AN: I need to write more YukiRu stuff but my muse for this story is highly overpowering the rest.
Happy New Year!
Akito brushed the girl's bangs to the side. She always wore her bangs over her right eye...why? Did she have an injury like the one he had given Hatori? The way she acted, the alcoholic she had been with must've been rather rough with her. Was it possible he damaged this eye? What exactly did he do to her? He sighed. He certainly didn't expect her to just give him the answers he wanted. She was irritatingly stubborn in that way. There was one way he could collect the information... Standing, he fought the ripple of a headache from last night's alcohol and smoothed her blanket over her before stepping out of the room to Hatori's office.
My head pounded as sunlight filtered in through the paper covering on the windows and shone directly over my eyelids. I felt as though a jackhammer had been taken to my head. Every small movement was excruciating, and simply put, I wanted to die. Tenshi's sweet good-morning chirps (realistically, good-morning-let-me-out chirps is more like) did nothing to help the case. "Ughhhh...Tenshi, be quieeeeet..." I couldn't help the groan escaping my throat. I hated this feeling. But even so, I was completely baffled on one thing: why didn't I remember coming to bed the night before?
"Finally awake, ne? I was beginning to worry you slipped into a coma." Ugh. The last person I wanted to see. I forced my body to roll over until I was facing away from the direction of his voice.
"What do you want?"
"Am I not allowed to make sure you're breathing? That's some gratitude for the person who carried you in here after you passed out on them."
"...huh?" I rolled back over and stared at him, his back turned to me as he sat in the doorway leading to the garden. "What do you-"
"And just so you know, 20 is the legal drinking age in Japan." Woah woah...what?! I sure was awake now. I pulled myself up into a sitting position.
"What does that have to do with anything?"
"You said it yourself last night. You claimed to be underage but you're actually old enough... What, don't tell me you forgot." He leaned back and supported himself on his hands, his head tilted to look at me.
"Forgot...forgot what?!" There was no way he was trying to imply I drank last night. There was no way-
"You mean you don't remember the nice talk we had over a bottle of wine? We had a nice little discussion about your past abuse and then things got heated and you fainted in my arms. You don't remember any of that?"
"N-no... Wait, you didn't- oh my god did you?!" I instinctively clutched the blankets closer to me in an attempt to hide anything that might be exposed. Did this pervert take advantage of my intoxicated state - his own doing, I'll wager - and violate me?!
"Oh relax, I didn't touch you. I mean, I did, but there was no clothing removal. I promise you. Why would I want to defile my own skin with your filth?"
The scene suddenly replayed before my eyes in the form of images flashing swiftly. The visuals were soon followed by auditory memories and sensations. The drunken slur in both our voices, the, dare I say, husky tone of Akito's as he pressed me to the wall, the warm rush of air of his breaths against my heated flesh... Had I really...allowed that?
I groaned and pulled the cover over my eyes to hide my burning blush. I can't believe I tolerated that... How could I have been so stupid?
The man in my room let out a low rumble of laughter. "It's okay, you know. There's nothing to be so worked up over." He was seriously acting like it was nothing?! Was he really treating this as though we had discussed floral arrangements over a nice pot of tea?! I practically threw the blanket off.
"Nothing to be worked up over?! So what, it's nothing to alcohol me up and kiss me and touch me?! And how do you know my age anyway? I don't recall ever telling you-"
"I stole your medical file from Hatori."
He did what?!
"Excuse me?!" How could he say it so calmly?!
"I was curious about your eye and if you had any other conditions I need to know about, so I simply went and took it from his files. As the Head of the house it's only right I have complete access to the medical data of those I allow to stay here."
"You deceitful little-" oh I was mad now. He went behind my back and dug up my personal information. Information that was supposed to be confidential between me and the doctor that would be seeing me. That had to be the most underhanded, conniving, treacherous thing he's done yet.
"You're angry with me for simply wanting to fill myself in on any hazards to your health and inform myself of any injuries? Honestly, you act as though I depleted your bank account of all of its cash."
"That's not the point! The point is that's confidential! No one is supposed to be able to access it or know of anything unless I tell them! Especially not some lecherous pervert who-" his onyx eyes narrowed dangerously on me.
"Finish that sentence. I dare you." My breath halted in my lungs. This was a dangerous game I was getting myself into. I simply glanced away. I hated admitting defeat but I was in no mood to deal with his anger. My head was pounding and throbbing, and I feared with Tenshi being in the room, there would be a hefty price to pay if I said much else. "I don't know how you came upon the conclusion I had libidinous intentions for you, but I won't tolerate it. For the second and last time, I did not touch you. The only reason I kissed you last night was to satisfy a curiosity I have long held on why skin contact and affection are apparently so persuasive it breaks the bonds I have with my Juunishi. I have no romantic interest in you, and you are truly arrogant if you think you would have even a sliver of attention from me in that regard."
