A/N:: As I said before, I was a bit dissatisfied with the ending and so I decided to write an epilogue. I hope you guys enjoy it.
DISCLAIMER: I own nothing.
When Misao awoke on the next day and found Aoshi sleeping on the floor, she didn't know what to do. She wanted to get out of bed but she was afraid that if she did, Aoshi would wake up. She remembered everything about the night before and blushed as she remembered that he held her hand. She quietly turned on her side and stared at the sleeping Aoshi. She looked at the way he breathed, the way that his lips moved, the sound of his light snores. She was so lost in thought that she didn't realize when Aoshi opened his eyes and stared up at her. When Misao finally noticed, she blushed in embarrassment.
Aoshi continued to stare at her and Misao could only blush harder. She pulled the covers upward to cover herself but Aoshi reached out and grabbed them. Misao held her breath and waited to see what he would do. Aoshi smiled slightly and Misao swore she heard her heart hit her rib cage. Aoshi brushed back her hair.
"Don't hide from me anymore." was his simple response.
Misao instinctively covered her face with her hands and smiled. 'That was so romantic'she thought with a fan girl squeal.
She felt his hands around hers and let him pull them away from her face. He gently helped her up from the bed and looked down at her.
"We have a date today….we should get ready, its almost noon."he said.
Misao nodded and brushed off the non-existent dirt off her clothes.
"Let's meet in one hour."she replied and quickly made her way out of his room.
She tried to keep her cool because she could feel Aoshi's eyes boring into her back. She made haste and practically unhinged Aoshi's apartment door in order to make her escaped. Once back in her own apartment, she let out a very typical girly squeal while jumping around. She quickly stopped when the sudden ache of her ankle reminded her to be more careful.
Once Misao was ready, dressed in a simple blue sundress with a pair of blue sandals to match with a nice bun on her head, she stood in front of her door, anxious. She took a deep breath and yanked the door open to find Aoshi standing there, hand raised ready to knock. The blush crept back onto her face and she laughed nervously. Aoshi smiled softly and moved aside to let Misao out. They stood awkwardly in silence until Aoshi suggested that they get started. Misao happily walked along side Aoshi and enjoyed the comfortable silence that they had. It was then that Aoshi slipped his hand into hers. She bit her lip and blushed as she gently squeezed his hand in hers. They made their way to the park, light conversation flowing from them as they passed the scenery. Once in the park, they found the tree where they first met and sat down underneath it.
"Wait here, I'll get us some ice cream."voiced Aoshi as he stood and assured Misao.
watched as the people walked by. She heard the shuffling of feet approach and immediately looked up, expecting to see Aoshi. She sat, surprised to see Soujiro of all people standing before her. He smiled warmly, his eyes scanning her face.
"Misao."
Misao stood and faced him, confused as to why he was here. Soujiro smiled more when she kept silent.
"I saw you when you entered the park. I came to see if we could talk. I know this is going to seem a bit forward but I just want to ask…are you happy?"
Misao met his eyes in surprise. Her thoughts flew to Aoshi and she allowed an endearing smile reach her lips.
"I am. Are you?"
Soujiro smiled fully and nodded.
"We were never made for each other. I'm sorry for what happened. I played you the wrong way and I never meant for things to happen like they did. I really did love you at one point. I'm just sorry that it was short lived."he said and bowed to her.
Misao managed to smile. What she and Soujiro had was special, to her in her way, but special none the less.
"This might be the last time I see you. Yumi and I are going to go far away after our wedding. I'm glad I got to see you you smile for me…once more? I want to have a beautiful memory of you"he asked.
Misao blinked. It was so much like Soujiro to be so forward and straight to the point. He disliked beating around the bush.
Misao smiled and tried to blink away the tears in her eyes. Soujiro smiled and gave a little laugh. He quickly hugged her and kissed her forehead. Misao stood, looking into his eyes. With a final goodbye, he was gone, just as quickly as he had come to her. She stood and watched him walk further and further away from her until she couldn't see him anymore. She was glad that he didn't turn and look back. She wouldn't have been able to have kept her composure. She didn't want to say goodbye because she knew she would never see him again. He was just that kind of guy to never look back. Misao let a small laugh escape her lips and then turned around to search for Aoshi. She managed to see him making his way to her through the crowd. She thanked him as he handed her an ice cream. She noticed it was vanilla, her favorite. She felt the tears come back to her eyes. She felt very happy. She turned to Aoshi saw him occupied with his own chocolate ice cream. She watched silently, looking at his features and the way the wind moved his hair.
"Something on your mind?"he asked, surprising Misao.
She quickly shook her head and smiled. She bit into her ice cream carefully and looked away from Aoshi, trying to hide her blush. They continued to eat their ice cream in comfortable silence. When Misao was done she turned to Aoshi to find him on his back, looking up at the tree.
