"Haru-chi, that was, like, totally overboard," Chiyo said in a stern voice. Snapping out of her shock caused by Kanako, Haruna responded. "Tch, who cares? You know what? I'm glad she quit. That means I don't have to deal with her anymore!" Chiyo stared at her friend. "So you'll give up on Akio-kun too?" Haruna flinched. "G-give up? Don't be ridiculous. I don't need that mouse or the deal to get Miyashita-kun to pick me!" "Um, Haru-chi?" "What?" Chiyo pointed in front of her. Following her trajectory, Haruna saw Akio still standing in the doorway. All he did was shake his head in disappointment, then turned around and disappeared into the stairway.
While Haruna dealt with the realization that Akio had seen and possibly heard everything, Kanako kept running. Down the flights of stairs, through the hallways and all the way out the front doors she ran. She didn't stop to get her stuff or tell anyone where she was going. Kanako just wanted to hide from the world.
In the moment, it had been easy for her to put on a brave face in front of Haruna. After all, everything she had said she meant. But now that the words Kanako had spoken were sinking in, she felt nothing but pain. "I can't be with Akio-kun..." Over and over she thought about it, until her sadness began to warp into anger. "It's her fault... It's all Haruna's fault! If she hadn't been such a jerk, we could've pulled it off!"
Kanako suddenly stopped. "No, that's not right. I shouldn't throw around blame. But still... If we could've made it a year, I think... I could've been happy for Haruna if Akio-kun picked her instead of me..." As she came to grips with her actions, Kanako trudged the rest of the way home. Walking in and not even stopping to take off her shoes, she went straight up the stairs and into her room.
Time passed slowly as she laid on her bed. The clock on her phone read 1:12 p.m. "I shouldn't have left school like that..." Kanako regretted. "I'm going to be in so much trouble." Abruptly putting the end to the silence in the Nakatomi house was the shrill ring of their doorbell. "Who could that be?" Kanako wondered. Getting up and making her way down to the first floor, Kanako stopped just short of actually opening the door.
"What if it's Akio-kun?" she thought, remembering she had ran past him. "Oh geez, he definitely saw me crying too..." Her hand hovered above the handle, uncertain of whether or not to grant entry to whoever was on the other side. "If it's him, what'll I do? I really don't want to see him right now..." Then, another thought crossed Kanako's mind. "W-what if it's Haruna...?" Her worry was quickly dispersed though. Kanako knew there was no way that would happen. "Then who...?"
Knowing there was only one way to find out, Kanako turned the doorknob and opened the door carefully, allowing just enough space so she could see who it was that was there. To her surprise, it was a girl with blonde hair, tied back in two small buns with two long strands rebelliously hanging loose. Her uniform matched Kanako's overall, but the girl's had become rather untidy. She also appeared to be out of breath. "M-mi-chan?" Kanako stuttered.
"U-um, h-hey... Kana-chan..." Michi said nervously between breaths. "So... can I come in?" "Huh? Oh, um, sure, I guess..." Kanako was confused. Wasn't Michi mad at her? A couple steps forward and the girl in question was inside. Shutting the door behind her, Kanako stared at her friend. "Why are you here, Mi-chan?" Kanako asked in a more mellow tone, her initial shock wearing off. "Why? Because I saw you sprint past our classroom in tears, that's why!" Michi exclaimed, flabbergasted by the question. "She saw me?" Kanako thought to herself. Thinking back, it was true she had ran by her classroom. Kanako's face went red from embarrassment.
Michi's expression switched from annoyed to worried, and she got closer to Kanako. "What's wrong, Kana-chan?" she asked. Kanako wasn't sure what to say. "Well, it's, um..." she struggled to find the right words. "Does it have to do with Endo-san?" Michi guessed correctly. Kanako's acknowledgement was a simple nod. "I knew it. I knew she'd cause nothing but grief for you. Come on, we're going to go back to Iwanai Municipal and giving the girl a piece of both our minds!" Michi went to pull Kanako with her, but instead it was the other way around. "...Kana-chan?"
