Chapter 6

A/N: a little more detailed author's note is at the end. Thought I'd just let you enjoy the story rather than make a long author's note up here ;)

Butch locked himself up in his room all weekend. Maybe not all weekend, he came out when his brothers left to go on a double date with their girlfriends. Butch didn't know how to feel. Well he did, he was angry and sad at this same time. Tetsuo contacted him but he really didn't feel like talking to anyone. He even made his mind up about skipping school on Monday. He couldn't face seeing Kaoru because it would just hurt too much.

Butch decided that if this were what heartbreak felt like, he wouldn't want to go through this again. He didn't care about being completely humiliated at the school dance by wearing a dress; he just didn't want to feel like this ever again (Anyways, Butch convinced himself that he would look better as a girl than Tetsuo, by far). If it wasn't obvious before, it was sure obvious now that he really did like Kaoru even if he said he didn't. He didn't even try to play it cool and pretend he didn't care. He really did care. He never knew he cared about Kaoru this much…

Everything was going as planned, Monday he was staying home and he actually came out of his room. The TV was downstairs so he had to watch it while his brothers were at school. He fell asleep and the next thing he knew there was someone sitting next to him. He didn't look to see who it was and just rolled over.

"Look I really don't want to talk right now. Yes I did come out of my room… But that doesn't mean anything," Butch sighed closing his eyes.

"You don't even want to talk to me? I mean you did stand me up on Friday," said a familiar voice.

Butch's eyes snapped open as he turned to face Kaoru.

"Oh, you," he said and rolled back over.

"What do you mean by that?" she said raising an eyebrow.

"Nothing, and what do you mean I stood you up on Friday? If anything, you stood me up!" Butch said turning to face her now.

"I did not stand you up! You said Friday but you didn't give a time," She said crossing her arms over her chest.

"But you went off with that other guy! Why didn't you tell me you had a boyfriend!" Butch said sitting up straight now.

"What? I don't have a boyfriend!" Kaoru said looking confused.

"Then who was that guy you were with on Friday?" Butch said raising an eyebrow.

"My old friend… Mitch? I texted you, well I texted you from one of your brothers phones! And I can't believe that you thought that Mitch was my boyfriend! Ewwwwww gross! He just got back from college and wanted to see me."

Butch didn't know how to respond. He might have been able to accept her apology if this guy was her brother or something, but this was an old childhood friend. He didn't know if this guy was planning on trying to date Kaoru or something. Hell, he didn't know if Kaoru and him had dated in the past and maybe the flame between them would be back on.

"Mitch has a girlfriend, incase you wanted to know, and they are pretty serious," Kaoru said as if reading Butch's mind.

"But…" Butch started.

Butch kind of felt dumbfounded at this moment. He felt so stupid and embarrassed about his mistake and he wasn't sure how to recover or play this off.

"Mitch just wanted to grab a bite to eat and introduce me to his girlfriend. I declined at first because I said I had other plans… But then you totally bailed on me," She scoffed.

"You totally did not text me," Butch replied beginning to pull his phone out of his pocket.

"Here," she said taking the phone out of his hand.

She opened it up to the messages, but it said it was from his brothers and sure enough there were the texts.

"Well how was I supposed to know it was you, I thought my brothers were playing a cruel trick on me!" Butch said snatching his phone out of her hands as she snickered at him.

"Of course you did. I think I've got you all figured out," she smirked.

Butch was taken aback and stared at her. Never had he ever met someone who was even close to being on his level. He always thought that he was one step ahead and had everyone else around him figured out. Apparently when it came to Kaoru, that wasn't the case.

"I'm meeting Mitch and his girlfriend, Delilah, I think for dinner tonight, you in?" She asked. "I think it's the least you can do for standing me up on Friday," she said punching him playfully in the arm.

"Whatever," Butch responded.

Butch stood up and told her he'd be back in a minute because he was going to go and change. He wanted to mentally smack his head against the wall. Maybe he'd really do it later. He had been so self centered that he never thought that Kaoru had a life outside of school, kind of like teachers, except teachers didn't look as attractive as Kaoru… Unless you count that new French teacher… well, in Butch's eyes, Kaoru was the most attractive girl he'd ever seen. You see them in school and its really weird to see them outside of school doing normal things like having social lives. He felt like a total jerk. He jumped to conclusions and assumed the worse with Kaoru even though it really wasn't that bad. He really should apologize to her.

