chapter six

Dinner was a simple affair.

That was, if you could call the several courses Shigure and Akito had requested be brought over from the annex kitchens simple.

Tohru and Kyo sat across from Shigure and Akito, a spread of food ranging from dumplings to grilled fish placed artfully between them. As the conversation dropped, Tohru reached for rice ball and noticed that Shigure was giving her a strange look.

"Uh …" she started, accidentally knocking a spoon in a nearby dish. "Is everything okay Shigure-san?"

The man blinked slowly and purposefully before leaning forwards and resting his chin in his hands. "I'm not sure," he said contemplatively, his eyes still on her as if he was trying to figure something out. "Have you done something different with your hair? I could have sworn it looked different when we were outside."

Panic fluttered in her chest and it was suddenly very difficult to breathe. "Oh, it's just that-"

She was saved from finishing her sentence when Kyo interrupted, an adorably grumpy look on his face that she couldn't help but appreciate. "What do you care about her hair you dirty perv," he grumbled with a deep frown as he picked at the food in his plate.

There was absolutely no doubt Kyo was annoyed that their quiet evening together had been cut into by Shigure and Akito's unexpected arrival, but she knew from his relative silence that he was at least trying not to be completely hostile.

From Shigure's responding grin, he knew it too.

"My, my, Kyo. You really are in a foul mood today aren't you. I'm sorry dear Tohru, I hope he isn't this horrid to you every day. I worry, since the two of you are all alone in that house all the time with no one to protect you."

Even without the older man emphasising his words for dramatic effect, it wasn't hard to catch onto where his mind was wandering. 'A little too close to the gutter,' Tohru could almost hear Yuki saying.

His remarks brought a hot flush to her cheeks and she chewed her food frantically to keep from having to respond instantly. Kyo didn't respond to the comment either, but Tohru did feel him tense up beside her, and when she risked a look at him he was stabbing at his chicken rather roughly.

"Is that a blush I spot, Tohru? I didn't mean anything indelicate I assure you, just an innocent comment over an innocent dinner. Unless there's something I'm missing of course?"

That seemed to be the last straw for her new husband as Kyo suddenly slid his chair back and stood up, slamming his fists on the table as he did so. "I just remembered there's somewhere else we have to be," he declared loudly, gritting his teeth.

"Oh really?" Shigure responded. "I was certain Tori said that-"

"Gure," Akito warned quietly, her face the picture of annoyance. She had been silently listening to her boyfriend throw around aimless comments this whole time, but it seemed even she had had enough. "Let them be."

"Ah, you're no fun," the older man moaned, leaning back in his chair and pouting at his girlfriend. "Besides, we're staying in the annex so it's not like we'll see them again before they leave. Sit down Kyo, you're starting to make me antsy."

Kyo's stomach grumbled traitorously, and despite his obvious desire to escape, he retook his seat with a defeated sigh. As soon as he was seated, he returned to openly glaring at Shigure. The tension between the two of them was rife, and Tohru had lived with the two of them long enough to know that if she didn't do something soon, it would only end in an argument.

As inconspicuously as she could, she reached under the table and placed her hand on Kyo's knee. His eyes drifted towards her at the touch and she leaned towards him. "It's just a meal," she whispered encouragingly.

The gesture seemed to appease him for the time being as he nodded, placing his own hand over the top of hers in response.

"She's right Kyo. After dinner, the two of you will have all the privacy in the world and you can make each other blush in whatever way you fancy. Isn't that right dear?"

If looks could kill, the glare Akito flashed at Shigure would have had him cold and dead on the on the floor in half a second flat. But as it was, he only grinned shamelessly and began to serve the next course.

Luckily, the food created a buffer for any disagreement that could have arisen from that particular look as the four of them dug into their over-laden plates.

"This tastes amazing," Shigure noted, lifting a forkful of grilled shishamo towards Akito. "Here, try some." She gingerly took a bite, blushing wildly at the obvious display of affection and Tohru couldn't help but smile at her friend.

Kyo however seemed to care marginally less about the scene before them. "Stop being all gross and cutesy Shigure, it doesn't suit you at all. Just finish eating and go," he griped, shovelling a much too large bite of food into his mouth.

"So, Akito," Tohru interjected loudly as their two partners began to bicker ceaselessly. "What was it that you wanted to talk about?"

"Oh," the other girl murmured, frowning at her food as she tried to figure out a way to put her thoughts to words. "Actually, it was about my wedding. I don't have many people I can call 'friend' … but you already knew that," she said with a nervous laugh.

"That's okay," Tohru said softly, nodding to encourage her to continue.

"We set a date for next year, and I was wondering if … maybe …"

Akito bit her bottom lip and frowned intently at her food. Tohru gave her a moment to finish her sentence, but it became pretty clear that she didn't plan to. With a concerned expression, Tohru leaned forwards but she needn't have worried.

As if sensing her distress, Shigure momentarily paused whatever argument he was having with Kyo and turned to Akito, casually wrapping an arm around her waist and leaning in close to her ear.

Tohru straightened up to give them some privacy, and even though she had no idea what Shigure said, it seemed to have been exactly what she needed to hear. Akito's face relaxed instantly, and a ghost of a smile appeared on her lips.

