Title: Ring
Summary: Five years after losing Tohru to Kyo, Yuki finds himself at Tohru's doorstep, and is forced to confront the consequences and come to a final decision.
Genre: Romance/Angst/Hurt/Comfort
Rating: T
Word Count: 6,223
Yuki sighed as he emptied the blackened contents of the tin pan into the trash, adding the tenth burnt attempt at a cake to the pile. He had spent the past four hours trying to make something that resembled a cake to no avail. Frustrated, he tossed the pan, which was also burnt black, into the sink and kicked the oven as he turned it off, cursing his inability to cook. He scraped the mess of lumpy dough and clumpy flour off the counter into the garbage and tossed the bowl with a hardened pink substance that was supposed to be strawberry frosting on top of the ruined cakes, bowl and all, not bothering to even attempt to separate the ceramic bowl from the now stone frosting that tasted more like raw salmon than strawberries. He tore off his apron stained with flour, burn marks, and pink frosting and added that to the trash as well.
With a frown, he opened the refrigerator crammed with leftover takeout containers and peered thankfully at the neat box containing the light pink cake covered with strawberries and icing that spelled out Happy Birthday, Honda-san. Taking it out and gently setting the box on the counter, he finally allowed himself a small smile, grateful that he had decided to go to a bakery yesterday in case he failed at baking a cake, which he suspected he would anyways. He glanced to the table where a white box with a poorly tied pink ribbon sat next to a large bouquet of daffodils and azaleas similarly wrapped with a crooked bow. Pulling out a chair, he dropped down into it and buried his face into his hands as he shook his head in disbelief.
"Yuki, are you trying to cook again? I think you're going to set off the fire alarm. I'll open a window!" Yuki heard his girlfriend call as she walked down the stairs.
"Sorry," he muttered without even looking up when he heard the footsteps in the kitchen.
"Oh!" she gasped, "You picked these from your garden for me? That's so-"
"No! Those are for Honda-san!" he exclaimed in an unintentionally sharp voice as he whipped his head up and snatched the bouquet from her outstretched fingers.
Machi just raised an eyebrow as she forced a smile across her face. Folding her arms across her chest, she looked at him expectantly while Yuki lowered his eyes, unable to meet the gaze of the woman who should have meant everything to him. He was well aware that Machi hated it when he spoke of Tohru, let alone spend so much effort on Tohru's birthday. He surmised she loathed Tohru out of jealousy; no one could detest such a kindhearted girl otherwise, but it was his fault really. He suspected Machi knew of the feelings he was reluctant to admit himself, and as soon as such thoughts began creeping into his head, he banished them, and turned his focus back to his surroundings. Noticing how he clutched the bouquet away from her in a tight grip that crushed the already wrinkled bow, Yuki let out his fiftieth sigh of the morning and set the flowers on top of the present he got for Tohru.
"Sorry, I shouldn't have yelled at you. Don't misunderstand. Today's Honda-san's birthday," Yuki told her gently.
"Is she coming back to celebrate then?"
"No… I was thinking of going over and visiting her for a little bit to drop off her gifts. Don't worry. I won't stay long. She probably has plans with Kyo for most of the day anyways," Yuki mumbled.
"She lives three hours away. Not long is at least all day, Yuki."
Yuki didn't say anything.
"Fine. Whatever. Go. I'll have dinner ready when you get back," she muttered while rolling her eyes as she reached for the basket of vegetables.
"Actually, those are for Honda-san too…" Yuki confessed, grabbing the basket and setting it closer to the other presents.
"So you got her flowers, vegetables, a cake. What else did you get her? What's in the box?" Machi asked, gesturing to the last item on the table.
"They're boots. I know they don't seem like the best gift, but Honda-san has always preferred practical gifts, and last time I saw her, her boots looked a little worn out," he replied.
"When's the last time you saw her?"
"A few months ago at her and Kyo's anniversary party. Why do you ask?" Yuki replied nonchalantly, pretending not to notice the jealous expression she wore.
"Don't you think she replaced them by now?"
"No, Honda-san hates wasting money on herself, and Kyo's too stupid to notice. You know, Honda-san has had those boots since we lived together, and that was five years ago. When she first moved in, her shoes had a couple of holes in them already, and yet I had to hide one so she thought she lost it before she would buy a new pair for herself. It's silly really," he explained with a smile.
