What up, fellow Furuba fans? Alright, so here's the weird thing, ever since I said that I wouldn't have as much time to write, I've been taking every opportunity I can to work on my stories...Okay, maybe not every opportunity, Harvest Moon sometimes gets a strangle hold on me. XP The point is, I've been writing more since I told you guys that I wouldn't be able to. How ironic! :D Still, I wouldn't say that I'll be updating often, since my classes this semester are keeping me pretty busy. But, this week is my spring break! Whoo!

Anyway, enough of me, let's get on with it already!

-Camie

Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Fruits Basket, as it is the property of the lovely and talented Natsuki Takaya. I do, however, claim any original characters\storylines that appear in this story.

The Art of Teaching

Chapter 13

Kumiko was strangely quiet for the rest of the day. When she came back inside, she informed Shigure that she would be upstairs doing homework if he needed anything and promptly went up to her room.

As she sat at the desk and tried to focus on what she was doing, her thoughts kept wandering back to that kiss she had given Hatori. It had felt so natural, far more natural than any other kisses she had given or received.

Then again, what if it didn't? What if she only wanted it to feel that way? How did Hatori feel about it? Her heart sank as the notion crossed her harried mind.

Oh, no, she thought fretfully. Did he even have any romantic feelings for her? What if she had ruined her chances with him for good? Her thoughts went spiraling downward from there. At the end of what should have been a three-hour study session, she had only gotten through a few pages of her assigned reading.

When dinner time rolled around, she continued to keep to herself, picking at her food with anxiety creasing her brow.

"Is something wrong, Miko?" Shigure asked finally. "You've hardly said a word all afternoon."

"And you've barely touched your food," Tohru observed. "Does it taste bad?" she said, her tone already sounding alarmed.

"No, no, it's fine. Everything's fine. I'm just not hungry tonight…" Kumiko reassured them.

After a few more minutes of pushing food around her plate with her chopsticks, she excused herself from the table and cleared her dishes. As soon as she was back upstairs, she gathered up her pajamas and toiletry bag and headed for the shower with the hope that the hot water would calm her nerves.

It didn't.

When she had gotten dressed, she took her time brushing out her hair. She went through it section by section, taking care to untangle each and every snarl she came across. When she was finally finished, she went to her room, and made further attempts to relax before going to sleep. Grabbing the novel she had been neglecting for the past couple of weeks, she crawled underneath her blanket and settled down to read.

Picking up from where she had left off, the heroin had just discovered she was in love with her life-long friend. For months the woman kept her love a secret, but one day, she resolved to tell him her true feelings.

Ayaka gazed at him, gathering the strength she needed to say the words that so desperately wanted to fall from her lips. "Takeshi, there's something that I've realized lately…"

He looked at her with his soft brown eyes. "What is it? Is something wrong?" he asked with concern, reaching over to place his hand on hers. A blush as pink as the new rose blossomed upon her cheek.

"No," she said breathlessly. "I just need to tell you something."

"You can tell me anything, Ayaka." She swallowed her fear and took a deep breath.

"Takeshi, I love you. I don't know how long I have, but it seems like it has been a very long time…Maybe…maybe even our whole lives…" Takeshi was quiet for a moment. She looked at him with her wide innocent eyes.

"Ayaka," he began slowly. "I am truly sorry. I just don't feel the same way." He gave her a pitiful look. "I don't see how we could ever be—"

"UGH!" Kumiko screeched, hurling the book at the door, barely missing Tohru's head as she came into the room. Kumiko put her hands over her mouth in surprise. Tohru stood in the doorway with a stunned expression.

"I'm sorry," she said with a quavering voice. "Should I come back later?"

"No, no, no," the older girl answered, trying not to sound as wound up as she really was. "I just…I just got really into the book and I got…frustrated. Sorry."

"Oh, I see," she replied, still a little shell-shocked. "It's alright."

Without saying anymore on the subject, Kumiko laid down to go to sleep. Downstairs, Shigure was looking in the direction of the girls' room and heaving a heavy sigh.

"I really hope no one is breaking my house again."

