Seasons of Chances and Love 3: Promised Love In Autumn

I Promise You

CHAPTER 8 (FINAL)

Kana didn't know why or how but it seemed like approaching the person that she had chosen to avoid for the past weeks had never been this heart-pounding. She couldn't stop her heart from beating too fast that it was starting to hurt. But then she realized that it might have attributed to the fact that she was going to approach the person her heart had chosen to love a long time ago.

It was a common reaction to her, anyway. She should've known that. After all, it was the very same reaction every time she would approach her best friend or vice versa. But now, to be able to feel his presence near her again didn't seem to be the only reason.

Approaching Oishi again after all the commotion that had happened was one factor for that nervousness. And the other was her fear of what might happen after she asked for his forgiveness—if he would accept it or not. But what she feared the most was about her confession.

Yes, she decided to tell the truth to him... to his best friend.

Whatever it was that could possibly happen, she was willing to take the risk. It was now or never—that's all she had to remember.

"Shuichiro!" Kana called out as soon as she was able to keep up with him. It looked like he was about to leave the tennis court. Wasn't he supposed to watch the rest of the tournament?

Oishi was surprised, she was sure of that. And somehow, she expected something like that to happen. After all, with all that had happened for the past weeks, it would appear that approaching him like this as if nothing happened at all was something they would surely deem surprising.

"Kana..." he could only breathe that out since he couldn't believe his best friend just called out to him.

The red-haired girl finally stopped running towards him and tried her best to catch her breath. It took her a minute or so. Oishi was just patiently waiting for her to say whatever it was that she wanted to say to him.

Finally taking a deep breath, she straightened herself and faced Oishi with such a determined (if not slightly hesitant) look that he couldn't even fathom what was going to happen at that point. Yet he waited for it, anyway.

"I thought you won't come here to watch the team play..." she started out as softly as she could. "What made you come here?"

He frowned. And why wouldn't he watch the tournament? But the answer in that soon dawned in him which made him smile—albeit a little sad. "It's been a long time since I watched you play like that—like your life was on the line and you have to give it your all in order to survive out there."

"But that didn't answer my question."

No words came out after that. And yet the silence between them was not as uncomfortable as she thought. It wasn't also that awkward.

It was a hesitant type of silence, both were trying to figure out what to say that was sensible.

"Does it matter to you? Will it matter to you if I tell you the whole reason?" he asked soon after as he eyed her with a serious look that she could rarely see from him.

It was a serious look that, in a way, made her nervous.

Wait a minute! Why was she feeling like this? He wasn't planning on killing her, was he? No, that couldn't be the reason. Besides, that feat would've been a little impossible for him to do, but there could be a slight possibility that he could.

"If I said yes, will answer my question, then?" she asked back without batting an eye on him.

Of course, what she had asked had definitely shocked the hell out of him. Did that mean he was still important to her in some way?

"What made you come here, Shuichiro?" she repeated in a tone so serious. For once, she couldn't help showing how serious she could be in talking to him like this.

No words came out of his mouth even after a minute had passed. But Kana didn't mind waiting for him to answer the question. As long as he was going to answer it, and if the answer was something that had come from his heart after that deep thinking, then the long wait would be worth it.

He faced her, with a serious look so different, she thought she could possibly have heart attack at this point. This serious look on his face was definitely causing her heart to palpitate like this.

Seriously, what in the world was going on right now?

"Because I've made a decision... to tell you the truth," Oishi said.

His words somehow made her frown, though. "What do you mean?"

"Am I starting to get confusing to you right now, Kana?" he asked in a tone that suggested his words be a form of a joke.

"To be honest, you are." And it was the truth.

"I still hope you'll understand this as soon as I tell you, Kana. I want to take my chances long before I lose the courage to do this. I don't want to remain a coward anymore. I don't want to be like that... because I don't want to lose you like this again."

Her eyes widened at Oishi's words. Just what in the world was he saying to her? "Shuichiro, what is this supposed to mean? What are you—"

"I came here to see you, to watch you play tennis because—" he paused and eyed her with an expression so intense, Kana thought she could never breathe properly again. "—because I want to see the look on your face that made me know how much you love playing it. I want to see you for the reason that I want to tell you something important. I came here... to finally tell you that... I love you, Kana."

Kana didn't know what to think. Was this for real? Was her mind not giving her some sort of hallucinations just because she missed him so?

