Blue Rain:
It was exactly the same scenario a year ago: the rain and the umbrella, the reason for braving the rain and the comfortable company under that umbrella.
Perhaps the only thing different was the familiarity he has developed with the doll in his arm. She doesn't squirm and point towards the nearest food stand like Hinaichigo. She doesn't voice out the first degrading order that comes to mind like Shinku. And she doesn't bark out non-sense that often lead to misunderstanding and confusion like her twin.
"Do you think she's in the playground again?" Jun asked.
"Yes, I do." She answered calmly, "Even if she isn't, I know her well enough to rule a few locations where she might be."
Amidst the cold deluge and uncomfortable feeling of mud constantly flinging up his legs, there was the consolation of being with a very sharp and reliable mind. He never understood why, but being with Souseiseki just seemed like things would go according to plan, or at least not as chaotic as it would be without her. Her sense of order and protocol of how things work set everything straight, that not even the infernal racket caused by Hina's tantrums could last long enough, not since she came to stay at his house and work the ways of the gullible strawberry doll and her many weaknesses.
"If your arm is getting tired, I will opt to walk." She offered, looking at Jun.
The proximity of their faces would have been enough for an awkward situation. They were so close they could feel each other's warmth and notice each other's thoughts reflected on their eyes. But there have never been any thoughts worth hiding, as far as Jun knows, nor have there been any situations of awkwardness between them.
"It's fine." He bravely said, grinning at her proudly, "You're not heavy anyway."
It was her turn to give him a proud grin, like it was a compliment worth boasting and vanity-satisfying. Not like she was vain to begin with. Jun had seen her work through her dress, her hair, her cosmetic attendants, and never have he seen her spend more than five minutes on all of those combined. She'd come out, fresh from the bath with her sisters, comb her hair up, then start drying Suiseiseki's hair, tie Shinku's long ones and then brush Hinaichigo's curly top. Her own hair would fall down naturally to decorate the side of her small head.
Moments passed, with the playground still a few blocks away, the blanket of rain suddenly thickened.
"Goodness, this rain is quite something." She said.
"Yeah, we better hurry."
Jun noticed her trying to move up his arm. The umbrella was big enough to accommodate a person and a doll, but it wasn't protecting from the wind. Her right arm was getting drenched badly, and she is simply too timid to even ask for more on top of being carried. But for Jun, she didn't have to ask. He gave a sudden fling of his arm, causing Souseiseki to bounce up, and land somewhere nearer his elbow.
She gave him a look stuck between generosity and humiliation, but Jun simply smiled at her. After that short acknowledgement, her head again turned towards their surroundings, blurred by a furry of merciless liquid. Souseiseki was equipped with all that is necessary for combat, including alertness, the readiness to respond to any possible event, and to consider all those possibilities in the present, one of which her twin not being in a playground but being somewhere else.
There were more shades in the street where they entered, so the options are increasing. Souseiseki's head was turning in all sorts of directions to pry on each detail of each location, unintentionally causing her cheek and hair to brush on Jun's face. Said boy didn't mind, but he couldn't help but notice one superficial detail.
He moved his head closer and sniffed on her hair. In that precise moment, Souseiseki's head turned around in an attempt to say something to Jun, but wasn't able to since their lips came critically close. Jun froze, and so did Souseiseki. For a moment Jun got entranced with the contrasting color of her eyes, which blinked after a few seconds forcing him to recoil back to the real world and continue his pace on the pave way.
This time, the situation was getting dangerously close to being awkward. Lucky for him, Souseiseki was quick to brush it off with a smart question.
"What?" she asked, taking an indifferent tone.
"Nothing. It's just that your hair smells familiar."
"It should. I've been using your shampoo."
Jun's left eyebrow rose, along with the left side of his lips. It wasn't a smile, it wasn't a grimace – it was a question turned into a feature, something he knew Souseiseki was very much familiar with. It was usually followed by a rant or a yell, but he knew that with Souseiseki, it wasn't necessary.
"Sorry," she said softly, suddenly turning tiny in his arms with a bowed head and childish, pleading expression, "I guess I shouldn't have."
"I don't mind. You can use my stuff, but for starters you should ask for permission." He chastised mildly.
"That I will, I swear." She said strongly.
"And also, it's a guy's shampoo. Shouldn't you be using Nori's?"
"My sisters are already using it. I'd feel bad if Nori runs out."
