'We Fell in Love'
Disclaimer: Ken Akamatsu wrote 'Love Hina' and he owns the rights. This tale written for fun, and I seek no re-dress from it.
Writer's notes: I am introducing more characters who will also be a part of this story as it moves along. Many are new and many are quite familiar.
-Chapter 2-
While she ran across campus after stopping by an off-campus coffee shop, Kitsune headed over to her first morning lecture of the semester. With her, she carried a small digital video camera along with her smart phone so she could record the Sensei's lecture in class. It was for when she studied later that night in her dorm room because she had to work when school finished for the day. She developed that habit because she liked to put the buds into her ears and study when it was quiet in her dorm room.
Her roomie Mariko had a computer animation design class first hour, so they said that they would catch up with each other at lunch.
Kitsune found that she was not the only class participant who used that method of note-taking in class.
This Sensei was open-minded when it came to new forms of note-taking, as long as it did not disrupt the flow of his class and that person stayed awake.
"Ohayō, Ruka-san. Did you have a good summer?" asked Kitsune of an older classmate who had become a friend.
The young man she asked this of was an aspiring manga artist who had already published three Tankabon series under an up-and-coming pen name. He was part time college student, who also did construction work and was happily married.
"Yeah, I did," answered Ruka, "Thanks for asking, Kit. Oh yeah, Hiromi-chan wanted me to me to say hi. She said thanks for all of the candy." His wife Hiromi was six months pregnant with their first child.
"Tell her hi for me too," said the smiling Fox.
More students filed in.
"Ohayō, Sato-kun. Ohayō Kotone-chan," said Kitsune who spotted two more of her good friends, "Did you two manage to get away at all during the summer like you wanted?"
The couple headed down the lecture hall steps to where she sat.
"No, Kit," answered Sato as he and his girlfriend sat with Kitsune in the same row, "I had to work and her mother had to go away on business. So, she had to stay home during the summer break and watch her Otōto." (Writer's note: younger brother)
"How was Osaka, Kit?" asked Kotone. She always seems to smile no matter what the circumstance.
"Good. My Onii-chan has finally found himself a nice girl," said Kitsune who chuckled with the others seated there, "Her family owns a small inn just outside the city limits. My mom likes her, so that's something at least."
It became very quiet in the lecture hall as the Sensei and his grad assistant suddenly walked in to get the class going.
"Okay everyone let's settle down now, I've got a lot of material to cover and it will deviate slightly from what's in the syllabus. You can have your recording devices on, but you have to stay awake in my class or I'll turn the sleeper's device off. Now let's begin," said the Sensei without a pause as he sat on the edge of his desk.
The class laughed along a bit with him before he started in.
-On another part of the University campus-
The only thing that Keitaro had ever splurged on in his life, was when he bought himself a motorcycle. Actually, his father gave him the money, because he wanted to use it as well. It was not just any motorcycle; he had purchased a well-maintained 2014 Honda™ Goldwing© that came fully loaded and had very low mileage. The accoutrements on this rig included: a big windscreen, AM/FM stereo with CD player, heat ports to keep him somewhat comfortable when the weather became colder and a sidecar that Kanako absolutely loved. The colors were blue and white, decked out in all chrome trim and to finish it off, there was a large pair of leather saddlebags that hung over the sidecar.
(Kenichi believed that he was lucky to get this peculiar bike, as it was not generally sold in Japan. It was made for the North American market. It also helped that Keitaro has had his motorcycle license since he was eighteen, so every chance he got, he went out riding. That, and Kenichi borrowed it from his son when he and Kasumi had time on the weekends. At first, she was a little dubious about being seated in the sidecar, but after watching the fun her kids had tooling around, she now wanted to go everywhere in it when Keitaro did not use it.)
Even though a family chauffeur could come and take Kanako to school, she loved being seated in the sidecar as Keitaro drove her to schoolover in Kanagawa Prefecture.More than once, Keitaro has complimented his sister about her new uniform. He said that the new blazer, blouse and pleated skirt combination fit her much better than the old sailor fuku she had worn during the spring semester. Smiling at her brother, Kanako had to agree with him.
After he had dropped Kanako off at the Academy, Keitaro headed off to the art school in downtown Yokohama.
As he rode through big city, Keitaro received quite a few envious stares from other drivers on the highway. He ignored them as he came to his exit and turned off the highway.
The student lot for motorcycles and scooters came up on his left, so he pulled in. There were a few more stares from some of his fellow students when he parked his bike.
