What Kira Sees
It scared her when he left for the track. The thought of his life incessantly threatened, by the very thing he loved, sent chills down her spine. Nevertheless, she supposed that was simply the way of love- it was as dangerous as it was thrilling, as vulnerable as it was strong.
Kira tightened her hold on his waist, burying her face into his chest and inhaling deeply. The strong, repugnant scents of sweat and gasoline engulfed her, wrapping her entire body in warmth and comfort. Though other girls would find his scent revolting, she loved it- as down to earth and real as the feeling of sand between her toes while running across the beach. No matter what happened, she would always remember his scent.
"Kira?" His voice held a hint of surprise, and his hand stroked her hair. Since their marriage six months ago, she had watched him soften like butter, every day another wound healed, a new talent discovered. Tears stung her eyes, and she blinked them away. This was no time to cry, it was a time to rejoice- she was so proud of him.
"Kira!" His voice sounded anxious now. She looked up through blurry eyes at his pale, blond-crowned face, staring down at her in concern. Smiling, she whispered, "I'm fine."
He raised a finger to stroke her cheek, smearing her tears across her skin. A blush crept across her cheeks from the heat of his finger, and he shook his head, sighing. "What do you see in me?" he asked.
Biting back a smile, she said sombrely, "Certainly not your looks." The shock that spread across his features was so hilarious that she choked back a giggle. "I'm kidding!" she laughed, rising on her tiptoes to kiss his cheek. He turned his head, stealing a kiss from her lips before grinning cheekily, as she flushed and stammered like an adolescent.
"That's what you get for joking around with me," he said.
Her eyes sparkled. "Perhaps I should joke around more often," she mused, before flushing again and ducking her head shyly. Rei grinned, holding her tightly, not so willing anymore to let her go.
"You know," he said thoughtfully, lounging against the doorframe of the house, the open door smattering on its hinges beside him, "I never thought we'd end up here."
"What, married?" Kira asked curiously.
"No…" Rei said slowly, searching for words, "Together."
Kira didn't want to dwell on that. Life without Rei would be like living without art- it would be impossible to breathe, to speak, to laugh. Rei- he was her living, walking piece of art, personifying everything she loved. "It was God's will," she said simply. "We were destined for each other."
Rei shook his head. "I still don't know how I ever deserved you," he said.
"You don't. But I don't deserve you either. But love doesn't care about those sorts of things. It changed us." Kira spoke with wisdom well beyond her twenty years, and she rocked back and forth on her heels, staring out at the trees waving at them from beyond the threshold. Across the horizon lay the track, the place she had spent a lot of her time watching. Suddenly, like a lightning bolt, inspiration struck.
She straightened in Rei's arms, gazing up at him stubbornly before he could open his mouth and deny it without her even asking. "Rei?" she asked sweetly.
"Yes…?" he asked guardedly. Kira had learned all too swiftly how to get what she wanted from him. Her innocence was all too apparent in her large eyes, and fluttery lashes like butterfly's wings.
"Would you do me a favour?" she asked.
"What is it?"
"Take me for a ride around the track?"
Oh. That was it. His shoulders heaved with relief. "During a race."
"WHAT THE HE…?" She clapped her hand across his mouth, glaring at him.
"Shhh!" she hissed.
"NO. No, no, no…" He shook his head emphatically. "No way."
"Why not?" she demanded. "You ride it all the time."
He laughed shortly. "I am a professional, Kira. I know how to ride the track."
"Of course. You're willing to gamble with your life, but won't take a gamble with mine?"
"That is a stupid question, Kira," he said, voice dangerously low. His eyes glittered, and Kira instinctively tried to take a step back. However, his hold on her tightened, drawing her into him as though he could meld her into his skin. His breath brushed against her hair as he tucked his chin into the crook of her neck. "Oh Kira," he sighed. "There is only one way I would ever take you on a ride around the track in a race."
"What is it?" She sounded all too hopeful.
"Seduce me."
"What?" she squeaked, outraged. She pushed her hands on his chest, breaking them apart to glare into his face reproachfully. "You're toying with me, Rei!" Her voice shook with anger, her brows knit together like bound caterpillars. He bit his lip to keep from laughing at her. "Stop it!" she snapped indignantly, cheeks flushed.
"Kira, there's no way I'd be allowed to take you with me anyways."
"But it's for the sake of art!"
"Art?" he cocked a brow quizzically at her. She nodded. "You see, it's this new idea I had- I want to get the feeling of racing and incorporate it into a painting. The colours."
