Confession
He stood there, watching the people go by. The first days of autumn are always busy, and the people flowed onto the streets like the bright color that's creeping into leaves.
The chatter distracted him as he observed the groups, couples and the families. He heard snippets of summer memories; scraps of average teenage gossip, and the familiar whispered-sweet-nothings.
Better yet, no one recognized the solitary young man. The messy black hair concealed by a cap, the sharp blue eyes hidden, hands thrust in a pair of casual jeans; he appeared to be your average teenage passerby.
But he. Was on the newspaper the previous week. And he. Had won national championships in Kendo just last year. And he. Was not your average teenager, he was your schoolyard heart-throb. He, 18 years old, was currently waiting for his childhood friend of 15 years to show up oh-so-fashionably-late. Once again.
This time was different. His palms were clammy, his feet unable to settle down, and he felt nauseas; to the point where he had doubt in his own courage, something he never had to worry about before.
"Look! It's Hattori Heiji!" The girl yelped, dragging on the sleeve of her more tragic friend to her attention.
"Is it really him? The high school detective?"
Crap. Not again. He pulled his cap lower, and hovered among the people, hoping to escape.
"Wait! My Kami, it really is him!" Hoisting a pen and notepad in the air, the girl screamed for a signature and Heiji was temporarily blocked by the sets of curious eyes and strange looks.
Finally forming a barricade in front of him, the girl managed to spit hurricane sentences to express her extreme admiration and the how lucky she was to have spot him.
Indeed, it takes sharp eyes and sharper determination to spot, block and annoy the hell of Hattori Heiji in the matter of five seconds. But he'd like to think himself a patient man, and with a smile-more like a grunt- he obliged the crazy fan girl.
Among the hurried words, there was a phrase that caught him off guard.
"You're single, aren't you? Because all my friends say you are and if you aren't that would disappoint a lot of girls because everyone thinks you're so handsome and it would be such a waste just to bestow it all on one girl of course I'm not supporting cheating because that would be wrong oh, I'm just ranting on and on, aren't I?"
Thankfully, Heiji only heard the first question, and had the rest of her speech to ponder that problem.
Was he?
Hopefully not after today. Because whenever he thought on this topic, a particular emerald-eyed girl always popped into his head; and stayed there. With persistence.
And during the last three years, it could only be called a path of enlightenment; as he slowly began to grasp why he was always thinking of her, why he would unconsciously scribble her name on his notepad, or why he would sometimes whisper her name just to see how it'd feel.
The struggle was especially great when he reached the stage where he could not look at her without staring at her lips, thinking how they would feel on his. And when his heart would behave erratically when she displayed her usual affections. Sometimes, just a look would get him going in the wrong direction.
And the doubt. The horrible self-doubt that was unknown to him suddenly infested on his mind with the desperation of a disease, spreading into every corner. His biggest fear was that she did not feel the same way and thus would despise him for ruining their friendship.
But it could go on no longer. For when she talked to other boys, or smiled at those blasted male classmates; all he wanted to do was to kick them into oblivion and lock her up somewhere, where her smile wouldn't attract boys like flies. Or when she looked at Ran and Shinichi with that little sigh and a sad smile, it was all he could do to not pull her into his arms and whisper 'You're mine.'
And all of this wouldn't have mattered if he didn't know what it meant. But he did. She was no longer his childhood fiend, or his classmate, or his neighbor.
"So? Are you single, or are you not?"
The girl suddenly snapped him out of his reverie, and he let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.
"I…uh…" He suddenly stammered, not knowing how to reply.
But thinking of those green eyes, and gathering his courage, he said,
"No. I'm not." Because his heart belonged to someone else. That should count, even if it might be one sided, right?
"Really? Who is she, because I would really like to…"
He didn't bother hearing the rest, because a shadow emerged from the crowd, and her presence made Heiji draw in another breath.
"Kazuha…" He breathed, and suddenly, the girl blocking them, along with the whole street just vanished out of thin air. And all he could think of was what he was planning on doing today.
Making her mine.
He blushed furiously at the thought, and once again, he was back to reality.
The fan girl looked back and forth from him and this mysterious figure, sensing the tension and for once, she exited quietly; having gotten what she came for.
Perhaps it was impulse. Maybe he wasn't thinking, and that's why he pulled her into an embrace in front of the entire street. Ignoring his preplanned romantic dinner and flowers, he stupidly pulled her into him and held her.
"H-Heiji! What in the world are you doing?" She hissed, her cheeks imitating the color a tomato.
