Disclaimer: I don't own Fruits Basket.

It was everywhere.

Thousands of white-gold fibers fell over Hatsuharu's brow like a continuous stream of champagne, bottled to its breaking point after a vigorous shake, then released in fit of ecstasy. Breathing in deeply, he could swear he almost caught the scent of champagne: sweet and crisp but with a sharp bite that only alcohol could provide.

A never ending supply of equilibrium distorted, inhibitions torn down…

Sliding his groggy storm cloud eyes around the room slowly, he saw evidence of last night's alcohol-soaked escapades. Bottles of expensive French wines were thrown together in a multicultural heap with several choice Japanese rice liquors. The nearly empty bottles caught the morning sun that was coming over the horizon, glinting and taunting his dry eyes. In another corner, he spotted the result of all of the liquor swimming through both of their bloodstreams: clothes in a haphazard cyclone. Tight black pants, a fur-trimmed motorcycle jacket, a long pleated uniform skirt that could only belong to her.

This view was covered in the streams of champagne that tickled his nose. Those golden strands ignited with the sunlight, glowing until it almost hurt to look for too long.

Carefully so as not to wake her, Hatsuharu reached a hand up to brush away that stubborn champagne so that he could see more clearly. At least he hoped it would give him more clarity.

No such luck. A headache was cracking his head wide open, a dull ache that started between his eyes and quickly spread.

He was too nervous to move but he couldn't help it. All of that liquor gave him the strong urge to go to the bathroom. Plus he needed to cure his headache, and only a healthy dose of aspirin would do the job (luckily, Hatori had supplied him with a fresh bottle not too long ago, during his routine annual checkup).

Slowly, slowly, he made his way onto his feet. First, he had to cautiously maneuver his slender arm from underneath her head. That part took the longest (and was the most terrifying) since her warmth bled onto his arm all night. He knew that this part of him would be the first thing she would notice if she woke up in that particular moment. Hatsuharu missed the pressure of her head almost immediately after his arm was declared free from her grip. Nevertheless, he breathed a silent breath of relief as he gingerly maneuvered his body upright. The most she reacted was a sleepy groan and a restless toss and turn that didn't last long once she occupied the toasty spot where his body used to be.

Hatsuharu paused a moment to look at her. Now her intoxicating hair was cascading over her face so that her features were barely recognizable. A smile splashed onto his lips as his eyes melted into pools over her sleeping form. He quickly located his white and blue striped boxers, crumpled in a heap by his feet, and pulled them on.

A long journey to the bathroom later, his feet padded softly against the cold floor towards the bed. His messy-haired companion hadn't missed a beat in her alcohol-soaked slumber. It brought a low chuckle to his throat that he didn't suppress in time.

Eyes blinked slowly open. They were sapphires thrown in the dark depths of the roughest seas.

"Urnghhhh. My head is killing me," Uo announced with her usual rough Yankee coarseness. Everything she said almost sounded like a threat was following closely behind her statements (unless she was speaking to Tohru or Hana, of course). This was especially true with her voice clogged with sleep. She blinked, licked her dry lips, and finally met his gaze. Her eyes were a reflection of his own: the same tired, dazed expression, the same red veins from lack of sleep and excess of liquor claiming them.

"I figured you'd say that," Hatsuharu replied calmly, with an undercurrent of grogginess. This was a major hangover he was fighting through. It was like trying to swim against the flow of an icy stream. "Take these," he offered, pouring two white capsules into her palm.

Uo quickly took the offered remedy without a drop of water to help the pills down on their journey down her throat. In response, the blonde gagged and coughed, managing to spit out a few scrambled-sounding expletives. Quickly, Hatsuharu offered a bottle of spring water, which Uo snatched greedily. She sucked down the liquid in large gulps, giving Hatsuharu a glare that could freeze Hell over. The white-haired boy shrugged in response.

"Fuck!" she gasped as soon as the contents of the plastic bottle were deposited in her stomach. Some water trickled down her chin, and droplets soon collected on her long flaxen tresses. Uo casted her ocean-colored eyes, still rough and choppy from last night's calamity, over the pile of glinting alcohol bottles.

"We didn't drink all of those, did we? I didn't know I was such a lush."

