A'N: The awaited continuation of my story!!What's gonna happen to Youko??Hope you like it!! R&R

Previously on Reaching True Feelings:Kaoru looked away and put a hand over her face, biting back her tears. Youko didn't say anything. "We've kept our relationship a secret until now. And I don't care anymore. I love him. Okay?! I said it!" Kaoru shot back, no longer hiding her emotions, tears streaming down her face. Youko wanted to comfort her but because of the fact that she was talking about something that hurt him as well, he couldn't stand it. He said nothing, exited her house, and stormed off in his car… Kaoru watched him go, saddened that he had to find out the truth in the way that he did.

Kaoru felt herself sink to the floor, face buried in her two hands. "Oh Kami-sama… I can't believe that Tsukane told him like that…" She said to herself as she sniffled a few times before she found the strength to stand up and hold off on crying for a few seconds. The tears wouldn't stop, though. She had betrayed and lied to a friend and there was nothing that could be done about it now. She walked outside onto her porch and sat down, inhaling the fresh air. What have I done to deserve something like this? Why must I suffer this kind of pain? All I did was try and love a man. All I did was love unconditionally. Does all love lead to pain? Kaoru had been too wrapped up in thinking about the present situation that she didn't even here a car pull up. Obviously it was Kenshin but she wasn't aware that he had arrived until he had gotten out of his car and firmly shut his car door.

"…Kaoru?" Kenshin asked worriedly as he ran up to her, worry numbing his entire body as he watched her cry. "Kaoru-koishii, what's the matter?" Kenshin asked as he held her shoulders and rocked her back and forth ever gently. She looked at him with bloodshot blue eyes and said nothing. "Please answer me. You're scaring me…"

"Youko knows!" Kaoru blurted out as she stood up, as did Kenshin. "Oh, Kenshin…he knows that I love you and I broke his heart…" She wrapped her arms around him and started to bawl, face leaning hard and heavily against his chest. "I told him that we were in love only because he had heard it from Tsukane first. She had the nerve to go over to his house, tell him personally, and then try to seduce him…" Kenshin's eyes narrowed and he held onto her as tightly as he possibly could without actually hurting her. "Kenshin… he came over here and asked me about it and I confessed to him. I couldn't lie to him any longer. I'm so sorry for telling."

"I don't want you to ever be sorry for anything again," Kenshin cooed as he placed a finger under her chin so that he could easily meet her lips. It was a gentle and tender sort of kiss used only to calm Kaoru down. "If you were in this much pain, I would have definitely wanted you to tell him… and now that he knows, maybe things will be a little easier on you…" Kaoru shook Kenshin as she roughly took a hold of his shoulders. "I promise, Kaoru… things will be better. It is almost time for graduation. We will be with each other afterwards. I'll move wherever you have to go for college. I have property in Kyoto. We can go there…" He wiped the tears off of Kaoru's face with his right thumb, smiling kindly at her.

"You make it seem as if we don't have anymore problems to face…"

"Kaoru…I'm sure that there will be things that we have to overcome… but don't let those horrible things drive you mad up to the point where you don't care about anything anymore…" Kenshin whispered. "I love you so much and I will do anything and everything to make sure that you are happy."

"I am happy with you. You don't need to do anymore for me. It's Youko that I'm worried about. He's the one that's not happy…" Kenshin nodded. "He's my friend…he deserves a shot at happiness but I ruined it, didn't I?" The redhead shook his head and held her in his arms again. She let herself fall prisoner to him and fell limp in his firm but passionate hold. "Kenshin…I don't want this to happen to him. It's almost as if everyone is in high spirits except for him. I'm the one who did this to him."

Kenshin disagreed with her and pecked her several times on the lips, Kaoru too upset to follow through with his sensual kisses and caresses. "Do you want to rest? Take your mind off things?" She slowly nodded. "Okay…I'll take you back and pamper you. A massage, the works, you name it. Sound good?" Kaoru's smile shortly returned.


They were in the car and had decided to drive to Kenshin's house locally rather than using the thruway, which was usually filled with traffic. And besides, it was much more quiet and peaceful when driven through local areas during the evening hours. He looked at Kaoru trying to rest out of the tail of his eye and smiled. She looked so innocent when in fact he knew she wasn't entirely. He had wanted to kiss her, taste that 'innocent' woman who sat right beside him but put that thought in the back of his head. She was obviously not feeling well in the least bit and he didn't want to put stress on her. "Kaoru…just a little further and you'll be able to sleep all you want."

Suddenly, Kenshin's speed dramatically decreased and he poked his head out of his wide open window. "What? At 10 at night? You've got to be kidding me…" He muttered under his breath as he let out a heavy sigh. Kaoru looked at him worriedly and he shrugged lethargically. "Traffic. Here. On local roads of all places…" Kaoru nodded and leaned back into her seat. Apparently she would have to wait a while before she slept. "If you want, you could sleep in the car. It looks like this traffic is headed straight for my street, that it is." Kaoru nodded.

