I Don't Claim To Know Much (open)

[Nippori Keiji]

Nippori resisted the urge to run a hand through his hair as he said goodnight to his boss, giving a quick bow before turning around to leave. Another night's work was done for now, and he had finally finished his shift now it was after ten at night. It had been a busy night, and so he was exhausted. What he really needed now was a good night's sleep, even though he'd have to get up early in the morning to get ready for school and make sure that his sister wasn't late for middle school, and drop his little brother's off at kindergarten.

Things had been going good lately, and he hoped that they stuck that way, at least for a little while longer. His dad was getting enough business to get them by, and Nippori's own part-time job on top of that meant they were doing well. For now, anyway. Things were bound to dip back down eventually, however much he didn't want it to or tried to prevent it. He could only hope that the dip wasn't going to be too steep.

Shoving his hands in the pockets of his jeans, he walked down the street, his scruffy sneakers scuffing the ground as he walked. There was a very slight breeze bringing the temperature down a little, so Nippori was glad he was wearing his usual black hoody, even though it was going to get worn-through at this rate.

Fishing around in his pocket for a second, he brought out his old, battered mp3 player. It was a few years old now and was scratched, bashed, and a part of it was held together with cellotape. It kept skipping songs without warning and some tracks refused to play anymore, but he didn't have enough money to get another one. And even if he did, he wouldn't spend it on another one.

Nippori tried for a few minutes to untangle the headphones, but he was unsuccessful. He stopped walking to better concentrate on the task, his tongue sticking out between his teeth as he fiddled with the wires. The headphones, too, were old, with one ear piece working perfectly and the other going in and out of working thanks to a loose or wonky wire. A few curses audibly left his lips, making a couple of passing strangers turn and raise their eyebrows.

Moments later, an exclamation of "Victory!" came from him as he finally got the headphones untangled, taking the moment to be childishly delighted with his success, and even striking a sort of victory pose, despite the fact that he was in the middle of the street.


((ooc - outfit is here!))

[Minami Akira]

Akira was walking home from her tutoring job. Today’s student was a rich junior high school boy. He’s a snob and he always tried to mock Akira in every way. It was least of her concern though. What she’s concerned about was his study. He’s a smart kid. But he’s too lazy.

She’s determined to change him. She threw her fists in the air.

Aah, the night air feels good.

It was cold, but she felt fine only with her thin brown jacket. Her right hand rummaged inside her small bag which she clinged in her left hand. She found what she wanted, a notebook and a pen. She pulled her bag until it rested on her shoulder, and started jotting on the notebook. She was writing her tutoring plan for the rich boy. A few times she glanced to the streets to see if anything or anyone was on her way. It’s her habbit to walk and write at the same time. And amazingly she never bumped into anything or anybody.

Tomorrow I'm going to tutor Ami-chan!

She smiled. She liked Ami-chan.

Finished with her plan for the boy, she wrote her plan for tomorrow

Meeting with broadcasting club, laundry, tutoring...

And for tonight she would review today’s lesson, then have a late night tea with her father.

She smiled at the thought of her father.

Suddenly her thoughts were disrupted by a shout.

“Victory!”

She looked around and saw a boy, posing what might be an expression of victory, in the middle of the street. He was about two meters ahead of her.

She instantly giggled.

Thinking that the boy might heard her laugh, she said,”I’m sorry. That was rude of me.”

[Nippori Keiji]

Nippori pumped his fist into the air to round off his victory pose. Perhaps it was childish to be so delighted by such a simple thing as untangling his earphones, but he couldn't bring himself to care otherwise. If anything he deserved to act a little childish, more than most others who acted the same way and worse. He worked day after day, so he deserved to have a bit of fun.

A quiet giggle caught his attention, but he didn't think anything of it until a girl's voice spoke and he turned around. He blinked for a second, looking at the girl. He vaguely recognised her, which led him to assume that she was from Karasumari. Perhaps the same year as him? He couldn't be sure. But what he could be sure of was that she was cute.

