REINKED-The Convention Has Arrived, and My Jitters Are Not Helped By The Arrival of a Truly Bizarre Girl

"Mmm...humn?" I wake up on the floor, a heavy weight across my stomach. I lift my head and see Sami sleeping on me. I blush before giggling quietly. I try to recall last night. Let's see, I wrote a few more chapters, read the one-shot like a million times, and, uhmmm...wow, no explanation for this. Welp, guess I'll just accept it. I sit up, watching her roll over onto my lap. Her sleeping face is so messy and cute. I feel myself swooning. I turn my attention to the clock on the oven.

"Huh, that's weird. It's 10. Doesn't the con open at 11?"

My words act faster than an alarm clock. The siblings eyes both open wide.

"IT'S 10?!" They both yell as they struggle to get up.

"Shower's first! Kei, Yuta, go!" Sami yells, pushing us into the bathroom.

"I-I WANNA SHOWER WITH YOU!" I try to yell as I'm forced inside with the panicking Kei.

"It's fine you've seen a penis before, haven't you?" She asks rhetorically.

"Have you?" I ask.

"..." She closes the bathroom door. Once she's gone, we both stare at each other.

"...it will be fast-"

"Kei, get in the shower and please stop talking.

...

"Yuta, get a cover for the box, tape a blanket over them." Sami says, throwing me a roll of tape as she grabbed some drinks and snacks out of the fridge. I dutifully take the couch blanket and fold it up, placing it over the books before taping over the top. Perfect, no chance of a leak like this, hehe.

"Alright, I'm heating up some instant ramen. Both of you eat it quick!" She said while eating hers as soon as it's out of the microwave.

"Got it miss!" Kei says, trying to put on a sweatshirt.

"Dude it's like 80 out." I tell him.

"I-I like how it looks." He says. Looking down, I see the design of a finger pointing up through an explosion. Okay, yeah, that's pretty tight.

"RAMEN'S DONE WE HAVE TEN MINUTES EAT WHILE YOU RUN!" Sami says while placing ramen cups in our hands.

"H-how am I supposed to carry and ea-" My question is answered before I finish asking as Kei drinks his soup down in a few seconds before grabbing the box and sprinting. "DO YOU TWO JUST NOT BELIEVE IN HEAT?! WHAT ARE YOU?!" I yell as I drink from my scalding hot cup. 

We bolt down the stairs and through the apartment's entrance. Running down the sidewalks is the real challenge though, with so many people crowding the foot space.

"Kei, when we get there, you gotta set up the table. We'll be in after we get our badges." She says to him. He nods with fiery determination before speeding up.

"I-I thought he said you were the one with all the stamina." I say, panting, holding my mostly full ramen cup.

"What? No, he's got way more than me...oh shoot, he was making you feel better. My little bro...so sweet..." Tears come to her eyes.

"D-don't cry please." I beg through pants.

"Oh, it's coming up. Just past this corner." She takes my hand and speeds up, sending us speeding through the cracks between people. The lack of safety about this whole thing is, frankly, quite exciting. I take in the exhilaration as we finally turn the corner. We arrive before the convention center.

"Woah..."

Let me ask you a question.

Why do you think people go to conventions?

What is it about these big gatherings that brings people so much joy?

Because personally, I don’t know the answer myself.

But I’m feeling it now, staring up at the convention hall, gulping. Excitement, fear, happiness, it's all swirling round and round in my head.

“Hmm? You look lost already, hehe. Never been to a convention before?" She asks, though I can't tell whether it's seriously or jokingly.

“No, I’ve been before. But…this is my first time selling something at one. I always just perused tables, but now I am one of those tables. I guess hearing what your uncle and your brother thought is just really getting to me, you know?" I feel my stomach churning. If this thing is a flop, I don't know if I could really take it. It's probably one of the best things I've ever done. Surely it isn't horrible. Surely...

