It had been 365

It had been 365 days since Sheba dreamt of the boy she loved, running next to her and clasping her hand, with the same loving face, laughing with her; the dream after she thought she discovered Ivan's true feelings – the ones for Feizhi.

It was that time of year again: Christmas. The time of year when soft, fluffy white particles floated down in gentle tufts towards the ground. Lights flashed on across the continent as party gates were opened. People were laughing, dancing, and sipping on glasses of champagne.

Following the release of Alchemy, Weyward was currently undergoing and age of relative peace and prosperity. Even the citizens or Champa, who were previously dieing of starvation and fatigue, were satisfied due to large amounts of international aid in return only for a portion of their daily catch of fish.

"Ivan?" Sheba called out? "Ivan?"

"Who you looking for?" Jenna asked, bounding over.

"What do you think?" Sheba asked.

"I'm just kidding. Why do you need Ivan, though?" Jenna asked suspiciously.

Sheba turned a light shade of red. Her intention, however, was partly innocent. She pulled out a letter, "Professor Guang asked me to give this to Ivan. Some kind of piano recital or something."

"I see," Jenna shrugged, "Last I saw him, he was somewhere over…that-a way," Jenna pointed in an easterly direction. "I think he's in the music hall."

"Thanks," Sheba muttered, and walked towards the eastern cliffs of Vale. As soon as she rounded the corner and disappeared from Jenna's sight, she began running. Just around the corner, Jenna smiled. Sheba made such loud footsteps.

The buildings were a blur to Sheba as she ran down the streets of Vale, her blonde hair flying backwards, making her head seem like a flying comet. Her eyes were centered on one location: The Vale Music Hall.

She slowed her running and pushed open the wooden doors, panting slightly. She glanced around the deserted lobby, spotting only Jenna's grandfather lying asleep on a wooden chair.

"Oh yeah," Sheba thought. Jenna's grandparents owned the place. And ever since Jenna's parents died, she'd been living in the music hall. She still did.

Over the snoring of Jenna's grandfather, Sheba's ear heard the slight sound of Baroque-style music, with ornamentations and eight-note runs hit with perfect precision.

Sheba followed the source of the noise and found Ivan sitting in front of a piano, moving slightly to the beat of his music. His fingers danced lightly on the piano keys as the wiggled and hit each key with perfect precision.

"My violin skills are nowhere near this level," Sheba thought, before a wave of déjà vu shook her. Sheba shook the feeling off.

Ivan suddenly stopped in the middle of the piece, and turned around. He spotted Sheba and smiled. "Hello Sheba, he greeted, what brings you here?"

Sheba reached for the letter, but decided against it. Ivan would definitely kick her out to practice if he learnt of the recital. "I came in here to get warmer," She stated, and that odd feeling of déjà vu swept over her again.

Suddenly, she had a strange urge to ask something risky. "Ivan, who do you like?" Sheba asked.

His eyes glanced knowingly over Sheba's hidden hand (which was clutching the letter), but couldn't resist widening his eyes. "What…do you mean, exactly?" Ivan questioned.

"I mean…who do you like?" Sheba stated forcefully, "It isn't that difficult…"

"Well…umm…" Ivan scratched the back of his hand, and stole a glance at Sheba's hidden hand again.

"Er…what have you got there?" Ivan said, pointing at her hidden hand.

Sheba glanced at Ivan weirdly. "I asked first."

"So? I want to know what you've got there. Maybe it has something to do with me…"

"What?" Sheba explained, "You think I wouldn't come to meet you unless I had something important to tell you?"

"Well…not exactly that…I-I just…"

Sheba sighed, "Never mind. I just want to know whom you like. Is she from Contigo our out of the three girls in our group?"

"How do you know my crush is a girl?" Ivan smirked playfully, playing a deep, minor scale.

Sheba's eyes widened. "Ivan!" She exclaimed. "Are you really…y-you know?"

Ivan shook his head. "No. I was just joking, Sheba," He said. Ivan then leant in towards Sheba, "But just to answer your question…its one of the three girls in our group," he whispered. Ivan closed the piano cap and flung a violet sheet over the piano.

As he left the room, he bent down slightly and whispered in Sheba's ears. "It's someone you know." He left.

Sheba stood there dumbstruck. Did Ivan just make a move on her? "Its someone you know." Well, that was a bit obvious. I mean, he did say it was one of the three girls in our group…

Suddenly, a single thought flashed through Sheba's mind. She was still clutching the letter that she was meant to give to Ivan. She turned on her heels and flew out the door.

