On sunny day, passed Afternoon, Zashi is already waiting for a Yukio to shows up, on the small bridge as they planned.
He keep try to act cool, despite his heart beating hundreds times per second, but his anxiety ends as soon Yukio calling him from far away.
His eyes widened to see her in sundress ready to go out a date with him, she came striking some simple pose on him.
“Zashi, how do I look?”
Zashi swallow hard, give his small smile.
“Yukio you look absolutely stunning.”
Yukio give her gentle laughs, tapping on his shoulder.
“Thank you, you look pretty great yourself , so did you have any plan, where we can go.?
Zashi shrung his shoulders up with akward face.
“A plan?…”
Yukio pouting her cheeks for seeing his reaction.
“Zashi!, what’s wrong with you?, you suppose to make a plan, you’re a guy in this relationship.”
Zashi touch the back of his head, apologetically.
“Well I don’t really have special place in my mind, maybe we can go some café on the city and-
Yukio scoffs playfully.” Café?, seriously?, that doesn’t sounds like type of place that guy like you want to go for theur first date.”
Yukoo lean foward and tap on his chest.
“Hey, just be yourself, I really want to get to know you better, and what makes you, who you’re, I don’t care if that place was not romantic or up to any standard, just be who you are.”
𝗭𝗮𝘀𝗵𝗶 respond with his lip tugging to the side.
“Alright then, how about we grab ourselves some snacks and there this special spot that we can go and talk more about our life.”
Yukio give her double fists to show the level of her exicmment.
“Yes that’s the spirit, on your lead”
Yukio hold onto Zashi’s arm, ready to have their first date, as Zashi already feel overwhelm by sudden closeness, trying to compose himself from Yukio demanding affection.
Making his blue orbs appears around his head, luckily, Zashi notice it first before she can notice it dissappear.
_ _ _ _ _
They both enter nearby convenience store looking for quick foods that easy to eat, thier eyes observing the place, grabbing some sushi and soft drinks, sandwiches , couple of bentos, and lastly karaage fried rice.
All foods sitting perfectly on the counter, before Yukio can grab her cash from her purse.
Zashi already pay for both of their purchases.
“Huh you pay for us?”
Zashi smile proudly.
“Well of course, I gotta start be a gentleman in order to make this relationship works.
Yukio shake her head with a smile, feeling slightly annoyed.
“And I just suprise that you got that much money to cover both of us, but I’m not complaining.”
Zashi gently take their purchased foods inside the plastic from the counter.
“Well, thanks to ¥15,500 that I won from this community contest that I joined last month.”
After both of them leave the store, Yukio can’t help her urge to ask more.
“But what kind of contest that you join?, is it collectable things?, Oh it has to be sport contest, because of how insanely strong you are.”
Zashi stop walking, try to courage himself to open up.
“No…, is actually…, a manga festival contest.”
Yukio blinked her eyes for a moment, to make sure she heard him right.
“Manga contest?
that is amazing!, I didn’t expect you get that kind of talent, are you a mangaka?”
𝗭𝗮𝘀𝗵𝗶 blushed from Yukio intense praised.
“Thanks but my drawing wasn’t really that great.”
Yukio lean closer, pressing her body agasint him.
“Well…
can I see it?.” Find the original chapter at g.com.
Yukio look over him intentionally making her pupils bigger, but Zashi can’t bare to imagine Yukio look over his artwork even from one paper.
“No!, I mean the manga, is not even nearly finish yet and it needs alot of improvement.”
Yukio smirk, but try to be fair.
“Why?, what you even drawing inside your manga?, naughty boy?”
She trace his shoulder lightly, making Zashi all sweating.
“Nothing, is just not finish yet, like I said, I promise you, I will show it, once it’s done.”
Yukio cross her arms, accept his promise
“Fine~, just tell me when you’re ready to show me okay?, and make sure, you show me the one that you currently working on, I want to see all of it.”
Zashi rubbing his jaw with his finger awkwardly.
“Yeah, sure.”
_ _ _ _ _
After a long walk, two of them finally arrive to the location that Zashi planned out for both of them.
A abounded soccer field near the forest, that’s being taken by nature, a wooden bleacher covered with vibes, and grass, where on middle between two bleachers has one small river stream flowing down hills.
Yukio mesmerized how outstanding the place was.
“Woahhh, this is freaking awesome, how do you find this place?, I’ve been live here almost the rest of my life and yet I haven’t stumble this place, not even once.”
Zashi only smile looking over Yukio who still survey the place.
The two of them sitting next to each other, unpack their foods immediately, while watching the view of empty forest.
Yukio take the sandwich first into her mouth, before starting a conversation.
“So tell me Zashi I keep hearing peoples says that you’re not from here, what is your story?, what make you decide to move here?”
Zashi pause for moment and gathering his thought while watching over the trees above him.
“Back then, i was kind of a traveler…, who’s wondering around freely to find any place that I can call…, home…, and I never had one, I was being left out and abounded ever since I was a baby, and there’s this guy came adopt me, looking at unwanted child crying inside the trash can, wondering what my fate will be, if he wasn’t there for me.”
Yukio cover her mouth, shocking by his revelation.
