Work Text:
Shiemi was underneath her front desk, those pesky Ruga roots were hiding again, she really needs to reorganize most of the contents in the store.
Ever since she'd taken the exorcist shop from her mother, things have been busy. Most new exorcists knew her from school. They radiated together; she had good connections with most and that's what kept the out of the way shop remembered.
It had been at least three years since she's graduated, since she's said good bye to her first and only friends. They all followed their own paths, as she did hers. She missed them terribly, Izumo and Paku, Bon and Miwa, she didn't know where Renzou was - Yuki was - she still saw him, rarely, but he has been the only one who knew where he was going and that was already practically there when they meet. And Rin - she remembered when they said good bye.
The door opens, the bell rifles to prove that and Shiemi squeaks, startled when she hits her head under the table.
"Ow - Hi, welcome, what can I help you -" the words froze in her throat as she rubbed her blond head. Spring green eyes wide and shocked.
"R-Rin?" In front of her, in his ideal hands in his pockets stance was the half demon boy - except. . . he wasn't such a boy anymore. He'd grown in the past years he's been gone, his shoulders have broadened, taller, slim but with more muscle build on him, hair as messy and night black as she remembers, she doesn't see his tail, but as he smiles shyly at her she sees the peek of his fangs and-
'"Rin!" She says again, happiness bunkering out of her throat as she brightens.
She hasn't seen him in so long! She didn't even know where he'd gone.
And up until now, seeing him physically in front of her, she hadn't realize that gapping feeling in her chest of how much she missed him.
"Hey Shiemi. How's it goin'?" His voice was familiar and warm. Like his flames.
"G-good, very good- well I mean, oh- how are you?" She stutters, pushing back her lengthened blond tresses.
"Great."
They stare at each other for a silent moment. Then Shiemi remembers.
"We did it!" Rin laughs, his hair a mess, pure excitement radiating off him as he bounced around.
Yuki shakes his head next to him. "You may have graduated but you still have a lot of work to do, more to learn."
Rin wasn't listening, Shiemi smiled as Izumo hugged her, Paku gave her a tearful good bye.
The boys were all laughing and shoving and talking over each other. Shiemi watched, they've graduated, they're all going places now - she realizes with a strange twisted mixture of pride and sadness that she's going to miss them even if she was proud of them all.
The after party was huge. The years they'd spent together seemed to bring out the bonds.
She remembers how tired she was towards the end. Everyone had said good night. She was the last one, Rin had stayed behind to walk her home, Yuki - they didn't see him since the beginning of the party.
They walked in a happy glow and silence. Shiemi was tired but happy anyway. She would be sad tomorrow but right now she had no room for wretched thoughts.
Suddenly, she felt a soft warmth brush the back of her hand. She startled and gives Rin a questioning look. His face betrays nothing but slight surprise.
"Sorry." He almost whispered.
Shiemi remembers feeling the sudden pull when she looked up at him. The dark ascending and shadowing the dips and curves of his face.
"It's alright." Neither look away. She had been too tired then to realize the impact it was having on the boy.
"Shiemi. . . can you- do you -" he looked so uncomfortably embarrassed for a moment, cheeks warming. "Do you maybe wanna come with me when I go - to wherever?" He finishes, not looking at her while rubbing the back of his head.
Shiemi recalls the startling feeling she felt at he moment he'd asked back then. She realized then with a heavy heart. . . Rin still - she remembers when she'd turned him down.
"I'm not ready for love yet."
Maybe she'd never be.
"I'll miss you too." She had said gently and taken his hand in hers. Rins eyes glittered in the dark. "But you know my choice, Rin."
He gave her a half smile that made her heart ache.
"I know. Just thought - ya know - maybe I'd ask in case you might have changed your mind."
She shakes her head, "I haven't. Thank you though. I really will miss you."
Tears threatened her. She hates crying in front of people, especially Rin, whom she tries so hard to be brave for. He saved her from the moment by pulling her into a warm hug.
Shiemi sighed, breathed him in and wrapped her arms around his neck, on her tip toes.
"I'll miss you too, Shiemi." He whispered so low she almost doesn't hear it.
She smiled into his shoulder.
"Don't forget to visit."
And now her she was, three years later looking at one of her best friends and she can't say anything! Since when has it ever been hard to talk to Rin!
