PG (I decided to keep it at this rating -0 )
Disclaimer: I don't own Imadoki. yuu watase does of course.
Thanks again to the reviewers!
Me: Uhh.. what?
Kristine (mumbling): update Me: Wha?
Kristine: Update Me; Why?
Kristine: UPDATE!!! You have 7 days.
Me (gulping): Ok, I will. Uhh.. (backs away) see u later.
Welll... that was a while ago... say 2 weeks? BUT I REALLY DID HAVE LOTS OF HOMEWORK!!! It's true!!! I'm so so so sorry for the looonnnnnggg update.
Chapter 5- "It's Not Over"
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He looked directly into Tanpopo's frightened eyes and asked, "How bout I stay here with you for a couple of days?"
Tanpopo did a double take. She was sure that she misheard what he said. "Uhh... say what?" She became startled at the seriousness of his eyes.
"I'm going to protect you. Ryusaki isn't kidding and I'm gonna stay here and keep you safe.."
She didn't know what to say. What was she supposed to say? "But Koki..."
"There is no way I'm going to stay away from you. No matter what Ryusaki says. Heh... at least not after the encounter we just had." His eyes shifted over to the floor and Tanpopo blushed.
"Well... uh... I guess it'll be alright. I mean... how bout your family? Will they be ok with this?" Koki thought for a moment and said, "I'll say that I'm staying over Kyogoku's place. So... I'll be back after I pack some things ok?"
Her heart skipped a beat while she nodded. She watched him go and wondered if it was a good idea for him to stay with her. She glanced at Poplar who was glaring at her. "What? At least I have someone to play board games with. OH! And I can show him the dandelion. I don't think he noticed it because we were--" Tanpopo turned red. "We were busy with... uhh... drinking chocolate milk. Yup." Poplar looked at her with a look that seemed to say "Liar. I'm not blind, ya know."
Fatigueness took way and she lay down on the couch. Soon afterwards, she drifted off to sleep.
30 minutes later
Koki
brought his things up and placed them to the side of Tanpopo's
apartment door. 'Let's see, now where did I put the key?' he thought as
he searched his pockets.
'Dammit! I forgot that I didn't ask her for
one. I guess I'll just have to knock.' He knocked a few times. "Hello?
Tanpopo?" He knocked harder and his impatience grew.
"Hey whatcha doin' bangin' on the door for?"
Koki turned around and saw one of Tanpopo's neighbors. She seemed about a few years older than him but something didn't seem quite right. She was wearing a big T-Shirt and the brightest red lipstick he's ever seen. "Erm... sorry."
"Don't worry stud." She said with a curve of her red lips. Koki gulped. "Hey, if your girlfriend, I'm assuming she's your girl, won't open the door, how would you like to join me?"
Koki panicked and started banging his fists against Tanpopo's apartment door louder and desperately, yelling her name repeatedly.
The girl just laughed and went back inside her apartment.
Meanwhile...
'ZzZzZzZz........." Tanpopo snored on. She was dreaming about the Halloween Dance and it was about time to announce the Frightful King and Queen. She was in her costume but she couldn't find Koki around anywhere. Suddenly 'drumbeats' started rolling (in reality, it's Koki pounding at the door) and Mr. Raccoon Face was almost ready to honor the winners. "Ladies and gents, I am semi-proud to announce the King and Queen... (more drumrolls)... Ryusaki and Tanpopo!!!" Out of nowhere, Ryusaki shows up beside her and walks her up to the stage. Tanpopo spots Koki in the crowd. All he does is stare.
Tanpopo woke up with her head pounding. She couldn't understand her dream. She usually dreamt of Koki. Did it mean that Koki didn't really care for her? She shook her head and let that idea slide. She realized that the pounding in her head were the pounds on the door. 'Koki!!!' she thought. She looked at her watch and was amazed to see that almost an hour had passed by. Rushing to the door, she tripped over Poplar who didn't seem to have woken up but had a smirk on his face. When she opened the door, Tanpopo immediately muttered "Uhh... hi?" Koki looked at her with exasperation.
