Bursting Red

A swift knocking on her door brought her from the deep slumber she was wrapped within. Her eyes parted slowly, staring at the door in confusion. “Yes?” The door opened and her father peeked in, eyeing her softly.

“Nezumi-kun, if you haven’t forgotten, tomorrow the shop is closed for repairs. Take advantage of your free day.” With a wide yawn she pulled herself upwards, blushing as her stomach growled loudly. “Hungry?” She nodded lazily, peeking at him through one eye. “You’re mother is cooking dinner now, it should be done in less than twenty minutes, are you feeling better?”

“Much so, arigato Tou-san.” Standing up she gave a slight stretch, her shirt revealing her flat stomach underneath. Her father gave a small shake of his head and turned away, leaving her to slowly stumble towards her window. “Oh,” she slipped the fabric of her shirt between her fingers, noticing she was still wearing Deidara’s shirt and surely her mother would notice. She slipped it off and rummaged through her drawers for her own clothes. When she was dressed she left her room in search of the kitchen, frowning at her mothers back. “Evening Kaa-san” she muttered, sitting herself at the table. Her mother tilted her head back and gave a small nod.

“Nezumi-kun, I’ve been meaning to talk with you. About that blonde boy you were nuzzling with the other day.” For once, she was thankful her father wasn’t here. She frowned and walked over to her mother, leaning against the counter so she could look her mother in the face.

“I was not nuzzling with him Kaa-san.” She replied flatly. Wherever this new found courage was coming from she didn’t know, but her mother didn’t seem to find it amusing at all. With a frown her mother turned towards her, ice in her eyes.

“You were close enough you might as well have been, that’s besides the point. I’m very ashamed at your behavior, it’s…it’s absolutely disgusting” she spat out, turning her attention back to the vegetables in front of her. “If I catch you with him again, that’s it. You won’t leave this house again.” Slowly, she turned her head back towards Nezumi. “I know you were with him today. I know you went against my words and saw him.” She opened her mouth to retaliate but found she could say nothing. Her mother simply shook her head and lowered her eyes. “You dishonor this family Nezumi. Acting like some wayward harlot, you’re lucky your father doesn’t know how you’re behaving. There’s still time to change this though, if you would listen to me.”

“No.” Her voice was strong, looking at her mother through narrowed eyes. “I won’t listen to you. You don’t know him, you know nothing about him. Who are you to tell me he’s not right for me?”

“I’m you’re mother!” She threw the spatula down into the pan and turned to her daughter angrily. “I’m your mother Nezumi-kun. Please, don’t do this to yourself. Don’t do this to your family…I will never forgive you.” Her words stung but she still could do nothing but shake her head.

“Kaa-san, don’t speak to me like I’m some ignorant child. I’ve never felt this way, with anyone.” Her voice was soft, trying not to alarm her mother with her words.

“You’re too young to know what love is.”

“You’re wrong. Just because you still haven’t figured out what love is doesn’t mean I must follow in your footsteps!” Her mother stilled and continued to stare down at her pan, motionless. “I wouldn’t say the things you’ve said to me to anyone, never. Do you think I don’t know you married Tou-san only because you were pregnant with me? I‘ll be fine Kaa-san.” Almost pleading she shut her eyes, causing deep lines to form between her brows.

“I won’t let you make the same mistakes as I did Nezumi-kun. I will stay true to my words, if you even so much as speak to that boy again…you will not leave this house.” And that’s when the fight ended. She knew there was no budging her mother and biting her lip was all she could do to keep from bursting into tears. She had to see him, she could hardly go a minute without thinking about him so how was she supposed to avoid contacting him? I will just have to be more stealthy, she thought defiantly, Kaa-san must not find out. She returned to her room, her appetite having diminished. “This is terrible” her hand wandered softly down the cat’s arched back earning a small mew in approval. A short breeze trembled the strands of hair that hung loosely in front of her face, bringing with it the smell of rain and lush grass. Slowly, she fell forward onto her hands and knees, crawling towards the open window with a curious expression on her face. When she reached the sill she sat up, placing her elbows on the space and in turn resting her chin on her folded hands. The moon shone with a silver elegance, full and bright with stars twinkling in every direction around it. The clouds had long since gone but thankfully the air was still strong with the clean smells it had held. Would it be too much, she thought curiously to herself, if I went to his house tonight once Kaa-san and Tou-san were sleeping?

