A/N : Kon'nichiwa, my dear reader ! Here I come with my little drabble for Ju-On :b
Totally un-beta'd, feel free to alert me to any mistakes you may find !
I don't own anything related to Ju-On. Except for my movie collection. But I want my own Toshio :')
...::: Loving Embrace :::...
She looked back up at the house again. Her eyes stung with unshed tears. The woman sighed, pulling her long hair out of her face. Walking down along the fence, she noticed the once bright paint was peeling off. Looking through the overgrown garden at the house, the windows dark against the pale facade, the young woman faltered in her step, thinking that perhaps she saw a hint of a movement in the window once belonging to someone very dear to her.
The quiet words were blown away by the wind, whispering through the narrow backstreet in the silent neighborhood.
„I came back... As I have promised to you so long ago, Shio-kun."
„Hikari..! Stop!"
The girl turned around, laughing as she saw the young boy running after her through the dense foliage. She looked ahead of her once again, screaming over her shoulder.
„I told you you'll have to catch me!"
The boy ran with a newfound enthusiasm, slowly catching up with his friend. When he finally reached her, his hands went up around her tiny waist, both of them tumbling to the ground. They laughed as they rolled down the hill, with him landing up on top of the girl.
„Gotcha!" he squealed in her face happily, catching both her wrists as she struggled to push him off of her.
Hikari looked in his eyes, twinkling with mirth. She was dying inside at the news she had to tell him. She hated the fact that she is going to ruin his happiness, and the anguish filled tears finally found their way to her eyes.
The boy's expression fell, watching the tears rolling down her face, dropping into her shiny black hair.
„Did I hurt you? I'm so sorry..! Hikari-chan, I'm sorry!" he babbled quickly, confused expression gracing his round face. Releasing her wrists and getting up he tried to help her to her feet. She remained sitting, forcing her mighty sobs to subside without much success.
The girl waved her hand at him, trying to tell him he didn't hurt her in any way, but she couldn't get any words through her hiccups. He sat on the ground next to her, engulfing her in his embrace. Burying his face in her hair, he tried to ease her obvious sadness at least.
When her sobbing started fading away, she looked with her tear filled eyes up into the face of her best friend.
„Toshio-kun.." she whispered brokenly. „My parents are moving to Europe in two months.." Fresh tears spilled from her eyes and she clutched tightly on her friends body.
He stared at the top of her head, trying to figure out what exactly happened. His right hand started wading through her hair soothingly.
„But.. But you'll return, ne?" Toshio asked quietly. „You will come back home.. To bring light into my life again..?"
Hikari raised her head slowly, her entire body trembling. „I don't know. I really don't know."
The boy's dark irises widened and he felt his own tears stinging his eyes. He let them fall, knowing his best friend won't be comming back to him any time soon.
„But I will come back to you, Shio-kun.. I promise."
Hikari shook her head vigorously. She couldn't help herself with remembering the happy past. The past which suddenly hurt so much. When she came back to Japan, back to Nerima, she found out from the neighbors the sad story of her childhood friend.
She remembered the times when Kayako watched both of them playing in the garden with smile upon her kind features, almost forcing them to stop in their games to eat lunch. When she hid herself in the tree and watched Toshio running around screaming her name at the top of his lungs, just to be scared to death when she jumped down from her hiding place. When they were playing with Mar, Toshio's black pet cat.
The young woman stopped in her tracks in front of the gate, letting herself in with the familiar creaking sound. Walking around the house, she found herself in the places where she was happy once, sad eyes falling on the swing in the corner of lush filled garden.
She stepped onto tiny porch in back garden, sitting down overseeing the entire garden from the spot Kayako often sat at, watching the playing children.
Hikari caressed the bouquet of meadow flowers she brought with her, laying them down on the porch. Taking her bag, she pulled of her most prized memory, the stuffed bear she got from Toshio just before she left Japan.
Looking at the toy in her hands, she felt her tears finally spill out and trail salty paths down her cheeks.
„I came back, Shio-kun.." Hikari whispered tearfully. „I came back to you, and you are not here."
She heard of the curse. Of course she did, she asked the neighbors about Toshio and his parents whereabouts. They were afraid of the house. When they found out who she was, that she intended to go there, they tried to discourage her, saying she will die if she ever tried to get to the house again.
Naturally, Hikari assured them she won't go to the house of Saeki family. But somehow, she found out she couldn't heed to that promise.
Because she gave her promise to another person, to the boy whom she loved with all her heart, even after all these years she spent away from him.
„Shio-kun.." she spoke again. „I never really told you how much I loved you back then, did I?"
She felt as if she could die just from her broken heart right there on the porch. Sudden rage filled her body.
„I told you I will come back to you!" Hikari screamed to the cooling air of September afternoon. „I promised! And I did keep my promise, just to find you dead!"
Her hands curling to tight fists, she started pounding the surface of the porch. Her body gave way, and she felt herself falling face first on the hard planks under her. Hikari continued beating her anguish away with her fists, finally submitting to a crying heap, just laying there, sobbing hysterically.
If she was capable of feeling anything, she'd notice the figure of a little boy crouched over her shaking form.
She'd feel his tiny hand stretching out to caress her hair. She'd hear his voice humming softly her favorite melody. She'd feel him laying next to her, embracing her weeping body. She'd see Mar purring softly at her feet.
And she would definitely notice Kayako above them, with tiny, frightening smile gracing her nightmarish face.
I love you too, Hikari-chan. You will be bringing light into my life... Forever.
She never knew she had died that September afternoon, in the loving embrace of her lost best friend.
。エンド 。
So, what did you think ? Review below, let me know ! ^_^
Oh, a little clarification is in order.. 'Hikari' means 'Light'. I kinda thought that little pun was cute XD
EviRuha (: