Chapter Text
It was raining cats and dogs the day I first met you.
The school year had just started. The new batch of first-year students at Miyamasuzaka were quick to scour the school in search of a club to join. My friend Ena had gone over to the Art club. I, on the other hand, decided to check out the Tea Ceremony club. I’ve always taken an interest in traditional food, whether it be making them or eating them.
The club sure seemed promising. The seniors were really good at introducing the club and teaching us the basics of carrying out a proper tea ceremony. As the minutes ticked by, the day’s activity eventually came to a close. I left the classroom alongside the other students, but not without signing myself up as a new club member.
The second I stepped outside, I was greeted by a shocking cold and a scenery of drab gray. It was raining. Pouring, actually.
This caused quite the dilemma, considering my current location wasn’t that near to the school gate. Not to mention the lack of shade…
Luckily for me, I, Momoi Airi, always come prepared!
I fished out my small pink umbrella from my schoolbag and walked out into the rain, fat raindrops pitter-pattering against the nylon surface above me. Some of the other girls had their umbrellas out too, while there were some who used their jackets or bags as a cover. And of course, there were those who simply just ran.
And then, there was one girl, who wasn’t moving at all.
In the midst of all the hubbub, there she was, kneeling under a tree. Her light blue hair stood out against the weather’s misty gray, capturing my attention. As I stared, I realized that the tree wasn’t providing the girl any shade at all.
“Hey!,” I called without really thinking. I jogged towards her, stopping right at her side. “What are you doing?”
Sensing my presence, the girl slowly tilted her head up to look at me. And right then and there, I felt my heart skip.
Her skin was fair and smooth. There wasn’t a single blemish or pimple to be found, with the one minor exception being a small mole under the left corner of her mouth. Her long hair, despite being dampened by the rain, still framed her face in such a charming way. And her eyes. Oh, her eyes. They shone like two blue gems; dazzling and curious, yet so enchanting and-
Wait, why was I here again? Oh, right.
“You’re only gonna get yourself sick, you know,” I told her, tilting my body so that my small umbrella could shade her as well.
The girl’s mouth hung slightly ajar. She could only blink at me, as if she’d been stunned. Before I said anything else, my eyes caught sight of a round figure fidgeting in the girl’s palms.
My eyes widened. “Is that… a baby bird?”
The girl glanced down at the little fuzzy chick in her hands and back at me. “Ah… Yes, it is,” she uttered in a breathy voice. “It fell out of its nest. Thankfully it didn’t get injured at all.”
“Yeah, good thing,” I said.
The girl stood up, and I was struck with the revelation that she was way taller than me. I held my umbrella a little higher, allowing her more room to straighten herself. I quietly watched as the girl raised the little chick up towards a small nest nuzzled between the tree’s thin branches. With great care, she gently placed it into the nest.
The little chick let out a soft ‘peep’, happy to be home. The girl smiled. “Bye bye, little one. Stay safe, alright?”
The rain continued to pour down on us. Even though I was already wearing a cardigan, I still felt a little chilly.
“It’s a good thing you saved that bird,” I said. “Who knows what would’ve happened to it if it had stayed out in this weather…”
“It might not have survived,” the girl lamented. “Which was why I had to help it.”
“It’s really kind of you to do such a thing. But you should also take care of yourself. Look at you, you’re practically soaked!”
“Oh, don’t worry. I’m used to it!,” the girl said with a smile. It looked genuinely sincere, though it felt more like ignorance to me.
I furrowed my eyebrows at her. “Still, that can’t be good for your health. C’mon, let’s go inside the building. I have a small towel you can use to dry yourself off.”
“Ah, that’s alright,” the girl replied, lightly shaking her head. “I don’t want to trouble you.”
“Nah, it’s fine,” I said. Ena told me beforehand that she had to head straight home after club activities. And I didn’t make any other plans. “Shall we?”
****
The two of us stood inside the ground floor toilet. I stared at my reflection, admittedly feeling a little conscious of my own looks while the physically flawless girl was just beside me, using my pink hand towel to dab her clothes and hair dry.
“Are you a first-year as well?,” I asked, though I didn’t recall seeing her during orientation. And I’m 100% certain I would remember someone like her.
“Ah, uh, no,” the girl mumbled. “I’m a second-year student.”
“So that means you’re my senior then,” I uttered. Soft heat quickly rose to my cheeks. “Jeez, now I’m feeling a little embarrassed at how I talked to you earlier.”
“Please, don’t be. If anything, I should be the one feeling embarrassed for troubling a junior.”
“Like I said, it’s fine,” I shrugged.
