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*_* MARMALADE MERCURY *_*EP 15b: IMPACT OF A CONFESSION - HOW LONG WILL THIS HAPPINESS LAST? |
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<commercial break; Ami, Greg and Urawa skating, they trip over Ami's computer>
“There is a small lady in our living room.”
Ami turned away from their new house guest, to see Greg standing in the doorway. She offered him a wan smile. “Observant. This is Chibi-Usa, that cousin of Usagi’s that I mentioned? She was waiting for me after juku. She wanted to stay over, to give Usagi a break. I might have encouraged the behaviour, having offered her ice cream earlier... it was shortly after I told the others about my scholarship. I hope this isn’t a problem?”
Greg shrugged, peering at the pink haired girl.
Chibi-Usa’s eyes narrowed. “You better be a sound sleeper,” she asserted.
“Oh-Kay, whatever,” Greg said. He looked back at Ami. “Just so you know, everything’s confirmed with Kaijin. It’ll be tomorrow, before your juku. Though if you’re not free, don’t even worry about it, since now that your friends know about Germany, I bet they’ll insist on having some sort of..."
“I’ll tell them no,” Ami insisted. “I don’t really want a gathering anyway, and besides, what’s happening with you tomorrow is more important.” She smiled at him.
And Greg’s cheeks coloured slightly, as they had the previous day. Ami found herself wondering if that’s what she looked like when she got embarrassed.
It WAS kind of cute.
“Wow. Thanks. Uhh, as to, er..." He faltered, and his gaze drifted back towards Chibi-Usa.
“If you hear anything in the middle of the night, don’t even bother checking!” Chibi-Usa said.
“Let’s talk another time,” Greg sighed, rolling his eyes as he turned to head upstairs. “Maybe I can walk with you to your juku tomorrow.”
*****
“I suppose you’re wondering why I asked you to meet me here, a little before Greg would arrive?” Kaijin asked. He was leaning up against a post in front of his house, smiling at her as she walked up.
Ami shrugged. “I assumed it was--"
“I heard that Mamoru guy broke it off with Usagi,” Kaijin continued blithely, shrugging his arms out to the sides. “Something about her father not approving? And Mamoru apparently preferring a clean break when it comes to romantic relationships? Therefore, I figured, as Usagi’s friend, you’d be a good person to gauge my chances on the rebound.”
Ami felt her eyebrow twitching. “Zero.”
Kaijin shook his head. “No, no, think about this! I’m not saying I’d make a play for her right away, Usagi obviously needs some time, some space. But how long do you figure I should wait, before I distract the lovely girl from her misery with my mastery of card tricks? A couple more days? A week?”
“Zero chance,” Ami repeated. She turned away. “I’ll wait for Greg at the end of the street.”
“Fine, understood, I’ll back off Usagi,” Kaijin sighed. “As an alternative, want to talk about how I knew Greg was my brother?”
Ami froze mid-stride. Somewhat against her better judgement, she turned back. He was grinning at her again. Baiting her. But she had to know. “I’m listening,” she yielded.
Kaijin took a moment to check that there was nobody around who might overhear, and even then he lowered his voice. “I ended up reading my mom’s private diary years ago. Kind of accidental, she was hiding it from my father in plain view, on a bookshelf. She’d suspected him of infidelity, you see, and had been trying to track down the first case, which she believed had involved a pregnancy.”
“Greg’s mom?” Ami hypothesized, off of Kaijin’s hesitation.
Kaijin nodded. “Right. Of course, she’d left Japan, so that trail was a dead end. On the face of it. I was a little more persistent, as the idea of having a sibling intrigued me. I even travelled to Canada, under pretext of a vacation, to run down some leads. You ever been to Ottawa?”
Ami shook her head.
“It’s a nice place.” Kaijin clasped his hands behind his head. “I’d wow you with my detective skills, but suffice to say, I met his mom. Greg was apparently in England at the time, so I never met him. Only saw a picture. But when he turned up here? At first, I thought he’d followed me back.” Kaijin shook his head. “Instead, he never even knew that I’d been to his hometown.”
“And you never told your parents about what you’d learned?” Ami wondered.
Kaijin looked thoughtful. “Nah, they’d kind of patched things up that year, and I didn’t want to rattle the cage.”
