Clannad

The Lost Girl

Note: Hello hello! Here's yet another chapter of The Lost Girl to start off the second part! Hope you like it! :D

Read, REVIEW, and Enjoy!

Chapter Eleven - Peace

Summer break came and went. During that time, I found myself working at the Furukawa Bakery to make a little extra money. It was also to check up on Ushio, who was hard at work to catch up on what she'd missed in school. I know she's afraid of everybody moving on without her...But I know that I would never do that to her.

Near the end of the break, I was asked if I'd like to continue helping out at the bakery. I had no real reason to refuse, so I told them yes. And so, it was decided that I would come there every day after school to help around for a few hours, and, on the weekends, I'd go in the morning to open it up and prepare everything. It sounded like it'd be hard to do...But I figured I'd get used to it.

Before I left on that last day of the break, I couldn't help but feel like I was part of Ushio's family. Something that I had never really had. People you can depend on...People who don't die when you're at a young age, and whom don't kick you out and abandon you...

A true family.

That first day of school came, and I woke up like any other day and got ready. Once I was done, I said goodbye to my grandmother and headed outside, where, as usual, Ushio was already waiting for me. We walked down the same road as always, mostly quiet, but occasionally talking about anything that comes to mind...And I felt a sense of peace settling upon my life...Finally...

Once we arrived at school, we found Yurino and Risha waiting for us. Yurino already had a nice mark on his face, where Risha had obviously done some damage to him. "H-Hey Konoda, Ushio." he said nervously. I raised an eyebrow. "You're really good at scaring people." I told her, and Risha gave a satisfied grin. "Only weak idiots like this." she said, mockingly drilling her fist into Yurino's cheek.

I smiled. Besides fighting a lot...They seem to get on pretty well, I thought. Just a few moments later, both Nyou and Irisa arrived, and our whole group was finally here. Everyone began to tell about what they had done, and I sighed as everyone but Ushio and I had some kind of interesting story to tell. But, watching Ushio, I could tell she was happy with having a group of friends to talk with again. And seeing here happy...Made me happy in return.

After talking for a while, the warning bell rang, and everybody quickly went to their classrooms. Yurino told me that he was in class 2-A, which was the same class as Nyou. "It's a shame we didn't get the same class." he told me with a grin. I gave a fake laugh and a smile, secretly thinking, Thank god.

Ushio and I split once we got to room 2-B, and, after telling her goodbye, she began to walk away. Instead of going in right away, I stood by the door and watched her. I'm keeping my promises, I thought with a smile, Both of them.

That day went by quickly, and, before I knew it, Ushio and I were heading for the Theater club-room. Once there, we found everyone already waiting for us. We mainly talked for a little bit, and then began to discuss what we would be doing for the upcoming School Festival.

"Why not a one-act play?" Risha suggested, "Because we need a stage crew, and not all of us are really cut out for acting..." Everyone nodded, and I thought for a few moments. Suddenly, an idea popped into my head. "How about you, Ushio?" I said, and she looked at me, confused. "You could put on a one-act play." She blushed, and shook her head. "N-No, I couldn't..."

I turned to everyone and said, "Let's take a vote. Who votes for Ushio?" I slowly raised my hand...And everyone else followed suit. I grinned at Ushio, setting a hand on her head. "Well, that's that." I told her, and she gave a nervous smile. "O-Okay..."

We didn't have much more time before everyone had to start leaving. Ushio, Risha, and I were the only ones left, and Ushio said, "Tokoi, do you want to go now?" I glanced at Risha, and said, "Uh, I have to do something...But I'll talk to you later." Ushio stared at me for a few moments, before smiling and nodding, and then walking away.

Turning to Risha, I said, "Alright, let's go."

Earlier that day, I had asked Risha for her help. "You remember that promise that I made with Ushio?" I told her. "Yeah." she said, and, seeing my expression, she raised an eyebrow, "You're buying it now?" I nodded, rubbing the back of my head. "Yeah...And I have no idea what to choose."

