Our love story 🍀

Our love story

Chapter -1

(Fall,fell,fallen)

Tokyo

A city full of life yet lifeless at some point. I was born and raised there.I got everything a child would like to have. My life was like a rich protagonist of a movie

Everything in my life was going perfectly until one day my father lost his job. We came back to our hometown Chichibu maybe i should say my father's hometown

My mother also quit her job as a professor so that she can come with us. My sister wasn’t even bothered about what was happening with us. She never had any friends at school. Rather she became brighter after coming here

As for me,my whole world went upside down.

But the thing i regret losing is not my luxurious life it's something i cherished most... My first... Love

While tying my shoes I screamed~ I'm leaving.

—Okay. Be careful on your way ~my father replied

I rushed so that I don’t get late on my first day as a 3rd year

Chichibu. A beautiful city of Saitama. I am glad I came here. It's warm,cozy and comfortable. This place feels like a warm hug from nature...

Entering the school gate I took a moment to look around

Everything seems different today. I can see how cheerful everyone is

Some are chatting with their friends & couples are  walking while holding hands. Everyone is smiling, shining and living their youth the fullest

Looking at them makes me wonder am I living my high school life the fullest?

Walking through the corridor I entered 3-C classroom. I put my bag at the last seat by the window and sat down. Looking out of the window I realized it’s really my last spring as a high schooler

Cherry blossoms are looking a little too much pretty this year. I am a senior now. By this time next year I will have graduated. I wonder how my life will be then...

Coming back to my senses I felt like doing some real senior kinda thing. I took a book out to make some notes

—Tohru chan! Good morning!

—Good morning Ayano chan

—Looks like we are in the same class again this year

—Yeah. It's nice to see you in the same class

—What are you studying? Taking notes? No wonder you top in every exam

I gently smiled

—You know that's the only way for me to get into college

—It's to get into a university in Tokyo, right? Do you really have to go Tokyo?

—Yes. I left something precious there

—Are you sure it's still there?

—No. Still I need to check it. And even if i can't get it back... I can at least go back where i belong. And it’s Tokyo

Ayano nodded

—Hey! Tohru Chan,Aya chan! Good morning!

—Mika chan. Calm down. You're out of breath~Ayano said

I handed over a water bottle.

—Drink some water~I said

—Thank you tohru. You're always so considerate ~mika said

Mika drank some water

—Have you guys seen? I'm in different class. How can I spend my last year of high school without you all?

Mika started crying

—Mika. Don't cry. We maybe in different class but we can meet any time,right~Ayano said while comforting her

—But we can't spend much time this way~Mika said crying

—Mika chan. I used to live in Tokyo. We were not supposed to met but we met. We were destined to be friends. And being in different classes won't change this fact. We will always be friends no matter where we are or what are we doing... Understood?~I said

Ayano and Mika startled at me for a moment and both started crying hugging me

—You are so sweet Tohru',Ayano said

—Why are you so kind? Now i can't stop crying~Mika said

I smiled awkwardly not knowing how to comfort them

When the homeroom teacher entered in the classroom the atmosphere changed. Everyone went back to their seats and bowed . Mika left the class quietly saying goodbye to us

—I'm Minami Shirakawa. Hope we gonna have a wonderful year ahead. As you guys are seniors now,be serious. Your future depends on it. Soon...

A boy came running before the classroom door. He was panting. He bowed to the teacher.

—I'm really sorry teacher. I'm late. Please, let me in

Ms. Shirakawa sighed

—Okay. But don't be late next time kazehaya. You're senior now

He nodded,came in and sat beside my seat. It’s kyo kazehaya...

—So what i was saying is,soon we'll be...

The boy whispered, Good morning Tohru

san

I whispered back~Good morning kyo kun

I wrote a note on a page and passed it to him ~Why are you late?

He wrote down the answer and gave it back~I slept late and woke up late

Were you up again awake writing your novel?~I asked on the note

Yeah. And I got scolded by my mother this morning~he replied with another note

I laughed reading this

—Tohru Shirakawa. Be quiet. Concentrate on the class

—I am sorry teacher

Having no desire to get scolded again we paid attention to the class

—That's why i'm giving you an assignment. You guys will write about your dreams and hand it over to me tomorrow, it'll help you to decide your carrer path later. Hope you understood. That's it. Any question?~ teacher said

A girl raised hand

— are dreams and aims different?

—Yeah. Aim is which profession or goal you wanna achive. And dream is simply what you wanna do,would love to do or experience or maybe the life you wanna lead. It’s not about achieving something professionally or competitively... Anything else?

Silence

—Homeroom ends here for today

The teacher left the room. Ayano turned back

—Your mother is so cool Thoru! But are you sure no one is gonna understand that it's your mother. You two look alike

—Don't know. But as they haven't figure it out in 3 years. I don’t think they will in future

—Tohru,sorry. You got scolded for me~kazehaya said

—It’s okay kyo kun. We both got scolded by our mother. We are even

By the way,who else knows that Ms. Shirakawa is your mother?~Kazehaya said

—Mika. Only you three know. Keep it a secret okay?

