CAUGHT IN A WHIRLWIND

Author's Notes: I can't believe I got this out fast. And it's longer than the first chapter, too! Anyway, a bit of development and hints on Kenshin's and Kaoru's relationship in the past.

Also, I've edited the first part a bit due to an inconsistency I've found while I was typing this chapter. It can be easily overlooked as I only changed Kaoru having her own table to having her own office.

As always, I'd like to thank the ladies of triumvirata for the suggestions.

Disclaimers: I own not one character in this fic. They're Watsuki-sama's.


Kenshin looked out on the window. He held the ends of his pen in both hands and his eyes stared unseeingly at the chaos of hundreds of cars and people going about their business down below his office, lost in thought.

Kaoru Kamiya.

The woman with long, midnight locks that had softly brushed his cheek when he helped her earlier.

The woman with razor sharp tongue and quick temper when she had snapped and glared at him.

He had every intention of making his secretary search for what division she was under the moment Aoshi had told him in passing, although he didn't press for details, that Kaoru was in fact working in the company. But he didn't have to as he got pleasantly surprised at seeing her among the officers he would be closely working with.

"You called for me, Mr. Himura?"

Kenshin smirked before turning his chair around.

"Must you be so polite, Kaoru?" he asked, an eyebrow arching in inquiry at the woman standing across him as he replaced his pen to his table.

Kaoru shrugged. "You're my superior and business etiquette dictates that I should be respectful of my seniors," she pointed out. "Sir," she added, shifting her weight to her other foot.

"Do sit," gesturing to one of the chairs in front of his table. "Anything to drink?" he asked as she sat down.

"No, thank you."

Kenshin tilted his head and eyed her before pushing a button on one of the phones on his table.

"Bring two jasmine teas in here, Suzume," ignoring the widening of the eyes of the raven-haired beauty and the consequent glare thrown his way.

"You call me 'Mr. Himura' and yet you have the gall to glare at me, Kaoru?" he asked in amusement as he leaned in comfortably in his chair.

Kaoru rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. "What do you want, Kenshin?" she asked in return, dropping all pretenses of masked politeness.

Kenshin just smiled at her as his secretary came in and brought the two steaming cups of tea he asked. He sipped his tea and urged her to do the same. She ignored his request and balefully watched him. If she would always act like this when they're alone together, he wondered...

Placing his cup down, "How are your brothers? I imagine they're both finishing their college degrees already."

She was watching him carefully and he raised an eyebrow in return. She sighed.

"Yahiko is on his last term in European History and Yutaro is on his last year in Biochemistry." Kaoru paused, uncrossing her arms and leaning forward, bracing her hands on his table. "What. Do. You. Want. Kenshin?"

He watched her amusedly with lidded eyes before he himself leaned forward and tapped her nose with his forefinger.

"Nothing, Kaoru. I just wanted to know how's my former schoolmate and current officer," he answered before he leaned back down in his chair. "Your tea has gone cold," nodding at her untouched drink.

Eyes narrowed as she settled back into her chair and reached for her tea. She sipped a little of the cold tea, resisting the urge to grimace at the taste, before putting the cup back down on the saucer.

"Tea tastes much better cold," she flatly told him. "May I be excused?" she asked, ready to stand up.

Kenshin nodded his assent but before Kaoru even reached the door, "Meet me at 8AM tomorrow, at the Yamada Club. And don't be late."

She paused in her step but without turning back, she gripped the door's handle tightly and nodded once, before letting herself out. She did not see the arrogant smirk that graced the face of her boss.


Kaoru scowled the moment she was out of their esteemed EVP's office and stalked towards her own further down the hall, pinching her nose every now and then as she recalled how Mr. Himura had so casually touched her nose. The nerve of that man! He knew she couldn't do anything in this setup. He knew. And he was using it to his advantage.

Frowning, she sat on her chair and stared at the small calendar in front of her.

Saturday.

She hadn't really deciphered what he had said when he told her to meet him at the Yamada Club until she saw the calendar.

It was her practice day.

"Kuso!" she cursed lowly, hands clenching into fists on her lap as realization dawned on her.

He was going to test her skills in kendo.

But as to the why...

She had never really opened up to him during high school. He was her senior and he was also the captain of the kendo club. Although she had managed to get along very easily with the others and had taken to calling each other names, with Kenshin, she was a little different. One wouldn't really notice if she wasn't observed closely. There was a distance in her actions with him that was easily overlooked because she often teased him, too. Only her best friend noticed and knew why.

Kaoru had a crush on Kenshin.

Groaning, Kaoru spun her chair slightly and stared at the painting on her wall. Unlike Kenshin's office, Kaoru's had only one panel of floor to ceiling window and it's directly behind her table. As it was afternoon and the sun was glaring at her side that she had to draw the blinds close, she stopped her chair to face the wall on her right.