"Not necessarily. I'm sure you did the most damage though."

"Oh, God." Uo stopped her shocked exploration to clutch her head in pain. Eyes squeezed shut, her mouth tumbled into a graceless grimace. "This headache won't go away. I know better than to mix my liquors. Fuck." True to her word, Hatsuharu discovered a trail of silver beer cans that were just barely seen underneath the cyclone of clothes.

His arms framed Uo's long frame, which was now crumpled into a hungover-ravaged heap. Hatsuharu came in close, foreheads barely brushing together. The closeness of his body, the heat radiating from him forced her gaze to meet his.

Uo pulled the free flowing white blankets around her body as if it just occurred to her now to be modest in the daylight. Not that it made a difference. Her body was imprinted on his mind no matter what was covering her form. Unconsciously, his eyes flickered down to her collarbone, which still jutted forth despite her covering.

Why was the female collarbone such a sensual body part? It was delicate yet strong, soft yet covered in edges. Its shadows and depth, light mixed with dark, called to him. Kiss me, the angles and edges seemed to tease.

With a groan, he greedily pressed his hot lips against the hollow of her collarbone. He wanted to taste her skin, suck in all of her scent, feel her body heat in the here and now. Hatsuharu wanted to savor those textures and tastes to last him until later.

Who knew when that would happen. Of course, Hatsuharu and Uo had slept together several times when both of them were fully aware and alert, not a drop of alcohol in their systems. However, their encounters seemed to happen at a moment's notice, never with any rhyme or reason. As far as Hatsuharu was concerned, he was single and fine with it. Uo was the same way. She was independent. Rough and tomboyish, Uo didn't seem to be the settling down type anyway. It suited Hatsuharu just fine.

At first.

With a sigh, Uo threw her head back, eyes closed tightly as if the world depended on it. It only exposed more delicious collarbone and throat for him to devour. It suited him just fine.

Hatsuharu felt his view becoming more tunnel-like and hazy. His soft gray eyes hardened into steel. He was no longer calm and stoic. He didn't feel quite like himself. It was more like an animal was taking over that he knew and was unfamiliar with all at once.

Black Haru.

Oddly enough, White Haru didn't feel himself retreat down into the crevices of his soul while Black took over. Rather, it was as if he was viewing Black Haru from above his physical body. Most times, when he changed, a piece of him would be knocked unconscious while his Black persona created chaos. It was so strange, as if his two identities were wordlessly communicating with each other to achieve the same end.

He spread feathery kisses all over her firm yet tender collarbones, which rained down more firmly and passionately with time. His hands pierced Uo's wrists, so thin and fragile, to the headboard. He noticed the fold in her brow from his tight grip, but he couldn't bring himself to ease up. He would devour her until there was no more of her left.

He needn't have worried however, because the pain and pleasure formed a hazy cocktail over her face that encouraged him to fan his kisses all over her milky throat.

"H…Haru," Uo wheezed, the breath ripped out of her body with the contact of sharp molars on her neck. He drank in her skin, mouth moving and sucking in the silky skin as if he could slowly consume her soul through the sensitive spot.

"I need you, Arisa," Black Haru bit out, with a furious snap at her neck once again with his teeth. Was he hurting her? He perversely hoped so. She was hurting him so much, every day…

He felt her shudder with the way he growled her name. He rolled every bit of desire, delirium, and anger, this dangerous mixed drink of emotions, into those three syllables. He knew she loved every minute of it. In return, he relished every moan that he ripped from her vocal chords with the ecstasy-laced pain he gave her.

She was so bad.

"We gotta stop," she managed to choke out between panting and groaning. "I'm going to scream."

Silver clashed with stormy blue once again. Her eyelids were heavily hooded, revealing only tiny slits of ocean blue. The view of her face awash with passion was enough to make him groan.

"Scream," Black Haru taunted with a devilish grin stretching his swollen lips wide. His eyes ignited with her threat.

"I… We… We—we can't." Her decisiveness swirled with an enormous amount of doubt and longing. He could feel it in her voice. Uo reached her hands up to roughly push him away. Almost immediately, he could tell that she was letting her champagne hair wash over her face again to hide the regret in her eyes.

