Chapter 4: In Which Rin begins her new job...

I walked through the automatic doors, looking down at the slip of paper in my hand. My first job. I suppose it was about time. Luckily for me, I didn't have to worry about hiding the Sohma curse from everyone.

How did the adults keep up the facade for so long? Well, for Ayame it would have been easy: no one goes near him if they have any sense. That's probably why the Sohmas are such an uncomfortably close-knit family. They couldn't afford to meet new people...

I checked the note again.

'Sohma Isuzu, cleaner in block 4. Shift times: 6:30-10:30. Duties take place on: 21st-26th floor, Monday-Thursday.'

Who would have guessed that this is what I would be reduced to? A cleaner working for my own family company. My feet sounded too loud on the polished floor, and suddenly I felt guilty for standing on it. Someone's taken time to clean this, soon that someone will be me.

'You must be Isuzu. Good to meet you, I'm Kanako, I lead the maintenance team here.' The woman seemed to be fairly friendly, but I was probably giving her a bad impression. I do that, not always intentionally. She was middle-aged, with hair that looks like it used to be dyed red and a firm expression, as though she had been brought up to expect hard work.

I bowed and said as obediently as I could, 'Is there a uniform I need to change into?' Kanako wasn't wearing one, but she probably just did administration or something.

'Yes, it's here, locker 736. This will be your personal locker while you work here. You can put personal possessions in it and leave your uniform inside when you leave.' There's a large blue apron and a blue cap. If my hair had been long, I would've needed a hair net too. I quickly slip the apron on and adjust the cap to fit me comfortably. I hated it already.

What the hell am I doing here? I thought angrily. No, you have to. It's for Haru, remember? We need money, and the damn Main House isn't going to give us anything.

'This is Haruhi. She'll be your partner while you work here, you can decide between you who does which rooms and floors,' said Kanako, pushing forward a girl a little younger than me, already wearing her apron and cap before walking off.

The girl smiled tentatively, a bit like Tohru used to. She had short hair too, but it was neatly trimmed. Why was she here, I wondered.

'Hi Isuzu. You can choose which floors you want to do, I don't really mind. The offices are all the same anyway. Do I know you from- Never mind.' Definitely a Tohru-girl. Same sort of attitude. I wonder if she cooks...

'Um, if it would get the job done faster, we could do each floor together. Same time, then we can leave, right?' I venture. It's unusual for me, but I want to know this kid better. Somehow it would feel as if Tohru were here again.

'Who puts gum in people's hair, that's just disgusting!' I squirm at the thought.

'Oh, he was only about 7 years old anyway, he didn't know any better,' Haruhi answered matter-of-factly. 'It's easier to manage this way too. Why did you cut yours?' she asks me casually.

'Um, I... I didn't...' I falter. What could I say now? I wasn't just going to tell this kid my life-story, I hardly knew her. Normal people can answer that question without having to do that, I thought. 'I.. don't remember really. I preferred it long though. It was past my waist before Ak- before I cut it.'

Haruhi didn't seem to notice me struggling with the reply though. She just carried on wiping the large window panels on the 26th floor one strip at a time. She looked like she was used to this sort of thing. It had taken me a while to sweep up the crud on the floors quickly.

'I suppose office workers just gather dust from sitting still for too long,' I imagined Haru saying. If he was here he would've known how to get the job done much faster than me. Haru's actually quite good at cleaning. He's had to clear up much worse than this after one of his 'black episodes'.

Looking over at Haruhi again, it felt like she was thinking about what one of her friends would do in this situation too. I wondered who it was...

'Rin?' said a voice that I almost recognised. A tall blonde boy walked over to us, holding a rabbit backpack.

'Mo...Momiji? Is that you?' I was a little confused. What had happened to the small child in girls clothes? The curse broke, said the imaginary Haru, he's had to grow up to deal with it.

'Are you working here? Haru said something about that. I was just waiting for my Dad... Rin? Why are you crying?'

I hadn't realised. There was just something so sad about Momiji now, and I felt like I knew what it was, although I wouldn't have been able to pin it down as one emotion.

'You've... It's just too... Were you...?' That's as far as I got before sinking to the floor, my hands over my eyes. What has this curse done to us? It worked its way through our minds, splitting families and warping us to suit its demands. Then it broke, and left us vulnerable and strange. That poor boy...

'Rin, don't cry.' A hand that had good intentions rested on my shoulder, soothing me. I looked up into his eyes, large tears still forming in my eyes. 'I know I'm not the same as I was, but change is good. I'm not sad, so you shouldn't be either.'

'But why do you seem so... so calm? Like you're trying to be happy even though... even though...' I cried out, 'Momiji, this isn't you! What happened?'

He smiled gently and lifts me to my feet. 'Rin, I was the way I was. I am the way I am. If I wanted to change, I could. I'm in love, Rin. With Tohru.'

I gasp, then ask tentatively,

'But Tohru's gone to live with Kyo now, hasn't she? When did this happen?'

'I have been for a while. Ever since she told me about how my sister wanted to, well, be my sister,' he chuckled, 'She never guessed. I hope she never finds out, because I want her to be happy.'

Then I felt selfish, because I was in love with Haru, who frequently confirmed his love for me. How painful to be in love with someone who isn't even here anymore.

'Does Hatsuharu know?'

'Yes. He found out a short while after the curse broke. A girl in our class confessed to me and Haru was there,' explained Momiji very simply. He was talking about these things as though they were just stories, or something he'd seen on TV somewhere. I always thought he was strong, but I never knew he could lift such a weight.

'Er, excuse me?'

Oh God. Haruhi was there the whole time, wasn't she? The first day, and she'd seen me crying like a baby. Awkward.

'I know it's not really my business,' she said, making her way over to where we were standing, 'But I think that Momiji should try and take his mind off of Toh-ru, was it? I'm part of a club at school, and I think that it would cheer you both up. We're doing a dark-themed session which I think you would like, Isuzu, and Momiji could meet some new people...'

She looked down at the floor I'd just swept and turned a little red. 'I know how it feels to be in love with someone who doesn't know it. The best way to deal with it is to wholeheartedly accept your feelings, and distract yourself from them. I mean, you never know, right?'

Glancing back up at us, I hoped Haruhi could see just how much of an impact that advice had had on Momiji. There wasn't an extreme change, but a small spark of the little boy had appeared behind his eyes. He looked determined, and even a little happier.

Thinking back on what she'd just said, something suddenly clicked.

'Dark-themed session? ...Like cosplay? Is there someone in this club of yours that goes by the name of Suou?' I quizzed her.

'Yes, there is. How did you- Oh!' she exclaimed, 'Now I know where I've seen you before! Tamaki took pictures of you and a boy with funny hair and showed us the photos for 'inspiration'.' She began to laugh nervously. 'I hope he didn't bother you too much. He's just in his own world most of the time-'

'Well, I suppose we'll have to turn up now,' I huff. Secretly though, I'm quite interested in how they'll pull off our style.

Thank you for reading this far! I wanted to write Momiji in as the cute bunny boy we all love, but then realised that the curse would have been broken anyway so I couldn't. Oh well, I love a challenge. Since this is my first and only fanfic, I'm really curious to know what you think, so please rate and/or review! Next chapter: Meet the Hosts! is soon to come.