Disclaimer: I own no part of Love Hina, but Sean is me.
Did you miss me? Admit it.
* * * Chapter XXX: Shinobu's Birthday * * *
"I don't think I could have asked for a better time," Shinobu thought. "I mean, setting up this picnic lunch for just the two of us…"
"Thanks again for doing this. I'm having such a wonderful time today."
"No sweat," Sean said. "I think we both needed a break from all that chaos the others bring into our lives anyway, don't you?"
"Yes, it's good to just get away from it all. I hope they don't come looking for us or anything, though. You know how protective of me Naru and Motoko can be sometimes."
"I do, but you don't have to worry about them or anyone interfering. I've taken steps to make sure we don't see them again until we want them to; or to be more accurate, they won't see us." The entire picnic scene had been turned invisible to everyone except the two involved.
"He doesn't want anything to spoil this for either of us," she thought as she gazed lovingly at Sean, who was laying down on the picnic blanket he brought with him, staring up at the clouds. "Everything is so peaceful here. It's perfect." She continued to look on as her beau appeared more and more relaxed. It looked as though all his worries had melted away in the noonday sun. "He cares so much for me, yet there's so little I can do for him except help with repairs to Hinata-Sou."
A tear started to appear in her eye. "If only there was something I could do…" Suddenly, she recalled what Motoko has done for him in recent days. "That's it! I could… no, he would never let me do something like that. He'd just say that I'm too young and that I shouldn't concern myself with it for now. He tells me to be patient, and I have been, but I just don't know how long it'll be until he thinks I'm ready for the next step. Oh, if only I was older, so I could enjoy the full benefits of having a boyfriend."
When she saw Sean close his eyes, she knew a special opportunity was made available to her, and that it was her choice as to whether or not to take advantage of it. "Come on, Shinobu, you can do this." In all honesty, she was deathly afraid of what might happen, but she refused to let fear of the unknown hold her back.
Sean was jolted out of his apparent daydreams when he felt Shinobu climb on top of him, her face about a foot away from his own. "Shinobu, what are you--"
"Sean, you know I love you, right?"
"Of course," he said, still a bit shocked by his girlfriend's bold action.
"Then let me show you how much I care for you."
"But I'm not sure if--"
"I don't care if you think I'm too young! All I want is to see you happy, and I'm not about to let Motoko be the only one to do that!"
Sean continued his attempts to object, but Shinobu would listen to none of it. She was a girl on a mission and nothing was going to stop her… except…
--- Thursday, 11/15 6:15 AM
Shinobu's eyes snapped open and it took a few moments for her to realize where she was; her bedroom, as opposed to the open field she had been in moments before and where she wished she had stayed. "Oh, God, not again!" she thought, her tears making themselves known. "Why are these thing have to happen to me?" she muttered.
"And what things might those be?"
Shinobu instantly recognized the voice and it was at that moment that she realized that someone was in bed with her, their arm draped over her. She looked behind her (as she slept on her side) and saw Sean there, smiling at her. "What are you doing in here?!" she asked in a hushed tone so nobody outside would hear.
"Good morning to you too, birthday girl," Sean said, his smile never leaving his face.
Shinobu didn't know how to feel at that moment. Should she be glad that Sean remembered her birthday? Should she be scared because of what happened in her dream? Should she just freak out because the two are sharing the same bed?!
Noticing her indecision, Sean decided to snap her out of it by giving her a quick kiss on the lips, but all that served to do was deepen Shinobu's already red face. "What's wrong?" he asked, starting to get really worried at this point. "Aren't you glad to see me?"
"I… I…" Shinobu started, frantically searching her mind for something intelligible to say. "I need to go make breakfast," she finally said, trying to get up, but Sean kept her from going anywhere.
"No need. It's already taken care of."
"Uh oh," Shinobu thought. Her escape route just got cut off. "What do I do now? Auuu…"
Sean noticed Shinobu's panicked expression. "Shinobu, I can't help you if you don't tell me what wrong."
"I'm sorry," Shinobu said, tearing up. "There's something I have to do." She jumped out of bed and ran out the door before a now speechless Sean could do anything to stop her.
"I hate to run out on him like that," Shinobu thought as she slowly made her way down the hallway. "I know he meant well by what he did, but I need to sort out my own thoughts right now." When she reached the dining room, she found a wide array of food there, the centerpiece of which being a beautiful cake. "What's all this?" she thought out loud.
"SURPRISE!!" Shinobu turned around to find the others in the doorway. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SHINOBU!"
Shinobu was speechless; her face a bright red, partially because of the wonderful surprise, partially because she was still in her nightshirt.
"Come on, girl," Kitsune said, lightly slapping her on the back. "We don't have too much time this morning before everyone was school and work to get to, so let's get this party started, shall we?"
"Yay, Party!" Suu said, jumping up and down ecstatically. (How's that different from any other day? Oh well…)
"Um, thank you, everyone," Shinobu said timidly when she regained her senses.
"You should be thanking Sean," Naru said. "He's the one who planned this whole thing. By the way, where is he?" The whole time, Sean was absent from the festivities.
"Hmm, good question," Keitaro said. "He was so excited about today; he even mentioned something about some big surprise for you, Shinobu."
"Yeah, I think I've already come across his 'big surprise,'" she said. She wasn't sure if she should have said that, but she was too late; it had already been done.
"Really?" Motoko said. "What was it?"
"I'm not sure if I should say it…" her voice trailed off.
"Aw, come on, tell us!" Suu said.
