Forgotten
By: Ochako107
Standard Disclaimer
"So how was your shopping trip with Tohru?" Uo asked, plopping down in the desk chair in front of Hana. She turned the chair so she and Hana could face each other. The girls spread out their lunches while Hana shrugged her lean shoulders not saying anything. "Hana?"
"It was fine... I suppose."
Uo knew what that meant. She took a bite out of her turkey sandwich, talking with her mouth full. "She left early again?" She watched as Hana continued to prepare her lunch, breaking her chopsticks carefully down the center and placing her napkin across her lap. Uo looked to the ceiling and sighed. "Was it Yuki and Kyo again?" Hana continued to simply eat her bento box quietly. "Ah, chatty as always I see."
Yesterday, Hana and Tohru planned a shopping trip to find new clothes for the fall. She needed a new coat while Tohru needed a new scarf. Uo complained that she had to work but promised to go on the next excursion. Hana wouldn't admit it, but felt happy to have Tohru all to herself even if for just a few hours.
After Tohru moved in with the Sohmas, Hana and Uo saw less and less of their best friend. Tohru took off after school claiming she had to walk home with the Sohmas. During lunch she would only spend half of it with them and the other half with the Sohma boys. On the weekends they took her places and any other spare time Tohru had, she was doing her homework or working at her part-time job. Slowly Hana was seeing less and less of Tohru.
It irked her.
Anyhow, while shopping they happened to run into Ayame who was chatting idly with some woman beside him. They stopped when they saw Tohru and immediately tried to steal her away to dress her up.
'Ah...' she remembered Tohru turning around to look apologetically to Hana, 'meet me in front of the station in an hour, okay?'
Hana put on a smile, each muscle in her face suddenly feeling very stiff and heavy. 'Okay.' She watched Tohru smile gaily and turn to follow Ayame and the other woman, now chatting cheerfully with him.
An hour later Hana waited around the station holding two bags in either hand. She stared up at the central clock and saw that two hours passed. 'Last boarding!' the intercom affirmed. Hana looked back to the clock nervously. Would Tohru make it? Maybe she should wait a bit longer...
Her cell phone vibrated in her pocket and Hana pulled it out with the caller ID reading, 'Unknown'. She picked it up anyway hoping it would be Tohru.
'Hello?'
'Hana-chan! I'm so sorry, I lost track of time!'
So it was Tohru. She was probably using Ayame's phone.
'I didn't mean to...'
'It's okay...'
But was it really?
'An amazing thing happened, Hana-chan! Ayame and I were walking back to his store when I passed by a beautiful shop. When I went inside I found an adorable pink scarf with pom poms on the ends! Ayame told me it would look good on me so I bought it. I hope that you found your coat.'
Hana's hands clenched the bags. 'Yeah, I found a new black one to replace the old one.'
There was a brief pause. It sounded like Tohru was hesitating. 'Well... anyway, Ayame offered to drive Yuki, Kyo, and me back to the house. Do you want us to pick you up as well?'
'Kyo and Yuki?' Hana asked with her eye brow raised. She did not want to be with them if she was going to be a third wheel. 'What are they doing there?' She was trying to articulate her words with as much cheer as she could mutter; hoping Tohru wouldn't trace the annoyance in her voice.
'Oh, someone told them I was here with Ayame so they both bolted over here in mere minutes. Amazing really! But then we started having a lot of fun-- well I was having fun-- and I forgot...'
'Oh okay...' Hana interrupted not really wanting to hear about how much she was enjoying herself while Hana spent the entire afternoon alone. Her chest tightened at that and her hands involuntarily clenched. It was always the Sohmas... Sohma this-- Sohma that-- what was so great about the Sohmas? They took their entire afternoon away. It was supposed to be just her and Tohru. She silently laughed.
It was never going to be just her and Tohru again.
Hana put a smile on as other people in the station passed her by. 'No, it's okay. It's out of the way for Ayame and the train is just about to leave anyway. I'll be fine.'
'Are you sure, Hana-chan?' Tohru asked uncertainly.
Does it matter? She wanted to reply. 'I'll be fine. Ano, I have to go or I'll miss the train.'
'Be safe.'
'Bye.'
