The Art of Confession
Lightning flashed. Shadows grew bleak. A silver lining streaked vertically in the landscape, conducting its ferocious flamenco of the Heavens. It was the only strong light source now.
Torrents of raindrops continued to gush downward and pattered upon the windowsill of the Shiba House's largest window. The frenzy mingled with the moonlight and created somewhat of a dim silvery glow and left behind a trail of nightly fog, but darkness was the element to be pondered mostly on a night like this.
There seemed to be a slight, sleepy murmur travelling through the hall, tapping a certain blue samurai ranger in particular. It tickled his ears for a moment, leading his eyes to look in the direction of the soft murmur. But he shrugged it off as his eyes trailed over his book rhythmically.
Despite the fact in having read this book millions of times and having memorized every line of the book, narrating philosophical samurai history, he couldn't resist another last reading. It was ironic how the weather was boisterous at the time of reuniting with his father in only a couple of hours. Then again, it's almost surreal of how the weather exactly reflected his inner feelings right now…boisterous but at the same time inspiring his lips to stay unusually silent.
He was leaving the Shiba house. More importantly, he was leaving his friends.
It is the utmost responsibility to create a relationship with your surroundings. The sword is swift and becomes a part of you. For a samurai is to always stick to the way of nature and contribute to every swing of the sword a reasonable direction of attack, so must a samurai also be willing to use his sword to benefit the greater good of the outcome of the battle. Using nature as a reliable source and practicing union with it is the most vital attribution of adapting to the samurai code.
A bright, fiery light radiated the page he was reading. His eyes rose only slightly to recognize a small candle, held by soft, feminine hands. The slightest trace of a blush tackled his cheeks and left him chasing after it.
"You might need this, Kevin," a voice whispered calmly.
His dark eyes trailed upward, meeting a pair of equally sparkling ones. He was caught by sudden awe as he tried not to seem vulnerable under that gaze. He felt as if he could look at those eyes for the next million years. It was then that another epiphany dawned on him. He was leaving Mia…
"Hey, Mia!"
A soft smile played upon her lips in the glow of the small flame, reflecting off of the incomparably bright sparkle in her eyes. "Hey, Kev."
She attempted to set the candle carefully down on the small table right next to the couch he was sitting on, but much to the blue ranger's own surprise, his hand brushed gently over hers in attempts to help. Both of them paused for a moment and realized the significance of that simple touch, feeling the surreal moment end as soon as Mia let go nervously and played with her hair.
"Sorry I interrupted you. I didn't want to seem like a stalker or anything, but I couldn't help noticing-"
Kevin chuckled lightly. "Oh, no problem. A pleasant surprise, actually..."
He scooted a little closer to the windowsill, closing his book and expecting her to slide next to him. Somehow he had gotten so used to her signature move of sitting next to him that he didn't expect her to take the seat opposite of him. A flicker of disappointment briefly lingered in his gaze as he set the book on the table before them.
"I'm surprised you're still awake," he managed to say.
Mia sighed softly, brushing her fingers through her loose hair. "I couldn't sleep."
But as simple as her gesture was, it attracted Kevin all the more. He didn't expect himself to gawk at his best friend like that (though it wasn't really a surprise), but he knew that every time he wanted to be a gentleman, he just didn't feel like he was successful. There was definitely magic around Mia.
He was so used to gazing at the delicate outline of her face and enthusiastic smile, but it was his turn not to be a stalker. He traced the cover of the samurai book in his hand instead.
For a moment everything was quiet and still, except for the rain's random patterns of sound. Mia looked out of the window, deeply occupied and finding joy in watching every leaf drench with a newer wave of falling water. And Kevin looked at her…through stolen glances, of course. This felt too much like their usual cliché moments. All the time he had, he directed it to ending this war. But now that it was over, it was time to clearly focus. Be himself a little more. Being more upbeat- which was impossible- or at least being more talkative. Most importantly not being afraid to show of his "cool dance moves" in front of Mike. Besides, if Kevin and Mia were to part separate ways in a few hours…
He shook his head. The thought itself wasn't pleasant at all.
"Have you packed everything?"
Kevin snapped out of his trance and nodded. "Yeah…"
"You must be excited," she grinned widely, still looking out of the window. "It's your chance to pursue your dream."
The Mia statement he always looked forward to hearing. He sighed in content.
"And get away from my cooking. That, too."
He laughed, shaking his head. "Mia, you're a great-"
"Believer in my own cooking," she finished with a smirk.
"But-"
"I'm just messing with you, Kevin," she said smilingly. "You know you're really sweet enough to actually agree to that."
He paused, trying to keep from gushing. "You must be excited, too," he said.
"About not cooking?"
"No…" he said, playfully irritated. "About your normal life."
"Oh, yeah…sure…"
She wasn't moved by the comment, much to his surprise. He tried not to seem so perturbed once he noticed that the same enthusiasm about the topic was now nothing more than recognition.
"I guess." She bit her bottom lip, no longer caring for the world being bathed in the rain. She dribbled her fingers onto the palm of her other hand, finding enjoyment in the simple gesture.
Kevin was kind of confused. Wasn't this the moment she had been dreaming of since their first meeting? Being herself without having to worry about the next nighlok attack, expecting to find her Prince Charming one day, even get married someday- so many dreams she had shared with him all added up to these few remaining hours. For an odd reason, he felt his throat burn uncomfortably.
"You guess?" he repeated. "Wasn't this your dream?"
