Love Hina belongs to Ken Akumatsu. This Fic belongs to me
Naru's still having trouble getting used to their new place.
After getting kicked out of Suzu's (And not too soon, she was really getting on Naru's nerves! Her and that creep Tatsu!), they managed to get another one of Mutsumi's friends to let them stay at their apartment as "house-sitters" since they had left town to deal with some family business for the next three weeks. Compared to Suzu's home, this one had less in terms of walk-around room, and a lot less natural light too. The balcony area outside was a tad more spacey, but with the weather the way it was, using it was a hassle, especially when they wanted to dry things outside.
She opens the door with the spare key she received, and takes in the smallness of the space once more. Mutsumi had brought out the kotasu to help keep warm and "ease the homesickness", but all it did was add to the room's natural claustrophobia. The best distraction for that, she decided, was studying. While she managed to avoid getting behind classes during her suspension, that didn't mean she shouldn't take the time to get ahead, especially with finals coming soon.
So she gets out her textbook and begins going over formulas, equations, readings, responses, whatever she can think of to keep her brain moving and focused on anything but today…
"Wow – She really did come back?"
Naru pointedly ignored the whispers as she zipped open her backpack and began taking out her books. All day yesterday she had been dealing with whispers behind her back and odd stares, and today was obviously not going to be different
"I heard she got suspended for beating up her boyfriend for dumping her?" someone whispered
"No, it was because he kept trying to get handsy and she couldn't take it anymore." another argued
"I heard it was because she found out he was cheating on her with her friend – you know, the one from Print club?"
She breathes through her nose, gets out her notes and paper to start writing what's already on the board. She wishes Mutsumi was with her, the okinawan had been rather supportive of her in the classes they were sharing, and had openly combated some of the whispers and rumors – but sadly this class was meant for those pursuing degrees in education, so naturally, she was on her own here.
"Are the teachers really okay with this?"
"Do you think she'll go crazy again?"
She stops to erase a spelling mistake. It's fine, you're back now. The term's almost over anyways, so the stupid rumors will die down soon enough. Everyone saw what happened – knows what happened. Just forget about it and focus on studying for your finals!
"I kinda feel bad for him, even if he is a perv like she said – I mean, imagine dating a nutjob like that–"
Her pencil slams down hard as she turns to stare at the gossipers, who immediately froze up in terror while the rest of the class went silent, as if begging her to force them to shut up right now.
And she did, goddamn did she really want to, want to send the assholes who had the audacity to side with that awful pervert – the one who took her home and then nearly jeopardized her education with his nonsense (and he didn't even get punished too either)! They've been in class with each other for months, and yet they were more willing to listen to rumors than Naru herself!
Luckily for both sides, the teacher returned at that moment, and everyone went back to preparing to continue listening to her lecture, Naru being the last to resettle into her seat.
It was fine. They could talk all they want but in the end, she knew she was in the right!
"So scary..."
Nothing she did was wrong….
(Right?)
Her pencil breaks, and she swipes it aside before getting out a new one. Damn it, she needed to focus! Finals were important – especially when she's missed a week and a half of classes thanks to that stupid Keitaro! If she didn't get a good score, she might end up having to take summer courses or worse, and she couldn't afford to cut into what little time she had in getting her room back.
Naru rubbed the remaining bits of sleep from her eye as she settled herself into the cushion, waiting for the others to sit. After receiving Haruka's call, everyone agreed to meet at Seta's, since it was the only place they could all reasonable meet at and because Su and Shinobu did have school tomorrow. They also considered waking Sarah, but decided against it, figuring the young girl needed her rest.
Once they all settled around the living room table, they turned their attention to the "host" of their little gathering, who looked absolutely haggard despite being the one having called all of them together.
"So, what's the big deal?" she mumbled, eying the brunette woman as she leaned against the table. Though it had been hours beforehand, Naru was still feeling a bit irritable about their conversation earlier, and it was hard to look at the woman without her hand flexing on instinct.
"First, we need to get everyone up to speed." she says, and gave Naru a slight nod that caused the redhead to stiffen as it reminded her of the other problem angering her to the point it had hindered her sleep until the call.
"One of the idiot's new pervert buddies is coming early." she growled, and the responses were immediate – Su's face had gone crestfallen in an instant, while Mitsune and Motoko had gone wide eyed shock. Mutsumi had moved from her seat to hold the despondent Shinobu, who had already begun crying.
