I Belong To You: A Kisshu And Ichigo Love Story

Chapter 13: A Way To Answer

O/A/N: So just a thing that I've been noticing about this story; Ichigo cries. A LOT. I'm totally aware that in the series she's really not the crying type - she's a lot gutsier - but I figured that she has a ton of trauma and crap going on and she's a hormonal teenager so if she cries a lot in this situation then it's legit.
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It took Kisshu a few moments to wake up - when he did, he winced at the stark, white sunlight that was pouring through the open curtains. He guessed it had to be sometime in the late morning - it was quiet downstairs. Obviously, the Café hadn't opened yet. The girls were still at school.

Kisshu tried to sit up, but found that his ribs still hurt too much to move. He gritted his teeth in frustration. He didn't like feeling weak if he could help it. Being confined to a bed was especially humiliating. Although, if Ichigo had been there, he would have happily lay still while she nursed him back to health.

Speaking of which...Kisshu frowned. He could remember her saying last night that she was going to bring him something to eat. And yet, he didn't recall seeing her again for the rest of the night. After he'd been hauled up the stairs by Pai and Tart and thrust into the shower, he'd stood in the water so long Tart asked if he'd drowned. Kisshu had growled a reply, and took even longer getting out of the shower and dressing into clean clothes, because he could hardly move on his own. After he was decent, Tart and Pai helped him into bed, where he promptly fell asleep. He hadn't woken up once. Maybe she had come up and seen that he was asleep.

Maybe she was sitting beside me, he thought to himself, fantasizing the attractive senario. And she thought about kissing me while I was asleep because then I might not feel it. That seems like one of the adorable little things she'd do...

In that case, Kisshu wished he was well enough to get out of bed, find Ichigo, and kiss her for real. She'd seemed extremely worried when he finally got back to Café Mew Mew - she'd even been waiting for him, by herself, for who knew how long. The thought made Kisshu want her even more.

He grinned to himself. "Ahh...maybe you'll be mine after all...Ichigo," he said cheerfully. As he imagined Ichigo confessing her undying love to him, he was interrupted by Pai.

"Yo!" Kisshu said. He attempted to lift his hand, but then, wincing, decided to forgo the courtesy. "What's up?"

Pai surveyed him impassively. "Are you feeling better?"

"Hai. Say, where's Ichigo? Did she come up here last night?"

Pai's face remained expressionless as he said, "No."

For a moment, Kisshu was disappointed. "Ah." Then, he frowned. "How come?"

Pai said, "We're not sure."

Kisshu's body shot bolt-upright, resulting in a loud groan and a lot of cursing. "Don't move," Pai warned him.

"Where's Ichigo?" Kisshu demanded.

Pai said, "At home. Sleeping, I believe."

"Sleeping?" Kisshu glanced at the clock, quickly converting the time in his head. "Shouldn't she be...in school? Or wait, is she sick?"

"I didn't ask. I sent Tart to investigate, and he reported back that he had seen her asleep on the floor. In her bedroom."

"The floor?"

"Hai."

With a waver of air, Tart materialized into the room next to Pai. "Kish! You're okay!" he said.

Kisshu wasn't pleased. "Tart, did you see Ichigo today?"

Tart nodded. "Yeah, she was sleeping in her room."