Chapter V Love is Inevitable

Dedicated to pratz, who I always turn to.

There had been moments when he battled different urges, some of which demanded that he at least check up on her, like she did whenever he was unheard of or out of sight. That was the pattern of their friendship. He thought about her endlessly. Was she heartbroken? Then as a friend he should go to her. But the thought of her mourning over another man… he couldn't…

Three weeks and counting… He was always the first to know about the details of her life. She treated him as her confidante. Although why was beyond him. That was Fuuko. Never really thinking about her decisions. Why would she pick the coldest person on earth to share herself with? One day she just decided to bare her soul to him. Why him? He was just her ex-teammate and nothing else. Him­—Tokiya Mikagami, of all people. She chose him. Not Recca, not even Raiha.

It made him feel… like he was special to her.

Whatever. He snorted, pouring himself another shot of whiskey. She gave that right to Raiha, not you.

He despised the vulnerable feeling that engulfed his chest. Hated the fact that his thoughts would always drift back to her. Loathed the truth that he was reminiscing the days of happy friendship and was inwardly craving for more.

It was starting to sink in.

He missed her.

………………………………………………..

She certainly hoped it was a mirage.

But no person in the world had Mikagami's eyes. They were like pale, icy orbs of cerulean and they told the whole story of his life. Fuuko wondered if he knew that—or if she should tell him. Come to think of it, there were a number of things she wanted to tell him. He had lived in her mind these past couple of weeks…

A soft smile graced her lips as she glanced at him from behind a bookshelf. What would he do if she suddenly ran in his direction and threw her arms around him like she did last time? Sighing, she stepped behind another bookshelf.

Fuuko found what she was looking for, a book entitled Kamikaze and quickly purchased it. He never looked up.

On her way out of the bookstore she stole another glance at him. She noticed that he had slipped on glasses while reading the summary of a book and that the crisp, impeccable lawyer look was clearly on vacation. He was dressed so nicely in khaki jeans and a black turtleneck that Fuuko was finding it hard not to…erm, for lack of a more decent term, drool.

She left the bookstore in a heartbeat.

…………………………………………………………..

It was one of those beautiful days.

And Mikagami decided to spend it with the Hokage. Domon had procured a boat and was anxious for a test drive of some sort, and so Recca and Yanagi had arranged lunch by the lake. Ganko and Kaoru almost came to the point of blackmail before Mikagami finally relented and agreed to show up.

Mikagami parked his BMW and took a ten-minute hike to the site. When he arrived, Ganko and Kaoru were already paddling off to the middle of the lake and Domon was yelling instructions that was falling on deaf ears. On the picnic table, Yanagi and Kitsura were chattering about some topic he did not bother to find out while they were slicing celery and potatoes. Recca was setting up the grill.

Everyone noticed him at one point or another, saying hello or waving. He just nodded and settled under the tree where he had written two or three poems before. This time he had no desire to create poetry. For one thing, he was lacking inspiration. So he merely took out his copy of Les Miserables and began reading.

Thirty minutes later, and he was soaking up the solitude and had almost finished three-fourths of the novel when Recca strode up to him, crunching on a carrot stick.

"Too bad Fuuko's not here. Isn't this your spot? The two of you?" his eyes showed amusement.

Mikagami shot him a cold stare, but at the back of his mind he was fighting the urge to ask where she was.

Recca dismissed the glare. He was used to it. The shivers had dissipated a long time ago. "Les Miserables." He pronounced it incorrectly. "This is what—the fifth time you've read that?"

Mikagami had reached the last chapter. "What is it, Hanabishi?"

Recca flashed him a sheepish grin. "Know how to operate the grills?"

Mikagami sighed and put down the book. He followed Recca down the hill. Domon was already having a tantrum out of sheer frustration of trying to work the grills but failing.

"Idiot." Mikagami said, and told them they were supposed to shove in the charcoal before anything else.

The girls (with the exception of Ganko) prepared a delicious meal of Ceasar's salad, rice, sushi, another fish dish and dumplings while Recca and Mikagami took care of barbecue.

Yanagi called Ganko, Kaoru and Domon, who were admiring the boat and they all gathered around the table.

"Where's Fuuko?" Ganko demanded. She glanced at Mikagami for an answer.

He didn't offer any kind of response.

"She's missing a lot." Kitsura commented.

"And someone's missing her a lot." Kaoru said coyly, winking at Tokiya.

The girls broke into identical grins, while Kaoru laughed burst into cataclysmic laughter and Domon joined in. Recca was annoying Mikagami by hooting.

Domon chose the moment to quote. "The course of true love never did run smooth."

"Honey. That's Shakespeare!" Kitsura exclaimed, shocked.

………………………………………………………..

