2

Minako's heart still hadn't stopped pounding long after she had boarded the plane. Hearing those words from Rei, her sweet, shy, and stubborn Rei—in front of a crowd of people, no less—had set off a whole host of emotions in the idol, and she found herself wishing that the plane would turn around and take her back home.

A pleasurable shudder ran through her at the thought of what would take place when she next saw Rei. It was the only thing Minako enjoyed about being separated from Rei over a period of time: the reunions. She shivered again, thinking of their last night together. If she closed her eyes, she could almost feel Rei's mouth trailing soft kisses along her skin, hands caressing her, bringing her closer—

"Minako-chan, are you even listening to me?"

She opened her eyes and glared at her manager, finally understanding the meaning of justifiable homicide.

"What, Shacho?"

Something of her murderous feelings must have shown in her gaze, since her manager visibly flinched.

"I-I just wanted to run through the itinerary again—"

Minako sighed. "For God's sake, Shacho, it's an eight hour flight! We're not even meeting up with the organizers at the venue until tomorrow, and I know the itinerary inside down and upside out. I have seen it, I have read it, I can recite it for you in French, even! I haven't quite mastered it in Swahili yet, but then, I haven't had time to practice with someone constantly babbling it at me in Japanese!" She waved down a stewardess and requested some water. "Sorry."

Surprisingly, Shacho looked sympathetic rather than terrified.

"You miss her already. I know. I thought that going through the itinerary might distract you for awhile." Shacho shrugged and leaned back in his seat. "You were very brave, doing that, Minako-chan. I'm proud of you."

"No long-winded diatribes on how I've ruined my career?"

Shacho gave her a stern look. "When have I ever been long-winded? You wound me with your accusations!"

Minako tried to hide her laughter behind a false coughing fit.

"I'd be lying if I said there aren't going to be some repercussions," he went on. "It's the way of the world, sadly. But at the same time, this is going to make some people love you even more. Aino Minako is not only talented and beautiful, but she's courageous too! And after all," Shacho winked cheekily, "Publicity is publicity."

Minako felt a warm rush of affection for her manager.

"Let's go over the itinerary again," she said.

Shacho looked elated.

~O~O~O~O~

Hours later, Shacho had dozed off in his seat, snoring loudly. Minako had worn him out, trying to teach him to recite the itinerary in English but with an Australian accent. It didn't help matters any that he had to keep vying for Minako's attention as her mind continually wandered back to Rei.

Ignoring the rumbling sounds coming from her manager, Minako reached into her carry on bag and pulled out the small stack of mangas Rei had given her. A sealed envelope fell into her lap as she opened one of the books. She smiled widely when she recognized the handwriting that adorned it, and hurriedly pulled out the letter inside.

Dear Minako,

The next three months are going to seem like an eternity without you here.

To say that I'm going to miss you doesn't even begin to express how I feel at the thought of you leaving. There are no words that can describe the sensation of falling asleep thinking of you, dreaming of you, then waking up to think of you first, but knowing that I won't see you lying beside me, my arms empty...

No words. In any language.

Please don't work too hard while you're away. If you come home sick, I'm going to be very upset. Illness would put somewhat of a damper on my plans for your return. Either way you'll be confined to bed, I suppose, but I know which way you'd prefer. I certainly know which way I'd prefer.

Minako grew steadily warmer as she read.

Australia has no idea how lucky it is. Don't let it keep you forever. Come home safely.

I love you, Mina.

Rei

PS - No, you cannot bring back a koala. No matter how adorable it is.

Minako hurriedly wiped at her eyes, amused by the post script. She wondered how Rei would feel about a kangaroo instead, and giggled as she tucked the letter into her jacket.

Finally feeling somewhat relaxed, Minako leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes. They did not open again until the captain's voice announced that they were beginning the descent into Sydney International Airport.

~O~O~O~O~

Rei slowly climbed a certain tree that grew close to the Shrine, and stepped onto the tiled roof when she reached the top. She made her way to the peak and sat, gazing up. There were a few clouds obscuring some of the stars, but the moon was full and bright.

The evening with her friends had been quite entertaining. When they weren't discussing the plans for Makoto's upcoming wedding in Hawaii, Usagi delighted in continually waving her phone in Rei's face, showing several different images of the now famous embrace. Rei pretended to be disgruntled by it, grumbling that her friend was being too loud, but secretly she planned to take a better look at the photos the moment she got home.

No one seemed to recognize her, which was a huge relief. In fairness, much of her face was obscured by a baseball cap—unsurprisingly, she had found one of Minako's hats under the dresser—but she was still keen to avoid mobs like the one at the airport.

She had, however, received a phone call from her father's secretary, saying that the Senator wanted to meet with her as soon as was possible. Rei informed her that she would gladly meet with him, but he would have to call her personally and arrange the meeting if he wanted to see her so much. She was amazed to feel her phone buzzing five minutes later with a call from her father. He'd sounded aggravated, but that was nothing new. She had a funny feeling that she knew exactly why he wanted to see her so suddenly.

Rei smirked. She needed to bring Minako to that ice cream parlour when she returned. She looked forward to seeing the idol's delight at being able to create her own ice cream flavour—even though she'd probably combine flavours Rei hated and then force her to try it.

She sighed again at the thought of Minako, and wondered if she had found the note tucked inside the stack of mangas. Rei blushed when she remembered the letter. She didn't consider herself to be terribly skilled with words, and so had scrawled it out, stuffed it into the envelope and sealed it before she could reconsider her decision.

She felt her phone buzz. The name on the display cheered her immensely.

"Hi, Beautiful." Rei grinned at the sound of Minako's soft giggling.

"Hi, you. I got your note. I—don't have any words either."

It took Rei a moment to realize what she meant. She barely remembered what she had written, only that she meant it completely.

"Oh. M-Minako, I—"

"Have you seen the news? Our kiss is now quite famous."

"Erm, Usagi showed me a few pictures earlier."

Minako laughed, and listened as Rei told her about her evening with their friends. The idol wasted no time in telling Rei that they were going to the new ice cream parlour the minute she got back, after Rei had described it.

"—I'm still worried someone will recognize me sooner or later. I wonder how you do it sometimes," Rei said later, and noticed that she was still wearing Minako's hat. She had a feeling it might become part of her regular wardrobe while the idol was away.

"It's a gift. Really, though, I have a trick I use on occasion. It works more often than it doesn't. Just play dumb, Reiko. Shouldn't be too hard for you, right?"

"Hmph. You're lucky I love you, Minako."

There was silence on the other end.

"Minako?"

"...I love you too, Rei."

Rei was certain that she was moments away from melting.

A few more minutes passed, then they bid each other a reluctant good night.

Once she'd put her phone away, Rei turned and stared up at the moon, and wondered if Minako could see it too.

~O~O~O~O~

Minako flipped her cell phone shut. Resting her arms against the rail of her suite's balcony, she gazed at the full moon.

It was going to be a very long three months, she thought with a sigh.

~o~o~o~

Chapter 3 Next Week!

Author notes: A wedding in Hawaii? Could that possibly be the beach where Would You Refuse Me takes place? I think I think it could.

...Okay, I'm shameless, I admit it.

Thanks for reading!