A/N: Revised.

Disclaimer: *sigh* It's pretty obvious I don't own Rurouni Kenshin (after all I am writing a 'FanFic'). So this is the only time I'm writing this.

Summary: Modern day. They accidentally met one day, just two strangers drawn to one another. However, unknown to either, their lives are very much interlaced… is it fate, a scheme, or truly just a coincidence? KxK

OoO

Jasmine

He walked down the street along with many others in the populated city. Strangely enough the city is where one could feel the most anonymous and that's the way he liked it. Although, he preferred going about at night, finding it better for the kind of man he was, and for the kinds of things he does. At night it was, of course, conveniently easier to hide amongst the shadows.

Yes, the night was his ally.

However, today was different. He opted for walking instead of taking his car or sports bike, during broad daylight no less, needing to do some quick errands before heading back to his apartment.

Sighing, he continued walking, regretting not taking his car instead.

The stroll was doing him some good though, clearing his mind. Normally when he drove he would re-think and remember all of the things he has gone through, things he has done, like going through flashbacks. Strange how that happens, when you zone off while driving, conducing an automobile being second nature.

It could very well be the same with walking though, but not for him.

He took in a deep breath, taking in the cool autumn air. On second thought, maybe it was a good idea to go on foot today. Hell, he should have done this a long time ago, especially seeing how therapeutic it was turning out to be.

Perhaps he should just leave everything he knows behind and just start walking about, see where that takes him. Just wander around; get redemption, get centered, get some peace. Could he do that? It didn't seem like a bad idea. Then he can come back whenever he pleased.

What a perfect solution to such an imperfect life.

A vibrating brought him out of his thoughts. He reached over his back pocket and pulled out his phone, sliding it open and reading the message.

'MIDNIGHT OLD CATHEDRAL'

Great. he thought to himself. He was already not looking forward to that night.

The message was anonymous and as soon as he read it he erased it, placing his phone back in his pocket, and all the while feeling for his GP handgun he had placed on the back of his pants. He never left home without a weapon in hand; you never know what could happen or who you could bump into. He didn't care so much for fire arms but it was much easier to hide in comparison to a katana. He much rather remain inconspicuous.

Continuing at a regular pace, he tried to clear his mind again. He took in everything that was the city; the noise, the sight, the feel, the smell. The smell?

He took a whiff of the air. Every smell seemed to be right, a combination of smog from the cars, grass and leaves from the park, fruits from vendors, perspiration from people, and… jasmine?

Odd. he thought. His curiosity was piqued. He would never admit it to anybody but he liked sweet, floral scents. Looking down at his watch he saw that he was early and decided to not rush himself.

Following his nose he came to the corner of the side walk, the street lights indicating that pedestrians shouldn't cross yet.

Finally, he found where the sweet smell was coming from. In front of him was a woman with long, black hair, held up into a pony-tail by an indigo ribbon. She had sunglasses sitting on her head, thick bangs seeming to hold them in place. He looked at her up and down; she wore dark jeans, black boots, and a faded black leather jacket. He also noticed her grey messenger she carried across her shoulder.

College student. he thought to himself as he, along with the rest of the people, waited for the streets lights to change.

Attaining a bit more courage, he leaned closer to the young female, to see if he can get a better smell of her, enjoying the distraction he found for the day.

He took another deep breath; the engaging, exotic aroma filling his nostrils.

The dark haired woman shifted, slightly turning her head to her left, and he leaned back. She probably subconsciously felt that her personal space was being invaded.

He grinned, amused.

However, he did observe her facial features when she turned, first of all noticing her long, dark eyelashes that outlined clear sapphire eyes; followed by a slightly upturned nose and plushy pink lips.

She reached over into her messenger bag and took out a device, pushed a button, and put it back. Her head slightly bobbed, and he then noticed that she had earphones on, as well as small silver hoop earrings hanging from her ears.

He vaguely wondered what kind of music she was listening to, as the lights turned and the pedestrians waiting crossed the street in unison, he following the herd and the dark haired woman.

He made sure that he was a good distance away, watching her as she made her way down the street. There was a rhythmical sway of her hips as she walked that he found truly enjoyable.

Yes, walking was definitely the best choice today.

He never followed women unless he was hired to do so. His life had become so dull and stagnant that even this harmless trailing was somewhat fun. He was going to spark up a conversation with her or stalk her. That morning would probably the only time he'd ever see her.

She followed the stairs that lead down to the sub-way, he shadowing behind.

