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Overdrive (Lilly)

Well, well, well...!

I only intended to hit-and-run with one story, but after I received such great advice (and came up with another, IMO, interesting story idea) I've stolen another Range Rover and jammed it through the nearest jewellery shop without anti-ram raid bollards in front of it, in the form of writing another tale. Feedback is welcome.

Be aware that the Hisao in this story is perhaps a little rougher with a certain girl's feelings than he should be ^_^.

Super-dooper thanks to Mirage_GSM who spent two days giving this story his utmost care and attention, to SemisoftCheese who's Ritsu makes a brief cameo appearance, and to all of you for reading it!

Chapter 1 – PoV: Lilly
Chapter 2 – PoV: Hisao
Chapter 3 – PoV: Lilly
Chapter 4 – PoV: Hisao
Chapter 5 – PoV: Lilly
Chapter 6 – PoV: Hisao
Chapter 7 – PoV: Lilly
Chapter 8 – PoV: Hisao
Chapter 9 – PoV: Lilly
Chapter 10 – PoV: Hisao
Chapter 11 – PoV: Lilly

Chapter 1 – PoV: Lilly

"Okay, on the count of three, we both say our results."

"One... Two... Three!"

"..."

"Thirty-two!"

With the exception of Emi, we all chuckle lightly and shuffle around.

"Ah! Evil! Evil, evil, evil, evil!"

"You said it, not me. Still, the fact that you managed an even lower score than me is kind of amazing." Hisao lightly sprinkles a little salt in Emi's wound.

"Grr~!"

She makes a noise imitating a starved dog, well, it's more of a puppy I think, but their scores aren't amusing in the slightest. As one of the better English speakers here, it's my responsibility to offer them help.

"Either way, scoring higher than thirty-two isn't something to boast about, much less scoring below it. For any subject."

"Yes, Lilly."

"Sorry, Lilly." Emi follows Hisao with an apology of her own.

"I could help you with your English, if you'd like. My evenings are usually free, and it would be my pleasure to tutor you both once I am back from Scotland."

There's an awkward pause, and my heart sinks as I begin to expect the pair of them to let me down gently.

“...If it's alright with you, I'll take you up on that offer, Lilly", Hisao says.

“R-really?” I wish I didn't sound so dazed, but this truly is a surprise.

“It's not a bad idea. My evenings are generally free, and I definitely need the help.”

I beam and turn my attention to Emi.

"Will you be joining us, Emi?"

I shoot her an inviting smile, knowing full well she'll dislike the offer to spend her free time studying. It's an unfair tactic to put her on the spot in front of her peers, but I suspect it's the only real chance I have of getting her to take her education more seriously.

"Er… Sorry, Lilly. I'm grateful, but I've got to study in the evening." Oh, pull the other one, Emi.

"A likely story." Hisao sarcastically exclaims. "You must have at least a few evenings free a week?" I was quite unprepared for him to take my side in this argument.

"My class has mock exams coming up in a while, Hisao."

"Isn't that next Thursday?" Rin says.

The silence confirms that Emi was exaggerating a little.

Hisao continues. "Once you've narrowly avoided failing them again you can join us."

I half expect to hear more angry canine sounds, but Emi fights her corner with vigour. "You only want me to join in because I'm worse at English than you."

"Well… It's not that specifically, but it would be nice if there was someone else present to be on the receiving end of Lilly's sharp tongue."

"Hisa-" I protest before Emi interrupts me.

"-Fine. Okay. Whatever."

We won!

Emi's not done yet. "But there's something you have to do for me, Hisao. I think you know what it is." I hear Hisao quietly swallow. "You have to join me on my evening runs, too!"

"I...I think that might be too much for me. I’m already running in the morning with you. We talked about this a while ago and decided against it."

"Don't worry, Hisao, I checked with the nurse! He said it's okay for you to join me after school as long as you don't go crazy out there. I'll be there to watch over you, so it's fine!"

I can hear Rin laughing and snorting next to her.

"Well..." Hisao contemplates.

"Just an hour."

"No way! Twenty minutes."

"Forty five minutes!"

"Twenty five minutes."

"Half an hour. That's my final offer Hisao."

"I think...that's fair." I interject. I don't want him to push his luck with her.

Before Hisao can respond Emi finishes the conversation. "It's a deal," she says, her face most likely twisted into a smile. "I'd ask you to join us when you get back Lilly, but I think it would be a token gesture. You don't look like the running type."

I frown.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean it like that, I just meant you don't seem like a sporty person. You can join us if you want!"

I let slip a silent giggle with my hand over my mouth and reward Emi for her sudden consideration for others.

"My my, that's very kind of you, but you're right. I shall have to politely decline. I hope you two have fun."

"I hope you have fun on your trip too Lilly!" she replies.

Chapter 2 – PoV: Hisao

Only three days later I sit in Lilly's room for my first English lesson. I offered to skip it because of her jet lag, but she rather intimidatingly insisted nothing would get in her way. Her overseas visit ended much more prematurely than we all expected. Something's really upset her.

"Now, how much do you know already, Hisao?" Lilly asks as I sit at her desk.

I exhale an elongated "Errr..." and start to look around her shelves. My attention is drawn to a long row of matching books with small black buttons on the spines, one of which is titled 'Self-Study English : Vocabulary Volume 4'.

"What are you looking at, Hisao?"

Lilly senses my prolonged, confused voice roaming around her room, as I fixate on various pieces of furniture.

"Does it really take that many books to become fluent in English?"

She pauses for a moment, before a look of understanding crosses her face, and she smiles.

"Braille is rather wordy in print form Hisao, but if you want to teach the language, then yes."

"...I see."

Lilly fiddles with something in her uniformed-lap. Her long delicate fingers untangle a webbed mess of black cables. Eventually she pulls out a set of earbuds typically used for listening to music from the spaghetti and dangles them in my general direction.

"What are those for?"

"To listen, of course. That's the best way to learn a new language Hisao – by listening to a native speaker."

I tentatively place the furry lumps into my ears. Realizing they won't fall down my earlobes into my brain, I give them a firmer push, and feel strange due to the audibly muffled atmosphere.

All those Braille books sure look fancy, but I think two new languages might be a bit much for me. Speech is the only way Lilly can teach me.

