Unfamiliar Territory (Chizuru Ichinose x Reader)

(15) Back To Normality

(The Next Day) (Outside Y/n's apartment)

Y/n's POV:

...

Chizuru: "Again, thank you for going on that practise date, Y/n. Sumi said that she believes in herself more now. Obviously it's still a work in progress but that's still massive!" She says delightedly, which causes me to laugh a little.

Y/n: "Don't worry about it. It was a nice experience." I say wholeheartedly in reponse.

She briefly looks at me with a smile before it disappears and only a curious expression is left on her face. I begin to wonder what she's thinking about before cuts me off, letting me know:

Chizuru: "Is there anything I can do in return? I've already asked so much of you and even messed things up for you a couple of times..." She says, trailing off at the end, which causes me to spring into action:

Y/n: "Hey, putting up with me is more than enough, most people don't~" I reply, trying to lighten the mood before an idea comes to mind:

"Actually... do you remember those tickets my parents gave me for the ferry ride that's happening next week?" I ask, to which she nods, confused.

"How would you like to come with me?" I ask, causing her to immediately lose her composure before stuttering out: 

Chizuru: "I-I guess, but why me?"  She almost whispers, to which I blankly reply:

Y/n: "You're currently the best company I have. Two of my other friends are probably going out drinking on that day while another will be spending time with their new girlfriend." I say, as if it was obvious from the start.

In reality, it's more of a side-reason. She truly is the best company I've got, but there's another, much more compelling reason as to why I chose her for the trip.

I recall her grandmother's words as I begin to plan. She asked me to be there for her when she's gone but to do so without the risk of Ichinose pushing me away, I've got to get closer to her. I thought, quickly bringing myself back to the conversation at hand.

She nods, an unreadable expression on her face. Was that the wrong thing to say? Ah, screw it, I'll just tell her! I panic, breathing in slowly before telling her the main reason:

Y/n: "Also, I'd like to discuss a few things with you... about your acting career." I say, before waving goodbye to her and walking into my apartment. 

I unwind a little before getting back into my usual routine. So much stuff has happened over the past few days that were 'interesting' to say the least. Sure, they were fun and often enlightening but I'm going to need some time to relax, so I do exactly that. 

Once I finish a little bit of exercise, I sit on the couch, scrolling through the different shows available to watch. I settle on a romance film, which I get quite invested in. I've always liked the way different films portray certain ideas in a variety of ways, from the wording of lines, to slight movements of the actors, establishing their characters and how the directors and writers want the audience to feel. I may not be an actor like Ichinose but I can identify all the little pieces that come together, resulting in the finished product.

Hell, I wrote a story and script for a small romance film when I was younger. I thought it had potential to be something truly amazing. Even a retired director I showed it to all those years ago said the same thing! However, my writing career slowly started to take off and now it's buried under piles of drafts somewhere in my parents' attic. 

The film eventually reaches it's climax, almost causing me to shed a tear or two in satisfaction. With newfound inspiration, I begin writing some ideas down that I could perhaps implement into a the current story I'm writing.

Many hours pass until I get worn out from the endless possibilities my brain was providing me. I turn on my phone, finally getting around to answering any messages I received from the past few days. Those include: A thank you from Kazuya, Some funny videos from Kuri, a booking for my next check-up from my doctor and... a message from Mami!?

How did she get my number? I question myself, my answer eventually falling to one suspect: Kibe. Kuri doesn't talk to her too much, and Kazuya can't have socialised with the group too much either due to him devoting time to his girlfriend. I sigh in frustration, reminding myself to scold Kibe for giving my out my number so carelessly.

I check the message and sure enough, my suspicion is confirmed:

Mami: [Hi Y/n! How are you doing? I hope you don't mind but I asked Kibe for your number. I'd like to speak with you whenever you're free, so please text me back~] 

What does she want? I don't exactly trust her but I want to get this over and done with as fast as possible. I begin to type back, asking her if she's free tomorrow to talk, but I really can't be bothered for yet another hectic day, so instead, I reply:

Y/n: [Hello, Mami. I'm free in 2 days (Friday) if that's alright with you. We can meet at the park right after school?] 

To my surprise, a response comes instantly, as if she was waiting the entire time:

Mami: [That's fine :) I'll see you then!]

I don't actually have any lessons due to the whole presentation that was set for the class but I better not get into that at the moment. In fact, I probably wont even have to explain it to her. 

What would she want to talk to me specifically about? I think to myself, before taking a look at the dark sky outside my window, start faintly visible.

I almost lost track of time! I get into bed and start to drift off, a little bored of my 'normality' already. I swiftly fall asleep, my last thought being: 

I wonder how the rest of Ichinose's day was?