What the hell was he talking about, Juunishi? His Zodiac? What did he mean by that? And even though I didn't want to admit it, it was a minor stab to be told just how unappealing I was.
"More on the matter, we are six years and six days apart. I will not be called a pervert for your sake."
Oh great, the age card. Though, it made no sense. I'm an adult, it's not as though I was still in high school and he was a stalker. I've heard of greater age differences. But hey, if he needed to tell himself that, fine. Why should I care?
"Fine. You act as though I would want to be involved with you."
"Hmph." There was a quiet rustling of silk as he evidently stood. "Don't worry about your shift tonight. I already told the maids you were too incapacitated to work." I turned to look at him, ready to say something about how I'd be fine after some Ibuprofen, but he kept on. He wasn't even facing me, and the brief consideration that perhaps I had somehow wounded his coal of a heart fluttered through my brain. "Though, I do require a favor in return." Of course.
"What? Scrub the floor of your blood coated chamber?" I snorted. "Be a blood sacrifice of some sort?" His ice cold glare met my eyes, a scowl etched into his face with furrowed brows. Though I could see the hate he tried to emanate, there was no mistaking that disappointment and perhaps pain flicking in his pupils.
"Nothing of the sort. What do you think I am, a mindless animal? I simply require you accompany me for dinner tonight, and if you're feeling especially generous with your time I have freed for you, I would appreciate it if you would come with me to get bird seed for the ungrateful canaries around here. I'll be leaving in an hour, if you would be so kind enough to be an escort." I could hear the false, sarcastic politeness and knew he was barking an order at me in a condescending manner. Rage would've torn through my veins...if it weren't for this sudden development. Accompany him for dinner? Why? What sort of evening had he planned?
I directed my gaze to the other side of the room, propping my elbow against my knee and resting my chin on my hand. "Alright." I could use the opportunity to buy Tenshi some more treats. She was well stocked on food for the next month, but she always deserved some extra sweet goodies for putting up with my antics.
No further words were exchanged. Only the sound of feet moving across the floor, the swish of fabric following close behind them, and the door sliding shut kept the air from being totally still and uneasy. Once he was gone, I exhaled deeply. Well. This should be fun.
The car ride was awkward. We were forced to sit less than two feet apart the entire thirty minute drive. He sat with his elbow on the door's armrest as he stared out the window at the passing scenery as I did much the same. The only difference was that my other hand nervously fidgeted with the zipper and handle on my purse. There was something about sitting so close to him in utter silence that froze my veins in apprehension. It didn't help this was the first time I had seen him in his black get-up since we originally met, and just as it did then, his appearance was like a black hole consuming all light around it in its utter darkness. At the same time, it strangely made his eyes stand out in a... Relatively attractive way. I scolded myself inwardly. There was no way I could see this man as attractive. Just...no. Not with the way he treated me. I sighed inwardly and closed my eyes. The dull roar of the tires rolling along the road was relaxing despite the tense air within the car. It aroused and drug up many memories of my childhood years. Road trips all the way from Texas to Virginia, the way back, the multitudinous vacations to the beach, the miscellaneous visits to national parks... Oh how I wished I could turn back time to the good old days before stress and the need for money nailed me.
When the pet store came into view, I straightened myself away from the window and readjusted my purse. An unexpected hand on mine had me looking into the obsidian eyes of my 'boss.' "When we enter this store, you are to stay with me. Do you understand?" Seriously? Did he think I was going to run off?
"Obviously. I'm not a friggin' five year old. But now that you've said that maybe I should take the opportunity to run far, far away." Something unidentifiable flashed over his eyes, but it was gone within the same instant. His door opened behind him and he spared no time in climbing out of the car. The gentleman who had driven us here and opened Akito's door - who I now recognized as Hatori - glanced at me with an...apologetic look as though he wanted to say something before closing the door and walking around the car. I knew what he was about to do and opened my door myself, placing my foot on the asphalt of the parking lot and standing just as he reached for my handle. I turned a smile towards him.
"Don't worry, I can open a door myself. Unlike some people." Out of the corner of my eye I could see Akito, who was waiting beside the entrance, scowl at me. Just the response I wanted.
"Ah, of course. I have no problem doing so for you, though."
