SS Contest #21: Bittersweet
Apr 30, 2017 18:34:08 GMT
neonquincy1217, sgamer82, and 2 more like this
Post by gent on Apr 30, 2017 18:34:08 GMT
First post here! I hope I did everything right, if I missed something, sorry!
Summary : It's Sera's birthday, and one particular memory tugs at the back of her mind...
Word Count : 1093.
Summary : It's Sera's birthday, and one particular memory tugs at the back of her mind...
Word Count : 1093.
Bittersweet
And before she knew it, her mind had gone back to one of the last times she’d ever seen him.
“Your balance is off.” He said, for the umpteenth time as he swept her feet off the floor and sent her crashing down. He tiled his head to the side and looked down at her with a slight frown on his face.
She hated it when he did that.
“You’re letting yourself be clouded by anger, Masumi.” He stretched his lean, muscular arms behind his back as he continued to appraise her small, beaten figure.
“One more time, Shuu-nii! This time I’ll…”
“In real life, there are no second chances.”
That was Shuu-nii.
Everything had to be life or death. Hit first and hit hard, no second chances, no whining about. His gaze was cold and calculating, and he was seldom seen without a book of some kind resting in his hands. He didn’t speak with mama all that much, and only occasionally asked Kichi-nii how his Shogi was getting along.
As for herself… he hardly noticed her apart from the odd greeting every other day.
She tried hard to catch his eye – she ran errands for him, watched him as he did rigorous training every morning – Jeet-Kune-Do, he called it – and tried her best to be useful.
Kichi-nii was the ideal brother. He helped with her homework, took her out to see the movies and bought her yakisoba when Mama wasn’t looking.
But the one whom she wanted to take notice was Shuu-nii.
And so, three whole weeks after he’d moved in, she’d mustered the courage to go up to him and asked him if he could teach her Jeet-Kune-Do. He’d looked up from his book and directly into her eyes.
It was then that she’d noticed that he had the exact same eyes as her.
“Tomorrow morning at six. Don’t be late,” was the only thing he’d said.
That was three months ago, and she still hadn’t gotten hang of the whole thing.
“That’ll be all for today, Masumi.” He said as he turned his back to her. "Also, this will be the last time I train you personally since I’m leaving for America tonight.”
She looked up in shock. Her lip quivered as the tears began to form at the corner of her eyes and she had to lower her head to hide them.
“I’ll send you Jeet-Kune-Do training tapes once I’ve reached, so make sure you train hard.” He said.
She brightened almost immediately and her heart beat fast and she watched him walk away.
“I’ll train hard! Hard enough… to make you proud of me one day!” she said to his retreating figure. He stopped and turned back to her. She felt his eyes gaze through her, as though looking at her soul.
“And when the day comes, what do you want me to give you?” he asked, and for a moment, his voice sounded soft, almost sad.
She stared at him, taken aback. She felt his intense gaze on her and blushed as she cast her mind around to say something… anything.
“F-flowers,” she blurted out and felt her ears go red.
Flowers?! I’m a tomboy, for heaven’s sake! I don’t even like flowers! she thought desperately. But the damage had already been done.
He nodded slowly and turned away from her once again.
“I’ll keep that in mind,” he said, and she could almost swear he was smiling.
She was jolted back to the present by the sound of Sonoko’s voice. She was going on about how she was reading a book on Floriography – the language of flowers.
Sera shook her head, tracing her birthday cake with a finger and feeling tears spring to her eyes again as she thought of Shuu-nii. As she vigorously blinked them back, she felt a hand on her shoulder.
She looked up, to see Azusa-san smiling down at her, holding a bouquet of flowers.
“Here, Sera-chan! Happy birthday!” she said, handing her the bouquet.
Sera accepted them gratefully, mouthing her thanks. But she frowned as Azusa-san shook her head.
“Oh they’re not from me! Subaru-san asked me to drop it off and to wish you a happy birthday on his behalf.” said Azusa-san and briskly walked away to the next table.
“Subaru-san…” said Sera in a puzzled voice. “The person who lives in Shinichi-kun’s house? But I wonder how he knew it was my birthday.”
“And he was probably rushing to buy the flowers too, since these make no sense in the language of flowers,” said Sonoko, peering down at the bouquet.
“Really? They’re Carnations, aren’t they? What do they mean?” asked Sera.
“Pride,” said Sonoko. “It means he’s proud of you.”
“Proud… of me?” said Sera softly as she looked at the blood-red carnations in her hand.
It was only a for a fleeting moment, but she felt as though a wave of happiness had crashed through her heart, leaving behind a sense of giddy euphoria, the kind you get when you see a loved one after a long time, and she felt it warm her entire being, filling her with joy.
She smiled and pulled the bouquet towards her, and though she wasn’t quite sure why, she felt like she had gotten just a little closer to Shuu-nii, and the world had gotten just a little brighter.
“Happy birthday, Sera-chan!” said Sonoko and Ran in unison as Sera blew the candles on the small cake which sat on a table at Café Poirot. She blushed as she cut the cake and the others clapped gently.
