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doumekiss · 5 years ago

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reconstruction (xxxholic fanfic)

Watanuki, Doumeki, Himawari // G // 1600 words // Fix Fic - POV second person What if Doumeki had used the egg to erase Watanuki’s memories of Yuuko ?

You don’t ask Doumeki what he wants for luch that day or the day after that. That’s an effort, it’s hard to spend the day without this and making food for him was not just something you did to make up for his many rescues but also a part of your routine that you reluctantly liked. He doesn’t seem to expect you to do however, he doesn’t come to ask what you did for him and when you say you don’t want to talk to him for a while he obeys. It was strange you always told him to leave you alone but he could always see when you really meant it. You cook just for yourself and you can taste your food again and feel as something bigger than just a matter of taste. You’re real, you can feel, you’re part of this world, the cost was great but everything is on the right track again. . . . Mokona and Kudakitsune will live with you in the apartment, not Maru and Moro however, they stay in the shop asleep until someone with enough power takes charge of the place. You ask Mokona to tell you how Tsubasa and the others traveling with the other Mokona are, and he does. You think you would feel if something was really wrong with Tsubasa, your souls are different, or became different, but your existence is connected with his and it will be like that until one of you two dies. You and this Mokona are probably the most similar beings in this aspect living in this universe. You also ask him to tell you a bit more about the Dimensional Witch. That makes him hesitate. You remember that one day you found a store and found someone there who said they could help you stop seeing the ayakashis in exchange for a certain amount of service. You remember the cases, the people you helped, and the people you weren’t able to save. But you don’t really remember her, her face or her voice, or the things she made you feel. Now there was a big hole in the place where there was something of great value before, something you had been willing to give up the whole world for the possibility of perhaps having again one day. . . . Himawari comes to visit you at your apartment over the weekend and this is a surprise, she has never done it before and you can see the reason why she thought it safe to do it there at the end of the hall. Doumeki doesn’t ask to enter with her and a part of you wanted him to do it just to say that you won’t allow it and knock the door in his face. But you allow yourself to ignore your anger for a moment, Himawari was there and this always makes the world seem a little better, a little softer. You wonder if the Dimensional Witch used to make you feel something similar. You both sit on the tip of the futton so as not to disturb Mokona and Kudakitsune who are both sleeping there. “So what do I owe the honor of your visit?” You ask. “I just wanted to see how you are, how you’re processing everything” “The idiot in the hall who asked you to come and ask me that?” “No, I came because I wanted to. Although I’m sure he’s also worried, he really loves you… you know that right? ” You don’t answer that, you decide to change the subject. “I made cake yesterday and I could make you some tea, would you like that?” “Yes, sure” “Well, you can stay here and I’ll be right back” When the water starts boiling Himawari appears at the kitchen door. “Watanuki-kun” “Yes ?” “Your computer was on and I noticed the page you were on” Oh, shit you think. “Sakura Kinomoto, is she who I think she is?” “Yes, she is the Sakura of this universe” “Your mother” “I’m not sure if I can really call her that, or even anyone like that. I couldn’t see her face before but I remembered her hand so clearly on my forehead when I was sick and she calling me Kimihiro, but now I don’t think these things really happened and if they happened they happened to Tsubasa and I just mixed things that happened to him about me, and it’s because of him that they sacrificed themselves, not for me. I am not their son, I am not a person, I am a side effect ” “Maybe it’s your memories, you told me that everything about your childhood and your time before coming here is confusing and complicated. Are you absolutely sure you’ve never interacted with her? ” “No” “And you know even if you haven’t had a mother you’re still a person, and you have relationships that are definitely real, I love you, Doumeki loves you, Kohane loves you. You’re here, you’re real ” “Thank you” “I’d hug you now if I could” “I know” . . . In the days after the end of that part of your life you were still passing by the shop after school, the place seemed cold and empty. But not today, you can hear the sound of Maru and Moro playing in the garden and when you arrived near the gate there was someone there blocking the passage. You suppose that most people would find you two alike, he was just a little shorter tha you, and but he had dark hair, blue eye and glasses. But the biggest difference was a serene arrogance that had never been present on your face. And also power, of a type you had never met before but one that you could recognize. “You’re Clow” “Wrong, I’m just a reincarnation and only half really. My name is Eriol ” “No disrespect, but your previous incarnation complicated my life and the lives of many people I care about” “Yes, that was the kind of thing he used to do. If that makes any difference, he felt sorry for everything, and so do I ” “It doesn’t. But I think there is nothing to be done now. So you’re the new owner of the store? ” “Oh no, she is” Only then you notice that there is a redheaded woman sitting on the porch looking gently at you. “Hi, my name is Kimihiro Watanuki, I worked for the former owner of this shop and I would like to offer you my services” The woman came to you and took your hand. “Nice to meet you Watanuki-kun, my name is Kaho Mizuki and I’m araid I can not accept your offer” “Why not?” “Payment. Your services would be too valuable for me to pay, and any desire you have is not one that I can grant it. ” “So what am I supposed to do now?” “Go live your life I guess” . . . You weren’t sure where you were going until you got there, but when you arrived you marched into the temple as if you were 100% centain on everything. You found Doumeki in the yard sweeping the leaves, he stopped when he saw you. “I want to talk to you asshole,” you announced. “Allright. Speak” “You had no right to do what you did. I was already forgetting a lot of things, I didn’t even remember the faces of my parents. It was selfish of you to ignore my desires of what I wanted to do with my life and my mind ” Doumeki kept looking at you for a long time, and when you were about to yell at him and ask him if he had nothing to say he said, “You’re right. I didn’t just do it for you, I did it for myself too. Because I wanted you living in the world ” “This isn’t an apology” “No, it’s not. And you will not get one from me. Not when it comes to this. If you’re going to hate me for what I did I can live with that, but I do not regret anything and I will not apologize ” You can feel your anger boiling, and you leave without saying goodbye. You keep arguing with him in your mind on the way to the supermarket and also back home, and in the kitchen making the snacks for tomorrow, you don’t remember your dreams that night you’re almost sure you were fighting with him in those too . You’re waiting for him in front of his class room when the lunch bell rings and you place the wrapping you made in his hands.

He seems surprised by the sight of you. “What is this?” He asks. “A bento and some other things. But before you start eating I want you to be aware that you don’t deserve this delicious bento or the pleasure of my company and also of Himawari-chan. However I in my infinite generosity decided to take pity on your pathetic self and allow you to continue lunching with us until graduation, and only because there are only a few months left for this and soon I will not have any reason to have you in my life again and - Hey! I’d told you not to start eating before I finish! ” You two walk side by side to your usual lunch place, Himawari is there waiting, and when she sees that you two are together her smile, which is always beautiful, shines brighter than ever. You sit down and you three eat together until the bell rings again. The world feels like it’s in the right place, and for once so do you.

Also available on ao3

#my writing #xxxholic #himawari kunogi #shizuka doumeki #kimihiro watanuki #doumeki x watanuki #douwata #my fanfiction

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thefinalcinderella · 7 years ago

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DIVE!! Book 2 Chapter 11-DAY MUST BREAK

It’s the second-to-last chapter!

Full list of translations here

Previously on DIVE!!: I double-demand a spinoff with Shiraha.

There had never been a night that hadn’t ended with daybreak.

It was as Kayoko had said. The night that passed without Shibuki sleeping a wink had ended with daybreak, like always. In the morning, Youichi and Tomoki ended their short vacation and were heading back to Tokyo. Youichi said, “That was a good break. When the Olympics are over, I’ll come back and dive off that cliff.” And Tomoki left with, “That was fun--!”

After Miyuki drove the two to the closest station, Shibuki watched the enclosed video with Kyouko in his room. Although it wasn’t easy to suppress the urge to see it right then after he finished reading Kayoko’s letter late last night, when he recalled Kyouko’s face and how she had been desperately pursuing Shiraha’s footprints, it felt like a betrayal to watch it by himself, so he had hesitated.

The footprints of Shiraha that he had been pursuing since he was little.

The tangible shape of what his grandfather had plainly left behind.

It might have been because it was too heavy to accept it alone, the thing that had leapt into his hands so suddenly.

The video of less than ten minutes was short. As the old film was only dubbed, a rough storm of noise constantly covered the screen, and the images occasionally flew into disorder. Nevertheless, when Shiraha in his younger days appeared on the twenty-four-inch TV screen, Shibuki’s eyes could not help but get heated up.

It wasn’t only because of the nostalgia of meeting his grandfather again after such a long time. As Kayoko had said, Shiraha was smiling widely.

Sixteen years old. Shiraha, who was the same age as the current Shibuki, was indeed running around crampedly in the Tamagawa pool with all the carefreeness of a wild child. The three-meter. The five-meter. The seven-meter. The ten-meter. He ran up and down them as though the platforms that gradually grew taller weren’t unusual to him, as he soared grandly from them many times. Watching Shiraha making his huge splashes was like watching himself, so it was funny. Without waiting for the violently heaving water surface to become still, Shiraha flew out of the water like a flying fish, and then dashed to climb up the diving platform again. Sometimes he would turn around and smile at the cameraman—Mizuki Shinnosuke—who was following his movements. Beneath that bashful smile, who would be thinking about stuff like his back is probably already aching right then? As if he himself had forgotten that, Shiraha was energetic in the distant new world that he left his hometown for, and was enjoying himself wholeheartedly. But his technique and rotations were still clumsy. He was awkward taking off from the platform. But it was certain that Shiraha shone there.

Kyouko, who was hugging her knees next to him, sniffed her runny nose.

Even though Shibuki tried hard pretending to be calm, when the video ended and the screen was painted with blue, he couldn’t bring himself to reach for the remote.

“The reasons why Gramps stopped diving was truly good, no matter what. Either because of the war, or because of back pains, or anything else.”

Eventually, Shibuki’s hand moved, not for the remote control, but for holding Kyouko’s hand.

“What I wanted to know wasn’t why Gramps quit competitive diving, but why he started. If he started to like it, then that’s fine. If he had fun in Tokyo, then that’s even more fine…”

From then on, Shibuki spent three days at Kyouko’s house. On the evening of August 30, when he told her, “I’m going back to Tokyo tomorrow,” Kyouko nodded without saying anything. She might have been convinced that this day would come someday from the time when Shibuki was being indecisive by himself.

He dragged out his departure until just before the end of summer vacation because he wanted to stay by Kyouko for as long as he could. If he returned to Tokyo, he would devote himself to diving again and forget about Kyouko for a while. He knew about that irresponsibility of his, so he wanted to make up for that in advance, even a little bit.

“Have sex with Kyouko every night, get married after graduating high school, have kids, buy a boat, dig into the tastiest fish that I catch that day with my family…I still think that I’ll never get bored of that kind of life, even now. But…”

On the night before his departure, while Shibuki’s strong arm served as Kyouko’s pillow, he spoke frankly from his heart.

“But, before that, I want to dive with those guys one more time. At the same time and on the same stage as Youichi and Tomo. I don’t have any incredible techniques, but I haven’t done my best yet. That’s why, for a bit longer…I’ll do as much as I can do, lose as much as I can lose, and come back when I feel like it.”

Kyouko also responded in the same open-hearted tone to his voice that held no hesitation.

“Yep. Lose quickly and come home early.”

“Are you really okay with this, Kyouko?”

