And, without major incident or delay, here is chapter two of my "wonderful one-shot adventure." No, Momiji isn't here, I just thought I'd start giving everything in life epic names of my own. I'm still not sure how long I'll keep going with these short stories. I suppose as many as I have songs for I'll write, so long as the ideas keep coming.
Anyhow, this story is going to be based off the song "Stand by Me," obviously by the Temptations. Mostly, it's going to center on Tohru and her feelings for Kyou. It's going to be a post-curse, pretty romantic one-shot. So, I suggest that those of you with weak constitutions for romance should pass this chapter by. I really hope to hear from more of you on this chapter and I also hope that everyone enjoys it.
Evening is setting in over the Shoma household, a young brunette girl busy by the sink with a stack of dishes from their New Year's meal. Her young boyfriend had disappeared to some unknown location after the meal, leaving her to clean up the aftermath alone. Now, Tohru never minds doing housework, in fact she finds having these things to constantly keep track of and do to be rather fun. She's never bored and never ends up feeling lonely when she has a household to take care of. But at the same time, since they started dating, Kyou usually stayed behind after the meal to help put things back in order and clean the kitchen. It's extremely odd that he would chose to disappear to the roof or some other place.
She turns the knob to the shut-off position, reaching up and taking her hair out of the messy ponytail she had gathered it into prior to beginning the cleaning process. No matter! I'm done now anyway, so I'll just go look around and see where Kyou-kun went! She resolves in her mind, turning around and heading toward the sitting room.
Could he possibly be snuggled under the kohatsu to escape the cold weather? She gently slides the door open, not wanting to wake him if he had fallen asleep there. However, a quick glance inside is all it takes to let her know there's no one in the room.
Maybe he just was tired after eating so much and wanted to go lay down in his room. Seems like a plausible suggestion to her. She gives the door a gentle rapping with her knuckles and waits a moment for a reply. There is none. Kyou's ears are sensitive, so even if he had been asleep he would have awoken to the sound and invited her to come in. It's simply not logical to invade his space when he's not even there.
If he's not in either of those places, he could only be in one other location: -save for the bathroom, and she isn't about to search for him there- the roof. She scurries to her room, slipping on a heavy jacket and some fluffy earmuffs. Tohru can't imagine why she would have gone looking for him any other place but the roof, as it seems to be his fortress of sorts -the place the marmalade-haired teen feels most comfortable.
She makes her way up and onto the roof, smiling when she sees the boy sprawled out in his usual position: His gaze turned heaven-ward, his arms crossed behind his head and being used as a support system and makeshift pillow, his one leg stretched out for comfort and the other bent at the knee to prevent any sliding. She climbs up onto the shingles, happy to be off the wobbly latter. She draws his attention immediately, those fiery amber orbs focusing on her as she situates herself next to him.
A small smile appears on his face as he sits up when he notices her shiver. Tentatively he places his arm around her shoulder, rubbing her arm to create friction and warm her body a bit. She snuggles a little closer to the boy, elated at the feeling of being wrapped in his arm.
"I was hoping you'd come and find me," He whispers into her ear, grinning even more widely when it earns him a small shudder. Her shyness is one of the most endearing things about her. "I actually wanted to talk to you alone for a while."
The rice ball's eyes widen, her head crooked to one side a little in curiosity. "What about, Kyou-kun?"
"I'm glad I can be with you." He states rather simply, while leaning his forehead onto hers. She giggles a bit in response to this, wrapping her arms around him in a soft embrace.
"I'm glad I can be with you too! So much, Kyou-kun. Is that all you wanted to say?" The brunette questions as she backs away, batting those big eyes at him.
The former cat shakes his head at this as a flood of memories from the past years washes over him. Meeting her, getting to know her, eating together, laughing together, taking walks and even sitting on the roof. Nothing too elaborate as far as memories, really more of just a series of snapshots of the two of them on their various adventures through their young lives, but it is enough to give him the distinct feeling of comfort and warmth in the bitter winter air. She's changed him so much ever since she tumbled into his desolate existence. She had never been repulsed by him or thought lesser of him, and really how could she? There isn't so much as a judgmental bone in her thin little body. Tohru's presence in his life had been the thing to free him from the lonely cage he had been confined to for so long. She is quite simply his life's savior, though she'd never admit to doing such a thing.
