A/N: I am currently writing another RK story, Amnesia, but I am suffering writer's block. I have been working on its next chapter and will be continuing the story, but sometimes it's nice to have a little break. Recently, I began this story, and I have already written more than eight chapters (which I will be editing). The first chapter is the shortest so please don't worry about its lack of words. In later chapters, there will be lots of flashbacks to help you understand what is going on in the story, so pay attention to italics. They will be labeled for you, so there shouldn't be any confusion. Please review! It keeps me motivated and makes me happy to know people are hopefully enjoying the story.
SUMMARY: Modern AU. Kamiya Kaoru's desperation for employment after recently graduating college lands her in the Tokyo Police Department, working for an insufferable boss that makes constant jokes at her expense. After months of doing menial tasks, she gets her first case, working with a partner whose top priority is gambling and bar fights rather than doing actual work. The case drags Kaoru into a darker world where nothing is as it seems, including government secrets, conspiracies, and revolutions. When love enters her life, Kaoru is forced to face reality. But what happens when love leaves her for the second time in a row and how far will she go to get it back? KxK
Chapter 1: Alone Again
The rain was pelting against her face and body, drenching her clothes from head to toe. It had been storming all day, but its severity had definitely pick up recently. The soft rumble turned into ground-shaking roars, and subtle heat lightning became obnoxious bolts across the dark sky. The steady pattern of rain over the past few days was finally breaking weeks of drought, but inches of water had now accumulated in giant puddles on the sides of the streets. The thirsting soil of local gardens had long been satiated, and flowers were being drowned from all of the extra water. Yet it still came down now harder than ever. The rain was falling in droplets the size of golf balls, and the noise of the rain hitting the pavement in combination with the cracks of thunder created a loud song that only Mother Nature could direct.
The world seemed dead save for the noises of the storm. No one is their right mind was outside, not even driving in this kind of weather. Yet the flashes of lightning that sporadically cracked across the night sky briefly illuminated a lone figure that stood amidst the storm, seemingly unaffected by the world around her. She stood by the edge of the street, ignoring the rain pouring down on her, the cold win that felt like needs against her wet skin, and the electricity that threatened to strike her down. Despite all the obvious warning signs that a person should run for cover, the young woman remained still. If corpses had the ability to stand, then a passerby would have thought she was dead, judging by the complete stillness of her form. However, Kamiya Kaoru was not dead—far from it. True, she was either extremely stubborn or extremely stupid for standing out in such a storm, but dead she was not. At least not physically. Subtle clues proved this fact. Her body shook slightly from being drenched and plagued by the cold wind, and her beautiful sapphire eyes reflected a look of absolute despair.
Her pale skin glistened in the rain under the fluorescent streetlights, giving her an ethereal glow. Long raven hair splayed out across her wet back, some of the silky strands stuck to her pale face. Her soaked navy dress clung to her small frame, and her bare feet were being washed with the mini creek that was flowing down the sidewalk from all the rain. She stood there unblinking, staring down the street into the darkness. There was nothing there but a black abyss. Yet her eyes never wavered and remained focused on the area that only she could have found interesting.
"Why?" she finally whispered to herself. She spoke aloud, but her voice was lost to the storm, not even reaching her own ears. Her throat was dry, and her eyes were bloodshot from the emotional distress that had befallen her a few days ago. Her mind was focused on only one thing…or rather, only one person. Kenshin.
Kaoru's thoughts swirled around the red-haired man she had met only about a year ago. It was strange how quickly she had fallen in love with him, and he had fallen in love with her just as fast. But here she was once more, crying and feeling her heart break into a million pieces after he left her yet again. It didn't matter that he told her he loved her. It didn't matter that she meant the world to him. She was furious that he left her, claiming to be unworthy of her innocence. His absence caused her such grief that she found it difficult to rise out of bed. A mixture of emotions were swirling in her head—anger, despair, hurt, pain. Regret, however, was not one of them. She would never regret the day she met Himura Kenshin, and she would trade the pain she felt now for the bliss to forget. She would cherish her memories with the redhead forever, even if it was short-lived.
