Oh my gosh! You aren't going to believe this, but I had every sweet second written up, and something happened with my computer again and I lost it! I'm so sorry! I don't know what the problem is, but I'm trying to repair it as I type this. Please enjoy, and keep the reviews coming. I appreciate you guys.

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The minute Ritsu stepped into work the next day, he knew something was off. It was too quiet. Stepping down the hall, Ritsu looked around for any signs of life.

"Hello?" he called.

Suddenly, Ayame stuck his head out of the third storage room, which also doubled as a workroom. "Ah, Rii-kun," he said. "Just the person I wanted to see. Miine-chan is sick, so I need you to help me by holding the dress I'm working on still."

"O-oh," said Ritsu. "Hai!" he immediately stepped into the third storage room. He loved his new job, and he especially loved how Ayame made him feel needed.

They worked in silence for a good fifteen minutes, until it happened. Ritsu moved his finger too close to the moving sewing machine.

"Ah!" he gasped in pain. Ayame immediately stopped pedaling (A/N: It's one of those sewing machines were you have to pedal it with your foot.) the machine and leaned over to examine his cousin, who now had the cloth as a part of his finger.

"G-gomen ne," said Ritsu, trying not to wince in pain.

"Why are you apologizing?" asked Ayame. "Gomenasi. I didn't see your finger there, Rii-kun. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine," said Ritsu, trying to be brave. He attempted a smile at his cousin, but his pain somehow showed through.

"Ritchan," said Ayame quietly. "Do you need me to call Hatori?"

"No, no," said Ritsu, holding his finger close to his chest. "I'm fine. Really."

"Wait here," said Ayame. The snake stood up and turned walked over to the corner, where they kept a box of extra supplies. He reached inside and rifled around, until he found what he was looking for. He turned back to Ritsu, who gulped.

In Ayame's hands was a pair of sharp cutting scissors.

(A/N: I am not a Doctor, so therefore this medical advice is purely fictional. If you are ever in a situation like this, call a Doctor.)

"Wh-what are you doing with those?" asked Ritsu nervously.

"I have to get the thread out of your finger," explained Ayame calmly. He walked over to Ritsu and gently took the trembling monkey's hand in his own. "Don't worry, Rii-kun."

Ritsu closed his eyes as Ayame cut the thread that bound his finger to the dress. The minute it was gone, Ritsu dared look down. He was greeted by the sight of his cousin pulling at the thread in Ritsu's finger.

Ritsu bit his lip so hard he tasted blood and tried not to wince as his cousin pulled a total of six times to remove the stitches. When the pain finally faded, the monkey opened his eyes.

To his horror, his finger was covered in blood. Still perfectly intact, yes, but covered in blood nonetheless. The blood fell onto the fabric and seeped from the holes in his finger. Ritsu began to tremble like a leaf.

Ayame watched his cousin's expression turn to horror. Feeling a wave of guilt sweep over him, Ayame reached out and took ahold of Ritsu's hand. Cradling it in both of his, he brought the wounded finger to his lips and placed a delicate kiss upon it. Ritsu's face turned scarlet.

"Gomen, Rii-kun," said Ayame. "Let me fix it for you." he replaced his cousin's hand and stood. Once again, he rifled through the box, this time for some bandages. When he found the first aid kit, he brought it over to Ritchan and picked out the rubbing alcohol.

"This might sting," he warned Ritsu. The chestnut-haired man merely nodded.

The three drops of alcohol did indeed sting. Ritsu allowed himself to flinch, this time. Ayame watched him in sympathy. Once that was over, he picked out a bandage and began to wrap it tenderly around Ritsu's finger. Ritsu watched him with a mixture of apprehension and wonderment at the caring expression on Ayame's face.

"There," said Ayame, once he was done bandaging the cuts. "Good as new!" Which was a lie, but Ayame felt he should be strong for Ritsu's sake.

"A-arigatou," stammered Ritsu. His face again turned red. "Gomen. I didn't mean to ruin the outfit."

"The outfit?" said Ayame incredulously. "Ritsu, I don't care about some stupid dress. I'll start again if I have to. I'm worried about you. You're the one who's bleeding."

Ritsu didn't know what to say. Ayame wasn't mad?

