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

Possession

Donna8157

Chapter 13 : Broken

What . . why is the mood so cold?

When lunch time had come Soujiro, Sanosuke, Kenshin, and Kaoru had come gone to the cafeteria to eat. However, there was a heavy air that seemed to surround them as they sat down on the table and took out their food. Soujiro looked around and saw that the awkward mood wasn't going to disappear any time soon. He noticed how Sano was deftly trying to avoid the red-haired man's eyes and Kenshin seemed to be in a foul of a mood as ever.

Trying to think of something to lighten up the atmosphere the brown-haired boy suddenly remembered his time spent alone with Kaoru the other day on the roof. He smiled brightly as he looked around at his two friends. "That's right! Himura-san, you haven't seen Kamiya-san smile yet have you?"

Kaoru jerked up her head surprised at Soujiro's comment while Sanosuke and Kenshin turned their heads towards the boy and looked at him.

Soujiro smiled. "You had to see it. Kamiya-san is so pretty when she smiles." He looked over at Kaoru and saw that the girl quickly turned her head down, a bit embarrassed. "Kamiya-san, smile again. I'm sure Himura-san would be surprised, too."

". . ." Kaoru didn't look up for her face became a dark red hue.

Seeing that the girl was uncomfortable, Soujiro quickly stopped himself and frowned ever so slightly. "I'm sorry, Kamiya-san. I didn't mean to make you feel uneasy." He then shifted his gaze towards the two other young men and furrowed his brows. They had gone back to eating quietly with their eyes on the food again making the ambience tense.

"What's wrong with you, Sagara-san and Himura-san? Why is the mood so strange between you?"

Sanosuke slightly choked on his food as he looked up with widened eyes at the boy that sat next to him. "Wh . .what?"

"You two look like your nerves are on edge. Is there something wrong?" Soujiro asked with concern as he shifted his gaze between the two of them.

Trying to avoid Soujiro's contemplating eyes, Sanosuke looked back down at his food and seemed to find more interest in it than ever before. His hands that were holding the chopsticks seemed to start sweating and he had a hard time picking up the small morsels of rice.

"Sagara-san?" Soujiro questioned.

Sano jerked his head up and smiled uneasily. "Eh . . no – nothing's wrong, Soujiro."

The boy narrowed his eyes. The rooster head had to have been the worst liar ever. There was definitely something wrong between the two of them, but Soujiro decided to stop probing further because it looked like neither of them were going to tell him anything. He sighed and then picked up his chopsticks. It was going to be a long night.

"Wow, this place is nice, Sagara-san!" Soujiro admired as he walked around the apartment with eyes twinkling in awe. Sanosuke's place was only two blocks away from the school itself and had one bedroom, one bathroom, a living room, and a small kitchen. Since it was on the fourth floor, it even had an outdoor terrace next to the bedroom that looked over downtown Kyoto.

Kenshin didn't seem to be interested in the new place for he just walked over towards the living room, buried his body in the white cushioned sofa, and shut his eyes.

"It seems that Aoshi already brought all my stuff here. I wonder when he and the weasel girl are coming . . . " Sano wondered aloud when he found all the boxes and other things stacked neatly in the corner. He walked over to the refrigerator and opened it. Shit. I don't have food and this is supposed to be a party. He shook his head as he closed it. He dug into his pockets to see if he had any money, but found that they were empty. He frowned. He would need to go to the bank to get some cash, but at this time of day the bank was already closed.

At these times, Sanosuke would usually ask Kenshin for some money but since what had been happening these past few days, he found that he couldn't bring himself to casually ask his friend. Things just seemed to have become awkward between the two of them. Sano found himself constantly being on edge in his presence ever since that night Kenshin had walked in on him in Kaoru's room.

He cringed mentally. Sanosuke still wasn't sure whether or not Kenshin had seen the kiss. He looked over towards the side cautiously and saw Kenshin sitting back in the sofa with Kaoru standing next to him. The man's brown eyes softened as his gaze lingered on the dark-haired woman. He wasn't sure what to make of those feelings that he had developed for her. He hated seeing her upset and instead wanted to make her smile.

Soujiro walked over to the kitchen seeing that Sanosuke was standing there absent-mindedly by the refrigerator.

