Important Notice to Readers!   I have put in a request to the administrators of fanfiction.net to give RahXephon its own category in the anime section.  I do not know when (or if) this will happen.  However, in the future, when checking for updates of my story, be sure to see if there is a RahXephon category.  Thanks! Hello!  Hope you like this chapter, too.  There's also an author's note at the end.

Disclaimer: RahXephon and its characters are the property of their respective owners, this piece is not for profitable purposes.

Chapter 22: White Day

As I lie down on my bed, reading a book and eating the chocolates Mishima gave me for Valentine's Day, my mind wanders to White Day.  I pause, holding one of the chocolates in mid-air; I'll definitely have to do something.  I consternate as I eat, maybe I should buy something. Well, I can't get chocolate because she just gave me that.  Flowers might seem too presumptuous. It seems repetitive to paint something, since I did that for her birthday, but, after all, that is what I do best.  Ok, I'll paint her something then. But what?

Days pass by, and I still haven't been able to decide.  I even got scolded in class for not paying attention.  Mishima gave me a worried look then, which made me feel even more stupid.

After classes end, I walk with Mishima in silence.  As I am about to open the door to the art room, I notice that Mishima is there beside me, and I wonder why.

"Mishima?"

"Oh, I'm sorry, I can go."

"No, no, wait, I was just unsure why you weren't going to the music room."

She moves her foot nervously and says, "Well, the conductor's ill, so they decided to cancel for today.  So, I decided to join Kamina-kun today, since we're in the same club, so I thought it would be ok, that is, if it's fine with you."

"Of course, you're more than welcome to come, but I'm worried you might get bored…"

She looks away, "Maybe it's best if I don't come…"

I look at her and smile as I take my hand from the door.

"I have an idea, Mishima."

She looks at me, surprised.

"You join me in club, and I'll draw or paint whatever you want."

She shakes her head yes excitedly and says, "That would be fun!"

We walk inside, and I notice Soujirou, who looks up when he sees us and smiles. 

I lean against a chair as I watch Mishima wander around, looking at what other people are doing.  She comes back soon and we look at each other happily.  I move forward and say, "Mishima, what would you like me to do?"

She squints her eyes like she did when we studied that time at my place, which makes me smile.

"Hmm, let's see," she says as she paces.  She looks around the room, and stops suddenly and walks over to the windowsill at the other side of the room.  I can't see what she's looking at from where I am, but she then turns around holding a glass vase with sunflowers in it.  She walks back carefully, smiling.

"Kamina-kun, I love sunflowers, could you sketch this for me, please?"

"Sure, Mishima."  She places them on a table nearby and I get out my sketchbook and begin to draw.  I look up once in a while; when I do, I notice that Mishima is staring rather intently at my work, and I feel a little embarrassed.  After I finish I look up at her, and she looks at me surprised.

"Are you done, Kamina-kun?"

"Yep."

"Can I look?"

"Of course."  I hand her the book and she looks back and forth between the sketch, the vase, and me.

She grins broadly and says, "It's beautiful, Kamina-kun.  Can I keep it, please?"

I blush as I say, "Sure, Mishima, I'm glad you like it."

As the club period ends, I say to Mishima, "Mishima, I have to get something from my locker, I'll meet you at the front gate?"

She gives me the thumbs up sign and says, "You've got it, Kamina-kun!"  I watch as she walks out of the room, carefully holding the sketch in one hand and her briefcase in the other.

As I walk to the gate, I see Mishima crouching down on the pathway, but I can't tell why.  Worried, I quicken my pace and call out her name.  As I do so, I see her get up, and two white birds take flight beside her. I watch in awe as the birds spread their wings and fly into the sky, and I realize what I want to paint for Mishima.

I put down my brush, pleased with my work.  In the foreground of the picture is a bird with its wings outstretched as it sets forth to the sky. Instead of painting the bird white, I chose to paint it with a pattern of the blue sky and white clouds that I saw at the gate on the day that Mishima joined me in the art room.  Behind the bird is the sky, a gradient of color from dark blue to white. At the bottom, I've put the ocean, a mixture of gray and dark blue and white crashing waves, because that is where Mishima and I first met.

On White Day, I don't mention anything on the train, but when I get to school, I quietly escape from Mishima, Mamoru, and Asahina to my locker where I get a box which I bring with me to the art room.  Once there, I place the painting in the box and wrap it, excited about the time when Mishima will see it.

Once the lunch hour arrives, I pass a note to Mishima that asks her to meet me at the art room before going to eat. She looks at me surprised, but then smiles and shakes her head yes.  While Mamoru and Asahina argue, Mishima and I slip out quietly into the hallway.  I'm sure that I look anxious, and Mishima seems nervous, as well.  We arrive at the art room and I take out the painting from my storage space, and hand it to Mishima.

"Kamina-kun?"

"This is for White Day, I wanted to return the favor for the chocolates from Valentine's Day," I say, blushing.

She looks up at me and smiles. She places the package in one hand, and it seems that she's about to move more towards me, but she suddenly stops herself, maybe I was just imagining it…

She removes the wrapping paper and stares in shock at the painting and then at me.

"Oh, Kamina-kun, it's so beautiful!"  I watch as her eyes start to tear up, and I become confused, is something wrong?

I am more surprised when she carefully places the painting on a table and looks up at me before falling forward and embracing me. 

"Thank you so much, Kamina-kun," she says between tears, holding on tightly.  Caught completely unaware, I'm not sure what to do.  It's hard for me to resist returning the embrace, but maybe I'm misinterpreting what she's doing.  Before I can act, Mishima quickly pulls herself away.

"I'm sorry, Kamina-kun, I shouldn't have done that," she says, looking away.

"No, it's fine, Mishima." I say, smiling.

As I look at Mishima, I decide that I will definitely express my feelings for her, in the best way I know how.

Author's Note:

In case my description wasn't clear, the painting that Ayato made for Haruka as a White Day gift is the one that is seen repeatedly throughout the series. (I've seen it in episode 1 in the subway station when Ishtori was standing in front of it, in episode 11 on the side of the bus Ayato rides on when he's trapped in the illusionary world, in episode 19 hanging in Ayato's and Hiroko's hotel room, in episode 20 on the screens hanging from the ceiling in the scene when Ishtori is talking with Haruka, and in episode 26 in the subway station and in Ayato's and Haruka's home. It may have been in others, but those are the instances I remember).

Next Chapter

Mishima's 14th Birthday