Just then, Akito let out a small grunt and that brought the end of their embrace. Tohru blushed and straightened out her skirt, she looked down, "Um… uh… I…I'll just be… going to fetch some water for Akito when he wakes up," She said and made a move to go out, but Akito's hand stretched out and grabbed onto Tohru's wrist. "Wait," Tohru looked back, "Akito-san?"
"Kyou, I'd like to have a chat with her, if you don't mind," Akito said. His tone of voice turned sincere and soft, he has become such a changed man. Kyou nodded obediently, he glanced at Tohru once more and nodded, as if trying to say I'll take my leave now, you'll take care ok? Tohru, as if having some sort of telepathic skills, nodded back and blushed. With a bang, the door was closed.
Akito sat up with the help from Tohru. He turned to look at her, "Thank you," Tohru looked at him and nodded, smiling pleasantly. "I did nothing," Tohru said, "I was just voicing out my feelings,"
"No," Akito said, "Your words were… so comforting. In the past, I hated myself, I thought I was born to be horrible and obnoxious," Akito chuckled under his breath softly and helplessly, as he placed a hand on his forehead. "But after that first confrontation, I… I don't know how I felt but somehow, the burden in my heart was somewhat… gone, you healed me, Tohru," Akito said astonished. "I don't know how you did it, but… you did," Akito said.
"When you were talking to you, part of me is believing you, but the other just, won't listen… and that was the curse that was controlling me, telling me not to… then, you asked me something, and I felt, yeah, I want to be happy, why should I be sad? What reason have I got to be? And suddenly, I felt like…" Akito drifted off a bit, remembering that feeling when the curse was lifted. "I felt like something inside me is clinging onto me, not wanting to break out, I thought I would have lost my mind then, but you called me… Gawd, I'm so glad you did because it brought me back to where I want to be, and that thing in me is driven out of my body, if you hadn't called my name back then, I think I would have gone back to my old, horrible self,"
"It… was excruciatingly pain for me, but once it had been driven out of me… I… I felt so good. I've never felt like that in such a long time, in fact, it was the very first I did feel that good," Akito threw his head back and laughed, for the very first time. "All these years, I thought I was controlling the Souma family well… I thought I was in control, in power… you know?" Akito looked at Tohru, who is smiling politely. "But then… it was actually the curse which is telling me what to do and what not…" Akito leaned back and closed his eyes, "Thank you so much, Tohru…"
"It… It was nothing,"
"And you're right, I have been believing and hoping you could break the curse, somewhere deep inside of me. Some itty, bitty gnawing little instinct deep down in my gut hoping for you to break it. When you left 3 years ago, I… I guess all hope was lost,"
Tohru sagged her shoulders, feeling a bit angry yet happy that Akito was telling her his feelings. "But you came back," Akito said and smiled helplessly like a child at Tohru, "You…" Akito let it trail off… are one amazing person…
"I'm fine now; I think I can make it back to the Main House on my own… I think the rest of them must be feeling something different…" Akito stood up and wobbled from side to side for a while, before he was steady. When he was, "You still owe Kyou an answer…" he said and opened the door before Tohru know it, he was gone.
Kyou was just waiting for her outside of the room, leaning his back against the wall, his hands in his pockets. He looked up at Tohru silently and looked back down on the ground. Tohru smiled at him, "Kyou-kun! I'm just going to make dinner, would you like to join me in the kitchen?" Kyou looked at her and nodded silently as the both of them made their way to the kitchen.
"Tadaima!" Tohru heard Yuki and Shigure, "Okairi!" Tohru called from the kitchen. Yuki came, unsuspectingly, into the kitchen and looked up. "…" Yuki stared at Kyou with his mouth wide open in surprise, Shigure joined in and he, too, looked up at Kyou in surprise. "Stop looking at me like that, you irritating buggers!" Kyou yelled frustrated, waving a knife in his hand.