The subway cars were full, having them squeeze by and hold on to the railing as they stood up to hold their balance.

This was when he took advantage as he stood as close to her as was possibly permitted. However, it was a bit unnerving that a man could get that close to a woman and they not notice.

He took more time to notice she wore a breezy, strappy cotton shirt and silver necklace with a small key hung lightly around her neck. She was rather thin, but not frail. He could tell through her jeans that she exercised regularly. So she was physically strong.

He didn't stare; he just took side glimpses of her. She seemed distracted and lost into whatever song she was listening to. Perhaps, like him, she liked the walk to clear off her mind.

The subway car abruptly paused, having most of the passengers stumble from the action. She didn't hold on the railing tightly enough and ended slightly falling on him. As a gentle man, he got a hold of her, preventing a fall. She placed her hand on his chest and lightly pushed away.

The young lady only politely smiled up as if giving him a 'Thanks' to the help he provided. However, she did a double-take on him, something about him catching her eyes. She looked up at him and took in his features, just the way he had taken in hers. Her eyebrows came down, frowning a bit and once she noticed how she was gaping at him her cheeks flushed with embarrassment and she quickly looked away. She went back to her original position, getting a tighter hold of the railing this time.

He grinned at this; he always received that reaction from the opposite sex. It was good to know that he captivated her as much as she to him, too bad it wouldn't go further than their short 'run in' that very moment.

A little longer and the subway came to a complete stop. She made her way out, but he decided to stay. That had been entertaining… for a while.

He looked down at his watch. He really needed to get all his errands done.

OoO

A spiky-haired brunette whipped the bar counter. He was wearing his signature white wife beater with a white shirt with the kanji character 'Evil' on the back, along with some jeans and dark shoes.

It was still early at night and The Blue Note bar only had a few customers. That was something the young bartender wasn't too happy about. Some loners sat along the bar while a few other played pool toward the back. At the center of the bar was a dance floor that was only used on weekends whenever the 'younger crowd' came in, filling the rather small bar up with barely legal kids that can hardly hold their liquor, but nonetheless he made good tip money off of them. Unfortunately, tonight seemed to be looking like a slow night

The front door opened and in walked in one of his weekday regulars. He usually came in when it was the slowest and he always made sure to leave Sano a big fat tip. So, of course, this red-headed guy was one of his favorite customers.

He came up and took a seat by the bar, as usual, in an irritable mood.

"Hey, what'll it be tonight?"

"The usual."

With a nod Sano turned around and quickly poured a drink. Taking a beverage napkin, he placed that down in front of the smaller male with his drink following it.

"Any business tonight?"

Dark mauve eyes looked up at him, warning him that he should mind his own affairs.

Sano snickered with understanding, "Right. Let me know if I can get you anything else."

The kick-boxer by day, bartender by night, had some suspicions about what the red-headed was involved in. He'd always come in with a mood from hell, dressed in dark colors, mostly black. There was once when he'd seen his katana, but he was sure he carried it around more than just once. He would only have a couple drinks which, Sano guessed, was just to loosen him up a bit without feeling a buzz. While drinking he would never look up, just stared intently at his drink as his thick bangs covered his eyes, shielding himself from the rest of the world. He could very well be looking at his surroundings from behind those bangs, but Sano could never be too certain. He only spoke when he wanted another drink and/or when he would get up and pay, telling Sano he could 'Keep the rest', referring to his tip.

He was a mystery, but he liked the bartender/customer relationship they had going and didn't want much else to do to with the apparent dangerous and shadowy man.

The front door opened as a couple more people came in.

Sitting at the bar, the red-head listened, not wanting to drop his guard, but continued to look down at his drink.

He heard one person sit down at the opposite side of the bar and the other go to the pool area, apparently meeting up with some friends.

The bartender, who he knew was named Sano, went toward the new guest.

He didn't mind the spiky-haired brunette, one of the reasons he frequented that bar. Also, Sano's pour was heavy, obviously making his drinks strong. He knew that the tall bartender trained by day to become a professional UFC fighter and he also knew that he was good.

"What'll it be, Missy?"

"Bourbon. Neat, please."

He heard Sano make the drink and then a sweet smell hit his nose. He sniffed the air, instantly recognizing the scent.

He looked over at the other end of the bar. It was none other than the young woman he had seen that morning. What were the odds of that?

The small female still wore what she had on earlier that day. Except, she reached over to the back of her hair and pulled on the indigo ribbon, letting her dark strands loose.

