Disclaimer: We don't own it!
Author's Note:
Mokoto... Shishio...
The Glass Half Empty
By Mou Hitori no Akari and SoraLvr926
Chapter Two
The scene that Kenshin arrived upon was not what he intended it to be.
As he walked through the door, he spotted the mess, and he instantly grimaced, hands on his narrow waist. "Sanosuke!" He yelled, and a shuffle of feet was heard, a tall, slender man throwing himself artlessly over the banister above them.
"Yo." He said, standing straight. He crossed his arms, staring at Kaoru through his chocolate brown eyes. He tossed his bangs aside, fixing at his bandana, and shoved his hands into his pockets of his baggy jeans. "I believe," Kenshin pointed at the whirlwind of a living room, "This place was clean before I left!"
His friend, Sanosuke, (Sano for short), ignored the comment, his eyes roving over Kaoru. "Who's she?" He asked bluntly, and she was finally aware of the attention put on her.
"I'm--" She stated.
"None of your business." Kenshin interceded. He gave a sigh, and rolled his eyes. "Now, you're going to clean this up."
"What makes you think I did it?" Sano said, incredulous. He feigned a look of mock hurt.
"Because, Yahiko isn't sloppy like you are! I don't know why I put up with this." Kenshin sighed, ushering Kaoru into a room across the foyer. Sano shrugged, and began picking up the random items.
"I'm sorry you had to see that." He murmured, and she shook her head. "That's ok, really."
She looked around in awe. His apartment was amazingly large. The room they were in had an assortment of paintings, and she could tell by the collection that he was so into art. She loved art, too.
"For a bartender, you seem to be living comfortably." She said without thinking, and he looked at her. She sat back against the leather couch, staring at Kenshin through lidded eyes, the effects of the alcohol making her mind swim pleasantly. He smirked, and stared into one of the paintings nearest to him. "I suppose," He said, touching one painting. This one had an oil painting of a girl in a blue kimono, cherry blossums splayed all around her. In her raven hair it flowed, against her pale skin, against her lover's as well, lying in her lap.
She saw that they were staring off into something beyond their background, the girl's face distant. Her heart ebbed with the still-life of a girl, as if she had been there... done that... some time far, far ago.
"It's beautiful." She murmured, and he nodded, his eyes never leaving it.
"I made it." She gave him a look of surprise, and he turned to her. "You can sleep upstairs if you wish. I will sleep downstairs on the couch."
"Oh, no... I couldn't possibly--"
"What would you have rather done? We can't sleep in the same bed." He murmured, and she blushed at those words. She looked at him, weary-eyed, half-drunk.
"I cannot let you sleep on the couch, while I sleep in your bed."
"What are you suggesting, then? We sleep together?" He gave a smug smile, and her insides went warm with a rush. It had crossed his mind.
"I don't know!" She said, sounding very much like an impetuous child. Before Kenshin could add in another word for his amusement, a younger boy holding a book to his chest stared at them both. "Shinta," The young man said, and Kenshin turned, facing the boy.
He was tanner than all the others were, his head hidden under a spikey arrangemant of hair. He wore a radical attitude in his face, an earring hanging from his right ear lobe. But, when he spoke, it surprised Kaoru with the gentleness in it.
"Yes, Yahiko-chan." Kenshin said.
The one named Yahiko came to him, and whispered something in his ear, his hand rested on his shoulder. It was an intimate gesture, Kaoru knew, and she felt a pang of jealousy flare in her. In a moment, it was gone.
Yahiko stared at Kaoru, and Kaoru stared at Yahiko. He came to her, and gave a short bow, his layered hair falling around his eyes. "A pleasure to meet you, Miss..."
"--Kamiya Kaoru." She added.
"Miss Kamiya-san." Yahiko walked out of the room, calling for Sano. Kenshin rubbed a hand on the back of his neck, and looked to the floor. "Well, if you want to sleep--"
"He called you Shinta." She stated, stifling a yawn. "Is that your real name?" She asked, her eyelids drooping. He nodded. "That's the name my mother and father gave me."
"H-How..." She stifled another yawn, "Is everyone calling you Kenshin?"
"I don't..." He paused, staring into his hands. "I don't know..." He confessed. "Everyone just knows me by that name."
"Ken... shin..." She muttered, the battle to keep awake was finally a lost cause, and she sank into the couch with a plop, startling Kenshin. He walked hurriedly to the couch, reaching her in time, knowing that she was in danger of slipping off the couch. He caught her, catching her waist with his strong arm, securing her head with the other.
