AN: well, chapter 8 is finally finished!!!!! I finished it!!!!! *jumps
around* I still have 3 more exams next week, but they'll have to wait! This
fic has been postponed long enough. And besides, writing helps me relax.
Hee hee..
Hope you enjoy this chapter!
************************************************************************
A week has passed and nothing eventful has happened ever since that incident outside the restaurant. When Hatori had told them that night about what had happened, they all had been shocked, though inside, the cat and the mouse gave a small whoop for the tiny misfortune that had fallen upon their so called rival. Tohru had looked worried, and that sent a slight dent on their euphoria, but they later shrugged it off. Tohru was always worried about everyone. It wouldn't do to read much into it. She was just that way, and its one of her most appealing traits.
And now a week has passed without a single peep from Ryu. Yuki and Kyou had been surprised, but grateful, that Ryu Akamatsu hasn't been up to his usual tricks. Although the action did seem suspicious, and it leaves them wary of what may come next. Is Ryu planning something? Is that why he's not doing anything lately, because he's getting ready for a master plan? But no matter how hard they speculate, answers were never found, and so they decided to leave the matter be and just stay on guard for any surprises that may come their way.
************************************************************************
Class was at its usual boring pace, with the sensei droning on and on about historical facts that nobody cared to learn.
"In December 1866, Emperor Komei, an ardent supporter of the Bakufu government, passed away, and the Emperor Meiji ascended to the throne. November 8 the next year.."
At his seat at the back of the class, Ryu stared longingly at his angel. It has been a week since he had had a long conversation with her. Lately, he had been reduced to mere greetings of hello as they crossed paths in school. He missed her and he would have liked nothing better than to have lunch with her again. Be it in a cafeteria or in a restaurant. But he has no choice in the situation he's in. He's grounded, given the ultimatum that he is to go straight home after school.
This sucks! Damn my old man for doing this to me! This punishment is so corny. Imagine, ME! GROUNDED!!! he sulked and fumed, gripping the pen in his hand tightly.
His mind drifted back to the events that lead to his current predicament.
"Tadaima" he said to what he had expected to be an empty house. After all, for all the years that he has spent in this house, all that ever greeted him was space and emptiness. His parents were always away, leaving him to his own devices, just sending him gifts and messages every now and then. He, of course like any normal person, resented this at first, but then, as years went by and nothing changed, he adjusted and got used to it. He even saw the benefits of such an arrangement. He was free to do anything he wanted, just as long as it wasn't scandalous or something that would drag the "family name" in mud. He got into trouble often, most of time with the school, but these were nothing. Easily handled by his father's secretary. And soon, he got into the routine of it, landing himself in trouble, with his father, indirectly, bailing him out. Piece of cake.
But tonight was different. After his routinary greeting of "I'm home", instead of the usual silence that he had come to expect, a cold deadpan voice greeted him back. "Okaeri". Startled, he looked for the source of the voice, and found his father seated in their large parlor, drinking what looked like a glass of whisky.
"Tou-san, you're home. And kaa-san?"
"She's upstairs, sleeping. Our flight was tiring, she's drained from all her shopping in Milan." His father replied, taking a sip from his glass.
"And you'll be staying for how long this time?"
"We'll be leaving the day after tomorrow. Now enough with the questions. What's this I hear about you running over a member of the Sohma family yesterday?" His father's voice had gotten colder by the time he finished the question.
Ryu gulped. He rarely got scared of anything. And little intimidated him. But his father was the exception. If there was anything that Ryu feared, it was his father's wrath. His father controlled the family's purse strings, and he who controls the money, controls the family. That's the way it has always been in the Akamatsu household.
"I didn't "run over" anything. It was an accident, I just bumped the girl a little. There really wasn't much damage."
"Not much damage?! Your having bumped her, as you so conveniently put it, is damage enough! Do you know how influential that family is around here? A "bump" is enough for them to press charges! You're lucky that they didn't think of suing! If they did, the press would have had a field day!!!"
Ryu simply stayed silent, eyes cast down. Infact, he really couldn't say anything. His father rarely let anything faze him, but when it comes to the "family honor", then he gets all worked up. And when his father was in this kind of mood, it was best to keep your mouth shut.
"You'd better get your act together Ryu. But to make sure that you remember this folly and not do it again, I'm going to have to restrict you to the house for a week. Which means you're to come straight home right after school. To ensure that you keep your end of this arrangement, I'm going to ask Henri to keep an eye on you and check if you're home 30 minutes after your classes are supposed to end. 30 minutes should be enough time for you to get home from school."
Ryu wanted to shout, but he couldn't. He wanted to rave that being grounded was unfair! What happened was an accident, and it had been a paltry one at that. Nothing that would merit this! But, he couldn't do anything. His father's word was law in this house, no matter what Ryu's preference may be.
And now, sitting here in the classroom, with his angel only a few seats away from him, he got angrier at the predicament forced upon him. a week!!! I've been grounded for a week!!! he seethed. but no matter, today's the last day of my punishment. I should be able to take Tohru-chan out tomorrow. the thought lifted his mood somewhat. And a change in his expression was noticeable as he made his plans for tomorrow.
************************************************************************
The bell rang, and students scrambled to get up. The teacher made a few last minute announcements, homeworks, etc. But of course, it fell on deaf ears. Today is Friday (do Japanese students have Saturdays off?), which means that class officially ends now for the week.
