salut et quoi de neuf (hi and what's new)! here we go - the final chapter. now, it's a lot longer than i planned, so i guess the author's note can be longer too. so, i tried as hard as i could to include/tie up everything. then, i realized that my style of writing drastically changed from the time between the first chapter to this one (i used something from the first chapter to tie this one to it - i hope you can notice it!). lastly, i did write a song called, Finale, and I will put it up on Mitsuki's Notebook soon. if anyone will be missing me after this story is complete - and i hope you do - i plan on writing another Full Moon fanfic (along with finishing Like Snow), or you can support my fictionpress account under the same name. i allow anonymous reviews there! i'll make a big list of who reviewed at the bottom. for now, read, review, and enjoy, s'il vous plaît!

disclaimer: i do not own full moon wo sagashite, but five-way echo and all new songs are mine

19. Reconstructing Crescendo

“Takuto…everything is so perfect!”

“I-I’m sorry…”

“Please wake up!”

Takuto awoke with a jolt almost like electricity, pulsing through his veins, spreading with the dull soreness. His hand rose up to lightly touch his head, as if he could quiet the memories. With blurry vision, he scanned his surroundings, discovering with a mix of disappointment and excitement, that he was indeed in a hospital bed hooked up to various machines and monitors.

It was dead quiet, tugging on Takuto’s mind when he had finally noticed that he was alone. There was no Meroko, no doctors, no nurses, and the most uncomfortable, no Mitsuki. The blinds still covered the windows, giving an isolated feeling to him while he waited in absolute silence for another living and breathing human being to come into contact with him. All he craved to find out that he wasn’t having another dream - or nightmare.

A nurse opened the door, light from the hallway streaming in after her, and another brightening sense - sound. Humming mixed with guitar strings were clearly detected in the air, and he almost sat up in bed, desperate to hear more.

“Ah ah ah - no you don’t,” the nurse gently scolded, poking him back down with one finger. She watched in amusement at his annoyed face, and the pain that accompanied his sudden movement. “Takuto, would it hurt you too much to stay in bed for one more day?” The bubbly-attitude nurse unwrapped a few bandages, inspecting some injuries of concern.

“Yeah, it could,” he answered, wincing when her fingers brushed a bruise. “Uh…nurse..?”

“Meroko.”

“Mero - what?!” Takuto almost flew forward again, completely amazed at what he had just heard. He examined the nurse’s appearance closely. Her eyes were clear teal and her hair was a long, flowing sea green. “That’s not possible.”

“Of course it is, silly.” She snapped her fingers, revealing the signature looks Takuto knew her for. “I just had to check on you.”

“Do you know anything about medicine or treating people?”

“Tch, it’s not that difficult,” Meroko laughed, although somewhat nervously. “Look, it’s not like pretending to be a nurse will make you lose your arm.”

Takuto rolled his eyes, knowing that she was probably breaking around ninety rules, but he didn’t care. Someone had saved him from facing his still troubled thoughts alone. “So, I’m back, huh?”

She nodded, taking a seat at the visitor’s chair. “I told them that I would handle the situation, and I did.” With a proud beam, she checked a monitor close to him. “I argued that this was the best solution - they agreed without hesitation!”

He smiled weakly in return, eying the closed door. What he wanted - what he needed - was out there, waiting to welcome him. His mouth felt dry, wondering if she had already left the hospital and moved on. She was so unpredictable, yet so stable… and even though he could be in a room full of women that were the most compatible with him, or “exactly his type”, her image came to his mind, shutting everyone else out. It wasn’t purely attraction - it was destiny, pulling them apart and binding them together, until a final outcome was decided. The only thing that they could count on was the music, keeping their sense of sanity alive.

“She’s still out there,” Meroko breathed out softly. “She’s never really left for anything - well, except bathroom breaks, and small bites of food. Not like she can eat right now, though…” Her attention was focused on his blank face. The expression that was missing gave her shivers. No brilliant ideas were popping up to get his thoughts out into the open.

“Hey, are you-” she began to question uncertainly.

“Has she been singing?” He asked abruptly, still emotionless from what Meroko could see.

“Yep - started maybe an hour ago. Her manager’s been warning her about straining her vocals, so she switched over to humming. They said something about canceling her performance…”

“No! Don’t do that!” He slammed his fist down on the bed, frustration and guilt in his voice. “She shouldn’t do that for me…” A bitter taste remained in the back of his throat, knowing how many times she had to put her career on the line for him. He couldn’t take any more guilt if the public’s reaction to the tour was a flop.

Meroko swallowed, overwhelmed by the awkwardness and the direction the conversation was heading. “Do you want to know what she left under the door?” She gripped a post-it note in her hands, her eyes darting to the door every three seconds.

“Please, give it to me.”

Takuto,

When I come in…pretend to be asleep, okay?