Immediately he shook the thought from his mind, pushing it far away. He had never dated a girl before, or ever really liked one. Of course, though, he could appreciate when a girl was cute, but that wasn't enough on it's own, was it? Besides, he didn't have time for girls on top of school, his jobs and the Tumbling team. Even with all that, he struggled to find time for anything else, even things like homework some of the time.

"Uhh...what was?" he said, finally speaking after a few moments of silence. It took him another second before he realised. "Oh, you were the one that laughed?" The hint of a blush coloured his cheeks, though it couldn't really be seen since it was dark. "I was being childish; you were right to laugh," he said, chuckling a little, his small blush vanishing and a smile tugging at his lips.


((ooc - hopefully this is enough for you to reply to. if not, just let me know =]))

[Minami Akira]

He turned around and looked at Akira. She recognized him now. He’s Nippori Keiji, a Karasumori student, second grade, and member of the boys tumbling team. The boys tumbling team had been one of Akira’s main interest recently and the broadcasting club was going to make a show about the boys tumbling team, so she had looked up about the members.

He was silent for a few moment and then said "Uhh...what was?"

He looked confused.

"Oh, you were the one that laughed?"

Akira couldn’t see it but she was sure that Nippori was blushing.

"I was being childish; you were right to laugh," he said with a chuckle.

Seeing him smiling, Akira was relieved. She thought he might get angry.

“I’m glad that you’re not mad.” She smiled.

Then, relief changed into curiosity.

She walked in quick steps towards him. Her eyes gleamed with excitement.

“I’m Minami Akira, Karasumori second grade, president of broadcasting club. You’re Nippori Keiji –kun from the boys tumbling team, right?”

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ooc: It’s great! Nippori is so cute~! I actually went “Kyaa! XD” when I read your post.
I’m sorry if my reply’s bad >_<

[Nippori Keiji]

The small smile never left Nippori's lips as the girl spoke, before his face took on a slightly confused expression once again. "Why would I be mad?" he asked, for it only to dawn on him again a second later. Oh, right... He was a Yankee, of course. And an over-dramatic one at that. Typically, if someone laughed at him, the expected response from him, or any yankee for that matter, was to get angry.

If it had been a boy that had laughed at him and not a girl, then maybe he might have gotten a bit angry. But, this girl... no. He wasn't going to get angry with her. He wasn't a very typical yankee anymore, what with having to try and stop fighting, but the reputation, of course, remained. Not that he particularly minded much.

Then she was walking towards him, a gleam of excitement in her eye that only succeeded in making Nippori a little more confused and a little nervous. What was she going to do? Or say? Girl's weren't exactly his forte, after all, so trying to read this girl was as pointless as talking to a wall. Or any other inanimate object, because he wasn't about to get any answers.

As the girl introduced herself, Nippori did realise that her voice was a little familiar. And when she said she was president of the broadcasting club, it all made sense. He said a quick "Nice to meet you", remembering his manners that his mother had instilled in him when he was a child.

What the girl said next, however, before he could speak again, surprised him momentarily. Not because she knew his name, because a lot of students knew who the yankees in the school were, if only through reputation. No, what surprised him was the fact that she associated him with the Tumbling team, and not with being a yankee. "U-uh, yeah, I am," he managed to get out, feeling very much like an idiot.


((ooc - lol, I'm glad I managed to capture Nippori's cuteness XD All the way through the drama I kept "aww"ing at him haha. and this post was crap, I apologise!))

[Minami Akira]

“You’re Nippori Keiji –kun from the boys tumbling team, right?”

He answered with "U-uh, yeah, I am"

It’s really him!

Akira was not going to lose the chance. It’s pretty hard to find the opportunity to interview the boys. They’re always busy practicing. Well, of course that’s what they’re supposed to do.

She’s eager to know about the boys. How did they improve so fast? Why did the yankees join the team? So many questions popped in her head.

She also admired those boys. They had to face many problems; lack of facility, the prejudice towards some of the members’ yankee status, underestimation. But they kept practicing relentlessly. And now they had won the ticket to Kantou championship. Last year the team didn’t even have enough members to perform.
To Akira, the dedicated and hardworker was the most honorable of all.

