Selfish Chapter Five
Again, the rabid, insane and hungry muse is at it again. Chapter Five is complete! *cries* I think the muse is starting to eat my soul!!!
For all waiting for that LOOOOOOOOONG awaited chapter of Vicissitude...it's coming up next. I won't work on anything else until that is done...that muse can eat that for awhile...
Oversight
Chapter Five
Furious, Kyou quickly soared down the flight of stairs, hearing the soft footfalls hitting the steps as his ‘roommate’ quickly followed in his wake. ‘Just my damned luck,’ he thought to himself, slamming the door to the first floor open and not caring if the girl followed him or not.
‘No,’ he thought. ‘I want her to follow so we can get this shit sorted out.’ The last few minutes had been some of the oddest in his life, and he blamed Shishou for that. If his father hadn’t mentioned the fact that having his freedom could give him an opportunity to reach for dreams he’d never had a chance to think about, he wouldn’t be having the damned thoughts about that girl that he did.
Slowing down slightly, so that girl could catch up a little but still not reach him because he didn’t want to deal with her yet. He’d probably looked like the biggest ass in the world anyway, not that he cared or wanted her to like him. “It’s just what Shishou said,” he growled to himself quietly. “The first new girl I meet and suddenly I’m as perverted as the damned inu. Shishou’s just got me thinking about things I shouldn’t be.”
Not wanting to show any weakness in front of that damned Yuki, he’d forced himself to tear his eyes away from hers as soon as he started thinking about needing to see her smile, wanting to hear her laugh. Girls never interested him before, he found them annoying, useless and nothing but a pain. Uotani and Hanajima, he wasn’t even sure how he’d become friends with them. They’d just been there and he hadn’t minded it, they annoyed the hell outta him but weren’t like the rest of the girls.
He hadn’t been able to take his eyes of that girl for long though, he found his eyes straying to her all to often in those minutes. “Figures, she’s a damned Yuki fan girl already,” he growled, making his way down the hill.
“Sohma-san! Wait!”
It sent chills up his spine, those words coming off her mouth bothered him to the point that he’d been tempted to grab her by the shoulders and scream at her to just call him Kyou. He hated formality to begin with, he didn’t deserve respect from people when he rarely gave any out to others. This was different though, his entire being reacted with disgust at those words coming from her. He needed to keep his distance though, giving her permission to call him by his given name would make things too intimate when he just needed to get her out of his room.
Making his way to the housing department, Kyou yanked the door open and stormed inside. The girl had almost caught up with him, grabbing the door just before it shut in her face before entering the building as well. Kyou didn’t even acknowledge the secretary, just slammed his way into the office without a word.
“Ah! I am so sorry,” he heard the girl say as she passed the secretary and entered the room behind him.
The man at the desk inside looked up in surprise as they entered. “You fucked up,” Kyou growled, storming to his desk. “You threw me in a room with a girl!”
“I…?” the man looked at Kyou…then the girl…then back to Kyou again. “There must be a mistake, I wouldn’t put…I wouldn’t put a male in a room with a female.”
“Does she look like a boy to you?” Kyou yelled, placing his hands on the desk and pointed a finger at the girl biting her lip nervously in the corner. “Maybe you need your eyes checked!”
“No! No…” the man replied. “I can see clearly that she’s not a boy. I need to know your names so I can get your paperwork and see where the error was made at.”
“Sohma Kyou,” he growled, turning away from the desk to glare out the window at the trees just outside.
The man got to his feet and headed to a shelf as he searched for Kyou’s file, finding the proper folder he placed it on his desk. “What is your name, miss?”
“Hon-Honda…Honda Tohru,” she managed to get out.
Kyou’s stomach dropped as a strong wave of nausea hit him; his entire body froze at the name. ‘No! It can’t be her…’ He knew it was though; fate gave him freedom only to throw the one thing that would disrupt his life in his path to remind him what a monster he really was. He’d been trying to get over that part of his life, at least try to forget about it but here was a message telling him loud and clear that he wouldn’t be allowed to put the past behind him. Claustrophobia settled in as the walls closed in around him, he couldn’t run…he couldn’t even run. ‘Get me outta here…damn it! Move!’