“When I first started going out with you, I asked you something. Until now I’ve slept with all sorts of men, and I don’t regret that because it was fun, but the men around here won’t have anything to do with me seriously anymore. I asked you if you do. Do you remember what you answered?”

“It’s an honor to choose a woman who knows all kinds of men rather than a woman who knows none at all.”

Kyouko smiled.

“I’m the same. A Shibuki who knows Tokyo, and knows about competing and losing, rather than a Shibuki who knows nothing…that Shibuki is better.”

Shibuki cupped her cheek with his large palm.

“Kyouko.”

“Hmm?”

“It would be nice if you were there.”

Shibuki ended that painful summer with that single sentence, and they moved onto sex without being overwhelmed by their parting sentiments as they were, and snuggled close together and fell asleep healthily to their hearts’ content.

It was all as it was supposed to have been, but it wasn’t enough.

The next morning, just when Shibuki was about to head off, Kyouko suddenly did a one-eighty on her attitude.

“You’re not going to call me when you go to Tokyo anyway.”

“There’s no need to go see off such a cold-blooded man at the airport.”

“To begin with, isn’t there something wrong with leaving contraceptives in the room of a woman before her marriage?”

Kyouko, who couldn’t help but act hateful and ranted on and on, was like a completely different person from the understanding girlfriend she was yesterday. This was common, but each time Shibuki seriously wondered if Kyouko had a twin sister. Come to think of it, four months ago, when Shibuki was going to Tokyo for the first time, they had also gone through this exact same process.

“There’s no more time, so I have to go now.” Shibuki said, regretting his own lack of learning ability.

“Are you sure you’re not coming to see me off?”

“I’m not going.”

“You can just come to the front door.”

“I’m not going.”

“At least turn around and look at me here.”

“Not doing it.”

“What the hell’s the matter with you?”

The same question from four months ago.

While still keeping her back facing Shibuki, Kyouko answered with the same reply from four months ago.

“Just leave it. Go quickly, so it feels like you’re coming back soon again.”

“All right.” Shibuki nodded, walking out of Kyouko’s room like he was coming back as soon as possible.

When he went down the stairs, he came across Aya-san sweeping at the front door.

When she noticed him carrying his backpack, she put one hand into the pocket of her apron, and said, “You going?”

“Yeah. I already ate.”

“Take this with you.”

From the other side of the dust glittering in the morning sun from the window, Aya-san curtly presented to him a charm passed down in this region. It was a bivalve (1) shell that had a hole pierced through the top of it, with a red string passed through it.

“It’ll help you stand on your own feet. Don’t let anything get in your way.”

“Thank you.” Shibuki murmured, warming the shell with his palm. Then after that, once again, he went through the rotting sliding door, acting like he was returning soon again.

Miyuki drove him all the way to the airport. Until the day before, Shibuki had been planning to return to Tokyo by train as he had before, but when he called his house to tell them that he was going back tomorrow, Miyuki had already prepared airplane tickets. Moreover, a flight on the morning of the 31st had been planned for Shibuki.

His mother didn’t seem to understand much about himself, but was he just judging from appearances? When Shibuki got into the car with those unclear feelings, Miyuki’s voice came from the drivers’s seat. “Is Kyouko alright?”

“Who knows. Geez, do all women have split personalities?”

“It’s good to express your feelings. When the things you pent up inside explode, you’d break.”

“You don’t express your feelings.”

“That’s because your dad died before the explosion could happen.”

The car drove smoothly, but there was still time before it reached the airport. In that case, Shibuki decided to try asking about the things that he had been curious about up until now.

“So, my old man, who grew up listening to all the bad things that the other relatives said about Gramps, and so denied his way of living and felt like going into the honest work of fishing. So if that’s the case, did he not want me, his son, to dive? Why didn’t he stop Gramps from teaching me how to dive?”

“He did.” Miyuki replied easily. “But, even if he did that, you wouldn’t listen.”

“I did?”

“Did you forget? Even if your dad got angry, you talked back to him, pulled on your grandpa’s arm and went out to the sea. Even if you got hurt, even if you got bruises, you didn’t stop diving. Your stubborn father had to give way.”

“…”

“That’s what I remembered again when you returned this time. According to my mother’s intuition, you will be going back to Tokyo again.”

“On August 31st?”

“That’s woman’s intuition.”

Upon their arrival at the Aomori Airport parking lot, Miyuki took out a large paper bag from the trunk. “Since there are four boxes of kujira mochi (2), give them to everyone who helped you,” she said, grabbing onto Shibuki’s right hand. It was a whale-colored uirou (3) made of rice and red beans. He clearly remembered that four months ago, she had also pushed those presents at him for “everyone in Tokyo.” Anyone would like this, she had said back then, and he should have pushed it back at her like back then, but this time he silently hid it in his bag.

“I can’t come home in glory, but I’ll do as much as I want to in Tokyo, and then I’ll become a fisherman here. One day I’ll buy a boat, so that I can let you live as much as you want without having to take care of anybody.”

When Shibuki left with that last line as he headed towards the airport, the corners of Miyuki’s eyes were glittering. “I just want your health to be…” She said, before her voice got stuffed up. Until the end, she never asked Shibuki why he came home and about his diving situation.

The departure time for the plane to Tokyo was 10:16 a.m.

Shibuki checked in at the airport at 9:33.

Because he had plenty of time before departure, Shibuki scraped out some coins from his jeans pocket, and called Ooshima’s cell phone from the payphone in the airport’s lobby.

“Hello, this is Ooshima…”

“It’s Okitsu, but I’m flying back now.”

When he said that first part, Ooshima was silent for a moment like he was confused, and then casually said, “I see,” not as though he was putting on a show of courage, but like he was pretending to be calm.

“Be careful when you come home. Don’t go missing.”

“Please tell that to the pilot.”

“Look forward to the airline meals.”

“It’s only seventy minutes.”

“That’s too bad. Right, well, we’ll be having sukiyaki tonight, okay?”

“…is that the only thing you know how to make?”

While he was amazed at Ooshima, who was the same as ever, when they conversed like this like nothing at all had changed from a month ago, the odor and feeling of that apartment, and the small, casual things in all the nooks and crannies of life were revived at once, filling up Shibuki’s heart.

I really feel like that I’m over there, that I returned to Tokyo.

Of my own will.

Maybe, in order to lose.

Translation Notes

1. A sort of mollusc that people use a lot as charms.

2. A kind of rice cake eaten on Hinamatsuri

3. Steamed cake made of rice flour and sugar

Next time on DIVE!!: You’ll finally know the reason why Shibuki sees a swan in the anime.

#dive!!#dive novel translation

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imitranslates · 8 years ago

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Real Account II Chapter 103

Skipped over this chapter last month, but here it is! It was certainly a special, very fanservice-y chapter in time for Valentines’ Day...

Real Account II Chapter 103 – Let's Have Some Fun Tonight Part 2

Page 1

[“ReAcc Go” Day 2. 11:45 PM.]

(A short rest!? This time, it's a little perverted <3)

[The Traveler's Inn]

Page 2

Yuuma: Geez.

Yuuma: Things have gotten really bad...

Yuuma: The Yuuma team from Social Media Hide and Seek...

Yuuma: Has finally been reunited!

Ayame: More importantly...

Ayame: What are we going to do to about that?

(Box): Uuuuuu....

Yuuma: ......

Mizuki: ......

Mizuki: Box-kun...

Box: Uuuu...

Box: Uuu.....

Box: Uuuuhu...

Box: Uhuuhuuhu.

Ayame: ...?

Yuuma: —!?

Yuuma: Hey... What's that!?

Page 3

Yuuma: Kurashina...

Yuuma: Something's shining at your feet!

[Circlelle: If a player stands in a glowing 1 meter circle drawn on the floor for more than ten seconds, the summoner can steal all of that player's monsters.]

Box: Ahahahah!!

Box: Well, that's that! Time to move on to the next!

Page 4

Box: Well, see you later!!

Yuuma: Damn you, boxstard!!

Box: Bye-bye, Mizuki... I loved you, but...

Box: It seems that you're also fated to die, after all!!

[Kurashina Mizuki.

Monsters in Possession: 0.

(Number of monsters needed to clear: 50.)]

[37 hours remaining until the end of the game.]

Page 5

Yuuma: —Kurashina! This isn't the time to carelessly have a sleep over! If you don't start collecting monsters again soon...

Mizuki: Aha... But... I'm already at my limit. (I haven't eaten... and I'm all beaten up.)

Mizuki: ...Yet, despite that... My mind feels really refreshed right now. I wonder if it's because I'm happy.

Mizuki: In fact... I don't think I'd mind dying if it was like this...

Yuuma: Don't give me that!

Yuuma: I won't accept that! I'll definitely find a solution!!

Mizuki: Yuuma-kun...

Mizuki: That's right...

Mizuki: There's still something left we have to do... <3

Page 6

Ayame: Sigh...

Ayame: I'm so glad that Kurashina is back to his usual self. (We're still in trouble, though...)

Ayame: That's just the way things are with those two...!

Ayame: But... I wonder if they're alright sharing a room together.

(Ayame: It's the room next door...)

Ayame: I mean, they were just beating each other up a little awhile ago...

Yuuma: Oww...

Ayame: That's Mukai's voice...! Oh no—

Page 7

Yuuma: Haa... Gh... You dumbass! Be more gentle...!!

Mizuki: Fufu... <3 Maybe I should make it more painful...

(This... This is...!!)

Page 8

Mizuki: The bandage was slipping on your pinkie.

Yuuma: Geez... Don't laugh. As much as we fought, that's the worst of my injuries...

Mizuki: Sorry for grinding against it earlier. (grind)

Yuuma: Ouch!!

Ayame: ? I can't make out everything they're saying...

Ayame: Grinding...?

Ayame: Ah, he said it hurt again...

Mizuki: Yuuma-kun, this spot here... getting really warm.

How silly... Did you think about me... when you were doing it by yourself..?

Yuuma: Sh... Shut up! Just keep going already...!

(Hawawawa!?)

Page 9

Chiho: They're definitely doing it.

Ayame: Seriously...

Chiho: Yes. I have a little bit of knowledge in that specific area!

There's no mistake! From time immemorial, when soldiers returned from the battlefield, they sought woman to satisfying their built-up urges!

Chiho: In clashing against one another, they both riled each other up... Now that they're staying in the same room, those feelings would only get more intense! Until... they crossed over to...!!

Ayame: Ch-Chiho-chan, calm down!!

Ayame: I... I see... So Mukai goes both ways...

Chiho: It's okay! Ayame-san... There's a solution!!

Ayame: Huh...?!

Chiho: Huhu... Yes...

Page 10

(You just have to swing both ways, too!!)

Ayame: H-how is that supposed to help me!!

Page 11

(If you do that, the four of us will end up in the best possible pairs, don't you think!! Right? Right?

(Happy End... <3)

Ayame: No, I don't think so!!

Chiho: Ayame-san... I'll make you forget all about Yuuma-san...

Ayame: B-but... Chiho-chan.. I...

Chiho: As a woman, there are things about you I can understand very well...

Chiho: See... Right here, huh?

Ayame: Ah! Y-yah, Chiho-chan, there...!!

Chiho: How about this...<3

Ayame: Yaaahh... Amazing...!! How could I care about Mukai anymore...!!

Ayame: I don't... think I can return to the way I was...

Chiho: Let's sink into it together... No matter how far...!!

Page 12

Ayame: Nngh, why is this so long!! You're fantasizing too much, Chiho-chan!!

