Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction ❯ To Love Again ❯ Chapter 5 ( Chapter 5 )
[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]
By: Silent Tears of Agony 
Anime/Manga: Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Drama / Romance / Angst | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 05.28.2004 | Pages: 3 | Words: 3.4K | Visits: 678 | Status: Completed
Anime/Manga: Rurouni Kenshin Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Drama / Romance / Angst | Type: Alternate Universe | Uploaded On: 05.28.2004 | Pages: 3 | Words: 3.4K | Visits: 678 | Status: Completed
Title:To Love Again, Chap:5
I am surprised, but not ungrateful, that I didn't recieve any flames about Soujiro. ^_^
Many thanks to Brittanie Love for beta-reading for me. ^_^
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Early morning sunlight streamed through the window, gently lighting everything it settled on. It was enough to make any person stop and admire the beauty. However Kenshin, being the unappreciative jerk that he is (A/N:*cough* I'm describing myself in the morning here) simply groaned, rolled over, and attempted to get more sleep. He sighed when he bumped into something small and soft. When Tomoe had first died, Kenshin had allowed Kenji to sleep with him because they both needed the company. Now Kenshin was worried that Kenji would be too dependant on him, so he tried to make Kenji sleep in his own bed. But Kenji still would come in in the middle of the night.
Kenshin brushed the mass of red hair away to reveal Kenji's face. Miss Kamiya had been right, Kenji's face was badly discolored, but not too swollen. Kenji stirred when Kenshin lifted his son's face up to better inspect the bruises. Kenji rubbed his eyes and blinked several times as he mumbled out a "morning".
"Good morning Kenji. What did I say about sleeping in daddy's bed?"
Kenji's eyes started to tear up. "I-I know but I had that dream again and...and I just had to come in here."
Kenshin gathered Kenji up in a hug. "Shh, Kenji. It's okay." He gently patted Kenji's back while he sighed inside. It was always the same cursed dream. Kenji would dream that Kenshin was dead and was inconsolable until he saw for himself that his dad was alive. Kenshin hoped the fact that Kenji would just crawl into bed with him and not wake Kenshin up with his tears meant that it was getting easier on Kenji. Hopefully they would just disappear all together some time soon.
Kenshin patted Kenji's back again as he gave off one last sniffle. "Why don't you go get dressed and I'll make us some breakfast, hmm?"
Kenji's face brightened. "Pancakes?"
"Sure."
"With Blueberries?" He asked hopefully.
Kenshin smiled and rubbed noses with Kenji. "Just the way you like them." Kenji squealed and dashed off to go get changed.
Kenshin stretched and looked over at the picture on his nightstand. It was a picture of him and Tomoe on their wedding day. They had eloped so they're clothes were nice but simple. They were both so young neither family approved of the marriage. And Tomoe's family, being very traditional, had arranged for her to marry another. They disowned her when they learned of her marriage to Kenshin. But they had loved each other so much. He still loved her...
His heart clenched as he traced his fingers over her face in the picture. "Tomoe. My sweet Tomoe. Will you ever loose this hold you have on me? Will I ever be able to move on? Will I ever even want to?"
"Daddy?" It looked like his daddy was crying. Kenji had never seen him do that before.
Kenshin looked up to see Kenji standing hesitantly in the doorway. "I'll be there in a minute."
Kenji perked up "Good. I'm *starving!*"
Kenshin smiled and wiped away a tear that had trickled down his cheek. 'At least I still have my son.'
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"So Kenji. Where would you like to go today?" It was Kenji's first day off from his grounding.
Kenji answered without hesitation. "The zoo!"
"The zoo? But we went there last week."
"I know. But I like the monkeys. They remind me of Uncle Sano."
Kenshin loughed loudly at that and touseled Kenji's hair. "There does seem to be a strong resemblance now that you mention it. Alright, we'll go. But I wouldn't tell Uncle Sano what you said. Although, Aunt Megumi would agree if you told her." He winked causing Kenji to grin. "Put your dishes in the sink and I'll go get dressed. Then we'll go, okay Sport?"
