"Rain is the most beautiful thing in the world…"
Lelouch stood beside the bus stop with the umbrella wide open in his hand. He could feel the raindrops falling and dripping down from the umbrella's edges. The sounds of rain were beautiful and the smell of the fresh earth was breathtaking. Lelouch couldn't help taking in deep breaths.
"Beautiful, isn't it?"
A soft voice sounded and Lelouch looked over. The girl was standing three feet from him. Her long, shiny green locks were tied into a loose bun this evening. Her bright golden orbs peeked out from underneath the long, styled bangs. Her pink umbrella was held in her hand, and a small smile was gracing her beautiful features.
"Yes, it is," he replied softly, smiling back at her. "Nice to meet you again, C.C."
The girl turned back to staring at the softly falling raindrops. Her eyes carefully studied their movements.
"Such a tragic that we only get to meet on rainy days like this?" she asked without looking at him.
Lelouch's eyes went back to the rain without his realizing. "I wouldn't say that," he said, "it's fortunate enough that we get to meet at all."
She chuckled. "I suppose. However it'd be nicer if we could meet more often."
"One can only hope."
"One can only dream."
The bus came.
"I'll see you tomorrow, C.C.?" Lelouch asked while folding his umbrella.
She smiled slightly. "If it rains."
o
It rained again today.
Lelouch took out his lunch box and went to the cafeteria. He saw his colleagues everywhere, all in pristine white coats, laughing and talking. Some saw him and waved at him; he politely waved back but quickly excused himself.
Noise had always bothered him so he retreated back to a small room at the back of the common kitchen and ate there quietly.
Milly came in to make a cup of coffee and saw him.
"Lelouch," she said, crossing her arms at the sight. "Not again. Why don't you ever eat with us?"
He only smiled. "I like a quiet lunch. Please don't worry about me."
She shook her head, went on making her coffee and just before she exited the room, she turned around to face him. He looked up at her expectantly and she said hesitantly, "You're not alone, Lelouch. We're here for you, always."
"I know."
o
"How's work?" C.C. asked that evening.
They were standing in their usual spots. The rain was persistent but they both liked it. The smell of the fresh earth that signified life always amazed them.
"The usual," Lelouch answered. "I had a couple come in today talking about their fertility problem."
"They can't conceive?"
"Unlikely. I've recommended a treatment but the husband didn't seem too happy."
C.C. blinked. "How so? Doesn't he want a child?"
Lelouch's eyes never left the scenery before him as he spoke, "He does but he wants it done the natural way. Not some life being artificially created in the lab."
"That's what he told you?"
He let out a soft chuckle. "He didn't have to. It was all written on his face. The wife seemed genuinely interested, though."
"Of course." C.C. chuckled.
The sounds of raindrops filled the comfortable silence between them.
"Lelouch," C.C. began.
"Yes?"
"Maybe… maybe it's…"
The bus came. Lelouch folded his umbrella.
"Don't say that, C.C.," he said firmly. "I'll see you tomorrow?"
"If it rains."
o
It wasn't raining today.
It was sunny and humid.
"Crazy weather," mumbled Lelouch as he walked to the bus stop from his apartment complex.
Looking up at the bright, cloudless skies, he prayed that rain would come back soon.
He got a call from Shirley during break.
"Hello?"
"Lelouch? Ah, are you free tonight?" she asked excitedly into the phone.
It's not raining and it won't randomly start…
"Yes I am. My shift ends at five," he said.
"Great!" He could feel her excitement sip through the phone. "Euphie's throwing a party at her house and we're invited! Of course, right?" She laughed. "So I just wanted to check with your schedule first before giving her a final answer."
"Count us in," he said, smiling slightly.
"Great! I'll see you later, Lelouch." And she hung up.
Lelouch tilted his head backward, letting it rest against the back of his chair and closed his eyes.
That night at the party, Lelouch had a strange experience of OBE. He felt like he was walking around Suzaku and Euphie's house unnoticed by everyone. Then, he saw himself holding a glass of white wine, his face blank and emotionless. Then, he saw himself staring out the window hoping to see raindrops battering against the glass-paned window.
o
It never rained that day.
Neither did it the next day or the day after.
Lelouch was standing by the bus stop in the evening. It was a hard day at work. He had a lot of patients and his mind was constantly working that he didn't realize how exhausted he was until his shift ended.
Now, standing here alone staring out at the dry street, he felt like the world had deserted him. He felt alone and lonely.
His phone rang at that moment. He glanced down, saw it was Suzaku, wiped it and brought it up to his ear.
"Hello?"
"Lelouch, you're free tonight? Want to go for a drink?"
The rain season probably ended…
"Sure, why not? What's the time and place?"
o
His prayers were returned. It rained today.
Waking up to the sounds of raindrops beating softly against his window, Lelouch felt joy as though it was the very first time he'd experienced such a feeling.
Rain is the most beautiful thing in the world…
He didn't wait. Instead of taking the usual bus route to get to his workplace, he decided to take a detour and went to the bus stop that picked him up in the evening.
She was there, holding a pink umbrella. Her long hair cascaded down to the small of her back and she looked up at the sounds of his footfalls.
"Morning, C.C.," he said gently, stopping a few feet from her.