Ayame: I... I was probably just mistaken after all!

(Something like this happened yesterday, too...)

Ayame: I'll try listening properly this time...

Yuuma: Kuku... Take a look at your meat... It's standing up and dripping everywhere...

Mizuki: Uu... It's embarrassing...

Yuuma: Geez... I can't believe you put something like this in here...

Mizuki: Fufu... I hope it's delicious...

Keep this a secret from Ayame-chan... <3

Ayame: T... This is bad, Chiho-chan!! There's been a pitching substitution!!

And they're using something!

Chiho: Marvelous... Thank you, God...

Page 13

Ayame: I... I-I-I have to stop them!!

Chiho: Fufu... It's useless, Ayame-san. Once that runaway train by the name of “Sodom” takes off, there's no emergency brake...

Ayame: No... There's still something I can do...!

Chiho: Huh...?!

Ayame: If I use that method... I can surely stop them...!!

But... Being able to do something like that is...

Chiho: ...!! Ayame-san, you can't mean...!!

Ayame: ...I don't have the time to hesitate...!!

Chiho: Ayame-san, no!!

Ayame: Stop!!

Yuuma: Woah?!

Page 14

Ayame: —... Ah.

Page 15

Ayame: Let me... join in, too...!!

Chiho: Ayame-san...!!

(I'll intervene as a third person... If I can't stop these two from running wild, then I have no choice but to embrace it...!)

(Goodbye, my purity... For the first time, I'm glad to be normal...)

Page 16

Yuuma: You scared me.

Ayame: Uh... Huh?

[....

Uh... This is...]

[Raw meat...?]

Mizuki: Oh no, you ruined the surprised. Well, either way it's fine.

Mizuki: Mmm, I wanted to make the arrangement prettier first...

Mizuki: Hey... I know... that I ended up making you worry lots about me, Ayame-chan...

Mizuki: So I wanted to do something for you... But, this was the only thing I could think of.

Ayame: .......

Page 17

Mizuki: Ayame-chan, this is...

(Mizuki: Eat up.)

Mizuki: My apology for making you worry, and my thanks...

(Ah... I can't believe myself...!!!)

Page 18

Ayame: Waahhh!

Mizuki: Wow, Ayame-chan is so happy she's crying....

Yuuma: Anyway... why are you dressed like that...

Ayame: I... I was so sure...

Ayame: That your virginity was being stolen away, Mukai...

Yuuma: That's it, Ayame!! I'll steal it!!

Ayame: Kyaaaah!!

Ayame: Uh... My... virginity...?

Yuuma: Not that! (What's wrong with you?!)

Yuuma: It's how we're going to rebuild Kurashina's monster collection!!

Ayame: !!

Page 19

Yuuma: Professor Marble!!

Yuuma: He said it earlier! “Of course, the monster professor would have a large quantity of monsters!”

Ayame: Eh... then, you mean...

Ayame: No way...

Yuuma: Of course!

Yuuma: We'll steal them!

Page 20

[It's a rematch...!!]

Prof Marble: Huohuohuo...!!

Prof Marble: Now then...

Prof Marble: It's open-season on Players again!

[Meanwhile, in a separate Traveler's Inn.]

#real account 2 #real account spoilers #real account translation

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leofemt · 8 years ago

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life isn't always a fairytale, is it

Mizuki, the enigma, and his accidental conquests.

kasamizu, mizukimi, indoumizu, all one-sided/up for interpretation.

on ao3.

NOTE: hi i'm writer's block and welcome to jackass

act i: kasahara

"Mizuki Hisahito."

Nakazawa blinks.

"Sorry," he says, "are you here to apply for a managerial position?"

Mizuki stands staunchly, somehow seeming unshakeable despite his small frame- well, small compared to the other first year Inohara, the new goalie trainee, and other students who come to Nakazawa's workroom about Seiseki's soccer team.

"No." He says, something in his tone of voice making Nakazawa turn his chair completely to face the boy. "I'm here to ask about tryouts."

Nakazawa considers him.

"Have you played soccer before?" He asks- by his stance and how much of Mizuki's frame he can see, probably not, but you can never be sure.

Mizuki shakes his head.

"Never." He says, face unnervingly unreadable for a high school boy.

"So you would be starting in high school." Nakazawa sighs, leaning forward and propping his elbows on his knees. "Listen, Mizuki-kun-"

"Nakazawa-sensei." Mizuki says. "I'm going to work as hard as it takes."

Nakazawa stares.

"Plenty of kids say that, Mizuki-kun..." He trails off. "Not to doubt your dedication, but-"

Mizuki's expression doesn't change. That look in his eyes makes Nakazawa furrow his brows slightly, makes him sit up straight.

"Alright." He sighs. "Tryouts are in a week, on the pitch after school... I'll be expecting you there, Mizuki-kun."

"Thank you." Mizuki says formally, bowing a full bow, which makes Nakazawa frown in something like befuddlement, before taking his leave.

~~~~~~

"Minaki," Nakazawa leans over his desk at lunch, "you teach Year 1's Class C, right?"

The other teacher looks up.

"Yes, why?" She looks at him.

Nakazawa scratches his head.

"There's a kid..." He starts, "Mizuki Hisahito."

Minaki blinks.

"Mizuki..." She trails off. "Ah, Mizuki-kun... His grandfather passed away shortly before this year."

Nakazawa frowns.

"Really..." He mumbles.

~~~~~~

Mizuki does show up at tryouts.

"Mizuki Hisahito!" He announces when Nakazawa calls for lineup. "No prior experience."

There's snickering. No one shows up to Seiseki High's soccer team tryouts without experience- there are kids in the ranks who come to Seiseki soley for the soccer team, to have a shot at making the big leagues.

The kid next to him opens his mouth.

"Kasahara Junpei!" He almost shouts from nervousness. "I-I played forward for my junior high."

The captain makes a noise and marks it down- from his place next to him, Nakazawa can see the barely-legible scribbles on the spreadsheet of the names of first-years.

"Alright!" The captain says. "If that's everyone, your first task of tryouts is to run!"

There's murmuring.

"'Scuse me," one first-year calls out bravely, "Captain, are we gonna get to do more than run?"

"Of course," the captain replies, crossing his arms, fixing the students with a glare befitting of a third-year with sharp, dark eyes, "but running is the fundamental of soccer! If you can't run, you can't play soccer!"

~~~~~~

Mizuki makes it through 20 paces of the field before he collapses in abject exhaustion.

"Mizuki-kun," someone says, "right?"

Mizuki looks up.

There's a hand outstretched.

The boy leaning over him smiles- albeit a slightly nervous smile, but it's a friendly respite from the glares and suspicious looks from the rest of the trainees.

"I'm Kasahara Junpei." He says. "The look on your face is a little scary, Mizuki-kun..."

Mizuki blinks, clearing the frustration from his brow. He accepts Kasahara's hand and pulls himself up.

"Mizuki Hisahito." He says formally, before pausing. "Ah- you already knew that."

Kasahara can't help but laugh a little. Mizuki stares at him.

"Sorry..." Kasahara chuckles. His hand is still gripping Mizuki's, and he gives it a shake before letting go. "Nice to meet you."

"Same here." Mizuki replies.

"Kasahara! Mizuki!" The coach bellows from the sidelines. "Get running!"

They do.

~~~~~~

"Mizuki-kun?"

Mizuki looks up.

"Kasahara-kun." He says, moderately surprised.

Kasahara smiles sheepishly and scratches the back of his head.

"Do you mind if I eat with you?" He asks, gesturing to the empty seat on the other side of Mizuki. Blinking in slight surprise, Mizuki shakes his head.

"How are you feeling after tryouts yesterday?" Kasahara sits and unwraps his lunch- something packed from home, it looks like- and glances up at him. "Since you haven't played sports before..."

Mizuki frowns.

"I'm going to play." He says staunchly. Kasahara's eyes widen and he waves his hands.

"Ah, I'm sure you will!" He exclaims before settling again, smiling that sheepish smile. "Mizuki-kun... you have that kind of personality, you know."

Mizuki cocks his head.

"Personality?" He says.

Kasahara nods, picking up a piece of egg with his chopsticks.

"Personality." He repeats. "I haven't known you for long, Mizuki-kun, but I feel like you can do anything that you try..."

Mizuki shakes his head.

"Kasahara." He says- Kasahara pauses for a minute at the dropped honorific, but doesn't say anything. "What does the voice inside of you say?"

Kasahara blinks.

"Voice?" He asks. "Inside of me?"

Mizuki nods sagely and takes a bite of his bun.

"The voice." He confirms.

Kasahara shakes his head.

"A voice inside me, huh..." He wonders, chopsticks pausing. "To get into a good university?"

Mizuki purses his lips.

"The voice inside of me..." He says. That feeling starts to spark within him again, the burning in his gut. "It tells me to break something."

Kasahara stares at him.

"Break... something?" He exclaims. "Physically? Mizuki-"

Mizuki shakes his head again.

"Not physically." He continues. "It tells me to work harder... to try more, to run faster, to kick harder..."

He trails off again. Kasahara looks at him for another moment, then bursts out laughing.

Mizuki watches him, befuddled.

"What?" He asks.

Kasahara's chuckles die down, and he wraps a supporting arm around his stomach before looking Mizuki in the eye again.

"That's your personality, Mizuki." He smiles, and it's somehow self-depricating, makes Mizuki want to pull Kasahara along with him. "You're the type of person to never give up, I guess. An idealist."

Mizuki blinks.

"An idealist?"

~~~~~~

Mizuki starts running laps around the outer fence later that day.

~~~~~~

Two weeks later.

"Mizuki!" A voice calls from the school gates.

Mizuki, panting from running, feet sore and legs aching, lets himself slow down. It's someone in a bright yellow raincoat, an umbrella over their head, holding something in their arms. It's raining, and the water has fully soaked into his hair and his clothes, chilling him.

"Kasahara." He calls back, drawing to a stop, walking towards his friend. "It's Saturday- what are you doing here?"

Kasahara laughs out loud. He's smiled much more often in the two weeks they've been training together.

"Like you can talk." He replies, holding out one of the cans in his hands as Mizuki draws near, rain squelching in his sneakers. His socks are soaked to the bone. The rain pitters and patters insistently along every exposed surface, and the air smells like wet concrete.

"I'm training." Mizuki says bluntly, but takes the can- hot tea- nonetheless. "Training is good-"

Kasahara shakes his head.

"Not too much of it," he sighs, "especially if you haven't been training before... try and take other peoples' concern into account, geez."

"Sorry." Mizuki combs a hand through his short, wet hair, making it spike up from his scalp. They move to the protection of a large tree by the gates. The only noise is the rain falling on the environment around them.

