A/N: Before I get on to the details of this chapter I just wanted to say thank you for all the nice words in the reviews. It really warms my heart to read you guys talking about how much you enjoy this fiction, it honestly does.
Alright, now that that's done, welcome to the newest chapter!
Where we last left them, Seishirou and Raku had a more than romantic scene on the balcony, and the Kazu brothers decided to devote themselves to playing matchmaker for our couple! How will they pull that off? And will Seishirou come to terms with her feelings soon?
Only one way to find out…let's go!
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
It was around 11:00 A.M. or so when Seishirou was awoken by a rather delicious scent. As her eyes slowly blinked, she began to recall where she was. As her eyes darted around the room she saw Raku's bed was oddly immaculate; not a single sheet was out of place, nor was there a wrinkle to be found upon the pillowcases. However, that had its own reason: Raku wasn't in bed at all.
Seishirou realized Raku's absence when she saw the body pillow was occupying the stretch of bed where Raku normally would have been.
'That bastard,' Seishirou drowsily thought as she clenched her blankets, 'darting off on his own without a single regard for me…'
Seishirou darted up, only to elicit a startled, "AH!" from the foot of her bed. As she looked in that direction, Seishirou saw Raku coming her way, dressed in a pair of solid white shorts and a pink v-neck t-shirt. His hair still had that odd essence of bedhead that it always had, and the X-accessory glistened as the sun streaked through the glass door that exited to the balcony.
'Huh? Does he polish that damn thing?!' Seishirou thought as she cast a glance at the accessory, but then diverted her gaze to the outside.
From a momentary glance outside, Seishirou could see the city was already abustle with people making their late morning commutes to work, or some just returning from a long night's work. Billboards and company logos alike all remained vibrantly lit, despite it being daytime on a perfectly clear and sunny day where the only clouds that peppered the sky were wispy cirrostrati.
As Seishirou looked Raku's way once more she saw that he had almost lost his balance, but had successfully re-centered himself, and was also toting a small wooden tray. Upon the tray was a still steaming breakfast consisting of golden waffles fluffier than the clouds in the heavens above doused with syrup that slowly trickled down along their curvaceous bodies and whipped cream that seemed to melt with the syrup, strawberries (sands stems) in a pristine white bowl, orange juice that looked like a small dash of lemon had been added to it, all topped off with a single white rose in a clear vase.
"Ah, you're awake!" Raku declared brandishing an honest smile, "Excellent! Well, better eat up!"
"W-Wait a minute," Seishirou said as Raku drew closer with the breakfast tray, "what's the meaning of this?!"
Raku looked down at the breakfast tray, then up at Seishirou as he replied, "Breakfast in bed of course!" then sat the tray down in Seishirou's lap. "Now go ahead and eat up," Raku said as he reached behind Seishirou to fluff her pillow, "we have a busy day planned at the aquarium, remember?"
If the fact that Raku's face was no more than mere centimeters away from her at the moment, causing her memories of the prior night to flood back to her, wasn't enough to cause her to become flustered beyond compare, then the fact that he had prepared breakfast in bed for her was.
As Seishirou reached for her silverware, she inquired, "How did you do this?"
"Easy;" Raku responded as he sat down next to Seishirou, "I asked Sanpei for the key to the kitchen, dug around in the cabinets for the ingredients, and just took it from there!"
'Of course I won't tell her that I did this at 7 A.M. because I was hungry too,' Raku thought, his expression not showing it in the slightest, 'that'd just make me seem sleazy…'
Seishirou internally squealed over the whole ordeal, but somehow found the strength to say, "You could've just woken me up earlier, you know…they serve continental breakfast here…"
"I know," Raku responded, locking eyes with Seishirou, "but…I don't know how to put it…you were just so cute when you were asleep!" Raku said as he flashed a broad smile, he then turned from Seishirou as he remarked, "Yeah, that's it!"
Seishirou almost dropped her silverware then and there to either throw herself at Raku or throw a punch at his jaw, even Seishirou wasn't sure which she would do (even though she was leaning more towards option A).
'I've said it probably countless times before, but I'll say it again, what the hell is this guy's deal…' Seishirou thought as she began to eat. As she took more and more bites of the delicacies before her, she was left helpless but to marvel at how Raku could prepare something this fantastic from basic ingredients. However, she did think of one small thing, 'And how did he know that I love white roses…'
'Shit, shit, shit…' Raku thought to himself as he smiled externally, 'I hope she didn't notice my blush…'
"Anyways," Raku said as Seishirou ate, "like I said, today's a busy day." Seishirou glanced upwards at Raku as he continued, "If we hurry up and get dressed after you finish eating, we can make it to the aquarium by noon. From there, we have all the time in the world to do as we please until we get tired or the aquarium closes down!"
