Chapter Text
After class, she couldn't ask her roommate about what he wanted to say because Asahina had already dragged him off to lunch before Haruka could gather her things. At the cafeteria, Ishimaru-san was reviewing her English essay with her. It was typical of him to discuss this subject with her the most, as it was one of the few things in school in which she was better than him.
Additionally, they discussed Owada, who, according to their observations, now ignores the moral compass instead of being hostile, which they both considered a success. She wondered if his change was due to the fact that he had recently established a closer relationship with Fujisaki-san. Aware that the programmer maintains good relations with his roommate, he may have decided to let it go a bit.
During lunch, Ishimaru-san told her about his vacation plans. The basis of his plan was, of course, not rest, but productive use of every day. He certainly declared that he would give private lessons to elementary school children to earn some extra money. It was clear from their conversation that the boy was not well off, and he wanted to do everything he could to ease the financial burden on his father. Haruka considered this a very noble approach.
The advantage of last night was that she could finally use the self-improvement classes for the purpose they were actually invented for. After the music class, she decided to stay in the instrumental room and work on the lyrics to the melody she had written some time ago. Despite the significant progress she made in some areas over the past three months, one thing remained unchanged... her writing.
The pattern was always the same. She would write a decent melody, and then when she tried to write some lyrics, she would end up filling the pages of her notebook with pessimistic ramblings that had a pseudo-poetic character. And, of course, as was typical for her, it never went without a billion erasures, torn pages, and immense frustration. This is how the lyrics often ended up in the trash, and the melody in the drawer.
It looked like it would end the same way that day, because after the first 20 minutes, she had already destroyed one pen and left at least 3 torn pages on the floor. "This doesn't make sense," she thought, and sat down on the cold floor, leaning against the piano. She probably just had to accept that she wouldn’t be a great songwriter.
She closed her eyes and began to hum the tune she had just heard. It sounded so gentle that it was almost soothing. The text should also evoke positive emotions...
Continuing to hum, she decided to search her mind for at least one pleasant memory that would give her a foothold. However, she found a complete void in her mind, which she would not have dared to complain about under other circumstances. For most of her life, she was usually accompanied only by intrusive thoughts, so a clear mind was something she would have killed for. Although this state of affairs didn’t help her creative process.
She really hoped that her rested mind would be able to provide her with a bit more engagement. It turns out that good sleep isn’t the solution to everything…
"I wonder what he wanted to ask…," she thought about her roommate, who came to mind as she returned to today's morning in her thoughts. She suspected it was something trivial, but it still didn't put her mind at ease, because he had that characteristic expression on his face that she couldn't quite read. She would certainly not call such expression a sign of sadness or neutrality, but joy also didn't fit here at all. When Fujisaki-san was happy, his smile could light up at least half of a room. She involuntarily smiled when she remembered the programmer in this form.
„You’re smile like a thousands skys. I hear mysellf laugh for the first time in a while…I’m not use to stare at anyone but when I see you I lose track od time…Going all out just to keep you around…,” she sang.
The words appeared out of nowhere. She opened her eyes wide and immediately jumped up, barely keeping her balance after such a sudden rise. She grabbed her notebook and quickly wrote down what had just come out of her mouth. It came to her so unexpectedly that she was afraid that she might forget everything due to her distraction.
When the verse was already on the page, she decided to confront it with the melody she had previously created. The sounds she played on the piano seemed to perfectly match the words. It seemed that they had formed an inseparable whole…
„Maybe our paths crossed by an accident… but I already know that I won’t be the same… Just as this melody I seemed to be waiting for you, quite unaware such a perfection is true…,” she continued singing the newly created words in her head, noting them down in her notebook at the same time.
This part of the text seemed to come to her even more easily than the previous one. In this way, she sang and created more and more. Completely absorbed in her work, she stopped paying attention to the passing time...
After the programming lesson, which Chihiro had the pleasure of taking alone and because of that the teacher often finished it a bit faster than planned, he quickly went to his room to use the bathroom. To his surprise, he did not find Yoshida-san there, who, if his memory served him right, should have been in a self-improvement class at this time.
The room seemed untouched since they had left together in the morning, which meant he was the first to return. This was certainly a novelty. The past few weeks had accustomed him to finding the actress napping or frantically getting ready to leave at this time on Thursdays, leaving at least an unmade bed that she hadn't had time to make before returning to class.
"She didn't have to nap today...," he thought, uncontrollably glancing at his bed, which brought back memories of that morning. A sudden rush of heat that not escaped his face was triggered by a memory of Yoshida-san sleeping, leaning against him at night.
He had never thought about sleeping with someone before, but he suspected that if such a thought ever crossed his mind, then it might have caused him discomfort besides embarrassment. However, when it came to his roommate in general, his feelings towards her were the complete opposite of that word. The second time the actress fell asleep during the evening watching, he couldn't hide his satisfaction, especially considering that he had her tacit permission to do so.
