3rd week of March
Tooru checked his watch for the time, making sure he was not running late for his meet-up with his fellow 3rd years.
It was still a quarter to noon, giving him plenty of time to roam around the park.
Their graduation day was eventful and the famed captain received many well wishes and gifts, mostly from his admirers. Everyone in the volleyball team joined the graduating seniors, making it the most bittersweet and emotional time of all his high school years.
It had been a week since and Tooru was too busy preparing for his departure to Argentina that he now only had the time to hang out with his friends.
The thought of leaving Japan, a place he has know for 18 years, gave him a sense of ambivalence.
He felt exhilarated for the opportunity to train under the guidance of the man who inspired him to play volleyball. But part of his heart felt dejected that he had to leave prematurely to reach his ultimate goal.
A bigger piece of that sadness and uncertainty was Celeste whom he has not even confessed to yet. His heart ached at his impending departure, wishing he could take her with him.
He wanted nothing more than to make their pretend relationship a reality. The situation made him at fault for not being honest in the beginning.
Tooru internally knocked himself for even asking Celeste to be his 'girlfriend until he leaves' when all he really wanted was to express his concealed emotions. He did not like the uncertainty the future held for the two of them and it made him negligent.
He was sure he'd get a beating from Hajime if he found out what he'd been doing.
A slight guilt rose in his chest when he thought of his best friend. It had been an ongoing silent inquiries between the two of them for the past months but neither spoke up.
He had yet to have a proper discussion with him about their feelings for the girl. Does Hajime like her too? Tooru frowned at his inability to discern his ace's true feelings.
Though no one knew, Tooru continued with his sleep-overs at Celeste's apartment. The setter smiled softly at the fond memories he have had with her the past weeks.
They were like real couples when it's just the two of them but goes back to being just best friends around other people, including Hajime.
It was like their own little secret.
The phone he was holding in his grey coat pocket rang, interrupting his thoughts. He stopped walking as he pressed the answer button on the incoming call.
"At your 9'oclock. Black jacket and a white shirt." The voice on the other line echoed.
Tooru craned his neck to his left and saw a man wearing the described clothing wave at him.
"Iwa-chan!!" He waved back and jogged towards him.
"You looked like an idiot walking with a frown on your face then suddenly smiling. Have you finally lost your mind?" This type of greeting seems to be Hajime's signature when it comes to Tooru.
The setter stuck his tongue at his best friend's comment. "Are Mattsu and Maki here now too?"
"Nah, knowing those too, they'll probably be late."
A sudden puff of light air blew in the direction of the river bank.
The cherry blossom trees around them came alive and danced under the wind's whispered song. Its gentle breeze weaving through the branches, making the flowers scatter like floral confetti.
A genuine smile crossed Tooru's lips as a few petals landed on his left palm. "Anything that twirls seem to remind me of our tiny dancer friend."
"Did you finally confess to her?" Hajime eyed the man before him.
Tooru froze in place and blinked at his best friend. His brows furrowed in confusion, and heart beating too fast he felt it would jump out of his chest.
The olive-eyed lad chuckled at his reaction. "Everyone knew, Captain Obvious. We were all just waiting for you to man up."
"But, you, I thought," The setter trailed off, struggling to form a coherent response.
"You thought I liked her the same way you do?" Hajime smiled fondly at the thought of Celeste. "You never did ask. I've been waiting for months for you to come up to me with your smug face and say you like her and to fight fair and square."
"Iwa-chan, I'm really not sure if I should address the insult or not."
Hajime let out a low laugh, "For a while, I thought I might have liked her, but in the past year, whenever you two were laughing at something or act close to each other, my heart never ached for jealousy."
The ace turned his body towards the river and continued, "Do you remember when Makki and Matsun locked the three of us in the gym storage room? I think it was then that I realized I loved her like a little sister and not romantically."
"But you were frowning when I held her hand."
"I was, but for a different reason." Hajime shook his head at the memory. "You gave me such a challenging look, you probably thought she would pick me over you."
"She did seem to be a bit more comfortable with you more than she ever did with me."
"Have you ever paid attention to the way she looked at you?"
"Well.."
"See? Your feelings are clearly mutual. Man, I've been itching to do something but it was quite entertaining watching you two struggle to tango."
"So you really don't like her that way??" Tooru exclaimed in disbelief.
Hajime chuckled as he shook his head.
"Now I feel so dumb for being jealous of you. Do you even know the turmoil I had to go through?!"
"So, I should have gone up to you and said, 'you can date our best friend, I don't feel that way about her anyway?' Yeah, not a chance." Hajime tilted his head to the side and eyed his best friend.
"You need to be the one to figure out everything. Seeing you become worked up and jealous proved to me that your feelings were unlike what you had with your exes. I wouldn't want Ce-chi to be just one of your girlfriends, otherwise you're really getting it from me."
"I'm already torn Iwa-chan." Tooru looked down at the ground. The carpet of pink and white petals reminding him of how fleeting moments could be.
"I really do love her but I'm also leaving Japan soon. I want her to wait for me but I also don't want her to have a hard time."
He sighed and looked up at the clouds, "I want to make it work between us but there's so many uncertainties."
"Then take it one step at a time."
"I've been trying my best but I just can't seem to tell her the truth."
Hajime frowned, "You still haven't confessed even after kissing her?!"
"How do you know we kissed?!"
"Under the stupid Ginkgo tree at school on our grad day, I saw you sneak a kiss so I thought you told her then."
