In my busy-ness today, I almost forgot to post these drabbles! Hope you enjoy (and off to bed I go...)!
Week 2: Christmas
2c. Christmas Tree
They had just enough time to find shelter under the large oak before the downpour started, creating a sheen of mist that glowed under the lights. It took less than a minute for the grass around them to be soaked, but the thick leaves of the tree held out against the rain. The only dry patch of ground was the small circle that bound the two people together.
For a few minutes, the only sound between them was their laboured breathing as they recovered from their earlier sprint. When that subsided, an uneasy silence began to brew. The air around them warmed and Usagi shuffled her feet as Mamoru cleared his throat.
"Fancy seeing you here," he said, his voice half washed away by the rain. "Heading towards the arcade?"
"Actually, I'm going home early today. We're putting up our Christmas tree."
For no particular reason, Mamoru felt guilty at her words, almost as if he was the one who had caused the rain to fall. "They're not going to start without you, right?"
Usagi shook her head, a small smile on her lips. "Nope, we always put the tree up together. Mama will probably know that I forgot my umbrella and am stuck somewhere..." She surveyed her surroundings. "Maybe I could try to make it to that tree over there..."
"Knowing you, you'd trip and fall." His words sounded snider than he had intended, and Mamoru winced when he saw her face harden.
"Yea, I probably would, knowing me."
The tapping made by the rain came between them again, and Mamoru felt his stomach twist into knots. Just like so many other times, he had said something he could not retrieve, something that drove her far away. He was searching desperately for a way to remedy things, to bring her smile back, when a drop of water fell onto his jacket, trembling for a while before it sank into the thick material.
Mamoru cleared his throat again, this time with more conviction than the last.
"Look up, at the tree. You see the way the water glistens on the leaves?"
Her recognition and delight was precious. "Just like bits of tinsel! I wonder what it looks like from outside."
The rain was starting to ease, and a few minutes later, they emerged from their shelter. The oak was covered with droplets shimmering against the darkening sky. But Mamoru only frowned when he saw that the tree was nothing like the one he had imagined only moments before.
"If only this was a pine," he sighed.
Usagi just looked at him, her expression unreadable. "It's not about what the final product looks like—it's the people you're with." Then she smiled again, her eyes sparkling like tinsel. "Our Christmas tree is beautiful, Mamoru-san."