This one's awful long guys, sorry! It's about 13 pages. Faithful readers will do well to remember that 'Thursday' has become a big part of the story, or has been leading up to a big part in the story, and I took it upon myself to write out -everything- that happened Thursday. That alone was ten pages. I'm afriad I made Kit feel bad :(. But she does have three pages in this chapter, so, get comfortable, grab refreshments and get ready 'cause this one could take a little while. XD
KS:
Kaye had a mischievous smirk on her face as she exited the locker room and met up with the whining Kira.
"Ow ow ow! Oh my gosh! It hurts so bad!" Kira complained.
Kaye sneezed loudly, and when everyone looked suspiciously at her, she said, "Oh, I'm sorry, I'm allergic to bullshit."
Kira looked steamed and threw up her fists. "You wanna fight? As in fight me?" Kaye looked around for some other target Kira may have had in mind. "Listen, girly, I've been through Army training, and we wouldn't want Miss. Social to go M-I-A, ne?" Kaye said to the stunned girl.
Kaye walked away, her back turned, waving her hand in a goodbye fashion and eventually disappearing into the masses. Before then of course, with her acute hearing, Kaye overheard the others and Kira trying to figure out what M-I-A stood for.
Kaye stuck out her tongue and ran back to class.
"Kaye!" someone shouted from behind her, and Kaye turned quickly around, narrowly missing another teen. The person was waving through the crowd and all she could see was a hand.
Kaye waited until the person was closer and only then recognized the hand as Momiji's. "I should've known!" Kaye said, grinning at the blonde boy, "Now, where's our favorite black and white friend?"
A white head bobbed through the crowd towards Kaye, as if following the beckoning. Kaye laughed jumping on the shoulders of said head.
The three walked back to class and made it just in time, much to Haru's dismay, for a pop TEST. Yes, a test. Kaye passed it easily, and the teacher didn't believe her when Kaye said she was done only ten minutes into the testing period.
Once that class was done, many more tests faced the trio, but nothing could stop Kaye! Haru and Momiji on the other hand, well, not so well. Haru's grades were mostly borderline brain-dead and Momiji's were in the eighties.
By the end of school, Haru was nearing black and Momiji was trying to avoid that. Kaye on the other hand hadn't seen him black in a while and was waiting to see if it had changed or not.
Kaye, Tohru, Kyo and Yuki walked outside the entrance with Haru and Momiji, waving goodbye and then going their separate ways. The three older kids chatted about school and the tortures of it all, while Kaye stared ahead of her in wonder. She thought about everything and anything that came to mind, a dazed look spreading over her face as she did so. Kyo glanced at his sister every now and then, making sure she was okay and not reclaiming her cold or about to faint. But Kaye continued to walk, and she did so for a long while until they had reached home again.
Shigure waited inside, waving with a small grin plastered on his face. Kaye looked curiously at him, wondering what mischief he was up to and stepped inside the house, kicking off her shoes. Her eyes darted around each room she went into, knowing Shigure for his jokes.
"Shigure," Kaye started, coming to a conclusion, "Your editor is coming over again isn't she?" Shigure stopped waving and turned around to face Kaye.
"Er, whatever gave you that idea?" he asked slowly. Kaye waved her hand and replied that she knew him too well, that she had basically grown up with him, Hatori and Aya. Shigure sighed and relented that, indeed, his editor was coming over for the latest manuscript.
"You are so cruel to poor Mi-chan!" Kaye accused, pointing her finger at Shigure, of whom was trying to sneak out the back door. Kaye sighed and added to her last thought, "But I guess it's a lot of fun too, ne?"
"I know!" Kaye said, looking at the startled Shigure, "I'll help!" And evil look spread across her face as she tossed her backpack aside and Shigure and her went to scheme in his office.
Kyo looked shocked but dismissed it. If she was going to have fun then she may as well do so. He went up to his room and tried to do his homework, but couldn't. Music was coming from Kaye's radio. 'She must've forgotten to turn it off this morning,' he thought to himself and quickly went into her room to turn it off. He tried not to procrastinate in his sister's room but something caught his eye.
