Things had been changing ever since the new school year started. There had been both good and bad things that happened. Kisa had finally been able to switch schools. She started the new school year with a new class at the primary school linked to ours. She'd been so excited to start attending a school so close her precious Oneechan.
In the beginning little seemed to have changed between her old school and the new. Kisa was still quiet, and her strange eyes and hair didn't help her mix in any. At first, it looked like she might be outcast just like she had from her old class. I'd always been able to explain mine away through my foreign heritage and felt useless with no advice to give. But I, and the others, couldn't leave it alone. We all worried about her and couldn't help but stop by.
That made all the difference. Being attended constantly by her very cool (and protective) older cousins, Haru and I, made people re-estimate her worth. That she was also visited by important upperclassmen like "Prince Yuki", head of the student body council, and his notorious cousin Kyou brought her up a notch too. People began to look at her in new light.
As usual though, it was Tooru who tipped things over. Kisa just shone when she was around. People finally got to see all the special things about her. She'd officially gone from "strange and weird" to "mysterious and cool." Before the year was half over, she'd be dubbed the princess of her class. Hiro was frantically waiting to transfer next year, worried that she might attract too much attention. His concern was probably legitimate.
It was amazing really how things had changed in our family. When Kisa had first been bullied we could have done the same thing. We could have visited. Kisa could have come to us for help. But it never even occurred to us to support and depend on each other that way. We didn't even know there was a problem until Kisa disappeared. We didn't know how, or that we even could, act like a real family. But, then before Tooru perhaps we weren't a real family after all. Things had changed a lot since she'd come.
But I knew things were really changing for me the first time I was pulled aside by Yuki. The mouse didn't often have private conversations with the rest of us. He was so frequently sick when we were kids that we didn't get a chance to see him much. I suppose we all got used to lumping him in with the older Junninshi since, if he wasn't with the Head, he was often sitting in Hatori or Shigure's shadow. At family gatherings, like New Years, he was often too sick to join in when he was little. As he got older he was expected to entertain Akito instead. We fell into groups, the older Trio, Akito and Yuki, and us kids. Kyou of course, was left on his own.
Things have been changing since Tooru came around, of course. We've all be mixing a lot more since then. But to be singled out by Yuki, even now, you knew it had to be important.
"When they confess..." He said, "Just say you aren't interested in getting into a relationship right now. Don't," he warned, "say that you're interested in someone else just to get them to go away. Any girl you even say hello after that to will just be bullied. It wouldn't be fair."
I didn't understand what he was talking about at first, and when it hit me I was practically knocked speechless. I gaped at him in surprise. Confess to me? Girls just didn't think of me that way. But Yuki just asked if I understood. When I nodded, he walked off as if we'd just been discussing something as mundane as what we planned to have for dinner.
Yuki had come a long way, but he still really didn't understand how talk to people.
Still, the concept was so impossible to me that I hardly gave it a thought. It just wasn't something I had to worry about. I was Momiji, pet of the class. Girls may like to give me candy and play with me, but the don't confess to me!
I spent a the next few days being surprised again at face that shone back from any reflective surface I found. I hadn't changed that much that I would have to worry about stuff like that! So what if I'd grown taller over the past summer? So what if I'd filled out a bit; that I'd lost some of my baby softness. I was still me. I still dressed in frills. I'd left off the modified girls uniform this year, but I still had my boy's uniform custom made in the girl's lighter blue, and still wore a hat. No girl would think to confess to me.
So when it happened, I was so shocked I found myself repeating Yuki's script almost verbatim.
"I'm sorry, I'm not interested in getting into a relationship right now." I said, and watched the eyes of the girl before me start to shimmer. I didn't want to see her cry! This was too cold. "But I'd be very sad if Kimiko wasn't my friend anymore." I adlibbed.
Instead of making the shimmer go away, Kimiko's face crumpled completely. She buried her hands in he face and ran around the corner. I could hear her muffled sobs from where I stood helpless in the hallway. This was awful! How did Yuki stand it?
I felt lost and confused, and did what I usually did when I felt that way. I went to talk to Tooru.
"...and then she just started crying!" I exclaimed waving my hands around. I shook my head and let my blonde curls fall into my face. I sighed and let my hands fall back to the table, resting on either side of a half eaten piece of cake. I poked at it dissolutely with my fork. It was a rich German chocolate that Tooru had learned just to assuage my sweet tooth. But even it's sugariness was having a tough time getting past the lump in my throat.
