Summary: In a tragic accident, Honda Tohru's memories are erased. A few years later and solely by coincidence, she crosses paths with Sohma Kyo. The memories return, but at what cost…? KyoxTohru Oneshot

Lone Flower

Chapter One

"Dammit!" He exclaimed, coming to his senses. How could he let her run away? It wasn't like her to run away. Was she trying to embarrass him? Did she think she had the upper hand just because her two friends were watching? "I'm the faster runner!"

Arisa and Saki observed in amusement and astonishment as Kyo ran after Tohru. There was no doubt in their minds that this dispute would settle. Maybe with something romantic, like a hug, or maybe even a kiss.

If Arisa weren't so surprised, and Saki not flooded with deep emotions for her dear-Tohru, they would've known. They would have doubted. There are times when doubt is needed. The result is always something else, never something wished for, always unexpected.

-

I won't let you get away.

That was the one thought that ran through Kyo's mind, his goal. He was tired of running, emotionally and physically. That was unlike Tohru, who just begun. She was running from him, the fear of being with him, the fear of change, and the fear of it all ending.

All of it—their happiness and innocence, the blissful days of ignorance—she feared its collapse. And it would probably shatter in front of her. It had happened once before in her past. Tohru ran from the truth. Kyo ran for it.

The brunette, brown-eyed girl stood between several crossroads. She waited patiently, staring at a light that flickered red. She was waiting for him, it seemed. Kyo ran at full speed, trying to annunciate her name. Why was it suddenly hard to say her goddamn name? She was special—that was true—but never before had it been so hard to…

He realized it instantly. What Tohru had been waiting for. It wasn't for him. A weight pushed down on his entire body. He fell on his knees, staring at the scene. It was all he could do. He lost the strength to go on. There was no hope.

"To…Tohru," he said.

The rest of it was a blur…the lights, the screeching siren. None of them impacted his brain as greatly as she did. It wasn't that he was too late, rather, that Kyo was frightened. To be freed, and then loose that freedom. Maybe he didn't love her at all.

He knelt in the same place, the sidewalk, ignoring the murmurs and whispers of those around him. Those people. As if they knew how it felt. They didn't—no one did. Kyo stared at the sky, in all its azure majesty, tainted only by white smudges. Ironic. The best weather in days saved for his depressed mood. God still didn't like him.

Who would? He hated himself.

Clenching his fists, he let all the anger out:

"Tohru!" He cried, releasing the pain in cold sweat and tears. The stares of bewildered eyes didn't matter. The darkening sky did nothing to calm his mood. He didn't care if he scared that woman's kid. He didn't care. He only cared for her.

You and you alone, he thought, watching in a daze as the ambulance took her away, never to be seen or heard from again, and soft rain trickled from the sky. But it wasn't raining. The clouds were nothing more than his imagination. Why was that?

She deserved rain.

-

For a long time, she saw nothing but darkness. Until…

"She's waking up. Tohru-kun is waking up."

"There's no need to repeat yourself. Hey, Tohhruuuuu," Arisa said, slouching over the bed. "You awake?" She was calmer now, the opposite of her previous exclamations and 'Oh, God!' 's just a few days ago.

The two girls watched as their best friend shuffled under the white covers. They were told movement was a good sign, but for the past two days, Tohru writhed beneath the covers from pain. It was essentially Saki's idea to 'cover' her misery by hiding her face under the bed sheets. Arisa thought of it as a method of suffocation.

But they were too happy to think such stupid thoughts at the moment.

"She moved. Tohru-kun moved!" Saki exclaimed, standing up.

"I know, and I saw her eye open," Arisa said with a yawn. Maybe the sleepiness had brought the cool back to her head.

"Oh Arisa," Saki said, leaning in closer. Arisa followed.

Tohru awoke groggily and slowly from her four-day coma. She scratched the top of her bandaged head with her bandaged hand, wincing at the sudden pain and recalling her injury. She sat up in the bed, staring wide-eyed at her best friends.

"Uo-chan…Hana-chan," she acknowledged.

Arisa danced around the room, overjoyed at her friend's awakening. There was also something else… "Ha! I told you she'd say my name first!"

"That's because you were close to her face. I wouldn't be surprised if she suffocated," Saki replied.

"As if you're one to talk about suffocation. It was your freakin' idea to cover her up with blankets like a dead person," Arisa said, glaring at Saki. She tried her best to hide her smile.

"It worked, didn't it?" Saki asked, not waiting for an answer. She faced Tohru and went straight to business. Her eyes grew unconsciously dark. This happened when she grew serious. Tohru knew that.

"What's wrong, Hana-chan?" She asked. Her head tilted cutely to the side. Her eyes grew wide with child-like curiosity.

"Do you happen to know where Kyo-kun went?" Saki asked. "We asked Yuki-kun and he hasn't seen him since this incident of yours. Any places come to mind? He's seemed to have disappeared."

Arisa sauntered over, hands rested casually behind her head. "Who cares? He abandoned Tohru. Should've gone to hell," she said.