Pictures. Sprawled out on her bed was a vast array of pictures, spreading from the day she was born to a bit before she came home. Of course, knowing his sister, there was a ton more. She loved taking pictures of nearly anything, but he took a quick look at some of the pictures on the bed.
He picked up one picture and looked at it; the day Kaye was born. Kyo was in his father's arms while Kaye was in his mother's, Kyo being but a year old. His mother looked relieved and was smiling greatly, unlike when she had Kyo. It was a total fiasco when she tried to hold her son, and then having him turn into a cat.
Tohru walked into the room with Kaye's laundry, looking curiously at Kyo as he stared at that one picture. She turned off Kaye's radio, which snapped Kyo out of his daze. Tohru stood beside him and Kyo handed her the picture.
"Is this...?" she started but never finished.
Kyo looked at her and said, "That's Kaye, and me, and my father and mother." He pointed to each in turn.
The sad, distressed smiled that crossed his face started Tohru and she felt burdened to ask, "What happened to them?"
"Dead. Or at least, I hope they are." Kaye said, stepping into her room. Kyo looked away from his sister's gaze. Tohru looked confused; she had been so depressed when her mother had died, but Kaye seemed nearly glad.
"Mother committed suicide. Father ran away," Kaye explained, and she started to pick up the pictures on her bed, staking them neatly and placing them in a shoebox discovered under her bed. She snatched the picture Kyo had and shoved it in with the rest, kicking the box lightly under her bed.
"But, why?" Tohru asked as Kaye turned to leave the room, "Why would she have committed suicide?"
Kaye sighed and looked at the girl, "I'm not the one to tell you that." She threw her hands up in the air, stretching them out, and she left the room.
Tohru couldn't help but think, 'No wonder Kaye was a cutter, no wonder, well, a lot of things!'
Kyo sighed as Tohru turned her gaze on the cat boy. "It's because of me," he said, a slight grin on his face. "She…"
A series of flashbacks cascaded through his mind, a different voice each adding their own toxic opinions. "From what I heard it seems like suicide," "But no one knows for sure." "I guess it was so hard on her having the cat as a son that she killed herself." "Poor thing," "If only she hadn't had that cat child," "The boy doesn't even cry," "Even though his mother's dead," "And HE'S the one who pushed her to suicide…"
He stopped thinking on it and Tohru came to a conclusion herself. A screech was heard downstairs and the two quickly recognized it as Mi-chan's. The two ran downstairs to see Kaye dressed up in a maids outfit, saying stuff like, "The Master isn't home right now, why don't you come back later?" and "Please don't kill yourself on our steps; I have to clean up if you do, ma'am." Kyo held in a snicker, wondering how Shigure got Kaye to wear a maid uniform.
However, if he knew Kaye as well as he thought he did, he knew she would do anything for a fun jest.
IS:
After quite a few hours of game play Shigure finally left the manuscript out where Mii could find it. Attached was a note instructing her to go to a certain restaurant at a certain time if she wanted the manuscript for the next book. She found Shigure dancing around Tohru, who was making dinner, trying to snag a bite here and there. "Shigure, this is not dignified! You can't just deny me your manuscripts like this!"
"Fine," Shigure said, smirking, "I guess you'll never see another one, now will you?"
Mii walked out of the house not long after, sobbing, but she had, at least, agreed. Kaye and Shigure gave each other the thumbs up with a "Yes!" attached, similar to what Shigure and Aya could be caught doing… among other things.
Kaye went upstairs and hurriedly removed the maid's uniform now that her task was completed. Tohru came upstairs just as she had finished changing, sliding back the door and taking the dress from Kaye. Tohru held it out in front of her and smiled. "This dress really was adorable on you Kaye." She folded the dress and grinned sheepishly at Kaye. "I envy your figure."
Kaye scoffed, half-laughing. "I envy yours!" Both girls laughed and Tohru gathered the rest of the laundry for the second time that day. "You know," Kaye said, fidgeting with something under the bed, "You really are too thorough about the wash, you know. The way you do laundry I could wear the same outfit every day."
