Toradora!:Spin-Off 2 The End Of Summer Vacation - Chapter 1

Status: Incomplete

50% completed (estimated)

   

The End of Summer Vacation

Chapter 1

This summer hadn't been too bad.

With one last wipe with the cloth, Takasu Ryuuji permitted himself a smile. He was still hunched over from the work, having applied himself to polishing the sink so thoroughly that it could be eaten from. The drain and faucet gleamed silver without any hint of smudging; there was neither strand of hair on the bottom or sides nor drop of water left behind, just as he wanted it.

His work was perfect.

Gazing at his own reflection in the mirror above the sink, Ryuuji contently mused with how he had done his bangs. In the world the mirror reflected, the real Takasu Ryuuji had already died. He'd been lynched and buried. Behold, all ye people of this world, the nightmare that all mankind has feared is starting---dwelling upon such things didn't make them real. Maybe it was the sharp, uplifted sanpaku eyes, or perhaps that the green light glowing through the gap between his long bangs let loose a furious lightning attack. In reality, however, he was just born with that face. The person himself was an ordinary second year high school student, an energetic yet thoughtful young man.

Ryuuji's summer vacation this year had been special, different from all that had come before: a villa by the seashore, his first trip without parents, a ghost plot, and even a surprising counterplot. He even caught a glimpse of what 'women' were really like. The summer's memories were etched into his mind, from the ferocious sun to the beautiful things. It seriously wasn't bad at all.

"Fuffuun...♪"

As with these last two days, his special summer vacation was over already. Starting the day after tomorrow was the long-awaited new school term. And, even better, it looked like something exciting was shaping up. Hoping to have fun again this summer, Ryuuji looked at himself in the mirror, humming a tune and fiddling with his bangs. Summer vacation's ending soon, what a shame---

"'Fuffuun♪'"

He didn't even need to turn around. Standing in the bathroom doorway, she twirled her bangs around her fingertip extended below and to the right of her nose, humming with her face resembling a Hyottoko mask. Crowded into the corner of the mirror was a reflection of her female form, maliciously mocking Ryuuji's silly appearance.

"...What? What's up?"

"Nothing," she curtly responded, glaring at him by way of the mirror.

Aisaka Taiga raised her eyebrow, as if to make fun of the Hyottoko face by getting it backwards. She was barefoot, wearing a cool one-layer cotton one-piece dress with an orange plaid. Her lightly colored hair was tied in the back, gently swaying down to her hips. With her suntanned cheeks and nose, her features were rosy like a French doll--- not at all like the Hyottoko. Rather, she was a second year high school girl, built too short in comparison to the rest, She had a pretty face that was remarkably young but not drawn with graceful lines, as if she were carved from hard glass.

"It doesn't matter, though. Normally, guys would get embarrassed if they were seen staring at the mirror."

What a life. Taiga, as Ryuuji's classmate, lived in the apartment building next door. Each had a crush on the other's best friend. And, as if to completely test the goodness and helpful spirit of Ryuuji, it seemed she was sent as a trial by God. Despite Taiga living by herself next door to the Takasu residence, she spent half her time freeloading here, practically residing with his family, throughout his summer vacation even more so. Taiga slept under only one roof now more than ever.

She angrily twisted the face she had spent time preparing, taking on the form of a fava bean as her chin lifted disagreeably. "Hey, now you've gone and done it, haven't you! 'Fuffuun♪'"

She was simply maddening. Looking back at her, Ryuuji answered sullenly. "If you want to say something, say it."

"Say? But wasn't it like this - 'Fuffuuun♪' - Hey, perhaps this sound - 'Nfuffuuuuuun!'- How's that? 'Fuffuuuuuuuun!'" Taiga's bored expression changed, now spreading her hands and opening her eyes wide as if in amazement. "You've gone and completely confused me!" she rudely declared, lifting her white chin before continuing.

"They say in an old Greek tale there was an idiot who was so enchanted by his reflection on the surface of the water that he fell in the pond and died! His ghost possessed the flowers by the water, and even now couples who visit the pond are brought to an untimely end! But, here, your face would probably make mushrooms… poisonous enough to kill a bear! The spores from your spirit will remain eternally in this bathroom floating around, and new residents will leave, frightened. 'Wa-ah, mushrooms are sprouting up!' they'll say! There – was – a – fool – in – an – old – Greek – tale, in – the – pond – his – gloo – my – face – "Taiga sang with a triumphant expression, poking him each syllable from start to finish.