Kanako's hand remained tightly clinging to the back of Michi's shirt, holding her in place. "I can't..." she said in a very soft and small voice. "I can't go back right now..." Michi stared at her anchor. "Okay... then we'll stay here," she said simply. Kanako looked up from her feet and saw Michi wearing a gentle smile.
The two girls went to sit down on the couch in the living room. "So, um... I'm sorry about the other day," Michi said shyly. "I said I wouldn't push you, but I did." Kanako was stunned. She didn't think Michi had done anything wrong. "N-No! I'm the one who should apologize! I shouldn't have snapped at you!" Michi looked Kanako right in the eyes. "I guess we were both feeling guilty," she said, then picked up Kanako's hands in hers. "Whatever's going on, you can tell me when you're ready, okay? I mean it." "Thanks, Mi-chan."
They sat in silence for a moment before Kanako interrupted it. "Hey, Mi-chan?" "What is it?" "Can you... not say anything to Haruna?" Kanako asked. "I've known you long enough to know you might do something like that." Michi sighed. "Alright. But, I still think she needs a good tongue-lashing!" Kanako laughed a little.
"Wait," Kanako said, becoming serious. "Michi, won't you be in trouble now too with the school?" "Nah. When our teacher asked where you were, I told him you went home sick and asked if I could come check on you and bring you your homework and stuff." "Thanks for bailing me out. Though it must be nice to be you. Top students always seem to get special treatment," Kanako pouted a little. "Oh come on, don't be like that! You know, it's your own fault. If you studied better, you'd do better," Michi chided. "Whatever," Kanako muttered, continuing to sulk and causing Michi to laugh.
*****
"Why do I feel like this?" Haruna wondered shortly after returning from lunch. She had a mix of emotions swirling inside. "I should be happy. It's over. And yet..." There were still feelings of doubt, regret and... guilt? Yeah, guilt. No matter how much Haruna tried to shake it away, she knew Chiyo was right. She had gone too far. That was twice in recent memory. Kanako had every right to react the way she did. No one wants to put up with being berated and they certainly don't like being sweared at up and down like a sailor fighting a typhoon. "Ah, why do I care?!"
Those feelings that Haruna had kept tossing around internally through the rest of the day. When she went to go home, she saw that Chiyo was nowhere to be found. "Great. Guess I'm going alone then." Exchanging shoes with her locker, Haruna began the journey.
It had been awhile since she had gone by herself. The last time it had really happened had been shortly after her and Kanako's friendship ended. It was also around that time she had met Chiyo. Haruna remembered it like it was yesterday.
After a particularly horrible Monday of school near the beginning of her first year of junior high, Haruna found herself in a sour mood. She had been that way for a while due to the massive fight she had had with Kanako. So, to blow off some steam, Haruna had elected to go to an arcade not too far from her school. When she arrived, she made a beeline for the fighting games. After playing for about an hour or so, she decided she was thirsty, so Haruna went over to the plethora of vending machine options.
While she stood in front of one, Haruna noticed that she was hearing strange noises coming from the hallway to her left. Down that way should've been nothing more than an emergency exit. With curiosity getting the better of her, Haruna ventured down the dark hall. As she got closer, the noises that she had heard began to shape themselves into words.
"...Haa... Don't stop... Harder... Do it harder...!"
"Like this?"
"Ahh! Yes! That's it! ...Mmm, keep going."
"What the hell is going on back here?" Haruna wondered.
Turning the short corner, it was the end of the line, with only a door and exit sign glowing overhead. However, that day there were two more additions. Through a combination of the faint light given off from the main area of the arcade and the humming red coming from the big EXIT lettering, Haruna could see two figures in an odd positon.