"Lets try a little question and answer."

Lilly's voice becomes a little more boisterous, the increase in volume and and slight slowing of speech clearly deliberate to compensate for my dulled senses.

She adjusts herself in her chair, as if to make it blindingly obvious that we are now having a pretend conversation and presses a button on her tiny music device. A clear and methodical Japanese-accented voice speaks English to us both.

"What time is it?"

I look at my watch. It's somewhere between five thirty six and five thirty eight. Not only can I not be entirely sure of the current time right now, but I also cannot remember how to say numbers bigger than twenty.

"Five."

Lilly gives her forehead a little scratch, and clears her throat before continuing.

"Is it really?"

Out-foxed by a blind woman. A new low.

"...No. Sorry, I lied. I think you'd say it's about 'five thirteen seven'."

"Thirty, Hisao." She takes me through English numbers a few times before we resume listening to the taped questions.

"Where are we going to eat?"

"Its restaurant."

Lilly pauses the recording and lovingly lectures me on possessive nouns and...so forth...before shutting up after what feels like an eternity.

"Did that make sense, Hisao?"

"...Sort of," I say nervously. If she tests me on it right now, I'm screwed.

She seems to get the point just from my tone of voice. She can read me like the books she can't read. "Don't worry, we'll have a chance to go over it again. Let's keep going."

"What do you want to eat?"

"Pizza kudasai!" Lilly starts to raise her index finger as some sort of corrective measure. "I mean...Pizza please!"

"...How appropriate, Hisao. You can also say 'thank you' instead of ''please." I repeat the phrase in the alternate form, and she seems satisfied.

Lilly presses the stop button.

"How many pieces would you like your pizza cut into, Hisao?" she asks.

Perhaps having a little fun with me, I return the favour.

"Six please. I can't eat eight."

Lilly's content smile starts to wobble slightly, and she rubs her forehead again, this time hard enough to leave a faint red mark.

After half an hour of this routine, I slump back in my chair and exhale in an exaggerated fashion, hoping Lilly takes the hint.

"I think that's enough for our first session." She's as perceptive as she is pretty. "Anyway, Emi will be expecting you at the track soon."

I clear my throat. "The same time tomorrow?"

"Yes, that's fine with me, Hisao. I look forward to it."

If I were to judge based entirely on today's lesson, I couldn't say I'm as optimistic about the next one as Lilly is. I remind myself that I did agree to these lessons, so I must remain positive, regardless of how much of a waste of time I'm starting to fear they'll be.

After walking to my room and changing into my running outfit, I quietly close and lock the door and pace down the corridor. Hold on now, I may be several minutes late, but I can't work up too big of a sweat before I get to the track. What was it she told me the last time I showed up to the track exhausted? 'You should cautiously rush, Hisao, like me!'. Yep, great advice Emi.

Chapter 3 – PoV: Lilly

It's five o'clock the next day, which means it's time for Hisao's second English lesson with me. Emi's still busy studying, or so she claims, for her upcoming tests.

I reach to the far end of my desk, and grab the bundle of cables. I suspect it will forever be a mystery to me how they re-entangle themselves every time I use them.

After pulling out a set for myself, I extract a second pair of earphones for Hisao, and hold them up in his direction for him to grab.

"It's okay thanks, I've got my own”, he says.

"Oh? It's good to see you're taking this seriously."

"You know...those earbuds you gave me last time were kind of cheap looking."

"You don't stay rich without budgeting Hisao", I say with a smile.

"That's why I bought a pair for myself, and a pair for Emi later."

Always the thoughtful one. I hope she appreciates his kindness.

We quickly recap yesterday's faux conversation, followed by some audio-assisted number revision, which Hisao is rather reluctant to admit needing.

It isn't long before we both begin to feel worn out. Giving one-on-one tuition is far more intense than I imagined it would be.

I hear Hisao's newly-bought earphones land on his shirt, and I take the hint, removing mine.

"So..." Hisao contemplates.

I wait for him to continue speaking, but he takes just a little too long. "Yes?"

"You came back much earlier than I expected. I don't want to prod my nose where it doesn't belong, but you really seemed unhappy before our lesson yesterday."

I take his question in a light-hearted manner. It's sweet that he's trying not to hurt my feelings. "Were you scared?"

"What? No, no. You were more upset than angry I thought."

"You're not much of a liar, Hisao." I tease.

"So did you have fun in Scotland?" He asks, clearly wanting to move the conversation along.

"I can't say I did. Mostly due to my mother and father bickering with each other - when they weren't pestering me about joining their legal enterprise."

"I see. I gather you don't find it an appealing idea?"

"Not at all."

He takes my short, sharp answer as a sign that I don't want to continue this line of questioning.

"How was your aunt?"

"...She passed away during my flight there."

"Oh. I'm sorry to hear that Lilly."

Please don't ask me about her funeral Hisao, or why I'm not going. I want this break in the lesson to be relaxing, not to create even more tension.

"You know, I think you'd make a pretty good teacher, Lilly."

My mood perks up a bit at hearing this. Hisao doesn't know it, but teaching is my plan after college. "Really? What makes you say that?"

"Well… You've been so enthusiastic about these English sessions. Both for me and Emi. It's obvious how much you care about others. For you, I think caring means educating."

"That's sweet Hisao, but I really don't think I'm that good."

"You're not much of a liar either. You know full well that you'll make a great teacher, Lilly." He pauses for a moment. “This is the kind of stuff Emi won't talk about. Everytime I bring up the future she changes the subject.”

Sensing the change in mood, I make a sour face...

"Stop doing that!"

...Which he finds cute.

We get ready to listen to the recording once again and continue with the lesson.

The session passes quicker than yesterday's. I almost get the impression Hisao has been studying in the time between just to impress me. I hear him scribbling in his notebook, finishing his sentence with an exaggerated thud of pen on paper, and I take the earphones out of my ears.

I hold out my hand to him.

"Its okay, I've got my own – remember?"

"N-no, Hisao."

Now that I've made a fool of myself, things can't get worse, so this is my opportunity. Big moment. Here I go.

"Hisao, I'd like to see what you look like."

He stops moving and stays silent.