"You know, for a song about humming, that wasn't too bad!" He answered again simply, moving her fingertip out of his way. But Taiga's upraised eyebrow still didn't move.

"I'm telling you to move it, you narcissistic kid!" Forcing herself in front of Ryuuji, she started pushing Ryuuji away from the sink with her rump.

"What the – ?!" Ryuuji grabbed the sides of the sink, hanging on with all his strength as he tried to keep Taiga from pushing him back.

"How long are you going to hog the sink? I just want to use the mirror."

"'How long?' Until now I was cleaning here! Go use the dressing mirror in Yasuko's room!"

"Ya-chan's in the middle of changing! Besides, you've got to stop spreading mushroom toxins!"

"I am not! Besides, this mirror is part of my house!"

"Fuffuun♪"

"Are you listening!?"

They wrestled each other for the spot before the sink, neither wanting to turn it over. They stepped on each other's bare feet, elbowed each other, and pushed each other aside with their hips. In the end, Taiga had triumphantly stolen the place in front of the mirror.

"Good grief!"

Ryuuji looked over Taiga's head, inevitably using the mirror from behind her. Taiga could only reach up to Ryuuji's chest at best. She couldn't look at him in the face even while standing tiptoed, a rather mortifying problem.

Taiga, her nose nearly touching the mirror, looked over her face. She scanned for areas where she was pink from a little sunburn: cheeks, neck, shoulders, chin, and forehead. And then, approving and nodding to herself, she released her fluffy long hair from the rubber-band that bound it, and, with a moistened hand from the sink, pulled out the kinks so she could comb her hair. Under this treatment, Taiga's soft hair immediately spilled out into its full length.

By example, Ryuuji rinsed his hand too and tried to part his hair in a similar fashion, combing with his fingers and working with it all the way back to his neck. But his straight hair was too stiff, and he couldn't handle it as skillfully as Taiga could. All he could manage on his first attempt was the crooked part in his hair. His hair had grown quite a bit, down to the nape of his neck, the longest it had ever been.

"... Hey, you. So when are you going to get it cut?"

From the middle of the mirror, her sparkling clear brown eyes looked back at him. "My hair?” he replied,

"It really has grown long. I still haven't got it cut."

"What an answer!" said the disgusted Taiga in the mirror, giving an exaggerated expression of revulsion with tongue stuck out. "Did you intend to start school with that head? Yech, how irritating!"

Seeing the ugly face she gave him, Ryuuji told her to leave him alone. But no matter how or who she said it to, he felt his hair was OK. While looking in the mirror once more, he tugged on his hair a bit more, checking its length. Somebody might be a little irritated, but it was absolutely OK.

This summer Ryuuji hadn't had his hair cut at all. This hair was, in short, 'not bad', a summary of the recent summer vacation. Now, however, he needed to prepare for the day after tomorrow, the new school term, the long running start into the coming fall. He was doing a makeover; he combed his overgrown hair.

Even if he said so himself, he felt that his hairstyle up to this point was too serious. If only it could cover his face, then he'd just have to worry about normal, student-like things. But slowly, the suspicions about him being a delinquent had been fading, and now, with the start of the new school term, he thought he might try a bit of a transformation.

May if he stretched it a little more, combing it out without changing the length, the top a little short, the neckline a bit long, stylishly long, more adult-like, and the texture... That's what he was aiming for. For a moment he thought it troublesome, since it was still in the middle of growing out.

Taiga turned around forcefully, looking up at Ryuuji's face point blank. On tiptoes, she jabbed her finger at his chin with a frown like lightning, fiercely furrowing her brow.

"That's absolutely got to stop! You've absolutely got to get a trim! It was summer vacation after all, you thought, and then you kept quiet, sneaking along and staying out of sight. Your head must -"

The vein in her temple was pulsing. "Ta - Taiga?" Ryuuji wondered just how much she tenser she would get.

"...RRRRRGH! You... are really a pain!" She was shouting with all her might. "I'm warning you for your sake! I'm telling you this out of kindness!"

