Story of a Rhythm Game Couple

Chapter 8: A visit to a friend's house

It was almost five. The downpour, which hadn't been forecast on the news, was so heavy that one could hardly catch sight of a person passing by.

As Asahi and Sana stepped out to the entrance, they were greeted with a rain like never before. It appeared to be quite a widespread downpour, so how the forecast could even miss it was inexplicable.

"How am I supposed to go home like this...?"

Sana spoke incredulously. A rain of this magnitude did not cross her mind in the slightest. While she was running her errands this morning, she could sense the overcast sky, but she brushed it off, figuring it would be nothing more than some drizzle that she could make it home quickly.

"I guess... you can stay at my house for a while until things get better?"

Asahi spoke to Sana as he was pulling out his umbrella from the peg and opening it. It was a fairly large umbrella, whose canopy was so large that two people could fit in comfortably. Though the rain was too heavy for the umbrella to keep them both completely dry, they wouldn't get too soaked given that his apartment was only a few steps away.

"I won't do anything to you, so you don't need to worry about anything. So if you don't feel comfortable, well..."

In an effort to not creep Sana out with the invitation, he tried to reassure her. It was rather awkward, perhaps due to his lack of experience conversing with girls.

"I know you won't... Umm..."

Sana could either accept Asahi's offer to go to his house or decline it. If she took it on, she would get into a boy's apartment, which she had never done before. Even though she normally didn't give much hoot about it and would simply think of it as visiting someone's house, she couldn't help but feel a twinge of anxiety. If she turned it down, though, she would be left in the arcade all alone. To make things worse, because of the unexpected rain, FunZone had just issued an early closure notice. If the rain didn't cease by then, she would be in a very precarious situation.

"I-I'll take your words for it..."

She decided to go to Asahi's flat, however grudgingly. At the time, logically speaking, staying at a friend's home sounded more feasible than a chance to be pushed out in the rain in about an hour. In order to fit beneath the cover, she drew herself near Asahi.

Asahi put his arm over Sana's shoulder.

"Eh?"

"We're going to run now." Asahi elucidated. "I need to make sure you can keep up with my pace 'cuz the wind is really gusty right now. Are you alright?"

As the one holding the umbrella, strong waves of wind were bound to toss him around. Since he was with Sana, he wasn't too confident in his strength, however physically strong he might be. He was encircling Sana's shoulder; part of it was to lean on her when the wind was fierce, and the other was to ensure that she remained within the umbrella's canopy.

Even though Sana understood what Asahi was getting at, she still seemed perplexed and even a little embarrassed.

"Yeah, I am." She timidly answered.

After hearing her confirmation, Asahi signaled her.

"Alright then. Running on 1. From 3, 2, and... 1!"

On 1, Asahi dashed out of FunZone, pulling Sana along with him.

After sprinting for a minute or two, they finally reached Asahi's apartment. Taking a few deep breaths of exhaustion, he pressed the button on the elevator, which directed them to the sixth floor. After the "ding" sound that indicated they're on the correct floor, they headed out toward apartment 601, with a modest nameplate "Noguchi" on the door.