Disclaimer: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin.
AN: Hey ya'll! here's the sequel to Best Friend's Forever. I don't think that you need to read BFF in order to understand this story and I hope that you enjoy this. Just to let you know, though you'll find out as soon as you begin reading, there is a time gap of about two years from its prequel. I was reading over the first few chapters of BFF and I seriously cringed at what i saw. It was the first fanfic that i had ever written and I saw a lot of mistakes and well...yeah. Let's just say I wasn't as proud of it as I was when I first wrote it. So, I might go back and edit it if I have the time. Who knows?
Anyway, on with the fic!
Chapter 1: Kenshin's return.
Kaoru got up with the strange feeling that it was going to be a great Saturday, but she just couldn't remember why. She blinked, and then suddenly remembered. Kenshin was coming back today! It had been nearly three years since she had seen him after his freshman year in high school, and he was now a senior, and he was coming back to Meiji High!
During the summer before her freshmen year in high school, she had noticed that Kenshin was a bit distant and he seemed to always have this sad smile on his face. Whenever she asked what was wrong, he would brush it aside and say that it was nothing. But several weeks before the start of the new school year, Kenshin's mother was sent to the hospital after she seemingly collapsed. As it turned out, she had been hiding an illness from them for a long time, and she was dieing. Kenshin had suspected that something was wrong, and he knew that ever since his father died, they had been having some financial problems. About a week after she went to the hospital, Kenshin's mom died, and Kenshin became even more distant.
Everything that happened after that, happened all too fast. Before they knew it, Dr. Gensai, who was Kenshin's grandfather, came to help take care of the three orphans, and when Hiko was transferred to Tokyo for his job, they all went with him.
For the past two years, Kenshin and Kaoru had kept in touch by talking on the phone, though not as much as she would've liked, but enough to know what was happening. His little sisters Ayame and Suzume were living with Dr. Gensai in Tokyo, while Kenshin stayed with Hiko a few miles away. Why he chose to live with Hiko rather then his sisters and grandfather was a complete mystery to Kaoru, but whenever questioned, he would skirt around the subject and end the call, saying that he had something to do.
It was almost the start of the second semester in high school, and Kenshin would have to work hard to catch up with the rest of the seniors at school, but Kaoru knew that he could do it. He had always been a very sharp and intelligent boy.
Kaoru hummed happily as she got dressed and headed downstairs to get some breakfast. Yahiko was already at the table with their parents.
"You seem to be in a happy mood," commented her father with a teasing smile on his face.
"Of course! Kenshin's coming back today!" she said her blue eyes sparkling.
Yahiko perked up and his face lit into a smile. "Oh yeah! I completely forgot! What time is he supposed to get here?"
"We're not really sure," said Kaoru's mom. "Hiko said that he would call when they arrived at the airport."
Kaoru quickly finished her breakfast and then went to her room where she spent an hour or two trying to finish her weekend homework. By the time she was done, it was nearing lunch time and she went down to grab a sandwich. When her mother asked her whether or not she wanted to go out and have lunch, she declined not wanting to be out when Kenshin arrived.
For the next several hours, Kaoru tried everything she could think of to keep herself occupied. She called Misao and Megumi, but when she started talking about Kenshin again, the two claimed that they had an incoming call and hung up. She tried going on the computer, watching TV, reading, and playing games with Yahiko, but no matter what she did, she couldn't focus and her mind would always return back to the fact that Kenshin was coming back. When dinnertime was approaching and there was still no Kenshin, Kaoru began to feel frustrated and angry.
"Where the heck is he!?" she said pacing around her room like a trapped animal. Kaoru threw herself onto her bed and glared at her ceiling when all of a sudden, her father yelled, "Kaoru, Yahiko, can you come down here for a second!" Kaoru sighed. What did they do now? Her father only used that tone of voice when he was annoyed at something that they had done. Getting to her feet, she stepped out into the hallway to see Yahiko coming out of his own bedroom several feet away. Kaoru gave him a questioning look, but he shrugged, a clueless look in his eyes.
She turned and headed towards the staircase, but as she was descending, she suddenly froze, and her breath caught in her throat when she noticed that they had guests. There, standing at the door was Hiko and Kenshin.
