Plastic Little Fan Fiction ❯ Plastic Little: Sweet Chocolate Kisses ❯ Chapter 1

Plastic Little: Sweet Chocolate Kisses

 

Captain Tita Mu Koshigaya strode from her cabin, swiftly slinging her white jacket on over her black skin-tight hunter's suit when she stopped in surprise. The brown haired young woman knelt down to the deck and picked up the single red rose and a box of chocolates, a slight smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

 

"I wonder who left...?" Tita murmured, taking a deep breath of the rose's lovely scent and noting that there was no identifying card. She returned to her room to put them on top of her desk then returned to the hall, hurrying down to the motorized ladder that would take her up to the bridge of the petshop hunter Cha Cha Maru.

 

"Tita," Nichol Hawking looked up at her in surprise from his position at the helm as she appeared. The pink haired young man smiled at her warmly as he blushed faintly and declared, "Happy Valentine's day."

 

"Thanks," Tita jumped into the captain's seat even as she thought, 'So did Nichol leave those?' She smirked as she swiftly concluded, 'No, he doesn't have the guts.'

 

"You know Tita," Joshua Balboa said to her gently, "you don't have to be on duty today." The blonde haired man continued on, "We made sure you weren't on duty roster today...."

 

Tita smiled back wryly, knowing that the ship's rumor mill had been busy for the past several days spreading the news about her and Elysse. "It's all right, Balboa," she flashed him a warm smile as she continued, "I'd rather be out working, honestly."

 

She and Elysse had been planning to spend Valentine's day together, a romantic night out in the colony, but the letter that had been sent over a week ago had ended all that. Tita should have been angry at Elysse's confession that she had found someone else, but in all honestly they had been drifting apart for quite awhile. If she had been willing to move to the shore with Elysse full time or if Elysse had joined the ship maybe things might have been different, but otherwise their part-time relationship had been doomed.

 

"Course and heading, ma'am?" Nichol asked.

 

"We've got a shopping list of species to capture this time," Tita leaned forward eagerly as she ordered, "submerge the ship and let's get to work."

 

Meanwhile in sickbay Mei Lin Jones was scolding one of her more difficult patients. "Mikail," the short haired blonde frowned down at him, "you have to remember to watch what you're eating. A man of your age shouldn't..."

 

Mikail DiAgieff looked sullen, the gray haired, dusky skinned engineer sitting in his chair looking oddly like some child in trouble. "What's the point of living forever," he complained, "if you can't enjoy life a little?"

 

"I don't think enjoying life a little caused you to gain this much weight," Mei said dryly as she tapped the display. She hauled out her ultimate weapon and said, "How do you think Tita would feel if you collapsed on her one day?"

 

Mikail visibly winced at that thought. "All right, all right," he finally grumbled out, "I'll try a little harder to watch what I eat."

 

Mei smiled in satisfaction. "Now I just have to figure out how to get Tita down here for her physical," she said.

 

"Speaking of Tita," Mikail ran a hand nervously over his balding head before asking, "have you managed to tell her yet?"

 

"I left her a rose and some chocolates this morning," Mei blushed faintly as she continued, "but I really don't think this is the best time." She sighed as she fiddled with a pen, "I mean, her girlfriend did just sent her a Dear Jane letter."

 

"Or it might just be the best time," Mikail countered as he picked up his white shirt and pulled it on over a scarred chest. Buttoning it up he said, "Tita has always cared about you, but you've never really told her about how you feel about her."

 

"It's not quite that easy, you know," Mei frowned. "She's been living with my parents for almost as long as I've known her, since the death of her father, and she probably just thinks of me as an elder sister," she sighed.

 

"We've had this discussion more than once," Mikail gently reminded his younger friend. He smiled as he stepped up to the door, "But the only way things are going to change for the better is if you tell her the truth about your feelings."

 

"Or change for the worse," Mei sighed as the door closed behind him.

 

Mei smiled to herself fondly as she walked around tidying up the sickbay, remembering the first time she had met Tita. A child prodigy she had helped develop the cure for the deadly Ietta fever, and Tita had been infected. Working day and night she had strived to save Tita, the fever finally breaking even as the worst storm of the year had passed. Stumbling tiredly to Tita's bedside she had been greeted by the most charming smile....

 

....and Mei had lost her heart.

 

Her whole life changed on that day, the lonely, driven child genius finding her first true friend. Mei and Tita had spent almost all of their free time together, the bond between them growing deeper, and when Tita lost her father to the sea of clouds Mei's parents had taken her in. But through the passage of years Mei had never told her about the depth of her love, content to remain the trusted sister Tita could always rely on.