"I think I'm going to regret this," Shinobu thought. "Alright, I'll tell you!" She noticed the looks she was getting from everyone; they were more than eager to find out. "Oh yeah," she thought. "I'm definitely going to regret saying this." "Well, when I woke up this morning, he was there."
"You mean he was in your room while you were asleep?" Naru said, a slight twitch starting to form.
Shinobu's face turned red again. "Actually, he was in bed with me."
The next few moments were in complete silence. Everyone on the receiving end of Shinobu's little piece of information was shocked to the core.
"Uh, you're kidding, right?" Motoko asked. "Please, tell me you're kidding."
All Shinobu could do was shake her head slowly.
"Ah, so that's his big plan," Kitsune said, a grin forming on her face. "He wanted to celebrate your birthday by making you a woman."
"No, it wasn't--"
"That no good…" Naru said, a vein throbbing in her forehead. "I can't believe he'd even think about trying to molest you! He is so dead!"
"Naru, it wasn't--" Shinobu said, but Naru had already rushed out of the room. "--like that."
"I find it hard to grasp that Sean would ever attempt to rape you," Motoko said.
"That because he didn't!"
"Well, if that's the case," Kitsune said, "then Sean is definitely in for a big surprise of his own."
---
Sean leaned against a wall in his room. It looked like he was in deep thought. "I could have sworn that she would have been overjoyed to see me," he said to himself. "but instead, she just ran off like I was the plague. Hmm, she mentioned that something has been happening to her. I wonder what it could be--" his thoughts were interrupted by the sound of his door being slammed open.
"YOU!!" Naru screamed.
"Me?" He said, confused and a bit scared at the look she was giving him.
"I can't believe you!" She said, pinning him against the wall. "To think you would ever pull a stunt like that! I mean, trying to rape poor Shinobu on her birthday is a new low!"
"WHAT?!"
"Don't try to deny it! She said herself that you snuck into her bed last night!"
"Hold on, you don't understand--"
"Oh, I understand, and no magic will save you this time!"
"Okay," Sean thought, trying to keep calm. "At this point, there's nothing I can say or do that will calm her down, so the best plan of action should be to…" He broke out in a dash for the door. "RUN LIKE MAD!"
"Oh no, you're not getting away from me!" Naru said, giving chase.
"I thought she was over this whole rage thing," he thought as he led his pursuer down the hallway until he reached a dead end. "Oh, crap."
"Hehehe," Naru chuckled evilly as she made her way to her victim, who looked more and more like a trapped rat with each passing second. "I'm going to enjoy this so much," she said, cracking her knuckles.
---
Everyone who stayed in the dining room could hear the impact from upstairs as though it was only a few feet away, and it made Shinobu flinch. "Why did this have to happen?" she asked, new tears forming. "Why did Naru have to beat him on my birthday of all days?"
"In a way, he brought it upon himself," Motoko said.
"No, it wasn't his fault. He wanted me to be happy, that's all. I just couldn't keep my mouth shut about it when confronted about it by you."
Naru reappeared in the dining room. "Ah, I feel better now."
"Naru, news flash:" Kitsune said. "Sean's innocent."
"What are you talking about?"
"It's true," Shinobu said. "He wouldn't do anything like that and we all know it."
"You saying I beat Sean even though he didn't deserve it? …Again?"
"You got that right," Kitsune said.
"Oh, great," Naru said, guilt appearing on her face.
"Aw, he'll be fine," Suu said. "Let's eat!"
"You're right," Shinobu said. "He's survived this long, after all."
"I still want to apologize," Naru said. "The last time I hit him for something he might have done to you, it resulted with him going blind."
"Old habits die hard," Motoko said.
"That's easy for you to say. Why didn't you come with me?"
"I found it very hard to believe. I admit that if I didn't know him as well as I do, I would have accompanied you and tried to cut him in half for his transgression."
"Uh, guys," Shinobu said. "Could I ask you something?"
"Sure, what?" Naru said.
"Have any of you had any dreams with Sean in them?" All the girls nodded. "What kind of dreams were they?"
"Well, I haven't had one in a while, but I do remember some where the two of us were studying together," Naru said.
"Playing with him!" Suu said between bites.
"Consummating our friendship," Kitsune said, grinning.
"Uh, ditto," Motoko said, blushing. That got a couple surprised looks before Shinobu continued.
"That's what I thought."
"Why do you ask?" Naru asked.
"Well, it's just that I had a one with him in it just a little while ago."
"What happened?"
"Well, it was like this…"
---
"Damn, I haven't seen Naru that pissed off in… well, ever," Sean thought as he entered orbit from the force of Naru's attack. He rubbed his cheek, which was black and blue and growing quite swollen. "Or hit quite that hard for that matter. I'm going to have to explain everything to her when I get back; I hope she's calmed down by then. In the meantime, I guess I should take advantage of this situation." He blinked, making his eyes glow green (telescopic mode). "Let's see how everything's going back home." He focused his vision on the southeastern United States. "This would be so much easier if I could see the state borders like in maps. Now let's see…" He kept zooming in until he recognized the highways of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. "Hey, I can see my house from here…"
---
"…I was determined to make him the happiest man alive, but just as I was about to, I woke up," Shinobu said, finishing her explanation. Her face was a deep red.
"Well," Kitsune said. "it looks like our little Shinobu is growing up, doesn't it?"
"Kitsune, this is serious!" Shinobu shouted, regaining everyone's attention. "After I woke up, it took me a little while to realize that Sean had joined me in bed overnight. I probably would have stayed with him, but I was too freaked out by my dream, so I ran out of the room. If only I had never dreamed that up; or was allowed to let it finish."