"Kasahara," Mizuki breaks the near-silence, "do you think we'll make it to Nationals?"

~~~~~~

Second year.

"I'm never going to become a regular."

Mizuki turns around.

Kasahara is the only other one in the dark, empty locker room. He slams his hand against the metal door- it rattles with the force of the blow- and hunches over further, as though experiencing some gut-wrenching pain.

"Kasahara-" Mizuki starts, taking a step towards the other boy.

"I'm never going to become a regular." Kasahara gasps, a repetition, and he almost falls to his knees- Mizuki rushes forward to try and support him, but he's not fast enough. Kasahara crumples to the floor, kneeling and hunched, and all Mizuki can do is crouch beside him and place a wary hand on his best friend's shoulder.

"Kasahara..." He says, watching how the other boy's shoulders begin to shake, and feels something inhuman rise in him, because his instinct right now is silent- he doesn't know what to do. "Kasahara, I-"

"It's alright." Kasahara pants, back heaving, and Mizuki sees something bright catch the light streaming from the half-open door on its way falling from Kasahara's downturned face to splatter invisibly on the dark floor. "I can see the facts, Mizuki."

Mizuki stills.

He's right, after all. Kasahara isn't a remarkable player, especially for a forward- not compared to the current captain, and to the talented monster first year Ooshiba, who had scored three goals over his upperclassman with more experience and technique in today's practice match alone, and to Mizuki himself, an established regular as of this year and the one whose name is being drafted for next year's captain.

Kasahara won't ever become a regular.

Words seem to refuse to come from Mizuki's mouth.

When Kasahara turns, still hiding his face, and his forehead comes into contact wtih Mizuki's lowered shoulder, it seems natural for Mizuki to tighten his grip on his shoulder, to keep him there- Kasahara finally breaks, that tempered, hesitant demeanor falling away, and sobs painfully into Mizuki's shirt.

He wants to play.

He wants to become a regular.

He wants to play.

He wants, wants, wants- wants attention on him, wants to be in the spotlight, just for a moment- wants all this practice to mean something, to himself and to his teammates and to Seiseki as a whole...

Mizuki can't do anything but smooth his hand over the back of Kasahara's neck and listen, both of them sitting in the dark, their voices and their touch the only things connecting them.

~~~~~~

The beginning of third year.

"Mizuki." Kasahara puts a hand on his arm after practice one day. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

He pulls Mizuki out of the locker room, to the side of the building.

"Kasahara." Mizuki says, watching his face. "What's wrong? We have plenty of good first-years this year..."

Kasahara looks him in the eyes.

"I'm leaving." He says. "Mizuki, I'm leaving Seiseki."

Mizuki feels his heart stop.

"Leaving." He repeats instead of saying the thousands of things he wants to say. "Kasahara, you-"

Kasahara smiles. This doesn't seem an appropriate time for smiling, Mizuki thinks, because he's just been told his best friend of two years is leaving, but Kasahara always smiles at the wrong times- when he's self-deprecating, when he's unhappy, when he's upset, and it makes Mizuki want to communicate his feelings, except he can't. No words are enough to communicate how he feels for Kasahara.

"It's my grandmother." Kasahara confesses, that unbearably sad smile still on his face. "She's not getting better- actually, she's gotten worse-"

Mizuki swallows.

"Kasahara." He croaks, and this has never happened- it's never felt like he has things that he wants to say so bad, things that want so terribly to be free that they claw at his throat in an attempt to find their form as the perfect words and sprout from his mouth, but there's something holding them back- it's Kasahara, of course it's Kasahara, who says things that other people understand.

Kasahara looks away.

"When?" Mizuki manages to get out.

"Two months." Kasahara says, shoulders hunched. "Right after the game with Saku."

Two months.

It sounds like a death sentence.

~~~~~~

He can't tell Kasahara to stay.

He can't stop feeling like he wants Kasahara to stay.

Pointless.

~~~~~~

"Mizuki." Nakazawa calls out to him from his workdesk. "Come here for a second- I have the list of starters for the game with Saku."

He does.

Kasahara's not on it.

~~~~~~

They're going to win, he says.

He's going to win for Kasahara, he thinks.

~~~~~~

They don't win.

act ii: kimishita

"Mizuki!" The captain calls. "Come here for a second."

Mizuki complies, leaving his conversation with Kasahara behind. Kimishita tracks him out of the corner of his eye.

"Oi." Ooshiba comes up behind him, shoves him out of the way. "Move."

Kimishita ignores him in favor of keeping his attention on the conversation between Mizuki and the captain- Ooshiba stares at him for a minute before scoffing and turning away. Kimishita doesn't hear.

"That guy..." He mutters. Mizuki- the second year- an enigma for sure, enough so that Kimishita is incredible intrigued and wary at the same time. "How can someone so dumb be the team's ace already?"

"Talking to yourself already, Kimishita the Idiot?" Ooshiba sneers at him again, only to be rebuffed when Kimishita doesn't reply, just shoves the rest of his non-practice stuff into the locker and turns around to prop his cleat up on a bench, pulling on the laces.

"Mizuki..." He can hear snippets of their conversation. "Forwards... starting..."

Kimishita finds himself unfocused.

~~~~~~

"Oi." Someone- someone unfriendly-sounding- says from behind. "Mizuki-senpai."

Mizuki turns around.

It's Kimishita- the new first-year midfielder, bone-chillingly precise and terrifyingly intelligent, but takes himself too seriously- and Mizuki faces him completely.

"Kimishita?" He replies. "What is it?"

"Am I the starting midfielder for the next match?" He asks bluntly, pointedly, and Mizuki cocks his head.

"Starting?" He repeats. "I don't know."

Kimishita growls.

"I saw you talking to the captain earlier." He mutters. "Senpai."

Mizuki shrugs.

"Captain doesn't tell me anything." He says, turning back to the field. "I don't need to know anything."

Kimishita crosses his arms.

"Don't need to know anything?" He scoffs. "Senpai."

Mizuki shakes his head.

~~~~~~

Recieving Kimishita's passes really is like magic, Mizuki thinks as the ball rolls right between his feet for the umpteenth time, just in time for him to shoot, score, hear the stands roar in front of him- the thrill of a point is quickly encompassed by the hunger for more, as it always is, and he shouts before turning back to the goal. Another, another, another.

~~~~~~

Later that year.

"I'm sorry we lost." Mizuki approaches Kimishita on the abandoned soccer pitch. They're not going to nationals this year, it would seem, and Mizuki knows that the captain is in his dorm in a state in which he does not want to be seen.

Kimishita shakes his head.

"We're going next year." He says firmly, and even though it's been less than a year, the mature tone of his voice makes Mizuki only more determined to see the team through. The feeling of failure floods him again, of Kimishita sending him a perfect pass, as always, and being blocked at the last second, at hearing the silence of his teammates as the cheers from the other team's side of the stands roar around them- it's his fault, isn't it, that someone has prevailed over them. Mizuki feels his resolve.

"Yeah." He replies, affirmative. "We're going next year."

~~~~~~

Next year.

"You're not satisfied with Kimishita's passes, are you."

Mizuki doesn't move- it's Taira, after all, and any movement can be a dead giveaway, but he cocks his head.

"Not really." He says.

~~~~~~

"I heard you!" Kimishita shouts. "I heard you say you weren't satisfied with my passes!"

The whole team stares. Kimishita's voice has taken on an edge of desperation.

"Tell me what you want!" He almost begs. A feeling starts to creep in Mizuki's gut. "Am I not accurate enough? Tell me what's wrong with my passes-"

"I have no idea." Mizuki interrupts.

Kimishita stares at him.

"Is it that strange to never be satisfied?" He continues, remembering what he had told Kasahara in their first year. "I have this voice in my head... that tells me I can do more, run faster, shoot harder-"

Kimishita exhales in disbelief.

~~~~~~

Mizuki finds Kimishita after practice a few days later.

"Kimishita." He begins awkwardly. Seiseki's front gates are abandoned except for both of them- he knows Kimishita is almost always one of the last to leave practice.

Kimishita glances sideways.

"Captain." He says. "What is it?"

"I-" Mizuki pauses. "Did I hurt your feelings?"

Kimishita looks at him, properly this time.

"Eh?" He exclaims, a flush rising to his cheeks. "How did you get that idea?"

Mizuki frowns.

"When I said to Taira that I was not satisfied with your passes." He replies, confused. "You-"

Kimishita's face burns red- why, Mizuki's not really sure, because it had been a simple misunderstanding, hadn't it?

"Nevermind that!" He insists. "Drop it, you idiot."

Mizuki starts to say something, but thinks better of it.

"Alright." He replies instead.

act iii: indou

Mizuki meets Indou Kaoru in his first year.

"Mizuki." Kasahara whispers- they're at the annual district-wide training camp, after their second match. "We have to go, another team is going to need this locker room-"

"My shirt is stuck." Mizuki says, deadpan, tugging helplessly at where his jersey is caught in the edge of a locker. "Kasahara-"

Kasahara sighs and pinches at the edge of where it's caught, but it's too late- while they're fussing over it, the locker room door bursts open.

"I'm telling you, Shuuji." An annoyed voice. "Mango-strawberry is the best flavor combination!"

"You're such an idiot, Kaoru." A petulant voice. "Strawberry tastes terrible."

"Well, I knew you had bad taste." A sniff. "Someone who actually likes grape-flavor..."

The two round the corner into the main locker room and lock eyes with Kasahara and Mizuki, who are crouched over a locker in which the hem of Mizuki's jersey is very, very stuck.

"Uh." Kasahara breaks the awkward silence. "Sorry, we were about to leave-"

The taller one- his shirt is electric pink and his hair is the wildest Mizuki has ever seen, and something about the boy puts him on edge instantly- waves a hand.

"The team won't be in for a few more minutes." He says dismissively, and bowl-cut-boy next to him nods.

"Ah." Kasahara replies awkwardly. "Okay... Mizuki, let's-"

The taller one takes a step forwards.

"Mi-zu-ki?" He enunciates, suddenly seeming much more interested, and there's a serious glint in his eyes that's simultaneously unnerving and fascinating. "Mizuki Hisahito, Seiseki first year?"

Mizuki frowns.

"Do I know you?" He asks shortly.

Fuzz-head shakes his head and chuckles.

"Not yet." He says, drawing even closer, until it's to the point where Kasahara feels uncomfortable. Mizuki doesn't back away from his stare.

Tall boy extends a hand.

"Indou Kaoru." He says, a grin creeping up his face. "Saku High first year."

Mizuki takes the hand and shakes shortly, dropping it as soon as possible.

"Seiseki's freak, huh." Indou tilts his head, considering, eyes never leaving Mizuki's face, a disturbing change from when he and his baby-faced friend had come into the locker room, arguing over the merits of different flavorings.

"Sorry?" Kasahara interrupts for the first time, a frown creasing his brow. "What did you-"

"That's not the right word..." Indou glances down, as though considering something, before looking back up. "Monster. I've heard rumors about you, the first-year monster."

"We'll be out of your way." Mizuki replies, glancing back down to where his shirt is still caught in the metal- one final pull by Kasahara dislodges it, and he brushes down his jersey with the same hands that he's just shaken Indou's with.

"I feel like we're going to be interesting, Mizuki." Mizuki's eyes narrow at the dropped honorific, but he doesn't say a word, and lets Kasahara pull him out of the locker room by the wrist.

~~~~~~

Later that year, Mizuki learns that the boy is Indou Kaoru, midfielder prodigy of Saku High, and that he and Narukami Shuuji are a midfielder-forward duo of superhuman proportions. Rumors circulate about them- those two are going far, those two are childhood friends, those two are only first years and they can do this much already- it stokes the fire in Mizuki's gut, and he runs twice as many laps as usual.

~~~~~~

Second year.

He's improved.

His first thought upon seeing Indou again.

He barely remembers their first encounter, and Seiseki hasn't had a match with Saku since then, but he has the sense that the other boy and his partner have undergone extreme, ferocious improvement. It makes him both wary and excited, and pushes him to train just a little harder- not exactly a rival, but someone he watches out of the corner of his eye.

