Chapter Text
“That was a great match!” My kouhai came up to me after our last volley had ended with me sending the shuttlecock right over her shoulder before she could react.
“You almost had me,” I replied with a grin. “If we had another year together, I'm sure you'd surpass me and then some!” I was sweating in the June heat, and the sweatband I wore in my short, ponytailed hair did little to keep the moisture from rolling down my face. The weather reports claimed we might see some rain later that afternoon, but it had yet to manifest.
We wrapped up practice and I said goodbye to my kouhais. I wasn't sure how many more practice days were were going to have together. As a third year, I was planning on retiring in the summer to make time to study for entrance exams. I was going to miss this, and miss them, but I had pretty high ambitions for college, so I needed to give myself the best chance I could to fulfill them.
I didn't bother changing out of my tracksuit, just wiped myself down with cooling wipes and ran my head under the faucet to cool off, before packing up my bag and heading down the hill towards the coast. I still couldn't believe I was lucky enough to go to school here, even with the nearly three years I'd had to grow accustomed to it. The classrooms of Minegahara High School looked out directly onto the ocean, and I often found myself staring out at it, losing myself in the gentle motions of the blue expanse. (Especially when the lectures started to get just a bit too boring, though I always did my best to keep half an ear open to make sure I didn't miss anything.)
I walked down the hill and out the school gates, turning right after crossing the train tracks and then a short bridge, to head towards Shichirigahama station. I was the only student walking this direction this late in the day, only the cicadas accompanied me on my way home. If I continued straight I would be at the beach, also named Shichirigahama, in a matter of minutes. (Even though it was named “seven ri beach”, it was actually less than a ri long)
I was lucky, and I didn't have to wait long for the Enoshima Electric Railway — or Enoden — to arrive to take me to Fujisawa station. I had a very important appointment that I didn't want to be late for, but the Enoden would get me to there with plenty of time to spare.
It was busy in the main hall when I arrived. After I got off the Enoden, I had taken the short bridge to the main station, and was waiting by the gates that lead to the JR Lines platforms. I had gotten to know this station pretty well by now, though up until last spring it was mostly the platforms for the Odakyu Lines that I had been the most familiar.
School had let out long ago, and even the students who had clubs of other after-school activities had mostly gone home by this time of evening. The station hall was mostly filled with office workers and shoppers on their way to the large shopping center across the street. Even the tourists who would be swarming the building on a weekend were mostly absent.
Which is why the girl in a dark green school uniform caught my eye, less so from what she was wearing, but rather because of the fact that she was staring directly at me.
It's not that I wasn't used to getting stares in public. My height was enough to turn heads, even if I hadn't dyed my hair a bright shade of pink years ago. (My girlfriend had drawn a picture of me once with that color hair, and I had liked it so much I had to make it a reality. Sadly I had had to wait till I had graduated middle school to color it, but I was excited to learn that Minegahara's rules on hair styles were loose enough to let me get away with it. Of course, my sister had to copy me the moment she saw it on me, but whatever. She was at university living with her girlfriends now and could do whatever she wanted.)
I had already been tall for my age in middle school, and high school had gifted me with another growth spurt. At this point I towered over almost all of my peers, to the point that the basketball team kept trying to recruit me. But badminton had been and remained my sport of choice, and, given how well we did in last year's regional tournament, the team wasn't going to give me up without a fight. Well, at least not until I retired. After that, who knew? Everyone expected me to try for a sports scholarship, and so had a hard time understanding why I felt the need to study as hard as I did, but I had other plans in mind. Plans I wasn't really sharing with anyone, just in case they didn't pan out, but they involved me getting into a good school, so I made sure to hit the books whenever I could.
