White Day for All!

[blazeoflife]

Who: Junpei, Fuuka, and any of his lady friends! (and maybe a guy friend if they really wanna?)

Where: All around Saeng Seong!

When: Back dated to March 14th!

Summary: White Day is traditionally about boys giving back to girls who had given them chocolate on Valentine's day. Junpei thinks it's silly to not treat his other female friends! (...That and he made a looot of truffles with Kanji.)

Warnings: Junpei swears sometimes?

Fuuka had busted her ass in making him those chocolate, even if they'd made him pretty damn sick, he knew he was going to return the favor. Of course, it took some assistance to do so; he didn't know how to make chocolate for the life of him, but thankfully with Kanji's help, he managed to produce some really nice looking (And tasting!) ones.

But, well... when he thought about it, a lot of his lady friends had come to Saeng Seong recently. Yukari was always off 'investigating' somewhere (shouldn't she really be talking to Naoto-san? She was the detective after all) and Mitsuru was working, and of course, Minako was back... but there was also Yuna, his co-worker...

Traditionally, you were only supposed to give chocolate back to girls who gave you some in the first place, but really, where was the fun in that? Besides, Yukari and Minako had missed Valentine's day, and Mitsuru probably didn't even think too much about it. And surely Yuna would appreciate the thought! Oh, and maybe Shura too? And what about... 

Well, there were a few girls he knew. So that day, Junpei decided to go around, trying to find the girls he knew to hand them some chocolate, put into some nice paper bags. Though, there was a special box in the bottom of his bag, for a particular girl...

Comments

[letmeatem]

It was the first time she'd ever seen Junpei looking so seriously at her- and, while yelling at her, too?

She couldn't really blame him, either. She'd been so focused on her theory. But...it had felt like a little cold, at first. Just a cold. The only reason she was starting to see the truth, was just how different she'd felt just from a hug.

"................." For once...she had no snarky retort.

Her glare even wavered, a little, as she fought to hold her composure. She still felt...kind of awful, physically. So, she didn't have it in her to retaliate in the same way as she normally would. It took a little effort to manage a steady tone and loud voice.

"Look, I don't need a babysitter! I'll manage, okay?!"

Almost immediately after, her expression tensed and she looked away. The truth was, she didn't want to have to rely on them like that.

[blazeoflife]

"You obviously need someone to keep an eye on you if you're willing to let yourself get this bad!"

But... Junpei took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. Okay, okay, getting mad like this... it wasn't going to solve the problem with her. It never did. They were both too stubborn to back down sometimes, so... so maybe he needed to change his tone a little.

"...Look. I get it. I get that this place is weird and is awkward for you. And I get that from when you're from, it feels like you should go back immediately and get ready for what's coming."

Reaching into the bag he was still carrying, Junpei held out a white bag with a small pink ribbon holding it closed.

"But... please, Yuka-tan, just trust me on this, just once. Take this time here and savour it. It's a break from where we were; we get a chance to be with people we've... lost, or won't see again. We'll be put back where we belong once we're done here, I sure of it... so what's there to lose in staying here?"

Looking up at her, his brows were knit, a serious expression on his face.

"Don't shut us out again, okay...?"

[letmeatem]

It was a good thing he took it down a notch, actually. Her guard lowered just a bit, her eyes moving to the ground. Expression tensing, she remained quiet for several seconds. His words actually had her thinking pretty hard. For one, Shinjiro-senpai was- he was alive, there. There was absolutely no way she could ignore that. Even so...a part of her still...--

The bag being held out to her was seen in her peripheral vision and she looked up, paused, then slowly reached out to accept it. Her eyes lowered back down to the bag as she let out a sigh. It contained every bit of frustration and pent up anger, sadness, and...maybe some regret...within it.

"Look, I... I get it, okay? I was- I was wrong!"