Tohru shook her head. "Oh no, I like being thorough! That way no one's ever looking for certain clothes when they need them or anything." She glanced back over at the maid's outfit and tilted her head slightly. "I wonder why Shigure had this dress laying around."
Kaye laughed. 'So naïve Miss Tohru is,' she thought, but she snickered and decided the truth was best. "He told me he purchased it for you as a White Day Present, but Ha'ri wouldn't let him give it to ya." Tohru fell over sideways with a dazed look of shock on her face. Kaye burst out laughing and finally retrieved the photo box from under the bed.
Tohru propped herself up on her elbows and watched as Kaye rifled through the old photos, finally picking up the one Kyo had been so transfixed upon before she had interrupted him. Advancing over on her knees Tohru sat beside Kaye and looked down into the faces of her old parents. "Why do you hope they're dead?"
"It's nothing more than what they deserve," Kaye sniffed disgustedly. "Anyone who makes a commitment to a family and then walks out is a pussy and should be spit on. And my mother was always playing favorites and neglecting Kyo then trying to make up for it, never really truly loving him because she never really accepted him… and then she left all this blame on Kyo…" Kaye's hands began to shake, but out of fury rather than sorrow or sentiments. "It was her gay-assed decision. I hope she rots in hell for what she's done." She shoved the picture back into the box and reached for a different one. Tohru stood up.
"I have laundry to do," she said quietly. "Then I'll make us some dinner, okay?" Kaye nodded, not looking at her, but staring intently at more of the photos.
What was tomorrow? Thursday? Kaye couldn't really think straight. She remembered a bunch of things about Thursday, none of which really had anything to do with her. Kyo had been talking about an endurance run. In fact, he hadn't really shut up about it. And then yesterday Axle had said something about Tohru coming to see his gallery Thursday.
Kaye's cheeks reddened slightly. Would he try something? It was obvious to everyone that he was into her; even Haru couldn't rationalize it anymore. Then, of course, Tohru was oblivious. Could she really not see through him? As far as Kaye could tell Tohru didn't really return his feelings, it seemed. She was never the one to ask if he'd like to hang out and she was almost never the one to start the conversations, yet she never really seemed to end them either…
Stumbling across a picture of Kyo, around 5 or 6 years old, smiling and holding a hand out to her, Kaye thought harder about the Axle situation. She had half a mind to spy on them, but, would Tohru forgive her if she was caught? And what if she didn't? What would happen, damn it? She wished she could read the future. All she wanted was to protect Tohru. And her brother.
A new question popped into her head: How did Kyo feel about Tohru going to Axle's?
"Dinner!" Tohru called brightly from downstairs. Kaye sighed, stood, and advanced towards the stairs to take her place with the others at the table. Delving farther into the subject would only account for a serious migraine, and she did not feel like OD-ing on Ibuprofen tonight.
The next morning Shigure's house was quite silent. Kyo and Yuki acted as though they had full-grown oranges lodged down their throats, minus the choking and gasping noises. The others figured it was just about the endurance run. The competitiveness made the air thick and difficult to swallow.
Tohru fussed constantly over Yuki. She took his temperature several times, made him drink extra orange juice, and made him bring one of his inhalers. She said she would also have one, if he needed it. He merely rolled his eyes, smiling slightly. He knew she was being ridiculous, but he did appreciate her concerns.
Once Kaye finally got the story about last year's endurance run where Yuki had had a cold and an asthma attack had occurred she shook her head, fighting the urge to laugh. All this over what happened last year? Yuki was in perfect health this year, but, it was just like Tohru to always worry.
For Kaye, it was really quite sad that she couldn't be out with the other three. It would be fun to race her brother, just as it was fun to fight or to wrestle him. Silly little things like that were carefree and childish, which was how the two preferred things in their minds. It brought them back to their younger days, before all the problems started, or as Kaye called it, 'The Abandoning Period'.
