45- Vignette - Post Game

xxxxx


A Rose by Any Other Name

He noticed that sometimes Shiki would get that old look back in her eyes.

Yeah, that one.

The one that she had during their game when she had seen Eri.

Shiki introduced them all to her.

Eri didn't join their Hachiko group all the time - Neku was sure that she understood or at least could sense that Shiki had a bond with them that she would never understand. So, Eri did give them their space, when they needed it.

Nevertheless, after introducing Eri to the group, Shiki seemed to quiet down a bit more, her body language not as prevalent as before. She seemed to be doing it unconsciously, to make matters worse.

Neku could tell she was not jealous anymore, but Shiki was still unable to throw away the part that kept looking after Eri. Old habits die hard.

Eri once came along to Hachiko, doing a kind of happy bounce and flourishing a bright pink rose. A boy at school had given it to her – anonymously, it turned out.

"It suits her," Shiki said absentmindedly, watching Eri show it off to Beat and Rhyme.

She didn't say it but Neku heard the silent 'unlike me' beneath it.

The next day, he showed up in front of her doorstep with a whole bouquet of orange roses.

She gaped at him for too long and he almost started to regret it.

"…Do you not want them?"

"T-that's not it. I just…um…why…?"

"They suit you, too."

She slowly, delicately reached out to accept the flowers, her fingertips brushing over Neku's as she held them. She paused for a moment.

"Are you sure?"

Neku let go of the bouquet and Shiki instinctively drew it closer to her, preventing it from falling.

"I'm sure. I know you look up to her but you're your own person. If her flowers are pink and yours are orange, then that's fine too. They're all still roses."

Shiki's uncertainty turned into a soft smile. "If you put it that way, I have to accept them." She gave him a light giggle. "If they were a bit darker, they would match the colour of your hair."

He tugged the tip of his spikes. "So what?"

"I was just saying." Another giggle. "Thank you, Neku. They're beautiful."

"Yeah, you are."

"…?!"

"…!"

"…"

"They…are. I meant, 'they' when I said..." Neku turned his head away, embarrassed by his blunder. "Don't get the wrong idea. It's not like I bought red ones."

"I-I know. But it surprises me that you know they have different meanings."

"I don't, really. I just know the red ones mean…" He mumbled the word 'love' under his breath because it was not a word that the cool and collected Neku Sakuraba would say. "I'm not really sure what orange ones mean. I just thought you'd like them."

"I do like them. Really, though, thank you."

Her eyes shone as she looked at him and he found that he did not regret this at all.


A/N: Tadaa! Happy Birthday Heart-chaaaan! This is a present for you because you said your birthday was today in one of your A/Ns and I thought I'd think up a special chapter for you. I thought this would be a nice topic to do because it also has a connection to the pair in your fic. By the way, according to my amateur research, orange roses symbolise passion or desire or wanting to change from being friends to something more romantic. Lol, at Neku. Long live roses!

Thanks to B.A.G-GOMEZ, Coolgal342, Xerzo LotCN, Aquila'sTrainee, I'll Break Your Heart (again, happy sixteenth!), Jt and Omega Zekrom for the awesome reviews :D

Dina (22/11/2013)


Omake:

"…Do you not want them?"

"T-that's not it. I just…um…why…?"

"It's not for you, it's for your stuffed Piggy."

"Huh?"

"It looks like its maker still has a lot of practice to do."

"Practice?"

"With your stitching. I'm saying you need to improve your stitching for your dresses. Maybe it would help if the model for them– "

"Neku, you're not getting out of modelling for us, even if you pretend to be nice to Mr. Mew."

"Dammit, Shiki!"