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..........M.E.R.I.D.I.A.N......L.I.G.H.T.S..........

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"Where are we going this time?"

"Anywhere, everywhere, it's not fun having a schedule all the time. Let's just go wherever."

"I love adventures and all, but please don't tell me it's a long one? That shrine we went to the other day was a hella long walk." I patted my knees trying to get it ready for this adventure that Yuzuru was talking about.

"We're not going to walk," Yuzuru replied, waving at me to follow him. We were in a park, the people were scarce which made it all the more peaceful. The trees were full and lush, also, very much green. "We're going biking!" he announced, pointing ahead to a bike rental shop.

"Uh, that's a no for me." I stopped in my tracks.

"I thought you didn't like to walk?"

"Yeah, the bike's amazing, but my biking skills are not."

Yuzuru crossed his arms and cocked his head, he laughingly said, "You don't know how to ride a bike?"

"I don't-"

"Yet you know how to skate? Are you for real?"

"Dude, I don't even know how to rollerblade! Give me a break here!"

"What? Rollerblading is technically the same as skating."

"Well, I don't ok? Drop it." I placed my hands on my waist as I continued, "Besides, those wheels under your feet make it so hard to balance."

"Yeah, and those thin blades in the skates make it so easy to balance," Yuzuru stated. I was about to retort when Yuzuru continued, "while jumping on them multiple times with multiple rotations in the air."

"You're having fun mocking me, aren't you?"

"Of course not," despite saying that, Yuzuru had a huge grin on his face. "I'll teach you how to bike."

"Not happening, Yuzuru." I was firm on that. I remember that one time when I was a kid, I had a bike with four wheels on it but I still managed to crash every single time I ride it.

"Ok, fine, we'll ride a double seater bike."

I was confused at what he meant. "You mean, like that Batman and Robin bike?"

"You are so unromantic. Don't you watch movies?" Yuzuru shook his head as he walked towards the rental shop.

"What's romantic gotta do with anything?" I said, but Yuzuru was already inside the rental shop. I followed him to the shop and saw him talking to the owner. In a few minutes, we got ourselves a bike. The double seater that Yuzuru was talking about.

"I say that we get the Batman and Robin bike, it's much more comfortable," I commented as I examined the bike. It was basically a bike, but it was slightly longer than a regular bike, and after the rider's seat, there was an extra cushion for a passenger seat directly behind it.

"Just get on, Era." Yuzuru was already seated on the bike, he had one foot on the pedal and the other foot on the ground. His dark blue polo shirt and white pants gave him a cool vibe.

"Woah, you look so cool." I immediately pulled out my phone and said, "Smile!" Yuzuru complied, then I ordered him again, "Ok, now lean your elbow slightly and give me a serious look."

"Is this a photo shoot?"

"Hey, as a model," I began, exaggeratedly flicking my hair behind me like how the divas did it, "I'm just giving you pointers, alright? Once you get famous all over Japan then you'll be doing some modeling gigs."

"If I get famous?"

"Once you turn senior, I think you'll be infamous."

"Let's worry about that once I turn senior. Now get on."

"Ok, geez, you're no fun. Wait, last one." I went beside him and posed for a selfie. It turned out well with the both of us smiling happily, the bike couldn't be seen but the background was amazing with the verdant trees.

Once I was settled on the bike, Yuzuru began to pedal. It was surprisingly nice. My fear of riding bikes was still there, but as a passenger this time around, I didn't have to worry about crashing anywhere.

I squealed a bit as we hit a bump, my reflex forced me to hold onto Yuzuru's waist and I felt much more secure. Initially, I was holding on the edge of the bike and the side of Yuzuru's shirt, but since holding on his waist would decrease the probability of me tumbling down the ground, then I just held onto him in the end.

The scenery reminded me of the time back when my family visited Tokyo. However, the people here were fewer, the trees denser, and the atmosphere was more peaceful. I personally thought that the air was even fresher than the ones in Nagoya, Baguio, or anywhere else in the world that I visited in my life.

