Chapter 2: : Lunch Time!

ringggggg--

With the loud ringing of the bell, Hiro was already packed and ready to leave. He didn't want to stay in math class any longer than he had to.

Their two block classes were over, and it was time to eat lunch.

[Hiro: Ahh, I wonder what I'm going to eat for lunch today. Soba? Ramen? Hmm.]

Hiro thought out loud as he waited for Kaori and a few others to finish packing up.

Hiro pulled his wallet out of his pocket, and to his surprise, not a single bill was in it, only a few coins.

[Hiro: Ehhh?! Where's my lunch money?!]

A short flashback played in Hiro's head as he remembered his Mom telling him not to forget his lunch money that she placed by his backpack.

He was so stupid! In the rush, he swiped his backpack but left the money that was on the same table!

[Hiro: Agh, what am I supposed to do now?]

His stomach grumbled as he watched students walk out of his second period class.

Great, now even if he did get lunch, he would be at the back of the line.

Hiro watched Shuuki leave with his group of friends that might as well have been the whole class. He walked out the doorway, talking and telling jokes, making the whole group laugh.

Hiro sighed.

Hiro looked at his two friends that were still in the classroom.

[Hiro: Kaori, Hatori-- ready to go to lunch...?]

Hiro said with a sad expression on his face.

[Hatori: What happened? Did math burn you out again?]

[Hiro: No-- well, yes, but that's not all of it...]

Hiro's stomach grumbled loudly.

[Hatori: Oh, I see. Guess I should take my time and walk at the slowest speed possible--]

[Kaori: Hatori!]

[Hatori: Kidding, kidding~]

[Hiro: Well, you can if you want to... I forgot my lunch money.]

[Kaori: Oh, Hiro...]

Hiro looked at Kaori with puppy eyes.

[Hiro: Kaori... could I, umm... have spare lunch money if you have any?]

[Kaori: Sorry Hiro, I only have enough for myself. I could share my food with you though.]

[Hiro: No... it's fine... eating just a little will only make me hungrier...]

Hiro directed his begging to Hatori. He blinked multiple times with his puppy eyes.

[Hiro: Hatori... could I--]

[Hatori: No.]

[Hiro: Wha--!]

How could he be denied so firmly? By someone he called a friend?!

[Hatori: You forgot your lunch money, and it's your fault. School ends in like three hours, it won't be that bad. Just tough it out. I'm not giving you any of my share.]

[Hiro: Aww...]

Hiro began walking out of the classroom.

[Hiro: Okay guys... I see how it is... let's go...]

[Jun: Hey, did you say you didn't have any lunch money?]

That voice!

It could only be--!

Hiro turned around, and saw Jun behind him.

[Hiro: Jun!]

Jun giggled at his overenthusiastic response. She covered her mouth with her hand.

[Jun: Yea, Jun. That's me.]

Hiro felt his head heating up and his heart beating faster. Jun was talking to him!

[Hiro: Uhh, so what brings you here?]

What response was that? C'mon Hiro!

[Jun: Oh, I heard that you didn't have lunch money or something. I have just enough money for another meal, if you need it. I thought I could help out a bit.]

She's an angel!

But Hiro couldn't accept that offer! He couldn't take money from the girl he liked!

[Hiro: Uh, no no no, it's okay. I don't have lunch money, but I'm not that hungry--]

Hiro's stomach growled so loud that the math teacher that was supposed to be on break looked his way.

Jun frowned and gave Hiro a serious face, then held out her hand.

[Jun: Here, take it.]

Hiro instinctively put his hands out in front of him.

Jun dropped a 500 yen coin into his hands, and then gave him a shining smile before walking away with her group of friends.

[Friend 1: That was so cute of you Jun!]

[Friend 2: Making steps forward, I see.]

Jun blushed.

[Jun: Stop it, guys!]

Her group of friends laughed before walking into the halls to get to the cafeteria.

Hiro stared into the hallway, unmoving.

[Hiro: Uh, what just happened?]

[Hatori: I think she likes you.]

[Hiro: Huh. She likes me.]

Hiro stared at the 500 yen coin in his hand. Hiro's face turned red.

[Hiro: Whaaa?! Jun likes... me?!]

Hiro jumped and freaked out at the possibility.

