We Can't Leave Them Alone, Even For One Moment

[FUJIWARA OSAMU]

Osamu had invited everyone to his second home that was near the sea. During that time of the year, it would be less crowded but the weather would still be enjoyable. He came to the conclusion, along with Hideo and Hiroki that it would be the best location for all of them to find something enjoyable to do and since he couldn’t just invite Amaya and Yoshihiro without looking suspicious, they were all going to tag along which gave him a feeling of déjà vu from a few months back. He had seen it all, the moment where Hideo snuck in, Hiroki complaining that it wasn’t a good idea as the man switched poor Amaya’s swimming suit into two pieces. He had expected it to turn out sour once she would find out, luckily for them, she did, but only when they were in the place and had to change into their suits and were head to the beach. After a few arguments and some convincing, they were able to go down to his private beach and enjoy some time on their own, followed by Amaya, looking as angry as ever as she was wearing a sun hat and a pair of glasses that hid her eyes – note that they could still feel how upset she was and the daggers she was throwing in their backs. In his defense, he had nothing to do with it.

He pointed to the group the spot where they would be and set their beach umbrella in the sand before setting his towel down. Hopefully, they would get some peace and actually enjoy the day. Hiroki was already heading towards the beach once he found out that they had a few items that would add pleasure to their trips and grabbed a beach board already running for his fun day, dragging Satoru around. Amaya had found herself a spot a bit apart of them and was set too, mumbling incoherent things as he secretly hoped she wasn’t cursing them all and decided to focus on Matsumi. “I think this should do.” He said to her with a smile. He was determined to relax and actually enjoy himself, and wouldn’t let anyone ruin it.

[TAKAHAMA YOSHIHIRO]

The last thing Yoshihiro wanted to do was to go out by the sea. Unlike the others, he had to work to stay at the house, he couldn't just go on a trip one weekend because he felt like it. They tried their bet to convince him to go. He knew that Matsumi was apparently also tagging along and that she pushed Amaya to come, no doubt on behalf that being the only girl with a group of boys would look bad but it wouldn't be the same if she accompanied her friend. But that meant Yoshihiro was under no obligation. In a way, he viewed the fact they would leave as vacation time for himself as well. He had no idea if they thought of bringing Amaya's brother too but even if that was not the case, dealing with the boy alone would still give him plenty of free time to do whatever he wanted. Ultimately, it was Amaya's aunt who convinced him to go. Seeing how the others wouldn't be there, she thought it would be a good opportunity to do some work on the house and if Yoshihiro was to stay, then he'd have to help. He was certain it was just a ploy to make him go and that she didn't intend on doing any renovations, but he also didn't want to tempt it. She may be able to make some just to punish him, or have him do all of the chores around the house even more so than he already did.

The trip there proved as painful as expected. Amaya didn't seem pleased to see him. Neither was he and he was brooding in his corner while Matsumi tried to entertain Amaya and ask what she planned to do once there. Yoshihiro couldn't picture Amaya enjoying sunbathing in a bikini, unlike Matsumi, and to see her try to find activities they could all enjoy was laughable. Yoshihiro did agree to play some games at the beach with Hiroki but other than that, barely talked during the whole trip.

Yoshihiro might have a bathing suit on but he preferred to also wear shorts and a shirt. He also had sunglasses on already, mostly because he didn't want to keep them on top of his head. Matsumi was asking if he could help carrying some stuff they were to bring down at the beach. He didn't mind. He couldn't picture matsumi carrying all of this by herself and it certianly wasn't Hideo who would help. Then he saw Amaya. He stared at her. He couldn't beleive she had that kind of bathing suit. he stared at Matsumi, certain she was the one who bought it for her. But Matsumi was surprised too before telling her how cute she looked and how well it suited her. Yoshihiro turned his head away when Amaya passed by him. No way that suited her and he refused to look any further.