Sendai was truly the City of Trees.

When I grow up, I wouldn't mind living here at all. It was a beautiful city.

We passed by a long stretch of a pond, the jagged reflection of the light caused by the slight waves was breathtaking. If I didn't personally saw it, I thought it would be some fake CGI or something. It was too picturesque for anything other than that.

With my arms around Yuzuru's waist, I leaned my head on his back as I peacefully took in the surrounding scenery. My head was in a lull as to how comfortable I was, if I didn't shake myself from it I might even fall asleep which would result on me finally tumbling off the bike. A bright red sign in the distance caught my attention, I looked up at Yuzuru and saw that his ears were oddly red. Was it dehydration? It was getting pretty hot.

I patted Yuzuru's back and pointed at the red sign in the distance. "Yuzu, is that a café? Let's rest there for awhile."

Yuzuru cleared his throat roughly and said in a raspy voice, "Ok."

Poor guy, he's so parched.

I thought, leaning my head on Yuzuru's back as I waited for us to arrive in the café.

*****

Yuzuru and I came back right before dinner time. I was currently in the kitchen helping Saya with dinner. I didn't know how to make the dishes so I stayed and let her do all the mixing while I did all the ingredient preparations.

"Ah, Era-san, what are you doing here?" Yumi walked into the kitchen with a shopping bag in hand. The ingredients Saya said were missing were brought by Yumi, so now we could continue on with the dish. "You're a guest here, let us do all the cooking. Just relax and have fun."

"No, it's fine Yumi-san." I shook my head before I smiled bashfully. "Actually, I want to know how to prepare Japanese dishes authentically. I never got the chance to properly learn one."

"Are you sure?" Yumi seemed to light up as I said that. "If that's your reason, then I have no objections. I'll be glad to teach you a few dishes."

"Thank you." I grinned happily as a dash of pink colored my face. I love cooking, it was a pleasure to learn new recipes, especially authentic recipes.

We went on to make dinner with me making mental notes of how the process came to be. Yumi even revealed a few tips when it came to cooking her dishes.

"We don't usually add too much seasoning," Yumi explained, as she stirred the soup and added in the vegetables. On the other side, Saya was in charge of frying the fish. "The fresher and simpler the taste, the better."

"That's the complete opposite of some of the Filipino dishes I know. Our dishes usually have a strong and flavorful taste, that's the reason why rice is so popular, it negates the strong flavors."

"We do have dishes with strong flavors as well. I'll let you try some in the coming days."

"Need any help?" Yuzuru popped into the kitchen. He was fresh out of the shower, his hair was still wet. "Smells good."

"Yuzu, can you prepare the table? We're almost done here," Saya said, done with frying the fish and now she's handling the fried dumplings and tofu.

"Got it," Yuzuru called out as he went to prepare the table.

We heard the front door open, and the call of "I'm home" was heard, indicating the arrival of Yuzuru's dad, Hidetoshi. There was a resounding of "Welcome home" from different parts of the house, I was amused and in awe at this Japanese greeting.

A moment later, we were all seated around the dinner table making our way through the feast. I nearly closed my eyes in bliss at the delicious dishes spread out within reach.

"Era-san helped cook dinner with us," Yumi told her husband, causing me to blush as the attention was suddenly focused on me.

"Oh, did you, Era-san?" Hidetoshi had a kind smile on his face.

"Only a little," I replied, shyly. "I'm just starting to learn."

"We all got to start somewhere," Yumi said, handing over another cup of rice to Yuzuru. "I'll teach you my recipes."

"Thank you."

"Great! I'll be your test taster when you decide to practice," Yuzuru butted in whilst munching on the stir-fried vegetables.

"You just want to eat for free," Saya said, rolling her eyes. "Era-san, make sure to let my brother work for it."