Kenshin had changed... at least he had physically. He was taller, and his shoulders were broader. His boyish face had nicely matured, and his eyes were no longer the soft violet that Kaoru was so used to. They were now a bluish color, and they no longer contained the mischievous and cheerful spark that had always been a part of him as a boy. Even his hair had changed a bit. While it was pulled up into its customary ponytail, it somehow seemed darker, no longer as vibrant as it used to be. His skin tone also seemed a bit paler, making the crossed shaped scar marring his left cheek stand out even more, seemingly even deeper than it was before. Despite the changes however, Kaoru couldn't help but admire how attractive he was. He had always been a handsome boy as a child, but now that he was older and his features were more matured, Kaoru couldn't help but find him even more appealing and alluring than before.
"Kenshin!" exclaimed Yahiko from behind her, jolting her out of her musings. Kenshin looked up and their eyes met for a second before Yahiko suddenly pushed her aside and rushed to greet his surrogate older brother. Tearing his gaze away from the pretty girl that was his childhood friend, Kenshin allowed a grin to grace his lips as he and Yahiko grasped hands and gave each other a one-handed brotherly hug.
"Dang! You've grown up Yahiko," said Kenshin, his voice a bit deeper then what Kaoru remembered it to be. "You're what, fourteen now right?"
"Yeah," cried Yahiko a great grin plastered to his face, and pride apparent in his eyes.
He's changed. It's been almost three years, Baka, of course he's changed! Kaoru thought. Did you expect him to stay exactly the same over the years? Suddenly, Kaoru hesitated on the stairs as she began to feel slightly nervous. He's changed. He wasn't the same Kenshin that she used to play with as a child. He's grown up, and she didn't know him anymore.
Kenshin looked up and a slight smirk, practically identical to Hiko's, appeared on his face. "You don't seem all that happy to see me Kaoru," he said in a familiar teasing tone that immediately set at her ease.
Kaoru no baka! He's still Kenshin. No matter how much he's grown up, he's still Kenshin.
Practically running down the rest of the stairs, Kaoru launched herself into Kenshin's arms and she felt his chest rumble as a chuckle escaped his lips. How she had missed the feeling of his strong arms around her and his masculine scent engulfing her. "Kenshin no baka, of course I'm happy to see you," she whispered nuzzling her nose into the dark red hair over his shoulder. "I've missed you so much."
Kaoru pulled back and, not wanting to seem rude, turned to Hiko. "And of course I've missed you too Uncle Hiko," she said giving him a hug as well.
Hiko laughed and allowed an arrogant smirk to play on his lips. "Of course you did."
Everybody in the room laughed, and Kaoru's mother began to usher everybody into the dining room where she had just finished preparing dinner.
"You didn't have to make us dinner," said Hiko turning to Kaoru's mother.
"It was no trouble. I figured you would be coming soon, so I just made a bit more," she replied taking her seat beside her husband. Sitting across the table from Kenshin the way she had so many times as a child, Kaoru couldn't help but feel kind of nostalgic. A part of her wanted to believe that things were back to how they used to be back then, when they were children, but looking around the table, she couldn't help but feel a bit melancholy for the four people obviously missing from Kenshin's family. Dinners with the Himura's had always been a noisy and joyful event, but tonight, it seemed too quiet. The three adults on one end of the table were talking quietly amongst themselves, and Yahiko was too busy stuffing his face with food to notice the somewhat awkward silence on their end of the table.
Glancing up at Kenshin, she saw that he was seemingly relaxed while he ate his dinner in silence, but after conspicuously sending more glances up at him, she noticed that his eyes would continuously scan the table and land on her for a few seconds before he forced himself to look back down at his food again. So she wasn't the only one that noticed the awkwardness in the room.
Dinner seemed to last an eternity for the two teenagers and when it was finally over, Kaoru and her family walked Kenshin and Hiko to the door when Hiko announced that they should be heading home because they still had a lot of unpacking to do.
Bidding farewell to Hiko, Kaoru turned to Kenshin and offered a small shy smile. When Kenshin returned the smile, he made a move to hug her, and she hugged him back, though it wasn't as familiar as the first one was. Moving aside so that the rest of her family could say their good nights, her gaze was transfixed on Kenshin's figure as he turned around and offered one final wave to them. Shaking her head slightly, Kaoru raised her hand to wave back, but she couldn't help the feeling of disappointment at how their first meeting in over two years had ended up. With a slight sigh, Kaoru gently pushed their front door closed and headed towards her bedroom.
