A/N: Each chapter/oneshot will consist of a different pairing although most pairings will be repeated. Some oneshots may also have 'sequels' to them, if you get what I mean. I'll put the rating, the pairing and the title of the oneshot at the top of each chapter. And if you have a request, like an idea or a pairing, I'll happily accept it! Feel free to request! If there are no requests, I have plenty of ideas in mind so I'll just go with what I pick.
Enjoy, and R&R please!
…
Title: Song of Fate
Pairing: ElixUmi
Rating: Probably a K+
…
Umi sighed as she headed towards the park that was just more than a few blocks away from her apartment. It was an early autumn evening and the blue haired girl was in the mood for some fresh air and relaxation after being cooped up in an office all day. That office would never perk up, would it?
She outstretched a hand and opened the rusted red gate before entering the small park. There wasn't many people around as it was evening and children would be at home by now with their families and probably eating a warm meal and people would have left already after walking their dogs to go back home to their boyfriend, girlfriend or family. Umi herself had no children and wasn't currently in a relationship; she mostly kept to herself.
The blue haired woman had often considered getting a little more social so she could meet that special someone that could make her happy and she could start a family of her own. Her parents, whenever they came to visit her or vice versa, always told her that they wished she was more social so maybe one day they could have grandchildren. Umi would scoff or blush at the idea on the outside but on the inside, she wondered if it wasn't such a bad idea.
As a child and teenager, Umi never really interacted with boys and often stuck with her friends. It wasn't that she disliked boys; she just preferred to stay with her friends. She found it weird that usually when the girls interacted with the boys, they would go bright red and look silly. She couldn't understand what made boys so important that a girl should have to look like a fool.
Her mother simply told her, when Umi explained all this to her, that when she was older she would understand.
The twenty two year old sat down on an empty wooden park bench and sighed again. Sometimes she wished she wasn't so awkward and could be more social and upbeat like her childhood friends Honoka and Kotori. The two of them had both found love with someone and started families. Kotori simply said that someone special would come along one day and then she would just know that that person was The One, just by looking at them.
Umi believed in no such thing. It wasn't possible that she would know just from looking at a person. And it was weird to look at a person for too long anyway.
Looking around the empty park, she kicked a few leaves with the toe of her white boot and watched as the golden and red leaves moved a few inches away from her and their original position. She tightened the hold of her jacket around her body and bit her lip. Why was she here again? Oh yeah, fresh air. Well it was fresh, but also freezing! Maybe she should leave now…?
Though something strange inside the blue haired woman was telling her to stay right where she was, and wait at least five minutes before leaving. And that's exactly what she did. There was no explanation for why she was still sitting on that park bench in the freezing autumn cold after work, until four minutes later after Umi had pulled out her sky blue IPod and earphones and was listening to Yuka Iguchi's Stand Still.
"Excuse me? Is it ok if I sit here?"
"Hm?" Umi looked up whilst stopping her music and pulling out her earphones, just about to respond when she locked eyes with the owner of the voice. Her words that she was going to say didn't matter anymore as they caught in her throat and her body froze as she felt herself fall deep into those eyes. The woman standing over her blinked her beautiful sky blue eyes and cocked her head to the side, her blonde ponytail falling over her shoulder. Never had Umi seen someone so beautiful before, ever. The blue haired woman cursed herself for staring, but she just couldn't rip her gaze away from the woman. There was something about her, if it wasn't her beauty, which captivated her.
"Are you ok?"
The blue haired woman was finally able to tear her eyes away from staring and found her words again so she could reply to the blonde. "U-Um, yes. D-Did you ask for a s-seat?" The ponytailed woman nodded. Umi nodded then scooted over from her spot on the bench so the woman still standing could it down.
"Thank you." The woman then walked closer and took the seat next to Umi. As she sat, she failed to notice the blue haired woman next to her staring at her again. Umi couldn't stop herself as her eyes ran up and down the blonde, taking in every single detail that her amber eyes could pick up on. Just from looking, Umi could tell that the woman was older than her due to the longer legs, better build and look of maturity. Yup, definitely older. Maybe twenty five or twenty six though she looked very young. She was wearing a light blue coat so it was impossible to tell what her top looked like but she could see that she was wearing navy jeans and light blue flats on her feet. It looked so adorable on the blonde that Umi had to bite her lip from crying out.