"Oh, he does," I replied, amused at the interactions within the family. "I reward him with a home-cooked meal whenever he wins a competition."

"Ahh, the struggle." Yuzuru groaned causing Saya and me to chuckle.

"By the way, I forgot to mention," Saya started, placing down her chopsticks, "when we were at the rink a few days ago, some friends of ours invited us to go to the beach. Can we go?" she addressed this to her parents.

"Oh? Who did?" Yuzuru asked.

"There's Sato, Kenichi, Aki, Hanabi, and I don't know if they're inviting more people." Saya shrugged before she added, "Of course, Era-san is free to come as well."

I was confused with the names since I didn't know these people.

Yuzuru sensed my confusion so he explained, "They're all common friends of ours in Ice Rink Sendai."

"Can we please?" Saya asked her parents again, who looked at each other.

"I don't mind," Hidetoshi finally said, getting more side dishes in his bowl. "How will you get there? Do you need a ride?"

"Kenichi will borrow the van from his dad, he's licensed and been driving for a year now."

"Hm, alright, but be safe there. Don't wander too far in the ocean," Yumi replied.

It was a few hours later that I brought up the topic of the beach outing to Saya. Her parents were already in their room and Yuzuru was taking the trash outside.

"Saya-san, about going to the beach..."

"Yeah? We're going to be picked up at around 8 am tomorrow."

"I'll place an alarm on my phone, but... I don't have the... appropriate attire for that outing."

"Attire... Oh! Sorry, it escaped my mind. Hm, it's too late to go out and shop now." Saya touched her mouth in thoughtfulness, before saying, "Here, c'mon. Let's see if any of my bathing suits fit you."

She led me to her room where she then brought out a few bathing suits for me to try on.

"Ohh, it looks too small on you." Saya placed a palm on her face as she tried to think of a solution. I didn't even try the swimsuits yet but the... bustlines looked indeed small. "Speaking as a girl, I'm so jealous! You're so curvy..."

"Sa-Saya-san..." My face was a flaming red tomato now.

"How about this? It's held up by strings so you can adjust it...?" She held up a pale pink one-piece swimsuit that has a halter-top string style. "Here, try it. You can try it in this room, I'll leave for a while, just call out once you're finished and we'll see what needs to be adjusted."

I stood there for a second before my mind went all  'to hell with it' and quickly changed into the swimsuit. I wasn't exactly too shy as to not wear a swimsuit in public, I did wear figure skating costumes after all. This swimsuit was a little tight in certain parts of my body even when I adjusted it. Since it was tight, it pronounced more of my curves for all the world to see.

Checking myself out in the huge mirror in Saya's room, I saw that my back was exposed. Thankfully, the exposed part ended well before my waist. The neckline wasn't too low either, it's acceptable enough. Overall, the swimsuit was pretty nice, if not a little tight. It actually felt like I was just wearing one of my costumes. The only difference was that I have no skin tone stockings to go with it.

"Saya-nee, did you see E...ra..."

I didn't know who was more frozen, Yuzuru or me. My back was to Yuzuru, but since I was in front of the huge mirror, he could see my front too, and I could see his dumbfounded expression on his reflection as well.

"Yuzuru! How many times do I have to tell you, knock first!" Saya slammed the door shut, leaving me inside her room alone again.

My moment of being frozen ended as I heard Saya berate Yuzuru, I tried to stifle my laughter at the absurdity. I wasn't shy about wearing a swimsuit but it did surprise me that Yuzuru barged into the room unexpectedly. I quickly changed out of the swimsuit and into my own clothes and left the room.

An angry looking Saya and a red-faced dumbfounded Yuzuru greeted me as soon as I stepped out.

"It fits... a little," I said, lifting up the innocent swimsuit.

*****

My hands patted the sand firmly then I got another clump of wet sand and slapped it on the sides, hoping that it would stick this time. Sadly, some of the newly applied sand crumbled. As one could guess, I was building a sand castle. A pretty bad one, but still a sand castle. I was damn proud of it.