When he took off his helmet, Keitaro spotted a beautiful woman as she got out of her car. There was a portfolio and an art supply bag with her as she headed towards him.
"Kei-kun, I'm still a bit ticked off at you for not drawing me topless at that bar two weeks ago," said the woman named Watanabe Kina as she stopped by his bike. She had wished that their relationship was a lot more than it was at present. Since junior high, he has not once taken the bait that she had dangled in front of his face. It was quite enticing to say the least. But there was a deeper reason than that however, he was first and foremost, a gentleman. That in of itself attracted her to him, as it was a rarity in Japan at their high strata.
"Yeah right, Kina-chan," said Keitaro who laughed in reply, "It was bad enough that you flashed us all even though that place was full of drunken men." He then reached for his art supplies out of the left saddlebag for his first morning class.
"Hey, Keitaro. Is she hitting on you again?" asked a young man named Hanabishi Daisuke who approached them, "I wish you'd hit on me sometimes." He was Keitaro's best friend and part of a group that he regularly socialized with.
With a smirk, Daisuke teased the young woman next to him and put his arm around her shoulder.
"Hentai," Kina said playfully as she jabbed him slightly in the ribs, "what would Ringo-chan say if she knew you were hitting on me." Hanma Ringo was Daisuke's girlfriend and Kina's best friend.
Keitaro snickered at the duo's antics as they headed off to class together.
"Kina-chan, she would probably thank me for keeping you off of Keitaro," said Daisuke as he teased her back, "You're almost like an added appendage when we're all together." He was not interested in Kina romantically.
"And Dai-kun, he keeps ignoring me too," said Kina with a fake pout. She looked over at Daisuke when the three entered one of the classroom studios for their first class of the day.
Keitaro knew to say nothing, as he set up his easel for the first hour.
He knew that Kina was a very gorgeous woman, but she did not interest him as dating material. He thought of her only as one of his best friends. On occasion, he had drawn her portrait, as he had with the others in their clique, but only offhandedly.
As stated, there was someone else that she liked. He was extremely shy though, but if he was to ask her out, she would not turn him down.
Back to reality, as they all settled in while the class began.
As fall had started, there were many changes around the country. Schools started up again and the bustle of people transitioned away the warm summer weather. Although the temperature still remained comfortable, it would not be long until the everyone felt the full effect of the seasonal change.
This included a certain business owner as Kenichi also noticed something that was quite obvious to his trained eye. Although he has a good full-time staff in all of his shops, it seemed that when school started back up, the youthful energy sometimes seemed to be missing from his places. He and his wife were good judges of character because the high school and college students that work for them always brought so much life with them.
Nevertheless, he knows that the youthful energy will return after school is over for the day, as well as on weekends and holidays.
Family was important as well. Kenichi had his only niece in mind on his mind at this moment. He always attempted to either call or look-in on her whenever it was possible. Kenichi and his older sister were very close before she passed away. He also knows how hard Haruka took her mother's death. And, with her break-up from her fiancé Junpei, she really had no one to confide in now except for him and his son.
She and Keitaro were very close. Haruka has a lot of his artwork hung on the walls of her place.
-An important call-
"Moshi, moshi. This is the Hinata Tea Shoppe, Haruka speaking," said the voice on the other end of his cell phone.
"Ohayō, Haruka-chan," said Kenichi, "How are you doing and how's the tea shop today?"
"Ohayō, Oji-san," she replied, "I'm glad you called. I'm good and the place is doing great. How are Kasumi Oba-san, Kei-kun and Kana-chan?" Haruka always wanted to know how they were all doing, as she cared a lot about her immediate family.
"They're all good," said Kenichi, "Kei-kun asked me to say hi the next time I called you. He wanted you to know that a package with a formal portrait of Yoko Onee-chan should be arriving there in a few days. He said he was thinking of you when he drew it."
"Tell him thank you for me," (Silent pause-some throat clearing) said Haruka, after wiping away a tear she continued, "Oji-san, I want to tell you that I need a new product distributor. I'm really growing fast here. The company I have now can't keep up with my demand even though they have good stuff. Plus, I want to expand the number of items that I sell here daily. Can you help me with that?"
"Sure, fax me a list of what you need and want," he answered with a smile in his voice, "I'll have one of my drivers change his route to bring you your order. I'll even send you a wholesale price list with the first order because it's not listed on our website. Do you want candy and meat buns too?"
