Kodomo No Omocha Fan Fiction ❯ I Don't Hate You ❯ Chapter 2 ( Chapter 2 )

A/N Hey I'm back again! Just a note, if the song Sana sings later in this chapter has any of you confused, it's supposed to be weird. Japanese songs never seem to translate well into English and I think it's funny that since I don't know Japanese and can't appreciate the silly rhymes and rhythms in Sana's songs, I only know they read strangely as subtitles. I tried to recreate the absurdness of her songs in English here in my story, just as a little joke! So, "HAPPY HAPPY SMILE SMILE!"

Disclaimer: I unfortunately do not own Kodocha

Sana stood outside the iron gate to her family mansion, waiting under the dim light of the street lamp for her golden-haired friend. She had gone home after school that day, eaten dinner with her mother and Rei-kun, tried to do some of her homework, but had quickly abandoned it for her current post outside. How would she ever work up the nerve to tell Hayama her true feelings? She had realized over eight months ago what Hayama meant to her, but unfortunate events had gotten in the way to true happiness. Why did she have to be so dumb when it came to love? Hayama had told her that day in front of the clinic that he had always loved her, but she had never seen it before then. She had ignored the signs, thinking of him as one of her many friends. How foolish and stupid of her. Only when she had lost Hayama to Fuka had she truly understood how vital he was to her every day life. He was the only one that mattered, the only one that ever truly understood and appreciated her. Now she had a second chance at Hayama, but Sana was feeling more depressed than hopeful. It wasn't in her nature to be pessimistic, but even with Hayama now single, could she really hope that he still loved her? Could he still harbor feelings for her even after she had unconsciously spurned him for the past two years? She wasn't sure, but she knew she had a promise to keep, and that running away last time to New York with Naozumi-kun hadn't worked either. She was going to have to be brave and tell Hayama the whole truth.

At that moment, Hayama Akito turned the corner and came into view. The 14 year-old had gone to his house after karate that day to shower and eat with his family, and now he was walking to Kurata's house to meet her as he had promised. Hayama had passed his belt test with flying colors as he knew he would, and now that he had cleared that hurdle, he allowed himself to think about the next big event in his live. Sana. He had briefly entertained fantasies of what she would say to him, but he would not allow his hopes to rise. Now as he looked down the street, he saw her slight form shivering from the winter night cold as she kept vigil under the street light next to her house.

"Yo," he greeted her as he walked up to stand beside her.

"Hi," she said trying to smile cheerfully, only to have the small grin slip off her face. Hayama noticed her subdued mood and his stomach lurched in nervousness. He then lifted his right hand in front of him, bringing a black cloth belt into view under the yellow glow of the street lamp.

"Oh Hayama, that's great! I knew you would do it!" Sana exclaimed, this time with sincere excitement, hopping up and down and clapping her hands together. She extended her own hand to finger the cloth thoughtfully. "Was the test hard? Have you told your family? What did your father say?" she asked.

"It was nothing," he replied, "and Dad said he was glad….Sana…you wanted to…tell me something?" Hayama asked, his eyes filled with seriousness.

"Hayama…" Sana began, a thrill passing through her when he had used her given name. It sent warmth through her, pushing out the coldness from her body and giving her new courage to tell him everything. "Hayama, I…I…" she stuttered, mesmerized by his hazel eyes, by the unreadable expression in them. God, she had to tell him before this feeling ripped through her chest. It felt like everything about him consumed her until she was almost swallowed up in this…"I love you!" she suddenly exclaimed. She had shocked herself at her sudden directness. Based on Hayama's reaction she assumed he also hadn't been expecting anything this abrupt either.

Had she just said what he thought she just said? Hayama Akito was reeling, time seemed to slow down and he couldn't think straight. "I love you…" Two years of waiting to hear those sweet words from her lips. When they were in sixth grade, he would lay awake at night sometimes, imagining a moment similar to this one, her eyes misted over in emotion as those words rolled off her pink tongue. He had always assumed she would remain an airhead and his fantasy would stay a figment of his imagination. Now she was still an air head, but his fantasy had come true. Hayama suddenly came crashing back to the present, regaining his senses as he saw Sana's face cloud over in worry. She was waiting for, no fearing his reaction. She honestly didn't know how he felt about her.

"Hayama…do you...do you love me too?" Sana asked in a quavering voice once she couldn't stand the heavy silence any longer. She couldn't understand the look he was giving her and she was starting to feel queasy from fear that he might not love her anymore.

