Behind a Smile: 02: Boku no Kanjou wo Mitomeru
Author's notes: EI! How are you guys? I'm back here, again, with the second chapter! ^^
I've been reading Phoe-chan's 'Mezameteyuku Tamashii: Awakening Spirits' over and over again – I think for three times now. She's really amazing – I love her Sou/Misao ficcies. In fact, it's her works that inspired me to write my own. ^^ I hope Phoe-chan can review this, even though its kind of…cliché. Heeheehee…
Anyway, I've been reading 'Mezameteyuku Tamashii: Awakening Spirits', so that I could understand Soujiro and Misao's characters to portray them better. I always get this feeling that Soujiro's too serious, he's too smiley, he's too polite; and like Misao's lacking her usual perkiness in this fic. Can you guys please comment on this issue? ^^; Comments would be greatly appreciated.
Also, I decided that the chapter titles be in Japanese in Sou-chan's perspective. But I think when Sou-chan's not in the chapter, or nothing much happens to Sou-chan…I'll change the perspective. ^^; Ehehehehe…
**
02::Boku no Kanjou wo Mitomeru//Admitting My Emotions::02
**
One week.
One entire week has passed ever since school started – ever since Makimachi Misao saw and bumped into Shinomori Aoshi. All the while, as his best friend starts to fall for someone else, Seta Soujiro was confused about the silent turmoil going on in his head.
It was a cold, but sunny autumn Saturday morning, more and more leaves turning to a crisp shade of gold. With the chilly autumn wind playing with his short, dark brown hair, the supposed-to-be Tenken smiled and entered his home, meeting the inquisitive gaze of Shishio Yumi.
"Ah, Yumi-san." Soujiro said, sliding the large glass door shut. He started to walk towards the main hall, since he just came back from the patio. Yumi, meanwhile, followed the 17-year-old teen's footsteps, gaining his attention with her words.
"So what are you planning on your birthday, Soujiro?" Yumi asked, making the teen stop in his tracks and turn to her.
"Oh nothing much – a nice quiet dinner would do just fine." Soujiro replied, opening his eyes from his smile.
Yumi frowned. Really, this kid was too simple. "Oh c'mon, just the two of us? What about Misao-chan, Kenshin-san, Kaoru-san, Sanosuke-san and Megumi-san? Oh I know…" the maroon-haired woman smiled at the blue-eyed boy. "What about a nice dinner – with only you kids? Wouldn't that be fine?"
Soujiro smiled a pleasant grin, deep inside him wondering why Yumi was so concerned about his birthday. Yes, he was turning 18 – but to him it was like any other age he'd been through. He himself hasn't even thought of what he was going to do on that day – September 20. "It's all right with me, Yumi-san."
The lady sighed, giving up hope in making the boy live his life a little bit. "If that's what you want. Honestly – sometimes, you're just too simple. It's like you're an adult."
The teen only chuckled in amusement, bowing before the purple-eyes lady before turning to the majestic staircase beside him. "I'm going to be one, Yumi-san." He said with a light laugh, heading up the carpeted staircase as Yumi went to the living room.
*
The green-eyed girl fiddled with the phone cord nervously as she lay on her bed, talking on the phone with Kamiya Kaoru and Takani Megumi on three-way.
"…are you sure that's the kind of women he likes, Kaoru-chan, Megumi-chan?" Misao asked nervously, her eyes locked somewhere.
"I'm not sure, but I think so." Megumi said, who in turn was sitting on a luxurious couch.
"Then I'm going to change to be like the type of girls Aoshi-sama likes!" Misao exclaimed.
Kaoru audibly sighed. "You know, Misao-chan, I just don't understand it why you're so obsessed with Shinomori guy anyway. I mean, there are other fish in the sea, you know."
Misao only pouted at the comment, her fingers still anxiously entangling themselves in the cord. "Well Aoshi-sama's one endangered fish, and he's the only Aoshi-sama in the sea."
