Fandom ( it takes all the stars to align ) ••• starfallen.txt & redrobinwing

[Redrobinwing]

Hisao cringed slightly at Hoshiko's throw. It wasn't just that hers wasn't exactly the best, but his had been really bad too; probably worse since he nearly hit Airi. "I think I just did..." It was probably quite the scene seeing the two attempt the game. He'd definately lost a bit of pride after his failed attempt. Despite that though, his friend started laughing about the whole thing. It felt odd at first, seeing her laugh at her own mistake, but it was comforting too; showed that she wasn't too embarrassed. He smiled and let out a small laugh, though he was still blushing quite a bit.

Now it was his turn to go at it. Hisao let out a small sigh, calming his nerves slightly as he picked up his second ring. Now that he had a better feel for how much power he'd have to put into it, he hoped that this throw would be better than the last. He chose the same bottle to target since nothing had changed about its position. Carefully, he aimed for it and measured how much force he'd have to put into it. Once he was ready, he extended his arm out and tossed the ring, barely catching the bottle and looping around it. A wave of relief washed over him; he'd proved that he wasn't horrible at the game. The blush on his face started to fade. "Thank god."

 

[starfallen.txt]

IF TOMORROW NEVER COMES
and i could still breathe and survive ー

"That's awesome!" Hoshiko exclaimed. Sure, it might not have fallen around a bottle perfectly, but it was still a feat, she thought.

Come to think, not many prizes were taken yet, it seemed. Was the game supposed to be hard? That brought a little bit of comfort in her - if it was supposed to be hard, then people wouldn't look at her fail three times in a row. She sighed, staring at the closest bottles. She could try hitting for those next. She still wasn't really sure just how far they are from her, but maybe she'll get lucky this time.

About a few moments later, she tossed the ring. She threw it a little bit too light this time - it didn't even hit anything. It just kind of fell on the ground with a sad thump. It was close, though. At least Hoshiko had that going for her.

"That's it, I suck," she said jokingly, smiling. She had loosened up after she shared that laugh with Hisao just a few moments earlier, and it seemed like she didn't mind looking bad anymore.

"Last one!" Airi announced. "Just one ring so far! I mean, that's still a small prize, so you guys have that going." She grinned, tilting her head to the left.

 

[Redrobinwing]

A little bit of pride returned to Hisao after hearing Hoshiko's encouragement. It was rare for him to be complimented for an accomplishment of any kind; he wasn't particularly skilled in many things. Now that he had a better feeling for the power needed for each throw, there was a much better change he'd get a good shot off. But first, it was his partner's turn. Her second throw was only been slightly better than her first, which meant she still missed the bottles, just by a smaller margin this time. Before he could start to feel bad about it though, she smiled and shrugged the toss off. Again Hoshiko made him feel a little bit better about everything; it seemed like she was starting to relax a little more with the game. Their day at the festival seemed to include a lot of that; it was nice seeing her so friendly and not nervous. "It was a good throw though, you just need a little more power in it."

It was Hisao's turn once again. Now armed with the experience of having thrown twice before and with a fifty-percent success rate, he aimed the ring carefully and tossed it. This time, the ring almost perfectly landed on one of the bottles. Again, a new sense of accomplishment found its way into Hisao's chest. It was a small accomplishment, sure, and not really noteworthy, but at least he did well at something. "Two rings now."

 

[starfallen.txt]

IF TOMORROW NEVER COMES
and i could still breathe and survive ー

Ah. Well.

Hoshiko felt herself start to blush again. It was just some simple advice from Hisao, really, but why did that make her feel... actually good about herself? She's gotten some advice from Mana before, and sure, they made her feel pretty okay when it actually helps, but...

You're being cheesy, Hoshiko. Damn.

"Hey, Hoshiko," Airi called out; a small reminder that it was her turn.

