One Mistake
A/N: Hello HOTD community! This is a first for me in this universe, but I hope to try my hand at the TakashixSaeko pairing. I've recently become addicted to the HOTD series and the TxS pairing and couldn't resist the temptation to write about them anymore. Enjoy and let me know what you think in a review!
"If you like him so much then just go ahead and be with him!" Komuro Takashi shouted as he stomped out of the Miyamoto household; he told himself that he had slammed the door to let out his frustration and not to act like a thirteen year old child being overly dramatic.
Walking off into the night, Takashi ignored Miyamoto Rei as she burst out onto the front porch. "Komuro-san!" she shouted desperately, her eyes brimming with pain and guilt as her love walked off into the night.
So it's san now? Takashi thought as he felt the tell-tall drip-drop of rain drops that preluded a heavy storm. Rei-chan had been drifting away from him—he knew that much—ever since the summer had started. But to hear her call him with such a formal title...it hurt. A lot.
Stuffing his hands in his pockets, Takashi ignored the rain that was now steadily falling and continued down the sidewalk. Cars flew by him as their owners rushed to get home before the downpour could get any worse; one car got a bit too close and hit a large puddle that had been forming. The water from the puddle arched high shot up like a bullet and doused Takashi from head to toe in even more water.
Just great, Takashi thought glumly as he continued to walk back towards his home. That's just perfect!
"What do you have against me!?" Takashi suddenly roared as he stared up at the sky. He didn't know—or frankly care—if there was or was not a god or goddess or whatever that ran the entire world according to some desire or plan. But it was human nature to place blame on someone or something else. Generally in that order.
"I didn't ignore her!" Takashi screamed towards the heavens as he walked. "I wasn't a bad boyfriend! She loved me!" Takashi cried and at that moment he realized the truth.
Rei-chan had loved him. But he hadn't loved her back.
As if on a cue, another car hit a bump in the road and a fountain of water came crashing down onto the black haired teenager. Screaming, Takashi gave up any hope of staying somewhat dry and walked along through the rain; his soggy socks squished against his feet with every step he took.
As he walked, he thought of his time with Rei-chan and their countless dates. He smiled bitterly as he thought of all the romantic gestures and tiny acts of affection that they had delivered and received from each other over the years. His heart wrenched and he fought off a wave of salty tears.
I'm such a wimp, Takashi thought as he turned right on the street corner; his view was blocked by a high wall that ran along it.
"Oof!" A feminine voice cried as Takashi ran straight into someone head on causing them both to crash to the cold wet concrete.
"Sumimasen!" Takashi cried as he struggled to get up; only to realize who he had just knocked over. "Busujima-san?" He asked in confusion as he froze in surprise. Not only was it extremely odd to see Fujima Academy's highly reclusive kendo champion, it was even more unusual to see her crying.
"Komuro-san?" Busujima Saeko said in surprise; it was more of a statement of shock rather than a question. Her face was red, her right cheek was slightly bloody, and her eyes were bright and puffy—proof that she had been hit and was now crying.
"Are...are you alright?" Takashi asked as he slowly finished standing up as the purple haired kendo master followed suit.
"What is it to you!?" She demanded as she glared at him; Takashi was taken back in shock as the normally quiet girl spoke to him in such a harsh manner. Her features immediately softened. "I'm sorry...I shouldn't have-"
Takashi stopped her immediately, "it's alright Busujima-san," Takashi assured her as he smiled and scratched the back of his head. "I should have been watching where I was going; it was my fault," he said as he suddenly felt a chill run up his back as the rain continued to hammer down upon the two.
Mere seconds after he remembered the rain that was hammering on his body; Takashi felt quick jabs of pain start to join in with the icy rain as hail fell as well. The storm was getting worse"We should probably get under cover," Takashi said.
Saeko glanced up briefly as the hail fell even more rapidly. "Indeed," she said as she rubbed her eyes in a vain attempt at removing the puffiness that accented them so obviously. The two quickly ran across the street—thankfully devoid of any cars now that the hail had picked up—and then under the awning of a small coffee shop.
