Rise Before Shine [Open]

[Nanasawa Minako]

It was four in the morning when Minako's eyes opened. It was still dark outside when her body became conscious and she sat up. The house was always so quiet, even when her mother was awake the most that could be heard was the sounds of soft violins. Mina had to admit, she liked the quietness of her household. If she lived in the dorms, she imagined there would be noisy dorm mates at all hours. The stillness of her house made her feel refreshed when she woke up. Her arms stretched well above her head as she slipped out of bed.

The young girl had a rather rigid morning routine. She woke up early, brushed her teeth and got dressed in sweaters pants and a tank top before leaving the house in the morning for a nice run around town. When she got back home, Mina showered then fixed herself breakfast before heading to school. Her morning runs only lasted two hours since she still had school and after school practice. There was no need to exhaust herself.

Mina slipped outside and smelled the wet air. Last night, it rained and the ground was still wet. The air smelled nice since it always smelled so nice after a long rain. The teenager started her jog though her neighborhood and beyond. She had made it well beyond her school and started was not too far the shopping district when she reached her halfway point. The teen leaned against a stone wall to relax. "I should have brought some water."

[Tenchi Lui]

[/b] Oh, actually now that he thought about it, maybe she was talking to herself. Whatever. People who spoke out loud to themselves were announcing to the world that they were freely allowing someone to jump into the conversation. [/blockquote][/ul]

[Nanasawa Minako]

“Huh?”

She was trying to keep her breathing regulated when she looked to her right to see a man smoking nearby. Minako turned to face him, blinking a few times. He was tall, and the way his hair was spiked up made him look even taller. She stared at his hair for a moment an wondered if it hit the tops of doorways. The woman moaned for a second.

She turned back around towards the street. “I wasn’t complaining to you?” she replied. Minako shrugged. She supposed she said that too loud, but she wasn’t looking at him to say such a thing. He was weird to think she was talking to him just because she said something in close proximity. Most people didn’t talk to strangers or even acknowledge them. Her eyes glanced back over at the tall man as she noticed the terrible smell. That’s right, he was smoking.

“Smoking is unhealthy.”

She gave him a deep frown, completely disapproving of his life choices. It was very bad to smoke. Someone like her could never smoke since it would inhibit her from doing things she wanted to do. “You shouldn’t do it.” She turned back towards the street and continued to breathe back at the slowed rate as her heart sped.

[Tenchi Lui]

She wasn’t complaining to him, just as he had started to assume she hadn’t been. Tenchi shrugged his shoulders, ”Then y’talkin’ to y’self and that makes y’crazy.”. Whatever, he didn’t need to concern himself with who she was talking to. What irked him was when she started to lecture him about smoking and how it was unhealthy. Did she honestly think he cared about health if he opted to smoke.

”Whatever. So is dyin’ of thirst.” he grumbled before he snuffed the burning ember out between his thumb and finger. He rolled his eyes before slipping back into the shop momentarily. His father had a small kitchenette area in the shop. He reappeared after a minute to see the girl was still there. ”Frickin’ here.” He put a bottle of water on the ground, not really near the girl. He figured the sooner she got some water, the sooner she could just leave.

Oh right, he needed to get paint supplies. ’Jus’ dun leave the damn bottle on the ground.” He warned before he stuffed his hands in his pockets and headed down the sidewalk. ”Too damn early for this crap.” He grumbled under his breath with a shake of his head.

[Nanasawa Minako]

He called her crazy, not that she thought much of it. Minako had heard really mean statements from classmates and team mates. It was rude, but it hurt much less hearing a stranger say something like that than people she knew. The girl continued to concentrate on her breathing. If she kept thinking about that, she wouldn’t have to worry about him and his mean words. He did put out the cigarette but he also belittled her for forgetting water and went inside. Her shoulders rolled back as she tried to relieve any stress in them. At least the mean guy was gone so she wouldn’t have to worry about that.

Two minutes later, he was back. Her blue eyes shifted towards the tall male then back at the street. Break time was over with his appearance. She needed to go back home before he started to fuss again. He didn’t fuss, however. The male placed a bottle of water down like a peace offering between them. Mina looked at the bottle then picked it up. “Thank you,” she said gratefully as she bowed her head a little. She hadn’t expected to get anything like helpful from him since she had obvious struck him in the wrong way, but for some reason he got her a bottle of water and she was thankful for it.

