(Chapter 6: A Rainy Day)

"I don't know." Rukawa shrugged as he sat in Kira's kitchen. She sighed and poured him a tall glass of orange juice. The rain was pouring outside and the only sound in the room was the sound of the pelting rain, rhythmically beating against the glass window.

"You're a smart, guy, aren't you?" She said slowly as she sat down. "Why won't you put more effort into your work? Why didn't you study for that exam?"

"Don't need to." His tone was clipped. She tapped the table with her fingers.

"Why not?"

"I've my future planned out for me already, by my father."

"Well, if you decided you were to do something else with you life?" Kira asked reasonably.

"I wouldn't need any of this."

"What would you be, then?" Her voice, though patient, was getting slightly frustrated.

"I'd be a basketball player." Rukawa told her simply. Kira threw up her hand in resignation.

"Never mind." She looked out the window. The rain was falling a bit softer now, and more steady. "I wonder if it's going to stop raining."

"Doesn't look like it would." He glanced up at the sky beside her. "C'mon, we're going to be late." Finish rinsing out his cup, he left for his bike. Reluctantly, Kira followed, patting her fresh hair worriedly.

"Char, we'll be back earlier today, alright?" She called as the dog ran from the kitchen to see her off to school. His tail wagged wildly as she gave him a kiss on his head.

"Oh, well. Wet, fine." She muttered as she closed the door behind her. "There's no way to avoid it anyway."

But as she settled on the bike, something was gently draped across her hair and body. She looked up to find Rukawa's school uniform coat shielding her from the pouring rain. He lifted the coat a bit and peered down at her. She looked like she was playing dress up in her father's clothes and extremely charming in his eyes.

"Keep this on. It'll keep you dry until we get to school."

"What about you?"

"Don't worry about me."

Rain came down hard upon them as they rode to school. Kira could see Rukawa was soon soaked as droplets of rain dripped and hung at the end of his hair, but nevertheless, he never uttered a complaint and rode on gallantly.

"Rukawa?"

"Hmm?"

"How come you don't go by the warehouse anymore?"

"I don't feel like going." The contrast between Rukawa's home life and hers were startling to him. Even when his mother was living at home, his home life had never been like Kira's. And even though his father made plenty of money, his home never had the warmth and togetherness as Kira's had. The quiet, independent, but intimate and salutary life that Kira led slowly attracted him closer, like butterflies to flowers.

Kira silently agreed, though she didn't hear any of his thoughts, she could read his hunger in his eyes. Rukawa had almost spent every afternoon over at her house for the past few weeks. Sometimes, he'd bring Buster over and they'd watch both dogs chase in her garden. Sometimes, he sit and listen to her as she plays the piano. Other times, they'd sit at the kitchen table working on their homework in silence together as the night breeze brought the perfumed scent of flowers through the open French doors.

But the best moments were when the sky grew midnight black, and they'd be lying on the grass in Rukawa's backyard, side by side as he pointed out the stars and the constellations. Kira would savor the silence and the deepness of Rukawa's voice as they stared up at the diamond star studded sky, with the rays moonbeam as their only witness.

She remembered their first night of stargazing, she had led Rukawa down the path through her garden under the darkened sky. There, Rukawa had seen her latticed gazebo, painted white and trimmed with satin ribbons and cascades of white flowers. He had taken one look at it, and declared that it way too feminine to sit in for his manly pride. He had half-expected Kira to feel insulted, or to burst into tears, but she did neither. She only laughed and pointed to the soft grass on the side of the gazebo.

Their days together made them more than neighbors or classmates, but friends, soulmates.

Kira felt a happiness she'd never felt before. Rukawa had gradually and gently entered into her life. An intimate bond had developed slowly between them.

"I'll see you at the same place after school." He reminded as he parked his bike. She took off his jacket and shook her hair. Her long, sweet-smelling hair fell around her, shadowing her face like a silken veil.

"Rukawa, you're all wet."

"I'll be fine." He replied shortly, taking his jacket from her and putting it on. Lifting a hand to bid farewell, he left for his class without another word.

Kira smiled to herself as she hurried to her own class, perfectly dry, thanks to Rukawa. She hoped he wouldn't catch a cold because of her. As she walked into her classroom, she could see that Yumi was already perched on top of her desk with the newest fashion magazine.

"Kira!" She called and waved.

"What have you got there?" Kira asked as she neared and sat down at her desk. "Another fashion/dating/guy magazine?" Yumi popped her gum and chewed loudly.

"You got it." They made a pretty contrast, the two girls sitting together. One as fair as a lily, the other a little wild rose. Guys looked over and whispered. Some whistled, but Yumi unhesitatingly gave them a gesture with her hands that shamed Kira so much she could only look down and blush a deep red.

