Love Hina Fan Fiction ❯ Love Hina: Insertion ❯ Chapter 3

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Shinobu listened to the radio, trying to learn the lyrics as she heard
Robbie Williams sing the song Eternity. She wanted to cry. She wanted to
run away. She just wanted top escape the reality, which she found
herself so unluckily, bound to. Even the bunny doll she had didn’t
comfort her feelings.

"Shinobu-chan," her mom called. "You haven’t packed yet, have you?" and
her mom looked at her desperately. "Shinobu. We are moving the next day
after tomorrow, and your room is still a mess."

Shinobu looked up to her mother, and nodded. "I-I’m sorry, mom..."

Shinobu’s mother sighed as she rearranged the box she was packing. "So
what did your teachers say about the move?"

The young girl suddenly felt all her loneliness and depression coming
from her heart to her stomach, and then to her eyes. "Mom..." she began.

"Yes, dear, what is it?"

The mother didn’t get an answer, and also didn’t notice a tear pour down
her daughter’s eyes. Shinobu just stood up, left her doll alone, and ran
out of her house before her mom could say anything...

-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Love Hina: Insertion

2. Hianta’s New Resident, Shinobu: Arrow Signs and Buds’ New Glasses

-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Shinobu found herself lost in thought as she walked around the streets,
not looking particularly at where she was going. Everything was spinning
around her psyche as she tried not to think of what was happening to her
life.

She sat down on the bench at the end-side of the Yukemuri Bridge. She
never, in her whole life felt so helpless. She stared at the ground,
basically the whole world ignoring her, as she slowly broke down and cried.

Or so she thought.

Something on her right caught her eye. She paused crying for a moment,
and turned her head. There was a boy there, sitting down, with a pen on
his hand, either writing or drawing in it. He was not exactly a handsome
type, with those big square glasses reflecting glares which partially
hid his eyes. What Shinobu did notice though was his slight head
movements towards her, and a faint glimmer of his eyes. He was taking
looks at her and his notebook.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-

/He’s drawing?/ Shinobu thought. /What is he drawing? /She tried to look
away, but could not help but think, /He’s kinda creepy.../

And she looked at him again, only to find that he was not alone. There
were three old men now, who grabbed his notebook, and were tossing,
passing it around them, making the boy try to grab his notebook away
from them. It was like a game of Monkey in the Middle.

/The town elders?/ Shinobu thought, and watched the whole thing play
out. It all ended when one of the Elders threw the notebook at her
direction.

The notebook rolled the ground a bit, before it opened up in the ground
where Shinobu was staring. Shinobu didn’t know if she found herself
angry or surprised at the boy. In the notebook, she found herself
looking at a near perfect sketch of her, not crying or frowning, but
smiling. She looked at the boy who drew it, and took the notebook from
the ground. "H-how could you...? That is so mean..."

The boy looked at her, confused. He suddenly looked nervous. "Uh... I
didn’t mean... I mean..." and he backed up a bit, then said, "I, uh,
sorry!" and he took off like a chicken about to lose his head.

Shinobu watched the boy run away from her, and found herself staring at
her sketch again.

"Try smiling," an elder voice said behind her.

Shinobu found herself trying to actually copy the smile in the sketch.
After a few moments, she failed miserably, and she knew it. Even the old
voice behind her knew it.

"Nope, doesn’t look like you," an old voice said.

"I... I have to return this," Shinobu said.

"The boy was heading for Hina Apartments," said the old voice. "That way..."

"The Hinata Apartments?" Shinobu asked, the memory of her ‘accident’
going through her mind. She turned around and saw the council Elders
pointing at where the boy ran.

"That’s right..." "That’s right..."

Shinobu was about to go where they pointed, until she looked down. There
was a red arrow, pointing to the opposite direction. She followed that
sign, and sighed as she hugged the notebook closer to her as she walked
back home.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Shinobu’s home:

"Where have you been Shinobu?" her mom asked. The poor girl didn’t
bother to reply as she just stared at her sketch.

She dreaded going to school the next day. She didn’t want to, but she
needed to.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Next Day; Shinobu’s School:

It was a particular and normal day. Students gossip over the most
trivial things, girls talking about boys, and laughing at their own-made
jokes. You can even find some of them flopping in their desks, sleeping,
obviously thinking that cramming was the best way of studying.

Shinobu just stared at the scene like she was in a place where she
should not be, and yet should not leave. Her feet not stepping towards
the boundaries of the sliding door as she just stared her class from
outside, dreading to enter. On her desk sat one of her classmates. She
seems to be doing something, and Shinobu just watched with curiosity.
When the girl sat up, Shinobu looked at her seatmate, her face
vandalized by the make-up put in her face. The red lipstick was
bordering way off her lips, and her blue eye shadows were applied so
thickly you thought a painting brush painted it.

It was a practical joke for the girls as they laughed as they finished
applying the make up on her face. The poor girl didn’t seem to notice
anything wrong and laughed with them as well.

Shinobu found herself somehow angry with the group, and sorry for the
girl. "That... That..."

"Yeah? Somebody called me?" one of the students called near Shinobu’s
current position.

"Yeah, behind you," another one replied.

The girl in the right bottom place of the class turned around and looked
at Shinobu. "Oh, hey Maehara, what is it?"

Shinobu took a step forward, entering her classroom. "Nothing," was all
she could mutter, before she could enter.

