Finding Slowly the Truth and Those Feelings.
It had been a hard day at DDS. Kinta had to go to work, Kazuma could relax at the limo that came to pick him up, while Megumi walked home with her other two classmates who still lived together. Their class Q classmates found out about this a little while ago, but decided not to say anything, they didn't want to get too involved in Ryu's personal business.
"They really are close friends" Thinks Megu looking at Kyu and Ryu. "Sometimes I wonder if I can be special to them, like they are to me"
Those feelings the girl hid became more confusing. She thought she set her heart for one, but she was wrong. For her love for Ryu increased even more.
"Megu is really beautiful, don't you think?" Asks Kyu when the girl left.
"Where is this coming from?" His classmate looks at him confused.
"I don't know. I realized it some time ago. But Yukihira is pretty too"
"Are you trying to say you like them both?"
"I'm not sure. I look what I shouldn't look" He remembers looking at Megumi's underwear by accident more than once, and the chest of both mentioned…intentionally.
"Kyu, you really are like a little kid. You've been that way before I even knew you"
"I remember that the first day we met, Megu said that she felt like she saw you before. But she has photographic memory and would remember you, isn't that right?"
"I guess" Ryu remembers the moment when they get off the ship to Karisaki island. "Now that I think about it, she made a weird face when we met"
"A weird face?" Kyu also tries to remember but the only thing that come thru his head are the words 'maybe is love at first sight' that he told his friend the instant Ryu walks away from them when they arrived at the island. "Maybe it was" Says Kyu out loud without realizing it.
"Maybe it was what?" Ryu saw his classmate stop for a moment with a face of sadness he had not seen before.
"Well…no, forget it"
The lights were off, only the stars' lights brightened Kyu's room, who slept like an angel, while Ryu couldn't stop thinking of the conversation of that afternoon.
"A while ago I thought I learned what it is to have friends" He told himself in his head while staring at the sealing. "But for some reason my feelings for Kyu and Megu aren't the same as Kazuma and Kinta's" The boy decides to turn half way and lean his head over his left arm. "Kinta and Kazuma are my friends, but my other two classmates are something more…I'm not sure of what, but I can feel that even though they are different feelings, they are stronger than friendship" Ryu closes his eyes. "I want to know what it means"
Kyu went out the following day without telling anyone where he was going. Megumi was surprised when she saw him at the door of her apartment.
"Kyu? What's wrong?" She asks letting him go in.
"Are you alone?" The boy tries to look at her serious, but deeply he was nervous.
"Yeah, my sister went to buy some things…are you ok? Did something happen at DDS?"
"No, it's not that…I wanted to ask you something"
"You came here to ask me something? You could've call or wait until tomorrow"
"I had to do it as soon as possible, and in person"
"Ok…what is it?"
"Well…to tell you the truth I don't know why I want to know about this, but I wanted to know if…well, um…what do you think about Ryu?"
Megu blushes without expecting something like that. "W--what do you mean? Ryu-kun is, well, he is a friend of DDS. Really smart and knows how to solve cases. Actually, he is…the same as I think about you…"
Kyu looks at the pillow he was sitting on. "Megu, I'm sorry. I didn't want to put you in this position. Is just that…I don't know, I just can't imagine you with him"
Megumi blushes even more and without realizing it, she stands and starts talking in a loud voice. "You can't imagine me with him?! What are you saying Kyu?! Ryu-kun is…Ryu-kun is…well, Ryu-kun is a very important person to me and you don't have the right to tell me things like that!"
Kyu stands up as well and starts yelling with her. "I already say I was sorry! I don't even know why I care so much what's gonna happen between you two! The truth is that I think of you as a friend and nothing more!"
The boy leaves angry, leaving a scared Megu fall on her knees.
"Kyu…I thought…I thought you considered me something more than that" Megu closes her fists getting mad at herself. "I don't like admitting it that much, but what I feel about you and Ryu-kun is almost the same. I like you both and I can't help it!" Tears start falling while she remembers those special moments with them.
Kyu and Megu now talked only to resolve cases. The girl used her photographic memory to remember important situations, Kinta questioned the suspects, Kazuma investigated what he could on his computer, while Kyu and Ryu analyzed. The routine repeated itself, but it wasn't the same as before.
