Tenchi Muyo Fan Fiction ❯ Okayama Summer ❯ Chapter 7

*Okay, I was feeling really weird when I wrote this... I had this strange need to write "que pasa" ('what's up' in Spanish) over and over again. The only reason that this isn't anywhere in the chapter is that I contented myself with yelling it at the top of my lungs. Umm... ^^; merii kurisumasu? -.- This chapter (short though it may be) is dedicated to xT-Zealot, who is writing a very cool story that is similar to this one. ^_^ Go read it. ANYWAY!! Read on. I happen to actually know what I'm doing for the next chapter (more DBZ!! Squee!!), so... expect that out in LESS than a month!! ^_^ I may be working on about five novels at once, but I DO progress every once in a while!*

Chapter Seven

Tenchi sat back on his bed, fingers laced behind his head. His room was dark, casting shadows over everything inside it, including the boy himself. Eyes closed, headphones slipped over his ears to block out the world - and he needed it, too... he worked so hard during the day, and had to put up with all the girls as well...

The seventeen-year-old boy sighed heavily, and rubbed his eyes. "This is maddening..." he murmured, and ran a few fingers through his slightly unruly black hair. "I need to get more sleep at night..."

His spectator, watching from the shadows, fingered the item in her hand and approached the bed from behind, eyes downcast. Hoping not to scare the boy, she placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. "Tenchi?"

Tenchi stiffened, sitting , then pulled off his headphones and turned around, eyes wide. When he saw who it was, he relaxed, and sat cross-legged, a warm smile overtaking his face. "What are you doing here? Isn't everyone else in the onsen?" He chuckled. "That's not like you, to miss THAT..."

The girl sat next to him, and shrugged slightly, brushing a lock of hair behind her ear. "I don't know..." she looked at him, and a troubled smile graced her features. "I had a feeling you weren't feeling well, anyway, and..." she hesitated, and held out a slightly trembling hand. "I wanted to give you this."

Tenchi accepted her gift, eyes wide. "This... this is a Royal Teardrop." His eyes flickered. "The mourning flower of the Jurai Royal Family..."

"I know no one's died, or anything..." She shrugged. "But... somehow I felt it seemed appropriate, anyway." Her eyes were on the floor, not wanting to meet his. He, the prince of the Jurai Royal Family... she shook her head slowly. The flower was really for both of them...

Tenchi stared at her for a moment, then pulled her close in an unexpected hug. "Arigatou, Ryoko."

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

"Um..." Gohan raised an eyebrow. "What are you doing?"

Noboyuki stared back at him, and the older man sweatdropped profoundly. Not exactly sure what to say, he cleared his throat and said, in his best "elder" voice, "Nothing you'd understand."

This didn't impress the young boy. "Isn't that the women's side?"

"Umm." Noboyuki facefaulted. "How'd that get there?"

As Tenchi was taking a rest from the day's activities, Gohan had been left alone to deal with Noboyuki. The boy wasn't actually IN the onsen - he was sitting to the side, fully clothed in things Tenchi had lent him. The fumes and the extreme heat didn't seem to be affecting him at all - yet another strange thing about the boy, the man noted. As Gohan wasn't a pretty girl, he had become instantly suspicious of him from the day he had appeared.

Noboyuki, however, was in the water - positioned, as usual, right next to the wall that separated the men's side from the women's side. Snatches of conversation, as well as Ayeka, Sasami, Mihoshi, Kiyone, and Washu's voices could be heard from the other side of the wall - which, to Noboyuki, was like a beacon of hope.

"Too bad Ryoko's not there," he said to himself, sighing. "She doesn't believe in towels..."

Gohan rolled his eyes and wished desperately that Tenchi would magically appear to assist him. The teenaged boy was quite friendly, and Gohan could relate to him quite well; his perverted father was another matter altogether. He seemed not to trust Gohan at all (probably because he wasn't a beautiful female). "I think she's with Tenchi."

Noboyuki raised his eyebrows. " 'With'?"

Gohan stared at him. "What?"

"Nothing. I'll ask Tenchi later."

Gohan stared at Noboyuki a minute longer, but he had gone back to feeling at the wall, possibly for a crack of some sort. Gohan was about to leave (he had suddenly realized that he was ravenously hungry), when Noboyuki whirled around and glared at him. "What are you doing here, anyway?"

Gohan blinked. "Uh... nothing."

Noboyuki pointed a finger at him dramatically. "You're spying on me, aren't you! Tenchi sent you to make sure I wouldn't do anything naughty!"

Gohan stared at him. "Uh..."

"Did you think that up all by yourself?" A girl's voice said cheerfully.

Noboyuki looked up, and Gohan followed his gaze. Washu was leaning on the wall, smirking at Noboyuki. The older man's face went pink. "Oh, hello, Washu-chan! How are you today?"

"Fine; thanks for asking." Washu said dryly, and turned her attention to Gohan. "What ARE you doing here, by the way?"

Gohan shrugged. "I'm not really sure... I couldn't think of anything better to do, and I didn't feel like taking a bath, so... I just sort of... sat here." He blinked. "You know, that sounds really, really stupid."

Washu grinned. "Go do something, then. Leave Noboyuki to his perverted fantasies."

Noboyuki frowned. "Hey..."

Gohan shrugged. "All right." He jumped to his feet and walked out.

Noboyuki glared at Washu. "Don't shoot down my dreams, Washu."

"Aren't you supposed to be at work?" Washu asked pointedly.

Noboyuki glared at her a few seconds more, then sighed and crossed his arms over his chest. "Valid point."