Hiroki apparently wanted to go boarding with Satoru so Yoshihiro ended up playing with a throwing disc with Hideo once he was done bringing all the stuff. Amaya had left them while Matsumi and Osamu focused on setting everything down. She smiled back at Osamu. "Yes," she agreed. She looked around. It was nice that Yoshihiro seemed to be in a playing mode but she wished Amaya would stick around more. She was about to go to her but someone beat her to it, in a way. Hideo had also noticed Amaya and taking advantage that Yoshihiro had his back at her, he tossed the disk in her direction, flying above Yoshihiro so he couldn,t reach, all the way to Amaya, hitting her on her thigh, although at this point, it lost most of its speed and wouldn't hurt so much. Matsumi straightened up as she waited to see what the reaction would be, knowing Yoshihiro would have to go and pick it up. Would they finally talk and lighten up a bit?

[TSUKINA AMAYA]

Amaya wasn’t sure why she ended up being stuck with the radiant ones in a radiant place such as the beach and recalled the events prior to that. Matsumi had found ways to touch her sensitive spot somehow as she understood that the girl wanted to spend more time with Osamu but her parents wouldn’t let her come if she wasn’t joined by a friend. She also took her brother along with her so he could enjoy himself as well. The beach was after all a safe place and her aunt couldn’t be more pleased by the idea. Amaya wasn’t aware however that someone had switched her bathing suit until she made it to the beach and was quite upset at the turn of event. Why didn’t they let her have her one piece? She didn’t feel comfortable showing her body like this and was a bit on the defensive even if Matsumi complimented the outfit. She mumbled a few incoherent things and decided to sit by a spot that was far enough for them so she could vent a little.

She didn’t notice the guys staring at her when she was wearing her new bathing suit and even less when it was Yoshihiro who did that. She simply focused on finding a spot on her own as the others were settling their camp for the day, she did the same with her towel and sat down on it making sure to put sunscreen on so she wouldn’t burn. She was in the process of doing so when the flying disc landed on her and she startled a bit, not expecting that but was still on the edge from having to cover much more than she thought she would have in the beginning. At least, Matsumi seemed to be enjoying herself. She did tell to Matsumi that she wasn’t sure what she would be doing once at the beach; there weren’t any rumours of Pirates or death corpses, that wasn’t a place she would go for right away.

She would also have to find out who was the culprit of the swimming suit crime. They would hear it out from her! The disc was only a distraction and she moved as it fell beside her since she was in the middle putting the cream on her arms.

Osamu did feel bad for Amaya though, he bet she wouldn’t feel comfortable in the suit but he preferred not to think about it much, letting Matsumi observe the scene for them as he picked up his book for the day; he always enjoyed a good read by the beach before a water dip or game or whatever Hiroki would come up with. He mostly wanted to chill and he wasn’t going to let his friends ruin that.

[KIMURA MATSUMI]

It was funny to see Amaya in that bathing suit. Matsumi quickly understood that it was a bad trick one of the boys played on her and that she was not happy about it. Matsumi swore to her that she looked gorgeous but she didn't want to hear of it, it seemed. Even Matsumi had been shocked by how pretty Amaya could look like that. Matsumi wore one too, in light blue with a bow in the middle of the top, although they couldn't see much of it now with her outfit. She tried to look as feminine as possible without it to seem too obvious.

She didn't mind setting things up. Yoshihiro didn't grumble while bringing most of the objects, for a change, so she could give him a break. She wondered about Amaya who set her spot away from them. But at least she was close to Osamu. Their plan seemed to be working well so far, in the sense that the two were there. But they were avoiding each other. They would have to come up with something. All Amaya talked about during the trip was pirates or death and the like. She kept suggesting bathing or playing a game on the beach or build a castle... anything. Matsumi didn't know what the temperature of the water would be like. She was a bit shy about going in it herself, not wanting to catch a cold or something for this.

"I suppose we should be glad she's not hiding behind a book..." she muttered in a sigh as she stared at her friend. That would be another barrier between them if she did something like this. She also wondered who thought the joke on the swimsuit was funny. It wasn't, as it nearly made her walk back home, but at least that tragedy was averted. She didn't realise that Osamu himself had picked up his book as she was busy staring at her friend.

And then the disc incident happened. Yoshihiro had begun running after it but stopped as he realised where it landed. He stayed there a moment, observing Amaya and her reaction. Seeing her dismissing the disc instead of throwing it back, he moved towards her to fetch it. He no longer had his glasses, of course. He left them by the small bag that was supposed to be his things, in reality sunscreen and where they kept the towels. He didn't want to talk to her though, he just grabbed the disc, staring at her most of the time as though she would jump on him at any moment otherwise, before going back to Hideo. Matsumi sighed heavily. This was now going well between those two.

