Torn
Chapter Three: New Faces
"When will you come home?"
"Sometime after eight. Dinner's already in the fridge. All you and Sano have to do is heat it up."
Large auburn eyes looked at her. "But what if something happens again?"
She laughed in good humor, adding to Yahiko's irritation.
"I'm serious!" he asserted. "Some guy might barge in out of nowhere, and it might be too late for Rooster-head or me to save you this time!"
Kaoru took her cousin gently by the shoulders. "Yahiko, it's an office. No one is going to ride the elevator twenty-two stories up just to hassle a secretary. Plus, I won't be alone. Dr. Shinomori will be there."
The boy scoffed. "Yeah, like some psychologist can stop a criminal. What's he gonna do? Make him look at a bunch of ink blots and ask him about his childhood?"
"Yahiko, I'll be okay," she tried to assure him, but caught the doubt on his face. "Fine, I'll call home around six. If I don't call, then you and Sano can come to my rescue. Deal?"
He looked at her uneasily, but the fear in his eyes began to disappear. "You better call!" He walked away, his baseball bat in hand and his duffel bag in the other.
"I will," she called after him.
Walking at a steady pace, Yahiko took one last look at his cousin who was waving good-bye.
"Hey, Myoujin," a voice acknowledged him. Yahiko turned his head and found two of his male classmates walking at either side of him. "Is that your sister?"
"No," he answered, curious as to why he was being questioned by two boys that he hardly ever talked to. "She's my cousin."
"Is she in high school?" The other one asked from his right side.
Raising a brow, he shook his head. "No. She's in college."
"She's really pretty."
Gripping the handle of his bat a bit tighter, Yahiko frowned. "You need to get your eyes checked!"
"I dunno. I think she's kinda hot," the boy on his left said, glancing at the older girl as she got into her car.
"Quit looking at her!" He shouted.
"Does she have a boyfriend?"
His grip constricted on the baseball bat. "She's too loud and ugly to have one."
"Then I'm gonna ask her out," the classmate on his left said.
Yahiko stopped in his tracks, teeth bared. "No, you won't!"
The two boys stopped as well, amused at how obvious their peer's anger was. "Why not, Myoujin?"
"She's not interested in dorks like you," he seethed.
One of them sneered. "I'm gonna ask her out to a movie on Sunday. What are you gonna do if she says 'yes'?"
Auburn eyes burned into the taunting boy. "She won't."
"Then I'll keep asking her until she does."
"I won't let you."
They both laughed mockingly, ignoring the creaking of the wooden bat as it was suffocating in Yahiko's hand.
"What're you gonna do, Myoujin? You can't stop us."
That was enough to provoke him. Bat raised high, Yahiko let out all his fury in a shrill yell and charged at his classmates. The boys didn't waste a second and fled, screaming for their lives as their peer chased them. They ran off into the sanctuary of the school, an infuriated Yahiko trailing after them.
None of them noticed the white-haired man that had driven pass.
* * * *
"Is this all, Miss?"
Kaoru nodded as the florist took the bouquet of white and yellow lilies from her. She had picked them for their subtle beauty because she had felt that they were just what she needed to lighten the décor of Aoshi's waiting room. As the florist was busy at the cashier, sapphire eyes scanned the shop. It had been so long since she had stepped into a floral shop. Blooming faces and full petals greeted her, and several unique scents intermingling with each other drowned her senses.
A collection of deep scarlet roses stared at her from its stand. Blue eyes observed the budding faces as they were bunched up all together.
'Okkasan's favorite...'
Memories of her mother arranging the crimson flowers played in her mind. As a little girl, she would watch her delicately taking each one by its long stem and placing them in the depths of a porcelain vase.
Her mother was so graceful, so ladylike. Kaoru remembered that she would try and help her arrange the flowers, but the thorns would always cut into her soft flesh. She had lacked the elegance of her mother's movements, so she was unable to care for the flowers like her mother did. Perhaps they didn't prick her because she was as beautiful as them.
"Here you go," the florist took her from her thoughts. Smiling embarrassedly, Kaoru received the bouquet and paid.
"Thank you," she said, and turned on her heel. She was about to leave, but the roses were calling to her. Kaoru bit her lip, the flowers tempting her with memories of happier days that she had kept close to her heart.
'It's been so long since I've visited them...'
Kaoru checked her watch. It was forty minutes past two. She had to get to the office before three.
Being late to work on her first day would definitely not make a good impression on Aoshi, so she couldn't risk it. There were still a few things that she needed to pick up before she went to the office.
She would just have to visit them some other time.
Sighing, Kaoru left the flower shop with the bouquet of lilies in her hand.
* * * *
She smiled to herself, wiping her forehead. "There! Now this place doesn't look as depressing."
