Summer Parallels [Izumi/Misha]

❝

Perhaps the only thing that the Asuwa River had in common with the Neva River was that they cut right through the heart of their respective cities. And for Misha, that was enough. Of the memories she had of her biological parents, the most cherished ones were the times where they walked about the riverbanks.

Of course, it was impossible to return now to Saint Petersburg, especially for only the sake of nostalgia. So Misha made do with the Asuwa River. She had made her way down to the Penguin Cafe in the early morning, where the summer sun had already risen and brightly lit the way. It wasn't too warm just yet, letting Misha wear a light dress that still covered her arms and legs, pushed lazily by the valley breeze.

The early start was for a reason - it afforded her the first pick of the pastries at the Penguin Cafe and a completely empty seating area. With a peach danish in one hand and a cup of tea with her cane in the other, Misha headed for a table closest to the river waters itself. She set down everyone on the table first, turning the chair just to face the water and take in the sights and perhaps more importantly, the sounds. Even with the early morning, the Asuwa River Park was still in the middle of a city, and thus the bustling sounds of life filtered into the rustling breeze and rolling waters.

After a while, Misha took out her phone, sending a text message to her roommate Izumi. An invitation, though one Misha had to expectations regarding whether or not she'd see her. It would be nice, yes, but, she understood the realities of their differing schedules. A time, a place, and an offer even to pay for the food.

Momentarily, her thoughts drifted to her girlfriend, Nao. Of course a scene like this would be good for both of them, but at the moment, Misha was worried about her roommate, who she had not seen nor spoken too much with for a while. But now, all that there was to do was wait. And with that, Misha finally took a bite out of her danish.

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by MIZO.❉ of ww

And things were set in motion. The start of.. well, return of Izumi after so long, in its entirety wasn't too much to cheer about, but the idea of Misha reaching out to her was an offer she couldn't refuse. Not that Izumi would ever want to.

Just.. what to wear? She harkened back to the dress she wore in autumn, with all of its intricate details, bought by her own mother. The memories of pastry shopping, browsing wedding dresses..

Could be saved for another time.

Izumi responded promptly, and set off quickly enough, deciding to just go with a very simple t-shirt, hoodie, jeans and some athletic sneakers, something that seemed more practical.. it was only Misha after all.
If this was some formal event, efforts would've been made to at least... bother trying to be some form of sophistication.
Quickly walking, half-jogging, darting inbetween crowds, dashing and weaving, all of the usual things Izumi did on her exercise outings took over during this brief moment of absolute speed.

Within short time, the pink-haired Izumi found herself at the Penguin Cafe, initially looking around with some visible confusion. Glancing at the signage, and subsequently stepping inside, she glanced around for Misha.
"A while" was an understatement, at least with how frequently Izumi and Misha would converse, with her asking the latter for advice often enough, now it just seemed like the two of them hadn't had a while to catch up.

The smell of pastries was everso indicative of an aesthetic that Izumi always associated with Misha.
Danishes, the treat that Izumi only recently developed a liking towards, no thanks to her roommate.
Eyes scanning the building's interior, Misha was soon located, and thus Izumi quickly made her way over to the familiar face.

Enthusiasm in full swing, Izumi greeted her greatest friend happily.
"Good morning, Misha-chan~~!"
Izumi bowed deeply, quickly standing up, but leaning to one side, hands clasped together with a smile.

❝

Misha-chan.

Aside from family only two people called the baker Misha-chan. One was her girlfriend, Nao. And the other, her roommate, Izumi. The sound of Izumi's voice came as a relief, a jolt to steer the blonde girl away from her spiralling thoughts. With a happy sigh, Misha looked over to Izumi and raised her hand in greeting.

"Good morning, Izumi-chan," Misha replied with a smile. It was great to be able to talk to someone she could use -chan with, let alone a peer. She shifted her seat to properly sit at the table. "It's really has been too long, you know? I'm glad you could make it." Misha's normally stiff and formal vocabulary was given the rare opportunity to relax a bit. "Sorry, I really didn't get anything for you yet, I wasn't too sure if you'd make it..." She shook her head in embarrassment before looking up again.

