Title: In the Snow

Author: Elonrae Arevn

Word Count: 1329

Universe: None

Genre: Romance

Warnings: Blatant femslash/shoujo-ai/whatever you want to call it. Two girls kissing.

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Masumi’s back hit the concrete wall hard, and she slid down until her bottom thumped onto the ground. Her arms, encased in the sleeves of her favorite black trench coat, wrapped around her knees as her lower face was obscured by the cloth. A chunk of black hair fell over the right side of her face, obscuring one gray eye, but she didn’t bother to tuck it back behind her ear.

The white snow, drifting down, settled over her huddled form gently, like a cold and unforgiving blanket. Her pale hands, fingers loosely linked, trembled at being out in the freezing weather without the slightest protection from the cold.

Suddenly, the faint light filtering through the heavy clouds was blocked out by a shadowy figure squatting down in front of the lonely girl. What little sunlight still showed haloed the new person, giving them an unearthly glow. The voice that spoke in the oppressively heavy silence added to the effect.

“Masumi, why don’t you have gloves on?” uttered the sweet voice. Masumi slowly turned her gaze to the girl, who instead of black hair, had brown waves tumbling around her face, framing her equally brown eyes.

“I suppose…I forgot to grab them.”

There was absolutely no infliction in her voice to convey annoyance, or sarcasm, or any emotion at all. The other frowned at this.

“Masumi-chan-“

“Iwakashi-san,” The black-haired girl said quietly, enunciating the ‘san’ suffix very clearly, “You need not worry about me. And such familiarity cannot be allowed now, can it?”

“Masumi, what are you talking abo-“

“Iwakashi-san. Give it up. I know what you were doing-have been doing-“ here she paused, so briefly one would hardly notice it, before continuing, “with Takana-san for months. You played me for the fool, didn’t you, Iwakashi-san? Getting what you wanted from me, until jerking me around was nothing but entertainment for you and your little…friend.” The words were spat out viciously, cold and biting. “I’m not going to stand for it anymore. I’m done being your puppet.”

“Masumi-ch-“

“No more Masumi-chan! We’re not friends now, even if we ever were, Iwakashi-san!” With that, the upset seventeen year old rose to her feet, fully intending to walk away from the whole horrible mess.

“Masumi-chan, you’ve got it all wrong!” The other girl’s scarf flapped wildly in her mad rush to stand up to prevent the other girl from walking away.

“Oh, do I? Then how is it, Iwakashi-san?” Masumi turned to glare at her friend, the girl she’d thought she’d loved.

“Emiko-chan and I-we weren’t-we weren’t doing what you think!”

Masumi sighed, all her angry energy seeping out of her, leaving her with just a tired, sad feeling in the pit of her stomach. “I don’t believe you.”

The brown haired girl stepped back as though she’d been slapped. Never, in their whole friendship had either one of them doubted the other. That was the whole principle of the thing-to have one person they could know, without a doubt, would never lie to them. One person they would never have to lie to.

One person they could trust.

As though reading her thoughts, Masumi smiled bitterly. “I know. We swore to always trust each other, didn’t we? To never lie? Obviously, we’ve both broken those oaths, Iwakashi-san. And didn’t we agree, if that ever happened, it would be the end of our friendship?”

Her waist length hair, blown by the breeze, wound around her arm and caught between her fingers. “Goodbye, Iwakashi-san. It was fun while it lasted.”

The silent tear that trickled down Masumi’s face as she turned to walk away belied the cool and callous tone of her voice. As she started to walk away, the other girl who was staring at her back realized that she was really leaving, and she was leaving angry, and she was never coming back. And if that happened, her whole world would collapse.

“Masumi-chan!” The cry burst out of her unintentionally, as she pelted forward to wrap her arms around her friend from behind and burying her face into the black fabric of the trench coat. Masumi froze, unsure of what to do next. When you tell someone who doesn’t feel the same way about you as you do about them goodbye, you don’t expect them to try to stop you.

“Masumi-chan, I’m sorry! I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry-I don’t know why you got so upset about me dating Emiko-chan, but if it’ll make you stay, I’ll break it off-just please-please-don’t leave me…don’t leave…” The plea trailed off into a heart-wrenching sob.

“Rei-Iwakashi-s-“

“And stop with the ‘Iwakashi-san’! Masumi-we’re friends, dammit! Not enemies, or-or anything else!” No matter how much I wish we were so much more than friends, her treacherous mind added- “Call me Reiko-chan again!”

“Alright…Reiko-chan.” Just the simple endearment brought not-so-small smiles to both of their faces.

Reiko took a deep breath. “Masumi-I think we need to be honest with each other.” The other girl stiffened slightly in her arms, and she realized she was still holding her best friend tightly against her body. She reluctantly let her go, all the while wishing she hadn’t.

“All right. Masumi…I’m sorry for lying to you about Emiko and I. It’s just-she asked me out, and I was-trying to get over someone-“ You, she whispered in her mind, “-so I thought it seemed like a good idea at the time, and…” Her voice trailed off at the other girl’s silence.

“Did it work?” Masumi finally asked, after what felt like an eternity.

“What?”

“Did you get over them?” Was it just wishful thinking, or was there a tone of hope in the other’s voice?”

Reiko stared down at her feet. “…No.”

“…Oh.”

Reiko glanced up again, more sharply. “Masumi-chan, what was that about you being my puppet?”

Masumi looked away. “I assumed that you knew of my feelings, and was using them against me. It wouldn’t be the first time it’s happened.”

“Feelings?”

“For you, you idiot!” Masumi snapped, glaring at her suddenly.

Reiko tried to control her pulse-why was her heart suddenly pounding? “Yes, you’re my best friend-“

“Oh, for-can you not take a hint?” Masumi growled, frustrated.

“What do you mean, a-“ her question was cut off as her best friend-and long-term crush-covered her mouth with her own. Reiko could only blink in shock as she was kissed by the person she’d been in love with since her first year of high school. As suddenly as it had started, the warm pressure on her mouth was taken away as Masumi withdrew.

“That’s what I meant by feelings. Idiot.”

“Hey, I’m not an idiot!” Reiko pouted playfully, before noticing that Masumi was turning away again. “Hey, where’re you going?”

“Home,” she snapped. “I’ve made enough of a fool of myself already.”

Reiko frowned. What was she going on about now?

Oh. She felt like slapping herself on the forehead. Masumi didn’t think she returned her feelings.

…And now she was about to get on a bus. Crap.

“Masumi, wait a minute!” She tackled her best friend again.

“Argh! What the hell do you want now, Reiko? I was honest with you, you were honest with me, we’re good, so let me go home!”

Her rant would have continued, if she hadn’t been cut short by Reiko throwing her arms around her neck and forcefully kissing her. Caught off balance, she wrapped her arms around the other girl’s waist to support herself without thinking.

“Now we’re good,” Reiko informed her, after ending the kiss.

“Wait-Reiko-what-“ Masumi was too dazed to form a coherent thought.

“Okay. So we’ve settled that, now, right?” An agreeing nod. “Good. And now I think we have a few more questions to sort out.” The brown-haired girl hesitated. “Walk with me?”

“Of course.”

With the exchange of a few simple words, each girl let go of her hold on the other and began their aimless walk through the snow, now connected only by their linked hands.

--

Gah…I didn’t like the ending very much at all. I wrote it because it was bugging me that it wasn’t done, so I finished it off.

Concrit? Please?