Chapter 6: Hide-and-Go-Seek
Hiro's lips quirked upward, as if she would start laughing, but with his face so serious the laugh seemed to die half way to her lips. Setting her burger down, she looked at him with a curious expression. After he wasn't forthcoming with an explanation, her gaze dropped to her hands on the counter. She replayed his words again, those simple words. "I want to paint a portrait of you." She could feel the blush rise to the occasion and she looked up at Mamoru-sama again to see him still looking at her with his serious expression.
"Why?" she asked the obvious question, trembling fingers picked up her milkshake and she took a sip.
"Well, you are grounded to the same grounds on which I live and so I figure I will have plenty of access to you so it will only take a matter of days since I have a feeling your schedule won't be packed full of activities that would make it hard to set up a steady schedule for the sessions I would need you to model," Mamoru-sama answered, finally picking up his own burger and eating it calmly, ignoring Hiro's blushing face.
"Oh," she responded, blushing again at thinking that there was a more profound reason behind his painting her than the simple fact that she was the one person he had almost unlimited access to. She felt his eyes light on her face and she continued hoping he wouldn't pick up on her ridiculous notions and get uncomfortable. "And in return you will help me in my endeavors to dodge Cai?" she said letting her brown eyes lock with his sea-green ones.
A ghost of a smile flitted across his lips and she couldn't be sure why. "Yes, that was the agreement," he assured. She nodded and took another bite of her burger as if mulling over the deal once more although she already knew that she would be his muse in an instant.
"Well, anything is better than being in Cai's clutches," she said nonchalantly to which he simply laughed.
Mamoru-sama didn't invite her to his little apartment that evening or the next day and she wondered if he had only been kidding about painting her. She lay in her bed with a book two days after their trip to the store and though it had rained for two days straight, the sun rose warmly on the wet world. It was almost noon when she heard a knock on the front door of the Ogino residence. When her parents didn't rise to answer it, she grumbled softly to herself before rolling out of bed and making her way to the front door.
On the way, she picked some white fuzz off her black dress pants and smoothed out the front of her light blue blouse, itching gently at the high-neck wishing the buttons at the neck would actually unbutton instead of behind for mere decoration. She smiled briefly as she saw her purple hair tie around her wrist having opted to let her hair down for the day.
She wore the smile until she opened the door and it immediately dropped to be replaced with faint displeasure. Brown spiky hair coupled with pale green eyes in the fact of a 6' tall jock greeted her and she tried to close the door only to have half of his body walk across the threshold and make it impossible. "Hey, that's no way to greet your boyfriend," Cai said with a sly grin as he slithered the rest of his body into the house before closing the door behind him.
"The funny thing about being someone's boyfriend is you tend to have to be both a friend and a boy first," Hiro said in a dry tone as she turned away. "Now get out of my house," she said as she walked away but she didn't get very far as his arm encircled her shoulders and pulled her back flush against his chest. Her hands flew up to grab hold of his arm and pulled futilely at it.
She froze feeling his lips brush against her hair that covered her ear. His other hand moved up to sweep her hair behind her ear, the same hand trailing down her bare shoulder along her arm, his lips brushing her ear along the outer edge. "I am man. You are woman." His voice was dangerous and leaning toward seductive before he pressed an open mouthed kiss against her jaw and she cried aloud in sheer terror.
"Chihiro?" her mother's voice came from the living room and Hiro felt him smile against her cheek before pulling away before Mrs. Ogino turned the corner to see them standing in the entry way.
"Good morning, Mrs. Ogino," Cai said and Hiro could hear his charming smile. "I am afraid Chihiro-chan saw a spider but I have already taken care of it," he continued. Her mother cooed and praised his quick action as Hiro walked briskly past her mother and toward her room.
"Where are you going, Chihiro? You cannot leave your guest alone," Mrs. Ogino twittered turning to watch her daughter's retreating back and Hiro could feel the daggers in her gaze. Hiro tried to compose her face and turned back not sure if she had succeeded.
"I am afraid I am not feeling well enough for visitor's mother," she responded but before she could turn around her mother insisted that it was merely due to the fact that the rain had kept her inside for two days straight and that a walk in the ground's gardens with Cai would be just the thing. Hiro was impressed that she refrained from rolling her eyes at the rather preposterous statement. She forced a smile receiving the full brunt of her mother's expression while Cai was still standing behind the formidable woman.
"Of course," she strained changing her direction from her room to the back porch, Cai jogging a few steps and catching up with her, slipping his arm about her waist and she tensed every muscle in her body as they walked first out onto the verandah then down the steps and onto the still dewy grass. Cai hadn't taken his shoes off and Hiro hadn't put any on.
"You should wear your hair like this more often, Chi-hi-ro," Cai said as the hand about her waist moved easily into the hair that trailed about her mid back. "It's silky," he commented and she bore with the attention until they hit a point on the path where she knew they were out of sight of the back porch windows at which point she slipped quickly from his arm and glared at him, her hands in fists at her side.
"So help me, Cai, you touch me like that again and I'll…" she began to threaten when he took a quick step toward her, his hands easily slipping about her waist.
"You'll what?" he asked softly, dipping his head towards her. Hiro's hand went flying but he caught it, holding it by the wrist, palm up. Fear and anger were battling inside her and she practically shrieked when his lips pressed against her palm. She kneed him, something he hadn't expected, and as he curled about himself she flew like the wind.
Hiro had started aiming for the house but remembering her mother was there, she turned tail and ran back in a diagonal from where she had come from Cai. She heard him stumbling down the path and moved from the path onto the stones that led up to Mamoru-sama's porch. She wasn't sure if the teacher was home but she prayed some luck would be in her favor as she knocked as loudly as she dared in hopes that he would hear and Cai wouldn't.
