I wanted to say thanks to MewPurin for her reviewing a second time here, ne! Thanks, ne!

But no time to talk, ne! Let's start, ne!

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Sweet Candy Promise

Chapter 4: Sweet Meet

A week passed since Purin realized that she'd never see Taruto again.

Since that day her smile vanished. She just wasn't able to smile anymore. No laughing. No smiling. Just pain, tears and her being alone in the world. Neither her siblings nor Minto and Retasu could find a way to help the girl. The nights she passed laying in her bed unable to sleep, crying all the time, the days sleepy and without seeing anything positive, funny or good at all.

Wherever she looked, everywhere she saw just Taruto, heard his voice, daydreamed about him and sometimes she really thought he was there. She stopped living in the here and now, seemed like she didn't realize anything around her anymore and just lived in her own mind-world where she could see him, hear his voice…

"Onee-chan, wake up, please!" She heard a voice and opened her eyes. It had just been a nightmare. But it wasn't really different from the true world. After all she tried to smile for her siblings and was able to sleep at least some nights and she also didn't fantasize about him. Yet. But she kinda felt that she wasn't far away from that state.

"You screamed while you slept so we thought you had a nightmare and woke you up, na no da!" explained Heicha to her sister. Purin smiled.

"Thank you, everyone. It really was a terrible nightmare."

"Then it's okay we woke you up?"

"Of course, na no da!"

With that Purin stood up and prepared herself for the day. She brushed her teeth, dressed and ate the breakfast her siblings made for her before she hurried to school. Even though they woke her she was late. Like often last time. It really had been a week and also the other ones in her class started to worry about the girl. Purin acted like she didn't understand what they meant and just told that she was fine. She didn't have really good and close friends at school so it wasn't a real problem making them believe her story.

In the lunch break Purin left the school building to relax at her favorite bench. It was a secret place where she could be alone when she really wanted to. Since she watched the girl taking the candy she set here every day. She just needed some time for herself after being in the crowded school all day. Earlier she liked places with lots of people but now it kinda annoyed her.

She realized her nose dripping and wanted to take out a handkerchief of her pocket. She put her hand inside and found a candy inside. Right away her eyes started to fill with tears. She stood up and threw the bonbon in the bin standing next to her bench.

Suddenly she felt like someone watched her from beyond. 'That's just your imagination.' She thought to herself.

Shhhh…. A sudden wind came up and left the feeling in the girl someone said something. A very certain someone. "Oh no. Now it already starts to be like in my dream. Please, no! Stop!" Purin ran back to the school building as fast as she could. She had a very bad feeling inside her chest telling her that something wasn't right. 'Of course something's wrong if I already start to fantasize' she thought, trying to stop her scared body from shaking. 'Please, oh please, I don't want to end up like that…'

The rest of the day she was totally unable to follow the lessons and gave up already after a few minutes. After school she hurried to work, having this feeling of her being watched like before again all the time. Totally out of breath she reached the café.

"Oh my god! What happened to you, Purin?" Retasu asked the girl with a very worrying look on her face.



"Did something happen?" asked a not less worried Minto.

Fast Purin came to herself again and smiled at the girls. "Nothing, na no da. Purin's okay, na no da!"

"Really?"

"Yes, don't worry, na no da!"

"If you say so. But if something happens, let us know. We help you as much as we can!"

"Of course, na no da!"

Even though they weren't really satisfied Minto and Retasu stopped asking. Perhaps something personal again? But they really hoped that Purin would tell them if something bad would happen to her.

Purin concentrated on her work so she could get the strange happenings out of her head again. After all there was no need to worry. But perhaps she should really talk about the things that happened. That's also what her mother told her: When something was wrong it was best to entrust yourself to a good friend. "After that your heart will feel better, no matter what problem you have!" That's what she said every time.

"Well, Retasu-nee-chan, Minto-nee-chan, na no da…" Purin said quietly to the other two Mews. Happily they turned around. Finally they got to hear what was teasing Purins heart.

"Yes, Purin?"

"Can I tell you what happened to me?"

"Of course you can! Every time, whenever something's teasing you!"

"But you won't laugh, na no da?"

"We'd never do something like that! We're your friends, remember?" Minto smiled. Sometimes Purin was just too cute.

And so the girl told her two friends about her having the feeling to be followed and how sad she was because she knew now that Taruto would never come back and about her terrible nightmare.

Retasu looked with a carrying look on her face at the younger girl.

"You know what? Just take a break from work for a few days, get a bit more sleep and then this will stop for sure! You're just totally confused right now!"

"For sure, na no da?"

Minto sighed. Purin really cared too much about others.

"Of course. We can handle the café also when we're just two. Right, Retasu?"

"No problem!"

