When Dreams Come True
NOTE: REPLY TO ANARCHY SKY- thanks for the song, learn to be lonely. I listened to it and really imagined Soujiro standing out in the rain crying to himself. All in all, the song, 'tears in heaven' wasn't exactly meant for Soujiro himself. It was more for him family who had already passed away and Soujiro was just thinking to himself that he wasn't worthy blah, blah, blah. Anyway, I just wanted to clear that up.
REPLY TO LAU – Thanks for the long review, those are my favorites. Anyways I just wanted to apologize for some of my confusing sentences in previous chapters. And about the Kamatari thing, when she says, "If I still liked men and I were you," I meant to write it more like, "If I were you and I liked men," stating that if he were Soujiro and he liked guys, blah, blah, blah. I just wanted to clear that up too. And what you said, about you liking the earilier chapters, I like them more too. It's just the story at its basic form. I have to admit, I have been getting more and more sloppy in later chapters because I can't remember what certain things go on, (I almost forgot about Kamatari!), but hopefully, my story can once regain what lightness about it, it once had.
But you must be the reason,
And just what I need.
For every day of the season,
Perfection indeed.
Chapter fifteen – Bigger Than Everything
Misao never really was the same. Ever since Aoshi came with Minako to the Aoiya, things had been different. Less crashing noises had occurred and there weren't as many squabbles going on. But what worried Soujiro the most was that he and Misao were spending less and less time together. And whenever he saw Misao's heartbroken face, his heart tugged at him just that much more.
"Sou-chan, come over here!"
Omasu had called him over to help him with something, "Sou-chan, can you do me a favor?" He nodded, "Could you go to the market and pick up some miso? We seem to be all out."
"Sure."
She walled over to a cupboard and opened the cabinet door to retrieve a bucket, "WoaAHH!"
Poor Omasu, so many things fell on top of her head.
"Oww…"
Soujiro hopped over, "Are you alright, Ms. Omasu?" he asked with a hint of a chuckle.
"Yeah…," she replied while rubbing her head gently.
Misao then passed the entrance of the room to go outside, "Mii-chan! Wait! Come back here!"
Misao walked back to the room, "What?"
Omasu stood up with the help of Soujiro, "Misao, why don't you go to the market with Sou and help him get some miso? You can show him which one's best!"
Misao shifted her eyes as if she were unwilling, "Fine…"
Soujiro understood Misao's anguish, so he argued, "No, it's alright Ms. Omasu. I can go alone. If you just tell me the right vendor-,"
"Nope," Okon walked into the room, "Misao has to go and besides, she hasn't been outside for some time."
Misao leaned against the doorframe, "Only for a couple of days…"
Soujiro shook his hands from side to side, "No! It's really alright! I can go on my own!"
As soon as he opened his eyes, Okon was glaring at him so hard, he felt like she was about to kill him at any given moment, "On second thought…"
Her expression changed, "That's a good boy! Now be home by dinner! Wouldn't want anything bad to happen!" she chimed while she pushed Misao and Soujiro out of the building.
As soon as they were out, Okon turned around to shut the door behind her. But Soujiro called out, "But don't you need the miso for that reason?"
BANG
When Okon wanted things to go her way and for you to shut up, she would make sure she got what she wanted.
And she also threw a bucket at his head.
"Ow, my head," Soujiro whimpered as Okon slammed the door behind her.
"Are you ok, Soujiro?"
"Yeah."
He stood up and began walking with her.
Well that was different, he wasn't used to be called 'Soujiro' by Misao. Maybe that just showed how far apart they had grown in the last few days. But he didn't want to mention anything to make Misao feel uncomfortable.
He never wanted Misao to feel uncomfortable around him.
But now, she was.
For some reason, Misao was hating the sun and the fresh breeze. Nothing was good to her anymore, nothing had the same shine it used to have. And also worst of all, Soujiro wasn't talking to her. She thought it was because he saw what a wreck she was after Aoshi arrived with Minako, but she never would've guessed that Soujiro didn't want to talk to her because he thought she didn't want him to.
Communication goes a long way, you know.
"Um, Misao?"
"Hm?"
But if he was going nowhere, Soujiro was willing to take the risk.
"I'm sorry about Aoshi."
Crap. Maybe he really did make the wrong choice.
Misao stopped walking and kind of just stood there. Soujiro turned around and realized what he had just done, and he felt horrible. Well, actually he didn't know what he had done so he just hoped Misao wouldn't hit him.
But he offered anyways, "You can hit me if you want to…"
He didn't really know why he said it, but for some reason, any reason, he wanted to take Misao to a better place. Or at least release her spirit from the heavy burden she had undertaken.
"I'm not going to hit you Sou."
Sou…
Sou.
He felt better.
"I would never hit you! Why on earth would you ask me to do such a thing!"