The first one Haruna noticed was a man standing in the back. It was hard to make out details, but he appeared to be wearing a basic t-shirt in some sort of dark color. However, looking down, it seemed like his pants were missing. Then there was the other person in front of him. She was bent over in a somewhat awkward position, and the only thing covering her was a frilly white bra. Her panties were stretched to hang onto her voluptuous thighs and her skirt was dropped at her ankles.
While Haruna didn't have any actual experience, it didn't take her long to figure out what she was looking at.
"W-What the hell?! Get outta here!" The guy shrieked. "Hey, hold on. Maybe she wants to join us," the girl said in a sexy tone. "I-... I-..." Haruna was grateful for the dark at that moment, because aside from preventing her from seeing more than she wanted to, it also helped to cover her beet-red face.
"I'M SORRY!" she screamed, bolting out of the hallway and arcade. "Oh. My. God! I can't believe that just happened! Those two were having s-... s-s-s-sex! And in such a public place too!" To try to cool her head, Haruna stopped into a nearby restaurant and took advantage of their drink bar. While sipping on an orange soda, she thought back to that incident and noticed something she hadn't noticed in the heat of the moment. "She looked familiar... and had blonde hair... no wait, it was a sort of auburn color..."
That's when it clicked. That was a girl in her class. Chi... Waka... something or other.
The day after that, Chiyo talked to Haruna immediately. "Hey girlie, what's your name?" she had asked. "Huh? Why should I tell you?" Haruna said back. "Welllll, I guess you don't haaave to, buuut, you did walk in on me getting it on with that dude, so I think it's only fair. Here, I'll start! I'm Chiyo, Chiyo Wakabayashi! What's your name?" Haruna had stared at her hesitantly, but eventually complied. "I'm Haruna Endo."
Thinking back on it now, Haruna could laugh. A little. It was still weird. The worst part was that Chiyo would still bring it up now and then. "And now because of that, she tells me every gross detail about her excessive sex life..." Haruna sighed. However, although Haruna could find Chiyo annoying, she was still the best friend she had. "Damn it, I kinda wish she was here now.
"Haruuuu-chiiiii!" a giddy voice called. "Huh?" Haruna let out, turning behind her. There was the gal on her mind, charging at her at full speed. Leaping from about 10 feet away, Chiyo glomped onto the surprised Haruna. "W-What the...?" was all she could manage to say. "I thought you left me behind!" Chiyo pouted. "That's because I thought you had left," Haruna explained, regaining her composure. "Oooh. Yeah, sorry 'bout that!" Chiyo said, making a goofy expression. "I had to meet with a teacher after school about one of my grades." "I see," Haruna said with a smile. "Hm? Hmmm? Haru-chi, you seem oddly happy. Could it be that you're glad to see me?" Chiyo said in a smug tone. "Y-yeah right! Like I'd want to see you..." she mumbled that last part. Chiyo was beaming, but it didn't take long for her to become serious as she released Haruna.
"Y'know Haru-chi," she began. "You should apologize to Kana-chan." Haruna froze in place. "Are you seriously taking her side Chiyo?" she asked aggressively. "It's not about taking sides," Chiyo said. "I thought that maybe you had moved on from that whole thing because of how you were acting a second ago, but I guess you're still mad," Haruna said. "I'm not mad Haru-chi. It's just... well... would it kill you to be even a little nicer to Kana-chan?"
Haruna sighed. "Look, I know what you mean. But I just... I can't do it. That girl... she rubs me the wrong way. If her feelings get hurt because of being around me, that's her fault, not mine." "That's pretty unreasonable," Chiyo commented. "Well it's true," Haruna retorted.
The conversation while walking home avoided the topic of Kanako the rest of the way, but even once Haruna had arrived at her residence, changed out of her uniform and lazily laid in her bed, Chiyo's words still echoed in her mind. "You should apologize."
"Absolutely not," Haruna thought flatly. "Why should I? If she can't take it, then maybe she should've just given up. Well, I guess she has now..." Haruna had to think about that. What would this mean for her and her future with Akio? She had seen him looking pretty disappointed in her earlier after Kanako ran off. Did that mean it really was over? Did she lose?