"Still! I'm glad to see you again. Between the student council, getting a few transfer students to settle in, my family's shop..." Misha trailed off with a sigh. "It's just been too much. So really...it's hard to put into words how glad I am to see you, and how much, frankly, I missed you. How have you been lately?"

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by MIZO.❉ of ww

"Misha-chan, I was about to say the exact same thing. Too long... but at least- at least we're both able to make it this time, yes?"
Izumi's eyes glanced to the side for a moment, before looking into Misha's with a smile, as she nodded in response to what her friend said. The feeling of belonging to something felt great. Misha was genuine enough about this to the point Izumi would reciprocate the feelings, a true friend and dependable one too.

Transfer students... more people to introduce herself to. This list just kept growing, didn't it? While it wasn't something Izumi had to do, at least putting the effort in would pay off.

But... that was a bit more in the future, and not something to do right now and here.

With the assurance of Misha-chan's presence, being honest wasn't too much of an issue.
And so... confiding in her friend yet again, Izumi proceeded.

"Lately... busy? Mother's been checking up on me... and would like me to stay in Okinawa for a short stay sometime."
Pulling her hoodie's sleeves over her wrists, she looked to the side, puffing her cheeks.
"Any ideas of what I should bring with me from here? I don't want to disappoint."
She smiled.
"And I've been thinking about the previous trip we did again... getting confused."

❝

The sigh that came out of Misha was one of both relief as well as worry. Perhaps it was the way their studies were ramping up as third-years or just how the school year was moving at a rapid pace. But quiet moments with the few true friends Misha had were truly rare, making them all the more cherished. She took a sip from her tea as Izumi talked about her mother, tilting her head and letting her hair shift as she drummed up suggestions in her mind.

"Well, is there anything here in Fukui that Izumi-chan can bring back that her mother couldn't get in Okinawa?" Misha asked, her fingers tapping the side of her cup. For Misha, it would have been easy to bring back any of her baked goods that she had learned, or even a sampling of the local bakeries nearby. But Izumi-chan being in the Theatre Department left Misha with a surprisingly lack of ideas. "Well, do you have any souvenirs you can take back? Like a costume from the last production you were in? Or a recording? Of it?"

With a thoughtful hum, Misha started to look around the cafe for any other inspiration. "I suppose any other souvenier of Fukui may also work...did you mom specify anything?"

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by MIZO.❉ of ww

"Costume.. I suppose.. mother never specified that she wanted anything, I just thought it'd be good of me-"
She blinked, thoughts again coming to the fact.. Izumi hadn't really picked up the pace with anything just yet, and indeed, with familiar fashion, sat there for a few moments in total silence, glancing to the side awkwardly before coming back to her senses.
Doubt, dreading and all of these things Izumi didn't want, were now starting to cloud her thoughts.

"Misha... I'm not too sure If I can- well-"
She exhaled, running a hand through her hair, leaning back in the chair with a sigh.
"Articulate? Is that the word-? Get myself across, I've been in the background and haven't had the time to fully take charge of things. Please.. if you have any more advice, I'll listen."

Yet again, she found herself confiding in her friend's more measured response to things.
Otherwise, a lost Izumi would have ended up stressing too much over something like this.

❝

In the middle of a sip of her tea, Misha raised an eyebrow. The baker never really pried much into Izumi's family situation, largely because she never wanted others to pry into the complex situation that was the Kitamura family. Though she sighed a little, Misha still had a small smile when she spoke.

"Well, for me. I consider the purpose of a gift is as a token of affection. Something to say that I appreciate someone and wanted to show it," Misha replied. "If you are treating the souveneir as an obligation above all else, then I think you have a much larger problem on your hands than simply getting a gift."

The baker tilted her head a little with wink before continuing, trying to give the conversation a more relaxed tone.

"Is there anything that would make you say, 'ah, that reminds me of my mother'? Or, 'my mother would enjoy this'?" Misha asked, tilting her head side to side in a relaxed manner, letting her hair shift about her. "Even if there are pastry shops in Okinawa, the fact that you brought one from Fukui is a gesture onto itself."