"Sagara-san?"

Sanosuke was pulled out of his daze when he heard the other's voice. "Uh yeah . . Soujiro?"

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. It's just that I don't have any alcohol or food in here . . . and no money." He pouted as he emptied his pocket.

Soujiro smiled. "I'll go out and get some then." He turned around to grab his jacket from the chair.

"Thanks Soujiro. I'll pay you back later," Sanosuke said with an impish grin.

I wonder how many times I've heard that, Soujiro thought to himself as he shook his head lightly. Before he was about to walk out the door, he heard Kaoru's voice. He looked behind him and saw that she was slipping on her black heels.

"I'll go instead, sir," she said as she grabbed her coat from off the hanger.

"We can go together, Kamiya-san. You can't carry everything by yourself anyway." The boy's eyes softened as he watched her put on the coat and he opened the door for her allowing her to go first. He looked back at the two others and nodded. "I'll be back in a little while," he said with a wave and closed the door.

After Soujiro and Kaoru left the apartment, an oppressive feeling seemed to envelop the room where Kenshin and Sanosuke were. With a heavy feeling, the spiky-haired man walked over out to the living room and sat across the couch on a wooden chair. He looked around, trying to find something to allow his eyes to latch onto, anything but Kenshin.

" . .that day . ." Sano looked up surprised to see that his friend had spoke. His throat felt dry as he anticipated what the man was about to say.

"That day . . if you're fidgety about what happened that day," Kenshin started in a quiet voice, but to the other man it sounded louder than anything else. "There's no need. Everyone has that kind of curiosity. It's nothing that important. Don't feel so nervous around me just because of that one trifling kiss."

" . . ." Sanosuke felt his heart surge in pain when he realized that Kenshin really had seen him kissing Kaoru that night. But . . was it because of a passing curiosity? Was it nothing but a trifling kiss?

"Are you going to be okay carrying all of that, Kamiya-san?" Soujiro implored with his blue eyes tinged with worry as he watched the girl trudge up the stairs towards the entrance of Sanosuke's apartment. His hands were already full with bags and couldn't help her lessen the weight of her own.

"Yes, sir," she said breathlessly as she finally reached the front. She carefully placed the bags on the cement floor as she dug out the keys to the door in her coat pocket.

"Soujiro! Kaoru-san!" a familiar energetic voice cried out from behind. Kaoru looked behind her and noticed Misao come bouncing up the steps.

"Makimachi-san, it's nice to see you again," the boy said with a smile.

As Misao came closer towards the lit area, Kaoru noticed how different she looked from when she was wearing her maid's outfit. She was wearing a pair of black pants and a dark emerald green fitted shirt that matched the color of her eyes. It was obvious that she was out to impress someone. Kaoru smiled gently as she greeted her.

"Hello Misao . . oof."

Kaoru had been enveloped almost viciously in a bear hug as Misao pounced on her. It almost felt as if her ribs were being crushed, but the girl smiled nonetheless. It felt good to be embraced.

"Misao," someone addressed. "Kamiya-san needs to breathe."

The emerald-eyed girl quickly released her death grip on the other and smiled innocently as she turned towards Aoshi. She pouted. "I thought Kaoru-san could use a hug."

A ghost of a smile appeared on the man's face as he looked at the young woman. He then turned his attention towards Kaoru and Soujiro. "Good evening Seta-san. Kamiya-san." The both of them returned his greeting politely. Aoshi then bent down to pick up some of the bags that Kaoru had been holding.

"Aa . .thank you, Shinomori-san."

The tall man nodded as he stepped into the complex.

KNOCK KNOCK

"Himura!!! Rooster-head!!! Open up the door!"

Sanosuke was knocked out of his stupor and quickly got up to open the large oak door. In front of him stood Soujiro, Kaoru, Misao, and Aoshi with bags in each of their hands.

"What took you so long?" the pig-tailed girl accused as she narrowed her eyes and nudged him to move out of their way. She and the others walked towards the kitchen and dropped off the items on the floor. Kaoru and Misao then proceeded to put the food and drinks into the refrigerator as the others went to the living room to sit down.