"I'm sure she wouldn't mind. She has boxes of it." Jun said, trying to reassure her.
"Yes, but still…"
She left the statement hanging. It indicates a point already pinned, and an argument already closed, and by the small smile adorning her little face, it was definitely her win. Considering that he also tends to do that when he's arguing with Tomoe, Jun let it slide and just paired a smile with hers. As they continued to walk, and humorously dread the increasing volume of rain, their faces ended up literally leaning on each other. Neither seemed to care though, since the freak cold was reaching an intolerable peak.
Jun entertained those dead air seconds by hopping over some mud puddles, temporarily distracting Souseiseki. When he failed to successfully cross over one wider than his premature calculation, the result was a messy pair of slippers, and a thousand waltz worth of giggle from the creature in his arm. The sound of it coming from Souseiseki was fresh and crisp, and something Jun doesn't hear too often, and it gave a definitive delight in the boy that he felt like he wanted to hear more of it.
He was about to raise another point for discussion, like how she doesn't smile much or that she should find her happiness now that the Alice Game is over, when a sudden aerial illumination took those thoughts away, followed by an ear-shattering roar. Souseiseki jolted a bit as if that electric phenomenon was able to reach her.
Another slice of white divided the sky, again followed by thunder. Both of them saw the split second lighting make landfall on a tower of one city building. They were still staring open-mouthed and expectant, when they realized that the show was over. They looked at each other, acknowledging the same appreciation of something awesome and at the same time scary.
Jun found it strangely remarkable that Souseiseki was able to maintain a calm and stress-free disposition. He was partly expecting her to jump on to him and choke him by the neck like Suiseiseki. In a way, he was also hoping for it.
"I see you're not that scared of a little lightning." Jun commented with a smirk.
"No, I'm not." She confirmed, still looking far across the sky as if another flash would come its way, "But I wouldn't want to be hit by one, either."
That witty response made Jun chuckle. Souseiseki considered her own absent-minded answer and soon joined him in the fit. Their subtle laughter joined the noise of rain, until they mellowed down, concluded with meaningful smiles with one another. It became clear for Jun at that moment that as Suiseiseki's twin, Souseiseki was the polar opposite. Calm, reserved, tolerant and patient – she embodies every reversed trait, both in and out. As Suiseiseki's affectionate nature and emotion-driven personality is reflected in her beauty and lady-like appearance, so is Souseiseki's masculine, more refined and less noticeable charm scream out her constantly rational disposition.
The thought wavering towards the other star-doll reminded Jun of one detail he failed to understand.
"Say, Souseiseki," he began, "What did I do this time? I mean, it's not like this would be the first time she ran away because of me. But this would be the first where things don't make sense. I mean, I haven't even said anything yet and she…"
"It's not your fault she ran away, Jun. At least, not entirely." She said, scooting a bit away from Jun for reasons said boy didn't get, save for that conspicuous small blush right beside her signature dimples.
"What do you mean?"
She didn't answer, so Jun was left to recall the events prior to Suiseiseki's sassy and immature antics.
"This is so stupid." Jun groaned for about the tenth time for the past 5 minutes.
"It's your fault for forgetting our birthday." He heard Shinku say.
"Hey, it's not even YOUR birthday. Didn't Rozen make you in different years?" he asked, hoping to reason his way out of this nonsense.
"Yes," answered Souseiseki, "but he set a specific date every year just for making one of us, so technically, we all have the same birthday." (this is balderdash by the way, I'm not even sure when they were made.)
"Alright fine. Let's just get this over with, this blindfold is tied too tight." He complained.
"Great!" Suiseiseki said in what Jun considered as a squeelly kind of voice that he appreciates every now and then, but with the said blindfold, was currently annoying the heck out of him. "Now, this is how it's going to be. One of us will do something to you, and you have to guess who it is. Simple, yes?"
"Yeah, yeah, okay. Give me a test run, see how it goes. I don't want to give you guys an easy time." He said, feeling the vibe of the whole charade.
He waited for a few seconds, until he felt tiny fingers suddenly squeeze his nose.
"Ooww!" he exclaimed. The giggle that followed and the hush from Suiseiseki were more than enough clues. "Hmm, small, chubby, sticky hand, smells like pastry… this is a tough one…"
He was playing it, of course. He waited to hear another giggle from the target to determine her exact location. When that childish sound was finally heard, he reached out to his 2 o'clock and got a hold of the smallest, loudest creature in the house. The hapless Hinaichigo wasn't expecting it. She yelped as Jun yanked her to his lap and started tickling her.
