CHAPTER FOUR

Grumbling and muttering to himself, Yusuke trudged down the streets in his neighborhood, his hands shoved into his pockets. "I don't want to go to school tomorrow. It's so boring. I don't want to go home to do my stupid homework but I know Keiko is going to ask if I did it tomorrow—if I actually go to school, that is—and then she'll be pissed at me when I say no. She's been really pissy even since that comment I made about how bad her cooking is at Genaki-baa-san's place and don't know why. It's true. I mean, there are some dishes she makes that are all right and others that aren't. It's a fact. In fact, I should go in there and tell her that to her face and then maybe she'll get off my—"

Yusuke blinked. Go in there and tell her? Yusuke backpedaled to a store window and pressed his face to the glass. There was Keiko sitting at a table for two at a large, swanky restaurant. And sitting in the chair across from her was a board shouldered, young waiter with chiseled features laughing with Keiko. Furious, he pounded the glass, startling the people sitting at the booths by the windows. They looked up to see a pig-nosed boy glued to the glass, grinding his teeth.

Yusuke's blood boiled. How dare he? How dare he flirt with my fiancé?!

Without a second thought, Yusuke burst into the restaurant like a whirlwind. Brushing by the seating hostess and the other servers, Yusuke charged over to Keiko's table.

Stunned, Keiko stammered, "Y-Yusuke! What are you doing here?"

Not seeing the waiter, Yusuke's head whipped to the left and right, searching for him. "Where is he? Where is that bastard? When I get my hands on him, I'll show him what real pain feels like!"

"Yusuke, Yusuke!" Keiko cried, standing up. She gently touched his arm. "Yusuke, please, you're making a scene."

Yusuke calmed down a bit enough to scan the other customers. They were all staring at him in fear, expecting him to start fighting someone—a distinct possibility. Then Yusuke glanced at Keiko's warm brown eyes pleading at him. Cursing the waiter under his breath, Yusuke sat down where the server previously reclined. He put his brown handbag that was his schoolbag on the ground next to his seat.

Gratefully smiling at Yusuke, Keiko sat down across from him. "I certainly didn't expect to see you here. I thought you told me you were going home to do your homework." Not that I mind that you're here, Keiko added mentally.

Yusuke sighed. Always nagging. "What are you doing here, Keiko?"

"Me?" Keiko said calmly, picking up a menu in her hand. "I'm here to check out the competition."

Yusuke's heart stopped. The… competition?! She, she said it right to my face! "How, what, why?!"

"Why?" Keiko repeated, slightly confused. Then she narrowed her eyes at Yusuke. "Because of you and your rude remarks about my cooking, that's why."

"Yeah, but, Keiko, we always get on each other's nerves and say whatever comes mind. It doesn't mean that—"

"No," Keiko replied firmly, gritting her teeth. "You always get on my nerves and say whatever comes to your mind."

All right, Yusuke couldn't contest that. But… "Why would you go to someone other than me?" Yusuke knew that Keiko had always threatened to leave him, but she always came back.

Keiko moved her head slightly to the side and raised an eyebrow. "Becauuuse I know what you're like." Geez, what's been getting into him, lately? Keiko thought.

Yusuke's jaw hit the table. Then fury enraging him, Yusuke jumped out of his seat. "What does that mean?! I'm old news? I'm too old and boring for you?"

Getting exasperated, Keiko answered, "I don't know about getting old, but yes, I've been with you a ton of times so I know everything about you."

W-W-What? Yusuke blushed deeply, his face stained red and purple. He knew that while he was dead and a ghost he had visited Keiko while she slept, and she cared for his comatose body, but… Yusuke never actually did anything to her. What is she…? So is she…? I didn't do anything! I look at dirty girlie mags, and sure, I may touch her sometimes, but I never… I never… Before he could stop himself, Yusuke cried, "What did you do to me?!"

"What are you talking about?" Keiko cried.

Yusuke blinked. "What? What do you mean?"

Standing up herself, Keiko threw a napkin down at the table. "What do you mean 'what do you mean'? What do you mean?"

"You're cheating on me!"