XXXXXXXXX
Knock knock. Kaoru stood awkwardly in front of Kenshin's front door as she waited for him to answer. A few seconds later, the distinctive sound of locks being undone was heard before the door slowly opened to reveal Kenshin, who was dressed in an old black t-shirt and dark blue sweats. Seeing Kaoru standing in front of his door, Kenshin's eyebrows furrowed somewhat.
"Hey Kaoru," he said casually. "What are you doing here?"
Clearing her throat, Kaoru raised her hands which were clutching a brown paper sack. "I brought some lunch from my mom," she said smiling.
"Oh…um, ok," he said pulling the door to invite the girl in. "Thanks. Why don't you come in?"
Throughout the entire time, Kenshin hadn't smiled once. His face had been kept carefully blank and because of that, Kaoru hesitated imperceptibly. The Kenshin she remembered was always smiling.
Kenshin raised an eyebrow. "Come on, you're not going to make me eat lunch all by my lonesome, now are you?" he said placing a slight pout onto his face. Giving a slightly embarrassed chuckle, Kaoru kicked off her shoes and stepped into his house.
"So, where's Hiko?" she asked following Kenshin into the kitchen where the table was covered in cardboard boxes. Pushing several of the boxes off to the side so that they had room, Kenshin pulled up a couple of chairs, and gestured for Kaoru to take a seat.
"He left. Said something about having some business to take care of, but if you ask me, he just didn't want to go through the hassle of unpacking," said Kenshin taking the offered sack lunch from Kaoru and pulling out a couple of sandwiches. "He's probably hoping that by the time he gets back, I'll be done."
Kaoru scoffed, "That sounds just like him."
"Doesn't it?" said Kenshin taking a bite out of his sandwich after handing one to Kaoru. "If there's anything or anyone that hasn't changed in the past two years, it's Hiko."
Kaoru lowered her eyes and an uncomfortable silence fell over the room. So he really had changed. Here he was practically admitting that he had changed, but the thing that bothered her the most, was if his feelings had changed. He's older now, more mature. Would he still feel the same way that he had for Kaoru before he left? Or would he feel that that was just a silly childhood infatuation?
No! thought Kaoru. Stop thinking like that. No matter how he feels, he'll always be my friend. He'll always be here, and that's what's important! ...isn't it?
"It's not the same, is it?" Kenshin said suddenly, his eyes blank except for the small traces of sadness held within. Looking up, Kaoru nodded.
"It's been almost three years, and we haven't really talked in a long time," he continued entrancing Kaoru in his serious gaze. "Things…things have changed. We've changed, and I'm not really sure where our relationship is at right now."
"…Yeah…" she whispered. "So…what do we do?"
"…I'm not really sure," he replied, his eyebrows furrowing. "I guess we can spend some time getting reacquainted for a while, and then we can decide where we want to go from there."
"Yeah, we could do that." Nodding, Kaoru forced a smile onto her face. "So I guess that means I'm stuck helping you unpack, huh?"
A small forced smile appeared on Kenshin's lips. "Of course you are. What better way to get reacquainted then by cleaning?"
Kaoru laughed and got up from her seat. "So where do we start?"
Getting up, Kenshin pulled the cardboard boxes back to sit in front of them. "Right here."
Slowly, they began to unpack the boxes filled with dishes and silverware, cups and other types of things normally found in kitchens.
"So…" said Kenshin as he stacked dishes into a cupboard, "how are the others doing?"
"The others are fine. They all know that you're back and were planning on throwing you a welcome back party, but some things came up and …yeah it didn't really work out," she replied throwing an empty box aside.
"Oh, well that's okay," he replied reaching down from his stool for some more dishes to place in the higher shelves. "It's too much trouble anyway."
"Mmm," mumbled Kaoru. "So where are Ayame and Suzume? I thought they would have come back too."
"Naw, they just finally got settled in Tokyo and Dr. Gensai felt it would be better to let them at least finish the school year. After that, it'll depend on if the girls want to come back or not."