A week had passed with no word from Hatori, for which Kumiko was, in fact, very grateful. All she wanted to do now was keep her head down until it all blew over. She felt like she was some criminal in hiding. "The Kissing Bandit," she decided is what they would call her someday. "Infamous for stealing kisses from men who had no romantic interest in her whatsoever."

"Earth to Kumiko!"

"What?" she yelped, coming back to the bench she was occupying with two of her friends after they had gotten out of class. The others stared at her strangely.

"Man, what is up with you lately?" her friend Daiki asked.

"Yeah," Naoko said. "You've been on edge for days now. Is something going on?"

"No…" she lied. Naoko looked at her incredulously.

"Are you having money trouble again?" she asked.

"No, it's nothing like that. Just a little stressed out from school, is all."

The pair of them looked at each other, then at their friend. "You're lying through your teeth," they said together.

"Why don't you just tell us what's really going on?" Daiki suggested.

"I can't!" she moaned. "It's too embarrassing."

"Now you have to tell us!" he whined. Naoko shushed him and added,

"I'm sure it's not that bad." Kumiko shook her head.

"But it is. I did something really, really stupid," she said, putting her face in her hands.

"What? What did you do?" the young man asked.

"Come on, you can tell us," Naoko said kindly, though Kumiko could hear the curiosity behind her voice.

She took a deep breath. "So, there's this guy…" Naoko squealed and Daiki leaned forward with interest.

"Is it that novelist I saw at the restaurant?"

"No!" she scoffed. "It's someone else."

"Okay, okay, just go on with the story," Daiki prompted her.

"Well, the other day, he was over at our house and we just got to talking. It wasn't really anything special. But then, when he was about to leave he told me something that was really sweet and I guess I just got caught up in the moment and I…" She trailed off, her cheeks burning. Their eyes were wide with anticipation as they waited for what she was going to say with baited breath.

"What?" Naoko prodded.

"C'mon," Daiki pressed. Kumiko swallowed.

"I kissed him."

Her friends gasped. "Are you serious?"

"Just on the cheek!" she clarified before they could get too excited. "And now I'm afraid that I messed it all up. I mean, I don't think he had any idea that I felt that way and I'm scared that he doesn't feel the same way about me. And if he doesn't, which I'm pretty sure is the case, then I have, without a doubt, ruined any remote chance I had of a relationship with him."

They gave her sympathetic looks.

"I seriously doubt that," Daiki told her. Naoko put arm around her.

"Yeah, everything will be just fine. I mean, what man could resist you?"

"If anyone one could, it would be him," she mumbled, defeated. They hugged her. "I'd better get going." She got to her feet and picked up her bag.

"We'll walk with you," Naoko said. Daiki nodded in agreement. They talked as they trekked across the snowy campus, trying to keep Kumiko's mind off her troubles. When they reached the parking lot, they said goodbye. As she prepared to head in the direction of the nearest bus stop, a car horn beeped two times. The friends looked around, confused.

Kumiko's gaze landed on a brown compact car. The driver held up a hand to her in greeting. Her eyes widened.

"Who is that?" Daiki inquired. She tried to shake off her surprise as she answered him.

"I guess that's my ride," she replied, feeling uneasy. She walked toward the car and peeked into the open passenger-side window just to be sure. Hatori looked back at her evenly.

"Get in," he ordered. She gulped nervously, but obeyed. He pulled away as soon as she was in the car.

The young woman sat silently, too anxious to say anything or even look at the man sitting next to her. The tension was so thick she could feel it seeping into her lungs as she tried to keep her breathing even. The only noise was the sound of the heater blowing through the vents, but to her ears, it sounded more like a roaring cyclone. Just when she thought she was going to explode from the pressure, Hatori suddenly said,

"Are you hungry?"

She raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Huh?"

"Have you eaten lunch yet?"

"N-no…" she replied, feeling confused.

"Good." He made an abrupt right turn and within a few minutes, pulled into the parking lot of a strip mall. He turned off the car and got out, while Kumiko stayed put, bewildered. Hatori opened her door and she jumped. "Are you coming?"

