Three days following Mitsuya's birthday marked the last day of school and the beginning of their summer break. There were a few end-of-year parties and dinners, but Aiko declined asking permission for any in case she lost the privilege of attending the only one she was interested in.
Emma wasn't hosting a dinner. And, although the driver would be instructed to drop Aiko at Emma's house, the two were to meet with some of Emma's friends to eat out. Weaving an excuse, in her father's absence, was easy for Aiko as the nanny, Koyuki, was more than naïve.
Naivety wasn't something that Aiko was used to since living with her father, and it somehow felt wrong to take advantage of it in such a way. But, although Koyuki's willingness to believe Aiko did leave her with a slightly bitter taste in her mouth whenever she lied to her, it wasn't enough to deter her from visiting Emma.
Dinner with Emma and her friends was again a new experience since being back in Japan. They were almost opposites of Yui and Ichika. With lots of unbridled laughter, something that Ichika was strongly opposed to, as well as some slightly inappropriate jokes.
"I can't believe you got Baji to fall for you," Mei, one of Emma's classmates said.
"Er, I don't know," Aiko said, not really enjoying the focus of their conversation being her and Baji.
"She's also a little clueless when it comes to Baji," Emma stated. "But yeh, he's got it so bad for her."
"Emma," Aiko whispered, "I'm not clueless, we're just not quite there, yet."
"So, exactly how far have you two gone?" asked Reiko, another classmate.
"Huh? No, we don't ... we're just friends." Aiko's face reddened deeply which sent Emma and her friends into a fit of laughter.
"Well, if he's like any of those other Toman boys, I'm sure it won't be long before he's all over you," Mei said.
"Hey! I object to that, Mei," Emma said. "They're not all girl-hungry freaks."
"We're sure Draken and Mikey are perfect angels," Reiko laughed. "But some of those boys are girl, freaking hungry all day long. Trust me, I know." And then she proceeded to tell a story about her fast-moving, yet short-lived romance with one of the Toman members. A story that it seemed, the other girls had already heard a number of times.
As planned, Baji, Mikey and a few other boys were outside waiting to collect Emma and Aiko after dinner and they left for their usual hangout at the shrine.
The shrine was loud and packed as always, and Aiko exhaled a small breath of air. She had missed the bustle of the Toman gatherings, as much as her initial reason for being there was always Baji, there was some kind of relief that being around them brought her. It was a temporary freedom from the restraints of her life that she felt she shared with each of them as they too sought some type of freedom.
Aiko sat on a wall by Baji as he talked with some of the members of his division about the upcoming week. It seemed delinquent life wasn't all games as they discussed a new gang that were trying to make a name for themselves. They'd already picked trouble with a few Toman members so they needed to be crushed, as they put it, to put them back in their place. Baji's underlings looked on with excitement and admiration as Baji, wearing a much more mature expression than Aiko had come to know him for, instructed them on their movements.
Captain Baji, she thought as she subconsciously reached out to comb her fingers through his hair. My Captain Baji.
Baji pulled his head away slightly as her fingers stroked the top of his head, so Aiko reached forward again only to get the same response. Undeterred, Aiko shuffled closer and scooped a small lock into her fingers.
"Stop it," Baji said, slapping her hand away.
Aiko bit down on her lip and looked around the other members, none of whom seemed very interested in her and were still hanging on Baji's words.
Silly, she thought, reprimanding herself. Can't you see he's busy? and in a low, but audible voice, she muttered, "Sorry, Captain."
Chifuyu stifled a chuckle while Baji looked over at her from the corner of his eye before giving his head a small shake.
"We're done," he said after completing his instructions and the boys all nodded and dispersed to make smaller circles nearby where they continued laughing and talking.
Baji leaned back against the wall then, and watched Aiko who had remained quiet and still for the duration of his meeting, from the corner of his eye. He reached for her hand and placed it back on top of his head. "You can continue," he said, looking back up at her. "But, when I'm talking with my division, it's probably not the best time to play with my hair."
"I really am sorry," she said. "You just looked so cute commanding your boys. I couldn't help it."
Instantly, on the word cute, Baji straightened himself up and turned to stand in front of her, pushing himself in between her legs and grabbing hold of the ledge of the wall on either side of where she was sitting. "I said don't call me cute, Aiko," he said in a low voice. "Captain of the first division is not supposed to be cute!"