"Looks like becoming a shopkeeper really was your thing, huh?" He finally says, he walks in and smiles as he looks around. She'd changed much of the dusty area and made it much cuter in a sense, while maintaining a wisdom about the place. It has been around for centuries after all.
The ice is broken. Shiemi smiles bright and instantly starts rattling off about the place and what she's been doing too it.
Rin just watches, takes her in. Enjoys her excitement.
Shiemi only just realizes she's been talking forever, he's still standing there and what's more. . . he's in a black exorcist uniform. Like Yuki's except he has the coat open and the sleeves rolled away, a much messier take on the ideally primly kept uniform, jaunty and. . . Shiemi suddenly notices how good he looks in it, chest flexed under the tight black shirt, arms veined and formed over the years and his collar bone peeks out from the shirt, without the coat buttoned she could see much of him and his entire aura screams 'laid back bad-ass' for lack of better words.
Shiemi blushes. Did she really just think that? She must be coming down with something.
"Oh my, how stupid. . . I'm so sorry Rin, I've been blabbering on for an hour and I don't even know why you're here." She hastily pulls her hair back, looks away as she adjusts her kimono and shyly glances at him apologizing with her eyes.
He smiles. Her heart near skips. She presses a hand to it in case it jumps out. . .
"I came to see you." His voice is steady, eyes, glittering deep blue with a hint of fire, they meet hers and don't move. She feels a sudden and unfamiliar warmth trail down her body.
Wh-what?
"Really?" She is surprised how strange and unbelievably hopeful she is. They were friends! Why wouldn't he want to see her! Why was the fact that he came to see her makes her feel good be so odd?
"Yah. . . also Yukio wanted me to pick something up." He chuckles a bit.
Shiemi nearly squeaks from how the sound races along her nerves.
Her hands clutch in her skirts. "W-what would that be?
"Bale root. Something about a kid with demonic nightmares." He shrugs in that indifferent manner that drove Yukio insane.
Shiemi giggles. "I'll get it." She turns to go.
His hand wraps around her wrist suddenly, it's larger than she remembers and with a rougher texture, but still as warm as ever and gentle. She turns and finds his eyes asking a silent question.
She not sure why she feels so light headed.
"Stay, it's fine. He doesn't need it right away, there's no rush." Then he tugs her back to the desk.
Shiemi swallows, breath too thin to breathe.
"I missed you. A lot, you know." He says gently, but there's little embarrassment to go with it.
Shiemi realizes he's not the awkward young boy anymore. He's - he's grown up. . . and he knows what he feels and - and she doesn't know what to think.
"I missed you too, Rin." That was most definitely true.
He smiles. Her heart flips. He hasn't let go of her, his touch is starting to burn on the soft skin of her wrist, it's traveling up her veins and bubbling in her stomach and - and she feels a dull throbbing in her body. . . she's not sure where or what it is yet.
They spend hours talking about everything and nothing.
Shiemi is overjoyed to find, though Rin obviously has more control and calm, he's still the bright happy insatiable adventurous and temperamental weirdo she meet. His adventures were often caused by his jumping in or out without much thought. He'd been all over the world, meet so many new people and seen so much. . . she couldn't get enough of hearing.
He laughed and frowned and joked and teased and his three years had been so full and colorful she felt hers hadn't been so fruitful after all. But he listened to her encounters as if he was willing himself to remember every detail.
He was just visiting, three months, just to check up an Yukio he said and see how the old places of his favorite years were doing. He'd promised to visit often as he could these days. And he was so happy to see her.
She slept with a smile on her face thinking about it that night.
The next time Rin stops by wasn't for business. It was Saturday and everything seemed settled. No demons to fight or people to kill. . . just quiet. Shiemi was grateful for days like these.
But she hadn't seen Rin in a week. She'd thought he'd forgotten and she couldn't blame him. Exorcist had busy lives.
It pleased her when he showed up that afternoon, hair windblown, face pinking, huge grin on his face and in such normal clothes it took her a moment. He had on a button down opened over a white t shirt, faded jeans because it was still Rin after all and his sleeves rolled up to show his forearms.
Shiemi smiled huge when she saw him, her stomach tightening and squeezing inside. She passes the feeling as missing breakfast.
"Rin! I didn't think you'd visit so soon." She laughs as she pulls her long blond locks into a pony tail.
The half blood grins wider, fangs peeking out, Shiemi briefly wonders what it would feel like if he bit her with them and - she's horrified with herself.