"Misao-chan," Megumi said, giggling a little bit. "The only reason why she's doubting Aoshi is because she already has her Ken-san."
Kaoru furiously buried her head in her pillows, denying the stated fact. The two could only hear incoherent mumbles coming from the blushing girl.
"See what I mean?"
Even if it wasn't visible, Kaoru shook her head furiously as if negating the comment. "Iie! Kenshin hasn't even told me yet…"
Misao laughed. "Oh c'mon, we know Kenshin likes you sooo much."
Suddenly, Megumi's eyes flared up, remembering something as Misao and Kaoru continued to argue (though Kaoru enjoyed it).
"Ano ne," Megumi started, claiming the attention of Kaoru and Misao. She looked seriously at her hands as she continued her sentence. "Have you noticed that Soujiro-kun's been acting strangely?"
"Are you sure, or does his smile just creep you out?" Kaoru asked, eager to hear. If Misao was with her she would've earned several bonks upside the head.
"Hey!" said Misao defensively. "His smile does creep me out sometimes, but he's my best friend!"
"No, no, no." Megumi said, still intent on making her point. "He seems spaced out more than usual…like he's been bothered by something."
Kaoru agreed, nodding her head even though the two can't see her. "I've noticed that too…. He's like, preoccupied all the time…thinking all the time, too much in his head. Kenshin even noticed it."
The supposed-to-be healer of the Kenshingumi looked thoughtfully at the phone cord. "I heard Ken-san and that birdhead talking about how strange Soujiro-kun's been acting. Do you think it's just because the soccer match's near, Misao-chan?"
Seta Soujiro was a star of the soccer team because of his incredible speed.
Misao took a while before she could answer the question. "Sou-chan never gets nervous about soccer matches. In fact, he's happy about them – says it's a good way of exercise."
"Maybe he's afraid of coming old!" Kaoru suddenly said. "His birthday IS coming up."
The mention of Soujiro's birthday made emerald eyes widen in surprise. "Oh my god, Sou-chan's birthday!!"
Megumi tsk-tsked a few times. "Don't tell me you forgot about Soujiro-kun's birthday."
Sighing, Misao frighteningly admitted so, guilt running in her veins as she tried to untangle her fingers in the huge knot she managed to make.
"How can you forget?" Kaoru inquired, utterly bewildered at the mistake Misao made. "I mean, we've been talking about it…Soujiro-kun only says that it's okay, that we shouldn't make a big fuss out of it and dinner's fine! We've been talking about it ever since we went to school."
Now struggling to get her hand free, and squeezing the phone between her ear and shoulder, Misao hastily replied. "But Aoshi-sama's been taking all my time…" she pouted, producing a huge jerk, sending her body reeling to the floor as she screamed.
"Yare yare…" Megumi let out, shaking her head as if she saw what just happened to Misao. "I'll talk to you guys tomorrow, alright?"
The other two agreed and with a single movement, they ended their conversation by placing the phones on their bases.
* later that day *
Out of breath, Soujiro closed the door behind him and sighed, wiping the sweat off his forehead with a white, fluffy towel. His shirt was drenched in sweat, his once puffy-looking hair matted to his face as he breathed in the scent of his bedroom.
He just finished practicing soccer downstairs, with the late afternoon sun shining down on him as he kicked the checkered ball around. For some weird reason the autumn wind was not present, with the climate strangely being warm.
The blue-eyed boy let go of the towel and threw it on a chair, taking off his sweat-soaked shirt and placing it in the hamper as he entered his bathroom. Eager to have a nice, hot shower, Soujiro started to undress himself, but once again, his phone rang.
Answering it, he only smiled as he recognized who it was.
"Misao-chan…" he remarked, chuckling as Misao giggled on the other line.
"Hey you!" said Misao, her voice cheerful as she responded to Soujiro's greeting. Noticing the silence that passed between them, she sighed. "I got you at a bad time, haven't I?"
