Flutter
by Funakounasoul

Disclaimer: Kiyohiko Azuma owns the characters and Azumanga Daioh and not me...wahhh...

Author's Notes: Thank you for all of your reviews, as well as the large critique by Javer . I really appreciated it. Well, here's chapter 2! (This was after revising it two times, once with my friend giving me pointers.) As you all know, our favorite odd couple started a bet to see if Tomo would get accepted into one of the best high schools in town. Tomo won, and as her prize, they were to eat outdoors during lunch. Let's see what happens, shall we?

CHAPTER TWO

The chimes sounded off twelve times, giving the sign that lunch had begun. Students rushed towards their favorite eating spots as the sounds of people talking filled the school. Two students, however, were not talking but rather walking -- walking outside, that is. It had been only the day before when Tomo revealed her high school exams to the skeptical Yomi. As promised, they were to venture out into the field and eat lunch together.

"Boy, is it great out here or what?" Tomo said as she ate her food, "The sun is shining, the birds are singing, the spring air is as refreshing as always, and the food's delicious!"

Meanwhile, Yomi sat silently, eating her food slowly. Tomo noticed and turned to face her friend.

"Hey, what's up Yomi?" She asked.

Yomi, still hesitant, slowly replied, "I still can't believe you made it in..."

"Is that all? Jeez, I thought it was something more serious." Tomo huffed and took another bite of her rice. However, a sly smile formed on her face a few moments later.

"Don't tell me," she began slowly, "You're jealous that you don't have my smarts?" Upon seeing Yomi choke on her food slightly, Tomo stood up and began to dance around the tree, singing "I knew it" triumphantly. Yomi stood up furiously and stopped the other girl's little dance.

"Tomo," she began, "I'm not jealous. Why should I be when I'm the one who gets the better scores all the time?" She continued talking as they both sat back down, her voice getting louder with each word.

"You're always copying my homework, you're always asking me for test pointers...You know, sometimes I wonder how you even manage to pass each class every single year!" As she kept on with her little rant, it was Tomo's turn to be silent.

After noticing Tomo's sudden quietness, Yomi stopped and apologized. She told Tomo that she didn't really mean it; the surprising results from the day before were still overwhelming her. Tomo accepted the apology, though it was evident that she was about to cry.

"Yomi?" Tomo asked silently, "Do you really think I'm..."

"No!" Yomi interrupted, already knowing what Tomo was going to say, "No, no, of course not!" She then placed her hand on the smaller girl's shoulder. "I never intend all the mean things I say to you to be true. I just get annoyed sometimes."

"You mean it?"

"Yes, I do. I-" Suddenly, the bell rang once more, indicating the end of lunch. After a rather loud sigh, Yomi helped Tomo up, and they both headed towards their class.

A few hours later, the bell rang once again, and school was officially over. Students walked out, all exhausted from the day's lessons. As the students headed their separate ways, Tomo and Yomi continued to walk together. Luckily for Yomi, Tomo was happier now and was leading the way to some unknown area. In fact, they were headed for that special place Tomo mentioned the night before.

The two eventually ended up in a park and continued their way within the area until Tomo found the perfect spot to sit down. They finally found themselves in a small area of the park that was similar to their school's field, though this field was filled with cherry blossom trees. Just the sight of the spring plants overwhelmed Yomi. After walking through the grassy area for a while, they sat down underneath a large tree, exactly like they were a few hours ago.

Although Yomi loved the scene in front of her, she looked around uneasily, "Um, Tomo? Are we even allowed to be here?"

"Relax!" Tomo answered, "I come here all the time. No one ever comes here."

"Wait...You come here often? How come you never told me?"

"Because then it wouldn't be secret."

"It wouldn't be...what?," Yomi paused for a moment before continuing, "Then again, I don't think many people think this place is even accessible."

"That's because it's not."

"It's not?!" Yomi began to yell. Before she started yelling, though, Tomo quickly placed her hands over Yomi's mouth to silence her. Finally, after Tomo was certain that her friend was not going to continue shouting, she explained to Yomi that people don't realize that this area is practically safe, adding that she had already surveyed the area before. To Yomi, the girl's reasons made absolutely no sense. However, she was not going to intervene -- after all, they still had to finish their conversation from earlier that afternoon, and privately for that matter.

A small yawn escaped Tomo's mouth. She stretched her arms out for a few seconds then fell onto the grass, taking in the beauty of the area around her. Yomi dared not to say a word and continued to sit. The wind was beginning to calm down and as it blew around the two girls, it felt as if it were washing away any anxiety they had within them. Suddenly satisfied, Tomo sat up and decided to reintroduce the conversation they had at school earlier.

"So, um, do you actually get annoyed when I'm around you?"

"In a word, yes..." Yomi looked up to see if Tomo was going to go teary-eyed, but was surprised to see her still listening seriously, "But, you shouldn't take it seriously. You do get annoying at times, but...well..."

Tomo, noting Yomi's difficulty of word choice, encouraged her friend to go on. Yomi was still having trouble finding the right words. She just couldn't find the right combination. After a few more seconds of word fighting, she finally spoke, using the closest words available to her at that moment.