"We should stop," she said in a small voice, strangled and hoarse. Her hair still concealed her face. He knew if he brushed it back to see her, she'd damn near bite his hand off, so he backed off.

Blink.

Blink.

Blink.

Black Haru was quickly receding. It felt as if he were in a bathtub filled with warm water that was quickly being sucked down the drain. White Haru no longer had the backseat. He was free to reign over one-hundred percent. He blinked once more to scatter that intoxicating haze that descended upon him just now. Even in this moment, he could feel Black Haru cursing violently in the edges of his mind. However, he knew that his darker side would settle down for now.

Gently, Hatsuharu grasped her chin and pulled it from her blonde curtain. Her face was pale. Her eyes were wild. Her hair was a tornado. He was sure he looked no different. It was a struggle to push those animalistic urges down, but he tried to suppress himself for her sake. As tough and slick as Uo was, he knew she was vulnerable and soft deep down inside.

Deep down inside. I'm sure you both like it that way, Black Haru tittered lasciviously from the edges of his mind. Faintly now, but still noticeable enough to tick White Haru off. With an internal growl, he felt Black slither away completely for good. For now at least.

His thumb tenderly stroked her lower lip, now at least twice its normal size from all of the biting and kissing last night. He noticed faint bite marks and a drop of dried blood dotting her lip. He caressed the injury, silently cursing himself out. He gritted his teeth in half-disgust.

He recoiled when she shrank from his touch. Especially when she was so responsive before. But her eyes flashed dangerous electric cobalt when she glared up at him through long dark eyelashes.

"I'm going to go," Uo growled.

Stupidly, Hatsuharu asked, "Why?" before he could stop himself. What do you mean, why? he asked himself in bewilderment. I crossed the line. I acted out of line.

Uo gave him a queer look, as if they were on the same wavelength in regards to his floundering question. It was almost crazy how they read each other's thoughts without a single word exchanged.

Even though a nasty retort seemed to bubble up on the surface of her lips, she swallowed it down instead with a grimace and a small shake of her head. "We're both still probably fucking wasted," she settled on weakly. "I'm going to get cleaned up. I probably look like a hot mess. Then I want to get out."

"Arisa…"

"I need to leave now. This was just all a big mistake."

A big mistake? His stomach felt like it was wringing itself inside out with her harsh words. His heart galloped at high speed. How could this all be a big mistake?

Wordlessly but with her body language saying a thousand words, she stalked over to the heap of clothing and yanked on her clothes, piece by piece. Hatsuharu couldn't help but stare at her wistfully as she wrestled herself into her school uniform. When she flung her hair over her shoulder, a sweet cloud wafted over to him. He couldn't place the scent, but he wanted that scent to drift over him always.

"You owe me an explanation. You can't just say that this is all a big mistake and then not tell me why," he said as calmly as possible.

"Don't play dumb," Uo spat irritably as she brushed invisible debris from her uniform and stopped to search for her handbag. "We've been fucking around for three months now for no apparent reason. Just wasting time. I'm tired of this. I'm tired of lying to Tohru and everyone. I'm tired of pretending I barely know you just so we can continue this charade. This means nothing to me. I'm done. I'm really done."

"Wait."

Fingers wrapped around her wrist again, gently and softly.

"Let go."

"…No."

"I said let go!"

"How can I let go when you won't let me go first?!" he shrieked wildly. Self-consciously, he lowered his tone.

"You're not making any sense. This is me letting you go, Haru. I'm not in love with you. I never was. And I know you don't love me too. We don't even like each other. This is just us using each other to get off. That's it, and you know it."

Each syllable felt as if it physically resurrected itself and gave Hatsuharu a cold, unyielding slap of reality. Only this reality felt like some distorted fantasy. All he knew was that this was Uo's perspective. But he refused to accept it as reality.

"There's no way," Hatsuharu breathed, pulling Uo in so close that their body heat melted together, "I'm letting you go like this."

Tears bubbled in Uo's eyes, but she furiously brushed them away. An angry flush tinged with embarrassment bloomed in her cheeks. She whipped her hair quickly to blur the sight, but Hatsuharu's eyes were quicker.

He only saw her.

