Sometimes in April
Rating: T Genre: Romance/General
Summary: Seto Kaiba has always been known relentless workaholic but when his brother and doctor force him to take a vacation, he goes off to Kyoto to escape for a month but he finds out that maybe vacations aren't so bad when he meets a beautiful red headed photographer. SxS
Chapter 2: The Beautiful Photographer
The worst loneliness is not to be comfortable with yourself – Mark Twain
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April 2nd
It was a peaceful morning in the old, broken city. It would be the first day to face life not as the CEO of Kaiba Corp but as Seto Kaiba, a man captivated by his own invisibility. Blue ocean-like eyes revealed themselves to the morning light but he had still felt so tired. The brunette peered over at the clock beside him on the small wooden desk. It was 9:30 in the morning. This was considered late to him, he never woke up this late, not even on the weekend but was he always this tired? Did he always feel so drained? This morning was a new day for him. He laid in his bed looking into the morning seen as if he had never seen light ever before, it was the first sunrise he had ever treasured, it was the fist time he ever stopped and absorbed the beauty of the sunrise.
The cell phone began to ring but his body stood still. He didn't want to move from his peaceful, comfortable position. If they wanted to make him rest than that's what he'll do and that included not answering his phone.
The annoying ringing abruptly stopped. He continued to stare blankly and emotionlessly. A few moments later another came but lasted for a second. He finally reached over and grabbed the phone.
'1 missed call, 1 new voicemail'
He sat up in the soft sheets and decided to see who had called.
The name that came up was Mokuba.
He froze for a minute, letting his mind dwell on the memory of his brother.
"Because I don't know you anymore"
Those words held a lingering sorrow that echoed through the chambers of his mind. His own brother said he didn't know him, how could he respond to that? He reluctantly decided to listen to his little brother's message. He at least deserved that and started to listen.
"Hi Seto, it's me, Mokuba, I just wanted to see how were you doing…I um…I miss you, a lot…the doctor told me you agreed to take the month's rest but… when you came back, you left the mansion really fast, you didn't even say goodbye, I have no clue where you are…I really miss you, I'm sorry for making you go away…I guess I'll call you later, I'm so sorry, please forgive me nii-sama…bye Seto"
A tear ran down his handsome face yet no emotion emitted from him. His face was completely black yet his eyes continued dance around the room. He hung up the phone and placed it back on the wooden desk. He wiped the lonely tear away and sighed.
"I'm sorry too"
The afternoon came quickly as the CEO walked through the bamboo groves to an unknown destination. It was eerily quiet. He didn't have to hide who he was here. To these people he was simply another face with no identity here in Arashiyama. It is truly a sanctuary among sanctuaries here in Arashiyama especially in April. The cherry blossoming and the trees were turning green. Arashiyama was a golden treasure to him, probably the only part of part of Kyoto that was free from any despair or brokenness. It was hard to believe that this was his childhood home. Was it really surprising that when everything was falling apart he'd run back here? There were so many great memories here in Arashiyama with his family growing up. Why couldn't things stay that way? Why couldn't he remain in Arashiyama?
Kaiba stopped for a moment and looked up at the sky. He raised his hand as shaped his fingers in a circle as if he was outlining the sun like in his childhood. He vision the days of his youth running through the grooves as a mind. Things were so different back then. He was different.
He slowly placed his hand back at his side and looked down at the dirty ground. His blue eyes showed his restless emotions running wild. He couldn't help but think of Mokuba and the message on the voicemail. He had run away from him. He would never admit it to anyone but that's what he felt. He couldn't even face himself right now much less anyone else. Kyoto was safe for him; no one knew of his existence or even cared. He was invisible to the weeping eyes of these people.
The CEO reached the end of the grooves and saw a beautiful holy temple ahead of him by the lake. It stood magnificently. He walked down the path and gazed at the alluring pink cherry blossoms above. The temple stood before. The cherry looked rather tarnish and dull. It looked like it had seen years of endless misery and sorrow. He shivered at the thought of his feet touching holy ground. In Domino, no such place existed but here it was possible to find some kind of peace.
He sighed as Seto closed his eyes and felt the wind played with his chocolate locks as if it was whispering in his ears, telling long unforgotten stories of the past. He opened to see a young woman standing before.
She looked like the young miko of the shrine, adorned in the traditional clothing of a young priestess in red and white. Her hair tied back with a thin white ribbon with loose strands on the side. Her eyes were a sweet hazel that looked warm and inviting. Her skin was a porcelain cream that he wanted to touch and feel. She was stunning, a fine piece of art perhaps. Kaiba looked on and noticed she had a camera in her hands, she was taking pictures of the two small birds playing in the trees and smile as she watched them. She was beautiful. She looked so happy while clicking away at the camera. She looked over to the path and noticed the young CEO.
"Oh hello sir, can I help you?" she said shyly and bowed. He gave a small nod trying to be respectful. He continued to stare.
"Are you lost?" she asked again.
"No…I was just walking" he finally stated.
"It sounds like you're lost" said the young woman smiling as she tried to hide the camera behind her back. He gave a questioning glance.
"Why are you hiding your camera? You can continue what you're doing"
"…Technically a miko shouldn't be doing this but I can't help it, a photographer's ambition I guess"
"You're a photographer?"
"I want to be, I do it in my free time; you should see some of my work sometime" she replied.
"Maybe"
"Are you a tourist?" she asked.
"No…just revisiting some old memories…trying to clean my mind"
"Kyoto can do that to a person, in this city you're a face among the crowd no matter what you were anywhere else. Some call it being invisible" she said. He flinched at the word but it went on unnoticed by her.
"What do you call it?" he asked curiously.
"I call it…finding the true you…that maybe the 'you' that was lost before you came to Kyoto can be found here" she said softly. Kaiba stared at her intensely; he literally couldn't take his eyes off the stunning miko. Reluctantly he began to turn away and head back to the hotel and gave one last glance at her with those intense baby blue eyes. The young woman looked on with curiosity.
"Wait" she said in a soft tone. He stood still; he was rendered useless by the sound of her angelic voice.
"Tomorrow night is the annual Festival of Stars that marks the beginning of spring, it's very beautiful and fun, I'll be performing…you should come by…if you're not busy" she said. Kaiba looked at her emotionlessly over his broad shoulder.
"I'll think about it"
"…Can I at least know your name?"
"Only if you tell me yours"
"…Kawaii Shizuka"
"…Kaiba Seto…goodbye…Shizuka-san" he said and walked off back into the bamboo groves. Shizuka stared allured by the mysterious young man. She smiled graciously.
"I hope to see you again…Kaiba Seto"
I know, it's short but I promise to make up for it. Trust me ;) tell me what you think!