Overgrown ➵ Akashi Seijuro

five

edited first to third person, 26/09/2018

Chapter Five

The sun beat down on the earth with an intensity that left everyone in Teiko thinking they were within an oven, the sun the heat that slowly roasted them as time passed. Despite staying indoors for the majority of the day, by the time it came for classes to end and clubs to start, Akane had spotted several students check for possible sunburn. She herself was sweating, and she didn't even have to run at full intensity in a stuffy gym.

So when two players collided and she was requested to grab ice packs from the nurse's office, was one of the rare moments where Akane wished she wasn't held by such regard within the club, for then she might not have had to go outside.

However, Akane had the meaning of responsibility instilled in her so strongly it was an instinct as natural as breathing, and she hadn't even hesitated to respond with a smile and hurry in the direction of the school.

Akane winced as she walked, and quickened her pace so as to be out of the sun quicker, which felt like fire was hovering just over her neck. She wiped her forehead and tied her ponytail higher on her head so it didn't touch her skin.

Thoughts as distant as fairyland, Akane wondered if it were possible to get away with using the ice packs herself to cool down before they passed to the possibly injured players. It would be their own fault for not watching themselves during the practice game.

Akane shrugged off the idea almost as soon as it came. No. She had a duty to do, and she'd ensure it was carried out properly. She knew the groggy sensation of guilt would follow her around for the rest of the day like she'd eaten too much chocolate, heavy and sickly.

Not that I would ever admit to Sei that chocolate could make me feel that way. He wouldn't hesitate to use it against me in the future.

Akane sighed when she re-entered the school's building, the shade providing somewhat of a relief from the heat, though it still seeped through the walls, leeching into the air until it wrapped around her in a stuffy sensation not unlike being wrapped uncomfortably tightly within a too-thick blanket.

At least she didn't have to climb any stairs. That would have been its own form of torture. 

Given the lateness of the day - classes had concluded little over an hour ago - Akane had expected to be the only one in the corridors, everyone else either in clubs or at home in order to escape the heat. However, Akane found herself stumbling across another girl lingering in the corridor. She stood straight, hands on her hips and projecting an aura like she was Wonder Woman, but her eyes betrayed her, looking around like a calf detached from its mother. 

Surmising from the girl's gym gear, flushed face and the sweat the coated her brow, Akane placed the girl in an athletics club. Despite looking like she had just come off the field like a professional, the girl stood indoors, biting her lip and looking utterly lost.

Akane hesitated for a fleeting second, action prevented only by the reminder of the task she was supposed to carry out, before she approached the girl. The two players in question sported nothing more than a mild headache when she left – they could wait a little longer.

Akane cleared her throat as she neared the girl. "Do you need help?"

Despite her attempts to prevent scaring the girl, the girl jumped and spun around, charcoal hair whipping around her face. She chuckled and rubbed the back of her neck when she noticed Akane to the side.

"I didn't notice you there," the girl laughed. "I'm fine, just a bit lost, I don't come down here very often – do you know where the nurse's office is?"