Even sight the sight was kind of scary…
"Geez I can't believe you…don't you know me!"
…he kept on smiling his real smile…
"And you! You haven't been talking to me for like, ever! What wrong! Why won't you tell me!"
…because he knew that Misao was happy.
"I care about you Sou! Honestly! You can tell me!"
And since Misao was happy…
"Is it me! It has to be me! I'm soo sorry!"
…he was happy.
"It's not you Misao."
But for what reason was he so happy?
He stopped yelling and shaking her fists, "What?"
"It's not you that's making me not talk to you," he paused for a moment. He didn't want to tell her that the reason he wasn't talking to her was because he thought she didn't because then it might seem like it was her fault. So he changed it up a little, "I just didn't know what to say sometimes…"
She stood up straight and looked Soujiro directly in the eye. There was silence for a few moments until Misao said, "I'm sorry I made you feel uncomfortable around me."
Soujiro's smile dropped a little, 'Crap! That's what I was trying to avoid!'
"No! Misao! Not at all! I just-,"
She looked down, she seemed sad again. Great. Back to square one.
"I just can't make anyone feel comfortable around me. There must be something wrong with me."
Misao admitted to herself, she had never felt so lonely in her life. She questioned if even her own grandfather appreciated her.
And now, she had even turned away Sou…
But in a way, she didn't.
"Misao…"
She just brought each other closer.
She looked up to see Soujiro standing just a couple inches away from herself. At first she was a little uneasy, but she seemed it like it somewhat. He took her chin and lifted it up so she had no choice but to look into his eyes, "I feel perfectly comfortable around you."
She couldn't move.
And neither did he.
He wanted to say something else, but nothing came out. He wanted to step away, but something told him not to. The tug from his heart was gone, but there was a new tug at the bottom of his stomach.
'If I just look at you enough…'"Sou…?"
He stepped away.
And smiled. But this smile was similar to the one he would use several months ago. The mask, as you may call it. But he didn't want to express what he was feeling. He was afraid that if he did, Misao would leave him again. And besides, he didn't even exactly know what he was feeling. All he knew was that everything wasn't enough for Misao.
He wanted to be more than everything to her.
Because she now, was more that everything to him…
Too bad he didn't exactly understand at all yet.
All he knew for sure was that Omasu needed miso and he and Misao had to get it for her.
Poor Sou.
About three days passed…
Misao…
She was always on his mind. Her smile, always repeating itself again and again. She was always there to help him, to comfort him. She never failed to help him heal. But even though Soujiro felt she was an angel compared to himself, her eyes always managed to bring her back down to earth. She had her own problems too. And her imperfections made her seem even more perfect. Now that he thought about it, they were kind of alike, they were both imperfect.
But when he put it that way, he could relate to the entire world. Everybody had their own imperfections. Everyone had their own problems. No one was all the way sure about things. No one was positive everything would turn out to be alright.
Maybe he wasn't so alone after all?
"Minako-dono?"
There was no answer. For some time now, Soujiro had been thinking if he should really ask Aoshi's girlfriend to read his eyes. It would be an awkward question, but hopefully she'd understand.
At the moment, he was looking for her.
It was strange really, he had never been this nervous or embarrassed before, which was odd because of the whole Tenken thing.
"Minako-dono? I need to speak with you…"
But maybe it was a different type of nervousness or hesitation.
"Mina-san…?"
Because this feeling was deep, deep down. Farther down than any sword could ever possibly reach.
"Yes Sou-chan?"
He was surprised because the voice had come from behind him, "Oh Minako-dono, you scared me…"
She chuckled a little, "I couldn't help but respond to what you just called me, my aunt and uncle used to call me that," she tilted her head, "Anyways, I was expecting you, for what reason are you here for?"
The feeling grew.
"Well…"
A lot.
But something she had said threw him off-guard, "Wait, what do you mean you were expecting me?"
She brought her hand to her face, "I meant exactly what I said, I knew you were coming. Does that surprise you?"
He couldn't really respond. His mind was ready to ask her a deep question, but on the other hand, she had just brought something up that he really would like to know about.
Crap.
He scratched his had while she giggled, "I'm sorry, I must've thrown you off track. So you wanted me to examine your eyes, right?"
"Yes…Wait, huh?"
Her gleeful smile remained on her face, "I never told you that…did I?"
She shook her head while he asked, "Did you 'read my eyes?'"
Another shake, "Then what?"
She giggled once more, "Sou-chan, I didn't even have to read your eyes to know why you came up here. I just used common knowledge that you would have no other reason to see me than to let me examine your eyes for you so you can figure out a little more about yourself. Right?"
Wow. That was pretty sweet.
"Um, yeah…"
And scary.
She smiled and then tilted her head, "But should I? I don't know. To use my special ability for the benefit of others…hmm, I need to think about that one for a moment."