"Shinobu, everything will be alright," Motoko said. "It was just a dream."
"Maybe, but I've been having that same dream every night for the last week. Every time, I made the first move, and every time, I wake up before anything happens. I know I'm too young to have him in real life, and I can deal with that, but being denied in my dreams is just too much. I'm starting to get really worried."
"Hmm, that is strange…" Motoko said, remembering the violent dreams Sean used to have.
Kitsune went over the dialogue in Shinobu's dream, and something clicked in her head. "So, Sean's getting some action on the side is he?" she said, glaring at Motoko.
"You can say that," Motoko said, her face turning pink. "But how did you find out about that, Shinobu?"
"Sean told me. He didn't want me to be surprised if I happened to catch you two in the act."
"I think the more important question is why would he go shack up with someone else?" Kitsune said. She looked like she had been betrayed. "Am I not doing a good enough job?"
"That's what he said," Motoko said. "You should consider yourself lucky he still pleases you."
"I'm going to have a serious talk with him when he gets back."
"Speaking of which, I wonder where he's at?" Naru asked. "He usually gets back by now, right?"
"Maybe he's just waiting for you to cool your jets," Kitsune said. "You were really mad at him just a few minutes ago."
"Well, it was just a misunderstanding."
"It's always a misunderstanding," Kitsune said under her breath.
"I think I'm going to go take a bath and get ready for school now," Shinobu said. "Thank you for listening to what I had to say."
"You're welcome," Naru said. "Mind if I join you?"
"Not at all." All the girls decided to continue the birthday party in the hot spring, but Naru paused before leaving the dining room.
"Hey, Keitaro, would you clean all this up for us? Thanks!"
"Hey, wait--" Keitaro started to say but Naru was already gone. He looked around him; Suu had single-handedly made a disaster area of the whole room. "Wonderful."
--- 3:02 PM
"Are you alright, Shinobu? You've looked really distracted today."
"Yeah, I'm fine," Shinobu said halfheartedly. In truth, she had become very depressed as the day wore on. She waited for Sean to return as long as she could before she would risk being late for school, but he never showed. Even in class, she found herself unable to pay attention to the teacher, her thoughts constantly turning to her missing love. The worry etched on her face didn't go unnoticed by one of her friends and she confronted her about it after class.
"You sure don't look fine. Tell me what's bothering you."
"Well, one of the people I live with got in a bit of an accident, and I've been wondering if he's alright."
"Wait, don't you live at the girl's dorm?"
"Yeah."
"Then why did you say 'he'?"
"Our landlord's a guy; long story."
"Hmm, I wonder why you're so worried about a guy… unless…"
"Unless what?"
"You're in love with him, aren't you?"
Shinobu's face turned bright red. "W-What makes you think that?"
"Well, the look on your face right now is a dead giveaway. Why haven't you told me about him before?"
"It's a bit complicated. You see, he's--hey what's that?"
"Don't try to change the subject."
"I'm not joking," Shinobu said, pointing skyward. Sure enough, there was a flaming ball hurtling in their general direction. "Duck!" Shinobu grabbed her friend by the arm and ran for cover. About as soon as they were sheltered, they heard the tremendous impact not too far away from them. After the dust cleared, Shinobu poked her head out. "What the heck was that?"
"Your guess is as good as mine. Let's go see."
Shinobu nodded and the two slowly walked to the smoldering crater, where a small crowd was starting to gather. She could hear some murmuring, but couldn't tell what was being said. As they neared, she saw a hand poke out of the hole. "It's a person?! But how--" The words caught in her throat when she saw a second hand join the first one, but it was the head that appeared shortly thereafter that made her almost faint.
"Oh man, I wouldn't want to go through that again," a singed Sean muttered, climbing out of the hole he had just made.
Shinobu was speechless. Sure, she had gotten accustomed to the things he does around the house, but he just fell out of the freaking sky!
"Hmm, I wonder where I am," Sean thought, looking around. "A school, huh? Well, that certainly narrows things down a--" His thoughts came to a crashing halt when he spotted Shinobu among the crowd. "Well, what do you know."
Shinobu's friend heard the visitor call out to her by name. "Hey, how does he know you, Shinobu?"
"That's him," was all she could say.
"Who's he?"
Shinobu finally let the reality sink in. Tears in her eyes, she ran over to him and hugged him tight. "Thank God you're alright! Where did you go, Sean?! I was so worried about you!"
"I circled the earth a few times, courtesy of Naru's fist."
"She sent you into orbit?! Oh, when we get home, I'm going to--"
"--thank her," Sean finished.
"What?!" Shinobu was confused by that.
"You wouldn't believe the view from up there. I should take you up there sometime, but if I do, I'll skip the reentry; it can be a real pain, you know?"
"Um, excuse me, but who are you and how do you know Shinobu?"
"You wanted to know who I was in love with, right?" Shinobu said. "Well, this is him."
"You've got to be kidding! He's got to be twice your age!"
"Almost. What's your point?" Sean asked.
"It's not like we do anything inappropriate or anything," Shinobu added.
"It just doesn't look normal, that's all."
"You just saw me plummet from I don't know how many miles up in the sky and you bring up being normal?"
"Good point."
"Now, there's something I need to talk to my girl about, so if you'll excuse us…" With that, both Sean and Shinobu vanished without a trace, provoking shocked gasps and whispers from the crowd.
"I'm glad your alright," Shinobu said. She still felt a bit embarrassed, what with the public display of affection and all; and they were still there at the scene of the crash.
