“It’s December!” Fuuko Kirisawa screamed to the phone receiver.  She was talking to one of her best friends, Recca Hanabishi whom she has known almost all her life.  “It’s finally December! The snow’s coming!!”
 “Fuuko, relax!” Recca said.  “OK, so snow has something to be excited about, but then.. just relax, OK.  Calm down.”
 “You don’t get it, don’t you, Recca.  The reason why I’m so happy is because of the skiing competition you and I planned to have last year.  Next week you have to get your arrogant little butt out there, and ski with me! Ha! Beat that Recca! You boasted that you were an expert skiier.  Now, you would have to prove it!”
 “Oh, c’mon, Fuuko.  We were both skiing that year.  You did see me ski.. didn’t you?” Recca said.
 “Yeah.” Fuuko said slowly.  “But then still.  Let’s see if we’ve improved or gone worse.  It’s just like practice in fighting, Recca.  How you and I spar together.  It’s nothing, I bet.”
 “Yeah.  It’s nothing.  And I’m gonna beat your head off on the skiing competition between you and me next week! Hey, wanna come over?” Recca said.
 “Umm..  I’ve got the colds.  Why don’t you come over and be a gentleman for once, huh?” Fuuko said, sniffing.
 Recca sighed.  “OK, OK! I’ll come over there.” He said.  “Are your parents there?”
 “Nope.  They went for a drive for I don’t know what reason.”
 “OK, I’ll be right there in about ten minutes.” Recca said.
 “Oki, doki! See ya!”
 After exactly ten minutes of waiting there was a knock on the door.  Fuuko excitedly opened it.  OK, so Recca was her crush.  She liked him.  They were best friends.  But then she acts normally around Recca, unlike her previous crushes, which she’s shy to talk to.  But with Recca, she can do anything she wanted in front of him, whether or not it’s embarrassing.
 “Hey there, Recca! Come on in!” Fuuko said, her voice sounding weird because of the cold she had.  Hmm.. he awfully looks cute in that blue pants and red coat.  Fuuko thought.
 “Hiya Fuuko!” Recca greeted.  “I brought you some chocolates I was able to dig in from the fridge.”  He handed her two boxes of them.
 Fuuko received them.  “Thanks.” She said, then sniffed, her nose making a sound.
 “Man, that cold is getting worse!” Recca exclaimed, pushing Fuuko down to the sofa.  “Just sit there.  I’ll get you some hot tea before you get sick.”
 “It’s OK, Recca.” Fuuko said getting up from the sofa.  “I can do this myself.  It’s not like I’m paralyzed.  I’m fine.  It’s just a cold.”
 Recca pushed her back, and she flopped back on the couch.  “It’s not just a cold.  A cold could get worse you know! Who knows.  You can have a fever any minute now! Then we can’t race together!”
 “Oh yeah! Darn it!” Fuuko said.  “Fine! Be my slave until I feel better!”
 “Huh!? No fair!” Recca whined.
 “Hey, hey, hey!!!” Fuuko said starting to relax on the couch.  “You’re the one who wanted me to get well so we can race!”
 “Fine!” Recca said in defeat.  He made his way to the kitchen and came back with two cups.  “Here’s your tea, my Queen.” He said bowing.
 “Why thank you, my servant!” Fuuko replied.  “Just kidding, Recca.  Thanks.”

* A few days later *

 A few days later, Fuuko decided to go to the skiing slopes with Domon, Recca, Kaoru Koganei, who controls the Adamantine Blade, element of Metal, and Tokiya Mikagami, one of the Hokage members who controls the Ensui, element of water.
 “Hey Domon! I’ll go practice how to ski so I’d be better than Recca and win versus him, OK? I’ll be back in a few minutes.  Just wait for me here.” Fuuko told Domon Ishijima, her other best friend who is also one of the Hokage members, controling Ring of Saturn, element of Earth.
 “But then Fuuko, you’re still sick!” Domon told her.
 “I’m fine, Domon! Really.  I am.” Fuuko said assuringly.  “I’m fine.  I mean, don’t you think it would be unfair for me if you, Tokiya, Kaoru, and Recca go skiing but me, just because I’m sick.  Why do you think I insisted on coming here the first place? No one could change my mind once it’s made up.  Too bad for you guys.”
 “You’re still sick, Fuuko.  You have fever.” Recca said.
 “So? It’s just slight!”
 “It’s gonna get worse, Fuuko, I mean, no one knows.” Tokiya said.
 Tokiya, Kaoru, and Domon looked at Recca, knowing that he was the only one who could change her mind, and he knew it himself.  But all he gave them was shrug.
 “I do what I want to do, and no one can change my mind.” Fuuko snapped, and headed for the slopes with her skis.
 The others watched Fuuko and the others disappear as they have gone on to ski as well, which left him there standing, and being the last one to go.  Everyone knew Recca was the only person who could actually “control” Fuuko if she allowed to be, which seldomly happens.  But then he wanted to Fuuko to learn a lesson.  When she’s lying down sick in bed, he’d tease her and say: ‘That’s what you get for not listening to me and the others, Fuuko! See what happened now?’  Oh yeah! It would be fun teasing Fuuko.  After putting on his goggles he sped down to the steep slope and followed the others.

