《To Our Future》


 The girl I Met In The Library.

    Its 7 am. The sunlight pierces through the curtains into my work room where my laptop is open and my presentation complete. It seems I had fallen asleep typing.


    Its Monday and office starts at 9. I close my laptop and get up from the table. Just then I caught a glimpse of a book inside the drawer. Titled ¡°To our Future¡±, it was a book of memories. It made me remember my high school days. I was a huge bookroom back then, who aspired to become a doctor¡­ well, all those changed when I met you¡­


    10 years ago.....


    Flip flip. The only sound one could find in a library. A silent place where readers could enter their world of imagination. I sat in the corner most table in the library beside the window sill. Like usual I had grabbed a book from my favorite shelf and was reading it. Everything proceeded like my normal days and would have continued to, had you not decide to bother me that day.


    ¡°Katsunobo - kun!¡±


    You whispered into my air, catching me by surprise. I quickly turn, my hand covering my ear, flustered.


    You stood there in front of me, an angelic smile across your face.


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    ¡°Y-you¡¯re¡­?¡±


    ¡°Katsukawa Yuna. We¡¯re in the same class.¡±


    ¡°Ah! Katsukawa san! You sit next to me right?¡± I said finally snapping out of my embarrassment. ¡°What are you doing here?¡±


    ¡°Is it strange to see me in a school library?¡± you ask, chuckling.


    ¡°Yes... N-no! I meant no!¡±


    You chuckle again.


    ¡°I¡¯m just messing with you. I came here searching for a book but ended up not finding it¡­ And that¡¯s when I saw you.¡± you said, smiling.


    I quickly put a book up to my face and pretended to read it to hide my embarrassment. After a while I peeked through the book to find you sitting at the opposite end of the table still looking at me.


    At this point I was quite confused. What were you still doing here?


    ¡°You know, Ryota kun. It¡¯s quite impolite to hide your face when someone is talking to you¡±


    ¡°Eh? But you aren¡¯t even¡­¡­ wait did you just call me by my first name?¡±


    ¡°Whatever could you mean Katsunobo kun?¡± you said, smiling.


    ¡°I¡¯m pretty sure I heard my first name though!¡± At this point I was so embarrassed and confused I wanted to run away.


    ¡°Ah! Could you be secretly implying I call you by your first name?¡±


    ¡°Katsukawa!¡±


    You chuckle. ¡°Fine you can call me by my first name as well.¡±


    ¡°T-That¡¯s not what I meant!¡±


    ¡°You don¡¯t want to?¡±


    ¡°Ugghh! How could someone be so cute? It¡¯s totally unfair!¡± I thought, flustered.


    ¡°You don¡¯t want to?¡± She repeated this time saying it way cuter then before.


    ¡°It¡¯s a pleasure!¡± I replied.


    How could I say no? I had already lost the first time she started saying that!


    ¡°It¡¯s nice to meet you, Ryota kun!¡±


    ¡°L-Likewise¡­. Yuna ...san ¡°


    I looked up to see her smiling.


    ¡°It¡­ really isn¡¯t fair¡­¡­¡± I murmured. I was already turning red.


    ¡°Is something wrong Ryota kun?¡±


    ¡°N-No. Nothing at all.¡±


    And just like that we became friends, and I didn¡¯t realize back then how much you were going to change my life.

 Chapter Two: Friends?

    My name is Katsunobu Ryota. I¡¯m your average high school student and a total bookworm.


    Talking with girls is impossible for me, and a girlfriend is nothing less than a dream¡­. HOWEVER¡­¡­! I¡¯m sitting across one right now alone in the school library???!!


    Chapter Two: Friends?


    A few days have passed since I first met Katsukawa san in the school library, and she has been visiting regularly ever since.


    ¡®I wonder why she comes to the library every time though¡­ ¡®I was lost in my thoughts that I didn¡¯t realise Katsukawa had already entered the library and was already seated across the table.


    ¡°What are you thinking about Ryuta kun?¡±


    I snapped out of my day dream.


    ¡°Katsukawa san? Ah. It was nothing.¡±


    For some reason Katsukawa started pouting and I have to say she¡¯s cute even when she¡¯s angry...Wait.. Now¡¯s not the time for that. I have to figure out why she is pouting.


    ¡°Katsukawa san.. why are you pouting?¡±


    Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on.She didn¡¯t reply  but instead looked away still pouting.


    I thought about what may have made her angry.


    ¡° is it because I said something?¡±


    She didn¡¯t reply but this time she looked at me with the corner of her eye.


    Guess I¡¯m in the right direction... but what exactly did I say wrong?... is it because I didn¡¯t say what I was thinking about?


