Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.

Azumanga Daioh: A Heart to Love

Chapter 8: Bitter Memories

Yomi and Ashitaka walked up to her locker. He reached around her and pulled out her school shoes, setting them on the floor for her. She smiled up at him, then slipped off her street shoes, which he picked up and placed in her cubby.

"Thanks." She smiled again.

He smiled back and wrapped his little finger around hers.

"Gosh! It's already been two months. How much longer is this going to go on?" Tomo groaned while changing into her school shoes as well.

"What's your problem?" Yomi tried to stare down her friend.

"You guys are my problem. You're everyone's problem, always so sweet and lovey-dovey with each other. Gaah!" The short-haired girl bent at the waist and stuck her finger in her mouth.

"You're just jealous," Yomi countered.

"Yeah right! Like I'd want some tall, handsome guy fawning all over me." Tomo turned away and laughed. A few seconds later, her shoulders slumped and a pitifully sad expression flashed on her face. "You're right, I am jealous. Ashitaka-kun, you wouldn't happen to have a twin brother would you?"

The boy laughed. "Sorry, Tomo-chan."

"Oh well." Her usual smile returned. "Guess you'll just have to get over me." She turned and walked away.

"Freak!" Yomi yelled.

The boy laughed again. "You guys are too funny."

The brunette frowned up at him. "I wasn't trying to be funny."

"I know, but that's what makes it so funny." He gave her a big grin.

She balled her hand into a fist, twisting his finger in the process. "Think this is funny?"

"Ah! Ah! No! Not funny! Not funny!"

"Didn't think so." She grinned. "Come on. We'll be late for class." She slipped her hand into his and led the way.

Walking past the lockers, something caught the boy's eye and he glanced back over his shoulder. There he spotted Sakaki standing against the opposite side of the lockers. As they walked away, she straightened up and turned but hesitated when she saw him looking back at her. Her sad expression made his heart sink, but she paused for just a moment before turned down the isle to change her shoes.

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"Sorry I can't walk you home today." Ashitaka stroked the back of Yomi's hand with his thumb.

"It's okay. I understand. Trying to get into Tokyo U. can't be easy. You need all the help you can get." She gave his hand a gentle squeeze.

He quickly glanced up and down the street, then leaned in and kissed his girlfriend on the cheek. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Okay." She smiled and gave his hand one last squeeze before letting go. She stood watching him run down the street for a few moments before turning with a sigh and heading home.

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Ashitaka managed to find a cram school half way between school and home that had a reputation of helping over 95 of their students pass the entrance exams of their school of choice. This included 27 out of the 29 Tokyo University applicants they tutored last year alone.

Classes ended at 8:00, and a very weary 18-year old made his way slowly home. Walking by a very large estate, the front gate suddenly opened.

"Goodnight, Tatakichi-san." The tall girl waved before closing the gate.

"Sakaki-san?"

The girl gasped with a start. "Ashitaka-kun? W-what are you doing here?"

"I just got out of cram school." He looked at the large gate. "This is Chiyo-chan's house, isn't it?"

"Mmm." She nodded.

"Who is Tatakichi-san?"

"Oh, that's Chiyo-chan's dog." She blushed.

Ashitaka smiled. "I see." Just then the streetlights went on. He looked up at the darkening sky then back to the girl. "May I walk you home?"

"Hmm." She turned away for a moment, the redness in her cheeks growing a little deeper, but eventually she replied, "Sure." Then she turned up the street and started walking.

The boy fell in step and they walked down the street together in silence.

"How have you been, Sakaki-san?"

The sudden question startled the girl. "What do you mean? You see me almost everyday."

"I do, but I don't. I see you in class, but you hardly ever say a word, and you're never around with your friends… at least not when Yomi and I are there together." He hesitated, not sure whether to add his latest observation finally decided to go ahead. "And this morning, I saw you waiting on the other side of the lockers. Waiting for Yomi-chan and me to leave." He glanced over.

Sakaki bit her lower lip.

After several minutes, Ashitaka replied, "I see." His breathing became labored and he clenched his jaw tightly.

The girl fought the urge to look over at him; instead she kept her eyes to the ground ahead of her.

They walked in silence the rest of the way to her house.

"Well, thank you," she said softly, "for walking me home."

The boy only gave a slight nod, not even bothering to look over.

Sakaki tried to smile. "I'll see you in school tomorrow… I guess." Her smile faded away. "Well, goodnight." She started to open the gate.

"You lied to me," Ashitaka whispered.

"Huh?"