Turning away from him, she grabbed her jacket and stalked towards the door, hardly seeming to process what he told her.
"I'm leaving first then. Have fun with Honda-san."
She didn't even spare him a glance over her shoulder as she practically stomped out of the room, but even without seeing her face, Yuki could imagine perfectly the deep set frown across her otherwise stoic face. Yuki groaned, smacking his head against the table and lied there until he heard her car engine start. Then he stood and watched Machi drive away from the kitchen window before he gathered everything on the table. Somehow, he exited the house and locked the door with everything. He then climbed into his car after making sure Machi's black car was nowhere in sight. He knew Machi was probably cursing him and Tohru now. He sighed again as he backed out of the driveway and started down the road to Tohru's house, trying not to think of anything but Tohru's smile the rest of the way.
He pulled into her driveway at noon, and sat in his car for a few minutes, debating whether he should actually disturb her on her birthday or not. There was still time to drive away before she noticed him. She was probably too distracted to be peering out her window checking for him, especially since he didn't even tell her he was coming to surprise her. Actually, she might not even be home. Her and Kyo's red car wasn't in the driveway today. Then he could just leave everything on her porch and hope she received them, though that meant he'd have to pass more months without seeing her. Still unsure of which he preferred, he finally stepped out of his car and collected everything from the backseat. After he had slowly inched across the stone path that led to her front door, he paused, and then stepped up onto the tan colored welcome mat. Just as he decided to just leave his gifts and flee, he impulsively rang the doorbell, and her voice and hurried footsteps froze him before he could retreat. All he could do was stand there with his mouth half open, two boxes in his right hand, a bouquet in his left, and a basket hanging off his arm as the door swung open, and Tohru's smiling face came into view.
"Yuki-kun! What are you doing here?" Tohru greeted him cheerfully.
"I was just passing by on my way to Shigure's house, so I decided to drop by to say 'happy birthday.' Happy Birthday, Honda-san," he told her with a smile, holding out the packages for her.
"Shigure's house is across town!" Tohru exclaimed.
Yuki just smiled and motioned with the gifts again. As she took the four gifts hesitantly, drawing them into her arms, he noticed her attire. His eyes slowly ran across the strawberry printed flannel bottoms she had on to her disheveled ponytail that hung limply across her left shoulder. His eyes rolled up and down as he scanned over her outfit five more times, his disdain growing and his smile faltering each time. Luckily, she seemed too overwhelmed with all the packages in her arms to notice his scrutiny of her or to even be embarrassed about her appearance.
"Thank you, Yuki-kun, but this is too much!" she proclaimed.
Ignoring her cries, he queried, "Why are you still in your pajamas?"
"I… I… umm…"
"Oh. I understand. Kyo didn't plan to take you out until dinner time, right?" he guessed.
"Actually… Kyo-kun left to train yesterday and told me he'd be back tomorrow," she confessed in a dejected voice.
Yuki's left eyebrow twitched in anger as he tried to suppress his fury. With her head lowered, Tohru couldn't see the ire radiating from him, and he couldn't tell from the top of her head whether she was more humiliated or disappointed by this revelation, but he suspected it was the latter, so he took a deep breath and raised her eyes up with two fingers under her chin. Her large blue eyes blinked quizzically as she peered up at him. Whatever negative emotion that previously swirled in those orbs quickly diffused, and once more, he could actually smile.
"Come on, Honda-san. Get dressed. I'll take you out today."
"Oh no! I couldn't possibly impose! You must have a lot to do! I can't waste your time! Please don't worry about me! You already got me gifts!" Tohru protested vehemently.
"Honda-san, get dressed, please," he repeated, "I'm waiting."
Glancing over her shoulder then back at Yuki, she seemed to hesitate, debating to herself about whether she should go with Yuki to celebrate or continue waiting at home in hopes that Kyo would return early. Yuki made the decision for her, taking the packages out of her hands and setting them on the end table beside the door before he took her by the shoulders, turned her around, and gave her a gentle shove towards the stairs. She peeked back at him for a second only once before she scurried down the hall and up the stairs, unable to keep a small smile from spreading across her face. She was dressed under five minutes and was brushing her hair before she could wonder why she was in such a rush or whether she should even be this happy, but she couldn't stop her feet from skipping down the stairs or her arm from taking his or even her lips from grinning as he helped her into the passenger seat.