—Okay!~~Both said

After school Ayano and Mika were walking together down the stairs. Tohru was running down the stairs to catch up with them. That's when she tripped and fell

—Ahh..(Tohru whispered)

And at once, Tohru's memories flashed back to the summer from 3 years ago

I was running through the corridor and coming down the stairs fast. And suddenly my feet slipped and I was about to fall down the stairs. Then i saw a boy at the bottom of the stairs. He had a plastic bag in his hand. He was startled when he saw me. & I eventually fell on him

—Ahh...It hurts(He whispered)

—I am sorry!

I got off from him.

—Are you okay,kiddo?

—I'm not kiddo and I'm alright. Are you hurt? Let me see

— A little on my back. Maybe i scratched my hand too

—I'm really sorry. Let's go to the pharmacy

—Don't worry. I've first-aid at home.

He stood up I also tried to stand up but couldn’t

—Oww..maybe i twisted my ankle a little.

—Looks like we really have to go pharmacy now

The boy kneeled and checked my leg.

—Looks like you broke your leg.

—What!

—Just kidding. But you have injured it badly. Let's go to the pharmacy now

The boy turned

—Hop on. I'll give you a piggy back ride to the pharmacy.

—Are you sure? I don’t wanna trouble you.

—You think you can go down from 3rd floor and walk to the pharmacy when you can't even stand up. Your injury can get worse this way

—Okay... Then...

I hopped on his back. He stood up.

—You are quite lightweight

The boy was walking through the road carrying me. He was quite tall

—Which grade are you kiddo?

—I told you I am not kiddo. I'll be in high school next year

—I thought you just got into middle school. I am in high school by the way. One year senior. You look younger than you are

—No you look more like an adult than your age. I am just the way a middle schooler should be

—Gotcha. But don't you think you should behave more politely with me as I am your senior. I got hurt because of you and I'm even helping you

—I am sorry senpai.

—What's your name by the way?

—It's Tohru Shirakawa

—I see & I'm Ren Sugimoto

We were at the pharmacy. He was standing at a distance buying medicines. Sunlight was touching his face, the table fan was keep messing up his hair. For some reason he looked kinda cute to me

—Done. Your leg hasn’t broken. It's just muscle pain. But avoid walking too much until the pain is gone. I applied some pain relief spray. You just take the medicines and rest for a while~the nurse said

—Okay... And the guy. Is he okay?~Isaid

—Yeah. Looks like he has just got hurt in his back and scratched his hand. We gave him pain killer. Don't worry~she assured

I thanked her with a gentle simle

—No need. It's my job,she replied

—Let's go,Ren said

I turned that way hearing his voice and forgot to breathe for a moment. He was standing with his face close to mine

Seeing him this close to me i couldn’t bring myself to say anything  & just nodded my head

We came outside the pharmacy

—Sugimoto senpai... I saw a bag in your hand. It had ice cream inside. It must have been melted by now. Can i...'

—You don't need to worry~he assured

—No,i want to buy those for you as an apology and thank you~I insisted

—If you say so. Let's go to the nearby store~he said

We started walking. I was still unable to walk properly. So he grabbed my hand around his arm

—Just take help when you need. Don't push yourself too much~he said

I nodded with a smile

—By the way, you were in a hurry. What was it about?~he asked

—I was on my way to buy ramen~I answered

He started laughing. I saw his smile for the first time then

—For ramen? You ran like it's an emergency

_Because my favourite show was about to start~I said slightly shouting.

—You are pretty serious about these things~he said while laughing.

—Yeah. Yeah... But will you stop laughing already?'

—I'm trying but can't

He teased me about this the whole time. We were coming back after buying ramen & ice cream & suddenly a question popped up on my mind

—Sugimoto senpai. Do you live here?'

—No. My girlfriend lives here. I was on my way visiting her

—Ohh

Suddenly I couldn’t feel any pain. My mind went blank

I just felt a strange ache in my chest

—Hey! Are you listening?

I came back to my senses

—I was asking if you lived there. I have never seen you here before

—My aunt lives here. I also came to visit her'

—I see

We came in front of the apartment building where my aunt lives. She was standing outside the building. Seeing us she came running

—Where were you? I was so worried ~my aunt said

—I'm sorry. It's a long story. Let's go home first

—Ren kun? Why are you with Tohru?~my aunt asked

—He helped me.

—I don't know what happened but thanks

—It's okay Ms. Mayuka

—Are you going to meet Kana chan?

—No I will go home for today~Ren replied.

—Okay. Let's go Tohru~my aunt said

I let go of his hand. While going up,i turned and looked at him once. He was walking away. I didn’t know what that feeling was... I felt an ache deep inside me

It hurts... I blinked

I came back to reality. I was in school. Kazehaya was standing right in front of me

—Are you alright?~he asked

—Ahh... Maybe...!~I answered while smiling awkwardly

But that heart ache... I could still feel it...