"Yeah, that would be great," responded Haruka who cheered up at his reply, "The kids and college students would love that. Plus, some of the old farts would too." A snicker followed. She rarely did that these days, but a call from her uncle usually brightened her spirits.
The conversation then took on a more serious tone.
"Have you heard anything from our solicitors about MacDougal-san's daughter, Sarah?" asked Kenichi. He knew that Haruka had a full plate with the young girl's disposition still being decided by a Kanagawa Prefecture magistrate. This was another sad case in his niece's life.
"Yes, and thanks for asking, Oji-san," replied Haruka thoughtfully, "A Prefecture child advocate will be bringing her by soon so that we can see each other again. It seems that they're letting her chose who she wants to be with since Sarah-chan is an American." The addition of the girl here would bring a very bright ray of sunshine into her life.
"One last question Haruka-chan if I may, how's my Kaa-san?" asked Kenichi with some trepidation.
He and his mother did not always see eye-to-eye on things. She was upset with him because he would not allow her take Kanako along with her when she went on her 'World Spa Tour'. His daughter said no to that, so both he and his wife backed her up as the put the kibosh on that subject.
However, neither know the whole truth behind the reasons for that yet.
"She is doing well, the old bat," said Haruka off-handedly, "she had a tendency to show up here in Hinata City anytime day or night to still test my skills. I think she's worries that Kei-kun will be able to beat her the next time she tests him. I know that I was really shocked when he matched her move-for-move the last time they sparred and that frustrated her to no end. I think he is actually trying not to beat Granny if you ask me."
They both chuckled, because they know that to be true.
The air in both rooms seemed to lighten.
"I'll tell you what Haruka-chan," said Kenichi who sounded like a proud father, "Not only has Kei-kun gotten better, but so did Kana-chan. At the last tournament, my daughter stood there aloof on the mat while her opponent went through some kind of Kata form before charging. Kana-chan just simply stood aside, jabbed two pressure points on the other girls back rendering her immobile. Her Sensei cried foul, but there were no rules against what Kana-chan did, so she won the tournament. Kei-kun though wasn't interested in fighting this year because of other commitments."
Knowing his son's reasons for not participating, he respected his decision. Keitaro's temper sometimes had a tendency to get the better of him when he fought. He nearly crippled his last opponent, when the other young man used an illegal move that was easily reversed. Keitaro needed to be restrained after he went ballistic and 'blacked out'. He punched the man's shoulder so hard that the audience could hear bones shattering. By all accounts, his move was legal, but the ferocity of that strike startled everyone who had witnessed it. Later, Keitaro said that he could not remember what had occurred during the match.
"I don't think that the old girl would like it if Kana-chan did that to her as well," said Haruka who laughed aloud, "Her pride is already bruised enough Oji-san." She knew that her grandmother was actually quite proud of all three of her grandchildren, but sometimes did not let on for some reason.
"Yeah, just don't forget to e-mail or fax me what you need and want. I can start delivery tomorrow if you'd like," Kenichi said in closing.
Work was beginning to call out to him again, so he had to abruptly go.
"Arigato, Oji-san," Haruka said before said she hit the disconnect icon on her cell phone, "I'll get my order off to you right away."
The line then went dead.
She knew that her uncle was very reliable and could get her anything that she wanted or needed.
-We switch to the Tea Shoppe for a moment-
Stepping back into her office, Haruka walked over behind the desk and sat down in her large comfortable chair. She slid open the top desk drawer, pulled out a large legal-sized sealed beige envelope and set it down in front of her.
'Obaa-san, you've really stepped in it this time,' Haruka thought as she looked at the front of the package addressed to her cousin.
It read: Urashima Keitaro, Tokyo Prefecture.
-A conversation of a personal nature-
"Keitaro-san, would you come see me before class started?" asked the class Sensei. This Sensei knew Keitaro quite well outside of the University setting as we shall see.
"How can I help you Nomura-Sensei?" asked Keitaro in kind to the man seated at the desk in an office just off a studio classroom.
"Please close the door, Keitaro," Nomura-Sensei said to him quietly, "This is a personal query."
Doing as requested, Keitaro closed the door behind him and sat down opposite the teacher.
"What's up, Junpei?" asked Keitaro in a more familiar tone. When they were here at the school, these two men mostly kept their relationship at a professional level.
"Keitaro is your cousin Haruka-chan seeing anyone right now?" the man asked without preamble and hoped for a negative response. Junpei dated Haruka in high school and they became lovers in college. That was before her mother's death and Urashima Hinata throwing a monkey wrench into his future plans with her. In addition, their schedules and a lot of bad timing had kept their relationship from resuming after their careers got going.