"You thought it was someone from another class, huh?" the second girl
asked the first girl.

"Well, can you blame me? She never talks to anybody!" the first one
replied. Shinobu could only listen as the two continued to talk about
her. She didn’t need to hear this. She turned her attention to the group
near her table.

"Okay, pay up for the makeup job," the girl who sat on Shinobu’s table,
holding out her hand. "It’s a steal!"

Shinobu wanted to say something, say anything, warn the girl who was
obviously suckered into it, but she could not. She just watched as the
girl took her hands to her pockets and get some money.

The girls suddenly noticed Shinobu, and the three of them minus the girl
with the make-up looked at her. Their eyes went from amusement to
annoyance. The girl stood up, went off Shinobu’s table, and declared,
"I’ll come back for it in the next five-minute break."

Shinbou sat on her table, and looked at the girl, obviously not really
worried or didn’t actually know was in her face. "Um, are you okay?"
Shinobu asked.

"I’m fine," the girl said, looking at her. "We’re all friends, so..."

"Hey! Maehara and Taichi are friends!" one of the students said.

Shinobu blushed as she felt the whole class staring at her. "W-what? Not
really..." and she bowed her head. She looked up, and found herself
relieved as the whole class now was paying attention to the teacher who
just entered.

The teacher looked strict, and strict he was, but Shinobu knew better.
The teacher was kind as well, who supported her about her feelings in
the move. He looked around the class normally, but he found himself
staring at the girl beside Shinobu. "Miss Taichi, what’s the matter with
your face?"

"Oh, nothing sir," the girl replied calmly. "This is how I really look."
And the whole class, except for Shinobu, burst out laughing.

Shinobu found herself blushing with anger and pity. She could not help
but feel out for her seatmate. She looked at the windows as the class
continued laughing. She found herself wondering about the boy yesterday.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Streets:

Buds sneezed and wiped his nose with a napkin Reiko gave him. True to
her promise, Reiko accompanied Buds as they set on foot around the
place, to check out some clothes.

"Thanks," Buds replied, wiping his nose a bit.

"You should see what you are wiping with," Reiko said.

"What?" Buds asked, and looked at the object in his hand. His eyes
widened and threw it away, swiping his hands hard. "THAT WAS NOT FUNNY!"
Reiko gave him a sanitary napkin to wipe with.

Reiko laughed hard. She hadn’t done so in a few weeks, but now she did.
Buds just stared at her hard, still unable to do anything to actually go
wringing her neck, because of two things:

Reiko is a way better fighter than him, as much as he hates to admit it.
She learned kendo from her family, and is now a black belter in karate.

Having Keitaro’s memories, Buds could not help but feel a bit of a love
for his ‘auntie’. He knew Reiko as inwardly laughing at this. Her role
was punching Buds hard behind the head, and it would always somehow hit
him, no matter how much he dodges or expects it.

"What if you used it already!" Buds demanded, looking at Reiko.

"THAT would have been funny," Reiko laughed harder than before, rolling
on the ground and laughing.

"Keep that up, and you’ll get a Mazokoku as a boyfriend," Buds said
angrily, walking at faster speeds.

"It’s Mazoku, not Mazokoku, nimrod," Reiko replied, smiling. "I swear,
if you don’t get the Slayers, you’re going to keep saying Mazokoku for
your whole life."

"Okay, fine. Mazokoku, okay?" Buds asked, walking away.

"You got it wrong again!" Reiko said, smiling.

"Oh forget it," Buds replied, throwing his hands in the air. "So, are
there more places where we can go?"

Reiko looked at Buds from head to toe. She sighed. "You know, for
someone who has a bet on making a girl NOT to fall in love with you, you
sure dress sharp, but then, that is how you are." And how true she was.
Buds had a type of personality to keep himself appealing fashionably. He
would wear some type of cool looking clothes, which not only looked nice
on him, but also actually made him much more better looking than normal.

Buds changed his ‘Keitaro Fashion’ clothes. He bought new shirts, three
pairs of jeans, and changed his glasses. From big rectangular
spectacles, he now wore sleek glasses whose lens was light-grayish. Buds
found his vision a bit down, but with the change in his looks, he found
it acceptable.

"They won’t fall in love with me by clothes alone," Buds had said to
Reiko. She knew it was impossible argue with him, so she just kept her
thoughts for herself.

Meanwhile, Buds continued walking away from her, but it did not take
long until he spotted a store which sold Music Albums. Buds looked at
it, and smiled. "Cool."

Reiko sighed as she ran a bit to catch up with him. "And you are here to
study? Remember, you are stuck here until you pass the Tokyo U exams."

"Hey, what’s wrong with music?" Buds asked.

"I wonder how you are going to play if you are buying CDs," Reiko began.

"You’ll just give me a mini-compo, or just buy me a CD Walkman," Buds
replied calmly, shrugging his shoulders. "After all, we had a deal that
you’d buy all the things I wanted, right after I clean the Apartments,
right? After all, money can buy anything."

"Can’t buy love though," Reiko replied, smirking.

"Well, you can’t, but with much money, you can sometimes rent..." Buds
replied, not really thinking on what he said. He paused when he realized
what he had just said and looked at Reiko, who was glaring at him. "Uh,
watch YOUR mouth, Reiko! It’s making my Virgin-Ears bleed!" he said,
acting angry.

