Celebrations

"Another year gone and still I'm sitting in the same room, in the same chair and probably with the same brand of beer as last time," Aoshi mused as he set his alcoholic beverage – that was really more for show than anything else - on the coffee table in front of him and with a steady gaze watched the people that once again had gathered to celebrate the twentieth birthday of one Kamaiya Kaoru.

The birthday girl in question was standing by the drink table -which under normal circumstances would have been her and Misao's desk- more than a little tipsy, trying to mix a new round of margaritas, while Kenshin followed her every move; making sure that his newly appointed fiancé wasn't doing anything she'd regret in the morning. To no one's surprise Sano and Megumi were bickering in one of the corners of the room, most likely over something trivial that some alcohol and a good tumble would be able to cure.

To most people this date was only one of many in the calendar. But for Aoshi and Misao it held a much more momentous meaning.

Today marked the anniversary of their first meeting. Back then he only knew her as the boisterous friend of Himura's girlfriend. At present she was Makimachi Misao; best friend and lover.

He can still recall how he, the stone faced hermit, observed her, the social butterfly, as she - much like now – was having a lively discussion with Kaoru's younger brother, Yahiko, while at the same time lining up glasses for her customary drinking contest with Sano. He believes the score was about even after the last time. Not that he was counting or anything.

He can't pinpoint what it was, but there was just something about her that night that had him intrigued. Just by looking at her his entire body screamed for him to pursue her. Shinomori Aoshi never pursued. Not to say that he hadn't had a fair share of women in his life, most of them casual one night stands. He simply never felt the urge to invest more energy than need be, which said quite a deal about the few relationships he'd managed to maintain through the years. At the end of the night she was the one who came to him; he did have a reputation to uphold after all.

What she said to him he couldn't remember, but he must have responded positively, because the following weekend he found himself taking her out to dinner. A month later Misao's weekly visits had become part of their everyday life and it hadn't taken long before they were sharing a bed in more senses than one; much to the dismay of his roommate, and the further delight of the girls.

In the fall she had enrolled in the same college, her mind set on media, while he started off his third year focusing on business. However just because they went to the same college didn't necessarily mean they got to see more of each other. More often than not they were both swamped with compulsory reports and when things got particularly nasty they were fortunate if they even got a glimpse of each other during mealtimes. Then again the separation had its perks as it meant that they wouldn't constantly be in the other's face. Although he doubted he would ever see it that way. Misao certainly didn't and didn't hesitate to complain about the unwanted situation whenever they hadn't gotten together in the last twenty-four hours.

Really, she could be quite childish at times; on the other hand that was one of the things that had attracted her to him to begin with. How she could just let everything go without a care in the world for her appearance even though she was nearing nineteen and should have grown out of her rebellious adolescence years ago. Being the severe man he was it comforted him to know that his polar opposite stood by his side to fill in the cracks he had missed, as he in return did the same for her.

Shouts and cheers told him that the drinking game was on and he left his barely touched beer to observe the two individuals throwing shots down their throats like their life depended on it, or at least their pride. A minute later they called it a draw and Sano and Misao; both looking a bit bleary eyed, reached out to shake hands - well attempted to anyway.

Aoshi watched his girlfriend rise from the worn out couch and with surprising stability, considering her previous activities -not to mention those ankle-breaking high heels-, managed to walk her way over to him where he was sitting in an equally tattered loveseat. As if her stored up steadiness had suddenly run out she rather ungracefully plopped into his lap and wrapped her slim arms around his neck.

"Hey," she whispered in his ear.

"Hey," he mimicked, encircling her waist with his own arms.

She spotted his nearly full bottle. "Are you going to drink that?" she asked, gesturing at the beer. He shrugged and she took it as a sign for her to go ahead. Grabbing the bottle she took a rather large swig. She shuddered. "Kami, it tastes like shit," she grimaced before taking another gulp. He wasn't quite sure how that added up but he didn't question her. He'd learnt from experience that she had a habit of doing things that didn't really make any sense to anyone but her. Yet another of her little quirks that kept him bound to her.

Misao set the beer back on the table then leaned back into him to softly nibble at the shell of his ear. "Let's go back to your place. Sano's not getting any tonight and is gonna spend the rest of the night making up to Meg, and Himura will never let Kaoru stay alone in our room when she's shitfaced."

"Is that so?" He answered, his sultry voice lowering an octave, while he let one of his hands ghost over her naked thigh. One of these days he was going to have to tell her how much he appreciated these short dresses of hers.

She snuggled closer still, her pink lips remaining close to his ear. "I'll even do that thing with my tongue that you like so much." So what if it was some cheesy line out of a romance novel, it sounded good. At least in her mind.

Aoshi let out an amused breath and gave her forehead a light peck, knowing full well that by the time they reached his and Sano's room she'd be sound asleep. To humor her he played along and with a light shove he got her to stand up so that he could leave the comfort of the armchair himself, then took her hand and began leading her away. They said their goodbyes, with the girls promising that they would meet up the next day. Their respective significant others doubted that very much.

His assumptions were correct. Not even five minutes later she was within the security of his embrace as he walked down the two last corridors leading to his dormitory. Without too much difficulty he managed to unlock the door and remove the covers to gently place her in his bed. After freeing her feet from the black four inch stilettos he tenderly covered her petite form with the surprisingly colorful bedspread – all credit to Misao. Affectionately he placed a loose strand of raven hair behind her ear, his knuckles brushing against her soft cheek in the process. He looked longingly at the space beside her, but before he joined the braided beauty in sleep he had a task to do. In a near motherly fashion, that would have Sano on his ass in a laughing fit, he planted a large glass of water and two aspirin on his bedside table. Misao often joked that he would have become the perfect Boy Scout.

He stripped down to his boxers and with outmost precaution he crawled over her and into bed. With a content sigh he closed his steel blue eyes and inched closer to the warmth of her body.

And to no one but the night, Aoshi displayed one of his own traits as he protectively put his arm around her.

Author's notes: I think it goes without saying that constructive criticism would be very much appreciated.

Thanks!

/ Tranquil Forest