"Don't worry," Sean said, noticing the blush on Shinobu's face. "They can't see or hear us right now." He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and the two began their trek back home. "Now, tell me what's on your mind."
"What do you mean?"
"You didn't run out on me this morning for no reason. Something's up."
"I was too scared before, but I talked to the others about it, so I guess you deserve to know; especially because it concerns you." Sean nodded, signifying that he was listening. "Well, last night I had a certain dream about us."
"Um, what exactly are we doing in this dream of yours?"
"We were out having a picnic lunch together. Some time passes and a thought crosses my mind and I find myself determined to do to you what Motoko has."
"Is that right?"
"Yeah. Well, just before I got started, I woke up; and then I found you in bed with me. That's why I panicked; I regretted doing that afterwards. I might have stayed, but I've had that dream for a week straight, with the same ending; it's gotten me a bit frazzled."
"I see. About sneaking into bed with you this morning. I probably overstepped my bounds by doing that, if Naru's reaction was any indication." He rubbed his cheek, which was still bruised. "I can still feel that punch she gave me."
"That's my fault. I wasn't able to explain everything before she blew up."
"Makes sense." Sean sighed and looked up at the sky. "I guess this birthday was a bit of a bust, huh?"
"Not necessarily. There's still time left in the day."
"I suppose so, but making you worry about me isn't a good start."
"But you're here with me now. That improved it a lot."
"Yeah. I wasn't even aiming for your school during my descent. I didn't even know where it was, so I got pretty lucky on that one."
"Where were you aiming, then?"
"I wasn't. All I could see was the flames surrounding my force field."
"Yeah, you look like you got a bit cooked."
"Well, it took me a little while to realize just how hot it gets when you're going through Earth's atmosphere at such high speeds."
Shinobu nodded thoughtfully. "What do you think we should do later on?"
"I think the first thing we should do is get back before the others send out a search party to find me."
---
"Hey, check this out!" Kitsune said as she sat on the couch, watching the news. There was a story on about a strange event that occurred in town minutes before.
"…Eyewitness accounts depict a fireball crashing into the ground in front of a local middle school…"
"I was afraid of this," Sean said, which surprised everyone, since he wasn't there moments before. The reporter continued, saying how he climbed out of the hole he made and how both he and Shinobu disappeared. "I should have known better than to pull the old vanishing act in public. I guess I should lay low for a while until this whole thing blows over. I hope they don't think it's a kidnapping."
"Where the hell were you?!" Naru asked. "We've been worried sick!"
"So I heard. To answer your question, I was in orbit!"
"Did I hit you that hard?"
"Yes, you did."
"Um, I'm sorry about that. I overreacted again, that's all."
"Let's just forget that ever happened, shall we?"
"Sean, I need to have a talk with you!" Kitsune said.
"If this is about what happened yesterday, I keep telling you--"
"No, not that. Since when have you and Motoko been together?"
"What do you mean?" Sean asked, trying to sound confused.
"She knows, Sean," Motoko said.
"Yes, I do, I would like an explanation."
"Um, well," Sean said nervously, tugging at the collar of his shirt. In a spur of the moment decision, he ran out of the room. "See ya!"
"Hey, get back here!" Kitsune said, giving chase.
"Never a dull moment," Naru thought.
--- 10:02 PM
"Uh, Sean?" Shinobu asked, opening the door to his room.
"Yeah?" Sean responded, looking up from his book. He noticed that Shinobu had changed into her nightshirt.
"I just wanted to wish you a good night and to thank you for a nice birthday."
"You're welcome, but I promise to not make you worry about my safety next year."
"I don't think that'll be a problem. I warned the others that if they ever hurt you again when you didn't actually do anything, they'll have to answer to me."
"Either that, or we can sell Naru to the space program to help them launch their satellites." The two shared a laugh, knowing that he was just joking. "Well, see you in the morning, then."
"You're not going to bed yet?"
"Nah, I figured I was going to stay up a couple more hours. You know me, and how much sleep I need."
"Yeah, I guess waking up at midnight can be a bit hard at first."
"I've gotten used to the early mornings. Why did you ask, anyway?"
Shinobu's started to blush. "Well, I was just hoping we could go to bed together, like you tried to do this morning."
"Oh," Sean said, tossing his book to the side. "In that case, I guess I could turn in a bit early tonight."
Shinobu's face lit up upon hearing this. "Would you mind if I slept in here, then?"
"Not at all. Keitaro's upstairs doing schoolwork with Naru, and I never know when or if he comes back down."
Shinobu went over to him and hugged him. "Thank you. I promise I'll stay with you this time instead of running off."
"Considering my sleep and work schedule, I might not be here when you wake up, but I'll do my best."
"I don't care about that. All that matters is that we're together right here, right now. C'mon, let's get some sleep." She took him by the hand and led him to the futon he always kept unrolled in a corner of the room.
"As you wish, birthday girl." He said as they both got under the covers. In almost no time at all, Shinobu was in a deep sleep, but since Sean wasn't quite tired yet, he just let his mind wander a bit. Some time later, he heard Shinobu sigh happily as she snuggled closer to him. "Looks like she's finally finishing a dream," he thought with a smile. "I just hope that when the time comes, I'm just as good in real life. I wouldn't want to disappoint her or anything." After what felt like an eternity, he let himself accompany his girlfriend in slumber, his final thoughts being his curiosity as to what exactly was going on in the dream Shinobu was having.
* * * End of Chapter XXX * * *
Aw, isn't that cute? Well, see you next time! Please R&R!