[TSUKINA AMAYA]

Amaya didn’t want to hear it, even if she was told that she was beautiful wearing that suit. It wasn’t like her, just like it wasn’t like her to be forced to wear nice clothes for her aunt’s desire whenever she wanted her to attend these receptions. She was thankful that the bottom was shorts, but she would have preferred the one piece that she had. At least, Satoru was enjoying himself with Hiroki and that appeased her a little. She may not look like it but she did care for people, she just didn’t like to be shoved into forced activities. The sun was going to kill her, literally but she did contemplate on what she could do. She didn’t hear rumours of Pirates hiding a treasure which was a bummer, because she would have liked it for sure. She could hunt down seafood so they could have a meal. But for now, she was still not in a mood to do much as she was still digesting the idea of being stuck here with the radiant ones.

Osamu was about to start reading his book when Matsumi commented on Amaya’s behavior and froze. He put his book back into his bag when she commented on it and looked at Amaya who seemed to have cheered up a little bit. She could be creepy when they let her dress the way she wanted, but when she was dressed normally, she had the potential to be a lady for sure. He observed the scene as Yoshihiro treated her like some kind of animal that would bite him. He couldn’t blame his friend, especially when it concerned Yoshihiro- she could really bite him if need be. “I don’t know if there’s anything we can do about it.” He stated, thinking of what could put Amaya in a mood to enjoy the beach. There was a cave, not so far, but he wasn’t sure about if he was ready to let her explore on her own but that might certainly put her in a good mood.

Amaya didn’t react much when Yoshihiro approached, giving him a warning look instead. He was the one who poisoned her life the most, he should be warned and he walked as fast as he could back to the sea. The further away he was from her, the better it was going to be. Osamu sighed and decided to dib on Amaya. “Hey Amaya, I heard there was a cave not so far if you go for a walk – “ He was cut short by her as she perked up. “A cave? Are there snakes, spiders, or even better, bats inside it?” She asked him which he shrugged at. “I don’t know, I didn’t look it up.” He admitted and would rather not if he was honest. He pointed in the direction he said it was, it was still on his part of the beach so he really saw no harm in letting her go there if it was to cheer her up. She did consider it as she looked in the pointed direction but didn’t go there yet. Osamu was going to let that idea blossom into her mind and will see what she would do with it.

[KIMURA MATSUMI]

Matsumi was impressed by how pretty Amaya could be. It proved that, if she believed in herself a little more, she could be pretty. People sadly viewed this highly and judged each other based on it. So all she needed was to look less scary all the time and more approachable and surely she could even be popular if she wanted. "You know what is the whole deal with her swimsuit?" she still asked Osamu though. She couldn't fully believe it was one of the boys, she didn't see them doing something like that. Not Hiroki for sure, nor Yoshihiro who always tried to make the point that he didn't care about her, and she really hoped not Osamu either. Satoru was no doubt too young for that. That left Hideo, and she was torn between it possible and too crazy. Or her aunt. Maybe she forced something like that on her niece without Amaya's knowledge.

Matsumi had yet noticed Osamu and his book. She never meant to insult him, she just mentioned the fact that Amaya picked a book to look even less approachable. It was another wall between her and them. It had to be fixed somehow. Of course, Yoshihiro was not going to suggest she joined them. They should all play, Amaya included. There had to be some game they could all do, even if it was just sandcastle building. But the boy went back with his disc and not a care for the girl he left behind. Matsumi took a deep breath, ready to go to him and ask why they were not including her in the game also when she saw Osamu walk towards Amaya. He apparently had a plan and this disrupted her train of thoughts. She decided to follow him and see what he would do.

She wasn't sure about a cave. Caves were dark, and cold, and spooky. Okay, they were everything she would like. But she wasn't sure about going there to or how they could convince everyone to go. Did they even think of bringing torches? To make matters worse, Amaya talked of snakes, spiders and bats. This made Matsumi shiver. "Wouldn't a cave by a beach end up flooded during the high tide though? Can't see animals living in there." Whether there were some or not, Matsumi was still not too inclined on going. but it did catch Amaya's attention, and since the girl took on her to come here for her sake, Matsumi felt like she would have to do a sacrifice too. But why did it have to be a scary, dark cave?

