Gaman
It hit him on a day like any other. She had been berating Yahiko over his technique, walloped him for good measure, then she turned around and said something sweet to Kenshin, bounded into the kitchen with a smile on her face.
Crazy, tomboyish Jou-chan.
Temperamental, caring, good. So good.
Sweaty and sweet and... beautiful.
She was beautiful.
Somehow he had never thought of her as beautiful before.
But on that day like any other Sano watched her laugh in the sunshine, and his heart leapt and his muscles clenched and his blood hummed in his veins.
Heat. Heat, and a shadow over the sun.
Aside from the fact that Kenshin would probably break his vow and slice him in two if he tried anything (and Sano would not glance over to see if the rurouni had noticed - Kenshin could be creepily aware sometimes), Kaoru... would never go for him.
Kaoru loved Kenshin the same way she breathed the air, practiced kendo, and burnt rice.
For the first time, the first time he was aware of it, he wanted her - her laughter and her smiles and her slim, soft, strong body. He wanted that hidden smile of hers - the sad one, the wistful one - he wanted all of her.
It was like realizing, all over again, that he could never be as fast as Kenshin, never be the same fighter, never have the skills and instincts of a hitokiri.
On a day like any other, in the sunshine, surrounded by his friends, Sanosuke's mouth twisted in a bitter smile.
It was a day like any other, and nothing had changed.
Nothing would change. He would teasingly insult her, her cooking and her looks, she would mock him and fight him in return, and they would be comrades and friends the same as always.
Nothing had changed.
It was just another something Sano could never have.
.
.
Author's note: I was going to call this "Okabore" (unrequited love, secret love) but decided "Gaman" (pride, endurance, deal with it) was a better title.
A quick break from Yuki Onna. I think this is my first canon RK story. Sano/Kaoru... If Kenshin weren't in the picture, I think they'd have potential! What do you think? …(And for some reason my muse has decided that Sano needs to feel sorry for himself in a masculine and self-deprecating sort of way and that everyone, at some point or another, falls in love with Kaoru.)
Even for an alternate pairing, it strikes me that there's a surprising lack of Sano/Kaoru on this site. :-\
