Hi, everyone! Here's the next chapter of this fic. I hope you all enjoy it.

Disclaimer: I do not own GochiUsa. It belongs to Koi.

A Wish Upon A Shooting Star

Chapter 5

Rize searched all the shelves and drawers, hoping she'd find an old jigsaw puzzle lying around somewhere. Syaro was too short to reach most of the shelves so she sat on the floor and searched through the drawers close to the ground.

Rize put her hands on her hips as she stared at the huge shelves with a frown. There was way too much stuff in the room. Old clothes, toys, art projects, report cards... Everything that was ever important to her at some point in her life was kept in this room.

Rize sighed. Why couldn't she find any puzzles? She was sure she had quite a few when she was little and her father rarely threw anything of hers out. Then where were they?

Rize looked down at Syaro. She was diligently checking through every drawer she could reach, carefully keeping everything back in place when she finished. Rize smiled softly. It looked like Syaro was a sincere girl even when she was little.

Rize bent down and crouched next to Syaro. "Hey. Is it okay if we play with something else? Or do you want to look some more?"

Syaro looked up at her, biting her lip. "Is this bothering you? We can go back to your room if it is."

"What? No, it's not bothering me. That's not what I meant. I was just wondering if you're getting tired of searching." Rize patted Syaro on the head. "You really need to stop saying that you're bothering me. Because you're not."

Syaro pouted. "Are you sure? I feel like I am..."

"Trust me, sweetie. You could never bother me."

Syaro broke into a huge smile and jumped from her spot on the floor to hug Rize with all her might. Rize blinked in surprise. Why was Syaro so happy all of a sudden?

Rize thought back to what she said. She froze as her words came back to her. Sweetie. That's the word she used just now. Sweetie.

Since when did she call Syaro sweetie?

Rize squeezed her eyes shut as she felt her whole face heat up. She was blushing like crazy right now, wasn't she? Of course she was. What was she thinking, calling Syaro something so... So... Affectionate?

Rize took a deep breath, willing her racing heart to calm down. Syaro might be a kid now but she'd get back to normal eventually. If Syaro remembered everything that was happening now, then...

Rize felt her heart speed up again. How was she supposed to calm down? She was so embarrassed she wanted to crawl into a hole and never come out. It didn't help that Syaro was holding her so tightly right now.

Rize wrapped an arm around Syaro despite herself. She didn't know what was wrong with her but hugging Syaro felt really... Nice. And for some reason, so did calling her sweetie.

Rize shook her head. Oh, great. It was official now. Something was wrong with her. Seriously wrong.

Syaro pulled away and beamed at Rize. Rize couldn't help but weakly smile back. Yes, something was wrong with her. But it also felt so right that she didn't know what to do.

Syaro skipped away and dropped onto the floor. She hummed as she resumed her search through the drawers. Rize slowly stood up. Oh, well. As conflicted as she was feeling at the moment, it was nice to see that at least Syaro seemed pretty happy.

Rize walked over to the next shelf and reached up to check through them. She needed to find at least one of her old puzzles. She couldn't bear to disappoint Syaro.

Rize turned her head to look at Syaro. The blonde carefully pushed the drawer closed and scooted over to sit in front of the next one. She pulled on the drawer but it didn't open. With a pout, Syaro pulled on the drawer a little harder.

Rize giggled. Everything Syaro did was just way too cute. A small smile made its way to Rize's face. Spending time with Syaro like this was nice. She could get used to this.

Syaro gritted her teeth and tugged on the drawer. The drawer finally opened with a jerk and Syaro smiled in satisfaction. But the books on the top shelf were falling down. Rize's eyes widened in horror.

Rize raced to where Syaro was, managing to get there just in time and spreading her arms out in an attempt to guard Syaro. Rize winced as the books hit her back and fell to the floor.

Syaro looked up at Rize with wide eyes. "Ri-Rize-san?"

Rize bent down and kneeled in front of Syaro. She grabbed Syaro by the shoulders and looked her over. "Are you okay?"

