HAH. YOU WILL BE CONTAINED FOR AN OPENING MESSAGE.
This was also done for a Winter Contest for FANART (including fanfic) on DA for the group Gakupo-Loves-Luka.
SO DO EEEEEEET. It's all winter themed, and the link to the group is here: http:/gakupo-loves-luka (dot) deviantart (dot) com/
On New Year's Eve, Luka sat alone, curled up on her couch inside her comfortably warm apartment. Everyone's probably having a great time, she thought miserably, glancing out the window, through which she could see pretty white flakes lazily drifting downward. She adored how the light of the street lights was diffused by the white that was all around. Normally, she'd have loved to venture out into the chilly weather and fully enjoy the wintry scenery.
Her stomach rolled, as if to remind her why she wasn't going out tonight, and she stumbled to her feet to head to the bathroom. Gagging fruitlessly into the toilet, Luka knelt there shivering for a few moments and then mechanically flushed, though nothing had come out of her body.
On this New Years Eve, Luka was sick with the flu.
Tiredly, the pinkette wandered back to the couch, her expression wistful and exhausted all at once. Her hair had been tied back into a loose bun, and the normally stunning woman currently looked far less than her best. Her face was pale and she looked drained. She wore plaid flannel pajamas – Luka cared very little for how her pajamas looked, as long as they were comfortable and kept her warm.
The woman settled herself on the couch, stared dismally at the cold tea which her body had rejected earlier and tugged a thick, fuzzy blanket over her body, looking pathetic. There was nothing worse than being sick on a holiday, and Luka hated being sick in general. Being in poor health made her feel uncomfortably weak. Besides that, illnesses didn't often affect her. When they did, though, they hit her hard. Generally this left her alternating between two emotions – somewhat depressed and extremely annoyed with the world.
Groaning, she shifted to a slightly more comfortable position. She was watching the New Year's program, but it was a sorry replacement for actually being there to enjoy it herself. The others would be there, and she envied them deeply for it. She'd give anything to be out to participate in the festivities.
Just as she seemed to get totally satisfactory position, she heard something strike her window with a wet thud. Her head turned quickly towards the sound, and she saw a splatter of mushy white that remained stuck to the glass. Frowning, she slowly pulled herself to her feet and gazed past the thing she suspected was a snowball and outside. Through what little of the window that was clear, she could make out that someone was on the streets below – past the fire escape, it was hard to tell much more about said mystery person.
Who the hell would throw snowball at my window at this hour of the night? She thought, glancing at the analogue clock on her wall, which read that it was three minutes after eleven. Her emotions were somewhere between feeling deeply irritated at this unknown person and extremely curious as to whom they were.
Without really thinking, Luka swung her window open and stuck her head outside, wrinkling her nose and shivering at the sudden rush of cold air. Should have thought and put a jacket on, she told herself, scanning the street just as another snowball sailed beautifully to land smack dab in her face. This attack was accompanied by several surprised warnings from a definitively male voice.
Spluttering and cursing, the woman shook off the chilly projectile. Vaguely, she realized she knew that voice, and by the time she was done removing most of the snow, she shouted, despite the fact that her throat was sore, "Gakupo, you moron!"
A particularly startled male clambered up the fire escape, spouting apologies as he went, assuring her that she had not been his target and that he had just been trying to get her attention. Soon, the tall, handsome purple-haired man was wiping snow from her face with his thumbs, still muttering profusely, trying with all his might to soothe any anger he imagined she might feel. His hands clutched her face, and she couldn't help but to giggle a little at his worried manner.
"Calm down, idiot," she whispered teasingly, touching his gloved hand gently with her own. She then tugged at the tassels on his terrible black and white striped knit flap-hat to ensure he was paying full attention to her. "No harm, no foul. I'm just a little colder for it." He ceased his contrite mumblings, and studied her carefully, trying to assess whether or not she was actually as fine as she said she was.
Gakupo tended to be painfully careful with her, and lived with the fear that she would get tired of his somewhat childlike ways. He'd worked hard to win her, and whenever he accidentally did something that seemed to mess things up, he was the first to apologize for it. In his mind, the most terrifying thought he could conjure was her leaving him because he did something stupid.
