My Favorite
AUTHOR'S NOTE: GTO rules in all ways. The manga is fantastic and the
anime is spectacular and after reading/watching the storyline dealing
with Tomoko and Miyabi I just had to write a fic for them. They're such
a couple.
For as long as Miyabi could remember she had been popular. It was a part
and a parcel of her life, just like the height of her body or the color
of her hair. She accepted it and never thought much about it. People
liked her and wanted to be her friend, that was that. She never
considered the why and how of the matter.
Until that phone call.
That one meaningless, stupid, and random phone call. Why should it
change everything so much? What did she care if she was Tomoko's
favorite person anyway? She didn't need clumsy and slow but at the same
time unbelievably gentle and sweet Tomoko. So what if she was her oldest
friend? The one person who probably knew her best, her family included.
She didn't need her, she was popular after all. Everyone in school
wanted to be her friend.
And yet the phone call remained. Always lurking in the back of her mind.
The sound of Tomoko's voice, echoing softly, speaking of how she had
never left. How she would stay with her until the end. That she was her
favorite not because of the reasons the others liked her. Not because
she was cool or her parents had money but something that she hadn't
mentioned. Something she couldn't say in that phone call.
Something that haunted Miyabi endlessly. It shouldn't though. She knew
she shouldn't care about Tomoko. God, she tried to not care about
Tomoko. When they had gotten to Junior High their friendship had still
been intact. That was before Miyabi learned to subtly care what others
thought of her. To care but act like she really didn't. Because caring
what others thought about you wasn't cool at all.
Miyabi, like all the arriving students, wanted to be cool more than
anything. She longed for acceptance within her new ranks and it didn't
escape her that Tomoko was holding her back. The others admired her,
liked her, but they couldn't understand what she saw in Tomoko and told
her that repeatedly.
They told her so often that eventually Miyabi herself forgot why she was
friends with Tomoko and when that happened they truly ceased to be
friends. Tomoko realized it herself but as much as it hurt she still
wanted to be with Miyabi and so she put up with the shabby treatment.
She let herself be ordered around like a servant by her former best
friend who had suddenly turned into a stranger.
Why had she done it?
Did it matter so much what the other kids thought of her? Did she let
their praise go to her head along with their insults against Tomoko? Or
did she simply lose sight of what really was the most important... the
most real thing in her life?
And was there any possible way could she fix it?
She didn't know but somehow, Miyabi felt drawn to try. That's why she
stood outside Tomoko's family restaurant, staring up at the sign and
trying to raise her courage to step inside. She knew what would await
her... happy greetings and compliments from Tomoko's family while they
insulted the other girl.
Once it had disgusted her. The cruel treatment of their child and
merciless lack of understanding for her small faults. To be honest, it
still disgusted her. Perhaps even more because she treated Tomoko just
as badly, if not more.
But when she pushed the door open and walked inside, she found the
restaurant bustling with activity as always but this time Tomoko was
sitting quietly at the front counter, studying what looked to be a
script and eating a bowl of ramen. The noise didn't appear to bother her
and she remained focused.
Until her father shouted a loud greeting to Miyabi. Then she saw the
script slip between slim fingers that shook ever so slightly before
Tomoko turned slowly in her seat to look her in the eyes. And as she
looked, Miyabi saw the confusion lurking in that light brown gaze. The
confusion and the happiness.
Even now Tomoko cared for her. It was truly baffling. What in the world
had she ever done to deserve such devotion of feeling? Surely she had
defaulted on all of that with her horrible actions involving the other
girl. Despite that thought, the driving force behind her visit, Tomoko's
phone call, rose up once more in her mind.
Whatever feelings Tomoko had for her now, Miyabi wanted to know what
they were. No more guessing, no more dancing around the issue, she
wanted to know what was in the other girl's heart and once she knew...
She would finally make a decision.
The walk over to Tomoko had to be the longest moment in her life thus
far. As she moved, she kept her eyes locked with Tomoko's, never
wavering and trying to read the reactions on her face. To get some hint
of what was to come so maybe, just maybe, she could stop the rapid beat
of her heart and still her nerves.
"Tomoko," she said as she reached her destination, averting her gaze
from the girl in front of her, unable to bear looking at her sweet
features any longer, "can we talk?"
Silence washed over them despite the hustle and bustle of the family
restaurant. If the walk had been endless then now Miyabi was in a
virtual vortex of missing time. Why was this so hard? Perhaps because of
the severity of her actions... the depth of just how wrong they were.
The worst you were, the harder it was to apologize.
