6 Meeting

Monday, April 4th, 2005

7 A.M

I woke up with a tingling feeling in my arm. Aya slept all night on me, her head tucked into the crook of my shoulder and her hand resting on my chest as if we had done this before. I have to get up to make lunch for us later. The thing is Aya is sleeping on me. How do I get out of this situation? The only idea that came to mind is to actually wake her up ironically.

"Aya," I said quietly. She shook her head and stretched, yawning.

"Mmhmm," she mumbled,

"Get up."

"We got to school today, you should go and get ready."

"What do you mean Sato, it 's Sunday."

I couldn't tell if she was teasing me from yesterday or if she actually thinks it is Sunday.

"No it's Monday, wake up or we're going to be late."

"Hurry up and get dressed. I will make you some breakfast."

"Ok dad whatever you say?

I can't believe I fell asleep on him like that. I'm so embarrassed. Well, it did feel right for that moment and we were both exhausted. My heart was pounding the whole time. I don't think he minded though. He didn't move or shift away, just lay there and kept his arm around me.

"Also can you get off me, my arm has probably been asleep for so long now."

Oh sorry." I replied as I got up from his side.

We both stood up at the same time to face each other.

"Alright, I'm going to make us some pancakes and get lunch ready for us ."

"And should get ready for school."

Why is he acting so normal? We literally just slept and basically cuddled with each other all night. He doesn't even seem to be flustered.

I never realized, but Aya's bed hair doesn't look that bad.

…

This is so embarrassing and awkward that I need to say something.

"Hey Sato, are you going to do your hair today?"

Hmm, I never thought about that.

"Maybe if I have some time. Do you want to do it for me?"

"I will do it for you. If we have the time of course."

Living together with Aya has been an experience. I never thought something like this would ever happen. The thing is things don't stay the same forever. Something always comes and ruins it.

20 minutes later

"Hey Sato, the bath is free if you want to use it."

I saw her step out of the bathroom, She looked pretty in her uniform and with her hair all wet and shining.

A little Flustered, I said "I will Aya. You should dry your hair, my mom told me that you can get sick."

"Oh ok."

Is it me or was Sato's face a bit red? I looked at him and smiled.

"You okay?"

"I'm fine."

Waitt is he embarrassed about something?

"Oh, yea by the way I managed to get some good conditioner yesterday while you were passed out."

"You should use it."

That must have been tough for Her carrying me around while trying to buy it. I will buy her something later.

"Oh yea I'm working today, so I'm not going to be home till about 7."

"Oh alright."

"Can you watch the food for a sec? While

I go and get ready?"

"Oh alright, just don't take too long."

"I won't, I'm going to get ready quickly ."

"Also Sato you would look better and taller if you stop slouching."

"I'm not slouching."

"You are, I can see your back is curved like a turtle's shell."

"You don't have to be mean about it."

"Hahaha, I'm just messing with you."

"Alright I will stop slouching just because you told me so."

Why did he say is there is any meaning behind it?

"Oh, right I forgot to tell you something. Thank you for taking care of me when I fainted."

"Don't worry, it's what friends do."

...

I wonder if they are really dating or just close friends.

The way Aya acts around him makes them look like they are dating.

Sato doesn't seem to act like they're dating though.

The easiest way to figure this out is to find out at school.

...

8 A.M

"By the way Aya, how do you get to school?"

"I usually ride my bike, but it got stolen."

"So I guess I will have to ride the bus till I can get a new one."

"What about you, how do you get to school?

"I just take the bus every day."

"Wow, I guess you will be a tour guide."

"Haha, very funny."

"It usually only takes about 5 minutes to get to school by bus."

"OH, YEA SORA MAY BE IN SCHOOL TODAY!!"

"You don't have to yell, you know."

She must be excited to see her if she is yelling like that.

8:45 A.M

2nd day of school. So much happened this weekend that I don't even know how to explain it. I have gotten so close with Aya and I started talking to Hana again after so long.

This school year is looking good so far. I wish I had guy friends though. Aya didn't have time to do my hair today sadly.

"Sato Rin!"

"Hana Takao!" the teacher yelled out,

"Come up to the front of the class."

When I heard my name was called, my brain started racing with thoughts about why I was being called out. Was I in trouble? Did I do anything wrong? As I got up from my chair and walked towards the front of the room I felt a lot of pressure and fear being in front of the whole class.

"Both of you guys have the highest grades in the class so you know what that means."

"Wait what."

Hana, your class president since your grade is higher, and Sato, your class vice-president."