Tooru laid a smoothing hand over her laundry. "I don't think anything Momiji-kun could have said would have prevented her tears. She's lucky that her confession went to someone who cares so much for her feelings. She'll be glad of that later. But," She got up and poured a little more tea into my cup. "Are you sure that Momiji-kun didn't want to accept?" Her hair fell forward in a soft fall, covering her face as she poured.
Accept? What a strange question to ask. Kimiko was nothing to me, just another girl in class who I sometimes played with. I shook my head vehemently. "No...I just don't want her to be sad."
Tooru sat back on her knees and smiled at me. "I don't want Momiji to be sad either," she said, and I realized why she had asked. As a Junninshi, I wouldn't have been able to say yes to Kimiko even if I'd wanted too. I hadn't even thought of it.
I didn't want to think about it. "Then lets talk about happy things!" I exclaimed. "Do you know what yesterday was?"
More than anyone else, Tooru had always been able to adjust to energetic mood swings. That was one of the great things about being around her. "Eto..." She said and her smile widened. "Yesterday was market day..." she said playfully, "And a Tuesday....and it was the 14th...." She ticked off all the things that yesterday had been.
"The 14th of March!" I said emphatically, "And continuing our tradition of one day late White Day gifts, I present To-ru with this!" I dug a stack of tickets out of my frilly sleeve and slapped them down on the table.
Kyou walked into the room, toweling off from his run around the grounds. He eyed me skeptically and then peered at the toppling stack tickets on the on the table. "Oy, brat, what's all that mess?"
"Next week is the school festival!" I said jumping up to explain. "And as thanks for this years' Valentine's Chocolate, To-ru will be my guest to every booth at school!" I wagged a handful of the tickets at Kyou. "I got tickets to everything!" I held up one, "Fortune telling booth!" I held up another, "Tako booth!" And another, "Goldfish game booth!"
Kyou didn't let me get much further. "Damn brat!" He ground his knuckles into the sides of my head in a double noogie, "You don't have to tell me what each one is!"
"Waaaaahhhh!" I mock cried, "Kyou is hurting me!" And it did hurt a little, but it felt good in a way that Kyou at least was still treating me the same. I sniffled and let Tooru pat my head sympathetically.
I looked up at her and forgot for a moment I was playing. She looked so sweet, sympathetic and worried. I was so caught up in looking at her that I almost missed seeing Kyou's face turning a rapid series of colors as he got jealous over Tooru paying attention to me. Never mind that she wouldn't have if he hadn't bullied me.
"B-brat!" He exclaimed, turning quickly away from us. Not quick enough to hide his annoyed flush. "Did you forget that Tooru has to work the booth in our class?"
I looked wide-eyed at Tooru. I hadn't forgotten, but I hadn't thought she'd be trapped there all day. But then, she was always so self-sacrificing. She might have signed up for a whole day's duty. "You can't come?"
The lump in my throat from before had come back, and I felt tears pricking at the back of my eyes unexpectedly. I'd just assumed that she'd be able to come with me. I'd called in favors from everyone I knew in school to get tickets. I'd begged, wheedled and charmed for weeks to get them all. I'd never even thought that she might not be able to come. I hadn't realized how much I'd been looking forward to spending the day with Tooru till I thought it wasn't going to happen.
"Ah...well..." Tooru said looking back and forth between Kyou's back and I. "I have to help set up the booth, and bring in the onigiri..." the success of their booth last year had made it easy to decide to use the concept again, "but after that I'm free." She smiled.
"WAI!" I cried and leapt into her arms. I just couldn't restrain myself. I was so happy. There was a loud "PYON" as I transformed and my clothes fluttered to the ground. "I get to spend the whole day with To-ru!" I wiggled my rabbit nose at her blissfully.
She beamed back and rubbed her cheek against mine. "I get to spend the day with Momiji-kun! It's a very nice White Day gift."
To my own shock, I blushed. I said the first thing that came into my head, "It's like a date!"
That earned me another double noogie from Kyou. But it was worth it. I had a date with To-ru!
All next week I ate lunch with Tooru, Kyou, Yuki and her friends. I was getting really excited about our 'date' for the school festival. We'd decided (well, I decided) to dub it "Momiji's and To-ru's First Date at the School Fesitval", a name which never failed to get a rise out of Kyou.
