Unfamiliar Territory (Chizuru Ichinose x Reader)

(19) The Ferry Incident

Y/n's POV:

Once we board the ferry, I stand there jaw-dropped. No matter what she wears, she's simply astonishing. Appealing to all the senses. The darkness of the sky, contrasting with her luminescent radiance. She's practically glowing! I thought, my chest feeling tight and my heart beating faster than ever before, as if savouring the moment with everything I have for it will eventually come to an end?

She looks at me, with myself being far too entranced to properly notice her expression. I must've been staring for at least a couple of minutes. She speaks, breaking me out of her spell:

Chizuru: "...You need something?" She asks angrily, with a very faint blush on her face.

This causes me to realise exactly what I've been doing. I start panicking like crazy, picking out the first excuse I could find:

Y/n: "I-I was just f-feeling a little dizzy." I reply, trying to sound convincing. 

She sighs before responding, her face looking deadly serious.

Chizuru: "Why didn't you say so? We shouldn't have come here if you're not feeling well." She says, before I quickly reply, almost cutting her off in the process.

Y/n: "Don't worry, I'm fine now. I promise it won't happen again!" I say, bowing.

Chizuru: (Sigh) "Anyways, what did you want to talk to me about?" She asks, her expression changing into something more gentle.

The reason I brought her here jolts back into my mind. With my confidence and resolve returning, I start.

Y/n: "Well, first of all, it's about your acting career. As you probably know I really admire the fact that you're doing everything you can to make your dream come true. After all, a similar thing happened to me. And after all you've been through, you're honestly an incredible person to keep going." I begin 

Upon hearing my compliment, she shifts the side of her face out of my view. She begins muttering but I continue:

"I'm aware that you want to go for it yourself, and that you'll probably refuse if I try to help in any way. But, I needed the support of many people in order to get to where I am now. All of those people cared for me. No matter how stubborn I was, they would keep trying. I want to help you achieve your dream. Just like those who helped me, I care for you and want to help you succeed." I say, letting out a deep breath afterwards. 

That certainly wasn't easy for me to say. I honestly thought about backing out at one point and giving her the shortened version of my speech.

She turns, fully facing me once more, before asking, bewildered by one of the things I had said:

Chizuru: "What... what do you mean... you care for me?" She stutters quietly. 

Realising how what I said could be interpreted very differently, I set the record straight, answering honestly:

Y/n: "I mean I care for you. You're not only a neighbour, but one of my closest friends. I know I've known you for a lesser amount of time than my other friends, but I enjoy your company very much." I say openly, oblivious to why her face is red.

Once her face returns to it's normal tone, she half-yells:

Chizuru: "Dumbass! You've should've said that in the first place. Do you even realise what your speech could have implied to others?" She finishes, to which I embarrassingly nod, apologizing to her.

After a while, we both return to interacting as normal. I go to a lower floor to get a drink for Ichinose and myself. She looks a little off-balance. Just as she's about to fall to the side, I put my drink down and grab her shoulder on instinct, stopping her from falling.