“Ah…that’s an unusual name for a girl,” the man commented, searching for her file on the wall. “I’ve never had this happen before…but I am afraid I am in a little problematic position…” Pulling her file, the man opened it and shook his head sadly. “It appears that someone thought because of your name…that you were in fact male and didn’t double check their facts.”
“Oh! I…um…I’m sorry I caused so much confusion,” she said quietly. The tone of her voice led Kyou to believe that she thought she was to blame for the error, which he knew was the school’s incompetence-not hers.
“No! I am so sorry about this. There’s just a slight problem, we had a rash of last minute registrations…and that leaves us with no rooms to move you around to.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Kyou sighed, dragging a hand through his hair in frustration. “I’ll just move back to the dojo…”
“No! I can’t let you do that,” Tohru cried, grabbing his arm. “The error had nothing to do with you, Sohma-san. This is my fault.”
“Well, the two of you discuss what you want to do,” the man said. “Just let me know if one of you decides to move out so I can credit your account accordingly.”
Kyou nodded, pulling away from her as he slowly headed for the door. The place she held him still absorbing the warmth from her touch, he sighed figuring that he was being punished for everything he’d done wrong in his life. He should have known who she was at first sight; he’d always wanted to hear her laugh.
That hadn’t changed.
OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO
He’d picked up the phone the instant they’d returned to their room. Tohru tried not to be hurt by the entire thing, but he still hadn’t said a word to her since leaving the office. That he wanted out of the room that badly, she didn’t blame him. She couldn’t help but feel that she was the one that should do the leaving though. It was an error with her paperwork, not his.
“It doesn’t matter, Shishou!...No, I don’t find it as amusing as you do!”
‘This entire day has just been strange,’ she thought. Reaching over to her desk, she grabbed the picture frame of her mother’s photograph and held it tightly to her, wanting some comfort. She noticed Kyou watching her, but when she made eye contact he turned away from her and faced the wall.
“Shishou, you don’t understand…no…that’s not…,” he sighed, burying a hand in his fiery hair. “Honda…her name is Honda Tohru…”
She hugged the picture frame a little tighter.
“What? Shishou! No!” He yelled, getting to his feet. “You can’t…but…Shishou! Shishou!”
Tohru flinched as Kyou slammed the phone back on the receiver. She didn’t want to ask how it had gone, because it was obvious her roommate was not happy about what transpired on the phone call. “I…I am sure…Grandpa will let me…”
“Good for me, my ass,” he grumbled, grabbing his shoes and storming out of the room. The room shook slightly from him slamming the door behind him. Tohru just stared after him for a minute afterwards.
“I should call Grandpa,” she said to herself, getting to her feet and picking up the phone. Dialing the familiar number, he answered on the third ring. “Grandpa? It’s Tohru.”
“Ah! How is college, Kyoko-san?”
“Um…it’s…it’s okay…I met my roommate finally…” Tohru managed to say, trying not to cry. “There…there was a little problem with my…my paperwork. They…they put me in a room with a boy…”
“Oh? That’s interesting,” he commented. “I bet he’s nice.”
“Grandpa? I feel really bad…he really doesn’t want me here,” she managed to choke back a slight sob from escaping. “I…I think I sh…should come back to stay with you.”
“Is that what you want?”
“I…I’m not sure. I just know he’s not happy having me here,” Tohru sighed. “I can’t push myself on someone. He doesn’t like me…”
“Just be yourself,” Grandpa replied. “Sometimes the best things take time and effort. You’ll see, in time all will be fine. I have faith in you. Have a good evening, Kyoko-san.”
Tohru listened as the line went dead, leaving her completely alone in the quiet of the room. The sun had finished going down while she was on the phone, leaving her in darkness. She checked the clock, it was seven…the dining hall had closed a while ago. ‘I wonder of Sohma-san got something to eat?’ Something told her he hadn’t made it to the dinner in time either.
