Chapter 3
Disclaimer: Fruits Basket and its characters are the property of Natsuki Takaya
It was Tohru's habit to wake up early. Her companions were still asleep when she crawled out of her makeshift bed on the floor. She took a quick shower, brushed her teeth and changed into her school uniform. Then she tiptoed back into the room to check on their patient.
He was no longer in his zodiac form which she took as a good sign. He must be feeling better, she thought as she studied the sleeping dragon's face. She found herself wondering if he looked better without those bangs always falling over one side of his face. Her hand reached out but she stopped herself in time. What was she thinking?, she chided herself.
Her face was the first thing Hatori saw when he opened his eyes. He was content for awhile to drink in her features and get lost in those big blue-green eyes of hers. She broke the spell.
"Umm Hatori-san? Would you like some breakfast and pajamas?"
"I am hungry. There are pajamas in the drawers over there, can you get me a pair please?"
In her eagerness, Tohru ran toward the drawers, forgetting that Shigure was sleeping on the floor. She tripped over him then landed on him. A puff of blue smoke later and she found herself looking at his doggy face.
"I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry!," she wailed.
The dog just sighed. When Tohru continued to offer a stream of apologies, Shigure put a paw on her knee.
"Tohru-kun. It was an accident. Don't go beating yourself up over it. Why were you in a hurry anyway?"
"Hatori-san needs his pajamas," she said then jumped up and scurried over to the drawers to find said garment. She handed the dragon a pair of seagreen flannel pjs and quickly made her exit so he could dress himself.
Her next goal was to make breakfast but it seemed she depleted the pantry after making the chicken soup last night. She stuck her head in Hatori's room.
"Ano Hatori-san?"
"Yes?"
"Well, you don't seem to have any food in your kitchen, not that it's your fault or anything. Most people get too busy to shop and you did get sick so ..."
"I usually get my meals from the main house's kitchen. Shigure can show you where it is."
Shigure came out of the bathroom, catching the tail end of the conversation. "Shall we go Tohru-kun?," he asked.
She didn't want to be a burden on the maids so she insisted on helping with the cooking. Akito noticed how breakfast tasted different. He knew Tohru was at Hatori's house and wondered if she cooked the meal. Few things escaped Akito's attention. He decided to tolerate her presence in the estate until the family doctor was better.
Hatori felt a pang of disappointment when Ayame and not Tohru carried in his breakfast.
"Eat up Tori-san. You need to be up and about again. Akito-san is simply missing your presence."
Ayame then launched into a tale about his shop and how fabulous it is. The dragon turned a deaf ear to his friend and tasted the miso soup.
"Did we get a new cook?"
"Eh?"
"Who made breakfast?"
"Oh that. Our princess helped the servants with the cooking. Delicious, isn't it? Anyway as I was saying, business has simply been marvelous. Word about my great designs is spreading all over the region. People are realizing what talent I have!"
Hatori tuned out Ayame and focused on eating.
Tohru left the main house and headed to school. She called Shigure's house earlier and got Kyo. She asked if he and Yuki (he snorted in contempt at the name) ate breakfast already and if they could bring her bag to school. She'd meet them there.
After hours of Ayame's stories and Shigure's teasing, Hatori promised himself he'd never get sick again. They wore him down. The two only stopped their babbling long enough to give him his medicine.
Tohru wanted school to end quickly. She kept looking at the clock on the wall and fidgeted in her seat. When the bell rang, she grabbed Yuki and Kyo's hands and practically dragged them home. She didn't notice how both teens turned red.
She made them dinner, packed all sorts of things in a bag and left. She stopped by the market on her way to the main house.
Even Ayame and Shigure knew when to leave Hatori alone. He was in his office trying to get some work done. But it was hopeless. He was still weak and couldn't concentrate. A chill crept in the room. Hatori glanced at the window and saw snow falling. He thought of Kana and lapsed into a moody silence.
Someone knocked on the door.
"Go away Shigure. That goes double for you Ayame. I have work to do."
"I didn't mean to interrupt you, Hatori-san," a hesitant voice reached his ears. Tohru.
"Is there something you wanted Honda-kun? Come in."
Tohru walked into the room with a tray.
"I brought you dinner and your medicine. There's also a magazine in case you get bored."
She placed the tray on his desk without looking at him and turned to leave.
"Are you sleeping here tonight?"
"Hai. Since it's Saturday tomorrow, I can leave later in the morning. Shigure-san and Ayame-san promised to stay with you until you're stronger."
Just wonderful, Hatori thought. He wanted to ask why she couldn't stay longer but refrained from doing so. The cat and the rat probably already resented the time she spent here.