Will he talk to me? Some people don’t feel comfortable talking to someone the just met.

There’s only one way to find out.

“Can we talk while we walk? That’s of course if you don’t mind, and if we’re going to the same direction.”
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ooc: I’m sorry for the late reply. And I’m sorry that my post sucks. (>_<)

[Nippori Keiji]

For whatever reason that Nippori couldn’t fathom, Minami seemed genuinely happy that he was who she thought he was. He vaguely remembered something being mentioned about the broadcasting club wanting to cover the male tumbling team, but truthfully, he hadn’t paid that much attention.

When she spoke up again, he was again slightly taken aback by what she said. Did she honestly want to talk to a yankee? There was a moment where he thought she might be interested in asking about him, but he hushed that thought almost immediately. She’s interested in the team.

“Y-yeah, sure,” he said, placing the mp3 player back in his pocket, although he kept the earphones in his hands, because he didn’t want to have to untangle them again later, he wasn’t about to listen to music now anyway now that he had company, and he wanted something to fiddle with.

“I live down by the seafront…” he said, to see if she lived near there at all. And on this side of town, that’s the poor area… Since he didn’t know the girl in front of him, he had no idea what part of town she would be from. If he were to guess, he would say the opposite side of town from here, but that was just from first impression, and those could often be wrong. After all, weren’t he, Aniki, Ryosuke and Kiyama prime examples of that? Anyone that looked at them wouldn’t expect them to do gymnastics itself, never mind rhythmic gymnastics.

He cleared his throat slightly as a nervous feeling crept up on him. “So…what did you want to ask?” he said, turning his head to look at her as they started to walk down the street. He fidgeted with the earphone wires, wrapping it and then unwrapping it around one of his fingers.



((ooc - your reply was good! Haha, don’t be so hard on yourself XD))

[Minami Akira]

“I live down by the seafront…” he said

What a fortunate coincidence.

“My house is not really close but it’s in that area.” said Akira with a smile.

Her house was located a few blocks from the seafront. It was small like most of Japanese houses, though more battered. One floor house with a bedroom, a bathroom, a kitchen and a family room. She slept in the bedroom while his father slept in the living room. The house was inherited from his grandfather from his father side.

They started walking. She walked by his right side. She put back her notebook and pen into her bag which rested on her left shoulder. It’s not the time to take notes, she thought.

“So…what did you want to ask?”

He turned his head to look at her.

She looked at him too. In this distance she could see him better. He seemed like a nice guy. And he looked like he had a tough life. Living in their area, who didn’t? He must had been from a part time job. Most of the students in their area had part time jobs.

She noticed that his hands were fiddling with his earphone.

Thinking that he must be nervous, she moved her eyes from his.

She’s aware that her habbit of looking at people straight in the eyes made some people uncomfortable.

And then she went straight for the big question.

“Why did you join the tumbling team?”
---------------------------

[Nippori Keiji]

Nippori looked at Minami as she answered, a little surprised. Oh. So his first impression had been wrong after all then. Well that really did confirm the ‘don’t judge a book by its cover’ thing, didn’t it? As far as he knew, she was a really good student, and he couldn’t say that a lot of the students in their area were all that good at their schoolwork. He himself was an example of that. But, really, it was only because he didn’t have a lot of time to study and do homework.

He was a little startled when Minami turned her gaze to fix it on his. He hadn’t expected her to turn and meet his eyes, and he felt a little odd. Like there were butterflies in his stomach or something. What was with that? The odd sensation in his stomach was strange and foreign, but he just tried to push past it and ignore it for now.

“Why did you join the tumbling team?”

The question made him pause for a split second in his steps, before he continued walking. He hadn’t expected her to go straight for a big question like that. “Hmm…” He thought for a moment, trying to think of a good and truthful answer and how to phrase it right. He was a little nervous about answering her questions without at least one of the other guys there as well. What if he messed up?