The girl suddenly perked up, a little bit surprised. She looked at Airi, then at the bottles. It looked like Hisao had thrown another one and got another bottle. "Oh..." She gripped the last ring she had, hoping she would at least make this one. She had to throw it just a little harder than last time, but maybe not as hard as the first time. But that would only guarantee getting it at least where the bottles actually are. It would take some luck to get one, but she had to at least try. They were getting prizes, anyways.

She glanced at Hisao for a second, before finally deciding to throw the ring. It actually did went farther than her second one, and it didn't hit the back wall this time. She stared intently as the ring hit the top of a bottle, bouncing off of it and falling on the ground near it. "Oh." There goes all that confidence from earlier. She still smiled, though, shrugging it off like it was nothing. "Eh, I tried my best, I guess."

"That was so close!" Airi commented, putting a hand on her hip. "Hey, at least you're still getting something! Feel free to pick something out. Whatever's fine."

 

[Redrobinwing]

Hoshiko's attempt wasn't half bad. She added a bit more power to her throw like he had said, and her aim was much better too. For a second he almost cheered when the ring hit the top of the bottle, but stopped himself when it bounced off. For just a moment, he felt a tinge of disappointment, but it was definitely better than the last two throws, and that was worth being happy about. "Good job Hoshiko, that was really close." He smiled down at the girl. Airi's voice caught his attention. "Oh, a prize, sure." There were a few different prizes all stacked on various shelves. Most of the prizes that they could pick weren't too great, but some seemed a little cool. As he checked out what was available to them, he spoke to Hoshiko. "What do you want?"

 

[starfallen.txt]

IF TOMORROW NEVER COMES
and i could still breathe and survive ー

Hoshiko was still a bit down on herself after that throw, but she managed to smile back at Hisao. "Thanks," she replied, a slight blush on her face. Sure, maybe she did kinda waste his money, but at least she had fun. Right?

When he asked her what she wanted, she looked up at the prizes. She didn't want most of these, but there were some which she wouldn't mind having. Still, she felt a little guilty after those horrible throws. "O-oh, no, you don't need to pick anything for me," she said, waving her hands dismissively. She was about to suggest just not getting anything, but that would be a waste of money too, wouldn't it? If Hisao didn't want anything, then maybe...

"Well, I guess a plush would be good," she added. "Still, though, you don't have to get me anything..."

 

[Redrobinwing]

Hisao shook his head with a calm smile. "We can share it though, trade it whenever we see each other." He thought for a moment about what to get. The only suggestion that Hoshiko gave was to get a plush, which did narrow things down a good amount. There were about four of them in total; a stuffed bear, a dragon, a fox, and some sort of bird. It was for sure between the bird and the fox; the bear seemed a little cliche, and the dragon a little too fierce for his taste. Hm... On one hand, the fox was kind of cute, and he always they they were pretty cool animals. On the other hand, the bird could play short bird songs if you squeezed it. It was a tough decision. "Hoshiko, do you think we should go with the fox or the bird?"

 

[starfallen.txt]

IF TOMORROW NEVER COMES
and i could still breathe and survive ー

Trading it sounded nice. It would kind of be another excuse to hang out with Hisao, even if it was something as tiny as giving him a plush to keep for a while.

Hoshiko's response to the question was almost immediate. "Bird. Definitely bird." If her interest in birds wasn't apparent when she got that tiny plastic bird toy from earlier, it was pretty much obvious now. This bird plush in particular was adorable. Absolutely adorable. She was going to squeeze that thing so many times.

Airi giggled at Hoshiko's response. "She loves birds," she said, grinning. She reached up to grab it, soon handing it to Hisao. "I think it has some recording feature too, but I don't know how to activate it. We kinda just threw away the box and the little paper telling you what it can do." She shrugged.

 

[Redrobinwing]

Hisao was a little taken aback by Hoshiko's excitement, he hadn't really expected her to be so into birds. So far, the only thing that he knew she was into was playing guitar, and that didn't have much of a correlation with birds of any kind. Still, it was almost girlish in a way, and kind of cute too. He accepted the plush from Airi and glanced it over before handing it to Hoshiko. He was glad to see her so happy about the plush, it felt nice to something like that for her. "Thanks Airi."

