Disclaimer: I do not own Hana Yori Dango.
Chapter 24: Not Again!
Just as Tsukasa had said, he had called Haru to instruct him to let Tsukushi off early the following day, so she could arrive an hour earlier than their usual rehearsal time for them to work on the song. Since it was a light day and there was not much work to be done, Haru allowed Tsukushi to leave once her lunch break came. This allowed her to have a leisurely lunch and, she had hoped, some time at the internet café to catch up on her e-mails and do some surfing on the net. Unfortunately there was something wrong with the computer server there, so the café was closed temporarily. She wasn't in the mood to go window-shopping to kill time, so she decided to go to Akira's house earlier and use his computer while waiting for Tsukasa to arrive.
=================
Bright light coming from the noontime sun was streaming in through the windows when Tsukasa awoke. He sat up from bed groggily, feeling disoriented as he glanced about the unfamiliar surroundings. As he rubbed the sleep from his eyes, he remembered that he decided to crash here at Akira's house after their late night out the previous evening. He was too wasted to drive home, so he left his car at the club and went home with Akira.
He plodded his way out of the guest bedroom and went down to the kitchen to scrounge for something to eat. A post-it was stuck on the fridge door. It was a note from Akira. "Stepped out for a lunch date. You still have a spare change of clothing from the last time you crashed here. I put them on top of the bureau in my room. See you this afternoon for practice. -A."
Tsukasa opened the fridge door and frowned when he saw that all Akira had in there were a couple of boxes of Chinese take-out (how long they'd been in there he didn't care to guess), a six-pack of diet soda, and a moldy block of cheese. He went to the living room to search for the cordless phone after he found a flyer of the nearest Domino's stashed in one of the kitchen drawers. After calling to have a pizza delivered, he glanced at the clock on the wall and saw he had about 45 minutes left before Tsukushi arrived. Perfect. That left him enough time to bathe and have his lunch first. He went back upstairs so he could take a shower at the bathroom inside Akira's room.
=================
Tsukushi saw that Akira's car was not where it was usually parked, so she assumed he had gone out for lunch. Tsukasa's car wasn't there either, not that she expected it to be, considering she was early. They had agreed to meet at 2pm and it was only 1:30.
She let herself into the house with her own copy of the key. After dropping her knapsack onto the couch, she went upstairs and headed to Akira's bedroom. Just as she was about to settle into the chair in front of the computer after she had turned it on, she heard the knob of the bathroom door turn. She whirled around and screamed when she saw a man step out of the bathroom, his face partly concealed by the towel he was rubbing on his head.
"What the fuck?!" Tsukasa cried out as he heard a bloodcurdling scream when he stepped out of the bathroom. His eyes almost popped out of their sockets when he saw Tsukushi standing across the room, screaming her lungs out for all she was worth. "Tsukushi?!"
The screaming stopped immediately when Tsukushi heard his voice. Shock registered on her face when she realized that the man was Tsukasa, the towel that had been concealing his face now hanging around his neck. "Tsukasa?!" she exclaimed as her hand clutched her chest. "Holy shit, are you planning to make a career out of scaring me out of my wits?!" This was the second time in a span of days that he had managed to almost give her a heart attack.
"Well, what the hell are you doing here anyway?" he yelled. "You weren't supposed to be here 'til at least half an hour from now!" He was unaware that the shock he had felt was causing him to yell.
"So I'm early! So what?!" she shouted back. She didn't know why she was shouting. Maybe it was all that adrenaline that was still pumping through her. Or maybe she was really ticked off that he was yelling at her. As she stood there glaring at him, she suddenly realized that Tsukasa was standing before her clad only in thin cotton boxers. The towel that hung around his neck provided scant coverage of his bare, muscular chest. Beads of water coming from his wet hair trickled down his neck. The blood that had drained from her face due to her earlier fright suddenly came rushing back up to her cheeks as she drank in the sight of him. Her knees wobbled, and she was grateful for the bed that had been separating them, because it was there to catch her fall when she sharply turned away from looking at him. "And what the hell are you doing anyway, walking around in your underwear, you... you... exhibitionist!"
Tsukasa suddenly realized he was only wearing his boxers when she said that. He hurriedly took the towel off his neck and wrapped it around his waist. "You can turn around now," he told her.
Tsukushi turned around as told. Big mistake. The towel that had hung around his neck now rode low on his hips, leaving his chest bare. She swallowed hard as she watched the muscles on his chest ripple as he fumbled to tie the towel in a knot around his waist. He fought to keep the laughter out of his voice as he spoke again. "I'm no exhibitionist."