Another breeze stirred and she closed her eyes in deep thought. She didn’t want to force herself onto him, but from his reaction to her touch today she doubted he would mind much. “No” and she pushed herself away from the window. “What am I thinking, I hardly remember where he lives.”

Touching defeat she stood up and sat on her stool in front of the new blank canvas she had placed there. Her frown deepened when she realized she didn’t know what to paint, her mind as blank as the materials in front of her. Feeling useless, she clambered over to her bed and threw herself down. She never remembered her life being so dull. The white feline jumped up on the bed and sauntered forward, wrapping its slender body in a ball by her ankle and with a purr he shut his eyes. Her mind spilled backwards, for the sake of having nothing to do she broke her day down into important pieces. Starting with the odd conversation Deidara and her had shared while he taught her to use and mold clay.

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“Do you ever feel like you were meant to do something better with your life, hm?” He said suddenly, stopping his hands from moving about the clay. She stopped as well and turned to look at him with wide eyes.

“Not really. What can I do better? I’m a simple waitress with no path in front of me but the one I walk to and from work on everyday.”

“How boring.” He replied, turning his attention back to the dragon model he was toying with. A small smile graced his lips. “I think we were both meant to do something more, un.”

“How so?”

“Well, why not?” The air shifted into something of a more serious tone, the clay was sticking to her fingers now and she felt the need to rush them under water. “I‘ve been getting this strange feeling recently...” The way he spoke was different, somewhat detached and unsure.

“Like what?” Trying to edge the anxiety away she tried to focus the majority of her brain on the task at hand. How hard could it have been to mold the wings on a butterfly, honestly. She noticed out of the corner of her eye Deidara was staring at the wall, a faint but malicious smile itching at his mouth.

“Like something big is going to happen soon” he turned towards her with wide eyes and a short grin, earning in return a somewhat concerned expression on her own face. “I want to prove to everyone how wrong they’ve been, do you ever feel that way?” She nodded slightly, wondering if what she felt was even close to what Deidara felt. “I just don’t know how I’m going to do it yet, un.” The urgency in his voice somewhat startled her, relaxing once he flashed her a warm smile.

“Why do you need to prove anything?” she reached forward instinctively to brush his hair out of his face but no sooner redirected her hand towards a spare piece of clay in sudden embarrassment.

“These people…really underestimate me, un. I’m sick of it and they really need to know they’re wrong.” She still didn’t understand. Why would he care what they thought and how far was he willing to go to prove them wrong. His hand wrapped around hers as she struggled to fix the wing, with her mouth parted open she watched as he pushed her fingers into the clay while using his thumb to press against hers and rub the clay in a slight circle. When he pulled away the wing was gracefully shaped to match that of a spring butterfly.

“Thank you” she whispered, still dazzled at his touch. His face was close, close enough to kiss she thought, but she turned away to look at her sculpture instead.

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Her thoughts broke away as she yawned widely, her eyes clenched shut. It was surprising how tired she actually was. After turning the light off she curled into bed, eyes focused on the bright moon in the sky, casting shadows on the end of her bed. She quickly fell asleep and was plunged into a mess of dreams that would have made even Deidara blush scarlet.

When she woke up to the sound of birds she stretched her tired arms and sat in bed an hour after she had awoken. It was a fairly nice looking day, the sky was a blur of blue and grey but nothing compared to yesterday. She got dressed and ready hurriedly, eager to leave the house without her mother knowing. She painted her lips a rosy pink and dressed her eyes in a light golden shimmer, telling herself it wasn’t for Deidara. “Tou-san?” She knocked on the open door and smiled sweetly at her father. He looked over his writing tablet and smiled back at her.

“You look nice Nezumi-kun. Where are you going?”

“I needed to pick up some new brushes and paints, I heard there was a new shop up town and I just wanted to let you know I’d probably be gone for awhile.” He nodded and returned his attention back to his tablet. “Do you need me to pick up anything while I’m out?”

“Actually, we’re running low on rice paper. Get some and drop them off at the restaurant if you would.” She nodded and turned, getting out of the house as fast as she could carry herself. Her slender hands ran up her arms as she walked down the dirt road, desperate to regain the warmth in them. With a frown on her face she realized she should have grabbed a sweater before racing out the door. Her mind wandered, desperately trying to remember where he lived from her house, luckily she found the right road. It was late enough for him to be up and she hoped she wouldn’t arrive to find him still sleeping. As her eyes grazed the building he lived in she shook her head, wondering if she was being overbearing. I hate this, she thought miserably, looking away from the building with contempt. Life was so much easier when a boy wasn’t thrown into the mix.

