Tohru stared blankly ahead, seeing none of the words written on the chalkboard in the front of the room and hearing none of the lecture Mayu was currently giving. She was off in a world she was very familiar with, dreamland. There she was doing better in school than she was here, and she wasn't the pregnant girl at school that everyone whispered about behind her back. She was off somewhere with her newly acquired boyfriend on the first date they were yet to take.
Yuki had promised to take her out on their first date today after school, if it could even be called that. They were going to go shopping for clothes for the baby. It wasn't anything romantic, but she'd rather be there at the moment, and with one hour left until the end of school, she could hardly focus.
"Clear your desks… Test time," Mayu announced, gazing directly at Tohru.
Tohru gasped in shock and jumped slightly in her seat. Her eyebrows contorted with concern, and the color drained from her face as her pencil toppled off of her desk. She wasn't ready to take a test.
"EH? Test?!" Tohru squeaked.
"Yes Honda-san. We've been discussing and preparing for this test this whole class period."
"Tohru, you'll do fine," Yuki reassured her. His desk was already clear –if it even had anything on top of it before. He was obviously ready, but she wasn't.
"B-but I didn't study! I d-didn't look over my no-notes! I wasn't even p-paying at-attention to the review and-"
He cut her off with a quick peck on the lips. Though it did little to calm her nerves, it accomplished what he had intended it to, she was stunned silent, along with the rest of the class who were only accustomed to handholding being the only evidence that they were going out. Tohru gasped softly, her face darkening with each passing second as more and more of her classmates turned to face her and mutter things to one another. She didn't want to know what they were saying. It was bad enough that they had seen. Luckily, the class silenced down as Mayu stepped forward with tests in hand.
"You'll do fine. I know you will. You practically answered all the questions on the homework without my help. You'll do fine," he repeated more firmly.
Tohru swallowed nervously and kept silent. The tests were being handed out. She was making an attempt to visualize her notes in her head and do a bit of reviewing before Mayu reached her desk, but it wasn't going so well. She could only remember bits and pieces that hardly made sense, but as soon as a test was placed in front of her, all her grasping on the little sense she had remembered vanished. She frowned and stared at the test hopelessly.
Yuki glanced at her and took her hand in his instantly. He gave it a comforting squeeze and picked up his pencil with his other hand. He kept his fingers wrapped around her hand as he started his test. She didn't fail to notice that he was writing with his left hand when he usually wrote with his right hand. Of course, he'd be ambidextrous. Still, he was probably more comfortable using his right hand, but because she was such a child, he had to keep his right hand around her left one so she wouldn't freak out. She smiled at the gesture and gripped his fingers gently, letting him know how much she appreciated it. He didn't say anything, but she could see the corners of his mouth curve up in a smile. She took a deep breath and picked up her pencil, ready as she'd ever be.
Throughout the test, whenever she got stuck and struggled, she could feel him rub her hand to calm her down. By the time she finished, she was more than relieved. As soon as her pencil was tossed aside on top of her desk and she leaned back in her seat, his fingers unwound from hers. He stood up and turned in his test, taking hers with him.
Tohru knew he had been finished quite a while ago, but he hadn't gone up to turn in his test, most likely too afraid to release her hand and do so. She wasn't sure she would have made it through without all of his help.
She was smiling when he came back.
"Now that wasn't so bad, was it?" he asked as he reseated himself.
"No, thanks to you," she whispered.
"I didn't do anything."
"You studied with me all week… for over an hour each time. That's nothing?" Tohru questioned, perplexed.
"You studied. I sat there, watched, and distracted you," he corrected her with a grin.
Tohru smiled but shook her head, disagreeing with him. He had distracted her once in a while with his periodic kisses and whatnot, but if he had not been there, doing her homework would have been a wasted effort. Yuki opened his mouth to add another comment, but he was silenced by a hiss from Mayu. He looked up, finding her finger to her lips, signaling him and Tohru to stop talking. She pointed to an assignment she had written on the board before returning to grading the tests.
Both obeyed and took out their textbooks, but only Tohru started the work. Yuki sat there, staring at the clock. There were a mere five minutes until school was over. He saw no point in answering the first question then packing up, but he didn't mind sitting there though. Watching Tohru concentrate on the worksheet amused him. She looked adorable when she was confused, chewing her pencil eraser and frowning at the question.
Tohru had only filled out the first question halfway when the bell rung. Yuki stood instantly and helped her pack her things away before he kissed her on the cheek and bid her farewell, promising to find her after he copied some papers for Mayu. The red-faced brunette looked down embarrassedly after he left. She clutched her backpack closely to herself, remaining in her seat nervously as she tried to ignore the glares she was receiving from every female occupant of the room, with the exception of her two friends.
