A/N: A new story from your humble servant kaoru07. This story is a re-tell of the story "Marriage on the Rebound" by Michelle Raid.

Ladies and Gents, vertebrates and invertebrates, Sit back and enjoy the show!

DISCLAIMER: This would be the only chap that I will post this disclaimer. Rurouni Kenshin (Samurai X) is the property of Watsuki Nobuhiro and Jump comics as much as I don't own the Miss Reid's "Marriage on the Rebound" or the plot (As I said this is a re-tell,…RK style) So lawyers don't sue… I don't claim anything.

SUMMARY:

Just after being jilted on her wedding day, Kamiya Kaoru suddenly found herself hurled into a marriage proposal, by the man who convinced her fiancée to abandon her; the same man which was supposed to be her brother-in-law. She half-heartedly accepted his proposal, but why did he want her to be his bride just now, when he had acted as if he despised her?


Straight to Your Arms

CHAPTER ONE- Breaking the news


Her ice-cold hands pressed between her knees as she slumped to the nearest chair.

The silence that filled the room made her wonder if she's just deaf of everyone's just mute. All she knew is the small sheet of notepaper her hands crushed beneath the soft folds of pure white silk and delicate lace. The note the red-haired man had just coldly handed to her.

'Dear Kaoru…'

Remembering it only made her already pale face turn whiter with misery.

"How could he do it?" her brother-in-law's harsh voice finally unruffled the silence. As much as Sano hated it to sound gruff, he just blurted it out.

But nobody answered him. Who would dare anyway? Nobody knew. Kaoru sure couldn't, and the red-head obviously wasn't prepared to.

Only a few short miles away, the supposed-to-be groom stood idly by the lead-paned window, effectively isolated from it all. After all, his part of the dirty feat was done.

"My God! He couldn't have made it any worse, could he?" Sano raked out angrily.

"No", not wanting to add fuel to the fire, the red-haired man managed to get the single syllable past his tensely locked throat to answer that one. He knew what Sano is capable of, so as much as possible he tried to make use of his presence sparingly.

The bride didn't so much as move, her eyes which were dark blue under normal circumstances looked much darker in her pale face now. She was not seeing much, just the cold, dark niches of her mind where she could see the horror and feel the hurt and humiliation waiting to take hold of her once the all-encompassing numbness of shock had worn off.

Kenshin must be in shock too, she supposed. He certainly looked pale beneath that warm tone that his skin always wore. And he was dressed for a wedding the way an unsuspecting best man would; in a formal grey morning suit.

Her gaze dropped to her hands, where her finger curled tightly around the crisp note.

'I'm sorry I have to do this Kaoru….'

Her heart was pumping unusually –not in her breast but in her stomach, massive, agonizing pulses that made her feel dizzy and sick.

Somewhere out there was a church full of anxious guests, all clad in their best wedding finery, waiting for a bride and groom who would never show up.

By now, they would have suspected that something had gone wrong. The fact that the groom and his best man were not in their places by the altar was enough to stir up suspicion alone. Her sister would be jumping all over the place with worry and Misao, her bridesmaid, looking foolish in her pretty emerald dress, would be waiting just outside the church for a bride who was no longer wanted

"God –"Sano broke into sudden movement. "I have to go and warn all those poor people waiting at the chur–"

"There's no need, I've already seen to it….I thought it – best." he finished inadequately, hating the situation Akira had thrust upon him so much, that the words came out abrupt.

As if on cue, the sound of a car pulling up outside the elegant town house alerted them of the first shocked arrivals back from the church.

'Too soon', Kaoru thought numbly, her head spinning with emotional overload. 'I'm not ready for them. I can't face them, I can't–'

"Kaoru"

It was Kenshin's voice sounding raw with concern. Within seconds she felt herself being caught just before she collapsed.

"I don't want to see anyone..," she whispered.

"Yes, of course". Kenshin bent in front of her, holding her slumped against him. With the fine tulle veil covering her thick mane of midnight-black hair rustling against his face and his heart thundering underneath her resting brow she noted distantly that he was trembling.

"It's Megumi.." Sano had moved to peer out of the window. "It's your sister, Kaoru", he murmured soothingly.

Kenshin uttered a soft curse when the front door burst open. Kaoru began to shake violently so he shifted his big frame to gather her into the protective cocoon of his arms.

"Kaoru!" Megumi's near hysterical voice rang out.