"Oh," said Kaoru handing Kenshin more cups and dishes, while placing the silverware into a drawer. "So, have you gotten your schedule yet?"
"Nope, I think Shishou said that he already took care of that for me," he said hopping off of the stool. "But I still have to pick it up in the office tomorrow. So is Sano still with Megumi?"
"Yep. And Misao is still with Aoshi too."
"Yeah? And how about Yahiko? Did he ever ask Tsubame out?"
Kaoru giggled. "Actually, they went on their first date last Friday. I still think that they look absolutely adorable together."
A small smile appeared on Kenshin's face - though it didn't fully reach his bluish eyes - as he placed the silverware into the drawers. "That's great! I guess I missed a lot things while I was gone huh?"
"Kind of," she replied. "But don't worry about it, things haven't changed too much. Like, Sano and Megumi still bicker continuously, and most of the teachers at school are the same from your freshmen year."
"Aa," he mumbled. Picking up a dirty rag that he had thrown carelessly onto the counter before Kaoru showed up, Kenshin began to spray some cleaners onto the countertops and started wiping them down.
"Dang, everything's so dusty in here," he grumbled intentionally changing the subject.
"Well of course, it's been nearly a whole year since anybody came in here and really cleaned the place out. Me and mom were planning on coming in, in about a month or two for spring cleaning, you know," she said scrunching up her nose. "But since you're here now, I guess we don't have to anymore."
"Dang, if only I waited a couple more months, I wouldn't have to clean this stuff up," sighed Kenshin.
Suddenly, a dirty rag collided with the back of Kenshin's head and he turned to find Kaoru with a satisfied look on her face. "And here I thought you had matured," she said a slight smirk playing on her lips. "You're still a lazy bum, Kenshin Himura."
"Hey!" he protested deciding to play along, "I was never a lazy bum…I just, didn't like doing chores unless you were there to make my job easier…"
Kaoru laughed. "Whatever you say Kenshin."
The first genuine smile in while spread across Kenshin's face as he turned around and continued his work in the kitchen. It took them several hours to finish off the unpacking in the kitchen and living room, but by the time dinner was rolling around, the two were done with the two rooms and were practically collapsed on the couches that they had dragged up from the basement.
"Oh my gosh, I haven't done that much cleaning and unpacking in a long time," whined Kaoru.
"Well, aren't you glad that you helped me with it then," asked Kenshin from his couch. "Imagine how long it would've taken me to do it myself." Kaoru chuckled and threw a pillow at him. "You wish."
Suddenly, a loud grumble sounded and Kaoru shot straight up, her hand on her stomach and face a pink tinge. Kenshin laughed and then slowly pulled himself into a sitting position as well. It felt so good to laugh again.
"Looks like it's dinner time. Come on, I'll cook us something to eat."
Kaoru's blush deepened as she got up from the couch. "Oh no, it's okay. It's getting late and I should probably be getting back. My mom's expecting me home for dinner."
"No, she isn't," said Kenshin. "I called her earlier and told her that you'd be having dinner here."
Kaoru's eyebrows furrowed. "No you didn't. When did you have time to do that?"
"When you went to the bathroom," he answered grabbing a hold of her hand – which to his amusement turned Kaoru's cheek a deeper crimson color – and gently led her to the kitchen. "Now come on."
Kenshin pushed her into a seat at the kitchen table and then opened up the pantry. Scratching the back of his head, Kenshin turned around with a pack of uncooked pasta shells in his hand and gave Kaoru a sheepish smile. "I hope you don't mind some pasta. That's all we have right now."
Kaoru stared at him for a second before bursting into laughter. "Wait a minute," she laughed. "You're actually going to cook?"
Kenshin raised an eyebrow. "Uhh…yeah?"
"Dang, maybe you really have changed. Back then, the most you would do in the kitchen was help out when our mothers asked for it. Now you're willingly going to cook for me."
"Hey at least I knew how to cook back then," he said a slight teasing smile appearing on his face.
"Yeah, if you call knowing how to make cup-a-noodles and scrambled eggs knowing how to cook then yeah you knew how to cook."
"Hey! At least I could do that back then. If memory serves, I believe you were completely hopeless in the kitchen. Has that changed any?"
