::: Drinks For Two :::
by
- GlazedAndConfused -
DISCLAIMER
I don't own Love Hina. Akamatsu-sama still has the rights to the manga and the anime.
"As if the night couldn't get any worse..." sighed Mitsune "Kitsune" Konno as she downed her umpteenth shot of saké that night. The bar she so often frequented was your typical dive, the smell of stale cigarette smoke hanging in the air as the raucous laughter of men who - to be polite to them - had their brains between their legs once again rang through the relatively large confines. None of this - nor the burning sensation of the spirit travelling down her throat - registered in the fox-eyed lady's mind as she grabbed the bottle that sat in front of her and poured herself another shot, albeit rather shakily. This was the only way she knew how to dull out the humiliation and pain she had suffered from being dumped by another man who saw her as nothing but a promiscuous sex toy.
"Pfft, as if it was going to last anyway..." the sandy blonde dismissed, downing another shot of saké and brushing stray strands of her hair behind her ears. She should have been used to this anyway; guys only ever came and went, seeing her as the town bike. A lady of leisure she may have been, but even she would have loved to be seen as a girl to take home to their parents, rather than just a girl who's there for a good time.
Just for once, she would love to be in a stable, loving relationship.
Every other girl in Hinata was seemingly entitled to one, so why wasn't she? It wasn't as if she was lacking in the ammunition either; she knew there was more to her than just her impressive bust and mature, defined features. They were happy, surely she should be entitled to just a bit of happiness?
It was then her mind flashed back to the one man who saw her as more than a good night out. Seta Noriyasu. The one man she loved more than any she had ever been with, and that really was saying something. He was handsome, kind, mature... also somewhat oblivious, but that just added to his charm. It was just a shame that he would never see her as anything more than a good friend. It was also a shame that Naru just had to fall for him too. It wasn't fair! The one man she thought she had a chance of being swept off her feet by, and her best friend chose to declare her love for him too! That day felt like she had been hit in the heart by a sledgehammer, non-stop.
At least drinking gave her an escape from all this loneliness she endured when she saw happy couples showing everyone how much they loved each other. It dulled her senses to the point where she easily fell into a blissful oblivion, her mind and self free from anything else except the effects of the alcohol. If only it lasted all the time, then she'd be a happy woman.
"Still..." Kitsune sighed again, picking up the bottle and staring deep into the clear depths of the alcoholic fluid before taking a large swig straight from the bottle, "at least I know you'll be here for me all this time. More than any... man," she spat the last word with a significant amount of hatred, not likely to forget what happened to her tonight. "I never learn, do I?" Putting the bottle down, she noticed as she stood up that her co-ordination was slowly starting to be replaced by the all-too-familiar sensation of dizziness. Alas, the downward spiral has begun... Kitsune thought, but at least I'll feel a lot better for it tonight. With that decision firmly planted in her mind, she chose to sit down and keep drinking herself into obliviousness.
At least, she was about to until she felt a gentle, smooth hand on her own. Upon looking up, she saw that the hand was that of the resident lily and the third of the Toudai aspirants, Mutsumi Otohime.
"Ara..." Mutsumi spoke with the softness of velvet, "Kitsune-san... is this seat taken?"
"...knock yourself out, Mutsumi-san." Kitsune turned back to the bottle. "What are you doing here anyway?"
"I followed you after we saw the argument you had with Kenji. Are you okay?"
"Yeah, couldn't be better..." the fox-eyed lady sarcastically replied. "Everything's hunky-dory now that I have the only thing that doesn't see me as anything less than a night in the sack."
Mutsumi frowned, taking a seat beside her friend. Even the normally optimistic Okinawan had to agree that Kitsune looked, for a better word, dishevelled. Her eyes were bloodshot, and her normally silky hair messy. She knew that things between Kitsune and her recent boyfriend was rocky, but not to the extent that she would immediately start drinking to block out all traces of everything that transpired between the two. Naturally, she was concerned; it wasn't good to see her drinking away like this.
"Kitsune-san... tell me what happened." Mutsumi spoke again. "Please?"
The vixen sighed, putting the bottle down. "Bastard said that he was only ever interested in me for my body, as has every other guy I ever liked other than Seta, and that's pretty much it..."
The Okinawan closed her eyes pensively, shaking her head slightly. She had an idea that Kenji wasn't exactly the type to commit himself to anything long-term, but she didn't have any idea that he would be the type to just love her and leave her the moment he'd gotten what he wanted out of her. "So he wasn't the right type for you after all?"
"Nup. He was even ashamed to take me to his parents, too."
Mutsumi's eyes widened. "He thought that little of you?"
Kitsune drew circles in small puddles of spilt liquor with her little finger. "Seems that way, yeah." She sighed again. "Y'know... I wouldn't mind sex if they actually loved me, I honestly wouldn't. But all I ever seem to be to guys is nothing but a cheap lay. Not that they ever complain though... the scumbags love it."