"What?"

"You're cheating on me!"

"What?" Keiko shouted. Grabbing Yusuke's shoulder, Keiko pulled Yusuke closer until they could feel each other's breath on their faces. Yusuke could see her eyes burned, whether with tears or anger, Yusuke couldn't tell. "Yusuke, I don't know what you're talking about, but I'm here at this restaurant to check out their food. The Yukimura diner my family runs hasn't been doing too well lately because this new place has been stealing our customers."

Yusuke put a hand to his chest and breathed heavily. "Oh… Oh… so that's… oh, that's so much better than what I was thinking…"

Keiko tilted her head, down, becoming closer to Yusuke. She stared directly into Yusuke's eyes through her bangs. "What were you thinking?"

Yusuke blushed deeper. "Ah… ha, ha… ha. Nothing. Nothing at all."

Suspicious, Keiko narrowed her eyes. "Hmm…" Then she sat down, muttering to herself.

"What?" Yusuke asked, sitting down himself. "What did you say?" Sure, he felt an unmeasurable amount of relief upon hearing the truth, but Keiko couldn't just say something in this situation without Yusuke knowing what it was.

Keiko sighed, and looked away, her cheeks still a bit red. "I said, 'I don't know what got that stupid idea in your head, but why would I cheat on you when I'm dating a hero?'"

"Keiko…" Yusuke murmured, touched. All of his misplaced doubts slipped away. Then Yusuke narrowed his eyes at Keiko, suspicious. "Hmm…" …is that really a good thing in this context?

"What?" Keiko asked.

"What?"

"Oh my god," Keiko exclaimed, throwing her hands up in the air. Making a noise of irritation, Keiko pulled back the sleeve of her pink sweater to look at her watch. "Where is he?"

"So you ARE cheating—!"

"Don't. You. Dare." Yusuke shut up. Exhaling deeply, Keiko began, "I'm supposed to be meeting Kuwabara—"

"Ew, you're going out with Kuwabara?!"

Keiko threw the pepper shaker at Yusuke. "Gah!" Pepper flew all over his leather jacket, white shirt, and jeans.

After pausing to calm herself down, Keiko said, "I'm supposed to meet Kuwabara-kun so we can try out as many different items on the menu and compare them to the Yukimura diner. I didn't ask you, because I know what your ramen tastes like, so I could guess what you were going to say about this restaurant's food."

Aaaahhh… Yusuke thought, nodding to himself. That explains all the 'I know you' comments. "Wait, hold on a second. Isn't it because I own a ramen stand that you would want me to come along with you? I know how good food should taste."

Keiko looked down at her hands in her laps, her eyes swimming with unshed tears. "You, you insulted my cooking when my family restaurant is counting on me…"

Great. Now Yusuke felt like an ass. "Come on, Keiko. You know that your parents' place is the best around! Tell you what, I got a great idea to help you guys out."

Keiko looked up, a bright smile on her face. Hope surged within her chest as she asked, "What?"

Yusuke leaned forward, resting an elbow on the table. Pointing to a waitress, Yusuke said, "You see her there? I bet this new place is getting all their customers because of how sexy their serving uniforms are. So if you wear an apron and a cute miniskirt—"

"That's it!" Keiko shot up from her chair, causing it to clatter to the ground. She threw her purse at Yusuke's face. Storming off towards the bathrooms in the back, Keiko cried over her shoulder, "I've had enough of you!"

Surprised, Yusuke almost missed catching the purse before it hit him. Upon lowering it, he saw Keiko walking away from him, wiping her eyes. "Aw, Keiko!" Yusuke called after her, not even getting up from his chair. "What did I do?" Silence.

"Does this mean I'm dumped?"

Kuwabara pushed out the door of a restaurant in his neighborhood. I not sure but I think this is the place I'm supposed to meet Yukimura—

"Hello, sir and welcome!"

Kuwabara turned to see a young seating hostess smiling at him from behind a podium. Noting her fancy maroon uniform, Kuwabara shuffled his feet, feeling uncomfortable in his simple long sleeve shirt and black slacks.

"How many are in your party?"