Kaoru beamed at her work. The surface of her clean desk shone in the light of the lamps that hung from the ceiling. The white and yellow lilies stood beautifully in a ceramic blue vase that Kaoru had found in her attic. A framed picture of Sano, Yahiko, and herself at a festival was placed next to the computer that Aoshi had provided her with. A small bowl of candy also graced the desk. She would need her sugar rush as badly as any of the Aoshi's adolescent patients would.
In addition to the modifications of her desk, Kaoru did a little work on the waiting room. Since she knew that sitting for a long while would grate the nerves of usually restless teenagers, she found some more things at home that might keep them slightly entertained. Kaoru brought in some of her old books that she had used to read as a teenager so that the patients could occupy themselves with them. She also went out and bought various magazines that were popular among teenagers and set them out.
To liven up the atmosphere, Kaoru brought in old paintings that were gathering dust in the attic. She hung them on some of the walls, including the one behind her desk. Most of them were paintings of calm landscapes and flowers, but she still thought that they had given the surroundings a more relaxed feel to them.
The door to Aoshi's office creaked open, and the psychologist stepped into the waiting room, carrying folders in his hand. His blue-gray eyes scanned the environment, a bit shocked at how much it had changed. With only a few simple alterations from his new secretary, it didn't look like a waiting room.
It looked more like a home.
"Well, what do you think?" Kaoru asked, smiling proudly.
Aoshi's stoic expression remained. "I can see that you weren't kidding when you asked if you could decorate the waiting room."
Her happiness was still evident on her lovely face. "I figured that I would be spending a lot of time here, so I wanted to bring in a few things that reminded me of my home."
His eyes caught the bowl of candy. "And those?"
Kaoru realized that he was referring to the sweets. "Oh, I just bought those in case your patients wanted something to snack on while they waited."
"You do know that I'm a psychologist who deals with teenagers, right?"
She nodded, a bit confused at the stern tone of Aoshi's voice. "Yeah, but they might get hungry." She took the dish in her hands and offered it to her boss. "Come on, take one. They're really good!"
Aoshi shook his head, letting out a small chuckle, something he rarely did. "Just how old are you, Miss Kamiya?"
Kaoru was oblivious to his sarcasm as she stripped off the wrapper of a cherry-flavored lollipop. "Eighteen. Why?"
"Because you act like you're five."
She grinned. "Megumi says the same thing to me. But hey, you're never too old to enjoy candy!"
The psychologist said nothing, putting the folders on her desk. "Don't make a mess here. Here's some paperwork that I want you to organize for me. There's a copy of today's appointments. Have the patients sign in when they come."
He then turned away, saying nothing more as he returned to the solitude of his office.
She was different. The cheerfulness in her voice was quite refreshing. Aoshi's past secretaries were never like Kaoru. They had all been middle-aged hags in conservative dress suits who disliked him as much as they disliked the patients who came to see him.
This girl was nothing like them, preferring dress pants and high ponytails instead of constricting buns and skirts. Instead of a strict frown, her face was animated with a smile. This one was different, and he knew it.
Things were bound to get very interesting around here.
* * * *
Kaoru propped her chin on the palm of her hand, looking over the fine print of the documents before her. The rustling of papers and the soft hum of her computer screen were the only things her ears had heard. It was already fifteen minutes after four, and Dr. Shinomori was already attending to a patient inside of his office. Only two other teenagers and their parents were waiting in the room as Kaoru was organizing the files Aoshi had given her earlier.
She had only been here a bit more than an hour, but Kaoru liked it here. There were no drunken businessmen or college boys to make passes at her or bug her for more drinks, and the room was free of the pungent smells of alcohol and cigarette smoke. It was nice and quiet here, and she enjoyed this serenity immensely.
But she couldn't deny that she was a little bored.
Just then, she heard the parting of the elevator doors. Curious by nature, sapphire eyes lifted from the documents to the elevator. But as soon as they opened, the doors closed. She didn't see another disgruntled teenager with their accompanying parent. There was no one.
'Maybe the elevator's malfunctioning,' she rationalized as her slender fingers sifted through more documents.
"Hiya!!!" A merry voice sounding behind her, causing her to drop the documents onto the floor.
Kaoru whirled around to meet the vibrant blue-green eyes of a teenage girl. Black strands of hair were strewn around her face, and a long braid dangled stylishly against her back.
"Omigosh!" she cried, attracting the attention of the waiting patients. "I'm SO sorry!"
Falling to her knees, she gathered up all of the files that Kaoru unintentionally dropped. In her frantic state, the strange girl had mixed up the documents and put them all out of order. Kaoru was too shocked to care as she took back the files from the energetic teenager.
"Um...are you a patient?"
The girl laughed goodheartedly and shook her head. "Nope!" She took Kaoru's hands into hers, her eyes studying the young woman's face. "Are you really her?"