Ami pursed her lips. “So do you think your dad will admit to --"
“Hi Greg!” Kaijin said, waving.
Ami flinched, looking over her shoulder to see Greg approaching.
“So, yeah, Ami, give my apologies to your friend Makoto for my attitude last Sunday at the Game Centre, okay?” Kaijin concluded, pushing away from the post. “I don’t want her saying anything bad about me on Umino’s show tomorrow.”
“I... y-yeah,” Ami stammered out.
It was time for Greg’s confrontation. Part of her wished that she and Greg had been able to talk about the implications of a relationship before this. She hoped there would be time later. Because of how she was leaving tomorrow...
“You ready for this?” Kaijin asked, clapping Greg on the shoulder.
“I don’t know,” Greg admitted. “But let’s do it anyway.”
*****
Ami sat quietly to the side as Greg laid out the evidence for Kaijin’s dad, supported by interjections from Kaijin himself. The man listened to them, his face inscrutable, until they finished. He then leaned forwards, and Ami realized that everyone, herself included, was holding their breath.
Which way would things go? As expected, following the path that had been laid out, or...
“You are completely mistaken,” Fushigi Taylor said to them. “I’m sorry to have to tell you this, but you’ve got the wrong man.”
Kaijin shook his head. “Dad, no, I saw the diary, I--"
“There WAS an incident around that time,” the elder Taylor admitted. “I’ll admit to that. But it was not with Greg’s mother. That is to say, I did take his mom out to dinner once or twice, but we never had THAT kind of relationship. So it’s just impossible.”
He looked at Greg.
“Are you certain that something happened with her while she was still in Japan? Because I didn’t see her dating anyone else either - isn’t it possible that she became pregnant right after her return to Canada?”
“No,” Greg said, slumping back in his chair. “I mean, I don’t know, but I thought... that is, my grandma was always a bit strange, but when I did the research on my dad not being my dad, it all pointed to... well, all these connections to Japan. From there, I...“
He pounded his fist against the arm of the chair, straightening again.
“No! I don’t understand. My life story feels like it makes more SENSE if I’m Greg Taylor, that HAS to be the truth!” He looked devastated.
Ami reached out to touch him on the leg, and he didn’t even seem to notice.
Kaijin coughed. “Sooo, dad, you admit there WAS an incident then?” he said, leaning in against his father’s desk and glaring. “What were you thinking? Look at what it’s spiralled into!”
“Yeah,” Mr. Taylor admitted. He scratched at the side of his face with his index finger and shrugged. “I guess I’m sorry?”
“So what do you intend to do about this now?” Kaijin demanded. “Greg’s become a close friend at the very least, so we should support--"
“Oh, leave it be,” Greg interrupted.
“Greg?” Ami murmured.
Greg rose to his feet. “Never mind. It doesn’t matter. What’s impossible is impossible, meaning it’s time to move on. Right?” He forced out a smile. “Thank you for meeting us, sir. I apologize about the misunderstanding.”
Mr. Taylor nodded, an uncertain look on his face. Kaijin looked frustrated, but for once he seemed to be at a loss for words. Ami hoped she at least looked supportive, but really, if she was off to Germany, of what use was she to Greg now?
Greg jerked his thumb at Ami. “Kaijin, pretend to be my brother for long enough to make sure she gets to her cram school safely? I’m going for a walk by myself.”
Ami watched Greg leave the room. She snapped her gaze back over to Kaijin. He stepped away from his father’s desk, tiling his head to the side.
“Well, well. I hate to disobey, but I think I’ll have to put the ball back in your court, Ami,” he remarked. “Did you want an escort to your juku? Or do you have better places to be?”
Ami felt her hands clench into fists. Damn it! Why did balls keep ending up in her court?! Urawa, Minako, Kaijin, Greg, and it always happened when there was no time to do a proper analysis. All she knew right now was the thing that she wanted to do the most...
So it was like Minako had said last weekend. Stop thinking, Ami, just act!
She wasn’t sure what expression she was making, but Kaijin simply nodded at her. Without a word, Ami ran out of the office, hoping it wasn’t too late to catch up to Greg.
*****
Greg hefted the stone in his hand and fired it out over the water. It didn’t skip at all. It sank like, well, a stone. He sat back down on the bank of the small lake and sighed.
“I think it’s time to go home now, Greg.”