His next response is a failure to decide whether he wants to say 'what' or 'how'. It comes out as "...Whow, Lilly?"

"Pardon?"

"I mean...sure."

Approval of my desires? I wasn't expecting that, nor have I experienced much of it in the last few days. If he already knows what I'm going to do, I'm certainly impressed.

I feel him press his open palm against mine. I give a gentle push in return, and he guides our hands over to his face, at which point he lets go, presumably giving me free reign to stroke his features.

Spiralling softly over his protruding cheekbones, my hands chase around his head, gradually building an image of Hisao. People with vision tell me that they are often surprised upon seeing someone whose voice they have so far only heard. For me, I experience this every time I become close to someone in my life. It's always a surprise. But this time, somehow, it's different. If there was ever the face of a man who was a kind, pleasant person, it's the one I'm caressing now. He's just like I expected. I wonder how the brain that struggles with English so much can lie behind his smooth forehead and how the voice that speaks it so badly can lie behind his delicate lips.

I brush my fingertips just under his nose, so I can hear him softly chuckle as I tickle his neatly trimmed nose hair.

My hands linger just a little too long on his lips, and he gives my fingers a playful nibble to indicate this. Reluctantly, I drag my hand down to his jaw and off his face before my feelings become too publicized to him.

"Thank you, Hisao. Apart from eating my hand. You'd best leave now if you don't want to keep Emi waiting."

Chapter 4 – PoV: Hisao

I've got butterflies in my stomach. My emotions are so conflicted; it makes me feel terrible. I can't get my mind off Lilly, and I'm seeing her again today. This time will be different. I'm going to make it more than a lesson.

She sits with that familiar uptight, perfect posture at her tidied desk next to me. Being blind she probably has enough surprises in her daily life, but I hope she enjoys the one I have planned for her.

"I really enjoyed yesterday's session", I say.

"...Yes. I as well, although we didn't do as much studying as I thought we might."

Please don't kill my buzz, Lilly. I think I'm falling in love with you.

She feels the edges of the miniature media player and delicately pushes her fingertip onto the play button. Painfully unfamiliar speech, all of it entirely useless in the modern world sings through our ears. Lilly stops frequently to pause the playback, my eyes focused on her lips' exaggerated over-pronunciation of an entirely foreign alphabet, after which she excitedly encourages me to pronounce these inane sentences over and over again. It's remarkable how even something as tedious as learning English becomes seductive when under her supervision.

In the heat of the moment, I take my earbuds out and lean over towards Lilly. It takes several seconds for her to realize that I’m no longer paying attention to the lesson; time I spend just staring at the serene expression on her face.

I move my face closer, close enough that she can feel my nervous breath on her cheek, and softly press my lips against the smooth skin on the side of her face.

"Hisao?"

It turns into a kiss.

"Hisao… What are you-"

I push aside the long blond hair running down her back, and start kissing the back of her neck more passionately.

"Hisao, stop!"

I keep going.

"Stop it." Her voice loses its strength and grows quiet. She pauses to calm her breathing. "Hisao, please."

I can tell she's enjoying it.

"At least let me take...my..."

I pull her earbuds out. They collide with the bottom of the wooden desk, the cable not quite long enough to let them softly land on the carpeted floor like I hoped.

She won't allow herself to smile, but her words are fractured by her body tensing as I massage her shoulders while kissing her neck.

"N-no, you can't..."

Her voice becomes desperate, and she pleads with me.

"What about Emi? She wants us to study."

My lips move onto her face, and I gradually lose control of my senses, lost within the fragrance of her mild shampoo and her subtle moans and breaths.

Her voice begins to squeak.

"I can't believe you'd do something like this."

She reaches out her hands and frantically intertwines her fingers with mine. Verbally resisting, lust overcomes her body, and she physically gives in to me.

"Please stop." Her futile words are masked by her heavy breathing. She leans her head into my kisses, her eyes closed. As she gently rocks back and forth in her chair, the star-shaped hair tie at the back of her head falls out. The thick strands of her curly blonde hair are no longer held in place, instead flying about, brushing my face.

Eventually she finds the strength to push me away with both hands. Her cheeks are flushed red.

"Get out."

"Lilly I didn't – I wasn't trying t-"

"Just leave Hisao. I don't know what's...wrong with you. Please just go."

I hesitate.

"Can I see you again?"

She spins around in her chair shooting a furious look in my direction. Her anger subsides into confusion as she tries to answer my request.

"I...I don't know. What are you asking me Hisao?"

"It's not a date. I just mean to talk outside of our study sessions."

Lilly seems to be uncomfortable with the situation.

“...Please?”

She sighs, obviously troubled. I'm putting my feelings above hers. I know she won't like this, but if I let a dam build up between us, she might never be alone with me again.

"...Very well. I'll grant you that concession.”

Chapter 5 – PoV: Lilly

Hisao's behaviour yesterday still has me on edge.

I'm heading down to the Shanghai for my rendezvous with him, when I hear light footsteps and two distinct high pitched voices approaching from the north east. They're getting closer. Although both the girls have a strange irregular pattern of footsteps, one sounds distinctly like an uncomfortable limp much more than the other. They've changed their trajectory towards me deliberately.

The girl on the left is excitedly talking about what I assume is her poor performance on a recent exam, while the other girl groans in a slow, methodical manner.

Just as one of the pair speaks up, I realise who they are. I try not to let it show, but I'm feeling panicked.

"Hi, Lilly!"

"Hello, Emi. Is Rin with you?"

"Sure is."

"Hello, class rep."

"I appreciate being addressed by my title, but I'm not your class representative Rin."

"Maybe I've changed classes since we last met."

"Have you?"

"...No."

It's awfully satisfying to leave Rin speechless.

"But you weren't sure, were you?" she continues.

I can hear Emi giggling.

"Indeed I wasn't”, I say, humouring Rin. “So, have you two been at the-" Goodness, no. "...the art store?"

"Uh-huh. Rin needs casein paint for her upcoming masterpiece!"

"I'm sure it will be lovely."

"Where are you heading, Lilly?"

Lying is terrible, and I'm a terrible liar. My instinctive answer is the only one they'll believe.

"To the café."

I choose not to elaborate further.

"You mean the Shanghai?"

"Yes, that's right."

