This Sunday I'll be 21. Yes, I'm that old already. I became a solid RK fan only a little before I turned 18. ^_^
Disclaimer: RK ain't mine, but the fic IS all mine.
Thanks, guys, for coming to my defense. ^_^ About requests for Y/T and A/M, we'll see. I don't know about S/M, since Sano is out of the country.
Have any of you guys seen Vandread? Thank goodness it's on right now. Ezra (Ezura) is a very good reference character!
(reformatted)
………………………………..
The doctor concluded his monthly check on Kaoru's progress. He nodded every so often, and smiled as he noted his findings in his chart. Everything about him assured the expectant young mother that everything was in order. This was going to be a good day, Kaoru felt.
The summer leaves had all turned orange, red, yellow, and brown. Many of those leaves had already fallen, as autumn crept its way into everyone's lives. The air was now crisp and cool, even in the late morning.
Oddly enough, Kaoru was not feeling too chilly. Rather, she was wondering why the sensei was rubbing his hands every so often, when she felt fine. She also saw this in her husband. He always wrapped up in a blanket faster than she did. She shrugged this off as probably another side-effect of being pregnant, and for the most part she was right.
But the doctor faced her again with those ominous eyes, full of grave intent. The last time she saw eyes like those, they were on Saitou Hajime, when Kaoru first met him as Fujita Goro. Suddenly she felt a cold breeze run through her body.
"Himura-san," the doctor began. "Now is a good time to file your maternity leave."
"But, but, sensei!" Kaoru protested. "I have to work!"
"If you were a storekeeper or a schoolteacher, Himura-san, I would allow you to keep working until you were almost ready to give birth," the doctor explained. "However, you are a kendo teacher, and you use your whole body to its utmost to be a good teacher. If you continue to work, not only would that be dangerous to your child, it would also be dangerous to you. At any rate, your baby's growth will soon be slowing you down, and you would definitely be unable to teach. Therefore, I suggest that before you have any more trouble with your schools, you had better file your leave of absence."
Each word fell on the kendo master like a large brick. Kendo was everything she had known, and the only thing she did well. And yet, she was being asked –no, forced—to give it up. Furthermore, she was being required to rely on only Kenshin's income from the police force. While it had been sufficient so far, who knew what expenses they had to incur over the next few months, preparing for the baby, readying the house, their food………..
"Himura-san, Himura-san, daijobu desu ka?" the doctor inquired as he waved a hand in front of Kaoru's dazed eyes.
"Yes, I'm fine, sensei. But, but, you are asking a lot!"
"Do you want to keep this baby, Himura-san?"
"Yes."
"And does your husband want to keep this baby, Himura-san?"
"Yes!"
The doctor placed his hands on top of Kaoru's shoulders. "Then, believe in your husband. He will not let you down. File your leave."
Kaoru only looked out past the window and at the busy street.
A month had passed since Kenshin's first day as chief trainer of the police force. Kaoru had just passed her third month of pregnancy, and was entering into her fourth. She had begun to show. Her obi was not tied as tightly as before. She felt herself eating more than she used to eat, which already was a lot. The morning sickness had subsided, but there were still days when she felt queasy. Despite the protests she gave to the doctor, she, too, realized that she was slowing down in her kendo classes. Deep inside, she agreed with him. Within a month she would be in no condition to wield a bokken.
Kenshin improved by leaps and bounds in that month. Soon he learned the best methods to get across to his students. He studied how to give just enough challenge, but provide enough mercy. He now knew each student by name.
He was paid well for his services. Everyone said he deserved it. The heads of police commented that the students under him were actually excited to attend his classes. It was commendable, when it was noted that his class was often the hardest among all those given to rookie cops.
Kenshin knew enough about finances to save much of those earnings, while they did not have to rely heavily on them. Some of it was in a foreign-operated bank, and the rest saved up at home in a safe. He was happy to finally be a breadwinner for his Kaoru-dono, and his future child. However, he was dismayed at the speed their money was leaving them, even if they both tried their best to be economical. House repairs, daily necessities, but most especially the food expenses. He would have the best vegetables and fish their money would allow, and this took up most of their ready money, Kaoru's money.
