Snow Day! (Salmane)

School finally got out! It was certainly snowing enough to have a school day end early. The morning had snow only a few inches, however, a foot seemed to rattle the school and send all the students home. He took this opportunity to grab and toss snow around him in the courtyard before he left. Snow was such a beautiful thing. It was a shame it was ending soon. But nothing was going to ruin his snow day. He wore pants, a white shirt, and a thin brown jacket, carrying his stuff with him to home, not even noon in the day. He would struggle slightly walking down the hills on his way from the school.

Cyril saw students flood from the school talking frivolously about small things. He would be going over to get something to eat, before going home, possibly something hot, like ramen, or contrary to many other students, ice cream. It was surely the best time to eat it, during the cold where ice cream is best preserved was it not? He couldn't help but keep a slight smile in the face of his stress. With new events livening up what could be a great year, and so much to do, he was going to make the most of it. He continued down the sidewalk as Kizuna Academy was starting to leave from eyeshot.

She was on the sidewalk up ahead from the school she went to. A group of familiar girls appeared; they slowly gained speed on the small female, although she did realize this fact, running was pointless. A hand would grab her shoulder and violently turn her around a slightly taller girl was in her face, “So you like to call me out, no one disrespects me and gets away with it, got that ‘Poindexter?’ Why don’t you use that ugly little head of yours to find a way out of this?” Her friends snickered as the taller girl hit Salmane in the abdomen, she cried out as the girls rings dug into her skin. One of the friends took her legs and knocked the girls knocked her down as the other tugged at her hair; although it was short it still hurt. “D-Dam you all to hell…” One of the girls tugged tighter and laughed. “What’s that Sal-man? Are you hurting? All you have to do is apologize and we’ll leave you alone.” Salmane glared at the taller girl, all she had said was that telling a teacher to ‘shut up’ was not the best idea.
 
But now here she was being held on the sidewalk, having demands thrown at her. “I… apologize...” The girl snickered, looking at her girls and they let go. “That’s good you little whor-” She was cut midsentence but Salmane’s laughter. “I’m sorry you can’t accept the truth, you act all tough but you’re really a lonely and you were just worried that I telling you the best thing to do was the best thing to do and you wouldn’t have that.” With that the girl stared down at her in disgust. She quickly kicked the small female in the stomach with all her force then looked up, “Come on girls, let’s go.” With that, the female group left, not once looking back even for a second. Salmane sat up against a wall, she looked down the side walk, and it seemed no one was coming for the moment. So no one had seen that? Either way her abdomen started to feel sharp waves of pain, he wrapped her arms around herself. She pushed her head and stared at the sky, as long as no one asked her why she looked like this she would be fine. The thought of someone who actually cared asking her would most likely make her cry. But, who wouldn’t ask? Her hair was a mess; there was dirt all over her clothes and her hand was bloody. Yup, that was totally normal.

Cyril continued to walk down the sidewalk, happily looking at the snow along the road. On the way, he did notice a few girls leaving a sidewalk talking about silly stuff he didn't care for. His attention went in front of him and he saw Salmane of all people, sitting by a wall, looking like she was where the girls were leaving from. He slowed his pace slightly when he walked up to her and took a good look, though he managed to slip in the snow and land on his knee almost right on cue, which did cause some pain, though he would hide it on the outside. She was positively messy, from her dirty clothes, to her mussy hair, and her hand was actually bleeding, covering her tiny body. He knelt beside her looking at her as she seemingly stared at the sky. He didn't have any first-aid kits or anything special, and he didn't touch her to ascertain the damage.


"Salmane, you alright? Well, stupid question. But still, are you okay?" he asked. He put down his small bookbag from school to the sidewalk next to him and Salmane and turned to make a look at the girls now practically out of sight, though in his mind he could see them. Did they do this to her? It was kind of a shame he wasn't there to prevent it, since Salmane seems to usually need help whenever he sees her.

Salmane sighed, putting her head down, trying to hide her face from the boy whose face she knew well. Cyril, why did he of all people have to come? He was one of her friends, finding her like this would be horrible. She didn’t want to make him worry although some of the little blood had dripped onto the cement below her. “I’m fine… I’m fine. There’s nothing t-to worry about…” She continued to look away, it was disgraceful that she couldn’t even defend herself against three girls. Three girls who had no right to be doing what they had did.

