A Second Chance (Akira x Ryo)

Chapter 8: Away

A/N: Hi! I just realized that this has over 100 views already!! Thank you all so much :) I can't believe people are actually sticking with this lol

[Third Person]

Ryo walked towards the kitchen, stretching and yawning from last nights sleep. "Morning, Dad."

His father sat at the table as he sipped coffee, seeming half awake. "Mornin'. You're already dressed?"

"I'm heading to the pond with Akira today. I'm not having breakfast. We'll get something to eat later." He said, while combing his hair.

"Well, don't come back too late. Mom's making a good dinner today."

"Is that so? Maybe I should invite Akira over." Ryo made his way to the door, put on his shoes, and stepped outside.

His dad perked up, seemingly remembering something important. "Ah, Ryo!"

"Yeah?"

"U-um. Never mind. Go have fun."

Ryo raised his eyebrows before continuing out the door.

A bit after he had left, his mom entered the kitchen. "Good morning, hun."

"I couldn't do it. I couldn't tell him."

"What? You said you would this morning!"

"Yeah.. but he looked so happy about going somewhere with Akira, and I just couldn't!"

Ryo's mother sighed, scratching the back of her head. "Then we'll have to tell him during dinner."

"Ah. He may have mentioned inviting Akira."

"Well, tell him I didn't buy enough or something!"

"Alright, alright. I'll text him."

~

Ryo walked along the path to the pond, Akira close behind. His phone buzzed, and as he looked at it he frowned.

"What is it?" Questioned Akira.

"Ah, just a text from my dad. Nothing big."

It was a comfortable silence they walked in. The weather was just perfect that day; the temperature relatively high, with a slight breeze to even it out.

"We should do this more, you know. Alone. I guess I never realized how peaceful it'd be with just the two of us until you mentioned it."

A blush creeped up on Ryo's face as he heard Akira's comment. How could he just say something like that so casually?  "Yeah. I like it too."

They finally arrived at the pond. As usual, the sight seemed like a fairy tale. The water was higher than usual from the rain showers that had occurred over night. Trees reached over the water; some branches dipping down and lightly grazing the surface.

Ryo sighed, taking in the magical view. "Have we ever taken Miki and Miko here? We've been here so many times, but I'm not sure if we've ever shown them this."

"No. It's kind of like.. our own little secret. A secret base, or something."

"Just between us."

Akira laughed a bit. "No girls allowed!"

The two of them made their way down to the water, and took their place under a large tree, shading them from the sun. "I can tell you about my dreams, if you want."

Akira widened his eyes. "Really? I mean.. you don't have to if you don't want to. I'm not forcing you."

"No, I feel like I need to let this out."

It's not like he's gonna know this actually happened. It's just a nightmare to him.

Ryo sighed. "Okay, here goes. I've been having these dreams for as long as I can remember. They're the same; or at least similar, every time. When it starts, I'm just standing there, nobody around me. And always, somehow, I have to follow some kind of trail. And the trail leads to the same thing, every time."

His voice was already starting to quiver. As if he knew, Akira put his hand on Ryo's shoulder. "It's okay. Continue."

Ryo's breaths were shaky. "W-when I reach the end of the trail, I see you. But.. y-you're cut in half. Dead. And what makes it even worse is that somehow, in this dream, I know I was the one that did it. And when I see this, I feel so alone, and afraid. Not only did I lose you, but it was my own damn fault. And I can't take it. I've tried approaching you with my eyes closed, but it never works. The only way to wake up is to look at what I'd done."

Soon Akira was wiping tears from Ryo's face that he didn't even realize were flowing. "Oh, Ryo.."

And with that, Akira kept repeating Ryo's name in that soft, angelic voice; the only thing in the world that could serve to comfort him. Again and again he wiped away the tears until they finally stopped coming. "It's okay. I'm here, and I'm never leaving."

Emotionally drained, Ryo practically collapsed into Akira's arms, hoping to god he didn't start weeping again. (Or maybe not to god lol.)

"Akira.." he whispered, hardly audible. "My biggest fear.. is losing you."

Akira gulped. He didn't understand why that simple statement made his face heat up, or why it only made him pull Ryo even closer, or why he kissed his cheek before saying anything else.

"I could say the same for you, Ryo. I don't know what I'd do without you."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I'm back!"

Ryo stepped inside his home, removing his shoes. The nice smell that made it's way to his nose was proof that his dad wasn't lying that morning. His mom must've been planning a good dinner for that evening. Why, he didn't know,  but he was grateful.

"Welcome back, Ryo. Dinners almost ready, so go ahead and sit down." She almost sounded nervous.

She set down the meal just as his dad sat down. "Eat up Ryo, it's your favorite!"

"..right." There was something in his dads voice that was off as well. He was acting quite strange in the morning, too. "Thanks for the food!"

They ate in stiff silence, much different from the one him and Akira shared walking to the pond. Usually, his mom and dad would tell each other about their day, plans for the week, or just whatever came to mind. But today, it was silent.

It was Ryo that broke it. "Alright, guys. What's going on?"

They looked at each other, and his mother spoke. "Ryo, we've made a very important decision. It was necessary we go about this in order to keep our family going comfortably. It's a huge opportunity, and-"

"Just tell me."

His mother sighed and averted her eyes. This time, his father spoke.

"We're moving to America."