CHAPTER 4: We'll Be on our Way, Now
Tohru was getting very excited! Uo and Hana had arrived together a little bit later and were very glad to find their dear friend safe. They too had feared the airport's being busy. After speaking together for a bit, they all realized it was time to go to their gate. They were currently boarding the plane.
Tohru stared in awe at the flashing lights and all the chrome… The modern looking plane was, to her, a work of art. She listened closely to the "ding" sound the plane made to inform her about interesting things, like how long the trip would last, what New York would look like and when they would be taking off. She sat down in her seat, which was next to Kyo. When they were at their gate waiting for the plane, Momiji had consulted every one to see whom they would like to sit by during the long trip, the seats were placed in pairs. Obviously, Haru would sit with Rin. Yuki was to sit with Momiji. Uo and Hana were happy to sit together and finally, that left Kyo and Tohru.
"As long as I don't have to sit with that idiot rat…" Kyo responded to this.
So as Tohru sat with Kyo, staring around at all the plane's different parts, Haru and Rin sat in silence.
"…I'm sorry I made you angry." Haru said, seeming emotionless. Rin gave him a quick stare, to try and make him regret what he had just said, but they both knew each other too well. Haru knew it wasn't really meant to be hurtful.
"You know I would never hurt you, Rin." He told her, touching a lock of her hair. Her hair was the silkiest, smoothest thing he had ever felt. Rin, on the other hand, felt troubled and afraid… It would be so easy for her to give in and be in love with Haru… But it simply wouldn't do. Akito had already shown how much he had not appreciated what she had done, and also, she would probably kill herself if ever Akito were to hurt Haru… Her sweet, beautiful Haru.
"Get a life." She said as she stood up, and walked tall to the nauseating toilets. Haru was forced to let her long hair loose and to once again, let Rin free. She was a horse, and horses need their freedom. He knew that, and he knew what her motives were, but he couldn't help but let out a sigh. Maybe a sigh that was a bit too loud to be ignored.
"Your girlfriend mad at you?" Uo-chan asked as she turned around in her bench to see Haru.
"Yeah, everything's good though… Rin's just had it tough and I know it's nothing personal… I understand that…" he told her confidentially.
"That's quite mature of you." Hana said monotonously and not bothering to turn around in her seat. Haru thought about that.
"Not really… I'm just giving her her own space, you know?" Haru replied to that.
"Yes… That's precisely what most women want. Space when they need it, closeness when they're in that particular mood. You're young… Yet you understand women in ways which some old men never get to understand." Hana-chan smiled, still sitting forwards in her bench. Haru looked at the spot that Rin had occupied earlier and stared at it without answering. He emitted a very sad look.
"So Tohru-chan, you must be quite excited!" Yuki asked Tohru. Tohru swiftly turned around in her seat to see a rejoiceful Yuki looking at her with an impressive grin.
"Oh yes, Yuki! I can't wait to see the Statue of Liberty and Radio City Hall and Times Square and… Oh wow, it's just so exciting!" She said, on the verge of tears of joy. She giggled and swiped a loose strand of hair away from her mouth.
She's so cute, Thought Yuki. He wondered how such a nice girl wound up in the crazy Sohma's environment and managed to accept it all with such ease… But he didn't feel for her in that way. He just thought of her as a very good friend, and he was certain she thought of him the same way. So why couldn't he stop thinking of all these thoughts?
"Erm yes," he said, blushing at that thought. "I'm sure it will be good for all of us."
"Tohru! I heard that in Times Square, it gets really crowded. So if you want, I'll hold your hand so you don't get lost in the huge crowds of people!" Momiji exclaimed as Yuki eased into his seat. Momiji grabbed Tohru's hand, to show her just how he would hold it.
"Let go of her, you idiot." Kyo said, slapping Momiji's hand. Momiji yelped and began weeping. Suddenly, the familiar "ding" sound boomed out from the plane's speakers. Tohru straightened her back and waited for the important message to come.
"Hello passengers! I will be your pilot today. My name is Tsuke Kunijitsimu. It's a pleasure to have you on board today and if you require any assistance at all, feel free to ask any one of our flight attendants. They will be delighted to help you!" He said, very enthusiastically. "We hope you have a pleasant and comfortable flight with us. Thank you." Tohru felt so cared for and comfy after the pilot said that. What a nice man! Momiji was still weeping aftr Kyo's mean insult, and was pressing a button beside his seat. Tohru wondered what it was when all of a sudden, a woman with a short black bob and a blue hat came to Momiji and Yuki's row of seats.
"Do you require assistance?" She said with a smile. Yuki became more aware of her presence when she said that. He had no idea what she was talking about.
"Excuse me ma'am?" He asked in his polite manner.
"It's me that requires assistance!" Momiji said, sobbing. " The boy in front of me slapped me on the hand because I was sniff just being nice to Tohru and sniff, he's not very nice because sniff sniff… He wants Tohru all to himselfffff!" Momiji wailed. Kyo blushed and muttered something that soundedlike "stupid rabbit…"
"And I heard you say that if I needed any kind of assistance, I could ask youuu… Wahhh…" The flight attendant looked at Momiji with a quizzical look.
"So ahmm… You pressed the button?" The flight attendant asked. Yuki was finally aware of the situation.
"Thank you ma'am, but Momiji is my responsibility and he will not do anything of the sort again. Pardon us." Yuki said, with one of his most formal voices.
