First encounter

"V-tuber" a term which gained immeasurable popularity over a span of a year but to me, it is the word which gave me the strength to move on from my past.

I have been a gloomy kid for as long as I can remember. This gloominess turned into thoughts of things better being unknown. I spent most of my childhood with my grandmother as both of my parents were busy working. After I lost my grandmother at the age of 12 my tiny world surrounding me and her was in shambles. My life feels as if it has entered an "Eternal Winter". It felt as if I was faced with one of the strongest blizzards. The world around me was covered with thick layers of snow and ice which took away all the colors and left the world black and white or so as I thought until I discovered him "The person who brought a stop to that everlasting winter" and that is how the first spring after my grandma's death arrived. Fuyumi thought to herself.

Fuyumi is a college student who is living alone in Tokyo to pursue her studies in IT. She is not known by many people in college due to her non approachable tendencies, somewhat natural for an introvert who hates staying around people. Even after trying to be out of people's attention, she was able to make a very few friends.

"She is just a 19-year-old nerdy girl" is what most people think about her but despite her age she's a fairly successful person. No one is aware of the fact that she is the person behind the name "Nameless being". A faceless gaming content creator and streamer who earns a decent amount just for playing two-three matches.

Fuyumi barely attends college, and that day was one of the days she went to attend class. She usually does not get scolded for her absence in the class but this time she had been gone for weeks without notice. That time she was called for by one of her professors who was relatively new and was unaware about her reasons for absenteeism. She had to stay there for some time after the end of her last class for the day. While she talked with the professor, her friend from the same major waited for her along with a couple of her acquaintances. It took Fuyumi a while to explain her condition and the fact that she had already submitted an application regarding it during her admission. The professor apologized and she was let go.

While walking down the hall she crossed paths with a man, wearing formals, who did not seem to be someone from her college. She did not pay much attention to it and went to her friend who had been waiting. It had been sometime since she met her even though they live in the same apartment complex. Her friend told her about the senior she met while waiting for her. She described the senior as "A good looking and tall man wearing a suit".

Her friend explained to her his purpose of visit while they were returning to their apartment complex.

After reaching home Fuyumi felt exhausted. She took a shower and went to bed. After a few days she received a text from Nami, her friend who lives in the same apartment complex as hers, to go out on a dinner with her. Fuyumi did not want to, but she couldn't reject her, so she went along. A few of Nami's friends were also present there.

Fuyumi was not good friends with anyone there. She never contributed to their conversation, nor she ever tried. She did not like crowded and loud places. She just chucked down her food and stayed quiet. She noticed that someone from another table was approaching their table.

The person stood in front of the table and said, "How have you guys been?". Nami replied "Great, and what about you?". He said "Good to hear that, I have been fine as well" with a smile on his face, and everyone started talking with him. He joined them on the table and told them that he had a team dinner with his office colleagues who left earlier. They went for another round but he bailed out somehow since he doesn't enjoy drinking all that much.

Clearly, everyone was frowning over him. But he didn't pay much attention. Everyone enjoyed and Fuyumi was happy that her friend enjoyed herself. At the end of the dinner most of them exchanged numbers with him. When they were leaving, he offered to give them a ride back home in his car.

Fuyumi and Nami left by themselves as their apartment complex was not too far away. It was until she reached home, she realized that the man who sat down on their table was the senior Nami was talking about. Once again, she was too tired think about anything and opted to fall asleep after taking a shower.

Next day was a Sunday and as per usual she went grocery shopping in the morning. As she was looking for some cup noodles in the supermarket, she heard a voice saying, "Cup noodles aren't good for your health, you know.".

She turned around to see a handsome young man who was indeed talking to her. She did not understand why a stranger would be saying that to her. As she tries to escape that place, he calls out and tells her about his observation of the previous night and how she did not say anything to anyone expect Nami.

Fuyumi was taken aback. Before she could figure out who he was, he introduces himself in a polite manner as "Haruma" , a former student of her college. He added “I was sitting right beside you yesterday, how didn't you notice me at all?”

It seemed as if he was interested in her which was not in any bad way but more of something as if he could understand her thoughts. It seemed like she really sparked his curiosity.

"Well... I think you don't find me all that comfortable to talk to considering you haven't said a word to me since yesterday, when we met" he sighed.

It gave off a vibe of a slight disappointment but relief at the same time because it confirmed his idea of her being different from the others who were pestering him to get his number, especially the females of the group.

"It's not what you are thinking. It's more like why a complete stranger would come and talk to me." She exclaimed.

They fell into a moment of silence. Fuyumi's answer was far from what Haruma expected as he anticipated a 'silent treatment' from her.

"I am sorry if that is what you felt. I just don't like talking all that much" Fuyumi said in lenient manner.

Fuyumi definitely didn't like being told about what she ate. She barely gets time to cook when she has to attend events and college. An emergency stash of cup noodles won't hurt now, would it?

Haruma felt chills down his spine. He could feel that he might have offended her in some way but there were too many things which could be the reason. He stepped back to figure out the cause when Fuyumi started walking away.

She said "Now... Don't mind me. I would me on my way and if you really want to have a conversation we can talk while I pick the rest of the things. I am especially short on time today."

Haruma's face lit up. Even he was unsure of the reasons.

They did not have anything to talk about in the first place, so they started to talk about their majors in college.

Haruma told her about his office too. She was impressed by his knowledge about certain things and most of all, his position at his job. She could tell that he excelled at his field of work which did not seem obvious to her due to her 'not so good sense of judging people'.

Fuyumi left the market after her shopping was done. She had to stream that day to make up for the rest of the week. She walked and walked when a sudden feeling came rushing to her. Emotions she has long forgotten. A sense of nostalgia. Upon reaching home she was filled with emotions that she couldn't explain, nor could she figure out the reason for feeling that way.

"That voice...... that way of talking...... it felt oddly familiar." She muttered to herself. "What is this feeling? I can't actually pinpoint it...”

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