A Week After

The three men silently stood side by side by the door. They came from a Japanese restaurant nearby and just peacefully had their breakfast.

“Man, this creeps me out.” Umi touched the wall while staring at the view in front of them.

“What happened? It’s not like that a while ago, neh?” Yuuki asked while slightly pulling the blue-haired man’s shirt.

“How would I know?” He replied annoyed while pulling the vocalist’s hand from his clothing. “What do you think, Bara?”

Bara had his keen, sharp eyes fixed on the matter as well.

“I have no idea.”

Xxx

Apparently, what lay in front of the trio is nothing less than Kei’s usual twisted sleeping form in the sofa, and Uruha. The blonde-haired person was sitting smugly on the other seat with feet elevated to the table next to him, and was laughing gloriously and elegantly… hard.

The boys were easily worried as hell, but none had the courage to approach.

“He doesn’t usually watch t.v. here before, right?” Umi coolly asked.

“He never touched it.” Bara declared.

“Look! The psp’s all forgotten!” Yuuki pointed at Uruha’s favorite toy, which barely showed from the messed up contents of his bag.

Suddenly, Uruha’s ringtone rang. They thought he would not answer it, for that’s what he usually does whenever he is busy doing something else, but this time…

xxx

“Moshi moshi.” He even lowered down the volume of the television.

The three observers looked at each other.

“Nande? Who told you to change it?” He said to the person in the other side of the line.

“No way. Do it again.” He said with a firm voice. Then he put a finger at the mouthpiece and began softly giggling away.

“Sou ka? Macaroni then.” He pouted as if to think before saying the word “macaroni” in his usual, kawaii Uruha English.

“Okay. Don’t be late.” He said the words in such a cold manner yet his face is beaming in delight. “Jya ne.”

After he hung up, Umi pushed Yuuki and the three began walking inside. Uruha straightened up and looked away embarrassedly, as he if he was caught in the act of doing something illegal.

“Say, what’s up with the call? You’re pretty cruel, huh? You do not have to make us lonely single-men any more envious.” Umi teased as he jumped at the space beside the other guitarist and swung an arm upon his shoulder.

“You don’t need to know.” He pulled away.

“Ah, of course we do not need to know. Married couples have a lot to talk only among themselves, neh?”

Yuuki pulled closer and looked curiously at the two men. Although unsaid, there is almost an electric current forming between the two’s faces. Bara pulled the kodomo away.

Then Uruha sighed, “She’s coming to bring me lunch. Satisfied?”

“Ah, I see!” Umi happily stood up. “I wonder how her cooking tastes like. I can’t wait to try that!” He said heart-eyedly.

“She’s only bringing a bento for one. I’ll tell her to bring you some next time.” Then he snobbishly walked away.

Yuuki pouted at Uruha’s blow. Bara tapped Umi by the shoulder and before he approached his guitar, “It’s no use. Let’s get moving.”

“Argh! That merciless freak.” She frowned as she sadly put aside the sushi rolls she made. “Demo…”

That morning, when she came to the store to buy ingredients for the spaghetti Uruha wanted, she found out that the store she usually buy in ran out of pasta. However, just then, she randomly won an in-store raffle and got to bring home a fresh and huge salmon for free. Although she already knew that the man does not like Japanese food, she thought that he should try her homemade sushi at least once for she used to work at a sushi restaurant and that was her specialty.

“I should have seen this coming.” She sighed as she wore her coat and began preparing to go outside again. “Why is he asking for a bento if he wants spaghetti anyway?! There is even an Italian restaurant nearby the studio. Plus, he knows that I am not good in western cooking, and… Yeah, of course. This is the sadistic Uruha we’re talking about.”

So she proceeded to go back to the marketplace to buy the food he wanted.

“Macaroni, eh?” She saw the packs of macaroni, but she cannot decide whether to buy it or not. “Damn. I don’t even know what to cook with this. Maybe I should get some cookbook first.” She went outside and walked towards the other street where the bookstore is.

Upon arrival, she easily noticed the teeming crowd of people around the shop just beside the bookstore. “What? 70% off in all items? Honto?”

She scowled as she tried to squeeze herself among the people. However, the owner suddenly opened the other door of the store, and the multitude immediately rushed in. She almost got dragged and had her foot stomped, so in the end she used her remaining energy to get herself out of the commotion.

“What the hell. I almost got crushed.” She exhaustedly sat in the public bench nearby and sighed while rubbing her bruised arm.

“That was quite dangerous.” A man said while sitting beside her.

“Yeah.” She replied. Then she recognized the voice and immediately turned to its direction. “You?”

“Huh?” The brown-haired boy with pleasingly delicate features looked at her as well. “Amaya-chan!”

