Chapter One:

What Have We Done?

A/N: Back to my static. That is all, enjoy.

I hate the fall. Everything about it is unsettling; the end of wonderful summer days spent lounging at the beach, the end of pretty colored nights walking hand in hand with my lover as a cool breeze shuffles her hair; pieces of scattered memories laced together into a depressing montage of what will never be again. Quietly I stare at the lifting moon as deep husky rain clouds threaten the ease of the night tossing a hand through my short blond hair I laugh. Yes this night would be the end of many things but in hope, the beginning of many too. I had recently taken a new job, my career as an internationally renowned F1 race car driver was fading in the distance and the new career of manager was about to take off. The prodigy was a 17 year old boy named Tyler Hewlett whose family lived in Daytona Florida. After watching me race for years Tyler demanded his father bring me to America to teach him all I knew. The price was right and the opportunity was amazing, they were even willing to overlook the fact that not only was I female, but a lesbian at that. My lover is less then thrilled to be whisked away from her family, friends, her life but she loves me and I'm lucky to have her, had she in any way disagreed with this move; I may have given up on my dream. Sighing I turn to face our bed, she's sleeping and now she looks peaceful, pangs of guilt run over me as I close my eyes remembering our fight earlier in the day. I want so much for her to be happy and in that I push her away from me. I realize that, so does she. We shout at each other for an hour, never more, then I retreat to my office and she to her art room; after we both cool down we meet in the kitchen where I beg her forgiveness and she laughs at me as we kiss. I close my eyes as I think about our kitchen, that tonight was the last night we would make love on the counter, the last night we would eat dinner in our dining room.

'Haruka.' her voice is soft and raspy with sleep.

'Mm.' I reply to her slowly walking into our room from the balcony the curtains closing behind me to shield the light of the moon.

'You okay?' she yawns turning over. I watch her, adoring the look of her body in our bed.

'Fine. Just thinking go back to sleep.' Her eyes droop but her arms reach for me, I slide into our bed and she wraps them around me. I can hear her return to her slumber, her arms now locked against my body, her head resting on my back, my position isn't a comfortable one but I'll keep it as long as she's happy, slowly I join her in sleep.

...

Morning sun breezes against the deep grey of our curtains covering my face in day. I squint my eyes against it, my body aches a little from my position and since I'm now alone in bed I'm able to stretch my 5 foot 9 frame out over the bed. I groan loudly pushing my feet into the bed and pulling my arms out to my sides. 'Morning.' I hear the silky voice of my love greet as she wanders into our room with two cups of Styrofoam coffee.

'Yes, thank you.' I say taking the cup she offers me. 'What time is it?' I ask downing a large draft of the coffee silently cursing myself as it scalds my mouth.

'Nearly nine.'

'Michiru, you really don't have to do this.' I say to her, using my free hand to push myself into a sitting position before I take her hand into mine.

'Don't be absurd.' she laughs lacing her fingers around mine before meeting my hand to her mouth. 'I love you Haruka, three years with you in America and me here would drive me crazy.' She moves her mouth to meet mine and I taste the bitterness of the coffee mixed with the natural sweetness of her mouth.

'What time are the movers here?' I ask breaking our kiss, her lips still very close to mine.

'Eleven.' she answers still not pulling away.

'Then we have some time.' I tease her, putting the cup on the floor and wrapping my arms around her. 'What could we do?' I say as my mouth matches hers again. She moans against my embrace, our tongues dance with each other and warmth begins to over take me.

'Mm Ruka, we need to finish packing.' she says against my lips breaking our kiss. I frown only a little as I know she hates it, and then nod. 'Yes we do.'

...

33 hours, 14 minutes later my head is cloudy and my body is officially protesting against me but we're finally making our way into the house the Hewlett family has rented for us. Slowly we make our way past the large front gates, the house is larger then I could have imagined and I'm slightly confused on its need. Michiru's eyes are wide as she takes in its stature against the soft twilight of the early evening sky. 'What point are they trying to send Ruka-koi?' she says to me in an almost insulting tone. I try to ignore it as the driver hands me the keys to both the house and the car the family has given to me.

'There is also a car for Miss Kaioh.' He says to me handing me yet another set of keys. Michiru turns then and frowns a little at her previous rudeness. I smile to the driver happy he likely doesn't speak Japanese. 'Anything you need feel free to give me a call.' He adds helping me with our bags once our things are in the house he smiles at me and takes his leave. I glare slightly at Michiru who fully ignores me wandering aimlessly about the house.

'It's pretty.' She says lifting random objects. The house has been decorated in traditional Japanese; some of the items bring a smile to my face as they are blatantly Americanized Japanese knockoffs. The sound of Michiru's laughter drags me from the living room into the office; there hanging on the farthest wall is a picture I would recognize instantly.

'Do they know I painted this?' she says between giggles.

'Not likely.' I laugh glad to have our tensions lifted. She crosses the room to join me, slipping her arms around my waist leaning her head against my shoulder. I hold her close as we admire her work. 'You're so talented Michi-koi.'

