Red-Haired Anita
"Hisami?"
The lone dark-haired girl looked up from her book, a little startled.
"Oh! Hello, Tohru dear," she greeted with a smile.
"Good book?" he asked a little awkwardly, hesitantly taking a seat next to her on the bench in the school courtyard.
"I've read it before," she admitted with a self-deprecating smile, blushing slightly and flipping the book shut. "But I always enjoy it every time I read it again. Have you read it?"
"Red-Haired Anne," he read slowly, peering at the cover. "Nope. Isn't it kind of girly?"
"It's about a girl, but I think anyone could enjoy it," Hisami replied hesitantly. "Anne is a really strong, determined, but very kind person."
"Like Anita," Tohru said flatly before he thought better of it, as he took in the slight blush that colored the girl's cheeks as she extolled the virtues of the star of her favorite novel.
"Exactly like Anita! She's the smartest girl in her school, and she's really athletic, too. All the other girls look up to her."
"Great."
"And Diana is her best friend. They're bosom friends."
Tohru choked slightly. Bosom friends! Just what kind of book was Hisami reading?!
"What the heck does that mean?!" he exclaimed.
Hisami hid a smile.
"It means a very, very important friend. Bosom friends care about each other more than they care about anyone else."
"Uh, right. Tell me more about Diana," he urged, hoping that this turn of conversation might not turn his face bright red with embarrassment.
"Well, Diana is quieter than Anne, and she sometimes gets in trouble because Anne doesn't always stop to think before she does something, but Diana doesn't get mad, because she always has fun, even when she and Anne get scolded. She's always a loyal friend, and she and Anne are always there for each other."
"Yeah, it sounds like you guys are the real life Anne and Diana," Tohru said, not particularly trying to keep the irritation or the faint trace of sadness out of his voice, as he began to rise from the bench.
"Yeah," Hisami said quietly. "But there's something that worries me."
The boy froze, and then sat down again.
"What's that?"
"Well...there's a boy that really likes Anne – his name is Gilbert – and he hurts her feelings by making fun of her red hair, and she decides not to forgive him for a long, long time."
"Okay…"
"But eventually, she forgives the boy, and they become really close friends. Almost even closer than Anne and Diana."
"Oh."
"Anne even marries the boy when she grows up!"
Tohru frowned.
"But wasn't Diana more important to Anne than anybody?"
"I think she still was more important to Anne than anybody when Anne got married," Hisami said slowly, looking down at her hands. "But I think that maybe Anne and Diana started being really important to each other in a different way when they grew up."
Both were silent for a moment, Hisami carefully not looking up as her eyes grew a little misty, and Tohru wracking his brains for something to say, and wondering again why the less selfish part of his brain wanted so badly for those two dumb girls to be happy together.
Particularly when he had a terrible case of what his grandma would have called 'puppy love' for one of those dumb girls.
Specifically, the dumb girl next to him, her large, soft brown eyes beginning to fill with tears.
Why did she seem to end up crying every time he got to talk to her alone for a minute?
"But Hisami, you're not actually Anne and Diana, you know," he finally said cautiously. "Just because Anne and Diana didn't like each other that way, it doesn't mean that you and Anita have to stop liking each other that way."
"I guess," she admitted, her tone doing nothing to convince Torhu that she particularly believed him.
He turned to face her, glaring.
"It's true! You're not some girl from a book; you're you! And Anita's not some girl from a book. She's Anita. You've got to decide how you're going to live by yourself instead of letting a book decide it for you just because you find a character that's a little bit like you."
"I know, Tohru. But…I guess I keep thinking about that boy that came the night our class camped out in the library. He and Anita seemed really close, didn't they? Maybe…"
"Maybe he's her Delbert or whatever?"
Hisami giggled softly, before her smile vanished again.
"Maybe."
Tohru cupped his chin in his hands and rested his elbows on his knees.
"Did Diana ever marry anybody?"
"Yeah. She married a boy named Fred," Hisami replied.
The boy nodded slowly, digesting this.
"It didn't seem like Anita liked anybody but you," he said hesitantly, cheeks growing brightly red.
Hisami ducked her head a little, her blush matching his.
"I'm glad you think so, Tohru."
"So even if Anne and Diana fell in love with other people, it doesn't mean that Anita's going to fall in love with some weird boy that shows up sometimes but doesn't go to classes."
"But…" Hisami sighed again. "Even if she doesn't like him now, she might like him more someday. Or she might like some other boy more someday."
"But you might like some boy someday, too," Tohru shrugged, before catching himself and gulping nervously as his blush returned in full force.
"I can't imagine ever liking someone more than Anita."
"And I bet she can't imagine ever liking someone more than you," Tohru shrugged, striving for nonchalance and willing his flaming face to cool a little.
"I hope not," Hisami said softly.
Then she looked up at the boy and smiled, a sweet, genuine smile, more cheerful than he had seen her since Anita had left for Hong Kong with her sisters. Tohru looked away quickly.
"Thank-you, Tohru," she said, giving his hand an impulsive squeeze.
"Yeah, sure," he mumbled, staring at his hand as though fascinated, as she stood and, with a wave, crossed the courtyard to the nearest door.
He watched her go, and then smiled a bit at the book lying, forgotten, on the bench beside him. He picked it up and slid it into his book bag to return during the next class.
"Hmph. At least Diana married Fred when she grew up."
End Notes: Hey, cool! The dub used "bosom friends" instead of "soul mates"! Still using Red-Haired Anne instead of Anne of Green Gables, because I still think that Hisami wouldn't know her favourite book as the latter. Just a personal preference thing. Well, dat's all, and thanks for readin'! :o)
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