'There's one!' Yuki cried out in his head and flung himself inside, shutting the door and locking it behind him. He pressed his ear to the door, listening.

"Oh, Yun-Yunnnnnnn! Where are youuuuuuu?" he heard Kimi say as she searched the hall. This was the second time today one of the student council members had almost found him. Kakeru had been hot on his trail after lunch but Yuki had hidden himself in the janitor's closet just as Kakeru had rounded the corner. Five minutes ago, Yuki had been walking to his locker when he heard Kimi's singsong voice echoing through the halls. He had dropped his books and fled.

Yuki had been desperately searching for a closet but there was not a one in sight. He had run up many flights of stairs to find protection of any kind. He had almost run out of hope too, but finally, out of the corner of his eye he saw a tiny closet tucked away near the end of the corridor.

Yuki now pressed his hand against his heaving chest. It was tightening up; he began to feel those sharp, familiar pangs. He knew that much running would be bad for his asthma, but he didn't care as long as the "school defense force" didn't find him. He usually liked student council meetings, but today he just wasn't up for it. Yuki jumped away from the door when knob started jiggling. He heard a click and the door swung open. It was Machi.

"There you are," she said blandly. "H-H-How did y-you find me?" Yuki puffed, still out of breath. She blinked and then said, "I saw you run in here." She turned away and motioned for him to follow her. Yuki stepped out of the closet and immediately started wheezing.

"Are you alright?" Machi turned around and for a second, just for a second, Yuki saw concern on her usually expressionless face.

"I-I'm okay," he gasped, "I just have bad asthma."

"The student council room isn't very far away. Can you make it?" Machi asked. Yuki nodded, and they moved on. Yuki had been sitting down in the student council room, catching his breath for about a few seconds when Nao burst in.

"Where were you, President?! I've been searching for you with these two imbeciles nearly all day!" Nao jerked his thumb behind him, where sure enough, there was Kakeru and Kimi.

"Yun-Yun! You're okay!" They both shrieked excitedly.

"Oh, Yun-Yun, Kimi was so worried about you! Where did you run off too? Did you get more candy for us? Kimi asked him.

"Really, Yun-Yun, you should answer your cell phone when I call you! That way we wouldn't be late for our meeting! And then chibi-suke wouldn't get so hysterical!" Kakeru proclaimed.

"Hey! I thought I told you to stop calling me that! And I did not get hysterical!" Nao said, his voice getting higher as he got more aggravated.

"You're getting hysterical!" Kakeru cried happily as he chopped Nao over the head. Yuki quietly left the room as Nao broke into a fit of rage. He went outside and took long, deep breaths of the cool air. He was on a small balcony that overlooked the small school garden. Yuki smiled when he saw Tohru, who was bending over and smelling the flowers. Her hair swayed in the breeze and the sunlight that dappled the garden made the brunette color shine. He wouldn't dare call out to her, for all he wanted to do was watch her.

"Yun-Yun!" Kakeru's cheery voice startled Yuki out of his engrossment. "Why are you out here?" Kakeru followed Yuki's gaze and said more softly, "Oh." They both watched Tohru move along to some pink tulips where she carefully pulled out a weed. "Y'know, you say she's just a good friend, but from the way you always watch her…" Kakeru's voice trailed off.

"I care about her," Yuki ended the conversation in a deadpan manner. He walked back into the student council room, leaving Kakeru alone.

"Oh, Yun-Yun," Kakeru said to himself, "is that all you have to say about her?" He smiled into the sun and then went back inside to rejoin his fellow school defenders.

………………………………………………………………………………

After school, Tohru spent nearly half an hour trying to coax Kyo out of the building. He obviously wasn't looking forward to seeing Ayame later.

"Just leave me alone! I'll be back home in time for breakfast tomorrow!" Kyo told her this several times but each time Tohru would respond that it would be better if everyone was there for supper. The last time she had to tell him this she was nearly in tears.

"P-Please Kyo-kun. It's not a good dinner unless everyone is there." Kyo heard the trembling in her voice and mentally kicked himself. Why, why was he always the one who made her cry? He sighed heavily and extended his hand toward her. Tohru smiled gleefully and took it and nearly dragged Kyo all the way home.

………………………………………………………………………………

"Oh, Gure-san! Kindly open the door so I can properly greet you and my beloved brother!" Ayame serenaded outside on the porch that evening. Shigure opened the door and flashed Ayame a peace sign.

"Oh, Aaya, I don't know how much longer I could have gone on without you!" Shigure sighed as he placed the back of his hand to his forehead dramatically.

"Dear Gure-san," Ayame said as he took Shigure's free hand with his own, "do not fret, for I am here! Shed no more tears, for at this very moment I have graced your doorstep this wonderfully romantic fantasy evening! I would never allow someone who is like a brother to me feel such anguish! That would be unacceptable on my behalf! And speaking of brothers, where is my own flesh-and-blood little brother, my darling Yuki?"

"Sorry, Aaya. He isn't home yet from his student council meeting."

