Boy Meets Girl, Girl Meets Boy: A Love Story (Chapter 24)
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*sighs*
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Chapter Twenty Four
Coffee. I need coffee.
I actually never drink coffee. Well, not this regularly. I used to drink when I was young, back in high school, just to keep myself awake and to keep up with the workload. The habit followed me until my first year into University. I guess it was, in a way, to compensate for my lack of sleep and obvious sleeping problem.
Over the last few months, however, I stopped drinking coffee. Now, I'm trying to be healthy and cut back on my bad habits, drinking gallons of coffee being one of them. I think my habit stopped when...I think it started that day when this guy, an arrogant little dwarf, bumped into me, making me spill coffee all over myself and onto him too....
Whose idea was it to meet here at the Johnny's Entertainment building anyway?? Can't even find a decent cup of coffee around here! I groan as I stomp around the cafeteria. Why couldn't we at least have met at NTV studios instead? It's closer to Studio 8 and besides, at least they have a great bakery that sells delicious coffee. Unlike here...
And why did I come anyway?? I should have left Emiko to go on her own and see her precious "Toshi-kun" (Oh God! Make me puke, why don't you??). Never mind the fact that she's my best friend and that I should be with her to protect her from prying eyes but again, what am I doing here?? I should've left her, stayed at home and locked myself into my room to sleep until eternity. Or at least, until I can get Nino to stop appearing in my dreams. Best friend or no best friend, I shouldn't even be here. She's an adult anyway. She doesn't need me. She can handle this.
ARGH!!!! WHERE THE HELL IS THAT GODDAMN COFFEE???
Excuse me, miss but I ordered some coffee. I'd like to have it, in this century, if possi - ah! Here it is. Took you long enough...
I wrap my hands around the small cup. God, if it isn't so freaking cold in here. It really is fall, isn't it?
I slink out of the cafeteria and into the nearest elevator, taking me up into the building. As I arrive into God knows what floor (can't remember), I keep asking myself why was I here in the first place. Then I remembered that, oh, yeah - Emiko wanted to see Satoshi. I should've just dropped her off here. Or at the airport, but then, she would have to face, not only the photographers but also hoards of screaming fans, as well as his manager and everyone else. Which, I could only presume, that it wouldn't be safe at all.
I sighed as I tried to shake my head, my hair almost falling on my face. My thoughts then shifted to the events of the last few days. As expected, I didn't get any sleep last night, thanks, in part, to another dream featuring Nino. Geez, but I must look like hell right now. Not even make up or a trip to the salon can cover it, which was what my sister tried to do. Oh sure, I know Rina meant well. She took me out for a girl's day to go shopping, then to the spa and the salon. I must say though, I love my new haircut. So does Seiji, probably, or else he wouldn't have gone and asked me out. And I was probably crazy, just crazy enough to say yes. We went out last Friday and the following day after that and...today is...Monday?
I checked my watch while holding the cup with my other hand. Maybe I should tell Emiko I'm leaving. I don't even want to be here. Why was I here again?
I opened the door to a room and walked in, my head still down and my hands still wrapped around the cup. "Emiko, I'm gonna go ahead. Something ca - "
Crash!!
I raised my head to tell her something, but apparently, not fast enough as I raised it just in time to see that I had bumped into someone. Next thing I know, I'm falling down backwards, sending my coffee cup flying into the air and far behind me. I close my eyes as I fall onto the carpeted floor, with a body crashing heavily on top of me.
"Itai!!!" I yelled. "What the he - " I groaned in pain and started hitting the person on top of me, yelling at him to get off me. I push the person on top of me, sitting up and rubbing the back of my head. When I open my eyes, I find Nino sitting in front of me. I push him away, hard, and quickly stand up, turning around and facing him, standing as far away from him as possible.
Okay, I did not expect this to happen. I stood a few feet away from him, trying not to look at him but failing miserably. Well, who wouldn’t? He was wearing a pink suit (jacket and pants), dabbed with neon yellow spots all over, and a black collared shirt underneath. But I still couldn’t get over the pinkness because even his necktie was…pink.
My eyes roamed up and down over his body, an eyebrow raised. “Wow…huh, so you really are gay after all…”
“Woah! You're an Elephant!! Have you lost weight?!” He retorted back.
“If I’m an Elephant, then what are you??” I shot at him. Okay, but THAT DID NOT MAKE ANY SENSE! I mentally beat myself up for that nonsense comment but I couldn’t let him go without a fight.