There was a kitchen in the basement if people needed to cook their own food, Tohru figured she’d make herself something to eat and bring him some too. She didn’t bring a lot of supplies with her, but she had enough ingredients for some rice balls. That should fill them until breakfast at least.
Gathering the food, she made her way to the basement so she could get the rice cooked. They wouldn’t be very fancy since she hadn’t brought any fish or other items yet, but they would do. She’d have to remind herself to run to the market in the next couple of days.
Putting the rice on the burner, Tohru wondered how living with Sohma-san would be. It was an arrangement that was sure to raise eyebrows, but really it seemed like they weren’t left with any other choice. They were stuck together unless they could find a different solution. ‘I can make the most of this situation! I lived by myself in a tent for four months! I can live with a boy that hates me!’ Tohru sighed, checking the rice with a fork. “I can’t believe he hates me!”
Suddenly completely depressed, Tohru stared at the rice, watching as it finished cooking. Once the grains were perfect, she pulled it off the burner and carried it back to her room with a pair of oven mitts. “Sohma-san?” she said, opening the door and searching the room to see if her roommate had returned yet.
The room was still empty.
Taking a seat on her bed, she placed the pot of rice next to her and started shaping onigiri. ‘Maybe when I am done, I will have someone to share them with,’ she thought as she placed the first one on the plate.
OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO
Kyou had been sitting there for hours, first watching as the sun set, and then watching as the stars came out. Finally, he’d earned his freedom from Akito although he was still cursed and maintained the bond. He’d somehow beaten that damned Yuki, though he didn’t know how or when. No one had been too willing to talk about it when he’d asked them. His life had been moving in a direction where he’d thought he’d finally be happy.
He didn’t have a life of living in a single room looming over his head anymore, he’d get to live on the outside from this point on. He’d gotten a scholarship to a college, something he’d never even allowed himself to dream about until now. He was living outside the Sohma cage for the first time in his life.
The future was something he found himself looking forward to experiencing. It wasn’t filled with fear, dread and loneliness anymore. The last month had been one of the best in his life; he’d graduated high school and gotten prepared to live on his own at college. Everything was perfect, until he’d found out Yuki had decided to change schools, attending the same one as Kyou.
It seemed suspicious, that the nezumi would transfer so close to the start of the school year. The reason he gave seemed sound enough, Kyou knew he’d been attached to one of the girls in his student council and she wasn’t finished with high school yet. Though Kyou did think Yuki was stupid for changing his life around for a girl, he found it more irritating that he’d be attending the same school as the rat, again.
That probably should have been his first clue that his college life wasn’t going to start off well. He blamed Shishou for planting those damned ideas in his head about thinking about his future as well. He’d asked him what he wanted in his life, to not be afraid to get to know the girls he met and maybe someday he’d want to be with one. He’d laughed at the man, since in Kyou’s entire life he hadn’t ever had any interest in girls.
That was probably the reason that the next girl that walked into his life left him feeling like a cat in heat. Every cheesy metaphor he could imagine matched that moment, lightning struck, angels sang, the world stood still…it was nothing more than a fucking nightmare.
He hadn’t talked to her at all, but knew more about her than he possibly should. Her father had died when she was really young, she’d been left alone a lot as a child, the third anniversary of her mother’s death was quickly approaching and Kyou had been the one to let her die.
Being the cat, Kyou was used to fate dealing him the short end of everything. He knew his life was built on the sacrifices of others, that he would be better off dead. Now he had to force his existence on the one person who shouldn’t have to deal with him at all. He thought once Shishou heard the name of the girl he had been placed with he’d surely be allowed to return home.
Apparently, Shishou thought Kyou still had some healing to do besides those four months in the woods. ‘Living with her might be something beneficial. I don’t know if its fate or a coincidence but your life has been intertwined with hers for many years. Perhaps there is a reason why.’ After that, the line went dead as Shishou hung up on him.
He didn’t know what to do, he’d been sitting up here for hours as his head and his heart argued with each other, neither knowing what side it was really on. Part of him wanted to be with her, she was the one person he’d wanted to meet and he’d thought about her often over the years. Fate may have brought them together, but Kyou had established long ago that fate didn’t like him at all. This didn’t bode well for either of them.