The Okinawan placed a gentle hand on that of the fox-eyed lady. "But... men should see you for who you are --"
"Yeah, the town bike, whom every guy gets a ride off."
"-- a kind person, one who's good to have a laugh with --"
"My idea of which always seems to be picking out crappy horses and getting pissed all the time."
"-- a good listener, and a good overall person."
"Meh."
Mutsumi stared into Kitsune's squinted eyes, sensing the overall depression in her tone. It pained her to see a good friend like this, wallowing away in booze to help eradicate her self-pity.
"While we're here, would you like a drink, Kitsune-san?"
"May aswell... not got anything else to do," Kitsune replied, resting her chin in her hand.
Mutsumi turned to the counter and poured herself and Kitsune a shot of saké each, handing the shot glass to her tipsy friend. Taking note as Kitsune downed the shot she was given, plus another shot she poured more or less immediately afterwards. A few moments passed in which the only sounds resonating through the confines of the bar were the chinking of glasses and loud conversation. The Okinawan slowly took her shot of saké, analysing her fox-eyed companion as she did so; the latter, unaware to her, was doing the same despite her slightly intoxicated state. She observed the warm, comforting, chocolate brown orbs of the lady sat next to her. Years of experience in observing and reading people's emotions was enough to obtain her a PhD in human psychology.
"So, Mutsumi-san..." Kitsune spoke, knowing full well that the conversation was about to take it's current route anyway, "what do you think of Keitaro?"
A faint blush adorned Mutsumi's cheeks, a slight smile spreading across her cheeks as she placed her fingertips on her lips. "He's kind... gentle... compassionate, thoughtful..."
"Yeah, I guess he is..." Kitsune enthused. "He is pretty sweet, isn't he." She turned to Mutsumi, a slight grin on her face. "If it weren't for the fact that he was so hung-up on Naru, I think you two would make quite the perfect couple..." In more ways than one, indeed, she mused.
The blush became fiercer. "Ara... he does have a crush on Naru-san, doesn't he?" She smiled gently. "But I think that you two would make a nice couple, too..."
Kitsune shook her head. "Nahhh... you're jesting."
"I'm not. He could be the man you're looking for."
The fox-eyed lady scratched her chin, hiding the shudder that rippled down her spine as a slight sense of unease entered her system at those words. Not that he'd ever see much in me anyway... "Now that you put it that way... he is loving. He certainly knows how to treat a lady..." A wicked grin spread across her face as a new thought entered his mind. "...and if he was that way inclined, I could well show him the ropes."
Mutsumi chuckled gently. "I never thought of it like that."
"Don't suppose you would have."
The Okinawan's face took a wistful expression. "I love Kei-kun."
"You do?" Kitsune asked.
Mutsumi nodded. "Yes," she spoke with genuine sincerity, "but I do not think he would ever want to be with me... but that is okay, if he is happy with Narusegawa-san, then that's all that matters to me. As much as I love him, I would rather see him happier with the person he loves."
"Bet it comes as a bit of a shock when she does nothing but belt him left, right and centre though, eh?"
Mutsumi frowned. "Kei-kun can't help it if he's clumsy though..."
"I know, I know. Girl needs to get a hold of her temper before she kills the big lug one of these days. Didn't help that he didn't make too good an impression on us when he came here though I suppose..."
Mutsumi, tilting her head to the side slightly, was intrigued. "Ara, what happened?"
Kitsune downed another shot of saké before starting on her monologue. "Well, Naru first found him in the hot spring... naked... then she chased him off, and he was running around without any clothes on, that kind of thing... after shocking the living daylights out of poor little Shinobu, and dodging near death from one of Su's... inventions, we eventually chased him to the roof. Turns out the poor sap didn't even know that Hinata Sou was an all girls' dorm rather than a hotel anymore. Of course, Naru and Motoko didn't bother to hear his side of the story and kicked his butt left, right and centre."
"Oh my..." Mutsumi covered her mouth with her hand.
"Then Haruka turned up. Which was just as well, as he probably would have been a eunuch by now if Naru and Motoko had their way," Kitsune spoke with a slight drunken giggle. "So, he and Haruka both made up that he was a Toudai student an' all that, and like fools we believed him and let him stay - after all, it wasn't every day you came across someone you know who was related to someone who went to Toudai, is it?"
"No, I suppose not..."