She was at a loss of words after all this. It was all getting too confusing for her. But how was she supposed to believe this? Until now, her mind couldn't stop replaying the words that Oishi had spoken that day.

And until now, it didn't fail to give her heart so much pain that she had been bearing all this time.

"I'm not in love with her..."

"How am I supposed to believe you, Shuichiro? How would I know that what you just said right now... was the truth?" Kana didn't want to doubt his words but she couldn't help it.

After all that had happened weeks ago, she couldn't help but have doubts in her heart at this point, especially towards her best friend.

Great... Now those words had been too painful for her to bear and too irritating for her to hear.

"That day you said to her... that you're not in love with me. And now you're telling me this? That you love me? Tell me, Shuichiro. How am I suppose to accept that? Do you have any idea how much those words had hurt me at the time? Do you have any idea how I wanted to disappear when I heard it? Hearing you say those words... told me that I'd never have a chance to show you how much I love you. How much I love you more than a friend..." And with that, her tears started to fall.

It was the tears she hadn't released in front of him, although she never thought that she was still capable of crying like this. She thought she already let it all out these past weeks, during those times she felt like dying because of the decision she made at that time.

"I've been a coward to tell you that... because I was scared..." she admitted in teary eyes as she faced him like that.

She was somewhat expecting that he'd laugh or at least let out a reaction because of her revelation. But none of those came. Instead, something else happened that had stopped her world from turning.

It all happened so fast, she didn't know if it was a dream or not. Or maybe this was just a dream... because the thought of Oishi pulling her close to him and pressing his warm lips against hers was something that would only exist in her dreams.

He was kissing her! Oishi Shuichiro, her best friend and the only man who had held her heart, was kissing her in a way she never thought possible. Was this true? If this was a dream, then would it be too greedy of her to wish for something like not waking up and her remain in that dream—in that scene?

But before she could even say such thought in her mind, Oishi left her lips as fast as he claimed it that left her gaping.

"W-what... What was that all about?" was all she could ask to him since she didn't know what else to say. She had a lot of questions but she couldn't say it all to him.

"You lips..." he started that made her blush even more. "They're still as warm and sweet as I remember them."

"What?"

"Just like the first time I kissed you..." he continued with a sneaky grin on his face.

Realization dawned her as soon as his words registered her mind. "You mean you already kissed me... long before this?"

Oishi nodded, not minding the sheepish look on his face and with tints of pink on his cheeks. He gently cupped her face soon after. The blush on his face faded as the look on his eyes turned serious once more.

"I did it on purpose. Or maybe I did it because I wanted to. But yes... I kissed you long before this. Underneath our favorite gingko tree just below Izumi Shrine two years ago, that's where I kissed you."

His revelation had seriously shocked her that she couldn't even figure out what to say to that next. It was like her mind—in addition to that mind-blowing kiss—had stopped functioning right there and then.

Two years ago, underneath the gingko tree just below their favorite Izumi Shrine... Oishi said that it all happened there. Could it be that he was talking about that day? The day they first went to the sacred tree where she made a wish along with him? Could it be?

"But I know you won't remember that... since I kissed you while you were asleep..." he continued. "I didn't have the guts back then... to tell you the truth about it. At the time, I always remember the words you said to me while we were waiting for the rain to stop."

"The words I said to you?" Kana asked with a frown.

Oishi nodded. "About how the rain washes away your courage to tell me your feelings... even though I couldn't tell if it was true or not."

The red-haired girl tried to recall the event he was talking about. Then all of a sudden, it dawned her. He was referring to her accidental confession back then. It was in late spring, two years ago, as well.

"You... You heard what I said back then?"

"I heard it. But then you denied it so I didn't push it out of you. I didn't tell you that... rain doesn't always remind us of how love pours down on us. At least to me. That same rain also reminds me of how it washes away my courage to tell you the truth that I'm speaking to you right now," he answered truthfully, one that Kana could tell.

She felt like crying again. But this time, it wasn't because of the hurt she felt all this time. She felt like crying again for the reason that she was happy. Whatever was happening right now somehow felt all too good to be true.

Her best friend, Oishi Shuichiro, was telling her that he loved her. And here she thought those words—this moment—would only exist in her dreams. But now... Now it was really happening to her.

"I'm sorry... for holding back to tell you the truth. About how much I love you. About how I love you more than a friend. I'm just scared... So scared of losing you," he said in unshed tears later on. "So even though it would be painful for me, I just let things be. I continued to be your friend—your best friend—no matter how much that fact would hurt me continuously. I allowed things to flow like that even though all I want to do was to hold you in my arms and tell you that I love you over and over again."