"Well, if you aren't, why are you parading around clad only in your boxers? Can't you see the curtains on those windows aren't drawn? What if the neighbors can see you?" She knew she was blabbering but somehow she couldn't stop. "What if --"
"Baka," he cut in, his eyes crinkling humorously. If he didn't like this girl so much, he'd have whacked her in the head already for being so dumb. But what he really wanted to do was shut her up and stop her ranting and raving by kissing her senseless. He fought the urge to walk up to her and take her in his arms as he spoke again. "I'm pretty sure Akira's neighbors don't give a flying fuck if they see a naked man in here. Knowing Akira, he probably walks around in the buff all the time, curtains or no curtains. I'm more concerned about the neighbors beating down the door because of your screams." At Tsukushi's dubious look, he added, "Can't you see I just stepped out of the shower? Duh. Of course I'd be in my boxers. You ought to be thankful I'm even wearing them." He couldn't resist teasing her as his lips curled up in a mischievous grin.
Tsukushi stood up from the bed and averted her eyes downward as she muttered, "Whatever. I'm going down now so you can get dressed." She almost ran towards the door, still keeping her eyes down and refusing to look at him. She had to get out of there before she got a nosebleed or something. In her rush, her foot caught on the edge of the area rug just before she reached the door and she went plummeting face first onto the floor. Her eyes squeezed shut and her arm shot out in front of her as she braced herself for the impact.
Tsukasa was there to catch her before she could hit the floor. She felt his arms catch her body and break her fall. When she opened her eyes, she found herself facing his chest. His hands were on her waist as he propped her up. When she looked up to his face, he was staring intently at her. "Tsukushi..." he breathed. She stared back at him, mesmerized, as she watched his face move closer and closer to her own.
She knew he was going to kiss her... and she made no move to stop him because she realized... she wanted him to. She drew in a deep breath and closed her eyes as she prepared to receive his kiss.
His hands snaked to encircle her waist and pull her close to him. Her hands, which had clutched impulsively at his arms as he caught her, seemed to move out of their own volition to clasp themselves behind his neck.
Tsukasa's eyes closed instinctively as he leaned in to claim her lips, those lips which he had been dreaming about these past few days...
Just before their lips could touch, the silence surrounding them was shattered by the sound of the door bell ringing. Their eyes flew open at the sudden intrusion.
The look in Tsukushi's eyes was akin to that of a deer caught in the headlights. Tsukasa, though similarly surprised, had eyes that were still clouded with desire.
Tsukushi lowered her flushed face and averted her eyes from his burning gaze. She made a sudden movement to turn around but Tsukasa was too quick for her, catching her by her wrists in a vice grip. "Don't go..." he pleaded in a raspy voice.
The doorbell rang again, continuously this time, as if the person at the door had decided to keep their finger pressed on the button.
"I... I really should get that," Tsukushi stammered, while turning away from Tsukasa resolutely. It took all of her willpower to tear her eyes away from his because she found herself drowning in his gaze again when he stopped her the first time.
Before he could stop her this time, she had already disengaged herself from his hold and was marching towards the staircase at the end of the short hallway.
When she got down and opened the door, a teenaged boy wearing the Domino's Pizza uniform stood there holding a pizza box. He rolled his eyes when he saw her and said irritably, "Finally. Here's your pizza, lady."
Ordinarily, Tsukushi would've berated him for his attitude. But right now with her frazzled nerves, all she could do was look at him dumbly as if he had just landed from outer space. "Um, yeah, okay, could you wait a sec?" she instructed once she found her voice again. "Tsukasa! Did you order pizza?" she yelled, her voice reverberating throughout the quiet house.
"Yeah! Could you ask him to hold on a sec? I'll be down in a few," Tsukasa yelled back from the second floor. Seconds later, he came bounding down the staircase while still trying to put on a plain blue t-shirt over the faded jeans he had on. By that time, Tsukushi had managed to compose herself somewhat.
Tsukasa walked directly to the open door and pulled out his wallet from his back pocket. Tsukushi had already gotten the box from the pizza delivery guy and was turning to walk to the staircase leading to the basement when Tsukasa stopped her. "Wait, Tsukushi..." he said as he caught her by the wrist again.
Tsukushi looked pointedly at the hand he had on her wrist, causing him to let go immediately. Her face was a cool mask of nonchalance as she spoke. "I'll bring this down to the basement. Go on and pay the guy." With that, she turned on her heel and made her way down to the basement.
Tsukasa wanted more than anything else to run after her and take her in his arms again, but the moment had been broken. With a heavy sigh, he turned his attention back to paying the pizza delivery guy.