But yet, here was Salmane, like a sitting duck. She allowed them to do what they had done. Not even trying to stop them. Although, it did seem when Cyril was around that she was always in trouble, falling tremendous times. But look now, she was in worse condition than ever before. Although making him worry was not the best idea. But why was it that he was always there when she was in pain or on the ground. Was it a sign or something? Maybe he was just meant to protect her, or maybe she was just a klutz.

He saw her face being put down and pursed his lips. "You okay?" he repeated. He saw a droplet of blood hit the cement and frowned, her injury could be worse than he previously saw. "The stuttering and repeating yourself seems to say otherwise Salmane," he said moving in the direction that her face moved. He took another look in the direction the girls went, who were now out of sight, and looked back at her. "Did they do this to you?" he asked. He wasn't worried as he was a bit disappointed that she was acting so meek and humiliated at it all.


"Cmon, lemme see," he said. He looked to see if her hand was alright, and maybe she just didn't do anything to stem the bleeding. It didn't LOOK serious. If those girls did hurt her, surely they didn't mean to cause lethal harm. "Stop looking so down so I can help you. I actually have a present for you," he said trying to cheer hr up. It was just three silly girls. If they ganged up on her surely she would be at a disadvantage. Cyril at least didn't feel mad at her for being hurt. It wasn't her fault after all.

Well, she was crying now, although not making a noise and looking away. It wasn’t that she was in pain; it was that someone cared if she was alright. “Cyril… I-I’m fine. Please…” The only reason she was bleeding because that girl’s rings dug into her abdomen. The rings were unbelievably sharp. The only reason her hair was a mess is because they pulled it, it wasn’t even that bad, worse had happened when she was a child. Her father and mother used to fight, although about what she didn’t know, were they fighting about each other or something bigger she’s not seeing. In any case, she would wipe at her eyes, still looking away, “It’s fine, don’t worry about them… God dammit your so stubborn.”

She would turn her head and look at the boy who had been questioning her and fixed her hair, standing up. She put her arm over her front because standing up caused some pain to the area where she had been hit. Why did it hurt now? They were just little rings, but it seemed the girl pulled down and cut in a straight line. “There are you happy now?” Salmane’s tears had slowed down a bit and it seemed they had stopped for the time being.

He could hear it in her voice that she was clearly upset, and it went beyond just simple humiliation, despite it being not so simple. "Cmon, don't be so upset," he said wrapping his arms around her giving her a hug. He was a bit concerned for her. She seemed so upset, and he had to make her feel better for the surprise he had. "No "please" anything. Chin up alright?" he said. He saw her wipe her teary eyes and turn away, before poking her head a couple times. "I don't know if you are ticklish, but I can check," he warned. It was almost pathetic seeing his every attempt to try and cheer her up, but he was stubborn and persistent and was going to try. His thoughts went that route and even made him laugh when she said what he thought. "Stubborn people can help people who are upset, kind of like how you are right now," he added.

He saw her try and fix her hair, and stood up a bit after she did to face her. She still looked cute, for being so small. He saw her wince and almost move to her, but stopped when she put her arm on her stomach. He had thought the blood was coming from her hand but no, it was coming from her abdomen. "At least it doesn't seem like a knife. You wouldn't be as sad, so much as shocked," he tried to joke, very poorly in fact. He saw her tears had slowed but shook his head. "I won't be happy until you stop your crying, then I will hit you with a passing snowball," he said holding his right arm  out to the ground as he stood almost as a threat. Soon after, he would pull his arm up and give her another hug trying to calm down what was left of her strain. He felt another cold chill pass by and he tightened his hug slightly trying to get warmer. "Motherfucker it is cold..." he said.

The pain was gone, it seemed that everything was fine, the blood clotted and the bleeding seemed to end. The walkway was clear, it seemed everyone was gone. Only that one girl and that one boy stood on the sidewalk from the school they went to. They were hugging though, was this an attempt to comforting her? The tears had stopped so what was wrong, even when she stood, he hugged her once again; although this time it was tighter. He seemed to cling onto her. “I never cry…” She lied through her teeth at the boy. “The cuts were dome by rings. It’s no big deal.”