Quirking an eyebrow, Kaoru stared at her in confusion. "Am I who?"
The inquisitive spark in her eyes didn't fade. "Are you really, really her? Are you Kamiya Kaoru?"
Kaoru hesitated, but she nodded. She almost wished she hadn't when the room was suddenly filled with an overjoyed cry from the girl as she jumped into the air.
"I can't believe it's really you!" she exclaimed, grabbing Kaoru's hands and spinning her around in a happy dance. "Aoshi-sama wasn't kidding! It's you, it's really, really you!"
A bit embarrassed, Kaoru took a step back. "Do I know you?"
The girl grinned. "No, but I know you! You were the only girl on the Watsuki High School kendo team! You won every tournament against every school in the regional area!"
Kaoru felt her cheeks getting redder and redder by the second.
"You're Kamiya Kaoru, the Rose of the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu!"
Surprised by how much information was bubbling from her unexpected guest, she smiled shyly. "You seem to know quite a bit about me."
She nodded, her braid bobbing up and down. "Of course! You're a legend at my high school!"
Kaoru took this moment to notice the familiar blue pleated skirt and red scarf tied over the white shirt. She had worn it for three years when she was a student.
"So you attend Watsuki High?"
"Uh-huh! I'm a freshman there!" her hand shot out before Kaoru. "Name's Misao Makimachi!"
Kaoru took her hand in a friendly handshake. "Nice to meet you. I guess there's no point in telling you my name, is there?"
Misao laughed. "Guess not! But seriously, they still talk about you at my high school. The administration has your trophies and your picture on display in the main lobby."
She blushed. "I really didn't do anything..."
"Are you kidding me?!" Misao cried as if Kaoru had uttered a profanity. "You single-handedly beat every opponent that was thrown at you! You were practically the entire kendo team!"
Her face grew warmer. "I wouldn't say that. There were other guys on the team..."
Misao's grin grew wider. "Man, they didn't say anything about you being so modest, Kaoru-san."
Before Kaoru had the chance to answer, Aoshi stepped out of his office with his patient.
"Remember you have another appointment next Tuesday," he instructed the teenager.
The young man nodded and walked over to where the people were waiting. A middle-aged woman stood from her seat and escorted the boy to the elevator, and both disappeared with the automatic closing of the mechanical doors. Aoshi then directed his attention to the bubbly high school student, a disapproving frown on his features.
"Misao, this is a waiting room. You can't come in here and make a commotion for my patients."
Misao grinned sheepishly in response.
Aoshi caught the perplexed look on his secretary's face. "Miss Kamiya, unless she hasn't told you already, this is Misao. When I informed her over the weekend that you were going to become my new secretary, she had to come down and see you for herself."
The high school student scowled. "Aoshi-sama, that's so rude! Degrading Kaoru-san to the status of a lowly secretary!"
"She works for me out of her own free will, Misao." Aoshi stated evenly.
"You're still acting like an old crank!" Misao's blue-green eyes then fell upon Kaoru. "Kaoru-san, if he gives you a hard time, just use one of your techniques. That'll show him!"
Kaoru couldn't help but giggle. Despite her hyperactivity, Misao was a very amusing person. "No, he'll fire me if I do that, and I really need this job."
Aoshi stepped in again. "Don't you have to get home, Misao? Your grandfather is probably wondering where you are right now."
Misao smiled at the psychologist. "Guess you're right. Grandpa can be a real worry-wart sometimes."
The high school student bowed respectfully in front of Kaoru. "It's been really great to finally meet you, Kaoru-san!"
Kaoru returned the bow. "It was nice meeting you, too. You can visit me anytime you'd like."
Misao stood upright and her blue-green eyes began to sparkle. "Really?! That's so awesome...but it's really boring here..."
The girl crossed her arms in deep thought, and then, as if a light bulb had flashed on in her head, clapped her hands together. "That's it! You and me can hang out somewhere! When's your next day off?"
Kaoru smiled sheepishly. "The only day off I have is Sunday."
Misao grimaced. "You're kidding me!" She then turned to the psychologist. "Aoshi-sama, you have Kaoru-san working like a dog!"
"She agreed to it, Misao," Aoshi replied coolly. "I didn't force her."
Another smile lit up the girl's features. "Oh well! I guess Kaoru-san and I have to do something on Sunday then!" she faced Kaoru, an expectant gleam in her eyes as she awaited her to respond.
"How about it? Do you wanna hang out with me this Sunday?"
Sano and Yahiko always told her that Kaoru was tenderhearted. She was always too stubborn to admit it, though.
"Sure, that'd be fun," she replied sincerely. In all honesty, Kaoru was looking forward to getting out of her house for a reason other than college or work. It's been a long time since she had done something entertaining for a change.
Misao let out another ecstatic cheer. "Great! Then you and me are gonna hit the mall this Sunday! It'll be so much fun, Kaoru-san!"