"You lied to me." He turned to face the girl. "You said we could still be friends, but friends don't avoid each other. Friends don't treat friends like strangers." After a minute, he added. "Well? Don't you have anything to say? Won't you say anything at all?"

The girl hung her head.

"Fine."

She heard him rustling with his clothes then suddenly. "Here!" She looked up and saw him holding out the tie she had bought him.

"You were wearing it?" Her cheeks turned bright red with embarrassment for not noticing earlier.

"I've worn it every day to cram school, for luck."

"For luck?"

"Yes, because I thought it was a gift from a friend, a friend who cared about me. I guess I was wrong." He reached out, grabbed her hand, and pushed the tie into it. "Goodbye, Sakaki-san." He turned and walked away.

The girl stared at the tie in her trembling hand. Don't let it end this way. Don't let it end this way. Not this way. "Ashitaka-kun!" She ran after the boy.

"Ashitaka-kun!" He heard her yell. Turning around, he was almost knocked to the ground when the Sakaki ran into him, wrapping her arms around him.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," she whispered having buried her face in his chest. "I want you to be my friend… I… I need you to be my friend. Please, please." She held him tight, almost afraid to let him go.

Ashitaka dropped his schoolbag and wrapped his arms around the girl, gently rubbing his cheek over the top of her head. "It's okay, Sakaki-chan. It's okay. I'll be your friend. I'll always be your friend."

Suddenly, a car horn sounded. "Get a room!" The passengers laughed as the car drove by.

Sakaki stepped away from the boy. "Sorry." She turned aside.

"No, that's okay. Those people were idiots," he assured her.

Looking back over at him, she slowly smiled. "So, we're still friends?"

The boy smiled back. "Of course."

"Good." Sakaki's smile grew. "Oh!" She held out her hand. "I'd like it if you kept wearing this… for luck."

Ashitaka, took the tie back and effortlessly put it back on. "Always."

"Well, goodnight, Ashitaka-kun." She blushed as she gazed up at him.

"Goodnight, Sakaki-chan." He threw her a wink.

Sakaki's smile grew, lighting up her whole face. With nothing else to be said, she gave a small wave goodbye and trotted back to her house. She stole one last look and saw Ashitaka still watching her. He waved, causing her to smile again, and wave back before closing the gate behind her.

The boy picked up his schoolbag and sighed. "Friends," he whispered to himself. "Yeah, I can deal with that." He began walking home. "Yomi-chan's a great girl and Sakaki-chan… Sakaki… she's something special." Finally, everything seems to be coming together in my life. Now, if I can just keep from screwing it all up.

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(000)

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"Well, lets see, there's you, me and Chiyo-chan; Sakaki-san and Kagura-san…" Yomi looked over at her longtime friend then over at her boyfriend's empty chair. "And Ashitaka-kun?"

"But what about Tomo-chan?" Chiyo asked.

"Yeah, what about ME?" Tomo came up behind the smaller girl. "Wait, WHAT about me?"

"It's nothing." Yomi tried to wave her away.

"We're deciding who'll be in our group for the field trip to Okinawa," answered Chiyo.

"Well, me of course." The short-haired girl smiled confidently, but looking at her childhood friend then over at the young prodigy, her smile quickly disappeared. "I'm part of the group, right? I mean with me, that makes six, right?"

"We-e-ell…" Chiyo looked away.

"Yomi-chan mentioned Ashitaka-kun." Osaka replied.

An expression of shock flashed across Tomo's face but a rye grin replaced it almost instantly. "You're just joking, right?"

"I just think everyone would have more fun if Ashitaka-kun was in our group, that's all," Yomi said plainly.

"What?" Tomo yelled in shock. "No way! I'm a whole lot more fun than he is. Besides, with a boy in the group, you can't cut loose and just be yourself."

"Say, what are you guys talking about?" Kagura walked over and asked.

"We're deciding who should be in our group for the fieldtrip," Chiyo answered.

The swimmer's brow wrinkled. "Well, that should be easy."

"That's what I said," Tomo agreed.

"I though it might be fun having Ashitaka-kun in our group," Yomi added.

"Oh." A smile played across the young athlete's lips. "Yeah, well, I could see that, but then who do we leave out?"

Yomi and Chiyo both looked at Tomo.

Osaka followed their gaze and started at Tomo. "So who are we leaving out?"

"Hey! That's just not fair!" The girl in question stomped her foot. "Why don't you go with a different group?!" She pointed at Yomi.

"That doesn't make any sense at all." The spectacled girl shouted.

The lively discussion of who should be in their group continued when the boy they were talking about came into the room. He glanced over at Yomi and smiled but continued on to his desk.

"Sakaki-chan, I've got something for you." He smiled and opened his book bag.

