Was that a Flying Pizza?! [END]

[Hiyami]

She grinned when she saw him come running up. He'd turned towards both of the apartment buildings. She noted that he gravitated towards her own - he seemed a bit uncomfortable with the other one. She simply observed him, still grinning evilly. She was highly amused when he looked at the directory, trying to figure out where she was.

She smiled - much less evilly - when he finally looked through the glass doors and realized that she'd been sitting there.

She got to her feet when she saw the mouthed words - she had no idea what he'd said, but she guessed it was something simple and of no real consequence. Her movements set off the sensors for the doors, which opened to admit him.

"You're late!" she sang, "And I win!"

Then, as if her mood had snapped from one frame straight to another, her feet went shoulder width apart - about, anyways - and one hand went to her hips. The other was pointed straight at him.

"Penalty game!" she said, her intentions far more innocent than the name of the game. She grinned reassuringly as she led him to the elevators and pushed the up button.

"Don't worry," she told him cheerfully. "It's not like it'll hurt in a bad way, and besides - it's still all for fun and games!" She hummed a tune under her breathe for a moment - she couldn't think of where she'd picked it up from. It might've been from some anime or the other, but that only opened up more options. She shrugged, putting it out of her mind. Instead, she poked Jin Woo in the rib.

"Revenge!" she said, before faking evil laughter. Then, she calmed herself from her high - adrenaline did strange things to her at times. Many people made the "O.o" face when she had too much of it.

The elevator came, and she got on, expecting him to follow. Then, when the elevator started its upward trek, she spoke again, this time as a hostess:

"So, d'ya want anything? Like maybe tea?"

[choongsung]

"You're late!" she sang, "And I win!"

As much as Jin Woo hated to lose he thought that he'd just let it go this time around. It would be a stupid thing to argue over anyways. Since he had come in later it is probably why Hiyami told him he had lost.

"Yes yes, okay I lost. So what happens?"

"Penalty game!" she said, her intentions far more innocent than the name of the game. She grinned reassuringly as she led him to the elevators and pushed the up button.


Jin Woo blinked a couple times before he responded to Hiyami's overwhelming excitement about this "game".

"Uhhh... penalty game?"

When Hiyami poked Jin Woo in the ribs, he winced for half a second because of the injuries he sustained from the previous fight at school. He tried to hide these from her as he looked at her once more.

"So, that was the penalty?"

The way Hiyami was acting towards him, to Jin Woo one could say it appeared to be "cute". Quickly casting those thoughts out of his mind, Jin Woo told himself,

I just met her today, so she's just a friend. A new awesome friend

When the elevator came, Jin Woo followed Hiyami inside and waited for the doors to close and take them to the upper levels.

"So, d'ya want anything? Like maybe tea?" she asked.

Jin Woo replied, "Well, just water would be fine..." He then thought for a second and broke into a grin before saying "I just wanted to make sure you got home safely you know?"

[Hiyami]

Hiyami frowned when she saw him wince, but quickly hid it; the show of pain, though quickly hidden, had only strengthened her intentions to attack him with bruise balm. Lots of it, probably.

When he responded though, she squealed. Anime and Manga, although they hadn't rotted her brain, had shown her what the many types of ideal characters were. She momentarily wondered if she couldn't maybe get him to come to a convention with her sometime.

"I declare," she said, teasingly, "You're like What's-his-face from What's-it-called!"

Then, figuring he had no idea what she was talking about, she explained: "That was sweet of you - wantin' ta make sure I got home safe and all, but it's not really necessary. I live less than ten minutes off campus at a run."

Then, grinning a bit cheekily, she continued as the elevator dinged, telling them they'd arrived on her floor. She got off when the doors opened, leading him down the hall to her own little piece of home. She unlocked the door with a key she'd snagged from her jeans' pocket earlier.

Her apartment was small and homey. It was a two room apartment. One, of course, was her own bedroom. The other she used for whatever suited her needs. It was essentially a random room. It doubled as a guest room, though - there was a twin-sized bed in there.

In the living room was a small television, a two-piece couch set, a coffee table, and other home-like things. There was a computer there, too, and showed reasonably more use than the television. On the other side was the kitchen - a comfortable little piece where she had all the necessities for food and whatnot.

"Make yourself at home!" she said, toeing her shoes off as she stepped into the main part of the apartment and gestured towards the living room space.

She herself headed for the kitchen, dropping her jeans into a hamper for laundry. She grabbed two cups, and a pitcher - from her refrigerator - and placed it on a tray. She also grabbed some small snacks - an assortment of them, really - and added them to the tray before taking the tray to the living room section of the house. She set it down on the coffee table that sat between the couches and the TV.

