The note that was slipped quickly under the door smelled of cherry blossoms, Raye noticed as she bent to pick it up. For a moment she quietly observed the small envelope, noting with a laugh that her name was scrawled on it, although it had been obviously meant for her. Sighing slightly, Raye pulled open the envelope and the smell of cherry blossoms intensified. Not seeing the flowers that feel silently to the floor, Raye read the note quickly. The frown she wore on her faced deepened.
Raye was out of her bedroom in a flash, hoping to catch the writer of the note as he scurried away but stopped. She nodded to herself and headed out of the temple.
Raye found him where he always was when he was troubled - on top of the roof of the building his father owned. His hair blew in the breeze and he sat quietly, watching the sunset. She didn't go to him, choosing instead to watch him for a few minutes.
"I knew I'd find you here," she said, breaking the silence.
He didn't respond. His heavy sigh said everything that was needed.
Raye's eyes flashed with worry. "Are you okay?"
"No." The word came out forcefully, too forcefully than he intended, she knew.
"Wanna talk about it?"
"What's to talk about?"
Raye took a deep breath. "The note."
"Forget about it, Raye. Forget everything I said. I didn't mean it. I shouldn't have given it to you."
She moved to sit beside him and he moved so she would have more room. "You're going away," Raye said softly.
"I have to." His voice was even.
Raye looked at him with sadness in her eyes. "Why?"
"I have to, " he shrugged. "Time to grow up. I can't keep doing what I've been doing. I'm getting too old to barely survive on just my hobby."
"You're not going away because of me, are you?" He said nothing. "Chad.."
"What?!" he whirled to face her. "What do you want me to say, Raye? You want me to tell you that I'm still in love with you after all these years?! You want me to tell you that I can't look at you without it hurting in my heart? Can't it just be that I'm leaving because I'm getting older and I have responsibilities that I've ignored for too long that I need to take care of? Why must everything I do happen because of you?! I'm tired of it, Raye, tired of the games and tired of dealing with you. I have to go. I have to go before I loose everything else that's dear to me. Before I begin to hate you."
Her lip trembled. "You hate me?" Her voice was so soft and it was if she'd barely spoken.
Chad stared at the sunset as he gently took her hand in his. "I don't know, Raye. I think if I let myself," he paused, "really get upset I might." He stood. "I've got to go. My flight for London leaves in an hour."
"You're just going to leave," Raye asked him. "You write that stupid note, knowing the whole time I'd find you and you say all those things and you just leave?"
"What more is there to say, Raye?"
"I deserve an explanation for why you're leaving, the real reason! Tell me you hate me, Chad, if that's why you're going! Tell me you love me, tell me anything else but 'I have to'! I deserve more than that, you know!"
"I told you the truth!"
"No, I see it in your eyes, Chad. There's so much inside you that you want to say that it's practically killing you not to say it!"
"I still love you, Raye! I know we already had our chance. I know it but it doesn't help me at all. I love you and I hate it! I love you so much that every second away from you feels like an eternity! I hate it! I hate having this feeling every moment of every day. You only see me as your friend and every day I see you date men who care nothing for you compared to how I feel. It's killing me! I have to leave, Raye, so I can forget these feelings. I have to go..." Chad's voice faded.
"You are the one who ended the relationship the first time, Chad. Not me. You. If you still loved me, why didn't you just tell me?"
"I...was scared."
"Of what?"
Chad's head hung low. "Of not being good enough for you. I saw the guys you dated before me, Raye. They're good looking, successful men and I'm not. They'd be able to give you anything you ever wanted and we'd have to work for everything we want. I saw you living in this temple sacrificing things that you shouldn't have to sacrifice when you're meant for so much better."
Raye's heart stopped for a moment and she reached out her hand to touch Chad's face. "When we were together, Chad," she whispered, "I never thought of the things we would never have. I thought only of the things I knew I'd have. Those men, they could have bought me the world if I had asked for it but they never would have been able to buy my love. You had my love, which I gave to you without any price. I sacrifice nothing when I say this to you, and gain everything.
'...He loves my heart, for once it was his own,
I cherish his because in me it bides:
My true love hath my heart, and I have his.'"
Raye smiled as Chad sighed and pulled her to him, enveloping her with his warm arms and kissing her passionately. When they pulled apart, breathless, Chad smiled down at Raye.
"When we get back to the temple, remind me to burn that note!"
~Fin~
AN: This was fluff, pure and simple fluff. It started out innocently enough this evening with the first paragraph. When I got to the dialogue I thought 'Great! Drama just like I want!' and sometime after that I realized that, well, it wasn't turning out like I thought it would but I kept going. And before I knew it (5 minutes ago) I had finished the fic and it a completely different than my original plan. This is what I get for playing games in between writing and not only that but for writing it all in one sitting. The quote Raye uses is the last 3 lines of a poem called "The Bargain" by Sir Philip Sidney - to which I claim no rights - , one of my favorite love poems because of the last lines there. Happy Fall, ya'll! ^_~
Raye was out of her bedroom in a flash, hoping to catch the writer of the note as he scurried away but stopped. She nodded to herself and headed out of the temple.
