one.
the sunset on the beach, the sound of the waves took over her body as she closed her eyes and let the peace take over her. the seagulls made loud noises and the faint chatter of the other families made her feel at home. the beach was where nakamura natsumi felt at home.
the wind left her strawberry blonde hair flowing behind her. and as the waves left from the shore, she felt like her problems washed away with them. all the pressure and all her aggressive feelings left her body when she came here.
as she walked the sand, she took in the beautiful sight and looked at her surroundings. not too far from her, she had seen a boy with grey hair and black tips. she could barely see his face but he looked gorgeous. he looked over and saw her in the distance and gave her a small smile. not knowing how to respond, she gave him a surprised look and quickly turned.
the boy who gave the smile had a confused look written all over his face. he watched the shorter girl become smaller in the distance. kita shinsuke had come to the ocean today to escape his annoying volleyball teammates. it wasn't that he did not care about them, it was just at times they would become too much at times. especially the miya twins and their many fights. and the beach. had seemed like a good getaway. but here he was, questioning why the girl gave such a strange attitude. he hadn't given her a nasty look at first, so what encouraged her to give one to him? the thoughts continued on his mind even later in the night when he was laying in bed. something about the girl sparked a certain part in him.
----
the hallways of inarizaki high were always a bit crowded when the time came for lunch. on the first day back from summer, natsumi found herself pushing through the halls trying to get away from everyone else as soon as possible. that was how it usually was during the whole school day. for her, it seemed as if lunch was the worst. not having friends and being closed off did have benefits at times, however, there were many cons and always being alone during lunch would be one of them.
the walk to the small grassy area near a tree wasn't far, but the way it was isolated from everyone else made natsumi feel as if she was alone. one of the best feelings if you were to ask her. something about the silence and knowing no one can interrupt it made her satisfied.
she eyed her surroundings and noticed the way everyone looked at her. a look of disgust as if she was an evil monster. the way they all avoided her because they were scared of what she would say to them.
she wasn't a very "known" student. since she had a closed-off personality, not many people bothered to talk to her. and she didn't bother to talk to anyone else. the few people who did attempt to talk to her ended up giving up after realizing how non-talkative she could be.
that was how everyone expected her to be, but one day she would meet the right person and they would open up her heart and take away the cold protective layer over it. but what she did not know was that person was the one boy who she had first seen at the beach.
---
in a nearby area, the inarizaki volleyball team sat as the miya twins argued like many times before. kita sat and watched, while in his mind he was wondering where he went wrong to have such idiotic teammates like the ones he was given. suna rintaro sat next to him recording the whole thing with jelly sticks in his mouth. aran ojiro was on the other side, also ignoring the twins usual antics.
something about the arguing was normal to the group now. and rarely a week would go by without the twins finding something silly to bicker about. kita usually would put a stop to this just by giving his striking glare. if looks could kill, the miya twins would have been dead by now and a lot of the teams problems would most likely be resolved.
kita sighed and decided that it would be best to remove himself from the situation. he considered the places that would be the most peaceful, the places the exact opposite from where he was right now. the library was his initial choice, due to how quiet it was and maybe he would be able to find a book to read.
just as these thoughts wandered his brain, they were soon interrupted by a loud bell which indicated lunch was now over. a satisfied look made it to his face as he remembered there was no practice today. maybe he would end up going to the library today after all.
---
time skip to the end of the school day
natsumi let out a sigh of relief as she heard the final bell of the day ring. her favorite part of the day, where she could go to her safe and quiet home and did not have to worry about the people around her.
however, today was different in a way. she decided during her second to last period that she was going to go to the school library and look for a book or two as a way to distract herself. she told herself that maybe if she wasnt just cooped up in her room all day, her mental health may improve even just by the tiniest bit.
with that in mind, she made her way through the once again crowded halls and walked into the library. her eyes widened in awe as she, for the first time, realized how big the library was. since transferring to inarizarki in her second year, she had only been to the library probably about two times. yet that was just to pick up necessary books and be in and out. she had never taken the time to look around and realize what a beautiful place this was.
the large room was lined with bookshelves with hundreds of books organized by the author's last name. there were small tables scattered around for students to sit and work on any work that needed to be done. in one corner there were a few bean bags to sit and in the front near the entrance, there was a desk with the librarian. natsumi immediately fell in love with the place and found a certain type of peacefulness in it.
"maybe this place isn't so bad after all," she thought as she walked near the bookshelf and looked through the titles. a specific book titled "to the moon and back” caught her eye as she picked it up from the shelf and began reading what it was about.
"to the moon and back? that was a good one. i read it a few years ago". a voice next to her spoke. as she turned to see who it was, she was faced with the boy she had once seen a few days prior at the beach.
"the guy from the beach.. she thought. did the look i gave him that day not scare him away? why is he approaching me right now?" she began thinking as her eyes widened in confusion.
"you're the girl, right? the one i saw at the beach the other day?" he said with a questioning look written on his face.
"natsumi nakamura natsumi". she told him as she broke the eye contact they held, turning back to the bookshelf and returning her gaze to the book.
"thats a pretty name.. im kita shinsuke. what year are you in?"
"straight into a conversation, i didnt expect this. why hasnt he left yet.." she told herself, wishing he would leave before she would embarrass herself or find a way to drive him away.
"i'm a third year, and you?" she responded, giving into the conversation.
"i'm a third-year as well, i havent seen you around much. are you new?"
"i transferred here my second year."
"where did you go before you enrolled here?"
"fukurodani. you tend to ask a lot of questions for someone who has never spoken to me before. she began. in case my look i gave you at the beach wasnt enough for you, ill say it. i have no interest in being your friend and i'll spare us both the trouble of beginning a friendship and end this conversation now." she snapped, surprising both kita and her in the process.
"shit- i didnt mean for that to come out." her eyes widened once again as she realized what she said.
"i dont understand how starting a friendship with you would be a waste of time, but if thats what you want then ill take my leave. it was nice meeting you nakamura." he said, avoiding eye contact as he walked away from the girl, leaving before she got a chance to apologize.
natsumi watched as the boy walked farther from her. although a part of her wanted to run over and begin apologizing, she knew it would be better for both of them to keep their distance.
kita, on the other hand, thought this interaction made him want to get to know her more. he wanted to understand why she was like this, why she so easily closed him off after only a few sentences were exchanged.