Yet still she stayed. And he felt so unbearably happy when he made her smile. The fear was worth it, though it certainly left him feeling weak in the heart sometimes.
At that moment, Luka was considering her own stubbornness with him at the beginning of their relationship. She struggled to remember why that was, though they had met after a break-up that had been particularly traumatizing for her. At every turn, she had pushed away his charming antics, the eggplant dishes left at her door and sincere words. Thank goodness I finally let my own stupidity go, she thought.
Now, every time she saw his face, she counted herself lucky for having him in her life. They'd been together for two years, and they had been two excellent years. Smiling, she noticed the way he was leaning forward to kiss her, but she jerked away.
"Why are you here?" she asked suddenly, sharply. Pulling away from the window, she retreated to the couch. Carefully, he slid inside the window, watching her. As he closed it, he wondered why it was that his Luka looked so worn, though that was not entirely what made him worry. Her running also concerned him, but he didn't know that she didn't want to give him her flu... "I mean, shouldn't you be with everyone else?" she said, trying to be delicate.
He shrugged, approaching her carefully. "You weren't there, so I assumed you must be here. I'd hoped I could tempt you to come out." He grinned boyishly at her, and she felt her heart flutter. She loved how his smile always reached his eyes.
Shuffling her feet on the ground, she looked quickly at the floor. She couldn't lose her resolve, and she would if she looked at his smile for too long. Luka already knew that if she told Gakupo she was sick, he'd stay and she didn't relish the idea of him being ill; he hated it even more than she did.
Attempting to sound casual, Gakupo said, "Luka… what's up? Why aren't you out and about? I know New Year's is one of your favorite holidays." He was getting close, reaching for her hands, but she pulled away. He stopped when she did that, freezing in his tracks. The dread flickered to life in his breast, clutching his heart.
It's finally happening, he thought, looking at the ground. Internal panic made him want to run around and flail his arms like a madman, but he took a few deep breaths instead. If she chose to leave, and that was what made her happy, that was what he would let her do. If you truly loved someone, you can let them go when they want to go. Unhappily, he looked back up at her. "I'll leave, if you want."
Luka would have been pleased that he was leaving on his own, but there was something wrong about how he was saying it. She moved closer, though she stood a safe foot away from him. "What do you mean by 'leave'?" she queried gently, testing the waters. She wanted to know exactly what he meant before she let him go.
Sighing with deep displeasure, he said, simply and flatly, "Well… it seems pretty obvious that you don't want to be with me. You won't let me get too close. And we haven't talked since this morning, and you sounded so unhappy and then you just hung up." His speaking voice was picking up in speed, denoting the hysteria which boiled in his mind.
Luka remembered that call. At that time she had been frustrated at being ill and had hung up abruptly by accident when she had needed to throw up. Frowning at him, she opened her mouth to say that he was a huge imbecile, but he cut her off. "No need for words. Just know that I love you, and because of that… I'll let you go." He looked at her, the force of his words reading clearly in his depressed-looking eyes. "I'd better get going," he finished hollowly, with a hoarse edge to his voice.
He began to move out of the apartment, and she found herself amused and annoyed at the way he had rushed to conclusion. However, these emotions soon morphed into fear as Luka realized that he was perfectly serious and that this was him leaving her so that she could 'be happy'. His back turned, she mentally said, To hell with it, and ran up behind him, wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her head on his back, which was still a little damp from snow.
"What kind of paranoid idiot logic is that? You can be such a nitwit," the pinkette mumbled into his stiffened back. "I wasn't being cold because I want to break up with you." She tugged him around so that he had to look into her pale, smiling face. He looked at her warily, and she shook her head. "You're really dumb, sometimes, you know that, right? I've got the flu… and I didn't want you to catch it, because I know you loathe getting sick," she muttered the last part, with a smirk.
The last time the man had gotten ill, he'd sat in a corner miserably the whole time. It had taken quite a lot to get him out of that corner, and she didn't relish a repeat experience. Although, she admitted to herself, His sullen, broody-face is kind of adorable.
