Note: OOCness! This is the last chapter and I'm sorry if this wouldn't satisfy most people. Hope you enjoyed this story though! (:
Part Two
She wanted to run, shout, and even shield her eyes. Desperately. She wasn't used to this strip of power, and it scared the hell out of her that she can't do anything. Her movement seemed to have stopped, and all she could do was stare at Ruka who was still very much pissed off. And naked.
Fortunately, when her mobility left her, she regained her voice.
"What the hell are you doing? Cover yourself up!" Hotaru commanded, although her voice was too soft for her liking.
"What did you say?" Ruka took a couple steps closer, and Hotaru suddenly felt a sense of déjà vu. "Isn't this what you wanted? What are you waiting for? Take a picture already, Imai."
He was mocking her.
He was actually mocking her, and that irritated her to no hell. In a second, she regained her composure and showed Ruka the reason why she had the Ice Queen for a title.
Two can play at this game.
"A picture? Fine, strike a pose then, Ruka." Hotaru kept her face cold, as she saw Ruka became overwhelmed with shock. "And don't keep me waiting. You're not my only job today."
Jealousy suddenly carved into Ruka's face, as he suddenly pushed her against the wall.
"What do you mean by that?"
It was a lie but it seemed to have fired his anger more. Something that Hotaru never intended to do since she was still very aware of his lack of clothing, but she quickly covered her surprise.
"Would you stop doing this? I don't appreciate being pushed against the wall over and over again." She tried to get out of his grasp but he firmly held her.
"Are you really trying my patience, Imai?" He's so different from the Ruka she'd known, but somehow, she liked him better this way.
"What's that got to do with my other jobs? You're not the only one girls go crazy for, Nogi." To her surprise, Ruka let go of her and finally had the decency to put his towel back on.
"What the hell am I doing?" He was just probably trying to gain his senses back, but Hotaru heard him anyway.
"You're trying to get me to take your picture, remember?" She was the one mocking him now as she held up her camera. "Got scared?"
He still didn't turn around, but he pointed towards the door. "Don't make me repeat myself again. Please leave, Imai."
Something about the way he said it changed, and Hotaru found herself obeying his order without a second thought.
Maybe if it wasn't the Ice Queen, he would have handled it much better. If it wasn't the Ice Queen, he wouldn't have done something so stupid. If it wasn't her, he wouldn't have gotten so riled up. But the fact was – it was her.
And another screwed up fact made him want to kill himself was…
His blood was still calling for her.
What the fuck was he thinking? Getting naked with a cold bitch who was also gorgeous to booth is something that he should have never done. Not to mention if the said cold bitch is someone whom you felt something for.
Ruka almost choked. Where the hell did that come from?
There's no way fate would screw with him so bad, right? No way. His best friend is being tortured and blackmailed into killing people. He had been forbidden to see his parents ever since the blasted training started. He's involved in a war that he doesn't want to fight. He already lost the love of his life to Natsume or…Is she the reason why he got over Mikan?
A damned voice told him… Yes.
He slapped his forehead. Hard.
No, he needed time to think. And a cold shower. And sleep, he must sleep.
Something told her that running away was wrong. She was not a coward, and the Ice Queen never backed down from any fight. It was not good for reputation to start now. There were really few occasions where she feels fear, and it was startling for her to be this scared of Ruka. It's not normal because usually, it's the other way around.
She was still a few rooms away from Ruka's room, and large part of her wanted to go back and confront him. Some smaller, maybe wiser part of her told her to stay away. He'll only hurt you, they say. The bigger part of her questioned why she was feeling this way though.
Mikan was the most important person to her. All the others were just blurs in her eyes that she occasionally cares for. But when did Ruka became so clear in her eyes that he was already pushing Mikan away from her sight? Hotaru suddenly realized that it was what scared her.
"I'm starting to get cheesier than Mikan." She mumbled to herself which was to say a lot because Mikan would probably have a better relationship with Natsume if she could just stop calling him pet names such as Wabbydabby, Hottiepie, and other monstrous and unthinkable names Natsume was cursed to be called as.
Sighing, she looked at the window at the end of the hall and saw that it was getting dark. The curfew is going to take effect in a few minutes. She has to know which way she's going and the fact that those two ways were as different as night and day. One would probably change her life, while the other will stay the same as always, without any freaking change.
As the clock stroke 9, Hotaru made her decision.
When Ruka stepped out of the shower, there was no denying the presence that hid behind the shadows of his four-cornered room.
"I thought I told you to leave." He said evenly. He was already dressed for bed which consisted of pants, and nothing else.
"I don't follow orders. I just give them." Hotaru stepped into light, and what Ruka saw sent shivers down his spine. She was dressed only in his polo. He had a good guess that there was no other clothing underneath it too.
"Why are you dressed like that?" Ruka asked; his voice just above a whisper.
In an instant, the half-buttoned shirt dropped and Hotaru simpered.
"What dress?"
"What the fuck are you do-" Ruka was cut off by a lips on his. He felt everything. Her lips. Her tongue. Her whole body was pressed against him. His own body was still reeling with shock by the abrupt contact. At one point, he actually lost his balance and ended up on the floor with Hotaru straddling him. It took him quite a long moment before he started to respond back. But when he finally did, Hotaru had decided to tease his last ounce of control.
"You know what, Ruka Nogi?" Hotaru smirked, as she saw Ruka's eyes darkened heavily. "I'm doing something I never thought I'd want more than a thousand rabbits."
"As long as it's only for me," he agreed.
And with that, Ruka surrendered his control.
Sumire, Mikan and an annoyed Natsume huddled just outside of Ruka's room.
"See, see I told you it would work!" Sumire exclaimed happily as she heard non-verbal sounds coming from the room.
"Not so loud idiot." Natsume muttered. He felt happy for Ruka but it was not in his fantasy to listen to his best friend and Ice Queen having sex. No thank you.
"Wow, what are they doing in there Natsume-kun?" asked Mikan thoughtfully as she heard exhortations for more. "It sounds like a lot of fun."
"You mean you're still not doing it with him Mikan-chan?" Sumire asked, quite disappointed. Obviously, she had already gotten over Natsume a long time ago.
"What it?" Mikan asked, confused.
"That's enough." Natsume said as he quickly dragged her away from the room. "You've won your bet. Here's the thousand rabbits." He threw the pouch to Sumire who grinned happily. "We're leaving." He told Mikan.
"But-" Mikan protested but one look from Natsume shut her up.
"Haha, I told you he's in love with the witch." Sumire bounced happily towards her room, still hearing religious declarations from the room while Natsume muttering that he could not believe that his best friend fell for the Ice queen, and Mikan was still trying to ask Natsume what is it.
The End