Title: No Response
Author: Kamel
Theme: Frustrated
Genre: General
Rating: G

Words: 850

Summary: Mamoru hadn't written back to any of her letters and Usagi was steadily growing more frustrated.

Chiba Mamoru.

She lost count how many times she re-read the name and the foreign address, double checking – triple checking – for any errors. Her writing was the clearest it has ever been, no room for misreading (or so she hoped). The address matched exactly the one he had given her. She had double checked that also. There was nothing wrong with the envelope and it had the adequate amount of postage stamp needed. She had her return address on it thought none of the letters had been returned. They were obviously being delivered, weren't they?

Usagi's shoulders fell slightly as her blue eyes trailed up from the addressed letter to the mailbox. She had even made sure that this was an active mailbox. It would have been her luck to be placing letter after letter into an inactive mailbox, but no – it was active. She had almost wanted to hear that it had been inactive, she would have rather wanted to hear that her letters were sitting in a small pile inside rather than realizing Mamoru truly had not been responding to her.

She tried to reassure herself time and time again, over and over. Mamoru had gone aboard to study and he must have been extremely busy with his work – otherwise he would write back. Yes, that must have been it. He was too busy studying. After all, he was at Harvard University. A grim smile tugged on the corners of her lips as she ran that thought over again. It made sense.

Yes.

Definitely made perfect sense.

He was too busy for his girlfriend.

Her stomach had twisted itself into tight hot knots at that realization. Was that the truth behind why her letters were not being answered? Did Mamoru really not care anymore? Would it honestly be too difficult to take a little time out of his schedule to just write back? She wouldn't have even minded a short response – anything was better than nothing, wasn't it? After all, they were in a relationship together – they were more than boyfriend and girlfriend at this point. He was her Prince and she his Princess. Why wouldn't he answer?

How many unanswered letters have she already sent? He could have easily written back, a letter explaining that he was too busy or perhaps even a phone call; she wouldn't have mind either. An explanation for this long silence would save her all the frustration she was experience now. Every day she came home to an empty mailbox, she came home to no response and the frustration was eating away at her. She was expecting something, anything.

Maybe this letter would be different.

Maybe she would actually get an answer this time.

Then again.

What made this letter any different than the others she had written before?

It wasn't any different. It truly wasn't. She had written about her day, about their friends and the adventures they were having – about the celebrities that were now attending their school and the new enemy that had appeared (and the Starlights, whoever they are). Surely he would write back, especially with the news of a new enemy and more sailor senshi appearing – and Chibi-Chibi as well. He had to have been worried about them, even though she informed him that they were okay, they were handling the situation very well.

Why all this effort to contact him when he really didn't care himself? Obviously if he cared, he would have tried to make contact with her, right?

Her lower lip began to quiver as her blue eyes started to sting slightly. No, she really wouldn't think like this; Mamoru wouldn't do such a thing, not to her. He loved her and she him. No, he had to have been busy with school work, with his academic life. Studying aboard was a big deal. Maybe he was having a hard time adjusting and having contact with her would only make that adjusting more difficult. Yeah, that made sense. If she was in that position she wouldn't have wanted to be constantly reminded about home either.

Well, she would have loved to hear from her friends, but that would make adjusting to a foreign culture even harder – and America was as foreign as a culture could get.

But seriously. Just one letter explaining anything!

Her fingers clutched onto the envelope as she reread the name and address for the millionth time. This had to be different; she had to keep telling herself that regardless of what reality was telling her. She had to believe against everything that Mamoru would write back this time or maybe he would actually call; she just wanted to hear from him – just once, that couldn't have been too much to ask.

"Mamoru-kun," Usagi muttered softly, bringing the envelope close to her chest as she closed her eyes tightly. "Please, Mamoru-kun," her quiet voice begged as she slipped the envelope into the outgoing mailbox.

End