"Of course, Miyabi-chan," said Tomoko finally, her voice soft, almost
apologetic in her use of the childhood nickname but unable to stop
herself from saying it in time. "Come on," she went on, standing up now,
"we'll go to my room." Leaning over the counter, a smile played on her
lips as she shouted loudly, "Papa? I'm going to my room! Miyabi-chan
wants to talk with me, okay? I'll help close later though!"
Returning from the depths of the kitchen, Tomoko's father arrived,
wiping his hands on a towel and grinning widely. "Don't worry about
that," he insisted, a look of pride on his features as he gazed at his
daughter. The expression took Miyabi by surprise. It was something that
she had never seen before in regards to Tomoko's family. "You just study
that script of yours, huh? After all," he chuckled, "I want to see my
little girl become a star."
"You're silly, Papa," laughed Tomoko, smiling as she picked up her
script.
"Just remember to buy your mother and me a fancy house some day!" her
father shouted out before returning to his tasks.
Miyabi trailed after Tomoko, in vague shock about the change in her
family. Things had improved that much? All because of one little
audition? Because of Onizuka? She had tried for years to get Tomoko's
family to appreciate her and all it took was a stupid audition and some
small time attention from the local entertainment community?
Quite suddenly, Miyabi felt sick to her stomach.
As if sensing her mood change, Tomoko turned to face Miyabi, sadness
covering her pretty features as she leaned back against her bedroom
door, closing it with a click. "I think they're more excited about my
new career than I am," she confessed quietly. "My brother said it's
perfect for me, that actresses aren't supposed to be bright. They just
have to look pretty and smile." Pausing for a moment, Tomoko looked off
to one side, her long hair masking her face as she gave a short laugh.
"Even I can do that."
"Are things better though?" Miyabi felt herself drawn to ask. She just
had to know, to have some assurance that things were in fact better for
Tomoko. It simply wasn't right for someone as kind as her to suffer as
much as she did.
"Yes," Tomoko replied, tilting her head and smiling at Miyabi, "much
better." Shaking her head, she laughed again and ran her fingers through
her hair as she crossed the room and sat on her bed. Miyabi watched as
she moved around until she was sitting cross legged, a position she knew
to be Tomoko's favorite. "It makes me sort of sad that they only care
because other people say I'm good at something but..." She sighed and
murmured, "Oh well. It doesn't matter. At least I can finally say I'm
good at something now."
"You were always good at something, Tomoko," said Miyabi in quiet but
forceful tones that caused the other girl to lift her head and look at
her. Taking a slow step towards the bed, she continued, "You were always
a good friend. Always. Even when I was so horrible to you..." Unable to
look at Tomoko as she felt her throat tighten and a wave of guilt wash
over her, Miyabi said hoarsely, "You stayed with me until I said not
to."
Tomoko was silent for a moment then she asked with guileless honesty,
"Why did you send me away, Miyabi-chan?"
"I don't know," said Miyabi, frustrated and ashamed with herself. She
released a shuddering breath then began pacing back and forth, careful
of the scattered action figures all over Tomoko's room. Several of which
she herself had given to the other girl when she discovered her
collection. "I just... I guess I just wanted to be popular. I wanted the
others to like me and everyone kept teasing me for being friends with
you. After awhile I somehow forgot why you were such a good friend and
I..."
"You told me to go away," Tomoko finished solemnly for her.
Wincing at the brutality of the words, Miyabi nodded her head. "I'm
sorry," she whispered in husky tones, her black hair hanging low on her
features, "I never should have listened to them, Tomoko. You're the only
one who probably even cares about me, you know? The others just like me
because of who they think I am or because my parents have money and I
dress nice. I don't know... I don't know why they like me. I don't know
why you like me. I'm..." Trailing off as she felt the emotion overcome
her, Miyabi released a choked sob. "I'm a terrible person."
There was only the sound of rustling bed sheets and then Miyabi felt
Tomoko's arms, strong but soft and always so gentle, surround her and
hold her close while she rested her chin on Miyabi's shoulder. Sighing
at the feeling, she relaxed into the other girl's arms. They used to do
this all the time. Hold each other when they were feeling bad or when
things just seemed hopeless. Just holding until it somehow got better.
"You're not terrible, Miyabi-chan," Tomoko murmured in her ear, her
breath softly whispering across Miyabi's skin, causing the other girl to
shiver at the feeling. "You could never be a terrible person. Because
you're my favorite."
"Why?" asked Miyabi, altogether tormented by this statement. How could
she possibly be Tomoko's favorite after everything she had done? She
knew she didn't deserve to be, so how could it be true? "Why would you
feel that way after how I've treated you?"
