Disclaimer: See Chapter 1
Escaflowne: All you need is Love, Isn't it?
Chapter 82
Junten High School Track Tournament
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"On Your Mark!"
The six girls stepped into the starters' blocks, knelt down, and planted their feet in the blocks. Some of them gave their legs one last shake before planting their feet. Then, finding just the right position to plant their hands, they waited for the next instruction, each of them totally focused on their goal, the white ribbon one hundred meters away.
"Set!"
They lifted off their knees, legs coiled up like springs, heads up in total concentration.
TSH!!!!!!!
The gun sounded and all six girls shot out of the starters' blocks, speeding down the track.
Hitomi Kanzaki exploded out of the blocks, her eyes ever focused, ever riveted on the image of the man she loved, standing at the far end of the track. It was for him she pushed herself so hard. It was for him she ran so very fast. And now as she sped down the track, everything around her seemed to lose focus and fade into a misty haze; first the people in the stands, then the teammates cheering along the sides, then the other girls in the race. Eventually, even her body felt detached from her mind. She was aware that she was moving her legs in rapid succession, one in front of the other. She knew she was pumping her arms quickly and smoothly, in time with her legs, but somehow it did not feel or seem real to her. The only thing she was sure of was the shallow breaths she was taking and the image of Van standing in the distance.
As she broke the finish line, the image of her true love slowly faded away, but not before he offered her a loving smile. Gradually her mind became aware of everything around her. Her body, which felt weightless as a feather during the race, now felt heavy as her legs and lungs burned for oxygen. Her ears delivered to her the loud cheers coming mostly from the section of the stands filled with Kamakura-Kita students.
Students and parents from the three schools represented at the meet all cheered as the sandy-haired girl with the emerald colored eyes took the early lead and pulled away, winning the race by 0.14 seconds, setting a new Prefecture record of nine wins in nine consecutive heats.
Later, during the medal ceremonies after the end of the day's track and field events, the PA announcer declared the first, second, and third place finishers for the girls' 100 meter dash. "And the winner of the Girls' 100 Meter Dash is Hitomi Kanzaki from Kamakura-Kita High School. Miss Kanzaki has set a new Prefecture record by winning her last nine heats during the past three meets her school has competed in." The crowd cheered enthusiastically and Hitomi waved, happily accepting their praise. Turning her attention to the race officials, who extended a congratulatory hand, she shook their hands, then graciously accepted the congratulations from the second and third place finishers.
"I'm so proud of you, Hitomi." Her mother reached out and gave her arm a gentle squeeze before her hand slid down and cupped Hitomi's hand.
"You were great, Hitomi!" Her little brother jumped up and down. "Can I see your medal? Can I?"
Smiling down at him, she bowed her head and slid the ribbon off. "Here you go." She handed the gold-plated medal to him.
"Whaw! It's so heavy. Is it real gold?" he asked.
"No, just gold paint, but it does look real, doesn't it?" she told him with a smile.
"I wish your father could have been here to see you." Mrs. Kanzaki beamed with pride.
"It's alright, mom. I know dad has to work on the weekends sometimes." The sandy-haired girl turned her attention back to her mother.
"Well still, I'll make sure he attends your next meet," the older woman assured her.
Smiling, Hitomi nodded. "Okay, that would be great."
"Hitomi!"
The three of them turned to see Yukari standing at the entrance of the bus, waving in their direction.
"Well, I've got to go now, mom." She bowed politely. "I need that back, squirt," Hitomi said, placing one hand on her hip and gesturing for her medal with the other.
"Okaaay." The boy grudgingly handed the prize over to his big sister. "Hitomi?" He looked up at her.
"Yeah?" She casually replied as she placed the medal in her gym bag.
"I'm really proud to have you as my sister." He smiled.
The teenaged girl gasped. Her eyes went wide for a moment before a bright smile crossed her face. "Why Keiichi, I never expected to hear you say that," she confessed.
"Well…" The boy's face turned bright red as he suddenly found the pebbles on the ground very interesting. "Don't get the wrong idea, I still think you're a dork. It's just, well, it's not everyday that you have a sister who sets a prefecture record like that." He looked up sheepishly. "I just wanted to let you know… I think you're really great." He smiled.
"Well, thank you, Keiichi." Hitomi ruffled his hair. "I really appreciate it."
"So you'll be home Sunday night?" her mother asked.
"No mom, don't you remember? I'm staying by Yukari's till Monday. We'll go to school together, and I'll be home after practice," the sandy-haired girl reminded her.
"Oh, that's right." The woman smiled. "Well you girls have fun, and I'll be sure to make your father come to your next meet, okay?"
"Okay." Hitomi leaned forward and kissed her mother on the cheek, causing the woman to gasp in mild surprise. Running to the school bus, she turned one last time and waved goodbye to her mother and brother, then boarded to the cheers of her teammates.
Plopping down on the seat next to her best friend, Yukari smiled and asked, "So will I get to listen in on your conversation with Prince Van tonight?" She giggled.
"Shshsh." Hitomi pressed her finger to her lips. "Keep it down. Do you want everyone to hear? And besides, Van is a king, not a prince," she corrected.
"Sorry," the redhead replied with a smile, holding her hand next to her mouth in an attempt at keeping their conversation secret.
Just then Megumi and Akane turned around in their seats in front of them. "Big plans for tonight, Hitomi?" the team captain asked.
"No, not really, Megumi-sempai," she replied innocently.
"Good, then you can come with us tonight." Akane smiled.
