A/N: Thank you SO much for all this great feedback! And now I have another chapter all ready for you guys! I hope you like it!!! Enjoy!
DAY TWO
"Okay…what the hell did I just say yesterday, Kenshin?" Sanosuke inquired, looking rather displeased. The presence of his redheaded comrade was something he didn't anticipate. In fact, it kind of annoyed him. "Ooookay, since you're too stupid to remember, I guess I'll have to refresh your memory then!" Kenshin nodded. "I told ya…whatever you do from here on out is your problem! Not mine! I'm not the one who's seducing-challenged!"
"Yeah…just mentally…"
"What was that?!" Kenshin just put a hand up. He didn't want to argue…he was simply stating the facts. "Well anyways…" Sanosuke mumbled, rubbing the bridge of his nose, "I thought I told you that I don't need your issues to deal with when I'm currently having a hangover. I had a lot of late nights this week and yesterday's was probably the worst of 'em all…so you should kinda…leave…"
"Actually, Sano…I came here for another reason that doesn't have to do with Miss Kaoru at all."
"And that reason being…?"
"You're invited to the Akabeko…well with our usual group, I mean. Miss Kaoru, Yahiko, and Miss Megumi…they're all attending dinner with us and it would be nice if you could join us, Sano. Things really aren't the same without you, that they aren't."
"Don't be a suck up. It makes you look even gayer…" He said sourly as he looked at the maimed saucer from which he smashed yesterday. "Remind me to ask Hiko how he does it."
Kenshin morosely answered, "Sure, whatever you say."
"But yeah…I think that it would be great if I did come. With food bein' there, maybe I could get pumped up and go out later tonight…you know, change my luck at dice." Kenshin rolled his eyes. There was no way that Sanosuke could improve his luck. Not in this lifetime anyway. He was cursed with an unbelievable streak of bad luck… sometimes his losses at dice went on for weeks at a clip. "And on top of all that free food, I should see if you're really trying to win this bet…"
"What are you implying!?"
"Aah, I just feel like you're not puttin' your whole heart and soul into this…" Kenshin was about to object in his defense but Sanosuke held up a hand. "I gotta see your technique. If you at least try but fail, I'll give you a little credit. But if you just sit there, smiling your goofy and incredibly fake smile…then forget it…I'll just see you as nothin' but gay." Kenshin stopped arguing with him and just sat there, shoulders sagging. "Maybe this'll be a good night for you…you can casually…oh I don't know…lean on her shoulder or something during dinner and brush your hands against hers a lot and sappy romantic stuff like that…"
"Sano, I'm getting the impression that you've done these things before." Kenshin added, deciding to put a taunting grin on his face.
"There's no way that I'm a sentimental kind of guy! Ya got that?"
"But I always believed that you liked Miss Megumi! I know that you make it seem like you two do nothing but bicker and argue but I believe there are deeper emotions locked away in your heart, that I do. And since we're on an honest streak, maybe you should get whatever's bothering you out in the open."
"The kitsune is all over you, remember? 'Sir Ken! Sir Ken! Ohohohoho!'" Sanosuke squeaked, doing his best Megumi impression, while simultaneously using his forefinger to curl his hair.
"That wasn't a bad imitation, that it wasn't!" He grinned. "You should do comedy."
"Okay. SO not the point! What I'm tryin' to say here is that she's all over you! Even if I did like her and stuff, she'd always go after you first. Once you saved her from Beshimi of the Oniwabanshuu, she looked so hell-bent on making you her boyfriend or something like that. Even though you get all nervous when she touches you, she still doesn't stop." Kenshin shuddered. "What, you don't like her hanging around you like that, Kenshin? Whooo, I kinda thought you wouldn't mind it…I know how desperate a man can be."
"I just try and distance myself from her, that's all. Truthfully, I wish she would stop doing that to me. It's obvious that she's only trying to provoke Miss Kaoru's anger, that she is. And besides, her being so persistent like that…well it's just one of the few qualities that I find distasteful in women…"
"So, you don't like her like that?" Kenshin shook his head immediately.
"She's all yours, Sano!"
"And Kaoru's all yours so yippedee freakin' doo dah!" He pulled the sake jug up to his lips and Kenshin smacked himself in the face with his right hand. It was going to be a loooong night at the Akabeko.
Kenshin nervously sat next to Kaoru, his hands tracing his porcelain teacup. He could tell that he was nervous, only because when he held the cup in his hands, the liquid would shake slightly. Rolling his eyes, he did his level best to look away from everyone and at other tables. It set his mind in other places and far away from his 'responsibility.' Sanosuke occasionally shot glances at his best friend, hoping that he would make a move already.
Sanosuke POV:
Look at him! Shakin' that much, you'd think that he's gonna wet his pants in a couple seconds. I don't even know why he's all freaked. I mean, I remember the time that after he fought Saitou, she ran up and hugged him. That's something that should make him nervous. But now, he's just sittin' next to her. They're not even touching each other and he looks like he's gonna explode! Yep, Sagara… I knew I was right. He's not gonna try and make a move with everyone watching. And with the kitsune around, there's no way that he'll be able to pull off his crappy attempts either. Aah, Megumi…don't you have a patient that needs help or something? Sometimes, you can really ruin stuff.
Wait a sec…I remember the stuff I brought here…just in case. Heh, heh. Damn I really am good! What did I bring, you ask? Two bottles of sake! Oh yeah! I'm gonna make him have a drinking contest with me and once he's totally out of it, that's when he'll start romancing Jou-chan. All right! He might be able to pull this off after all! Score for the boys back home!
