An Unheard Voice - Chapter 11: Chapter 11

"Good morning, pumpkin!!" My mother says, as I flop on the couch, barely awake. I rub my eyes, looking at her weirdly.
"Look, pumpkin is a cute nickname! An showed me a ton of names to call my adorable son, so I'm trying them all~ I think I like pumpkin best!" She hums, making my toast. I should probably help her, but my body is extremely tired. I have never stayed up that long before. Even if new years was days ago.
"Enjoy~" She places it on the coffee table, along with my drink. I begin eating, but start dozing off. "Toya! Don't fall asleep, you've been invited somewhere!"
I tilt my head, and she comes to me with a message. Smudge is still laying down, he's extremely lazy when he's bored.
An texted my mom about ice skating. But I see their past messages of new names to call me. An...
I should probably get ready, they want me to be there at 12 A.M... But I'm so sleepy...
I sigh, and nod. She smiles, ruffling my hair. "I know you'll have a lot of fun! You haven't been to an ice rink before, and I know Akito will be there to protect you~!!"
I blush, sitting straight up. Well, that woke me up.
I arrived to the right location.. right..? I look around, worried if they're not here.
"Toya!! You made it!" An waves, and Akito walks up to me.
"I'm so glad you made it here safe. We're all done already, but I'll help you get skates and stuff." He says, and I follow him to where we get them.
This is my first time at a skating rink. I'm excited, but also scared. An invited Kusanagi, Otori, Tsukasa, Kamishiro, and obviously Azusawa. Akiyama and Ena couldn't make it.
"Woohoo! This is gonna be a blast!! Alright, join us when you're ready! Kohane, let's go skate and hold hands!!" An says, and Azusawa follows inside.
After I got my skates, I sit on the bench to put it on. I struggle a bit, but eventually figure it out. Does walking in ice skates always feel weird..?
Akito also helps me get to the rink, as I literally squeeze him with my grip. But An drags him away leaving me by myself.
I don't remember it being so crowded when I came here.. why are there suddenly so many people? And why are they getting so close to me... I hold onto the edge, struggling to stay still. I'm scared.
"Aoyagi! Are you doing okay?" Azusawa comes over to me, and I shake my head. She smiles, offering to help me by holding her hands. "I'll make sure you can skate without holding onto something."
I accept her offer, and almost fall immediately. Tell my mother and Akito I love them- "Ahh! I've got you, it's okay!" She tries telling me, since my legs are getting wobbly.
Azusawa starts off slowly, and if she goes too fast she tells me to squeeze her hand.
"You're doing well! Do you think you're going to be ready on your o--"
"AHHHHH!!!!" A girl shrieks, crashing into the both of us. I fall back, but someone grabs my arms from behind before I touch the ground. Oh, so the girl was An..
"Woah! That was a close one.. Are you okay?" Akito says, as I look up. I blush, nodding. He helps me get on my feet again, while my face is all red. Wait, did he push her?
Kusanagi and Otori rush over, helping the other two up.
"Kohane, I'm so sorry!!" An sobs, jumping onto her.
"It's okay, really! We'll both fall, don't jump onto me..!" Azusawa tries pushing her off.
"You hate me~!!!" An starts bawling. Already..? Azusawa takes her out to calm her down. Kamishiro chuckles, holding Tsukasa's hand.
"Yeesh.. she sure is quick to cry when it comes to Kohane refusing her love. I think she hit her head, though..." Kusanagi sighs, going up to us.
"Tell me about it." Akito laughs, recording.
"Shinononome!! Come help me get hot cocoa for everyone!!" Otori grabs his hand, hurrying out.
"It's Shinonome!" He yells, getting dragged. Otori sure is fast..
"Hehe. Emu can be so adorable sometimes. She showed me her spinning just a second before An crashed." Kusanagi giggles, and I stare at her. I think something is going on between those two.
"Wh-Why are you staring?! Stop it, shithead!!" She punches me, and I clench my gut. 'Shithead'..-? Ouch.
"Nene, why are you suddenly at the railing? You're good at skating, we used to do this all the time as children.." Kamishiro asks, coming up to us.
"Shut up! Don't talk about me when I was a child.. anyways, where's your knight and shining armor? Isn't that him?" She points to Tsukasa, circling nonstop while screaming at the top of his lungs. Is that.. water coming out..? Oh no, he's making a hole in the ice.
"Ah!! Tsukasa-kun, I'm coming!!" Kamishiro rushes to him, and I chuckle.  I can probably tell why Saki wasn't here, he makes sure to keep a very close eye on how she dresses when she goes out during winter and fall.
