I'm posting early in the day today because I have a 15 page paper due by midnight so I need to get moving on that. I'm semi embarrassed I almost missed my final today. My instructor's wife, another instructor, woke me up texting if I was on my way. My alarm never went off.
italics are Kenshin's thoughts
bold italics are an action like "sniff, sniff"
Wednesday:
The middle of the week, hump day, the day that begins the weeks decent toward the weekend and all of it's fun possibilities. Possibly the most boring, uneventful day of the week-unless you live in a loft on the lower left side just two blocks away from an ice rink. Oh, and your name is Kenshin or Kaoru.
On this particular Wednesday Kenshin had come home from work early and thought that he would help Kaoru out with the ribs that she bought the wrong sugar for. After all, his coworkers Lenny and Carl had barbecues all the time, and many manly grill fests so of course he could take their advice and make Kaoru's rib recipe even better.
Kaoru had sent him a text earlier letting him know that their neighbor would pick her up from work so she could take him to the rink for some tips. With no Kaoru, this left Kenshin alone, in the house, with nothing but pointers on how ribs should properly be made, by his expert coworkers.
Standing over a pot of boiling water Kenshin carefully watched the ribs Kaoru had been marinating in the fridge since their trip back from the grocery store.
He poked them with the pitchfork thing.
He prodded and flipped with the tongs.
He even made a special stop at the store to pick up Lenny and Carl's guaranteed, lip-smacking, melt in your mouth, Sweet Baby Rays BBQ x-Tangy sauce of which he dumped into the pot of ribs and boiling water.
Loud banging and thumping could be heard in the hall outside of the apartment followed by something that suspiciously sounded like, "Get back here you ungrateful little BRAT!"
No, it was, "Get back here you ungrateful little BRAT!" because he heard it again, and again with shouts of "BUSU, BUSU, you old hag!" in between.
Ah, yes the sweet sounds of his lovely Kaoru and the well behaved, soon to be college student down the hall.
Kenshin went to open the door but pulled back as another masculine voice was heard.
"Hey, Kao-chan! "
Kao-chan?
"You left your laptop in my car and the brat left a stick."
"Oh, thanks Sou-chan."
Sou-chan?
"I really appreciate the ride and you helping us out."
"Ah, no problem. That boy's got skills. With some more practice and you training him, he may even make varsity as a freshmen."
"Ssssshhhhhhhhh! Don't let him hear that, his head might explode. Anyway, I miss this and the guys."
A thoroughly confused Kenshin once again thinks: The guys? What guys?
"Yeah we miss you too. The ball and chain act doesn't suit you Kaoru. You should come hang out more often and the brat can come on Friday too."
Ball and chain act?
"Aw, cut it out Sou, he's a good guy and I like..."
"Yeah, yeah, I know...And I know you like to feel free and unrestrained. You'll make a good wife Kaoru, you never have to worry about that, but you'd make an even better one to someone who understands you."
At that Kenshin looked through the peep hole in time to see Kaoru hugging some guy with short dark hair and a slim but sturdy build and Kenshin saw red.
"So, Kao-chan...see you on Friday then!"
Kenshin opened the door aggressively to see the man's back as he left to the elevator.
"Oh! Kenshin you startled me."
Kaoru tiptoed up to reach Kenshin's lip for a hello kiss.
He returned the peck stiffly while his eyes darted up and down the hall.
"Who was that?" Kenshin asked rather shortly.
"Who?" Kaoru started, "Oh, that..."
"Yeah who? Who is Sou-can (in a girly imitation voice)? What is with this Kao-chan thing? What Friday? That is man day." Kenshin finished with a huff as Yahiko the neighbor came out of the apartment a couple doors down.
Kaoru was rather shocked having never been spoken to like that by anyone before, let alone Kenshin.
"Yo Busu! I left a stick in Sou-sempai's car. Did he leave already?"
Shaken out of her stupor.
"Yeah, but he brought it up before he left. He asked if you wanted to go on Friday?"
"Hell yeah, getting a chance to play with those guys; there's no way I'd turn that down!"
"Good, Nishi will come by around 6:30 p.m. to pick you up. Now go on and get a good rest, you worked really hard today. Soujiro is a tough coach, you'll need to be in top shape if you want to play for him."
"Nishi? Yoshi! I get to play with a pro! Night Kao, later Kenshin." Yahiko waved as he ran back to his apartment without the stick he was looking for.
Kaoru sighed noticing she had forgotten too.
"Ahem." A sever looking Kenshin once again demanded attention. "What do you mean Friday?"
"Kenshin, Yahiko was invited to play a pick up game with some of my old friends and teammates."
"But you'll be here on Friday right, it's man's night."
"Kenshin..."
sniff, sniff
sniff, sniff
Kenshin kept trying to stare down Kaoru waiting for some sort of response.
That is until Kaoru figured out that there was an unusual smell, a smell that was coming from her apartment. A smell that smelled suspiciously like boiling ribs and Sweet Baby Rays x-Tangy sauce.
As far as she knew, the only ribs in the house were the ribs they had bought yesterday that were supposed to be in the refrigerator marinating.
A homemade marinade that had taken an hour and a half to prepare, not to mention the hour it took to clean out the refrigerator to make space for the bins of marinating ribs, that were definitely still in the fridge and not boiling in a pot on the stove in a god awful mixture of Sweet Baby Rays x-Tangy sauce and water.
No, they were still in there waiting for her to take out tonight so she could start the rubbing process which would continue periodically from tonight through tomorrow, until they were ready to be cooked very slowly on Friday.
The glare she sent Kenshin melted the look of condescending superiority that had made it's way onto his face.
His expression slowly, and gradually melted into something that spoke of guilt, sheepishness, anxiety, and fear.
The last one is what Kaoru planned to take full advantage of if her suspicions were confirmed.
Agonizingly slow, Kaoru made her way to the kitchen.
There was no way Kenshin would be that stupid. Especially after last night's shopping fiasco and the argument they had over these very same ribs.
In the doorway Kaoru could see: a pot of boiling brown gunk, with stiff brown things popping out covered with the same brown gunk glued to them and boiling over the sides of the pot and onto her new top of the line, latest model stove that had only been installed three months before Kenshin.
Kenshin was making sure to stay out of arms reach but was inching his way toward the kitchen when Kaoru turned sharply with a look that would kill. He may have even peed a bit.
"A, a, aa, aaaa...Lenny and Carl..."
"Grrrrr..."
Was that a growl?
"They BBQ all the time and...Eep!"
Kaoru slammed her bag on the ground, pointed Yahiko's stick threateningly at Kenshin earning another girlish eep! from him before breaking it in half with her bare hands, then marched out the door slamming it shut.
But what about my man's night.
Apparently he was that stupid.
Does anyone know why the reply link isn't working on reviews?
Kokoronagomu: ch.2 review-yes, we'll find that Kaoru has quite the tolerance level here despite her aggravation(Kenshin). Ch. 3-yes they do.
SRAS9: Thanks for commenting! Glad you like it and don't worry there'll be an update every day until the end on Friday.
Oh yeah, I posted a comment on my profile page with a link to a tidbit about the reanimation of RK. I do hope its true. Can't wait to get more info.
