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Thursday, 6/1/2013, Satonaka Home, Early Evening...
“Chie, for the last time, Junes has to buy lower quality meat because it’s too expensive!”
“Whaa!? You guys make like a bazillion yen a year, you’re so full of it!”
“Actually, Chie, we have to do that for the inn sometimes…”
“...! Yukiko, not you, too…”
“But you’re right, I think Junes just does it because they don’t care about the food as much.”
“ Hey! ”
Kanji lazily lapped at his drink, bored out of his mind at the seven millionth fight between Chie and Yosuke playing out in front of him. Yukiko’s interjections were fun, but nothing he hadn’t seen before.
Maybe it was the atmosphere. It was Rise’s 17th birthday, and Chie had decided to be a pal and let her host a party at her place. Her parents were taking a weekend trip up north, so the gang had it all to themselves. Kanji had never been to Chie’s house, and it was pretty cozy. Spacious living room that had a doorway right into the kitchen, a rented plastic table layered with snacks standing proud in the center, and an upstairs where Rise was currently changing; she’d come in hot from a secret show and was eager to shed herself of her sweaty performance outfit.
But all of this was secondary to the real reason why Kanji had stayed clammed up in the kitchen, nursing his cup of punch for the last hour and a half. In the living room, monitoring Teddie like a mother hen as he kept scooping up cupfuls of sugary punch, was Naoto. She had let her cerulean hair grow out a bit over the summer to within an inch or so of her shoulders. A navy blue ruffled, button-down shirt with no sleeves and an elegant white string tie paired with a smart pair of white trousers that went down to just above her calves made up her “party” outfit. As always, Kanji thought she was unbearably cute and well aware he was going to turn into a stuttering mess if he tried to talk to her, so he’d tried to make an effort to stay away.
There was only so much room, though, so that meant picking a corner and staying put while the rest of his friends had fun around him. It was good to see Yu again, having made the trip back from Tokyo at Rise’s request, and Chie had put on some sort of soft pop music, but he could never totally relax. Parties weren’t exactly his thing anyways.
Of course no sooner had he decided to continue keeping quiet did Rise march down the stairs like a rampaging bull, her normally well-trained and pleasant voice pitched up to an ear-bursting shriek. She blew through the downstairs like a hurricane, giving big hugs to everyone she passed by, including him, nearly causing Kanji to spill his drink.
“‘Ey, watch it!” he moaned, just managing to balance his cup before a drop of punch spilled onto his yellow tank top. “You just saw me yesterday, what gives!?”
Rise tut-tutted as she squeezed around his neck a little harder. “Yesterday wasn’t my birthday , Moronji! And besides, you should feel so grateful for this!” She pulled back and gave him an impish grin, her long copper hair flowing past her silky white camisole top, “People usually have to pay lots of money to get a hug from me.” She booped his nose twice with her finger before scattering off to continue her greetings, leaving Kanji hot with embarrassment. Why’d she have to be all touchy , he thought.
Plus it wasn’t her he wanted that from…
Chie sighed with envy as Rise took her sweet time with Yu’s hug, rubbing her arms all up and down his back. “Yeesh, get a room you two!” She thought about that for a second before gasping in shock. “W-wait, no, that would be my room! Grrooo--hooo-ssss ” Even Kanji found himself giggling at Chie once again putting her foot in her mouth.
“That doesn’t bother you, Yosuke-kun?” Yukiko asked politely, staring over at her fellow 3rd year.
Yosuke blushed a little and sipped at his water cup. “U-uh, nah, not really. Besides, it-it’s not like I even know if Yu...y’know.”
“Aww, c’mon now,” Chie snickered, slugging Yosuke in the arm, “You gotta make a move one of these days! Be bold, like Teddie!”
“Err,” Kanji spoke up for the first time, feeling like he actually had something to contribute, “Feel like that’s a bad idea, senpai. Ya really wanna be like Ted at somethin’?”
