CH. 89 - A Misunderstanding

 Shiori sits downstairs on the couch, bouncing her leg with her hands folded in front of her mouth. She thinks intensely as she sweats a bit. She gets a nervous look before falling back onto the couch, letting out a frustrated sigh.

 “What’s going on?” Her little brother asks. Shiori looks over to see him staring at her with a slightly worried look. She smiles at him softly.

 “Nothing, Riku. It’s okay. I’m just… nervous.” Shiori says. His face relaxes as he sits next to her with an inquisitive look.

 “Oh. Why are you nervous?” Riku asks.

 “Well… today I’m gonna ask Hikigaya a big question.” Shiori says nervously. Riku looks at her with a super excited face.

 “You’re gonna ask him out??” he asks loudly. Shiori freaks out for a moment before slamming a pillow in his face.

 “Not so loud, you moron!” Shiori shouts softly. Riku squirms under the pillow before she lets him go. “Sheesh, when did you learn about these things?..” she asks. Riku lowers the pillow.

 “Well, I am going into fifth grade. Kids talk.” Riku says.

 “Well, you better keep your nose clean, kid, or I’ll make sure you stay young and dumb forever.” Shiori warns.

 “No way! You can’t do that to me! That’s not fair!” Riku says while jumping up on the couch. 

 “Wanna bet?” She asks menacingly as Riku gets scared.

 “W-well, if you do, I’ll tell Hikigaya how you feel!” he threatens. Shiori sweats before sighing.

 “Fine, you got me.” Shiori says. Riku exhales in relief before sitting back down.

 “So does this mean I’m getting a new big brother? Officially?” he asks softly. Shiori blushes before looking away.

 “Maybe… I guess it might…” She turns back to Riku and puts her finger to her lips in a shushing manner. “But you can’t tell him, it has to be me.” Shiori says, blushing. Riku smiles widely and salutes her.

 “Roger!” He then hops off the couch and runs into another room. “Moms! I’m gonna get a new brother! Officially!” Riku shouts. Shiori hears from the other room before drooping over. She turns to look at the stairs leading to their rooms before sweating a bit. 

 “Okay, this is it.” She says quietly before getting up and going up the stairs. She timidly approaches Hikigaya’s door before lifting her hand to knock on the closed door.

 “Yeah, I got that mismatch eyed freak wrapped around my finger.”

 Shiori hears Hikigaya’s muffled voice from behind the door. Her eyes widen as her hand hovers over the door. She begins to shake.

 “What..?” she says with a shaky voice.

 “Oh- Oh yeah, she’s so easy. I can get her to do whatever I want.” Hikigaya says as Shiori’s eyes start to shake. Her ears start almost ringing as she can hear her heart beating in her ears. She slowly steps back as tears begin to form in her eyes. Suddenly, the door opens as Hikigaya begins to step out but is surprised to see Shiori standing before him.

 “Shiori? What are you doing here?” he asks. She doesn’t answer and only stares at him for a moment before turning away. She begins to walk away before Hikigaya grabs her shoulder. “Wait, are you okay-”

Before he can finish his question, she pulls her shoulder away forcefully. Hikigaya is shocked as she begins to cry and glare at him.

 “Keep your filthy hands off me, got it?” She says coldly. Hikigaya’s eyes are intense but far more confused. 

 “Shiori.. What-” Hikigaya says. She turns and tries to run down the hall and down the stairs, but before she can get far, Hikigaya grabs her wrist to stop her. “Shiori, wait! What happened?” he asks, concerned.

 Shiori struggles to get away from him and in an instant, without meaning to, she teleports out front of the house, down the sidewalk a bit. She stumbles and collapses to her knees as she was mid pull from Hikigaya’s grasp. She looks at her hands, confused for a moment, before tears start rolling down her cheeks. Chizuru and Lucy quickly notice her and look at her in confusion and surprise, standing by the front door of her house, holding signs and confetti poppers with ‘Congratulations!’ on them.

 “Shiori! What happened?” Chizuru asks as they make their way to her. She quickly gets up and begins to walk away from them. 

 “Nothing. Just leave me alone.” Shiori says coldly.

“Wait, did he turn you down? Talk to us!” Lucy says as Shiori starts to wrap her arms around herself before sobbing.