Butch pulled a black undershirt on and then a black button up on. He then proceeded to put on a pair of black slacks with a black belt. He then got his black socks and dress shoes. Before he went back down stairs he grabbed a tie. He assumed that this would be some sort of nice restaurant because Kaoru was actually wearing a nice dress. This was the first time that Butch actually noticed she was wearing the dress. She looked stunning in it. It wasn't too dressy but it was enough to make her look fancy. The dress hugged her perfectly and Butch wondered why she always wore clothes that were too big for her at school.

"I was thinking, you owe me an apology," she said scanning Butch over.

"You owe me an apology," Butch responded by rolling his eyes at her as he fiddled with his tie.

"Why? I didn't do anything wrong!" she argued.

Butch rolled his eyes, as he couldn't figure out for the life of him why he couldn't tie his tie all of a sudden. It wasn't like this was the first time he'd worn a tie!

"You need help with that?" Kaoru asked as she took a few steps closer to Butch.

He looked at her once before trying to tie it one final time and then giving up with a sigh and throwing the damned tie to the ground. Butch knew that it couldn't possibly be him because he had never had a problem with tying ties. It was just this particular tie that he was having trouble tying. They damned thing must be a different size or something.

Kaoru walked over to Butch and picked up the tie that he had thrown to the ground. Butch tried hard not to look as she bent down to pick up the tie. He focused on anything but her. He just didn't want to seem like a creeper.

"What have you never tied a tie before?" she joked as she began to tie the tie.

"Pfft. Of course I know how to tie a tie. Its just that this particular tie just doesn't want to work." Butch scoffed.

Butch may have played it cool on the outside but on the inside his heart was racing and he couldn't help but let a little blush escape to his cheeks at his stupidity for not being able to tie a damn tie. His breath hitched in his throat as Kaoru was standing this close. Butch watched Kaoru's delicate hands handle his tie and tie it perfectly. He like watching her hands work fast but efficiently to get the job done.

"There, she said patting his chest and taking one final look at her work.

She smiled and then looked at Butch. Butch didn't know what to say even though he knew a thank you was in order. He just couldn't take his eyes off how beautiful Kaoru looked. She was wearing a little makeup that helped define her already good features on her face, like her eyes. Butch couldn't help but stare into her eyes as they were lined with soft eyeliner and a little bit of silver glitter on the top and lower lash line. It helped make her eyes really sparkle. Butch thought he could stare into her eyes for hours.

"Umm… Is there something on my face?" Kaoru asked suddenly self-conscious about her looks.

She quickly looked down and away from Butch to hide the slight blush that began to cover her cheeks.

"You just look beautiful…" Butch said before he could process what he was saying.

"Thanks… But flattery will get you no where in my book if you want to make up for standing me up," Kaoru smiled and took Butch's hand.

"Oh, I'm just getting started," Butch smirked and led the way to his shitty car.

They arrived at the restaurant a few minutes late because Kaoru couldn't give proper directions and Butch couldn't follow the real ones. They walked into the restaurant and Kaoru saw her friend and they made their way over to them. The place was kind of fancy and surprisingly busy for a Monday evening, or so Butch thought. Introductions were made and hands and hugs went around the group of 4 and then they all sat down; Butch next to Kaoru on one side and Mitch next to Delilah on the other side. Delilah was a fairly attractive girl but she still didn't compare to Kaoru.

Delilah was a little taller than Kaoru and a little more developed as well. Butch had no trouble looking Delilah in the face when he talked to her. Butch thought Delilah looked more like a hooker or something. She was wearing a skimpy dress that was a little to short and revealing. The deep V in the red dress was just pushing it and Butch wanted nothing more than Mitch to offer this girl his jacket so she could cover up.

Delilah had long brown hair that was toffee colored (probably dyed that way because her roots were a little darker and the ends were a little lighter). Butch appreciated when her hair was in the front because it covered that revealing dress. She was also wearing way too much make up. It looked like she just let a clown do her make up. The eyeliner was way to heavy and the foundation didn't match her skin. Butch was no beauty guru but he could spot a fake girl from a mile away. She was probably the most fake as they came.