She shook her head, feeling Kyo's eyes watching her again. They were walking to school now, and nearly there. Kaye had felt the same sensation yesterday but hadn't acknowledged it in the least.
Upon entering the school yard the four of them seemed to brace themselves. They had grown accustomed to the Sullivan siblings badgering them in the morning and they waited for the alert of Kira screaming about something, but there was nothing. Shrugging, they continued into school as they would have normally.
Kira turned up late in homeroom, just before the bell rang for first period. Pondering this silently as she left the classroom she decided to dismiss the thought, thinking that she didn't give a damn about the girl, and then nodded to herself as she accompanied Haru and Momiji to Science class.
Tohru had been chatting with the boys and Uo and Hana in homeroom, laughing like any other day. Yuki was complaining about being tired, Kyo was arguing with Uo, Hana was snacking on the breakfast she'd neglected to eat. There was only one thing she'd become so far accustomed to that seemed to be missing; Axle.
She glanced around for him once again, but knew it was useless. 'If he had come in he'd be over here already,' she thought, turning back to the group. 'I hope he's okay.'
Yuki was talking to Uo about the endurance run. "I thought you weren't going to show up?" he inquired, leaning back against the heater. Uo shrugged.
"Well, I guess I got out of bed on the optimistic side this morning because here I am," she said, shaking her bangs out of her eyes. Glancing around, a smirk spread across her face. "Looks like someone else skipped, however. Where's that Axle kid?"
"We didn't see him this morning, and homeroom's almost over," Tohru said, looking up at the clock. To do so she had to lean over Kyo, who was sitting in the chair next to hers. As if on cue Axle tore into the room, taking in the scene. His breath caught in his chest and he glared intensely at Kyo, who, realizing what this must look like, smirked back at him. Axle advanced over just in time to hear Tohru say, "I hope he's okay…"
"I'm fine Tohru, thank you," Axle said, still staring at Kyo. As he walked he dragged a chair over to sit at Tohru's other side but realized Yuki was already there. He had hopped into the chair, whereas he had been leaning against the heater moments before. Axle blinked a few times and it was Yuki's turn to smirk. Grumbling, Axle slid the chair next to him, but sat down just as the bell rang.
Everyone stood, Yuki and Kyo not budging from Tohru's sides, much like it had always been. Axle watched the three exited the classroom, a smirk growing on his own face. 'That's okay,' he thought, 'I get her in Lit.' Then he too headed for first period, following not far behind them.
When he got there Axle sat down next to Tohru who was watching expectantly. "Are you sure everything's okay?" she asked, concern wavering in every note of her voice. "Why were you so late for school?"
"Abercrombie the Bitch misplaced her favorite lip gloss and Doris wouldn't let me leave without her," Axle explained bluntly.
"I'm guessing you're talking about Kira then?"
"Sad to say, but yes."
"So, who's Doris?" Tohru asked.
"Oh, she's my mother," Axle explained in an even more brusque fashion. Then he suddenly smiled. "You'll meet her when you come over later." Tohru smiled back at him and both of them turned their attentions to the teacher. Yuki and Kyo, who sat behind them, both glowered at Axle. 'By accident', of course, they had eaves dropped on the conversation. The reminder had not, by far, put them in better moods.
Second period was when they had gym class. Uo, Hana, and Tohru all went over to wish Yuki luck, but didn't dare approach Kyo. They called personalized words over to him instead, knowing that he was too brimming with tension to go near at the time. Tohru and Axle shared a wave and the girls' headed to the starting line, then took off.
This year Hana ran for about five whole minutes before quitting. Tohru and Uo jogged alongside each other, waving to the classrooms as they passed, trying to catch the attention of Kaye and the others.
From within the classroom Kaye looked up from her math problems to the clock then quickly threw pieces of paper and Momiji and Haru and pointed to the window. The three stood up, watching Tohru and Uo jog by, waving. It took the teacher a while to figure out what was going on.
"I wonder if the guys have started yet," Haru said almost anxiously. Kaye shoved him and, as if on cue a blur raced by the window, clad in green. The three of them cheered, but something caught Kaye's eye. Sure, it was Yuki and Kyo, but there was someone else tied with them.
