Rurouni Kenshin

Eyes on Me

Chapter 4 ~ The Cafeteria

By: C-Chan

Disclaimer: I don't own anything.  Do you think they'd trust someone like me with an anime series?

Warnings: A talk with everyone's favorite rooster-head!  Nothing else, really….

Notes: So many reviews!  Geez Louise, I don't know what to say!  Thank you so much!  FYI, I've put aside all my other stories to work solely on this one.  That means updates will be frequent!  Yeay!

Onto number 4….WHOOOOOO!!!

……

            What could bother you so much that would cause you to act like this?  Kaoru thought, cupping Kenshin's cheek.  I hope one day you can trust me to tell me.  You don't belong here, no matter what.  You're not crazy.

……

            Kaoru had the worse cramp in her neck, and sleepily she rubbed it, trying to soothe the tense muscles.  She slowly sat up and blinked, realizing where she was: the hospital.

            Did I fall asleep?  She wondered, looking around the room.  She was still sitting next to Kenshin's bed, the red-head himself in a deep, peaceful sleep.  His hand had been stitched by Megumi, and now rested on the bed, comfortably wrapped in gauze.

            Rubbing her neck again, Kaoru sat up in her chair and yawned.  "I guess I did." She whispered, smiling down at Kenshin.  It must have been late, because the room was only lit by the hallway lights outside.  The usual hustle and bustle of the hospital had died down, and Kaoru saw a bored nurse wander down the hallway, a coffee in one hand and a doughnut in the other.  At the thought of food, her stomach gave a very unlady-like growl.  Guess I'm hungry.  She blushed, slowly standing up.

            As she turned towards the door, a sound behind her made her pause in her tracks, her sapphire eyes turning to meet with sleepy amethyst.  "Kaoru?" He whispered.

            Kaoru returned to the bed and brushed some bangs out of his face.  "I'm going for something to eat.  Do you want anything?"

            Kenshin closed his eyes, leaning slightly into her touch.  The medicine was still running through his system, a thick haze still covering his mind.  He shook his head slowly, smiling sleepily.  "No…thanks…"

"I'll be right back." Kaoru promised, moving silently out of the room and down towards the cafeteria.

            It was empty except for a few people, all seated at different tables.  Kaoru briefly thought about getting a meal, but remembering all the things she'd heard about hospital food settled on a salad from one of the vending machines and a can of soda.

            She decided to sit down with one of the other people, who happened to be Sanosuke.  The orderly was leaning back in his chair, a toothpick hanging loosely out of the corner of his mouth, twirling a bottle of water in his hands.  Kaoru smiled and sat down in front of him.  "Don't fall over." She said with a giggle.

            Sano grinned and righted his chair, then took a quick swig of his water.  "Finally awake, huh?"

"I didn't even realize I fell asleep." Kaoru said, blushing slightly.

"No problem.  Meg gave a big huff about it, but I told her I'd check on ya guys every so often." Sano replied with a shrug.  "She thinks that guy's dangerous."
"He isn't," Kaoru replied almost immediately.  "He's too sweet and gentle to be as dangerous as you people think."
"Hey, I never said I thought he was dangerous!" Sano said, raising an eyebrow.  "Believe it or not, I knew that guy BEFORE he got here."

"You did?" Kaoru asked, interested.

"High school," He responded, chewing thoughtfully on his toothpick.  "We got off on the wrong foot, but eventually we became best friends."
"Are you still that way now?" Kaoru questioned.  Doesn't look like it.

"Yup, but because of the job and all….well, you've seen what's been goin' on." The orderly said with a grin.

            Kaoru nodded, a knowing smile forming on her lips.  "Oh yeah.  He told me about your little hide-and-seek games."

"So the little guy speaks to you, eh?" Sano said with a chuckle.  "Barely says anything to me now.  Maybe a hello every so often, but once in a blue moon I get a full sentence."

            Kaoru nodded and looked down at her salad, pushing the different vegetables around with her fork.  I wonder why he's here…

"Beats the hell outta me." Sano replied immediately.

            Kaoru blinked.  "Did I say that out loud?"

"No, but I know you were thinking it," Sano said with a grin.  "All I know is that one day three weeks ago he was being wheeled in.  By the time I got here to find out what exactly happened, he was locked in his room, strapped to the bed."

            Kaoru remembered the scars she'd seen a few days ago, and hesitantly continued.  "Did he…try to kill himself?"