********************
A/N: A TxT moment, as promised. Okay, so the chapter ending wasn't so great, but hey, at least I didn't leave you hanging this time, right? LOL. I was debating on whether to end this on a cliffie like last time but I'm not that good at dodging rotten tomatoes. So there, they didn't kiss, thanks to the evil author. On second thought, maybe I should've braced myself for rotten tomatoes after all, hahaha.
Lian: Hi there. I'm glad you're still reading this even if the pairing isn't your favorite couple. Thanks for your support.
otakuchique: Yep. Somebody ought to buy that girl a clue.
BlackArmoria: Hey there. Are you the same Black Amoria who's left me comments at Winglin? I'm glad you like the story and the pairing. I love Tsukasa too!
random0182: Hi! I'm glad you decided to break your silence. It's always nice to see a new name on the reviews page. Thanks for reading and leaving a review.
Sailor Angie: Hey girl! The scene in Akira's room was written especially with you (and others like us who lust for Tsukasa, lol) in mind. I hope you liked it, even though they didn't actually kiss. I know, I'm evil, hahaha. Hope your 'baby' is fixed by now.
flipgrl: Hi there. Here's a bit of TxT action for you. Hope you liked it.
ToinKs: Oist! Ever since naman, aminado akong si Jerry ang inspiration ko for both my fics, di ba? Hahaha! I've said it before and I'll say it again... I adore the guy! Hope you liked this TxT chap.
Syvonair: Thanks, glad you liked the chap. As for when Tsukushi will admit that she likes Tsukasa, your guess is as good as mine.
cherub girl: Heya! I hope this update is soon enough for you. Hope you liked that little TxT moment.
thidathai: Hi! I'm glad to hear you like the way I write the characters, and that sometimes you can visualize the scenes in your head.
kamiangel: Hey girl! Yup, we did get to watch MG1 & 2 here. In fact, reruns are still being shown 5 days a week. As for getting the DVD series, of course I'd say it's worth it. Well, at least for me, 'cause it was MG that got me into HYD and writing fanfics in the first place. But hey, don't take my word for it. Ask other people too before you buy. I don't want you blaming me if you spend an obscene amount of money on the DVDs.
XxSwtDreamerxX: Any suggestions as to what Akira and Jiro might do?
Thanks to all of you for your continued support of this story. As always, please leave me a review if you've time. Your reviews help a lot, y'know. 'Til the next post, take care guys.
Chapter 24: Not Again!
Just as Tsukasa had said, he had called Haru to instruct him to let Tsukushi off early the following day, so she could arrive an hour earlier than their usual rehearsal time for them to work on the song. Since it was a light day and there was not much work to be done, Haru allowed Tsukushi to leave once her lunch break came. This allowed her to have a leisurely lunch and, she had hoped, some time at the internet café to catch up on her e-mails and do some surfing on the net. Unfortunately there was something wrong with the computer server there, so the café was closed temporarily. She wasn't in the mood to go window-shopping to kill time, so she decided to go to Akira's house earlier and use his computer while waiting for Tsukasa to arrive.
=================
Bright light coming from the noontime sun was streaming in through the windows when Tsukasa awoke. He sat up from bed groggily, feeling disoriented as he glanced about the unfamiliar surroundings. As he rubbed the sleep from his eyes, he remembered that he decided to crash here at Akira's house after their late night out the previous evening. He was too wasted to drive home, so he left his car at the club and went home with Akira.
He plodded his way out of the guest bedroom and went down to the kitchen to scrounge for something to eat. A post-it was stuck on the fridge door. It was a note from Akira. "Stepped out for a lunch date. You still have a spare change of clothing from the last time you crashed here. I put them on top of the bureau in my room. See you this afternoon for practice. -A."
Tsukasa opened the fridge door and frowned when he saw that all Akira had in there were a couple of boxes of Chinese take-out (how long they'd been in there he didn't care to guess), a six-pack of diet soda, and a moldy block of cheese. He went to the living room to search for the cordless phone after he found a flyer of the nearest Domino's stashed in one of the kitchen drawers. After calling to have a pizza delivered, he glanced at the clock on the wall and saw he had about 45 minutes left before Tsukushi arrived. Perfect. That left him enough time to bathe and have his lunch first. He went back upstairs so he could take a shower at the bathroom inside Akira's room.
=================
Tsukushi saw that Akira's car was not where it was usually parked, so she assumed he had gone out for lunch. Tsukasa's car wasn't there either, not that she expected it to be, considering she was early. They had agreed to meet at 2pm and it was only 1:30.
