Title: The Girl Who Smiles
Summary: The girl who never fails to keep that amazing upward curve in her lips bringing things, people and their hearts to where it supposed to be – just unfortunately, failed to fix her own. RyoSaku.
Genre: Romance, Melodrama, Slice of Life.
Rated: T
Disclaimer made.
CHAPTER 2: Kimi ni Todoke
I've ran all the way here
Just to meet you again
Just to reach you again
See your amazing smiles
Your heart-warming stares
Let us fall in love, all over again.
Name: Ryuzaki Sakuno
Age: 23 years old
Occupation: Aspiring culinary expert, assistant researcher
Relatives: parents (deceased since 3 years old), grandmother (deceased since 16 years old)
Legal guardian: Tezuka Kunimitsu
She slowly opened her eyes, taking a deep breath of warm air that continually touched her skin, the cold yet warming breeze swayed her long brown locks, dancing as it blew. Her small yet beautiful hands balled into fists, clenching her long old pink sundress slowly relaxed, exposing her palms – finally stretched meeting the warm breeze with delight.
She sighed, glancing down and smiling sadly, "Obaa-chan, he is back."
Move on, Sakuno.
She sighed and chuckled like remembering something happy, "Funny, isn't it? I know you will scold me if you will learn that I still," she paused and looked away. "I can't forget. What am I going to do?"
"Ryuzaki."
She turned and warm gaze focused on a tall, lean man, who was about slightly older than her, approaching and placed a hand on her shoulder. "You didn't mention you are here."
"Kunimitsu-nii." She noticed that soft glimpse in his eyes he always gave her. She knew their boundaries, that at home, she called him 'nii-san' as a sign of respect and being a part of his family. And when they were not, she called him 'sempai' that gives authority and professionalism especially when they worked together for a project at the university.
"Let's go home. Fuji made us breakfast."
She nodded, a sweet Ryuzaki smile decorating her small face.
His arm snaked around her narrow shoulders, prodding her back to their house then looked back at the tomb, "You should have told us you want to visit coach."
"I am sorry for worrying you; I just wanted to pay her a visit after my morning jogging."
"Isn't Kaidoh supposed to be with you?"
"Ah," she nodded and tried to look everywhere but his overprotective stare. She decided to tell him the truth since he would know if she lied. She cleared her throat, "He needs to attend his team practice earlier than usual. I advised him the kids need his guidance, you know."
"Ah." He nodded in agreement.
She chuckled, "I just hope he won't give the kids hundred laps today."
"If they need it, then that will be fine."
She nodded in agreement and smiled, "I am sure they will do fine under his training."
"Let's go."
And as they started walking back together, Sakuno glanced back at her grandmother's and smiled sadly, I'll see you soon obaa-chan.
See you.
Ryuzaki Sakuno's eyes widened again as she continually stared at the man standing in front of her. Her tightened grip on her the thick books that were long locked in her embrace was her close-too-obvious sign of recognition of the scene before her eyes. She gasped for a sharp air when she realized he is walking towards her, that familiar smirk present on his face.
"Ryoma-kun? What are you doing here?"
Don't tell me he had waited for my class to end? I mean, seriously?
She glanced at her wrist watch and noticed it is already past lunch time already. She raised an eyebrow at this.
"Hey." She heard him standing a foot away from her, his hands on both pockets. He is wearing a loose white long sleeves shirt and brown pants. Why does he still look gorgeous with just a simple outfit?
She looked away and saw a large glass behind, reflecting her simple image. She looked unattractive at all, with no sense of fashion to start with. She was just sporting her routine outfit, an old gray sweater and a pink long skirt. Her hair is tied in a tight bun and no other accessories will be seen except for an old wrist watch that looked too antique and old looking for her age. But this is pretty much comfortable for her, dumped that thing they call fashion, she loves being minimalistic and overly conventional, thank you very much.
"Ryuzaki?" His voice woke her up from reverie. She turned her head and realized his face was almost a few inches away from her. She noticed him frowning while his left hand is waving in front of her like he is trying to catch her attention.
"Oh, I am sorry!" She bowed and flushed in embarrassment.