Hana closed her cell phone, biting her lip with aggravation. She broke her trance and went to purchase her train ticket before climbing aboard. She picked a seat away from the other passengers not caring that some of them stared at her angry visage and dark demeanor. She sat in the far corner and folded her hands over the two bags on her lap. She stared down at them thoughtfully before reaching into the blue one, slowly pulling out a scarf she picked out for Tohru. She guessed she had better make a trip later that week to return the present, obviously all in vain. She caressed the yellow material between her fingers suddenly feeling very alone and unhappy. She lost her train of thought.
The entire afternoon was ruined.
"Good afternoon, Uo-chan! Hana-chan!"
Blinking, Hana snapped out of her reverie and stared up at the sunny smile of her best friend. She waved happily and Hana felt all the depressing thoughts float away.
Hana looked up at her friend with a bright grin. "Hi Tohru-kun."
"Yo!" Uo greeted as well.
Tohru pulled up a chair to sit with them, beginning to chat with them like old times. Hana relished in these moments just the three of them sitting together talking about everything and nothing. It felt comfortable and warm. It made Hana love Tohru that much more, forgetting about the events of yesterday.
Tohru giggled and leaned forward saying, "And then I said..."
"Honda-san?"
Tohru's eyes lit up like Christmas lights and she turned slightly to see Yuki. Hana also looked at Yuki, her eyes glowing. 'Oh, if it isn't Prince Yuki coming to steal Tohru-kun away no doubt. I'd rather him leave us alone.' She shook her head, removing the scathing remarks from her thoughts. What was she thinking?
"Yuki!" Tohru laughed. Was it just Hana or did Tohru look overly happy to see her new friend? "What's up?"
"Honda-san, do you want to get a drink with me? I know that you like the strawberry kind and wondered if..."
"Oh no," Tohru laughed already getting up, "you always pay for the drinks! I would like to pay for once."
Yuki laughed, each chuckle sounding like nails on a chalk board to Hana. She stopped eating and just smiled in Yuki and Tohru's direction, listening to their conversation... livid with anger.
"Honda-san, it's no trouble."
Tohru put a hand up to stop Yuki. "And anyway, don't I owe you five dollars?" She was already rummaging her bag for her wallet.
"For what?"
"Oh, it was the time we went to that fair and I forgot my wallet. I needed to buy those cute little pencils for Momiji?" Tohru turned on Hana and Uo, "the fair was so cute and I bet you would have liked it. They had all these cute Mogeta trinkets!"
'Well we weren't invited…' Hana thought. Her stone face contrasted with Uo's surprised one.
"You went to the fair without us? I thought we were going together!" Uo exclaimed. Hana was channeling the same thoughts but of course didn't say a thing.
Tohru suddenly looked uncomfortable, looking down at her brown shoes. "Um..." Had she forgotten?
Uo instantly felt bad and waved the remark away. "Ah, don't worry about it. We were sorta busy that day anyway, remember Hana?"
'Not really...' Hana thought. "Of course. Megumi and I spent the day with Mom," She lied.
Yuki must had felt the tension and smiled to make Tohru feel comfortable again. "It was fun spending the afternoon with everyone, wasn't it, Honda-san?"
'Everyone but us...' Hana once again shooed the thoughts from her mind.
Tohru turned on Yuki, "remember when Hiro and Kisa wouldn't be pulled away from the booth with the huge stuffed animal Mogeta?"
Yuki laughed, "Oh yeah! That was an odd sight seeing Hiro so entranced with something like that."
Tohru also laughed, her thoughts fluttering away from the awkward tension moments before.
"I forgot about that… we should do it again," Yuki muttered while scratching his head. "But anyway I insist, Honda-san, I'll pay for the drinks, I just wanted to know if you wanted to go and get it with me."
"Well... okay."
Hana suddenly felt very left out and ignored.
Hana cleared her throat, gaining her friend's attention. "Tohru-kun, I wouldn't mind getting you a drink. It'd be my treat."
"No!" Tohru instantly responded. "I mean... I'd feel bad. It's okay, Hana-chan, I don't want to make you do something you don't want to."
Hana felt her hands grip the underside of the table, but her voice still revealed no anger to her friend. "I want to."
"It's okay." She said shifting her glance at Yuki.
"Tohru-kun," Hana said with a bit of an edge. Luckily, Tohru was already chatting with Yuki.
Tohru laughed, suddenly getting excited. "I know! Tonight I'll make something that you like, Yuki-kun!"
