Author's Rant:

I'm so persistent. I want to finish this fic by the end of our semestral break, if not before the end of the second week of November. Kami-sama, give me powers. *doing-doing-doing* Thank you for reaching this far in my fiction.

Disclaimer: Rurouni Kenshin is copyright Watsuki-sensei's. Do I have to state it over and over again? It is just painful.

~Shohoku no Miko~©

Chasing Rainbows by Shohoku no Miko

Chapter Six: Mata Atarashii Hana ga Umarete ('Til the New Blossoms Bloom Again)

***Soujiro***

"What if. We leave Tokyo?" Misao asked, her fingers intertwined with mine, her head on my shoulder.

A sudden rush of feelings coursed throughout my body. What is it with her that just her simple statement had such an effect on me?

What is she implying? Is she trying to tell me that we should elope? Or is it because she is so accustomed to me that she wants me to be with her? Can it be. that she feels the same? Or is she just trying to run away from the problem?

Whatever it is, I don't know how to react. For the first time in my life, I felt like I was silenced by no less than the shotgun-mouth Misao. MY shotgun-mouth Misao.

I know for a fact that she is childish and immature. Not entirely, though. Immature, in a sense that she knows what is the right thing to do, but chooses to do otherwise. Some people mistake her for being childish all throughout, but she is definitely not. I am not being boastful or anything, but being her friend for almost all of her life, I am confident enough to tell the world that I know her very well. She knows what she is doing, but there are times that she discovers new things. They may not be new, but these are the things that she had just begun to understand. A late bloomer, that I can call her.

Childish and immature are two different things. Childish is seeing things in a child's perspective and not understanding some things. Immature is seeing in a mature person's perspective, but acting on a situation like a child. Childish and Immature are two different entities.

She can be childish at times, and immature at times. But sometimes, she wants people to see that she is childish when in fact she being immature. Like now, I know her reasons well enough to ask me that we leave Tokyo. She wants Okina-san, her parents, Yumi-san and Shishio-san to think that we just want to spread our wings and explore. But given the situation -- she crying over the betrothal without anyone knowing it -- I know that she just wants to run away from it all.

And I won't lie to myself. She just wants me to accompany her because she knows that I'll understand. She knows that I'll be there to support her in everything she is to do. She asked me to go with her and leave Tokyo because she can't live without me, her best friend. ONLY her best friend, and I know there is nothing deeper.

I admit: I want to kid myself. I want to tell myself that she wants the two of us to elope and run away, that she loves me like I love her. But it is not so. She loves me, all right, but only because she sees me as her best friend, the brother she never had. And she thinks that I see her just as she sees me. She thinks she is the sister that I was so close to have, but was unfortunate enough to meet an accident that caused me the life of my parents and my sister, who was at that time at the womb of my mother.

But there are times that I think she does see something else. There were her words, her gestures, her actions, and her occasional stares. Even Sanosuke-san thinks that she is something else to me.

"Oh c'mon Soujiro. There's no need to hide it from Kenshin and me. After all, you two look good together. Opposites attract." He said, confident that I would be admitting the truth.

And I did admit the truth. "We are friends, Sanosuke-san. The BEST of friends. And that's about it." I finished with my signature smile.

And being his friend for also a long time, he knew I was saying the truth. I could see the shock that registered in his face. "You mean.? But I thought. I mean, look at the two of you. Its almost as if you live at the same house already! And the way she looks at you, how the two of you cling to each other like there was no tomorrow, and she even calls you Sou-kun! You never wanted other people to call you that. Even Kenshin and I weren't privileged of that!" Sanosuke-san finished.

"Sanosuke, there are things that seem real but there really is nothing into it, that I am sure." Kenshin-san smiled at me.

"Fine, fine. But I don't think they'll remain best friends forever. I really see something deeper--" Sanosuke-san stopped when Misao-chan and her newfound friend, Megumi-san, came.

That was when I realized that however noisy and potty-mouthed Sanosuke-san is he certainly met one who can shut him up. -- Megumi-san.

And I see myself that I have the same effect on Misao like Megumi-san has on Sanosuke-san. But the difference is, Megumi-san and Sanosuke-san see something else beyond their friendship, and has decided to accept the fact that there is, something deeper.

"I don't know, Mi-chan." I answered, blowing her bangs away from her eyes.

I heard her sigh. "I can't think of another option, Sou-kun. I don't want to get married. yet."

"Well, if you'd ask me." I began as I felt her shift in her place on the sofa. ".There are endless options. I mean, you could go tell your Jiya straight that you don't want it. Or, as you thought, you could run away and go to another place where no one would take away your freedom. You can kill yourself, but I advise you not to for I would be the first one to slash off your head," I felt her soft chuckle against my shoulder. ".Or, if you love someone else, as indicated by your word 'yet'. You could tell your Jiya and maybe he'll change his mind."

I felt her tense a little. "Me? Of course I haven't!" She looked at me skeptically, and then smiled mischievously. "Maybe YOU have. Have you found someone to love?"

"Me?" I pointed to myself. Of course I have. In fact, I think I will never find anyone else to love. And she is beside me now, asking me the question that I am trying to elude.

If only I could tell her my thoughts. I am afraid that she will take the matter immaturely. But I cannot lie to her anymore. There are too much lies that I've been keeping from her already.

"Me?" I repeated. "I have yet seen another who can surpass you, Mi-chan." I smiled, and so did she. She leaned on my shoulder again, and I felt my inner Soujiro sigh in relief. At least I told her the truth. But she failed to understand beyond those words. "What will you do now, Mi-chan?"

"Hmm." I saw Misao think. "I'm tired of thinking already, Sou-kun." She removed her head and hands, much to my dismay. But I was taken aback when she suddenly stretched throughout the sofa and put her head in my lap, her face looking up to me. "Don't leave me, Sou-kun. I need you beside me." She stared at me, her eyes pleading, before facing the spectacle of colors splashed on the sky through the wide windows of her unit.

"I won't. I promise." I brushed her hair and smiled. "Anata no sugu soba ni, mata atarashii hana ga umarete, Misao."

I will never leave you, Misao. I can never have enough strength to do so. I love you too much to even think of it.

I will always be with you as you wish Misao, until the new blossoms would bloom again.

...tsuzuku...

Author's Notes:

Okay, that's the end of the first part. I can't believe I made six chapters of this story only on one scene! I'm starting to think that my pace is too slow. Anyways, I have to pick up from where I left off and really make it fast. The next chapters will be written in third person and unless indicated by ***Misao*** or ***Soujiro*** or for anyone's name to be in between those cute asterisks, it would be me who will be telling the story. ^-^

Have you all noticed the titles of my chapters? Someone could guess it, I know. The first three titles weren't influenced, but the other three are. I'm really sorry if the chapters come out crappy. Even in this semestral break given to us, I am really busy writing the lyrics and composing the melody of our graduation song, fixing the papers of the cadet officer candidates, writing and proofreading articles for the school organ, editing our Investigatory Project, memorizing my lines for the upcoming play I am going to direct AND act on (they wouldn't let me pass this year. *wails*), and fixing the schedule of those RCY volunteers who will be on duty on All Saints' Day. Not to mention household chores. Argh!

Gomen ne for all the errors. To err is human.

Ja, mata ne!

~Shohoku no Miko~