Fruits Basket Fan Fiction ❯ A Gift of Fruit ❯ Ribbons ( Chapter 3 )

I really need to stop doing this, he thought to himself as he checked his reflection in the mirror one last time. Tossing the towel in the hamper, Kyou Sohma opened the bathroom door and headed down the hall to the kitchen. Living with Shishou, he'd become accustomed to rising early years ago, so continuing the routine here hadn't been difficult for him at all. He hadn't counted on the morning becoming his favorite time of the day, though.

 

His routine had been simple: wake up, go for a run, eat breakfast, shower, and then go to school. He's not sure when it happened though, how he changed his habits just that little bit—then a bit more—then yet even a little more. I'm a complete and utter fool. He grabbed the top of the doorway, leaning his weight against it as he watched Tohru dragging pots and pans out of the cabinets. “Morning.”

 

She leaped, letting a pan clatter to the floor as she turned around to give him a smile. “Kyou-kun! You surprised me!”

 

He smiled, letting go of the door as he headed over to the refrigerator to get the milk out. As he passed her, he gave a soft tug on one of the two small braids she'd fashioned in her hair for the day before saying, “Well, if you'd pay attention to what's going on around you a little more you would probably know I was there.”

 

“I know,” she said, dropping her head as the ribbon from the braid he'd tugged on unraveled.

 

Why do I always say such stupid things to her? He sighed, taking a step toward her as he reached for the end of the braid. “I just didn't mean to scare you.”

 

Tohru was silent as he retied the ribbon for her, making sure it was nice and tight before he let it fall from his hands. He hadn't realized how close he'd been standing, until he looked at her face. Cheeks stained with a crimson blush, she gave him a shy smile before saying, “You never scare me, Kyou-kun. You're always a nice surprise.”

 

“Ung…” he rubbed the back of his neck, feeling like an idiot as he stepped away from her. “Yeah…I should…go…get something from my room…” He quickly turned away from her, his heart thudding in his ears as he found it hard to catch his breath. Heading out of the kitchen as fast as he could, he reached the stairwell before he stopped, taking a moment to lightly bang his head on the banister. Stupid, stupid, stupid! Why do I do this to myself? Why can't I just leave her alone?

 

It had started with him finding breakfast waiting for him when he came home from his morning run. He'd enjoyed the one on one time with her so much that he kept doing little things to maximize the amount of time he spent with her in the mornings. He'd reorganized things to the point that he now had it planned out to the minute. He timed it so he walked into the kitchen less than five minutes after she came downstairs to start breakfast. He'd tried to go back to his old schedule—he'd been trying for over a year now. It's not that hard to set an alarm clock to go off an hour later, damn it!

 

He knew he'd never be able to do it though. When it came to Tohru, he wanted every minute he could get.