[Hiro: Is that what happened? Is that why she was blushing? Is that why her friends were teasing her? Is that why she gave me this 500 yen coin?]

[Hatori: Yeah, and I think you just extorted her money.]

Hiro stared blankly at Hatori for a few seconds.

[Hiro: Wait what? No! No, I didn't--]

[Hatori: C'mon, let's get going.]

Hatori smirked and tapped Hiro's shoulder as he walked by him, heading to the cafeteria.

[Hatori: At least now I don't have to listen to your stomach growling for the rest of the day.]

Even though Hatori acted this way towards Hiro, they were good friends, and sooner or later, Hiro would find a chance to make fun of him too.

Hatori was another one of Hiro's best friends. He has yellow and black hair, and usually had a serious complexion, even though underneath he was just a baby.

When they were in elementary school, Hiro remembered a time when Hatori cried because he lost his favorite dinosaur toy, and after hours of looking for it, it turned out it was in Hiro's pocket the whole time! Hatori was so salty at him for the next few days.

Hiro chuckled at the memory.

[Hiro: Yeah, yeah, let's go.]

––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––

The cafeteria was full of students. After standing in line for a while, Hiro deposited his 500 yen coin into the ticket machine and handed the ticket to the lunch ladies for some tasty ramen.

Hiro headed to his usual spot in the cafeteria, a corner of the cafeteria with windows, showing the view of the sports field.

His friends were waiting for him-- Kaori and Hatori were already eating their packed lunch. Kaori with her homemade octopus sausages and Hatori with his everyday plain sandwich.

Hiro quickly set down his food and took a seat and said--

[Hiro: Thanks for the food!]

--before slurping up his noodles.

It tasted great. The perfect saltiness and the perfect firmness to the noodles. The broth had a nice chicken flavor and the chopped scallions really added the impact the ramen needed.

[Hiro: Tastes so good!]

Kaori took a bite of her tako sausage, then nommed on some rice with her chopsticks. She twirled the chopsticks in her hand as she gave her opinion.

[Kaori: I would actually argue that the school lunch isn't all too great, but that could just be me.]

[Hiro: What? No, the school lunch is amazing here!]

[Hatori: Nah, it's not just you Kaori. The school lunch here is kind of bland and it gets repetitive.]

Hatori gave his critique as he bit into his bland sandwich.

[Hiro: You have no right to say that, you eat the same thing every day.]

[Hatori: Well, even though I eat the same thing for lunch every day, the thing I eat never gets repetitive or bland. It's pretty damn good if you ask me.]

[Hiro: Right...]

Hiro unappetizingly looked at Hatori's gray sandwich with lettuce and tomatoes.

Suddenly, a roar erupted throughout the cafeteria. Cheering.

Hiro and Hatori and Kaori and everyone in the cafeteria turned their heads to look at a white-haired boy standing on a table, juggling juice cartons with his magic.

Portals opened and closed, and the juice cartons flew perpetually through the air.

Shuuki.

Shuuki was standing on the top of his table in the middle of the cafeteria, juggling the milk cartons like a performer.

His friends and the people around him clapped and applauded.

Hiro hated those guts of his. It turned Hiro's stomach inside out. Shuuki, his adopted brother, a show-off.

Students threw more cartons at Shuuki. Milk cartons, juice cartons-- Shuuki was juggling maybe eight cartons now.

The students were laughing. They were enjoying it.

Shuuki was laughing. He was enjoying it.

Hiro couldn't help but look at Shuuki and hate him.

Stop showing off. You're nothing special. Just because you have amazing magic doesn't mean you can show off in front of everyone.

It left a sour taste in Hiro's mouth.

Shuuki pretended like he dropped a carton, but right before it touched the ground, he used a portal at the last moment to keep it suspended.

Laughter. Next to Hiro.

Hatori and Kaori were laughing too.

Ugh, if Shuuki wants attention that badly... then--

Hiro picked up his milk carton, pushed his chair out, and stood up.

It was almost like something was pulling him. He didn't think much about his action, but felt he was in the right with his feelings.

Almost like he was meant to do this, Hiro got into a pitching position, then pelted the milk carton right at Shuuki's face.

Hiro went through a baseball phase when he was younger. He knew what he was doing.