As if on cue, all of them looked over to see Rise swatting Teddie in the elbow and gnashing her teeth at him while Naoto and Yu tried to play peacemaker. Evidently, Teddie had been a little too “friendly” with his hug.
“Good call Kanji,” said Chie, “I stopped hugging Ted a long time ago ‘cuz of that.”
Yosuke laughed bitterly at that. “It’s not Ted’s fault your bubble butt gets in the way.”
Yukiko snorted while Kanji cringed and Chie squeaked, punching Yosuke’s stomach in unison with her retort. “What. Did. You. Say!? Don’t talk about my butt, ya perv!”
Before she blew her lid, Yukiko put her hands on the bare skin exposed by the spunky 3rd year’s green knit halter crop top, a gentle smile on her face. “Oh, don’t listen to him, Chie! Your butt is a little...plump, is all. But it’s cute!”
Now it was Yosuke’s turn to cackle while doubled over as Chie’s face turned from righteous anger to mortified shock, blood rushing to her cheeks. “Y-Y-Yukiko! Ixnay on the utt-bay talk!” she whispered furiously.
“Hmm? But last night you said you liked it when I - mrrgh!?”
“Aaah! Quiet, you!” Chie seethed through gritted teeth as she mashed her palm over Yukiko’s lips. Girls were weird , Kanji thought.
“Sheesh, you guys sure like talkin’ ‘bout butts,” he commented, polishing off the rest of his drink.
“Oooooh, butts!?” Teddie cooed, wiggling his way over to the kitchenette with the rest of them. Yu quickly dragged him back.
“C’mon Teddie,” their steel-haired leader said calmly, “Don’t butt in.”
Everyone groaned except Yosuke, who literally slapped his knee in an almost comical overreaction. “Good one, partner! You still got it, dude.”
As Yu gave him a thumbs up in appreciation, Chie muttered “suck up…” while Rise got in the middle of everyone, clapping her hands to quiet everyone.
“Enough butt talk!” she hollered, standing tall with her long legs left bare by a pair of denim short-shorts, “But don’t go too far, because it’s time to play some games !”
Kanji met everyone else’s eyes, knowing this could only be trouble. It was Rise who had initiated the infamous King’s Game at Tatsumi Port Island, and despite her current sober state (or at least not fake drunk), her devious eyes hid sinister plans.
“Hooray, a game! This party was bear-ly cooking, but now it’s about to get cuh-razy , yo!” Teddie hiccupped, his baby-blue eyes half-lidded and losing a bit of their shine as he guffawed like a mad bear.
“Uh, wassup with Ted?” Kanji asked. Naoto sighed, walking over to join everyone else.
“Teddie thought it wise to fancy himself a bartender and add his ‘expertise’ to the punch bowl,” she announced drolly, holding up a nearly empty bottle of shochu. “We are probably fortunate it wasn’t soju. N-no need to worry!” she continued, noting everyone’s look of alarm at their drink, “I disposed of the tainted beverage shortly after I noticed a while ago. He should be fine, save a possible headache in the morning…”
Yosuke clicked his tongue and stepped over to his surrogate little brother. “You stupid bear, how many times have I told you that that cabinet is for adults! ”
“B-but I amshs an adult, Yooosuukee,” Teddie slurred, “Guhhrrizzshlies are grown when they’re -hic- sexy ‘n mashture! Like meeeee…”
“Oh god...I’m taking him upstairs, sorry in advance Chie,” Yosuke groaned, slipping an arm around Teddie’s immaculate ruffled shirt and dragging him toward the stairs. Yu and Rise locked eyes for a second, and she jerked her head toward Yosuke. Immediately, Yu ran around to Teddie’s other arm and gave Yosuke a helping hand.
“Let me help you with that, partner,” he said, winking at Yosuke. Another blush went across Yosuke’s nose before he nodded. The two quickly spirited Teddie up the stairs, leaving Kanji alone with the girls.