She let herself into the house with her own copy of the key. After dropping her knapsack onto the couch, she went upstairs and headed to Akira's bedroom. Just as she was about to settle into the chair in front of the computer after she had turned it on, she heard the knob of the bathroom door turn. She whirled around and screamed when she saw a man step out of the bathroom, his face partly concealed by the towel he was rubbing on his head.
"What the fuck?!" Tsukasa cried out as he heard a bloodcurdling scream when he stepped out of the bathroom. His eyes almost popped out of their sockets when he saw Tsukushi standing across the room, screaming her lungs out for all she was worth. "Tsukushi?!"
The screaming stopped immediately when Tsukushi heard his voice. Shock registered on her face when she realized that the man was Tsukasa, the towel that had been concealing his face now hanging around his neck. "Tsukasa?!" she exclaimed as her hand clutched her chest. "Holy shit, are you planning to make a career out of scaring me out of my wits?!" This was the second time in a span of days that he had managed to almost give her a heart attack.
"Well, what the hell are you doing here anyway?" he yelled. "You weren't supposed to be here 'til at least half an hour from now!" He was unaware that the shock he had felt was causing him to yell.
"So I'm early! So what?!" she shouted back. She didn't know why she was shouting. Maybe it was all that adrenaline that was still pumping through her. Or maybe she was really ticked off that he was yelling at her. As she stood there glaring at him, she suddenly realized that Tsukasa was standing before her clad only in thin cotton boxers. The towel that hung around his neck provided scant coverage of his bare, muscular chest. Beads of water coming from his wet hair trickled down his neck. The blood that had drained from her face due to her earlier fright suddenly came rushing back up to her cheeks as she drank in the sight of him. Her knees wobbled, and she was grateful for the bed that had been separating them, because it was there to catch her fall when she sharply turned away from looking at him. "And what the hell are you doing anyway, walking around in your underwear, you... you... exhibitionist!"
Tsukasa suddenly realized he was only wearing his boxers when she said that. He hurriedly took the towel off his neck and wrapped it around his waist. "You can turn around now," he told her.
Tsukushi turned around as told. Big mistake. The towel that had hung around his neck now rode low on his hips, leaving his chest bare. She swallowed hard as she watched the muscles on his chest ripple as he fumbled to tie the towel in a knot around his waist. He fought to keep the laughter out of his voice as he spoke again. "I'm no exhibitionist."
"Well, if you aren't, why are you parading around clad only in your boxers? Can't you see the curtains on those windows aren't drawn? What if the neighbors can see you?" She knew she was blabbering but somehow she couldn't stop. "What if --"
"Baka," he cut in, his eyes crinkling humorously. If he didn't like this girl so much, he'd have whacked her in the head already for being so dumb. But what he really wanted to do was shut her up and stop her ranting and raving by kissing her senseless. He fought the urge to walk up to her and take her in his arms as he spoke again. "I'm pretty sure Akira's neighbors don't give a flying fuck if they see a naked man in here. Knowing Akira, he probably walks around in the buff all the time, curtains or no curtains. I'm more concerned about the neighbors beating down the door because of your screams." At Tsukushi's dubious look, he added, "Can't you see I just stepped out of the shower? Duh. Of course I'd be in my boxers. You ought to be thankful I'm even wearing them." He couldn't resist teasing her as his lips curled up in a mischievous grin.
Tsukushi stood up from the bed and averted her eyes downward as she muttered, "Whatever. I'm going down now so you can get dressed." She almost ran towards the door, still keeping her eyes down and refusing to look at him. She had to get out of there before she got a nosebleed or something. In her rush, her foot caught on the edge of the area rug just before she reached the door and she went plummeting face first onto the floor. Her eyes squeezed shut and her arm shot out in front of her as she braced herself for the impact.
Tsukasa was there to catch her before she could hit the floor. She felt his arms catch her body and break her fall. When she opened her eyes, she found herself facing his chest. His hands were on her waist as he propped her up. When she looked up to his face, he was staring intently at her. "Tsukushi..." he breathed. She stared back at him, mesmerized, as she watched his face move closer and closer to her own.
She knew he was going to kiss her... and she made no move to stop him because she realized... she wanted him to. She drew in a deep breath and closed her eyes as she prepared to receive his kiss.
His hands snaked to encircle her waist and pull her close to him. Her hands, which had clutched impulsively at his arms as he caught her, seemed to move out of their own volition to clasp themselves behind his neck.
Tsukasa's eyes closed instinctively as he leaned in to claim her lips, those lips which he had been dreaming about these past few days...
Just before their lips could touch, the silence surrounding them was shattered by the sound of the door bell ringing. Their eyes flew open at the sudden intrusion.