 “I-I don’t need you! Leave me alone!” She shouts between sobs before her wings burst out from her back and she takes off into the sky at high speed. Lucy and Chizuru stare at her with worry and confusion as Hikigaya comes running out of the house. He looks around before noticing Chizuru and Lucy. He runs towards them with a worried expression.

 “Where did she go?” he asks. They turn to him with confused looks.

 “We don’t know, she just took off.” Chizuru says.

 “Did you really say no?” Lucy asks with an upset look. Hikigaya rushes past them with a frustrated and worried look.

 “Say no to what??” he asks hurriedly as he attempts to chase her down. Hours pass as clouds begin to cover the sky.

 Shiori sits alone in a tree with her wings wrapped around her as she continues to sob. She lays her head on her arms crossed upon her knees as a rustling in the bushes around is heard. Hikigaya comes stumbling out of the woods and towards the tree she’s sitting in. He looks up and smiles when he sees her.

 “Ah! Shiori! I finally found you! Now, you’ve got to explain to me what’s going on??” he asks as Shiori gives him a glare. Her wings open up as she swoops down and grabs hold of Hikigaya before flying quickly away. Soon, they come to the stage clearing the group claimed. She drops him hard before landing herself. Hikigaya groans in pain a bit before getting up and dusting himself off.

 “Okay, that was a little uncalled for.”

 “I have to explain?” Shiori shouts. He looks at her as she turns around with tired and hurt eyes filled with anger and betrayal. “You’re the one who needs to explain.” She says loudly. He looks at her confused as her wings raise around her just a bit. “So what? Are you working for the Devil’s Syndicate? Did Drake put you up to this? Or maybe it was Amy? Was she ever my friend? Was… was anyone else?..” She asks angrily as tears begin to flow again. She stutters and sobs between her words.

 “Please, just explain to me what you could’ve possibly meant. How could this have been a misunderstanding? Please, just tell me anything that means this wasn’t all fake! Something that proves that I meant anything to anyone!” She shouts as she sobs. Hikigaya stares at her in confusion and pain from seeing her so hurt.

 “Shiori… I just… I don’t know what’s going on. If you could just-” he begins to say, but she just grunts in frustration before crouching down and holding her head in her hands. “Just explain why you’re so upset. I promise I’ll do whatever I can to help you.” Hikigaya says softly, keeping his distance from her to not overwhelm her. Shiori doesn’t look at him and just holds her head in her hands as Hikigaya desperately tries to understand.

 “Why did you say those things?..” she asks quietly. Hikigaya stares at her confused for a moment before starting to put it together.

 “You mean on my phone call?” He asks gently. Shiori opens her eyes a bit and lifts her head slightly to look at him. Noticing this reaction, Hikigaya begins to understand, almost letting out a full sigh in relief. “Shiori, I was telling some jerk to fuck off. He called me asking for you, and when I told him no, he went on some rant about how I’m just using you cause you’re easy or whatever.” Hikigaya explains. Shiori begins to lower her wings as her eyes widen.

 “What about the part where you said I was a-a mismatch eyed freak..?” Shiori asks softly. Hikigaya sighs a bit in relief that the situation has an explanation.

 “I was being sarcastic. Those were the kinds of things he was saying. I would never, ever say anything like that about you.” Hikigaya says, lifting his hands towards her gently. “Don’t you remember what I said when I first saw your eyes?” Hikigaya asks as Shiori recalls his reaction. “I think your eyes are so beautiful.” Hikigaya says softly.

 “So you.. didn’t mean it?..” Shiori asks softly. Hikigaya shakes his head, stepping towards her carefully.

 “I don’t care what anyone else thinks. I think you’re amazing just the way you are.” he says passionately. Shiori begins to stand up as her expression turns from betrayal and anger to understanding. Hikigaya sighs softly with a caring and relieved smile. “How many situations are we gonna have from misunderstandings?”

He looks at her and gets surprised when she starts balling. Tears roll down her face as her wings flop to the ground as she falls on her knees, crying openly. She cries out as Hikigaya then quickly rushes to hug her. He wraps his arms around her tightly and holds her for a moment as she cries into his arms.

 “I may not be all that smart, and sometimes I make horrible decisions, but being friends with you isn’t one of them, Shiori.” He says softly as she cries into his embrace.

