Youth Unsupervised

Chapter 10-Pale Moonlight

It had been over a week since I'd seen Saki and I think I might have been starting to go a little bit crazy. I'd been thinking about her nonstop. In the day, I could distract myself with things like games, manga, or even Hiromasa's company, but the nights were the worst. I didn't have anything to drown out my own thoughts so I was forced to wonder where she was, if something happened to her, and when or if she was coming back.

It seemed unlikely, after being friends with her for this long, that she would simply disappear for the entire summer break, but I don't pretend to know the first thing that was going on in her head. That fantasy I had of my feelings for Saki fading had long since passed. It was clear to me that they weren't going anywhere and I was just going to have to deal with the rushes of bliss followed by the pangs of longing.

I decided I was long overdue for a trip to the store. All that was left in the fridge was a jar of mayonnaise, and my stock of instant noodles was completely gone. A little fresh air might not have been such a bad idea either.

I walked several blocks from the house, to the convenience store I usually went to. One of the light panels in the stripped boarder around the top of the building was still cracked, and had been for a few months. The sales woman at the counter greeted me as I walked through the sliding glass doors. I got a hand basket and started to walk up and down the aisles, grabbing stuff that only took some hot water to prepare.

I reached out to grab a bowl of tempura udon, when someone's hands slid around my eyes.

"Guess who?" Saki said softly in my ear.

I smiled. "Hmm. The devil, maybe?"

She giggled and removed her hands from my eyes. "Close enough."

I tried to hide my smile as I turned around to face her. "Are you stalking me now?"

She shrugged. "Well, watching you sleep through the window just isn't as fun lately."

"You should try getting in the bed with me. I'm a lot more fun that way." I grinned.

She laughed. "I'll keep that in mind. What are you up to anyway?"

"Shopping. What does it look like?"

"Oh, yeah. I guess you would have to shop for yourself, wouldn't you?"

I went back to grabbing things off the shelf. "What are you doing here?"

"I was on my way to your house and happened to see you here, so I thought I'd mess with you a little."

"Yeah, sounds like you." I turned the corner to the next aisle. She followed with her hands folded behind her back.

"God." She peered into my basket. "Don't you buy anything healthy?"

"Not really. It's my dream to die at forty."

"I guess I can't really talk." She picked up a candy bar and studied it. "It's not like I can cook either."

"Who says I can't cook?" I asked.

"You mean you can cook?"

I shrugged. "A little. I just don't see the point when it's just me."

She smirked. "I'd love to see you in one of those frilly pink aprons." She shoved the candy bar into her pocket.

I sighed, reached into her pocket, retrieved the candy bar, and dropped it in my basket. "Let's not start getting into who wants to see who in what."

She chuckled. "You sure are getting handsy."

I shook my head and walked down the aisle, skipping the next few, until I got to the refrigerated section. I grabbed a few different flavored rice balls and plopped them in the basket, along with a few fresh bentos. Lastly, a salad, which I shook in Saki's direction.