"Wh-What?"

"You're not hurt, are you?"

"I should be asking you that. You're the one who got hit by those books."

"I'm fine." Rize looked over her shoulder at the shelf behind her and gritted her teeth. "This place is dangerous for you."

Rize stood up and lifted Syaro off the floor. Walking to the middle of the room, she set Syaro down. "You don't have to search anymore. I'll look for the puzzles. You just stay here. Away from the shelves."

Syaro nodded and stared at the floor. "I'm sorry, Rize-san."

Rize frowned. "Why are you apologising?"

"You got hurt because of me. The books fell because I pulled on the drawer too hard, didn't they?"

Rize dropped to her knees and pulled Syaro into a bear hug. "It's not your fault. It's my fault. I should have been more careful. You would have gotten hurt if I was just a little bit slower." Rize squeezed her eyes shut. "I'm sorry, Syaro. Please forgive me."

Syaro wrapped her small arms around Rize. "But you protected me. So, thank you."

Rize bit her lip. Yes. She had managed to protect Syaro. But she almost didn't. Didn't she say that she wouldn't let anything happen to Syaro? That she'd make sure of it? Then why did something like this have to happen on the very first day?

Rize tightened her embrace around Syaro. She didn't want Syaro to get hurt, no matter what. She almost had a heart attack when she saw those books tumbling down. How would she feel if Syaro actually got hurt?

Rize's throat went dry at the thought. She pulled away from Syaro and patted her on the head. "I want you to stay safe so... Just stay here, okay?"

Syaro nodded and with another pat on her head, Rize walked away. Rize resumed her search in silence. She wished Syaro would hurry up and get back to normal. She was incredibly cute right now but she was also way too vulnerable. Rize wasn't sure she'd be able to protect her.

Rize pursed her lips. She needed to find those puzzles fast. This room was beginning to suffocate her.

"Ojou?"

Rize turned to find a guard at the door. "Yes?"

"Dinner is ready. Your father sent me to call you, ojou."

"Oh. Is it already that late?"

The guard nodded and looked at Syaro. Syaro visibly paled and ran to hide behind Rize. Rize sweatdropped as Syaro clutched her legs.

The guard bowed. "My apologies for scaring the child." He stood back up. "But your father asked you to bring your young friend as well."

Rize chuckled. "Of course." She reached behind to ruffle Syaro's hair. "Let's go get dinner, Syaro."

Rize carefully made her way down the stairs carrying Syaro in her arms. She wasn't usually so worried about descending down the stairs but everything seemed kind of scary right now. If she slipped and fell, Syaro would get hurt. So being extra careful was her only option.

Rize entered the dining room to find her father already seated at the table. He smiled at her. "Rize, you're here. Are you having fun playing with the kid?"

Syaro buried her head in the crook of Rize's neck the moment Rize's father turned to look at her. Rize gently stroked Syaro's hair and smiled at her father. "Yes, it's fun. But she's really scared of you."

Rize's father let out a deep chuckle. "Children tend to be scared of me. I think the only child that wasn't afraid of me was you when you were little."

Rize felt her cheeks heat up in a blush. "Well, you're my own father. Why would I be scared of you?"

"Exactly." He gestured toward the chair across the table from him. "Sit down, Rize."

With a nod, Rize walked over to the table and pulled out a chair. She sat Syaro down on the chair and... Well, that wasn't going to work.

Syaro was so short that the tabletop was at her eye level. There was no way she'd be able to eat anything like that. Syaro looked up at Rize, a questioning look on her face. Rize frowned. What was she supposed to do now?

Rize's father chuckled. "Your little friend won't be able to eat like that." He turned his head to look at Syaro. "What's your name, kid?"

Syaro looked up at him and bit her lip. "Sy-Sy-Syaro. My name is Syaro."

"Well, Syaro-kun, you can sit in my lap if you want. You can enjoy your dinner then."

Syaro's eyes widened in fear. She shook her head vigorously.

Rize cringed. "Oyaji, what sort of a suggestion is that?"