"'Kay!"
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Kaoru felt a tug on her pants and looked down to see Suzume staring at Yahiko quizically. "What is your brother doing?" Kaoru looked over to see her brother making faces at the gorillas. "Don't worry about him Suzume-chan. He just finally found someone who understands his level of communication."
"Hey! I heard that!"
Kaoru, Suzume, and her sister snickered. "But Yahiko-chan. I only speak the truth." Kaoru smiled innocently. Yahiko huffed and puffed at that and did his usual "don't call me -chan" but other than that, couldn't come up with a retort.
Laughing Kaoru turned around and noticed two someones she knew. Kenshin and Kenji Himura. But she was really only paying attention to Kenshin. And what female wouldn't with the way he was dressed? He looked drop-dead sexy wearing tight dark jeans and a black shirt that set off his fiery hair -- which was fashioned in a high ponytail. 'It should be illegal for your boss to look that good.' Kaoru mentally wailed as her jaw hung open and she forgot how to blink.
"Heh. You stare at the poor guy any longer busu and he might get the idea that you like him."
Koaru whacked Yahiko over the head. "Shut up you!" She hissed.
Kaoru was trying to decide what to do. A part of her wanted to go up and say hello. But she never felt comfortable greeting somenone -- especially guys -- unles she knew them really well. 'If Misao was here she would encourage me to do it. Scratch that last thought. She would push me right into him so that there was no choice *but* to talk to him.' But the fact was Misao *wasn't* there to lend moral support, or *cough* a helping hand. So Kaoru finally just decided that she would smile casually and wave as they walked by.
Kenshin turned when he recognized a familiar voice. Strange that he should remember Miss Kamiya's voice when he had only met her twice over the span of two days.
His eyes wawndered over to the man standing next to her. So she was married then? Kenshin felt a strange sensation in his stomach. It wasn't really jealousy, more like...dissapointment. But why should he be dissapointed? It wasn't as if he had considered her as a potential girlfriend. So what if he had checked her hand for a ring (she really should wear one if she was married). What was she going to do, sue him? Kenshin shook his head to get rid of such thoughts. It didn't matter anyway. He would never love anyone but Tomoe. He started to walk past them when one of the little girls greeted him.
"You have pretty hair, mister."
Kenshin wanted to laugh when he heard that. No one had ever told him that before. Especially not a little girl.
Kaoru was not so amused. In fact she was horrorified. She didn't really think Himura-san would appreciate that. "Himura-san! I am so sorry! Please forgive her! Suzume-chan, you know better than to speak to strangers like that!" Kenshin interrupted her.
"Please do not reprimand the child. I am not the monster you seem to think I am. The child just complimented me. Why should I be angry with her?" Kaoru looked down guiltily and bit her lip.
"I am sorry Himura-san." Kenshin looked up at her, slightly annoyed.
"You seem to say that an awful lot." Kaoru blushed and bit back the urge to apologize again.
Kenshin kneeled so he was at the same level as Suzume. "Thank you...Suzume is it?" Suzume giggled and nodded her head. Kenshin smiled. "Thank you. I have never recieved such a compliment before. Especially not from someone with such pretty hair of their own." Kenshin tweaked her chin after he said that. Suzume giggled (again) and latched onto Kaoru's leg.
"Do you know who else has pretty hair mister?" Kenshin shook his head. "Kao-nee-chan." Kao- who? Oh, she must mean Miss Kamiya. Her first name had been Kaoru, hadn't it?