That…That was out of kindness? Ryuuji scratched near his nostril. Her frankness was a big help, thinking he followed her logic reasonably well.

"That's some face - Aargh!" Something hit his elbow, shoving his hand straight up. Wham! His finger jammed into his nose to the second joint.

"THAT. IS. QUITE. ENOUGH!"

Ryuuji's mind had not changed. With both cheeks stinging and his hair mussed up, he pointed the finger that had been jammed up his nose directly at the tip of Taiga's nose. Taiga cried out in surprise, and exaggeratedly reared back to avoid the now-contaminated fingertip.

"This hair is growing into a vision of what I am becoming! Eventually I will trim it just right, but for now, it is fine!"

"Vision? It's seems like some sargassum weed from Hell!"

"That's a bit extreme. Isn't your mane as long as your bed? This summer has been hot and humid."

"I'm fine with it. It grows out naturally brown, smooth and fine. I only have to tie it back."

"Yeah, I might eventually color my hair, or tie it back."

"Kyaa! Sca-ry!!"

"Why is that?!"

"I mean, even if you don't wash your finger!?"

"My nose is not that dirty!"

From behind the commotion in the narrow washroom, the shape of Yasuko appeared, clad in blue jeans and a T-shirt, and looked in on them.

"So~ How long are you two going to keep making that noise before you finally get moving?"

She wore a cotton billed cap over her face, which was made up with only sunscreen. At her feet, which featured a deep pink pedicure, was a cooler bag with frozen meat stuffed inside. She had three kinds of yakiniku dipping sauces, unopened, in a rather large supermarket bag. Preparations had already been made without them. It would shortly be time to leave the house.

Ryuuji and Taiga closed their mouths, exchanging understanding glances. Their insignificant quarrel stopped at that.

August 30th, 3 pm. The Takasu's and Taiga together headed towards the local riverbank. It was to be, perhaps, the last event of this summer vacation.

* * *

"Incre-dible..."

"Hey! It's dripping, it's dripping! Whoa!"

Taiga quickly moved her sandaled feet apart as she sat on the bench. The sauce dripped from the grilled corn in her hand – SPLAT – to the ground near Taiga's feet. Ryuuji, as fastidious as he was, didn't even feel like wiping up sauce from the ground. He admonished her to pay more attention, scanning over Taiga's one-piece dress to make sure nothing had stained her clothes.

"But this sight, it's really something else, isn't it? Already the boundaries between the groups are getting rather fuzzy."

"Though here they are pulled rather tightly, those boundaries."

Still sitting lined up on the bench with Taiga, Ryuuji stretched out his sandalled feet, drawing a line on the ground before them. That was where the line separating drunkedness and sobriety lay.

Though it was the end of August, the season was still midsummer.

The sun, after wandering most of the afternoon, was slanting towards them and by the river it was hot and muggy, but even the smell of the water was half-hearted, as if the air were tired of carrying it. Still, the scorching heat wave, enough to thoroughly burn one's skin, had even driven the cicadas into hiding, even their frenzied voices now somehow feeble.

On the sprawling river bank, enormously tall weeds running rampant on and on into the distance, you could hardly call it pretty. The lazy surface of the river felt quite far away. Here and there on that riverbank, the colorful tops of parasols and tents tossed bright colors around. Clinging to the last of summer, many barbeque groups were coming to this vacant land which had been opened up.

"Maybe that's the Bishamontengoku team over there."

Ugyaaa! Hoaaaaa! Naaaaaa! Boeeeeee! --Towards a group of women raising cries like strange birds not of this world, Taiga pointed with her corn-cob. "I guess", said Ryuuji, looking off into the distance.

Under the faintly orange cast of the sunlight, there was Yasuko, her virtually golden hair done up and around, half up, wearing a tube-top a camisole and a miniskirt over short pants, her skin seductively white, probably due to her always being at work after dark. The Bishamontengoku team, their shoulders and chests seeming to regret the expose to sunlight, were at the barbeque, already hurriedly drinking sake, sake, sake, and on top of that, "Vacuum Drinking~! Hyayaya~!" ...holding cans of beer in their wide open mouths, not using their hands, looking up, showing off how hard they were working, pouring the contents down their throats. It was a really good thing that Yasuko wasn't with them.

<~~50% Completed~~>

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