Ritsu Tainaka stared out the window of her train, watching the scenery fly by…her half lidded eyes vacant as she tapped her foot to the music playing in her red headphones.

Here I am, running away again…

The drummer's sleek brown hair was pulled up in her signature style by a black and white headband that Mio had bought for her as her graduation present. Ritsu shoved her hands into the pockets of her casual grey sports hoody and slid against the chair, propping her feet against the chair in front of her as she tried to get comfortable.

It was a long train ride and she was quite worn out from school and her part time job at the local musical instrument store…and of course Tadao…

Her head bopped to the music in her headphones, keeping rhythm to the bass drumas she relaxed her shoulders, moving them once in a backwards circle to stretch them out. Tokyo… she thought, feeling a little excited.

She placed her hand to the cold window and breathed on it, causing the glass to fog up. Mio… she absentmindedly drew her best friend's name on the glass and then blushed, quickly wiping the condensation away.

It was spur of the moment and she had tons of motivation and energy at the time but the long day had taken a toll on her. Way to spontaneously do something like this without planning ahead baka…she chastised herself.

Ritsu had planned on surprising Mio at her apartment but it was getting late and she was starting to worry whether or not she would wake their beloved bass player up or not. I should send a text just in case…she thought as she reached into her black sweatpants for her cell phone. What are you wearing?… she typed, grinning as she erased the words.

'Mio, what are you doing tonight?' she retyped.

She flipped her phone closed and sighed, holding it loosely in her hand enjoying the familiar feel of it in her palms.

The phone buzzed and Ritsu flipped open her phone to check Mio's response.

'Nothing much, I think I'm just going to play a bit of bass and then maybe go grab a late night snack at the restaurant next door. What are you up to?' came the reply.

'Guess who's coming to TOKYO?' Ritsu texted back.

'No way. So excited. Lets go eat together' came Mio's quick reply.

Ritsu smiled at her lack of self control. Oh well, I've had TOO much self control with you anyways, she thought.

Anticipation was building up inside of her and she kept imagining what she would be saying in 20 or so minutes when she arrived in front of Mio's apartment door… how Mio would be reacting and what they would be doing tonight.

I heard you weren't partying at all so I came here to show you a good time and get you to loosen up and have fun! She imagined herself declaring as imaginary Mio pouted, insisted she was fine and reluctantly agreed to go out with her. Nice cool nights like this after a long day of studying and work is the perfect time to go wild and party…thought Ritsu.

Alcohol had proven to be a dangerous thing however so Ritsu fully intended to control herself and instead make sure Mio had a good time.

She had wanted so desperately for so long to see her so having absolute self control and making sure the night went perfect for her felt like an easy mission to accomplish. Despite all the risqué situations that had occurred in the past when alcohol was involved, Mio still retained an unbelievable amount of trust and faith in her.

Ritsu gritted her teeth, remembering all the close calls and the painful fluttering of her heart. Still, in the end she couldn't get enough of it.

Being with the person that made you the happiest in the world…no matter what price or burden came along with it she would pay it gladly over and over.

The drummer grazed a finger against her slender neck, gradually moving up to caress her cheek where Mio had hit her the last time she teased her. She had punched her especially hard the last time they were together and the memory brought a bright smile to Ritsu's face.

She might have had oversold her acting a bit…so much that Mio had nearly started to cry through her constant apologies. Im such a brute Ritsu! I'll make it up to you are you okay? Should I take you to the hospital? Mio had said, holding Ritsu as she pretended to lie there dying.

Ritsu sighed, closing her eyes and trying her best to remember the warmth of Mio's embrace…the smell of her hair and the sensation of her tear stained eyes pressing gently against her neck. It was difficult but Ritsu had managed to keep things between them as upbeat and cheerful.

Nothing was more important to the young drummer than staying close to Mio and being able to protect her. When they were in high school, Ritsu often teased Mio but as the years passed and as they matured it was becoming less frequent. Didn't change the fact that once in a while Ritsu let Mio have it really good for old times' sake.

Ritsu sighed, curling her knees to her chest and hugging them loosely, gripping the soft fabric of her black sweatpants.

She rested her head against her knees as she fought the frustration of being in love with someone you just couldn't have. No matter what she did, no matter who she tried to start a relationship with…it all fell apart so easily.

She had warned herself and her ex boyfriend about the way she was but in the end… breaking his heart had been incredibly taxing for her…And now I'm running to the one person I can't have…

Ritsu glanced up, staring at the back of the seat in front of her. She had pressed on in the only direction she could. Towards accepting the fact that at least for now…until things played out she would have to be alone.

Why couldn't I have acted first, she wondered to herself remembering the events that played up to Mio and Yui dating each other. It was a common fantasy that she were several scenarios that she had often imagined happening in an alternate universe where she had been quicker to act than Yui.

Even now she was happy for them but back then, when she was going crazy with longing and sadness she had told herself over and over that it would pass.

That she would accept the way things were and move on but in the end she just couldn't forget about her longing for Mio… after all, she was the knight and Mio was the damsel in distress wasn't she? But another knight had beaten her to it and what a radically awesome one too…Ritsu thought, thinking about Yui. Their lead guitarist's vibrant energy, charisma, and cheerfulness were overflowing these days.

Maybe it was seeing how happy Yui and Mio were together…whenever they flirted in front of the others or made a cute romantic gesture towards each other… it was just too easy to see herself in Yui's place, either giving or being the recipient of Mio's love.

Just friends…just friends…like blood related sisters … Ritsu chanted the familiar phrase in her head.

The young drummer had learned many mental tricks to being able to control her emotions better over the years. It had taken serious mental discipline to stay cheerful when Mio animatedly talked or complained about the ups and downs of dating a happy go lucky ditz like Yui.

Maybe I'll give Arisu a chance… she wondered, her mind wandering to the shy raven haired girl with oversized glasses from her English class. She had glimpsed the younger girl when she dropped her glasses one day and she had been surprisingly similar looking to Mio.

She had avoided dating girls on purpose but maybe it was what she needed…Tadao had been a nearly perfect boyfriend and Ritsu found herself believing that they could make it more than once… but in the end… after every fight she realized she was looking for more and more excuses to end it with him.

She cringed, remembering his broken expression…his sad downcast eyes when she had said goodbye for the last time. Forcing herself to keep running instead of turning back and begging for him to take her back had taken all she had.

After all, wishing for a future where she was happy wasn't such a crime was it? Even if it was fake…there were times when he made her completely forget about Mio…maybe it just needed more time…

But in the end, that's one of the reasons I had to leave you…for a moment, Ritsu felt an incredible amount of longing for Tadao's strong arms, his familiar feeling of his lips against her forehead and lips.

Snap out of it Ritsu, you're nearly there! Ritsu closed her eyes tight, wishing for all the sadness, negative emotions and feelings to disappear from her being. She put on her brave face as the train came to a stop and jumped to her feet, her headphones slipping of her ears to dangle around her neck. She grabbed her overnight bag and headed towards the exit.

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