Fruits Basket Fan Fiction ❯ NECTAR ❯ The Spider Awakens ( Chapter 7 )

KAKERU *

"Kakeru? Why are you here?" Yuki asked and quickly stepped away from his cousin.

"I... I... uh..." I stuttered foolishly while mentally questioning the little love scene I had just interrupted. "Oh... yeah," I said in relief when I remembered the plan, "I found your cell phone." Reaching into the jacket's deep pocket, I pulled it out and held it up for all to see. `Proof!'

"Haru, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in the hospital?" Yuki's cousin, Kureno, interrupted, and I was taken aback by the level of resentment in his voice. This same person had been charming, friendly, not to mention totally forgiving, just moments ago when he had caught me crawling under the outside fence - the grumpy Kyo-chan had pointed out the best spot - to gain entrance to Yun Yun's family estate.

"Yes, I just came by to grab Momiji some ice cream from the kitchen," Haru explained. "We didn't want to bother Hatori with it."

"This isn't the kitchen." Kureno stated the obvious.

"And you're not Akito, you're just his little boy toy, so why don't you back the hell off?" Haru said bitterly, his gray eyes flashing momentarily black.

"Haru, calm down," Yun Yun said as he placed his hand on Haru's shoulder. "You should go back to the hospital, you're still healing. I'll ask the maid to bring over Momiji's ice cream."

"Yes," Haru agreed with a nod. "I'll go, but I'd still like to talk to you more. Can you drop by later?"

"Sure. I'll come by tonight." Yuki told him with a soft smile. Haru walked towards us on his way out of the room, and then stopped suddenly in the doorway.

"Oh, have her bring cookies too. Momiji likes those chocolate swirly ones... I forget what they're called."

"Dragonfly Chocolate Wafer Sticks?" I took a wild guess.

"Yes! That's it." Haru agreed, and leaned close to my ear as I stepped aside to allow him to pass. "Thanks, and nice outfit, by the way," he said softly to me.

"Uh.... Thanks." I said uncomfortably as I felt my face grow warm.

"I ought to be going as well. It's my turn to watch over Akito," Kureno said before looking down into my eyes and smiling. "It was nice to meet you, Kakeru Manabe."

"Yes, very nice." I agreed, because except for one little moment of awkwardness, it really was. This Kureno character was interesting, handsome like all of Yun Yun's cousins, and also tall, enigmatically sexy, and very polite.

"Perhaps we'll meet again," he added, staring pointedly into my eyes before turning and heading down the hall.

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YUKI *

`Did I imagine that?' I thought to myself as Kakeru's eyes followed after Kureno. `I must have, because I could have sworn that the ever-uptight Kureno just flirted with Kakeru.'

"Kakeru." I said, too loudly, and then lowered my voice when he looked my way. "You don't have to stand in the hallway like that, come inside, and if you don't mind, could you shut the door?" Then I walked across the room and bent down to retrieve my shirt from the floor.

"Yuki, I'm sorry for just dropping by like this." Kakeru apologized, while stepping into my room and closing the door. "I would have called first, but...." He held out my phone with a shrug.

"It's not a problem, Kakeru. It's more of a surprise, really." I told him. Taking the phone from his hand I sat it, along with my shirt, on the windowsill. "About what you saw when you walked in... Haru and I... ah... it wasn't what it looked like." I said awkwardly, while turning my back to him so that I could quickly re-button my pants.

"Oh... I knew that... he's your cousin, after all. I didn't think that you two were...." Kakeru laughed, and when I turned to face him again I noticed that his face was bright red. "Well, to be honest, I suppose that I did think that - but just for a moment - and now I don't because, well, you're related, right?"

"Actually, Kakeru, Haru and I are distant cousins. Quite a few Sohmas have dated and even gotten married." I told him, before catching myself. `What in the hell am I saying? I'm making excuses? Now he's going to think that Haru and I really were doing something perverted. What is wrong with me?'

"So this is it? The room you grew up in?" Kakeru asked, changing the subject as he stared around my sparsely furnished room. Although the maids had done an excellent job of repairing the damage caused by the recent incident, it didn't change the fact that the room was dispiriting. Watching Kakeru take it all in, I tried to see the room from his eyes. `It really is very unsettling,' I realized, `a nearly empty room with black walls and not a single adornment, he isn't going to understand. He's going to think I'm a freak.'

"Your cousin, Akito is his name, right? He went crazy and painted it this way?" Kakeru asked thoughtfully.

"Yes." I confirmed, thinking back to the day I had accidentally gotten myself locked inside the school closet and covered with paint. Kakeru had sat with me for hours that day. Without complaint he had listened attentively, allowing me to speak at length about my childhood, about Akito, and about Tohru. `He's amazing!' I thought to myself.