Tohru carefully placed her things inside her bag. She glanced up and saw that Uo-chan and Hana-chan were waiting for her, their bags slung over their shoulders. She hastened her movements, not wanting to make her friends wait.
"So, do you have work today Tohru?" Arisa asked.
"No. I have today off, but tomorrow I have to go to work."
"That's great Tohru-kun. Now you can come with us. we're going to a café and grab something to eat." Hanajima said, with as much enthusiasm as she could. Which means, for Hanajima, that she had uttered the sentence just a tad bit louder than usual.
"Yup! Hanajima here is going to buy us some snacks!" Arisa piped in.
"That sounds great! I get to spend some time with my two closest friends." Tohru said, clapping her hands in the process. It was all well and good, because Yuki and Kyou weren't walking home with her today. Kyou had already left, saying he had to go visit his shishou. Yuki had mentioned something about doing something for the Student Council.
The trio chatted while heading towards the school gate. And so engrossed were they with their conversation that they failed to notice the figure waiting for them just up ahead.
"Honda-san!"
Tohru looked around, trying to find the owner of the voice.
"Over here!" a figure gave them a wave before walking up to them. It was Ryu.
"Honda-san, I'm glad I caught up with you."
"Konnichiwa Akamatsu-san" Tohru greeted cheerfully. Which made Ryu smile.
Arisa and Hanajima just looked on, eager to find out what's going to happen. But, unfortunately, their plans were ruined when Ryu said,
"Can I talk to you privately Honda-san?"
"Privately?....." Tohru's curiousity was getting piqued. "Uh. sure." She walked a few steps away from her friends, who seeing her move, also backed away from the pair and just decided to wait over by the tree nearby.
"What is it Akamatsu-san?" Tohru cocked her head to the side.
"Are you free tomorrow evening? I would like to invite you to dinner, and then maybe to a movie afterwards." Ryu inquired, without the least bit of hesitation. He wasn't some untried youth who stuttered and gawked when asking the one he liked (i think love is too strong a word) to a date. He was confident, calm and smooth. Though, considering his experience at this and his popularity with the opposite sex, his attitude wasn't surprising.
"Dinner?.... Movie?.... !!!" Tohru squeaked. "But . uh.. You see. I have a part-time job tomorrow evening."
Damn! Ryu thought, but still determined to go out with his beloved angel, he pushed on. "How about lunch then?" Dinner would have been more romantic, but this'll have to do.
Tohru was a bit nervous. This was the first time somebody asked her out. Momiji didn't count since he was almost like family to her. "Uh. ok."
"Great! Where can I pick you up?" Ryu shouted a mental 'Whoop'. Finally! A date with his Tohru-chan! Things were finally brightening up.
Now Tohru was definitely panicking. She can't have Ryu pick her up at the Sohma residence! Her mind frantically searched for a way out, and then..
"Tohru's going with us somewhere tomorrow morning. So wouldn't it be better if she were to just meet you somewhere? It would certainly be more convenient for her" Hanajima said, totally unabashed at 'indirectly' admitting that they had infact been eavesdropping at the supposedly private conversation.
"That would be fine. Just meet me outside the Akabeko at, say, 11:30am?"
"Nice choice Akamatsu" Arisa interjected. The Akabeko was one of the popular restaurants around. Not really fancy, but still expensive. The ambiance was supposedly unique. At least that's what Arisa heard from people since she didn't really frequent restaurants of any kind. Ryu seemed taken aback by the comment. He wasn't used to people talking to him that way, most students addressed him with either awe or, to those who were envious of his good fortune, with contempt. Rarely did anybody speak to him so. casually, impertinently. He glanced at Hanajima and saw that the girl was staring at him with her usual deadpan look. Again, nothing reverent or special was in that gaze. He wasn't expecting those kinds of reactions. But he shrugged it off, thinking that his Tohru-chan's friends were certainly different.
"Ja then Honda-san! I'll see you tomorrow." With a wave he went off towards his car.
Arisa and Hanajima followed his disappearing form, their expressions revealing nothing of their thoughts. And when Ryu's car finally disappeared around the corner, they still continued to stare at the spot which he previously occupied.
"Uo-chan, Hana-chan.." Tohru's voice pulled them out of their trance-like state.
Arisa spoke first. "Ah! Gomen ne Tohru! I spaced out for a moment there."
"Shall we go?" Hanajima followed. And with that, the three girls went off for their excursion.
************************************************************************
"YOU WHAT?!!!" the shout cut through the silent air of the Sohma household. It was early in the evening, and they all had just finished eating their dinner when Tohru had popped the question.
"calm down baka neko! You're frightening Honda-san" Yuki said in a slightly irritated voice.
And it was true, though perhaps a bit exaggerated. Tohru wasn't exactly frightened, but more like surprised by the cat's outburst. And she of course didn't want to offend anybody.
"But if Kyou-kun doesn't want me to go." She said a bit hesitantly, afraid to commit more errors.
"Of course not Tohru-kun! This will be your first real date! You should go." Shigure said with his usual enthusiasm.
Yuki just remained silent, though, when Tohru glanced at him, he gave her a gentle smile. Which, if one really looked at him hard enough, looked rather forced.
Yuki didn't want Tohru to go on a date with Ryu as much as the neko did. But, he understood that they really couldn't impose their wills upon her. They had no right to forbid her to go.
"So. its ok for me to go out tomorrow?" Tohru asked hopefully.
"Of course! Tohru-kun's first date!!! I'm so excited. Our little flower is growing up!"