Yuki had asked her out a week ago, and he hardly tried to keep that a secret from anyone. Unlike her, he didn't have a problem about fussing over who was watching or what they were thinking whenever classmates saw them holding hands or kissing. She did, however. She was the ones they glowered at or insulted when their jealously became too much. No fan girl ever bothered Yuki with her trifle complaints. Everyone knew his response. He had no problem reminding them of his love for Tohru, unlike Tohru, who couldn't even talk to her friends about her new relationship.
They never seemed bored with whatever Tohru had to say about her and Yuki, even when she repeated things. Regardless, they were lucky if they even were able to convince her to talk about Yuki. Tohru never liked their questions. Regardless, she did appreciate all they did for her. Without them, she probably would never have been able to leave the classroom. She had never been one who dealt with humiliation well. Tohru couldn't move until the three of them and Mayu were the last ones in the room, and it took her friends' glares to send the other students on their way.
However, in the situation she was thrust with as soon as she stepped out the door, she instantly wished she was back inside the classroom with the fan girls throwing her dirty looks. Of all topics her friends had to chose, they had to pick the most embarrassing of all.
"So where has he kissed you?" Uo asked Tohru curiously while winking at her.
Tohru flushed, "Ah… Umm…"
Too impatient to await Tohru's response, Uo poked Tohru on the cheek, "Has he kissed you here?"
Tohru's face burned red, but she nodded. Uo's finger slid down to her neck, "Here?"
Again, Tohru nodded, redder than before. She couldn't lie if she tried. Even if she did shake her head in denial, the blush across her cheeks would have revealed the truth. As much as she loved talking to her friends, there were certain subjects she'd rather keep between herself and Yuki. Talking about kissing definitely wasn't something she wanted to share with her two best friends. Anything else, she'd tell them about. Uo didn't seem to understand Tohru's wish for privacy. Her questions just seemed to get more personal.
Uo put her finger on Tohru's lips, "And of course, here."
"Arisa, that would be quite enough. Her sex life with the prince is nobody's business but hers and the prince's," Hana comforted the blushing girl as she scolded Uo.
"But we're her best friends!" Uo exclaimed.
"It's still not our relationship."
Uo sighed in defeat, "Fine. So where is the prince taking you today?"
"Yuki-kun is taking me shopping. We're going to get a few things for the baby," Tohru answered with a smile.
Tohru let out a soft breath of relief. She had to thank her dark haired friend for helping her out, but as Tohru faced her to do so, Hana turned away. Hana glanced behind herself for about the tenth time since they started walking. Worried to see her normally at ease friend acting so paranoid, Tohru turned around as well. She was startled to find Motoko, Minami, and Mio walking closely behind them. Tohru froze in her spot and bowed to the fan girls.
Uo and Hana both stopped when they realized Tohru was no longer strolling along with them and peered at Tohru before exchanging similar looks.
"I sense jealousy behind us, don't you?" Hana asked Uo calmly.
"Obviously," Uo agreed with a laugh as the fan club members glared at them.
"We're not jealous!" Motoko denied hotly.
"Why would we be jealous of Honda-san?! She's not pretty at all! She's not even skinny anymore!" Minami declared loudly.
"Why you're all jealous because your precious prince loves Tohru and not you all. Besides, she is bearing the prince's child anyways, and he thinks Tohru is pretty," Uo stated matter-of-factly.
Tohru flushed in humiliation. She tugged on Uo's sleeve, pleading her to stop, but Uo ignored her, daring the fan girls to deny what she had said. One of them might have insisted that Yuki didn't really love Tohru and was just being kind, but Yuki walked over before any of them could speak. He greeted the girls politely before taking Tohru's hand in his. Tohru flushed, grateful he hadn't finished his task soon enough for him to be around to hear what Uo had just said, but Uo just had to include him in the previous conversation they were having.
"Don't you think Tohru is pretty?" Uo asked Yuki.
Yuki was clearly startled by the question, but he smiled warmly soon after, "Of course. She's the most beautiful girl, inside and out, I've ever laid eyes upon."
The fan club girls cringed, rejecting the words that had drifted out of Yuki's mouth. He had just insisted that Tohru was more beautiful than any of them. Yuki didn't seem to notice their expressions as he told them goodbye, telling them something about taking Tohru to the mall.
The fan girls were disappointed at first, stalking away with sulky faces after Yuki had left with Tohru, but they soon were smiling wickedly as they realized there was only one mall nearby. With a quick glance at each other, they knew they were all thinking the same thing.
