DISCLAIMER: You and I both know that I don�t own these wonderful people, so let�s just move on shall we? Oh, and I hope you�re under a good dentist cause this might make your teeth rot from extreme over the top sweetness. Saying that, you�ve been forewarned, so don�t sue�especially since you wouldn�t get anything�fashion designing academy takes everything I�m worth for so it would be pointless.
And now on with the fic:
Comfort under the stars
Standalone chapter
It was a dark, clear night in a dimly illuminated street, with no moon overhead. A perfectly crystalline night in which the sky was dotted by a myriad of twinkling granules of light mirthfully gleaming in a cloudless veil of indigo black. Just the kind of night that Naozumi so loved to stay awake deep into the small hours of silent repose to admire. Yet, tonight, not even the giddy dance of pulsating sky jewels in search of his attention could capture him and give the comfort his aching heart so beseeched. Despite their endless effort to catch his eyes, his mind was elsewhere.
So they loved each other.
Sana-chan and that Hayama character loved each other.
He loved her�that much was obvious by his jealous protectiveness of her�and she loved him�and that, too, despite her naive ignorance of it, was obvious as well exactly for the confusion that she felt toward him.
So they loved each other.
He knew that.
And it hurt.
Especially since he�d been there when they admitted it just a short while earlier in the large street where the Kurata residence was situated, only a few yards behind them.
Now he couldn�t deny it no matter how much he tried. He couldn�t say, �No, she�s only being nice because that�s her nature,� or, �Well, she�s like that towards all her friends,� and he could definitely no longer say �She�ll love me with time�. No, he couldn�t say those anymore, because Sana was expressive and emotional and passionate and her feeling couldn�t ever be forced into something else.
She would never love him.
And proof of that was that now, only a few minutes after the agonizing declaration of love between the two, he walked these sleepy street with stinging eyes while listening to his companion sniffle beside him.
That was what hurt more, he reasoned. Looking at her he couldn�t help but notice how much she resembled the child actress who had been the decisive factor in most of his life�s important decisions. This desolate girl beside him with the tear streaked face and sluggish step was the spitting image of that happy sprite which now belonged to someone else.
And it hurt because she proved that what he�d just seen moments earlier wasn�t just a horrible nightmare, but cold and harsh reality.
But�maybe she could be like Sana-chan.
Maybe she might�
�You don�t have to walk me home if you don�t want to,� came the soft voice with the unusual accent beside him. He realized it was Fuuka. She did have a particular accent, he though to himself, and her voice was lower pitched and more intellectual sounding then Sana-chan�s. �You don�t have to compare me to her,� she continued, almost reading into his mind.
�Wha�� he asked stunned.
�Well, I know we look alike, and people tend to compare us a lot, and I�m sure it must bother you a lot, so maybe you should go back home,� she explained, keeping eyes on the hard asphalt of the sidewalk.
She�s way more considerate than Sana-chan, he assessed, and, at this, smiled. �No, I don�t think so, it would bother me more going back home,� he told her. And that was the truth. Going back to his apartment now, alone and wallowing in self pity, would only make things worse, and going back to the Kurata residence where he was supposed to be staying with his family, was completely out of the question. �Besides,� he continued, in an attempt to lighten the mood, �I think a walk under the stars tonight is just what we need,� he said, finally turning to the stars which had�till now�prayed for a wonder-filled glance from him, and he finally felt the warmth they always brought to him seep into his icy heart.
She looked up and slowly smiled. He noticed that, despite the physical resemblance to Sana�s, Fuuka�s smile had an entirely different effect on him. Sana�s had always been contagious for she seemed to shoot happiness out of every pore in nearly every situation imaginable, Fuuka�s, instead, calmed him, relaxed him, brought a peace into his being that hadn�t been there in a long time.
�You know,� she said finally turning her smile on him, �one of the things I love the most about this place is how well you can see the stars. Where I used to live I�d ask my boyfriend to come and watch the stars and name the constellations with me sometimes, but they weren�t very visible there, so one could only name a few of the main ones over and over,� she told him in a very secretive tone.
�Did you do that often?� He asked, trying to keep her on this conversation that was making the both of them smile.
�No, he didn�t like it much. He always complained about all the mosquitoes finding it too funny to use him as their main course,� she said giggling, and he laughed with her. �But now,� she said quietly, �at night, before going to sleep, I look out my window and see how many of all those stars I can name,� she said a little wistfully, but then stopped herself short while blushing. �I�m sorry,� she apologized, �I must sound very childish to you,� she whispered with embarrassment. At that he blew up in an outburst of laughter.
