Taken in part from episode 25- Love is like the sea
Disclaimer: I. Own. Nothing.
Authors Note: You should be warned, this is not a exact retelling of episode 25. During this entire series I jumped ships so many times. At first I wanted Manaka and Hikari together, then I thought I wanted Kaname and Chisaki paired up, then I hopped on board the Hikari, Chisaki band wagon for a brief period. In the end though, I was unexpectedly pleased with everyone who paired up, except for the whole Hikari, Manaka, Miuna cliffhanger. In my mind Hikari should have ended up with Miuna. Episode 25 left that door wide open in my mind, it just didn't play out the way I wanted it too. So, therefore, I have manipulated episode 25 to please my own smuttish desires.
FYI: I wrote this in about half an hour. It was not edited. In other words, read at your own risk.
~Love is Like the sea~
It was late, however, Hikari had not been able to sleep since he laid his head down. His mind was under too much stress. Tomorrow was the Ofunehiki, and deep down he knew tomorrow would change the way he viewed the rest of his life. Feeling the weight and anxiety over the situation begin to bear down on him he decided he needed to get some fresh air. Perhaps check on tomorrow's preparations. It didn't matter to him that it was nearing midnight. Its not as if he was going to get much sleep either way.
Miuna had not had a good night sleep since Manaka woke from her hibernation. The truth was she feared the sweet, bright eyed beauty that slept uncomfortably close to her. Manaka was kind, caring, and innocent. At the same time, as much as she wanted to love the scarlet haired girl for all the endearing qualities she possessed, she could only find room in her heart for envy and resentment. It was sad, sick, and pathetic really. No one needed to tell her that. Miuna loved Hikari, and Hikari saved every ounce of his love for Manaka. A girl who did not posses the ability to love even herself.
Miuna did her best to push those thoughts out of her mind. Feeling sorry for herself wouldn't change anything. She had lost count of how many times she tried telling herself that.
Annoyed with herself, Miuna rolled out of bed and headed for the kitchen. As she passed the sliding glass door she noticed a figure making its way done the cobbled stone drive. It was Hikari. What was he doing out this late at night she wondered?
She was running behind him before the conscious thought of following him occurred to her.
"Hikari!?" She called after him as they reached the shoreline.
The sound of Miuna's voice stopped him in his tracks.
When they were both standing face to face, Miuna realized she was the only one who was panting. Each breath she took must have mirrored the rapid beats of her heart.
"What's the matter?" He asked calmly. Too calmly for her nerve racked state.
Hunched over, with her hands on her knees for support as she labored her breathing, she offered the only response she could think of. Which was a question of her own.
"Hikari, where are you going… at… this… hour?" She breathed out in sessions.
Hirkari turned to look out on the harbor behind them. " I just thought I'd go check on the boats."
"The boats." She repeated, not understanding at first.
" I was just thinking tomorrows the day." He stated. "So I just wanted to make sure we didn't miss anything in the preparations."
At his words, and overwhelming, annoying thought popped into Miuna's head. One that, however odd, she felt the need to voice.
"I hope Manaka's love comes back." She blurted out. Trying to convince herself as well as him.
"But that's not the only thing." Hikari reminded her with a raised brow, as if he was re-stressing himself over the entire situation. "Hopefully we'll be able to do something about the surface, too."
"Yes. But I hope it comes back." She ignored the second part of his statement. However true, that wasn't the true reason for all of this.
"Yes, apparently that's all girls think about." Hikari ran his fingers through his messy locks and shot her a weary look. "You should be more concerned about the bigger pic-"
But Miuna didn't care to hear about any of that. She cut him off.
"You love Manaka-san, don't you?" she asked him. Her reserve leaving her all of a sudden for a more unexpected brazen nature.
"Wh- what are you talking about?" He sputtered, ocean blue eyes wide, as if she had caught on to something once thought secret. But there were no secrets. Not between friends, and sure as hell not between unrequited lovers.
"You love her right?" She asked again. Her voice hard. This time sounding more accusatory, than curious.
He stared after her for a moment, dumbfounded, before finally letting up and turning away from her.
"Yeah." He breathed out in irritation.
That one little word. That one simple syllable. He truly had no idea how much it broke her heart.
"Say it more." She begged him in a soft voice. How odd she must sound a little voice in her heard thought before she silenced it.
He turned back to face her. His expression laced with confusion.
"Say it more." She commanded. This time however, her fists were in balls at her sides, and there were tears threatening to escape from her eyes. "Say that you love Manaka-san more!"