Did you miss me? Admit it.
* * * Chapter XXX: Shinobu's Birthday * * *
"I don't think I could have asked for a better time," Shinobu thought. "I mean, setting up this picnic lunch for just the two of us…"
"Thanks again for doing this. I'm having such a wonderful time today."
"No sweat," Sean said. "I think we both needed a break from all that chaos the others bring into our lives anyway, don't you?"
"Yes, it's good to just get away from it all. I hope they don't come looking for us or anything, though. You know how protective of me Naru and Motoko can be sometimes."
"I do, but you don't have to worry about them or anyone interfering. I've taken steps to make sure we don't see them again until we want them to; or to be more accurate, they won't see us." The entire picnic scene had been turned invisible to everyone except the two involved.
"He doesn't want anything to spoil this for either of us," she thought as she gazed lovingly at Sean, who was laying down on the picnic blanket he brought with him, staring up at the clouds. "Everything is so peaceful here. It's perfect." She continued to look on as her beau appeared more and more relaxed. It looked as though all his worries had melted away in the noonday sun. "He cares so much for me, yet there's so little I can do for him except help with repairs to Hinata-Sou."
A tear started to appear in her eye. "If only there was something I could do…" Suddenly, she recalled what Motoko has done for him in recent days. "That's it! I could… no, he would never let me do something like that. He'd just say that I'm too young and that I shouldn't concern myself with it for now. He tells me to be patient, and I have been, but I just don't know how long it'll be until he thinks I'm ready for the next step. Oh, if only I was older, so I could enjoy the full benefits of having a boyfriend."
When she saw Sean close his eyes, she knew a special opportunity was made available to her, and that it was her choice as to whether or not to take advantage of it. "Come on, Shinobu, you can do this." In all honesty, she was deathly afraid of what might happen, but she refused to let fear of the unknown hold her back.
Sean was jolted out of his apparent daydreams when he felt Shinobu climb on top of him, her face about a foot away from his own. "Shinobu, what are you--"
"Sean, you know I love you, right?"
"Of course," he said, still a bit shocked by his girlfriend's bold action.
"Then let me show you how much I care for you."
"But I'm not sure if--"
"I don't care if you think I'm too young! All I want is to see you happy, and I'm not about to let Motoko be the only one to do that!"
Sean continued his attempts to object, but Shinobu would listen to none of it. She was a girl on a mission and nothing was going to stop her… except…
--- Thursday, 11/15 6:15 AM
Shinobu's eyes snapped open and it took a few moments for her to realize where she was; her bedroom, as opposed to the open field she had been in moments before and where she wished she had stayed. "Oh, God, not again!" she thought, her tears making themselves known. "Why are these thing have to happen to me?" she muttered.
"And what things might those be?"
Shinobu instantly recognized the voice and it was at that moment that she realized that someone was in bed with her, their arm draped over her. She looked behind her (as she slept on her side) and saw Sean there, smiling at her. "What are you doing in here?!" she asked in a hushed tone so nobody outside would hear.
"Good morning to you too, birthday girl," Sean said, his smile never leaving his face.
Shinobu didn't know how to feel at that moment. Should she be glad that Sean remembered her birthday? Should she be scared because of what happened in her dream? Should she just freak out because the two are sharing the same bed?!
Noticing her indecision, Sean decided to snap her out of it by giving her a quick kiss on the lips, but all that served to do was deepen Shinobu's already red face. "What's wrong?" he asked, starting to get really worried at this point. "Aren't you glad to see me?"
"I… I…" Shinobu started, frantically searching her mind for something intelligible to say. "I need to go make breakfast," she finally said, trying to get up, but Sean kept her from going anywhere.
"No need. It's already taken care of."
"Uh oh," Shinobu thought. Her escape route just got cut off. "What do I do now? Auuu…"
Sean noticed Shinobu's panicked expression. "Shinobu, I can't help you if you don't tell me what wrong."
"I'm sorry," Shinobu said, tearing up. "There's something I have to do." She jumped out of bed and ran out the door before a now speechless Sean could do anything to stop her.
"I hate to run out on him like that," Shinobu thought as she slowly made her way down the hallway. "I know he meant well by what he did, but I need to sort out my own thoughts right now." When she reached the dining room, she found a wide array of food there, the centerpiece of which being a beautiful cake. "What's all this?" she thought out loud.
"SURPRISE!!" Shinobu turned around to find the others in the doorway. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY, SHINOBU!"
Shinobu was speechless; her face a bright red, partially because of the wonderful surprise, partially because she was still in her nightshirt.
"Come on, girl," Kitsune said, lightly slapping her on the back. "We don't have too much time this morning before everyone was school and work to get to, so let's get this party started, shall we?"
"Yay, Party!" Suu said, jumping up and down ecstatically. (How's that different from any other day? Oh well…)
"Um, thank you, everyone," Shinobu said timidly when she regained her senses.
"You should be thanking Sean," Naru said. "He's the one who planned this whole thing. By the way, where is he?" The whole time, Sean was absent from the festivities.
"Hmm, good question," Keitaro said. "He was so excited about today; he even mentioned something about some big surprise for you, Shinobu."
"Yeah, I think I've already come across his 'big surprise,'" she said. She wasn't sure if she should have said that, but she was too late; it had already been done.
"Really?" Motoko said. "What was it?"
"I'm not sure if I should say it…" her voice trailed off.
"Aw, come on, tell us!" Suu said.