“Zashi…
that’s…, that’s, horrible, I’m sorry, I’m sorry for asking you that.”
Zashi maintain the situation with a smile.
“Hey it’s okay, I already moved on from it , my story isn’t always shine the most, it might never been and is funny how I still can remamber the fact that man who wield me from that trash can then my own parents, and that’s before the world force me to live by my own, I never a place that I can call home and I was alone for as long I can remember…,”
Zashi try not to shed a tear as he speak.
“Everyday, I woke up, seeking for someone new came to my life, and I’ve been alone for the longest time.”
Yukio share her empathy by cover his fist with her soft hands.
“Oh Zashi, I’m so sorry that you need to go through all of that, I can’t for certain say that you no longer need to feel alone anymore, but one thing I can assure is, you have me to stay by your side.”
Yukio slowly lower her head agasint his shoulder, making him smile without noticing,
_ _ _ _ _
Meanwhile two of them start to laughing at random topics they throw to each other.
“There’s no way you can screw it up that badly on your day one
Yukio try to stop her laughter to respond.
“Yes, it is true, I was ranked the lowest in the class until mid summer, I try really hard to get into higher class, and my mom said she might put me into much better culinary school and hopefully someday, I get to be the best chef around the world.”
Zashi smile supportingly.
“Wow you have such a incridble dream Yukio.”
Yukio expression shift after she’s about to reveal the truth.
“Well it wasn’t actually my real dream, it’s always what my mom wanted.”
But she add some of positivity on her tone.
“But now that I have someone that care so much about my cooking, I think i want to improve myself even more, and you.., you better improve your drawing so I can read and follow up over your manga!.”
Yukio’s last sentence shivering his body, after being reminded of their promise from earlier,
“Y-yes I will try.”
And suddenly Yukio start get down from the bleachers and follow the small stream.
“Hey, where you going?”
Yukio continue follow the trail of small river. This chapter was copied from g.com without permission.
“I want to follow where this stream is going to take us.”
Zashi decide to slide down, head into the same adventure.
“Okay, that sounds fun.”
Both of them hold their hands side by side, as the stream becomes their gap on the middle, they keep getting even deeper into forest, with the sounds of insect chirping everywhere.
Yukio try to make a small conversation to kill the silent.
“So Zashi, back then, when you tell me that you never had a home, are you still feel the same way?”
“yeah I guess, the zinc shack that I live is home, but is barely feels like home to me, but that doesn’t mean i want to be ungrateful for Mr.
Yosa gift, I…
I.
kinda want a better home someday.”
Yukio lit up with fun ideas blooming in her mind.
“Then let’s make that home, and find it together, I want you to feel complete Zashi, and by the time, you also need to fulfill my wish, which is to be with you forever, if that’s not too demanding of a request.”
Zashi chuckle keeping his eyes on her.
“No.
not at all, infact I love demanding request, that’s bassicly just tell me that you expecting more from me, but before we can get to that, home is what going to united us forever, don’t you agree?”
Yukio humming softly.
“Yeah, I think that’s make sense.”
Zashi keep looking over the endless stream, until he get some ideas.
“Hey do you think we might will find our home if we keep follow the stream till we reach to the end?”
Yukio expression change with sense of challange.
“We’ll see, but whoever arrive to that home first, can get the most of it.”
Yukio suddenly speeding up the movements from her legs, making them racing while keep their hands hold together, their laughter traveling across the forest making the environment more lively.
_ _ _ _ _
Eventually they stoping to see the stream ends with small pond from the distance, they catch their breath after a long run.
“Well this place doesnt look like home at all” Zashi complain.
“Yeah, but at least it looks pretty.”
Yukio eyes lingering over the pond and spot some fishes swimming around.
Zashi took the opportunity try to catch one.
“Oh great, fishes, I guess I know what I’m having for dinner.”
When Zashi almost put his hands into the water, Yukio stop him for brief moment
“Zashi stop!
We can’t catch this fishes, can’t you see how peaceful their life is?, under this small pond?, and beside they all might be group of family, how do you feel if someone take someone important in your life just like that, that wouldn’t be very nice right?.”
Zashi confused, unable to understand her point.
“Yeah, but this are fishes, and they always used to be capture all the time.”
Yukio cross her arms, standing for what she bealive.
“But not this one, not them, they never experience that kind of stuff before, and I don’t think is fair that we can just take everything we want, just because we can, sometimes we need to limit ourselves and appreciate things that we already have.”
She proving her point, by staring at the fishes smooching at each other.
“Abiltiy to have anything you want does not make it right, if you taking it from everyone, sometimes we just need to appreciate the way the thing was, without taking them, controlling or changing it from what it was.”
Yukio keep looking at the fish inside the pond prolongedly, until they heard something.
“Did you hear that ?, I think i hear some car honking.”
Zashi proceed to get inside the bush to investigate more follow by Yukio, for awhile they finally meet their discovery after dive themselves into the bushes and benches.
Yukio made her exit out, almost falls down to the hills, but thankfully Zashi manage to hold her from falling, she breath heavily, but her shock fade away after see the view of city infront of her.
“Woah I didn’t know there’s a big city right next tobour village…, do you know this?.
Zashi amaze as much as Yukio, staring over the big city.
“No I don’t…”
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