She then went into her own room to retrieve a case of sorts and then returned.

She set said case down on the floor at her feet and poured the water for them. Then, after several long moments, Hiyami nodded. "Now's as good a time as any."

Then, without batting a lash, she looked straight at Jin Woo, and in all seriousness, said, "Strip."

Then, she opened the case - a medicine box.

[choongsung]

When Hiyami opened the door and invited Jin Woo inside, he was a little hesitant to enter. He was not sure if her parents were home or that they would be shocked that there was a guy in their house. Afterall, Hiyami was japanese and they like koreans, were an extremely conservative group of people.

"Make yourself at home!" she said.

Since Hiyami kept insisting that Jin Woo come in, he reluctantly took off his shoes and walked inside. It seemed like a nice apartment room, comfy, nice and homely. Although she did tell Jin Woo to make himself at home, he could not feel so relaxed especially at another person's house. Therefore Jin Woo took a seat in the middle of the living room taking in the surroundings. When Hiyami disappeared to go about and do her business in the kitchen and her own room, Jin Woo took out his cell phone and texted his older sister.

Seems like I'm going to be a little late. I'm visiting a friend at the apartment.

Jin Woo was careful to leave out the fact that "this friend" was in fact a girl that he met at the school cafeteria in the middle of a food fight.

Few moments later, Hiyami returned with a medication box and promptly said without hesitation,"Strip."

Jin Woo stared at her directly without blinking and said, "Are you serious... I'm not stripping. It's your house!"

[Hiyami]

"Are you serious...? I'm not stripping. It's your house!"

Hiyami raised an eyebrow. She considered saying several different things - perhaps even getting up and stripping him herself. In the end, she decided on simply trying to persuade him to do it.

"Don't be ridiculous!" she scolded. "There's no one else living here. Just take off your shirt so I can check on your injuries!"

She reached for her cup and took a sip a water. Then, she looked him straight in the eye and challenged him.

"If you're too afraid to do it yourself, I'll be more than happy to do it for you." she told him, a dangerous glint in her eyes. She set the cup down and reached into the box, taking out several objects: scissors, gauze, bandages, hydrogen peroxide, alcohol, small pins, and something that looked like a lotion tin. One of the short round ones. That was filled with the bruise balm.

Though she hadn't opened it yet, she knew very well that it didn't smell like daisies. On the other hand, the effects were well-worth the odd smell. Besides, she had a body splash that smelled like Hawaii. She'd gotten it to see what the hell it was. It said body, and it said splash. She'd spritzed herself with it once, but the only noticeable difference was the smell.

Which she thought was a bit silly.

"It's your choice. We can do this the easy way.... or we can do this my way."

The door was locked - it was automatic - and she could certainly get in his way before he got to it, if only because she knew her own home so well.

"Well?"

[choongsung]

"I mean.. even if you want to treat someone's injuries you don't ask them to just strip"

Jin Woo was slightly embarrassed by what was going on. Here he was, trying to make sure that the girl was alright by escorting her home. Somehow, it turned around and he was being threatened to take off his shirt so that the girl could treat his wounds.

"If you're too afraid to do it yourself, I'll be more than happy to do it for you."

Sighing, Jin Woo decided that he should try and talk his way out of this unfortunate situation. "No, I'm not afraid to take off my shirt. It's just not right you know..? For a guy to undress in a person's house that he just met. And I'm fine, do not worry about me. I'm pretty strong so these bruises will fade just fine."

As she took out all of her equipment including scissors, gauze, ointment, and other "tools" Jin Woo felt like a lab experiment about to become dissected. He thought to himself

She has to be an upperclassman... There's no way another freshman would try and pull something like this off. Or.. high school is just plain weird.

"It's your choice. We can do this the easy way.... or we can do this my way."

"Uh.. your way wouldn't have to deal anything with those scissors right?"

The door was locked - it was automatic - and she could certainly get in his way before he got to it, if only because she knew her own home so well.

"Well?"

Standing up from where he was sitting, Jin Woo walked over to where Hiyami was, lowered himself, and grabbed both her hands. He looked at her in the eyes and said,

"Trust me, I'm okay, I dealt with a lot of bodily injuries taking martial arts you know". He then smiled, "Okay?"

[Hiyami]

Hiyam smiled sweetly at him - too sweetly. He was crouched down, and she was sitting down. She mentally nodded to herself before lunging forward. It was fortunate that their drinks of choice were dihydrogen monoxide. The snacks... Well, most were bagged, so she wasn't too worried. She'd just go over it all with a rag later.

