Puppy Love
Chapter 3: Tomorrow never felt so depressing
Fingers tapping on the counter impatiently, she kept her free elbow resting on the surface as her head lay on her palms out of laziness. Every once in a while, her eyes would flicker towards the clock on the back of the store and then return her gaze back at the door again.
When she needed him to stay as far as possible from her, he appeared even faster than she could imagine. When she needed him to stay, he disappeared instead…
How was it possible for someone to feel so strongly about sacking an employee before he even showed up for his first day of work? She had no idea.
The store was opened until night, much to Miyuki's objection. The puppies would often sleep for the majority of the day and were often awake for a short period of time. She disliked the fact that sometimes, people sought entertainment by barging into the shop, disrupting the sleep of the poor animals.
In her opinion, she considered these people as shallow trashes too.
IST - Idiotic shallow trashes.
RSH - Rich shallow trashes.
Of course there were sub-categories for shallow trashes too!
And the fact that Miyuki was still doing moderately alright in her studies – still able to pass the grade barely –, she had placed aside some time during school to prepare a list of chores for him.
Whether it was common tasks like stocking up, or ridiculously chores like keeping the pasting all price tags at the exact spot, she had them all listed out. She would force him out of the shop, and if possible, traumatize him out of the district.
It was exaggerating to do the latter, but better safe than sorry. Her plans were going perfectly well as planned.
Or so she thought…
The soft dinging of the bell chimed as the puppies started barking excitedly, many trotted towards the entrance of their cages and tails wagged side to side madly.
"Kaoru, reporting for work!" his voice was full of enthusiasm, despite the fact that dusk was approaching. Miyuki narrowed her eyes at him, straightened up and pointed an accusing finger at the auburn-haired teen.
"Where have you been?!" she demanded, irritated by his seemingly uncaring attitude.
Kaoru frowned bemusedly, hands stuffed deep into his pants. "School?" he didn't know why he felt so…uncertain. He was in school, at the Third Music Room where the rest of the Host Club were entertaining ladies. He had done nothing wrong.
So why was he feeling guilty over the girl's accusations?
Her lips curved downwards as she turned towards the clock - 5.36 in the evening.
There goes the task of asking him to clean the windows and arrange the stocks by their expiry dates…
Miyuki sighed dejectedly as she ambled around the counter towards him slowly, eyes gazing at the patterns on the floor. The tasks she had assigned for him all demanded time. And for that fact, she had to cancel all the plans and forfeit them for tomorrow, since there was not enough time for him to complete the time-consuming tasks. She turned and gestured for Kaoru to follow her when she passed him, walking towards where the puppies stayed at.
"The puppies are normally sleeping for an extremely long period of time. So, unless the situation demands it, don't disturb them." She knew it was unnecessary to brief him too thoroughly, since she wanted to make sure he was gone by this week – either because he had had enough, or that he no longer found the job interesting. But there was a need to prevent him from wreaking havoc in the shop, regardless of the duration of his stay.
Kaoru nodded in acknowledgment, his eyes scanning at the features of each of the puppy. As he passed by them, he found that whenever the brunette passed the cages, the puppies – as if on instincts – would rush and poke their noses between the metal wiring and bark softly, as if making attempts to capture the brunette's attention.
It was somewhat adorable.
"So what am I supposed to do?" he directed her gaze back to the female in front of him, who had stopped at one of the cages. She lifted the latch on the entrance and swung it open, hands moving swiftly to carry the puppy before it had the chance to escape and pummel to the ground.
The puppy was covered with a thick and fluffy layer of white fur, legs short and plump while the bottom of its paws were slightly darkened. Its eyes black in contrast to its fur, the puppy struggled energetically in Miyuki's grip. Obviously, the animal had just woken up from its slumber.
"Your first task," she paused for a moment as she lowered to her feet and released the puppy. "Is to look after the puppies, as easy as that."
He raised an eyebrow as the animal trotted towards him and sniffed at his shoe curiously.
"I have to clear up the inside of his cage and he needs exercise, just make sure that he's safe inside and not nibbling at the stuff in the shop." She wasn't paying attention to the two animals loose in her shop, lifting herself to her feet as she started clearing the inner part of the cage.
This was the toughest job that she could think of right now. Perhaps the dog would scare or irritate Kaoru out and never come back?
Yeah right… she was so naïve…
"So it's a male?"
"Hai."
No one spoke. He directed his attention at the puppy at his feet for the next few moments, completely oblivious to his surroundings. The animal seemed to have something against his shoe, scratching it continuously as if he was digging the ground. Finally, it lost interest in the action and trotted towards the rest of the cages, sniffing the other puppies.
