Fruits Basket Fan Fiction ❯ A Gift of Fruit ❯ Future Anxieties ( Chapter 4 )

Walking out of the classroom in shock, Tohru Honda looked at the paper in her hands. `I got a B! Mom, I am so happy!' She stared at the Language Arts grade her paper on `The Future Me' received, before hugging it tightly to her chest. Surprisingly pleased with the outcome of an essay about a subject that caused her many sleepless nights from anxiety in the past couple of years. Somehow, she'd managed to get all of her fears and hopes down on paper!

 

“You look happy.”

 

All…except the main one. Turning toward the familiar figure in the otherwise empty hallway, she proudly held up her paper to show her best friend. “Look Kyou-kun! I got a B!”

 

The indulgent smile that Kyou Sohma gave her made her stomach do flip-flops as he grabbed the paper from her hands, inspecting the red mark carefully. “A `B' huh? You sure?”

 

“I am very sure,” she replied happily, reaching for the paper back from his hands. Kyou held it up at an angle above his head so he could still read it and Tohru stumbled as she completely missed the moving target. “K-Kyou?”

 

“I dunno, Tohru,” he said, placing one hand on her head before she crashed into him causing a transformation while the other still held the paper above his head. Kyou looked down, meeting her eyes with his crimson colored gaze as he slowly handed the paper back to her. “It kinda looks like you might have tried to change your grade from an `F' to a `B' using a marker…”

 

“I…No! I couldn't…I've never…” Tohru felt her cheeks color as she tried to defend herself.

 

“You know…changing it after the teacher gives it back isn't going to work,” Kyou's hand ruffled her hair briefly before falling from her head to her shoulder. With a gentle nudge, he started her in the direction of the school's exit doors. “I've tried it several times, I should know.”

 

“You?” Tohru squeaked, pausing in the entryway as she tried to shove the paper in her bag for the walk home. “Y-you…You've changed your scores?”

 

Kyou grinned, his maroon eyes sparkling as he leaned against the door to open it, the rush of air that entered sending his orange hair fluttering as he waited for her to follow him. Tohru's stomach did that strange butterfly thing that always made her feel funny when she watched Kyou. `He's so beautiful…all the Sohma are…'

 

“Why do you think I do so well in school?”

 

She paused, trying to remember what they'd been talking about before she started to shamelessly stare at him. `School? Were Kyou-kun and I talking about…oh!' Her cheeks heated as she remembered their conversation, “But I know Kyou-kun studies! You wouldn't—“

 

“Tohru?” She paused in her step, standing next to him in the doorway as she strained her neck to look up at him. A gentle tap to the head made her lose her balance as she stumbled back in surprise, landing on her backside. For some reason, no matter how often Kyou did it—she never expected it. “I was just teasing you.”

 

`I am beginning to think that Kyou-kun likes it when I blush…' Tohru couldn't help thinking as her cheeks flamed up again. Kyou covered his mouth with his hand, trying not to laugh at her.

 

“I am so sorry,” he finally said, laughing as he grabbed her hand and pulled her back on her feet.

 

“Oh! No! It's not your fault! I'm fine! Really!” Tohru insisted as she found herself dragged along behind him through the crowded courtyard of their school as they headed home. Tohru had difficulty keeping up with the neko's fast pace, but he didn't let her hand go until they reached the safety of the forest surrounding Shigure's.

 

The pace significantly slowed once they found themselves alone again, Tohru quickly missing the warmth of Kyou's hand in hers. They walked in companionable silence for a few seconds before Kyou finally broke the quiet. “So, you got a `B' on your paper about the future...why did she wanna talk to you then?”

 

Tohru bit her lip, thinking about the conversation Mayuko-sensei had with her before leaving class. “Oh? Nothing really…I mean she just wanted to tell me how well I had done,” she lied, surprised at how easy it was becoming to her. In truth, she wasn't real sure what sensei had kept her after class about beyond telling her not to think too much about the future.

 

`Honda, I normally don't stick my head into others business…but don't take too much stress on and remember that sometimes the present is just as important to the people whose future you worry about.'

 

She'd instantly thought of Kyou, how she needed to free him from his curse. The fact that it could be done gave her hope, but she still hadn't figured out how yet. Until she did, she couldn't help thinking that everything she wanted for her own future, just wouldn't be there if he didn't have one himself.

 

Suddenly, Tohru wondered what kind of a paper Kyou had turned in. She knew what his fate was and it wasn't as if he could write out a entire paper on spending the rest of his life in a room alone because he was the Nekozuki. Taking a deep breath, almost afraid of his reaction to the question, she asked him.