I start to feel at ease as the the conversation flows more naturally.

"Hisao told me he's finding his English classes a bit easier. I think it's really sweet how you're giving up your time to help him, Lilly."

"It's my pleasure, Emi. You're taking it easy with him, aren't you?"

"Of course I am! Don't worry, if he's going to drop dead anywhere it won't be with me!"

What relief. I can't hide my concern, resulting in my response being sarcastic. "How reassuring."

Idle chit chat continues between us. It mostly consists of Emi telling both Rin and me about her exploits on the track. Soon, we wind things up.

"Bye, Lilly. Thanks again!"

"This might be the last time we ever meet, so I hope you have a nice life."

"Thank you, Rin."

***

"Hello, Lilly! A table for one?"

"Actually, I'm expecting to meet someone here."

Please notice me, Hisao. Come and and save me from the embarrassment of standing in front of everyone under Yuuko's no doubt uncomfortable gaze.

"Hello, Lilly", a familiar voice says.

"Hisao", I reply.

He places his hand against mine, down by my side and gently tugs before leading me off to our table.

"Are we out of sight?"

"Don't worry, nobody knows we're here except Yuuko”, Hisao reassures me.

"Did you come here on your own?"

"Yes."

"What did you tell Yuuko?"

"I just told her I was meeting a friend. I didn't mention that my friend is called Lilly."

"Well, she knows that now."

Yuuko soon takes our orders. When she leaves, we find ourselves sitting in silence.

"Hisao, let's just forget everything. I won't speak a word of this to Emi."

"I don't want you to forget, Lilly."

"...Please don't say that. We have to stop this. Emi saw me coming here."

"She did?"

"Yes. She and Rin were coming back from the art store." I'm somewhat annoyed that he didn't notify me of this in advance. "Why didn't you tell me she'd be here?"

"I didn't know."

"How could you not know that she would be in town ten minutes ago? Aren't you..."

I catch myself beginning to lose my temper, and abort my sentence.

"You should help her. She sounded in pain when I spoke to her."

"I will, I will. I know she's been limping lately. I just need to convince her to see the nurse."

"I'm not just referring to her leg, Hisao. You know what I mean."

Hisao places his hand on top of mine on the table. I make a half-hearted attempt to extricate my fingers, but his soft touch is too much to oppose.

"Can I kiss you?" he asks.

"Hisao! There are people here!"

"They don't care. The only people that can see ourselves are you and I."

Sometimes he really is careless with his words.

I pretend to shift about uncomfortably in my seat before responding. I want it, his loving voice, his selfless temperament, his handsome countenance kissing me, I just don't want to admit it.

"...Just one kiss."

By the time our lips separate, our tea has gone cold.

Chapter 6 – PoV: Hisao

After my date with Lilly, I hit the books in preparation for my upcoming meeting with the Yamaku Science club, aka Mutou, followed by an evening of being yelled at by a now wheelchair-bound Emi. After Lilly told me about her limping, I made her see the nurse, who promptly put a temporary halt to her legged mobility. I think she's getting her own back on me for snitching on her. She might not be able to run, but she's making me exercise for the both of us. Every time I slow down she rolls around the track in her chair chasing me, shouting "Faster, faster dammit, Hisao!".

Covered in sweat, my coach and I visit the nurse.

"Should I run tomorrow, too?" I ask.

"Pfft! Of course! Just because I can't run doesn't mean you can slack off, Hisao. If you do, the nurse will let me know!"

"That's right Hisao, I've got friends everywhere." He gives me a stern look. It breaks into a grin just before the situation might have become awkward.

“Everything's fine”, he cheerily states, as though his prior remark has vanished from the atmosphere.

He ushers me out in an exaggerated fashion and tends to Emi so he can check the recovery progress of her infected leg. Outside his office I lean against the wall next to the vending machine and try to do that thing where you balance on one leg and lift your other leg up, resulting in making an acute angle against the wall with your knee. It doesn't work, I fall over, and explore the polycarbonate panelling with my hands, as I bash into it so it can take my weight.

Emi pokes her head out of the door and gives me a suspicious look, only to gaze back into the nurse's office.

“It's just Hisao falling ov...” I hear her say as she closes the door.

Thirty seconds later Emi wheels herself out into the corridor fully dressed, and we say our goodbyes.

"Are you sure you wouldn't rather have a cane?" I tease. Emi does her angry dog impression in response and we walk off together, parting ways outside the auxiliary building.

I stride down the men's dorm corridor, unlock my door and step into the room. My mood is elevated exponentially due to the absence of my bespectacled neighbour.

Inside, I gently nudge the door closed, only for it to get stuck. I give it a firmer push, but it resists with what feels like human force. Curious, I strafe to the right to see who's there. Staring back at me is the troubled face of Emi's mother Meiko, her hand still placed against the door.

"Hello, Hisao."

"Hi Mrs Ibarazaki."

She takes a deep breath. "The nurse told me about..."

"Her leg? I'm sorry she didn't tell you earlier. It was tough just getting her to see the nurse about i-"

"No, Hisao!"

I freeze at her outburst. Silence is forced upon us by her anger and my fear. Down the hall I hear a door open and finally close, probably by some eavesdropping neighbour.

"I'm sorry for raising my voice." She takes another pause to calm down. "He told me about you...and the girl you're apparently receiving out-of-hours English tuition from."

"How did you, I mean he...?"

"Does that really matter? The nurse and I share a close relationship. I'm sure you're aware of that already, Hisao."

Meiko's face returns to its previous grimace.

"Please stop hurting Emi."

She gives me the same puppy dog-pout her daughter's inherited, except Meiko's not being playful.

I lower my gaze to the ground in shame. “I’m sorry. I don’t want to hurt Emi, but I just don’t know what to do in this situation…”

She takes a few seconds to formulate her thoughts. I always respect people who do that; it usually means they've thought through what they're about to say.

"Do whatever you want to. But you can't let things carry on the way they are. If you do, everyone will end up getting hurt. From what I hear, this Miss Satou isn't the one at fault, and Emi certainly isn't."

“...You're right, they're not. Lil- Miss Satou's innocent. None of this is her fault.”

“Or Emi's.”

“...Or Emi's, I know. I'm sorry.”