Getting to his feet, Kyou made his way back into the dorm and down the stairwell to his room. It was extremely late and he had to be up early to do his morning workout, he needed to attempt to get a little bit of sleep. Opening the door, he wasn’t surprised to find Tohru fast asleep since it was well after midnight. The light in the hallway lit up her face and Kyou just stood there watching her for a moment, every fiber of his being telling him that with her was where he was supposed to be.
Closing the door quietly, Kyou pressed his forehead against the coolness of the wood for a moment. “Why? Why her?” he whispered to himself. Sighing, he locked the door before heading over to sit on his bed. Rooming with a girl; any girl, wasn't something that he would consider safe. She'd discovered the curse already, though she hadn't had a chance to ask him about it. So had Uotani and Hanajima, he didn't imagine either of them would let it get buy without an explanation.
He hoped the damned rat had come clean to them, so he wasn't the one that had to. He doubted that though, since that would force Yuki to reveal his own curse and the less they knew the better. Maybe Hatori could just erase their memories; it wouldn't be the first time they'd had to do that.
His eyes drawn to Tohru, Kyou was still confused about everything he was feeling. He wondered how she'd been the past couple of years, living without her mother. Had she been happy? Did she miss Kyoko? Would she hate him when she learned the truth? Kyou buried his head in his hands, wondering why he cared if she hated him or not. He shouldn't care, he should stay far away from her because no one in his life had ever made him feel like this, and it scared him. He felt like if he got too close to Tohru, in the end he would shatter. The world and life he'd created for himself would crumble and there wouldn't be anything he could do to save it.
Sighing, Kyou lifted his head and his eyes landed on the picture frames on her desk. The picture of Hanajima and Uotani surprised him, making him wonder how long she'd known them for. The photo looked to have been taken before he'd ever met the pair, as if they'd all gone to middle school together. His attention fell on the other frame, Honda Kyoko stared back at him and he realized the one thing that scared him the most.
If he got too close to Tohru, it would be her that would shatter, her that he'd trample. A life built on the sacrifices of others; Tohru would be yet another thing he would destroy in the end. He'd taken enough from her already, he didn't want to take anything else. His eyes landed on the final item on her desk, frowning as he stared at it.
Shocked, Kyou got to his feet and made his way get a closer look at what he thought was a Jyuunishi set. He couldn't breathe as he picked up the papier-mâché cat from the set and stared at it. "Why the hell would she add the cat to it? Is she nuts?" He put the neko back, not wanting it to look like he'd been going through any of her stuff and turned back around to go to bed.
His eyes landed on a plate sitting on his desk, it was full of onigiri. He hadn't realized until that moment that he hadn't eaten since lunch, and suddenly found himself starved. Grabbing the small paper sitting beneath the platter, Kyou opened the paper and tried to make out the messy script. "Damn her handwriting sucks," he growled. It only took a moment to decipher the message.
I missed dinner tonight, thought you might have as well. I made a few extra onigiri in case you came home and were hungry. I did not know what flavors you liked, so I am sorry they are so plain. I haven't had a chance to go to the market for anything yet. If you let me know what you like, I will be sure to pick it up next time. I am so sorry for being such a burden.
Tohru Honda
He sat there staring at the note in shock, 'Burden? If anyone's a burden, it's me.' He reached for an onigiri, and noticed he'd started eating without even realizing it. There was only two left, which didn't take him long to finish those off either. Taking the dish to the sink in the bathroom, Kyou rinsed it off quickly and promised himself to clean it better in the morning.
Exhaustion had finally overwhelmed him; he had too much to think about and not enough time. He wasn't sure what tomorrow would bring, but he could deal with it in the morning. Climbing into bed, he took a last glance at Tohru...
He'd have to deal with it, he wouldn't destroy anything again.
He'd done enough damage to her already.
I do not own Fruits Basket or the characters affiliated with the Manga and Anime. They are the property of Natsuki Takaya…I am just ‘borrowing’ them for my own nefarious deeds. I own nothing, suing me won’t help anyone.
