Chapter Twelve
The Silent Treatment Never Works
After drying her hair, Kaoru sat on her bed and tried to come up with an explanation on the unusual things that happened tonight. Aoshi, the first name that came popping inside her mind. Her fingers reached out to touch her lips as she remembered the person who possesses them a few moments ago.
A smile formed on her lips at the memory of it. But then a frown promptly crossed her face. Numerous questions remained stuck inside her head and irritate her for the fact that she couldn't answer them. Why did he kiss her? And why did he say he's jealous? The doctor's hiding something, that's for sure. She dropped her hand and sighed, I should have just asked him… the drive towards home was a silent one. No one dared to open their mouths after that kiss. And as they arrived back in the apartment, Kaoru muttered an awkward 'goodnight' and went straight to bed. "Aargh!" she grabbed her hair and frustratingly kicked off the covers of her bed. "I'm so confused!" she exclaimed and then immediately dropped down to the soft mattress, wishing to get some sleep through counting a herd of sheep. But to no avail, she was still wide awake.
The thoughts, the sensation and the pleasure of his lips against hers kept bugging her puzzled mind. Why? She desperately wanted to ask him but at the same felt really nervous from the thought of facing him again. "Waahhh!" she thrashed against the bed and then frustratingly buried her head under the pillows.
"Sleep, must sleep!"
After numerous attempts of counting each jumping sheep inside her head, her eyes finally grown tired and immediately she fell asleep.
Aoshi was in the same dilemma. Right after she said goodnight and went up to her room, he sat on the couch and started to ponder. What had he done? Was that the right thing to do? To kiss her and tell her he was jealous? That girl's making me do things I'm not used to do… He pinched the bridge of his nose and realized with these thoughts, he won't be getting any sleep tonight.
The next day wasn't as good as what Kaoru was expecting. She woke up and saw the man who engulfed her thoughts exit his own room. They both stopped in tracts and looked at each other. Kaoru was in the verge of ignoring him or do her usual routine of teasing him. Instead she found herself nervously smiling and bobbing her head as she greeted, "Good morning." But what he did next take her aback. He acknowledged her with a small nod and "Hn," as he started down the stairs without as much of glancing back at her.
What the hell was that all about? She thought, downright disappointed for being ignored like that. With a shook of her head, she headed to the bathroom, took a bath and dressed. She went down the stairs and saw him talking on the phone. Finding that he was busy for her interrogations, Kaoru went straight to the kitchen and cooked breakfast.
When she returned to the dining room to prepare the table, she saw him, already dressed, with his face hidden behind that rather large newspaper. She sat on her chair and silently ate her breakfast, her eyes furtively watching him. She saw his hand reach for his coffee then quickly disappears behind the newspaper again. A frown crossed her features, wondering why the doctor's acting like this.
She nervously looked around, clearing her throat as she spoke, "What do you want for dinner tonight?"
He didn't drop the newspaper, much to her annoyance and disappointment. "Anything you plan to cook will be fine." He answered as he flipped another page and began to read in silence again.
Her brows drew together and then found herself eating her breakfast. She narrowed her eyes and glared at him, "Even black-bean curry?"
He didn't answer.
"Or even assortments of left-over foods?"
"…"
"Perhaps, greasy bacon and eggs would be fine—"
Finally, he dropped that blasted newspaper and found herself looking at a pair of cold ice-blue-eyes. "Cook whatever you desire. I don't care." He suddenly stood up and walked off without even touching his food.
Kaoru felt absolutely affronted by this. Out of anger, she dropped her fork and marched towards the next room, which was the living room. She found him there, fixing his tie and noticed him abruptly stop when he saw her reflection next to his.
Planting her hands on her hips, she half-angrily asked, "Doc, is something wrong?"
He merely glanced at her as he focused himself onto fixing his tie again. "Nothing. Why do you ask?"
Suddenly she found herself in déjà vu, where she's supposed to be the one who's upset and angry, not the other way around. She angrily glared at him and replied, "Look, if this is about the kiss—"
"Who say's it's about the kiss, Kamiya?" he tersely interrupted, giving her a side-glance as he waited for her answer.
Her cheeks flushed, feeling quite awkward with this conversation, "Well… I thought—"
"Don't get into wrong conclusions." Somehow he sounded too stern and this quite surprised her. "What happened last night—never happened, do you understand?" he saw her eyes widen and a look of dismay evident on her face. He felt guilty for causing that kind of reaction from her. She was… snubbed by him… again. But after numerous hours of thinking last night, he brought himself into a conclusion of ending whatever he's feeling towards this girl. She was only a housemaid. What's between them was nothing more but a professional relationship.
