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"God - damn it, yo!"
There was a clatter as Beat threw down his skateboard and followed it to the ground, sitting on his ass in the middle of the skatepark. It was dark. Empty. He'd come here to hide after a shitty fucking day, wanting some time to relax, some time alone, but what good was it when he couldn't even stay on the board?
Beat glared at it, nostrils flaring, as if it would take the hint and start working like it should. Normally, Beat wouldn't have a problem with the kind of basic tricks he'd been trying today. He'd told Neku, once, trying to teach him in the mornings before school, that the board was like an extension of his body (a line he'd totally stolen from a martial arts movie, not that he was about to fess up). It responded to the tiniest of motions like it was a part of him, letting him glide from trick to trick like it was nothing.
But today, his wheels seemed to jam on the smallest pebble. Every incline felt like ice under his feet, and his body felt big, unwieldy, too clumsy to balance right on the board. Every trick ended with him eating shit on the pavement. Not one had gone right, in the three hours he'd been here, and it was just - it was so -
"What are you gonna do with your life, kid?"
"What kind of example are you setting for your sister?"
"You're eighteen, you need to think about DOING SOMETHING instead of just playing around on that stupid skateboard -"
Yeah, well - apparently he couldn't even do that right anymore.
He swore again, kicking the board away viciously and pulling his hood down under his eyes, just wanting to hide from the world. He was so - so angry, and there was nothing he could do about it, but sit here like a lump, and wallow. It seemed to be all he was doing, lately, ever since he'd left high school and his parents had been on his case more and more. What to do what to do what to do -
The thoughts were so loud, swirling in his head, that he didn't even hear the sound of footsteps coming towards him.
"Lord Beat! What a surprise to see you here so late."
Beat froze instinctively, body scrunching up like a clenched fist. He recognised that voice - actually, it would be pretty hard not to recognise that voice. He'd never met anyone else who talked like Pinny.
He swallowed, slowly releasing his hood, letting it fall back from his mussed hair. Sure enough, Nagi was standing in front of him, clutching her backpack to her chest, with her head tilted ever-so-slightly in curiosity. For some reason, Beat always thought of birds when he looked at her - small, cute, jittery. Now was no different, and he felt something twist unpleasantly inside him.
He forced himself to smile, hopping to his feet. "Yo, hey, Pinny! What'chu doing here?"
Nagi let out a loud sigh, letting her head fall back to see the sky. "Ohhh, I'm afraid it's been another of those lamentable days where I've had to study late at the library. I was about to return home when I heard a disturbance - then, I looked over here, and saw you."
Beat might have imagined it, but she seemed to perk up a little as she said that last bit. She fiddled with her glasses and smiled at him.
"It feels like it's been a long time indeed, Lord Beat. Are you occupied? Or do you perhaps have a moment free to talk?"
Man, Beat was not in a position to talk right now. His hair was a mess, his throat felt thick, and he was very conscious of his abused skateboard, lying abandoned a few feet away. It was always a bad idea to talk to people when he was in a bad mood - he always ended up saying the wrong thing and pissing someone off. But his surprise at seeing Nagi had softened the edge of his anger. He shrugged awkwardly and tried to pin the smile on his face a little more securely.
"Sure thing, Pinny. I ain't got nowhere t' go."
Nagi's head tilted just a little more at the wording, but she didn't say anything about it. "Very well, Lord Beat. I believe there's a bench over there. Sally forth!"
Without waiting for a response, Nagi began marching over to the edge of the park. Beat went to follow her - then, feeling self-conscious, went to grab his skateboard first.
"So..." he said, resting the board on his lap and playing with a wheel to avoid looking at her. "What's up? Why's college got'chu working so late?"
"I'm afraid it's the end of days - finals week is approaching," she groaned, burying her face in her backpack. "And, thanks to Shibuya's Composer, my professors don't remember the three weeks I spent in the Reaper's Game, and I don't have an excuse to miss the exams. So, I have little choice but to spend my days studying, trying to make up for lost time. A truly pitiable effort."
"That sucks, Pinny," Beat said sympathetically. He thought, for a moment, about offering to help - but he'd barely passed his high school exams, never mind the intelligent shit Nagi was up to. He decided to keep his mouth shut instead. "You're smart, though. I'm sure you'll come through aight."
"When it comes to standardised testing, I'm afraid its not knowledge the professors are testing, but our ability to memorise the correct answers," Nagi said miserably. "But thank you for the vote of confidence, Lord Beat. It is much appreciated."
For no reason he could explain, heat rose to Beat's cheeks, turning them red and blotchy. "'S no problem," he muttered, turning his face away.
There was a moment of companionable silence, filled only with the constant thrum of Tokyo traffic. Beat continued to mess with his skateboard, pretending not to notice how Nagi peered at him curiously. It occurred to him, distantly, that he never really spent any one-on-one time with Pinny, either in the Game or afterwards. It wasn't as uncomfortable as it should've been.
Eventually, Nagi spoke. "I gather you've had your fair share of struggles with University, Lord Beat?"
Beat looked up, so quickly his neck cracked. "Where'd you hear that, yo?"