"No no, really. You do enough, worry about yourself. Thank you for driving us-" I stepped forward, but a hand on my shoulder stopped me.
"Amethyst-san." His voice was hardly above a whisper as he leaned closer to my ear. "I think you should stay with Akito. He'll get into trouble if he doesn't have a buffer, and he's terribly claustrophobic in large crowds. I feel your presence might ease his nerves."
Was that what Akito's order was about?...was that why he wanted me to come in the first place?
"Hai. Arigatou. I'll do my best."
Hatori nodded and I made my way over to the reason I was dragged into town. "Alright, let's go. The sooner we get this over with, the sooner we can leave and I'll be done with your demanding ass."
Akito huffed in disapproval but didn't remark, surprisingly, only silently following me inside the store. Hatori certainly knew what he was saying; my black-haired tag-along sure was staying close...almost uncomfortably so. We were only in the store for maybe a minute when I felt the tug on my sleeve of someone pinching it in a discreet way. His anxiety radiated from him like heat from a furnace... But I suppose it was understandable. There sure were a lot of people here today, moreso than when we had met, and I remembered very clearly how bad my social anxiety was in high school and how tense and nervous I was in these atmospheres. It was for this reason I took pity on the man clinging to me. I wouldn't say anything about this unless he did, which as far as I could tell, he wouldn't. The bird feed aisle was thankfully dead, so once we were safely out of the crowd, an audible sigh left him as he released my shirt. "Why are there so many people here?" His rhetorical question came as a strained hush of air, and I legitimately felt sorry for him. He wasn't used to interaction to this magnitude.
"It is Saturday, and midday at that. We'll leave soon."
"...please..." A pang of sympathy tinged in my heart as I glanced at him, my eyebrows curving understandingly as my eyes softened.
"We will."
His eyes that had been cast to the side met mine for a second before quickly flitting away again. "Just hurry up."
I returned my attention to the food and toys, grabbing a cuttlebone and bell first before snatching two separate bags of canary feed to compare them. One had citrus taste but the other had more vital nutrients... As a bird lover, I simply had to get them nothing but the best even if they were feral. So focused was I in comparing the price value and ingredients I didn't notice our surprise visitor until Akito loudly gasped before there was a loud thud. "Get off of me!"
I whipped my head around to find my 'companion' pinned to the ground by a large golden retriever that was presently attempting to lick his face but was blocked by his hands. I couldn't help a snort of laughter, this was just too golden. The abusive jerk who slapped and belittled me as well as many others...was helplessly trapped beneath an overly friendly dog just wanting to give him a big wet smooch.
"Dammit, woman! Help me! This is no laughing matter!"
"Right right, gomennasai." I set the feed and toys down and grabbed the dog's collar, unable to wipe my smile off my face. "Come on, give Mr. Grumpypants some space and go back to your owner." Innocent brown eyes met mine as the canine whimpered when I tugged on the collar. "I'm sure your owner is worried sick. You shouldn't-"
"Pocky! Where are yo- oh there you are!" A female voice behind me drew nearer along with the sound of footsteps on the tile. "Sumimasen! Her leash broke and I couldn't catch her. I- well, if it isn't Amejisuto! Long time, no see, ya bitch. Are things any better?" I stared into the familiar eyes of my friend. Of course I'd bump into her. She was a real talker so it only made sense for the universe to time it perfectly when I was in a rush to leave. Even as she hooked the brand-new leash on the dog's collar, her mouth hadn't stopped.
"Ah, they're okay. But you see we-"
"Ooooh is this your boyfriend? You didn't tell me you fished someone in! He's quite the looker!" She leaned her head towards me and winked as she covered the side of her mouth with her hand, but it did no good with the ridiculous volume she was using.
"Well no, he's not. He's just-"
"Can we leave?" Akito's shaky voice cut me off as he grabbed my sleeve again, only this time all of his fingers curled in the fabric. "I don't want to be here any longer."
"Yeah, we can go now. I'm sorry." I met Amaya's eyes again, cringing on the inside from her crooked smirk. "I apologize, but we'll have to meet up again some other time to talk. We have somewhere we need to be."
The girl's hands raised up in the air. "Hey, hey, I understand. You two go have fun." She winked at me before turning to leave. "And take care of him! He seems shy!" I couldn't help blushing at her implications of what she believed was the nature of our relationship. If she only knew this was the same ass that I complained about during our last rendezvous.
I shook my head sighing. Let her think what she will. I've told her time and time again I'm waiting until marriage and if she doesn't get that, what else can I do? I gathered up our items - deciding to get both sacks of feed - and guided Akito to the checkouts. Seeing the line was long, I swallowed and looked up at him.
