a small gap in the middle | Akaashi Keiji x Original Character

ページ24: 恋愛の形

- Page 24: Form of Love -

"Y-Yuuki?"

Because of his shock to see his friend crying all of a sudden, Keiji forgot to use a honorific after her name. Although, saying her first name went smoothly like water. It was like a new experience.

He panicked a bit, moving to the front in order to look at her better as the honey blonde-haired girl hides her tear-stricken face in her hands.

"Hey, why are you crying? What's wrong?" He asks, trying to calm himself down as he is in a new predicament.

Yuuki sobs, doing her best to wipe the tears away with her hands but because she is so struck with anxiety and sadness that she failed to calm herself down and stop the flow of tears.

She has never cried like this in a long, long time. If she remembers correctly, the last time she felt this bad was when she was still in middle school. But why does this hurt more than when she was picked on by that girl from her class?

Why is loving a person so hard when one set a boundary like this?

'I want to tell you... I want to tell you so bad, Keiji,' is what's running in Yuuki's mind. 'But I don't want to lose you because of my feelings for you! I just can't bear to part with you!'

"Yuuki, will you please look at me?" She hears him.

A few hiccups escape her throat before she lifts her head to meet a worried look in his gunmetal irises. It was a little too much to bear, seeing that kind of expression on him.

"Here," he rummages through his right jacket pocket and takes out a gray-colored handkerchief.

"T-Thank you, senpai..."

The girl gratefully accepts the piece of cloth, although slightly reluctant, before patting the tears away from her eyes. To see this side of her in full view is embarrassing, to say the least. What shall she ever do if, one day, she never receives such kindness from him again?

The two made it a point to make a stopover at the park they frequent. Twenty minutes have passed and Yuuki found herself in a calmer state than before, although the corners of her eyes are red from all the crying. Somehow her self-esteem is down and doesn't know what to feel, tired and uneasy from all of the thoughts and feelings that keep on conflicting each other in her heart and mind.

Keiji isn't used to seeing the girl like this nor being too quiet. All of this is new and deep inside, he's anxious and panicking. He doesn't know what made his friend cry so much, let alone make her act this way. Is this really the extent of their friendship, that he's unsure of how he'll make her feel better?

"Have you calmed down, Yuuki-san?" He asks, handing out a small can of milk chocolate drink that he bought from the nearest vending machine.

Unable to fully look at him, she slightly tilts her head and gratefully accepts the cold drink. The lower half of her face is hidden by the gray handkerchief that belongs to the person beside her. "Thank you. Sorry."

"Don't apologize. I'm just...shocked to see you cry all of a sudden," he says, releasing a relieved sigh when he finally heard her say something. "Did something...make you upset?"

Upset? 'Upset'... That could be the right word but 'conflicted' and 'anxious' are also the reasons why she burst out crying. She wants to tell Keiji how she really feels about him because she's been suppressing them for almost four years already. However, the thought of them drifting apart, to the point that their friendship can never be mended, scared her. All this time, she thought that staying friends is the right way to go.