"Yuki-kun. Kyou-kun." Tohru glanced at her two friends, hoping to get their consent as well. She valued their opinions greatly, and if they said no, even if Shigure-san had already given her the go-signal, she still wouldn't go.
Kyou had sat down beside Yuki, and was now looking off to the side. He gave a tiny grunt, which Tohru interpreted as a yes. Sort of.
"Of course. Whatever makes Honda-san happy, will make us happy." Yuki said quietly.
Yuki's voice sounds strained. "Anou Yuki-kun, do you have a sore throat?" Tohru asked innocently.
Yuki's eyes widened at that baffling comment. "no Honda-san. Why do you ask?"
"Well, its just that Yuki-kun's voice sounds strained."
"Ah, no Honda-san. Maybe its because I'm tired." He said wearily. "if you'll all excuse me, I'll go up to my room and rest" and with that statement, the mouse made a graceful exit. better retreat before she notices how much I hate letting her go on that date with Akamatsu.
Kyou silently stood up after the mouse had disappeared, and just went outside to the roof without so much as an explanation.
************************************************************************
"That boutique sure is nice!" Arisa exclaimed. "Though I couldn't pick out anything to buy. Just isn't my thing, you know."
"But Tohru-kun has bought some very nice items." Hanajima said in her usual quiet voice, a tiny smile gracing her features.
Tohru smiled at her two friends. They've been so kind in helping her pick out her outfit for her date today. Nothing expensive of course. And she didn't really plan on buying a new outfit for her date, but Hana-chan and Uo-chan had insisted, saying that this occasion was special, and it deserved at least a new outfit. They even offered in paying it for her, as a gift, but she couldn't let them do that. And after a few minutes of squabbling, they finally let Tohru have her way, which was to pay for the dress herself. And she was wearing it now. A simple lemon yellow off- shoulder blouse, and a pair of white pants. At first, she kept trying to pull the sleeves back to her shoulders, but the silky material just kept sliding off, and so after a few more fruitless attempts, she gave up and just left them as they were.
"Now, shall we go meet lover-boy?" Arisa teased. This produced the expected blush from Tohru, to which Hanajima rebuked "stop teasing her Arisa." Already grinning unrepentantly, Arisa gave out a great laugh.
They walked to the place, which was just a few blocks away from the boutique. And there, stood Ryu, who looked positively gorgeous. He looked the same as he does from school, but somehow different. It was as if there was an air about him.
He smiled when he saw them approach, and his gaze lingered at Tohru. "You look beautiful Honda-san." He said smoothly.
"Well, we'll just leave you two then." Arisa said, already starting to move away from them.
"Bye Tohru-kun. Have fun ok?"
"Bye Uo-chan, Hana-chan." And with a final wave, her two friends went off.
"Shall we go inside Honda-san?" Ryu said, but was already taking her elbow and slowly guiding her towards the Akabeko.
Tohru smiled and nodded.
The restaurant's reputation didn't do honor to the real thing. The ambiance wasn't merely unique, as what people say, it was glorious. Various artifacts from all over the world were hung on the walls, or stood off at the corners. There were tribal masks from India, Africa and other such countries. But there were also elegant scrolls of calligraphy from China. European paintings hung about here and there, and there was even an armor near the front door. All these made a wonderful riot of clashing cultures.
It took all of Tohru's will just not to gape and gawk at the wonderful façade.
Ryu led them to a table in the corner, just near the Chinese artifacts. And immediately, a waiter appeared at their side and gave them each a copy of the menu. Ryu ordered Chicken Cordon Bleu, while Tohru ordered a dish of fettuccini.
After a few moments, their orders arrived. And they proceeded with their lunch, while having a casual conversation.
Unknown to them, a few eyes were watching their every move.
************************************************************************
"Tell me what we're doing here again?" Hatsuharu whispered with resignation.
"We're making sure that Too-ru is safe. We're protecting Too-ru!!!" Momiji exclaimed.
"Quiet you damn bunny! They'll hear us!" Kyou whispered furiously.
"We're here to make sure that Ryu doesn't try anything with Honda-san. We don't know him that well, we're just doing this for Honda-san's benefit." Yuki calmly said. To which Haru simply muttered something that went like "sure, we're doing this for Tohru's benefit and not because two or you are just jealous."
Kyou whirled on him and said "What did you say you dumb cow?!!!" But Yuki shot him a glare, which said "do you want them to know that we're here!"
Kyou simmered down, though still frowning.
The four Juunishi males were currently hiding behind a bunch of plants near the kitchen door. The customers weren't allowed in this area since the kitchen was off limits. It was the perfect hiding place, and the waiters were already warned not to interfere with them or even show the slightest sign that they were there. It was to their good fortune that they discovered that the Akabeko was actually a restaurant owned by a subsidiary company under Sohma corporation owned by Momiji's father. And so they were free to do what they want.
"They're just talking." Haru muttered. "can we just go? Its getting cramped in here."
"No! look!!! He's making a move!" Kyou exclaimed, to which everyone prepared themselves to jump out and intervene. But it turned out that Ryu was merely leaning over to hand Tohru a napkin, since the girl had a spot of sauce on the corner of her mouth.
This earned Kyou a glare from the other three males.
************************************************************************
Totally unaware of their spectators, the two merely continued with their conversation after they finished their meal. Ryu, not wanting to end his time with his beloved angel just yet, decided to order some dessert, just to buy him some more time.
"Honda-san, you seem a bit close with the Sohma's. any special reason for that? Yuki and Kyou aren't usually very open to females."