"After school please reports back to me so I can tell you what to do."

"I-I never agree to this though."

"Well I'm not the one who made the rules, so deal with it."

"It's just for one semester, so it won't be as bad as you think."

"But, but—."

"Let's have a fun time working together Sato."

This is my chance to get closer to Sato! I'm gonna make a move on him before Aya gets too close to him.

I guess I have to look at the good side of it. I'm going to be working with Hana now, and I know Hana. It's better with her because I know her and we can catch up.

As I looked around the room I saw Aya looking at me with an annoying expression on her face. She seemed to be panicking herself as she watched me.

…

The thought of Sato being class vice-president isn't bad, but he will have a lot of alone time with Hana. But they are nothing more than childhood best friends…

right?

I never knew Sato was in my school.

11:45 Start of Lunchtime

*Dingggg*

"Alright, class, head over to lunch. I will see you tomorrow. There is no homework tonight."

"Hey, want to go see the new movie later?"

"Yeah what time." Said some random girls in my class.

"Hey, Sato."

"Hello, Sato."

Both Aya and Hana came up to me.

"Can we sit together?" Hana asked excitedly, with a big smile on her face.

Aya gave her that death stare look. She was trying so hard to smile. I got the feeling it was out of dislike for Hana.

"No Sato, eat lunch with me," Aya said, crossing her arms.

As soon as Aya Said that Hana's smile turned into a mad look. Her eyes narrowed and she gave Aya a glare that would kill.

I looked at Hana in shock, I had never seen such a look from her before.

I was a bit taken aback by their sudden attitude change. It wasn't like them to be this aggressive at all.

Before Aya could say anything, someone got in the middle of the argument.

"Yeah guys, is everything ok ?"

"Yeah they just got into a little argument but everything is fine now," I said quickly, hopefully trying to stop a fight from happening.

"Oh that's good anyway I'm Yuki, I'm here to tell you about every class president and vice president of their respective freshman classes are eating lunch together, so I'm here to invite you guys. But I guess you guys won't be co— "

"Yes, I and Sato will go right away."

Hana interrupted her.

Aya was shocked by this.

"Oh um... was-."

"Great, meet us in class 2-B!"

Yuki said happily and headed off to the other freshmen students.

Hana wrapped her arm around mine and said, " Ok Sato, take care of it, let's head out."

Then she gave Aya a smirk as if saying I won.

Hana, still grasping my arm, started to walk away. I couldn't help myself and let out a sigh. I will never understand the woman I thought to myself.

…

Wait, Sato, hold up… why am I just standing here. What do I do or say? I'm an idiot.

As Hana is dragging me across the school I saw a girl that seemed familiar. She is also one of the class presidents.

"Hey," I said.

She looked at me, smiled then looked away with her face red.

Is she blushing?

I continued walking. I didn't think much about it.

…

Who was that girl that Sato said Hi to? I feel like I saw her somewhere before.

We got to class 2-B and as soon as we did everyone's eyes were on us.

"What's going on?" I whispered to Hana. "Why is everyone staring at us?"

She just looked down and said, "I don't know, but it's starting to creep me out."

The students in the room all had their heads together whispering like little girls.

Yuki came up to us and told us" Hello Sato and Hana you guys can take a seat anywhere we will start in 5 minutes."

We sat down and waited until Yuki started talking. The atmosphere felt thick until Yuki started talking. "Today is the first meeting of the freshman class presidents and vice presidents. We have worked really hard for these positions of leadership."

I don't even want to be here.

"So today we are going to introduce each other. We should all get to know each other since we will be working together to give a voice to the freshman class."

"How about we start with introductions."

"Class 1-A you guys should start. You two already seem close."

"Are you two dating by any chance?"

I and Hana said together "we aren't dating!"

Then Yuki in confusion said, "I'm sorry I just thought you were because you two are all over each other."

Hana and I both blushed bright red. Hana then said."No, it's not like that, we are childhood friends!" When Hana said this I tried to make her let go but she wouldn't. She just started squeezing tighter. I could feel my face getting hotter. Why is this happening?

Yuki laughed out loud and said, "Oh that's it huh then how about you two introduce yourself to the class?"

"My name is Sato Rin."

"I'm Hana Takao."

"it will be a pleasure working with you all"

"I might as well go."

"I'm Yuki Ito, the president of the class 2-B."

"Currently my vice president is sick at the moment, but her name is Sora Kei.

Isn't that Aya's best friend?

Sora was elected class president!? But when did she take the test? She was sick when we did.