"Yes, she does." She certainly did too, especially now with the breeze blowing through it. Her dark hair was a beautiful contrast to her pale skin. And it looked like it would be soft and silky to the touch. It would probably look even more beautiful cascading around her face. Maybe then he could use the excuse of brushing it out of the way to touch it like he had been wanting to do since he first met her. 'Stop it. Stop it! STOP IT! She's married you idiot! Besides, you've only known her for two days. You shouldn't have such strong feelings about her.' Shaking his head to get rid of unwanted thoughts AGAIN, he turned to Kaoru to speak with her. "You have a very lovely daughter Miss Kamiya. Actually it's Misses isn't it?" He tried to keep the anger from coming out in his voice. He really did. But some of it still escaped. He *hated* being kept in the dark about things. But, really, this wasn't any of his business and he shouldn't let it bother him. 'And just how many times am I going to have to tell myself that before it comes true, hmm?'
Kaoru blinked. He sounded....slightly angry. But for the life of her she couldn't figure out what he could be angry about. "Oh no. Suzume is not my daughter. I am watching her and her sister for a neighbor of mine."
"Who is this guy Kaoru?"
"Oh Yahiko, forgive me. This is my new boss Kenshin Himura. Himura-san, this is my brother Yahiko."
Kenshin's surprise showed on his face. "Oh, I thought he was your husband."
Yahiko made gagging noises at that.
Kaoru smiled. "No, I'm not married."
Relief flooded through Kenshin's chest. No, it couldn't be relief. He wasn't interested in her that way. He WASN'T! So what he was feeling mus have been something else. Like...indegestion. Yeah, that sounded good.
Kenshin sighed. He wasn't a man who constantly second-guessed his emotions like this. Was he always going to be this way around Miss Kamiya?
"So, he really isn't your husband?" Kenshin knew the question made him sound desperate and stupid. But a part of him needed to be reassured.
Yahiko gave a short bark of laughter. "You really think I would want to be married to busu? Please. My life is cruel enough already." Kaoru slapped him upside the head.
"Itai! You see what I mean?! Your always hitting me!" Kaoru "pffed" amd waved her hand in a dismissive manner. "That was just a love tap." (A/n: I say that to my family all the time. ^_^)
Kenshin had to restrain himself from grinning.They were certainly acting like brother and sister now. Kenji gave a tug on Kenshin's hair, signaling his father to take him off his shoulders. Kaoru's mouth started to water as she watched his muscles move from the action of taking Kenji down and she kept her jaw shut firmly to keep from drooling. 'Stop staring! He's going to notice.'
Kenshin's eyes widened and his heart beat sped up as he noticed Miss Kamiya staring at him. She was...she was checking him out! Not that he was any stranger to staring woman. Any female who had entered puberty and beyond ogled him. Some were even a little more *ahem* aggressive about making their affections known. Usually Kenshin was disgusted by all of this. But this time he found it oddly...exciting. 'Get a grip Kenshin. You're 24 years old. Not some hormonal teenager!'
Kaoru bit her lip. She wanted to apologize to Himura-san for insulting him. But she was never very good at apologies. Well, it was better to just get it over and done with. Sighing she turned to Yahiko and asked him to take the children over to see the lions. Yahiko scowled but grudingly agreed.
"Your brother does not like children?"
"I don't think it's so much that as he's afraid of them."
"I don't blame him. When Kenji was born I was so afraid I would do something wrong and I would hurt him or he would hate me. You name it and I panicked about it."
Kaoru laughed. "But you seem to be a good father. And he loves you. I can tell by the way he looks at you. You two are very lucky to have each other."
"I know that. Truthfully I would like to have more children. But...since Tomoe died, I haven't had the desire to look for love again." Kenshin had absolutley no idea why he had disclosed such personal information. He was very tight-lipped about his personal life and his past. But something about Miss Kamiya made him comfortable enough to open up.
Kaoru, on the other hand, had filed this bit of information away for later reference. "I hope some day you do. I've always wanted to have at least two children. A boy and a girl."
"So you're looking for Mister Right?"
Kaoru smiled wryly. "Actually, I thought I had found him, but it turned out he didn't want a family." Kaoru shrugged. "Which was alright because I later realized he wasn't the type of man I would want to raise a family with."
