The Boy Who Blocked His Own Shot

Chapter Two: Let Your Beauty Unfold

Disclaimer: I don't own Kare Kano or any of the characters. I don't own Brand New or any of their songs.

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            Morning sun shone through the windows of Yukino's room, revealing a red-eyed and tear-stained Yukino. She moaned and pulled her comforter over her head. "I don't want to wake up," she mumbled.

            "G'morning, Sis!" called her younger sisters Kano and Tsukino. They jumped on top of the lethargic lump hidden by an assortment of blankets.

            "Ugh, not now!!" she cried.

            "What's wrong?" asked Kano.

            "Arima and I broke up…."

            Yukino's sisters let out shocked gasps. "Who broke up with whom? Did you want to break up? You two made such a cute couple!!"

            "I broke up with him. He couldn't trust me and now it's too late to work things out." Yukino rolled the blankets down and sat up. "I haven't seen Arima at school since then! I don't even know if he wants to get back together!" she sobbed.

            The phone rang and interrupted their girl talk. Yukino bent over and looked at the small screen on the base. "It's Arima! Should I pick it up?"

            Kano and Tsukino nodded. "Maybe he wants to talk about it!"

            Yukino picked up the phone. "Hello?"

She had no response, only heavy breathing. It was slow and steady, like a stream.

"Arima, I have Caller ID!"

            Click!

            "That's so weird. He was just breathing. That's not like him…."

            "Are you sure? Maybe you don't know him so well…" Kano trailed off. "It could be a side of himself that he's never shown to anybody."

            "The stalker in him has emerged!" said Tsukino. "It could be his way of dealing with the break up!"

            "You could be right. Oh, I hope I see him today at school! I've got to speak with him about us!" cried Yukino. She reluctantly stood up and opened her closet door to find her uniform for the day. Her scheming sisters slipped out of the room unnoticed and quietly closed the door to Yukino's room. A glint in their eyes foretold a plan of reuniting.

            "Sis obviously doesn't want to stay away from Arima."

            "With a little work, we can get them back together. But this isn't going to be easy."

~

            Hokuei High School was a flurry of excitement for then freshman class. An assembly was planned after and the school grounds were buzzing with talk of the assembly. Yukino stood with her friends and barely heard their bubbly chatter. She searched the crowds of students wandering around for a place to sit and eat for Arima, but the boy was like a ghost. He seemed to be everywhere when Yukino was not paying attention to her surroundings, and yet when he was sought after, he was nowhere to be found.

            "YUKINO!!"

            She was brought out of her daze and turned her head to her friends. "Uhh, yes?"

            "I asked you what color I should dye my hair."

            "Oh. Um, strawberry blonde with a few highlights would look very nice with your skin tone." Yukino, having answered the question, felt compelled to look once more at the passing students.

            "Strawberry blonde? No way! I wanted a subtle change, not a complete makeover! Yukinon, are you listening to me? Yukino!"

            "Oh, sorry. I was looking at the crowd."

            "Focus!! Man, what's with you today? During math class you were staring at the hallway, like you were expecting someone to pop in."

            Yukino remembered she didn't tell them about the breakup. Lunch was about to end, and if she told the story, everyone at the assembly would see a swollen-eyed Yukino. Although she had given up her façade, Yukino just wasn't ready to show the school her broken and sorrowful side.

            Suddenly, Yukino remembered that Arima's favorite place to spend the lunch hour was at the row of cherry trees by the river. She played with the thought that she could catch him just in time if she hurried.

            "I—I have to go." She hurriedly ran towards the cherry trees in hopes of finding her love.

~

            Yukino arrived at the grove of cherry trees. She looked around hopefully but found nothing amidst the pink clouds. Yukino let out a groan and fell to her knees. The rich emerald grass cushioned her bare knees and cradled her knuckles that she pressed into the ground. The sweet ringing of a bell caught her attention and Yukino looked behind her. There was nothing there except for a lonely bouquet of dead cherry blossoms.

            Yukino, now scared out of her wits, searched for a reason to escape and remembered the assembly. "Oh, NO! I'm late!!" she panicked. Yukino stood and brushed herself off, then ran like a racehorse back to the school.

~

            "Yukinon, where have you been?" whispered her friends. Yukino had managed to sneak into the auditorium unnoticed and then squeeze under chairs until she got to her seat.

"I was—nowhere. I was nowhere," she whispered back. She made a motion to get into her chair until her friends warned her of the object on the seat. Yukino looked down at the blue metal of the chair and saw a withered bouquet of dead cherry blossoms.

            "AHHH!!" she screamed and caught the attention of a few teachers and the entire freshman class.

~

Mountain Rain: How was that? Arima's really finding clever ways to scare the dookie out of Yukino. Review!