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by MIZO.❉ of ww

Izumi gave a sigh of defeat, looking to the side.
"I think I'll just ask her. It's really... a waste of time if I get the wrong gift, you know?"
All these things that needed to be asked. Just avoiding that irrecoverable stall Izumi dreaded she was falling into.
Misha was the one opinion Izumi could definitely trust with.

Those gears in Izumi's head began turning towards something, a small deviation.

"Unless... I should ask her to come out here. I know how far Okinawa is, but either way, one of us will have to go from Fukui to Okinawa, and you know.. I sort of prefer the colder breeze here, Misha-chan... and maybe that way, we could just find something she likes? Plus... she hasn't really left Okinawa for a while now.. Tokyo was more important to her for some previous job but that's passed. And also... I don't feel like I could take a pastry with me all the way on a plane, and not have it damaged or ruined in security. It's too much risk for something as delicate as a pastry, Misha."

The sentiment was there, but practicality was more important. Izumi couldn't stomach handing her mmother something like a crushed pastry. In Izumi's own eyes, it would be like if she was offered pizza only for it to be nothing but a charred mess of dough and cheese with the consistency of granite.

"I will.. speak to her soon, ne?"
Izumi gave a rather uncharacteristically sheepish grin, combined with thumbs up.

❝

If she could help it, Misha tried her best to not pry into the family life of others - after all, her own family was a bit of a mess. But the baker was well aware that sometimes the issue had to be forced, and even then Misha always took the subtle, prodding approach. Yet, she knew that there was a time where even that tactic had to be thrown by the wayside.

With a soft sigh, a worried frown spread over the baker's face and her fingers tapped at the side of her teacup. "Izumi-chan...? I really never ask about one's family, but I do worry a bit. Do you and your mother get along?" It was most blunt Misha had been in a long while, and she glanced breifly to the side.

"In a ways, it may not directly help me in helping you find an appropriate gift, but I think I would like some better context. I understand I may be overthinking it as well." Misha chuckled softly and shrugged. "I am no mind reader, in the end. For better or worse."

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by MIZO.❉ of ww

Izumi slowly lowered her hand, and leaned forward.
"Context... well, since you and I are on such a close level of understanding.."
She took a deep breath, and looked into her confidant's eyes.

"Mother is not originally from Okinawa, which figures my lack of the accent. We never really did so much in regards to picking up the local culture and the sort.. we only moved there because some of her relatives were in Naha. It's.. odd."
However much context was needed.. Izumi would be more than willing to apply.

She gripped the table, and spoke with a shaky, wavering tone, indicative of how her earlier words were.
"And I believe, or at least heard from some family gatherings, her career as a hostess in Tokyo might've been the reason we ended up relocating? And now, well.. the hastiness of it all meant I don't know how my father is, she's never been willing to elaborate on it too much, not even the rest of my family knows. I never really asked about your situation, but you seem to have matters that are mutually exclusive with my own, from what you've said before."

Izumi looked to the side for a moment.
"Is it really.. telling of what happened between them if she told me to never rush into a relationship? I'm not even sure of it all anymore, just.. I wish she'd tell me. I.."
Silence following, tears began to pour down Izumi's cheeks, and she stomped her foot on the floor, hiding her face behind her hands.

❝

From Misha's experiences with her friends who had strained ties with family, she had expected an amount of resentment, anger, and disgust. And so she was ready to get out of her seat when Izumi clutched the edge of the table so that she could put a hand on her roommate's shoulder to assure her.

"Ah, it's okay, it's okay, Izumi-chan," Misha whispered softly, pressing lightly to remind Izumi that she was still there and among good company. Behind the assuring smile she gave her roommate, the baker processed the situation more deeply. Rather than a tension between Izumi and her mother, it seemed like the issue was between her mother and the rest of her family. Though the reason why a gift would be problematic changed, fundamentally the issue remained the same. But getting a gift was now a secondary concern for Misha. While not an unexpected outcome, the baker knew that it was still her fault for upsetting Izumi.

"You know, I'm glad you told me about this, as much as it hurt." Misha said, her voice still low and trying to be comforting. "You are your mom are really strong for enduring, you know? Despite it all, she's taken good care of you, and you've gotten into a very good school at Fukui." Small bits of praise, but Misha's goal now was just to stabilize the other girl.

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by MIZO.❉ of ww