Homecoming

Jyou checked his wristwatch, sighed, leaned back in his chair, and checked the watch again. His eyes flicked to the red digital clock above the terminal, seeking a second opinion.

"She's late." The fabric of his khakis bunched up beneath his palms as he squeezed his knees.

"Planes often are," was Koushiro's reasonable response. He sat in the chair beside Jyou, staring at his laptop display. Jyou scowled, rose, and began pacing the airport terminal. Yamato's smirk caused a sting of embarrassment that pierced his anxiety, pushing him towards irritability.

"How can you all just sit there so calmly?" Jyou demanded. The Chosen Children, both old and new, were assembled in a row of seats at an airport, waiting to welcome Mimi back to Japan. Mimi spent middle school in the United States, but was returning home for high school, which was all very wonderful.

But it didn't fix the fact that her plane was late.

"Relax, man," Taichi said. He was leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed behind his head, a perfect picture of lazy indifference. "The plane will get here when it gets here."

"It's such a long flight," Sora added. "I'd hate to see her arrival delayed."

"Ugh! I wish she'd hurry up and get here, already! I haven't seen her in forever!" Miyako crossed her arms and began tapping her foot. "I wonder if she's done something new to her hair for the occasion? I can't wait to see!"

Daisuke snorted in the seat beside her. "You two should just get a room already."

"Daisuke! How dare you-"

Jyou scowled and turned away from the squabbling kids. He continued prowling the aisle until something tugged his sweater. He glanced down and found Hikari smiling at him. "It will be okay, Jyou-san."

"Oh- Uh-" It was difficult to stay stressed with that gentle visage focused on him. Some of that restless energy quieted, and he managed a small smile in return. "Yes. You're right."

He moved awkwardly back to his seat, aware of the many pairs of eyes watching him. Heat rose to his cheeks, and he knew they were darkening, which only made him blush harder. Somehow, Iori's direct, innocent stare was the hardest to endure, although Takeru's radiating amusement was a close second. Jyou slumped his shoulders and focused on the worn carpet.

What's wrong with me? Jyou had looked forward to today for weeks. At first, Mimi's return was a quiet happiness, a pleasant bright spot in the future. But as her arrival neared, inexplicable nerves took root, and Jyou found himself checking the date and time every hour and wondering if Mimi had remembered to pack everything.

It was all very strange. People moved and traveled all the time; there was no reason to feel anxious about it.

Jyou's head jerked up at the sound of Miyako's squeal. "Oh my gosh! Look! It's Mimi-san's plane!" She rushed to the glass wall overlooking the landing area, squished her palms against it, and started bouncing.

"I wish I had her energy," Ken murmured. Jyou couldn't have replied if he wanted to. His heart seized in his chest, then seemed to shoot upward. Its pulsing heat clogged his throat. He couldn't breathe, couldn't think. There was nothing but a primal beating resounding in his skull.

"Ah, Jyou-san? Are you alright? You seem pale." Jyou knew Koushiro was speaking to him, but he couldn't make out the words. He shook his head helplessly.

"Go, Koushiro-kun," Sora said quietly. Koushiro gave Jyou one last look, then joined the group gathered against the glass, leaving him alone with Yamato and Sora.

"Deep breath, Jyou." Yamato placed his hands on Jyou's shoulders, caught his glance, and raised an eyebrow. "C'mon. Breathe."

Jyou scowled, annoyed at Yamato's (somewhat irritable) orders. His brain shifted away from panic, allowing a smidge of calm. He wanted to scold his friend, but Yamato was suddenly grinning.

"Good," he said. "You're fine. What's the worst that could happen?"

Sora flinched, but Jyou was too busy imagining worst case scenarios to notice. What if she's happy to see everyone else, but she hardly notices me? I know I'm easy to overlook. It happens all the time. Or what if she's even more beautiful than the last time I saw her? God, what would I do then?

"Let's get you straightened up, Jyou-senpai." Sora motioned for him to stand, and he obeyed like someone in a trance. She smoothed out the collar of his buttondown shirt, then pulled the hem of his sweater, tugging out any lumps in the fabric.

"Bend over, please." Sora slipped a comb from her pocket. Jyou tried to stand still while the jet bridge rolled towards the plane, but he found his feet shuffling towards the terminal gate. Yamato poked him hard, and Jyou scowled and held still. There was a strange tugging against his scalp as Sora pulled his hair into a new part and style.

When Sora finished, Yamato stared critically at Jyou. "Looks better."