Innocent blue eyes stare at him as she awaits a response. Her tiny fingers lace into his bigger ones, the most perfect fit imaginable.
"Actually, no..." He turns around to face her carefully, shoving his free hand into his jacket pocket. "I also wanted to say that I am really glad I met you. You'll never know how grateful I am to you for all the love you have given me. You've made me feel so important and so needed. Really, you've just made me so happy..."
Those baby blues widen as a blush creeps over her features. Surely she hadn't been that much of an influence on his life. "No, no...really I didn't do so much! I just...I just..."
"You just cared a lot about me." He finishes the sentence for her after hushing her gently.
"Y-yes...I did...I do." Tohru replies quietly, still flushed, deeply touched and quite embarrassed. Her fingers tighten in place around his, signifying her nervousness.
"Tohru, I need to ask you something really important," He swallows mid-sentence, his neck feeling flushed. For some reason, the lump in his throat just won't disappear and he begins to fidget with his fingers inside his pocket.
"Okay, you know you can ask me anything Kyou-kun."
Her tender response is enough to curb his pent up uneasiness. Slowly he pulls his hand out of his pocket, holding his loosely clenched fist between the two of them. A flood of red fills his face. The girl moves a little closer, wondering what he could possibly be holding.
"I know that I'm supposed to kneel or something, but I figured I'd take a less traditional route, seeing as I wanted to do this here." The cat gives her a little smile, earning a nod of partial understanding in return. The look of curiosity on her face is making him want to move as fast as possible with the small speech that must follow his first statement. "Tohru, this is the first place that I realized I had feelings for you. This is where we'd console each other when things got tough. This is where I learned so much about the girl I love and that's why this couldn't possibly happen anywhere but here..."
He slowly pulls his fingers back, revealing a beautiful but simple 1/4 carat diamond set in a thin gold band and a small black velvet box. Her eyes rapidly widen as she glances from the ring to Kyou's face. His eyes soften a bit as his confidence builds.
"I think you know what comes next," He whispers affectionately. She nods, tears beginning to roll down over her extremely red cheeks.
Tohru can't even begin to believe this is really happening. Well, it would have had to at some point if they really are meant to stay together, however, this scenario still comes across to her as something that only happens in romance novels or movies. It hardly seems like it should be real. She sobs softly, letting go of his hand to cover her cheeks in utter shock.
"Tohru, I love you and I promise I'll stand by you. Come hell or high water I will. Will you please marry me?" He takes a deep breath, just happy that the words are finally out. My god, it seems to have taken a lifetime to get all the words out. At least now the only need for words is going to be left up to Tohru, as she must make a decision and answer him. One second passes, then another and yet another. It seems an eternity before the overwhelmed girl opens her mouth. He hangs on her every movement as if not seeing or being able to cherish a single thing would deprive him of the very air he breathes.
"Y...Yes of course I will, please stand by me!" She timidly holds out left hand, watching him smile happily as he lifts the ring from it's resting place and slips it onto her finger.
After a brief but tight embrace, Kyou moves back just enough to lean in and give her a passionate kiss. His thumbs rub her temples shakily, his breaths coming out quickly and excitedly. Her hands come up to cover his as his separates their lips. They smile at one another, foreheads gently leaned together.
"I will stand by you too Kyou-kun. I love you very much!"
"I know you will..." He brushes the loose strands of hair behind her ear, glad they now have a lifetime ahead of them to cherish and stand by one another.
Well, that's it for chapter two. I know that this chapter was a little cheesy and that there are a lot of stories where he proposes to Tohru, but I needed a scene that truly matched the tone of the song. I hope that you all enjoy this and I can't wait to hear from those of you with comments. As always, no flames. If you don't like a story, it's okay to just not read it. Thanks to both of the people who reviewed the first chapter and I am glad that you like it so much.