Cheers to chapter 1!
Disclaimer: I do not own Sailor Moon (Sad face...)
Usagi POV
With a methodical, distracted pace I cleaned the counters of the ice cream bar, my arm wiping the rag in rhythmic circles as I covered areas I know I'd done already.
It had been pretty slow for a Saturday, most likely due to the annoying drizzle that hadn't let up since 8:30 this morning. It was just too dreary of a day for ice cream and arcade games, I guess.
I let out a soft giggle, reminiscing to the days when a torrential downpour couldn't even stop me from coming here. The Crown Arcade had become a home away from home for me, a place where I could be silly and hang out with friends and ogle at cute boys.
But those days were pretty much over. Gone were the lazy afternoons avoiding homework by chugging on milkshakes and spending hours in front of the Sailor V game, and here were the busy afternoons juggling college applications and a part-time job.
'At least I was able to score a job at The Crown!' I thought. Satisfied that the counter was spotless, I quickly scanned the tables for any emptied and abandoned dishes. A smile crept across my face as I glanced at the two lone people conversing in the far corner of the arcade and then noticed the time. I didn't have much more to do at the moment, which meant I'd be able to take an extra long break when the girls got here.
"Perfect!" I chuckled, washing my sticky hands and then drying them on my apron. "They'll probably be here any minute, so I may as well start preparing their favorites!"
"Talking to yourself again, Usagi?" A voice laughed behind me.
I spun around, hands on my hips, and stuck my tongue out at Motoki. He always seemed to be right next to me whenever I did that… not that I did it often. "That's none of your business!" I stomped my foot, adding to the faux anger.
He laughed again and smiled. "Are those milkshakes for your friends?" He gestured to the empty cups I had placed on the counter.
"Yeah. We planned on hanging out here for awhile today. We haven't done it in ages." I said with a sad smile.
Motoki nodded slowly, lost in his own thoughts. "They're on the house." He said finally, flashing me one last smile before turning and continuing his work.
"Thanks." I said, though I knew he wouldn't hear me. I went back to preparing the frozen treats when I heard the door opening, its bells chiming happily.
"Hi, Usagi!" A bubbly voice accompanied the sounds of high heels clacking on the tile floors.
I turned rather quickly towards the door, knocking over one of the half-made milkshakes in the process.
"Minako!" I jumped and waved to her, ignoring the sticky ice cream dripping over the counter.
She hopped onto one of the swiveling bar stools, resting her head in her hands as she gave me a signature love-struck look. "You will NEVER guess what happened to me today at the studio!"
I chuckled at her enthusiasm as I started cleaning up the mess that had made its way to the floor. Minako had been lucky enough to snag a part-time internship at a local TV station over last summer. At first she was only able to watch the various new casts from the sidelines, merely as an observer, but due to her self-proclaimed 'star persona' she found her way to the dressing rooms, assisting the anchorwomen with hair and makeup.
"It's all about relations." She had said. "The person you are sidekick to today could be your key to fame tomorrow!"
As summer drew to a close she had complained about not being able to intern at the station anymore, since it was only a weekday thing and her parents would 'never let her go on a school night'.
Luck had come her way only a few weeks later, when one of the anchorwomen from the newscast (a Mrs. Maya Koizumi) invited Minako to intern at her Saturday morning global news report. Since then she had been learning the ins and outs of being a live reporter, and was even scheduled to make her first TV appearance soon.
"Usagi?" She waved her hand in front of my face. "Are you listening?"
"Oh? Sorry, I was just thinking." I smiled, tossing the now sticky rag into the sink. "What happened to you?"
"Well…" Her mood instantly perked up again, "Mrs. Koizumi had a special guest in the studio today! He was SO cute! Next week he will be there again and I will personally introduce myself and he will realize that a girl with such star quality needs someone just as full of potential to be with!" She started gushing.
"What?! I wanna go meet him, too!" I exclaimed.
