Of Kith and Kin: Chapter 6
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi! Thalia here with Chapter 6 as promised! E-MAIL ME WITH YOUR COMMENTS PLEASE!
I haven't been getting lots of e-mail lately and wanna know why and what you are
thinking about my work^_^!! Anyways, the address is smart_sweetlady@yahoo.com. I
wanna hear from you! As usual, all disclaimers apply, blahblahblah...on with the
story!! REMEMBER TO E-MAIL ME!!!!
-Thalia
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ami did not go back to her apartment, or to the hospital. She took the
cab straight to Serena's apartment. It was a Sunday, so Serena and Darien should
be home. She ran into the building and took the elevator up to the top floor.
Serena was home indeed, cooking spaghetti and meatballs in the kitchen
as Darien was setting the table. She heard a knock on the door, and opened it to
see her best friend, carrying her worn valise, standing in front of her. "Ami!
What a surprise! Darien, darling, Ami's here, set an extra place at the table!
How have you been, girl? We didn't expect you here, but you're welcome anyways,
like always. Thanks for com----" Ami was silent as Serena chattered amiably, and
Serena noticed her friend's pale, tragic face and stopped mid-sentence. Her face
becamse serious, and she quietly asked, "What happened?"
Ami gave a pathetic laugh, "Serena, can I stay here? I mean, I'll sleep
on the couch, I'll pay rent, do the cooking and laundry, anything. Can I just
stay here?"
Serena nodded mutely and Darien came out of the kitchen, both looking at
Ami with concern. "Of course you can stay. But can you tell us what's wrong?"
Ami shook her head silently and slowly, images of her and Zoisite once
again re-playing in her head...his voice, his smile, the way his eyes darkened
from jade to forest green when he looked at her, right before he kissed her....
She vaguely felt tears slipping down her cheeks. The tears turned to sobs, and
soon the always-cool, calm and collected Ami was crying like a heartbroken angel
in Serena's arms. The blonde woman looked at her friend's dejected face, heard
her whispering, "Zoisite! Oh, Zoisite!" brokenly as she wept. In a flash, she
understood. Ami had fallen in love with someone, and now had to part from him. A
wave of sympathy and understanding washed over her, and she gave Ami a hug.
Darien, gentlemanly as always, handed Ami a handkerchief and asked her
if there was anything he could do. Ami shook her head, then suddenly seemed to
recall something. She opened her handbag: inside was a CD in a CD case. She took
it out and showed it to Darien and Serena.
It was the smash hit debut album of "Fire and Ice". The cover of the CD
case had a simple yet arresting design: it was divided into two halves: one half
bright with flames surrounding Jay Summers' face, the other chill with icicles
about Zanth Winters' face. Suddenly, the calm, icy Ami returned, asserting her
control and shoving emotional Ami back. She swallowed, and coolly pointed to the
slightly melancholy but handsome face of Zanth Winters on the CD case. "If any
man even remotely resembling him looks for me at work, I'm not there. Do you two
understand?"
Serena and Darien nodded, rather confused. Ami's instructions were quite
unusual, but she likely had her own reasons.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Zoisite had gone wild when he saw Ami's note. How could she leave now,
when he needed her the most?! He stormed to her room in a fit of rage, intending
to fire poor Emily on the spot for letting her out. But the first thing he saw
in the room was the picture of his mother, with himself as a boy in her arms. He
took a deep breath...he could still smell the indefineable scent that seemed to
be uniquely Ami's...fresh and cool, invigorating, bracing, like a breeze wafting
inland from the sea, yet with a hint of sweetness like pure white waterlilies or
spring violets buried underneath it. He suddenly realized something: true love
was entirely selfless, it expected nothing, it was higher and holier than any
mortal desire could ever reach. If he truly loved her, he would not condemn her
for leaving. Love had no reasons, it just was. Zoisite, like his Ami had before
him, did something he had not done in a long, long time. He cried. Emily, simple
minded but sympathetic, watched him silently as he, a grown man, cried, burying
his handsome face in his hands, just like Miss Ami had done. She did not know
how to put it in words, but she somehow understood how Master Zoisite felt, how
Miss Ami felt. Breaching the servant-master boundary, she shyly touched him on
the shoulder. "Miss Ami loves you, Master Zoisite."
