Authoress here.

I'm afraid I may have spoiled everyone with my last two, highly-quick updates. Now that school has come back in full swing (full-er swing, finals are looming) I can't make any promises as to updates. But thank you all for reading!

(Note: sc means 'scene change.' Than you for your time.)

No Mountain High Enough
Chapter Five: Imagine That

The day had been perfect, Mizuki reflected, and was coming to a perfect close.

The mountain trek had been rigorous, yes, but not as hard as she had expected. After they could no longer see the starting line, their course had run across a particularly rocky hill. There was a narrow path cloven into what looked like a cliff-face, and the Junk Boys were forced into single-file lines. Ever practical, Sekime suggested they use the climbing rope given to their team by the officials to rope each other together, in case someone lost their balance.

However a good idea, the rope had proven unnecessary, each member making their way carefully and swiftly. Once across the cliff-face, the course evened out into a gentle slope through a pine grove. The smell had reminded Mizuki forcefully of Christmas, and to her delight, they took a short lunch break there.

One stream-crossing later, they found themselves in a meadow that stretched out for another good three miles.

Nakatsu had voiced the general opinion when they reached the meadow. "I thought this course was supposed to be really hard. This isn't bad at all."

Sano nodded. "Yeah, it does seem easy. But I'll bet that it gets harder further up and further in."

"Oh, don't rain on our parade, Sano!" Noe had said brightly. "We've gone so far already today! What was our daily goal?"

"At least eight miles," Sano responded immediately. "But that was factoring difficult terrain and weather."

"And I'll bet," Mizuki had said, "That we've gone at least that, if not more."

And now, Mizuki thought happily, returningto the present,I'm sitting by Sano's side at a campfire, and it's a beautiful, cool night with a big, full moon.

Across from her, Nakatsu had impaled a hotdog onto the end of a sharpened stick. He was slowly turning it over the dancing orange flames, getting it to the perfect crispness and mesquite, campfire flavor. Noe, on the other hand, had stuck his hotdog in the center of the flames and let it catch on fire. After letting it burn for a couple of seconds he blew it out, announcing proudly; "It's done!"

The mountain air had cooled substantially after the sun descended behind the distant peaks. Mizuki shivered, and rummaged in her bag to find the jacket she had had ready to pack. It rested neatly near the top, folded carefully by Sano.

Sano noticed her, and grinned. "Whoa, you found that fast!"

Mizuki flicked a twig at him. "Be quiet."

"And look, it's all nicely folded, and there's no creases, no wrinkles-" Sano was cut off as another twig bounced off of his forehead. "Throwing foliage, Ashiya, not very gentlemanlike of you!"

Mizuki stuck her tongue out at her roommate. "We're in the wilderness, roughing it. I'm not gonna be gentlemanly!"

As if to accentuate Mizuki's point, Nakatsu slid his hotdog off of the stick and bit the better part of it off. His mouth full of the crisp, hot meat, he took a swig from his water canteen. Bits of partially-chewed meat and water ran over his chin.

"Nakatsu, that's just disgusting." Kayashima took a dainty nibble out of the hard-tack bread he held.

"Wha'?" Nakatsu looked at his roommate in bewilderment. "Ish no' 'isgushin.'"

His expression sent Mizuki into a fit of giggles. "See, Sano? Camping trip manners rule!"

Sano sighed in mock-despair. "Will I ever win?"

Five voices simultaneously called "NO!"

After the general laughter had subsided, Kayashima checked his wrist watch. "It's nine thirty, so let's get to sleep."

"Who's setting the alarm?" Nakatsu wanted to know.

"Me." Sano pulled the battery-operated timer from his backpack and set it quickly. "We'll be up around six."

Groaning at the ungodly hour Sano had set for them, the Junk Boys spread their sleeping bags around the dying fire. The stars were unbelievingly bright above them, and the night-time noises of the meadow were gentle and soothing. Out of the gathering darkness Mizuki spoke in a soft, sleepy voice. "G'night, guys."

sc

Sano shook Mizuki awake gently. "Ashiya. Ashiya!"

The sleeping beauty cracked open one eye. "Is it morning already?"

"No. We have to talk."

Wordlessly, Mizuki rose from her sleeping bag. Immediately Sano was aware of her sleeping attire; loose sweatpants that rested gently on the swell of her hips, and a similarly baggy, too-short tee shirt. Whatever restrictive garment she normally wore was missing, and in the moonlight Sano could clearly see the gentle curve of her chest. Peeking out in the gap between her shirt and her sweatpants was a toned stomach, her small belly button surrounded by smooth, pale skin.

Sano led her a good distance away from the others, until the general snoring was a quiet background noise. Then he turned and faced her.

"You're not being careful enough, Ashiya."

Her eyes grew round, and her breathing hitched. "W-What do you mean, Sano?"

"The others aren't so stupid that they won't find out." Sano ran a restless hand through his hair. "That's the reason I didn't want you on this trip in the first place."

