once in a blue moon

With a bit of a wobble, Ryou-kun climbed the steel fence and hopped in.  It was past midnight, and everyone was drunk in the park, laughing in the moonlight.

All of us came together in this far off place in the middle of somewhere I can't pronounce to end the summer properly.  None of us had gone to hanabi this year, and Yoppie-kun thought to buy our own fireworks and celebrate it ourselves, here in this quiet park, among colorful swings and beside the concrete animals.

"Ki wo tsukete, yo (Be careful)!", I hollered after him. Soon, I was climbing the fence myself, and paused mid-stride as I watched him stretch out on the bench, the contours of his frame accented by the inviting shades of dark trees and the gentle glow of dimmed lamps.  I climbed down and sat on the bench, indicating he can rest his head on my lap, but he sat-up instead and looked at the moon.

"Tsuki ga kirei da ne(The moon's pretty, isn't it)?" I murmured, my eyes betraying the true subject of my thoughts.  He smiled, an easy smile as is his custom, and said that in this famous Japanese story, two lovers sat underneath the bright moon much like tonight, and one of them remarked the same thing.  "Atto, Aishiteru itta ("I love you" was spoken afterwards)," he continued, looking at the sky.

I nodded and hummed my assent, then looked to the same sky myself.

We were really drunk, and we somehow found our way to Yoppie-kun's place and made a fun mess of it.

When Saturday morning came soon after, Ryou-kun had to head home, and I tagged along, under the guise of catching my morning Nihonggo class.  We soberly walked the long route back to the station together and managed to talk.  I thanked him for being so kind during my first day at the community center.  He told me he didn't do it intentionally; he just acted according to his feelings, and his feelings said this guy's OK. "Hashirarenai (not someone to run away from)," he said.

I asked him if he remembered that one time when we were eating together and he asked me who I liked. I explained that he must have thought that it was Tomacho-kun, but I proceeded to correct him with a stammer.  "Ryou-kun ga, ano, suki desu (It's Ryou that I, well, like)."

It was easier than I thought, and my heart didn't trip over itself.  I realize he's become a friend of mine, and with dear friends, the truth came out naturally--language barriers or none.

He thanked me kindly, and said it made him happy to be told that. Without missing a beat, I said he can confide with me anything and ask me anything with no restraint. "Arigatou, arigatou (thank you, thank you)," he replied.

By then we arrived at the station turnstiles, and went through our goodbyes.  "Mata raishuu (see you next week)," we told each other, and I turned my back and walked away with no hesitation.

Photo credit: snappydessy
BGM: Chrono Cross - Guldove (Another World)