D/C: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin…SOB!
12 reviews…wow! I really didn't expect that, but I'm not complaining! I'm really happy my fic got so much attention, and I guess (this is gonna sound stupid) u love me, u really, really love me!- I always wanted to say that! !
Anyway, this is my second chappie…hope u like it.
Enjoy, folks.
Chapter 2: Loss
'We're here, miss'
The cab driver's voice brought Kaoru crashing down to reality.
'Oh, yes, thanks' she murmured.
She handed him a couple of bills, and climbed out of the car, pulling her suitcase behind her.
She stood before the building in which Sanosuke and Megumi stayed, took a deep breath and stepped in through the gate.
She took the elevator to the third floor, made her way to flat no. 23, and rang the bell.
Then she quickly wiped her eyes from any left-over tears.
It was only seconds before the door was opened, and Sanosuke stood in the doorway. He grinned at the sight of her.
'Kaoru!' he exclaimed, pulling her into a hug.
Tears sprang to Kaoru's eyes at this warm gesture, but she fought them back. 'Hello, Sanosuke' she said, putting on a horrible hearty voice which didn't belong to her.
He let go of her. 'Long time no see' he remarked.
'Yeah…well, I've been busy' she replied.
'Yeah, and how can't you be busy when you're living with Kenshin?' he said, winking at her.
Kaoru tried to ignore the way her heart ached at the mention of Kenshin's name. 'Is Megumi here?' she asked.
'Yeah…come on in' he said.
Kaoru nodded and dragged in her suitcase. Sano frowned, but said nothing.
He led her into the living room. Kaoru saw Megumi…along with Misao and Aoshi.
'You didn't tell me you have guests' Kaoru hissed.
'What? Oh, Misao and Aoshi don't count as guests…they just barge in' Sano replied.
'I heard that!' Misao snapped, then smiled at Kaoru. 'Hey, girlfriend!'
'Hi' Kaoru said, trying to sound cheerful.
'Hello, Kaoru' Megumi said, while Aoshi nodded at her.
'Hi' Kaoru said, yet again.
'Hey, why didn't Kenshin come along with you?' Sano suddenly asked.
'Um…he's busy, he couldn't come' Kaoru lied.
She took an empty couch, clasped her hands in her lap and forced a smile onto her face as she looked at them.
'So, how's it going?' she asked them in general.
'Aoshi's going on a business trip to Italy tonight' Misao informed her. 'I'm staying here at Megumi's since he's going to be there for at least a week'
'Yeah, she's frightened of staying alone at home' Sano cracked.
'Am not!' Misao fumed.
'I'm not worried, anyway' Sano continued. 'I'm locking her in the guest room, because I don't need a headache right now'
'Hey!' Misao said indignantly, and they all laughed.
A sudden idea jumped into Kaoru's mind. 'What a coincidence!' she exclaimed. 'Kenshin's going away to Spain for a few days too!'
'No!' Sano cried, looking suddenly horrified. 'You're not planning on staying here too, are you? Heck, I thought Misao and Megumi were the worst that could happen…but you?!'
Kaoru didn't know whether to smile or appear hurt. She normally knew how to fathom Sano, but in her current state…
Megumi swatted her husband's arm and smiled at Kaoru. 'He's only kidding, Kaoru' she told her. 'You're welcome to stay if you want'
Sano nodded. 'The more the merrier, it's just a good thing we have a large place' he added. 'Um, Kaoru…you weren't offended by what I said, were you?'
'No! Absolutely not!' she lied. 'I've known you long enough to know that you're never serious about anything'
'Maybe you should start running a hotel, Sano…those girls would help you run the business just fine' Aoshi remarked.
'Hey, you're right' Sano admitted.
'Oh, speaking of which…Kaoru, what's Kenshin going to do in Spain?' Aoshi asked.
'Yeah, how come he never told me about this trip? And I'm his best friend!' Sano protested. 'Betcha he didn't want me asking for presents! That traitor! He knows I love Spain!'
Kaoru winced; why did they have to keep reminding me of Kenshin? I want to forget him…
Meanwhile…
The world had turned black before Kenshin's eyes.
He roamed the streets, constantly bumping into a passer-by.