"I had forgotten I told you about him. That was what, almost a year ago? I'm surprised that you remembered," I said appreciatively.

"Certainly," Kakeru said and pointed to his head. "Photographic memory, I remember everything."

"Really? Photographic memory, is it? Then I'd think you'd get better grades." I teased and swiftly sidestepped as he aimed a playful punch at my arm.

"So, ah... Kakeru, can I ask you something?" I said with a grin as I scrutinized my friend's overstated attire. "Where exactly did you get that jacket?"

"Do you like it?" Kakeru asked, and then strutted across my room like a fashion model.

"Not particularly." I answered honestly and instantly felt bad when the smile dropped from his face. "I'm sorry, Kakeru. It doesn't really suit you, is all I meant to say. I think I'd prefer to see you in something else, something more... I don't know... comfortable." I quickly explained, and was relieved when he busted up laughing.

"That figures." He said, removing the jacket and letting it drop to my floor. "Better?"

"Much!" I decided. "Although I think that Haru owns that same shirt, it's silk right?" Reaching out my hand I touched his sleeve, confirming that it was indeed exactly like the shirt Haru owned.

"Yes, silk." He agreed, and grabbed my hand before it could drop away.

"Kakeru?" I whispered uncertainly as he proceeded to lift my hand to his mouth and press it briefly against his lips.

"I'm glad to see you're smiling again." Kakeru told me as he gazed into my eyes. "A moment ago there were tears. You were crying?"

"No.... Yes...." I said in confusion, momentarily distracted by sight of my hand against his lips.

"You were." He insisted, while stepping closer and giving me a concerned smile. "Are you all right now, Yun Yun?"

"I am." I said honestly, because seeing him this way, smiling so endearingly, somehow made everything else feel inconsequential.

"That's good to know." He said while running the back of my hand teasingly across his delightfully soft mouth. I watched him for a moment, mesmerized by his lovely dark eyes and the gentle caress of his lips, until a large grin broke across his face and he stuck out his tongue and licked me. Coming directly to my senses, I pulled my hand away.

"What are you up to, Manabe? Cut it out!" I said halfheartedly. I didn't really want him to stop, but I felt uncertain of his motives. I knew from experience that Kakeru liked nothing more than having a good laugh at my expense. There was an excellent possibility that I would mistake what this was, that perhaps Kakeru was only playing a prank. I had thought about him constantly over the past few days, and during that time it had never even once crossed my mind that he might have been thinking of me as well. It seemed impossible that the girl crazy Kakeru Manabe could be gay. It was far more likely that this was a joke and I was being made a fool of.

"Why are you messing around like this? It isn't very funny," I complained. "You didn't need to go to all this trouble to bring me my phone. You could have given it to me at school. Why didn't you just do that?"

"Why? Because I haven't seen you, not at all since Tuesday, since you kissed me and ran off like a coward." He said straightforwardly, and I backed away from him in shame, hiding my face behind one hand.

"I wasn't upset about it, you know." He continued, closing the distance between us quickly and gently removing my hand from my face, so that he could look me in the eye. "Yun Yun, why have you been hiding from me?"

"I haven't..." I lied, trying to back away again, but discovering that I was up against the wall. "I've been busy. You know that I missed school on Monday, I needed to catch up."

"I don't believe you." He said and stepped forward again, resting his hands on the wall to either side of me.

"I'm sorry," I whispered. Within my chest my heart pounded anxiously, I wanted to run away, but Kakeru had me trapped. "The truth is, Kakeru, I didn't know how to face you. What I did was so... perverted. I really don't know what made me behave like that, and I'm completely ashamed. I couldn't face you because I couldn't explain my actions to you."

"No explanation is necessary for the kiss." Kakeru said quietly, and leaned his face closer to mine. "But you shouldn't have run away afterwards, and you shouldn't have avoided me. Yun Yun, our friendship is so important to me. I just don't understand how you could blow it off like that, like it meant nothing to you."

"Kakeru..." I started, but couldn't find the words in order to continue. How could I tell him that I hadn't slept in the past four nights because I was convinced that he would hate me for what I had done? What would he say if he knew the main reason that I was crying when he walked into the room was that I was unbearably lonely without him in my life? And how did I even begin to enlighten him on what I was feeling so very deep inside of me, when I wasn't even sure for myself?

"I didn't think you'd even notice," I finally said. It was the one safe, honest thing that I felt I could admit to him. It was the only explanation I could offer that didn't scare the hell out of me.

"Not notice?" He wondered. "How could I not notice? We've spent lunch together every school day for the past year, without fail. Damn it, Yuki, you're my best friend, of course I noticed when you just disappeared!"