Sari-15
For all waiting for that LOOOOOOOOONG awaited chapter of Vicissitude...it's coming up next. I won't work on anything else until that is done...that muse can eat that for awhile...
Oversight
Chapter Five
Furious, Kyou quickly soared down the flight of stairs, hearing the soft footfalls hitting the steps as his ‘roommate’ quickly followed in his wake. ‘Just my damned luck,’ he thought to himself, slamming the door to the first floor open and not caring if the girl followed him or not.
‘No,’ he thought. ‘I want her to follow so we can get this shit sorted out.’ The last few minutes had been some of the oddest in his life, and he blamed Shishou for that. If his father hadn’t mentioned the fact that having his freedom could give him an opportunity to reach for dreams he’d never had a chance to think about, he wouldn’t be having the damned thoughts about that girl that he did.
Slowing down slightly, so that girl could catch up a little but still not reach him because he didn’t want to deal with her yet. He’d probably looked like the biggest ass in the world anyway, not that he cared or wanted her to like him. “It’s just what Shishou said,” he growled to himself quietly. “The first new girl I meet and suddenly I’m as perverted as the damned inu. Shishou’s just got me thinking about things I shouldn’t be.”
Not wanting to show any weakness in front of that damned Yuki, he’d forced himself to tear his eyes away from hers as soon as he started thinking about needing to see her smile, wanting to hear her laugh. Girls never interested him before, he found them annoying, useless and nothing but a pain. Uotani and Hanajima, he wasn’t even sure how he’d become friends with them. They’d just been there and he hadn’t minded it, they annoyed the hell outta him but weren’t like the rest of the girls.
He hadn’t been able to take his eyes of that girl for long though, he found his eyes straying to her all to often in those minutes. “Figures, she’s a damned Yuki fan girl already,” he growled, making his way down the hill.
“Sohma-san! Wait!”
It sent chills up his spine, those words coming off her mouth bothered him to the point that he’d been tempted to grab her by the shoulders and scream at her to just call him Kyou. He hated formality to begin with, he didn’t deserve respect from people when he rarely gave any out to others. This was different though, his entire being reacted with disgust at those words coming from her. He needed to keep his distance though, giving her permission to call him by his given name would make things too intimate when he just needed to get her out of his room.
Making his way to the housing department, Kyou yanked the door open and stormed inside. The girl had almost caught up with him, grabbing the door just before it shut in her face before entering the building as well. Kyou didn’t even acknowledge the secretary, just slammed his way into the office without a word.
“Ah! I am so sorry,” he heard the girl say as she passed the secretary and entered the room behind him.
The man at the desk inside looked up in surprise as they entered. “You fucked up,” Kyou growled, storming to his desk. “You threw me in a room with a girl!”
“I…?” the man looked at Kyou…then the girl…then back to Kyou again. “There must be a mistake, I wouldn’t put…I wouldn’t put a male in a room with a female.”
“Does she look like a boy to you?” Kyou yelled, placing his hands on the desk and pointed a finger at the girl biting her lip nervously in the corner. “Maybe you need your eyes checked!”
“No! No…” the man replied. “I can see clearly that she’s not a boy. I need to know your names so I can get your paperwork and see where the error was made at.”
“Sohma Kyou,” he growled, turning away from the desk to glare out the window at the trees just outside.
The man got to his feet and headed to a shelf as he searched for Kyou’s file, finding the proper folder he placed it on his desk. “What is your name, miss?”
“Hon-Honda…Honda Tohru,” she managed to get out.
Kyou’s stomach dropped as a strong wave of nausea hit him; his entire body froze at the name. ‘No! It can’t be her…’ He knew it was though; fate gave him freedom only to throw the one thing that would disrupt his life in his path to remind him what a monster he really was. He’d been trying to get over that part of his life, at least try to forget about it but here was a message telling him loud and clear that he wouldn’t be allowed to put the past behind him. Claustrophobia settled in as the walls closed in around him, he couldn’t run…he couldn’t even run. ‘Get me outta here…damn it! Move!’
