sagittariusly | (no subject)

She placed a single sugar cube in his tea and glanced at the photo again. Maybe she should take a picture of it with her phone...? With Ryusei's permission, of course.

At the question, Tomoko nodded and sipped from her tea. "Kengo-san's really nicer this time," she replied. "He's also smiling and laughing more often than he did last year... Yuuki-san said he's really human now, instead of something else." She paused. "Ryusei-san, would you like to visit Amanogawa soon? I think everyone would like to see you again - Gentarou-san and Kengo-san especially."

"I don't think I have the time," Ryusei said reluctantly. Jirou had gotten himself into shenanigans with the Art and Tennis Clubs somehow, and was dragging Ryusei along, despite neither of them knowing anything of art or tennis. "Are there still Club activities on Sundays?"

Or they could meet up casually without being a Club, like Tomoko and Ryusei were doing now. But it'd have to be a Sunday that Ryusei could beg off Jirou (to put it lightly, Jirou needed the assistance with his schoolwork), and everyone else had to be free, too. Maybe they could do it for someone's birthday. "I'd like that, though. To see everyone." Gentarou texted him a lot, but it wasn't the same.

"...not as often," she replied quietly, taking her time to sip her tea again. "Without the threat from the Zodiarts, there wasn't any need to meet as much as we did before." Gentarou in particular was often complaining about how boring it had been lately - after all, their goal had shifted from defending Amanogawa to meeting the Presenters, and without the Rabbit Hatch, it wasn't an easy goal to accomplish. Aside from Kengo, there wasn't anything anyone could actively do in order to achieve this dream.

Tomoko couldn't help the disappointment that laced her tone, though, but she tried to smile through it. "Maybe when you're not too busy?" she said, though she had no idea when that would be.

"Definitely." There was time; maybe when they all were in college, they'd have an annual special day. So if anyone couldn't make it, they'd make it the next year, or some such. "It's a promise."

Speaking of promises and meetings... "Should we go? Let's get your...toes before it gets late." He got up to fetch the extra helmet.

"Mm." Tomoko finished her tea and stood - but then she also took out her phone. She walked towards the cabinet where his picture was displayed, and indicating her phone, she shyly looked up at him.

"Ryusei-san, can I...?" Maybe he'd say no, though she wished he wouldn't.

Edited 2012-10-08 06:19 (UTC)

"Hm?" Ryusei came back with the helmet. Oh. Oh, nooooooooooooo.

"T-Tomoko-chan," he managed to choke out through his horror. "What would you want it for?"

She lowered her phone. "I just... I want a photo to remember you by, especially since I don't get to see you often. This is really a nice picture of you and I'll always cherish it."

Tomoko wondered why he seemed so horrified of this picture, though. "...however, if you don't want me to take it I understand."

Tomoko-chan, I am going to need you to exorcise it. That... That wasn't a nice picture at all. And if anyone were to get ahold of Tomoko's phone, or....

"I-I have an idea!" he said, going over. "How about...a current picture of us, together?" That would be more agreeable, right? Better than a picture of a photo, right?

"A picture... of us together?" Tomoko clasped her hands together. While this picture of Ryusei's would be very precious, a picture of them together would be--

"I'd like that," she said softly. "But, where should we...?"

...Maybe Ryusei hadn't quite thought that through. In any case, they wanted to be away from the cabinet.... "Uh, how about...outside? With the bike?"

That was a prettier backdrop than in here, right? Ryusei didn't know, but they needed to get away from that evil picture in case Tomoko decided to quickly snap a picture of it on her way out, after all. (It was what Ryusei would have done if Jirou had had an embarrassing photo of him in his house.) And in his panic, it was getting stuffy in here, and Ryusei needed to go get some air and calm down. "—We're headed out there anyway."

With the bike! Tomoko couldn't help but nod and smile. "Mm! That's a good idea, Ryusei-san." And she would put her phone back into her pocket and take the book from the table to wait for him to make the first move.

Crisis averted. Ryusei turned away to take a secret sigh of relief before leading Tomoko out.

"Over here," he said moments later, wheeling his bike to the curb. "Any preference for backdrop?"

She turned to look around them. "Over... there," Tomoko replied, pointing towards a vacant lot with a dead tree standing in its lonesome at the very edge. "I think that will be very appropriate for our first picture together, don't you?"

"I'll defer to you." He couldn't say that was unexpected. Interesting, though, that he started to get nervous just looking at it. How wide was Tomoko's phone? And...why did she just say 'first,' as if....?

—Back to the moment. "Where should we stand? Should we get closer?" As in, closer to the— "—To the tree, I mean," he added hastily.

Tomoko blinked, unsure of what he meant at first until he clarified it. "...yes," she said. "I think we should stand near the very base of it, as if we're under the tree's shade if it was still alive. Some say that it brings luck, and..." Here Tomoko tucked her chin down, as if embarrassed to say the following out loud, "...and I want you to be lucky for the whole year."

--that you're not with us. She kept the words to herself, though, afraid that she might be too forward with it.

Lucky, huh? Ryusei smiled reflexively. I've already been pretty lucky. Who could tell if Jirou's collapse was lucky or not? Ryusei wasn't going to count up the events of his life into pluses and minuses, but he was glad to have gone to Amanogawa. If anything were to happen from here on, he'd fix it.

"Let's go." He propped the bike up and started for the tree.

Tomoko quietly walked beside him. She wished herself and the other club members luck, too, for the rest of the school year. It wouldn't be long before Gentarou, Yuuki, and Kengo graduated, and then it would be her and JK at the helm of the club. If that day came, well, who's to say if the club would still be as active as before?

Soon they were under the tree. Tomoko stood at a spot directly under a dead branch and took out her phone again. "Here, Ryusei-san."

"—Yeah." Ryusei tentatively stepped to her side. He found his hands were clasped, and unclasped them, but un-unclasped them when he let go and realized he wanted to put his hands in his pockets, which, at this distance, brought his elbow close to brushing Tomoko's side.

It's just a picture. "Is this...?"

...it was a good thing that her hands were full with holding both the book and her phone. Tomoko gripped her book tighter and nodded. "...Mm," she said, trying to fight the nervousness she was feeling. It's just a picture!

She fiddled with her phone a bit, then outstretched her hand and asked, "Ready?"

"Yes." Smile. Smile. Don't grimace, don't blink, or they'd be here longer. He was holding Tomoko up; who knew how fresh her other ingredients had to be, and maybe the shop she had in mind would close by the time they got there. And he wanted to take the picture with his phone, too. "Ready."

Tomoko smiled, which was a mere quirking of the corners of her lips upwards, and for a few seconds she didn't dare breathe - not until a crisp snap was heard from her phone, which indicated that their photo was taken. Quickly, she flipped the phone over to look at the picture. A cursory glance at it told her it looked all right; her eyes weren't closed, though she did look a little odd. Then again, all her pictures were like that.

On the other hand-- "Ryusei-san, you photograph really well," she said, showing the picture to him. It didn't surprise her; after all, most described him as an ikemen. Of course he'd photograph well.

That may or may not be so, but it was better than the picture she would have taken if they didn't do this. "Tomoko-chan, can I...?" He held up his phone.

She blinked. "O-Of course," Tomoko said. Far be it from her to deny his request, anyway. "Should we stay here or--?"

"Here is fine," Ryusei was saying even as he raised his phone. Just a quick snap, and they could go.

Quickly, Tomoko assumed the position she did before, though instead of one arm clutching her book to her chest she now used both. She smiled again, and patiently waited until their photo was taken.