Changed For the Better: A Fruits Basket Fan Fic
Disclaimer: same as chap 1-13
Chapter 14 : Happy Faces
"Hey, do you know if Tohru is awake yet?" Kyo casually asked Shigure Saturday morning. Kyo had just entered the house after his morning run, and he was starving. Since he had seen a light on in Shigure's room, he thought he would be the best person to ask about breakfast.
"I haven't seen her, but I have been secluded in here working on my next great novel. You know, someone in this house has to pay the bills."
"Isn't that someone the Sohma main house?"
"Ouch. You're being a grumpy little kitty this morning. You should go back to bed."
"I'm too hungry."
"So, is that why you asked me about Tohru-kun?" Shigure asked in a suspicious tone.
"Of course. Why are you looking at me with a stupid grin on your face?"
"Que será será, Kyo-kun. I know real reason why you're so upset this morning. You're jealous that Yuki-kun is going to Tohru-kun's party tonight! I'm sorry she didn't ask you, but insulting me won't help you overcome your lovesickness."
Kyo kicked the door next to him. "Shut up you damn dog! I don't need this from you!"
"Oh, did she ask you to go then?"
Kyo remained silent with an angry scowl on his face.
"Don't tell me. You were your usual self and said no when you found out Yuki-kun was going with his brother. Honestly, if I were you, I'd take up any opportunity to see our fair flower dressed in something other than her school uniform. Have you seen the dress that Aaya made for her to wear tonight? Yuki-kun doesn't know how lucky he is!"
"SHUT UP! I don't want to hear about that damn rat right now. You don't know…you don't…AWW DAMN IT! I don't want to talk about this with you. I'll be on the roof until Tohru makes breakfast."
"Breakfast is already prepared. Tohru-kun made it before she left this morning to see her grandfather."
"WHAT? You just said you haven't seen her!"
"Did I say that? Maybe I meant that I didn't see her yesterday morning…"
"YOU IDIOT!" Kyo said as he punched through the other screen door to Shigure's office.
"Must you destroy my house at any given opportunity?"
"YES!" Kyo yelled as he stormed out of the office and into the kitchen. He forcefully opened the refrigerator door and grabbed the carton of milk on the shelf. As put the carton to his lips, his eyes wandered to the counter next to him. There was a sheet of paper near the sink, and Kyo scanned over it.
Breakfast and lunch are in the refrigerator. See you tonight at the show! Hugs -not literally but you know what I mean ; ) - Tohru.
Kyo opened the refrigerator again. There was a plate of onigiris on the second shelf, and a set of the rice balls on the plate were in the shape of a cat.
"How did I miss these?" Kyo thought as he lifted the Syran wrap covering the plate. He took one of the cat rice balls of the plate and held it in the palm of his hand. " I wonder if she made these for me because…"
He closed his eyes in hopes of shutting out the thoughts in his head. He knew she made them for him because she was trying to tempt him to come with her to the party after the play. Kyo had initially told her that he would go with her, but after what had happened at the main house, he decided that he couldn't accompany her without risking her getting hurt by Akito. So, when he got back to Shigure's house that day two and a half weeks ago, Kyo told Tohru that he changed his mind and didn't want to go to the party after all. He had said it with the intention of not hurting her feelings, but he accomplished exactly what he didn't want to do. She cried, and seeing her cry because of him made him secretly want to cry as well. And to make matters worse, he later found out later that day that she had been "let go" from working at Momiji's father's building, which apparently was Momiji's punishment for helping Kyo with Tohru.
"I'm sorry Tohru. Really, I am," he said quietly to himself.
"What are you sorry about, Kyon?" Shigure asked.
Kyo nearly dropped the plate. "Don't sneak up on me, you bastard!"
"You didn't know I was behind you? Tisk. Tisk. And you call yourself a martial artist."
Kyo wanted to throw the plate at him, but Shigure took it away.
"These look delicious! Huh? What is this? Cat shaped onigiris? You know, since you're the cat, if you eat these, you'll be a cattibal… I mean, cannibal. Hmm… that reminds me of a joke. There were these two cannibals, and they were eating a clown…"
Kyo shoved one of the cat onigiris in Shigure's mouth. "Do you ever say anything that's not moronic?"
"Still in a grumpy mood, sour puss? I hope your mood lightens by tonight; I wouldn't want you to scare poor Satchan."