"Stupid, dense girl," Hayama rasped, uttering the same words he had used all those months ago in front of the clinic, "Yes, I do," he said, overcoming that small inner voice that told him love confessions were embarrassing and shameful. He had to tell her the truth; she would never guess it on her own without his help.

Sana's blood rushed hot at his words. He had insulted her and then confessed his love for her in the same sentence. That leopard Hayama would never change, but she realized as a few tears started to fall from her eyes, she never wanted him to, ever.

Hayama reached out and brushed the tears from her cheeks. "Why?" he asked, guessing the reason himself, but needing to hear her say it out loud.

"I'm..I'm so happy Hayama!" Sana said, suddenly closing the gap between them and flinging her arms around his waist, sobbing into his chest. She was so relieved that she felt she would never stop crying. Hayama loved her and her own heart swelled at the thought. It was more than she could have dared to hope for half a year ago.

"Sana…" Hayama whispered into her ear, stroking her red hair with one hand, the other snaking around her waist to draw her closer to him. The softer expression in his eyes was the only sign on the stoic boy's face of the intense emotion that he was feeling inside. She was finally his and he knew that he could never let her go again. He would cherish this moment as the culmination of two years of waiting. Kurata Sana was his at last.

"Hayama?" Sana whispered, looking up into his face. "Am I your girlfriend now?" she asked, a shy, slightly childish expression delicately gracing her cute features.

"If you want to be," Hayama stated, a bit unsure of where to go from this point on.

"Yes, I'd very much like to be, if you want me to be that is," Sana replied awkwardly, love shining in her hazel eyes as she looked adoringly up at Hayama. Her face was so close and so pretty. Hayama couldn't control himself any longer and he dipped his head down to catch her soft lips with his own.

Sana was caught off guard for a moment, her big hazel eyes widening in surprise at his actions. He had kissed her before, twice when they were in sixth grade, and once yesterday, but every time he did it, she still couldn't get over her shock of suddenly having her mouth pressed against his. Her first reaction was to step back and whack him with her mallet to cover up her own surprise and fear at the situation, but for the first time, Sana suppressed her childish fears and embraced the new adult feeling that was rushing through her body and making her legs feel weak. She tentatively began to kiss him back, moving her mouth unsurely against his.

She was kissing him back! Hayama's blood rushed hot faster than a lightning bolt through his body as he felt her lips start to react to his, her arms entwining around his neck and her fingers shyly playing in his hair. His grip around her waist tightened as he supported most of her weight, his right hand gently rubbing her back. He could have kept kissing her for hours but she slowly pulled back from his face to gulp fresh air into her lungs. She hesitantly looked up at him as her chest heaved up and down, a light blush painted across her cheeks. He stared at her intensely, trying to burn the image of her before him now into his memory. She had never looked more beautiful as she did now and he felt strange urges pulling at his mind as he looked at her.

Sana couldn't think coherently after that kiss. She gazed up at Hayama, and that deep expression she could see in his eyes was scaring her a little with its intensity. She loved him so much but this part of the experience was completely new to her. She couldn't explain the feelings coursing through her body, or how every inch of her skin felt highly sensitive and in tune with his touch. What was happening to them?

A cold wind suddenly blew down the street making Sana shiver in Hayama's arms. Hayama then noticed that she was only wearing a thin long-sleeved shirt and that the sun had already completely disappeared over the horizon. "Cold?" he asked, rubbing her arms with his hands, creating a warming friction. "Ye..yes," Sana said, her teeth chattering from the cold.

"You should go inside then. It's January and you're standing outside without a coat on," he replied.

"Ok," she said starting to turn around to go into her house. "Hayama?" she said, stopping and turning around to ask him a question.

"Yes?" he said.

"What should I call you now that I'm your girlfriend? I've only called you by your family name ever since I've known you," she said, a silly grin on her face and an awkward blush still spread across her cheeks.

"Akito…I guess," he said just as awkward, still trying to adjust to the idea of their new relationship.

"Ok," she said. Then she suddenly ran and launched herself back into Hayama's arms, whispering in his ear, "I'll see you tomorrow Akito."

Hayama felt his blood heating up again at the sound of her using his birth name, her breath delicately brushing his ear. He squeezed her tightly in an affectionate hug and whispered back, "I'll meet you before school in the court yard. Try not to be too late tomorrow morning. He then kissed her cheek and released her.

Sana gazed up at Hayama for a second longer before nodding and then walking through the iron gates and up to her house, waving after her new boyfriend.