 Eventually, they make it back home together as Hikigaya leads her along, holding her hand. She lags behind him a bit with her head lowered as Hikigaya walks in front of her. She looks up at him from behind with a frustrated and embarrassed look.

‘How many times is this?.. How many times have I broken down in front of him because of my mistakes?.. I don’t…’ Her thoughts pause as the gentle rain pelts them ever so lightly. ‘He deserves better than me…’ she thinks as she lowers her head.

 They make their way back inside as Chizuru and Lucy stand up in surprise and relief. They rush to her as Chizuru hugs her tightly. After a moment, she pulls back and looks at her.

 “Where did you go??” Chizuru asks.

 “Yeah! We were super worried about you, dude.” Lucy says with a relieved look. Hikigaya watches them for a moment before he hears someone yelling.

 “Hiyaaa!” Riku shouts while diving onto Hikigaya’s head. He latches on and starts beating the top of his head as Hikigaya struggles to get him off. 

 “Ah! Ow, hey! Stop it, what’re you doing?!” he shouts as he rips Riku off of his head only to be met by his small foot kicking him directly in the face. 

 “That’s what you get, you big meanie! You hurt my sister’s feelings, I can feel it!” Riku shouts.

 “No, I didn’t..!” he says with a muffled tone from under Riku’s foot before tossing him over, causing Riku to fly through the air comically. “It was just a misunderstanding!” Hikigaya shouts. Chizuru and Lucy look at him confused before turning to Shiori, who looks away.

 “How about we go get you cleaned up? You’re all wet from the rain.” Chizuru offers softly with a smile.

 “That’s a good idea.” Lucy says as they take Shiori upstairs and to the bathroom. There, Chizuru washes Shiori’s hair, sitting behind her as Lucy sits on the counter.

 “So are you going to tell us what happened?” Chizuru asks.

 “Do I have to?..” Shiori asks reluctantly.

 “Yes. We literally waited here for hours, worrying about you. You absolutely have to tell us what happened.” Lucy says. Shiori pauses for a moment before Chizuru speaks up.

 “Hiki said there was a misunderstanding. Did it have something to do with you asking him out?” Chizuru asks. Shiori shakes her head softly.

 “So what happened?” Lucy asks. Shiori gets an upset look before responding.

 “Nothing. Just me being… the same old me for no reason…” Shiori says upset. The others pause for a moment.

 “You didn’t ask him, did you?” Lucy asks. Shiori shakes her head again. Lucy sighs. “Well, are you going to ask him?” Lucy asks again. Shiori pauses for a moment before softly shaking her head again. They look at her shocked.

 “What?? Why not? You two are perfect together!” Chizuru says. Shiori tenses up a bit at her comment.

 “I don’t.. think we are…” Shiori says quietly. Chizuru sweats a bit.

 “What makes you say that?” she asks.

“Because… I’m so… unstable… Just look at tonight. I made him rush around town looking for me in the rain only for me to accuse him of something he didn’t even do… and that’s just today. Think about all the times we’ve fought or argued. All the problems I’ve caused for him. I basically sent him to the hospital, I’ve brought bullies that have literally attacked us, I let his sister d-” Shiori says while holding herself, suddenly stopping as the thought stabs deep in her mind. Chizuru and Lucy look sad at her words as Shiori only grows more frustrated by her own actions. “He’s better off loving someone better than me…” she says quietly with a sad tone. After a moment of silence, Chizuru speaks up.

 “Shiori, look at me.” Chizuru commands. Slightly surprised by her tone, Shiori turns around a bit to look at Chizuru giving her a disapproving look. “I don’t want to hear that kind of talk from you again, got it?” she says firmly before softening her look. “Shiori, you’re not perfect. Neither are we. But that doesn’t mean we haven’t earned the right to be happy.” Chizuru smiles at her. “You’re not damaged goods that need to be cast aside. You deserve to be loved too.” She says softly with a smile as Shiori nods back timidly. Chizuru giggles before slapping Shiori on the back encouragingly. “Well, don’t worry! I’m sure you’ll get your chance to ask him again!” Chizuru says happily. Shiori winces from the slap as Lucy snickers.

 “And you’re definitely gonna tell him. We just need the right place to do it.” Lucy says. Suddenly, Chizuru’s face lights up as she gets an idea.

 “Oh! I got it!” She turns and looks at Lucy. “I know what we’re gonna do this summer!” She says with a big, excited smile on her face.