Note: Inspired by/ lyrics taken from Near to You, by a Fine Frenzy! Didn't actually mean to write this with Tamao, but the song wrote the story (:
She imagines herself something she is not. She knows the foundations; she is an orphan. A good cook. The "shy and nice" one. But after this, the line becomes blurred. She's not satisfied with herself. After all, her aim is for the unattainable. Well, it once was.
Tamamura Tamao presses play.
He and I had something beautiful, but so dysfunctional, it couldn't last.
She sits up from her bed and slides her feet into her slippers, one at a time. A glance around her room before leaving- the blinds have been hastily closed, and a sliver of soft light lights up the room, courtesy of the moon.
I loved him so, but I let him go, 'cause I knew he'd never love me back.
Tamao shuffles down the hallway as silently as she can. Most of the boys have turned in for the night, and Anna-
She pauses outside said girl's room before peeking inside. Nothing has changed inside. A neatly folded bed, a stack of books. Tamao inhales as deeply as she can. She knows it's silly, and that breathing the same air will not turn her into the blonde itako.
I'm still reeling from the loss, still a little bit delirious.
The floorboards creak. Tamao plops down on the white cushions lining the dinner table. She's not sure what possessed Ryu to buy them. The photo album that came in the mail from the developers is still resting on the table. She carelessly flips through the pages. A picture shows a crooked shot of a tuxedoed Ren arguing with the camera, another of Yoh and Anna, their happy smiles cut off from the shot. She smiles thinking of Ren's reaction to the pictures, and of Horohoro energetically defending his photography skills.
Near to you, I am healing but it's taking so long
Tamao checks her watch. It's morning where they are. She has already begun to miss them. Yoh, with his smile that never failed to make her cheeks burn, and his kindness that she craved. And then Anna. She couldn't bring herself to hate Anna- after all, Tamao knows she was the thief, the intruder of the world's most perfect pair. She could only have done her best to be like Anna; and that she tried to do. But in the end, it changed nothing. She knew it, and knows now.
'Cause though he's gone and you are wonderful, it's hard to move on
"Tamao?"
She jumps. Lyserg's mouth twitches upward, and his eyes are curious. Tamao can feel her entire face coloring as she suddenly becomes self-conscious of her nightdress and the fact that she's slouched over, clutching her CD player.
She still sits on the cushions, unsure if offering him a drink would be appropriate, or if she should just stay where she is. Ten minutes pass while Lyserg pours himself a glass of milk and Tamao attempts to compose herself.
"So, Lyserg, what are yo-"
"Hey, Tamao…would you care to dance? With me, I mean." Lyserg interrupts her question with an easy grin and an empty glass in his hand.
She giggles at first, partially because of the absurdity of the question, and partially because she thinks he's just trying to lighten the mood.
But his hand is still there.
Well you and I, have something different, and I'm enjoying it cautiously
Lyserg lifts her hand over her head, and Tamao gives a little spin, the nightdress tickling her legs. Tamao knows she can't love Yoh much longer. She's slowly moving forward. And she's happy right now, in her nightclothes and thick socks, dancing with Lyserg on the kitchen floor.
Yet I'm better near to you.