"Who could possibly…?"
"Well?" Tohru said anxiously, approaching a panting Yuki and Kyo. They had just passed the finish line. She offered the inhaler to Yuki but he smiled fixedly and shook his head. "Who won?"
"No one did," Kyo shouted, kicking a pole that had randomly appeared. "It was a three-way tie."
"Three-way?" Tohru asked and both boys nodded their heads towards Axle, who was coming over.
"Hey guys, good race, eh?" he said brightly, holding out a hand to each of them. Yuki nodded stiffly but did not, by any means, take the hand offered to him. Kyo just stomped away.
"I have to wait another YEAR to beat that damn rat!"
The rest of the day went off much as all the others did, with Kyo and Yuki being bitter and Axle being cocky, Kaye observed as she quietly ate her food. Kaye had many times that day approached Tohru but had not once actually said anything. This, of course, led to Tohru being overly cautious about her, asking if she felt sick or if something was bothering her. 'Tohru was always a good listener…' Kaye thought to herself, but she wasn't about to talk to Tohru about Axle. Not unless she needed to.
When it was time to go home Kaye, Tohru, Axle, Kyo, and Yuki stood around waiting for Kira. Kaye had her arms folded tightly across her chest, scowling something awful at the ground. She tried to focus on what Tohru was saying.
"I'll be home in time to make dinner, so no spoiling your appetites okay?" Kyo and Yuki nodded. Axle hadn't heard. He was a little ways off, looking out for his sister.
"How much you want to bet she lost that damned lip gloss of hers again?" he muttered to Tohru who gave a little laugh and turned to look out for her also.
Yuki cleared his throat. "Okay Miss Honda, we'll just be going then..."
Tohru turned back to them, smiling brightly. "Okay, I'll try not to be too long!"
"We'll try not to miss you too much!" Kaye shouted over her shoulder and Tohru started to laugh as she waved goodbye to them.
"Tell that to Shigure," Kyo muttered. "He's going to make some huge-assed deal about her being over there, you know."
Tohru watched the three leave, waving until they were completely out of sight. She smiled faintly, sighed, then turned back to face Axle, who was hollering at his sister to hurry up. She seemed to be taking her time walking over, but when Tohru saw her shoes she wasn't surprised. They were Steve Madden, six inch stilettos. (O.o)
She stared in awe as the girl approached, then quickly snapped her mouth shut. "How on earth can you walk in those?"
Kira looked at Tohru as though she was an alien, then glanced at her brother and laughed playfully. "Darling, all it takes is practice!"
It didn't take very long to get to the Sullivan's home. Tohru felt very self-conscious in the neighborhood they led her through, however. All the houses were huge and they reminded her of the main House of Sohma. These two strode around like they owned the whole street, but both in different ways completely. Kira strutted with a little catwalk while Axle slouched as he always did, so comfortable and completely un-fazed by his surroundings.
Tohru tugged at the hemline of her skirt, remembering how these two had grown up with money and material items to comfort them, but were they really happy? She glanced at both of them, and both were smiling. What was underneath? Tohru decided not to judge too quickly.
She followed Axle closely, not wanting to get lost. They led her half blindly and before she knew it she found herself entering an enormous, spotless kitchen. An attractive woman with tame 80's hair (what an oxymoron!) dressed in a velvet, ink-bottle green pantsuit sat at an island, absorbed in paperwork. "Doris is a real estate agent," Axle explained with a whisper.
Tohru smiled brightly and stepped forward. "Hello Mrs. Sullivan, it's nice to meet you. My name's Tohru Honda."
Mrs. Sullivan looked up, startled, and smiled, standing up from her stool and advancing towards the girl. She held out a hand and smiled with her eyes, not just her mouth. "And to you, Tohru. The kids didn't tell me they were expecting company. I would have had Ethel spiff up a bit." Tohru blinked a few times and then it sank in that Ethel must be the main maid of the house.