What was happening? This wasn't like her, not at all. It was clearly something to do with the woman sitting next to her. Could it be…?
No! It can't! Umi thought as she clenched her hands into fists at the thought. It surely wasn't that feeling that Kotori had told her about, was it? No, it just couldn't be! Love at first sight never happened in reality, only in movies! Then Kotori's words came back to her: One day that special someone would come along one day and that she would know that that person was The One just from looking at them. Umi blinked at the blonde again. So maybe it could be-
She was pulled from her thoughts (and her staring) when she heard a familiar song play, though when she looked at her IPod, she saw it wasn't from hers. Turning her head to the side, she saw the ponytailed girl next to her place a dark pink IPod on her lap and hum softly along with the song Umi loved. She could hear it, even when the woman's earphones were in. And before she could stop herself or even think about it…
"That's Yuka Iguchi, right?!" The blue haired woman cried excitedly, leaning closer to the blonde. The woman pulled out her earphone and moved back slightly, a little surprised by the stranger's sudden outburst of excitement over her music choice. She didn't know how to react.
Meanwhile, Umi bit her lip as she pulled back. She couldn't believe she had just done that! How could she be so foolish as to cry out randomly at a beautiful stranger!? She had never felt so embarrassed in her life! But…wasn't it strange that they were both playing the same song at the same time? It wasn't every day that that happened.
Oh god help me now, Umi pleaded mentally as the blonde paused her music and took out her other earphone and turned to face her. As Umi met her eyes, she didn't see any sign of anger as the woman placed her pink device back into her jacket pocket and licked her lips.
That single move made Umi's heart stop again.
"So you like Yuka Iguchi too, I'm guessing?" The blonde asked, clasping her delicate hands. Umi gulped as she tried to pluck up the courage to answer the question, licking her dry lips.
"Um, y-yes… L-Listen, I-I'm sorry for my sudden outburst just now. I-It's just…" Umi trailed off, not sure how to answer that she had discovered that they both were listening to the same song at the same time. The ponytailed girl cocked her head to the side again, looking even cuter than last time. Umi bit her lip harder.
"Go on," The older looking woman urged the younger looking one on with her answer. She looked desperate to know.
"W-Well… It's difficult to explain but…" Umi tried to remain calm but she ended up blurting out her answer in a rush anyway. "We are both listening to the same song at the same time!"
The blonde blinked before moving her gaze away from Umi and to her jacket pocket where her IPod was at the moment. Then she looked back at the woman sitting next to her and at her blue IPod. The blonde politely gestured towards the screen to take a closer look and Umi nodded before showing the blonde her screen. A picture of Yuka Iguchi appeared on the screen with the title 'Stand Still' in big letters above it with the pause button below it. The ponytailed girl just stared then pulled out her IPod again and stared at the screen, seeing the same picture with the same title on it.
This didn't make sense! This was crazy! How could two people possible listen to the same song at the same time in the same place whilst sitting right next to each other?!
It sounds weird but maybe… Maybe it's fate..? Umi shook the thought away and put her IPod back into her pocket as the blonde did the same. There was an awkward silence for a minute or two before the blonde spoke up.
"Eli Ayase," Umi turned to look at the blonde and saw the woman smiling and sticking her hand out as a greeting. "My name is Eli Ayase." Umi smiled as she took the hand, her heart pounding fast. The ponytailed girl's hand was so warm…
"Umi Sonoda," The blue haired woman replied softly. The blonde, Eli, nodded at the response and smiled a smile even sweeter than her last one. Umi felt her knees weaken at that smile, and felt them weaken even more when she realised they were still holding hands. The greeting was over now, right?
As if reading the blue haired woman's thoughts, Eli removed her hand from Umi's and nodded shyly. Umi backed away a little to give the blonde her personal space back, even though all she wanted to do was stay close to her…
"Well, this is funny," Eli laughed softly, reaching up to move some bangs out of her face. "I come here after dancing class and suddenly I find someone who shares my music interest! And knows when I listen to it to,"
"U-Um… W-Well…" Umi turned red. She didn't know what to say in response as the ponytailed girl giggled and smiled before saying in an upbeat tone,
"It's ok, Umi-san. We know each other's names now, so we're not strangers anymore!"
