Chapter Seven

Disclaimer: I don't own RK.

Author's Note: Here's chapter seven and I'll try to update every week (Thursday).

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Kenshin leaned back and looked at Kaoru. "Suppose you tell me everything you know about Tomoe."

Hiko had been sent to get some sake and two sake disks while Kenshin and Kaoru studied the menu. Kaoru didn't know much about sake, and she wasn't too sure it was what she wanted right now. But she didn't get much of a choice.

"That's just it," she said slowly. "I don't know anything about Tomoe at all. I don't even know her."

Kenshin frowned, and Kaoru was scared that he might get angry again. "I don't get it. You knew who I was in Razzles. You heard me talking on the phone and then I grabbed you. You said you didn't know Tomoe. But I've been going over it in my mind and I'm pretty damn sure that I never mentioned her name once, so what is this all about?"

"Nothing like that," Kaoru said, her cheeks flushing with embarrassment. Now that she had to tell him, she realized how stupid it would sound. But there was no other alternative than the truth, even if it did mean Kenshin getting angry at her and losing him forever.

Not that I ever had a chance with him, she thought, gazing wistfully at the handsome, worried face opposite her. It was just a fantasy ---- one that was too good to be true!

The sake arrived and Hiko poured each of them generous portions. Kenshin raised his sake disk toward Kaoru and she did the same before taking a sip. It was rich and smooth, and it slid down like polished silk.

Kenshin glanced at the menu. "They make the best sashimi and sushi here," he commented.

Kaoru nodded. "Fine," she said. She hadn't a clue what she was agreeing to, but it seemed the right thing to do to let Kenshin order in his favorite restaurant. Hiko nodded and went off with the orders.

Kaoru looked up to see Kenshin watching her. "So?" he asked as he sat with his hands around his drink.

"You're going to think I'm nuts," she began, "but I saw your personal ad and I was curious."

There. She'd said it and not implicated herself! She hadn't exactly lied, but she heard the moment the words came out that it sounded as if she had seen the ad as a reader, not the ad taker.

Kenshin looked slightly puzzled and slightly amused. "Do you do this kind of thing for a hobby? Follow up on other people's ads?"

She looked down at the white tablecloth. "It sounds stupid, doesn't it?" she said. "But I'm a sucker for a happy ending. I just wanted to see if you really did find Tomoe again."

As you can see, I didn't," he said and frown lines appeared in his forehead, "it was pretty much a long shot, putting the ad in the paper, but I figured it would be the sort of paper she'd read if she came to Tokyo. She likes to think of herself as really hip."

"You don't even know if she's in Tokyo?" Kaoru asked.

Kenshin shrugged. "I know she's always dreamed of being famous. She'd come and stay with me and she'd always beg me to take to see a show. Do you go to the theater much?"

"I wish I could," Kaoru said. "But I'm struggling on a tight budget, and theaters cost big bucks."

"They sure do," Kenshin said.

"Have you asked around the theaters?" Kaoru asked.

"The first places I went," Kenshin said. "I asked about her at all the stage doors, but most of the doorkeepers are very uncooperative. I might have been some strange guy waiting to pester one of the casts. But some of them let me look down the cast list ---- and she wasn't there. Of course she might have taken a stage name. That's the kind of thing she would do ---- she always had a flair for the dramatic." A spasm of pain crossed his face and he gave a heavy sigh.

Kaoru longed to hug him, to stroke away those frown lines between his eyes. She found herself wondering how it would feel to hold him close to her, to draw his head toward her breast and to stroke his thick red hair while she soothed away his hurt. She had to remind herself that it wasn't her he wanted, He was sighing for someone else he loved.

"How long since you saw her?" she asked gently.

"I hadn't seen her for a couple of months," he said, "but I've been kind of busy and she was a three-hour drive away. So it was a complete shock when they called me and told me she'd left home ---- just upped and left one morning with all her things. No note, no nothing. I knew she wanted to get away as quickly as possible, but we both agreed that she'd stay home and finish up college first. I told her she needed the qualification if she was going to survive on her own, and she agreed. But now she's taken off with one semester left. It just doesn't make sense."

He looked at Kaoru and she nodded to show him she understood.

"Nobody's heard anything from her since then," he said. "I was sure she'd contact me, even if she didn't want the others to know where she was. I mean, dammit, she must have known that she could stay with me, that I'd take care of her. I guess I'm kind of hurt that she didn't come straight to me," he said.

Kaoru cleared her throat. "Do you have any reason to suspect that something bad could have happened to her? I mean, have you contacted the police?"

He paused before he answered. "No, I don't have any reason to suppose anything bad has happened. And I haven't contacted the police. What could I say? She's not a minor. She's free to go where she wants. She always liked to be independent. But I can't help worrying about her."

He paused and studied Kaoru's face. "She really is very like you," he said thoughtfully.

He reached across and took Kaoru's hand. "If you really do know where Tomoe is, please tell her that I don't want to run her life for her. I just need to know that she's okay and she's happy. That's all. It's not much to ask is it?"

