It was an ordinary afternoon. Chiba Mamoru had just gotten home from his residency from Juuban Medical Hospital and was ready for his next two days off. He had a few books laid out to read about the human anatomy and was brewing a pot of coffee to ready himself for a relaxing evening. Thank the gods I've got the next two days to relax. That surgery in the OR was grueling.
Mamoru looked around the three bedroom house that he inherited from his parents and sighed. At least I've got no noise to distract me. I'm almost unhappy about it. It wouldn't hurt to have Motoki over sometime and enjoy a social life…
He looked back down at the books he had to read to become better at his job. But who's got time for that when you're working to become a doctor?
He sat down with his cup of coffee in hand and opened the first book. Brand new and hardcover; the book's spine make that creasing sound that Mamoru loved so much. He savored the moment, took a sip of his coffee, and started his first chapter.
Mamoru was on his fifth cup of coffee when he heard the moving truck. He looked up at his clock, 4:47pm. He'd been reading for three hours and was on his seventh chapter. He decided that it was as good a time as any to make something to eat so he got up and headed towards the kitchen. In between the living room and the kitchen was the porch sliding glass door that gave him a side view of his street. Curiosity overtaking him, he stopped momentarily to peer on his new neighbors.
The moving truck was sizable. Enough for a family. Once it stopped backing into the driveway, a blue minivan pulled up in front of the house. A businessman came out of the driver's side, a blue haired woman came out of the passenger's. Mother and father, it seems. A young boy with sandy brown hair bolted out of the car on the side closest towards the house and slammed it on someone else in the car. A female voice rang out, slightly muffled from inside the car. "SHINGO! What the hell?! Are you trying to perform an amputation on my leg via car door? It's not very sanitary, ya know. I'd expect more nepotism from you."
Mamoru let out a hearty laugh. She's funny.
The girl who made the remark was able to get the door open and step out of the car. The minute she did, it was like she had stepped out of Mamoru's dreams. His breath caught, his pupils dilated, his body froze, and all this happened so quickly to Mamoru that his coffee mug had fallen out of his hand.
The shattering sound pulled Mamoru out of the incredulous state and he snapped his attention to the girl who was making her way towards the house; completely ignoring the broken porcelain all over his floor.
The blue haired woman spoke. "What do you think, Usagi?" Usagi. Gods, she's gorgeous.
She had long blonde hair that was in a messy bun. Strands of it had fallen out and the length of it reached just at her backside. She wore high waisted jean shorts that accentuated her small waist and a light cream tank top that was tucked in. Her muscle tone was exquisite. Even as she walked, Mamoru could see the quadriceps and hamstrings working underneath her skin. Where did this angel come from?
"I think it's perfect. The neighborhood seems nice enough. Did you research the colleges?" Oh good, she's legal. It would be frowned upon for me to generate such feelings for a minor.
Her mother put her arm around her shoulder. "Yes I did, we go to a few orientations tomorrow. For tonight we're just going to get settled in." The mother looked over across the yard and started to yell to someone in the moving truck. "Kenji! Dear! Let the moving men deal with the furniture! KENJI!"
The father was attempting to pull the couch from the burly moving men presumably to prove his masculinity in front of his family. "It's fine, Ikuko! Just helping these men, they needed it."
The moving men did not like that comment. One of them dropped the couch which gave Kenji the brunt of the weight and he collapsed underneath it. Various screams came from his family members and Mamoru saw this as his opportunity to introduce himself.
He bolted out the door and before Kenji's family members could respond, Mamoru was already hurdling over his fence into their yard and lifting the couch off of Kenji.
Mamoru pushed the couch onto its side allowing Kenji to stand up and move out from its way. "Are you alright sir?"
"Yes, thank you. These damn movers just dropped it onto me."
Ikuko stepped in to check on her husband's physical condition. "Now, now, dear. You were provoking them. You agreed that you'd let them do their job. They don't like to be condescended to."
Usagi walked up to the man who had saved her father. "Thank you, so much, sir. I take it you're one of our new neighbors." She put out her hand to shake his. "I'm Tsukino Usagi."
Mamoru smiled. She's perfection. "I'm Chiba Mamoru. I live next door. Please don't hesitate to ask if you need any assistance."
Mamoru. Usagi couldn't take her eyes off of the man who had just saved her father. He had jet black hair that fell into his ocean blue eyes when he looked down and his frame was definitely something to admire. He was wearing a button up white long sleeve shirt with the sleeves rolled up and black slacks. Usagi had expected to meet new people in moving to a new city, but she never thought she'd meet one so soon, nor so attractive.
Ikuko smiled at him and introduced herself, her husband, and her son who had already been inside claiming bedrooms. "If you don't mind, Chiba Mamoru."
