As you know, I do not, as well as anyone except Ken Akamatsu, own Love Hina
I do own the fic, though…
Oh, and there are no flashbacks here, so all italics are thoughts...

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Tuesday Morning
02 – Washing My Hair
SethSolare

The patchy areas of steam in the open-air bath seemed to shift about in the small bits of breeze that made it over the wall. The water was a bit calm this morning. Unlike the evening retreats to the hot spring, it seemed like a mirror in a steamy bathroom. The sound of a sliding door and a single pair of feet walked into the hot spring area. Warm feet suddenly broke the mirror-like effect and Keitaro breathed a sigh of relief.

It was quite the eventful morning. Things had happened that were good. Naru was incredibly beautiful. There was no doubt in his mind, nor any other guy's mind, that she was the most incredible woman they could meet. Keitaro actually remembered that some girls had not only noticed Naru's beauty but were very interested in seeing her. That little thought somehow got into his head. There would be him, Naru, and maybe…

"Wait, what am I thinking? She hates me now. I touched her bra. That's just as bad as noticing that she wasn't wearing one this morning. But, the bra was nice. It was nice and lacy. And she wasn't wearing one. And the cool morning air kind of… WAIT! NO! WHAT AM I THINKING!?" Keitaro's thoughts kept on coming. These very chauvinistic thoughts worked their way through him. It was dumb of him to see Naru like that. Though she may act tough and ready for any brawl, she can be so innocent when she lets her guard down or when she's drunk. But those are rare occasions. He hated himself for not catching her at times when she's innocent and sober. There are those once-in-a-blue-moon occasions where Naru actually shows that she might have feelings for him. Maybe there's something there she didn't see before. "Maybe if she'd give me a chance."

Keitaro wondered what Naru's actions meant. There were times when she showed something. There are those times when she said maybe. But with every maybe, there came a scream and a crater in the ground, a damaged telephone pole, or a hole in a roof. And because he was Keitaro, he'd have to fix all of them. The only thing he couldn't fix was Naru. Her image of him would be spoiled for the whole week. Sometimes, it would go on for a whole month.

"What's the matter with me? Why do I love someone who doesn't show a bit of love for me? And just when I think she's going to tell me she loves me, right before we kiss, I always manage to screw it up. Somehow, she keeps taking it all back. How is it even possible for me to mess it up this many times?" Keitaro asked himself. "Why do I love her? I can't explain it at all. I just can't stop thinking about her. She's violent. She has a short temper. She can be rude, ungrateful, and just mean. She doesn't love me… But I can't stop loving her. Why? Why can't I stop loving you?" His last words were barely a whisper, drowned out by the moving of leaves.

Keitaro's little wounds weren't very painful. Mostly, they were just little scrapes and such. Keitaro already removed the bandages that weren't very dirty at all. If he needed them again, he had a first aid kit in his room. His little scrapes were meaningless to him. And the person to blame for all this. The person who wouldn't take responsibility for all of it was…

"Naru. Come on; you need a bath. You've got to take your mind off this for a while." Two pairs of feet tapped on the rock flooring of the Hinata Spring. Kitsune and Naru were already in the water by the time Keitaro noticed. Now, there was no escaping his inevitable flight into the sky. "Oh no, not again! I think I forgot the sign this time. And it's all her fault. She made me forget it. If it hadn't been for the good morning and her violence, I would actually be concentrating on what the hell I'm doing. It's her fault. And now, she's gonna kill me." Keitaro's thoughts blazed through his brain. The two of them were already comfortably situated in the water, and Keitaro could only watch and wait for death. He watched as they did nothing; they just sat there. It was an incredibly uncomfortable silence for all three of them. Kitsune glanced at Naru every couple seconds. It was an odd feeling to be sitting next to a rather boring Naru. Kitsune, after a little while longer, couldn't take it anymore. There had to be some amount of sound in the hot spring.

"Why don't you just tell him?" Kitsune asked. It seemed like such a simple question. And yet, Naru couldn't answer. She didn't know why she couldn't just admit it. The time at the pool was as close as she could get. Feelings were always hard to say. Saying them and then saying it like you mean it are two different things. It was always difficult to speak your feelings for someone. And as much as she denied the words that she wanted to say to him, she knew. It was somewhere inside of her.

