Disclaimer : Rurouni Kenshin is the property of Nobuhiro Watsuki, Shonen Jump, Viz, and Sony Productions.

Possession

Donna8157

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Chapter 7 : Hangovers and Spilled Coffee

Rays of bright sunlight slipped through the curtain into Sanosuke's room. The man blinked at the unwelcome light and stretched his arms and legs as he turned around lazily to look at the clock. It was already 10:30 am. His head was still pounding from all the vodka that he had drank the other night. As he sat up he placed his two hands on his forehead to try to lessen the headache.

He grunted as he finally got up out of bed and stumbled towards the bathroom. He went over to the sink and splashed some water on his face. As he looked at himself in the mirror, he saw that his eyes were still a bit bloodshot and his brown hair was ruffled into a complete mess. He frowned at his image.

Better start getting ready for the day. It's already so late, Kenshin is probably already at school. Hmm . . .I wonder what I should do today?

After brushing his teeth, he had a shower and got dressed. Then he walked downstairs.

"Oh Sano! You're awake already?" an energetic voice greeted him.

Sanosuke looked up and grinned. "Why, if it isn't the little weasel girl? You've grown since I last saw ya!"

Misao narrowed her emerald eyes and then laughed it off. "Since you just got here, I'll spare you from my wrath." She smiled wickedly and then added, "Rooster head."

"Hey!" Sano said as he crossed his arms in front of his chest and gave a masculine grunt. "I resent that!"

"Now we're even," the young maid said as she smiled triumphantly.

The young man laughed as he walked towards her. "I missed ya, weasel girl."

She smiled warmly and embraced him. "I missed you too, rooster head."

"Umm . . anyway," Sano said while breaking the hug. "Why were you surprised that I was awake? It's not that late is it?" he said as he scratched the back of his head and looked around.

"No, but you're the first one up."

"Huh?" Sano asked befuddled. "What do you mean?"

"Himura and Kaoru-san are still asleep."

"Really?" he said as he looked upstairs. "Well, I'll see ya around. I gotta go check up on those two." He went back upstairs with his hands thrust in his pockets and walked towards Kenshin's room. I can't believe Kenshin didn't go to school. Just how much did they drink last night?, he thought as he knocked on the door.

No one answered.

Sano jerked the door open and the sickening odor of liquor filled his nostrils. The man wrinkled his nose in disgust at the sight and smell of the room. There were bottles and fallen shot glasses everywhere. Geez, he used to be such a clean freak, too¸ he thought as he kicked some of the empty bottles out of his way and walked towards the bed.

He found Kenshin spread out on the floor and Kaoru sleeping soundly on his bed. Sano shook his head at the absurdity of the situation and picked up a bottle from the floor and looked at it. Damn . .three entire bottles of vodka. .and they're all empty. He went over to Kenshin's body and squat down.

"Hey Kenshin! Get up! You have to go to school . ."

"Mmm . ." Kenshin moaned as he turned the other way to block the unwelcome noise.

"Get up!!!!" Sano yelled as he poked him hard in the shoulder.

"Ugh . . shut the hell up. My head's ringing . ." Kenshin slurred out as he creased his face at the loud noise. He covered his two ears with his hands.

"I can't believe you drank this much man . . ." Sano said with a disapproving look and then added with a smirk. "You're only allowed to drink this much when I'm around." He smiled and winked. Kenshin chuckled despite the throbbing pain in his head.

"I don't know . . my head hurts . . ." the red-haired boy drawled out as he got up into a sitting position. He laid his back on the wall as he put his head on his knee.

"You're such a slacker, Kenshin. Do you know what time it is?" Sano asked while pointing to his Rolex watch with his finger. "It's already 11:00am! You've already missed half of school!"

"Eh? When did you become such an exemplary student?" Kenshin said with a playful smirk.

"Get up and let's go eat," Sano said while helping his friend stand up. He then went towards Kaoru, who was still lying peacefully on the bed. She was asleep and her face still held a faint rosy blush from the alcohol from last night. Sano smiled as he looked at her and couldn't help but be reminded of the story of "Snow White" and the kiss from her Prince Charming. His cinnamon eyes flashed mischievously and he kissed her lightly on the cheek. Kenshin who had been watching the entire time became wide awake and looked at Sano, surprised by his actions. Sanosuke looked back at his friend and smiled impishly and shrugged.

"I couldn't help it. She looked so cute there and with her eyes closed. She reminded me of that story, Snow White."

Kenshin ignored him and walked over to Kaoru with his face stiffened and pulled the comforters roughly off her body.

"Get up!!! We're late!!"

Kaoru shot up from her lying position with her blue eyes wide awake and in shock at the sudden obtrusive sound. Sanosuke turned back towards his friend, surprised by his behavior. Meanwhile, Kaoru looked around in confusion as her cheeks were beginning to turn crimson from embarrassment.

