Underneath It All
Chapter 14: Cars
Disclaimer: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin
Recap of the last chapter:
"What would you like me to cook for breakfast?" asked Kaoru; reopening her eyes with a genuine smile.
Kenshin smiled back.
"I think I'll do the cooking."
---
Monday morning came slow and wary. While the young couple walked down the hallways of the educational institution, curious stares and mild whispers were heard like a chain reaction. Was it a dream? Was Kenshin Himura really doing what they thought he was doing? Was he actually holding the hand of Kaoru Kamiya; the girl who argued and clashed with him every single day? It was definitely a dream; a very twisted and sick dream… right?
As they entered their science classroom, those seated in their desks automatically raised their heads to see who dare attended Professor Shishio's domain of torture. Immediately every set of eyes was glued to the pair as though Kaoru and Kenshin were some new form of absurd species.
The couple paid them no mind as the continued their way to their respectable seats. Kaoru sat down in a seat a few rows in front of Kenshin, while he continued his way to his seat next to Soujiro. They were still in the same seating arrangement that the Professor had assigned when the second semester started.
"Hey, what's up with you and Kaoru? Are you two going out?" asked Soujiro quietly with his usual smile on his baby face as Kenshin sat down.
He waited patiently for an answer while he watched Kenshin close his eyes momentarily before opening them in the direction of the person who asked the question.
"Yes," said Kenshin in a tone that held a hidden tint of happiness.
"I see," said Soujiro as he gradually averted his attention to Kaoru who was chatting away with Misao who was in a seating-pair perpendicular to Kaoru's seating-pair. Aoshi was sitting perfectly still, facing the front of the room. He was a great contrast to his partner; the bubbly Misao. The sight just made Soujiro's smile grow wider. Focusing his gaze just on Kaoru, he continued to speak, "you can definitely trust her."
"Hm?" Kenshin flashed his attention to his friend.
"She's a loyal one with honor. Just looking at the way she treats her friend shows how she trusts those who trust her," explained Soujiro. Kenshin stared at Soujiro in surprise for a second before looking in the same direction as Soujiro. The two boys just watched the raven-haired girl as she giggled along with her friend.
Kaoru Kamiya, thank you, Soujiro said in his mind. He slowly allowed his sapphire orbs to drift toward the redhead next to him, Because of you; my dear friend is starting to smile a true smile; something that I haven't seen in a long time. Soujiro's brief joyful thought was cut when he noticed a scowl appear on Kenshin's face.
Changing his sight, he saw the source of Kenshin's displeasure. There, sitting next to Kaoru was Tomoe. She was currently engrossing herself into the conversation between Misao and Kaoru. Soon after, she was a part of their conversation while her lips moved in response.
Soujiro unconsciously frowned. "She's up to something," he said. Kenshin nodded in agreement.
There was something in the way she acted towards Kaoru that didn't seem right…
Turning her head slightly, Kaoru gave Kenshin a quick smile before turning her head back to the front as Professor Shishio entered the room.
"You all better have enjoyed your weekend because I'm going to work you like cattle for the next five months. You may think it's a little early to start thinking about the finals, but I want you all to ace your science final. How well you do on that exam determines how good of a teacher I am, and I am a great teacher. I don't care how well you do on your other exams, just as long as you ace this one. So you pigs better pay attention or I'll be sure to have those who don't ace the exam clip my toenails and wax my back over the summer," said Shishio.
Everyone inwardly shivered, especially Sano and Megumi. If they thought that clipping his toenails was bad, imagining what it would be like if they had to clip his toenails and wax his back was enough to turn anybody's stomach.
"Now, we'll be starting chemistry today so take out your chemistry textbooks and turn to page twenty-one," ordered Shishio.
Everyone did as they were told and soon they found themselves exploring the wonderful world of the periodic table.
---
After a few more classes, the clock struck noon and the students were dismissed for lunch. Kenshin walked out of the social studies classroom, followed by Sano, Soujiro and Aoshi.