Stray locks of auburn hair escaped my high ponytail so I pushed it away with the back of my hand, but all it did was to leave traces of wet sand on my forehead. The sea breeze was nice and the sun was hiding behind a thin sheet of clouds, so it wasn't too hot or too cold.

The wind blew again, swaying my ponytail gently as well as the pink cotton top that Saya lent to me. The pink top worked like an off shoulder blouse, it's specifically used for beach outings. To complete my outfit was a pair of white denim shorts. The swimsuit that I wore within could be seen because the off shoulder blouse was semi-transparent and the straps of the pale pink swimsuit could be seen tied in a cute ribbon around my neck.

I could hear laughter and the sound of splashing water in the distance, it was Saya having fun with her friends on the shore. I looked around but I couldn't find Yuzuru anywhere.

I yelped as a cold object was pressed against my cheek. A sniggering was heard next.

"Yuzu!" I scowled at him.

"Here you go." He handed over the ice-cold soda bottle.

"Thanks."

Yuzuru sat down heavily beside me, his own soda in hand. He was wearing a dark red and black board shorts used for swimming and a plain white shirt.

"What is that supposed to be?"

"That is my masterpiece."

Yuzuru capped his soda and put it aside, then he proceeded to shamelessly mess up my sand castle.

"Don't touch it!"

"C'mon, it looked like the Tower of Mordor from Lord of the Rings. I was just fixing it."

"It's definitely not! Now, it looks like the Leaning Tower of Pisa!"

"Hey, at least it's a real architecture?"

I tried fixing the damage Yuzuru had done but every time I touched it a clump of sand kept on falling down.

"Whatever." I pushed the castle off and decimated it in an instant.

"Maybe it needs a bit more water?" Yuzuru tried forming a small dome but it was too crumbly.

"I dunno, I kept on pouring water over it but it just doesn't hold." I pouted sulkily.

Yuzuru stood up and patted off the sand on his hands. "Let's do something else."

He held out a hand to help me stand up. I grabbed my soda and stood up with his help. I also shook off the sand from my body, and Yuzuru brushed the sand from my forehead. Together, we roamed and looked at the beach vendors' products.

It wasn't that busy of a day in the beach. There were still enough people to keep the stores open and ready for business. Some of the stores were even grilling something appetizing. My mouth watered at the smell, gulping as I saw the sizzling barbeque and squid on sticks.

I was just about to buy the grilled squid when Yuzuru and I got interrupted.

"Yuzu-kun," a voice gently called out.

We both turned towards the sweet voice. I saw that it was one of Yuzuru and Saya's friend. I didn't get a good look at her because by the time we were picked up from their house, the girl was already seated on the far back of the van. Now, I saw that she was a very pretty girl. Seriously, she's probably one of the prettiest Japanese girls I've seen.

Is she an idol?

I wouldn't be shocked if she was. She has this cute heart-shaped face, clear white skin that seemed to shine under the sunlight, and gentle wavy hair that fell down her delicate, small shoulders. I had this urge to ask what skincare product she was using to get that shiny glow, because wow, her skin looked so soft and tender... and shiny.

The girl seemed to be very focused on Yuzuru though, maybe that's why she didn't see me, which was strange because I was standing like a sore thumb in this beach full of Japanese people.

Alas, the tantalizing smell of that grilled squid beckoned to me in a much stronger pull. I left Yuzuru's side to buy the grilled squid. That was the major reason. The minor reason was that the shy and sweet girl seemed to want to talk to Yuzuru alone, so I left them both be to say the words that needed to be said.

After five minutes of waiting for my grilled squid to be done and ready, I returned to the spot where I left the sweet girl and Yuzuru behind. I was munching the chewy squid on a stick on my hand when I saw that they were still in the same position I left them both in. It seemed like they were still chatting so I stood by the side next to the vendor selling the grilled barbeques.