"I can't. I just don't want to," Naru whispered. "What'd she say?" Keitaro asked himself. He couldn't even read her lips. The steam was quite thick and that made it easy for him to hide and difficult to even get close to what she was saying.

"How can you say that? Don't you want to tell him? Doesn't he mean anything to you?" Kitsune began to yell. Kitsune was aggravated now. Not only would Naru not admit her feelings to Keitaro, she wouldn't completely answer her best friend. "Do I have to do everything for them? If she doesn't want Keitaro, I'll take him. Hell, any of us would take him. Even Motoko's got some feelings for him," Kitsune thought. Keitaro was completely stunned at this. He had a good idea of what she was talking about. However, certainty was something that was very precious, since those words were usually fickle things.

"I just can't love him. What about everyone else? What about you? Don't you like him, too?" Naru asked. The only word that could even be heard by Keitaro was, "you." Besides Kitsune, no could hear what she said.

"Keitaro and I are just friends. Naru, he loves you. He would give up everything to be with you. Why is that not good enough for you?"

"Because, what if… what if it doesn't work out? I don't want to be in a relationship just because we said we liked each other. I told him the same thing. I want to be friends with him… forever. But, if I were to date him, things would change. And if it fails, how could we be friends after all that? Things would have changed so much," Naru murmured. Her voice got softer and softer. Tears tried to make their way out. However, as much as she had to, Naru wouldn't cry. She didn't want to. Tears were useless here. But, with all the water around her, Kitsune wouldn't be able to tell. However, if the crying were to start, it wouldn't stop. It would be impossible to stop.

"I'm sorry, Kitsune. I wish I could be more open with you. I'm sorry," Naru's last words came off as a sob. The pain was almost overwhelming. With little ability to stay beside her best friend, Naru stood up and ran back inside. Kitsune didn't even try to run in after her. Just like all people, even herself, pain was something you had to first deal with in your head a little. She hoped that Naru would come back to talk later. There was nothing that could be done right now.

After a little while, Kitsune noticed ripples coming from behind the steam. She tried to make out the figure through the thick mist. Keitaro's heart began to pound. He knew that she was looking right at him. He also knew that she figured out that he had been spying on the conversation the entire time. It was written all over her angry and sad fast. "You might as well just come over her, Keitaro. Besides, it's not like you could hear her from there," Kitsune spoke with some insight.

"I – I couldn't hear her," Keitaro blushed profusely. "I – Is it okay if I sit next to you?" he called from the mist.

"I don't see why not. It's not like you haven't seen me naked before," Kitsune laughed a little. "What are you doing in here, anyway?" she asked.

"I was, well, you see, I," Keitaro didn't know what to say. "Oh, Kitsune, I was just spying on you and Naru talking about me. That's what I came here to do," Keitaro considered these choice of words in his emotionally distraught state. "I was washing my hair."

"I'm sure you were," Kitsune came back at him. Keitaro looked at Kitsune for a moment. Her really light hair was almost like silver. It was precious. Little droplets of water glistened in the strands. The sunlight sent little rays of light in Keitaro's eyes. Her hair seemed to shine. It wasn't the normal, beautiful shine of her hair; it was angelic, almost.

"He sure is looking at me strangely. It has to be that weird look Naru gets whenever she walks by cute guys." Kitsune noticed the intense gaze. Brown eyes looked at her. "Geez, why does he have to look like that?" she asked herself. Without his glasses, Keitaro looked incredible. He was just about as cute as Seta was. Strangely, Kitsune could imagine falling in love with this Keitaro. She could even imagine kissing him. His eyes were just incredible. When they weren't hidden behind glasses, it was as if he were changed entirely. If only those eyes would be on every man. "If only I had his eyes. I could be just as beautiful as Naru. I guess I can see why everyone likes him. Even Motoko likes him. It's so strange that he's with me. "

"You know, Keitaro," Kitsune started, "You don't have to lie. I know you were listening. It's no secret you want to know what she feels," Kitsune's voice was barely a whisper. However, Keitaro could definitely hear every bit of her words.