“My God, you look like crap!! What happened? Stick a finger in a socket?”
“Gee, thanks. So do you, by the way…”
“Erhm…” A voice clears his throat, interrupting us. We turn around to find Ohno and Emiko, holding hands (insert eye-rolling here), standing there and watching us fondly. “I see you two have already seen each other…” Emiko giggled and shot Ohno a knowing look. Ohno gave her a small smirk and nodded back.
I rolled my eyes at them. “Hey, I just came back to tell you that I’m gonna go ahead, okay?” I bowed at the two lovebirds.
“Go? But you just got…here…” I shot Emiko a look as Ohno’s cell phone rang, forcing him to move to another room and answer it.
"Yeah, you just got here! Why don't you stay?" Nino mimicked Emiko, then smirked at me. I ignored him and gave Emiko a bow. "Gomen ne. I'll see you at home, okay?" She nodded and went to find Ohno.
Turning around, I grab my bag and head for the door. For a moment, I stop and look at him. I think I was waiting for something to happen, though I don't know what.
He just stood there, staring back at me with narrowed eyes. I take a step back as he steps forward towards me. One hand reaches out, grabbing a couple of strands of my hair. I start to wonder to myself just what he was doing but I make no move to stop him or even walk away.
He lifts the piece of strands, rubbing it between his fingers. "You got your hair cut..." Lifting it near his nose, he sniffs it lightly.
Um...yeah, in case you haven't noticed. What's it to you anyway?? "Yeah, I did..." My voice comes out soft and shaky. I try to cover it up by slapping his hand away.
He makes a face and walks away. I exhale as he walks past me, sighing heavily. Closing my eyes, I breathe mentally to calm myself down but when I open them, I find him still standing right in front of me, trying to take a picture of me with his cell phone. There it was again, his trademark smirk strewn across his mouth.
I raise an eyebrow and just stand there. I wanted to do something for some reason, but couldn't decide whether to punch him or hug him. Instead, I did both. My left arm reached out, a hand sliding behind him and pulling him close as I threw my arms around him.
At first, he just stood there, motionless. I tighten my arms around him, inhaling his scent. That's when he started moving. He started waving an arm up, making small choking noises but I wouldn't let go. "Wh-why are you - Hana-chan!! Why are you hugging me?! Let me go!! Na-nande? Nande da yo?! Oi!" Raising his arms, he lifted my arms around him, squirming and screaming in that annoying, high-pitched voice of his.
After I let my arms go, I whack him on the arm.
“Hey! What was that for?” He curses under his breath, something about me being the most violent girl he’s ever met.
“Only around you.” I respond back. “That,” I said. “was for spilling my coffee. You owe me one."
"I owe you...what?! I owe you nothing!" Suddenly, the phone in the room rang. Nino crossed to the other side, picked it up and responded, "Hai?...Speaking...w-what?!" I heard the phone dropping loudly.
Next thing I know, I feel one hand around my arm, grabbing me and pulling me back. "Hana-chan! Cho-chotto!"
I stop and turn around, shoving his hand away. "I told you never to call me that!!" I hiss before continuing to walk.
He ran in front of me, spreading his arms sideways out, and blocked himself against the door. "You can't leave!"
"And why not?" I raise an eyebrow. When he couldn't give me a definite answer, replying instead with a "Just because!", I moved past him and towards the door.
A pair of hands wrap around my waist, grabbing me violently and steering me back around. "Quick, you got to hide!"
"What the - what are you doing?! Nino! Let me go!" I try to pull away but his grip is too strong, pushing me forward.
"You can't go out there!"
"Eh?! Why not?"
"Does it matter? Look, ask stupid questions later! Right now, just go and hide!" He keeps pushing me towards the next room.
I resisted, stopping in my tracks. "NO! I won't move until you tell me what's wrong! Nino, what's going on?"
He closes his eyes and groans in frustration, frowning. The sound of footsteps stop him and he pushes me forward once more. "I'll explain everything later but right now, you got to hide! My mother is coming!"
"Your mother?" I turn around. "Your mother is coming? Oh, I better go and say hello..."
"No, you can't! I don't want my mother to see you!" He drags me back into the opposite direction.
"Oh, what? So now you're afraid your mother will see me?? You're ashamed of me, aren't you?? I can't believe you - "
"That's not it! Look, shut up! In fact, my mother loves you, even more than me!"
"So why not? What's wrong with me then?? Nino, what's going on?" I struggle as he keeps pushing me into the next room.