Their eyes met and he immediately forced himself to look away, preventing himself from pitying the thwarted look her eyes giving him.
Kaoru looked at him, agape. She didn't realize her hands shaking out of fury and disappointment. Why would you be disappointed, Kaoru? Her inner voice interrogated.
Did you enjoy the kiss?
Do you long for his lips to touch yours again?
Kaoru, are you falling for him?
Kaoru didn't know what to think anymore. She was so confused.
Hurt and confusion had never been a good combination. She swallowed a couple of times, and took a long deep breath before regaining her composure again. She looked at him and forced herself to smile. "If that's what you want, then." She politely bobbed her head and said, "Excuse me." And then she turned on her heels and she was gone.
Aoshi watched her until she disappeared from the other room. This sudden politeness brought an eerie feeling within him. He doesn't like it. But of course, he had no other choice but to let her do whatever she feels necessary.
At least, that's what he thought as the only right thing to do.
"He did what?" Both Tae and Megumi gasped in unison.
Kaoru cringed at their voices and said, "I said, he kissed me last night."
"Are you serious?" they both gasped again.
She gave them a skeptic glare and replied, "Of course I am! What? You think I'm making this whole thing up?"
"How and why?" both women demandingly asked. Surprisingly both leaned against the table at the same time.
Arching a brow, Kaoru said, "Look, if you two keep on doing that, I'd rather not tell you."
"Oh come on!" Tae waved a dismissive hand, "Don't be such a spoil sport!"
"Tae is right." Megumi added, "We want to know everything, from beginning to end."
Tae nodded, "Come now, start talking or I'll be forced to do something to make you talk."
"Alright, alright! Sheesh!" Kaoru raised both of her hands in surrender and started retelling all the events that happened last night. From the date with Enishi until to the part where she and Aoshi kissed. "And this morning he ignores me! Ha! He has the nerve to ignore me when I'm the one who's supposed to be confused and ignoring him! I mean, what is up with that guy?"
Megumi took a sip on her coffee and nodded, "I know. Guy's can be a little too sensitive than women sometimes."
Tae undeniably agreed on this, "True."
Kaoru looked at her two best friends and sighed, "Was that the right thing for him to do? To ignore me?" her brows knitted and despairingly she threw her hands to cover her miserable face, "I'm so confused!" she groaned.
Megumi calmly dropped her coffee and stared at her, "Why would you be confused?" she asked, "Is there something we should know?" exchanged looks with Tae who happens to think what she's exactly thinking as well.
Kaoru shot her head up and frowned, "What do you mean?"
Megumi sighed, "Tanuki, did you enjoy the kiss?" she sternly looked at her, much to Kaoru's surprise.
She stared widely at her, "I-I don't know…" was her unsure answer.
"Dearest, that's not the answer Megumi and I wanted to hear from you." Tae leaned closer and stared straight into her eyes as well, "Did-you-enjoy-the-kiss?"
Kaoru looked thoughtful for a moment and then finally shrugged her shoulders, "Maybe."
"Tanuki…" Megumi warningly spoke.
"Alright!" once again, she found herself surrendering. "I did." She meekly replied blushing as she quickly averted her eyes away. Did she just admit that she liked the kiss? Oh no, what have I done? She looked over to her two friends who were now grinning slyly towards her. Now she can prove that these two would make a good team of investigators someday. They can easily pull out the truth out of somebody who's lying.
Megumi gave a foxy grin and mocked. "I beg your pardon?"
"I enjoyed it, okay?" she furiously exclaimed and then took a long, deep breath. "Ya' happy now?"
Tae happily clapped her hands, "Ooh, Kaoru-chan's in love again!"
Megumi mocked a sigh of relief and said, "I'm glad it's no longer Ken-san! I thought she'd never give up on him!"
Kaoru was so flustered, she was beginning to stutter again, "W-what?" she knew her face's flushing like a ripen tomato by now. "H-hey! I didn't say I like him! All I said was I enjoyed the kiss! A-and stop doing that! You're embarrassing me!" she looked around, noticing a lot of eyes focused on their table.
Instead of stopping themselves from embarrassing her, they started laughing. Some friends! She bitterly thought, lowering her head (If that's possible) further in utter humiliation.
Megumi noticed the look on Kaoru's face and immediately nudged Tae to stop giggling. "It's pretty obvious, is it not Tae-chan?" she addressed her so she could refrain herself from laughing.