"Oh no," Tohru objected, "I don't expect special treatment…"
"Nonsense, dear."
"Kira, your manicurist is ready," a middle aged women called from the bottom of the stairs. She was wearing an apron and a rather ridiculous bonnet. Kira advanced over to her, still strutting, and tossed her coat to her as she passed. Tohru was personally offended by the girl's behavior.
"Your gallery pieces have been dusted and polished, Axle," called another middle-aged woman from another staircase, one on the other side of the main hall. Axle nodded his thanks to the woman and lead Tohru up the stairs. She bowed to the maid as she passed, then continued on her way.
As Axle and Tohru disappeared the maid and Mrs. Sullivan watched with smiles. "What a charming girl," the maid said, and Mrs. Sullivan nodded.
"You have personal servants?" Tohru inquired, amazed. Axle had lead her into his bedroom first.
"Yep, sure do," Axle said, sighing. He set himself down in front of his computer and Tohru stood beside him, looking around. There was a bookshelf filled with different types of cameras and two shelves were dedicated to lenses. Axle followed her gaze. "Oh, those are just for decoration, I haven't used those in years. The real stuff has a room of its own, branching off the gallery."
"You sure have a lot of rooms," Tohru said softly.
"I have this whole wing to myself, might as well use it."
Tohru shook her head, wondering how all this was possible. Axle didn't really seem like the rich type, but Tohru smiled remembering something her mum had once told her about judging or labeling people. 'Axle is a Greaser in a family of Socs…'
"Come look at this," Axle called and she turned her attention to the computer. "This is the art site I've been telling you about."
"Mausoleum-Hippie?" she read with a little laugh, staring at his computer screen. "Is that what you call yourself?" she asked, turning back to him. He was resting leisurely in his computer chair, watching her with a grin. He nodded and she smiled. "Sounds just a little hypocritical don't you think?"
"Well Tohru, the world is hypocritical," Axle said, standing and stretching. Tohru tilted her head, interested to know what he meant by that. "You learn that living in America," he explained, starting down a long hall. She stood up and followed him, listening. "Christians shun homosexuals, when in reality if it were meant to be that way why would god have created them in the first place? Americans are supposed to gain freedom of speech, but how can we exercise that freedom if we're always being told what to think and what to say? If we come to America to be free, then why do we elect one person, one individual as imperfect as any other, to rule us, to tell us what to do?"
"Sounds like you've really thought this out," Tohru said brightly, and Axle flashed a mischievous grin.
"I've had practice," he said, opening a door for her. They were in yet another hall. Tohru felt suddenly dizzy. Was there an end to this house? "In my old school I used to constantly voice my opinions to my peers and because of it I was eventually thrown out for a generous amount of time." Tohru widened her eyes and Axle laughed quietly. "It's okay, really. You get used to it after a while."
They came to yet another door, which Axle opened for her yet again and Tohru found herself in something of a museum. She stared around, all breath lost to her, and she heard a door click closed behind her. She paid no mind. "Like it?" came Axle's voice in her ear.
Tohru nodded and walked over to the nearest hanging; a picture of a willow tree dangling its lacy branches low over the surface of a calm lake on a foggy day. Hurrying to the next and the next, zigzagging across the aisle, Tohru muttered praise here and there. Axle leaned back against the door they had entered through with his arms folded and a smirk on his face, admiring her admiring his art. He walked towards her as she studied one of a field of flowers. He stood behind her and glanced at her as she struck a thoughtful pose. "Tell me what you're thinking," he ordered softly, standing back.
Tohru tilted her head slightly. "Oh nothing, just picturing Momiji in here." She turned and smiled brightly at him. "He really loves flowers! He'd love this photo, I wish he could see it."
"Oh, well, it's not a photo, this one's a painting." He watched as Tohru's mouth opened slightly and she reached out to touch the masterpiece and felt the rough canvas material. She could scarcely believe it. "You have an amazing talent," Tohru whispered, still amazed. She felt the same way she had watching Kaye perform. She found herself feeling a little, well… jealous.