"What? Kisa is coming with us to Tohru's play?"
"Haa-kun asked her to come along since we're going to be sitting in the Sohma family box. Personally, I'm a little surprised she said yes. She hasn't been very sociable as of late, but I suppose like everyone else in this family, Satchan put aside her personal problems so she could meet Tohru-kun in person."
Kyo rolled his eyes and took a cat rice ball off the plate. "Whatever. As long as she doesn't annoy me like that rabbit, I don't care if she comes or not."
"Speaking of Momitchi, he suggested that we get flowers for Tohru-kun. You can come along to pick them out if you fix my door."
"Fine," Kyo said nonchalantly.
"Good," Shigure said, taking another onigiri off the plate. "I'll be in my room working if you need me."
"Yeah, yeah."
"Kyo-kun," Shigure said as he left, " you'll feel a lot better if you just ask her if you can go with her. It wouldn't make you any less than a man…"
"Shut up!" Kyo said, throwing (and missing) his half eaten onigiri at the dog,
"Damn it. Sometimes the things he says just gets under my skin…" Kyo thought as he picked up the scattered rice on the floor. "I don't even know why I agreed to go with him to get Tohru some flowers. Flowers eventually die and get thrown away."
Kyo went to the trashcan to throw away the rice. Right above the trashcan on the wall was the Hello Kitty clock that Kagura had given them for New Years. " I really hate this thing,' he said as he looked at the cutesy cat face staring back at him. "The only thing stopping me from taking it down is that she likes it."
Kyo suddenly had an idea and immediately went to find Shigure.
"Hey," Kyo said, peering into Shigure's study, "Kisa isn't at the main house right now, is she?"
Shigure looked up from his computer. "I think so; well, at least she was there yesterday. Why do you ask?"
"No reason. I am going out for a little while. I'll be back later."
"Aren't you forgetting about my door?"
"I'll fix it when I come back."
"Where are you going, Kyo-kun?"
He didn't reply as he put on his tennis shoes. There would be no way in hell Kyo was going to tell Shigure what he was planning to do; if the dog were to find out, he would never let Kyo live it down.
"This is the first time, Mom. This is the first time you're not going to be here to see me perform." Tohru thought as her stage make up was being applied to her face in the main dressing room. "I used to think that this day would never come. And now that it is only an hour and a half until the curtain rises, I can't believe it's already here."
She looked over to her left. A group of make up artists was finishing up the last touches to the Phantom. Mel was sitting to her right reading a magazine and waiting for his turn to get his make up done.
"It's strange, isn't it, Tohru," Mel said, his head still buried in the page he was reading. "It seems like yesterday that we both were in line outside the theatre, freezing our butts off and waiting for our turn to try out for the play…"
Tohru didn't answer him. "Tohru-san," the make-up artist scolded, "If you don't stop shaking, I won't be able to put your eyeliner on correctly."
"I'm sorry," she replied.
Mel closed the magazine. "You're not scared of tonight, are you?" he asked.
"No…well, maybe a little…"
"Why? Tonight is your night, Tohru! Ichiro-san may be playing the Phantom, but you're going to steal the spotlight from him as soon as you take the stage. As long as you remember to say and sing your part in English, you'll be fine," he said playfully.
"I'm not worried about my lines," she sheepishly replied.
"Then what are you afraid of? If you can accomplish that, then everything else will be okay."
"I know. But, it's just that…"
"Tohru-san, please stop talking. I need to put on the lip liner," the make-up artist asked.
Tohru obliged and shut her mouth. "Well, whenever you want to talk, you know where to find me," Mel said getting up from the chair.
"Wait! Mel-san, I need to do your make up after Tohru-san," the woman with the lip liner yelled.
"I'll be right back; don't worry. I need to go take care of something first." Mel assured the woman.
When Mel left the room the first thing that the woman doing Tohru's makeup asked was about Tohru's relationship with Mel.
"Eh? What are you talking about?"
"Aren't you dating Mel-san?"
"No, what makes you say that?"
Ichiro, who was listening to the conversation the whole time, interrupted them. "Just because a young lady is close to a man, it doesn't mean that they're dating, right Honda-kun?"
"Oh, yes! Mel and I are just friends."
"See," Ichiro said, looking at Tohru's make-up artist, "they're not dating. They're just friends with benefits…"
"EH? What do you mean?" Tohru asked, confused. Her comment caused the people around her to burst out laughing.