The lack of foods was most certainly not what gave her the thought.
"Work, Yukio is still a bossy jerk. Anyway, you busy this afternoon?"
She was planning on reorganizing every herb on the left shelf.
But maybe that could wait a while.
"Not really. Just let me put these jars away and we can visit." She leans over and wraps her arms around three large herb filled glass jars. With a somewhat practiced move she pulls a rickety stool out from under the desk with her foot and gets on to reach the shelf. She really should replace the old thing. It creaked every time she moved it. But she wasn't thinking about that. She was just all electric and excited that Rin was here and -
The thing teeters. Shiemi gasps, shoves the jars into their hold and falls back. She cringes, every muscle tightening, waiting for the impact of the fall.
The pain never comes.
Shiemi gasps and looks up. Rin's dark blues meet her sunny greens.
"You ok- " he trails off. Eyes widening a fraction.
Shiemi sees it. She feels something pull and clench. Her heart speed is hurting, loud in her ears. His arms are under her knees and around her back.
He's biting his lip, subtly indenting it with one of his upper fangs.
She fells a shock go though her as her nose suddenly brushes his, soft, delicate brush of their skins and she can feel his warmth radiate through her. What - what -
Her throat clenches. Rin freezes all at once and they both pull away.
He lets her slide down to her feet, she steps away with awkward speed, missing his warmth instantly.
Rin rubs the back of his neck, avoiding her eyes. "S-sorry Shiemi." He mumbles shyly.
The petite blond feels as if her face is on fire. She doesn't understand what's come over her, it was a near fall - she shouldn't be feeling this hot and bothered and - and he was waiting for her to answer.
"It- it's nothing. Thank you for saving me. You're still very good at it." She gives him a grateful smile.
Rin suddenly laughs, she never realized how much she missed that laugh, how much she wanted to hear that laugh. Warm, and tousled, like him.
"It was one of my favorite pass times."
They both laugh now.
They forget about leaving the shop after. Rin just sticks around and helps her reorganize her shelf, but they have a good time anyway. Neither even notice until after the sun sets.
Once he left, Shiemi feels the loneliness around her that had been there but she never noticed until Rin's presence filled it then left. She hugs herself, standing in the door frame watching the sun slip away behind the beautiful green topped mountains, the wind blowing her soft blond hair, the last rays of light making her eyes change into a mixed green as she thought.
She realizes she can't wait until Rin comes over gain. And when he leave again - she might just be tempted to go with him this time.
It has been two weeks.
She tried not to be disappointed. Rin's come here to work. Not spend every waking moment with her. But that didn't stop her from wishing he'd come. She'd become somewhat addicted to his presence. She thought about him a lot more than she'd care to admit.
Mostly at night - when she was alone, in her bed. She'd think of him - her thoughts would wander from their conversations, past memories, to what he looked like now . . . different parts of him. Then she'd start to think - much to her embarrassment- about what certain parts of him would feel like under her hands, or pressed against her, she starts to want to find out. Her wonderings turn to wanting and - and she's afraid at first.
She feels changes, the aches, the yearning in her heart. Like - like a woman. But, but nobody ever told her how painful it was. How embarrassing. She didn't realize she could feel so - needy. It was scaring her. To want Rin like this, in a way she never dreamed she'd want anyone, let alone -
A half demon.
Shiemi gasps and hugs her pillow closer, squeezing her eyes shut at the thought. It shocked her - the intenseness of her feelings. She wanted Rin to come, she wanted to spend hours and days with him, to laugh - cry - learn together. To make him food he'd be happy to eat . . . well, maybe that would go the other way around. But she wanted to make him happy. To grow with him, to have him close making her feel safe and - and she suddenly realizes she wants him with her forever.
She swallows the growing lump in her throat, tears brim in her eyes, heat pooling and falling down the sides of her cheeks. She presses her palm to her lips. Did that - does this make her crazy or is there something else?
She believes she knows what this is . . .but she can't- she's not sure.
Yet.
The bell to the door tingles.
Shiemi gasps, heart flying, she's on clouds. Rin's come back! She walks to the front with a radiant smile on her face, soul singing, she never imagined she could feel this happy.
Yukio's calm smile greets her back.
