**The only character I own is Aki. The rest belong to their rightful owner and creators. Thanks for the viewers out there! Hope you like this chapter. Please please please review and let me know what you think!**
"Good grief… could this day GET any worse?"
First off, Aki was late because she was so exhausted from work the previous night, she forgot to reset her alarm and woke up after school had started resulting in an hour of detention. Thanks to that wonderful little surprise, she was also late to work. By the way, bosses do not appreciate tardy slave laborers. Best way to cope? Grovel. Big time.
That couldn't really be helped. It was work or eviction. Granted, both were extremely suckish thoughts, but since evicted meant going home, work it is.
BUT! At least she had enough money to buy a small luxury, her favorite snack, pocky. "Mmmm… yes I needed this. SO worth the extra money." Since Aki found herself in a lightened mood, she decided to go on a little adventure and wander through the nearby park. She had never been there before even though it was near her apartment. She didn't really know why, something in her head just said 'Don't go there.' And she listened. But tonight her gut wasn't talkin' tonight. As far as Aki was concerned, that meant throw caution to the wind and go for it. So she did.
Bad idea. Now she knew why her gut had been saying 'Stay away.'
Okay okay, yes there are animals all over the friggin world, but this was ridiculous! Everywhere you looked they were in some sort of group! What a nightmare! Birds were crowding the trees. "How the heck do they all fit on that poor thing… it's sagging?!" A small pond had been taken over by semi aquatic creatures like ducks and cranes and turtles. "Oh gross! They all 'go' in there…" There was even a bench covered with pigeons. "…"
Lucky for her, they were all settling down to sleep for the night. If she could be stealthy enough, she could tiptoe around them and make a mad dash for home as soon as she was in the clear. Taking a silent, deep breath for courage, she began her treacherous quest home.
Why not just go around? Well, she had to be home quick to attempt homework she didn't understand before passing out on her textbooks and this was the fastest rout. She was not going to let a bunch of disgusting creepy beasts stop her from reaching her destination. Her pride was on the line, at least she thought so.
First step… "Here we go.." So far none of the animals had taken any notice of her, and if they did, they were too used to being around humans to care. "Just a few more steps and I'm out of this land mine. All I need to do is make it past that pond. A little further, a few more steps and I'm home free… so close… so close…"
Then… all hell broke loose. Feathers and fur went flying in a frenzied rush. Aki was ahead of most of the animals yet she still froze in fear of the sudden movement behind her. She wasn't the only one who noticed the random motion either. Every bird in the pond that could fly took off at the exact same moment knocking her over as they flew in a terrifying whirlwind of feathers and unmentionables; however, there was one particularly nasty little duck that did not fly off.
"What is he looking at?"
She slowly stood up, not taking her eyes of the fearsome beast watching her noting the amount of literal crap feather combo that coated her shoes, jeans, jacket, hair, and any other visible part of her body. "Wait a second… Oh no! Don't even think about it buster! There is no way you are getting this," she shouted in a trembling voice that still managed to be full of frustrated rage. She gripped her precious pocky , hidden in her inner jacket pocket, closer to her.
The most intensely epic duck vs girl staredown took place for a solid two minutes before the vicious little beast leaped with all his might at the food. A startled shriek left Aki's lips as she once again fell less then gracefully to the unforgiving ground. Landing with a thud that was sure to leave a deep purple bruise on her rear, Aki screamed again at the injustice of a stupid duck taking away her only bit of happiness of the day. Fearful and anguished tears streamed down her cheeks.
"Are you okay?" asked a gentle voice from behind her, "You fell, are you hurt? Can I help you? What on earth happened? Poor thing, you look like you've seen better days."
"Great now this hot guy is here seeing me like this... Just great. Could this day GET any worse?"
Ryuu looked down at this poor girl completely covered in bird poop and feathers. He wondered for a moment what had set them off before realizing it was actually his fault. "Oops... this is not good. I need to make this up to her. Er, I should probably find out who she is..." Helping the young fiery girl up to her feet he couln't help but notice how petite she is, a full head shorter then Ryuu. It was nearly impossible to distinguish her hair color from the dirt and poo. He guessed brown to match her... eye? Only one of her eyes was a deep rich brown. The other was a startling shade of hypnotic blue. Her eyes were beautiful if not a bit unnerving. They shone with unshed tears and the passion he knew was in her heart. Blinking, he realized he had been staring at them and didn't realize the now fearless face that glared defiantly at him.
"Get away from me pervert! I've had a rough enough day without your fake pity! Don't even think about doing anything funny or I will drop kick you! Don't you dare underestimate me. I am a hell-of-a-lot stronger then I look." spat the furious indignant girl.
