Disclaimer: Fruits Basket and all other characters mentioned in this fiction are owned by Natsuki Takaya.
RAIN
hitokiritomoe
He hasn't seen the blue of the sky in three days. This irritated him to no end, not to mention weakened him, but what could he do? The weather is the weather. It cannot be conquered. Unlike the bears that the damned rat and others imagined him to have battled with. Sighing loudly to himself, he looked up at the mass of gray that is the sky. He cast it one defiant glare before slumping to the ground, his knees bending beneath him. The rain pelted on the roof of the waiting shed, making its blue paint scream out in terror.
"I don't sense her anywhere…" a soft voice spoke beside him.
He looked up to see dead ebony eyes staring back at him. Instantly, his heart pounded faster, but he was already too exhausted to show any outward feeling of fright.
"She's not near here at all," she repeated with the same dull expression.
"Who?" he asked, standing up.
"Tohru," she said it in such a nonchalant tone, as if there could be no other answer.
He sighed at that, looking out of the waiting shed and at the flowers welcoming the rain with upturned faces.
"I… I'm not waiting for her," he said, too overwhelmed by the darned cold weather he couldn't even be his usual brash self.
"Oh? Your waves tell me otherwise."
"I'm not… that is… I'm not supposed to."
"Oh."
"I know she's with… him."
"Hm."
Silence as a gust of wind ran through the flowers, making the grass bend. He winced as some rain water hit his face, then he speedily wiped them off with the sleeve of his uniform.
"You don't like rain," she said after awhile. He grunted in reply.
"And you're weak right now."
"You don't even need your waves to observe that," he snapped.
She chuckled. "Grumpy in the rain? You're just like a cat."
His skin prickled at her words.
"Your waves are close to a cat, have I ever told you that?"
He didn't know what to say about that.
"Kyou, are you a cat?"
He positively stiffened at the question.
"I mean… your zodiac."
He relaxed and almost laughed insanely with relief, but he stopped himself just in time. "Don't be ridiculous. There is no Year of the Cat."
"Oh. Yes. Tohru's been mentioning it so much that I forgot."
"She isn't coming, is she?"
Sudden change of topic.
"With the rain, they won't be coming this way."
"It was stupid of me to wait, then."
She was silent. The rain had stopped. He looked down at the ground, feeling dumb for assuming that Tohru would go home with him. I guess it was too much to ask for, he thought to himself. Just because she said she wanted to be a Cat doesn't mean that she likes you! Stupid! Stop misunderstanding people's intentions!
"Look," she suddenly interrupted his thoughts, "a rainbow."
He looked up at the slowly brightening sky and saw it. The rainbow hung like a ghost, its colors a bit subdued, but it was there. And around it, patches of blue could be seen where the sky was beginning to clear. He pumped a fist in the air and broke into a grin. He looked at the dark-eyed girl beside him and thought of how her features softened in the sudden brightness.
"Hanajima."
She turned to him, eyes not blank this time, but questioning.
"Can I walk you home?"
She smiled then, a sweet gentle smile that was untrained, but beautiful nonetheless. He worked up the courage, took her hand in his, and pulled her out of the shade, and into the sun.