A/N: Alrighty! So here is Part II! I'm sorry for it's length, being that it is shorter than both Part's I and III, but I promise, if you enjoy it, I will send the third out soon after.
Also, if any of you like "Fruits Basket" please check out my other fic entitled 'The Plumb on Her Back.' I would love the support!
WARNING: I have upped this fic to rated R only because I don't want to offend anyone with some of the subject matter. Furthermore, in this chapter, I use the words "Dear God," and would like to apologize up front if anyone feels insulted. I could not find anything else with the same amount of intensity. Sorry!
Thank you everyone for your comments!
evil tsubasa: I apologize for the lack of 'darkness' thus far. Maybe this will give you a taste for the chapter to come. Although the last part is quite…um…well...er 'tempestuous' it does end on a cheesy, high note. Hope you can find something enjoyable to take from it. Until then…enjoy Part II
Akujunkan: Thank you for the compliment! I feel quite honored since you seem to be so perceptive about these characters as well as with my own personal writing style after reading only one measly chapter. Hehe. Well since 'a', 'b' and 'c' were all far from the truth, how about this for 'd'?
MakieToAyame: I began 'Kare Kano 2' yesterday and am excited to finish it! You're writing style is fantastic; don't ever say that. Thanks for your review! It always means a lot when someone actually wants to take the time to submit one. But I am sure you know this, being a writer yourself.
Briar Noir: As much as I would have loved for Yukino to be the ever so passionate and deranged lover—I hope this part will compel you to read more. There is quite a bit of juiciness to come. Hope you stick around for it!
Special thanks to Cheshire Grin for prereading my chapters even though she is 'allergic to cringing.' I know I like to load on the cheese! Sorry CG; please forgive me!
Disclaimer: So I have to admit to all of this fraudulent writing…I know, I know. -Ahem- Yukino, Kano, Asaba, Arima and his mother do not belong to me, nor am I the true mastermind behind Kare Kano. That praise goes to Masami Tsuda. -curt bow-
Tempest Desire
Part II
"What will you do, Arima—without Yukino by your side?"
Hideaki's questioned echoed in that dark place of Souichiro's mind, forever plaguing his scrutiny. He had absolutely no idea how to address the inquiry and revealed this with a wordless sigh. Instead, he traced his finger along the cool glass of the windowpane, his eyes blazing when lightening struck.
The prolonged silence continued until a deafening clap of thunder was heard, which forced the solemn teenager to take a step away from the window. How could he have known that at precisely that moment his supposed ex-girlfriend had rung the bell that should have echoed throughout his house? Instead, the noise was swallowed up by the rumbling sky.
"I don't know." He finally answered.
"You took her virginity. You don't think she is just gonna let you waltz out of her life? Those things are important to girls." Asaba reasoned.
"Miyazawa is not like that." Souichiro spoke softly. "She is not the kind of girl who will use something special to her as a means for revenge. And besides—those things—they are important to me too."
Asaba privately agreed
-
Maybe he isn't home, Yukino deliberated. She was seized with a death-like shiver that forced her to lean on the door of Souichiro's house. I should just turn around and go home. Of course he would avoid me. He can read me like a book. He isn't at the top of our class for nothing. The more she thought about it, the less nerve she was able to hold onto.
Yukino stumbled a couple of steps away from the entry, longing for the comfort of her warm futon. Maybe when she got home she would take Kano up on her offer after all. And then she realized—deep down she was still a child herself. Sure she had skipped most of what one would consider a normal childhood, but it did not mean that she was incapable of wanting someone to depend on. I used to depend on Arima, she recalled. Yukino was suddenly showered with guilt as she remembered that day—the day she had first conveyed that he could depend on her as well, the night they had shared their first kiss with the storm surging outside of the school. Amidst choking tears, Yukino's words were delivered to the rain, "I wish you could have had more faith in me."
-
"Well—has she called?"
Souichiro's patience was dissolving with each question.
"Or stopped by?"
It occurred to him that she might not even care. He felt his insecurities start to take effect. They often entered his conscience in this manner—like a drug superseding his ability to reason. Could it be that this is what she wants?
Another loud sound interrupted their silence. More thunder? "What was that?" Souichiro asked.
"Uh—judging by the fact that I cannot really hear it, I am guessing that it is coming from your end, which can only mean that Miyazawa is at your door," came the blunt reply. "Dumby," Asaba added a second later almost endearingly. "You really are clueless."
Miyazawa is here? Now that he listened closely, he could hear the adamant pounding at his front door. Souichiro felt his palms begin to sweat. He had to prepare himself—for the worst. Anger, sadness—they didn't amount to the excessive drama that his Yukino could wreak when she aimed to.