Seishirou raised an eyebrow and inquired, "How did you know what I had planned for us today?"
"I'll answer that with a better question," Raku replied, "whose laptop did you type up the schedule on in the first place?"
Seishirou swallowed hard as she remembered the hour or two she had spent on Raku's laptop typing up their itinerary for the entire week and a half, but then marveled at Raku's impressive memorization skills.
"Why go to the trouble of memorizing it all?" Seishirou inquired.
Raku turned to Seishirou and replied, "Well…it's just, really important to me, y'know?" Raku's smile perked up a bit as he continued, "I never get to spend as much time as I'd like to with you, so I figure doing this like this is the least I can do to get closer to you."
A small silence hung in the air, interrupted only by the small gusts of air that drafted through the open windows near the sliding glass door.
'Ahhh…I went and spoke my mind again, didn't I…' Raku lamented to himself behind the smile he currently wore, 'Oh well, it's not like I said anything I didn't mean…'
'Is it going to be like this every day?' Seishirou thought as she dwelled on everything Raku had just said, a furious blush painting her face, 'If so…I'm in Heaven…' Seishirou tensed up as she realized what she had just thought, but couldn't deny that what she had just said was what she truly thought and felt.
Raku unconsciously found himself miring at Seishirou as she continued to eat, observing every inch of her beauty while a hurricane of emotions ran wild in his head. However, when he came to his sense, he noticed something…
"Oi, Seishirou," Raku began, drawing Seishirou's attention.
"What is it?" Seishirou responded.
"Don't move, ok?" Raku said as he began to move closer to Seishirou.
A flustered Seishirou began, "O-Oi, what are you-" but before she could respond, Raku had already begun. He placed his right thumb on the bottom right hand corner of Seishirou's mouth, then slid it across her mouth ever so slowly. The entire time, both Seishirou and Raku were steaming from the heat of embarrassment, each one oblivious to the other's heat.
As Raku concluded the act, still rather close to Seishirou's face, his hand still on her left cheek, he stated, "Y-You had something in the corner of your mouth…s-so I got it for you…"
"U-Uh, th-thanks…" Seishirou meekly replied.
'H-He's touching me…' Seishirou thought, overwhelmed by this forwardness, 'This is…amazing…I mean, disgusting! Er, no, I mean…'
As a confused Seishirou wrestled with her emotions, Raku thoughts, 'W-Wow…her skin's so soft…' as he gently rubbed Seishirou's cheek, then pulled his hand away, 'I noticed it on the balcony last night, but it's really soft. And her lips are just…'
As Raku lamented over the perfection of Seishirou's lips, Seishirou spoke up and inquired, "D-Do you think m'lady would be fine if she knew that we were together right now?"
"Eh? Why would Chitoge give a damn about if I'm with a girl other than her?" Raku responded as he shrugged his shoulders.
Seishirou furrowed her brow as she replied, "Isn't that what a girlfriend is supposed to do?"
Raku's world completely stopped for a second as he internally slapped himself for letting his tongue slip yet again. 'That's right,' Raku thought to himself, 'no one ever told Seishirou that Chitoge and I are a fake couple because if they did, that damn four-eyes would be all over us…'
"O-Oh y-yeah! Sorry about that one, Seishirou." an unconfident Raku replied, "It must be jet lag and all that's messing with my head, ha ha…"
"Yeah…sure…" Seishirou conspicuously concurred as she thought to herself, 'That just now…that wasn't a normal insult like I normally see them throw at each other, that was honest discontent with her. Was Master Claude right? Are they really a fake couple? And if that's true…' Seishirou felt the all-to-familiar blush begin to creep up ever inch of her body again as she thought, 'does that mean I have a chance with Raku?' As hard as Seishirou tried to dispel these thoughts, she couldn't help but linger on the idea of her entangled with Raku amorously.
"Anyways," Raku said, still shaking from the whole tongue slip ordeal, "you should get dressed ASAP. In the meantime," Raku plucked the now empty tray from Seishirou's lap as he said, "I'll just leave this out in the welcome room for one of the Kazu brothers to get later."
As Raku left the room and trotted down the hallway, Seishirou couldn't help but attempt to sort through the emotional typhoon in her head as she unzipped her suitcase to obtain her attire for the day.
'Why do I feel like this? Like I have a chance to make Raku Ichijo my-' It wasn't Seishirou's thoughts that stopped her mid-thought, but it was what was in front of her.
"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Seishirou shrieked at the top of her lungs, and sufficiently startling Raku in the process as he fell back onto the hardwood of the hallway and let out a stifled grunt of his own.