"Kakeru, I'm really sorry." I whispered and inhaled nervously when his hands moved from the wall. One of his hands wrapped itself at my waist while the other brushed the hair out of my eyes, allowing him to look at me, really look at me, as if for the very first time.

"I missed you, Yun Yun, don't ever do that again." He said to me and then gently, almost uncertainly, placed his lips upon mine. Pushing away my inhibitions with a gentle sigh, I closed my eyes and willed myself to stop thinking. This was Kakeru, my dearest friend, and this kiss was real for him too, it wasn't just a game. I could trust Kakeru, he'd always kept my secrets in the past and this would be no exception. He would never hurt me, so I just needed to relax. I deserved to enjoy this.

Kakeru's lips felt warm, smooth, and strangely sticky. When I opened my mouth slightly and moved closer to him, silently hinting, he willingly obliged. While running one hand lightly along my back, he slid his tongue through my parted lips. Shivering slightly from the sensation of the cool silk of his shirt brushing against my bare skin, I moaned wantonly because I couldn't hold back the longing that was racing through my heart.

This kiss, Kakeru's kiss, was amazing, soothing and tantalizing in equal doses. I wanted to fall into his arms and beg him to hold me forever, to never let me go. I wanted to tear off his clothes and nail him to the wall. I wanted to make him scream. The kiss brought all of this out of me simultaneously, it was that powerful. It was sinful, it was chaste, and it tasted of something sweet... was that pineapple lip gloss?

"Kakeru?" I whispered breathlessly when he pulled away and stared yearningly into my eyes. "Can I ask you something?"

"Yes," he whispered back, "anything."

"Um... are you wearing makeup?"

"Fucking Kimi," he mumbled and pulled me into another kiss. I considered asking what Kimi had to do with anything, but then decided I was probably better off not knowing. Instead I relaxed into his arms and faded into his lips. Moments later there was a knock at the door followed by the voice of Akito's maid.

"Young Master, Doctor Sohma is requesting that you come to Master Akito's chambers immediately," she called through the closed doors.

"Is he all right?" I asked and hurried across the room to slide open the door.

"He's started calling for you in his sleep again." She said and averted her eyes from my half dressed state.

"I'll be right there." I informed her, and then added before she could walk away, "And if you don't mind waiting down the hall for just a moment, my friend will need someone to show him to the gate."

"Certainly, Young Master," she agreed, and I turned to face Kakeru who had already retrieved his jacket and was again at my side.

"Yuki?" Kakeru said with concern in his eyes, and took a gentle hold of my arm.

"I'm sorry, Kakeru," I said and looked down at the floor in regret. I didn't want Kakeru to leave. I wanted to spend more time with him, and I certainly didn't want to be around Akito, but this was the way things were. "I have to go to him."

"I understand, but ah... I need to ask you something." Kakeru told me.

"Kakeru?" I asked, and gazed up.

"Will you... uh... go out with me?" He asked timidly and stared into my eyes hopefully.

"Go out with you!? Like have a date?" I asked uncomfortably. It was one thing to admit that I wanted to make out with Kakeru, but it was another thing altogether to agree to start dating him.

"Yes, exactly like that, a date tomorrow night. A movie, or dinner, or we could just meet for tea, I don't really care. I just need to see you again, okay?"

"I don't know..." I said to him, and peered down the hall to where the maid stood, very likely eavesdropping on our entire conversation. "I suppose that having tea would be all right, maybe. Can I call you later?"

"Sure," Kakeru agreed, letting go of my arm and leaning over to place a quick kiss on my cheek. "I'll see you tomorrow night then."

"Okay." I said, glancing past him to confirm that the maid was not looking our way before giving him a quick hug, complete with a pat on the back. "I'm sorry to chase you out like this, but I really have to go."

"I know. I'm off then." He said with a grin then pulled away and headed down the hall.

I stood for a moment, watching him go before rushing into my room, grabbing my shirt, and running down the hall towards Akito's chambers.

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KAKERU *

Stepping through the gate, I breathed deeply of the cold winter air and started laughing. It was brilliant. The plan had worked perfectly. It was everything that I could have wished for... well, maybe not `everything.' I would have liked it if I'd been allowed to stay longer. Additionally, I felt oddly unnerved about leaving my Yun Yun behind in that creepy old house. I was being ridiculous, wasn't I? That was Yuki's home, after all. Sure, this Akito fellow sounded like a bit of a loony bird, and what the heck was that whole thing about him calling for Yuki in his sleep? Yeah, that was kind of fucked up, but hadn't Yuki mentioned to me that his cousin was ill of health? Really, how dangerous could someone like that be? `Stop worrying, Kakeru. Yuki's a big boy and he can take care of himself.'