"Oi!" A voice. "Mizuki!"

Mizuki turns around.

A familiarly hot pink shirt.

"Mizuki!" Indou jogs up to him, a grin on his face. Mizuki keeps his mouth tight, his eyes staunch. "Don't tell me you forgot about me already!"

"Indou." He says by way of greeting.

Indou smiles at him.

"We're finally facing each other, huh." His teeth glint, and Mizuki is reminded vaguely of a wolf. "I've been waiting for this, you know. Seiseki's monster."

Mizuki frowns.

"Were you the one who started that?" He asks, referring to that absurd nickname- the monster of Seiseki.

Indou shakes his head. His ridiculous hair falls with the movement.

"That sprung up on its own." He shrugs. "I just happen to have a good eye for potential."

Mizuki narrows his eyes.

"Alright." He says. "If you'll excuse me."

It's not a question. Mizuki turns away, heading towards his teammates on the other side of the pitch, and ignore's Indou's voice calling out after him.

~~~~~~

End of third year.

"Mizuki."

It's Indou. Mizuki knows without looking up, but he does anyways.

"Indou." He replies.

Indou frowns at him.

"We've been rivals all these years," he says, "and you can't even call me by my first name? Hisahito."

"I would rather not." Mizuki turns away. "If there's nothing more-"

Indou grabs him by the arm.

Mizuki pauses.

"I'll-" Indou pauses, a crack finally showing in that unnervingly cheerful demeanor, an uncertain twitch flickering across his face. "I'll see you on the pro pitch."

Mizuki shrugs his hand off.

"Perhaps." He replies, and strides away, not looking back.

#days #mizuki hisahito #kasahara junpei #kimishita atsushi #indou kaoru #mine #kasamizu #ish... i thnk thats the strongest one nsdhflsdkf #my writing #i keep forgetting! to crosspost this!!

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goldenworldsabound · 7 years ago

Text

Chapter 1 - A Dangerous Man

Aaaaah here’s the start of my fic with Akabayashi >///< I’m shipping super hard with him right now...

Akabayashi was taking a little walk in Ikebukuro. It was a bit late in the evening, the sun having set not that long ago. He overheard a scuffle, and peered down the street to see what was going on.

His eye narrowed as he spotted two thugs cornering a young woman. As he took a closer look, walking towards them, he felt his heart stop for a moment as he got a closer look at the woman.

It was only the second time he’d ever thought of a woman as beautiful. Her face was soft and round, and the way her hair fell in chocolate brown waves was captivating.

He pushed those thoughts aside for the moment as he came within visible distance of the thugs.

“Give us your money, bitch!” One of the thugs yelled, making a grab for her bag, which she clutched to her chest and barely dodged.

“Oi oi, didn’t your mother teach you it’s not nice to steal?” Akabayashi said, grinning crookedly, leaning on his cane.

The woman turned to him, wide-eyed, still looking terrified. There were tears in the corner of her eyes, and he was glad he was in a position to save her. That look was crushing him already.

“And didn’t yours teach you to butt out of other peoples’ business, old man?! Scram or you’ll be next!”

Akabayashi chuckled. “Actually, I think you’ll wanna deal with me first.” He swung out his cane suddenly, knocking the first thug’s feet out from under him. He landed hard on his back.

The other thug ran at Akabayashi, aiming a punch at him, but Akabayashi neatly sidestepped and grabbed the thug’s arm, twisting it behind the boy’s back in a painful way. He pushed the boy to the ground, putting his foot on the boy’s head and putting just enough pressure to force his face into the asphalt.

The first thug got up and ran at Akabayashi, but without moving his legs or turning around, Akabayashi nailed him in the throat with the cane. He looked over his shoulder at the boy, grinning wickedly.

“Have you learned your lesson, or do we need another class?” He asked, laughing a little as he lifted his foot off the downed thug’s head. The two boy’s stood up fearfully and bolted, realizing they were clearly outmatched.

“Guess they got the message then.” Akabayashi turned to the woman, face softening a bit, even as his lopsided grin remained. “Are you okay, Miss...?” He asked, tilting his head a bit.

“O-oh! Um! My name is Wendy. Uh, thank you for saving me…” She bowed a bit, clearly still flustered by the experience. Akabayashi thought it was rather cute.

“Don’t worry about it, Wendy-chan. I couldn’t help it when I saw your predicament.” He laughed a little. “To be honest, I’m surprised you didn’t run away during all that…” He was glad she hadn’t, of course, but it was a more typical reaction.

“A-ah...that’s...reasonable...I guess I just kind of froze up…” She stared at her feet. Was she blushing a bit? That was too cute…

“Well well, it’s okay either way.” He assured her. “Do you live around here? I’d be happy to walk you home.”

“Oh! I, I couldn’t impose on you like that...I don’t even know your name…” She definitely seemed embarrassed.

Akabayashi chuckled. “Akabayashi Mizuki, at your service. And I assure you, it’s no trouble at all.”

“If you’re sure, I...I really can’t turn down that offer.” She replied, smiling a little bit. His heart melted a little.

“Lead the way.”

The last time Akabayashi had been in this situation, the first time he’d met a woman he thought was beautiful, he’d had no trouble coming out and saying so immediately. Even after swords had sprouted from her limbs and she’d slashed his eye.

But this time he was older, more experienced, and very aware that Wendy was younger than him. Especially in a situation like this, where she was probably feeling vulnerable, he didn’t want to make her uncomfortable by confessing like that. It’s not like it had worked out last time, anyway.

Wendy didn’t know exactly what to make of the man walking her home. On the one hand, he’d rescued her from those thugs, and his lopsided grin was cute, and his voice was also very nice, and he seemed kind so far. On the other hand, the way he fought was clearly very practiced, and he hadn’t hesitated at all. And that scar running down his eye was a bit...scary. He gave off a certain aura, she felt...like he was potentially dangerous.

She felt like she should make small talk, either way. He was handsome and seemed polite, after all, and it would be better than staying silent. And despite trying to ignore it, she was quite taken in by his good looks.

“Akabayashi-san, what do you do for work?” With a suit like that, she thought, he must do something on the higher end.

“Oh, just the odd jobs here and there.” He replied, waving her off. “How about you, Wendy-chan?”

Wendy noticed the way he avoided the question, but decided not to push it. What if he was some kind of...assassin or mobster or something? Scary! She’d rather not know, at the moment, she thought.

“I’m a software developer, over at [company name]. I only moved here to Tokyo last week, actually…” She looked sheepish. “And already I almost got mugged…”

“Ikebukuro can be a bit dangerous at night. You shouldn’t wander around if you can avoid it.” He looked serious for a moment.

“I see...I’ll keep that in mind from now on...I was also thinking about trying to find somewhere to take self-defense lessons, too…” She mumbled the last bit, somehow feeling embarrassed about it.

“I know a great dojo, actually. You’ll be in fighting shape in no time.” He winked as his grin returned.

“Oh, really?! That sounds wonderful! Where is it?”

“It’s called Rakuei Gym, and it’s over by…” Akabayashi gave her the information she needed happily.

Around the time he was finished they arrived at her apartment. As Wendy unlocked the door and stepped inside, she turned back to Akabayashi.

“Um, do you...want to come inside?” She asked, not really sure if that was appropriate. “I can make you some tea, or something. For helping me, it’s the least I could do.”

Akabayashi laughed and lightly tapped his cane on the ground a few times. “Wendy-chan, didn’t we just say you needed to be more careful? Inviting a stranger you just met isn’t the wisest idea. You really don’t know much about me.”

“Ah! Ah...that’s...that’s true I suppose…” She blushed at being called out like that. “I suspect if you’d say something like that you’re not a bad man, though…” She eyed her feet as she said that. Was she really trying to convince a stranger to come into her apartment right now? For what reason, exactly?

“I hope it’s not too forward of me to say this, Wendy-chan, but...you’re very cute.” He smiled.

Wendy put a hand over her mouth suddenly, blushing further. “Oh, um, ah, uh, thank, thank you, um…” She stuttered out looking off the side, unable to meet his gaze while she was this flustered.

Akabayashi put a hand on the doorway. “I can see you’re a bit flustered now, but...I’d like to see you again, if you wouldn’t mind. I’ll give you my number and you can decide, okay? No hard feelings if you don’t wanna see an old geezer like me again.” He chuckled a bit.

“Ah, um, that...I would like that.” She nodded, holding out her phone for him to put his number in, which he did. She found herself smiling, her heart pounding like it would burst out of her chest at any given moment. “I’l...I’ll call you.” She said softly as she took her phone back, holding it gently in her hands.

“Well then, I look forward to it. Have a good night, Wendy-chan.” He waved behind him as he left.

Wendy watched him for a moment before he disappeared out of sight, then closed the door. She stumbled to the couch where she flopped down, feeling almost dizzy with exhilaration from the day’s events.

Once she’d recovered, she stared at his number in her phone. He had been...straightforward. Very straightforward. They’d only just met! But in some respects, that made things a lot easier...and it was a bit hot, too, she admitted to herself, blushing and squealing a bit.

Calm down. You only just met him, and he’s definitely a lot older than you...you’re still running off the adrenaline from the almost mugging!

It took some time before she could calm down and go to sleep that night.

---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ----

During her lunch break at work she excused herself and tentatively dialed Akabayashi’s number after some contemplation. She held the phone to her ear nervously, trying to control her breathing as her heart raced.

“Hello?” As his voice came through the ear piece she felt herself smile and held back a squeak.

“Um, hi Akabayashi-san, it’s Wendy, from yesterday…” She fidgeted with some strands of hair with her free hand.

“Hello, Wendy-chan. It’s good to hear from you. I didn’t expect it to be so soon!” He chuckled and she felt herself blush a little bit.

“W-well, I figured if, you know, if you could be...so straightforward then, then I should...you know…” She stammered her way through the sentence, trailing off at the end.

“I’m happy to hear it.” He sounded genuine and Wendy felt herself perk up at the tone. “Would you like to get dinner? Oh, or did you have something else in mind, Wendy-chan?” His voice sounded like his lopsided grin looked, somehow.

“Ah, dinner would be fine! Um, how’s tomorrow tonight?” That was a Friday, so she didn’t need to worry about getting to bed at a reasonable hour, in case he was particularly chatty. Which she would be fine with,

“Wonderful. I know a great restaurant, if you’d like…”

With plans solidified they said their goodbyes.

---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ----

After work, Wendy went to the dojo. She was pleased to be able to start that day, and pleased to seem to make friends with a small, purple-haired girl named Akane.

“Did you like it here? Are you going to come back?” Akane asked excitedly as they left dojo.

“Yeah, I think I will.” Wendy replied, smiling.

“Yay! I have to go now, Wendy-senpai. I’ll see you next time!” Akane waved and started to walk towards a car that was waiting for her. As Wendy followed the girl with her eyes, she started as she noticed who was leaning against the car.

Akabayashi grinned wide as he saw her, and waved. Akane followed his gaze back to Wendy.

“Akabayashi-sa~n! Do you know Wendy-senpai?” She asked, smiling happily.

“A-ah, we’ve only met a little, Akane-chan.” Wendy replied, before Akabayashi could respond. She didn’t know what he was going to say but she thought there was a good chance it would fluster her.

“That’s right, but I suspect we’ll be seeing more of each other.” He replied, as if it was a perfectly reasonable thing to say as he grinned at her.

“I’m going to see Wendy-senpai more too!” Akane yelled, laughing a little.

“That’s right, Akane-chan, now that she’s training with you.” He stopped leaning on the car. “Well, we should get going. Nice seeing you here, Wendy-chan.” His grin was more of a smirk as he climbed into the back of the car.

“Yeah, nice...nice seeing you…” Wendy waved as the car pulled away. She stood there for a moment.

WHAT?!

Shaking herself out of it, she started walking to the subway, but she could feel herself sweating.