"Sano, I don't understand what you're saying." Mizuki crossed her arms against the chill mountain air. "What do you mean, the others will find out? Why didn't you want me to come?"

Her voice was slightly accusatory, and Sano mentally kicked himself. "It's not that I don't think you can handle the race, it's… because of your secret."

The look on her face was clearly one of shock. Her mouth dropped open, and her eyes were round with apprehension. "What s-secret are you talking about, Sano?"

Almost unconscious of his actions, Sano reached out to smooth her cheek with his palm. "Mizuki…" His lips caressed her first name. "I've known."

"Sano..." Her voice was hardly more than a whisper. He leaned towards her, thinking that he could hear her better in a closer proximity, but syntripical motion propelled him past the boundary of politeness and into the zone of passion. It was but a hair's breadth between their lips when Sano stopped; hesitating, dreading and anticipating all in one terrifying moment. Then Mizuki pushed forewords; needy, breathless, frightened, thrilled.

The kiss was heart-stopping. He'd never known how soft a pair of lips could be until he had kissed Mizuki. The moisture, the heat- Sano was a stranger and desperately wanted to know more. He wanted to know everything, and in that moment, he knew Mizuki wanted to learn as much as he did.

A loud sound jerked them apart. An owl winged its way overhead, hooting loudly into the night sky. Mizuki sent Sano a terrified look before glancing back at the campsite, where their teammates were stirring. She darted towards them, and Sano reached out to catch her hand, and-

"GAH! Fucken' fire…"

Sano jerked awake, hand stretched out in front of him. His breath was coming quick and shallow, and he let his hand drop, feeling disappointed. Across fromhim,Nakatsu was swearing slightly, having rolled too close to the embers causing his sleeping bag to be singed.

"Y'all right, Nakatsu?" A sleepy-eyed Kayashima half-sat up to peer at Nakatsu.

"Yeah, fine." The soccer player grunted back, beating at his slightly-smoking sleeping bag. Noe and Sekime were stirring as well, groaning and rubbing their eyes.

"Morning, already?' Noe mumbled. The words brought back the memory of Sano's dream abruptly and he blushed, blessing the darkness.

"Not yet, Noe." Sekime checked his glowing watch face. "It's four-thirty."

"Aw, hell." Nakatsu cursed a final time before shuffling away from the glowing embers. "See y'in two-some hours."

"One and a half, actually."

"Shut it, Kayashima."

"G'night, everyone."

Sano glanced at Mizuki. She had slept soundly through the disturbance, clutching her sleeping bag up to her chin and snoring softly. Sano felt himself smiling, and, somewhat disappointed, he dropped back off to sleep.

sc

As dawn streaked the eastern sky, a quiet snigger broke the stillness of the morning.

"Shuddap, you idiots." A voice growled. "We don't know if the other teams are awake yet."

"It's five-fifteen. Who else would be awake this early?"

"I don't care what you think, but if we get caught doin' this, we're screwed. C'mon, get your pocketknife and help me cut this."

"Fine, fine." The second voice grumbled, and soon two knives were cutting through the thick cording of the rope-and-plank bridge. Beneath it was a black crevice, a crack in the bones of the mountain. It ran deep and long, the rope bridge being the only passage over it for at least a mile. Forests grew right up to the edge of it, and the thickets looked menacing and impenetrable.

With a snap, the robes coiled and jumped loose, stands cut thoroughly. The planks, strung together by the ropes, fell and clattered noiselessly on the other side of the gap. The two who had cut the ropes stood, admiring their handiwork. Now instead of a quick crossing, there was a twelve-foot gap in the middle of the path.

"You sure other teams will be crossing this way?"

"Yeah. Remember that offshoot course that intersected with ours late last night? If I remember the startups, both Tokyo and Osaka, along with another school, were to our left. Since the paths ain't crossed before now, they're probably going to get stuck here."

"Okay, if you two are done, let's get going, quick." A third voice urged, sounding nervous. "I still don't like this idea."

"You'll like it well enough when they're handing you a check for college." A fourth person snapped. "But you're right; let's scram."

"Alright. Let's go." The first voice sounded smug. "An' don't worry, Kaechi, no one will know. That bridge was old; some of the planks were rotten, remember? Those ropes cut pretty easily, so it could have been anything. And they'll be okay, they'll just have to radio for help, and then they're DQ-ed."

"Fine, if you say so, Tsubasa."

Tsubasa smirked, glancing back at the gap. "And I do say so. C'mon, we still got three other teams to beat."

End Chapter

Authoress here.

CLIFFY! HA HA, WHADDYA THINK ABOUT THAT?

No, seriously, what do you think? Did you believe Tsubasa (an entirely fictional character, I assure you) could sink that low?

Did you believe that poor, hormonal Sano's dream was true?

Tell me! Hope you all enjoyed, I'll try to update again ASAP. (Grins) Now it's gettin' good…

Authoress OUT.