Chapter 7

The bell of Yakazai’s door clattered as Kana stepped inside. All at once, the familiar atmosphere washed over her. The bar was notably more crowded than it was the last time she was there, when she and Naoya had first met. Kana wasn’t particularly surprised, since it was a Friday, after all. If anything, the extra people made her happy because it meant her favorite bar was getting good business. The only problem was that it made it more difficult to find Naoya among the multitude of customers.

Kana stood in the entryway scanning the room for any sign of Naoya. The longer she went without seeing him, the heavier the pit in her stomach became, fearful that he hadn’t shown up. At last, there was a flash of white in her peripheral as she turned towards the bar. Seated in the same place he had been when they talked the night away was Naoya, dressed in a maroon button-up shirt, a plain white t-shirt, and a pair of jeans. Kana relaxed when she spotted him, all of the tension that had built up at the thought of him not being there leaving her body. She made her way over to the bar with noticeably more pep in her step.

Naoya noticed her as she approached and waved to her excitedly. Kana was careful to avoid the rug she had tripped over last time and then settled in the same seat she had sat in on Monday, leaving a space in between the two of them just as there had been that night. Naoya slid her a glass of cold beer that he had evidently ordered in anticipation of her arrival, just like the glass she had spilled a few nights ago. The bubbling liquid in the glass, as cold as it was, brought a warmth over Kana that she couldn’t explain.

“Nice job avoiding that rug this time.” Naoya teased, “It did quite the number on you the other night, after all. It might have some kind of vendetta against you.”

Kana felt heat rush to her face as her cheeks reddened at Naoya’s jab. “Dammit…I was really hoping no one saw that…”

Naoya laughed. It was stifled at first, but soon grew to a hearty chuckle. It was a warm sound that made Kana’s ears tingle pleasantly and caused the floaty feeling in her stomach from that morning to return in full force. Kana wasn’t stupid. As many romance movies as she had starred in and played the part of a lovestruck girl, she had a sneaking suspicion as to what this feeling was. The problem at hand was that she didn’t know if she was ready to acknowledge that she might know what it was. It didn’t help that the floaty feeling woke up the butterflies that seemed to live in her stomach whenever Naoya was around. She pushed the thoughts just out of sight, but not out of mind.

Kana pouted slightly and rolled her eyes. “Oh come on. Do I need to remind you of how flustered you got when I spilled my drink? I thought you were just gonna turn around and leave with how mortified you looked.”

“Pffft, as if. I was more embarrassed for you more than anything else.” Naoya retorted.

An odd tension formed between the two for a few moments, almost like the restrictiveness of the air before an argument. It felt familiar somehow. Then, just like that, they cracked and began giggling to each other, and it was gone.

“It’s good to see you again, Naoya. This week has been…interesting to say the least.” Kana admitted softly as she took a sip of her beer. A faint warmth spread through her body, though whether it was due to the alcohol or the present company, she couldn’t quite decide.

“It’s good to see you too, Kanae. I’m glad our last encounter didn’t immediately scare you off.” replied Naoya after a short silence, “As for your interesting week…do you want to talk about it?”

“Oh, uh…it’s just work stuff. I can’t really say too much because of…uh…NDAs, yeah. I guess what I can say is that I got something like a promotion. I’m happy about it, of course. It’s just that there’s going to be a lot more on my plate than I’m used to.”

“I get it. I’m actually in somewhat of a similar boat. I’ve got my own…NDAs, so I can’t say too much either, but I guess the best way you could describe what I do would be something like contractor or gig work. My…team and I just took on a contract that could take us to new heights, but it’s probably going to be the biggest thing we’ve ever done.”

Kana and Naoya talked for a while about their jobs. Kana was careful to remain nondescript and vague about what she did. Naoya mirrored her, giving her as little information as he could while still providing good conversation. It was rather odd, talking like that, but Kana didn’t mind. She simply enjoyed Naoya’s companionship.

Beyond their limited discussion of their careers, they joked and threw jabs at one another. Their own laughter colored the air around them, and the rest of Yakazai’s noise began to fade away. It didn’t take long for their conversation to cause the feelings Kana had pushed away to come back, perhaps even stronger than before. She wanted to push them away again, to drown them in the depths of her mind and hope they never resurfaced. She barely even knew this guy for goodness sake! But if her time playing the part of over dozen different girls each with feelings just like these had taught her anything about love, it was that feelings like these didn’t just disappear.

Kana and Naoya each sat silent, both staring down at their drinks. The presences of the other customers in the bar had long since drifted from their minds. Kana swirled her drink and took a sip to wet her suddenly dry mouth. You didn’t create this persona, Kanae Kageyama, just to be another mask to hide behind. You created her to prove to yourself and the world that you can be more than the ‘Ice Queen of the Silver Screen’. So stop dawdling and let this be the first page of your new chapter.

“Naoya-san, is this…a date?” Kana asked softly, barely above a whisper.

Kana froze in anxious anticipation as the words exited her mouth. For an excruciatingly long time, Naoya didn’t say anything. He simply kept staring down at the glass between his hands. The barstool between them sat empty, a sea of isolation that separated them, so easy to cross. The muffled chatter of the other patrons buzzed in the back of Kana’s head as she waited for Naoya to say something. Anything.

Finally, Naoya spoke, just as softly as Kana had. “Do you want it to be, Kanae-san?”

Kana’s tensed muscles released as she allowed herself to move once more. She took a deep breath as she realized she hadn’t even breathed while waiting for Naoya’s response. Grabbing hold of the last bit of courage she could muster for the night, she slid over onto the barstool that had once separated them.

“To be honest with you, I don’t really know.” she answered, “But I do know that I want to get to know you and become closer to you. Is that…okay?”

Naoya turned to her with a tender smile on his lips and a warm gleam in his emerald eyes that made Kana feel like she would float away. “I think I’d like that a lot, actually.”

For the rest of the night, the air between them felt charged with something unexplainable. It was like they’d opened the Pandora’s Box of tension that was just shy of being romantic. They had acknowledged feelings that held weight and power in their relationship, though neither seemed fully aware of what that meant just yet.

They talked for a short while longer, but soon decided to head home since they both had somewhere to be the next morning. Kana stepped out into the cool night air with Naoya in tow. The streets were quiet and the moon shone down on them brightly.

“Do you want to do this again next weekend?” asked Naoya.

“Absolutely.” Kana replied.

They went their separate ways and Kana hurried home with her heart beating in her ears and the taste of courage on her lips. She was afraid, excited, and a little sad all at the same time. Some part of her had wished that what she had with Naoya before this could’ve gone on forever. But to deny the feelings she had would have been to deny herself a chance to grow. She was worried about what she had unleashed upon them, but for once, she felt like she was running towards something instead of away.