What She Means to Me
Note: Here's the first of many one-shot stories that I've come up with. It may not be every week, but be sure to check every Saturday for these days will be devoted for short stories. I hope you guys enjoy.
It was the first day of Kanmusu training and the battleships were all lined up ready to go. Among those girls was Mutsu. She was a newcomer so all of this was pretty new to her. She wasn't sure of what to expect, but she did know that one day, she would be among those girls who would fight for control of the seas. Ever since she became of age, she always wanted to be a fleet girl and now, she's finally having that opportunity.
Unfortunately, things weren't going according to plan. In the classroom, she was very talented. She understood everything that was taught and could figure out everything she was asked. The mechanics of the sailing shoes, technique for firing the cannons; everything made sense. When it came to battle plans, she was superb. She saw patterns in strays in every playout she was given. As time went on, she was starting to truly believe she was a fleet girl in heart. When the day came for them to take to the seas, things got a little different.
Although she understood the mechanics of the sailing shoes, putting them into real time was hard. She could barely stay standing for more than a few seconds while the other girls were doing like they were on normal ground. She didn't understand why. She learned everything in the classroom and yet, it wasn't working out on the water.
With every mistake, most of the girls would laugh and make fun of her. It was hard for to shake it off because this made her the center of attention. The more she was laughed at, the more it made her feel inferior about it all. If she couldn't do here, than there was no way she could do it in a real battle. But suddenly, out of nowhere, she looked up to see a girl with her hand stuck out towards her. Immediately, this caught her attention. She had long, black hair and was the prettiest thing she's ever seen.
"Come on. Try again." Her voice was rather deep for a girl, but she ignored that fact. She took her hand and the other one brought her onto her feet. "Don't treat this like you're trying to walk on water. Just think of it as a smooth walk. Flow with the water and your body will do the rest."
"Thank you." Mutsu was unaware of it, but she was still holding onto the other girl's hand. "Um, what's your name?"
"Nagato." Nagato. What a strong name for such a strong girl. They suddenly broke hands as Nagato left and continued with the training. Mutsu kept all of that in her head as she attempted to try it out. It didn't go very well, but she did manage to spot some improvement. She stayed up longer than before which was a plus.
Once when they're training sessions were over, she continued to train. She stayed out in the water and kept at it. Nagato's advice seemed so simple, but it was a struggle to try and follow it. The longer she stay out there, the harder it seemed. After about a dozen tries, she ends up falling towards the water again, but this time, someone was there to stop her before she could. It was Nagato.
"Don't work yourself too hard."
"But I can't do and I don't want to fall behind."
"Don't worry about that. I'll help you during the training times. We're all fleet girls and we need to help each other out." There was a sudden skip in Mutsu's heart. This girl: She was the prime example of a fleet girl. She was strong, smart, and caring. Mutsu thought that only actual fleet girls were like this, but apparently, there was already one right in front of her.
For the next month, they continued to train together. It took Mutsu a while to finally understand the real mechanics of staying on her feet, but when she got it, she got. She was out sailing everyone almost as if she's been doing it her whole life.
She ended up learning just in time for the firing work. They were all given cannons and that's what started their target practice. Here was where she excelled again. Without having to worry about staying on her feet, she was able to concentrate on hitting her target. Every time she shot, it was perfect shot. Even Nagato wasn't shooting as good as her. However, Mutsu still looked to her for advice. Although her shots were good, her technique wasn't so good. This was where Nagato outshined her. Her movements were clean without any extra energy wasted. She quickly asked for advice and Nagato was willing to help out.
The more time she spent with Nagato made her feel like she was doing something right. She was constantly learning while being around someone who was an inspiration to her. She also couldn't help but stare at her while she did her rounds. Her long hair flowed through the wind. She long legs extended out with perfect vigor and her beautiful face was so determined. She couldn't get over it. This girl was perfect.
