::: Obsessed With Your Touch :::

by

- GlazedAndConfused -


Chapter One : Ease Of Mind

Mutsumi placed her hand on her cheek, closing her eyes in wonder. "Ara... look at them, don't they make quite the perfect couple?"

"Well, well, well, who woulda thought Keitaro would be getting married?" Kitsune quipped as she removed a flask of sake from her sizeable bosom and took a sip of the fermented liquid.

Motoko closed her eyes in pensive thought. "I just hope Urashima does not mess this day up."

"Auu... sempai looks so handsome in that tuxedo..." Shinobu commented

Su leaned over to Shinobu, her face all but in the younger girl's ear. "What's a tuxedo? Is it good to eat?"

Sarah placed her hands on her hips. "Looks like the dork's finally getting hitched!"

Ema looked on at the proceedings, stars in her eyes. "Ohhh... she looks so magical..."

Kanako looked as Keitaro was waiting at the altar, flanked by Seta, her face mildly flushed as she noticed that he did indeed look handsome in the tuxedo he was dressed in, as Shinobu had pointed out. Y-Yes... this is it... I'm going to marry oniichan! Kanako thought, a smile bright enough to put the sun to shame on her face. All this waiting is about to pay off! She started to walk down the aisle, trembling in anticipation, tears of joy stinging at her eyes as she savoured the moment she had been waiting a whole lifetime for; her beloved was all but a few steps away from her in the giant hall, ready to join her in matrimony. She reached the altar, only to find that he was still staring down the aisle.

"On... oniichan?" she spoke, "I'm here, oniichan!"

Keitaro, however, did not take any notice of the younger girl. Waving a hand in front of his eyes, she looked towards the doors of the hall as she noticed Naru in the doorway, with Haruka behind her, holding up the back of the wedding dress.

She looked down, her eyes widening in sheer horror, and noticed that what she was wearing was most certainly not a wedding dress. Instead, she was wearing a black, oriental-style silk bridesmaid's dress, the hem of which reached down to just past her knees with a slit up the side. But, if she's... then I'm... a bridesmaid?! Kanako looked back towards the door as she saw Naru walking slowly down the aisle towards the altar, with Haruka in tow; her face was concealed by the veil that hung over her face, but it was clear to see that she had a look of pure, unbridled joy on her face. As the auburn-haired woman walked directly past her, not so much as acknowledging her presence, Kanako's ire was raised, quickly replaced by despair as she watched the two join at the altar and declare their vows to each other.

She watched as Keitaro and Naru were about to seal their vows with a kiss; their lips slowly nearing and nearing until...


"...NO!" Kanako bolted upright in her futon, sweat trickling down her face and panting heavily in the relative darkness of her room. She moved her hands to her eyes as the tears finally fell, dripping onto the futon covers. After a few minutes of crying unabashedly, she moved her hands from her eyes, revealing her red orbs to be puffy and bloodshot from tears. "No... not that dream again..." she whispered. "Why do I still keep having that?" She looked to Kuro, who was still sleeping soundly at the foot of her futon. "Kuro..."

She quickly rubbed at her eyes as she heard a knock at her door, followed by Keitaro calling for her. "Kanako, are you alright? I thought I heard you scream..."

"No, oniichan... I'm fine, I just had a nightmare." Didn't I just...

"Oh, okay. Breakfast is almost ready, so you'd better get ready!"

Kanako managed the barest of smiles. "Okay." Oh, oniichan... why can't you just be mine? This smile was soon replaced by a frown at that sudden thought that made it's way into her head like a gunshot. Why did she give Keitaro to Naru after a cross-country chase to Hokkaido? It wasn't as if she deserved him... was it? What made her so special that he had to fall for her? Hmph. I just hope oniichan sees her for who she truly is...

With that, she reluctantly got out of bed and started to get ready for breakfast.


Breakfast was it's usually happy occasion, with a general aura of cameraderie filling the air. Naru and Keitaro were sat side by side, exchanging little but meaningful expressions of love between each other, much to Kanako's disdain. Su, Sarah and Shinobu exchanged chit-chat, as did Mutsumi and Kitsune. The only one who remained silent throughout the whole exchange was Kanako, who was eyeing Keitaro and Naru jealously, although she didn't let this be known to the other residents.

Do they always have to be so lovey-dovey with each other? God, it makes me sick...

Su, however, picked up on Kanako's quietness.

"Kanako! Why aren't you talking with us?" the tanned girl piped up, "You're all quiet and stuff..."