“Welllll,” Rise trilled, scooping up the empty shochu bottle, “While they finish up, why not get started, eh? Spin the bottle time! And we’re going to do seven minutes in heaven, and it’s going to be adorable. Since you’re the only boy Kanji, you’re going in!”
“H-huh!? Whu…” Kanji sputtered as the girls sans Naoto all giggled and gathered in a circle on the floor. Naoto shrugged and silently joined, her face mildly red.
Kanji tried to object but choked on his words as Rise explained the rules…
“...”
“...”
“So, uh…”
“...”
“N-nevermind. ‘S fine…”
“ -hnngk- Look, I am just as mortified as you, so if you do not want to participate in this shambolic charade, then by all means…”
Kanji sat silently in the silky darkness, debating whether he should answer or just bury his head in his hands. He didn’t really understand the words Naoto was using and although time had seemingly ceased to function, he was sure it had only been a little less than two minutes. That meant five more minutes to go.
Five. Whole . Minutes.
It had happened so fast; Rise told him he was automatically “it,” and then she was already spinning the bottle. Kanji had scoffed at how blatantly she had used a slender pinky toe to maneuver the bottle to land on Naoto, but Chie and Yukiko feigned ignorance while he and Naoto cried foul. Unfortunately, a rampaging, ravenous Rise was hard to stop, and it wasn’t long before they were forced into a small closet near the front door.
That said, if Kanji was being honest, he could have put a stop to it at any time. He was big, big enough to probably hoist up Rise and Naoto at the same time. But he hadn’t, so here he was now, shoulder to shoulder with a girl he’d had a monster crush on for the past year. Did he...want this? It was tough to figure out; maybe if he wasn’t near hyperventilation because Naoto’s leg was touching his, he could think clearer. He’d been a kid - he knew what seven minutes in heaven was for, and he tried desperately to push that out of his head. It would be stupid to even get his hopes up.
What was it about her? Ever since she had approached him fearlessly the previous year to ask him questions, he had been fixated on her, even if he thought she was a boy. Something about that naked confidence, someone so totally unafraid of who they were and what they were capable of, was so darn attractive . He had been pissing and moaning internally about girls teasing him for years, yet here was a kid who just chose to walk around in odd, loud clothes and question random people. How was he supposed to react?
Of course, that was a pretty carefully constructed facade, as he had come to find out. Weirdly, though? That only strengthened his feelings; the sheer willpower to go on when everyone around you figures out you’ve been hiding your gender from them was wild to him. Forget a biker gang - Naoto was fighting society just by existing . What a badass.
It was really too bad that all those thoughts were going to stay in his head and come nowhere near his currently-trembling lips.
“I...I’m sorry.”
Hmm? He turned to her (or at least he thought he did, it was quite dark) and did his best to tune out the excited giggling of the other girls through the thin wall to listen to Naoto’s husky voice. What was she saying?
“Whattya mean?”
“I feel as if I’ve spent all my time at this party just monitoring Teddie, and not engaging or interacting with any of you. I’m sorry...I really am no good at parties.”
Who was he to argue with that? Kanji sought to comfort her quickly. “Hey, ain’t a big deal. I haven’t talked to everyone much neither. Parties are good fer chatty people - I ain’t like that.”
A huff, although it sounded amused. “I have noticed. In fact, I have detected a few things, as it were.”
She could be so cryptic. The darkness around them only made it more frightening. And alluring. “Y-yeah? Like what?”
“You are...Different around me.”
Kanji had never wanted so bad to find a secret escape route, even if it was like a murder hatch where Chie secretly kept victims. Anything .
Naoto kept going, shifting a bit and bumping knees with Kanji. “Around our male senpai and Teddie you are very capable of speaking your mind about a variety of topics, if a little quieter with Rise-san and our female senpai. Yet you seem to lack this adequacy whenever your outings involve me. You perspire quickly, keep quiet, and don’t even look me in the eye most of the time. I could attribute that last one to our height difference, admittedly, but still...Puzzling.”