After some time, eligibility tests took place. This was where the high-end officers would observe the hopefuls in search of more fleet girls for the main fleet. Unfortunately, the results weren't looking too good. Most of the girls were making horrible mistakes which caused their instructors to bow their heads in shame. It wasn't until Nagato went when things started to turn around. She sailed marvelously and her shooting was sensational. She immediately caught the attention of the officers to where they talked to her in private. When it was Mutsu's turn to go, she was a little nervous, but right as she stepped into the water, she looked over at Nagato and saw her giving her a wink. That sparked something in her to sail like nothing anyone's ever seen. When her test was over, the officers called her over and gave her the same talk Nagato received. Once they left, another man came over and talked to the two of them. It was the Admiral.
"You two are spectacular." It was hard to give him a response since everyone made it seem like he was some kind of ghost who never showed his face. "Have you always been training with the Battleship Class?" They nodded their heads like morons. "Well, recently, I've been in need of some secretary ships. Would you two be interested in taking over that position?" Out of nowhere, their faces lit up like children on Christmas.
"Yes, we'd love to."
"Really? Fantastic. I will come by tomorrow and take you to our main headquarters. I'm very proud of you ladies." With that, he disappeared from sight. Once he left, they turned towards each other with their jaws on the floor.
"We… We did it."
"Yeah, we did!" Mutsu jumped right at Nagato and wrapped her arms around her. However, the weirdest thing happened. Mutsu went in for a hug, but when it happened, she opened her eyes to see Nagato kissing her on the lips. After a few seconds, they broke into an awkward silence.
"What… What was that for?"
"I'm sorry. It's just that… I've never had someone to care for and you've been kind of like that towards me. I'm sorry. I'm just being weird." Out of nowhere, Mutsu grabbed her hand and looked her in the eye.
"It's okay. I've never had someone who cared about me like the way you did. If you weren't here, I definitely wouldn't have passed. Thank you." All of a sudden, Mutsu started to lean in closer to her when…
…
Beep! Beep! Beep! Click.
Mutsu swung her arm over her bed and turned off her alarm clock. She slowly opened her eyes and saw that it was another day on the mainland. As she tried stretching out both of her arms, something was stopping her. She looked down to see Nagato sleeping in her chest. Immediately, a smile appeared on her face and she wrapped her arms around her body and kissed her on the forehead. This soft touch was enough to wake her up from her sleep. She slowly cracked open her see Mutsu looking at her with a bright smile on her face.
"Good morning. What are you so happy about?"
"Oh nothing. I just a really great dream." Nagato kicked her legs out from the bed and placed them on the floor.
"Yeah? What was it about?" Mutsu sat up and smirked right at her.
"It was the first time you kissed me." Suddenly, Nagato jumped a little bit. Her face shot bright red, but she managed to keep it hidden from Mutsu. "You remember that day, don't you?" Nagato was afraid to answer. Of course she remembered that day. She just knew that Mutsu was teasing her at this point. She suddenly came up from behind her and wrapped her arms around her waist. "You don't remember that day?" She had to answer her now or else Mutsu would start to cry and that was one thing she didn't want to see.
"Of course I do. That was the day we got drafted into the fleet." There was a silence. "What? That was the day, right?" Mutsu realized her hold on Nagato and turned around in silence. Nagato saw her turn towards the other side of the room and wondered what was going on. "Mutsu, what's wrong?"
"That wasn't the answer I was looking for." It took Nagato a few seconds to figure out what Mutsu was really talking about. When she did, her face returned to its bright red color and she clenched her fists. Mutsu, you're horrible person. She climbed onto the bed and turned Mutsu's face towards her.
"That was the day I confessed my love to you, right?"
"It was a unique of confessing, but yeah, you did," she said with a smile. Then, Nagato leaned in and kissed her on the lips.
"I could never forget that day. That was day I met my Mutsu. Now, come on, the Admiral wants to see us at HQ." Nagato climbed off the bed and started to get ready. Meawhile, Mutsu watched her walk towards the bathroom with just a shirt on. A smile appeared on her face as she closed her eyes.
I love you Nagato. You're my Nagato. When she opened her eyes, she saw Nagato right in front of her with clothes on and everything. She leaned over and kissed her again.
"Hurry up, we can't be late." She turned around and walked out of their room in a hurry. That's when Mutsu sighed and stood up.
She never changes.
The End