"Eh that wasn't our first kiss."
"Huh?! Are you telling me you've been touchy with her without confessing?! Are you fucking with me right now Crappykawa?!"
"Eek! We haven't gotten that far yet."
"I'm not interested in the details but you need to be clear with your feelings for her!"
"I did!" Tooru winced at his frowning best friend, "or sort of did."
"Ugh." Hajime rubbed his temples in frustration, "Elaborate on this sort of did thing you're spouting."
"Well, please don't be mad anymore, but I asked her to be my pretend girlfriend as a graduation gift."
"You what?!" The wing spiker clenched his hand into a fist and the setter stepped back with his arms up.
"And she agreed to it! I didn't force her!" Hajime's frown didn't relax. "Well that's also half truth." Tooru added.
"Shittykawa, do you know how deep this river is? I should be drowning you right now."
A clearing throat interrupted their heated conversation and the two men looked towards two other figures approaching them.
"You know, Mattsun and I have been wondering if you'd continue on like this until you're both old and crinkly." Hanamaki remarked.
Hajime closed his eyes and tilted his head up. He let out a long heavy sigh and turned to face Tooru, his eyes heavy with concern and irritation.
"Please stop being selfish." Without saying anything else he walked away and gestured for the men to follow.
"You good? It looked like Iwa was really going to bury you alive." Matsukawa walked beside his captain.
Tooru adjusted the scarf around his neck and tuck his nose in it. "He was really mad this time."
"What did you do?"
Tooru didn't respond.
"Ah, I think I know what it's about." Matsukawa tapped his captain's shoulder in comfort. "We'll support you no matter what."
The brown haired setter smiled at his teammate, "Thanks Matssun."
~~~
Tooru pressed the buzzer once and inspected the small box on his hand one last time. When he heard the locks being unbolted, he hid the box behind his back and prepared a warm smile in greeting.
"Too-chi?" Celeste peeked from behind the door with a small smile. "Aren't you supposed to be with the seniors?"
"Yup! But Makki had to go, and he's pretty much inseparable with Matssun so we split ways."
"And Ha-chi?"
Tooru let out a nervous laugh, "You know how Iwa-chan is."
"What did you do.." the girl giggled knowingly, then opened the door wider to let his 'pretend' boyfriend in.
Tooru wrapped his arms around her once she finished locking the door. "I missed you."
"You just saw me yesterday."
"And it felt like a decade." The setter buried his face on the crook of her neck, the scent of sweet strawberry giving him a sense of comfort.
Not letting go of the hug, Celeste rocked the two of them sideways, slowly at first then quickly.
Giggles erupted in the air as they both toppled to the floor.
"You're so silly." Tooru lightly flicked her nose. "Close your eyes."
"Hmm? Why?"
The brown-haired lad smiled affectionately and proceeded to kiss her forehead. "Just do as I say please."
Celeste pouted but did as told. A soft rustle and a sound of a box opening followed shortly after.
The girl sneakily pried one eye open, curiosity unfurling in her stomach. Tooru inched his face closer to her as a warning. "Stop being sneaky."
The blue-eyed maiden giggled and closed her eyes.
The touch of cold metal on her wrist sent a tickle on her spine and she opened her eyes to look at it only for Tooru to cover her eyes with his right hand.
"Don't look yet and listen to me." He grabs both of her hands and brought them to his face.
After letting out an anxious sigh, he spoke softly. "Ce-chi, I may have approached things the unconventional way and I feel I've done you wrongly. When I asked you to pretend to be my girlfriend, I thought it was the most suitable option for me to be honest with you, but really all I've been doing was run away from it."
He tenderly rubbed the back of her hands with his thumb. "I was afraid of what might become of us once I leave for Argentina. Now that I think hard about it, I didn't consider what you would have wanted for us."
"And for that I'm sorry. I'm sorry for my egocentric tendencies but I want you to know my heart is committed."
Tooru kissed both of her eyes then leaned his forehead with hers. "Aishiteru wa, Celeste. For the longest time. I'm not sure when it started but my heart beats for you."
The release of his suppressed emotions, gave him a cathartic release. The weight of the once unspoken words lifted off his shoulders and gave way to a flood of emotions. His eyes became teary with relief and overwhelming love for the woman in front of him.
Celeste opened her eyes, her expression mirroring Tooru's. There was no need to speak words for their eyes said it all. Joy radiated in their hearts as his confession was met with reciprocation.
The infatuated man brought up the girl's right hand to show her his gift. On her wrist was a gold bracelet adorned with three forget-me-not flowers, a symbol of eternal love and devotion.
"This bracelet is a token of my vow to you." Tooru kissed her knuckles, letting his lips linger longer on her ring finger, a promise of the future.
"We'll do just fine right?" Celeste intertwined their hands, needing his words of affirmation. "It will not be easy being far away from each other."
"Yes, we will. We may be miles apart then but the physical distance will not diminish what I feel for you." Tooru reassured.
"Then, I'll try to visit you when I can. I'll be supporting you wherever you may be. It's a promise."
Celeste put out her pinky and it reminded him of her promise to return 12 years ago. Though it took her many years to return to Japan, the fulfillment of that promise made him feel solace to their impending separation.
Tooru wrapped his own pinky on hers, "I'll wait for you, as we each forge a path of our own, my heart will stay loyal to you. That is my promise."
~~~ Fin ~~~