Mitsuki

“I will…” He promised, closing his eyes and thinking of her.

“Are you ready to go in?” Daiki watched Mitsuki scratch out a few lines of her song written on hospital cafeteria napkins. She blotted at her teary eyes with a few extra - or the “rejects”. “I mean, I don’t think he’s conscious yet.”

“It doesn’t matter. I have to get this out of my system. He has to know that I tried.” She picked up the guitar that Teruo had loaned her, and gave her a speed lesson in about an hour. “I don’t care if it doesn’t sound like studio quality. It’ll get through to him - it always does.”

“I didn’t mean it that way.”

Mitsuki’s heart sunk. “Oh…”

“You’ve been through a lot, you know that?” He took a sip of his bottled water, briefly checking up on his fellow band members, exhausted and napping around them.

“I’ve been through worse. Please, Daiki, this is important.”

“No, Mitsuki. As a performer-”

She tossed a few napkins into a trashcan, not listening or caring. “Have you ever been so in love with someone for so long…that you feel that if you can’t be with them, the world will fall apart?”

Daiki did not move, and held his breath, guessing that she was running low on energy as well as faith.

With both of her index fingers, she pointed in two directions - one at the door where Takuto was, and the other at herself. “This is where my music comes from - and if one goes, then I won’t know what to do. My heart’s not going anywhere, so it’s Takuto I’m worried about.” She stood up, entering Takuto’s room without looking back.

“You know,” Daiki commented to himself with a smile. “I was going to say ‘you remind me a lot of my own girlfriend - determined, strong, and dramatic’. Oh well, it still worked anyways.” He whistled a tune of Mitsuki’s from her debut, leaning back in her chair. “I wonder how he’ll like the song…”

“I…well…there’s nothing to say, I guess…” Mitsuki mumbled to herself clumsily, almost breaking out into a sob as she took her seat next to Takuto. Such a serene grin was on his face; as if he was having a pleasant dream…but no doctors or nurses had news of him waking up. Her note was put in about five minutes ago, yet it was more to assure herself that he would wake up.

She felt her eyes water up again, and exhaled to clear the misty vision. Her fingers touched the correct chords to open the song, and she began, feeling fear and discomfort swirling around inside of her. Only time would make it go away. “I-I called it ‘Finale’…”

“‘Why are you crying now?’

‘Aren’t you done? Is it over?’

You asked me

It never really bothered me much

Until I realized how much you cared

Promises to stay strong

Don’t work well on your own

So can I let myself fall for a while?”

“Just hear me,” she whispered while preparing her voice for the chorus. The lyrics were too simplistic in her opinion, but in a way, it was like their relationship - complex, with easy points to relax in the middle.

“And the only thing I can do

Is sing and remember

I’m not backing down

Or losing hope

But softening the pain

Oh, until I see your face”

As the incorrect notes entered her ears, she felt her fingers trembling, certain that there wasn’t much more she could take. Her gray irises glanced over at Takuto, noticing that he had still not moved one bit. She chewed on the side of her cheek, feeling red all over her face. Was her effort all for nothing?

“If I pointed fingers

All four would come back to me

Yeah, everyone agrees

I shouldn’t have ran away from your touch

Knowing that I was scared of me

Trying to rebuild all of this

With only these two hands

Is work for tomorrow”

She repeated the chorus, paying closer attention to the notes and chords. With her peripheral vision, she saw Takuto’s calm, even breathing, and it almost relaxed her, telling her that for now, he wasn’t going anywhere.

“‘Why am I crying now?’

‘Am I done? Is it over?’

I truly want it to be

To get a chance…

One more word in…

Please, listen to me sing and remember

‘Why are you crying now?’

‘Aren’t you done? Is it over?’

You asked me”

As the last notes hung in the air, she watched him noiselessly, a strong hope for him to open his eyes within her. Every passing second, her heart felt as if it was being held over a cliff, with only three strings preventing gravity from pulling it down. The sensation was such a rush and a chill at the same time, making her breath become caught in her throat.

“T-Takuto..?” Mitsuki stuttered, setting the guitar next to her on the floor. A deep exhale came out as she pressed a hand to her forehead, unsure of what to do next. Should I wait? He could wake up just as I’m leaving…but then that would look bad. Interrupting her thoughts was a low grumble, alerting her that she had been neglecting her body’s need for food. Oh, I need to eat! But I can’t leave him - what do I do? She eyed the door apprehensively, going back and forth between the two options.

Takuto opened his eyes cautiously. Truthfully, he had been completely asleep, thinking that the song was a part of his dream. But it was too…soft to be something he would come up with in a dream. With an entertained grin, he observed Mitsuki’s internal battle of filling her stomach or staying with him.

“You know,” he began in a voice that covered up his physical discomfort, “if you need to eat, go ahead.”

