A/N: Hello, all! I totally finished this chapter like a month or so ago and never uploaded it…oops! Anyways, here it is! Thanks for the comments so far, it means a lot!

"Kampaaai!"

Kenshin and Kaoru's sake cups clattered together clumsily as they cheered. "What a view, huh?" Kaoru mused, setting her cup on the edge of the wooden bridge they were standing on. She leaned her whole body over the wooden railing to look out over the Sumida River. Everything was black—the water mirroring the cloudless night sky perfectly. Only the paper lanterns, glowing warm orange were seen floating leisurely along the calm water like fireflies.

"Well, this bottle of sake isn't going to drink itself!" she belted out rather loudly, trying to mask her uneasiness. Since the letter came offering a better job to Kenshin, Kaoru wondered if her time with him was limited. She filled her cup to the brim with the clear, bitter smelling liquid and looked up at his face to gauge his reaction. He simply smiled warmly and nodded as she poured him another cup. They both drank a few more cups in relative silence, enjoying the mild breeze and the sound of the festival music nearby.

Kenshin fixed his gaze on the horizon in the distance and pursed his lips, deep in thought. He gripped the wooden ledge of the bridge tightly, his knuckles beginning to whiten. Kaoru noticed the sudden tension and began nervously tracing her finger along the edge of the sake cup in front of her.

"Kaoru…?" Kenshin's words cut sharply through the silence.

"Hm…?" Kaoru turned to him, beginning to feel the heat growing in her cheeks from the effects of the alcohol. Her sapphire eyes met his face, which was still turned to the side facing the water, and she couldn't help but blush at the sight of his handsome profile—the sharp lines of his jawline balanced with the feminine beauty of his soft, flowing red locks of hair and piercing violet eyes. He turned slowly to meet eyes with her, a perplexed expression forming on his face. "Kaoru…I really appreciate everything you've done for me these past few months, though my past is…" he paused at the word, "questionable…. "

Kaoru was beginning to feel all too uneasy about Kenshin's change of mood. She spoke up quickly, leaving no room for more serious talk. "Listen here, Kenshin! The only reason I let you stay here in the first place is because you've been so helpful with the dojo! We're just now beginning to recover from the damage done by…Shuuji. So I need you here to help with the new students pouring in.…" she was beginning to plead at this point and she knew it, but the conversation was beginning to sound like goodbyes and she could only hope that Kenshin could be persuaded otherwise. Kenshin opened his mouth to speak again, but decided against it. He took another big gulp of sake, ultimately satisfied by his small speech and turned back to the river.

"Kenshin, why don't we walk around and look at the stands!" Kaoru exclaimed after a few minutes of nervously chugging cup after cup of sake. She was beginning to feel more intoxicated than she planned on being, but as the sake bottle emptied, so did her feelings of unease and doubt. "Sure, why not." Kenshin replied earnestly, grabbing the rest of the bottle in one hand and tucking the two small cups into the belt of his kimono with the other.

Kenshin and Kaoru paced leisurely through the streets, stopping once at a stand filled with brightly colored hair pieces. "Oh, look at that big one! It's…beautiful!" Kaoru all but shouted, half-drunkenly, pointing at a hair comb adorned with a multicolored flower made out of cloth, her eyes lighting up with excitement. "You can try it on if you like, miss," said a long haired woman, picking up the hair comb and holding it out to her. But Kaoru thought about her money situation. She knew the dojo was just beginning to recover and that there weren't enough funds to go around since her father died. She looked down awkwardly at her feet and tugged on Kenshin's sleeve to motion him in the other direction away from the stand. "No, that's okay…thanks, though!" she said with fake laughter.

Later on, they began walking to a clearing close to the river to see the lanterns up close. As they walked, Kaoru began humming a song that was played at the festival earlier. She was really starting to loosen up from the effects of the alcohol and began haphazardly walking across the uneven stones on the path to the riverside. "Kaoru, you should really slow…"

Just as Kenshin spoke the words, Kaoru clumsily tripped on a small rock beneath her and fell face forward just in time for Kenshin to tightly grasp her in his embrace from behind; his firm, muscular arms supporting her weight effortlessly.

Kenshin did not let go—could not let go—immediately. They were both feeling intoxicated in more ways than one. Kaoru closed her eyes and relaxed in Kenshin's embrace, feeling his hot breath from behind her on the nape of her neck, sending icy chills down her spine. He exhaled raggedly, regaining his composure and slowly relaxing his grip on her frame. She wriggled free nervously and began apologizing for the fall.

The rest of the night was spent at the riverside with more sake. Kaoru drunkenly poured her soul out to Kenshin that night next to the water, giving away some of her most well-protected secrets. She continued to drink until finally resting her head gingerly on the ground and falling asleep soon after.

The next morning she awoke in her bed to a familiar sake-induced headache, and…silence.

The entire dojo was without a sound.

She decided to check on Kenshin first thing and apologize for passing out on him last night. She smoothed out her messy morning hair with her hands and threw the covers of her futon back to get out of bed.

She yawned and made her way down the hallway to the spare room Kenshin was staying in and knocked softly, hoping he was already awake. When she didn't get a reply, she curiously nudged the sliding door open to peek in.

The room was empty, except for Kenshin's futon folded neatly in the corner. His belongings, swords, clothes…all gone.

She walked into the room catatonically and slouched to the ground, staring at the futon, her eyes beginning to blur with tears. She noticed something on top of the futon—a hair comb. She grasped It heatedly in one and hand, silently sobbing.

Kenshin was gone.

Thanks for reading and see you in Chapter 6! Please drop a comment and let me know what you think so far! (Not sure who's reading this anymore… lol)