Unwavering Faith (or a Lack Thereof) | Saimatsu

Chapter 3

The third time they met was during the summer. It was half way through the season, the weather was sweltering- an all time high for the past few years- and Kaede's air conditioning unit just happened to break. How convenient. Her parents called for people to come fix it, but they wouldn't be coming until later on in the day.

Her sister headed out to a friend's house in order to avoid the heat, and although Kaede wasn't sure what she was going to do, she knew damn well that she wasn't staying inside her house, which was so overheated that it felt hotter inside than it did outside. Taking her phone charger alongside a few other belongings and placing them in her bag, she started thinking of places where she could stay for the day.

Naturally, the first thing that comes to mind is a certain boy with an adorable face and a kind heart. But during the past few months they'd try to hang out, if one of them wasn't busy with something then the other one would be busy. What were the odds that they'd both be free?

Pushing aside her growing doubt, Kaede decided to try anyways.

u doing anything today?

Saihara Shuichi <3
No
Why?

Kaede's eyes lit up. He wasn't doing anything today? How lucky she was.

my ac broke
im gonna melt
can i come over?

Not even a second passed before she got a reply with Shuichi's address. He was almost a little too easy- but hey, it wasn't like she was complaining. She gave herself a once-over in the mirror near the front door, making sure she looked good before she slipped on her shoes and left her sauna of a house.

The trip wasn't a pleasant one, but at least it was a fast one thanks to the fact that there was a bus stop near both of their houses. She wasn't particularly fond of the random men staring at her, either, but all she could do for now was ignore it.

Although she was happy to make it to her house, Kaede felt a little bit self-conscious now that she was here. She was definitely sweating at least a little due to the heat- yet when she pulled up the strap of her tank top to see if she smelled bad, she smelled just fine. With this little bit of reassurance, she knocked on the door to his house.

She heard the faint sound of something click- but the door had yet to open. Kaede's brows furrowed in confusion. She could've sworn that was the sound of the door being unlocked, yet why wouldn't Shuichi open it? Would he really just walk away like that?

Since there were no windows on or near the door, Kaede only had one way to find out. She slowly reached her hand forward, palms outstretched and fingers curled as she moved to grab the doorknob...

Only for it to turn right before she could touch it. The door opened, and standing before her was none other than the person who invited her over in the first place. "Hello, Akamatsu... san..." Shuichi greeted her with a smile, but as he got a better look at her, his speech started to slow.

"Well..?" Kaede asked after a few seconds. "Are you just gonna stand there or are you going to let me in?" Kaede quirked a brow, crossing her arms over her chest. The heat was starting to finally get to her, and the impatience made her question come out a little ruder than she had originally intended.

It was enough to snap Shuichi out of his trance. "Ah! I'm sorry! Come on in!" Hand still holding onto the doorknob, Shuichi took a step back, allowing Kaede into his house.