Description: Ichigo has to break the news to Masaya, and face Keiichiro at work. What sort of decision will she make?
Rating: T just to be safe.
MewMid: Sorry for being dead the past few months, I've been busy with college. I'm going to be a police officer, so I've been pretty freaking busy. Forgive me guys! Hope you all still like it!
Yay updates!
[][][][][][][][][][]
The alarm clock was the worst sound she could hear at this moment. Her phone had a multitude of missed texts, and she couldn't stop thinking of her mistake last night with Keiichiro. Dark rings under her eyes were evident as she slumped out of bed and glanced in the mirror. Her hair was a mess, she hadn't slept well at all.
The warm embrace she shared with Keiichiro was all she could think of. However, the worst thought in her head, was how to break the news to Masaya. She couldn't stay with him after kissing another guy. Guilt made her stomach twist into a hard knot as she imagined Masaya's reaction. She cheated!
"Oh my god what am I gonna do!"
She groaned, turning away from the mirror and burying her face in her hands. There was no way she could just tell him. She didn't have the guts. Masaya's love for her was what saved the world, and here she was betraying him. Ichigo hesitantly looked up at her clock, it was time for her to go to the cafe.
…
It was as though all eyes were on her, even though no one was looking at her directly. Ichigo walked through the cafe, keeping her head down. She felt like everyone knew about her and Keiichiro. Narrow brown eyes glared at her when she looked up, a certain blue haired mew was sitting ahead of her. Ichigo stared right back at her,
"What's your problem?"
Ichigo spat bitterly, earning a gasp from the tea sipping mew. Mint grit her teeth and stood up,
"I didn't even say anything! What crawled up your-"
Before she could finish, their blond manager barked at the two of them.
"You two knock it off and get to work. The cafe is officially open now, I don't need you two idiots crawling all over each other."
The two girls didn't say another word to one another, and began their usual cafe duties. The entire morning, Ichigo could hear Keiichiro when he would interact with the others, but she was too ashamed to look at him. As she was serving a table, a familiar voice stood out among all the others. She felt as though she was frozen, her eyes glancing towards the cafe doors.
There he was.
His jet black hair was combed today, a smile on his face as he greeted Lettuce at the podium. Masaya was so charming, so likable. He was so freaking perfect. Ichigo bit her lip as he made eye contact with her, too perfect. Too bland.
The boy made his way through the crowded morning traffic of the cafe and up to her, his arms outstretched for a hug. Ichigo hesitantly returned his embrace, it felt alien to her. She didn't feel the same, she felt guilty. As he released her, she glanced to her left, to avoid his eyes. A soft pair of grey eyes met with hers, peering out from the kitchen window.
Her heart felt like it shattered into a million pieces when she saw the hurt in his eyes. Keiichiro never looked like this, the moment was brief. His head lowered and he resumed what he was doing. Ichigo felt so terribly guilty, Keiichiro must have begun to have feelings for her too.
"Are you listening to me Ichigo?"
The redhead reluctantly looked back up to him, his expression flooded with concern. Ichigo nodded slowly, motioning for him to follow her. Masaya was visibly confused, following the girl behind the wall separating the main room from the staff area. The small hall divided the kitchen from the main sitting area. It was dim, and quieter.
"Ichigo-"
"I have to tell you something."
She practically spat the sentence, looking at him with desperation in her eyes. The two stood quietly for a few moments, he didn't understand what was going on.
"What's bothering you?"
Ichigo rocked back on her heels, looking around, very stressed. Her voice seemed to soften,
"I'm… I think we should take a break…I need to think some things-"
"What! Ichigo, are you serious?"
He interrupted, his eyes wide. Masaya took a step back, not fully understanding the situation. He loved her. More than loved her. It was their love that saved the world, that was irreplaceable. The now timid girl's eyes started to water, she fumbled over her words,
"I'm… going through some weird things right n-now. I just want some time to think… I'm sorry Masaya! I really didn't want to hurt you! I j- just…"
While she trailed off, Masaya wiped the corners of his eyes. He shook his head,
"I don't understand…We-"
"We need some time apart, please… if you love me, let me g-go…"
Masaya was silent. The sounds of the cafe were all they could hear. Ichigo felt as though she was going to throw up, she couldn't believe what she was doing. They had been together for so long, how could she do this to him?
He slowly collected his thoughts, her words were sinking in. He barely spoke,
"O-okay Ichigo… Just… call me when you figure things out. I love you."
His last three words made her cover her mouth with her hand, tears rolling down her cheeks. Ichigo shook her head as he slowly walked away, looking back at her with regret. Her back collided with the wall as she sank to the floor, sobbing into her hand quietly. Ichigo shook her head slowly, she couldn't believe what she had just done. It had to be done. She kissed Keiichiro, she couldn't face Masaya knowing what she did.
Of course, the chef came out of the kitchens saloon doors to her right. His eyes fell to her, he immediately stepped forward and knelt in front of the mew.
"Oh, Ichigo, what happened?"
The girl writhed to the left, avoiding his eyes. She sobbed into her arms as quietly as she could, her throat in a heavy knot. Ichigo shook her head, not able to form words because of her cries. The brown haired man contemplating leaving her alone. Keiichiro knew she shouldn't have kissed him, as much as he liked her, he couldn't believe he let her do that.
It was his fault. He should have stopped her.
Keiichiro reached out, gently pulling her shoulders so she would be forced to look at him.
"You should take the rest of the day off. You seem too upset."
Ichigo hated taking off work, but he was right. She slowly nodded her head, her big watery eyes gazing up at him. Keiichiro patted her head and stood up, holding his hand out to her. The cat girl daintily took his hand and stood up, her knees wobbly. Keiichiro walked her to the door, but the girl didn't even turn around to face him as she exited the cafe.
The girls all gawked at them while carrying out their cafe duties, not sure as to why their leader was going home. Mint shook her head, of course Keiichiro would walk her to the door. Everyone always made Ichigo the favorite.
The brunette man stood in the doorway as the girl walked away from the entrance of the cafe. She had her head down, she didn't even look back.
Keiichiro felt torn, he wanted to comfort her, but at the same time, he knew he shouldn't. He couldn't make the problem worse. He wasn't sure what was going to happen now. Could he pursue a girl so much younger than himself?
Keiichiro sighed and walked back into the cafe, avoiding eye contact with everyone as he did so. Ichigo was so sweet, so precious, she was so out of his reach. He mentally kicked himself for thinking of her in this way. He couldn't do this to their relationship, this wasn't like him at all. Keiichiro had never been the type to go after someone who was not available. He was an adult, he should be acting like it. After slumping back into the kitchen, he resumed his work, deep in thought about the mistakes.
…
After getting home, Ichigo curled up in bed alone. She felt sick. The lead mew couldn't believe herself, what she had done. Keiichiro didn't deserve to be in this situation. Not in a million years would she have imagined she would be involved with Keiichiro. He's an older guy, she didn't even know his real age!
Her soft pillow caressed her face, making her snuggle in. She wouldn't get out of bed. Not today.
A ring on her cell made her open one eye and glance over at it. A text? A voicemail?
The cat girl groaned and grabbed the device, glancing at who it was from. To her surprise, it was a text from Lettuce.
::Hey, just checking to see if you're okay… You seemed upset today. Everything all right?::
How on Earth can she respond to this? Should she tell her, or keep her problems to herself?
[][][][][][][][][][]
MewMid: Again, sorry I was dead. It's hard updating stories, taking classes, and trying to update my deviantart page.
R and R baby! Love you guys!
