Fire & Snow
Our Second ChanceA/N: *SPOILER ALERT* If you haven't read season 1 although it's on your agenda, I'd HIGHLY recommend reading it first. It'll help clarify a lot of things and you wouldn't be spoiled by the content in this chapter :)
Here's the link again: A Broken Love Story
A couple of pointers before I let you dive in,
- Updates are expected to be about once a week/ every two weeks until October. By then I'll be able to publish much more often :D
- The projected story length is about 15 chapters (but it may go over!)
- You all are amazing for supporting me :D <3
- As always, these chapters are LONG (much longer than the first season's)
Therefore, please allocate enough time to read them if you prefer to read them in one sitting!
いつもの通りにありがとうございます!感謝しています!
--
The first snowfall of the season brought a bittersweet pause to the bustling town of Tokyo.
As the snow fell, it rested upon the park benches as if it were a feather cushion, soft and warm. It covers the rich color of the brick buildings in a shade of pearl white and the evening sun ignited the frozen dew in vibrant hues. Ryosuke and Rio carefully made their way to the familiar apartment building. As soon as they had cover, they drew back their hoods and stomped their boots on the mat before strolling into the elevator to reach the fifth floor.
"It's strange for the evening sun and snow to be out at the same time." Ryosuke observed, patting the melted snow off his jacket. He then turned to his fiancee and brushed the water droplets away from her fringe. "Your cheeks are so red" He chuckled, cupping her face with his two warm hands.
"I can't help the fact that it's freezing outside!" Rio replied, placing her cold hands over his and surprising him further.
"Forget outside- you're practically the same temperature as a snowman!"
As soon as the elevator came to a stop, the two proceeded down the familiar hallway but it wasn't too long before they bumped into another couple.
"Rio-chan!" Amu called, running up to the older girl.
"Amu!!" Rio exclaimed back, embracing her best friend with a tight hug.
Daiki ruffled his hair in confusion. "Didn't you two just see each other last week?"
"Listen, Dai-chan..." Rio playfully scoffed. "You guys have it differently. You see all of your friends basically every day for work."
"With Daiki, seeing him once a year is already too much for me..." Ryosuke began to joke but instantly regretted it when he saw the older boy lunge for him.
"OI-" Daiki exclaimed. "Just admit that you miss living with me!"
"I'd rather live in a dump than risk dying in a fire with your cooking."
"You're biased- Rio-chan and I basically have the same cooking skill level."
"Yeah but at least she doesn't yell as loud as you do when something burns."
"I'm not even THAT loud." Daiki loudly protested as everyone stared at him in disbelief. "ANYWAYS- What is Chinen thinking about by requesting the four of us to arrive at his place at the same time? Did something happen again?" He asked, thinking back to the crazy incidents that happened only a month ago.
"I'm kind of worried actually... and I absolutely despise meeting without knowing the reason beforehand." Rio replied.
In an instant, everyone knew what she was referring to. Three years ago, Ryosuke and Daiki asked Rio and Amu to meet them without telling them the reason why. When the girls arrived, they were suddenly dumped and ghosted for three years. It wasn't until about a month ago when Rio happened to bump into a drunk Ryosuke in the park. At that time, Ryosuke was already engaged to Satoko and Daiki was dating Mayu. However, little did they know that Satoko and Mayu were the masterminds of a deceiving plot to make the guys their's.
During that time, Rio managed to achieve her dream of becoming a doctor while Amu had spent all her years working for a terrible manager. If it weren't for Rio treating Ryosuke when he fainted from malnutrition and Amu standing up to her manager when Daiki's reputation was on the line, then the four of them wouldn't be standing where they stood today. Oh, and we can't forget to mention Chinen- aka. Amu's ex who orginally decoded Satoko's and Mayu's plan.
While everyone else was absorbed in their own thoughts, Amu decided that she would be the one to take the initiation. She took a couple of steps and rang the doorbell, surprising everyone.
"EH?" Rio exclaimed. "You're not worried?"
Amu shrugged. "After everything we've gone through... I don't think I'm really afraid of anything anymore." However, as soon as the door opened to reveal the surprise inside, Amu jumped in fear when a series of loud screams echoed throughout the building.
"CONGRATULATIONS!" The rest of JUMP exclaimed, popping mini confetti cannons at the two couples.
Ryosuke, Rio, Amu, and Daiki stood in complete disbelief until Hikaru and Kei finally dragged them into the living room.
"What is all this?" Ryosuke asked in confusion.
"We never threw an official congratulations party for your engagements so we wanted to surprise the four of you with one today." Yuya explained.
Daiki grinned. "At this point, I'm only convinced that you guys want to celebrate everything just so you have an excuse to party and drink.."
"Of course not!" Kota protested before handing each of them a glass bottle of alcohol. "But anyways, here's a beer!"
Cheers of congratulations rang throughout the apartment and everyone was having a great time. Music, laughter, and warmth filled the cold winter air as stories of thier childhood was shared between conversations.
Half way into the celebration, Amu decided to take a quick breather after a couple of sips. Afterall, she was the lightest drinker in the group, perhaps even on earth, and she didn't feel like knocking out especially at her ex's place.
After stepping out into the balcony, she released a huge sigh and smiled after managing to catch her breath from all of the crazy comotion inside. The snow had finally stopped falling and the way it rested on the leaves of the trees reminded her of the day when she first moved to Tokyo from New York.
"What are you thinking about?" A soft voice suddenly called out, slightly surprising her. Amu turned around and saw Chinen sliding close the balcony door to join her.
"Just about how much has changed since I first moved here when I was in highschool. I was such a shy child who had no friends. Then you came into my life, introduced me to Rio-chan and JUMP, and..." Amu smiled. "I'm really happy to be where I am now because
Comments