Due to a change in the new semester, Kenshin found himself in a few different classes than Kaoru. While they would both be in the same class for the core subjects, like math, science, social studies, and English, they were both in different options. When he had Foods; she had Financial Management, when he had Photography; she had Art, and when he had Design studies, she had Mechanics.
The last option that Kaoru chose had always perplexed Kenshin. No doubt Kaoru had a tomboy side, but the fact that she didn't mind getting herself covered in grease and oil sometimes made Kenshin wonder. She was definitely different from all the other girls, with the exception of her two close friends.
The group of four boys stood at the side of the door while the rest of the students flooded out to enjoy their break. Aoshi stood next to Soujiro and Sano, who were bickering about today's lunch menu.
"Hmm, should I get the 'usual'? Or maybe I should get a salad… nah, too light. I know! I'll get chili! But wait… Megumi is always complaining that that stuff makes me gassy. I don't know… what do you think Sou?" asked Sano.
Soujiro quickly shot an amused expression to Kenshin, who returned a similar smirk. He turned his attention back to the pondering Sano who currently had his right index finger pressed against his lips and his eyes cast heavenward in thought.
"I think you should have Megumi," replied Soujiro with a smirk.
Unfortunately, Sano was too caught up in his own thoughts to hear what Soujiro said. After realizing that his shorter companion said something, he mumbled, "Huh? What did you say?"
"Nevermind," Soujiro waved his hand as though brushing away Sano's curiosity. Sano gave him a suspicious stare before averting his attention to a person currently walking out the classroom door.
As if feeling his gaze, Megumi looked up. An irritated expression made its way to her face as she retorted, "What do want now rooster? Is it money? Homework? Hair gel? Because you know what; my answer is going to be the same as always, 'No!'"
Kenshin and Soujiro couldn't help but smirk. Although Megumi had been in their class for the past few months, they had never really witnessed her witty character. Yet, now from hearing her smart remarks and seeing her up close, they could see why Sano was attracted to her.
They had to admit, Megumi was something else. She definitely could have become one of those popular preppy girls obsessed with shopping and boys, yet she instead chose to be a sophisticated young woman with smarts in the medical department.
"Well… what is it?" hissed Megumi as she narrowed her dark eyes at Sano who seemed as though he was in a trance. Rolling her eyes heavenward, she kicked him in the shin.
"Ouch!" yelped Sano as he doubled over to clutch his wounded leg. Soujiro and Kenshin broke out in a chuckle, while Aoshi arched his brow.
"Stupid rooster," muttered Megumi as she continued her way past him, shortly after followed by Misao and Kaoru.
Kenshin took that chance to grab Kaoru's elbow and pull her close so that his mouth was near her ear.
"Where do you want to eat lunch?" he whispered; his warm breath tickling her ear.
Kaoru gave out a soft, delighted giggle at the feel of his breath, "well, actually I-"
"I'm ready to go, Kaoru," a voice said from behind Kenshin.
Immediately he whizzed around and shot a small glare at the girl standing before him. Tomoe was unfazed by his deathly expression and simply stared back at him with an emotionless face.
"Actually, I'm going out with the girls for lunch. I promised Tomoe last week that I would show her that Italian restaurant a couple blocks from the school. They have really good lasagna," said Kaoru from Kenshin's side. She was oblivious to the heated intent resonating from Kenshin to the dark eyed girl in front of him.
"Oh!" exclaimed Kaoru as she slapped her hand to her forehead, causing Kenshin to reluctantly shift his gaze from Tomoe to Kaoru. "How rude of me, Tomoe, this is Kenshin Himura. I should have introduced you earlier."
"Hello, Himura-san," spoke Tomoe with ease.
"Hi," gritted Kenshin through his teeth. Kaoru watched from the side, the odd chemistry between the two. They were supposed to shake hands now, right?
As though reading her mind, the two 'strangers' brought up their hands at the same time and shook. A smile graced Kaoru's lips at the sight.
"Can we go now?" asked Misao impatiently as she hopped from foot to foot. It was like Misao to always be moving.
"Aa," replied Tomoe as she slipped her hand out of Kenshin's and stepped toward Kaoru. Kenshin had to fight the urge to step in front of Kaoru defensively, but he knew if he did that than Kaoru would wonder why. He also knew that he had to tell Kaoru about Tomoe soon, but he just hated to see her upset.