'She is not yours anymore,' an intruding voice pierced his thoughts. It slipped around his brain until it's coldness crept into his blood, freezing him where he stood.
"I guess I will let you go then." Asaba announced, his voice filtering through his friend's panic.
"Uh—yeah," Souichiro muttered. "Thanks Hideaki."
-
Yukino's fists were painfully frozen and turning blue from thrashing them against the surface of the Arima's door. Either Souichiro was not home or he was just plain ignoring her. "Fine then," Yukino spat to no one in particular. Her defiant chin jutted out to the rain and she was just about to turn away when the door flung open with a desperate clatter. At the sight of him, her body nearly collapsed.
-
Souichiro felt his heart sink when he glimpsed the disheveled girl who had always appeared remarkably polished and composed. Yukino stood amid the relentless downpour as if she sanctioned it to punish her body. He noticed the pink lips quivering and thought she might be crying, though he could not exactly tell in the cloud of rain that separated them. Her eyes glared at him uncertainly as if she did not recognize him. The chill of the storm glided beneath his pajama shirt and he shivered. It was then that Souichiro knew he could never deny her. Wordlessly, he held out his arms to her. Yukino consented.
-
Before Souichiro went to the closet for clean towels, he lit the fireplace. His brain detonated a million different thoughts at once as he moved about in a trance-like state. 'This is your fault!' 'Did you think you were doing her a favor by letting her go?' 'Just look at what you did to her!' 'You are a worthless, disgusting pig!' At the linen closet, Souichiro's hands clenched fiercely around his skull to block out the voice, the voice that was his own.
When he reentered his living room, he could not help but freeze. The delicate glow of the fire cast rippling shadows about the refined living room. They played tenderly upon Yukino's head as if directing his gaze there. Her face was turned to the side, and still—he could not deny it. She is so beautiful, he thought. Even in the way his couch engulfed her rain-soaked body. Even the limp hair that fell into her eyes, and the sound of her small, uneven breath. Souichiro wanted her. He wanted to feel the slender limbs clinging to him, the childish whisper teasing his ear. He wanted to smell the girl in a mix of their sweat and passion as he drew her closer and closer. His body trembled.
Souichiro's feet gradually moved until they carried him in front Yukino. His dark eyes peered down at her pink cheeks while wrapping a large towel around her body. "You should get out of those clothes," he instructed.
Yukino stiffened. The command in his voice scared her somehow. Though truthful, the comment struck her as perverse and cold. It etched itself into her goose bumps until a new shiver took over her body. Detecting the slight tense of her muscles, Souichiro collapsed to his knee in front of her, worried. "Miyazawa." He allowed the word to release lovingly. "Are you? Are you all right? You look feverish. Why don't I give you something else to wear?"
Yukino peered into the black pearls in front of her. That was the Arima she knew. With a small nod, she permitted him to lead her up the stairs and down the hall to his room. She stood in his doorway as he fumbled through a drawer for something dry. When his body turned to her, his gaze fell on her so intensely that she could tell he still desired her.
Yukino trembled from something uncontrolled by the storm raging outside. I want you too, she thought sadly as she remembered the letter. There was a change in his expression while a thought took affect in his mind. He was struggling with something, and clearly losing. Instead of handing her the clothes, his arm extended stiffly and his face fell away from her. Her knees were knocking as she moved numbly toward him.
When Yukino took the clothes, she was disappointed to discern Souichiro walking past her toward the door so that she could dress in private. Without thinking, her hand shot out and caught his arm desperately. His eyes on her burned in an almost pleasant way that she could not explain. And then she willed it to happen, with all of her being. Yukino wanted it more than ever before. His lips fell on her almost unkindly and she felt her guilt evolving. She wasn't making this any easier for him. But she had to wonder, do I really want to?
Souichiro sensed his heartbeat quickening as he seized Yukino's mouth with his own. He could feel his body coming apart, the frenzy within him increasing to a head that rivaled the tempest shaking his window. Dear God, he wanted to own her.
He is so aggressive; Yukino could not help but notice. His hands crashed against her waist as if to snap her in two. Is this what he is talking about? This ravishing side that he has only now exposed? She forced her hands between them in a rough attempt to stop him, catching his gaze steadily as she did. He is trembling, she saw. He looks like a scared child.
"What is it?" Yukino asked, drawing in a shaky breath. "Tell me, Arima or else I will never understand. I want to know." She was frantic. "Let me help you."