Is that his kid??? No, she called him by name, which she probably wouldn’t do if that were her dad...so then what was he doing with her? And that was a nice car, and it was chauffeured? Who is this guy???

She blushed as she realized he’d set it up so he’d see her again. She’d even mentioned that she was going to check it out today on their earlier phone call and he hadn’t said a word. What a devilish expression he’d worn as he’d said it was nice to see her, as if he hadn’t known that would happen...tch!

She laughed a little to herself. She’d been played well in a harmless little joke. And if a kid liked him that much, he probably wasn’t a bad guy, right?

Well, hopefully she’d know tomorrow.

---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ---- ----

Seated at the restaurant, a nicer teriyaki joint, Wendy took a look at the menu, figuring Akabayashi would do the same. When she glanced up she saw that he was simply looking at her, and he grinned when she noticed.

“I’ve been here a number of times, so I don’t usually need to look over the menu.” He offered up as an explanation. “You, on the other hand, I’ve only seen twice before now, you see...and that dress you have on I’ve never seen before...so it’s more interesting to look at you. It looks lovely as well…”

Wendy was tempted to hide her face behind the menu, but resisted, feeling a light blush on her cheeks. “Um, thank you, Akabayashi-san…”

“Please, feel free to call me Mizuki.” He corrected her. “I don’t want this to be a formal relation, you know.”

“O-oh, um, sure, Mizuki-san.” She felt a bit shy about it somehow.

He chuckled. “You’re very cute when you’re shy like this, Wendy-chan. But it does make it hard to get to know you.”

“Y-you know, it, it’s just, I mean, when you, you call it out like that, you know!” She sputtered out a string of words that almost formed a coherent sentence. She cleared her throat and tried again. “Calling me out like that just makes me even more shy, you know…” She blushed at the admittance.

“I know.” He replied with a grin. “But like I said, it’s also cute.”

“Well, that is…” As she searched for words, the waitress arrived to take their order.

Once that was done, Wendy had had a chance to compose herself, so she asked Akabayashi a question before he could ruin her carefully constructed composure.

“You said I didn’t know you very well, so I was hoping that I could get to know you well enough that it wouldn’t be odd to invite you in for tea.” She said quickly. “So, um, I’d like to hear more about you…”

“Aha, well, I’m not sure that will make you want to invite me inside for tea, to be honest with you.” He lazily swirled the tea in his cup. “I’d rather talk about you, you know.”

“Well, I feel that it’s only natural to be more interested in hearing about the other person, but right now I think you’ve heard a lot more about me than the other way around, you know?” She smiled. “You’re so mysterious right now.”

“And isn’t there something alluring about that?” He replied back. He felt himself getting ready to give in as she smiled at him.

“Of course there is, but you can never feel close to a man as long as he’s a mystery. And someone said they didn’t want this to be a formal relation, Mizuki-san.”

He chuckled. “Looks like you got me. My hands are tied now.” He held raised them up a little as if surrendering. “What do you want to know then, Wendy-chan?”

She paused for a moment. “Um, are you like, Akane-chan’s...guardian, or something?” She asked. That seemed like an easy question to start with.

“Ah, not exactly like that. Not her legal guardian or anything. She’s the granddaughter of my boss, is the simplest way to put it.”

“I see...and what is it you do again?” She put on an innocent tone.

He grinned at her. “I’ll tell you that once you invite me inside for tea.”

“I did invite you inside for tea - you’re the one who said I shouldn’t have and declined.”

“Nothing gets by you.” Akabayashi teased. “I’m just not sure it’s good to bring up so early in our date...what if you decide to run out on me?” It came off as a joke, and with his sly lopsided grin it didn’t even seem like he was particularly serious, but it gave Wendy pause.

“Now I’m just more curious...but fine, you can tell me after dinner when I invite you in for tea.” Wendy said, surprising even herself as she defiantly said the last bit.

“You’re already so confident you’ll be inviting me over after our date, huh? My my, you young people move so fast these days…” He teased, implying something different than she had intended.

She blushed red instantly at the implication. “TH-THATS! That’s not what I meant! Just, just for tea!” She pouted at being teased like that.

He laughed. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, you’re just so easy to tease…it’s too cute to resist...”

As she sputtered trying to come up with a suitable reply despite her blush deepening, she was saved by the arrival of the food.

Once she’d recovered herself a bit and eaten a little, she thought up another difficult question to ask, and she was curious how he’d dodge this one. Or she’d get an answer, which would be equally interesting.

“Mizuki-san, you’re clearly a skilled fighter...why’s that?” She asked, carefully keeping her tone innocent, smiling a little. “You took out those thugs with almost no effort, after all.”

By the way he chuckled she thought he might realize that she was, in her own way, teasing him by asking questions she figured he didn’t want to answer.

“Well well, I was a bit of a ruffian in my younger days, you could say. All I wanted was to be the strongest. Built up quite a reputation with that. I lived for fighting.” He seemed amused with his past self as he spoke.

Wendy was surprised to hear an honest answer from him so readily. He’d been vague or dodged almost every other question. His answer, of course was...well, she certainly wouldn’t have liked his younger self, she supposed, if he was as bloodthirsty as he claimed now.

“What changed?” She asked, honestly curious.

Akabayashi paused for a moment. He looked a bit sad, but his smile but didn’t falter. “I met someone. And the gang I was with at the time ended up being the reason she died. It’s not like we were even together in any meaningful way.”

“I, I’m sorry-”

“Well, the past is the past, and there isn’t much we can do about it, except move forward. Take care of the people who are still here.” He smiled sincerely, not acknowledging that he cut off her apology. Perhaps he just preferred not to acknowledge it at all.

Wendy felt a bit bad, having brought up what were clearly bad memories. And he didn’t want her apology, for whatever reason, she thought, so she dropped it. Before she could bring up another topic, he shifted the conversation to more casual topics, like current movies and other pop culture topics.

#wendyashi #fic #chapter 1 #Red Devil's Honey

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thefinalcinderella · 7 years ago

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DIVE!! Book 1 Chapter 1-DIVE TO BLUE

Here’s Chapter 1! Not sure if I should split these chapters up, since they’re quite long, but I’m not sure how to split them, so if you want me to split them up, then leave a comment!

Full list of translations here.

Previously on DIVE!!: A woman secretly watches a teenage boy dive into the ocean in winter.

The platform overlooked the restless blue. Whenever Tomoki stood at the tip of the concrete that jutted out from the diving platform, he was always hit by a deep sense of regret. Darn it, he thought. How could I be so careless that I just keep coming back here again and again?

A flight from a height of ten meters.

A dive at sixty kilometers per hour.

A mere 1.4 seconds of an aerial performance.

It really is quite ridiculous to somersault, twist the body, and get into a water entry position in such a short instance, all the while enduring that speed from that height.

Tomoki caught a glimpse of his feet, with his heels at the front of the platform and his cramped, rounded toes in the air. Don’t look down. Don’t think about it. If you hesitate, your feet won’t budge after that no matter what. Even though he knew this, Tomoki was still occasionally possessed by the “hesitation sickness”.

The diving pool shimmered from the setting sun shining through the window.

The transparent undulations of the water were like countless whorls of hair, entangled together.

A mysterious, elusive world of water awaited Tomoki far, far below.

When people learned that he was a diver, everyone always asked, “Aren’t you afraid?”. However, most people were thinking about the height of the diving platform, not the actual horrors hiding beneath it.

Water. That eerie liquid that never stayed still for even a moment. If you plunge into it at sixty kilometers per hour, the resistance created would be more similar to that of thin ice than water. If he succeeded in entering the water, Tomoki would feel the pleasurable sensation of diving into thin ice. Water always greeted a successful person warmly, so its welcome would feel like being wrapped in a soft gel.

But what if he failed? The water would then strike at his body without mercy. The impact will far greater than what someone watching would imagine it to be. Violent and dizzying blows to the consciousness, accompanied by nauseating pain, and it only gets worse when the whole body is paralyzed and sinks to the bottom of the water. Tomoki had actually fainted and almost drowned several times during practice, and had to be saved by his coach and teammates.

“Hey, Tomo, what are you looking at! Are there fish in the pool?” Coach Fujitani’s voice flew up from the poolside.

I must not look. Tomoki quickly glanced away from the water. He slowly turned his head back to look at Reiji and Ryou, who were waiting their turn on the diving platform’s staircase.

He resigned himself and faced the water, taking a deep breath. If he had been alone here, he would have turned back to the staircase dejectedly with the excuse that he was in terrible form today. But doing that in front of his teammates would be way too uncool, and most importantly, Coach Fujitani would never forgive him.

Tomoki stopped looking down and stared straight ahead instead. Focus on your lower body, concentrate harder, and plan out everything you do from now on with your head.

The forward reverse 1½ somersault in tuck position.

The success rate of the move isn’t bad. It’ll be all right. It’ll go okay for sure. While talking to himself, he spread both of his hands, as he bent his knees rhythmically to apply momentum, and jumped high—

Tomoki’s body was stationary at a certain point as he flew in midair, tracing a small circle backwards as he plunged down. In the next moment, when his fingertips that were joined together at the top of his head touched the water, Tomoki’s body was slightly angled as he submerged into it, causing a huge splash to go up.

The angle of entry was too shallow. His palm, which struck the water in a strange way, became numb. Nevertheless, in the water that bubbled up from his dive, as usual, Tomoki felt that indescribably comfortable feeling,

The sense of accomplishment from overcoming his fear, and the feeling of being relieved from tension.

And, the exhilaration of being in the water, not knowing whether it was friend or foe.

As he got out of the pool, he received some directions from Coach Fujitani for his performance just now.

“Your takeoff (1) is too half-hearted.”

“You’re straining your shoulder.”

“Your performance ends when your toes enter the water. Don’t lose focus until it’s all over.”

After nodding towards (2) each direction, Tomoki unsteadily walked toward the platform again. He could only see white, his skin still felt the sensation of being in water, and his feet felt light as he ascended the platform’s stairs, feeling a bit tired and strangely euphoric.

Maybe, just for a moment.

Something seized in those 1.4 seconds.

For the sake of making that pleasure his own, and more certain.

As if Tomoki was chasing some sort of rare animal, he set his sights on the platform, far above.

And indeed, as he set both feet on the edge once more…damn it, how did I so carelessly come to this place again…he was once again hit by an incorrigibly deep sense of regret.

“Tomo, you were frozen up there earlier.”

“He didn’t dive all that easily either. I was watching from behind and he looked pretty scared.”

During their break, as soon as they jumped into the Jacuzzi bath to warm themselves up, Reiji and Ryou both burst out talking as if they had beenwaiting for this moment.

“Sorry…I was stuck in a weird state of mind. It happens sometimes, and I’m not sure why I can’t dive.” Tomoki said.

Reiji nodded vigorously.

“Don’t worry, I get it. Something like ‘Even though I was able to dive yesterday and today, I might not be able to dive tomorrow’, right?”

“I just kept thinking about what will happen if I make a mistake in that situation. It doesn’t seem to be very good to imagine on the platform.”

