Hanami
"Hikari! Come on!"
A young girl looked up from her mirror and glanced out the open door. "The cherry blossoms aren't going anywhere, Taichi!"
"Yeah they are! They'll fall and then we'll--"
"I meant today…" Hikari smiled brightly as her older brother entered the room. In his hands was his black school bag. It looked like it was full of rocks. "Why do you still have your school bag?"
Taichi smirked and dropped to the floor. He flipped open his bag and showed the items to his little sister. "I brought extra paints and junk."
"Oh wow! You got the pink I asked for!" she beamed and fell to the floor with her brother. They began to dig through the bag, pulling out many different art supplies. After they nearly dug everything out, their mother appeared through the door.
"Taichi! Hikari…" She sighed, "Do you guys want to be late for your picnic?"
"No way!" they exclaimed and shoved everything back in. Hikari snatched her digital camera off of her desk and followed Taichi out the door.
Today wasn't any ordinary day. Today was a beautiful day during hanami, or cherry blossom viewing. It was one of Hikari's most favorite times of the year. All the cherry blossoms came to bloom and there were many festivities. The blossoms signified the end of the harsh winter and the beginning of spring. Many people went on picnics and performed dances for the occasion and most of all; there was a lot of food. Sure, it wasn't close to more of the well-known holidays celebrated in Odaiba, but it was one where the weather was just perfect to eat outside and enjoy Mother Nature.
And today, Hikari was going to dance for the small parade the Odaiba Middle School put together. They made a float full of blossoms and selected the dancers to 'jump and jive' around the float. (Or so Taichi said.) Hikari was looking forward to it the most because she was not only dancing, she was dancing by her best friend, her longest-known pal, her secret keeper, and most of all, her crush.
Taichi, who knew of his sister's crush, rubbed it in every chance he got. "So, Kari," he vexed, "do you remember all your dance steps? You wouldn't want to humiliate yourself in front of… Oh, who was it again?"
"Taichi," she bit her lip and looked towards her mother from the back seat, hopping she wouldn't jump in.
"Yeah…"
Oh! There was that mother-ish 'yeah'!
"Who are you dancing beside, Hikari?" her mother glanced into the rearview mirror then down again.
"No one."
"You have to be dancing next to somebody…"
"He's not gonna show up."
"Then who's the replacement?"
"He's sick."
"Hikari!"
"Mom!"
"Teenage girls," Taichi rolled his eyes.
"Oh, shut up, Taichi," Hikari huffed and crossed her arms. "As much as I know, Ken, Daisuke, and Takeru will all be there. Maybe it's one of them."
"Is it perhaps --" Taichi was cut off by the stop of the car. He turned to look out the window and his face brightened. "Yeah! Matt's already here!"
Hikari watched her brother dive out of the vehicle, grabbing his backpack before the door slammed shut. "He acts as if he were six-years-old and awaiting the ice cream man."
A faint "you're last, you pay!" came from Yamato. Taichi shot back with a "it was my sister's fault."
"You're excited to, honey," her mother smiled, "go on now. I'll see you when the sun refuses to shine."
"Nine o'clock, Mom," she murmured, "you always say that."
Hikari caught the eyes of her friends and grabbed onto the handle. "Eish! Mom, can I have some money? You know Taichi, he wastes the paint…"
"Eish? Where did you learn that from? All well, a girl is a girl." Her mother handed her a random amount of money and the girl was on her way. She jumped onto the park grounds and ran her way down to Miyako and the others, her own backpack over her shoulders.
Miyako turned just in time to see her friend. "Kari, it's about time. Daisuke wants to paint someone's portrait. I volunteered, but he said he wanted someone pretty. So please keep him company, if I find him alone, I may hurt him."
"Eish, Daisuke…" Hikari giggled and dropped her bag next to the others and wandered to the junior painter.
He stood up and bowed to Hikari's presence. "Ah, mademoiselle! Though I may not catch your beauty in a picture…" he glanced down at his hand then looked back up, "May I paint your portrait?"
