:: Staying Awake to Chase a Dream ::          

"…Staying awake to chase a dream; tasting the air you're breathing in, I know I won't forget a thing…"

:: Falling Away With You :: Muse ::

The water was so deep it looked like polished black obsidian; a sharp contrast to the bone white cattails, and the soft, fragile spring green of the reeds that lined its edge on the far side of the lake. Trees, painted a thousand different shades of green in the evening twilight stood impressively along the banks of the lake and the surrounding mountains, their branches meshing together to form a sort of curtain half-hiding lake-side cottages within their folds of greens, each crease in the curtain ebbing from the darkest emerald to the most delicate of mint pastels in the distance.

My feet dangled over the dock; waves rolling softly in, rhythmic and steady as my own heartbeat, tickling my feet as they crested against the time-worn wood of the dock.

The fading sun was warm on my bare shoulders as I closed my eyes, breathing deeply in the sweet summer air. That fresh, wild scent of lilacs and crushed pine needles in my nostrils was a constant reminder of my childhood.

Of so many beautiful memories…

It was the summer between graduation and college. I was trapped in that horrible time when you flounder in between the worlds of adulthood and adolescence; everyone and everything I had ever known since I believed in Santa Claus was changing… drifting… away from me, already off in search of the next adventure. A chapter of my life was coming to a close and I didn't want it to. Not without--

"Daydreaming again, Kanzaki?"  A male voice asked behind me, silhouette outlined in the setting sun light; long and lanky, with disheveled hair, wearing a pair of cargo shorts and a worn red t-shirt.  

"No…just thinking," I answered, my head turned slightly, splaying my fingers towards the crimson stained sky. 

The dock creaked under Van's weight as he walked down it towards me, "'Bout?"

"Just things…"

"Like?" He prompted, dropping down beside me, his long legs spilling over the dock's edge and past my feet.

About how fast we grew up… How I'll never see you again after this summer…

"Like that time when we where six and you threw my cat into the lake just to see if it could swim," I said instead, not looking at him. 

His lips quirked into a smile, his eyes catching the failing light and dancing in it, "Later then, you glued Barbie doll clothes onto all of my GI Joe action figures."

"Dolls."

"Hmm…?"

"They were dolls, not action figures."

He laughed, his eyes crinkling, "Whatever you say Kanzaki."  

We sat in silence, each to our own thoughts, ankles bobbing in and out of the water, listening to the loons cry in the distance; their song a wordless melancholy sonnet to the setting sun. The last of the rays disappeared over the tree line, the edge of my world as I knew it during my childhood.

How quickly that was about to change…? 

I shivered involuntary.

 "Cold?"

"A bit…"

He pulled his feet out of the water and stood up, water running down his tan legs and unto the weathered grey wood of the dock. 

"Come on."

"Huh…?" I tilted my head back, looking at him. 

"Let's go over to my house. Watch a movie. Burn something. Toilet paper Dilaunuda's house even. " 

"You'll never grow up will you?" I asked, shaking my head as I smiled up at him.

His lips quirked again, grinning lopsidedly.

"No."

My smile disappeared.

"Good."

"…I only dream of you; my beautiful… Tiptoe to your room, a starlight in the gloom. I only dream of you, and you never knew…"

:: Sing For Absolution :: Muse ::

Several hours and half a dozen movies and sodas later, two had become one hidden underneath that soft, red flannel blanket in the midnight gloom, the ending credits for Lord of the Rings flashing about the room in a comfortable way. 

I was curled up next to him under the blanket, head softly rising and falling with the soft movement of his chest, his arm sleepily around my waist, idle fingers twisted into the hem of my t-shirt protectively, his own body sprawled out against the arm of the sofa.

Crickets hummed softly just outside of the open window, song hanging in the soft breeze.

I sighed, my head sliding further up onto his angled chest. His hair fell onto my face as he shifted under my weight, his chin coming to rest on the side of my face, almost cheek to cheek. 

"Your boyfriend's hair is longer then yours now, Kanzaki," Dilaunuda laughed, pointing at my new haircut, a half eaten string of licorice hanging out of his mouth.

I punched him playfully in the ribs, "He's not my boyfriend."

"Riiiiiiiiiight…" He rolled his eyes, "Whatever you say Princess."

I stole the licorice from him mouth and promptly took a bite from it, "He's not. We're just friends."

He laughed, and took the candy back from me, tossing the rest of it into his mouth, his eyes just watching me.

"What?"

"Nothing, I just happen to know verbal diarrhea when I happen to hear it."

"Excuse me?"

"Lies," he stood up, brushing off his shorts, "I know lies when I hear them."

"Hitomi?"

"Hmmm…?"

Pause. He shifted again underneath my weight.

"Nothing."

"What time is it?" I whispered in the gloom, not moving.

He snaked his arm off my waist, out from underneath the blanket, squinting at the glowing digital numbers in the dark, "4:23AM."

I groaned, half-heartedly moving to get up.

"Why don't you just stay?" His fingers caught around my wrist, my movements stilled, "It's only a few hours until its light anyways… my parents won't care."

"Can I?"

He nodded, yawning as he fumbled for the remote to turn off the television screen.

With a faint click the room darkened, the only light coming in slanted pale moonbeams across the floor.

His breathing began to slow; rhythmic and soft, we both breathed in the sweet scent of lilacs that hung on the wind as it drifted in.

He chuckled suddenly; the sound reverberating through his chest.

"You make an odd teddy bear, Kanzaki," He mumbled, his arm tightening around me, pulling me tighter against him.

I yawned, curling up within his shell of warmth, "Better not tell Dilly that."

An eyebrow raised, his forehead creasing with confusion.

"He lit your last teddy bear on fire when we where six, remember?"

He chuckled again, his head turned slightly, lips brushing up against my cheek in a soft kiss.

"Don't worry, I won't let him, or anyone else ever light you on fire."

My arms went around his waist.

"Good."

He pushed a stray hair behind my ear, pulling the blanket up higher, tucking it in around my shoulders. Another kiss, brushing against my temple, followed. 

I looked up, eyes meeting. Hesitation, the awkwardness of uncertainty hung thick between us, heartbeats echoed dully in the darkened gloom.

His breath was hot on my face, eyes searching for answers best left unspoken.  

The lights of fireflies sparked and died outside the window above the lake, the sky darkened; a faint dusting of stars within its folds.

Time froze, two souls wanting nothing more then to dare to stay awake to chase after a dream.

Here, there where no words.

Slowly, he leaned forward, a dull throb caught in my throat, eye lids fluttering not because of the heavy weight of sleep.

Lips met softly, begging for absolution for a secret long kept hidden; a chance to free a cherished dream.

"…It's plain to see it's trying to speak, cherished dreams forever asleep. Hopelessly, I'll love you endlessly…"

:: Hopelessly :: Muse ::

Disclaimer: All lyrics are property of Muse, from their album Absolution.  Used without permission, along with Escaflowne. 

Fluffy, pointless and abstract. 

Ah yes, it is good to be back. Even though the ff.net quick-edit formatting is the devil.

Avaris Lehn Sky

R&R