Raku entered the room, slightly rubbing the back of his head, and inquired, "What is it?! Did something happen?!" Raku saw that Seishirou was sitting on her bed, ominously glaring down at her suitcase with a look of both malice and horror.
Seishirou turned her glare to Raku and merely pointed down at her suitcase with her shaky right finger. "Suit…case…' Seishirou croaked as she returned her glare to her suitcase.
Raku slowly walked over to the jet black suitcase, and equally as slowly glanced down at it, only to see something he would've never expected.
Seishirou's clothes, from her tops to her underwear, was all tattered and torn, as though it had been put through the wash one too many times. Raku knelt down and began to sift through various articles of clothing, only to find that nary a one had been spared this tragic fate.
"H-How…w-when…w-why…" Was all Raku could manage to stutter as Seishirou looked on in horror. Raku turned his gaze to Seishirou as he quickly said, "C-Calm down, calm down! We can figure this out, trust me!" Seishirou snapped out of her terror-stricken state at Raku's words, somehow comforted at the sound of Raku's voice. Raku hesitated for a moment before grabbing Seishirou's hand and saying, "I swear that I'll find a way to fix this! I absolutely will!"
Seishirou miraculously cracked a small smile at Raku as she thought to herself, 'I don't know who's a bigger idiot…him for being like this, or me for hoping that him and m'lady aren't dating…' As Raku drew back from Seishirou, Seishirou couldn't help but steam up again from embarrassment at what she had just thought, however, yet again, she couldn't deny it.
Raku ran his hand through his hair as he said, "Nijo was the last person to touch your luggage right? Let's get him up here and see what he knows…" Raku walked over to the phone and quickly dialed the hotel lobby's number, and began to chatter as Seishirou took the time to think about what had just happened.
'Why do I feel so reassured about this?' Seishirou inquired of herself, 'If it was anyone else, I'd be seriously doubtful, but when it comes to him, I feel so safe…He's such an idiot about it all, but I can't help but feel drawn to him…It's just like everyone told me…I'm…' Seishirou gulped heavily as she was about to utter the words to herself, but before she could, she heard the sound of Raku hanging up the phone as he declared,
"Nijo said he'll be up in a few minutes." Raku turned to Seishirou as he continued, "Don't worry. Like I said, we'll get to the bottom of this one way or another!"
Seishirou smiled an honest smile at that, and, through the overwhelming blush, nodded her head in agreement.
[5 MINUTES LATER]
Seishirou, dressed in the same outfit as the day before, picked Nijo up by his suit vest and violently slammed him against the wall.
"Whoa, whoa, take it easy there doll," Nijo cooed in that annoyingly sly tone of his, "you'll damage the do." Nijo gestured to his faux hawk as he said this.
Raku, who was sat upon the couch, spoke up and said, "We don't give a damn about your hair! What we do care about is-"
"WHY THE HELL ARE MY CLOTHES ALL TORN UP?!" A furious Seishirou inquired, her rage evident in her eyes, "YOU'D BETTER HAVE A DAMN GOOD ANSWER BUDDY, OR I'LL CUT OFF YOUR HAIR AND THAT ANNOYING HEAD THAT GOES WITH IT!"
"Temper, temper, someone's gonna blow…" Nijo aimlessly said as he averted his gaze from Seishirou and instead turned towards Raku and said, "Oh, 'morning Master Raku. You're looking effervescent! How's every little thing?"
"It'd be better if you'd just tell us what you know about Seishirou's clothes." Raku snidely retorted.
"Oi oi," Nijo responded, "some 'Good Cop, Bad Cop' routine this is."
"IT ISN'T A DAMN ROUTINE!" Seishirou exclaimed as she pointed to her suitcase, "MY CLOTHES ARE TORN UP AND YOU WERE THE LAST PERSON TO HAVE THEM! WHAT DO YOU KNOW!"
"Oh those clothes," Nijo said as he pointed to Seishirou's suitcase, "yeah, I knew about those."
Seishirou was so stunned upon hearing those words that her grip slacked up enough for Nijo to break free. He sauntered over to the couch where he swiftly plopped himself down, the impact of his body on the leather making a loud 'Thud!', and propped his head up with a decorative pillow.
"You knew about this?" Raku inquired as he turned to Nijo.
"Oh yeah, big time." Nijo confidently replied with an honest smile on his face.
"Then why the hell did you say everything's fine in your letter?!" Seishirou forcefully inquired as she walked over to the couch.
"Oh yeah, about that…" Nijo began, tensing up slightly, "Well you see, when it comes to hotel luggage, I have a different definition of 'fine' than most people."
"Elucidate, now." Seishirou demanded as she leaned up on the wall nearest to Raku.