"Ahh. Well it's not a problem then." Said the flight attendant in a daze. What a polite young boy, she thought as she strolled away. Yuki began scolding Momiji, and Tohru spoke with Kyo.
"Uo-san, Hana-san… Wait, it is alright if I call you that, right?" Haru stopped to question.
"If that's what you want to call us… It's all good!" said Arisa, smiling with that rowdy-chick smile of hers.
"Alright…" Hana remained silent as Haru continued, " Well, I'm going to go tell Rin that we're taking off soon… I'll be back in a few minutes…" He got up from his seat, and slowly walked to the back of the plane. He noticed a few young girls staring at him, but he had no interest in anyone like that. The only person there was, right now anyway, for Haru was Rin. He sensed her as he marched closer and closer to the restroom door. He walked up to that small restroom door and sniffed nonchalantly. He observed the door carefully, and noticed the "Occupied" notice on it.
"Rin…" He called out to her softly. No answer came from inside. Before doing what he was about to do, he looked around, to make sure no one was looking. Then, with his exceptional strength, he rammed into the door and it came crashing down. Some of the flight attendants seemed unsure about the strangely loud sound that came from the back of the plane, but after a few minutes of stern staring and other things to take care of, they were off. Haru lifted the door carefully to discover Isuzu looking a bit concerned with her head perched on the toilet and tears spilling from her eyes, occasionally plopping in the toilet water.
"You've hurt yourself." Rin asked, staring at Haru's bleeding arm. He didn't shift his vision and stared straight at her.
"I missed you." He told her, and sat down on the floor beside her.
"Haru, that's not a reason to knock the door down." She replied. She let a silly smile appear on her face, she found Haru's logic funny sometimes. Haru seemed to be staring out into space when suddenly, his gaze shifted to Rin's eyes. He stared at her for a few seconds and let a happy smile escape his lips. They both began laughing after a few minutes, both alone but as one, sitting on an airplane's bathroom floor.
Kyo was so in love with her… But he didn't see what good could come out of it… Ever. This tore him up inside, but it was soothing at the same time just having her in his presence. He wasn't sure if this was love, but it must be close. He knew that after he'd be done high school, he'd be locked up forever in that dark room that he knew about too well. Every day will surely be painful without her… Now they are even more painful, because he has to mask his true feelings.
"Tohru, why do people live?" Kyo asked, not really aware of what he was asking.
"What do you mean Kyo-kun?" Tohru asked, confused. He hated that sweet, pure innocence of hers… He blushed.
"I mean… Well er… Maybe you won't get it at all, but I don't see why people go through all the trouble of making friends, having jobs, falling in love (he felt himself redden) when we all know that we will someday die… What good comes out of it…?" In his position, it was even more complicated, because he would have even less life to live…
Tohru's expression changed. Her eyes closed and her lips formed a melancholic smile. She slowly began to formulate her response.
"… If you live life thinking 'One day, I'm going to die.', then you won't have done anything with your life and you will die alone and sad… That's why I think you have to live in the present, and live each day like it's your last… Why do we make friends? So we can have people who help us and care for us…" When she said this, she stared at Momiji with that same smile of hers. "Why do we make ourselves have nice jobs? So we can feel like we have made our mark on earth… And finally, why do we fall in love? I don't know… Love is hardest to explain, I think…" Tohru finished. She looked up at Kyo, who looked a bit depressed. "That's what I think."
Live each day in the present… Like it's your last… Kyo thought about Tohru's words, and thought she was probably right. He knew soon, he would be condemned to be imprisoned in that room and that it wasn't healthy at all for him to be thinking about that now when he had time to live properly… To be civilized… To be with her, not yet plagued by Akito's strict rules, that was his dream… For now anyway, it was. He looked at Tohru and smiled at her.
"That's a good way to think." He told her.
"Really?" Tohru blushed. She looked out her window at some trucks that rushed on the concrete landing area and thought about what she had told Kyo-kun when out a of nowhere, a "ding" boomed out of the plane.
"Passengers, please return to your seats and fasten your seatbelts. At this moment, we are taking off. Thank you." The pilot, Mr. Kunijitsimu informed them. Tohru grew very anxious for the departure. So many adventures awaited them in America! Tohru felt the plane moving and Momiji screamed excitedly when this happened. She saw Rin and Haru walking up the aisle and moving themselves back to their seats. Where could they have been? Hana-chan waved at her, and she waved back. She sat comfortably in her seat and the plane jerkily sped up. She squeezed Kyo's hand and his face flushed. She held on tightly, not knowing what to expect from the sudden speed of the plane. Sooner than she was aware of it, she looked out the window and saw the airport growing farther and farther away. She released Kyo's hand. She stared at him and they both smiled. Tohru didn't know what to do to make this moment a bit less uneasy, so, whilst pumping her fist in the air, she exclaimed:
"America, here we come!"
Another great chapter to write, this one was especially long! I'm happy with it.
In next chapter, there will be more about the non-couples, don't worry. I know I overdid the Tohru-Kyo and Haru-Rin thing, but it was just to set the mood, I guess. Don't worry, Yuki, Momiji, Hana and Uo will appear!
NOTE did you notice the small clue of Yukiru in here? Heehee. So now every one's happy, right? But maybe they won't be, who knows. Who says I will make anything of it, in the end?
Feel free to review me, it would please me !
Until next chapter!