"Okay, then I go now, na no da…" With that Purin left the café, still with a sad look on her face.

"Are you sure that's she's gonna be okay, Minto?"

"I'm not sure. But she's a strong girl and nothing gets her down so fast. She must really like Taruto a lot. Perhaps it's even more than that."

"You mean she really does…?"

"Yes. I think it's oblivious. But we can't do anything right now than just trust that things will happen right."

"That's not much…. I wish that I could do more for Purin."

"But right now we can't, Retasu. Just pray that faith is gonna be good with her. She went through so much."

"Yes. I think you're right. Oh please, let everything be okay with Purin…"

Homework was a real torture for the girl that day. After she had finally finished it she only wanted to go to bed. Right before she closed her eyes and fell asleep she got this feeling again and it even followed her through her dreams, or better, through the terrible nightmares she had every night. The next morning she woke up even more confused than before. Luckily it was the last school day in that week.

The day seemed to be endless. But finally school was over again. Relieved Purin started to walk home.

And then she saw it.

Or better him.

And she screamed.



She stopped thinking, just ran as fast as she could to the café, slammed the door open and ran right into Minto.

"Oh my god! What happened to you?"

"It's just like in my dream! I start to fantasize! I'm getting crazy! Oh Minto-nee-chan I'm so afraid… Retasu-nee-chan too…" she said totally out of control while Retasu walked over too. While she took the shaking girl Minto looked up. And she understood.

"Purin. Come here to me." She said that in a very hard tone.

"But Minto, don't be so harsh to her…"

"Shut up now! And you, come here already!"

Purin started to shake even more. What was up with Minto now? What did she do that the bird Mew was so mad with her?

"Minto-nee-chan, what…?"

"You start already to act like Ichigo, you know that? Only seeing yourself and your self-pity and not even realizing that you hurt the ones you love the most!"

"Minto-nee-chan, what are you talking about? It's not my fault that happens, na no da…" Purin started to cry. She didn't understand anything anymore.

Instead of her Retasu did now too. "Purin, behind you…"

"What?" asked the girl under tears and turned around again. But after she looked over her shoulder she just saw the same terrifying thing than before. She really was fantasizing.

Suddenly her sadness turned into anger and she started to shout at her hallucination: "Vanish already, you stupid piece of mouse shit! What do you think you're doing here disturbing my life!!"

That was too much for Minto. She turned the monkey mew around and grabbed her as strong as she could, making the smaller girl look right into her face.

"What do you think you're doing here? WAKE UP ALREADY!"

And with that she slapped Purin in the face as powerful as she could.

"Oh" was everything Retasu was able to form with her mouth.

Instead of that someone else shouted "What the heck do you think you're doing, you…!"

But Minto already had let go of Purin. She just looked the girl who had her hit cheek covered with a hand.

"You really think you're still dreaming or sleeping or whatever? Woke up now?"

Slowly Purin pulled the hand covering her cheek away and looked at it.

"Not dreaming… But then…"

Behind her Taruto had stretched out his hand to her shoulder. Retasu watched the scene with tears in her eyes and Minto still looked angry.

"…he…back…but….away…for ever… over…no return…" was everything Purin was able to stutter. But slowly her brain started to work again. "then…that means… he's really….back!"

Taruto was just centimeters away from her shoulder when she suddenly turned around and hugged him with all power she had.

"Taru-Taru! You're back! Finally back! Taru-Taru, Taru-Taru, Taru-Taru…" She couldn't speak any further. Instead of that just tears dripped out of her eyes, but that time tears of happiness. Pure happiness while she buried herself in his shirt.

"Of course I am. Didn't I tell you that I'd come back?" Taruto tried to play the strong guy, but he couldn't. He only realized the week, crying girl in his arms and couldn't do anything else than hugging her back. All harsh words died already before reaching his throat. Everything he could do and wanted to do was holding her and comfort as good as he could.

"I'm so sorry Taru-Taru… so sorry, na no da…"

"It's okay. Don't worry. It's okay." He couldn't stop a few tears dripping down his own cheeks in this moment.

Minto looked relieved now. Retasu nodded to her. "Good work" she said quietly to her. "I know" Minto replied trying to cover that she also had tears in her eyes while Retasu was already crying too.

"Taru-Taru… Thank you, na no da…for forgiving me, na no da…"

"It's okay" He smiled. "But could you please let go of me? Or just lover you grip a bit? Very soon my rips are gonna break if you go on like that!"



And after that they all had to laugh. It was a really, really nice feeling to finally be able to laugh again from deep inside the heart, found Purin. She smiled at the boy who held her. Her Taru-Taru… He finally came back to her… Finally…he…came… back. To her. She smiled. "na no da"