[FUJIWARA OSAMU]

Osamu had put the book away from him and heard Matsumi’s question. He nodded, making sure he would be out of Amaya’s hearing range because the murder was definitely going to happen if she was to know. “Hideo.” He simply said and it wouldn’t take her too long to connect the dots with how it could have happened. He just didn’t want to say too much knowing that they were at earshot and she was still pouting and upset at the idea of having to wear such a piece. He didn’t think it looked bad on her, she had potential, she definitely wasn’t his type as his type was most likely next to him. He then went to Amaya and told her about the cave. “We don’t know until we go and see there for ourselves.” He was game, it might take some time to get Matsumi down to do it but they could do this much for Amaya who kept doing things she might not have wanted to do, to begin with.

Amaya on the other hand, nodded, agreeing with them. They had to visit it to see if there were or not animals that would pique her interest. For now, though, she watched her brother having fun with Hiroki and stood up, and decided to go near the water. She heard there was good seafood around here and she wanted to see for herself. They could most likely get free dinner out of it. She always thought that way; being used to work on a tight budget and feeding the whole clan.

Osamu wasn’t bothered by the fact that she went on her own, she was always independent and couldn’t help but compare the girl to Matsumi who was her literal opposite. He was happy that their friendship worked and that balanced Amaya a bit more towards the ‘bright side’ as she would tend to say.

[KIMURA MATSUMI]

"What?" That was a rhetorical question, of course. She looked towards Hideo and Yoshihiro. How did he manage to sneak into her room and slide in that bathing suit? And how did he know how to get one that fit? No, scratch that, this one made sense when you knew it was him. She was a bit upset after Osamu, since it meant he knew but didn't stop it or warn Amaya about it, but she chose to ignore it. She did look cute in this and was hoping she'd get over it.

Osamu was apparently keen on letting Amaya explore the caves. Matsumi was certain that the girl would love doing it on her own but Matsumi couldn't let that happen. What if something were to happen then? She wouldn't have anyone to help her and with the tide possibly reaching in, it could go pretty bad. But she didn't want to go herself. Even a warm, safe cave felt a bit scary to her. The conflict could be shown on her face. "You shouldn't go by yourself, in case something happens," she pointed out. Plus she still remembered the last time and how worried they all got. "But if I come along with you..." Her voice trailed off. They all knew she would be scared and be more of a hindrance than help. Osamu would have to watch over her and not Amaya. She looked at the boys, Hiroki with Satoru, Yoshihiro with Hideo. "Maybe we can ask them to join?

As she said that, Amaya was already walking away to look at the sea. Was she changing her mind? Inside, Matsumi hoped so. If not, they really needed to ask the others if they wanted to do some exploring. And hoping they would say yes.

[FUJIWARA OSAMU]

Osamu simply nodded his head as Matsumi replied to him. He didn’t want to assist to a murder scene just about now and knew that she would get it. The day had only started so might as well enjoy a bit of it before the drama would occur. That was unless Hideo decided he felt cheap enough and would tell the truth to the girl but he doubted it would ever happen so they were going to be fine for a while.

It was true that it was probably going to be best if she was accompanied by someone. They could figure that out in due time. He glanced at Hideo and Yoshihiro and nodded his head. “That could be an idea.” He said as he watched Amaya go on her own seemingly scouting the area by herself. At least, she wasn’t pouting anymore in her beach towel so that was a great way to start. “We can talk it out to them later.” He said to Matsumi. They could just keep an eye on Amaya and later would do as promised and let her visit the said cave.

Meanwhile, she continued to walk around the store, looking at the seafood that could have the potential for a dinner. It wasn’t too bad but it would have been better with the original swimming suit for sure.

[KIMURA MATSUMI]

Osamu agreed with Matsumi. It was best for Amaya not to go alone. She wondered if Amaya even listened to her when she said that and it was the reason why she chose to walk away a bit. Was she bothered that they would join in her fun? It was for her safety though, and to not repeat what happened during their last trip. She wondered if Amaya would try swimming. She didn't think she could herself. It looked way too cold for that. Just because there was no snow or ice didn't make it swimming weather in her mind. She didn't get Hiroki and Satoru either but they didn't seem to mind. Yoshihiro and Hideo were still at it. Matsumi assumed they would until they either called them out or a pretty girl passed by Hideo's line of sight. For now though, things seemed to go well. It was a relief.