Before he could move, she advanced, a death grip on the bottom of his shirt. She wondered briefly if the coffee table could handle the weight... But shrugged it off and sat on his hips. She wasn't heavy, but she wasn't exactly light either.

Then, she lifted the rim of his shirt. She hissed in sympathy as she saw the beginnings of some very nasty bruises. She felt bad for putting him through more pain to treat him... But the coffee table was the coffee table... And he should've listened!

She shoved his shirt up, until it was caught beneath his armpits. She grabbed the scissors - they were close, anyways - and then smiled at him, just as sweetly as she had before she'd toppled him.

"Well, you can surrender now and take it off.... Or I'll introduce your shirt to these scissors... And you can go home shirtless, in the shirt I'm wearing, or one of my other shirts." she could smile like an angel even while she threatened as a devil. It surprised many people, but she went to some very great lengths to right wrongs that she felt she'd made.

Still, even before he could really do anything - and therefore, while he was off guard [probably] - she yanked the shirt up and over his head and tossed it somewhere behind her.

She nodded, pleased with herself. She set the scissors aside and grabbed the bruise balm. From the size of the bruises that had already formed, she guessed at the size they'd eventually be and touched a dab of balm on the one closest to her. It was the bruise on his stomach - his abdomen, more like - from when the first upperclassman had attacked. Despite her rough handling of him, she was relatively gentle, carefully spreading the balm on the bruise.

She stopped paying attention to him and concentrated only on the bruises.

[choongsung]

Hiyami's sudden reaction caught Jin Woo off guard and he fell onto the coffee table. Only moments later, Jin Woo found himself on his back with the girl pinning him down. Even if her intentions were to be treating these bruises, Jin Woo felt awkward as Hiyami spread the balm over the afflicted areas. Not only did Jin Woo have bruises, but he also in some areas was slightly burned. It was caused by the chafing of his shirt against either shoes or fists.

"...Thanks" said Jin Woo as he tried to bear the stinging of the bruise balm.

As the girl tended Jin Woo's injuries, his muscles involuntarily tensed then eased up. Hiyami was unknowingly applying some ointment over his sensitive spots which caused Jin Woo to be slightly nervous.

Looking away from Hiyami, Jin Woo asked "I guess you really don't mind forcing a guy to go shirtless and tending to his injuries huh..." To the boy, Hiyami seemed to not have heard him as she concentrated on Jin Woo's treatment. "Why did you do it anyways, you just met me and you did not have to you know"

[Hiyami]

She frowned when she saw the minor burns. When she finished applying the bruise balm on the front of his torso - stomach, chest, all of that, she got off of him, deciding that he'd resigned himself to treatment.

She didn't say anything when he thanked her - it was her fault he was hurt, so there really was no reason for him to thank her. "Sit up, please." she said quietly, glancing at her medicine box to ensure she had ice pads.

Once he was up, she didn't really give him a chance to do anything, much less stand. She'd already begun applying the balm to his back. Here, she hissed under her breathe - they were huge! She applied the balm in excess, rubbing it in using soothing circular patterns.

"...not have to, you know?"

Having caught only the last part of that, Hiyami blinked at his words, confused.

"I'm sorry," she apologized as she capped the bruise balm and grabbed a couple of cold packs. "I was a bit distracted. What did you say?"

She located the first of the burns and opened the cold pack, following the instructions to apply it.

[choongsung]

Jin Woo shuddered as Hiyami applied the cold pack to the first of his burns. The fact that she was gently massaging his bruises while applying the ointment was quite soothing.

"I was a bit distracted. What did you say?"

Jin Woo replied, "Well, you just met me and you don't have to do all of this. Why did you feel like you had to treat me?"

The boy was curious afterall. Normally no one would just invite someone they just met and start treating their injuries in such a soothing and careful way. Jin Woo had to admit, the bruise treatment was nice and he started to feel more relaxed than he had felt in a long time.

Suddenly, Jin Woo became curious of where this girl was from. She did not act like a person who grew up in California for one thing, and she had a slight accent of a person who came from Asia. Yes, Jin Woo had a light accent as well, but only because he grew up in Korea town speaking Korean all of his life.

"Hiyami, you're from Japan right? How is it there?"

[Hiyami]

"Well, you just met me and you don't have to do all of this. Why did you feel like you had to treat me?"