Mel came back into the dressing room amidst the laughter. "What is so funny?" he asked.
"Mel, Ichiro-san said you and I are friends with benefits, but I don't understand why that's so funny. We are friends, and I think of all of my friends are beneficial to…"
Mel rolled his eyes. "Don't worry about what they think," he sighed. "They wouldn't understand that we are really just lovers pretending to be friends."
"WHAT?" Tohru gasped.
Mel winked at her. "Why deny the feelings, dear, sweet Tohru? The game is over. We can not hide it from everyone forever, especially since we are so serious about our future together."
Tohru's head was still spinning as Mel laughed at his own comment.
"You're done," the make-up artist told her. "Don't mess it up."
Tohru thanked the woman as she moved onto Mel, who was now back in the chair next to Tohru.
"Why does everyone insist on making me and Tohru a couple?" Mel asked as the woman applied foundation to his face. "Ugh, you think some of the make-up got in my mouth," he complained to the woman.
"Well, keep your mouth shut then," Ichiro said as he picked up the magazine that Mel was reading earlier. "Besides, it's not like we have lives of our own, so if making up scenarios about the both of you keeps us entertained, then so be it."
"Sometimes, I don't know if you're joking or being serious," Mel replied.
"That's because you're such a good actor, right, Ichiro-san?" Tohru chimed.
"Have I told you lately how much I like you?" Ichiro asked Tohru.
"EH?"
"Is Honda-kun in here?" asked a voice at the door.
Tohru looked around in her chair. "I'm here, Kiko-san," she replied
"Good. Could you come with me, please?"
Tohru got up from her chair and followed Kiko to her private dressing room. Himena Chihiri, her former dance instructor and the current choreographer for the show, was waiting inside.
"Chihiri-sensei, is there something that you needed?" Tohru asked as Kiko closed the door behind him.
"Come sit by me, child," the old woman beckoned. Tohru sat on a stool next to where her teacher was sitting.
"Hoshi-kun said there was something bothering you, and he asked us to talk to you about it," Kiko said kneeling down next to her.
"This is what Mel meant when he said he needed to take care of something earlier," she thought to herself.
"What is the matter, Honda-kun?" Kiko asked. "It isn't stage fright, is it?"
Tohru closed her eyes and shook her head no.
"This fear that you have, it's about your mother, isn't it?' Chihiri said quietly.
Tohru gasped and started crying. Black lines from her mascara trailed down her cheeks along with her tears.
Chihiri hugged the crying girl carefully as not to wrinkle her costume. "I'm so stupid," Tohru said sobbing. "I told myself I wouldn't cry about that today."
"It's not stupid," the old woman reassured her. "This is the first time she is not here to see you on stage. Of course you have every right to be sad. I am sad about it myself. Your mother was the one of the best stage moms I have ever had. I half expected her to see her running around backstage helping in some way or another when I came into the theatre today. But, you know as well as I do that those thoughts are just the product of an old woman's wishful thinking. Tohru-san, your mother would be so proud to see you now. She would be happy to see that you have continued with the talents she worked so hard for you to have developed. No matter what happens on the stage when the curtain rises – no matter if you fall, if you lose your voice, or even if that curly mop of a wig on your head falls off in front of everyone, Kyoko-san wouldn't have cared. When she looks down on you tonight from heaven, she probably will feel like the luckiest mother in the world."
Tohru hugged the old woman tighter.
"Just keep a smile on your face and everything thing will be all right," Tohru said quietly.
"What was that, child?" Chihiri asked.
Tohru pulled away from the old woman.
"My mother used to give me a pep talk before every recital about how my father would be proud if he were still alive. And at the end she would say, 'If all else fails, Tohru, just keep a smile on your face and everything will be all right.' And Chihiri-sensei, this is the first time, I really do believe everything is going to be all right."
The teacher smiled at her former pupil and handed her some tissues. "I probably look frightful, don't I?" Tohru laughed, as she wiped her eyes.
"You could rival Ichiro-san for the part of the phantom if you keep your make up as it is," Kiko joked.
"All right," she said getting up, " I should go get it redone before I warm up." Tohru then bowed to her two former instructors. "Thank you for allowing me to talk to you about my mother. It means so much to me to talk to those that still respect her as much as I do."
"Anytime, Honda-kun. You're going to make her proud tonight. I am sure of it," Kiko replied.
