Rating: PG
Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon, so don't sue me please. ^____^
You don't realize what you have until it's gone. That is so cliché.
But it's true.
A week ago, we lost a good friend of ours. Nyasu. Such an annoying litle creature, some would say. I might even have said so on occasion. Annoying or not, he was still a good friend.
Kojiro and I were stunned when a Rocket-Dan agent presented us with the body of Nyasu, who had been missing three days. It was hard to tell if it was really Nyasu; the body looked as though it had been half-eaten by something. A gruesome sight. The agent said he had found it along the side of the road near Tokiwa City, and since he had known our Nyasu was missing... It all seemed a little strange to me. Something more than coincidence. But what could we do?
We had to bury our friend ourselves. That's how alone we are in Rocket-Dan. No one cares for us because we aren't top agents anymore. It's something we have come to realize lately.
For this past week, we have been living in a tiny apartment here in Tokiwa. The building is basically falling apart, but that's why we are able to afford it, for now. We have so little money left...
Now it is nighttime, and I stare at the ceiling of our bedroom, having been awoken by something. What it was, I don't know. Kojiro and I share the lone bed in order to comfort each other when we grow sad. He will often put his arms around me, but I have a hard time displaying emotions to him. I want to tell him so many things... but it's so hard.
Looking beside me, I see that he is gone and wonder what he could be doing up at this time of night. Curious, I creep along the hard wooden floor on bare feet, crossing paths of moonbeams flowing through the windows. I find him in our excuse for a kitchen, his hands in a white-knuckled grip on the windowsill. It seems that he is peering at the distant clouds, which are tortured with occasional flashes of lightning.
"Kojiro," I say to him, placing my hands on his shoulders. "You should be in bed... come on." I tug at him gently, but he shakes his head.
"No, Musashi... I just want to think for awhile," he says, sounding very tired. I sigh. It has been a week, but I am getting stronger. I have to, for Kojiro's sake. I know his heart is more tender than mine; he still cries often when he thinks of Nyasu. One of us has to be strong, however, and that is usually me.
"I'll be waiting," I tell him before I go back to bed sadly. As I lay down, I think over our situation once more.
Our money will soon be gone, and I know that I have no desire to go out and terrorize the world as a member of Rocket-Dan again. Chasing after Satoshi's Pikachu fails to interest me as well. That's how much Nyasu's death has changed me. I've realized that Rocket-Dan is getting us nowhere, and it's getting us there faster than we could even on our own. The only problem left is what we will do instead. There is definitely no way I could leave Kojiro, however. He needs me too much. Or maybe it's just that I need him.
Both, then.
Besides, I can't imagine any other girl being able to understand him the way I do, and the thought of him being alone frightens me. As if he has heard my thoughts of him, he appears in the doorway, looking toward me hesitantly. When he sees that I am waiting like I had said, he comes to sit beside me. He seems calmer than before as he gazes down at me, almost like he is memorizing my face.
"Musashi..." he finally begins, taking one of my hands. "I want to talk about something." I nod and wait expectantly. It has been so long since he has just wanted to talk.
"Now that... that Nyasu is... is dead... what will we do? I don't want to be in Rocket-Dan anymore, Musashi..."
I can't help but smile. I should have known that he had been thinking the same thing as me - it usually happens that way. And just a day ago, he wouldn't have been able to say that Nyasu was dead without crying; I feel proud of him.
"Well... I guess our only choice is to go somewhere far way and hope we're never found. Maybe Sakaki is expecting us to. I don't think he'll put up too much of a fuss when he finds out his two worst employees are missing... maybe he'll even throw a party when he finds out," I conclude sardonically.
"So you... you want to stay with me?" he asks nervously.
"Of course... we're still a team all on our own, you should know that by now, Kojiro-chan," I scold affectionately, flipping a strand of hair out of his eyes.
He smiles happily, then falls serious again. "Musashi, do you think that... Nyasu died for a reason? What I mean... is, do you think this is all helping us to realize how wrong Rocket-Dan is for us... and how right it is for... for us to be together?"
I watch him stumble and falter his way through his questions, then sit up a bit on one elbow so our faces are closer together. "Maybe... I'm sure if Nyasu can see us now, he would think we are making the right decision." He nods and I know that the subject is closed for the moment. Yet I think he still has something to say.
"I want to talk about something else... It might sound strange.... Musashi-san, have you ever... been kissed before?"
Wondering where he is going with the subject, I smile, as I know he is blushing even without sufficient light to see by. "Yes..." I tell him. "My first boyfriend." As though expecting it, he nods back. "What about you?" I ask next. It's only fair, after all.
He shakes his head very slowly. "Not even Rumika?" I whisper teasingly, but almost wish I hadn't when his face falls.
"No... not her."
I feel bad, so I decide to make up for it. "I would love to be the first one you kiss..."
Instantly, he smiles again and I start to close my eyes as he begins to move closer. But first, he lifts his hand to trace a finger gently along the curves of my lips; the gesture seems so intimate to me that I gasp slightly. Kojiro just smiles in satisfaction before finally leaning in.
Our lips meet delicately at first, before passion slips into the kiss. I look at him when we part, and he looks so shyly at me that I have to smile back. He lays down next to me and I rest my head on his chest and place my arm around him; his own arms encircle me comfortably. I wonder to myself why I had never tried this before. It feels so warm and safe.
"If Nyasu really can see us now... I'll bet he's gagging," Kojiro is saying. I laugh.
"Probably." Snuggling in closer, I smile in happiness as I feel my eyes beginning to drift shut, rain from the once distant storm now starting to patter a rythm on the roof above.
Who knows what the future holds for the two of us...
