Ch 12

Haruna's POV

Haruna got tired from sitting on the cold, hard ground. With swollen, puffy eyes she got up from her hiding spot and went to gather her stuff from the classroom. She did not want to run into anyone she knew right now. Especially not Mami. She must have been so disappointed with how Haruna played.

Haruna also didn't want Fumi to see her like this. Fumi had been so impressed with her when she taught him how to hit the ball all those weeks ago. She would hate to see his disappointed face now that he has seen her disastrous performance out in the field.

Luckily for Haruna, she was able to get out of school without encountering her best friend or boyfriend. As she walked out of the school gates, she looked at the time and realized that Yoh's basketball match was supposed to start in 5 minutes.

Haruna stopped right at the school entrance. She really wanted to see Yoh play basketball. Ever since she heard Fumi talking about how great Yoh was at basketball during middle school, she had been really curious to see him play. When Fumi told her that Yoh was going to play basketball for the sports festival, she was beyond thrilled.

Haruna turned around and faced the school. Her heart was urging her on towards the school, but her feet refused to move.

I would just be a bother anyways, Haruna thought. He hasn't talked to me for a whole week AND he didn't even come to my game.

Shaking her head sadly, Haruna turned away from the school. After a moment of deliberation, she decided to head over to the place she always goes to when she is sad- Nobinobi Park.

Haruna sat on the swings, mindlessly dragging her feet across the sand when she felt her pocket vibrate. Taking her cell-phone out of her pocket, she saw the name Yoh flash across the screen.

She hesitated for a second, deciding whether or not she should answer the phone. On the one hand, she hadn't heard from Yoh in awhile and she missed him terribly. On the other hand, her eyes were still puffy and red from all the crying she did earlier. She knew how Yoh hated girls who cried a lot. With that in mind, she rejected the call and turned off her phone.

She began to swing in earnest, pumping her legs up higher and higher until she felt like she was soaring in the sky. She closed her eyes and felt the breeze on her face. She felt her mind get clear and her feelings begin to settle.

Haruna looked up and was surprised by the darkening sky. I must have been here for awhile, Haruna thought as she slowly came to a halt. Looking around her, she spotted a figure coming her way. She tensed. She knew that the park was dangerous at night but it was barely 6 pm, for goodness sake!

However, as the figure got closer she realized that it was Yoh. Haruna felt an instant wave of relief before her heart began to speed up and a wave of nervousness hit her. Yoh was practically running towards her, with a scowl on his face. Haruna felt an overwhelming urge to run away but she was frozen on the spot.

"Yoh.." Haruna began to say, as soon as Yoh was within earshot. However, she was unable to finish her sentence as she felt a soft thump on top of her head. Haruna grabbed her head in surprise, staring at Yoh who stood angrily before her.

"You idiot! Why didn't you return my call? Fumi and Takahashi-chan were so worried about you, since you weren't responding to any of their messages. I've been running around like a fool trying to find you!"

Haruna opened her mouth to explain once again but she didn't get the chance to because she was suddenly enveloped in warmth. Her eyes widened as she realized that Yoh had hugged her.

"I was so worried about you! I thought you had gotten hurt or something when you didn't answer the phone. Don't do that ever again. If you are upset, just come to me, okay? I'll listen to all you have to say."

Haruna could only nod, as she stood frozen for a second, her heart beating extremely fast. Her arms were stiff on her side, unsure of what to do with them. After a second, however, Haruna tentatively brought her arms around Yoh and slowly buried her face on Yoh's chest. She felt Yoh tense for a second and Haruna was about to pull away until she felt Yoh tighten his hold on her.

So there they stood, Haruna and Yoh in silence, in each others' arms. Despite Haruna's racing heart, a deep sense of calm descended upon her. Here, in Yoh's arms, Haruna felt the last remaining pieces of sadness from the day dissolve away.

With her head buried in Yoh's chest, Haruna was surprised to find Yoh's heart racing. Haruna closed her eyes and buried herself deeper into Yoh's chest trying to hear Yoh's heartbeat more clearly. However, she was soon distracted by a familiar smell. Something that she remembered from her dreams.

Unaware of what she was doing, she trailed her nose from Yoh's chest to his neck with her eyes closed. It wasn't until Yoh spoke that she was awoken from her trance.

"What are you doing?" Yoh whispered to her.

Haruna snapped her head up as she opened her eyes suddenly. She then realized she was only a few millimeters from Yoh's face. With a yelp, she stumbled back from Yoh, breaking out of the hug. Her face turned tomato red as she realized she had been caught sniffing her coach.

" I'm so sorry, Yoh! I didn't mean to sniff you! It's just that you smell so goo- I mean, you smell like cinnamon!"

Yoh looked confused as he brought his arm up to his nose. "I smell like cinnamon?"

Haruna nodded her head vigorously. "Yeah, like cinnamon! The other day- Sunday! I think it was on Sunday! Anyways, I smelled cinnamon when I fell asleep at the movies. For a second, I thought it was Fumi, but now I know that it was you!"

At this, Haruna saw Yoh turn his head away from her, with one hand covering his face. That wasn't enough, though, as Haruna saw that Yoh's ears were bright red.

"Okay, okay. I get it so you can stop explaining it to me," Yoh said, his face still slightly tinged red. He looked down at his watch, taking note of the time.

"It's getting dark already. Let me walk you home. In the way, you can tell me why you were so upset."

Haruna looked at Yoh with a big smile on her face. Haruna was once again reminded why Yoh was such a great person. He always knew how to make Haruna feel better.

"Thanks, Yoh! You really are a great person and a great coach. I am happy to have you in my life."

This time, Yoh didn't have the time to cover his face. An explosion of red covered his whole face, from the top of his head to the end of his neck. Yoh blustered for a while before turning to face forward to walk in the direction of Haruna's house.

Haruna feared for a second that she had said something she shouldn't have until she heard Yoh's soft voice from in front of her say quietly, "Me too, Haruna. Me too."