“Imagination is the enemy!” Ryou said in a strange tone of voice.

“What, were you trying to copy Coach Nakanishi?”

“Yeah, he says that all the time. He says that when you’re on the platform, you should throw your imagination away, and become a rubber ball that can only bounce.”

“But Coach Fujitani doesn’t agree with that. He says to pretend you’re a bird, and then to immediately pretend you’re a fish. The most important thing is your mind’s performance, or something like that.”

“So, those two don’t agree with each other. Maybe that’s why Coach Nakanishi quit…” Tomoki’s voice sank.

“Coach Nakanishi didn’t quit because of his relationship with Coach Fujitani. It’s because our club’s going under soon, so he’s just moving to a more secure place.” Reiji replied, his voice sinking as well.

A silence dwelled between the three of them. Even though this topic depressed them every time they talked about it, they always ended up coming back to it, despite whatever they were talking about before.

“It really is just that. Out there, there’s clubs that have more famous, stronger divers, and have monthly salaries that are better than ours…”

“That’s not it…” Tomoki interrupted Ryou. “Coach Nakanishi didn’t transfer just for money, or fame.”

“Is that right?”

“Yeah!”

“Okay, okay. We’ll leave it like that then.”

Hearing Ryou’s humouring tone, Tomoki was embarrassed at how childish he sounded, but he still didn’t want to hear about how Coach Nakanishi transferred from the club for money.

Tomoki, Reiji, and Ryou. The three of them were enrolled in the Mizuki Diving Club (MDC), which was directly managed by the major sports manufacturer Mizuki. There were rumors that the club was in deficit management and that its survival was in danger. Its divers included twenty-six elementary school students, seven middle school students, and one high school student. Twenty-six to seven to one. This ratio spoke to everybody about how difficult it is to continue diving as it is.

Diving was that kind of sport. It’s scary, painful, cold, and filled with constant suffering. Most people couldn’t put up with it and ended up quitting. Because of that, a good diver was hard to train, the competitions weren’t very lively, and it only got modest coverage on TV and in the newspapers, always overshadowed by the showier swimming races.

Of course, the reason for the downturn wasn’t just limited to the divers. There was a chronic shortage of coaches in the Japanese diving world. Even if a child with the physical aptitude and determination appeared, there weren’t many institutions that could nurture that talent in the current Japan.

That’s why six years ago the president of Mizuki made the bold first step to overcome this situation by establishing the MDC. The president being a former diver, he was especially enthusiastic about the development of the Japanese diving world, and set out to nurture the diver who would be responsible for the future of the diving world, at the risk of a large deficit. It was a wonderful aspiration.

However, he died. His hepatitis worsened, and the curtain was closed on his life in mid-January of this year.

Since then, the MDC that was left behind became a mere nuisance to Mizuki, and it shifted to become a more general swimming club. But there were constant rumors that it was going to be closed, and recently, those mere rumors seemed to be supported when one of the three coaches got poached by a Kansai diving club. Tomoki was doubly shocked when he learned that he’d been abandoned by his trusted coach, and that the MDC had been cornered to that extent.

“I also believe in Coach Nakanishi. It can’t be helped when your livelihood is on the line. It is a recession, after all.” Reiji said, like he was trying to wave away the humidity in the bathroom. “Besides, if the MDC survives without shutting down, Coach Nakanishi might come back.”

Tomoki was saved by that voice, but Ryou responded with an “Is that so”.

“I don’t think we’ll survive. But I know where Reiji’s confidence is coming from.”

“Youichi-kun.”

“Youichi-kun?”

“Our club has Youichi-kun. If he continues to be active in our club and help improve Mizuki’s image, won’t the executives regret it when they shut us down? That was what he was saying.”

“He said it himself?”

“From himself.”

“…Youichi-kun saying such a thing is so amazing.”

The three gave a big sigh at the same time as they relaxed.

“Well, it’s true that Youichi-kun is a huge asset to have, the problem is whether we can wait until then.”

When they returned to the pool while listening to Ryou’s cooled voice, Youichi had just climbed up the steps of the diving platform.

The twenty-five square-meter diving pool was filled to the brim with water. The Eidai-affiliated (3) Sakuragi High School Diving Club had appeared out of nowhere around the pool. Even at the one-meter springboard backing the window that reflected Akebono Bay, there was some university club already beginning water entry practice.

In the winter, when the outdoor pools couldn’t be used, all the divers scattered around Tokyo gathered around Akebono Bay like this—whether they want to or not. This was because the Tokyo Tatsumi International Swimming Center was the only facility in Tokyo that had an indoor diving pool.

“Fujitani-kun, for this one, try diving from the seven-meter (4) this time.” The advisor of the Sakuragi High School Diving Club, Coach Abe, called up to Youichi, who was on the ten-meter platform, from the poolside.

“Ok.”

Youichi nodded and went down to the 7.5-meter platform.

That was Youichi: MDC’s ace, Coach Fujitani’s son, and also a first-year student at Sakuragi High School. Just as divers in the Tokyo suburbs flocked to Akebono Bay, many high school students who intended to dive were enrolled at Sakuragi High. It was the only high school to have their own diving pool right on the premises.

Even if the MDC closed down, Youichi-kun would be fine because he could still dive at Sakuragi High.

Pushing those jealous thoughts out of his head, Tomoki looked up at Youichi on the platform.

Top divers attracted people from the moment they stood on the platform. You could understand the meaning of that phrase when you watch Youichi. His toned body. His stock-still posture. His sharp gaze. You wanted to find out how he was going to perform, and how much was he imposing on himself. Just the height of his will stood upright and was transmitted acutely. (?) Finally, Youichi’s knees stretched like springs, launching his body high into the air.

A backwards 2½ somersault in pike position.

How does he dive like that? Tomoki’s thoughts, as always, succumbed to both excitement and despair. How does he pull off a move like that so perfectly, and make it look so easy?

Youichi’s dive was beautiful. There was not a single disruption along the line of his body as he flew in the air. He boasted a track record of being the middle school champion for three consecutive years, and now, even though he’s just a first-year in high school, he was already looked at as the most promising athlete at Inter-High, and whenever Tomoki watched his polished performances, the words “talent”, “pedigree” and “DNA” came into his mind.

He was a thoroughbred; Coach Fujitani was a former Olympic diver, and his mother was considered the Madonna of the diving world.

“My dad used to be a gymnast, but the highest level he got to was prefectural meets in high school. He’s a hack compared to Youichi-kun.” Ryou said next to him, probably thinking something similar.

“My parents used to brag that they were really athletic when they were younger, but the Fujitani family is on a completely different level from them.” Reiji chimed in from the other side.

“Both of my folks aren’t athletic, but they’re always asking me to do a lot.” Sachiya’s voice came from the other side.

“Sacchin?” Tomoki and the others all turned toward the owner of the voice at the same time.

“Hey, you. When did you get here?”

“A while ago.”

“Where?”

“Where I’m always at.”

“From the Moms’ Synchro class?”

Sachiya dropped his eyebrows and responded with a “Yeah” to the three’s stunned expressions.

“Today, another mom joined. She was completely new to this, so she was always a beat off from everyone else. Her breathing was still not good. It seemed like she was going to hold everyone else back a lot if this continued, and I’m worried that there will be fighting with the leader mom with the hook nose from now on.”

Sachiya was talking and smiling happily. He was a sixth-grader, one year younger than Tomoki and the others. Although he was in the MDC, he hated diving. Even the three-meter platform was too scary for him, and whenever he had a chance he’d always sneak away to watch the relationship dramas of the synchronized swimming class being conducted in the next subpool over.

“If you don’t get rid of that hobby of yours soon, you’ll be found out by the coach.”

Sachiya completely ignored Ryou’s advice.

“I found out something about Coach Fujitani.”

“Eh. What about him?”

“With that angry face, you’ll be able see it better if you’re on the ten-meter platform. Didn’t you see it?”

“I didn’t see it.”

“Me neither.”

“I didn’t see it, but…”

While saying that, the trio’s feet turned to face the ten-meter platform despite themselves.

Sachiya then recalled something, and said, “That’s right.”

“So, I got a message from Coach Fujitani. He had urgent business so he had to go back home. He said if you still want to practice, you can follow Coach Ooshima’s instructions for the time being.”

“Urgent business? I wonder what it is that made Coach Fujitani leave in the middle of practice.”

“Don’t know, but I saw him with a pretty lady.”

“Pretty lady?” The three of them looked all around, but saw no sign of a pretty lady.

“Coach Fujitani’s on a date with her.”

“A lady more important than us?”

“Hey, are you still on that?”

This scandal involving someone so familiar to them quickly overshadowed Youichi’s wonderful performance and the MDC’s crisis.

All four of them ran to the locker room, while looking around uneasily.

“There.”

They changed their clothes quickly while drying their wet hair. When the four of them got out of the locker room, Coach Fujitani was still in the lobby, in front of the reception desk. Sure enough, he was with a young woman. But it wasn’t just the two of them.

Next to Coach Fujitani—who was, as usual, wearing plain clothes and looked nothing like a former Olympic athlete—there was a middle-aged man dressed in a suit who looked very out of place at a public pool.

“Hey, maybe it’s a love triangle.”

“A complicated love-hate relationship?”

As they spied on them from the shadow of a pillar, Sachiya, who was behind them, made an “ah” sound as if he realized something.

“That guy, he works for Mizuki. He visited here before. He seemed to get bored of diving quickly, so he watched the Moms’ Synchro class with me,”

“What a terrible employee.”

Hearing that, the woman who stood talking to Coach Fujitani turned around.

From between long, loose, wavy hair, a pair of cat-like eyes glared at Tomoki. Those eyes look like they’d glow in the dark, Tomoki thought suddenly. Beautifully curved eyebrows. A straight nose. Thin lips. While every feature was well-balanced, it was only those bright eyes that threw everything off by standing out.

She must be in her mid-twenties. She was dressed in a gray pantsuit that was somewhat lustrous, and despite not being very tall, she was strangely intimidating. Tomoki couldn’t look away from her.

It was like he was being sized up. He couldn’t stop feeling on edge, and his throat went dry.

Indeed, she had been appraising him.

“Hey, what are you kids doing there?”

Coach Fujitani followed the woman’s gaze and noticed Tomoki and the others. He scowled at them, and the four of them dejectedly walked forward. “Are they your students?” asked the man in the suit, but he didn’t seem very interested.

“Ah, yes, they are, even though they are already in middle school they still act like little kids…”

“It appears that you don’t have much students above middle school, as usual.”

“No, no, I really do still have some, but when they become third years in middle school they’d have to take exams soon, so it really can’t be helped that they don’t show up sometimes. And it also can’t be helped for the girls, since if their friends weren’t coming then they won’t come either…”

Seeing Coach Fujitani smiling at and buttering up the man in the suit made Tomoki uncomfortable. He knew that if that guy was in a swimsuit instead of that stuffy suit, then Coach Fujitani would be way cooler than him. It really was annoying that most things in the world happened outside of the pool.

“After all, the parents don’t understand. No matter how much we concentrate our efforts, if the parents don’t cooperate, then this is exactly how it turns out…”

No one was listening to Coach Fujitani continuing his explanation. Sachiya, who was next to him, piped up innocently with a “Hey, hey, who’s that lady?”

