"Are we really doing this?" Mamoru groaned, and Motoki elbowed him in the side good naturedly.
"Come on, it'll be fun," he exclaimed. To this, Mamoru rolled his eyes, but didn't comment.
"And it's for charity," Makoto reminded him.
"Alright, alright," Mamoru gave in. Everyone in the group smiled at his agreement, except for Usagi. She rolled her eyes and thought, Geez, what a baka.
The charity volunteers finally got to their party, did a quick head count — Mamoru, Motoki, Usagi, Makoto, Minako, and Rei; Ami was sitting on the sidelines nursing her twisted ankle — and passed out three strings. They sat on the grass to next to a sign that read "Three-Legged Race" to pair up and tie their ankles together.
In desperation, Mamoru looked for a partner, but Motoki and Makoto had already paired up, and Minako was fussing with the string tying her ankle to Rei's. And that meant . . .
"Hello, baka," Usagi muttered, a length of string dangling from her fist.
Mamoru gulped in apprehension but tried for nonchalance as he mocked, "Hello, Odango."
Usagi's cheeks flushed, but she didn't say anything as she scooted over and started tying the string around their ankles in sharp, jerky movements.
Mamoru's shin tingled in each spot where Usagi accidentally touched him, which she was trying very hard not to do. As a result, she finished long after their friends, who watched with amusement as they struggled to stand up without brushing against the other.
Rei watched their lack of progress and snickered. "I wonder what will happen when they actually start running," she said, grinning wickedly.
At this, Minako snorted, but held back her laughter as, red-faced and panting, Usagi and Mamoru got up.
"Do we really have to do this?" Usagi whined in a last ditch effort to escape.
"Come on Usagi." This time it was Mina's turn to team up on them. "It's for a good cause!"
"Fine," Usagi muttered, and slouched. Then her hand brushed Mamoru's, and they both tensed. Everyone else laughed.
At long last, every team lined up at the starting line, about a dozen in number. Usagi was muttering under her breath as a charity volunteer shouted, "Ready, set, GO!"
Usagi gasped in surprise as Mamoru's foot moved forward, tugging her along. She collapsed onto him, holding onto his arm to keep from falling.
Mamoru stopped breathing at her touch and froze in place. Unfortunately, even with her death grip on his arm, Usagi's momentum kept carrying her forward, pulling Mamoru down with her. She landed on her back, the force of her fall knocking the wind from her lungs. As Mamoru fell, he tried to roll away from her, but because of the string, ended up pinning her to the ground.
Usagi, having regained use of her lungs, was breathing as shallowly as she could. Mamoru's piercing blue gaze made her feel like a butterfly trapped in a jar. Scared and bewildered.
The enemies froze, breathing as shallowly as possible and gaze locked upon the other.
Off in the distance, they heard a whistle chirp.
"That would be —" Usagi began, trailing off.
"The end of —" Mamoru murmured, then gulped.
"The race," they finished together, identical blushes flourishing across their cheeks. The idea of their friends finding them in such an undignified position motivated them to stand up, an awkward and difficult process.
Finally, Mamoru pulled Usagi to her feet, his grip on her hands warm and strong. He held on a moment longer than necessary, then realized what he was doing and hastily pulled away, tearing his gaze from Usagi's beautiful face. Though he kept his eyes on a tussock of grass next to his foot, he could feel her gaze on him. Instinctively, he looked up, meeting her eyes. Her already pink cheeks flushed darker, but she offered him a shaky, uncertain smile.
What was left of his reason fled him in that moment, and pulling her small body to his, he kissed her, unable to keep denying himself her touch. He loved her. He needed her.
Usagi responded passionately, throwing her arms around his neck, never wanting to leave him.
Mina and Rei turned away from Motoki and Makoto, who were still celebrating their second place victory. At the sight before, or rather, behind them, Rei gagged, and Mina bounced in excitement.
"I told you Rei! Am I the guardian of love or what?" she exclaimed, a smile splitting her face.
"Yeah, yeah," Rei grumbled, kneeling to untie their ankles and avoid looking at Usagi and Mamoru. "I owe you ten bucks. Happy?"
"Oh, yes," Mina returned, still grinning wide. "But I think they're happier."