XIX | spring

370 29 0
                                    

SPRING
🌸

SHE HUMMED, holding up her camera as she recorded the swaying of the cherry blossom trees. Some petals littered the ground, gliding in the air before hitting the sidewalk. "Like it?" Noya walked beside her. He wasn't quite sure what this little 'hangout' idea he'd pulled was. He'd spent time with her outside of school, but this was different.

Her brows furrowed as she chewed on her bottom lip. "Something's off," The girl replied quietly as Noya tugged at his baby blue shirt. In his mind, this was his weak attempt at a date because he couldn't even properly get the word "date" out of his mouth. Instead, he opted for "hangout". That only made it more pitiful.

He glanced at her quizzically, watching as she fixed the lens and focused it multiple times. As if sensing his gaze, she sputtered to correct herself. "I-I mean, it's not like I don't enjoy this! I love it, I really do! It's just. . . " Y/n trailed off, unsure how to finish her sentence. Noya swept in with a lighthearted grin, tilting his head.

"Something isn't right in the picture?" He offered and she nodded ecstatically. For once, someone understood her artistic values rather than just her crazily filming her entire life. "It's missing something," She bit her lower lip again, silently driving him crazy. "But I don't know what." Noya hummed, "The lighting?"

Y/n swiftly replied. Her instincts itched. She knew something was off, but she had no idea what; the fact that she couldn't even figure it out bothered her more. "No." Yū forced her to drop the camera back to her neck when he grabbed one of her hands and laced it with his. "Then, let's walk. You'll realize soon."

His English was improving a lot, but was still slightly messy. However, his comforting words and tone of voice were all that mattered to her rather than his ability to speak the language. She hummed in agreement, squeezing his hand as he squeezed back. The two sauntered around for a while.

There were the occasional groups who insisted on wearing traditional clothing, only making Y/n admire them more. While Noya was admiring them, he'd admire her. Every time she saw something creative or eye-catching, her expression shifted and he loved watching the change happen.

Y/n even ended up taking a few pictures for some people, each of them thanking her cheerily as she just nodded and did what she felt was right. There were the occasional demands of movements and squints of her eyes, but she managed to catch each moment perfectly. "You're really talented, y'know?" Noya blurted.

Her head snapped towards him, her cheeks flushing at what he'd just said. "What did you say?" She said in a bewildered tone. I have to make sure I'm not dreaming! She screamed in her head. Noya cracked a smile, as if knowing that she had heard him the first time already. He shrugged innocently, acting nonchalant.

"I just said I think you're talented."

Her eyes narrowed. "You think or you know?"

He shot his hands up in a 'surrender' position as she smiled brightly at his jesting antics. "Sorry, sorry," The phrase reminded her of one of the first weeks that she'd been in Japan, back when she had just introduced him to the camera and to YouTube. Since then, she'd hit the 1,000,000 subscriber plaque.

The girl abruptly froze, alarming him slightly. His eyes grew wide and he tilted his head in a concerned manner. "Y/n-chan?" His spiky tuft of blond hair seemed to move with his head movements, bouncing slightly. As much as Y/n wanted to burst out laughing, she was in full photographer mode now.

"Stay still, Yū-kun,"

"Wha—"

The libero didn't get to finish his sentence as the camera flashed. She stared at the screen with a slight frown and did a bit of clicking. He wasn't even looking at the camera. He was blinking! She scrunched her nose (an act that Noya found beyond adorable) and deleted the picture reluctantly, glancing at Yū.

I swear, he probably thinks I'm a creep. She shuddered in her head at the idea, refocusing her camera before turning it towards Noya again. "I need you to smile," He blinked, his mind flitting back to his action after the Nekoma practice match just weeks ago. Yū complied swiftly, breaking into a huge grin.

Watching as her own lips twitched upwards into a shy smile at his expression, he felt his heart pitter-patter harder in his chest. I love you so much. "Perfect," Y/n mumbled. However, it wasn't quite over yet. Like before, she treated Noya like the previous families that had asked her for pictures.

She would ask him to try different poses or "smile bigger" and even "stop looking so stupid". One of his personal favorites was, "Stop looking like a lovesick puppy." But I am. That's what he wanted to say, but his heart caught in his throat and he found himself choking on his own words. Satisfied, Y/n pulled back.

She clicked a bit more and Noya stayed frozen, almost afraid to move at all. She suddenly skipped over to a random stranger, talking to them for a bit before they nodded and took her camera. They smiled heartily at who they thought was a couple, watching as Yū's arm casually slung around Y/n's waist.

Both of their faces heated up at the contact, the two glancing at one another for a split second. Right then and there, the camera flashed and captured the moment. Thanking the stranger, she took the camera back and grinned at the photo. Warmth blossomed in her chest at the sight. The lens was focused on them.

Even the cherry blossoms were blurred out in the background perfectly minus for the ones that fell around them. His arm was looped around her waist and it was almost as if he was pulling her closer, the bright smiles on their faces captured in the moment. "Oh! There," Noya had hardly noticed the photo, too busy picking out petals from their hair and clothes.

Suddenly, the girl beside him whirled around and planted a soft kiss on his cheek. His heart sped up a mile a minute as she stared at him with equally pink cheeks and a flustered smile. "I guess I was missing a proper model in the picture."

chatterbox | yū nishinoyaWhere stories live. Discover now