His head dropped a little. She was playing games with him. Like she was pretending to be a greedy little…
"I got it!"
He lifted his head in alarm, "Got what?"
"I know what you can do for me in return of me examining your eyes!" Oh boy. Hopefully this sort of thing wouldn't turn out like the whole Mr. Shishio scenario…, "How about you go pick me a bouquet of flowers. But they all have to be different. No two can be the same. Pick about…fifteen flowers how about? When your done, come back and give the flowers to me."
…Really?
"And make sure, if anyone asks you what the flowers are for, tell them it's for someone special."
Seemed…easy.
"That's all?"
"Yup."
"Serious?"
"Uh huh!"
"Oh…"
Just as Soujiro was about to leave the room, Minako stopped him, "Sou-chan, how come you didn't call me Ms. Minako like you usually call other people?"
He stopped. Did he really say something other than Ms. or Mr.?
He didn't really know what to answer. And Maniako caught it, "Actually never mind. You just probably wanted to try something new, right? I mean, you haven't really used those terms before, have you?"
He nodded and realized what she was doing for him.
She was doing probably what she had done to Aoshi. By asking him questions did she push Aoshi to think more about who he was. By making him think did he realize more and more. And by answering for him did Aoshi feel less inclined to admit his wrongdoings. Minako had a very interesting way of approaching things. As if she were a star from above, she watched under the cover of commonality. Maybe she stuck out a little more? Maybe she was like the star to the north that always seemed to shine brighter than all the rest.
Maybe she was one of those guides, one of those people who introduce you to life changing events.
Or maybe she was just messing with him.
Soujiro then smiled honestly and shot out of the room as fast as he could. It was so easy! And in a matter of no time, he would know what he was and what his deal was too.
She was quite content as well. She was very happy to know that Soujiro really was everything that Aoshi had believed he was, even though he might never have actually mentioned it. But also she could sense the change in his voice. The change of heart and soul. He must be washing away all bad thoughts. Or, were they gone already? Had someone already fixed what needed to be mended?
Only he knows.
And when he was gone, Minako smirked to herself.
Her grandmother had taught her well in the art of matchmaking.
Soujiro was now out picking flowers, which was making him feel a little more feminine. But he really wanted to know how to be there for Misao the way she had helped him. So he thought to himself, that every flower he picked, it was another smile that Misao would give him.
He couldn't wait.
And he had to admit, finding 15 different flowers was actually kind of hard in the winter.
Wow.
He hadn't even thought of that. There wouldn't be any flowers left for Misao. Now he would never know how to make her happy!
He leant over the bridge and reminisced to himself. It had already been a couple of months since the day he met Misao. And it was quite interesting, he had managed to obtain a friend in such a short period of time. Maybe that was just her doing, maybe she was a truly good person.
But there was something about her. Something that made him smile every time she did. Something that made him stay whenever he tried to leave.
Something…
But what was the something?
Just then he pictured Misao trying to think of something hard while pounding her fists against her head as if that would help her solve the problem. He smiled inwardly and chuckled. It was always nice to think of her.
She really was something special.
He looked down to the river below him and to his surprise, saw a patch of flowers growing to the side of the flowing waters. He ran around the bridge and down the hill and landed near the flowers. He was lucky. They must be the last of the season.
At the Aoiya…
Minako stood on the balcony of the Aoiya. Her hands entwined with each other on her lap. At the moment, she was thinking of Aoshi and how she had seen so little of him lately. Just then, Okon walked out of the building.
"Hello Minako-sama, why are you standing out here in the cold?"
The young woman turned, "Oh, I was just enjoying the view. And you, Ms. Okon?"
"Same I guess," Okon walked over to the edge and gazed off into the distance, "You know, you are really important to Aoshi, I can tell."
Minako was caught a little off guard but quickly recovered, "And what do you mean by that?"
"I mean," Okon began, "You helped him in ways I never dreamed could be accomplished. He seems so peaceful sometimes. You can really see it in his eyes when he's all alone."
Minako nodded, "But Okon-dono, wasn't it you who started him off? He told me of how you would say such wise things that made him realize what he never thought could be. You started him off. I just finished. There wouldn't be a finish without a beginning."
Okon smiled. She never really looked at things that way, "What about Sou-chan? Are you finishing him off too?"
She shook her head, "With him, only I'm the middle. Only he and Misao together can finish the job."
"Are you saying…?"
Minako giggled, "In a way I guess. But he just needs to mend the scars that formed so many years ago. But like the scars, not everything will just completely vanish. He might be destined to always look for something that isn't there.
Okon's eyes lowered, "Everything isn't enough for that boy. Maybe he just doesn't understand that you can't always answer all of the questions. I've known so many people who've wasted away their lives looking for nothing."
They heard a noise and both looked down. It was Misao greeting Soujiro who was holding the flowers.
