Asahi

do you have practice today?

Nope! Free day ☺

maybe we can hang out?

only if you're not busy!

Okay!

I can meet you at your school now

see you soon ☺

"Who are you talking to, huh?" Anika interrogates knowingly. I lock my phone and shoot her a quick smile instead of answering the question.

"I figured," She replies to herself as we walk down the stairs towards the exit.

Marking a full week since his and Daichi's argument, we've had to resort to talking to each other mainly via messaging. Due to their once-daily, sometimes twice-daily practices for the Spring preliminary finals, I haven't had the chance to see him since last week. Seeing that he has a free day today seemed like the perfect opportunity to be able to spend time with him.

"We're going to hang out when he gets here," I change the subject and Anika fake gags. Glad to see she's back to being herself.

"Gross. I hate romance." She scrunches up her nose as I imagine she's thinking about it.

"Well, we're just hanging out, it's not like a date or anything," I justify. As I think about it, I start to wonder what that would be like, but I don't wonder out loud for Anika's sake.

"I better not hear about any funny business," she says in a scolding tone, and I shake my head.

"What are you doing after school then?" I ask her, wanting to draw her attention elsewhere.

"Hm, I don't know, homework, I guess," she responds. "I have to catch up on a lot since I wasn't here."

"Right," I say sympathetically, "I wish your mom had at least told my mom you were sick so I could've brought you your homework."

"Yeah, it's okay," she shrugs as we finally pass the exit doors and are greeted by sunshine.

"Is he here yet? I'll probably go home soon." Anika asks and checking my phone for any updates, there's nothing.

"It's okay if you need to go now, I'll be fine waiting here," I assure her, and she checks again with me one more time. I repeat my statement, and she goes on to wave goodbye before leaving.

It turns out I don't have to wait long, as my phone starts to buzz a few minutes later. I take it out, noticing that I'm getting a call from Asahi.

"Hello?" I answer.

"Hi, I'm here! I'm just waiting outside the gates, I don't wanna go inside in case I look weird."

"Okay, I'll meet you."

"Okay, see you soon."

"See you!" I say before ending the call. I put my phone in my pocket as I walk down the path to the gates where he stands. If I didn't know him already, he might look a bit intimidating at first glance, with his height and facial features. As much as he would panic at the realization, it doesn't really help draw attention away from him that he's a tall guy who doesn't meet anyone's gaze, wearing a black uniform, waiting outside an all-girls school. Of course, I know this creepy image of him is far from the truth of who he is.

"That was fast," I say as I approach him, and he's startled to see me at first but his face relaxes quickly.

"I'm glad I'm not late. So... what should we do?" He asks, and I start to think. Remembering that there's a small plaza some minutes away, I pose the idea to him, and when he agrees, we begin to walk there.

"So, why no practice today?" I ask as we settle into a decent rhythm of walking.

"Um, well, it's always good to have a break once in a while, I think," he responds. "... It could be that maybe Coach Ukai noticed that tensions are still a bit high since last week, so he cancelled practice."

"Ah, I see," I nod with another person in mind. "... Have you spoken to Daichi since then?"

He's silent for a moment. "... I haven't really talked to him. But, I asked Sugawara about him today before I left and he said that he's doing okay."

"That's good... hopefully, things go back to normal," I trail off, and we're set in silence again, walking side-by-side. I want to ask him about what really happened inside the club room that night, just before Sugawara was able to catch them. I bite my lower lip as a safeguard just to ensure my thoughts don't slip out by accident. No matter how curious I am, it's probably for the best not to bring it up right now.

⋆⋆⋆

"Wow. It's a lot more different than I remember." I note as we reach the outside perimeter of the plaza.

"Really? When's the last time you've been here?" He asks, and I shrug.

"I don't know, maybe when I was younger. From far away, I thought nothing had changed about it." I smile as we walk towards it. From a farther perspective, yes, it did appear small and slightly decrepit, but now, newer and distinct shops populate the area, and students from all different schools are present, differentiated by their uniforms. Most of them look accustomed to their sights.

"Where should we go first?" He asks.

"I don't even know," I scan over the premises, "there are too many choices."

"Maybe here?" He gestures to the first shop on our left. Through the window, I can see various types of stationery and other goods. I shrug as if to settle, and he holds the door open for me so I can go inside first.

"Thank you," I say as I head inside. The shop puts forth a trendy look, with brick walls outlining the inside and the ceiling strewn with hanging potted plants. In the middle, wooden tables display stands holding pens, paints, and other stationery, as well as small baubles.

"Hello," an older woman says at the front desk. I nod and return the greeting before shifting my attention back to all of the products in front of me.

"It's pretty nice in here," I smile at Asahi, who's taking in the sights just the same. He nods in agreement, and I start to walk around while he follows me. I navigate towards a shelf donning notebooks with different designs on them. I settle my eyes on one with a white cover gridded with black lines. It's simple, but it doesn't hurt my eyes as much as some of the more complexly-designed covers. I take the first one in the stack and flip through it.

"Hm," I sound in approval.

"Do you like it?" Asahi asks. I mull my answer over, not really sure exactly what I should be looking for in a notebook, but figure I might need one since I'm starting to run out of room in the one I'm currently using.

"It's nice," I respond, yet put it back. "I like it, but I'm going to think about it first. We can go outside for now." I say, and he follows me out after we thank the shop employee.