She stared at him for a moment, then nodded. She followed him uncertainly up the nearest sidewalk, wringing her hands the whole way. They passed several shops and boutiques until they came to a little café. Hatori opened the door and held it for her, but she hesitated, still wondering just what in the world she was doing here. The man raised his eyebrows questioningly, and jerked his head toward the inside of the restaurant. Kumiko obeyed his silent command and stepped through the doorway.

The hostess gave them a gracious smile as soon as she saw them.

"Good afternoon. Would you like a table for two?" she inquired politely.

"Yes, please. Near the back, if you can," Hatori replied. She smiled again and nodded, leading them to a small table in the back corner of the room.

When they were seated and the hostess had gone, Hatori calmly read over his menu, while Kumiko suddenly found herself so nervous that she felt like she needed to run a mile just to be able to talk to the man sitting across from her. In an attempt to contain her nerves, she picked up her menu and tried to at least look like she was reading it as she drummed her fingers on the table restlessly.

"Do you mind?" the source of her tension asked, his voice tinted with irritation.

"What? Oh," she said, realizing what she was doing, "sorry." She forced herself to take a deep breath. Without her permission, her leg began to bounce beneath the table.

"Miss Hishida, please," he said, looking keenly at her over his glasses. "Relax." That was the final straw.

"How am I supposed to relax?" she snapped. "I don't even know why you brought me here!"

"I brought you here to have lunch," he informed her nonchalantly. "I would have thought that much was obvious."

"That's not what I-"

"I also brought you here to discuss something. But first, let's order. Maybe some food will calm your nerves." As if on cue, the waitress arrived.

"Ready to order?"

Just before Kumiko could say no, Hatori said, "Yes. I'll have the miso soup."

"And for you, Miss?"

"She'll have the same," the doctor answered for her, again before she could say anything, "but with a cup of chamomile tea." She nodded and left.

"Chamomile tea?" Kumiko asked.

"You're a nervous wreck," he relied simply. She dropped her head in embarrassment. "Now, back to the matter at hand," he began, sounding as though he was in a business meeting. "If you recall, the other day, there was that little…incident between us."

She felt her face flush. "Yes, I remember... But let me explain, I-" He held up his hand to stop her.

"Please, let me finish. I've given a lot of thought to what happened and decided that it would be best if we had a little chat."

Oh, no. Here it comes… she thought, bracing herself for the inevitable humiliation. "Yeah, okay…" she managed to get out, her mouth dry.

"There are certain circumstances, of which you are aware, that make my life…complicated. It goes without saying, that social relationships are difficult to maintain for someone like me." Unable to speak, Kumiko nodded to show that she was listening. "Many of us find it easier to simply keep our distance, but you have made that very difficult to do, seeing as how you're so persistent."

He stopped talking as the waitress came by to set down their orders. They thanked her—Kumiko forcing a smile to show her appreciation—and she went on her way. Hatori watched as she walked away, making sure she was out of earshot.

"You caught me very much off guard that day. For the past week I've been thinking about the implications of what happened and I believe that there is something you must know," his voice dropped to a whisper, so that she had to lean in to hear what he was saying. "This curse runs far deeper than you can imagine, and the people who get involved get hurt. We've dragged you far enough into this war zone we call a family, and it isn't fair to involve you further."

That's nice of him, trying to spare my feelings, she thought, squinting to see the silver lining in this dark cloud.

"But even with that knowledge, I can't help my selfish desire to get closer to you."

Kumiko felt her heart skip more than a few beats. It was like a burst of sunlight had shown itself in the middle of a thunderstorm. For the first time since she had gotten in the car, she was able to look him in the eye.

"Wh-what are you saying?" she choked out. Hatori looked at her sincerely, a little smile playing at the corners of his mouth, and placed his big, warm hand over hers.

"I'm saying…let's just take this slowly."

A\N: Cheesy? Why, yes. Yes, it is. I apologize if this chapter was a little all over the place, I wrote half of it in the wee hours of the morning. But, let me know what you guys think! Reviews are love! Flames are lame! :D

See you soon.

-Camie

P.S. If anyone is wondering (or cares) I finally have my house back! Hooray for not having an excessively crowded living space! XD