"Well, I'm not one to get pedantic about the condition of a traveller's actual luggage," Nijo began, "that's just too much work. So, in accordance with hotel rules, I search it for everything that is deemed 'threatening' in nature. I.E. knifes, guns, bombs, intercontinental ballistic missiles-"
"Why are ICBMs on the list?" A nervous Raku inquired.
"We had this group of dudes, it's a long story." Nijo replied cheerily.
'Why are you so lax about it?!' Seishirou mentally inquired.
"Well anyways, I just check it for all the contraband stuff, but that's about it." Nijo explained, "I'm also in no obligation to inform patrons if there's a problem with their luggage if it doesn't involve any of the aforementioned objects. In fact, if I do, I run the risk of getting us sued for invasion of privacy."
Raku furrowed his brow and turned to Seishirou for a response.
"He has a point…unfortunately…" Seishirou grimaced.
"But wait a minute, that still doesn't explain why the clothes are like that in the first place." Raku said. He turned to Nijo as he inquired, "What's your opinion on it?"
Nijo raised his eyebrows as he responded, "Since I don't know much about clothes in the first place, I asked someone who does; Sanpei."
"You spoke to him before you came up here?" Raku inquired.
"Yep, that's what took me so long." Nijo replied. "Well anyways, when I told him about all this, he said it sounded like a classic case of being washed too roughly."
"Washed too roughly?" Seishirou reiterated.
"That's what the old four-eyes said." Nijo replied, "And I gotta say, I agree with him. So, now I'll ask, who was the last person to wash your clothes?"
Seishirou thought about if for a moment before she completely stiffened up from the realization she had just had.
"Uh…Seishirou?" Raku said as he shook Seishirou slightly in an attempt to free her from her trance.
"Mistress Seishirou?" Nijo said as he leaned forward, causing the pillow that rested beneath his head to fall behind his back.
"I just remembered…" Seishirou said in a spaced-out tone, "The last time I had my clothes cleaned was when I gave them to milady…and milady runs her laundry through…Master Claude…"
"That damn four-eyes?!" Raku exclaimed.
"He must've run my laundry with the boy's laundry…" Seishirou concluded.
"Yep, that'll do it!" Nijo declared as he rose up from his seat. He stretched his arms and said, "Well, I'm off! If there's anything else that you need, just give us a ring!"
As Nijo trotted down the hall and out the door Seishirou heaved a heavy sigh and droned, "Great, now what?"
Raku clenched his fists as he grunted out, "I'm not letting it end here…" Raku rose up from the couch, turned to Seishirou, and said, "I'll fix the clothes."
"Huh?!" Seishirou inquired as she lurched forward from shock.
"I'll fix them!" Raku reiterated as he ran over to his bedside and began rummaging around in his own suitcase. After a few minutes, he pulled out a small black case, and opened it to reveal a surprisingly well-stocked sewing set. "I brought this along in case I tore up any of my clothes, but given the circumstances, I'll just use it to repair your clothes!"
In absolute awe of Raku's offer, Seishirou was helpless but to nod and blush, not sure which one to do more of. When she snapped to her senses after a few seconds, she mustered up the will to inquire, "W-Where did you learn to sew in the first place?"
"Hm?" Raku said as he perked up his head from his bed where he was already laying out his sewing supplies, "Oh, the guys around the house are always tearing up their clothes for some reason or another, and since I'm in charge of laundry in the first place, I figured I should learn it."
'Of course, I've never had any experience with patching up women's clothes,' Raku thought, 'but what she doesn't know won't hurt her. After all, how hard can it be?'
"Actually," Raku added, "if you don't mind, could you run an errand for me?"
"An errand?" Seishirou inquired as she rose up from the wall and walked towards Raku.
"Yeah, see, in exchange for allowing me to use the kitchen, I had to make a deal with Sanpei." Raku replied. "I promised that I would return whatever ingredients I used and restock whatever was missing in the kitchen to begin with." Raku rummaged around in his pocket and produced a small sheet of lined notepad paper. He uncrumpled it and handed it to Seishirou (who emitted a silent squeal from making momentary contact with Raku's hand), who glossed it over. "This way you won't have to be cooped up with me all day while I work," Raku added as Seishirou looked down from the shopping list, "plus, it would mean a lot to me."
Seishirou felt her heart rate increase exponentially with those words. Dismissing this, she tucked the shopping list away in her right pants pocket and replied, "I suppose it can't be helped. Fine."
"Really?" An excited Raku exclaimed as he shot up from his knelt over position, nearly knocking all of his sewing materials over, "That's great!" Raku donned a bright and perky smile as he added, "Oh, and one last thing I'd like to ask of you."