"I think I'm going to regret this," Shinobu thought. "Alright, I'll tell you!" She noticed the looks she was getting from everyone; they were more than eager to find out. "Oh yeah," she thought. "I'm definitely going to regret saying this." "Well, when I woke up this morning, he was there."
"You mean he was in your room while you were asleep?" Naru said, a slight twitch starting to form.
Shinobu's face turned red again. "Actually, he was in bed with me."
The next few moments were in complete silence. Everyone on the receiving end of Shinobu's little piece of information was shocked to the core.
"Uh, you're kidding, right?" Motoko asked. "Please, tell me you're kidding."
All Shinobu could do was shake her head slowly.
"Ah, so that's his big plan," Kitsune said, a grin forming on her face. "He wanted to celebrate your birthday by making you a woman."
"No, it wasn't--"
"That no good…" Naru said, a vein throbbing in her forehead. "I can't believe he'd even think about trying to molest you! He is so dead!"
"Naru, it wasn't--" Shinobu said, but Naru had already rushed out of the room. "--like that."
"I find it hard to grasp that Sean would ever attempt to rape you," Motoko said.
"That because he didn't!"
"Well, if that's the case," Kitsune said, "then Sean is definitely in for a big surprise of his own."
---
Sean leaned against a wall in his room. It looked like he was in deep thought. "I could have sworn that she would have been overjoyed to see me," he said to himself. "but instead, she just ran off like I was the plague. Hmm, she mentioned that something has been happening to her. I wonder what it could be--" his thoughts were interrupted by the sound of his door being slammed open.
"YOU!!" Naru screamed.
"Me?" He said, confused and a bit scared at the look she was giving him.
"I can't believe you!" She said, pinning him against the wall. "To think you would ever pull a stunt like that! I mean, trying to rape poor Shinobu on her birthday is a new low!"
"WHAT?!"
"Don't try to deny it! She said herself that you snuck into her bed last night!"
"Hold on, you don't understand--"
"Oh, I understand, and no magic will save you this time!"
"Okay," Sean thought, trying to keep calm. "At this point, there's nothing I can say or do that will calm her down, so the best plan of action should be to…" He broke out in a dash for the door. "RUN LIKE MAD!"
"Oh no, you're not getting away from me!" Naru said, giving chase.
"I thought she was over this whole rage thing," he thought as he led his pursuer down the hallway until he reached a dead end. "Oh, crap."
"Hehehe," Naru chuckled evilly as she made her way to her victim, who looked more and more like a trapped rat with each passing second. "I'm going to enjoy this so much," she said, cracking her knuckles.
---
Everyone who stayed in the dining room could hear the impact from upstairs as though it was only a few feet away, and it made Shinobu flinch. "Why did this have to happen?" she asked, new tears forming. "Why did Naru have to beat him on my birthday of all days?"
"In a way, he brought it upon himself," Motoko said.
"No, it wasn't his fault. He wanted me to be happy, that's all. I just couldn't keep my mouth shut about it when confronted about it by you."
Naru reappeared in the dining room. "Ah, I feel better now."
"Naru, news flash:" Kitsune said. "Sean's innocent."
"What are you talking about?"
"It's true," Shinobu said. "He wouldn't do anything like that and we all know it."
"You saying I beat Sean even though he didn't deserve it? …Again?"
"You got that right," Kitsune said.
"Oh, great," Naru said, guilt appearing on her face.
"Aw, he'll be fine," Suu said. "Let's eat!"
"You're right," Shinobu said. "He's survived this long, after all."
"I still want to apologize," Naru said. "The last time I hit him for something he might have done to you, it resulted with him going blind."
"Old habits die hard," Motoko said.
"That's easy for you to say. Why didn't you come with me?"
"I found it very hard to believe. I admit that if I didn't know him as well as I do, I would have accompanied you and tried to cut him in half for his transgression."
"Uh, guys," Shinobu said. "Could I ask you something?"
"Sure, what?" Naru said.
"Have any of you had any dreams with Sean in them?" All the girls nodded. "What kind of dreams were they?"
"Well, I haven't had one in a while, but I do remember some where the two of us were studying together," Naru said.
"Playing with him!" Suu said between bites.
"Consummating our friendship," Kitsune said, grinning.
"Uh, ditto," Motoko said, blushing. That got a couple surprised looks before Shinobu continued.
"That's what I thought."
"Why do you ask?" Naru asked.
"Well, it's just that I had a one with him in it just a little while ago."
"What happened?"
"Well, it was like this…"
---
"Damn, I haven't seen Naru that pissed off in… well, ever," Sean thought as he entered orbit from the force of Naru's attack. He rubbed his cheek, which was black and blue and growing quite swollen. "Or hit quite that hard for that matter. I'm going to have to explain everything to her when I get back; I hope she's calmed down by then. In the meantime, I guess I should take advantage of this situation." He blinked, making his eyes glow green (telescopic mode). "Let's see how everything's going back home." He focused his vision on the southeastern United States. "This would be so much easier if I could see the state borders like in maps. Now let's see…" He kept zooming in until he recognized the highways of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. "Hey, I can see my house from here…"
---
"…I was determined to make him the happiest man alive, but just as I was about to, I woke up," Shinobu said, finishing her explanation. Her face was a deep red.
"Well," Kitsune said. "it looks like our little Shinobu is growing up, doesn't it?"
"Kitsune, this is serious!" Shinobu shouted, regaining everyone's attention. "After I woke up, it took me a little while to realize that Sean had joined me in bed overnight. I probably would have stayed with him, but I was too freaked out by my dream, so I ran out of the room. If only I had never dreamed that up; or was allowed to let it finish."
