• She ran through the forest crying, the hot hears warming her face in the cold; who would have guessed that the first snowfall of the year would accompany such pain?

    Ayame, a woman, age 18, stood at 5'4" tall, her green eyes accented by her deep black hair, kept straight and long, down to her waist. She wore a short kimono this evening, for the new year's festival, and was planning to tell Him she'd loved him since they first spoke.
    His honesty and care, his utter beauty and aura of wisdom; she loved everything about him. But when she'd gone to the place where they were to meet...

    Ayame'd seen Takuto and Yumi together, holding hands and gazing into each other's eyes with utmost love and adoration. She'd never had a chance, she realized, and began running, her sandals falling from her feet as she ran, the cold snow melting and seeping into her socks.

    Ayame didn't care. She felt oblivious and foolish, unworthy of the love that filled her body.
    "I will dedicate everything to finding love for those around me," she vowed, slowing to a stop and wiping the now-cold saltwater from her face. breathing heavily, she glanced down at her feet and, seeing a blue iris flower, kneeling down beside it to gently pluck it from where it sat.

    "How are you still alive, precious ayame?" she whispered to the flower, shuddering at the cold that raked down her spine and holding the iris close to her heart.

    "I showed her love and kindness, and she repaid me by blooming," came a low voice from behind her. "I took care of her."

    Ayame recognized the voice: it was Tyson Smith, the boy who'd been her best friend since they were 10.

    Standing and turning to him, she gasped aloud at the raw emotion she saw reflected in his eyes. "So, the iris loves you back?" she asked softly, her breath puffing out in clouds before her lips as she spoke.

    She'd never realized how Tyson had felt for her, and wondered if Takuto was that ignorant of her feelings.

    Stepping forward, Ayame reached out slowly with her left hand, the iris cradled carefully in her right palm, and took Tyson's hand in hers, bringing it closer to her body so she would be able to place the iris in his capable hands.

    "Yes, I do believe she does," Tyson breathed back in response to Ayame's question. "Well, what do you think?" he asked, taking the blue flower and gently tucking it into Ayame's hair, just behind her left ear.

    "I do believe she does," Ayame whispered, before kissing him softly. Iris Love?