Falling
Author: Anita
Fandom: Takarazuka RPF
Characters: Tsukishiro Kanato / Akatsuki Chisei, Kazama Yuno, Umino Mitsuki
Genre: yuri, romance
Rating: PG 13
Summary: Chisei thinks she's finally found the one for her in
Kazama Yuno. Yuno, despite their year-long relationship, started
displaying worried over Chisei's tightness with Tsukishiro Kanato. But
it's normal to message one of your best friends nonstop, right? To make
it worse, the two are to spend month apart when Chisei and Yuno find a
confession Kanato wrote in the past, and Yuno is convinced Chisei was
the intended recipient. How can Chisei prove to Yuno she's imagining
things and maintain both her girlfriend and her friend who's also a girl
when it's no secret she considers Kanato the most beautiful woman ever?
Previous Chapter | Chapter 18 | Next Chapter
Falling
Chapter 18
“Just do what you want with it.” Reiko had barely finished the sentence… in fact, Ari felt she had been about to say more, when the door slammed open and something like a tornado stormed in their direction.
“I knew it! I knew it, I knew it! I so knew it! I told you, Reiko-san! Didn’t I?”
Ari blinked, wondering whether it was some nightmare. But Umino was still standing in front of them, pointing to the note in her hand.
“Eri!” Reiko’s tone was so low, yet so loud, it was as if she were on stage.
And they were being watched indeed. By the still open door, Yuno was silently gazing the scene without allowing any feelings to show on her face.
Still in shock, Ari forced herself to face Umino. “How did you… Why are you here? Didn’t you leave already?” But even as she asked, she realized neither had passed by her earlier, although she had seen the whole troupe off waiting for Reiko. “And what are you talking about, Umi-san”
“What else? This!” Umino took the note from Ari’s hand so quickly, Ari had no chance to react deflecting her or even hold it more tightly. With the note in hands, Umino read it with a smile, “‘Be with me?’, huh?”
Desperate and bewildered, Ari threw a glance to Yuno for help. “It isn’t mine!” she tried to clarify. “It’s for you! Just see it again, it’s not mine.”
Reiko startled, but Umino just furrowed. It took her some time to follow the request and observe the note more closely. “Huh? For me? But you…”
Ari interrupted her before reality cracked open with whatever conjectured Umino was creating in her mind. “I didn’t write it, that’s what I meant! It’s not even my handwriting. But it is for you.”
Reiko was moving awkwardly, and Ari looked from Umino to Yuno, pleading for one of them to do something. That was when she caught Yuno rolling her eyes and mouthing something… that was obvious even if she couldn’t read lips, “Idiot”.
No thanks for the support… Ari thought and then concentrated on Umino’s despondent semblance. Which was just one more to the list of stuff that didn’t make sense. “Were you just celebrating that you thought I had confessed to your girlfriend?” She nodded Yuno’s way. “And why did you get here at the same time?” Her mind was speeding to put that puzzle in place and verifying even the most ludicrous explanations. “Don’t tell me that offer you made that day was because… you…” Her index finger pointed at both Umino and Yuno. “Are you into Haru?” Who cared about which name she should use now?
But while Ari was about to have a stroke from processing information and trying conclusions that fit, Umino had been distracted observing the note and just casually nodding. When Ari was about to rule that she hadn’t listened, she raised her head with a quizzical look to Ari’s finger. “You were talking to me?”
“What offer?” Reiko asked at the same time.
“You didn’t know, Reiko-san? She asked me if I’d accept a relationship with you, Umi-san and Haru.” Cheeks burning from embarrassment, Ari couldn’t focus on the reaction to that and turned back to Umino and Yuno. “So… was that it?”
“You’re implying we were getting together?” Yuno raised an eyebrow, but her posture had overall remained unaltered. “Umi-san, I’m sorry if that’s it, but you’re not really my type.”
Umino stomped her way. “What a cold rejection, you brat!”
Sure she was going to be hit, Yuno winced.
But Umino stopped midair. “It was all hypothetical!” she said facing Ari again, as well as Reiko. “She’s not my type either.” She took a pause and her breathing quietened. “I was in the middle of forcing Odachin to listen to me, since she didn’t pick up my calls, about how much of a big jerk she was to Ari-chan. That’s when we both saw you intercept Reiko-san in the hallway, and it looked a lot like you were about to declare your feelings or something. Who wouldn’t come and check?”
“She dragged me along,” Yuno corrected, and a smug smile crept over her lips. “I didn’t have to come to know declaring her feelings was the last thing Ari would do.”
“Use the honorifics when talking about your joukyuusei, brat!” Umino admonished her.
That almost got a laugh from Ari. However, at almost the same time, Reiko had stood up so suddenly, she could feel the air moving against her. “I…” Reiko looked distracted while checking if she had all her bags with her. “I have to go.”
“Wait!” Ari asked already to her back. “The note, you…” She gestured Umino’s way in vain.
“I don’t get it why you’d still have it after three years.” Reiko shook her head and resumed her walk, passing Yuno as though she weren’t there, by the door. “If you wanted to ask what to do with it, just throw it away.” And she left.
*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*
Ari was about to run after Reiko—she’d think what to say when she caught up—, but Umino moved to stand in the way. “Before you go, I need to confess something.”
“I’m gonna lose her, we can talk later!” Ari tried to get through, but Yuno blocked her this time, while Umino held her forearm.
“Wait!” Umino said in an almost shriek. “This is such a mess… But it’s actually funny, you’ll laugh!”
There was no time to care for what they had meant! Ari frantically searched for ways to escape. It was true she had already given back the note, or tried to, and that had been what she was set to do, but it still didn’t feel like mission accomplished. She was afraid that once Reiko was gone, she’d never be brave enough to face the matter again despite so many questions she had.
But it couldn’t be… As that small voice resounded inside Ari, she stopped resisting, and her shoulders fell.
“Ari, just listen!”
She came to herself with Yuno shaking her gently but urgently. “Reiko lied to you!”
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