The young teen slowly turned from staring out the window.

"I usually throw these things out. It's amazing how much junk mail I get everyday. But I couldn't help notice how much you like cats." He pulled a card out from his bag and looked at it. "It's just a postcard, an advertisement from some cat food company, but I thought you might like it." He held it out for the girl to take.

Sakaki accepted the card. Her heart melted the instant she looked at it. Three kittens practically on top of each other, staring at an unopened can of cat food and a can opener. She bit her lower lip and her eyes watered up as she ran her fingers over the kittens in the picture.

Ashitaka smiled wide. "It's safer than the real thing." Then he sat down.

Yomi stared at the exchange between her classmates with a long expression on her face.

"I mean, maybe he already has plans for the trip. He does have other friends, you know?" Kagura pointed out.

"What do you think, Yomi-san?" Chiyo asked. "Yomi-san?"

"Hmm?" She turned to meet the little girl's gaze.

"About Ashitaka-kun having other plans," Kagura explained impatiently.

"Oh, well, why don't we ask him?" Yomi got up and walked over to the boy's desk. "Morning, Ashi-kun." She smiled, running her finger over his hand.

"Morning, Yomi-chan," the boy replied with a smile, turning his hand over and gently taking hold of her finger.

"Say, for the field trip to Okinawa, have you made plans already?"

"Plans?"

"You know, what group you'll be going with," she replied.

"Oh, no not really, but I'm guessing I'll be in whatever group Torigai-kun puts together."

"Would you like to be in our group?" She asked with a smile. Seeing Sakaki's head suddenly come up caused Yomi's smile to fade just a bit.

A pensive expression played upon the boys face. "But… don't you already have six people in your group?" He held up his hand and pointed to each finger. "There's you, Sakaki-chan, Chiyo-sempai, Kagura-chan, Osaka-chan and Tomo-chan." He held up his thumb. "That's six."

"Well, Tomo was thinking of going with another group," Yomi lied.

"I was not!" The girl in question ran into her friend's side. "She's just trying to replace me with you. But you won't let her; will you, Ashi-kun?" Tomo grinned and batted her eyes at the boy.

"Hey, don't call him that!" Yomi yelled.

"Why not? You just did," Tomo teased.

"That's me!"

"So what makes you so special?"

"I'm his girlfriend, you idiot!" Yomi slammed her hand on his desk.

Ashitaka didn't flinch, but rather placed his hand gently over hers.

The brown haired girl looked down, and seeing his gentle, reassuring smile caused her anger to dissipate almost instantly.

"Tell you what, let me go talk to Torigai-kun and see if he's put together a group already." He stood up, gave Yomi a wink and walked out into the hall where his friend was talking with some other friends.

The two girls watched the boy walk out of the room, then Tomo turned. "What about you Sakaki-san? Wouldn't you rather have me in the group then Ashi-kun?"

Sakaki looked up at Tomo and slowly began to blush. She looked down at the postcard he had given her then she looked back up. "Well… I guess."

"What do you mean, you guess? And what's with the blushing." Tomo yelled which only made the tall girl blush more.

Yomi stared at Sakaki for a moment then turned towards the classroom door. She clinched her teeth and casually walked back to her desk.

"Say Yomi! Where are you going?" Her friend followed a moment later.

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(000)

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Ashitaka walked up next to Yomi as she stood outside the hotel looking out over the crystal blue sea. "Beautiful, isn't it?"

"Mmm." She nodded, a faint smile forming across her lips. Stealing a glance at her boyfriend, her smile faded away. "You know, you could have sat with me on the plane. Just because we're in different groups doesn't mean we couldn't be together during the flight."

"Sorry, but I needed to keep Torigai-kun in check. He kept threatening to drop his pants and run up and down the aisle screaming, 'To the revolution!' I think he had one too many canned coffees at the airport." He grinned innocently.

Yomi frowned but it disappeared quickly when he leaned over and kissed her softly upon the temple.

"I promise we'll sit together on the flight home, even if it means letting Torigai run up and down the aisle pantsless. Though, I think Chiyo-sempai may never be the same again, if she sees that sight."

Yomi covered her mouth to keep from laughing out loud.

"And with all the free time built into this trip, I'm sure we'll have plenty of time to spend together." He slid his hand into her's and offered her one last smile before turning his gaze towards the sea.

They enjoyed a moment of silence together staring out over the ocean, standing hand in hand. Yomi instinctively checked her watch.

"Oh my gosh! I need to go change. Our group is heading over to Shurijo Castle in fifteen minutes." She gave her boyfriend's hand a gentle squeeze. "Sorry."