"What does To-ru want to do first on our date?" I asked eagerly laying out the tickets in front of her. They were starting to get worn and frayed from me constantly manhandling them. It was a good thing that the Festival was this weekend, I didn't think they were going to last much longer. I didn't think I was going to last much longer.
Tooru skootched closer the tickets and made a show of looking them over. I took the opportunity to lean up against her and rest my head against her shoulder. By now she was used to me, and I relished that she didn't back away from my intimacy. She tilted her head a little so that it rested against mine, and put her hand over mine automatically as she looked over the tickets. I loved that Tooru let me cuddle. I didn't get this from anyone else. I closed my eyes contentedly.
"Momiji." Yuki said sternly, and I looked up in surprise from my position leaning against Tooru. Yuki didn't use that tone very often. He glanced out of the corner of his eye at a couple of girls from my grade as the passed by whispering to each other. "You should watch what you say so casually. Someone might get the wrong idea."
"About what?" I said, and was surprised at the defensive tone to my voice. I'd been so touchy the past couple of days. I'd practically bit Hari's head off when he said he might come to the festival at school to make sure things went all right. I know Hatori must have been taken aback when I'd yelled that I wasn't a kid and could manage on my own. I was surprised myself.
Yuki looked like he was trying to be patient. "About dating Honda-san." No matter what he'd fooled the people in school to think about him though, I knew that the mouse was anything but patient. He looked annoyed at having to explain himself, "People might get the wrong idea."
"The wrong idea?" my tone was as light as only I could make it, but I was struggling to keep my temper in check. It reared its head so seldom, that when I got mad I didn't really know how to deal with it.
"They might think you're serious about it." Yuki said exasperatedly. Tooru had caught on to both of our frustrations, and I could see that she was thinking furiously on how to diffuse the situation. I realized that I had her hand in mine and was clutching it tightly.
"Ehhhh....?" I drawled, "Maybe Yuki-kun is just jealous that I asked To-ru first!" Yuki pinked and looked at me angrily. As usual I knew just what to say to get under my cousin's skin. Served him right! Yuki was taking me too lightly. Why shouldn't people think that I was serious about Tooru? It wasn't as if I was a little kid. I was only a year younger than her! And girls had confessed their love to me. Why shouldn't I be serious about Tooru?
I still held Tooru's hand, and was still leaning against her shoulder. Watching Yuki closely, I deliberately laid my head back against her shoulder and rubbed my cheek against her. I cuddled as close as the curse would allow. After all, Tooru didn't let anyone but me do things like this.
Yuki stood quickly and tossed his lunch with excessive force into the trash can. "I've got work to do for the student council. Honda-san, I'll see you later in class." He gave me a slit-eyed glare that he usually reserved for Kyou. My heart leapt into my throat. I never realized how cold Yuki could look.
"Momiji," He said, pausing before he turned fully away, "You should consider the result of your actions against others. You wouldn't want to embarrass Honda-san with your antics." He walked away without another look back.
I sat up straight, furious all over again. Embarrass Honda-san?! Why should Tooru be embarrassed by me? A moment later I was mortified. What if she was embarrassed by me? Its not like she was the type to say so. I knew I could be a bit over the top sometimes. I looked up at her and I felt like my eyes must be taking up two thirds of my face, they felt so wide.
"Is To-ru embarrassed?" I cursed the fact that my voice, as it was wont to do the past few months, cracked.
"Ehhhah!" Tooru flung up her hands, "Of course not! I'm happy that Momiji acts like Momiji!" She hastened to reassure me. "Mother always said that people should act like they are and not try to be like everyone else." She smiled in remembrance, like she always did when she spoke about her mother. "Mother always said that people shouldn't be afraid to open their arms up wide and jump if they want to." She smiled at me so widely that I couldn't see her eyes. "Momiji-kun is never afraid to jump!"
I felt instantly relieved, even if I did doubt a little that she meant everything she said. Or that perhaps I was taking it in a way she hadn't intended. I felt frustrated that I didn't seem to understand what was going inside me anymore. But I smiled back at Tooru and was glad that she was there. Everything was always better when Tooru was there.
The day of the festival dawned bright, and I could hardly wait to get to school. Too fidgety and anxious to wait for Hatori and Haru to be ready to drive, I impatiently started out on my own. I alternated walking, and when the excitement and energy got too much for me, dashing head long towards school. I arrived there early, many of the booths were still setting up.