The blank expression on her face turned into a frown as her thoughts moved on. What would her parents think of her now? After her mother died when she was very young, her father raised her, teaching her the Kamiya Kasshin style of swordsmanship. He wanted to make sure that she grew up as a bright, independent young woman. And she certainly had. She was a stubborn, determined, and very self-sufficient. She never wanted to depend on anyone. Her father had never wanted her to left alone, but even he could not control death.
But would her parents truly think of her? She had succeeding in not becoming one of those whiny, little girls who spends her life trying to find a man to take care of her and cater to her every need. She didn't want that kind of relationship with a man. Yet here she was, tears mixing with the rain, throat rough from all of sobs, and body frozen from yearning for him to return. She was doing exactly what she had spent her entire life criticizing. A part of her told her that her situation was very different from those whiny girls, but did it really matter? The fact was that she had fallen for someone that she knew would never be able to stay with her forever. She ignored the obvious wrongness of their relationship and the little voice inside her head that told her to stop before she fell. But she did fall…and hard. She fell in love with him the moment she laid eyes on him. Her breath stopped upon hearing his gentle voice, and looking into his soft violet eyes made her heart melt. Even when his voice became cold and distant, his body stiff yet fluid in its motions, and his eyes a piercing golden stare, her whole body still felt on fire. She loved him. She loved all of him. And it wasn't a question of whether he deserved her. But until he was ready to accept that, she would wait until he came back to her.
And that was why she stood in the treacherous rain, uncaring that she would probably get sick from such exposure. She didn't feel the water spraying her body or the wind that chilled her to the bone. None of it mattered.
She was pulled back to reality when she realized that the rain was no longer hitting her face. It was a strange feeling, considering it was still pounding the pavement before her. She turned around slowly, her muscles stiff from remaining motionless for such a long time. Turning to the right, she was shocked to see a familiar face in such close proximity. The shock was not evident on her face, which remained expressionless even if she willed it to change. Her entire body was numb, and gentle hand that rested on her shoulder went unnoticed. Staring at the woman before her, Kaoru noticed her mouth was moving, but she could barely make them out above the noise of the storm.
Megumi looked at Kaoru with a worried expression, "Did you hear me?" It came out as a shout, as Megumi raised her voice further in an effort to be heard above the thunder and the rain. Megumi's words finally registered and Kaoru shook her head numbly. Sighing, Megumi began to guide Kaoru away from the spot where she had been standing for hours. She held one hand around her friend's shoulders, while the other carried the umbrella above their heads. Megumi continued, uncaring if Kaoru could hear her or not, "We've been searching for you for hours. Standing out in the rain like an idiot, honestly! You'll get yourself killed in this weather."
Kaoru faintly heard Megumi ranting to herself but chose to ignore it for now. She could fake not hearing it while she was outside, but as soon as they reached the haven of her quiet apartment, she knew the lectures could not be ignored.
It didn't take long for them to reach the apartment building that Kaoru shared with her two friends, Megumi and Misao. They each lived in separate one-bedroom apartments. They used to all be roommates in college, but after living in such close quarters for so many years, they decided it would be best to give each other some space. Megumi was in med school, and she needed a space to study that would not give her too many distractions. She was brilliant and much more serious than both Kaoru and Misao combined. However, she was also very cunning and enjoyed flirting with most of the male population…or at least those who met her particular criteria. Kenshin had been one of them.
Megumi also had a habit of being brutally honest. She had no qualms about telling Kaoru when she was being completely stupid. Kaoru liked to think that it wasn't very often, but she knew her stubbornness sometimes got in the way of thinking clearly. And today was probably going to be one of those instances. Regrettably, she probably deserved whatever lecture Megumi was about to dish out. After she was thrown into a scalding shower and given hot tea in an effort to warm up her shivering body.
This was exactly what happened, as Kaoru was thrust into the shower with force. Megumi laid out some towels and her to take a long, warm shower until her limbs were no longer purple. Then she left the bathroom, mumbling about making some tea. Predictable, Kaoru thought amusedly. She knew her friends well. As she stripped off her soaking clothes and stepped into the shower, she hissed as the hot water came in contact with her chilled skin. It was such a drastic change from being pelted with ice-cold water droplets for the past few hours. Normally a hot shower would be really relaxing, but right now it just gave Kaoru a stinging feeling all over her body. And it wasn't going to numb her from the pain; in reality, nothing really could.