"Arisa…"

"Um…what are you talking about?" Tohru asked. Both girls stopped, suddenly afraid to turn and face her. Was she kidding? Would Tohru even joke about this kind of stuff? But she was kidding, wasn't she?

"Who is Yuki-san? Who is Kyo-san?"

Wasn't she?

-

"Nothing…not a thing," Arisa said to Kureno. It was pure fate that they met. Arisa had fled the room after Saki tested if Tohru was lying or not. As if she would ever lie. Arisa found herself crying, for Tohru's sake. How could she have forgotten? Was it permanent? Would the memories come back? That was when she, literally, ran into Kureno.

"She remembers you, doesn't she?" Special emphasis on 'you.' Arisa hadn't expected that. She expected—no, wanted a sullen response. Even an 'Oh…' would do. Or he would have stared down at his two hands that rested upon his lap and feet, just as she was doing.

Arisa hadn't seen him for a while—that was true. But Kureno was Kureno. Had he really changed that much?

"I guess she does," replied Arisa, still looking down. Kureno's brown eyes were surprisingly…cool today. Maybe that was just her. She secretly dreamed of this reunion. She imagined passion. Instead, Arisa was obsessing over Tohru. Saki also was, in her weird, questioning sort of way.

"God," she said, resting her head in her hands. "What now? Where's that bastard Kyo when you need him?"

Kureno laughed. It wasn't a real one, just one to lighten the mood. Then his eyes fixated themselves on her. Arisa managed to stare back.

-

Yuki paced back and forth outside Tohru's hospital room. He hated this. Everyone had interrogated her all day, and now, even at night Hatori, the worst of them all, had to make sure for certain. His complex questions would most likely confuse Tohru. If she wasn't confused, did that mean she really forgot? If she was, then did that means she didn't? Yuki remembered Saki and Arisa telling him that her personality, at least, didn't change.

The one thing, the worst thing, that was forgotten were all memories that concerned the Sohmas. Yuki stood in there for the beginning of Hatori's meeting with her. He asked the dreaded question first:

"Do you remember Kyo?"

And so bluntly, as well. Even Saki hadn't phrased it that way.

"Who is Kyo?" was Tohru's response.

Yuki left after that, abruptly slamming the door on his way out. The Sohmas gossiped about it constantly. Honda Tohru's memory loss became their conversation over dinner. He hated them. It was always hard not to.

But the person he hated most of all was Kyo. Kyo ran away, without even apologizing or checking to see what happened. Tohru didn't deserve to love such a man. That was the only good side to this, Yuki thought, stepping outside. He saw Machi sitting and waiting patiently on a bench in the distance. Tohru didn't remember him, and in time Kyo would forget all about her.

-

Tohru barely changed over the years. She remained kind-hearted and optimistic, even following her grandfather's death. She listened to Arisa's love troubles, which were more like confusion. She watched in happiness as Saki left for college abroad. Unlike her friends, her life stayed plain and simple. She didn't go to college, but managed to complete high school, as Kyoko wished.

Then, it happened. The life-changing experience was never to be misplaced among her memories, never to be forgotten, again.

It happened so suddenly, on a hot July day, in the peak of summer. Tohru was nineteen.

"Mama, can you get this? You promised you'd get me candy for my birthday."

"You're right, but…I…I think it's too high! I'm sorry…but, Mama isn't very tall, you know."

"She is compared to me!"

He stepped inside. A navy hood covered his orange locks. It had just been raining. Luckily, he was no longer wary of the rain. That was just a part of the curse, and the curse was long gone.

He walked past her and her child, inserting the amount of yen needed into the vending machine. He was thirsty. He grabbed the soda, and passed her again, but nearly ran over the small girl standing beside her.

She tugged on the bottom of his jacket. "Excuse me, mister," she said. "But can you reach that? You look tall and my mommy's short."

"Oh. Sure," he said, grabbing hold of the gigantic candy-bar on the very top shelf. Who's idea was that? Candy was for kids, and kids were tiny. There was no way in hell they could reach that height.

"Gimmee!" shouted the toddler. Instead, he gave it to her petite mother. She wasn't exactly short, maybe around average height. Shoulder-length, brunette hair framed her delicate face. She was beautiful, in a simple sort of way.

"Oh my gosh! I-I'm so sorry for troubling you!! I…I could have reached it myself if I jumped high enough…I think…" She said, her voice trailing off. She looked especially cute when flustered. That struck him as strangely familiar.

She took the candy, bought it, and was off with the little girl.

It can't be her, he thought, uncovering his bright hair, leaving the store after buying an umbrella. Just to make sure…

"What is…your name?" He asked.

"Honda Tohru," she said.

Well, no. That didn't really happen. But for so long, he practiced this question—these effortless words. He searched for her, after realizing his own stupidity. But it was too late. No one would let him see her, for reasons unknown.

Kyo swore to himself, despite what everyone, including her own friends said. He would see Tohru again.

Thanks for reading.

This was my first Furuba story, lots of research was done. I'm not sure what to say myself.

Anyways, hope you liked it!

Shizuka-Ai calm::love