The Sky and his Sun (KHR Fanfic R27)

Chapter VIII

Byakuran

— Five years later from present

"Shou-chan? Where are you right now? ... Oh... So we'll meet at that Japanese restaurant? ... Alright, see you later!" The purple eyes of the white-haired man sparkled as he talked to his university friend on the phone.

As he hung up and ended the call, a sakura petal landed on his phone. Byakuran reached out to remove it before he returned his phone into his suit pocket. It was spring time in Japan, and sakura trees lined the park Byakuran was crossing through in full bloom.

The sakura petals were falling and flew with the wind. One could easily reach out one's hand to catch them, and Byakuran thought that his hair and clothes were probably covered in petals by then.

He checked his watch and then continued to walk. There was still some time before meeting up with his friend, Irie Shoichi. Irie wanted to return to his home during spring break, and Byakuran thought it was a good idea to visit Japan while meeting up with Irie.

Byakuran had to admit that the scenery wasn't so bad after all. He had always loved flowers, and loved the meanings behind them.

Perhaps he should find a bench to rest and watch the sakura. He spotted a bench in front, and although there was already someone sitting on it, there was space for two.

He walked closer, and noticed that the boy who was sitting on the bench had fallen asleep, his head nodding, with a load of sakura petals on his spiky brown hair.

Byakuran found his innocent sleeping face to be fitting to the peaceful background behind him. He watched the boy's chest expand and relax as he inhaled and exhaled, and didn't quite understand what fascinated him that made him unable to move his eyes away from the boy.

Something compelled Byakuran to bend down and reach his hand out to take the sakura petals from the brown silky hair. Byakuran was able to grab a single pink petal in his hand, and it was probably as soft as the boy's hair.

Sakura... The flower language of sakura in Japan was kind and gentle, and it was also known to be fleeting and short-lived. Just like the boy in front of him, his pale skin and peaceful countenance seemed as if they were going to fade into the background and disappear along with the flower petals.

Byakuran wanted to reach out to obtain another petal, but stopped in mid-motion as the boy suddenly opened his eyes and moved away from the hand.

"Who are you?" The boy demanded.

Byakuran grinned and asked back, "Who are you?"

The teenager frowned, and Byakuran thought that he was in fact pouting adorably. "I asked you first."

"I'm Byakuran. Nice to meet you." Byakuran held out his hand for him to shake.

"You can call me Tsuna." The boy replied, staring at the outstretched hand, but eventually took the offered hand.

"Do you know me?" Tsuna questioned, and paused for a little while, as if debating whether or not to ask the next question. "Are you a... creep, uh, I mean stalker, uh no, hmm..." He blinked at Byakuran to gauge his response, then muttered under his breath, "How do I phrase this nicely..."

Byakuran let out a laugh. "No, no, it's not what you're thinking. I'm just visiting Japan, and it's our first time meeting. I just saw there are sakura petals on your hair and wanted to brush them off."

"Uh... Okay? Thanks?" Is it really normal to touch the hair of a stranger? Maybe that's what foreigners do in their country? Huh, what, hadn't I live in Italy too? I'm pretty sure that wasn't a normal thing...