Kaoru's lips formed a genuine smile. "I bet it will be."
Misao leapt into the air joyously. "'kay, then I'll see you on Sunday! Don't make any plans!"
She skipped to the elevator, her long braid flailing up and down as she did. "Sayonara, Kaoru-san! See ya, Aoshi-sama!"
Kaoru waved to her, an expressionless Aoshi standing beside her. "Bye, Misao!"
The elevator doors opened and she hopped onto the machine. With a mischievous grin and a wink, Misao was gone when the doors shut. Silence returned to the room, and the patients could now wait in peace.
"Now maybe things will be quieter," he remarked.
Kaoru looked at him, seeing the stern, handsome face that she was already accustomed to. "Don't be so mean, Shinomori-sama. She's just energetic is all."
Ice blue eyes stared at the college girl. "You do know that you made a death wish when you agreed to go to the mall with her this Sunday, right?"
She smiled, not knowing whether or not her boss was kidding. "Oh come on! She's a really nice girl."
"That's not the point I'm trying to make, Miss Kamiya. After meeting her, you do realize how...disruptive Misao can be. I hope you bring along some painkillers this Sunday. By the end of the day, you won't even be able to crawl."
She laughed at his statement. Aoshi wasn't exactly an emotionless man. He had the sarcastic kind of humor that Kaoru found to be funny. "I'm looking forward to this Sunday. It's been a while since I've been to the mall."
Aoshi's eyes left her face, concentrating on the polished floor. "...she truly does admire you. She always has since she was in middle school."
Kaoru was surprised at the last remark. She had no idea that Misao had known her that long. "Why?"
"When you joined the kendo team in high school," Aoshi continued, his obsidian hair partially covering his eyes, "everyone had heard about it, even the students in the lower grades."
"...I didn't know that my joining the team was such a big deal."
"It was, especially to Misao. She was raised differently than most girls, and she took an interest in martial arts because of her grandfather's influence. So you can imagine how ecstatic she was when word reached her ears that a girl had joined one of the most skilled kendo teams in Tokyo."
Aoshi's face lifted from the floor and stared into Kaoru's face, his eyes clouded with reminiscence. "She would always turn on the TV and watch the channel that was broadcasting the tournaments that you participated in. Misao would cheer for you, despite the fact that you wouldn't have been able to hear her. After you graduated last year, she would go on and on about how much she wanted to walk the same hallways that you walked when you attended her high school."
The corners of his lips lifted into a small smile, the first one that Kaoru had ever witnessed. "So when I told her that you would be working for me as a secretary, she practically leapt ten feet into the air. I guess I should've warned you how troublesome she can be when she gets excited."
Kaoru shook her head, her hair brushing against her ivory cheek. "Don't worry about it. I'm glad that I met her."
Aoshi said nothing and turned onto his heel, but his secretary's voice stopped him.
"Is Misao...your sister?"
"No," his monotone voice replied. "She has been a friend of mine for a long time."
He stepped into his office, telling Kaoru to send in his next patient.
* * * *
Kaoru let out a happy sigh as she walked into the peaceful, sweet- scented night. Streetlights glowed in unison at her, cars whizzing past her so all she could see were red and yellow taillights flashing in the streets.
"I hope Aoshi will be okay by himself..." she spoke out loud as she walked down the steps, her sapphire eyes looking up to the building. She could imagine the psychologist gathering his things in his office and preparing to leave. It was almost depressing that he had to spend so many hours listening to teenagers' problems only to do the same thing the next day.
Suddenly, she bumped into something solid. The small shock of the impact sent her a step back.
"I'm sorry!" she exclaimed, feeling the blush that was creeping over her face. Sano always scolded her for being inattentive while she was walking. "I should've looked where I was going."
"Please, it's no trouble at all..." A smooth, masculine voice assured her.
Her blue eyes lifted from the concrete steps to the person she had knocked into. Turquoise eyes stared at her from a pair of dark shades that rested on the bridge of his nose. A shock of white hair was arranged wildly from his head, a small earring glinting from his left ear. Thin lips were curled into a smirk from a young face that was almost so handsome it was devilish.
Kaoru felt as if her whole face was turning red.
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
Alas, the first meeting! I know that it sounds kinda cliché, but I think that it's fitting. I mean, I didn't want to do something really corny like having Enishi save Kaoru from some accident involving a car or a runaway dumpster (that would remind me too much of The Wedding Planner...no offense to anyone, but that movie was horrible).
Hehe, j/k! Anyway, I hope my version of Misao isn't bad. I hope I made her hyper enough. Well, I guess the next chapter will involve Enishi a bit more. Sorry if the story's going kinda slow, but I wanna develop plot, y'know?
Thanks for reading in advance, and for the reviews! You guys are SO awesome!