"Where would you like to go, Honda-san?" Yuki inquired with a smile as soon as they were settled in the car.
"I-umm- Anywhere would be fine, Yuki-kun!" Tohru chirped.
"Honda-san, it's your birthday. There must be something you would like to do," he pressed gently.
"Well… I guess I haven't seen Uo-chan and Hana-chan in a while, but they live so far away," Tohru mused.
Without a word, Yuki slid the key in place and started the engine, making Tohru lurch forward in her seat, clutching to her seatbelt as she glanced at him with huge eyes.
"W-wait, Yuki-kun! Uo-chan and Hana-chan live two hours away! And Uo-chan and Kureno-san just had a baby! We can't just show up unexpectedly!" Tohru argued.
"Don't worry, Honda-san. They'll be really happy to see you," Yuki assured her as he started to reverse out of her driveway.
"B-But wait! If we're going, let me grab something first!"
He hadn't even completely stopped before she ripped off her seatbelt and hopped out of the car, making a dash back inside her house. Watching her sprint away, Yuki wondered whether she was even planning on coming back, but before he could unbuckle his own seatbelt, he saw her stumble back out, trying not to bump into anything with the large cake box he had brought for her in her arms. Smiling to himself, he quickly slid out of the car and opened the door to the backseat. When she reached him, he took the box from her to lay on one of the seats.
"Thank you for the cake, Yuki-kun, but I'm afraid if I don't share this with Uo-chan and Hana-chan, I'll never finish it by myself!" Tohru explained.
"We'll have a little party for you. How's that?" Yuki suggested.
She nodded so eagerly without any signs of protests that Yuki had to wonder how Tohru had celebrated her birthday since she moved out of Shigure's with Kyo. Watching her grin and hum to herself and swing her legs back and forth on the seat beside him once they had climbed back into the car, Yuki decided to make this the best birthday she ever had, so he stepped on the accelerator, trying not to waste any more time in the car than he had to. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her fingers wrap around the arm rest as she gazed out the window at the blurring landscape with wide eyes. She dared to sneak a peek at what number the quivering needle of the speedometer pointed at before glancing at Yuki quizzically.
"Yuki-kun, you're going thirty miles over the speed limit," she informed him softly.
"Let's see if we can get to Uotani-san's house half an hour earlier," Yuki responded with a smirk.
"Don't worry, Yuki-kun. I don't mind the car ride. I wouldn't want you to get in trouble for speeding."
He nodded and let the needle drop down a number when Tohru's hand grasped his arm, making him loosen his tight grip around the wheel. Seeing him relax, Tohru made a small comment about Uo and Hana, which turned into an one hour long rambling spiel about how they met, their childhood memories, and how much she missed them, which ended with her falling asleep with her head bobbing on and off his shoulder with every bump in the road. Usually, Yuki would have relished the opportunity to listen to Tohru chatter. It was one of her attributes that he appreciated most, but today, he could only hear desperation in her voice. Desperation to be heard as if she had had no one to talk to in months though he had always believed Kyo was there, and he never hated Kyo more than he did now. He had let Kyo take the most important treasure in his life, believing Kyo could care for her more than he could, could please her more, but here she was, sleeping with dried tear trails across her face, not even crying over how her boyfriend of six years wasn't here on her birthday but over how she hadn't seen her best friends in months because Kyo couldn't bother to drive her down there.
Yuki shook his head with irritation as he pulled into Uo's driveway. If Tohru was his girlfriend, they'd come here every weekend if she wanted to. She'd always have someone to talk to. He'd never willingly leave her side for an unnecessary second. He'd definitely never forget her birthday, especially since she never tried to bring attention to herself, regardless of however much she deserved it. Even at her own anniversary party, she played the cook, host, and waitress. While he cursed Kyo for neglecting her, he had to curse himself for even thinking of Tohru in that way when he had Machi, whom he himself neglected for Tohru.