It must be mentioned at this junction, that while Kenshin was indeed paid well, Kaoru's combined income from 3 kendo schools (excluding her own) was more than his. In order to match or exceed her current income, he had to get another part-time job.
This was the thought weighing heavily on Kaoru's mind as she walked home from the doctor's office. Kenshin saw it immediately as she entered the gates.
"I'm being asked to file for maternity leave…….." she explained.
"Maternity leave, being……..?"
"Baka deshi, anata," she replied, as she shook her head sadly and wearily, not up for a fight. "A pregnant woman has the option to temporarily resign from her job, and then return a month after giving birth. In my case, that's for a good five months' leave!" She looked straight at her husband's deep purple eyes and asked in despair, "What are we going to do about money, anata? We have to depend on your salary alone!"
" 'We have to depend on your salary alone'………" Kenshin quietly repeated. He hid his eyes under bangs of red hair, and turned his back on Kaoru.
"Money……….is that all you are worried about, Kaoru-dono?" he asked, slowly, deliberately ---despondently.
"Of course, not, anata-----" She protested to the back of a magenta yukata.
"You finally have to depend entirely on your boarder-----ne, Kaoru-dono? And it troubles you-----ne, Kaoru-dono?" His head was bowed low, until the dull flames of his hair covered his face completely.
" 'Kaoru-dono', three times in a row……….what is the matter with you, anata? That's not what I'm thinking!"
"……….Really, now, Kaoru-dono?"
He walked away, back into the kitchen. "Dinner will be ready in a few minutes."
Kaoru was not expecting this reaction. She did not understand. Money was NOT the only thing on her mind, it was definitely true. Why was Kenshin acting like this? What did he mean, what did he imply, when he called himself merely a boarder? How did she hurt his feelings? She ran through her whole little speech again, and found nothing wrong with what she said.
After five minutes of thinking, she thought she had a clue about the odd response. She quickly ran to the kitchen and planted herself at the door. She found her husband whistling a cheerful tune, slicing the last of their sashimi and arranging it on a plate. Still, she saw the miserable eyes that spoke volumes.
"Kenshin! Listen to me!" She called from the door.
Kenshin faced her with one of his patented rurouni smiles. "Oh, I'm glad you're here! Dinner's ready!"
"No, Kenshin. You will listen to me first."
Kenshin kept his smile, but the sorrow could be heard in his voice as he spoke.
"Sessha does not have to, Kaoru-dono. Sessha promises, he will work hard, he will get a raise or a bonus, either one. If he cannot, he will get another job over the winter, de gozaru. But sessha promises to provide enough for Kaoru-dono. Kaoru-dono does not have to worry about the finances, de gozaru. Kaoru-dono will no longer look down on sessha, because she earns the money to keep sessha fed…………"
"Sessha, sessha, sessha!" Kaoru took the plate from him and lay it on the table forcefully. Then she looked him squarely in both eyes, her own aflame. "Is that what you think of me, Kenshin? Is THAT what you think of me? That I look down on you?!"
The same flaming eyes melted as she said the accusing words, and they filled with tears. Streams ran down her cheeks as she held him in a tight embrace.
"Kenshin, anata, I am alive because of you. I still have my teaching positions because of you. I have this baby because of you! I am here to love you, because of you. Please stop pitying yourself. I have never looked down on you, and I never will. Remember that -----anata. You are my husband, no longer a wanderer, no longer a boarder. I depend on you, more than you think you depend on me. I believe in you, with all my heart."
As she looked up, she saw a sincere smile slowly appear. The dull purple eyes began to shine again in full brilliance.
"Thank you ----koishii. Thank you. But I do not take my promises lightly. I promise that you do not have to worry about the next few months. I promise."
"That's enough about that, Kenshin, alright? Now, come on, I'm hungry! I'm not waiting for Yahiko!" She started to attack her dinner with a ferocity that appalled her husband.
"Oroooo."
Life was about to become less than normal.
For now, neither husband nor wife were afraid.
……………………………………………………….
Sorry this one is short. The next chapter will be longer, I promise. Although I'm afraid the next few chapters will be on the mushy and sad side of things. By the way, do any of you guys know some Japanese comfort foods? All I can think of right now are pickles! Help, please!
Please wait a week for the next installment. I'll be reporting in class this coming week, and I have to study for it. ^_^ I'll see you then!