Sorry I haven't updated in a while guys! I swear Netflix is now my mortal enemy... Also, been kinda depressed. You know how life happens...

Anyways, here's chapter 7. I guess the song for this one will be The Past - Sevendust.

Chapter 7: The Past

I stayed by Misaki's side that night while he was sick. He was better the next day and I went home. He promised me that he would talk to Takahiro about staying with me when he and his wife moved to Osaka. It seemed that he was really thinking about taking me up on my offer.

A few days later, I received a call from Takahiro. I was expecting it, so when I heard the phone ringing I rushed downstairs immediately. I was working on my newest novel, a tragedy set during the end of World War II, when America dropped atomic bombs in Japan. It was poetically tragic and was sure to be a hit. Both myself and Aikawa-san thought so.

"Yes?" I answered into the telephone.

"Usagi, thank you for taking care of Misaki while I was away," Takahiro answered back. "It seems you two have become good friends!"

I smirked. "He has really grown on me, Takahiro."

"I see… He seems to really look up to you, Usagi. So much so that he believes he can live with you while he goes to school. I tried to tell him that you don't like others in your space, but he won't listen to me. He keeps insisting that you told him otherwise."

"I did. I made him the offer to live with me while he studied at M university."

"But he won't be able to pay any rent until he gets a job!"

"I know. I told him not to worry about the rent. In exchange for room and board, he can help me with the housework. And from what you've told me, he's an excellent cook and you know I can't cook for myself. Really, Takahiro, I think having Misaki stay with me would be beneficial for all three of us."

He paused for a few moments, probably thinking. "Are you sure about this, Usagi?" he finally said.

"I'm positive," I answered without hesitation.

He sighed happily. "Thank goodness. I was getting worried there for a bit. You'll let me know if he does anything to trouble you, right?"

"He won't do anything to trouble me, Takahiro."

And then we settled it: Misaki would come to live with me when Takahiro and Manami-san left at the end of the month. The overprotective man told me at least 5 times that it was only temporary and that he wouldn't let Misaki live as a freeloader off me forever. No matter how many times I told him that it was alright, he didn't listen.

Nevertheless, Misaki moved in with me at the end of the month. Takahiro and Manami-san brought him over and helped him carry in his bags. They were in a rush to get to the train to move into their new place themselves, so they left rather quickly. Misaki stood in the middle of the living room, glancing around at everything. It was certainly odd behavior considering he knew almost every room in the place already from when he had tutoring sessions here.

I cleared my throat to get his attention. "So, Misaki, let's take your bags up to the room you'll be staying in."

Without meeting my gaze, he picked up some bags and started walking up the stairs. I grabbed the other bags and followed. I directed him to the guest bedroom. It was small compared to the other rooms in the house. It only had a bed, a desk, a lamp, and an empty closet. Before Misaki came, it had been filled with some of my stuffed bears but I cleared all those out for him.

We sat the bags on the bed and he looked around the room, feeling everything. The bed had new sheets and blankets. I recently dusted and swept the whole room, even the inside of the closet. It wasn't much space, but I wanted what I could give to him to be nice. He felt the wood desk and opened the curtain on the window next to it.

"I don't remember this room," he said quietly.

I chuckled. "It was full of my stuffed bears last time you were here. I cleared it out and cleaned it all up for you."

He finally turned around and looked at me with gratitude in his sparkling green eyes. "For me?" I nodded and he looked down at the floor again. "Thank you, Usagi-san."

I reached my hand out and ruffled his hair, causing him to grunt in annoyance and embarrassment. He was too cute when he was embarrassed. He pushed my hand away and turned around.

"What was that for?" he asked.

"Because you're cute," I answered.

He gasped, but didn't say anything back. I hadn't told him I thought he was cute since I molested him. He had to know by now that I'm in love with him. I spent so much time with him. I had kissed him and held him. I even let him move in with me. He has to see my feelings for him.

"I… I have to unpack," he said after a minute or two of silence.

I didn't say anything else. I knew I had to give him some space. Truth be told, I needed some thinking time of my own. I turned around and walked out of the room, shutting the door behind me.

In my own room, I sat at my desk in front of my laptop. The document containing my novel in progress was open on the computer, but I didn't want to continuing writing at the moment. Moreover, I didn't have the capacity to store anything in my brain except thoughts of Misaki.

My dream had come true and now the person I loved was living with me. It seemed so odd at first that I didn't yearn for Takahiro anymore. I was so obsessed with him for 10 years and suddenly, that was all thrown away and replaced with a new love. It seemed so sudden… but was it really?

What about the time I molested him when we first met? I was angry and wanted to teach him a lesson. Honestly, I didn't think it would go that far. I thought he was fight me off more or scream for help. If he would have screamed, I would have stopped.