"FINALLY! I could hear your snoring all the way from the other side of this door." He said walking in with his things. "I've been standing there for about half hour and did I mention that you have VERY weird neighbors?"
"I'm really sorry Koki." she said looking guilty. He dropped his things and took her in his arms. "It's alright Tanpopo. It wasn't like you left me out there on purpose."
She decided to tease him a bit. "I didn't?" she asked with a smile on her face looking up at him. Koki made a frown. He couldn't tell whether she was kidding or not. "But I heard you snoring up a storm in here."
"How would you know if I was faking or not?" She questioned, her smile getting bigger. Koki looked directly at her with an unfamiliar gleam in his eyes. Tanpopo wasn't sure what he was up to so she said, "Hehe... I'm kidding?"
Koki started tickling her and she fell on the floor. He wouldn't stop until she surrendered. Tanpopo couldn't take it anymore. "Haha... please stop!!!" Tears were running down from the corners of her eyes. "I give up! I give up!" Koki stopped and gave a triumphant and satisfied look. He was too proud of himself that he didn't notice Tanpopo's mischievious expression.
'I am going to pay you back Koki!' she thought in her head. "So, tomorrow we have school so I suggest that we get some sleep."
"You mean, I have to listen to you snoring throughout the whole night? Shiesh. I wonder if I'll get any shut eye." He said teasing her. Tanpopo hit his arm playfully and got up. She went into her room and closed the door behind her.
"Umm... Tanpopo?" He called after her. She opened her bedroom door and asked, "What?"
"I... uhh... do I... well... " Koki was wondering where he should sleep. "Uh... I guess... I'll just sleep on the floor over here ok?" Tanpopo smiled. "Of course you can. You can sleep anywhere you want!" she said. "I think I'll just leave my door open. I'll feel safer knowing I could see you."
He smiled at her, then went into the bathroom to brush his teeth. Afterwards, he picked up the blankets he brought and placed it next to Tanpopo's. She looked surprised and asked, "What are you doin' here?" Koki lay down and replied, "You said I can sleep anywhere." With that, he turned around and fell asleep. She felt nervous but after a moment. she grinned and went back to dreamland.
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Tanpopo felt something warm across her waist. She lazily tried to open her eyes. Furiously, she pryed them open. When she saw Koki's hand on her waist, she became WIDE awake! 'Umm... ' she panicked. 'Ack! WhatamIgonnado?!' She wondered how they ever got into the position they were in. His leg was thrown over hers. 'Hand on my waist... and his leg over mine... damn this looks bad...' She struggled to get up and when she finally did, Koki shifted and 'accidentally' tripped her, causing Tanpopo to fall back on the ground.
"Heh..." Koki muttered trying not to burst out laughing. Tanpopo glared at him, got up and went to the bathroom, where she filled up a container with VERY cold and freezing water. Whistling, she casually walked back into the room and dumped the water all on Koki. Koki sat straight up and yelled every single swear word he knew.
"Um... oops?" Tanpopo smiled as Koki gave her the most evilest (is that a word?) and mischievious look.
"I... am going... to pay... you back... so bad." Koki said as he shivered and pointed his finger at her.
She just stuck out her tongue. "I just payed you back for last night. Hmph." With that, she walked into the bathroom to get ready. "Hurry up and get ready in there. I will be right out." She yelled.
Still shivering, he pulled off his shirt and dug around in his bag for his uniform. He got changed and ate breakfast with Poplar glaring at him. "Why is everyone glaring at me today?" Tanpopo joined him. "Because you're funny to annoy." She smiled and Koki's heart jumped again. He still couldn't believe that he was here with her and living with her. She finished eating her cereal and they just stared at each other for a moment, not knowing what to say.