"Oh, it is!" Tae delightedly replied.
Kaoru glared at them and said, "What's obvious?"
"That you like him."
"Feh! Me?" she furiously shook her head as a note of disapproval, "Never in a million years!" her nose wrinkled at the very thought, "H-he's the most arrogant, self-centered—egocentric bastard I've ever met in my entire life! H-how could I fall for a guy like him? Impossible!"
"Nothing's impossible, dear." Tae corrected.
"B-but I like Kenshin! Kenshin's—sweet, caring—a total opposite of that guy." She nervously laughed, waving a dismissive hand, "I'll never fall for him. It's so impossible, believe me!"
Megumi shook her head and immediately contradicted, "From what I've heard, this guy's pretty popular with girls. Tae and I had seen him in the party and we have to admit, he's gorgeous."
Tae turned to her and grinned, "That is so true."
Kaoru's eyes narrowed, "Unlike you two, I'd prefer someone who respects women." She received a dubious stare from the two, "Oh, alright! Physical appearance's comes next! But I much prefer someone who doesn't boss me around."
"Why wouldn't he?" Megumi asked, "He's your boss."
"B-but!"
Megumi rolled her eyes and decided to end this argument, "Tanuki, you came here complaining about how he ignored you after that kiss you shared last night, isn't that enough proof that you're falling for him?"
Kaoru helplessly looked at her and then shook her head with a sigh, "I-I don't know…"
"Kaoru-chan," Tae spoke, "You should see that certain spark on your eyes whenever you're talking about him." she smiled sincerely and said, "You like him, we can tell. Admit it." Both women watched Kaoru fell silent for a second, her brows knitting and then followed by a tired sigh.
"If I do feel something special about him—I'm not really sure if he feels the same way too…" she remembered the hurtful words he said that morning.
"Don't get into wrong conclusions."
She shook her head and said, "He said that I shouldn't get into wrong conclusions and should forget about what happened last night…"
Tae incredulously scoffed, "He's confused too. He never meant to say those words for sure."
"He's in denial." Megumi supplied.
"So, are you saying that there's a possibility that he likes me too?" somehow, there was a hint of hope within her voice.
The two women nodded simultaneously.
"Bummer." Kaoru muttered out of realization. She never though she'd be developing any feelings for the doctor. She swore never to be one of those women who swoons and worships him because she knew she's different. And all this time I thought my heart belongs to Kenshin alone… frustratingly, she groaned and threw her hands on her face, "What am I going to do? I-I can't just walk up to him and say that I like him!" her cheeks blushed at the thought as she meekly muttered, "He must feel the same way for me too before I do something…"
Megumi slyly smiled and patted Kaoru's back, "Why don't you try and prove it yourself."
Kaoru looked at her and asked the inevitable question, "How?"
"Test him. Do something that'll push him to make him confess. Make him jealous… that's the best way to do to push men onto their limits."
"Make him jealous? Are you sure?"
The raven-haired med-student haughtily laughed and nodded, "Trust me, Tanuki. I've been doing the same thing with Sano and it always works. He always ends up on my feet, begging me to stop flirting." Fox ears appeared on the top of her hair as she cynically snickered.
Tae winked at her and said, "Kaoru-chan, this is your only chance… good luck."
Kaoru nodded despite of the fact that she's quite unsure if she should trust these two or not.
Now, the million dollar questions is, how will I make him jealous?
The silent treatment went for days. She would only speak to him when she must attend to whatever he needs and then gives him the silent treatment for the rest of the day. Not until one day, Aoshi sat on his office, doing his usual research work when the doorbell rang. He looked up and saw Kaoru emerge from the laundry room and headed towards the front door.
A delivery boy stood in front of the door with a bouquet of red roses in his arms. "Good day." He greeted, "Are you Ms. Kamiya Kaoru?" he politely asked.
Kaoru just gaped at the roses and then at him as she slowly nodded, "Hai."
"Flowers for you." The delivery boy said.
"Eh? But I didn't order any flowers—" but it seems the delivery boy ignored her protest and proceeded inside. "Whoa," Kaoru's eyes widened as she watched a couple more of delivery boys enter the apartment with various bouquets of flowers in different colors.
"Where shall I put these?" a delivery boy asked.
She was too stunned that she herself didn't know where to put all the flowers. "Here." She pointed on the floor and soon everyone else followed.
Aoshi looked up again from his computer and saw bunches of vibrant blooms invading the whole living room. His brows furrowed and then a scowl formed on his face. He immediately stood up from his chair and approached one of the delivery boys. Kaoru was so happy, she observed each bouquet, admiring and smelling the flower's scent.