"Lelouch." She nodded then quirked up an eyebrow. "I didn't know you would be here in the morning," she stated.
He shrugged his slender shoulders. "There's this route that I want to try out. It's a little detour but I'll be fine. I have time."
"Is that so?" She chuckled. "Lelouch, you must be really popular with the nurses in your hospital, heh?"
"Well, I never notice, to be honest."
"Should I believe that?" She turned to look at him and the lovely smirk was there. He couldn't help smiling back.
"It's the truth, I promise."
"Does that mean you already have a certain someone or you're just that oblivious?"
"I am… Well, I… It's complicated."
"Lelouch…" Her eyes showed neutrality but he knew the turmoil within was tormenting her.
"It's fine, really," he said quickly. "I don't mind. It's whatever. I don't really care."
"But that's not up to you-"
The bus came. Lelouch folded his umbrella.
"I'll see you later?" he asked before stepping on.
"Yeah, later," she replied quietly. The umbrella's edge shielded her eyes away.
o
The next day, it also rained.
Beautiful, beautiful rain…
Lelouch got a call from Shirley during break.
"Shirley?"
"Lelouch, please tell me you're free after work? I have this important meeting coming up with the advisors and I need to pick up a cake for my mother's birthday. Can you please pick it up for me?"
"Sure. Same place?"
She giggled. "Yes, same place. You are honestly the best boyfriend ever, Lelouch. Did I ever tell you that?" She laughed.
o
"Isn't this kind of late?" C.C. asked her companion. "The bus stopped coming."
"I know," said Lelouch. They were the only ones there. His dark umbrella and her pink one were the only colors in the area at that moment. The sounds of raindrops were music to their ears.
"What are you doing here?" she asked quietly.
"Talking to you," he replied.
"Wouldn't your girlfriend be worried?"
He took in a deep breath. "You know about her." It didn't sound like a question.
C.C. nodded. "Of course. I was surprised when you didn't want to admit it this morning."
"Like I said, I don't care. It doesn't matter."
"Lelouch, that's not something you should say about your relationship."
He turned to look at her. His bright violet orbs bore into her illuminating golden ones and their gaze was held steadily.
"This is the relationship I care about. You are the one I care about. She's just… just…"
"A person to fill the void." C.C.'s voice cracked a bit and he looked away.
Suddenly, Lelouch felt someone touching his arm. Glancing down, he saw she had closed the gap between them. Now, they were standing so close that if he bent down he could have kissed her.
C.C. had her hand gently placed on his arm. Her eyes were glued to his and her lips parted slightly.
"Lelouch, what do you remember from five years ago? Right here on this very street, near this very bus stop, under this beautiful rain?"
Just like that, with a blink of an eye, he was pulled back in time, back into the gallery of painful memories.
She was saying something. Her mouth was moving. Her rosy pink lips were parting and closing.
They were standing near the bus stop waiting for the last bus to come. Their arms were intertwined. Their bodies were so close as if glued together. Their laughter filled the air.
Raindrops... raindrops… Beautiful raindrops falling from the skies…
The wind picked up.
She had a bad habit of holding her pink umbrella loosely. A strong gust of wind blew by, blowing the umbrella away from her grip.
Reflex and instinct kicked in. She turned on her heels and ran after it.
He shouted for her to stop because he saw it before she did.
The rain kept falling. The headlights flashed.
He threw away his own dark umbrella and ran after her, hoping to pull her back in time.
He couldn't.
The raindrops on the street didn't only have its natural color that day; there was a mix of red in them. A lot of red…
"Lelouch," she was speaking and he was looking at her through a haze, through a curtain of tears. "I'm dead."
Reaching up with both hands, the umbrella falling onto the pavement, she tenderly grabbed both sides of his head and titled it down so that she was looking directly into his eyes. "I'm all in your head, Lelouch. I'm not real. You can only see me on rainy days because that's when I died, but you have to let me go, Lelouch," she said quietly. Closing her eyes, she whispered on his lips. "Set me free, please."
Before he could open his mouth to reply, another warm hand touched his cheek.
A gasp of surprise escaped his lips as he jerked back slightly in surprise.
"S-Shirley…" he said.
The orange-haired girl looked wet from head to toe. She didn't have an umbrella with her and it was obvious that she'd been out looking for him.
"Lelouch, are you okay?" she asked concernedly. "I went home but didn't see you. I saw the cake but you were nowhere in sight, so I got worried. You didn't even answer your phone!"
She glanced around. "What are you doing here at this hour, Lelouch? I thought the bus service stopped after seven?"
Lelouch blinked, shook his head and then smacked himself slightly on the forehead. "Oh silly me!" he said, half chuckling. "I forgot that. I thought it ended at eight. No wonder no one is coming."
"You must be really tired from working so much," she said, heaving a small sigh. Then weaving her arm into his, she looked up at him with those smiling eyes and said, "Let's get you home, my love."
As they were leaving, Lelouch turned around one last time and caught the silhouette of a girl he once loved deeply. She was standing by the bus stop with the pink umbrella looking at the retreating backs of the couple.
A small smile tugged at the corner of Lelouch's lips.
Until the next time it rains, C.C.
-fin-
disclaimer: I don't own Code Geass.
Thank you for reading!