#the enthusiastic (yet childish) matchmaker: aiko naomi (oc)

[redrawthecolorlessworld]

"You're foolish."

———

"This place...it sure is interesting."

Aiko Naomi decided to drag Yamada Matsuzaki and Kazuo Nakashima to an amusement park today. She said she didn't have a particular reason in mind, she just wanted to go there. Kazuo didn't understand why she had the need to drag him and Yamada into this, though, but he'll just accept his fate.

"I wanna go on the merry-go-round!!" She exclaimed in excitement, pointing towards...that's right—a literal merry-go-round. Seeing her enthusiasm, Yamada chuckled. "You're acting like a kid, y'know~?" He teased, and to that, Aiko pouted. "Shut up."

"No offense, but you have the stature of a kid too, so anyone could mistake you to be Yamada's kid or my kid, haha." Kazuo added, before smirking once seeing Aiko's fuming face. "Oh, you little...!" "Alright, alright! No need to fight!!! Let's just go on the merry-go-round like what Aiko wanted, alright?" Yamada cuts in, making sure this silly banter doesn't turn into an actually serious argument.

"Oh- yeah, yeah. Alright. Let's go now. Catch up to me, you slow pokes!" Aiko then said, before dashing off from the other two. Kazuo sighed at that, before turning to face Yamada. "Let's go now, shall we?" He said, offering a hand for the novelist to take. Yamada stared at it for a moment, before smiling, moving his hand to grab onto Kazuo's—

"You really want to trust me like that?"

In a blink—

"You really think I can come back to you, saying "Let's hang out again like how we used to!" as if you didn't do anything?"

The image of her appeared.

Her disappointed frown was very evident as she stared back at Yamada.

"I'm..."

Yamada's heart beats faster—but not in a good way.

"I'm truly disappointed in you, Matsuzaki."

"Haa..."

"Yamada?"

"WAH-!"

Yamada could feel a hand grab onto his, and in an instant, he's brought back to reality. The person standing before him now wasn't her, but rather, Kazuo Nakashima himself. He wore a concerned frown as he asked, "Are you alright?"

Once that question was spoken out, Yamada finally realized the cold sweat rolling down his face. He definitely looked like he had seen a ghost by this point. "A-ah...I'm..." He trailed off, before sighing, forcing a smile. "I'm fine. Just...had a bit of a moment there." He then said.

He didn't want Kazuo to worry, after all.

The photographer's frown remained on his face for a few more seconds, before finally, it turned into a relieved smile. "Well...if you say so. Let's go now." Yamada squeezes the hand holding onto his tightly, his forced smile slowly turning into a more genuine one as his anxiety slowly goes away. "Yeah..."

"Let's go now."

"I don't have anything to worry about anymore, surely."

...

"You're foolish to think that, Matsuzaki."