            Sano sighed and rubbed his temples, his toothpick hanging limp in his mouth.  "I think so…but I could be wrong.  You're askin' the wrong person."

            Kaoru sighed and looked down at her un-eaten salad.  Despite her protesting stomach, she wasn't very hungry anymore.  Taking a drink from her soda Kaoru picked up her things and smiled slightly at the orderly.  "I guess I'll head back to see him." She said softly, heading off towards the garbage. 

"Hey missy!"

            Kaoru turned around to see Sanosuke leaning back in his chair again, his face strangely serious.  "Let him know I'm still here for him, okay?  We haven't talked like we used to in a while."

"Sure." Kaoru replied, dumping her salad and heading back to Kenshin's room.

            Kenshin was awake when she returned, greeting her with a friendly smile.  "You should be resting." Kaoru berated, sitting down in her chair by his bed.

            The red-head sighed and frowned at her.  "You're starting to sound like my doctor." He said in a joking tone.

            Kaoru smiled and patted his injured hand gently.  "Perhaps you should listen to her more often, huh?"

"Maybe." Kenshin shrugged.

            Kaoru clenched her fists in her lap, trying to build up the courage for what she was about to ask.  Could she really breach his privacy like this?  He didn't seem angry the first time she did, but he was reluctant to tell her as well.  Would this time be any different?

            She decided to start off with something else first.  "I saw that orderly in the cafeteria, Sanosuke…" She said, searching his face for a reaction.

            Kenshin blinked and nodded for her to continue.  "He said that he's still here for you."

"Good, old Sanosuke…" Kenshin sighed, a wistful smile on his face.  "He's a good friend."
"He told me you don't talk to him much anymore." Kaoru said softly, looking down at her lap.  "Why is that?"
"I honestly don't know." Kenshin replied just as softly, closing his eyes.  "The only person I talk to is you, for some reason."

"Why me?  Sanosuke said you were best friends." Kaoru argued, trying to figure out why a former complete stranger would talk to her of all people when his best friend was working in the hospital where he was.

"Something about you…" Kenshin murmured, his smile widening.  "When I saw you that day…I felt like I could talk to you, I guess.  I didn't really expect for you to talk to me."

            Kaoru blushed slightly, her smile coming back to her face.  "I wasn't expecting to talk to you either.  You can thank Sanosuke for that."

"Hn." Kenshin replied.

            Kaoru took a deep breath, then in a voice barely loud enough for Kenshin to register, asked the question that had been bothering her since she first started talking to him.  "Why are you here, Kenshin?"

            Amethyst eyes shot open to look at her questioningly.  Kaoru met his gaze, her face firm despite her rapidly beating heart.  Would he tell her?  Would he find enough trust in Kaoru?

"It's a long story…are you sure you want to here it?" Kenshin whispered, his eyes closing once again.  He tested the straps holding him down a bit before going still, waiting for Kaoru's answer.

"Yes," Kaoru replied softly, clasping her hands in her lap.  "I want to know why someone like you who claims he isn't crazy is here."

            Kenshin opened his eyes once more and glanced over Kaoru's shoulder, into the hallway to make sure no nurses were present.  He turned his gaze to meet Kaoru's deep sapphire orbs.  "Will you undo these?" He asked with a small smile, pulling at the straps again.

            Kaoru nodded and complied, gently unbuckling the straps holding Kenshin down.  He sat up slowly, examining his injured hand before settling both in his lap.  With a deep breath, he closed his eyes again and began….

Notes:  AH!  CLIFFHANGER ALERT!  *red lights go off* Mwhahaha…I'm so evil.  But I didn't want to make this chapter supremely long and then have nothing to write next chapter, ya know?  I want Kenshin's story to be one chapter on it's own…*nods firmly*

Kenshin: Cliffhangers aren't very nice, C-Chan-dono.

C-Chan: But it gives the readers something to look forward too!

Sano: Or it just makes them want to murder you.

C-Chan: *Blinks*

Eerrr…on the up-side, I got my first RK Manga today!  Yaaaay!  I'm going to read it, translate it, and name it Josie.  *Grins sheepishly* If you can't tell, once again I'm running on caffeine and nicotine, so I'm going to go now and try to get some much needed sleep.  The next chapter is already in the works, so keep an eye out!  But don't let it fall out of your head, that wouldn't be sanitary. .;;

Clicky click onegai!