Apologies. A Rin Matsuoka x Reader

8.

        "Eh this seems a bit too cute for my enemy." I cringed at Makoto. "You look fine Y/N!" He complimented me. I looked into the full length mirror, I was wearing black skinny jeans and a ruffled, off-the-shoulder blue blouse. Giving myself a full 360 spin I shook my head at the reflection of myself. "Fine, I'll wear it for you since you like it." I said, crossing my arms at Makoto. "Yay!" He clapped his hands together. "I just talked to Rin, he thinks I'll be meeting him at an overhead downtown close to the mall to talk." Haru said in the doorway of the bedroom. "Everything is going to plan, I like it!" Makoto said in excitement. I kept staring at myself in the mirror, feeling a flush cross over my face. "Y/N? Are you okay?" Makoto asked in a worried tone. "No, I'm nervous...it's not about the apology but, it's something else." I said quietly, placing my hand on the left side of my chest. Makoto looked up in awe before giving me a gentle smile in the reflection. "Hey, it's okay to feel like this. Once you get to know him-"  "You're gonna be fine Y/N." Haru interrupted Makoto. I turned around to face Haru who walked towards me. "Eh?" I said in confusion. "Rin isn't going to hurt you. Sure he can be an asshole but, I think Makoto is right. He has something for you. I can't answer that but Rin can." Haru said with reassurance. I placed my hands on his shoulders and gave him a firm nod. Haru smiled back. "Besides, he's got a little sister, so I think you should be okay." Haru said before leaving the room. "It's late, we're going back to the hotel. Also me and Makoto will be watching out for you during your date." Haru said while escorting Makoto out of the apartment. "Okay, have a good night guys!" I said as I heard them get quieter. "Also you're gonna need the landlord to come by here!" Makoto shouted. "Of course, that damn Haru." I said, remembering the lock was loose.

          The next day came by as the sun rays creeped onto my face. Today is the day, I thought. I got up from the bed and got ready. It was about 11:00 am when I finally took one more glance in the mirror before setting off into the streets. Haru had sent me the location that he was supposed to meet Rin at but, that was actually me. I felt hot and bothered about meeting him in public. I didn't know what his next move was going to be, will he yell at me again or will he actually warm up to me and apologize. I shook my head away at the distinctive thoughts. "You got this. Just be calm and cool." I whispered. Standing on the side of the road I waited for my ride and when the time came, I was prepared. Somewhat prepared.

         Thanking the driver I left the rideshare area and began my walk towards the overhead that Haru told me about. The overhead was like a bridge that connected both sides of the downtown area, it was much safer for pedestrians to cross over, instead of having to wait for traffic. Good thing it was the morning, or else this place would be far more packed. My heartbeat became faster with each step I took. I finally came to a stop when I found myself in the middle of it. There was a road sign that pointed in different directions of the mall area, making it easy for people to locate different stores. It had flowers decorated underneath it, making it somewhat more inviting for travelers. Close to the edge were the glass panes that held the overhead together, keeping it safe for people. A bench was in front of it, I went and took a seat there, watching as the seagulls flew above me. Taking a deep breath in I could smell the sea salt in the air, I was close to the ocean's pier no doubt. "He really tricked me huh?" A familiar voice said. I opened my eyes and looked at the direction of it. There stood Rin, dressed in a white long sleeve shirt and black jeans, with white sneakers. I looked up and down at him, he seemed to not be wearing his signature black cap at the moment. "What the hell are you looking at?" He clicked his tongue at me. "Eh? I-I wasn't looking at you!" I turned away in embarrassment. "Whatever, he wanted me here for a reason. Guess this is the reason. Can't really believe he tricked me into this." Rin spoke. The taller man walked towards me and sat right next to me. A breeze of cool air passed by us as I caught a whiff of Rin's cologne, he smelled like sandalwood and roses.  I gripped onto my black pocketbook as tight as I could, the whites of my knuckles showing. I felt all sweaty and hot, but why? "Oi, are you okay? You seem tense." He asked. "I-I'm fine, I'm fine." I said, avoiding eye contact with the man. We sat there awkwardly for a minute. Damn it, just say it already. "Rin, I'd like you to-" I paused when a loud gurgling sound came from my stomach. With my eyes widened I looked down at my stomach, like I was on a secret mission and I just got my cover blown. "Tehehe." Rin giggled under his breath. "W-Why are you laughing?!" I raised my voice at him. "Before we even begin to talk to each other, I'd like you to not pass out on me. Come on, let's get a bite to eat first." He stood up and placed his hands in his pockets. "O-okay." I replied to the taller man.

           We ended up going to a brunch place. Sitting in a booth across from one another I buried my face in the menu, pretending to look through it like a blinded bat. "Hey, stop acting like a complete fool for a minute would ya?" Rin said from behind the menu. I peeked my e/c eyes over the folder and looked into his cherry eyes. They were deep and intense. Scary. I thought to myself as I quickly raised the menu back. "Oi! I said stop that." He said once more. This time he took his hand and lowered the menu in front of my face.  "Ah!" I practically screamed. "Can you just look at me for a minute! Jesus, you're acting like you don't know me at all!" He said in annoyance. "Look over there." A voice whispered. "They don't seem happy at all." Another voice said. "Poor girl, do you think he's always like this?" I looked around the cafe, and things were said to the both of us. Turning my head I looked back at Rin, whose face went from intense to worried and soft. I took the menu out of his hand and laid it onto the table below us. "S-So, how did you like it over in the USA?" I tried my best to make eye contact with him. Rin turned back to look at me. "W-Well, it was different from Japan I'll say. In elementary school they didn't have homemade lunches. It was gross to be honest but, at least they treated us." He said. Rin's face started to soften and his expression became more relaxed. "Really? That sounds awful." I smiled. We started to giggle together as I saw a hint of blush creep onto his cheeks.

            We ordered our breakfast and sat there eating together and talking about things. Talking with him became more comfortable with each second. I found out that we actually had a lot of things in common. After we were done, he offered to take me to a bookstore where the latest volume of one of my favorite series was in stock. Rin wasn't much of an otaku but he seemed to understand my excitement about it and supported my hobby. The day lightened up as we continued down the strip of the mall, being around him made me understand why he was the way he was. We walked down the hallway of the mall after the bookstore, passing by a photography store. The flash from the cameras caught my attention as I saw a family of four taking professional shots of them. I stood in front of the glass panel and watched as the family shared a laughing moment with each other. "I used to have a father." Rin said quietly as he approached my side. I looked up at the taller red-hair man. "Oh, I'm sorry to hear that Rin. If I may ask, what happened?" I softly said to the man. "My father was a professional swimmer, I inspire to be just like him. Me, my sister, and my mother all loved him. We were a good family but one day during a fishing trip, he got caught in a bad storm and...drowned." Rin said as he took a deep breath. "I'm sorry. I'm sure your father would be so proud of you right now." Unconsciously I took my hand and laid it upon his broad shoulder. "Thank you, Y/N." He smiled. We looked at each other for a minute, until I remembered my hand being on his shoulder. I gasped and quickly parted away from the man. "T-There's one more place that I'd like to go to." I pointed towards the mall area. "What will that be?" He tilted his head.