"Sir?" The delivery boy was a young lad and felt awfully nervous when he saw the look on Aoshi's face. He anxiously handed him the card included from the flowers and immediately excused himself as he scampered off.
Aoshi read the piece of card in his hand and wasn't so surprised to see his cousin's name on it.
"Who's it from?" Kaoru suddenly appeared next to him as she took a peek on the card he's holding. She looked at him and accusingly asked, "Did you ordered all these flowers?"
He shook his head and replied, "Why would I send you flowers?" which was a mistake especially when he had seen the look of hope within her eyes vanish into thin air. Now it's all replaced with complete disappointment with a tad mix of embarrassment.
She involuntarily scowled and crossed her arms with a huff, "Then who's it from?" her tone clearly states that she demands an answer.
He looked down at her, realizing that this was the first time in three days that she ever spoke to him normally again. I guess she already forgotten about the kiss. He thought, mentally nodding to himself.
But of course, he had thought wrong for Kaoru never forgotten about the kiss. And definitely wasn't planning to. That was her first kiss—her first real kiss. The kisses she got from her parents were different. And the kiss she received from Sano on her 10th birthday was different too. It was all platonic. How would you describe that kiss you shared with Aoshi? Wasn't that platonic? Was that kiss brought up by infatuation? Kaoru immediately shook her inner voice's questions, not wanting to get all confused again.
She only chose to speak to him because she couldn't stand the silent treatment anymore. She was so bored, and doing all the polite stuff irritates her. No one can deny her anger towards the doctor. But giving him the silent treatment is like giving him a favor than a punishment. She's the one who's suffering and not him, which was really unfair. And there's also Megumi and Tae's suggestion of making him jealous…
"From your boyfriend, I suppose." He irately shoves the card towards her. She looked at him and then cautiously took it.
That's right… be grumpy, be jealous… Kaoru then smiled as she read the note. "Enishi… how nice of him…" she looked around and realized that almost half of the living room's filled with flowers.
"Why is he giving you flowers?" he interrogated, crossing his arms as he gave each bouquet a disgusted look.
Suspicion... a good sign of jealously… "Hmm… I don't know…" she placed the tip of her finger on her chin and looked thoughtful for a moment. "Ah, yes. I told him that I love flowers and would be delighted to receive one…" and then she blissfully turned around and happily squealed, "But I'd never thought he'd give me a whole flower shop!"
Aoshi snorted, "I never thought you're easily pleased with feminine stuff like this."
Kaoru eyes narrowed towards him, "What do you mean?"
He looked at her and then shrugged his shoulders, "Nothing." And then he turned on his heels and walked back to his office. "Clean that up. I don't want to see those flowers scattered on my living room."
Before Kaoru could open her mouth to protest, he promptly closed the door behind him.
She furiously sneered at him and then went to gather her flowers. She placed one bouquet on the counter top and then her phone suddenly rang.
"Hello?" She greeted.
"Have you received the flowers?" a familiar voice said from the other line. It was no other than Enishi, her employer's cousin.
A smile crossed her face as she replied, "Hai. They're very beautiful. Thank you."
"I'm glad you liked it. Umm… Kaoru-san?"
"Hai?"
"Are you free tonight?"
"Yes, why?"
"I received a couple of concert tickets from a colleague of mine. I was hoping if you could come with me and watch the concert together."
He's asking me out again? What a perfect timing! Kaoru thought but then immediately laughed and said, "Very suave, Enishi-san. Of course, I'd be delighted to come with you!"
She heard a sigh from the other line followed by his voice, "Great. I'll pick you up by seven, is that alright?"
"Yes, that would be fine."
But I don't think doc would be delighted at all. A wicked grin appeared on her face at the thought of seeing his face contort from anger again, Perfect…
Aoshi opened the door of his apartment, dropped his suitcase on the couch and proceeded upstairs. He was about to take the first step when he suddenly noticed the whole apartment awfully quiet. He curiously looked around and then called, "Kamiya?" when he heard no answer; he turned and went straight to the dining room. He noticed a package of Microwave Chili on the table along with a plate, a glass and a pair of spoon and fork. He reached out and stared at the instant food in his hand.She's feeding me this stuff again? He distastefully dropped the Microwave Chili and proceeded on the kitchen. And there he found no sign of his housemaid. Planting his hands on his hips, he observed the whole room, wondering where Kaoru had gone to. It was then when a small pink note posted on the fridge caught his attention.