Inhaling, he opened his mouth and spoke. “Truthfully…it was mainly because Aniki -- erm, I mean Wataru -- did.” He paused again for a moment, mentally phrasing what he was going to say next. “But then…then the team became really good friends. I mean, they helped me out when I was in a tight spot, and…it really meant a lot to me.” He had really been touched when they had helped him out at the factory, despite not knowing him long at all. He paused for the moment, a part of him unsure if he should explain exactly what they had helped him with.

[Minami Akira]

Akira’s question turned his steps into a halt. She turned her head back and stopped, eyeing him. It was not long before he regained his steps. She also started walking again. Her eyes were still watching him, observing his reactions.

Finally he spoke.

“Truthfully…it was mainly because Aniki -- erm, I mean Wataru -- did.”

She smiled. She was okay with the Aniki term. She already knew whom he referred to. Her habit of thoroughly investigating people she wanted to interview beforehand. Of course she already knew his address before she asked him to walk home together. But she couldn’t just say “Our houses are in the same area, how about we talk while we walk?” right?

That’s why she went straight to that question. The only thing she didn’t know about. The answer she couldn’t get from investigation. She just had to ask the person himself.

After a slight pause he continued, “But then…then the team became really good friends. I mean, they helped me out when I was in a tight spot, and…it really meant a lot to me.”

Her gaze softened as he said those words.

“Friendship is a truly precious thing, right?” She smiled.

“Is that what changed you? Do you personally think you’ve changed?”

She said it in the mildest tone possible. She wanted to know, how did he see himself?

Seeing him, she noticed that there’s part of him that was similar to her. They’re both poor and had to struggle between school and part-time jobs. Yet they both still put their remaining efforts into their respective clubs. It’s easy to sympathize with him.

“I’m sorry to say this bluntly, but we both know that most students in our area must work part time to eat. I do. And I suppose you do too. I respect hard workers like you. And I think you, and the rest of the boys tumbling team members, deserves to be recognized and respected. The broadcasting club wants to make people realize about it.”

She said it firmly as she looked at his eyes. She meant it and she wanted him to know it.

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ooc: I’m sorry, I’m not sure that it’s good enough >_<

[Nippori Keiji]

Nippori felt a little lame for saying what he did, even if all of what he said was true. Since when did yankees get all deep and meaningful? He fought down another blush, determined not to get embarrassed again, because he would probably just make a bigger fool out of himself that way.

“Friendship is a truly precious thing, right?”

His gaze turned from the street back to Minami as she spoke. He smiled and nodded, still fiddling with his earphones. “It really is. Especially for a yankee,” he said, looking away from her and back at the street. “I mean…All my life I’ve only ever had two friends, but now I have eight.” Eight friends… It was hard to believe that that many people were willing to put up with him

Here you go again… he thought, when he realised the conversation was still in the ‘deep and meaningful’ territory. It was strange, but somehow nice at the same time, to be talking like this. He could hardly go all deep and meaningful on Wataru or Ryosuke, could he?

“Is this what changed you? Do you personally think you’ve changed?”

Thinking for a moment before speaking, Nippori answered the question honestly. “Yeah, I guess so,” he said slowly. “I mean, being part of a team that’s actually accomplishing something is…different to being a part of a gang, y’know?” Trying to explain the world of yankee’s to someone who wasn’t a part of it was something difficult to do, so he tried his best to explain without going into the whole thing a lot.

“I…have changed. I know I have.” He nodded as though to confirm to himself what he was saying. “I don’t fight anymore, don’t smoke anymore either. I take the club seriously, and I don’t want to be the one that causes the trouble that might cause for the club to be abolished.” He looked back at her, a smile tugging at his lips. “So I’m on my best behaviour.”

“I’m sorry to say this bluntly, but we both know that most students in our area must work part time to eat. I do. And I suppose you do too. I respect hard workers like you.”

Nippori was surprised at her words, both because of how straight-forward she was and what exactly it was that she said in the first place. Sure, she was from the same area, but she seemed to be more easily ready to admit that she…wasn’t as well off as others. Nippori was a bit more hesitant, maybe he had too much pride and that stopped him from just saying it. He wasn’t sure.

