Thank you for your patience! Here's the last chapter of my story. Finally.
Even on the second floor, Tohru could hear the voices from the other side of her bedroom door. Upon entering her room, she had quickly slipped into a night dress and then, hearing Kyo's voice rise, had pressed her ear against her door to try and make out the conversation taking place. Kyo's footsteps were thunderous as he left Shigure on the first floor and when his own bedroom door slammed shut, Tohru flinched. And then there was silence.
Tohru backed away but left her hands on the wood, echoing how she had placed her hands on Kyo's chest mere minutes before. Was he coming back to her? He had said he would, but the deafening silence hung heavy around her, making her feel suddenly and unbearably alone. Had she been too forceful? He had seemed to reciprocate the same ardor she had felt but now she doubted herself. She'd never been particularly pretty or bright, she knew that. What did she have to offer him? The fear of rejection began to creep coldly into her thoughts, causing her body to tremble. What if she had done something wrong? Something that made him uncomfortable and pushed him away? The insecurity gnawed at her insides, a new ache in her chest replacing the heat from before. How would she face him tomorrow if he decided she wasn't worth returning to?
There was the soft knock on her door. Tohru's head lifted towards the sound, startling her out of her anxious musings. She twisted the knob and opened the door, revealing Kyo in a loose cotton tee shirt and boxers. He looked flustered at seeing her in a nightgown but his expression changed to that of worry when he saw Tohru had tears in her eyes. He took her shoulder gently and led her backwards into the room so he could close the door behind him. Without the light of the hallway, they stood in darkness, their eyes slowly adjusting to the moonlight shining through Tohru's window.
"What's wrong?" Kyo asked, his hand remaining on her shoulder.
Tohru sniffed and wiped her eyes hurriedly. "I-I'm sorry. For a minute there, I thought you weren't going to come. I thought I had disillusioned you."
Kyo cradled her chin in his hand, his thumb wiping any stray tears. "Dummy...I'm not going anywhere," he said, his voice laced with affection. He leaned in and kissed her forehead, letting his lips linger. He moved to softly kiss her eyelids, and then her cheekbones, which were still a little damp from her tears. He found her lips and took her face in both hands. He sucked gently on her bottom lip and her breath hitched in her throat. She exhaled a shaky breath. He surrendered her lips and bumped his forehead lightly against hers, reminiscent of his usual affectionate head bonks.
"You let me know if you wanna stop at any time, 'kay?" Kyo said.
Tohru nodded. "Let's make a new memory, Kyo-kun."
He kissed her again, this time with more fervor. As she eagerly returned the kiss, he slowly led her to the bed. When the back of her knees touched the comforter, she buckled and landed onto the mattress. Leaning back on her arms, she looked up at him. He was stunning; the moonlight highlighting the muscles through his soft, thin shirt. His cat-like eyes shining effervescently. Tohru felt that ache in her belly again; she wanted him. Now.
She reached for him, her hands running up and down his body, from his chest to his muscled stomach and lastly his hips. Her hands ended up flat against his hips, her thumbs lazily moving up and down the 'v' lines of his abdomen. Kyo took a sharp breath, surprised by the sensation of her hands and her boldness to explore. She was surprised too but she loved every second, his skin radiating heat under her palms, her fingers leaving tingles in their wake. Kyo's breathing became uneven and ragged; he dropped his hands onto Tohru's shoulders abruptly.
"Shit, Tohru. Wait, wait, wait. I'm not going to be able to control myself if you keep going. I don't want it to be over yet, so-" He swallowed hard to steady himself, "-we should slow down a little." His eyes were squeezed shut, but when he peeked down at her, she was looking up at him from a position he had only imagined in his late, late night fantasies. She pulled back, removing her hands, and a shudder ran through his entire body as she did so. He tried to make his breathing even, slowly regaining control of his physical and mental state.
