a drizzle. (o)

[TSUKINO NOA]

i left my head and my heart on the dance floor

[atrb=border,0px,true][atrb=width,450px,true][atrb=cellpadding,10px,true] the weather man had predicted the onset of rain, but noa left her apartments sans an umbrella out of a childish rebellion. when she laced her fingers through the baby-soft hair of her kitten, queen mary, the creature stared at her in disapproval, as though she understand that noa was acting stupid once again. the elder cat simply flicked her tail in something akin to moderate amusement as the door shut, leaving the felines to own the apartment whilst their owner waltzed the streets. it seemed that they had more common sense than she did. immediately upon feeling the cold air run through her, noa realized that her bed had been the safest, most comfortable place to be. however, she had embarked and so her feet would take her where she could go. clad in a parka--despite the temperature not really calling for such, she simply was a baby when it came to the cold--dark jeans and boots, noa felt ready to face whatever she had coming to her. the rain, imminent by the dark clouds hovering over tokyo, was her main enemy for the moment. not armed with an umbrella, poncho or anything to cover her but her furry hood, the girl began her journey to nowhere. she did not remain in solitary for long, finding that as soon as she had stepped out, she found a handsome face to follow. always making sure that she remained some steps behind mystery man number one, noa took in each movement he made to deduce certain things on his behavior. the awkward and failed attempt at shoving his way through the crowd standing in wait for a bus made her note that he certainly wasn't the aggressive type--or the considerate, as his face upon having to move in arc around them revealed disgust and disappointment. curious, she followed onward without making note to where she was headed. all that mattered, in her short-sighted vision of now, was that mystery man number one did not disappear without reason. not until they had walked quite the distance to stand in front of the hachiko statue did that reason for his disappearance come to light. maneuvering to stand some feet away from him, eyes trained cautiously on the curve of his cheek, noa felt the rush of coming in close contact of her stalkee. just as she turned her feet just slightly to head his way, however, a look of flushed relief overcame his expression and he moved outward, flinging out his arms to capture a small woman. nagging at her lip with her front teeth, noa came to the conclusion that this adventure had been--in short--useless. and, to fit the mood even better, the lightest of drizzles began, lightly coating her body in fine droplets. umbrellas opened to shield from this and the eventual downpour that was bound to appear some point after. it seemed her rebellious mood had gotten her wet and vaguely disappointed, nothing more. so, she stood near the hachiko statue and wondered: where do i go from here? just another day in the life of noa tsukino.

[HAYATO IKE]

somewhere deep in my heart it's raining,

[atrb=width,10%][atrb=border,0,true]

[atrb=width,90%][atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=cellPadding,0,true][atrb=background,http://i53.tinypic.com/smw1on.jpg,true] and the clouds are remaining, to drown me away from you WORDS 732 TAG TSUKINO NOA CREDIT JBF BY LUKA, TEMPLATE BY REA the train station was busy, noisy and packed with people; cheery christmas music played quietly over the chatter in the background and hayato ike simply stood in between all of it. his lithe body just barely had enough wiggle room to breath - he was pretty sure that he was close enough to suffocate in some stranger's body oder, and boy, was that definitely unpleasant! ike's face scrunched up in displeasure, and he coughed slightly, shifting his body enough so that he could move towards the exit - i can't handle this, he thought and the skin on his face was paler than just five minutes ago. there's not enough room in here, i need to get out was his final thoughts as he pushed passed a number of people. he struggled out, but eventually ike's feet touched the station platform, and there he was, free of suffocation. the rain poured down on him as ike emerged from the underground and walked onto the bustling sidewalks of shibuya, tokyo. immediately, he whipped out his umbrella to save himself the problem of drying up when he got home. ike made note of the umbrella in hand, not embarrassed by it, but there was a look of like amusement as he looked up at it. pink in color with yellow rubber ducks scattered in an unorderly fashion, there was no shame in his being to have such a feminine accessory in the open like that. it was just a small mistake he made when he went to classes, accidentally grabbing his older sister's instead of his own (which was, to say the least, one of the plainest umbrellas a person would ever find). while the thought of home was great, staying warm inside with a nice cup of hot cocoa, for some reason, ike didn't want to go back yet. he wasn't sure if it was the thrill of walking in the rain, watching the water pour down from the sky or the slightest inch of a rebellious thread in his head, but there was something keeping him away. chika could wait for him at home, or at the very least, busy herself with chores (or her boyfriend even) while the young man of twenty one went out and about around shibuya. he wandered mindlessly for a good few minutes, and eventually the man found himself standing at the core of shibuya, a landmark of tokyo - hachiko statue. there was nothing unusual about the scenary he witnessed there; there were crowds of people hustling all over to find a place away from the rain if no umbrella was in possession, or the occasional child being a child and splashing in the puddles (it took every fiber of his being to restrain himself from stopping the kid) and of course, people who mindlessly stood in the rain, not caring in the world if they caught disease or not. ike didn't know what made people stand there in the rain with no shelter like that, but it wasn't his forte to find out. it was the girl with the pink hair over by the statue who knew more about the human mind than he did. ike's lips pursed into a thin line and for a moment he felt disappointment in the woman for making such a choice - standing in the rain all by herself with no umbrella - but there was also a wave of sympathy he felt towards the pink-haired female. calmly, with his feet splashing against the water on the ground, he made his way over to her; he wasn't really sure if it was really who he thought it was (after all, he was coming from behind) but anyone standing in the rain like that needed a helping hand, right? he stood a few steps away from the shorter figure, however his arm extended out so that the umbrella he had was covering her head as well. "you'll catch a cold," he murmured softly to her, wondering if his voice was heard against the crashing rain. ike stood still and stared at her, thinking and pondering, and essentially his arm extended out so much that he was no longer being sheltered from the rain; well, at least she would be dry now. "you haven't been out here for long, have you, tsukino-san?"