After turning off the light, turning the girl over to a lying position, and lying down next to her, it initially seemed to him that he wouldn't be able to sleep much because of the stress, but after getting used to the situation and realizing that his roommate was sleeping comfortably and that it was thanks to his company, he was able to relax and fall asleep, sleeping through the whole night.
Yoshida-san built in him a sense of greater confidence and openness to new experiences. Additionally, he felt better in her company than with anyone else so far. He could just be himself.
"Maybe she's on the music floor..." Chihiro began to wonder if he should go up to that floor to check his assumption out of...pure curiosity. Besides, there was still some time left before class, and he didn't have anything else to do anyway. Floor 6 was familiar to him, as he had found himself there at least a few times when he worked with Yoshida-san on his program.
Thanks to the girl, he was able to improve many functions, introduce interesting modifications, and add a lot of new options in that creation. Although it was originally created just to kill boredom and experiment with other areas than the ones he usually worked on, it has now gained much greater innovative and emotional significance for him. Working with his roommate was a lot of fun and taught him a lot. Yoshida-san's practicality, honesty, perceptiveness, and, of course, immense talent made their work go very quickly and smoothly. It was also a big help that they were very compatible with each other on many issues, which also translated into their successful cooperation in sharing a room.
After exiting the elevator, the boy found himself on the main corridor of the floor. Most of the classrooms he passed through were empty. It seemed that this part of the school wasn't popular at this hour, which further suggested that he might find the actress here.
The door to the instrument room was closed, and that was where Yoshida-san spent most of her time. The schedule on the door didn't indicate that there were any classes being held there at the time. Chihiro decided to knock first, fearing that even if his roommate wasn't there, someone else might be, and only then pull the door handle. Stressed, he first slightly opened the door to just peek inside.
Through the gap, he saw Yoshida-san at the piano, playing a melody that he thought he had heard before. She was so engrossed in her work that she didn’t even notice that the door had opened. After a moment, she joined in with the singing.
„Just as this melody I seemed to be waiting for you, quite unaware such a perfection is true…I cannot resist even one thought of you, perfectly aware that I could never have you… Nevertheless no one can stop me from dreaming I could…”
When her beautiful voice filled the air, everything else seemed to fade away. This included his rational thinking, which would have suggested that the programmer should let the girl know that he was there. However, Chihiro remained silent, staying in the same place the whole time, stealing glances at the actress and enjoying the song she was singing. "I'll let her finish... It would be rude if I interrupted her now...," he reasoned to himself.
„You’re smile like a thousands skys. I hear mysellf laugh for the first time in a while…I’m not use to stare at anyone but when I see you I lose track od time…Going all out just to keep you around..."
The song seemed to have a romantic character, but it could also be his misinterpretation. The lyrics, along with the melody, had the tone of a love ballad. "I wonder if she wrote with someone specific in mind...," he thought for a moment, but then pushed his curiosity away.
The text may not have had any deeper meaning for the girl, and even if it did, it wasn't his business, especially since Yoshida-san had never shared her texts with him before. After realizing this, he felt a great sense of guilt.
"I shouldn't have listened in," he regretted in his mind and closed the door again. After waiting a few minutes, he knocked again and then opened the door again, this time much wider than before. Yoshida-san was still at the piano, but unlike the previous time, she noticed that the door to the room had opened. She looked at him in surprise, immediately closing her notebook.
"Fujisaki-san...," her tone was uncertain. It seemed that she was so surprised by his presence that she didn't know how to start the conversation. She also seemed a bit... stressed? Or maybe it was just his imagination. It often happened that he wasn't entirely sure what was going on in his roommate's head. She was very good at masking her emotions. " I didn't expect you here," she added after a moment, looking at him more relaxed, probably referring to the reason for his sudden appearance on the music floor.
"You weren't in the room... I thought you might be here...," he explained embarrassed.
"I have to think about changing my location since it's so easy to find me," she joked, slightly lifting the corners of her mouth. She put all her things into her backpack and then started collecting loose papers that were lying on the floor. Chihiro was used to this sight, as their room looked similar when the girl was composing in it. "What do you need from me?" she asked, her gentle gaze directed at him, accompanied by a few strands of hair that fell across her face. They probably came out of the high ponytail as a result of bending down to pick up a pile of paper scraps on the floor. The girl seemed to really like this hairstyle because she never styled her hair any other way.
Chihiro saw her only with her hair down in the evenings. Her beautiful, dark, long curls made a huge impression, being another of the many features that made the actress look so beautiful. During those three nights spent together, it happened at least once that the programmer woke up in the middle of the night, and the girl's hair fell on his face. They were soft and smelled of the lavender shampoo that Yoshida-san used.
"Earth to Fujisaki-san?." his roommate's voice snapped him out of his reverie.