“Ah…that’s an unusual name for a girl,” the man commented, searching for her file on the wall. “I’ve never had this happen before…but I am afraid I am in a little problematic position…” Pulling her file, the man opened it and shook his head sadly. “It appears that someone thought because of your name…that you were in fact male and didn’t double check their facts.”
“Oh! I…um…I’m sorry I caused so much confusion,” she said quietly. The tone of her voice led Kyou to believe that she thought she was to blame for the error, which he knew was the school’s incompetence-not hers.
“No! I am so sorry about this. There’s just a slight problem, we had a rash of last minute registrations…and that leaves us with no rooms to move you around to.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Kyou sighed, dragging a hand through his hair in frustration. “I’ll just move back to the dojo…”
“No! I can’t let you do that,” Tohru cried, grabbing his arm. “The error had nothing to do with you, Sohma-san. This is my fault.”
“Well, the two of you discuss what you want to do,” the man said. “Just let me know if one of you decides to move out so I can credit your account accordingly.”
Kyou nodded, pulling away from her as he slowly headed for the door. The place she held him still absorbing the warmth from her touch, he sighed figuring that he was being punished for everything he’d done wrong in his life. He should have known who she was at first sight; he’d always wanted to hear her laugh.
That hadn’t changed.
OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO
He’d picked up the phone the instant they’d returned to their room. Tohru tried not to be hurt by the entire thing, but he still hadn’t said a word to her since leaving the office. That he wanted out of the room that badly, she didn’t blame him. She couldn’t help but feel that she was the one that should do the leaving though. It was an error with her paperwork, not his.
“It doesn’t matter, Shishou!...No, I don’t find it as amusing as you do!”
‘This entire day has just been strange,’ she thought. Reaching over to her desk, she grabbed the picture frame of her mother’s photograph and held it tightly to her, wanting some comfort. She noticed Kyou watching her, but when she made eye contact he turned away from her and faced the wall.
“Shishou, you don’t understand…no…that’s not…,” he sighed, burying a hand in his fiery hair. “Honda…her name is Honda Tohru…”
She hugged the picture frame a little tighter.
“What? Shishou! No!” He yelled, getting to his feet. “You can’t…but…Shishou! Shishou!”
Tohru flinched as Kyou slammed the phone back on the receiver. She didn’t want to ask how it had gone, because it was obvious her roommate was not happy about what transpired on the phone call. “I…I am sure…Grandpa will let me…”
“Good for me, my ass,” he grumbled, grabbing his shoes and storming out of the room. The room shook slightly from him slamming the door behind him. Tohru just stared after him for a minute afterwards.
“I should call Grandpa,” she said to herself, getting to her feet and picking up the phone. Dialing the familiar number, he answered on the third ring. “Grandpa? It’s Tohru.”
“Ah! How is college, Kyoko-san?”
“Um…it’s…it’s okay…I met my roommate finally…” Tohru managed to say, trying not to cry. “There…there was a little problem with my…my paperwork. They…they put me in a room with a boy…”
“Oh? That’s interesting,” he commented. “I bet he’s nice.”
“Grandpa? I feel really bad…he really doesn’t want me here,” she managed to choke back a slight sob from escaping. “I…I think I sh…should come back to stay with you.”
“Is that what you want?”
“I…I’m not sure. I just know he’s not happy having me here,” Tohru sighed. “I can’t push myself on someone. He doesn’t like me…”
“Just be yourself,” Grandpa replied. “Sometimes the best things take time and effort. You’ll see, in time all will be fine. I have faith in you. Have a good evening, Kyoko-san.”
Tohru listened as the line went dead, leaving her completely alone in the quiet of the room. The sun had finished going down while she was on the phone, leaving her in darkness. She checked the clock, it was seven…the dining hall had closed a while ago. ‘I wonder of Sohma-san got something to eat?’ Something told her he hadn’t made it to the dinner in time either.
There was a kitchen in the basement if people needed to cook their own food, Tohru figured she’d make herself something to eat and bring him some too. She didn’t bring a lot of supplies with her, but she had enough ingredients for some rice balls. That should fill them until breakfast at least.