Meeting Tohru's gaze again, of whom seemed pretty satisfied with herself for making him squirm with pleasure, Kyo felt his own instincts turn feral. He smiled crookedly at her, swiftly picked her up by her underarms and placed her further onto the bed. She nestled into the pillows, breathless in anticipation. He let out a soft growl from low in his throat and propped himself on his elbows right in front of her knees.
He kissed them, one and then the other, and said, "Now it's my turn to please you." He held her knees and paused, "If you want me to." She nodded, honestly not sure what to expect, but as ready and curious as she could be. Kyo's lips grazed the inside of one knee and then slowly placed more kisses down her thigh, never breaking eye contact with her. Tohru's eyes fluttered closed as she collapsed into her pillows as he did indeed pleasure her.
She writhed under his touch, her head whipping from side to side as she tried to contain herself. She clenched the bedspread underneath her so tightly her hands shook. "Oh Kyo-kun, please don't stop," she whimpered weakly.
He didn't. He pleasured her until she peaked. As she came down from the high, her body relaxing and twitching, Kyo took Tohru's hand in his. When she was able, she returned the squeeze. Kyo propped himself up on his hands and knees and he crawled forward until he was leaning over her. Tohru watched him through her eyelashes, her breathing slow but heavy. Seeing him there with his muscles tight and defined from holding his weight above her and his bangs falling in front of his eyes only made her want him even more. She had never been this close to him before and she couldn't get enough. He quirked a smile and lust immediately pooled warmly in her stomach. Her need was far from quenched.
"You alright?" He asked quietly. Tohru nodded and brought her arms around his neck. Threading her fingers through the hair at the nape of his neck, she brought him down to kiss her. When they broke away, he chuckled, "More than alright, huh?" She giggled and they connected again.
Trying to prevent himself from transforming, Kyo dropped onto the mattress beside Tohru, and they lay there for a while, kissing as their hands ran up and down each other's bodies. At some point, the strap of Tohru's night dress fell off her shoulder and instinctively Kyo righted it back in place. His hand lingered there, his thumb delicately fondling the strap longer than he'd intended. Intrigued by the smooth skin of her shoulder, he absentmindedly ran his thumb up and down it. He said, "I can't believe you'd wanna do any of this with someone like me."
That caught Tohru off guard. "Why wouldn't I? You're so kind and caring-," Her face then flushed and she continued shyly, "-and so handsome. Anyone would be lucky to be with you, Kyo-kun."
He chuckled mirthlessly, "Lucky is a strange way to put it. Anyone who gets involved with me never seems to have much luck."
"Well, Shishou is lucky to have you as a son. And I consider myself very lucky to have met you and to be by your side now," She said matter-of-factly. It was amusing to him in a strange way that she seemed so okay with this. He wasn't used to it.
Kyo sighed and put his hand in Tohru's hair by her neck. He pulled his hand away slowly, letting the strands fall individually from his grasp. "You don't know what I've been through." This wasn't said in an accusatory tone, but more of in a 'you wouldn't understand if I told you' way. Although, this was Tohru. She of all people might miraculously understand or at least empathize.
"You're right, I don't." Tohru conceded, her tiny hands clutching his palm that was resting between them. "But whatever path you took made you who you are today. It led me to you and for that I am grateful."
Kyo felt a pang of emotion throb in his chest. She didn't have to fix everything. No one could do that. But just having her say those words was all he wanted. Once upon a time he had wished that he could have her by his side as he faced his demons, as he hopefully healed in time, as he grew and matured and became the man he wanted to become - but how could he truly ask that of her?
Couldn't he pretend for one night that he was normal? That he wasn't what he was? That he could just be with her a little longer before he had to leave?
But the guilt of those dismissive thoughts ebbed at him. He couldn't pretend nothing was wrong and then leave without any explanation. He couldn't bear to do that to her. He drew a deep breath. "Tohru, I need to tell you something. It's about graduation..."
"Is it about you being confined?"
