Two in one day! YAY! I am so into this. Please forgive me for
putting off my other fic! ^_^ Love ya all!
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Without You
By: FayeValentine00 (Sarah-chan)
Chapter 3
At ten o'clock that night, we all decided to head back out to the
water so the men and women spilt up and Kagura and I were able to
talk to each other in peace and quiet. We sat far away from the
wall that separated the men and women's side and then I turned to
Kagura with a smile.
"I'm so happy for you and Kyo! I hope that you guys are
really happy."
"Oh, we are! Kyo might seem angry all the time when Yun-chan
and the others are around but when we're alone, he's
different."
"That's great." My mind wandered for a moment back to
the time when I lived at Shigure's house. Life then had seemed so
simple and full of joy. Now I just felt worn down. What had
happened? As soon as I asked myself that question, I already knew
the answer. I'd left the Sohma home. That's exactly what had
happened.
"Tohru, are you alright?" Kagura's question pulled me
from my thoughts and I tried my best to forget my thoughts and
look up to her with a reassuring smile.
"Y-Yes. I'm fine! I was just thinking."
"Do you realize how much they miss you?"
"Huh?"
"Shigure, Yuki and Kyo. ... Not to mention the rest of the
family. They were lost when you left. I tried to go over to
Shigure's home more often and help with the cooking and cleaning
but it wasn't the same. Your presence and smile made that house
into a home."
"No, Kagura. You give me too much credit. I was a burden on
them for far too long! I can't allow them to take care of me
forever."
"You were never a burden, Tohru. Don't you see that!?"
She gave me a firm, determined look. "You made a group of
people who all just happened to share the same name and curse
into family.
"But..."
"Wait. ... Before you speak again, listen to me." I
looked up at Kagura in amazement. She'd matured a lot over the
years and had even become a little less violent. She'd really
become like a big sister and I was thankful to have her here with
me again. Maybe she'd be able to help me with my workplace
issues.
"Okay. I'll listen."
"Yuki has been lost without you. He's been miserable even
since you left. I think today was the first day I've even seem
him smile since that day. He doesn't talk to anyone and Shigure
even made Hatori come over to make sure that he wasn't getting
ill."
"Is he okay?!" My mind was racing. Why was Yuki so
upset! I thought of him everyday but there was no way that Yuki
could be thinking about me that often as well.
"He was fine but he hasn't been the same at all since you
left."
"Maybe I can talk to him."
"Yeah but ... but." She broke off and looked at me
strangely a moment before speaking again in a softer voice.
"What's bothering you?"
"N-Nothing. I'm fine."
"You got a distant look in your eyes just a moment ago and
it worried me. You don't look relaxed at all, even though we are
all together again. I've never seen you like this before. ... Is
there anything I can do to help?"
"Well, ... Ummm ... It's just..." Tears began to form
in the corners of my eyes and I couldn't find the words to speak.
"Tohru?..." Kagura whispered my name softly in concern
when she realized how really upset I was. She looked confused but
instead of speaking, she just took me in her arms and hugged me
tightly.
"I'm not very happy in Tokyo." I confessed softly as
Kagura tried to soothe me by running her fingers lightly through
my hair.
"What's wrong?"
After taking a moment to gather my thoughts, I told her about the
busy life of Tokyo, my tiny apartment, and even about my boss,
Mr. Fujisawa. When I finished my story, Kagura pulled me away and
wiped the tears from my eyes. She looked at me firmly but spoke
with empathy.
"Tohru, come home."
"I can't. ... I have to be able to live on my own. They
can't be expected to take care of me forever."
"But, what about your boss?!" She looked at me with
mild panic in her eyes.
"I don't know but I'll have to figure out something."
"We have to tell the boys!"
"No!! You can't!!" I threw my hands up quickly and
looked at Kagura pleadingly. "They will only get
upset!"
"But Tohru---" She started to speak but I cut her off.
"Please, Kagura."
She didn't speak for a moment and gave me a firm expression
before she slumped her shoulders in defeat. "Fine, I will
not tell then while you are here but once you are back in Tokyo,
the promise is off."
I wanted to argue with her but that stubborn look in her eyes
told me that I'd lose no matter what so I simply nodded my head
in agreement.
"Tohru, please be careful."
I nodded and gave Kagura a big hug when she looked at me with
heavy concern. "I promise."
The next morning, I woke up early and was happy to see that no
one else was awake yet. I quietly got dressed while trying not to
wake Kagura and then made my way downstairs to the kitchen. When
I saw that the coast was clear, I let myself inside and went to
work at making the best breakfast that I could come up with since
it'd been so long since I'd cooked for anyone other then myself.
As I was doing the finishing touches, I heard two sets of
thundering foot steps come down the hall and stop just inside the
kitchen doorway. When I turned around to greet Yuki and Kyo, I
had a big smile on my face.
"Am I still dreaming?" Yuki asked me with a shocked
expression on his face.
"If you are dreaming, so am I." Kyo spoke with an
equally shocked expression.
I laughed lightly at my two friends who looked so happy.
"You're not dreaming. I wanted to make you breakfast since I
have to go back to Tokyo this afternoon."
Both men seemed to frown in thought for a moment when I mentioned
returning to Tokyo so I quickly changed the subject.
"Will you help me set the table?"
"Yes." Both men agreed in unison.
20 minutes later, Momiji, Kagura, Yuki, Kyo and I sat down for
breakfast. We spoke excitedly about what we'd been doing for the
last several months. It was fun and I hadn't laughed so hard in a
long time.
"Momiji, Kyo, Yuki, Kagura! Are you home?!" Shigure's
voice suddenly rang out from the front portion of the building.
"Why are you yelling? Why don't you just go look?" I
heard Hatori's voice softly through the wall and it was obvious
that Shigure must have been trying his patience for the entire
trip.
"We're in here!" Momiji called out to the men loudly.
"Hey, who's car was in the parking lot?" Shigure asked
the moment that he appeared in the doorway.
"It's mine." I jumped to my feel with a big smile on my
face.
Hatori had walked into view by then and they both looked at me in
shock.
"Tohru! I thought I smelled your wonderful cooking!"
Shigure's face seemed to light up with happiness.
"Don't lie." Hatori muttered to Shigure before turning
to me with a soft expression. "How are you?"
"I'm great. It's so nice to see you! I made some extra food
just in case you came. Are you hungry?"
"You're so wonderful, Tohru! I'm starving. Hatori refused to
stop the entire trip."
"You ate before we left." Hatori rolled his eyes before
sitting down next to Momiji and turning to me again with a
pleasant expression. "I'd love some food. Thank you."
"Okay!" I ran into the kitchen and brought out the two
extra plates of food that I'd prepared for the older men.
After eating, everyone sat around the table talking. I felt like
I was home again. Everyone seemed really interested in my life in
Tokyo so I gave then the softer, happy version of my life there,
instead of the truth. I noticed Kagura's expression as I spoke
and I knew that she was biting her tongue but it couldn't be
helped. I didn't want any of the men to worry about me. I just
had to make them think that everything was alright. Then it would
all be okay, right?
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Next Chapter - Good-byes and the return to Tokyo