Mia looked up at him, kind of surprised the tone that rose slightly in his voice. Like he wasn't so convinced with her sudden apathy for her once-prevalent dream. He cleared his throat again. "I mean…Prince Charming and all that…?"
She laughed. "I never knew you were so curious about my Prince Charming."
He blushed beet red, fumbling with his thoughts. "Well…I mean-"
"Just kidding, Kev." Her smile disappearing as quickly as it formed. Kevin softened his eyes.
"Something wrong, Mia?"
Was he expecting her to talk to him about it? Not a bad idea of course. He was always willing to listen to what she had to say.
Mia sighed as a flash of lightning interrupted her serene features. She seemed startled, but not as much as his words.
"You okay?" he asked.
"Huh? Oh, yes…yes…"
Kevin cleared his throat, staring out at the outside world along with her. The winds were blowing at comfortingly high speeds, the rain drizzled its way onto his skin like a spiral of water, and the sky seemed so calm despite the natural pandemonium. It seemed amazing to him how air and water, work so well with one another… fit so well with each other… He took another expectant glance at Mia and glanced back outside. Water and air, air and water-not a bad combo at all-whether elementally or relationship-wise.
"You've changed, you know."
Mia looked briefly at him but still tried avoiding eye contact. "In a good way, hopefully," she chuckled.
He smiled. "Of course… but… you're not as enthusiastic about a normal life anymore."
She remained still. "I suppose so."
"Why is that?" he asked. Again his throat burned. Did he honestly wish Mia would continue to dream on about a normal life? Of course, since she was the actual reason he didn't let go of his dream of swimming in the Olympics. But…why was he so concerned for her love life?
As typical as her dream sounded for an average woman, Kevin did come to fantasize more about his normal life along with hers. Marriage…a family with dozens of kids…a pretty beautiful idea as far as he was concerned. Still…
"I guess it's just a part of being a samurai, Kevin," Mia said gently. "It changes you."
"But no so much as in giving up your dream, would it?" he asked, trying to keep from raising his voice as sharply as he would have.
"It's not so much about giving it up," she replied, lightening the tone. "It's about how it isn't as major compared to everything I've experienced being on this team."
Rain dribbled harder onto the windows until it was no longer anything short of a tiny cyclone.
"There's more to life than just Prince Charming," she said, thinking deeply. Friendship, struggles, support, discipline…so many of these things that we all take for granted sometimes…"
"You're starting to sound like me," he smirked. It surprised her… Kevin was not the one to smirk so much.
"Maybe," she smiled widely. "But it's true." She glanced up at him almost shyly. "You've been one of my best friends on this team, Kev. Your dedication, discipline, and support is everything a team like this can ask for. But you're also one of the main people I look up to in my life."
"You're stealing my thoughts, Mia."
"What?"
"My thoughts about you."
She blushed, playing with her hair for the third time.
"But I still don't see why you aren't as enthusiastic. Relationship is still a big deal. It's still… important…"
"Well-"
"Even I think love and relationships are important. And I'm the boring, hardcore samurai one."
"You're not boring," she said defensively.
"You get the point, though, right?"
She thought for a long moment.
"Mia…you've inspired me to not let go of my dream," Kevin said. "If I'm still holding onto winning a gold medal, if Ryan is still out there playing baseball…you are the reason."
A sappy dialogue, he knew. But the effect worked wonders. A choked laugh-humble and modest-escaped her lips. Kevin edged closer.
"Yeah, my vocab isn't all that great." He grew solemn again.
She raised her eyebrows slightly. "I doubt my Prince Charming would understand that."
"I doubt he won't."
She took a deep breath. "Kevin, I'm just a normal person now. Even if I was still to be a ranger, it wouldn't be any different. Life isn't about love."
"You don't think that, do you?"
"No, but it does have some validity to it."
"Not according to me, at least."
It really did seem strange to her that he was the one to give her that advice, but come trying to explain to her cheeks that epiphany, it wasn't a successful idea. Her crimson cheeks gave away everything.
"Life isn't necessarily about wanting to be in a wedding dress."
"But your Prince Charming would want to see you in a wedding dress. I want to see you in a wedding dress."
There was a deafening silence. Even the rain was nothing more than a few sprinkles of droplets falling from the rooftop edges. Kevin didn't catch anything else too significant in his words other than the fact that he was trying his best to make a confession as coolly as possible. Nevertheless, he was failing to do so.
"But seriously, Mia…as weird as this sounds, don't stop thinking about your Prince Charming."
Mia could never be a liar… or a good denier in the least. Her eyes blinked startlingly at the minute smile tugging at his lips. Something about the way he had managed to reassure her with words was too surreal. Mia wasn't marked by words. But then again, what else could explain the escape of a tiny tear from her eyes?
"Because I know who it is."
Mia was struck by denial. "W-what do you mean?"
What happened next was to be left to the tense air between them. Inches apart, eyes sparkling, the two former rangers met each other in the one way they were always denied to by duty. It was like a new light.
"I mean this."
Ever so gently he brushed back another waiting tear and leaned in, and the innocent harmony of lips meeting lips could only be described by the mischievous moon. Naïve lips against the more rigid ones, a union unable to be scripted, but equally untouched nevertheless. Whether it was meant to be so in that he would find joy in making the hidden moistness in her eyes disappear, it was certainly not a surprise.
So why was Kevin so concerned with her Prince Charming again?
Maybe it's because he wants a place in her heart. Maybe because it was him all along.