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anakiddwrites“A-alright… so, everything begins with your stance…”
Once the decision to practice together was settled, Mayoi timidly positioned himself behind Hajime, speaking softly and guiding his limbs to the standard position - all while without touching him yet. Teaching someone under pressure or with a specific goal in mind was one thing, but now Mayoi had found himself in a completely new situation with someone he didn’t know well, making the initial awkwardness unavoidable.
Thankfully Hajime was a soothing presence, giving him time to adjust and the reassurance he was willing to follow his lead. The dancing skills seemed a reasonable choice to focus on, since they had mentioned it and Mayoi secretly knew the online hate had targeted him in that sense as well.
“Stance… right…! Like this?”
Puffing his chest and perking up with a determined face, Hajime froze in place with closed fists and legs. But Mayoi was thankful the rabbit couldn’t see his expression, unfortunately cringing beyond his control.
Oh dear. That was… so bad.
An adorable effort, but clumsy nonetheless.
Mayoi would give him the benefit of the doubt since Hajime was still recovering from those stressful attacks, along with the awkwardness of training with a stranger. But it didn’t change the reality that he was presenting a stiff body with compromised balance and wouldn’t hold up stronger moves for long.
One step at the time, though.
“Hmmm.. j-just… s-spreadyourlegsabitmore… N-NO! I m-mean…!”
Mayoi wished he was wearing his gloves to express himself with less overthink about inappropriate touches, but it was too late. His shaky fingers hovered Hajime’s hips, face already growing red with the inescapable closeness until he decided to stand next to his junior instead, feeling the intense purple gaze on him all the time.
“S-so… keep your stance wider… and your body lowered.” Clearing his throat, Mayoi positioned himself as an example, looking at Hajime. “Because when you’re moving forward, balance is the key.”
“R-right… stance wide… body lowered… balance is the key.” Hajime repeated attentively, trying to follow the visual reference on his side. It did help and his stance improved, pretty much to Mayoi’s relief.
“Good, good! That’s the way, Hajime-san…! The starting point is essential to any following step. Are you ready to continue?”
Hajime nodded with a bright smile, taking a deep breath and receiving a soft smile in return, Mayoi also warming up for a quality coaching session.
“P-perfect…! Let’s try a simple coaster step, hm? Right foot… back... left foot… back. And one more time…”
Hajime watched Mayoi graciously demonstrate the basic move, assuming he wanted to get a grasp of his abilities and weaknesses before trying anything bolder. In any case, he already could see the senior was invested in helping and attentive to details, deserving the best of him too even in the simplest things.
“Right! Right foot… back… left foot… back…. right foot… left foot…” He started following Mayoi’s steps to the beat of his finger snaps, at first in a slow pace easy to tag along with.
“Right… left… right… left…” Mayoi started to pick up the speed, watching Hajime’s eyes slowly widening and his body pushing a harder effort. “Look up, not at my feet. Right, left, right, left… follow the beat, Hajime-san.”
“Right, left, right, left, right… the b-beat… right… left…”
Pretty much to Hajime’s frustration, the easy exercise became demanding very quickly and he felt his mind slipping up, body growing uncomfortably self-conscious and expression way more troubled than an idol should have while dancing. Mayoi noticed the tension, already able to predict the moment he would inevitably stumble and fall, defeated by such a simple warm up.
“Right. Left. Right. Left. Right…”
Still, Mayoi sustained the pace and just watched the fast beat and sequence of three steps overwhelming the bunny to the limit.
“R-righhh… le-lef…. ri- WAAH! ”
The fatal moment arrived when Hajime missed a step, losing balance and about to hit the floor if his senior’s hands weren’t there to hold his fall at the last second.
For a few moments they stayed in silence, Hajime catching his breath and too embarrassed to say anything. Mayoi helped him to stand up, taking his hands off him very fast.
That was the second time he had held Hajime’s fall in the span of a day.