"So yeah, we let him stay and treated him like one of us, except for Motoko and Naru of course who were watching his every move, Shinobu let him help her with her homework, stuff like that... only thing is, it turned out a day later that he wasn't a Toudai student after all; he'd been stringing us along. Then we made him leave... then later the same day, he has the gall to come back and let us know that Granny Hina had made him the landlord! How unbelievable was that?" She paused in her monologue for a moment to take another shot of saké. "So from then on, we made his life a living hell... we ostracised him, restricting him to having a cup of ramen for his supper, not letting him sit at the same table as us; hell, we even overworked him to the point where eventually he would have to leave, but he didn't... that's when we kind of took to him I guess; no normal man would have stayed for that long. But then again he did have his moments... he did fall in on us on the bath and peeping on us, the little hentai..." Another slight giggle. "Then he and Naru started to get a bit closer... when she wasn't belting him like a baseball, that is. Must've been all the studying they did together... but anyway, they both failed the entrance exam, and they both even went travelling together..."
Mutsumi smiled wistfully. "Ara... that's where I met Naru-san and Kei-kun..." She put her fingertips to her lips as she recalled the night she and Keitaro shared their first kiss on the beach in Okinawa. A starry night. The two of them alone around a campfire. Mutsumi removing the kanrinin's glasses. Leaning in for a kiss, salty grains of sand on her lips. Another small blush appeared on her face as she reminisced.
A few more minutes of silence passed between the two, during which Kitsune downed two more shots of saké before taking the bottle, staring once again into the depths of the liquor. "Keitaro reminds me a lot of Seta, y'know..." the fox-eyed lady reminisced, drunkenly.
The frail lady inclined her head slightly sideways. "Oh? How so?"
Kitsune smiled slightly. "I dunno... it's the glasses for a start. He's changed ever since he's come back from America... if he never reminded me of Seta before, he certainly does now. It's also his clumsiness... Seta was never that clumsy, but he was pretty darn goofy..." she trailed off in a slight giggle. "But that only added to how charming he really was..." her smile dropped, "no wonder Naru loved him so much, he was probably the only guy who would never have liked a girl for her body. He was the only man I ever truly loved... I even fancied my chances until Naru came onto the scene and declared to me that she loved him too. Being the good Samaritan, I stepped aside and let her take her prize, as I always did whenever there was a guy I fancied..." Her face unconsciously adopted a scowl as she trailed off. "But I'd much rather have lost Seta than Naru's friendship... I might not have approved, but it was our friendship that was more important." She looked out the window to one of the many street lamps. "If only one of those guys I liked took notice of me and not Naru for a change... she has the looks, the brains... what do I have? Nothin'!"
Mutsumi nodded. "You have the personality."
"Fat chance if anybody actually notices it."
"They do, maybe you just don't acknowledge that."
"They don't..." Kitsune drawled tipsily, waving her hand dismissively. "What's so good about me?"
"Ara, if I dare say, you are quite a beautiful young woman," Mutsumi commented with a slight tint of red on her cheeks. "Like I said before... you're a good listener. You know how to have a good time. You're generally good to be around... no wonder Kei-kun's spoken highly of you before."
Kitsune's stomach dropped the second time that night, as the guilt of her previous antics in which the kanrinin was the victim caught up with her. "But... I've done bad things to him in the past. I've avoided paying rent, conned him for saké money... how could he speak highly of me, of all people?"
"He's forgiven you for all you've done. You may not know it, but he'd actually rather you kept the party-girl personality... he doesn't know where you'd be without it."
Kitsune frowned, regret and a small hit of self-loathing visible on her face. "How he can forgive me after all I've done, I'll never know..." she spoke ruefully.
"That's just Kei-kun for you," Mutsumi smiled enthusiastically. "Come on, Kitsune-san, let's get you back to Hinata Sou before you drink any more... everyone's worried sick about you."
"M'kay..." she slowly rose, her legs wobbling as her head tried to adjust to standing up.
"Do you need any help walking?" Mutsumi enquired with some concern as the two slowly made their way through the front door and onto the street.
"Nahhhh... I'll be fine, trust me; I've made my way back before..." the fox-eyed lady replied as she got her co-ordination back and started to walk in a straight line. Or, at least, that's what she thought she was doing before she nearly fell into one of the side alleys outside the bar, had it not been for Mutsumi grabbing her by the arm and pulling her back - with surprising strength on her part. This strength was enough to send Kitsune colliding into the Okinawan woman, not enough to knock them over but enough to place each other in an inadvertent embrace. Considering the odd circumstances in which they ended up in this embrace, it was surprising for both of them to realise just how comforting it really was.
It also came as a surprise for both of them to notice how close in proximity their faces were to each other. Upon noticing this, Kitsune's eyes widened slightly, her heart slowly starting to race, but strangely found herself unable to tear herself away from such a close proximity. Whether it was down to her inebriated state or not, she didn't know.
"K-Kitsune-san..."
"Y'know, Mutsumi-san..." Kitsune drawled, "you have beautiful eyes. Has Keitaro ever told you that before?"
"No, he hasn't."
