Van stood amidst the bustling crowd of guests on the floor of the ballroom. The party was in full swing, and lively music rang out from the corner of the room, where a group of musicians sat playing their instruments. He had just come from a conversation with Allen and his sister Celena, who had come to spend two days in Fanelia with her brother before they left again. Of course, he thought, rolling his eyes, like everything else, this party isn't the same without Hitomi around. Van decided to indulge in some people-watching, checking out some of the guests present. Many of them he had never met before in his life. He assumed they must be friends of royals from surrounding countries. One of them, a young woman, passed right by him. He caught a whiff of her hair. She smells like Hitomi…
***
"And so," sobbed Reiko, "I finally got one last letter from him. And do you know what it said?"
Hitomi shook her head, trying to look sympathetic.
"It said," the blotchy-faced high school girl paused for emphasis, sniffling. "Rei- I know we shared some good times, but you're not the one anymore. It's over." Reiko looked at Hitomi expectantly.
"Um… I'm sorry." Hitomi did feel some empathy for her classmate although she was known to exaggerate. They were sitting on the train, on the way home from school. The girl had been telling her how her longtime boyfriend had moved away to China a few months ago, and they had been communicating regularly. But after a while, the letters had stopped, and yesterday, Reiko received the message that she was officially dumped for another girl.
The teary teen sighed melodramatically. "Oh, I loved him so much…"
"I'm sure you'll find another guy who appreciates you," Hitomi assured her sincerely. "Besides, any guy who stops communicating with you and leaves you hanging like that isn't worth your time." The words flew out of her mouth before she even thought about what she was saying. Now she realized this whole conversation paralleled her own situation with Van. It brought back her fears of Van finding another girl on Gaia, just like Reiko's boyfriend had in Kutou, his new town. So was Van really worth her time now that they had stopped communicating? She already knew the answer to that question. Yes, she thought. I love Van. I've got to try and reach him again.
"Well, this is my stop. See you later, Rei." With that, she exited the train and began the walk to her house.
***
Dusk was approaching. Van had sat up, and he was fiddling with the grass. It was so stupid how he was sitting here, thinking about Hitomi, and she was only a few feet away. He couldn't see her, though- she was still lying down in the tall grass. The ebony-haired king turned to his right, slicing through a large section of flowers and grass blades with his hands. He poked his head through an opening, and came face to face with Hitomi. His head was right over hers. She grinned playfully. "Hey, Van."
"Hitomi," Van beamed.
"C'mere," Hitomi invited. "I didn't even imagine the field would be this gorgeous." It was true, the field was remarkable at twilight, with the last of the fiery orange rays casting an eerie glow over the wildflowers.
Van placed himself next to Hitomi. She turned to look into his dark eyes. "It was sweet of you to bring me here."
"I knew you wanted to see it, and it really is beautiful here."
"Yeah… Van. This means a lot to me, not just because I get to visit the field… I get to be with you."
Van's heart sped up. Did all this, the way she'd been acting today, mean she still cared for him? God, he hoped so. Although still insecure, something clicked inside of him, and his doubts were beginning to wash away. The way Hitomi was looking at him, the way she had held on to him during the flight, and what she was telling him now- it must mean something…
Hitomi was looking at Van, waiting for a reaction. Why wasn't he saying anything? She was practically spelling it out for him.
Van lifted his eyes, finally ready. But Hitomi had hung her head, looking embarassed and disappointed. Gently, he reached over and tilted her chin up so that he was looking into her apologetic eyes.
"Hitomi. Do you remember that day you… you almost left Gaea? You told me how you felt about me. I know a lot's happened since then, but for me, at least, nothing's changed. I was an idiot for never telling you how I felt. Even if you don't feel the same anymore, I think I still owe you…" Van leaned over, slowly bringing his face toward Hitomi's.
Hitomi's heart was racing. She couldn't believe Van had finally clued in to the way she felt. Better yet, he returned those feelings! She felt Van's hand lightly touch her chin again, this time pulling her face toward his. They froze for a moment, their lips centimetres away, just gazing at each other. Hitomi brought her delicate fingers up to brush some raven hair out of Van's eyes. A small smile crept across her lips. She couldn't help it- she was in love with Van… and he was in love with her. Van returned the smile and leaned even closer.