Zoisite looked up with red-rimmed green eyes at the small girl, her wide
eyes with a curious companionable light in them. "I loved her, Emily, dammit, I
LOVED HER!!"
Emily nodded, "I know, Master Zoisite, and she loved you back."
Zoisite started, "Back! Yes, I WILL get her back...I'll be damned if I
let her go so easily!"
Emily looked away, shaking her head slightly. "Nay, Master Zoisite, Miss
Ami can be anywhere in the world right now. If she had left you, you would not
find her." she whispered. But Zoisite was already gone.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Good morning, how may I help you?" Serena looked up with a smile. Then,
the smile faded and her blue eyes became huge. Here he was, in the flesh, with
no bodyguard, no disguise! She was looking at Zanth Winters, in the flesh! He
was a handsome devil, all right, but his eyes...they looked so...so...beaten. A
patient in the waiting area recognized him and gave a soft shriek. Lightning-
fast, she took a crayon from the children's play table and a napkin, and with a
string of breathless exclamations and adorations flying from her mouth, she went
up to him for his autograph. He perfunctorily signed the napkin, "Zanth Winters"
in a neat handwriting, and gave the fan a forced smile. The girl chattered about
nothing for a few minutes, then, blushing when she realized that he had come on
some urgent business, ran off. Serena's suspicions were confirmed. This was the
man all right. He turned to her, and asked humbly, "Is Ami Mizuno in?"
Serena shook her head silently. The tiny glimmer of hope in the man's
eyes faded. He sighed, "Well, if she shows, please tell her that I was looking
for her."
Serena nodded, and Zoisite, looking about to make sure that there were
no paparazzi lining the street, got into the navy Lexus next to Waters and left
the clinic.
He came every morning, always asking for Ami. More and more autographs
had to be signed. Once, a gaggle of paparazzi reporters, alerted by some fans,
also came, and blocked the door. Zoisite looked at them wearily. He was NOT in
the mood for this...Ami did not show up at work any more...she knew that he'd be
looking for her there...what a miserable day! Serena, taking pity on him, and
worrying about what effects the crowds may have on the patients, called for the
security guards to clear the crowd. Zoisite barely made it out the door, but he
came again the next day...and the next...
Serena was desperate. Every evening she would find herself begging Ami
on his behalf to talk to him, to straighten things out. "Come now, Ami, he's no
fool, and I'm not a good liar. Besides, with all these crowds at the clinic, the
patients..."
Ami would apologize, but remain adamant about her stance. Serena would
become upset, but to no avail.
Darien, seeing the situation, decided to step in so that Zoisite would
stop pestering Serena. The next morning, once again, Zoisite entered the clinic
after signing a dozen or so autographs for the faithful fans camped out at the
door, but this time, Zoisite found his path to the receptionist's desk blocked..
not by fans, but by a tall, black-haired doctor in a white lab coat embroidered
with the name, "Dr. D. Chiba". He immediately recognized the man as that doctor,
whom Ami had come home with, late, that day...the name...that doctor that his
father had hinted...and what was he saying?
"Pardon?" Zoisite said.
Darien repeated his statement with finality in his voice. "Please do not
come to bother my fiancee any more."
Zoisite's face turned snowy white. His face contorted, almost as if in
physical pain, and he left.
The fans and paparazzi were disappointed the next morning. Zanth Winters
did not show up. And he never came again.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Duhn duhn duhn!! That's all for Chapter 6! Enjoyed? Yes? No? Send me your e-mail
to smart_sweetlady@yahoo.com!! Anyways, more coming up in a week or two! More
twists in this already convoluted plot...lol....see ya then!! And repeat after
me..."I will e-mail Thalia TODAY and tell her just what I thought of her work!!"
Have fun!!