“The way Emi talks about you, I thought you'd be much quicker to defend her, rather than this fancy woman you've been seen with.”

I make an apologetic face and take some time to pretend I'm thinking things over, but I know deep down that my mind is already made up. I start to say it slowly, but suddenly speed up because it feels so wrong.

“I love Lilly.”

Mrs Ibarazaki stares at me. Her chin moves up and down as she exhales, and she sucks her lip before turning to leave.

"Goodbye, Hisao."

"...Goodbye."

Chapter 7 – PoV: Lilly

We listen to the language tape narrate another sentence into our ears, both of us memorizing the words; Hisao ready to repeat them, and I ready to correct him. It's becoming less and less often that Hisao makes mistakes with his English, an impressive feat considering that the material I'm giving him to study is so much more advanced than when we first started these sessions.

Now it's time for Hisao to make his attempt at telling a tourist information centre he's lost his wallet, and his holiday is ruined.

"I have lost my wallet, and I need your assistance."

"That was beautifully read, Hisao. Well done." I smile and lean over towards his voice.

My hand reaches out and rests on his shoulder. I pull him in slightly and reward his studiousness with a syrupy, overstated kiss on the cheek. I hope he enjoys the lipstick I'm wearing just for this lesson with him.

Hisao pulls away quickly and starts to shuffle around in his seat. Something's not right. I look in his direction with a confused expression and slowly remove my hand from his shoulder.

"What are you two..."

I realize there's a third party in the room. It sounds like Emi, and there's alarm in her voice.

The room falls into silence, and I can hear Hisao's heartbeat becoming louder.

"Emi?" I quietly ask.

She doesn't reply, but I can hear soft high-pitched sobbing from someone stood behind me. It's definitely her.

Oh no.

"Emi...I..."

I stall, hoping Hisao will speak up.

He doesn't. It's up to me to take the lead as always. "I...I'm sorry..."

Please say something!

"...Emi?"

I better not push her any further for a response.

Being blind is tolerable as long as you don't make enemies. I'd be lying if I said I didn't fear for my safety in this situation. From his lack of action, I gather Hisao's just as scared of Emi as I am. Any sudden movements are bound to startle her, so I slowly reach up and take my earphones out. With a clear passage to my ear drums, her whimpering becomes more noticeable.

I decide to try and calm her. “...I'm so sorry, Emi… I don't know what to say."

"It's okay, Lilly", Hisao says. He puts his hand on top of mine on my lap.

"No!"

Emi starts wheeling around in her chair, but it sounds more like she's beating the chair itself than trying to move around in it.

"Emi, wai-" Hisao pleads.

"No, it's not okay!" She continues to wail. "I can't believe you two would do this to me!"

I hear the hinge of my door rotate, and Emi's sobbing moves outside into the hallway. The door slams shut with a force so hard my tea set rattles across the room. I can still hear her crying outside.

"...She'll be okay" Hisao quietly says, his face a little closer to me than I think is appropriate right now.

"But..." I retort. I trail off, no sentence composed in my mind to speak. I feel so helpless. I've destroyed both their relationships with each other.

We sit in silence, breathing to each other, before Hisao feels ready to venture out and retire to his room.

Chapter 8 – PoV: Hisao

The last few days have been quite possibly the most awkward of my entire life. Avoiding Emi has been both exhausting and an exercise in sneaking around the back of the school and through unpopular hallways to get to and from class.

Today is no different.

I leave my room nearly forty minutes before class starts and turn left down the corridor instead of my usual right, down the stairway at the back of the school. There's no one around. I step outside, the early morning chill shrouding my bare neck and hands and duck the overhanging wildlife that clearly doesn't get pruned sufficiently for anyone over four feet eleven.

I can hear footsteps.

Footsteps belonging to multiple people.

A pair of heads loom around the corner, facing me head on.

It's just Miki and the Track Captain. They must be out for a morning run.

I look at them and give a gentle wave, but Miki shifts uneasily, and the captain just ignores me. Hang on, why would they be taking such a backwater route to the track...oh crap. As they walk past my anxious, confused face, I see a familiar girl hiding behind them with a much more unfamiliar angry expression. I turn back to focus on the path ahead, when I'm suddenly pushed halfway into the Taxus bushes next to me.

Staggering and trying not to fall over, I look back in astonishment at the group and see Emi's arms outstretched having clearly given me an almighty shove. She scowls at me briefly, her face flame red, before quickly jogging to catch up to her friends. I guess without me bugging her, she doesn't feel obliged to listen to the nurse anymore.

For a brief moment I want to take revenge, but while her behaviour may be a little immature, Emi's completely justified in being furious at me. She'd probably kick my ass anyway, or give me a heart attack, and the nurse isn't going to take my side in a fight between the two of us.

After falling to my knees on the pavement to avoid rolling into the shrubbery, I ease myself back up and look at my uniform. Fortunately, I can't see any plants attached to me. I straighten up my ruffled shirt, align my tie down the middle and carry on walking to morning class, my heart beating much too quickly.

When I reach the end of the path and join the forecourt I see an oddly familiar and comforting view. Rather than the school, it's the house I used to live in years ago in front of me – the one where I lived with my parents when I was a child before moving to Miyagi. Our neighbour's houses are all there too. The row of suburban dwellings continues as far as I can see.

In between each house, the Yew trees that scared me so much as child stand tall. Their thin trunks are covered in rotten scaly bark, with bronze diseased crowns growing amongst each other, so much so that I cannot tell where one tree starts and the others finish. It used to be one of my worst nightmares to get lost in there.

I walk towards my house; as I get closer to our back garden, beyond it I can see the school. The tarmac terrace I walked upon for the first time all those weeks ago intimidates me. Dead leaves from the evil trees behind me fall onto it, and the wind is blowing them around. The school's forecourt looks more like a helipad.

Confused, I turn around to go back, but the morning track team, complete with an angry Emi, is still there in the distance. There's no way I can go back.

I can get to school. I know it. I can walk down our back garden like I did so many times before. I open the front gate, jog up the steps, and walk right past the front door. I don't bother trying to hide my presence, the front gate opening always alerted us to anyone entering our property anyway.