She needed to hear it. She needed to break those words in. No matter how much they hurt.
"A-are you stupid?" He yelled, clearly confused, and feeling bombarded all at once. What else did she need to hear? Hadn't his confession been enough.
"Say it?" She yelled back, standing her ground. She was in his face now. Through the light of the moon she could see the different shades of blue, as they swirled and crashed against each other like waves in his eyes. "In return for all the things I've done for you!"
"What kinds of things are you into?" He asked in a exasperated cry.
"Say it." She hissed brokenly, refusing to leave, refusing to move before he gave her what she needed to hear. "Please."
He stood there for a moment longer. Eyes locked with hers. Understanding nothing.
"I'm in love with Manaka." He eventually sighed.
"More." She begged, her cheeks turning red.
"I love Manaka." he yelled, more so to the ocean than at her.
"More." She egged.
He was blushing now.
"More!" She was relentless, but she needed to be.
"Hey would you give it a res-" He started to snap. That was until he caught the first few tears falling from her dark lashes.
"Miuna?"
She stumbled backwards at the sound of her name and the crashing of her own tears.
"Miuna?" He reached out for her as she crawled backwards in the sand in attempt to get away from him.
"Stop." He called. Before they both knew it he had dove in the sand beside her and was locking her in place with his arms.
"What's wrong with you?" He demanded. His anger was laced with concern.
"Just let me go." She cried, leaning her head into his shoulder, as he pressed her back further into the sand with his weight. "Please just let me go."
"I don't understand." Hikari told her while shaking his head. "Please make me understand so that I can help you."
"No one can help me." Miuna whispered. "Not as long as Manaka's awake and there is still hope."
"Why are saying this. I can help more than one person." He tried reassuring her, not understanding the brokenhearted, dark haired girl beneath him.
Miuna gave a soft chuckle through her sobs. "That's true, but there is only room in your heart for one person Hikari, and that person isn't me."
There. She sort of said it. She kind of gave herself away.
"Miuna, I'll always care about you and be there for you no matter what. We're family now." Hikari told her. He was shaking her by the shoulders now. "Now whose done this to you. What's his name. I'll go talk to him. He's a fool if he doesn't see what a wonderful, caring, sweet person you are."
"BAKA!" Miuna yelled. He was a fool. Such a beautiful, disastrous fool.
Hikari went silent as he stared at the girl beneath him. There were still tears in her eyes, but her expression was that of anger.
For the first time since Hikari had known her, he looked at her. Really looked at her. She wasn't that young, sad, rebellious child he knew all those years ago. She had changed, just like everything else in this world. She was as tall as he was now. Her hair had grown long, and while she often wore it in decorative bows, it was now in messy locks around her tearstained face. Her dark eyes penetrated his. As if she had been hiding something she wanted him to figure out. He hadn't been able to though. He had been to wrapped up in his own emotions to see her pain.
She was in love with him. He could see it now. He could feel it too. Upon that realization, the proximity of their bodies caused him to blush.
His body was pressed into hers. Their chest's were locked, and his waist was between her thighs. It was all accidental. It had all been in attempt to keep her still, but here they were, and he wasn't quite sure how he was suppose to feel. For so long he had lived, breathed, and existed only for Manaka. A person who could not love him. A person who barely remembered him at all. And here Miuna was, living, breathing, and putting his happiness before her own. He didn't deserve someone like her. No one would ever deserve someone as selfless as Miuna.
"Miuna, I-" Hikari started, but Miuna cut him off.
"Don't." Miuna spat through her tears, her dark brows narrowed. "Don't look at me like that. I don't need your-!"
"Its not pity." Hikari corrected her before she had the chance to finish, his breathing uneven as he held his weight over her. "Its gratitude."
At his words, Miuna relaxed her hardened expression, closed her eyes, and laid her head back in the sand. There was nothing she could do as he held her captive with his body except to give in to her tears.
After a few moments of silence, it was Hikari who spoke first.
"Could we stay like this for a little while longer?" Hikari asked her.
Miuna's eyes snapped open, but before she had the chance to respond, Hikari had buried his face into her chest.
Hikari's body was warm, and strong to the touch. Miuna knew this wasn't doing anything to help her situation. Besides, in the end, Hikari loved Manaka. He always had, and always would. A simple, intimate moment like this would never be able to change that.
Authors Note: I hope some of you readers got some satisfaction out of that. I haven't decided whether or not I want to continue. Let me know what you guys think.