"It's really picking up!" Takashi exclaimed as they entered the coffee shop. Outside, the hail continued to pound mercilessly against the glass windows of the store as the downpour—impossibly—increased even more.
"I guess it was a good thing that I ran into you when I did," Saeko said as a bored employee noticed them from behind his post at the cash register.
"Komuro-san? Your dating Busujima-san?" He asked in a shocked tone while staring at the two with wide eyes.
"What?" Takashi said in shock as his face grew red—unnoticed by him, Saeko face grew red as well. "No!"
"We are not dating!" Saeko said as she nodded her agreement. "We just came in to get out of the storm outside."
The employee glanced at Saeko before winking at Takashi. "Komuro you lucky dog! I'm on break for the next twenty minutes; I'll just give you guys some alone time!," he said with another wink and a smirk before vanishing into the shop's backroom. That left Takashi and Saeko completely alone in the suddenly too small coffee shop.
Still bright red, Takashi shook his head and gestured at a table. "Should we get a table?" He asked awkwardly. "Not that this is a date!" He assured her. "Not that I wouldn't want to date you!" His eyes grew wide as he realized what he had just said. "I mean, um-"
"It's okay," Saeko said as she walked over to the nearest booth and sat down; the leather squeaking as he soaking wet clothes rubbed against the fabrics surface. "I know what you mean."
Sighing a bit, Takashi walked over to the booth and sat down across from her. Upon hearing her giggle, he glanced at her questioningly. "What?" He asked as she placed a hand over her mouth to stifle the next round of giggles trying to break free.
"Your hair..." She said, "it's so...cute," she said in between giggles as Takashi turned beat red. What was she talking about? Reaching up with his right hand, Takashi realized that his normally spiky hair was plastered against his face because of the rain.
The kendo master continued to giggle for a few more minutes before finally gaining her composure while Takashi awkwardly tried to put his hair back the way it had been before; of course it only got worse because of his actions instead of better.
"So what can I get for you two?" The employee said with yet another conspiratory wink at Takashi as he stressed the last word with gusto.
Has it already been twenty minutes? Takashi thought, We just sat here and laughed...
"We're not drinking anything," Takashi said as he gave up on his hair; what use was it anyways, at least lady Saeko thought it was cute.
"Two regulars with extra creamer and whip?" The employee asked cheerfully, "be right up!" he assured them before bolting back off into the back room to prepare their coffee.
"I didn't even realize they had waiters here," Saeko said as she watched the oddly eccentric employee disappear into the back room.
"Me either," Takashi admitted as the two fell into an uneasy silence while they waited for their "ordered" coffees to appear. While they waited, Takashi covertly examined the daughter of Master Busujima while he played with one of the straws that were sitting in a container at their table.
Lady Saeko Busujima, with her long purple hair and shining blue eyes, was considered quite the catch by the male community in general. She was in her third year at the academy, but she had already won every kendo competition she had ever taken part in. She was quieter than most, but with her figure any man wouldn't be thinking about talking. The only thing that had kept most of the male populace away was her father; Master Busujima of the Emperor's Guards.
"Are you just going to stare at me all night?" Saeko asked quietly as she stared at the poor excuse for a man that sat before her. Takashi Komuro was well known for his antics outside of—and occasionally inside—school as well as his notoriously bad grades and lazy attitude. Though Saeko remembered that most women desired him for one reason or another.
"I-I-" Takashi said in surprise as he tried to formulate a response.
"Coffee!" The employee said happily as he placed a small tray containing two steaming cups of coffee covered in whip cream and a small basket of soft rolls. "Enjoy!" the man said and placed a small candle on the table before lighting it. He dissapeared so quickly that Takashi was starting to wonder if he had imagined the entire thing.
Sighing as he rubbed the back of his neck, Takashi reached over and put the candle out with his finger. "Sorry about all this," Takashi told the woman before him. "I-" suddenly he realized just how how the candle had been. "OWWWWWWW!" He squealed as he immediately dove his hand into the only source of liquid he could find. His coffee cup. His steaming coffee cup.
"OWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!" Takashi cried even louder—and even less manly—as the pain got even worse. He flung his arm left and right and beat it upon the cool leather and against his still soaking wet clothes in a an attempt to soothe the burn on his hand.
