You Will Marry Me Bonus: Birthday 3

I returned home, walking around as I started to clean up the mess we made. I lied down on the bed after getting the present I stowed underneath it and hiding it under my pillow, looking up at the ceiling as I hugged a pillow tightly. He'll be back, right? He'll forgive me, right? Why didn't I listen to him? I felt my phone vibrate as I got a message from one of my friends. I looked at the screen as a video played. It was too fast, how the pictures and videos that were taken at the amusement park spread on the internet. Today was a total failure! It was supposed to be a fun day to let him relax, but...

"I have to make it up to him..." I muttered to myself as I felt a tear trickle out of my eye as I tried to sleep through the night. I couldn't really sleep well, my mind constantly thinking about Aki and everything that happened that day. I tossed and turned, looking out the window as the fall wind blew across the branches of trees that I could see. It was a dark, overcast night; it was going to rain. "Aki..." I mumbled, hearing thunder rumble across the sky.

I woke up the next day to the sound of a gentle drizzle, the grey sky being the first thing I saw. I stretched out my arms, reflexively turning around to look at Aki's face; he still wasn't there. I moved over to the bathroom, splashing water on my face as I thought about what I should do. I never pushed him this far before. I was scared. I took a shower and got dressed, putting on a coat and taking an umbrella with me as I headed toward the door. I made this mess; I was going to fix it!

"If I were Aki, where would I go?" I asked myself as I walked down the road. He did find a place to stay for the night, right? The thought of him sleeping on the streets in this rain... I slapped my face a few times, getting my head straight as I started thinking again. The first place I went to was a hotel that was nearby; no sign of him. Next was another hotel, still nothing. I checked in on the apartment building he used to stay at, but he wasn't there either. I was running out of ideas. There was only one other place I could think of. "Hello? I'm looking for Akira Onjo. Is he here?"

I swallowed a knot in my throat as I looked at the security guard of the university that he studied at. People were still walking around, even in this weather, talking amongst themselves as faint voices reached my ears. That video even reached here; what's going to happen to him once he shows his face in class? I fucked up! I fucked up! I started sweating bullets as the security guard asked me for my reason for being there. After some explanation, I was allowed inside as they got someone to see if anyone came here during the night; he didn't come here.

Out of options, all I could do was hope that he'd come back home. I made my way home, finding it as empty as I left it. I sighed, hearing my stomach rumble as I took a step inside. "I still haven't eaten..." I muttered to myself as I felt a hand on my shoulder.

"What am I going to do with you?" Aki sent a chill up my spine, his hand cold from the air outside. He walked past me, heading right into the kitchen. He was back, I should've been happy about it, but there was still something that kept twisting my insides. I followed him into the kitchen, watching as he silently made some food for the two of us. Something felt strange about him like he wasn't really that focused on what he was doing. "Anything you have to say?" He said, his eyes still glued to the burners on our stove. I walked up behind him, placing one of my hands on his back as I looked for the right words to say.

"Sorry, Aki..." I mumbled, unable to pick out any more words to convey my feelings. He kept facing forward, his movements with the pan and chopsticks still feeling cold and calculated.

"And?" He asked, leaving me at a loss for words. I started breathing heavily as I felt my heart swell. I had to find something to say. "I see. Well, I hope you enjoy your lunch." He plated up the food, putting the other half in the fridge before he left the kitchen and headed straight for the bedroom.

"Are you still going to leave?" I asked as I opened the door to the bedroom. He had taken out another bag, stuffing clothes into it slowly. "I'm sorry... Aki, I should have never..."

"I feel betrayed Tano. You were selfish yesterday, dragging me along on that crazy date without even asking me first." His grip on the bag tightened as he looked up at me. "Because of you, I couldn't submit my project. That's not even mentioning the video of me throwing up on you! So tell me, why? Why did you do that in the first place?" He dropped his things, walking up to me as he stared me down while balling his fists.

"I... I just wanted to make sure you had a happy..." I mumbled, resting my head on his chest. I looked up at him, seeing a frown on his face. "And I... I... I felt like you've been ignoring me recently..." I panted, sweating bullets as I wrapped my arms around him. "Don't leave... please don't leave... Aki, I love you, please don't leave me." I was practically begging, holding him tightly as I felt him jerk forward and out of my grip. He looked at me for a moment before averting his gaze, returning to his business of packing up his clothes.

"I'll be staying with a friend from class. Here's their address. Think about what you've done before you try to talk to me." He said, brows furrowed as he sent me a text of an address that was fairly close by. "Goodbye, Tano." With that, he slammed the door to the room, stomping down with as many clothes as possible stuffed into his bag. I fell to my knees onto the floor, tears streaming down my face. I had done it this time.