'Tohru-kun... have you really forgotten all about Uo and me?'
"God, if it's leeks I'll really puke," a rough voice entered the conversation.
Tohru turned around to Kyo. "Kyo-kun! I'm sorry I totally forgot you hate leeks." Hana again stared up at the new person present in their lunch time. Didn't they know when they weren't wanted? Tohru nodded to herself, not noticing Hana's subdue anger. "Ah... I'll make Yuki's favorite then... but it'll be something without leeks..."
"What a pain," Kyo muttered, walking over to their group. Hana silently wondered if they would back up because the room suddenly seemed too small. "Forget it, make whatever makes you happy."
"Aww!" Tohru cooed. "Kyo, you're too nice to me." She turned her back on Uo and Hana and gathered her lunch trash to throw away.
Kyo chuckled, "Yeah yeah, you just better hurry and get your drink before they run out."
"You're right!" Tohru gasped trotting out the door with Yuki laughing behind her and Kyo calling for her to calm down and that he was only joking.
As the trio left, the room felt deafeningly silent. Hana's smile was still plastered on her face, afraid that if she let her muscles relax, she'd rupture into a million tiny pieces.
"Hana."
At Uo's voice, Hana slowly turned to her friend staring at her gravely. The way that Uo was looking at her, told Hana that she knew. Uo knew Hana was distraught. Uo reached over the desk and gripped on Hana's hand that was tightly fisted on her napkin. When had she taken the napkin off her lap anyway?
"Hana... it's okay."
"No. It's not." Hana took her hand away from Uo and looked away. "She's never around anymore, Uo. Don't you notice it? She just walked away with the Sohmas, not even muttering a 'bye' to us or anything."
"They're just new friends, you know that. It's like when the three of us first became friends. You get really excited and forget about other people sometimes. When she first met you, she ignored me sometimes, talking to you for most of the conversation. She just wanted to know more about you, wanting to spend time with you. That's how Tohru is; she's not doing it on purpose."
"But this is different," Hana reasoned, keeping her voice calm even though her insides were taught like a rubber band. "There's something about those Sohmas that keeps a part of her away from us. There's something... something she won't tell us. What ever happened to the days when it was just the three of us? Now all we hear is Sohma this and Sohma that. We don't have as many sleepovers, we don't call on the phone, and we don't go to the movies…" Hana felt her eyes narrow at the thought. "And even if we do all those things, we do it in the company of the Sohmas. I can't stand it."
Hana lost her appetite, her lunch completely forgotten on the desk.
"...Maybe we're just not good friends anymore. Maybe we're growing apart..." Hana stared down at her lap. "She forgot about us. She's found two new people to replace us. The Sohmas... they have some bond with Tohru-kun that we don't share anymore. I feel like... like she depends on them more, she talked to them more, she loves them more."
Uo just watched Hana, letting the girl vent out what she was thinking. Now that Hana mentioned it, Uo did feel like this. She sighed and also looked down to her lap.
"Like we've been replaced, hua..."
Hana hated herself for even thinking like this. She hated herself for embracing such jealously, wanting to have Tohru all to herself, not wanting to share her with the Sohmas. She hated herself for thinking ill of her best friend...
...But that was how she felt. She was forgotten.
"Listen Hana, we promised each other... over Kyoko's grave... that we'd look out for each other." Hana looked up to Uo, staring at her in the eye. "Forever. Even if we grow apart, even if we're a million miles away, I don't think I'll ever stop caring for that girl." Uo leaned forward with a small smile, "and I don't think she'll ever stop caring for us either."
Hana's eyes widened and she felt her face grow warm. It wasn't until Uo got up and embraced the dempa girl that she realized she was crying. The tears wouldn't stop and she gripped onto Uo, concealing her face in her uniform.
It was at that moment Hana knew she'd lost to the Sohmas. There was something about them that made Tohru stay close to them. A new friendship that blossomed more beautifully than the one she shared with her friend. It hurt; it hurt more than any physical pain could accomplish.
She was weak for it, for letting jealously come over her. She hated herself for it. And the worst part was...
...She would never say a word to Tohru about it.
That would be selfish of her. No, she would harbor this feeling, wishing and praying it would go away... but until then, she'd just smile for Tohru. Smile and make her happy until there was no use for her anymore... until she was completely forgotten.