This is Himura's room. How did I get in here?, she wondered. Her head ached badly and she placed a hand over her forehead as she cringed from the dull pain. She then got up from the bed and quickly hurried to her own room when she saw that the two of them were looking at her. As Sanosuke watched the girl, he covered his mouth trying to hold in his laughter. The way that she had turned red so quickly was just so innocent . . so cute. When she was out of hearing range, Sano finally let loose his laughter.

"Haha. Kenshin did you see? Jou-chan looked so confused and her face turned so red. It's so cute," he bursted out.

"What's so cute about it? Don't just stand there laughing! Help me throw out these bottles," Kenshin said as he began to pick up the trash around him.

Sano sighed and bent down to help. During the entire time, Kenshin did not speak a word to his friend. When everything was clean again, Sano left the room and Kenshin went to the bathroom. He roughly shut the door and leaned against the wall. His face was flushed crimson.

Damn. What is this? What is this . .this feeling I have when I see her?, he thought as he walked over to the sink and splashed some cold water on his face to clear his thoughts.

When Kaoru had returned to her room she took a deep breath as she closed her eyes. How come I don't remember anything from last night? The last thing I remember was throwing up in the bathroom, she thought as she massaged her temple with her forefinger. She looked down at her clothes. And why . .why are my clothes like this? They're wet, she thought as she picked at the hem of her skirt. When she turned around to go to the restroom, she suddenly staggered feeling dizzy.

She was feeling slightly feverish from what had happened the previous night and she felt a chill in her body. Kaoru leaned against the wall for awhile to regain her balance before she hurried to the bathroom to take a quick shower. Afterwards, she changed into the new suit that Himura had bought for her at Armani. It was a black dress suit with a white blouse.

Then she headed to Kenshin's room. She knocked on the door, but no one answered. She carefully walked in and noticed that he wasn't there. As she looked around his room, she noticed for the first time how sparse it was. There were no posters, no pictures, no normal teenager things that decorated his room. Kenshin had only the necessities: a few books, a laptop computer, a desk, drawers, and of course a bed. It was a surprise to her that he didn't even have a television in his room. Even Kaoru herself, when her father had been alive had at least a television and DVD player in her room. With as much money as the Himuras had, how come Kenshin didn't have one?

When she was about to walk back, she heard the click of Kenshin's bathroom door. She turned around a bit flustered by his sudden appearance. He was naked from the waist up and had a towel wrapped around his head. He was thin, but had a nice muscular physique. Her face instantly turned crimson when she realized that she had been staring at him for some time.

"Ano . . I came to help you dress," she stuttered as she tried to avoid his eyes.

"Get my uniform out of the closet," Kenshin commanded without taking a second look at her as he started to walk towards the window.

"Yes, sir," she replied astutely as she walked over to the closet. She opened the door and found a couple of pairs of the same uniform hanging inside. She picked one out and brought it over to Kenshin. She helped him get dressed and later went down to the dining room with him. Sanosuke, who had come down earlier, was sitting there chatting to Shinomori Aoshi, the butler.

Sano smiled and waved as he saw them come inside. Aoshi nodded at both the young master and Kaoru before taking his leave.

"I was wondering when you guys were gonna come down. I was starting to die of starvation!" He then added slyly as he looked over at Aoshi who had just left the room and motioned with his thumb, "and die of boredom." Kenshin didn't even chuckle when he heard his friend whisper the last few words and sat down next to him. Kaoru remained quiet also. The other man sighed as he looked between the two. The atmosphere just seemed so tense. Nothing he could say could break it.

"I'm going to transfer schools soon," Sano said as he started to eat the lunch that had just been set out for him.

"To our school, right?"

"Of course," Sano said and then he looked at the girl. "Do you go to Three Willows also, jou-chan?"

Kaoru's face reddened as she looked down at the food in front of her. She didn't know what to say.

"Kind of," Kenshin replied for her.

"What do you mean . . kind of . ." he asked suspiciously.

"Well, she goes to school, but she's not a student," Kenshin replied as he took a sip of the iced tea.

"What?" Sano asked, not completely understanding what he had said. "Why is it so confusing?"

"Forget it and let's just eat," the red-haired man said as he concentrated on the chicken soufflé in front of him. Sanosuke glared at Kenshin while the other man ate. He didn't like Kenshin's tone of voice and whatever he had meant by Kaoru going to school, but not being a student. He then focused his attention on the girl sitting across from him and his eyes saddened. She was eating her food slowly and did not look up.

Three Willows College Preparatory School

Kenshin, Sanosuke, and Kaoru had arrived at school a little after the fourth class of the day had just started.

"And so now we're brought to the topic of mitosis. There are five . ."

In the middle of class, the back door had opened and the three of them entered. At first the teacher was about to reprimand them for coming in so late, but when he saw that one of them was Himura Kenshin he kept his mouth shut and went back to the lecture. Kenshin sat down at the back of the class in his usual seat next to the window while Kaoru stood behind him. Sanosuke looked between Kaoru and Kenshin as the teacher started to talk about one of the stages of cell division.

So this is what Kenshin meant by saying that Jou-chan went to school, but was not enrolled as a student.