It was pouring when she got to the clearing. She was drenched to the bone and also very, very late. She was counting on the vague fact that she would meet one of her friends along the way and she'd ask for a lift back to town. Then she could manage.

It wasn't her fault. The alarm clock refused to cooperate.

There was no one in the picnic area but she knew they had been there. The left-over charcoal told as much.

It also occurred to her that she would be very sick soon, and though she was not one who feared contracting the flu, she figured it was not worth taking the risk.

Fuuko approached the nearest tree for cover.

It happened to be the one she and Mi-chan sat under, when she wished she had his talent. The fuujin girl smiled at the memory and sat on one of its large, protruding roots, hugging her knees to her chest.

She watched as small needles pelted the lake and disturbed its translucent surface.

Fuuko pulled out her cell phone from her pocket. "Recca, I would appreciate a lift."

Thirty very slow minutes passed by and she was enduring the cold, the rain, and the possibility of colds. The rain didn't look like it would stop and she was not going to wait for it to.

She heard the very familiar sound of a certain vehicle. When she turned around, a BMW was parked there and its owner stepped out slowly. He was holding an umbrella in one hand and a towel in the other.

Tokiya Mikagami was walking to her.

She was so surprised her jaw dropped open.

Mikagami looked every inch irritated as he threw the towel around her shoulder. "You look pathetic."

Fuuko's eyes weakened, and it was not because of the weather. It was because the way he looked at her always made her doubt the stability of her knees. And her heart, for that matter. "How'd you find me?"

He sighed. "Footprints. Simple logic."

She wasn't in the mood to deal with his sarcasm.

"Mi-chan, don't deflect. You told me not to evade confrontations and I'm taking your advice. There are two things I want to tell you." She said. "I missed you. And I love you, you know." She said simply, naturally.

Mikagami was about to lead the way back to the car but her words stopped him. Slowly, their eyes met at a point of intersection.

He couldn't believe his ears. She did it…she told him she loved him.

Mikagami took one step closer to her. His thumb brushed lightly across her cheek. His eyes gazed intensely at hers and she wondered irrelevantly if he knew his eyes had silver flickers in them.

The blush on her face deepened and she felt her hands tremble.

His eyes were always cloudy. Now they were not. They were brilliant, beautiful to her. No hint of anger, no trace of annoyance. A trace of love started to surface in them.

Mi-chan. Finally. I see you…

He was her perfect hiding place. She ran to him when she needed to lash out, and he never reprimanded her, he would always listen.

She felt herself reach out and tuck the stray strands of silver behind his ear.

His eyes…. He was the first whose eyes burned into hers, who searched her soul, they surfaced the buried, forgotten feelings of love… for him, always for him, ONLY for him.

She placed a hand to one side of his cheek and caressed it.

His cool aura comforted her in times when she was hurt, but he never knew… never even had an idea that in those moments it was he who healed her.

Her fingers formed a downward trail from his cheek that ended at his shoulder, and she wrapped her other hand around his neck.

Now she saw the evidence… of how much she had fallen for him and how long she already loved him.

Tokiya gazed uncertainly into her eyes. She was breaking the wall he had built all these years. Would he let her…? He already did. He already loved her.

Mikagami gently placed his arms around her waist. He gazed deeply into her eyes, as if asking permission.

She pulled him closer to her. He leaned down, closed his eyes and pressed his lips to hers. A shock of electricity flowed through her as his lips moved against hers. She felt the arms around her waist tighten, and felt him press her drenched body to his. She drowned in his scent, was buried in his arms.

She had wanted to kiss him for such a long time. It felt like heaven.

It was a long time before the kiss ended, and Mikagami crushed her in his embrace. She could feel his heart beating wildly, and he could sense that she was out of breath. But she tightened her arms around him.

The umbrella fell to the ground, long-forgotten.

…………………………………………………..

"Hey… is that Fuuko?" Yanagi shielded her eyes from the sun and looked towards the horizon where two figures were emerging.

Recca smiled. "She's with Mikagami."

Ganko was fanning the air rapidly, as if she were going to faint. "He's holding her hand."

Kaoru grinned cheekily. "Finally."

…………………………………………………

Notes:

Yes! Now they're together! I did something with the scene when they fell into each other's arms, it was too short the last time, and severely lacking in details, in terms of the kiss I mean, hehehehehehee.

At long last, it's over. I am ecstatic, delighted, joyful, blissful… hehehe, you get the picture, Sorry for keeping you waiting, it's the usual excuse. Hectic schedule, no time to breathe, you've heard it all before. There's an epilogue, btw… you don't have to read it because it doesn't really change anything but if you don't mind, why not? My thank you's are at the end.

Thank you so much for the reviews.