The Star of Night | MIYAKO

act two { whispers of dreams and secrets }

At the call of his name, the sixteen-year old waved to his friends. The group of six walked over to him before he closed a small book he was reading, "Hey, guys--"

"Mamo-chan!"

A familiar weight settled in his arms before anyone else sat with him. Chiba Mamoru looked down at the bright smile his girlfriend gifted him. A wide pink blanket laid under the perfect tree hiding the group from the sun. Decorated with containers holding nostalgic foods and some new, the big friend group poured out their own dishes before settling themselves into their peaceful lunch.

From the corner of Mamoru's eyes moved a head of soft blue, quiet against everyone chatter yet graceful with every move it made, "Oh, Miyako. I almost didn't notice you were here." With a grape partly in her mouth, Miyako widened her eyes at the sudden call before waving at the boy. "H-Hello, Mamoru."

Having a sister with a boyfriend is a hard task. If you were to ask how Miyako deals with it, she'll give you a simple answer: I try not to think about it. If she thinks about it too much, she gets weirded out about it. The whole relationship between Mamoru and Miyako has been mutual. On one end, Mamoru knows that to get wider support with the relationship, he needs to be on his best around his girlfriend's older sister. On the other end, Miyako doesn't want to add too much water and give too much sunlight to their relationship that others question their relationship or she even questions it.

It's simple, really, Miyako told herself as she stuffed a strawberry past her lips, its sweet taste unconsciously curling the corner of her lips. He's my sister's boyfriend. All I need to know is that he's treating her well and that she's safe.

Now that all the food was set and spread out, plates were handed out, and drinks were served, the group of seven formally said their thanks before digging into the spread. Sitting next to her boyfriend, Usagi brought up a serving of soup to Mamoru's mouth, just as he took a bite of cake.

"Take some! It's really good."

Switching his gaze between her deep-blue eyes and the food on the table, Mamoru quickly swallowed down the soft cake and taking in the hot food the blonde had served him. His jaw locked at the weird feelings in his mouth. Usagi noticed the change in his eyes and offered him a refill of water. It came to no surprise his mood changed because of the soup she made.

To the naked eye and their friends before them, the pair would look like the cutest couple you could ever find. But deep down within the vast layers of the heart and deep tissues of the mind, nothing was as it seemed. The relationship was founded on exceptions and forced hands. Mamoru was only with Usagi to stop her contentious courting from tiring them both. In the time they've been together, he's never kissed her.

It wasn't that he didn't want to be with her, but it was just because of that.

On his end, something was missing. A mutual feeling both shared, but Usagi wanted to keep what they had alive. Even if she noticed him turning away when she offered him a piece of tart or shot down her offering him water with a pat on the knee, Usagi wanted to keep the dying flames of their love alive, even if wasn't love. Her pinning would not go to waste if she dropped the weight of everything now, so she pushed all doubts to the back of her mind and kept whatever they had going.

Given the choice of many foods before her, Miyako prepared her stomach with sips of water before hovering her hand over all the dishes in front of her. The choice of just choosing one felt like the weight of the world rested on her back. One small mistake and she could be dealing with either Rei's spicy tofu or Minako sweet and sour plums. Her hand hesitated from choosing one when a container was raised right in front of her, "Try some. It's a recipe my mother left for me."