When Tohru left the room Kiko looked to the old woman. "Chihiri-sensei," Kiko asked in all seriousness, " do you really believe she has pulled herself together? The show starts in an hour; if she breaks down on stage like she just did in here, Honda-kun is the type of person that will never be able to forgive herself."
Himena Chihiri closed her eyes and smirked. "I believe in her, Kiko-kun, so just smile. Everything will be all right."
The house lights of the Midori theatre dimmed and the curtain came up at exactly five thirty that evening. To the eight members of the Sohma family who sat in box five, there could have been a hundred people on the stage, but they would have only noticed one person – the young woman who played the part of Christine.
"Why was Tohru-kun keeping such talent to herself all this time? She's very good," Kagura thought as she watched the play.
"Tohru is so awesome! Maybe one day we can put on a concert together! She can sing and I can play my violin. That would be the greatest concert ever!" Momiji fantasized.
"It's hard to believe that the person singing on stage is Honda-kun," Hatori noted to himself. "She looks and sounds so beautiful; I bet Shigure is probably thinking something perverted about her right now."
"Hmm, I wonder if I dress up in a cape and mask my little housewife will sing to me at home…" Shigure daydreamed.
Hatori tapped the shoulder of his friend who was sitting next to him. Shigure turned his head to face Hatori.
"I wasn't thinking anything bad, I swear!" Shigure whispered.
Hatori shook his head at Shigure and he nodded his head in the direction of Kyo and Yuki.
Shigure looked over to his right and watched both Kyo and Yuki's reactions to what was happening on the stage. Yuki was leaning forward with his head was resting on his fist; his concentration was split between reading the lyrics and dialogue on the screen above the curtains and watching the stage. Kyo, on the other hand just kept his eyes to the stage; he was so oblivious to his other surroundings that he didn't notice that Kagura had entwined her hand in his until after the scene with the Phantom singing "Music of the Night" was over.
"This is great Haa-san," Shigure whispered back. "It's like we're getting two shows instead of one."
"Shii-chan! Shhh! Tohru is singing now!" Momiji playfully scolded.
"Sorry, Momitchi. Haa-san was saying something very dirty about Tohru-kun and I had to correct him."
"Hari! How could you?" Momiji gasped.
Hatori shook his head. "Just watch the show, Momiji" he whispered to the rabbit.
Shigure winked at Hatori, and Hatori, in return, sighed at his annoying cousin and returned to watching the stage.
The velvet curtain came down at the end of the first act and during the intermission, Haru, Momiji, Kisa, and Kagura excused themselves from the box to go to the bathroom. This left the Hatori, Shigure, Yuki, and Kyo alone to talk.
"It certainly was surprising to see Tohru-kun on stage singing, wasn't it?" Shigure asked.
"Why should to be surprising?" Kyo replied with a tinge of annoyance. "She did tell us that she has been doing these types of things since she was a child."
"Personally, I am glad to see this aspect of Honda-san," Yuki added. "She's always trying to understand us and our way of life, but we really haven't tried to get to understand her. We can say that we have tried, but if we missed this aspect of her personality, at least I can say that I didn't try hard enough."
"That is a very mature thing to admit, Yuki" Hatori commented.
"I wonder if she wanted us to know about it," Kyo thought out loud. "Maybe there was a reason why she didn't tell us about this part of her life when she came to live with us."
"What was that, Kyo?" Hatori asked.
"Nothing. I was just thinking out loud about something, that's all."
"Anyway," Shigure said as he changed the subject, "I'm glad you both haven't walked out of the theatre yet, especially after what happened before the curtain came down. Man, that was a very convincing kiss! I apologize for using such harsh letters, but the actor who plays Raoul is one lucky son of a B."
Yuki and Kyo looked at Shigure like they were going to strangle him. Hatori shook his head once more at his cousin.
"But, I must say it takes two to tango. I wonder where Tohru learned to kiss like that? She must have practiced with someone," Shigure said as he looked at the two of them with his signature goofy smile across his face. "Who do you think she practiced with, Kyon?"
Kyo gulped as Yuki, Hatori, and Shigure looked at him, waiting for his answer. Yuki was wringing his playbill in his hands.
"I think you're full of it, and if you don't stop insinuating things that didn't happen, I am going to throw you off this balcony."
"Kyo-kun! Can't you be nice to me for once?" Shigure whined.