I popped by my own homeroom, where they were setting up the café they planned to run. I'd managed to get out of working the café by helping to make the decorations for the room. Even though I wanted to dash down directly to Tooru's homeroom to see if they had set up her things yet, I held back. I made sure the decorations I'd crafted were set up correctly first. Then I wandered around for a little bit, trying to curb my enthusiasm. I didn't want to seem too eager.
Finally I couldn't wait any longer and I started down to her classroom. I found my stomach was in knots. Why was I so nervous? I was just going to see Tooru. We were finally going to have our long planned day together. Our date.
Our date.
I was going on a date with Tooru. I stood in the doorway, and looked in at her class busily setting up the last minute preparations. I could hear the different classrooms beginning to open up for business all around me. Tooru stood over the booth arranging her onigiri one last time. I had been joking when I said it, and Tooru probably thought it was still a joke. Our Date. But I wasn't joking anymore.
"I'm sorry, we're not quite open yet." A blushing girl approached me in the doorway. For a moment I saw myself through her eyes as she looked up at me. I'd somehow gotten used to the fact that I didn't have to look up at people any more. Sometime over the summer I'd gotten tall, slender; I still had my blonde hair and blue eyes, my wide and easy smile. Things had changed.
"That's ok." I said, my voice thankfully staying in its lower register. I'd never have a deep voice, but it wasn't a childish squeal any more either. "I'm actually here for To-ru..."
"Ah! Momiji-kun!" Tooru smiled and walked towards us, taking off her apron. Kyou and Yuki, still trapped by their duties to the class in running the booth, looked up with twin looks of annoyance. They were jealous, I realized, not just because Tooru's attention was elsewhere...but because it was specifically on me. They were jealous of me.
I smiled at the girl I'd been speaking to and she gracefully, if regretfully, bowed out of the scene.
"Ready to start our date?" I asked. "To-ru gets to pick what we do!"
Tooru laughed. "I feel just like a princess!" She said playfully, calling to mind my last White Day gift and the fun we had then.
Picking up her cue, I took her hand in mine and said. "If To-ru is a princess, then I'm a prince!" I smiled at her, placed my hand at the small of her back and added, leaning in close, "Your prince!"
I was gratified when she responded with a surprised blush. I looked back at Kyou and Yuki as I guided a still blushing Tooru out of the door. Things were definitely changing.
I was catching up.
~fin~
In the beginning little seemed to have changed between her old school and the new. Kisa was still quiet, and her strange eyes and hair didn't help her mix in any. At first, it looked like she might be outcast just like she had from her old class. I'd always been able to explain mine away through my foreign heritage and felt useless with no advice to give. But I, and the others, couldn't leave it alone. We all worried about her and couldn't help but stop by.
That made all the difference. Being attended constantly by her very cool (and protective) older cousins, Haru and I, made people re-estimate her worth. That she was also visited by important upperclassmen like "Prince Yuki", head of the student body council, and his notorious cousin Kyou brought her up a notch too. People began to look at her in new light.
As usual though, it was Tooru who tipped things over. Kisa just shone when she was around. People finally got to see all the special things about her. She'd officially gone from "strange and weird" to "mysterious and cool." Before the year was half over, she'd be dubbed the princess of her class. Hiro was frantically waiting to transfer next year, worried that she might attract too much attention. His concern was probably legitimate.
It was amazing really how things had changed in our family. When Kisa had first been bullied we could have done the same thing. We could have visited. Kisa could have come to us for help. But it never even occurred to us to support and depend on each other that way. We didn't even know there was a problem until Kisa disappeared. We didn't know how, or that we even could, act like a real family. But, then before Tooru perhaps we weren't a real family after all. Things had changed a lot since she'd come.
But I knew things were really changing for me the first time I was pulled aside by Yuki. The mouse didn't often have private conversations with the rest of us. He was so frequently sick when we were kids that we didn't get a chance to see him much. I suppose we all got used to lumping him in with the older Junninshi since, if he wasn't with the Head, he was often sitting in Hatori or Shigure's shadow. At family gatherings, like New Years, he was often too sick to join in when he was little. As he got older he was expected to entertain Akito instead. We fell into groups, the older Trio, Akito and Yuki, and us kids. Kyou of course, was left on his own.
Things have been changing since Tooru came around, of course. We've all be mixing a lot more since then. But to be singled out by Yuki, even now, you knew it had to be important.