"No.." she whimpered against Kenshin's shoulder "please..no,…"

Of all the things she has to face now! She didn't want this not when she couldn't cope with it. Not her sister's grief, not her brother-in-law's –not even her own!

Kenshin must have sensed it, because he stood up and suddenly pulled her with him, and then she was being lifted into his strong arms.

"She's fainted"

He lied. God alone knew why, but Kaoru was grateful to him. She allowed her ice-cold face press into his warm, tense throat, his masculine scent surrounding her.

"Her room, Mrs. Sagara –show me where her room is."

Megumi, her quiet, gentle older sister who rarely let anything ripple the calm waters surrounding her life –went completely to pieces, dropping down into one of the chairs to sob uncontrollably. Sano went to her while Kenshin mumbled something under his breath and strode out of the room without waiting for directions.

The hall was packed with people. Kaoru could feel their horrified presence even with her face hidden in Kenshin's throat. She heard several shocked gasps, and Misao's voice, questioning and sharp with concern. Kenshin answered tightly, but she didn't know what he said. She was hovering somewhere between this world and another, riding on a fluffy grey cloud just above pained reality. The only voice raspy enough to penetrate through was Kenshin's.

"Which room?"

When no one still answered, he took the stairs and ignored their presence. The angry adrenaline pumping in his blood was powerful enough to send him up there without him so much as taking a breath.

Once on the lobby, he began opening doors, throwing them wide and glancing inside before moving onto the next one, until he came to one which could only be the bride's room, because of the messy scatter of wedding paraphernalia all over the place. He finally sat her down on end of the bed and then turned to slam the bedroom door shut.

Then the silence returned. The same hard, pounding silence which had closed them all downstairs, after Kenshin had delivered Akira's letter.

Kenshin just stood there, glaring at her down bent head for a few moments, and then suddenly walked towards her to grasp the short veil she still wore. He ripped it from her head and threw it aside, careless of the amount of pins holding it in place.

"Gomenasai," he muttered tensely in his Japanese accent. "But I couldn't …" swallowing, he spun away, thrusting clenched fists into his pockets.

She didn't mind when her scalp began to tingle from his rough treatment. If anything, she was glad of the feeling because it told her she was at least still feeling. She even understood why he'd done it.

She must look pathetic, really pathetic, sitting here in all her bridal clothes while her groom ran off in the opposite direction.

Then it really hit her. Self-loathing surged up from nowhere and brought her staggering to her feet. The letter, still crumpled in one hand fell forgotten on the floor as she began a mad clawing at the tiny pearl buttons holding the front of her lacy bodice together.

"Help me, for God's sake!"

"Kaoru, I can't!" Kenshin sounded helpless, which brought her eyes jerking up to his face.

"Why not?" she demanded. "You've done everything else you could possibly do to ruin this day for me, why can't you help me ruin this horrible dress too?"

Her sudden reproach sent him a step back, and set a nerve ticking at the side of his rigidly held jaw.

She watched his casually cold-hearted eyes soften with emotion as he opened his mouth to say something. Kaoru's chin came up; her darkened eyes daring him to deny what she had said accused him of.

But he couldn't, and his mouth closed again into a hard, tight line of self contempt.

On a fresh wave of inner violence, Kaoru gave a fierce yank at the bodice so that the two pieces of fine fabric tore apart, sending tiny buttons flying everywhere; on the bed, on the floor, and one flying across the room to land on the soft mauve carpet at Kenshin's feet.

"Help me!" she pleaded in choking desperation. The silk ripped as she tugged, but she didn't care, it felt as if getting out of this dress was the most essential thing in her life at that moment – to remove everything, even remotely connected with Akira or her ruined wedding day from her body.

He stared down at it, his titian head was lowered so she couldn't see the expression on his face.

On a rustle of silk, she turned away to finish the complete destruction of the dress and took malicious pleasure in ripping it from her body, without a single care for how much it cost. Until she stood there, trembling and cold, in the lovely white lace Basque and the silk stockings which was all she wore beneath.

"This feels worse than rape" she whispered, her arms wrapping tightly around herself in a protective manner, wishing that it would be able to lock her from the painful reality.

"Kaoru... Don't…" he muttered, taking half a step towards her with his hands outstretched in a kind of distressed appeal. But he knew there was nothing he could say, nothing that could ease the pain and degradation she was suffering right now.