"Aoshi, thanks for dropping off my stuff this morning," Sanosuke said with a grateful smile. "I couldn't have moved it all by myself."

"Anytime, Sagara-san," the other replied.

"So what did you get Soujiro? You better have gotten a lot of alcohol. It's not a party without it," Sano said with a wide grin.

"Hmm . ." Soujiro contemplated. He began to list items that he had gotten at the store with his fingers. "Water, tea, bananas, apples, granola . . umm . ." He looked over at his spiky-haired friend with a smile. "I'm sorry, Sagara-san, but I don't think I was able to get any liquor."

Sano blanched as he heard the list of food. "This is a party, NOT some sort of low carb health fest!" He scrunched up his nose in disgust as he sat back in the chair and crossed his arms.

Soujiro chuckled and shook his head. "Of course I got alcohol. You are very gullible sometimes, Sagara-san."

"That's because I can never tell when you're kidding and when you're serious. You have that same damn smile on your face all the time. How the hell am I to know what you're thinking?," Sano replied while waving his arms up in exaggeration. He was relieved to see that the others had come back. He and Kenshin had not uttered a word since Kenshin's little comment earlier.

The two young women then came into the living room. Misao was chatting animatedly with the other girl while gesturing with her hands. Kaoru only seemed to nod slightly at certain times. Sanosuke smiled when he saw how the others treated her and could tell that Kaoru felt comfortable around the other young woman.

"Okay, let's get this party started. Have you guys had Long Island Iced Tea before?" Sano asked as he got up from the chair and made his way to the kitchen.

An echo of no's were heard and the other grinned with satisfaction as he took out a couple bottles of hard liquor from the paper bags on the counter. He popped open the tops of the bottles and mixed the vodka, coke, gin, and other ingredients. A few minutes later, he came back with a couple of glasses filled with ice in hand.

"Here. Everyone have a glass," he said as he started to pour the concoction into the glass.

"In celebration of rooster head's arrival and new apartment!" Misao said as she reached for the liquor. Aoshi looked at her and motioned to stop her, but saw the small pout on her lips as he did. He sighed and nodded his head. Kenshin, too, who had been sitting there quietly finally took the glass and lifted it in the air for a toast.

"Cheers!" Kenshin said. Everyone toasted and drank the mixture. Kaoru hesitated for a moment as she looked at it, but then brought the glass to her mouth.

"How is it? The taste is great, right?" Sano asked with excitement.

Misao spat out the drink first and Soujiro followed in suit.

"How do you drink this stuff, Sagara-san? It's horrible!" Soujiro made a face as he studied the glass.

"You actually like this stuff, rooster head?" Misao asked in incredulity.

Kenshin got up out of his seat and poured the drink down the drain without saying a word. Sano looked at the three of them with an exaggerated frown. "You guys don't like it?" He then looked at Aoshi and Kaoru who sat opposite of him. He grinned when he saw that the both of them had a neutral expression on their visages. He quickly went over to their side and put an arm around the both of them. Sano glanced at them with a grin. "Jou-chan and Aoshi like it, don't you?"

"Sagara, remove your hand from my shoulders. Just because you're a little tipsy does not mean that I will allow you to take advantage of me," Aoshi said curtly as he looked at the man in the corner of his eyes.

Sanosuke paled and jerked his hand away from the other man. He felt dirty all of a sudden.

"Hey jou-chan. It looks like it's you and me only. These guys seem to have no taste at all," Sano said with a laugh as he winked at Kaoru.

Kaoru looked down at her cup and looked back up at the man. "Umm . . actually, sir . ."

Sano frowned playfully. "That's all right, it just means more of it for me." He laughed as he took Kaoru's glass and started emptying it into his mouth. After he finished the glass he looked over and sighed. "You know, jou-chan, you don't have to drink if you don't want to."

The girl nodded.

As the minutes ticked by and turned into hours, Aoshi and Misao thought that it was time for them to go. The man ended up having to carry her outside the apartment and hail for a taxi. It was too bad that she couldn't savor the fact that Aoshi was holding her for she was sleeping. He looked at the girl in his arms with a soft smile.