    ¡°Katsukawa san.. Before I was just wondering about why you keep visiting me. ¡°


    Katsukawa san finally turned towards me.


    ¡°I visit because I want to see you."


    ¡°...B-But wouldn¡¯t it be more beneficial for you to hang out with your friends instead of sticking to a loser like me?¡±


    For some reason it felt like that made her angrier.


    ¡° But I am hanging out with a friend!¡±


    This caught me by surprised.


    ¡° R-right were friends.¡± I added.


    Finally! My first female friend! You can rest peacefully! Grandma! Grandpa!


    ¡°.........BESIDES! I¡¯m not angry because of that!¡±


    ¡°Eh? Then-¡°


    ¡°Yesterday!¡± She said, cutting me off before I could finish my sentence.


    ¡°I thought we agreed on first names?¡± she said softening her tone.


    Ugh... this is too much for my heart.


    ¡±R-Right.. Sorry about that Katsu... Yuna..san....¡±


    She almost instantly became happy again.


    ¡°And Ryuta Kun... You¡¯re not a loser... at least to me.¡± She said, a little hint of red appearing in her cheeks before she covered her face with a book


    ¡°T-Thanks.. Yuna san.¡±


    She looked at me, smiled and went back to reading her book with her face covered.


    As for me, I am blessed to have witnessed another one of Yuna san¡¯s faces: Flustered face. SSR!!

 Chapter 3: Shopping as.....Friends?

    The scheduled time for meeting up was 10 infront of the station.


    I checked my phone. Its Eight Forty-Five now and I''ve been standing awkwardly for over 20 minutes now...


    Perhaps I arrived a ''little'' early?


    I opened my phone and checked the weather, calculator and note apps just to look busy.


    "Ah! Ryota-kun!"


    I looked up to see Yuna running towards me waving her hands in the air.


    I could see the light of the heavens descending upon Yuna.


    ''A Total Angel.'' I thought to myself.


    "huff..huff..I thought..huff.. I was early.." she said smiling and out of breath.


    "Anyways you sure came early didnt you? did I make you wait?"


    "Don''t Worry. I also Just arrived."


    for some reason I felt really cringe saying that.


    "A-Ahem.. anyways shall we?" I asked trying to recover from the cringe.


    "Yes!"


    Chapter 3: Shopping as...Friends?


    A few days ago in the school library...


    "Say Ryota-kun, are you free this weekend?


    I was obviously caught off-guard."


    "I mean... It''s not like I have anything to do." I replied.


    "...Because you don''t have any friends?" Yuna asked curiously.


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    "...."


    "I see..."


    Yuna thought for a moment before speaking again.


    "Want to go shopping this weekend?"


    Back to present:


    We are just shopping together... As friends of course!


    Yup. This is just a normal shopping between two friends.


    Thats totally it....


    "I heard that there was a new store that had just opened and wanted to check it out." Yuna said breaking my train of thoughts.


    "But wouldn''t going to shopping with other girls make more sense? I asked


    "I mean I don''t even know anything about girl''s clothes."


    "hmm... I wonder..?"


    Looks like she has no intention of answering my question... well, I did decide to come on my own violation anyway.


    "Hey wait up Yuna!" I cried out, after spotting her already standing in the mall entrance.


    "Hurry up slowpoke!" she said laughing


    Yuna dragged me around to various stores, and we weren''t done shopping until 5 that evening.


    Luckily the mall had a food court where we decided to rest for a while before heading back.


    "Here!" Yuna said handing me a box.


    "Whats this?"


    "A gift" Yuna replied, smiling.


    "T-thank you. Can I open it now?"


    ''Of course!"


    I slowly undid the wrapping and opened the lid of the box.


    Inside was a white handkerchief.


    I took out the handkerchief and slipped it inside my side pocket.


    I glanced towards Yuna, who was excitedly watching me. I couldn''t help but feel happy adn embarassed.


    "Are the bags too heavy for you?" Yuna asked, as we walked back to the station


    "Not at all. This much is nothin." I replied, even though I could literally feel my bones shaking.


    Yuna stopped and turned around.


    "...Im sorry i dragged you along to shopping with me today. It must''ve been a burden huh?..." she said.


    "I enjoyed It." I said, smiling.


    "I enjoyed shopping with you today, and I''m honestly glad you invited me! And if you want to, I can definitely go shopping with you again!"


    "Im glad you enjoyed... even me.....(Mumbling)..I..enjoyed being with you too..."


    "Whats that? I couldn''t hear you.."


    "It''s nothing." Yuna replied as she started walking again.


    I picked up the bags and followed.


    "Next time..." yuna said, as I caught up to her.


    "...Lets go to the movies."


    .....Today was just a shopping between two friends...


    .....why does It feel like date....