"Shinobu, everything will be alright," Motoko said. "It was just a dream."
"Maybe, but I've been having that same dream every night for the last week. Every time, I made the first move, and every time, I wake up before anything happens. I know I'm too young to have him in real life, and I can deal with that, but being denied in my dreams is just too much. I'm starting to get really worried."
"Hmm, that is strange…" Motoko said, remembering the violent dreams Sean used to have.
Kitsune went over the dialogue in Shinobu's dream, and something clicked in her head. "So, Sean's getting some action on the side is he?" she said, glaring at Motoko.
"You can say that," Motoko said, her face turning pink. "But how did you find out about that, Shinobu?"
"Sean told me. He didn't want me to be surprised if I happened to catch you two in the act."
"I think the more important question is why would he go shack up with someone else?" Kitsune said. She looked like she had been betrayed. "Am I not doing a good enough job?"
"That's what he said," Motoko said. "You should consider yourself lucky he still pleases you."
"I'm going to have a serious talk with him when he gets back."
"Speaking of which, I wonder where he's at?" Naru asked. "He usually gets back by now, right?"
"Maybe he's just waiting for you to cool your jets," Kitsune said. "You were really mad at him just a few minutes ago."
"Well, it was just a misunderstanding."
"It's always a misunderstanding," Kitsune said under her breath.
"I think I'm going to go take a bath and get ready for school now," Shinobu said. "Thank you for listening to what I had to say."
"You're welcome," Naru said. "Mind if I join you?"
"Not at all." All the girls decided to continue the birthday party in the hot spring, but Naru paused before leaving the dining room.
"Hey, Keitaro, would you clean all this up for us? Thanks!"
"Hey, wait--" Keitaro started to say but Naru was already gone. He looked around him; Suu had single-handedly made a disaster area of the whole room. "Wonderful."
--- 3:02 PM
"Are you alright, Shinobu? You've looked really distracted today."
"Yeah, I'm fine," Shinobu said halfheartedly. In truth, she had become very depressed as the day wore on. She waited for Sean to return as long as she could before she would risk being late for school, but he never showed. Even in class, she found herself unable to pay attention to the teacher, her thoughts constantly turning to her missing love. The worry etched on her face didn't go unnoticed by one of her friends and she confronted her about it after class.
"You sure don't look fine. Tell me what's bothering you."
"Well, one of the people I live with got in a bit of an accident, and I've been wondering if he's alright."
"Wait, don't you live at the girl's dorm?"
"Yeah."
"Then why did you say 'he'?"
"Our landlord's a guy; long story."
"Hmm, I wonder why you're so worried about a guy… unless…"
"Unless what?"
"You're in love with him, aren't you?"
Shinobu's face turned bright red. "W-What makes you think that?"
"Well, the look on your face right now is a dead giveaway. Why haven't you told me about him before?"
"It's a bit complicated. You see, he's--hey what's that?"
"Don't try to change the subject."
"I'm not joking," Shinobu said, pointing skyward. Sure enough, there was a flaming ball hurtling in their general direction. "Duck!" Shinobu grabbed her friend by the arm and ran for cover. About as soon as they were sheltered, they heard the tremendous impact not too far away from them. After the dust cleared, Shinobu poked her head out. "What the heck was that?"
"Your guess is as good as mine. Let's go see."
Shinobu nodded and the two slowly walked to the smoldering crater, where a small crowd was starting to gather. She could hear some murmuring, but couldn't tell what was being said. As they neared, she saw a hand poke out of the hole. "It's a person?! But how--" The words caught in her throat when she saw a second hand join the first one, but it was the head that appeared shortly thereafter that made her almost faint.
"Oh man, I wouldn't want to go through that again," a singed Sean muttered, climbing out of the hole he had just made.
Shinobu was speechless. Sure, she had gotten accustomed to the things he does around the house, but he just fell out of the freaking sky!
"Hmm, I wonder where I am," Sean thought, looking around. "A school, huh? Well, that certainly narrows things down a--" His thoughts came to a crashing halt when he spotted Shinobu among the crowd. "Well, what do you know."
Shinobu's friend heard the visitor call out to her by name. "Hey, how does he know you, Shinobu?"
"That's him," was all she could say.
"Who's he?"
Shinobu finally let the reality sink in. Tears in her eyes, she ran over to him and hugged him tight. "Thank God you're alright! Where did you go, Sean?! I was so worried about you!"
"I circled the earth a few times, courtesy of Naru's fist."
"She sent you into orbit?! Oh, when we get home, I'm going to--"
"--thank her," Sean finished.
"What?!" Shinobu was confused by that.
"You wouldn't believe the view from up there. I should take you up there sometime, but if I do, I'll skip the reentry; it can be a real pain, you know?"
"Um, excuse me, but who are you and how do you know Shinobu?"
"You wanted to know who I was in love with, right?" Shinobu said. "Well, this is him."
"You've got to be kidding! He's got to be twice your age!"
"Almost. What's your point?" Sean asked.
"It's not like we do anything inappropriate or anything," Shinobu added.
"It just doesn't look normal, that's all."
"You just saw me plummet from I don't know how many miles up in the sky and you bring up being normal?"
"Good point."
"Now, there's something I need to talk to my girl about, so if you'll excuse us…" With that, both Sean and Shinobu vanished without a trace, provoking shocked gasps and whispers from the crowd.
"I'm glad your alright," Shinobu said. She still felt a bit embarrassed, what with the public display of affection and all; and they were still there at the scene of the crash.