"Why are you here?" Yuki snarled, "Huh, now who's the stupid one?! Don't you feel anything different now?" Kyou asked, happy to know, for once, that he was not the stupid one. Yuki paused and thought for a while, "Ye… Yeah, I wanted to ask Tohru when I got back, until I saw you,"
"The curse is broken, Yuki-kun!" Tohru smiled widely.
"Yuki…-kun?" Kyou looked at Tohru in astonishment, and somehow, he felt jealousy boiling in his gut. "Broken?"
"TOHRU-KUN" Shigure exclaimed, breaking off the tension that has been building among the trio, he stretched out his arms, "TOHRU GIVE UNCLE GURE-SAN A BIIIIG HU—"
"Dream on," Kyou said, extending his hands to block Tohru from Shigure's arms. Shigure pouted, "Come on… can't we share?" Shigure asked innocently. "NO!" Yuki and Kyou exclaimed together. "Tohru!" A cheerful voice rang, Tohru looked over Kyou's shoulders and smiled happily, "Momiji-kun!"
Momiji jumped, obviously still as hyper and childish as ever, and gave Tohru a big hug, he hugged her so tightly that she could hardly breathe. "Eh… eh… stop it, Tohru's turning blue," Kyou said protectively. Momiji loosened his grip and looked at Kyou, "Oh Kyou, stopped being so tense! It's the first ever I'm hugging her without having to transform!" Momiji pouted.
"HAHAHA!" Within a flash, Ayame had swept Tohru off her feet. She blushed madly, "EH?!?!?" Kyou glared at Ayame, while Yuki gave a helpless sigh, "Where did he come from…?"
"Ayame, put her down," Hatori said from behind, his cool and calm tone has never changed. Ayame did, obediently. Within minutes, Hiro and Kisa had arrived too, "Wow! All of you are here!" Tohru exclaimed happily.
Momiji nodded, "We came here as soon as Akito said you were here and has broken the curse!" With that, he stepped onto the counter, "THIS CALLS FOR A TRIP TO THE SOUMA'S BUNGALOW!" He exclaimed.
"Hoi, quit fooling around, you'll fall from there," Kyou said and grabbed Momiji down. "I can make plans today and we could go tomorrow!"
"Doesn't Tohru need to work?" Hatori asked, he seemed happier now… Tohru noticed, everyone is… She smiled at him and nodded, "Hai, but I have the end of this week before going back," Hatori nodded. "aya-san… Have you been… cheating behind my back again?" Shigure said, striking his most charming pose at him, Ayame turned to look at Shigure, "How can I… gure-san…" Ayame said, too, striking his most alluring pose. At the same time, both of them gave a thumbs up and smiled at each other.
"Ah… Everybody's here except Akito-san!" Tohru pointed out, "If we want to make a trip to the Souma's bungalow, everybody must go…" Tohru said thoughtfully. "Hai hai! Tohru-kun We shall leave tomorrow and be back here by Sunday afternoon!" Momiji said cheerfully. Tohru looked at him and smiled and nodded.
Tadaima (Ta-da-ee-ma): I'm back!
Okairi (oh-Ka-ee-ree): Welcome back!
[After Word]
You guys are so nice! I thought the story came out really lame and when I found like 6 mail messages in my inbox, I was thinking: uh oh, I think it'll be hate mail this time. Good gawd, I was so relieved when it wasn't and I appreciated it! THANKS!!!!! And nope, it's not yet the end! There's still one last chapter… before it ends. But no wait! It's still not the end! There's still a sequel to it! I didn't really think that people would read my after word because, I mean, it is really nothing related to the story and all that…, but wow, thanks for reading them! And yes, I'll be writing a sequel in a different name because that other fanfic can also be a stand-alone thing.
hugs to all who have been reading!
A little summary on the next sequel:
Kyou and Tohru became roommates after the curse was broken and had been going out for 5 years. (so both of them is 25 years old now, working and all, not married though!) And then Kyou meets a strange yet persistent lady… all temptations are great, especially when Kyoru's relationship is getting a bit sour… Can he resist?