Salmane sighed, there was another lie, it wasn’t ‘alright.’ Nothing was ‘alright’ in this situation. As they spoke she was probably being infiltrated by millions of viruses looking to kill her. Those open wounds would close up soon but bacteria entering said wound wasn’t the best idea. “You said you had something to show me or give to me. May I ask what this ‘something’ is?” Her breath could be seen as she pulled away from the boy, smiling at him “It’s not that cold anyways”

He let her go shortly after his hug and picked up his backpack. She had seemed like she was calming down, and was ready to show her something, when she made her outright silly claim. "Nice try, wipe your eyes first before you say it again. And this time, try to say it with a straight face," he said chuckling a bit. It was odd to hear the cause of the damage. Rings? Who in the world wears rings that sharp? Cyril would just carry a hidden knife, his katana, or even some pepper spray for protection. But that wasn't the issue right now. "Well, remind me to never buy a ring for anyone. I mean, in case they decide they hate you," he tried to joke. His laugh turned into a nervous chuckle as his thoughts raced for something to connect to what he had to show her.


"You are going to have to get home soon. Clean that off or something. The last thing you need is random people calling the ambulance for a simple cut," he said reaching into his bag digging through it. His eyes looked back at her as he rummaged. "Well, I am not cold-blooded like you are," he said smiling before he pulled out two thin slips of paper. Upon closer inspection they were quite colorful and decorated with a drawing of a carousel, a ferris wheel, and a rollarcoaster. He held one of to her holding the other one in his hand, pointing in another direction so Salmane could take one if she wanted. "Won me a free pass to the carnival! Well two actually," he said. "Did you want to go with me? The only thing you would need money for is food," he said waiting for her response. His courage had been rising the moment he got his Persona. Maybe it was because he had something powerful, or maybe he was developing an ego. Either way he waited for her answer keeping the tickets held out.

Carnival, the region had a carnival? Was it even good, or was it cheap? Either way Salmane would slowly take one of the tickets and look at it “…Did you just ask me out on a date?” she would look at the boy smirking, it did sound like it. I mean, wasting tickets on someone like her something had to be going on right? Or was this going to be just thing friends do. She wouldn’t really know because being nice wasn’t her forte. “How did you win these anyways?” She would turn the ticket around and read a little of the back before looking back at him.

“Why are you so confident all of a sudden, I asked you to eat off campus with me maybe last week and you got scared, is something wrong?” What was wrong with him? He suddenly got the courage to ask her out to the carnival, although he seemed nice. But they were barely friends; I mean he had helped her a lot. But, a date, Salmane hadn’t been on one of those, she barely talked to straight men. To be honest she thought Cyril was gay up to this point. “In any case… I accept your… Date…”

He was smiling a bit thinking about the carnival. The carnival itself to his knowledge was very nice, especially at night where the lights were on. He had to come by and see it at least during the winter. He loosened his hand letting her take the ticket, accidentally dropping the other one and practically flailing his arms around trying to pick up the ticket before it fell into the snow, and eventually caught it inches from the ground. picking it up and putting it away, he would look back at her with her question. Date? Oh dear. This was certainly a question. Or it would be if Cyril hadn't decided to be so blunt about answering. "Yes, a date," he said. He didn't stutter or blush. He just waited for her response.

He smirked a bit when she asked how he acquired these lucky tickets of his. "You're gonna love this. You know 'Aika's Curry' down the road? The soup restaurant? I went there and they for a week have had this spicy challenge for park tickets. Eat a large bowl of their new spice curry and win tickets, so I tried it, but they..." he started laughing thinking about it. It was too perfect. "They fucked up the order, and gave me mild curry for the challenge! So I ate mild curry and won! It was amazing!" he said his laughing slowing down.

His laughing faded when she asked about his sudden boost in confidence. She was not wrong. For some reason he had lately been feeling more confident, at well, anything. Although, he did know why he was more confident. That night gave him the power to do something that mattered, and to him...it just felt right. Nothing changed his dislike of many people and love of solitude, but it gave him the edge he needed to face it, and maybe gain something in the end. "I am fine. Just, lately I have started to feel a bit better about myself. It works sometimes," he said smiling a bit to her, his eyes more obviously mismatched than ever, but the contrast between them being perfect despite the odd colors. He nodded feeling happier of her agreement to go with him. "Thanks. Here, should I give you my number so I can give you a time later? We have until the end of the month anyway," he asked.