And stare at the painting of a couple holding each other close... In which the guy reminded her so much of someone she was trying to put out of her mind.

"Kaooooruuuu!"

The woman jerked from her musings and turned her head to find her grinning best friend inside her office.

"What do you want, Misao?" Kaoru asked suspiciously.

Misao made a face. "Do I look like I want something?" she asked in mock disbelief.

The other woman just rolled her eyes.

Misao huffed indignantly as she sat down.

"Well… How did your meeting go?" she asked slyly, turning mischievous green eyes to the reclining woman across the table.

Kaoru turned her chair so she was facing her friend. "He asked how my brothers were," she answered and paused. Then she scowled. "He wants to spar with me tomorrow."

Misao stared for a few seconds before promptly laughing.

Kaoru glared. "It's not funny, Misao."

Her glare didn't result into the outcome she wanted as the other woman continued laughing.

"Shut up."

Misao tried to control her laughter, turning it into giggles and another look from Kaoru had her grinning widely.

"Come on, Kaoru. You have to admit it's funny... Alright, alright. Amusing," she amended when she received another glare, and then another which had her bursting into laughter again. "Kao-love… it's Kenshin… You know… the guy who… you've been…" she was telling Kaoru in between laughs but she cut off as the woman widened her eyes and looked past her to the open door. "Oops?" she said sheepishly before standing up, closing the door, and sitting down again. "Kaoru... I remembered how he was back then. He certainly was interested in you but you never listened to me!"

Kaoru raised an eyebrow. "Interested? You really are delusional, Misao. He had Tomoe, remember?" she replied before rolling her eyes. She was not going to get her hopes up. Besides, that was ages ago, wasn't it? She wasn't affected even if her heart did a little skip when her friend mentioned that ridiculous theory again after several years.

Misao Makimachi and Kaoru Kamiya had been friends ever since they could remember. Their families had been living next to each other for so long that they already considered themselves one big family. Misao had often times, slept over at the Kamiya's when she and her older brother Sanosuke would get into a huge fight. And Kaoru was usually at the Makimachi's during afternoons to eat Aunt Okon's blueberry cheesecake or coffee crumble cake. When Kaoru's parents died by a car accident, it was the Makimachi's who helped her and her twin brothers to cope and to stand on their own feet. Hiko and Okon Makimachi treated them as their own and Kaoru and Misao felt more like sisters than before. But sometimes...

Misao snorted. "They broke up before winter break, remember?" she countered. "Kaoru... he fell for you that's why he cut it off with Tomoe!" she added dramatically.

It was Kaoru's turn to snort. "Oh, really? Just like how Aoshi is smitten... Wait," she paused, before glaring daggers at her friend. "You knew! You knew he was going to be assigned here!"

Misao had the decency to look a little bit sheepish. "I didn't!" but the protest died in her throat when the glare intensified.

"Kenshin would have told Aoshi , maybe even Sano, and they would have told you and YOU SHOULD HAVE TOLD ME, MISAO!"

The woman rolled her eyes. "Do you realize that you've just shouted at me and that even though the door's close they would have heard your ridiculous accusations at me?"

Kaoru huffed. "Don't turn logical on me, Misao."

"Fine, fine," Misao said with a wave of her hand. "All Aoshi told me, and no, Sano only had the vaguest idea, was that Kenshin was coming back here in the country but he didn't tell me when and why, alright. And I didn't want to say anything to you until it was definite. I was as surprised as you when he was introduced yesterday." She was relieved when the fury in her best friend's eyes toned down a bit. "Besides, I didn't know you were still harboring feelings for him..."

A crumpled paper thrown to her face was Kaoru's answer.

"I hate you," Kaoru grumbled, arms crossing over her chest in a defensive manner.

"No, you don't. You love me. You're just irritated because I know you and could read you easily," Misao pointed out.

Kaoru sighed in defeat and slumped back down on her chair. "I thought I'm over him, you know. I mean, I had Enishi then Chou and Kamatari, although that was a fluke. Besides, I was very young then when we met. He did correspond with me during his first two years in university, which was very much unlike him and it surprised me the first time I received a letter, but it slowly dwindled to a stop after I got caught up with Enishi and senior responsibilities. And now, he's acting like we're still friends!"

Misao stood up and circled the table until she was on Kaoru's side. "Look, Kao," she started as she leaned on the table and looked at the woman. "I told you before and I'm telling you now... He was, and maybe is, interested. You were too oblivious to other people's feelings because you focused too much on your own. And don't look at me like that! I do know these things." She stuck out her tongue for emphasis to which Kaoru laughed.

"Thanks, Mi-love."

