2So… hi. I know I haven't been updating much lately, and I would like to apologize. I suck. I've just been busy… so, yeah. This is one of the… hold on, let me count them… seven or eight stories I'm working on right now, including the ongoing one that's already published and one I'm going to start soon. I'm not sure which ones I want to really focus on, but for now I'm focusing on this. And for anyone who has been keeping up with my ongoing stories (New Beginnings or Letters To Hayato) or one of my other stories (The Girl Who Glimmered or Shop Til He Drops), I will soon be going through and giving a few of them a full edit, so watch out for that. Once I've edited the story I'll put 'edited' at the very very top of the authors note. So, that is all I have to say, and I apologize once more for my lack of anything much lately. So, enjoy this new two-shot.
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"Good morning!" An unusually cheerful voice rang out suddenly, echoing through the desolate candy story. The sudden noise caused Kairi Sanjo, the current cashier, to glance up from his place behind the counter, where he had been reading one of his favorite classic plays, Hamlet, in the original Japanese translation. He was studying Japanese as his fourth language, since he was already fluent in Spanish and French, as well as English. In the doorway of the shop stood a young girl, probably about 17 (the same age as him), with shoulder-length copper colored hair and bright brown eyes. "How are you today, sir?" She bounces up to the counter. Kairi leaned back a bit upon her approach. "Or maybe I shouldn't call you sir, because you don't look like you could be any older than me. How old are you, anyway?" Confused by the blur of questions, it took the young greenette a moment to comprehend. She was staring at him with such an intensity that was afraid he might burst into flames.
"Um, I'm 17, and good morning to you too, I suppose." The girl looked puzzled. "What's the matter?"
"Why do you talk like that? I'm not an adult or anything, don't be so formal!" A smile had appeared on her face, and with no warning she reached across the counter (when did she even leave the doorway?) and gave him a playful shove. Before he could retaliate she turned and began towards the door. "I've got to go, but I'll be back tomorrow. See you then!" And just like that, she was gone.
But Kairi was too practical a person to leave it at that. He didn't even know her name! He wouldn't be a gentleman if he didn't ask her name before she left. So, he didn't stop himself from leaving his spot behind the counter and hurrying to the door. He also didn't stop himself from pulling the door open and glancing back and forth to see which direction she had walked in. But he did stop himself from running down the street in both directions to see if she had turned down an alley or something, because he was also too practical a person to leave his station when it came to work. His sister was, after all, depending on him to keep himself alive while she was on summer world tour with Utau Hoshina, whom she was the manager of. How would he keep himself alive if he didn't have a job to get paid for doing?
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It surprised him that she actually came back the next day. He had spent the entire evening the day before wondering if she knew that he was working the next day for sure, and, if so, how had she found that out?
"Good morning again! How are you today, Candyman?" He only stared at her, but she wasn't fazed by his lack of response. "You know, Candyman. Since I can't call you sir, I have no idea what I could call you. I only resorted to Candyman because you work here." Ah. That explained it. She came up with something silly to call him for no apparent reason. She just wanted to poke fun at him. He knew of people in his school who acted similarly, but he tended to stay away from everyone but his few high-intelligence friends. "I'm sure you don't really want to be called Candyman though, do you? Well, if you tell me your real name, I won't have to call you that, now will I?"
This… puzzled him. So she wasn't just trying to be rude? Odd, that was all the people at his school like her ever acted. He'd have to investigate further. "Um… I suppose not." She smiled, and the effect was blinding.
"So then, what's the wait? Tell me!" She half-lunged over the counter towards him, her face obviously brimming with anticipation (though he couldn't quite tell why).
"Um… I'm Kairi. Kairi Sanjo. And you are?" If possible, her smile seemed to brighten even more.
"I'm Yaya! Yaya Yuiki, that is. Nice to meet you! Anyway, let's get down to business, shall we?"
"Business?" What kind of business could this girl possibly have with him?
