Chapter 9 – cherry blossoms

Once in garden, I slowed. Under one of the cherry trees was Ranmaru. He was looking up at it in awe. As I approached him, he turned, a guilty look in his face, before realizing it was just me, and a glare settled in on his otherwise handsome face.

"What are you doing here at such a late hour? It's past midnight!" Had I really been asleep that long?

I looked up at the pink cherry blossoms. They were absolutely breathtaking under the white moonlight.

"Hey! I asked you a question! Answer next time, will ya?" I nodded out of habit, really.

"So answer my question then." What had even been Ranmaru's question? Ah, yes. I tried forming words with my mouth, but my throat would not cooperate properly. After a bit of trying to communicate, I abandoned and hung my head in shame.

"How did you even manage to get this far in life if all you do is abandon all the time? You can't go on living like this. Sometimes, you've got to fight for things, when they are truly important to you. How could you have even become an idol with that attitude?" His comment took me by surprise and I looked up at him, bewildered. Had I simply not been trying hard enough?!

I tried again, harder this time, and a small sound escaped my lips.

"I" I started, "I had nightmare, so I… I came here to calm myself." I whispered the last part of the sentence.

"Well, that wasn't too difficult, was it?" I shook my head no, it wasn't. "Thank you." I whispered.

Then, a sudden gust of wind surprised us both, picking up all the cherry blossom petals littering the ground, and pulling us into a pink tornado. It was breathtaking.

"By the way Aika, you better not hurt Ai, nor play with anyone's feelings, or I'll never forgive you." I looked deep into Ranmaru's heterochromatic eyes. His face stayed blank of all expression, but I could see weariness lighting his eyes.

"Don't worry, I'd never hurt any of them" I said softly.

"Well, you better not! Or else"

"Ah, threatening the ladies, are we, Ranran?" Reiji came over to us, "Don't worry, we can trust Aika, okay? She's not like all those other women you had to meet; imagine her as being some sort of second Nanami, basically, okay?" (recall: Nanami, Tokiya, and Cecil have gone off to Agnapolis for 2 weeks).

"I'm worried for Ai. It's not like him to act like he did yesterday. It's all her fault: she's the one making him change!"

"Ranran, Ai-Ai is not like all those other band members you knew. He'd never leave us for a woman. He'd never leave us for anyone. Besides, isn't there that no romance rule?"

"You know plain and well that that no romance rule is only for the students, not the senpais. AI is free to do what he wants."

"My point exactly Ranran!" Reiji beamed, "So how about letting him decide for himself, okay?" Reiji finished off, winking, leaving nothing for Ranmaru to answer back, "It's his life, after all, is it not?"

I do not own any of the characters, or the bands in Uta No Prince-Sama, but the protagonist (and her -dead- best friend) of this story is my own creation. Please do not steal them without authorization (just ask). Thanks dudes. :) Peace