'Thank you.' She says blushing the same pink tint she always displays when I compliment her work. If I tell her she's beautiful she shoots me a glare the only blush comes from commenting on her art, and her blush I love. I slide my arms around her waist pulling her against me, letting my mouth wander to her shoulder, then her neck. 'Shall we find the bedroom?' she says her voice betraying her a little. I release my hold on her and follow as she leads us out of the office and down the hall. We open three doors before finding one that contained a bed. 'How many bathrooms do we need?' She teases having closed the door on two of them. 'Oh Haruka' she gasps taking in the beautifully decorated master bedroom. Ocean blues and sea greens cover the walls, coral pink sheets lay back to a sand colored duvet.

'I take it you approve?' I tease her. This room was the only one I was already aware of what to expect; The Hewletts asked me how I wanted it decorated and I told them, the ocean. My ocean. Michiru's eyes follow around the room until they meet mine, she has a wonderful look of wonderment on her face and I find it endearing.

'You knew about this?' she says to me, taking the few steps back to me, her eyes locked on mine.

'I did. They asked me how our master room should look and I said the ocean.' there is a tear in her eye and even though I hate to see her cry my heart is pulled more toward pride then fear. Her lips are on mine before I even register what's going on, my arms instinctively find her waist and I pull her close. The kiss is passionate and seductive and I'm fighting the urge to ravish her, she can feel that I'm sure; my body is leaning against hers begging to be closer still. 'I should get our luggage.' I manage to break in. she groans pulling me further into the room, she lets go of my hand and places herself on the bed, the innocents of her look is broken by the fire in her eyes. 'Haruka' she breathes and the realization that I have been standing a foot away from her just staring hits me, I grab the hem of my shirt and lift it over my head tossing the fabric somewhere in the distance leaping onto the bed next to her. 'Yes.' I say in the most seductive tone I own, letting my hands busy themselves with the buttons of her dress. Her lips are against mine again and our tongues are doing their usual dance her hand is running up my side bringing waves of shivers over my skin my nipples perk and a rush of warmth hits my pelvis.

'Damnit.' I curse at the sound of a phone ringing breaks my concentration. Michiru groans loudly as I step off the bed to find the disturbance. 'Moishi Moishi,' I answer forgetting I'm in America.' Yo.' I add quickly. 'Haruka, you made it.' the voice of James Hewlett the third gushes in my ear. Tyler's father had more money then brains as far as I was concerned, the heir to an oil fortune that had doubled many times over. James had never had to work a day in his life and from that, neither had his son. His wife Donna was the reason Tyler was into motorsports, she demanded he find something constructive to do beyond spending his father's money.

'We did, yes.' I say glancing to Michiru who was back to seducing me, her hands unbuttoning the rest of her dress, I cock my eyebrow at her and turn my attention back to the wall.

'And everything is good? We stocked the fridge and made sure there was enough stuff for both of you.'

'Yes, everything is perfect. Thank you for the bedroom Michiru loves it.' I say listening with interest to the increased speed of her breathing, deciding it's best I keep my attention on the foam colored wall I ask 'When do you want me at the track?'

'Oh, not until next week Haruka, get settled. I'll drop by with Donna in a few days to make sure everything is well and go over the press stuff with you. Have a good night.' he finishes. I hang up the phone and turn to find Michiru on our bed, clothes completely removed. Sound asleep. A smile crosses my face and I move to pull the blankets over her before placing a light kiss against her pouted lips. How I love her. I flick the light off leaving the room in complete darkness and head for the door, getting lost on my way, she's right how many bathrooms do we need? Once I reach the door I separate our luggage and move things around in the living room to accommodate our items when the movers arrive. Wandering from the living room I show myself the kitchen happy to know little of the events that take place there. I can handle feeding myself but the idea of actually cooking is beyond my grasp, I just hope that these appliances will be good enough for Michiru. I search the cupboards for a kettle finally finding a pot instead; I fill it with water and set it to the stove, trying a few knobs before sparking the right one. Next I set out to locate some tea and a cup, my water is already boiled when I finally locate the cup but I still have yet to find the tea. Shrugging I wander to the closet confused as to why there is a closet in the kitchen, but I finally find the tea, and an array of other food. Now I'm aware of the concept of a closet in the kitchen. I take my tea with me to the rest of the house, opening and closing doors as I scout about, I locate two spare rooms, another office with a music stand and easel much to my request, I find yet another bathroom and finally with the last door, the garage. I set my tea on the floor flicking the light to the garage, my heart leaps from its place in my chest, the garage is perfect. To my left a wall of tools shine in the form of never been used and well polished. To my right a hydraulic lift next to it a team of tires and two added tool cases that spark my imagination. a stupid smile crosses my face as I move from one delightful item to the next stopping only to view the tarp; a squeal like sound escapes my mouth and I rush to the side of the tarp pulling it ever so slowly off of the car. My heart settles back into my chest only to swell with elation I stare at the chaise of the half built 1967 Chevrolet impala. 'Oh my god.' I managed vaguely remembering the mention of my dream to build one in a conversation with Tyler. Next to the half built impala is my daily ride, knowing full well my baby was parked in a garage in Japan seeing her sister in almost exact detail warms me a little. Next to my Toyota is a civic for Michiru. I pull the door to the garage open and leave the newly discovered heaven grabbing my cup and switching the light back off before I head back through the house and into the bedroom, Michiru is still sound asleep, I change out of my pants and bra only now realizing I had not replaced my shirt, then crawl into bed next to her, pulling her body close to mine as I drift off into sleep.