"This is a candy store, isn't it? I've come for candy!" Kairi sweatdropped. This girl is crazy… "I would've gotten some yesterday, but I had some urgent business to attend to. I just wanted to check out the new candy shop before I bought anything from it." Yep, crazy… "So first off, what brands of pocky do you have here? I only buy a few specific brands…" She went on to list her personally acceptable brands, and once pocky was out of the way, she went on to chocolate, then lollipops, then about four other categories of candy, and Kairi was so glad he had studies different types of candies before he started working there, or he was pretty sure that pretty little redhead would've beaten him up for working at a candy store with a limited knowledge of her beloved candy.
"Yaya-san, I would love to help you with your candy needs for the rest of the night, but I'm afraid it's closing time. I'll check out what you have so far, alright?" This news obviously shocked the girl, because she swung around to look at the clock so fast Kairi was sure she gave herself whiplash.
"Is that seriously the time!? Omigosh, I'm going to be late! My parents are going to be so mad if I'm late! I have to go; can you just hold this for me? Okay thanks bye!" Before the boy could ever react she was frantically running out the door.
About ten seconds later she returned in a red and pink blur. "Kairi, you wouldn't happen to have a car, would you?"
"Uh, yeah, why?"
"I need a ride. Can you give me a quick lift across town? Please please please please pleeeeaase Kairi?" Sadly, no matter how antisocial he acted, Kairi could absolutely not resist the puppy dog eyes.
"Fine." Her million-watt smile went up a notch.
"Thank you ssoooooo much! I just need a ride to the train station, and then you won't see me for the rest of the week!" With that she grabbed his arm and made a break for the exit, barely letting him flip the 'closed' sign and lock the door.
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Being the ridiculously polite person he was, Kairi didn't ask the girl about why she needed to go to the train station to see her parents (although the suspense was killing him), or why he wouldn't see her for the rest of the week (although the suspense was pretty bad there too).
He was determined, even though she poked at him and asked strange questions and criticized his driving skills throughout the entire ride there, not to be as nosy as she was.
What kind of gentleman would do such a thing as that?
So, he went on through the week and waited (although if you asked, he would say he hadn't even been thinking about her) until she burst through the door the next Tuesday.
"Hey Kairi! Did ya miss me?" It took him a moment to answer because he was recovering from the heart attack she'd given him when she made her entrance.
"Not to be rude, but why would I miss you? I don't even know you."
"Isn't it obvious, because I'm Yaya, silly. Everybody misses me when I'm gone." He sweatdropped. That's… quite the assumption… "Anyway, do you still have all that candy I was going to buy last week?"
"Yes, I wrote down your order before I put that all away. I'll get it…" Five minutes later the massive order was reassembled and the girl was pulling out a pink wallet emblazoned with an assortment of candy decals. "So that'll be…" He gaped at the unbelievable number in the screen. Can she really afford this? "Um… that'll be $122.71." Kairi nervously glanced up at the girl in front of him, afraid she would have some sort of outburst at the crazy price. She did seem like the kind of person to do such a thing.
But, much to the cashier's surprise, she didn't even react. A shiny silver card was whipped out and scanned. That was that.
Except, that wasn't that, because she had nine bags of candy to carry to her car. Naturally Kairi helped her complete the task. What gentleman wouldn't?
Once the candy was all secured in the back of Yaya's bright yellow Mini Cooper Kairi expected she would simply thank him and drive away. He probably shouldn't have assumed that.
"So Kairi, what's your story?" Well that was direct…
"Um, I'm afraid I don't quite understand what you mean by that. Would you mind elaborating?"
"I mean, why are you, an obviously high intelligence low sociality high school age boy, working at a candy shop in the middle of the summer? Don't even try to say it's because you wanted to. I'm not buying it." Kairi had to admit, he wasn't expecting the girl to be quite so insightful.