He allowed himself one last wistful gaze at the woman slumbering peacefully on his shoulder, one last fantasy before he lightly shook her shoulder, ending the dream that, for once, she belonged to him. She awoke after a couple startled blinks and smiled at him, completely unaware of the chaos she just stirred in his mind. She hopped out of the car with delight and ecstatically rushed off to the door. Yuki found hints of a smile across his own face as he grabbed the cake from the back of his car and jogged after her. He found her frozen in the doorway, squished in the tight embrace of Uo and Hana, so he awkwardly lingered in front of the steps, shifting his weight from one foot to the other and the cake from one hand to the other for what felt like an hour until Uo and Hana finally opened their eyes and noticed him, giving him a strange look.
Turning to Tohru, Uo asked, "Where's Orange top?"
Tohru's smile faltered before she forced it back and laughed, "He's with Kazuma-san training!"
"On your birthday?" Uo asked, raising her eyebrows.
Tohru lowered her head, avoiding their eyes as if she offended them. Yuki opened his mouth to break the silence in attempt to keep tears from spilling from her eyes again, but the look in Hana's eyes kept him back.
"I see… It looks like I'll have to reject Kazuma's proposal again," Hana commented in her monotone voice.
"Pro-Proposal?" Tohru squeaked while Uo gawked, then added, "Again?"
"Yes. The first time I was too young to settle down, and the second was the time Kyo yelled at you, and now here Kyo is ditching you on your birthday. I can't possibly accept a proposal from a man who raises such a son, can I?" Hana reasoned with them.
"N-No!" Tohru protested, "Don't turn him down for me… I-I'm happy for you guys!"
She gave Hana a quick hug and swiped at her eyes in hopes that no one noticed, but they were all staring at her when she glanced around. This was the life none of them expected. Tohru should have been the one married with kids or at least the one getting engaged, not her two friends who had denied any interest in marriage their whole lives while she dreamed of a family of her own since she was six. Yuki couldn't bring himself to face her forced smile, especially since he knew, deep inside, that he was secretly pleased that she was neither a wife nor a mother yet, and he hated himself for it. Hated himself for hoping against what he knew would bring her the most happiness.
"What? Guys, it's my birthday! And Yuki-kun got me a cake! Let's go eat!" Tohru exclaimed with false cheeriness, interrupting all of their gloomy thoughts.
She stepped past them through the door, but they all lingered outside. Tohru cringed at the silence behind her but forced each foot forward, leaving the three behind.
"Are you all going to stand outside all day? Come on! I want to see Uo-chan's baby!" Tohru called after them.
Uo's eyes lingered on Yuki's face for a brief moment before she chased after Tohru, and Hana eyed him for a minute longer before creeping after them with her eerily soundless footsteps. Yuki hesitated a moment outside, unsure of whether he should step through the threshold or hide in the car until Tohru finished visiting, but he looked down and remembered the cake he held. Taking a deep breath, he stepped up onto the porch and then through the door. Though he had only been inside this house once after Uo and Kureno had wed, he found the kitchen easily enough, where Tohru was waiting with a knife and plates. After setting the cake on the counter, he took a step back, letting the three friends chatter. Tohru lifted the knife to cut the strawberry covered cake, but before the blade could touch the pink icing, Uo suddenly grabbed her wrist.
"Wait! You should make your wish!" Uo interjected.
"M-My wish?" Tohru stuttered.
Hana nodded, plucking twenty five candles and a lighter out from seemingly nowhere. The candles were quickly lighted and soon the three were singing happily to a blushing Tohru who covered her cheeks with both her hands, but she obediently blew out all the candles when prompted. Then she quickly began slicing the large rectangular cake and handing out plates with huge chunks of cake, eager to leave the spotlight and return to the sidelines. Yuki took his dish clumsily, and Uo soon ushered him and Tohru onto the loveseat in the living room. Hana seated herself on an armchair while Uo retreated upstairs to get her son.
It took less than five minutes of eating cake, fawning over a sleepy baby, and reminiscing with her best friends to bring back Tohru's characteristic grin, and another five before Yuki heard her laugh ring out. Though neither Uo nor Hana made any effort to include him in their conversations, Yuki was content to just sit there, silently munching on the birthday cake and watching Tohru's face light up every few minutes. He knew Tohru was trying to make him feel welcome, turning to him every few seconds to get his opinion or just to simply smile at him, so though he did feel out of place in Uo's living room, especially with her giving him suspicious glares when Tohru turned the other way and Hana staring at him, he just plastered on a smile and sat there patiently for the next three hours. Then a cry from the blue bundle in Uo's arms jarred Tohru from her rambling chatter and made Tohru jump with a start as she realized how late it was.