Laughing wickedly, the three of them rushed out of the school and bolted down the road. They stealthy followed Yuki and Tohru to their home, watching them drop off their backpacks from behind a tree. Each of them made soft gagging sounds to conceal her raging jealousy as Yuki wrapped his arm around Tohru's shoulders, and they grimaced as Tohru smiled and leaned against him. Swallowing their disgust and blatant envy, they continued to track the couple as they started for the mall.
From behind, they looked just like any other couple. Just another ordinary teenage couple shopping around in a mall. That is, until one got a glimpse of Tohru's round belly. Unfortunately, that image of a perfect couple was all the Yuki fan club as they stalked the prince and his princess around the mall. All three of the fan club members here couldn't help but sneer at Tohru's back. She was obviously content, walking beside Yuki with her shoulder making contact with his and her hand welded with his, but heck, which girl wouldn't be?
Her voice even gave her joy away with that little giggle of hers after every other sentence she said. It didn't really bother them that she was happy with him. She wouldn't have been normal if she wasn't. What disturbed them was the fact that Yuki, their prince, seemed as happy as she was, if not more so. They couldn't figure out what he saw in her, what she had that could bring out such a smile on his face. They hadn't even seen that look on his face before, but the scene before them was starting to become repulsive. He had already kissed her –thankfully not on the lips- twice. Once on top of her head and once on the back of her hand.
Sadly, this trip wasn't going as well as they had expected. All they were seeing was proof that Yuki was happy to be with Tohru and nothing otherwise. Nothing interesting was even happening.
The three of them had already followed the couple into numerous baby clothing stores, hiding behind clothing racks as Yuki and Tohru walked around. Tohru had already chosen a couple of outfits, all pink colored, and Yuki was currently holding them for her as she chose a pair of socks, hats, and mittens. The pile of pink grew continuously, and by the time they left the store, each carrying a large bag. They paused momentarily before a large map hanging on the wall. Yuki whispered something into Tohru's ear and pointed to the center of the map. Tohru flushed before nodding, and they were off again, heading to the middle of the mall.
Yuki led Tohru to a maternity store, taking her bag from her before they stepped in to let her browse around. Tohru was about to deny needing new clothes, but taking one look down at her top, she could see that it was rather tight fitting. She was a few days short of beginning her third trimester. The baby would continue to grow, and it wouldn't be long before she wouldn't even be able to get her shirts over her stomach. Peering around at the clothing racks, Tohru chose a random outfit and pulled out the tag. Her eyes widened at the price tag and she dropped it immediately.
"What's the matter, Tohru?" Yuki asked worriedly.
"I didn't bring enough money for anything… I-I'm sorry… I didn't think we were going to go clothes shopping for me too," Tohru looked down apologetically.
"Don't be silly, Tohru. I'll pay. Pick whatever you'd like," Yuki ordered.
"No, no, no! I c-couldn't! You already bought all of this!" Tohru protested, gesturing to the bags in his hands.
"It's my child too. Don't worry about it. So go pick out your clothes before I do for you," Yuki told her.
She stayed where she was guiltily. Yuki set the bags he was holding down in exasperation. He took Tohru's hand in his and dragged her to a nearby rack and pulled out a light pink shirt in Tohru's size. He held it out to her and used his other hand to tilt her head upwards, making her look at it. Tohru didn't say anything, keeping her eyes off the garment. She didn't want to make him buy her any more things. She only had a few more months left to her pregnancy. It'd be a waste to buy new outfits she wouldn't even be able to wear after she gave birth and lost the weight she had gained.
"Tohru, please. You know I'm not good at picking out clothes. Help me out here?" Yuki begged.
"It's perfect…" Tohru finally whispered.
Yuki smiled at her and gently shoved her towards the clothing rack, making her chose a few other outfits she liked before paying for them and letting her leave. Tohru walked out of the store behind Yuki, carrying her new clothes with a frown. Yuki paused and turned back to face her with a concerned expression.
"Tohru, it's just clothes," Yuki soothed.
"Can I pay you back then?" Tohru asked hopefully.
"No," Yuki declined quickly.
Tohru frowned and crossed her arms across her chest. She made an attempt to glare at him but realized he was just amused by this. She could tell he was fighting off a laugh. Spinning around on her heel, she started off in the opposite direction of him, abandoning him there along with the bag of clothes he had just bought for her. The smile vanished off of Yuki's face as he darted over to her, picking up the bag on along his way. He wrapped his arms around her stomach, stopping her in her tracks with an embrace from behind.
Tohru's cheeks flared red as he kissed her on the cheek and handed her bag back to her.