With perfect accuracy and a 100 kph pitch, he nailed Shuuki right in the side of the head with the milk carton he threw. The milk carton crumpled and splattered milk everywhere.

Shuuki stumbled and almost fell off the table, dropping all of the cartons he was juggling.

The crowd went silent.

splat splat splat--

Hiro looked away, and sat back down.

It all happened so fast, no one knew who threw the carton. Plus, everyone's eyes were glued to Shuuki anyway.

Shuuki looked at his soaked clothes, and shrugged it off. He hopped off the table and stacked all of the fallen cartons into a pile using his portals, and then smiled at the crowd and gave them a thumbs up.

The crowd roared again and applauded.

The sour taste in Hiro's mouth grew stronger. Arrogant bastard.

As the crowd settled down, Shuuki and a couple of friends from his table wiped the floor with napkins, then he headed to the bathroom to wash himself off.

Hiro was about to resume his meal, however something caught his eye.

Jun was sitting at Shuuki's table, and was soaked in the chocolate milk that Hiro threw.

Hiro's mood completely changed. Without hesitation, Hiro got up from his seat and briskly walked to Jun after grabbing some napkins.

Jun was already up, about to wash up in the bathroom.

As Hiro rushed to Jun, Hatori commented.

[Hatori: Whoa, Hiro making moves. Something we'd never think we'd see in our lifetime.]

[Kaori: Haha, let him be, Hatori. Your sarcasm is going to puncture his thick skull someday.]

[Hiro: Jun! Are you okay?]

[Jun: Oh, Hiro! Yeah, I'm fine. Did you enjoy your food--?]

Jun gave a smile and a greeting gesture before realizing her arms were still dripping with milk.

Hiro was about to point it out, but Jun knew.

[Hiro: Uhh your--]

Jun got out of her greeting position.

[Jun: Actually I have to wash this off before my clothes stain!]

Jun hurried over to the bathroom, but Hiro caught up with her before she left the cafeteria.

[Hiro: Wait!]

Jun stopped and turned around.

[Hiro: Here.]

Hiro handed a stack of napkins to Jun, his hand on top, dropping them onto hers; the exact same way she handed him the 500 yen coin.

[Jun: Oh, thanks!]

Jun rubbed the wet parts of her clothes vigorously to dry up most of the milk. She then wiped her chocolate milk covered arms and legs with the napkins, the liquid being soaked up by the fibers off of her smooth skin.

Hiro blushed. He realized he was staring.

It was hard to keep his eyes off of her.

Avoiding eye contact, Hiro shyly thanked her.

[Hiro: And yeah, I enjoyed the food. The ramen here is... it's pretty good. Thank you too.]

[Jun: Oh that's good. The ramen here is way better here than other schools... I really like the ramen here. At my old school they would sometimes even serve it to you cold! Isn't that crazy?]

As a ramen connoisseur, Hiro did indeed think that was crazy.

[Hiro: Cold? That's horrid! And-- you like the ramen here too?]

Hiro was surprised. They had something in common!

[Jun: Of course! I love ramen! I buy the ramen ticket every time I get school lunch. Why do you ask?]

Hiro was having flashbacks to a few seconds ago when Hatori and Kaori disapproved of the school lunch.

Hiro knew the food here was good, it's just them being all fancy with their homemade foods... Well, maybe not Hatori. His gray sandwich wasn't anything near fancy. It was just sad.

[Hiro: Oh, I just had some friends tell me that nobody liked the food here, so it's a bit refreshing to know that someone else also likes it, haha.]

Jun finished up soaking up the milk. After she was done, she tossed the napkins into the trash can and smiled at Hiro.

Hiro could look back at Jun without feeling as awkward now.

[Jun: Thanks! You saved me there. It would've been a huge pain if this shirt smelled like spoiled milk.]

Jun had a glowing aura around her. Her smile was so warm.

[Hiro: N-no problem.]

Hiro responded timidly.

[Hiro: Just think of it as me repaying the favor for you giving me lunch.]

Technically, the reason she was soaked was also his fault entirely, but she didn't know that. Hiro was a bit disappointed in himself for justifying it this way, but it couldn't be helped.

[Jun: Yeah, haha...]

After a small awkward silence, Jun spoke.

[Jun: Hey.]