Chapter Three: New Faces
"When will you come home?"
"Sometime after eight. Dinner's already in the fridge. All you and Sano have to do is heat it up."
Large auburn eyes looked at her. "But what if something happens again?"
She laughed in good humor, adding to Yahiko's irritation.
"I'm serious!" he asserted. "Some guy might barge in out of nowhere, and it might be too late for Rooster-head or me to save you this time!"
Kaoru took her cousin gently by the shoulders. "Yahiko, it's an office. No one is going to ride the elevator twenty-two stories up just to hassle a secretary. Plus, I won't be alone. Dr. Shinomori will be there."
The boy scoffed. "Yeah, like some psychologist can stop a criminal. What's he gonna do? Make him look at a bunch of ink blots and ask him about his childhood?"
"Yahiko, I'll be okay," she tried to assure him, but caught the doubt on his face. "Fine, I'll call home around six. If I don't call, then you and Sano can come to my rescue. Deal?"
He looked at her uneasily, but the fear in his eyes began to disappear. "You better call!" He walked away, his baseball bat in hand and his duffel bag in the other.
"I will," she called after him.
Walking at a steady pace, Yahiko took one last look at his cousin who was waving good-bye.
"Hey, Myoujin," a voice acknowledged him. Yahiko turned his head and found two of his male classmates walking at either side of him. "Is that your sister?"
"No," he answered, curious as to why he was being questioned by two boys that he hardly ever talked to. "She's my cousin."
"Is she in high school?" The other one asked from his right side.
Raising a brow, he shook his head. "No. She's in college."
"She's really pretty."
Gripping the handle of his bat a bit tighter, Yahiko frowned. "You need to get your eyes checked!"
"I dunno. I think she's kinda hot," the boy on his left said, glancing at the older girl as she got into her car.
"Quit looking at her!" He shouted.
"Does she have a boyfriend?"
His grip constricted on the baseball bat. "She's too loud and ugly to have one."
"Then I'm gonna ask her out," the classmate on his left said.
Yahiko stopped in his tracks, teeth bared. "No, you won't!"
The two boys stopped as well, amused at how obvious their peer's anger was. "Why not, Myoujin?"
"She's not interested in dorks like you," he seethed.
One of them sneered. "I'm gonna ask her out to a movie on Sunday. What are you gonna do if she says 'yes'?"
Auburn eyes burned into the taunting boy. "She won't."
"Then I'll keep asking her until she does."
"I won't let you."
They both laughed mockingly, ignoring the creaking of the wooden bat as it was suffocating in Yahiko's hand.
"What're you gonna do, Myoujin? You can't stop us."
That was enough to provoke him. Bat raised high, Yahiko let out all his fury in a shrill yell and charged at his classmates. The boys didn't waste a second and fled, screaming for their lives as their peer chased them. They ran off into the sanctuary of the school, an infuriated Yahiko trailing after them.
None of them noticed the white-haired man that had driven pass.
* * * *
"Is this all, Miss?"
Kaoru nodded as the florist took the bouquet of white and yellow lilies from her. She had picked them for their subtle beauty because she had felt that they were just what she needed to lighten the décor of Aoshi's waiting room. As the florist was busy at the cashier, sapphire eyes scanned the shop. It had been so long since she had stepped into a floral shop. Blooming faces and full petals greeted her, and several unique scents intermingling with each other drowned her senses.
A collection of deep scarlet roses stared at her from its stand. Blue eyes observed the budding faces as they were bunched up all together.
'Okkasan's favorite...'
Memories of her mother arranging the crimson flowers played in her mind. As a little girl, she would watch her delicately taking each one by its long stem and placing them in the depths of a porcelain vase.
Her mother was so graceful, so ladylike. Kaoru remembered that she would try and help her arrange the flowers, but the thorns would always cut into her soft flesh. She had lacked the elegance of her mother's movements, so she was unable to care for the flowers like her mother did. Perhaps they didn't prick her because she was as beautiful as them.
"Here you go," the florist took her from her thoughts. Smiling embarrassedly, Kaoru received the bouquet and paid.
"Thank you," she said, and turned on her heel. She was about to leave, but the roses were calling to her. Kaoru bit her lip, the flowers tempting her with memories of happier days that she had kept close to her heart.
'It's been so long since I've visited them...'
Kaoru checked her watch. It was forty minutes past two. She had to get to the office before three.
Being late to work on her first day would definitely not make a good impression on Aoshi, so she couldn't risk it. There were still a few things that she needed to pick up before she went to the office.
She would just have to visit them some other time.
Sighing, Kaoru left the flower shop with the bouquet of lilies in her hand.
* * * *
She smiled to herself, wiping her forehead. "There! Now this place doesn't look as depressing."