"Well, I live with my sister, who is the manager of Utau Hoshina, who is on world tour right now. Obviously she had to come with her. So, my sister, Yukari, thinks telling me to find my own way to buy food and gas and other necessities will give me independent living skills that I will need in the future. So I got this job, which was the only one I could find on such short notice, and now here I am. The owner is quite generous with salary since I am one of three employees." Kairi didn't really understand why he was telling her all of this. Didn't matter much now.
"Sheesh. Your sister sounds intense. If I had a sister who did that my parents would flip their lids."
"My parents actually agree with her. They sent me to live with her after all."
"Why? Were you a rebel back home who decided he needed to change for the better when he moved to a new place?" Is this the same girl who barged in without a care in the world almost two weeks ago?
"No, they wanted me to go to this high-end school but they couldn't move away from work, and the school doesn't board. They agree with her because they think that I've lived too sheltered of a life up until now and I need to learn how to support myself."
"That sucks. Anyway, I've got to get home, but I'll be back in a few days with some candy-loving friends. You guys sell parfaits too, right?"
"Indeed. Frozen yogurt too." The fact that this girl had other candy-loving friends was horrifying to the nerd. Please don't be just like her…
"Alright then. See ya later Candyman!" With that farewell she climbed into her car and drove off, leaving Kairi to his unhappy thoughts.
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Two days later she flounced back through the door, this time followed by four others that all look about the same age.
Being the sensible nerd he was, Kairi devised a list in his head of each person's appearance.*
*1 - Girl - Average height, golden eyes, somewhat short pink hair with bangs clipped back by a black X clip, light blue polo shirt w/ colorful design over the heart, blacks ruffled skirt, brown ankle-high combat boots.
2 - Boy - Tall, azure eyes, shaggy navy blue hair, white T-shirt w/ abstract black and maroon design, open black cardigan, ripped jeans, unremarkable shoes, seems very interested w/ girl ahead of him.
3 - Girl - Short, honey-gold eyes, very long blonde curls, white headband over bangs, mint green dress ruffled at the bottom, short white blazer, pink ballet flats, bored, seemingly annoyed w/ boy (?) behind her.
4 - Boy (?) - Above average height, golden-brown eyes, long straight dark purple hair, white sweatshirt, open black hoodie, cargo pants, sneakers, obviously bothering girl ahead of him and enjoying it.
"Hey Candyman, these are my friends I was telling you about! This is Amu, her boyfriend Ikuto, Rima, and her boyfriend Nagi! My other friends couldn't make it. You'll meet them again some other time though!" As each person's name was announced they gave him their own greeting, so he quickly made a new list of their attitudes (in his head).
1 - Amu - Cool n' Spicy, above everyone else vibe.
2 - Ikuto - Cold and Quiet, uninterested vibe.
3 - Rima - Bored, doesn't want to be here vibe.
4 - Nagi - Polite - nice to meet you vibe.
Yaya wasn't done yet (of course). "Guys, this is Kairi. The guy I told you about." They all stood silently for a few awkward seconds before Kairi reluctantly broke it.
"So… are you guys going to buy something?" the greenette asked cautiously, nervous that Yaya would be angry at him for his disinterest in her friends (not that they were all that interested with him either).
"Oh yeah, so guys," she turned to her friends, "get whatever. They have candy, frozen yogurt, pastries, parfaits-"
"They have parfaits here?! Why didn't you tell me that Yaya?!" Rima suddenly yelled, causing Kairi to jump, Amu to roll her eyes, Ikuto to sigh, Nagi to laugh, and Yaya to pout (so, quite a variety of reactions). "I'll take the parfait you believe you can make best." Her voice alone made goosebumps rise on Kairi's arms.
Nagi took a parfait too, but Amu claimed to be on a diet and Ikuto didn't say anything. Yaya took an unsurprising extra-large twist ice cream cone with rainbow sprinkles.