"Whoa... easy there," Ryuu said gently as if to soothe this wild beast of a female, "I promise I won't hurt you and if I do, you have every right to... drop me... and run screaming for your life knowing I will never ever bother you again." That did seem to help a little. Her calculating eyes searched his to find the lie or the truth. Ryuu couldn't tell. He did know she was living a hard life and bearing an even harder past. Some part of him just wanted to comfort her. Granted, Ryuu is known for being protective and eager to help others, but it's different with this girl. He doesn't want to play the father figure or a big brother to her... He wanted to hold her as a lover would and never let go. "Maybe I could escort you home?" Ryuu suggested, "Where do you live?"
After a long pause the girl answered," I live in that apartment complex straight ahead- the little one."
Ryuu looked to where she had pointed seeing a shabby run down complex that just barely looked like the building could stay up at all. He wondered how the occupants managed to not fall through the floor. Looking back he couldn't help but ask, "Does that place even have sanitary running water?"
With a grimace she replied, "No..." "Okay, so it's not much of a home, but at least that horrible excuse of a father isn't there."
Not surprisingly, he shot her a look of surprise then realized exactly how close they were. He still had not let go of her after helping her to her feet. A light blush spread across his cheeks softening his deep emerald eyes even though he was embarrassed. He has such beautiful eyes. Ryuu noticing her stare quickly let go and looked down. She saw his cute little pink blush deepen to a crimson red a smiled a little to herself without letting him see. She would not allow herself to be charmed by this man or any other. Young men grew up to be low-life scum. If there was anything her father taught her, that was it. School had shown her that as well. Too many times had she either seen or nearly been the victim of some creep who thought of her as an easy target. She would not grin and bear it like her mother. She was Not weak. She would prove to herself and her father that she Can not only survive, but live her life the way she chose to. But, people are unreliable. The best way for Aki to live is by herself.
Despite being covered in bird crap and feathers with a bruised butt as that demon duck enjoyed her pocky, she straightened up and steeled herself against the world and more importantly, this stranger.
"I don't want your pity nor your help. Leave me alone." she said with a strong even voice.
That snapped they guy out of his blush as he slowly met her gaze. His emerald eyes shone with concern that was too sincere to be faked. "Why? Why does he look at me with concern. Why should he care? It must be a lie."
"Is there no way you will let me help? I am the one who startled the animals by bringing them food. The state you're in now is my fault. Please let me make it up to you in some small way." he begged, "You can come to my place! I have plenty of warm running water and extra rooms that you can stay in if you'd like. You don't have to pay for anything, or if that doesn't work I can pay your rent for a few days or install running water. Please..."
"Well when you put it that way... that would be helpful. Fine. I will stay with you for one night. No funny business and no commitments, but first you will walk me home so I can grab clothes. You will not come into my apartment. You will wait outside." ordered Aki. "Living alone is best but the gut is saying trust this guy tonight then never look back so that's what I'll do. That could be why it said to check out this park in the first place." The young green haired man shook his head in agreement and seemed relieved. "At least he's happy. That makes one of us."
They quickly made their way to the run down apartment complex without another word to each other. Aki told him to wait out front while she went to grab a some clothes to change into including her simple black pj's and her work and school uniforms. After shoving them into her ragged black backpack, she came back down the stairs to find the green haired guy waiting by a taxi with the door open for her. He had a charming grin on her face and said to get in. Aki threw her beat-up bag in first then hopped on in. He slid in much more gracefully then turned to her with a shy smile. A normal person would seriously question his actions, but for whatever reason, she felt she could trust him. Aki realized she had not bothered to ask this stranger's name yet. Probably would be a good thing to know.
"Sorry for not asking earlier, but what's your name?" she asked
He grinned a little wider and answered, "Ryuu. And your name is?"
"Aki."
"Well Aki, it is very nice to meet you even under these rather unusual circumstances. I'm sorry about what happened to you. It is entirely my fault." Ryuu said as he bowed a little in her direction.
"Likewise, and don't bother apologizing. There's nothing you can do to change what happened. Animals hate me anyway. I'm used to it. They aren't the only ones."
Ryuu's head cocked at that. His confusion told her he was either an animal lover or has always been surrounded by some form of a loving family with people who care about him. Maybe even both.
"Animals hate you?" he asked.
"Isn't that what I just said? What part of that sentence do you not understand?" replied Aki bitterly.
"I'm sorry I didn't mean to offend you. It's just hard for me to understand why they would. You don't seem hostile towards them. They aren't angry with others without reason. What makes you think they or anyone else hates you?"
Before Aki could answer the cab driver told them they had arrived at their destination and as Ryuu paid the man, Aki looked up in awe at the massive apartment complex. It was the most luxurious building she had ever seen in her life. She looked over at Ryuu who she knew couldn't be much older then her and gaped. "Holy molely this guy is loaded!" She shouldn't be here. After looking down at her pathetic appearance of stinky bird feathered crap attire there was no way she had the right to even look at this building let alone walk inside. Aki took an involuntary step back at the thought then glanced back to Ryuu from under her now matted bangs, her head hanging in shame.
