ROADSIDE FLOWERS ( t. kageyama )

ix. celestial creatures

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roadside flowers.
chapter 9: celestial creatures

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"kirishima! yukimura!" our class representative yells from the doorway. "someone's looking for the both of you."

i finish my bento and head to the doorway, rintaro joins me and we find taiyou-senpai with yukari-senpai. it's odd seeing taiyou-senpai in the standard karasuno high school uniform. i greet them and so does rintaro. although unlike me his voice is so loud that one of our classmates yell at him to quiet down.

taiyou-senpai seems amused by the whole display, chuckling just like he always does. yukari-senpai smiles amiably next to him.

"so... what did you come here for, senpai?" rintaro asks, stuffing his hands in his pockets. i do this sort of weird side-shuffle, gaze nervously flicking over to stare at his untucked and rumplef uniform to the nest of messy strands of hair drooping over his face. a poster delinquent. the only thing out of place are his earnest eyes shining with excitement and mirth upon seeing his upperclassmen. then i catch myself and my ears redden in embarrassment- god i really hope he didn't see that- and i make thr conscious effort to keep my legs locked in place. it won't look too good if i run away now, especially since rintaro is offering me a bright smile upon seeing me beside him.

"pretty soon, the faculty will announce that classes for this afternoon will be suspended. they're going to have this really long meeting from what i've heard from our adviser," taiyou-senpai explains. the mention of the basketball club adviser tugs at my curiosity. he is a figure we seldom see since he leaves us to fend for ourselves. he attends official matches and helps in gathering funds, but that's about it (somehow, he reminds me of my father). "we intend to utilize the whole afternoon for practice, but unfortunately, us third years are studying for our entrance exams."

he turns to rintaro. "since you're a regular now, i trust that you will make sure that the first and second years train. i've already told nijimura, but just to make sure."

"and teruko-chan will do my job for today," yukari-senpai says. she has a smile on her face as usual and i notice that the highlights in her has changed color. they're a bright red now, like the color of ripe strawberries ready for picking. they complement her nails. i wish i had the confidence to pull that off. "i have the list and most of the data here," she hands me piles of paper that are so heavy my shoulders sag when i receive them. "of course if you need help, you can call me over. my classroom's in the third floor, first classroom right of the stairs."

to my shock, rintaro slings an arm over my shoulder. too close for my tastes. his voice rings in my ears, loud and harsh. i have to try hard not to instinctively shrink away from him for the fear of offending him and instead take deep breaths as quietly as possible. in. out. the image of a field of  sunflowers  warm and bright swaying gently in the summer breeze. i sigh, my breathing returning to normal as i can almost feel the air washing over my face with light, feathery kisses in a nostalgic, comforting manner.

"don't worry, senpai! she'll have me!"

taiyou-senpai's eyes narrow at him, a little menacing, a little playful. a brotherly response that the old aichi would have done. i try not to let the bitterness escape from my smile. "i'll hold you to that," he says.

when rintaro reassures taiyou-senpai, the latter turns to me with his bright smile. "do your best later, okay?"

i nod.

the old aichiro would have done that too.

but he's gone.

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