Saeko, for her part, was giggling even harder than before as she watched the man before her act like a complete fool over a simple burn. Honestly, it wasn't like it hurt that much; she knew this for a fact.
"Will you...stop that!" Takashi demanded as he resorted to sucking on his burnt fingers in order to relieve himself of the pain. The slightly singed skin tasted awful and Takashi was left wondering how he could have burnt himself over something so simple as putting out a candle.
"Gomen," Saeko said after recovering from her giggles once more. "I do not know why I laughed," she said sheepishly. "Gomennasai," she repeated with a politer tone as she picked up her coffee and lightly sipped from it. The whipped cream tasted wonderful when it was mixed with the plain coffee that had been liberally doused in creamer. When she removed the cup from her lips and placed it down on the table, the man before her started stifling his own laughter. "What is it?" She asked, slightly confused as a few small giggles escaped his mouth.
"You still...still have...cream..." Takashi said in between giggles as he privately realized that he found the image of Lady Saeko with her mouth covered in whip cream oddly erotic. "You have whipped...whipped cream on your mouth still," he finished as he finally brought the laughing fit down.
Saeko's face turned bright red and she immediately assaulted her mouth with a thin white napkin with the intent of covering up her embarrassing mistake. "I'm sorry!" she said, thinking of all the long talks on etiquette she had been given and how grievous of an error it was to make such a blunder such as she had. "Please-"
"It's okay Busujima-san," Takashi assured her, "I won't tell anyone," he promised as he drank from his own cup—his hand thankfully cool once more—and left the whip cream plastered across his face. Saeko, upon realizing what she had looked like, laughed outright rather than feeling shame.
Takashi froze ever so slightly upon hearing her laugh. It wasn't the refined giggle or calculating "hn" that most women would give. It was an honest, simply care free laugh. It sounded beautiful.
"I see now why you found it so funny," Saeko said after finally composing herself. She sipped from her own coffee once more and tentatively left the whip cream on her face. Unlike what her father had drilled into her mind, the man before her did not look revolted, he actually looked happier to see her breaching such simple—yet undeniably necessary—etiquette protocols.
"If my mom could see me now," Takashi said with a smirk as he thought of his mom seeing him drinking coffee in such an improper way while in the company of a women who he had just met. But had he really?
He had shared a classroom with Lady Saeko ever since attending Fujima Academy. They had even worked together on projects before—though on those occasions they were always in larger groups. How had he never noticed her before? The answer was simple; he had been more focused on his dying relationship with a rapidly fading Rei to notice any other women around him.
"Indeed," Saeko said with a smirk as she took a small roll from the basket between them and popped it into her mouth. It tasted nice, butter had somehow been worked into the core of the loaf, but this actually enhanced the flavor rather than distracting from it.
The two sat in silence once again as they quietly ate their rolls and finished off their coffee. The entire time the storm was raging outside, the hail having grown so large that there was a serious possibility that they would shatter the glass windows. Luckily no such thing happened, but it was still slightly terrifying to see hail half the size of golf balls falling from the sky at incredibly high speeds.
After a few more moments the silence became unbearable and Takashi decided to speak up. "So uh..." Takashi started to say as Saeko looked up from the dregs of her coffee to stare at him curiously. "If you don't mind me asking," he said sheepishly, "why were you crying?"
Saeko's face clouded briefly before she absentmindedly brought a hand up to her cheek, which had stopped bleeding and—luckily for the shop employee—was mostly clean thanks to the heavy rain she had been running in. Her eyes were still a bit puffy; however, the coffee and the whipped cream had done wonders and the puffiness appeared to be receding.
"I think..." she said softly, "that we should talk about something else."
"What happened?" Takashi asked as he wondered why it mattered so much to him.
"It does not concern you," Saeko said calmly—though her voice was laced with iron—as she folded her hands on the table.
"Your cheek was bleeding and you were cryi-" Takashi continued, unafraid for some reason as he tried to figure out what had happened to the woman sitting across from him.
"Just drop it!" She roared and Takashi froze in surprise, "please just...drop it..."Saeko said softly as she started to shake ever so slightly.