She heard him chuckled, she rose an eyebrow in confusion. When he realized she is staring at him, he stopped and gulped then laughed again. "Ryoma-kun?"
"Sorry. I just realized you didn't really change after all."
She shifted her weight on her right foot and frowned, "What's that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing really." He waved a hand as a declaration of something like don't mind and once again gave her a look he gave her yesterday night.
She shuddered at this. She doesn't have any idea why does he always do that. They have just met again yesterday, after a decade of being away from each other, that is. She can't help not to think when she caught him staring at her a couple of times yesterday night. She mentally gulped and prayed her imaginations are just playing at her.
Over-thinking will just lead you to assumptions that will just destroy your heart into pieces.
"Let's eat." He finally said.
Her eyes widened and smiled at this. "Aren't you going to ask if I am free to eat outside with you?"
"You need to eat." He smirked and said, "You are too thin, Ryuzaki and that," he pointed at her nose, "is very unhealthy for a chef like you."
She laughed.
"Are you sure they had a ramen store here?" Sakuno asked again, for the nth time that day.
"Don't compare me to your poor sense of direction." Ryoma grunted and continued looking around at the same spot they've been in the past half hour, pissed off with the girl who needs to be plucked with a large hole on her throat for being too nosy today.
"I didn't say you got us lost, Ryoma-kun." She chuckled.
"You just did."
"Oh, sorry about that."
Her laughter brought a warm touch in his irritated ego.
Still.
She's making fun of me. Ryoma turned at her and gave her his lovely death glare but apparently the brunette returned him a charming smile. His eyes widened a fraction –
He felt the blood rising in his neck and face, he isn't even wearing his hat, so he did the very thing he knew that he usually do and that he managed to get away from this – looking away.
She still loves you, Echizen.
He could feel, really feel that hard beat of his heart against his chest. Of all the days Kami-sama choose, why does he need to remember Fuji's words today? Not that he mind if it would just suddenly popped in his head while on a tennis match, he would just racked his head and every single part of his being would just automatically switch into a mode of 'tennis-balls-only'.
Does Kami-sama know how hard it is to refuse looking into the eyes of the girl that made his heart wait for almost 11 fucking years? Does anyone know how long he yearned for a phone call from her? If she would just have tried chasing after him and tried to convince him to let her wait for him, he would have might changed his mind.
He was too young the time she confessed to him, didn't she understand that love isn't what he needed before? She could have just said, "I will wait."
And that!
That is enough for him to accept her feelings… at least recognizing it as something he needed to attend to, nothing more – he would just figure out on his own how to return those feelings later on – but no…
She had let him figure things alone without her reminding him that she loves amidst of his stupidity. He can't remember when but he just felt it – he woke up one day looking forward to see a certain auburn braided hair girl praying for nothing but his safety during his matches. He would found himself suddenly remembering her heartbreaking voice the last time she called him, it clenched his heart. He would just close his eyes and started to count all the elements in the chemistry periodic table like an alphabet song.
These were the feelings that are buried inside his heart in the past 10 years.
He still tried to deny it until he heard her name after so many years… right from the big fat mouth of Momoshiro Takeshi.
Then he suddenly missed her, he just can't name the feeling anymore, it was so intense that he can't breath until he sees her. And that was 2 years ago. He had been drowned with mixed feelings of hunger of seeing her and horror of losing everything he had worked so hard for in the past decade. No one knew how much he had tried to suppress and denied the feeling of emptiness inside him. No one knew how much he kept everything, from the guilt of pushing her away to the way how of trying to forget and deny his feelings for her.
Might be hormones.
Fuji Syuusuke, as the known tensai of Seigaku, noticed the chronic change in Ryoma's tennis matches and in his interviews in the past 2 years. Whenever he is asked about relationship status, his eyes would flickered for a second then his stoic slash emotionless face would show before anyone could noticed… but this doesn't scamper away from Fuji's keen senses. He knew that this day would come, that Ryoma will continue to deny the feelings for the younger Ryuzaki.
Time to recognize and stop of running away, Echizen.
He could have realized it, she bewitched him the moment she offered friendship instead of something more. He is smitten and didn't realize it for a decade in which the obvious is just right under his nose. What did he just do? The feeling of emptiness didn't dissolve the way he thought and planned to be.