The vibration of Hatori's cell phone in his jacket pocket interrupted the escalating conversation. He excused himself to take the call and by the time he came back, Haru, Momiji, Kisa, and Kagura were back in their seats.
"Was that the main house?" Yuki asked Hatori.
"No. It was Honda-kun on Ayame's phone."
"WHAT?" Yuki and Kyo said in unison.
"She wanted to thank everyone for the roses that were sent to her dressing room, and she also wanted to say that she has to stay after the play is over due to an interview with the newspaper. Ayame offered to drive her back to the house, so she said it is okay if we left after the show is over."
"You didn't say yes to that, did you Hari? I wanted her to see me in my suit!" Momiji exclaimed.
"Don't worry, Momitchi. Everyone is coming back to my house after the play anyway," Shigure told him. " We all have to see Tohru dressed before she leaves for her party! Yuki, you're one lucky son of a B."
"Stop saying that," Yuki sighed.
Kyo shifted in his seat after Shigure mentioned the party. Kagura noticed this, but lucky for Kyo the house lights dimmed and the curtain rose again before she could ask him about it.
The Second act started with the song "Masquerade". It was entertaining to watch, but it didn't capture the eight Sohma's attention as much as Tohru's next big solo, "Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again". All of them were touched by the song's message. Though she didn't know Tohru personally yet, Kisa had heard from her family members that Tohru had tragically lost her mother. So when Tohru heartwrenchingly sang about loss in the song, even Kisa could sense that the song wasn't about the character Christine's loss of her father, but really it was Tohru singing about her mother. Intentional or not, at the end of the song, Tohru was in tears on stage. In box five, Kisa, Momiji, and Kagura were in tears as well.
After two more big musical numbers in the play, it finally came time for the curtain to come down and for the play to end. When it came up again a minute later for the curtain call, the whole theatre stood on their feet and cheered when Tohru, Ichiro, and Mel took their bows together.
"Hey, Haa-san, look at Yuki and Kyo now," Shigure nudged.
Hatori looked over at his two younger cousins. They were staring straight at the stage, clapping and smiling at one particular onigiri as the members of the cast congratulated each other on stage.
When the cast did a final bow, the green velvet curtains closed for a final time that night. Shigure, Yuki, Kyo, and the others waited in the box for the crowds to die down so that they could leave without risking transformation.
"Satchan, you've been quiet this whole time. What did you think of Tohru-kun's performance?" Shigure asked her.
Kisa opened her mouth to say something, but she closed it with muttering a word.
"You can say if you didn't like it, Kisa. We won't tell Tohru," Momiji prodded.
Kisa shook her head to tell Momiji that she didn't want him to do that.
"Sheesh. Are you still not going to talk, Kisa?" Kyo asked.
Kisa sighed and buried her head in Haru's side. "Kyo, you could be nicer to her," Haru chided as he put his arms around her. " She's doing the best she can."
"You're wrong, Hatsuharu. Kyo is trying to be nice," Hatori intervened. "He came to the main house and spent the whole morning with Kisa today."
"HATORI!" Kyo yelled.
"Oh! Maybe you can tell me what he did today, Satchan. I tried asking Kyon when he got back, but he was being mean."
Kisa looked over to Kyo, who was turning red from holding in his anger. She then looked at everyone else. She knew they were waiting for her to answer.
"Kisa…" Kyo said through his teeth. "It's a secret, remember? "
Kisa nodded and made no more indications that she was going to tell the others what went on.
"Aww, come on, Satchan!" Shigure sighed.
"Please, Kisa, you can tell us!" Momiji pleaded.
She shook her head no and smiled.
"We're getting nowhere with this; let's go," Hatori interjected. "Honda-kun will be at Shigure's before us if this keeps up."
They agreed, and everyone began trickling out of the box. Because they sat closest to the stage, the last two people to leave box five that evening were Kagura and Yuki.
"Aren't you coming Kagura-nee?" Yuki asked as he noticed she was still sitting in her chair.
"Yes Yun-chan," she said lethargically as she got up from her seat. She stared at the closed curtains one last time.
"Is something the matter?" he inquired. Yes hadn't noticed her acting so melancholic before, and he was concerned.
Kagura sighed and put on a fake smile. "Of course not! We should hurry, shouldn't we? The others are probably downstairs in the lobby already."
"Right," Yuki replied; he was still a little worried.