She passed out, her soft snores ringing in his ears. staring into her immobile face. Her cheeks were tinged a pleasant shade of pink, her lips full, her cheeks plump with the traces of her teen years. Her midnight blue-black hair fell in tresses around her. He touched the hair, appeasing his curiosity by smelling her clean hair. Tempted to kiss the silky strands, and he had wished to. He picked her up into his arms, her body hanging lifelessly in his arms.
He walked up the stairs without effort, ignoring Sano's gaze on him.
"You gonna do her?" He said bluntly, and Kenshin gave him a cold stare. "She's not my play thing. I respect her more than that." He said, and Sano shrugged.
"Yeah, whatevah. You're still a man, dude." He pointed out, and he continued in cleaning the living room. Kenshin walked into his room, closing the door with his foot. He laid her on the bed, staring at her, and he didn't know what to do next. She still wore the jacket she put on, and he took it off. He moved her to the middle of the bed, and was startled by the jerky movement she made.
She whispered something, turning in her sleep, a single tear making a path over her cheek. "Ma... ma..." She whispered, letting out a soft moan of longing. Kenshin caught the tear in his hand, and then the flashes came. Pain. Loss. Love. Loneliness. Murder.
He retracted his hand, stepping back.
Pretending that he wasn't in the least disturbed by the encounter, he changed his clothing, shrugging into a t-shirt, and some pajama bottoms. He sat at the window pane, grabbing a sword in the corner, holding it to him. He unsheathed it, his eyes glaring into the reflection of the polished blade. "Sakabasou." He murmured, putting it back in its sheath. He held it to him, his eyes drooping into his slumber, holding the sword to him like some age-old tradition.
There, on the floor, he fell asleep, his troubled mind put to rest for what seemed a few hours away from reality.
---------------------------------------
Kaoru awoke later that morning, sitting up abruptly. The awaited hangover didn't come, and when she looked around the room, she sighed. She was sleeping in a big bed, underneath luxuriously soft covers. She stretched languidly, absorbing her surroundings. So this is where the man named Kenshin resided. It was intruiging. A sword hung on the wall in a special glass shelf. She stared at the sword, and a flash through her memory startled her.
She got out of the bed, nonplussed at the cold feeling in her feet. She continued anyway, staring at the sword more closely. She touched the glass, and a flood of memories filled her, as though they were her own. She felt pain and suffering, felt the victims' blood scream to her, and she pulled her hand away with a startled gasp. She held her hand, as though singed there, breathing rapidly.
She would make note that she would not touch that thing again.
A knock came to the door, and she sat up, alert. "Yes?" She said warily, and the boy she saw last night, Yahiko, gave her a bored look. "Good," He said. "You're awake. I made breakfast, so you might want to come down to eat?"
She nodded. She followed Yahiko down the stairs, silently, calmly, her bare feet making soft taps against the cold floor. "Your feet must be cold," Yahiko said softly, as if knowing what she thought, and he stopped near a neat row of slippers. "Here," He said, pointing to the crimson furry slippers. "Use those. Kenshin barely uses them, anyway."
She looked at the slippers, and then placed her feet in them. She felt her feet warm instantly, and it gave her goosebumps. She then followed Yahiko into the fairly large kitchen, taking her seat on a stool. She leaned into the counter, the scent of eggs and other aromas filling her nostrils. Yahiko tossed a towel on his shoulder, expertly tossing eggs, bacon, sausage links, and a patty into a porcelain plate. The design was beautiful, and hand-crafted. She wondered if Kenshin had made this, too.
"Here." He said, and Kaoru stared at the plate.
"I'm sorry to--"
"You're not imposing, Miss Kamiya. Honestly. In fact, we welcome you here." It was the first time, Kaoru recalled, that she had seen Yahiko smile. The boy looked no older than her, in fact a bit younger, but there was something so wordly about him, something quite angsty. Kaoru felt a pang of sadness for him, and she didn't think she had the right to. She barely knew him. Why assume?
"Where is Sanosuke?" Kaoru asked, forking her eggs.
"Mr. Sunshine is probably sleeping in. He probably needs to work later today." He said nonchalantly.
"Who does?" They both heard a strained voice, and Kaoru spun around, while Yahiko looked up. Sano held his head, his brown hair disheveled, his eyes red-rimmed from a possible loss of sleep. He yawned discourteously, scratching the morning shadow on his chin. "Smells good in here." Sano grunted, and shuffled into a stool. He stretched, many popping sounds coming from his back.