"Go? Go where?" replied the emerald-eyed girl.
"To Shibuya. My older brother just bought a new Toyota Sienna, and he promised to take me and my friends to Shibuya tonight. He'll be our chauffer all night long." Megumi smiled.
"So we're going shopping and to the movies and…" Akane started giggling.
"And what?" Hitomi give her two senior teammates a confused stare.
"A new teen nightclub just opened in Shibuya, just like a real nightclub without the liquor." Megumi smiled wickedly.
"But Akane, I thought you were engaged? Why do you want to go to a nightclub?" Yukari asked.
"I'm not looking to pick up any guys or anything, I'm just looking to have a little fun. Besides, he's off on a training journey with his dad this weekend," the older girl replied.
"I thought you went with him on his training journeys?" Hitomi inquired.
"I do, but lately his dad seems to think I'm more of a distraction than a help. I can't imagine why." She smiled innocently while pushing up on her breasts with the back of the seat, causing all three girls to burst into laugher.
"So do you want to come, Hitomi?" Megumi asked.
"Huh." Looking over at Yukari, then back at her team captain, she replied, "Well, I'm spending the night over at Yukari's."
"Oops, sorry, only runners allowed." Akane gave the team manager a sympathetic frown.
"What are you talking about?" Megumi elbowed her friend in the shoulder. "Of course Yukari can come. You will come, won't you, Yukari?" the team captain pleaded with a smile. "Both of you will, right?"
Hitomi and Yukari looked at each other, their eyes questioning the other, neither willing to make a decision. Finally, Yukari turned and said, "Give me a minute," and she jumped out of her seat and headed for the back of the bus.
In the back of the bus sat several seniors, all with their books opened, all studying diligently, quietly. Amano was one of these. While he'd had three colleges offer him track scholarships, he still needed to pass their entrance exams before the scholarships could officially be extended. And just as with his track career, Amano always strived to push himself academically, so every spare moment until the exams in three weeks would be spent studying.
Yukari quietly sat down next to him and waited for her boyfriend to notice her, but the young track star was so deep in concentration that he didn't become aware of her until one of his teammates, tired of seeing the poor girl wait so patiently, turned from his seat and smacked Amano on the head with his pencil.
"Oh!" Yukari gasped in shock.
"What?" Amano looked up quickly, wondering what had happened, when from his peripheral vision he saw the long red locks of the girl he loved. "Yukari," he said, then leaned over and gave her a small kiss, which caused a bit of a stir on the bus and a deep blush from his girlfriend. "Is something wrong?" he asked after looking at her hesitant expression.
"Well… it's nothing really. I'm sorry for disturbing you." She smiled and started to get up.
Amano gently placed his hand over hers to get her to sit back down. "It's okay, I needed a break anyway."
"Well…" The redhead turned away slightly. "You see, Megumi and some of the other girls are going to Shibuya when we get back to school, and they asked if Hitomi and I would like to join them."
"Sounds like fun." Her boyfriend smiled. "You should go and enjoy yourself."
"Well, you see, they were talking about going to a new teen nightclub there as well…."
Amano smiled and rested his hand on hers. "You don't need my permission to go have fun with your friends, Yukari," he assured her.
"But I don't want you to think I'm running around trying to have fun or pick up other guys because you can't be with me," she blurted out, her cheeks turning a bright red as she looked up into his warm reassuring smile. "I mean…"
"I trust you, Yukari. And if some boy wants to dance with you, well, just know that I know it's only a dance, and when I'm done with my exams we'll go to that club together, okay?" His smile widened as he looked lovingly into her eyes.
"Oh, Amano." The girl with the crimson hair and deep, thoughtful eyes leaned forward, allowing her eyes to drift shut. Her boyfriend did the same, but as they drew closer, they could make out the faint snickering and rustling coming from the seats before them. In unison, they opened their eyes and turned their heads to see about a dozen members of the track team turned in their seats, staring at them with big grins on their faces.
Yukari's face immediately turned bright red as she drew away from her boyfriend. Amano drew back as well, but gave his teammates a stern stare, letting them know he was none too pleased with them. They instantly turned around in their seats and kicked up idol chatter, pretending as if nothing had ever happened.
"Well, I guess I'll go tell them that I'll be joining them." Yukari stood up and took a step towards the front, then suddenly turned and pressed a kiss on her true love's lips, catching him completely by surprise. "Thank you, Amano," she whispered, then turned again and walked back to her seat.
The team captain watched as his girlfriend walked away. "I'm one lucky guy," he whispered to himself. Shaking his head, he picked up his book and continued studying.
AN: Well, what can I say? ACEN was great!!!! I had so much fun it wasn't funny. =P
I got to be one of the judges for the AMV contest there. One of the Drama entries was an Escaflowne AMV.
It won Honorable Mention in that category.
Got to meet a couple of my readers at the Fanfiction Panel I was on, unfortunately, none of my Escaflowne readers. L
Sorry for the delay in posting this chapter but after ACEN, I got sick and wasn't in much of a mood to write. Then this past weekend my computer died. I hope to have it back up and running again before the end of the week but fortunately, I saved this chapter to a floppy before hand.
As always I'd like to offer a big thanks to my wonderful beta-reader Janice, who I got to meet at ACEN and who has just moved a 3 hours drive from me. I got to met her again this past Sunday during my anime group's viewing. We had a lot of fun. Thanks as always Janice. You're the best.
And thank you all for your wonderful support. I love reading your reviews just as much as you enjoy reading my story, I'm sure.
Thank you all,
A. Amishi