Raye found him where he always was when he was troubled - on top of the roof of the building his father owned. His hair blew in the breeze and he sat quietly, watching the sunset. She didn't go to him, choosing instead to watch him for a few minutes.
"I knew I'd find you here," she said, breaking the silence.
He didn't respond. His heavy sigh said everything that was needed.
Raye's eyes flashed with worry. "Are you okay?"
"No." The word came out forcefully, too forcefully than he intended, she knew.
"Wanna talk about it?"
"What's to talk about?"
Raye took a deep breath. "The note."
"Forget about it, Raye. Forget everything I said. I didn't mean it. I shouldn't have given it to you."
She moved to sit beside him and he moved so she would have more room. "You're going away," Raye said softly.
"I have to." His voice was even.
Raye looked at him with sadness in her eyes. "Why?"
"I have to, " he shrugged. "Time to grow up. I can't keep doing what I've been doing. I'm getting too old to barely survive on just my hobby."
"You're not going away because of me, are you?" He said nothing. "Chad.."
"What?!" he whirled to face her. "What do you want me to say, Raye? You want me to tell you that I'm still in love with you after all these years?! You want me to tell you that I can't look at you without it hurting in my heart? Can't it just be that I'm leaving because I'm getting older and I have responsibilities that I've ignored for too long that I need to take care of? Why must everything I do happen because of you?! I'm tired of it, Raye, tired of the games and tired of dealing with you. I have to go. I have to go before I loose everything else that's dear to me. Before I begin to hate you."
Her lip trembled. "You hate me?" Her voice was so soft and it was if she'd barely spoken.
Chad stared at the sunset as he gently took her hand in his. "I don't know, Raye. I think if I let myself," he paused, "really get upset I might." He stood. "I've got to go. My flight for London leaves in an hour."
"You're just going to leave," Raye asked him. "You write that stupid note, knowing the whole time I'd find you and you say all those things and you just leave?"
"What more is there to say, Raye?"
"I deserve an explanation for why you're leaving, the real reason! Tell me you hate me, Chad, if that's why you're going! Tell me you love me, tell me anything else but 'I have to'! I deserve more than that, you know!"
"I told you the truth!"
"No, I see it in your eyes, Chad. There's so much inside you that you want to say that it's practically killing you not to say it!"
"I still love you, Raye! I know we already had our chance. I know it but it doesn't help me at all. I love you and I hate it! I love you so much that every second away from you feels like an eternity! I hate it! I hate having this feeling every moment of every day. You only see me as your friend and every day I see you date men who care nothing for you compared to how I feel. It's killing me! I have to leave, Raye, so I can forget these feelings. I have to go..." Chad's voice faded.
"You are the one who ended the relationship the first time, Chad. Not me. You. If you still loved me, why didn't you just tell me?"
"I...was scared."
"Of what?"
Chad's head hung low. "Of not being good enough for you. I saw the guys you dated before me, Raye. They're good looking, successful men and I'm not. They'd be able to give you anything you ever wanted and we'd have to work for everything we want. I saw you living in this temple sacrificing things that you shouldn't have to sacrifice when you're meant for so much better."
Raye's heart stopped for a moment and she reached out her hand to touch Chad's face. "When we were together, Chad," she whispered, "I never thought of the things we would never have. I thought only of the things I knew I'd have. Those men, they could have bought me the world if I had asked for it but they never would have been able to buy my love. You had my love, which I gave to you without any price. I sacrifice nothing when I say this to you, and gain everything.
'...He loves my heart, for once it was his own,
I cherish his because in me it bides:
My true love hath my heart, and I have his.'"
Raye smiled as Chad sighed and pulled her to him, enveloping her with his warm arms and kissing her passionately. When they pulled apart, breathless, Chad smiled down at Raye.
"When we get back to the temple, remind me to burn that note!"
~Fin~
AN: This was fluff, pure and simple fluff. It started out innocently enough this evening with the first paragraph. When I got to the dialogue I thought 'Great! Drama just like I want!' and sometime after that I realized that, well, it wasn't turning out like I thought it would but I kept going. And before I knew it (5 minutes ago) I had finished the fic and it a completely different than my original plan. This is what I get for playing games in between writing and not only that but for writing it all in one sitting. The quote Raye uses is the last 3 lines of a poem called "The Bargain" by Sir Philip Sidney - to which I claim no rights - , one of my favorite love poems because of the last lines there. Happy Fall, ya'll! ^_~