Phase 05

I was nervous. No, nervous didn't even describe what I was feeling. With a small gift bag in my hand, I stretched out my arm. One tiny button. Press it. Press it Makino! This giant, mahogany door was the seperation between Earth and Heaven... or Hell. Which one was I going to step into? It was Hanazawa Rui's birthday, and I was going to meet his father. I prayed to Kami that he was more relaxed than Doumyouji's mother.

The door opened.

"EH!" I didn't even ring the doorbell yet, what...

A middle-aged man with tuffs of brown hair wearing an obscenely bright turquoise shirt loomed over me. His eyes were unmistakeably Hanazawa Rui's; however, there was some sort of a fanatic glint.

"RUI! WHO IS THIS CUTE GIRL?"

Wow, this was Hanazawa Rui's father? This may be a little too far from Kaede.

"I'm Hanazawa Kazuma," he bowed slightly, "and you are?"

"ACK! I haven't even introduced myself yet! I'm Makino Tsukushi, a friend of Hanazawa Rui's. Are you... Hanazawa Rui's father?"

"Nope, he's my brother."

"WHAT THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE! YOU ARE WAY TOO-- AHH, I MEAN, YOU LOOK TOO MATURE." Good save Makino, good save.

"Heh heh heh. I just look old for my age!"

"Stop playing around."

That voice. I looked past the older man. Hanazawa Rui.

"Rui, is this your girlfriend?"

"Hn. Maybe."

My brain was starting to spiral. What's with these people?

"Ehh... Hanazawa-san, don't get the wrong idea..."

"HEH HEH HEH. Good catch Rui!" He snuck up behind Hanazawa Rui and whispered in his ear, "How far have you gone hmm? Take the opportunity! Don't waste away your youth!"

I was starting to get irritated. My teeth clenched, "Hanazawa-san, you know I can hear you." I couldn't believe it. This was Hanazawa Rui's father? If I met him on the street, I might have thought he was related to Mimasaka or Nishikado.

"Gomen, gomen," he apologized while scratching his head.

"Come sit Makino," Hanazawa Rui said as he patted the spot next to him on the sofa. I walked over and sat on the other side. The length of his sofa was close to the Great Wall of China.

"Why're you so far away?" His voice sounded amused.

"Your sofa is so big. Might as well take advantage right? More space, more air to breathe!" I demonstrated by stupidly waving my arms around.

He scooted over and reached out to stop my hands.

"There's plenty of air around here. Someone once told me it was free."

I blushed; he grinned.

Hanazawa Rui, when you're this close... I feel nervous. This is when I like you best. When you're only a centimeter away, and I can just reach out and touch you.

"OHHH, young love!"

"Father. You're very distracting."

"HEH HEH HEH! Fine, I'll leave you two alone." But he didn't leave without another wink in our direction.

"Hanazawa Rui. Your father is very different from you."

"Yeah."

I looked at him. He was back to his stoic self. Was I supposed to be relieved? Lately, he's fluctuated a lot. Sometimes he's teasing me, and other times he's not so talkative. I smiled to myself.

"What are you thinking about?"

"Hanazawa Rui, you're a weirdo."

insert divider here

"Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday dear (I was the only one who sang Hanazawa here) Rui
Happy birthday to you!"

So everyone's here singing to Hanazawa Rui, and even though he looks deadpan as usual, his eyes look a little more lively.

"Ooo Doumyouji, isn't that a beautiful cake?"

"Pah! It's average. I could buy you a better one."

Doumyouji. My head is starting to hurt. Why did he have to bring her here?

"Tsukasa, why is she here?" Rui's eyes turned to slits.

"Rui, what do you have against Umi anyway? You're always so damn rude around her. Geez."

He asked again, "Why did you bring her? She's not one of us."

This time Doumyouji's eyes turned to slits, "She's my girlfriend. That automatically makes her one of us. Besides, what about your woman?"

"Eheh... let's not get too testy about this now. It's our boy Rui's birthday!" Trust Mimasaka to lighten the mood.

"Yeah, bring out the liquor!" Trust Nishikado to think about alcohol.

My eyes widened. He still thought of me as Rui's woman. That made me a little sad and a little angry. But more than anything, I was thoroughly disappointed.

"Get drunk yourselves. I'm going out to get some air. Makino, you're coming with me."

Hanazawa Rui walked towards me and grabbed my wrist. He practically dragged me out into his jungle of a backyard. He knew exactly how I felt.

I looked up at the canopy of stars.

"Oh I almost forgot, here," I handed him my present.

"What is this?"

"Open it and find out stupid."

He carefully took out the tissue paper. Not at all like Doumyouji who would just tear it apart... Ugh, why did I think of him?

He reached in to pull out my present. A picture in a frame that I made myself!

"Did you make this out of popsicle sticks?" He jabbed at the frame.

"Yeah, I don't have the money to waste on a nice frame."

"It's ok. This is very professional."

"Stop sounding so amused!"

He looked at the picture. It was us.

"Remember that day after Valentine's when we were walking back to my house? Yeah, that was then."

He traced his hands over my face. My arm was linked through his, and I had a huge smile. Hanazawa Rui only had a hint of a smile, and his eyes seemed amused. Yeah, it was us.

"Er, Hanazawa Rui, would you mind giving me back the gift bag and tissue paper? I'm going to have to reuse it you know."

He looked at me from the side.

"I'm very happy."

Why... did my heart beat so fast?

He brought me out here because he knew I didn't want to see Doumyouji like that. He might be the only one that understands this pain. Unrequited love is a pretty darn good stab to the heart. My heart doesn't understand how to recuperate. Stupid, stupid heart. I need a surgeon. I glanced at him wistfully.

"Was it that obvious? My face?"

"You're not that hard to read."

He knew what I was talking about.

"You're hurting a lot right? There was a time when you supported me. So... I'm here with you."

Even if his hands lacked warmth, his eyes were very gentle.

"Don't worry. It's not an obligation. I'm happy being your support."

Stop it.

"Why are you being so nice?" My voice was barely a whisper.

He grinned, "Didn't I tell you before? It's probably love."

No, no, no. I had to tell him.

"Hanazawa Rui... I'm sorry, but I just can't forget about him. You've been more than wonderful. But I'm using you! So, stop being so nice to me."

All of a sudden, my knees felt more weak than ever. I wanted to collapse. Topple over. Spill out my heart so that it shatters on the floor.

"Stop being so nice to me..."

At a time like this... my heart can't take it.

"Give yourself a break Makino. Stop thinking so hard. I don't care if you're using me. I want you to use me."

Damn it.

"I just want to be by your side."

Hanazawa... Rui.

insert divider here

Author's Notes: I apologize DEEPLY for the two year gap. The format of the story is a little weird. I couldn't get the indents to work! The wavy thing I usually use as a divider wouldn't show up either. I'm hoping to fix this when I go back to the states. (Yeah I'm out of the country right now.) Do any of you feel like I'm using too many ellipses? For some reason, they feel right with Hana Yori Dango. :) Sorry if you're one of those people that don't like them! Don't expect me to update too often. Ehh, this chapter was shorter than the last. But there's more dialogue I think. Anyway, feed me your thoughts.