"That's too bad. I'm sure you would make a great mother." Again Kenshin had no idea why he was acting so strange. He usually wasn't so compassionate with strangers.
He explained himself further when Miss Kamiya looked at him quizically. "Hey you made it through a day with Kenji. I think you even made an impression on him because when I came home last night he didn't have anything bad to say about you. Which for Kenji is pretty good."
Kaoru smiled fondly. "You know, I think if I stay long enough I'm really going to like him. And I'm not just saying that to keep my job."
Kenshin shook his head. "No. I don't think you would be the type to do such a thing."
'Just say it. Say it and get it over with.' "Ano....Himura-san..about earlier...I-I'm very sorry. I didn't mean to imply that you were an unkind person. It's just that when I met you before you seemed kind of....."
"Cold?" Kenshin asked blandly.
Kaoru nodded her head sheepishly.
"Don't worry. I get that alot. Apology accepted."
"Thank you." Kaoru turned to leave and then hesitated. Blushing deeply, she turned and blurted out. "Himura-san, I think your hair is very beautiful too." And with that she ran off like a light to her brother and the children.
Kenshin couldn't keep a slight blush from staining his own cheeks.
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I am SO sorry about the long wait. I had two finals on the same day that I had to study for. On top of that, my health has been bad the last two months so I just did NOT feel like writing. I cannot apologize enough.
I would like to dedicate this chapter to my cousin. She's such a good freind to me, and I hope that the problems she is having will blow over soon.
I would also like to dedicate this chapter to sabella/pan because she is such a cool reviewer. I still can't beleive she actually recommended some of my stories on her BIO! (And that she liked my name. lol. I was seriously considering changing it until I read that.)
RECOMMENDED FANFIC: "Swords and Roses" by sabella/pan. It hasn't gotten to the real romance yet, but its still worth reading. And anyone who is a fan of Kaoru wil definately like her in this story. She totally rocks! (You can find this stroy on my favorite story list.)
Okay now onto the best part.
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&a mp;&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&a mp;&&&&&MY REVIEWERS&&&&&&&&&&&&&& amp;&&&&&&&&&&&&&
(mm.org)
k-chan88 -- (Please forgive me if I misspelled your name. I couldn't log on to make sure it was spelled right.) Hey I read two of your stories! They were cute. Wow, I can't believe you rated the story so high. I don't think its THAT good, but I'm not going to argue with you.^_^
(ff.net)
Brittany -- I tried going on-line to see what I could find out about them. The only thing I found was that they are fast, mostly reliable, and a fair amount of the people who owned them were greatly satisfied with them. Truthfully, I don't care much for a/n's in the middle of a story. But I'll try to include some for you. ^_^
Koneko Maiden -- That's I usually take awhile before I review too. You are the only one who has commented on Sou! Thank you so much for doing that! ^_^ I was starting to worry he was a bad choice. No, on lemon in this story. Sadly the 'R' is for rape.;_; (Don't worry, Kenshin isn't responsible!)
rain angst -- You have such a cool pen name! Well I'm glad you think so. ^_^
Sappire fox girl -- Okay. OKAY! I'm updating right now. Please don't hurt me. ^_^
InuLimbo -- Thanks. lol. Well I hope you didn't die. I would feel really bad if you did. Really. ^_^
Marie -- Thanks I'm glad you do. ^_^
Lisa -- Yes! Please do! ^_^
Mishorou Mie -- I'm glad! ^_^
chibiBattousai -- I'm the author I can do whatever I want! ;D Actually I thought that was the best spot I had ever ended a chapter at since I started this.
Alex -- Not for several more chapters I'm afraid. (That's why I changed the genres around.) I'll try to keep everyone sustained on small amounts of fluff until then. ^_^
half-breed-demon-fox -- Thanks! ^_^ Sorry for not including your review in the last update. I didn't see your review until just after I posted the chapter. That's literally what happened.