She glared hard at the bag- of course, her anger wasn't directed at the gift. In fact, it was nothing more than the result of everything feeling kind of like it was crashing down on her. There was also a terrible feeling behind admitting she was wrong. She felt...stupid. So very stupid.

It also didn't help that her body was fighting against her. With a long pause, head still lowered, she slowly reached a hand out and hesitantly- very hesitantly...gripped his upper arm. Lo and behold, she was right. Just from touching his arm, she started to feel better. It actually...pissed her off. Being wrong, being trapped, being forced to do something she didn't like doing...all of it.

And, that was her answer to his request.

[blazeoflife]

"..."

Very, very carefully, Junpei raised his free hand, and gently put it on her own. He could feel the warmth too, but he needed her to know it was okay. It was okay to open up like this.

"It's okay to be wrong sometimes, y'know. I know you hate it a lot, but..."

He smiled, tilting his head a little.

"I'm wrong all the time, so maybe it was just the 'Junpei Zone' getting to ya, huh?"

C'mon, take aim at him, Yukari. It's okay, he can take it.

[letmeatem]

She frowned a little at his initial reassurance, as well as the hand on her own. It felt...weird, okay? Her frown was nothing in comparison to the one following the mention of Junpei Zone. Okay, seriously? He just haaad to go and act like an idiot, now of all times...

...And, in a way, she couldn't appreciate it more. It was somehow comforting, as it almost made her feel like they were right back in the dorms. Prior to her frown strengthening, it had softened, ever-so-slightly.

She couldn't let him know she didn't mind the whole 'Junpei Zone' thing, though!!!

"Ugh. Seriously, Stupei? You wish." Regardless of her words, her tone doesn't hold...any bite, really.

It might be more than just a little clear that she's just saving face. Her grip loosened on his arm just a bit, before she chanced shooting a weak glare up at him, "Don't put me on the same level as you."

[blazeoflife]

"Seriously, Yuka-tan. Don'tcha know? Without school around, we're aaaall equal here~"

His grin only got wider, half from teasing her, and half from feeling reassured that she was going to be okay. He let go of her hand, before gesturing at the chocolate.

"And not even a thank you for the White Day chocolate! I'll have you know I slaved over it aaaall yesterday!"

[letmeatem]

"Just because there aren't numbers to compare us, doesn't put us all on the same level, you know!" She gave him a look that shows she was less-than-impressed.

She left it at that, though there was a part of her that was kind of...glad at there not being school. Sure, she'd been a diligent student, but that was kind of mainly due to there being...well... a social obligation?

To the mentioning of the chocolates, Yukari looked down at the them. There's a look of surprise, and then, "Wait...you made these?"

[blazeoflife]

"Heey, I can cook... a little! I just don't do it a lot..."

Though for once, his smile became slightly sheepish.

"Okay, I admit, I got a little help from Kanji Tatsumi, but they weren't that hard to make. And I promise--" crossing his heart with his finger, "That I taste tested em first. They taste great!"

[letmeatem]

"Boiling water for instant ramen doesn't count as cooking." She retorted quickly, before letting her expression soften a little.

Because, well...it's not like Yukari's any better at cooking. But, hey, the teasing thing kind of just came naturally with Junpei. It was how they showed they care. They truly were just like a brother and sister. She peered at the candy, then up at Junpei. Her expression softened, a bit, "...Wow, so, you went through a lot of trouble for these."

She smiled lightly, "Heh...thanks, Junpei." Hey, she appreciated it, okay.

[blazeoflife]

"Back at the dorm it did... y'know, it's kinda weird that we didn't have a dorm mother, now that I think on it."

But his expression warmed up a lot when Yukari thanked him, acknowledging the effort he put into it. He didn't get thanked too often by her, so he'd treasure it.

"You're welcome!"

His expression turned a little sheepish, and he glanced away, rubbing the back of his head.

"...and y'know, the eating lunch with us isn't just for the touch thing; we also actually like your presence for some bizarre reason. We'd like to see you..."