Now that they had finished with the game, it was time to check out the rest of the festival. Things looked like they were still pretty busy for the most part, though the lines were slightly shorter than they had been before. Hisao didn't really care what they did, so he looked to Hoshiko. "What do you want to do next?"

 

[starfallen.txt]

IF TOMORROW NEVER COMES
and i could still breathe and survive ー

Hoshiko gratefully accepted the bird plush, immediately giving it a squeeze. It was a soft birdie. Good birdie. She hugged it closer to her, refusing to let go of it for a while. She soon started to walk away from the stand, waving a goodbye to Airi and letting the people behind them play next.

"Next, huh? Uh..." Hoshiko looked around, tilting her head. She wasn't really sure where to go next after this, really. She didn't quite feel like wasting Hisao's money any more than she already had. "Well, maybe we can just walk around, if you want to," she suggested, smiling at Hisao. It would be nice to just hang out until the day is done for now. There were others who would probably want to do more, but for now, she was content.

"...Thanks for spending time with me today, though."

 

[Redrobinwing]

Hisao put his hands in his pockets as they left the stall. It had been a good day so far, better than he'd expected for sure. Now that they were gone with the game, Hisao was actually rather content with just hanging out for the rest of the day; a sentiment which Hoshiko seemed to shade. He smiled and nodded in agreement. "Yeah, that sounds good."

What she said after, though, made him feel weird. She thanked him for spending time with her. He was happy to do it, she was a cool person and it was nice to spend the festival with someone. At the same time, though, it felt odd that she thanked him for just hanging out. It wasn't like it was hard to do, far from it in fact. Hisao hid any awkward feelings and simply shook his head. "Don't thank me, I'm glad to hang out with a friend."

Now that they were free from sticking to the festival, he started walking towards a shady spot with a decent view of the festivities. It was isolated from everyone else, and seemed like a good place to relax for a bit. "Do you mind if we sit over there for a few minutes?" He pointed to the spot so that she could see it.

 

[starfallen.txt]

IF TOMORROW NEVER COMES
and i could still breathe and survive ー

A friend...

Oh, Hoshiko. You finally did it. You made a friend without Mana's help. She felt a tinge of pride at that, a blush dusting her cheeks the slightest bit. Alright, yeah, maybe she was starting to feel something, but god forbid she ever be stupid enough to let that slip out of her mouth.

"Oh, yeah, that spot looks nice," she replied, following him as she did so. It was late in the afternoon now, and in an hour or two people would start cleaning up and going back to their dorms. She herself would probably grab her guitar and go up to the roof by herself again. "So, um..." Hoshiko looked to the side, tilting her head. She didn't really know what to say again. Dammit, Hoshiko. You were doing so well. She decided to just not say anything, hugging the bird plush a little bit tighter, but not tight enough to activate it.

"Y-yeah, uh, I'm out of things to say again."

Okay, well, so much for not saying anything.

 

[Redrobinwing]

Hisao nodded in agreement as they climbed the small hill up to the bench. It was located under a small gathering of trees that all seemed perfectly gathered to provide a good amount of shade from the afternoon sun. Hoshiko squeezed the plush again, which nearly made her friend blush just because of how cute it was to see. Even with her eyepatch, she was a good looking girl. Very cute in her some of her mannerisms; though Hisao stopped himself from continuing that train of thought any further.

As they neared sat on the bench, Hoshiko spoke up, and once again announced that she couldn't think of anything to say. By now, Hisao had started to get used to it; he wasn't sure whether that was funny or sad. Maybe a little bit of both. He let out a chuckle though, choosing to see it as more humorous. "Don't worry about it, you don't have to say anything if you don't want to." A few moments of silenced passed, and he realized that it was getting a little awkward again. "The view is nice." Apparently neither of them were sparkling conversationalists.

