Wildest Dreams
Kazuki led Kahoko through the park and along a path partially hidden among the trees. Kahoko had never been this far into the park before and she got a little worried.
"Are you sure that it's this way?" Kahoko asked, looking around and not seeing anyone anywhere near them.
"Don't worry, Kaho-chan, we're almost there. It's not too far away." he kept on going and Kahoko tried her best to follow.
"How did you find this place again?" she walked closer and closer to him. It was almost sunset and the sky was quickly darkening.
"I happened to find this place once when I got lost." Kazuki explained. He brushed aside some low hanging folliage and held it for Kahoko to pass under.
"Does that mean that we have to be lost now to find it?" Kahoko said jokingly, but she was half serious.
Kazuki chuckled. He felt her worry and hurried to reassure her. "No, no, we don't have to get lost, and we aren't. But if you're scared you can hold my hand until we get there." He blushed at the suggestion but he still offered her his hand.
I'm just being a gentleman. I mean, I wouldn't want her to get lost or trip or something. Oh, who am I kidding, I just want to hold her hand. I wonder how soft it is...NO! Bad thought. Okay, Kazuki, be a gentleman and stop thinking bad thoughts!
Kazuki snapped out of his mental ramblings when he felt something grasping his hand. It was Kaho-chan. She had put her hand in his and was holding it like a lifeline. He was surprised that she actually decided to hold his hand. Such a little gesture and it still made his heart beat a mile a minute and his face turn three shades of crimson.
He looked at her to see that she was looking back at him. They're eyes met and in that moment they both saw something in each other that they never noticed before. Could it have been...love? They realized that they were staring and the both blushed and looked away, both sharing the same thoughts yet again.
Yeah, right. My eyes are probably just playing tricks on me. It's just wishful thinking on my part.
The whole time that this was happening, they had never let go of each other's hands.
"Uhh, why don't we keep going?" Kazuki suggested. "We're almost there."
Kahoko just nodded but kept her head down as to hide her the blush on her cheeks.
The pair walked for another few minutes until they finally emerged from the trees. A stray breeze drifted by tickling their noses with the scent of sweets, tea, and flowers. Kahoko looked up and gasped at the sight before her. They had arrived.
Two Hearts was a patisserie designed like a large gazebo with floor-to-ceiling glass windows running the circumference of the shop. The building was surrounded by a simple garden of roses all colors of the rainbow and the fragrances of baked sweets mixed well with the scent of nature to provide an ambiance of relaxation and peace.
Kazuki chuckled at the look on Kaho-chan's face when she saw the cute, secluded patisserie. "Well, we're here. Let's go in." he gently led her in and held the door for her while she admired the roses along the way.
"Konbanwa! Welcome to Two Hearts! Would you to like a couple's table?" The waitress smiled at them.
"A c-c-c-couple?" Kazuki stuttered. He looked down at their linked hands and noticed that they were standing very, very close.
Kahoko also noticed what they must have looked like and the pair sprang apart, putting as much as two foot of space between them. "No, it's not like that! We're just friends."
They both blushed and looked away awkwardly which made the waitress giggle. Even she, a complete stranger, noticed how much they liked each other.
"Gomen, my mistake. Please come this way." she directed them to a table by the window. It was away from the other customers. It could be called intimate.
This is obviously a couple's table. Wahh, we're so close our legs are practically touching. I know I'm blushing, I can feel it! Damn it, why do I blush all the time? It's not like this is something I should be embarrassed about! I'm just hanging out with Kaho-chan. So what if we held hands and...damn it I'm starting to think weird thoughts again! Stop!
"What would you like today?" Kazuki snapped back into reality and blushed because both Kaho-chan and the waitress were staring at him.
"Uhh I'll just have a fruit and green tea ice cream crepe." he told the waitress his order then looked over to Kaho-chan. She was still looking over her menu with an undecided frown on her face. "Do you know what you want yet, Kaho-chan?"
She shook her head. "It's so hard to decide. Everything looks great."
"How about a miille feuille then?" the waitress asked. "It means "a thousand leaves" in French. It has a rather romantic meaning behind it if you look a little deeper." she said this lowly only for Kazuki to hear.
He looked at her in shock and she just giggled.
Oh my god, does EVERYONE know? I am not that obvious, am I?
"That sounds good too. I'll have that. Thank you..."
"My name's Chitsu Natsume. Just call me Natsu-chan. I'll be back with your order soon. Call me if you need anything, ok?" and she left.
The two were left together and an awkward silence descended over them because they did not know what to talk about. Kazuki wanted to say something but every time he opened his mouth his mind turned blank. The same with Kahoko, she could not think of a thing to talk about.
Finally they decided to break the silence. At the same time.
"So how-" Kazuki.