...

The hypnotic sound of a newly installed RVX 06 engine purred around freshly groomed cement and where I normally regale in this sound today it's giving me another headache, I place the mic next to my mouth and saving a groan I say 'Tyler, not so much gas you're killing it.' Michiru gives me a soft look and I run my hand along my brow. In three years I have managed to gain little and lose a lot. I've shared to the best of my abilities my racing knowledge with Tyler, and yet he's retained little of this information. We'd been over and over the same routines hundreds of times, me changing this, tweaking that and after hours and hours at the track he would still come in last or closer to. Secretly I was glad when Michiru was offered a position as a teacher at a school in Canada. She knew my contract with the Hewletts was up at the end of this year and even though they'd offered me a permanent position with a hefty salary I couldn't accept, not now, Michiru was moving. Tyler rounded the last lap and I moved from my viewing window to sit next to Michiru resting my head on her shoulder, she dropped her book and placed her arms around my shoulders. 'It's alright baby, just three more hours.' she cooed. I sighed heavy and stood, watching the boy spin out as he usually did when it came to the turn. 'Tyler.' I said hard. He corrected the turn and flowed nicely through. 'What will I do without you Ruka.' he said. I frowned harder then. 'You'll live.' I finished. 'Bring it in we're done.' he pushed the gas again and brought the car to a halt below me, the mechanics were closing around it and I held my frown, he'd been around the track only sixty times but he'd ran the transmission to death. 'Ruka, he's still a mess.' Gary the lead mechanic said into my head piece. Gary had a way with cars, and for that we became quick friends; I would miss him. 'I know.' I replied into my mic my tone laced with sorrow for the poor mechanic who would now need to fully replace the transmission and anything else a miss with the machine.

'Hey Michiru.' Tyler greeted entering my office. Michiru said nothing to him, she never does. After their first meeting she found it better to merely ignore him. She's accused me of not seeing how he flirts with her, for omitting his lengthy stares and rude comments but I see them and they bother me and I talk to him about it but he continues.

'Tyler, you wrecked the car.' I say flatly.

'I did, well Gary can fix that.' he puts off taking the seat next to Michiru, she shuffles away from him focusing on her book.

'Look Takashi wont be as nice to you believe me.' I warn him, Takashi Aino was my manager for three seasons in Japan and as a personal favor to me he was taking over. The money helped I don't doubt. Tyler's hand is dangerously close to Michiru's leg, his eyes are fixed on the hem of her dress, jealousy fills me but I don't say anything, why save the boy now? Soon the sound of hand to flesh is heard in the quiet of the office and Tyler is holding his face. 'How many times do I have to warn you?'

'I didn't think she'd hit me.'

'Baka.' Michiru says grabbing her book and leaving the office.

'I can't believe you tap that.' Tyler says derogatorily. I glare at him. 'What?' he asks and I roll my eyes, thanking Michiru again in my mind for getting us away from here. I hand my office keys to Tyler then, shake his hand and as my final act as manager to the boy I try to summarize my knowledge into one swift speech praying that some of it sinks in before Takashi starts. 'Ease off the gas so much, don't run the gears, remember third is before forth and by god stop hitting on girls who are way beyond you.' he laughs and we hug. It's uncomfortable but finally I'm away. I close the door behind me and hurry home, Michiru is there already, dinner has been started and she's humming. I make my way as quietly as I can to her side, letting my arms ease around her, my chin resting in the curve of her neck. 'I love you.' I say.

'I love you too.' she smiles leaning into me.

'What time do the movers come?' I ask poking my finger into the sauce she's made. She swats me away and I laugh moving to the dinning room.

'Tomorrow afternoon around three. Our flight is at five.' she adds some salt to the sauce after I make a face. 'Everything is packed so we should be alright.' she adds. I look at her, admiring the beauty before me she blushes and this causes me to laugh.

'You never blush when I stare at you.' I say.

'I'm just happy you're letting me do this.' she says.

'Michi-koi, you moved here for me, it would be rather selfish of me not to do the same for you. Besides if I spend another day with that boy I might kill him.' We both laugh now, she joins me in the dinning room, her arms around my shoulders her lips closing in. 'Last night.' I say to her.

'It is.' she smiles. 'We should make it memorable.' she takes my hand slowly she kisses each finger before the palm and then my wrist; my eyes close on their own as I savor each sensation, her lips brush against my inner arm before she moves them to take my lips. Our kiss is long, passionate and familiar. She breaks it only to turn off the stove, I hear her moving in the kitchen and when she returns her clothes have been replaced only by the kitchen apron. 'Oh my.' I manage.

'Indeed.' she teases. I take her to bed, forgetting completely about dinner and not really caring much for it, she'll be my dinner and my desert tonight and tomorrow, we'll move to Canada.

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