When evening fell the following day, Ren slowly made his way downstairs. He yawned loudly and proceeded straight toward the door. He stopped dead in his tracks upon hearing the familiar voice of Kenta Usui. A growl escaped him and he turned abruptly towards the kitchen. When he made it to the kitchen door he stood outside in silence. He closed his eyes and listened intently through the door.

"So Usui-kun, how many cupcakes do you think I should make for Maki-chan?" She asked as she retrieved the baking mix from the cupboard.

The tall boy stood rather tense as he leaned against the wall. When Karin turned around and saw him she sighed.

"Usui-kun, what's the matter?" She asked worriedly.

The boy gently scratched his head, unsure of whether or not he should tell her. When Karin's bright eyes fixated on him he felt compelled to speak.

"Well, it's just…I guess I feel like an intruder." He stated sheepishly.

At this Karin suddenly made a disheartened expression.

"But why? My family accepts you." She replied as she opened the refrigerator door.

As she bent over Usui felt his face flush and he turned his attention to the clock on the wall above the door. Upon retrieving a gallon of milk and two eggs, she closed the door and proceeded toward the kitchen table. Gently, she set down the ingredients. The boy blinked, but said nothing in response.

"They do." Karin tried once more.

With a sigh, he proceeded over towards her. He watched as she tore open the mix and dumped it into the bowl. Then, she took the first egg into her hand and knocked it against the large red bowl with precision. Carefully, she pulled apart the shell and released its containments inside of the bowl.

"You really believe that, Maaka?" He asked dubiously.

Karin's eyes shot up to meet his. For a moment neither one of them said a word. Then, she returned her attention down to the bowl. She knocked the second egg just as perfect as the first, and she watched the inside drip into the bowl. Slowly, she walked over to the counter and retrieved the butter she had set there a while ago. It was nice and soft now, and she smiled to herself as she brought it over to the large bowl.

"I do. Or else I wouldn't have said it, silly." She replied.

As Usui watched her begin to pour the milk into the measuring cup he had retrieved before they began he sighed. He approached her warmly and smiled.

"Thanks Maaka." He said faintly.

At this moment, Ren expected what was yet to come. He knew that silence that came just before a kiss. He grinned menacingly before making his grand entrance into the kitchen. As he walked inside the first thing he noticed was the fact that Kenta Usui's face was mere inches from his sister's. He narrowed his eyes and opened a cabinet gently. As the two were about to be caught in a kiss Ren slammed the cabinet shut. At this the couple jumped.

"Hello, Karin." Ren seethed, his golden hued eyes fixated on Kenta's hand that now rested near his sister's waist.

"Ren?" Karin gasped.

"H-How long have you been here?"

Kenta Usui grew slightly pale – he had become aware of Ren's intense dislike of him the moment they first met. He also knew what her brother was capable of, and so he hastily removed his hand from Karin's waist.

"Long enough…" Ren hissed.

Karin noticed how her brother's piercing eyes had never once swayed from Usui's face, which had become as white as snow. The awkwardness that now filled the kitchen was unnerving.

"We were just whipping up a tray of cookies…" She said with a sheepish grin.

"Is that all you were doing?" He asked as his gaze remained fixated on Usui.

"Stop staring at Usui-kun!" She exclaimed. "You're always trying to scare him off!"

"If he was as afraid of me as you say…" Usui remained fixated on his sneakers and Ren narrowed his eyes. "Then he wouldn't have tried to make a move knowing that I'm a few footsteps away."

At this Usui swallowed hard. Karin noticed his distress and proceeded to push her brother out of the kitchen, which proved unsuccessful. Soon enough Ren had his sister's head locked in place and delivered a double noogie.

"Wahhhhhh, Ren leave me alone!" She cried.

Usui wanted to step in, but realized that it would only make the situation worse for him and Karin by aggravating Ren even further. He stood in place feeling completely useless and at the mercy of his girlfriend's beast of an older brother. When Ren was satisfied with his inflicted big brotherly wrath he released Karin and proceeded over to the bowl of cookie batter. He sniffed it and then turned his head away in disgust.

"This smells terrible." He said. "But by all means, have at your baking. I'll be going out for a bit…"

The two shot each other blank stares as the brooding vampire left the kitchen and proceeded outside.

