Disclaimer: See Chapter 1.

Chapter 3 – Tea and Tantrums

Later that evening, the café closed at the usual time. Keiichiro had retired to the lab shortly after the doors closed to check on the safety of the city and the girls had been left to clean up the café. One by one, they completed their duties and slipped out, waving a goodbye to the others. Soon, only Ichigo was left. She finished mopping the floor before placing the mop in its bucket and washing her hands. Then she walked up the stairs to Ryou's room before stopping there. What was she going to say? She recalled his earlier mood and felt nervous about talking to her boss…but she had always managed to tackle him head-on before to come to an agreement. What was different about this time? She could feel her face growing warm. Shaking her head, she raised her hand…then dropped it.

'He's very stubborn,' she thought to herself. 'He won't say yes unless I give him something to help him change his mind.'

Even in her mind, her argument sounded feeble. Yet she went downstairs and put the kettle on, buying herself some thinking time. Once the tea was brewed, she walked downstairs to give a cup to Keiichiro, who smiled his thanks, looking tired. Then she checked to make sure Ryou's cup was brewed properly. Then she walked around the kitchen, making sure everything had been put away and double checking. Only then did she realize how silly she was being.

'If you stall any longer Ichigo, the tea is going to be stone cold by the time it gets there,' she thought, marveling at how her inner voice managed to sound like Ryou when it was telling her off.

Finally, she picked up the cup, walked up the stairs again and knocked on the door.

No answer.

She frowned and knocked again. This time the door opened slightly. Ichigo pushed it further, expecting Ryou to be glaring at her from inside but he was not standing at the doorway. She walked inside and allowed her eyes to adjust to the dark room. The window was open and it caused the curtains to billow silently. Mingled with the moonlight, they cast spooky shadows on the wall. Ichigo shivered in spite of herself. Putting the tea down on the table on her left, she looked around for her boss.

"Shirogane?" she whispered uncertainly.

Something on the bed moved. Ichigo stepped back quickly, her breath hitching in her throat and her heart pounding wildly. The figure mumbled vaguely and turned before settling down in a new position as the moonlight illuminated a head of golden-blond hair. It was Ryou.

Ichigo breathed slowly, trying to calm her racing heart. She crept silently towards him and peered down at his sleeping form. Her stomach flipped slightly and a smile graced her features as she observed the almost innocent look on his calm face. When he wasn't angry or stressed, he looked very sweet. And he was definitely better-looking this way! Her smile faded as she realized what she was thinking.

'Why am I thinking these thoughts about my rude, arrogant boss?' she thought to herself. 'I have a boyfriend. Masaya is my boyfriend, not Shirogane.' Frowning a bit, she stepped away from the bed before turning on her heel and walking out of the room.

At the doorway, she turned to look at Ryou once more. His mouth was curled up into a slight smile that made her smile despite herself. "Sweet dreams," she whispered into the room before closing the door gently behind her.

The moment Ryou woke up, he knew it was going to be a bad day. For one thing, the sun was streaming into his room, unshielded by the curtains, which he had stupidly left wide open before lying down last night for what was meant to be a small nap, but had turned into a deep sleep. For another thing, he has slept awkwardly and had a throbbing pain in his neck. To top it all off, he had dreamed about her again and had woken up with her face implanted in his mind, her sweet scent in the air and her voice filling his ears. He wanted his Strawberry…but no, she was not his Strawberry. She was Masaya's girlfriend, not his. He growled at the thought.

He stretched awkwardly before pulling a new shirt on, moving his sore neck uncomfortably. He was just about to exit the room when he noticed something on his desk that hadn't been there the night before. A cup of tea. He grabbed the cup gratefully, ready to take a gulp, but stopped it just before it reached his lips.

"It's cold!" he said in disgust. "Well, that's just great…"

Ryou walked out of his door and faced the staircase, cup in hand, only to be faced with the one person he was not ready to see.

'Today just isn't my day,' he thought.

"Good morning Shirogane," Ichigo said chirpily.

"I'm not in the mood for this."

"Having a bad day already? You just –"

"Get to the point, Momomiya," Ryou growled, stomping past her and into the kitchen.

"How do you –"

"I'd have to be blind and deaf not to know what you want!" he replied harshly, his back to her. He could not make eye contact with her. "You want the afternoon off? Fine, take it. But if you haven't finished your work when you leave today, your pay will be docked. Now go away and leave me alone!"

With that, Ryou busied himself with washing the stained cup out. Silence resonated after his last sentence and he thought she had left the room.

"I'm sorry."

He whirled around. Ichigo was still there, looking at him with a peculiar expression, a mixture of worry and hurt on her face. He felt regret flood through him, but before he could open his mouth, she was gone. He turned back to the counter and leaned heavily on it with a sigh. He had hidden his feelings well so far, but how much longer could he keep hiding before it all fell apart?