"... Can I tell you something?" Kusanagi starts muttering, and I nod.
"It's just.. I.. have a crush on someone.. but.. I think they like someone.. I-It's not you, obviously!! Don't get any weird ideas!! ... But.. how would you feel if that happened to you, hypothetically speaking..?" She blushes, whispering. Why did she mention me, though? Well, whatever.
I'd be pretty depressed if Akito ever found got a girlfriend and stopped hanging out with me. I don't know why, but I just.. don't want anyone to have him. He probably just thinks of me as a friend... I'd rather be a friend to him rather than him leaving me. Especially since he's going to kiss some other girl in the play.. Wait- I think I just called him my crush naturally.
"Well, I say go for it before it's too late. Who knows, maybe you might be wrong about them?" Yes, I brought the notebook.
"You're so stupid!! How can you not tell I'm talking about y-- Ah, Uh, nevermind!!" She yells, and I tilt my head. But Kusanagi storms off, flustered. She skates pretty quick.. Otori's name doesn't start with a y? Neither does Akito's, so I'm fine.
"I'm back!" Otori says, carrying a bunch of stacked cup holders. I rush off the ice quickly while also grabbing the railing so I don't fall, and go to help Akito.
"Thanks Toya, but it's fine. It's also really hot, and I don't want your hands to burn. I know how sensitive you can be to hot and cold stuff..." He chuckles. That may be true, but that's still embarrassing to me.. I sigh, following in disappointment. He's going through this because Otori bought like, 20 for herself.. but if Akito says it, it's probably for the best..
".. Well, you could hold my hand. Yeah, these may be warming my hands already, but remember when I said I prefer you with warm hands? I'd like to use you as a hand warmer instead. These are burning--!" Akito holds out his hand, carrying them all in the other. I blink in disbelief. Is he immune to embarrassment..?
I held his hand, flushed. This might be humiliating, but I would never deny that kind of offer from him. We walk back to everyone on the benches, except Kamishiro and Tsukasa. Tsukasa is learning how to stop his skates.
".. What are you two doing?" An says, with puffy eyes. I accidentally laugh, and cover my mouth immediately. "Toya-!!"
"He's not wrong for laughing, you know. You look like a blob fish." Akito hands her a cup, and even Azusawa giggles.
"KOHANE!!!" An begins crying again, and Azusawa holds her face.
"I'm sorry, don't cry again! I'll kiss your tears away!" She begins doing just that, calming An down immediately.
"Can you love birds go do that somewhere else?" Kusanagi mutters, as Otori is sharing her waffle with her.
We all stare back at her, and she doesn't even notice that Otori is feeding her. I'm convinced there's something she's not telling us. Good for her, however.
I sit down, and Akito hands me a cup as well.
"It might be hot, so be careful." He smiles, throwing his empty cup at An's head. I nod, and blow on it. Otori probably drank 9 by now. I take a small sip of it, but still burn my tongue and flinch. That hurts-!
"Ah-"
"OH MY GOD TOYA BURNED HIMSELF!! GET THE MED KIT, CALL 911 HIS PRECIOUS, PERFECT, BEAUTIFUL MONEY MAKING FACE GOT BURNED!!! THESE PICTURES NEED TO BE FLAWLESS, I'M CHARGING STUDENTS 10 BUCKS A PHOTO!!" An freaks out, as Azusawa tries finding something in her bag. She's selling what now? Whatever, this hurts too much to even worry about that right now.
"TOYAAAHH!!" Tsukasa tries skating out, but falls on his face. Ouch.. I felt that.
".. It seems you're not entirely ready to be on your own.." Kamishiro giggles.
"I told you.. Toya, let me see where you got burned." Akito pushes An out of the way, holding my face. I blush, sticking my tongue out a little. It was just the tip, so that should be enough..
"... Kohane. Change of plans, get the camera." Akito says, and Azusawa nods, handing An the camera. Huh?
"This is going to get a million bucks! Maybe I should start making people bid for thi-" An laughs evilly while admiring the print out, but Akito snatches it from her.
"Not so fast, this is mine." He says, putting it in his pocket. An tries taking it back, but Akito just grabs her face, and won't move no matter how hard she tries running. But once she begins pointing her camera to him, he lets go. I feel a bit relieved he took it so An doesn't sell such an embarrassing photo.
