Slowly, Mikomi’s eyes opened to be welcomed by a brand-new day. He peered over at his alarm clock and realized that he had slept in just a little bit more than he had intended to. After quickly going through his typical morning fair, he grabbed a piece of toast as it popped up out of the toaster and dashed out the front door as he was running a bit behind schedule. Karoline didn’t even get a chance to say goodbye but she let out a small chuckle at the sight of her son dashing out the door with a piece of toast hanging from his mouth. Ryan was waiting for him at the usual spot on the sidewalk with quite an annoyed look on his face.
“Sorry, Ryan… I’m running a bit behind.”
“Man, Mikomi. Because of you, I’m going to be late!”
“You didn’t have to wait for me, you know.”
Ryan looked as if he had an epiphany. He truly didn’t realize that he could have just gone ahead without him. When you’ve been friends with someone for such a long time, that kind of mindset is normal. Sometimes you can’t open your eyes to the bigger picture and get stuck in a routine that feels like second nature. Nevertheless, they began their trek to school at a brisker than normal pace.
As they neared the school, time had grown painfully short. Realizing that they really could end up late, they made a mad dash for the front doors. By the time they stepped foot into the school’s main foyer, they could hear the morning bell going off. Ryan, again, blamed Mikomi for making them late, but Mikomi didn’t pay much attention to Ryan’s complaints. As he was running, it was almost as if things began to move in slow motion. His attention was honed in on the stairwell as he sped toward them to get to his homeroom. He was so focused that he didn’t notice Serha there in the hallway reading her book. As the bell finished ringing, she closed her book and looked up just catching a brief glimpse of Mikomi as he ran by.
Serah let out a sigh as she was a bit disappointed that Mikomi hadn’t paid much attention to her but the fact that she, too, was late offered her a bit of comfort. One may wonder how someone already at school would be late to class; however, when you stand around and wait for someone and then never get the chance to meet up with them, time can slip away and make even the most punctual people fall a step or two behind.
***
Just as soon as the day began, it was over. Mikomi and Ryan were seen leaving school when the two of them walked past a group of girls who seemed to be in the middle of trading gossip between them. Mikomi heard a specific name graze his ear so he focused his attention and honed in on their conversation.
“Hey, Crystal… Have you ever seen that girl that sits alone by the side of the football field?”
“The one that’s always reading that stupid book? Yeah, she’s so disgusting. People like that just need to disappear.”
“I know! She’s literally reading it every single day! Like… I read a good book here and there myself but that’s way beyond excessive. Bet you it’s some sort of journal and she’s plotting to kill us all! She’s just going over her notes to craft the perfect crime!” chimed a third girl.
“OMG, Trish… what if it’s a secret diary?” replied Crystal. “What if she’s keeping notes on all the boys she’ll never have? Maybe she goes home and pretends to have fantasies with them!”
“Eeewwww!” replied the first girl, Vanessa. “That’s so gross but she seems like the type to do that. Girls like her who are really quiet typically do the creepiest shit. Anyway, want to hit up Shake Shack? I really want some of their cajun fries.”
Mikomi gritted his teeth as he walked past them, trying to ignore the fact that they were laughing and having a good time at her expense. He didn’t say a word because he knew that his actions would be futile. Ever since the day Mikomi first saw Serah, he was captivated by the way she looked. Although her skin was pale, the way it looked in the sunlight was radiant. The facial expressions she made while reading her book made her seem to look even cuter. Everything about her aura had a certain gentleness about it. Needless to say, it was love at first sight for Mikomi, but he knew that he couldn’t just ask her out based on looks alone.
Over time, Mikomi vicariously learned about Serah. Sadly, most of it was through petty gossip as he had just heard but he had even asked some of her less suspicious classmates about her and got some genuine information. His heart ached whenever he thought about how others perceived her. That’s when he decided that he wanted to be the person to end her loneliness but would she really go out with someone she had never even talked to before?
Even though it was quite a long shot, Mikomi knew that there was only one way to find out but with so many people around, he decided that today wasn’t the best day. After all, with the way she was perceived by others, he felt that it would be better to ask her in a private setting, this way no one could ruin the moment. It quickly became the next morning and just like the previous day, Mikomi ran out the door early and tried to take off down the street but behind him, he heard something all too familiar.
“MIIIIIIKOOOOOMIIIII”
Ryan struggled to catch up to him. Mikomi let out a sigh and slowed down just enough to let Ryan catch up to him. Huffing and puffing, Ryan caught his breath and then asked the obvious question.
“Where’s the fire all of a sudden?”
“Sorry, Ryan, but I’m running late again.”
“Late? You’re like five minutes early? Are you sure the clocks in your house work okay?”
Mikomi was caught in his lie. He wanted to leave before Ryan saw him. He wanted to get to school before most of the kids showed up so he could ask Serah out as privately as possible but it seemed that wasn’t going to be the case today, either. Mikomi shrugged off his lie and the two of them walked to school together. When they got there, he noticed that things still looked rather empty. Serah was sitting alone in her usual spot reading her usual book. Mikomi gritted his teeth and decided that he wasn’t going to let Ryan, or anyone else, get in his way anymore.
“Ryan… go on ahead. There’s something I need to ask someone.”
Mikomi was staring right at Serah. Even for someone like Ryan, it was pretty easy to connect the dots. After all, Mikomi didn’t exactly hide his interests all too well. While he never flat-out stated he liked Serah, his mannerisms whenever she was in the vicinity could have been read like a book. Ryan grabbed Mikomi by the shirt sleeve before he could take a single step forward.
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
“Wait. You’re not going to do what I think you’re going to do, are you?”