"Was it you? Huh? Was it you?"
"Eeek! Yes, yes! It was Hina! Hahaha!" the blonde doll answered amidst a brutal attack of Jun's fingers on her side.
When he exhausted the little twerp long enough, he kissed the top of her head, whispered 'happy birthday' and then gently pushed her off. He heard the doll skip her way from the living room to the kitchen, probably to get a drink.
"Okay, who's next?" he declared proudly.
"We forgot to explain one detail." Shinku said.
"And that is?"
"If you don't manage to guess it right, one of us get to take something from you." Suiseiseki answered.
"Really? Well, it's not like there's much here in my life you haven't taken. Ouch!" he felt a pillow slam across his face at the end of that statement. "Shinku!"
"Nope! It's still Hina!" the culprit mistakenly thought of to have ran off somewhere again hit Jun with the same pillow. To escape his wrath, all she had to do was put her arms around his neck in a hug, then run off again.
"That's one mistake. We get to take something." Shinku said again, beginning to sound creepy.
"Tch, fine. Just go on with it."
He felt a gentle poke of on his cheek – gentle, coy, but familiar. "Souseiseki." He said with a smile.
"That's right." He heard her mellow, beautifully deviant voice.
He sort of wished the remainder of their plan would just go like that. But the rest of the half hour passed on with all sorts of ridiculous antics, mostly coming from Suiseiseki's brutish expressions of affection, Hina's childishness and Shinku's desire to see her underlings get humiliated. There were bits of Souseiseki's mediocre 'cooperative' contributions but he never got to feel anything from her, which was really the only consolation in the game.
"Okay, Jun, you managed to guess everything right. Now, for the last guess."
"Finally…" he groaned again, happy to conclude the affair and at the same time tolerate such occasional farce.
"Remember your one mistake? And how we are supposed to get something from you because of it?" Suiseiseki asked.
"Oh yeah, that. Sure, what about it?"
"Weeell… for the final part of the game… one of us will take it from you…"
"And then you simply have to get guess who it is."
"Really? Sounds easy enough. Bring it."
He was a little relief when the detail was as basic as that. But when he heard people shuffling about, a subtle coaxing and argument happening in the background, Hina's familiar, poorly restrained laughter and Shinku's infuriated sighs, he began to suspect something.
"…do I really have to?" he heard someone whisper in the background, but he wasn't able to figure out who it was.
The catch in the terms was that they weren't able to specify what would happen if he guess this one wrong again, if somehow they manage to take something from his pocket or probably cut a strand of his hair stealthily without him knowing. He smirked to himself as he devised an escape route in the whole scenario.
But then everything suddenly went still around him. It became awfully quite, save for the patter of raindrops from the outside. Of course, there was another possible part of this game: that everyone would quietly exit the room, leaving him to his own company looking genuinely stupid. He gave a sigh of defeat. There was no escape route to this one…
"Alright," he began, "you guys got me. I give up, so why don't we…"
Before he could stand from where he sat, or even finish that surrendering speech, he was quickly silenced by something small, tender, moist and chocolaty. His mind went blank that he couldn't even begin to imagine the audacity of such an act. Surely, he should be pulling his head away, take out his blindfold and start pointing fingers, right?
But no. For some reason, he couldn't move. The soft lips pressing against his was addicting, and although 'it' made the initiative, he could feel his own lips matching the gentle pressure and it seemed the other party was melting in his mouth. Sneaky, that much he could register in his head – to take away something like this. No wonder they didn't wager what that 'thing' would be, since it would be obvious he would be robbed of his first kiss.
Truly, it was his first, but his own brain seemed to have grown dead to everything else. It felt so darn good that even after pulling away, his head followed as if seeking for more. He shamefully ran his sleeve across his chin to wipe an escaped drool.
He then heard foosteps, loud and excited, entering the living room. It would seem they were given that few minutes all to themselves. Had he realized that sooner he would have grabbed that person's head in an attempt to kiss some more, but that would be unbecoming.
Then came the complicated part..
"Okay, so who was it?" asked Shinku.
He was still shaking a bit after that, and blushing. He had to take some time to clear his head and get his gears running before he could place some sense into things.
"Let's see… it couldn't be Hina, since her lips would be too small, and it would have been a messy kiss. Little Ms. Man-doll probably wouldn't have agreed to do it, and even if she did I would not definitely not have enjoyed the kiss since it would feel like I'm kissing another boy… so now it boils down to Shinku or…. OOOW! Hey!"