"W-wait a minute! How is that fair – We still have a week left!" Mitsune cried, sounding drunk but having a surprising bit of sobriety in her lit (Naru could only assume she was still in process of moving towards a hangover). She curled into herself and made a motion to grab a bottle that wasn't even in the room.
"Well not anymore! Whoever it is is coming the day after tomorrow, so we have to do something by then."
Motoko, who was rightfully furious, slammed a fist at the table "I knew that dastard wasn't trustworthy! He must have planned this from the very beginning!"
Naru eyed the splotches on the swordgirl's neck, and suppressed the urge to flinch. That rash of hers really did seem to be getting worse... "What did you expect from stupid Keitaro? Especially with all the stunts he's been pulling lately!"
The group made noises of fear and despair while Naru's arms crossed, anger boiling at the unfairness of it all. She hadn't had a chance to really let the reality sink in since Haruka gave her Keitaro's message, too wrapped up in upset over everything else going wrong in her life, but now that she spoke of it, she couldn't stop the rage sinking into her blood and veins as she saw that her boy-no, their manager (he lost the right to "boyfriend" after what he did back on campus!) really was going all out to force them to play his sick game! It was like dealing with Kanako all over again, only-
The creak of the table made her realize she was gripping one of the legs hard enough to form cracks, and she had to take a few breathes before releasing it to avoid splinters.
"In any case," Haruka says, suddenly speaking up and getting their attention "We need to do something. At the rate things are going, you all might not have rooms to return to at this point."
That got them all to quiet down, and Naru's jaw was slowly becoming sore from how hard she was clenching it. She could already see it now – an army of bespectacled horny degenerates arriving at the dorm steps, sleeping in her room, touching her old things, walking around with their asses and...things hanging out, all while their ringleader sat by and laughed as he encouraged them.
Su raised her hand "Su could make something to keep the new person away!" only to lower it "or at least, she could if she had her lab..."
Despite that though, Naru's interest is instantly piqued as the idea formed. Even if they couldn't do it with one of Su's machines, it wouldn't be too hard for one of them to keep this new pervert from setting camp in their home….
"Yeah..." she says, looking at the rest "We already know when he's coming – if we can find him before he can get to the inn and meet with Keitaro, we can make it clear he's wasting his time and force him to go back to wherever the hell he's from!"
Mutsumi surprisingly frowns "That seems risky," she says, thick brows furrowed worriedly "I mean, what if he's dangerous?"
Mitsune nods in agreement "She's got a point – for all we know, they might be some secret underground martial artist fighter or something?"
"A-and it's still boys..." Shinobu, who had finally stopped weeping, mumbled, adding on "They can be so scary..."
The redhead snorts derisively at their concerns before cracking her knuckles "Oh Puh-lease, they're probably just as weak and wimpy as he is! If they even try anything on me, I'll knock'em into next week!"
"No need," Motoko declares, raising her bokken, "Just direct him to him, and I'll help him learn the folly of assisting in that dastard's villainous plot! We must prevent Urashima from setting up any more cowardly traps for us!"
The fact her suggestion made such traction caused Su to beam slightly "Su can't make a machine to stop him, but she still has some of her old things, maybe she can make a new resident tracker!"
Despite still having slight misgivings, Mutsumi seemed to find Naru confidence agreeable, and Mitsune even cracked a small joke about "avoiding unnecessary violence" with her favorite red dress, so she seemed okay with it. Which work, the more hands on board, the better their chances!
However, Shinobu seemed to be the only one still on the fence, twiddling her thumbs anxiously "B-but, if Senpai finds out about it, he just get madder at us and we'll never get to come back. Maybe we should-"
The idea of that (or maybe just the fact it's being considered as a detriment) is enough to make her slam a fist into the floor "Oh who cares how he'll feel!" Naru cuts in, letting out a breath when she's quietly motioned to lower her voice in consideration of the still sleeping Sarah upstairs "Those are still our rooms! We have every right to keep people out of them!"
Shinobu withers in an instant, looking ready to sob again, and it's only Haruka's interruption that stops it.
"That's not the point Naru," Haruka states, holding an arm out in front of the quivering brunette "We can't afford to give Keitaro any reasons to take back his offer, and interfering with the new residents is guaranteed to do just that."