"Now, now, Usagi… the studio is for professionals only!" She teased, giving me a wink.
I put on my best pout, only to receive a sly little smirk in response.
"Oh dear, what's Usagi complaining about now?" Someone interrupted us, nearly startling Minako off of her stool. A head of long, raven hair sat down next to her, violet eyes sparkling in a wordless greeting.
"Rei!" I whined. "Minako won't let me meet the cute guest on World Affairs!"
Rei laughed, shaking her head. "Of course you can't go. If Minako is taking anyone," Her smile curled into a more devious one, "It'll be me!"
"Very funny, Rei." Minako rolled her eyes. "But I don't know how Yuichiro would feel about that." She retorted.
A blush crept onto Rei's cheeks, and she quickly grabbed her milkshake and started gulping it down, pointedly ignoring Minako's comment.
I smiled to myself, knowing just how much the fiery priestess cared for the Shrine assistant. The two of them had become even closer throughout the years, and Yuichiro still harbored a deep love for her. On the other hand, Rei had yet to admit to herself – let alone anyone else – that she had feelings for him too.
'I may not be the senshi of love…'I thought absently, 'But I can tell that she views him as more than a friend. Maybe I can get the two of them to go on a date!'I chuckled at the thought, catching the attention of the two girls sitting in front of me.
"What's so funny, Usagi?" Rei asked, a tint of annoyance in her voice.
"Oh nothing at all, Love Bug!" I smirked at her.
For a moment she just stared at me before what I said sunk in. Her blush deepened to a lovely shade of red and a spark of anger flared in her eyes. "What did you just call me?!" She seethed.
I brushed it off with a laugh and handed her another milkshake, which she took appreciatively. One thing was for sure, she hadn't changed much over the past couple years. Sure she had been working harder at the shrine ever since her grandfather got ill and we hadn't had as many opportunities to hang out, but she still had that temperamental side to spice things up a bit. And, with her grandfather's condition improving, we would hopefully have even more chances to bicker, just like old times.
'Just like old times…' My mind repeated. We hadn't all been together to hang out in forever. I had been looking forward to this day for the past week and a half, excited to be able to joke around and laugh and hang out like we used to.
The three of us moved over to our favorite corner booth, juggling our multiple milkshake cups. With a sigh of relief I plopped down on the seat, glad to be off my feet for awhile.
As soon as I sat down, Minako's and Rei's faces lit up and they began waving frantically in the direction of the door. I turned to see Ami and Makoto walking in together, both lugging backpacks.
"Sorry we're late!" Makoto apologized, pulling out a tray of cookies. "I had to wait for them to be done, so we missed the first bus."
My mouth watered at the sight of the fresh, warm delicacies as she put the plate in front of me, and I couldn't resist. Peeling back the layer of plastic wrap, I snatched a few of them and quickly gobbled them down, savoring the salty peanut butter goodness.
"These are so good! They're… they're… they're so good I could cry!" I said, my eyes as wide as saucers as I continued to stare at them.
Makoto had been taking extra cooking classes at the community center downtown, and they had been paying off. She was a better cook now than she had ever been, even though I used to think it wasn't even possible. From what I understood her class covered a bunch of different styles of cooking, so she would have experience in all sorts of cuisine.
Recently she put in a few applications at some local restaurants, but hadn't heard anything yet. Ever since she started the cooking course she had become almost obsessed with owning her own diner, where she could cook and bake and add her own charm to the atmosphere. It was most admirable.
"Aww, thank you Usagi! I miss baking you your favorites, so I decided to whip up a quick batch before I left my class this morning." She said with a smile. "My teacher thinks I should sign up for his baking class next semester, but if I get a job somewhere I don't know if I would have the time."
"Not that you even need more practice!" Minako jumped in, grabbing a few cookies for herself. "You could probably run any bakery in this town out of business, easy!" She gave her signature victory pose for emphasis.
Ami giggled. "She's most likely correct. You have always had a talent for baking."