"Oh no! I wasted your whole afternoon! I am sure you both had a lot planned and couldn't do because I kept talking! And Yuki-kun! I made you stay all day! I am so sorry-" Tohru squealed apologetically.
"Tohru," Uo interrupted her, lifting her hand up, "We loved seeing you today. We haven't seen you in so long. Today was the best day we've had in a while. Right, Hana?"
"Yes, Tohru-kun. We have missed you greatly. You must make your boyfriend bring you to visit us more often next time," Hana added.
"Oh Hana-chan! Please don't be made at Kyo-kun! He's just busy!" Tohru defended him.
Hana didn't seem content with Tohru's reasoning, but Uo spoke up before she could comment.
"But really, we have to thank you, prince, for bringing our dear Tohru to visit," Uo said, turning to Yuki with a smile for the first time that night.
Yuki smiled a little embarrassedly, muttering something about being happy to do so that none of them really caught as they were too busy exchanging farewell hugs with teary eyes. He stood awkwardly once more, half way between the kitchen and living room, and inched towards the door. He had passed the doorway into the kitchen by the time Uo and Hana finally released Tohru. She seemed to hesitate momentarily, glancing at her two best friends and the small infant laying on the couch, before offering a final wave and walking over to Yuki while her two friends gave Yuki appreciative smiles, though such was only visible on one of them. He waved halfheartedly in return and then lead Tohru out the door and back into his car, opening the door for her before he slid in himself.
"Oh, Yuki-kun! Thank you so much for bringing me to see Uo-chan and Hana-chan! This was the best birthday! Thank you! Thank you!" Tohru cried as she slipped on her seatbelt.
"It's only five, Honda-san. Your birthday's not over for seven hours. Let's go eat dinner," Yuki suggested as he started the car.
"N-No, Yuki-kun! I couldn't possibly impose! You've already done so much for me! Don't worry about me! This was a wonderful birthday! You couldn't do more for me! Besides, you must want to get back to Machi-chan!" Tohru tried to reason with him.
"I'd really love to have dinner with you, but if you'd rather not spend more time with me, I understand…" Yuki trailed off in a dejected voice.
"No-No!" Tohru cried, "I love spending time with you, Yuki-kun!"
"Good because I happen to be driving towards your favorite restaurant anyways."
Looking at his smirk, Tohru realized she had fallen for his trick. She grimaced but decided not to argue, realizing how hungry she was and that she was having a better time than she thought she would, considering how her boyfriend had abandoned her on her birthday. She turned to Yuki and flashed him a grin, hoping he somehow understood the extent of her appreciation for his taking the time to celebrate her birthday with her. He beamed back at her, though that soon faded.
"But…" Yuki started, "the restaurant is a little fancy, and what you're wearing…"
He trailed off again, eyeing her floral skirt and v-neck shirt, and Tohru flushed self-consciously, so an hour later, Tohru found herself in a floor-length maroon dress seated at a two person round table covered with a cream table cloth. A trio of long candles, a vase encasing a red rose, and the slender menu Tohru held up before her face were all that separated her from the suit-clad Yuki. She sucked in a deep breath before lowering her menu to look at Yuki, who sat there, nonchalantly skimming the menu laid in front of him.
"Yuki-kun, don't you think this is a bit too much?" Tohru whispered, glancing around the room shyly.
"No, of course not. You look beautiful," he smiled at her.
Tohru flushed again, raising the menu back up to hide again, though that was soon taken away as the waitress returned to set down two glasses of wine and take their orders. She gripped the glass cup tentatively in her hands before her face, hoping the redness of the wine would offset the blush on her cheeks, but judging from the grin across Yuki's face, she doubted it helped much. Before setting the glass back down hopelessly, she took a large sip but wound up sputtering through coughs, nearly choking. After the alarm faded from his eyes, mirth quickly took over, and they both broke out in laughter, breaking the uncomfortable atmosphere, so the rest of the dinner felt as if they had never even left high school. It felt just like those days, sitting at the table in Shigure's house, back when they all lived together, back when he and Kyo bickered all the time, back when Tohru still had a crush on him.
