Disclaimer: I am way too broke to own Rurouni Kenshin.

Cupid's Secret

Chapter Two:

Alley Adventure

The dingy smell of trains and the city filled her nostrils as she once again took a deep breath. Patience is a virtue she reminded herself for about the seven hundredth time. The bus was late again, and she would to actually get somewhere on time for once. Just once. That was all she was asking for.

Flipping through a chick magazine, barely even glancing at the pages, she waited a few more seconds and then finally gave up. Dusting off the invisible dust off of her fading jeans and picking up her purse, she got up from her seat on a bench and waded through the crowd on the sidewalk, determined to find a shortcut.

Now if I go here and then cross here this should get me there and now all I have to do is just turn…here.

Kaoru looked down at the mentioned "here" and found herself staring into a dark alleyway. You know the type; the ones in all of the movies when the sweet, innocent girl goes in and no one sees her ever again. The type where thugs and criminals hang out just waiting for victims… you get the gist.

Okay, time for plan B…

Then Kaoru looked at her watch, and found out she didn't have the time for plan B. She stepped in the alley. See, this isn't so bad! Step number two followed step number one and the next thing she knew, Kaoru was walking (slowly, admittedly, but walking) down the middle of the dark, creepy alley. How could you be such a chicken? I mean c'mon, you know that movies exaggerate all those things anyways.

The sound of footsteps echoed behind her and Kaoru found herself speeding up and then she slowed herself down. Calm down, I mean it! The footsteps got closer and closer but abruptly stopped and Kaoru almost turned around but then they continued, much softer but a little faster until they were right behind her and a hand touched her shoulder and

BAM!

Kaoru whacked her assailant with her purse. A fact that as a kendo instructor, she would have been a little bit more proud of if her eyes had been open. Now, she opened them triumphantly, eager to see her victim. Hmph I bet whoever it was was not expecting that! To horror, there was not a dirty, grungy man in rags with a gun was at her feet but a clean man in a pressed suit and tie with a suitcase. Red pooled behind his head even though Kaoru hadn't thought she had hit him that hard.

Now, Kaoru didn't want to discriminate but she was pretty sure that he wasn't going to mug her.

"OMG I'm so sorry!" she practically yelled.

Which the man only responded with "Oro"

Slowly, he peeled himself off the ground, waving off Kaoru's help. Now that he was standing she could see (and kicked herself for her stupidity) that the dark red wasn't blood but long auburn hair. His bangs where long; almost completely covering his violet eyes that were tinged with blue. His face was smooth, almost feminine except for a cross-shaped scar on his left cheek.

He was not just cute or the highschool definition of "hot". No, this man was beautiful. And possibly bruised. Could this day not get any worse?

"I'm sorry!" she gushed feeling her face turn as red as his hair. "I just, I just wassolateandthetrainwasevenlatersoifoundashortcutbutitwasdarkandcreepyandyou'veseenallthosemoviesandtheniheardfootstepsandtheonlyweaponihadwasmybagand…."

He stopped her with a quiet laugh. "It's fine. I should have been more careful." He took a glance at her still very horrified face. "I'd be happy to escort you the rest of the way." He said this all in a good Samaritan kind of way and sounded like he could be trusted but her mother had always warned her about men in dark alleys…

However, she didn't want to appear rude. Actually, she didn't have time to appear rude so she consented because she didn't want to walk alone anyway. He smiled and started walking ahead. A movement out of the corner of her eye caused her to stop and turn around.

What she saw surprised her. In the corner slightly covered by garbage, lied a thug, just like the one Kaoru imagined when she hit the guy with her bag, beginning to regain consciousness with fresh bruises all over his face.

She looked at the man before her; with his mysterious looks and unreadable presence and the man at her feet.

"Hey you'd better hurry up before you get mugged by another business man." He teased, stopping for her to catch up.

A huge part of being a matchmaker was being able to read people. And this guy was completely indefinable. He seemed nice enough but there was something about him that seemed a little off. Like he was holding back.

As she stared into his violet orbs, she couldn't help feeling that what she was seeing was only the surface.

Who is this guy?