From where I was located, I heard bits and pieces of their conversation.

"-finished with summer assignments? School is about to start." The girl twirled a lock of her hair. Every time she locked eyes with Yuzuru, she shyly averted her eyes and a red blush covered her cheeks. "If you're not, I can help you if you want?"

I gaped and was stupefied at this overly sweet scene.

"I was finished by the time the first week of vacation ended." Yuzuru didn't beat around the bush.

Doesn't this guy know what flirting is?

Wait, the girl was flirting, right? But she's Yuzuru and Saya's friend. Or, I could be wrong again. Maybe she's naturally this sweet and innocent?

I noticed that they were talking again, so I tried to listen in.

"-working on my triples," the sweet girl said, a blush covering her cheeks, "... I'm having some difficulties... can you help me?"

"Coach Nanami can help you with that. I'm not qualified to teach you." Yuzuru said, impassively.

I nearly choked at his reply.

What the hell Yuzuru! You don't have to be so blunt! At least give the girl some pointers...

Yuzuru turned away but the girl held tightly on his hand.

"Yuzu-kun!"

I felt my breath stop for a second time at this dramatic unfolding before I chewed grilled squid again at a faster rate.

What's up with this unexpected loveline! Is this a movie? Yuzuru is growing up!

I felt proud of my boy. The girl was very pretty, seemed like a catch for a teenage boy to say the least. If I wasn't mistaken, this sweet yet eerily persistent girl liked Yuzuru.

Yuzuru was saying something again but before I could listen further, heavy smoke occluded my vision and I coughed heavily.

"Girl... away... away... pollution," the barbeque vendor said in broken English. I got the gist of it as I saw the direction of the wind change and now the smoke from the grill was heading towards my direction.

I lifted up my hand and nodded at the vendor before leaving my spot. My throat was raspy from all that coughing so I threw my squid on a stick on a nearby trash can. I was drinking my soda when I felt a tap on my back.

I turned around and saw that it was Yuzuru. I was surprised for a moment and I searched for the girl. She wasn't anywhere to be seen.

"You just disappeared all of a sudden, where did you go?"

"... I was hungry..."

Yuzuru sighed exasperatedly before holding my hand and said, "Wanna swim?" He jerked his head towards the ocean in a cool manner.

"Uhh." I searched for the girl again but she must've left already. "Alright."

*****

After our swim, we were both lounging on the side of the beach where our group placed a blanket on. The others opted to go to the vendors this time so it was just Yuzuru and I at our spot.

"I think that girl has a crush on you," I teased him, giving him a suggestive look.

"I know."

I coughed at his abrupt answer. "What? Really? I was just kidding!" I was flustered. It was purely in jest when I said that so I was caught off guard with Yuzuru's reply.

Yuzuru leaned back on the sand on his elbows as he enjoyed the sea breeze with his eyes closed. He had a peaceful expression on his face, which was a sharp contrast to my alarmed one. A few seconds passed, but Yuzuru didn't deign an explanation.

It came to me to come looking for an answer. "You... I don't mean to pry, and it's totally fine if you don't want to reply, I get it. But, how did you know that she has a crush on you? Is it, like, a legit crush?"

"She told me herself."

At Yuzuru's simple reply, my jaw dropped, before I excitedly looked around to see if Saya, that girl, or the others were within hearing distance. I didn't see them so the coast was clear. "And? And? And? What happened? What's your response? When did it happen? Are you guys going out now?"

"You're too excited for this..." Yuzuru's eyes widened as he was faced with my barrage of questions.

"You totally are going out! Oh my god!" I smiled excitedly at him as I shifted around.

"I am totally not going out. I assure you that." He then slumped lazily on the sand, good thing there was a blanket underneath us or it would be hell to get that much sand out of his hair. For his sake, of course.

"What? Why not?"

