CHAPTER ONE.

So this is a test run, I'm not feeling too confident about this story, but if you guys want more there are two more chapters of this story. Just let me know if you wanna read them and I'll post them, alright? :)

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any of the characters or the story of Fruits Basket. I'm just borrowing them for a little ok?

She was running, that was all she knew right now. She didn't want to know why she was running right now. She didn't want to know why she had a sore face at the moment. Sure, she would have to tell someone later when they noticed the mark that was sure to be there, but that was later, not now.

Now was running. Now was rain. Now was her long blond hair whipping around her. She was so lost in her thoughts that she ran into someone chest. Looking up all she could see through her tears was a mop of orange hair, orange top - Kyo, a voice in her head told her. She stood still, not sure if he was someone she could break with, not sure if he could be trusted when she was like this. She didn't want to be made a fool of, so she stayed quiet. Then he spoke, softly, as if he was afraid he would break her by speaking too loud. "Yankee? Yo! Yankee!," When that didn't work he called her something else, "Uo?"

She broke. Collapsed into his chest, sobbing, clinging to the idea of someone familiar being with her, her hands clenched in his shirt, hoping, just hoping, she could trust him like this, hoping that he wouldn't make her put her mask back up for him. She didn't know if she would even be able to right now. She wasn't strong enough. The thought made her break a little more.

Now there were warm arms wrapping around her, pulling her closer to the body in front of her, awkwardly stroking her hair, swaying them from side to side, as if trying to calm her down. She wasn't sure why Orangey would do this for her, but she wasn't going to stop him. It was nice to be cared for, for once. There was a questioning voice above her head now, her hands tightened into the shirt, worried he was going to pull her away from him. She didn't want to let go just yet.

"Yan-Uo...what's wrong? Are you alright?," a hand moved under her chin and pulled her eyes up to meet Kyo's, his eyes widened as they moved over her cheek and saw the mark that was left there, then she heard a sound come out of him that she could have sworn sounded like a cat hissing.

"Who did this to you?"

Uo shook her head, turning to bury it back into Kyo's chest, but the hand lifted it again, his eyes now staring directly into hers, pinning her with his gaze.

"Arisa," Her breath caught in her throat, "that bruise is in the shape of a hand. Who did this to you?"

Her head shook again, this time he sighed and released her chin, pulling her so that his chin rested on top of her head.

"I'll let you get away with not telling me for now, but you will tell me later. Understand?" She paused for a moment, mulling this over in her head before finally nodding. If she had to tell someone she would rather it be someone who could protect her, not that she needed it, but it would make her feel better knowing, and she supposed it would be better to tell him versus the prince or Hana. She was sure the prince would have no clue what to do, and she didn't want Hana to kill anyone, which Uo was sure her friend would do if she ever found out the truth. And there was no way she would ever tell Tohru about this. No, Orangey was much better than the alternative.

"Do you want me to walk you home?"

"N-NO! I-I mean...c-could I stay at your house tonight?"

Kyo looked unsure but nodded and turned to walk to his house, "S-Sure..."

Uo had never really considered Kyo to be her friend, but he was friends with Tohru, and she had a feeling he would be the one to ask the least question out of everyone she knew. Right now that was good enough for her. She just wanted to forget tonight ever happened she knew she couldn't, but she so wished she could. Maybe, just maybe, she could be safe tonight, maybe she could let someone else look out for her tonight, maybe he wouldn't be looking for her tonight. Maybe.

As she followed him to his house Uo decided that she couldn't be bothered to annoy him, and she didn't want to ruin her chance at another place to sleep tonight. Well that was what she told herself as she sped up her pace to reach him before clutching his left hand in both of hers. Pointedly not looking at him as he stared curiously in wonder at her, not sure what possessed her to grab his hand in the first place.

Finally he shrugged it off and turned forward again, continuing to walk, not stopping to look at anything or anyone. It was after all, pretty late, and he didn't want to bring unneeded attention to them. He didn't think the Yankee could handle much more tonight from the looks of her. She looked...fragile almost, and for someone to get close enough to put that mark on her face-she trusted them, if she didn't they wouldn't have gotten that close to her, couldn't have. She didn't let anyone she didn't trust close enough to even graze the tips of their fingers on her. How did he know this? He knew the body language she was unknowingly projecting, his was the same, for different reasons of course.

Kyo was ridiculed his whole life for being the cat, sometimes he was beaten, mentally if not physically, almost every day of his life. He learned quickly. Touch is bad. The last person he let in was Shishou.

Uo used to be in a gang, her mother wasn't there from what he could tell either. Then her gang turned on her when she wanted out, the people she trusted most hurt her, beat her. She learned quickly too. Touch is bad. Trust is really bad. The last people she let in were Tohru and Hana.

Now for some reason she was letting this-this boy, this soon to be man, care for her. She was letting him in. Something she promised herself she would never do, and she did it anyways. She hoped she wouldn't regret it later, hoped he wouldn't break her even more than she already was, that he wouldn't leave her all on her own. All she had right now was hope. She hoped it would be enough.