Jun was looking downwards, shyly, as if she were about to confess... something!

Was this it? Was this the moment Hiro's life had led up to? Jun telling him that she liked him, and him responding with "I like you too"? Did Jun actually like Hiro?

[Hiro: Yeah?]

[Jun: Uhm, I was wondering if...]

Hiro's heart was beating and his breathing became rigid. It was hard to stay normal.

{Hiro: C'mon Hiro, you can't lose your cool now!}

[Jun: ...if we could...]

{Hiro: If WE could??!}

[Jun: ...umm... nevermind.]

{Hiro: NEVERMIND?!}

Hiro died on the inside from the suspense, all leading up to nothing.

However, as Jun said nevermind, she turned her face away from Hiro, and Hiro could see that she was blushing. Her cheeks were rosy and her eyes showed it all.

{Hiro: Wait! She's just being the stereotypical shy girl in TV shows! She likes me. She likes me. She's blushing. She likes me... right?}

Another awkward silence broke out. The two teens stood there in the cafeteria, avoiding eye contact.

Hiro couldn't stand the discomfort any longer. Nor could he wait to know what "nevermind" means. Hiro decided to go for it-- and ask exactly what it means.

[Hiro: Uh, nevermind?]

Jun's eyes locked onto Hiro's.

[Jun: Actually, I have something very important to tell you.]

Hiro's heart skipped a beat. Jun really did like him. Right?

[Jun: But you have to promise to not tell anyone... At least not yet.]

This confirmed it. Something being told to Hiro that he shouldn't tell anyone else... yet? It had to be a confession of love, right?

[Hiro: Yes, I promise. What is it?]

Jun's eye contact wavered, and she blushed again.

[Jun: Okay... so...]

Jun took a deep breath. Jun opened her mouth to say something, but no words came out. Instead, she just exhaled and looked beat.

The suspense was actually killing Hiro. For real!

{Hiro: C'mon Jun, just say it!}

[Jun: Jeez... nevermind.]

[Hiro: Ackkkk--!]

Hiro almost fell over from that response.

[Hiro: You really know how to build up suspense, don't you?]

[Jun: Oh shut up, I'll tell you later.]

Hiro sighed, and began walking back to his table to eat the rest of his ramen, but then he felt a soft tug at his sleeve.

Jun had grabbed his sleeve.

Jun looked at Hiro straight in the eyes.

[Jun: Do you think you can meet me at the town park today after school? Is 4 P.M. a good time? Most clubs should be over at that time, right?]

Him and Jun meet? Like a date? Today?

Wait, no. Hiro can't be too hasty. He can't jump to conclusions. He must confirm.

Hiro did have archery club that day, and elections for the new club council were coming up (which he wanted to run in), but he could skip one day... right?

[Hiro: The town park? Yeah, 4 P.M. is good and I can make it, but... just you and me?]

Jun blushed. Hiro had never seen someone blush this many times before.

[Jun: Yes, that is correct.]

Yup, Hiro was going to skip archery club.

Her blushing made Hiro blush as well. She looked so cute when she acted like this!

Hiro couldn't be shaken however. He had to act like his normal self!

Hiro did a twirl then struck a pose of victory.

[Hiro: Mm, okay then! It's decided! 4 P.M. today, after school! Just you and me!]

Hiro grinned wide.

Jun looked embarrassed.

[Jun: Hey, you don't have to go yelling it out to the world, you know.]

[Hiro: Haha, sorry, sorry.]

[Jun: Okay... 3 P.M. Make sure you're there! If you aren't, you'll force me to force you to pay me back that 500 yen!]

[Hiro: Yup yup, I was going to pay you back regardless! But I like that determination!]

Hiro winked and smiled a killer smile.

[Jun: See you then!]

[Hiro: See ya!]

With that, the two teens parted ways from the corner of the cafeteria, and Hiro rushed back to finish his ramen as he realized there were only two short minutes left in the lunch period.

[Hatori: Soooo, how'd it goooo?]

Hatori teased.

Hiro didn't stop eating to respond. He had to finish his food or he would be wasting the precious meal Jun so graciously provided him.

[Kaori: So she does like you back?!]

Hiro coughed out his food and almost choked.

Hatori and Kaori burst out laughing.