AN: Alright, y'all, this is my first Love Live fic. This is what I like to call a pretty ambitious project, considering it's Jolks and not in-universe NozoEli. I wouldn't have written this if it weren't for my online friends on FaceBook (I'm talking to a certain someone in #JolksGC) so, thanks for the push. Now, sit down, buckle up, relax and enjoy the read and...please...both hands on the desk.
Nah, I'm kidding, this ain't that kind of fic...let's go!
HAVE YOU EVER WONDERED HOW OUR STORY ENDS?
The nine members of μ's walked into the backstage of Tokyo Dome after performing their last song and saying their goodbyes and their thanks to their loyal fans, both in Japan and around the world, who came to watch them these past two days. When they were out of sight from the people outside, slowly, each of them started to feel tears fall from their eyes. Rippi, the youngest of them, was the first to start sobbing.
"Everyone, thank you for being by my side for these past six years. I love you all." She said in between sobs as she wiped her tears away.
"Rippi-chan." Kussun said as she and the others hugged her. They went on like that for at least another hour until finally, they've all calmed down enough to be able to talk to one another without bursting into tears. Kussun stood off to the side, drinking a bottle of water as the others talked in the changing room.
"Kussun." A familiar voice called for her. Kussun turned to face the source and what she saw almost took her breath away; it was their friend, Nanjo Yoshino herself. She took a short while to observe the woman their fans loved and adored, not just for her voice and wacky antics, but for her ikemen charm as well. Little beads of sweat were still on her forehead, she was still wearing the outfit she wore as when they sang "Bokutachi wa Hitotsu no Hikari" and her eyes, like Kussun and the others', were a tad swollen from all the crying they did earlier. Kussun's heartbeat went erratic all of a sudden. She has long realized and accepted the fact that she was in love with her friend. Though...WHEN exactly did she start falling for her, she had no idea. Maybe it happened during their Radio Garden days. Maybe it started when they first met. Who knows? But just like any person who is in love with someone...she was afraid of the rejection that might be in store for her.
"Kussun, are you alright?" Nanjo asked her, worry etched on her features.
"Ah, I'm fine, Nan-chan. How are your knees?" She asked the older woman as she snapped out of her reverie.
"Heh...it doesn't hurt as much as I expected it to." Nanjo responded with a small smile.
"That's good." She said as she turned her gaze to the other members. They were still lost in their own little world. However, Kussun did notice both Emitsun and Ucchi giving her knowing looks. After all, they were the only ones who knew of her infatuation with Nanjo.
"What do you think it would've been like? If we never became successful?" Nanjo asked Kussun as she drank from her own bottle of water. Kussun frowned for a second; out of all the things she usually thinks of, it's those types of things that she doesn't really like thinking about.
"Our stories would be so different than it is now. We would've gone our own paths in life. Maybe we'll run into each other, maybe we won't. For me, I'm just glad we're right here, right now." Kussun answered with a small smile.
"That sounds like something Nozomi would say." Nanjo said with a smile of her own.
"Really? Well, your question sounds like something Elicchi would ask." Kussun said as she giggled. "Well, regardless, I don't want to think of a different story for my life. I don't want a story where I don't become a part of this and not have the chance to be with everyone. But...most of all...I don't want a story where I never get the chance to meet you, Nan-chan." She boldly stated. Kussun had no idea where her boldness was coming from. But it's there. She wondered if now was the moment to confess her love for Nanjo. Before she can change her mind and lose the courage to do so, she blurted it out.
"Nan-chan, I love you."
Nanjo dropped her still open water bottle upon hearing her words and slowly turned to face her. The others still haven't noticed that something was amiss between the two of them.
"I love you, Nan-chan. You don't have to answer me right away. Or ever. I just felt that I had to tell you. I'm sorry." Kussun said with tears in her eyes and a small smile on her face. Unable to take Nanjo's silence any longer, she immediately ran out of the changing room, leaving a dumbstruck Nanjo behind.
"Ugh...what? Who spilled their drink?" Soramaru, who was sitting on the floor, asked as the water from the fallen bottle streamed towards her. Finally, everyone noticed Nanjo.
"Nan-chan? Are you alright? Where's Kussun?" Mimorin asked her as she stood up and approached the petrified woman.
"She-she went out." She responded.
"Nan-chan, what's wrong?" Ucchi gently asked her. Nanjo shook her head and turned to the others. She did her best to look them in the eye, afraid that the blush on her face would be obvious if she did.
"I-uh-Kussun...she-she told me she loves me." Nanjo answered. The others let out a collective "Oooh" at the news.
"What did you say?" Pile asked her. Nanjo couldn't answer them; what could she have told Kussun? They took her silence as an answer to their question.
"Nan-chan, do you feel the same way?" Rippi asked her. Her question got Nanjo thinking. Does she feel the same way about Kussun? Well, she'd be lying if she said Kussun wasn't pretty. Nanjo liked a lot of things about her; her wackiness, her smile, the way she talked, amongst other things. Whenever they rehearsed and they had to get close together for a dance step, her heartbeat would go faster. Especially when they were rehearsing "Garasu no Hanazono" two years ago. Earlier, she felt her heart doing sprints faster than Usain Bolt when Kussun ran towards her on-stage just to glomp her during "Super Love, Super Live". But is that really enough to indicate that, yes, she is in love with Kussun?
