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This is a Kisu Yori Mo Hayaku fanfic! Pairing, Maa-kun/Fumino all the way! X3

Author: foxmagic

Disclaimer: I don't own. But I wish I had a husband like Maa-kun. T.T

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It's neither the journey nor the destination, but the ones who will greet us at the end.

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Clack…clack…clack

The steady rhythm of the train lulled her, stringing her senses somewhere between sleep and awareness. It was no use to open her eyes and stare out the window, anyway. The repetitive scenery gave her a headache.

Fumino pressed her hands into her lap, almost nervously. Had she done the right thing? Teppei's incessantly cheerful voice was sorely missed, so much so that she could hardly remember a time without it. He was her everything, her reason for surviving. Without him, she would have given up long ago. But as it turned out, and maybe even for that very reason, she had decided to brave this trip alone. For her own sake.

"Where are you going, buncha?" Teppei asked, wide eyes watching curiously as a hand tugged at her pant leg.

"To the store. I'll be right back, okay? You stay with Ryuu while I'm gone."

"Can I have some pudding?"

"Sure." She smiled.

"Can I have some pudding too, Fumino-san?" Ryuu called wistfully.

"Oh…kay." Closing the door to his apartment, she hefted a bag over her shoulder that had been hiding just beyond the door. "I'll only be gone for a couple days, I'm sure he'll be okay."

That's what she had told herself, but now she was having second thoughts. What if something happened while she was away? What if Teppei got hurt? What if Sensei-

"Sensei…"

Her thoughts drifted back to him. They always seemed to do that, like clockwork. She had to remind herself that her little brother was no longer the only important person in her life. She had to take care of her husband, too.

A pang of dull pain clawed mercilessly at her heart.

Oh how she wanted to grow up. To be the woman he wanted and needed, to be a wife suitable for him-

That was her dream, and her deepest desire.

So, she hadn't told him that she was leaving. She hadn't told any of them because this was her own battle to fight, her own inner demon to conquer, and nothing they could do or say would change that.

The train ride was long. Longer than she remembered. It had been a while, hadn't it? The landscape was familiar now, threatening her impassive expression with tears even as the journey came to its abrupt end. Shouldering her pack, Fumino stumbled out of the passenger cabin and into the overcast weather. It looked like it might rain, she noted. And that was the last train for the evening, but there were hotels nearby. Shady hotels, but hotels nonetheless. It would be fine if she left first thing in the morning.

As she climbed the hill, her pack grew heavier. A burden -her burden, like the weight of all those nights lying awake, listening to Teppei's cries. She was the one he needed the most. She was the one who had to carry on the family's responsibility. This responsibility. Fumino paused, coming face to face with the purpose of her trip.

Two gravesites, side by side.

"Mama, Papa…"

She stared for a while, faintly noticing the wet drops that greeted her face. Not tears, at least not her own tears. If she could imagine it, perhaps the rain was a fitting mood. It rolled across lashes, dark and heavy, moving to the curves of her cheek and neck with little appreciation for dry clothes.

Had it been raining that day too? She couldn't remember.

"I hope you're watching us, Mama, Papa. Teppei is growing up so fast. He's gotten really smart, so it must be from Mama's side." She said quietly, though it was meant to be a joke. "I too…"

She trailed off.

There was warmth at her back. Around her, the rain had stopped.

Fumino glanced up only to find that the sky had been replaced by red, stretched canvas. The words escaped before she realized it. "Sensei…? How did you-"

"Do you know how stupid you are?" He bit out.

She clenched her teeth, angry, and was about to whirl around when two hands moved to stop her.

"I was worried…" His voice low, soft. "You had disappeared. Do you know how scared I was?"

There was a tremble in that last sentence.

"How did you know…?"

He didn't need to say anything. Teppei must have remembered, despite her efforts to hide it from him. Today -the anniversary of their parents death. Of course he'd know where she was.

"I had to do this alone, I couldn't bring you into it-" She fumbled. "This is my problem, this is my responsibility…"

"Haven't you realized by now?"

Turning slowly, Fumino glanced up at his rain-soaked face. That expression -so much love.

"I'm your husband. Please, let me share this burden with you. You aren't alone anymore."

Her heart twisted, face red in embarrassment. And out of the corner of her eye, she caught the gleam of a motorcycle. Ojiro had ridden all the way here in the pouring rain. For her.

The façade crumbled as she buried her fingers in his shirt, pressing tear-stained eyes to that chest which anchored her always. He was right, had always been right -for her body and soul were no longer hers alone. Why hadn't she seen that? "I wish you could have met them. They would have liked you." She whispered. "My parents would have really liked you."

Ojiro smiled. "I'm sure they were great people, for raising such a good woman. I'd like to thank them."

She smiled, wholeheartedly.

He fingered the straps of her backpack, sliding them off her shoulders and into his waiting grip. And just like that-

Her burden had been lifted.

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FIN

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