Tohru's mind went blank. "Uh. You see. err.." eep! What am I going to tell him? That I live with Kyou-kun and Yuki-kun?! "err. well, maybe that's because every female they meet are interested in them in a romantic way. I just wanted to be friends with them." Tohru gave an inner sigh of relief on having thought of a believable reason.
"You mean you're not interested in them in THAT way?" Ryu asked hopefully, his heart already thudding fast inside his chest at the possibility that the Sohma's might not be competition after all.
"Of course not! We're just friends. That's all." Tohru said, looking away from the intensity of Ryu's gaze.
"Honda-san, you don't know how happy that makes me." Ryu's hand was moving towards Tohru's cheek. The action caught Tohru's attention, which made her look at Ryu's face. Bad move. Ryu's look held her gaze, Tohru wanted to look away because this was too much for her, but somehow, she couldn't. Ryu's face loomed closer, ...
Then suddenly.. *TWACK* Ryu jerked back, looking to the side, then gazing to the ground. He bent over and picked up something on the floor, looking at it in confusion.
Tohru was relieved at having been released from that strange spell, but at the same time she was curious as to what had distracted Ryu. "Anou, Akamatsu-san."
Ryu looked back at her, "Something hit me." He held out his palm towards the girl, and Tohru saw that there was a piece of olive there. "Eh?!" Tohru exclaimed, for lack of a better response.
"I know. How could an olive be flying around here?" Ryu scanned the area, looking for a possible source of the flying vegetable (is olive a vegetable?). Having seen nothing, he just sat down and decided to shrug it off. "Must have flown out of somebody's plate, I guess." He said, although he looked as if he was trying to convince himself.
Tohru just sat there, not knowing what to say, except she was thankful for whatever had caused the olive to hit Ryu. Who knows what would've happened if it didn't.
************************************************************************ Four heads ducked back down before Ryu Akamatsu could spot them.
"An OLIVE?!!!" Yuki whispered furiously, "Why did it have to be an olive?! It's the least plausible thing to go flying around!"
"Well, it worked didn't it?! And besides, it was the only thing near me!!!! It was lying on the ground! Or did you want me to go inside the kitchen and find something else, and then come back finding out that its too late because that damn Akamatsu would have kissed her already?" Haru replied with as much intensity, close to turning into black mode.
Yuki sighed and rubbed his temples. This was turning out to be disastrous. But the cow had a point, the olive-throwing trick worked, and Ryu didn't seem to suspect anything. And he really should thank the cow. After all, he did 'save' Honda-san from certain disaster. And he should do it fast, before the cow shifted into his "black" persona and revealed their position.
"You're right. And that was quick thinking on your part." Yuki mumbled.
Haru just smirked, completely placated at having been thanked by his "love".
"Wai!!! Haru is a hero! He saved Too-ru from that guy's kiss of doom!" Momiji cried out. Though the last part of the sentence was a bit mumbled since Kyou had quickly covered the bunny's mouth with his hand before somebody heard them.
"Quiet you!!" he whispered into Momiji's ear. "We should never have brought you along!"
"but.. but." tears were already beginning to well up the bunny's eyes. But before it turned into a bout of tears, Yuki's statement distracted them.
"Look! They're leaving! We'd better follow them!"
All four scrambled to get up. But they were crouching so close to each other that they all crashed back down in a tangle of limbs. Fortunately, they didn't get up high enough that their fall was merely a few inches and didn't make much noise.
"Get off me!" Kyou growled.
"Tooru's getting away!" Momiji cried out. And all four resumed disentangling themselves from each other with renewed vigor.
A few minutes and a lot of painful extractions later, they went outside and looked for Tohru.
They saw her up ahead, talking to Ryu. Although the girl was too far away for them to hear what she was saying, what they saw was enough for them to guess what the conversation was about.
Ryu was leading Tohru to his car!
************************************************************************
"Honda-san, you have to let me take you home. I can't expect you to walk all the way there." Ryu said, very puzzled as to why Tohru wouldn't accept his offer of giving her a ride home.
"But I can't Akamatsu-kun.." Tohru replied, her mind already thinking of a plausible answer.
"Why not?" Ryu asked.
"because. because..."
"BECAUSE I'M HERE TO PICK HER UP!!!" a new voice piped up.
Tohru whirled around at that very familiar, and oh so welcome, voice. And sure enough, she found the little bunny bouncing over her way.
"Momiji-kun!" Tohru cried out in relief. And fortunately, she held her tongue back just in time before she could ask what the bunny was doing here.
"Ne Too-ru, are you finished here? You promised to go with me to that bunny shop remember?" Momiji said, while pulling Tohru towards the car just behind him.
"Ah, of course Momiji-kun. Akamatsu-san, I'm really sorry, but I promised him that I'll accompany him this afternoon." Tohru said, moving towards the car that Momiji had brought with him, waving to Ryu. "Thank you so much for lunch Akamatsu-san. I really had a great time." She gave the boy one final bow and got in the car.
"It was my pleasure Honda-san." Ryu said, and he watched as the car sped away with his Tohru-chan.
************************************************************************
AN: well, how was it? I think it's a bit abrupt, but I couldn't think of any other way of writing it. Maybe my muse hasn't come back to me fully. Maybe she's only half here. Hmmm...
Anyway, please forgive me if this chapter isn't so nice. Heh heh...
Oh and by the way, I've added a gravitation section to my website. There are four gravitation wallpapers there!