"I don't think so, Junpei," replied Keitaro offhandedly, "I can give you her cell phone number if you want."
He knew that his friend here had been a romantic rival for Haruka's affections with Seta Noriyasu who taught over at Tokyo University.
"I'd like that," said Junpei genuinely surprised.
"Yeah, her friend Julia MacDougal died not too long ago," said Keitaro, "and Haruka-chan took her friend's death really hard. She's now in a custody fight with Seta-san for her daughter Sarah, and that takes a lot of her time right along with the Tea Shoppe. So, I think that might answer the question if she's seeing him or not."
His friend smiled when he heard about Haruka's circumstances. It gave him hope of a renewal in their relationship.
From his father, Keitaro had heard the whole story of Junpei and Haruka's breakup almost five years ago. His Obaa-san for some reason did not approve of Junpei and had given Haruka the Tea Shoppe so she would be obligated to be there instead.
At least this is what the family thought, if only they knew the whole story.
To this day, Haruka was still pissed off with her grandmother and would give anything to have him back in her life. If only just to spite her, but at the same time, she was still very much in love with him.
With time and the proper karma, both may get their wishes fulfilled.
-At Urashima's downtown shop-
"Urashima-san, how much do you charge now for these new pork buns?" asked a part-timer who had just punched in.
"Yotsuba-san, they're the same price as the beef ones," answered Kenichi with a smile. All the Urashima stores have lately added a little deli area that sold lunches and mid-afternoon food items freshly made for those on the go. It was a popular and fast-growing area of his business.
In her usual breathless manner, Kitsune came in the front door. She had only three morning classes today because her afternoon one was cancelled due to the Sensei's absence due to a cold. Her notes from their previous lecture would keep her up-to-date until the next class. A note on their office door placed there by the teaching assistant read that they would be back on Friday for that day's lecture and that they should study what they had so far.
Smiling because the store was busy as always, she knew that the time would fly by very fast.
"Konnichiwa, mina-san," Kitsune said almost eagerly and dropped off her stuff in the office. She then washed her hands, grabbed an apron off the back shelf and tied it up in the back of it after slipping the top loop over her head.
Over on the office notice board, she saw what was on the list for that day.
"That will keep me going until closing time," said Kitsune in a thoughtful tone. She loved the fact that she did not have to close up today.
Nodding to herself, she headed out onto the main floor.
After a few minutes, an odd question came at her from Kenichi.
"Kitsune, are you seeing anyone right now?" asked Kenichi who quietly inquired of his assistant manager.
Looking askance at him for a second, she did not know how she should answer that.
"Urashima-san, you're a happily married man, aren't you?" answered Kitsune with a teasing question of her own. He has a good sense of humor, so she wants to see where his line of questioning would lead.
"Gomen, Kitsune. That wasn't for me," he replied wanting to clear up the misunderstanding, "I was just making small talk while trying to find out a little more about you."
Standing next to her boss, Kitsune was helping him with some chocolate-covered pretzels and caramels.
With a shrug, she said, "I'm not seeing anyone right now Urashima-san. My busy schedule doesn't allow for it. Plus, I have a new elective course starting next Monday, so that'll cut into my time even more."
Kitsune putting candies on the trays for store display sales.
"I hear that," said Kenichi, "I was the same way when I attended the school like you. That was long before I had opened my first store. That's how I met my wife." He almost inadvertently let the 'cat out of the bag'. But at the same time, he said the last part as a large floor mixer went on, so she missed the end of what he had said.
'Thank the Kami for that one,' Kenichi thought as he breathed a sigh of relief.
Since it was early afternoon, the place is really hopping and kept at it for the rest of the business day.
Kenichi could not bring the subject up anymore, it was 1:30pm and he had to go.
In addition, Kitsune was flat out. She worked hard to keep up with the demands of the shop's sweet-toothed customers.
Working straight thru until the 5:00pm closing time, Kitsune knew that someone else would be here to lock up today. For once, she did not have to wait for everyone else to finish.
Seeing that as an opportunity, she grabbed her stuff and ran out the front door. Kitsune wanted to catch an earlier tram than usual as someone else walked into the back door.
"Good timing, the front door is now locked," said Keitaro happily. He watched while the employees scrubbed everything down before they left for the day.
One last walk-through before he set the alarm, stepped outside and locked the backdoor.
-End of Chapter-