AN: Hey everyone!

I finally managed to get around to updating this as you can see. It took me a while to do this one, as it involves some of my own experiences in it and therefore it was difficult to write. But sill, I wanted to write this idea down and turn it into a Kyoru fic for my friends, I hope this cheers you up, you know who you are ;)

By the way, I HIGHLY RECOMMEND that you listen to 'Everything' by Lifehouse. And also, sorry in advance for the spelling and grammar, I checked this story but even then I think there are still mistakes ^^;

Name of oneshot/drabble: The Strength you Give Me

Rating: T (Just in case)

Genre/s: Hurt/Comfort/Romance

Characters/pairings involved: KyoxTohru, minor UoxKureno and HaruxRin.

Idea for one shot/drabble summary: Tohru starts to compare herself to her friends that are in relationships. She starts to have doubts about her relationship with Kyo. Can our favourite cat convince her otherwise?

Dedicated to: zyeIN and Allyssa Metcalf

5. The Strength you Give Me

"You okay now?"

Tohru nodded, wiping the tears away. "Yes, thank you. I'm sorry…that you had to come all this way, Kyo."

The former cat of the zodiac just smiled and rolled his eyes. "What are you talking about? I was only around the corner, my class is pretty boring anyway…but I have to get going now."

The girl nodded again. She watched as Kyo left for his classroom again, offering her a smile when he turned his head back.

She smiled back, all the past sadness gone. What she had been sad about was another test failure. She had studied really hard this time, but like a few years ago, she had failed. Even though she remembered his words from so many years ago when he came up to her room with the miso soup, she still cried. Uo and Hana couldn't do anything to ease her pain, so the yankee of the trio ran into Kyo's classroom threatening to bleach his hair if he didn't come out right now.

Kyo didn't need a threat to run out of the classroom to Tohru. If only she knew that…

"So, you feeling better, Tohru?" Uo asked with an encouraging smile.

"Yep, all better!" Tohru said cheerfully as she practically skipped to her friends. They'd been waiting at the end of the hallway for a while, waiting for the lovey-dovy moment between Kyo and Tohru to end.

"In that case, shall we go to an early lunch?" Hana offered, beginning to walk down the hall.

Moments later Tohru and her friends were outside in the sun, a basket with their lunch in the middle of the small circle they had formed.

"So, how was your date with Mr Kureno, Uo?" Tohru asked.

Uo grinned proudly. "It was great! We went out to that little restaurant at the corner just a few stores away from my workplace. The whole night he was acting a little awkward, but I think I managed to bring him out of his shell. He's pretty shy I guess.

"I'm just glad that I can be a strong woman for him. I can take care of myself so I don't have burden him too much. Still, he cares, a lot, but I tell him I can take care of myself."

Tohru felt something spike in her system. What was this feeling? She nearly came to clutching her heart where it hurt the most. For the rest of the lunch she was pretty quiet, only speaking when spoken to.

At the end of the day Kyo met up with her and they walked home. But even standing next to Kyo, who would sooth her soul even if she just looked at him, couldn't get rid of this feeling in her body. It was a strange, cold, unmoving feeling. She went into her thoughts.

'Was it something I ate?' she thought 'I wonder if I made somehow added a wrong ingredient to the sushi, but if I Uo and Hana would have been like this too. They seemed okay, I hope they are…When did I get this feeling again. It was when—'

At that she froze. She realised this feeling that was in her. Her heart pounded and her head was almost spinning.

"Tohru?"

She quickly looked up to see Kyo had stopped when she had. She quickly put on a smile. "It's nothing! I just thought…I heard and saw something was all."

With that they kept walking to Shigure's. As usually the dog proclaimed his over dramatic welcome home and how he had missed his darling flower. Kyo of course smacked him over the head and told him to shut up. All the while Tohru got straight to the dinner, working at a slower pace than usual.

Her thoughts were clouding her, not moving away from her mind. This feeling…she knew it now.

'Am I…really worthy of having Kyo by my side?'

She wasn't physically or emotionally strong. She cried over the smallest and simplest things and panicked to the point where she would only make things worse. She was physically strong like Uo, or could take care of herself without doing something wrong.

Now that she thought about it, what about Haru and Rin's relationship? It wasn't a secret anymore, but they still seemed a bit hesitant to acknowledge to everyone that they were together. Rin was a very strong woman. She was so determined to break the curse for Haru she even put her life on the line and even broke up with him just so he wouldn't get hurt.

These thoughts all troubled Tohru.

Would she do the same if it were Kyo?

She had broken the curse, but what had she done?

