1I felt like writing a more serious one today. Reviews, plz!
Target 2: To Understand
Chapter Summary: In which Reborn locks up Gokudera and Ringo in a room and the bomber learns they may have more in common than he thought.
Timeline: Right before the Kokuyo Gang Arc
They really should've seen it coming.
After all, it didn't take a genius to figure out something was wrong when Tsuna was practically thrown out of his own room by the hitman that called himself his tutor, followed by said hitman giving the poor excuse that "Dame-Tsuna had urgent errands to run for Mama" and demanding Gokudera and Ringo to wait for them. But then again, who had the courage (and stupidity) to defy Reborn, The World's Greatest Hitman?
When they decided that ten minutes of staring in dumbstruck silence at the door completely undisturbed meant the coast was clear, they tried to leave the room – only to realize they were locked inside.
"What the Fuck?" Gokudera said made a face at his crude language before noticing something slipping under the door.
"Uh?" Ringo bent down to pick up a small, rectangular sheet of paper. She flipped sides and realized it had a message.
"Your unwillingness to cooperate is perturbing Dame-Tsuna. I suggest you begin working on your differences, unless you want to make this room your permanent residence." – Reborn
Reborn was one sneaky, sneaky devil.
"What." Ringo said flatly. Gokudera yanked the paper from her hands and reread it, as if trying to determine whether it was real and finally broke into a long string of curses.
Ringo sighed. Ever since she had returned to Namimori a week ago, Gokudera had convinced himself that, due to being Tsuna's childhood friend, the pinkette was his number one rival for the position of right-hand man. He had already made very clear what he thought of her; there was no way he was going to cooperate.
Much to her surprise, Gokudera didn't attack her with insults and instead sat down on Tsuna's bed. His expression was somewhere in-between resignation and annoyance as he stared at the wooden floorboards. Ringo took it as a peace offering and sat on the opposite side of the bed, flattening down the pleated skirt of her Namimori Middle uniform.
"I'm only doing this for the Tenth." Gokudera finally said, not bothering to look at her. Ringo shrugged "Figured as much." That caught the silverette's attention, who finally chose to focus on her face. "What do you mean?" he asked, narrowing his eyes. "Exactly what I said. You made it pretty clear that you hated me when we first met." Ringo had unconsciously raised her voice. "Tsuna has the right to have more friends, you know? He's not yours!" She was yelling know. "He might be your first friend, but not long ago he was my first friend!"
Ringo suddenly became conscious of herself. During her rant she had gotten up and was practically in Gokudera's face. The later's eyes were wide and he was clearly confused. Ringo retreated to the furthest corner of the bed, sitting down again, pulling her legs to her chest and hiding her face in her knees. This was unlike her. She normally didn't give a damn about what other people thought or said, so why had she gotten so worked up?
Meanwhile, Gokudera was trying to organize his thoughts. He didn't really care about the effects of his words on others, but Ringo's reaction had bothered him. Maybe it was because she was always so confident, like she didn't have a care in the world, and now looked like she could break apart at any minute. Like she was different Ringo… or, perhaps, an inner core. One she didn't let people see. But he had.
"Why did you come back from Italy?" Gokudera found himself asking after another ten minutes of uneasy silence. Ringo raised her head, either because she didn't expect such a question, or because of the gentle tone he had used. "Because…I remember him." Gokudera knitted his brows in confusion. She leaned back and tucked a stray hair behind her ear.
"Amnesia." she paused, as if tasting the word. It was bitter and lonely. "All I know is that my family moved to Italy because of work when I was seven. Apparently, my folks were killed in a car crash months after. I survived, but my memory shut down due to trauma." She wrinkled her nose at the memories of the shrinks that analized her. "But I did remember one think. Tsuna."
She stared right into Gokudera's eyes. Her gaze was penetrating and the bomber was unable to look way. "Memories prove we exist, right? Then, he is the only proof that I existed. Not knowing shit about yourself is lonely. That's why, when the director of the orphanage said I could go back to Namimori, I came."
Ringo looked way for seconds before turning to him again. She was smiling this time. "I'm just trying to reconnect this friendship, ok? Don't worry, I won't hog your spot of right-hand man" She flashed her trademark smirk "But don't tell him ok? I don't want Baka-Tsuna to get too cocky."
Gokudera only stared for seconds, admiring her change of spirits. He blushed slightly under her gaze, mumbling an embarrassed "I know that". The sound of the door being unlocked was heard. Tsuna ran inside, worried that his friends might have killed each other, followed shortly by a satisfied-looking Reborn.
Everything went back to normal as Gokudera resumed his lesson on equations. While Tsuna was solving a particularly hard problem, Gokudera snuck a glance at Ringo. Maybe she wasn't so bad. Maybe he could relate to her, both knew the burden of loneliness.
Maybe, just maybe… he could understand her.
Hope you liked it. Reviewers get cookies, flames will be used to bake said cookies.