…Wouldn't I have stopped?

But he didn't scream. He let me stroke him. Judging by his moans, he felt good. My own hands made him orgasm. But did he truly want it? He couldn't have, but yet he didn't try to stop me.

Did I fall in love with him then? Or did it happen slowly while I was tutoring him? Either way, how did I miss it?

Suddenly, the phone rang, pulling me out of my thoughts. I rushed downstairs and to answer it. It couldn't be Takahiro. They had just left. It was most likely Aikawa-san, trying to persuade me to make the deadline that was coming up in a week.

"Hello?"

There was a pause. It was so silent on the other end that I didn't think anyone was there. I was about to hang up when I heard a sharp intake of breath.

"Akihiko," came the voice on the other end. My name shot through his voice like venom.

"You." The word came out of my mouth like venom as well. "Why are you calling again? I told you, I'm not coming home. I can take care of myself."

He chuckled menacingly. "Father's not very happy that you haven't come home since I last called you. He's threatening to stop trying to protect you all together. Is that what you want, Akihiko? Do you want everyone to know what you did?"

The memories threatened to leak out of the dark crevasses of the back of my mind. I couldn't let them come out now. I had to deal with my brother and my father first. And I couldn't let Misaki know about my past. He would never want to be near me again after he heard it.

"No one will find out. Father already made sure of that all those years ago. Now leave me alone, both of you."

He began to rebuttal against me but I hung up the phone and unplugged the jack from the wall. If Takahiro needed to reach here, he could call Misaki's cell phone. If Aikawa-san needed me, she would show up at my door.

The dam that held the horrible memories back was slowly collapsing. I needed to take my mind off of things fast. I lit up a cigarette and made my way upstairs to see Misaki. He would surely make all the bad things go away. He could erase my past, at least from my mind.

Misaki was in the bathroom next to his room, combing his hair up into ridiculous spikes. It looked so weird, but he still looked incredibly cute. But, I couldn't let him go out in public to his college entrance ceremony. I reached out my hand and ruffled his hair down so that it looked normal. He screeched and looked down in defeat.

"You got in via the wait list," I reminded him. "Quit giving yourself airs."

He turned and looked at me angrily. "Shut up! It doesn't change the fact that I got accepted by Mitsuhashi!"

"True, you may have been wait-listed, but once you're enrolled, no one will know. Even though you were wait-listed, if you graduate properly, being wait-listed won't…"

"Quit talking about being wait-listed!" he screamed at me.

I was only trying to make him feel better about only getting in via the wait-list. Obviously, I didn't do a good job of that. I somehow offended him.

He started to go downstairs and I followed him as I finished my cigarette. I watched him put on a tie, poorly I might add. I almost sighed heavily as his poor attempt at being sophisticated.

"Hey, come on. What kind of knot is that?" I asked as I came up behind him. I grabbed his hands to show him how to properly tie a tie. His hands were warm and they seemed to fit in mine perfectly. "I'll do it for you, so learn."

"Yes, sir…"

As I was about to untie it and start over, I noticed something odd about his shirt. "Your buttons are misaligned. You're unbelievable!" I started unbuttoning his shirt from the top. "Here, take it all off."

He threw up his arms and began to struggle. "Ah, I'll do it myself! It was an honest mistake!" How adorably cute… "Besides, if I don't hurry, the entrance ceremony will…"

I leaned in close to his ear. "Don't worry. It only takes five minutes to get to Mitsuhashi in my red sports car."

Suddenly, I had to have more of him. I needed to get rid of the memories in my mind. I wanted to hold him and touch him again. He was just so cute that I couldn't stand it. I pulled us both down onto the couch so that he was sitting in my lap, his back against my chest.

He grunted as he landed. "Wait! Hold on! Are you dreaming?!"

I smirked and kissed the side of his head by his ear, making him cringe and blush. "You should be honored. To have won the affections of the Usami-sensei… Surely you cannot know what a tremendous thing that is."

"I don't wanna know!" he screamed at me.

He began to struggle some more but I held him by his waist. Now he knew my true feelings for him, yet he still struggled against me. I brushed my open palm against the crotch of his pants, making him gasp.

"Stop!" he cried out, pushed my hand away with a lot of force.

Suddenly, he gave one powerful shove forward and was out of my arms. He turned around with an angry look in his eyes but his face was flushed. He didn't say anything, but walked away from me.

So, he can resist me. He is strong enough to fight me off.

So why didn't he when we first met? Obviously he had a thing for me.

I smiled. Oh feisty little Misaki… Winning over people who play hard to get is my specialty. You'll find that out soon enough.