Kaoru chuckled at the sight, walking over towards the puppy and lowered himself to sit on the floor. It was weird, to have him taking interest in the store – a commoner's store – and actually feel like it was something he wanted to do.
The puppy, as if noticing that the height difference between them decreased significantly, turned and lunged at the teen, only to jump up a short distance before it landed conveniently on Kaoru's crossed legs. He laughed, hands reaching out to scratch the back of its ear.
To think Hitachiin Kaoru would find joy in such a commoner's pet shop. Hikaru would be surprised...
Miyuki glanced at him from the corner of her eye, silently processing the scene into her head. He appeared to be genuinely content. His reaction and affection shown for the puppy seemed real… Was it really possible for him to change?
"When pigs fly..."
Too engrossed in her own thoughts, she had unconsciously mumbled out loud. The freed puppy's ears perked up sensitively as it turned to the source of the noise. Kaoru lifted an eyebrow as he stared at the brunette.
"What...?"
Snapping out of her daze, Miyuki shook her head rid of the pathetic thought and turned to face the teen. "N…Nothing…" She stammered shakily, cheeks heating up in embarrassment.
Kaoru raised both delicate eyebrows, watching as her expression twisted in disbelief before scrunching her nose in disgust. If he was supposed to feel concern, then there must be something wrong with him.
Because right now, he was watching with morbid fascination.
There was no girl in his school that held expressions like she the ones she had. They had rich, classy parents that taught them the proper and graceful way to act since young. Frowning exaggeratedly and twisting of facial expression was normally not a polite thing to do, and something that he would probably never see the girls in his school do.
He had seen Haruhi with exaggerated expressions before, but it was not a common sight, and it was normally scrunched up with unbelievably. Normally when they introduced her to their summer vacation houses, beaches and things along that line.
This was the first time he had seen a girl and knew what she was feeling just by her expressions. From disbelief to disgust, her next expression made his stomach twist in shock.
Miyuki turned sharply and threw a dirty glare at him. Kaoru could feel himself shrinking back. No one moved for a long time. One was too stunned for words, the other was too angered to speak.
It was she who finally decided to end his misery. She abruptly broke her stare and walked over to him, picking up the white-fur puppy and replacing it back to its rightful cage. From then on, no one spoke as she continued her routine. It was suffocating at first, but slowly, the tension broke away little by little, and Kaoru found himself slightly enjoying the silence and observing her work.
The animals in the store seemed to have brightened her mood; her, eyes softened as the puppies struggled childishly in her arms.
The gentle aura surrounded her when he first laid his eyes on her was back. No, it was never gone. Her face was serene, undisturbed. Her eyes reflected so much content, it was…indescribable. That smile that graced her face, like a child given a candy for a job well done. It was innocent, untainted. An unexplainable beauty behind the average commoner.
Of course, he would probably never live to see the day where she would use those eyes to look at him. Was he more worthless than puppies?
It was amazing how she could be so gentle when she's smiling…
…and irritating when she talks at times…
Miyuki lifted her head up and locked eyes with the auburn-haired. Frowning in confusion, she titled her head to one side slightly.
"…What…?"
Kaoru broke into a smile and shook his head, hands crossed over his chest.
"You'll look prettier if you just stand there and not talk."
She glared at him agitatedly and flung the puppy's water bottle, aiming at his head. Kaoru's eyes widened as he ducked the flying object, scrambling to his right. The weapon narrowly missed his ear and clashed onto the cans of food on the shelf, toppling the first few rows of objects.
"Nice aim."
She groaned in frustration, gripping onto the metal wirings as she vented her anger on them. There goes the chance of knocking off early…
How in the world can a normal day turn out so badly…
"So, how did I do today boss?" it was amazing how he managed to keep up such an upbeat mood after working in school and at the shop.
"Terrible." she kept her voice nonchalant, eyes focusing on nothing in particular. Kaoru grinned buoyantly. "Practice makes perfect."
Practice…?
"I'll get the hang of it…eventually"
Eventually??
"Ah well, I'll see you tomorrow…Yuki-chan!" He knew it would serve its purpose, to disturbed her. Miyuki twitched at the name… and the statement.
To…morrow?
How…long…is he planning to stay?!
End.
Review Responses.
Thanks kiarababy79! Thanks for the compliment :D I got this idea when my sister was in the process opening up a pet shop! heheh
Thanks Jayrin Paige or JP! Hah...The OC is more towards someone full of pride, like those kinds of people who refuse to let others see them as weaklings :D I'll begin the experimentation in the next chapter!
Thanks Hakumei. xo! I'll work on the flaws :D This story is probably more different since it started out with a different scenerio, but I'm really not sure how long it can keep readers on their toes!