Souichiro fought to replace the disoriented passion that roused his blood with the mask that he was so accustomed to. 'Tell her,' the voice whispered unfeelingly into his ear. 'Tell her all of the filthy dreams you have about her. Tell her what you would do to her if it was up to you!' There was a wicked laugh that transpired inside of Souichiro's mind.
No. I can't tell her! I can't! He internally rebuked himself. But I will lose her if I don't, the unbearable thought branded itself into his mind.
'You will lose her either way.' The voice threatened. 'She was never yours to begin with…'
Stop it! He yelled back. Stop it! That's not true! Souiciro let out a faint whimper, as his head fell into his hands again.
Yukino watched him silently, her befuddlement turning into alarm. He clutched his head with such obvious distaste that she was certain he wished to tear it from his neck. "Arima?" She choked in her immobile state.
"I—I'm afraid," he confessed curtly. But as soon as the words were released, he bit down on his tongue.
"Afraid? Afraid of what?" She pressed.
"It's nothing." He told her in an attempt to end the discussion. The panic she had witnessed only a moment before vanished and was replaced by a stanch expression.
Yukino moved closer to him. "Arima. You can tell me anything. Let me help. I want to—"
"No!" He shouted defensively, his sentiments rising with the inflection.
"Why?" Yukino demanded. "Is it me you're afraid of? Is that it?"
Souichiro let loose an exasperated sigh, though tears were forming at the corners of his eyes. "No. That's not what I meant."
"Then what? Tell me."
"I said it was nothing!" his voice broke.
"It is me! I know it. You're afraid to trust me, afraid I won't understand!" Yukino affirmed as she stomped her foot.
"No! That's not it at all Miyazawa!"
"Yes it is!" That's why you can't tell me. It's because—"
"I'm afraid of myself!" he roared.
Yukino froze at his admission and even more at the wild expression that imbued his eyes. "Your…self?"
Souichiro cursed gruffly when he realized his mistake. His hands clenched and unclenched at his sides while his nose flared in an attempt to calm his fury. He turned from her stonily; resuming his clarification with a somewhat defeated air. "I'm afraid of the person that I am, and the one that I become as a result of my feelings for you."
Yukino was silent for a moment; his outburst had startled her. Would she provoke more anger if she questioned him further? When she did speak, her tones were hushed. "What is it, exactly, that your feelings do?" Her fingers were clumsy against his temple and brow as she removed the bangs concealing his eyes.
He grew rigid at her touch. "I don't know. I can't—I can't talk about this with you," he said stiffly as he strode towards the window.
"But why, Arima? We are supposed to be—" Her sentenced trailed off. They were no longer boyfriend and girlfriend. Or so the letter said. But, what exactly did that mean for them now? Yukino's teeth clenched as she watched his back. She didn't care about the letter. She knew he loved her. He had to love her!
Yukino marched up beside him. "Arima!" she shrieked.
But she halted when she noticed his expression. There was something peculiar about the way he stared at the moon—the apprehension he emitted while allowing it to bath him in it's light. Almost as if it frightens him, she noted. Souichiro shivered, but did not budge from where he stood.
Yukino placed her hand firmly on his shoulder. "It's OK," she announced warmly.
He turned to her, trying to rid the shakiness in his limbs. "Miyazawa?" His eyes held a far away look.
Yukino grabbed his hand, pulling him towards her until the remote expression disappeared and he saw her standing there. "Do you love me?" she asked abruptly.
He nodded slightly. "I love you."
Gently, she rephrased her former question once more. "What does that love…do to you?"
Souichiro hesitated. "It's shameful." He admitted quietly. "It's so overpowering that I act out of some instinct that I don't even recognize. Almost like I feel…corrupted." His hand covered his mouth quickly to prevent anything more from being said.
Yukino watched the anxiety that made itself present in his features. She could not pretend that she understood. But she was determined. There came the familiar tilt of her jaw into the air. "Show me," she dared.
A/N: -chuckles- Sorry—another cliffie. It's hard not to since this fic is so short. Well, all will be revealed in good time. Until then, I am wondering about this ending myself. I'm thinking alternate endings so everyone can be happy. Let's try another A, B and C—shall we?
A.) Arima spirals out of control and in his blinding madness, he kills Yukino, only to awaken next to her in a pool of her blood! (Whoa…morbid!)
B.) Yukino feels the full weight of his anxiety as she watches Arima lose himself to the power of his other side. There is nothing left to do. She leaves him.
C.) After being scorched by the fire of Arima's dark side, she realizes that despite her fears, she loves him…and with that positive emotion she will stay by his side.
D.) Any other suggestions…?
You guys are great! I will update as soon as I can!
LinBean
PLEASE R/R!