They became stronger when professor Dan was kidnapped, and even though their teamwork was good, they didn't find it good enough. The cases they had to solve weren't so important like they use to. At least they weren't until three days after Kyu and Megu's argument.
The class find it weird not to see Megu at class, until Dan-sensei enters with Katagiri with a note in his hand.
"I have the girl with photographic memory. You'll have her back when classmates of section Q come get her by themselves"
"Is from Pluto" Says Professor Dan showing the note without finish reading it and the black rose that Katagiri had in her hand "The note came with that rose. We're not sure of what's going on, but for some reason he wants you guys"
Ryu was in a shock. "Impossible" He though. "Anubis was burned the day we rescued Dan-sensei. Unless…unless it wasn't Anubis; that may be his rose, which means it's only me the organization wants, but for some reason it asked for everyone to go…Maybe not to make it so suspicious. That's it, now I understand…the person who is calling me is not Anubis, is someone that has worked for him for a long time. The person that calls herself my mother…Yuria"
The class insisted on going by themselves. Kazuma looked for the place in his computer, but slowly stops and looks at his friends.
"I don't like it that Megu was kidnapped, but this shows that we are willing to help our friends." He gives them a smile. "It means that it doesn't matter what happens, we'll still be friends"
The others nod their heads up and down and smile back, leaving the elementary school boy communicate with the teachers in case something happens.
"I remember perfectly what happened" Thinks Megu watching a shadow stand in front of her while she opened her eyes, her arms tied to a chair and her mouth covered.
FLASHBACK:
Megu was walking to the academy at the same time she always did. Made a turn in one of the halls in which almost no one goes. But someone was alredy there waiting for her.
"It's you…" Were the last words Megu said before fainting in the arms of the person that hit her on the head.
END OF FLASHBACK…
The girl makes an effort to get out, but her effort wasn't enough. Yuria takes out the handkerchief of her mouth.
"Why?" Asks the pink haired girl as soon as she could. "Isn't Ryu-kun your son?"
"I see…" Yuria gives a maleficent smile. "Ryu-sama has decided to live with one of his academy classmates, but hasn't tell the truth about his past?"
The girl opens her eyes a little more, thinking that maybe Kyu knew something. "Maybe he didn't tell every one of us" She thinks.
The closer they got, the more enemies came. Finally, Kinta looks at his classmates.
"Go get Megu" He says. "We're a team no matter what. My job now is to take care of these guys while you go save our friend"
Kyu and Ryu smile again, nod their head up and down again, and start running, hoping not to be late.
"Hold on Megu" Thinks Kyu. "I know we had a small argument, but it doesn't mean I'll let something happen to you"
"Yuria" Thinks Ryu without looking away. "I'm on my way, you better not do anything to Megu…I won't let you hurt her!"
"Ryu-sama belongs to us" Says Yuria showing a black rose. "She'll be back to our organization sooner or later"
"Don't say that! Is not possible that Ryu-kun is---"
"You don't believe me? I will prove it to you when he gets here"
A man challenged Kyu to solve a case to let him go, while Ryu had the chance to continue.
"Go" Kyu tells his friend. "I leave Megu in your hands"
"But Kyu…" The boy didn't know what to tell him.
"Don't waste time. Kinta and Kazuma are doing their best to help, we too have to take care of our parts" Kyu looks in front of him. "GO FAST!"
"Count on me" Ryu finally answers and runs rapidly without turning his head.
Finally the door where Megu was kept held opened. Yuria gives a maleficent smile while the girl didn't know if she should feel happy or nervous staring at her friend there.
"R--Ryu-kun" The girl manages to say staring at his worried face.
"Megu!" The boy doesn't look at Yuria until she welcomes him.
"I'm happy you arrived, Ryu-sama" She says.
"Leave Megu. She better not be hurt!"
"Don't worry sir, the girl is in perfect conditions. We were just talking, asking her to prepare herself to say goodbye, for you're coming back to our organization, isn't that right?"
Ryu got mad with those words, but then remembers something. Megumi was still in the room, now she knew the secret.
