a/n: it's wednesday! which means it's upadte time! hope u enjoy this chappie! 9 is already under way, but skool started, so i'll try to do as much as i can!

Standard disclaimers apply

Chapter 8: Explanations & Reprimands (Beware of Bokken Beatings)

Megumi felt terrible. She had had trouble sleeping all last night and she felt sick to her stomach when she'd woken up from her nerves. She'd finally decided to just skip. Forget about the whole entire date. She wasn't ready to face the truth. Not yet. Although she knew that she would eventually have to face the music and realistically, sooner would be better before she developed too much of an attachment to him. She knew that Kaoru was going to kill her; she wanted desperately for this to work out, seeing as all the rest of her escapades like this were a huge failure.

She sighed and stared at the phone. She knew he was going to call sooner or later. Maybe she should just call Kaoru… Yeah. She picked up the aforementioned phone and dialed her number.

"Yeah."

"Kaoru?"

"Hiya," she said sleepily.

"I… Promise you won't kill me?"

"What did you do?" Kaoru's mind was already jumping to conclusions such as Megumi had ruined her favorite red dress, or gone through her wardrobe again like she'd done on previous on occasions.

"Well… that man I got to know online and on the phone…" Kaoru already didn't like the way this conversation was going. "He asked me to lunch."

"What!"

"And I… I told him I would go…"

"WHAT!"

"But then I stood him up. Kaoru what do I do? I just… I didn't… I mean-"

Kaoru breathed a sigh of relief. "You did the right thing."

"I know that it was wro- what did you just say?"

"That you did the right thing. He moved to fast! That's a big dating no-no."

"How would you know? You hardly date anyone!"

"I dated Enishi!" she protested.

"Yeah, for two months. That is not a serious relationship," Megumi informed her.

"Well, I know what I'm talking about!" Kaoru snapped. "And he should have waited until you had established a stronger relationship."

"Riiight. But I don't think it was right, I mean, I told him I would go…" she trailed of.

"Don't worry about it. Tell him you're sorry and that your friend thinks it was way to early. That and you chickened out," she instructed.

"I-what- hang on, I have another call," she said, jamming the talk button down. "Hello?"

"Megumi?"

The moment of truth.

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Kaoru was fuming. Lunch? After she specifically told him no contact in person. Kaoru growled as she moved towards her phone perched on the stand. She punched the numbers in until she heard it ringing. It rang about ten times and he still didn't answer. She threw the phone on the couch, aggravated. He was probably talking to Megumi. Sighing in obvious frustration she picked up the phone again. Time to pull Misao into the little plot.

"Hello! You've reached Misao, how may I help you!"

"Whoa, stop screaming!"

"KAORU! I haven't talked to you in ages! It's been so crazy, and Aoshi, he's been so amazing! He's been getting time off and he's been taking me to the lake and the beach and-"

"Misao! Put a lid on it for five seconds! I have a crisis on my hands!"

"Oh. What is it then?"

"You know how Megumi's dating status is usually like zero, ne?"

"Yeah."

"Well, I thought I'd help her along with-"

"Kao-chan, you know that never works."

"And I thought that an online dating system was the perfect solution," Kaoru continued as if Misao hadn't even talked. "The only thing is… Do you remember that guy she was arguing with at the gig?"

"The rooster?"

"Yeah. Well, he's the one I hooked her with online, but they only talk on the phone. But the rooster's got ants in his pants. He tried to set up an actual date after I told him not to!"

"I told you that your schemes never work out," Misao said, amusement clear in her voice.

"It's not funny!" she wailed. "I just want her to be happy! And I know that her and Sano are perfect for each other, I mean, opposites attract, ne?"

"I-"

"And Sano really likes her-"

"Kaoru, calm down! Why don't you just talk to the rooster?"

"I tried! He won't answer his goddamn phone," she informed her.

"Why don't you just go over there, then?"

"Why didn't I think of that?"

Misao giggled. "Have fun. Call me when you get back, okay?"

"I will."

Kaoru hung up the phone with a new resolve. Misao would be a worthy ally in this battle of love. She stomped off to her car, bokken in hand. She'd been trained in kendo when she was littler and had made sure that her skills hadn't dimmed over the years; she knew they would come in handy.

'Oh, they'll come in handy alright… Rooster head is going to learn that lesson the hard way…' she thought venomously.

Sano had no idea what was heading his way when he saw Kaoru's car pull into his driveway. When she got out of the car, he saw the furious expression on her face, he knew that she had somehow learned of his escapade. And he had only just punched in Megumi's phone number… This didn't look too good.

"Hang on," he told her right after he'd questioned her with her name. She didn't answer, but he pulled the phone away from his face.

