Slow Burn

Chapter Eight:

"Like Looking Into the Past"

It took Kokoro and hour to get ready, and she hurried. He put on a nice kimono, fixed her makeup, and fixed her hair up. She wasn't totally sure whether it was to show Matthew that she really was on her way to being a geisha or that she hadn't gone all out on the makeup and hair in a while. "Probably both." she said to herself quietly. She stepped out into the courtyard behind the two wings of her house, her mother already waiting with a smile on her face.

"Nice to see you can still do your hair and makeup, dear." Miyako said with an approving smile. Kokoro only nodded, she still had to walk carefully in the high sandals, but they came with the rest of the outfit.

"Should I go get -?" Her mother cut her off.

"No, I'll go get him in a few minutes. Just to make it easier for you, wouldn't want you to trip retrieving him." Kokoro laughed and nodded. "Now, just do what you normally do." her mother said softly. Kokoro knew exactly what to do, she had been doing for a long time. After about twenty minutes or so, her mother abruptly walked inside. She returned after a few minutes with Matthew behind her, he was blind folded. Miyako walked back inside, a smile on her face and a wink to her daughter.

"Um… hello?" Kokoro giggled to herself and walked over to him, and slipped out of the sandals when she reached him.

"Hi." she said coyly. He smiled. "Why are you blindfolded?"

"It was your mother's idea. She said it would be better if I saw you like this." Kokoro giggled. She walked behind him and removed the blindfold from her American friend. He began to turn around, she took his shoulders stiffly.

"Not yet, close your eyes."

"Alright." She waited for a few moments and walked around him, sat down in front of him, and straightened her back and held her shoulders up more than she normally did. "Can I see you yet?"

"Are you so eager?" He recoiled slightly. "Okay, since you are so excited, you can open your eyes now." she said as sweetly as she could. His eyes opened and immediately focused on her. She smiled up at him.

"Wow." She smiled wider. He looked at her face, which was the traditional white with the red lips and dark eye brows. He examined her hair which was done up in a traditional fashion. "You look great!"

"Thank you, Matthew." She starred at him warmly, stood up, and took a step back, "As much as I want to, I cannot hug you when I'm in all of this." She had a kind, soft smile across her face.

"Ah, a traditional thing?"

"Um, no, I like that shirt and I don't want to get make up on it." she said with a laugh. "You'll keep me company?"

"Of course I will." he said with a smile. She took a step back and slipped the sandals back on and took a few steps back down to the ground. She slipped on the first stair, she closed her eyes and opened them to have Matthew starring down at her with a smile. He had caught her before she could call out. "You alright?"

"Uh, thank you." she said checking her ankle, "I am, thanks to you, but really, you are a quick one." He helped stand her up and walked her the rest of the way."

"It was nothing, really. I've got your back." She smiled.

"Remind me to kiss you later." He looked at her funny, but then nodded. She backed up and bowed and he turned to walk back up to where they were a few minutes before. She trained in various ways for a few hours, the duo talking the entire time. She felt herself clear a place for him in her heart, she smiled. He obviously enjoyed himself as well, it seemed. After she finished she walked inside, he followed behind a few steps. "I'm going to go take a shower and change." she told her mother.

"Dinner will be done by then." Kokoro nodded. Matthew smiled and found a place to wait for her. She came out a little while later and they ate dinner together. Afterwards, Kokoro took Matthew aside.

"Let's go outside, shall we?" she asked him warmly. She led him out to where she was all day. She slid her arms around his neck and laid her head on his shoulder. "Will you dance with me for a while? Just because." He placed his arms on her, slowly. She looked up at him all of a sudden, smiling and giggling.

"What?" he said shyly.

"You're still nervous?" He looked away. She squeezed him. "Why?"

"I don't know. I really like you and I want to hold you right."

"Was that the reason before?" He shook his head.

"I was just nervous before." She smiled and raided up and closed her eyes.

"It's okay, but I think I owe you. So before I forget…" she faded away with a kiss. It was a mere peck on the lips, but she blushed and laid her head on his shoulder. After a few moments, "So, why are you so nervous?"

He laughed a bit, "Because, you are so beautiful and smart, how could I not be nervous? You're like the most awesome girl I've ever met!" She looked up at him in surprise. He smiled down at her.

"You think so highly of me. Why?"

"I see no reason not to think so highly of you."

"You make it sound like I'm perfect." she said meekly.

"Do I?" he said with a little surprise.

"Well, yeah. You call me beautiful. I'm not all that pretty. And you say I'm smart, I'm not super smart." she said lowly. He laughed.

"You are all that pretty to me."

"To you? What does that mean?"

"There's an expression in my country that says 'Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.'" She smiled. "And you don't have to be a genius to be smart. You are intelligent and have commonsense, which is more than I can say about a lot of the people I grew up around." She smiled wider.

"You've thought this out, I see." He nodded.

"I have a lot of free time." She squeezed him.

"Anything else you want to tell me?" she said with a curious smirk.

He leaned down to whisper in her ear, "My aren't you a curious one?"

"I like to know how I am thought about by those I like." she said with a shrug. He answered with a laugh. "But tell me if you have something on your mind."

"Well," he said plainly, "I'll save it for another time." She sighed and squeezed him again.

"Well I think that you are a wonderfully wise person. You have a way with words that can always make me feel better. You are sweet and you put me before yourself, so you try to at least. You are smart, observant, and so fun to talk to. I love the way you look at the world, you definitely have a strong sense of honor. On top of all of that, I'm loving every second of hanging out with you." she confessed and laid her head back upon his shoulder. He ran his hand up and down her back and she melted into him. "Tell me something if you will."

"Yeah?"

"Tell me what you think of me."

"Um," he paused for a second. "Kokoro, I think you are absolutely amazing and that when I have to leave I will comeback for you at the first opportunity, I promise you that. I enjoy just being around you, it doesn't even matter what we're doing, I enjoy it all the same. You are smart, wise, sweet, and you are beautiful. I feel blessed that I know you. I stand and look on in awe at your grace in mental and physical matters. I look at your smile and my day gets better. And I think about your face and how I fall into your eyes. I think, Kokoro that I am falling for you." She smiled and closed her eyes as she leaned in to kiss him.

All of a sudden a flash of light and a loud crash interrupted them before she could actually kiss him. They turned to look as a white light surged forth from another explosion a few hundred yards away. "Really?" Kokoro said flatly in English. He looked at her for a moment. She heard her mother's voice but it was blurry and very distant. She looked up at Matthew and, even though he was holding her, seemed a hundred yards away. Then everything went black and she passed out.