When the apartment was left with only four people, Soujiro noticed that the atmosphere seemed to grow tense again . . similar to how it was during lunch. The smile that had been there seemed to falter as he watched his two friends continuously drink.

"Himura-san, Sagara-san . . this is enough. You've drunk too much already," he said as he took away the bottles from their hands.

"No, put it back," Kenshin hoarsely ordered.

Soujiro narrowed his eyes when he saw that this was a situation in which he could not do anything. He sighed gruffly and not so gently placed the drink back on to the table. "I feel so frustrated when I'm around you two. I'm going to bed. Good night." The young man got up from his seat and walked to the bedroom.

Kenshin did not seem to pay him any attention and continued to empty shot glass after shot glass of hard liquor. Kaoru watched him helplessly. There was nothing she could do either to stop him. She then got up and walked to the bathroom to wash up. Once she came back outside she noticed the small terrace. With steady steps, she walked over and slid open the glass door.

The cool night breeze sent shivers down her spine, but it did not bother her. She went outside and stood there looking intently at the picturesque view of downtown Kyoto in awe. The bright lights and tall buildings were so very captivating. As she stood there, she noticed that it was almost day time. The sun seemed to creep up from its hiding place.

Feeling someone's gaze on her, she turned around. It was Sanosuke. Thinking that there was something wrong, she quickly went over to help him.

"I'm all right," he said as he ambled over and gave her an impish grin. "It's beautiful, isn't it?" He looked over at the view. The sunlight had hit the tall buildings and a reflection was cast over it.

Kaoru nodded in agreement as she looked out again and then turned to him, "How long have you been out here, sir?"

"For awhile now," he replied. Sano then looked into her blue eyes with sincerity. Maybe it was the alcohol that had given him more confidence, but he reached over and gently cupped her face with both his hands. Shocked, Kaoru looked at him with widened eyes of confusion.

He smiled at her expression. "Even though it's autumn, it's still cold in the morning. See, jou-chan? Your face is cold."

Sanosuke continued to gaze softly at her with his cinnamon brown eyes. She is so beautiful, he thought. Kaoru looked at him and felt at a loss for what to do so she just stood there unmoving and lowered her eyes. As Sano looked at her, his eyes fell on her pink petal-like lips. His pupils stirred ever so slightly as he remembered his feelings from that night he had kissed her. It wasn't a moment of confusion. It wasn't a trifling kiss.

Mesmerized, Sano slowly moved his calloused fingers towards her lips and he touched them ever so slightly. When Kaoru felt his touch, she trembled and a look of perplexity besieged her face. As Sano continued to look at her, he felt the sudden urge to kiss her again. It was at that moment that he woke himself up from his catatonic daze.

He blinked.

"Ah . . I'm sorry, jou-chan. You looked cold . .and . ." Sanosuke spoke ambiguously as he moved his hands away from her face and avoided her eyes. How could he have let himself do that?

"Thank you . . . for caring," she said in almost a whisper. The man looked up, surprised at what she had just said. There was a faint smile on her face as she looked at him. A feeling of relief crossed over his eyes and he smiled broadly.

The feelings that I'm feeling right now . . what is it?

Kenshin's fists started trembling.

"Himura . ." Soujiro was lying on his back and held his head with both hands. He wasn't a heavy drinker and the little alcohol that he had that night had given him the worst headache. He couldn't even open his eyes for they felt too heavy. When he felt that Kenshin was in the room, he called out for him. "Himura-san . . could you get me some water?"

Kenshin didn't even make a slight movement as he heard his friend's request.

"Himura-san," Soujiro repeated in a louder voice. When he saw that Kenshin wasn't going to do anything, he groggily got out of bed and walked over. "Fine. Be that way, Himura-san. I'll go get it myself," he said a bit irked. The young man's head started hurting more and he started feel nauseous as he staggered over to the kitchen. Laboriously, he got out the water from the kitchen and filled up the cup.

As he was drinking, he found his eyes staring at Kenshin who was standing there unmoving. What is Himura-san doing?, he wondered as he furrowed his brows. Once he put the cup of water down, he walked towards his friend and tapped him on the back.

"Himura-san."

Kenshin didn't even look at his friend and just headed towards the bathroom.