Kyo felt the blood rush out of his face, all of his senses in shock. The word hung heavily in the air surrounding them, suffocating him. Tohru looked at him with a serious, unwavering expression. She didn't flinch or cower from it, as if it didn't scare her.
"How?" was all he managed to say.
"Akito-san told me. At the beach house last summer."
"You've known that long?"
"Yes." Now her tone faltered, a little guilty that she hadn't said anything. But she didn't assume it was her place to bring it up until now. "I won't let it happen."
"No," came his immediate reply. "No, I don't want you up against Akito in any way," Kyo said heatedly. He didn't mean to get riled up, but the emotion of her knowing his fate, of her wanting to take a stand against it, was causing him to lose control of his temper. "You don't have to do this for me. I won't let you get involved."
"I'm already involved!" Tohru raised her voice shrilly. He blinked at her.
"I can't bear it. I have to do something. Because I don't want anything, not the curse, not your confinement, not anyone to take you away from me." Tears that had been pricking her eyes spilled over onto Tohru's cheeks. She'd been keeping all of this inside her for so long, she couldn't stop it from overflowing just like her tears. A lid that had been secured so tightly had now been pried open with no hope of closing again. "I know it's completely selfish. It didn't even start that way. But I don't care," Tohru's voice broke. Burying her face in his chest, she let out a sob. "Please just don't leave."
There was a beat of silence as Kyo gathered his bearings, letting what she said sink into his skin, his heart, his soul. Tohru felt warm fingers tracing slow circles on her back. "I'm not going anywhere." He repeated. She looked up and met his warm, soothing gaze. "Not right now, not tonight," he assured her as ran his fingers through her damp hair comfortingly. His eyebrows drew together, "But I can't ask you to take any of this on yourself. You always put too much of other people's problems on your shoulders."
"But you're not just 'other people', Kyo-kun. I care about you more than anyone. You've become the most important person in my life."
Since when did my name have a special ring to it only when you said it?
His lips came crashing down on hers; he couldn't help it. How could someone feel that way for him? How could she so strongly want his life to change for the better, and to so dearly want to live it with him?
"I've always wanted you by my side." He confessed when he pulled away, outlining her lips with his fingers. She gazed at him through her lashes. He continued sullenly, "But I thought it was too selfish of me."
"Then be too selfish," she said without an ounce of hesitation in her voice. He chuckled at her tenacity and at his sheer disbelief of all of this.
"God, I love you," he said. He'd said it. Out loud. To her. He hadn't meant to let it slip but after the night's events, it seemed he couldn't keep anything from her anymore. Maybe he never would again.
Looking back and forth between Kyo's amber irises, Tohru smiled tearily and said, "I love you, too." He kissed her forehead and nipped at her nose. She laughed and he kissed the tears from her cheeks. Their lips met and they couldn't help but grin through the blissful kisses. Anything past this kiss, this hour, this night was unclear; they couldn't fathom the future quite yet. They were both simply finding solace in the unbelievable thought that they could face it together.
"Kyo-kun," she breathed through gasps. She spoke against his ear, her face lost in his soft hair. "I want you."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. If you want me as well."
"Tohru, I want nothing else." Leaning above her, his hand cradled her head like she was the most delicate thing he'd ever held.
"You ready?" Kyo asked, although he seemed like the unready one, his arms shaking slightly. "It may hurt..." he said hesitantly. She couldn't help but smile despite his nervousness. She felt no fear; she was about to be with the one she truly loved.
"It's okay." She put a hand on his arm, like she did earlier in the rain although that seemed eons ago. He gazed down at it and his trembling ceased. He then gave her a smile that warmed her core.
It was clumsy. And a little slow. But they found their way together. And when the time came, it shook the both of them. In one moment, all was glorious, blinding, invigorating; they were one.
The next moment came and went. A much needed breath passed between them. A sheen of sweat glistened across their chests and foreheads. Their cheeks and noses were ruddy from their exertion. Their bodies were quaking as they descended from their euphoria. But they couldn't look away from each other. All they could think was how utterly beautiful the other looked in that moment.
