After the simple dinner at the restaurant around the corner, the night rounded off with a slow walk along river bank. Yes, the night was almost over and apparently, Kouji hadn't made any move yet. No heart-thumping confessions, no lip-locking, no cuddling or even hand-holding. And this was getting the gang impatient. Was Kouji getting cold-feet? Or maybe, (they silently decided), he just needed a little shove. And that was exactly what they gave him. Tasuki gave Kouji a shove towards Melody, and almost telepathically, he and everyone else disappeared as fast as they could. Miaka and Tamahome ran far ahead, whereas Chichiri, Tasuki and Yui fell behind the bushes in frenzy to find a convenient hiding place. Well, somehow in that frenzy, Yui fell on top of Tasuki who fell onto Chichiri. Ouch.
Now left alone, the soon-to-be couple could only look at each other in embarrassment. Then, Kouji was the first to break the awkward silence. "Ano… I have something to say…"
From the bushes, Yui, Tasuki, and Chichiri watched on in anticipation. This was it, the love confession! But no, they were wrong.
"…what I want to say is… You guys can just come out." Kouji finished.
"EHHH?!" This was not want they had expected. Sighing, Chichiri said, "Kouji is a coward, no da!"
"YEAAA!" Yui agreed heartily, with Tasuki nodding beside her, both in chibi-form.
Looking at each other, both Kouji and Melody started laughing heartily. "Seriously," Kouji managed between laughs, "THAT was funny! I mean the reaction on all of your faces, anticipating that something would happen? Man! It was hilarous!"
Confused, Tasuki, Yui and Chichiri just stared back. "What?"
"Ok, yes, Melody and I are a couple. Officially now, anyway. I actually asked her during dinner."
"EH?? Dinner? When?! How come we all never noticed??" The trio exclaimed.
Melody smiled coyly as she showed them a paper napkin, with Kouji's handwriting scrawled on it.
"It's just that you all were expecting so much and all that we decided to trick you guys." The couple explained, laughing together.
"Cheh! And I got sat on by a hippo for nothing." Tasuki grumbled.
"Just who are you calling a hippo?" Yui demanded, hitting Tasuki playfully on the arm.
"Ah, the lovers bicker. We should leave them to their private session of bickering." Chichiri laughed as the other couple nodded in agreement and quickly made themselves scarce by running ahead to join Taka and Miaka, leaving the bickering duo behind.
"Eh? Where did Chichiri, Kouji and Melody disappear to?" Yui asked, looking around for the others after Tasuki and Yui had called truce to their little "argument".
"Shoot! I think we've just been left behind on purpose. We should probably move faster." Tasuki replied as the duo quickened their pace.
"Or we may get lost?" Yui teased.
"Cheh! Are you forgetting that you are with an experienced bandit? A bandit like me never gets lost! After all, the wilderness is what we bandits call home." Tasuki boasted. Yui rolled her eyes at him but decided not to reply him for fear of further boosting his ego without any intention. The couple continued the rest of the journey back to the hotel in silence. As for the rest of the FY gang and Melody, they hurried back to the hotel and made sure to stay out of the couple's way for fear of facing 'immediate death' for setting the two of them up yet again.
--
"This is so no fun. Now, are you sure you remember where the hotel is?" Yui asked. "I don't remember crossing this bridge."
Tasuki scowled. "You don't second-guess a bandit. We're not lost. Just… Taking a longer route. You know, lighten up, and enjoy the scenery!"
Yui laughed. "Right. Did you bring your cell? I think it would be wiser to call the others."
"Um… Sure, but I don't see the need for it…" Tasuki grumbled as he pulled out his cell phone. "… Anyway, it's out of battery."
"What?!" Yui snatched his cell phone and stared hard at it. True enough, his cell phone was flat.
"Well, I don't see how staring at my cell phone will bring it back to life," Tasuki teased as he kept his cell phone back into his pocket.
"Haha," Yui said dryly but had to smile at his attempt in calming her down. "So how now, Mr I'm-Such-An-Experienced-Bandit-We-Won't-Get-Lost? Any idea?"
"Well, for starters, we can try and locate the main road first. That way, we can find our way back better." Tasuki instructed. Nodding her head, Yui obediently followed Tasuki and started looking for a way towards the main road.
While finding their way through the forest, Yui couldn't help but admire Tasuki. Despite them being hopelessly lost, Tasuki proved to be still in touch with his bandit ways. In no time at all, he successfully led them to the main road where they managed to hitch a ride back to the hotel. She didn't feel scared at all being lost in the forest. Instead, his presence made her feel safe. His messy orange hair and serious face made him look so adorable, she had to resist the urge of running her fingers through his hair. Wait, what was I thinking? Yui thought in alarm. Since when did she think of him as cute? Shaking her head, she forced herself not to look at Tasuki as they entered the hotel to head back to their respective rooms.
"Ok, so here we are." Tasuki's voice interrupted her thoughts. Looking up, Yui was surprised and almost reluctant to be standing right outside her room.
"Um… Yeah," she agreed. "Well, thanks for finding our way back. We almost had to camp outside in the wilderness! Haha…" Yui laughed lamely, trying hard to disguise her awkwardness with him.
"Ok, go get some sleep, shorty." Tasuki teased as he ruffled her hair affectionately before giving her a peck on the cheek which took her by surprise.
"Umm… Haha, good night. See you tomorrow." Yui laughed nervously as she retreated back into her room and closed the door behind her. Her fingers touched her cheek, tracing the ghost of his kiss, still feeling somewhat overwhelmed. Then, at the sudden realisation of her thoughts, she couldn't help but blush. What was wrong with her? It was just… Tasuki. Shaking her head, Yui changed into her PJs and crawled into bed, pulling the covers up to her chin. Tomorrow was going to be a long day- the official 'study' part of the trip was starting. Anyway, she was tired already; sleep should claim her anytime.
But an hour past, and then another hour, and Yui was still awake. Sighing, she shifted in her bed again. Why was it affecting her still? It was merely a peck on the cheek, a gesture of friendship. That was exactly what they were- friends. So she shouldn't be losing any sleep over this. And yet… She blushed at the memory of the kiss. She felt like a little girl at the candy store. How silly.
--
Shoot! Why did I do that? Meanwhile, Tasuki was smacking himself in the head with his pillow for the scene earlier. It was already past midnight in Paris and still, Tasuki had trouble sleeping, not due to jet lag. Being an ex-badit, he had been trained to be adaptable to his surroundings so sleeping at weird hours shouldn't be a problem to him. Yet here he was, wide awake, still troubled by the earlier scene. Why did I kiss her? It's not like I fancy her, right? Tasuki groaned. I hope I didn't scare her away. After all, it's just a friendly kiss, right?
The scene from earlier kept replaying on and on in his mind, just like a jammed tape recorder. He could still smell the strawberry-scented soap that she used. His head was full of images of Yui smiling, Yui blushing, Yui laughing… Yui, Yui, Yui! Damn! I really need to sleep! Tasuki groaned as he buried his face into his pillow and continued to toss and turn in bed, trying to sleep. Now, if he could only find the 'stop' button.