“Enough of that." I feel  a hand smack my shoulder. I give an ouch. "No stressing allowed. We’re here to make history, okay?!" Sami, with her energetic passion, looks deep into me. I can feel my heart start racing. This...this is how much she believes in us. What am I doing getting so hung up on things when I should be focused on her.

"Thank you Sami. Let's go set ourselves for the history books." I say, earning me her gentle smile. We make our way forward, to the badge stand, where we show them our names on the registration sheet (we were super panicked last night when we realized we hadn't registered me yet). Once we have our badges, we begin pushing our way along, past the growing crowd of waiting participants. Keisuke is probably already inside, setting up our display for the doujin and the one shot. What a kind guy. Oh wait his sister literally forced him to. Still a nice guy though.

We enter through the front doors, finally facing the massive space inside. It is...very intimidating. I feel a shiver echo down my spine watching the masses walk about while people set up their shop spaces. Shaking my head, I look over the many tables of people and find Keisuke. Seeing us, he waves and we make our way over to him when we’re surprised by a girl getting in our way, slamming her fists down on the table. Her gaze is focused directly on Keisuke. The intense aura she's giving off sets a stress bomb off deep inside me. Oh god, what now?

“HOW ARE YOU BACK WITHOUT EVEN TELLING ME?! THERE’S NO REASON I SHOULD FIND OUT MY BEST BUDDY IS SELLING AT THE SAME CON AS ME THROUGH A CONVENTION MAP!!!” The girl yells, clearly disturbing everyone else…actually, they look more tired of it than anything. Is this an expected occurrence? I wish I had been expecting it. I look over at Sami and see her looking tired as well.

“M-Mami, I’m sorry, I was just so busy I forgot…” Kei gets interrupted by an accusatory finger.

“FORGOT?! WHAT DO YOU MEAN FORGOT!! MEANIE!” She turns and huffs. "Guys like you are the worst..." She sniffles. It’s then, as she looks ready to leave the table be, that she locks eyes with me. Her cheeks turn rosy and her lips start to quiver. "U-Uhm, h-hi. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be a bother." She laughs a little, bowing again and again...uh, is this girl okay?

"Uhm...you're good, really. Well, uhm, actually, I'd appreciate if you didn't yell at Kei too much. He doesn't take stress very well.

"Y-you're right." She turns around and bows deeply to him. "Keisuke, I'm so sorry for the way I treated you. It was cruel and mean and It shouldn't have come from my mouth." She says, her voice filled with regret. Kei's confusion is palpable.

"Uh-uhm-uh-okay. It's okay, I forgive you?" He says so unsure I'm surprised it doesn't send this girl into another rage. Satisfied, she turns around and smiles at me.

"Uhm...good job?" I give her a thumbs up, making her ecstatic.

“Oh, hey, you know Kei? That's crazy! Maybe an online friend meeting him for the first time? He's a pretty good guy, treat him well! Or, wait, you knew he was easily stressed. Have you known each other in person for a while?" She is now much closer, invading my space thoroughly. I feel a strange gaze filled with murderous intent aimed at the both of us. Um, I should probably do something about that.

“Uhm, I've known Kei since Wednesday. I'm actually working with his sister as a manga author." I explain, pointing to the girl next to me. She smiles, making a pleasant face now that she's the object of importance. The girl narrows her eyes at her.

"Sami Reese...it's been a minute since you've released something without attaching it to your brother's name. How interesting..." The girl's personality seems to change, suddenly taking on something of an analytic fellow. She seems to take in both of us at once before continuing. "A doujin? An original work? What are you two doing?" She asks.

"Well, it's funny you ask. We're actually releasing an original piece." Sami says.

"Really? Now I'm curious..." She turns around, walking back to the table.

"E-erm, are you looking to buy one?" Kei asks, scratching the back of his neck. Me and Sami walk up to the table before she can start getting aggressive again.

"Depends." She says, taking one of our one-shots out of the pile. She looks over the front and back cover. "Pretty thin...pretty cheap too. 700 yen?" She cocks her head.

