#tomoruna

With only one umbrella to spare, there stood two people, their shoulders just slightly brushing against each other. “I didn’t think I’d find you looking for shelter during this time of the year,” the male’s voice laced with a lighthearted tone, his hand gripping the umbrella a little tighter than usual. “I thought I had one, okay…” Her small voice emitted a slight pout as she awkwardly stared at the ground. 

“Besides, I thought you had practice today? Is the diligent Tomoya skipping?” Her voice perks up, questioning the boy as if it was a detective case. Tomoya shook his head, there was no way he’d skip practice in his life, but today was a special case. “Today’s our day off; did you forget, Runa?” Tomoya asked, his face slightly flushed at the close proximity as he realized how close he was to her. 

The racing beat of his heart was no louder than the pouring rain itself, but it felt louder than it seemed. “Oh… it is?” Her airheaded response was no joke; she had no idea it was Tomoya’s day off. However, this was a regular occurrence between the two, as it was an everyday experience for Tomoya, as he had dealt with more problematic people before. 

Tomoya couldn’t help but have his rose-colored lenses take over his vision, everything about her was so lovable, but could he really take the leap of faith with his secret in hand? Everything has to be perfect; he couldn’t miss up on this only chance. From the first day he met Runa, he felt a spark in his chest, almost as if it was a never-ending firework; every day he spent with her was bliss, drunk on the euphoric feelings he’d feel when with her. 

The pitter-pattering of the crystal tears hitting the umbrella to the floor was calming, but if only it could calm the hearts of the two. As if it was fate, their voice was in sync, “Hey…” Their eyes captured each other in a trance as they quickly looked away. “You can go, Runa,” Tomoya offered, his hand reaching to the back of his neck in anxiousness. 

Runa awkwardly shifted her body away from Tomoya with a worried expression worn on her face, “You sure?” To only receive a nod of reassurance, “Then… come down here, please?” Runa tugged on the boy’s sleeve to reach her level. With the lad complying with her request, he bent down to her level as she whispered a secret only she knew. 

As she whispered her secret, it was almost as if the rain poured harder than before. Her face was flushed, but she tried to muster a brave face nonetheless. Tomoya felt his heart burst, his face redder than anything else on this planet, “You’re serious, right?” It felt like he was living inside his dream, but he wasn’t. 

The chilly and frosty winter air spreading across Japan was the best way to describe it. The air becoming thin yet thick at the same time, holiday festivals inching closer as the seconds pass. 

Inside a home laid a small girl; her room had the scent of lingering paint and lavender. The contrasting scents mixed and mashed together; it was an odd scent, to say the least. Locked up in her room, never leaving. She felt suffocated at the same time, being all locked up in her room by her choice. 

It was quite the silly decision; she had a happy family, of course, having their ups and downs, but she still locked herself in her room. She felt inferior to others, her skills not up to par with those around her.  She barely left the house, only leaving her room when her parents were home so she wouldn’t worry them. She attended school regularly but avoided human contact as much if possible. 

The small girl laid in the dark room, feeling even more suffocated than before. She didn’t know what she wanted to do when she grew up. Did she want to be a streamer? Maybe a character designer? Perhaps a psychologist? Her dream was to simply draw and live a simple life, an unrealistic dream. 

She sighed as she looked at her stash of canvases. However, there was none in sight. As much as she hated it, she knew she had to leave the house. There started her quest to buy more canvases and return home as soon as possible. 

She sluggishly walked outside of her room, seeing her younger sister out and about with whatever she was doing. Quietly, she left the cozy, safe zone and ventured out to the so-called world. It was busy, loud, and most of all, crowded. The girl hated crowded spaces the most; it always made her feel anxious and claustrophobic. 

As the girl kept walking, she caught the scent of lavender; drawn to it, she found herself in front of a flower shop rather than the art supply store. However, her eyes caught onto something else, daffodils. Something about the golden flower sparked something within her. She couldn’t put her finger on it, but it was calming, like her favorite lavender scent. Although that calming atmosphere didn’t last for long… 

Loud laughter could be heard throughout the store as a long-haired man rushed outside of the store, laughing maniacally, scaring the poor girl. However, there was someone right behind him, an average-looking boy; nothing remarkable about him, just normal. 

The boy turned to the tiny girl and gave an apologetic look, his face highly flushed yet worried at the same time. “Um… Are you okay?” Asked the boy, his face full of guilt, even though he didn’t do anything wrong. The brunette girl nodded slightly, feeling awkward and anxious once again, looking back at the daffodils in a way to avoid eye contact. 

