ROADSIDE FLOWERS ( t. kageyama )

xxv. shrine plaques

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roadside flowers
chapter 25: shrine plaques

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i got lost on my way to the basketball clubroom.

i heave a sigh. so much for capability. stupid teruko.

my eyes wander to the wooden signs raised above the entrances. some were hanging crookedly, others covered in rust that the letters weren't readable. there's not a single one of them that denotes the presence of the basketball clubroom and i am already confused as to what paths i have chosen that i can't retrace my steps. i better ask someone for the way.

i search for a door and for the first time, something goes right because when i knock on the door, it opens and friendly looking college students greet me.

"umm..." i begin. "do you know where the boys' basketball clubroom is?"

"nope," the one with raven hair says. he grins at me like one of those cats you see on the alleyway. "how about you bokuto?"

"not a clue. we're the volleyball club," bokuto says, shaking his head. oh. "the basketball club really isn't something we concern ourselves with."

"you applying to be their manager?" the one with chatoyant features ask.

i nod my head yes.

"perfect!" bokuto yells, the sound makes my ears screech. my hands immediately travel to the hem of my blouse and tug in rythmic patterns.

"we want a female manager. three of them just graduated and the two remaining are in relationships. it'll boost morale you know."

"maybe you can do it?" he asks and this persuasion, sort of pushiness reminds me of yukari-senpai. a mirror to my early high school days. i would have said yes and be pressured into it, but i know what i want now. i want to be the manager of the basketball team, win all the way to nationals and even outside of japan.

"i'm sorry, but all i'm interested in joining is the basketball club," i tell him.

"really?" he asks, tilting his head to the side. he looks like an owl and i hold the urge to marvel at the fascinating sight.

i bow politely. "really. thank you for the offer though. i'll be going now." i turn around, abandoning this conversation with the cat and the owl. they're interesting i'll give them that. tobio-kun always hangs out with crowds like this. good for him. i hope he makes lots of friends. are we still friends?

i head for the exit with thoughts swirling in my mind. they're running rampant and i try my best to steady my shaking thoughts, but it's as if the world itself is against me because i haven't even taken five steps away from the entrance to the volleyball clubroom when my breath hitches.

"okay, take care-!" it's as if all of the noise faded away in one swift go and whatever force did it, stole the strength seeping in my bones, all the way to my fingernails and my clutch loosens. the books i carry in my grasp are on the verge of falling.

"tobio-kun," i say.

his forehead scrunches. his eyes are still the same shade of blue i like. "teru?"

god. he's saying my name.

my books fall to the floor in heavy thuds.

"you have an awful habit of carrying things that always seem to topple over," he tells me and i look at the floor where the books pages have been smeared by dust and dirt.