Strawberries & Cigarettes (Shinichiro x Reader)

XI

Name

Committing to a certain thing isn't that easy, especially in love. Being with Shinichiro and thinking of spending the rest of my life with him feels surreal.

I like him. I won't deny that anymore. I find him attractive, kind, and all the good things you can describe to him. He has it all.

Now that he's courting me, I think this is a sign or a way from the Heavens to figure things out– my feelings towards him... deeply.

"U-Uhh. I..." I trailed off. I am lost for words. I didn't see this coming. Just last night he confessed and now, he's courting me.

I didn't realize the doubled-beating of my heart, the butterflies in my stomach, and my cold shaking tiny hands.

I looked for words to say but I just couldn't. I need to get my shit together!

He chuckled softly to the point that it tingles to my ears. It's like music to my ears that makes me sleep– a lullaby. Heck, I could ask him to record his sweet and soft laughs but that would be so embarrassing and I look crazy for asking him to do that.

"You don't need to answer me right now. I'm just informing you. Oh, I shouldn't ask in the first place," he realized and chuckled a bit. "Well, here we are. Whether you'll allow me to court you or not, I will still pursue you," he added. He then caressed my face down to my chin, making me look at him in the eyes.

"Okay," I answered. I looked into his eyes deeply.

Shinichiro, the man in front of me, smiling widely with a glint of happiness in his eyes, cheeks were red as a strawberry, and hands were warm as the sun. I will answer him and love him properly... in time.

"For now, uhh... may I?" he asked.

"What do you mean?—"

My words were cut off by the soft lips against my left cheek. My eyes widened and I can feel my whole face burning.

"W-What..."

"See you!" he shouted, running backward away from me while waving his hand up in the air.

"Shinichiro, you smooth asshole!" I jokingly shouted.

I touched my face from where he left the kiss. My face heated and my lips slowly formed into a smile.

I turned around and my eyes widened because of surprise. Mika's face greeted mine.

Oh my. Is she there for a long time?

"M-Mika! Do you need anything?" I asked.

She hummed and narrowed her eyes back at me. Don't tell me...

"You two are close, eh?" she asked with a smile on her face.

"W-We're not really "that" close..." I trailed off. Why am I stuttering?

She looked at me intently then chuckled right after. "You know what? He rejected me this morning! He said that he likes someone else and– wait," she stopped and stared at me. Her mouth then turns into an "o".

"What?" I asked, wondering what's gotten into her.

Her eyes widened. "No, way! Are you the one that he likes?! Oh my gosh!" she squealed like a pig taking a dirt nap.

"What... are you talking about?"

The one that he likes? Who? Shinichiro?

Well, yeah Shinichiro even confessed to me last night but how did this woman figure it out that easily when even I cannot figure it out or even my feelings.

I shook my head and pretend that I didn't know what to say. "Stop it, Mika. Come on, let's take a seat," I said and sat down.

Mika followed me. She grabbed the chair in front of me, turned it around, and sat down. She smiled widely.

"You know what? Now that I got rejected by him, I think you're the one he likes. And damn, dude, I'm already imagining your future together with him. Aww. Isn't that sweet?" she giggled once again.

I was shocked at her statement. I chuckled and said, "Hey, aren't you supposed to be mad or something to me? Because you know, the boy you like likes another girl which is your friend and which is me."

She chuckled and held my hand on my desk. "Of course not. I like him but it's not that deep. And..." she stopped for a second. She looked at me in the eyes and smiled. I can sense that she is happy. "I've seen how you look at him even if it's just a minute or a second. It has this kind of feeling that it is strong and passionate. And same goes for Shinichiro. I don't have that feeling towards him like yours."

I was taken aback by her words. I didn't realize that I am now smiling at her.

"Thank you so much for understanding, Mika. I actually want to apologize because I somehow got upset with you because you liked the man I like, too," I apologized and chuckled.

She laughed and slapped my arm jokingly. "So, you agree? That you like Shinichiro?"

I nodded in response which made her jump out of happiness.

Shinichiro was waiting for me outside my classroom. He's wearing our uniform, his body's leaning on the ledge while his hands were in his pockets. He looked so cool just by doing that.

"Hi," I greeted him with a smile.

He smiled and greeted me back.

"Are you hungry?" he asked when we got home.

I sighed and shook my head. "No. I'm fine."

"Hey." He grabbed my arm swiftly and made me turn to him. I raised a brow. "Are you okay?" he asked, the concern is evident in his voice.

I chuckled and said, "I am fine."

"Okay."

I sat down on the sofa. He followed and sat beside me. I looked at my watch to check the time, it's almost six.

"What time are we gonna get there, at Mitsuya's friends' gig?" I asked him.

"Probably seven o'clock. The live band's gonna start at eight. We can have dinner outside if you want," he suggested.

"Hmm," I hummed. "What about your grandpa and Mikey? I mean, we can just have dinner here."

His brows furrowed and his tongue twitched. "Why are you always asking about Manjiro?"

I raised my brows and asked, "What do you mean by that?"

"You always say his name but I've never heard you said mine," he stated and turned his face away from me. I even glimpsed the pout on his face. Cute.

I realized I never called him by his name. Maybe just once or twice but not more than that.

"Really?" I asked in disbelief.

"Yeah! You never called me by my name. Only with "hey" like what the hell is that?" he grunted.

I laughed, "I'm so sorry, Shinichiro," I apologized.

His head slowly turned to me. When I see his face met mine, the blush on his face is evident that's pink as a strawberry. He's so cute that I want to pinch his cheeks.

"Please, say it again," he begged.

"Nah. I don't want to," I joked.

He pouted even more and held both of my hands that's on my lap. "Come on, y/n! Say it!"

I sighed in defeat. Probably give this guy a chance.

I took a deep breath and murmured, "Shinichiro."

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Hello, loves! Sorry for the late update :< I almost died when the 532 words of draft in this chapter got lost. Gladly, it came back after I re-login :)))) Anyway, enjoy reading! <333