-Thalia
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Hi! Thalia here with Chapter 6 as promised! E-MAIL ME WITH YOUR COMMENTS PLEASE!
I haven't been getting lots of e-mail lately and wanna know why and what you are
thinking about my work^_^!! Anyways, the address is smart_sweetlady@yahoo.com. I
wanna hear from you! As usual, all disclaimers apply, blahblahblah...on with the
story!! REMEMBER TO E-MAIL ME!!!!
-Thalia
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ami did not go back to her apartment, or to the hospital. She took the
cab straight to Serena's apartment. It was a Sunday, so Serena and Darien should
be home. She ran into the building and took the elevator up to the top floor.
Serena was home indeed, cooking spaghetti and meatballs in the kitchen
as Darien was setting the table. She heard a knock on the door, and opened it to
see her best friend, carrying her worn valise, standing in front of her. "Ami!
What a surprise! Darien, darling, Ami's here, set an extra place at the table!
How have you been, girl? We didn't expect you here, but you're welcome anyways,
like always. Thanks for com----" Ami was silent as Serena chattered amiably, and
Serena noticed her friend's pale, tragic face and stopped mid-sentence. Her face
becamse serious, and she quietly asked, "What happened?"
Ami gave a pathetic laugh, "Serena, can I stay here? I mean, I'll sleep
on the couch, I'll pay rent, do the cooking and laundry, anything. Can I just
stay here?"
Serena nodded mutely and Darien came out of the kitchen, both looking at
Ami with concern. "Of course you can stay. But can you tell us what's wrong?"
Ami shook her head silently and slowly, images of her and Zoisite once
again re-playing in her head...his voice, his smile, the way his eyes darkened
from jade to forest green when he looked at her, right before he kissed her....
She vaguely felt tears slipping down her cheeks. The tears turned to sobs, and
soon the always-cool, calm and collected Ami was crying like a heartbroken angel
in Serena's arms. The blonde woman looked at her friend's dejected face, heard
her whispering, "Zoisite! Oh, Zoisite!" brokenly as she wept. In a flash, she
understood. Ami had fallen in love with someone, and now had to part from him. A
wave of sympathy and understanding washed over her, and she gave Ami a hug.
Darien, gentlemanly as always, handed Ami a handkerchief and asked her
if there was anything he could do. Ami shook her head, then suddenly seemed to
recall something. She opened her handbag: inside was a CD in a CD case. She took
it out and showed it to Darien and Serena.
It was the smash hit debut album of "Fire and Ice". The cover of the CD
case had a simple yet arresting design: it was divided into two halves: one half
bright with flames surrounding Jay Summers' face, the other chill with icicles
about Zanth Winters' face. Suddenly, the calm, icy Ami returned, asserting her
control and shoving emotional Ami back. She swallowed, and coolly pointed to the
slightly melancholy but handsome face of Zanth Winters on the CD case. "If any
man even remotely resembling him looks for me at work, I'm not there. Do you two
understand?"
Serena and Darien nodded, rather confused. Ami's instructions were quite
unusual, but she likely had her own reasons.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Zoisite had gone wild when he saw Ami's note. How could she leave now,
when he needed her the most?! He stormed to her room in a fit of rage, intending
to fire poor Emily on the spot for letting her out. But the first thing he saw
in the room was the picture of his mother, with himself as a boy in her arms. He
took a deep breath...he could still smell the indefineable scent that seemed to
be uniquely Ami's...fresh and cool, invigorating, bracing, like a breeze wafting
inland from the sea, yet with a hint of sweetness like pure white waterlilies or
spring violets buried underneath it. He suddenly realized something: true love
was entirely selfless, it expected nothing, it was higher and holier than any
mortal desire could ever reach. If he truly loved her, he would not condemn her
for leaving. Love had no reasons, it just was. Zoisite, like his Ami had before
him, did something he had not done in a long, long time. He cried. Emily, simple
minded but sympathetic, watched him silently as he, a grown man, cried, burying
his handsome face in his hands, just like Miss Ami had done. She did not know
how to put it in words, but she somehow understood how Master Zoisite felt, how
Miss Ami felt. Breaching the servant-master boundary, she shyly touched him on
the shoulder. "Miss Ami loves you, Master Zoisite."