Kaoru didn't really notice that Butch was staring at Delilah but it was so easy for Butch to look away and just watch Kaoru engage in conversation with her old friend. Butch loved the way she got animated when she talked about something that she was very passionate about. He loved the way she laughed at Mitch's so not funny jokes just to make him feel like he was funny. Butch could stare at her forever. Even though sounded kinda creepy, it was true. Butch ended up staring at Kaoru pretty much the whole evening and talked little when he was talked to so he could hear Kaoru speak.

When the get together was almost over, Kaoru went to the bathroom. Butch didn't understand but Kaoru even let Delilah come too. Butch smirked, keeping a mental note to remind Kaoru that she wasn't really different from other girls. He found it kind of weird that girls used the buddy system when going to the bathroom, but whatever.

Butch turned towards Mitch who was glaring daggers at him.

"Um, did I do something wrong?" Butch asked raising an eyebrow at the guy across the table from him.

"Yeah, you stole my girlfriend1" Mitch fumed.

"Um, I'm pretty sure Delilah is all yours. I didn't even make any moves at her. She's totally not my type," Butch said leaning back in his chair.

"No, Kaoru," Mitch said quickly looking towards the bathroom to make sure the girls weren't coming back.

Butch looked at Mitch for a second.

"So, who's Delilah then?" Butch asked.

"She was supposed to be a distraction for you, but you were just looking at Kaoru the whole time," Mitch scoffed.

"Yeah and?" Butch said putting his hands behind his head.

"And, she's supposed to be MY girlfriend! She was my best friend first and we were supposed to fall in love," Mitch said and slammed a hand down on the table. A few people that were around looked over.

"What happened?" Butch asked.

"None of you're business. Just know, I came back to take Kaoru back. I came back to win her over. She was the one that got away… But now I'm back and I wont let someone like you stand in the way, so why don't you give up now. She's mine." Mitch said leaning over the table.

Butch glared back and said nothing. Mitch didn't need to know that Kaoru and him weren't dating. But he probably already knew they weren't dating. If Kaoru and Mitch were really best friends, she probably told him everything. Inside he felt his heart break a little more. But Butch wasn't a loser; he wasn't going to back down.

"I don't intend to let her slip away again," Mitch spat.

"I don't intend to lose her to someone like you," Butch spat back at Mitch just as venomously.

Before things could escalate anymore, the girls came back and said they were ready to go.

Butch smiled up at Kaoru and got up. Mitch helped Delilah into her coat and began to lead the way out. Butch and Kaoru followed them towards the front of the restaurant. Mitch turned around to see if Kaoru and Butch were still there and Butch took this as an opportunity. He gently laid a hand on the small of Kaoru's back to help guide her. She quickly looked up at him and then looked away, a tinge of red dusting her cheeks. That definitely wasn't blush Butch thought to himself. Mitch looked livid. Butch just smirked.

"Hey man, watch out!" Butch said just in time so Mitch didn't crash into the waiter who had a full tray of food.

Butch wasn't about to be the jerk that he could clearly see that Mitch was. So what if Kaoru and Mitch were best friends a few years ago? Butch just saw this as a greater challenge and he was more than willing to accept that challenge.

A/N: So, I'm not dead. I thought of another plot twist in this story to just add a little bit something more to this story. Incase you were wondering why I haven't been uploading. It's because I took a family vacation to China. I was super jet lagged and then I had to get my wisdom teeth out. Now, I'm preparing for my job and college. Pretty busy time for me. But here I am. Not dead. Writing another chapter for this story. At 4 am. (gotta write it at any time you can). No particular time frame for when the next chapter will come out but I hope it won't be as long. And as always, when I'm gone for a while, I try and make the chapter a little bit longer. I originally was gonna stop before this "date" but I thought you guys deserved this. And just a final thought. I know it's been a little while since I've uploaded a new chapter, but I really think taking a break from this story was helpful for me. I really had time to take a break from this story and focus on other things in my life. Not that I'm going to be giving up writing, no, I enjoy writing this story and I think I've found more a motivation to keep continuing this story. Reviews and always appreciated. Thanks for reading!