Kaoru beamed at her work. The surface of her clean desk shone in the light of the lamps that hung from the ceiling. The white and yellow lilies stood beautifully in a ceramic blue vase that Kaoru had found in her attic. A framed picture of Sano, Yahiko, and herself at a festival was placed next to the computer that Aoshi had provided her with. A small bowl of candy also graced the desk. She would need her sugar rush as badly as any of the Aoshi's adolescent patients would.
In addition to the modifications of her desk, Kaoru did a little work on the waiting room. Since she knew that sitting for a long while would grate the nerves of usually restless teenagers, she found some more things at home that might keep them slightly entertained. Kaoru brought in some of her old books that she had used to read as a teenager so that the patients could occupy themselves with them. She also went out and bought various magazines that were popular among teenagers and set them out.
To liven up the atmosphere, Kaoru brought in old paintings that were gathering dust in the attic. She hung them on some of the walls, including the one behind her desk. Most of them were paintings of calm landscapes and flowers, but she still thought that they had given the surroundings a more relaxed feel to them.
The door to Aoshi's office creaked open, and the psychologist stepped into the waiting room, carrying folders in his hand. His blue-gray eyes scanned the environment, a bit shocked at how much it had changed. With only a few simple alterations from his new secretary, it didn't look like a waiting room.
It looked more like a home.
"Well, what do you think?" Kaoru asked, smiling proudly.
Aoshi's stoic expression remained. "I can see that you weren't kidding when you asked if you could decorate the waiting room."
Her happiness was still evident on her lovely face. "I figured that I would be spending a lot of time here, so I wanted to bring in a few things that reminded me of my home."
His eyes caught the bowl of candy. "And those?"
Kaoru realized that he was referring to the sweets. "Oh, I just bought those in case your patients wanted something to snack on while they waited."
"You do know that I'm a psychologist who deals with teenagers, right?"
She nodded, a bit confused at the stern tone of Aoshi's voice. "Yeah, but they might get hungry." She took the dish in her hands and offered it to her boss. "Come on, take one. They're really good!"
Aoshi shook his head, letting out a small chuckle, something he rarely did. "Just how old are you, Miss Kamiya?"
Kaoru was oblivious to his sarcasm as she stripped off the wrapper of a cherry-flavored lollipop. "Eighteen. Why?"
"Because you act like you're five."
She grinned. "Megumi says the same thing to me. But hey, you're never too old to enjoy candy!"
The psychologist said nothing, putting the folders on her desk. "Don't make a mess here. Here's some paperwork that I want you to organize for me. There's a copy of today's appointments. Have the patients sign in when they come."
He then turned away, saying nothing more as he returned to the solitude of his office.
She was different. The cheerfulness in her voice was quite refreshing. Aoshi's past secretaries were never like Kaoru. They had all been middle-aged hags in conservative dress suits who disliked him as much as they disliked the patients who came to see him.
This girl was nothing like them, preferring dress pants and high ponytails instead of constricting buns and skirts. Instead of a strict frown, her face was animated with a smile. This one was different, and he knew it.
Things were bound to get very interesting around here.
* * * *
Kaoru propped her chin on the palm of her hand, looking over the fine print of the documents before her. The rustling of papers and the soft hum of her computer screen were the only things her ears had heard. It was already fifteen minutes after four, and Dr. Shinomori was already attending to a patient inside of his office. Only two other teenagers and their parents were waiting in the room as Kaoru was organizing the files Aoshi had given her earlier.
She had only been here a bit more than an hour, but Kaoru liked it here. There were no drunken businessmen or college boys to make passes at her or bug her for more drinks, and the room was free of the pungent smells of alcohol and cigarette smoke. It was nice and quiet here, and she enjoyed this serenity immensely.
But she couldn't deny that she was a little bored.
Just then, she heard the parting of the elevator doors. Curious by nature, sapphire eyes lifted from the documents to the elevator. But as soon as they opened, the doors closed. She didn't see another disgruntled teenager with their accompanying parent. There was no one.
'Maybe the elevator's malfunctioning,' she rationalized as her slender fingers sifted through more documents.
"Hiya!!!" A merry voice sounding behind her, causing her to drop the documents onto the floor.
Kaoru whirled around to meet the vibrant blue-green eyes of a teenage girl. Black strands of hair were strewn around her face, and a long braid dangled stylishly against her back.
"Omigosh!" she cried, attracting the attention of the waiting patients. "I'm SO sorry!"
Falling to her knees, she gathered up all of the files that Kaoru unintentionally dropped. In her frantic state, the strange girl had mixed up the documents and put them all out of order. Kaoru was too shocked to care as she took back the files from the energetic teenager.
"Um...are you a patient?"
The girl laughed goodheartedly and shook her head. "Nope!" She took Kaoru's hands into hers, her eyes studying the young woman's face. "Are you really her?"
Quirking an eyebrow, Kaoru stared at her in confusion. "Am I who?"