Suddenly, her stomach drops and she wishes it wasn't him, then she feels instantly guilty for feeling like that. And her emotions clash and swirl and she feels dizzy, as if she dropped from her heights and her stomach turns.
"Y-yuki, I didn't expect to see you today. How - how can I help you?" She desperately hopes her unexplainable despair doesn't sound in her voice.
Yuki may have noticed. But he probably didn't connect the despair to his appearance.
"I placed an order for-"
"Holy water, salts, and the jasmine tea." She smiled, "I remember. Here, already wrapped up for you." She'd gotten very good at this over the years.
Yukio gives her that same polite smile he always gave her. "Didn't expect any less."
Then, silence fell as he went about collecting the packages and putting them in his messenger. It was heavy. Shiemi was suddenly gripped by the irrational and sudden fear that she was being awkward with him. The silence was uncomfortable!
"So - " she forces back a cough, attempting to remain casual, to sound conversational. "How's Rin?"
Yuki spares her a glance from behind his glasses. "Fine. I thought he'd come by here recently."
"He did, he has . . . just not these past two weeks." She misses Yukio's second, longer, more inquisitive, glance. "I just thought, he - both of you were very busy and, well, I hope everything's alright." She met his eyes uncharacteristically uncertain.
Yukio stares at her now.
Shiemi feels her face heat up. What was wrong now!
She'd appeared too eager, too interested . . . well, why shouldn't she? Rin was her friend, one of her best, and one she hadn't see in years, she was allowed some curiosity. Right?
"We're fine, not even arguing . . . much. He says hello though." Her stomach flips. " But unfortunately, a recent demon possession case is taking him longer than usual. I'm about to go join him actually."
"Oh, ok, that's great. Say hi for me. Um - and it was great to see you Yuki." She speaks shyly, trying to hide her worry about Rin being alone in a case.
Yukio smiles again. "You too. I'll see you soon."
She nods too vigorously. "Tell Rin he can come too." She stops. But it was too late. She'd let too much of her mind slip and Yukio was brilliant, scarily so. Much above her meager intelligence. The look he gives her says as much.
"I will. Bye Shiemi." He speaks a bit slow, deliberate. As if trying to really see what she was thinking.
Shiemi does nothing but nod and smile forcefully in hopes he didn't notice her shame.
Once he left she falls to the floor in a relieved heap. That had been ten times worse then she feared. Oh God . . . she sighs sadly. She feels hot, Yuki might suspect what she was feeling now. But how could he? She didn't even know entirely yet . . . maybe . . .maybe.
She stops and everything seems to stop with her. Her mortification gives way to realization. The impact was -
Like someone choked her lungs.
She was in love.
She was in love. In Love with - with Rin! The very boy she'd told she wasn't ready to - to love yet and now.
She loves him.
She misses him.
She wants to see him . . .
She feels like singing and throwing up all at once and she has the brief thought that if being in love felt this utterly awfully wonderful she wishes she never felt it then . . . she couldn't' imagine how it had taken her this long to realize, maybe she'd loved Rin for a while now.
A long while. After graduation she might have realized it.
But she'd been too young. Too naïve. Too stupid to notice.
She felt her heart swell, her body tingle. She wanted Rin.
She felt like running, like hiding, like dancing, like freezing, like laughing, like crying. . .
She does neither.
She stands up, shakily. Breathing. Closing her eyes and breathed. Then, once she opens them, it seems the world had suddenly become ten times more beautiful than it had been mere second ago.
A week has passed since Yuki had visited. Three since she'd seen Rin.
There were so many times she wanted to run out of her store and go looking for him, to share her revelation with him . . . but something always stopped her. Whether it was lack of confidence or work . . . she didn't get the chance.
So she settles for hoping he'd come by.
Another week passes.
She dreams about the time they had together, all the adventures and laughs and tears and . . . and she just wants to tell him. It was eating at her like a parasite. Who knew love could be so insistent to be known. She couldn't imagine how Rin, if this was what he'd felt, how he dealt with her refusal.
No wonder the others had felt so bad for him.
She'd been cruel, accidently and in the most worst way possible.
She was starting to hurt.
Yet another week.
Shiemi wants to go find him. A storm stops her.
She wants to go after. A slew of costumers stop her.
She was almost out of her shop. She fell and hurt herself, unable to climb down the stairs. She tried and tried and tried.
Until she began to believe that some unholy force was trying to stop her.