She nodded her head at Osamu. They could ask them later indeed. She hoped they would agree though. She wondered what Amaya was doing looking at the shore like this, and the waves. She didn't get what her plan was. Had she did, she would have encouraged everyone to participate. "So much for getting them closer though, but I suppose we still have the rest of the trip for that," she added. She looked up to smile at Osamu about it.

She couldn't explain why, but she suddenly felt self-conscious standing there next to him. She lowered her head, looking away to cover her blush. Was she too close of him? And in those clothes too. But he didn't seem to mind it for once so why did she have to be the one getting all shy all of a sudden? Perhaps because, if all they had to do was watch Amaya and wait until they explain their ideas to the others, it meant they would be alone together. This moment she wished for for so long.

[TSUKINA AMAYA]

Amaya wasn’t in a talkative mood much for now as she was still upset about the whole idea of wearing a swimming suit that didn’t fit her tastes. It was slowly starting to fade away as she looked at the potential of the seafood that was going on and the idea of prepping a meal sure made her feel better than being stuck under the radiant sun with the radiant creatures. Why was she so unlucky? The only thing that made her try to change her mood was Satoru who seemed to enjoy himself with Hiroki. She didn’t want to ruin his day, she was still the big sister and she didn’t need him to look after her even if she was almost certain that he did.

She wasn’t going to grab their meal right away though as it was too early to do so anyway and they would have plenty of time to do that later on as she was sure her brother would be willing to help her get the seafood. She straightened up when she was done evaluating the goods that were in the sea and looked at Satoru who was having a blast with Hiroki. They truly were like children and at least, Hiroki was offering to her brother some sort of companionship that she couldn’t do being a girl and a freak.

Osamu knew how tedious it was to get Yoshihiro to spend time with Amaya and had to agree with Matsumi. He didn’t feel that she grew nervous all of a sudden as they were alone. He remembered the pastry shop she mentioned the other day. “By the way, we have to settle a date for the pastry shop.” He told her. He could bring something to his friends after that knowing they might nag him for not bringing sweets home after going to the shop.

[TAKAHAMA YOSHIHIRO]

In other circumstances, Yoshihiro might have played with Satoru. He didn't dislike kids, he just treated them like normal people. But Satoru opted to go into the waves with Hiroki and so an battled ensued between Yoshihiro and Hideo. Not like the ones they might have at home, arguing at each other and trying to see who of the martially trained rich boy or the street savvy kid would get the advantage on the other. Although they might be some of that. This time, it was a battle with a flying disk. They might not have been deeply into it but since Hideo flew the disk towards Amaya to annoy Yoshihiro and the other boy calling him on that, they had a proper battle. They were totally unaware of the others and what they were doing. They were too busy making sure to catch the disk no matter what and send it to the other in as difficult a way to grab as possible.

In the middle of this heated competition, Hideo threw the disk with all of his strength and, this time, Yoshihiro missed it. It flew, only to, once again, hit Amaya, this time not just near her, but straight at her. A pity for Matsumi also, who startled of surprise as Osamu asked her about the bakery. She smiled and was about to answer when she saw the whole scene and let out a yelp at it, hands instincitvely going to her mouth in horror.

"You idiot, stop send it this way!" Yoshihiro screamed towards Hideo as he had to run to Amaya again. He was less bothered than earlier though, for he had what happened too and got shaken. Hideo as well, actually. He ran to join Yoshihiro. "It,s not like I did it on purpose, you're the one who was standing there," he claimed. He too had not noticed Amaya moving towards the wave and now being in the right angle for a surprise attack from them. "Are you alright?" Hideo asked Amaya, slightly afraid of what her reaction would be, and ready to throw Yoshihiro under the bus if need be. He didn't want to suffer her wrath. He was one scorned woman after him already, that was enough. Matsumi also joined Amaya to ask the same question.