"I wonder if she's worried about that stupid cat and Kisa's secret?" Yuki thought as they rejoined the others. "Dumb cat. I don't know why he just doesn't come clean about it. Knowintg him, it's probably something asinine anyway."
Back at Shigure's house, Kyo had excused himself from the cacophony that his cousins were creating in the living room. He went upstairs and closed the door to his room. Kyo then went over to his bureau and opened the bottom drawer. On top of his neatly folded sweatpants was a small, pink shopping bag.
Begin Flashback
" Okay Kisa, I brought you here because I need you to do me a favor," Kyo told Kisa as they stood on the corner of a busy intersection near the heart of downtown Tokyo. "But first, before I tell you why, you have to promise not to say anything about this to anyone. If that damn rat or stupid dog were to find out that we were here…"
Kisa took his hand and smiled.
"Can't you give some verbal confirmation or something?"
She slumped her head.
"Whatever," he said, annoyed. "Just no keep your silence about this to everyone, no exceptions, okay? I need you to go in that store for me," he pointed to the big Hello Kitty sign across the street."
Kisa looked confused.
"You see…the thing is, Tohru likes this stupid clock in the kitchen…and I really didn't want to give her flowers after her performance tonight so…I want you to go in there and get something for her." he said rapidly.
Kisa still looked confused, but she was smiling through the confusion.
"Don't give me that look," Kyo said, embarrassed and blushing. " This isn't what you think it is. Everybody else is getting flowers, but I just don't want to get something that will die, that's all. And there is no way I'd be caught dead in a store like that; there are way too many girls in the place and the whole of idea of a guy stepping inside that store is emasculating. So, that's why I am counting you to do this for me, Kisa."
Kisa cocked her head to her side and looked at Kyo. She used to be afraid of the cat; every time she was around him he would have a surly attitude or he would be fighting with Yuki. But at that moment, her fears of the cat were alleviated. This was the first time she had seen the awkward, sweet side of her troubled cousin, and it made her smile.
Kisa nodded her head in agreement that she would help him, and Kyo handed her his Sohma family credit card. She crossed the street and went into the store. Thirty minutes later, she came back to show Kyo what she got.
Kyo's eyes grew big as Kisa pulled a small but long box out from her bag. When she opened the box to show Kyo, his mouth dropped.
"Of all the crappy, girly things in that store, you bought that? What were you thinking?"
Kisa looked upset and was on the verge of tears.
"Wait don't cry. It's okay, really. It's just that it's…nevermind. Thanks Kisa."
End Flashback
Kyo took the bag out of his drawer, and carefully removed the box from the bag. He opened the box and stared at the rhinestone Hello Kitty watch that was fastened in place in the box. The happy, cutesy Hello Kitty face on the watch taunted him, and he despised it. However, he had a feeling Tohru would like it, and that thought made him sort of excited to give it to her.
A banging on the door interrupted Kyo's thoughts. "She's here, Kyo! Ayame and Tohru are coming up the driveway!" Momiji exclaimed.
Kyo ears perked up, but he tried to sound like he didn't care. "I'll be down in a minute."
He put everything away back in his drawer and looked out of his window. "There she is," he thought to himself as he watched her step out of the car.
She was smiling and laughing with everyone, and he couldn't help at that moment to smile with her. He turned away from the window and left his room. As he got to the bottom of the stairs, everyone was making their way into the living room.
"Everyone looks so handsome and pretty!" Tohru commented in the hallway.
"Hurry up and go change, Tohru," Momiji said to her as he led her into the living room. "We all want to see you in the dress Aaya-chan made."
"Oh, all right," she smiled. " I have to shower first but…" she trailed off her words when she saw Kyo standing in the stairwell.
"Oh hi, Kyo-kun," she chimed after a minute. "You look very handsome in your green suit!"
Kyo turned his face away from her to hide that he was blushing. "Thanks, I guess."
Everyone was watching the awkward, silent interlude between the both of them. "Tohru-kun, I think there was something he wanted to ask you about your party, but he's a little embarrassed to ask," Shigure told her.
"What is it, Kyo-kun?" she asked eagerly.
Kyo looked at everyone in the living room and then back at Tohru. He knew he couldn't say what she wanted him to say; he had told Akito that he would distance himself from her. "What time are you leaving for your party?" he asked.
"In about an hour, I think. Why do you…"
"You should get moving then," he interrupted. "You don't want to be late, do you?"