What has gotten into him?, Soujiro wondered and then he saw them. Sanosuke and Kaoru were outside in where Kenshin's eyes were fixed upon. The both of them were standing side by side while leaning against the balcony looking at the scene before them. Soujiro grinned as he walked towards the glass door and slid it open.

"Are you on a date with Kamiya-san so early in the morning, Sagara-san?"

" . . ."

Soujiro knit his brows together. "I guess it is true seeing that the both of you aren't saying anything."

Sanosuke's eyes widened as he gestured wildly with his hands. "W-what are you talking about, Soujiro? Jou-chan and I are just enjoying the view from up here. Anyway . . you're up really early. I thought you wouldn't be up at all today."

"Hmm. Did you think I was going to sleep all day because of that? I could easily . . oop." Soujiro's face had turned a bit green and he rushed to the bathroom. He knocked urgently on the door with one hand while using the other to cover his mouth. "Himura-san. Himura-san!" he called out in a muffled voice. "Himura-san, I need to use the restroom!" Once Kenshin came out, Soujiro rushed inside.

"Ooh..wheck.." The boy was leaning over the toilet and Kaoru had followed him inside to pat his back. As Kenshin watched the girl, his frown deepened and he shut the bathroom door.

"Hurry up!" the red-haired man yelled. Kaoru was the last one to get washed up and hearing the urgency in his voice, she hurriedly got out. Strands of her black hair were still sticking to her face because of the water that was left. When Sanosuke saw her, he gently moved the few strands and put it behind her ear. Kenshin saw the gesture and roughly turned around as he walked to the front door.

"What is this!?! You haven't cleaned my shoes yet!" Kenshin turned around and glared at the young woman as he shouted at her. Kaoru knit her brows together to control her anger as she rushed over and started cleaning his shoes.

"Forget it!!" He pushed her away brusquely and put on his shoes. Kaoru who had been on the ground, got up and followed him out. Soujiro and Sanosuke watched with a tight frown on their faces as they too started going outside.

SLAP

Soujiro and Sanosuke's eyes widened as they saw the sight in front of them. The blue-eyed boy quickly sprinted over to Kenshin.

"What are you doing?" Soujiro shouted as he blocked Kenshin's hand that was in mid-air before he was about to slap her again. Kaoru sat there on the ground with her hand over her cheek and her eyes wide with shock. A small trickle of blood started to flow down near her lips.

"Move!" Kenshin glared fiercely at the other boy with eyes the color of amber. Soujiro saw this and his hold on him tightened. He wasn't going to let him go.

"I won't move! What did Kamiya-san do wrong that you're hitting her!" he asked with piercing eyes.

"It's none of your business! It's her and my problem!" Kenshin said as he struggled to get out of the other boy's grip.

"You bastard!" Sanosuke rushed forward and threw his fist in Kenshin's face. The red-haired man fell to the floor from the unexpected punch. Seeing that Kenshin was hurt, Kaoru quickly got up and went over to him to help him get up.

Sanosuke narrowed his eyes as he looked at his friend. "Since I've come back to Japan, you've only shown me a side of yourself that disappoints me, Kenshin!!" He clenched his fists so tightly that his knuckles had turned stark white. He tried to hold back his anger.

Kenshin smirked as he sat there on the ground and wiped the blood from his mouth with the back of his hand. His amber eyes glared up at his spiky-haired friend as he stood back up. "Disappointment? What disappointment? Are you disappointed that you saw a side of me that you have never seen? Who is she that you would stand up for her? She's just a bitch that sold herself because of money . ."

Soujiro could not contain his anger anymore and punched Kenshin in the stomach. The man crumpled over with his red hair falling in front of his face and his hands clutching his gut.

"Himura! There is a limit to a person being patient. Were you always such a low being?" he spat out as he breathed heavily.

Kenshin was crouched over and he slowly looked up at Soujiro with a callous grin on his face. He laughed harshly. "Yeah . . I'm just a low being. Did you just find that out? I guess you've overrated me all this time." The red-haired man stood up again with some trouble.

"You . . you . ." Soujiro grabbed onto Kenshin's collar and was about to punch him in the face when Kaoru got between them and blocked him. Soujiro put down his fist as he saw the girl's tear-filled eyes.