Ryuu noticed Aki's sudden change in behavior and offered her a reassuring smile. He didn't want her to look down on herself like he was sure she was doing right now. He wanted to see the smile she hadn't shown him. He wanted to see what she would be like when she was clean , well fed, and happy. The poor girl was skin and bones. She had bags under her eyes that he hadn't noticed before and her dirty hair was pulled up into a messy ponytail. She didn't wear make-up, which was okay with him, but her face held a natural beauty that he was sure was hidden under the dirt and poop.
"Please follow me." he said with as much gentle concern as he could convey to her. Her head still hanging, she followed him like a lost stray puppy he might have saved from the streets. As they traveled through the lobby of the beautiful building he could notice her body language shrinking as if her mere presence offended any of the people there. If they disapproved of her they didn't show it though, because she was with him and everyone knew Ryuu's reputation of being overprotective of any and everything he held dear to him. They didn't know his relationship with her but they wouldn't risk the chance that she might be.
His little bundle followed him silently to the elevator as he pushed the button. She hadn't said a word since they left the cab and he was starting to get worried. They went up to his floor in silence which continued to get louder and more pronounced. By the time he unlocked his door his ears were ringing with the unspoken words.
"Well here we are." Ryuu said in an attempted ice breaker.
"The guest bathroom is down the hall and there is a room right across from it. There is a bed made up already. My room is at the end of that hallway." he said pointing at another hallway on the other side of his spacious living room and kitchen area. " Don't go through the bamboo doors and if you need anything at all please let me know."
Aki could do nothing but nod as this whole experience left her speechless. Everything around her was so spacious and clean. They luxurious beauty of his wall that was made of glass to see the night lit city was breathtaking and so was his high tech kitchen and massive sofa. The guy had two hallways and multiple rooms for cripes sake!
Still mind-blown she walked like a zombie to the bathroom and noticed the marble tiles and claw-foot and shower combo at the far end of the bath room. An exotic black marble sink with gold fixtures stood next to an exquisite hand carved oak cabinet which held the softest towels she had ever touched. She walked over to the tub and turned the water on and true to his word, it worked and was warm. There were plenty of soaps and shampoos near the tub with feminine fragrances to them which made her wonder if he had girl visitors often. Perhaps a little sister or an older one. Maybe he had a room mate or a girlfriend. She forgot to ask if he lived alone or not. Turning the water off as soon as the tub was full she allowed herself this one luxury of a warm luxurious bubble-bath and decided to ask him who else lived here after she became presentable again.
After about an hour and a half, Aki was finally clean. Her long red hair was the hardest to clean since it had matted up, but after thirty straight minutes of soaking and brushing and scrubbing with more yanking, she had finally brought back it's natural shine and washed out the feathers that had mixed with the dirt and unmentionables. She finally started to feel like this night was taking a turn for the better. She went to thank Ryuu for his hospitality. Her pride normally wouldn't allow her to do such a thing but he had been kinder to her than anyone else ever was and he deserved her thanks more than anyone else.
Taking a deep breath, she stepped out to find Ryuu. When she walked out into the living room his mouth dropped to the floor and his eyes widened.
Ryuu knew Aki was pretty, but with her clean hair shining in fiery waves around her face to her hips he realized how big of an understatement 'pretty' was. This young woman was absolutely, without question, the most beautiful woman he had ever seen in his seventeen years of living. Her eyes sparkled and lit up with the fire in her soul. It didn't even matter that she stood in her modest black pajama pants and matching button up shirt. As soon as she walked out, his breath had caught and it was taking awhile for him to find it again.
She took a small step toward him and with the tiniest of smiled said, "Thank you for helping me Ryuu." in the sweetest voice he had ever heard.
"... No problem..." he choked out.
"Hey can I ask you a question?" she asked as she cocked her head to one side in an adorable pose.
"Of course you can."
" Do you have a little sister?"
Confused Ryuu answered, "No I don't."
"I see..." Aki said sounding a little dissapointed.
Confused Ryuu asked, "Why? What made you think I had a little sister?"
Aki looked up and that and replied, "Well you have a lot of girly soaps in your bathroom."
Then it hit him. "Ohhhhhh... No those belong to Megumi. She is like a little sister to be, but she and her brother often stay with me while their parents are overseas. They both had dates tonight, and were supposed to come back by ten, but their parents called and said they were to go to their parent's house after the dates. Mr. and Mrs. Yamamoto said they had already called to tell the twins."
"I see..." said Aki again, this time a little happier.
**So what did you think? I probably won't be able to get many chapters out this fast, but I was inspired this weekend so it just kinda worked out heh heh. Please review! Untill next time-Later~*