Mulling over the question, Tomoko released a huff of air that blew
Miyabi's black locks forward and she watched entranced as the silky
strands landed on her nose, tickling it and making her laugh. Feeling
those soft laughs shaking her body, Miyabi smiled and waited for the
answer, confident that eventually it would come and fearing the outcome
she knew somehow would arrive. That Tomoko would finally realize she
wasn't worth it. That she didn't deserve to be anyone's favorite.
Especially hers.
"I don't know," said Tomoko finally, her hands tracing up from Miyabi's
waist and onto the sides of her body, causing the other girl to tremble
in her grasp. Stopping on her shoulders, she gently turned Miyabi
around, looking into her fearful expression and soothing it with a
gentle touch, pushing long hair away from her face. "I just do. You were
the first person to be nice to me, Miyabi-chan. The first to want to be
my friend, the first to listen to what I had to say, and the first to
not laugh at what I did say. I'll never be able to forget that." Smiling
softly, she cupped Miyabi's cheek. "Never."
"Maybe you should," said Miyabi shakily, unnerved by the strength of
Tomoko's feelings for her and suddenly feeling quite scared. "I'll only
hurt you again."
Looking long and hard into Miyabi's eyes, Tomoko smiled and shook her
head. "No you won't," she murmured with a soft confidence. "You've
learned your lesson and so have I. Even if you are my favorite I would
never let you treat me that way again, Miyabi-chan. No matter how much I
love you."
"Tomoko," said Miyabi breathlessly, "I..."
"Shh," Tomoko whispered, pressing her hands gently on Miyabi's waist,
pulling the other girl up and against her until her hands rested softly
on her back, rubbing it in soothing circles as she held her close.
Rocking her to and fro as the sobs shook her body, everything in her
actions a calming influence. "It's all right. I promise."
Miyabi didn't know how long she cried but when she finally pulled away,
her eyes were red and her throat was sore and she felt suddenly
embarrassed by her uncharacteristic display of emotion. But that all
went away when Tomoko gently wiped her thumbs across tear streaked
features as she wore an expression of quiet understanding.
"This is why you're my favorite," said Tomoko softly, so softly that
Miyabi had to strain to hear her. "Because even though you're everything
I said you were, dependable, confident, brave, and smart, you never
really let it go to your head. You're still my little Miyabi-chan inside
who sometimes needs to be held as much as I do."
Smiling weakly, Miyabi eventually arched an eyebrow, her voice hoarse as
she said, "Little?"
"Well," Tomoko formed a mischevious expression as she looked from her
ample breasts to her friend's. "I am a lot bigger than you now."
Narrowing her eyes as Tomoko continued to smile larger and larger at
her, Miyabi pounced at the other girl, hands reaching out as she cried,
"That's it!"
A shriek rose up in the air as Tomoko dodged Miyabi's seeking fingers
until they both landed, tumbled together on her bed, Tomoko valiantly
trying to avoid Miyabi's tickling and failing horribly in her attempt.
But Tomoko gave as good as she got and soon they were both tangled in an
embrace of sorts as they laughed in each others arms.
Their laughter dying down, Miyabi smiled and hugged Tomoko to her as her
friend rested on top of her lightly. They remained that way for
countless moments until Tomoko pulled back, gazing down into Miyabi's
features and smiling. Studying Tomoko with an earnest gaze, Miyabi
pushed her friend's hair over her shoulder, only to have her hand trace
up to Tomoko's face and over full lips to feel their texture.
"Tomoko," said Miyabi quietly, looking up into wide brown eyes that
always looked at her so lovingly, "you're my favorite too. You always
have been."
There was a cry of surprise, a hint of tears, and then an overwhelming
burst of happiness as Tomoko leaned down towards her, resting her body
fully on top of Miyabi's as she met their lips in a kiss.
It was tender and hesitant at first, pressing against one another
softly, as if afraid the moment would disappear entirely, that it was
some sort of dream and any minute now they would wake up and be back
where they once were. Seperated by a sea of teenage confusion and the
game of popularity that had been thrust upon them.
But they didn't wake up and their kisses grew more and more confident,
until Tomoko gently pressed her tongue past Miyabi's lips, drunk from
the heat of her mouth and wanting more than anything to taste the person
who she cared for most. She tasted and she tasted again and as she did
Tomoko knew she would never have enough of this.
No matter what happened in the future, if her acting career didn't pan
out, if her family went back to hating her, if she got unpopular again
at school, none of that really mattered. As long as she had Miyabi with
her everything would be all right.
Because whenever she was with her favorite the world became perfect and
strangely enough, so did she.
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