My first AkiraxSaki fic! They're so sweet together ^^ Just a quick one so don't expect much. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Eden of the East / Higashi no Eden :(

How You Make Me Feel

"Come on. We're almost there."

A boy with black hair led a girl with salmon pink tresses through the dark grasses of a local park.

They were in New York, near his apartment, and the night was reaching its midnight benchmark. The air was cool and crisp as a gust of wind breezed by, and the only lights they had to brighten their path were the stars above, shimmering like the bellies of silver fish in a vast, onyx ocean of velvet combers.

The boy tightened his grip on her hand as he helped her over a boulder.

"Thanks, Takizawa-kun." Saki smiled.

"No problem." He replied. For a brief second, their eyes locked and ginger melted with olive green.

Then, Akira grinned back at her and continued to pull her forward, and she followed hastily. His pace quickened until he was nearly running, leaving poor Saki to try and keep up to the best of her clumsy abilities. She tried to keep up with him as best as she could, not wanting to slow him down nor rain on his parade, for he seemed ecstatic to be taking her wherever they were headed. She heard him repeating over and over to himself in a murmur, "Almost there, almost there…" like a little kid, excited to get to a playground. Saki had to keep herself from giggling aloud at the thought and instead focused on the terrain he was taking her over.

The grass stretched out before them in what seemed to be a valley, not a park, and the land before them began to rise in the form of a large hill with a single tree towering overhead. Akira was running at top speed now, building up momentum in order to easily clear the turf as it went against gravity. Saki followed behind breathlessly, her short scarf flying out behind her along with her hair and she grasped his hand harder.

At last, the boy reached the top of the hill and came to an abrupt stop, spinning around and opening his arms wide in glee to present his favorite spot to his companion, calling out "Here we are!" However, he neglected to remember that their fingers were still entwined and as he threw his arms out, Saki was pulled forward and slammed into him, easily knocking him off balance. Time seemed to slow down for a brief moment, but only long enough for Saki to see just how high up this hill was.

With a yelp of panic and a shout of surprise, the couple went tumbling downhill, head over heels together. Akira had just enough reaction time to tighten his grip on her hand and as they rolled into the grass, he did his best to keep her as close as possible. Muffled cries dispersed into the night air as the boy and the girl were pulled downward, frequently knocking painfully into one another, before, at last, they separated. Akira pushed himself up quickly and spat out a mouthful of dirt.

"Ugh. That was not what I had in mind…" he chuckled bitterly to himself. Then, as he sat up into a kneeling position, and snapped his head up to look for his companion.

He froze when he finally laid eyes upon her.

She was lying on her side with her back facing him several yards away, unmoving. A horrible image flashed into his mind and he cringed as a memory played out before him briefly.

He was standing atop a pointed building in an amusement park. One hand was held to his ear, fingers grasping a cell phone, while his other hand pointed a fake gun at the sky. Then, there was an explosion as the missile hit and he was thrown off his perch. He then rose slowly, looking around fervently until his gaze rested upon what he sought. The very same girl lie on her side her back facing him…

The next second he blinked, the scenery of the memory had faded away into the current background of the moonlit park. He still did not fully understand the meanings of his recovered memories even after he had erased them, but none of that matter at the moment.

"Saki!" Akira scrambled to his feet and raced to her side, dropping to his knees again when he reached her. He carefully placed a hand on her side and rolled her onto her back, wincing as he saw her face slightly twisted in pain, eyes shut. Her chest was heaving quickly and Akira felt alarm flare up inside of him like a candle sparking into a blaze. "Saki? Saki!" He called out desperately. Wait, why am I so panic-stricken? She's obviously fine, right? She's just got the breath knocked out of her…

Reaching forward, he gently unwound the scarf from around her neck and undid the first button of her jacket. Her breath exhaled in visible white puffs for several moments and the anxiety was eating Akira away inside. At last, her eyelids fluttered and ginger irises revealed themselves slowly and the boy let out a sigh of relief. "Saki! Are you alright?" he asked frantically.

"S…Sorry…Takizawa-kun…" she huffed. "I didn't mean to…"

"Hey, I should be the one apologizing." He placed one hand on her stomach and slid his other arm under her shoulders, helping her into a sitting position. "Are you alright?" he asked again.

"M…Mm." She nodded once. "Just a little…winded…" she gasped.

"Well that's good." He smiled. "Here, can you stand?" he got to his feet and offered her his palm, and she coyly accepted. Akira pulled her up to him, but the second Saki tried to put weight on her right foot, she collapsed back to the ground.

"Ah! Ow…" she hissed through gritted teeth.

"What is it?" the boy knelt back down beside her.

"Ah i-it's nothing. I'm just a little shaky is all." She defended lamely.

"Does your ankle hurt?"

"…A little." She admitted.

"We should go back-"

"No!" Cutting him off abruptly, Saki then covered her mouth with her hands in embarrassment before trying again. "I mean, we came all this way, and I know you really wanted to show me this place, a-and I really wanted to see it too so-"

"Alright, alright, I got it." He chuckled. "We'll stay. As long as you're certain you're okay."