He stood there linking, and she watched him process the information slowly. Finally, Gakupo let out a rush of air, and then beamed. All of his sadness and fear was let out in that exhalation, and he relaxed. "Why didn't you just say so?" He said, pulling her close, fully enveloping her in his arms. "Luka, I got my flu shots months ago. Didn't you get yours?" he asked, releasing her so that he could feel her forehead, which was still a little too warm.
She flushed. "… I don't like needles. You know that." He laughed at her, and then kissed her on the forehead. "Besides, if you had known I was sick, you would have stayed to take care of me and then could have gotten sick too and then…" He placed a finger on her lips, silencing her babbling. Silently, they admitted that they both had done something incredibly stupid, and that was all that was needed.
"Love, I'd weather a thousand illnesses for you," he whispered, smiling gently.
Luka laughed heartily at him, and then coughed. Finally, she managed to say, "That's a cheesy line." She snuggled close to his chest, secretly glad for the company though she still worried about his getting ill. Too late to deter him now, she thought without a hint of regret.
"Indeed." Gakupo agreed cheerily, his chin resting on her head and a goofy, pleased grin on his face. "It sounded better in my head. But it doesn't make it any less true." With this said, he shifted so as to look at her. "Now, let's get you onto the couch. You're to get better, you hear me?" Luka groaned. God, how she loathed being taken care of, though she'd tolerate it better from Gakupo than anyone else. "No protesting!" Gakupo declared, sweeping her off her feet, to which she squeaked in surprised response.
Gleefully, he sat himself down on the couch, with Luka still in his arms. By this time, she was glaring at him. "Was that really necessary?" she asked, as he pulled blankets on top of them.
He shot her an innocent grin. "Of course," the man replied without missing a beat. Luka sighed in a resigned manner and rolled her eyes at him, a grin firmly stuck on her face.
"You're lucky I love you," she muttered sulkily, though she soon found herself comfortably wedged under his arm, leaning on his chest while he held her close. "Take off your coat, goof," she said, as they watched the New Year's show. Meekly, he did as he was told, tossing the coat, his gloves, hat and boots into a corner where they would be unobtrusive. Normally, Luka would have scolded him, but for now, she really didn't care. She knew he'd clean it up later, when she wasn't leaning on him.
Feeling warm, content and happy, despite her illness, Luka watched the countdown with half-open eyes. A long day with the flu was finally starting to show how it had worn her down. With Gakupo there as a kind of soothing presence, she was ready to simply drift away into oblivion. However, as the crowd ecstatically reached the 'FIVE!' before the New Year, Gakupo reached inside his pant pocket.
He clutched a little black velvet box in his hands as though it was deeply important, but Luka was either too enrapt in the television or too tired to notice. The man glanced at her, and then took a deep breath. Now, or never, Gakupo thought, smiling. This was what he wanted, and now, he'd ask her if this was what she wanted too.
The purple-haired man moved so that he could more easily look her in the eyes, which was what caught her attention. He had to admit, he'd imagined doing this a little more romantically. The plan had been to do it while at the New Year's Celebration, at midnight, and he'd even planned a musical number with the other Vocaloids… but this would do. Her beautiful blue eyes locked on his face, and he knew that, even though this was not as he had thought it would be, that he couldn't wait any longer.
"Luka… I planned a big, long romantic song…" Gakupo started, unsure of what to say. For once his cheesy lines deserted him. 'THREE!" the crowd shouted enthusiastically. "And a dance number…" 'TWO!" they bellowed. "But… the heart of the matter is…"
'ONE!' the crowd declared bombastically, as they erupted into cheers over the new year.
"I love you, utterly and completely, and want to be with you for the rest of my life... Will you marry me?" the man asked, grinning at her, utterly exposed and feeling a bit sheepish. He loved her, and was mind-numbingly terrified she would say no.
The pinkette was unsure of how to respond, her expression one of surprise. Any sound from the television had become nothing more than vague background noise. Certainty and uncertainty mingled inside of her, but despite of both, she somehow knew exactly what she wanted. A wide, pleased grin crossed her face.
"Yes," she said, somewhat breathlessly, joy making butterflies in her stomach. "Yes."