She smiled brightly and nodded. "Though I may not be the exact specimen of beauty you are looking for…"
"She is beautiful… and modest!" Daisuke held up his paintbrush and again, Hikari laughed.
From the other side of the road, a tall blond came into view. He walked casually across the street with his hands in his pockets. His hair caught the sunrays and reflected the sky in his eyes. Miyako greeted him with a wave and rushed over to speak with him. Hikari glanced only for a second to see his arrival before turning to look back at Daisuke. His look of determination made her smile.
"Eish," she heard Takeru say to Miyako, "Daisuke painting?"
"I heard that, blondie!" he snapped and looked back at the canvas.
Hikari turned to look at the newcomer, "So what? It's more than what you're doing."
"I feel hurt," Takeru smirked and looked over the brunette's shoulder. His eyes blinked a couple times and he scratched the back of his neck. "Eh, nice painting?"
Daisuke looked up at Takeru, "Is it really that bad?"
"N-no! It's great, Daisuke."
"It's bad…"
"It's not bad!"
"Then why'd you compliment it! You never compliment me!"
"Got you there," Miyako started to laugh.
Hikari hid a grin and joined to look at the painting. She too blinked a little bit. "It really is good, though."
Daisuke turned red. "Really?"
"Yeah. Promise me you'll give me a painting when you're a famous painter," she smiled.
"O--"
"Hey, guys," Ken interrupted the discussion and tossed his backpack on top of all the others. "Where's everyone else?"
Hikari pointed to the playground; "Taichi is with Yamato and Sora. Jyou couldn't make it. And Koushiro's inside with Iori, messing around with computers, most likely."
"Ah," Ken curiously walked to the group to look at the painting. "Yikes!" he took a step back. Daisuke groaned and fell to the ground while the others laughed.
"I-I'm sorry," the boy genius laughed uneasily, "I didn't… mean to. I mean, it's not all that bad--I mean, that's great, Daisuke! Heh, heh…"
"Forget painting," Daisuke threw down his paintbrush. He slid to the side of Hikari, raised her camera to her face, placing his right beside and smiled. Once he clicked the button, he remarked, "I'll stick with pictures. Photography can take me places!"
"Ugh, forget photography," Miyako rubbed her stomach, "I'm hungry."
The group of five agreed to get some lunch then wander into the real art galleries. Hanami was also famous for the paintings and art from the past. Hikari remembered her classmates talking about how their ancestors created the theme of such and such while another's actually painted it. She wondered if she would become famous like that. Or well known. Then she wondered if she would marry someone who was brilliant in the arts. She shook her head and silently laughed at herself.
The sweet smell of food made each and every kid stop. They conjointly breathed in the delicious smell and closed their eyes.
"Kushi-dango…" Miyako and Daisuke said together. Takeru, Ken, and Hikari watched as the other two turned loose to run towards the smell of the scrumptious food.
"They don't have a bad idea," Takeru started to wander after them. Ken zipped past Hikari as the blond took off in a dash.
"Hey! W-wait for me!" Hikari whined and chased after them.
"So, Sora," Taichi leaned over the steps of the monkey bars and looked at the female athlete. "Pick anyone to dance with yet?"
"I'm not sure," she answered, knowing that he was nearly dying to ask her.
"Maybe she's going with a certain blond-haired, blue-eyed singer?" Yamato looked down at her from on top of the bars. He gave her a near-pleading look and she struggled to keep a straight face.
"I don't think I'll be dancing with anyone this year," she shrugged helplessly and walked away. Taichi slumped over the bars, as did Yamato.
"So then you hook up these wires into the speaker wires. Then these free circuits go into my laptop. The laser cords connect to the lighting cords and the main plug then goes into the outlet." Koushiro was saying from behind some computers. "Got it, Iori?"
"The knee bone's connected to the… thigh bone. The thighbone's connected to the… hipbone…" Iori swung his feet from a high stool.
The redhead looked up from the cords and blinked. "What?"