I'm currently standing outside the door, trying to hear what they're saying. I'm hoping I don't get caught, or else things could get ugly.

"I'm Reí." Said someone who I'm guessing is the president of Class C. He was tall and had long hair.

"And I'm Lura. Let's have fun this semester because it could be our last."

Wasn't she the girl I saw at the mall?

All of them seem to be taking this student council seriously. Unlike me who doesn't even want to be here!

"Is that the only reason we are here?" Said Reí.

"No, I would like to present the idea of making a group chat. It would benefit everyone."

"The idea of making one is not bad, but what about when we have to compete against each other." Said, Lura.

"You make a good point. We will figure that out when we have to."

When Yuki finished speaking, he and everyone else took out their phones. He didn't ask us to join a group chat with him, he demanded it. He has a strong presence.

Yuki started to speak again once we all gave him our phone numbers. "Before we all go, would the person standing behind the door please come in!"

HOW THE HELL DID HE KNOW, BUT I'M OUT OF HERE!

*footstep noise.*

I wonder why someone would be listening in on this. This is the most boring meeting I've ever attended.

"That's strange, I'm going to have to check the camera to see who was eavesdropping ."

"That's it you guys can leave."

"Wait before we go. Do you guys want to meet up at that cafe near the school after school today?" Asked Lura

"Yes we can have a group chat but for us to work together effectively we should all get to know each other and be friends. " Said Yuki

"That's a great idea, can everyone meet up?."

Everyone agrees to the idea, then everyone starts to leave.

As everyone started to get up and leave we all Hana finally let go and said "Ok Sato I have to go now but let's meet up at the exit and walk down to the Cafe when school is over."

"Sure thing Hana, see you later then?" I asked as she turned around.

She turned her head back, smiled at me, and nodded before walking off to go to the rest of her classes.

I had a few more classes before school ended.

4:00 P.M

After getting out of my last class of the day I noticed that I got some notifications on my phone.

I pulled it out of my pocket and saw that it was an unknown number.

The text read: "Hey Sato, it's me, Yuki. Remember that person that was eavesdropping on us? Well her name is Aya and I'm pretty sure I saw you talking to her back at lunchtime.

Talk to her and Let me know what happened ok?"

I was surprised that Aya was eavesdropping. I didn't know how to respond so I just said "Sure thing I will tell you if I find out why."

Of course, I may not tell him if the reason could get her in trouble.

As walked down the steps and saw Hana waiting got me a "Hey, it's about time you showed up." Hana said

"Sorry for being late. I had some things to do" I apologized.

"Don't worry about it. I just got here anyway," she replied while looking at her phone.

Should we start walking? It's only 10 walks from here?" I asked.

She nodded in response. We started walking and when we were out of sight of the school, She leaned into my ear and whispered, "So what are we going to talk about? You know you won't be able to get much out of me if you don't tell me anything first."

She's too close for comfort. I can barely hear myself think, let alone speak.

I thought about how I was supposed to approach this conversation for a moment before responding.

"What is there to talk about?" I simply stated. I wasn't sure why I felt so nervous speaking with her but I just did.

"Well, there are plenty of topics that could come up naturally during our conversations," Hana responded as she looked at me with a smirk on her face.

What do you mean by that? I asked.

"For example, you and I have known each other since we were kids. So if we started talking about past experiences or memories, there would be plenty to discuss. But if you didn't want to talk about those things, then we could always talk about what we're doing now or plans for the future. Things like that," she explained.

Is she trying to tell me something? I wondered to myself.

"I guess you'll never know unless you ask. What do you want to talk about?" she asked.

...

Why am I saying stuff to him? Is he too dumb to take the hints?

Hana was getting more frustrated by the minute. But I didn't know what. It seemed as though she wanted to say something but was holding back on it. She looked down at her feet and sighed.

"Look guys, it's Sato and Hana," Lura said from a distance

"Oh, hey!"

Hana ran over to us and greeted us with smiles.

"Hi, Sato! How's your day been?" Laura asked.

"It's been good, thanks for asking," I answered.

"And how are you, Hana?" she continued

"Good thank you."

"Are you ok? You look disappointed in something," Lura questioned.

"Not everything is fine." Said Hana

"Alright if you say so."

"Let's head inside." proclaimed Yuki

Inside the Cafe

"Sato, "what would you like to drink?"

"I would like a coffee." I didn't know what was the best thing to order since it was my first time here, but you can never go wrong with coffee

"You're so basic," said Lura "Can I get a latte though?"