Before he could finish that processing, he felt a monstrous force collide with his knee, enflaming his entire leg with intolerable pain. It ruined the mood for him so much he decided to end the whole thing.
"Alright, that's it!" he declared, untying the towel that was covering his eyes, "I'd take the stupidity, the senseless games, the muddle of things you always leave me to fix, yeah, I'll take all that. What I can't stand is the… kicking…"
Everyone seemed to be in a worse disposition, save for Souseiseki who remained calm despite the slight trace of hurt on her face. Hina and Shinku had no qualms in expressing their disheartened sentiments by looking down at the floor with shimmering eyes. As per Suiseiseki, she was fuming – and there's no surprise in that, but there was something deeper than spoiled, denied childishness in her anger.
"W-what?" he cautiously asked them.
"You… STUPID, INSENSITIVE, PUNY HUMAN!"
She gave another kick on his shin, amplifying the pain which was yet to disperse from his leg and causing him to jump around the room clutching one of his calves.
And that was that. He was planning to give her a word, or two, through one bone-breaking yell, but when he was able to recover, all that was left were the three dolls, whispering among one another. Souseiseki announced she'd be going out to find her, but Jun thought it'd be dangerous for doll to be under this downpour so he joined her.
And so there they were, finally at the playground, with no sign of Suiseiseki. They were both hoping that by the time they got there, the rain would've stopped or at least softened a bit, but it didn't. It's pouring down so hard now the umbrella was practically useless, so Jun ran to what they thought was Suiseiseki's hiding spot, her twin safe and still relatively dry in his arms.
They were able to reach the makeshift cavern where thankfully the sandy ground was completely dry and they could comfortably wait. They were under some diminutive sheet of silence when an orb of light suddenly flew in and landed on Souseiseki's hand.
"Ah, Lempicka… Uh-huh, yes… oh, I see, that's good, I suppose. Please run back home and tell everyone that we're fine, but we have to wait this rain out, at least until it weakens."
The artificial spirit burst out a wave of magic then rushed out.
"What did she say?"
"Um," Souseiseki seemed hesitant to answer, "She said Suiseiseki never actually left home."
"What?!"
"I'm very sorry Jun!" she started to appease the angered human even before Jun could vent out. The boy saw the sincerity in Souseiseki's eyes and wasn't able to let his own furry grow. "I will speak to her later and ask her to apologize for causing you a lot of trouble."
"No, it's fine." Jun said, stretching out his arms which had been in stationary position until now. "Besides, I have a feeling I should be the one apologizing."
Everything was dry, but nothing seemed a suitable place to sit, at least not for a neat-freak doll. Jun didn't mind the dirt. He just sat on the ground and leaned on a wall, while his companion was busy looking for something – probably a rock or a leaf, something that wouldn't soil her shorts. When she wasn't able to find it, she just fixed herself in the middle and tossed her legs awkwardly.
"Here. You can sit on my lap." Jun offered with a mischievous grin.
Souseiseki's face brightened with a sweet smile, "Really?"
"Really. Hurry up before I change my mind." He didn't really mean it, of course.
Jun's legs, crossed in a lotus position, provided a very comfy throne for the Lapiz Lazuli. She placed her hands on each of his knee and, without being conscious about it, laid her back on Jun's chest. When she suddenly realized the extent of taking the boy's offer, she gave a motion of standing up again, but Jun pulled her back. No further issue to that, Jun thought.
"Thanks Jun… it must feel weird having a boy sit on your lap." Souseiseki said.
"Oh, that… I called you Little Ms. Man-doll earlier. That was mean, I'm sorry, especially since it's your birthday."
"It's alright," Souseiseki rebutted while shaking her head, "I get it all the time. I DO look like I boy, don't I?"
"For others yes, but I still think you're really cute girl."
Out of curiosity, or even perhaps clarification, Souseiseki turned her head and looked up at him.
"You do?" she asked with a smile.
"Um… yeah…" he answered, a little embarrassed for giving a compliment he had never shared with the opposite sex before, even for a doll.
That radiant curve of her lips never left Souseiseki's face as she reverted back to front view. Jun could tell as much, even though he wasn't looking at her directly. Minutes went on and the rain didn't seem to show any hint of mercy. And by the looks of it, they'd be stuck there for at least another hour. With the cold breeze and wearied disposition that may mean falling asleep, which would be perilous in their situation.