"I'll see you later," whispered Kaoru in Kenshin's ear before placing a peck on his cheek and hurrying after her friends who had begun walking down the hall.
Kenshin fisted his right hand as he brought it up towards his face. After a long moment, he relaxed his hand and opened it.
There, scrunched up on a small piece of paper were the words that read,
Rooftop, after school.
A tense atmosphere cloaked the empty hallway, mind the four boys. Aoshi's eyes were closed in deep thought, Soujiro was looking in the direction the four girls disappeared down, and Kenshin was busy glaring at the crumbled paper in his hand.
Sano finished rubbing his sore shin and stood up straight. Taking in his companions' aloof expressions, he quirked his left eyebrow. What just happened?
"So…" started Sano, breaking the intense silence. Soujiro blinked out of his stupor and turned to the tall brunette. Kenshin jolted straight as though he just woke up from a nightmare. And Aoshi, his body unmoving, opened his icy orbs.
Seeing that he caught his friends' attention, he cleared his throat to speak.
"Yeah, uh… what's for lunch?"
---
It was now last period and Kaoru found herself in Mechanics with Sano. It was odd how she became friends with the goofy rooster before Kenshin, who she was now technically 'going-out' with.
In the beginning, Kaoru new that Sano was different from Kenshin; that being because he appeared to smile more often and he even talked to Dexter, the gross-looking guy who sat in the back corner and picked his nose when he thought no one was looking.
She never knew the story of why Kenshin was so prejudice toward people who weren't 'popular', until recently when he told her over the weekend. She was sort of shocked to find that someone used him for her own benefit to gain popularity, which was the reason for his distrust towards others.
A small smile made its way to her lips. Kenshin had opened up to her and decided that she was more important than his stupid reputation. She didn't care how popular he was or how much money he had; she liked him for him. And nothing would change that.
"Oi!" a voice broke Kaoru out of her happy thoughts. Turning her blue eyes to the source of the voice, she came face to face with no other than Sano. "You ok? You seem a little out of it," his brows nitted together in concern.
"Oh… uh… yeah! I'm fine, I just blanked out for a minute," said Kaoru as she pasted a warm smile on her face.
"Well, ok. Kenshin would probably pound me if anything happened to you in Mechanics," said Sano as he turned back to the car that they were fixing together. A blush crept its way to Kaoru's cheeks as she absorbed what Sano said.
After allowing her cheeks to cool down, she placed her gloves on her hands, tied her apron around her waist, and followed the same procedures as Sano.
A few minutes passed by as they concentrated on giving the old car an engine check. The strangling silence was beginning to irritate Sano.
"Hey, Kaoru."
"Hmm?"
"Is… the fox seeing anybody right now?"
"Who?"
"Megumi." Kaoru paused and looked at Sano who had slightly flushed cheeks.
"Well…" Kaoru spoke as she turned her attention back to the automobile, "I don't believe she is. The last time I checked she was single."
"Ah…"
Another space of silence filled the air while they worked away.
"… Is she interested in anybody?"
"I suppose there might be someone…"
"Like whom?" he blurted out, maybe a little too fast.
"She told me that she liked him around the start of the year," replied Kaoru as an evil smile twitched at her lips.
"Who is it?"
"Why do you want to know?" questioned Kaoru.
"Just out of curiosity," replied Sano as he began fixing some of the oil tubes. The evil grin on Kaoru's face widened.
"Aoshi," she said.
Immediately a ton of oil exploded out of from under the hood and Kaoru quickly ducked to avoid being hit. Once she was sure that there was no more oil, she stood up and bit her lip to suppress a laugh. Sano's entire front was covered in black oil, especially his hair and face.
"Megumi… likes… Aoshi?" he muttered to himself in a low tone, loud enough for only Kaoru to hear.
"Oh! You meant Megumi. I thought you said Misao. Silly me!" exclaimed Kaoru as a few giggles escaped her lips.
Sano slowly turned his head to look at Kaoru in disbelief.