"SoOo... about the dance... I was wondering whether or not... umm... you'd like to go? Unless you're planning to go with someone..." Tanpopo interrupted him by covering his mouth with her own. After that, she shyly got up to wash her bowl leaving an astounded Koki wide-eyed.
Tanpopo gestured to the door. "Come on. We don't wanna be late. So hurry up!" She walked out the door and Koki followed smiling to himself. 'I can get used to this...' he thought.
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Koki and Tanpopo decided to keep their living together a secret. It was of course, temporary after all.
"So Koki..." Aoi started to say. "Where were you last night? I called your house and they said you were out at your friend's place. As far as I know, me, my hot babe, and Tanpopo are the only main friends you have and I was with the hot babe. So... that leaves Tanpopo." Each time Tsuki heard "hot babe", she turned a deep shade of red and glared at him.
Koki and Tanpopo furiously shook their heads in denial. Aoi
leaned in close to Koki and whispered, "So what were you two so busy
about that you couldn't invite us?
Not that we wanted any company. Hehe... right, darling?" He smiled at Tsuki who instantly wiped his grin off his face.
She pointed at him and yelled, "He is so a friggin' liar! We-did-not-do-anything. Got that?!" Tanpopo and Koki quickly agreed with her.
Suddenly, Tanpopo got the feeling she had yesterday. The feeling as if someone was watching her and she knew exactly who it was. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Ryusaki casually leaning against a tree, staring directly at her. Wanting to get things settled, she made her way to the place Ryusaki awaited. Koki opened his mouth to protest but she signaled him to stay where he was. He greatly detested the idea and it was clearly shown on his face.
"Hey. I knew you'd come back to me." Ryusaki said tossing an apple in the air.
Tanpopo looked at him angrily. "You broke my window."
"If you want, I can come over and fix it for you."
"I don't think that's a good idea." Tanpopo argued.
"To me it is. I'll hire someone then and I'll pay for it. How bout that?"
She thought for a moment and answered carefully. "O...kay... I guess that'll be alright. I mean, I don't have the money to fix something like that." 'And I don't want to ask Koki for any money.' she thought to herself. "And please. Don't threaten my friends."
Ryusaki looked at her. "Who said that I was threatening your friends. I'm threatening my competition. Do you think I'm gonna give you to a loser like that?" He asked, nodding his head in the direction of Koki who seemed very pissed that Ryusaki even had the nerve to look at him. "Can he kick me out of this school? Probably. But will I let him? Hell no."
Tanpopo was at a loss for words. "But... Ryusaki... I- I don't like you that way. Can't we just be friends? And please don't bother Koki anymore." Anger flared into his eyes.
"Tanpopo, I am not going to let my future stay in the hands of someone like him or anyone for that matter! You will be mine!!!" He yelled and angrily stomped away.
She walked back to where Koki, Aoi, and Tsuki waited.
"Um... did I miss something?" Tsuki asked.
"Yeah... you're not telling us something. I wanna know!" Aoi whined. "I wanna, wanna, wanna know!!!"
Tanpopo giggled. "No, it's alright. It's nothing to worry about. Really..." But somehow she wasn't convinced. It was easier to not tell the whole truth. She glanced at Koki who was raising his eyebrows, questioning how it went. She shrugged her shoulders and frustrated, he cursed under his breath and ran a hand through his hair.
'Man... what am I gonna do?' Tanpopo asked herself.
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After school...
Tanpopo and Koki were walking back to the apartment in silence. After a few moments, Tanpopo asked, "So, what are you gonna dress up as?"
Koki honestly didn't know so he just said, "Guess." hoping to get an idea on what to be.
"A fireman?"
"No,"
"A monster?"
"Nope."
"A puppy?"
Koki looked at her. "Me? No way." Tanpopo just smiled and protested, "But you'd be so cute!"
"Keep guessing," he said flatly.
"A gangster slash druggie?"
"HELL NO!!!"
Tanpopo shrugged her shoulders. "Shiesh, I'm just kidding. Uhh... you like flowers soOo..."