Soujiro smiled sheepishly. "Of course not, Misao-chan! Well…if you call someone at a time while you're half-naked and planning to go have a shower, I guess it is."
She pouted once she heard his explanation. "How come I never get you in a good time?"
Soujiro shrugged. "You could've called me earlier…around two 'o clock or so."
"I couldn't have – we were talking about Aoshi…" Misao drifted off dreamily, her mind once again occupied by the ice-blue-eyed 20-year old. Slightly irritated, though it was very unlikely of him, Soujiro decided that taking a shower would be the best choice for now.
"Eto…Misao-chan?"
Snapping herself out of her Aoshi-filled trance, Misao turned back to the person on the other line. "Yeah?"
"I'll…go take a shower now." Said the teen simply.
"Oh…yeah…right. I'll talk to you later, okay?" Misao said, bidding goodbye to the supposed-to-be member of the Juppon Gattana. With a somewhat frustrated smile, Soujiro headed towards the bathroom door and proceeded to take his shower.
** Soujiro's POV **
It was strange.
In my whole life I have never felt this way – being possessive of someone. Ever since school started – ever since Misao-chan saw Shinomori-san…I've been feeling odd whenever Misao-chan talks about him. I felt like I was irritated of Shinomori-san, and lately I've been wishing that Misao-chan shouldn't have seen him. Or maybe Shinomori-san shouldn't have been born. Either way I was still confused of my feelings.
You're curious on how long Misao-chan has been my best friend, aren't you?
Well, gladly, I'll tell you.
It started eight years ago – when we were still ten years old. When I was three my parents died, and Shishio-san and Yumi-san had taken me under their wing. Yumi-san of course thought that it would be best for me if we left Japan for some time – to let the memories of my dead parents settle down inside of me. So we did, living in England for seven years.
I was educated there during my earlier years, while Shishio-san and Yumi-san sustained my Japanese language. At home, Shishio-san would never let me speak English – we can only talk in Japanese. The maids, even though most of them were Japanese, would only carry on with their tasks. When guests and visitors arrived, that is the only time we would speak in English.
Pretty lonely, I was, when I lived in England. I had few friends, most of them English, but they were all understanding of my situation. I enjoyed their company – they were all appreciative of me, and they would always be amazed if they hear me talking in my native tongue. But it was sometimes funny when they say my name – they say it like 'Sow-ji-row'. I only laugh at it, but most of my friends got my name right.
Then Shishio-san announced that we would come back to Japan a few weeks later – to live there permanently because of his business. I took the news pretty hard, finding it impossible to tell my few friends that I would be leaving. After some encouragement from Yumi-san, I mustered up all the courage I had and told them that I would be living in Japan a month later. They were all sad – giving me going-away gifts of teddy bears and such.
A month later we arrived here, moving in this very house. I adjusted pretty fine, that is, until school started.
Most of the students flocked over me like I was some rare object, asking about how England was, and if I could speak in English in front of them. Smiling, even though I felt very frustrated inside, I did what they asked.
Then this perky little girl came, her long hair braided in a long plait of ebony black, having eyes the color of glimmering emeralds. She told the kids off for me, then grinning widely as she introduced herself to me.
I remember that day. She had this HUGE grin pasted on her face, holding out her hand to me as she said her name.
'Wai! Atashi wa Makimachi Misao da yo! Anta wa?'
I remember taking her hand and shaking it lightly, introducing myself to her.
'Boku wa Seta Soujiro desu.'
And that was the day when we became best friends. During our first week, she told people off, telling them that I needed time alone and the whole lot. Years later I became more independent, telling people off my own with that genuine smile that for some weird reason, girls always…faint when they see it. What's the problem with my smile? Is it THAT scary?
And we've been inseparable ever since…Misao-chan and I. Then we met Kaoru-san, Megumi-san, Kenshin-san and Sanosuke-san, who always seems to fight with his little brother, Yahiko-san. They've been very good to me for these past years, and I'm thankful for that.
