Secrets Of Spring | Shigatsu Wa Kimi No Uso ;; Watari Ryota |

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Maika

For the remainder of the day, it feels as if I've been drained of my energy. I struggle to take control of the muscles in my body after pulling that stunt earlier and dancing on the roof--even writing at my desk proves to be difficult. Once the bell rings, I wander the streets as fast as my body will let me. I hate this feeling, I absolutely loathe it. I used to be able to run as fast as I wanted to, dance as hard as I pleased, but now I struggle to follow through with my steps. I spot a bus station and gradually make my way there to take a seat. When I sit, I deeply inhale and exhale, holding onto my chest and bending forward. An older woman gives me a confused look that I spot from my peripheral vision--she's probably wondering why I'm more winded than her.

The bus pulls up to the stop and the woman next to me stands to board the bus. "Are you getting on?" The driver asks and I look up.

I think for a moment. I don't want to go home just yet. I don't want to be stuck in this cycle of going from school to home. I nod to the driver and use my hands to prop me up from the bench and drag my feet over to the entrance to climb the steps.

"Maika!" A voice calls out. I turn around and Watari stands behind me at the bottom of the steps. "Where are you going? The neighborhood is just a few blocks away,"

I grab his hand and lean toward him. "Let's get away from here," I breathly say.

"Huh?! What do you mean?" He asks confused.

"Come on, let's be adventurous! What's stopping you?"

Watari lets out a chuckle and I pull him into the bus. I plop down in the front row seats since that's as far as I can manage to go. My eyes feel heavy as my vision darkens and Watari looks over at me. "You okay? Where do you wanna go?"

"Hm... The beach,"

"The beach? Why there?"

I look into Watari's eyes. "We never got to do anything over summer break and you talked about going to the beach together. So we can do it now!"

"Why don't we go during the weekend or even next summer so we can spend the whole day there?"

I shake my head vigorously in refusal. "No! Just indulge in my thoughts for now," I ask. "If my condition is worsening this much, I want to spend time with him while I'm still mobile..."

"Alright, alright, we can go now then,"

Time goes by as we pass by streetlights and tall buildings, eventually becoming trees and grassy fields as we go to the countryside. Once I see the water in the distance, I point to it to show Watari and he laughs, then teases me for acting like a kid. We finally reach our destination and Watari pays for our bus fare, refusing to let me pay. After thanking the bus driver, I exit the bus and take off my shoes when I get to the sand. My feet sink into the warm soft sand as I tread closer to the water. I set my shoes down and sit on them, facing the water.

"Wah, it's been forever since I've gone to the beach," He inhales the salty air deeply after he plops down next to me. "Oh, cool, look at this!" Watari picks up a broken cream conch shell. The tip and central body remain intact but the sides have broken off.

"What's so cool about something broken?" I ask. "It's like me, a ballerina that is doomed to never move in the future,"

"Its imperfections make it cool, it shows a different side that no one else sees. Yeah, you see a hundred perfect conch shells, but you never see a broken one because no one ever appreciates things that aren't perfect,"

He places the shell in my hand and I look closer at it. It is beautiful, but I was blind to it. I projected my own insecurities onto it and made it to be ugly when in reality, it's just... Different. But even so, I can't help but criticize myself for this, for my shortcomings even though I had no control over it.

"There's another one," He speaks up and grabs it. This shell misses the top tip and the parts of the side, revealing a soft pink inside the white shell.

"Woah, it looks like a rose," I comment.

"Well, then its a rose for a great dancer," My cheeks redden as he hands it to me and I accept it. I hold both of the shells close to my chest and smile.

"Thanks, Watari!" I then stand and stretch my arms over my head. "I need to get moving, my legs are falling asleep after that bus ride,"

I walk over to the water and go in, following the sun that disappears into the horizon. The water reaches my thighs and I turn around, calling for Watari. "Come on! You're not scared of water, right?"

He scoffs and runs over. "As if!" When he reaches me, he splashes water at me with his running and I exclaim.

"What was that for?!"

"You're in water, you're bound to get wet, Maika," He teases and splashes me again intentionally. "And I'm just having fun," He sticks out his tongue and I scrunch my nose.

"Two can play at that game!" I push water at him, initiating a full-on water war. 

We splash and chase each other through the water like children on a hot summer day. We're the only ones at the beach and our laughter fills the air along with the waves meeting the land. Time passes as we become soaked and we drag our feet back to shore.

"I feel gross," I cringe inside because of all the salt water.

"Weren't you the one that wanted to be adventurous? And you were the first one to get into the water," Watari points out.

 I stop and turn to him. "That doesn't mean I wanted to get drenched!"

A wave crashes into Watari, sending him forward and both of us fall. When the wave recedes, I cough and wipe my eyes of the sea water. When I open them, Watari hovers above me as I lie on the wet sand with his hands on both sides of my face. Both of us don't dare to speak but Watari suddenly lowers himself down, our bodies becoming closer as he closes the distance. I stifle a breath as my face reddens. What is he doing? Is this it?

Our noses almost touch when I hear my phone ring from a couple of feet away. Snapping out of it, Watari springs away from me and I jump as well. I scramble to my feet to check my phone and click on the text.

Kaori's Mom

Hey Maika, We need to talk to you. It's about Kaori.
Sent - 5:59 p.m.

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Warning: Long authors note below (mwhaha sorry~~)

Hey, so today I changed the title and the cover of this story from "Next Door Neighbor" to "Secrets of Spring". When I first published this story, I couldn't think of a title or make a good cover so I guess they were just placeholders until I progressed with this story. Also because I didn't even know what I was writing so yeah.

I also didn't think that the previous title matched the story. Yes, Maika and Watari are neighbors, it just didn't seem like an interesting title so that's why I changed it.

I'm also making a goal to get to Christmas in this story before the end of the year and possibly on Christmas in real life. Maybe, it's just a goal in mind so if a bunch of updates from me come out, you'll know why.

Anyways, isn't it frustrating that Maika and Watari are having a moment and then parents ruin it? Haha, I'm sorry if you want to smack me with a wooden plank because you're mad at me. I'm mad at myself too.

Thanks so much for reading and I'll see you next time!!