"Maybe it won't be as long as you think…"

"I just hope no one got into a serious accident." Kaoru nodded in agreement and the two sat in silence for a considerable amount of time, Kenshin occasionally letting out the aggravated moan, Kaoru looking down and twiddling her thumbs. She saw how annoyed Kenshin was because of the traffic and placed a hand onto his. Amethyst eyes wandered over to his hand and noticed that she was trying to relieve tension. He smiled. She knew him well. "Don't tease me, Kaoru-koishii," Kenshin said jokingly as he held onto her hand. Her touch alone was something that made him feel better. Her touch spoke volumes according to him. And said contact did much more than that as well.

The cars began to move again and Kenshin sighed a sigh of relief, moving his sports car forwards slightly… until they had to stop yet again. "I don't understand what this could be, Kenshin. And so late at night too… well, actually…" She stopped and began to think. "It's prom night…anything could happen because of that." Kenshin reluctantly agreed. He didn't want to believe that teenagers could get piss drunk and then waste their lives in accidents that could have been prevented. But they were fully capable of doing so. Kaoru looked down and tapped her foot against her car door. "I can't help but worry…"

Kenshin was about to take a detour but saw that the cars were beginning to move again. Good. Pressing down onto the gas pedal, his car slowly but surely made its way forward, reaching the end of the block where the holdup took place. Both Kenshin and Kaoru noticed the flashing lights of an ambulance and Kaoru put a hand over her mouth. "Oh, Kami-sama…" She muttered under her breath as she noticed a person being hauled onto a stretcher. "I can't believe this…" She said as she looked out of Kenshin's window, feeling as if they should try and do something to help. "He looks so…young…"

Kenshin too looked at the person on the stretcher. It was a man. He was covered in blood from his collarbone all the way down to his waist. It looked as if the car itself was totaled and a miracle that the driver was still alive. As for the other car hit in the accident, it was obviously totaled, rammed in between the opposing car and a tree. "Ohh…" Kenshin muttered as he saw the second man come out, completely unharmed and staggering to and fro. He was a drunk driver and had hit a completely innocent person, possibly causing said person to lose their life. And once he let his eyes wander to the person in the stretcher again, he felt his heart stop. "Ohh…no…" He said as he immediately moved his car and parked it parallel to where the accident took place.

"Kenshin…what's the matter? You look so pale…" Kaoru said worriedly as she looked directly into his amethyst eyes. "Kenshin? Please tell me what's wrong!" She took his hands in hers and lightly shook him.

"Kaoru…please don't get scared when I tell you this…" He said as he avoided eye contact by looking at his dashboard. She nodded and waited for him to continue. "The man on the stretcher who seemed to be in bad shape…I know who he is…" Kaoru arched an eyebrow, obviously confused. "It was difficult for me to tell but once I saw him, there was no mistaking it that he was…Youko…" Kaoru's eyes suddenly widened to three times their normal size. She felt as if her body went numb and had forgotten how to function. Kenshin shut his eyes and said no more. He didn't want Kaoru to hurt anymore.

"I'm not going to take this!" She cried as she flung open her car door and looked straight at the body. It was Youko and there was no way that her eyes were deceiving her. "Youko!" She cried as she ran across the street and up to the stretcher. Two paramedics instantaneously approached her, wondering why she would do such a thing. "Please, I beg of you…" She began.

"We don't know who you are or where the heck you've come from. You think we'll fulfill requests from some kid like you?" One paramedic said coldly as he tried to shoo Kaoru away.

"No! You don't understand! I know this boy! I swear I do!" The female paramedic crossed her arms and allowed Kaoru to continue with her story, obviously the kinder hearted out of the two. "I don't know how he got into this accident but he told me, this was his new car…and…and…" Kaoru put a hand up to her head. "His name is Tasekano Youko! Look for yourself! I'm sure he has his license and ID with him." The woman carefully lifted the white sheet loosely draped over his body and reached into his pocket, pulling out his wallet. She scanned his identification card and license.

"Even if you know his name, you would not be able to come into this ambulance unless permission would be granted by this boy, which of course is impossible, seeing how he looks to be unconscious." Kaoru shook her head and the tears rolled down her cheeks again. "Excuse me, ma'am. I'm sorry but we must get him to the emergency room so if you please… Back away from th--"

"Ka…oru…" Youko said as his face scrunched up, obviously in sheer pain. Kaoru and the two paramedics looked at him in shock. Apparently, his will to live was very strong. "Kaoru…what…are you…doing here?" Kaoru walked over to him and took his hand in hers, shaking her head.

"Please…I beg of you…" Kaoru said one last time, "please let me ride in the ambulance with him. I have to make sure that he is all right. It is partially my fault that he is in this state…"

"Why are you telling us all this?" The woman inquired.

"Because I'm praying that if I do, you'll let me be with my friend…" The paramedics thought for a moment and the female reluctantly nodded, granting her permission to come along with them. "Oh Kami-sama! Arigatou Gozaimasu!!" Kaoru cried out, looking back down at Youko, eyes closed. His car was totaled. Prom night wasn't as magical as he believed it would be. But at least he knew the truth and Kaoru had hoped that that was good enough. "Youko…I promise… well, I know that it might not mean much to you now but… I promise to stay by your side…tomodachi…"

A/N: What's gonna happen to Youko? Can't sa-ay! Hope you liked it though. Kinda sudden? You bet! Ciao!!

Son Christine