Lean on Me

Hana Yori Dango Oneshot

Tsukushi x Tsukasa

"Makino! Hurry up and bring those boxes over!" Okami-san yells to Makino. A surge of customers flooded her store ever since people found out Makino worked there. She sighs as she lifts another box and brings it over to the front.

"Are you ok Tsukushi?" Yuki, her best friend, asks her as Tsukushi brings over another box.

"I'm fine Yuki-chan. Don't worry about me." She smiles. She can't let anybody know how tired she really is. Otherwise, she won't be able to stand on her own two feet.

"Oh Tsukushi. You work so hard everyday and with school and your other job at the bar, I don't know how you manage it all." Yuki-chan praises her. Tsukushi waves her off as she grabs another box.

"It's alright Yuki-chan. I'm fine. Why do people keep asking me that?" Tsukushi questions her as she heaves another box down.

"Tsukushi, you've been working extremely hard this past month. With your father's sudden illness and Domyouji's sudden return to the United States for a business deal, you must be stressed out." Yuki looks at her curiously.

"I'm fine Yuki. I'll have the money for Papa's operation by the end of the week and Tsukasa is coming home next week. Everything is going to be fine." Tsukushi reassures her. Yuki shakes her head as she sees her best friend continue to struggle with the box. How much more can Tsukushi take before she collapses?

"Are you sure everything is going to be fine?" Rui asks Tsukushi after her evening shift at the bar.

"I'm sure Rui. Don't you start worrying about me too. I already have Yuki on the job for that." Tsukushi punches his arm playfully. Rui works with Tsukushi at the bar since he found interest in working with the common folk. Of course, his identity there is a secret but girls still flock to him like white on rice.

"You know, it's alright to take a break every now and then. Nobody expects you to be a hero." Rui advises her. Tsukushi shakes her head at him.

"I know that Rui but I have to keep my drive and stay focused. Otherwise I won't be able to pay Papa's medical bill."

"Makino, you know you can ask me, Akira or Soujiroh for money. We will be happy to lend it to you. In fact, you should have told Tsukasa about this. He can definitely let you borrow the money." Tsukushi waves him off.

"Thanks but no thanks. I got this covered. Papa will be operated this weekend and I see Tsukasa next week. I got this all figured out." Tsukushi raises her fist in the air. Rui laughs at Tsukushi's display of her weed power. He wonders how long Tsukasa will be able to stay away from his little tough weed.

Turns out, Tsukasa couldn't stay away for long because after calling Makino up and yelling at her for not answering his call and then promptly pleading for her forgiveness because he had to stay an extra week.

"Oh that's fine. Don't worry about it." Tsukushi tries to sound enthused over the phone.

"Alright then. Don't worry because I will make it up to you. Don't work too hard and don't go off with Rui all by yourself. Ok bye." Tsukasa hangs up just as quickly and Tsukushi sighs. Oh well, she has an opportunity to work more hours and help pay Papa's bill faster. Unfortunately, Papa was rescheduled to be operated the following week. She ends up working overtime that week, causing her friends to start worrying about her health.

"Oh Tsukushi, are you sure you are alright?" Yuki asks as Tsukushi throws up in the shop's bathroom.

"I'm sorry Yuki. I guess I haven't been eating well." Tsukushi excuses herself.

"Well obviously. You've been working yourself to death. Don't worry. Okami-san has agreed to let you go home. You better get home and rest up or else you'll end up collapsing next time." Yuki hands Tsukushi her jacket and purse.

"Fine and thank you Yuki." She waves good-bye and heads home when she receives a text.

Tsukushi, meet me at Ebisu Garden now. ~Tsukasa

"Now? Why does he want to meet now?" Tsukushi cries out to no one in particular. People start staring but she pays no heed. She suddenly starts to feel dizzy and leans her head against the wall. She should have taken some medicine this morning.

"Oh well. What can I do about it now?" She whispers to herself as she wills her body to the bus station. There, she sees a strange man sitting there, but she pays no heed as she collaspes on the bench. When she gets home, she plans to take a nice hot bath before collapsing on her soft bed. She can text Tsukasa later and explain what happened.

"Excuse me miss. Excuse me." She hears a voice. Tsukushi comes down to reality and faces the strange man sitting next to you.

"You dropped this." He hands her a purple wallet that Tsukasa had given her on a whim. She thanks him as she places it in her purse. Then her mind realizes something. Her wallet was stuffed deep down in her purse. There's no way she could have dropped. That could only mean this man stole from her purse.

