Magic Knight Rayearth Fan Fiction ❯ Sefiro High ❯ Sefiro High - Chapter 28 ( Chapter 28 )

Today is not the typical school day for the students of Sefiro High. It was a day for the preparation for the bunkasai, or the school festival. Schools usually have it in autumn, but then, the institution always wanted to be different one way or the other, so they set it up a few weeks before the summer break.

The bunkasai in Sefiro High is a 3-day celebration. That is why, students are given a day or more to prepare. Each class and club has to have an 'event' of some sort. The classrooms have to be cleaned, and decorated, booths have to be set up, and the halls should be scrubbed clean. Too much work has to be done, but students don't mind because they are having fun.

Class 1-A decided to have a sort of a café. Everybody had already been assigned on what they are going to do. They had requested Umi to supervise the food preparation since she is the most skillful in that category. After planning on the design they want to have for their classroom, the class started to have a general cleaning.

"Are your brothers coming over, Hikaru-san?" Fuu asked.

"Knowing them, they won't miss it. I think they're gonna bring okaa-san."

"That's nice…How about your dad?"

"Dad has gone to one of those journeys again. He's been like that since he passed that National Kendo Examination."

"Err…What's that?" Ferio asked, popping out from nowhere, and smiling sweetly at Fuu.

"It's an examination for kendo masters, so that they can get the highest title a kendo master can have. Only 2 people pass the test out of hundreds, at least in average…sometimes nobody does…It's said to be the hardest examination one can take around the world," Fuu explained. "Anyway you have to have a high title to be able to qualify. There's even an age requirement for that…nobody below 40 I think is allowed to take the exam."

"Wow! So you're dad was able to pass that?"

"Yeah, I'm really proud of him, he's the youngest kendo master that had ever passed it…Anyway, I don't know when he'll be back."

"Oi Ferio! Get your butt over here! We still have lots to do!" Clef shouted from the other side of the room. He also gave Umi a wink and continued on what he was doing.

"So, you and Clef are really ok now?" Hikaru asked the blushing Umi.

"I think they are more than ok now," Fuu said smiling. "Well, Umi-san?"

"Well…" Umi said, her face in a deeper shade of red. "…Clef and me are…you know…"

"Wow! Really? How come I didn't know that?" Hikaru's friends face-faulted upon hearing this.

"It's because you haven't been yourself these past few days," Fuu replied.

"Oh yeah…"

"Can you tell us what happened?"

"Well…" she started to say, until she remembered that she had to first look around her to make sure that nobody else would hear what she was going to say. "…I had been thinking about lots of stuff lately and it kind of confused the heck out of me…"

"Stuff?"

"You know, about love…and Eagle and Lantis…"

"You look fine now though, does that mean you had finally got a conclusion?" Fuu asked.

"Yes…"

"So…"

"Well, it's like this. The first thing that confused me was the thought that I might be in love with them both. Since I do get the fuzzy feelings when I am with both of them. We all know that it's not really possible…But the truth is, I do love both of them…"

"What??? But you have to love one more …"

"Wait, I'm not finished yet. Last night when I was thinking, I thought that I love them both at the same way…and I just had to find out whom I love more. And when I've finally chosen, it made me realize that I was wrong. I am in love with only one of them. The other one I love in a different way and I didn't have to be confused at the first place."

"…But you just said you love them both?"

"I love Eagle not only as a very close friend but because he reminds me of my love for Lantis. That is because both of them are alike in many ways. When I see Eagle, I see Lantis. And it is Lantis that I am in love with. It's always been him. "

"And you figured it out last night? After you have chosen and not before?" Fuu asked.

"Well, coz I was just too stuck with the idea of loving both of them in the same way."

"So what made you think you love Lantis more then?"

"I remembered the incident yesterday morning when we were walking to school, I nearly got hit by a bike until Lantis pulled me towards him. And he held me really tight…And when he was holding me, I wanted it to last forever, I never felt like that way with Eagle."

"I see…"

"And there's another thing…which made me realize that I wasn't really in love with Eagle…"

"And that is?"

"I don't see Eagle when Lantis smiles at me."

* * *

Lantis had not been in his best mood lately. He had been this way this morning after he walked with Hikaru to school. The reason? Hikaru had been acting a little bit strange. Hell, she wouldn't even look at him in the eye. He felt as if she didn't want to be with him.

His feeling was confirmed during lunchtime when he and Eagle visited her classroom. She had been talking casually to Eagle but was very hesitant in talking to him. When he tried smiling at her, she looked away.

"Ch…" he said. "What did I do now?"

"If you think like that too much you're going to get old quite fast," Eagle told him as he walked towards Lantis.

"I really don't get it, Eagle."
"Don't get what?"

"Why is she acting like that?"

"Like what?"

"Like different…"

"I don't think she is…"

"Didn't you notice how she avoided talking to me?"

"Hmm…"

"See, now you do…"

"Want me to talk to her?"

"Thanks Eagle…"

* * *

Hikaru didn't mean to act differently with Lantis. But when she was finally aware of the feeling she had for the young man, she couldn't help but get tensed when he is around.