Umi blinked at the blonde before processing her words. They knew each other's names, they were still sitting next to each other on the park bench and they were still talking… So maybe Eli was right.
"I-I guess you're right…" Umi nodded, clasping her hands to stop from shaking. Eli cocked her head to the side.
"Are you cold?"
"A little bit."
"Then maybe you should go home…"
"No!" The response came out quicker than Umi expected and Eli blinked a few times in shock. Umi gulped whilst trying to regain her usual calmness. "I mean, we just met. I would like to get to know you more…"
Eli remained blinking, until she gave off a big happy grin and nodded. "Ok!" Umi had never felt so happy to finish work early and visit the local park.
…
"Wait, wait, wait." Eli clapped her hands in glee. "So you and your two friends actually climbed a tree when you were little? And you almost fell off?!"
Umi nodded, chuckling and brushing back her bangs with a hand. "Yes. Though we actually kind of did fall off. Honoka insisted we climbed it, and Kotori and I just went along with it. I guess it was worth it in the end though…"
"Hm?" Eli gestured for a continuation.
"Well, when we fell, we could see the whole city from that branch on the tree. There were so many lights and it just looked so beautiful. That sight is one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen in my whole life…" Umi smiled softly. Eli nodded.
"That sounds wonderful. But Umi… Can I ask, did you ever date when you were a teenager?"
Umi blushed a bright scarlet as her mouth opened in an embarrassed and shocked gasp at the sudden question. The conversation had just taken a very sudden turn. Eli bit her lip to stop herself from bursting out laughing at the other woman's reaction. "So… I'll take that as a no?"
Umi nodded, reluctantly. "Yes… I've never really been one for…romance or anything along those lines. I just-" The blue haired woman stopped herself as she bit her lip. Eli nodded in an understanding.
"Me neither,"
Umi's head shot up at that and she stared at the blonde. "You haven't dated before?!" She tried to keep herself from shouting out the question to the whole city. Eli nodded, unfazed.
"You seem surprised by that?"
"Of course I am! I can't believe you haven't dated before! You're too beautiful to not!" Umi stopped as she realised what she had just said. Eli simply looked at her. "I-I mean-"
"You're too kind Umi! Really, you are. And adorable too!" Eli squealed as she pulled the younger girl into a hug. They had confirmed previously that Eli was in fact older than Umi by two years. Umi stiffened in the hug, not out of rudeness, but because she wasn't expecting this sort of response. Inside though, she was squealing with joy at being hugged by the other woman. Once Eli freed her from the hug, the blonde sighed in happiness before pulling out her IPod. Checking the time, Eli stood up before turning to Umi.
"Sorry, but I have to go now. I have to go and pick up my sister from her friend's house. I never realised it was this late. Time sure does fly, huh?" She laughed genuinely. "Thank you though, for the seat and everything."
Umi nodded before standing up too beside the woman. Eli smiled at her and before Umi could react, Eli hugged her again. "Thank you again Umi. Let's meet again!"
Umi nodded once the hug broke. The two had exchanged phone numbers sometime in the conversation. Eli nodded too before turning on her heel and walking towards the exit of the park. Once she reached it, she turned back and waved to the blue haired woman who happily waved back. Eli grinned and turned again before leaving the park without looking back.
Umi stared after her until long after she was gone and sighed. It had been so fun, yet Umi had had a hard time containing her excitement. Seriously, what was up with her?! She still refused that she liked the blonde more than a friend.
I mean, we've only spoke for a day! Umi thought as she left the park to head back to her apartment, I bet I never see her again...
It was a few hours later that the blue haired woman received a text from the blonde. She hadn't been expecting word from the other woman so soon… Or any word at all! Umi picked up her phone with a look of interest as she scanned over the text.
Eli: Wanna go out somewhere on Saturday?
Umi felt her heart flutter as she quickly tapped out a reply.
Umi: Why not? I'm in.