A kiss.
One moment of weakness.
One moment given over to passion.
One moment where his years of self-discipline amounted to nothing.
It was odd. He always imagined their first kiss would be after some grandiose event. His mind wandered back to the books he read to fall asleep during the Bakumatsu. There was one, a book about the dark ages in the West, that he was especially fond of. He could not read the words, but the pictures of strange armored men fought large dragons and rescued beautiful ladies fueled his imagination. The few times he allowed himself to dream he'd dreamed there was a beautiful lady for him to rescue.
He thought he'd found that beautiful lady in Tomoe. And for the briefest time he had. But he had been no knight in shining armor for his wife. Instead he was her dragon, cruelly snatching away her brave knight. And in turn, she had been snatched away from him.
Then he had begun the slow transformation from dragon to knight. Ten years of penance. Ten years traveling as a dragon desperately trying to fit into a knight's armor.
Then he had met her, an angel of mercy, part sweaty tomboy swords-master, part brave and reckless teenager, and part goddess.
And he'd loved her – every part of her, even the sweaty tomboy. God, how he'd loved her. Not at first, of course. He never was one for love at first sight. But there was a definite attraction, an attraction which slowly turned into a deep and lasting love, at least on his part. He never knew if she felt the same way. In many ways, he hoped she hadn't. He was so unworthy. He would die for her in an instant. He would travel to the ends of the earth just to make her happy and to keep her safe. And in his mind, the best way for both was to stay near her but only as a friend. He was fooling himself of course. If that were really the case, he would leave Tokyo for good. He wanted to be with her. He wanted to hold her, to kiss her, to whisper into her ear how much he loved her.
He always imagined their first kiss would be after some grandiose event. But it wasn't. It was the early evening in spring. The cherry blossoms were in full bloom. The sun was setting, and they were alone. Walking back from the Akaebo, Kaoru had been especially quiet. She seemed truly at peace for the first time since her abduction by Enishi. So peaceful and so beautiful. Yahiko and Sano were walking ahead while he lagged behind with Kaoru.
Her lips looked so inviting. Whether she noticed his gaze or not he couldn't tell, but the next moment, she licked her lips. That's when his self-discipline crumbled. He stopped suddenly and slipped his hand onto her shoulder. As she turned to meet his gaze, he leaned in and kissed her.
There was nothing spectacular about the kiss per se. It was closed-mouthed and ended too quickly. Some would have even considered it prudish. But for Himura Kenshin and Kamiya Kaoru for whom a simple hug or holding of hands would elicit deep emotional responses, it was as if their souls had met for one brief instant.
Kenshin pulled back and gazed at Kaoru's expression. He almost expected shock or anger. God knows he deserved it for having dared touch such a flawless beauty with his unworthy lips. But there was no anger. There was some shock, of course. The abruptness of the kiss left the girl stunned. But soon, the shock wore off and a smile grew in its place.
To Kenshin, it seemed to be a smile of acceptance of all his past mistakes, and perhaps, even of his future ones. Kaoru closed her eyes, pulled one of his arms around her shoulders and rested her head on his chest.
Amid the chirping of the crickets and the chatter of their friends ahead, the couple walked home silently. No words were necessary.
~THE END~
One moment of weakness.
One moment given over to passion.
One moment where his years of self-discipline amounted to nothing.
It was odd. He always imagined their first kiss would be after some grandiose event. His mind wandered back to the books he read to fall asleep during the Bakumatsu. There was one, a book about the dark ages in the West, that he was especially fond of. He could not read the words, but the pictures of strange armored men fought large dragons and rescued beautiful ladies fueled his imagination. The few times he allowed himself to dream he'd dreamed there was a beautiful lady for him to rescue.
He thought he'd found that beautiful lady in Tomoe. And for the briefest time he had. But he had been no knight in shining armor for his wife. Instead he was her dragon, cruelly snatching away her brave knight. And in turn, she had been snatched away from him.
Then he had begun the slow transformation from dragon to knight. Ten years of penance. Ten years traveling as a dragon desperately trying to fit into a knight's armor.
Then he had met her, an angel of mercy, part sweaty tomboy swords-master, part brave and reckless teenager, and part goddess.
And he'd loved her – every part of her, even the sweaty tomboy. God, how he'd loved her. Not at first, of course. He never was one for love at first sight. But there was a definite attraction, an attraction which slowly turned into a deep and lasting love, at least on his part. He never knew if she felt the same way. In many ways, he hoped she hadn't. He was so unworthy. He would die for her in an instant. He would travel to the ends of the earth just to make her happy and to keep her safe. And in his mind, the best way for both was to stay near her but only as a friend. He was fooling himself of course. If that were really the case, he would leave Tokyo for good. He wanted to be with her. He wanted to hold her, to kiss her, to whisper into her ear how much he loved her.
He always imagined their first kiss would be after some grandiose event. But it wasn't. It was the early evening in spring. The cherry blossoms were in full bloom. The sun was setting, and they were alone. Walking back from the Akaebo, Kaoru had been especially quiet. She seemed truly at peace for the first time since her abduction by Enishi. So peaceful and so beautiful. Yahiko and Sano were walking ahead while he lagged behind with Kaoru.
Her lips looked so inviting. Whether she noticed his gaze or not he couldn't tell, but the next moment, she licked her lips. That's when his self-discipline crumbled. He stopped suddenly and slipped his hand onto her shoulder. As she turned to meet his gaze, he leaned in and kissed her.
There was nothing spectacular about the kiss per se. It was closed-mouthed and ended too quickly. Some would have even considered it prudish. But for Himura Kenshin and Kamiya Kaoru for whom a simple hug or holding of hands would elicit deep emotional responses, it was as if their souls had met for one brief instant.
Kenshin pulled back and gazed at Kaoru's expression. He almost expected shock or anger. God knows he deserved it for having dared touch such a flawless beauty with his unworthy lips. But there was no anger. There was some shock, of course. The abruptness of the kiss left the girl stunned. But soon, the shock wore off and a smile grew in its place.
To Kenshin, it seemed to be a smile of acceptance of all his past mistakes, and perhaps, even of his future ones. Kaoru closed her eyes, pulled one of his arms around her shoulders and rested her head on his chest.
Amid the chirping of the crickets and the chatter of their friends ahead, the couple walked home silently. No words were necessary.
~THE END~