Slow Burn

Chapter Seven:

"The Heavenly Garden"

Kokoro and Matthew did their shopping without anything exciting happening. Matthew had gotten enough clothes for his stay in Japan. After dinner Kokoro took Matthew onto the front steps of the house and sat down and looked at the thin crescent moon. They sat shoulder to shoulder, Kokoro wrapped Matthew's right arm around her shoulders for warmth. "Cold?" he asked sarcastically. She nodded as she laid her head on his shoulder. He pulled her closer to him, she looked up at him. He sat perfectly still starring into the starry sky.

"What are you looking at?"

"The stars." he answered warmly.

"Specifically?" She received no reply for a few moments so she wrapped her arms around his ribs.

"Have you ever thought of the sky as a garden?" he finally asked, albeit quietly and calmly.

"No, but please explain." He laughed a little. "No really! I want to know…" No answer for a few more moments after she trailed off.

"There are so many stars up there." he finally said again. She nodded. "There are as many stars in the sky as grains of sand on the beach. A vast celestial garden for us to look up at."

"It seems dear to you. All of those colors and sparks do kind of remind me of a garden." He laughed.

"Just one in particular."

"Which one?

"The head of Andromeda."

"Andromeda? Like the tail of Pegasus?" she asked. He nodded. "Why?"

"Don't know. It's just that great things tend to happen after I see it."

"Your lucky star?" she said quietly. He turned to look down at her and smiled.

"I suppose it is my lucky star."

"So, your star, where is it?"

"I do not know. Different sky, different side of the planet, so I can't find it."

"You lost it?" she asked quietly. He sighed and looked down at the ground for a moment, then turned to look at her, smiling.

"I have lost my lucky star." he said slowly. She nestled her head against his shoulder and neck to try and cheer him up. After a moment or two he finally looked back up at the sky. "I have you though." he said, looking back at her.

"That's very sweet, Matthew. So our meeting wasn't luck, is that what you mean?" she said with a deep look of curiosity. He starred back at her and released her from his grasped and turned his torso so that they were face to face. He hugged her suddenly. A moment passed. "Question answered?" she asked. He smiled warmly.

"Mine is." She looked up at him curiously.

"What question?"

"Where my lucky star is."

"You found it?"

"Mmhmm. I did."

"Show me, please." she said pulling his cheek to hers.

"I can't."

"Why not? I thought you found it, or is it that you don't wish to show your 'princess' to me?" she said pulling her face away from his, she looked shocked, angry, and hurt. Matthew was taken aback by this, and that she knew than Andromeda meant 'princess'.

"That's not it at all, Kokoro." He gently placed his forehead to hers and closed his eyes. "I can't show you where it is, and it is simply because you cannot look into your own eyes. That's all. You can't see you through my eyes, so no one can see my lucky star right now. Understand? I would show you in a heartbeat if I could. You…" She had pulled away and cut him off by placing her index finger of his lips. When he was silent she stood up and looked down at him and extended her hands out to him. He took them and stood with her.

"I think I'm falling for you. I can't say that I truly love you yet, but that will come in time. I'm sure that the moment will come when I just surrender my heart to you and wait patiently for yours." He smiled. She smiled back. A moment passed and she whispered, "That was your cue to kiss me…"

"I know." he joked. She smiled elfishly at him. She sighed and closed her eyes and lay in his arms, motionless and silent. As they both held the other, she refused to let him go. "Not done?" he whispered. She still had the elfish smile on her face and she squeezed him sharply.

After a while she pulled away from him and sat down on the front step and she kept herself in his arms and did not release him from her embrace. "I like you a lot, Matthew."

"I like you a lot too, Kokoro." They sat starring up at the sky until Kokoro sneezed an hour later. "Bless you."

"Thanks. Um, let's go inside before we catch something." He stood, bringing her with him. She squeezed him once more before she led him inside. They stood in the hallway for a moment, without a word while Kokoro locked the front door. She turned and hugged him hard and tight. "Good night, Matthew. Sleep well."

"Night, you sleep well yourself." She smiled and squeezed one last time and they headed apart to their rooms. Kokoro laid down on her bed after she got ready to go to bed and starred up at the ceiling. She prayed until she fell asleep, she prayed for guidance. The next morning she woke up to Matthew nudging her back to consciousness.

"Is something wrong?" He only smiled. She looked at the clock. It was ten o'clock. She smiled and sat up.

"Good morning."

"Morning. Your mom sent me to get you up."

"Oh, okay. I'll be out in a second." He nodded and walked out, closing the door behind him. She stood up and took off her shirt and shorts and tossed them in a basked that was in the corner. She opened her closet and took a red shirt out and a pair of black wide legged pants out and got dressed. When she opened her door her mother called to her.

"Are you hungry dear? We saved you some breakfast."

"Thank you, I'm pretty hungry." She heard the door open and close. "Where's Matthew?" Her mother sat her food down on the table.

"I asked him to go get me a few things. Milk, eggs and the like."

"Oh." Kokoro began to eat, eyes down.

"What's wrong, Kokoro? Are you alright? Something with Matt?" Miyako asked quickly, angrily and fearfully. Kokoro dropped her chopsticks and put her hand on her mother's.

"No, no, no! Not like that at all! Mother, he has been so wonderful to me. He's respectful and trustworthy and…"

"And?"

"I'm falling for him." Her mother hugged her.

"Are you sure? After only less than a week?" Kokoro nodded, almost ashamed of herself. Her mother, sensing this attempted to comfort her distraught daughter.

"Kokoro, sweetie, this is nothing to be ashamed of. He's good to you, right?"

"He is wonderful to me."

"Then is it so wrong that you are falling for him? It does not seem so bad to me." Kokoro smiled. "When was the last time you two kissed?"

"Saturday night." Kokoro smiled at the thought, and blushed when her mother smiled.

"So you didn't kiss at all yesterday?" Kokoro shook her head. "Why not?"

"I hugged him a lot, it was enough." Miyako embraced her daughter upon hearing the sentence from her daughter's mouth. "Why are you so happy?"

"I think he likes you as much as you like him." Kokoro smiled.

"Me too."

"Well finish eating, Kokoro. Go get dressed when you're done, you have training today."

"Dressed?"

"In a kimono. Look pretty, it'll make you feel a whole lot better." Miyako said as she walked away. Matthew returned a minute or two later and sat down next to Kokoro.

"Matthew?"

"Yeah?"

"I have to do some geisha training today. I was wondering if you would keep me company while I go through it today."

"Of course, I'd love to."

Kokoro smiled and hugged him, "Will you draw me a picture?"

"Of?" he asked with a smile.

"I don't care, just to pass the time while you wait on me to finish?"

"If you want me to." She hugged him again.

"Or you can watch me and talk to me." He smiled.

"I'd rather talk with you, I'll enjoy it more." Kokoro smiled and blushed a little.

"Well, I'm going to get ready after I finish getting ready so can you occupy yourself for a little while and I'll get you when I'm done?"

"How long is a little while?" he asked warmly.

"Well, I have to put on a kimono and do my make up, so that long." she said putting her cheek to his. "Depending on if I want to look good or really good today." He smiled as she pecked him on the cheek and stood up. She saw him smiling after her out of the corner of her eye, it made her feel warm inside. She went to her room and got ready for her day of training.

She really was falling for him.