Hours had passed, and Kurama had still not come out of his bedroom. 'He must have been more tired than he thought,' Hiei thought to himself. During the time that had passed, Hiei had removed his cloak and settled on the couch again, taking the time to think over the situation. With his slight "performance" in Kurama's bedroom, he had made all thoughts of the human female leave his fox's mind. Albeit only for a short while. 'I have to make him forget about her completely.' Hiei reasoned. 'Maybe I could just kill her?'

But before thinking about that option further, he heard some movement coming from inside Kurama's room. At that moment, Kurama appeared through the door. He had taken his tattered shirt off and hadn't replaced it. He was currently naked to the waist, and Hiei had the urge to dispose of the rest of Kurama's clothing. Kurama's hair was tousled, and he had a groggy look on his face, but the color had returned to his cheeks. Kurama turned to Hiei and smiled slightly.

"How long have I been asleep?" Kurama asked.

"Hours," Hiei answered simply as he looked Kurama up and down, getting the strong urge to see Kurama like this every morning. "You were tired."

"Evidently." Kurama complied, feeling slightly self-conscious under Hiei's gaze, but found that he enjoyed it, nonetheless. "Do you have any idea what time it is?"

"Time? No. But the sun is well past its crest." Hiei said. Kurama went into the kitchen and looked at a clock above the stove.

"2:30! Oh, sweet Gods!" Kurama exclaimed, now fully awake. He quickly ran into his room. Curious, Hiei followed. Kurama was going through his clothing frantically. Hiei approached him, grabbed his neck, and pulled his head down gently, kissing him deeply, making sure Kurama took a few deep breaths. After a little bit, Hiei let him go and stared at him. The redhead slowly opened his eyes and stared back at Hiei.

"Calm down," Hiei murmured softly, and he caressed Kurama's cheek. Kurama closed his eyes and leaned into the touch. He hadn't realized how much he had missed this, missed him. Hiei kissed him again, this time a little more gently. "Why are you in such a rush?" Hiei asked gently after letting Kurama's lips go.

"What…?" Kurama asked, a little dazed.

"Why are you in such a rush?" Hiei repeated.

Kurama straightened up and held his head tenderly. "I…can't remember. I seem to forget about everything when you do that." Kurama admitted, blushing slightly.

Hiei smiled to himself. "You looked at the time and saw it was late. Then you came in here and started searching frantically for something." Hiei offered. He watched as Kurama's beautiful green eyes widened.

"Oh, Mio! She'll be here any minute!" Kurama said. He then continued to search his room, a little less frantically though.

"Mio…?" Hiei asked, confused. It wasn't a name he had heard before.

"The girl from last night. I told her I would take her out for lunch today." Kurama answered, diving into his closet. Hiei's demeanor darkened immediately. All of his muscles tensed at once, and he seemed to stare daggers at Kurama's back. Sensing Hiei's change, Kurama turned around. "Hiei, I'm sorry. But I already told her I-" Kurama tried to explain, but Hiei interrupted.

"If you think that I will allow you to see her now, after-" Hiei stopped and looked away, frustrated, his face flushed. Kurama returned to his search and found what he was looking for. He headed past Hiei towards his bathroom to change, Hiei following close by. At the bathroom door, Kurama turned around abruptly.

"Hiei. You cannot just show up and expect me to drop everything and pick things up where we left off. I had already planned this with her and will not disappoint her. I am sure that you can understand that." Kurama explained. He then turned around and closed the door in Hiei's face.

Hiei stood there for a while longer, stung by Kurama's words. He felt hot tears sting the back of his eyes, caused mostly by the sadness that was filling him, along with some rage. He took a shuddering breath and was about to call out when he heard a knock at the front door. "Hiei, that should be Mio. Open the door and let her in." Kurama called from inside the bathroom with a no-nonsense tone in his voice. Hiei thought about disobeying Kurama's order but then decided to comply. He didn't want his fox any angrier at him than he already was. They had a lot to catch up on and he wasn't going to make any progress that way. He opened the door, staring at the human female he had seen kissing Kurama last night. The memory of that irked him, and he made no attempt to hide it. The girl looked a bit surprised.