Thanks for reading my fic. I'll try to come up with the next chapter soon!
Reviews please!
Ja! -Mayorie-
Hope you enjoy this chapter!
************************************************************************
A week has passed and nothing eventful has happened ever since that incident outside the restaurant. When Hatori had told them that night about what had happened, they all had been shocked, though inside, the cat and the mouse gave a small whoop for the tiny misfortune that had fallen upon their so called rival. Tohru had looked worried, and that sent a slight dent on their euphoria, but they later shrugged it off. Tohru was always worried about everyone. It wouldn't do to read much into it. She was just that way, and its one of her most appealing traits.
And now a week has passed without a single peep from Ryu. Yuki and Kyou had been surprised, but grateful, that Ryu Akamatsu hasn't been up to his usual tricks. Although the action did seem suspicious, and it leaves them wary of what may come next. Is Ryu planning something? Is that why he's not doing anything lately, because he's getting ready for a master plan? But no matter how hard they speculate, answers were never found, and so they decided to leave the matter be and just stay on guard for any surprises that may come their way.
************************************************************************
Class was at its usual boring pace, with the sensei droning on and on about historical facts that nobody cared to learn.
"In December 1866, Emperor Komei, an ardent supporter of the Bakufu government, passed away, and the Emperor Meiji ascended to the throne. November 8 the next year.."
At his seat at the back of the class, Ryu stared longingly at his angel. It has been a week since he had had a long conversation with her. Lately, he had been reduced to mere greetings of hello as they crossed paths in school. He missed her and he would have liked nothing better than to have lunch with her again. Be it in a cafeteria or in a restaurant. But he has no choice in the situation he's in. He's grounded, given the ultimatum that he is to go straight home after school.
This sucks! Damn my old man for doing this to me! This punishment is so corny. Imagine, ME! GROUNDED!!! he sulked and fumed, gripping the pen in his hand tightly.
His mind drifted back to the events that lead to his current predicament.
"Tadaima" he said to what he had expected to be an empty house. After all, for all the years that he has spent in this house, all that ever greeted him was space and emptiness. His parents were always away, leaving him to his own devices, just sending him gifts and messages every now and then. He, of course like any normal person, resented this at first, but then, as years went by and nothing changed, he adjusted and got used to it. He even saw the benefits of such an arrangement. He was free to do anything he wanted, just as long as it wasn't scandalous or something that would drag the "family name" in mud. He got into trouble often, most of time with the school, but these were nothing. Easily handled by his father's secretary. And soon, he got into the routine of it, landing himself in trouble, with his father, indirectly, bailing him out. Piece of cake.
But tonight was different. After his routinary greeting of "I'm home", instead of the usual silence that he had come to expect, a cold deadpan voice greeted him back. "Okaeri". Startled, he looked for the source of the voice, and found his father seated in their large parlor, drinking what looked like a glass of whisky.
"Tou-san, you're home. And kaa-san?"
"She's upstairs, sleeping. Our flight was tiring, she's drained from all her shopping in Milan." His father replied, taking a sip from his glass.
"And you'll be staying for how long this time?"
"We'll be leaving the day after tomorrow. Now enough with the questions. What's this I hear about you running over a member of the Sohma family yesterday?" His father's voice had gotten colder by the time he finished the question.
Ryu gulped. He rarely got scared of anything. And little intimidated him. But his father was the exception. If there was anything that Ryu feared, it was his father's wrath. His father controlled the family's purse strings, and he who controls the money, controls the family. That's the way it has always been in the Akamatsu household.
"I didn't "run over" anything. It was an accident, I just bumped the girl a little. There really wasn't much damage."
"Not much damage?! Your having bumped her, as you so conveniently put it, is damage enough! Do you know how influential that family is around here? A "bump" is enough for them to press charges! You're lucky that they didn't think of suing! If they did, the press would have had a field day!!!"
Ryu simply stayed silent, eyes cast down. Infact, he really couldn't say anything. His father rarely let anything faze him, but when it comes to the "family honor", then he gets all worked up. And when his father was in this kind of mood, it was best to keep your mouth shut.
"You'd better get your act together Ryu. But to make sure that you remember this folly and not do it again, I'm going to have to restrict you to the house for a week. Which means you're to come straight home right after school. To ensure that you keep your end of this arrangement, I'm going to ask Henri to keep an eye on you and check if you're home 30 minutes after your classes are supposed to end. 30 minutes should be enough time for you to get home from school."
Ryu wanted to shout, but he couldn't. He wanted to rave that being grounded was unfair! What happened was an accident, and it had been a paltry one at that. Nothing that would merit this! But, he couldn't do anything. His father's word was law in this house, no matter what Ryu's preference may be.
And now, sitting here in the classroom, with his angel only a few seats away from him, he got angrier at the predicament forced upon him. a week!!! I've been grounded for a week!!! he seethed. but no matter, today's the last day of my punishment. I should be able to take Tohru-chan out tomorrow. the thought lifted his mood somewhat. And a change in his expression was noticeable as he made his plans for tomorrow.
************************************************************************
The bell rang, and students scrambled to get up. The teacher made a few last minute announcements, homeworks, etc. But of course, it fell on deaf ears. Today is Friday (do Japanese students have Saturdays off?), which means that class officially ends now for the week.
Tohru carefully placed her things inside her bag. She glanced up and saw that Uo-chan and Hana-chan were waiting for her, their bags slung over their shoulders. She hastened her movements, not wanting to make her friends wait.
