A/N: First one-shot! Kinda angst-y with fluff :3 Note: Mio and Ritsu aren't together and they're still in high school. Idk I just kind of had a little idea with this. To be honest, it's not the best that I can write. But here it is anyway. Because I absolutely adore the thought of Ricchan comforting Mio in a thunderstorm. Kind of cliche but oh well it's fluff :P (*sigh* wish there was someone to comfort me in a thunderstorm *shot*)

Disclaimer: I don't own K-On! If I did there wouldn't be K-On! anyway because I wouldn't have the brains to think it up.

Stay With Me

Mio wants Ritsu to stay and Ritsu doesn't want to leave in any case.

It was raining heavily. Nothing very special about that fact, since it was a normal occurrence in wet weather. It was the fact that there was thunder and lightning added to the rain, filling the girl's senses. Said girl was trembling, hidden under layers and layers of blankets and pillows. It didn't take a genius to understand that she was terrified.

Mio was home alone, reading a novel. It was late and she was getting ready to go to bed. That was when she saw a bright flash of lightning outside her window at the corner of her eye. She knew what was coming and covered her ears. The magnificent clap of thunder sent her screaming and running to her bed, where she felt a little safer.

The storm raged on until the wee hours of the morning. Rain was fine, Mio thought. But thunder and lightning together was just absolute horror. The girl waited and waited, in hopes of a certain brown-haired knight coming to save her. Mio longed to be embraced by her, and maybe a peck or two added in for good measure-

Maybe the lightning had fried her brain.

Ritsu had never ever left her alone in a thunderstorm as awful as this. She would usually call, or text, and respond to Mio's messages. Mio knew she was being unreasonable, but wrapped like a cocoon under layers of good insulators of heat, and shrieking after every clap of thunder, she really couldn't care less.

Mio must have called Ritsu about thirty times and sent fifty messages to her, but she didn't reply. Ritsu doesn't go to sleep this early, Mio thought. So why wasn't she responding?

Mio fell into an uneasy sleep after the worst of the storm had passed. Her last thought was, Where are you, Ritsu?

The next day, Ritsu was the same as usual, but she noticed something off about Mio. Mio had been avoiding her or giving her the cold shoulder for the entire day.

By the time school ended, Ritsu just couldn't take it any longer. She managed to corner Mio after rushing out of the classroom and sprinting after her.

"Mio. Answer me truthfully. Why are you ignoring me?" Ritsu asked, her golden eyes searching deep into Mio's slate grey ones.

"I… What do you mean why? You should know why. Now get out of my way, I'm going to be late." Mio tried to avoid her gaze, but she was captivated by it even while she was furious, which made her angrier. Mio pushed Ritsu away and hurried to the music room.

Ritsu entered a minute after her and settled into her usual seat. The other three didn't seem to take much notice of their unusual silence and continued talking to each other.

"Hey guys, did you sleep well last night? There was a terrible thunderstorm, right?" Yui asked. "That's what Ui told me. I didn't hear anything. There's going to be another one tonight, I think."

Just the very thought of it made Mio feel sick.

"Wait… What?" Ritsu asked, her eyes wide with shock. "A thunderstorm? Last night?"

"You don't have to act, you know, Ritsu," Mio said rather coldly and suddenly got up from her seat. She sprinted out the door and slammed it shut. Poor Ritsu was rather dumbfounded.

"I-I have to go after her, don't I?" Ritsu said, seemingly to nobody. Without waiting for an answer, she too hastily got up and ran after Mio.

"Ah, sweet young love," Sawako said calmly, taking a sip of her tea. The others, as usual, had not seen her sneaking into the club room.

"Mio! Stop!" Ritsu shouted and ran as fast as she could after Mio. They had both reached the entrance of their school. It was pouring.

Mio suddenly realized that she was getting drenched and stopped. She turned around to face Ritsu and that was when a bolt of lightning appeared in the sky for a split second, dazzling the both of them and lit their faces. The accompanying clap of thunder shook the ground and sent Mio barrelling blindly towards Ritsu.

The force of it knocked them both to the wet ground, with Mio clinging desperately to Ritsu as though her life depended on it and Ritsu trying to calm her own racing heart.

"Mio... So that's why you were mad at me right? Because of the thunderstorm?" Ritsu asked and placed a comforting hand on her best friend's back.

Mio shuddered at the sudden warmth and melted into Ritsu's touch. "Y-Yes… I tried to call and message you so many times. You know, right? You know that I'm afraid of thunderstorms?"

"Of course I do! I know all of your fears, Mio," Ritsu said and tried not to grin triumphantly at the fact. Her hair band was lying a few metres away and her bangs hung loosely, dripping wet.

"Then why didn't you…" Mio closed her eyes at her words. So what? So what if Ritsu didn't come? It's none of her business anyway. She realized she was being extremely unreasonable and rather childish.

"…Come? Trust me, Mio, I would never have left you alone, if I freaking knew there was a thunderstorm in the first place! I went to sleep really early last night because I was exhausted, and forgot to charge my phone. I slept through the entire storm. I'm really sorry, Mio." Ritsu felt guilty for leaving Mio alone to face one of her greatest fears, while she was sleeping soundly. She could just imagine Mio huddling under piles and piles of pillows and blankets, trembling. Her heart clenched at the thought and she pulled Mio possessively closer to her.

"O-Oh I see… Um, I'm really sorry too... For being unreasonable. And... Ritsu?" Mio looked up at her. "I have a fear I bet you don't know about."

"Hmm? Oh really?" Ritsu looked at Mio and blushed. Their faces were inches apart and the intensity of Mio's gaze made her heart accelerate, which gave her a heady feeling.

"I'm afraid... Of losing you," Mio said, a pink tinge on her cheeks. "Stay with me, okay?" She was referring to Ritsu staying by her side, now and forever. She just hoped Ritsu wouldn't be too dense to see.

"Sure. You know what my fear is, Mio?" Ritsu asked, blushing a little more. Her eyes dropped from Mio's to her lips.

"…No?"

"Not being there with you when there's a thunderstorm," Ritsu dropped her voice to a husky whisper and leaned forward.

She captured Mio's lips in hers, gently. Mio's lips were silky and soft, better than anything Ritsu had ever dreamt of. To Mio, Ritsu's lips were all she needed to keep warm during a cold rainy day. The arms wrapped firmly around her helped too. Ritsu was all Mio could think of now. Her eyes, her arms, her bangs, her lips…

If Ritsu was there by her side, she wouldn't be afraid. In the future, with thunderstorms and whatnot, Ritsu would be there to save her from falling into the dangerous abyss of fear and other scary things. Ritsu would be there to catch her if she fell — in love, that is.

"I told you they'd be alright," Sawako said, folding her arms with a smile on her face. The three members were peeking at the two kissing in the rain, high up in the club room. What they witnessed caused Tsumugi to get an intense nosebleed and Azusa to turn away, her cheeks flaming red. "Heck, they're far from alright."

More A/N: Love you guys! Please review and favourite if you like it :) Thanks!

x

Joeh