UNBUTTONED

By Mizuki

Part Two of Two

Buttoned Up

Mariko stifled a sigh as she spied another boy waiting for them round the corner. The nervous look on his face and the way he kept wringing his hands was too obvious to ignore.

'Ma-Mariko-chan!' he burst as soon as he saw them approaching. 'Will you… will you accept my button?'

Just as she had done with the previous three, she smiled apologetically and said, 'I'm sorry, Masaru-kun, but I'm not accepting any buttons today.'

He looked crestfallen, but quickly gathered his wits about him, nodded a few times and took off. Mariko felt sorry for him, but she wasn't generous enough to accept something she didn't want. The only button she might have been tempted with was away on Hokkaido and highly unlikely to find its way into her hands.

'You're… very popular,' said Nobuko-chan softly.

'So are you,' she answered, remembering in wonder how not twenty minutes earlier the quiet girl had had to politely refuse a button of her own.

Nobuko-chan ducked her head to hide a blush.

'I just can't understand why they would all confess today,' Mariko started chatting as the two of them continued towards Nobuko's homeroom. 'I mean, it's the last day of school, isn't it? It's not like we're going to see each other again.'

'Maybe… that's why?'

'Hmm?'

'They have nothing to lose.'

Mariko thought about it. 'Yes, that's true. But if the girl doesn't exactly feel the same, but doesn't object? You need time to work on getting together, and there isn't any left. It's the end after a—'

'Kotani! Kotani, come quick!'

It was Bando, standing in the doorway and beckoning them inside. Curious, they hurried into the classroom.

There was a strange guy standing in the middle of the room, surrounded by people. He wasn't wearing a uniform and generally looked older than a high school student. He had bleached spiky hair and was wearing jeans and a colorful shirt.

'Which one's Kotani Nobuko-san?' he asked gruffly.

Nobuko-chan stepped forward. 'I am.'

'Good,' he thrust a pen and a sheet of paper at her. 'Sign here.'

Frowning in confusion, she complied. Then he gave her a package the size of a shoebox.

'Open it, Kotani-san!' cried the girls excitedly, as the guy rolled his eyes at them but waited patiently, obviously curious as well.

She methodically tore the brown paper and opened the cardboard lid. Bits of silver and gold confetti sprang into view, most probably hiding something fragile underneath. Nobuko dived her hand inside and searched for a good half minute before finally taking it out.

Then she unfolded her fingers. In her palm lay a metal button, round and carved, one of those used in the old-style high-collared uniforms. Attached to it was a note. A 'Kon!' in katakana inside of a large, pink heart.

'A button!' someone exclaimed. 'Who's it from, who's it from?!'

But Nobuko-chan didn't answer. She raised her other hand and stroked the button with her finger. Mariko suddenly remembered a moment from a few months ago when Nobuko-chan had seen her eat lunch with Kusano-kun. It made perfect sense now.

'You're going to accept it?' she asked. Nobuko-chan nodded.

'Sometimes,' she said dreamily, her eyes not leaving the button and the note, 'sometimes the end is just the beginning.'

Mariko, seeing the beautiful half-smile bloom on her friend's lips, thought that she just might be right.

The End

A/N:Hello:D Sorry it took so long to write this, but I hope it was worth the wait :P Thanks to all who have reviewed! You're the best :)

Love,

Mizuki