"Oh! I didn't know that Shuuichi had company. I suppose I should have called first. Is he ready to go?" Mio asked, looking past the short, angry-looking man in front of her to try and catch a glimpse of her date. Hiei said nothing but stepped aside, letting the girl in. Mio looked cautiously at Hiei then, as she stepped inside. She scrutinized him, taking note of his smaller-than-average stature. 'Almost like a kid,' Mio thought. Hiei closed the door and went to sit on the couch, crossing his arms and glaring at Mio all the while. She continued her inspection of him, her eyes being drawn to the muscular arms crossed in front of what appeared to be an equally muscular chest. 'Damn, that's no kid,' she thought, a bit shocked but also wondering if he had just as much muscle everywhere else. 'The little guy looks seriously pissed off,' Mio thought. She was about to ask something when Kurama stepped out of the bathroom, fully dressed.

"Hello, Mio. Please excuse my tardiness." Kurama said, walking toward them, a vision of elegance. He threw Hiei a look that told him not to butt in, but Hiei pretended he didn't know what the look meant and stood up.

"Kurama, a word?" Hiei said and walked off into Kurama's bedroom.

Kurama shook his head slightly and sighed. "Please excuse me, Mio." Mio nodded.

'Kurama…? Like the wrestler?' she thought curiously.

Kurama stepped into his room and closed the door. When he turned around, Hiei grabbed him by the waist, threw him onto his bed, and then jumped on top of him.

"Hiei, what are you-!" Kurama's words died on his lips as Hiei crushed them with his own. Hiei's hands grabbed Kurama's wrists, and he pinned him down onto the bed, eliciting a small moan from Kurama in the process.

'So he likes that...' Hiei took a mental note. He straddled Kurama's hips and thrust his own hips forward, rubbing against Kurama's groin and suckling Kurama's neck at the same time. Another soft moan escaped Kurama's lips before he could stop it, feeding Hiei's fire. Hiei claimed Kurama's mouth in an instant and continued thrusting his hips forward, making Kurama shiver with delight underneath him. Kurama didn't know how much more of this he could take. It was torture!

"H-Hiei…! S-stop…!" Kurama pleaded breathlessly.

Hiei stopped thrusting himself into Kurama but continued to kiss him, slowly running kisses down his throat. "Please, don't say that you don't want this," Hiei practically begged between kisses.

"I-I don't… I mean… I do… but Mio…She's…" Kurama felt Hiei stop at once. He opened his green eyes and found Hiei's red ones staring at him.

"You would rather go to her?" Hiei questioned, anger edging his voice and something that sounded like sadness.

"Hiei, she's waiting. I can't just leave her there." Kurama reasoned.

"Then tell her to leave," Hiei said, not understanding why that notion was so difficult for Kurama to grasp. Kurama belonged with him, not with her. Surely, he knew that.

"What? No! I told her I would take her out to lunch, and I will keep my word." Kurama said. Hiei looked down. After a little while, he let Kurama's wrists go and slipped off him, still unable to look at the fox. Kurama quickly got up and looked at his reflection to ensure everything was in place. He turned around and looked back at Hiei's bent head. "Please try to understand, Hiei," Kurama said.

He made his way back to the door. Before he could open it, though, Hiei caught him by the wrist, turning him around and pulling him close, murmuring haughtily into his ear. "Alright. I'll let you go this time. But you owe me, fox. And once you return, I expect your payment in full." Kurama closed his eyes and shivered slightly. Hiei kissed Kurama's throat one last time, seriously debating leaving a mark, and then let him go. Once he had heard Kurama and the girl leave, Hiei slipped out the window, determined to follow the pair.

Following them was harder than Hiei had thought it would be. Since it was the middle of the day, there was hardly any place where he would hide, so he mostly kept to the trees and rooftops. He followed them until they entered a small glass building with few people inside and out. He was thankful when the pair decided to dine outside instead of inside. Once the waiter had brought them their drinks, they started to talk and laugh.

Kurama was fully aware that they were being followed. He felt mildly irritated at being observed but couldn't find it in himself to be angry. If he was being entirely honest, he enjoyed feeling Hiei's presence shadowing him. It felt familiar and comforting, and he found he was smiling despite himself. Mio wanted to go to a cafe, and because the weather was nice, he suggested that they sit outside. In reality, he didn't want Hiei to burst into the establishment just because he couldn't see them. He also enjoyed having Hiei's gaze on him, though he was less ready to make that admission.

