Chapter 3
"Is something wrong, sweetie?" Todd said to Momiji, his voice right next to her ear as he came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. Sighing, Momiji tore her gaze away from the Tokyo skyline she saw out her balcony and turned to face him, leaning against the railing to steady herself. Todd placed his hands on the railing, one on each side of her, effectively trapping her and began planting little kisses on her neck.
"No, not really…" she answered absently. "Why do you ask?"
"I dunno, you just seem different this past week…kind of distant." Todd replied after coming up for air. "Getting cold feet?" he joked.
At her hesitation, Todd stopped trying for a better angle at her neck and straightened up, looking at her intently. "Momiji…are you getting cold feet?" he asked again.
"No, I mean, well…"
"Something has happened, hasn't it?" Todd asked again, staring closely at her eyes. "What is it?"
Momiji averted her gaze from those keen blue eyes and became very, very engrossed in the pattern of tiles on her balcony floor. "Todd…"
Todd's eyes softened sadly as a realization hit him. "It is Kusanagi, isn't it?" he urged.
"No! Well, I mean, yes…I mean, I saw him last week. I found him in an alleyway, all beaten up and bloody and I saved him. But then, he just ran off afterwards. I can't seem to stop thinking about the wounded look on his face when he found out who it was who rescued him." She rushed through the sentences, realizing afterwards what they sounded like. "Todd, I…" she trailed off lamely, a blush spreading across her cheeks as she dropped her eyes back towards the oh-so-fascinating tile.
Dropping his hands to his sides, Todd heaved a sigh and then reached over, gently tilting Momiji's face back towards him. "Momiji…I know how you feel about Kusanagi. I know how you have always felt about him, and always will feel about him. But somehow I had hoped, I had prayed, I had told myself it wasn't true. You would see how I feel and it would be enough." He stopped her squeak of protest with one finger and continued. "No please, Momiji, let me finish. I know that you love me, but I know that it is not the same. No one forgets their first love. Some of us never get over them either." Todd paused for a moment. "I had hoped that you fell into the first category Momiji… but it seems more like the second." Todd stopped again to blink back what seemed to be the beginning of tears.
"I wish things could have been different for us, Momiji…" he began again. "I wish we could have gotten married, and tried to have a normal life. But your loyalty and your capacity for love are some of the things I love most about you. I have never and will never meet a person like you." Todd paused a moment and drew a deep breath before continuing. "That is why I have to call our wedding off, right here. Once and for all."
Momiji's head snapped to attention and she searched Todd's eyes in confusion. "W-what??"
"We have to call the wedding off, Momiji. It can't go on."
"But, I don't understand. Why?" Momiji sputtered.
Todd smiled a small sad smile. "Do I have to spell it out Momiji? You are still in love with Mamoru Kusanagi. Hopelessly, madly in love. I can tell, always have. And asking you to ignore that would be like asking the bird to stop singing. I can't ask you to stop being who you are Momiji. So the best thing I can do for you is get out of your way. I want to do this Momiji. For you. I can be selfless too. I can be brave. This is something I need to do Momiji, for you." Todd leaned over and brushed a light kiss across Momiji's lips, hesitating slightly before deepening it, volumes of sadness and resignation being said in a few moments of contact. "Keep the ring Momiji. Maybe in another time, another life…" Todd shook his head and wiped tears from his eyes, turning to leave.
"Todd!" Momiji cried out, and he turned back around. "Todd…thank you. I wish it didn't have to…well, just, thank you." She whispered, tears shining in her green eyes. As she watched him walk out the door of her apartment Momiji heard his voice drift back to her. "Just fix it Momiji. Fix him, and make me proud. Don't make me regret what I just did. I have faith in you." The stunned Momiji could only listen as the sound of his feet on the stairs slowly faded away.