifts himself up and jumps over those tall blocks. As he reaches the ground he let a smirk that can faint every girls in their class. But fortunately, they all managed to just scream their heart out. Yuri turns to everyone and smiles even more.

‘Aah… here he goes again.’  said Rika in her thought, as she looks at Yuri who’s smiling proud in front of them. She then looks around to see her classmates ‘Kyaaa-ing~’ over him, as they are trying to reach his hand as if that he is a saint. She showed an expression of disgust and rolled her eyes, not knowing that she caught Yuri’s attention on what she did. Yuri let a playful smile.

At the library, Yuri is wasting his time strolling in those bookshelves, when an entertaining sight caught him. He stopped to see, a peeking curly hair not far from him. Then a playful smile curves on his lip. He walks forward still wearing that expression. He managed to sit and watches the girl reading in front of him. She doesn’t notice his presence, because the book that she’s reading covers her face. Yuri rests his chin in both hands. “CI…TY OF BONES…” he read. It is the title of the book that she’s reading.

“Oh! So, what happened to Jace and Clary? Are they together now?” he snapped, realizing that he also knows the book she’s reading.

“Well… they’re still not, because they thought that they are still siblings…” she suddenly spoke, book still covering her face. Yuri unbelievably looks at her and slightly slammed the table by his hand. It still made a noise, enough to make Rika back in to reality. “Gosh! For how long they will stay like that?! They are just hurting their selves!” he said, pissed can be trace on his voice.

Rika was reading seriously earlier. She’s really in to it that she didn’t even notice the presence of the boy who’s now in front of her since earlier. She immediately put the book down and sees him, looking at her intimately. They are the only ones on that table. She became move that made Yuri smirked. She furrowed her eyes and tries to ignore him then fixes her things. Yuri just watches her innocently. She’s now leaving when he managed to stand up from his sit.

“Wait!” he called, but she didn’t even dare to look back. So, he just sits back and sighed. He watches her, as she walks away from that place. He wonders why she ended up like that, ignoring him… making their distance impossible. He then reminisces the first day they met…

It was his first day to his new school. He was running fast for he was late. He stopped to notice that he’s not familiar to his surroundings anymore. He’s lost. He just scratches his head, as he moves backward to go back from where he went, when he bumped in to someone. He immediately turned at his back and sees a girl, taking her things which scattered on the ground. The impact was that much that made the girl lost her balance.

“Oh my God! Are you alright?” he asked in worried, as he lifts her up. The girl didn’t answer, as she keeps her head down. Yuri stayed looking at her, still holding both of her arms. She has a long curly hair that covers half of her face. He shoves away that part of her hair and sees her face. He became move to see her cute innocent face behind those strands of hair.

“Are you alright?” he asked again, when he recovered from amazement. The girl slowly nod, eyes avoiding his sight. “Okay…” Yuri said and took her school bag on the ground then lends it to her. The girl looks at him then take her bag. Yuri smiled and turned his back at her, starting to leave.

Rika just watches him leaving, when he stopped from walking. He’s turning his head right to left, as he scratches his head. Rika got the mood and noticed his uniform. She walked forward to him and gave him a poke at his back. Yuri turned to her.

“Anou…” she started, head is down. “I’m also going to Horikoshi Gaku-

“Really?! I guess we can walk there together!” 

Rika was stopped to see his delighted face. She didn’t help but let a wide smile and immediately nods. Yuri too, he can’t help but smile naturally, seeing this girl smiling like that in front of him feels really amazing.

It seems like the time was stopped, as they walk together. They are talking so many things then mix it with their chuckles. They stayed like that, as if that they are the only people around. Yuri felt really amazed by her, time to time that she was talking. He feels his natural self while talking with her.

“Chinen!”

They were stopped from walking, when someone called him. It was also then that they realized that they are now in front of their school. They both look to the boy, who’s going near to them. “Hey, Chinen! What are you? A turtle?! Going easy, while someone might beat us for being late.”  said the tall boy in front of them.

Rika looks at him, like he’s familiar to her. The tall boy didn’t bother to look at her and turned his back at them. He started to leave, as Yuri scratches his head. He turns to her.

“I’m going first now… see you later!” he said and started to run. But he suddenly turned back at her. “By the way…! I’m Yuri Chinen! Nice meeting you!!” he shouted in a distance.