"Isn't a latte the same thing as a coffee?" I asked

"No, a latte has milk in it while a coffee doesn't."

They should just call that coffee with milk.

Yuki was to my left while Hana was next to him. In front of me was Lura and beside her was Rei. Yuki kept looking at me. He probably wanted to know if I knew why Aya was eavesdropping. I didn't know though, but I was starting to feel a bit uncomfortable.

"I can't stay long because I have to work in about 30 minutes," I said

"Seriously you should just ditch it and have some fun with us." Said Rei. The only reason he said that is because he didn't want to be alone with 2 girls and Yuki. I wouldn't like that either.

"Here are y'all drinks, enjoy." Our drinks had just come and everyone ordered something different. I don't know the names of all of them, but they look tasty.

*ding*

I looked up at the door and saw Aya walk in. I forgot to tell her that I was hanging out with them.

Hana started to speak up"Oh did you guys hear about that movie that just came out?"

I saw Aya walking in my direction.

*footsteps*

"Yeah, the one about the zombie?" Said Rei

*footsteps*

With each step she was getting closer.

"Oh, I just recently watched it with a friend. It wasn't that scary. I ended up falling asleep." I said I couldn't tell them I was watching it with Aya or else they would get the wrong idea."

I looked up from the conversation and saw Aya in my face.

"What are you doing here aya?" Hana said with a confused face."

…

"Hello Earth to Aya, are you there?" asked Laura with a worried face.

She is just staring at me… those eyes why are they like that. It's like they are full of sadness and anger.

"Aya are you—"

*Slap*

All I could hear was a ring. What just happened.

"Why did you slap him Aya?" It sounded like Hana said that. With my head still ringing I saw a Hana standing up as if she was going to slap her, but Aya started to speak

"lier."

"What!?"said Hana

"You are a lier!"

"You said you were going to go work today, but instead you're here having a party." Said Aya with tears in her eyes. All the emotion in her eyes made no sense.

"You are a jerk, Sato," Aya said, running full speed out of the cafe crying.

At this time I saw everyone in the Cafe staring.

"Are you okay Sato?" Asked Yuki "I saw her coming to our table, but I didn't think she was going to slap you."

"It's fine I shouldn't have lied to her in the first place. I told her I was going to work instead of staying. I was hanging out with you guys."

She didn't have to slap me though.

Eventually after hanging out I went to work. I was puzzled as to why she would slap me. After work, I started to go home around 9:00. Then I received a text message from the group chat asking if I was okay. I told everyone that I was fine. I was infront of my apartment building when I got a text from Hana saying to call her right now, So I did.

"Hey, Sato," she began. "How are you doing."

I replied back with, "I'm good thanks for asking."

She continued talking about how Aya was in the wrong and how she had my back. I stayed quiet until she asked, "What do you think of me, Sato?"

"H-how could you ask me that question?" I said in shock

She laughed at my reaction and responded with, "I'm serious. What do you think of me?"

I sighed before responding, "you're a really good friend that has my back."

"That's all? i thought you would say something like 'your hot' or 'you're beautiful'" she said with a giggle.

I smiled then replied, "I don't know what to say other than that. You have been helping me get through hard times and I can always count on you whenever I need help.

That's all I can really say."

There was silence on the phone for a little while before she spoke again

"Sato, how do you think of me as a... woman?"

As a woman!? What does she mean by that?

I couldn't believe it. Was she asking me if she was attractive? But why would she ask me this? I didn't know how to respond. I felt myself blushing and turned red. I didn't know what she meant so I answered honestly.

"well... you're pretty."

"What?" she said in surprise.

Why am I saying this?

I replied with, "you're cute but don't think of it like that they are just words."

I can't believe Sato called me cute! My heart feels like it's going to pound to my chest. I can't handle this.

She said, "Okay. I will see you Tomorrow." then hung up.

My face felt red. I kept thinking about what she said. Why did she ask me that? Is she trying to flirt with me? No, definitely not we're friends. She is probably just teasing me.

It was late and I was tired. So I opened the door and said " I'm home, Aya."

I looked around and saw her asleep on the couch with the T.V on. I turned off the T.V and I stared at Aya sleeping. I felt so bad for lying to her.

I will ask for her forgiveness tomorrow. Maybe we can talk about it, maybe she'll understand. I walked towards Aya and covered her with a blanket. From the look of it she been crying for some time.

I whispered, "Good night Aya."

I sat down on another sofa close to her and fell asleep.

I feel like I been sleeping on the couch for a long time now.

…

"Jerk Sato."