A happy sound bubbled from Tohru's throat. She wasn't sure if it was a laugh or a sob, but she kept doing it, her hands covering her eyes as she did so. Because of this, she didn't see Kyo's uncertain and worried expression.
"Tohru, I'm sorry. Did it really hurt? What did I do? You could have told me to…"
She removed her hands immediately. Tears spilled down her face when she did. "Kyo-kun, please don't be sorry!" She said incredulously.
"But you're crying..."
She sniffed but smiled. "I'm just so happy. I can't help it."
With a look of relief and a quirk of his lips, he said, "you weirdo." He ruffled her hair affectionately and pulled a tissue from her nightstand to dry her eyes.
It had been everything she could have dreamed of. He had truly made her his. She reveled in that thought, sighing into the deepest form of contentment. Rain pattered against the window; she hadn't realized it was still quite the downpour outside. The sound made the moment more peaceful, more complete somehow; it was just him, her and the rain. The rest of the world was washing away and only Kyo remained in her eyes, gazing at her with the purest expression of love. She reached out to brush away a few bangs that hung in front of his eyes and her hand lingered against his cheek. He turned his head and kissed her palm. Tohru smiled, bewildered and grateful that time had seemed to stop.
They could have been there lying together for seconds, hours, days; they couldn't tell how long it all was. They kissed and laughed until their lids grew heavy. Tohru succumbed to sleep first, whispering a gentle goodnight before her breathing steadied. Kyo just gazed at her, blissfully numb from all that had happened. He didn't want to sleep. He wanted to be here with her forever. But soon the darkness, the exhaustion and the purest happiness calmed him as his blinking slowed. He drifted off to sleep with the sheets draped around their legs and their fingers entwined. They dreamt about that night, not knowing what tomorrow would bring, but relishing in the new memories they made together.
~ Epilogue
How could she be so chipper in the morning? This morning especially. Kyo yawned. Looking blurrily through his eyelids, his view of the kitchen and Tohru making breakfast was turned on a ninety degree angle as his head lay on the wooden table. He was sitting cross legged at the kotatsu in the living room, ignoring the tv blaring away and pretty much all things besides the sunlight coming through the window silhouetting Tohru's now familiar form. It was the tomorrow he had been dreading, although nothing seemed out of the ordinary. He didn't know what he'd expected; there hadn't been any indication that they had been found out. Shigure hadn't been up and around to tease them yet, though, so they weren't completely out of the woods yet.
He yawned deeply, he was tired. They'd woken up in her bed, swollen lips and stiff limbs from their excursions the previous night. They had hesitated, blinking at each other in the hazy morning light, wondering if it had all been a dream. Then Tohru kissed him. And he realized he never wanted to live without her good morning kisses. His chest warming, he fleetingly thought it was something to fight for. Maybe things could change someday. Tohru came to sit next to Kyo, placing his plate of pancakes in front of him. He sat up fully, taking the chopsticks she'd handed him and gave her a thanks with a weary smile and a husky morning voice.
Tohru noticed Kyo had a bit of bedhead. She patted at his cowlick to no avail. He caught her lips with his when she got too close. It was short, but sweet. Her body buzzed with the memories of the night before. She knew they had to be careful since Yuki and Shigure could be around any corner. And more than that, what they were going to try to do was dangerous. Defying the family, breaking the curse. But she wasn't afraid. Whatever it took, she would fight, she would meddle. She would do anything to be by his side. Anything to see Kyo eat pancakes in the morning, to feel him pressed against her at night, and to jump in puddles together in between.
Thank you for joining this journey with me. I set out to write some sensual content and I hope I succeeded. It's funny because I wrote a story with the intent of exploring Kyo and Tohru's intimate life, but that one didn't pan out how I'd originally planned. This was the second attempt to really explore their relationship - the "what if things had gone a little differently". Still ended up the same though - a lot of love and fluff for our favorite cat and riceball.