I would like to thank everybody for leaving such nice reviews. Please review this chapter, and don't forget to leave any suggestions you think would improve the story. (Other than "lemon", "faster updates" or "trash it". Sorry, I don't plan on doing any of the three. ^_^)
I am surprised, but not ungrateful, that I didn't recieve any flames about Soujiro. ^_^
Many thanks to Brittanie Love for beta-reading for me. ^_^
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Early morning sunlight streamed through the window, gently lighting everything it settled on. It was enough to make any person stop and admire the beauty. However Kenshin, being the unappreciative jerk that he is (A/N:*cough* I'm describing myself in the morning here) simply groaned, rolled over, and attempted to get more sleep. He sighed when he bumped into something small and soft. When Tomoe had first died, Kenshin had allowed Kenji to sleep with him because they both needed the company. Now Kenshin was worried that Kenji would be too dependant on him, so he tried to make Kenji sleep in his own bed. But Kenji still would come in in the middle of the night.
Kenshin brushed the mass of red hair away to reveal Kenji's face. Miss Kamiya had been right, Kenji's face was badly discolored, but not too swollen. Kenji stirred when Kenshin lifted his son's face up to better inspect the bruises. Kenji rubbed his eyes and blinked several times as he mumbled out a "morning".
"Good morning Kenji. What did I say about sleeping in daddy's bed?"
Kenji's eyes started to tear up. "I-I know but I had that dream again and...and I just had to come in here."
Kenshin gathered Kenji up in a hug. "Shh, Kenji. It's okay." He gently patted Kenji's back while he sighed inside. It was always the same cursed dream. Kenji would dream that Kenshin was dead and was inconsolable until he saw for himself that his dad was alive. Kenshin hoped the fact that Kenji would just crawl into bed with him and not wake Kenshin up with his tears meant that it was getting easier on Kenji. Hopefully they would just disappear all together some time soon.
Kenshin patted Kenji's back again as he gave off one last sniffle. "Why don't you go get dressed and I'll make us some breakfast, hmm?"
Kenji's face brightened. "Pancakes?"
"Sure."
"With Blueberries?" He asked hopefully.
Kenshin smiled and rubbed noses with Kenji. "Just the way you like them." Kenji squealed and dashed off to go get changed.
Kenshin stretched and looked over at the picture on his nightstand. It was a picture of him and Tomoe on their wedding day. They had eloped so they're clothes were nice but simple. They were both so young neither family approved of the marriage. And Tomoe's family, being very traditional, had arranged for her to marry another. They disowned her when they learned of her marriage to Kenshin. But they had loved each other so much. He still loved her...
His heart clenched as he traced his fingers over her face in the picture. "Tomoe. My sweet Tomoe. Will you ever loose this hold you have on me? Will I ever be able to move on? Will I ever even want to?"
"Daddy?" It looked like his daddy was crying. Kenji had never seen him do that before.
Kenshin looked up to see Kenji standing hesitantly in the doorway. "I'll be there in a minute."
Kenji perked up "Good. I'm *starving!*"
Kenshin smiled and wiped away a tear that had trickled down his cheek. 'At least I still have my son.'
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"So Kenji. Where would you like to go today?" It was Kenji's first day off from his grounding.
Kenji answered without hesitation. "The zoo!"
"The zoo? But we went there last week."
"I know. But I like the monkeys. They remind me of Uncle Sano."
Kenshin loughed loudly at that and touseled Kenji's hair. "There does seem to be a strong resemblance now that you mention it. Alright, we'll go. But I wouldn't tell Uncle Sano what you said. Although, Aunt Megumi would agree if you told her." He winked causing Kenji to grin. "Put your dishes in the sink and I'll go get dressed. Then we'll go, okay Sport?"
"'Kay!"
