February 2-3, 2022
Word: Cheek
As the mesmerizing sight of the orange sky changed into a reddish color, a young man walked through the pedestrian bridge with the sound of music blaring in his ears.
After what seemed to be a long-winded afternoon, Ito Seiji was tasked to bring handouts to the bedridden Nakagawa Saki as per Hasegawa Maho's request. Although the route to Saki's house was longer than the route to Seiji's house, he went out of his way and accepted the unexpected request for an ulterior motive. To scavenge information to use against Saki for the future. And uncharacteristically, to watch the night sky as he walked home.
Swiftly traversing his smartphone from the lock screen to the music app, he paused the charming idol music blaring in his headphones. He unzipped his handbag and stored the bulky headphones while also grabbing the folder the homeroom teacher entrusted to Hasegawa. Finally, Seiji was before the gates of the Nakagawa residence. A typical small two-story modern house that looks exactly like the others in the neighborhood, enough for a family of four. It had a minimalist design, a house with plenty of loose space for extravagant decorations.
"I've known Saki for the rest of middle school yet this is the first time I went here," Seiji thought, eyeballing the doorbell before him.
With the folder containing the handouts on his hand and an index finger ready to press the button on the other, he took a deep breath and let out a sigh. Click. An unusual chime caught the attention of the Nakagawa residence.
"Please wait a minute," a woman yelled, which echoed throughout the residence.
The voice came across as distant from the entrance, barely within the earshot of Seiji. Tension never left the innocent high school boy. Hovering outside the entrance, spending time idly tapping his foot, he became restless as time passed by. The reddish color of the sky transformed into the starry summer evening sky, chirping crickets filled the silence of the neighborhood. A sudden gale of summer night wind sent a chill down the loitering student.
Eventually, the sound of footsteps grew closer towards the entrance. The door swung open, revealing an attractive woman holding a spatula in her hand.
"Sorry for the wait. I was making porridge for my daughter," the woman recited a quick excuse wearing a flustered face. "Do you need something?"
"Good evening. My name is Ito Seiji, I'm a classmate of your daughter Nakagawa Saki. I came to bring the handouts our homeroom teacher entrusted to me," Seiji politely said, bowing as a greeting.
"So you're the one Saki is always talking about!" Mrs. Nakagawa said, her eyes lit up. She pointed her fingers downwards and waved them towards herself, signaling Seiji to enter the house. "Come inside. You could join us for dinner after checking up on Saki."
"I would like to decline the offer. I don't want to trouble you any further."
"Then how about giving the handouts yourself," mrs. Nakagawa suggested, pointing at the ceiling.
Seiji folded his arms, turning his gaze to the genkan where various shoes were present. The Nakagawa residence consists of two children. Saki, the eldest, and Hiroshi, the youngest. Seiji knew Saki for being an introverted and awkward girl back in middle school, other than that, he knew nothing about her family. Either way, while he does not want to bother them, he was genuinely worried for Saki.
"Then, sorry for disturbing you," Seiji said, entering the vicinity and removing his shoes.
Setting foot on the tatami mat, Seiji was greeted with an intersection. Before him was a door to the living room, which was wide open revealing a comfortable couch and a wide flatscreen television screen. Sitting on the couch was Hiroshi, watching an english action movie. To the right were the steps upstairs. And on the left was the bathroom door.
"Hiroshi-kun! Saki's friend visited us!" Mrs. Nakagawa yelled over the loud sound of the television. "Would you introduce yourself?"
Because of the lack of a reply, the silence was fortunately drowned in the sound of violence from the movie. Invested in watching the movie, Hiroshi was not able to greet Seiji properly.
"I apologize for my son's behavior. He is shy around strangers."
"Is that so," Seiji replied, taking a peek at the climatic scene happening on screen.
"Oh I almost forgot!" Mrs. Nakagawa shouted. "The stove is still burning so I have to finish cooking. Once you go up the stairs, go right down the hallway. You should be able to find Saki's room there."
Mrs. Nakagawa ran towards the living room with a spatula on her hand, scolding Hiroshi to turn down the music as soon as she closed the door behind her. Left alone in the tatami mat entrance together with his thoughts was Seiji contemplating whether he should go upstairs and check on Saki or to go home.
"Should I have rejected her offer? I feel like my face would turn red as soon as I enter a girl's room," he thought, walking circles. "Whatever, I'll just leave the folder in her room and go home."
Walking up the stairs and turning towards the right end of the hallway was the door to Saki's room, with a nameplate hanging outside the door decorated with girly stickers. Beside the door were scratches marked on the doorframe. Next the scratches were names of the two siblings. It was a beautiful sight of two siblings getting along. However, as the scratches were marked further-up, it gradually decreased.
Switching his gaze from the door frame to the door knob, he swallowed his saliva as he reached his knuckles against the door to knock at the door. Knock Knock Knock. There was no response. Seiji called out to Saki. There was still no response. Forced to enter a room without warning felt like an invasion of privacy. However, because he was given permission from the mother of Saki and because he would only be leaving the folder behind, he had no choice.