"Anytime!" Misao chirped, before leaning over to peck Kaoru on the cheeks and walking towards the door. She stopped her strides to pull it open and looked back at the other woman in the room. "Remember to wear your black sweatpants and tank top tomorrow!" And with that, she hastily exited and closed the door.

Kaoru knew she was being childish when she threw another crumpled paper, towards the closing door this time, but she couldn't help it. Her world was Kenshin-free for a long time and she hadn't even spared him a thought, disregarding her dreams of him once in a while, and she was doing fine. True, her last relationship ended three years ago and lasted only for three months but that doesn't mean that she was about to go and grab the redhead. She wasn't hung up on him like that. Nope. She wasn't.


"Kaoru! Somebody called," a voice distinctly Yahiko's sounded the moment Kaoru walked into their house.

Exasperated, she rolled her eyes and dropped her keys on the small table near the door before going to the kitchen.

"Well, did you remember to ask who it was?" she asked, sitting down on one of the chairs and putting down her bag on another. She slipped off her high heels and rubbed her calves. A steaming mug of coffee was placed in front of her, courtesy of Yutaro and she smiled at him gratefully.

"Of course I did! What do you think I am? Some moron who doesn't ask who's on the other line?" Yahiko demanded as he appeared in the kitchen and it was his twin who reacted with a snicker. "Shut up, Yutaro. But anyway, it was Kenshin. I didn't know he was back," he continued, pointedly ignoring his brother as he leaned on the counter.

Kaoru choked on her coffee and Yutaro immediately ran to her and softly patted her back.

"Eh, Nee-chan, why that reaction?" Yutaro asked as he moved back to his position and glared at his twin. Yahiko merely shrugged.

Breathing easily, Kaoru shook her head. She didn't want to discuss the enigma that was Kenshin Himura. They knew enough and she didn't want them to think that up to now, she was still fostering romantic feelings for the former captain of her high school's kendo club.

"I just didn't know that he has our number," she answered instead, hoping to dispel any kind of thoughts the two might be concluding.

Yutaro acquiesced by nodding. "So, what do you want for di-"

His question was cut off by the sound of knocking on their front door and Kaoru looked at him then at Yahiko in question.

"Don't look at me!" Yahiko protested as he sped to open the door.

Kaoru grinned while Yutaro chuckled evilly.

As Kaoru contemplated on what she wanted to eat while Yutaro bustled about the kitchen, she dimly registered the opening of the door and Yahiko's exclamation.

"Kenshin! Come in!" she heard her other brother shout and she paused massaging her muscles in horrified realization of just who had arrived at their doorstep. Numbly, she continued to hear Yahiko's and Kenshin's conversation.

"What are you doing here? When did you come back?"

"I thought I'd stop over and visit and maybe help with dinner. I vaguely remember Kaoru didn't like cooking."

He wisely evaded her brother's second question by bringing up her skills in the kitchen.

Their voices sounded louder and Kaoru slowly slid into her heels as Yahiko snorted.

"Didn't like cooking? Did you mean that cooking didn't like her? Well, that didn't change in any way. Busu can still cook poison."

Not wanting to hear any more of her brother's comments and with Kenshin nonetheless, "I can hear you, Yahiko-chan!" And she stood up just in time to see them enter the kitchen proper with Yahiko muttering about not calling him -chan.

"Hey, Kenshin! It's been years! I was just about to cook dinner and was just waiting for Nee-chan to decide what she wanted," Yutaro greeted the redhead.

Why Kaoru forgot that her brothers idolized her boss when they were still in middle school was beyond her. And why they were acting all close and chummy as if thirteen years hadn't pass by was enough to bring her back to the situation at hand.

Kenshin Himura.

In their house.

About to cook dinner, if the way he was looking over Yutaro's shoulder was any indication.

"Why are you here?" she asked suddenly, her question halting the ongoing conversation he and her brothers were having about chicken breasts and cream.

Kenshin turned around and faced her, leaving Yutaro to fend with Yahiko's wandering hands over the food, with a smile that would have made her heart skip if only she was younger and if only this was an entirely different situation. Never mind that her heart actually skipped and accelerated just a tad.

"I thought I'd visit you next. I went by Aoshi's yesterday. I'll be visiting Sano and Misao later on," he answered easily.

"You don't need to visit them later. I'll call them over right now and we'll all have dinner here," she told him evenly, before grabbing her bag and heading out to her room and calling the Makimachi's.

And that was how she found herself merrily eating dinner, tossing back insults, and laughing good-naturedly later on that night.


Last Notes:
Next chapter will deal with Kenshin and Kaoru's and some other things. Anyway, as far as the plot goes... I really have no final decision as to how this'll end except that of course, the two will become a couple. As for how long... I originally thought this will last up to at least 3 chapters but now, I'm letting my muse decide for me so we'll see how long it'll be. I'm just going with the flow of my writing/typing so I hope you're enjoying reading this.