“.... s-sorry for t-touching you suddenly, Hajime-san… a-are you hurt…”
The guilt for his actions at the rooftop was still lingering on his heart, so he wished the apology could count more or less for that as well. And seeing Hajime just shaking his head and holding back upset tears, the urges to comfort him just grew stronger.
“I-it’s okay, though! It looks like an easy sequence, but it requires a fair share of abilities… you did-”
“... awful . That was awful.” Hajime blurted out, looking up at Mayoi with a frustrated frown. “ Please be honest with me, Ayase-senpai. Sorry for being so blunt, but you don’t have to coddle me.”
Mayoi held his breath, taken aback by the confrontation and realizing that sugar coating his own genuine conclusions would be insulting at best and cruel at worst. Despite his own insecurities, he shouldn’t forget that Hajime was a professional idol like any other in the building and deserved to be treated as such.
“... it should be an easy sequence for an idol of your experience level, but your subpar concentration and balance ruined your performance too fast. I believe you are taking it seriously, but it’s concerning that your mind isn’t in the right place to get in the zone like you should.”
Whoa.
As expected, a heavy atmosphere hit the room, but after some moments Hajime just swallowed dry and rubbed his eyes, feeling he had been splashed with cold water. Freezing to the bones, but forcing him awake.
“...ah.. haha… thank you… thank you, Ayase-senpai. I can see that. I’m really sorry for disappointing you so fast…” Ultimately he forced a smile, even if genuinely grateful. As much as it was hard to listen, the feedback was more healing and respectful than any sheltering kindness could be right now.
“A-ah, sorry! Sorry, I didn’t mean to be harsh, that was… presumptuous of me.… you didn’t disappoint me, please. I know you are doing your best…!”
“No, no, you aren’t presumptuous or harsh, there's a lot of difference between objective criticism and mean comments for the sake of it… I asked for honesty, so really… I appreciate it, Ayase-senpai.”
Hajime discreetly looked away and wiped stubborn tears, unaware Mayoi’s heart was heavy for secretly knowing the reason behind those words. He wanted to comfort his junior, but influencing him to say more details just to keep an act would be even more cruel and hypocritical, out of the question.
But while Mayoi was stressing to find something proper to say, Hajime sighed heavily, patting his own cheeks and looking up to his senior in the eyes, getting his full attention again.
“... right… right.. Ayase-senpai… I should have been honest from the start too, sorry! But… truth is, when you offered help I just felt so worked up… b-because… it felt too good of an opportunity!”
“H-huh? H-Hajime-san??!!”
“It just… I heard from Shiratori-kun and Kazehaya-senpai that you are a great teacher… pushed their limits… and helped ALKALOID a lot… so you don’t need to hold back with me…! Please! I-if… if I’m worth the trouble, that is…! Sorry for the bother! I'm just… so tired of feeling weak… f-falling behind…”
Hajime blurted it all out at once, completely red and slightly trembling like a scared bunny confessing his sins, embarrassed of his insecurities. But Mayoi was just delighted with the adorable sight of those pleading eyes trying so hard to show the resolve behind that confession of weakness, grasping at strings to not break down. A pure image of vulnerable cuteness impossible to resist or look away.
The switch has been flipped in a single flick.
So Mayoi managed to wear his largest smile and speak in his sweetest voice to reassure that lost little rabbit begging for guidance.
“Hajime-san… you're not a bother at all. If you still want my help, I’m willing to. If we stopped at the first slip, we… wouldn’t be idols, right?”
The bunny’s bright smile followed by a thankful nod was already the first reward and likely the only one he would need. Mayoi just nodded in return, giving Hajime one single headpat like a blessing.
And a warning.
“Begging for mercy from now on is absolutely a no-go, hm? ♥”
He whispered close and winked, making Hajime blink twice in confusion and agree on instinct, staring deeply at Mayoi like he was seeing him for the first time. The change in the atmosphere was notable, but he had no plans to backpedal after begging for help so dramatically.