 

Then Elysse had arrived and Mei had learned first hand what jealousy was. Tita and Elysse had an instant bond, a pulse of electricity between them that Mei had deeply envied. Her thoughts were in turmoil when she learned they had slept together, not to mention the lengths Tita was willing to go for Elysse. Yes, she knew Tita would have done the same for any crew member of the Cha Cha Maru, but still it bothered her. The only relief had been Elysse's decision to stay in the colony, and Mei still felt mildly guilty being happy about that.

 

"So," Mei murmured to herself, "now that Tita's free again... what do I do?"

 

Later that day a tired Tita headed back to her quarters, feeling satisfied at catching nearly a third of her list of targets on this trip. 'I wonder if Roger left them?' she mused then giggled, 'No, edible panties would be that pervert's kind of gift.'

 

Tita reached her door and opened it, stepping inside only to suddenly stop, the scent of roses wafting over her. On the bed were two roses and a small bag, in addition to the ones still sitting on her desk. She walked over with a bemused smile, opening the bag to find chocolate kisses, her favorite. Noticing that there was a letter attached to the gifts this time she sat down on the side of the bed, picked up the letter and began to read.

 

"Tita," the paper read in familiar script, "your smile has always warmed my heart, your presence brings joy to my otherwise barren life. I know it may seem cowardly to tell you about my feelings in a letter like this, but it seems I have little choice. No matter how poised I may seem around you in fact I'm a bundle of nerves, unable to get the words past my lips. So instead I'm forced to write out these words: I love you."

 

"Oh," Tita reached up to wipe at the corners of her eyes, surprised to feel a few tears well up, then she continued to read.

 

"My timing, I know, is terrible. You may not want to hear these words from me, or even want to consider me in that way, and if so I understand. No matter what I hope that we will remain friends," and at the end it was signed, "Mei."

 

Tita set the letter down, a bit of a blush coloring her pale cheeks. "Mei?" she whispered to herself aloud, thoughts racing as she considered the other woman, the beautiful, graceful blonde that she had known for so very long.

 

Swiftly making a decision Tita rose from her bed and left the cabin, walking a short distance down the curved hall until she reached the suite that she wanted. The chime was soft then she heard Mei's voice call out, "Yes?"

 

"It's me," Tita answered.

 

The door swished opened and Mei stood there, dressed in her simple white uniform. She smiled at Tita nervously, running a hand through her short hair as the taller woman smiled shyly down at Tita, "You came, then."

 

"After leaving me a letter like that," a smiling Tita answered as Mei led her inside, "I couldn't not see you, Mei."

 

"I almost didn't leave the letter," Mei admitted, sitting down on the side of her bed and waving Tita to a nearby chair, "I know this isn't the best time."

 

Tita smiled wryly, "I'm still getting my head around all of this." She took a breath, "How long have you felt this way about me?"

 

"Honestly?" Mei asked. Tita nodded and she continued, "For several years now, almost as long as I've known you."

 

"I haven't treated you very well at times, have I?" Tita murmured, thinking of the times she had asked Mei for advice on dating and other things.

 

"I was glad you trusted me with that," Mei said loyally.

 

Tita smiled wryly, the silence stretching around them. She took a breath, "Part of me wants to just step into your arms and let things go from there."

 

"But...?" Mei knew there was more.

 

"It wouldn't be fair to you," Tita said firmly, "I'd just be rebounding from Elysse." She flashed a smile, "Instead, how would you like to go out with me, next time we're on shore? We can go on a date and see what happens."

 

Mei burst into a smile, "I'd like that, very much."

 

Tita rose from her chair even as Mei did, the two of them walking over to the door. "Oh," Tita paused, "I wanted to thank you for the chocolate kisses."

 

"Hmm?" Mei's eyes widened as Tita moved closer.

 

Tita smoothly pressed her lips to the startled Mei's, not a sisterly kiss but not quite as passionate as a lover's might be. She slid back and smiled up at the fiercely blushing Mei, "Just think of that as a promise for later."

 

"That's better than any chocolate kiss," Mei managed to breathlessly say.

 

"Happy Valentine's day," Tita smiled as she left.

 

End.

 

Notes: The names were taken from both the Plastic Little anime and manga, as was the Mei and Tita relationship. The anime focuses, understandably, on Elysse and Tita, but the manga goes much more into the lives of the crew of the Cha Cha Maru, as well as detailing how Tita and Mei first met. It's a very good story, and I recommend it as light reading. I also owe a tip of the hat to Chris Davies, who wrote the first Plastic Little fic that I've read as well as implying Tita and Elysse might have some troubles with their relationship.