She struggled, trying to pull herself away.
Instead he locked his arms tighter around her and buried his head into the nape of her neck, where her ponytail swept on his cheek.
"Ahou! S-Stop it. We're in the middle of the streets!" She murmured, too flushed to utter anything comprehensible.
Instead he realized and accepted that his brain had shut down, and just followed the will of his heart. His last coherent thought had been how beautiful she was, and the way her lips looked so cherry red he could bite them.
Some passerby's stared, some giggled, and most just ignored the usual teenage displays of affection. But none of it mattered; to Heiji, there was just her and the overwhelming confession on the edge of his lips.
While Kazuha, stunned beyond her nerves, began to worry; with still no replies from Heiji.
"Heiji? What's wrong?" Out of fear and concern, she hugged him close and lifted her head to see his face.
Maybe that's when his brain had a sudden start-up. I can't tell her here. She deserves better!
But Kami! The way she felt in his arms, and the way her soft voice so cautiously worried for him. He was sure she could hear his heart, the way it felt like exploding, just from her hug.
His brain, again, has left his very body; and the only thought was to tell her, because he simply could not wait any longer.
"Kazuha… I-" He released her out of his grip.
When his blue eyes met her green, he abruptly stopped.
Fear gripped him like a silent claw, and scratched away at his awareness. He suddenly felt so vulnerable; that one word from her could break the very ground he stood on, or even worse, his heart.
He searched her eyes. Smooth and affectionate, it reminded him of water.
"Heiji?"
"I'm in love with you, ahou."
He held his breath, and her every movement, every expression became vital to him. Nevertheless, he felt lighter, as if he shook this secret of three years off of his bones.
Following each passing second, his hopes diminished. For after an eternity of watching her expressionless face, he felt like this was the answer he was to receive.
"I love you." He repeated it again. Why? He didn't know. Maybe he was stupid enough to hope that she didn't hear the first time.
She finally opened her mouth to speak.
"Heiji…I-" She whispered.
No! Stop! Don't say it! The panic that clasped his heart caused him to launch her back in his iron arms, as he hung onto the very last threads of his sanity.
"Please… whatever you do, don't say no…" he pleaded, whispering into her hair, and holding her tight.
"How could I, Heiji? I love you."
"So much that it hurts."
He pulled her out of his arms and looked at her, trying to see if he had imagined her reply. Let it be a dream, if only I don't have to wake up.
He was hit with a wave of ecstasy. It made his limbs numb and his mind blank. His blood boiled beneath his skin.
She loves me! She loves me back! He stopped himself from jumping with bliss.
Her words echoed in his brain over and over again.
He stared into her eyes, and saw the similar giddy happiness and relief. It made him momentarily forget. Forgetting to control himself.
And that's when he turned her back against the wall, took her hands in his and finally claimed those cherry lips of hers.
It was a little sweet, a little fresh, and a little desperate.
And even when he was out of breath, his lips lingered on hers, not wanting to leave.
"I've been waiting for this for 3 years." He whispered against her lips.
"And I, 15."
…
Epilogue
"Where is that boy, he's missed lunch and now dinner?"
Hattori Hanzo looked at the empty spot, and then at the cold dinner in the bowl.
"Let the boy be, Hanzo. He's probably with his friends."
"Hm."
"No doubt with Kazuha-chan."
"Hm… Probably."
"When are they getting married?"
"I'm betting on early twenties."
"How many grandchildren do you want?"
"As many as possible, you?"
"I'm putting my money on at least two."
"Hm…"
"I just hope he proposes soon, I'm sensing that he's finally coming to his senses."
"Really?"
"This morning I heard him mumbling incoherent things to himself, now if that's not a boy in love, I don't know what is."
A sigh from Hanzo.
"Then let the wait be finally over."
"Don't worry, I've already reserved a location and the honeymoon."
The End~~
Hello!
Hope you enjoyed this little one-shot.
Please forgive my sloppiness and plot changes, as this was written at 2 am, and my brain has shut down probably an hour ago.
Although I'm not particularly pleased with this one, I didn't have the heart to delete it because I wanted to apologize for disappearing for so long.
And I further apologize for the lack of updates on my other two stories, but this one-shot was to tell you that I am working on them and this is a little treat for those who had been waiting.
Thank you for reading. My eyes are held open only by toothpicks, so I bid you good-morning, and I am off to bed.
Please review, opinions, suggestions are much appreciated!