Opening the door, the sight of the bedridden Saki welcomed him. Laying down on the bed covered in fluffy blankets was the flushed expression of Saki with a wet towel on her forehead. Seeing the obviously napping girl, Seiji carefully closed the door behind him to avoid her from waking up. Finally, he was inside a girl's room.
Darting around the room, Seiji noticed that it was surprisingly tidy. Taking a glimpse at the girly nameplate outside he assumed that her room was the same. However, that was not the case. Instead, It had little to no decorations. There were only a few pieces of furniture and shelves containing collections of shoujo manga.
Beside her bed to the left were the windows covered in plain curtains. To the left of the room was her workplace which contained a desk and a chair. Opposite to the bed were shelves of various books containing manga and fashion magazines. In the middle of it all was a checker board designed carpet. It was a normal room, shattering Seiji's expectations.
Breathing out a sigh, he walked over beside the bed, looking at the restful face of Saki.
"How did you catch a summer cold, idiot," he whispered, gently hitting her face with the folder.
Seiji walked to her work desk cluttered with many fashion magazines. Posted on the bulletin on the wall was a note saying "I won't lose to Seiji" with an angry face beside it. Seiji let out a quick chuckle, still eyeballing the bulletin. Beside the note was a picture of the both of them looking away from each other's gaze. It was a picture from an arcade cabinet they visited during a field trip back in middle school.
"Woah she still had this with her," Seiji said, glancing over to Saki.
To his surprise, Saki got up from under her blanket, rubbing her eyes. The wet towel on her forehead fell on the beddings as she moved her messy brown hair away from her face. Because of how loose her pajama was, her cleavage was displayed. Flustered, Seiji turned her gaze away from his drowsy female classmate.
"Is that you Seiji?" Saki asked, dragging out her words
"I-I'm sorry for barging in. I was told to bring this here," Seiji fumbled his words, covering his reddish face with the folder.
"You came to pay a visit!" Saki threw her hands up and sat cross-legged on top of the bed, her eyes half open, beaming.
Seiji caught a glimpse of her lovely expression. His heart pounded as he turned his back towards Saki, looking away once more. Flustered because of the sudden awakening and the unsightly appearance of his bedridden classmate, he was in a hurry to leave the vicinity.
"Well then, will you excuse me," Seiji said, leaving the folder on top of the fashion magazines.
As the innocent highschool boy took a step, a warmth from behind stopped his movements entirely. Lowering his gaze, he noticed a pair of arms wrapped around his chest. Looking over his shoulder, he noticed Saki embracing him blissfully, letting out a giggle.As he tried to break free from her embrace, his cheeks flushed red.
"Come sleep with me," Saki whispered.
A chill ran down his spine as she breathed into his ear. His knees become weak as a result of his anxiousness, allowing Saki to pull him down to the top of the bed. She gazed into the eyes of Seiji with alluring eyes, biting her lip while tucking her hair in the back of her ear. Pinned down by his female classmate, Seiji looked away from her eyes.
Saki lifted his agitated face, and as their eyes met, she said, "look at me," and moved in for a kiss. She closed her eyes as she passionately kissed Seiji. Seiji's eyes widened when he felt her tongue wrapping around his. Hot from the embarrassment, he pulled out of the kiss, gently shoving her shoulder away.
"S-stop, Saki," Seiji said, still flustered from the kiss.
Saki giggled, throbbing the heart of Seiji. Slowly lifting his head, he caught a glimpse of her grinning, red from blushing. "How adorable," she said before collapsing on Seiji.
"I-I said stop it Saki," Seiji stuttered, pulling her away from his chest.
He noticed that she felt heavy when he tried to move her. Placing his palm on her forehead, a burning hot temperature stinged his skin.
"She's burning up. I have to call for her mother."
The door creaked, revealing mrs. Nakagawa peeking in saying, "What is with the ruckus kids?"
Seiji left the house with an unforgettable memory etched in his heart after consulting his mother about Saki's rising temperature. Walking home admiring the evening sky, his heart continued to pound, drowning out the symphony of crickets chirping with the noise of the busy road. The one timid girl who he teased everyday disappeared that night. All Seiji saw was a girl seducing him with her bewitching smile. And thus, the day ended with such thoughts looming in his head.
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"How's the food, master?" Hasegawa Maho chuckled, handing out the pastries as Seiji munched on the cafe's special omelet rice.
"It would taste better without you asking," Seiji glared.
"The pastries are finally here!" Saki rejoiced with stars in her eyes.
As soon as Maho distributed the pastries, Saki recited a quick prayer of gratitude and swiftly munched on the appetizing cream puffs. Her face melted in pleasure as she gnawed the pastries, stretching her mouth into a grin. Eating a spoonful of omelet rice, Seiji, who was beside Saki, witnessed the delightful sight, flushing his cheeks in red.