He smiled and let her hand go. "That's okay. My group's heading out soon too." He gave a half wave. "I'll see you tonight."

"Okay! Bye!" Yomi turned and ran into the hotel.

Ashitaka checked his watch. "Mmm, still have almost an hour before our bus leaves." He slowly turned, allowing his eyes to scan the hotel patio and poolside. "Hmm..." He smiled and walked towards the person standing next to the railing."

"That's the direction of Iriomote Island, isn't it? You're going there tomorrow, right?" Ashitaka inquired.

"Mmm," the girl nodded.

"Hoping to catch a glimpse of an Iriomote Yamaneko?" He tilted his head towards her and smiled.

She clinched her fist and put on a look of shear determination. "I know I will."

Ashitaka's smile grew. "I'm sure you will. In fact, I'm certain of it."

Sakaki gave him a warm smile. "Thanks."

After a few minutes of standing and staring out over the ocean, Ashitaka enquired. "I guess you need to get ready to go?"

Sakaki shook her head. "I'm ready already. Chiyo-chan said she'd come get me when everyone was ready to go."

"Oh…" The boy looked back out over the ocean. "That's good."

"Mmm…" She smiled and did the same.

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"Hold the elevator!" The girl with long brown hair and glasses yelled as she ran down the hall.

Chiyo poked her head out from the elevator. "Oh, it's you Yomi-san," she smiled. She kept her finger on the OPEN button until the taller girl stepped in.

"Thanks Chiyo-chan," Yomi gasped breathlessly.

The young prodigy giggled, "You're welcome."

"Are we late?" Yomi checked her watch.

"No, not at all. I told Sakaki-san I'd get her when it was time, so I decided to go down a little early." Chiyo smiled.

"Oh," Yomi sighed, but quickly recovered. "Tell you what, I'll go get Sakaki-san; you make sure everyone else gets on the right bus, okay?"

"All right." The young girl responded enthusiastically. "She should be over by the pool. You know where it is?"

"Yeah, I was just out there earlier."

Just then the elevator door opened at the lobby.

"We'll be right there." And the older teen headed towards the side entrance to retrieve her friend and classmate.

There were a number of hotel guests out around the pool so she didn't see the girl she was looking for right away, but following Chiyo's instructions, she walked towards the pool. Spotting the girl, Yomi could see she had a big smile on her face and appeared to be laughing. She called out, "Sakaki-san!" But the girl didn't hear her. Quickening her pace, Yomi hurried over but stopped dead in her tracks when she saw who it was that brought such a big smile to Sakaki's face. Ashitaka-kun…

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"I swear that's what he said." The sandy blonde haired boy laughed.

Sakaki didn't even try to contain her amusement, allowing herself to laugh out loud.

Seeing the normally stoic girl laugh and smile so freely, brought a sense of joy to the boy's face. Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a very familiar face. "Yomi-chan?"

"Huh?"

"That's Yomi-chan, I think. But why is she just standing there?" He raised his hand and called out to her, "Yomi-chan! Over here!"

As if snapped out of a trance, his girlfriend smiled and started walking towards them. "There you are. Sakaki-san, we need to go if we're going to catch our bus."

"Oh, okay." Sakaki graced Ashitaka with one last smile and quickly fell in step with Yomi.

"Have fun!" The boy called out as he stared after the girls. Sakaki glanced back once more and waved back at him, but Yomi simply continued to walk away.

"Hmm, wonder what's wrong with her?" He stared a little while longer before shrugging and turning back towards the sea.

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"Is something wrong, Yomi-chan?" Sakaki asked, looking over at her friend as they walked through the hotel.

The shorter girl remained silent for a time, glancing over at her friend to see if she was really that oblivious of her feelings. She sighed. Maybe I'm just imagining things. But she does like him, doesn't she? I mean, how could she not? "Sakaki-san, what do you think of Ashitaka-kun?"

"What do you mean?" A hint of confusion crossed the dark-haired girl's brow.

"Do…do you like Ashitaka-kun?" Yomi's face turned a pale shade of red.

Sakaki's face turned bright red. "Ah… I mean…" She turned away for a moment. Steeling herself, she turned back towards her friend with a serious expression on her face. "Ashitaka-kun is my friend. Of course I like him. I like him as a friend and nothing more." She stopped suddenly and placed a hand upon her friend's shoulder. "Yomi-chan, I would never do anything like try and take Ashitaka-kun away from you. I swear."

Sakaki's earnest expression calmed Yomi's troubled heart, and the brown-haired girl smiled up at her friend. "I know. I believe you." She shook her head. "I don't know what got into me just now. You're a good friend Sakaki-san. I trust you. Really I do."