So he just watched Mayoi calmly walk towards his bag, taking out a few curious objects. Well, one was just his phone, but the others were chalk and a Newton’s cradle, surely unusual props for a dance class. A moment later he was coming back to the middle of the room in slow steps, eyes on the phone screen when Falling Wonderland started to play without warning.
“... Hajime-san’s abilities have improved since the oldest songs like Joyful Box, but Ra*bits choreographies usually aren’t demanding or complex. That’s also true regarding the collabs with Double Face and Ryuuseitai, performances that aren’t heavily tied to dance as well.”
Mayoi’s attitude and tone were almost like Ibara had possessed his body for a business presentation where the topic was Hajime himself, making the bunny completely speechless. He was almost expecting a slideshow to pop up at any moment, as impracticable as it could be.
“But Falling Wonderland is an exception and a good example of your current skills. Your legs are strong enough to jump high and your stamina is fine too… the issue lies in balance and rhythm to sustain complex moves and keep up with a group. In that sense, your body control and awareness are ones of a beginner rather than a professional idol.”
Mayoi graciously halted in front of Hajime with an analytical gaze and the bunny didn’t even have room to feel upset or offended, only fascinated, a bit intimidated… and exposed, as if the senior’s teal eyes were scanning the very depths of his soul.
“.. A-Ayase-senpai, you… c-can tell all that just from the music videos and that quick exercise…?”
The answer was just a soft enigmatic smile that only gave Hajime chills.
Without further explanation, Mayoi turned back and started to scribble something on the floor with the chalk, taking his time under Hajime’s confused stare and the ongoing Ra*bits songs.
In about five minutes, a shape similar to a hopscotch game was done, cute circles numbered from 1 to 10 creating an irregular path to a finish line written ‘HEAVEN’. Only then Mayoi turned off the music, stretching his arms casually and placing the Newton’s cradle on the floor, poking the spheres to start a fast paced beat.
“Keep your eyes on me.”
He demanded with a firm yet calm gaze that gave Hajime no choice but to hold his breath and obey, almost mesmerized by his slender figure.
Positioning himself on the starting line, Mayoi brushed a strand of hair behind his ear and stepped on the first circle like a swan’s touch to a crystal clear lake, looking ahead and proudly spreading wings. A large smile came to his features as his body darted forward, following the exact beat of the cradle and hitting each number of the path in a perfect rhythmic evolution.
Fluttering yet fierce, precise and expressive. Hajime really couldn’t take his eyes off it even if he wanted to, covering his mouth and almost tearing up witnessing a simple demonstration turning into an intense performance.
Once Mayoi’s feet reached ‘heaven’, standing millimeters from Hajime’s frozen body in front of him, the persistent cradle was the only sound in the room. Mayoi’s expression was totally peaceful in comparison to Hajime’s intense glare and shaking knees, his spirit swaying in many different ways.
“7.3 seconds.” Mayoi checked his watch, breaking the silence before looking at the bunny again. “Since it’s your first time, I’ll allow 10 seconds.”
“...a h?”
“Ok, 10.5 at maximum. But don’t abuse it.” He sighed, tilting his head as a sign for Hajime to go to the starting line, expecting him to understand his challenge without more questions.
Obviously there was no room for bargains or refusals, so Hajime swallowed dry and walked in silence to the 1st circle, trying to control his shaking legs.
Meanwhile Mayoi paused the Newton's cradle, restarting its motion with half of the speed. At least some relief to Hajime’s heart, since the previous pacing looked completely impossible for him.
Or any human, to be totally honest.
“Anytime now, Hajime-san.” Mayoi noted, crossing arms and watching him from the sidelines like he had his life in his hands.
And at this very moment, Hajime wouldn’t question that he really did.
