Ok this is just a quick one-shot for Fruba, with Kureno and Uotani cause they're such a good couple! And for disclaimer, 'course I don't own Fruba, but I do own some of the books and an old sock :-D
She was crying, he could tell from the way her eyes glistened and tears streaked down her face, but he could hear no sound. He wanted to reach up, to touch her tear-stained cheeks, but she seemed so far away. Suddenly she gasped, and turned away from him, towards a sound he could not hear. A person stepped out of the shadows, and with it a memory, a memory of cold harsh laughter, and pain.
He looked back at the girl next to him, and whispered the first word that came to mind, the memory of her, the only word that mattered, "Arisa…"
She flinched, barely believing he had spoken, and turned slowly back to him. He smiled, weakly, and remembered how she mad she had gotten, the first time he called her that. They had gone to eat lunch after bumping into each other in the city…
"Because, I thought our meeting meant something. Because…I was happy!" She jerked out of her seat and turned to go. "Thanks! I'm leaving!"
Kureno sat in shock, after her speech, and finally realized what she had just said. "Arisa! Wait!"
"WHAT MAKES YOU THINK YOU CAN START CALLING ME BY MY FIRST NAME BASTARD!"
"Eh, but?"
After a little bit, he had been able to catch up to her,
"I'm sorry, I spoke without thinking. I was happy, too…that you spoke to me. Really. I… wanted to see you too, ever since that night."
He couldn't get her out of his mind. That was his first mistake.
A soft touch on his palm made him look up. There she was, her blond hair streaming down in front of her face, her eyes full of unshed tears. She was speaking, urgently and clearly, but he couldn't make out any words. He tried to smile again, but it took too much effort, and he lapsed into another memory.
He thought he'd never see her again. He thought he'd just return to life as usual, serving Akito and running errands. Yet, he couldn't ever forget her. Sometimes just a small something would trigger a thought of her, some fleeting glance at the convenience store where she worked, or a girl eating tororo soba, the food they had shared for a fateful lunch.
Then, one afternoon he had a free hour. He had gone to a small park by a river, to get away from everyone and to sort out his thoughts. The water was clear and everything seemed so peaceful, and he lost track of time. Maybe it was only a few minutes, or even an hour later, when he heard a familiar voice behind him.
"Is…is it really you?" She sounded so incredulous, so disbelieving, that he almost laughed. Instead, he turned to her and smiled. She laughed.
The few hours that they spent together then were the best he ever had. But he knew, that like all good things, it wouldn't last.
But he had been foolish, and when he decided he had to go, he asked her to come with him, so they could enjoy a little more time together, and she had eagerly accepted. That was his second mistake.
As they approached the Sohma property, someone was watching them, someone who was very unhappy. And someone who didn't miss the way their hands had found each other and linked between them, or the way both seemed to be walking in the clouds. And this person happened to be Akito.
Kureno did not go unpunished. But he had wanted to see her again. That was his last mistake.
He coughed, choking on air as he tried to breathe. The shadowed person walked out of the room, and from the look of fear on the blond girl's face, not without first issuing some kind of threat.
He wanted to sooth her fear, and with effort he grasped her hand. She stiffened slightly, then relaxed into a more peaceful state. By now, he could hardly see. All of her tears had dried up, and left stains down her cheeks. Her clothes were creased and her hair was mussed, but he had never thought she looked more beautiful. He gripped her hand a little tighter and she gazed at him, her eyes reflecting the same look as his own.
Numbness flooded through his body, and he wilted slightly. But he continued to grip her hand, to feel the warmth radiating from her body, from her heart. And even though his grip soon went limp, and his breathing stilled, in those few last moments he had never been happier. And then, he was gone.
…The end…Review!