"Don't get creeped out, Rize. I only suggested that because you used to sit in my lap and eat at the table a lot when you were little."

"Huh?" Rize blinked. "I did?"

"Yes, you did. But I feel like Syaro-kun is too scared of me to take me up on my offer."

Rize glanced at Syaro who was cowering in her chair. "Yeah, she's not going to sit in your lap."

"Then let her sit in your lap."

Rize stiffened. "Wh-What?"

Her father raised an eyebrow. "What's wrong? Let her sit in your lap. Or do you want the kid to go hungry tonight?"

Rize bit her lip as Syaro looked up at her, her face full of expectation. Now she had to let Syaro sit in her lap? Wasn't that a bit...?

"Is anything wrong, Rize? Why are you blushing?"

Rize cleared her throat. "It's nothing. I'm fine." She pulled out the chair across from her father and sat down. "Everything's fine. Just superbly fine."

Rize's father furrowed his eyebrows at her. Rize simply smiled at him. Did her smile look unnatural? Most probably. But there was nothing she could do about it.

Rize knew she sat Syaro in her lap just a few hours ago. But that was only because she was crying. It was because Rize wanted to comfort her.

And most importantly... Nobody else was in her room to witness it.

But what about now? She knew that her father thought that Syaro was just a kid. He wouldn't bat an eyelid if Syaro sat in her lap. But still.

Even if her father didn't know, she knew. She knew that Syaro wasn't actually a kid. Syaro was actually her kouhai. Her close friend. Someone who Rize couldn't help but both admire and want to protect at the same time.

And for some reason, Syaro was the only person who sent Rize's heart racing whenever she came close.

Rize let out a shaky breath. She had no choice right now. A heart-racing dinner was what fate had in store for her, it seemed.

Rize carefully picked Syaro up from the chair next to her and set her down on her lap. Rize wrapped her arms around Syaro's waist so that she wouldn't fall off her lap and forced a smile. "This should work, oyaji. Thanks for the suggestion."

Her father gave a short nod and gestured for their dinner to be brought out. A few maids swiftly laid out the table. Curry and rice. Nice and simple.

Rize stared at the two plates of food in front of her. How exactly was she going to eat with Syaro sitting in her lap? She seriously had no clue. It's not like she could think clearly anyway with her heart pounding as loudly as it was.

Syaro carefully picked up her spoon. Rize lifted an eyebrow. The way Syaro was holding the spoon wasn't right. She'd be able to stab her food with the way she was holding the spoon in her fist but there was no way she'd be able to eat properly like that.

After a bit of a struggle, Syaro somehow managed to get a small amount of rice on her spoon. She slowly brought the spoon to her mouth with a shaky hand. Luckily, the rice didn't fall off before Syaro could blow on it and eat it.

As Syaro chewed her food, Rize frowned. "Hey, Syaro. Are you not used to eating on your own?"

With a blush, Syaro shook her head. "I'm trying to learn how to use a spoon but Mama usually feeds me."

Rize smiled softly at Syaro. "There's no need to be embarrassed about that."

Rize let out a small sigh. She actually felt embarrassed herself. Syaro was just four. Expecting her to be able to eat properly herself was asking for too much. Rize should have realized that before.

Rize pushed her own plate to the side and pulled Syaro's plate closer. She placed a hand on Syaro's hand and bent down so that she was closer to Syaro's ear. "Hey. Want me to feed you?"

Syaro's blush deepened and she gave a short nod. Rize giggled. Syaro was honestly way too cute.

Rize sat up straight and took the spoon from Syaro. She took some rice and curry, lightly blew on it to cool it down and brought the spoon near Syaro's mouth. Syaro ate the food and chewed it with a small smile on her face.

Rize couldn't help but smile herself. Yes, she really could get used to spending time with Syaro like this.

It's nice that we can always count on Rize to protect Syaro. And to help her out too. These two are having a lot of fun together, aren't they?

Read and review, folks! I'm always open to feedback and constructive criticism.