"So, what's new with you, Missy?"

"Nothing. Same stuff, just different day."

"I hear ya. And where is that friend of yours? The Fox?"

"Around. I promise that the minute I see her I'll make sure to give her your message." she smiled at him.

He watched them converse, careful to seem that he wasn't paying attention to them. Sano placed his elbows on the bar counter as he leaned on them, getting closer to her. Only faint whispers could be heard from them now.

He couldn't help but glare at the two, getting the distinct feeling that they were talking about him. He briefly wondered if they were involved as something more than barkeep and client.

It was really none of his business and why should he care whether people talked about him or not. So, he went back to look at his glass, his drink almost finished. He drank the last of it and was about to order another but Sano beat him to it as he placed a second double Scotch in front of him.

"Compliments from the lady." Sano told him grinning from ear to ear as he nodded his head toward the woman from that morning.

He looked over at her, meeting her reflective azure eyes. She stood up with her drink and bag in hand and made her way toward him. Their eyes were locked on each other. His gaze didn't leave hers and she didn't drop her line of sight from him. She took a seat next to him and gave him a once over, taking in his appearance.

"You're the guy from the subway this morning, right?"

"Possibly."

She smiled unbelievingly at him, "Possibly? Well, it's not every day you see red-headed, lavender-eyed man."

"Good point." he answered, finding her smile addictive as he grinned back at her.

"You probably thought I was rude. I didn't even thank you."

"There's really no need."

"Nonsense. It's a good thing I bumped into you again or how else could I have shown my appreciation and sincere apology?"

"Just for preventing a fall? I should do this more often." he joked.

She laughed, "You're right. It's a bit exaggerated, isn't it?"

"Maybe. Maybe not. I'm not complaining. It's not every day a gorgeous woman buys a guy a drink."

She playfully glared at him, "Thank you. I'll take the compliment. And I'll also take an apology from you."

"An apology? For what?"

With a sparkle of mischief in her eyes she leaned in close. His muscles involuntarily tensed when he felt her breath feather over his skin as she said, "For following me." The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end.

She leaned back and laughed the second she saw the serious look on his face. "Look if a good looking guy is near, you better believe I noticed, especially if he's as distinct looking as you. I suppose in a weird way it's a compliment that you followed me."

Though her comment momentarily put him on edge, her lightheartedness on the situation oddly put him at ease. Sometimes he had to remind himself that not everyone was like him. He raised an eyebrow, "So in a weird way you like it when strange men follow you?"

She let out a laugh, "The way you say that makes me sound demented. Well, like all women, no, I don't like being followed by any man. But I suppose…"

The way she looked at him, smiling had feeling… something. "Yes?"

"I suppose it's lucky that you're not a crazy stalker. You have no idea how close you were to being maced. "

He laughed at the idea, "Is that so?"

She shrugged, "A girl has to defend herself somehow."

"You're absolutely right."

With a grin, she lightly tilted her head, "So, what's your name?"

He hesitated for a minute, debating whether he wanted to give her his name as he looked into her eyes, continuing to search her ki.

"Kenshin."

"Kenshin?" she extended her hand to him, "It's nice to meet you."

He took her hand and shook it, finding her shake firm, strong but not too empowering. She attempted to pull her hand back but held on a little tighter, "And your name is…?"

She studied him. Her eyes were filled with amusement, looking at him as if they've shared an inside a joke. "I don't think I'll give that quite so easily. I'm not convinced you're not a crazy stalker."

Giving in to the logic of her answer he let her go, "I can't argue with that."

Her eyes went down to look at her cell, checking the time and let out an annoyed groan, "Well, unfortunately, I have to go." she said as she stood up and swung her bag over her head so it can lie across her shoulder. "Maybe we'll run into each other again." She downed the rest of her drink and started making her way out.

If he didn't have something to do, he might have tired persuading her to stay, maybe even convince her to get a hotel room with him. She was by far much more interesting than any women he's been with lately. But since that wasn't the case, he simply watched her leave the bar.

"It seemed like you guys hit it off." Sano said as he approached him.

Kenshin turned to glare at the taller male. He was aware that he listened to at least part of his brief conversation with her. Nonetheless, he didn't like eavesdropping.

Sano held up his hands in defense, "It was totally unintentional." He explained. "But, if you're interested, I can find out a few things about her."

He thought about it, unsure of what he wanted to answer.

OoO