Then that triggered another thought. Haruna had seen Kanako crying when she booked it for the door. It wasn't like it was the first time Haruna had seen that, but this time felt different. It felt like if she didn't do something to fix the problem at hand, there'd be no going back.
Thinking about all of that together contributed to building a rising level of guilt within Haruna. "Ah, who cares?! I should be happy! I don't have to see that stupid mouse girl anymore and I can pursue Miyashita-kun however I want! This is perfect!"
But even after saying all that, all Haruna could do was stare at her ceiling, repeating: "Why aren't I happy?"
*****
From the early morning of Thursday and all the way through to the night, Haruna's guilt kept going up. It got so bad that Kanako was actually in Haruna's dream. In it, Haruna tried to say she was sorry, but the words wouldn't come out. Kanako realized that she'd never get to hear them, so she turned around and walked away. Nothing Haruna did could stop her. "Damn this guilty conscience..." she thought when she woke up.
She had skipped out on picking up Kanako yesterday due to what had happened, but Haruna decided that the only way she'd stop feeling the way she did was if she apologized. So, with plenty of dread piling onto her guilt, Haruna went next door. However, Kanako's mother informed her that her daughter had already left and that she had done the same thing yesterday too. "So now she gets up on time?" Haruna sighed to herself, annoyed.
While most students were able to enjoy their Friday, Haruna couldn't. When she had arrived at school, she saw Kanako briefly in the hallway. But when she called out by saying: "Hey idiot!" that caused Kanako to flinch and scurry inside of her classroom. It also earned Haruna a death glare from one of the girl's friends.
Her next attempt was during their culinary class together, but the day's recipe took a lot of time, so Haruna only got to get close enough to Kanako so that she could tell her she wanted to talk. That command though was met by a vehement shaking of both head and ponytail by Kanako, and then shrinking behind her group members.
The next try was at lunch, but the furthest that Haruna got was the door, as the same friend who glared at her that morning came over and told her to go away. Haruna wanted to respond, but before she could, Chiyo met up with her and dragged her off to the roof.
"This is impossible," Haruna said dejectedly. "What's imbosible?" Chiyo asked through a mouthful. "Your stupid idea of apologizing..." Haruna muttered. "OMG, you're actually going to?!" Chiyo exclaimed. "Why're you so surprised? It was your idea!" Haruna yelled back. "I know, but... I didn't think you would. Good for you Haru-chi!" Chiyo said, slapping her friend on the back.
After recovering from the sudden attack, Haruna continued. "Yeah, well, it's not like it really matters. She wants nothing to do with me. Every time I've tried to talk to her she either runs away or hides behind her friends." "Isn't that normal? I mean, Kana-chan's not all that confrontational anyways right? She probably doesn't want to talk to you because she thinks you're going to yell at her again," Chiyo guessed.
"She's probably right," Haruna thought depressingly.
If Haruna's previous attempts had felt like a failure, then the others after lunch felt like she completely bombed. Four more tries and they resulted in the following: Kanako running away, Kanako running away, Kanako's friend accusing Haruna of harassment, and... Kanako running away. "This. Is. Ridiculous!" Haruna screamed internally.
Over the weekend, Haruna tried to think of a way to even get Kanako to stop bolting every time she saw her. And while one girl pondered that, the other had the opposite on her mind. "I don't want to see her. I want to avoid her at all costs. I just wish she'd leave me alone..." Kanako whimpered.
Monday proved to be no different than Friday, as Kanako managed to evade Haruna at every turn. She knew she couldn't keep it up for forever, but she was going to try. It helped that Michi was so defensive of her friends, because that meant Kanako could use her. She felt kind of bad doing that to a friend, but Kanako felt like she had no other choice. Anything to avoid Haruna. Unfortunately, that also meant that for the past three days, Kanako hadn't gone to club either.