 It was getting dark, and the others were wondering where Fuuko and Tokiya were.  They’ve been waiting for them for a few minutes now, but they never showed up.
 “Don’t you think they would have noticed how late it was already?” Kaoru asked.
 “I guess so.  But I still don’t know what’s taking them so long.” Domon said.
 “What if something bad happened to them?” Kaoru asked.  “With Fuuko’s health condition, who knows what would happen to her.  She isn’t strong when she’s sick, you know?”
 “I guess you have a point.” Recca said.  “Where are they? It’s getting darker!” But then he wasn’t scared yet.  If Fuuko and Tokiya were together, there wasn’t anything to worry about.
 “Hey you guys!”
 “Huh?” Kaoru asked surprised.  “That’s Mikagami’s voice! Maybe Fuuko’s with him!”
 Tokiya appeared slowly until he reached them.
 “Hey! You’re alone!” Domon said pointing at him.
 “Ummm.. yeah.  I am.  Why?” Tokiya asked.  “Hey, there’s someone missing.”
 “Yeah, Fuuko.” Recca replied.
 “Where is she?” Tokiya asked.
 “What?!” Recca said.  “I thought she was with you.”
 “With me? Why?” Tokiya said.
 “Well--ummm...” Recca stammered.  “You--you guys skiied together, so I thought you were together.”
 “Well, we’re not.” Tokiya uttered.  “We went our separate ways after.”
 That was the answer Recca was afraid to hear.  It immediately made Recca’s heart beat one million times faster.  “Darn! How are we supposed to look for her now!? In this darkness?! And she’s sick!”
 “But then she insisted.” Kaoru reasoned.
 “Yes! I know! But then I could have stopped her.” Recca’s voice raised, and sounded panicky.  “Everyone knew I was the only one who could stop her! I’m looking for her if it’s the last thing I do.” He headed downhill before either of the other guys stopped him.
 Kaoru narrowed his eyes.  “The guy is obviously in love.” The rest of the guys just nodded their heads in agreement.

 Recca removed his skiies and carried them, deciding to walk.  He looked around him in case Fuuko might be somewhere near him.  He made up his mind that she wasn’t.  I hope she hasn’t gone far.  Recca said to himself.  Fuuko! C’mon! Where are you! He walked a few more steps, calling Fuuko’s name as loud as he could.  Finally, he wore off, and screamed his loudest scream, “Fuuko!! Where are you! Answer me!”
 It was late at night already.  A few hours have already passed, and snowflakes started dropping from the sky.  The snow reached Recca’s knees, and he was getting sleepy, but he’s not sleeping until he finds Fuuko.  He was ready to collapse.  He was tired, and needed to rest.  No! I’m not.  I’m not resting until I find her.  Recca thought to himself.  His eyesight got used to the darkness, so he could quite see.  Suddenly, he saw a familiar figure lying on the snow.  Recca felt his heart stop for second.  “Fuuko!” He whispered.  He ran to her.  Fuuko was covered with snow, and nearly frozen.
 Recca lifted Fuuko’s head gently.  She was pale.  “She must have fainted from how cold it was.” Recca said to himself.  He took one of his coats off and put it around her.  He noticed that she still had her skis on, and took them off.  He looked around them to find his way back.  Maybe he could carry her home.  But something else shocked him.  His heart beated twice as fast.  He hated to say this, but he was lost.