 

[starfallen.txt]

IF TOMORROW NEVER COMES
and i could still breathe and survive ー

Hoshiko sat down on the bench, sighing a little bit. He said it was okay even if she didn't have anything to say, yet for some reason she still felt the need to at least say something. She didn't want him to think she was boring or something. Well, at least he wasn't trying to get rid of her and leave her by herself again. That was good. It meant that he at least tolerated her presence.

She leaned against the bench, relaxing. "Yeah, it is." She smiled to herself, watching the festival. She thought she spotted someone she knew among the crowd, but decided not to think too hard about it. It felt nice to loosen up for once, even if it was just for one day. "Hey, Hisao. What kind of songs do you like?" she suddenly asked, giving him a short glance.

 

[Redrobinwing]

Hisao sat forward and rested his elbows on his knees as he took in the scenery. It was a nice moment, just looking out at the festival as the sun lowering itself towards the horizon. For just a moment, he forgot about his condition, the stress of the hospital and of homework, and he just enjoyed himself. It reminded him of when he confessed to Iwanako under the tree. Suddenly, he was snapped back to reality as his mind reeled from having to remember the rather unpleasant memory. A small frown graced his lips for just a moment, but he quickly recovered and leaned back.

Hoshiko's voice reminded him that he wasn't alone. He turned to her. "Oh, I don't really have a specific genre I like. Stuff with acoustic guitar is cool, and maybe some jazz too." Truth be told, he wasn't too into music. He enjoyed listening to it, but it wasn't something he was very interested in either. "What about you?"

 

[starfallen.txt]

IF TOMORROW NEVER COMES
and i could still breathe and survive ー

"Anything that I can relate to, I guess. If that even makes any sense." Hoshiko started swinging her legs under her, letting her chin lean against the plush. She looked childish doing it, but she probably didn't realize that. It was kinda cute.

She found herself wondering about Hisao for a second. It was none of her business, but she really couldn't help it. He looked like a perfectly healthy human being, but she was sure there was something wrong with him. It was definitely something internal, like Mana's and Airi's. She could ask, but... that would be a pretty dumb idea, wouldn't it? It almost seemed rude, now that she thought about it.

Well, there goes the conversation again. This time, she decided to just stay silent for now. It was nice to just enjoy watching the rest of the festival with him. She gently squeezed the bird plush again, almost laughing as it started playing its little bird song. This was such a good plush. She's going to love it more than she loves herself. "Sorry. Just wanted to do that."

 

[Redrobinwing]

That made sense. A lot of people gave that sort of answer; it could be hard to choose favorite genres. "That's cool." Another silence followed their short conversation, but this time it was sort of nice. Hoshiko seemed content with squeezing the plush, and that made him feel good for winning it. She squeezed it a little tighter and the bird song started to play. Seeing her so attached to it was kind of cute too, in an innocent sort of way. He let out a small chuckle when she apologized. "Don't worry, I'm glad you like it." She was a really nice girl, maybe a little awkward (okay, really awkward sometimes), but she had a good heart and she sounded talented based on how much she practiced guitar. Now that they had some time, Hisao was content with just relaxing for a while until the sun set.

 

[starfallen.txt]

IF TOMORROW NEVER COMES
and i could still breathe and survive ー

Hoshiko only giggled in response. "It pretty much just made this entire day worth it," she joked, "I mean, other than spending time with y-- someone else for once." She tripped over a word there, but she didn't seem to want to draw attention to it. She didn't want to sound like a creep or something by saying that.

The sun was pretty low by now, and, as expected, people are starting to clean up and head back. Hoshiko sighed softly. The whole day had gone by so fast, it was almost surprising. The girl soon stood up, stretching a little bit. "Well... I think it's time I go hole myself back up in my dorm again." She grinned, trying to make that previous statement come off as a joke. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" With that, the girl gave him a little goodbye wave, soon walking away from Hisao.

Today had been a good day.

The next day...

Hoshiko had pretty much skipped all of her classes so far. Again.