"Koushiro, I hate to complain like this…" Iori looked into the eyes of his friend, "But I don't understand a word you're saying. I couldn't figure out how to operate Microsoft Word. I don't care for circuits, cords, or wires. I don't think I will ever understand what the difference between a tower and a monitor would be… And I'm hungry."
Koushiro blinked for a couple seconds. Iori bowed his head; "I apologize. I didn't mean to be so cruel."
The older boy laughed and freed himself from the computer wires and patted Iori's back. "No need to apologize. Sometimes I just get… caught up in my hobby."
Iori jumped down from the stool. "So we'll get something to eat?"
"Yeah, I'm starving." Koushiro began to follow the other but tripped.
"Are you okay?" the boy twirled around in his steps.
The redhead laughed at himself and pulled the last wire off of his ankle. "I guess I get caught up a little too much."
"Mm! I haven't had these for like… a month!" Miyako swooned over the foods. A large pile was in front of her, but Daisuke had a bigger pile.
"I can eat these for breakfast, lunch, and dinner," Hikari bit into a tasty dango; a chewy food made from rice flour.
Ken glanced at both of the girls. "You two would be obese before school ends…"
Both dropped their food and glared harshly. He, in return, shrugged and drank from his cup. Takeru looked down at his food, then over at Hikari's.
"I want one of those…" he whined, not even in an asking tone.
"Get your own," Daisuke answered for Hikari.
She rolled her eyes and lifted one of the dango snacks into her hand. They both reached across the table and met halfway. When their fingers entwined, Hikari blushed. That triggered Takeru to blush. Both glanced away but didn't drop their arms. Daisuke looked up from his food and blinked.
"Did someone say freeze?" he asked, trying to make them realize they weren't moving. They still didn't budge.
"Hey!"
Nothing. Only more blushing.
"Taichi's coming!" Daisuke tried again. Hikari finally dropped her hand into a napkin and sipped her refreshment through a straw. The goggle-boy wasn't lying; her older brother placed himself beside her and took a bit of her food into his hand.
"Having fun?" he asked, slightly smiling. Yamato sat down beside Takeru and both of the older brothers drank from their younger sibling's cups.
"Tons. You should see Daisuke's painting," Hikari answered. The older brunette and blond turned away from the group and spit out what they were drinking.
"Daisuke painted!?" they asked simultaneously, their eyes nearly bulging from their sockets.
"…That's not funny," Daisuke grumbled over the laughter of the group.
"No-no, really now," Taichi calmed down, wiping his chin to get rid of the sugary water. "Was it like Picasso?"
"Or did you go for the more unique Fiasco?" Yamato added. The oldest two laughed for a few seconds then let it die out.
"Ah, thanks for that laugh, Hikari," Taichi patted his sister's back. He looked up and saw Iori and Koushiro approaching. He waved them over. Both of the newcomers sat down with the group and they began to munch on the treats again.
Hikari could have sworn that Takeru constantly looked over the table to see her, but she wasn't willing to look up. She was either scared, flattered, or confused. Scared of not knowing what to do if he was looking at her, flattered if he was, and confused of why he would be. When she saw a hand reach over the table for one of the sweet dango snacks, she looked up. It wasn't Takeru; she sighed, it was Yamato.
"Something's wrong with your sister," Yamato said, loud enough for everyone to hear. Well, everyone that was sitting with them.
Taichi immediately fell into the big brother mode and turned her to look him in the eye. "Are you okay? Feeling sick? Want to go home? Is it your head?" He set his hand on her forehead, "Fever? Scratchy throat? You feel a little warm… Want to go home?"
"Taichi!" she pulled his hand down. "I'm fine. I was just lost in my thoughts." She smiled sweetly, "You don't have to worry about me all the time."
He poked at some ice cubes with a straw within his cup. "If you feel sick, just tell me and I'll run you home."
"I will, I will," she sighed and slouched against Miyako. She looked up at her and murmured, "He'll never let me grow up."