 “It’s getting late, and Recca’s not back with Fuuko yet.”  Kaoru said.
 “We noticed.” Domon mumbled.  “What are we supposed to do now? We can’t just stay here all night and freeze to death!”
 “Why don’t we just come back tomorrow and look for them.” Kaoru suggested.
 “No.” Tokiya shook his head.  “We’re looking for them now.  Let’s split up.”
 The others agreed and went their separate ways.

 Recca looked around him nervously, and thought he saw a cave, and decided to bring Fuuko and himself in for safety for the night.  He carried her slowly and gently in his arms and made his way inside the cave.  Luckily, there were some fire wood, and he rubbed the wood together to make fire.  He glanced at Fuuko who was peacefully lying still on the cold floor.
 I never knew she looked this pretty while she’s sleeping.  Recca said inside him.  I can’t believe I never actually noticed her until I’ve been this close.  And I’ve known her all my life.  He reached out to touch her cheek.  It was smooth, and cold.  Suddenly he felt drowsy himself, and slept after a few minutes.

 Fuuko’s eyes opened.  She looked around her.  “Where am I?” She asked herself.   She was surprised to see Recca sleeping beside her, his arm around her.  “Recca?”
 Recca woke up and sat up.  “Fuuko! Boy, am I glad you’re awake!”
 “Umm... I don’t feel so good.” Fuuko said.  “My head hurts.  Where are we?”
 “I, hate to break this to you, Fuuko, but...” Recca paused.  “To tell you the truth... I don’t know where we are.”
 “What?”
 “Remember yesterday, we went skiing?” Recca asked.  “You were missing and I was looking for you.  I found you lying on the snow.  You fainted, and it was too dark to see, I can’t find my way back, and I saw this cave and brought you here.”
 “You mean this was all my fault? I did this?” Fuuko asked.  Her voice sounded hurt and guilty.  “I can’t believe this!”
 Tears rushed down Fuuko’s face.  Recca hasn’t seen Fuuko cry in a long time, since that barely happens.  “Hey, it’s not your fault.” Recca said, pulling her into a hug.
 “Yes, it is!” Fuuko insisted.  She pulled away from Recca.  “This wouldn’t have happened to us if it weren’t for me.  And now, look at us.  We’re in this.. this.. cave! LOST! Waiting for someone to find us! Starving to death!” She wiped her tears violently and stopped crying.  “And you,” She said angrily.  “Why did you have to look for me? Look what you’ve gotten yourself into! Now you’ve made yourself lost as well.”
 “It’s better than leaving you out there in the cold to rot!” Recca said patiently.
 “I don’t wanna die, Recca!” Fuuko cried.  “I’m too young to die.  And I don’t have any plans to die like this.”  She herself can’t believe shes’s acting like some helpless girl.  “I’m going out there and finding myself some food, and who knows! I can find my way back home.”
 “No, you can’t Fuuko! You’re sick!”
 “So??”
 “So?” Recca said, his voice slightly rising. “That’s it? So? You don’t even care about your life, do you? You’ve come all the way to being 19 years old! And you’ll just stop right there? You don’t have any plans in dying of hunger.  Do you have any plans of dying because your sick and stubborn?!”
 “Ever since when have you cared for my life?” Fuuko snapped.
 “Ever since the day you and I became friends.” Recca said.
 “Yeah right!”
 “Fine! Don’t believe me!” Recca said.  “Just relax, OK? If we go to another place that would lessen the chances of them finding us.  I’m sure Domon and the others are looking for us.  Just wait for a few hours.”
 “I’m hungry.” Fuuko said calming down.
 Recca rubbed her back so she could relax.  “So am I.  Just wait a few more hours.  Just be patient.”
 Recca put his arm around Fuuko and she rested her head on his shoulder.  Recca kissed her forehead and smiled at her.  “Don’t worry.  We’ll be OK... I promise...”
 Fuuko looked up at him.  “Are you sure?”
 Recca nodded.
 “He--” Recca and Fuuko said at the same time.
 “You go first.” Recca said.
 Fuuko blushed, and Recca seemed to have noticed it.  “What’s wrong?”
 “Well, it’s just that... there’s something I wanted to tell you, but then something just told me not to.” Fuuko said quietly.
 “What is it? I can’t read your mind, Fuuko, remember?” Recca said.  “What is it? Just tell me.  It’s not like I’d freak when I hear it.”
 “OK.  Here goes nothing.” Fuuko shut her eyes tight, and opened them slowly.  She said as fast as she could,  “I have to tell you this, ‘cuz it has been stuck in my head for a really long time, and I need to let it out.  Recca, I... I... love you.  I know this must be a shocking moment, but I can’t hold it back any longer! I have to tell you! And about Yanagi? I don’t care! I don’t care! Domon told me that if you love someone, you have to say it right there, out loud.  Otherwise, the moment just passes you by.  I’ve--I’ve loved you ever since I was old enough to know what love meant.  And I don’t care if you’d hate me after hearing me say this, because I really don’t.  The most important thing i---” Recca’s mouth on hers interrupted what she was saying.  AARRGGHH!! Oh my gosh! Fuuko was screaming inside herself.  Recca’s kissing me.  He’s actually kissing me!  She closed her eyes slowly and kissed Recca back, they both pulled away.  Fuuko’s mouth was slightly open from the shock.
 Recca looked at Fuuko’s surprised face.  She brought two of her fingers and touched her lips.  He looked down at her, and slightly shook her.  “Are you OK?”
 Fuuko slowly nodded.  “I’m... I’m just amazed.  I.. I just needed a few seconds to... umm.. to... recover.”  After a few seconds she looked up at Recca, and smiled.  “Hi.”
 Recca gave her a gorgeous smile, which made her knees buckle.  “Hey.” He whispered huskily in her ear, which tickled her.  Fuuko never knew she could actually be a softy when it came to love, or to Recca Hanabishi.  She was inexperienced, obviously! OK, so guys liked her, but then since she was such a toughy, they avoided her, just for playing safe, but the fact was they drool over her.  They worshiped her like as if she was really a Goddess.
 “So where do we start from here?” Fuuko asked.
 “Why,” Recca started, putting his arms around Fuuko’s waist.  Fuuko put her arms around his neck.  “don’t we start... let’s see...” he narrowed his eyes, the way he always does when he pretends to think hard.  ”going out.” he finished.  “What do you think?”
 Fuuko blushed.  “Sure.  I guess.  I don’t know any better way to start off than that.  But let’s make a deal.”
 “OK.”
 “Don’t interrupt me while I’m speaking!” Fuuko said.
 “Sorry.” Recca said quietly.  “Will this be able to make you forgive me?” He pulled her closer and kissed her again.