Everything doesn't sit well when it comes to Ryuzaki Freaking Sakuno.
Just shit.
Enough of the 2 years drama of watching himself staring to nothing but the water dripping in his hair down to his well-toned torso –something he see from the tv dramas Nanako loved to watch. Enough of that –
He needed to see her in a light that only he could understand, that he could only create for her.
Reach her.
He could and will win her back. This will be a mighty but easy fight because he is The Echizen Awesome Ryoma.
"Ryoma-kun?" he heard her voice again, but this time with recognition, he glanced and looked at her. "I got worried, you weren't answering. Did I say something bad? Do you feel uncomfortable, sick or something?"
"Betsuni."
He heard her sigh in relief and a new smile appeared on her face. "I know a place around this district too, a ramen house, you know? We've been here for an hour Ryoma-kun, the shop you know might have moved in a new location and besides," she swayed her body side to side and walked to look around, "the stores are all tennis-related, are you sure you are hungry?"
"I am hungry."
"Come on, the place I've been telling you is just a 10-minute walk from here, let's go."
She was about to walk away when he caught her wrist with his large hand. She looked at him with questions in her eyes, he just smirked at her and mouthed 'mada mada dane'.
Ryuzaki Freaking Sakuno blinked twice when Echizen Awesome Ryoma placed a huge bowl of ramen in front of her, hard.
"Eat."
"Eh?"
"Eat."
"I heard that Ryoma-kun, but why?" She cocked a head on her side and gave him an innocent look
Damn Ryuzaki, don't make it hard for me to take care of you.
"Do you always need a reason to eat?"
She blinked again and tried to suppress a laugh. "Ryoma-kun is funny!"
He raised an eyebrow, questions filling the gap in his amber eyes. Say what?
"…"
"Ryoma-kun is weird."
"Well, you should publish a Ryoma-kun dictionary." He retorted, leaning backward.
"I know right!" she placed a pensive finger on her chin and made a thoughtful look. "Ryoma-kun is interesting."
"Interesting?" he smirked; he just loved how the word roll under his tongue like testing a new word.
She nodded and smiled, eyes gleaming in delight and clasped her hands. "Now, Ryoma-kun, let's eat now. "
He picked 2 pair of chopsticks and handed one to Sakuno, eyes fixed on her, intentionally brushing his fingers on hers. However he wouldn't appreciate to admit it to anyone and to himself that the touch sent him tingling feelings over his body and spread like a wildfire, he had enough feeling of being pathetic giggling like a high school girl thank you very much. But he won't deny the spark of accomplishment when noticed those tinge of pink tint on Sakuno's cheeks.
See?
He glanced at the dish before him; he carefully placed his chopstick between some strands of the ramen noodles, lifted it up until it is in eye level and noticed its fine texture. He was about to bring it in his mouth when he realized Sakuno watching him intently, her own mouth gloriously shove with a big fist amount of ramen noodles.
He raised an eyebrow and smirked, "Thought you are not hungry, Ryuuzaki."
He suddenly found himself amused of how her mouth dropped, some noodles slipped from her. "Y-you a-almost choke me to death, Ryoma-kun!" she blurted out scandalously.
"I think I did not." He grinned
"B-but I did not say I am not hungry!" She pouted.
"Oh, that and that." He pointed the bowl of ramen and to her. "Manners, Ryuuzaki."
She blushed crimson and looked away, "I-I was just e-excited to taste the new soup invested in this ramen."
"Huh?"
She started to look everywhere but him and started to fidget her small fingers, biting her lips in the process, "Uhm you see, I was studying culinary cuisine and uhm…"
"…that's already given."
"I—I know!" she looked at him and an apologetic smile decorated her face, "The store's owner was Obaa-chan's bestfriend and I love how they experiment on their dishes and make new ones for the profit of everyone."
"Money?"
"Not really," she cleared her throat, "You see Ryoma-kun this is the art of culinary. I mean, everything doesn't need to look appetizing like what is usually commercialized, some chefs would choose to take the risk to create a new one to make everyone love the food they created for them under a reasonable price. People eat and become satisfied, chefs will earn money for living and learn more about food, create new ones or even improve the taste of an old one, something like that."