He wanted to gulp, but he was sure that would be too impossibly loud in this tiny space. Even nervously rubbing his neck or face ran the risk of bumping into Naoto or touching... somewhere that might get him killed.
Still, she deserved at least some response. “U-uh...erm…’S not like...I mean to be like that, but…” Man, this was getting tough, he thought. It was easy enough for his brain to tell him how his heart felt, why couldn’t he explain it right now? His mumbling did little to stop Naoto, who just kept going.
“Ah - You do not have to explain yourself. I-I’m sorry for bringing it up, I have probably made things really awkward... more awkward,” she self-corrected. Kanji was sure his face was glowing red through the inky black all around them. Even fumbling and stumbling, she was adorable. He really wished he could see her face, but he made due with the vague outline of her he could see.
“It ain’t like that,” he said quickly, pushing his chin into his bunched-up knees. Naoto made a curious noise, which encouraged him to continue. “I jus’...So, yer like the smartest one ‘o all of us, right? I feel dumb anytime you talk, ‘cuz you use big words ‘n stuff. But I…” It was now or never. He squeezed his eyes closed, despite the pitch blackness, and offered up what was in his heart.
“I wanna be someone you could be proud of, y’know? Not some troublemaker, or dummy, or whatever, but just a...cool guy. Like you are. W-well, like, cool girl , or whatever, but...yeah. So I feel like the more I talk, the more you ain’t gonna see me that way ‘cuz I’m gonna say something dumb…And then you wouldn’t like me no more...”
There it was. Luckily Naoto couldn’t see him, she might have seen how glum he looked and erased any doubt that he was an emotional dope. How long was seven minutes anyhow!?
Some time passed before he could feel Naoto shuffle a bit. Was she facing him now? He thought so, based on her outline. “Kanji-kun...I-I had no idea. Has it...Always been like this?”
No need to keep it under wraps anymore. “Y-yeah. Least since ya came up to me at school last May.”
Naoto seemed to mull on this. “I am not sure if this will settle you entirely, but, ah, please do not ever think that I think you are not ‘cool’ or anything of that nature. You - a-and everyone else too! - are very important to me. It would be quite hypocritical of me to judge someone else for being a bit odd, but I...W-well, I like that about you.”
Were it possible, Kanji might have burst into tears hearing that. He managed, somehow, to sound perfectly normal in response. “Y-ya do?”
“I-in a word, yes,” Naoto answered. “As you have said, you also have problems fitting in with the societal milieu you have grown up in. It’s not exactly the same, but...I, too, have had my problems with this same dilemma. In that way, I feel closer to you than the others, so I...Hmm? Kanji-kun, you’re shaking.”
Shit, she noticed. Everything she was saying was so unlike what he ever thought he would hear that he began to tremble with excitement. His honest streak continued. “I-I don’t wanna say suh-somethin’ dumb, and I’m scared I will, so I’m tryin’ to, y’know, shut up…But that’s really awesome to hear...”
Again, more silence. “Kanji-kun,” Naoto asked, her silhouette clearly shifting up to its knees as it carefully balanced on him, “Do you know what oxytocin is?”
Kanji shook his head, only catching too late that she probably couldn’t see. “Nuh-no…”
“It’s a neuropeptide, a hormone that releases into your bloodstream in response to feelings of labor or...bonding. It can provide relief from stress or fear, and can be triggered by certain activities.”
What the hell? A science lesson? “Uh, neat, I guess…Like what?”
Suddenly, the shadows closed in on him, making him gasp a bit. But then there were arms around his torso, warmth pressed up to his chest, and he could almost feel the rhythmic, erratic heartbeat of his closet companion as she hugged him. Was this really happening, in real life? Or had he actually entered heaven?
“...Is it...working?”
Before he could answer, the shadows dissolved suddenly, light flooding the tiny closet from its open door. A Rise-like squeal could be heard above the gasps, Kanji hoping spontaneous combustion was near.
“ Oh. My. Goooooo~d!”