⌠ 1 ⌡
Takeshi nudges me. "Nervous?"
"It's nothing."
"You were whining just five minutes ago."
"Forget it, alright?"
"Fine, just don't ruin things."
He grins and leans in. "The short haired one's mine."
"Whatever you say."
Slow footsteps
towards them.
What am I afraid of?
I've done this before.
Say your names.
Ito Takeshi.
Sugawa Eri.
Akiyama Yura.
Huh? It's my turn to introduce myself.
Ah, I'm Sakai.
Sakai Keichi.
Nice to meet you.
I can barely hear myself speak.
Rain girl glances over at me,
a flicker in her eyes.
Does she remember?
⌠ 2 ⌡
"Should we go for karaoke?" Takeshi says.
The girls murmur in agreement.
"Keichi? What do you think."
Curious looks.
Act normal.
"Sure. Let's go"
Takeshi leads the way.
True to his word, he leaves us trailing behind.
Chattering away at the short haired girl...
Sugawa was it?
Usually,
I can fill the silence.
Small talk.
School. Weather. Pets.
Easy.
But today is different.
Rain girl is next to me.
She walks carelessly,
her arms crossed behind her back,
bangs unravelling in the light breeze.
She's humming something.
A pop song?
Still,
we haven't spoken a word to each other.
The other two are already
laughing away,
in their own world.
I should say something.
Anything.
My mouth opens.
Closes.
She's still humming next to me.
"Um-"
She turns.
My throat tightens.
An expectant look.
"Nothing."
The walk continues in silence.
⌠ 3 ⌡
Her shoulder almost brushes mine.
Our closeness
feels like distance.
Step by step,
we head
to our destination.
Her humming ends.
I count the cracks in the road.
One.
Two.
Say something.
Say something.
The karaoke bar is ahead.
Still silent.
They were right.
I'll always be this way.
YOU ARE READING
wingman | Cell Phone Novel
RomanceSakai Keichi has always been the wingman, the shadow helping his best friend chase girls in an empty cycle of double dates and practiced smiles. He lets himself fade into the background. Until he meets a girl who smells of rain, and for the first t...