"Ah."
"This one," she took a spoon and sipped a small of amount of soup, "—is a soup created from the milk bone of a young cow."
His eyes widened, he picked up his own spoon and tried it the way she did, "I don't know how to say where this is made of but this is good… and warm."
"I know right?" she gleamed at him.
"Do you always go and eat here?"
"Not all the time, I am too busy to go elsewhere aside from the university and house, you see."
He nodded and took another sip of the soup. "Good."
"Which good?"
"Not going elsewhere."
"You sound like Kunimitsu-nii!"
He looked at her, a blank look on his face, "You like living with buchou?"
She nodded happily.
Crap.
"Don't you feel awkward to live with a guy under one roof? I mean you guys aren't blood-related to start with."
She shifted in her seat and nervously glanced at her side, seemingly cautious on her next words.
"D-don't you know yet?"
Oh no!
"What?"
Silence enveloped them. Sakuno took a deep breath, "Kunimitsu-nii and Syuusuke-sempai are living together."
Ryoma almost dropped his chopsticks as his amber eyes widened. He chose to remain silent as the small piece of information processed in his head.
The auburn haired girl looked away, "Kunimitsu-nii became my legal guardian after obaa-chan died. And well, even after turning 23, he won't just allow me to live on my own and insisted to stay with him. So right now, I am living with the both of them. But I guess not everyone acknowledges his relationship with Syusuuke-sempai so I won't be surprised if you don't know about it."
"But are you okay with it?"
"Of course I am! They are a happy couple! But I should be asking that to you, you are closer to them, right?"
"They are still my friends, that won't change."
She placed a hand on her chest and sighed in relief. "I am happy to hear that."
They finished the rest of the meal in silence and they started walking home together side by side.
"You are still in college, right?" Ryoma started another conversation that made Sakuno's heart leap of surprise.
"I—I… not really."
"Hm?"
"I already finished school almost 2 years ago; I was taking my research for Japanese culinary."
"Taking a master degree, then?"
"Something like that… I am almost finished; I just needed to complete my research study."
"Oh."
"How about you Ryoma-kun? You seemed talkative today. You changed a lot."
He smirked, "Really? Good or bad?"
She looked away and bit her lip, "Uhm—good."
"Good." He repeated.
Soon, they reached Sakuno's house in peace. The girl fumbled her keys, blushing hardly. She can't help not to feel him watching her intently.
"Thank you for the meal Ryoma-kun. And for walking me home." She bowed before him.
"I'll see you tomorrow, then?"
"Oh, I am sorry, I won't be available tomorrow."
"The day after?"
His heart sank when she shook her head. He frowned, "Why?"
"I will be travelling different prefectures of Japan for the completion of research."
Silence.
She blinked when he suddenly looked at her; his amber eyes glazing at it met hers. She hasn't seen them for a while, for almost 11 years. The cold winter crisp into the air warming their blushing cheeks like they were back in time – 11 years ago. She can't still figure it out why he is doing this – but she hated to assume. She had been through the whole hell after his rejection; she had died a thousand nights and cried over her deepest frustrations in the past. But she can't push him away neither, he was her dear friend. She doesn't and will never have the heart to point a finger on him. Not that she had thought of doing so but the fact that he was here, standing in front of her, just created a huge hurricane in her peaceful heart. She will never get use to this.
"I will go with you."
Author's Note: Still, a lot of grammatical errors, I know. Let me know your thoughts. And sorry for being late too! I hope everyone's okay. I became busy due to my hospital duties and charity works for our patients in Leyte (victims of Super Typhoon Haiyan, yes) – I barely had the time to do other things. Apparently, I am on leave (I have posted my cosplay trials for Mikasa Ackerman and Rukia Kuchiki on my facebook, check them out!)
Btw, if some of you have watched FMA Brotherhood, you might have noticed a part of this chapter taken from a scene in FMAB. (laughs)
Also, the Okaeri chapter is inspired by Ayaka's Okaeri. This one is a song from Flumpool, the next will be from JYJ.
I hope to post the next installment as soon as possible. So help me by posting more reviews!
See you again!
Next Chapter: W (The Big Sky in the East)