Summary: During a very eventful laundry day, Tohru finds out the answer to the infamous question: boxers or briefs?
Important note: This story is a continuation of my other piece, Stupid Pencils, but can be read independently.
Disclaimer: I do not own Fruits Basket or any of its relating characters.
Laundry Day
Tohru hummed happily to herself as she strolled down to the laundry room, ever determined to get her chores finished. Midterms had just finished, and with her fears of failing miserably as she had before, she spent every waking moment cramming as much information into her head as possible. Of course, her one-track plan had its ups and downs. While she did pass her exams with flying colors, receiving a minimum of B – on all of her tests, her list of household chores piled up to a staggering height.
So, with fierce determination and newly-greased elbows, Tohru zoomed around the Sohma house like a cleaning hurricane; dealing first with the dishes, then the dusting, then the vacuuming. After two long hours dealing with the bathrooms – she swore never to leave it unclean for more than a week after finding the moving hairball in the bathtub drain – all she had left to do was the laundry.
She breezed by Shigure and Kyo's dirty clothing in a little less than a few hours, leaving Yuki's for last. Wiping away the trickles of sweat that ran down her forehead in quick rivers, she set to work once more.
Yuki Sohma. Her heart gave a playful flutter. It was times like these when she really wished her mom was still with her. She knew nothing of boys, and therefore, knew nothing about fanciful crushes or dating. It didn't help that she couldn't approach Uo or Hana about all this, the embarrassment was just too much. Instead, she kept to herself (and the diary she stashed beneath layers of her underwear), allowing her secret to remain just a secret.
As she lost herself in endearing daydreams ("Mrs. Prince Yuki," she breathed with a wishful sigh and a shy giggle), an orchid-colored garment fluttered undetected to the floor. Unaware of the fallen item of clothing, Tohru continued to absentmindedly sort through the laundry; reversing any shirts she plucked out inside-out, checking pockets for any extra change or small trinkets.
With the darks and lights dutifully separated, Tohru turned the large dial on the washing machine and immediately, water began to fill the hallow center. As she bent to scoop up the lemon-scented soap, the forgotten purple clothing finally caught her eye.
"Oh dear, it's a good thing I –" A terrified shriek replaced her words and she stumbled to the ground in her shock. Covering her innocent eyes pathetically, she tried to get the image of Yuki's underwear out of her head.
How could this have happened?! Her housemates were usually very careful about stuff like this, preferring to wash their own, um, undergarments on their own. She allowed herself a tiny peek through a crevice between her fingers and, without a doubt, the offending piece of clothing was still there. She noticed its deep, velvety color – a purple far darker than Yuki's eyes
In an instant, Tohru's eyes were covered again. What was she doing, comparing Yuki's underwear to his eyes?! She was very grateful that none in the Sohma household could read minds.
Speaking of which, the bamboo door slid open almost violently and the heavily breathing Prince stared down worriedly at the girl. "Miss Honda! Miss Honda, what's wrong?"
"Wrong?" She said feebly, her eyes still hidden behind her rigid fingers.
Yuki slumped against the doorway, out of breath for having sprinted from his room to her side the moment he heard her cry. "Did something happen, Miss Honda? I heard you scream and I…" Yuki raised a confused eyebrow as Tohru simply raised a hesitant arm and pointed shakily to the floor. "Wha…?" His eyebrow twitched.
Won't the Gods just strike me now? Yuki thought, as horrified as she. There, on the floor, was his underwear; bright against the tan wooden floor, the miniscule, almost undetectable, smiling onigiri prints taunting him.
Yuki scrambled to grab the embarrassing piece of cloth off the ground and gave a poor, sheepish laugh. "Um, I think I'll take over from here, Miss Honda."
Tohru gave no protests, and with a muttered "Alright, thanks, bye!" she zoomed out of the room. He heard a few painful thuds come from the stairway and despite his current situation, he gave a soft laugh. The felonious undergarment in his grasp brought him back to the matter at hand, and without a second thought, he threw it in the awaiting machine along with the rest of his darkly-tinted clothing.
"Thank God the Cat and Dog aren't here." Yuki muttered with some relief as he turned off the light and shut the door.
Now in the safety of her room, Tohru fell back against her door, thankful for its support. She was sure her face was as flushed as the tomatoes in Yuki's garden, even without glancing at a mirror. Putting a hand at her thumping heart in a sad attempt to calm it, she walked over to her desk.
Carefully, she dug through the contents of her filled drawer until she spotted what she was looking for. Holding her secret Prince Yuki Fan Club pin in between two fingers, she grinned at the gleaming crowned Y. "I wonder how the girls are going to take it when they find out Yuki wears boxer-briefs?"
I hope you all enjoyed this one! Please review and I promise to give you a tiny peek at Yuki's underwear (insert sly wink here)!
-A.L.