"Busujima-san?" Takashi asked in surprise as he saw fresh tears forming at the corner of her eyes. "Are you alright?" He asked, concerned.
"What is it with men?!" She snapped, though her anger was rapidly fading as she shook. "They just...just can't...take..." She started to say, only to clench her eyes and take a breath. Her composure resolved, she glared at Takashi. "You need to learn to accept no," she said and glanced out at the window. It was still storming. "I'll see you around," she told him before standing up to leave.
"Your not leaving are you?" Takashi asked in a shocked voice as he stared at her like she was crazy.
"I have to be getting back home," she informed him as she headed towards the door.
"Busujima-san you'll get destroyed if you try to go outside!" Takashi cried as he jumped out of the booth. "You can't-"
"Oyasuminasai Komuro-san," Saeko said as she started to open the door. She had to get out of here now. Before the memories assaulted her again and she broke down before someone as weak as Komuro.
"Wait!" Takashi said and did the only thing he could think of to stop her from leaving; most likely into certain death. He reached out and grabbed her hand. His hand connected with hers and he felt her turn, only for the sudden electric shock between them to stop all thoughts running through both of their minds.
"Wha-" Saeko started to say, only to freeze at the electric-like shock coursed through her entire body. "What are you doing?!" She cried in a high pitched tone as she stared at Komuro and then at his hand linked in hers.
"I'm not going to let you go get yourself killed," Takashi said stubbornly. Noticing the pain that flashed across her face, he moved closer. "Are you alright Busujima-san?" He asked again.
Saeko, upon hearing his words, felt the memories being triggered and grimaced as they came. Why? She thought bitterly as fresh tears came against her will; she felt her knees start to shake as she remembered his touch. His mouth on hers. She shivered and tried to break free of Komuro-san's grip, but she was too weak and he too strong. How ironic...
"Bu-Busujima-san?" Takashi asked as his eyes grew wipe upon seeing her tears. He was even further shocked when the blue haired kendo master threw herself into his arms—knocking both of them to the floor in the process—and sobbing as she finally broke down. "Bu-Bu-Busujina-san?" Takashi said in a tiny voice as he felt blood start to well up inside his nose at the sight of the curvy female wrapped around him. Bad mind! Bad!
"Just shut up and h-hold me," Saeko said softly as she sat on his lap and shook violently into his arms. She had no idea why she was doing this or what had convinced her it was anywhere near okay to do. But it felt right and she didn't want to let go, so she simply held onto Komuro-san as if her life depended on it.
Takashi merely nodded and gently wrapped his arms around her as she cried. It scared every fiber of his being seeing lady Saeko crying so violently, but he would do as she had asked and pray that she didn't kill him when she recovered from whatever spell she seemed to be under.
Saeko felt his arms wrap around her and immediately felt more terror and more tears explode out from her body as she sobbed even more. She shouldn't be doing this. She was Saeko Busujima, not some petty coward who couldn't even hide her emotions from Komuro of all people. What was going on!?
They stayed like that for a long time; Takashi gently rocking Saeko as she sobbed into his chest while the storm raged around them. It was awkward for the two of them, but neither was willing to let go of the other at the moment. Takashi felt duty bound to help her; Saeko couldn't let go of the comforting warmth that he gave off.
Eventually though the hail stopped, then the rain, and finally the thunder rolled by. Sighing softly, Saeko let go of Takashi. "Domo Arigato Takashi-san," Saeko said softly as she smiled thinly at him. "That...that meant a lot."
Takashi froze at her wording—which mixed an incredibly formal thank you with an incredibly personal name reference—before smiling at her. "Don't mention it," Takashi said with a chuckle. "Everybody needs to let stuff out from time to time," He said as she nodded in agreement.
"If you don't mind...I'd like to just talk about what happened...you brought it up anyways," she said, sounding defensive but also overly needy. She had to get it off her chest, there was no way of avoiding it now.
Takashi's face grew serious and he nodded, "of course, it will stay between us don't worry," he promised her as they stood up and walked back towards the table. Saeko felt a massive surge of gratitude burst forth at his words. He barely knew her and yet he was willing to keep her secrets? On a whim? This man was truly something...