Naru wants to argue, but the look she gives (the same one she gave when she handed her the news in the restaurant), forces her to swallow any other protests she had with a huff.
"Okay, then how about we just tell them there's no room available and that the asshole lied? That should get rid of him without Keitaro being the wiser!"
The older woman frowned "That's still the same problem. He'll find out what you did and just end your leases outright."
Naru frowns back, feel something uncomfortable bubble up in her chest, only being smoothered down by the presence of Mutsumi's hand on her shoulder
"Well, how about this?" the Okinawan began, and soon the girls fell into their usual roundtable of attempting to spitball usable ideas that could get them back their room.
But no matter what they came up with, from a declaration of an honorable duel to the death ("We'd get sued"), to building a robotic doppelganger ("No time."), to "negotiating" ("I'm pretty sure Keitaro's told him all about you"), to simply politely asking them to not take their rooms ("That's...not how it works sadly."), Haruka would shoot it down without mercy, and the constant rejections were making the building headache Naru was getting stretch across her scalp.
"Well what do you want us to do then?" Naru hissed, standing up abruptly after the next rejection "And don't suggest the stupid lease again, but no one here wants to sign it!"
Haruka goes quiet at that as the rest exchanged concerned looks, and her next expression turns into one she hadn't seen in a while – that she had only brought out back at the beginning during the start of Naru stay at the Hinata, when she was still reeling from her mother's remarriage and everything seemed to be spiraling out of control. She had made the mistake of bumping into the woman during her cigarette break and snapped at her, getting that look as a result and finding herself on her knees, begging forgiveness.
"Before that, I'm going to ask a question." she says, eyes slowly shifting over every person present "and you all have to answer – and I mean honestly, no BSing or anything."
Naru felt a little apprehensive at the last sentence, but nodded in agreement, and slowly, but surely, everyone followed.
The older Urashima nodded as well, and her dark eyes suddenly turned sharp, as though to bore through Naru's very core "Do any of you really want your rooms back?"
The responses was so unanimous it almost sounded like one voice rather than four. Only Naru stumbled, because she had been so off-put by the sudden question and the way it was phrased that it took her longer than it should have to answered
Haruka made to grab a cigarette, only to paw at air and click her tongue irritably before adjusting herself in her seat.
"Well none of you are acting like it," she states, voice suddenly cold "Talking about interfering and tricking and lying and all that nonsense, but none of you have said anything about what to do after that. Not anything about negotiating with Keitaro or convincing him to reopen the inn to you all – just stuff to keep the new person out and continue spinning your wheels like you've been for the past three weeks now."
The way she says all that is cutting and hurtful (almost as much as Keitaro's own words that day), and Naru can't help help but bristle at the implication. They all get ready argue back (or at least defend themselves), but Haruka cuts them off with her next sentence, "Which won't even help, because even if you drive them off, there's still the rest of them that coming after the end of next week. Do you think you can stop that many people at once? Do you really think that'll keep Keitaro from ripping up your leases right as soon as the week's up?"
The reminder of the forgotten others hung heavily in the air, much like a silent blade, and the questions that followed caused the girls to shiver at the sudden chill it brought as their heads hung low. Naru's mouth bobs up and down as she sputters, tries to come up with a counter-argument – They weren't "spinning their wheels"! They were just...still planning on what to do. It was a complicated situation after all! Even she knew that! The jerk had heartlessly tricked them out of their home, and they needed to be just as ruthless if they even wanted even a small a chance at getting it back. These things take time after all, and besides, they were still a team, and a team needed to be united. It did no good if no one could agree on a solution.
But even thinking all this, none of the words came out of her mouth, and she couldn't help but shiver when she feels her eyes burn.
Haruka lets out another sigh "I know I said I'd help as much as I can," she says, doing another look around the room as each girl hunch in on herself anxiously "And I still want to – which is why I'm telling you that this isn't a situation where you're allowed to be picky anymore. If you really, honest to the gods want your dorm rooms back, you need to be willing to grit your teeth and… and take a loss…."
Naru's shoulders ache with how high she has the arched "So that's it then? You want us to allow that...gross pervert and his new lackeys to force us into his new contract!? Just grin and smile while he takes our freedom away!"