Mitsuki made a small noise, similar to a squeak and spun around in her chair to meet him. Filled up with excitement, she gave him a hug, almost squeezing the life out of him.

“Takuto! You heard!”

“Y-yeah. Can I breathe now?” He choked, ignoring his throbbing heavily bruised arm.

“I’m so sorry!” She slumped back into her chair, upset that she had caused more pain. “It’s just that…well, you’re okay now, right?”

“I’m not going anywhere for a while,” Takuto answered, sighing in relief. “Are you going to perform that?”

“Huh? What?” Her irises were wide at his question.

“I don’t think you should perform that song,” he replied bluntly.

“Oh…” Mitsuki stared at the ground feeling even worse.

“I didn’t finish yet,” he tapped her lightly on the arm. “What I was going to say was, that you shouldn’t perform the way you did. It was almost like a funeral. I prefer it when you’re happy and forget about the world.”

“I prefer it that way, too. But…I like it most when I’m like that with you.” She didn’t say anything else, letting her red eyes give him her apology. Her hands grasped his, and she sniffled, setting her head down on the bed to drift off to sleep.

Five Months Later:

Mitsuki lay back on the sand, feeling the warm sunlight tickle her exposed skin. Her arm brushed against Takuto’s, tiny grains of sand separating the touch. She giggled when she heard an obviously fake snore from him.

“Takuto, I thought you were watching the ocean tide, not sleeping!” her voice was gentle as she playfully scolded him.

“I am.”

She rubbed her closed eyes, still rested and relaxed from their small vacation at the island tour spot. “Fine, but I’m waking up now.”

“Go right ahead.”

Mitsuki gasped when she opened her eyes, a brilliant diamond ring held between Takuto’s ring and index finger right in front of her. The light glinted and reflected on the diamonds radiantly, giving it the illusion of a thousand tiny mirrors. She was speechless, always positive that this day would come, yet she had no clue that it could happen so suddenly.

“I don’t want to risk letting you think that I don’t love you again. This was the best way that came to my mind to show that I’m completely committed to you,” Takuto explained, sitting up. “Mitsuki, I helped you live - you have helped me live, over and over. Do you think-”

“Yes.” Mitsuki cut him off, gazing deep into his eyes. “That’s all that I need to say.”

Takuto pulled her into an embrace letting the words sink into him before he kissed her. She’s right. That’s the way it should have been from day one…

“Ah, how cute.” Suoh passed the binoculars to Teruo. “I wish one of you two could be more…like Takuto.” Him, Teruo, and Tetsuya were hiding behind a sand dune, watching the entire proposal.

“What in the world do you mean?” Teruo glared at him, swiping the binoculars out of Suoh’s hands. “I could have a girlfriend, but the band comes first right now.”

“And why are you lecturing me?” Tetsuya added, picking up a hermit crab. “My girlfriend is waiting for me to come home from the tour.”

“Look around you,” Suoh ordered, and they did. At an outdoor tropical restaurant, were Daiki and his girlfriend, drinking smoothies. He placed a flower behind her ear, and she blushed at the sweet act. On the other side of the beach, were Masato and Miwa, slowly walking along the beach as the tide washed over their bare feet.

“Hey, people have happy endings - just not at the same time!” Teruo pointed out, handing the binoculars to Tetsuya.

“For once, I agree with him. I can’t out-of-the-blue propose to my girlfriend. She’ll think I did something bad.”

“Flow with the beat guys, flow with the beat.” Suoh sat back on the sand, absorbing the warmth.

“What does that mean?” Teruo and Tetsuya asked in unison.

“It means - shut up and enjoy the sunset - at the moment.”

Tetsuya brought the binoculars up to his eyes, watching Takuto slip the ring onto Mitsuki’s finger. “Finally, it seems like we have struck a perfect chord.”

random babble...d'accord, this is where i place my grand merci for reviewers. if anyone reviews (or alerts/favs/wants a thank-you too) later than the date i posted this chapter, i'll edit it and add your name. here we go: Dylislily, MitsukixTakuto 4 ever, kawaii123, animeluv12, XxXxFallen-AngelXxXx, MilkTea141, bullterrierlove,Yuki No Yume, Dawnstarshine, Goddess of Lunar, rose94, sakura4594, demongirlofthesand, Yashi Inuzka, life-is-rubbish, takuto-and-mitsuki-eternally, Kagome5177, RoseTaisetsuna, and lavdaworld. i am truly honored and blown away that my story was so popular (23 favs and 18 alerts - you guys SPOILED me). therefore, i wanted to do some kind of appreciation thing, and i hope that both writing a brand-new song, and thanking each and every one of you personally will make this story memorable. one last thing...a sequel or re-write may be possible... a bientôt et au revoir (see you soon and good-bye)!