"You stay out of it!!!!" Kenshin screamed violently as he roughly pushed her to the side.

CRASH

There was a sharp nerve-racking sound. The three of them turned their eyes towards the direction from whence the sound came from. It was almost as if time had stopped as they stood there in shock. Kaoru, who had been pushed by Kenshin, had collided into the glass door and was on the floor covered in blood. A small pool of the thick red liquid was around her and seemed spread. There were pieces of broken glass scattered around everywhere.

"Jo – jou-chan!!!" Sano cried out in a shaky voice as he dashed over to the girl. He didn't feel the pain in his feet from the pieces of glass and he quickly brushed the glass off of Kaoru's body with trembling fingers. "C-call an ambulance!"

Soujiro quickly came to his senses and took out his cell phone to dial 119. (This is 911)

Kenshin stood there stiffly and couldn't move from his spot. His feet felt as if they were rooted in the ground and his eyes that were trembling could not move from its place on the girl. Only she was visible in his eyes. Kaoru, who was lying on the ground with blood seeping out from her body. He shook his head slightly. He couldn't believe the sight before his eyes. It was so much like . . so much like . .

Kenshin didn't feel Soujiro's touch or voice that was calling out to him. Instead all he felt was fear.

The smell of disinfectant oscillated within the bright white hallways of the hospital. Sanosuke was hovering back and forth restlessly. He couldn't seem to calm down his heart that was racing with worry. Soujiro was leaning against the wall with his eyes fixed on the double doors where Kaoru's operation was taking place. And Kenshin . . Kenshin was sitting on the plastic chair with his head down and frighteningly quiet.

"If something happens to Kaoru, I'm not going to let you get away with it. You hear me, Kenshin?!" Sanosuke threatened in a strained voice with his back to the man. He couldn't even face him right now because he was so angry.

Kenshin was deaf to all that was going around him. His mind and heart had been thrown into turmoil and his pupils shook with fear. He couldn't believe what he had done. He fingers clenched tightly onto his pants as his heart seemed to writhe with pain.

CLICK

As the door of the operation room opened, Sano and Soujiro rushed to the doctor. Kenshin looked up and locked his fingers together as he stared at the physician's mouth.

"There's no need to worry. Luckily, there was no big injury." When the spiky-haired man heard those words all the nervousness and anxiety that had gathered in his system left. He sank to the floor with unfettered relief.

"I'm glad . ." Soujiro said as a smile reappeared on his face. A small tear fell from his blue eyes as he shut his eyelids.

Strength went into Kenshin's locked fingers and he dropped his head. An image of Kaoru flashed through his mind.

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- To be continued.

Author's Notes :

Please leave a review to tell me what you think! Thanks! I hope you enjoyed the chapter =D And yes, Kenshin remembers everything that happens when he's drunk.

A note about the debt:

I'll go and add this in somewhere in the earlier chapters when I edit them. But the debt that Kaoru's dad owed Hiten Mitsurugi Incorporated was about three million dollars.

Long Island Iced Tea :

This is a mixed drink consisting of hard liquor such as Vodka, Rum, and other stuff. It's disgusting. If you talk to a bartender you'll find that the only people who order this are: a.) people who just turned 21 or b.) people who have no taste. Hehe

Special thanks to HitokiriSky, Ryoga, Dragon Master271, De Lazy Lime, Tenshi-no-Hana-chan, Mz. Amber Eyes, cyjj, nirada, Eternal-Senshi-S, plex, kirie-kun, Himura-chan, Coodle, Honeyz-Rinoa, Shannon, Katana Midori, Babo, Brittanie Love, Kiichi Dazai, saotome, Inu Limbo, Chibi Kiki, S3R3nity, Piper, erica6060, rkfan246, Reignashii, JouChan, Oni Tokage, kimi.the.water.spirit, nobody, Miaka, cutiechanXD3, KKfan4ever, rain angst, Kitsune Kenshin, BabyKaoru-Sama, bonessasan, flaming-amber, kkfan, ShiroiMatsu, tiaravball15, kenshin's-angel, and Fuu for reviewing! Thanks so much for your support. I really love reading your reviews. =)