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Kaoru felt a tug on her pants and looked down to see Suzume staring at Yahiko quizically. "What is your brother doing?" Kaoru looked over to see her brother making faces at the gorillas. "Don't worry about him Suzume-chan. He just finally found someone who understands his level of communication."
"Hey! I heard that!"
Kaoru, Suzume, and her sister snickered. "But Yahiko-chan. I only speak the truth." Kaoru smiled innocently. Yahiko huffed and puffed at that and did his usual "don't call me -chan" but other than that, couldn't come up with a retort.
Laughing Kaoru turned around and noticed two someones she knew. Kenshin and Kenji Himura. But she was really only paying attention to Kenshin. And what female wouldn't with the way he was dressed? He looked drop-dead sexy wearing tight dark jeans and a black shirt that set off his fiery hair -- which was fashioned in a high ponytail. 'It should be illegal for your boss to look that good.' Kaoru mentally wailed as her jaw hung open and she forgot how to blink.
"Heh. You stare at the poor guy any longer busu and he might get the idea that you like him."
Koaru whacked Yahiko over the head. "Shut up you!" She hissed.
Kaoru was trying to decide what to do. A part of her wanted to go up and say hello. But she never felt comfortable greeting somenone -- especially guys -- unles she knew them really well. 'If Misao was here she would encourage me to do it. Scratch that last thought. She would push me right into him so that there was no choice *but* to talk to him.' But the fact was Misao *wasn't* there to lend moral support, or *cough* a helping hand. So Kaoru finally just decided that she would smile casually and wave as they walked by.
Kenshin turned when he recognized a familiar voice. Strange that he should remember Miss Kamiya's voice when he had only met her twice over the span of two days.
His eyes wawndered over to the man standing next to her. So she was married then? Kenshin felt a strange sensation in his stomach. It wasn't really jealousy, more like...dissapointment. But why should he be dissapointed? It wasn't as if he had considered her as a potential girlfriend. So what if he had checked her hand for a ring (she really should wear one if she was married). What was she going to do, sue him? Kenshin shook his head to get rid of such thoughts. It didn't matter anyway. He would never love anyone but Tomoe. He started to walk past them when one of the little girls greeted him.
"You have pretty hair, mister."
Kenshin wanted to laugh when he heard that. No one had ever told him that before. Especially not a little girl.
Kaoru was not so amused. In fact she was horrorified. She didn't really think Himura-san would appreciate that. "Himura-san! I am so sorry! Please forgive her! Suzume-chan, you know better than to speak to strangers like that!" Kenshin interrupted her.
"Please do not reprimand the child. I am not the monster you seem to think I am. The child just complimented me. Why should I be angry with her?" Kaoru looked down guiltily and bit her lip.
"I am sorry Himura-san." Kenshin looked up at her, slightly annoyed.
"You seem to say that an awful lot." Kaoru blushed and bit back the urge to apologize again.
Kenshin kneeled so he was at the same level as Suzume. "Thank you...Suzume is it?" Suzume giggled and nodded her head. Kenshin smiled. "Thank you. I have never recieved such a compliment before. Especially not from someone with such pretty hair of their own." Kenshin tweaked her chin after he said that. Suzume giggled (again) and latched onto Kaoru's leg.
"Do you know who else has pretty hair mister?" Kenshin shook his head. "Kao-nee-chan." Kao- who? Oh, she must mean Miss Kamiya. Her first name had been Kaoru, hadn't it?
"Yes, she does." She certainly did too, especially now with the breeze blowing through it. Her dark hair was a beautiful contrast to her pale skin. And it looked like it would be soft and silky to the touch. It would probably look even more beautiful cascading around her face. Maybe then he could use the excuse of brushing it out of the way to touch it like he had been wanting to do since he first met her. 'Stop it. Stop it! STOP IT! She's married you idiot! Besides, you've only known her for two days. You shouldn't have such strong feelings about her.' Shaking his head to get rid of unwanted thoughts AGAIN, he turned to Kaoru to speak with her. "You have a very lovely daughter Miss Kamiya. Actually it's Misses isn't it?" He tried to keep the anger from coming out in his voice. He really did. But some of it still escaped. He *hated* being kept in the dark about things. But, really, this wasn't any of his business and he shouldn't let it bother him. 'And just how many times am I going to have to tell myself that before it comes true, hmm?'