"Ah, actually, I'm supposed to be meeting someone. I'm pretty late so they might be here already. Do you know—?"

"That's it!"

Kuwabara looked beyond the waitress just in time to see Keiko throw her purse at Yusuke's face. "I've had enough of you!" Rubbing her eyes with a hand, Keiko stormed off deeper into the restaurant.

"Aw, Keiko!" Yusuke called after her. "What did I do?" Silence. "Does this mean I'm dumped?"

The waitress regarded Kuwabara with suspicious eyes as though she was asking, You're not with them, are you?

"…the person I'm meeting isn't here yet, so if you could get me a table in the back, I would really appreciate it," Kuwabara answered.

The hostess smiled warmly again, grabbed a menu, and said, "Follow me."

The restaurant was smaller than Kuwabara expected for being fairly fancy. The waitressed dressed in pristine black blouses and skirts, covered by an apron, while the men were decked in suits. Majestic paintings of Mt. Fuji and other landscapes decorated the mauve walls, giving the restaurant a regal air.

"Here, you go," the seating hostess said, gesturing to a table in the back corner, as Kuwabara had asked. Kuwabara nodded his thanks and she left after informing him a server would be with him shortly. Sitting down, he examined his surroundings. To Kuwabara's right was the kitchen, where Kuwabara could peer into a doorway and see the chefs slaving over ovens. If Kuwabara stood up slightly, he could see Yusuke's end of the table at the front of the restaurant.

After the seating hostess left, Kuwabara could only shake his head. Urameshi is being a dumbass to Yukimura like usual. Geez, it's so hard to believe they love each other sometimes. Kuwabara placed an elbow on the table, resting his chin on the palm of his hand. His eyes going distant, Kuwabara exhaled. Unlike me and Yukina-san…

It had been six days since Kuwabara and Yukina visited the park. After that particular fiasco, Kuwabara had brought Yukina to his house like he promised. Upon seeing Yukina still had a saddened face, Shizuru immediately took the ice demon under her wing and tried to cheer her up in her own way. Over dinner, Yukina's disposition transformed: she smiled, she laughed, and she told stories of Genkai's failing memory. The sight of her fitting into the Kuwabara household was an image that Kuwabara would carry to his grave. That, Kuwabara told himself, that's what the goal at the end of the road is. And with Yukina-san and I dating that goal is finally no longer a fantasy.

So why did Kuwabara feel a sense of foreboding?

I'm probably just feeling tense because of that shrimp. He probably won't react well to the news of us going out. Kuwabara snorted. And while he's wasting his time chasing down a present to win a meaningless bet, afraid that he'll have to tell me his secrets, I already won what really matters. Yukina-san's affection. And if he doesn't like it, too bad. Because no one but me can appreciate her true angelic beauty and her radiance that shines like the pure white uniform she's wearing…

Kuwabara blinked. The pure white uniform she's wearing? Kuwabara looked over to his left into the kitchen. There!

In the kitchen, Kuwabara spied the upper half of Yukina's body as she placed a plate of food onto a counter before disappearing out of his sight. Without hesitation, Kuwabara jumped up from the table and entered the kitchen. Chefs and servers glanced up at Kuwabara in surprise and disbelief. Kuwabara barreled past them, heading towards a young woman cooking on a stove, oblivious to the intrusion.

"Yukina-san! What are you doing here?"

Surprised, Yukina turned around, a ladle in her hand. A too large chef hat sat adorably crooked on her head. Upon seeing it was Kuwabara, Yukina smiled warmly. "Kazuma-san! What a surprise! How are you?"

"Oh, I'm good—no, never mind that! Yukina-san, why are you cooking at a restaurant?"

"O-Oh, well…" Yukina glanced towards the side, suddenly uncomfortable with maintaining eye contact. "I just needed to get some money for uh, something. So I thought I would cook. Genkai-san has been teaching me this world's dishes!"

"Yeah, but, why not work at Yukimura's place? This is her family's competitor—"

"Hey! What are you doing here?"