He cracked his neck, then his knuckles. And just when the popping didn't stop, he, to Kaoru's horror, popped his shoulder joints. He blinked, then let out a refreshed sigh. "Make me a plate will ya, 'Ko-chan?" Yahiko did what he was told, soon placing the plate inbetween Sano's arms. Sano let out a smile of gratitude, his hand resting over Yahiko's smaller one. "Thanks." He murmured, and Yahiko pulled away.
The act was odd, Kaoru thought.
"So," Sano pierced the silence, helping himself to a mouthful of eggs. "You're Kenshin's girl, am I correct? Frankly, it's about damn time." He said, and Kaoru blushed. "No, you... you have it all wrong." She said politely, placing a relatively small portion of eggs and sausage into her mouth.
"Oh?" Sano said. Yahiko did not seem to pay attention to the conversation, but he was listening intently.
"We met at his job, but he was offering me a ride home. That's all it was." She said.
"You look a little young to be in a bar, missy." He said, slightly amused. "How did you get in without getting into trouble?"
"Misao-chan owns the place. She lets me have free passage." She said, forking her eggs once more.
"Misao, huh? That girl's got sass, man." He said. "Did you happen to meet Aoshi there?" He seemed to observe Yahiko shortly, before staring at Kaoru.
"Yes, he seems like such a nice man." She said, staring into her plate when the eye contact became a bit uncomfortable.
"That's because he is." Yahiko said, and they both looked up.
"You know him?" Kaoru asked, incredulous.
"Know him? Of course we know him!" Sano cut in. "We all knew him when we were college buddies!" He pointed to Yahiko, and mentioned Kenshin. She wondered now how old Yahiko was! "You all went to college together?" She said, incredulous.
"Yeah." Sano said, and he ate the rest of the contents on the plate. "Now Aoshi owns a corporation, and it's booming. You can say he is an aspiring businessman." He smirked, and he went around the counter, and into the kitchen. He placed the plate in the sink. He ran upstairs, but turned around, staring intently at Kaoru.
"Kenshin needs someone, you know. Don't let his smile fool you for anything, missy. I think you are all the salvation he needs." He ran upstairs, never giving Kaoru any time to answer, the words sticking in her mind.
'Don't let his smile fool you for anything...' What had that meant?
"You must pardon Sano's bluntness. It's the only thing greater in measure than his blatant stupidity." Yahiko said. "Help yourself to anything you wish." He said, and Kaoru nodded. She was left alone again to reminisce on her life so far. "Kenshin will be here in an hour or so." Yahiko added later, and Kaoru did not answer.
She only hoped that the anxious feeling in the pit of her stomach was not because she would see her red-headed stranger once more.
--------------------------------------------
"You can't possibly leave now." Kaoru had, sometime later, heard this conversation going strong downstairs from Kenshin's room. She was there all day, waiting for what, she didn't know. She had hoped Kenshin would come home soon, so that she would leave.
She didn't want to leave.
"--You can't possibly." She heard the voice repeat, and she peered through the door, her head poking out slowly. "I just don't like her." Yahiko said calmly, his arms crossed, barring Sano's way from the door. "You don't like any of the girls I date, man." Sano said in an exasperated sigh, taking his jacket from the coat rack. Realizing he took the wrong one, he put it back, getting another.
"That isn't true!" Yahiko said indignantly, and even from upstairs she could see that he was blushing. "She's a loose-cannon, and she looks a bit cynical. She's really dishonest. I don't like her vibes." Yahiko said defensively, and Sano scowled.
"You come up with the same bullshit every time!" He said angrily, jerking into the jacket. When he realized again that he had grabbed the wrong one, he let out a frustrated sigh, and hung it back on the rack. "That's your excuse for every girl I go with."
"That's your problem!" Yahiko shot back, eyeing the rack quickly, then grabbed Sano's windbreaker. "You are dating half the female population on and off! You can't keep a relationship if you tried!" This was the first time she had seen Yahiko so angry. He was blushing deeply now, infuriated, shoving Sano's coat into his chest, storming away.
"Here, take the damn coat! Go to her, for all I care! I don't know why I expect for you to change!" Yahiko yelled over his shoulder, stomping up the stairs. Sano stared off after him, shoving his hands roughly into the jacket sleeves, shutting the door with such force, that it caused Kaoru to jump with startlement.