"Did you know? Amongst us sisters, I was the only one who was made under a rainy day like this." Souseiseki suddenly said, hinting a nostalgic tone.
"Really? That's Interesting," Jun commented, "I didn't know that. I guess even while you were being made you were already used to a noisy background."
Souseiseki chuckled at that, "Yeah, I suppose you're right."
Jun probed through his own memory in hope of continuing the moment of the conversation, "Let's see… it was raining when I accidentally hit a cat with my bike."
"My, that's horrible." Souseiseki said in mock accusation.
"Hey, I said it was an accident. I mean, I didn't see it coming, and when it rains hard like this, you get distracted easily, you lose your way around things… or in my case, I lost my way around my words…"
"Eh?" she looked up, not understanding his later statement.
He didn't bother re-stating it. In his mind, he was convincing himself that the earlier apology was more than sufficient, but he couldn't shake away that feeling of lax, like he still had to do more than that, and that in his recklessness he had hit on something fragile like a little cat. But it was already beyond him.
"We're… um, we're going to miss Kun-kun." Jun said out of the blue, more so to fill the void.
"Ohh, dear," he heard Souseiseki whine with such childish disappointment, "you're right! And today is supposed to be a critical episode too! Stupid rain!"
That was the first time he heard her express disdain over something. Mature and rational Souseiseki doesn't normally do that, so hearing her say it was very amusing for Jun, even though she didn't really have any particular address to it. That said, Jun still felt bad for bringing it up for it certainly put her in a foul mood, as indicated by the sudden crossing of her arms on her chest, and the straightening of her back.
He needed something to cheer her up, or at least distract her.
"Well, I was planning to save this for later," Jun started to say while pulling out stuff from his pocket, "but now that we're waiting, I might as well use it to put your mind away from Kun-kun."
Souseiseki, feeling the boy move under her, stood up and watched him struggle with a handful of boxes, each the size of a pear. He was able to shove everything back in the deep containment of his shorts, save for one blue box with a pen's length, adorned with only a green ribbon stripping a cross on the front. He handed the box to Souseiseki who didn't seem to get it.
"I didn't actually forget. There's one for each of you, but I left the ones for Kanaria and Suigintou back in my room." He said softly, grinning at her like it was an achievement to fool them all. She took the box from Jun with various glimmers showing in her eyes of red and green, stroking it with her tiny fingers. "Well?" Jun interrupted her contemplative consideration, "Say something."
"Thank you." She whispered, clutching the box and squeezing it on her chest like it was a part of her. Her usual deep voice, made subtle and softened by her calmness, quivered unusually in that expression of gratitude. She seemed to want to say more, but couldn't find the right use for vocabulary.
"You're welcome." Jun said, running a hand playfully on her hair.
Souseiseki just knelt on his legs, still looking down at the box. Jun was partly hoping she'd open it up, but if she wanted to savor the moment of receiving a gift, he couldn't deny her that.
"You know," Jun began, "before my parents went overseas, we use to have this tradition. When it was someone's birthday, we'd treat him or her as the master of the day. The master would make a request, and everyone would obey. It wasn't much, but it was fun. Whenever it was dad's birthday, he'd tell me to yell on the roof at night, 'I'm king of the world!' I'd go up, scream at the top of my lungs, and we'd end up getting a lot of complains from the neighbors."
Souseiseki giggled at the story, "Wow! I'm guessing your father wanted you to develop self-confidence."
"Yeah, you're right." Jun affirmed, "But hey, I was eight, so I didn't really get all that. Plus they everything got shadowed by the fact that they left Nori and me."
"Oh, I'm sorry Jun."
He reassured her by a sly grin and a poke on her tiny nose, "No worries. My point actually is, now that we're here, and today being your birthday, why don't we follow tradition. There's not much I can do, but right here, right now, you can be the master."
She looked at him, questioning and a little bit hopeful. Jun seemed proud and ready, perhaps because there really wasn't much she can ask of him. In a way, it was a bit unreasonable to deliver such privilege when there is hardly anything with which to make use of it.
"So, I can ask you to do anything for me?" she asked.
"Yes, anything. But try not to make it too embarrassing, ok?" Jun winked at him to emphasized an unspoken understanding between two reasonable minds.