Reiko snorted. "Virgin-Ears," she said sarcastically. "Rrrright."

Buds just smiled slightly.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Another Part of the Region:

Shinobu, a dark haired cute yet shy girl extraordinaire, walked alone in
the sidewalks planning something she should have felt she should have
done a day ago. Holding a brown paper bag near her heart, she walked a
scenic route towards her destination.

Signs would always seem to appear opposite on where she intended to go.
In the roads, in the road signs, in the slope signs. She ignored all of
them as she walked up the stairs in a steep hill. Each step she took,
she felt her emotions lighten around her, and when she got to the top,
she gasped at the sight she saw.

The Hinata Apartments was a sight to behold. After all, the building had
a aura around it, indicating its age and experience. Shinobu stared at
it quietly, her memory about the place was not really frightening her.
It was not the building, which made her scared of this place, but the
experience she had with her parents afterwards.

Shinobu paused as she took a look at the scene. She hoped she would find
the boy here...

Hinata Apartments

On the third floor, in the side of the entrance, Kitsune was trying to
push the overactive Indian girl away from her. "No!" she said.

"Oh, come on, Kitsune," Su began. "Play with me!"

"Look, just wait for Urashima to get back!" Kitsune replied.

"But Keitaro is playing with Miss Haruka!" Su replied.

In the Streets

Buds was in front of the screen, his smile was dazzling and fitted him
well. A sign was shown in the bottom, reading: Keitaro Urashima, Buds.

The camera angle changed, and we can see Buds giving out a peace sign
with his two fingers, and smiling at the viewpoint. The sign on top of
him read: Keitaro Urashima, Buds.

Buds was suddenly whacked behind his head, and fell on the ground hard.
Out came Reiko’s picture, and she had her fist out, her expression was
neutral, a cigarette in her mouth. The sign below her read: Red Eye
Haruka, Reiko, smoking beauty goddess.

Back to Hinata Apartments

"Oh, then just wait for Motoko!" Kitsune suggested desperately.

"But Motoko is training!" Su replied.

Somewhere where there are waterfalls

A sign reading Motoko Aoyama was pointing at a small person under the
waterfalls. The camera zooms in and shows a girl with long black hair
concentrating under the waterfalls.

Another sign appeared on top of her, reading: Motoko Aoyama. Then, the
sign reappeared in her right side. The girl’s eyebrows twitched a bit,
and as more signs appeared, there was a red cross on her head.
Finally... "GO AWAY!" she snapped, took her sword, and sliced the sign,
and the camera in half.

Back again...

"Hey, who’s that?" Kitsune asked, surprised, seeing a lone girl in front
of the apartments.

"Oh," Su looked at the girl. She smiled as she recognized her. "She’s
Maehara Shinobu."

"She’s on your class?" Kitsune asked.

"No," Su replied, smiling. "She’s in 7th grade, sits at desk 23 in Class
B," Su said without missing a beat.

"Oh, so she’s not at the same grade as you," Kitsune said.

"I memorized the names and the faces of all the students at school," Su
replied, smiling proudly. She waved her hand. "HEY! SHINOBU! What ’cha
want?" and she jumped from the ledge, landing on the roof beneath her,
then jumped again to the ground, and went towards Shinobu before the
girl could react.

Shinobu looked at Su with surprise, the brown paper bag still held on
her chest.

"What’s up? Have anything to eat?" Su asked happily, and with lightning
fast speeds she moved around Shinobu searching, sniffing her, for food.
"Something smells good..."

Shinobu blushed at the attention she was getting. She looked around her
nervously. Su’s eyes now looked like a cat with fangs. She cried in
surprise.

Coming up the stairs, Naru Narusagawa looked at the scene with surprise.
She gasped. "Hey! What are you doing?" she asked Su. She changed her
speed, and ran towards the Indian girl, and took carried her away from
the new girl. "Cut it out!" and Naru looked at the new girl. "Oh, hey,
your family owns that restaurant in town, right?" Naru asked,
recognizing her.

"I guess she’s Su’s friend," Kitsune said as she appeared to join the
group after using logical ways to go down down the stairs instead of
jumping.

"Oh, did you come over to play?" Naru asked.

"YEY! Someone to play with!" Su replied, jumping up and down.

"N-no, I..." Shinobu began, trying to explain. "I didn’t even know our
exchange student, Su, lived here," she admitted.

"OH I KNOW!" Naru cut her off. "I bet Kitsune ran up a tab in your
family’s restaurant!"

"Huh? Where did you get that idea Naru?" Kitsune asked nervously.
Looking at Shinobu, Kitsune looked thoughtful. "You’re their kid?"

"No... no," Shinobu said weakly. This was not what she wanted everything
to lead to. Before anyone could speak again, Shinobu took the paper bag
and gave it to Naru. "H-here!"

Naru looked confused for a second, and took out what looked like a
notebook from the bag. Kitsune looked at it, and asked, "What’s that? A
sketch book?"

"It’s not food?" Su asked, clearly saddened by the prospect of not
having food. Kitsune took the notebook, while Su took the bag for closer
inspection. After all, there might be food if she was lucky, right?

Looking over the pages, Kitsune looked surprised as she found sketches
of females. Females in bathing suits.

"They’re all pictures of girls!" Su said, looking at it. Naru turned the
page, and saw another picture of a girl, making a peace sign, and a
signature with Keitaro’s signature.

"Huh?" Kitsune said, surprised.