All she did was wonder around and get the facts. She never did figure out what had broken the Sohma's curse. So much of the events from the past could have been stopped if she had figured out how to break the curse earlier.

She didn't understand why Kyo had chosen her. She was of no use to him, only a burden.

Why would he want to be with someone who wasn't strong enough and couldn't give him anything back?

If she couldn't be strong for herself, how could she be strong for other people?

That last thought nearly let the tears escape from her eyes. It was so true, to her at least. If only she knew the truth…

Pain ran through her finger.

She quickly looked down, dropping the knife on the counter and leaping away in fright. She clutched her finger and let out a yelp of pain. Some blood escaped from between her fingers.

She slowly but surely released her grip around her finger. She'd cut along the side of her index finger. How on earth had she managed that?

The door slammed to the side, a worried Kyo standing there. "Tohru! You okay?"

She turned to Kyo, tears now falling from her eyes, but not for the reason he thought. Just looking at him now made her realise how true those thought her to her. The pain in her finger was forgotten, instead moving to her heart. Here she was again, helpless and weak, and she'd become a burden.

Kyo rushed her to her, gently taking her hand between his cupped hands when he reached her. "Damn, how did you manage to get this? It's not too deep though, by the looks of it…"

He quickly led her to the tap to wash the blood away. She couldn't look as she saw the water wash away the blood from her finger and hand. She remained unmoving, more tears streaming down her face and sobs making her double over.

"It…It didn't hurt that much, did it?" he asked quietly over the running tap.

She couldn't look at him, but her voice emerged in a strained whisper. "I'm sorry…"

At that he turned the tap off. "What?"

She pulled tried to pull her hand away from his own, but she was too caught up in the moment. "I'm sorry…I wish I could be strong. I 'm only a burden to you, aren't I? If were able to become stronger you wouldn't have to come running to my aid. I wouldn't be a burden to you…"

Silence settled over them. Eventually Kyo moved his hands away from hers. To her that was a bad sign and her eyes widened in shock. He walked out of the room, not closing the door behind him. She heard Shigure asked Kyo what had happened, but he only muttered something to him and kept walking.

She lost her focus and fell on her knees. Grief and sadness took over her system, making her forget everything around her. Maybe now it was over…but it was a good thing. This way she would no longer be a burden to him…so why did she so desperately want to run to him just to be by his side?

"Where the hell did that all come from?"

She looked up in shock as he reentered the room, a big bandage roll in his hand and some disinfectant. She couldn't stop looking at him with wide eyes as he crouched to her level. Her took her limp hand, careful not to hurt to the cut finger.

"You know you really need to have more confidence in yourself," he began, carefully spreading the disinfectant over the cut. She winced but listened to what he said as he kept spreading the dark yellow liquid on her finger. "You're not a burden, believe me…"

He trailed away, knowing what he was about to tell her would be one of the most personal confessions he'd ever told anyone in his life. Was he ready to express his feelings? This was Tohru thought, she wouldn't judge him or shun him. No…he had to tell her. "You may be physically weak, and you let your emotions get the better of you, and you may sometimes overact, but…You don't realise how strong you really are. You are the light that's leading me to the place where I find peace again.
"You are the strength, that keeps me walking. You are the hope, that keeps me trusting. You are the light to my soul. You are my purpose...you're everything. You calm the storms, and you give me rest. You hold me in your hands, you won't let me fall. You steal my heart, and you take my breath away.

"It's hard to explain but…I felt like for a long time I had been restrained by my fears and nightmares. But then…you became that light leading me away. I finally broke free from their restraints, and you led the way to redemption…

"I don't you to leave my side. You're all I want your all I need, you're everything. You're everything that keeps me going. You don't need to be strong, because…I can be strong for both of us. I want to be there for you when you're depressed…So quit crying and smile again! I'm strong enough to take both of our burdens, even when you think you cannot…"

By this time he had already wrapped the bandage around her finger. He tucked in the end to a fold. He finally had the strength to look at her, surprised by her reaction.

She wasn't crying, like she would have probably done by now, she only looked at him, love and assurance radiating from her eyes. She slid her wounded hand into his. "Okay…Thank you, Kyo."

He smiled, helping her up from the floor. Instead saying the usual response –'Nothing you need to thank me for' –he said the last part of his little confession. "Would you tell me how could it be any better than this?"
Oh wowz, the fluff is popping out of everywhere!

Some of the words Kyo said are from the song that inspired this fanfic, 'Everything' by Lifehouse. Anyway, hope you enjoyed this oneshot and I'll see you for the next one :D

Reviews and comments are greatly appreciated :)

Thanks for reading!

Keep writing!

-Warrayfinson