Miyako grinned and held out a rice ball, "Don't sweat it; that's why they made chocolate and treats."
"Taichi, Taichi, Taichi!" Hikari squealed while they were walking down to the fairgrounds.
"What, what, what!" he glanced around.
She pointed to the miniature carnival. "We HAVE to go!"
He searched his pockets, "I don't know if we have enough money…"
Hikari pulled out the wealth she possessed and it made her brother grin. "You're a lifesaver," he grinned.
"Hey, what about us?" Sora said from behind the siblings.
Taichi turned in a circle. "Y-you can come, too. I'm sure I can get some money to pay for your bracelet."
Sora blinked while he searched his pockets. Yamato casually stepped up and said, "I'll pay."
"Huh?" Taichi stopped his search and watched as Sora thanked the blond. "Lousy Yamato. Lucky you're in a band…"
Hikari giggled and the group of ten kids wandered into the people's fair. Since this wasn't a large celebration, the large, scary, and attention-catching rides weren't put up. However, because the hanami stretched on for weeks throughout the lands, there was enough time to make the celebration count. The Ferris wheel was up, that was good. It was one of Hikari's most favorite rides. And what made it better, it was a double Ferris wheel. That meant that it could go twice the height!
"Hikari!" Daisuke called, just as she got her bracelet. "Wanna ride the wheel with me?"
She smiled brightly. "Sure, Daisuke!"
The two rushed into line and waited to mount the ride. Takeru, who was just behind Hikari, bit his cheek and walked away. It wasn't long before he bumped into a taller person.
"Sorry," he apologized, then looked up to see that it was Yamato. "What?" he asked after nothing was said.
"Why did you just let her go?" Yamato asked, following along side of his brother.
"What? Eish, what do you mean by that?"
"You like 'er, you know you do."
"As a friend."
"Lies befriend the devil."
Takeru raised his eyebrow. "Where'd you get that from?"
"A poster."
"Yeah right…"
Yamato pointed to the left and read, "Lies befriend the devil."
Takeru felt the irony punch him in the gut. "Go figure."
"Are you going to even talk to her?"
"I have been."
"Duh, Hikari, please pass a napkin," Yamato recited from his brother's words. "That's real charming."
"Yeah, well," Takeru tried to think of a way to get rid of his brother, "if you're so perfect, why is Sora riding the rides with Taichi, huh?"
"What? They are?" Yamato whipped around and saw Sora standing with Miyako. He looked down at his brother. "If this is bugging you so much, maybe you should just go home."
"No way," he remarked, "I'm not going to back out of the festivities now."
"You mean you're not going to let Daisuke get a free night with Hikari."
"I find no such words in my mind," Takeru used the words of a poem.
"Unless you let it out, it can never be seen," Yamato looked towards Sora again. Taichi was wandering her way. "I'd talk with you more, but I've got a situation of my own. See ya', Squirt."
"Thanks for the words of wisdom," he mumbled.
"So then how does this work?" Iori pointed to a ride over the side of a fence. Koushiro blinked for a moment.
"Um, it's just ran by a motor."
"You mean it's not computerized?"
"Since when did you begin to wonder about things like that?" Koushiro asked curiously.
Iori looked up at him and gave him a look, "After you drilled computer stuff into my mind for two hours, I think I'd become curious…"
Koushiro grinned at took a bite out of his pretzel. "Computers make you wonder a lot… Get used to it."
"Hey, look," Daisuke pointed to the darkening sky, "the first star."
"Oh! Make a wish," she closed her eyes and murmured: "Starlight, star bright, first star I see tonight. I wish I may, with all my might. Please grant the wish I wish tonight…"
Both closed their eyes to make their wish and slowly opened them again. They glanced at each other and blinked. Hikari was slightly disappointed that it wasn't her wish that was sitting there. Daisuke was disappointed because she didn't look very happy.
"Want to know what I wished for?" he asked.
"You can't say, it won't come true."
"I wished that I could make you smile the way Takeru does."