"It belongs to our Tokyo U student," Naru sneered, not really knowing if
she was angry at Kaitaro’s tastes.

The last statement got Shinobu’s attention. "Huh? Tokyo University?"

Buds suddenly appeared, his hands full of plastic bags of shirts, pants,
a pair of shoes, a mini-component, which he suckered Reiko into buying,
and some 20 albums including Evanescence, Linkin Park Meteora, and
others. He looked up and saw the girls grouped at the entrance, and he
looked confused. "What are you guys doing?" he asked.

Kitsune smiled, putting her thumb at her chin. "Well, that is a Tokyo U
student for you. You sure can draw for someone taking Pre-Law."

Before Buds could ask what she meant, Su smiled playfully, showing Buds
a sketchbook he somehow recognized, and she pointed at the pictures.
"Keitaro, you perv!" she said with a silly smile.

Buds suddenly felt like got him with his pants down. Taking a sprint
towards Su, he tried to take ‘his’ sketch book back. But with Su’s size,
and the fact that Buds’ hands were carrying a few things, Buds caught
nothing but air.

Buds sighed, and gave up with a small smile. He looked at Naru, Kitsune
and Su, then noticed another girl in the group. He looked sideways a
bit, and looked at Shinobu. "Hey, you’re that girl from before..." and
he smiled slightly.

Shinobu blushed as she saw Buds smile at her. She almost didn’t
recognize him, with the new clothes and glasses. She suddenly felt
guilty coming and returning the sketchbook. "I’m sorry! I just wanted to
return it!" And she took the sketchbook from Su’s hand and ran away
before any of them could say anything. Naru, Buds and the others just
watched as the young girl ran down the stairs.

Buds looked confused as he watched her. Tears were evident in her eyes,
he was sure of it. He silently wondered why. He was not the only one,
because Su suddenly accused him.

"You made her cry!" She said gleefully. "Keitaro and his new look made
her cry!"

"Wait a minute," Buds began, "don’t you think you people too are to
blame too?"

"Huh? Why?" Naru asked.

"You guys should not go through other people’s things," Buds replied,
looking at them. His words had the desire effect, as Su, Naru and
Kitsune’s expression suddenly changed.

"Well... I guess you are right," Kitsune began. Then she smiled. "But
then, you look cool with those glasses! And your clothes! No wonder she
ran!" she smirked, and looked at Buds from head to toe. "You are a
looker now."

Buds made a face. "Hey, don’t change the subject!"

-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Streets:

Music: From the Inside, by Linkin Park

Shinobu ran away as fast as her legs could carry her, tears streaming in
her eyes. She felt so... confused. So guilty... so sad. She ran towards
back at her house, as all the signs pointed as she went down the hill,
up the road, and to her house.

"Where have you been?" her mom asked.

Whether Shinobu replied or not, she didn’t know. Her thoughts were mixed
so much that she was confused. She didn’t even remember how she came
home, but she seem to reply, since her mom angrily admonished her.

"The Hinata Apartment! Didn’t I tell you not to go near that place?"
"It’s full of young girls and Kami-sama only knows what they get up there!"

Shinobu didn’t reply as she bowed her head, the bag and the sketch book
tightly in her chest.

"And what about your packing! The moving truck is coming tomorrow!"

-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Hinata Apartments:

"LET’S EAT!" "LET’S EAT!"

Sounds of jingling of chopsticks hitting the porcelain...

Sounds of running and moans...

"LET ME IN FIRST!" "NO! ME!" "SHUT UP AND JUST MOVE!"

Three figures tried to squeeze themselves in the kitchen desperately.
When they did enter, they went and desperately took some glasses.

Buds was the first to reach the sink, and took out the first cup he
could get. "AH! THAT’S MY CUP!" Naru shouted.

"Who cares!" Buds replied curtly, and filled up the cup with water. Naru
couldn’t do anything, and took another cup, and so did Kitsune. They
desperately tried to fill up their cups with water. Buds filled his
first, and took a deep drink, and sighed.

Naru and Kitsune followed, trying to dispose the fire that found itself
in their tongues. They took deep breaths as the flavor settled down.

"Ooh, that was SPICY!" Buds exclaimed, sighing.

Outside the kitchen, Su was surprisingly looking bored as she ate her
food. "You guys just can’t appreciate good food because of all that junk
food you eat," she admonished them gently. The food on the table were
surprisingly brightly colored red of all the spicy sauce Su had put into
it. "Back home, this is the kind of food our royal family eats!"

"Then please don’t crown me king," Buds replied, sighing as he took
another drink.

"Man, I can’t handle this..." Kitsune sighed, and took another drink.
"Let’s eat out."

"Agree!" Naru said as she finished her drink. "How about the Hinata
Restaurant?"

"Huh? Isn’t that where that girl lives?" Buds asked. Naru nodded, and
before she could say anything to make Buds agree, Buds surprised her by
saying, "Sure! It would be nice seeing that girl again. What was her name?"

"She’s Shinobu, 7th grade," Su replied, smiling.

Naru looked at him, and glared. "What are you thinking in that Hentai
Mind of yours!"

"Hey!" Buds took his hands in front of him. "Don’t look at me like that!
I wasn’t thinking anything!"

"Rrrrright..." Naru sneered.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Hinata Restaurant:

"Huh? What is this?" Buds asked, looking at the note posted on the door.
"Closing notice?"

