Chapter 6 - The Questions

Revised on 1/4/12

When I arrived at work the next day, the only thing that I could think about was Pai's soft, scarred lips, and our first kiss. I felt a little stupid, acting all dazed and ridiculously happy, not unlike Ichigo when she thought about Aoyama-san. For once, the mews took interest in me without me having to prompt them. Ichigo interrogated me throughout the day, followed closely behind by Minto and Purin.

If Pai had been human, perhaps I would have told them the truth, but saying 'I'm dating an alien bent on world domination' would likely make future conversations slightly awkward. The questions that the other mews asked me were things like;

"Is he tall?"

Yes, he's very tall.

"Does play sports?"

Not that I know of.

"Is he good looking?"

Of course he is.

"Is he smart?"

Yes, although his Japanese isn't very good.

"Does he love you?"

Who knows?

Of course, I insisted that I had no boyfriend, since if I had admitted it, Ichigo would surely have conducted a very thorough investigation. Ignoring the mew's prying questions, I thought about later in the day, when I would be seeing Pai again. He would meet me at home, in my room, I would give him everything that I had written down about the mews, and maybe we…

I blushed as I thought about it. Eventually, the girls left me alone to go do more important things, such as working. A few minutes later, a figure came into my line of sight- Shirogane. I smiled softly and returned wiping down a table as I had been prior to his arrival. "You look happy today, Retasu-san." He said with a slight smirk, putting his hands in his pockets. I blushed, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.

"I guess I am happy." I said, cringing at how flirtatious it sounded.

"Well, that's good. Customers like happy." He said before turning around and walking away. I was slightly taken aback by his words. I guess that must have been why Ichigo was always calling him a jerk. I had never paid enough attention to what he said to make that observation. But now, I couldn't help but noticing more and more about him. I shook my head, trying to bring myself back into reality, and away from indecent thoughts about my boss.

After all, I had a boyfriend… or something like that, I guess…

As I opened the door to my house, the familiar smell of my mother's food wafted into my face, filling my lungs as I breathed in. A cheerful greeting came from the kitchen, more specifically, from my father. "Welcome home!" He said as I took of my shoes and walked into the kitchen.

"The same goes to you." I responded as I smiled at my parents. My father nodded to me, leaning on the counter with a smile as my mother kindly smiled and said hello from her position in front of the stove.

"Dinner in about an hour?" She said softly. I nodded, and then made my way up the stairs to my room. When I entered my room, I saw Pai standing there, a book neatly parted in his hand. As I closed the door, I was once again struck by the incredible light of the setting sun on his tall, muscular, yet slender figure. I couldn't help remembering the first time that he had appeared in my room, the light shining on him just the way it did now.

"Hello," I began, nervously. "Am I late…?" He lifted his eyes from my book at the sound of my voice, and then shook his head.

"You cannot possibly be late if there was no specific time that we agreed to meet." He replied, closing the book that he was holding, and then setting it down on my desk. With that simple gesture, all of the giddy joy that I had been feeling washed out of me, and I felt as if I had been doused with cold water. I looked at him uncertainly as he examined a poster on the wall.

"Oh… I should probably get those sheets of paper that I compiled for-"

"There's no need." Pai interjected, grabbing a folder off of the table and waving it in the air. "I already collected what I came for." He set the folder back onto the table, turning his gaze to me. I could hear that I had audibly swallowed. He then started to advance towards me, his slow pace raising my level of apprehension. "I hope you don't mind." He said as he came to a halt before me.

"I have been here for a while, so I decided that it might be best if I gathered what I needed before you arrived, so that I could leave you in peace as soon as possible." He said as he brushed my hair back behind my ear. The startling gesture caused me to drop my bag, allowing me to press myself into my door as much as I could. He leaned forward so that his lips were almost touching my ears. "Unless…" He whispered as he pulled my hips into his. "You don't want me to."

He lifted his left hand to show me the object that it delicately held; my razor. "I find you fascinating, Retasu."

"Why do you have that?" I asked in a whisper, somehow afraid to speak any louder. Turning the razor in his fingertips, he ran the back edge of it along my neck. I shivered at the cold metal against my skin, thankful that he was using the blunt side.

"I thought I would keep this for a while." He said in a low voice, lifting the razor from my neck to examine the small blade. Suddenly, his eyes flickered onto my, his gaze intense. "I have become fond of you, and I would rather you not accidentally bleed to death." This was such a different Pai than the one from the day before.

The day before, he seemed so gentle, so melancholy, but the Pai that I was seeing in my almost dark room turned knots in my stomach. This was the Pai that I had revealed my feelings to as he stood with his back turned to me, the Pai that coldly called me a fool. I wasn't really sure which Pai I loved more. Placing the back of the razor on my skin again, he ran it along my mew mark.

"Although," he began. "Perhaps I should cover this mark that you have with my own mark." Very gently, he kissed my mew mark, and then pulled away. I froze as I felt his hand running along my thigh. "Then again, I suppose you've already marked yourself as mine, haven't you?" Pain seared through my leg as he roughly grabbed my wound. I started to scream, but he quickly dropped the razor from his other hand, allowing him to cover my mouth without cutting my lips open.

"Shh… I'm sorry, Retasu…" He whispered as tears began to stream down my face. "But I needed to illustrate my point." He lightly kissed my cheek before he spoke again. "All this pain is unnecessary." He slid his arms under me once again, being careful to avoid my injury. Laying me down on my bed, he whispered to me once more.

"If you ever want proper care, just let me know." He pulled away, straightening up. "I have training as a medic." I stared at him as he returned over to the door, picking up the razor, and in turn, the folder with information on the mews in it. He nodded to me once, and when I blinked, he was gone. I knew that I was risking everything I had without a guarantee that I would get anything in return, but I couldn't help it. I really, really wanted to be with him. I choked back a sob, burying my face in my hands.

He was right. I really am a fool.