However, the boy seemed to misunderstand the action. He gently offered, “Here, let me get you those daffodils as an apology from me and… that masked pervert, is that alright?” The girl felt instantly guilty for making a random stranger pay for something as an apology. Still, she couldn’t decline the offer at the same time. He had the most apologetic face. She didn’t want him to feel even worse than he already was and was left with one option only, to accept it. 

“Oh… Uh… Thanks?” The girl gratefully appreciated the boy’s offer, but it was her only option; her voice slightly became higher pitched, portraying off as a question instead. Perhaps she can replace the older flowers with the newly bought daffodils at home. After purchasing the flowers, she felt extremely awkward; what does a normal person do in these kinds of situations? 

Both parties felt awkward; how do they even interact with one another without making it even tenser than it already is? “So… uh… Who’s this ‘Masked Pervert’ you were talking about..?”  It was weird; the shut-in introvert initiated the conversation first? It was out of place, way out of place for her. “Oh, him? He’s supposed to be my upperclassman, but he’s kind of a pain to look after, though… But he’s super good at what he does, and I can’t help but respect him for that,” the simplistic boy answered, his face showing all sorts of admiration. 

"You must really look up to him, don't you?" The girl asked, her expression not telling the full story, though. The taller boy rubbed the nape of his neck, clearly bashful, "Despite his wild actions, he's someone that I can look up to." 

Both brunettes gave each other a farewell smile before turning their separate ways. Well, that's what's supposed to happen until the girl quickly stops the boy. "Uh… Um… Could you actually help me with something..?" Confused, the boy simply nodded his head, not sure why he bothered to agree in the first place, "Sure, what is it?" Chocolate eyes looked up at him in surprise, "I need some help with shopping… Canvases are too heavy for me to carry…" 

Carrying canvases? Was that all she really needed? Yes, the canvases were a bit big and heavy for the girl, but was there an ulterior motive? "Is that it?" The brown rabbit questioned, his head ever so slightly tilted to the side. 

"Mhm, they're a bit heavy for me, so it's hard to carry them back home," the girl nervously chuckled, her eyes darting back to the bouquet of daffodils in her hands. The lad quickly took note of the girl's odd demeanor, not questioning anymore. 

"And uh, thanks, uh… Kouhai-san?" The petite girl gave a sheepish smile, not really knowing what to call the boy. 

On the other hand, the boy let out a stifled laugh before helping the other, "Just call me Tomoya, okay? Uh, Suisen-san?" 

Runa’s little sister looked at her older sister as she asked, “You wanna call a friend over?” To which Runa simply nods as she takes her phone to call Tomoya. The younger sibling waves goodbye to take off to her own personal affairs as Runa dials the number of the idol she loves dearly.

“Hello? Runa? What’s up?” The phone quickly spoke, excitement lacing through his voice. Runa coughed as she replied with a tiny voice, smaller than usual, “Can you.. Come over?” “Of course, I’m on my way,” Tomoya immediately took off to Runa’s house to check up on her. 

The doorbell rings as Runa’s little sister answers it, “Ah- are you Runa’s friend?” Tomoya quickly nodded, ignoring the “friend” comment. Hayami (Runa’s sister) “She’s in the second room down the hall over there,” Hayami pointed in the direction of the hallway as she took off. 

Tomoya made his way to Runa’s room and opened the door to see a sickly Runa. How does one catch a fever during the summer? No idea, but they say that “only idiots catch summer colds” Tomoya sighs as he pulls a chair over to see a half-awake Runa. “Hm~? Tomoya? What are you doing here again?” 

“You called me over since your sister had somewhere to go and needed someone to look after you,” the idol simply said as he checked the wet towel to see if it needed to be changed. “Oh, that’s right- I’m kinda bored, though~ Tomoya~ Can we play some video games instead?” 

Tomoya sighs at the girl’s stupid question, “Nope, you’re gonna rest like you’re supposed to be doing. Once you get better, we can play some video games, alright?” Runa huffs in annoyance; she’s so bored, though, and can hardly sleep now, being that she’s been sleeping throughout the whole day. “But Tomoya~ I’ve been resting all day… Please, can we play at least one game..?” Runa pleaded, with her eyes growing into doe puppy eyes.

The poor girl has been cooped up all day like this; surely one game can’t hurt, right? Wrong. Tomoya caved in as the girl begged her boyfriend. A simple game can’t hurt that much, maybe. After playing a few rounds of Smash Bros on the switch, Tomoya noticed Runa was nodding off. The boy chuckled at her manner as he switched off the game console, took the controllers out of her hand, and slid it back onto the console.