“If you’re thinking that I’m going over there to ask her out, then that is exactly what I’m doing.”
“You’re seriously going to do that, Mikomi!? Why would you ask Serah out!? Nobody likes her! You hear how people talk about her every day! She’s such an outcast! If you do that, everyone at school is going to treat you the same way! Do you know how much you’d damage your reputation… and mine!? If you do that… then I don’t think you and I couldn’t be friends anymore. I’m not going to be dragged down with you on this one!”
Mikomi turned and looked at Ryan. He couldn’t believe that his best friend of all these years would say that to him. If anything, it’s a best friend’s job to support one another. Ryan’s words pierced through his heart and damn near broke it. Mikomi had been angry at Ryan before for saying some dumb things but this was, by far, the most unforgivable thing Ryan had ever said to him.
Mikomi couldn’t hold it in. He grabbed Ryan by the shirt, balled up his hand into a fist, and slammed it right into Ryan’s face! The sheer impact sent Ryan straight to the ground, his nose completely bloodied from the impact. Everyone that was standing around them turned and saw the altercation but Mikomi didn’t care who witnessed it. He stood there towering over Ryan looking down at him with a death glare in his eyes. Ryan knew he had stepped way over the line when he saw burning rage in Mikomi’s eyes.
“I will say this once. I love Serah. If it means losing someone like you as my friend, then that’s a small price I’m willing to pay. People like you make me sick. What the hell do you know about Serah anyway?”
Ryan quivered with fear as he laid there on the ground. This wasn’t the Mikomi that he had known for a good chunk of his life. Ryan was completely shocked that his best friend would throw away their friendship so easily, let alone punch him in the face. Mikomi glanced over and saw that Serah hadn’t noticed the altercation at all. Despite her not seeing anything, he knew that there was no way he could approach her now. Not while in this state of mind and with everyone staring at him. Mikomi decided to let it go for now and walked away, entering the school.
Time had passed and another day at school was in the books. Mikomi knew that Serah usually left through the back entrance. At the very least, he didn’t have to worry about running into Ryan due to what happened earlier. He easily slipped out the back door before anyone else and looked around frantically for Serah but she wasn’t there. Mikomi decided to take a gamble and waited for her, hoping she hadn’t already left. After a while, he began to lose hope. As if it were fate, he went to take a step away when she suddenly appeared and walked right past him without so much as paying him a single bit of attention. Mikomi cleared his throat and called out her name.
“Serah?”
Serah stopped in her tracks and slowly turned towards Mikomi. He was captivated by her beauty and became a bit nervous; however, Serah didn’t say much of anything. She just stood there and looked at him with a slightly annoyed look on her face as if she didn’t want to be bothered. Perhaps it was because she thought that Mikomi would be just another person to ridicule her. After noticing the kind of look Serah was giving him, he could only say one thing.
“Hi.”
Serah simply gave him a nod and turned to leave. He reached out for her but she was too far away to grab.
“W-wait!”
Serah stopped and turned back around. That annoyed look on her face only got worse as Mikomi didn’t know what to do next.
“I, uh… wanted to ask you something.”
Serah’s voice was as quiet as ever. She slightly tilted her head to the side as she tried to remember who he was.
“You. You’re… Mikomi… from the advanced classes?”
Mikomi nodded. He was overjoyed that she knew his name as it filled him with a sense of hope. Mikomi rubbed the back of his head, trying to figure out how to ask her out. He decided that it was probably best just to go for it all and pray.
“Serah. I know this is sudden but… I was wondering if you would like to go out with me?”
Serah was taken aback by it. Her voice, while still quiet, shot back rather sharply.
“Is this some kind of sick joke? This isn’t very funny.”
Mikomi grabbed Serah by the hand which shocked her even more. She even began to panic just a little. Mikomi took a deep breath and looked right into her cerulean blue eyes.
“It’s no joke… I’m being dead serious here. I think you’re cute and yes… I’ve seen the way other kids treat you and I don’t think that’s fair. I find you interesting and I want to know more about you. I know this is skipping the whole friendship phase but I just feel something inside of me whenever I look at you. I want to be the one who protects you.”
Serah looked up at Mikomi as if he were crazy. The look on her face said that she wasn’t buying it one bit but on the inside, Serah didn’t know what to think. Mikomi knew that he had to say something a little more convincing than that. Putting himself in her shoes, how would he feel if someone just randomly ran up and confessed their love?
“I know you probably don’t believe me. I’m sure you think I’m just another kid that’s making fun of you or I’m setting you up for something embarrassing. My only hope is that you can trust me when I say that I’m not. I know some things about you because the other kids like to gossip but I don’t know what’s true and what isn’t. I know you’re quiet, you keep to yourself, and you like reading. Those things kind of describe me as well so in that way I think we’re similar. I don’t know what it is but whenever I see you, I just get this feeling inside of me. I want to be there for you. It’s not pity or anything so please don’t think that and… well… I don’t know how to explain it. It’s just the way I feel.”
Serah still didn’t know what to think but maybe there was a slight off chance that Mikomi was telling the truth. Maybe it was the hope that burned in Mikomi’s eyes that convinced her but Serah decided to play it cautiously.
“I’ll think about it.”
With that, Serah took her hand back from Mikomi and walked away.
“Thank you,” said Mikomi under his breath with a smile on his face.
It was the next day at school. It was a Friday so Mikomi wondered if Serah would give him a reply before the weekend or if she would wait until Monday. He arrived at his locker and noticed a note sticking out of it. Mikomi grabbed it and unfolded the paper.
“Mikomi. Please write your address on this note and stick it in locker 327-B.
-Serah”