CHAPTER 14
Rena checked herself in the bathroom’s mirror, really satisfied with the newest appearance she had recently adopted. A few weeks ago, she had visited the hairdresser to get a new haircut, knowing precisely what new look she wanted. During the shooting of
Destiny she had no choice but to respect the director’s decision when it came to Arisa’s looks, but now she was free from any obligations.
Rena ran her fingers through her brown wavy hair, her fingertips inspecting the ends that had been neatly cut. Her hair still remained quite long - as she had asked the hairdresser to only remove a few centimeters – and her fringe was brushed nicely to the side.
Taking a look at the rest of her appearance, the older Matsui finished buttoning carefully the collar of her silky red blouse, before taking a step back and adjusting her long black skirt. It wasn’t everyday she wore such an elegant outfit, but the circumstances were quite special. After all, tomorrow was Christmas, and she had been invited for the occasion at Yuki and Mayu’s apartment in Tokyo.
Rena knew she needed to do one more little thing to be good and ready, and her fingers encircled the golden bottle of perfume resting on top of the shelf in front of her. Conscientiously, she applied the perfume at a few strategic places. Soon, the sweet scent reached her nostrils; a mix of mandarin and orange, with a hint of jasmine and rose. Her all-time favorite perfume. Placing the bottle back in place she glanced down at her watch, taking a peek at the time. Her train for Tokyo was in less than an hour; she would need to leave very soon.
Stepping out of the bathroom, her eyes searched the other girl who was going to accompany her to Tokyo, immediately noticing her in a very strange position. Indeed, Jurina was on all fours in the bedroom - her eyes glued on the red carpet - while her left hand was feeling around frenetically the floor underneath her.
It didn’t take a genius to figure out that she was looking for something. “Did you lose something?”
“My ring,” Jurina sighed heavily, her attention entirely monopolized by what appeared to be a very frustrating search. “I can’t find my ring.”
Rena furrowed her brows at the revelation. It is true to say her girlfriend was not the most organized or neat person in the world – even though she had greatly improved on that aspect of her personality these last years - she nevertheless was always very careful when it came to something that meant a great deal to her. And Rena, more than anyone, knew how precious that ring in particular was to her.
This Sunday afternoon of July in the Maruyama Park of Kyoto submerged Rena’s mind, and she looked down to the silver ring on her left index. Never did she expect Jurina to give her such a beautiful present, nor did she ignore the touching meaning behind it. In the past, when they were still two innocent teenagers, they would often wear matching clothes or items. This time, it was very different. Those matching rings had a much deeper meaning; they symbolized Jurina’s infinite love for her. Out of all the gifts Jurina had given her, Rena would always treasure that ring more than anything.
Rena stole a glance at her watch, discovering they still had approximately fifteen minutes until the taxi’s arrival. Their suitcase was already waiting near the entrance, but their time was definitely limited. She contemplated her options carefully, observing the girl who was now desperately looking for the ring under the bed.
“It’s not lost anyway,” Rena said calmly, trying to sound reassuring. Somehow, she didn’t feel alarmed by the missing object. She recalled vividly seeing it on Jurina’s finger the evening before when they came back from the restaurant, which meant it had to be somewhere in the apartment. Jurina always placed it on the bedside table before going to bed, so it couldn’t have gone very far. “Why don’t you look for it when we come back from Tokyo?”
Rena knew she said something terribly wrong the instant Jurina left her search aside to look back at her. Considering Jurina’s rather displeased expression, the older Matsui seriously doubted her offer was going to receive a positive outcome. A prediction that got confirmed a few seconds later.
“I will not leave without it,” Jurina protested. “I know it has to be somewhere in here. Just… just give me a few more minutes.”
The moment after, Jurina was in deep search of the ring again, and Rena could tell nothing she would say would manage to change her girlfriend’s mind. She was never going to get up from that floor until she obtained what she wanted. Right now, Rena was witnessing one of her girlfriend’s most famous personality traits: her incredible and relentless stubbornness.
If this kept going, Rena feared there was a high chance they would miss their train. Despite it, she couldn’t find it in her to chastise her girlfriend for her current behavior. Jurina was simply too attached to that ring. Not only she wore it every single day, Rena sometimes saw her gazing at it at length, in a mix of appreciation and admiration.
That’s why Rena was convinced she meant every single word she just uttered. Jurina was never going to leave the apartment without the ring on her finger, which meant she had to find a solution to make sure they arrived on time at the train station. Of course, they could always take the next one, but it was not a solution she favored the best. Without many options left, she took a decided step forward. “Alright. I’ll help you look for it.”