Souseiseki's face suddenly turned red, and for some unknown reason, her calmness suddenly hid behind a curtain of frozen, wide-eyed stare. Jun immediately dropped the grin he had been wearing. Souseiseki was now looking at him like he was a big chasm that she had to cross, and she didn't seem confident about succeeding.
"Very well," she said softly, dropping her head to hide the uncool appearance, "I… I do have a request."
She stood up and slowly walked towards the middle of the cove, her legs lightly tossing as she does so. With her back turned against him, Jun wasn't sure at the moment if his worry was merited, of he should just find other minds to distract her. Then again, he thought, if she has something on her mind she wanted to let out, now may be the time. Considering that they were both mature people, at least compare to her sisters, it wouldn't be that bad.
"Name it." Jun said to her.
The little doll acknowledged that by lifting her head, and walking towards a nearby hole serving as a window. She held out a finger outside and took a few drops of rain, then spoke, "I want you to promise me two things."
"Erm, okay…" Jun hesitantly said. Technically it was a request, but it was an odd one. It was definitely better than being asked to sing or dance, so he gave his consent.
"Jun, I want you to promise me – if you don't like what you're going to hear, you'll forget that I ever said it…"
"What?" perplexed and somewhat concerned, Jun tried to interrupt, but Souseiseki continued.
"And also- after today, when we get back home, you'll do your best not to hate me." Her voice was low, soft and self-conflicting.
"Souseiseki, I don't understand what you're –"
"Promise me, Jun!" she declared strongly, loudly, turning around and giving him an urgent look.
It wasn't a simple request. It wasn't a childish demand either. Had Jun figured she would have something on her mind like this, he would have opt a different route. Then again, what else can he do? He couldn't even understand where she was going with this. At least, by how that request went, Souseiseki believes that he would change his perspective of her – that much he knew. Jun grinned at her, to appease the growing tension in the atmosphere, and to simmer down her fear of something.
"Okay, I promise, master." He said.
"And you don't break promises, do you Jun?"
"Not that I know of." He answered for the purpose of adding jest in the discussion. The point of the moment would be defeated if it is causing her discomfort.
Souseiseki took a deep breath, the one you take before you jump in a deep plunge. Jun watched her pace around the middle of the cove, with a finger holding her chin. For a moment, she seemed like a real detective, and Jun began to wonder if she's just toying with him. He continued to watch her, slightly getting amused at the adorable thing she was slowly turning into, being so serious.
"Okay, here it goes." She began, stopping in front of Jun with the box still held close on her chest, "Remember when I said that it wasn't entirely your fault why Suiseiseki reacted like that?"
"Yes I remember." He said, suddenly getting interested.
"It wasn't because of what you said. It was because of what I told her a few weeks ago."
"What did you tell her?" he asked, even more curious than ever.
Souseiseki's head suddenly burned with a fluster Jun had never seen on her before. Whatever composure she was keeping in check has certainly failed, and now he was seeing the real sentiments of the doll. At the moment, she has become a blushing, emotionally driven mess.
"…I told her… um.." she tried to speak, her knee rattling, her head squeezing down her neck. She looked like she wanted to disappear, or turn into a tiny ball and just roll away. Jun leaned his ear closer when she mumbled something he couldn't hear. That made Souseiseki cringe her body into a smaller form.
"I didn't catch that." He said, unable to comprehend a single word she said.
Souseiseki shot up at him suddenly, "Don't make me say it again!"
Jun was forced back with the grave authority in her voice, "I-I'm sorry but, I didn't hear what you…"
The doll turned her back on him again, and said loudly, "I told her that I've fallen in love with you."
That was the mind-splitting punch line that rendered even nature into a halt, as the storm around them slowly dies into a simple drizzle. But that was just a brace for a greater gush. As Jun's mind processed her statement, and that glimmer in Souseiseki's green and red orbs, his heart was the first to respond – it felt like it stopped, and then it suddenly ran so fast. His face then took it from there, blushing suddenly, eyes-wide and mouth-gapping.
"You are… in love with me?" he whispered, more so to repeat the last statement he was expecting to hear from her. Heck, he hasn't even used the word 'love' since he stopped reading manga.
"Don't, don't repeat it either!" Souseiseki demanded, completely flustered and embarrassed.
"I'm sorry, it's just that… I feel so…"
"Disgusted? Betrayed? Utterly sickened? Discombobulated?" Souseiseki ranted, leaning closer and closer with each word as if asking him to say them.
"Calm down, geez!" Jun said, holding her shoulders, "God, I don't even know what discombobulate means, but I sure don't feel that way."