The look in Tsukushi's eyes was akin to that of a deer caught in the headlights. Tsukasa, though similarly surprised, had eyes that were still clouded with desire.
Tsukushi lowered her flushed face and averted her eyes from his burning gaze. She made a sudden movement to turn around but Tsukasa was too quick for her, catching her by her wrists in a vice grip. "Don't go..." he pleaded in a raspy voice.
The doorbell rang again, continuously this time, as if the person at the door had decided to keep their finger pressed on the button.
"I... I really should get that," Tsukushi stammered, while turning away from Tsukasa resolutely. It took all of her willpower to tear her eyes away from his because she found herself drowning in his gaze again when he stopped her the first time.
Before he could stop her this time, she had already disengaged herself from his hold and was marching towards the staircase at the end of the short hallway.
When she got down and opened the door, a teenaged boy wearing the Domino's Pizza uniform stood there holding a pizza box. He rolled his eyes when he saw her and said irritably, "Finally. Here's your pizza, lady."
Ordinarily, Tsukushi would've berated him for his attitude. But right now with her frazzled nerves, all she could do was look at him dumbly as if he had just landed from outer space. "Um, yeah, okay, could you wait a sec?" she instructed once she found her voice again. "Tsukasa! Did you order pizza?" she yelled, her voice reverberating throughout the quiet house.
"Yeah! Could you ask him to hold on a sec? I'll be down in a few," Tsukasa yelled back from the second floor. Seconds later, he came bounding down the staircase while still trying to put on a plain blue t-shirt over the faded jeans he had on. By that time, Tsukushi had managed to compose herself somewhat.
Tsukasa walked directly to the open door and pulled out his wallet from his back pocket. Tsukushi had already gotten the box from the pizza delivery guy and was turning to walk to the staircase leading to the basement when Tsukasa stopped her. "Wait, Tsukushi..." he said as he caught her by the wrist again.
Tsukushi looked pointedly at the hand he had on her wrist, causing him to let go immediately. Her face was a cool mask of nonchalance as she spoke. "I'll bring this down to the basement. Go on and pay the guy." With that, she turned on her heel and made her way down to the basement.
Tsukasa wanted more than anything else to run after her and take her in his arms again, but the moment had been broken. With a heavy sigh, he turned his attention back to paying the pizza delivery guy.
********************
A/N: A TxT moment, as promised. Okay, so the chapter ending wasn't so great, but hey, at least I didn't leave you hanging this time, right? LOL. I was debating on whether to end this on a cliffie like last time but I'm not that good at dodging rotten tomatoes. So there, they didn't kiss, thanks to the evil author. On second thought, maybe I should've braced myself for rotten tomatoes after all, hahaha.
Lian: Hi there. I'm glad you're still reading this even if the pairing isn't your favorite couple. Thanks for your support.
otakuchique: Yep. Somebody ought to buy that girl a clue.
BlackArmoria: Hey there. Are you the same Black Amoria who's left me comments at Winglin? I'm glad you like the story and the pairing. I love Tsukasa too!
random0182: Hi! I'm glad you decided to break your silence. It's always nice to see a new name on the reviews page. Thanks for reading and leaving a review.
Sailor Angie: Hey girl! The scene in Akira's room was written especially with you (and others like us who lust for Tsukasa, lol) in mind. I hope you liked it, even though they didn't actually kiss. I know, I'm evil, hahaha. Hope your 'baby' is fixed by now.
flipgrl: Hi there. Here's a bit of TxT action for you. Hope you liked it.
ToinKs: Oist! Ever since naman, aminado akong si Jerry ang inspiration ko for both my fics, di ba? Hahaha! I've said it before and I'll say it again... I adore the guy! Hope you liked this TxT chap.
Syvonair: Thanks, glad you liked the chap. As for when Tsukushi will admit that she likes Tsukasa, your guess is as good as mine.
cherub girl: Heya! I hope this update is soon enough for you. Hope you liked that little TxT moment.
thidathai: Hi! I'm glad to hear you like the way I write the characters, and that sometimes you can visualize the scenes in your head.
kamiangel: Hey girl! Yup, we did get to watch MG1 & 2 here. In fact, reruns are still being shown 5 days a week. As for getting the DVD series, of course I'd say it's worth it. Well, at least for me, 'cause it was MG that got me into HYD and writing fanfics in the first place. But hey, don't take my word for it. Ask other people too before you buy. I don't want you blaming me if you spend an obscene amount of money on the DVDs.
XxSwtDreamerxX: Any suggestions as to what Akira and Jiro might do?
Thanks to all of you for your continued support of this story. As always, please leave me a review if you've time. Your reviews help a lot, y'know. 'Til the next post, take care guys.