A/N: Importanto! I LOVE YOU READERS!(throwing confetti all over) I'm so happy with sooooooo many readers. (sob) THANK YOU MEKIA ALSO for being my no. 1 reviewer. Hmm… some of you must be thinking of what is 'the black box' that Resha loves so much have to do with anything? So, find out in this chapter!(waves like crazy)
Chapter 18: Secrets within The Box
Two days later, in Ningenkai
'First place! I can hardly believe it. Man, Yomi's son was strong!' Yuusuke grumbled. He almost won but luck wasn't by his side that time.
'Don't be sad. It was an exciting match though.' Resha soothed. Yuusuke, Kuwabara and Ranma groaned.
'Hey Resha. You and Kurama are back together? Huh? Huh?' Kuwabara asked bouncily, eyes shining.
'What do you mean "back together"?' Resha asked in annoyance.
'Aww, don't try to lie. Anyone could see you two had stopped fighting.' Yuusuke grinned, slinging an arm around her shoulders teasingly.
Resha grunted. 'So?' she said nonchalantly.
Ranma rolled his eyes and looked at Kurama who was just being quiet. 'Don't you have anything to say, Kurama?'
'No comments.' Kurama replied coolly.
'Remind me, why are we here again?' Kuwabara asked looking around. They were now at the airport.
'To pick up my mother who is coming home today.' Kurama replied.
A little redhead boy was watching the gang in interest. His gaze was entirely on Resha.
'Come on Hikaru. We need to go now.' The little boy's father called. His stepmother looked at him puzzled.
'Hikaru, what are you looking at?' she asked her stepson.
Hikaru wasn't listening. 'Okasama…' he whispered as he stared at Resha. 'Okasama! Okasama!' he cried and ran towards Resha.
'Hikaru!' his father and stepmother called.
A coin dropped onto the floor and Resha bend down to pick it up. Out of the blue, she heard a boy calling his mother in a loud cry. She turned around only to find herself being hugged by the boy himself.
'Okasama! Where have you been? I missed you so much.' He sobbed, hugging her tightly.
Resha blinked in puzzlement, astounded. The boys were perplexed also.
'Hikaru! What are you do…' a male voice trailed suddenly in shock. Resha looked up and unexpectedly dropped the coin with a loud clink, her eyes widen.
'You are…' Resha couldn't finish the sentence.
'It can't be…' Hikaru's father muttered.
Resha looked at the redhead man to the boy who was still clinging to her. 'Hi…Hikaru? Arakawa Hikaru?' she asked the boy.
'Em! It's me, Okasama. Don't you remember?' the boy asked, looking into her eyes. He had almost the exact same facial as her but in a more boyish way.
'Re… Reyna.' Hikaru's father uttered.
Resha's eyes darken and she picked the boy up, facing him. 'It's Resha, Aki. Reyna is dead.' She said icily.
Aki winched at her harsh tone.
'What's going on around here?' Kanata, Hikaru's stepmother demanded, looking in between the three redheads.
'Resha, please explain.' Kurama stepped beside her along with the others.
Resha sighed in frustration. Recently, she had been explaining a lot of things to people. Some of her secrets had been revealed and she hated that.
'Intro first. This is Arakawa Aki, his son Hikaru, and his new wife Kanata, if I'm not mistaken.' She said.
'How…' Kanata stopped.
'I'm Saotome Resha and these are my friends. Sorry if this bothers you, but I look exactly like Reyna, Hikaru's late mother.'
Everyone was thunderstruck and looked in between the little boy and her; they do look alike.
'Then… you are not my mother?' Hikaru asked sadly.
'No, I'm sorry.' She answered in a gentler tone.
'But how do you know my name?' he asked more.
Resha raised an eyebrow. 'I've met you before, don't you remember? Oh yeah, you were three that time.'
'Oh my, what is going on here?' Kurama's mom said from nowhere.
'Mother.'
'Aunt Shiori.' Resha said, slapping herself mentally for forgetting her. She quickly introduced them all. 'Where are you staying, Aki?'
'We are…were going to book a hotel.' Aki said a little jumpy.
'Oh, you are Resha's friends, ne? You can stay at our house. I'd be delighted to have some guests.'
'Aren't I'm a guest?' Resha said a bit insulted.
'You are a family. Well…, you will anyway.' Aunt Shiori smiled. Resha twitched slightly at the last comment, Kurama sighed and the others snickered.
'You kids coming along?' Aunt Shiori asked Yuusuke, Kuwabara, and Ranma. They nodded.
At the Minamino's resident
'I met Aki and Reyna when I was nine. Reyna said I looked very much like her when she was my age. At that time, Hikaru was two or three. I was very fond of Reyna, probably because she appeared very much like me, in looks anyway. Ranma went with Pop to trained somewhere near and I stayed with them for three days. After that, I left. About a year later, I heard Reyna was terribly sick so I slipped from training to see her. However, when I got there, she was already dead for two months. Too late. Then I heard that you were marrying soon, Aki. I must say, I was shocked. I didn't go to your wedding though. I just left.'
Aki shifted uncomfortably. The others were wordless.
'Oh well, Hikaru needs a mother, ne?' Aunt Shiori broke the silence. Resha nodded lamely. Hikaru was sitting on her lap; he seemed very fond of her.
'No wonder. You always skipped training to go elsewhere. I constantly wonder.' Ranma said.
Resha grinned. Kanata watched her. 'Is…Reyna really like you?' she asked timidly.
Aki and Resha looked at her taken aback.
'No, no! Only the looks. Red hair and she has gray eyes rather than silver.' Resha answered.
'Reyna's personality is much more…err…' Aki trailed.