"Thank you." She apologizes as she rises from the bench. She starts walking away when a hand grabs her wrist.

"Please, the pleasure is all mine." The strange man responds. She turns around and takes a look at the man. He seems to be in his late twenties with long black hair and black eyes. He would have been more gorgeous if it wasn't for the fact that he had bags under his eyes.

"Now, I think I deserve a reward, don't you?" He asks her in a husky voice. Tsukushi's nerves shoot up. Her sickness wasn't helping and she starts to pull away from danger.

"I'm sorry but I have to go."

"Not until I get my reward." The stranger grips her wrist tighter and Tsukushi panics.

"Let me go and I won't hurt you." She threatens him. The stranger smiles at her as he pulls her close to him.

"With that sickness, I don't think you can hurt anybody."

"You're right, but I can." A strong voice comes from behind him. The stranger turns around and a fist comes flying at him. He collapses on the ground in pain and Tsukushi looks up at Tsukasa.

"Baka! What the hell are you doing? I find you here all up on some other guy instead of at the garden. I told you to meet me there ten minutes ago. You're lucky I called Yuki and she told me you left the store. Do you have any idea how worried I was?" He starts rambling off. The man tries to rises but Tsukasa stomps on his head, knocking him unconscious again.

"Tsukasa..." Tsukushi whispers as she starts to feel even more faint. She feels so relieved that Tsukasa saved her in time. Who knows what could have happened to her?

"What?" He snaps at her. That's when he realizes that she is swinging dangerously back and forth.

"Thank you." She whispers before she faints. Tsukasa catches her in his arms and looks down at her pale face.

"Baka, with your dad's medical bills and other stuff, you made yourself sick. I shouldn't have left you alone. You're a mess without me." He whispers as he kisses her forehead. Thank goodness Rui texted him about Tsukushi's problems. She would have never told him otherwise. They'll have to talk about that. Tsukasa carries her over to the limo where he commands the driver to take her to his house.

"Tsukushi...Tsukushi...Tsukushi..." Someone calls out her name. Tsukushi groans as she turns over in a warm comfy bed. That's when she opens her eyes. She doesn't own a warm comfy bed. She sits up suddenly and sees Tsubaki, her boyfriend's sister, giggling at her while she motions for the maid to place a tray of food on Tsukushi's lap.

"Nee-chan!" Tsukushi gasps. Tsubaki giggles as she points to the food.

"You better eat all that Tsukushi-chan or Tsukasa will bite my head off." Tsukushi looks down at her plate and sees an American style breakfast. She was always fascinated by the pancakes and the scrambled eggs.

"How did I get here Nee-chan? I remember I was walking back home and there was this guy and then...then...Tsukasa showed up! But it must have been a hallucination. Right?" Tsukushi looks to Tsubaki for answers.

"As far as I know, you were walking home with a fever when some pervert tried to grab you. Tsukasa found you and beat the shit out of him. I must say, it is his best work yet. Anyways, he brought you here and right now he's taking care of your family situation." Tsubaki recounts everything.

"What? He's at the hospital where Papa is staying at?" Tsukushi chokes on her orange juice.

"Yes Tsukushi. I can't believe you didn't tell anybody about this. This is serious stuff. Rui even had to text Tsukasa about this. We were all so worried about you!" Tsubaki reprimands her but all Tsukushi can think about is Tsukasa knowing the whole truth. He was going to be really pissed at her.

"But...I didn't want to worry anybody. Oh, this is all a big mess." Tsukushi cries. She has to get out of this bed. She has to make a million phone calls. She already missed her shift at the dango and she needs to inform Mama of where she was last night. Then she has to make Tsukasa take back the money for the hospital bill. She promised her family that she would pay it.

"Tsukushi. Your parents already know of the situation and your dad's operation has already been paid for. All you have to do is rest up and get ready for Tsukasa."

"Nee-chan! I don't have time for this! I have to go! I can't just..." Tsukushi pushes the tray away and tries to get up when she falls back on the bed. She still hasn't recovered her strength.

"Don't worry. I already texted Tsukasa about you waking up and knowing him, he'll probably be here in ten minutes." Tsubaki looks down at her watch. Tsukushi blanks out. How will she explain all this to Tsukasa? He's always hated how Tsukushi tries to take on family problems by herself. He always tells her that he wants her to ask him for help, but she was raised to stand on her own two feet. She'd rather eat her own arm off then ask for help.

