Greetings, readers! ^^ So this here is my first attempt at a Songfic! It's not quite as good as my other works, but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless! And for anyone who doesn't know, the song used is "In the Wee, Small Hours of the Morning." Specifically, the New York Voices arrangement. (It's a jazz thing. ;D)
~Manake
"In the wee, small hours of the morning, while the whole wide world is fast asleep..."
Celty looked over at the clock next to her bed. The luminous, red numbers displayed 5:02 a.m. – much too early for anyone else to be awake. Ikebukuro seemed like it would be a busy city no matter what time of day or night, but after around three a.m., things started quieting down a bit. People went home to their beds and settled in for some well deserved sleep. Everyone else was asleep, except for the Dullahan. Something was keeping her awake.
"You lie awake and think about the boy, and never, ever think of counting sheep."
No, not just something – someone. Someone who's tall, strong, and handsome, with bleach-blonde hair and deep, brown eyes. Someone with a kind smile despite his hard demeanor. Someone she considered her best friend in the world, yet held stronger feelings for as of recently. And she knew Shizuo felt the same way. Celty tossed and turned in her bed, trying to fall asleep, but found no success. With a frustrated huff, she threw the covers off of her and strode to the balcony just outside her bedroom. She leaned against the railing and looked out at the city – her city. The sun was starting to rise, but had not yet peeked over the horizon, so everything was bathed in a light blue tint. Street lights remained lit for a short time more, then flickered out one by one. Very rarely did the Dullahan get to see Ikebukuro so still and so quiet, but she had to admit it was very peaceful. Beautiful, even. Her restless mind wandered back to the blonde bodyguard, wondering what he was doing right now. He was probably asleep, too, like the rest of the city.
"When your lonely heart has learned its lesson..."
Celty felt like she was the only soul awake right now. She almost felt lonely thinking about it. She began to think back to the previous evening, when she had spoken to Shizuo last. She had brought up casually in their conversation that things were going somewhat downhill for her and Shinra, to which Shizuo merely apologized. Celty thanked him, thinking nothing of it. After a moment, Shizuo thought it appropriate to voice his true feelings for Celty. He confessed that for some time, he had actually been in love with her, but never knew how to say it. The Dullahan became confused, since her feelings for Shinra hadn't quite faded yet. Granted, she felt more than friendship toward Shizuo, but loving Shinra was practically all she knew at that point. She decided it would be best to go home and sleep on it, needing some time to think things through. Before she left, however, Shizuo said that he would wait forever if necessary, which made the Dullahan feel reassured. When Celty got back to the apartment that night, she and Shinra got into a minor disagreement about some trivial thing, which turned into a full blown argument over her head. When she went to bed, she knew her decision had been made – she was choosing Shizuo.
"You'd be his, if only he would call."
However, she was still feeling conflicted over Shinra. Celty was hoping that maybe a nice long talk with her best friend would aid in her decision, but he never called or texted or anything. Now her mind was racing, and her heart was fighting to make the most ultimate choice it could make at this moment in time. Celty felt that she knew what she wanted, but had no idea how to follow through. She was scared. She didn't want to lose either of the two men she cared about, but knew that only one could have her heart in the end.
"In the wee, small hours of the morning, that's the time you miss him most of all."
The headless faerie stood pondering for a good while, as the sun finally shone its first golden rays over the city. Finally, her mind was made up. She sighed contently and slipped back inside, sliding the glass door shut behind her. When she laid back down in her bed, she reached for her PDA and instantly opened her pictures. She clicked on the one good picture of Shizuo she had stored, and just stared at it. Shizuo had no idea she had the picture, or even that she had taken it. Celty knew the blonde hated having his picture taken, but wanted to have one anyway. So, she snapped a candid shot of him while he was completely unaware. He was standing beneath a tree in the park, leaning against the trunk; his face was turned toward the sky and a genuine, calm smile stretched across his lips; a few rays of sunlight peered through the leaves and illuminated a few spots on his body; most importantly though, he had no cigarette in his hand. Celty hated that habit of his, and was quite relieved when she was able to capture such a perfect shot of him and not have the cigarette ruin the effect of the whole thing. If Celty had lips, they would be smiling. If she had cheeks and flowing blood, she would be blushing. If she had a heart, it would be fluttering. She hoped with all of her might that he would call her tomorrow. But if not, then she would have to go see him herself. For now, she would let him sleep, and hopefully have a sweet dream of her own.