"Then, how do you feel?" she asked, kneeling on his leg again.
"I don't know. Surprised, I guess." He said, scratching his head while looking away.
Then, all of a sudden, he became really conscious of how close Souseiseki was, and now relatively scandalous their position was. All of a sudden, he found himself staring at her deep eyes, plastic, lifeless toy's eyes at a glance until they come to life with a sudden burst of emotion transcending anything he had seen on a human eye. All of a sudden, Jun became aware of a number of things he had never thought he'd consider.
"Is this why you made me promise?" he cautiously asked, leaning back to hide his own blush.
"Yes. Because I'm scared of how you might react." She said, standing up and walking a few paces back. She stood in front of Jun, head still down, arms dangling behind her and ankles making display of childish restlessness.
"Do you hate me now, Jun?" she asked timidly.
"No." the boy said strongly, "I will never, ever hate you."
Souseiseki's face softened a bit with that reassurance, but still asked, "Do you think it's weird?"
"It's not weird to fall in love, that much I know. But… why me?"
She gave him half a smile, lifting only the side of her lips, "I don't know. I guess you could say with the Alice game being over, I ended up having this hole in my heart I was hoping father would fill. But instead, you began to fill it – with your warmth, your bravery, your dedication. Before I knew it, I was constantly thinking about you, dreaming about you, and wanting to be you…" she was reverting back to a minimized size with each embarrassing confession. "…and, well, you get it."
"Uh, yeah, sort of." Jun said, still mildly at a lost, "So, where does Suiseiseki fit in all this?"
"Oh, Um, Suiseiseki, she's always worried about me. She always says that I think too much about the Alice game, and that I'm always too rigid with things. That is why she was very happy when I told her that I love you. She planned the whole game and was hoping to use as plot for me to admit."
Still not used to hearing that word followed by his name, Jun did his best not to be too taken in by the sweetness of her voice, and just get into the facts some more.
"And that was also the reason why she went kung-fu style with my foot, is that right?"
Souseiseki nodded, shameful for her sister's childishness, but appreciative that she'd get defensive when someone hurts her twin. But Jun did hurt her. He called her a man-doll, for crying out loud. He never understood much about Souseiseki. All he knew was the silent tranquility always radiating about her, a calm acceptance of things - he never got to see the turmoil beyond the serene surface. Like a reckless run in the rain, he lost sight of things.
"I tried, you know." Souseiseki continued, "I tried not to fall for you, I really did, but… I'm sorry, Jun."
"Why are you apologizing?" Jun asked, somewhat annoyed at her for blaming it all to herself.
"Because…" she tried to answer, but couldn't get her thoughts into words. Her beautiful eyes were beginning to tear, and Jun's mild anger was swelling.
"Listen, Souseiseki, I…" the boy dug into himself, while holding on Souseiseki's shoulders. He tried to search for something inside of him, something he could use as leverage to the situation. "…I'm not gonna lie. I wasn't expecting this."
Souseiseki seemed to have shrunk in his hands as he held her gently.
"And I may be too young, or probably just too stupid, to understand the concept of love, but I do know what it feels like to admire someone."
Jun eased his old on her shoulders and let his hand traveled down to her arm until it reached her hand. With the box still clasped between her little palms, Jun held them both in his own hands and whispered, "Open it."
Souseiseki seemed apprehensive when she looked at Jun, but he reassured her with a slight nod. She gently pulled the sealing ribbon and uncovered the top, ending up with subtle disbelief in her wide eyes.
"I bought a ribbon for Suiseiseki, a headband for Hina, and a hairpin for Shinku. That one there is called a hair-needle. It's supposed to string long strands of hair, but in your case, it'll be different."
Jun knew that it'd be the last thing she'd expect as a gift. He took out the item from the box – a light, crystalline blue rose with a sharp, silver stem. The leaves crowning the side of the petals were sparkly green, while the petals themselves were darkly shaded with a translucent making. He twirled it around Souseiseki's face and then gently inserted the stem near the top of her left ear. The rose stood up amidst her chest-nut hair, accenting her gentle features and the two colors of her eyes.
"You know, I've always looked up to you, Souseiseki." He began, appeasing the tension, "You're strong-willed, and quick-witted, and you always put others before yourself. Plus you don't mess around. Being with you is relaxing, because I know that when you're there, nothing would go wrong."