I've never seen him this angry; I don't think I've ever seen him angry. It was paralyzing; I was struggling to breathe, to keep my eyes open, to think. As seconds passed by, I found myself gathering enough strength to get up and walk around the house, stopping in the living room. He had taken most of his things, leaving only the scraps of his notes behind as crumpled balls of trash. I picked one up, fiddling with to read down what he wrote. It was scribbled out, barely comprehensible except for the fact that he wrote it down multiple times on this one piece. Over and over again, the words kept repeating, with minor variations each time around the same line; he was really putting his all into his studies, and I ruined it.

What could I do to fix this? Should I even try? Will that just make it worse? I stood there for a while, staring at the papers while trying to think of something I could do. I couldn't think of anything. I clicked my teeth a bit, cleaning up the scraps and walking over to the kitchen to eat the food he made me; it had gotten cold. "What do I do?" I mumbled to myself, biting the ends of my chopsticks as I held myself back from getting depressed again. I tried to pump myself up. "I have to do something, but..." Tried was the important word.

I spent the rest of the day alone, pacing around the house as I desperately imagined the scene multiple times in my head. Everything I thought up, every scenario, none of them had him forgiving me easily. I still had work the next day, as well. I went to sleep with a heavy heart and everything weighing on my mind, tossing and turning in the bed for the second night in a row. Still, I had to move forward. I got out of bed, getting ready for work as my manager pulled up on the street to pick me up.

Work that day wasn't particularly interesting, thankfully; just looking over options for potential ads I could do and a few messages from fashion designers I knew. Not like I was paying much attention to them, still worrying about Aki. I finished up the replies I wanted to send out, getting into the car with my manager as I stared out of the window. "Wait...stop the car!" I said, hurriedly fumbling with the door as I spotted Aki with a group of people eating at a cafe. I got out and was about to cross the road when I saw his face again. He looked over at me, staring at me for a few seconds before talking with his friends again. That stung, and I felt my heart throb in pain as I trudged back into the car. My manager asked me about it and I told her everything that happened.

She nodded, taking a detour for me as we drove toward the university that Aki was studying at. I wondered why she decided to take me here, but she said that I'd be able to figure it out once I got inside. The security guard remembered me from the previous day, giving me a nod as I told him my reason for returning.

I was led inside, going down the halls as students passed me by. I looked around, still thinking of what I could do. I don't know how long I spent wandering the hallways as I thought, but it was long enough for their lunch break to be over by the time I decided to head back to the limo. "What are you doing here?" Aki asked, crossing his arms with a bag slung over his shoulder. He was with the same group of people from before. "You know what, nevermind. Come on guys, we're going to be late."

He and his friends walked past me, paying me no mind even as I turned my head to look at them from over my shoulder. My manager drove me home, wishing me good luck as she went to her home for the night. It was lonely. How long had it been since I spent this much time alone like this? I went over to the fridge, I had saved the second portion of food from yesterday so that had to do. I ate it slowly, wondering if I could just talk it out with him to resolve this. I finished eating, washing up, and heading to the bedroom for the night; it was empty.

"This... I don't like this." I mumbled, gripping one of the pillows tightly as I curled up into a ball. I took a deep breath, not wanting to waste any more air by talking to myself. Those years where I was on my own, the memories from that time were slowly trickling back. I tried to push them away, but they kept me up to the point where I had to walk off my nerves. I looked out the window, sighing as I dressed myself up for a night stroll. The silence was killing me, so I thought that keeping myself busy would be a nice change of pace. A simple sweater, a pair of shorts, and some sandals; good enough, I didn't really care at the time.

I left home, pocketing my keys, and walking out of the neighborhood and into the busy streets. There wasn't really a place I wanted to go, but I just didn't want to be at home. Walking around at night like this felt refreshing, the cold fall air helping me as I kept trying to clear my head. I looked up at the sky as I arrived at a quiet park, still fairly cloudy with the recent weather, but I could see part of the moon peeking out from behind one of the smaller ones. I smiled as a gust of wind blew past me. I've run out of ideas, for now, and I needed to think of something in the morning; which was both nerve-wracking and relaxing at the same time, as odd as that sounds. A bar was the next place I ended up, the loud interior a complete contrast to the serenity outside.

It was strange. Normally, I wouldn't mind being here; I love going out with friends and enjoying the energetic atmosphere that was usually in bars and clubs at this hour. But, when I imagine Aki and I being here, something just doesn't click. For some reason, I just can't think of a way that he'd be happy in a place like this. "A place he'd be happy in... I really am an idiot." I laughed, leaving the bar and remembering the events of Saturday; I won't make the same mistakes again.

I went home with some peace of mind, some. Falling asleep came easier after my walk, and I woke up feeling rested the next day. My manager and I still had things to talk about at work, so I had something to do for the better part of the day. As I was deciding where to eat lunch, I saw something out of the corner of my eye.