He leaned and read what was in scripted on the paper.
Doc,
If you're reading this note, I'm currently enjoying the concert with your cousin, Enishi. I may come home late. Fear not, I already prepared your dinner. It's on the table.
Enjoy your meal!
And in the end was a bad drawing of her doing a peace sign.
A nerve instantly throbbed on his forehead as his hand crumpled the stupid paper between his hands. He can't believe she went out with Enishi again without telling him. Why do you care anyway? She went out with your cousin, so what? You're not jealous, are you? Of course not! He sternly thought, throwing the paper in the bin. Why would I be? He asked his inner voice, pinching the bridge of his nose in the process.
Because you kissed her.
Aoshi scowled and shook his head; I only kissed her because she won't shut up.
That's not true. His inner voice disagreed.
What do you know? He angrily replied.
You said to her that you were jealous. It came straight from your mouth.
He had to admit, his inner voice was right. He did say he was jealous. Why ever did he tell her that? What was he thinking?
See? You're guilty. Admit it.
Shut up.
A piece of advice, man. If you want her, get her before somebody else does. You have to do something so you won't lose her. Don't hesitate, for Pete's sakes!
I don't need your advice.
Sorry, but you have to. I'm your freakin' conscience.
Aoshi frowned; if you're my conscience… you should act a lot more like me.
Geez, do I have to explain myself? I'm a conscience. I'm supposed to contradict everything.
Promptly he blocked his thoughts and felt degraded for liberally talking to himself.
With a tired sigh, he walked back to the dining room. He took the microwave chili and off it went inside the microwave.
"I'll deal with her when she gets back."
By midnight, Enishi's car arrived in front of Aoshi's apartment. Enishi stepped out of the car to open the door for her. She stepped out, smiled and automatically said thank you.
"I had a wonderful time, Enishi-san." She said, still smiling. True, she did enjoy the concert. And Enishi's company wasn't so bad either. Truth be told, there are a lot of thing they both agreed upon. They both loved the same type of music, love doing fun stuff like pranks and even the same types of food as well. It was so surreal. Almost as if they're meant to be together. But of course, Kaoru wouldn't go onto that. Enishi was nothing more but a friend. They would definitely suit together as friends.
Enishi smiled down at her and nodded, "Me too. I wish we could do this again some time."
Kaoru nodded, "Of course."
He looked at her and realized how truly beautiful she was. Even though she's wearing a simple shirt and jeans, she still looks stunning. It's her simplicity that drawn such beauty out of her. Cousin, if I were you I'd do something to have this girl all to myself… Aoshi's lucky to have her. It's a shame up until now he ignores her.
"Er… Enishi-san, if you don't mind…"
"What is it?"
Kaoru hesitantly glanced over to the apartment and then stared back at him again. "Hug me."
The white-haired tycoon blinked twice at her, confused on what she just said. "Pardon?"
She then released a nervous laugh and said, "You see…" she leaned closer and whispered, "I'm in the process of making a certain person jealous."
Enishi's brows furrowed and he too hesitantly looked around. And then it hit him. She's making Aoshi jealous. Well, what do you know? He's being used as well after all. Instead of feeling disappointed, he felt quite relieved for the fact that Kaoru's making this whole plan much easier for him. His sister would be glad to hear this. I don't feel guilt anymore… a grin spread on his face and was glad when Kaoru smiled back. This girl is something… he thought, realizing how well she amuses him. "Alright." He took a step forward and looked down at her.
She in return took a long deep breath and smiled again. She opened her arms wide and said, "Give me a hug!" she adorably ordered and Enishi had no other choice but to obey. He hugged her tight and felt her own arms snaking around his neck. She giggled, causing a vibration between their chests, which caused him to laugh as well.
"I hope this is enough—or do you want me to kiss you?" he whispered against her ear.
Kaoru giggled again and shook her head, "A hug would do. If you dare to kiss me, he might come out here and beat the bloody pulp out of you."
"True." He said, nodding. Holding her like this was exquisite. Not in an intimate way or anything. It was just like hugging a little sister and nothing more. He had never hugged his real sister like this before. It's for the fact that they're not used with this customary and that his sister might feel quite uncomfortable if he suddenly storms in and do this.
Kaoru choked, patting Enishi on the back to get his attention, "Enishi-san, I can't breathe! You can let me go now."
"Oh, sorry." He quickly pulled away and sheepishly grinned.
She smiled and then bobbed her head again, "Thank you, Enishi-san."
