Disclaimer: I do not own Hana Yori Dango.
Chapter 4: Left Behind
"Weird girl," Hanazawa Rui thought as he seated himself against the trunk of the oak tree, watching her figure grow smaller and smaller as she walked away.
The handstand forgotten, Rui thought back to what had transpired a few hours ago which led him to seek solace at his usual place in the park -- the old oak tree with the abandoned tree house on top.
"Rui, I was accepted for that scholarship at Juilliard," Shizuka had told him earlier that night while they were having dinner after leaving band rehearsals at Akira's basement.
"When do you leave?" he asked in his usual deadpan voice, although a feeling of dread was slowly creeping up his chest. He had known since a few months ago that this day would come, although he had kept on hoping she would change her mind about applying.
"In two weeks."
"So soon?" The dread that had crept up his chest now manifested itself in his voice.
Shizuka knew that Rui wasn't liking what he was hearing so she attempted to appease him by talking in a soothing voice. "Rui. . . you already knew for some time about my application. You know how much I've wanted it and how hard I've prayed to get accepted. Aren't you happy for me?"
He didn't answer her question and instead asked, " What about the band? What about me?"
"The band can very well do without me, and you know that. Tsukasa's a great vocalist, and if you still need a female singer you can easily hire a replacement for me. Surely I'm not indispensable? There's a lot of great talent here, just waiting to be discovered."
"What about me?" he repeated. "What about us?"
"I'm sure it won't be that hard. We can call and e-mail each other as often as we wish. You can even fly to the States and visit me sometime. Look, the scholarship is only for a year. After that I'll decide whether I want to stay on there or come back here. But the important thing is. . . this is something I really want to do, and now that I'm being offered the chance, I'd be a fool to let it go. Please don't make this any harder than it already is. Don't you think it's also hard for me to do this, leaving you? You will always be my Rui, and don't you ever forget that. But I have to do this, and I will do it," her voice was firm as she finished.
Knowing she had already made up her mind and there was no changing it, Rui did not reply anymore. Nothing he, nor anyone, could say would sway her from her decision anyway. Instead he pursed his lips and signaled the waiter for their check.
The drive to Shizuka's home was made in complete silence. Both of them were lost in their own thoughts. Rui immediately drove to the park after dropping Shizuka off.
The beep of his cell phone broke the still of the night and snapped Rui awake from his trance. He glanced at the caller i.d which displayed Akira's name and number.
"Hello?"
"Yo, Rui, are you still with Shizuka?" Akira's cheery voice came through.
"Nope, I dropped her off some time ago. What's up?"
"Well, the three of us are here at Frenzy," Akira informed him, naming the club they were at. "Dude, we just got ourselves a gig at this place, although we still have to wait 'til the manager can schedule us. It may turn out to be a regular weekend stint. Wanna come over to check the place out?"
"Sure," he replied. He quickly memorized the directions Akira had given him. The rest of the gang will find out sooner or later about Shizuka's impending departure. Now was as good a time as any to tell them, he decided.
*********************
A/N: Ugh, short chapter, I know. Sorry but my brain seems to have gotten into the Christmas spirit and decided to take a vacation. Seems most of my readers have taken a vacation from reviewing too. I'm sorry if these first few chaps are boring you, but I'm still laying the groundwork. I'll make it up next chap. We'll see if I can get the plot moving along.
Sailor Angie: Ooops, I was talking about the boyband F4, who are coming for a concert here in the Philippines on the 26th. Sorry if I confused you. Apologies too if Tsukasa didn't make an appearance in this chapter. He'll be in the next one though. ^_^
XxSwtDreamerxX1: Thanks for the compliment, and I'm glad you liked the last chapter too! Hope this chapter answered your question about Rui.
I'm not sure if I'll still be able to update before Christmas, so I'm taking this chance to greet you all a HAPPY CHRISTMAS! ^_^ See you all next chapter! Please leave a review if you have time!