"So… Megumi doesn't like Aoshi?" asked Sano with his eyes still wide open.
Kaoru shook her head before saying, "Nah… she said that he's too reserved for her tastes. Besides, Misao already staked her claim on him; she'd probably murder any girl who tries anything on him."
"If Megumi doesn't like Aoshi, then…?" Sano asked hesitantly.
"I'm sorry, Sano. I'm sworn to secrecy, but… I can give you big hint," replied Kaoru, making Sano's face light up.
"Yes?"
Kaoru leaned in closer to him until her face was a foot away from his.
"He's kind of dumb," she stated simply.
Hearing this, Sano deflated. Great, now I know it's not me, pouted Sano in his head.
Kaoru inwardly smirked when she saw his expression.
He is dumb.
---
The dismissal bell rang, causing the students to dash out of their classrooms in attempt to escape the Prison of Education.
Kenshin walked down a now empty hallway of the upper floor and made his way to a familiar door. Pushing it open, he was greeted with a flight of stairs. Once he finished making his way up the steps, he paused when he reached the door that separated him and the person he dearly loathed.
The only source of light was the small lines that traced the outline of the door. Closing his eyes, he inhaled a deep breath. Keeping it in, he opened his eyes with a determined glint to them.
Pushing the door open, bright rays of sunshine flooded his vision. As his eyes adjusted to the change, he focused them to a figure standing on the far side of the roof. Still with his determined expression, he began to walk toward the female.
He stopped when he was five meters away from Tomoe. He stood facing her while she continued to face the fence that separated her from a potential death. She just stared out over the school grounds with her usual emotionless face.
"So you came," she started, "I'm glad. There is something that must tell you; it's about that time."
Kenshin shrugged and looked away, "Whatever," he muttered.
"I didn't mean to hurt you that much. I just thought it would be better for the both of us if…"
"If what? If you played with me like a toy and threw me in the trash when you got bored?" hissed Kenshin as he tried to control his anger.
"Yes," she replied. Before Kenshin could retort back, she continued, "What is more important to you Kenshin? Your pride? Or your reputation?"
He eyed her in a mix of anger, frustration, curiosity, and confusion.
"It's your pride isn't it?" she answered for him.
The anger was slowly disappearing and was being replaced by curiosity. He nodded his head; to answer her question and to urge her to continue.
"I did love you, Kenshin, I truly did. Yet, after a while I realized something about me that I knew would hurt you. That "realization" led me to determine that we could no longer be together romantically. But I knew that you would not let me go so easily if I just dumped you and left. You're a man who seeks reason and answer. So… I had no other choice but to find a way to hurt you; make you detest me, loath me, and hate me.
"I knew that you treasured your pride before your reputation. It would have ripped my heart knowing that your spirit was broken because of me, so I decided that breaking your reputation was best. Yes, I crushed your reputation at that school and I may have crushed your pride a little, but at least I crushed it in an honorable manner for your sake."
Kenshin bowed his curious head, taking in the words. It still did not make sense to him. He did not understand why she did what she did. What was she even talking about? What did she mean?
Tomoe continued before he had the chance to ask her any questions.
"Kenshin, I wanted to hurt your reputation instead of your pride because…"
---
Ok, I know you people probably want to kill me right now; I finally update and I leave you with a cliffhanger. Mwahahahahahaha! OMG! I am such a cow aren't I? I really shouldn't be so cruel…
Anyway, just to let you guys know, I have no knowledge about cars whatsoever. I don't know if there are any oil tubes underneath the hood. But please do not get on my case about it in your review. Alright? Just bare with me here!
Also, in the next chapter you will find out why Tomoe intentionally hurt Kenshin. I also hope that you guys liked this chapter. I know that it's practically been five months since my last update, but it took me a while to finally get some inspiration on this story. Sometimes I wish that I could update every week like some authors, but I can't. I will try my best though to update as soon as I can.
I apologize for any spelling and grammatical errors. I tried to find as many as I could.
Anyway, PLEASE LEAVE A NICE HEALTHY REVIEW FOR ME! THAT WOULD BE VERY NICE!