[TSUKINO NOA]

i left my head and my heart on the dance floor

[atrb=border,0px,true][atrb=width,450px,true][atrb=cellpadding,10px,true] for a moment she considered going home, just as the rain began to come down in sheets. all of her heat had left her, dissipating into into the water molecules that jetted across her exposed patches of skin. the droplets lingered in the strands of her hair, causing an itching irritation whenever her head moved to the slightest degree. yet, for some reason, she continued to stand there, as though waiting for something to happen, something to kick her into motion. people passed by with the occasion glance in her direction, some in the same condition and some with umbrellas. she noted that a few, usually those alone, hesitated as they went, made brief eye contact and then shuffled away. all the while she stared at them, people-watched with the subjects completely aware of her every eye movement. at least those who cared to look. she didn't speak, though, didn't beckon anyone to help her with her plight. at some other time, when her spirits were higher, when her trip had been successful, maybe she would have clung to the arm of a stranger and demand the inclusion of herself under their umbrella. maybe, maybe not. it came as a surprise when his voice floated over the noise of the rain, making her freeze in all her usual stillness. the rain overhead had been cut off, at least in that moment a fraction of it. she didn't miss the bit of it against her skin, and rather enjoyed the echo of the raindrops against the curve of the umbrella above her. turning her eyes to take in the object, she met with a rather unusual, unexpected style. not his, because she remembered the one that he used, the standard display of solid color, nothing special. this was something quite different. "should you be so concerned?" she asked as her body turned to face him, eyes moving up to his face at the exact moment. her lips twitched slightly before curling up into a smile. the black centers of her eyes dilated as she stared into his, cerulean overcome by shadow for some passing moments. placing one foot in front of the other, fingers reaching out to press against his own in attempt to push the umbrella closer to him, noa looked to bring them bother beneath the duck-printed umbrella. "only a while. i was waiting for you," she lies with her teeth hidden beneath her lips, words quiet and barely vibrating. "i should have known i turned you homosexual, or at you going for that western hipster style, now? this is terribly ironic."

[/color] one of her hands floats up to flick the plastic shielding them and the earlier moment is gone. her pupils have retracted, her voice tinkles with mocking.

toe-to-toe with him, she grins up and finally removes her other hand from his on the umbrella. "were you coming to meet me or do you have someone else to be?"[/color][/div][/size][/td][/tr][/table]

[HAYATO IKE]

somewhere deep in my heart it's raining,

[atrb=width,10%][atrb=border,0,true]