The gothic girl put on a facade of happiness that didn't take long to crumble. "Oh, nothing... I'm just... thinking."

"Thinking about what?"

"Just... personal things. Nothing for anybody to worry about."

"Okies! I think too, about my big brother back in Molmol!"

"Really?"

"Yup!" The foreign girl bounded across the table to Keitaro, who managed to get a faceful of Naru's chest. "I like Keitaro, he reminds me of him! Um..." She trailed off as she spotted Naru's ire begin to rise at the position her husband was in.

"PERVERT!" The auburn-haired woman shrieked, before sending the hapless man flying through the ceiling and the roof of the old building, and high into the early morning sky. This sight made Kanako's thus-far unflappable facade snap, and the gothic girl rushed over to the redhead and gave her a brain-rattling slap across the face, making her look at Kanako with widened eyes and a dropped jaw. "What was that for?!" she yelled, but stopped as she noticed the look on Kanako's face.

"You and I know damn well what that was for," Kanako simply stated, "and don't tell me he was being a pervert... you know him better than that."

"But he placed his face in my --"

"No. He did not." She leered at Naru, making the older woman flinch slightly. "I expect you to apologise to oniichan when he gets back... understand?" She took Naru's simple nod as affirmation. "Good." The younger girl then walked out of the kitchen and upstairs, her appetite and her breakfast completely forgotten.

Damn her... why does she always have to attack oniichan for things that aren't his fault? Kanako scowled, thoughts of hatred running through her mind about the auburn-haired girl. One of these days she's always going to get her comeuppance.

Motoko, a scowl on her face as well, was about to get up and tail Kanako back to her room when she felt a gentle hand on her arm; turning to face who was stopping her, she found Kitsune with a concerned look on her face, making her scowl turn to a puzzled look. "Kitsune-san?"

"Leave her be. You know how protective she is of her brother..."

"I... suppose you are right."


Kanako was sat on the laundry deck, gazing into the sunny skies. Unrequited love was a feeling she was most familiar with ever since she arrived at Hinata Sou, but never did she imagine that it would burn this intensely in her heart. To her, it was a feeling akin to someone having impaled her heart with a white-hot fire poker and twisting the offending item around repeatedly. Many a sleepless night she suffered as a result of this feeling, and many a time she cried at the drop of a hat. So absorbed in her thoughts the younger Urashima was that she didn't even notice the object of her desires standing right in front of her, a cheerful smile on his face.

"Oh, hey, Kanako-chan! I didn't see you there... mind if I join you?"

Kanako managed a brief smile. "Sure."

The kanrinin took a seat beside his younger sister and gazed at her intently, something Kanako picked up on. "What? What is it, oniichan?"

"I heard from Naru that you slapped her after she sent me flying earlier this morning. Mind telling me why?"

"But the bitch deserved it! I've told her plenty of times before, nobody hurts you while I'm around!"

"Look, I know you don't like it when she does that. But I'm alright; see, I'm the picture of health! Got that whole immortality thing going about me!"

"But..."

Keitaro smiled. "Don't worry about it. I'm used to it by now."

A moment of awkward silence hung in the air between the two for a few moments, though it seemed like eternity to the younger Urashima. Pulling herself out of her thoughts for a moment, she looked at Keitaro intently, her lips curling up slightly as a new thought entered her mind. I can't believe how much you've changed over the years... it's like you're the man I've always dreamed of.

"Oniichan..." Kanako whispered.

Keitaro's face adopted a look of concern. "Kanako-chan? What's wrong?"

"It's..." she paused, trying to find the right words for what she was about to say.

"Kanako-chan, you're beginning to worry me now... so whatever it is, you can tell me."

Kanako took a deep breath, preparing herself for what she was about to say. "I... want you to make me another promise."

"Of course. What is it?"

The gothic girl turned to face her older brother, staring intently in his eyes. "Oniichan, I want you to promise me... that you will never leave me. I know how much you love Narusegawa, even though I honestly think you could do much better, and your happiness means everything to me. But I want you to promise me that you will never forget me, or leave me like when we were separated years ago." Her eyes started to mist up, so she averted her gaze to hide this. "I don't think I could bear that happening again..."

Keitaro put his arms around Kanako and kissed her on the cheek, gently stroking her hair. "That's a promise I can guarantee that I'll keep. You're my little sister, and I love you dearly. Of course I'll never leave you."

Kanako smiled in spite of her despair. "Thank you... oniichan."


: END CHAPTER ONE :
::: AUTHOR'S NOTES :::

...nothing, nada, zilch.