Sweet Happiness

By Funakounasoul

Disclaimer: I don't own Azumanga Daioh or its characters. Nope.

Author's Notes: Well, this just randomly popped into my head. Seriously, it did. I get out of my bed and "pow!"...hit me like a ton of bricks. This section needs more Tomo-Yomi friendship fics anyway. It's short, but sweet...like eating a candy bar. Oh, and for once, this story does not belong in/crossover to the "Flutter" universe. It's a story all on its own.

Read and enjoy!

Yomi never imagined she would be here of all places -- a candy store. There she was, though, walking around the various aisles, or rather, being forced to walk thanks to Tomo. The two were heading home for the day when the energetic Tomo suggested they stop here. She wanted her sugar fix and nothing, not even the health-conscious Yomi, was going to stop her.

Unlike her serious counterpart, Tomo felt like she was in heaven. Candies of all shapes, colors, and sizes were all around her. Which one would she pick? She did not have much money in her pocket. This was, after all, an unplanned stop. She knew she could only afford one candy bar. In this gigantic store, trying to pick a single bar out of hundreds was going to be difficult.

"Are you done yet?" Yomi suddenly asked, breaking the shorter girl's train of thought.

"Shut up!" Tomo yelled back. "Can't you see this is hard?"

"You were the one who decided to enter a candy store and not something smaller like, say, a convenience store!"

"Convenience stores are for sissies. Candy stores are for the hardcore candy lover, like me!"

Yomi shook her head in disgust. How could Tomo love candy so much, especially at her age? Candy was high in sugar, therefore they were bad to eat. Yomi walked away from her indecisive friend, hoping she could escape the sugary inferno without problems. That was not to be -- Tomo immediately spotted her and pulled her back. The sugar-hating girl was told to stay put and that it would only take a few more minutes. Grumbling, the brunette decided to simply stay clear of Tomo's path and headed for a different section of the store.

The store itself was large for a specialty shop. Everywhere Yomi walked, she found candy and candy-related merchandise. She even found confections from other countries. This store had it all -- chocolates, hard candies, gummies, gum, gooey candy, gourmet candies, and other sweet snacks. Yomi heard her stomach grumble loudly, almost to a point of sounding as if it was roaring. She was hungry, and the only thing near her was candy. The candies had awakened her sweet tooth from its long slumber.

"No Yomi," she muttered, desperately trying to find a place free of candy, "you made a commitment to stay fit. Candy is bad...Candy...is...bad."

No matter the location, the brunette saw nothing but candy. The candy stared back with its menacing logos, mascots, and bright colored packages. They were telling her to eat -- eat to her heart's content. She ran, yet the evil candies were hot on her trail. Even the bathrooms were pro-candy, with candy ads and candy-scented soaps. It was driving her insane. The candies' spell was finally affecting her…

Yomi did the only thing she could do. She screamed.

"Okay, I'm going with this one!" Tomo yelled as she thrust the chosen candy bar triumphantly into the air. It had taken her nearly half an hour to pick this one -- a typical chocolate bar with caramel inside. It was one of her all-time favorites, too. All she needed to do now was to find her friend, who she hoped had not tried to escape again.

"Yomi! I picked my candy bar! Hey, Yomi?" Tomo looked everywhere for her missing friend. So far, there was no sign of her. She looked out the store's windows -- no Yomi to be found. Perhaps she did get away and was now close to their neighborhood. No, Tomo thought, she could not have gotten that far. She still felt Yomi's presence in the store; it was something she picked up from being around the girl for so many years. She was inside, but where?

Tomo continued her search. As she passed by the cash register, she heard a purchase being rung up. That was strange -- there was no one in the store but her and Yomi. Wait. Turning around, Tomo saw something she had not seen in ages.

Grabbing the plastic back, Yomi turned around to find Tomo staring right back at her. "Ah! T-tomo...Are you done now?"

"Yomi, is that bag...full of candy?"

She had been caught in the act. Yomi shook her head, however, and tried to look as dignified as possible. "What? Of course not." she answered monotonously. "This is just...for my mother."

Crossing her arms, the shorter girl replied, "Yes, your mom. She loves sweets, doesn't she?"

"Yeah...she sure does. Since we're here and all, I thought I'd buy her some stuff."

"How nice of you to do that...Well, I'm off to pay for my chocolate bar." As Tomo approached the register, she smirked at her opposite. "Hope you don't gain weight from all this..."

A few moments later, both girls were walking down the street with their candy. At least, one of them was -- Tomo had devoured her chocolate bar right after purchasing it. Needless to say, she was hungry for more. She eagerly looked at Yomi's bag. Noticing this, Yomi switched the bag over to her other hand, away from Tomo's dangerous sweet tooth.

"Can't I at least have one?"

"No."

"Please?"

"No."

"With a cherry on top?"

"...No."

"Are you seriously going to finish that whole bag by yourself?"

Yomi stopped. Looking at her bag of sweets, she thought about her diet and the amount of candy she purchased. She did go crazy with her purchase that was for sure. Even so, she felt like today was her day to indulge herself in sweets. She blamed the store for her actions, as well as Tomo. She was the one who wanted to go inside and buy a candy bar.

"So, what are you gonna do, huh?" Tomo continued pestering her bespectacled companion. "Come on, Yomi! I'm hungry here!"

Without turning around, Yomi calmly replied, "No." The young woman then placed half of her candy into Tomo's hands and added, "But we can."

The gesture had surprised the other girl and could only mutter a simple "thank you" in response. Tomo thought she was going to get another uppercut, and to a lesser extent, hear the taller girl reply with an angry "shut up, idiot!" but this...this was quite unexpected. The two resumed their walk afterwards with Tomo placing her donated candy in her schoolbag at the same time.

After some thought, Yomi knew that too much candy was bad. A little sweet snack here and there was okay, but an entire bag of candy for one person was insane. She had let her sweet tooth take over her entire mind. Perhaps she should start eating a few sugary treats every now and then to tame the cravings. Besides, hogging a bunch of candy to oneself was mean and selfish. She felt her decision to share candy with Tomo was a good one; she felt content.

The remainder of the walk was silent. Yomi could feel Tomo's gaze from behind -- she was still confused over the brunette's actions. Despite their long history together, it seemed Tomo would never understand some things. She must have gotten used to boring, scornful, mature Yomi. She had a caring side, too, she just did not show it as often as she used to.

"Yomi! Hold up!"

Hearing Tomo's cries to slow down, Yomi stopped and waited for the girl to catch up. "What is it?"

"What are you hiding?"

"Come again?"

"You heard me! There must be some reason you gave me this much candy! Spit it out!"

Yomi smiled. It was a genuine smile this time, one that Tomo had not seen in a long time. Suddenly, the bespectacled teen grabbed Tomo's hand and placed another piece of candy in it -- a small, chocolate bear.

Holding up another chocolate bear, Yomi quietly replied, "We are best friends, aren't we?"

Tomo looked at the bear, then Yomi, and smiled. "Yeah, we are!"

With a mock toast, the two girls proceeded to eat their chocolates. After sharing a quick laugh, they happily headed home. For them, this was just another friendly moment between the two. These moments only happened on special occasions. It was something only longtime friends could understand.

People have said that candy brought happiness to those who ate it. Today was no exception.

There you have it. So, did you like it? It's been a while since I last typed something like this. I think. Well, I got to go work on "Flutter" now. Don't forget to review!