Gathering the food, she made her way to the basement so she could get the rice cooked. They wouldn’t be very fancy since she hadn’t brought any fish or other items yet, but they would do. She’d have to remind herself to run to the market in the next couple of days.
Putting the rice on the burner, Tohru wondered how living with Sohma-san would be. It was an arrangement that was sure to raise eyebrows, but really it seemed like they weren’t left with any other choice. They were stuck together unless they could find a different solution. ‘I can make the most of this situation! I lived by myself in a tent for four months! I can live with a boy that hates me!’ Tohru sighed, checking the rice with a fork. “I can’t believe he hates me!”
Suddenly completely depressed, Tohru stared at the rice, watching as it finished cooking. Once the grains were perfect, she pulled it off the burner and carried it back to her room with a pair of oven mitts. “Sohma-san?” she said, opening the door and searching the room to see if her roommate had returned yet.
The room was still empty.
Taking a seat on her bed, she placed the pot of rice next to her and started shaping onigiri. ‘Maybe when I am done, I will have someone to share them with,’ she thought as she placed the first one on the plate.
OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO
Kyou had been sitting there for hours, first watching as the sun set, and then watching as the stars came out. Finally, he’d earned his freedom from Akito although he was still cursed and maintained the bond. He’d somehow beaten that damned Yuki, though he didn’t know how or when. No one had been too willing to talk about it when he’d asked them. His life had been moving in a direction where he’d thought he’d finally be happy.
He didn’t have a life of living in a single room looming over his head anymore, he’d get to live on the outside from this point on. He’d gotten a scholarship to a college, something he’d never even allowed himself to dream about until now. He was living outside the Sohma cage for the first time in his life.
The future was something he found himself looking forward to experiencing. It wasn’t filled with fear, dread and loneliness anymore. The last month had been one of the best in his life; he’d graduated high school and gotten prepared to live on his own at college. Everything was perfect, until he’d found out Yuki had decided to change schools, attending the same one as Kyou.
It seemed suspicious, that the nezumi would transfer so close to the start of the school year. The reason he gave seemed sound enough, Kyou knew he’d been attached to one of the girls in his student council and she wasn’t finished with high school yet. Though Kyou did think Yuki was stupid for changing his life around for a girl, he found it more irritating that he’d be attending the same school as the rat, again.
That probably should have been his first clue that his college life wasn’t going to start off well. He blamed Shishou for planting those damned ideas in his head about thinking about his future as well. He’d asked him what he wanted in his life, to not be afraid to get to know the girls he met and maybe someday he’d want to be with one. He’d laughed at the man, since in Kyou’s entire life he hadn’t ever had any interest in girls.
That was probably the reason that the next girl that walked into his life left him feeling like a cat in heat. Every cheesy metaphor he could imagine matched that moment, lightning struck, angels sang, the world stood still…it was nothing more than a fucking nightmare.
He hadn’t talked to her at all, but knew more about her than he possibly should. Her father had died when she was really young, she’d been left alone a lot as a child, the third anniversary of her mother’s death was quickly approaching and Kyou had been the one to let her die.
Being the cat, Kyou was used to fate dealing him the short end of everything. He knew his life was built on the sacrifices of others, that he would be better off dead. Now he had to force his existence on the one person who shouldn’t have to deal with him at all. He thought once Shishou heard the name of the girl he had been placed with he’d surely be allowed to return home.
Apparently, Shishou thought Kyou still had some healing to do besides those four months in the woods. ‘Living with her might be something beneficial. I don’t know if its fate or a coincidence but your life has been intertwined with hers for many years. Perhaps there is a reason why.’ After that, the line went dead as Shishou hung up on him.
He didn’t know what to do, he’d been sitting up here for hours as his head and his heart argued with each other, neither knowing what side it was really on. Part of him wanted to be with her, she was the one person he’d wanted to meet and he’d thought about her often over the years. Fate may have brought them together, but Kyou had established long ago that fate didn’t like him at all. This didn’t bode well for either of them.