"It says they are closing..." Naru said, reading it, her eyes wide with
surprise.

"Well, that is like, ‘DUH’" Buds replied sarcastically. Naru narrowed
her eyes, and took out a viscous punch to Buds, who nimbly dodged. "Hey,
stop that!"

Su looked up from the sign, and saw Shinobu looking at them. She smiled.
She climbed Buds, and sat at his shoulders. "SHINOBU! Fix us something
to eat!" Su called.

Kitsune looked up. Buds and Naru, forgetting about their fighting for a
minute, and also looked up. Buds gave a smile at the girl above them.
"Hey Shinobu-chan! Can you invite us in?"

Shinobu blushed again as she saw Keitaro smile at her. He looked so...
dashing. "I... I’m sorry!" and she closed her window and curtains.

Su looked down. "She’s still mad at us..."

Buds smiled and patted the Indian girl gently on top of her head. "Don’t
worry. No people stay mad very long, right Naru-san?" and he turned to
Naru. He suddenly swallowed.

Naru had that glare which scared him. It was that same glare which made
she gave him when he saw her naked before.

"Shinobu-CHAN!" Naru demanded. "When did you start calling her
Shinobu-chan!"

"Wow! Keitaro is going to get socked again!" Su said excitedly as she
jumped of Buds’ back.

"Hey, it’s not what you think!" he said, raising his hands in defense.

"HENTAI!"

*POW!*

-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Hinata Teahouse:

Su paused a bit as she smiled and opened a box filled with chocolate
cookies in turtle shapes. She chewed is happily as she let the flavor
explode in her mouth, and ignored the conversation going on.

"A divorce?" Buds asked.

"Yes, that’s what I heard," Reiko replied, carrying a few more food to
her ‘customers’. "The mother is not getting alimony, so they’re selling
the restaurant." And she put the food in their table.

"What about Shinobu-chan?" Buds asked, and quickly looked at Naru. "Hey,
don’t hit me anymore! We already went through this a minute ago."

"FINE! See if I CARE!" Naru replied.

"Ah, ignore him, Naru-chan," Reiko replied, smiling. "Keitaro is always
attracted to younger girls."

Buds blushed at that. "HEY! IT’S NOT LIKE THAT REIKO!" and Reiko’s try
suddenly swatted him with thee tray she was carrying.

"Miss Haruka," Reiko said, smiling inwardly.

"I KNEW IT!" Naru began. "YOU ARE A HENTAI!"

Buds ignored her, and looked at Reiko. "What about Shinobu-SAN!"

Reiko smirked. "They say they are still fighting who gets custody," and
she began to move the tray like a fan. "They say she’s picked on school,
so I guess it will be a good opportunity to move her to another school."

"Really?" Kitsune asked, and looked at Su.

"That is news to me..." Su replied.

"So, she’s leaving..." Buds said, looking at his tea. He took a few
sips, and a deep breath.

Picture of Shinobu lying on her bed, hugging her rabbit, tears evident
in her cheeks.

"I feel sorry for her..." Buds said quietly, and looked at his tea. He
finished drinking it.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Next Day; Hinata Restaurant:

"We’ve been over this before!" Shinobu’s mom said. "Stop coming here!"

"I’ve given this a lot of thought," Shinobu’s dad replied. "How in the
world are you going to raise Shinobu without a job!"

"Oh, what would Shinobu feel if she was raised by a strange woman!" the
mother countered.

"I’m telling you, there is no other woman!" the father replied.

Shinobu heard enough. She stood up from her room, and bowed her head as
she walked between the verbal war between her parents. The two were in a
heated argument to spot her.

"Why did you even come here and bring all this up on the day we are
moving!" the mother asked. She looked at her right, and gasped.
"Shinobu! Where are you going!" but it was too late, and Shinobu exited.

Shinobu walked randomly at the streets where her mind was once again in
turmoil. She didn’t know what to do, where to go, or why she was even
feeling this way.

/No matter where I walk… no matter what I do, I’ll end up always in the
same place…/ she thought. /No matter where I am going, which way I’m
headed… there is nothing I can do about it./

She was so consumed in her thinking that she didn’t even notice someone
behind her. It took a tap in her shoulder to make her stop walking and
turn around. She gasped.

Buds smiled at her gently, making her blush. She didn’t know why she
felt this way at him. She could only say what she could only think of
saying. "I’m sorry! I…"

"Nah, don’t be," Buds replied, bowing. "I’m the one who is sorry."
Shinobu looked at him confused. "We wanted to throw a party for you," he
continued, and smiled. "Think of it as a going away party, and an
apology for making you mad at us."

"Huh?" Shinobu asked, confused at the last comment. "Mad?"

"Anyway, please come with us…" Buds requested, smiling.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Hinata Apartments:

"Take Care Shinobu," Shinobu read the sign quietly. She sighed, and kept
her head down as she entered the living room of the Hinata Apartments.

"Please, make yourself comfortable," Buds said, smiling. "I know it’s
kinda ironic to say good-bye when we just met, but then, we have to make
this memorable, huh?"

"No please, you are too kind," Shinobu blushed.

"Ne, ne," Buds teased, waving his hand. "Cheer up. We’ll be serving in a
while…"

*BOOM!*

Shinobu blinked at that. If there was anything memorable, that was it.
The boy in front of her just got barbecued before he entered the kitchen.