"Aren't you cold, Hatori-san?"
Tohru closed the curtains, adjusted the thermostat and left. She soon returned with a blanket she draped over his shoulders.
"You musn't catch a chill. You're recovering from a cold. People underestimate colds."
He heard from Yuki how her father died from what started out as a cold. To reassure her he wasn't on his deathbed yet, he pulled the tray toward him and noticed how bulky the magazine was. He opened it and saw a box of chocolates shaped like sea creatures. His eyes were drawn to the sea horse smack dab in the center of the box.
His gaze went to Tohru who looked like she wanted to bolt from the room. Then he found his voice.
"Is this for me?"
"Uh... I was going to give them to you on Valentine's Day but you got sick."
"It must have been a lot of work finding chocolates shaped like the Chinese zodiac."
Tohru wanted the earth to swallow her up. She hadn't counted on being in the room when Hatori opened the magazine. She couldn't lie to save her life either.
"It wasn't that hard really."
"I thought you weren't supposed to buy us chocolates anymore? It's not that I don't appreciate the gift but I'm sure there are better things you could have spent your money on Honda-kun. Like school trips or shoes."
Tohru thought Hatori was upset with her and blurted out an explanation.
"But I didn't spend a lot of money. I only bought chocolates for you, Uo-chan and Hana-chan. So you see, it wasn't that big of an expense."
What she said surprised Hatori. He was the only Sohma to get chocolates from her? He remembered the way she reacted when he squeezed her hand at Shigure's house. Hope rose in him. He decided to test his theory and approached her.
"I didn't mean to sound ungrateful. Thank you for thinking of me ... Tohru-kun."
He never used her first name before, Tohru thought as she turned beet red. The way he said it sounded beautiful to her.
His spring had finally arrived but he knew Kyo and Yuki needed her more. He gave Tohru a sad smile then bent down and kissed her cheek. It was all for the best. His time with Kana was enough. But he couldn't find the strength to just walk away from her.
"It's OK to say what you want once in a while. A good friend told me that.,'' Tohru said and looked at him. "What do you want, Hatori-san?"
"You,'' he said simply and pulled her into a hug. Just before he transformed, he felt her hug him back.
Blushing furiously, Tohru picked up the sea horse and kissed him softly. She cradled him to her chest.
"And what I want ... is you.,'' she slowly said.
THE END
Disclaimer: Fruits Basket and its characters are the property of Natsuki Takaya
It was Tohru's habit to wake up early. Her companions were still asleep when she crawled out of her makeshift bed on the floor. She took a quick shower, brushed her teeth and changed into her school uniform. Then she tiptoed back into the room to check on their patient.
He was no longer in his zodiac form which she took as a good sign. He must be feeling better, she thought as she studied the sleeping dragon's face. She found herself wondering if he looked better without those bangs always falling over one side of his face. Her hand reached out but she stopped herself in time. What was she thinking?, she chided herself.
Her face was the first thing Hatori saw when he opened his eyes. He was content for awhile to drink in her features and get lost in those big blue-green eyes of hers. She broke the spell.
"Umm Hatori-san? Would you like some breakfast and pajamas?"
"I am hungry. There are pajamas in the drawers over there, can you get me a pair please?"
In her eagerness, Tohru ran toward the drawers, forgetting that Shigure was sleeping on the floor. She tripped over him then landed on him. A puff of blue smoke later and she found herself looking at his doggy face.
"I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry!," she wailed.
The dog just sighed. When Tohru continued to offer a stream of apologies, Shigure put a paw on her knee.
"Tohru-kun. It was an accident. Don't go beating yourself up over it. Why were you in a hurry anyway?"
"Hatori-san needs his pajamas," she said then jumped up and scurried over to the drawers to find said garment. She handed the dragon a pair of seagreen flannel pjs and quickly made her exit so he could dress himself.
Her next goal was to make breakfast but it seemed she depleted the pantry after making the chicken soup last night. She stuck her head in Hatori's room.
"Ano Hatori-san?"
"Yes?"
"Well, you don't seem to have any food in your kitchen, not that it's your fault or anything. Most people get too busy to shop and you did get sick so ..."
"I usually get my meals from the main house's kitchen. Shigure can show you where it is."
Shigure came out of the bathroom, catching the tail end of the conversation. "Shall we go Tohru-kun?," he asked.
She didn't want to be a burden on the maids so she insisted on helping with the cooking. Akito noticed how breakfast tasted different. He knew Tohru was at Hatori's house and wondered if she cooked the meal. Few things escaped Akito's attention. He decided to tolerate her presence in the estate until the family doctor was better.