Both girls turned to the window, spotting Tohru sitting with Yuki and Kyo on a bench, talking about something and smiling with each other. Hana's heart clenched.
"I miss her, Uo..."
Uo stared at Tohru's happy face, wondering what the future would bring them. She wondered if their friendship would ever be the same, but for the sake of Hana, she dared not voice it. The bell rang that lunch was over, students beginning to clean up their lunches and return to class. Uo nodded to her teary friend, handing Hana a tissue to dry her tears. "Me too, Hana... me too."
"Hanajima-san?"
Uo and Hana turned around to see one of the Yuki fan club girls smiling. She was awfully friendly this afternoon. Hana stepped forward drying her tears as if they were never there to begin with.
"If this has anything to do with your precious Prince Yuki," Hana paused, feeling the venom still rolling on her tongue, "I don't want anything to do with it."
"No, no, of course not!" The girl exclaimed. She turned to Uo, obviously feeling threatened by her attendance. "Can we step outside alone?"
"Hey, go ahead, Hana," Uo said clapping her on the back. Some cheer was coming back to her voice. "I'm going to run to the girl's room before class starts." With that Uo hurried away leaving Hana with the fan girl.
They walked outside into the hallway.
"What is it?" Hana asked, putting her serious mask on once again. What was this girl's name again? Ah yes, Minami.
"We want to interview you, if that's okay. Can we come to your house maybe this afternoon?" The girl began to chuckle nervously. "If that's okay!"
"No." It was a fast and a flat answer.
The girl bowed. "Please! It would make a great article for the school news paper! We're doing an article about electric waves and you'd be the perfect person to interview so please...!"
How dull, like she would actually believe any of this baloney. Hana felt her electric signals go off when Minami turned slightly out the window. Hana also shifted her eyes to the window to see the fan club president. She was recording them, and not doing a good job by the way of hiding herself. Ah... so this was about Tohru spending time with Yuki... how juvenile. Was that all these fan girls thought about? What was so great about Yuki anyway? Hana watched the girl before her trembling in her school shoes.
"Okay... please wait for me by the gates this afternoon."
The girl looked excited and began to bow in gratitude. Hana simply walked past her and back to the classroom.
What was so great about the Sohmas anyway?
She was surprised to see Uo and Tohru standing beside the doorway.
"Hey, Hana! What did those fan club girls want?" Uo asked in a rather loud voice.
"They wanted to interview me about electric waves for the school newspaper."
Uo arched an eyebrow and Tohru looked nervous. "And you believed that?"
"Well... no... They have something sneaky in mind..." her glowing eyes traced over Tohru. Despite how much her best friend was hurting her right now, she still couldn't stand to watch those fan club girls try and hurt her in anyway. "But don't worry... I also have something sneaky in mind."
"Yeah! I like your thinking, kid!"
"I don't know Hana-chan..." Tohru said uneasily. Why did she care anyway? Hana didn't show any resentment to the shorter girl.
"Oh, this is going to be good! Can I come over after work?" Uo continued.
"Sure." Hana was almost wary of asking Tohru, already knowing what she'd say. "Are you coming as well, Tohru-kun?"
Tohru's eyebrows knitted together and she looked down at her shoes again. "Ah no... I'm working late today."
Uo saw it in Hana's eyes. The sadness dwelling deep in her pools of violet. There was a pregnant pause as a few of their classmates passed them to enter the classroom. "Oh, I see."
"We'd better get to our seats quick," Uo cut in, relieving them of some of the tension. Didn't Tohru have any clue how much her company was sorely missed?
Yes... Hana missed Tohru the most and slowly... she knew she was being forgotten.
End
A/N: Well, this was depressing. This story is based on the Fruits Basket Episode 18. And this story sorta isn't the 'end'. If you could tell, the last part of this story was taken from episode 18 so it's like you have to watch episode 18 to get the 'real' end of the story. Get it? Maybe not.
A while back, I was watching the episode of Fruits Basket when the Fan Club girls go to Hana's house to interrogate her about Tohru and Yuki. At the end when she realizes that she was like the fan club girls, it made me wonder. So I started writing this a while ago, but never finished it till now. I really like Hana, and she has to think evily sometimes, right? Wouldn't you be jealous if you missed your friend? Oh well... After reading this, watch episode 18 again. I think it makes more sense. Hope you enjoyed!