She heard the latter's shoes slapping against the path and she looked fearfully over her shoulder, with a hand raised to knock again when she suddenly pitched forward with a squeal that was drowned out by the shutting of the door behind her and a gentle hand against her lips. She trembled with her back against the wood of the door as she looked up into Mamoru-sama's face where that ghost of a smile lived. Presently, he stood away from her to look out the curtains that shuttered his windows and the smile became more prominent as he watched Cai debating furiously as to whether he should call out for Hiro or leave the premises gracefully.
"I suppose there is no avoiding it," Mamoru-sama said letting the curtain fall back into place before looking down at her form that had slid to sit on the floor against the door. "You will just have to hide here until he leaves." He walked back to where she sat and slid down the wall beside her, his knees pulled up and his arms casually draped around them, one hand grasping his wrist as he looked across the room toward the doors Hiro knew led to the bedroom and bathroom.
Her heart had settled somewhat after her flight and she looked up at him, her head leaned against the door. "How long do you suppose that will be?" she asked. He shrugged his shoulders before casting her sideways glance.
"It might be all afternoon depending on how determined he is to find you," he said, exaggerating she was sure but she didn't mind the idea of spending the afternoon with him as opposed to with Cai.
"Well sitting around here hiding doesn't sound too fun," she teased looking up at the ceiling. She could see him looking thoughtful on her periphery, more for show, she was sure, than actually thinking about what they could do.
"I suppose we could always start that painting I told you about the other day," he said, "after all, the sun has finally come out so there is a little more natural light to be had," Mamoru-sama continued gesturing to the window to the far left of them. It was the window that faced away from the main house. She nodded slowly before standing up and walking over to the window to look out, careful not to lean out in case a certain someone were looking for her just outside the guest house. The sun warmed her face, a small breeze sweeping in through the open window and shifting her hair softly against her shoulders.
She looked over her shoulder to see the man moving about and collecting the tools he would use for the project. She registered the dark jeans he wore with envy that her mother hadn't control over his comfort and she smiled softly as she studied his well-tailored shirt. It was a deep crimson color and turning to her, she saw that the top two buttons were casually left open revealing the edges of his collarbone.
He, too, had left his hair unbound but as she watched quietly, he was pulling it back from his face in a loose ponytail to keep it from getting in his way. It took her the usual moment to realize he had caught her in her staring and she turned as casually as she possibly could to look out the window. She rolled her eyes at herself, reprimanding mentally that she wouldn't be able to do that when school got back into session. 'So stop making a habit of it!' she finished before looking back at him and finding that he was a lot closer than when she had looked away.
"Gah!" she exclaimed, jumping away and almost out the window, catching herself against the sill, her hand to her heart.
He chuckled, his brow furrowed in a humored way. "I am sorry to startle you. Now, if you will allow me," he said and that was the only warning he gave before he grasped her hands and pulled her slightly away from the window. He helped her to sit in a chair he had brought over. A wooden chair with a soft cushion she admired the craftsmanship of it and her memories informed her that it wasn't one of the furniture pieces supplied by her parents for the guest house. He instructed her to cross one leg over the other and then told her to rest her chin in her hand, elbow on the armrest, looking out the window.
Her other arm he couldn't seem to decide on for a while. Wherever he placed it, on the armrest or her lap, he would not be satisfied until his eyes lit up with an idea. He disappeared into the bedroom and she heard him rummaging around a little. Almost ten minutes later he reappeared, holding something in his hand. She looked at him curiously and he held it up for her to see. It was a heart-shaped locket of gold, cunningly crafted with a lattice of rose vines.
"May I?" he asked unclasping it and gesturing to her. She was a little speechless and thus simply nodded before he walked to stand behind her, draping the necklace about her and connecting the clasp. He gathered her hair gently and the chain slipped over it so it would lie neatly under her sheet of brown hair. She let her fingers skim gently over the heart as Mamoru-sama walked back around to look at the affect. He guided her back into the pose he wanted and asked that she hold the heart loosely in her hand, thoughtfully. "As though you are thinking of some past love you may never see again," he continued.
Haku's face flashed into her mind and as she held the locket, her heart pulsed. Hiro looked up into Mamoru-sama's face briefly before looking back out the window. Mamoru-sama isn't Haku, she thought painfully to herself. The former pushed her hair softly away from her face, behind her ear and the warmth lingered. Or is he? Her thoughts were a-whirl.
"Mamoru-sama?" she asked suddenly, looking up into his sea green eyes that had been trained on her from above for heaven knows how long. He seemed to snap out of his own reverie.
"Shall we begin?" he asked not letting her continue her question as he moved to sit with the canvas. She pursed her lips softly, took up the pose and listened absently to the soft scratching of a pencil against the canvas as she thought of Haku.
So, I am surprised but totally happy and content with the fact that I got 4 whole reviews after the last chapter! It was definitely a boost of confidence because to be honest, I wasn't so sure about the whole painting Chihiro thing... but it has had some positive feedback so I will not apologize for it!
Reviews: XXPayXtra4ShippingsXX, EasternWindDragon, Carly, and litugreen!
It has also come to my attention that in some of my post-notes I may have missed a name of a favorite-r, follower or reviewer or that it didn't save properly...? I would go back and fix it but I haven't any idea who I missed and such but this is what I will do. When this story comes to an end (for all good stories must) I will post, again, a list of all who have ever given this story their very fine support. Big smile! So look forward to it! And I hope this chapter isn't too boring.
Much Love!
CB