"I want to go, but..." Kanako contemplated the outcomes. "If I go, Haruna might ambush me or something. But if I don't go, I might make the others worried." After debating back and forth with herself, Kanako eventually settled on going. Tomorrow.
While Kanako dealt with that, Haruna asked Chiyo for advice on the way home. "How to say you're sorry? C'mon Haru-chi, even little kids know how to do that much!" Chiyo said with a laugh. "Cut me some slack! It's kinda hard to apologize when the one who's supposed to receive darts away every time I get close," Haruna said. "Yeah, that does make things trickier." Chiyo went silent for a moment as she thought, then: "Just tell her what's in your heart. It doesn't have to be fancy or anything. If you mean it, I'm sure it'll work out. And if she doesn't except right away..." Chiyo twisted so that she was nearly in front of Haruna. "... you could always offer to go out on a date with her. Y'know, icing on the cake!"
Chiyo's suggestion was met with a hard thump on her head from Haruna's right hand. "What the hell Chiyo?! A date?! All I'm trying to do is apologize, not make up from a lover's quarrel!" Recovered from her assault, Chiyo skipped ahead. "You never know..." was all she said in a sing-song sort of tone.
*****
The next day, Haruna resolved that she was going to tell Kanako she was sorry. It wasn't like she 100 percent believed she was wrong. Actually, Haruna wasn't even sure if she'd sound convincing. That was how much she felt that she wasn't wrong. Not really, anyways. This was solely for her benefit of renewing her chances with Akio. That's what she kept telling herself, anyways.
Surprisingly enough, Akio hadn't said a word to her about the whole thing. "Did he lose interest?" Haruna wondered, causing a bit of panic to rise within her. "No, that doesn't matter now. It's all irrelevant if I can't talk to Kanako." Haruna had practiced what she was going to say last night in the mirror. "I can do this. I'll get her to understand. It'll all work out," she said to psych herself up.
The pumping up was necessary because it was nearly time. The school day was almost over and Haruna had overheard Kanako's friends asking if she would be in club, and she told them yes. "As soon as her club lets out, I'll grab her and make her listen."
The bell rang and students began packing up. Haruna took her time, just to be on the safe side of making sure Kanako didn't see her and get skittish. She had told Chiyo about her plan on the way to school that day, so Chiyo went home. Not before giving a slightly sickening wink to Haruna though.
As Haruna waited, the sun sank to a level that created an orange glow throughout the rooms and halls. It wasn't sunset yet, but the colors were all mixing together to set something of a romantic mood in the building. Haruna found herself getting angry at the sun for doing that, but also wondered if it would make her odds any better.
Looking at the clock, she saw Kanako's club was just about to end. Having her stuff pre-packed, Haruna grabbed it and quickly made her way to the clubrooms, until finally she arrived at the one with a big label on it that said: Cooking. The smells seeping through the crack of the door were delicious. Haruna couldn't tell exactly what it was, but she wished she could taste it.
Just as she was about to get carried away by the savory scents, the door slid open. Walking through was a girl wearing the same uniform as Haruna. However, the difference between them was in appearance. Her normally neatly tied bow was a little loose on the ends and her shirt wasn't perfectly tucked in. On her face were beads of sweat from the heat of the kitchen. That all led up her to her head, which was covered in somewhat disheveled hair. Regardless of how messy the front got, the back was still tied in a typical ponytail.
Haruna, who had been leaning against the wall next to the door, stared at Kanako, and she stared back. For a moment, their eyes were locked, both holding a certain amount of surprise, though for different reasons. However, the moment was very short-lived as the danger to Kanako quickly clicked, causing her to bolt.