Zoisite looked up with red-rimmed green eyes at the small girl, her wide
eyes with a curious companionable light in them. "I loved her, Emily, dammit, I
LOVED HER!!"
Emily nodded, "I know, Master Zoisite, and she loved you back."
Zoisite started, "Back! Yes, I WILL get her back...I'll be damned if I
let her go so easily!"
Emily looked away, shaking her head slightly. "Nay, Master Zoisite, Miss
Ami can be anywhere in the world right now. If she had left you, you would not
find her." she whispered. But Zoisite was already gone.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Good morning, how may I help you?" Serena looked up with a smile. Then,
the smile faded and her blue eyes became huge. Here he was, in the flesh, with
no bodyguard, no disguise! She was looking at Zanth Winters, in the flesh! He
was a handsome devil, all right, but his eyes...they looked so...so...beaten. A
patient in the waiting area recognized him and gave a soft shriek. Lightning-
fast, she took a crayon from the children's play table and a napkin, and with a
string of breathless exclamations and adorations flying from her mouth, she went
up to him for his autograph. He perfunctorily signed the napkin, "Zanth Winters"
in a neat handwriting, and gave the fan a forced smile. The girl chattered about
nothing for a few minutes, then, blushing when she realized that he had come on
some urgent business, ran off. Serena's suspicions were confirmed. This was the
man all right. He turned to her, and asked humbly, "Is Ami Mizuno in?"
Serena shook her head silently. The tiny glimmer of hope in the man's
eyes faded. He sighed, "Well, if she shows, please tell her that I was looking
for her."
Serena nodded, and Zoisite, looking about to make sure that there were
no paparazzi lining the street, got into the navy Lexus next to Waters and left
the clinic.
He came every morning, always asking for Ami. More and more autographs
had to be signed. Once, a gaggle of paparazzi reporters, alerted by some fans,
also came, and blocked the door. Zoisite looked at them wearily. He was NOT in
the mood for this...Ami did not show up at work any more...she knew that he'd be
looking for her there...what a miserable day! Serena, taking pity on him, and
worrying about what effects the crowds may have on the patients, called for the
security guards to clear the crowd. Zoisite barely made it out the door, but he
came again the next day...and the next...
Serena was desperate. Every evening she would find herself begging Ami
on his behalf to talk to him, to straighten things out. "Come now, Ami, he's no
fool, and I'm not a good liar. Besides, with all these crowds at the clinic, the
patients..."
Ami would apologize, but remain adamant about her stance. Serena would
become upset, but to no avail.
Darien, seeing the situation, decided to step in so that Zoisite would
stop pestering Serena. The next morning, once again, Zoisite entered the clinic
after signing a dozen or so autographs for the faithful fans camped out at the
door, but this time, Zoisite found his path to the receptionist's desk blocked..
not by fans, but by a tall, black-haired doctor in a white lab coat embroidered
with the name, "Dr. D. Chiba". He immediately recognized the man as that doctor,
whom Ami had come home with, late, that day...the name...that doctor that his
father had hinted...and what was he saying?
"Pardon?" Zoisite said.
Darien repeated his statement with finality in his voice. "Please do not
come to bother my fiancee any more."
Zoisite's face turned snowy white. His face contorted, almost as if in
physical pain, and he left.
The fans and paparazzi were disappointed the next morning. Zanth Winters
did not show up. And he never came again.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Duhn duhn duhn!! That's all for Chapter 6! Enjoyed? Yes? No? Send me your e-mail
to smart_sweetlady@yahoo.com!! Anyways, more coming up in a week or two! More
twists in this already convoluted plot...lol....see ya then!! And repeat after
me..."I will e-mail Thalia TODAY and tell her just what I thought of her work!!"
Have fun!!
-Thalia