“Hey, who are you pointing at? This is…” Coach Fujitani was about to introduce her, but she cut him off to do it herself.

“I’m Asaki Kayoko. I saw you all dive from the poolside earlier.”

Her cat-like eyes pierced through them, and even Reiji and Ryou, who were on both sides of Tomoki, turned to face him. It was very obvious that Kayoko was only looking at Tomoki.

“You, what’s your name?” Though her voice was low, it was a distinctive sound that resonated well.

Tomoki felt agitated, and answered nervously.

“Sakai Tomoki.”

“How long have you dived for?”

“Five years…and, a bit more.”

“What are the heights of your parents?”

“Eh?”

“How tall are your father and mother?”

“…Dad’s a hundred and sixty-eight centimeters. Mom’s about a hundred and fifty.”

“What kind of sports do both of them do?”

“Um, Dad plays baseball, soccer, ice hockey, water polo and judo. Mom did ballet until she hurt her ankle…”

“So, your body must be quite flexible? Say, have you ever been told you were double-jointed?”

“Double-jointed?”

“Something you’re born with. If someone’s double-jointed that means they are more flexible than most people. You must be. Also, your limbs are long, your shoulders are wider than your waist, and you have a small build. And what’s more…”

“Eh?”

“Oh well, it’s fine. I got it, somehow.”

After finishing her barrage of questions, Kayoko seemed to comprehend something on her own, and put on the coat that she carried on her arm. On the prompting of Coach Fujitani and the man in the suit, they walked briskly towards the exit.

“Hey.”

Tomoki suddenly called out to their backs.

“You, did you come here to destroy our club?”

It was the first time he ever addressed an older woman with “anta”(5). Even he was surprised he used it.

However, when Coach Fujitani was about to scold Tomoki for being rude, Kayoko held him back and replied to him calmly.

“I didn’t come here to destroy it. I came to protect it.”

Beneath the cloud-covered sky, the lights in the windows of the lined-up buildings seemed to make up artificial constellations, glowing from a distance and nearby. Whenever a car crossed the bridge, the fake constellations blurred in the river, becoming a second night sky.

The road after rush hour was smooth, and Ryou’s mom, who was driving the car that Tomoki and Ryou were riding in, was also in a good mood.

“It seems we’ll be able to arrive earlier. That really helped.” She murmured to no one in particular.

It looked like the reason for her good mood was because the practice ended earlier than usual today.

It was a one hour drive from Tatsumi to Setagaya. Since Tomoki and Ryou lived in the same ward, their mothers took turns picking them up and dropping them off. The Tatsumi Swimming Center was open to the public for about four days a week, so although they took turns, Tomoki thought that it must be difficult to take out the car each time. However, he didn’t think he’d have the energy to take the train to Tatsumi after school, practice for two hours, and then go home. Even on the days Tatsumi’s pool couldn’t be used, Tomoki was still assigned dryland training for basic physical strength building. Although he skipped it sometimes, if he did it properly, he’d never have to go there on holidays. Although, Coach Fujitani had said that diving was a sport that required a great amount of dedication.

Ryou was also tired, and he sat next to Tomoki quietly with his eyes shut. Ryou, who usually talked as loudly as possible, was silent only for tonight. Before Tomoki had entered the car, Ryou had said, “Isn’t it great? The pretty lady from Mizuki was pleased.” Tomoki remembered that his lips were twisted and how uneasy he sounded, and became dejected.

Thinking about that woman made him feel tense for some reason. He felt like something troublesome will start soon. He didn’t know whether he was looking forward to it or afraid of it. In an effort to calm himself down, he placed his hand on the car window, which was cold as ice from reflecting the night view of February, and his fingers, wrinkled from being in the pool, felt prickly. According to the mechanical voice of a woman from the radio, it might snow tomorrow.

Even when the car stopped in front of Tomoki’s house, Ryou didn’t open his eyes, which only seemed to prove that he was just faking being asleep, but he decided to play along and closed the door quietly.

“Wow, Tomo, you’re back early.”

While waiting for his mother to warm up the miso soup at the table, his younger brother Hiroya came down the stairs.

“Practice ended early today.”

“Oh, why?” Hearing Tomoki, his mother Megumi poked her face in from the kitchen.

“Don’t know. But because Mizuki’s employees came, they must be having a conference or something like that.”

“Must be serious, if Fujitani-sensei’s there too. Even though the only thing in his head is diving, now he’s also getting pulled into the company’s troubles.”

While saying those pitying words, Megumi brought over a bowl of miso soup with daikon and fried tofu.

Since he ate dinner before practice, no matter how hungry Tomoki was after he returns home, he was only going to get miso soup. Flab was a diver’s enemy. Even if only a little extra fat was gained, it’ll throw off his sense of rotation immediately.

“By the way, Miu called.” Hiroya told Tomoki, who had his chopsticks in the soup. It sounded like he had been finding the right time to say it. “She said she’ll call again, but if Tomo is feeling well then he’ll call her instead.”

“’Kay.”

“You should call her. She’s probably waiting for you.”

“’Kaaaaaay.”

Hiroya was his younger brother, but since he was born one year after him in March while Tomoki was born in April, they were in the same grade, even though they weren’t twins. They felt more like friends than brothers. It was a strange feeling for Tomoki, that Hiroya, who was his brother as well as one of his friends, and Miu, who was his girlfriend as well as his friend, were in the same class together.

“Well then, call her. Miu’s always waiting for you. It must be tough to go out with such a sports-nut.”

“Shut up, Hiro.”

“Anyways, if you guys do go out, it’d be better for you to be more like me than yourself. Miu’s pretty careless too.”

“Tell that to her.”

“I did.”

“What?”

Miu, what?

As soon as he tried to ask further, Hiroya grabbed the TV remote and turned away. Loud music boomed from the speakers, prompting Megumi to frown and tell him to turn it down. Megumi could distinguish between Tomoki and Hiroya just from the volume of the TV alone.

Tomoki finished his miso soup. Although he took the cordless phone in front of Hiroya and went upstairs to his room, he honestly didn’t feel like calling Miu.

There was only one reason. He had nothing to say to her.

“Tomo-kun, I’ve always liked you. If you want to, could I be your girlfriend?”

That was what Miu had said when she confessed to him last spring. It had taken place immediately following being sorted into classes at the beginning of middle school, when she had been separated into a different class, even though they were in the same class in sixth grade.

Before that, in mid-February he received chocolate from her, which got him teased by his friends that if he liked them then he should ask her to be his girlfriend. It had been the first time such corny words had been said to him, so Tomoki had been perplexed. He had just become a middle school student, so he still didn’t have a sense of reality for things like boy-girl relationships yet. Someday he’d also fall in love, and he’d snuggle with and kiss with his girlfriend, and he imagined he’d probably do even more with her. But since that would be far off into the future, he’d never considered the specifics of the process leading up to that. Like others, he also had desires, but for now he’s satisfied with just his dream.

Nevertheless, as to why he answered “Okay” to Miu’s confession without hesitating, Tomoki still had no idea.

Perhaps it was for a very cowardly reason. Maybe it was because he didn’t want the other girls to call him a bad guy for rejecting Miu (Poor Miu, Tomo-kun is awful!), or that he wanted to gloat over his friends who thought he was putting way too much into diving (What, Tomo got a girlfriend?), or maybe, he just really wanted a little bit of color in his life that was dedicated to diving (Even I can get a girlfriend or two…)

In truth, he started thinking about whether or not he could actually go out with Miu, right after they started dating. Even if you say dating, it was always Miu calling him and visiting his class during recess, her reminding him that they were in a special relationship.

Tomoki had no time. He was always busy with diving practice. He didn’t even know how to talk to girls, and first of all, he didn’t even know if he actually liked Miu that way.

He thought she was a cute girl. He certainly didn’t dislike her. But he never, not even once, felt like he wanted to see her right this moment, or that he wanted to hear her voice, or that he wanted to embrace her very much, or that he wanted to marry her, or that he wouldn’t allow her to ever cheat on him, or that he wanted three kids with her, or that he would protect her even if an earthquake happened.

He wondered if that was okay.

Despite his hesitation, he called Miu, not wanting to spend the rest of the night wondering when she would call him again.

“Hello?”

When Miu’s voice came after just one ring, Tomoki knew she had been waiting for him to call, and felt bummed out again.

“Tomo-kun?”

“Yeah. Um…sorry that I was late.”

“No, it’s fine. I’m happy. Tomo-kun, are you not tired from practice today?”

“Yeah, since practice ended early today.”

“Why?”

“Eh? Well…there’s a lot of reasons…”

“A lot.”

“Yeah.”

“Tomo-kun always has a lot of reasons, huh.”

“…”

“Ah, it’s fine, I’m sorry. I just wanted to hear Tomo-kun’s voice. Oh yeah, I went shopping with Hacchan today, and I found a really cute jellyfish doll, which looked like you somehow, so I bought it. Tomo-kun, would you like to see it?”

“Jellyfish doll…”

After going through many silences, by the time he hanged up five minutes later with a “Well, later”, Tomoki was tired enough to feel like he dived off the ten-meter platform a hundred times.

What do couples talk about so much, when they call each other everyday? Hiroya said I should flirt, but how the heck do I do that? I’m such an idiot, I can’t even do something like poking Miu’s forehead while laughing, Tomoki thought.

Even though it’s Miu, it wasn’t not easy to have fun with their phone calls.

While lying on his bed and thinking, self-hatred suddenly assailed him along with sleepiness.

I’m so boring, he thought. Everything about me is half-done. Even though I’m going out with Miu, I’m putting all my time and focus into diving, and even that was half-hearted in the end. If I put more effort into it seriously, I wouldn’t skip practice sometimes like I do now, and would have kept practicing even if Coach Fujitani wasn’t there. But I have no perseverance or enthusiasm for that. But, I can’t even imagine a life without diving, and if MDC is gone, I’d lose everything…and that scares me a lot.

A diving pool with a depth of five meters. Though it was always filled with a blue that was refreshing to the point of being artificial, as soon as he got out of the water the world stopped shining, and became a dull grey. In the midst of that grey, Tomoki felt as though he was living while having trouble breathing, like he needed to breathe with gills.

Losing the world of water would mean losing the freedom to breathe.

Thinking about the MDC’s future, Tomoki couldn’t help but be extremely anxious.

What were Coach Fujitani and the employees from Mizuki talking about today?

And then, there was that woman, Asaki Kayoko.

Tomoki instinctively felt that she was not an opponent to be taken lightly. She seemed like the type of person who would break promises, lie, and cheat on her lover without batting an eyelid.

However, there was the last line that Kayoko had left with—

“I didn’t come here to destroy it. I came to protect it.”

Strangely, he had only believed those words in the moment that he heard them.

Translation notes:

(1): You probably all know what takeoff means, but I’m just going to give you guys a link to a diving glossary that helped me out a lot.

(2): The word used here is “相槌” which means interjections indicating one is paying attention (thanks jisho). Apparently the Japanese have a word for it but we don’t???

(3): I didn’t know what “永大” (Eidai) meant so I just assumed it was a shortened university name

(4): Technically 7.5 meters, but most people just call it the seven-meter platform

(5): Anta is a pretty rude “you” to use for someone you don’t even know, and is older than you. Funny enough Youichi uses it for Kayoko right off the bat and Tomoki uses it with her later in the story. She didn’t seem to mind it both times though

Next time on DIVE!!: The beginning of the end for Tomoki’s social life.

#dive!!#dive novel translation

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