"C'mon, Kenshin. You and me. One on one. Right here right now!" Sanosuke said as he whipped out his secret weapon. Sake was a good thing. He looked at the taller man, expression oozing with skepticallity. "Aww, it's not gonna hurt anyone. Sure, it might kill your sobriety but ya never needed it anyway."
"Aah, Sano…are you sure?" Kenshin replied, unsure if he should accept.
"Man! We've done this before, haven't we? Lighten up!" He tossed Kenshin the sake jug and Kenshin shrugged his shoulders. True, they had gotten piss drunk, on more than one occasion that is. So to Kenshin, it would be yet another occasion for him. "All right! Let's go!"
A few minutes later, Kenshin dropped the sake jug and suddenly felt a little too lightheaded for his taste. He couldn't even speak properly. And he knew that he was drunk because he was starting to sound a little too similar to Sanosuke whenever he was out of it. "I can't drink anymore, can't I that!" Kenshin said as the pink tint on his cheeks became clearly visible. Sanosuke grinned. "Sona, did yooou win?" Kenshin inquired. Apparently, he had mixed up the vowels in Sanosuke's name… and just about everyone rolled their eyes.
"Who's the king, baby? Woohoo!" Yahiko rolled his eyes and realized that Sanosuke's food was left unguarded, thusly helping himself to a second course. "Who! Is! The! King?!" Sanosuke said again as he too dropped his sake jug, his being totally empty, of course. "Jou-chan, you know you wanna congratulate the underdog right?!"
Kenshin looked at Kaoru and smiled a drunken smile, body swaying left and right. "Miss Jou-chan! A handshake will do, it that will!" Kenshin inched his way toward her and suddenly felt himself being pushed onto her lap. Pushed? No, he just fell in her lap because the sake was now getting the best of him. "Ororororo…" He muttered as he felt his nose push in between her thighs. Kaoru froze. She didn't know what to do as Kenshin's head was…well, wedged in a place that he had no right to be in. "Aaa, Miss Jou-chan…you smell so sweet…"
"Aah! K-Kenshin!" Kaoru stammered.
"Miss Jou-chan…" Kenshin pulled himself up and looked deeply into her blue eyes (well about as deeply as a wasted man can see). "You are veerrry pretty." She blushed fiercely, turning away from him and that was when she felt his face nuzzle in between her legs again.
"K-Kenshin? Are you all right?" Kaoru inquired, lifting his face. "He's…asleep…on my LAP?" She wanted desperately to scream but Megumi was suddenly being of service, taking the poor rurouni out of Kaoru's lap and into her arms. "Miss Megumi! Just what do you think you're doing? Leave him alone! He's obviously not himself right now!"
"Leave us alone, you little child," Megumi replied scornfully. "Who says that you have any say in the matter between Sir Ken and I? The truth is, you don't. And besides, you were the one who seemed to be so disturbed with the fact that he made himself comfortable in your lap. If you were any kind of real woman, you would have let him stay there…and possibly do more with him. Ohohohoho!" Yahiko and Sanosuke plugged up their ears. "Ohh, Sir Ken…" She said as she lifted his face and noticed that he was coming to, eyes flickering open. "Kiss me, Sir Ken."
"Shit! No!" Sanosuke cried. But he did it too little too late. Megumi and Kenshin were kissing fervently, Kaoru covering her face with her hands. The foxy doctor was all too good at making Kaoru feel horrible and this one really was the straw that broke the camel's back.
"Well, excuse me…" Kaoru said as she was trying to bite back her tears. "For not being so devious when it comes to stealing Kenshin away!" Megumi broke the kiss only to see that Kaoru was beginning to cry.
Kenshin noticed her rather depressed state and suddenly crawled over to her. "Miss Jou-chan! Don't cry!" He said, trying to put a hand up to her face. She started to fume and as an angry Kaoru would do unconsciously, she punched him in the face. He touched his cheek and looked at her wide-eyed, not being able to take her eyes off her. She was crying. "Miss Jou-chan! What did I do to upset you?" Kaoru said nothing and gathered her things, heading for the exit of the Akabeko.
"I'll go keep her company," Yahiko volunteered maturely, running after her.
Sanosuke looked at Kenshin, grabbed his jug of sake, and knocked him out. Apparently, he had the need to chat with the oh so foxy doctor sitting across from him. "Why'd you go and do that? Kiss him I mean…" Megumi flipped her hair at Sanosuke and shrugged, now looking at the ends of her hair. "This is no time to be checking for split ends, kitsune! You know full well that you hurt Jou-chan! Maybe you shouldn't have taken advantage of Kenshin this time, no matter how drunk he was."
"And you shouldn't have suggested the idea of having a drinking contest then!"
"Don't even try to pin the blame on me! You know full well that Kenshin doesn't want to be with you and yet you insist on comin' between him and Jou-chan! Why the hell would you do something like that?" Megumi stayed silent. "You're supposed to be their friend. Ya know, you've got a real funny way of showing it sometimes…" There was a pause for a few moments before Sanosuke pulled out a fishbone and scoffed at Megumi. "Just…let it go. Give it up. Kenshin'll never want you like that. So stop hurting Jou-chan's feelings, all right?"
"She's got to learn how to stand up for her relationship with Sir Ken."
"You know what? Maybe it's you who's gotta learn. I'm gonna go… see ya 'round." Sanosuke said as he stood up and took Kenshin by the ankles, draping him over his broad shoulder. And as he walked outside of the Akabeko, he sighed to himself. "Damn…I feel sorry for Kenshin now. He might not be able to pull it off now 'cause Jou-chan is gonna be pretty mad about that whole kiss thing… Oh well, five days left…"
A/N: Heh, you REALLY thought that I would make things easy for Kenshin? Hardly! Review please! Thank you so much!!!!!
Son Christine
