Swing Life Away
I wrote this fic for a friend of mine as my way of saying thank you. Chi, this is for you.
Disclaimer: I do not own Fruits basket or the band "Rise Against" Or there song "Swing Life Away"
Warnings: None
Pairings: Slight mention of a Kyo x Tohru
Note: The text in bold italics is the song lyrics
Swing Life Away
Am I loud and clear, or am I breaking up
Am I still your charm, or am I just bad luck
Are we getting closer, or are we just getting more lost
Tohru looked around the room one last time to check and make sure she had everything she needed. Seeing that she had everything she needed she shut her suitcase and placed it by the door. She then got into her bed and rested her head on the pillow. As she laid there she thought about the days ahead. It was summer time and Uo, Hana, and herself had saved enough money and were all going on an out of country vacation. Even though she was excited about the trip, it meant that she would be leaving the Shoma house for about 3 months.
I'll show you mine if you show me yours first
Let's compare scars, I'll tell you whose is worse
As hard as she tried she couldn't stop thinking about how much she was going to miss Yuki, Kyo, and the others. The more she thought about it, the closer it came to bringing her to tears. She quickly tried to think of a happier memory. Her thoughts drifted back to earlier when Shigure, Yuki, and Kyo threw her a surprise goodbye party. Haru, Momiji, Kagura, Ritsu, Hatori, Ayame, Hiro, and Kisa had also come over to wish her farewell...
Let's unwrite these pages
and replace them with our own words
It had certainly been a party to remember. For once there was no fighting or arguing, in fact it was quiet the opposite. Everyone got along, including Yuki and Kyo. They all chatted with one another and reminisced about the good times they've shared with Tohru. And if that wasn't enough, earlier that day Kyo, Yuki, and the others helped make a huge dinner to cap off the night.
We live on front porches and swing life away,
We get by just fine here on minimum wage
But it was after the dinner that stuck out most in Tohru's mind. After they had all eaten, the family led Tohru to the living room and gave her a going away present. It was a photo album that had pictures of her with various members of the Sohma family. Yuki and Kyo told her that they wish they could join her on the trip, but at least with this way it would feel like they'd be with her the whole time.
If love is a labor I'll slave till the end,
I won't cross these streets until you hold my hand
Tohru smiled as she remember what she did after receiving the gift. She was so overcome with emotion that she ran over to Yuki and Kyo and gave them both a big hug. Of course afterwards her face was filled with embarrassment as she quickly remembered why the Shomas weren't made for hugging. The party lasted for a few more hours, then one by one everyone wished Tohru good bye and left.
I've been here so long, I think that it's time to move
The winter's so cold, summer's over too soon
Let's pack our bags and settle down where palm trees grow
Tohru sat up from here bed and sighed. Yuki, Kyo and Shigure had volunteered to clean up so that she could get some extra sleep for tomorrow. But for some reason she found that going to sleep was impossible. She looked over where her luggage was packed shrugged her shoulders.
"Oh well, I'll just get some sleep on the plane."
I've got some friends, some that I hardly know
But we've had some times, I wouldn't trade for the world
We chase these days down with talks of the places that we will go
Tohru walked over to her luggage and began rummaging through it. She pulled out the photo album and laid back down on the bed. She had planned to look through it during the flight, since she hadn't had time to do that earlier. But seeing as how she would be asleep on the plane, she decided to look through it now. She opened the album up and began looking over each photo. She giggled a little as she came across a picture of Yuki.
We live on front porches and swing life away,
We get by just fine here on minimum wage
He was just standing in the halls at there like he normally did, except for the fact that he was wearing a dress. She remembered that it was a rice ball sale day at school, and her class had come up with an idea to sell more rice balls than any other class. Yuki wasn't the happiest with it but in truth, it actually looked really good on him. But every time she remembered it she couldn't help but laugh a little. In any case though the idea worked, their class sold more rice balls than anyone else.
If love is a labor I'll slave till the end,
I won't cross these streets until you hold my hand
Until you hold my hand
She flipped through some more pages, occasionally stopping over certain pictures to reminisce over it. Most were just quick snapshots of there day to day life. Pictures of them at school, around the house, there was even one of her and Momiji at work. There were also pictures of them relaxing at the lake and at the hot springs. She was close to the last page when she saw a photo that brought a smile came to her face; it was a picture of the whole family standing together outside the house. Judging by the condition of the photo it was taken just before the party. She sniffed and held the album tighter as she tried to fight back the tears coming to here eyes.
I'll show you mine if you show me yours first
Let's compare scars, I'll tell you whose is worse
Let's unwrite these pages and replace them with our own words
But the more she looked at the photo, the harder it became push them away. She quickly turned the page and closed her eyes. She took a few deep breaths and looked over at the rest of the pictures. When she came to the last photo she felt her eyes soften. It was a picture she remembered taking of Kyo. He was just sitting on the roof of the house, gazing at the stars like he'd done almost every night.
We live on front porches and swing life away,
We get by just fine here on minimum wage
As far as she could remember she had always felt a stronger connection with Kyo than anyone else in the family. In truth she had always had a strong sense of sympathy for the cat. But with Kyo she felt like no matter what was going on in her life, she could always share her problems with him. She felt that she could always be open with him. She felt that as long as she was with him, everything would be alright.
If love is a labor I'll slave till the end,
I won't cross these streets until you hold my hand
As she gazed at the photo, she felt a strange feeling begin to swell inside her. She remembered first feeling that way after Kyo showed her his true form. And ever since that day, the feeling inside her became stronger and stronger. She didn't know what it was, but what she did know that out of all the friends she had made, she was going to miss him the most.
Swing life away
Swing life away
Swing life away
Swing life away
She took one last look at the picture and closed the album. She put the book back in her suitcase and turned off the lights. She then walked over to her bed and laid down. As she rested her head against the pillow she felt tears run down her cheek. But these were not tears of sadness, of joy. If she had learned anything tonight it was how truly lucky she was to have the Shomas in her life. She would miss them all but she knew that once she'd return, it would be like she had never left at all. And she wouldn't have it any other way. She smiled and closed her eyes as she drifted off to sleep.
The End
Well I hoped you liked the story, even if you didn't, that's okay. Anywho, sorry again about the slow updates. If you need a reason then read my profile, hopefully that will explain everything for you. Anyways till next time,
Peace!