"I-I'm okay," said Ritsu, looking at the floor. Ayame reached out a pale, feminine hand, and cupped his cousin's chin in his palm. He raised the monkey's face from and studied it intently.

"Really?" he asked suspiciously.

Ritchan's face turned pink. "H-hai," he said. "I'll be fine."

"Then I'm glad," said Ayame with a bright and sincere smile. Ritsu felt himself relaxing, despite the throbbing in his finger, he smiled as well, a tentative smile.

"Wait right here, Ritchan," said Ayame, standing up. He smiled reassuringly at Ritsu, before flouncing out of the room. Ritsu wondered where he was going.

When Ayame returned, he had a glass of water with him. "What's that for?" ask Ritsu curiously.

Aaya smiled and walked over to the medical kit. Reaching inside, he pulled out a bottle of Tylenol and extracted a pill. Then, he leaned towards Ritsu. Rii-kun opened his mouth to as what Aaya was doing, but instead wound up with a Tylenol on his tongue. A minute later, Ayame poured some water through Ritsu's still-parted lips. Ritsu swallowed and blinked, while Ayame beamed at him.

"There you go!" he said enthusiastically.

"A-arigatou," said Ritsu, once again turning bright red. Ayame just smiled.

"No problem," he said. "Now, you should sit down for a while, Ritchan. Wait until the painkiller kicks in."

"O-oh no!" said Ritsu. "I want to help. Onegai? I've already inconvenienced you by being injured. I want to make up for it."

"There's nothing to make up for," said Ayame soothingly. "It was my fault. Don't feel bad, Ritchan. Why, back when I was first starting out as a fashion designer, Hatori had to stop by once a day to pluck the thread out of my fingers."

"R-really?" said Ritsu. The idea of his perfect cousin being injured doing what he was best at was a foreign concept to him.

"Hai," said Ayame. "The same went for Miine-chan. How else do you think I learned how to treat wounds caused by the sewing machine?" Ritsu blinked. He hadn't thought of that.

"Now, you rest here until you're feeling better," said Ayame. "I'll go and cut the fabric for another dress. When you're absolutely sure you'll be okay, then come and join me, alright?"

Ritsu just nodded meekly.

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About an hour later, the two Sohma men were hard at work. Ritsu was basting the dress together, and Ayame was adding the hem. They both worked in silence, each completely focused on their task.

Suddenly, though, Ayame stopped and looked up at his assistant. Ritsu didn't notice he was being watched, and merely continued to work. Ayame studied his face carefully. When he seemed content, he began to work again.

'It doesn't look like he's in pain,' thought Ayame. 'The tylenol must still be in effect.'

Meanwhile, Ritsu was carefully basting the side of the dress. His mind kept wandering to earlier that day, when he had gotten his finger caught in the sewing machine. As a child, when he was injured, he was told to be strong and suck it up. Nobody would come running to comfort him.

But Ayame... Ayame was different. The moment he saw that his cousin was injured, he jumped into action. And Ritsu couldn't help but remember the light kiss he placed upon his sore finger. Nobody had ever kissed away his injuries before. Ayame's actions were a first.

Ritchan couldn't help but blush as he recalled his feminine cousin taking his hand and kissing his finger.

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Three hours later, Ritsu and Ayame were eating their lunch. This time, Ayame had a sandwich and Ritsu had something stale stuffed with old peanut butter. Ayame couldn't quite figure out what it was.

"Ritchan," he said suddenly. "I can't finish my sandwich. Would you like the rest?" he shoved the remainder of the food across the table towards his cousin. He wasn't all that hungry anyways.

"Oh no!" said Ritsu frantically. "I couldn't. What if you get hungry later?"

"Then I'll get some more food from the pantry!" said Ayame with a bright smile. "Onegai, Rii-kun? I wouldn't want to waste food."

"O-o-of course!" said Ritsu. He reached across the table and grabbed the sandwich, quickly taking a bite just to please Ayame.

This made Ayame smile. 'Rii-kun is so adorable,' he thought. 'So, so adorable...'

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Yes, the ending was a little rough, but pretend it wasn't. How did you like it? Was it good? Bad?

Please review and tell me!