"The most important question is... why are you so excited about this?" He closed his eyes to get a comfortable spot to take a nap.

"I just am, it's not every day your friend was confessed to. What happened exactly? I mean, again, I'm not forcing you to-"

"She said she liked me and wanted to be in a relationship. That happened a few months ago."

My breath got stuck in my throat in anticipation, I whispered, "Then?"

"Then, I rejected her. I only see her as a schoolmate and a friend that I skate with. I don't like her romantically."

"Ooh," I gushed out, more in awe than anything else. Yuzuru heard me so he peeked at me.

"What's with that?"

"That girl is amazing." I hugged my knees and saw his silent question. "She's amazing in a way that she's so courageous. I don't know, back in my country, it's the boys who usually do the confessing."

Yuzuru just hummed in response. It was silent between us as we were lost in our own thoughts, the only sound that could be heard were the gentle waves of the sea and the occasional chirping of the birds.

"Yuzu?"

"Yeah?"

"It's normal to be experimental in our teenage years. I personally saw it with my other friends back in the Philippines. My friends tried dating, even if they don't initially like, or love, the other party that much, they still tried dating just for the experience," I tried to explain it to him. "So why not? I think you should give the girl a chance if she confessed to you again."

Yuzuru was silent before he sat up and gazed seriously at me. "Do you think I should date her?"

I hesitated before I nodded. "That is if you're up to experiment on things? I think that girl knows that you don't initially like her, but she still liked you after all these months. If you want to try out dating with her then you should be clear that you're willing to try it with her and see if any feelings decided to sprout up or something."

"Then do you want to date me?"

"What?!"

"Let's try this experiment that you're going on about."

"Yuzuru, you don't, you don't get it," I stuttered before he cut me off.

"What don't I understand, Era?" Yuzuru questioned me. His phoenix eyes never left my own from the start of my explanation. "You said that teenagers experiment. I'm a teen, you're a teen, it's normal to experiment. That's what you're saying, right?"

"I'm not talking about us here; I'm talking about you and her."

"Why not you and I, though?" he countered.

I was perplexed and I didn't know what to say next. If I tried to contradict him then that's just like contradicting myself and this pointless conversation would never end. I wanted to kick myself for starting something I didn't even have any experience with.

"Look," Yuzuru began. "I know where you're getting at. But Era, really, do you honestly think I'm like any other teenager out there?"

Stunned, the answer automatically slipped out of my mouth, "Heck no, you're like a middle-aged teenager." I gasped and tried to cover my babbling mouth.

"Wow, you think so highly of me," Yuzuru sarcastically replied, before quirking his lips. "Extra stuff aside, I may not know a lot of things and I may not have the experience that other people have, but I am not in a hurry Era. Even when I was young, I know what want and I know what I don't want. Liking something forcibly when you clearly don't like it just leaves a sour taste behind. It's better to be decisive when it comes to things. Otherwise, it would just hurt other people."

In that moment, Yuzuru's words sunk and he was right in every single aspect.

"I know, forget it. It's stupid of me to even say it."

"It is."

"Hey!" I scowled at him.

"It's true though, you don't even believe it yourself."

Now that I sincerely thought about it, I really didn't.

"Yeah, you're right," I acquiesced, my shoulders slumping down.

"So, is it safe to say that you won't try this experiment thing with others? You know, just to experiment?"

"No!"

"You sure?"

"Why did the tables turn on me now?"

"You're the one who got this incredible idea in the first place," he pointed out.

"Point taken. Ok, ok, I promise! I won't do anything stupid like getting in a relationship with others just to experiment."

"Are you sure? I'm still available if you want. No objections here."

"Stop talking, Yuzuru."

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..........M.E.R.I.D.I.A.N......L.I.G.H.T.S..........

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(The cliché is strong within this chapter, lmao!~)

(If you liked this chapter, then please leave a vote and/or a comment. Thank you!~)