Without so much as a warning, the shapely vixen - unable to tear herself away from her gazing into the Okinawan's deep, brown orbs eyes - suddenly closed the gap between her face and her companion's in the form of a kiss. Mutsumi was either too shocked by the sudden action to move, or - more unlikely - was enjoying the kiss herself, but either way, she made no effort to detach herself from the fox-eyed woman's liplock. Was it drunkenness? Most likely. Was it affection? Maybe; she hoped she had reassured Kitsune's worries and self-doubts by lending her a friendly ear. Was it an unspoken attraction to the Okinawan? Probably not. But still, she found herself unable to move away, by choice or by circumstance.
"Mmmm..." came a low moan from Kitsune as she prodded at the frail woman's lips with her tongue, a move which Mutsumi unconsciously reacted to by opening her mouth. This continued for a few moments until Kitsune - even in her drunken state - realised what she was doing; upon doing so, her eyes widened and she flew back, almost falling back into the alley. Despite reaslising what she did, she felt a sense of regret at breaking the kiss off so abruptly; not just because of not wanting to hurt the Okinawan's feelings, but also because she felt a sense of warmth and security after initiating the rather intimate move. Maybe tonight isn't so bad after all... Kitsune absently thought.
"Ara... Kitsune-san..." Mutsumi placed her fingertips on her lips, a heavy blush spreading across her face.
"Ahaha..." Kitsune laughed giddily, averting her gaze from that of Mutsumi's. "Sorry about that, I guess."
"I-It's okay..."
The two remained then silent, choosing to simply make their way back home without saying a word, Mutsumi supporting Kitsune with her arm around her waist.
Back at Hinata Sou...
The rest of the tenants were stood by the door, waiting for the watermelon woman and the resident party girl to arrive back home. Naru and Keitaro in particular looked concerned for the two; it had been over two hours since Mutsumi had left the all girls' dorm to search for Kitsune, and there had been no trace of the two as of yet. Su was laid on the sofa, sleeping alongside Sarah, her American partner-in-crime who was on the floor with her legs folded, Motoko stood leant against the wall nearest to the front door, her eyes seemingly closed in a state of meditation. Shinobu was stood by the door, looking out for any trace of the two alongside Haruka, Naru and Keitaro.
"I hope they're both okay..." Naru spoke, "what's taking them so long?"
"Kitsune-sempai doesn't normally stay out this long..." Shinobu muttered, her voice filled with concern. Looking at the clock, she noticed that it was just gone one o'clock in the morning.
"I have my fears about Kitsune-san's rambunctious behaviour when she is socialising..." Motoko spoke, bowing her head. "There are many... perverted" she spat the last word with contemptuous emphasis, "drunkards out at this time of night, who knows what they would do given the chance to those two?"
"Ohhh... that's it, I can't wait any longer," Naru stamped her foot on the ground. "I'm going to look for them," she turned to Keitaro, "and YOU are coming with me!"
Keitaro was about to make his way out of the door until he heard a faint voice drunkenly singing in the distance. Walking up to the stone steps with Naru, he could see the silhouettes of Mutsumi trying her best to support the foxy woman, who was singing at the top of her voice as they made their way up the steps.
"Oh, show me a home... where the buffalo roam..." Kitsune was singing, off-key while waving her arm in the air as the two reached the top of the steps.
"Mutsumi-san, Kitsune-san," Keitaro spoke, his eyes filled with concern, "are you both okay?"
"We're fine, thank you handsome..." Kitsune piped up, reaching up to stroke Keitaro's cheek with her fingers before they limply dropped down by her side, "dunno where I would have been without my saviour here," she continued, eliciting blushes from Keitaro, Naru and Mutsumi respectively. "Well, what're we waitin' for? Onwards and upwards to bed, m'deari --" This sentence was suddenly cut off by the familiar sensation bubbling in Kitsune's stomach; nausea. Without warning, she broke away from Mutsumi, kneeled by the nearest bush and proceeded to empty the contents of her stomach into the shrubbery. "Ugh..." the fox-eyed lady groaned, wiping her mouth and accepting a glass of water from Keitaro, "never will I drink this much again..."
Naru looked at Mutsumi and rolled her eyes. "I'll take her from here," the auburn-haired woman spoke, taking her from Mutsumi's grip into her own. "Thank you for bringing her back, Mutsumi," she smiled.
Mutsumi smiled back warmly. "Ara, no problem." She slowly walked in with Keitaro as Naru proceeded to haul Kitsune up to her bedroom. I just hope the next man she finds will be the right one for her... the Okinawan mused, looking at Keitaro through the corner of her eye.
::: END :::
::: AUTHOR'S NOTES :::
Well, it's been seven long months since I last wrote something creative... and it's only my third attempt at writing an actual shoujo-ai... so my apologies if this wasn't too good. This may well be my last fanfic for a long while yet, too.
Done on request for Amber. Other requests are welcomed too.