Minako spoke, "Or maybe he just needs someone to translate our words into Soujiro-nese."
Down below…
"Sou, what are all those flowers for?"
Soujiro looked up to find Misao standing in the doorway with a question on her face. He tried to remember what Okon had told him to say, "Well…um, it's…"
"It's what?"
"…It's a present!"
She wanted more information, "For who?"
'What'd she say!'
"Oh! Someone special! That's who it's for."
"Oh."
She stepped to the side as Soujiro walked past her. In a way, she kind of wished those flowers were for her. But, why was she thinking that in the first place…?
"Minako-dono!" Soujiro called out as he traveled up the stairs. He saw her head pop out of a doorway as she motioned him to come towards her, "Shh, come this way."
He followed her motion and entered the room behind her, "Set the flowers on the bed and follow me." He did so, and followed her out onto the balcony, which she stood on earlier.
There were two pillows that were set about a foot and a half apart from each other. She led him to one pillow while she sat on the other and held out her hands, palms up, "Now give me your hands and look into your eyes. Now let me look into your eyes."
He set his hands on hers and stared into the deep black orbs that belonged to Minako. She just stayed in place for a while before she removed her hands and let Soujiro's hands falter a little, "Relax."
She then placed both of her hands on his cheeks and kept on staring. And it was funny too, he hadn't felt the least bit uncomfortable while they sat there for a few minutes. Until Minako spoke, "Well, I see things I didn't really expect to see."
His head perked up a little, "What do you mean?"
Minako brought her hand to her face and said, while she rubbed her eye, "Well, I saw Misao."
Soujiro's questionable face grew even more confused, "Misao? What's she got to do with me?"
Minako blinked a few times before answering, "Well, apparently everything."
She sat up and walked back through the door back into the building, "Wait! Minako-sama!" Soujiro scrambled after her and stopped right behind her, "Mianko, you have to tell me the rest of what you saw! Please! I have to know!"
Minako turned around and smiled, "I did, I saw Misao, a few stars, and a fish."
Huh?
"Stars and a fish!"
She nodded gleefully, "Fishy!"
He kind of stared after her as she giggled a little.
"But…," He had a hard time speaking while he tried to recover from the amazement he had just received, "But, is there any certain meaning?"
She rolled her eyes, "Well YEAH it does. The stars mean something big is going to happen in your life, and the fish represents how easily it can get away from you. I think the 'it' is Misao…"
She looked back to Soujiro's face that was far beyond confusion, "What?"
She sighed in exasperation, Ok, I'll try to explain as best I can…"
She took a deep breath and as soon as she was about to speak…
BAM.
She shut the door in his face.
Minako was obviously a lot like Okon. Except different. If that made sense.
He also questioned how Aoshi loved Minako the way he did. He made him think for a moment. Minako first appeared to be a calm lady, where actually she had a quick wit and she was fast to talk. It was like she had a mask on…
…a mask.
Maybe many people did that, and maybe Minako understood what she does. Because in a way, it just adds to the mystery about her. Maybe that's why Aoshi was so attracted to her.
'Maybe that's why Soujiro was so attracted to Misao…'But something was still up.
He didn't know what he was thinking, he didn't know what he was supposed to think. The whole world was left open. She hadn't really answered any of her questions, and he felt like he was left in a haze.
'But maybe that's just the Minako-syndrome taking effect…' he apparently made up a new disease for Minako.
How pleasant.
"Sou?"
It was Misao. She walked out of the building while holding a bouquet of flowers that looked extremely similar.
Wait, they were the ones he had picked for Minako earlier. Wait! Had he been in Misao's room when Minako did her reading? They had!
Soujiro panicked a little, "Yes Misao?"
She glanced at the flowers in front of her, "What are these?"
He stood up and walked over to her, "They look like an assortment of flowers to me."
"Sou, I'm not dumb," she replied with an attitude added to her voice, "It's just…I thought you said they were for someone special."
Maybe those flowers really were for Misao. Because Minako didn't really accept them like she really wanted them. Had Minako…Had Minako tried to set them up?
"Well," Soujiro looked down to the flowers as well while taking a step forward, "you're someone special, aren't you?"
Her head shot up. Once again, Soujiro was a little closer then usual, "Well, not like that!"
He tilted his head, "No?"
"No!" She exclaimed while her cheeks began to redden.
He set his hand on her cheek, "Misao, you might not be the certain someone special, but you are indeed someone special."
She looked up and met eyes with him. Once she did, she looked right back down while smiling, "You're so cute sometimes, Sou."
"Cute?"
She giggled, "Yeah, cute."
After that, Soujiro saw Misao in a different light. A different bright light shone upon her and this time, Soujiro also shared the spotlight. A two-person act?
Maybe.
End.
No notes cause it's kind of late and the ending was a little rushed. I might redo the ending but hey, my mom's pissed.
Lol!
naiLAUG