When she looked up at Tohru again, there was a determined fire in her dark eyes. "Tohru, I'd like for you to be my maid of honour," the girl said before any doubt could creep back into her tone. "If you want to that is … obviously. You don't have to if -"

"I do want to!" Tohru said excitedly, forgetting all about the food and almost knocking over her drink as she stood and reached across the table. "Akito, I'm so excited to get to be a part of your wedding," she squeaked, unable to contain her joy as she enclosed Akito's fidgeting fingers in her own comforting hold.

Kyo and Shigure, who had earlier promptly returned to squabbling, stopped once more at Tohru's excited outburst and turned to the two girls with intrigue. It didn't take them long to figure out what had happened.

When she retook her seat, Tohru caught Kyo flashing her a cryptic smile. He was happy for her. And even if he could never quite let go of his past with Akito completely, he was happy for her too.

As the conversation lapsed into various wedding planning details, talks of dresses, venues and flowers filled the room as even Shigure and Kyo put their two cents in and agreed on a few points despite their earlier animosity.

Whilst the two men discussed whether all the Sohma's would be wearing matching suits, Akito caught Tohru's attention with a gentle tap to the knuckle.

"So," she started, her voice pitched low so only Tohru could hear. "Have you two discussed marriage at all?" she asked, looking pointedly between Kyo and Tohru.

Tohru freaked out a little at the question, and in an effort to think of a response, she shovelled some mochi ice cream into her mouth and ate it as slowly as she possibly could. "Um … actually, we have," she replied eventually, hoping that the head of the Sohma's wouldn't push the topic further.

"Oh that's great," Akito responded. "I suppose it won't be long till the two of you tie the knot and have little Tohru's and Kyo's running around then."

Tohru choked on the spoonful of dessert in her mouth, coughing wildly as she tried to regain her composure. Kyo had her in his arms in seconds, rubbing her back with gentle soothing motions as Akito handed her a glass of water.

She took a sip, the cold seeping through her insides in cool wave of relief. "Thank you," she sighed softly before clearing her throat.

"Geez, would you take it easy. That dessert ain't going nowhere," Kyo said with a teasing grin, his hand still on her back. And then, more softly. "What had you eating like a maniac?"

Oh god, was she really going to have to talk about this.

"I'm afraid that was my fault," Akito stated. "I was just pointing out that I was looking forward to seeing more younger Sohma's in the family soon, and I seem to have caught Tohru off guard."

"Younger Sohma's?" Kyo repeated slowly, his confusion evident in his tone. "Is someone having another baby or something?"

"No, she meant your children Kyo," Shigure clarified, and this time it was Kyo's turn to cough in embarrassment. He mumbled a response quietly, but no matter how she strained to hear him, Tohru couldn't make out a single world he said.

"What was that?" Akito asked, frowning in confusion at his response.

"Nothing," he said, voice strained as he refused to make eye contact with Tohru. "Kids are great, but shouldn't you two be more concerned about your own?"

"Ah, we haven't fully decided on that front yet have we my dear," Shigure said, turning to his wife-to-be. "Besides, everyone's already convinced that the pair of you will beat us all in that department." He grinned wickedly at Kyo. "No pressure."

"Uh," Tohru smiled nervously. "We haven't actually talked about kids, but like Kyo said, they really are great."

"Oh. I was under the impression you'd already discussed it," Akito said quietly, looking more than a little embarrassed. Her other half on the other hand only grinned smugly, and from the look Akito gave him, it was clear where her misinformation had come from. The look was enough to make any normal man fall to his knees and beg for mercy, but Shigure's grin only widened.

"And with that, it seems we must be off," the older man said, standing and helping Akito to her feet beside him. It didn't take long for them to clear the table together and soon the four found themselves standing in the courtyard under the stars.

"Thank you again for such a lovely evening," Tohru said as she pulled Akito into a parting hug. "The food was amazing, and it was wonderful seeing you again."

"The same for you. And uh, Tohru," Akito said softly, holding onto her a little longer than needed. "Please ignore all the baby comments. I thought that …" she sighed softly, an air of suffering in her tone as she grumbled her fiancé's name.

Tohru couldn't help but giggle. "That's okay. I think he was just trying to make the evening a little more interesting and … it definitely worked."

"Yes, but still," Akito said, shaking her head as she pulled away from Tohru. "I'm sorry for bringing it up."

Kyo and Shigure were standing by the car that would take the older couple to the house at the annex, and Tohru couldn't help but watch with a full heart and quiet pride as Kyo and Akito shook hands and wished each other well in parting.

As the headlights of the car disappeared from view, Kyo sighed heavily and fell against the low wall dramatically. "That was one of the most painful experiences of my entire life," he groaned, words slightly muffled as he pressed his face squarely into his hands.

"Oh, definitely," Tohru giggled in agreement as she perched beside him. "But I'm so proud of you for going along with it anyway."

Kyo turned his face towards her with a shy smile and Tohru almost slipped off the wall as her heart stuttered at the sight. She didn't think she'd ever be able to put to words how beautiful her husband looked when he wasn't putting on a mask for the rest of the word.

"Do you think they figured us out tonight?"

"No, I think we pulled it off," she said, nudging him with her shoulder. "We make a good team, right?"

Kyo lifted his head and sat up straight, gazing up at the stars twinkling above them as he took in a deep breath.

"I sure hope so."

thank you so much for reading, let me know your thoughts if you have the time! i hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as i enjoyed writing basically *everything* shigure said and did lol. until next time, stay safe guys x