Kaoru…my beloved Kaoru…
But what did he do to deserve this? What mistake has he done? What could've upset Kaoru so much? He wanted to know, his ignorance was killing him.
His life was absolutely blank without her, he needed her desperately.
What stopped him from throwing himself into the road in front of a speeding car?
Nothing. I could kill myself right now.
But that would be a downright lie. There was something which prevented him from committing suicide.
Hope.
Hope that Kaoru will someday return.
He will cling to that hope no matter what.
Before he knew it, Kenshin found himself in front of a local pub.
With a muffled sigh, he stepped inside into the pub.
He walked up to the bar, and settled himself down on one of the stools.
A man stepped up behind the bar. He smiled at Kenshin.
'Hello, the name's Kamatari…how may…?' the man asked.
'Sake' Kenshin interrupted him, without looking up at the bartender.
Because if he did look up, he'd confuse what he'd see with a beautiful female, wearing a skin tight velvety black shirt, and tight white pants, who was batting her eyelashes at him.
'Ooooh, you must be in trouble, then' Kamatari said.
'What makes you say that?!' Kenshin snapped, jerking his head up. 'I…oh'
'What?' Kamatari said. 'Oh, do you find me attractive? There's no need to be shy, hon, others have thought the same'
Kenshin didn't know whether he was staring at a guy or a gal, and was totally self-conscious about his mouth which was hanging wide open, but couldn't shut it.
A customer came to the bar. 'Hey, Kamatari, what's up, man?' he said. 'I haven't see you in a while'
'Oh, Ishizumi! It's so good to see you!' Kamatari gushed, and dropped his tone of voice. 'Well, you know, I've been hooked' he whispered, and shot a glance at Kenshin. 'But not completely…'
He handed the man a tankard of beer and turned back to Kenshin with his Sake. 'There's no need to look so depressed, hon' he said, laying a hand on Kenshin's shoulder. Kenshin stared down at the hand as if it were a gnat resting on his pastrami sandwich. 'You can't imagine the horrors it does to your complexion' He smiled brightly. 'C'mon, talk to me, maybe I could offer you some advice'
Spilling out his love life to a gay guy at the bar was the last thing Kenshin would think of doing. But not before long, he was gulping down his Sake and pouring out his heart to Kamatari, who seemed to find his seat next to Kenshin a lot more comfortable than the one behind the bar.
'And then, and then she started crushing the roses with her feet…they cost me 19$, and she ruined them!' he said drowsily.
Kamatari patted Kenshin's back soothingly. 'There, there, hon…what did you say your name was again?' he said.
'And then…she slapped me! Can you believe it?! My wife actually slapped me!' Kenshin gasped, and took another swig of his Sake.
'Oh, dear! Did it hurt? Where did she slap you?' Kamatari asked anxiously.
'And then, she took her bag and said, "Kenshin, I don't love you anymore"' Kenshin continued. 'Well, she didn't exactly say that, but…'
'So your name is Kenshin, huh?' Kamatari said. 'That's such a cute name! Can I call you Ken-nii?'
'I want her back' Kenshin pleaded, as if it were in Kamatari's hands to bring her back.
'Aw, don't be like that, Ken-nii' Kamatari said, pouting. 'You can always hook up with some on else'
And, as if to prove his point, he put an arm around Kenshin and batted his eyelashes furiously at him.
Kenshin stared drunkenly at him. 'What are you doing?' he demanded.
'Ow! I knew I shouldn't have given him that much of Sake!' Kamatari muttered. Then he smiled again. 'Say, how about a hug? It could do you wonders you know'
Kenshin sat up straight, and shook his head. 'No, I'm in no mood for hugs now' he muttered, and reached inside his pocket for his wallet. 'How much for the Sake?'
'Oh, don't worry about that' Kamatari assured him. 'This one's on me'
'Thanks' Kenshin mumbled as he slid off his stool.
He staggered to the pub's door, swaying slightly as he walked.
'Hey, Ken-nii! What's your number?!' Kamatari called after him.
But Kenshin ignored him, got to the door and left the place without a second look back.
'Drats!' Kamatari muttered. 'Completely hopeless!'
Meanwhile…
'Aoshi…?'
Kaoru's eyes fluttered open. She turned her head sideways and saw Misao talking on the phone.