"I'm sorry, Tohru. Forgive me… You can pay me half, all right?" he bargained.
"Thank you," Tohru murmured with a smile.
He released her and took her hand back in his, tugging her towards the exit. They had been at the mall for over an hour, and he had promised that he'd get her home in time for her to start dinner. Tohru followed slowly, admiring things in stores through windows. She wasn't ready to go home. There were so many more beautiful things to look at, and the most beautiful thing stood in a store to her left. She gasped softly when she spotted the white dress with ruffles tainted pink at the edges layered across the body of the garment. There was a satin ribbon running across the middle, the color of the darkest shade of pink on the ruffles. She slipped her hand out of Yuki's and ran over to the shop.
She pressed her nose against the glass, staring at it with wide eyes.
"What is it, Tohru?" Yuki asked, walking over to her.
"Isn't it pretty?" Tohru asked, not taking her eyes off the gown.
Yuki smiled and nodded, "Would you like it?"
"No, no! It wouldn't fit!" Tohru pointed out with a glance downwards at her stomach.
"You're not going to be pregnant forever, Tohru. You'll be the size you were before in no time. Come on. I'll get it for you," Yuki told her, pulling her towards the entrance.
"No! I-I don't want it!" Tohru denied, pulling her hand out of his.
She darted away from him, not wanting him to purchase the dress for her.
Yuki stood there, dumbfounded for a short moment before chasing after her. Barely dodging crowds of people in his way, he tried to keep track of Tohru as she slipped through the crowds. She turned a corner, and by the time he got there, she was nowhere in sight. Groaning, he wondered how she could maneuver better than he could while carrying a baby inside of her. He trudged along worriedly, craning his neck around in attempt to locate her.
Meanwhile, Tohru sat down on a bench tiredly.
She wrapped her arms around her stomach with a sigh. He just didn't understand some things about pregnancy. How did he expect her to go back to her old size after having a baby inside of her? She sniffled and wiped the tears from her eyes.
Tohru wasn't even sure why she was upset, but it probably had something to do with the fact that she had no idea why Yuki even liked her. He was the most popular guy in the whole school, despite his interactions with her, the most unpopular girl in school. His popularity had dropped slightly with his confession that he was the father of her child and that he loved her, but not significantly. She could count on one hand the number of girls who had stopped worshipping him when they found out the baby in her was his. This fact made her feel guilty enough about their relationship. She didn't need him to buy things for her to fuss over.
She was too preoccupied to notice the girls calling her name until they were standing in front of her and shading her in darkness. Tohru looked up with wide eyes, shocked to find three members of Yuki's fan club standing before her. She stared blankly at the three faces for a moment before forcing a faint smile to her face that the three girls did not return. They stood there, glowering at her, jealous and angry.
"Hello, Honda-san…. How might you be this fine evening?" Motoko asked in a sickly sweet voice.
"I-I'm f-fine!" Tohru stuttered nervously.
"Oh really… Well not for long anyways," Minami added in a falsely cheerful tone as she sat herself down beside Tohru.
"W-What do you m-mean?" Tohru inquired worriedly.
"Well you see…. You don't really think the prince has any real interest in you, do you? I mean, you couldn't possibly have thought that, right? It's completely ludicrous to think such a thing. Forgive me for even thinking you'd be stupid enough to believe that. Sorry," Motoko apologized in a cynical voice.
Tohru looked down sadly, fighting off new brimming tears. It was enough to think that herself. She didn't need other people to point that out to her as well, nor did she need them to pretend to be her friends and try to console her. She wished they'd just leave her alone now they had said what they wanted to. She didn't want them seated next to her, babbling about how incompatible she and Yuki were. Tohru was well aware of that fact, but he loved her. He even insisted that she was a better person than he was, but they were making her doubt his words.
"So you know, Tohru, we're not trying to be mean, but you understand our reasoning, right? You and Yuki? Come on! Let's be reasonable here, okay?" Minami soothed in a menacing voice.
"Hush, Minami! You're being extremely rude! Leave the poor girl alone! It's not her fault the prince doesn't really love her!" Motoko snapped.
She paused for a moment before adding, "Well I mean, she could be blamed for believing such an obvious lie…. But give poor Honda-san some pity."
Tohru clenched her mouth shut, wrestling back her tears and choking back sobs. Her hands shook as she pressed them to her face, hiding the tears she could no longer restrain. Motoko smiled wryly when she noticed this and patted Tohru's back unsympathetically. She waited until she could hear the soft murmur of Tohru's crying before Motoko snickered cruelly and signaled to her companions now was the time to leave. They all left Tohru alone on the bench, smiling satisfactorily to themselves as they sauntered away, and their smiles only widened when they spotted Yuki running towards them.
