lavender; nishimura riki

seventeen.

5/7 8:30pm - lavender field.

You have no idea how long the walk is from town to the lavender field. You passed through a small suburb near the outskirts and into wild rolling stretches of grass dotted with white wildflowers. The stone went from paved to gravel to a small stretch of pavement again to cobbled. Riki was right. The further you walked hand in hand along the thin cobbled portion of road, the more you felt like you were in a movie scene. There's so much to see in one location. You understand what the director picked this place for the movie. There are suburbs, there's a downtown not too far off, and there are these beautiful hills of grass. What's unfortunate is that you don't recall a scene being set within those hills.

The most recent scenes of the movie have been spent in a police station set as things are sorted out. Lots of emotional scenes, some foreshadowing. You brush your thumb in a soothing motion along the back of Riki's hand. Your surroundings are so beautiful you almost can't believe they're real. A shimmering river curls in from the distance towards the path. The path follows it for a couple of yards then diverts, straight into a field thick with lavender and the scent of honey. You don't know where the honey comes from but it drifts on the breeze, a steady warm sweetness. That's where you are now, in the midst of the lavender, on a small stone bridge arching above the river.

Riki sits on the ledge and you lean next to him, your elbows resting on the warm stone. He's kicking his feet in a childish way, one that makes you feel that a wrong move will send his shoe flying away into the water. As you peer down, you notice little silver fish darting to and fro. You can't tell whether the gleam of the river is from that or the reflections of the setting sun.

"So do you like it?" Riki asks hesitantly. You smile, still watching the little fish. Minnows. You think. They must be Minnows. You glance at your boyfriend. Just the word makes your heart flutter. Boyfriend! You grin from ear to ear, a soft happy flush on your cheeks, "Yes, I love it." You lean your cheek against his shoulder and wrap a steady arm around his waist. You feel him shyly lean down to press a kiss to your temple. You smile. "I want to live here forever."

You startle when Riki throws his feet over the edge back onto the safe side of the bridge and begins to walk down. You stare after him, confused, but follow. He takes a curved path towards the bank of the river and begins to take his shoes and socks off. Your eyes widen in realization and you hop on excitement as you follow suit and roll up the cuffs of your pants to your knees. Riki jumps in with a small splash that comes for you and wets your legs up to the thighs. So much for rolling up your pants. You let out a small shriek at the coolness of the water and carefully wade in, the Minnows scattering around your feet. You nearly slip on a mossy rock, screaming as you reach out for your boyfriend. Riki grabs your arms, a bright laugh escaping his lips. He helps steady you, snorting at your disgruntled expression.

"What?" You sniff, crossing your arms and raising your chin. He shakes his head, scrunching his nose, "You look funny."

"You look funnier!" You kick at his shin, making him screech and hop around to escape. The splashes only soaks your legs further but you don't mind. You launch yourself after him and he twists to avoid you as you try to capture him in your arms. When it becomes obvious that he's just as slipper as the minnows that slide past your feet, you grab a not-so-handful of water and throw it at him. The result is small droplets of water wetting his shirt at the right shoulder.

In response to your antics, Riki kicks up a larger splash of water, but you move away, the water rippling around your ankles before you use both hands to cup some of the cool water. This time your aim is true and the water lands right in the middle of his chest. You let out a triumphant cry and he an upset one. You laugh at the face he makes in reaction to the moistness of his shirt. Then, you're the one who's all over the place when he tries to pull his shirt over his head.

Skin hot, you gasp and catch his hands, shaking your head furiously, "No!"

"What? Scared?" He tilts his head innocently. You frown, "No- I just, nooo." You whine, dipping your head so you're staring at your feet below the glassy stream. Riki laughs, patting your head and letting go, "I won't."

"Oh thank goodness." You let out a sigh of relief. You wouldn't be able to handle it. You might spontaneously combust. Just the small glimpse of stomach that you caught caused your face to ignite. Riki's hold on his shirt relaxes and he steps away from you. You've made a mistake by being flustered for so long because the next moment, he'd pouring a handful of cool water down your shirt. You let out a half-delighted, half-distressed scream and tackle him since he's within arms reach. The result is the both of you floundering in the stream, your clothes completely soaked through.

Letting out a gasp, you drag yourself sopping wet out of the water and lay down on the grass at the bank. A sprig of lavender tickles your ear. Riki follows shortly and flops down beside you, "Why would you do that?" He says accusingly, though there's a laugh in his tone.

"Do what?" You grinned.

"Tackled me!" He jumps on you and you kick your legs, letting out small shrieks until he releases you, eyes glittering with a happy hunger. You smile up at him, "I can't believe I ever hated you."

Riki looks taken aback, "Hey, I never hated you!"

You snorted, "Seemed like you did."

"Well, sorry that I'm not nice to complete strangers." He flops over onto his back so he's beside you again, one of his arms splayed across your stomach. You snort, "I was never a complete stranger. I was a co-worker, and you were an asshole. Especially when I was a random side character in that one thing."

The grass rustled as Riki sat up, "Seripusly. I never hated you. I didn't mean to be so rude. It's just..."

"It's just what?"

"Nothing."

"Tell me." You sit up along with him. You reach out to trace a soft hand down the curve of his spine. He glances at you, looking slightly confused with himself, "A defense mechanism?"

You smile and gently pat his back in a rythm like you would a small child, "I get it."

"How? What's your flaw? What's your reason that people don't like you?" His gaze flickers all over your face, his throat bobbing as he swallows. The glow of the sunset on his features is beautiful.

You laugh bitterly in response. "It's not other people. My flaw is that i don't like myself. I don't believe in myself."

Riki seems to be stuck in thought for a moment, face set into a solemn expression like a doll frozen in time. Then, he grins, "I believe in you."

"Oh, shut up, that's cringy." You mumble. Riki shrugs. "I do." He wrings water out of the hem of his shirt and you let your hand slip off his back to do the same. You watch as his fingers lose the grip, "So can I take this off, or?" He asks.

"Oh my gosh." You say under your breath. You turn away from him, "Fine, do whatever, but I'm not looking!"

Riki laughs and you hear the scuff of him pulling his wet shirt from his back then the drip of water on soil as he wrings out the cloth properly. You have already decided that you'll wait until you're back at the hotel to take care of your clothes. Even so, you bunch your shirt all the way up to your breastbone as you try to squeeze out the water.

The air between you both descends into silence as you let the sun dry you slightly off. Then, you feel warmth as Riki presses his chest against your back. His arm falls around you and you lean against him with a content sigh. Your eyes fall shut and you hear him say something under his breath. "What was that?" You hum.

"It was nothing." He whispers. The low volume at which he's speaking causes his voice to come out as a soft grumble and you can feel the vibrations in his chest as he speaks. He shifts behind you and presses a kiss behind your ear. You shiver slightly, "You seemed like the shy type." You mumble.

"Not with you." He says quietly. "You make me confident, like I matter."

"Of course you matter." Fireworks of orange go off behind your eyelids when you shut them. "You're a famous actor. You have so many fans. They love you."

It's so quiet for a moment aside from the chirping of birds off in the distance that you think he might of fallen asleep from the warmth of the sun.

After a heartbeat or two, you feel Riki's lips against your shoulder as he comfortably burrows his face there. "It's different." He doesn't elaborate.