Daydreaming about his classmate's hair was definitely not a good idea, especially when he was in the middle of a conversation with her. He was overcome with embarrassment. He felt his face turn red. Controlling his emotions was definitely not his strong suit.
"I… got lost in thought for a moment… I’m sorry," his words were accompanied by nervous laughter, which didn’t help his situation at all.
"I asked why you were looking for me?," she repeated the question and threw the pieces of paper she had collected from the floor into her backpack. He wondered if she had noticed his nervousness or if she had deliberately pretended not to see it. "Did something happen?" she asked when he didn't say a word. She looked a bit worried now.
"No, no, nothing happened," he calmed her down.
He didn't really know what to say in response. "Just wanted to see you," he thought, embarrassed by himself.
"I just wanted to ask...", he began hesitantly, trying to gain time and come up with an excuse. "What are your plans for the summer?" he asked, thinking of the first thing that came to his mind.
"Plans for the holidays?," she repeated, raising her eyebrows slightly. He knew it sounded absurd that he was looking for her for this very purpose, but he hoped they would just pretend it sounded believable. It has happened before that they distorted reality to avoid… actually what…
"I wanted to ask about this before Japanese, but then Asahina-san approached and…," he nervously began to explain, at which she looked at him even more suspiciously.
"You know very well that I will be here for the whole summer," she announced. "Unless you're interested in what I'll be reading during my free time," she added jokingly, which somewhat relaxed the atmosphere. "As long as Hopes Peak doesn't organize anything interesting, I plan to do what I usually do, with the benefit that most people will return to their homes, so there won't be such a crowd in school, just silence and peace," she concluded. "And you?," she asked, somewhat straying from the topic and at the same time giving up further discussion about why he was really looking for her and why such a stupid question had come out of his mouth.
"We agreed with my dad that we wouldn’t go anywhere this year, so I’ll probably spend most of my vacation at the computer…"
"I hope you can take a break from the pressure that school puts on you. Plus, you'll spend some time with your dad."
Yoshida-san minded her words when they were in the common areas of the school. Sometimes he felt that she was more careful about his secret than he was. She never once made a mistake when she addressed him. Her skills were phenomenal.
"Actually it's a bit less stressful at home," "and less exciting," he added to himself. To be honest, there was actually a reason why Chihiro asked the girl about her plans for the summer break. He wondered if she might want to… go with him to Shizuoka. The fact that she would spend a month and a half completely alone, and that she would be experiencing panic attacks, was very troubling to him.
"And of course, you'll have your own room. Rest from me will also do you good, " she added jokingly. But he wasn’t laughing. Rest from her is the last thing that would come to his mind. However, it never occurred to him that she might want to take a break from him...
"You'll also have a whole room to yourself…," he tried not to show that his mood had sunk.
"I of the two of us am more noticeable in the room, " she suggested, not wanting to literally refer to her situation in a public place.
"Are you sure everything will be alright… When you're alone… ," he couldn't help himself and tentatively decided to bring up the subject.
"So that's what it's all about," she sighed and moved closer to him. She had been standing by the piano during their entire conversation, so when she suddenly moved, he was thrown off. "Are you worried that I'll be alone huh?", she asked in a gentle tone, looking at him with a gentle gaze.
Despite his embarrassment, he couldn't take his eyes off her. He had never been treated that way before. People usually didn't know how to behave or reacted nervously to his overemotional nature. Yoshida-san seemed patient and kind to him, which evoked many positive emotions in him that he couldn't quite name, because it seemed like he had never experienced them before.
"I thought maybe I could ask my dad if you could…"
"How many times do I have to remind you that you're not responsible for me and you have your own life?"
"I know, but…"
"No buts, have a peaceful vacation. I'll be fine," she assured him. "You know, I somehow had to survive 15 years without you," she said, laughing, and he blushed.
He didn't want to overinterpret her words, but their meaning was ambiguous, which left him perplexed. "Somehow" suggested that since they met, it was much easier for her, which made his heart palpitate.
When she saw his overreaction, it seemed that she understood the meaning of her words, because moments later blushes appeared on her cheeks, which made him go weak in his knees.
Yoshida-san blushed relatively rarely. When it happened, it was a very delicate blush that stayed on her face for a very short time. He envied her for being able to control such a reaction, but being an actress probably had something to do with it. It didn't change the fact that the red blush added to her charm, and every time it appeared on her face, he tried to enjoy the sight as much as he could.
"Classes are about to start…We should get going, " she pulled away from him and put on her backpack. Unfortunately, there was no sign of her blushes anymore.
"Yes... you're right," he let her through the door and they headed towards the main building. They spent the entire way in silence.
Despite the girl's assurances, Chihiro still seemed to worry about her, but he had no choice but to simply accept her decisions. If only he could have done something to keep in touch with her during those one and a half months of separation...