Not Like This

Not Like This ~ Naichau Kamo Edition


Merry chatter drew Ai's attention as she sat alone in the cafeteria of the UFA building, already dressed in her sports attire. She had arrived early this morning to prepare for the dance rehearsal which would commence in an hour.

"Ai-chan!"

The vision of her second-in-charge sweeping into the canteen wearing a purple outfit with her long hair hanging past her shoulders swaying in a mesmerizing fashion caused a small smile to form on her face.

"Ohayo Gaki-san!"

Her carefree mood was adversely affected when she noticed another person following closely behind the twenty year old.

"OHAYO!"

"Ohayo Kame-chan."

Replying the turtle girl with a plastered smile, Ai watched in silence as the pair made their way over to sit down at the table she was seated at. Removing the cover of a bento she had conveniently picked up along the way, Eri took a sniff at the piping hot package, taking in the delicious aroma of deep fried tempura prawns.

"Itadakimasu!"

With a childish grin, she bowed and split the wooden chopsticks in her hand, tucking excitedly into her first meal of the day.

"Slow down pokepokepoo, you don't want to choke."

The warning came a tad too late as coincidentally, Eri started coughing violently, spewing white rice from her mouth in various directions. A single rice grain even shot out of her nose, making a "hun" noise in the process.

"Daijoubu?"

Pounding her on the back in an effort to dislodge the interfering grains obstructing the younger's airway, Risa enquired in a concerned voice.

"I really can't leave you by yourself even for a second."

Pulling the plastic box nearer to herself, Risa dissected the pieces of seafood into bite size morsels before returning the half eaten meal to Eri.

"Here."

"Arigatou Gaki-san. You're the best!"

Latching onto her arm, Eri rested her head on Risa's shoulder contentedly, closing her eyes to fully enjoy the experience.

With her existence so blatantly forgotten, Ai felt a strong sense of irritation well up within her. Why were Risa and Eri on such intimate terms? Why did their behaviour seem so natural and right? Why was Risa looking out for Eri to the extent of babying her? Unable to contain her resentment at seeing her sub-leader shower the oldest Rokkie with such affection and the blissful expression which had appeared on Eri's face, Ai bit hard on her lower lip to prevent herself from muttering something she would regret. So caught up in her own thoughts, she did not notice Risa staring at her.

"Are you alright? You seem a little...weird."

"Wha--t?? I'm fine! Absolutely fine."

Her voice rose to a high pitched squeak and Ai knew her less than normal reaction would undoubtedly raise Risa's suspicions. Squirming under her scrutinizing gaze, Ai felt totally naked and as if her every thought was plainly readable to Risa like an open book. Continuing to observe Ai thoroughly, Risa's brows furrowed unwittingly, an obvious sign that she was contemplating something. However, before she had the chance to question Ai further, Eri's distinct voice sounded once more.

"We were asked for our 'Naichau Kamo' stories again."

"What did you say?"

Grateful for the help Eri unknowingly rendered, Ai seized the opportunity to avert attention away from herself.

"The first story was about sliding doors not opening for me, the next was having a wrong food order arrive. The last example was about..."

Pouting cutely as she waited for both of the elder girls' attention to be focused wholly on herself, Eri paused for dramatic effect.

"...dropping my jacket into the toilet bowl."

"EHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH?!??!?! Uso!"

"Honto!"

Pointing at Risa and gesturing wildly with eyes wide open, Eri affirmed that the incident had indeed taken place.

"But you're an idol!"

Slapping the table top with one hand and cradling her stomach with the other, Risa's laughter resonated heartily throughout the empty dining hall with a number of tears slipping from her honey colored eyes.

"Do you have to laugh so hard?"

Folding her arms across her chest, Eri's pout deepened and she tilted her head upwards at an angle, sulking at Risa's obvious display of bemusement.

"Gomene. But it was REALLY funny."

Flashing Eri a lopsided grin, Risa patted the offended girl on the head, stroking her fringe in the process.

"I'll forgive you this time. No more making fun of me, okay?"

"Hai."

The sudden screech of metal leg on ceramic tiles announced Ai's departure as she removed her food tray from the table, making up a random excuse to leave.

"Being leader sure is busy."

Mumbling her thoughts aloud, Eri directed her short-lived concentration back to devouring her food.

"Yeah, I guess it is."

Answering Eri softly, Risa kept her gaze trained on the doorway through which Ai had left moments ago.

I prayed for our love. But our hearts grow further apart.

-----

Standing outside in the hallway, Ai leaned heavily against the wall. Squeezing her eyes tightly shut, she willed herself to not cry at what she had just witnessed.

Can I pretend to notice nothing?

Heaving a depressed sigh, she shook her head to clear all images of the person occupying her mind. Except that no matter how hard she tried, it would not work.

I know you're a kind person. But that makes it even more painful.
Is this how I should be? I keep wondering to myself.

As Ai trudged dejectedly towards the venue for the dance practice, her eyes reddened and glazed over with a transparent coat of tears.

"It wasn't meant to be like this."