ajisai | s. shinichiro

二十三

"Mr Gold is back from New York and he looks like he's ready to eat me whole and then spit me out after." Airi remarks, heaving a deep breath while holding onto the painting canvas she made a few days ago, handing it to Shinichiro afterwards.

"Here you go. Go to my place instead. I feel like this work isn't the kind of work that'll give him make him give me a recommendation letter for MUA." She expresses.

Shinichiro takes the canvas in his hands and admires it. "If I was him, I would have long given you that recommendation letter." He tells her, taking a hold of her hand as he hands it back to her. "I'm sure he'll leave positive comments about this. If not, then...do you want me to wait for him in the school's parking lot and beat him up?"

"You can't!" Airi immediately replies. "Anyways, all I have to do is to just wait here until I am called-" She wasn't able to finish what she was saying as Mr Gold took one quick glance at her while walking straight ahead.

"Miss Airi, please see me in the art room."

"Not bad." Are the first words that Mr Gold say to Airi as soon as she placed the painting of the afternoon sun setting in the sky. "I like how you use various orange palettes. In general, orange means passion, positivity. But looking at your work, you're giving the color another meaning. The aglow or orange, the hour of day's death."

Hearing those words come out of his lips made Airi feel like she was about to hit the jackpot in the lottery, about to get the last 7 of the 777 big win in a casino slot machine game. Straightening her back, leaning forward and looking at him with earnest, the anticipation of him finally giving her the recommendation letter is just one pen and paper away of today.

"With this work....it's an above average grade." He says, shattering the exciting anticipation she felt, her shoulders immediately dropping. 

"For a high school student, of course this artwork is a hundred percent. But to go to an art school and this be hung up at an exhibition? It's like an ordinary work with a point five percent specialty. The specialty? You made an excellent use of the vibrant colors, natural art and you're also able to affect the mood of the person viewing this work. Sadly, it's not enough."

. . . . . . . . . . ♡

"Seriously?" Shinichiro asks in disbelief. "He said that? There's probably something wrong with his eyes. He should seriously get them fixed." He adds, shaking his head. "And why are you so after that recommendation letter?"

"Because it's the easiest way to get into Musashino." Airi responded, staring down at the yogurt milk bottle in her hands. "That piece of paper is like a key to a door that's locked and filled with answers to a home that's filled with secrets!" She exaggerates, heaving out a breath. "Are my works really that average?"

"Your paintings deserve more than just to be hung up in an exhibition. If anything, your paintings should go down in history!" Shinichiro says. "If he's not going to give you that recommendation then I'll just pay for your tuition."

"You can't do that." Airi immediately replies. "If I'm going to do the math, tuition alone is one point one million, admission without recommendation is three hundred thousand, application fee is at thirty five thousand and a one year term expense is at four hundred thousand. Adding it all up, are you really willing to shelf out one point eight million for me?"

Without a doubt, Shinichiro nodded his head. "I won't regret all the money I'll put into you, Airi chan. What's point of just storing it away in a bank? It's natural to make money and store it in a bank, but to not touch money in the bank is not money earned."

"I get your point but please, don't spend so impulsively for me." Airi replies, looking up at him. "I'll be able to turn things around for myself. There's still time to improve."

"But there's half of the year left." Shinichiro presses. "Don't you think by now you should have gotten what you want?"

"It's not as easy as it seems. Of course you wouldn't understand." Irritated, Airi stood up from where she is seating and walked away. Left alone, Shinichiro could only run his hands from his face to his air, pushing them back as he felt emotional distress coursing through him.

Even when the school bell rings, signalling dismissal time, both Airi and Shinichiro hadn't made up from their altercation. Shinichiro went along with his friends while Airi went to the other side with her friends, avoiding the places they know they would be in. But despite that, Shinichiro couldn't help but tilt his head from left to right, trying to spot Airi if she is in the place as him.

Unbeknownst to him, Airi is already at home. Wearing out of her school uniform and into a pair of casual clothes, slinging the straps of the backpack she prepared one night around her shoulders.

"Where are you going, older sister?" Takashi asks, watching the older girl descend down the stairs.

"Taka, mom will be home a little early tonight. Tomorrow is a holiday at mom's workplace too so she won't go to work as well. If she asks where I am, you know what to tell her, okay? I'll be back." She bids, placing a kiss on top of his forehead before placing a kiss on Luna's cheek.

"Don't cause trouble to Taka nii, okay?" She says, caressing Luna's cheek with her index finger, going out the door and closing it behind her.

. . . . . . . . . . ♡

The following day at school, Shinichiro came in a little early so he could have time to talk to Airi and sort their argument of yesterday. Sitting on a bench with his left leg raised on top of his right one, he waited for her to arrive to school. Glancing at the gates for every time he would notice a girl entering through, when it wasn't her and the first class is about to start, his anxiety began to climb into his head.

What if she didn't want to see him anymore that's why she's skipping? What if she immediately got sick of him? There were so many reasons as to why and every time he thought of each, he was slightly panicking, thinking that she would leave him.

"Hey" Shinichiro says, walking up to Roa and Seiko when he spotted them. "Have you two seen Airi? I didn't see her today."

Both Roa and Seiko shook their heads as well.

"The last we talked to Airi was yesterday on our way home." Seiko tells him.

"She did say that you two got into a disagreement. But that's just it and nothing else." Roa adds. "Maybe she got sick again? I don't know! She didn't even tell us anything earlier as well."

Since two of her friends didn't see her enter their school earlier, he resorted to texting and calling her. But that effort went fruitless as Airi isn't picking up, all the texts and calls he gives her but nothing for him in return.