So instead, he turned for the door, his shoulders stiff beneath the smooth grey cloth of his suit. "I'll go,..and get someone –"

"NO!" the protest stopped him dead on his tracks, just a couple of steps from the door. "No…" she repeated weakly. "You can leave now if you want…, but I don't want anyone else coming near this room."

It was one thing having Kenshin witness her complete downfall, since it was he who had in fact, brought it about. But it was quite another having all those others witness it too.

She wanted nobody here. No one. Not her best friend Misao or her own sister.

She didn't care about Kenshin, or the fact that she was wearing next to nothing in his presence. Besides, he had openly held her in scorn from the very first moment Akira had introduced her as his fiancée.

Thoughts of Akira brought the sickness back, roiling around in her stomach so she had to heave in some deep, controlling breaths to stop it from overwhelming her. Her hands remained on her arms, soiling the soft flesh red as her nails bit at her upper arms with enough cruelty to draw blood.

Suddenly, she felt something cold press against her skin. Her long lashes flickered upwards as she detached her left hand from her arm and spread the cold and trembling fingers out in front of her.

A huge diamond shone tauntingly back at her, and with an angry pull she wrenched it from her finger and spun to face Kenshin again, her eyes spearing bitterness into his tensely guarded amber ones.

"Here" she threw it at his feet. "You can give it back to him. I don't ever want to see it again"

Turning away from the image of Kenshin slowly bending down to pick up the ring, she walked quickly into her small bathroom, where she sagged shakily against the door. Her insides felt thick and heavy, as though every functioning organ had collapsed, self disgust had her body folding right against itself.

Then, with the sudden jerky movements of one whose mind was not functioning with any coherent thought at all, she staggered drunkenly to the tub. Her cold and trembling skin was crawling with revulsion that she desperately felt the need to wash it away.

It was only when she wrenched the fragile white silk Basque from her body that she saw the pale blue satin and lace trimmed garter still clinging lovingly to her thigh, just above one white silk stocking.

A smile twisted her bloodless lips when she realized just how ridiculous she must have looked to Kenshin, making her grand exit with this piece of frivolity on show. Tears blinded her eyes, the first of many, she supposed.

With the back of an icy hand, she pitifully wiped them away. Trembling fingers found the tap and turned it on until the burning hot hiss of water gushed down on her. Then she just stood there, not moving, just letting the stinging heat wash all over her. Eyes closed, face lifted up, not caring if she scalded herself, so long as she scoured every last hint of the 'bride' on her body.

How long she stood there like that, she had no idea, because she refused to allow herself to think, or feel. But through the dark recesses of her consciousness, she was vaguely aware of intermittent knocks sounding on her bedroom door, of voices –one her sister's, another one crisp and clear was Misao's.

Kenshin's deep resonant murmurs fused with theirs, telling them God knew what. She didn't know nor care as long as he kept them all away from her. Then, eventually, silence fell again, but this time, it is a solid kind of silence which soothed her flurried heart and helped her keep her face turned up to the hot, hissing spray.

There would be time enough to endure all those pitying glances and murmured platitudes which were bound to come her way. Right now, she would allow herself this few minutes of solitude. A time hers alone…to try to come to terms with what she is now.

A jilted bride.

TBC…


Preview of the Next Chapter – When all falls down

"I'm not going yet.." he told her confidently. "I have a proposition to you first.." Kaoru was about to speak when he cut her off.

"..I want you to hear me out before you say anything. I know you're in shock, and I know for the moment you're still not capable of making decisions of any kind. But I'm going to force this one on you –"

"Sorry mister Himura" she cut in, "but I've learned my lesson not to get into any propositions, especially one that involves a member of your family circle"

She hastily stood up in an attempt to avoid the conversation when he grabbed her wrist. "Please,… I'm just doing this for the simple reason that I think, if you agree, we can at least save your pride if nothing else from this mess.."

Kaoru was perplexed. His amber eyes were guarded but unwavering as they held onto her cerulean ones with fierce determination.

"Marry me instead of my brother Kaoru"


(EDITED JUNE 23 2011)

This is the revised version of this chapter. Those who have read the first version of this should give this a second chance. Thanks to bbzachariah and Auditory Eden for leaving an eye opener^^ If anybody's disappointed with how this chapter had turned into, I sincerely apologize. Please understand that if I didn't do this, this story would be removed otherwise.

Chapter two is currently on the process of editing so I haven't published it yet. But it's already finished, just needed a few retouches so I guess it should be out tomorrow.