Kaoru blinked. He sounded....slightly angry. But for the life of her she couldn't figure out what he could be angry about. "Oh no. Suzume is not my daughter. I am watching her and her sister for a neighbor of mine."
"Who is this guy Kaoru?"
"Oh Yahiko, forgive me. This is my new boss Kenshin Himura. Himura-san, this is my brother Yahiko."
Kenshin's surprise showed on his face. "Oh, I thought he was your husband."
Yahiko made gagging noises at that.
Kaoru smiled. "No, I'm not married."
Relief flooded through Kenshin's chest. No, it couldn't be relief. He wasn't interested in her that way. He WASN'T! So what he was feeling mus have been something else. Like...indegestion. Yeah, that sounded good.
Kenshin sighed. He wasn't a man who constantly second-guessed his emotions like this. Was he always going to be this way around Miss Kamiya?
"So, he really isn't your husband?" Kenshin knew the question made him sound desperate and stupid. But a part of him needed to be reassured.
Yahiko gave a short bark of laughter. "You really think I would want to be married to busu? Please. My life is cruel enough already." Kaoru slapped him upside the head.
"Itai! You see what I mean?! Your always hitting me!" Kaoru "pffed" amd waved her hand in a dismissive manner. "That was just a love tap." (A/n: I say that to my family all the time. ^_^)
Kenshin had to restrain himself from grinning.They were certainly acting like brother and sister now. Kenji gave a tug on Kenshin's hair, signaling his father to take him off his shoulders. Kaoru's mouth started to water as she watched his muscles move from the action of taking Kenji down and she kept her jaw shut firmly to keep from drooling. 'Stop staring! He's going to notice.'
Kenshin's eyes widened and his heart beat sped up as he noticed Miss Kamiya staring at him. She was...she was checking him out! Not that he was any stranger to staring woman. Any female who had entered puberty and beyond ogled him. Some were even a little more *ahem* aggressive about making their affections known. Usually Kenshin was disgusted by all of this. But this time he found it oddly...exciting. 'Get a grip Kenshin. You're 24 years old. Not some hormonal teenager!'
Kaoru bit her lip. She wanted to apologize to Himura-san for insulting him. But she was never very good at apologies. Well, it was better to just get it over and done with. Sighing she turned to Yahiko and asked him to take the children over to see the lions. Yahiko scowled but grudingly agreed.
"Your brother does not like children?"
"I don't think it's so much that as he's afraid of them."
"I don't blame him. When Kenji was born I was so afraid I would do something wrong and I would hurt him or he would hate me. You name it and I panicked about it."
Kaoru laughed. "But you seem to be a good father. And he loves you. I can tell by the way he looks at you. You two are very lucky to have each other."
"I know that. Truthfully I would like to have more children. But...since Tomoe died, I haven't had the desire to look for love again." Kenshin had absolutley no idea why he had disclosed such personal information. He was very tight-lipped about his personal life and his past. But something about Miss Kamiya made him comfortable enough to open up.
Kaoru, on the other hand, had filed this bit of information away for later reference. "I hope some day you do. I've always wanted to have at least two children. A boy and a girl."
"So you're looking for Mister Right?"
Kaoru smiled wryly. "Actually, I thought I had found him, but it turned out he didn't want a family." Kaoru shrugged. "Which was alright because I later realized he wasn't the type of man I would want to raise a family with."
"That's too bad. I'm sure you would make a great mother." Again Kenshin had no idea why he was acting so strange. He usually wasn't so compassionate with strangers.