"So, do you have work today Tohru?" Arisa asked.
"No. I have today off, but tomorrow I have to go to work."
"That's great Tohru-kun. Now you can come with us. we're going to a café and grab something to eat." Hanajima said, with as much enthusiasm as she could. Which means, for Hanajima, that she had uttered the sentence just a tad bit louder than usual.
"Yup! Hanajima here is going to buy us some snacks!" Arisa piped in.
"That sounds great! I get to spend some time with my two closest friends." Tohru said, clapping her hands in the process. It was all well and good, because Yuki and Kyou weren't walking home with her today. Kyou had already left, saying he had to go visit his shishou. Yuki had mentioned something about doing something for the Student Council.
The trio chatted while heading towards the school gate. And so engrossed were they with their conversation that they failed to notice the figure waiting for them just up ahead.
"Honda-san!"
Tohru looked around, trying to find the owner of the voice.
"Over here!" a figure gave them a wave before walking up to them. It was Ryu.
"Honda-san, I'm glad I caught up with you."
"Konnichiwa Akamatsu-san" Tohru greeted cheerfully. Which made Ryu smile.
Arisa and Hanajima just looked on, eager to find out what's going to happen. But, unfortunately, their plans were ruined when Ryu said,
"Can I talk to you privately Honda-san?"
"Privately?....." Tohru's curiousity was getting piqued. "Uh. sure." She walked a few steps away from her friends, who seeing her move, also backed away from the pair and just decided to wait over by the tree nearby.
"What is it Akamatsu-san?" Tohru cocked her head to the side.
"Are you free tomorrow evening? I would like to invite you to dinner, and then maybe to a movie afterwards." Ryu inquired, without the least bit of hesitation. He wasn't some untried youth who stuttered and gawked when asking the one he liked (i think love is too strong a word) to a date. He was confident, calm and smooth. Though, considering his experience at this and his popularity with the opposite sex, his attitude wasn't surprising.
"Dinner?.... Movie?.... !!!" Tohru squeaked. "But . uh.. You see. I have a part-time job tomorrow evening."
Damn! Ryu thought, but still determined to go out with his beloved angel, he pushed on. "How about lunch then?" Dinner would have been more romantic, but this'll have to do.
Tohru was a bit nervous. This was the first time somebody asked her out. Momiji didn't count since he was almost like family to her. "Uh. ok."
"Great! Where can I pick you up?" Ryu shouted a mental 'Whoop'. Finally! A date with his Tohru-chan! Things were finally brightening up.
Now Tohru was definitely panicking. She can't have Ryu pick her up at the Sohma residence! Her mind frantically searched for a way out, and then..
"Tohru's going with us somewhere tomorrow morning. So wouldn't it be better if she were to just meet you somewhere? It would certainly be more convenient for her" Hanajima said, totally unabashed at 'indirectly' admitting that they had infact been eavesdropping at the supposedly private conversation.
"That would be fine. Just meet me outside the Akabeko at, say, 11:30am?"
"Nice choice Akamatsu" Arisa interjected. The Akabeko was one of the popular restaurants around. Not really fancy, but still expensive. The ambiance was supposedly unique. At least that's what Arisa heard from people since she didn't really frequent restaurants of any kind. Ryu seemed taken aback by the comment. He wasn't used to people talking to him that way, most students addressed him with either awe or, to those who were envious of his good fortune, with contempt. Rarely did anybody speak to him so. casually, impertinently. He glanced at Hanajima and saw that the girl was staring at him with her usual deadpan look. Again, nothing reverent or special was in that gaze. He wasn't expecting those kinds of reactions. But he shrugged it off, thinking that his Tohru-chan's friends were certainly different.
"Ja then Honda-san! I'll see you tomorrow." With a wave he went off towards his car.
Arisa and Hanajima followed his disappearing form, their expressions revealing nothing of their thoughts. And when Ryu's car finally disappeared around the corner, they still continued to stare at the spot which he previously occupied.
"Uo-chan, Hana-chan.." Tohru's voice pulled them out of their trance-like state.
Arisa spoke first. "Ah! Gomen ne Tohru! I spaced out for a moment there."
"Shall we go?" Hanajima followed. And with that, the three girls went off for their excursion.
************************************************************************
"YOU WHAT?!!!" the shout cut through the silent air of the Sohma household. It was early in the evening, and they all had just finished eating their dinner when Tohru had popped the question.
"calm down baka neko! You're frightening Honda-san" Yuki said in a slightly irritated voice.
And it was true, though perhaps a bit exaggerated. Tohru wasn't exactly frightened, but more like surprised by the cat's outburst. And she of course didn't want to offend anybody.
"But if Kyou-kun doesn't want me to go." She said a bit hesitantly, afraid to commit more errors.
"Of course not Tohru-kun! This will be your first real date! You should go." Shigure said with his usual enthusiasm.
Yuki just remained silent, though, when Tohru glanced at him, he gave her a gentle smile. Which, if one really looked at him hard enough, looked rather forced.
Yuki didn't want Tohru to go on a date with Ryu as much as the neko did. But, he understood that they really couldn't impose their wills upon her. They had no right to forbid her to go.
"So. its ok for me to go out tomorrow?" Tohru asked hopefully.
"Of course! Tohru-kun's first date!!! I'm so excited. Our little flower is growing up!"
"Yuki-kun. Kyou-kun." Tohru glanced at her two friends, hoping to get their consent as well. She valued their opinions greatly, and if they said no, even if Shigure-san had already given her the go-signal, she still wouldn't go.