 

“Ano…How did Kyou-kun do on his paper?”

 

“Me? I dunno…fine I guess. I got an `A' and all…” Kyou kicked at the dirt on the side of the path, shoving his hands into his pockets. “Don't know why…not like anyone in our family has any real say in their future so it's not like my paper was even about what it should have been.”

 

“Kyou-kun, you got an `A'?”

 

He shrugged, looking down at the ground as a sprinkling of a blush spread across his cheeks. “Yeah, like I said…not sure why though, not like I talked about the future at all. I just kinda talked about what I wanted to do before graduation. Being with the ones I care about, doing things together.”

 

“Spending your time with those you care about…is still your future,” Tohru replied. “I can see why she gave you an `A' for that.”

 

“I guess I just don't understand how writing about the two people I care about in my life and how I want to be together with them can get me an `A' but…whatever…” He sighed, reaching over to tug on the tiny braid framing her chestnut hair. “What did you write about?”

 

“Me?” Tohru's heart skipped a beat, wondering if she should tell him the truth or not. “I…um…just my fears, I guess. I mean…I said how I worry that my future is dependant on the actions of others.”

 

“How so?”

 

Tohru gasped, turning bright red as she panicked. “Um…well…I just feel like…I'm not sure about…” She stumbled on a rock in her alarm, sending her straight toward the neko.

 

Both his hands landed on her shoulders, successfully stopping her before she fell into him. Blushing at their close proximity, Tohru slowly lifted her head, expecting his hands to fall away at any moment. To her surprise, his head gently rested on top of hers instead, effectively wrapping her in was probably one of the closest things to a hug he could give her without risking transformation.

 

“I guess I just don't understand how writing about the two people I care about in my life and how I want to be together with them can get me an `A' but…whatever…”

 

`…sometimes the present is just as important to the people whose future you worry about.'

 

She bit her lip, understanding dawning as she suddenly realized the two people in Kyou's life. The first was Shishou; the man who had raised him like a father…the other was her. Tears slowly swelled in her eyes, blurring her vision until she blinked them away, letting them roll down her cheeks instead. “Thank you,” Tohru whispered.

 

Kyou quickly stepped away from her, putting some distance between them as he rubbed the back of his neck with his hand, a scarlet blush covering his face as he avoided looking at her. Although tears slowly rolled down her cheeks and he was trying to move away from her, Tohru bit her lip and gathered her strength as her heart soared. Stepping toward him onto her toes, she closed the gap he'd created before fisting her hands in his shirt and softly pressing her mouth to his.

 

His entire body stiffened beneath her touch, obviously unsure of how to react to Tohru's sudden move. The kiss was light, gentle and only lasted a moment before she started to pull away, somewhat embarrassed at her bold actions. His lack of participation in the moment making her fairly self conscious. `M...maybe I shouldn't have done this…'

 

To her shock, just as she had almost pulled away completely, Kyou Sohma kissed her back. A move surprisingly full of desperation, Kyou's hand threaded through her hair as he pulled her back to him and his mouth slowly slid across her lips.

 

The entire encounter was awkward, lasting all of seven seconds. Neither of them had a clue what to do with their hands or where to put their heads. It was lacking rhythm and it was messier than she'd imagined her first kiss would be—yet, for them it was perfect. As they slowly pulled away from each other, the nervous butterflies started in her stomach again as she felt color rise in her cheeks. One glance at Kyou studiously avoiding eye contact proved she wasn't the only one blushing, he almost matched the brightness of his hair.

 

“You know,” he said with a frustrated sigh, still avoiding her gaze as he rubbed his neck with his right hand. “You shouldn't be the one thanking me. You don't owe me anything…”

 

“Oh! No! No, that's not true!” Tohru protested, reaching for his other hand and clasping both of hers around it, barely surrounding his one with her two. “I am just so grateful to spend time together with Kyou-kun! Being with you, more than anyone, makes me so happy!”

 

He gave her a sad smile, taking her right hand in his left as he threaded their fingers together. “Me too…being together with you…” he tugged on her hand, pulling her behind him as they headed home. “Thank you…”

 

Tohru stared at their hands, noticing the slightly different hold than normal. She wasn't sure what changed from when they left school, but something had. Still, she knew that there were things that hadn't been said, a gap between them that hadn't been breached yet.

 

Whatever it was…they'd make it through everything--together. Of that, Tohru was sure.