Sakaki smiled back. "Thank you."

"Oh no!" Yomi checked her watch. "We better hurry or they'll leave without us." The two girls broke into a run and dashed through the lobby, out the front doors to the bus.

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Yomi was about to set her tray down across from Ashitaka when she saw how little he had on his plate. "Is that all you're going to eat?"

He pushed what little champloo he had on his plate around with his chopsticks and sighed. "I ate way too much at the Pineapple Park."

"Pineapple Park?"

"Mmm, pineapple cakes, candies, juices; all sorts of things." He looked up at his girlfriend with an expression that hinted more towards a hidden sadness rather than any physical discomfort. "I think I'm going to call it a night."

"Already?" Yomi lowered her tray. "I thought we'd take a moonlit walk along the beach." Doing nothing to hide her disappointment.

"I'm sorry. I'm just not up to it tonight. Maybe tomorrow, okay." He forced a smile.

"W-want me to keep you company? We can watch some TV together." The girl offered her boyfriend a gentle smile.

"No, that's okay. Besides, boys and girls aren't allowed to be on each other's floor, let alone in a room together. I wouldn't want you to get into any trouble because of me." His smile failed to reach his eyes. "I'll be fine. I just need some rest. Enjoy your meal." He looked down at her tray and his eyes went wide. "Wow!"

"Hmm, I got a second plate for Tomo." She laughed.

Ashitaka looked next to the girl and saw Tomo sitting happily enjoying her food.

Yomi looked beside her and saw the same thing. "Hehehe, well… you see… we are on vacation, sort of, right?"

Ashitaka smiled. "Enjoy your dinner. I'll see you tomorrow." He turned and walked away.

"O-okay…" Yomi watched her boyfriend walk away and sighed.

"Hey Yomi-chan! Where's Ashi-kun going?" Tomo called out.

"He says he's not feeling well." She sat down. "I guess he ate too much pineapple at the Pineapple Park."

"Really?" Tomo replied, then looked down the length of the long table. "Hey, Torigai-kun!"

Ashitaka's friend looked over from his conversation with his friends. "What's up Tomo-chan?"

"Why'd you let Ashitaka-kun eat so much? Didn't you guys know we were having buffet here at the hotel?"

Torigai gave Tomo a confused look. "What are you talking about? Ashitaka-kun barely ate anything at the Pineapple Park. A half a wedge of fresh pineapple, that's it, at least that's all I saw him eat."

Yomi looked over. "But he said he ate all sorts of stuff, pineapple cake and candy and things."

The boy shock is head. "No way, they had that stuff in the gift shop, along with samples. I know, I ate a ton of it, along with these guys. He gestured to his friends and they all nodded in agreement. "Any of you see Ashitaka-kun eat any of that stuff?" They all shock their heads. "Neither did I, and I was with him in the gift show the whole time. He didn't even buy anything in there… accept a stupid pineapple pin."

"A pineapple pin?" Tomo titled her head.

"Yeah, you know, one of those pins that you put on your lapel." The boy gestured across his chest.

"Hmm," Tomo turned to her friend. "Maybe he bought you a present?"

Yomi's worried expression gradually changed as a smile crept across her lips. "Maybe…"

"What do you think Sakaki-san?" Tomo asked.

"Huh?" The tall girl turned from her conversation with Chiyo.

"Nevermind, it's not important." Yomi cut in. "Come on, let's eat." She picked up her chopsticks and started sampling from everything on her tray. I gift… It's not much but this would be the first time he's ever bought me anything… other than food that is. Her smile grew slightly as she let her worries slip away.

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"Man, what a day." Kagura stretched and let herself fall back into her bed. "That castle was really cool though, wasn't it Sakaki-san?"

The taller girl poked her head out from the bathroom. With her toothbrush in her mouth, she gave a nod then retreated back into the bathroom.

"And tomorrow's going to be even better what with the trip to Iriomote Island." The swimming star added.

"Mmm." Sakaki nodded coming out of the bathroom in her pajamas and taking a seat on her bed.

"I bet you can't wait to see the island wild cat, can you?"

Sakaki stared out the window and clinched her fist. "Mmm."

Kagura stared at her roommate for a moment then gave a mild chuckle. "You're not much of a conversationalist, are you?"

"Huh?"

"Nevermind." The short-haired girl sat up and grabbed the TV remote which was sitting on the corner of her bed. "Want to watch some TV?"

Sakaki glances at the monitor for a moment then stood up. "No, I'm going to sleep." And she pulled down the blankets on her bed.

