Title: Veer
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: Unbeta-ed, spoilers from Ep 12, non-canon
Genre: General, fluff
Word Count: 1201
Main Character(s): Ranka, Alto
Pairing(s): Alto/Ranka
Summary: She tightened her fist, until her nails dug into her palm, plucking up her courage before it failed her and leaned forward. One shot.
Disclaimer: Macross Frontier, characters and settings are copyright to Satelight and Studio Nue.
AN: Some of the parts follows Ep 12 but most are non-canon. Alto and Ranka's conversations are taken from the subs.
The air on Galia 4 was hot and humid. The flight suit with its high, turtleneck collar and fingertips to toes cover was not helping in this weather. Halfway to wherever they were heading to, Ranka had already tugged the zipper of the collar down. She had seen Alto did the same. He must be feeling hotter than her, with his long hair and lugging the large gun on his back. She wondered if they've gone at least a mile now or maybe more. It certainly felt that way, with them trudging through the forest in this heat. Sweat rolled off her face, the leaves under her feet crackled dryly as she trod over them.
She heard the sound of rushing water just as they stepped out into a clearing. She couldn't help her hair lifting up in delight at the sight. The water came from the lake where the Macross laid, running down a waterfall and going downward in a shallow river. She hurried forward, coming to stop at the edge of the bank, looking down at a shallow pond. The water probably didn't even reach up to her waist. She could see the bottom clearly but there was no underwater life beneath the surface. She felt somewhat disappointed.
"Now then." And Alto was tugging the zipper of his flight suit all the way downward.
She felt her face grew red, wanting to turn her head away but couldn't. He wore nothing but a pair of boxers underneath. There was the charm around his neck which he took off, placing it on top of the gun. A quick tug and his hair fell down to his back, swaying a little. He then waded into the pond; the water came up to his thighs only, confirming her earlier belief. She watched as he bend down a little, thrusting his head under the waterfall. The water cascaded over his head down his back.
His hair was so long, reaching to his waist when untied. She wondered how long did it took for him to grow it out. As if sensing her stare, he turned around, lifting his head out of the water.
"What is it?" he called out to her, breaking into her thoughts. "I've checked it. It should be all right if you don't drink it."
She stood up, grasped hold of the zipper and drew it downward. She knew that her face was a probably red but she couldn't stop now. Not when she already decided to do this. Her flight suit crumpled to a heap around her feet. Now that she was out of it, she felt much cooler. Keeping her eyes averted from him, she carefully made her way down. The water was still warm from the sun, though it was cooling now. It came up to her waist. She was shorter than him by a head and shoulder. She waded towards him, arms crossed over her chest.
"Um..." she said, embarrassed. She was in her underwear only in front of him. Her crossed arms probably only served to emphasized her small breasts instead of hiding them. She wished, not for once, that she had an ample chest like Nanase's. Or even like Sheryl's.
Instead of commenting on her chest, her underwear or her near nakedness, he pulled her under the waterfall. "You won't get wet if you just stand there," he told her.
She peered upwards at him through her lashes. He was blushing as hard as her. Well. It wasn't as awkward as she had thought, just a little uncomfortable as neither of them knew what to say to each other. She ducked her head under the waterfall, loving the delicious, cooling sensation of the water over her skin. She soon forgot about her shyness.
"Uwaah, this feels so good," she said, lifting up her hand to pushed her wet hair out of her face.
"Isn't it?" Alto had gone back to soaking his head. "I wonder if we can swim at the lake up there," he mused.
The thought of taking a swim sounded appealing but there was no telling what lived in the lake and being near the ship gave her an uneasy feeling.
"I don't think I want to swim in there," she said. "Not near that ship anyway."
He gave her a concerned look. It made the butterflies fluttered ever so slightly.
Their impromptu soaking finished after a while and they both climbed back up to the bank, coming to sit in the clearing. The sunlight shone down on them in a hazy, golden light. She wrung the water out of her hair, watching as he did the same. His hair was longer so it would take longer to dry than hers.
"Let me help," she said, coming to kneel behind him. Taking his hair in her hair, she squeezed it section by section to get the water out. The droplets fell to the ground, leaving dark spots behind. His hair was soft, almost like silk and very smooth. She admired the feel of it in her bare hand before she began to finger comb the strands.
"You're a girl that's full of surprises," he said. "When I just met you, I remember you saying 'I can?' or something similar. I didn't know whether you were timid or brave. I'm impressed at how much your heart can withhold."
She could feel the heat going back to her cheeks again at his words. The butterflies flapped their wings.
"... But- but compared to those times," she stuttered, face red. "If I was a little braver... it's all thanks to you. Because you're always protecting me. When I'm confused, you support me. That's why..."
He had turned around during her talk and was now looking at her with an expression that she couldn't quite identify. It was as if he had a revelation or an epiphany. Then, his eyes softened and his expression gentled, and she wondered if he could hear how loud her heart was beating right now. She could kiss him right now, just lean forward a little...
She tightened her fist, until her nails dug into her palm, plucking up her courage before it failed her and leaned forward. She could feel his surprise but it didn't last long. He kissed her back, even bringing a hand up to cup her cheek. This kiss wasn't in a script. There are no cameras around them. It was just them alone in the forest.
When they parted, their eyes met and they both blushed, looking elsewhere. When they looked back at each other again, she was the first one to break. She laughed, bringing up a hand to her mouth to stifle the giggles coming out from her but to no avail. He joined in, letting out peals of laughter.
"Let's go," he said, after their laughter had died down to chuckles and giggles. He smiled at her. She saw that it made his left cheek dimpled and thought it was endearing. "Time's precious and we should go and explore that ship."
He stood up, holding his hand out to her. She found herself smiling back at him as she took his hand.
Owari.