She snuck up there early in the morning, even brought some unhealthy junk food from the convenience store - she was lucky they were open 24/7 - and had been practicing all day until lunch. Her fingers were kind of sore by now, but she didn't really mind. It was fun to practice and sing.

Come to think, she wondered why she hadn't been in trouble lately. Usually she'd be caught by the student council president at least once a week, but nothing really happened last week. Maybe Shizune was starting to let up now that it's the end of the year. Awesome.

The bell for lunch rang, and it took a few minutes for Hoshiko to faintly hear some of the students' chatter from the ground below. Hisao was supposed to come by around this time, right? Maybe he changed his mind. Maybe he thought she was weird and decided to just not go. Yeah, why did she expect him to come anyways? He was probably just being polite yesterday. Wow, you're dumb, Hoshiko. Absolutely dumb.

Deciding it would be best to drown her feelings in playing, the girl started another song.

 

[Redrobinwing]

Hisao pretended to ignore her little slip up, mostly to avoid embarrassing either of them since the was she worded it implied certain things. That couldn't have been what she meant though; it was just a slip of the tongue. When she got up to leave, he gave her a smile. "Yeah, see you tomorrow Hoshiko."

Now alone with just the sunset and his thoughts, Hisao let his mind wonder to wherever it wanted to. Whether that was to his parents, to Iwanako or to Hoshiko, it didn't matter to him now. It had been a long day, a fun day, but still a long one, and he had a lot on his mind. There were things he needed to figure out too, a lot of stuff that was probably just normal teenage anxieties or emotions. He let out a small sigh as he watched the sun lower below the horizon.

The next day was rather uneventful, at least in the morning. Classes went smoothly and he explored the campus a bit more during his free period, but what he really anticipated was lunch. Hoshiko had invited him to come to the roof and watch her play, and he was honestly looking forward to seeing it. She was a cool person, and getting to see her perform would be great, even if it was just her practicing. Once he grabbed his lunch from the cafeteria, he headed up the stairs that lead to the school roof. Opening the door, he spotted the girl sitting a few meters away. "Hey Hoshiko."

 

[starfallen.txt]

IF TOMORROW NEVER COMES
and i could still breathe and survive ー

Hoshiko's heart skipped a beat at the sudden call of her name. She didn't really expect him to actually come. The girl immediately stopped playing, turning her head to look at Hisao. "Hey," she greeted, smiling. She moved aside, giving him some space to sit on the bench. "What's up?"

Ah, now that he was actually here, she was starting to feel a little self-conscious about playing. What if she wasn't actually as good as she thought? What if Hisao didn't like the songs she played? What if she'll just end up being boring?

Hoshiko looked away for a second, trying to think. Maybe she can do a bit of small talk for a while, and then at least play one song before lunch ends. Yeah. Yeah, that sounded like a good idea. She began to strum softly, not trying to play something yet. It was just something to fill the silence just a little bit.

 

[Redrobinwing]

Hisao offered a smile in return, along with a small wave. It looks like Hoshiko had already been playing a bit before he'd arrived, which made him wonder how long she'd actually been on the roof. He'd heard that she would skip classes sometimes to come up and play, and he had a feeling that was what she was doing today. Maybe that was something he'd talk to her about later, it probably wasn't a big deal since they were nearing the end of the year, but for now, he chose not to acknowledge it. She strummed a few strings softly and, if a simple few notes were any indication of her skill, then she was certainly skilled. There wasn't any buzz to the sound they gave out, and the space in between each note was perfect despite seeming to be a throwaway action. He knew next to nothing about music though, so there was a good chance he was reading too much into it; he was just excited to hear her play something.

"So, what sort of stuff have you been practicing?" He wasn't exactly sure whether or not the question made any actual sense, but he hoped that his lack of musical knowledge wasn't too evident. There wasn't much he could talk about with her regarding music, but he had a feeling that Hoshiko was a little nervous about playing in front of him, especially considering her somewhat nervous nature. Whatever the case, he sat down beside her, giving her enough room to play her guitar comfortably, and set his food down on the floor in front of him.