"I really wish that I could help you," Kaoru said shakily. His hand was over hers. "In fact, I wish that I did know Tomoe so that I could tell her those things. But I really, truly don't."

He nodded. "I'm glad that you're here though," he said. "I haven't had anybody I could talk to before. It's been driving me crazy. At work I'm supposed to be the ambitious advertising type. Meeting tough clients, selling them on our ideas, hoping for that promotion. There's nobody I could tell that I was being eaten up inside."

"You must care a lot about her," Kaoru said.

He looked astonished. "Of course I care about her. She means everything to me. She always has."

"If you want my help," Kaoru said, "I'll do what I can. You can show me a photo of her and I could ask around for you."

He looked at her warmly. You'd do that for me?"

There, he has said it. It was stupid to think that he had even noticed his warm hand, firm hand still covering hers. Hiko appeared with two sashimi and sushi boats and Kenshin sat up, taking his napkin from its folded water- lily position on his side plate. Kaoru picked up her chopsticks and touched one roll full of salmon.

"Forgive me for my ignorance, but what is this?" She asked.

Kenshin smiled. "It's salmon. Uh-oh. I hope you're not allergic to seafood."

I've never tried salmon," Kaoru said. "I don't think anyone where I came from has ever tried salmon, but I'm willing to give them a try."

"You won't regret it," Kenshin said.

She took a bite. "It's good," she managed as soon as she had swallowed.

"So tell me," Kenshin said, "where are you from?"

"Out in the boonies. A small town called Atami. I know you've never heard of it."

"Wrong," Kenshin said. He waved his chopsticks at her delightedly. "We played against your school in a Kendo match."

"I knew you had to know Kendo," Kaoru said excitedly.

"I'm a bit rusty," Kenshin said. "I am now horribly unfit. I keep telling myself that I'm going to practice every morning before work. Then I wake up late and I tell myself tomorrow!"

Kaoru laughed. "I walk to work and back," she said. "It helps keep me in shape."

"You're kidding. You look great ---- like a dancer or something."

Kaoru shook her head. "Not even close," she said. "I was hopeless when I took ballet lessons when I was six."

"So what do you do, Kaoru?"

It was the first time she could remember him using her name.

"I ... er, I'm a sort of cub reporter. I --- I want to be a journalist," she stammered.

"No kidding? Which newspaper?"

"Tokyo Now," she said.

"Aha. That's why you saw my ad," he said. "I bet I can guess the whole scenario now!"

She felt herself turning red. The truth was about to come out.

He nodded. "You're always on the lookout for a scoop, right? I never thought that the personals would be a good place, but I bet you can find a lot of material in those ads. 'Missing Heiress Found Working in Homeless Shelter'? That sort of thing?"

"Oh, no," Kaoru said. "I'd never use another person's problem to get a scoop. I'm not like that."

"Then why?" Kenshin wanted to know.

"Why what?"

"Why would you care? Don't you have other things to worry about?"

Kaoru looked away in embarrassment. "There's not too much exciting in my life right now," she said. "I share a place with two other girls. I go to work. I come home, eat and watch TV. Hardly the life I'd dreamed of living in the big city."

"So, why don't you do something about it?" Kenshin said. "There are so many things to do and ways to meet people. You could join clubs or take classes..."

"All of those things cost money," Kaoru said simply. "Right now I have to decide if I can afford fries with my shake."

Kenshin nodded. "I'm sorry. I'm really stupid sometimes. I remember exactly what it was like when I was getting started. I never had any money when I was a student. We used to tour the food demonstrations at the big stores until they got to know us and wouldn't give us any more pieces of cheese."

Kaoru laughed. "I've thought of doing the same thing."

"You should. You can get a well-balanced meal if you go on the right days. Better yet, you should find a nice guy who has a good income and is prepared to take you to expensive restaurants so that you can give up fast- food in favor of cuisine.

He looked at her then, his eyes holding her steadily. What was he saying, she wondered. That he wanted to be that guy and take her out to eat again? She wished she had been around men more so that she could be sure.

"So tell me about some of your scoops at Tokyo Now," Kenshin said.

Part of her wanted to lie, to tell him fantastic stories about underground corruption she had discovered at city hall. But she couldn't. She didn't want Kenshin to think she was something she wasn't. "No scoops yet, I'm afraid," she said. "The editor is a terrifying man called Soujiro, and I haven't yet gotten up the courage to egg him for a real story."

He smiled at her. "Don't worry, Kaoru. You can do it," he said. "Just don't give up."

"I hope so," she said softly. She was thinking that she wanted Himura Kenshin and a journalistic career equally badly and both seemed equally out of reach right now.

"I don't blame Tomoe for wanting out," he said. I knew she wasn't happy studying business, but I guess I didn't realize how much it bummed her out to have to sit through accounting classes every day." He looked up at Kaoru. "Do you really think she's okay?"

"I'm positive," Kaoru said with an assurance she didn't feel. "From what you've told me, I'm sure she's just trying to make a life for herself and she doesn't want to get in touch with anyone close to her until she'd made a success of it. I know exactly how it is ---"

She broke off. Kenshin seemed to understand. "You sound like you've been through it, too."