"Because my mother thinks we're still together!!" He suddenly blurts out.
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*sighs*
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Chapter Twenty Four
Coffee. I need coffee.
I actually never drink coffee. Well, not this regularly. I used to drink when I was young, back in high school, just to keep myself awake and to keep up with the workload. The habit followed me until my first year into University. I guess it was, in a way, to compensate for my lack of sleep and obvious sleeping problem.
Over the last few months, however, I stopped drinking coffee. Now, I'm trying to be healthy and cut back on my bad habits, drinking gallons of coffee being one of them. I think my habit stopped when...I think it started that day when this guy, an arrogant little dwarf, bumped into me, making me spill coffee all over myself and onto him too....
Whose idea was it to meet here at the Johnny's Entertainment building anyway?? Can't even find a decent cup of coffee around here! I groan as I stomp around the cafeteria. Why couldn't we at least have met at NTV studios instead? It's closer to Studio 8 and besides, at least they have a great bakery that sells delicious coffee. Unlike here...
And why did I come anyway?? I should have left Emiko to go on her own and see her precious "Toshi-kun" (Oh God! Make me puke, why don't you??). Never mind the fact that she's my best friend and that I should be with her to protect her from prying eyes but again, what am I doing here?? I should've left her, stayed at home and locked myself into my room to sleep until eternity. Or at least, until I can get Nino to stop appearing in my dreams. Best friend or no best friend, I shouldn't even be here. She's an adult anyway. She doesn't need me. She can handle this.
ARGH!!!! WHERE THE HELL IS THAT GODDAMN COFFEE???
Excuse me, miss but I ordered some coffee. I'd like to have it, in this century, if possi - ah! Here it is. Took you long enough...
I wrap my hands around the small cup. God, if it isn't so freaking cold in here. It really is fall, isn't it?
I slink out of the cafeteria and into the nearest elevator, taking me up into the building. As I arrive into God knows what floor (can't remember), I keep asking myself why was I here in the first place. Then I remembered that, oh, yeah - Emiko wanted to see Satoshi. I should've just dropped her off here. Or at the airport, but then, she would have to face, not only the photographers but also hoards of screaming fans, as well as his manager and everyone else. Which, I could only presume, that it wouldn't be safe at all.
I sighed as I tried to shake my head, my hair almost falling on my face. My thoughts then shifted to the events of the last few days. As expected, I didn't get any sleep last night, thanks, in part, to another dream featuring Nino. Geez, but I must look like hell right now. Not even make up or a trip to the salon can cover it, which was what my sister tried to do. Oh sure, I know Rina meant well. She took me out for a girl's day to go shopping, then to the spa and the salon. I must say though, I love my new haircut. So does Seiji, probably, or else he wouldn't have gone and asked me out. And I was probably crazy, just crazy enough to say yes. We went out last Friday and the following day after that and...today is...Monday?
I checked my watch while holding the cup with my other hand. Maybe I should tell Emiko I'm leaving. I don't even want to be here. Why was I here again?
I opened the door to a room and walked in, my head still down and my hands still wrapped around the cup. "Emiko, I'm gonna go ahead. Something ca - "
Crash!!
I raised my head to tell her something, but apparently, not fast enough as I raised it just in time to see that I had bumped into someone. Next thing I know, I'm falling down backwards, sending my coffee cup flying into the air and far behind me. I close my eyes as I fall onto the carpeted floor, with a body crashing heavily on top of me.
"Itai!!!" I yelled. "What the he - " I groaned in pain and started hitting the person on top of me, yelling at him to get off me. I push the person on top of me, sitting up and rubbing the back of my head. When I open my eyes, I find Nino sitting in front of me. I push him away, hard, and quickly stand up, turning around and facing him, standing as far away from him as possible.
Okay, I did not expect this to happen. I stood a few feet away from him, trying not to look at him but failing miserably. Well, who wouldn’t? He was wearing a pink suit (jacket and pants), dabbed with neon yellow spots all over, and a black collared shirt underneath. But I still couldn’t get over the pinkness because even his necktie was…pink.
My eyes roamed up and down over his body, an eyebrow raised. “Wow…huh, so you really are gay after all…”
“Woah! You're an Elephant!! Have you lost weight?!” He retorted back.
“If I’m an Elephant, then what are you??” I shot at him. Okay, but THAT DID NOT MAKE ANY SENSE! I mentally beat myself up for that nonsense comment but I couldn’t let him go without a fight.
“My God, you look like crap!! What happened? Stick a finger in a socket?”