Aiko held her breath as she stared down into his golden eyes, darkened under his deep frown. He was again doing his best to look intimidating which, if she didn't know him as well as she did, may have worked but right then she found she was doing her best to hold back from combing her fingers through his perfectly gorgeous, black hair again.
"You're right. You're not cute," she finally said. "You might just be the most beautiful thing I've ever seen."
Baji let out a deep laugh. "You are so weird," he said, flicking her in the ear, and then, he wrapped a finger around the lock of hair that hung by her ear and combed it through, adding, "and you obviously don't look in the mirror much if that's what you think."
Aiko looked away as her cheeks flushed with heat. Baji was also one of the most unpredictable people she'd ever met.
Baji slipped his hands around her waist and lifted her from the wall, lowering her to the ground. "Do wanna take me for a ride?"
"Uh-huh," she said, her mind more focused on where his hands were and the super close proximity of their bodies than what he was actually asking.
"Nice," he said with his gaze still holding hers.
A slow tremble spread through Aiko's body; something that Baji noticed indicated by his head tilt and look of concern before a slow smirk curled onto his lips. "Let's go."
He led her over to his bike and, after taking a small towel from the storage, got on.
"Here," he said, tapping the front of the bike when Aiko went to pass to the back seat. "I was thinking it would be fun if you drove."
"Are you crazy?" she said with a small laugh. "I'll crash."
"No, you won't. I'll be helping."
Aiko's gaze drifted from Baji to the front of his bike. How on earth am I supposed to sit there? she wondered, reaching out to press her hand against the metal frame. "Does it get hot?"
Baji smiled, content that she was considering it and he spread the small towel that he held over the area nearest the front of the seat. "Nah, you should be fine, but just in case."
"You came prepared, huh?" she joked, to which he nodded. "Okay, fine," she said and grabbed hold of the handlebar.
Sitting up front was very different to sitting behind Baji.
There was a loftiness about being up front, as though she were a knight about to ride a magnificent beast. But then there was also Baji as he wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her firmly against him.
Aiko let out an audible gasp as she realised just how close she was to Baji. Yes, sitting up front was very different to sitting behind.
His hand rested against her belly as he held onto her, his legs pressed against the back of her legs, and the whole of his body from his groin up to his chest pressed firmly against her.
"Umm," she mumbled. "I don't think I can do this."
Baji's hand gripped her ankle as he lifted her leg and pressed her foot against a small nook on the front of the bike. "Just keep your feet here, okay? That's really important." He loosened his grip from her belly and did the same to the other leg before wrapping his arm back around her. "Now lean forward and grip the handles," he said.
"No, Baji. I can't," she said, not even sure if she had heard him correctly. Right then her senses were completely out of control with her pulse rocketing as well as her breathing pattern, and Mei's word from earlier that evening running through her mind, 'Well, if he's like any of those other Toman boys, I'm sure it won't be long.'
"What's wrong?" Baji asked.
"I ... I just ... we never ..." Aiko's voice trailed off as she lost any comprehension of how to explain what she was feeling.
"Are you that scared?"
"Yes, but ... It's not that. It's ... umm ..." Aiko made a small circular gesture with her hand hoping he could get the meaning which she was finding difficult to express.
Baji loosened his grip around her and leaned back slightly. "I see."
Gaining some clarity as a small gap widened between them, Aiko, in turn, relaxed and straightened herself up, letting out two heavy breaths of relief.
"I didn't think you'd mind something like that," Baji said.
"Mind?" Aiko asked, that wasn't it at all. In fact, Aiko usually did nothing but think of Baji holding her and had wished for that moment for so long. But thinking it and actually having it happen were two oceans apart.
Her nerves and all sense of judgement went and there was no way she would be able to pull off riding a motorbike when she could barely see anything other than the lights and stars that seemed to have taken over her vision.
"Are you kidding?" Baji laughed when she finished explaining. "Stop overthinking," he whispered into her ear, wrapping his arm around her once again and pulling himself close to her. "If it feels nice, then just enjoy it."
Aiko let out an audible groan as he gently stroked his thumb in the place where it sat against her stomach. Then, trying her best not to concentrate on any of the many different emotions that were running through her, she took in a deep breath and let it back out slowly.
"Now reach for the handlebars."
She leaned forward followed by Baji, who also leaned in and gripped one handle with his free hand. The engine roared and then the bike lunged forward.
