Summary: Home is the way you hold my hand.
Standard disclaimer applies here
querencia
.
.
.
(n.)—where one feels at home; the place where you are your authentic self
.
.
.
10:45 am. Gate 7.
The voices all around her—some loud, some excited, some filled with sadness— all seem to merge together in a low hum of static noise. She hears nothing but the loud beating in her chest, anticipation and longing all encapsulated in the vital organ in her body. She drums her fingers along her arm, an old habit that revealed her inner nervousness.
Her long black hair is twisted into two low hanging braids and she fiddles with them anxiously— will he still like it when she ties her hair like this, she wonders, or will he think she's childish? He'd always been fond of this particular hairstyle on her, but time often changes people, and Yanagi Hisato is no exception. On top of that, America is a quite a different place from Japan, she realizes, with different customs and different outlooks on such trivial things like hair. Perhaps, she muses, the past twelve months have changed Yanagi into someone she won't recognize? They'd talked on the phone everyday, but she knew he was busy with his studies and keeping up with his father's expectations, and often pushed him back to work.
A small smile lifts the corners of her mouth as she remembers Tachibana muttering bitterly to Shiori, "Forget dating. Those two should just get married. Have you seen the way they act around each other? It makes me nauseous." They'd all been drunk, but she remembers that Tachibana is most truthful in her intoxicated state, and would never confess to things that weren't true.
Thinking back at it, she can't really remember the details of her life before Yanagi, as cliché as that sounds. He'd come into her black and white world, all light blue eyes and flustered pride, and she'd pulled the high throne he'd imagined himself on right out beneath him. She didn't think he'd follow her so far and can never really fathom why, but he did—breaking her out of that strong shell of isolation she'd had since god knows when. Her father's death had scarred her delicate heart as a child, and while she kept herself strong to put back the pieces, Yanagi had been the one who helped her find appreciation for life once again.
She won't say that he's everything because he's not (there's her lovely circle of friends whom she cherishes with so much love and her hardworking mother who deserves the entire world) but he makes up a huge part of her life. Without him, she wouldn't have known what it was like to have caring friends who treated her like family. Without him, she wouldn't know the bright world outside of the pages of her textbook. He taught her how to smile and let it loose once in a while, and honestly she couldn't be more grateful.
Out of all the sweet, soft, pretty girls Yanagi could have chosen, he chose her—Kujou Mikoto—despite her plain hazel eyes and ordinary jet black hair, despite her sharp tongue and expressionless features, despite her habit of acting more manly than most girls her age.
Her cheeks warm at the thought and she takes a deep breath. Change or not, Yanagi had always been accepting of her; she would do the same for him.
A voice booms through the speakers of the airport as she glances down at her cellphone screen: 11:00 am. People are pouring out of the busy gate at the same time loving friends and families rush forward to meet their loved ones; in a matter of minutes, the waiting section she is sitting in becomes empty except for her.
She takes a deep breath and gets up, gathering all courage and trying desperately to dampen the fluttering in her stomach and the ache in her chest. Hazel eyes scan the growing mob of people manifesting before her, searching for blonde hair and cerulean blue eyes.
In all the years Kujou has known Yanagi, he has never been late.
Insecurity begins to settle in when she can't find him, can't see the boy who holds her heart so carefully in his hands in the crowd of happy families. What if he decided to stay abroad? What if something happened on the flight? What if he was hurt? What if—
"Kujou!"
Her body freezes at the sound of a familiar voice—along with the crowd. It's as if the world stopped, just for a brief moment, allowing her to collect herself. The silence only stretches for a few seconds before the buzzing of voices are back, this time louder.
"Hey, isn't that Yanagi Hisato? You know, the next CEO of Liu Resorts?"
"Yeah, he's so handsome and charming! Wonder where he's been the past year?"
"Oh, I heard he went to study abroad. He's so smart and rich!"
There's giggling and shallow compliments being thrown Yanagi's way, futile attempts to capture his attention, but Kujou doesn't care—because the next minute the mass of people part and there he is, standing a few feet away. Despite all the calls of his name, the fluttering eyelashes and flirtatious smiles of girls prettier than her, more elegant than her, more stylish and girly than her, Yanagi's blue eyes fall directly on her and they stay there, a gentle smile making its way up his elegant face. He sees no one but her.
"Kujou?"
He looks taller, she observes with a quick scan of his body. He looks leaner and his blonde hair is slightly longer at the sides and the atmosphere he carries with him seems more mature but he is still her Yanagi, still the boy with bright eyes and an even brighter smile that could light up even her darkest nights; he is still hers.
Tears prickle her hazel eyes as she releases a strangled sound and runs toward him, leaping into his awaiting arms. He still smells the same—like mint and something clean. He's so close and his arms are tight around her waist and she doesn't care, doesn't care that there's an entire horde of people watching them at this very moment because she is in love with this boy and a year has been so hard without his constant presence.
Her chest feels like it's about to burst with the overwhelming amount of emotions she feels and before she can even think through what she is about to do, she leans forward and plants a soft kiss at the corner of Yanagi's mouth. Right there, in the middle of the airport, in front of hundreds and hundreds of people, because she missed him so much and she is so happy.
Yanagi's cheeks are bright red and so are hers, but she can tell by the way he's grinning and the way his eyes sparkle that he is happy, too.
"C'mon," he says, lacing his fingers with hers, tugging her towards the exit. "Let's go home."
It's a familiar feeling, Yanagi's hand enclosing hers, and she wants to tell him that she is already home, standing in the spot next to him. Because home is not a place, she has come to realize in the past eleven years. Home is a person, and for her it is a person with perfect large hands that hold hers.
Fin.
note: if you like shoujo manga and you haven't read Last Game, I def recommend it! it's sort of like KWMS and Special A.
I'm currently working on new chapters for yuanfen and am planning on updating FMN as well (it's been like 3 years i'm sorry); hoping to get them out by the end of this week. thank you all for your patience once again, i love you all.
-A