“Gee, thanks. So do you, by the way…”
“Erhm…” A voice clears his throat, interrupting us. We turn around to find Ohno and Emiko, holding hands (insert eye-rolling here), standing there and watching us fondly. “I see you two have already seen each other…” Emiko giggled and shot Ohno a knowing look. Ohno gave her a small smirk and nodded back.
I rolled my eyes at them. “Hey, I just came back to tell you that I’m gonna go ahead, okay?” I bowed at the two lovebirds.
“Go? But you just got…here…” I shot Emiko a look as Ohno’s cell phone rang, forcing him to move to another room and answer it.
"Yeah, you just got here! Why don't you stay?" Nino mimicked Emiko, then smirked at me. I ignored him and gave Emiko a bow. "Gomen ne. I'll see you at home, okay?" She nodded and went to find Ohno.
Turning around, I grab my bag and head for the door. For a moment, I stop and look at him. I think I was waiting for something to happen, though I don't know what.
He just stood there, staring back at me with narrowed eyes. I take a step back as he steps forward towards me. One hand reaches out, grabbing a couple of strands of my hair. I start to wonder to myself just what he was doing but I make no move to stop him or even walk away.
He lifts the piece of strands, rubbing it between his fingers. "You got your hair cut..." Lifting it near his nose, he sniffs it lightly.
Um...yeah, in case you haven't noticed. What's it to you anyway?? "Yeah, I did..." My voice comes out soft and shaky. I try to cover it up by slapping his hand away.
He makes a face and walks away. I exhale as he walks past me, sighing heavily. Closing my eyes, I breathe mentally to calm myself down but when I open them, I find him still standing right in front of me, trying to take a picture of me with his cell phone. There it was again, his trademark smirk strewn across his mouth.
I raise an eyebrow and just stand there. I wanted to do something for some reason, but couldn't decide whether to punch him or hug him. Instead, I did both. My left arm reached out, a hand sliding behind him and pulling him close as I threw my arms around him.
At first, he just stood there, motionless. I tighten my arms around him, inhaling his scent. That's when he started moving. He started waving an arm up, making small choking noises but I wouldn't let go. "Wh-why are you - Hana-chan!! Why are you hugging me?! Let me go!! Na-nande? Nande da yo?! Oi!" Raising his arms, he lifted my arms around him, squirming and screaming in that annoying, high-pitched voice of his.
After I let my arms go, I whack him on the arm.
“Hey! What was that for?” He curses under his breath, something about me being the most violent girl he’s ever met.
“Only around you.” I respond back. “That,” I said. “was for spilling my coffee. You owe me one."
"I owe you...what?! I owe you nothing!" Suddenly, the phone in the room rang. Nino crossed to the other side, picked it up and responded, "Hai?...Speaking...w-what?!" I heard the phone dropping loudly.
Next thing I know, I feel one hand around my arm, grabbing me and pulling me back. "Hana-chan! Cho-chotto!"
I stop and turn around, shoving his hand away. "I told you never to call me that!!" I hiss before continuing to walk.
He ran in front of me, spreading his arms sideways out, and blocked himself against the door. "You can't leave!"
"And why not?" I raise an eyebrow. When he couldn't give me a definite answer, replying instead with a "Just because!", I moved past him and towards the door.
A pair of hands wrap around my waist, grabbing me violently and steering me back around. "Quick, you got to hide!"
"What the - what are you doing?! Nino! Let me go!" I try to pull away but his grip is too strong, pushing me forward.
"You can't go out there!"
"Eh?! Why not?"
"Does it matter? Look, ask stupid questions later! Right now, just go and hide!" He keeps pushing me towards the next room.
I resisted, stopping in my tracks. "NO! I won't move until you tell me what's wrong! Nino, what's going on?"
He closes his eyes and groans in frustration, frowning. The sound of footsteps stop him and he pushes me forward once more. "I'll explain everything later but right now, you got to hide! My mother is coming!"
"Your mother?" I turn around. "Your mother is coming? Oh, I better go and say hello..."
"No, you can't! I don't want my mother to see you!" He drags me back into the opposite direction.
"Oh, what? So now you're afraid your mother will see me?? You're ashamed of me, aren't you?? I can't believe you - "
"That's not it! Look, shut up! In fact, my mother loves you, even more than me!"
"So why not? What's wrong with me then?? Nino, what's going on?" I struggle as he keeps pushing me into the next room.
"Because my mother thinks we're still together!!" He suddenly blurts out.
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