Kuwabara and Yukina turned to see a potbelly red-faced man dressed in a white cooking uniform approaching them, a shaking fist raised in the air. "Wait for your orders outside!"

So rude. I don't know how this place is doing better than Yukimura's diner, Kuwabara thought with a frown. "For your information, tubby, I haven't ordered anything yet."

"I don't care!" The man forcibly turned Kuwabara towards the exit and pushed him. "Get out of the kitchen now, or we'll throw you out!"

"You haven't ordered yet—Kazuma-san! Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," Kuwabara raised a hand over his shoulder. As he left the kitchen he called behind him, "I'll take the special, whatever it is."

Yukina smiled and waved at him. "I'll be out with it soon!"

Kuwabara paused by the entrance of the kitchen, soaking in the image of Yukina's rosy cheeks and sweet smile. A server carrying a tray full of food squeezed by Kuwabara, glaring at him, but the street brawler didn't pay him any attention. As he stared at Yukina, the red faced chef from earlier wheeled onto Yukina.

"You! You good for nothing new girl! Get back to work right now or else I'll throw you out on the street without your pay!"

Bowing deeply, Yukina profusely apologized, "I'm sorry, sir! I'll get back to cooking right away!"

His blood boiling, Kuwabara had to restrain himself from barging in the kitchen again and set that man straight. But that would only make matters worse for Yukina. Kuwabara sighed, a pang of regret running through his heart. Yukina-san goes through so much shit and she just takes it in… It's not right. Cursing his helplessness, Kuwabara returned to his seat.

As promised, several minutes later Yukina emerged from the kitchen carrying a plate of food on a serving tray. "Here you go," she said as she placed the food on the table.

"Why, thank you, Yukina—what is this?!"

Yukina beamed, obviously quite proud of herself. "You asked for something special so I made something that I used to eat while I lived in the Demon Realm. Of course, I didn't have any of the ingredients here with me so I did my best to adapt. What do you think?"

Kuwabara poked at the gelatinous white goop on the plate. Chucks of red, blue, and black floated within the goo. It was covered with what looked and smelled like ranch dressing and surrounded by lettuce and rice. "Eeeeuugh… I-I mean, I think it looks really good, Yukina-san."

"Really? You think so?" Yukina cried, clapping her hands. "Oh, I'm so happy!"

Kuwabara forced a smile on his face. Maybe I really should eat a bite… He glanced at the plate. Two black chunks within the goop turned, making it appear that the white Jell-O was staring back at him. …if I want indigestion for a week.

"Oh, here." Yukina offered a pair of new chopsticks from her apron. "You eat them with these!"

Kuwabara stared at the chopsticks, baffled. How?!

Waving the chopsticks aside, Kuwabara turned serious. "Yukina-san, I…"

"Kazuma-san, I…"

The two stared at each other, surprised. Then they chuckled. Kuwabara raised a hand and nodded at Yukina. "You first."

"Oh, I just wanted to thank you again for saving me. Every day since then, I think about you—eep!" Mortified, Yukina covered her nose and mouth with the serving tray, which failed to mask her burning cheeks. Confused by her actions, Yukina thought, Why is admitting that I think about Kazuma-san embarrassing?

"Actually," Kuwabara happily cried, "that's exactly what I was going to talk about!" Turning serious, Kuwabara stared deeply into Yukina's red eyes. "Yukina-san, I just wanted to make sure that you don't believe those goons' words. You really are smart, kind person."

Yukina smiled, her heart melting. He's too kind; he really is. But…

In Yukina's head, Tarukane, her torturer whispered, "You are not a person, but a thing. A freak of nature."

That's what I really am, Yukina thought, swallowing hard.

"Anyway, we're dating now so that means anywhere ya want to go…" Kuwabara raised a fist in the air and flexed his bicep. "I'll be there to protect ya, you know? So that'll never happen to you ever again."

"'Dating'?" Yukina blinked. "What's that?"

Kuwabara blinked as well. "You know, dating."

"No, I'm sorry, but I don't know."

Horror creeping in his eyes, Kuwabara lowered his arm slightly. "You know, dating. Like going out. You asking me to take you out."