Then she said the team deserved to be recognised, and making direct eye-contact with him. And there it was again; that odd sensation in his stomach and chest. Although this time it was accompanied by his heart thumping in his chest. What the hell…? he wondered, tempted to raise a hand to his chest, but he refrained from doing so.

The sincerity in her words was warmly welcomed, and it was good to know that some of the student body seemed to be coming around to the boy’s rhythmic gymnastics team, even if just a little. And this girl, Minami, being the president of the broadcasting club, technically had the power to make more students listen, and perhaps more of them would accept them. “Thank you,” he said, smiling at her. “That…really means a lot.”



((ooc - it was good, don’t worry! =]))

[Minami Akira]

“Thank you,” he said, smiling at her. “That…really means a lot.”

He looked surprised at her statement, but his response was good.

She smiled back at him.

The wind was blowing again. She stayed silent for a moment as she enjoyed the breeze. She liked the night breeze.

Then she turned back to Nippori.

“There’s this movement called bakku tei, right? I saw it in the competition. It was impressive!” she said in an amazed tone.

“I don’t know much about rhytmic gymnastics, but I think Azuma-senpai’s bakku tei is great. It looked powerful, I could sense his energy. And I think Misusawa-senpai’s is beautiful.”

She looked up to the sky. “I wonder how it feels like...jumping in the air...”

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ooc: I’m sorry it’s really short >-<

[Nippori Keiji]

Nippori didn’t really consider himself one to think in cliches, but the smile that appeared on Minami’s face after he spoke made his heart flutter, the butterflies in his stomach increase, and made the smile on his own lips somewhat dopey in response. He didn’t know what was wrong with him, couldn’t figure it out, but the more he looked at her... He stopped his brow from creasing in thought at the odd sensations.

He turned his gaze away and looked back at the street, the street lamps casting their orange glow on everything. Just as he was trying to think of something to say though, Minami spoke. “There’s this movement called bakku tei, right? I saw it in the competition. It was impressive!” she said, before continuing. “I don’t know much about rhytmic gymnastics, but I think Azuma-senpai’s bakku tei is great. It looked powerful, I could sense his energy. And I think Misusawa-senpai’s is beautiful.”

Nippori could only nod in agreement with her. “Yeah, if only I was as skilled,” he said before he could stop himself. He fought a frown from tugging at his lips and instead gave a small smile. “Everyone has worked so hard to get to where they are. I just...seem to be trailing behind everyone a little.” It was true, he considered, that perhaps he was the worst on the team. He wanted that to change, but he just didn’t have the time for the extra practice. If he ever did, he would do it, even if it meant staying in the gym until late.

Minami looked up at the night’s sky, and Nippori found himself doing the same. “I wonder how it feels like...jumping in the air...” she said, keeping her gaze upwards. Not as many stars could be seen because of the lights, but it was still pretty to look at. To Nippori’s slight disappointment though, when he looked back at the street he found that they were nearing their part of town, so they would have to part ways soon.

Absently, he wondered exactly how late it was now, but he couldn’t be bothered to pull out his cellphone to see. It had to be fairly late now, and the street lamps didn’t cast their glow on everything. He looked at Minami, tilting his head slightly to the side, biting his lip for a moment before he dared speak. Taking a breath, he opened his mouth, only to flounder for words at the last minute and end up hesitating. Finally, he manged to get the words out. “I-I can walk you to your d-door – I mean...” He resisted the urge to hit himself. “I-it’s late, right? S-So...what kind of guy would I be if I left you to go down your street yourself...r-right?”

Inwardly, Nippori was cringing at himself as he turned his gaze to the ground by his feet. Instead of hitting himself physically like he wanted to, he was berating himself mentally for sounding like an idiot and not being able to speak properly. Do I...like her? he wondered to himself, glancing back at Minami before looking at the ground again. He bit his lip a little as he realised that, yes, it certainly seemed that way. Again, he wanted to hit himself. Girl’s were something he didn’t have time for, even if it was just developing a crush on one.



((ooc – OMG, look at me, on the site at college XD Only downside is that I can’t see the cbox =/ But sorry if this reply isn’t...all that good lol we could probably finish this within a few posts.))