Getting to his feet, Kyou made his way back into the dorm and down the stairwell to his room. It was extremely late and he had to be up early to do his morning workout, he needed to attempt to get a little bit of sleep. Opening the door, he wasn’t surprised to find Tohru fast asleep since it was well after midnight. The light in the hallway lit up her face and Kyou just stood there watching her for a moment, every fiber of his being telling him that with her was where he was supposed to be.
Closing the door quietly, Kyou pressed his forehead against the coolness of the wood for a moment. “Why? Why her?” he whispered to himself. Sighing, he locked the door before heading over to sit on his bed. Rooming with a girl; any girl, wasn't something that he would consider safe. She'd discovered the curse already, though she hadn't had a chance to ask him about it. So had Uotani and Hanajima, he didn't imagine either of them would let it get buy without an explanation.
He hoped the damned rat had come clean to them, so he wasn't the one that had to. He doubted that though, since that would force Yuki to reveal his own curse and the less they knew the better. Maybe Hatori could just erase their memories; it wouldn't be the first time they'd had to do that.
His eyes drawn to Tohru, Kyou was still confused about everything he was feeling. He wondered how she'd been the past couple of years, living without her mother. Had she been happy? Did she miss Kyoko? Would she hate him when she learned the truth? Kyou buried his head in his hands, wondering why he cared if she hated him or not. He shouldn't care, he should stay far away from her because no one in his life had ever made him feel like this, and it scared him. He felt like if he got too close to Tohru, in the end he would shatter. The world and life he'd created for himself would crumble and there wouldn't be anything he could do to save it.
Sighing, Kyou lifted his head and his eyes landed on the picture frames on her desk. The picture of Hanajima and Uotani surprised him, making him wonder how long she'd known them for. The photo looked to have been taken before he'd ever met the pair, as if they'd all gone to middle school together. His attention fell on the other frame, Honda Kyoko stared back at him and he realized the one thing that scared him the most.
If he got too close to Tohru, it would be her that would shatter, her that he'd trample. A life built on the sacrifices of others; Tohru would be yet another thing he would destroy in the end. He'd taken enough from her already, he didn't want to take anything else. His eyes landed on the final item on her desk, frowning as he stared at it.
Shocked, Kyou got to his feet and made his way get a closer look at what he thought was a Jyuunishi set. He couldn't breathe as he picked up the papier-mâché cat from the set and stared at it. "Why the hell would she add the cat to it? Is she nuts?" He put the neko back, not wanting it to look like he'd been going through any of her stuff and turned back around to go to bed.
His eyes landed on a plate sitting on his desk, it was full of onigiri. He hadn't realized until that moment that he hadn't eaten since lunch, and suddenly found himself starved. Grabbing the small paper sitting beneath the platter, Kyou opened the paper and tried to make out the messy script. "Damn her handwriting sucks," he growled. It only took a moment to decipher the message.
I missed dinner tonight, thought you might have as well. I made a few extra onigiri in case you came home and were hungry. I did not know what flavors you liked, so I am sorry they are so plain. I haven't had a chance to go to the market for anything yet. If you let me know what you like, I will be sure to pick it up next time. I am so sorry for being such a burden.
Tohru Honda
He sat there staring at the note in shock, 'Burden? If anyone's a burden, it's me.' He reached for an onigiri, and noticed he'd started eating without even realizing it. There was only two left, which didn't take him long to finish those off either. Taking the dish to the sink in the bathroom, Kyou rinsed it off quickly and promised himself to clean it better in the morning.
Exhaustion had finally overwhelmed him; he had too much to think about and not enough time. He wasn't sure what tomorrow would bring, but he could deal with it in the morning. Climbing into bed, he took a last glance at Tohru...
He'd have to deal with it, he wouldn't destroy anything again.
He'd done enough damage to her already.
I do not own Fruits Basket or the characters affiliated with the Manga and Anime. They are the property of Natsuki Takaya…I am just ‘borrowing’ them for my own nefarious deeds. I own nothing, suing me won’t help anyone.
Sari-15