Unfortunately, they were unaware of the fact that he hadn't even noticed them.
Yuki darted straight past them without a greeting or even an acknowledging glance in their direction. He continued breathlessly over to Tohru, not stopping until he had enclosed her small form in his arms. He kneeled down in front of her, holding her tightly against his chest. Tohru sat there stiffly, crying and letting him stroke her hair. She pressed her face against his shirt, not bothering to fuss over what anyone else in the mall was thinking. Yuki gripped her worriedly, wondering what he had done to upset her.
"Tohru, what's the matter?" Yuki inquired anxiously.
"N-Nothing…" she sniffled.
"Why are you crying then?" he continued gently.
"I-I I-love you…. I-I…" Tohru stammered, avoiding his question.
"I love you too…" he reassured her.
"D-Do you really?"
"Yes. I really do. Now tell me, what made you cry?"
"Nothing… I'm okay…" Tohru smiled, withdrawing from his hold and swiping at her tears.
Yuki stood up and sat down beside her. He took her hand in his, squeezing it lightly. Her response hardly comforted him. He knew her better than to believe that. She was the type of person who didn't want to worry others, meaning she would rather keep her problems to herself and pretend to be happy when she was depressed, but he was aching to learn of the cause of her tears. Her crying wasn't something he enjoyed seeing, and knowing she'd rather not tell him the cause of her tears made it that much more difficult to punish the people to blame.
"But you were crying… Did I do something wrong?"
"No… Of course not… You did nothing wrong…." Tohru murmured.
"And the dress…?" Yuki questioned.
"I don't need it… It's pretty… But it'll never fit…."
Yuki didn't respond. He kept his thoughts to himself as he made plans to return to the mall sometime later in the week to get the dress he could tell she wanted. She was just too selfless to admit it. It'd make the perfect gift for her for the baby shower Uo and Hana were secretly planning to throw for Tohru –though it'd have nothing to do with the baby. She'd love it, although she'd complain endlessly, whine, and insist he take it back. In the end, she'd keep it, even if he had to refuse to return it or take it back for days.
"Ready to leave yet? …Or is there something else you would like to get after all?" he asked, trying to get her to admit to wanting the dress.
To his disappointment, Tohru simply agreed to the first and denied the second, oblivious to the connotation to the dress. She stood up, anxious about getting home on time now. She started towards him, but she paused in mid step. Tohru flushed, peering at his confused expression timidly. Yuki watched her for a minute, holding his hand out to her to urge her along. Tohru stayed put, too embarrassed to say anything for a brief moment.
"I-I need to go to the washroom…" Tohru admitted softly.
"All right. I'll wait here for you."
"Don't! You can go somewhere else! I can find you later! I-I might take a while!"
Tohru waved her hands in front of herself in protest. Letting him know where she had to go was humiliating enough. Yuki was considerate and he wouldn't mind waiting, but she didn't want him to have to wait around for her. He stared at her, confounded. At first, he didn't want to leave her alone just because she needed to go to the restroom, but thinking it through it for a second, he realized she had just given him the perfect opportunity to go pick up her gift. He could have thanked her, and he would have if it wouldn't have revealed his plans.
"Okay… But please don't look for me. We're going to get lost. If you don't want me to stand around here waiting for you, would you please stay here instead? I'll come back when I'm done getting something?"
"Okay," Tohru agreed before scurrying off to the bathroom.
Yuki ran off as soon as Tohru stepped inside the restroom. Unable to recollect where the store was located or even the name of it, he struggled to retrace his steps as quickly as he could. It took him a few minutes to even spot the store on the opposite side of the mall from where he was standing as he squeezed through the clumps of people with three bags in his arms. Yuki made his way over to the shop and bought the dress as rapidly as he could. Somehow, he managed to get back shortly after Tohru exited the washroom.
She noticed he was carrying a new bag in his hand along with all the others they had before as he ran towards her.
"What did you get?" Tohru asked curiously.
"Oh... You know. New clothes," he answered nonchalantly with a shrug.
She smiled, naturally assuming the clothes he had bought were for himself, but if she took a closer look at the black bag, she would have noticed the shop name was one for a female apparel shop and the same store she had been window shopping in not too long ago.
He took her hand in his, sliding the bags onto his wrist. Yuki led her away before she stared at the bag too long and recognized the name. Along their way, they passed three very depressed looking girls who couldn't even manage to smile when they saw their precious prince pass by them.
They could see he had chosen his princess, and he was happy with her, even though it wasn't one of them.