He realized he was still gripping her wrist, but it was a firmer grasp this time. Uo made no moves to pull herself away. He took advantage of the moment.

It was true, in the beginning it was all fun and games. They didn't take each other seriously. One game of truth or dare, one drunken night, one intoxicated kiss. That was all it took.

Hatsuharu couldn't deny that he was attracted to the tall blonde. She was rough and jagged with edges poking out haphazardly. As joking and breezy she seemed, she was also extremely closed off, especially with tender and sensitive matters of the heart. It took so much time to break through her scar tissue, to touch upon those still-fresh wounds. Gradually, she let him in. She let him see glimpses of moments that made her cry, that made her vulnerable and lonely. She was tough and cool and confident, but there was more behind the curtain.

He was able to uncover more and more as she grew more confident in him. He wished he could say the same for himself. He had so many mysteries and secrets that he wanted to hold onto tight. He couldn't let them wash against the surface. It was all too painful to reveal, too risky.

But he couldn't help feeling like he could smile more easily around her. His heart felt lighter. It was hard to contain his grin around her. If anyone else caught on about them… But they were such experts on keeping secrets that it never was even a thought on any of their minds.

He felt his hands cup her face. He tilted her face up. Her eyes turned into pools again, no longer choppy ocean currents.

"There's only one problem with what you just said," Hatsuharu murmured.

"…And what's that?" Uo's eyes darted away. Trying to be secretive again, he mused.

With a strength that surprised him, he yanked her face towards him again. His heart hammered against his rib cage. He felt drops of perspiration gather on his brow. But through the constant blood rushing in his ears, he persisted.

"I'm in love with you."

Uo shook her head slowly, a wavy smile trembling on her lips. When she saw how serious he was, her eyes wide with disbelief turned sad. She took a shuddering breath.

Hatsuharu's lips collided with her own, soft and needing, then firm and passionate with time. Before he could deepen the kiss, she growled against his lips and pulled back. The vibration of that low grumbling sound sent tremors through every cell of his body. He tried to curb the wanting in his veins.

The imprint of her kiss was still on his lips. Unknowingly, his pink tongue slid against his bottom lip. He tasted her natural mouth mingled with sweet, tingly champagne.

Champagne. She was his champagne. He needed more and more of her every time. He couldn't seem to build an immunity to her. Hatsuharu felt like he could get intoxicated off of her essence.

"Fuck," he muttered under his breath. Uo acted as if she hadn't heard him.

"…I'm sorry, Haru," Uo murmured, unable to meet his gaze. The curtain fell once more. Dividing him from her. Keeping him from her true feelings. He could only rely on her tone, on the cadence of her voice, on the weight of her words. "This isn't going to work out."

"What isn't going to work out?"

"Don't play dumb! I hate when you do that!" she thundered with a bolt of menace in her voice. "Time's up. I'm not having fun anymore. I'm done playing with you."

"Playing with me? Playing with me?!"

"That's right. I'm done playing with you. It was fun in the beginning. But now I'm bored. And I'm not in love with you. I don't love you."

"I think you're bullshitting me."

"Doesn't matter what you think."

"Arisa."

"Haru."

Silence washed between them, soaking them both in its icy waves. Gray and blue clashed in the perfect storm. Haru was thunder, while Uo was lightning.

"I think you're lying to me, Arisa."

Uo ducked her head down once again.

"You can live in your fantasy. It's not my problem anymore."

Soft footsteps turned into more insistent tapping against the floor. He heard her move towards the door.

A pause…

He felt her eyes on him.

A hesitation trembled in the air. If he concentrated hard enough, he could almost hear her mouth opening to say something. The pause made the air vibrate against his back. His hands balled into fists. He looked out the window. It would hurt too much to look at her.

The cool click of the closing door reverberated through the empty space.

Hatsuharu squinted against the golden sunlight. It stung his eyes to stare into it. But his heart was hurting more than any hangover, more than any headache, more than even this brief stinging of his eyes.

His mind drifted back to the sight of the world being bathed in sunlight through the view of Uo's haphazard hair splashed over his eyes.

A sad smile touched his lips.

He was missing that champagne.

Sweet with a tinge of acid.

Golden and bittersweet.