"I never actually heard what she said. Just everything that you said."

"Is that so? Did you even understand what we were talking about?" Kitsune hoped he wasn't as dense as he usually was. "Just once, today, be intelligent."

"I wish I knew what she said." Keitaro went on, "Thanks, though, for telling her. I just wish I had the courage to say all those things to her face."

Kitsune looked at Keitaro's saddened face. He stared into the water at his feet. Pity began to grow within. He was so beautiful to her. And somehow, she hated how he was. She didn't like looking at him when he was like this. His face, once so incredible, was filled with emotional scars that never seemed to close.

"Keitaro?" she whispered. He looked up and into her eyes. "Dammit, Keitaro. You just have to. Why can't you just be like every other moron?" She had to look straight through him or she would never be able to control what would happen.

"Keitaro, back when I was younger and in high school, I dreamed of falling in love. I once told this guy that I loved him. And he never wanted to go out with me in the first place. He thought I wasn't mature enough. He fell in love with my best friend," Kitsune forced a little laugh. She could feel the lump in her throat grow.

"You mean, Naru?"

"Of course I do!" she yelled at him. With a little jump, Keitaro began to get nervous very fast.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to scream at you," Kitsune apologized. "But yeah, it was Naru. Since then, I never really wanted to tell another man how I feel. I hate being hurt, Keitaro. And I know you hate it, too. Everyone hates it. But as much as we hate it, it never goes away." She was silent again. Keitaro looked in awe at her.

"She really does seem to shine. I wish I had more times like these with her," he thought. She really was pretty. Kitsune was older, and definitely more developed, physically and emotionally. Though intelligence was something Kitsune didn't have as much of, she had an incredible personality to make up for it.

"I wonder if he…" Kitsune had a strange thought that moment. It seemed to flood her mind. There they were. Two people, alone, in a hot spring. They were both naked. Though she did want to save herself, she did think about something else. It would be awkward, though. Keitaro was too fixated on Naru and his mind and heart would never leave her. But Kitsune knew what she felt. Maybe just this once…

"Keitaro, back then, I told myself I would never tell another man how I felt. It's like I'm becoming Haruka. I can never admit what I truly inside. As much as I try and love someone, I just don't have the willpower to say it," she said with clarity. Keitaro seemed to be admiring her for this honesty. "I tried to with Seta. But I cared about Naru. Perhaps even loved her. Probably loved her about as much as you do right now," Kitsune said. Those words completely shocked Keitaro. "Kitsune was in love with Naru?"

"I was in love with her, yeah. I mean, she was the most beautiful girl I knew. I never did anything. She's not like that. I'm not much like that either. She's the only one I ever thought about, like that," Kitsune whispered again. She really didn't want anyone to know about her bisexuality with Naru. "I never imagined I'd be telling Keitaro this."

"Kitsune, I," Keitaro tried. "I never knew you were."

"I don't like a lot of girls Keitaro. My feelings for Naru went away with time. Truthfully, I never really liked another girl since her. I do admit, though, Motoko is a very beautiful girl," Kitsune giggled. "I guess now's a good a time as any."

"You know, Keitaro, I hated myself for not telling people I love that I love them. Now be mature about this. Be very mature for me," she said with a stern look. Keitaro simply nodded. "As many times I joke about it, I know what I feel for you." Kitsune took a quick glance at Keitaro. She expected a look of horror. Maybe there would be a look of hatred, distaste, and shock. Instead, there was only a soft look of kindness. It was that same look that made her fall in love with that man. However, he didn't say anything.

"I never knew she had this feeling. Not that I didn't sense anything. We are flirty and all, but not like this," he thought. Nervousness set in and he could feel that huge boulder sitting in his throat. And that boulder seemed to grow as Kitsune inched closer to Keitaro.