With a satisfied smile Makoto slid into the booth, followed by Ami.
"I'm so glad we were all able to get together today!" The blue-haired girl smiled.
"How have your classes been going, Ami?" Rei asked.
"They're been quite difficult, but nothing I can't manage. Anatomy and Physiology is a hard subject to master." She explained. Ami, being the genius that she was, graduated high school a year early and was accepted into a community college just outside of Tokyo. For her first semester she filled her schedule with classes she needed to get into medical school, and although the brilliant girl could handle anything that came her way, she was still adjusting to college.
I watched as the four of them kept going with their small talk. It had been so long since we got together for no reason at all… sure we hung out now and then to study, but never to hang out like we used to. Barely two years ago the five of us were almost never apart, spending every waking hour in each other's company.
But two years had changed things.
Look at us. We were in our last year of high school, save for Ami. It had been two years since we were given the blessing of leading normal lives. Two years since the defeat of Chaos. Two years since…
'No.' I chastised myself before the thoughts could even materialize in my head. 'Don't think about them. You'll just start to miss them even more.'
My eyes found their way to the window where they could stare at the dreary, stormy skies and I had to suppress the sigh that came to my lips. I couldn't help but wonder how they were doing after all this time.
A part of me had been completely devastated at their departure. Thinking back to that day, I chuckled at the faux naivety I put on to keep myself from getting too upset.
"Just pretend like everything is okay…"I had told myself before saying goodbye. "Don't get all emotional!"
Of course, that didn't stop me from becoming emotional later that night, curled up in front of the window, gazing up at the stars. One good night of uncontrollable sobbing and hysterics and I was set to go.
Besides, I had Mamoru again. I may have let him go back to America to attend that college (though at first he was against the idea; it took some convincing from me that he should pursue his dream while he had the chance), but he wrote to me as often as he could. Even I found it hard to find time to write out everything I wanted to tell him, between my job here at the arcade and homework and applying to colleges.
At the thought of colleges, an exasperated groan found its way out.
"What's wrong, Usagi?" Makoto asked.
I turned my attention back to my friends and gave them a reassuring smile. "It's nothing, I'm just thinking of college."
"How has applying been going for you?" Ami jumped in, her voice full of enthusiasm. She had been a big help to me in looking at colleges and applying to them, and was just as excited for me as I was about it.
"Do you even know what you're going to major in?" Rei questioned skeptically. I knew she was worried about my going to college, since it was – and I quote – "A bigger deal than high school."
"Well…" I started nervously, scratching the back of my head. "I'm not completely sure yet. I've applied to a few nearby and told them I was undecided in my major, but I've been pushing a few ideas around."
"Such as…?" Rei prodded me on.
"Business. Or politics. Or world affairs." I paused, thinking. "Or maybe even something more cultural, with lots of languages." A frown plagued my lips, which didn't go unnoticed by the girls.
They sat in silence, watching me for a moment. Finally, Minako spoke. "Is that what you want to do? Or is it what you feel you need to do?"
"I want to do what I need to do." I replied simply, taking a quick swig of my milkshake. The rain had finally let up outside, and the sun was just starting to poke out from behind the clouds. Wanting to change the subject, I flashed a smile to Minako. "Hey, is that a new dress?"
Either excited that I noticed, or understanding my wish to change the subject, she grinned back. "Why yes it is! I got it yesterday! It wasn't exactly on sale, but I figured I deserve to splurge every once in a while." With a wink she stood and twirled in it, modeling her new navy blue dress, being sure that we saw the bright orange floral print on the sides and sleeves.
"It's very flattering on you." Ami smiled. "There must be someone in particular you want to impress."
With that Minako and Rei jumped into her story of the cute guest again, Makoto and Ami listening intently with a smitten look in their eyes.
I chuckled at the scene and leaned back in my chair, determined to enjoy the time we had together.
Woo! Hope y'all liked it! If so, let me know! If not, ehh you should tell me that too! :)
See ya next week!