Hikari turned to look him in the eye. She was half surprised because of his sweet words and half surprised because he got Takeru's name right. "What do you mean?"
"I see you laughing with him and then I find out that you don't laugh with me. You laugh at me."
"That's not true."
"Maybe not, but that's the way I'll look at it." He shrugged and grinned. " 'Sides, it's more fun making you laugh than it is to smile. Can we, you know… stick on the friends thing?"
Hikari smiled lightly, "I'd like that. …You're so considerate… and understanding…"
"Ah, yeah, whatever…"
Takeru shifted from foot to foot at the line of the ride. He searched for Hikari's cart, practicing his lines for when they were to talk. A grin came across his face when he saw her cart. It quickly vanished when he saw the lips of Hikari brush against Daisuke's cheek. Suddenly, he felt sick. Now he wanted to go home.
He started to push his way out of the crowds but was again stopped by his brother.
"Hey, you're little parade thing is going to start in a half hour. Shouldn't you and the rest be getting ready?"
"I want to go home…" Takeru looked down, feeling his self-confidence drop to the negative numbers. He couldn't even think about Hikari anymore.
"What? What happened to not letting Daisuke get a freebie?" Yamato kneeled down in the grass, looking up at his brother. "What happened over there?"
"Truth knocked me over the head with a seven-foot pole," Takeru said coldly, numbly, lifelessly.
Yamato's eyebrows furrowed. "You look like it. Tell me what happened."
Takeru gained the same look as his brother and glanced at the wheel ride then down again. "She, and he, riding… I went there to wait and then talk… she kissed him on the cheek. Then seven-foot pole thwacked me into reality."
"Are you sure she didn't just uh," he tried to make something sound reasonable, "uh, turn?"
"No…"
"Then see? Maybe you're over reacting?" Yamato stood up again and gave his brother a rub on the shoulders. "There goes Kari… You should go to. And ask her. Look at it this way, if it did happen on purpose, you can go home. If not, you can uh, go be a spontaneous little squirt."
Takeru looked up at his brother, his eyes reflected only the darkness of the sky. "Fine."
"I'll see you in a half-hour." He grinned, "It'll be great, trust me."
The little Takaishi drifted out of the grounds and towards the rooms of rehearsal. He avoided Hikari when she bounded up to him, 'needing to tell him something'. Frankly, he thought it was about her and Daisuke, so he made up an excuse to get away.
"Uh, t-tell me later, I've… got to go to the bathroom?" his eyes shifted to the ground and he flung his bag over his shoulders. He quickly rushed into another room, leaving the girl standing with confusion over her face.
"Hey, TP, what's wrong?" Daisuke asked inside of the room Takeru ran into. The blond looked at the other, then looked away, not wanting him to see the heartbreak.
"Nothing. Leave me alone." Takeru didn't mean for his voice to crack.
"What the--" Daisuke bent forward to see the eyes of his friend. "Why are you crying? I'll go get Hikari to cheer you up and--"
"Eish, just shut the hell up." Takeru rubbed his eyes stubbornly. "Let's get this thing over with."
Minutes later, the two youths stumbled out of the bathroom wearing traditional kimonos. Daisuke's was a midnight blue with decorated ends; it used to be his father's. Takeru, as usual, wearing a light robe-like clothing, decorated with the suns and stars. His was handed down from Yamato.
Hikari and Miyako looked up from the basket of cherry blossoms and smiled. Both of their kimonos were pink, Hikari's lighter than Miyako's. And both of theirs had the traditional blossoms. It was obvious that they planned with each other.
"Hey, Takeru," Hikari nearly jumped to his toes, "can I talk to you now?"
"I-I--no." He bowed his head and hurried out the door, into the fresh air. Yamato was seen walking towards him before the door closed.
"Daisuke, what's wrong with him?" Hikari questioned.
He shrugged, "I was going to get you to cheer him up, but he bailed and said to shut up."
"Eish, what did I do?"
"I don't think you did anything," Miyako said lowly, "not that I was eavesdropping or anything, but he was telling Yamato how you um, kissed Daisuke."