"What are you smiling about, Shuuichi?" Mio looked up from her drink to see him smiling softly.

"Just thinking about an old friend," Kurama replies, his smile getting slightly bigger. Mio looked at him thoughtfully.

"Is it the guy who was at your apartment?" She asked curiously.

Kurama nodded. "He showed up rather unexpectedly. It's been quite some time since we've seen each other. It certainly brings back memories."

"You should have told me," She said, concern clouding her features. "We could have rescheduled. Catching up with old friends is important," she said as she sipped her drink.

"It's alright. We did agree to go out for lunch. I'm sure he'll be staying for a while, anyway," Kurama flicked his gaze over to where he knew Hiei was hiding—nothing obvious, but just enough for him to notice.

Hiei couldn't make out any of what they were saying from where he was perched, but he watched nonetheless. He felt slightly startled when he saw Kurama look directly at him, even for a split second, but it made him smile. 'Of course, he would take notice,' Hiei thought. He watched Kurama laugh and smile politely, listen attentively, and give as much attention as he received. Much to Hiei's concern, Mio gave Kurama her full and undivided attention. Seeing them now, it was easier to tell that she was completely smitten with Kurama. Hiei couldn't blame her and wondered if he had that ditzy look on his face, too. Their food was brought out, serving as a means to distract them from each other a bit, though they continued to converse.

When they got up and left, the pair leisurely headed back where they had come. They took their time, looking through shops and seemingly enjoying each other's company. Hiei followed behind, observing from a distance, trying not to overreact about how her arm was linked with his or how she could lightly caress his arm to get his attention. Objectively, he knew there was nothing to get riled up about, but he couldn't eliminate the tension he felt watching someone else touch the fox. His fox. He had a slight feeling of Deja Vu as he followed them.

'This is just like last night,' Hiei thought, feeling somewhat anxious at the notion of another attempted kiss.

After the afternoon turned into early evening, the trio arrived at the girl's house. Kurama walked Mio to the door, where she turned to face him.

"I had a wonderful time today, Shuuichi," Mio said with a soft smile, though there was a bit of sadness in it.

"And yet you seem upset," Kurama frowned, searching her face for an answer. Mio looked up at him, her eyes sparkling with emotion and understanding, and Kurama sighed. "Am I really that obvious?" She gave a little laugh.

"I know when a break-up talk is coming. I also know how to tell when a person is in love. The way I saw you today, I've never seen you look that way for anyone before," Mio gave a deep, shaky sigh.

Kurama let out a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding. "I am sorry, Mio. Things with Hiei are... complicated. A lot is still unresolved, and I don't want to drag you along through this. Please know that I never intended to hurt or mislead you. It's been years, and then suddenly..." Kurama trailed off, starting to feel somewhat emotional himself.

"Do you still have feelings?" Her blunt question threw Kurama off. He paused, looking down at Mio directly while an entire lifetime of memories of Hiei flooded his mind. He felt a warmness spread through his chest and couldn't help smiling.

"Yes."

Mio dropped her head, trying to keep the tears at bay but not having much luck. After a few deep breaths, she looked back up at him. "Thank you for being honest with me. I am happy that I had this time with you." She stood on her toes, using Kurama's shoulder for support and bringing him down a bit, and kissed him softly on the cheek before rushing inside.

"Me too," Kurama sighed, turning to walk away.

From his vantage point, Hiei could see Kurama and the Mio exchanging a few words. He couldn't make out what they were saying but could tell it wasn't good. He started feeling a bit guilty about watching their interactions but stayed regardless. Hiei watched Kurama try to explain something to Mio and watched as she lowered her head in resignation. Even though he was a bit far, Hiei could still see the tears in her eyes and wondered what Kurama could have said. She then looked up at Kurama and gave him a few more words and a slight smile. Hiei tensed as she stood on her toes, kissed Kurama lightly on the cheek, and went inside. After a pause, Kurama left and went toward the apartment.

Hiei slowly released a breath and some of the tension he had been feeling. He knew that he didn't like it when she was all over Kurama, but he realized then that he had been worried about them taking things further. Hiei felt relief wash over him when he saw Kurama walk away. Sure that Kurama wouldn't return to Mio, Hiei sped up ahead of him and beat him to his apartment by five minutes.