"It's a pretty good value considering the content." I say, trying to sound confident.

“I-Is that so?" She starts to fidget. She starts to giggle like a maniac, scratching her cheek. The discomfort forming in my stomach makes me bite my tongue.

“Yes, absolutely. I'd suggest you take a look inside." Sami says, her voice cold. The girl's face changes serious once more.

"Hmm...maybe I should." She repeats, looking down at the book in her hands, opening up the front cover.

“Oh god." I whisper to myself, looking away discreetly. Having already had this thing torn apart story wise by two different people, something about waiting just to hear the exact same result really doesn't hold that much interest to me. I do my best not to look visibly terrified.

“Well, the art is definitely pretty good. Not surprising. You've always been a great artist Sami. Maybe a bit egotistical about it, but a good artist none the less." She says, making Sami stick out her tongue.

"Whatever Mami, just keep reading." Sami spits out.

"I will, I will." She mumbles, reading on. Ugh, this is going horribly. She's gonna hate it. She's gonna despise it. It's awful. I just shouldn't have come.

"L-" I try to spit out some message of premature apology for the story's quality, but I'm shut down by something. That thing is that she’s still reading. I mean, if she hates it, why hasn’t she just thrown it in my face already? Or Sami's? Maybe…is it actually not that bad to her? The thought feels unrealistic, but also makes me very excited.

"Uhm, Mami?" I repeat the name I heard earlier. She doesn't respond. She seems frozen on a certain page. The moment the two boys say their farewells to each other.

"Something wrong Mami?" Sami asks, half cockily, half seriously. A part of me was bracing for being wrong. To be made fun of for making such a crap story.

And then the first tear fell. It landed on the page. Then the next. And the next. Tears poured from her face. Her lips began to quiver as she tried to speak but couldn't. I was...so confused. What am I looking at? Is she...actually moved? Moved by my awful story? She looks up from the one-shot, staring me in the eyes.

Those tears are sincere. No one says a thing. No one seems to notice the few people gathering around, confused by the sight of the crying girl. 

"I..." She says a single word before being chocked up. "I...thank you..." She chokes out. What's she talking about? "Thank you...for seeing me..." She starts to smile. Then it clicks. Here she is. The one who understands. The one who feels the same. Inside me, I feel my heart clench.

"...of course." I say, smiling back.

"H-here." She reaches into her jean short's and pulls out a few coins, handing them to me. I look over her orange blouse, teary-blue eyes, and orange hair, and absorb each aspect into my mind.

Mami. The girl I've been writing for this whole time. Well, one of them anyways.

"W-wait." I say, grabbing the copy of the manga and signing on the inside of the back cover my name and my Soysanku account. "If you like this, I think my novels may be up your alley too." I tell her, not with pride or satisfaction. Some other feeling is deep inside my heart. I think...it's happiness to have found someone I could touch. "I hope...I can continue to make you satisfied with my work." I tell her, bowing deeply. I feel her gaze locked on me.

"I..." She starts to speak, but I don't hear her finish. When I look up, she's gone. I look around but catch no sight of her.

"Looks like she got cold feet. How interesting." Sami says, before looking at me. "Feel good?" She asks. The feelings of the last few moments surround my heart.

"No." I say. "I don't think I could feel anything but sad that people can understand." I say. "But...I'm happy they get to know they're not alone." I feel my eyes move to Kei. He looks back. "Maybe that's enough meaning in itself." I say. He looks down for a moment, and smiles.

"I guess so." He responds.

"Uhm, Sami..." I turn back to her. "Who was that?" I ask.

"Hmm? That was Mami Ichika. She's another doujin artist like Kei. A pretty good one too...I've never seen her act like she has with you before though. Seems she has a fondness. Especially now. Lucky you." She looks at me with an ugly stare.

"I-It's not reciprocated." I say, hoping that fixes things. It thankfully does.

"Well of course it isn't hun." Sami says, smiling.