 

[starfallen.txt]

IF TOMORROW NEVER COMES
and i could still breathe and survive ー

"Just... whatever I feel like, I guess." She continued to strum quietly, and eventually muscle memory took over to play an actual song. Hoshiko started to smile just the tiniest bit. Maybe she was still a bit on edge, but she was starting to look more comfortable again. "I kinda sing, too. But only when I feel like it, I guess. I've never sang in front of anyone before."

There were still at least four bags of junk food left in her little stock, and she was starting to get hungry. She didn't want to stop playing, though, especially when that was why Hisao was here in the first place. She couldn't really afford to disappoint him now. But at the same time, the cafeteria food Hisao had brought was actually starting to look good, and she didn't even have breakfast this morning anyways, and...

"...You mind if I stop to eat first before I start playing? Sorry."

 

[Redrobinwing]

Hisao leaned back a bit on the bench and relaxed. The view from the roof wasn't half bad. It wasn't nearly as good as the hill they'd been up on the day before, but it still offered a good look at the campus. There were quite a few more students out and about now, actually. More than he expected; most of them tended to stay in the lunch room to eat, but for some reason there were quite a few walking around campus. The festival may have had something to do with it, maybe it rekindled a liking for the outdoors in some of the students. It was cool though, to see people walking around and talking with each other.

As Hoshiko spoke, she strummed a few more notes out of her guitar, but rather than being random and seemingly unplanned, her strumming quickly turned into a neat tune. Hisao didn't recognize the song, but it was clean enough to have been practiced. When she mentioned that she liked to sing sometimes, the boy smiled brightly. "Really? That's so cool!" He was about to say more when Hoshiko asked to eat before she played. He shook his head. "No, go for it. I actually grabbed some extra food in case you were hungry." He picked up his plate and placed it in between them. The lunch was rather simple, just rice, soup, and a bit of chicken. There was an extra bowl of soup on the table, and a little more chicken than the cafeteria usually offered on Hisao's tray. "We can share the rice and chicken, and the bowl of soup is for you."

 

[starfallen.txt]

IF TOMORROW NEVER COMES
and i could still breathe and survive ー

For her...?

Hoshiko felt her cheeks heat up a bit. She knew it was just because Hisao was a genuinely nice person, but still. He brought food for her. Who is this boy and why is he so nice to her. Does she even deserve this. She probably doesn't. She gently set her guitar down in its case, looking at the tray of food. "You sure? I have some food here, too..." She gestured towards the bags of chips. Still, maybe she needed to eat something healthy for once. A diet of solely instant cup noodles can't be good for her.

"But, um, thanks, anyways," she said quickly, smiling. Okay, maybe there was just the tiniest bit of a crush. God forbid she admit that out loud.

 

[Redrobinwing]

Hisao pushed the tray towards her slightly and nodded. "Yes, I'm very sure. Have some." His voice was friendly, but his expression showeda bit of determination in making sure that she eat some. Maybe he was being a bit too insistent, but based off of the chips that she had stored on the roof, and from the fact that she had probably been here all day, it was safe to assume that she was planning on eating pretty much only chips as her primary source of nutrition for the day. That was definitely not okay in his mind, she was a teenage girl who needed to eat properly, even if she was an adult. Actually, come to think of it, he wasn't actually sure exactly how old Hoshiko was. That probably wouldn't be a great thing to ask her, so he stored away that question for later. For now, he was content with making her eat something and hanging out for a bit while they could. Classes weren't too rigorous since things were nearing their end, so there wasn't too much more work to do. Less homework too, which was nice. The extra free time was cool, but it also meant a lot more boredom for Hisao since he didn't have too much to do to fill the time up. Maybe he could start hanging out with Hoshiko more; maybe go to a movie with her, or grab dinner or something... Those were date things though. She was cute though, and pretty nice, but... Again, Hisao shook the thoughts from his mind and tried to focus on just enjoying hanging out with his friend.