"When they confess..." He said, "Just say you aren't interested in getting into a relationship right now. Don't," he warned, "say that you're interested in someone else just to get them to go away. Any girl you even say hello after that to will just be bullied. It wouldn't be fair."
I didn't understand what he was talking about at first, and when it hit me I was practically knocked speechless. I gaped at him in surprise. Confess to me? Girls just didn't think of me that way. But Yuki just asked if I understood. When I nodded, he walked off as if we'd just been discussing something as mundane as what we planned to have for dinner.
Yuki had come a long way, but he still really didn't understand how talk to people.
Still, the concept was so impossible to me that I hardly gave it a thought. It just wasn't something I had to worry about. I was Momiji, pet of the class. Girls may like to give me candy and play with me, but the don't confess to me!
I spent a the next few days being surprised again at face that shone back from any reflective surface I found. I hadn't changed that much that I would have to worry about stuff like that! So what if I'd grown taller over the past summer? So what if I'd filled out a bit; that I'd lost some of my baby softness. I was still me. I still dressed in frills. I'd left off the modified girls uniform this year, but I still had my boy's uniform custom made in the girl's lighter blue, and still wore a hat. No girl would think to confess to me.
So when it happened, I was so shocked I found myself repeating Yuki's script almost verbatim.
"I'm sorry, I'm not interested in getting into a relationship right now." I said, and watched the eyes of the girl before me start to shimmer. I didn't want to see her cry! This was too cold. "But I'd be very sad if Kimiko wasn't my friend anymore." I adlibbed.
Instead of making the shimmer go away, Kimiko's face crumpled completely. She buried her hands in he face and ran around the corner. I could hear her muffled sobs from where I stood helpless in the hallway. This was awful! How did Yuki stand it?
I felt lost and confused, and did what I usually did when I felt that way. I went to talk to Tooru.
"...and then she just started crying!" I exclaimed waving my hands around. I shook my head and let my blonde curls fall into my face. I sighed and let my hands fall back to the table, resting on either side of a half eaten piece of cake. I poked at it dissolutely with my fork. It was a rich German chocolate that Tooru had learned just to assuage my sweet tooth. But even it's sugariness was having a tough time getting past the lump in my throat.
Tooru laid a smoothing hand over her laundry. "I don't think anything Momiji-kun could have said would have prevented her tears. She's lucky that her confession went to someone who cares so much for her feelings. She'll be glad of that later. But," She got up and poured a little more tea into my cup. "Are you sure that Momiji-kun didn't want to accept?" Her hair fell forward in a soft fall, covering her face as she poured.
Accept? What a strange question to ask. Kimiko was nothing to me, just another girl in class who I sometimes played with. I shook my head vehemently. "No...I just don't want her to be sad."
Tooru sat back on her knees and smiled at me. "I don't want Momiji to be sad either," she said, and I realized why she had asked. As a Junninshi, I wouldn't have been able to say yes to Kimiko even if I'd wanted too. I hadn't even thought of it.
I didn't want to think about it. "Then lets talk about happy things!" I exclaimed. "Do you know what yesterday was?"
More than anyone else, Tooru had always been able to adjust to energetic mood swings. That was one of the great things about being around her. "Eto..." She said and her smile widened. "Yesterday was market day..." she said playfully, "And a Tuesday....and it was the 14th...." She ticked off all the things that yesterday had been.
"The 14th of March!" I said emphatically, "And continuing our tradition of one day late White Day gifts, I present To-ru with this!" I dug a stack of tickets out of my frilly sleeve and slapped them down on the table.
Kyou walked into the room, toweling off from his run around the grounds. He eyed me skeptically and then peered at the toppling stack tickets on the on the table. "Oy, brat, what's all that mess?"
"Next week is the school festival!" I said jumping up to explain. "And as thanks for this years' Valentine's Chocolate, To-ru will be my guest to every booth at school!" I wagged a handful of the tickets at Kyou. "I got tickets to everything!" I held up one, "Fortune telling booth!" I held up another, "Tako booth!" And another, "Goldfish game booth!"
Kyou didn't let me get much further. "Damn brat!" He ground his knuckles into the sides of my head in a double noogie, "You don't have to tell me what each one is!"
"Waaaaahhhh!" I mock cried, "Kyou is hurting me!" And it did hurt a little, but it felt good in a way that Kyou at least was still treating me the same. I sniffled and let Tooru pat my head sympathetically.
