Long Awaited (revised)
A Hanagata x ? story By Yuu Mizuyuki--------
Disclaimer:
Slam Dunk © Takehiko Inoue, all characters from Slam Dunk in this fic are his. Others not in the anime are mine and may not be copied without permission.
Thank you.
- Yuu Mizuyuki
Dedication:
I dedicate this fanfic to my friend, Micchy-no-koibito, (be sure to check out her fics!!) ^^; gomen! I wasn't able to give you something for your birthday and I wasn't able to go either.
PrologueIt was raining … that day.
The clouds seemed to weep with me.
I felt lost, drowning …
But she gave me life to live …
A life like no other. I truly miss her.
Mei …
Splish splash …
"Oi! Touru-kun! Matte!"A timid voice cried out in the midst of the darkness and chill of the stormy night. "Where are you going?" The small girl let out a whimper as she ran towards a small, dark figure ahead of her. She paused to catch her breath and she wrapped her soaked jacket around her to give a bit more warmth to her freezing body. She ran faster this time to keep up.
She cried out again. "Touru-kun … where are you going? Matte! Onegai!"
The figure turned around and searched the darkness for the voice that was almost drowned by the storm's deafening clamor.
"Don't follow me! I'm just going to go to the tree house to get my basketball!" The figure cried out. He then turned back.
The little girl strained her ears to hear what he said. She ran to him and tripped near his back. She gave out a small cry as pain coursed her leg at a freshly cut wound but she ignored the pain. Bravely, she stood up and clutched the figure's cold, wet wrist.
"Touru-kun, you're gonna get sick …"The figure, Touru, looked back at the little girl … "You're gonna get sick too, Mei-chan. Go back. I'll come back …"
She hesitated for a moment. She was scared to death and she looked back to see the glowing light from her house not far behind … but she could not leave him here too. "Iie …"He tried to twist his wrist free. "Don't be stubborn, Mei-chan!" Touru shouted, annoyed.
She sobbed and sneezed. She sighed, gave a sad smile and said, "Promise you'll come back, okay?"
Surprised, Touru gave a worried smile and whispered to Mei's ear. "Hai … I promise … I'll always come back for you!" He grinned and ran into the darkness.
Mei closed her eyes and waited for her surprise to come. Touru-kun told her to stay in the living room and to close her eyes.
She shifted her weight towards her other foot restlessly. "Touru-kun, hayaku! I'm getting sleepy." She giggled as she heard Touru's footsteps growing louder.
She faked a yawn as she heard Touru gasping for breath as he sighed. "I have it. Hold out your hand."
"Which one?"
Eh? Touru thought for a moment …
"Which one do you like to hold up?"
Touru-kun can be a baka sometimes …
She giggled and stuck her tongue. She raised her right hand up and she felt something cool being place in her hand. It was light and smooth. "Can I open my eyes now?"
"Hai!" He replied cheerfully.
She slowly opened her eyes and looked at her hand. In it was a small glass figurine of a kitten with a pink ribbon and a small bell.
"Kawaii!"
She smiled and looked at Touru who was waiting eagerly for her response.
He had bought that for her when he was out to visit her grandmother. He knew Mei-chan liked kittens and so he decided to give her a small glass one. Next time, he planned to give her a really cute kitten.
Mei hugged Touru and whispered, "Arigatou, Touru-kun."
Touru blushed crimson and tried to clear his head. " … I just thought you might like it … and um …"
Mei let go and looked up at him. She noticed how much Touru-kun had grown. He was a head taller than her now and he was just one year older. "I really like it, Touru-kun. Kawaii, ne, Touru-kun?"
Touru scratched his head with embarrassment and blushed even more. " … hai …"
"Where are you going, Touru-kun?" Mei whimpered and hugged her teddy bear.
Touru looked sadly at Mei. Her father told him that they were going to Tokyo since he was promoted. He was going to work there. They were going to live in a better house and Touru was going to study in a better school. Everything would have been all right, but he was not going to be able to bring the most important person to him.
"Mei-chan …" He paused to searched for words. I'm going somewhere and I won't be seeing you for a while."
Mei looked up at him with confused eyes. "When will I see you?"
Touru looked away.
Mei sniffed and tried to hold back tears that were begging to be shed. " … but you promised …"
He looked at her puzzled.
"You promised that night … in the storm." She paused as tears fell. "You promised … you promised you were gonna come back for me ... always."
He looked at Mei's eyes. Even if he was just nine, his father had always said he was perceptive and mature for his age ... and so, he saw sadness, fear … and determination within her dark brown eyes.
"Mei-chan … I will come back. I promise." He smiled and hugged his best friend. The world then began to seem lighter for him as he let go. He looked once again at her eyes and saw that she held no more fear nor sadness, but hope and unending patience.
~to be continued~
Author's notes and rantings: ^.^ this is my project now and I put all the others on hold. My first attempts are … blah! _ … ^^; I promise myself I will finish this fanfic. Read and review, Onegai. For those who do not understand what's going on, this is just the beginning … things will get better in the next chapters ^.^, ne? *crosses fingers* I'll just hope for the best ^.^! I hope you enjoyed it. E-mail me for flames :P and suggestions or comments. My e-mail is ninja_miki@yahoo.com. Domo Arigatou!