"To think, that this tree was the thing that started it all."he whispered.
Misao laid down next to him but decided to keep her eyes closed. She rested her hands on her stomach and breathed in the fresh air.
"Every breath I take in is fresh, just like every moment with you Aoshi."she said as she opened her eyes.
She turned her head to look at him and found him already staring at her. She smiled at him and looked up.
"This date is perfect."she voiced and stole a glance at him.
Aoshi didn't move and just kept looking at her. Misao blushed at the intensity. Aoshi reached out and took her hand and squeezed it gently. Misao turned on her side and scooted closer to Aoshi. She leaned in and kissed his cheek. Time froze for a moment for them. Misao knew she was going to love him more than ever before. Their moment of peace was disrupted by a sudden rumbling, followed by light drops of rain. Misao blinked up at the sky in surprise. What had happened to the sun? She guessed her question angered the sky because the rain came down harder. Aoshi quickly stood up and helped Misao to her feet. He grasped her hand and quickly led her away from the tree. He heard Misao yell over the sound of the rain. He stopped and turned to her.
"Lets head home Aoshi! It looks like the rain is going to last a while."she said.
Aoshi continued on, running with Misao to hurry to their building. By the time they made it back, they were thoroughly soaked. They quickly ducked into the building, leaving trails of water everywhere. Aoshi looked at Misao to find her staring at her feet. He looked down and noticed one of her sandals was missing and both her feet were muddy. She suddenly laughed and wiggled her toes. She brushed away her hair and turned to Aoshi. He looked like a model and Misao couldn't help but noticed how his clothes clung to him. Aoshi sighed as he squeezed out some water from his shirt.
"I should have checked the weather."he mumbled as he watched the water drip to the floor.
Misao laid her hand on his arm.
"It was fun."she added and smiled at him. She grabbed his hand and lightly pulled him along.
"We should change before we get sick."
They made their way up and stopped when they reached their apartments. They stood in front of each other not knowing what to do. Misao scratched her head and laughed nervously.
"I feel like a teenager all over aga- AHH!"
Misao reeled back, a hand over her eye and looked at an extremely embarrassed Aoshi. It took only a couple of seconds for Misao to realize what happened. Aoshi tried to spontaneous and romantic and tried to kiss her…but failed horribly and instead his nose poked her eye. However, she couldn't even imagine being mad at him for trying. She smiled despite the pain and wrapped her arms around him and hugged him.
When she pulled away, she stood on her tip toes and lightly brushed her lips against his. He responded to her and wrapped his arms around her to keep her close as possible. The kiss was light, but very passionate to them. They broke apart, hesitantly. Misao quickly opened her door and shyly looked at Aoshi.
"Goodnight Aoshi."
Aoshi smiled, making Misao's heartbeat increase.
"Goodnight Misao."
It was a beautiful Saturday morning. The sun was out and shining, there was no work to go to, and most beautiful of all, there was no noise to disturb Misao's beautiful sleep.
CRASH!!!
Misao instantly cracked an eye open and groaned. She quickly kicked off the covers and ran out into the living room, halting instantly as she saw the many pots and dishes on the floor. Her eyes followed the trail all the way into the kitchen, where she found the culprit. In the middle of the kitchen, stood a two-year old Kenji Himura. Standing right next to the infant was her husband, Aoshi Shinomori, looking quite guilty.
"Whats going on here?"she asked, her hands at her waist.
Aoshi picked up Kenji in his arms before answering his wife. "We were just making breakfast. Kenji accidently opened the bottom drawer and everything flew out."
Misao sighed and rubbed her tired eyes before she made her way to them. Kenji reached out his arms to her and she readily took him in her arms.
"As long as Kenji is unhurt, I guess I can let this slide."
Aoshi raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms over his chest. "You seem unconcerned for me."he stated.
Misao managed to smile before answering, "You can take of yourself."
Aoshi rolled his eyes playfully before leaning down and capturing her pouted lips with his own longing ones. He pulled away and turned back to the stove while Misao put Kenji in his high chair. She ruffled his red hair and smiled. He looked exactly like Kenshin but had Kaoru's fair skin and eyes. Misao couldn't believe that Kenshin and Kaoru already had one child and a second one on the way.
"What time are Himura and Kaoru coming by?"asked Aoshi as he finished making breakfast.
Misao stretched and plopped down in a chair.
"Kaoru said they'd be by in the evening. Their flight lands today around 4pm."
Aoshi nodded and served Misao and Kenji plates. He sat down next to Kenji and began to feed the infant. Misao watched on with a smile. She had gotten married to Aoshi after 5 months of dating. To others it may seemed rushed but to them and their friends and family, it was about time. She never really recovered her memories and that always made her feel guilty. However, Aoshi didn't mind. He was happy to make new memories with her. Misao looked down at her wedding band. They have been married for two years and living in a new house down the street from Sanosuke and Megumi, who also have been married two years.