He flinched, and looked over his shoulder. Ami was there, staring at him, her book bag clutched in both hands. “You’re supposed to be in class!” he protested.
She shrugged. “Surprise! I’m not.”
“What about your friends? Don’t you want to be with them before heading off to Germany tomorrow?”
"Yes." She stepped closer. “That’s why I’m here.”
He flinched again. And her image blurred a little. He quickly turned away, back towards the lake, wiping his arm across his eyes. “You knew I’d come back to this place, huh?”
“Actually, I followed you,” Ami admitted. “From Kaijin’s. But once I realized where you were heading, yeah, I knew. So I hung back, to give you some time. I’ve been watching you ever since.”
Seriously? He’d been here over an hour! “Oh. Sorry to bore you.”
“I wasn’t bored.”
She approached, and sat down next to him.
They remained that way for a short time.
“Know what?” Greg said at last, working at keeping his tone level. “With Kaijin not being my brother, and you leaving, it’s occurred to me that I have no reason to stick around. I might as well head back to Canada.” He chuckled. “I should probably tell Makoto in the morning. If she ends up debunking mysteries surrounding me on Umino’s show, along with her planned segment on explaining how to bake a cake, I’d hate to think she’d end up giving out false information.”
“Don’t worry! Makoto would never give out inaccurate cooking information,” Ami assured him. “She even helped me make your cake that one weekend.”
“Ami, I didn’t mean about the cooking, I meant--" He stopped, because as he turned to look at her, he saw she was grinning at him. “I feel like I have been a bad influence on you.”
She laughed then, and it was joyous. “I think it’s been more the other way around,” she said, nudging at his side. “Getting you to spill all of your secrets to someone, instead of deflecting all the time? My, my, what HAVE you become, Greg Anderson?”
He chuckled. “Beats me. A better person, we can hope?” he said, offering up a wry smile. Now he couldn’t stop looking at her. “I guess there’s just something about you, Ami. It’s like, I didn’t even know I was lonely, until I saw your face. Do you know you’re not simply the first girl I ever kissed, you’re also the first girl I confessed to?”
Her eyes got a bit wider. “Wait, what? When did you ever say...?"
He stretched his arms out back behind himself. “That day at the amusement park. Right after we ran into Minako.”
~~~~~
"You were the first girl I ever actually kissed,” Greg clarified airily. “And I didn't expect you to be awake."
Ami felt her body turning to jelly. How could he just toss that out so calmly?? "Then you admit... you actually... you... WHY?" she demanded, forcing out the question that had been plaguing her all week.
Greg quirked an eyebrow at her. "Why do you think, Ami-chan? Obviously because I LIKE you," he declared with a shrug.
~~~~~
Without warning, she slugged him hard in the arm.
“Ow! Hey, what was that for?” Greg protested, straightening himself and reaching up to rub the point of impact.
“I thought you were JOKING back then,” Ami said. Her obvious irritation was somewhat muted by the cute way she was scrunching up her nose. “That’s not how a normal boy would confess!”
“Yeah, well, I think we’ve covered how my life has been about withdrawing from getting to know anybody that well?” he protested. “Includes ignoring certain social norms. I mean, at this point you DO know that I’m not normal, right?”
“Yeah, well, is anyone?” Ami sighed.
They both looked back out at the lake.
Then, “Greg? I like you too. A lot. To the point of... love.”
His heart soared. He looked at her sidelong, and noticed she was biting her lip. Even when she looked hesitant, she still looked amazing.
“It’s just, with me leaving everybody tomorrow, yourself included..."
His emotional roller coaster plunged back into a downwards direction. “I get it,” he said. He reached out tentatively for her with one hand.
She met him halfway, and their fingers entwined.
He swallowed. “So even though we care for each other, I suppose, in a way, this is our goodbye? Because I don’t think I’ll have it in me to see you off at the airport. Sorry. But I bet all your friends will be there anyway, so it’d just be weird with me too.”
“I’m okay with weird. But I also kind of understand. Do tell me that we’ll at least keep in touch?”
He nodded. “Oh yeah. I hope so.”
Looking at her now, he realized the lump in his throat wouldn’t clear, despite repeated swallows.
“The sucky thing is,” he admitted, “after a day like today? I’m really torn now on whether to deflect by trying to skip another stone, or completely break down crying in an uncharacteristic show of vulnerability.”