"Cough, cough," Buds stood up, his clothes and hair burnt. He looked at
himself, and bowed his head. "Why the hell does this happen to me? I
just got these clothes…"

"Urashima, you alive?" a voice called in the kitchen.

"Yeah, Kitsune," Buds replied. "What the hell did you two just do?" and
he entered the kitchen. He suddenly closed his mouth as he felt a laugh
escaping his lungs. Naru and Kitsune were both of the ground, their
clothes burnt, and their faces were darker as well. Naru’s hair also
caught a small fire.

Naru glared at him. "Laugh, you die," she said heatedly.

"Sorry," Buds said, giggling. He looked around. The kitchen was a mess.
There were burn marks everywhere, and the only thing who was not burnt
was Su. She didn’t even look like the fire touched her. She was skipping
around the kitchen, taking a cover of the pan off, and took a sample of
the food. She suddenly looked sick.

"Well, Naru spilled the oil…" Kitsune reasoned.

"HEY! It wasn’t my fault!" Naru complained.

"Shinobu is here," Buds said, cutting of the argument between the two,
"Now how do we fix this?"

"Oh man! All of this is ruined!" Naru said. "Throw them. We’ll make a
new batch…"

"No, don’t!" Shinobu’s voice startled the four people. She was now
inside the kitchen, looking inside the pots. "We can still save some of
these! Are there any more raw vegetables?" she asked Naru. Naru nodded.
"Good," and she turned to the boy. "Can you get me boiling water? We can
save all this if we add some basil and rosemary." Buds nodded, and began
searching the ktichen.

And with Shinobu dictating what was needed to be done, the all ruined
meal became…

"Party Meal a la Shinobu!" Shinobu said proudly as she put the last
thing on the table.

"Wow…" Kitsune said. "I can’t believe you made all this from the mess we
did!"

"Wow…" Su drooled. "YEY! We can eat now!"

"Wow…" Naru said, smiling. "It’s a good thing the party was not ruined."

Buds smiled at the food. "Well, at least Shinobu-chan can cook with much
more skills than some people I know."

Naru’s eyes narrowed.

*KICK!*

"OW!" Buds found a foot implanted in his face. "What was that for!" he
demanded, taking his hand to comfort his cheek.

"Serves you right idiot!" Naru began.

"Ano…" Shinobu began timidly. "Uh…"

Buds looked at her, and smiled. "Sorry, Shinobu-chan. It just happens
everyday, right?"

Su jumped up. "Yeah! Keitaro always moves around, and Naru-san tries to
hit him strongly. But I can’t seem to hit him when we play," and with
that, she gave out a flying kick to Buds. Expecting it, Buds ducked
down, dodged as Su tried unsuccessfully to kick his face again and
again. He was laughing.

"Better luck next time, Su-chan!" Buds teased.

*KICK!*

"OW!" Buds declared as Su got a good hit on him.

"YEY!" Su said happily as she continued to give kicks.

Haruka entered the living room, which surprised everyone. "Oh, hey," she
greeted.

"Miss Haruka," Naru greeted. "What brings you here?"

"Her parents," Haruka/Reiko pointed at Shinobu. "They are looking for
her. They say her move is today."

Buds looked at Shinobu and smiled weakly. "Your move was today? Heh,
then the party must have been coincidental. Come on, I’ll show you out."

"No…" Shinobu suddenly said. "I don’t want to go!"

"Huh?" Buds asked, confused.

"Shinobu!" "Shinobu!" two voices called out from outside. Buds correctly
thought they were Shinobu’s parents, but before he could react, he felt
something strong grip his arms. He looked at the person grabbing him,
and was surprised to see Shinobu looking at him, her eyes now filled
with desperation and sorrow.

"I don’t want to leave…" she said.

Buds looked at the door, and then to Shinobu. He looked around him. Naru
seems to be looking at him, waiting. Kitsune looked worried, and Su
looked happily. Reiko just looked impassive. He nodded. "Then come on!"
he declared, and took Shinobu and dragged her to the kitchen.

"Hey!" Naru declared, surprised. She chased after them.

The door of the living room opened revealing Shinobu’s mother and father.

"Shinobu?" called the father.

"Did you see her?" the mother asked. Unnoticed to them, behind them was
Buds, dragging Shinobu, and Naru following. Su was pointing at the door
behind Shinobi’s parents, but before she could say anything, Kitsune
covered her mouth.

"Hehe, beats me," Kitsune replied, smiling.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Corridors:

"Would you wait up?" Naru demanded as they reached into one of the
corridors. "What the hell is on your mind! Her parents might call the
police against us!"

Buds looked at Shinobu, who was still nervously clutching his arm. "She
doesn’t want to go," Buds replied calmly to Naru. "And quite frankly, if
she grips me like this, I kinda feel like I should be helping her."

"Su-suimasen," Shinobu apologized quickly and nervously, letting go of
Buds’ arm.

"Nah, I was joking," Buds said, smirking, and messing up her hair.

"Why do you even want to get involved?" Naru asked.

"Because she doesn’t want to, that’s all," Buds replied. Looking at
Naru, he went on explaining. "This divorce is tearing her apart. All the
will we thought she was mad at us, but it really wasn’t. I think her
feelings are tearing apart. Look, Shinobu-chan is forced into something
she doesn’t want or need to experience. I got to help her with
everything I can!" and she took Shinobu by the arms, and began running
again.