Aiko screamed, jumping back slightly, but Baji's firm grip prevented her from completely losing her position.
"Don't worry," he said, lunging the bike forward again as he tried to line it up on the path that led down to the road.
Aiko jumped again and let out a lower scream. "No, no, no, Baji. Please, I really can't. We're going to crash."
"I promise, as long as you stop jumping, we'll be fine."
"I'm trying," she said, but the warmth of his breath brushing against her ear wasn't making anything easier.
Baji straightened up again and looked around the gang of boys. "Chifuyu," he called out. "Tell her she'll be fine, please."
"You'll be fine, Aiko-chan," Chifuyu called back.
"Look, if anything happens, I give you permission to beat the crap out of me, okay?"
"Okay," Chifuyu laughed, raising his thumb to Aiko.
"You see, there's no way I'm letting Chifuyu beat me up, so you don't need to worry."
"Whoa whoa, wait a minute," Mitsuya called, running in closer. "Don't trust that Aiko. There's no way Chifuyu is going to even attempt to beat Baji up."
"This ain't got nothing to do with you," Baji shouted.
"I'm looking out for my friend," Mitsuya continued. "So, basically, it's better if I beat the crap out of you so she can be sure it'll get done."
"Yeah, whatever," Baji laughed.
"I want in," Angry's brother, Smiley shouted.
"You two are not helping," Baji said, annoyance becoming apparent in his voice. "You're starting to sound like you want us to crash so you can get a chance to beat me up."
"Nah," Smiley said, his trademark smile as big as usual. "I'll probably wanna fight you either way now that you've gotten me excited, but if you do crash, I'm with Mitsuya beating the crap out of you."
"Whatever," Baji shouted before setting off down the pathway.
Aiko, still amused by the banter between the three, was taken unaware and didn't have a chance to scream that time. Instead, she stared, wide-eyed, as the long path came to a quick end.
"Was that okay?" Baji asked, turning the bike around.
"I guess. It was over so quickly."
Baji took off again riding back down to the area where the boys were, and, after getting an okay from Aiko, turned again to ride back down.
"See, it's not so bad, is it?"
"No," she said, resting her head back against his chest. "It was kinda amazing."
"Do you want to keep going?"
Aiko nodded and straightened back up in time for Baji to start back up, this time leading them out onto the main road.
Baji's strength was different to what she had imagined. The way he held her securely in place while still maintaining complete control over the bike made her feel like some type of princess character from a story, wrapped up in the protective arms of her guardian as he rode them to safety.
Aiko again exhaled a deeply held breath and relaxed into his arms. "Baji," she shouted, unsure if he would hear her over the roars of the street and bike engine.
"Mm-hmm," he said, his voice clear and near.
"This is it," she said. "This is the best night ever."
Baji laughed and tightened his arm around her waist for a moment and then they continued riding in silence until reaching the overlooking point, or Baji's quiet area as Aiko always remembered it as.
Baji pulled up at the top of the hill and shut down the engine. "So, how was it?"
"Oh my God. That was the best. Now I know why you guys love riding," Aiko said, almost bouncing as she spoke. "And fighting."
"Huh?" Baji said with a laugh.
"I don't know. I just feel like I have all of this energy that I need to get out."
"Mmm," he said. The ride seemed to have had the opposite effect on Baji as his voice came out soft and relaxed. "You reckon you can handle it back on your own?"
"My own?" she asked, twisting slightly to glance at him behind her. "Where will you be?"
"I'll be here. I just mean I won't hold the handle, I'll keep my hands here," he said, walking his fingers up the sides of her waist as he spoke.
A huge giggle burst out of Aiko who wiggled under Baji's touch.
"Who's ticklish now?" Baji laughed before sliding back in his seat and pulling Aiko back into his arms with him.
Baji rested his head in the nook of her neck, sending a new set of waves running through her coupled with the various statements that had been shared between the two of them over recent days; the last of which was the 'just friends' comment.
Aiko laughed again as an inappropriate image of Baji and Chifuyu sitting in a similar position flashed through her mind.
"What's so funny?" he asked.
"I just wondering if you ever sit with Chifuyu like this."
"What?" he asked, pulling back to get a view of her face. "Why would I sit with Chifuyu like this?"
"He's a friend, isn't he?"
"Aiko, if two guys are sitting like this, I'm pretty sure they're more than friends."