I'm getting close to the school. Beyond the stone path down the side of the house, there's a pile of wire netting. It covers the entire floor. I nimbly step onto and over it. It entangles my shoes, but I reach down to pull it off. It seems to wrap tighter around me. Both my feet are now stuck. I can't balance anymore, and I fall over for a second time today. I’m sat on the floor trying to pull the netting off me, when I see Emi standing at the front gate of my house.

She makes eye contact with me, and closes the gate behind her. It gives another familiar creak. Emi smiles coyly, and continues walking down the side of the house towards me. Her now-familiar limp is gone. I scramble about trying to untangle myself, but I'm being pulled in tighter. She's getting very close. I don't know what she wants, or is going to do, but I'm afraid.

Only feet away from me now, Emi calls my name.

"Hisao."

"...Emi?" My reply is packed with hysteria.

"Hisao."

She reaches into her pocket.

I'm almost at the point of collapsing. I'm sweating, my heart bouncing all over the place, my arms now entangled in this metallic treacle, fearing for my life.

"Hisao!"

"Hisao!!!"

Ow...

There's a USB stick poking me in the back of the neck.

"It's lunchtime, Hisao. Wake up."

I mumble a response.

"I'm...not hungry...Rit...su. I think I'll..." I yawn. "...stay here."

"Suit yourself."

My head in my arms on my desk, I hear a voice in the distance. "He looks so~ comfortable!" It gets louder as she speaks, suggesting she's coming closer to me.

I bring my head up and off my forearm.

Ouch!

I bump temples with Misha, who's leaning over me with a preposterous expression of angry eyes and upturned smile, bringing me back to my senses. "Hicchan~, that hurts!"

"Sorry, Misha."

I watch her walk off to the classroom door, where Shizune stands waiting and glaring at me. Misha dashes over to her, throwing her hands in all directions, and the pair disappears, presumably to have lunch.

"What happened between you and Emi?"

I turn around surprised, forgetting that the girl with the golden hair band is still here. Over the chatter of class, I can never hear Ritsu's laptop, but now with just us two left I wonder if it's still turned on, and if so, how it can operate at such a quiet volume. I twist my head around to the right to get a look at the screen, which I notice is in fact displaying some sort of document, most likely a transcript of the previous class. Before I can read the title I get another poke in the head.

"Stop looking at my computer Hisao. You should have paid attention in class if you want to read my notes."

The handwritten notes on my desk end abruptly where I fell asleep. I stare at the front of the classroom for several seconds and try to make sense of the leftovers written on the board, but my attention is interrupted once again.

"Back to the point. You and Emi."

"...Everything's fine."

Ritsu smiles as though all is well. I think she's going to leave me alone. "Oh right. My concerns are now alleviated, Hisao."

Her sarcasm less than impresses me, indeed I'm anything but impressed with it, considering this is none of her business.

She lowers her eyes and tries again. "Miki told me you and Emi were on the rocks."

Argh! Miki knows! The dream's coming true!

"What's wrong?" she asks.

I stay silent and make a poker face, the staunchness of which is such that a billion yen could be on the line, but she doesn't buy it for a second and grins at me. "She also said Lilly was teaching you more than English."

I don't mind her slandering me, but bringing Lilly into this is crossing the line. I won't stand for it.

"Lilly is completely innocent! She's done nothing wrong. Don't get her involved in this." I calm down a little and try to give her a more direct and honest answer. "No, she's not. Not anymore."

Ritsu gives a half-witted laugh in return. "Mmm, sure Hisao."

Chapter 9 – PoV: Lilly

"Will you be okay here, Lilly?"

"Yes, thank you, Hanako."

"Alright… See y-you later."

Hanako removes her arm from my shoulder and leaves me outside Hisao's door, upon which I knock. I hear a chair slide back on a carpet, just like the ones in my room. What are obviously a pair of bare feet walk across the floor. The door clicks open.

"Lilly?"

"Hello, Hisao."

“...Would you like to come in?”

“Please.”

He takes hold of my hand.

“Don't get any ideas Hisao.”

He chuckles under his breath, and leads me to his bed, wait...

“Hisao!”

“Sorry, sorry!”

He laughs some more, and I hear him move a chair across the floor. My hand is gently placed on the back of the seat, and we both sit down.

"This situation with you avoiding Emi is silly. What an earth has got you so terrified of meeting her and apologising?"

"Are you crazy? She'll never forgive me! You saw how mad she was when… she found us."

"She's a very nice girl. You're right for each other. We're not. You can make it up to her, as long as you don't do anything foolish."

That's right. Hisao and Emi are meant to be. They were a perfect couple before, and they'll be a perfect couple again. As long as Hisao is with her, I don't have to think about the possibility of him being with me...

...Which is what I really want. But being an adult means letting things go, like my feelings for Hisao.

"I just don't think she wants to see me."

"I'm sure she wants to make-up with you just as much as you do."

"But I don't want..."

"What?" My expression is incensed. "What did you say?"

"...Nothing. Just, forget it."

I hope he wasn't going to say what I think he was going to say.

"Call her, Hisao. Now."

"She won't speak to me. I don't want to. I don't have her number."

"That's preposterous. You're her boyfriend. I'm sure you have her number."

He doesn’t reply.

"Fine. I'll call her instead."

"No!"

I pull my phone out of my uniform skirt pocket, and begin massaging the buttons with my thumb.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm doing the right thing Hisao. I'm getting you and Emi back together."

"Okay, okay, I'll call her!"

Despite Hisao following my orders, in some small way it feels as though my heart is slowly breaking at the thought of him being single for just a few moments. Moments that are rapidly vanishing. Moments that will be gone once he calls her.

Right now, for this fraction of time, he can still be mine.

I open my mouth to speak, but just as the words that I'm sure I'll soon regret are about to come out, I hear Hisao making fumbling noises with his phone. He pushes the appropriate buttons, and I can faintly hear the beep of the phone ringing.

After saying nothing, I close my mouth like a fish and sit with a smile contradicting the heartache inside of me.

"Hello, Emi. It's me."

Ugh. I try to listen carefully in Hisao's hushed room, but either Emi doesn't reply or the phone's speaker is too quiet.

"I want to meet you. To apologise."

...

"Please."

There's a strange scrambled ranting sound from the phone. I can't make out the words.