 “Hey you guys! They might be there!” Tokiya pointed to the cave.  He skied ahead, and Domon and Kaoru just followed him.
 “Hey you--oo--oo....” Kaoru trailed off.  He looked behind him, and saw that Tokiya’s and Domon’s faces were surprised, just like his, and their mouths were slightly open.  “Umm... maybe, we shouldn’t interfere, since some people seem to be doing something private!”
 Fuuko and Recca stopped what they were doing and looked at Kaoru, and turned beet red.
 “Looks like somebody is in love with somebody!” Kaoru sang out laughing his head off.  “Somebody’s in love with somebody!!!!”
 “You guys found us!” Recca exclaimed.  “How?”
 “It took us a pretty long time.  We’re about an hour and a half away from home, and we better hurry up before our parents get all worried.” Domon said.
 “Yeah, we better go.”
 “Hmm.... I can see you the two of you had quite a great time getting lost.” Tokiya murmured.
 “Shut up, Tokiya! Stop teasing!” Fuuko said.
 “I’m gonna race you tomorrow, Fuuko! Nothing’s gonna change that! And I’m still gonna beat you!” Recca said sticking his tongue out at Fuuko.
 “Says who!?” Fuuko exclaimed.
 “Says me!” Recca answered boastfully.
 “Why you... LITTLE SNAKE!!!” Fuuko chased after Recca, who skied as fast as he could.  “I’ll get you Recca Hanabishi! I swear I will get you!”
 “Even if those two were on, something tells me they could never stop fighting about things.” Tokiya shook his head slowly.
 “Yeah.” Domon and Kaoru agreed.  “But, you know what they say: The More You Hate The More You Love.”

THE END
The story sucks, doesn’t it?
Sorry.... Please accept
my deepest and most sincere apologies. ^.^

© 2002 ReccaLovesFuukoFanfics by Yuki Okudera
who, under the pen name Fuuko Hanabishi.  All rights reserved.