The inquisitive spark in her eyes didn't fade. "Are you really, really her? Are you Kamiya Kaoru?"
Kaoru hesitated, but she nodded. She almost wished she hadn't when the room was suddenly filled with an overjoyed cry from the girl as she jumped into the air.
"I can't believe it's really you!" she exclaimed, grabbing Kaoru's hands and spinning her around in a happy dance. "Aoshi-sama wasn't kidding! It's you, it's really, really you!"
A bit embarrassed, Kaoru took a step back. "Do I know you?"
The girl grinned. "No, but I know you! You were the only girl on the Watsuki High School kendo team! You won every tournament against every school in the regional area!"
Kaoru felt her cheeks getting redder and redder by the second.
"You're Kamiya Kaoru, the Rose of the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu!"
Surprised by how much information was bubbling from her unexpected guest, she smiled shyly. "You seem to know quite a bit about me."
She nodded, her braid bobbing up and down. "Of course! You're a legend at my high school!"
Kaoru took this moment to notice the familiar blue pleated skirt and red scarf tied over the white shirt. She had worn it for three years when she was a student.
"So you attend Watsuki High?"
"Uh-huh! I'm a freshman there!" her hand shot out before Kaoru. "Name's Misao Makimachi!"
Kaoru took her hand in a friendly handshake. "Nice to meet you. I guess there's no point in telling you my name, is there?"
Misao laughed. "Guess not! But seriously, they still talk about you at my high school. The administration has your trophies and your picture on display in the main lobby."
She blushed. "I really didn't do anything..."
"Are you kidding me?!" Misao cried as if Kaoru had uttered a profanity. "You single-handedly beat every opponent that was thrown at you! You were practically the entire kendo team!"
Her face grew warmer. "I wouldn't say that. There were other guys on the team..."
Misao's grin grew wider. "Man, they didn't say anything about you being so modest, Kaoru-san."
Before Kaoru had the chance to answer, Aoshi stepped out of his office with his patient.
"Remember you have another appointment next Tuesday," he instructed the teenager.
The young man nodded and walked over to where the people were waiting. A middle-aged woman stood from her seat and escorted the boy to the elevator, and both disappeared with the automatic closing of the mechanical doors. Aoshi then directed his attention to the bubbly high school student, a disapproving frown on his features.
"Misao, this is a waiting room. You can't come in here and make a commotion for my patients."
Misao grinned sheepishly in response.
Aoshi caught the perplexed look on his secretary's face. "Miss Kamiya, unless she hasn't told you already, this is Misao. When I informed her over the weekend that you were going to become my new secretary, she had to come down and see you for herself."
The high school student scowled. "Aoshi-sama, that's so rude! Degrading Kaoru-san to the status of a lowly secretary!"
"She works for me out of her own free will, Misao." Aoshi stated evenly.
"You're still acting like an old crank!" Misao's blue-green eyes then fell upon Kaoru. "Kaoru-san, if he gives you a hard time, just use one of your techniques. That'll show him!"
Kaoru couldn't help but giggle. Despite her hyperactivity, Misao was a very amusing person. "No, he'll fire me if I do that, and I really need this job."
Aoshi stepped in again. "Don't you have to get home, Misao? Your grandfather is probably wondering where you are right now."
Misao smiled at the psychologist. "Guess you're right. Grandpa can be a real worry-wart sometimes."
The high school student bowed respectfully in front of Kaoru. "It's been really great to finally meet you, Kaoru-san!"
Kaoru returned the bow. "It was nice meeting you, too. You can visit me anytime you'd like."
Misao stood upright and her blue-green eyes began to sparkle. "Really?! That's so awesome...but it's really boring here..."
The girl crossed her arms in deep thought, and then, as if a light bulb had flashed on in her head, clapped her hands together. "That's it! You and me can hang out somewhere! When's your next day off?"
Kaoru smiled sheepishly. "The only day off I have is Sunday."
Misao grimaced. "You're kidding me!" She then turned to the psychologist. "Aoshi-sama, you have Kaoru-san working like a dog!"
"She agreed to it, Misao," Aoshi replied coolly. "I didn't force her."
Another smile lit up the girl's features. "Oh well! I guess Kaoru-san and I have to do something on Sunday then!" she faced Kaoru, an expectant gleam in her eyes as she awaited her to respond.
"How about it? Do you wanna hang out with me this Sunday?"
Sano and Yahiko always told her that Kaoru was tenderhearted. She was always too stubborn to admit it, though.
"Sure, that'd be fun," she replied sincerely. In all honesty, Kaoru was looking forward to getting out of her house for a reason other than college or work. It's been a long time since she had done something entertaining for a change.
Misao let out another ecstatic cheer. "Great! Then you and me are gonna hit the mall this Sunday! It'll be so much fun, Kaoru-san!"