Fuuka�s face puffed up and she brought out a plastic Kodocha hammer which she repeated beat on Naozumi�s head while yelling, �That�s NOT funny!�
�I�m sorry, I�m sorry� Naozumi apologized holding both his hands up in sign of surrender. �It�s just that I spent the last several months alone with Sana in New York, so not even a two year old seems childish to me anymore,� he explained.
�Oh,� mumbled Fuuka, once again feeling very embarrassed.
�And in any case,� he began in the attempt of making amends, �I used to do the same thing while I was in New York, but there are too many skyscrapers there, and the city lights are too bright, so I hardly ever got to see any stars,� he explained.
�Did you miss them?� she asked out of genuine curiosity.
�Yes, sometimes,� he replied. �Especially,� he specified, �when I played my trumpet. Ever since I started playing I used to practice under the stars, like tonight, so when I was working on the musical it just felt like something was missing from my practice sessions,� he told her. �Actually,� he added, �I didn�t even realize what it was until last night when we landed and I saw this sky again.�
�I imagine it felt great,� she though out loud.
�Oh, yes!� He exclaimed, �I just felt�I don�t know, I guess it was a sort of fulfillment�I don�t really know how to describe it,� he said, and then chuckled. �Now I�m the one who sounds childish,� he joked.
She laughed, but shook her head. �No, actually, I think I would feel much the same way,� she sympathized. And then she slowed down her step. �Well, that�s my house,� she indicated a wealthy looking�though not as much as Sana�s�home where there were still lights on in the lower floor.
�Looks like they�ve waited up for you,� he pointed out. �Will they say something if they see you with me at this hour?� He asked worried. He knew what kind of a reputation actors had these days, and he wouldn�t want to get anyone in trouble, but she shook her head, reassuring him.
For a second they were quiet and absorbed in their thoughts but then he spoke up again. �Which one�s your window?� He asked looking at the house�s side wall. She raised her eyebrow at him in uncomfortable confusion. Feeling unsettled by her scrutiny he specified, �Well, you said you like to look at the stars from your window, right? I just wanted to know which one it was.�
Smiling in relief she pointed to an open window with white fluttering curtain, and as they reached her front gate she stopped, turned to him, and called out, �Kamura-kun?�
�Please, call me Naozumi,� he asked holding his hand up to stop her questioning till she did as asked.
��Naozumi-kun,� she began, and he lowered his hand. �Naozumi-kun�thank you,� she finally said.
�For what?� He asked puzzled.
�For�comforting me under the stars the way you did,� she explained. �Thank you Naozumi-kun,� she repeated, and saying so raised herself on her toes to touch her lips to his cheek in gratefulness. Calling out goodnight, she turned and entered the gate.
Before she reached the front door he called her, �Mitsui-san!�
With a smile she answered from the open doorway, �You can call me Fuuka.�
�You�re very different from Sana-chan, Fuuka-san,� he told her with a widening grin, and, at seeing her hurt expression went on to say, �But I like you that way,� he continued. And seeing a blushing smile taking form on her face, he turned and walked the same path again toward the large house in which his and the Kurata family stayed, all the way contemplating the stars feeling lighter this time around than he�d felt before.
Little did he know that another person was contemplating the very same stars.
FIN!
Author�s ramblings:
Before you start threatening me with your parents shotguns let me clear up a few things. I wrote all this in one sitting without bothering to re-read it (and I don�t intend on doing that anytime in he future either), so maybe I skipped words or made grammatical and spelling errors, but I hope most of you can look past that. If some of you might be wondering: No, Fuuka and Naozumi are not in love yet, with this I simply intended for them to realize that there are plenty of people out in the world that could complete them much better than Sana and Hayama respectively might have been able to do. And I also wanted them to realize that often one needn�t look very far to find that person. If you want to complain about your rotting teeth: CONTACT ME. If you wish to praise me for my wonderful magic weaving eloquence in these sugar filled sentences: CONTACT ME. If you wish to flame me for going over the top for the descriptiveness of a starry sky: CONTACT ME, and don�t pull back. Don�t worry, after all it�s been a long time since I�ve had a BBQ. In any case, CONTACT ME at [email protected]
This is dedicated to Sana-chan (who asked for it in the first place) and Federica, who�s been a wonderful friend till now. It�s people like you who make me want to write in the first place. Oh, and Koneko, too (I hope you�re doing well on your exams!)
Thank you
Pearl Drop Angel
A.K.A Roberta Jeanne Gallucci