The girl’s pink lips curled into a thin smile. “Thank you very much,” she said. “Ah, sorry. I should’ve asked sooner… What’s your name?”
“Momoi Airi,” I answered.
“Airi,” she repeated. Hearing my name in her wispy voice sent a bunch of tiny butterflies in my stomach into flight.
“What about you?”
“Hinomori Shizuku.”
“Shizuku, huh,” I muttered, glancing at the water-stained window on my left. How oddly fitting.
I re-focused my attention on the girl in front of me. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Hinomori.”
“Ah, please, just Shizuku is fine,” she responded, bashfully waving a hand.
“Alright then, Shizuku,” I said, although I hesitated a bit before saying her name. I rubbed the back of my neck, hoping my cheeks weren’t too red.
Shizuku giggled. “It’s a pleasure to meet you as well, Airi. And thank you once again for your kindness.”
“It’s nothing, really,” I replied. Now my cheeks definitely were red.
Then, Shizuku pointed her finger at something behind me. “Oh! Look!”
I turned around and faced the window. Just like before, its surface was streaked with water droplets. But then, I noticed the size of the droplets had greatly diminished from before. “I guess the rain’s letting up.”
The two of us walked out of the toilet, towards the lockers where the students kept their shoes. I opened my locker and changed out of my indoor shoes into my regular flats. “I better be going now,” I said, closing my locker.
“Alright,” Shizuku nodded.
“What about you?”
“Me? I think I’ll just wait for the rain to stop entirely. It doesn’t look like it will take that long.”
“Hm, true.” Clutching my umbrella in one hand, I waved at her with the other. “See you around, Shizuku.”
The girl paused for a moment, before nodding and waving back. “See you around, Airi.”
****
After a nice warm shower, I sat myself down at my desk and started preparing for the next day of school. After all, a student must be well-organised!
I rummaged through my bag, taking out books that won’t be needed and putting in the textbooks for tomorrow’s classes. As I was arranging my things, I got hit with a startling realization:
Shizuku still had my towel.
The thought of Shizuku brought flashing images into my mind. My heart skipped and jumped as I remembered her gentle smile and her soft pink cheeks. And her eyes. Her beautiful, dreamy blue eyes. How was it possible for someone to be so effortlessly gorgeous? A part of me envied that beauty.
And an even bigger part of me was enthralled by it.
****
The morning Sun was hanging high in the clear blue sky. I walked into the school building and stopped at the shoe lockers. I opened my locker, expecting to see my indoor shoes resting nicely inside. To my surprise, I saw something else.
On top of my shoes was a neatly folded fluffy pink towel. My towel.
I took it out of my locker, my eyebrows furrowed in slight confusion. It was a familiar voice that pulled me out of my thoughts.
“Morning, Airi,” Ena greeted groggily. Someone’s clearly still half-asleep.
“Morning Ena,” I replied, turning around to see her tired expression. I watched as her brown eyes moved away from my face down to the towel I was still holding in my hands.
“Why do you have your towel?”
“I…” My voice drifted. I looked down at the towel, remembering the girl whose hair this very towel dried. My heart skipped another beat.
“I don’t really know.”
Ena blinked at me. “Huh?”
****
I ended up telling Ena about Shizuku, and the events that led to me lending her my towel and accidentally leaving it in her possession. Until this morning, that is.
“I see,” Ena said, now very much awake. She brought a finger to her chin as she muttered, “Hinomori Shizuku huh…”
I tilted my head at her. “Does that name sound familiar to you?”
“I’m not sure. I feel like I’ve heard it somewhere before.” We entered our classroom and sat at our desks. Leaning forward, Ena asked, “What does she look like?”
I turned around in my seat and rested an arm on her table. “She has long light blue hair. And she’s tall. Like, really tall.”
“Is she a model?”
“I don’t know, but I wouldn’t be surprised if she is. She’s definitely got the looks for it.”
At that, an image of Shizuku flashed across my mind. Soon, the tips of my cheeks started warming up.
Ena hummed. “She must be really beautiful if she’s got you looking like that.”
I raised my eyebrow at her. “Looking like what?”
“Oh, nothing,” she said, though there was a slight smirk on her face.
I immediately turned away from Ena, deciding not to entertain whatever idea was in her head. “I’m still wondering though. Why did she leave my towel in my locker and not just give it to me herself?”
“I don’t know. Maybe she can’t make it to school today. And so she left it in your locker yesterday before she left.”
“Hmm… I guess that makes sense,” I muttered, still somewhat unsure.
Ah well, I could just ask Shizuku herself about it the next time I see her.
And for whatever reason, my heart started beating a little bit faster at the thought of talking to her again.