"Aoi please." He thought he shouldn't be trying this hard for her. That after everything she had done to him. Kichi shouldn't want to help her. But he did and realistically the only bad things she had done were just say a bunch of harsh words to him. "I'm not trying to tease you or make fun of you, if that's what you think."
"It doesn't matter." She responded, not slowing her pace. "You don't have to keep pretending you care." He couldn't understand why she was so adamant this being his stance. She couldn't truly know how he felt and the boy was aware he was being genuine.
"Look, I already apologized about that coin toss thing in class." He assumed she must've been holding a grudge about that moment still. While it was rude, he believed it to be a one time deal that she'd be able to move on from. It would be silly to continue to hate him for it. "That's not the kind of person I am, so you shouldn't worry about that."
"It's not about that." She replied. "I mean, I'm sure you like my sister more. Everyone does…" The girl walked into the tunnel where the tank surrounded those inside. He followed, hoping to continue their conversation. "You think Airi's cute, right? I know a lot of people have been talking about it lately."
"Well, uh…" Even though it was true, saying that to her twin sister's face was a bit embarrassing. On one hand, it seemed a bit rude to talk about someone's sibling in front of them. On the other hand, those two were twins. So surely admitting he thought Airi was cute would also be an indirect statement on his opinion of Aoi's appearance. "Yeah I would say… She's… Pretty." His voice trailed off as the boy finally admitted his feelings on the matter.
"She's also nicer and more outgoing and…" She then went on to list off many more positive traits in her eyes that her twin had over her. "Why would anyone want to be around me when they can just be with her?"
"We don't live in a vacuum." He told her. While he might secretly believe her to be correct in that assessment. It also was the case they were twins and therefore family. No one would be able to ignore her as he originally thought when they first met. So he changed course and decided to learn more about Aoi.
The truth was it didn't matter who he liked more or less between those two. The only thing which did matter was him wanting to be their friend. "I mean, the two of us are here together because I asked, right? So obviously I'm not forcing myself to spend time I don't want to." That statement was only half true. A part of his motivation came from wanting to avoid his sister for a bit. Though he certainly wouldn't have decided to ask Aoi of all people if he was against being with her as well.
"It's just hard for me to tell." She turned herself towards the glass, looking at the vast imitation of the ocean surrounding them. With the glass, she caught a small glimpse of her reflection as she reflected on back at her old school.
It was a time when they weren't much younger than they were now. As in, it hadn't even been a year ago. The pair were the same as they ever were and ever will be. Airi always going around trying to meet new people and talk about the things she loved. Meanwhile, Aoi found herself conscious on all the little things between herself and others. A bit quiet and reserved, it was a challenge to share a conversation with anyone that wasn't her sister.
During this time, she thought she was a part of a group of friends with her sister. While it wasn't the best thing in the world for her. She didn't dislike it either. However things changed one day when she was coming into a classroom to meet with her twin sister. Right before she entered, she heard her speaking with some girls. The girls from their class they happened to be friends with.
"Do you want to go sing karaoke?" One of them asked Airi. A simple request that while Aoi didn't care for singing. She could live with being around people who were.
"Of course, I love to sing." That was the unsurprising answer anyone had grown to expect from that girl. "I'll go tell Airi."
"Actually…" This was where the break from the norm came in. "We don't really want to hang out with your sister." They said. Hearing those words sent a knife right into Aoi's heart. How could they say that, she wondered.
"Yeah, she's kind of a drag." One of them explained.
"Plus, she probably won't sing. So what's the point in her coming along with us?" Another one said. The more they talked, the heavier her heart felt. The more Aoi wanted to cry, but couldn't for that would give away her position. "She's no fun at all."
"How can you say that!?" Having people speak poorly of her sister sent Airi into a rage. She yelled at the girls who were now their former friends at this point. To her, it was too far to be mean to her sister. Even if they all were unaware that she was listening in on their conversation.
While she laid into those girls. Aoi came to another realization. There was no way her sister would ever separate from her. That surely made her happy to knew her twin had her back no matter what. Yet that knowledge also brought about more pain. For now she knew that no matter what happened. Even if people didn't want both of them, that she would do whatever it took to involve her into everything.
This day was when she hatched the plan on what to do next. They were already informed by their father that the family would be moving in the coming months. That they would have to transfer schools soon and start all over once more in high school. Aoi knew this coming in and decided it was up to her to control their fate.
There would be no sacrifices made by her sister for her sake anymore. This was when she told Airi they shouldn't always be so close to each other during school. She came up with the dumb excuse of developing separate personalities which surprisingly worked. They were already different in many ways, so it wasn't as if they needed to worry about finding their own identity or some other nonsense. It was just that she needed her sister to go out and make friends and eventually forget that Aoi would be a part of everything.
"You get it now?" Said Aoi after she finished her explanation. "I know what people can be like when they think I'm not around. Of course you're not any different."
"I like to believe I am." He responded. A lot of people always called him special. Though usually that wasn't meant as a compliment. Actually, every time he had been called special was more meant as a subtle insult. "I would think everything I've done should prove it by now."
"I know." She relented. "After everything I've said to you, I can't believe you don't hate me." Aoi couldn't understand why he was so tolerant. Was there any particular reason for doing so? It couldn't possibly be because she was cute, seeing as her looks were not unique in any manner.
"I guess you could call it a gut instinct." He answered. It was rare for him to trust in himself when it came to these crucial decisions. Or perhaps it really was the coin that was still guiding him albeit indirectly. That morning when he thought the twins were one person, he flipped the coin to see if he should continue to see them. That was knowing who he originally thought they were could become cold once more. "I just know that I still want to be with you right now."
"Uh, aren't you getting a bit close now?" She said. Aoi could see his reflection on the glass she faced. He had gotten nearer to talk to her and hadn't stopped closing their distance. "You know there's something called personal space, right?"
"I'll only let you go when you admit that I don't privately hate you." He said, putting his hands up against the glass. His arms were around her, preventing the girl from moving.
"Hey!" She complained, pushing up against the glass to try and push him off. "Get away from me."
"Heheh, only after you admit we're cool with each other." He laughed, not budging. Now the boy understood why his sister did silly things like this. It was fun being the one teasing someone. "See, we're joking like this so clearly we're friends."
"I'm not joking." She responded. "This is so not funny at all." With a powerful press on the glass, she used all her body weight to shove him backwards. Kichi tumbled and fell on his back. Due to the force she used to push him, Aoi also lost her balance and fell right on top of him.
"Ow." He said, feeling the weight of Aoi's butt right on top of… A sensitive area.
"S-sorry…" She said, not getting off of him. "Do you hate me now?" Asked Aoi.
"No…" He answered, slightly confused. Her tone made it seem like she was worried about his response.
"…Then okay. I know you're not faking it." After a moment to pause. Aoi finally admitted to him that his intentions were pure.