Kyou had sat down beside Yuki, and was now looking off to the side. He gave a tiny grunt, which Tohru interpreted as a yes. Sort of.
"Of course. Whatever makes Honda-san happy, will make us happy." Yuki said quietly.
Yuki's voice sounds strained. "Anou Yuki-kun, do you have a sore throat?" Tohru asked innocently.
Yuki's eyes widened at that baffling comment. "no Honda-san. Why do you ask?"
"Well, its just that Yuki-kun's voice sounds strained."
"Ah, no Honda-san. Maybe its because I'm tired." He said wearily. "if you'll all excuse me, I'll go up to my room and rest" and with that statement, the mouse made a graceful exit. better retreat before she notices how much I hate letting her go on that date with Akamatsu.
Kyou silently stood up after the mouse had disappeared, and just went outside to the roof without so much as an explanation.
************************************************************************
"That boutique sure is nice!" Arisa exclaimed. "Though I couldn't pick out anything to buy. Just isn't my thing, you know."
"But Tohru-kun has bought some very nice items." Hanajima said in her usual quiet voice, a tiny smile gracing her features.
Tohru smiled at her two friends. They've been so kind in helping her pick out her outfit for her date today. Nothing expensive of course. And she didn't really plan on buying a new outfit for her date, but Hana-chan and Uo-chan had insisted, saying that this occasion was special, and it deserved at least a new outfit. They even offered in paying it for her, as a gift, but she couldn't let them do that. And after a few minutes of squabbling, they finally let Tohru have her way, which was to pay for the dress herself. And she was wearing it now. A simple lemon yellow off- shoulder blouse, and a pair of white pants. At first, she kept trying to pull the sleeves back to her shoulders, but the silky material just kept sliding off, and so after a few more fruitless attempts, she gave up and just left them as they were.
"Now, shall we go meet lover-boy?" Arisa teased. This produced the expected blush from Tohru, to which Hanajima rebuked "stop teasing her Arisa." Already grinning unrepentantly, Arisa gave out a great laugh.
They walked to the place, which was just a few blocks away from the boutique. And there, stood Ryu, who looked positively gorgeous. He looked the same as he does from school, but somehow different. It was as if there was an air about him.
He smiled when he saw them approach, and his gaze lingered at Tohru. "You look beautiful Honda-san." He said smoothly.
"Well, we'll just leave you two then." Arisa said, already starting to move away from them.
"Bye Tohru-kun. Have fun ok?"
"Bye Uo-chan, Hana-chan." And with a final wave, her two friends went off.
"Shall we go inside Honda-san?" Ryu said, but was already taking her elbow and slowly guiding her towards the Akabeko.
Tohru smiled and nodded.
The restaurant's reputation didn't do honor to the real thing. The ambiance wasn't merely unique, as what people say, it was glorious. Various artifacts from all over the world were hung on the walls, or stood off at the corners. There were tribal masks from India, Africa and other such countries. But there were also elegant scrolls of calligraphy from China. European paintings hung about here and there, and there was even an armor near the front door. All these made a wonderful riot of clashing cultures.
It took all of Tohru's will just not to gape and gawk at the wonderful façade.
Ryu led them to a table in the corner, just near the Chinese artifacts. And immediately, a waiter appeared at their side and gave them each a copy of the menu. Ryu ordered Chicken Cordon Bleu, while Tohru ordered a dish of fettuccini.
After a few moments, their orders arrived. And they proceeded with their lunch, while having a casual conversation.
Unknown to them, a few eyes were watching their every move.
************************************************************************
"Tell me what we're doing here again?" Hatsuharu whispered with resignation.
"We're making sure that Too-ru is safe. We're protecting Too-ru!!!" Momiji exclaimed.
"Quiet you damn bunny! They'll hear us!" Kyou whispered furiously.
"We're here to make sure that Ryu doesn't try anything with Honda-san. We don't know him that well, we're just doing this for Honda-san's benefit." Yuki calmly said. To which Haru simply muttered something that went like "sure, we're doing this for Tohru's benefit and not because two or you are just jealous."
Kyou whirled on him and said "What did you say you dumb cow?!!!" But Yuki shot him a glare, which said "do you want them to know that we're here!"
Kyou simmered down, though still frowning.
The four Juunishi males were currently hiding behind a bunch of plants near the kitchen door. The customers weren't allowed in this area since the kitchen was off limits. It was the perfect hiding place, and the waiters were already warned not to interfere with them or even show the slightest sign that they were there. It was to their good fortune that they discovered that the Akabeko was actually a restaurant owned by a subsidiary company under Sohma corporation owned by Momiji's father. And so they were free to do what they want.
"They're just talking." Haru muttered. "can we just go? Its getting cramped in here."
"No! look!!! He's making a move!" Kyou exclaimed, to which everyone prepared themselves to jump out and intervene. But it turned out that Ryu was merely leaning over to hand Tohru a napkin, since the girl had a spot of sauce on the corner of her mouth.
This earned Kyou a glare from the other three males.
************************************************************************
Totally unaware of their spectators, the two merely continued with their conversation after they finished their meal. Ryu, not wanting to end his time with his beloved angel just yet, decided to order some dessert, just to buy him some more time.
"Honda-san, you seem a bit close with the Sohma's. any special reason for that? Yuki and Kyou aren't usually very open to females."