Sanosuke walked over towards where Kaoru stood so that she wouldn't feel so awkward standing by herself. She looked at him with widened eyes when she noticed he was there.

"Just keepin' you company, jou-chan," Sano said with a wink.

Kaoru blushed and a small smile appeared on her face.

Sano couldn't help but feel drawn into that smile. The way that her face had lit up in that one fleeting moment, it made her seem so beautiful. Even though it was so slight and had disappeared as quickly as it had come, the man felt happy. He just wanted to see more of it. Seeing it had made him feel as if he was seeing another part of her. A part of her that she had hid from all of them.

" . . . and so in the G1 phase . ."

The teacher continued on with the lecture, ignoring the two people standing in the back. The female students who were in the class couldn't help but take sneak peeks of Kenshin's new male friend. He was tall and extremely good looking. The way that he sauntered in the class and the way that he dressed in just a plain T-shirt, jeans, and a red bandanna in his hair made him look like the stereotypical bad boy. Some of the girls in the classroom giggled obnoxiously while trying to catch his attention. Sano didn't seem to care as the other girls gawked at him for he just took comfort in the fact that he had made Kaoru comfortable.

"Hey jou-chan," Sano whispered as he lightly poked her in the arm to get her attention.

Kaoru quickly looked up at him with her blue eyes and waited for him to continue talking.

COUGH, COUGH

Kenshin pretended to cough and turned around in his seat as he heard Sanosuke whispering to Kaoru and frowned. His friend was looking at her so intently and the girl seemed to reciprocate the same expression. Anger suddenly rose inside of the boy for no reason as he looked at the girl.

"Go get me a cup of coffee!!" he spat out.

The teacher flinched at the loud command that burst forth from Kenshin's mouth, but disregarded it as he continued on with his lecture. Meanwhile, Sanosuke looked at Kenshin in shock, but the other man had already turned back around in his seat and was now facing the front again. Kaoru's face had stiffened upon hearing Kenshin's words and immediately left the classroom. The spiky-haired boy glared at the other for awhile longer before following Kaoru outside.

Seeing that Sano had left with her, a brash fury over him and he kicked the empty desk in front of him.

Crash

The teacher cringed at the sound as he wiped off the sweat with his handkerchief and carefully started teaching again. A while later, Kaoru came back into the class with the cup of coffee in her hands. Kenshin scowled when he noticed that Sanosuke was standing side-by-side with her.

"Here, sir," Kaoru said as she placed the cup in his hands.

Without thinking rashly and letting his anger completely blind him, Kenshin took the cup and threw the contents of it onto her face. The coffee wet the girl's hair and flowed down her face and clothes.

"This is cold!" he said as he crossed his arms and turned back around to face the front.

"Kenshin!" Sano shouted. "What the hell are you doing?" He quickly took off the bandanna from his forehead and began wiping Kaoru's face, hair, and clothes. What the hell has gotten into him? I've never seen him like this, Sano thought as he clenched his jaws tightly.

"Are you okay, jou-chan? Did you get burned?" he asked with concern in his eyes as he looked into her eyes. Kaoru quickly turned her eyes away from him and nodded.

"I'm fine, sir."

The rage that Kenshin felt inside of him was only fueled stronger when he heard Sanosuke talking to Kaoru in such a private manner.

"Go get me another cup of coffee!!" the boy said coldly as he briskly turned around in his seat once more.

"Kenshin!! You!! . .You. ." Sanosuke didn't get to finish his sentence as he saw Kaoru leave the classroom once more. Suppressed anger burned within the depths of his eyes as he looked at his friend and then followed the girl outside.

The classroom, which was once a learning atmosphere had become a battleground with its warlike ambience. Electricity seemed to crackle in the air. The teacher who stood up front didn't know what to do and continuously wiped the cold sweat that poured from his face.

" . . I . . I'll end . . to – today's class . . up to here . ." he said in a small voice as he turned to face the class. As soon as he finished, the teacher walked out of the room as if he were running away.

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- To be continued

Author's Notes :

Please read and review ! Thanks!

I know you guys want Kenshin to mature quickly . . but it's going to take awhile. =) It just wouldn't seem right if he did a complete 180 by the next morning. Hehe.

Special thanks to Oni Tokage, Ryoga, Lil-Sun-Rie, cyjj, Himura-chan, Alli, TimeWarper, Ochanoko, Kairi7, saotome, cutie-chan-XD3, Chibi Kiki, Coodle, Boomerang-chan, Reignashii, super, Spike-Faye, S3R3nity, Piper, MizzLee, kik-ting, Lendra-chan, Vic'chonn, rkfan246, Raeyn-chan, De Lazy Lime, xia xue, Melanie, Azulene, Angelsangel, rain angst, Mz.Amber Eyez, Anonymous, black hearted kid, Leki, and nobody for reviewing! I really appreciate all the support you've given me. =) Thanks.

Also . . this was the last chapter that I had written out so I won't be able to update on an everyday basis like I have been, but I promise that the next chapter will come out soon.