"Stupid... idiotic... of all the..." He muttered to himself on the way up, his lip slightly trembling. When he got to the top, he let out a shaky sigh, composing himself. When he felt it was safe to open his eyes again, the pressure behind his eyes subsiding, he ran a hand through his hair, his usual distant expression returned to him.
Something caught his eye, a flash of dark hair. "So... you heard me?" He said softly, his voice slightly broken. Kaoru didn't stall in coming out of her hiding place, nodding solemnly. "I did. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to eavesdrop." He looked at her for a moment, and gave a casual shrug. "As you can see, Sano and I have had an argument on his..." He paused, "hedonistic ways." He said delicately, never looking at Kaoru.
She didn't know what advice to give him, no words of consolation, just a sorry look held in her eyes. He walked quickly to his room down the hall, shutting the door behind him with a soft click. To her dismay, Yahiko never came out of the room, so she was left by herself, in her thoughts.
She was too awake to take a nap, and reasoned that the sun was to set soon anyway. She had wore the same clothes two days in a row, so she went rummaging through Kenshin's belongings, finding a t-shirt with the Pepsi symbol on it. She took it, donning it over herself, the shirt reaching well past her thighs. She found one of his pajama bottoms, and put those on, too, slightly annoyed by the loose fit of them.
She shrugged, pulling the draw strings, and tied them. She stood in the middle of his room, holding the shirt to her, smelling the soft fragrance of Downy, and what should have been his scent. It made her mind buzz, standing in the middle of a man's room, wearing a stranger's belongings. She moved to the door, down the stairs, and into the kitchen, opening the fridge.
She found some turkey ham, some cheese, even mustard, and other individual condiments. To her great delight, she found wine. She grabbed the Wonder Bread, and made herself a sandwich worthy of praise, taking a bite. She sat and ate in the kitchen, quietly, listening intently to her surroundings. She sighed, gulping down her third glass. She poured her fourth, but paused.
When she was done, and when all things were cleaned up, she went to the room Kenshin had brought her to, staring at the walls that held his paintings, the glass on the counter only half full. She looked at each and every one, intruiged by them all. But one, one she had seen before, had caught her eye. She looked closely to the painting, the picture of the girl and her lover sitting beneath the cherry blossum tree.
She looked so forlorn, but she gave a small smile, her eyes distant. She touched the painting, her mind connecting to the painting in a flash.
"We should have a cherry blossum party every year... don't you think so?"
She gasped, pulling her fingers away, holding her hand. She stared warily at the painting, holding her hand to her still. A piece of a past remained in that painting, she thought. She hated when visions tended to creep up on her. She had had that gift since her parents died.
Even before then, she knew she was special. Her parents had always said so. The clearing of someone's throat snapped her out of her thoughts, and she whirled about, staring warily at Kenshin standing casually in the hallway.
"Oh." She said, her eyes softening, straightening as he entered the room.
"Hey." He said. It was casual, she knew, but she couldn't help but shiver at his voice, the reaction quite displeasing to her. "Ogling my artwork, are you?" He said in slight amusement, standing next to her.
"I am not." She said, staring at him. He moved foreward, and observed her from head to toe. "You've been drinking again." He said softly, and she frowned.
She crossed her arms over her breasts, hiding the peaked mounds from his view. It had nothing to do with the temperature of the room.
"So what?" She muttered. "You aren't my father."
"But, I care about you enough to be concerned. Don't I have that right?" He asked, and she humphed. She didn't like when he answered her. He always had something right to say. "In your case, no." She said rudely, the wine loosening her tongue. "And, and--" She paused for thought, the startling realization that she drank a little to the excess dawned upon her.
"And further more," She thought aloud, "I think you should take me home now. I want to go back home." She said unsteadily as Kenshin looked at her, his violet orbs observing her with patience. "If that's what you want." In that moment, she thought she had seen him somewhere, with those eyes, she had seen him before sometime ago in her life, sometime when her life was--
"Yes." She said. It was silent between them, and Kaoru was starting to wonder if he was going to say no to her. He walked out of the room, his face told her nothing, and she felt relief wash over her. He stood by the door, slipping into his shoes, grabbing his jacket. He paused, his eyes roving over the clothes she was wearing.
"Those are--"
"Oh, w-well," She said quickly, looking at the clothing on her. "I couldn't wear the same clothes. I kind of--"
"Keep them." He murmured softly, putting on his jacket. He opened the door, awaiting her departure with a patient air.
--------------------------------------------
Review us please!