"Oh, just Mamoru, please."
"Well, if you don't mind, Mamoru, it seems our moving men are leaving us due to this incident. Do you think you could help us move our belongings inside?"
Mamoru smiled politely. "I'd be happy to."
After two hours, all of the items off of the moving truck had been placed inside. The entire family helped; Ikuko organized which boxes went where inside, Shingo started to unpack the upstairs, and Kenji, Usagi, and Mamoru had moved all of the items inside."
In attempts to speak to the blonde bombshell more, Mamoru commented. "Your father and I could have handled that, Usagi. You didn't have to help."
Usagi smiled at him before she drank some water. "Oh, it's ok. I've had some experience with weights."
Mamoru raised his eyebrows curiously as she drank some more water and headed to the kitchen for a refill. Ikuko continued the conversation. "Yes, Usagi was a powerlifter in high school. Not competitively, but she liked that she could do things for herself. She got really into health and fitness and is now going to pursue a degree in medicine. She wants to help people." Ikuko smiled proudly at her daughter as she walked back into the room.
Mamoru chimed in. "That's actually a remarkable coincidence."
Attempting to be indifferent, Usagi finished a last big gulp. "Oh? Why's that?"
Mamoru smirked. "Well, I'm currently doing my residency at Juuban Medical. I'm about 4 or 5 months away from becoming a permanent doctor there."
Usagi's eyes went wide. "You're serious?"
Mamoru nodded.
"That's amazing, incredible even. Did you grow up here? Can you tell me what college is best? I'd love to pick your brain."
Ikuko started to laugh. "Easy, Usagi. He lives next door." She looked over at Mamoru apologetically. "I'm sorry Mamoru, Usagi is…driven."
Mamoru smiled. "That's actually really nice to see. Not everyone is."
Ecstatic, Usagi put up her finger to Mamoru. "I'll be right back."
Mamoru's face scrunched quizzically. "Oh, uhm, ok."
She came back with her phone. "Ok, I hope this isn't too forward, but I'd like your number. So I can ask you questions and find out what are good times for me to come and pick your brain."
Ikuko was slightly embarrassed. "Usagi!"
Mamoru laughed. "No, no. It's ok." I put my hand out towards Usagi. "Here, I'll put my number in. I'm normally working, but I check it in between patients and answer what I can." After Mamoru finished putting his number in, he handed it back to her.
"I do really have to get going though. I have a few books I need to get through since I have the next two days off."
Usagi got more excited. "What books are they?"
She IS driven. "Oh, uhm. Actually, if you don't mind." He looked to Ikuko. "Usagi is more than welcome to come over to my place tonight and look over some books and materials I have that could help her in her studies."
Usagi's eyes widened and she turned to her mother with a pleading look.
Ikuko smiled. "Mamoru, you've been so generous with us today, I just feel that you'd be sick of us fairly soon, but if you are sincere in inviting Usagi over, I see no issues with it." She turned to Usagi. "If it starts to get late, just text me. I'll know that you're right next door so I won't be worried." She hugged Usagi and led us to the door. "Have fun."
On the short walk to next door, Usagi's and Mamoru's hearts were racing, both due to nerves. Usagi had an almost violent attraction to this man. The minute she saw him aid her father, he just kept getting more and more interesting. She thanked the gods for the excuse of him being a doctor or else she would have had to find another way to slyly give him her number. She really did mean to pick his brain, but she wasn't planning on stopping there.
Mamoru had been silently chastising himself as they walked up to his door. You idiot. Do you really think that you can presumptuously invite a girl over this quickly? You're going to ruin something that can be incredible by forcing its hand. He looked over to her. And it really could be incredible.
After a minute or so of silence, Usagi decided to speak up. "I'm sorry if I'm being overbearing. Now that I think about it, I kind of forced you to invite me over."
Mamoru opened the door to his home and turned on the lights. Slightly relieved that he hadn't appeared too bold by inviting her over, he continued the conversation in a friendly manner.
"Not at all. I understand about being excited about your career."
They walked into the living room and he gestured to the books that he had been reading earlier that afternoon. She sat down and picked up the one on top. When she opened it, it remade that creasing noise that it had first made with Mamoru.
Usagi took a sigh and looked over at Mamoru. "I just love that noise."
Mamoru smirked and couldn't help but stare at her. He'd immediately found her amusing when he was watching them from his door, but he was surprised at how she became more and more stimulating as the moments passed. I never knew this woman existed but in my dreams.
His thoughts were cut off by Usagi's voice. "Mamoru?"
"Hmm?"
Usagi had been standing in between the living room and the kitchen. "Were you aware that you had a broken mug on the floor?"