Seeing how upset Kuwabara was, Yukina felt her stomach churn. "Yes, I asked you to take me out because I wanted to go somewhere with you." Although it twisted her insides, Yukina forced out, "Was that… wrong?"

His arm falling to his side, Kuwabara stared at the table, crushed. If Yukina wasn't mistaken, his eyes appeared a mite shinier than before. He mumbled, "No… I was wrong. I guess I can't make you happy."

Huh? What is he talking about? I don't understand. Before Yukina could ask, a belligerent voice from the kitchen bellowed,

"New girl! Are you out there talking with that boy again instead of working? That's it! You're fired!"

Crying out in alarm, Yukina dashed back into the kitchen. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry! I'll get back to work this minute!"

"Didn't you hear me? I said you're fired!"

His insides tearing up, Kuwabara stared mindlessly in front of him. I was the one who misunderstood. Yes, I'm the one who took advantage of her naïve innocence by presuming what she wanted, what she felt. I'm no better than all those guys who yell at her. I guess… Kuwabara gripped his jeans. He whispered, "I don't understand her all."

And while I'm here, making up things, that pipsqueak is out there, searching for a present to win the bet. I'm the one whose been wasting my time on deluded fantasies. If he actually manages to win, I'll never see Yukina-san again…

Slamming his hands on the table, Kuwabara stood up. His head down, Kuwabara sped for the exit. By chance he caught a glimpse of bit of black hair to his left. Turning, Kuwabara saw the man with the black hair, and then kept on walking. Then he did a double take. It was the most disturbing sight Kuwabara had even seen. He raised his voice and cried out to him.

Wiping her eyes, Keiko walked into the bathroom of her competitor's restaurant. Thankfully, while there was an occupied stall, there was no one by the sinks who could see Keiko's disheveled state. Keiko sniffed before looking at herself in the mirror. She cringed.

Ugh, I'm a mess. Gotta pull it together, Keiko. Yusuke didn't mean to be rude. Keiko released an exasperated breath, her hand on the counter closing into a fist. Oh, sure he didn't… The memory of Yusuke telling her to wear a miniskirt came to her mind. When I need him, Yusuke only thinks of himself and what he wants… The thought brought tears to Keiko's eyes.

"Are you all right?"

Keiko turned to her right to see the waiter Yusuke thought Keiko was dating by her side. "W-What are you doing here, Ryuichi?"

Ryuichi placed his hand on Keiko's shoulder, a slimy smirk on his face. "I'm terribly sorry, Keiko-san, about what you were forced to endure."

Jerking out of the young man's grasp, Keiko backed up a step. "How do you know—you were listening to our conversation!"

"Well, considering how loud and obnoxious that thug was half the restaurant was listening, my love."

Disgusted, Keiko narrowed her eyes. I am NOT your love.

Before Keiko could open her mouth to speak, Ryuichi stepped closer to Keiko. "Here…" he whispered in a low, velvety voice. He stroked a thumb across her cheek, brushing aside a tear. Leaning forward, he breathed, "I'll make you feel better…"

Keiko smacked his hand away, snapping, "Get the hell away from me. I don't need you to comfort me."

"Damn straight, scuzzball. Get away from my woman."

Confused, Keiko stepped to the side to see the entrance of the restroom. "Is that you?"

Scowling, Yusuke leaned back in the chair and put his legs up on the table. Servers and customers sent him dirty glares. A few servers conversed with themselves, wondering if they should kick Yusuke out for being so disruptive and disrespectful. But Yusuke paid them no mind.

Damn it, Keiko's mad at me again. But at least she didn't leave the restaurant entirely. That's a good thing, right? I still got a second chance. Sighing, Yusuke replayed the conversation in his mind, wondering when things had got out of hand. Wait a moment! Keiko said that she was meeting Kuwabara! I gotta… I gotta do something!

Yusuke slammed the chair's legs down on the ground and reached for his brown schoolbag on the floor. After the fiasco at the park, Yusuke had sworn he would always be prepared for the event that he ran into Kuwabara. Yusuke flipped it open and rumbled through the goodies inside. A farting whoopee cushion, water balloons, a fake plastic spider to scare Yukina, a monkey wrench, a fake plastic snake to scare Kuwabara… Man, it's too bad Yukina isn't here so that I can humiliate him in front of her. Is Kuwabara here yet?