"Look! There he is!" I heard the voice of Kyo-chan and looked up to where he was sitting, along with Kimi, on the low roof over the gate. "There is your friend, he's back, so will you please let me go of me now, you psychopath!"

"Nabe!" Kimi hollered down joyfully and let go of Kyo-chan's arm in order to stand up, hop off of the roof, and grab me by the arm instead. "It's about time you came back, that Kyo-chan was really working my nerves. For sure, that one is not to be considered as a blind date for Kimi."

Ignoring Kimi completely, I waved up at the roof. "Thanks for your help today, Kyo-chan." I shouted up at him.

"Whatever, you fruitcake, it wasn't like I went out of my way, don't read anything into it. I had to come out this way anyway." Kyo-chan said and turned his back to us, but not before I noticed the totally freaked out look on his face. `Wow, what is that about? Kimi must have really put the poor guy through hell while I was inside with Yun Yun.'

"How'd everything go?" Kimi asked as we headed off along the forest path and away from the main house.

"All right." I said casually, while inside I was screaming `Magnificent!'

"Just all right?" Kimi asked disappointedly, and I couldn't help but let out the tiniest giggle.

"You liar!" Kimi screamed in laughter and stepped in front of me to bar my path. Grabbing me by the face, she closely examined my eyes. "I knew it, you're glowing! He kissed you again, didn't he?"

"Well, actually, this time I kissed him." I said proudly, grabbing Kimi up into my arms and spinning her around in a circle. "I kissed Yun Yun, and tomorrow night we're going out on a date."

"YES!" Kimi cheered. "I told you that jacket was a sure thing, he liked it didn't he?"

"Sure, Kimi, he loved it." I lied, because there was really no reason to burst her little delusional bubble. "And your pineapple lip gloss went over really well, too."

"I knew it!" Kimi said. "Perhaps tomorrow night you might want to try the mango-pear flavor?"

"Ah... that would be a no." I told her and sat her back on the ground. "But I would be grateful if you'd let me borrow some more of those bath oils of yours, and um... maybe you could help me decide on a shirt?"

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YUKI *

Catching my breath and trying to slow my speeding heart, I slowly pushed open the heavy doors leading to Akito's chambers and stepped inside.

"Yuki." Hatori said quietly, and gestured me towards the bed where Akito lay. As I stepped closer, I saw that Akito's eyes were closed and his head was heavily bandaged and resting on Kureno's lap. "We were able to get him to calm down again and I've just given him a light sedative, but...."

"WHERE IS YUKI!?" Akito cried out and lurched across the bed, causing the robe he was dressed in to pull open revealing more bandages and an ugly network of slowly fading bruises.

"Akito..." Kureno whispered soothingly. Reaching out, he pulled Akito's shaking body close against his chest and rocked him gently while Hatori worked to quickly remove the IV from Akito's arm to prevent it from being ripped out. "Shhh... it's all right...Yuki's here now." Kureno told him.

"NO! DAMN IT! GET THE HELL AWAY FROM ME!" Akito screamed and lunged himself out of Kureno's arms and on to the floor.

"Akito!" Hatori and Kureno cried out at once. Hatori bent down, intending to lift Akito from the ground, but Akito's foot flew up into the air, connecting with Hatori's jaw and knocking him back.

"Yuki... please... I need him!" Akito cried out, and curled himself into a tiny little ball.

"Stop it, Akito!" I commanded and pushed Hatori aside so that I could kneel down on the floor next to Akito. Reaching down I placed one hand delicately upon his right shoulder, the only part of his body that wasn't either bandaged or bruised.

"Yuki?" Akito called out quietly.

"Yes." I told him as my eyes filled with tears. Akito was such a bastard and there were so many things that I would never be able to forget or forgive him for... and yet he was the most important person in my family, the history we shared was a bond I could never ignore. It hurt so much to see him this way, battered and broken and helpless. "I'm here now, Akito. I'm sorry it took me so long."

"Yuki." Akito whispered and reached his arms out blindly.

"I'm right here," I whispered. Lying down beside him on the floor, I wrapped him in my arms. "You're going to be okay now, Akito. You have to be, we need you. I need you."

"Yuki?" Akito asked quietly and slowly opened his eyes. "Have you really come back to me?"

"Yes," I soothed, and watched as his dark eyes instantly filled with tears.

"I'm glad," he told me, "because I've really missed you." Then he closed his eyes again and drifted off to sleep.

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And that was another chapter down… lots more still to come.

See you all again soon, and be sure to let me know what you think.

YTR