"So," Axle began, standing next to her before the painting, "You see Momiji in this one? That crazy kid that wears the girl's uniform?"
Tohru laughed. "That's Momiji alright! He's just so cute, he'd really complete the piece well."
"Hmm," Axle said, pondering. He glanced at her, something she hadn't seen, and then back to the painting. "I see a woman with long brown hair, and bright, icy blue eyes, the kind that wake you up inside, maybe stringing flowers together in some sort of craft, or maybe reading."
"Hmm," Tohru said, oblivious, "That sounds nice, too."
Axle chuckled quietly. "If I were going to paint that, though, I'd definitely need to get you to model for me." There, now he had her attention. She was looking up at him, a light blush dusting her cheeks.
"Oh, I couldn't…"
"C'mere," Axle said, starting toward the closest door, "I want to show you what a real darkroom looks like." Tohru nodded and followed him. Before opening the door he dimmed the lights, and as he saw Tohru's confused expression he explained how light could ruin the film that was developing. She nodded and walked in.
Once Axle shut the door Tohru felt as though suffocating, but in a strange way. It was very dim inside and everything seemed to have a reddish glow. Still, she was amazed. "This is how pictures get developed?" Axle nodded, looking around.
"Yep. They just finished with it and I have tons to develop, so I can show you if you want."
Tohru squinted at the watch on her wrist. "I'd love to but I have to get home and cook dinner."
To Axle this was quite a foreign concept. "You… you have to cook dinner?"
"Well yes," she said with a little laugh in her voice, "I must say the boys are hopeless, although Kyo and Kaye aren't all that bad in the kitchen. Yuki burns everything though, and Shigure's tastes are a bit too interesting for the rest of us…"
"What? You live with them?" Axle said, amazed. There was a stiffness in his chest as he saw her nod quite distinctly in the darkness.
"I'll have to explain another time, I really have to go," she said as she made for the door.
Axle blocked her path quickly. "Uh, Tohru, hold up a second," he said and she stood back slightly. "I, uhh, want to thank you for, you know, hanging with me and stuff. I didn't really expect anyone to accept me so quickly."
Tohru smiled. "Of course, I was more than willing."
Axle smirked. "More than willing, eh?" Tohru nodded. "I'd hoped so." With that he wrapped an arm around her waist and backed her into the wall, using the other hand to tilt her chin up as he craned his neck so his lips met hers. He felt her go rigid and wished the feeling would go away. He didn't want her to be nervous. He decided he needed to loosen her up, but once again his efforts failed. As he attempted to pry her lips open with his tongue she somehow managed to slip away from him, muttering a hurried "Sorry, I have to go," before running out the door.
Tohru said a rushed goodbye to his mother and sister and ran as fast she could all the way home.
All the occupants of Shigure's house couldn't help but notice how quiet Tohru had been since she'd returned form the Sullivan's home. When she'd arrived Yuki had asked her how it went and she had merely smiled at him then headed into the kitchen to make dinner. She stood, leaning against the door panting for a few minutes from her run home before actually starting to prepare dinner. When Kaye offered to help Tohru with dinner she didn't even turn around. She just shook her head and kept chopping carrots.
Tohru didn't eat much at dinner, just a few bites of rice here and there, or a sip of tea. She was thinking too much, she knew, but it felt as though Axle's lips still burned on top of hers. Self-consciously she brought her hand up to touch them gently, then hurriedly reached for her cup to hide the gesture, although poorly. It had been her first kiss, after all… The way it had been stolen made her feel as though sewn into the wrong skin… she hoped she wasn't being too obvious to the others…
"I… I think I'm coming down with something," she announced quietly. She hoped that would give an excuse as to her behavior.
"I can clean up," Kaye and Kyo said at the same time. Kaye continued, giving her brother a look. "You go take a bath and lay down, okay?"
Tohru nodded slowly and stood up. Kaye watched her go with a frown on her face. She made a mental note to talk to Tohru later then picked up her plate and brought it into the kitchen. Tohru had helped her once; maybe it was time to return the favor.