"Kon-san.. That's a really short family name. It's nice to meet you, Mai-chan!"” Mai looked surprised at having been called Mai-chan. She certainly wasn’t expecting Akira, who she only just met, to use chan. The small girl also never really thought about how short her name was. I guess it is pretty short. It seemed like Akira was going to be full of surprises by what he said next or rather blurted out. "You're so kawaii, Mai-chan." Mai was once again caught off guard. Her small lips parted but no sound came through as she could only gawk in embarrassment at having been called kawaii. She could feel the heat rush to her face as it soon turned the color of a tomato. It was rather difficult to tell how she should take it. Akira said it so easily with that same smile he has had since she saw him.
It looked like Akira did notice her eyes wondering since he commented on it. Even if it was unintentional, Mai now knew of his preference and felt a little sad at not being the type of girl he liked. Wait what am I saying? I have only just met him. With a tight lipped smile, Mai clenched her fists on her lap and quickly shook her head. The color had yet to leave her face and it seemed to only get darker at what occurred next. When the other boy had landed in front of them a figure suddenly shot forwards to shield her from any oncoming injury. Mai pulled away instinctively, bringing her arms up to keep Akira’s body from getting too close but he was still pretty close. Thankfully any imminent danger she was in had gon and Akira stepped away from Mai whose face was an incredibly bright red and looked to be in a bit of a daze. "S-sorry about that.. I was scared he was going to end up landing on you. I hope I didn't make you feel uncomfortable.
His apology brought her back to reality. The dazed looked now gone Mai was still red in the face but it had gone down. She quickly shook her head no to his apology since she couldn’t quite make her mouth move. The small girl still wouldn’t have been able to say anything even if she did, her brain was currently in overdrive trying to process what had just occurred. Mai noticed that Akira had put quite some distance between the two of them and she felt bad for having made him feel nervous. Taking in a deep breathe Mai was able to speak but the stutter had gotten considerably worse. “T-Th-Than-nk y-yo-you f-fo-or s-sa-savin-ing m-me.” she said with a wide smile on her face.
There was a brief lull of awkward silence which Mai was thankful for. It gave her time to gather her scattered thoughts and calm her pounding heart. A hand unconsciously drifted to the side of her face as she felt the heat burn her hand a bit. I hope I don’t get a fever. Still wrapped up in her thoughts Mai still couldn’t believe Akira had protected her like that. The only people she knew to have ever done that were her papa and mama. For a brief moment her thoughts drifted to her parents and she wondered how well they were doing with her not there. "Why did you look like you were going to cry earlier... Did someone say something mean to you?" Her thoughts were interrupted by his question but Mai was a bit happy that he was talking to her, even if it was about a touchy subject. “N-No o-on-e d-did.” shaking her head as she spoke. If they did, just point them out and I'll make them apologize." Mai wasn’t sure if it was the words he said or the cheerful smile he had as he said them that caused her to react the way she did. Mai suddenly began to giggle quietly to herself.
Realizing that her giggle may have been taken as her making fun of him, she stopped abruptly and apologized as quickly as she could. “ Ah! I-I’m so-sorry. I-I di-didn’t m-mean to-to l-lau-gh.” quickly standing to bow in apology. After waiting for a little while Mai stood up right, bringing her hands in front of her as she grabbed the edges of her uniform’s skirt. Her green eyes avoided looking at Akira again out of embarrassment. She heard his sigh and mistook it for him becoming impatient since she had yet to answer his initial question. Oh. Ah I di-didn’n’t r-real-lize I-I wa-as ig-noring y-you.” Looking away again, Mai frowned as she sat back down. She wasn’t sure if he would still want to talk to her and for a moment she was content with that. Suddenly her cousins words echoed in her mind Make some new friends. Swallowing the lump in her throat, Mai’s small fists tightened as she turned to face Akira. Biting her lip again, Mai mustered up all the courage she had to ask him a single question. “ M-May I-I cal-call y-you Akira-kun?” Since he had decided to call her by first name she thought it was only appropriate if she did the same otherwise it may have been seen as rude.