A/N: Hi!Just so you know, I am not abandonning Love Springs Eternal. I was typing a research report and this story just fell into my head. I didn't plan it really or anything, it just happened. This is in Kimiko's POV, and it is a really fluffy, sweet Rai/Kim romance. Enjoy!
I sat on my windowsill, watching the rain pour down. It wasn't even supposed to be raining. It's August! My first day back at the temple, and it rains. Rai isn't even here to convince me to do something fun, like short-sheet Omi's bed or hide all of Clay's hot sauce, or just for me to talk to and flirt with. Not that he likes me the way I like him, but I can still dream, can't I? Plus, it pretty much sucks not being able to see the guy you're in love with at all for a month. You see, in July, we have the month off. We go home to our families and spend a month of uninterrupted time with them. My flight got here early this morning, and Clay's soon after mine. Then Dojo picked us up and brought us back here. But Rai isn't coming until tonight. Omi, having no family, stayed here to keep getting the wu so we wouldn't be uninterrupted in our time with our families. He was so happy to see us when we got back. I feel bad leaving him. He says he's fine, but I think deep inside, having no one but old monks and Dojo for company has to kind of suck.
Finally, I couldn't stand being inside anymore. Not bothering to change, I climbed out my window and into the rain. I started running, my arms spread wide, to the oak tree, as though I was going to give it a big hug. Halfway there I stopped running and just stood in the rain, my head thrown back and my arms spread wide, letting the rain soak me through. After a moment I began spinning around, laughing. What I meant to do next was fall in the mud and lay on my back in the rain for hours until someone found me. Instead, I felt a pair of strong arms catch me from behind. Thinking it was Clay, I straightened up, turning around to yell at him.
"What do you think you're doing, ruining my—Rai!" because it wasn't Clay, it was Raimundo, the most amazing guy in the world, my life and my love, not that I'll ever tell him. I pulled him into a hug, just a casual, you're-my-best-friend-that-I-haven't-seen-in-a-month hug.
"What did I ruin?" he asked, not letting go of me. I pretended, for just a minute, that he was my boyfriend.
"Nothing," I said, because it was true. Raimundo could never ruin anything.
"If you say so. Hey, I'm glad I found you out here, cuz I wanted to talk to you."
"About what?"
"Not here though."
"Well, where then?"
He started to walk off. "Follow me!" he called over his shoulder. I ran, soaking wet, to catch up to him. He walked over to the oak tree and began climbing it. Then he offered me a hand up. I took it, happy just to hold his hand for a second as he helped me up to the top branch. We were so high up that the branches hardly protected us from the rain.
"Okay," he said. "Now I can tell you.
"The entire time I was in Rio, I wasn't happy. I missed you guys, and the familiarity of the temple. I didn't like traveling around Brazil, performing for a month when you and Clay were enjoying time with your family. Then I realized why I was so unhappy. You weren't there. You're my best friend, you keep me sane. And more than that. I love you."
I don't know why, but at that moment, the bizarrety of the situation hit me. I was sitting in an oak tree with Rai in the pouring rain, when Rai isn't even supposed be here for at least two hours, and he was professing his love for me. I burst out laughing.
"Okay, this has got to be a dream!" I exclaimed through my laughter.
"What's so funny about love?"
"Nothing! It's just, this situation is really bizarre. I just noticed that."
"It is pretty bizarre isn't it." He said, laughing. Then he got serious again. "But seriously, I need to know, do you love me? It's okay if you don't. I just want to know."
"Now I know this is a dream!" I exclaimed. "And since this is a dream, I can tell you truthfully without being embarrassed that I've—"
"You've what?"
I climbed into his lap. "That I've loved you from the moment I met you." I said softly. "This is a dream, right?"
He smiled. "No, this is reality." Then he did something I've dreamed about for years. He kissed me. No asking for permission, he just kissed me. And I kissed him back. Neither of us noticed that it had stopped raining long ago.
"My perfect moment," I breathed as I broke the kiss.
"What?"
"That's what I was going to say. What you ruined. My perfect moment."
"Do you still think I ruined it?"
I smiled at him. "No," I said. "You created it."
FIN