"What is it?" Seishirou said, just short of entering the hallway.
Raku reached into his pocket and pulled out his solid black cell phone, flipped it open, and, heart racing, responded, "D-Do you think we could exchange cell phone numbers and mail addresses? Please?"
Seishirou, frozen in her tracks and far to flustered to move in the first place, replied, "Wh-Why on earth-"
"Well I figure since we're traveling together, we should have some way to keep in touch." Raku replied, still grasping his phone, "Y-Y'know, in case something happens?"
'Shit!' Raku internally scolded, 'I really did it know, huh? And this is a new phone too…Well, if she gets mad, hopefully she'll just break my phone instead of my legs or my arms or my-'
Raku's thought train was interrupted by a small ringtone emitting from his phone. He had been so distracted with his thoughts that he didn't see Seishirou pull out her baby blue phone and send a contact request.
DO YOU WISH TO ADD
Seishirou Tsugumi
【YES】【NO】
Raku was in disbelief at this whole thing for a few moments, but didn't hesitate for a second when he selected "Yes" with the D-Pad. He looked up at Seishirou who currently had her head bowed such that her blue locks covered her face (unbeknownst to Raku this was to disguise the fact that her face was entirely maroon red).
'She probably did this even though she really didn't want to…' Raku mired as he gazed on at Seishirou's contact, 'She's amazing…'
'I can't believe it, I can't believe it, I just can't believe it.' A steaming Seishirou thought, 'I did it. I actually did it. What should I do? Send him an e-mail right now? Do a 'test call'? It was easy when I did it with Mistress Onodera, but when it's him…'
"Do you need money?" Raku spoke up as he pocketed his phone.
"Hm?" Seishirou responded, still starry-eyed from this whole ordeal.
"For the groceries," Raku replied, "do you need money?"
"O-Oh! N-No, thank you." Seishirou shakily replied as she pocketed her phone. "I'll be off now…"
"Be careful!" Raku called after her as she began to walk down the hallway. "And don't worry, I'll have everything done by the time you get back!"
As Seishirou turned the knob to exit the room, Seishirou, with her head still turned away from Raku, called back, "Yeah, I know!" in a cherrier-than-normal tone.
As the door closed behind her, Raku cocked his head to the side and inquired of himself, "Was it just me, or did she sound really…happy just now…?" Raku dwelled on it for a moment, but eventually dismissed it with a sigh. Picking up a few spools of thread and a needle, he strutted over to Seishirou's suitcase, plucked out a plain white long-sleeved shirt, and got to work. As he began to sew up a hole that was right below the neckline, he froze for a moment and thought, 'Come to think of it, what's gonna happen when I get to her…' Raku gulped as he thought, 'underwear…'
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
As the elevator doors opened with a 'ding!' Seishirou strutted towards the front desk, her sneakers clacking against the freshly cleaned stones. The lobby was, once again, devoid of life. However, there was one oddity that interrupted the peace. From behind the receptionist's desk there stuck out a pair of legs clad in polished dress shoes and hotel trousers. As Seishirou knocked on the desk, the person whom the legs belonged to let out an "AGH!" and fell backwards.
Seishirou, recognizing the voice as Ichinose's, said, "Ichinose?"
A groggy and windless Ichinose shakily rose to his feet, his purple locks completely disheveled, as he said, "Oh, Mistress Seishirou! What can I do for you?"
"I thought you said you weren't going to sleep at the desk anymore?" Seishirou remarked as Ichinose regained his awareness.
"Oh no, I just meant that I wasn't going to sleep lying down," Ichinose replied, as full of vim and vigor as he ever had been, "so I'm trying new positions. Just now I was sleeping while doing a headstand, and I must say, it was surprisingly good! I give it a 7/10 on the comfort scale."
'I give you a 0/10 on the intelligence scale!' Seishirou mentally droned.
"Well anyways, Raku put me in charge of getting some groceries for you kitchen while he repairs my clothes," Seishirou said as she leaned up against the desk, "so I was wondering if you knew where the nearest supermarket is."
"Oh yeah, there's one downtown." Ichinose replied. "If you head out right now, you should be able to catch the bus a few blocks from here."
"Great, thank you." Seishirou dismissively replied.
Just before Seishirou was out the door, Ichinose called after her, "So, how are things with Master Raku?"
Seishirou froze in her tracks, and turned to Ichinose with a completely flustered face as she responded, "Wh-Why do you need to know?!" before she dashed out the door.