'You still in the airport?...Hey, I have an idea, why don't you ditch Italy and come take me out somewhere?...Oh, you're such a sweetie! But no, you go to Italy and finish that business of yours…' Misao said.
Kaoru stared up at the ceiling and fought back her tears.
Why did everybody seem to have such a perfect happy life except me? Megumi and Sanosuke…Misao and Aoshi…
Why can't I be happy like them? Why did they all have each other while I have no one?
She remembered how Sano kept giving Megumi light pecks on her cheeks whenever he passed her or sat next to her…and how Aoshi kept his arms around Misao all the time…
Was she bitter? Nah.
But jealous? Maybe…
She tried hard to block Misao's conversation with Aoshi but she couldn't.
'Huh? What are you holding?...Oh, you're holding the keychain I gave you? You're such a dear!' she gushed. 'Uh-huh, uh-huh…oh, Aoshi, I'm really gonna miss you…I know it's only a week, but still…What? Of course I'm not crying! I'm not a crybaby!'
But Kaoru knew that was a downright lie, because she could the see the sparkling tears staining Misao's face.
'…You get me some decent presents, understand? Make sure they include jewelry…hey, you know what, forget it, I just want you…I love you too…Good bye, oh, and don't forget to call me from Italy…good…bye, then' Misao said, and put down the mouthpiece.
Without realizing it, Kaoru had begun crying.
And not some normal crying; she was sobbing real hard she was shaking.
'Kaoru?' Misao said, sounding alarmed.
Kaoru buried her face in her pillow, soaking it with her tears. She felt Misao's hands on her shoulders.
'Kaoru? What's wrong?' Misao demanded. 'You miss Kenshin too?'
Kaoru sobbed harder.
'Jeez, how bad is this, Kaoru?' Misao asked softly.
'Terrible' Kaoru choked out.
'Damn, I better get Megumi' Misao said frantically.
'Don't bother, I'm already here…Sano sent me to shut you two up' Megumi said from the guestroom's doorway. She paused. 'Kaoru, are you crying? God, I knew something was wrong from the moment you came…what is it, Kaoru?' she asked softly, as she made her way to her bed.
Kaoru shook her head, which was still buried in the pillow.
'Kaoru, you have to tell us…you can't keep it all bottled up' Megumi told her, sitting beside her on the bed. 'Trust me, you'll feel a lot better once you've spilled out everything'
'Is it Kenshin?' Misao asked casually.
'Uh huh' Kaoru blubbered.
'He hasn't really gone to Spain, has he?' Megumi asked.
'No' Kaoru choked.
'What has he done, Kaoru?' Megumi asked quietly.
Kaoru burst into fresh tears, and she dug her face in Megumi's lap, sobbing harder than ever.
'He…he cheated on me! Today I found this…this message on the answering machine…it was a girl, saying how much she had enjoyed her time with Kenshin the other night' Kaoru sobbed. 'He had gone out and met a girl behind my back…Kenshin, of all people, I thought I could trust him! But…but he betrayed my trust!'
Megumi exchanged looks with Misao. She smoothed Kaoru's hair in a soothing gesture. 'It's okay, Kaoru…' she said.
'NO! It's not okay!' Kaoru cried, pulling herself away from Megumi. 'It's never going to be okay! Don't you understand? Kenshin let me down, he betrayed me!'
'Oh, Kaoru' Megumi sighed, and pulled Kaoru into a hug. Kaoru sobbed into her shoulder.
Misao put her arm around Kaoru. 'It's not your fault, Kaoru' she said sternly. 'It's Kenshin who's got something wrong with his brain'
'Yes, you deserve better than him, he's not worth your tears' Megumi added.
'Kenshin doesn't know what he's losing' Misao said.
'Please, Kaoru…stop crying' Megumi pleaded.
'OY!! Cool it down, will ya?! Some people are trying to sleep!' Sano shouted room the other room.
Megumi shook her head. 'Some people are just too insensitive' she muttered, but vowed to shower Sano with thanks when she heard Kaoru utter a small giggle.
They were gaining progress.
A/N: (bouncing up and down) So, what did u think? Is it nice? Huh? Is it? I'm annoying, aren't I? Anyway, if u did like it, plz review…oh, and wait for my second chapter!
-ZEN.