The girl undid the top and sipped on the water. She watched him walk off as she finished her drink. Minako did a few long stretches to loosen her muscles then jogged after him. He was going in the same direction as she was. She turned around and started to jog backwards as she looked at the guy a few feet behind her. “Why are you out early if you’re so unhappy about it? Most people sleep at this time,” she asked casually with no real reason to know but passing curiosity. Her head cocked back as she looked to make sure there was no traffic before running across the street backwards.

[Tenchi Lui]

He had expected that he had heard the last of the girl at his doorstep. He gave her water and had every intention of forgetting about her. What did he need to concern himself about it? He shook his head, well that had been one of the few encounters that hadn’t gone completely and utterly strange. What he hadn’t expected was to see her jog by him and then start jogging backwards so that she can speak to him again. He found it a little odd that she even started talking to him. It wasn’t like their meeting had been a good one. Most people would be more than thrilled to see him get away from them or they would generally run away from him.

Having someone actually go after him and start conversing with him again was just plain odd. ”Need paint.” He mentioned automatically before collecting him, ”I mean. None of y’damn business. I ain’t askin’ why y’out running around am I?” Honestly, how the heck could she stand to be out running around; even worse, jogging backwards like that. If she wanted to ask him a question, couldn’t she do it in a fashion that was normal? Like walking alongside him or something. No… scratch that, people didn’t want to walk alongside him, that would just be weird too.

At least she had enough common sense to look at the road before heading across because he’s not all that certain he would have helped her if she had been stupid enough to cross without looking. He felt his eye twitch with growing annoyance, ”What’re y’doin’? Ain’t that shit tirin’?” No wonder she had to stop to get a drink or something, she was doing crap that wasn’t normal.

[Nanasawa Minako]

He called her crazy, not that she thought much of it. "Oh."

It was very odd to need paint before sunrise, but she wasn't really one to talk about odd tasks done before dawn. During summer, she made sure to train herself even harder for the month without school so she didn't waste time or slack off. People her age could be so lazy and she didn't want to fall into that trap.

The tall male decided he wanted to recant what he told her and replace his answer with none of your damn business. Minako raised one brow as she looked at the rough looking male. That was really rude. He was nice to give her the water bottle but it seemed he was generally a rude male. Minako shrugged it all off since he had a valid point. He didn't ask about her running habits or why she was running backwards. The girl nodded as she looked behind her again to make sure nothing was in her way. Running backwards was tough, but it helped build other muscles. She needed stronger calves, quadriceps, and shin plus working out those muscles more gave her better balance.

It was a good workout, and by running as fast as she could to this point and running slowly backwards, she worked out several muscles and did it within enough time so she wasn't late for school. It was a really nice routine though she was getting used to this and that meant her body needed change.

The male asked if she got tired and Minako shook her head. "I'm used to it." Mina had started training early morning back in middle school during her second year. She was a very dedicated girl and that dedication grew every year. "It's actually refreshing. You should try it if you want a good work out."

[Tenchi Lui]

[/i] wasn’t a real answer in his mind. Why the hell was she doing it in the first place. The fact that she was used to it spoke details of how she normally did things. She obviously worked out in such a fashion as often as she could. When she suggested that he should try doing it because it was refreshing, Tenchi scuffed at the suggestion, ”Do I look like I to do that crap?”. Actually he didn’t really want to know what she thought about his looks.

The fact that she was continuing to run like that started to make him feel uncomfortable. She wasn’t always looking where she was going because she was trying to hold a conversation with him. At any point that she was focusing on him, a wide variety of things could happen to her. Something could slip out in front of her, or hell, she could just very easily lose her balance. ”Would y’stop doin’ that? Y’gonna end up gettin’ hurt or sumthn. Can’t ya walk like a normal person.” Actually another thought crossed his mind at that moment, ”Why the heck y’followin’ me anyway? I don’t got anymore water on me.” [/ul]

[Nanasawa Minako]

Minako shrugged when he barked at her. She couldn't tell what type of person he was based upon appearances. If she had to guess, he was the a basketball player because of the height advantage. It just wasn't a fair guess to assume he played sports because of his height. She wasn't as tall as some of the foreign women that played tennis. She wasn't sure what her looks dictated she was good at. Minako was slender but toned. She worked out daily and she dressed in a manner that put comfort first. He wasn't dressed like a basketball player but someone going out during the night. Nobody played basketball in a leather jacket.