Instead of finding him waiting for her, she saw Eagle instead. "Eagle-sempai…"

"Hello, Hikaru-chan."

"Where's Lantis-kun?"

"Actually, he sent me here…"

"Why?"

"I should really be asking you that…"

"Anou…I can't really tell here…"

"Meet me at the rooftop," he told her. "You go there first, I'll follow you in a while. You know how rumor spreads here. We wouldn't want people telling that we're cheating on Lantis or anything…"

Hikaru nodded and went ahead. After a few minutes, Eagle came. "Hi again Eagle-sempai…"

He led her at the opposite side of the entrance, just to be safe. "So tell me…"

"We'll, it's like this…A-anou…I'm in love with Lantis-kun." Eagle couldn't help feeling hurt of what he had heard. When Hikaru saw this, she quickly apologized, "I'm sorry…I knew it would hurt you…"

"So you know…how I feel about you?"

Hikaru nodded. "It look long for me to realize, but I did last night. I'm really sorry, sempai…"

"It doesn't matter now…You love him. I am glad…"

"Yes I'm in love with him. I realized it last night also. And this morning when I saw him…I was scared…"

"Scared of what Hikaru-chan?"

"The feeling is too strong for me, sempai. I was scared that if I start to speak to him I might blurt everything out. And deep inside I feel he cannot love me back. Because…because…" and with that she started crying.

"Hikaru-chan…" Eagle said, he then pulled her towards him and held her in a tight embrace. "Don't cry…"

"He won't love me, sempai…And I want him to love me…"

"Shhh…"

"What will I do?"

"See, remember when we had the camping trip? Lantis and I had a deal about you. I told him, he should never make you cry, or I'll take you away…And he promised me that he wouldn't…You know why we made that deal, Hikaru? It's because we're both in love with you. So please don't cry now…He loves you too…"

"He…loves me?"

"Please don't cry anymore…or I'll be forced to take what he owes me since you're crying because of him now…Please?"

Hikaru's sobs became slowly became controlled. Eagle didn't let her go and kept comforting her. They stood like that for a while, until they heard someone drop a can behind them. It was then that they saw Lantis standing there, looking very shocked.

* * *

Lantis looked at his watch. 'They're taking too long…' He dropped by the vending machine to get a drink since he was quite thirsty before he decided to go to the rooftop. "Damn it!" he swore under his breath. "That's several floors up!"

He continued on his way. He opened the door and looked around. He tried to look at the opposite side of the entrance and then he saw them.

Eagle was holding Hikaru in a very tight embrace. He was caressing her hair and she didn't seem to mind. It was at that time that Lantis dropped the can he was holding out of shock.

The first thought that went to his mind was that, 'I'd better get out of here.' And he did. He ran as fast as he could.

* * *

"Maa…I think we do have a big trouble here now…" Eagle said.

"What do I do?"

"Run after him, I guess… tell him how you feel…I don't think he can listen to anybody else…not even to me…But he'll listen to you, because he loves you." Hikaru understood.

So she ran after him. 'Please let make him listen…' Some seniors and told her she saw him near their building. So she went there. She found him at a fountain beside the senior's hall. He was sitting there, with a bird perched on his hand. "Lantis…" she started to say.

The bird on his hand flew away, and he didn't dare look at her even if he knew she was there. He just suddenly asked her, "Remember the time when you asked me, of how would I feel if me and Eagle were in love with the same girl?"

"You told me that it would be really hard for you to give the girl up when she means a lot to you."

"I am letting you go now Hikaru… The deal between us is off. You can tell them any reason you want. I'm giving up on you."

"But…"

"I had been too selfish…too arrogant to even think that I can make you fall for me…I made that deal with you because I want to be with you…I didn't know why, but I want to see you all the time…I want to be close to you…And I kept asking myself…Why? Why do I need to be with you so much…? But it doesn't matter now…You love Eagle…"

"I do love Eagle…but not the way you think. I am not in love with him"

Lantis' looked at her with surprise. "What did you say?"

"I am not in love with Eagle…"

"But at the rooftop…" It was then when he saw that she had been crying. Her eyes are red and swollen. "You have been crying…"

"Eagle comforted me…that was what you saw…You were such in a hurry to leave that we didn't get to explain."

"Nevertheless…"

"I was crying because I thought you don't love me…" She started bursting into tears again, and ran towards him.

"Hikaru-chan…" He opened his arms to her.

"Daisuki da yo…"

"Lantis if you don't say you love her, I'd really take her away from you now…" Eagle said, walking towards them. "You made her cry again…"

"Mou, daisuki da," Lantis whispered to her ear. He then turned to Eagle, "You have a bad habit of popping out from nowhere Eagle…But thanks a lot."

"She's still sobbing Lantis…you should make her stop from crying…" Eagle said grinning.

Lantis looked at Hikaru, put his hand below her chin and slowly, made her face him. He then lowered his face to hers and pressed his lips on hers. She kissed him back as she put her hands around his neck.

Eagle turned around and walked away thinking, 'It was all worth the heartache…'