Gathering up courage she lightly ran up each stair until she was sure she had reached the right floor. Hesitantly, she knocked on the door in front of her, emblazoned with a large golden 14, she waited. “Coming, coming” someone spoke from the other side. To her surprise a young woman with short black hair opened the door and stared at Nezumi with a curious glaze over her eyes. “Can I help you?” Nezumi shook her head out of thought, her eyes widening in slight confusion.

“Ah, no. I’m sorry, I think I’ve got the wrong door.” Her voice sounded unsure even to herself. The young woman in front of her smiled lightly and opened the door wider, revealing herself to be dressed in nothing but a silk bathrobe that was revealing more than she should have.

“Well, who are you looking for? Maybe I could help” she purred. Nezumi stifled a shudder, trying to dismiss the newly found awkwardness that flooded through the air. Nezumi wasn’t very educated in such fields but she was sure the woman was implying more than she should have.

“I’m looking for Deidara’s apartment. I could have sworn this was his.” The woman snorted and rolled her eyes.

“That blonde brat? What is a pretty girl like you doing hanging around a boy like that?” She didn’t wait for answer but instead stepped closer, her fingers lightly running over Nezumi’s shoulder. Politely, she tried to pull away but the woman only advanced. “Come in, please, I was just starting the tea.”

“Oh, it’s really okay. I just had some tea and am not really all that thirsty.” She said desperately, trying to look away from the woman’s tongue that was running over her bottom lip. So much for being brave. A door opened to the right of them and both girls snapped their head to look. When Deidara turned to look at them his face was nothing short of blatant confusion. He snorted and shook his head, glaring at the woman in the nightgown.

“Back off Anta, she’s not interested” he said with a huff, ignoring the woman’s glare as he snatched Nezumi’s hand up.

“No one asked you brat.” Anta replied. She quickly crossed her arms and glowered at the boy who was now standing between them. Deidara bent over and grinned at her, shaking his head.

“No one needs to, she’s not interested in anything you have to offer. No one is.” He muttered the last part, turning away from her with a smug look in his eyes. Wrapping a secure arm around Nezumi he walked away from Anta, ignoring the insults she slung out at him. He glanced down at Nezumi, smiling as she looked straight ahead in confusion. “You alright? Don’t tell me she kissed you” he said suddenly disgusted.

“No, she did not kiss me!” Her voice was higher than usual and she glared up at Deidara. “What’s her problem? All I did was knock…” She shook her head and sighed, this taught her to try and remember where Deidara lived. She wouldn’t make the mistake twice.

“Anta’s all over the place. She’ll hit on whatever walks on two legs, who knows, maybe three legs wouldn’t phase her either.” He laughed as Nezumi brushed her shoulder off, the woman was pretty but a little too hasty for her taste. “Here’s your umbrella, I was just on my way out to find you actually.” He held out the blue umbrella and she took it gently.

“I had some errands to run anyway so I stopped by on my way. Hope you don’t mind.” He shook his head and she smiled as she noticed he still hadn’t removed his arm from her waist. “Would you like to come with me?” Her offer was laced with hope, and to her relief he nodded and tightened his grip. “I need some brushes and paints, and some rice paper too.”

“That’s good, I can pick up some more clay while you do that.” He smiled down at her and quickly bent down to kiss her on the cheek. “I have a plan Nezumi. With what I was talking to you about yesterday, I think I got it this time.” She turned her face up towards him and stared intensely. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to know or not.

“What is it?”

He looked up and over her, his smile fading away into a much more serious look. “I can’t say just yet, it’s not complete. But I will tell you this, I’m going to be acting on it soon.” When he turned to look at her she knew something was wrong, she couldn’t quite place where though. “When I do, I’m going to need you. Please.” The urgency in his voice alarmed her and it was all she could do to say yes and reassure him she would be there no matter what. “I know” he muttered, looking away. His head wandered off to darker places. He knew he shouldn’t drag her into this but he couldn’t stand to leave her behind. He wouldn’t, the thought of leaving her behind was enough to shake his nerves.

It was only his luck that she decided to say yes so easily.