PnSC studio. 12:43pm.

“Hey Uruha-san! Maybe she got stuck in traffic or something. How about you eat a little of this first?” Yuuki offered the only person in the place who is not eating.

“Iie. I’m fine. Thanks anyway.” Uruha said while plucking his black guitar. I wonder what’s taking her so long.

Soon, Tohru arrived running. She exhaustedly gasped before putting down her huge backpack.

“Oi, I told you to not be late.” The husband said while standing up.

“I got left by the train so I took… the taxi, but there’s drilling nearby and the traffic is not moving at all… so I ran all the way here.” She said in between breaths.

“I see.”

“Gomen. You must be really hungry now.” She handed out the bento box she brought for him.

“No. Just a bit.” He said while taking it.

xxx

While the two are talking in the sofa, Umi glanced towards them.

He saw Uruha smiling sweetly while opening the stacked plastic ware and Tohru talking a lot despite being weary. He quickly bit a huge portion of meat in annoyance and ended up choking.

“Don’t eat so hastily Umi-san!” Yuu said while giving him a glass of water.

“It’s not because- Why is that meat so hard anyway?” He complained while cleaning up his wet face with a tissue.

“Stop complaining. The manager treated us to this out of kindness. I guess it was just tad… undercooked.” Bara said while having a hard time cutting the piece of steak on his plate.

“Damn. I should have announced in my blog that we’re in here right now. The fans’ cooking is way better.”

“Don’t be like that Umi-san. The fans might think you’re living off their goodwill.” Yuuki reprimanded him.

“What’s wrong with that? It’s not like I’m asking them for it.”

Then Kei chuckled a little and moved his eyes toward the pair on the other side of the room. “They’re not so sweet to each other, but they look cute, neh?”

“Yeah. It’s not even like they are married already, but it seems that Uruha really likes her.”

“Baka. Why would he marry someone he does not like, anyway? Although it’s hard to imagine Uruha, falling for such a girl…” Umi’s voice weakened as he thought about Tohru.

She is not even that beautiful, and her personality is not really exceptional, but why is it that somehow I feel that I might be seeing whatever Uruha saw in her to like her like this… as well?

Xxx

“Ah, chotto matte Uruha-san.” Tohru stood up and began walking towards the table where the other men sat. Uruha didn’t turn back, but his eyes followed her before she disappeared from his sight.

“Hi minna!” She gladly approached the four.

“Hello Amaya-san!” Kei cheerfully replied while even waving a fork in the air. The others politely smiled at the girl as well.

“Ano… Actually, I brought some food for you too, but I’m not sure if you’ll like it though.”

“Eh? Really?”

“Well, I forgot that Uruha doesn’t like Japanese food, but since I already made this… but if you don’t want to it’s okay with me.”

“I want that.” Umi said while putting down his fork.

“Yeah, me too!” Yuuki excitedly said.

“Really?” Then she pulled out the other bento box from her bag. “It’s salmon sushi. It’s not really that much, but I hope you like it anyway.”

Then the four men began digging in.

“Sugoi…”

“Oishii!”

“Yeah, it is.”

“This tastes almost like my mom’s.”

Tohru blushingly smiled and shyly scratched her head at the men’s praises.

“Oi Urupon! You’re missing half of your life if you don’t try this.” Umi said to the man at the sofa.

“I don’t want that.” He rolled his eyes before he stood up and put down his empty bento in the table. “I’m done eating.”

After that, he proceeded to walk out of the room. Tohru felt bad.

Have I done something wrong?

When the door slammed shut, Tohru picked up her backpack and followed him outside.

“That ba-“ Bara pulled him down before he could stand up.

“Leave them alone.”

Outside

What is she thinking? I told her to bring me a bento, not them. Such simple directions…

Is she pissing me on purpose?

Uruha kicked a can before he angrily sat in the long bench under the shade of a huge tree just outside the fire exit.

Right then Tohru arrived. “Oi… What’s the matter with you now?”

“Nothing. Just go back. I’m going to take a nap here.”

“Ehhh… Isn’t it much comfortable inside?”

Then Uruha lay himself at the lengthy furniture before the girl could take a seat. “There’s no space for you here.”

She giggled at his childishness. “Yeah, I know. You always never leave space for me anyway.” Then she sat on her knees beside him. “But see, I’m still always around you. Shouldn’t you be nicer to me?” She pouted.

Uruha turned to face her. “You’re just around me because you need to. What’s to appreciate in that?”

“Is that what you’re thinking all this time?”

He didn’t answer and closed his eyes instead.

“Hey… If you’re thinking that the reason I made you lunch is only because I won the bet…” She paused when she noticed him open an eye.

“What?” He seriously asked while staring intensely at her.