Rena let her gaze wander around the room, retracing the events of the previous evening to try and identify where Jurina could possibly have forgotten her ring. Yesterday, they opted for French cuisine and left
Restaurant Pérouges a little after 9 p.m., clearly not feeling tired at all when they arrived later on at Rena’s apartment. When Jurina turned the television on and flipped through the channels a movie soon caught her attention, and they both settled down in the sofa to watch it.
It was past 11 p.m. when they moved to the bedroom, and Rena knew the younger girl was in a very playful mood when she started cuddling in bed with her as she was finishing a chapter of her book. Her caresses under the sheets were impossible to ignore, nor the few kisses she would occasionally steal between pages. The words started mixing in Rena’s head and she progressively discovered she was not paying attention to her book anymore, far too distracted by her girlfriend’s clever actions.
When she tilted her head towards her, Rena simply knew she wouldn’t say no to those eyes that were staring at her with such desire. Without hesitation, she put her book aside, and cupped Jurina’s cheek to deepen the kiss she had initiated. To be honest, she had missed the intimacy. Contrary to her schedule that had been rather light since she came back from Kyoto, Jurina had been very busy with her idol activities since October.
During the week, Jurina was often far too exhausted to do anything else but sleep when she stayed at her place. As for the week-end, it appeared they unfortunately hadn’t been able to see one another a few week-ends in a row, due to the recent release of AKB new single to which Jurina was of course participating. To sum it up, Jurina’s advances were more than appreciated and welcomed, and it didn’t take very long before the room plunged into darkness, and they removed their clothes to make passionately love to each other.
The moment was vividly imprinted in Rena’s mind, and she was positively sure she had noticed the ring on Jurina’s finger just before she switched the bedside lamp off. This morning, she wasn’t wearing it anymore, which could only mean one thing: she had removed it in the heat of the action.
Rena glanced towards Jurina’s side of the bed and reduced the distance, taking in the absence of the ring on the small table. Of course, it wasn’t there: it was probably the first place Jurina had looked for it, but a little voice inside her head was telling her she was boiling. From her peripheral vision, she saw Jurina standing up, but it was evident by the frustrated growl escaping her lips that her research remained completely fruitless despite her best efforts.
Convinced she was onto something Rena followed her train of thoughts and kneeled next to the bedside table, slipping her hand in the narrowed space between the bedside table and the wall. Disappointment was progressively plastering her features as the seconds went by and she was failing to find what she hoped, until her eyes widened when her fingers encountered a small rounded object just as she was about to pull away.
A smile moved to her lips and she retrieved the object, gazing at the silver ring inside her palm. It was completely similar to hers, or at least that’s what she always believed until now. As she turned the object between her thumb and index, she suddenly noticed to her surprise an inscription engraved inside. Wait. So Jurina had not only engraved a message in the ring she had given to her? She had also done the same with hers?
Stunned by this revelation, Rena wondered why the younger girl had never told her anything about it and kept this information secret from her. Curiosity got the best of her and she took a closer look at it, reading the short sentence engraved inside.
My heart only belongs to RThe words brought a smile to Rena’s lips, their somewhat cheesiness never overshadowing the beautiful and meaningful message behind them. Rena was all too conscious of Jurina’s indistinct love for her; she never failed to remind it to her on a constant basis with words of affection and her caring behavior. Jurina may be six years younger than her and at times still act a little childish, there was no denying she was an incredible romantic and faithful girlfriend.
Those last two years, she had loved her despite all her imperfections. God knew she was far from the perfect creature many people who truly didn’t know her wanted to believe. The princess of Nagoya? Just an illusion magazines had created for many years; a flattering title sometimes a little too heavy to bear for the young idol that she was. No, Rena Matsui was no princess, but just a simple human being with its evident qualities and flaws.
Rena knew she had hurt Jurina a few times, yet the latter had each and single time forgiven her. The evening of her graduation concert, Jurina had more than implied that she had forgiven her, but it took another month – the time when Jurina joined her in Kyoto for her birthday and they were physically and emotionally finally reunited – for Rena to realize that Jurina’s heart was truly not hurting anymore.
That day, Rena was finally able to put everything behind her, and forgive herself.