"What have-" Kahoko.
They stared at each other in surprise and then burst out laughing. It was just one of those moments where they laughed at how awkward they let themselves get. Suddenly all the tension was gone.
"So what I meant to say was, how has your violin playing been coming along?" Kazuki started.
Kahoko excitedly replied, "I've gotten a lot better since Tsukimori-kun started teaching me. It's too bad he decided to study abroad. I miss him, even his coldness at times."
Miss him, huh?
"You two are pretty good friends then?" I asked, just to satisfy my curiosity even though I knew that her answer could very well break my heart.
She laughed. "Well, he's not as stiff and standoff-ish as he used to be. I could say he's actually nice now." then she smiled with a faraway look in her eyes, like she was thinking back to some fond memory.
I knew it. I just HAD to ask...now i wish I hadn't.
Meanwhile, Natsume, who was keeping an eye on the "couple" had a fantastic idea. She was going to get them together, or at least attempt to. She had to try at least. They would be so good together, even a blind person could see as much.
Just seeing them come into the shop, holding hands and walking close as lovers, anyone could see that they looked adorable together.
Natsume, who had gotten to know Kazuki from his many frequent visits here, knew that he was head over heels for the red haired violinist whom he talked about bringing every time he came here.
"Now that they're finally here together, I can finally put my plan into action." she smirked mischievously. Natsume had they're orders in front of her and with a thick chocolate syrup she wrote on the rim of Kahoko's plate "For my Sweetheart."
However, what she had forgotten was that Kahoko had ordered the mille feuille and Kazuki had ordered the crepe. Not noticing her mistake, she brought out their orders.
"Here you are, enjoy!" Natsume placed their orders on the table and left without another word.
Kazuki took his plate but noticed something written on it in chocolate.
For my Sweetheart? What the...
Kahoko had noticed the same thing.
But they both had jumped to different conclusions.
Did I get my plate mixed up with someone else? I think I saw some other couples here. Maybe one of them ordered this for their sweetheart. That's sweet. I'd love to do something cute and romantic like this for Kaho-chan. To bad she has feelings for Tsukimori. I'll never have a chance with her now. Whoever this plate was meant for must have someone who loves them very much.
Kahoko was still staring at the plate. When she looked up at Kazuki, he had a soft, wistful look on his face and he was staring to his left where coincidentally the waitress, Natsume, was standing waiting on another table.
So she's his sweetheart? Is that why she wrote that on his plate? Was I wrong when I felt that there was something there when he held my hand? When he looked at me? Are my feelings really just one-sided? It would only be wishful thinking on my part to hope that Hihara-sempai would have any feelings for me. He already has a sweetheart. I'll never have a chance with him now.
"I have to go." Kahoko said abruptly.
Kazuki was shocked when she suddenly stood up. "Wait, what's wrong, Kaho-chan?" he saw the look on her face. She looked heartbroken.
"I should have realized this sooner. It would never happen in my wildest dreams." she picked up all of her things and pushed away from the table.
Kazuki hurriedly got up and grabbed his things and tried to follow her as she quickly dashed out of the shop. "Kaho-chan! Wait!"
"What's wrong, Kazuki-kun?" Natsume questioned. She had seen Kahoko run away and wondered what had gone wrong. Hadn't her plan worked?
"I don't know what happened. One minute, we were just talking and then our orders came and she just left!" Kazuki said in a rush. He was frantically thinking about what might have affected her so much.
Natsume had an awful realization. "The crepe was yours, wasn't it?"
"Yeah. What about it?"
"Well I wrote that little message on your plate because I thought it was Kahoko-chan's. I wanted to help you guys get your feelings out but I guess she thought that I had written the message for you." Natsume rushed on. "You need to go tell her now before she jumps to other conclusions!"
"I know! I know!" Kazuki looked outside. It was dark now.
And Kaho-chan doesn't know the way back. And if I remember, the weather forecst said that we were due for thunderstorms tonight. Oh no, I have to find her!
Without even paying for their meal, Kazuki sprinted out of the store with his bag and trumpet bouncing along his side. He frantically looked around for any sign of Kaho-chan but the darkness was thick and undiscerning.
Crap! Crap crap crap crap.
He looked all over. then to his right, he saw some foot steps in the grass that could have only been made a few minutes ago. Without a thought, he ran off in that direction, desperate to find her before she got lost and hurt herself.
I won't be able to forgive myself if something happened to her.
Well this chapter is LATE. Like weeks late! or A week? IDK. but whatever its here now! tell me what you think. :D btw I need a beta reader, any offers? I'm not sure how beta readers work but if anyone is interested message me and help me set it up, ok?
For now, read and review. tell me wat you think. ;) no reviews are bad reviews. comments and suggestions are always taken into account.
R&R
