Broken gift – by preety-lady-serenity

Disclaimer: The characters of Lovely Complex do not belong to me but to Aya Nakahara. We all thank her for them.

It happened as they were moving in to their new apartment. It was no ones fault to begin with. Risa Koizumi and Atsushi Otani were putting their belongings into their place when it suddenly happened. Umibozou's limited edition CD fell from the coffee table they had placed it as they unpacked. Both Risa and Otani heard the 'crack' that followed and hurried to the broken case on the floor, in order to see if the CD had survived its fall. They both stood over it, staring it, not daring to touch it.

"So, touch it," she nudged him in worry.

"No, you touch it!" he insisted, not dreading to find out about the CD's fate.

"No, no you!" she said in horror.

They stared each other in determination, agreed with a motion of their heads and touched it together. The two cracks across the CD split and validated their fear. Umibozou's limited edition CD was broken.

"Oh no!" Otani said in sadness and kept staring at the CD. He turned to Koizumi, who remained speechless, to find tears trickling down her cheeks. He jumped back.

"Koizumi, you liked that CD this much?" he asked in horror to her tears, "Come on, idiot, don't cry. It was too scratched to play well anyway!"

"You're an idiot," she said angrily and kept crying, "I loved that CD."

"I loved it too, but you don't see me cry over it like a crazy fool," he protested in his defence.

"Men," she fumed in annoyance and stood up, rubbing her eyes.

"Koizumi!" he thought in confusion as he looked at the CD's broken pieces.

-)-)-)

Koizumi Risa laid in her futon, tears streaming down her face. The CD was now broken. She had nothing to remember that time, back then. She let out a muffled sob and then felt the futon going down and someone's hands encircling her waist.

"Koizumi," Atsushi Otani whispered, "Talk to me. It's just an old CD!"

"IT'S NOT JUST A CD!" she shouted angrily and turned to see him, "It was the first thing you ever gave me!"

Otani remembered. That night, years ago, when Koizumi Risa had her birthday. She gave her the CD that night. And she, in return, confessed her love to him. He didn't even realise that she was speaking seriously back then.

"I gave it to you the first time you confessed to me," he said glumly.

"And you didn't even realise I was speaking seriously. I spent the next days playing the songs on the CD over and over. And then again when you rejected me. And then when we broke up over that silly argument during your entrance exams."

"It wasn't silly," Otani scoffed, "I was really pissed you went out with that midget Kohori!"

"He's still 2 centimetres taller than you," Koizumi answered back rubbing her eyes, "Anyways I loved that CD. It reminded me of why I have fallen for you."

"Why did you fall in love with me?" Otani asked seriously, "You never explained that."

"I am a midget fetishist," she said under her breadth.

Otani snorted and let out a laugh at the midget fetishist memory. Koizumi gave him a weak smile and she rubbed away her tears.

"I'm glad," he said with a smile, "that you didn't give up on me in the end."

"The CD helped. If it wasn't for it, I would have given up."

"No you wouldn't," Otani said and gave her a peck on the cheek, "You're stubborn like a mule when you want something."

"So I'm a mule now."

"Yep, my mule," he said smiling as she scoffed an stood up to continue the unpacking.

-)-)-)

With the mayhem of the unpacking, the CD's fate was put aside though Risa felt a sting in her chest once she would remember it. Yet, what was done was done and they could not go back to how it was.

"Koizumi, I am home," she heard Otani say that evening.

"Welcome home," she said happily from the kitchen, "How was your day?"

"Good," he commented as he retreated to their bedroom to change from his sweaty uniform.

He returned shortly after to find her preparing the table for dinner and he smiled as she noticed the small paper bag that he had left there. She was about to put it aside when she noticed it had her name on it. Sliding her fingers in it, she took out a small square, wrapped present.

"Is that for me?" she said to Otani, "Can I open it? I have opened it though."

She stopped speaking in shock. The wrapper revealed under it her Umibozou limited edition CD with its limited edition badge framed together and under them Umibozou's handwritten signature.

"Otani," she said covering her mouth with her hand, before shoving away a single tear of happiness.

"I glued the CD together and put it with the badge and the signature in a frame" he declared proudly when he saw her features lit in happiness, "I got Umibozou's signature at our trip to Hokkaido."

Risa smiled and dived to his direction. Grasping him upwards she started kissing him on the face, while squeezing him affectionately. Otani struggled for his tiptoes to reach the floor and set free from her grasp.

"Koizumi, I'm not a teddy-bear," he scoffed in embarrassment as her reaction reminded him of how short he was next to her.

"Sorry, but I am so happy Otani," she said stopping, still snuggling him in her hands. "Thank you very much for this.

That said she squeezed him even tighter and started kissing him all over the face once more, while he secretly enjoyed it as he struggled to reach the floor and set free.

Aww isn't he just precious? Please review!

Ok I was having a really funny discussion with another anime lover friend of mine who watched LoveCom and he is seriously convince girls will start going fr short guys now. :D