He explained himself further when Miss Kamiya looked at him quizically. "Hey you made it through a day with Kenji. I think you even made an impression on him because when I came home last night he didn't have anything bad to say about you. Which for Kenji is pretty good."
Kaoru smiled fondly. "You know, I think if I stay long enough I'm really going to like him. And I'm not just saying that to keep my job."
Kenshin shook his head. "No. I don't think you would be the type to do such a thing."
'Just say it. Say it and get it over with.' "Ano....Himura-san..about earlier...I-I'm very sorry. I didn't mean to imply that you were an unkind person. It's just that when I met you before you seemed kind of....."
"Cold?" Kenshin asked blandly.
Kaoru nodded her head sheepishly.
"Don't worry. I get that alot. Apology accepted."
"Thank you." Kaoru turned to leave and then hesitated. Blushing deeply, she turned and blurted out. "Himura-san, I think your hair is very beautiful too." And with that she ran off like a light to her brother and the children.
Kenshin couldn't keep a slight blush from staining his own cheeks.
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I am SO sorry about the long wait. I had two finals on the same day that I had to study for. On top of that, my health has been bad the last two months so I just did NOT feel like writing. I cannot apologize enough.
I would like to dedicate this chapter to my cousin. She's such a good freind to me, and I hope that the problems she is having will blow over soon.
I would also like to dedicate this chapter to sabella/pan because she is such a cool reviewer. I still can't beleive she actually recommended some of my stories on her BIO! (And that she liked my name. lol. I was seriously considering changing it until I read that.)
RECOMMENDED FANFIC: "Swords and Roses" by sabella/pan. It hasn't gotten to the real romance yet, but its still worth reading. And anyone who is a fan of Kaoru wil definately like her in this story. She totally rocks! (You can find this stroy on my favorite story list.)
Okay now onto the best part.
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&a mp;&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&a mp;&&&&&MY REVIEWERS&&&&&&&&&&&&&& amp;&&&&&&&&&&&&&
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k-chan88 -- (Please forgive me if I misspelled your name. I couldn't log on to make sure it was spelled right.) Hey I read two of your stories! They were cute. Wow, I can't believe you rated the story so high. I don't think its THAT good, but I'm not going to argue with you.^_^
(ff.net)
Brittany -- I tried going on-line to see what I could find out about them. The only thing I found was that they are fast, mostly reliable, and a fair amount of the people who owned them were greatly satisfied with them. Truthfully, I don't care much for a/n's in the middle of a story. But I'll try to include some for you. ^_^
Koneko Maiden -- That's I usually take awhile before I review too. You are the only one who has commented on Sou! Thank you so much for doing that! ^_^ I was starting to worry he was a bad choice. No, on lemon in this story. Sadly the 'R' is for rape.;_; (Don't worry, Kenshin isn't responsible!)
rain angst -- You have such a cool pen name! Well I'm glad you think so. ^_^
Sappire fox girl -- Okay. OKAY! I'm updating right now. Please don't hurt me. ^_^
InuLimbo -- Thanks. lol. Well I hope you didn't die. I would feel really bad if you did. Really. ^_^
Marie -- Thanks I'm glad you do. ^_^
Lisa -- Yes! Please do! ^_^
Mishorou Mie -- I'm glad! ^_^
chibiBattousai -- I'm the author I can do whatever I want! ;D Actually I thought that was the best spot I had ever ended a chapter at since I started this.
Alex -- Not for several more chapters I'm afraid. (That's why I changed the genres around.) I'll try to keep everyone sustained on small amounts of fluff until then. ^_^
half-breed-demon-fox -- Thanks! ^_^ Sorry for not including your review in the last update. I didn't see your review until just after I posted the chapter. That's literally what happened.
I would like to thank everybody for leaving such nice reviews. Please review this chapter, and don't forget to leave any suggestions you think would improve the story. (Other than "lemon", "faster updates" or "trash it". Sorry, I don't plan on doing any of the three. ^_^)