[atrb=width,90%][atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=cellPadding,0,true][atrb=background,http://i53.tinypic.com/smw1on.jpg,true] and the clouds are remaining, to drown me away from you WORDS 647 TAG TSUKINO NOA CREDIT JBF BY LUKA, TEMPLATE BY REA his dark hair matted against his forehead, droplets of water sliding down his skin as ike quietly stood there. the reaction from her was, for the most part, expected. he was fully aware that this oddly feminine object in his hand was not something he personally would use, but he made do with what he had and watched noa react to his kind gesture. he bowed his head only slightly, to avoid her eyes for only just a moment; "it's in my nature," he mumbled, "i can't help it." why was she getting so close? closer and closer and - ike couldn't handle this too well. they were no longer a couple and yet always, whenever she was around him, she would put him through this long process of simply thinking: what are we? he inhaled deeply, and felt the sudden stop of water against his skin. he glanced up to see that the umbrella he held out to her was now over the both of them, his arm raised only slightly as to adjust to his own height. "i-it isn't mine - i was rushing and i didn't have time so i-i just picked up some umbrella and - " pale skin turned to pink, then to red, and as flustered as ike was getting, there was no point being made. "i... i'm not like that," quietly he whispered. not that ike had anything against homosexuals, of course not, they were good people just like everyone else. it was just not him, however. his cheeks did not fade back to their original pale cream as he stood there underneath the umbrella with her. "the train was under maintenance," he lied uneasily (he never did well with lying) and brought a hand up to brush against his cheek, scratching the skin of his face with a soft touch. "and i decided to take a walk. to clear my mind." ike gulped; he wasn't sure how to deal with this situation. noa was his friend, a very good friend of his, but he couldn't act normally around her. she always made him flustered like this, unintentional or not. ike's gaze moved off to the side, staring at the feet of the great dog hachiko. contrary to what he said to her, this was making his thoughts race around in his head more than clearing it. ike's hand clutched the pink umbrella as if it were his last life line, the cliff he was barely hanging on with the pads of his fingers and hanging on for dear, dear life. "how... how have you been?" musing after a moment of no spoken word, he glanced back at her, his dark eyes timidly looking at the other. "i haven't seen you recently in school," though the truth was, ike had been avoiding most of the routes that would cause them to come into contact - not that he hated noa, not that he didn't want to talk to her or see her, but he wasn't sure how he could be around her and act normally like he would back when they still together. the idea of being together was still a positive thing in his mind - he wished he could go back in time and fix all of his mistakes he had made. (the thing was, what mistakes had he made? what did he do wrong? what had to be fixed? was he not just not cool enough? too withdrawn? bad habits? if there was anything he had to fix, he wanted to know and he wanted to correct his mistakes. but, ike realized, there was no second chance at this relationship. he failed the first and last time.) he stood there with a very tense hand, unaware of how his thoughts were being shown through his body language; tense, flustered, contemplative... ike was feeling a storm of emotion within himself.

[TSUKINO NOA]

i left my head and my heart on the dance floor

[atrb=border,0px,true][atrb=width,450px,true][atrb=cellpadding,10px,true] In moments like these, where he ducks his eyes away from her, acts embarrassed, almost ashamed, she doesn’t know why she chose to run away. He makes it easy for her to sidle closer, to want to revel in the body warmth he gives off in excess. The red that tints his cheeks welcomes her in, her bright eyes trailing along the features of his face, finding herself wanting to do something to those planes of skin. But, it’s all ill intention. She can’t discern love from fascination, affection from meaningless touch. And it’s something she recognizes as she holds her hands at her sides. Because if she does what she wants, runs the tips of her fingers across the curve of his cheek, she won’t want the consequences. She chuckled as her mind noted she had never been so responsible. And then she was back, all deceptive smiles and narrowed eyes, ready to strike. “You don’t have to lie to me, Ike. If you have a boyfriend now, you should introduce me to him. I’ll try not to stare,”

[/b] her words are close and dripping amusement. It’s easy to do this because it reflects any relationship she has, relentless teasing and half-assed accusations, attempting to see the psyche shatter. It’s both easier and harder with Ike, though. The words that make him blush, make him move away from her are as simple as breathing, but it’s not hurting him. She makes sure that it doesn’t for him, makes sure that her bite lacks venom, because she has no intention of chasing him away.

What are they? Noa can’t come to the conclusion, can’t figure their relationship in a matter of words. To her, it’s images. Experiences. Touches. “Ike” is the feeling of someone running his fingers through her hair, the press of palms against each other, the sharing of a breath. Equally, the park in her childhood and laughter with the roar of some carnival ride behind her head. The recollection of him, even as he stood before her presently, was strong and pleasant. It made her lips curl into a genuine smile, her eyelids lower pleasure. She couldn’t name it, what they were then and what they were now. It was pleasing, if not irritating, the inability to place things in words.

“Let’s continue that walk, then. Maybe I can help clear your mind.” The thought left her lips before she could reconsider, before she could turn around and tell him she had better things to do. Perhaps it was the pull of the past, maybe her never ending quest to contain him in some sort of cruel web. The latter may have already been true. Each meeting with him, each enjoyable experience was tightly held in the wraps of brain matter, so she did have him trapped. Not him, the embarrassed young man that stood before her, but the idea of him, the one she could have.

Sliding around to stand by his side, fingers brushed against his free hand, as if she wanted to hold it. But they were curled away against her side in a second, a pensive smile on her face as she stood there. He was away at the moment, quiet and stuck in some tempest of his mind. She could see it in the strain of his knuckles, the near-pain on his face. A moment of silence came between them, his question on the air, unanswered. Would she answer? What would he do if she just tugged them along, allowed the words to die, the inquiry to never be answered. She wondered if it would kill him that she wouldn’t respond.

but she didn't do that, instead she accompanied her reply with what her mind had told her not to do. The pads of her fingers moved along his jaw for just a moment, maybe trying to soothe, maybe just to be cruel. “I’ve been shadowing a school, it’s actually near the one you student teach at. I should stop in and say hello, though I’m quite sure the girls would beat me up,” she laughed outwardly, poking his cheek in humor before pulling away. “I’m fine, though. Content. How about you? Feeling up to life and all that?”[/div][/size][/td][/tr][/table]