Misao ate her breakfast quickly, trying to hurry so that she may get started on cleaning. Aoshi checked his watch and sighed. Misao smirked.
"Did Jiya tell you to go into work today?"she asked as she picked up Kenji.
Aoshi nodded and stood. "He needs me for just a couple of hours. One of the chefs wouldn't be able to make it today so Jiya asked me to cover for him. I should get going."
Misao pouted but said nothing. She wanted to spend the day with him but it'd have to wait for a couple of hours. Aoshi ruffled Kenji's hair and kissed Misao goodbye before closing the door behind him. She stared at the door until Kenji lightly tapped her cheek to notify her that he needed to go to the bathroom.
"After this, we're going to the store okay Kenji? Aunt Misao needs to buy something."
Kenji merely nodded. Sometimes it was hard to believe he was only 2 years old. He was intelligent just like Kenshin.
By the time Aoshi made it back home, it was already past noon. Kenji was down for a nap and Misao was in the living room watching television. She smiled her precious smile for him and he felt his cheeks warm. She always had that effect on him. He sat down next to her on the couch and laid his head on her small shoulder. She reached out and stroked his face, soothing him.
"Are you hungry?"she asked, to which he shook his head.
"I ate already. Are you tired?"he asked.
Misao nodded her head. "Cleaning always makes me tired."she said and giggled.
Aoshi slowly stood and made his way to their room to change. He came back a few minutes later carrying Kenji, who had just woken up. The three of them sat on the couch, watching shows until they heard a soft knock at the door. Misao quickly opened it and came face to face with Kaoru. They exchanged over excited greetings before Aoshi showed up next to Misao with Kenji and his belongings. Kenshin eagerly took his son into his arms.
"Thanks again for looking after Kenji while we were away." said Kaoru.
"No problem. You know we love him very much. We just wished he didn't have to go so soon."replied Misao.
"We'll come visit this coming weekend. Thanks again."answered Kaoru and with that, they were gone, leaving Misao and Aoshi alone.
Misao stood still as Aoshi snaked his arms around her and pulled her to his chest. Misao relaxed and turned to face him. She searched his face and quickly kissed him, to which he responded. When they pulled away, they were somehow on the couch. Misao continued to stare at Aoshi and he knew that something was on her mind. He pulled her close to him and looked into her eyes.
"Something is on your mind…tell me."
Misao couldn't help the smile that spread across her lips.
"You have to guess."she said teasingly.
Aoshi smirked and in a flash, flipped their position so that Misao was now lying underneath him and he hovered above her. He bent down and gave her soft kisses on her eyelids.
"Good or bad?"he asked.
Misao giggled, "Good. Very good."
Aoshi continued his assault.
"Hmmm…Is it that you love me so much that you decided to never look at another man as long as you live?"he teased.
Misao laughed and nodded. "I thought I covered this in my wedding vows?"
Aoshi smirked and softly kissed her neck, which caused Misao to laugh more. He mumbled into her skin and she pulled away.
"Must I keep guessing?"he asked.
Misao bit her lip for a second and then she wrapped her arms around her husband and whispered into his ear, "Aoshi…I'm pregnant."
She pulled back to look at him and saw that Aoshi was frozen still.
Misao giggled at his reaction. They had been trying to have children for about two months now. She had started feeling sick a month ago and she finally had finally taken three pregnancy tests while he was at work. She confirmed that she was now pregnant. She waved her hand in front of Aoshi's face, when he suddenly caught it within his grasp. He stared at Misao seriously.
"When did you find out?"he asked.
"Today."she replied to him.
"How far along?"
"Maybe a month."
Aoshi couldn't help the smile that graced his lips nor the light in his eyes. He pulled Misao into a powerful kiss that left her breathless. She felt her eyes fill with tears because she was so happy. She felt Aoshi tightened his arms around her. She wrapped her arms around him and slumped against his chest. She was finally living a new life with Aoshi and she couldn't ask for more. Misao stopped her enjoyment and suddenly pushed away from Aoshi. She quickly stood but it was too late, she ended up throwing up on the tile floor. She stared at the defiled floor and then looked at Aoshi who sat on the couch just looking at her. She immediately glared at him and sniffed.
"I hate you Aoshi Shinomori….LOOK WHAT YOU MADE ME DO!!"she wailed.
Aoshi groaned. He forgot that pregnant women had raging hormones. He felt the full onslaught of a cushion hit his head and groaned once more. Damn hormones were going to kill him ,but for Misao, he'd gladly endure it. Another hit to the head and Aoshi sighed.
A/N:: The End.