Kaoru's cheeks lit up in embarrassment and she crossed her arms indignantly. "Yes that has changed! I'll have you know my cooking is a lot better than it used to be."
"Oh really? Well you're going to have to prove that to me one of these days," said Kenshin as he took out a couple pots and ingredients from the fridge.
About a half an hour later, Kaoru found herself seated in front of Kenshin once again, and though she didn't want to admit it, the dish sitting in front of her actually looked and smelled really good, a whole lot better than how hers ever turned out.
Kenshin watched her face as he sat across from the girl and prompted her to try it.
"Go on. It's not poisoned you know," he said when he caught her glaring at the plate of pasta.
Kaoru picked up her fork and took a bite of the flavorful food. Suddenly she froze and her glare intensified.
Kenshin raised an eyebrow at the expression on her face. "Is it really that bad? I always thought I was a pretty good cook, and it tasted fine to me when I tried it earlier."
With an eyebrow twitching, Kaoru placed her fork down and looked up with an irritated look on her face. "No, it's just that…it's a lot better then my cooking. Since when did you know how to cook?"
Kenshin stared at her for a second before her words finally registered in his mind. She was annoyed because I cook better then her? He sighed inwardly, once again feeling relieved to see that she hadn't changed all that much. "Uhh…well you know Uncle, he isn't exactly the most helpful of people. He made me cook dinner everyday, and …I guess I just got better at it as time passed."
"Yep, he hasn't changed at all," nodded Kaoru turning back to her plate and taking another bite. As the two began to eat, another silence fell upon them, but it was quickly broken by Kaoru before it could get uncomfortable.
"I'm really glad you came back," she said. "We've all really missed you."
Kenshin brought his intense blue eyes up to meet Kaoru's sapphire colored eyes. "Yeah, I've missed all of you guys too. Especially you."
Kaoru blushed. She was used Kenshin's show of affection back then, but now it seemed different. Being faced with an older and more mature Kenshin, Kaoru couldn't help but to blush. "What was it like over there?"
Kenshin looked down. "It was...kind of lonely, and things were a lot harder...more dangerous."
"Oh yeah, that reminds me. I heard that that guy Battousai - I think it was - started killing people in the name of Tenchuu," she said. Kenshin stiffened and his eyes darkened somewhat, but Kaoru didn't notice. "It must've been pretty scary living there during all of that."
"...Yeah," said Kenshin, his voice devoid of all emotion. Kaoru looked curiously at Kenshin. "It all started when you first moved there right?"
"...Aa. So you guys heard about that over here?"
"Well yeah, it was all over the news. And the weird thing is, the guy uses swords to kill. I mean how odd is that?"
Kenshin remained silent as Kaoru talked. "There was even a point when people here claimed that they saw the Battousai. There were several killings here, and a lot of parents were hesitant on sending their kids to school. Did you ever see him Kenshin?"
Slightly surprised, Kenshin's head jerked up and Kaoru thought she saw flecks of amber in Kenshin's eyes, but whatever she thought she saw was gone a second later and the redhead's eyes were once again blank. "Uhh...no..."
"...Are you okay?" she asked concern evident in her eyes.
Shaking his head slightly, a strained smile appeared on Kenshin's face. "Yeah, I"m fine."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah, don't worry about me," reassured Kenshin.
"...Okay," she said hesitantly. "So, are you ready for school tomorrow?"
"I guess so," he said thankful for the change in subject.
"You think we'll have any classes together?"
Kenshin shrugged. "I don't know. Maybe..."
For the next hour or so, they talked about little things, and before they knew it, it was starting to get late. After walking Kaoru to the door, Kenshin stood awkwardly beside her on the porch.
"Thanks for helping out," he said closing the door behind him.
"No problem," she answered. "I was glad for the opportunity to hang out with you again."
"Yeah," said Kenshin. Awkwardly, Kaoru raised an arm to hug him and he embraced her as well, but just like the last hug they shared, the slightly hesitant and uneasy atmosphere caused the hug to lack the warmth and comfort that was normally expected. Pulling apart, Kenshin cleared his throat and said, "So I guess I'll see you tomorrow morning."
"Yeah," she replied turning around. "Bye."
AN: Well? I hope you guys enjoyed that. Please review and let me know if you guys think i should continue with it.