I locked eyes with the person staring at me, giving her my best death glare. She was undeterred, however. She was about my age, and I recognized the uniform as being from a school in Kamakura, but didn't know the name of it. Her hair was long and chestnut and fell in lazy tangles down her back. Around her neck hung a very expensive-looking camera. Her mouth was slightly agape, and she was looking at me with the kind of look I often saw people give my roommate, but not one I was used to receiving. (My roommate was something of a celebrity, I should point out. She was also drop-dead beautiful, and dating the sibling of my even-prettier girlfriend)
“What's that you’re looking at?” a gentle voice spoke directly into my ear. I jumped, surprised at having been snuck up on, and spun around to see said girlfriend, standing there with a warm smile on her face.
“Kaede, you startled me!” I glanced back at the girl, who had at this point made a box out of her thumbs and forefingers and was looking at me through them. “Nothing, nothing really. How was class?”
She had just started attending an art university in Tokyo a few months ago, and I was so proud of her for being able to attend in person. She had had a troubled childhood that left her emotionally scarred and agoraphobic. Her high school had been special, in that all her classes could be taken remotely. She had been shown that that was even a possibility by her then guidance counselor, when she was still in middle school and unable to make it any further than the nurse's office. Since then, I was fortunate enough to watch her gradually blossom into the beautiful college student I saw before me today. One who I was somehow lucky enough to call my girlfriend. She had almost no problems with crowds anymore, to the point where she even had a table last year at Comiket with her high school manga circle. (I admit, the crowds at the Big Site were enough to make even me a little nervous, so I was extra proud of her for that). Oh, and she was also the most talented artist I had ever met, though I admit I was biased. Her art had been something which I had also been lucky enough to follow her developing in real time. She had only just started learning how to draw when we had first run into each other (and I do mean “run into” quite literally.) But since then she had really honed her craft, even placing in a national manga contest when she was still a first year.
Kaede had even become so daring in public that she leaned over and gave me a warm hug, then took my hand in her own. “C'mon, let's go home. I'm sure you'll want to get back to studying as soon as you can.”
I nodded with a smile, and walked with her out of the station, leaving the odd gawking girl behind. I kept my ears sharp to hear if the snap of a shutter followed us. That was another sound I had learned to listen for whenever I was in public with my roommate (Did I mention she was famous? Paparazzi were an infrequent, but persistent annoyance for her, even when she did her best to alter her appearance to avoid notice).
Luckily, no clicking followed us as we left the station and headed towards the city streets and towards our respective homes, hands entwined. We were lucky enough to live across the street from one another. Still too far apart, as far as I was concerned, but with any luck, once I graduated, we'd be able to find a place together and move in and not have to spend our nights apart anymore.
“Mai-san is out tonight, so should I make dinner for us at your place?” Kaede offered. “It was nice enough of you to wait for me at the station, I don't want you to have to sacrifice any more study time because of me.”
I leaned against her, so close we were brushing our arms against each other. Kaede had also had a growth spurt, though not quite as big a one as mine. (Her growth seemed to be more in… other places than her height.) “I'd like that! But, you know, I had badminton until just now anyway, so it was no trouble to wait for you.”
“I know, but that doesn't stop me from feeling guilty for taking up your time when you wait for me at the station.” She squeezed my hand, and I smiled. “Still… I'm glad I get to see you that much earlier.”
“Me too,” I agreed, squeezing her hand right back.
“Tell you what,” Kaede lowered her voice and I could tell by the glint in her eye that she had mischief in mind. “If you really wanted to save time, I could think of one thing…”
“Is it… sharing a bath?” I whispered back with a grin. Her beaming face told me I had hit right on the money. “Will that really save time though? I might not ever want to leave if you're in there with me. My fingers will get all pruney.” I waggled the fingers of my free hand at her, and she laughed. I loved hearing her laugh. It was as clear as a bell, and made me feel warm inside.
“Okay, fine, I'll make dinner while you take your bath. And I'll try not to distract you while you study, okay?”
I looked at my girlfriend, her slim figure in the designer dress which had been a hand-me-down from my roommate which did a good job of accentuating her… growth spurt) making me think that I wouldn't mind being distracted by her. Just a little