Right There In Front Of
Me
A Trigun FanFic by Eric Jacobson
It's time to mark my return to FanFiction.Net! Yay! And I've got some new stuff
for you all to (hopefully) enjoy, this time around from Trigun! First of all,
I don't own any rights to anything Trigun-related, so don't go pulling an RIAA-style
Ninja move on me, OK? This little tidbit is something that's actually been happening
to me IRL (though minus the Rem dreams, LOL), and Trigun seemed to fit the situation
I needed. Anyway, Please R+R, and please enjoy!
::( And Now, On With The Story... )::
"Rem? Rem? Are you
there? Can you hear me?"
Meryl turned off the water, grabbed a towel and stepped out of the shower. As
she began to dry herself off, she looked at herself in the mirror. Is there
something wrong with me? Her reflection offered her mind no answer to it's
question. Or is it just that idiot's shortsightedness? Sometimes it feels
as though, when he's looking at me, he's looking right through me...
"Meryl, I'm going down to the general store. Do you need anything?"
Milly called in from the main room of their suite.
"No, Milly, go ahead. But get some more bandages, just in case. You never
know when Vash is going to just up and go get himself damn-near killed again."
"Good thinking, Meryl! I hadn't thought of that, but I should have, it
always seems like I miss the obvious when it comes to..." She kept talking
as she walked out the door.
As she listened to her go, Meryl couldn't help but laugh, even despite the thoughts
nagging at her mind. Milly could always make her laugh. Maybe it was her care-free
nature, or her often-times half-brained ditziness, or even her amazing 180 degree
turn to ace troubleshooter when the going got tough. Unfortunately, though,
even Milly's antics couldn't keep her from her inner ordeal, and once again,
she took on a look of despair.
What do I have to get through to him? To make him see...
"Rem? Where are you?"
"I'm right behind you Vash. Silly..."
Vash turned to see Rem standing right where she said she was, her back toward
him, her forward gaze fixated on the clouds above their heads.
"Aren't dreams beautiful, Vash? They're like blank pieces of paper, ready
to be written on by the pencils of our lives. Sorting and storing our everyday
memories, and even or most secret whims. It's amazing what our minds can do,
isn't it, Vash?"
"Yeah, it is pretty amazing. Though sometimes, I find it really hard to
understand the minds of other people. Is that normal?"
"Yes, Vash, it is. Sometimes, certain people stir certain thoughts or emotions,
and we find it harder to understand them. We're confused when it comes to them,
and they're confused when it comes to us."
"Emotions, Rem?"
"I can feel them inside of you, Vash."
"Inside of me?"
As she walked past the room
where Vash slept, she couldn't resist the urge to peek in on him. He was face
down on the matress, just barely big enough itself to contain his lanky frame.
He looked rather at peace, a tough task for one with so much weight on his shoulders
like him. His breathing formed a rhythm that Meryl unconciously followed herself
after a few moments. When she caught herself breathing in time with him, she
gasped and brought her hand to her face, something she'd trained herself to
do whenever she became embarrassed like this.
But then, she lowered her hand. Vash was passed out, Milly was in town, and
she was effectively alone. There was noone to be embarrassed in front of now.
So much had happened since they first met the goofball that turned out to be
Vash the Stampede. The $$60 Billion man, in reality, was a peace loving, seemingly
half-witted letch. And then, little by little, she saw what made him the infamous
Humanoid Typhoon as he diffused every situation haphazardly and often without
firing a single shot. She saw him with children, how he passed his simple ideals
of love and peace to them, and how he taught everyone that there was nothing
on this or any other world worth more than the value of life itself.
It was then that she began falling for him.
No, that can't be right, how could I fall for a moron like him? Oh, who am
I kidding. The more I try to hate him, the more I end up loving him. She
stepped away from the door, not before sneaking one last glance at Vash and
actually managing a smile. After getting herself dressed and ready for bed,
she sat down at her typewriter and began her daily report to send to the main
office.
"Vash, sometimes you can be so naive, you know that?" Rem turned
to Vash and smiled. "What you've been looking for is right there in front
of you."