A few seconds later Karin looked at Usui expectantly, hoping he would remember where they had been before Ren had interrupted them. When she leaned closer to him Usui placed his hands on her waist, but not in an intimate manner. He must have assumed she was losing her balance and decided to stabilize her.

"You okay?" He asked.

"Yeah, sorry…" She said with embarrassment.

Just as she was about to check the oven Usui pulled her in for a quick kiss. Karin's face shone red, but she smiled back at him and left a peck on his cheek.

"These cupcakes are going to turn out amazing! Maki-chan will love them!" She said with renewed zeal at which Usui couldn't help laughing.

"What?" She wondered.

"I'm sure they will, Karin." He said as he gently brushed her bangs away from her eyes. Usui had always adored her determination, despite her klutziness. It was one of the many things that made her so adorable, and Karin was oblivious of it. Nonetheless, she smiled at Usui's gesture and the two continued baking.

As Ren walked about the streets he began to seek out that girl from the previous night.

"What did she say her name was…? Natsumi, I think." He thought to himself.

Passing by a few women he smirked and they giggled out of embarrassment and glee. He wondered where he should begin looking. After all, it would be rather difficult to isolate one person's stress vibes, and since the amount of stress people endure daily changes, Ren realized it could turn into a lengthy search. He grimaced at the thought.

"Do I honestly need to find her anyway?" He asked to no one in particular. "I can have any other girl I want. Should it bother me that one slipped away?" He didn't need to answer it - he spotted the girl walking into the grocery mart a few blocks down the road.

"Well, well, well…just my luck." He said with a smirk.

With a steady pace he proceeded into the grocery store and peered down the first few aisles. He was disappointed at discovering that she hadn't been down them, but continued looking down each aisle nonchalantly. He decided to head down one so he didn't look suspicious or draw attention to himself and absentmindedly reached for a box of graham crackers on the shelf.

"Which aisle are you in….?" He mumbled as he inhaled deeply, trying to pick up her scent. Suddenly, his pupils dilated before quickly returning to their original size - he could sense her proximity. Maybe an aisle away? Two tops. He casually set down the box of graham crackers and walked to the end of the aisle. As he turned to go down the next one he saw her, standing in front of what appeared to be cans of beans. He slowly walked up to her.

"So, we meet again." He said, trying to contain his building anticipation.

The girl turned around and blinked.

"….do I know you?" She asked.

He felt a bit angry that she hadn't remembered, but decided it wasn't worth becoming irritated about.

"Yes, we literally bumped into each other last night. My name is Ren. And you're Miss Natsumi, correct?"

"Yeah…" She looked at him a bit dubiously, but continued browsing through the many assortments of beans. Ren blinked.

"So, we're buying beans I see." He felt a bit awkward trying to come up with things to say, which never happened. How could she do this to him? Women were supposed to be unable to speak in the presence of his incredible beauty and charm, and yet here he was talking about beans to her.

"Yes. I do enjoy them." She replied. "Something tells me you're not a big fan of them."

"Not particularly…"

The two stared at each other speechless. Ren decided to cut to the chase.

"So, I was serious about taking you for a cup of coffee last night…" He began.

"Oh? I do believe I declined your offer." She replied, but added "But thanks."

"Well, someone certainly isn't very congenial." He said with a hint of irritation.

"Look." She put down the can of beans she had picked up and crossed her arms. "I'm know your type. You like a quick and easy fix."

Ren shot her an intense look at her assumption.

"Excuse me?"

"I'm not someone who can be coerced into doing something I object to, so don't even waste your time." She was about to turn her back to him when suddenly he reached out and grasped her wrist.

"What if you're wrong about me?" He asked, despite realizing she had been spot on, which irritated him.

"I doubt it." She retorted. "Now, if you don't mind…I'd like you to let go of me."

Ren sighed and released her from his grasp. "Fine."

As she proceeded to disappear down the aisle Ren watched her with intense frustration at his defeat. He walked out of the grocery mart and headed over to the coffee shop anyway.

"I'll just pick up another one for tonight. I'm starving." He thought to himself.

"But don't think this is over, Natsumi. I won't stop until I've had a taste of your stress filled self..."

Note: To everyone who has been waiting for me to update this story….I am so sorry it took me so long! To be honest, I created the first chapter on a whim. I had no idea people would like it enough to want me to continue. As of now, I plan to continue it as much as my time allotted allows me. I hope this chapter ends up being worth your waiting!