***
Van remained stationary in one corner of the ballroom. He was bored. I want to have fun for a change! he told himself angrily. And standing by himself, watching everyone else dance and laugh, was not his idea of a good time. Suddenly, something caught his eye. Just a few feet away, the young brunette who had passed him a few minutes earlier was eagerly chatting with Allen. For some reason, Van felt a twinge of envy. Sure, he loved Hitomi, but she had left him to return to another world. He knew he wasn't ready to give up on her. But at the same time, Van was fed up with Allen and his charming ways that seemed to win over every woman he met. Van had to restrain the urge to go over and intervene.
As it turned out, he didn't have to. A moment later, the girl glanced around the knight's shoulder, and locked eyes with Van. She nodded, giving him a knowing smile. From then on, as Allen continued to spew out sugary compliments, the girl seemed distracted. She kept peeking around at Van. Finally, she excused herself, much to Allen's dismay. Van quickly looked away, pretending he was admiring the party decorations. (He had actually planned the decorations himself.) The attractive girl was striding towards him.
"Your majesty?" she said.
"It's just Van," he corrected.
"Van… this is a beautiful kingdom. I just wanted to congratulate you on the reconstruction."
"Thank you," he said politely. "What's your name?"
"Adara," the girl replied.
"You must be one of the advisors daughters! I'm so glad you could come," he said warmly.
"Yes, Jonah is my father." Adara smiled at Van, noticing his deep amber eyes so full of sincerity.
Van couldn't take his eyes off the girl, who looked about fifteen years old. Her stunning blue-green eyes stood out against her bronze skin. Her long dark chestnut hair cascaded freely down her back.
The music was slowing down now, and the first soft notes of a slow song began to play. Van and Adara looked around at the forming couples. She turned towards him. Van had a faraway look in his eyes. She grabbed his hands, snapping him out of it. "Come on," she invited. "Let's dance."
A little flustered, Van agreed. He felt guilty, as if he were betraying Hitomi, but he shoved those feelings aside. One dance with another girl wasn't going to change anything. And all he wanted was to have a little fun as a break from his usual sadness.
Adara turned out to be a lot of fun indeed. As they waltzed around the ballroom, her arms resting around his shoulders, she whispered jokes in his ear about the more stuffy members of the royal council. Van laughed out loud, and he got some strange looks from other peacefully dancing couples, but he didn't care. He tightened his hold around Adara's waist. He hadn't had a real laugh like that in a long time! She was the first person to succeed in cheering him up. And although she was very different from Hitomi, something about her scent, and her nature, reminded him of his lost love. Maybe that was the real reason he seemed to be attracted to her.
***
Hitomi shuffled into her bedroom, dropping her track bag on the floor by her bed. She walked straight over to her desk, her mission clear in her mind. She had to do this now, while she had the motivation. Her classmate Reiko's story had really pushed her to try and communicate with Van again. Hitomi pulled out her chair and sat down, taking a deep breath. She closed her eyes, attempting to clear her mind. Now, focus everything, she told herself. Picture his dark hair, those deep brown eyes, that gorgeous smile that only comes out every so often… she ran those thoughts through her head for a few moments, and her mind never strayed from the king of Fanelia. Suddenly, it came to her- she could sense his presence.
Van! she thought to him happily. Van, are you there? When there was no response, Hitomi was puzzled. She was sure she had reached him with her mind- she could feel it. In an effort to make him hear her, she reached out even further. Only now, Hitomi was sensing another presence. It was somewhere in between her and Van, blocking their lines of communication. As minutes passed, Hitomi was getting a clearer image of Van and this other presence. Not quite a vision, but a sense of what they were doing and feeling. The young man Hitomi loved was laughing. He felt completely at ease with whoever he was with, but at the same time he was in awe of the person. But there was an even stronger feeling coming through- from both presences. These two were infatuated with each other.
Tears springing to her eyes and then spilling over, Hitomi broke the connection and stood up. I love you, Van! she thought. But he obviously didn't return her feelings anymore. Her worst fears were confirmed- Van had fallen for someone else. Still, she hadn't expected that to happen so soon! It had only been three months since she left Gaia! On her very first attempt to begin communicating with her love again, she had discovered he had already moved on. Upon realizing this fact, Hitomi's grief turned to anger. If he could forget her that easily, she could do the same.
Fine, Van Fanel. she thought bitterly. Before she could control her fury, Hitomi cried, "I don't-"
***
"love you anymore," Hitomi said. Van's eyes widened in shock, filling with sadness as her words sank in. He jerked his head away, breaking their near-kiss, and turned to face the wildflowers behind him.
A/N: Hahaha… more to come later..