Then, once the spheres hit one more time, Hajime stepped on the first circle of ten separating him from heaven, hopping forward across the irregular path.
“ Again! ”
Mayoi’s deep voice echoed in the room along with a single clap, forcing Hajime to stop before reaching the 5th circle. Startled, he almost lost balance and stumbled on his knees, looking confused at his coach.
“Bu-”
“Ten seconds and a half passed, so start over.”
And like an obedient student, he swallowed the frustration and returned to the starting line.
“Again.”
He hasn't even reached the 4th this time.
“Again.”
He reached the 6th circle for the first time.
“Again.”
After more than 10 tries, it hurt to end on the 7th circle.
“Again.”
Relapsing to 3rd and 4th circles after a few more tries.
“Again. Again. Again. Again. Again. Again. Again. Again…”
The voice never became angrier or impatient neither kind or merciful, just a cold alert counting the successive failures. Every time Hajime looked at Mayoi looking for a tip, encouragement or adjustment, only empty teal eyes looked back with no sign of sympathy.
Begging for mercy wasn’t an option, after all.
It was like he had all the time in the world to stay there, a demon from hell fulfilling his duty of punishing sinners in an eternal loop of suffering. And everything he needed for that was some chalk and a Newton’s cradle.
Lost in how many times the cycle restarted, the numbers started to blend in Hajime’s vision and his loud breathing was mixed with the endless sound of spheres hitting each other. Sweat coated his back, torso and neck, legs hurting like he was running an infinite marathon in the void.
But once again he stretched his body, huffed and felt the anger and frustration guiding him in that twisted path, pounding each circle with growing strength and finally seeing heaven for the first time, lifting his leg to the last circle with a sliver of faith.
“Again.”
But the unrelenting timer crushed his hopes and dreams at the last millisecond.
“UGH!!!”
Hajime trampled on the heaven sign before turning his back away from the path, covering his face to hide the tears and shame. He couldn’t stop his whole body from trembling, feeling his sanity hanging on a thread and the nightmares with hopscotch incoming.
“Hajime-san.” Mayoi approached him without any emotion in his voice, touching his shoulder and making him whine in fear, still hiding his face.
“Rehydrate and breathe.” Mayoi insisted, holding his wrist and placing a sports drink on his hand. Hajime just nodded, unable to look at him and swallowing it all very fast, realizing he was really too thirsty to function, probably for a while now.
“... c-can I… get just a minute…” He sighed, begging quietly and gripping the empty bottle. There was no sign of crying or giving up in his voice, just a calm resignation, so Mayoi just crossed his arms and raised eyebrows.
“I can give you a minute. Nothing more.”
Hajime nodded, whispering a thanks and walking to his bag on the corner, crouching in front of it. After wiping some of the sweat with a towel, he took a deep breath, buried his face in it… and muffled a scream as loud as he physically could.
“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!”
Mayoi widened his eyes at Hajime venting out his extreme frustration and watching him return to the starting line in a gracious walk and empty eyes, like nothing in the world could ever bother him.
… the break lasted less than a minute, so fair enough.
“... remember what I said at the start, Hajime-san…” He whispered, holding back a pleased smile. “Concentrate. Put your whole body into it. ”
“.. everything starts with your stance...” Hajime repeated in a whisper, closing eyes and taking his deepest breath. The sound of the cradle became so much louder in his ears and the room seemed to shrink, the irregular path to heaven looking wider than ever.
Maybe his sanity was really slipping out. Every inch of his body felt so light and under his total control, from the fingertips to the soles of his feet, hyper aware of the blood pumping inside his veins. But at the same time, the fears and hesitations seemed to numb behind a veil, almost out of his consciousness’ reach.
Once again his body leaped forward in sync with the giant spheres pounding in his ears, feet stomping on the bright circles and the impact pulsing under his skin at each step.
Everything was a blur until he heard the sound of hands clapping with no cold warnings alongside it. Instead, blinking and looking down, he noticed one single word written in blue chalk under his two feet.