"what am I going to do?" Naru asked.

Buds looked back at her. "Delay them, until I can get an idea on how to
help her!"

Naru watched the two figures running in front of her, and she sighed.
"Man, why does he suddenly care about her? Oh, who cares? Not ME!"

And so began the cat and mouse chase...

"Don’t go in there! That is the forbidden room!" Naru warned the two
adults as they went towards a door. It was actually silly. Su placed a
neon light signs, reading: Warning! Forbidden Chamber! White Monster sealed!

It also didn’t help that there was another sign on the door, written in
paper, reading: Entrance to Foxy White Lady.

When the two adults opened the door, a normal human being, if very
young, might have screamed. If it was a adolescent boy, he would have
been drooling, because inside the room, was Kitsune, posing in a white
tight fit outfit. White lights were aimed at her, making her already
pale skin whiter.

The two adults ignored her, and Kitsune didn’t know if she was insulted
or felt defeat.

/Man, I can’t believe I got suckered into helping them!/ she thought.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-

"Don’t go there!" Naru warned the two adults. "Or else, Liddo and his
friends might..." and she was cut off as the two searching adults were
suddenly bombarded by stuff toys of Liddo Naru’s favorite stuffed toy...
and his friends, courtesy of Su.

"This is getting us nowhere!" the father muttered. "If you don’t give us
back our daughter, we will call the police!"

Naru sighed as the two adults continued on to their spree. /This is all
we can do for them.../

-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Up on the wide area balcony where the residents hang their washed
clothes, Buds looked around him. He cursed.

"Damnit, sorry, Shinobu-chan," Buds muttered. "Looks like I got us on a
dead end."

Shinobu looked around her, and spotted the roof on beside them. "Here,
Urashima-sempai," she called him, dragging him towards the roof. Buds
allowed her to drag him, but he looked a bit hesitant in getting on the
roof. Shinobu was already on the roof, and looked at Buds.
"Urashima-sempai..." she called. He sighed.

Buds followed her slowly, and when his footing was on the roof, he began
to breathe easier. "Hey, Shinobu-chan," Buds called as he slowly
followed her. "It’s dangerous out here."

"Yes, that was what my parents said before," Shinobu replied, walking
with perfect balance at the top of the roof. She walked towards one of
the end sides, and stopped, and sighed at the sight. "When I was little,
I would always come here and climb the roofs, but then, one day I
tripped, and got injured. My parents never allowed me to come back here
again."

"Why would you climb up here?" Buds asked, his steps slowly heard.

"Look, Urashima-sempai," Shinobu said, pointing at the city view. It was
nearing sundown, and city was starting it’s lights. Buds looked at it
with, overwhelmed by not the feeling or the beauty of the city. "Isn’t
it beautiful?" she asked.

"Uh, yeah," Buds said quickly and nervously. Shinobu was surprised by
his tone.

"Urashima sempai, what’s wrong?" Shinobu asked.

"Uh, we are so high..." was all he could say.

"Yes, we are..." and she looked at him. Something hit her. "Are you
scared of heights?"

"Uh, yes," Buds admitted.

Shinobu slowly lowered her head. "I-I’m sorry! I was so selfish in
dragging you here!"

Buds just waved his hand. "Forget it Shinobu-chan. You didn’t know, so
let it pass," and he paused as he slid down quietly on the roof. He
looked up in the sky as it grew darker and darker. "You know, as much as
we can run, we can’t really hide from your parents forever. No matter
how good you hide, you’ll have to face them sooner or later."

Shinobu was all quiet. Buds took a deep breath before he continued. "You
have to tell them. Tell them how you feel about everything that has been
happening around you."

"B-but, it w-won’t change things..." Shinobu replied, crying slowly.
"Even if they’d understand, my mom wants to leave this place, and even
if I wanted to stay, I don’t have anywhere to go."

Buds looked at her. "Than stay here," he said simply.

"H-huh?" Shinobu asked.

"You can stay with us, Shinobu-chan. With your cooking skills, I think
you’ll be a great help to the Hinata Apartments," Buds said simply. "Not
that I dislike the others cooking, but compared to you, we are nothing.
Su likes to make things ultra-spicy, Naru has accidents in the kitchen.
The last one almost barbecued me." Shinobu giggled a bit as she recalled
the scene. "And me... well, let’s just say that I would love to learn
how to cook even if it means that my whole arms would be cut... that is
how bad I am. Kitsune... well, no comment."

"Would the others agree?" Shinobu asked nervously.

"Agree? They’ll love you," Buds replied, smiling. "And even if they did
disagree, which I very much doubt, I'm the manager in the apartments if
you recall. I’ll get you in somehow."

Shinobu felt sudden relief swept through her. Her tears suddenly came
non-stop as she lunged towards the boy, and hugged him tight. She almost
crushed his ribs, but he didn’t mind, as the girl loudly wept in his
shirt. "Thank you..." she muttered. "Thank you..."

Unknown to them, the search party found them. Shinobu’s parents looked a
little shocked as their child wept loudly. Reiko just looked neutral, Su
was the same as usual happy go lucky and Kitsune watched the scene. Naru
was also looking at the scene like Kitsune, except that she had a death
glare to the boy.

"I KNEW YOU WERE A PERVERT!" she shouted and she threw one of her
slippers hard towards the boy. Buds didn’t expect it, and was suddenly
hit by a wooden slipper flying straight to his face.