Chapter 4: Left Behind
"Weird girl," Hanazawa Rui thought as he seated himself against the trunk of the oak tree, watching her figure grow smaller and smaller as she walked away.
The handstand forgotten, Rui thought back to what had transpired a few hours ago which led him to seek solace at his usual place in the park -- the old oak tree with the abandoned tree house on top.
"Rui, I was accepted for that scholarship at Juilliard," Shizuka had told him earlier that night while they were having dinner after leaving band rehearsals at Akira's basement.
"When do you leave?" he asked in his usual deadpan voice, although a feeling of dread was slowly creeping up his chest. He had known since a few months ago that this day would come, although he had kept on hoping she would change her mind about applying.
"In two weeks."
"So soon?" The dread that had crept up his chest now manifested itself in his voice.
Shizuka knew that Rui wasn't liking what he was hearing so she attempted to appease him by talking in a soothing voice. "Rui. . . you already knew for some time about my application. You know how much I've wanted it and how hard I've prayed to get accepted. Aren't you happy for me?"
He didn't answer her question and instead asked, " What about the band? What about me?"
"The band can very well do without me, and you know that. Tsukasa's a great vocalist, and if you still need a female singer you can easily hire a replacement for me. Surely I'm not indispensable? There's a lot of great talent here, just waiting to be discovered."
"What about me?" he repeated. "What about us?"
"I'm sure it won't be that hard. We can call and e-mail each other as often as we wish. You can even fly to the States and visit me sometime. Look, the scholarship is only for a year. After that I'll decide whether I want to stay on there or come back here. But the important thing is. . . this is something I really want to do, and now that I'm being offered the chance, I'd be a fool to let it go. Please don't make this any harder than it already is. Don't you think it's also hard for me to do this, leaving you? You will always be my Rui, and don't you ever forget that. But I have to do this, and I will do it," her voice was firm as she finished.
Knowing she had already made up her mind and there was no changing it, Rui did not reply anymore. Nothing he, nor anyone, could say would sway her from her decision anyway. Instead he pursed his lips and signaled the waiter for their check.
The drive to Shizuka's home was made in complete silence. Both of them were lost in their own thoughts. Rui immediately drove to the park after dropping Shizuka off.
The beep of his cell phone broke the still of the night and snapped Rui awake from his trance. He glanced at the caller i.d which displayed Akira's name and number.
"Hello?"
"Yo, Rui, are you still with Shizuka?" Akira's cheery voice came through.
"Nope, I dropped her off some time ago. What's up?"
"Well, the three of us are here at Frenzy," Akira informed him, naming the club they were at. "Dude, we just got ourselves a gig at this place, although we still have to wait 'til the manager can schedule us. It may turn out to be a regular weekend stint. Wanna come over to check the place out?"
"Sure," he replied. He quickly memorized the directions Akira had given him. The rest of the gang will find out sooner or later about Shizuka's impending departure. Now was as good a time as any to tell them, he decided.
*********************
A/N: Ugh, short chapter, I know. Sorry but my brain seems to have gotten into the Christmas spirit and decided to take a vacation. Seems most of my readers have taken a vacation from reviewing too. I'm sorry if these first few chaps are boring you, but I'm still laying the groundwork. I'll make it up next chap. We'll see if I can get the plot moving along.
Sailor Angie: Ooops, I was talking about the boyband F4, who are coming for a concert here in the Philippines on the 26th. Sorry if I confused you. Apologies too if Tsukasa didn't make an appearance in this chapter. He'll be in the next one though. ^_^
XxSwtDreamerxX1: Thanks for the compliment, and I'm glad you liked the last chapter too! Hope this chapter answered your question about Rui.
I'm not sure if I'll still be able to update before Christmas, so I'm taking this chance to greet you all a HAPPY CHRISTMAS! ^_^ See you all next chapter! Please leave a review if you have time!