"Already? But its only…" Kagura turned and looked at the clock. "Nine thirty."

"I know, but the sooner I get to sleep, the sooner tomorrow will come." Sakaki tossed her hair around to the side and pulled it in front of her, then got in bed and rolled on her side."

"Man, sounds like something my mother would say." Kagura tossed the remote back on the bed. "Well, I'm going to see what Osaka-chan and Chiyo-chan are up to." She headed for the door.

"Don't forget your keycard."

"Got it right here." The girl patted the breast pocket of her pajamas. "Night."

"Mmm."

Kagura shook her head with a smile and left the room.

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Sakaki woke up, took a shower, got dressed and left the hotel room an hour before the alarm clock went off.

She walked quietly to the elevator and boarded the empty cart to take it down to the lobby. Two floors down, the doors opened.

"Oh! Morning Sakaki-chan." The tall boy got in.

"Ashitaka-kun… you're up early."

"Yeah, guess that's the problem with going to sleep too early." He smiled. "What's your excuse?"

She gave a faint smile. "Same."

He gave a mild chuckle. "Well, I guess the good thing is we won't have to wait in line for breakfast."

"Mmm," she nodded.

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Sakaki and Ashitaka stood outside looking out over the ocean.

"Beautiful, isn't it?"

"Mmm." The girl nodded.

"My sister could spend hours staring out over the ocean and never get bored. She especially loved these southern waters. So clear, so blue."

"You've been here before?"

"Mmm," the boy nodded. "My family used to come here every spring when I was younger. Winters in Morioka can be pretty brutal so in mid-March we'd spend a week down here."

Sakaki looked back at the hotel. "Did you ever stay here?" She pointed.

Ashitaka looked back at the hotel for a moment then shook his head. "No, we always stayed at a cottage on the other side of the island." He slid his hands into his pockets.

"Oh." Sakaki glanced up at the tall boy, then looked out over the sea again. Over the next few minutes she glanced up at him multiple times.

"What?" He asked without looking over.

The long-haired girl quickly looked away.

"If you've got a question, don't be afraid to ask," the boy said softly.

"Well, … are you…" She quickly looked away again.

"Am I what?" He looked over.

"Nothing, never mind; it's not important." The girl turned her gaze back out over the ocean.

The boy smiled and turned towards the ocean as well. Suddenly, his eyes widened and his smile vanished as he pulled his hand out of his pocket. Tears began to form in his eyes but he fought to keep them from escaping.

"What's wrong?" Sakaki placed a gentle hand on his arm.

He looked down at his hand. "I bought this pin yesterday for my sister."

The girl looked down. "A pineapple?"

"Mmm, she loved pineapples."

Loved? Sakaki gave the boy a concerned look but refrained from saying anything.

"She used to collect pins, all sorts of pins. She wanted this one but we were running late so our parents didn't stop in the gift shop the last time we were here." A tear escaped his eye. "I don't know why I bought this."

"You're not going to give it to her?" Sakaki asked softly.

Ashitaka stared at the small metal object for a long time. "No… she stopped collecting pins a long time ago." He drew his arm back, ready to heave it into the sea, but for no particular reason, he stopped himself. Looking back down at the pin once more, he held it out to Sakaki. "Do you want it?"

"Huh?"

"Do you want it?" He held it a little closer. "Think of it as a good luck charm when you study, like the tie you gave me." He smirked.

Sakaki couldn't help but return the grin. "Well, if you put it that way." She reached out and took the pin, and slipped it into her pocket.

"You're not going to put it on?"

She shook her head. "I'm not going to study right now."

The boy laughed. "Yeah, I guess not."

"Hey! Ashitaka-kun! Come on! Our bus is here!" Torigai called out from the hotel entrance.

"All right! Be right there!" The tall boy waved back then turned to Sakaki once more. "I guess I'll see you tonight. Have fun on Iriomote Island. I hope you get to see a Iriomote Yamaneko." He smiled.

A deathly serious expression etched itself upon the girl's face. "I will." She clinched her fist.

The boy's smile grew, then he waved good-bye and headed back to the hotel.

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(000)

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Ashitaka shoved Yomi's carry-on bag in the overhead compartment of the airplane then took his seat next to his girlfriend who had the window seat.

"Well, we'll be home in a few hours. Get enough souvenirs?" He asked with a smile but Yomi just stared out the window. After a few minutes of silence, the boy asked. "Is something wrong?"

Yomi looked over at boy. "I don't know. Did you forget something?"

Taken aback by the question, Ashitaka thought long and hard before responding. "No, I-I don't think so. Why do you ask?"