Ichinose chuckled at her reply, and muttered to himself, "Looks like everything's all fine here…"
"Oi, Ichinose," Sanpei called as he emerged from the canteen behind the reception desk, "we've got a room service call up in Room 14 on Floor 27. Some guy is complaining the sheets aren't clean enough and-"
"No thanks Sanpei," Ichinose responded in that airhead tone of his, "I think I'm gonna go take a nap in the back for about 4 or 5 hours. Can I? Thanks…" Ichinose finished as he picked up his pillow and strutted back into the canteen.
"I can make you sleep for a lot longer than 4 or 5 hours if you don't get back here!" Sanpei exclaimed as he charged after Ichinose.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
The bus ride to the supermarket was fairly uneventful. The bus leisurely drove down busy city roads that were littered with hustling and bustling cars of all shapes and sizes. Some on their afternoon commute, some on their way to the stores or to see the sights, and some just out for a drive. They passed buildings of all kinds, clothing stores, antique shops, game stores, several libraries, all had people of varying ages entering and exiting. Some were little kids overjoyed and forever grateful to their parents for whatever it was they had just bought them, some were pouty people (perhaps because they didn't have the money to buy what they wanted, or maybe it was some dispute with their home life), and some just seemed relaxed amidst the bombastic winter chaos.
After an hour or so, the bus arrived at the supermarket bus stop where Seishirou left the bus, trudged through the crowded parking lot, and entered Star-Mart.
The place had your basic supermarket design; a large eggshell white and dark blue storefront with two separate entrances that both led to different parts of the store (the entrance on the right led to the food and groceries section, while the one on the left led to home supplies and other etcetera). Seishirou entered through the right, and was instantly hit with a blast of warm air, a pleasant reprieve from the winter air outside. The flooring in this area was polished stone, much like that at the hotel, and people rushed in and out, their cart's wheels clacking on the rocks making for a raucous environment.
Seishirou, dismissing this all, grabbed a gray plastic basket, and walked onwards to the groceries area.
The first and foremost area was lined with fruits of all kinds; starfruit, apples, bananas, tomatoes, oranges, you name it, they had it. There was also a combination deli/bakery tucked away in the corner, from which wafted the delectable essence of pastries galore.
Seishirou, doing her best to resist her intrinsic love for sweets, carried on and picked up a box of strawberries. As she moved further back through the crowded aisles she picked up all the things on the list: eggs, flour, syrup, waffle mix, orange juice, and all the rest.
It wasn't until she was on her way out that she passed by the bakery again and couldn't help but go in for a further inspection of the treats that lie before her. Powdered donuts from which wafted the slightest particles of powdered sugar, donuts whose glaze glistened under the light, twists, fritters, cookies, crepes, each one looking more delicious than the last. Behind the counter, several female employees rushed back and forth, carrying trays of pastries in and out of the back area where Seishirou caught a few quick glimpses of baker's ovens, dough being beaten, and more things of the same sort.
As Seishirou eyed the sea of delectations before her, she found herself thinking, 'I wonder what kind of sweets Raku likes…' tensing up at the idea and feeling the blush begin to creep up her face, she thought, 'I'm doing it again…Every time I think of something, I always end up thinking of whether or not Raku would like it or not…' It was then that Seishirou remembered, 'Wait a minute…' Seishirou rifled around in her pocked until she found her phone, opened it, and scrolled through her contact list to find Raku's name. She stood there, basket in around her arm, just staring at Raku's name, and contemplating whether or not to message him or not. 'It's just a simple thing, r-right? Just a quick question. "What kind of sweets do you like?". It's not like I'm going to buy him some or anything! Although…' Seishirou wrestled with these thoughts for a few minutes before an idea popped into her head.
Seishirou scrolled down in her contact list until she happened upon Onodera's contact.
DO WHAT WITH KOSAKI ONODERA?
MESSAGE
CALL
⬅BACK
Seishirou quickly scrolled down to the 'E-mail' option, and began typing up a message, thinking, 'If anyone would know about this topic, it would be Mistress Onodera!' as Seishirou concluded typing the message, she read it over once more for good measure.
TO: KOSAKI ONODERA
RE: SWEETS AND BOYS
CC: NONE
BODY
Mistress Onodera, I'm in a bit of a pinch.
How do you ask a boy what kinds of sweets he likes?
[END]
Thoroughly satisfied with its contents, Seishirou clicked 'Send'. It wasn't but a minute before Seishirou's phone vibrated, signifying a new message. Opening it, she saw it was indeed from Onodera.
FROM: KOSAKI ONODERA
RE: ANSWER
CC: NONE
BODY
Hi~Seishirou!
Uh, I'm not really good with these things (LOL), but I think that it'd be best if you were direct about it.
That way, he'll know what you're talking about and give you a clear answer!
Why do you ask, by the way? Who are you asking?