Rika became move for a moment. “Chinen… Yuri?!” where did she heard that name again and that tall boy… he seems really familiar to her.

Another day, Yuri saw Rika, eating alone in one of the tables at the canteen. She noticed him too but obviously pretends that she didn’t see him. Yuri furrowed his eyes. He was about to reach her place, holding his own tray of food, when someone stops him by the shoulders.

“Oi, Chinen ~ where do you think you are going? This way is in our seats!” approached the same tall boy at his back. It was Yuto, one of his co-members in Hey! Say! JUMP, an idol boy group in Japan. They are really popular and currently all the girls surrounding them are screaming for them.

Yuri took a deep breath and looks at Rika again, who’s still obviously ignoring the situation. “Come on ~!” Yuto held him at their place but his eyes are still at her.

Then it was started… him trying to go near to her and her ignoring his presence. He also did all the naughty things he could do for her to get annoyed, so, that she will even give him a shout. But even a cold sentence from her, he didn’t hear.

Since then… he keeps on wondering why she’s being like that. She just stay in one corner, didn’t even try to talk with others. She will just often see holding a book, as if that is her best friend and she could never let that thing off from her sight. She’s making him insane form wondering. She’s making him crazy, yet he misses her smile.

Yuri let a deep sigh after remembering those times.

Rika doesn’t mind the noise around her, as she keeps on reading her favorite novel book. She’s in the gym, looking for a peaceful area to read, but unfortunately there are students playing there. But she doesn’t mind, as long that they won’t disturb her. 

She’s on the of her reading, when a ball hit her head. She was move and touches the part of her head which got hurt. “Ouch…” she whined.

“Are you alright?” an immediate voice near her said. Worried can be trace on him.

Yuri was about to touch her when she looks up. Her eyes got big as he sees him. “Rika, are you alright?” he repeated. Rika didn’t utter any word and immediately gets up to leave. She just doesn’t understand on what she saw in his expression.

“Wait, Rika!”

Yuri hurriedly holds her in her arm, before she continues to walk away.  “Let me take you to the clinic.” He said when their eyes met.  

Oh, how he like those eyes but Rika shoves his hand from her and directly looks at him. “I’m okay…” she said and started to walk again.

He watches her back, as she walks away. He clenches his fist and controls himself in his emotions. He took a deep breath then goes to her. He doesn’t want to just let it. He can’t take that she’s being like that towards him. Why does she keep ignoring his presence?  He just can’t let it be… He can’t take it… her, always going away from his sight.

He grabs her hand and led her outside the gym. Rika just look at him in disbelief. When they got outside, she forcedly took her hand from his tight hold.

“What are you doing?!” she almost shouts. Then Yuri faced her. There was a long pause between them, when she dares to leave him again. Yuri stops her by almost hugging her. Rika flinched for a moment. “I just can’t take… you, always going away from me…” Yuri almost whispered.

“That’s not a big deal anyway….” She said and ignores his arms on her then started to leave. 

Yuri turns to her way. “Yes it is…” he said. It made Rika turns to him again with a surprise look in her face. Suddenly, her expression change to realize who he really is. “Just… stop this. Just go away from me…” she said.

“But why?! Why do I need to go away when all I ever wanted is to be always at you’re side….” 

Rika was stopped from her place, as she looks him again in surprise. “W-what are you talking about….?” She managed to utter.

“Yeah, Rika… It’s crazy but true. I am in love with you…. Since, then that I met you on my way here. Since, then that you’ve talked to me, laughed with me. And… since then that I’ve seen you smile… I’m always in love with you. That’s why I just can’t take that you’re always going away from when all I wanted is to be always near you….” Yuri confessed, eyes are glittering because of the threatened tears.

Rika didn’t help but to release the tears that she’s controlling earlier. “Because… You are Yuri Chinen! You are popular not only at this school but in whole Japan! And I don’t want to see your career ruining because of me. I don’t want them to see you near to this curly book worm girl! Add to that the word boring ~”

“But I also don’t want to see myself ruining without you….”  Yuri uttered in her ears.

Rika became move to realize that he’s now in front of her, face near hers. She looks up that made Yuri reaches her lips. Her eyes became wide as she feels him kissing her.

The world stops for Rika when Yuri let go of her lips.

“Rika… it’s crazy but true but I can’t see myself with nobody but you… please just stay by my side.” He said and let a smile.

Rika just nod with no words to utter. 

- END -