A teacher soon strolled into the classroom and called order.

"Open your books, class, to page 169…"

Everyone sighed. Class has officially started.

"You know what I've heard?" One of Yumi's friends, Suzu, said as she bit into her sandwich. "I heard that Nakata from Class B has been hanging onto Rukawa Kaede for the past week."

"Nakata Eri?!" Yumi smirked. As usual, she was stylishly and expensively dressed, perfectly groomed, and smelled of expensive perfume. She gave her long hair a flip and took a long sip of her juice. "I'm not surprised. She's had her beady little eyes on every good deal around here. I'm not surprised it's finally Rukawa's turn."

"Nakata?" Kira echoed. "Who's Nakata?" Her friend made a face.

"She's the shameless harlot that's been wondering from guy to guy." She gave a sharp bark of laughter. "Shocking, though, every guy seem to still like her even after they've known all about her."

"Yeah!" Another girl put in. "She's gorgeous, but the way she dresses is enough to make me retch. And the way she flashes her body—"

"Aiko!" Yumi cut her off severely. "We don't have to like her, but we shouldn't talk bad behind her back."

"I'm only telling the truth. The truth is that Nakata is a wanton and everyone in Shohoku knows it." Aiko flipped her hair. "She was pressed nice and tight against Rukawa in the hallway during break, and Mila heard her bribing him to take her out for a sweet after school."

"Bribing?" Kira was sure she did not like where this conversation is going.

"We don't gossip either!" Yumi insisted. But Mila eagerly joined the conversation.

"You should have seen Rukawa's face. It was as set as hard as stone and he didn't even flinch as she was snuggling up to him. And then—"

"Enough!" Yumi pushed her chair back and stood up, her face dark and her voice strained. "We should not become one of them." Was the only thing she said with her voice surprisingly soft.

But the redhead had stopped them too late, for on Kira's face, a troubling frown had appeared on her brow, and her mind was troubled while her heart grew heavier by every passing minute.

The rain was harder than ever when school was out. Kira stood on the front steps of the school, patiently waiting for Rukawa. But people came and people went. No Rukawa. She watched couples giggle as they left together under the same umbrella. She saw boys who took off their jackets to shield their sweethearts from the dreadful rain. Twenty-minutes passed and still no Rukawa showed.

"Isn't Rukawa here yet?" Yumi sauntered up behind her and drawled.

"No." Kira tried hard to steady her voice, but the affliction and worry was thinly hidden. "Why are you still here?" Yumi shrugged.

"To make sure you leave alright." Kira looked over and saw a strange expression on her friend's face.

"What's wrong? You've never done this before. What makes today so special?" She saw Yumi hesitate.

"It's probably nothing." She finally replied soothingly. "It's just…Aiko noticed that Rukawa's bike was gone." Kira's heart skipped a beat. "And when he left," Yumi continued. "Suzu thought she saw a girl walking beside him. And that girl looked like Nakata."

Kira was silent. In fact, she was so silent that Yumi was afraid the news had been too much to bear for the refined girl. She reached out to comfort her, but Kira looked up. She smiled softly, her ocean blue eyes distant, then said in a queer voice.

"It's okay. I'll head on home now. Thank you, Yumi."

Then, before Yumi could stop her, she stepped into the downpour rain, which immediately soaked her to the skin, and started alone on the long, lonely, cold journey home.

Rukawa silently cursed as he rushed out of the chemistry classroom. The retake test had taken way too long. The grade of the exam he had taken a week ago hadn't been high enough for him to pass, and the teacher and insisted he stay and retake the test in order to pass. And as he pushed his bike toward the classroom for a later quick escape, that girl, Nakata, had followed him, chatting on and on uselessly about the newest movie. She talked way too much in his view, and her conversation wasn't at all dignified, unlike like Kira, who was both filled with refined, cultivated qualities as well as quiet dignity. Overall, Kira had class and style, she was sweet and modest, Nakata doesn't.

He jumped on his bike and peddled hard for the front of the school, hoping to find the girl who had occupied his mind the whole afternoon still there, waiting for him.

But she wasn't, and the sky was quickly growing dark. Looking around hurriedly to see if she was still around, he hopped back on his bike and rode like lightening back home. And once he was home, he knocked on Kira's door, but all the lights were off inside her house and no one came to answer his knocks. Sighing inwardly and promising to call earlier tomorrow to apologize, he headed into his own house, wondering the whole time if she had been all right getting home in the rain and not knowing the whole time that she had not.

He noticed something wrong the next morning, when her door was locked against him. Usually when he arrives, the door was unlocked for him while she was in the kitchen, busily fixing breakfast for him and herself. He knocked and rang the bell for a few minutes. No on answered.