"ITE!" Buds shouted, and sat up. Shinobu looked shocked, and stopped
crying and looked up and saw her parents looking at her.

Naru rushed towards Buds at full speeds. When she stepped in the roofs,
she ran like she was possessed, and grabbed Buds in the collar of his
shirt. "You!" she shook him, "You!" and she shook him again. "PERVERT!"
and she slammed her fist downwards to his face.

"HEY! IT WASN’T WHAT IT LOOKED LIKE!"

*POW!*

"OW!"

"Shinobu, yogata!" her mother exclaimed.

"See what happens!" the father said angrily to the mother. "Shinobu ran
away from you because she doesn’t like you taking care of her."

"You can’t say that!" her mother complained.

"Then why do you think she ran away!" the father countered.

"MOTHER! FATHER!" Shinobu shouted, cutting of the two adults. The two
adults looked at her, surprised. "I love you both... but I don’t want to
leave this place. I love it here, and the school too."

"But everyone picks on you at school," the father said.

Shinobu paused, and looked around her. Naru was still shaking the poor
boy in the collar. Su was looking at her, smiling. Kitsune still looked
like she was looking forward to what will happen. Haruka... well, she
still looked neutral. "That may be, but I found some friends here,"
Shinobu replied easily. She waved her hand towards Naru and Buds, who
was still being shaken.

Naru felt some stares at her. She looked at her side, and saw Shinobu’s
parents looking at her. She laughed nervously and stood up all the
sudden. Buds followed soon after, glaring at her.

Shinobu had a sweat drop, but nevertheless continued, "This friends are
special to me, and I don’t want to leave them."

"Where are you going to live?" the mother asked. "Who will take care of
you?"

"I’ll be living here," Shinobu said simply. "I decided... that I want to
stay here. I can pay my stay by helping up in their needs like cooking."

"This is preposterous," the father replied. He turned to Haruka and
asked, "Can’t you say something? Are you going to allow this?"

"Well, if the manager says it’s okay, there is really nothing I can do
about it," Haruka said, looking at Buds. "Hey Keitaro..." Buds looks at
her. "She’s your responsibility."

Buds nodded. "Yeah. She’s welcomed here, unless there are nay complaints..."

"Not from me..." Naru replied.

"YEY! Shinobu is staying with us!" Su replied, jumping up and down.

"Well, we do need a few better cooks," Kitsune replied, shrugging her
shoulders.

"Well, that settles it huh?" Buds said, laughing. Shinobu smiled,
feeling like she could fly, she too laughed. Soon, everyone, including
the parents, laughed, not really finding anything funny, but just
because laughter, like the Ebola plague, is infectious, and spread in
the whole Hinata Apartment.

-=-=-=-=-=-=-

Bathes:

"Sigh, I’m glad this is all over, huh?" Kitsune asked Haruka as they
soaked into the bathes. "Now we have a new friend, and a great cook!"

"You still have to help in the cooking, though," Haruka said, smiling at
the frown Kitsune formed in her face.

"Do I have to?" Kitsune asked.

Naru looked at the sketchbook which Shinobu still didn’t give to Buds.
She suddenly stood up. "What is taking Shinobu so long?" she asked.

"Ah, don’t worry. She asked Keitaro to show her around," Haruka replied.
"She wanted to know everything about the house.

"Well, I think she needs a bath now," Naru said, fastening her towel.
Standing up she walked slowly towards the entrance and heard a *thud*
sound, and then a few more sounds like a metallic plate spinning on it’s
edges. She sprinted and opened the door, and opened it. She gasped.

Buds was in the dressing room, showing her where the stuff is placed,
but then, tripped on one of the baskets Kitsune left lying around, and
fell on top of Shinobu. When Naru opened the door, the long hair atomic
bomb girl just blew her fuse.

"YOU PERVERT!" she shouted, and lunged towards the poor boy.

"IT’S NOT WHAT YOU THINK! I SWEAR!"

There goes another orbiting star!



To Be Continued...

Reiko: Man... this chapter sucks!

Buds: Man, I love this chapter! I wasn’t hit so may times! It makes you
love betting huh?

Reiko: Sheesh, I knew making a bet with paper rock and scissors was a
bad idea.

Buds: Hey, all is fair in love, war and Fanfictions. Don’t complain
because this chapter you limited the way I had to be hit since I won the
match.

Reiko: Sigh... then smiles Ha! The next chapter though, you’re going
love it!

Buds: Huh? What is the next chapter?

Reiko: You forgot huh? Well, if you knew, you’d want to forget anyway.
NEXT: *Kendo Girl in Love? Swordplay and Chopped Ribs! *Motoko Aoyama
makes her appearance!

Buds: Mokoto Aoyama... the samurai tomboy!

Reiko: Yup!

Buds: AW HELL NO! Punches, I can take. Kicks, I can take too. Brooms,
endurable. Swords? FORGET IT!

Reiko: Like you have a choice.

Buds: Then’ll I’ll disappear! I’ll change my name, live in a foreign
land! Work off my ass and...

Reiko: Yeah yeah, like you could anyway.

Buds: I mean it! I really mean it! I swear!

Reiko: Fine. I’ll show your hentai DVDs to your parents and your
grandparents...

Buds: pause Uh, I think I’ll take my chances with Motoko.

Reiko: smiles Good boy!