Enishi nodded and said, "It's my pleasure." he then looked down on his watch and noticed it was almost half-past midnight. With one last smile, he walked around and stepped inside his car.
Kaoru watched him start the engine and saw him wave at her before driving off. She happily waved back. When his car was nowhere of sight, she turned on her heels and headed for the door.
Aoshi had no idea whether to go mad and curse everything to hell and back or storm out of the apartment and threat his cousin never to return again. His eyes narrowed towards the man hugging Kaoru outside. Just looking at them constantly causes his blood to boil. I am not jealous… I am not jealous… he continuously chanted like a mantra inside his head, his fist clenching as rage slowly started to consume him.
"How long is this hugging going to last?" He irritably asked under his breath as he watched them between the blinds of the living room's window. He noticed Enishi whispering something on her ear and she continuously giggled, her cheeks faintly blushing.
Annoyed, he paced around the room, his arms crossed and both brows knitted in anger. How was he supposed to deal with this? He can't believe he had to compete with his cousin for that girl's affection!
W-wait… did he just admitted that he liked Kaoru as well? That he feels threatened by his very own cousin?
Is he really worried that one day he'll take her away from him?
What was he thinking?
Ridiculous… he glanced outside and saw Enishi climbing his car. No one can take my housemaid away. Now he sounded too possessive, which was highly odd.
But then when he saw Kaoru turn on her heels and approach the door, he suddenly snaps out from his thoughts. It would be too embarrassing if she sees him pacing around waiting for her. I need to cover up. He immediately sat on the sofa, took the remote and pretended to watch the TV.
Just in time, Kaoru unlocked the door and went inside.
He had an arm draped over the sofa and pretended to look awfully bored. He slowly raised his eyes when he noticed her stop and stare at him.
"Well, what do you know? She finally returned. The mistress who needs not to do her chores." He sarcastically said as he leered at her through half-lidded eyes.
Kaoru crossed her arms and scowled, "Well, what do you know? Mister stuck-up's still awake. I wonder why?" she stressed out her last word, glaring back at him.
Aoshi plainly shrugged his shoulders and started flipping the remote again, "I can't sleep." He lied.
Mentally she giggled and went to sit next to him, "Can't sleep, eh?" She playfully pinched his cheek and cooed, "Aw… are you worried about me, dockie-poodle-poo?" She giggled when she heard him groan and swatted her hand away. She crossed her arms, teasingly looked at him and said, "Can't sleep without me around. Pity." She sighed in feigned disbelief, "What will you do without me?"
He suddenly turned to her and inquisitively stared at her, "What do you mean?"
She gave him a side-glance and replied, "What? You think I'm going to be your housemaid forever?"
Aoshi didn't know what to say and looked away, "I don't know." And then he turned his head towards her again, "You're not planning on quitting, are you?"
She looked at him and saw something within them that she couldn't tell. She shrugged her shoulders and said, "Yes… I-I mean, No! Not yet… Three months or so—I think…" she knew her punishment's about to come to an end. Only a few more months and she have to quit the job of being his housemaid, which suddenly brought her to a realization. I won't be seeing him again… she looked up and saw him still staring at her. A lump suddenly formed on her throat as he continued to stare at her with those unexpressive eyes. Damn, why do his eyes have to be so cold?
She won't be serving you forever… Aoshi haven't thought about it. He never imagined her leaving him someday. He was… enjoying her company so much that he tends to forget things like this. He continued to look down on the deep blue pools of her eyes and was surprised on what he saw. He saw disappointment. She was so easy to read. "Why?" was his one-word question.
"E-eh?"
"Why do you have to leave in three months?" he asked again, "School's not over yet… or are you planning on getting another job again?" his eyes suddenly narrowed towards her.
Great, now how am I supposed to explain this to him? She asked herself, totally unsure of what to answer to his question. She tensely looked away from his scrutinizing eyes. "Er… well, you see…"
"Why can't you answer?" he asked though his face still remained impassive.
Her mouth twisted in a smile and replied, "I-I…"
"You?"
What am I supposed to say? A lie, she needed to lie! Her mind started working, gathering numerous of reasons of what to tell him. And finally, she came up with something reasonable. "I—I've earned a lot of money these past few months and I—I think that would be enough to support my living… and since I'll be finishing college next year, I don't think working as a housemaid would be necessary." She looked at him and saw him still glowering at her.
Silence.
Her mouth twitching from her smile.
Still silence.
Talk, dammit!
His glare never wavered.
"Doc?"
