-- Chapter One – Be Brave!

Disclaimer: You should know this by now, but, for those of you who haven't yet figured it out: the only thing I own is the plot, and even that sucks arse. Sob

Tohru Honda stepped shyly into the dimly lit shop, jumping when the bell chimed overhead, signaling her entrance. Almost instantly, Ayame Sohma burst into view, beaming with excitement at the very idea of another customer. "TOHRU! What a lovely surprise!" She giggled at his enthusiasm, wishing she could hug this man who was the answer to her sudden problem.

"Ayame-san, I need your and Miine's help! Please!" She wasn't used to asking for help, so she didn't know if she had done it correctly or not, but she prayed that she had. She was desperate!

"Ah, darling Tohru! Of course we shall help you! Miine!" The woman's head peeked out from behind a curtain in the back, probably where she sewed. "Yes?"

"Tohru needs our help!" crowed Ayame. Miine clapped her hands in childish delight, before snagging Tohru's hand and pulling her along, diving happily among the many racks of dresses. "What do you need a dress for, Miss Honda?" she asked, absently handing a crimson dancing dress to Ayame, who was following them.

"P-prom. I want to impress Yu—someone," she stammered, just barely managing to catch her slip, but not soon enough, for Ayame soon burst out with: "My darling little brother will absolutely FAINT when he sees you once we are finished!"

"But…but!" But the two were now as excited as children who had just been informed that they could buy any toy that they wanted, dragging her along after them as they picked out dozens of outfits.

'What did I do?' Tohru asked herself, rubbing at the headache brewing between her eyes an hour later. She was sitting on the floor, looking over various designs with Ayame and Miine, bolts and swatches of fabric everywhere.

"I like this one," she finally said, pointing rather shyly at a simple design. Shy glanced timidly at the two adults who stared at her for a moment, then grinned and started shoving fabric at her next.

…Two days later…

Tohru was stirring a pot of soup on the oven for supper when a sudden noise from behind had her jumping in fright and whirling around, spoon at the ready. Her eyes widen, though, when she only saw Yuki standing behind her, blinking in surprise at her sudden movement. "Oh, Yuki-kun, you scared me!" Blushing furiously, she whirled back around, willing her heart to still, and not just from surprise.

"I'm sorry, Miss Honda. I thought you heard me come in." The laughter in his voice made her cheeks darken even more in embarrassment. He was still grinning when he came to stand beside her, sniffing curiously at the soup before giving a little chuckle of approval. "Nice job, Honda-san. Kyo will have a fit!" he told her.

"Eh?"

"The leaks."

"OHMIGOD I FORGOT!" Panicking, she reached out to lift the pot off the stove, but burned her palms, giving a little whimper of pain as she cradled both hands against the cool material of her shirt. Yuki was instantly alarmed, and it didn't help when she wouldn't show him her hands, telling him repeatedly that she was fine, not to worry about her. "Tohru-chan, let me see!" he finally yelled at her, exasperated and worried sick.

She was so startled by his change of address that she instantly relaxed, allowing him to take and inspect her palms gently. "Come on," he told her, gently gripping her wrist and pulling her upstairs to the bathroom with him, digging around one-handedly for bandages and aloe-vera gel to ease the burn. Once her palms were taken care of, he made to leave when he felt a shy tug on his sleeve. Turning around to face Tohru once more, he looked down at her questioningly.

"Yuki-san, can you…that is, do you…um…never mind," she stammered out, trying to slide past him, but his arm stopped her, instead gently guiding her back in front of him.

"Do I what?"

"Um…dance," she whispered, seeming intent on memorizing the tile pattern of the floor.

"Yes, actually." She was so startled by him giving her an answer that her head snapped up, staring at him.

"You do?" He nodded, a smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "Then will you go to the prom with me?" She refused to let herself back out, ignoring the fear of rejection that had bile rising to the back of her throat. She also refused to let all of Ayame-san's and Miine-san's hard work on her dress go to waste. She was so anxious to hear his answer that she didn't realize that she had stopped breathing until she heard Yuki yelling at her.

Tohru suddenly noticed that she was lying on her back on the cool tile floor, Yuki kneeling over her, concern darkening his eyes. "Honda-san! Breathe! Come on, in, out, in, out!" She gave a little gasp, gulping in air like a fish out of water, horrified at herself. "I'm all right," she told Yuki, one hand clutching her chest, the other unwittingly resting on Yuki's, which lay limp on the floor beside her.

After a few minutes, they both calmed down, Yuki helping Tohru to her feet and following her down to the kitchen, "just in case," he said. But before she ducked through the kitchen doorway to finish dinner, which was probably burnt by now, she glanced up at him, managing to mutter, "Will you, please, consider it, Sohma-san?"

He gave a little nod before disappearing back upstairs.