"Oh, Saaaannno," Kaoru drawled, coming up to his door.

"Shh, shh, shh! I'm on the phone with Megumi."

"Oh! Tell her you'll call her back," she commanded.

He nodded in understanding. "Hey, I'll call you back. I just got a visitor. Yeah. Bye."

"Sano."

"Jou-chan."

"What the hell did you think you were doing!" She whipped out her bokken and started beating his shocked form. "I told you no meetings! NONE!"

Sano couldn't get a word in between her jumbled shouts and painful swings. She was absolutely relentless. He tried to put up a decent defense, but her practiced strokes told him that it would be useless and earn him yet another beating. He could see why she would be so pissed at him though.

"I can't believe you! Megumi calls and wakes me up to tell me about how you were forcing her to go on a real date. Which is exactly what I told you not to do!" she screamed, beating his head in repeatedly. "Phone calls only Sagara!"

"I understand!" he was finally able utter.

"Then why did you ask her in the first place!"

"Because it's all a lie! She's talking to someone that she hates! What's the point of continuing it if it's based on a lie!"

"Men," she muttered before answering his question. "To build a relationship! To make this better than all of your stupid, childish arguments! Something that can make your times together happy ones based on your conversations!"

Sano just stared.

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Megumi stared at the phone in disbelief. Who on Earth could have came to visit that was more important than the oncoming discussion. Not that she minded of course. She had been trying to avoid it all day. So why did she feel like she was disappointed that it was held off? She shook her head to rid herself of such unsettling thoughts. She still had no idea how she was going to explain to him.

She sank onto her couch, burrowing into his comforts. She felt bad. He had done nothing to deserve her ill treatment of him no matter what Kaoru had said. Even if it was Sano, she knew that he never deserved to be stood up like that. It… just wasn't fair. Her phone rang a few seconds later and she leapt up, snatching up the phone and answering it.

"Hello!" she asked in anticipation.

"Sorry about having to hang up so quick," Sano apologized. "But I still have to ask. Why did you skip out?"

"I… I was scared," she confessed.

"Scared? Why?"

"I… I wasn't ready to handle the truth. I don't even know your name… and here I was making blind plans to meet you somewhere. I… I don't know. I'm confusing myself," she said softly.

"I… Well, how about we try a real date later down the line? Discuss it some more on the phone," he suggested.

"I'd like that," she answered honestly.

"Great! Anyway, I think you may have been right. You still don't know hardly anything about me. And I hardly know anything about you…"

She laughed gently. "I suppose you're right. What would you like to know?"

"How about… music interests, movie preference, and anything entertainment wise."

"Okay. Music. I'm not too much of a hard-core rocker like my friends Kaoru. And Misao I suppose. I like lighter music… softer. Uh, as for movies, to put it plainly, chick flicks," she replied. "And you?"

"I'm a little more like you're friend Kaoru on the music factor. As for movies I'd have to say we're totally opposite. I'm more into horror movies than anything."

Megumi flushed lightly. She did have a soft spot for such movies, but only Kaoru knew of her scary movie craze. Perhaps she should tell him so they could go to a movie one day? She decided she would.

"Umm, about that movie thing… I'm sort of a closet horror fan…" she whispered.

"Great! That means I'll have to take you out to see one some time!"

"I'd love to. Just… how about it's an extension of that dinner date?"

"Good idea. Just how much further down are we talking? Days? Weeks? Months?"

"I don't know… hopefully not months. A couple weeks probably."

"I can deal with that. I'll let you go now; you sound exhausted."

"Wait! Before you hang up, can you tell me your name?"

Sano grinned. "Sorry, you'll have to take a rain check, hun."

"I… Oh, alright. Bye."

"Bye."

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Kaoru watched as he hung up the phone, an approving light shining in her eyes. Sano glared at her, as if asking why she had to stay there and supervise his conversation. She just smiled brightly, grabbed her bokken and tapped his shoulder.

"Good job, Rooster," she congratulated. "You managed to fix everything, understand where both me and Megumi are coming from, and get a date in a couple of weeks. I still don't know when you should tell her who you are though…"

"I don't know either…"

"Oh! I know, I know! First you have to build your public relationship!"

"Obviously."

"So how about I have Misao set you up on a blind date with her!"

"A… what!"

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Misao stared at her phone. Kaoru had promised to call… and here it was, already four o'clock with no word from her. She looked away for a moment and sighed. And that was when her long awaited call came.

"Kaoru!" she asked excitedly.

"I need a favor!"

"Yeah?"

"I need you to convince Megumi to accept a blind date that you're going to set up between her and Sano."