Ami squeezed his hand. “If it helps, someone once told me that the trick to skipping stones is to relax. To ease up, and act more by instinct.”
“Well, damn. That makes me want to go for the crying,” Greg murmured, even as her image blurred before his eyes again.
Before he knew it, he’d buried his head in her shoulder. He didn’t know which of them initiated the full embrace, but he was glad for it.
It was unclear to him how long they remained that way, curled up against each other, but at some point, once he was emotionally spent, she again suggested that they return home. That time, he didn’t protest.
The last time he saw Ami was the following day. When she left their school. Heading home, get her things.
Which would be followed by her trip to the airport. And her flight to Germany. Suspending, or more likely ending, whatever relationship it was that they seemed to have created together.
Or so he THOUGHT...
*****
“Your story’s not over yet. Meet me tonight at the Bob-Floy ice cream shop.”
Greg gave Urawa a skeptical look. “Why? You miss the boys love cooking exposé on Umino’s show today? I’m not interested in that kind of a relationship, least of all with you.”
“AFTER the shop’s closed, idiot,” Urawa said, rolling his eyes.
Greg scratched his head. “Right. Is this some trick to keep me from seeing Ami off? Because I already decided I wasn’t going to the airport.”
“No. This is because I owe you one,” Urawa said, crossing his arms.
“You owe me one?”
He nodded. “Yeah. Remember our chess match?” Urawa prompted. “With Sewaya? You won your games, I did horribly, and yet you gave me the benefit of the doubt in the last round. So I owe you for that. There’s also the fact that I wouldn’t be here now without your darn speech, and I guess I’ve even also come to realize you’re maybe not that bad of a guy. So, your story with Ami? It’s not over. Not unless you say it is, once I’ve provided you with the missing piece.”
“Uh, okay then. What piece is this about?”
“I only saw one particular scene,” Urawa admitted. “So that’s all I can share. And unfortunately, I haven’t been able to speak about this with Minako yet, owing to her freaking out more than a little ever since Artemis went missing yesterday... but I feel like I’m doing the right thing here.” He leaned in. “So. Will you meet me, or not?”
He did meet Urawa. Greg wasn’t sure why he did, but he did.
And when Urawa said that they had to conceal themselves from view, it made even less sense, but he went along with it. Even when they saw Ami, running down the alleyway at a time when she should have been boarding her plane, he still didn’t get it. Not until...
“Mercury Star Power, Make Up!”
Sailor Mercury disappeared around the corner of the ice cream building.
And Greg finally remembered how to blink.
“Okay. That was a thing,” he said.
“That’s why she stayed,” Urawa said. “To be clear. I mean, maybe part of it was you, but really, that’s why. And if you change your mind about returning to Canada, to stay with her? You’ll be in the thick of whatever this is that’s starting up.”
He leaned in close.
“So. Greg. Do you think you’re up to helping me support Ami from the sidelines? Or are you going to wimp out instead?”
“A-Ah. Only from the sidelines, huh?”
“They fight. We don’t. That’s how it works. Maybe it’s even part of the reason I ran away from her once, worrying that there would come a day when I’d have another vision of...” Urawa sighed, and rubbed his forehead. “Look, this is an exclusive club of people in the know. If you’re in, fine, but if you’re out, you’re better to be out-of-Japan out. There really isn’t a middle ground.”
Greg nodded. “Meaning, if I stay, I’ll have to tell her what I saw here.”
“Yeah, no kidding! I’d hurt you if you weren’t truthful with Ami after this. And while we’re on the subject, something else I’ve seen, which you two need to talk about? That charm you were playing with last weekend.”
Greg frowned. “Given your sudden insights, I’m surprised I ever got the upper hand.”
Urawa smiled wryly. “We can only play based on how the chess board is set up.” He stood. “Pretty sure I have my answer. Our debts are square now. Know that if you screw up, I’ll still be here. Consider that a warning.”
He gave Greg a salute, and then turned and walked away.
*****
Ami tried to open her front door as quietly as she could. She crept inside, hauling along the luggage that she’d retrieved from Mamoru’s car after their battle. If Greg was already asleep, she didn’t want to wake him.
She needed time to come up with a good reason for staying in Japan. A plausible reason, one that wouldn’t jeopardize whatever the two of them had, one that wouldn’t make HER the one with the horrible secret from now on...