Hiyami snorted slightly, chuckling under her breathe as she applied the last of the cold packs. "In case you don't remember... I gave you the head wound." And she dabbed at it with some medicinal cream with her other, still miraculously clean, hand. She applied a bandaid to the cut. "And you wouldn't have gotten hurt at all if I hadn't turned the food fight violent. Even if it had gotten violent without my intervention, you certainly got more than your fair share of bruises from the guys that grabbed me."

She nodded to him. "You didn't have to save me, but you did anyways. Isn't it kind of the same thing here?"

"Hiyami, you're from Japane right? How is it there?"

Hiyami felt a stabbing pain at the memory of her homeland - of times when she'd been happy with both of her parents, long before she'd been captured. Her hands didn't hesitate, though, and her face showed nothing. Growing pains were nothing when compared to learning ones.

"It's been a long time. I was eight when I left, and I'm fifteen now, so it's been about seven years. When I did live there, it was very nice. The Americans, though some of them are very rude and cruel, were, for the most part, decent people. I remember one helping me up after I tripped when I was five." she said, her voice quiet. "My mother and father were always happy for some reason or the other."

She considered letting the medicines all dry out as he was, but decided against it. The AC did, on occasion make it far too cold instead of just cool. She grasped the gauze and started to roll it around, being careful to cover everything. Then, she rolled the bandage over it, securing it with clips.

"Everyone was very kind. Not too different from Americans. Not too different from Koreans. Everyone just tries to survive. Some do it cruelly. Others do it kindly." she said, patting him on the back.

"All done. You can put your shirt back on if you like."

She went back into the kitchen to wash her hands and grab a wet rag. Upon returning, she righted the cups, filling them to about the halfway point, and wiped up the water and crumbs from the snacks that hadn't been packaged.

[choongsung]

"In case you don't remember... I gave you the head wound." As she dabbed and cleaned the wound, Jin Woo flinched a bit before easing up once more.

"And you wouldn't have gotten hurt at all if I hadn't turned the food fight violent. Even if it had gotten violent without my intervention, you certainly got more than your fair share of bruises from the guys that grabbed me."

When Hiyami said that, the boy chuckled a bit and then looked at her before answering. "Not really, I heard that this school was a pretty violent place. I was going to experience it sooner or later. If I experienced it elsewhere, I might not have gotten the chance to meet you at all."

As the girl begun to answer Jin Woo's question about Japan, he had noticed that her voice tone changed. She seemed depressed, almost mournful as she talked about the way things were back then. Jin Woo made a mental note to be careful if that subject ever came up once again.

"Everyone was very kind. Not too different from Americans. Not too different from Koreans. Everyone just tries to survive. Some do it cruelly. Others do it kindly."

Jin Woo replied, "I see.. People are people I guess, we cannot control what they do. However, we can change the way people think about things right?"

Minutes later, Hiyami notified Jin Woo that she was done and that he could put his shirt back on. As he was doing so, he stole a look at the girl's face while she came back with a rag to clean up the mess that the two made. Taking the rag from Hiyami's hands, Jin Woo said "Let me clean it up. You relax. You just treated me so I have to do something for you too you know."

Jin Woo then put the rag down, wiped his hands on a napkin, opened up a snack and put one into Hiyami's mouth.
"You must be hungry, you were in line for food weren't you?"

[Hiyami]

Hiyami was surprised when he took the rag from her. She would've argued, but she was exhausted. And hungry. Still, surprised as she was when he took the rag from her, she was even more surprised when he popped a pretzel into her mouth.

"You must be hungry, you were in line for food weren't you?"

Hiyami shrugged, then glanced at the clock. It was actually getting a bit late. She winced at the time and got to her feet. "Other things kind of distracted me from that," she admitted.

"But I don't have any other engagements today. I should probably start on dinner. I'd invite you to partake... But your family will probably want you home soon." she said, before joking, "They'll probably want you home sometime before tomorrow, anyways."

She headed for the kitchen and began pulling things from her refrigerator. Then, she took a large dish - one for soups - and ladled some of her kimchee chigae - a Korean dish she'd learned to make from her mother, who had learned it from her mother thanks to the cultural bleed of the Japanese occupation of Korea - into it, filling it as high as she dared. She quickly and efficiently covered it with some saran wrap before returning to hand it to Jin Woo.

"Here's a gift and apology to your family for keeping you so late." she said cheerily. She walked him to the door and unlocked it, knowing full well that the stupid, yet amazingly useful, automatic lock had defeated far greater people than she. She held the door open, relinquishing it to him once he'd gotten his things together.

