Three Little Words.

Love Hina is owned by Akamatsu dono. If it is requested this story will be removed and destroyed.

Chapter One

Three little words. That's all it takes sometimes. I hate you, sometimes said out of frustration, often said out of anger. Many times it is said to a friend or a lover but not always meant to hurt. Emotions can make a person saw things that they really don't mean to say. This is one of those times.

(OOOOO)

Keitaro was tired. He was tired of the accusations and the beatings he gets on a daily bases. If not by Naru, it comes from Motoko. Sometimes from both of them at the same time.

This time it happened to be from Naru. Motoko was practing her kendo on the laundry deck as she does every morning. Keitaro had a large load of laundry that needed to be hung out to dry. As he walked out on to the deck, he tripped over the towel that Motoko had brought with her. As he stumbled across the deck, he did not see Motoko and he fell into her causing both of them to fall down sending her sword and all the clothes everywhere. Unfortunately, he landed right on top of her pinning her to the deck.

With Motoko being caught off guard and blindsided and with the way they had landed, she couldn't move. Motoko was surprised by what had happened. She opened her eyes and saw Keitaro had caught himself just a few inches from accidentally kissing her. She, at first, wasn't sure what to do. She looked at Keitaro and the look on his face told her he was expecting to be beaten by her. That is when an enraged Naru came storming at them and proceeded to kick Keitaro off Motoko. When Naru landed her kick in Keitaro's side, Motoko heard a couple of his ribs crack, which surprised her.

Before Motoko could stop and warn her, Naru was on top of Keitaro, beating, slapping, and yelling at the top of her voice. Motoko got up and ran over to try to stop Naru before she could do any more harm to Keitaro. Motoko grabbed Naru and tried to pull her off Keitaro. When she tried, Naru held on tighter to Keitaro with her legs pushing in on his injured ribs.

The pain that Keitaro felt in his side, for the first time in his life, made him fight back against what was causing the pain. He pushed Naru hard enough to make Naru and Motoko fall to the deck and away from him. As he pushed he felt the anger rising in him and he couldn't stop his voice as he said, "I hate you."

Naru wasn't sure she heard him and yelled back "What did you say!?" Keitaro lifted his head and looked at Naru with a fire in his eyes and said, "I said I hate you. I'm tired of you always hitting me and beating me for no reason." With the look, that Keitaro gave Naru she knew that Keitaro wasn't joking. She just looked at him and didn't know what to say.

Keitaro then turned to Motoko and said "Thank you for trying to help me just then but you are not completely innocent either. There have been plenty of times you have hit me also for no reason. So I may not hate you Motoko but at the moment, I don't necessarily like you. Also you keep calling me a pervert but I think you girls are more perverted then I am. I've been able to hear what you girls do in the hot springs."

"Now if you will excuse me I need to go get my side looked at and do some thinking." With that Keitaro walked around Naru and Motoko and walked into the inn. Naru and Motoko just looked at each other wondering what just happened. As Naru was about to say something, Motoko said, "I tried to stop you. I felt his ribs crack when you kicked him Naru."

"What do you mean his ribs cracked?"

"I'm just stating a fact Naru. I heard and felt his ribs crack when you kicked him. Now if you will excuse me I am going to go clean up and try to figure out a way to get Keitaro to forgive me for all my transgressions."

With that, Motoko left Naru sitting on the deck by herself.

(OOOOO)

"Sempai, what was all that noise I heard a couple of minuets ago?" Shinobu asked as Keitaro walked through the living room.

"It's nothing to worry about Shinobu. It was Naru beating me up again."

"Again sempai? What does that make, five times this week?"

"Six times I think." Keitaro answered. "If you will excuse me I need to go out for a bit."

"Will you be back in time for dinner sempai?"

" I should be. I wouldn't want to miss your wonderful cooking."

Keitaro turned and put his shoes on and reaching for the door said " See you later Shinobu." He then turned and walked out the door closing it softly behind him.

(OOOOO)

Keitaro went over to his doctor's office and was lucky enough to get in with out waiting to long. The doctor confirmed that Keitaro had a couple of broken ribs, but he would be just fine in a few days. The ability of his body to heal has really come in handy while living at the inn. After leaving the doctor's office, Keitaro found himself a small coffee shop that was not very busy, letting him think about his life at the inn since he moved in. After sitting there for about an hour and forty-five minuets, Keitaro got up, paid his tab, and headed over to his friend's apartment.

Haitani answered the door and saw a depressed but determined Keitaro in front of him.

"Hey Keitaro, come on in. how are things going at the inn these days?"

"That's why I'm here Haitani. Things have gotten to the point that I think I'm going to quit being the manager and leave the inn."

"Why would you want to do that Keitaro? Why would you want to leave?"

"I'm tired Haitani. I'm tired of the beatings all the time for things I didn't do. In fact, I just came from my doctor because I have some broken ribs from Naru kicking me earlier today. Would you want to live in a place like that?"

"Well I guess not but, with all those beautiful women I think I would try to enjoy it."