“…of course it is not.”

He closed his eyes again and smiled. “Then why?”

“Because… I’m not like that! I’m dedicated to my job! Even if I did not win, I’d still follow my employer’s orders with all my heart!” She said with flames blazing in her eyes.

Uruha’s upper lip twitched to the right. “Baka.” How can a person be so simple-minded?

Then he sat up and smiled before messing up her hair.

“What- Stop!”

“Let’s go in. I have a lot more to do.” He pulled her by the arm and began walking inside.

After that, The Galaxy resumed practicing and recording their songs while Tohru watched in the sidelines. She also helped them out at times and brought them drinks once in a while.

However, in the middle of their work she fell into a deep sleep. She has been running around the whole day, anyway.

In Uruha’s House

When she woke up, the first thing that met her eyes is the face of Uruha. So close, perhaps, that she immediately jerked into awareness as the image vanished with her immediately forgotten dream.

She explored her eyes around and realized that she was at home. “Of course, that could only be a dream.”

Then she stood up and approached the fridge to get some water. While walking from the kitchen to the living room, she noticed the blonde-haired guitarist smoking in his usual pose by the balcony. She blushed as she approached the picturesque sight. Upon looking closer, it seems that he just had a shower as his hair is partially wet, and the white, flowing outfit that he wore is clumsily hanging on his lean, tall body.

“So you’re awake.” He greeted the coming person.

“Yeah. Sorry, I fell asleep in the midst of it… again.” She embarrassedly apologized while scratching her chin.

“It happens a lot it’s not surprising anymore.”

“Actually, I’m not really like this before. I’m also wondering why I became such a heavy-sleeper nowadays.”

“I don’t really mind you sleeping around as long as you don’t get in my way… but at least do not sleep in the public too much. It gets me into trouble, you know.”

“Huh? I am just sleeping. Everybody sleeps anyway. What trouble could that give you?” She reasoned out.

Then Uruha flushed and immediately looked away. “Whatever. Just do as I told you next time.”

She frowned at his rigid orders. “What sort of thing happened while I am asleep?”

The man just continued smoking and did not reply.

“Hey!”

“It’s not really that important. I convinced them in the end, anyway.” His hand nervously shook as he put the white stick to his mouth.

“Convinced of what? Hey, I’m getting really curious now.” She smiled as she pulled closer and looked intently at the man.

He turned his back from her before saying,

“I already told you it’s not really important. Those scamps love getting to all sorts of conclusions."

"Just tell me anyway. You already started it!"

"You see..." He breathed in a little before continuing, "...they thought you might be pregnant. You have no idea how much of a hard time that gave me."

“Eh?!” She blushed the deepest shade of red yet as she moved a bit away from the guitarist. She could not even say more.

Then Uruha turned to glimpse at her and laughed. “Your face is all red. Is what I said that exciting?” He teased.

“Not at all. I mean… Demo… What did you tell them?”

“I said you just had a check-up and the result is still negative. If I say otherwise they might get suspicious.”

She swallowed the lump on her throat. “Yeah, of course.”

xxx

Time passed by and neither of the two said a thing to the other.

As she was shyly looking downwards and nervously playing with her fingers, the man who was all that time looking at her approached her and suddenly pulled her to him. Her eyes opened wide.

“Nande?” She tried to squeeze herself out of his hold.

“Don’t you like it when I hug you?”

She stayed silent for a bit before calming down and replying, “Not that I don’t… but it isn’t right, is it?”

“Not right?”

“Yeah we’re married, but it’s not like you married me because we’re in love, neh?”

“So we’re not in love?”

“Well… You’re not in love with me, are you?”

“Answer my question first. Do you not like it when I hug you... like this?” His voice lowered to a sad tone. That same voice she heard the night he mistook her as his mom.

“Actually… You did this lots of times already that I got used to it. Even though it feels good, I know it is not because you like me or anything. So I guess-”

“Do you not like me?”

She felt his large, slim hands gently touch her cheek. When she raised her eyes, she saw an unusual serene look on his handsome face.

Before she could think about it, her mouth parted open to answer, “Of course I like you.”

Right then he bent down to lightly press his full, rosy lips with hers.

Xxx

Quite a long chapter, neh?

I thought I could not make it. When I was typing this down I was like, “Confess already! C’mon Urupon!”, but he just cannot do it. (Rather, I cannot make him do it. XP)

Well, he finally did it in the end anyway. ^_^

Also, gomen for taking me quite some time to upload this. Lots of unexpected stuff came up, and I even caught a cold and had to sleep all the time like Tohru. But my hand was aching to type the ideas in my head so eventually, I gave in. I hope you liked this chappie, and please review!

Love lots! *sniff