Shit. "Oh, uh, yeah, I was drinking coffee when I heard the screams and saw the condition your father was in. I didn't take the time to clean it up since I knew he needed help." Quick and graceful lie. Nice going, Chiba.
"Well, since it was us that caused your inconvenience, let me at least help you clean it up." Usagi bent over and started to pick up the porcelain pieces. "Where's your trash can?"
"Oh, please, you don't have to." But Usagi was already walking towards the kitchen with the broken pieces in hand. "It's, uh, underneath the sink, left cabinet. Really, you don't have to do that. It was my clumsiness."
Usagi flashed him a smile from his kitchen that made his knees go weak. "It's no problem, Chiba," she said playfully. She picked up a wet rag from the sink. "Mind if I use this to clean it up?"
Unable to think clearly with that goddess in his kitchen, he simply shook his head.
Usagi walked over to the mess on the floor, got down on her hands and knees, and used the wet washrag to start scrubbing the coffee stain out of the tile.
Mamoru was about to lose his mind. This unreal woman was now on her hands and knees. Ass in the air, scrubbing. The movement of the body parts Mamoru couldn't ignore nearly drove him insane. He clamped his eyes shut and put his fingers on the bridge of his nose to try to block out the image. He had to walk away. "I'll be right back. I'll, uh, grab some more books that you'd like from my library upstairs."
He heard her movements pause. He slowly turned around, praying to the gods that she wasn't in a compromising position again. She was sitting on the floor with the rag in hand staring at him. Bewildered.
"Library? You have a library?" This guy is the man of my dreams.
Mamoru couldn't help but smile at the wonder in her expression.
"Yes. Would you like to see it?"
She wiped over the floor once more to assure that there was no more mess, rinsed the rag off in the kitchen sink, wrung it out, washed her hands, and started to walk towards him. "Is that even a question?"
The two walked upstairs and down the hall, past Mamoru's bedroom, to the room at the far end of his home. He opened the door. "Voila." Usagi let out a gasp.
The room was wall to wall bookshelves filled with hard cover books. The far corner had a love seat with a reading lamp above it and a small side table that had a coaster on it. She walked in and grazed her fingertips along the spines of the books in awe. After she walked halfway through, she turned to Mamoru. "I'm in love. Could I just live in here?" She chuckled. "Forever?"
Mamoru let out a chuckle as well. "You're welcome to borrow whatever book you like. Now that I know you, I'm confident that you wouldn't harm them in any way."
"Oh, are you kidding? I wouldn't dream of it!"
She kept perusing the texts and novels; becoming more and more captivated as the collection went on. She picked up a text on human anatomy and physiology, walked over to the loveseat, and opened up the book carefully like it were her own. After a few moments, Mamoru made the decision to put on some tea and left for the kitchen.
After about 20 minutes, he came back into the room and Usagi was already a few chapters in. He watched her as she read, fairly quickly he might add, and set the tea down on the coaster. "Speed reading?"
She stopped and looked up at him. "Hmmm? Oh, yes. I've been reading almost nonstop since I was 5. It's such a habit of mine that I'm able to read rather quickly." She looked over at the tea. "Oh, thank you so much. I'm sorry, I tend to get lost in the text. This is an incredible book." She looked down to mentally note the page and gently closed it.
Mamoru took a sip of his tea. "Oh, you don't have to stop on my account. I was actually going to ask you if you wanted to stay and read it. I'm going to be reading my own downstairs and I wouldn't mind having someone in the house."
Usagi smiled warmly at him as she took a sip of the tea. "Jasmine. I haven't had jasmine tea in so long." She looked around. "I'd love to stay here if you wouldn't mind. I feel like I'm more at home here than next door. Shingo is always making noise, but…" She shrugged. "What do you expect of a 12 year old?"
Mamoru smiled. "Yeah, here is always quiet. Considering your care and interest in these books, you're more than welcome to come over anytime you'd like for some quiet time to read them. Being such a freak about my books, I'd actually prefer if they stayed in their home anyways."
Usagi laughed. "I know exactly how you feel! I once lent a book to a friend in my hometown and she returned it in the most horrific state. I swore never again!"
Mamoru nodded as he drank some more of his tea. "The same has happened to me countless times. It's so inconsiderate. I cannot understand why people would treat them that way."
Usagi beamed up at her new friend. "You and I are much more alike than I ever would have imagined." She took another long sip of her tea while looking at him. "I think that this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship, Chiba Mamoru." She offered out her mug to touch his.
"Agreed, Miss Tsukino Usagi."
*clink*
Author's Note: Yes, yes. Usagi isn't like the normal Usagi. I'm aware that some of you may not like that, but I did want to write her intellectually in this story and have her and Mamoru connect on a new level. Hope you enjoyed it. More to come soon! Let me know what you thought in the reviews! ~(^_^)~