An hour after they left the restaurant, Tohru found herself wandering around the dark forest near Shigure's house with Yuki and her fingers entwined with his. She couldn't quite recall whether she had grabbed his hand first or if he had reached for hers and she didn't think she should be holding hands with someone she had had a crush on early on in high school while she was currently dating his rival, but every time she thought about letting go, her grasp only tightened around his fingers. Her fingers tightened once more in excitement when they began treading through a more familiar path and a small patch of vegetable sprouts gradually appeared.
"Look! There are still vegetables growing, Yuki-kun!" she exclaimed, pointing with her other hand at the small garden.
He smiled and explained, "I came back here during break to plant new things. I couldn't possibly let something we created together die so easily, now could I?"
Tohru flushed, and she felt his fingers tighten their grip around hers. She turned away embarrassedly, but she felt him tug her nearer and actually took two steps towards him herself as he grabbed her other hand. She gazed into his intense eyes, and something inside of her told her she should slip out of his hold and walk away, but she couldn't. She didn't want to. Her cheeks darkened as his face drew nearer to hers, and her eyes shut as she tilted her face upwards towards his for some reason unbeknownst to her. She could feel his breath brushing against her skin, the warmth radiating off of him, and practically the beat of his heart, or perhaps that was the incessant pounding of her own.
Then the phone rang.
Startled, she jumped away, breaking her hands out of his. She quickly began fishing through her purse for her phone. She felt the heat creeping across her cheeks as she hurriedly shoved her hair out of her face and flipped her phone open, lifting it to her ear. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Yuki turn away before she could read any expression across his face. He took a few steps away from her with his hands shoved in his pockets, and she couldn't tell whether he did so out of anger or to give her privacy before the gruff voice from the phone called for her attention, but her scattered brain could hardly process what was being said, but she quickly realized who was speaking.
"K-Kyo-kun!" she cried.
"Where are you? I'm hungry. I thought we were gonna eat dinner together?" he repeated.
"You wanted to eat dinner together?" she chirped happily and a little ashamedly.
"Yeah. Don't you always cook for us?"
And her heart shattered again.
The joy quickly seeped out of her voice and she could barely muster up her voice again to respond, "Y-yes… I'll come home right away. Sorry…"
But before she could say more, Yuki slid the phone out of her hand and snapped, "Stupid cat, Honda-san will not be coming home soon. It's her birthday, and she's going to continue celebrating with me."
And with that, he hung up before anything other than shock sunk in both Kyo and Tohru. Her wide eyes blinked at him in shock, oscillating between his stoic face and her pink phone that he held out for her to take back in his open palm. A shaky arm she barely recognized as her own took the pink electronic from his hand. Then he took her hand again and started leading her out of the forest. It took her two more minutes to fully process all that had transpired, but once she did, she yanked her hand out of his, and the moment was broken. She froze in her tracks, and he stopped half a step after her. She thought she heard a sigh before he turned around to face her with his bangs in front of his eyes hiding any ounce of emotion from her.
"Yuki-kun, I have to go home," she stated simply.
He only nodded, unable to speak lest she hear the utter devastation in his voice. With his head lowered, he started back for his car with her trailing two steps behind him. No longer walking side by side, their arms hung awkwardly at their sides. Yuki gripped his hands into fists, making them glaringly white in the moonlight while Tohru decided to wrap her fingers around her purse strap and twist in with frustration, shame, and though she didn't want to admit it, disappointment. They continued like this for the fifteen minutes it took them to reach his car, and this time, she stepped into his car herself, and he didn't even look her way as he started the car and drove back down the road that would take them to her house.
For the whole three hour ride, neither spoke. Tohru tried to several times, but every time she tried, she had to clasp both her hands over her mouth to stifle the cries that'd suddenly snatch her voice away in a weak attempt to keep him from hearing. He heard though and saw all the tears that trailed down her cheeks that reflected the lights radiating from the moon and car headlights. He wanted to swipe the tears from her face, say something soothing to her, pull over the car to give her an embrace she probably didn't even want, but he couldn't unclench his fingers from the steering wheel or his teeth, and his foot wouldn't lift off the accelerator pedal despite his heart's protests and his screaming desire to keep her in his presence and away from him for as long as possible.