"Well, just look at it this way," she finally replied, "Even though your actions annoy me sometimes, I'm still the only one you ever talk to. I mean, how many friends have you really made throughout our junior high years? Most people don't see that you're actually a really nice person to hang out with. They usually see the side of you that's, well, bothersome."

As Yomi continued, tears threatened to release themselves from her eyes, "If I was like that, I would've quit being your friend a long time ago. I've even risked my social life just being with you! Haven't you also noticed that I had barely have any friends because of you? I risked that, and I don't care! You are my first and my best friend Tomo."

"Yomi..." Tomo whispered, her tears threatening to fall as well. Yomi's words finally got to her as she noticed how much of a friend Yomi really is. Being together for all these years had affected them a lot. They were inseparable now, and maybe, Tomo thought, Yomi secretly wished for her to make it to that school after hearing her declaration those few weeks ago. Just that thought alone brought a smile to the girl's face.

The sun began to set as the two continued to sit under the tree, growing silent as the minutes passed. Tomo was lying on the grass once again, Yomi's words still ringing in her head. Yomi was still sitting, though her focus shifted back and forth between her speech and Tomo. Despite their preoccupied thoughts, the two managed to take in the serenity of the park.

There was a lack of outside sound now as night slowly approached. The nocturnal sounds of nature began to voice themselves. The wind picked up a little, causing a couple of cherry blossoms to flutter around the two. The scenery was beautiful, despite its unruly appearance. The park seemed to drown out the sounds of the city. For a while, Yomi felt like they were actually out in some forest in the countryside. The park's effect was finally getting to Yomi, and she, too, fell onto the grassy floor. As she stared into the darkening sky, she never noticed Tomo talking to her.

"So, do you like it?"

"Huh?" Yomi snapped back to her senses, "Did you say something?"

"Ah...So you do like it." Tomo stood up and dusted off her uniform. She took a few steps forward. She turned to face her friend, who also began to stand. It was getting dark, and the two knew that they had to be home soon. Before they headed out, Tomo smiled and began to speak once more.

"I first found this place two years ago. Something about it made me want to come here and loosen up a bit. I come here to relax, to think...I even come here to just to look at nature. Today was the first time I've ever taken anyone here, and I'm glad I chose you. Then again, you were the only choice...Well, now you know that I can be pretty calm and stuff. It's kind of embarassing!"

"Besides," she said as she placed her hands on her hips, "all this relaxing has its good points. Less energy to waste during the afternoon gives me more energy to use at school! Ha ha ha!"

Even though Tomo's speech turned into a ridiculous brag, Yomi was surprised at the other girl's speech. Ignoring the continuous boasting from Tomo, she walked up and hugged her, which completely threw Tomo off-guard.

"Thank you, Tomo."

"Uh...um...," Tomo stammered, still confused at Yomi's sudden action, "W-w-well, um, thank you."

"I'm glad you showed me this place. It kind of grew on me, actually."

"Well, I'm glad you liked it."

Yomi eventually let go of Tomo, her eyes fixated on the other's eyes. They stood like that for a while until the unexpected sound of a car horn blasted throughout the area. Yomi cleared her throat and turned around. Tomo, still trying to regain her senses, could only blink in confusion.

"Just don't think I'm going to act like that again, though." She said in her usual serious tone, "We're going to be in high school in a couple of days. We're supposed to be mature now."

"Oh, come on!" Tomo cried as she was finally aware of her surroundings, "Do you actually expect me to suddenly act like you or something?"

"No, I just want to see if you're up to the challenge."

Upon hearing the word "challenge", Tomo brightened up and replied, "Oh, so you wanna bet again, huh? Well, don't be so sure of yourself. I'll annoy you every single day for all three years!"

"I'd like to see you try. I'm sure you'll grow out of that hyperactive shell some day, and this park's going to help."

"Now you're putting the park into the picture?! This means war!"

The two sat back down, coming up with a proper bet declaration, as well as their winning prizes. By the time the sun completely set, the two had finally reached their agreements. The bet was whether Tomo could mature by their last year of high school. Whoever won could make the other do whatever they please for one day. They also decided that the winner could pick any day, as long as it was either a weekend or a day before college classes started.

After agreeing to the stakes, the two began their journey home. As they exited the park, they looked towards the sky. The stars were shining brightly that evening, and with a lack of lighting in the area, the stars' appearances seemed to be more magnificent than usual. They took in as much as they could, until they finally approached their highly lit district. The two approached the place they would split off, wishing each other luck for the upcoming first day of high school.

"Well, good luck, Tomo. These are probably the last few days we'll see each other 24/7."

"Hehe...Maybe, but who knows? We might be stuck for a while longer."

"Another year with you? Someone better save me."

"Ha ha, very funny." The two laughed, but it soon faded away. Splitting off, the two never said a word, not even a small goodnight. They slowly headed for their homes, preparing themselves for what was to come.

TO BE CONTINUED

Oooh...another bet! As you know, this marks the end of the Pre-Azu chapters. The rest will take place during the show, which means cameo appearances by the rest of the gang! Well, with my last REAL quarter of high school begining, I won't be able to update as quickly...but I WILL finish this story! This I promise to my readers! Review please!