Haruka doesn't respond, but the lack of one is answer enough. Naru slammed her fist into the carpet as she leaps to her feet, teeth gritted and tears leaking out in abandon with no care she was in front of her friends right now. She couldn't care because Haruka, the woman she looked up to, the person they all considered a foster sister and honorary den mother – had basically said they had to bow their heads to the enemy.
The rest just shared a look of despair as their shoulders and heads fell one by one. If Haruka wasn't going to support them anymore, if she really thought signing the lease was the only solution, then that meant...that meant…
There really was no hope.
She stops to adjust her glasses and reread the paragraph, erasing her previous answer to replace it with the correct one. Ugh, she needs to stop letting her mind wander like this! How the hell does she plan to get her degree if she keeps letting herself get distracted. Honestly, she's worst than-
Naru freezes as she see Keitaro up ahead, trying to reshuffle whatever books he had on hand to rebalance them. He looks completely absorbed in his task, not even minding the people having to swerve around him in the hallway as they made their way to their own classes.
She almost moves towards him, still hurt and raw despite a near week and a half passing already, only to be stopped by Mutsumi's gentle grip and the sudden shouting of his two nerd buddies suddenly popping out from around the corner, the thinner one wrapping an arm around the brunette's shoulder before leading him away and out of her sight as she's moved the opposite direction.
(It should make her happy, but all it does is deepen the cracks in her heart)
Naru's hands crashed on the top of the kotatsu, desperately tried to find another problem to solve, or equation to answer, or even essay to write, to distract from all the uncertainty and inevitability threatening to swallow her whole – but eventually, she reached both the end of her books and her limit, and the tidal wave of anxiety crashed down on her.
This was all that stupid bastard's fault! Doing all this right after saying he was in love with her, after leaving with Seta and coming back different, after doing all that and standing up to his nutjob sister, after...after….
After saying I was your promised one….
The redhead's fist curled tighter as tears threatened to spill out. He…he couldn't do this to her! H-he confessed to her first after all! Was so stupidly, clumsily persistent on proving his feelings! Still going after her even when she said "no" so many times, only giving little inches of herself because he kept pestering her and he was so pathetic and seemed so sweet and nice and said he loved her so many times and gave such a dumb, silly smile whenever she came into the room until she finally realized her feelings and gave in to that stupid, persistent fool of a man who she would slowly come to realize she couldn't live without.
After all that hounding and crying and drama, after she at last remembered that day in front of the inn with that little boy and girl where she made that silly promise and a desperate wish that took so many years to grant for herself – he was just going to dump her just like that! She, she….
She held back a sniffle, and her eyes began to sting
NO! Don't cry! I don't care anyways! I never- She choked back another sob, brown eyes turning glassy with anger …He probably never liked me any way, just wanted to get into my pants like every other guy! Guys just see girls as free sex dolls and that's it!
Naru pulled down her glasses to rub her face with her sleeve, rage building slow and burning away the urge to cry. Yeah…this had to be his way of getting back at her for not kowtowing to his shameless advances on her, it was the only other explanation she could consider aside from his freaky adoptive sister suddenly returning and disguising herself as him. He was mad she and the other girls saw through that "innocent little foureyes" routine and was just using all those little "incidents" to try and get them to let their guard down! Its how all men operated, like those creeps who liked to ogle her back home, and those dumb flirts who would try and follow her from cram school, and…Him.
He acted the same way, and so did the others afterwards – pretending to be nice and caring and saying he loved them but left when he couldn't get what he wanted anymore (When she finally took notice of the way some of them looked at her)! She shouldn't have expected any different now! The men in her life have always been like that, ever since she gained that person – pretending they loved and cared about her, then throwing her away or just flat out abandoning her when the chance came or they wanted to upgrade to something better!
Except Seta maybe, Seta was nice at least…He treated her so well, and still did after all these years of not seeing each other! Even offered to let them stay here when he had so little room, unlike a certain someone – he even offered to talk to the bastard for them and help convince him this stupid farce of his wasn't going to win him any favors with anyone. It was enough that Naru felt her heart flutter a bit at the kindness of her former tutor, the warmth only be quashed by the turbulent swirling rage and betrayal that filled her mind. It was no wonder she…
No, you're getting distracted! Focus on Keitaro! Focus on the perverted snot-nosed moron who broke your heart and stole your home from you!