Tohru looked disappointed at his answer, but was at least one person in the living room that was secretly satisfied with it.
"For once, the cat is right, Honda-san. You wouldn't want to be late to your party," Yuki said.
"Right," Tohru said, trying to hide her sadness. "I should go get ready. I'll be back downstairs in a little bit. Thank you again for coming to the play tonight, everyone."
She walked up the steps past Kyo to get to her room. Kyo still had his face turned away from her as she walked by him.
Kyo felt ashamed of turning a cold shoulder to her and shortly went back up the stairs to seek the solitude of his room.
"Kyo? Darling?" Kagura called out futilely.
"It may be best that you leave him be," Hatori told her as he put hishand on her shoulder.
"Poor Kyo," Momiji said quietly. " It's all my fault he can't go with Tohru."
Kisa turned her head when she overheard Momiji say this. She didn't know what he meant, but she was determined to do something about it.
After Tohru finished with her shower, Kagura and Kisa helped her get ready. They blow dried her hair and put the set of hot rollers she borrowed from Hana's mother in her hair.
"Thank you both so much for helping me get ready," Tohru thanked.
"No problem Tohru-kun; it our pleasure. You have had a long day, and it's the least we can do!" Kagura said cordially as she took out the last of the rollers. "Yun-chan is going to flip when he sees you. You look so pretty!"
Kisa smiled too.
"Kisa-san, you have a beautiful smile!" Tohru complimented as she saw her smile reflected in her mirror.
The tiger blushed.
"Kisa, aren't you going to say thank you to Tohru-kun?" Kagura asked as she combed Tohru's hair back.
Kisa opened her mouth, but closed it again.
"Oh it's okay,
"Sorry that Kisa is being difficult," Kagura apologized. "She hasn't talked to any of us for three weeks now."
"Oh Kisa-san, what is wrong?" Tohru asked, concerned.
"We don't know for sure, but it has to do with something that happened at school."
Kisa grabbed onto Kagura's arm and looked at her pleadingly to stop talking about her.
"Fine Kisa; I won't say anything more. You know everyone is worried about you
though, especially Haru-kun. It isn't very nice to make him worry like that."
Tohru looked at Kisa again in her mirror. She looked like she wanted to cry. "Don't worry Kisa. I'm sure when you start talking, it will be in an extremely cute voice."
The tiger's eyes brightened and she was smiling again. Meanwhile, Kagura finished pinning Tohru's hair in place. Her hair was half up, half down; the part that was pinned up was in a neat cluster of curls, while the part that was down was cascading down her back in big, soft curls.
"It looks so pretty! Thank you so much!" Tohru approved.
"You're welcome; now the only thing that's left is for you to put on your dress. We'll leave you so you can do that. Come on Kisa, let's go downstairs."
Kisa got up from where she was sitting on Tohru's bed and followed Kagura out of the room. Tohru changed out of her robe and put on her dress. It was a tea-legnth spaghetti-strapped dress in light pink satin. The straps and the square cut neckline was lined with light white sequins and beads. On the bodice there was a white ribbon belt that tied in the back. On the edges of the ribbon were sequins as well. She twirled around in the dress once or twice. The full skirt twirled around with her.
"This is such a fun dress, Mom! Ayame-san's skills are so amazing. I wish you were here to see me in it," she said to her mother's picture on her desk. " I just hope that I made you proud tonight at the play and I didn't disappoint you or dad."
Her thoughts about her mother were interrupted by a knock on her door. She went to open it, and she was surprised to see the person standing in front of her.
"Kyo-kun?"
"Err…Tohru…I…"He tried saying what he came to say, but he couldn't get the words quite out with her standing in front of him dressed like she was.
She was puzzled by his words. "Is something the matter?"
"No…nothing's wrong. Kisa…came by…and…I'm…sorry I can't come with you so… here," he stuttered as he put the shopping bag in her hands and walked back to his room.
As the door closed to Kyo's room, Tohru took the box out of the bag and opened it. She turned red as she looked at the watch inside. Tohru made her way to Kyo's door and opened it without knocking. Kyo, who was standing by his window and scolding himself for his awkwardness, jumped when she entered the room.
"Haven't you heard of knocking?" he asked as he regained his cool.
"Kyo-kun…" she said shakily as she walked toward him.