By then, he should have noticed something was really wrong, for the Kira he knew wasn't the type of girl to be petty about things like that. She would understand once he explains he to her. But Rukawa had believed—with his male mind—that Kira was angry with him for leaving her at school in the rain.

So that's why he left for school.

He thought about her the whole day, and was yelled by his teachers twice for daydreaming during class. He worried, he fretted, he grew anxious, and he was confused. By the end of school, the combination of all those feeling turned to anger. By God, why should any girl be troubled with something as little as leaving her at school?! He was not obligated with his life, only his feelings. Setting that in his mind, he got on his bike and headed for her house.

He was going to explain everything to her and see exactly what she has to say for herself.

He knocked. He rang. But no one came. There wasn't even a commotion inside the house until he thumped the door loudly and called,

"Open the door, Kira, it's me, Rukawa!"

Then he heard something. Something like the scuffle of nails on polished wood. A small "woof" was heard, then the sound of the lock being turned with difficulty. The door was finally opened…by Charmond.

The muscular wolf dog seemed to be in distress. He barked softly as soon as Rukawa stepped into the house. He ran in circles, before speeding up and down the stairs. Rukawa hung his coat on the coat hanger and frowned.

"What's wrong, Char?" He knelt down and reached out to the dog, having full mind to calm him. But Char refused to be comforted. He ran up the stairs, then down, and pawed the puzzled young man frantically. Rukawa finally got the idea and followed Char cautiously up the stairs.

Upon reaching the second floor, the dog immediately ran to the second door on the right and nudged his way into the room. Rukawa followed and curiously push the door open.

The room was dark, though moonlight was shining through the curtains. Gauzy, flowing curtains pooled on the carpeted floor. Rukawa thought Kira's bedroom reflected her perfectly. It was feminine and pretty, yet showed intelligence and technology. Her room was scented like summer flowers and fresh spring rain, softened with colors of the ocean—a soft shade of mysterious blue and white peppered with violet lavender. There were bookcases, a table with two white wicker chairs and a Queen Anne styled desk that held a computer. The incongruity of technology and romanticism sitting side by side caused his lips curl up to a tiny smile.

Kira was asleep in the dim room, her hair spilling across her pillow like shiny silk ribbons. And at the sight of her, Rukawa hastily closed the door as color quickly rose onto his complexion. But something caught his attention and he took a second look. That second look stunned him.

Char had somehow nosed his water bowl to the side of her bed, and was now dipping his nose into the water, then gently nudging Kira's face, as if trying to cool it. As Rukawa walked closer, he realized why.

Kira's face was flaming and as he laid a cool hand on her forehead, he drew back with shock and horror at the feverish burning of her temperature.

"Oh, God…" He staggered back and pressed against the wall, racking through every corner of his mind for guidance.

What to do?! The doctor! I'll call the doctor!

And away he ran to search for the phone, leaving Char with Kira. The dog took a deep sigh, and finally relaxed now that someone was there to take care of Kira with him.

If Kira had been awake through the night and onto the next day, she would have been touched at the patience and gentleness with which Rukawa had displayed while taking care of her, for he also suffered from a mild cold from riding in the rain, but never rested as he took care of her with determination. But no one ever saw that side of him except Char, who felt and saw with his own eyes. Rukawa continuously laid cool cloths on her forehead through out the night, with a gentleness none has experience from him but Kira. The patience as he held her up and spooned broth into her mouth. The soft eyes that looked at her as she slept. The tender nonsense he murmured when she writhed with discomfort while deliriously ranting and raving about finding her lost brother.

She looked beautiful when she was asleep. Her thick cloud of black hair spilt and fanned across the pillows. She looked pale, yet attractive. Her gentle breathing echoed through the silent room as silver moonlight shone through the window, shadowing her finely chiselled features. She looked even more innocent and naïve as she slept. Her thick, dark lashes almost brushed her cheeks as they formed a crescent shadow underneath.

Rukawa didn't sleep a wink that night as he watched over Kira. And he missed school the next morning, leaving students and teachers to wonder why Rukiko Kira and Rukawa Kaede were absent together. Toward dawn, he woke up with a start and realized he had fallen asleep. Sneezing lightly, the sound woke Char and the dog lifted his head. Rukawa walked over to Kira and felt her face, then let out a long breath of relief.

Her fever was broken.

But suffering from a cold himself, Rukawa felt the neediness of sleep for himself. If he doesn't catch some winks, Kira's going to have to be taking care of him in a few days.

"She's going to be okay, Char." He whispered as he stumbled out of the room to a couch where he could sleep for a couple of hours, knowing that Kira was going to be okay.