… A date… Was he serious? Was he actually serious on asking her out on a date? Why? It’s not like Salmane herself was appealing, so why her. Plus she barely knew him. When she called it a date she was kidding, it surprised her that he was serious. She wasn’t the best person to go out with; his social status would plummet if she was seen with him. Was he actually serious? “Are you actually serious… A ‘date?’ As in ‘An engagement to go out socially with another person, often out of romantic interest?’” She would blush a little, but not because of the fact that she just read out the dictionary description of that. “You could just call it ‘hanging out’ if you didn’t mean date…”

She would take the picture and put it in her pocket before taking out a piece of paper and scribbling down her number, handing it to the boy. “Use it if you want…” She was still blushing, this was her first time being asked out, although she kind of hoped it would be true. He was a nice guy and wasn’t stupid. He acted like himself and not some muscle headed freak, although his boost of confidence was weird in a sense. “Cyril... If you truly meant it like that, I’m flattered, although I would like to wait for… Us to get closer…” She laughed rubbing the back of her head and closing her eyes. She opened them and looked at him once again “Sorry I’m just that kind of person…”

It made him feel better to see her accept it. And the surprise she seemed to give off when he explained it was a date almost made him hopeful. Maybe the shock kind of would mean she wanted it to be a date after all and didn't expect it. Or maybe he was pathetic and overly-optimistic. He nodded. "Yeah, I am serious, that thing that people do when they ask, if only to simplify your definition. Also, it doesn't help that you are blushing when you say this while your face is pink," he said laughing. He found it a bit cute. The girl herself was a bit on the shorter side, but modest and in the right clothing, could look magnificent....but he wouldn't say that out loud. Instead he would respond to her next statement without missing a beat. "I suppose it doesn't have to be a date. But it'll be fun I promise," he said giving a reassuring smile.

He started to feel as though he may have came on too strong. Maybe he was too confident, but he was thinking, maybe he would miss it if he never did anything. He always had to try. He took her paper that she wrote her number on, nodding as he put it in his pocket. "Cool, it'll be fun, I promise," he said again. He said, but listened in to her explanation and suddenly grew hot in the face. 'Did it seem like I was that bad...?' he thought to himself. He wasn't after her like a mad man or anything. He wasn't even asking her to be his girlfriend. The thought did linger on his mind, it wouldn't be bad, but he never openly said it. "I wasn't trying to rush or try to flirt or anything. Just a date, doesn't necessarily mean we are dating," he said. His tone wasn't rude, but it sounded a bit...defensive. He almost felt like he was being attacked. It wasn't her fault, he was just kind of like a lone animal surrounded by some pack of wolves, and his confidence dropped from there.

“Not talking about dates and crap anymore. I’d love to accompany you…” The carnival might be fun, she hadn’t been to one since she was little and going now with a friend might be fun. Plus this boy might text her first rather than Gabishi. Either way, she would take out her phone, checking the time before studding it into her pocket, it seemed like she would need to go home, although it was a long walk and her driver was out on leave. Her arm would still be crossed around her abdomen even though there wasn’t any blood. She still couldn’t believe that a ring could do that, it felt like a knife, digging into her skin and drawing blood. “Just tell me when you want to go, I’m always free.” She would smile, ignoring all the stuff about it being a date, it was probably better to think he said that on accident. “I’m sure James is going to start worrying about my location. Do you want to walk me home…?” She thought for a moment, didn’t he live on the other side of the region. “I’m sorry but where do you reside now? If it’s too far away Nokawia then you don’t have to except my offer.”

He smiled when she expressed her willingness to join him. It made him feel better knowing she seemed more eager to go. "Awesome!" he said nodded. He saw that Salmane was still a bit protective of her stomach, though it had probably stopped bleeding at this point, and would not get infected at all. He was slightly disappointed that she didn't seem to think it was a date, and no it was true, Cyril didn't want to immediately start dating her after they would go. 'Just gotta be patient. Maybe it'll work out....' he thought to himself. "Yeah, I will probably call you a day or so before it happens," he said making a mental note in his head to do so.

"James?" he asked. Probably her ride home or whatever. "That's fine Salmane. Where do you live?" he asked. He probably would have guessed something along the lines of Yoro, or maybe Hayabusa. When he thought about it, he really didn't know too much about her background. Then again, it didn't really matter to him. He could probably do it. He had plenty of the time in the day to take a tram with her, then take one back. "I live in Yoro, but it really is no trouble. And I won't take no for an answer. I can do that," he said smiling. Cyril not planning to let up, would follow Salmane as she would walk in the direction of home, planning to take her there, then head home himself.

((EXIT))