"I wish I could've said something sooner. I don't like crying about the men I fall in love with. But I'm turning into Haruka. It's stupid. She's so strong for us, but she can only cry in front of him. When she's alone, in the tea house, she cries. She cries and cries about how she can never have Seta. She cries because she loves him and for her to accept him, it would be wrong." Kitsune's heart seemed to explode with every beat. She could feel so much inside of her. And with all of that, she knew how empty she would feel very soon. "I don't want to be like Haruka, And now… now I can never have what Naru has." She whispered one last word. She looked at him quickly. With little thought, she jumped on him and began to kiss him deeply.

"What the hell? What is she doing? Why?" Keitaro's thoughts blazed. He could feel his face heat up. He felt strange inside. With every passing second of her kiss, he became more aware of everything that was happening. The water around him seemed to feel much cooler. He could feel her warm body on top of his. With that body, came that feeling of her skin. It was incredibly soft. It was definitely… womanlier… than Naru's. With all this clarity of the world, he didn't even sense his hands moving to close around her. It took a while for him to realize what he was doing. "Dammit, she's so wonderful!" he suddenly thought. It was then that he finally started kissing her back.

Every second, her lips seemed to grope his. Her warm breath from her nose tickled him. He could feel the water completely surround this powerful embrace. With every one of her breaths, he could feel her chest swell against his. Subconsciously, hands started roaming her bare back. His hands crept all the way to her neck. Kitsune, though, somewhat experienced at kissing, never expected this from Keitaro. A shiver went through her body as his hand reached the back of her neck.

She could no longer control what was happening to her. For the longest time, she hadn't had a kiss this wonderful, this powerful. It was everything to her. It was what she had inside. For more than a year, she kept this inside. Inside, it was all in a small bottle of love. And now, that bottle exploded and became this. It became this outburst of passion. She loved every bit of this feeling.

She could even sense the bravery of this guy. And in no time, she felt her tongue wrap around his. It was smooth and slow. Kitsune held him tightly and let a hand rest on his chest. It was as if she finally had the man that she always wanted. Though, as much as she kissed him. As much as she loved him. As much as he kissed back.

He couldn't fall in love with her. He would never fall in love with her.

As she thought that, she felt Keitaro's tongue leave, then his lips. And in a blink, his lips and teeth were at her neck. "What is he doing? Damn, this is wonderful. Dammit, he's wonderful!" she pondered. He could feel his teeth softly dig into her neck. As much as she wanted to do the same, she would, in turn, ruin any chance he had with Naru… her best friend. She had already lost. And yet, she was winning, at that very moment.

Suddenly, Keitaro just stopped.

"Keitaro, what is it?" she asked. Again, her voice was barely audible.

"I know what you're thinking." Kitsune was elated. Had he actually fallen in love with her? Maybe he would give up on Naru. Maybe, she could be happy. "I wish you could be wrong."

And with those words, Kitsune's heart immediately broke. Inside, she felt it shatter and fall apart.

"Kitsune, I really wish you were wrong. But, I guess, the heart is what is right. I'm s-" Kitsune put a finger to his lips.

"If you tell me you're sorry, our kiss would mean nothing. Let's just leave it at that," she said. She removed the finger from his lips. Looking into his eyes, she softly caressed his cheek with her right hand. "Now, I have my happiness. I have my memory of you engraved into my heart, my lips, and neck," she giggled a little at those words. Though she felt so sad inside, she felt happy that she had this time with him. She smiled at him. "Now, you go get the real treasure," she said with a small kiss to the lips. Slowly, she removed her body from his. As he looked at her, she smiled back at him. Keitaro could only smile back. He had no idea what to feel at this moment, but he knew she was letting him go. He hadn't learned what he had hoped to learn. However, the things that he knew now were as precious as that silver, glistening hair of hers. He promptly stood up from the hot spring, and went back inside.

"You better get her," she sighed. "If you can't, I'm still here for you."

As she tried to smile, she closed her eyes and tilted her head to the sky. Warm water streaked away from her eyes and into the spring as she soaked.

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Something from me: Hmm... Okay, so I've been thinking… The effect of the song doesn't take place until maybe even chapter 4 (if I don't draw it all out any longer than that, hehe). It seems like torture, hehe. Anyway, I really thought out this chapter and it's definitely my favorite, for now… We shall see what chapter 3 brings us! Thanks, in advance, for all your words!