"No, it's a part of my training regiment," she replied calmly as the distance got a little bigger. She wasn't sure why he was slowly down but it couldn't be helped. She had to keep put a certain pace so her heart rate never slowed. "I'm used to it and careful. Don't worry." She didn't need him to be concerned. She wasn't the reckless type. Mina was very careful since hurting herself would mean she couldn't practice for a bit and hurt her even more in the long run.

The male thought she was following him, but that wasn't possible. She was the person in front even if she was facing the wrong way. On top of that, she had absolutely no clue where he was going. "I'm running home, not following you. Besides, it looks like the reverse is true, but you have no reason to follow me home." It was just a coincidence. Things like that happened. Yuki was someone she met at school, but it turned out the two girls lived pretty close to one another. The world was full of strange instances.

[Tenchi Lui]

Training regiment? Who the hell trains at her age? She looked like she was younger than he was and the fact that she was training was just plain odd. She must have still been in high school or something and was in some sort of sports program. Tenchi remembered seeing people running a lot when they were on sport teams, mainly the track and field section where they did nothing but run around. He never understood how being in a sport that involved running around could be considered as a skilled sport. As far as Tenchi was concerned, anything they could do, anyone could do provided they had a set of working legs to carry them around.

”What? I ain’t followin’ you.” He commented, completely missing the fact that she already stated that he would have no reason to actually follow her home. Up ahead she was forced to stop moving forward because of a traffic light. There was a small group of people waiting alongside her and even though she was unable to move forward, she was still jogging in place.

”Y’aimin’ to be Olympic runner or sumthin’?” He shook his head, ”I ain’t seen people your age runnin’ round and trainin’. Ain’t ya s’pose to do sumthin’ normal?” He was probably speaking a bit loud and brash. An older man in a suit looked toward him and appeared slightly annoyed, ”Gotta problem? Mind your own business!” Tenchi barked at him, What the hell was he looking at him for? He wasn’t doing anything other than talking to whoever this girl was.

[Nanasawa Minako]

She jogged in place to keep her heart rate up as she waited for the light. Her whole body turned around since she didn't want to over extend her neck by twisting it so much for so long. The girl kept high stepping as she practiced her breathing. The boy she was making small talk with seemed to get the wrong assumptions about why she was running. "No. I'm not a runner," she replied plainly. She wasn't fast enough to be a runner, and her legs weren't long enough. If she were his height, running might have been a nice option.

"I play tennis," she replied. "It requires speed, quick eye hand coordination, anticipating the opponent's moves, and a upper body strength for a strong backhand."

There were other things, but those were the nice general things about tennis. Coaches in the past had her do minor weight lifting to try to develop better arm strength. She ran a lot too so she could have an easier time keeping up when an opponent made her chase a ball. And she had been doing much better at anticipating moves so she could change up someone's rotation. Sadly, running backwards only gave her greater balance when she hit a ball hard so she didn't tip over or fall when stopping too quickly.

The boy seemed to get upset as one of the early morning commuters looked at the teens. Minako blinked a minute. She wasn't really one to deal with confrontation. The older man didn't seem like he wanted to get in a fight with the tall boy either. The light changed colors and Minako grabbed his hand and pulled him along across the street. She ran face forward for a block as she dragged him about until his complaints were too much and she let go of his hand.

"Sorry. I didn't want you to get in trouble with that guy. You seem like the type the police would never believe."

[Tenchi Lui]

How the hell does running around actually help with hand eye coordination, Tenchi wondered. He knew what tennis was and from his impression it involved mostly the arms. She was working her legs and not her arms. She should be lifting weights or something so that she could hit the ball harder. At least, tht’s what he assumed would be better to use.

When he got distracted by the older man who seemed to have an attitude with him and he was about to yell at him more, he felt his hand grabbed semi-tightly and feel himself pulled away from the area before a bigger scene could be made by him. ”Wh-what the hell do y’think y’doin?” Tenchi started as he felt a wave of embarrassment come over him. Why they hell was she grabbing his hand? He didn’t try and rip his hand away only because he was afraid he might end up hurting her and then where would he be? Someone would blame him for it and he’d end up getting in trouble… again.