"I thought I would be able to also but, with the way Naru and Motoko beat on me, I just can't take much more."

Keitaro and Haitani continued to talk for about another hour. Haitani asked what he was going to do and Keitaro told him he really didn't know.

(OOOOO)

After talking with Haitani and thinking some more about the problems. Keitaro decided that his idea was for the best and it was really the only thing to do. Keitaro arrived back at the inn just in time for dinner. As he entered the dinning room. Everybody except Naru greeted him warmly. Naru didn't say a word or even look at him. Shinobu glanced at Naru and noticed the look on her face was a look of worry and concern. "That look can't be for Keitaro, can it?" Shinobu wondered.

Both Naru and Motoko started to speak at the same time breaking the silence that had settled over the dinning room when Keitaro stopped them to make an announcement.

" Everybody, I have something I need to say. As I am sure, everybody by now knows that there was another problem this morning. Because of this event and other ones like it, I have decided to step down as manager for awhile and go somewhere else. I will return but I don't know when. It might be in a couple of weeks or even a couple of months."

It took a minuet for the announcement to sink in and then the questions started to fly.

"Where are you going to go?"

"When are you leaving?"

"What are you going to do?"

However, one question stood out from all of the rest.

"Is it because of me you are going to leave Keitaro?"

Even with Naru saying it in a whisper, it sounded like it was as loud as a bomb going off in the dinning room. Everybody turned and looked at Naru.

"Do I really need to answer that Naru?" Keitaro asked with just a hint of coldness in his voice. After that dinner was very quiet and short as nobody felt like eating.

(OOOOO)

Later that evening, Keitaro was in his room, packing his cloths and books he was going to take with him. As he was packing, there was a timid knock at his door. Keitaro opened his door and saw Shinobu standing in the hallway. "Hi Shinobu, do you need something?" Keitaro asked. Shinobu at first looked a little flustered and embarrassed but then she said, "Do you have a couple of minuets to talk, sempai?"

"Sure come on in Shinobu."

Shinobu saw Keitaro was packing and now knew that he was leaving for real. "Sempai, you're not leaving because of me or anything I've done are you?"

"Now what gave you that idea?" Keitaro asked. "You should know by now that you are one of the closest friends I have in this world."

"Then why are you leaving, Sempai?"

"It's a long and complicated reason Shinobu. I'll tell you about it later. I just don't want you to worry right now. I'll keep in touch with you by either by calling or writing, ok?"

"Ok Keitaro, I promise I won't worry right now. If you will excuse me I need to work on my homework for school tomorrow."

"Have a good night Shinobu." Keitaro said as Shinobu left. He then returned to the job at hand and finished packing.

(OOOOO)

Keitaro was putting the finishing touches on his packing when he heard the door to his room open and close. Without looking, he could tell it had been Naru that had come into his room. Keitaro said, "So you are going to talk to me before I leave." However, there was no response. Keitaro thought 'Must be my imagination. Naru would never come down here and try to talk me out of leaving.'

He turned around to get another one of his reference books off his dresser and that was when he had his breath taken away. Naru had come into his room but had not made a single sound. She was kneeling on the floor, bent over at the waste, touching her forehead to the floor. Her hands were in front of her with her first three fingers touching the floor and her pinky and thumb under her hands. What got Keitaro's attention more was what she was wearing and not what she was doing.

Naru had gone to her room and changed into a formal kimono. It was a dark blue, almost purple, in color with pink Sakura blossoms starting at each shoulder and moving down and around in a swirling, twisting pattern. The Obi she had put on was a lighter color of blue, also with Sakura blossoms on it.

It had taken Keitaro a couple of minuets to realize that he had stopped breathing when he had seen Naru in that kimono and a submissive posture. Keitaro walked over and sat down in front of her and asked "Naru, what are you doing?"

With out looking up, Naru replied "Keitaro-sama, please don't leave because of me or what I have done. I'm begging you not to go.

"Naru I hav…"

"Please let me finish. I know I have done you wrong Keitaro-sama, but please, for the sake of the other girls that need you here, don't leave. I'll do anything you demand of me." As she said this she brought herself up into a kneeling position so she could see Keitaro but not be able to look him in the eyes. "Please Keitaro" She continued, "I'll do anything you want me to do. I'll clean your room, do your laundry, I'll help with the cleaning of the inn and the hotspring. Keitaro, I'll even let you make love to me and even marry you if you don't go."

As Naru said this last sentence, she started to loosen and pull open her kimono. Keitaro being the gentleman that he is reached over and stopped Naru before she exposed herself to him by pulling Naru's hands away from her kimono.

"Naru, I understand the way you are feeling right now, but I just can't stay. I will keep in touch, but I have to go for awhile." With this Keitaro got up and went to finish packing his bags.

Naru got up and opened the door to go back to her room. While in the process of walking out of his room, she whispered, "Keitaro, I'm sorry for what I did to you and I do love you." Keitaro never heard her or saw the tear that was sliding down her cheek.

(OOOOO)