HEAVEN.
“9.8 seconds.” Mayoi’s proud voice and calm smile brought him back to reality, along with a gentle touch on his shoulder. “After 57 attempts, you reached Heaven, Hajime-san.”
Mayoi had to hold Hajime’s fall for the third time, helping him to safely sit on his knees to recover and offering him another sports drink, which was promptly chugged up.
“.... fifty… seven… ah… ahha… hahaha…” Between giggles mixed with tears, Hajime pulled his sweaty hair out of his face, feeling kinda loopy and in disbelief that he was really free from that cycle of hell. Mayoi was giggling with him, patting his back and giving him space to ground himself after the high.
“... very well done, Hajime-san… ♪ Now…” Speaking softly again, he held Hajime’s chin up and tilted head with a large shark smile. “Let’s try one more time, now with a smile on.”
“... ãh?”
“Idols need to smile no matter what, hm?”
Hajime didn’t dare to ask if he was joking, painfully sure it was as serious as he could be and hell wasn’t letting him go yet.
“... idols need… to smile, yes....” He repeated, nodding and feeling the hope sucked from his soul again as he was taken back to the starting line.
Now 1000% sure hopscotchs and Newton's cradles would replace the Yumenosaki empty stage in his nightmares.
“♪ ♪ ♪ ~”
“Very well done, Hajime-san! You just took 24 more attempts to do the full course with a smile! And a final time of 9.5 seconds!!! Congratulations!”
Mayoi’s enthusiastic applause could barely reach Hajime’s exhausted brain, his body sprawled on the floor completely soaked in sweat, tummy peeking out and a disturbing smile stuck on his face.
“There, there, rehydrate, rehydraaaaaaate ~ ♪” Mayoi kneeled and helped him to sit, giving him a sports drink bottle with a straw.
“... Shiratori-kun… didn’t exaggerate… at all…”
It was the first thing he was able to mumble, dizzy and slowly chugging the water. He could feel proud of his achievements later, when his muscles weren’t hurting so bad and his mind wasn’t jumbled. For now, everything just felt like a trip to hell and back.
“But Hajime-san was really impressive…! You didn’t give up and completed both assignments before 100 attempts, finishing at the 81st! That’s something to be very proud of!” Mayoi had the biggest smile while petting the blue hair, supportive and warm, totally different from the strict teacher from just moments ago.
“... 81… attempts…” Hajime repeated, a shiver running through his spine as rational thoughts slowly returned into place. “What would happen… if I failed at 100…”
“.. let us not talk about it .” The ominous whisper and chuckle were enough to convince Hajime he didn’t really wanna know too. “Drink more water, hm?”
“Y-yes, please… more water…” He accepted one more bottle, each sip bringing back his lifeforce and grounding him in the real world again.
Looking back at the path traced on the floor, it seemed so small and harmless, completely different from the intimidating hell trapping him for an eternity that objectively didn’t last more than 20 minutes.
A deep sigh escaped him and he closed his eyes, feeling the calluses on his feet, legs hurting and muscles begging for relief. But at the same time, a genuine newfound peace of mind was making him able to open a smile again.
It was like that intense practice had exorcised the last traces of the hatred and insecurities poisoning his heart and he finally could move on.
“A-ah…”
When Hajime opened his eyes again, Mayoi was gazing directly at him from up close, resting chin on hands and lost in thoughts.
“ Yick! S-sorry, I didn’t m-mean to stare!!! I j-just… wanna make sure… Ha-Hajime-san is ok…” The rabbit’s surprised face brought him back, blinking fast and averting eyes, the coach mode gone in favor of the usual timid Mayoi.
“... ehe ~ no problem, Ayase-senpai. I feel better already, don’t worry please. ~ ♪” Hajime reassured, actually endeared with his senpai’s quirkiness and happy to see different sides of him in such a short amount of time.