Aoshi was in deep thought. What if I refuse? But then he realized that doing such thing would be unfair for her. She wanted to quit because she has to. She's graduating as a cook and she'll be using that degree to get a much more decent job. As much as he wanted to refuse, he can't.
He's losing every chance he has left. He's about to lose her in a few months. Soon she'll be leaving him, alone with his unsaid feelings towards her. For the first time, he found himself completely puzzled with his emotions. This girl did something odd to him. She brought him happiness, light and… love. Things that he never expected from her. Things that he thought he would never experience from anyone. Yes, he had a good amount of lovers before. But none of them made him do things such as eat ramen on the side street, take the bus, do the groceries, eat a whole unhealthy meal, kick each others legs under the table, shout on a cliff, chase around the streets and finally… kiss under the rain. She made him do things that he had never experienced before. She's the only one who can stand up to him, defy him and be irritatingly stubborn in front of him. And the fact that she's the only girl that hadn't swooned in front of him when they first met.
Everything about her was different.
Surreal…
And fun.
She's a girl—no, a woman who's filled with happiness, carefree and easy to love.
And he's lucky to have her sitting here next to him, staring at those beautiful eyes in companionable silence. Many guys out there would envy him. And here he was, wasting every second of it.
He was a fool.
He had treated her badly.
He even made her cry because of a stupid comment he had never meant to say.
How pathetic.
Kaoru blinked at him, confused on why he's still not speaking any word. She waved a hand in front of his face, "Yoohoo, earth to doc, are you still there?" she snapped her fingers and asked, "What planet are you in—mmph!" she was cut-short when she saw his hand abruptly grab her wrist and pulled her into a kiss.
It was so fast.
She didn't even have the chance to blink.
Her eyes went wide as she felt his lips locked against hers. Her heart thumped wildly against her chest at the nearness of their bodies. His fingers remained enclosed around her wrist while the other rested on her shoulder.
It was a simple kiss.
A simple lip-lock.
But everything felt blissfully right.
Her eyes drifted shut, thinking nothing other than the man sitting in front of her, kissing her. All rational thoughts flew out of the window and she started to feel so light-headed.
Finally he released her wrist and allowed both of her arms to slither its way around his neck. He enveloped his own around her waist and pulled her tighter. He pulled back to catch an amount of air he'd lost and stared dazedly down at her. She, herself had the same look within her half-lidded eyes. Her face was flushed, and her lips were slightly red from the kiss. He had never seen her as beautiful as this…
Kaoru looked up at him and saw nothing but the obvious glaze of desire within those ice blue eyes. Odd, it may seem that his eyes held no coldness within them. Only the same fire of passion playing around her eyes as well. God… I'm in love… she said to herself, her forefinger tracing the fine line of his jaw as she mused on how handsome he is. Upon observing… she knew she wanted more and there's one thing to do to satisfy her needs.
Do the initiative.
She hesitantly leaned and softly brushed her lips against his questioningly. Aoshi watched her in mild amusement as she tried to be the upper-hand. But her soft, timid kisses won't do him any good. So, he grasped her nape and pulled her into a much more passionate and deeper kiss.
A gasp came form the back of her throat when she felt his tongue darting out and licking her bottom lip. Following her own instinct, she opened her mouth and welcomed his intrusion. His hands gently rubbed the small of her back as her fingers ran through his incredibly soft hair. He slanted his head and almost moaned when her tongue met his. She though failed to conceal her initial reaction. He swallowed her small whimper and took the opportunity to lower her down on the couch. Her soft hands traveled down his chest and traced the hard planes through the thin fabric of his white shirt.
Her touch sent a flare of desire within him and this forced him to pull away and stop.
Kaoru was stunned as he pulled away from the heated kiss they shared. Her eyes widely staring up on him, her cheeks were flushing pink and lips slightly parted as she erratically breathed. What's wrong? Why did he stop? These were the questions playing inside Kaoru's blurred mind.
Noticing the surprised look on her face, Aoshi leaned against her forehead and closed his eyes. Their chest pressed together caused by the position they were in. He could feel the rapid beating of her heart against his own.
"I'm sorry." He softly whispered.
Kaoru looked up at him and then closed her own eyes as well. "For what?"
"This." He simply stated.
H-he's sorry? Kaoru never felt more insulted in her entire life. Why would he be sorry about a thing they both mutually done? He kissed her and she kissed him back. It's simply no one's fault. She opened her eyes and looked at him, "Aoshi,"
Upon hearing her soft voice calling his name, Aoshi opened his eyes and stared down on her inquisitive blue pools.