He sat back to his previous location, and leaned back, fiddling with his fingers as he tried to filter his mind with the truth of his feelings. "I don't know anything about love, Souseiseki – not yet anyway. But I can definitely tell you that I… I've always liked you." He said, his chest melting with a sudden warmth.
"You… have?" she asked.
He gave a weak nod, with eyes screaming 'yes'.
"I have a lot of growing up to do, and I'm still a complete mess, but…" he answered, feeling more confident now that the truth was flowing out. "…if it's okay, maybe you can let me fall in love with you too."
Souseiseki's mild disbelief gradually faded, replaced by a tiny smile that was as sincere as it was small. "I think I like that." She softly said. She bashfully fidgeted where she stood, and looked at Jun with some sort of renewed hope.
There was a drastic change in that moment when their eyes met. Jun looked at Souseiseki and suddenly found her incredibly beautiful, not only because of the flower tucked in her hair, not only because of her angelic features and wide, honest eyes. Not only because of how cute she looked as she tilts her head in that question. Jun found her beautiful because she had always been beautiful – it just took a rain, and her straight forwardness for him to discover that.
Souseiseki realized that they've been looking at each other's eyes for quite some time. She broke it, and then scooted further away from Jun. The boy himself felt the sudden tension, and blushed deeper.
The second their eyes met again, it was harder to pull away. Both got suddenly entranced by a connection stronger than what they thought they had. Souseiseki had a sly smile plastered on her face, while Jun, still a bit flustered, was himself grinning for reasons unknown. But reason was clearly out of the question, since all they had going at the moment were emotions running straight and true.
"What becomes of us now?" She gently inquired.
He still had eyes on her when he shrugged and gave an unprocessed answer, "I don't know. Still the same, I guess, except there's something… more."
"Something more?"
"Yeah. You know… more…"
She giggled at the clumsiness in words, and the sound of it gave butterflies in Jun's tummy. It was very electrifying. What he said hardly made any sense. Then again, as reason already been ruled out, so has the sense of logic. The only thing sensible for them was the sight of each other and the sound of drumming rain drops matching their hear-beat. Souseiseki slowly walked towards Jun, stopping then in front of him and rubbing a hand on her left-arm.
"More of what, I wonder." She said.
Jun reached out towards her hand and gently pulled her to him. He tried to appear serious, tried to show her he is taking things in a matter of mature perspective, but despite all his will he could not wipe away the smirk on his face. But Souseiseki didn't consider that as prerequisite. She let herself be dragged into his lap once again, letting escape that familiar giggle, while Jun fancied her like a child holding on to a priceless treasure for the very first time. Indeed, better than the first time he has felt, would be the first time he had realized – how long had he had this treasure and yet failed to see its worth.
"Let's find out." He whispered, brushing a few strands of bangs from her forehead.
Funny how it takes a rain and a dose of recklessness to understand that we have to slowdown to see the real thing – Jun thought to himself, remembering as well the poor kitten he had ran over, all because of a pace he was not conscious of. Well, now he is conscious of his own pace, of Souseiseki, and his feelings towards her, and he will not let it end tragically.
"By the way," he said, "that little game we had earlier… I might have an idea who it was."
"Who?"
Payback would be the term in Jun's mind as he placed a hand to cover her eyes, and slowly, softly grazed her moist lips with his own. Indeed, there was no mistaking that same taste of chocolate made sweet perhaps by the over-consumption of m&m's, a matter for which he would lovingly scold her later. Yet sweeter still was her unique and distinct flavor. His intention was one quick, meaningful kiss, but her Souseiseki-ness was mildly addicting that he went on longer, deeper, until the pressure was too intense and the duration was too long. He felt hands hook on his shoulders as the doll's small lips respond in a swollen passion. After exhausting much pent up urge, Jun slowly pulled away, slightly dizzy and disoriented in a wonderful way. He focused his poor eye-sight and saw that Souseiseki was also, in a matter of speaking, a bit drunken.
"Happy birthday, you little sneak." He whispered.
The breathless doll smiled at him ever so brightly. She leaned her forehead on his and allowed their noses to touch, and while the downpour didn't seem so much of a bother as it was a means of a wonderful discovery, they figured this would have to be the best memory they'd have under the rain.
the end
Hope you enjoyed that!
This is one long shot one shot, but oh well... I'm still working on my others story, so I wrote this as a refresher, got the idea while i was bed-ridden for 2 days with a 40 degree fever. wahahaha!