Yusuke looked up just in time to see the scum waiter from before entering the bathroom Keiko disappeared into. What the shit?! So he's a pervert, too, huh? Well, tough luck, bud, because when it comes to being a pervert… Yusuke stood up, and cracked his knuckles. No one's better than me. Grabbing his schoolbag, Yusuke headed towards the entrance of the female bathroom.

Opening the door a crack, Yusuke could see Keiko and the waiter. Keiko faced towards him, while the waiter has his back towards Yusuke. The waiter was far too close to Keiko for Yusuke's liking. Selecting an item from his schoolbag, Yusuke thought, Stopping someone from making a move on Keiko is far more important than embarrassing Kuwabara.

Keiko smacked the waiter's hand away, snapping, "Get the hell away from me. I don't need you to comfort me."

"Damn straight, scuzzball. Get away from my woman." Yusuke lifted the object high in the air, took aim, and began to throw it.

"Urameshi! What the hell are you doing peeking into the girl's bathroom?!"

"Kuwabara?!" Yusuke turned around at the voice, causing him to mess up his throw.

The object sailed through the air and nailed Keiko. Water burst upon contact, soaking Keiko's chest. At that moment, a woman opened her stall. She stared at Keiko and the male waiter in the girl's bathroom. She stared at Keiko's soaking wet breasts. She stared at Yusuke at the entrance. Keiko and the waiter stared right back. The woman stepped backwards and closed the stall door.

The waiter looked at Keiko's chest appraisingly. "Nice."

Mortified, Keiko covered her chest with her arms. She looked to see Yusuke staring back at her with a surprised expression on his face. He raised a hand. "…Hi. How ya doing? …Good-bye." Yusuke slipped through the door and left.

"GET BACK HERE!"

Keiko bolted out of the bathroom. Yusuke was hightailing it out of the restaurant, however the many servers, customers, and tables were impeding his escape. Snatching a metal serving tray from a server, Keiko caught up with Yusuke. Sensing Keiko behind him, Yusuke turned around. "Ah, Keiko, I—"

Keiko smashed the tray down on Yusuke's head, denting the tray. "OW!" Yusuke collapsed to the ground, the tray clattering by his head. Cries and gasps from the other people in the restaurant filled the air. Stepping over the fallen Yusuke, Keiko made her way towards the exit.

"Ow, ow, ow…" Yusuke moaned, gripping his head. Upon not seeing Keiko's shoes, Yusuke leapt up. He stepped towards her, shouting, "Keiko, no, wait! Don't leav—"

Yusuke stepped on the metal serving tray and it slipped out from underneath him. For the second time, Yusuke crashed to the ground, this time bringing a table full of food with him. The couple eating there cried out in alarm.

Yusuke shoved the table off of him, the food and drinks spilled all over him. Red bean sauce changed his black hair to red, and ramen noodles hung off his shirt collar and ears like a necklace and earrings. Rice decorated him like it had been snowing. He was soaked to the skin with saké. "Hmm…" Yusuke chewed on something before spitting out a bit of bean paste. "This place's food really does suck." Hearing the sound of swinging doors, Yusuke looked up. But Keiko was nowhere to be found. "Keiko, wait!"

Yusuke jumped up and ran out of the restaurant. Through the giant window, Kuwabara could see the food encrusted Yusuke. Startled by the strange sight, people openly gaped at Yusuke, convinced he was some sort of basket case. Yusuke's head whipped this way and that, searching for Keiko. Charging off in a random direction, Yusuke threw out a hand and cried, "Keiko, don't dump meee!"

Kuwabara blinked. Then he turned around, heading for the back exit.

Her chef hat clenched in a hand, Yukina exited the kitchen, her chin trembling. "Kazuma-san, I was told I was fired and had to leave but I don't know what I did wrong… Kazuma-san?"

But Kuwabara was gone.