"Ohh right," she mused. "So, what about Emma?"
"Same thing, Aiko. That would mean more than friends."
"Right," she said with a small nod, trying to prepare a mode of questioning to reach a conclusion on the status of their relationship. Aiko's thoughts were distracted as Baji scooped up her hair and settled it all to one side of her neck before leaning in and pressing his lips against her neck.
His soft lips gently caressed her neck before the warmth, and wetness of his open mouth pressed down against her neck, half biting and half suckling.
Baji's name trembled on Aiko's lips as she tried to call it, but no voice would come out. Tingles of pleasure ran down her neck from beneath his mouth and her arm as his fingers ran down it and entwined themselves into hers.
'If it feels nice, then just enjoy it,' Baji's words resounded once more in her mind as her effort to control all the different responses her body was giving off became tiresome.
Aiko's eyes fell closed and she relaxed into him just as he raised his mouth and whispered, "I don't do that to Chifuyu either."
"I wasn't going to suggest that," Aiko said with a soft laugh.
"Do you know what this is?" he asked, brushing a finger over the area he had just suckled. "It's called a love bite," he said after Aiko shook her head. "One of the guys is always talking about them, so ..."
"A love bite?" she repeated, his statement about the moon on the night of the party echoing in her mind. "Baji," she said, pulling her legs up onto the bike and turning to face him.
"Why do you keep climbing up on my bike like this?" he moaned and pulled her down onto him with both of her legs extending over his left leg.
"I'm not going to let you distract me," she said while noting his protection over his bike. "I need you to make this clear for me. What exactly are more than friends?"
"The love bite wasn't clear enough?"
"No. You need to say it. You can't just merge a friendship into a relationship without ever saying it." She took his hand into hers and held it above her knee. "This is friends," she said before holding her own hand a foot above his. "This is two people in a relationship. Also known as girlfriend and boyfriend. Where are we?"
"Where do you want us to be?" he asked.
"That's not fair. I asked first."
"So you shouldn't have a problem with answering first then, should you?"
Aiko took her free hand and placed it on top of her hand which represented being in a relationship. "Here. Now you?"
Baji smiled until his incisors showed. "I would like us to be here," he said, waving his hand a foot above Aiko's, "But I'm happy to start here." He lowered his hand to hers and held it.
A smile overtook Aiko's face on finally receiving the answer she had wanted for so long. "So, you're my boyfriend?"
"I guess. If you want me to be."
"Baji, that doesn't sound very sure," she moaned.
"I know. It's just ... I don't know if I will be a good boyfriend," he said. "The guys are always stressed cos they forgot their girl's birthday or Valentine's day, or really stupid things that I probably will forget. I don't want us arguing because I went to hang out with Chifuyu on White day and forgot to buy you a gift."
"But you do want me to be yours, right?"
"You were already mine, you didn't know?"
"That's not how it works, but okay," she said, leaning her head against his chest. "By the way, I think you'll be a perfect boyfriend, gifts or not."
Aiko tipped her head back and looked up at him. "What exactly was up here?" she asked, waving her hand higher than where the relationship hand was.
Baji gave a small smirk. "You'll have to wait until you're older before I can tell you about that."
"I'm five weeks older than you."
"Maybe according to the calendar," he said with a small chuckle. "But we both know that in experience I'm a lot older."
"What kind of experience?" she asked sitting up to look him in the eye.
"Life experience." His chuckle turned into an outright laugh. "Geez, what is wrong with you?"
Aiko lay her head back on his chest, contemplating her next move before she tilted her head back up to him. "We should probably kiss, right?"
"Right," he said, tracing his finger over her lips, but the kiss didn't come as Baji's eyes narrowed for a moment before quickly scanning the area.
"What's wrong?" Aiko asked.
"Get down," Baji said, jumping off the bike behind her just as motorbike lights flooded the area.
"I told you he came up here," one of the riders shouted before they all began dismounting.
"Hey, Toman," the largest boy shouted. "We wanted to have a little talk." Clearly, the talk didn't mean with the use of words if smashing his fist into his palm was anything to go by.
Baji pulled his phone from his pocket and handed it to Aiko. "Call Chifuyu and tell him where we are."
"Okay."
"And then don't move from here," he said before turning towards the gang of boys. "Fine," he shouted back to the boys. "I'm in the mood for talking."