She starts thinking maybe this love shouldn't be. . .
A month.
Another.
She'd seen Yuki three times. Rin zero. Everyone else once a week. Once even Izumo came by. Her visits were rare and unexpected, but they happened. But no Rin. She must have been pining harder than she realized because Izumo had pointed out she looked so sad about something, and to suck it up. Everything would smooth out whatever it was.
She wanted to believe that. She tried.
But- but -why hadn't he come?
He promised . . .
Finally, it came toward what she was sure was the end of his stay. He would be leaving and he hadn't come by like he said he would. Shiemi wished she could hate him. But . . . her heart only ached and sunk. She hadn't realized how dangerous love was. It just snuck up an her and latched on and refused to let go and . . .
She feels tears blur her eyes as she tries to sort through her garden herbs.
Oh well, maybe this was for the best. She sniffs. Maybe he didn't feel the same anymore and . . . and someone wanted to spare her the pain. She sniffs louder, not that she deserves it. But she couldn't imagine Rin turning her down. Just the thought twisted a dagger in her chest. Shiemi couldn't believe it hurt this much.
Why was she so weak? Why couldn't she just move on and accept the fact that he didn't want to see her and she was realizing her feelings too late. Beside who would want a silly little uncertain girl like her.
A tear rolls down her pale cheek.
The door bell jingles.
"I- I 'll be right there." She forces her voice to call out around the lump in her throat.
"I don't need anything."
Rin.
Her heart went from breaking to soaring then back to plummeting to her stomach when she meets his eyes. He looks sad.
"Rin?" She cocks her head to the side in question, all her doubts fading for the moment in the wake of concern for him.
He runs a nervous hand through his messy hair. Shiemi fingers twitch. She wants to do that.
"I'm really sorry I haven't come to see you." He starts. Her fingers clench in her skirts.
"That's alright, Rin, would you like some tea now?" She asks a bit too hopeful sounding.
He shakes his head and gives her a small smile that doesn't reach his eyes. "I have to go Shiemi."
Her heart cracks again.
"I'm leaving tomorrow." He continues. She almost breaks right in front of him. "Being an exorcist . . . it's really - well, hard, ya know. I need to be away- "
"For how long?" She's surprised she sounds so upset.
He shrugs. "Dunno, depends. Could be weeks, months - years even. I just don't know when I'll come back." He answers honestly, a painful look flashing in his eyes as he finally looks away from her watering ones.
"I'll miss you." She whispers, tears quivering, heart clenching, she hadn't meant to say it out loud. Rin's head snaps up to meet her eyes, wide, lips parted in surprise and she . . . she really wants to taste him.
She doesn't even have the mind to blush this time.
"I- I'll miss you more."
The air freezes in her lungs, she leans forward and clutches the counter, knuckles going white. "So don't go. Stay." With me. But she's not selfish enough to say that out loud.
"I can't. You know that. But - I - I'm glad I got to see you a couple of times." He says gently, so Rin like and so - so warm, she just wants to reach out and bury herself in him.
"Bye Shiemi. " He backs away, the air gets colder in her shop instantly. She bites her lip to keep from crying out.
Don't go. Don't go. Don't. Go!
Please.
He steps out. Taking his light with him. Shiemi fells a horrible, urgent pull that lights her entire being up in fear. Fear of loosing him. Fear she'll never see him ever again. . .
No. No, she wasn't going to let this go. If Rin had been brave enough to tell her how he felt all those years ago, she could tell him now.
Even if it didn't matter anymore.
"Rin!" In a whirl wind of emotion and skirts, the blond girl runs, barefooted, out of her shop. Eye glisten in the sun as she looks down her mountain cut stairs, Rin already halfway down, wind blowing his hair.
"Riiiin!" She shouts, his name echoing off the rocks.
He stops and turns, face falling in surprised confusion. "Shie-"
She's running, she jumps, toes pushing her off the steps and flies towards him. Rin yelps and scrambles to catch her. She gasps, body landing right on his, he jumps in the air and lands safely at the bottom of the steps, Shiemi wrapped around him tightly, face buried in his shoulder as she cries.
"God, Shiemi! There are safer ways to say good bye." His heart is thumping in fear. Shiemi clings tighter, fingers digging into her shoulders, legs wrapped around his narrow waist. She breaths him in.