"Feizhi!" Sheba yelled out, panting.

Feizhi turned around. "Oh, hey Sheba! How's it going?"

"Fine," Sheba said, "Have you seen Ivan anywhere?"

Feizhi nodded. "Yeah, I saw him walk down towards the town center with an odd look on his face. He was thinking about something…or someone," Feizhi suggested. "Anyways, why do you need him?"

Sheba showed her the letter. "I've gotta give this letter to Ivan. Its from Professor Guang."

"Ivan's piano teacher?" Feizhi asked.

Sheba felt a pang in her heart. Did Ivan tell her every little detail about himself to Feizhi? "Yeah," Sheba replied absent-mindedly. "Well, I gotta get going. See you around!"

Feizhi waved at the retreating figure of Sheba. "See you around too!"

"Damn, where is that boy?" Sheba muttered under her breath. It had been an hour since her encounter with Feizhi, and she still hadn't located Ivan.

"Who, you looking for me?" A voice asked. Sheba instantly recognized the owner. She spun around.

"Ivan! I've been looking for you!"

"Didn't we just meet…a few hours ago?"

"Yeah," Sheba responded sheepishly. "And you remember that letter? Well…erm…its for you." She held it out. Ivan grabbed it greedily.

His face fell when he read the letters contents. "Ah…just a piano recital."

Sheba looked at Ivan with a questioning look. "I thought you liked music."

Ivan put up his hands defensively. "Yeah, I do. Its just that…I was expecting something else."

"Like what?"

Ivan held out his hand. "Come. Maybe you'll find out tonight."

Sheba raised an eyebrow, but took Ivan's outstretched hand without a second thought. "Where are we going?"

"We're going to climb to the highest point of Vale. Not Sol Sanctum…that was destroyed by Alex. But the rubble has since formed into a nice, comfortable hill."

"Why there?" Sheba asked as Ivan expertly led her through the thinning throng of people.

"I like the moon," was Ivan's only response.

Isn't the moon one of the symbols of romance? Sheba shook the thought from her head. Ivan liked Feizhi…

The couple soon climbed the stairs and passed the healing ward. They ran through the winding path leading to a beautiful hill that was the remnants of the once-great Sol Sanctum.

Ivan, still clutching Sheba's hand, led her to the top of the hill and sat down, never once releasing.

The two sat there for a moment, simply enjoying each other's presence and gazing at the moon.

Suddenly, Sheba wanted to make another daring move. "Remember that time a year ago, during Christmas?"

"No, not really. What are you talking about?"

"I saw you with Feizhi. What exactly were you two talking about?"

Ivan smiled. Sheba's heart fluttered at that smile, but she was certain he was reminding himself of the happy events that happened that day. Sheba almost didn't want to hear an answer.

"Feizhi was asking me why I was acting strangely. I said it was because of a certain blond-haired girl. She then started bombarding me with suggestions and stuff, and me, being polite, just stood there, zoning out once in a while."

Sheba giggled.

"In fact, the only thing I remember her saying was: 'You should kiss her the next time you have a chance.'"

Sheba's smile slowly faded. Was he about to describe his kiss with that "blonde haired girl"? Sheba wasn't sure she was ready to handle it.

"It has been almost a year…and I think my 'chance' is almost here. I just need to do one thing," Ivan whispered.

"And what would that be?" Sheba replied, equally quietly.

"This," and Ivan tackled Sheba, tickling her. Sheba squealed with laughter. "Stop!" She panted. "Truce! Mercy! Whatever!"

Ivan stopped and rolled over on his back. He grabbed Sheba's hands again. "Now, was that fun?" He asked.

"Maybe it was for you," Sheba panted, "but for me-"

"It was equally fun," Ivan whispered. As he slowly inched towards Sheba's face, the wind began to pick up. The young grass that just began growing on this hill made an intricate wave pattern around the young couple, as their faces gradually closed the small gap between.

Just before their lips connected in a heart-warming kiss, however, one could see a small beam of light from the moon filtering through the gap, creating a beautiful, star-like figure that added to the effect of a fiery kiss, released after a year of being caged in forcefully.

There was no need to force anymore, because on that Christmas Day, Sheba and Ivan gained the right to kiss each other, whenever they wished.

A bit of a cheesy ending? I think so too. But whatever, review! Tell me how you think of it. :) I like reviews. It helps me further my writing skills and get an A in English.