After a few minutes of comfortable silence, Yaya (quite loudly) announced that she needed to use the bathroom, leaving the main store area for the small hallway in the back where the restrooms were located.
"So, Kairi, where do you go to school? Nagi asked with a pleasant tone. If what Yaya said about him being Rima's boyfriend was true, Kairi would never understand how that worked out. And Kairi didn't want to be rude, but what was up with that boy's hair? It was longer than the girls he was hanging out with (with the exception of Rima)!
"I go to Lancaster Academy, out in Rustboro." This time Amu interjects.
"You mean you go to the genius school?! Really?! We have a friend who goes there, do you know of a boy named Hikaru Ichinomiya?" As a matter of fact, Kairi did indeed know the famous Hikaru Ichinomiya. Hikaru was in fact one of the nerd's few high intelligence friends.
"Yes, I'm friends with him. How do you guys know him?" The question wasn't out of sheer politeness, but Kairi truly wanted to know how (not to be rude) these dumbos knew such a high-profile person as Hikaru Ichinomiya, heir to the world renowned company Easter, and arguably the boy with the most promising future of all the boys in the world.
"Well back when we were in elementary school, Hikaru transferred into our school after being home-schooled all his life."
"Yeah, the freak was a total robot back then." Rima muttered through her parfait, which she was taking in with tiny bites that fitted her doll-like demeanor.
"So we were on the student council, Rima, Nagi, Yaya and I, along with some of our other friends who couldn't make it. Ikuto was two years above us and didn't go to our school. Hikaru was nominated to join the council to be the president when we graduated, so he had to hang out with us all the time and after a while he warmed up and we all became close friends. You should ask him about us." The pinkette suddenly seemed to become aware of just how much she'd talked in the last few minutes and immediately backed up a little until she was standing next to Ikuto. The taller boy hadn't seemed to have been listening to their conversation.
Luckily, Yaya arrived from her trip to the bathroom at that very moment. She proceeded to tell the entire little group about how she'd slipped on some water (which Kairi promptly excused himself to clean up) that she'd gotten on the floor herself and how she laid on the floor laughing at herself for a minute before she pulled herself together enough to stand.
When Kairi returned from cleaning up Yaya's mess her announced that it was the end of his shift and he was going home, thank-you-for-your-purchases-please-come-again. His replacement was a slightly slutacious girl about nineteen who introduced herself as Hitomi and immediately began an attempt to flirt with Nagi. After she realized that she would have to face Rima to get to him she turned her attention to Ikuto, who practically told her to get lost. Her rejections having taken her flirting spirit, the girl shrank behind the counter and pretended to take inventory while she waited for them to leave.
"Hasn't this been so fun? We have to do this again sometime. Maybe next time we could get lunch or something. Anyway, thanks for dealing with us for so long, Candyman! I'll see you on Monday, alright?" Yaya stared at him with wide brown eyes practically dragging him in, so to avoid the humiliation of trying to respond with words he just nodded with vigor. "Great! Come on guys, we'll be late for the movie! See ya Kairi!" Yaya and co. piled into Amu's SUV and were off, driving into the sunset like the end of one of the romantic comedies his sister liked to watch in tears when she and her boyfriend were fighting. All the nerd could do was hope that being friends with these hooligans wasn't going to affect his GPA.
I'm sorry I didn't use honorifics, I don't trust myself enough for that. As far as I'm concerned, they're in America. Although I used pocky to be more Japanese-ish… no matter. This candy shop is just that great. I used Hitomi in my other Yairi story, Shop Til You Drop (read it if you haven't yet), because she is the minor bitch character in my Shugo Chara stories. I always have one because I use her to get out any and all anger. Every story needs a bitch. If you Google, say, Amu Hinamori fashion/outfits, you'll find those outfits if you scroll around for a while. I'm no good at coming up with them myself. The next chapter will come out soon, and soon enough I will have finally finished something.
Read & Review.