~Strong Enough~
Disclaimer: No, I don't own the characters.
Please R&R
Chapter 8 - Midnight Sky
*A/N: To the best of my (limited Chinese) knowledge, Japanese schools don't have school dances-especially not in their gyms, like our cheap American schools do (j/k). However, the dance was necessary to the story (cause I say so ^_^) and I didn't know where else to put it. So for those of you who actually do go to Japanese schools and know all my technical errors, sorry! Just grin and bear with me.*
--
She knew she looked beautiful. She wasn't trying to be narcissistic or self-absorbed-but there was no point in denying the obvious. Aiko also knew why she looked beautiful. The reason her skin glowed, her eyes sparkled, and her hair shone like golden silk in the night was because this was the night. Finally, it was the night of the dance and she would be going with the guy of her dreams. Her heart soared.
Wonderful, wonderful, she thought giddily, spinning in circles, making her short, full-skirted midnight blue velvet dress flare out and the twinkly rhinestones on it catch the light and flash like stars. Wonderful night.
Her mood only improved when Yuu arrived at her doorstep in a dashing black tuxedo and a corsage. Given, the pink carnations didn't match her dress at all, but Aiko was thrilled at the thought that he had tried. She couldn't quit smiling as he took her to the dance. Even the tackiness of having to dance in the haphazardly decorated school gymnasium couldn't bring her down from Cloud Nine. She was floating on air and loving it.
"Thank you for this night, Yuu," she said, her eyes shining.
He gave her a half-hearted grin. "Sure."
Aiko's heart raced. His smile was so beautiful. She fought to remember how to breathe. A popular song came over the gym speakers and her eyes lit up. "This is my favorite song," she lied, eager to have any excuse to be in Yuu's arms. "Do you-"
"Um.do you want something to drink, Aiko?" Yuu asked solicitously. "I'll get something for you."
He was so thoughtful! "Thank you!" she exclaimed. As he made his way to the refreshment table, Aiko patted her hair back into place and smoothed her dress down. Okay, so she was a little nervous, but that was understandable, right? Then, out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of white.
Aiko turned her head fully and found herself looking straight at Miki Koishikawa, dressed in a filmy, sparkly, concoction of white-no pale, pale pink-that floated around her in reminiscence of a fairy princess. Her gleaming black hair was pulled to the back of her head, secured by glittering diamond pins, matching every winking diamond scattered across her spaghetti-strap, knee-length, Cinderella-esque dress.
God, no.
You will not steal Yuu from me, Aiko thought furiously. Not on this perfect night.this night of my every dream come true. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. It was alright. She could handle this. She could keep Miki and Yuu away from each other.
Then it hit her. Her eyes flew open. They lived together. Yuu must've seen her before he'd even left to pick Aiko up. He already knew how absolutely stunning she looked and yet, yet, he had come to take Aiko to the dance, regardless. He could have stood her up. He could have taken Miki, Ginta Suou be damned, if he had really wanted to. But he had chosen her.
Joy flooded her heart, erasing every smidge of jealousy, and bringing color back to her cheeks. "Yuu is mine," she whispered to herself in reassurance. The saying kept her heart light as Yuu returned with her drink and they danced the following three dances together. She reveled in the sublime feeling of being in his arms, of having the right to lay her head on his shoulder, breathing in his light cologne, and pressing her body against his. She was in heaven and Yuu was her angel. Nothing in the world could be so perfect, so right, as this feeling of belonging. 'Til the fourth dance.
It was a slow dance and she was swaying in Yuu's arms, enjoying the sensation. By chance, she looked up at his face, wanting to smile, to express her complete contentment. She caught him staring over her shoulder at another dancing couple.
Aiko maneuvered their dance until she could she who he had been looking at. At first, she thought it was a petite girl in a bold red dress with a brunet whose hair was a little too short to be fashionable. Idly, she noted that the girl looked more irritated with her dancing partner than adoring, but that wasn't too out of the ordinary. Why was Yuu looking.
Her thought trailed off as couples parted and through the gap that was left, Aiko saw Miki again. Her princess pink dress was a little smushed, the way her Ginta was holding her so tightly against him, but she looked as radiant as when Aiko had first spotted her. But what really got Aiko's attention was the longing way in which she was casting looks over at her.and Yuu.
The song ended. Aiko pulled out of Yuu's arms, numb. She wasn't an idiot. She may have been stereotypically blonde, rich, and beautiful, but she wasn't an idiot by any means. She had a brain. And she knew what she had just discovered, a discovery she didn't need her brain to inform her of, with the way her heart was already breaking.
"I need a breath of fresh air," said Aiko, tilting her head up to smile calmly at Yuu. Her expression betrayed none of her wrenching emotions. "I'll be back in a little while." She didn't give him a specific time. She didn't care. She rather thought he didn't either.
Walking outside, she did indeed take a breath a fresh air. But mostly, she thought about how even with her in his arms, Yuu had been staring at Miki. And how, despite how obviously Ginta wanted her, Miki preferred Yuu.
"Why do they have to be in love?" Aiko whispered brokenly to herself. She could have fought Miki with all she was worth if it had been anything but love.a crush, a he-was-mine-first attitude, an over-affectionate stepsister issue, pure competitiveness. But Aiko would never come between love. She knew how precious it was and she would never ask herself to deny it to anyone else.
Why does it have to be Yuu? she thought in agony. He was everything, everything she wanted. He made her so happy.and she would've made him happy too. But all that was irrelevant because he loved Miki. Miki.not her. Aiko buried her face in her hands and wept to the cold, unrelenting midnight sky.
The corsage had been picked out for Miki, her tears cried.