Hikari and Daisuke began to laugh. "In my dreams," he boasted.
"It wasn't on purpose," Hikari added.
"She was just turning to bless you and the ride stopped," Daisuke claimed, "I sneezed."
"When the ride stopped, the cart jerked a little and well… Oh, Takeru…" Hikari's smile drifted into a look of worry and she pushed herself out the door. She was still holding a cherry blossom branch in her hands. The sound of people filled her ears, but only two stood out. The Ishida/Takaishi brothers. She slowly walked towards Takeru and tapped him on the shoulder.
"Um, can I?" was all she had to say before Yamato left with a nod and a smile.
Takeru folded his arms behind his back, not knowing what to do or say.
"Well, the only thing I can say is… What were you thinking?" Hikari also folded her arms behind her back, looking up at her friend with her head tilted slightly to the right.
"What do you mean? What was I supposed to think?" he strangled his brain to finish what he was saying, "I-I…"
"Don't know reality even when it hits you with a seven-foot pole?" she finished. "Daisuke and I were just talking. We just saw a star, we wished, he told me his wish--"
"Why are you telling me--"
"And then," she interrupted, "he said that he wished he could make me smile the way you make me."
"What--"
"Then he drove on about how you always seem to make me happy," she interrupted again, "that's when I realized, you know, that you are just…"
"An imbecile?" he bit the inside of his mouth again, keeping a good eye on the fallen petals of the cherry blossoms.
"The greatest friend a girl can have, Takeru…"
"Friend?" he repeated, his words still lifeless.
Hikari fingered the fabric of her kimono nervously, looking down at the ground as well. "And… I just want you to know that …I… I think of you … more than a friend."
He looked up, his gaze finally linking with hers. "But that whole kiss with Daisuke…"
"Sigh, how many times must I tell people this?" she smiled faintly, "it was all an accident. Daisuke sneezed and when I turned to say 'Bless you,' the ride stopped… And you know how that thing jerks around like an old computer game."
Takeru's cheeks burned. Now he felt stupid; Yamato was right. "I'm sorry, Hikari," he whispered. The sound of pain still echoed in his voice.
Hikari gained a look of worry. "Now what's wrong?"
"I…" Takeru turned away. "I feel stupid, Kari."
"Why? There's no need. It was a mistake, everyone has those."
He laughed breathlessly at himself, "Hikari, I feel stupid because even when I do find out you like me, I still feel like I could…" he whispered the last word to himself.
"Takeru?"
"Eish, I don't want to cry, Kari."
The girl regained her smile and broke off a blossom from the branch. Lifting Takeru's arm up by his wrist, she set the flower in his hand and looked up at him. "Listen, no matter what is going to happen between us, whether it rises towards the heavens or drops to the underworld, we're still going to be friends. And I still don't see why guys think it's a crime to shed an innocent tear."
Takeru looked down at the blossom and sniffed. He turned back to look at the girl, her face was showing a smile and her eyes were the most reassuring. "So what does this mean? Are we?"
Hikari clasped his hand around the gentle petals, then enclosed hers on his. "It can mean what ever you want it to mean."
"Eish," they both murmured, blushed, and looked away.
He felt her hands slip from his and she turned to walk away. "Wait," he called, she turned around, not sure of what to expect. His hand with the blossom raised beside her cheek, his fingers gently brushed against her skin. Hikari looked up into his azure eyes and smiled. The flower was placed into her hair and his hand dropped back to his side.
"Now you look as beautiful as a hanami day," Takeru whispered to her. Both smiled to each other as the others began to come out of the buildings. The river of children passed them and soon, they joined to finish their celebration.
The End
Even I can admit that it could be better. I started this a while ago, then I got caught in a storm of writer's block and couldn't figure out how to end it. So it happened like that. Maybe I should rewrite it? ::shrugs:: Depends on what kind of reviews I get. Maybe a sequel? ::shrugs again:: Thanks for reading. ^-^