Tohru's mind went blank. "Uh. You see. err.." eep! What am I going to tell him? That I live with Kyou-kun and Yuki-kun?! "err. well, maybe that's because every female they meet are interested in them in a romantic way. I just wanted to be friends with them." Tohru gave an inner sigh of relief on having thought of a believable reason.
"You mean you're not interested in them in THAT way?" Ryu asked hopefully, his heart already thudding fast inside his chest at the possibility that the Sohma's might not be competition after all.
"Of course not! We're just friends. That's all." Tohru said, looking away from the intensity of Ryu's gaze.
"Honda-san, you don't know how happy that makes me." Ryu's hand was moving towards Tohru's cheek. The action caught Tohru's attention, which made her look at Ryu's face. Bad move. Ryu's look held her gaze, Tohru wanted to look away because this was too much for her, but somehow, she couldn't. Ryu's face loomed closer, ...
Then suddenly.. *TWACK* Ryu jerked back, looking to the side, then gazing to the ground. He bent over and picked up something on the floor, looking at it in confusion.
Tohru was relieved at having been released from that strange spell, but at the same time she was curious as to what had distracted Ryu. "Anou, Akamatsu-san."
Ryu looked back at her, "Something hit me." He held out his palm towards the girl, and Tohru saw that there was a piece of olive there. "Eh?!" Tohru exclaimed, for lack of a better response.
"I know. How could an olive be flying around here?" Ryu scanned the area, looking for a possible source of the flying vegetable (is olive a vegetable?). Having seen nothing, he just sat down and decided to shrug it off. "Must have flown out of somebody's plate, I guess." He said, although he looked as if he was trying to convince himself.
Tohru just sat there, not knowing what to say, except she was thankful for whatever had caused the olive to hit Ryu. Who knows what would've happened if it didn't.
************************************************************************ Four heads ducked back down before Ryu Akamatsu could spot them.
"An OLIVE?!!!" Yuki whispered furiously, "Why did it have to be an olive?! It's the least plausible thing to go flying around!"
"Well, it worked didn't it?! And besides, it was the only thing near me!!!! It was lying on the ground! Or did you want me to go inside the kitchen and find something else, and then come back finding out that its too late because that damn Akamatsu would have kissed her already?" Haru replied with as much intensity, close to turning into black mode.
Yuki sighed and rubbed his temples. This was turning out to be disastrous. But the cow had a point, the olive-throwing trick worked, and Ryu didn't seem to suspect anything. And he really should thank the cow. After all, he did 'save' Honda-san from certain disaster. And he should do it fast, before the cow shifted into his "black" persona and revealed their position.
"You're right. And that was quick thinking on your part." Yuki mumbled.
Haru just smirked, completely placated at having been thanked by his "love".
"Wai!!! Haru is a hero! He saved Too-ru from that guy's kiss of doom!" Momiji cried out. Though the last part of the sentence was a bit mumbled since Kyou had quickly covered the bunny's mouth with his hand before somebody heard them.
"Quiet you!!" he whispered into Momiji's ear. "We should never have brought you along!"
"but.. but." tears were already beginning to well up the bunny's eyes. But before it turned into a bout of tears, Yuki's statement distracted them.
"Look! They're leaving! We'd better follow them!"
All four scrambled to get up. But they were crouching so close to each other that they all crashed back down in a tangle of limbs. Fortunately, they didn't get up high enough that their fall was merely a few inches and didn't make much noise.
"Get off me!" Kyou growled.
"Tooru's getting away!" Momiji cried out. And all four resumed disentangling themselves from each other with renewed vigor.
A few minutes and a lot of painful extractions later, they went outside and looked for Tohru.
They saw her up ahead, talking to Ryu. Although the girl was too far away for them to hear what she was saying, what they saw was enough for them to guess what the conversation was about.
Ryu was leading Tohru to his car!
************************************************************************
"Honda-san, you have to let me take you home. I can't expect you to walk all the way there." Ryu said, very puzzled as to why Tohru wouldn't accept his offer of giving her a ride home.
"But I can't Akamatsu-kun.." Tohru replied, her mind already thinking of a plausible answer.
"Why not?" Ryu asked.
"because. because..."
"BECAUSE I'M HERE TO PICK HER UP!!!" a new voice piped up.
Tohru whirled around at that very familiar, and oh so welcome, voice. And sure enough, she found the little bunny bouncing over her way.
"Momiji-kun!" Tohru cried out in relief. And fortunately, she held her tongue back just in time before she could ask what the bunny was doing here.
"Ne Too-ru, are you finished here? You promised to go with me to that bunny shop remember?" Momiji said, while pulling Tohru towards the car just behind him.
"Ah, of course Momiji-kun. Akamatsu-san, I'm really sorry, but I promised him that I'll accompany him this afternoon." Tohru said, moving towards the car that Momiji had brought with him, waving to Ryu. "Thank you so much for lunch Akamatsu-san. I really had a great time." She gave the boy one final bow and got in the car.
"It was my pleasure Honda-san." Ryu said, and he watched as the car sped away with his Tohru-chan.
************************************************************************
AN: well, how was it? I think it's a bit abrupt, but I couldn't think of any other way of writing it. Maybe my muse hasn't come back to me fully. Maybe she's only half here. Hmmm...
Anyway, please forgive me if this chapter isn't so nice. Heh heh...
Oh and by the way, I've added a gravitation section to my website. There are four gravitation wallpapers there!
Thanks for reading my fic. I'll try to come up with the next chapter soon!
Reviews please!
Ja! -Mayorie-