The Butterfly Effect | Tankana

Chapter 7

Chapter 7

This Fluttering Feeling

Kanao's POV

This fluttering feeling I can't ignore.

My feet paced back and forth in my room. I couldn't tell if it was the room's temperature or my body heating up.

Cupping my face, a sudden warmth spread across my cheeks. My face felt hot and flushed. I could almost imagine my cheeks turning a rosy shade of pink. But somehow, it won't go away.

I lay on the bed, inhaling and exhaling my thoughts. It's been hours since that conversation with Tanjiro about the coin. The way he looked at me with such kind eyes, genuinely curious and concerned, made my heart flutter in a way I had never felt before. I gently slapped both my hands over my face, the embarrassment coming to me.

It felt like a dream.

I tossed and turned, it wasn't a dream. That moment kept replaying in my mind.

"To decide whether from now on you should listen carefully to the voice inside your heart or not."

My eyes dilated seeing the coin spinning in the sky. When he caught it on his palm, beads of sweat formed on my forehead.

My mind filled with thoughts, 'Which side will it be?'

When the coin fell, I couldn't see because he was blocking me.

Reading the coin as he revealed it made my heart drop. Heads.

I watched him walk away, with the coin in my hand, I pulled it closer to my heart.

The more I thought about it, the more my chest filled with a strange, fluttering feeling. I sat up to check the time and realized how late it was. As I yawned, I knew this was the second sign I needed to fall asleep.

Eventually, the thoughts lulled me to sleep, leaving me with a peaceful feeling.

I walked into school, fixing the crooked butterfly pin on my hair. I spotted Tanjiro in the hallway, and my heart skipped a beat. I wanted to approach him, to say something, anything, but my shyness held me back. Instead, I lingered by my locker, stealing glances in his direction.

He was with mr. Rengoku, talking about something. I felt so nervous for some reason. Do I thank him or casually say hi?

"Good morning, Kanao!" Aoi approached me, " Did you finish your homework?" she asked cheerfully.

I nodded, trying to keep my composure. "Yes, I did."

Aoi was observing my face, did I have a bread crumb on my cheek?

"Let's go," She said.

We walked to class together, Aoi brought up Tanjiro. "You know, Tanjiro is really good at explaining things. He helped me understand the math problem yesterday."

So they talked about math too? I mean, they have been friends even before I came to this school.

"Yeah," I replied softly.

Aoi looked at me curiously, her eyes widening a bit. "You think so too?"

I hesitated for a moment, then decided to speak. "He... he talked to me about something yesterday. It was nice."

Her eyes sparkled with surprise and curiosity. "Really? What did you talk about?"

While my mind wandered back to yesterday, I noticed her look at my face again.

"Are you blushing?" Aoi teased.

I felt my cheeks heat up even more. "No..."

"I noticed you blushing since a while ago, y'know."

"It's nothing special, he was just... very understanding." I said, making my voice even lower saying that last statement.

Aoi chuckled, her expression shifting to playful curiosity. "Do you have a crush on Tanjiro?"

My heart raced at her question. I opened my mouth to respond but found myself at a loss for words. Did I have a crush on him? The fluttering feeling in my chest seemed to suggest so, but admitting it out loud felt too daunting.

Actually no, I don't have a crush on him. I barely even know him. Maybe... or maybe not.

"I... I don't know," I stammered, looking away.

Aoi smiled warmly and patted my shoulder. "It's okay, Kanao. It's normal to feel that way. Tanjiro is a great guy."

I nodded, still feeling nervous but a sense of relief.

"I'm just joking, I know you don't have a crush on him." Aoi continued.

"Yeah, I don't.."

Saying that felt like a lie, my heart was racing so fast I could pass out.

Just when we were about to enter the classroom, Tanjiro passed by and stopped. Our eyes locked.

"Good morning, Kanao!"

I greeted him back, the feeling in my chest was back.

Even a simple greeting and glance was overwhelming, I immediately walked to my seat. I couldn't talk to him yet even if I wanted to. 

"Wait, I left something in my locker." I said to Aoi as I realized I left the notebook we needed for the first class.

"I'll go with you." She stood up and we ran outside before the bell could ring.

Our footsteps echoed against the tiled floor. The rush of air whipped through our hair as we hurried towards the lockers.

Reaching my locker, the lock clicked open, and I swung the door grabbing the notebook from the top shelf.

"Alright, let's go!" Aoi exclaimed.

We turned and sprinted back down the hallway, dodging a few students who were around. Getting in the classroom, we took deep breaths and went to our seats.

What's this?

There was strawberry milk and a sticky note on my desk.

"Good for you, you have something to drink." Aoi chuckled, still breathless.

We both sat down and I took the sticky note, reading what it says.

I had an extra one, you can have this :D - Tanjiro

I smiled down at the note and looked over at his seat, he exchanged a smile before focusing on what he was doing. I like strawberries, so I'm going to enjoy this.

"From Tanjiro?" Aoi asked.

"Yes,"

I allowed my cheeks to flush pink, again. And the faint sound of the bell started to ring.

Maybe Aoi was right. Maybe, just maybe, I did like him.

And for the first time, that thought didn't scare me as much as it excited me.