"At the Shanghai."

A smaller garbled noise from the phone.

"That's fine. After practice then. About an hour. Okay, see you later." He hesitates for a few moments before setting the phone down on the table.

Just like that, it's all over. He's Emi's again. Now I'm back to my previous responsibility of making sure they get along.

***

"You don't have to do this Lilly."

"Of course I do. If I don't, you'll run away."

"If she sees you she'll be even angrier."

"That's why we're going early, so she won't see us enter together."

A foul mood permeating from us, as if we were a couple fallen out of love, we enter the Shanghai.

"Hello, Hisao. Hello, Lilly! A table for two?"

"No, not this time please, Yuuko. Separate tables."

"Oh...um, we're quite busy today..." Yuuko trails off inelegantly. "I can't...really...use tables inefficiently. It's against company policy." Yuuko starts wringing her sleeves with her hands.

"It's no problem, Yuuko, I'll pop to the restroom."

"Oh, it's over here, Lilly!" She gently takes a grip of my forearm.

"I know, Yuuko, thank you."

"I'll make sure there's a table for you when you return!"

I wander off tapping my cane against the floor, as the unintelligible chatter of the customers grows more distant.

***

It must be ten minutes I've been standing here now.

I know I told Yuuko I just needed the lavatory, but I feel awkward about walking out there in front of Emi and making a spectacle of myself.

Eventually, even my years of experience of sitting still and being well-behaved are tested to their very limits. I tap my cane along the tiled floor towards the door I've heard open and close so many times in the last ten minutes.

*Crash*

Through the walls, I hear the sound of porcelain shattering. I stop in my tracks. Muffled yelling belonging to Emi follows it.

"...-is...-ll your fault!...-id self-...-rk...-ou we-...-chea-...-ard...this wou-...-ve happ-..."

When the shouting stops, I hurriedly walk back into the dining area. Flustered, I forget where exactly Hisao had been sitting. I stand in the centre of the café amongst a few patrons sat quietly talking about what just happened. It doesn't take long for someone to spot me.

Yuuko's nervous, shaky voice welcomes me to the scene.

"Li-lly!"

"Yuuko – are you alright?"

"Yes, y-es, I'm okay. I think she was just...unhappy."

"Where is Emi?" I ask.

A grief-stricken male voice answers. "She stormed out."

I suppress a sigh of relief.

"I see. What did she break?"

"J-just a saucer...and a plate."

I reach into my pocket to pull out some money, but Hisao and Yuuko both interrupt simultaneously.

"It's okay, Lilly."
"Oh! It was an ac-"

"But-" I stammer. They continue talking over one another.

"It was my fault."
"Customers don't have t-"

Yuuko's pleading quickly dies down, as Hisao gets the upper hand. "Let me pay for this, Yuuko, you've already cleaned it up for us", he continues.

Yuuko makes a few wimping noises before I hear paper changing hands. I follow up.

"I'm sorry about this, Yuuko. We'll be gone in a minute."

"It's okay Lilly. Do you st-till want your own table?"

Although she can't know it, Yuuko's preposterous request heightens my mood. It's a struggle, but a smile appears on my lips. "No, no. I'll be fine here, thank you, Yuuko."

I hear her rush off. In the distance she bumps into what sounds like an unoccupied chair, before her journey fades off into imperceptibility.

I feel around for the table. Hisao notices my lack of awareness of the surroundings and holds my hand, delicately pulling me in.

"Do you think she was suspicious the last time?" I nervously ask.

"And told the nurse?"

"No...she wouldn't. She wouldn't do that, Hisao."

"Should I ask her?"

"Please don't, Hisao. I'm sure she's innocent."

Yuuko soon returns to ask Hisao and me if we'd like anything. We both order tea. It seems there's a mutual understanding that we're going to turn this fiasco into another one of our secret dates. Before Yuuko leaves, Hisao speaks up.

"Yuuko?"

Please don't ask her Hisao.

He remains silent.

Thank you Hisao. I knew you'd do the right thin-

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

"Yuuko?" I ask.

"It was my fault! It's all my fault!"

"Yuuko?" Hisao asks.

"I...I...might have...accidentally mentioned seeing you t-two the other day."

I'm speechless.

"...Why...Yuuko?" a startled sounding Hisao asks.

"I'm sorry Hisao! I d-didn't realize you were already dating..." Her voice softens to a hushed tone. "...the girl from the track."

Yuuko's on the verge of tears.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

I hear her duck up and down, most likely frantically bowing, and the customers near us seem to have noticed her and stopped chatting.

"...It's okay, Yuuko. Forget about it." Hisao sympathizes with her plight.

I reassure her with understanding of my own. "Yes, I agree with Hisao. Even if you hadn't let it slip that we’re…having tea together, everyone would have found out some other way, I'm sure."

Hisao makes no reply, leaving me to believe he agrees with my notion.

We sip our drinks.

"You know, her Mom found out about us."

"She did?" Worry almost overcomes me.

"She asked me to stop hurting her."

“I think she's right, Hisao.”

"And that I should do whatever I want."

I walked right into that one. I don't think he should just trample over other's feelings. I don't even think he should do what I want.

"I think I love you", Hisao calmly utters.

I remain silent.

"Do you love me?"

"I... I don't know Hisao."

I just...I can't tell him now. I'm not ready. Too much has been happening lately. I hate all this drama, and I hate that it revolves around me. I can't wait to get away from it.

"I'm going away again tomorrow."

"...What?" Hisao sounds as if I'd just told him I’m married.

"It's only for the weekend. With Hanako, to Hokkaido."

"Just the two of you?" He cautiously asks.

"I'm sorry, Hisao. I do enjoy your company, but I need this time to myself."

"Can I call you?"

I think I can allow that. "Very well. Hanako and I look forward to hearing from you tomorrow Hisao."

Chapter 10 – PoV: Hisao

A weekend of avoiding the roof, the nurse and the track.

A weekend of wondering if the woman I think I love thinks she loves me. I almost don't want her to come back for fear that she says 'no'.

I called Lilly this morning. Pointless. She was still on the train. It was nice to hear her voice again though. Nice is an understatement; it was wonderful. I didn't dare bring the subject of us up. She spent most of the two minute conversation talking about how chilly she and Hanako found the station. When she was finished, it was clear that she knew why I was calling. She asked me not to call her again and to wait until she came back for her answer.