"Be careful going home," she said, nodding at his torso. "The rioters might still be out there, so if possible, take public routes."

She tried to think on anything else she could warn him about - after all, it was about time for the rioters to start heading home and away from the cafeteria. Who knew what kind of people he'd run into?

Hiyami considered going with him, but decided against it. Him and his honorable intentions would probably not feel at ease when she came home on her own.

"Well, I suppose I'll see you the next time we meet," she said, not really sure of how to put what she wanted to say. She pouted at her epic fail. "Thanks so much for today. Get home safe!"

[choongsung]

"But I don't have any other engagements today. I should probably start on dinner. I'd invite you to partake... But your family will probably want you home soon. They'll probably want you home sometime before tomorrow, anyways."

When Hiyami said this, he laughed outloud ruffled her hair a little bit. Smiling he replied, "Maybe at a later time we could do that if you want"

Hiyami then disappeared into the kitchen in order to send Jin Woo off with something. Making sure that he did not forget anything, Jin Woo stood up and waited for the girl to come back. To Jin Woo's surprise, she came back with Kimchi chigae which was one of his favorite food back when he used to live in Korea town. Sadly, his family had not eaten any korean food in weeks because they were not able to locate a Korean or an Asian market nearby.

"Here's a gift and apology to your family for keeping you so late."

At this, Jin Woo gave her a hug not only because he was so happy to see Korean food once again, but for the thanks that she was willing to offer such a gift to him and his family. Afterall, family was a very important aspect in Jin Woo's life. Although she was only a year younger, he could not stop bowing in thanks. As a result, it took a while for Hiyami to lead Jin Woo towards the door.

"Be careful going home," she said, nodding at his torso. "The rioters might still be out there, so if possible, take public routes."

Nodding happily, Jin Woo said "Don't worry about me, you stay safe inside your house."

Standing at the edge behind her door, Hiyami made sure that he knew where he had to go in order to leave the apartment without getting lost.

"Well, I suppose I'll see you the next time we meet," she said, not really sure of how to put what she wanted to say. She pouted at her epic fail. [b]"Thanks so much for today. Get home safe!"[/b][/color]

Before Jin Woo left, he walked up to Hiyami and knocked her forehead softly with his knuckles. He then looked at her in the eye and said, "You know.. please don't be so sad. You really do look a lot cuter when you're happy."
With that, Jin Woo walked towards the elevator and pressed the down button. The door opened few seconds later and Jin Woo went inside. Before the door closed the boy turned around smiled and waved, "I'll see you soon!"

[Hiyami]

Hiyami blushed when he hugged her, but grinned, pleased that he was pleased. Though it took some time to actually get him on his way, she didn't mind one bit. She was only just concerned that each second they spent talking was another second of dark.

The whole bowing thing... She didn't like it. She understood that he was pleased and all, but c'mon - bowing to her? She shrugged it off, though, simply grinning at his enthusiasm.

But when she'd finally sent him off, he'd knocked her on the forehead with his knuckles softly.

"You know... please don't be so sad. You really do look a lot cuter when you're happy." he'd taken a couple of steps back and simply waved, saying, "I'll see you soon!"

And then he was gone. Before she could even retort. Hiyami simply went back into her apartment and went to her living room. She sat on one of the couches, carefully putting the medical equipment that she'd used back into their proper places.

When she closed the box with a click, though, her blush, which had finally left, returned full force as the full impact of what had happened hit her.

Admittedly, she didn't understand why she was so... embarrassed? Pleased? She wasn't quite surem but she knew that she was definitely a tomato red. Probably a very bright tomato red. She went over the event in her head. She'd said her farewells, and he'd knocked her on the head. A show of affection, perhaps? She wasn't quite sure. But the words afterwards... It was such a manga moment!

Even as she put the medicine box away, and cleared away the glasses, pitcher, snacks, and tray, she couldn't keep her mind off of it. Was that something people typically did? Was that comment normal? She had all kinds of questions but no one to ask. She considered, but stopped herself, from looking it up on the ever popular search engine: Google. She point blank refused to let herself fall that much.

But, later, after she'd eaten, showered, done her homework and everything, she couldn't help but think back to it, trying to figure it out. She wasn't used to kindness for no reason, and she certainly wasn't used to such comments... compliments? She wasn't quite sure under which category the words went. One thing was certain though: Hiyami was confused as all hell and entirely unsure of what to do about it.

When she finally realized that she was continuing to think on it, she finally scolded herself: "Enough's enough! You're acting like some idiot who only just heard a compliment for the first time."

And then, despite her own will, she blushed bright red again.