[END]
Seishirou instantly cursed herself for saying 'a boy' instead of 'someone', but realized she couldn't change what was in the past, and began typing a response.
TO: KOSAKI ONODERA
RE: SWEETS AND BOYS
CC: NONE
BODY
N-No reason really, just curious that's all.
However, thank you ever so much for this help, Mistress Onodera!
You are a far greater woman than I!
[END]
'That should do for a modest thanks.' Seishirou thought to herself as she sent the message off, not knowing how flustered she had made Onodera in the process of that conversation. Taking a deep breath in a feeble attempt to calm herself, Seishirou scrolled to Raku's contact, opened up the e-mail interface, and began typing her message.
TO: RAKU ICHIJO
RE: SWEETS
CC: NONE
BODY
I was just curious, what kinds of sweets do you like?
[END]
Seishirou smiled a smile that was a bizarre mix of flustered, embarrassed, and satisfied. 'Straightforward and to the point. There's no way he can misinterpret this! Not that it would be all bad if he did misinterpret it-IDIOT! I'm doing it again!' Seishirou's hand trembled as she pressed the 'Send' button, and it spread to her entire body when Raku replied in what was most likely record time.
TO: ME
RE: SWEETS
CC: NONE
BODY
Macarons and strawberry crêpes are tied for my personal favorite.
Thanks for asking, by the way. Not many people do, so I'm glad you did :)
[END]
Beyond overwhelmed at this point, Seishirou struggled to type out a simple 'Thank you' message, then stow her phone and shake in what she thought felt like elation.
She caught several sideways glances from women and men who were out and about her, but she really didn't care that much at all.
'Exactly the same…' Seishirou thought, unusually giddy, 'We like exactly the same sweets!'
Seishirou rung the bell on the counter and a bright-eyed brunette girl emerged from the back and cheerily said, "Hi, I'm Hiyori Hanamiya, how may I help you?"
Seishirou eyed their selection before seeing that, of Raku's list, there was only one option. "Four strawberry crêpes, please." she said with a radiant smile.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"Well, that was kinda out of the blue…" Raku thought as he stowed his phone and continued patching up pieces of Seishirou's wardrobe. So far he had sewn up countless holes in blouses, long-sleeved shirts, and right now, he was at work on the trousers.
However, as he was working, his phone began to ring.
"Another distraction?" Raku droned as he placed the pants and needle on the bed and picked up his phone. "Hello?" Raku greeted as he picked up his sewing work again.
"YOOOOO, RAKUUUU!" an annoyingly familiar voice called from over the other end of the phone, "It's your favorite, Shuu!"
"Maiko?" Raku inquired, rubbing his thumb from pricking it so many times over the course of the past few hours, "What is it? And where are you?"
"Oh, I'm just lying around home, and I just wanted to call and see how that vacation is going for you!" Shuu cheerily replied from the other end. "So, where are you now? What are you doing? Who's that other mystery winner?"
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you…" Raku sighed in reply as he finished patching one pair of pants and moved on to the next.
"Of course I would!" Shuu reassured, "Just tell me, c'mon!"
Raku heaved a heavy sigh before firmly responding, "Seishirou."
There was a momentary silence before Shuu shrieked from the other end of the line, "LUCKYYYYYYYYYYYYY!"
"EH?!" Raku exclaimed in reply, his ears still ringing from Shuu's wail.
"LUCKY LUCKY LUCKY RAKU!" Shuu sang in reply, "You get to be on a fabulous vacation with an equally fabulous girl! Oh you're so lucky I could kill you!"
"I'm not sure how much of a compliment that was…" Raku responded, unsure of how to interpret Shuu's previous statement.
"So…" Shuu cooed (Raku could tell that if he was there in person, he'd be doing that annoying thing where he invaded Raku's personal space and talked to him with that smug look on his face).
"What?" Raku inquired, genuinely curious.
"What's it like, sleeping in the same room with Seishirou?" Shuu inquired in a devious tone. "I bet you've seen her underwear haven't you, you lucky bastard?!"
'If he only knew…' Raku silently thought.
"I can't deny that…" and embarrassed Raku responded.
"Oh ho ho ho…" Shuu cackled in reply, "'How bold of you Master Raku', as Marika would say!"
Raku audibly projected his disgust and said, "Please, that's the last name that I want to hear on my vacation…No, wait, strike that. 'Chitoge Kirisaki' is the last name I want to hear, but 'Marika Tachibana' is a close second…"
"That aside, are you growing any closer to Seishirou?" Shuu inquired.
"I suppose." Raku responded. "Actually, I think we're both warming up to each other more nowadays!"
