Manager wa Maid-sama • 赤葦 京治

𝙲𝚑𝚊𝚙𝚝𝚎𝚛 24

The wooden sandals on your feet made a clunking noise on the stairway to the shrine. You had been relentlessly fidgeting with the string from your handbag and were doubting your appearance since you left your house.

Taking the last step of the stairs, you made it to the entrance area and walked through a magnificent wooden gate embellished with lit lanterns.

You could hear the boisterous music up ahead that was just transitioning from the subtle flute and gongs to the upbeat banging of the drums.

You thought by evening it would be a lot calmer since the main event would have been done at day, but as you could see, things were just getting started when the sun had descended.

Since you arrived fifteen minutes early than the appointed time, you wandered a bit to get that nostalgia out of the way.

It had been quite some time since you stepped foot into the local shrine. New year prayers were used to be the only reason for you to visit. Beyond that, there wasn't any important occasion that was worth coming to.

Even then, you still loved these traditional celebrations. The unchanging scenery of a festival unlocked a childhood memory stored in the depths of your head.

You saw it just now. Tiny you wearing a yukata, both hands clutched to your parents. The world seemed bigger and scarier from your perspective, but they would be there to protect you.

"Ah, I miss seeing these."

Paper windmills were decorated into a tree. You blew out a gentle breath and many of the paper blades spun lively from the moist cold gust coming from behind your neck.

"Ara, who is this pretty maiden in a yukata right before my eyes?"

You pinned a hair to your ear while glancing to the side to see who was speaking.

A man in a dark gray yukata stood, facing you. His hand was holding a fox mask to cover his face, while his other hand was tucked into his sash.

He lowered the mask, revealing sharp ocean eyes and a coquettish smirk that belonged to Akaashi.

"You scared me. Where did you get that mask?"

"An old man over there gave it to me. Look what it can do."

He put the mask on the side of his face and let go of his hand. The mask didn't slide off like it was pinned to his hair.

"You look beautiful, [surname]."

"Thank you," you sheepishly smiled and gave a small twirl, "It's a bit old but I still like it. My grandmother bought it for me."

"As I said, beautiful."

Traditional garment matched his composed personality wonderfully, but his loose collar successfully distracted you since it was revealing a small portion of his bare chest.

"And you look handsome. As always...," you looked away at the end.

He generously smiled from the appraisal.

"Thank you. So...," he looked around, "Have you seen Bokuto-san anywhere or the others?"

"Probably they're somewhere in the crowd or could be running late," you searched for your phone in the small handbag, "Let me text the group."

Just when Akaashi was surveying the festival, he spotted a spiky gray hair with black streaks far in the distance.

He wanted to believe to himself that it could only be Bokuto, but he waited a bit longer until he saw Washio started appearing as well. They grew closer and closer in your direction.