[TSUKINA AMAYA]

Amaya had to admit that she was slowly, oh so slowly starting to enjoy her time at the beach. Already planning ahead what she would do for dinner and how she would prepare the seafood she would fish, probably with the help of Satoru as she didn’t think of giving the task to the radiant ones as they probably would have enjoyed their times in a better way than helping her out. She did think of asking Matsumi to help her but she wondered just how much she could have helped as the girl didn’t strike to her as someone who was keen on fishing or touching the animals.

That was until she was hit by the flying disk that went straight at her, hitting her on the arm. It was on its way to go at her face, but she moved just in time to avoid it. She made a face, ready to blow up as of course, it had to involve Yoshihiro. She glared at Hideo a little as he questioned her. Did she look alright? It already took all of her might to come to the beach, let alone to wear that bloody swimming suit and now they had to throw a disk at her face!

Osamu had also assisted to the scene and so had Hiroki and her brother Satoru which resulted in the group gathering around her. “Are you alright Sister?” Asked Satoru too, concerned. “What did you do again?” Asked Hiroki to Hideo, aware that he was the one inquiring of her well-being, surely, he was the one at fault, right? “I’m fine.” She snapped, angrily but trying to hold back as her brother was around. She had some restraint if it wasn’t coming from Yoshihiro himself. That’s when Osamu stepped in. “Hideo and Yoshihiro should go and visit the cave with Amaya, to apologize.” He gave them a stern look. Things were on the verge of breaking down and he didn’t want to see his day ruined.

[TAKAHAMA YOSHIHIRO]

Amaya looked like a demon queen right now, a monster ready to hit them with the full extent of her wrath. Even the boys backed up a bit, not wanting to be too close when she would blew up. She rarely exploded the way they did or picked up fight but there was something scarier about her. The boys could fight one another and after a few blows, it was over. They feared what could happen if she acted on how angry she was.

Everyone gathered around her, no one daring to say a thing. Satoru was the only one who dared approach her and speak to her. As her brother, he was safer. Hiroki blamed Hideo who raised his hands in defense. "Hey, don't blame me. We were just playing, I had no idea the disk would end up towards her. It's not like I planned it." They might think otherwise, but he never would have hit her if that were the case. The previous time, when it landed right next to her, maybe. It was a great excuse to talk to pretty girls. But you didn't score points with them by hitting them.

Hideo and Yoshihiro startled at what Osamu said. He was acting as the leader of the group, ordering them around. "The what now?" Yoshihiro asked. Not having heard their conversation, he had no idea what that was about. He was not scared of a cave, but he was not really inclined in going, especially with Amaya. The two always fought, why couldn't the others understand it? "Ignore him, he's just trying to get us all away to be alone with Matsumi," Hideo retorted. He would have done something like that. Yoshihiro poitned out the obvious though. "Then they're the ones who should go alone in a cave." Matsumi felt herself turning bright red. Her cheeks were burning out of embarrassment. She knew why Osamu said that, but to have it explained that way, it was really embarrassing. She looked down, unable to stare at any of them now, particularly Osamu. She felt the atmosphere got even worse now. "We should all go!" she exclaimed, still unable to look at any of them but not wanting it to end up being about Osamu and her trying to be alone for a moment.

[FUJIWARA OSAMU]

Hideo at fault was certainly a thing; he was the one who swapped her bathing suit so he could as well have done that. Osamu kept the words to himself though not wanting her to be angrier than she was already. They didn’t need this as the day was going relatively well until this happened. This was getting to be a mess and he didn’t want to have to deal with this. Thinking they could have a peaceful day with their crew was like witnessing the flight of pigs; it would never happen! He was rubbing his head as he tried to think of a way out of it without blowing them up completely if Amaya found out of the bathing suit.

Amaya briefly nodded at Satoru still shooting daggers at them with her eyes. She didn’t know what was holding her back unless it was the bathing suit she was concerned about otherwise she would have lashed out at them right away. Osamu stared at Hideo when he claimed he wanted alone time with Matsumi. “As people who messed up you should do that to apologize.” He retorted before Matsumi exclaimed they should go together. Amaya didn’t believe Matsumi was able to stand going into a cave and since she tried to contain herself, she glared at Yoshihiro and Hideo. “If you ruin this, I’ll kill you both.” She said in a warning tone. Hopefully seeing the cave would indeed ease her a little.