Shorts by Ozymil (Updated 12/7/17)

[Ozymil]

After a millennia I've arisen~~~

I was going through old stuff and found this tucked away in a dusty old corner of Google Drive. Short piece, but I thought some of you might enjoy it anyways. I've really been wanting to come back to writing KS fanfiction, but I haven't really had the right time or motivation. One of these days!

See you in another 500 years~

...

"Hisao."

As soon as his name leaves her mouth he can tell that something's amiss. The odd lilt between syllables and half-breath as she finishes his name alert him to that very fact. He can't tell whether he's just gotten good at reading her or if she's deliberately being transparent. Perhaps it's a little of both.

"Mm? What's up?" he replies sleepily, using his drowsiness to mask his concern.

"... I love you."

"I do too, Hanako."

There's more to this than simple displays of affection, but it's nice to hear regardless. He turns over towards her and wraps his arm across her waist to show her as much.

To his relief she returns the gesture, easing into his embrace. For a moment the intimacy between them settles and buzzes warmly. But, despite her calm demeanor, he can tell that her mind is still active, working something over and over.

"What're you thinking about?" he asks. An innocent question, and one that's open enough for him to get a grasp of where she's at right now.

"Us... You, me..."

"Yes, that would be the definition of 'us' in this situation."

That earns a small jab in the ribs from her elbow. He laughs like he always does when he teases her and she simply smiles warmly in return.

"No... What I mean is..." she says, trailing off. It's obvious that she has a lot she wants to say, but her mouth can't keep up with her head. That's fine with him. He can, and will, wait as long as she needs.

"What I mean is... What do we do? About us?"

A pause. It's his turn now.

"Well, I was thinking sleep would be nice." To further emphasize his point he sinks into the mattress and under the covers, bringing her with him. A giggle and slight shove later they are face to face, catching their breath and relaxing once more. She inches towards him and nuzzles into the crook of his neck.

In the early days of their relationship her reticence and hesitation would have frustrated him. But as time went on and the gap between them closed, her muted nature remained. Far from being uncomfortable for the two it turned into a sort of dance. A give and take from each partner, Hisao taking the lead and Hanako offering up the next step.

"What do you... What do you want to do after you graduate?" she asks, her question transmuting into a warm breath that tickles his neck. He mulls over what she's just said for a moment.

"I'd be lying if I said I hadn't given it some thought. It's our last year after all..." One step. Two step. "Teaching is something I keep coming back to, I guess."

"You'd look cute in a bowtie," she chuckles.

"I don't know if 'cute' is what I should be shooting for as a teacher. And who says I need to have a bowtie?"

"I do."

Once more they let the air grow still as they relax into each other.

One step.

"What about you?"

Two step.

"...Hmm?"

A small grin forms on his face. "You weren't just falling asleep, were you?"

"No, no..." she says.

It's one of her quirks that makes her so endearing. She has a habit of falling asleep against him, whether it's in bed, in the car, or at the movies. He blames her late reading hours, she blames how warm he is. It goes unsaid that they enjoy her bouts of narcolepsy.

"Well, if you fall asleep I won't be able to tell you what else I want to do after I graduate," Hisao says as he runs his fingers through her silky hair, resting his chin on top of her head.

"Mmm, well... You better hurry up then."

"I thought it'd be nice to travel for a bit. Take a trip to Hokkaido, maybe even the U.S. Haven't decided yet. Just a change of pace would be nice, really. Get out and see the world while these hips are still made of bone.”

"Traveling is good..." Hisao’s joke goes unnoticed, but she smiles all the same.

"Then I'd obviously need to get my teaching degree so I suppose that's another couple years."

“And… what would ‘Professor Nakai’ teach?” She yawns wordlessly. “Mmm... high school?"

"Maybe. Or maybe when I'm a bit older. Might get kind of weird being responsible for someone who's a few years younger than I am."

"Mmm..." She's gotten better at wearing a thick skin, but he's still able to tell when she's tense. He can make a couple guesses at what specifically is bothering her, but he knows better than to make assumptions with Hanako. And so the dance continues.

"Worried I might get swept up by some teenage harlot?"

One step.

"I'd... I'd have to be around... to be worried, wouldn't I?"

Two step.

"Yeah, that's a bit of an issue there."

Hanako shuffles around in his arms, turning to meet him face to face. In her eyes, Hisao can see the girl Hanako was when they met and the woman she is now. All the growth and pain she’s endured hasn't simply erased the frightened, squeamish girl she once was. She's still there, alone and frightened. Hisao desperately wants to wrap that girl in his arms and let her know everything is alright, that she's loved and wanted. But he's already done that. He isn't responsible for the scared little girl hiding in Hanako's eyes. She is.

"I love you, Hisao," the two of them say.

It goes unspoken between them, but Hisao and Hanako know it's there. The connection that first drew a cynical little boy to a scared little girl in the library, that broke down the wall they had put up to keep the world out, that is bringing their lips together as affirmation of their past, present, and possible future.

One step. Two step.

[Ozymil]

Oh baby a double! Google Drive has yielded another word treasure. More a drabble than a short fic, but if you liked Mayu, here's more Mayu.

...

It started with a Sunday afternoon.

Sundays are special to Mayu. She gets to sleep in late, choose which cereal she can eat, even if they're ridiculously sugary (which they always seem to be), and read comics as much she wants to. Of course, this seems rather standard for most six year olds. To a child an anthill is a mountain, a puddle an entire ocean.

There is one thing that makes Sundays particularly special for Mayu. On Sundays she gets to watch her mother work.

Other kids at school have parents that work normal jobs. They’re normal people like businessmen, nurses, police officers, truck drivers, and the occasional taxidermist. Mayu's mother isn't exactly normal nor is her job. Mayu proudly (and often) proclaims that "Mama is an artist!"

"What's she do?" Seiji from school asks one day. Seiji Nakayama, also age six, is a nice boy if a bit brash. That attitude will unfortunately land him in jail at the age of twenty-seven when he gets into a fistfight with an American tourist outside of a bar.

Mayu’s retort to this inquisition is that "She makes ART! Duhhh!"

"So she draws?"

"And paints! She mostly does paint stuff though."

"Big deal. I bet I could paint too. And my daddy says I'm a really good drawer."

“Not like my mama. She’s really good.”

“Prove it!”

She promises to. How, she doesn’t exactly know. But Mama will figure that out.

Years later when asked where she gets her artistic influences from, Mayu Nakai's response is, "It started with a Sunday afternoon."

[Mirage_GSM]

Really liked the first one. The second is a bit too short to really leave an impact.

[Ozymil]

Really liked the first one. The second is a bit too short to really leave an impact.

Thanks! Yeah, I'd found these both sitting on an old Google Drive account so I figured I may as well post them here where people could actually read them. The second piece is totally too short to have any weight behind it, but I thought it was a nice little ditty on Rin's daughter. I'd originally intended for it to be the start of its own piece, which eventually morphed into "Safe and Sound".

Glad you enjoyed "One Step, Two Step"! I think I had refrained from posting it until now just because I felt there was such a huge surplus of stories like it, i.e. cutesy Hisao/Hanako fics. It has its own merits as a way to explore their relationship, but I don't think it really offers anything new. Still, I'm happy you liked it!

[Oddball]

Nothing new and ground breaking, but the first one of the two is sweet.

The second one has potential, but feels too short.