Despite his reaction, Nagi remained calm and collected. "Nowhere in particular. Neku mentioned looking for a roommate a few weeks ago, while I was under the impression that you two intended to room together. Added to that, Rhyme has been asking about job vacancies recently - specifically regarding sports retail stores, which seem to suit your tastes more than her own. I simply put two and two together."
Nagi blew on her lenses and began cleaning them with the hem of her shirt. Beat stared at her for a moment, dumbfounded, wondering if she even knew that she'd just blown his mind. Then, he shook it off, coughing, "Yeah, well. I applied. Didn't get in. Wouldn't really call it a 'struggle' - more like a straight-up failure, y'know?"
"...Are you disappointed you didn't get in?" she asked. Her voice was strangely toneless - simply curious, with no judgement one way or the other. If anyone else had asked, Beat would've started getting jittery and defensive. But with Nagi so calm beside him, all he could do was sigh.
"I... I guess? Was kinda lookin' forward to going wit' Neku and the rest. Would'a been nice to... go through that together... have those experiences..."
"But is that your primary reason?" she pressed, just a little bit more. "University life is... well, if I'm being frank, it's a complete hellscape, from which even the tyrannical Reaper's Game was something of an escape. I've considered dropping out myself many times, even though it is ultimately the correct choice for me."
"...How do ya know that, though?" Beat demanded. She sounded so - certain about all of this. Beat had never been that certain about anything in his life. "How d'you know it's the right choice, even when it - it makes you study late, and - and feel like shit?"
He flinched, realising that he just swore in front of the most well-spoken person he knew. But Nagi didn't even bat an eyelash - simlpy hummed, and tilted her head thoughtfully.
"I think it's because... I just love to learn. Even when it's horrible, I enjoy what I'm doing," she said slowly, and Beat could see her weighting each word carefully. "Do you feel that way about education, Beat?"
Beat grimaced, scratching the back of his head. "No," was his honest, unadulterated answer - every second he'd spent in school, he'd just been waiting to get out. But he knew it couldn't be that simple. The way his parents had reacted, when they got the news...
Nagi, on the other hand, didn't seem to react at all. She simply shrugged, "Then you don't have to pursue it. No need to subject yourself to this hell if you don't want to."
"...But -"
"No buts!" she said imperiously, waggling a finger at him. Cute, he thought, suddenly and nonsensically. "Do what you will with your life, Lord Beat. If you want to go to university, you can try again. If you don't, then don't. Don't worry about what anyone else wants."
Beat mulled it over for a second, leaning back on the park bench. Just... do what made him happy? It was a novel concept, easier said than done, but it still made him feel better than the last three months of university preparation. That had left him with a heavy stone in his stomach and a forced, plastic grin on his face. But... what did he want to do?
He looked down at his skateboard again. It was one of the few things he'd ever enjoyed doing, and he was (usually) good at it. But... didn't today prove that wasn't consistent, either? He'd been just as useless on the board today as he was at anything else. The thought of going pro, or whatever, and competing like that made his skin crawl.
But then... Nagi didn't enjoy every day at university, either. Maybe...
Nagi followed his gaze, before flicking her eyes back up to his face. "You know... ever since the Game, I've been somewhat envious of your abilities on that board, Lord Beat," she said, with an air of someone admitting something fairly embarrassing. She leaned forward, letting her hair cover her face, but not even that could hide her blush. "I've always been somewhat clumsy, so the tricks you can do seem truly magical."
Because Beat's brain was fried, it decided to join in with the blushing. "Ah shucks, Pinny, you don't gotta say that," he laughed bashfully, scratching his neck. "I've just had a lotta practice."
"You've worked quite hard for it," she corrected insistently. "It's an impressive skill. I know I could never achieve something like that."
Pleased, he thought about it for a moment. All those mornings before school, teaching Neku to stand on the board without immediately eating shit. Growing up with Rhyme, helping her with roller skates before buying her a board of her own. Teaching.
...Teaching, huh?
He gave Nagi an uncertain, hopeful look.
"...Do you wanna give it a try, Pinny?"
Nagi spluttered, nearly dropping her glasses. "Huh? Oh, I - did you not hear me say how clumsy -"
"'S not that hard," he promised, trying not to laugh at her reaction. She was always so animated, all the time. He appreciated how straightforward she was, even with all the fancy words she liked using. "And I'll catch ya if ya fall. Pinky promise."
It was childish, but he still held out his hand. Nagi hesitated for just a second longer. Then, hand trembling exaggeratedly, she hooked her pinky around his.
"Aight, yo, let's give this a shot!" he crowed, way too loud, getting to his feet and placing his board on the floor. It was potentially too big for her, but it would do as a start. "Right, so you gotta put your feet here, and here, you see -"
Moving slowly, Nagi let him position her body correctly on the board, tensing and letting out a wheeze every time he adjusted her posture. When he pushed her gently, getting her started moving, she trembled like a leaf, so hard the wheels kept knocking against the ground. But eventually, it faded. She relaxed into the board. Beat whooped for joy when she moved a full foot without help, and actually was there to catch her when she instantly tripped.
For another hour afterwards, the city was filled with laughter. And Beat - for the first time in a while - felt hopeful.