Rena closed her hand around the ring, engraving the words deep inside her heart. As she tilted her head towards the young girl who had her back turned, she suddenly felt like sharing her discovery about the message, and asking why she had never said anything about it. In the end, she decided against it. There had to be a good reason why Jurina didn’t tell her; maybe she felt too shy about it?
The ring secured in her hand she raised to her feet, approaching the other girl and catching her hand. Two eyes gazed back at her, and Rena could tell by the look on her face she was not only desperate, but also getting really worried about the missing item. Her expression changed to a speechless one when the older Matsui revealed what was hidden inside her palm, and she was too stunned to react when Rena put the ring carefully on her finger.
“It had fallen behind your bedside table,” Rena informed, smiling a little when she saw the great relief spreading across Jurina’s face.
“I was so afraid I lost it,” Jurina confessed, her eyes glued on the precious silver object now encircling her ring finger. “I don’t know what I would have done if I-”
“You don’t have to worry about that anymore,” Rena cut her off softly, giving her hand a light squeeze. “Are you now ready to go?”
Rena received a silent nod in reply, but got startled when she was about to turn on her heels and felt Jurina’s hand still holding hers tightly. “Thank you, Rena,” Jurina murmured. “You have no idea how much this ring means to me.”
Rena didn’t miss the emotion in her shimmering eyes, and she caressed her cheek when Jurina pulled her closer to capture her lips in a gentle kiss of gratitude.
Yes, I do.
Yuki eyed suspiciously the rectangular present wrapped in green paper under the Christmas tree, praying it was not what she feared. Jurina had placed it here the day before at her arrival and, when she had questioned her about it in concern, the latter had assured her it was not a new figurine of Mikasa Ackerman. For an instant, relief truly spread through her chest. There were already too many signs of Mayu’s passion for the feminine warrior around the apartment, whether under the form of posters, figurines, DVDs, or goodies.
Because yes, Mikasa Ackerman was definitely a popular character. For a little while, Mayu’s passion had diminished slightly because of the lack of new content, but Yuki didn’t fool herself one bit. She had no doubt it would come back in full force as soon as the anticipated second season of the Japanese animated TV show would come out. It had already been four years since the diffusion of the very first episode, but the news she feared the most got out a few days ago. April 2017 would mark the return of
Shingeki no Kyojin.There were still four months to come, but Yuki was already mentally preparing herself. There was no denying how much she loved her adoring girlfriend, but she always found her a little frightening when she went in full otaku mode and let herself get consummated by one of her greatest passions. Yuki wanted nothing else but believe Jurina when she promised her it wasn’t what she thought; so why couldn’t she shake the feeling that this big, rectangular box was still bad news?
The four friends had now settled around the Christmas tree for the traditional exchange of presents and Yuki remained silent, a tinge of apprehension forming at the pit of her stomach as she watched her girlfriend unwrapping Jurina’s present with much eagerness. Yuki glanced nervously at Jurina, noting that the latter was – contrary to her – definitely enjoying the moment as she was observing Mayu’s frenetic actions in great delight. Not only Jurina enjoyed spending time with her AKB best friend, she always found it very entertaining when Mayu acted like a little kid around Christmas time.
Well, she was definitely in for a treat this year again.
Yuki truly didn’t know what to make of it when their eyes met, and Jurina gave her a somewhat mischievous smile. Wait. Jurina wouldn’t have dared to lie to her, would she? Yuki suddenly got very worried, and her heart pounded a little faster inside her chest without her consent. After all, Mayu did seem a bit too enthusiastic, and the size of the box was way too suspicious.
In the end, Jurina truly didn’t lie to her. No sign of Mikasa Ackerman inside the box Mayu was now staring at intently. It should have been a great relief, except for the fact that it was still a figurine as she feared. Indeed, inside the box was standing a 11 inches’ figurine of a female warrior. Long brown hair tied to the side into a ponytail. A blue hakama over a white kimono. Long black tights.
Yuki surely didn’t miss either all the accessories inside the box: a bow, arrows, a quiver. The signs were evident: it had to be an archer. Finally, Yuki’s eyes fell on the last accessory. It was a miniature of an aircraft carrier. Wait. What? This last accessory didn’t go at all with the rest! Who on earth was that?
“Kaga!” Mayu’s cheerful voice gave it away, and she watched her in incredulity as she started removing the figurine from the box to take a better look at it. “Thank you so much, Jurina!”
Yuki observed her girlfriend kissing Jurina’s cheek the moment after, a beaming smile plastering all over the SKE member’s face at the reaction her gift managed to provoke. Yuki couldn’t hold it anymore. Too many questions were currently juggling in her head. She had to let it out.