But I'm still confused. Why the hell am I feeling this way? I should be happy for Misao-chan, right? Now that she found her Aoshi-sama. But ever since she saw him she's been…forgetting me all of a sudden…. No, Soujiro, Misao-chan would not do that to you…that I keep telling myself. On the contrary, as these days pass by, she never seems to think of anything else than her Aoshi-sama.
How come I'm getting possessive over Misao-chan? She's not mine to be possessive of. However, just thinking of some other guy receiving her heartwarming smiles, her cheerful grins…it makes me irritated or something. Thinking about someone else playing with her soft, ebony-black hair…not that I have, since she SELDOM lets it out of her braid…it JUST makes me irritated, although I keep my irritation of her SUDDEN (HUGE understatement) infatuation over Shinormori-san behind my smile.
Admit it, Soujiro – you've fallen in love with her.
I have not. She's just a friend.
Your best friend…the best friend you never want anyone else to have. C'mon, you love her and you know it. If you don't, how come you're so jealous whenever Aoshi stares at her? Whenever she stares at Aoshi? Whenever—
That little voice in the back of my head is starting to annoy me a whole lot. I am not jealous.
After a whole lot of thinking…I finally made a conclusion. Maybe I AM in love with Misao-chan.
What about Misao-chan?
What about her happiness?
**
Author's notes: PLEASE tell me if I'm portraying them just right! Please!!! I'm really desperate – I want them in character as much as possible.
Heehee…I just made Yahiko Sanosuke's little bro. Why? Earlier on I thought Kaoru should be Yahiko's oneechan, but I felt that I was copying the idea from someone else so I just made Sano his oniichan. Besides, they have the same spiky hair…family resemblance perhaps? Hmm…
Anyway, I'm thanking you guys, all of you!! Special notes to special reviewers: (I haven't done this in SUCH a LONG time)
Ruby-san: Wai! Arigato gozaimasu!
White Witch-san: Really? 1/3? O.O wai! Yes, I am Filipino. ^^ Is it THAT obvious? O.O Wow! I'd like to know if you're Filipino too! ^^
Ceres17-san: Got a problem with that? *raises eyebrows* Joke. Is that a bad thing – seeing me in every category you go to? O.O sadly Aoi Tsuki is not going to be updated anytime soon…my liking for Gensomaden Saiyuki has disappeared (since AXN aired it too many times – like they're showing it over and over again)
sophomoric genius-san: thank you very much, and here's the update!
Animation Freak-san: Thank you!
Archangel Dream-san: Make it longer? ^^ You're actually lucky that I have changed my habit of making chapters only 2 pages long. ^^ I've been making them a page longer, but hey, I'll try. ^^
Mirai Grace: Arigato gozaimasu for the comment!
Midaoru-san: hai! Sou/Misao shippers will rule, and I'm one of them!!!
Chaos-san: yes, it is Soujiro/Misao all the way, with some Aoshi/Misao torture for Sou-chan. Arigato gozaimasu!
JT-san: ano…gomen ne, but there are going to be A/M moments in here…^^
Violettegal345: Yes, I do love Aoshi/Misao/Soujiro triangles, although there aren't many of them on the net… I agree – the world needs more Soujiro/Misaos!!!!!!
Cat H: Thanks for reviewing, and it IS a S/M ficcie!
Rook: Hai – Soujiro rules! Very much!
Gomen nasai for the other reviewers: I'm doing this offline and my computer wouldn't let me see the second page…T.T I'll see you guys!
Wai! Listening to Utada Hikaru's cd Deep River sure helped me a lot! Also sucking on two huge lollipops (the whirly suckers that they sell at Aji Ichiban) helped A. Pikachu, and don't forget her usual one liter of coke a day! Heeheeheeheehee! Don't forget to read Phoe-chan's & chibi-angel's Sou/Misao works!!!! They're really good!!!
Please, R&R! Comments are greatly appreciated!!! Please, no flames!!!
A. Pikachu