"Oh no." Tsukushi whispers. Ten seconds later, they hear a door slam from downstairs and a roar from below. Tsubaki laughs as she stands up and unlocks the door.

"It works every time. You know whenever you two started officially dating, I wanted to see how much he really liked you. I texted him telling him that you were here waiting with me and I swear to you, no matter where he was, he would always come home in 10 minutes or less. Ah, to be young in love." Tsubaki's eyes glitter. Tsukushi's heart starts pounding and soon enough, Tsukasa barges in.

"Tsukushi!" He runs over to her side and embraces her. Tsukushi pats him gently on the back and Tsubaki giggles.

"Your welcome Nee-chan for helping take care of my fiancee. Geez." Tsubaki mutters playfully. Tsukasa breaks the hug and turns to Tsubaki.

"I didn't know if I should believe your text but I'm glad I did." He then turns to Tsukushi and pulls a chair up to her. She sees the hurt and seriousness in his eyes. She turns away and Tsubaki takes the hint.

"I'll leave you two to talk things out." She closes the door behind her. An awkward silence penetrates the room. After five minutes, Tsukasa finally asks the dreaded question.

"Why?" He whispers.

"Why what?" Tsukushi asks him weakly.

"Why did you keep your father's sudden illness to yourself?" He asks her coldly. She starts to fiddle with her hands when Tsukasa growls in annoyance. He takes her hands and holds them in his. She turns towards him and sighs.

"Why did you keep all this to yourself?" He asks her again. She can feel the pain in his voice and she chokes down a sob.

"I didn't want to worry you." She answers honestly.

"Worry me? You worried me sick. You know how frantic I was when Rui called me and told me to come home? Rui never calls unless it's an emergency. Everybody was worried sick about you. If Rui hadn't told me, I would have stayed another extra week in New York. Why didn't you tell me? You're supposed to tell me this kind of stuff! I thought we were already past this stage! You are supposed to trust me! Why don't you still trust me?" Tsukasa starts yelling at her. She holds back all her tears as she yells right back.

"I know and I'm sorry ok? I thought I could tackle this on my own. If I couldn't even handle something like my dad's situation, then how am I supposed to handle your affairs? I am not weak Tsukasa! I'm not weak!" She cries back. Tsukasa sees that she is starting to cry. He hates it when she cries.

"I know you aren't weak, but you aren't Flounder Woman. You can't handle everything. That's what I'm here for. I'm here to give you support no matter what." Tsukasa explains to her. Tsukushi looks at him strangely before she starts giggling.

"What? I'm being serious here woman!" Tsukasa starts whining. She sighs as she leans into Tsukasa's chest. He's shocked at first, but then he sees her start to relax. He sighs as he climbs into the bed beside her so that they both could be more comfortable.

"I know that you want me to trust you and I do Tsukasa. I do...but..." Tsukushi struggles with her words. Tsukasa lets her collect her thoughts, knowing that if he interrupted her, then she would never spit out the truth.

"I need to be able to handle these type of situations if you weren't here. If something were to happen to you, I would have to take charge. I want to prove to everyone that I can be strong and independent no matter what happened." She whispers out carefully. After several minutes of silence, Tsukasa lifts Tsukushi's chin up, making her look into his eyes.

"Tsukushi, I know you mean well but I don't want you to do that. I know you can do that, but everyone has their limit. Besides, if I wanted someone who could handle all my problems, I might as well have quit and wasted all my time on an island or something. I don't want that. We need to work out our problems together. That's what a relationship is all about. I share your pain. You share my pain. It's simple really." Tsukasa reasons with her. Once again, Tsukushi is shocked by how simple minded and brilliant her fiance is. She does tend to overthink situations too much.

"I'm sorry Tsukasa." After another moment of silence. Tsukasa kisses the top of her head and lets her relax against him.

"Don't do this again. I want you to lean on me. Got it?" He growls and she giggles. He will always be her stupid and overprotective lover. Tsukasa looks down and sees Tsukushi sleeping on his chest serenely. She will always be his hard-headed and independent woman.

"By the way, there is something else I want to say." Tsukushi breaks the peace of the room.

"What is it?"

"It's Wonder Woman, not Flounder Woman." She giggles. Thus another 30 minute argument began.

~One of my most favorite couples back again! I love them so much! I really want to do a story for them but I have to finish my Soul Eater and my planned Cardcaptor's story. Ah! Too many stories but for now enjoy these oneshots. Enjoy my loves. As always, comments are appreciated.

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