They sat down at the table—which was now lightly covered in coffee residue and bits of bread from when Takashi had hit the table chasing after Saeko—and she began her tale.
"I...I was on my way home," Sakeo said softly, "I guess I wasn't watching my surroundings very well," she added while privately thinking, That's what you get for being distracted by petty things. "While I was walking...some...some guy," she paused and Takashi slid his hand over and grasped her own. It was a bold move—and completely unintentional on Takashi's part; his hand had acted on it's own accord—but Saeko didn't comment on it. Like when he had held her, it was weird, but it felt right.
"He..he uh...jumped me and...uh," she paused again and felt a comforting squeeze come out of Takashi's hand. It reassured her more than any trophy she had ever won; more than any of the constant—but lacking—praise her father gave her. "He tried to...take advantage of me..." she said. "He was weak, a drunkard or something," she explained.
"I...took him apart," she momentarily lost sight of the coffee shop she was sitting in with Komuro as she relived her beating of the rapist. She hadn't had a weapon on her at the time, but that hadn't stopped her. She had used her hands. "There wasn't anything left..." she whispered softly as she saw the pile of bloody mush sitting before her as if it were her next meal. She was a monst-
"It's okay," Takashi said softly as he slid next to her—he had gotten up as soon as her eyes had glazed over—"you're alright," he assured her as she automatically slid back into his arms as if it were obviously where she was supposed to be.
"Why am I such a wimp!?" She muttered as she felt—impossibly—more fresh tears start to come forth. "I can't deal with a guy getting hurt!" She cried, "I can't get away from you!" She added, "I can't even stop crying!"
Takashi held her closer and whispered in her ear, "Shhh," he began stroking her hair. "Your the most talented girl I've ever met," he said honestly as she froze in surprise. "Your stronger than anyone I know," he felt her relaxing as he continued speaking. "You are not weak, your the exact opposite in fact," he assured her as she leaned into his chest; her tears already beginning to fade as she merely listened in shock. "Busujima Saeko, your are not a wimp for being human."
Human? Saeko thought, I don't think I'm not human...do I?
"You okay?" Takashi asked for what felt like the hundreth time as he looked down at the girl in his arms. Huh, he would have never thought he would ever hold Busujima Saeko in his arms. But then again, he had never expected him and Rei to end on such bad terms either.
"Yeah," Saeko said softly as she looked up at him, her eyes no longer calculating; instead, they were now simply content. "You really-"
Takashi wasn't sure what brought it on, but the sight of her looking up at him with her blue eyes so happy, her face—minus the minor blood stain—so serene. He acted on instinct alone and leaned down to capture his lips with hers.
"You guys need a re-" the employee started to say as he re-entered the room, only to freak out at the sight of Takashi and Saeko about to kiss. "Woah!" he cried, "Go Komuro-san!"
Takashi froze and Saeko—whose eyes had been closed and her mouth had been partially open—immediately pulled away from him. Both were bright red and breathing a bit heavier than normal as they realized what had just happened. Before anyone could say anything, Takashi's phone rang.
"Hello?" Takashi said as he answered his phone. "Oh, hey mom," he said and scooted out of the booth to talk off in the corner nearby. "Yeah, I'm safe," he said and once he had reassured his mom, he hung up and headed back over to his table. To his dismay, he found Saeko gone; though his face brightened considerably upon seeing a small napkin covered in purple lipstick.
Picking up the note, he red the crudely drawn kanji and smiled. "Fujima Dōjō, 14:30".
Hope you all enjoyed that, It took FOREVER to finish. Japan is an incredibly interesting country, I enjoyed learning about it while I wrote this fic. I'm on the fence if I'm going to end it here or continue on into a multi chapter fic. Please let me know in a review. Also, can someone tell me if Japan uses a 24 or 12 hour clock? I researched it but couldn't find anything. I assumed that it would be a 24 hour clock since the am/pm thing seemed more like a Western idea, but I could very well be wrong. So just let me know in that review you'll be giving me in a few minutes.
Ciao!