"Good night, I'll try to wake up early," she called after him and then closed the front door behind her.

Sana skipped happily through the house with her Nori Nori machine singing another one of her goofy songs. "Sana has happiness shine on her face. Do a dance and let the smile show in graceful movements. Happy Happy smile smile, say bi bi to storm clouds!"

"Sana-chan….SANA-CHAN!" said Rei-kun trying to get Sana's attention amidst the loud singing and chaotic dancing she was performing on the coffee table in the Kurata's large living room.

"Rei-kun Rei-kun, do a dance. Don't be a frog that wears a frown. Happy Happy smile smile, say bi bi to storm clouds!" Sana continued singing, trying to get her manager to join in the hectic fun. Sagami Rei started trying to catch hold of Sana to get her to stop dancing and pay attention to him, but the fun-loving girl only pulled out her Burrucha and pressed the button that caused its twin to vibrate wildly in the man's pocket. Now Rei was vibrating with his Burrucha across the living room floor in time to Sana's fast beat, still singing and dancing her happiness for the whole household to hear.

"No longer a lonely wolf but a crafty leopard, he brings a smile to Sana's face. HAPPY HAPPY SMILE SMILE! HAPPY HAPPY SMILE SMILE!" Sana ended the song with a wink and one of her wild Komawari spins in the air. Rei slowly stumbled back up to his feet from where he had fallen from the crazy vibrations in his pocket.

"Sana-chan, pleeeeaaaassseee listen to me! I have a great new job offer for a new TV drama. The director wants to cast you as the lead…" Rei started desperately but was quickly cut off by the hyper Sana.

"No time for that Rei-kun! I'm still on break and am feeling H-A-P-P-Y!!!" Sana exclaimed while punching and kicking the air for emphasis and then running back up the stairs to finish her homework.

"But Sana-chan!!! How will I become the greatest manager in Japan if you don't accept any offers? SAAANNNAAA!" Rei-kun called after her while on his knees, tears streaming down his beet-red face and his hands tearing at his hair in frustration.

At that moment, Kurata Misako came driving around the corner in her little red toy car and pulled up next to Sagami Rei. She pulled out her fan from inside her kimono sleeve and held it in front of her face. "Sagami-san, Sana is obviously happy with her life at home and school right now. It would be wise to let her savor this time while it lasts. It is rare that she is allowed to act like a normal young school girl," the famous author said while leaning close to the still sobbing manager.

"Perhaps…you are right Sensei," said the distraught man in between sobs

"Ha! You should use this time to start thinking about a new career if my daughter decides she values this lifestyle over her acting career," the eccentric woman laughed as she drove wildly away in her car, kicking up a cloud of dust behind her. Sagami Rei renewed his crying at Misako's words a depressed blue aura settling around his shoulders.

Mean while upstairs, Sana lay staring up at the ceiling of her room from her bed, her thoughts consumed with nothing but Hayama Akito. She touched her lips with her fingers, remembering what it felt like when he had kissed her so passionately. She was a little surprised that he had shown as much emotion as he had; Hayama was always so reserved and expressionless. It warmed her heart to think he had admitted his love for her, had hugged and kissed her so affectionately. Sana knew the golden-haired boy too well to expect him to act like a typical boyfriend around her. She suddenly burst out laughing at the thought of him blushing and proclaiming his feelings for her like Tsuyoshi-kun did when he was around Aya-chan. No, he would always be Hayama Akito, the same arrogant and disrespectful boy she had hated those first few weeks in sixth grade, the same conflicted and troubled youth she had seen at the Hayama residence, and the same earnest and perceptive boy who had comforted her on several occasions. She desperately hoped they would never be parted, that he would always be a part of her life from now on.

Several blocks away, the very same 14 year-old boy sat on his window sill, gazing out into the darkness and thinking only of her. How had he fallen for such a goof-ball? Despite her often spastic and hyper behavior, Hayama knew her core. She was cheerful and optimistic by nature, seemingly his opposite, but their experiences together had made them reveal their own deepest wishes and insecurities to each other. No one else knew him the way she did, and he could see through the talented actress's layers to her real feelings. She kept him from slipping into despair and moodiness, making his life brighter than he could do on his own, and she needed him to guide her through life when her innocence or optimism kept her from seeing the real world. They saved each other time and time again, and he realized now that the only times that he truly felt like himself was when he was with her. He silently resolved that nothing else in life would separate them ever again. They belonged together, and after the revelations tonight, he didn't think he could survive another day without her.