'Hey, I can be a gardener--even though I already sorta am. Wait, is that lame...?'
"...dirt?"
"WHAT?!"
She shrugged her shoulders and said, "Well, iono then. But you better be something good."
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When they got home, Tanpopo found a note at her door. She looked at Koki who looked at her with a serious expression. "Another one? Damn, when is that guy gonna give up?" She picked it up, unfolded it and read aloud: "Hey Weed. I need help with my costume and the dance is two days away!!! Bring your costume or else!!! Don't forget to bring it. Come here IMMEDIATELY or I'll tear your head off! Okay? See ya. Your enemy/sorta friend, Tsuki."
Koki let out a sigh of relief and he shook his head smiling. "So, you want me to go over there with you or you wanna go alone?"
"Maybe you can drop me off? Iono. It doesn't really matter to me," she replied but he knew by the expression on her face that she didn't want to ride her bike all the way there.
"Umm.., I'll call Mr. Sakata and he'll give us a ride. Just get the things you need to bring over to Saionji's."
"Alrighty!!" Gleefully, she went to put her unfinished costume into her bag. Koki wondered about her costume too. He realized that her really, REALLY wanted to see it.
"Hey Tanpopo?" He yelled over to her.
"Yeah?"
"What's your costume?" She didn't answer for a moment. "I don't think I want you to know yet. You'll see when we go to the dance. Right now, I just want it to be a surprise."
"Aww... oh well." Koki looked around the room and saw the dandelion sitting in the corner of the room. He went over to it and was amazed at how much it developed.
"Wow! You've gotten so pretty. Didn't you? I'm sorry about that day when I pulled you out of the ground. I was stupider then than I am now. But I won't ever do that again. No I won't" He said in a way you'd be talking to a pet while he petted the dandelion. He turned around just in time to see Tanpopo standing there with an eyebrow raised.
"What?!" Koki asked blushing.
"Um, okay..."
"WHAT?!"
Tanpopo laughed and said, "You are VERY affectionate aren't you?"
Koki made a face. "Maybe just a little..."
"Ha, a little?" She criss-crossed her eyes and made a whirling motion with her finger to the side of her head.
"OK! Maybe a little bit more than a little..." He looked at her satisfied expression. "Well... thanks for...ahem... taking care of umm... my ba... my plant."
She smiled. "No problemo. Is the Enka guy here yet? Tsuki will be so mad if I don't show up on time."
Koki looked out the window and sure enough, his driver, Mr. Sakata, was down there--Enka music full blast.
"So let's get going." She nodded and followed Koki out the door.
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At Tsuki's house...
"NO NO NO NO NO!!!" Tsuki complained. She and Yamazaki had been at this ever since she got there. They were sowing together red and black cloth, trying to make a cape for Tsuki's witch costume.
"But Tsuki, I'm not doing anything wrong." Tanpopo stated, making a puppy eyed face which Tsuki erased by pushing Tanpopo's head away from her sight.
"Owwwiiieee." She said rubbing her face but right away, had a smile plastered on her face. It was like nothing could erase the happiness she felt when Tsuki finally had asked her for advice and her help.
"Stop with that stupid face of yours." Tsuki snapped.
"But I can't help it. I love you Tsuki!" she said as he hugged her. Embarrassed, Tsuki shoved her off. "Save that stuff for my former future husband."
Tanpopo blushed.
"I know what's been going on with you two and did I mention that you are a very BAD liar?"
"Uhh..."
Suddenly, Aoi burst in saying, "Your knight in shining armor has ARRIVED!" He glanced at Tanpopo and asked, "What's little miss ditz doin' here? I thought we had a 'special' date tonight." Tsuki's temper flared.
"We don't have any plans until the dance dimwit!!!"
"Flippy!!!" Tanpopo exclaimed.
"Stupid!!!" Aoi said with the same enthusiasm but Tsuki was already pushing him out the door. "Get out!! We are working on something important so leave!"