"Yoshinon, I'm going to ask you something." Shikaco began before she continued speaking. "Can you imagine Kussun with someone else other than you? Can you imagine her with another person for the rest of her life? Someone who isn't you?"
Nanjo did try to imagine it; she tried to imagine Kussun with a faceless person, smiling and laughing. Nanjo tried to imagine her spending the rest of her days with them. Take note, the keyword here is 'TRIED', because the moment she did, she felt a sharp pain in her chest, like her heart was being gripped by a vice.
"I tried but...why does it hurt so much?" Nanjo asked.
"Because it means you love her and you're realizing it just now." Emitsun said with a wide smile.
"Go after her, Nan-chan. She couldn't have gotten far." Soramaru told her encouragingly. Immediately, Nanjo ran out of the changing room and around the place until she found herself outside the Tokyo Dome arena. The rain was still pouring quite a bit and somewhat soaked her dress.
'Heh...it's like the sky itself is crying for μ's.' She thought with a chuckle as she walked around, looking for Kussun. There weren't a lot of people left in the area now. Most likely they were looking for shelter from the rain.
"Kussun!" She called out in a moderate voice. Just as she turned around, she saw Kussun with her back turned towards her, standing a few meters away. Her dress was soaked from the rain and the slight shaking of her body was a tell tale sign that she was crying. Nanjo approached her and gently wrapped her arms around the younger woman's waist.
"Kussun." She gently called.
"Nan-chan, why did you follow me here? You'll catch a cold." Kussun remarked as she turned to face her.
"Kussun, there's something I have to tell you." Nanjo said as she took Kussun's hands into her own.
"Nan-chan, I told you; you don't have to answer me now. You-"
"Let me finish, please." Nanjo cut her off. When Kussun didn't say anything else, she continued "A lot of people often wonder how Eli and Nozomi's story ends. Everyone has their own variations. But you know how I think their story ends?"
Kussun shook her head in response and Nanjo continued as her hands slowly rubbed Kussun's arms to generate some warmth for her.
"It goes like this; they'll go to college with Nico-chan. Nozomi will take something related to filming or photography while Eli will either take something straight laced or creative. After a few years, they'll graduate. Then, they're going to live together. After a while, Eli will propose and they'll get married and live happily ever after for all of their days."
By now, Nanjo's hands have travelled up to Kussun's cheeks, tenderly caressing them.
"Have you ever wondered how OUR story ends, Kussun?" She asked.
"Nan-chan..." Kussun whispered as tears rolled down her cheeks.
"I don't know what the future holds but I want our story to end the same way of how I thought Eli and Nozomi's would. I want OUR story to end with you by my side every single day. I want our story to end with me waking up every day to the sound of your voice every morning since I'll probably wake up late because I spent the night playing video games again." Nanjo said with a smile. Kussun giggled at her last remark. It was true that Nanjo often stayed up late at night to play video games. Especially Final Fantasy.
"I want your sleeping face to be the last thing I see every night for the rest of my life, Kussun. Because I love you. I love you so much that I want to spend the rest of my life with you." She continued as she wiped the tears that were trailing down Kussun's cheeks.
"Kussun, if you'll have me, I'll do my best to make sure our story ends with a happily ever after. You would never have to wonder how our story ends ever again; because it's already written." She boldly declared with a tender smile.
"Nan-chan, of course I'll have you, Nan-chan!" Kussun happily answered as she threw her arms around the older woman. As they embraced in the rain, Nanjo's eyes widened at what she saw; it was a tall blonde girl with blue eyes and exotic features. She wore a blue school uniform and she held a light blue cyalume. The girl beside her wore the same uniform and she had gentle Japanese features. She had tender green eyes and her purple hair was tied into two ponytails and she was holding a purple cyalume. The two girls smiled at them before taking each other's hands and walking away into the distant crowd, waving their cyalumes around like children before completely disappearing like ghosts. Nanjo smiled as she and Kussun separated.
"Nan-chan, I love you." Kussun whispered with a smile and tears of joy ran down her face.
"I love you too, Kussun." Nanjo replied as she gently wiped the tears away. She leaned towards the slightly taller woman and Kussun met her halfway, their lips confirming their love with a kiss. As they kissed, they thought of the same thing.
'Thank you, Eli and Nozomi, for bringing us to each other. Please continue to watch over us. Please take care of us and our love.'
They never have to wonder how their story will end anymore...
This next storybook in my life...shall be written with you by my side...
~FIN~
AN: WHAT THE FUCK? WHAT THE FUCK DID I JUST WRITE? I swear to God, this thing has more cheese than a Roman Pizza and an Italian Pasta combined! I have never written anything as cheesy as this one.
Anyway, standard rules apply; no reviews or more positive reviews means this story stays on the archive. An abundance of negative reviews, however, and this story gets taken off the archive. So leave your reviews at the door. I would greatly appreciate them.
Firework out!