“Ah, you guys didn’t have to do this!” she said, not really meaning it. It had been ages before she’d properly celebrated her birthday, surrounded by the people she loved and cared about.
“Make a wish, a wish!” said Sonoko. “Maybe for a prince to come whisk you off!” she added, winking.
Sera grinned. “I’m more into wizards than princes.”
“You need to make a wish fast!” said Ran, pushing the cake at her.
A wish, huh… she thought as she closed her eyes.
I wish you were here, Shuu-nii.
And before she knew it, her mind had gone back to one of the last times she’d ever seen him.
"Left foot back,” said Shuu-nii, as his right hand was thrust at her shoulder. She blocked it elegantly with her own right hand, before pushing her left knee up into his stomach. But he was far quicker; as his right elbow came down to meet it midway.
She clicked her tongue in impatience. She tried a knife-jab at his ribs, but once again, his elbow was in the way of a clean strike.
“Your balance is off.” He said, for the umpteenth time as he swept her feet off the floor and sent her crashing down. He tiled his head to the side and looked down at her with a slight frown on his face.
She hated it when he did that.
“You’re letting yourself be clouded by anger, Masumi.” He stretched his lean, muscular arms behind his back as he continued to appraise her small, beaten figure.
“One more time, Shuu-nii! This time I’ll…”
“In real life, there are no second chances.”
That was Shuu-nii.
Everything had to be life or death. Hit first and hit hard, no second chances, no whining about. His gaze was cold and calculating, and he was seldom seen without a book of some kind resting in his hands. He didn’t speak with mama all that much, and only occasionally asked Kichi-nii how his Shogi was getting along.
As for herself… he hardly noticed her apart from the odd greeting every other day.
She tried hard to catch his eye – she ran errands for him, watched him as he did rigorous training every morning – Jeet-Kune-Do, he called it – and tried her best to be useful.
Kichi-nii was the ideal brother. He helped with her homework, took her out to see the movies and bought her yakisoba when Mama wasn’t looking.
But the one whom she wanted to take notice was Shuu-nii.
And so, three whole weeks after he’d moved in, she’d mustered the courage to go up to him and asked him if he could teach her Jeet-Kune-Do. He’d looked up from his book and directly into her eyes.
It was then that she’d noticed that he had the exact same eyes as her.
“Tomorrow morning at six. Don’t be late,” was the only thing he’d said.
That was three months ago, and she still hadn’t gotten hang of the whole thing.
“That’ll be all for today, Masumi.” He said as he turned his back to her. "Also, this will be the last time I train you personally since I’m leaving for America tonight.”
She looked up in shock. Her lip quivered as the tears began to form at the corner of her eyes and she had to lower her head to hide them.
“I’ll send you Jeet-Kune-Do training tapes once I’ve reached, so make sure you train hard.” He said.
She brightened almost immediately and her heart beat fast and she watched him walk away.
“I’ll train hard! Hard enough… to make you proud of me one day!” she said to his retreating figure. He stopped and turned back to her. She felt his eyes gaze through her, as though looking at her soul.
“And when the day comes, what do you want me to give you?” he asked, and for a moment, his voice sounded soft, almost sad.
She stared at him, taken aback. She felt his intense gaze on her and blushed as she cast her mind around to say something… anything.
“F-flowers,” she blurted out and felt her ears go red.
Flowers?! I’m a tomboy, for heaven’s sake! I don’t even like flowers! she thought desperately. But the damage had already been done.
He nodded slowly and turned away from her once again.
“I’ll keep that in mind,” he said, and she could almost swear he was smiling.
She was jolted back to the present by the sound of Sonoko’s voice. She was going on about how she was reading a book on Floriography – the language of flowers.
Sera shook her head, tracing her birthday cake with a finger and feeling tears spring to her eyes again as she thought of Shuu-nii. As she vigorously blinked them back, she felt a hand on her shoulder.
She looked up, to see Azusa-san smiling down at her, holding a bouquet of flowers.
“Here, Sera-chan! Happy birthday!” she said, handing her the bouquet.
Sera accepted them gratefully, mouthing her thanks. But she frowned as Azusa-san shook her head.
“Oh they’re not from me! Subaru-san asked me to drop it off and to wish you a happy birthday on his behalf.” said Azusa-san and briskly walked away to the next table.
“Subaru-san…” said Sera in a puzzled voice. “The person who lives in Shinichi-kun’s house? But I wonder how he knew it was my birthday.”
“And he was probably rushing to buy the flowers too, since these make no sense in the language of flowers,” said Sonoko, peering down at the bouquet.
“Really? They’re Carnations, aren’t they? What do they mean?” asked Sera.
“Pride,” said Sonoko. “It means he’s proud of you.”
“Proud… of me?” said Sera softly as she looked at the blood-red carnations in her hand.
It was only a for a fleeting moment, but she felt as though a wave of happiness had crashed through her heart, leaving behind a sense of giddy euphoria, the kind you get when you see a loved one after a long time, and she felt it warm her entire being, filling her with joy.
She smiled and pulled the bouquet towards her, and though she wasn’t quite sure why, she felt like she had gotten just a little closer to Shuu-nii, and the world had gotten just a little brighter.