Rin. He's Rin. Safe, goofy, sweet Rin. Even if he was probably the most dangerous being she's ever met. Or hugged.
"No- not good bye." She stutters miserably. "Rin - I -I love you."
Time stops.
Rin's body goes ridged under hers, hands on her waist tighten their grip a bit. She is mortified, she can't bring herself to lift her face. He's angry? Disgusted? Hating her?
"Shiemi?"
He whispers her name, soft, gentle, unexpectedly sweet. Shiemi feels her stomach flip.
"Shiemi, look at me."
She pulls back slowly, face burning pink, and looks, eyes connecting, feeling like she could drown in his. Rin looks lost, gentle, and undeniably - happy.
It hits her like a million bricks.
"I love you too ya know." He flushes now.
Shiemi's heart swells, she doesn't deserve this, the warmth that fills her up . . . she could have been easily frozen to death if he'd rejected her. But now . . she was so warm something could sizzle on her.
Without thought, her hands cup his jaw. "I know . . . I just though you'd stopped after I - "
Rin's lips are on hers. His hand cups the back of her head, fisting in her thick blond tresses, he angles his head and pulls her closer. Shiemi moans in surprise, the sound so scandalous she blushes red. Rin groans right back, sounding near desperate.
This sends a shock through her system that she did not expect. His kiss gets more feverish, hot, aching. She - she loves it.
But they're, they can't -
"R-rin," she gasps between lips, "Up- up back to my sho-"
He's sprinting up the stairs, trying to keep their lips connected, she giggles, then she's pressing against a wall, kimono bunching around her hips, Rin's hands, hot and callused, run up her pale creamy silk like thighs, and hook behind them.
Shiemi gasps, shock wave after wave shaking her to her core, She feels like every nerve ending light up on fire, She gasps again when Rin slips his tongue gently past her lips. Shiemi opens her mouth for more, he tastes like ramen. Her tongue meets his, messily and inexperienced, Rin goes slow, but she can feel his want. She flushes again and tries to match him kiss for delicious kiss.
"Shiemi-" He husks, lips parting for a moment, he presses more, hot and gentle down her jaw line then her pale gleaming neck. Shiemi moans, fingers digging into his hair, finally, and stretches her neck more, to let him have more. Give her more. Yes - yes -
She realizes now, with surprise, that something is hot between her legs, she sliding down there. And she vaguely remembers reading somewhere that was what happens when a woman is aroused.
And a man -
The gasp is short and sudden. Something hard presses between her legs. They both freeze. The mood no less hot. If anything- they are sizzling now. Rin's eyes are nearly black - she swallows, wandering if she looks like that. He looks as if he's ready to devour her. . .
"R-"
He kisses her collar bone and sucks, lower and lower, fingers riding higher under her skirt. She feels so wet in her junction of her legs, and Rin's burning hands so near to the spot was making her . . . her clench. She arches and her hips roll into his unexpected hardness.
The half demon sounds like she's stabbed him.
Shiemi feels the jolt from the sound spark between her legs. She wants to hear it again. She rolls. Rin moans.
"Shie- Shiemi st-stop." He stills their rocking. Shiemi looks at him in lustful blur.
Lips swollen, sparkling eyes hooded with something far from innocent, clothes dropping down her shoulder, silky legs wrapped around his waist, hair mussed. She looks like a beautiful feast just begging to be eaten and enjoyed.
But he can't do this. Not to Shiemi, she deserves better.
"Why?" She asks, soft voice making the half breed shiver.
"Because one: Yukio would kill me. And Two: we shouldn't - shouldn't rush into this. Not yet. There'll be plenty of time. . . later. If you want." He looks shy suddenly.
Shiemi can't help smiling. She leans down and kisses his ear tip, soft pink tongue flicking over it. He looks as if he's about to explode, it feels almost as good as touching his-
"But what if you don't come back." She sighs sadly.
Rin smiles and kisses her, this one is different, soft, unhurried. Not urgent.
They pull apart, foreheads touching. "I will. For you. I only came for you, Shiemi." He says softly.
Shiemi looks into his eyes. And she believes him. Her heart feels like it's connected with his at the moment. She slides her fingers through his dark hair. "Then I'll wait for you, just like you did for me."
The smile he gives her is worth all the suffering it took to get here.
Funny how the one thing she thought she wasn't ready for has crept up behind her and . . . and now she can't imagine her life without it.
Or Rin.