"Right... Right there in front of me? What do you mean, Rem?"
"It's someone very close to you, Vash. And if you don't open your eyes
and pay attention, you just might lose sight of it altogether."
"But Rem, I don't understand. Who is it, and what is it? What's right in
front of me, Rem?"
"Oh, just wake up, silly. You'll see what I mean..."
"Just wake up? Is it really that simple?"
"Sometimes, all we have to do is open our eyes. To simply become aware
of something that was staring us in the eye but was somehow hidden from us.
But when we finally do see, we find that that the greatest of treasures has
been with us all along. Just wake up, Vash..."
As he opened his eyes, Vash tried to make sense of what Rem had just told him.
Open my eyes, it's right there in front of me, he thought. He couldn't
really determine what she meant. His eyes were open, but it wasn't coming to
him. And then, he looked to his right.
Sitting at a desk near his bed, he saw Meryl, head resting on her arms, fast
asleep.
"And if you don't open your eyes and pay attention, you just might lose
sight of it altogether."
A smile came accross Vash's lips as he finally realized what Rem had been trying
to tell him. He knew that something was going on within him, he could feel it
whenever he was around Meryl, but he really couldn't understand what he was
feeling. Maybe it was his desire to keep her from the trouble that seemed to
follow him around that had prevented him from noticing, or maybe he just didn't
want to accept it.
He was falling in love all over again, and this time, it was with someone other
than Rem.
He considered waking her up, but decided against it. He looked instead out the
window and into the night sky. Pitch black, except for the light of the fifth
moon. He stared at the giant scar on its surface for a moment. It was his doing,
after all, forced to use his ultimate weapon by Legatto against his will. A
permanent reminder of his legend.
But now, part of his legend was dwindling away. He could feel the free-wheeling
womanizer in him slowly dying as his love for Meryl grew to replace it. It was
in this moment that he finally accepted what was happening to him. Silently,
he walked out of the room and began to search the rest of the house for something
to help him make his discovery known...
"Meryl? Hey, wake up Meryl! Where did Mr. Vash go?"
"Milly? What... What time is it?"
"It's three in the morning, silly, now wake up! Did Mr. Vash say where
he was going?"
"Vash? You mean he isn't here? Oh, damnit! I swear, that man is insufferable!"
Meryl pulled herself upright and started to get up from the chair when she noticed
a piece of paper sitting on the desk. "What's this?" She unfolded
te paper and began to read.
Meryl,
I have something I want to share with you.
Meet me just outside of town, I'll be waiting.
Vash.
"I'm going out, Milly.
I'll be back in a while."
"You're leaving at this hour? Do you know were Mr. Vash is? Meryl, what's
going on?"
"I don't know, Milly. When I figure it out, I'll let you know." With
that, she threw on her duster and headed out of the room. She had no clue what
Vash was up to, but something told her it was important.
As she stood waiting next to a rather large boulder, Meryl wondered what could
have compelled Vash to do something like this. He's probably just waiting
to play some sort of aweful joke on me. That's got to be it. He's such a child.
Lost in her thoughts, she was startled when she heard Vash's voice behind her.
"Hey! Glad you could make it. I was starting to think I'd have to wait
for you til the morning."
"Well, whatever it is you want to share with me, make it quick. It's almost
four in the morning, and I have things I need to do tomorrow, not to mention..."
She never got to finish her sentance. Vash pulled her close to him and looked
into her eyes. "Vash..."
"It took me a while to figure it out, but in the end, an old friend gave
me some of the best advice I've ever heard. Sometimes, to find the things dearest
to us, all we have to do is open our eyes, and it'll be right there in front
of you. Well, I've opened my eyes, Meryl."
"What are you saying, Vash?"
He stared deeper into her eyes and smiled. "I love you, Meryl."
At that moment, they moved toward each other, locking in a kiss that, if it
had the power, would blow the scarred moon above them to pieces. It seemed to
go on forever, but neither of them cared. They had both found what they were
looking for. Each other...
The end! Short and sweet, I know. But I've been away for so long, and these
thoughts have been bouncing around my head for days. Anyway, let me know what
you all think! Ja ne ^,^