”I dunno what y’think y’doin’.”

She finally ended up releasing his hand and Tenchi wiped his hand down on his pants, because it had started to sweat from his nerves having started to get the best of him. ”Sorry. I didn’t want you to get in trouble with that guy. You seem like the type the police would never believe.” She explained.

”Yeah well..” He tried to come up with a better comment to follow it but he didn’t have one. Tenchi was never one that was witty or quick witted for that matter. ”Jus’ don’t do sumthin’ like that. People have personal space an’ crap like that.”

[Nanasawa Minako]

She stared at him blankly for a moment. Personal space? Mina had been warned about that once before when she was younger when she sat too close to the neighbor boy. That was when they were children in kindergarten. She did fine with minding personal space nowadays. Grabbing his hand and pulling him away from a potential fight was a total acceptable social norm. She was helping him out in the long run though he didn't want to hr help again.

"I don't think that applies to hand holding. That's more if I sat too close or leaned into you," she explained as she stood there with her arms crossed. She shook her head. It definitely didn't apply to this situation. She held his hand but they had been at arm's distance the whole time at best. He didn't run very fast for someone with rather long legs.

"You're pretty out of shape," she commented. "You should run more so you're not so easily out of breath. That way, you can run away easily by yourself."

He seemed upset, but it was probably because of displacement. He couldn't run fast or quickly with smoker's lungs. She was more than capable of running the two miles back home in under nine minutes. He probably wasn't able to do the same. "If you want running tips, I can help. Oh, and you'd need to stretch a lot."

[Tenchi Lui]

”Hand holdin’ is personal space. That’s what two people do when they like… I dunno… like one another.” Actually he had no idea. The person with the worlds least amount of relationship experience of any kind would go to him for certain. The greatest relationship he ever had was with a paintbrush and some canvas. He didn’t have to worry about what a piece of canvas thought of him. There was no lectures or judgment coming from the canvas and it was always just there waiting for him to use it.

Then she started to tell him that he was out of shape. Like hell! He was plenty fine. It wasn’t like he was some lazy ass that did nothing. He worked. He may not run around the damn city like this girl but he did plenty of work that kept him in shape. ”What?! So now y’callin’ me fat or sumthin’. I ain’t outta shape.” He had a word that almost escaped his lips at the moment in his anger.

”I ain’t needin’ runnin’ tips either. I can run this damn city an’ back without stretchin’. Prolly run further than you can despite all the damn useless trainin’ y’been doin’.” He was being irrational but he was quick tempered and stubborn. He never really thought things through and simply let his mouth run off without any connection to his brain. So his brain never gets a chance to work things out logically.

[Nanasawa Minako]

“No?” she replied confused. Holding someone’s hand wasn’t a thing exclusive reserved for relationship. It was something people did freely with others. When she was younger, she had to hold hands with several different people when crossing the streets. Yuki held her hand a lot nowadays, especially when she wanted to drag Mina somewhere.

“You must not hold hands a lot.”

It was a logical explanation for his rather unreasonable assumptions. Mina shrugged. “I’ll reframe from such things,” she replied carefully. She didn’t know who this person was, but she didn’t want to offend the stranger. It would be rather mean and mean for no reason. She simply was trying to get him away from that person so they didn’t end up fighting. If they somehow met up again and she needed to get him away from a bad situation, she would grab his ear since hands were out of the question.

When told him that he was out of shape, he got rather offended for no reason. He was such a weird boy. Were most boys his age weird like this? The ones at school were weird and she didn’t understand them, then again, that happened a lot with several girls as well. Mina had a hard time relating to most people. It was rather frustrating.

Though, the boy claimed he was really fast. She could run rather long and far, but Mosaic City was huge. She couldn’t run the entire stretch of the city, plus there were weird areas. Still, he claimed very impressive things. Mina was always up for overcoming challenges.

“Do you want to race? My high school is a mile away straight down this road. We can ran there since I’m curious to see how fast you are if you can run the whole city so easily,” she explained. The girl pulled one leg at a time behind her back to stretch. It had been a bit since she ran at top speed but it had been a while since she did a lot of things that were related to competition.

“Whenever you’re ready.”