Chapter 2: Gone With The Wind
Note: Thank you everyone who reviewed, followed, and favorite my story. I appreciate all of you so much. Now to all of you who are sad about the RinHaru in episode 12, let me tell you, don't let it get you down. I myself don't hate the pairing. I like the artwork and I blog about it on tumblr. But the reason that I got all grumpy with the pairing was that almost everyone, RinHaru and MakoHaru, kinda forgot about the rest of the 11 episodes that happened. Everyone is all "OMG! EPISODE 12."
Please have a little faith in your ships. Kyo-Ani did a great job with the plot and the characters considering it's only 12 episodes and they wouldn't do a dick move as suddenly make RinHaru official. And let me remind you that there's officially no canon pairing b/c first and foremost this series was about friendship and getting over one's fears and growing. Officially it's all fan service.
Regarding MakoHaru, I feel like it had more substance and attention than RinHaru. Every episode and almost every artwork threw in a subtle or obvious MakoHaru in it. It was always there whether in the forefront or the background. Kyo-Ani even says that between RinHaru, they consider them as good friends who work well together but b/c they have conflicting personalities they also have their fights. Between MakoHaru, they are regarded by Kyo-Ani as one set who they can't write one without the other. B/c of this it's easy to write the two as a married couple. They are a "telepathic pair" who's presence beside each other is never questioned b/c it's just natural for them to be together. Between MakoHaru, they will always need each other. I find it a dick move if they actually made RinHaru official because between the two pairings they built up MakoHaru the most. It would be bad writing on Kyo-Ani's part if they gave attention to one pairing more than the other but made the other pairing official.
Now that's the end of my thoughts. Thank god for tumblr. You'll find a lot of this stuff floating around there.
I've got my ticket for the long way 'round
Two bottle whiskey for the way
And I sure would like some sweet company
Oh, I'm leaving tomorrow. What do you say?
It was a one-hour ride on the train from Iwatobi to Tottori Airport. It would have taken less time if he went by car but his parents had work later and he didn't want to disturb them. It took a long time convincing them but they finally relented. His father convinced that his boy was growing up to be an independent man, was the first to surrender. His mother was a little harder. She cried and cried that her baby was going to live elsewhere, even if it was only for a little while. With the help of his father, he was able to calm her down. He was sad. His parents were a constant support in his life. Even though they would continue to be so, they wouldn't be by his side. And the twins, he wondered if they would be all right without him. He hoped they would be.
When I'm gone (when I'm gone)
When I'm gone (when I'm gone)
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone
His thoughts went to Haru. Would he really be fine without him? Who would drag him out of the bath in the mornings? Who would make sure he ate something other than mackerel? Who would pull him out of the pool when it was getting dark? Then he remembered that Rin was there. Rin was by Haru's side, not Makoto. He felt a searing pain in his heart. He was so lonely, so lonely that he wanted to cry again, to give up. Makoto's special person is Haru. But Haru's special person wasn't Makoto. Love is a beautiful thing they said. Being in love was a wonderful state to be in they said. What they didn't say was how painful it would be, if you were the only one.
You're gonna miss me by my hair
You're gonna miss me everywhere,
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone
'I won't cry. I won't cry. I'll be strong. I'll be happy. One day, definitely, I'll be happy. Don't cry. Don't cry.'
I've got my ticket for the long way 'round
The one with the prettiest view
It's got mountains, it's got rivers
It's got woods that give you shivers
But it sure would be prettier with you
That's right, he reminded himself. He will definitely be happy one day, with or without Haru. He'll eat well. Study well. Laugh well. Cry well. Live well. And when he meets Haru again, he hopes that he'll be able to congratulate Haru with a genuine smile. One day, one day, he'll definitely be able to do it.
When I'm gone (when I'm gone)
When I'm gone (when I'm gone)
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone
Haru had plans to go swimming with Rin today. But after hearing the news about Makoto, he suddenly lost all urges to do anything. How odd. Whenever he was troubled, Haru could always count on water to clear his thoughts. But today, water couldn't console him. Nothing could calm the thundering of his heart or the uncomfortable feeling in his stomach.
You're gonna miss me by my walk
You'll miss me by my talk
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone
Makoto was always there beside him. There wasn't a time in which he remembered that Makoto wasn't there with him. When did they meet? Where did they meet? Both Haru and Makoto couldn't remember anymore. It didn't bother them. They just accepted that they were always part of each other's lives.
I've got my ticket for the long way 'round
These feet weren't built to stay too long
And I'll go there on my own
But you'll miss me when you're home
It's for you, dear, that I sing this song
But Makoto wasn't here anymore. Haru didn't expect to be in a situation where Makoto wasn't there. He'd always expected that no matter what happens, there will always be water and there will always be Makoto. But now, there was only water, and everything felt so wrong, so empty.
When I'm gone (when I'm gone)
When I'm gone (when I'm gone)
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone
He looked at his cell phone. There were six missed calls and five unopened emails from Rin. There were three emails from Nagisa and two from Rei. They were probably worried about him. He felt bad. He should send a message telling them he was fine. But he wasn't. He wasn't fine. Not fine at all.
You're gonna miss me by my hair
You're gonna miss me everywhere
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone
TO: Rin
I'm at home. Can we see each other another time? I don't feel so well.
FROM: Haru
When I'm gone
When I'm gone
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone
He decided to take a bath, hoping that he would feel a little better and think a little clearer afterwards. Minutes passed by. When he came to, the water was cold and his fingers were wrinkled. Strange, his fingers never got wrinkled when he was taking a bath. Makoto would always come and pull him out. That's right. Makoto would pull him out. But Makoto wasn't here anymore. Haru cried.
You're gonna miss me by my walk
You'll miss me by my talk
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone.