Falling in Love is Embarrassing

As nighttime arrived, the Maaka family began to awaken from its slumber. Anju opened her gold eyes slowly. She looked around at all of her dolls, sitting in fixed positions around her bed. When she found her favorite one, Boogie-kun, she grabbed him, held him between her arms, and proceeded out of her room.

Upon arriving downstairs Anju noticed her mother and father sitting calmly on the couch. Her older brother, Ren, was standing up, gazing out the window. Anju quietly sat down in a vacant chair and sighed.

"Has big sister returned home yet?" She asked in a whisper.

"No, not yet, Anju." Her mother stated calmly.

Suddenly, her father jumped out of his seat, causing it to fall backwards.

"I just can't handle this anymore! My daughter…and Kenta Usui! He'd better not be putting his hands on my baby!" He exclaimed in anger and frustration.

Suddenly, his wife stood up and walked over to him.

"Listen Henry, our daughter is growing up. It was bound to happen eventually." She said casually.

It was then that Ren made a sound of disgust.

"Yeah, but she's with a human. That is detestable to a family of vampires." Ren argued.

Anju looked over at her elder brother with a look of disappointment.

"I have to disagree with you, big brother. If sister is happy, then what should it matter that Kenta Usui is a human?"

Ren's look turned venomous at her remark, but nonetheless she continued.

"Also, it is impossible for us to be with sister in the daytime. Kenta Usui serves as a constant watch over big sister."

Anju's mother nodded and patted Anju on the head.

"You see, Anju? It seems only the women in this house see things the right way." She said with a sigh as she proceeded into the kitchen to retrieve some blood.

Anju smiled ever so faintly and stood up from her chair. As she passed by Ren she could sense his disgust. She looked up at him innocently.

"Big brother, she's found happiness." Anju said ever so quietly.

"Whatever." He replied as he turned his attention away from the window to look down at her.

"So, are you going to wait for her to get back?" He asked out of curiosity.

"But of course." Anju replied almost immediately.

Ren sighed as he walked past her towards the door. As he closed it behind him he let out a low growl.

"Damn little sisters. They're completely different, and yet they share one common thread. They piss me the hell off."

Ren looked back at the house one more time and sighed.

"Well, whatever. I'm freaking starving, so I guess I'll go find myself a stressed out woman."

With that, Ren disappeared into the woods, leaving behind no trace of ever having been there at all.

As Ren walked the busy streets if Tokyo he relied on his blood affinity to guide him. Whenever he felt the presence of a stressed out woman he would track her down, win her over with his vampire glamour, bring her to a hotel room, make love to her, and in the midst of passion Ren would bring his lips to her neck, deceived as a kiss, and bite her. It was the same routine as always, and it never failed. He smiled at the thought of his cunning ways.

Suddenly, he felt that familiar pulsation throughout his body. He smiled, revealing the tips of his fangs.

"Well, that certainly didn't take long at all." He thought to himself.

As he followed the presence that bared such a great deal of stress he could feel his hunger increasing in anticipation. He made his way casually through the hustle and bustle crowds, his eyes scanning through them in search of his prey. Suddenly, he felt the pulse again.

"I must be getting close." He thought aloud.

Then, he felt someone bump into him. As soon as the contact had been made he felt the pulse, larger and harder than the previous times. He looked down at the girl who had hit him. She was an average looking girl, with an average looking hair style and average clothes. Nothing exciting about her physically, but her blood….

He could see the black aura of enveloping stress surrounding her. It was heavy and dense, and appeared to have been formed from an accumulation of incidents and events. He smiled to himself at his keenness in finding his prey so quickly. He truly was a master hunter.

The girl looked up with an apologetic expression.

"I apologize." She said softly.

With a quick bow, she proceeded on her way. Ren, however, managed to grab a hold of her hand, stopping her dead in her tracks.

"Wait." He began.

"It is I who should apologize."

The girl shot him a quizzical expression.

"Really, I wasn't paying attention. I just have…a lot on my mind."

Ren looked at her curiously and worked up the warmest smile he could.

"Would you like to tell me about it?" He asked, his sincere expression masking his insincere intentions of the confrontation.

"I'm Ren, by the way," He added.

"Now, out of common courtesy, she has to tell me her name." He thought slyly.

"Natsumi." She replied flatly.

"And, thanks for the offer, but no thanks."

Ren's eyes transitioned so quickly from pupils to slits to pupils that she failed to notice. He then tapped into her mind, trying to read her thought pattern and respond accordingly so that he could enjoy a 'fine dish', as he put it.

"I mean, honestly, how could I tell a complete stranger about all of the stuff I'm going through?" He heard her think.

He closed his eyes and sighed.

"Y'know, it seems to me that you're pretty stressed out. Maybe talking to a complete stranger may help…?" He suggested.

In all honestly, Ren was losing his patience. He liked his women submissive. He liked the women who would cling to him like a second skin, so infatuated with him that their world would be empty without him. He liked the women who fell for his glamour within seconds and soon enough, she would be naked in bed with him. This girl was more persistent, more stubborn than the others. It was starting to piss him off, yet Ren figured a challenge would make the meal all the more satisfying. Besides, he always had his powers if necessary. He wanted to see if he could make her yield to him without having to use his powers.

"Well, isn't that normal? To be stressed…is a normal occurrence." Natsumi stated in an as-a-matter-of-fact tone.

"Well, yes it is. But you seem to have excessive stress built up. That isn't healthy." Ren warned, moving in on her.

Natsumi watched as he placed his hand on her shoulder. She shrugged it off and swore she heard a low growl from him.

"How do you know?" She asked.

"I just do. Now, I happen to know of a little coffee shop that we can go to and talk about what is causing you to have so much stress." He said with a wink.

He used a tiny bit of his glamour in an attempt sway her even a little, but to his surprise she fought it.

"Thanks for the offer, but I'm going to have to pass." She replied, holding out her hand in disapproval.

Now Ren was truly losing his tolerance. He decided that to press the issue wouldn't get him anywhere, at least not quickly. He vowed that he would not give up on her. Still, he needed to feed soon. He was starting to feel a bit weak.

"Well, I'm sorry to hear that. Nonetheless, it was a pleasure to meet you Natsumi." He stated coolly.

Natsumi nodded to appease him and then turned her back to him. She soon enough disappeared into the crowd of people, leaving Ren needing to find another prey. He did so very easily. He simply found a girl that he had previously slept with and bitten, and went home with her that evening.

As Ren lay in the bed of his prey, he stared up at the ceiling in a dumbfounded state.

"Why didn't my glamour work? It always works on even semi-stubborn girls. She must be either lesbian or just really stubborn." He thought to himself.

As his prey returned from the bathroom she smiled.

"Oh, Ren sweetie! I just love you so much!" She exclaimed as she curled up on his lap.

Ren smiled as she leaned into him, revealing her neck once more.

"And I love you, Tomoko. So very much…" He said in a whisper.

He brought his lips to her neck and kissed her a few times before sinking his fangs into her yet again. She let out a yelp, but he used his vampire powers to silence her. His eyes gleamed red and within seconds the girl was silenced, leaving Ren to enjoy his second course. Her blood tasted sweet, so very sweet, yet somehow…it wasn't as satisfying as it should have been. Why was it, he wondered, that the Natsumi girl kept popping up in his head while he fed. He had wanted to taste her blood so badly, but he lacked the tolerance and patience to attain it that evening.

"I will find her. And her blood will be mine." He thought to himself as he removed his lips from her neck, placed her on the bed, got dressed, and left her house.

When Ren returned home that evening he could hear the annoying voice of his sister. As he proceeded upstairs he decided to be nosey. He had nothing better to do, and he was curious as to what that boy, Kenta Usui, had done with his sister. Regardless of how he treated his sisters, Ren was the older brother. Being an older brothers, it made sense why he was protective of his little sisters, especially Karin. She truly was pathetic. She had to have Anju clean up all of her messes every time she "fed". Ren snorted at the thought.

"If you could even call it that. She injects blood into people instead of taking it from them."

Suddenly, he heard Karin whiney voice again. He listened by the entrance.

"Oh, Anju it was so embarrassing!" Karin exclaimed, burying her face in her pillow.

Anju's bright gold eyes blinked and she sat calmly beside her distressed big sister, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"I'm so proud of you, big sister." She whispered softly, a faint smile claiming her face.

Ren raised an eyebrow, curious as to what had been so embarrassing. Then again, to his sister, everything was embarrassing.

"I feel horrible! I bet I disappointed him." She said with a sigh.

"Well, it was your first time. Was it Kenta Usui's as well?" Anju asked, sitting back on the bed.

"I-I think so, but still…I totally ruined it!" Karin said as she began to sob.

At this Ren could not stand idly by. Ren walked into her room and stood before his weeping sister. Anju looked up at him, her expression blank.

"Welcome home, big brother." She stated calmly.

"Huh?!?" Karin gasped as she wiped away a few stray tears on her cheeks.

She saw her brother, standing in front of her, looking seriously pissed off.

"Ren?!? What are you doing in my room?!?" She asked, freaking out.

He did not even acknowledge her question. Instead, he simply lifted her from her bed, grabbing her by the neck of her shirt. As she dangled limply from his arms she frantically tried to escape. Suddenly, his hands were on each side of her head, balled into fists. With unexpected vigor, Ren gave his sister the most painful knuckle noggin she had ever experienced. She let out a cry and begin to sob once more as the torture continued for a few minutes more. When he finally stopped she began to rub her aching head.

"What the hell would you go do something like that for? You're only sixteen for God's sake!" Ren yelled, glaring at her intensely.

"W-What are you talking about?!?" Karin asked, completely confused.

After a moment she added,

"You were listening outside of my door?!?"

"What the hell does that matter? You just gave up your worth to that Usui kid!"

"What?" Karin asked.

It was then that Anju leaned over and whispered in Karin's ear.

Within a few seconds, Karin's face had flushed a deep red.

"You thought I did THAT?!?" Karin asked, her face turning even redder.

"Then what the heck were you talking about?" Ren asked, leaning against the doorway.

"It's none of your business!" Karin hollered as she threw her pillow at him.

Anju stood up, walked up to her brother, and said in a barely audible voice,

"Big sister just experienced her first kiss."

With that, Anju walked out of the room and into the hallway.

Ren suddenly sighed deeply, realizing that he had gotten worked up over nothing. So his sister hadn't gotten laid yet. What a relief! He wasn't ready to deal with that yet.

"Oh, I hate you so much! Get out!" Karin shouted, throwing another pillow.

Ren caught it and smirked.

"My mistake. Of course my dimwitted unvampire sister wouldn't have done that." He scoffed as he exited the room.

He couldn't help letting out a chuckle. What a dork his sister was. Yet, he knew that he loved her, in his own weird way. As he walked past the window he suddenly desired to be outside. With unsurpassable grace, Ren jumped out of the window and landed perfectly on a nearby tree branch. He leaned back against the main body of the tree, extended his legs along the branch, and sighed. The night air felt good. He could hear the light shrill of bats nestled in the woods surrounding the house. He smiled to himself.

When one of his bats appeared before him he extended his hand out to it. With a gentle flap of its wings it was perched atop his hand. It twitched slightly before outstretching its wings. Ren's thoughts once again returned to that Natsumi girl. He simply had to taste her blood. It had smelt succulent in every way. His mouth began to water jus by thinking about how it would taste.

"I'll have to try to meet with her again tomorrow evening. Perhaps one of the numerous women I have come to know is acquainted with her." He thought aloud.

Ren simply sat there for a few more hours, his gold eyes hidden beneath his eyelids. As the sun began to appear near the horizon he let out a sound of disgust and reentered the house through the window. He proceeded to his room for a much desired sleep. He just hoped that his dumb sister wouldn't wake him up when she started to get ready for school.

Well, I hope you liked it! I tried to keep them all in character as much as possible. This is my first Karin fanfic! Thanks for reading!

Please tell me your thoughts and feelings on this! I would love some feedback! :)