Chapter 66: Time

“Did you hear what I just told those boys?” Ishi asked, certain that there was no way she was too far to hear him speak.

“I was about to come back.” She answered him. “So… Yes.”

“Well, if you’re going to rejoin the rest of us, then let’s go.” He didn’t want to be carrying these two full plates of food forever. So the shorter a conversation with those things weighing him down, the better. Plus it would be better to not have to talk directly to her about what happened. Unfortunately…

“Actually, can we delay that for a little bit?” After he had chased off those boys, this was the first time all day that she was able to talk to him uninterrupted. “Here, come with me.” Rinse took the boy by the arm. Since he was carrying two plates, there was little resistance coming from him.

Back around the corner that she came from, the idol took the pair to a tiny little cove away from everyone else. With the rock structures obscuring vision, the two of them could safely to whatever they wanted without anyone seeing them.

“I guess if you just want to talk, I can live with that.” Ishi spoke as he placed down the food onto some convenient rocks. Once he did so, the boy quickly grabbed a bite to eat, as he hadn’t done so all day. “But I’m not exactly the best person you could be having a chat with.”

“You really shouldn’t knock yourself down like that. We’re friends, so why should I care about who you are?” She nudged his arm playfully, signaling to him that she no longer had her down mood. “Besides, how can you feel that way after all that talk about how you say I’m just a normal girl?”

“It has nothing to do with our status.” He couldn’t care any less about their positions in life. “I just thought that someone so cheerful like you wouldn’t want to hang out with someone as negative like me. Especially since we argue a lot.” It was true that their personalities didn’t seem very similar at all. If anything, some people would view them as complete opposites.

“Well, let’s just say that it’s something that I want to do.” If it was up to her, she’d certainly have hung out with him more often today. Then again, being the one to have a private spot away from everyone was nice too. Especially since it meant getting a chance to share dinner with Ishi.

“Yeah well, I’m not against doing it either.” There was no way to twist it. With Rinse, he felt less upset with the interaction compared to most others that he had throughout his life. That was despite their occasional battle of words. “Now eat up so we don’t have to fill the air.” The boy chewed a bit onto a rib bone, draining it clean of any traces of meat.

“Actually…” She wasn’t done yet, nor was the idol planning on ending this so soon. “What was up with all those words you said about me?”

“Here we go…” He wasn’t looking forward to having to explain his position to her.

“If I wasn’t an idol, would that make us better friends?”

“Doubt it.” He answered. Perhaps if she acted the same way, then it could happen. Assuming that Rinse was just a regular girl who moved in next door, as well as sat besides him that fateful day. He still wouldn’t want to chat with her all that much. “Plus then some things wouldn’t have happened.” Otoya and Koto wouldn’t have practically made him hang out if she wasn’t as popular as she was. The arcade and movie theater would never have happened, which would’ve resulted in a never having that talk with Youna and becoming her friend.

She was also the one who stood by his side when he was accused of stealing money. If it wasn’t for her, perhaps his relationship with Ryugi would become truly broken. And if she never invited him to the production studio that day, then he would’ve never learned about Chinae’s true identity.

Pretty much most of the friends he had gained recently would’ve never happened if it wasn’t for Rinse.

“I see…” She looked down at the sand after hearing his belief about their small chance of becoming friends. The girl was squatting down besides him as she quietly munched on a piece of bean sprout.

“You know what?” He broke their slight tension when he came to a realization of what his life had become. “I’m actually glad you’re an idol.”

“Hmm?” She gently turned her head towards him for a mere glance. “But what about-”

“That’s what I believed in that moment, but when I really think about it. I can confidently say that my life is better because you came into it.”

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“You really mean that?” Her jaw dropped, which resulted in the small bean sprout to fall out of her mouth. “I mean, but you’re always so annoyed with everything around me.”

“Well, I guess the quiet life I was looking for in high school wasn’t actually what I wanted.” It was not as if he knew how that felt. Events and people were always getting in the way of the vision that he dreamed for himself. Then again, perhaps that’s just how his life was going to be, and that he was getting to the point of being used to it. Not that it would stop him from complaining about things that he thought was stupid. “And I don’t want you to tell anyone else about it, but I hope that your life is better because I’m in it too.”

Despite his statement sounding like it should’ve been a major revelation, it came as no surprise to Rinse. She had spent a good portion of her time learning about him through his actions. Even with his harsh words, there was kindness in his actions. Perhaps to some it was tough love, maybe without the love there, but he was always there to prevent disaster from striking and ruining everything.

After all, why else would he come here to her all by himself?

“It definitely has.” She giggled with a small, warm smile hidden away from his gaze. This boy had somehow truly made her happy when she was feeling down all because of his words. Normally, people say light positive things to do so, yet it was when he disparaged her job that got to her the most. Even when he was insulting her, that was where the boy struck the chord that mattered the most. That he had always seen her for who she truly was.

Rinse turned to thank him for everything, when her body froze. Wh-what was this feeling? Why was it that when she looked at him, her heart skipped a beat? Through out all her experience, the idol had never felt this way about someone. This feeling, this emotion, was this… Love? Her hands were shaking much more unsteadily than after a big concert. Her face felt like it was burning as thoughts of Ishi flooded her mind.

Tonight, she came to the realization of something that had been hidden for a while now. Something that only stirred when she witnessed him with another girl, but had tried to block out of her mind. When he revealed that he saw her as a girl, her mind finally broke past the barrier that she saw him as a boy for the first time. Tonight… Tonight was when Rinse had fallen in love with Ishi.

She turned her head down to hide her blushes from him. Somehow she had become a bit self-conscious, especially since she was wearing little more than a bikini.

“It’s really beautiful, isn’t it?” His question forced her to come a bit out of the temporary shell to respond.

“What is?”

“The sunset?” He looked at her puzzled that she somehow wasn’t looking at the same thing. “Don’t you think it looks nice?”

“Oh right.” The sun was hitting the horizon at the water. It gleamed a warm red and orange light over the sea. The sand they stood over glowed and shimmer from the rays casting over them. “It does look wonderful.”

“Heh, guess that makes another mark for everyone else to be jealous of me about.” If he was the type to keep a list, then his idol checklist would get another mark on watching a sunset with her. Apparently they did a lot of so-called special moments together that drove the other boys to really take issue with his relationship.

“Too bad we can’t keep that a secret from everyone.” She replied. Since he had sneaked off to see her, anyone with a brain would know that they shared in this moment upon their return. “Unless we don’t come back to them.”

“Nah, they’d probably think something else happened.” The first thing he’d imagine them accuse him of doing was… Well doing Rinse. For some reason they started to really question his motives for continuing to hang out with the idol despite the multiple times he had stated his future goals. “Plus I gotta find Koto so we can go home together.” His mom would get mad if he abandoned his younger cousin. That was a woman he certainly didn’t want to really get ticked off.

“And we need to properly throw out our food.” Rinse commented on their mostly empty plates. The only things left on top were the bones from their ribs. It would be disrespectful, as well as a crime, to litter on this beautiful beach.

“Right.” He got up and picked up his own plate. “So what do you say? Time to rejoin the others?” Ishi reached out a hand to help her back to the girl’s feet. For a moment, she hesitated. Now that her feelings had been realized, an act of holding his hand suddenly took on a new light.

“Let’s.” She calmed herself and took his hand. Maybe it was because she was more conscious about it, but his touch felt so gentle and soft holding her.

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