"Now before you get upset, Kisa was the one who picked it out…"
"Kyo-kun…"
"Didn't you hear me? I didn't do anything at all, it was Kisa who…"
"Kyo-kun!" she said, hugging him and causing him to transform "Thank you so much! You're so nice to me, and I don't know what I do to deserve it."
If cats could blush, Kyo would have been a redder shade of orange. "It's nothing really. I'm just sorry that I can't go with you tonight…"
"But Kyo, you're coming!"
"Didn't you just hear me? I said that I am not…"
Tohru put him down and took the watch out of its box and put it on. "See, Kyo-kun?" she said showing him the watch. "Even though you can't physically be there, you will be there with me in spirit."
"That is the most idiotic…" Kyo began to say, but he lost his train of thought when Tohru bent over and kissed him on top of his head between his ears. After this, Kyo changed back to his human form.
"Eeep!" Tohru said, turning around. "I'm going to go downstairs while you change, Kyo-kun. I'll see you later, okay?"
"Fine," he replied, "have fun at the party."
"I will now," she said as she shut his door.
"That idiot…" he thought to himself as he put his clothes back on after she left. But he couldn't keep a straight face when he was thinking it. He was happy for the first time since his talk with Akito. Even though he didn't want to admit it, he was slowly falling in love with an onigiri.
Authors Notes: Wheet woo! Chapter 14 is done. This may sadly be my last for a while. I have finals coming up, and I kinda want to pass my classes. Also I might not be able to write long chapters when I go home to KY in two weeks, so I tried to make up for it with this chap ( it's 25 pages… I wonder how I find the time…). This chap was fun to write though,so I hope it is fun to read too.
If you're wondering why I didn't put any lyrics to the songs in this chapter, it's because I didn't want to interrupt the course of the story. I was listening to the Phantom cd for a little bit while writing the chap. But for the rest of the time I listened to "My Doorbell" by the White Stripes. It was stuck in my head the whole week, but I like it a lot for some reason even unknown to me. I know that's a little random, but the song helped me finish the chap for some reason.
The only inside joke in this chapter, I believe, are the references to Dane Cook, whoa comedian. He's funny, but very raunchy. Normally, I hate stuff like that, but he makes fun of Burger King (I used to work there) and I find that hilarious.
Now…drum roll please…A super big shout out to all my reviewers for chapter 13. You guys rock my world! It makes me smile whenever I get comments back from people who read my story!
Dolphin Dreamer: Biology is awesome. I like microbiology more than regular biology, though. I can't really say much about who Mel is right now. That will be explained in the next chap, so stay tuned. : )
KurenaiChinoumi Yeah! A new reviewer! I am glad that you're enjoying the story.
Hypermikogirl: I was kinda mad at myself for putting Akito in the last chap too. But it was kinda a mixed blessing too now that I think about it. For most of the story I know what's going to happen, other parts I make up as I go. I am surprised that you guessed about Akito in the last chap… it makes me think you have ESP even more. : )
Klove0511: Personally, I like Yuki and Hatori. But for Tohru, there is no other person that fits better than her and Kyo. I am glad another person agrees. : )
Ms. Ahem: I hope studying for finals is going well. Don't stress yourself out too much. You'll end up like me if you do! Thanks for reviewing, Chica. I hope you and Ms. Torso Cancer get the chance to talk again. Her bday is on the 13th; you should call her then.
Bergerac: I am glad that you enjoyed the last chap! I was really excited to write about the opening night in this chapter after I got your review. Thanks for the motivation!
Karlis87: Thanks for the review. To answer one of your questions from your last review…yes, but that will be in the next chap. : )
CallaRose4ever: The suits sound fun! Maybe for the next play that she is in Kyo could wear one of them… lol. Poor Kyo. Thanks for the review and the birthday shout out. It was really sweet.
Dark Inu Fan: I was thinking about putting "gorgon" in the last chap, but I decided against it. I thought Kyo's reaction would be better if Akito called her tramp instead. I am trying to stick to the mangas as much as I can though. : ) Does Momiji's name in Japanese mean maple sugar? That suits him so well. Thanks for the review!
CrazyDazie: Once again, I don't know why I respond to you when you just yell at me over the phone… but I heart u chica so I guess it's okay. Only two weeks until I am home! Don't get grounded again!"
I hope I didn't leave anyone out… Thank you everyone for reading and reviewing! Feel free to send as many comments as you want for this chap. Until next time…( la fiesta!) this is Lani…out.