Risha sighed and shook her head. "And what makes you think that I'd know?" she said, and I opened my mouth to answer...But I closed it as I realized the answer might offend her. Because you're a girl, I thought to myself with a nervous grin.

So, we found ourselves going to a jewelry store in the shopping district of the town, which was, surprisingly, very small. As soon as we walked in, I completely felt out of place. Everything in that store looked way out of my budget range. "Hello." the old man at the counter said as we walked in, with a smile that looked like it was permanently etched on his face.

"H-Hi," I said, walking up to the counter, "I was...looking for a ring." The old man raised an eyebrow, and then glanced over at Risha, who blushed. "N-Not for me!" she said suddenly, and I almost couldn't hold back my laugh. The old man grinned, and reached underneath the counter, coming back up with a large black box.

"Seeing that nervous face of yours, I'm assuming you aren't going for anything too high in price." he said, and I nodded, rubbing the back of my head shyly. He laughed. "Don't worry son, I've seen it all before." he told me, opening the box. I was surprised by what was in it, and that the prices on the rings were actually something I could afford.

"Well, take a look, find what you'd like." the old man told me. I examined the rings for a moment, and asked Risha what she thought. She looked too, but the puzzled expression on her face told me that she had no idea what to look for either.

"Say..." the old man started to ask, "Do you both attend Hikarizaka High School?" Risha and I looked at each other for a moment, and then nodded. "Yeah, why?" she asked. He grinned. "I used to be a teacher there," he told us, "At least, the old school." I raised an eyebrow. "The old school?" The old man nodded. "About fourteen years ago, Hikarizaka High School was torn down and relocated." he explained.

I looked at Risha, and her expression told me that she hadn't know that either. Fourteen years ago?... I thought. "Hey...did you know anybody named Tomoya?...or Nagisa?" I asked. The old man's face lit up a little and he smiled. "Ahh, yes, I remember those two. I was Tomoya's homeroom teacher, Mr. Koumura." he told us. His face seemed to light up with memories from the past.

He's pretty old, I thought, He probably retired not too long after they graduated. I unconsciously continued to stare at him for a few moments, before Risha suddenly said, "Oh, how about this?" I looked at the ring she was holding between her fingers, and I raised an eyebrow. It was a golden two-wired ring with a small, pink gem at the top.

Surely I can't afford that? I thought, but, looking at the price, I found that I could. "That's...perfect." I thought, taking the ring and examining it. Mr. Koumura grinned. "That's a nice pick right there...Not too high in value, yet not considered cheap." he told us, taking the ring and revealing a small black box, which he set it in.

I blushed, and Risha laughed. It looked as though I was going to propose to someone. Mr. Koumura tilted his head slightly. "Hm? What is it?" he asked, and I shook my head. "N-Nothing." I said with a slight smile, taking out the money to pay for the ring. Then, waving goodbye to Mr. Koumura, Risha and I walked out of the store.

Taking out the ring, I put it up to the sunlight. "This is great." I said with a smile. Too bad I'm almost completely broke now, I thought. I noticed Risha staring at me as we walked, and I looked over at her. "What is it?" I asked, and she suddenly blushed and looked away. "I-It's nothing." she told me, and I raised an eyebrow.

We walked in silence for the rest of the way, and we eventually came to a road where we both split. She told me a simple goodbye after I thanked her for helping me out. After a few moments, I began to walk away as well. But I stopped when, out of the corner of my eye, I saw her turn around suddenly. Her hair blew in the wind, and the sunlight made her eyes glimmer slightly.

And she shouted something to me...My eyes widened as I heard it, and I watched as she got a surprised look on her face, obviously surprised about what she had blurted out. Then, she turned and quickly began to walk away, eventually out of sight.

"W-What?" I said to myself. Why would she...

I looked down at the black box in my hand, and thought about what Risha had just told me...

"Tokoi...Please don't be with anyone but me!"

To be continued...

Next Chapter – Forever

Note: I figured adding in some love triangles here and there might make the story a little more interesting. And who better than Risha to put in there? :D Please leave a review and stay tuned for the next chapter!