"H-how do you feel about me?" she hesitantly asked, hoping to hear a good answer from him.
But it seems this question hadn't affected him at all. His face still remained impassive, just plainly looking straight into her. Kaoru felt really uncomfortable under his gaze. It's as if he could exactly see right through her.
"What do you want to know?" his baritone voice that made a lot of girls swoon his feet question her back.
Kaoru sighed and whispered back, "The truth."
A moment of silence as they both search each other's eyes.
A small smile grazed the doctor's lips and he dipped his head low again to capture her lips in a searing kiss.
That was enough for Kaoru.
A smile and a kiss.
Definitely the answers she needed.
It was all worth it.
And then he pulled back again and stared down on her. "How do you feel about me, Kaoru?" he curiously asked, the back of his hand gently rubbing her cheek.
In return she smiled and tightly enveloped her arms around him, pulling him into an embrace. Aoshi took this opportunity to smell her unique scent and her jasmine perfume. To some unknown reasons, her scent somehow calmed his strained nerves. He felt unusually contended just by holding her like this.
"I think you know my answer by now."
Aoshi pulled back and saw her grinning face. He shook his head and said, "No," he stared her down though humor danced around his eyes, "Admit it. Admit that you love me and that you're only using my cousin to make me jealous."
Kaoru feigned innocence and adorably cocked her head on the side, "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Ah, you don't know?" Aoshi was willing to play her game. Noticing her exposed neck, he leaned down and softly kissed a spot just between the juncture of her neck and shoulder. Kaoru shuddered at the sudden contact; she held her eyes close, keeping herself from moaning. He looked at her and said, "I guess we have to settle in a much pleasurable way, is that what you want?" he saw her face flush pink at the comment. She was truly endearing and teasing her never failed to amuse him.
What does he mean by "pleasurable way"? She knew she was blushing like a ripen tomato in front of him, feeling oddly excited and scared at the same time. But she shooed these thoughts away and masked a defiant look on her face. "You can't force me to admit something through your ways!"
"Really?"
"Absolutely!"
"I assure you, I can."
She playfully narrowed her eyes and said, "Right—oof!"
Aoshi never backs out from any challenge. And so he stood up, scooped her into his arms and draped her over his shoulder.
"W-where are you taking me? Put me down!" she halfheartedly pounded on his back as he carried her towards the stairs. "Shinomori Aoshi, put me down this instant!" despite of her efforts to be released, she found herself giggling at the situation she was in. Here she was, carried like a sack, pounding like a lunatic in vain.
"Which room do you prefer?" he suddenly asks.
She snapped her eyes and realized they were standing between the gaps of their rooms. "E-eh?"
"Mine or yours?" he asked again as if his question meant nothing.
"I-I don't know! Why do I have to choose?" she demandingly asked. She heard a frustrated sigh from the other and started walking towards the door of his room. Kaoru quickly panicked, "H-hey! Wait a minute! I haven't decided yet!" but it was too late for the door was finally shut behind them as he placed her down on the floor.
The room was too dark, not until he switched the lamp next to his bed. She felt utterly flustered when he started taking off his shirt, revealing every inch of his skin before her eyes. Kaoru was glad the room was quite dark for him to notice her blushing face. She tried to look elsewhere, fidgeting on her fingers as he climbed on the bed underneath the dark blue covers.
"A-Aoshi… isn't this too soon…" she stammered, feeling her throat suddenly dried up. "You…I… we can't—I mean—"
"Kaoru." he called.
"Hai?" she raised her head and saw him already settled on the bed.
"Come here." He ordered, motioning for the empty space beside him.
She dumbly pointed at herself and asked, "Me? You want me to—?"
The blue-eyed doctor nodded and patted the bed.
She hesitantly walked her way and climbed on the bed, moving towards his side. She laid her head against his arm, never breaking eye contact as he watched her settle under the covers with him. He looked at her, noticing how nervous she was when they entered his room. She's still nervous up until now and thought this would be the right time to caress her cheek and reassure her that he never meant to scare her. "Kaoru… I will not do anything that will upset you." She looked up and silently urged him to continue, "I want you… to stay here. That's all I want, for now." His eyes held nothing but sincerity and that was enough to prove his point.
Kaoru was touched upon hearing those words. She nodded and the nervousness she's feeling was far long gone. She scooted closer and he in return placed an arm around her waist and pulled her closer.
Mutually they closed their eyes, waiting for sleep to claim them.
"I love you." She tiredly whispered.
He heard those three words before he drifted completely into slumber.
TBC