Sohma Kisa stood in front of the store window, staring longingly at the plushy toys inside. She opened her purse and rifled around until she found her bright purple wallet. She popped it open to see how much money she had, then frowned. Kisa was very good about saving her allowance, but this month she'd fallen pray to every girl's greatest weakness – new shoes. Unable to justify another impulse buy with the meager amount of yen left in her wallet, she snapped it shut and forced herself away from the window.
As she turned, she saw a flash of brown hair and a familiar set of brown eyes. "Hiro-chan!" she called out happily, moving toward her cousin. Yet as she moved toward him, he turned away.
"HIRO-CHAN!" she called out louder. But the boy kept moving away. In fact, it seemed to her like he was actually running away.
"Ah…" She stopped, feeling foolish for calling out so loudly. Maybe it wasn't Hiro. After all, it was Sunday, and the shopping district was bustling with activity. Blushing at the thought of running so enthusiastically toward a total stranger, Kisa turned on her heel and started walking in the opposite direction.
Despite her best intentions to go straight home after completing the errands her mother had asked her to run, Kisa couldn't help but pop in to the cute boutique on the corner to admire the pale green dress she'd been coveting for the past few weeks. It would match her new shoes perfectly…
She turned the corner around a rack and walked smack into someone. Panicking that it might be a man, she jumped away, then looked herself up and down. Of course she would have felt herself transform, but the visual reassurance of seeing her human arms and legs was comforting nonetheless.
"Phew. I'm so sorry," she said, looking up. But no one was there. She glanced around, twisting her neck to get every angle, but she couldn't see anyone.
"That's weird," she said to herself. She walked around the small store, but the only person in there other than herself was the bored looking cashier. Feeling uncomfortable, she decided it was time she head home.
While the shopping district had been teeming with people, the route back to the Sohma estate was practically desolate. Uneasy from her strange experience in the boutique, Kisa walked briskly, stopping only for traffic.
At one point, she heard footsteps behind her. Thinking it might be one of her relatives, she paused to peek back, but no one was there.
"I must be hearing things," she said out loud, trying to keep her uneasiness in control. She started walking again, but after a few steps she heard someone behind her again. This time, she whipped around.
"Who's there?" she called out timidly. Her call was met with birds chirping, and nothing else.
Sufficiently anxious, Kisa started walking faster. The estate was only a few blocks away, and once she reached it, she'd be safe.
She was walking by the small park near home when she heard rustling in the bushes next to her. Loud rustling, most likely created by a large body. Likely a human sized body.
Suppressing an urge to scream, she sprinted towards the estate. She didn't stop running until she reached her house and slammed the door behind her.
"Kisa?" he mother said, concerned. "What's wrong? You rushed into the kitchen without even taking your shoes off."
"Bumped into…no one there…footsteps…rustling" Kisa wheezed, completely winded by her mad dash home.
"You're not making any sense Kisa," her mother said. "Take a minute to catch your breath." She smiled. "Whatever it is, you're safe now."
Just then there was a knock at the door.
"Aieeh!" Kisa shrieked, grabbing hold of her mother and hiding behind her legs.
"Kisa. Calm down," her mother scolded. "I'm sure it's fine." She started for the door, then paused. "But just in case…" Her mother grabbed a frying pan from the wall.
Her mother hesitated for a moment, then slid the door open. Even standing safely behind her mother, Kisa's heart was racing.
"Oh, hello! I wasn't expecting you until later." Her mother stepped aside. "Kisa, aren't your going to greet Hiro-chan?"
"Hiro-chan?" Kisa moved out from behind her mother.
"I'm sorry I'm early, oba-san" Hiro said, bowing. He turned to Kisa and smiled warmly. "Hello Kisa."
Kisa smiled back, both relieved and pleased that it was Hiro at the door, and not some crazy stalker. Even if someone had followed her, with Hiro here, she knew she and her mother would be safe.
"Why don't you two go in the living room and let me finish baking this cake," Kisa's mother said, ushering Hiro inside.
Hiro followed Kisa into the room, and slid the door shut behind him. Kisa looked at him curiously.
Blushing, Hiro shoved a gift bag into Kisa's hands. "I know the party isn't going to start for a few hours, but I wanted to give you this," the boy said.
"Thank…thank you, Hiro-chan," Kisa replied, shyly.
"Well go on, open it." Though Hiro was looking away with his arms crossed, his voice betrayed his eagerness.
"Okay…"
The bag itself was a pretty sky blue, with white tissue paper and a pale green bow. "It's so pretty, Hiro-chan."
"Hn." The boy blushed deeper.
Slowly, Kisa reached in the bag and felt something soft and squishy. She pulled it out and squealed excitedly.
"Hiro-chan, how did you know?" she asked, admiring the tiger plushie. "It's so cute!"
Hiro just smirked. "There's more."
"More?" she asked incredulously. "But Hiro-chan, you didn't have to get me anything."
"I wanted to," he said impatiently. "Now check out the rest."
Shoving her hand back into the bag, Kisa felt something else soft, but of a much finer texture than the plushie. She pulled out the second gift and gasped.
"Hiro-chan…the dress. How did you…" Kisa let herself trail off as she realized how he must have known. "It was you I saw earlier…" she said, beaming at him.
He smiled and gently touched her cheek. "Happy Birthday, Kisa."