“Who is it, Mayuyu?” she asked hesitantly, only to see her girlfriend turning to face her hurriedly, and showing proudly the box in her hands.
“It’s Kaga, one of the characters from
Kantai Collection!” she explained enthusiastically. “See all those accessories?” she continued, pointing at the small objects stuck to the plastic box. “That’s what she uses to fight in battle. In the anime, the arrows transform into planes that take off from her aircraft carrier to spy the enemy’s positions. Just as Akagi, her role is essential in combat. Both are great and charismatic female warriors!”
Yuki believed to have listened to Mayu’s explanation very attentively, so why on earth didn’t a single word make sense to her? “When did you start watching that show?” she asked the question that was now burning her lips. Even though she didn’t share her undivided passion for 2D characters, she couldn’t have possibly missed it if Mayu suddenly became a fan of a new anime. The latter wouldn’t have waited a minute to mention it during one of their conversations.
“Last week, when you were in Osaka for the shooting of a TV commercial,” Mayu replied casually, her eyes glued on the figurine as she was removing carefully the sticky tape that was keeping in place the figurine and the accessories. “It was on my watching list for months. It was long overdue!”
“This show is entirely composed of female characters,” Jurina chimed in, catching immediately Yuki’s attention. Wait; Jurina had watched it too? And it appeared she had not been the only one, considering Rena’s small nod by her side. “My favorite is the main character, the funny and clumsy Fubuki, but Rena has a soft spot for Nagato, the serious commander who relays orders from the admiral to the fleets.”
Yuki could progressively feel her head spinning due to the overflow of information. Too much. It was just too much. Still, she mustered her best, polite smile. All three girls seemed very enthusiastic about this TV animated show she had never heard about, and she felt it best to keep - for once - her true feelings to herself. Maybe Mikasa Ackerman wasn’t so bad, after all.
At least, there was only one of them.
Yuki, who was finishing tidying up the kitchen, stole a peek at the two Matsui who were watching the concert playing on the television. A few famous Japanese artists had been invited for the special live event, and the joyful Christmas songs were now sounding pleasantly in the living room.
As soon as the exchange of presents was over they had lunch, a meal Yuki was quite proud to have prepared all by herself. Of course, Mayu offered kindly to help, but she wanted to hear none of it. Six months ago, she made the decision to take cooking classes, which she had followed every week diligently. For this special occasion, she wanted to show that all her hard work had finally paid off.
The meal was a great success: her cooking skills were praised by every girl at the table. A year ago, she may have seriously doubted the sincerity of their words, and believed they were just trying to be polite. Not this time. They meant every word, and it reassured her to know she was not a lost cause after all. She would probably never manage to reach Jurina’s incredible level – Yuki strongly believed the girl to have a natural ability when it came to cooking – but at least now she was able to make a very decent meal.
It had been so long since the four friends had been reunited, that Yuki truly didn’t see time passing by. There was so much catching up to do! Of course, Yuki had been able to meet Jurina a few times lately due to the release of AKB’s recent single, but she hadn’t seen the older Matsui at all since her graduation. The moment they started exchanging a few words, Yuki was pleased to realize their conversations still felt as natural.
In fact, she was saddened when she learned the other girl wouldn’t be able to join them in July for their annual week holiday, recalling the nice time they spent the four of them together the year before. It was undeniable they had a great dynamic as a group, but Yuki also had to admit she really appreciated the company of Rena during that week, discovering aspects of her personality she would never had suspected.
At some point during lunch, one detail in particular caught Yuki’s attention. Both Matsui were wearing a silver ring on their finger; Rena on her index finger, and Jurina on her ring finger. Yuki did notice well this particular silver ring on Jurina’s finger these last past months, but she didn’t think too much about it until now, taking it as a simple accessory the younger girl was visibly very fond of.
Now that she saw a ring on Rena’s finger that looked very similar to hers, she couldn’t shake the feeling that those were matching rings. Yuki was more than used to seeing both girls wearing matching outfits; they did it plenty of times in the past. However, a little voice inside her head was telling her there was more to read in those similar silver rings. That’s why she couldn’t keep it to herself any longer when she saw Mayu entering the kitchen to bring her the last plates from the table.