Kaoru's lips formed a genuine smile. "I bet it will be."
Misao leapt into the air joyously. "'kay, then I'll see you on Sunday! Don't make any plans!"
She skipped to the elevator, her long braid flailing up and down as she did. "Sayonara, Kaoru-san! See ya, Aoshi-sama!"
Kaoru waved to her, an expressionless Aoshi standing beside her. "Bye, Misao!"
The elevator doors opened and she hopped onto the machine. With a mischievous grin and a wink, Misao was gone when the doors shut. Silence returned to the room, and the patients could now wait in peace.
"Now maybe things will be quieter," he remarked.
Kaoru looked at him, seeing the stern, handsome face that she was already accustomed to. "Don't be so mean, Shinomori-sama. She's just energetic is all."
Ice blue eyes stared at the college girl. "You do know that you made a death wish when you agreed to go to the mall with her this Sunday, right?"
She smiled, not knowing whether or not her boss was kidding. "Oh come on! She's a really nice girl."
"That's not the point I'm trying to make, Miss Kamiya. After meeting her, you do realize how...disruptive Misao can be. I hope you bring along some painkillers this Sunday. By the end of the day, you won't even be able to crawl."
She laughed at his statement. Aoshi wasn't exactly an emotionless man. He had the sarcastic kind of humor that Kaoru found to be funny. "I'm looking forward to this Sunday. It's been a while since I've been to the mall."
Aoshi's eyes left her face, concentrating on the polished floor. "...she truly does admire you. She always has since she was in middle school."
Kaoru was surprised at the last remark. She had no idea that Misao had known her that long. "Why?"
"When you joined the kendo team in high school," Aoshi continued, his obsidian hair partially covering his eyes, "everyone had heard about it, even the students in the lower grades."
"...I didn't know that my joining the team was such a big deal."
"It was, especially to Misao. She was raised differently than most girls, and she took an interest in martial arts because of her grandfather's influence. So you can imagine how ecstatic she was when word reached her ears that a girl had joined one of the most skilled kendo teams in Tokyo."
Aoshi's face lifted from the floor and stared into Kaoru's face, his eyes clouded with reminiscence. "She would always turn on the TV and watch the channel that was broadcasting the tournaments that you participated in. Misao would cheer for you, despite the fact that you wouldn't have been able to hear her. After you graduated last year, she would go on and on about how much she wanted to walk the same hallways that you walked when you attended her high school."
The corners of his lips lifted into a small smile, the first one that Kaoru had ever witnessed. "So when I told her that you would be working for me as a secretary, she practically leapt ten feet into the air. I guess I should've warned you how troublesome she can be when she gets excited."
Kaoru shook her head, her hair brushing against her ivory cheek. "Don't worry about it. I'm glad that I met her."
Aoshi said nothing and turned onto his heel, but his secretary's voice stopped him.
"Is Misao...your sister?"
"No," his monotone voice replied. "She has been a friend of mine for a long time."
He stepped into his office, telling Kaoru to send in his next patient.
* * * *
Kaoru let out a happy sigh as she walked into the peaceful, sweet- scented night. Streetlights glowed in unison at her, cars whizzing past her so all she could see were red and yellow taillights flashing in the streets.
"I hope Aoshi will be okay by himself..." she spoke out loud as she walked down the steps, her sapphire eyes looking up to the building. She could imagine the psychologist gathering his things in his office and preparing to leave. It was almost depressing that he had to spend so many hours listening to teenagers' problems only to do the same thing the next day.
Suddenly, she bumped into something solid. The small shock of the impact sent her a step back.
"I'm sorry!" she exclaimed, feeling the blush that was creeping over her face. Sano always scolded her for being inattentive while she was walking. "I should've looked where I was going."
"Please, it's no trouble at all..." A smooth, masculine voice assured her.
Her blue eyes lifted from the concrete steps to the person she had knocked into. Turquoise eyes stared at her from a pair of dark shades that rested on the bridge of his nose. A shock of white hair was arranged wildly from his head, a small earring glinting from his left ear. Thin lips were curled into a smirk from a young face that was almost so handsome it was devilish.
Kaoru felt as if her whole face was turning red.
AUTHOR'S NOTE:
Alas, the first meeting! I know that it sounds kinda cliché, but I think that it's fitting. I mean, I didn't want to do something really corny like having Enishi save Kaoru from some accident involving a car or a runaway dumpster (that would remind me too much of The Wedding Planner...no offense to anyone, but that movie was horrible).
Hehe, j/k! Anyway, I hope my version of Misao isn't bad. I hope I made her hyper enough. Well, I guess the next chapter will involve Enishi a bit more. Sorry if the story's going kinda slow, but I wanna develop plot, y'know?
Thanks for reading in advance, and for the reviews! You guys are SO awesome!