As if that wasn't enough on my mind, I've got a weekend of dodging the woman I used to love as well. I'm told by the student council that Emi has been trying to find me all over school for the last few days. Conveniently I'm always somewhere else whenever Emi does her clumsy detective routine between her lessons and track practice.

Suddenly my pocket vibrates. A text message, from Lilly perhaps? No, my hopes were too high: 'hiso meet e on roof now pls'. There's only one girl at this school with such abysmal grammar and spelling: Emi.

I'm tired of avoiding her. Whatever hideous punishment Emi has in store for me, I might as well get it over with. She's going to find me sooner or later, and if it's an unexpected encounter her behaviour might be a bit more erratic than a carefully planned meeting.

That said, I still don't want to deal with her craziness.

I delay the meeting as long as possible.

For ten minutes I stand in my shared bathroom, sipping increasingly small quantities of water. My mouth is dry from nerves, but I don't want to drink so much that I'll wet myself when Emi no doubt scares me senseless from her shouting.

Fearing she'll be in even more of a mood if I'm late, I slowly drag myself up the metal stairway to the roof.

"Hey, Hisao." Emi welcomes me to the scene with a bland greeting, and a tired look in her sore, red eyes.

"Hi, Emi. Sorry I'm late. I had a surprise test to complete."

Upon hearing my lie, her grin vanishes quicker than a bullet train at full speed. "No, you didn't."

"...Were you spying on me?"

She lowers her eyelids over her miserable green pupils. "It was just a guess, Hisao."

Can she make me feel like dirt any more? It's my fault, it's my fault. I knew what I was in for. It's all worth it for Lilly.

"I'm kidding! Miki's in the same class as you, remember?"

Oh, fiddlesticks. I really am an idiot. "Er..."

"Forget it. So..."

I take a deep breath.

"How's Lilly? Miki told me she was away."

I don't want to think about her right now.

"Not good, huh?"

"She's chilly."

Emi narrows her eyes. “I think you owe me some truth, Hisao."

I can't think of anything to tell her.

"I guess you can find someone else to love then?"

I sigh. I guess I deserved that. "Look, all I want to do is just-"

"No, no, no!" Emi seems to vehemently disagree with my forward approach to calming her down. "When you said you wanted to meet me, all you did was apologise and tell your side of the story. You never gave me a chance to explain how I felt."

She pauses.

"This isn't the first time a boy has left me. After I lost m-..."

Emi stops herself and starts tearing up.

"I never thought I'd get over it. But I did. It was the hardest thing I've ever done, but I did it.

"And then after my boyfriend left me the last time, I didn't think I'd ever get over it again. I didn't think anyone would ever cheer me up.

"But my Mom did. If it wasn't for her..."

She loses control of her emotions and starts to break down in tears.

"...I'd still be in my room crying! But e-even you!" She tries to wipe her face.

I grab a balled-up tissue from my pocket, and offer it to her.

"No!" she shouts. "No! I don't forgive you Hisao! I'll never forgive you!"

Emi storms out, salty water pouring out of her tear ducts.

Chapter 11 – PoV: Lilly

I'm on my way to the Shanghai. How appropriate. Even more appropriate since it was Emi Ibarazaki who asked me to come here, considering last time. If what happened then occurs again, she - and possibly I - are going to be on the receiving end of whatever the coffee shop equivalent of 'barring' someone is. Besides, this is time I should be using to study, bearing in mind the imminent exams.

Akiko, one of the other waitresses, greets me, at which point I state that I'm here to meet a female student, who may or may not be enveloped in an atmosphere cuttable with a knife. As she's busy politely umm-ing and ahh-ing, a familiar voice calls out to me.

"Lilly!"

"Hisao?"

"Hello, Lilly!"

“Just 'Hello'? Come along, Hisao.”

"I mean… welcome back, Lilly! I mean… It's so good to see you again! No, I mean..."

That's the Hisao I know.

"To be honest, I was-"

"...expecting Emi?" I interrupt.

"Yeah. How did you know?"

I smile. "She asked me to meet her here."

"That's… kind of odd."

"I have to concur." Does she want to talk to both of us together? I wonder… Hopefully not.

Akiko approaches us. After an uncertain moment, she starts reading the menu to me, but I politely inform her it's not necessary and ask for tea. She quickly takes Hisao's order, too, and disappears.

"Did you enjoy Hokkaido?"

I give a soft laugh.

"Very much so. It was hotter than I mentioned on the phone though. When Hanako and I went for a walk into the city, we were perspiring constantly."

"Did Hanako enjoy the trip?"

Oh, Hisao. He knows the quickest way to my heart is through my friends.

"I'm pleased to say she did. She and I had a wonderful time." I pause. "But...I did...miss you."

I brace myself ready to shout for an ambulance, as I assume he's exploding with joy at this point.

"I missed you too, Lilly. I missed you more than I've missed anyone ever before."

All that tension. His sentimental happiness doesn't overwhelm him, but having my feelings reciprocated for the first time almost seems like some sort of wonderful fifth sense.

The conversation develops a lull as we both realise our united feelings for each other. But I can't forget about...

"How is Emi?"

"She's… okay."

"Hmm?"

"We had a chat a few days ago."

"How did it go?"

"I screwed it up completely."

"Oh dear Hisao. Perhaps that's why she's not here now – she might not be able to face you, or us, again."

“She's strong, Lilly.”

I lower my eyelids in worriment. I want to protest, but if we're an item now, sometimes I'll have to bow to his judgement.

“If you say so, Hisao.”

Akiko returns with our drinks and gently sets them on the table for a change. I can hear her rotate my cup on its saucer so the handle faces my direction.

I smile in her direction. She walks off, her duties complete, when Hisao's phone vibrates on the table.

I hear him scoop it up.

"It's from Emi", he says.

"Might I enquire as to the content of the message?"

"It says...'You two can have a real date now'."

End.

My my, such homewrecker.

And Chapter 4 came off as rather... rapey, the whole, Lilly telling him to stop, repeatedly, eventually having to physically prevent him from kissing her. What ever happened to "no means no"?