"Also, I'm kind of concerned by how much the skating rink is flooding now. And the crowd around us, haha." We notice the people around, some phones pointing in my direction. Is this the paparazzi or something-? I see Tsukasa bumping endlessly into people, while Kamishiro is trying his best to skate after him in circles.
"Maybe it's time we go." Azusawa suggests, and we all nod.
"That was so fun! Right, Nene-chan?!" Otori hugs Kusanagi, who doesn't mind. Akito walks by me, while Kamishiro has Tsukasa's arm around his shoulder. He fell on his behind and doesn't feel like walking anymore.
"Kohanee~ Don't leave mee~~" An cries, trying to grab onto Kohane by the waist as her father's car pulls up.
"I'll see you on Saturday, An-chan!" Kohane kisses her, and goes in the car. An stays frozen, and her face lights up.
"WHEN DID YOU GET SO BOLD?!"
"Oh yeah, I almost forgot to remind you all, we have news to tell Rui, so.. he might be in a terrible state when you come for rehearsal." Otori whispers the last part, but Kamishiro hears the news part.
"What news?" He asks her, who jolts.
"U-Uh, let's save that for tomorrow!! Haha, uh- Look at this sweets shop, wow!! Let's go in!" Otori rambles, dashing in. We all glance at each other, and follow.
"Are you guys with her? I think she's ill." Not even a second we're in, Otori is on the floor. Kusanagi runs up to her, and taps her.
"Look at all these desserts!!" She immediately gets up, running all over the place. Yup, a child in a candy store...
"Well, since we're already in here, you want anything, Toya? I'll buy it for you." Akito asks, and I shake my head. "Really?"
"I'm not a fan of sweets, really. Plus I have my own money.. Wait here."
I run over to An, giving her money and pointing to an item on the menu.
"Oh, you want me to buy it for you? Okay!" She nods, and goes to the cashier. I wait, and she hands me the pancakes with whipped cream and fruit. Akito mentioned he likes pancakes.
"This is the repayment for the field trip. Remember?" I smile, and his cheeks turn red.
"BAHAHAHA!! He's blushing!!" An pokes his cheek, and he shoves her away, embarrassed. I place it on the table he's sitting at, and see his ears are red again. It's adorable when they are. I sit across from him.
"Th.. Thanks..." He mumbles, looking down. I saw this shop has a valentine's limited pancakes, but they haven't revealed it yet. I'll take Akito here on that day.
"Akito, I'll feed you!! Say aah- AHHH!!" An shrieks, as he throws a knife at her. Good aim, but not good enough. She must be bored without Azusawa.
"Tsukasa-kun, open wide~" Kamishiro feeds Tsukasa, who looks embarrassed but still going with it.
"Normies.." Kusanagi mumbles, while wiping the frosting off of Otori's mouth. Is Kusanagi blind or something? Suffering from some sort of brain damage?
"You guys are rubbing it in my face, aren't you?! I'm leaving!!" An immediately bursts into tears, running out the door.
"What the hell..?" Akito scoffs. I shrug, trying not to laugh.
"Toya, I didn't actually mean the repayment seriously.. but I'm not complaining. Also, you didn't remember my sentence through all the way, did you?" Akito grins, and I tilt my head.
"I wanted you to take me out. I'd much rather enjoy these with you alone than An and the circus squad." He says, and my face goes red. Is that his suggestion of a date?!
"Bye, Toya. See you on Monday. Thank. You again, for the pancakes..." Akito waves, and I nod. I open the door, and my mother is already there, with her jaw open, holding her phone.
"YOU TWO FINALLY WENT ON A DA-- MMF!!" I cover her mouth, and slam the door. "Did you two really go on a date?!" She squeals, holding up a photo An sent. I think this is her "revenge". It's not our fault Azusawa had to go..
"No, we went with Tsukasa, Kamishiro, Otori, Kusanagi, Azusawa and An."
"Yeesh, being a third wheel to 3 couples, huh? Also, Kamishiro is a lovely boy. I'd like to get to know Tsukasa's future husband more!" My mother laughs.
"It's confirmed Tsukasa and Kamishiro are dating, as well as Azusawa and An, but I think Kusanagi hasn't said anything to Otori yet.
"Really? I'll ask An if she knows anything about Kusanagi!" My mother hums while typing, but her smiles slightly fades when she sees the text.
"Weird, huh?"
".. yeah." My mother replies, looking at a message from An. She turns off her phone, and pushes me on the table. "A-Anyway, let's eat dinner! I've already prepared it!"
Why do An and my mother act so strange when I bring up Kusanagi or she speaks to me-?