The living room light clicked on. He was staring at her from across the room.
“Greg!” Ami gasped. She looked down at her suitcase. “It’s so silly, I realized I forgot something, so I--"
“Yup, I was right,” Greg interrupted. “You’ve got that bitter secrets look again... Marmalade Mercury.”
Her grip tightened. MERCURY? No way could he mean...
He smiled at her. “Urawa... was maybe right about my habit of having the worst timing. I happened to be near the ice cream shop at the right time to see you transform.”
Ami dropped her case entirely, jumping toward him. “But I didn’t see anyone there? And you’ve got it wrong anyway. And you can’t tell anyone! Oh, Greg, I don’t want you hurt,” she gasped, her thoughts a mess of confusion as she seized him by the shirt.
He seemed startled for a moment, but then he simply reached out to take her by the shoulders. “Okay, Ami, first? Stay calm. I’m crazy out of my depth here, so I’ll follow your lead on everything. Second? I’m not upset. You obviously can’t print out laminated cards for people with your secret identity on them. In fact, if anything, I’m glad this kept you in Japan, within arm’s reach. Third?” He paused. “Those were real nice boots. I’d love to see you model them for me some time.”
Ami felt a heat rising in her cheeks. Which, despite the circumstances, made her feel like things were somehow normalizing between them. How could that be, with her Senshi identity on the line? “Are you finished?”
“Nearly. Fourth?” He pulled his hand away from her to reach into his pocket. And he pulled out the light blue temple charm with the two M’s and the small heart emblazoned on it.
What? How on earth had he snuck that away from her?! Ami quickly pushed her hand into her own pocket. Only to feel that the familiar circular object was still there.
“I ended up at this shrine,” Greg continued, looking at the medallion in his hand. “On the weekend before that chess match, where we all encountered Sewaya. While there, I got to talking with some dark haired girl, one of the shrine maidens I guess, and she gave me this temple charm. Supposedly it bonds people together if you put their picture inside, no matter the distance. Which, I know, that isn’t in any way scientific, and then with you leaving I thought, why should I even mention that I had the thing lest it freak you out, and hey, maybe it’s just a publicity stunt for said Shrine, but anyway, shortly after I got it I decided to..."
His voice trailed off. Because she had brought out the medallion’s twin. With her thumb, she flicked open the catch. Revealing his picture.
His eyes widened. And he did likewise.
Revealing a picture of her own face in his medallion.
Ami could scarcely believe it. It couldn’t be mere coincidence. Not something like this. It meant so much more. A tear blinked out of her eye as she embraced him.
“Know what?” Ami murmured by his ear. “Maybe, deep down, part of my uncertainty was a belief that nobody could really love me forever. Not given the whole Mercury part of my life. So, since Urawa knew from before, he was always in the running.”
His hands ran up and down her back. “Then all I can say is, I’m glad I’m a part of it now too,” Greg said. “Though, I guess I’m not totally sure that forever is what love’s all about? Because based on my history, it sure seems to me that it has its shares of ups and downs.”
He pulled back to look at her.
“I want to share that ride with you though, Ami Mizuno. If you’ll have me?”
Ami looked up at him. “Oh, I will. If you’re staying in Japan, despite how it played out about your dad?”
He nodded. “Yeah, I’m staying. Come what may, I’ll be here for you. Because I... I love you.”
She beamed at him, knowing her cheeks were tinting darker, and not even caring.
He coughed. “Actually, funny story? My first flight in, it ended up being a day earlier than when I’d said it would be. So, rather than disturb you and your mom, I got a hotel room and wandered around the neighbourhood. Meaning I actually saw you before we even met, at--"
Ami raised her finger to press it against his lips. “So talky all of a sudden. Perhaps social norms dictate leaving crazy stories for another time, after that confession?”
Greg nodded. “Sorry,” he continued as she pulled her finger back. “Just, nerves, I guess. Now that this relationship is a thing. Actually, are you sure you don’t want to hear about this commercial they’re shooting nearby, I was told it might..."
Ami laughed. This time, she cut Greg off with a kiss.
In the end, she didn’t know how long their happiness would last. But she intended to make the most of it, for as long it did... on this new pathway forwards, into the uncertain future.
<closing theme>
END SERIES
(Final Deconstruction Post to follow)