The spectacled girl narrowed her lips. "Never mind..." and she turned her attention back out the window.

The boy sighed and ran his fingers over his forehead. "Did I do something wrong? What?"

"No, you didn't do anything wrong. You didn't do anything, apparently."

"What are you talking about?"

"Nothing… it's nothing."

"If it's nothing, then why are you giving me the cold shoulder?"

"I'm just tired, that's all. I don't feel like talking, okay?" She stayed staring out the window.

"Fine." Ashitaka replied coarsely. He sat, silently staring unfocused across the plane. Finally, he reached under his seat and pulled his carry-on bag forward to retrieve a book. After shoving his bag back under his seat, Ashitaka opened to the bookmarked page and began to read.

After nearly an hour in the air, Yomi finally looked over to her boyfriend. He'd rather read than talk to me. She huffed then looked back out the window.

"Did you say something?" Ashitaka turned.

"No, nothing," she snapped.

The boy sighed and continued reading.

-

(000)

-

Yomi and Tomo arrived at Chiyo's house together.

"Now no fouling around Tomo, you've got to take this seriously if you hope to get into college." Her friend warned.

"Don't worry Yomi. I'll take it seriously." She reached out and rang the doorbell.

A moment later Chiyo answered. "Hi Yomi-san, Tomo-chan! Please come in."

"Hi Chiyo-chan." Yomi walked in first.

"Hi Chiyo-chan. Got any snacks?" Tomo followed.

"Tomo!"

"What?"

Chiyo just laughed. "Sure, I'll get some. Go on upstairs to my room. Sakaki-san and Osaka-san are already here." Then the girl headed for the kitchen.

Walking up the stair, Yomi scowled. "I can't believe you. Just walking in the door and already asking for food."

"I can't help it. I'm hungry."

"You're pathetic."

"Bet you end up eating more than I do, Yomi." Tomo teased.

"Shut up!"

-

Walking into the room they found Sakaki already hard at work and Osaka mesmerized by the end of her pencil.

"Hi guys." Yomi smiled and quickly took a seat across from the taller girl.

"Hi Yomi-chan, hi Tomo-chan." Osaka looked up and smiled enthusiastically.

"Hi." Sakaki looked up for a moment and nodded then went back to work.

Yomi looked at the books the other two girls had open. "Starting with math? Good idea." She pulled out her math book as well and flipped to the same page, then pulled out a notebook and turned it to a blank sheet. She started reading her textbook but quickly encountered a part she remembered having difficulty with in class. "Say Sakaki-san?" She looked up at the girl across from her.

"Hmm?" The tall girl looked up exposing the collar of the sweater she was wearing.

Yomi's eyes went wide when she saw a pineapple pin attached to Sakaki's collar.

"… I was with him in the gift show the whole time. He didn't even buy anything in there… accept a stupid pineapple pin.

A pineapple pin?

Yeah, you know, one of those pins that you put on your lapel.

Hmm, maybe he bought you a present?"

"Did you have a question?" Sakaki asked.

Yomi shook the memory away. "Uhh, yeah… umm, no, no it's nothing." Yomi looked down at her book and pretended to read.

"Say, Sakaki-san, where'd you get that pin?" Tomo blurted out.

"Shut up!" Yomi snapped.

"But we didn't go to that pineapple park and you said that Ashitaka-kun didn't-"

"I SAID SHUT UP!" Yomi yelled and slugged her friend hard in the arm, knocking her over.

Osaka and Sakaki gasped.

"Ouch!" Tomo rubbed her arm. "That really hurt."

"Good! Now shut up!" Yomi glared at her. "We're here to study, not to waste time chit-chatting!"

Slowly, Tomo sat up, still rubbing her arm. "Okay," she whimpered, and flipped her book open.

Yomi glanced over at the other girls and saw them staring back at her with a combination of shock and fear. Yomi's face turned a pale shade of red as she turned her attention back to her book.

A few minutes later Chiyo walked into the room carrying a try with snacks and five cans of fruit-flavored sodas. "Sorry for taking so long." She set the tray down in the middle of the table, then sat down between Sakaki and Yomi. "Feel free to ask me anything. I'll do my best to help." She smiled, then grabbed a soda and a pocky.

After a few quite moments, Sakaki asked. "Chiyo-chan, can you take a look at this? I'm not sure I did it right."

"Sure, Sakaki-san." Chiyo said with a smile, and craned her neck to get a bitter look at Sakaki's work. "It's almost right. You just forgot a step, here. See?"

"Oh, that's right. Thank you, Chiyo-chan." Sakaki nodded.