"But you said... you said at that time that... you haven't fallen in love with me," she stated with slight fear in her heart as to what it could possibly mean.

"And it's not a lie."

Kana could feel her heart starting to break into tiny pieces because of that. He was contradicting the words he was saying to her.

"I haven't fallen in love with you and that's the truth. But I said that because I have been in love with you for a long time now. I haven't fallen in love with you just recently, okay? That's what I want to tell you if you had just let me."

Her eyes widened at his words once more. So all this time, she misunderstood him? Now she felt so weak because of it. Without doing anything, he knees buckled and let her collapse to her knees. If it wasn't for Oishi's fast reflexes, she would've fallen completely to the ground.

"Kana! Are you alright? What's wrong?" And there goes his mother hen mode again. But it was something he didn't mind, though. In fact, he didn't know that. All he knew, he had to know what made Kana collapse to her knees like this.

"I'm such an idiot..." Kana mumbled that Oishi still heard.

He frowned when he heard that. "Kana..."

"I should've given you a chance to explain instead of avoiding you. I'm sorry... I'm sorry for being such an i***t, Shuichiro..."

He gently shook his head and smiled the same way. "You don't have to apologize, Kana. There's nothing for you to apologize. And besides, you already gave me that chance now. Now I was able to tell you the truth and I'm glad I managed to do so."

Her tears incessantly fell that worried Oishi even more. All he did to console her was to embrace her tight and let her know through it that he would never let her go—whatever happens. Kana cried with her face buried to his chest as silently as she could. Doing so didn't only gave her the security that she was looking from him, but it also brought out the longing she tried to keep to herself for so long.

It was the kind of longing that had started when she realized that she had fallen in love with her best friend.

"You know, I was afraid I would never be able to do this to you again..." Oishi said truthfully. "Friend or not, I was really afraid... especially when you started avoiding me. And I hope that by telling you the truth, the truth that had lived here in my heart, that fear would eventually vanish."

Kana didn't say anything. Instead, she just wrapped her arms around Oishi's body and returned his embrace in the same degree—as if she didn't want to let him go, as well. The feeling of having her love returned like that was something far beyond than what she could ever think of. It was overwhelming that she wouldn't mind dying at the moment. She would die happy, anyway.

"I won't leave you like that again, Shuichiro. I don't care if you'll hate me for it, but I'm not going to stay away from you anymore. I'll make sure I'll fade that fear away. Just promise me the same thing, that's all I could ever ask of you."

Oishi smiled at that and distanced himself from Kana for a bit, but he didn't actually let her go. He was still holding her as he intently stared at her aquamarine eyes.

"You don't have to make me promise that. I'll do it even if I don't have to make a promise," he declared that made Kana shed tears of joy. She was overwhelmed. "And I guess I wouldn't have to tell you the reason why I decided to study at Seigaku High School even though I already planned to enroll at another school."

"You know you don't have to do that if the reason is me. I wasn't going to stop you, you know."

"I know that. But I just want to stay with you, near you, to where I can see you smile, laugh, and be happy. You alone gives me the reason to fulfill my dreams of becoming a doctor in the future."

"But what does it have to do with me? It's not like I'm holding you back."

"For once, I don't want to sacrifice someone important to me for the sake of my selfish dream. Besides, I want to fulfill it along with the person I truly cared the most in the world. The one I know I'm willing to dedicate it to."

They both smiled when answers soon dawned them. They all had their dreams. But it felt like it would never be complete without each other's presence. They needed their inspirations to be able to fulfill it.

And so in the end, they managed to find each other and be made known of the love that almost tore them apart but later on, bound them together now.

"I love you. Remember that, okay?" Oishi said as his face started nearing hers.

Kana knew what would happen. And she was anticipating for it. "I love you, too. And yes, I will remember that."

Their lips met in a kiss so gentle that told them they had no reason to hurry. They had all the time in the world to savor the feeling of love that they had for each other, after all.

Who cares about the people that come and go as they watched the new couple? They were just probably envious, anyway.

It looked like Kana and Oishi had a lot to tell to Miyako and the others later on. But it didn't matter. They would gladly tell the whole story—a story that they were proud of—that had blossomed to its fullest that one chilly October.

A love story that had become memorable to them that one particular autumn. A love that promised them a new beginning for their lives.

-THE END-