She nodded. "Exactly the same sort of thing. My parents wanted me to live a life on their terms, to stay home in Atami, go to college, take lots of home economic courses so I'd make a good wife and then get married like my oneechan. They laughed when I tried to tell them my dreams. They wouldn't take me seriously. Do you know that my Otosan and my ex-boyfriend actually suggested that I could write an occasional article for the local newspaper if I wanted to be a journalist?"

Kenshin laughed. "That's too bad."

"It sure is," she said. "In the end I couldn't take it anymore. I just got out of there and came to the city, and I'm not going back until I'm a success."

Kenshin nodded, looking at her appraisingly. "Looks are deceiving, Kaoru... What did you say your last name was?"

"I didn't. It's Kamiya," she said.

"Kamiya Kaoru. Good name for a reporter. 'And now over to Kamiya Kaoru at the Embassy'!"

Kaoru giggled.

"As I was saying," Kenshin went on, "looks are deceiving, Kamiya Kaoru," he said. "You look like Bambi, but you're tough, aren't you?"

"I'm learning to be."

"And you're making it on your own, so I have to believe that Tomoe is, too," he said. "I'm really glad you decided to come tonight, Kaoru."

She didn't know what to say because she wasn't sure what he meant.

"You said you believe in happy endings," he went on, "but do you also believe in fate?"

"I'm not sure."

"I have to believe that it was fate that made me put the ad in the newspaper so that you'd see it and be curious enough to come to Razzles. I might never have met you if you hadn't believed in happy endings."

They finished their meal and the waiter brought tea.

Suddenly she noticed that Kenshin was looking at her with such tenderness that she could hardly believe it.

"Are you ready to face the storm?" he asked.

"Yes. And thanks. That was the best sushi and sashimi I've ever had in my life."

"Then you're easily pleased, though it is pretty good sushi." He helped her with her coat and they went to the door. As the stepped out into the night, the street lamps reflected from the wet sidewalks. The wind seemed to have died down, though.

"Hey it's stopped raining!" Kenshin said. "Where do you live, Kaoru?"

She told him the address.

"Not too far from here," he said. "And not even too far from me. I live in one of those big apartment blocks.

Her expression didn't betray that she knew this information already.

"I wonder if there are any taxis at this time of night," he said, looking up and down the street. "Never when you want them in this city. But I've got a great idea. Why don't we walk part of the way back? Or have you had enough walking for one day?"

"On, no," Kaoru said. "I'd love to walk.

"It may not be smart to do it with me," Kenshin said, giving her a glance of much intensity that she felt her insides flip-flop, "but I'd say it is a risk we both should take."

Kenshin took her hand and they set off into the night. Kaoru wasn't even conscious of her feet touching the sidewalk. All that mattered was Kenshin's presence, close beside her, and his hand, string and warm in hers. It was like a daydream turned into reality, and Kaoru half expected to wake up with a jolt and find herself staring at her computer terminal. Could this really be her with this gorgeous man? Had he really decided that Tomoe was not going to come back to him, and was she, Kaoru from Atami, going to be the one to put Tomoe from his mind?

It was cold, but it was a crisp sort of cold that felt good as it stung the cheeks.

"Not too cold?" Kenshin asked. He stopped to touch her cheek with his other hand. "Hey," he said. You are cold. I should do something about that right now." His arms came around her and he drew her close to him. "People can die form frostbite," he said, his eyes glowing as he looked down into Kaoru's upturned face. "And the lips are especially vulnerable. The only thing to do is to restore circulation right away..." Before Kaoru realized what was happening, his lips came to meet hers. This was no gentle brushing, the way Tsukioka Tsunan or the dorks at home had tried to kiss her. These were the lips of a man, who lived as a fast- paced executive in the big city and knew what he wanted. They were warm and demanding as they crushed against hers. She felt his tongue forcing between her lips and she parted them with a sigh of desire. His hands slid inside her coat.

"My place is only a couple of blocks away and it's damned cold out here," he murmured as they drew apart. "What do you say Kaoru?"

Kaoru was still breathless and dizzy form his demanding kiss. She had never known feelings like these before, never known that she could want a man as badly as she wanted Kenshin right now.

"Okay," she whispered.

"Oh, Kaoru," he murmured, his lips toying with hers as he spoke. "You're so sweet, so desirable, so adorable...I can't wait---" He broke off, drawing apart from her, looking down at her, sharply and critically.

"What is it?" she asked, sensing the alarm in his eyes. "Is something wrong?"

"This is," he said suddenly. "I'm sorry, Kaoru but I really don't think this is a good idea after all. I mean, it's starting to rain again and you should get home and get on with your own life."

He released her and leapt toward a passing taxi. The taxi screeched to a halt and Kenshin bundled the stunned Kaoru inside.

"Take her wherever she wants to go," he said, stuffing a twenty into the driver's hand.

Then he crossed the street behind the cab and ran off into the night.

TBC

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Author's Note: So, what do you think? Don't hesitate to leave a message and tell me if I need to improve on anything. Thanks a lot! (-o-)