She shook her head to clear the cluttering thoughts piling up. That's right – the dorm was her home, her safe haven, her refuge of purity! He shouldn't be allowed to take it from her! She survived having to leave her birth house, she survived Seta coming back into her life, she even survived that nutjob Kanako; she wasn't going to be thrown out by her…pervert of an ex boyfriend and manager! And she was sure as hell not going to let him defile their sanctuary with more perverted men!
She was going to fight this one way or another.
Energy renewed, Naru took out on of the books on her right and flipped back to the notebook page she was working on before. Nothing beat doing a quick review over what you just studied after all!
"Don't think you've won, bastard!" she sniffled through gritted teeth, "If you think this will make me give up, you've got another thing coming..."
Naru is still crying, but she's made headway in wiping away most of her tears. Shinobu offers a handkerchief and she takes it gratefully.
"And what of yourself?" Mokoto asks, eyes narrowed in judgment "Are you going to give up and willingly place yourself under Urashima's thumb."
"I didn't say that." she huffs, "I'm just saying we aren't in a position to be waiting around right now. Signing the new lease seems to be the only option..."
Naru's face scrunches with the grimacing frown that takes over her face before hearing Haruka sigh heavily and suddenly add "…But – that doesn't have to be all it is."
Slowly, but surely, each girl looks up, confusion and hesitance draped over their forms as they all turned to Naru, who had leaned back started at what she heard.
This woman had just gone through telling them that they had no other choice but to sign their lives away under the idiot's suspicious creepy contract, now she's saying there was an option B that she hadn't deemed interesting to tell them?
Coughing to clear her throat, Naru straightens herself "So what are you saying? There's a way to get back our rooms without having to follow that stupid new lease?"
Haruka taps the table, and waits until Naru sits down, and she and the others lean in
"If you're willing to listen, I might have an idea on how to get things back to normal…."
[1 day and 1 week remaining until the end of Term at Tokyo U]
At last - Naru's POV!
As stated before - it's difficult writing for Naru without getting into bashing territory. When you look back at everything in canon, it's hard to just...try and put a neutral spin on it, let alone a character focused one. But I did persevere, and hopefully I did give her character some justice, hopefully ;-_-.
Naru, I feel in this situation, would immediately victimizes and lionizes herself at the same time somehow. She just seems like someone who would claim herself too strong to fail, while also stating that whatever "weakness" caused her problem is not her fault. Clearly, she would never be in this situation if it weren't for letting her guard down and allowing Keitaro to "show his true colors" and enact his evil plan, not that he should have in the first place! He's clearly overreacting! None of them have done anything to make his act this way and he's definitely going to get an earful when they finally get their rooms back!
Compared to the others, Naru's a lot more emotional about losing her room, because for her, the Inn in the place where she got into the school of her dreams, made new friends, reconnected with old ones, escaped her changing family, is supposed to fulfill the promise that pushed her to improve her health, grades, and strength. Everything good thing she's encountered in her life is connected to and because of the Hinata, and because of that, is fearful of losing it and in turn everything else. Which is why getting kicked out has been so detrimental to her - She's supposed to get her "happy ending" there, and now that Keitaro's "ripped it away", everything gone bad, and why else would this happen if not for him stealing her sanctuary from her.
(Not to say this thought-process isn't understandable - she started out as a sickly kid who's dad basically walked off on her and her mom and felt she barely had anyone around she could rely on during that time, only getting the chance to change and improve herself through the outside help of Seta and her friendship with Keitaro and Mutsumi.)
The sad thing is, Naru did (in canon and in the fic) honestly have genuine feelings for Keitaro and wanted to try and work things out - unfortunately, all her combined issues screwed that up for her, and the stuff she said during the break up argument last chapter just kept making the hole she was digging deeper until she got to where she is in this chapter. Now it's just a questions of what happens first: Her realizing it and trying to climb out, or her hitting rock bottom and breaking her shovel on the way down
Oh, someone had messaged me earlier about this so I want to get this said/out of the way - I have no plans of pairing Keitaro with one of the other girls, an OC, or just anyone in general. The relationship and subsequent breakup with Naru was extremely messy for him, and he has a lot of stuff to work through. Maybe in a post-fic world, he might try dating again, but as far as the story here goes, Keitaro is maintaining the status of a single person for...well, until the fic finishes.
Thanks for reading, and see you next chapter!