Takahashi's Regret

Monday morning came. I'd overcome the courage I'd developed and was a tight ball of nerves by the time we left home. Damn...

"Stop squirming." Hina told me on the train.

"Sheesh, is a gu- girl not allowed to be nervous?" I asked.

Hina raised an eyebrow at me. She'd caught my slip-up. "You chose to do this, and while I'll stand by you either way, it's too late to back out now."

"It's one thing to feel brave in the comfort of your own home, but it's something else entirely when you're away from that safety." I replied with a grimace.

When we got to Chinō, I started hunting for Takahashi. She wasn't in the Computer Room, like usual, and I couldn't think of anywhere else where she'd be.

As I walked back towards homeroom I got ambushed.

No, not literally, but it felt like that at first.

"Psst!"

I squeaked - literally, I'm embarrassed to say - and spun round to the source of the noise. Takahashi.

"Oh, shit... Don't scare me like that!" I gasped.

Takahashi, for her part, looked bemused and guilty in equal measure.

"You're still using a voice..." She said.

I rolled my eyes. "Well, yeah. Just 'cause you know doesn't mean everyone else should."

She nodded. "Right. We should take this somewhere more private."

And with that she walked off, grabbing my wrist and towing me along behind her.

We stopped under a small tree near the school sports field. A cherry blossom; since it was October at this point, it wasn't in bloom, but I could picture how beautiful it'd be in spring.

On the bark, carved as if with a butter knife, were the initials AT.

Akane Takahashi...

"I planted this tree when I first came here." She told me. "It's grown well in those three years."

"What do you want with me, Takahashi?" I asked. I wanted to know the truth sooner rather than later.

"I need a friend, to put it simply." She said. "Someone I can rely on to not go blabbing about my secrets."

"And you think that's me?" I asked.

She nodded. "I know your secret, and I can't keep mine to myself anymore. I won't tell anyone if you don't."

I chuckled. "Don't worry about me - it's Hinata you need to worry about."

"Then don't tell her the details."

This time I outright laughed. "You think I would? I don't even let her into my phone!"

We continued talking like that for a couple hours - hallelujah for random holidays - and I got to know Takahashi pretty well. She wasn't the distant professional I initially thought she was; she was the broken child of the group.

I won't say any more about it unless she gives me permission, so I might have to block out a lot of what happens next. 

I think I'll leave it at that for now. Until next time.