“Mayuyu.” She waved at her discreetly, making sure her voice was low enough to prevent both Matsui from catching their conversation. Just to be cautious enough she stole a quick peek at the two girls, relieved when their attention was still entirely monopolized by the screen as they were visibly debating the current performance of Ayumi Hamasaki on the English Christmas song,
Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!Mayu who was putting the plates away in the dishwasher caught Yuki’s whisper and she tilted her head at her, arching an eyebrow at her curious behavior. Still, she approached without a word, Yuki finally letting out the question that had been burning her lips for so long. “Did something happen between Jurina and Rena that you didn’t tell me?”
“What?” Mayu frowned at her, not missing the expectant look she was giving her. “What do you mean by that?”
“The matching rings,” Yuki stressed. “Don’t tell me you didn’t notice?”
“Of course, I did,” Mayu confirmed, failing completely to see where she was getting at. “What about it?”
Yuki stared at her for a few, long seconds, trying to gauge the situation. So, Mayu had indeed noticed the matching rings as she expected, but it appeared by her clueless look that she was not drawing the same conclusions as her at all. Could it only be the fruit of her wide imagination, then? Consequences of her disillusioned mind? But Jurina was wearing her ring on her ring finger. It was not any random finger. When did Jurina do anything by chance anyway? Yes, Rena had opted for a different finger, but what if it was only a trick to cover the truth?
Yuki nibbled on her lower lip in hesitation. On one hand, it was getting harder and harder to keep her theory to herself. In her mind, a few elements were supporting it, and she couldn’t ignore what she had seen during lunch. On the other, she didn’t want to make a fool of herself if she happened to be completely off-track. Indeed, one element in particular was making her slightly doubt the veracity of her theory. Jurina shared pretty much everything with Mayu. As such, it was very unlikely she would have kept something so important from her.
Or would she?
“Wait…” Yuki got extracted from her thoughts at the sound of Mayu’s voice, her girlfriend who was now staring back at her with a look full of incredulity. “Don’t tell me you believed they got… married?”
Yuki felt the embarrassment raising to her cheeks when Mayu started to laugh freely. “Why not?” She still defended herself, trying to prove her point. “It wouldn’t be so improbable!”
“You’re right,” Mayu quipped, Yuki’s persistence only serving in increasing her mirth. “They secretly got married one week-end without anyone noticing!”
Even though Yuki now realized how stupid her theory had been when confronted with the facts, she couldn’t help but feel a bit frustrated when Mayu’s laughing didn’t show any sign of stopping. So absorbed by her conversation with Mayu, she jumped a little when she heard Jurina’s curious voice suddenly sounding from the sofa. “Who secretly got married?”
Yuki winced, meeting Mayu’s amused look as she pondered what to reply. The other girl was progressively calming down and brushing her tears away, but it was obvious by her lasting silence she should not expect any help from her to extract herself from this awkward moment. Considering Jurina’s question, it was clear she had only overheard the last part of their conversation. It was a small, but undeniable consolation.
A tentative smile formed on Yuki’s lips as she glanced towards the living room, noticing immediately the way Jurina was gazing at her in great interest. “N-No one. It was just a misunderstanding.”
Yuki didn’t believe her tone to be very convincing but to her relief Jurina didn’t insist, instead turning to pay attention to the screen again. Yuki felt a light tap on her shoulder and she tilted her head, delight still dancing on Mayu’s lips. She let out a small sigh in resignation. “I really got it all wrong, didn’t I?”
“You got it wrong this time,” Mayu confirmed, but Yuki nevertheless started to feel a little better when her girlfriend comforted her with a kiss on the cheek. “But who can predict the future?”
Yuki widened her eyes slightly at the enigmatic words, and she followed Mayu’s gaze as she was now observing both Matsui sitting on the sofa. A smile progressively moved to Yuki’s lips as she witnessed them exchanging casually a kiss, admitting Mayu was entirely right.
She was no more fortune teller than Mayu; there was no way to tell what the future had in store for their two precious friends. However, she wanted strongly to believe the time of tears and struggle was finally behind them. Life was short. Too short. Didn’t they deserve to be finally happy?
TO BE CONTINUED IN 2017
Author's note: Merry Christmas everyone! Hope you'll have a lovely day. This is the last chapter of
Destiny for the year. The next and final arc of the story will start in January! I want to thank everyone who leave 'likes' or/and comments on my stories. I do love writing for this beautiful ship, but feedback motivates me a great deal to keep on. Please keep supporting me in 2017
Topic: Heartbeat (20/20) + Partners (23/23) + Destiny (41/41 END) [WMatsui] - REPLIES (Read 287645 times)