“And… Thank you so much for the help. I feel I learned a lot… not just about dance, but about myself and my needs... I promise I won’t let you down and I’ll work hard!”
“A-ah… you could never let me down, Hajime-san… I m-mean… if it even means anything, I’m proud of you already! I’m glad that even someone like me could be of help…”
Mayoi couldn’t control the warmth growing on his cheeks thanks to Hajime’s natural kindness spreading in the room like flowers’ perfume. But the effect was mutual, since his supportive words also brought a warm wave of happiness to the bunny’s heart, taking him by surprise.
“... o-of course it means a lot…! I’m really grateful, Ayase-senpai… I’m glad we met here today… you are amazing…” Hajime confessed, brushing his hair behind his ear and cogitating telling Mayoi about the issues tormenting him, motivated by the comforting atmosphere.
“... g-glad…? F-for real…?” Mayoi blinked, genuinely surprised and inevitably starting to feel overwhelmed with the waterfall of nice words and gentleness, insecurities urging him to protest it now the adrenaline of coaching had worn down.
But before anything more was said, the unsolicited loud rumble of Mayoi’s stomach blasted in the room and interrupted their inner turmoil.
“YICK?!”
“.. A-Ayase-senpai…?” Hajime tilted his head in concern, while Mayoi immediately covered his face with both hands and gasped a noise, wishing the floor would open and swallow him alive, ending his misery.
“S… s-sorry, sorry, so-sooooorry, sorryyyyy Hajime-sa-san….!!! P-please don’t mind me!!!” He shook his head fast and turned on his back, still crouched and curled on himself. “M-my failure of a b-body is so rude even in a moment like this, soooooorry,,,,.... s-sorryforbeingalive…”
“R-rude?” Hajime’s concern turned up to a hundred seeing his senior so troubled and probably at the verge of a panic attack. “F-feeling hungry is normal, please don’t worry, Ayase-senpai…? We’ve been training for a while… Did you have lunch?”
Hajime crawled around him to talk on the same level, even though Mayoi’s head was buried in his arms and knees. He just shook his head, speaking in a low voice like a child who was caught doing mischief.
“.. I d-didn’t eat anything today…” And now he regretted his choices, even if the only reason was the fear of being a bother and grossing others out.
“Eh?! That’s not good!!!” Hajime tried to ignore the concerning guilty tone, gears reswitching to his caring side.
“Ayase-senpai, we are idols, we need to take care of our bodies… ah, I know…! Actually I’m hungry too after so much exercise… I have a few lunches in the kitchen, why don’t we go grab some together?”
“TOGETHER?” Mayoi’s surprise surpassed his shame and he looked up to Hajime in shock and disbelief. “H-Hajime-san’s food? N-no, I could never… I s-should not….,,,, s-sorry,,,,”
Truth is, deep down his heart jumped in excitement with the idea of sharing lunch with a lovely junior, consequently making him feel even more guilty and dirty. The vent exit was feeling more and more inviting to run to, but he didn’t want to give up and be even more rude.
Hajime scratched his head, taking a good look at Mayoi and noticing his nervous shaking. He was obviously overwhelmed and ashamed, on top of being hungry and the last thing Hajime wanted was to push him to a breaking point under the excuse of being helpful.
“Hmhm.. so…” Hajime slowly took some steps back, giving him more personal space. “What about it, hm? I can bring you a lunch box and you can… eat when you feel comfortable? I really don’t mind sharing, especially after you looked over me so attentively and trained me… let me pay it back, at least?”
Mayoi stayed silent for a few moments, struggling with the urges to push away the earnest kindness. He should be better than this at this point, he wanted to be better than this, but each new situation was a risk of his bad habits pulling him back to the swamp of isolation. Even though he was doing his very best day after day.
But after he had forced Hajime to face his weakness and fears with a harsh challenge… It would be even more shameful if he couldn’t try to do the same, at least a little bit.