I looked up at her and forgot for a moment I was playing. She looked so sweet, sympathetic and worried. I was so caught up in looking at her that I almost missed seeing Kyou's face turning a rapid series of colors as he got jealous over Tooru paying attention to me. Never mind that she wouldn't have if he hadn't bullied me.
"B-brat!" He exclaimed, turning quickly away from us. Not quick enough to hide his annoyed flush. "Did you forget that Tooru has to work the booth in our class?"
I looked wide-eyed at Tooru. I hadn't forgotten, but I hadn't thought she'd be trapped there all day. But then, she was always so self-sacrificing. She might have signed up for a whole day's duty. "You can't come?"
The lump in my throat from before had come back, and I felt tears pricking at the back of my eyes unexpectedly. I'd just assumed that she'd be able to come with me. I'd called in favors from everyone I knew in school to get tickets. I'd begged, wheedled and charmed for weeks to get them all. I'd never even thought that she might not be able to come. I hadn't realized how much I'd been looking forward to spending the day with Tooru till I thought it wasn't going to happen.
"Ah...well..." Tooru said looking back and forth between Kyou's back and I. "I have to help set up the booth, and bring in the onigiri..." the success of their booth last year had made it easy to decide to use the concept again, "but after that I'm free." She smiled.
"WAI!" I cried and leapt into her arms. I just couldn't restrain myself. I was so happy. There was a loud "PYON" as I transformed and my clothes fluttered to the ground. "I get to spend the whole day with To-ru!" I wiggled my rabbit nose at her blissfully.
She beamed back and rubbed her cheek against mine. "I get to spend the day with Momiji-kun! It's a very nice White Day gift."
To my own shock, I blushed. I said the first thing that came into my head, "It's like a date!"
That earned me another double noogie from Kyou. But it was worth it. I had a date with To-ru!
All next week I ate lunch with Tooru, Kyou, Yuki and her friends. I was getting really excited about our 'date' for the school festival. We'd decided (well, I decided) to dub it "Momiji's and To-ru's First Date at the School Fesitval", a name which never failed to get a rise out of Kyou.
"What does To-ru want to do first on our date?" I asked eagerly laying out the tickets in front of her. They were starting to get worn and frayed from me constantly manhandling them. It was a good thing that the Festival was this weekend, I didn't think they were going to last much longer. I didn't think I was going to last much longer.
Tooru skootched closer the tickets and made a show of looking them over. I took the opportunity to lean up against her and rest my head against her shoulder. By now she was used to me, and I relished that she didn't back away from my intimacy. She tilted her head a little so that it rested against mine, and put her hand over mine automatically as she looked over the tickets. I loved that Tooru let me cuddle. I didn't get this from anyone else. I closed my eyes contentedly.
"Momiji." Yuki said sternly, and I looked up in surprise from my position leaning against Tooru. Yuki didn't use that tone very often. He glanced out of the corner of his eye at a couple of girls from my grade as the passed by whispering to each other. "You should watch what you say so casually. Someone might get the wrong idea."
"About what?" I said, and was surprised at the defensive tone to my voice. I'd been so touchy the past couple of days. I'd practically bit Hari's head off when he said he might come to the festival at school to make sure things went all right. I know Hatori must have been taken aback when I'd yelled that I wasn't a kid and could manage on my own. I was surprised myself.
Yuki looked like he was trying to be patient. "About dating Honda-san." No matter what he'd fooled the people in school to think about him though, I knew that the mouse was anything but patient. He looked annoyed at having to explain himself, "People might get the wrong idea."
"The wrong idea?" my tone was as light as only I could make it, but I was struggling to keep my temper in check. It reared its head so seldom, that when I got mad I didn't really know how to deal with it.
"They might think you're serious about it." Yuki said exasperatedly. Tooru had caught on to both of our frustrations, and I could see that she was thinking furiously on how to diffuse the situation. I realized that I had her hand in mine and was clutching it tightly.
"Ehhhh....?" I drawled, "Maybe Yuki-kun is just jealous that I asked To-ru first!" Yuki pinked and looked at me angrily. As usual I knew just what to say to get under my cousin's skin. Served him right! Yuki was taking me too lightly. Why shouldn't people think that I was serious about Tooru? It wasn't as if I was a little kid. I was only a year younger than her! And girls had confessed their love to me. Why shouldn't I be serious about Tooru?