This continued for two and a half more hours. Tohru silently sobbed and Yuki silently cursed himself and the tears that gathered behind his eyes and blurred his vision.
As soon as he pulled into her driveway, she ripped off her seatbelt and bolted from his car, a fleeting 'thank you' in a voice raspy from weeping all that was left as he watched her purse bounce after her as her legs propelled her towards her front door. He should have left as soon as she found her keys and wrestled her way into the house, but he found himself frozen. He watched as Kyo raced to the door to greet her with what looked like a box of strawberries he had just bought and had crudely wrapped in newspaper a few minutes before in his hands. He watched her graciously accept the package with twice the jubilance than she had displayed when accepting his. He watched her toss her arms around his neck, and his headlights illuminated the kiss they shared.
Neither seemed to notice or even care that he was still there. His heart cracked again and again each second that ticked by, painfully slowly. He felt as if all his energy had seeped out. His mouth hung weakly open, a small gap, and he couldn't feel the rest of his numb body, but he could see that his fingers still held the steering wheel, though the grip loose was now. Only by looking at his hands did he realize he was shaking. His whole body trembled, and a loud choking sound, a mix of a hopeless scream and a sob, escaped before he realized he was crying. He could hardly see anymore, but he noticed when the light faded from her doorstep, so he knew that they were no longer there.
He cursed to himself as he slammed his fist against his dashboard three times and angrily swiped at the tears pouring out of his eyes. He smashed the dashboard once more before he finally pulled out of her driveway and speed away from her, but he could only make it half a block before he had to pull over, stopping in the middle of the darkened road. He just sat in his care, shutting off his engine and letting the darkness shroud him as he stared blankly forward for a minute. Then he shut his eyes and laid his head on his steering wheel, thinking about today, thinking about her, thinking about the past and letting a mixture of happiness, grief, and loss overwhelm him as he let himself remember the happiest days of his life until the shattering end of today.
He thought about love and soul mates and cursed the fact that she wasn't his.
He knew their relationship would always be one that only existed in almost's and what could have been's.
Yuki Sohma stood, a tree, rooted too deeply to a woman who kept weaving in and out of his reach, always a breath away from his fingertips. He stood tall and proud, aloof and five feet away from the rest of the forest, with long, sharp branches, though long since empty of any lively, green leaves, that soared above and looked over the whole earth. He stood, protected from gentle caresses by rough bark that sometimes caught someone's clothes with a lonely splinter. Tohru happened to be one of those people he caught, and the only to see through the nuisance and hear his lonesome cries, the only to disregard the scratches she received from his protective layering, the only to wrap her arms around his trunk, regardless of his continued act of contentment. Despite her cares, no girl ever fell for a cold, unmoving thing without any apparent emotions. In spite of his solid structure that seemed capable of deflecting any attack, he knew he'd never win the race in the end, immobile as he stood. Even if the race was upwards towards the heavens. In the end he'd lose and fall victim to racing flames or tumultuous lightning, incapable of stepping aside, but until then, he'd settle for pretending to care for the stray creatures that needed to settle on his branches before scurrying away and continuing to pretend as if he didn't yearn for the girl who flew away.
Well, he had to go home too and propose.
He pulled out the ring from his pocket and stared at it intently, twisting and turning it in his fingers. He had bought the ring already, anyways, for Machi. Or at least that's who he convinced himself he had bought it for. He chuckled once to himself before shutting the velvet box and tossing it back into his pocket. He wiped his eyes with his sleeve again before starting his car once more and started back home.
Numbness quickly replaced the hurt.
He felt nothing now.
He wasn't sure which was worse.
A year later, he'd see her, wearing those boots and a glaring engagement ring on her finger, at his wedding reception, while he drank, and drank, and drank, until everything became a blur. Until his life without her became a numb blur.
Whoever claimed that one's happiness depends solely on the happiness of one's beloved, regardless of whomever said beloved belonged to, lied. But it's okay. He could always pretend. Just as he's always done.
Less angsty than I imagined D: But oh well. c: Please correct my mistakes and tell me what you think of my first unhappily ever after!