"Ano...if you want to wait outside by the doors I'll be out soon." He shook his head, his dark mane brushing over his face as he did so.
"No. I'll stay with you. You might run off." I inwardly laughed. He just didn't want to be alone with a lot of people around. Poor guy.
"Alright, alright. But I don't want to hear any bitching about the wait."
"It's fine." As we moved a couple steps forward, a rowdy group of teenage boys walked in laughing like a bunch of baboons- their behavior no better. They carried themselves very sloppily and kept shoving each other. What morons. Couldn't even go to the store without acting as though there wasn't a single brain cell in that empty shell they call a skull. I grimaced and returned my attention ahead of me as we made our way up the line.
"Hey, hey, baby! Why not come spend the day with us? We'll show you some real fun!"
Who were they talking to? Whoever the girl was, my heart went out to her. I couldn't imagine the embarrassment of being catcalled by such inane horseplayers.
"Hey. We're talking to you, bitch! Don't ignore us."
At least she had the brains to disregard their vulgarity. Though, I did worry that they might get violent if-
"Bitch with the purple glasses and blonde hair! Stop being so prude!" Wait... They weren't talking to me...were they?
All the eyes in the checkout lanes looked around... Most locking onto me within a few seconds with a confused glint. Oh hell-
I turned my gaze in the direction of the apes, and lo-and-behold, they sure were staring at me. Figures. Must be my height. They thought I was as young and foolish as them.
"What the hell do you idiots want? Why don't you go jerk off to your dads' porn magazines? You'd probably learn some proper manners somewhere in them." I was in no mood for this bullshit. My face was burning out of both chagrin and bubbling anger.
"Think you're some sort of heavenly princess? Why, I'm gonna turn that pretty little face of yours black and blue! No one talks to me or my boys like that!" The apparent leader.
"Well you parasites to society should learn how to talk to wo-"
Akito's arm draped around my shoulders suddenly as he pulled me firmly to his chest. My face flared as hot as the sun. What...
"You fiends appear too young to be out on your own. Where are your mothers? I'm positive they're looking everywhere wondering where their little boys have run off to. I'll have to let them hear of this little incident. Or now that I think of it, there was an article recently about gorillas escaping the zoo... I'll have to give the zookeeper a call when I get home and let them know the animals have been spotted harassing an innocent bystander." His tone was dark and menacing, and it seemed as though all other noises and conversations had died. Even the animals were silent.
"You son of a..."
"Hey, is she your girlfriend or something?" The boy standing next to the leader cast a venomous yet hungry look my way, and despite my best efforts to keep the emotion at bay, overwhelming terror clutched me in its claws and led me to hide against Akito without thinking.
"She is-...mine. What business is it of yours? Leave this girl alone. That is all I have to say on the matter." H..his?! Well, I suppose I was, given I was the custodian in charge of his section of the Honke. But still... The wording caused my already flaring skin to rocket in temperature.
As if on cue, a few tall, burly security guards appeared behind the boys and pulled their arms behind their backs. One of the men met my eyes. "I apologize for the inconvenience, ma'am. These four have a record of causing mischief in this shopping center. We'll be calling their guardians and filling them in on what happened." He turned to the cashier that would have checked us out. "The manager said to let this woman take her items for free as one of these rowdy boys is her son."
"Eh?!" I pulled away from Akito in alarm. I couldn't take this stuff without paying! "No, I want to pay! It would be wrong to-"
"Thank you kindly. Give the manager our gratitude and condolences." Akito grabbed my hand and tugged me out of the store without warning with such force I worried my arm would pop out of its socket. He released me as soon as we were successfully out of the doors and turned to me, placing a hand on my shoulder. "Take an offer when it's given to you. Now. Are you alright?" I sought out and held his onyx gaze.
"Hai. Why wouldn't I be?" A nonchalant shrug was his response as he looked away.
"You seemed rather shaken back there."
"Ah..." I looked down at the concrete beneath our feet. "It was...the look he gave me." I sensed his gaze fall upon me again but only for a split second before he started walking in the direction of the car.
"Let's go home."
The return trip was even more awkward than leaving. I sat and stared at my hands folded on my lap. I wanted to say something, but what?... I glanced out of the corner of my eye at him. He was positioned the exact same as when we left... I sighed.
"Arigatou." It came out only as a whisper, and I was thankful he didn't appear to hear me...that is to say, until my own attention fell on the green blur of the trees.
"Hn."