"Ryu-kun" She starts. "Please tell me this woman is lying…you--you aren't ---part of Pluto, right?"
"Anything to say? Ryu-sama?"
The boy didn't know what to say, he only looked at the girl with pink hair, thinking of how he would explain the situation.
"Please Ryu-kun" His classmate continues. "Answer!"
"Yuria" Tha boy finally says. "Untie her and make sure she's ok"
She immediately does as he says, knowing that her plan was going perfectly and nothing could go wrong.
"It was an order" Ryu tells Megu. "The purpose of going to DDS was to observe things…"
"You mean you really---" The girl didn't want to believe what he was telling her.
"But as time went by, I tried to get away. Honestly, I didn't have a reason to leave Anubis at first. Until I met you guys" Megu stood up slowly while she listened. "In DDS I thought I would learn more about cases, but what I really learned about was having friends, trusting them and realizing I took the wrong path not escaping from Pluto before"
The faces of Q class appeared in his mind.
"Is too late to regret it" Interrupts Yuria. "You came in once, is too hard to get out"
"You brought Megu here to make me return to the organization, right?"
"There wasn't any other choice. If you refuse, Ryu-sama, I'll have no choice but to attack this girl with photographic memory again"
Ryu stares for a moment the scared face of the girl just mentioned and then closes his eyes remembering when they first met, their adventure at Kamikakushi island, the time they had to dress like students to investigate the case of the videos, and her smile when she saw him safe at the hospital after protecting Kyu.
The boy opens his eyes and gets ready to give a step forward and go with Yuria, but the girl in his memories comes between them, showing only her back to her friend.
"Megu what are you doing?"
"I can't let you do it" She says without looking at him. "You said that you tried to get away from Anubis and his organization, and I really decided to believe you. That's why I can't let you get away from us…It would hurt me too much to see you go!"
With a little smile Ryu hugs her from behind, leaving the girl blush and shock at the same time.
"Thank you very much, Megu" He whispers in her ears.
After seconds that seemed like minutes, Ryu lets her go and walks by her without looking at her, trying to let her know that he didn't want to put her in danger. Yuria stretched her arm so that the boy could take her hand, and even though he didn't want to do it, he was willing to take the chance.
"RYU-KUN!!!" Screams Megumi the moment the door opens again.
The boy stops, he first sees Yuria's surprised look, slowly turns around finding his friend with tears in her face and the rest of Q class behind her.
"I don't know what's going on" Says Kinta. "But looks like we made it in time"
"Sorry for being late" Smiles Kazuma. "But I was giving the report of our location to Dan-sensei"
"Now we are all here" Kyu looked serious at the enemy. "You won't keep this game up. Because we already won"
"The place is surrounded!" Was heard from outside. "You can't escape! Give up now!"
The woman gets close to the chair in which Megu was tied up a while ago and takes the black rose that was on it.
"This rose belongs to Ryu-sama" She says throwing it to him. "And this is a present for the rest" She lifts the chair and throws it to the rest of the academy class.
Kinta blocks the attack, noticing it was just a distraction to let herself run towards the window and throw herself from that height down to the police men that were waiting down.
"We'll see what happens Ryu-sama!" She yells.
The boy looks at the black rose in his hand and turns to give thanks to his friends.
"I'm glad you came in time"
Ryu notices that Megu looked at him with sadness, so to let her know that she didn't have to worry, he let the rose fall next to him without worries.
"I don't think I'll need it" He says smiling slowly.
Megu, still with tears in her eyes and with one running down her cheek, runs quickly to him and gives him back the hug he gave her before, replacing it with one of relaxation while the rose touched the floor.
"I'm happy you decided to stay…Ryu-kun" She whispers in his ear.
The boy hugs her back holding her tight, without noticing that Kyu had to turn his face a little to not feel more sadness that he already had watching them together.
"I guess you already decided" He tells his friend when they came back two days after the incident.
"What are you talking about Kyu?" She asks.
"I understand, and I don't want to interfere. Ryu and you are my friends and I want you to be happy. But if something bad happens, it won't be me who solves things between you two"
Megu blushed and smiles. "Is only friendship between us…I don't think that, well…Anyways Kyu, I'm thankful that things are ok between you and I"
Kyu smiles a little, making things between them better.