"You look wonderful." The warmth of Sora's smile and voice made Jyou accept the words that he never would have believed otherwise.

An intercom announced the arrival of Mimi's flight, and something seemed to reach up through the floor and seize Jyou's legs. Everything that wasn't frozen felt liquefied, and he was certain he would fall on his butt if he tried to move. Just what I want Mimi-kun to see when she walks through that gate…

Sora glanced back at him, and to her credit, she didn't laugh. She drew his arm around her shoulder, propping him against her. "Let's go. Mimi-chan will want to see you right away."

A high-pitched whimper slid up Jyou's constricted throat. He felt Sora's torso jerk as she fought down a laugh. What is wrong with me? This is ridiculous. It's just a friend coming home.

They joined the others at the windows, watching the jet bridge extend from the terminal gate to the plane. Somehow, Jyou felt the moment when the two joined. His knees rocked with the imagined impact, and he released Sora and leaned heavily against the glass.

Before long, he heard the thud of feet against the floor of the jet bridge. Miyako squealed and ran to the gate, and some of the others followed her, but Jyou remained glued to the glass. This felt just like that time he tried to ice skate. The people around him were enjoying themselves, flushed with happiness and excitement, but he trembled against the edge of the rink, terrified of falling, unable to trust his feet.

The passengers entered the terminal and dispersed, like liquid spilling on a surface. The sight of each new person filled Jyou with acute excitement, and each disappointment was a blow. The emotional roller coaster left him nauseous. He slid down the glass a few inches, like a shriveling slug.

Get a grip. It's been so long since you've seen her; you can handle a few more seconds. But what if she's not on the plane? What if she was late to the airport, and had to take a different flight? What if-

"MIMI-SAN! Ohhh my gooossshh you look amaaaziiiinggg-" Miyako threw herself into the tide of people, nearly knocking over strangers to reach someone in the middle of the crowd. Her excited chatter dissolved into a joyful shriek that grated his ears.

Jyou's sweaty hand jerked down the glass, resulting in a squeal no less annoying than Miyako's. A slim figure broke free from the crowd and approached. Jyou swallowed the wrong way, resulting in a coughing fit that forced him to shut his eyes and double over. By the time it passed, his stomach and throat were raw.

He straightened in time to see Mimi hug Miyako, then Sora. A glance at her face made Jyou feel more ill than ever. Instantly, he was sweating, and his heart was pounding, as if he had suddenly come down with a fever.

It was safer to look at her hair than her face, so he began there. It wasn't quite pink, and it wasn't quite brown. Perhaps she was transitioning from the first to the latter, since no Japanese high school would allow the pink dye. Mimi had grown it out; it spilled down her back in shining waves.

She released Sora, and her gaze fell directly on him. Jyou's knees buckled as her eyes widened. Oh, crap. Crap! They were exactly as he remembered: mahogany colored, glittering, and exerting a frightening magnetic pull. Jyou edged closer without willing it, his left side still glued to the glass for support.

Mimi stepped around Taichi, whose arms were held out, and tried to step through Koushiro, who stumbled back to make way for her as she started running. "Jyou-senpai!"

She hit him with a thud that smashed him into the wall. Before he knew what was happening, his arms were around her, and her hands clasped his cheeks. "Oh my god, look at you! You're so handsome!"

Jyou swallowed hard. His head was buzzing with her high-pitched vowel sounds; processing them as words required effort. When he understood, he twitched, colored, and started babbling.

"M-Me? No- Mimi-kun- Y-You- You're the- You look amazing."

And she did. In some ways, her face was just as he remembered it. But when she left a few years ago, he said farewell to a girl. The creature looking up at him now was ready to start high school, somewhere between child and adult. His eyes slid from her face to her body, but he caught himself, went red, and flicked them back up. She smirked and squished his cheeks, and Jyou felt his face burning.

Mimi bounced to her tiptoes, wrapped her arms around his shoulders, and hugged him. It stretched on long enough that Daisuke whistled, shortly followed by a cry of, "Ow!", as someone- probably Miyako- smacked him.

Mimi giggled, drew back from Jyou, and took his hand. "Come on!" Beaming, she drew him towards the group. "I wanna hug everyone!"

Jyou slid his hand around hers, swallowed hard, and fell into step with her.

Author's Note: The second short story is also a long-distance themed Jyoumi, but it's not a continuation of this one. It's an established relationship story where Mimi is in high school in the states and Jyou is looking at colleges from Japan. Please read them as separate pieces sharing a ship and topic. I will post it in a week or two.

Thank you for reading!