Remembrance - Day One
Title: Remembrance
Pairing: TezukaFuji
Rating: G for now
Genre: Romance/Drama
Warnings: Spoilers, and this is shounen ai
Disclaimer: I don't own Tezuka and Fuji. They own each other, though.
Parts: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
a/n: this started as a TezuOC and Fuji helping OC get Tezuka... but that was way before the earth was formed... so, yeah, it's all TezuFuji right now. This is not randomly written in second person PoV, mind you.
Hint No. 1: Does a SWITCH in POV NECESSARILY mean a CHANGE in POV?
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One runs a risk of weeping a little, if one lets himself be tamed… - The Little Prince, by Antoine De Saint-Exupéry
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Remembrance - Day One
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I know everyone thought that things started and ended as mere games to him. You admitted that you used to think so too. His attitude, his playful nonchalance annoyed you to no end; it hindered him from showing his true self especially at court. Yet you couldn’t deny that his careless elegance intrigued you as well; it made you wonder what kind of person he was hiding from everyone else.
However, you weren’t exactly pleased when you have come to be his favorite target. He especially liked teasing you, probably, you thought, because you spoke very little around him and said less to anyone else. It was one of the few things that you found unnerving: you couldn’t help wondering when he’d come up with a trick up his sleeve. I can easily picture you raising a brow whenever he was within proximity.
“What is it?” You asked as he approached you after a long run. You eyed him staidly, waiting, while he picked up his towel from a nearby bench and he dabbed it against his flushed and sweaty face.
He smiled placidly at you. “There’s someone who’d like to see you after practice.”
Suspicion began hissing in your head. It must have told you not to let your guard down around him. “I’m busy,” you said abruptly. But you realized your mistake when you heard a soft amused laugh; you knew that he never gave in to tones of dismissal.
“It’s very urgent,” he pressed. His lips were coaxing a knowing smile. “And the only homework we have for tomorrow is Math. We already finished it at the library before practice. You can’t be busy.”
You tried to throw a glare at him but you failed immensely because your eyes met his thoughtful blue ones. Then, he grinned, making you lose the contact and causing your brows to twitch.
“We’ll be by the school gates at five.”
“You - ?” You shut your mouth and sighed. He had set off without bothering to listen to your reply. Thinking that he never was one to pay attention to you in the first place, you didn’t attempt to call him back.
Practice ended early that day and you watched him warily as he brushed past you and took long strides out of the clubroom. He turned back to remind you of your rendezvous but you couldn’t help but notice that the smile on his face was too broad to be considered harmless. You nodded, bracing yourself mentally for what was to come.
You were donning on a clean set of clothing from your locker when you began to wonder what he could possibly be up to. Then, you recalled the last time he had waited for you by the school gates… He had been quite upset that day. The usual beam was replaced by a contemplative frown and you surprised yourself when you asked him to see you after practice. Relief had been evident in your face when he agreed; you must have thought that he would refuse to talk to you just as he had refused to talk to anyone else.
As you had walked away from school that time, you knew that he had no trouble in store; no mind game was in his head. You knew something was weighing him down. Despite the knowledge that you would be downing cup after cup of milk thereafter, you didn’t complain when he had been so generous as to pick your meal at his favorite noodle house. After all, you were the one who offered him company. While you were chugging down your third cup of milk, you had caught sight of him covering his lips and muffling a chuckle while watching your feat. But he had given up in the end and had thrown his head back in teary-eyed laughter - a sound that hadn’t been heard in the past week.
In normal occasions, you would have taken offense if anyone found entertainment at your expense. But I think that was when you began to appreciate his lighthearted nature, when you began to realize that people took his eternal smile for granted and so you had chosen to stay silent. At least your demise was doing a good thing. Besides, I’m quite sure that you had been smiling at that time, too.
Gulping down another cup of milk, you said, “If I were Yuuta-kun, I would transfer to another school as well.”
He blinked his eyes and stopped laughing. “You would?” he asked in a hollow voice, his eyes dropped to his untouched bowl.
You nodded firmly. “It wouldn’t be to spite you,” you said in your usual calm voice. “It would be to step out of your shadow and to see what I can accomplish on my own. After all, you are someone who excels in everything and your shadow would have to be very overpowering.”
He hung his head and fixed his gaze on you. “But if you were my brother… I’d stay. I’d want to accomplish many things with you. I’d want to win the Nationals with you.”
Your eyes widened by the tiniest fraction. Then, you nodded and said, “You and Yuuta-kun have different personalities.” You must have heard the heavy sigh that he released since you added hastily, “I may be wrong, though, seeing as I don’t have a sibling.”
He lifted his head and said, “I think you’re right.” He had smiled sincerely and added, “Thank you.”
After buttoning up your shirt, you shut your locker. You wrinkled your forehead slightly in thought, deciding that meeting with him couldn’t be all that bad. You only had to order dinner for yourself should the opportunity arise.
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As his lips opened slightly with the suspicion of a half-smile, I said to myself, again: “What moves me so deeply, about this little prince who is sleeping here, is his loyalty to a flower - the image of a rose that shines through his whole being like the flame of a lamp, even when he is asleep…” And I felt him to be more fragile still. I felt the need of protecting him, as if he himself were a flame that might be extinguished by a little puff of the wind… - The Little Prince, by Antoine De Saint-Exupéry
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A/N: comments and theories are accepted! (and theories might be confirmed!)