Yuria's plan failed. She got some injuries in her body after throwing herself from the window. While in the hospital, she was being watched for after that she was going to be taken away to prison because of the crimes she did while working for Pluto.
While Megu walked back to her apartment after classes, she notices that Ryu waited for her two blocks away, where there was no one else but them.
"I need to talk to you. You have a minute?" He asks watching his classmate say yes with her head and blushing. "I have to admit that I'm kind of scared"
"Scared of what?"
"I don't want to think about it, but what would happen if Yuria finds a way to come back? I don't want to put you in danger again, and I don't want the others to get involved either"
"Well I…I think there's nothing to worry about" She answers nervously. "After all, you're not alone. You told me about what happened in your life, and I support you, I'm sure that when the guys find out they will also---"
"Not yet" He interrupts. "Please Megu, promise me you won't say anything to anyone"
"I wasn't going to…I thought you might tell them"
"Yeah" Ryu pauses and then looks at her. "But not yet, when the time comes I will, I promise"
There was a moment of silence. "When that moment comes…" Continues the girl. "I will be there to support you…after all, we're friends…isn't that right, Ryu-kun?"
The boy looks at her for a moment, and then smiles and nods his head. "As friends, I want to ask you to stop using that title" Megu blushes. "You don't have to call me 'Ryu-kun' 'Ryu' is fine, ok?"
The girl looks at him, smiles and nods her head like before. "Well Ryu, I have to go home. Goodbye"
When she turns to continue her way, her friend holds her wrist, stopping her and making her blush even more when she turns around.
"There's something else I want to tell you" He says.
"Wh--What is it?" She asks scared.
"I noticed the day of the incident…" He takes a deep breath and lets go of her. "You see, a while ago my feelings for the four of you guys were different from what I've felt before…And slowly I realized that it was the feeling of having friends. But for a reason, I noticed that my feelings for you and Kyu weren't the same as the feeling of friendship…"
Megu still blushed looks at him confused "What do you mean?"
"Well, that's what I realized during the incident, I guess that was the only good thing about the incident…that it blew away my confusion"
"Ryu tell me, what did you notice?"
"That you and Kyu are more than friends…see, Kyu is like a brother"
"I see" She thinks without taking her eyes off of him. "I knew there was something special between them, now I finally know what it was"
"He always helps me, he worries about me and I worry about him…I guess that's what is like to have a brother…"
There was another moment of silence in which the girl tries to open her mouth and tries to talk.
"An--and me? What did--what did you realize about me?"
At first Ryu didn't want to look directly into her face, but after seconds of staring at the floor, finds the courage to look at her in the eyes.
"You are to me…more important than that. When you were in danger, I was afraid something bad would happen because of me. And when you put yourself in front of me so I wouldn't go with Yuria, I realized that you are even more special than I thought"
Megu was shocked, her blushed face was nothing compared to the punding of her heart.
"R--Ryu…" The girl almost with no words couldn't stop staring at him. "Since a long time ago I…well, since I saw you…how should I say it? When I saw you for the first time I felt like I knew you, but like you know, I have photographic memory and it would've been impossible not to remember you…At first I thought Kyu was kidding when he say it was 'love at first sight', but the longer I stayed with you…I realized that…"
Megu also started to avoid looking at him, but after closing her eyes believing she was dreaming, she opens them again and looks at him directly.
"I realized that I really love you Ryu!"
Everything was in silence. They could feel their hearts' beatings slow down while listening to the wind blow right next to them. Finally, Ryu smiles.
"Do you want to go out tomorrow after class?"
Megu again smiles and nods. "Sounds good" She looks at him for a moment and feeling that she didn't have to be scared anymore, she talks with more confident. "Do you want to walk me home?"
"It will be a pleasure"
They start walking slowly. They didn't know what to say, but felt that it wasn't necessary express with words what they were feeling that moment, for they knew that the love wouldn't be lost.
Slowly they begin to put their hand together and when they felt they wouldn't let go, they both look at each other and smile more. Trusting that they will have each other forever.
The End.
By Hikary Kyoyama