"Yeah. I don't think it's that bad. I'll be fine in a minute."

"But just in case you're not," Akira turned his back on her. "I'll carry you back up. Get on."

"E-Eh?" Saki blushed a wild pink. "B-But-"

"It's fine. Come on, before the sun rises." He coaxed.

After a hesitant minute, slowly, Saki slid her arms around Akira's neck. The black-haired boy jerked forward, thrusting her onto his back with a yelp of surprise as he locked her legs into place with his arms.

"T-Takizawa-kun!" Saki squeaked, tightening her grip around his neck significantly and causing the boy to let out a fake gagging noise. "D-Don't just do something like that so suddenly! My heart wasn't prepared!" she cried in exasperation.

"Alright, alright! Sorry!" he choked. "Now could you please stop hugging me so tight?"

"I-I'm sorry!" she gasped, slackening her death-grip immediately before bowing her head slightly in embarrassment and shame.

"Hey," Akira murmured, his voice softer and gentler than before. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be so harsh."

"No, it was my fault in the first place for knocking you over." She mumbled miserably as he began making his way slowly back up the side of the hill.

"No it wasn't. Okay we're both sorry, how about that? Are we even now?" he suggested.

Saki laughed lightly, her breath ticking his neck.

"Of course." She agreed playfully.

As Akira trudged back up the slope toward the single tree looming atop it, Saki gingerly rested her chin on his shoulder, breathing deeply and taking in his mysteriously familiar scent. Somehow, she did not want to let go of him even though she knew she must have been a burden to him. So she savored the feeling of warmth emitting from him and relished their proximity in the cool night air until at last he reached the summit of the small hill.

Carefully, Akira let Saki down, grasping her arm as she leaned on him to keep her balance. She was still a bit quaky on her feet, so Akira gently coaxed her to sit on the long grass and the girl obeyed with a relieved sigh. She sat with her legs tucked under her but her right foot sticking out slightly to the side. Akira sat down beside her, leaning his back against the thick trunk of the tree and pulled her back by the shoulders to lean against him. The girl quickly accepted his generous offer and snuggled backward toward him as he pulled her closer, wrapping his arms around her waist from behind. Saki let out a long sigh and a white puff of air slid out before her lips, which were curved upward into a smile.

"How's your foot feeling?" he wondered quietly.

"Better. I have pins and needles now but I think it should be fine afterward." She assured him, shifting slightly at the prickly feeling that was presently creeping up her shin.

"That's good to hear." His arms squeezed her tighter and Saki pressed as close to him as possible. "Look." His unexpected whisper made the girl tilt her head to one side in confusion as she turned her head slightly to give him a questioning glance.

But the boy's olive green eyes were fixed ahead and upward and Saki tentatively followed his line of sight with her own until her eyes rested on the vast night sky above them.

The sky was completely black, but the moon was sliced into the shape of a plump cat's claw, bathing the world below in eerily calming silver light that illuminated the dark shadows, swaying from the breeze in the air like a black puppet show. The stars shimmered vibrantly, even more so than Saki had ever seen them before in her entire life, no matter where it was she looked up from. Her mouth gaped open slightly for a moment before she regained her senses and tried to describe her awe. But all she could possibly manage was a spellbound, "Wow."

"Yeah. It's beautiful isn't it?" the boy chortled softly.

"It's more than just that! So much more! It's the most dazzling thing I've ever seen!" she gasped. "Well," she tore her gaze away from the stars to look back at him for a second. "Almost." She corrected herself with a coy smile and a blush.

"Oh you…" Akira shook his head from side to side. "Come here!" he ruffled her hair wildly and laughed as she squeaked and giggled, trying to fight him off to no avail. Then he proceeded to brush his fingers lightly over her sides, earning a loud squeal from the girl.

"St-Stop! Takizawa-kun! T-That tickles!" she cried.

"That was my intention." He chuckled, deciding to cease his assault, leaving her panting slightly for breath.

Then, after a few moments had passed, Akira pulled her back to him once more and gave her a lingering kiss on her lips, leaving her longing for more; so as they broke apart, Saki leaned in and pecked him on the cheek.

"I love you." She breathed happily, nestling her face into his shoulder.

"Love?" he scoffed. "That can't even begin to describe how I feel about you. There's no word in any language that could ever describe how you make me feel." He smirked.

"Well than thank you for staying by my side, despite all that's happened." She replied sweetly, not knowing exactly how else she should properly convey her feelings.

"And thank you." He responded before leaning in for another kiss.

Their lips melted together until the pesky entity know as oxygen forced them to break apart, then leaving the couple to lean against one another and nestle for warmth against the cool night.

They stared up at the velvety night sky, speckled with stars.

After a period of time, Saki fell asleep in Akira's arms.

He kissed her one last time before falling into slumber beside her, his lips smiling and his whisper still lingering lovingly on the wind,

"I could never explain how you make me feel..."

A/N: Sorry for the slight OOC-ness, but it was necessary for the fluff ^^ Like it? Hate it? Lemme know.

Please review!