Hatori felt a pang of disappointment when Ayame and not Tohru carried in his breakfast.
"Eat up Tori-san. You need to be up and about again. Akito-san is simply missing your presence."
Ayame then launched into a tale about his shop and how fabulous it is. The dragon turned a deaf ear to his friend and tasted the miso soup.
"Did we get a new cook?"
"Eh?"
"Who made breakfast?"
"Oh that. Our princess helped the servants with the cooking. Delicious, isn't it? Anyway as I was saying, business has simply been marvelous. Word about my great designs is spreading all over the region. People are realizing what talent I have!"
Hatori tuned out Ayame and focused on eating.
Tohru left the main house and headed to school. She called Shigure's house earlier and got Kyo. She asked if he and Yuki (he snorted in contempt at the name) ate breakfast already and if they could bring her bag to school. She'd meet them there.
After hours of Ayame's stories and Shigure's teasing, Hatori promised himself he'd never get sick again. They wore him down. The two only stopped their babbling long enough to give him his medicine.
Tohru wanted school to end quickly. She kept looking at the clock on the wall and fidgeted in her seat. When the bell rang, she grabbed Yuki and Kyo's hands and practically dragged them home. She didn't notice how both teens turned red.
She made them dinner, packed all sorts of things in a bag and left. She stopped by the market on her way to the main house.
Even Ayame and Shigure knew when to leave Hatori alone. He was in his office trying to get some work done. But it was hopeless. He was still weak and couldn't concentrate. A chill crept in the room. Hatori glanced at the window and saw snow falling. He thought of Kana and lapsed into a moody silence.
Someone knocked on the door.
"Go away Shigure. That goes double for you Ayame. I have work to do."
"I didn't mean to interrupt you, Hatori-san," a hesitant voice reached his ears. Tohru.
"Is there something you wanted Honda-kun? Come in."
Tohru walked into the room with a tray.
"I brought you dinner and your medicine. There's also a magazine in case you get bored."
She placed the tray on his desk without looking at him and turned to leave.
"Are you sleeping here tonight?"
"Hai. Since it's Saturday tomorrow, I can leave later in the morning. Shigure-san and Ayame-san promised to stay with you until you're stronger."
Just wonderful, Hatori thought. He wanted to ask why she couldn't stay longer but refrained from doing so. The cat and the rat probably already resented the time she spent here.
"Aren't you cold, Hatori-san?"
Tohru closed the curtains, adjusted the thermostat and left. She soon returned with a blanket she draped over his shoulders.
"You musn't catch a chill. You're recovering from a cold. People underestimate colds."
He heard from Yuki how her father died from what started out as a cold. To reassure her he wasn't on his deathbed yet, he pulled the tray toward him and noticed how bulky the magazine was. He opened it and saw a box of chocolates shaped like sea creatures. His eyes were drawn to the sea horse smack dab in the center of the box.
His gaze went to Tohru who looked like she wanted to bolt from the room. Then he found his voice.
"Is this for me?"
"Uh... I was going to give them to you on Valentine's Day but you got sick."
"It must have been a lot of work finding chocolates shaped like the Chinese zodiac."
Tohru wanted the earth to swallow her up. She hadn't counted on being in the room when Hatori opened the magazine. She couldn't lie to save her life either.
"It wasn't that hard really."
"I thought you weren't supposed to buy us chocolates anymore? It's not that I don't appreciate the gift but I'm sure there are better things you could have spent your money on Honda-kun. Like school trips or shoes."
Tohru thought Hatori was upset with her and blurted out an explanation.
"But I didn't spend a lot of money. I only bought chocolates for you, Uo-chan and Hana-chan. So you see, it wasn't that big of an expense."
What she said surprised Hatori. He was the only Sohma to get chocolates from her? He remembered the way she reacted when he squeezed her hand at Shigure's house. Hope rose in him. He decided to test his theory and approached her.
"I didn't mean to sound ungrateful. Thank you for thinking of me ... Tohru-kun."
He never used her first name before, Tohru thought as she turned beet red. The way he said it sounded beautiful to her.
His spring had finally arrived but he knew Kyo and Yuki needed her more. He gave Tohru a sad smile then bent down and kissed her cheek. It was all for the best. His time with Kana was enough. But he couldn't find the strength to just walk away from her.
"It's OK to say what you want once in a while. A good friend told me that.,'' Tohru said and looked at him. "What do you want, Hatori-san?"
"You,'' he said simply and pulled her into a hug. Just before he transformed, he felt her hug him back.
Blushing furiously, Tohru picked up the sea horse and kissed him softly. She cradled him to her chest.
"And what I want ... is you.,'' she slowly said.
THE END