"I'm going to see if there's a washroom nearby, will you wait here?" I ask as we stand outside the shop's window.

"Okay," He responds, and I turn away to explore, not long enough before I see a directory sign with arrows pointing in the direction of a washroom. I swivel around to face him, gesturing at the sign with a smile, and he smiles back with his feet planted in the ground.

When I come back, he's carrying a small bag, notebook-sized. I already have a notion about what may lay inside, and as I approach, I ask, "What's in there?"

"Oh, um, it's the notebook you were looking at earlier," He says, opening the bag so I can peer inside.

"Aw, you didn't have to get it... Thank you so much." I smile at him, and his face starts to redden.

"No, of course! Um... Do you want to walk around?" Asahi looks away shyly but glances back in time to see me nod.

"... You seem a lot less tired today than the last time we walked to school together," He says as we walk around the promenade leisurely.

"Yeah, I was able to catch up on my sleep," I respond and my eyes catch onto a vending machine standing adjacent to a wall.

I shift my direction towards it, saying, "I kind of feel like having something to drink."

I make sure to take out some money from my coin purse just as we reach it, wanting to pay for it myself.

"I got it," I say, pressing some coins into the slot before I look at him to check if he's about to offer to pay. His hand hovers over his pocket at first but drops down to his side again when he realizes I've already put in my own money.

"Is there anything you want?" I say as I gaze at the choices in front of me. I press a button, dispensing a small canned drink, and I crouch down to take it. With coins in my other hand, I look at him for a decision. He shakes his head firmly, and I look at the drinks again, thinking about what he might like regardless.

"It's okay," he reiterates, and I look back up at him once more for confirmation. He looks into my eyes, giving me a quick smile before placing a hand on my shoulder then removing it as soon as there's contact.

I give him a look of confusion, and I can tell that he's searching for the right words to say, and as he finds them, he lets out a sheepish laugh. "Um... is it okay if I put my hand on your shoulder?"

My confused look remains at his question. "Of course... why? You've done it before."

He scans the area, and I notice his gaze flutter between the different pairs and groups of other unfamiliar students.

"There's a lot of people," he says with cheeks reddened. "I don't want you to feel uncomfortable."

"I won't feel uncomfortable," I react quickly, and the look of concern on his face changes to one of relief. As he places a hand on my shoulder, though still with the same sense of hesitation as earlier, I feel a blush on my face, inching myself closer to him. This gives him a second bit of assurance, and suddenly, his grip on me tightens slightly with confidence, making me feel even redder. We continue to walk around the path, and for the first time, I start to feel like we're actually a couple.

⋆⋆⋆

We walk around the guided path a few more times, going into other shops just to see what we might find. An hour and a half into it, we both agree that our eyes have become indifferent to the sights and that it might be time to leave. The sun still shines brightly, though in a slightly lower position than earlier.

"What should we do?" He asks as we leave the grounds. As soon as I begin to think, it doesn't take me long to come up with an answer.

"Ice cream?" I suggest, and he grins at the idea.

"There's a place near our houses, we can go there," he says, and we begin to walk towards home.

As we approach Karasuno, I stretch my arms out in front of me. "Is it weird to pass by your school again? Since there's no practice."

"Well... a little bit," he responds, and as we walk by, I can hear loud screams coming from inside the grounds. They're indiscernible, but the volume gets my attention.

"Wonder what's going on in there," I say with a confused expression on my face.

Asahi shrugs in response, "Maybe it's another team using the gym."

It takes slightly longer to get to our destination than usual, as we have to walk past both of our schools before getting back to the residential area. He takes us on a familiar right turn, and I realize we're heading on the same way that leads to the park from that one early morning.

"Around here?" I ask, and immediately I see a small ice cream stand just a few metres away. It must've not been set up the morning that we came here. The person behind the stand seems to recognize Asahi and they greet each other familiarly. The menu above me displays limited flavours, but I suggest he picks for both of us. He decides quickly, paying for two cones topped with the same colour of ice cream. He hands one to me before suggesting we sit in the park from before. I nod, and we both eat quietly at our ice cream before reaching an empty bench.

"Do you know each other well?" I ask him, referring to the older man behind the stand.

"Well, kind of," He replies, "I've been there a few times, either with others or on my own. He's a nice person."

"Ah, I see. The ice cream is really good." I say in approval, zeroing in on a piece of playground equipment as I cautiously lick at the cold dessert. I feel his eyes on me for a moment, and I slowly turn my head to glance at him. As soon as I catch his gaze, his cheeks redden. I look at his ice cream, which is dripping over the sides from not being touched. I smile at it while scrunching up a napkin and pressing it to the ice cream to catch the stray drops.

"Don't spill any," I laugh, and he returns an embarrassed smile.

After we finish our ice cream, we continue to sit with each other as the sun begins to set on the horizon. I remember times where I've watched it on my own, outside my window or as I headed home from school on a late autumn afternoon. Never with someone else before, and I immediately tell the difference between watching something like this alone and with someone important to me. This feeling urges me to rest my head on his shoulder, and I act on it, perfectly able to find the height to do so. His body doesn't jolt at the contact, in fact, he seems to settle into it. I close my eyes for a moment as we watch the sun slowly descend, never wanting this feeling to end.