“... f-fine…” He whispered, nodding slightly and looking away. “S-sorry for the bother...”
“It’s not a problem!” Hajime's expression brightened up with the small victory, relieved that Mayoi accepted the proposal. “I’ll be back soon, so please don’t leave…!”
Hajime hopped up and left the room in fast steps, powering through his muscle pain. He could only hope some minutes alone would help Mayoi to ground himself a little and not sink deeper in paranoia and anxiety.
“Once he eats it’ll get better, I hope… it’s not like I don’t understand.” He mused to himself in the empty hallways, thinking back at all the times he froze, panicked and almost fainted for the smallest reasons, plagued with the guilt of feeling like a burden to his friends and family. A struggle he wouldn’t wish on anyone.
Thankfully he had grown stronger at least a little with everyone’s support, so it was his turn to give back to anyone in need. Especially an attentive senior who helped him with his selfish demands when they barely knew each other.
“It’s selfish, but… I kinda want it to change as well… maybe…” He whispered like a confession while taking the boxes out of the fridge, checking them to make sure it was the right food… and having a last minute idea, placing a lavender sachet there before closing the box again, hoping Mayoi would make good use of it.
“I think you need it more than me now… ~ ♪”
With the certainty that he had done everything at his reach to help, Hajime bolted back to the practice room and smiled in relief at finding Mayoi still there, sitting on a chair and writing something on his clipboard. The path to heaven had been cleaned and the infamous cradle put away too, no trace of agony left for posterity.
“Ayase-senpai… I’m back…” He announced gently, approaching in calm steps. “How do you feel?”
“A-ah… Hajime-san…” Mayoi looked up timidly, calmer but still embarrassed. “I’m.. I’m ok, sorry for worrying you… you didn’t have to give me your food…”
“No problem, Ayase-senpai! I’m happy to share and I made lunches for the week. It’s just simple tuna rice balls… but I hope it’s acceptable.” He handed the box to Mayoi, happy to find a shy smile accepting it instead of more resistance.
“T-thank you again for your kindness… It’s more than acceptable, please don’t say that.” He looked fondly at the box, his cheeks warmer again. “W-wait, did you say you made it…?”
“Hmhm! I’m used to making my own food ~” Hajime nodded proudly, unaware of Mayoi’s internal gushing at the idea of eating handmade rice balls from a cute junior, almost tearing up in euphoria. But he braced himself to avoid inappropriate rambles, covering his mouth and taking a deep breath.
“I d-don’t… deserve,,,,,…. ah, h-how p-p-precious…. a b-blessing,,,,.... a-anyway…!” Mayoi muttered to himself just to change the topic before his tongue betrayed him. “I… w-wrote down some t-tips, from the training s-session… I hope it’s useful…”
“Ah! Thank you so much, you didn’t have to!” Hajime’s eyes sparkled looking over the handwritten paper, full of annotations and bullet points about his performance. “It’s a lot… it’s really amazing how much data you got with just a short practice…”
“Haha… t-they say I’m good at observing…” A twisted smile showed up just for a moment, along with thoughts shoved deep inside his soul. There are things better left unsaid and Hajime didn’t detect any hidden meaning behind his answer anyway.
“You are amazing too, please don’t forget it… you gave your all, Hajime-san. Now you can rest, hm? It’s important to take breaks too ~ ♪” Mayoi hummed genuinely, his chest lighter. Compared to the sobbing rabbit in the corner of the rooftop from last night, Hajime was now a completely different person and this in itself was a reward worth all the efforts.
Once again, he didn’t regret stepping into the light despite the overwhelming brightness scaring him from time to time.
“Hmhm.. t-thank you. You too please rest and eat well, hm? We need energy to do our best…!” Hajime could feel his own cheeks warming up, giddy and happy things ended up on a good note.