I still held Tooru's hand, and was still leaning against her shoulder. Watching Yuki closely, I deliberately laid my head back against her shoulder and rubbed my cheek against her. I cuddled as close as the curse would allow. After all, Tooru didn't let anyone but me do things like this.
Yuki stood quickly and tossed his lunch with excessive force into the trash can. "I've got work to do for the student council. Honda-san, I'll see you later in class." He gave me a slit-eyed glare that he usually reserved for Kyou. My heart leapt into my throat. I never realized how cold Yuki could look.
"Momiji," He said, pausing before he turned fully away, "You should consider the result of your actions against others. You wouldn't want to embarrass Honda-san with your antics." He walked away without another look back.
I sat up straight, furious all over again. Embarrass Honda-san?! Why should Tooru be embarrassed by me? A moment later I was mortified. What if she was embarrassed by me? Its not like she was the type to say so. I knew I could be a bit over the top sometimes. I looked up at her and I felt like my eyes must be taking up two thirds of my face, they felt so wide.
"Is To-ru embarrassed?" I cursed the fact that my voice, as it was wont to do the past few months, cracked.
"Ehhhah!" Tooru flung up her hands, "Of course not! I'm happy that Momiji acts like Momiji!" She hastened to reassure me. "Mother always said that people should act like they are and not try to be like everyone else." She smiled in remembrance, like she always did when she spoke about her mother. "Mother always said that people shouldn't be afraid to open their arms up wide and jump if they want to." She smiled at me so widely that I couldn't see her eyes. "Momiji-kun is never afraid to jump!"
I felt instantly relieved, even if I did doubt a little that she meant everything she said. Or that perhaps I was taking it in a way she hadn't intended. I felt frustrated that I didn't seem to understand what was going inside me anymore. But I smiled back at Tooru and was glad that she was there. Everything was always better when Tooru was there.
The day of the festival dawned bright, and I could hardly wait to get to school. Too fidgety and anxious to wait for Hatori and Haru to be ready to drive, I impatiently started out on my own. I alternated walking, and when the excitement and energy got too much for me, dashing head long towards school. I arrived there early, many of the booths were still setting up.
I popped by my own homeroom, where they were setting up the café they planned to run. I'd managed to get out of working the café by helping to make the decorations for the room. Even though I wanted to dash down directly to Tooru's homeroom to see if they had set up her things yet, I held back. I made sure the decorations I'd crafted were set up correctly first. Then I wandered around for a little bit, trying to curb my enthusiasm. I didn't want to seem too eager.
Finally I couldn't wait any longer and I started down to her classroom. I found my stomach was in knots. Why was I so nervous? I was just going to see Tooru. We were finally going to have our long planned day together. Our date.
Our date.
I was going on a date with Tooru. I stood in the doorway, and looked in at her class busily setting up the last minute preparations. I could hear the different classrooms beginning to open up for business all around me. Tooru stood over the booth arranging her onigiri one last time. I had been joking when I said it, and Tooru probably thought it was still a joke. Our Date. But I wasn't joking anymore.
"I'm sorry, we're not quite open yet." A blushing girl approached me in the doorway. For a moment I saw myself through her eyes as she looked up at me. I'd somehow gotten used to the fact that I didn't have to look up at people any more. Sometime over the summer I'd gotten tall, slender; I still had my blonde hair and blue eyes, my wide and easy smile. Things had changed.
"That's ok." I said, my voice thankfully staying in its lower register. I'd never have a deep voice, but it wasn't a childish squeal any more either. "I'm actually here for To-ru..."
"Ah! Momiji-kun!" Tooru smiled and walked towards us, taking off her apron. Kyou and Yuki, still trapped by their duties to the class in running the booth, looked up with twin looks of annoyance. They were jealous, I realized, not just because Tooru's attention was elsewhere...but because it was specifically on me. They were jealous of me.
I smiled at the girl I'd been speaking to and she gracefully, if regretfully, bowed out of the scene.
"Ready to start our date?" I asked. "To-ru gets to pick what we do!"
Tooru laughed. "I feel just like a princess!" She said playfully, calling to mind my last White Day gift and the fun we had then.
Picking up her cue, I took her hand in mine and said. "If To-ru is a princess, then I'm a prince!" I smiled at her, placed my hand at the small of her back and added, leaning in close, "Your prince!"
I was gratified when she responded with a surprised blush. I looked back at Kyou and Yuki as I guided a still blushing Tooru out of the door. Things were definitely changing.
I was catching up.
~fin~