"Ok..." He replied with a fake sad expression. She slammed the door behind him and muttered, "Halleluja."
Another knock on her door transcended Tsuki with frustration. "I thought I told you to scr---" she started to say but it wasn't Aoi at the door.
"Ryusaki, what the hell are you doing here?"
He pointed to Tanpopo. "I need to talk to my... er...her." Tsuki looked at her and wondered what to do. Tanpopo got up and walked over to him.
"Stalker." Tsuki spat under her breath.
"Yes, Ryusaki?" Tanpopo asked nervously
He looked at Tsuki. Tsuki protested, "But this is MY room!!!"
"Uh... can you leave us alone for a sec?"
While storming out, Tsuki muttered, "Getting kicked out of my room, UNBELIEVABLE!"
Ryusaki stood there for a moment staring at her. Tanpopo looked down out of embarrassment.
"I've been trying to figure out a way to solve our problem but please forgive me for yelling at you earlier. I was just so angry at that..." He paused, the continued. "I came up with the solution. Tomorrow, after school, Koki and I are going to battle for you. Not fight but prove themselves. Whoever wins, wins your love."
Tanpopo looked shocked. "But Ryusaki, you can't just win my love. You can't change the way you feel all of a sudden just because someone wins. It's not at all about winning. It's about feelings"
"Exactly. I can't ever give
up on you until proven wrong. Just like a scientist, I have to
experiment to test a theory. But my love for you isn't just there. It's
real. You're a question that I've found the answer to but I just don't
have enough evidence or proof..." He looked at her and saw that she had
no clue about what he was saying.
He sighed and said, "Well tell
Koki that if he doesn't accept the challenge that I give him tomorrow,
you-are-MINE and that he has NO right to interfere with our
relationship!" With that, he left and Tsuki came stomping back in.
"The nerve of that guy. What did he have to say to you that I couldn't be a part of?" She demanded.
"It's nothing Tsuki."
"Your nose is growing." Tsuki said flatly.
Tanpopo's hand quickly flew up to her nose. "No it's not." she replied confused.
"Stupid. I didn't mean it literally."
The
topic was forgotten for a while as they worked on their costumes for
the dance. Both were excited about the day when they'd all dress up as
someone or some-
thing else.
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Ryusaki was in his car which was parked in the shadows where he had a view of Tsuki's house. When he finally spotted Tanpopo leaving, he noticed who stepped out of the black car that was there to pick her up. His hands tightened on the steering wheel, his knuckles turning white. He could see Koki taking his Tanpopo's hand in his and opening the car door for her. They both went inside and drove off.
"Shit." He said aloud. 'I can handle this. I can win.' he thought to himself.
He again looked at the place where they had disappeared into the night and scowled. He wondered why Koki was the one who was picking her up and he wondered why she hadn't ridden her bike. He decided to drop by at her place. When he parked himself in front of the building, he could see a light in Tanpopo's window. He could see her smiling and moving her lips as if she were talking to someone. After a moment, he could see another figure in her apartment. It was Koki.
'Why the hell is he there at this time of night?!' he wondered furiously. He couldn't believe he was there with her. Alone too.
He narrowed his eyes and focused his attention on a picture of Tanpopo taped to the middle of his car. 'I won't lose her.'
"Bring it on, Koki."
A/N: I'm really really truly really really sorry for the long wait. For a while I had writer's block and I'm still sorta disappointed with this chapter. I don't know... I don't think it has anything interesting going on. So sorry about that too. And I've been buried with homework and it's almost 10 p.m and i've only managed to do one problem on my math homework and I haven't done my other ones yet. SoOo... yes, I've been slacking off. I hate writer's block. I had trouble with the way the story should go and I've decided to ask you guys for help. What should Koki dress up as? I'm gonna try and update on Halloween, the day of the dance in this story. So I need SUGGESTIONS and quick! please?! thanx for reading and please review!!!