“But I need to go now, Ayase-senpai… I really should take a shower and rest, my muscles are killing me, haha ~ I’m sure you can imagine.” He brushed his hair behind his ear again timidly, almost not wanting to leave. “We… we see each other around, hm?”
“A-ah… hmhm…! S-see you… t-thanks again for letting me use the room today!”
Mayoi wondered if he should backtrack and tell Hajime he was fine eating together, that he would be happy to… but the fear of bothering still haunted him, and the embarrassment of losing the timing too. Not to mention he shouldn’t selfishly get in the way of his rest, knowing his body and mind definitely needed a break.
“No problem at all ~ ♪ Send a hi to Kazehaya-senpai from me, okay?”
Hajime wondered if Mayoi was calm enough to have a meal together now, but considered that repeating the offer would be just pushy and selfish, so he scratched the idea and walked towards the door, waving one last time before leaving the senior alone.
Maybe next time , a loose thought they both kept to themselves.
Once arriving at his room, Hajime threw himself in the bed with a whine, finally allowing his body to be lazy after being pushed to his limits. His stomach was also complaining, but the motivation to get food was too low and he just stared at the ceiling for some minutes, mind empty.
“I should shower… and eat… buuuuuut… WAH?! ”
The peace was interrupted when the room’s door slammed open, revealing a troubled Hokuto storming inside and almost taking Hajime’s heart out of his chest.
“A-ah… H-Hidaka-senpai…? Are you ok, you look pale?!”
“Shino… s-sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. Don’t worry, I just…” Despite trying to keep his composure, he looked lost and unsure of what to say, choosing to charge towards his closet. “I’ll just go for a walk, I won’t disturb you.”
“.. a-are you sure? Do you need help…?”
“It’s ok. I just need fresh air.”
Hokuto didn’t give him more time to talk, wearing a coat and leaving the room as fast as he arrived with no explanation.
“... I hope he can feel better soon… it’s been really stressful for everyone, hm?”
In any case, Hajime made a mental note to check him again once he had the chance. But for now, it felt like a good time to read the personal annotations of his coach, curious about the details and hoping to improve faster.
“... hm…? Did I see Ayase-senpai’s handwriting before…? It looks familiar… ah well, it must be just my imagination.”
Convinced it was just an impression, Hajime shrugged it off and just reached to his favorite notebook to clip that important paper to a page too.
Right next to the mysterious fairy note from last night.
The memory made him smile softly, thinking back on the support from the shadows and feeling like reading it again.
“It wasn’t a dream for real… ~ phantom fairy-san ~”
But the sudden ringtone from his phone distracted him from the idea at the last second, when the folded paper was already in his hand.
“Shiratori-kun? Ah… ahaha ~ ♪ How lovely…”
[From: Shiratori-kun]
[Shino-senpai! It’s true that Mayo-senpai trained you today?]
[Are you ok? Do you need emotional support? Can you walk??]
[If Mayo-senpai mistreated you, he’s gonna get those hands!!!]
[Don’t get fooled by his dumb act, he’s a devil. A Hell's servant.]
[From: Shino-senpai]
[It’s true! But it’s ok, I survived.]
[You were right though, he can be ruthless…!]
[I was surprised but I asked him to not go easy on me. So that's on me.]
[From: Shiratori-kun]
[WHY WOULD YOU SAY THAAAAT DO YOU HAVE A DEATH WISH 💀 ]
[Even after my warnings… ugh, what did he use? The ruler? The ropes? The paddle? The cradle? The pillows?]
[From: Shino-senpai]
[The cradle.]
[From: Shiratori-kun]
[The goddamn cradle. 💀💀💀💀💀 ]
Hajime ended up chatting with Aira for a while and didn’t think about the papers in his notebook anymore, finally getting to shower and eat after texting. Hopefully a night without bad dreams waited for him, but probably cradles and hopscotches would make an appearance… which was still better than dealing with hateful faceless mobs, in the end.