"Don't mention it, Sakaki-san." Chiyo's smile grew, happy that she was able to be of some help. "Oh!" Her eye caught sight of something on the collar of Sakaki's sweater. "What's that Sakaki-san?"

Sakaki's hand went up and gently touched the pin, but before she could say anything, Osaka shouted. "Don't ask Chiyo-chan! Or Yomi-chan will punch you!"

Chiyo flinched looking quickly over at Yomi who was staring intensely down at her book. Frightened, Chiyo inched slightly towards Sakaki's side of the table.

Turning to see the scared looks in her friends' faces, then over at Yomi and her thinly valed angry expression, Sakaki stood up. "Yomi-chan, we need to talk." She turned and headed out the door.

Yomi bitdown hard on her lower lip and clinched her fists before getting to her feet and following Sakaki out of the room, down the stairs and outside.

"What just happened?" a confused Chiyo asked.

Tomo stared towards the door for a moment just to make sure neither girl came back in suddenly, then she leaned in close and whispered loudly, "Ashitaka-kun bought a pineapple pin during the fieldtrip to Okinawa and Yomi thought he was going to give it to her, as a gift."

"Oh, I see. So she's upset that Ashitaka-kun gave it to Sakaki-san instead. But how does she know the pin Sakaki-san has is the same one Ashitaka-kun bought?" Chiyo asked.

"Because we didn't go to the Pineapple Park and that was the only place you could get it," Tomo argued.

"There and at the airport," Osaka added.

"The airport?"

"Yeah, the airport gift shop had all sorts of things. Pins, and magnets, and pictures, and postcards, and small statues, …"

"Yeah, yeah, we get the idea, Osaka-chan, they had lots of stuff there." Tomo cut the other girl off.

"You don't thing they're going to fight do you?" Chiyo lips trembled the at very thought.

"I don't know, but if they do, my moneys on Sakaki-san." Tomo shouted. "Yomi-chan's got a mean upper cut but Sakaki-san has a definite reach and height advantage. And while they may weigh about the same, Sakaki-san is a more solid weight, where Yomi is more mushy."

"I don't know," Osaka chimed in. "If Yomi can get inside and work the body, she might have a chance."

"True, true." Tomo nodded.

"You guys!" A teary-eyed Chiyo shouted. "We need to stop them. They're our friends. They shouldn't be fighting."

"Oh, don't worry Chiyo-chan." Tomo got up and patted the younger girl on the head. "I'm sure there's nothing to worry about."

Chiyo looked up at her friend and wiped her tears away. "Really? You think so?"

"Sure," Tomo continued. "Both of them are strong enough that one punch and it'll all be over."

"Tomo!" Chiyo began crying again.

-

-

-

Taking about ten steps away from the house, Sakaki turned and asked. "What's bothering you Yomi-chan?"

Yomi pressed her lips together tightly and took several deep breaths, trying to calm herself down. Then through clinched teeth she asked, "Just tell me Sakaki-san, where did you get that pin?"

Sakaki's hand went up and touched the pin once again. "Ashitaka-kun gave it to me." She saw Yomi's anger increase. "But it was no big deal."

"No big deal!" Yomi shouted. "I'm his girlfriend and he bought you a gift. How is that not a big deal."

Sakaki shook her head. "He didn't buy it for me. He bought it for his sister, but he changed his mind about giving it to her. He was going to throw it in the ocean. He gave it to me because I just happened to be standing there next to him. I'm sure if it were you or anyone else, he would have done the same thing." Sakaki explained.

This seemed to calm Yomi down somewhat.

Reaching for the pin again, Sakaki took it off and held it out to the other girl. "If it means that much to you, take it."

Yomi looked at the pin for a few minutes before lowering her head and sighing. "It's not the stupid pin. I don't care about the pin. I just wanted my boyfriend to think about me, that's all. When Torigai-san said Ashitaka-kun had bought a pin at the Pineapple Park, I thought that maybe he bought it for me and it made me feel special because it meant he was thinking about me even when we weren't together. But that wasn't the case at all." She took a few steps towards the gate and stopped. "Sakaki-san, please ask Tomo-chan to take my books home when she leaves. I'll call her later to pick them up."

"Aren't you going to stay and study?" Sadness washed over the taller girl.

"No. I've humiliated myself enough here for one day. I'm sorry Sakaki-san. I'm sorry for acting like such a fool." Yomi broke into a run and practically ran into the gate, struggling to force it open. Eventually, she got it open and ran off.

Sakaki looked down at the pin and slowly closed her hand around it. Turning, she headed back into the house and stuffed the pin in her pocket.

27