"Wow, that's beautiful Raku," Shuu cooed, "that really is. I'll pay you ¥500 if you tell me what cup size she is. ¥1000 if you send me a picture."
"Die. Right now. Please." Raku responded in a tone that he meant as halfways between serious and jocular.
"Joking! Joking!" Shuu replied, laughing all the while. "But Raku, it seems your still not aware of it just yet, are you?"
"Hm?" Raku inquired, "Aware of what?"
"All in due time my dear Ichijo!" Shuu confidently responded. "Well, glad to hear everything's going well for you! I'll talk to you later!"
"Oi, wait! Shuu!" Raku exclaimed before hearing the flatline tone, signifying Maiko had hung up on him.
"Honestly, that guy…" Raku lamented as he continued to sew up Seishirou's pants, "What did he mean by, 'you're still not aware of it yet'? He's too confusing about that kind of stuff…" Raku cast a small sigh in no particular direction as he reached into Seishirou's suitcase, only to feel the silky touch of what he deduced to be either Seishirou's bra or a pair of panties. He gulped as he slowly allowed his eyes to drift in the direction of Seishirou's suitcase and silently muttered, "Forgive me, Seishirou…"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
It wasn't until late at night that Seishirou made it back to the hotel. This was due to a shaky bus schedule and the fact that Seishirou had to personally reorganize the kitchen ingredients on Raku's behalf. She had no real qualms with this, save for the one large beating that she would deliver to Claude when she returned home. As she rode up the elevator, she couldn't help but sing a small tune to herself, as embarrassing as it was, as she held the bag with the coveted crepes behind her.
'What am I so giddy about, huh?' she wondered to herself, 'I mean, it's just sharing crêpes with someone…so why does it set my heart into overdrive?'
As the elevator arrived at their penthouse with a resounding 'ding!' Seishirou kicked off her shoes, slid into her house slippers, and entered the room. She happily skipped through the hallway and was about to call out Raku's name when she saw what he was doing.
Raku was sprawled out on her bed, face buried in the blankets, his needle and thread tossed haphazardly aside, and completely asleep. Seishirou was about to wake him and hit him for slacking on the job, that is, until she saw the couch over in the corner. Folded nice and neatly over there was every single piece of Seishirou's clothing; pants, shirts, socks, and even her bras and panties. And every single one of them looked brand new. They looked so perfect there was no way anyone could tell that there were ever holes in them.
Seishirou marveled at this sight once more before setting the crêpe bag down on the black marble table in front of the couch, and standing over Raku as she whispered, "You idiot…" in an almost playful tone. "No, I guess I'm the idiot for letting you do this, huh?" Seishirou cast a glance over to the crêpes before concluding, "Ah, they'll keep until morning…" and then doing something that she thought she'd never stop steaming from. Seishirou pulled a spare blanket from the closet next to her bed, threw it over Raku, then took a deep breath, and climbed under it with him.
All the while as she fell asleep Seishirou thought, 'I'm sleeping with a boy! I'm sleeping with a boy! What in the hell am I thinking?! And why Raku of all people?! What's worse is, why do I like it? The subtle heat from his body, the comfort of his presence, it's all so…enjoyable…So, I guess this is what it feels like to be…in…lo-' Seishirou drifted off before she could finish that thought.
However, it was at that time that Raku was roused awake due to the heat Seishirou's blatant embarrassment was causing her.
"What the-" Raku silently said, but cut himself short when Seishirou shifted around in her sleep to the point where she was facing Raku. Raku was taken aback by the adorable creature before him. Seishirou's hair looking all disheveled and messy was something he had never seen out of her before. The subtle heat from her breathing, and not to mention the fact that in that instant Seishirou tossed her arms around Raku and held him tightly, cooing his name all the while.
'Is she…' Raku thought, 'dreaming about me?!' Raku could help but get flustered at the fact, but did the only thing that he could think of. Raku gently wrapped his arms around Seishirou, lightly enough that it wouldn't wake her, and thought, 'What is it about this girl, huh? One minute she hits me, the next, this? And more importantly, why do I like it? Is it that I maybe-? I need to think about this…' Raku let out a long yawn before he gently drifted off to slumberland.
That night, both parties slept better than they could've ever imagined possible.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
A/N: Wowza that was a doozie, eh? Well, you guys deserved it!
And so the couple's feelings for each other inch ever closer towards love! Meanwhile, will Ichinose ever find a comfortable sleeping position? And what are your favorite sweets?!
Yeah, the sweets that Raku mentioned are actually my favorite sweets, so I figured 'why not?'
If you really enjoyed this chapter, why not write a review/follow this story/add it to your favorites? And even if you don't, I'll still love you!
Thanks again for reading and until next week,
See ya!