"The colours," he breathed, a feeling of nostalgia sweeping over him. "Just like my…"
"…painting," she finished, smiling at the familiar sparkle in his eyes. She was winning him over, bit by bit. Six months of marriage had taught her the many perks of being innocent- it meant people never expected her to be smart. Moreover, when they never expected you to be intelligent, they never thought that she could influence situations for her benefit either… and Rei was the perfect example. She couldn't count how many times she had conned Rei into doing something he originally didn't want to do, by convincing him he actually thought it was a good idea.
"That's a beautiful idea," he said, gazing down at her fondly. "You're so clever, Kira!"
She grinned. "I know," she said loftily, laughing at his face. "Oh stop!" she said jokingly, kissing his nose boldly. "You act as though you've never seen this side of me!"
"What, the happy side?" he asked quietly, watching her as though he'd never look at anything else in the world ever again. "You're so alive, Kira."
A question popped into her head, and burst through her lips before she could stop it. "What colours do you see me as?"
His answer was almost instantaneous. "Blue. Soothing, sad but cheerful. Deep, bright, innocent, dark. The different shades for the different sides, all lurking beneath your pretty blue eyes." His eyes lit up like a child. "Hey, that rhymed!"
Kira giggled, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him deeply, resting her forehead against his. "Oh, aren't you clever!" she said teasingly. He smiled.
"I love you," he said.
"I love you too," she replied.
Suddenly, a cough made them look up to see Rei's father standing awkwardly behind them, a suitcase in one hand. "Excuse me," he muttered, his skin bright red up to his ears.
"Come on, Dad," Rei said reprovingly. "We're married now."
"And so are we," Sonoko said, appearing from the living room to kiss her husband's cheek, "But that doesn't mean we clog up doorways with our lovey-doveyness." The tall, imposing woman stared at Kira, making the younger woman squirm in Rei's embrace. Shoko grinned, adding a swagger to her step as she left the room, murmuring, "Nice to know I've still got it."
Rei's dad looked so uncomfortable that Kira couldn't help feel a flutter of sympathy. That was before he said, "Well, with all this going on, you could at least produce a grandchild or two, couldn't you?"
Kira felt Rei's gag through her fingers before she heard it in his throat. "Be polite," she hissed in his ear. The thought of carrying Rei's child made her giddy on happiness, but she knew her husband did not share quite the same idea.
Rei swallowed his retort, instead muttering something a little nicer. "Make your own."
Kira shifted to elbow him hard. It barely made him flinch.
Mr. Kashino winced, then smiled at Kira as she tried desperately to make Rei apologize. For his part, her husband did look slightly guilty. "Sorry," he said at last. "That was low."
Rei's dad shrugged, an uncharacteristic grin crossing his stern features. Kira stared at him in surprise as he strolled past them through the front door, whistling. "I suppose we're not the only ones that have changed," she murmured thoughtfully to herself. Then Rei's arms were around her waist, pulling her in for a smooch before he dashed out the door after his father. "Hey, Dad! Can I get a ride to the track?"
"Lazy," Sonoko muttered as she hurried past Kira, heels tapping insistently on the pavement. The girl watched them all in a daze, before realizing they would be leaving her behind.
"Hey!" she shouted, grabbing her art supplies from the table and rushing out the door. "Wait for me!"
The limousine parked at the curb rumbled, then sped away. The young art student sighed, slowing her pace. Rocks scattered before her feet as she kicked at them vehemently.
"Damn," she heard someone say, looking up to see Rei staring after the limo, dumbfounded. His hands were tucked into his pockets, and he lounged around the curb like a bum with nothing else to do. "They didn't give me a ride," he complained, as though he obviously deserved one. "And I'm famous."
Kira snorted, but a loving smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. "Not yet."
"True," he admitted. "But one day I will be." A frown furrowed his brow as he gazed across the horizon at the bustling city. "So, how do we get there now? My motorcycle's in the garage."
Kira smiled, secretly thankful to her father-in-law. Striding up to him, she took his hand and squeezed it tightly, feeling like a queen on top of the world. "Now," she said cheerfully, "we get to walk. Together. And, oh boy, don't we have lots to talk about!"
Rei glanced down at the small girl beside him and smiled. "We sure do," he said, wrapping his arm around her waist and pulling her along beside him as he started walking. She curved her skinny arm around his; taking two strides for his one, stumbling here and there, only to have him catch her. Along the way, she thought she heard a thump as she dropped her bag, then the skittering of pencils across the ground, and then she thought that surely they were going the wrong way to get to the racetrack.
By the afternoon, she didn't really care. She was still with Rei, and he with her, and that was all that really mattered.
And that was how the awkward couple walked into the sunrise, strolling towards their own happily-ever-after.
THE END