"Student council meeting? This news brings tears to my eyes! Clearly, by partaking in student council activities, Yuki is showing interest in his older brother! Oh, Gure-san, remember the amazing days I participated in the student council? I was the president all through high school! And now, Yuki is following eagerly in my footsteps! It has to be that he is growing fond of his overachieving brother!" Ayame tittered excitedly.

'I think you're going a little over the top, Aaya,' Shigure thought.

"Ah, Ayame-san! Welcome!" Tohru said from the doorway. "Please come in! Dinner's almost ready!"

"Tohru-kun! I see that even though you live in a house filled to the brim with filthy men, you have blossomed into a rose!" Ayame acclaimed and began to drabble on. "Yes, a rose whose petals have bloomed and spread their sweet fragrance to the far reaches of the world! A rose in its fullest splendor, its colors so vivid and rich! A rose that-"

"Quit being so damn loud," Kyo said with quiet menace as he thwacked Ayame on the side of his head.

"Kyonkichi! I still see you are still as violent as ever! How will you attract dear Tohru-kun with that maliciousness?" Ayame said melodramatically as he took Tohru's hands.

"I told you not to call me that! And let go of her!" Kyo shouted.

"Ah, uh, um…" Tohru blushed. Tohru looked to Shigure for help, but he wasn't anywhere in sight. Then she saw him emerge from the kitchen, probably finished with sneaking some of the dinner.

"Uh, Tohru-kun, the stove's going off," he informed her. Tohru gave a small yelp and hurried into the kitchen while Shigure and Ayame settled down at the table. Kyo followed Tohru.

"You, uh, need any help?" Kyo asked her shyly.

"Oh, Kyo-kun! Are you all right? You seemed a little, er, irritated back there." Tohru asked him.

"Of COURSE I was irritated! That idiot is here and he'll stay here until Hatori comes! Which probably will be never!" Kyo exploded as his temper ignited. He hated when that obnoxious snake came over! And to make matters worse, he was that damn Yuki's brother! Kyo slammed his fist into the wall with such force that he made a perfectly circular hole in it. In the other room, Shigure and Ayame blinked in shock at the fist protruding from the wall. Ayame was the first to recover.

"Kyonkichi strikes again!" he laughed.

Kyo had a visibly throbbing vein popping out from his forehead as he withdrew his fist. Tohru was behind Kyo instantly. She grabbed his shoulders and spun him around to face her with surprising strength. Kyo had expected disappointment, irritation, or hell, even anger radiating from those enormous eyes of her. But as he stared down at her, her eyes quivered noticeably with…was that concern? She was concerned? About him? He had just blasted a fist-sized hole clear through the wall! No, that couldn't be it. Kyo had damaged the house so many times; she was probably only worried about its durability. A house can only take so much after it has been abused countless times.

"Oh, Kyo-kun! I'm so, so sorry!" Tohru babbled. "Are you okay? I didn't realize Ayame-san bothered you this much! I shouldn't have pestered you so much to come for dinner. I really am sorry. You can go, if you want. I don't mind at all! Ah, I mean, I don't want you to leave or to put you out, but if you're really bothered-"

Kyo listened to Tohru, but his mind was somewhere else, not that she noticed. She hadn't said a thing about the wall. And last night, she hadn't said anything about Yuki and their fight, either. She had gone to him that time to ask if he was all right, just like now.

She cared.

Kyo felt himself go red all the way from his toes to the tips of his bright hair. He desperately wanted to back away so he could hide, but the wall was getting its revenge by blocking him and Tohru had him cornered. She had stopped apologizing, but now her expression took on a more severe look. She gasped slightly and raised her hand to Kyo's forehead.

"Kyo-kun!" she nearly wailed, "You're so flushed! Go upstairs and lie down! Don't worry, I'll bring you something! Just leave everything to me!" Tohru dashed to the refrigerator and started picking through its contents to find something for her "patient." She glanced towards Kyo, and gave him a why-aren't-you-in-bed-yet look. Kyo felt dazed. Remembering her smooth touch on his forehead made him literally start sweating. He gulped loudly and turned slowly on his heel only to race upstairs.

Shigure stared, amused, as Tohru staggered into the room. She was carrying their entire dinner, plus a bag of ice, and a tray of soup. Ayame gave Shigure an impatient sigh and leapt to his feet to help Tohru.

"Really, Gure-san. You can be so oblivious! A real gentleman helps a fine lady when she finds herself in distress." Ayame chided him.

"You are as right as ever, Aaya. But really, when you're around me, you never show real manners." Shigure joked.

"Now, now, Gure-san, we don't want to pollute poor Tohru-kun's innocent ears here, do we?" Ayame winked.

"You two are still as disgusting as ever, aren't you?" An exasperated voice said from the shadow of the doorway.

"Yuki-kun!" Tohru brightened.

"Hello, Honda-san," Yuki replied as he stepped out of the gloom.

"My dear brother!" Ayame jumped to Yuki, forgetting Tohru and her many heavy dishes. Shigure finally got up and took some of load. "I'll set the table. You can go give this soup to Kyo-kun. I saw him run upstairs." Shigure smiled warmly. Tohru left the trio and headed for Kyo's room.