A vein popped at the side of Resha's head. 'Decent. That is what you were going to say, Aki.' She said offended. 'She is more of the opposite of me. Kind, sweet, softhearted, shy, etc, etc. I think you guys got the point.'
'I guess that is a lot. I think I better go.' Yuusuke uttered. Kuwabara and Ranma agreed.
Resha went outside to say goodbye to Ranma. 'Phone me if Akane hammered you. I truly have an ache to pound her these few days.' Resha said casually. The others sweatdropped.
'You are so cruel.' Ranma stated shaking his head. 'I still don't know why you hate her so much.'
'Then, you are blind.' Resha pointed dryly.
Ranma thumped her head playfully. 'Don't start fighting with Ku…Shuichi while I'm gone. Bye!' he grinned and went off. Resha stuck her tongue out when he left. Kurama only shrugged.
Night
Aki laid in the guest bed looking at the ceiling. His wife was asleep beside him. It's really bad to actually see Reyna's mirror image so unexpectedly. He never thought Resha would grow up to look so much like her. He suddenly missed his late wife. An extremely painful ache emerged from deep within. He hated that feeling. He hated it so much. He closed his eyes in agony. An almost inaudible sound crept into his ears. It was a song, a reminiscence he had long forgotten. His eyes shot opened and he got up. Slowly, he crept outside and followed the melody as it became louder and louder. He looked around him and noticed a silhouette on top of a tree.
Her hair was down and her head was bowed downward, so no one could make out her expression. The black tiny box was in her hand and was opened; it was actually a music box.
'Why…?' she said suddenly, making him jumped.
'Why did you forgot her?' she raised her head and looked straight into his eyes. 'How could you forget her? You ditched every thing that reminded you of her. I took this box from the rubbish. Why? WHY?'
Aki was silent for a long time. 'It…hurts to remember.' he answered finally.
'Baka.' Resha whispered and jumped to the ground facing him. The wind blew softly from behind her. 'It hurts because you only think of her death. You are not remembering her as who she was to you all these time. You are not remembering her kindness, her love, herself! Tell me, Aki! If you were to die tomorrow, would you want Kanata and Hikaru to remember you? Or just get on with their lives as if they never even know you existed?'
Those words stung hard. Resha saw his facial was utterly shocked, as if she just slapped him!
Resha put the box into his hand. 'Think about it, Aki.' She whispered and went back to the house.
Kurama just sat silently from his windowsill. He had heard everything with his acute hearing and was surprised at Resha's bitter tone.
Resha jumped onto the branch in front of him.
'Eavesdropping, fox-boy?' she snorted in a tone very similar to Hiei.
Kurama couldn't help smiling at that and motioned her to sit beside him. She grunted but jumped to his side anyway.
Resha folded her hands behind her neck and leaned her back into Kurama's arm. He embraced her affectionately. 'You are such a bossy fox!' she pouted, despite the warmth that was spreading inside her.
'That's not nice to say imoto.' he said and raised an arm to tug lightly at her unpigtailed hair.
'Oww.' She grumbled.
'Not everyone is like Aki, imoto. Some love last forever.' He murmured.
She looked downwards. 'I don't believe in true love. No love is eternal. Nothing last forever.'
'That is not true…' Kurama was stopped abruptly by Resha. She suddenly got up and looked at him angrily.
'There is no such thing as true love! Think of it this way Kurama. If, and only if you do love me, and we got married, and then I died. Will you…will you… fall in love with someone else and marry her? WILL YOU?' she cried in a quiet voice, looking down.
'I…………………………………………………………I don't know…' Kurama whispered after a very long pause. Resha went to her room abruptly and slammed the window shut.
Two redheads sat quietly still, their minds overflowing with the things Resha had said to each of them.
Morning
'Hey, Shuichi! Where's Resha?' Yuusuke said as he and Kuwabara came by. Kurama straightened up from his gardening and pointed to his back.
'Playing.' He answered simply. The other two boys looked at each other and sweatdropped when they suddenly saw Resha-chan running, laughing happily, Hikaru chasing after her.
'Tag, you're it! You're it!' Hikaru exclaimed and began to run from her as they play tag.
The morning went slowly and by that afternoon, the Arakawa were ready to go.
'Thanks a lot Mrs. Minamino; it is very kind of you to let us stay here.' Kanata murmured and bowed. Shiori smiled.
Resha put her hands into her pocket pants, ignoring them. Hikaru suddenly ran and hugged her, so she sat on her knees and hugged him back.
'I'll miss you!' he said softly, embracing her securely.
She kissed his forehead affectionately. 'Me too, squirt!' she smiled soothingly.
The others watched in silence. Kuwabara sniffed. 'This is so touching!' he sobbed.
The others sweatdropped.
Resha got up and looked at Aki. 'Where's that box? I wannit back!' she said defensibly.
'Ah…' Aki sweatdropped and gave it back. 'Thanks Resha, for all you had said. You've opened my eyes…' he smiled weakly. 'I won't forget… ever again.'
Resha nodded, her eyes softened a little bit. 'You better, or you are gonna face my wrath.' She smirked evilly. He smiled back.
They waved goodbye as they departed.
'Bye-bye, mommy! I won't forget you!' Hikaru shouted waving sadly.
Resha twitched at that.
'Bye-bye, mommy!' Yuusuke needled, grinning at her.
Resha gave a faint blush and a glare. 'Oh, shut up!'
He laughed maniacally. 'You know, I could almost picture that boy as yours and Kurama's. Simply the same!'
'WHAT!' Resha yelled turning scarlet.
'Oh my, you are quite right. I thought I was the only one imagining that.' Shiori smiled.
'Aunt Shiori!'
'Mother, that's not nice.' Kurama said a tad crimson. His mother gave a small chuckle and Kuwabara and Yuusuke just guffawed.
