promise me | llorumi fanfic

15: Next stop, Shintaro

It was mid-August and one of the most hottest days of the year so far, when the time finally came for Vania's birthday celebration. Everyone was so excited, but amongst the excited feelings, there were a few... disorganised people.

"Zane, can I borrow your shoes?" Kai peeped his head out of his bedroom door.

"I recall we all bought our own apparel 2 and a half weeks ago for this occasion," Zane said, packing his clothes into a bag.

"We did? Oh yeah, we did! So... no?"

"Find your own shoes, Kai!" Nya walked past the two over to Skylor.

However, amongst the disorganisation, there were also a few nervous feelings - one in particular.

"Cole... Cole!" Jay waved his arms in front of him.

Startled, he shook his head, knocking him from his daze. "Yeah, Jay?"

"You didn't answer me - tie or bow tie!" Jay held the two options to Cole's face.

"Oh um I'm sorry, a lot's been going on in my mind right now, but uh bow tie!" Cole rubbed the back of his neck, before gathering his things.

"Ooh are you nervous?" Jay asked teasingly, "Do you like herr?"

"Is it that obvious?" Cole sighed as folded his tuxedo into the duffel bag.

"Chill, Cole. It's alright to be worried! When I asked Nya out on our first date, so was I! It's tooottally normal!"

"You're being... overly nice," Cole squinted his eyes at him, "but thanks for that, I guess.

"Guys, once you're ready, meet up in the bounty with your things because we need to head off soon!" Kai announced to everyone in the monastery.

"Says you! You're not even half way packed!" a voice could be heard.

"Woah, who put you in charge?" said another.

"I'm gonna go check on Nya and. the girls and see how they're doing. Mind putting my bag in the bounty with yours?" Jay stood up.

"Sure," he took Jay's duffel bag and slung it on his left shoulder, with his own on his right as he walked off.

"Uh Nya?" Jay knocked on the door to the room the girls were all in. There was no reply, so he assumed to just walk right in.

Nya gasped, "Jay!" she quickly threw her dress to the side so be couldn't see it. "You know I don't want you to see my dress until the day!"

"Sorry, yes I know - but it's not like we're getting married or something!" he defended himself.

A couple giggles could be heard from the room.

"Still," Nya gave him that look which meant for him to go away.

"Okay, okay. I'll go - but be quick, Kai says we're going soon!"

A couple more giggles could be heard from the room, before Nya shut the door on her boyfriend's face.

As Jay turned around to head to the bounty, he was swung off his feet and span round a good couple times. He saw a green flash in front of him, holding his shoulder's still, saying, "Sorry Jay," before running off.

Jay noticed both Lloyd's arms full with things, as he left a trail of dropped things behind him. Picking up the stuff he dropped, he sighed. He felt bad for Lloyd and Harumi, he couldn't imagine the stress he was under, so he figured the least he could do was help. Following the trail to Lloyd's room, he found the three sat on his bed. "Here, Lloyd. These are the stuff you dropped," he placed them on the edge of his bed. "Do you... need help?"

"Uh no, I'm fine. Thanks Jay," he said dryly before packing the last couple things.

"A-Are you sure? There's no harm in asking for help," he insisted as he watched Lloyd struggle zip up the bag that was filled to the brim. "Let me do it, and I'll bring it to the bounty for you. Why don't you focus on your girlfriend and kid?"

"You're right," he turned his focus to Harumi, who also finished packing her bag and Lumina's mini backpack, with one hand, while carrying a Lumina that didn't want to be put down or she would start crying.

Harumi's bag was mainly baby stuff for Lumina, but had her tailored dress, that Nya had picked up for her at the bottom, which made it undoubtedly heavy, carrying for two. The mini backpack for Lumina to wear which had her stuffed animal, a banana, and a couple small things in the side and front pocket.

"Let me help you," Lloyd said, as he tried to take Lumina from Harumi, which earned wailing and squirming from her.

"I'm fine, Lloyd," she slung the bag onto her free shoulder and gave the mini backpack to Lumina to play with. "I've survived the whole morning without your help, I think I can do another 5 minutes," she shot that look at him, before walking off.

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"Is everyone ready to go?" Nya asked from the steering wheel.

A chorus of 'yep's and 'yeah's and 'yes's and a couple 'wooh's echoed.

"Okay then, next stop, Shintaro!"

Jay sat with Cole, Kai sat with Skylor, Zane sat with Pixal, but Lloyd couldn't find Harumi or Lumina - maybe they went down to the sleeping quarters?

As Lloyd climbed down the ladder, Nya asked him, "Where are you going, Lloyd? The weather's nice today."

"Just going to find Rumi and Lu, I'll be back out soon," he said after climbing down the last few steps on the ladder.

"Good, you need some sun, you've had barely any the last few months."

Lloyd always admired how much Nya cared for everyone, it made him feel better, as security, for the motherly figure he missed all his childhood. He vowed to not be the same to Lumina - no matter what.

He walked into the sleeping quarters to the warm smile of Harumi, who was feeding Lumina, greeting him. She patted the space next to her on Lloyd's bed, as she didn't have her own yet.

"I feel like we haven't had much of a break for ourselves in a long time," she voiced her thoughts.

"A lot has happened, I don't blame it. You know if you're stressed you don't have to hide it. I'm here for you, for us." Their eye contact was intense, until Harumi smiled at his words and lay her head on his collarbone.

"I'd hoped this party could be a break from looking after Lu, even if it was just for a short while, but now, I'm not so sure." She looked at her daughter, still drinking while grasped on to her mother, but her eyes lightly closed. "The older she's getting, the more clingier she's gotten." She looked at her boyfriend with a concerned look on her face, "Not like I mind, I love her and want to spend as much time as I can with her, but it's getting hard to do things without her crying when I put her down, or leave her sight."

He listened to her worries, and comforted her. "Let me take care of her for the entirety of our stay at Shintaro, you enjoy yourself and cool off a bit."

"If she'll let me," Harumi giggled at her own words. It was soon brought to a halt when new thoughts had overcome her. "P-perhaps... perhaps it's my fault too. Maybe attachment I had to my biological parents has something to do with her, or maybe the trauma I inflicted on you o-or—"

Her rambling words were soon cut off with a kiss: short, soft and sweet. "Rumi, listen. I understand how hard it must be for you right now, but I want you to know you're doing all you can, and the best mother to Lu. It's going to be alright - trust me." He wrapped an arm around her shoulder, as she started to shed a couple tears.

"Yeah, yeah it is."