"Don't worry," Sean said, noticing the blush on Shinobu's face. "They can't see or hear us right now." He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and the two began their trek back home. "Now, tell me what's on your mind."
"What do you mean?"
"You didn't run out on me this morning for no reason. Something's up."
"I was too scared before, but I talked to the others about it, so I guess you deserve to know; especially because it concerns you." Sean nodded, signifying that he was listening. "Well, last night I had a certain dream about us."
"Um, what exactly are we doing in this dream of yours?"
"We were out having a picnic lunch together. Some time passes and a thought crosses my mind and I find myself determined to do to you what Motoko has."
"Is that right?"
"Yeah. Well, just before I got started, I woke up; and then I found you in bed with me. That's why I panicked; I regretted doing that afterwards. I might have stayed, but I've had that dream for a week straight, with the same ending; it's gotten me a bit frazzled."
"I see. About sneaking into bed with you this morning. I probably overstepped my bounds by doing that, if Naru's reaction was any indication." He rubbed his cheek, which was still bruised. "I can still feel that punch she gave me."
"That's my fault. I wasn't able to explain everything before she blew up."
"Makes sense." Sean sighed and looked up at the sky. "I guess this birthday was a bit of a bust, huh?"
"Not necessarily. There's still time left in the day."
"I suppose so, but making you worry about me isn't a good start."
"But you're here with me now. That improved it a lot."
"Yeah. I wasn't even aiming for your school during my descent. I didn't even know where it was, so I got pretty lucky on that one."
"Where were you aiming, then?"
"I wasn't. All I could see was the flames surrounding my force field."
"Yeah, you look like you got a bit cooked."
"Well, it took me a little while to realize just how hot it gets when you're going through Earth's atmosphere at such high speeds."
Shinobu nodded thoughtfully. "What do you think we should do later on?"
"I think the first thing we should do is get back before the others send out a search party to find me."
---
"Hey, check this out!" Kitsune said as she sat on the couch, watching the news. There was a story on about a strange event that occurred in town minutes before.
"…Eyewitness accounts depict a fireball crashing into the ground in front of a local middle school…"
"I was afraid of this," Sean said, which surprised everyone, since he wasn't there moments before. The reporter continued, saying how he climbed out of the hole he made and how both he and Shinobu disappeared. "I should have known better than to pull the old vanishing act in public. I guess I should lay low for a while until this whole thing blows over. I hope they don't think it's a kidnapping."
"Where the hell were you?!" Naru asked. "We've been worried sick!"
"So I heard. To answer your question, I was in orbit!"
"Did I hit you that hard?"
"Yes, you did."
"Um, I'm sorry about that. I overreacted again, that's all."
"Let's just forget that ever happened, shall we?"
"Sean, I need to have a talk with you!" Kitsune said.
"If this is about what happened yesterday, I keep telling you--"
"No, not that. Since when have you and Motoko been together?"
"What do you mean?" Sean asked, trying to sound confused.
"She knows, Sean," Motoko said.
"Yes, I do, I would like an explanation."
"Um, well," Sean said nervously, tugging at the collar of his shirt. In a spur of the moment decision, he ran out of the room. "See ya!"
"Hey, get back here!" Kitsune said, giving chase.
"Never a dull moment," Naru thought.
--- 10:02 PM
"Uh, Sean?" Shinobu asked, opening the door to his room.
"Yeah?" Sean responded, looking up from his book. He noticed that Shinobu had changed into her nightshirt.
"I just wanted to wish you a good night and to thank you for a nice birthday."
"You're welcome, but I promise to not make you worry about my safety next year."
"I don't think that'll be a problem. I warned the others that if they ever hurt you again when you didn't actually do anything, they'll have to answer to me."
"Either that, or we can sell Naru to the space program to help them launch their satellites." The two shared a laugh, knowing that he was just joking. "Well, see you in the morning, then."
"You're not going to bed yet?"
"Nah, I figured I was going to stay up a couple more hours. You know me, and how much sleep I need."
"Yeah, I guess waking up at midnight can be a bit hard at first."
"I've gotten used to the early mornings. Why did you ask, anyway?"
Shinobu's started to blush. "Well, I was just hoping we could go to bed together, like you tried to do this morning."
"Oh," Sean said, tossing his book to the side. "In that case, I guess I could turn in a bit early tonight."
Shinobu's face lit up upon hearing this. "Would you mind if I slept in here, then?"
"Not at all. Keitaro's upstairs doing schoolwork with Naru, and I never know when or if he comes back down."
Shinobu went over to him and hugged him. "Thank you. I promise I'll stay with you this time instead of running off."
"Considering my sleep and work schedule, I might not be here when you wake up, but I'll do my best."
"I don't care about that. All that matters is that we're together right here, right now. C'mon, let's get some sleep." She took him by the hand and led him to the futon he always kept unrolled in a corner of the room.
"As you wish, birthday girl." He said as they both got under the covers. In almost no time at all, Shinobu was in a deep sleep, but since Sean wasn't quite tired yet, he just let his mind wander a bit. Some time later, he heard Shinobu sigh happily as she snuggled closer to him. "Looks like she's finally finishing a dream," he thought with a smile. "I just hope that when the time comes, I'm just as good in real life. I wouldn't want to disappoint her or anything." After what felt like an eternity, he let himself accompany his girlfriend in slumber, his final thoughts being his curiosity as to what exactly was going on in the dream Shinobu was having.
* * * End of Chapter XXX * * *
Aw, isn't that cute? Well, see you next time! Please R&R!