Disclaimer: No, I don't own the characters.
Please R&R
Chapter 8 - Midnight Sky
*A/N: To the best of my (limited Chinese) knowledge, Japanese schools don't have school dances-especially not in their gyms, like our cheap American schools do (j/k). However, the dance was necessary to the story (cause I say so ^_^) and I didn't know where else to put it. So for those of you who actually do go to Japanese schools and know all my technical errors, sorry! Just grin and bear with me.*
--
She knew she looked beautiful. She wasn't trying to be narcissistic or self-absorbed-but there was no point in denying the obvious. Aiko also knew why she looked beautiful. The reason her skin glowed, her eyes sparkled, and her hair shone like golden silk in the night was because this was the night. Finally, it was the night of the dance and she would be going with the guy of her dreams. Her heart soared.
Wonderful, wonderful, she thought giddily, spinning in circles, making her short, full-skirted midnight blue velvet dress flare out and the twinkly rhinestones on it catch the light and flash like stars. Wonderful night.
Her mood only improved when Yuu arrived at her doorstep in a dashing black tuxedo and a corsage. Given, the pink carnations didn't match her dress at all, but Aiko was thrilled at the thought that he had tried. She couldn't quit smiling as he took her to the dance. Even the tackiness of having to dance in the haphazardly decorated school gymnasium couldn't bring her down from Cloud Nine. She was floating on air and loving it.
"Thank you for this night, Yuu," she said, her eyes shining.
He gave her a half-hearted grin. "Sure."
Aiko's heart raced. His smile was so beautiful. She fought to remember how to breathe. A popular song came over the gym speakers and her eyes lit up. "This is my favorite song," she lied, eager to have any excuse to be in Yuu's arms. "Do you-"
"Um.do you want something to drink, Aiko?" Yuu asked solicitously. "I'll get something for you."
He was so thoughtful! "Thank you!" she exclaimed. As he made his way to the refreshment table, Aiko patted her hair back into place and smoothed her dress down. Okay, so she was a little nervous, but that was understandable, right? Then, out of the corner of her eye, she caught a glimpse of white.
Aiko turned her head fully and found herself looking straight at Miki Koishikawa, dressed in a filmy, sparkly, concoction of white-no pale, pale pink-that floated around her in reminiscence of a fairy princess. Her gleaming black hair was pulled to the back of her head, secured by glittering diamond pins, matching every winking diamond scattered across her spaghetti-strap, knee-length, Cinderella-esque dress.
God, no.
You will not steal Yuu from me, Aiko thought furiously. Not on this perfect night.this night of my every dream come true. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. It was alright. She could handle this. She could keep Miki and Yuu away from each other.
Then it hit her. Her eyes flew open. They lived together. Yuu must've seen her before he'd even left to pick Aiko up. He already knew how absolutely stunning she looked and yet, yet, he had come to take Aiko to the dance, regardless. He could have stood her up. He could have taken Miki, Ginta Suou be damned, if he had really wanted to. But he had chosen her.
Joy flooded her heart, erasing every smidge of jealousy, and bringing color back to her cheeks. "Yuu is mine," she whispered to herself in reassurance. The saying kept her heart light as Yuu returned with her drink and they danced the following three dances together. She reveled in the sublime feeling of being in his arms, of having the right to lay her head on his shoulder, breathing in his light cologne, and pressing her body against his. She was in heaven and Yuu was her angel. Nothing in the world could be so perfect, so right, as this feeling of belonging. 'Til the fourth dance.
It was a slow dance and she was swaying in Yuu's arms, enjoying the sensation. By chance, she looked up at his face, wanting to smile, to express her complete contentment. She caught him staring over her shoulder at another dancing couple.
Aiko maneuvered their dance until she could she who he had been looking at. At first, she thought it was a petite girl in a bold red dress with a brunet whose hair was a little too short to be fashionable. Idly, she noted that the girl looked more irritated with her dancing partner than adoring, but that wasn't too out of the ordinary. Why was Yuu looking.
Her thought trailed off as couples parted and through the gap that was left, Aiko saw Miki again. Her princess pink dress was a little smushed, the way her Ginta was holding her so tightly against him, but she looked as radiant as when Aiko had first spotted her. But what really got Aiko's attention was the longing way in which she was casting looks over at her.and Yuu.
The song ended. Aiko pulled out of Yuu's arms, numb. She wasn't an idiot. She may have been stereotypically blonde, rich, and beautiful, but she wasn't an idiot by any means. She had a brain. And she knew what she had just discovered, a discovery she didn't need her brain to inform her of, with the way her heart was already breaking.
"I need a breath of fresh air," said Aiko, tilting her head up to smile calmly at Yuu. Her expression betrayed none of her wrenching emotions. "I'll be back in a little while." She didn't give him a specific time. She didn't care. She rather thought he didn't either.
Walking outside, she did indeed take a breath a fresh air. But mostly, she thought about how even with her in his arms, Yuu had been staring at Miki. And how, despite how obviously Ginta wanted her, Miki preferred Yuu.
"Why do they have to be in love?" Aiko whispered brokenly to herself. She could have fought Miki with all she was worth if it had been anything but love.a crush, a he-was-mine-first attitude, an over-affectionate stepsister issue, pure competitiveness. But Aiko would never come between love. She knew how precious it was and she would never ask herself to deny it to anyone else.
Why does it have to be Yuu? she thought in agony. He was everything, everything she wanted. He made her so happy.and she would've made him happy too. But all that was irrelevant because he loved Miki. Miki.not her. Aiko buried her face in her hands and wept to the cold, unrelenting midnight sky.
The corsage had been picked out for Miki, her tears cried.