"Ah, hey! Come back!" Haruna yelled, chasing after her. "Damn, when did she get so fast?!" Down the stairs and through the halls they ran, the orange light illuminating their path all the way. "Stop... already... you idiot!" Haruna shouted between breaths. "How do I get her to stop running? I have no idea..." "Get back here you-"
It was in that moment that Haruna finally knew how she could get her attention. It was something she didn't want to do, but she knew she had to. It was the only way. Or rather, it was the only thing she could think of. Haruna gritted her teeth at the thought of it. "Fine... I'll do it..." she told herself. "K-..."
"KANAKO!"
Just before they had reached the turn for the lockers, Kanako stopped dead in her tracks. Seeing that she had, Haruna slowed to a light jog before stopping as well just behind her. "You finally... stopped running..." she said, bent over and trying to catch her breath. It was true Haruna was in a sports club, but running wasn't her strong suit.
"...you remembered..." Kanako said softly, turning to face Haruna.
"Huh?" Haruna said, standing up straight.
"That was the first time... The first time in four years you've said my name..." Kanako said.
"Oh..." was all Haruna could say. She knew she had actively avoided saying Kanako's name, but to hear it put like that was a reality check. "I was beginning to think you had forgotten it..." Kanako said sadly. "Huh?! How could I forget your name, stupid?! We grew up together didn't we?" Haruna shouted. That caused Kanako to smile a bit. "Yeah, we did..."
It was awkwardly quiet between the two girls. As they stood there, the orange light continued to highlight every feature available to it. Shining that light on Kanako, it seemed as though her hair glowed in it, and her face looked so soft and gentle. The light caressed every bit of beauty Kanako possessed and Haruna took it all in. For a moment, really a mere second to her, Haruna couldn't take her eyes away.
"S-so, what have you been trying to tell me the last couple of days?" Kanako asked nervously, snapping Haruna out of her bewitchment. "Oh, right..." Haruna had to think. What was it again she had wanted to say? She had practiced in the mirror, but all of the hand-picked words she had chosen had disappeared from her mind. However, she at least managed to remember why she had stopped Kanako.
"I-..." Haruna began slowly. "I'm sorry... about what I said the other day. I went too far..." Then, inside. "That doesn't sound convincing at all." Kanako stared at her, clearly surprised, but that faded into a more somber expression. "Is that so...? Well, thanks..." was all she said. "Damn it, this isn't going well. It doesn't matter if she accepts my apology. I need her to accept so that she's willing to continue the deal!" That was when Chiyo's words came back to her again.
"You could always offer to go on a date with her."
"I have to show her I'm serious about this fake relationship. We both have to convince Miyashita-kun. With that being the case... God, I can't believe I'm about to do this..." Tensing up and bracing herself for her own words, Haruna continued in her effort.
"Kanako, I know that things have been, pretty, uh, well, crappy since we started this whole fake dating thing. But... to show you I'm serious... this Sunday, d-do you... want to go on a date?" The end of Haruna's question was barely audible, but Kanako heard it loud and clear. "A-are... are you serious? A d-d-date?" she stuttered out, her eyes wide with shock. "Yes. At this point, I think it might be the only way to convince Miyashita-kun," Haruna said more firmly.
Both girls thought of their most recent interactions with Akio. He had seen Kanako crying uncontrollably. He had looked disappointed in Haruna. They both needed redemption in his eyes. "O-okay..." Kanako agreed, then she thought to herself cautiously optimistically: "Maybe this will be fun."
"Alright, I'll text you the details when I get them figured out tonight," Haruna said, then began to walk away. "U-um, Haruna!" Kanako called. "What?" Haruna said. "I, um... I don't have your n-number..." Kanako said quietly. "It's fine, I still have yours," Haruna responded. "Huh?" "Huh?"
"..."
"W-wait, you still have my number?!" Kanako exclaimed. "O-only for emergencies! Like if you were on the brink of death or something and I was the only person around! Don't read into it!" Haruna explained, then stomped off in a huff. "She kept my number... Now I feel kind of bad for deleting hers," Kanako thought with mixed emotions.
"But still... maybe this Sunday will be fun after all."
End of Chapter Seven.