It was a cool Sunday afternoon. Kenshin was sitting at the fire escape, reading quietly under the faint sunshine. It was so peaceful and still, with the exception of the passing breeze and the wind chime going off every now and then. Kenshin let out a heavily relaxed sigh.

'Aa, what a peaceful day de gozaru!'

All of a sudden, the peace shattered. Sanosuke appeared above him, bobbing the book into his face. As Kenshin painfully fell over, Sanosuke eyed him with impatience, "Oi, oi!!"

"Ororo...Sano... Why’d you do that for?” he muttered, rubbing his sore nose that could have been broken. There was a look of seriousness in his friend's face and he knew this wasn't some ordinary visit. "Nan de gozaru ka?"

“Don’t you know what today is, Kenshin?”

“Sunday?” he asked blankly.

“True, but...!” Sanosuke said, “Today is actually the day you’re finally going to tell Jou-chan your true feelings!”

“ORO?” Kenshin fell over again, this time hitting his head on the railing. However this time the pain was numb. Those words Sanosuke had thrown him had shocked him completely. “W-what was that you were saying?!"

“I know it’s a bit sudden, but one of you has to act and I figured it might as well be you.”

“So you’re saying: ‘it’s now or never’?”

“Maybe.” he replied, with a shrug, “Look, Tae has been on my case about this lately. Personally, I think the two of you should relax and take your time, but considering the incident three days ago where you told everyone about your past, I now believe you should consider letting Jou-chan know.”

“Dakara…!”

“No excuses! Jou-chan has going through hell wondering about ‘the two of you.’ I bet she has a mountain of questions, so you better go clear it up for her.”

'The Two of Us', Kenshin thought. Those words repeated in his mind. Even he didn't know what to say. They were together for so long, but so distant. He took deep breaths. “What am I suppose to do?”

“Look, I’m not telling you to go buy an engagement ring or a house! I’m just telling you to talk to her!” Sanosuke exclaimed, grabbing him by the collar and pulling him to his face.

“Hai, hai, hai! Sessha will try!”

”That’s it! Show no fear!” Sanosuke was very supportive. Kenshin just dropped his head. Fear was all he could feel - fear of opening up, fear of rejection... Kenshin didn't know it but that day would be a turning point in his relationship with Kaoru...

* * *
At the Maekawa Self-Defense School, Kaoru was still teaching a class. “That’s it, minna! Just like that!” she said, checking their footing. She paused to let out a sigh. ‘What’s with you? It’s been three days already. Why can’t you even talk to him?’ she thought as she was walking across the mat.

“K-Kaoru-san…” a student uttered.

She was much too lost in her thoughts to take notice. ‘What does he think of me...it hurts so much not knowing...Kenshin...’

Just then she crashed into the equipment. Everyone went to check on her. “Kaoru-san, daijoubu desu ka?”

”Yeah... err, class is dismissed!” she uttered, rubbing her head. Embarrassed, she pulled herself up and straighten her ponytail. She blinked at her waiting students, “Ano... please remember to practice on your own. See you next week, minna!”

“Hai, Kaoru-san!” they chimed in unison, and then scrambled to get their belongings.

Kaoru let out a sigh of relief; class was over and she could finally go home and concentrate on her thoughts alone. Just then, a familiar voice caught her off guard. “Kaoru-dono!”

She looked up in surprise to see Kenshin standing in the doorway. “Kenshin??” she gasped, as he walked towards her, “W-what are you doing here?”

“Nee, Sensei.” one of her students, a little boy, asked, “Is that guy your boyfriend?”

“N-Naniiii?!” she cried, “C-chigao! Shinta, don’t say things that are not where near the truth!”

“Sensei, you’re blushing.”

“Watashi... Mou!” she cried, covering her face.

Shinta waved good-bye. “See you next week, Sensei!” he said, running off to catch up with his friends outside.

Kenshin bent down next to her and said, “Kaoru-dono?” Kaoru was still covering her face. Amused, he gently pried her hands away and gazed at her red face. “Aa, much better." he said, letting go of her wrists, "Come on, let’s go!”

“Where are we going?” she asked, as she got her coat and purse.

“For a walk.” he replied with a smile.

* * *
After walking over to the park, Kaoru and Kenshin sat down on a bench and watched a group of kids play. Some of them were from the self-defense class. They were having a good time, enjoying the rest of their summer. “Suman... about the other day.” Kenshin suddenly said, “Sessha didn’t mean to burden you with problems.”

“You don’t have to apologize.” she replied, “I’m actually glad you told me about your past. It helped me understand a lot of things… so I don’t feel helpless when you’re troubled over bad memories.”

He lifted his head. “Kaoru-dono?”

“Not just me, but all of us… we don’t want you to ever feel alone again.”

Surprised, Kenshin stared at her for a moment. He then happily said, “Arigatou…”

The group of kids came running over and started talking at the same time. “It’s Kaoru-san! Hey! What’s going on? Who’s this guy? Wanna play with us?”

Kenshin noted, “You’re very popular.”

“Not really.” Kaoru replied, and then turned to the crowd, “Shouldn’t you all be practicing?”

“We will, Kaoru-san!” they all said, then said amongst them, “Kaoru-san’s so cool!”

She just covered her face. “Mou! What’s with these kids!”

Kenshin asked the crowd, “Who wants to piggy-back ride?” They all raised their hands. He rubbed his head. “Maa, how’s this going to work?”

Kaoru watched as Kenshin played with the kids. He had two on his back and three latched on his arms, while trying to kick a soccer ball. He eventually fell on his face and they started pulling at him. “He’s funny!” they laughed.

“Orororororo!”

‘Well, he’s good with children. He’s the type of person that you wouldn’t mind spending the rest of your life with...’ Kaoru thought. She turned bright red. ‘WHAT THE HECK AM I THINKING?! He’s an unemployed Ronin with big ugly scar on his face, who goes “ORO” all the time and acts like a houseboy!’ She stopped to watch him some more. ‘An ex-JD, with a warped childhood, serious emotional problems, and an undying love for his ex-girlfriend.’ She watched even more, this time with sadness. ‘Kaoru-chan, what are you thinking?’

Shinta pulled at her sleeve. “Sensei, come play with us!”

She smiled slowly and took his hand. Just then, Yahiko leapt at her from the tree behind. “I’ll get you now, BUSU!” he exclaimed, flying in the air. Kaoru simply picked up Shinta and sidestepped his attack. Yahiko landed in the bushes, black and blue. “DAMMIT!!”

Tsubame ran onto the scene and cried, “Oh my! Yahiko-chan!”

“DON’T CALL ME ‘CHAN’!!!”

* * *
Walking back home, the two both were silent. Suddenly, Kaoru stopped walking, staring down at her folded hands. Kenshin blinked and turned back, “Oro? Is something wrong?”

“K-Kenshin,” she stammered, “I was wondering, if there was a way, if you could go back to the way things were, and still be with Tomoe-san…”

“Would I?” he finished the question. She nodded, very embarrassed for asking it. “Sessha has to admit that was the most happiest time of my life. I wished it would never end.” He paused and looked to the ground. “But it did. What happened had happened, no matter what I tell myself.”

“Sou ka…” she uttered as they reached the apartment building.

“Demo Kaoru-dono, it’s like you said, ‘What’s most important is the present, not the past.’ So, I won’t even consider things that I can’t go back and change. I can’t change the fact that Tomoe is gone from my life.” He smiled sadly. “People separate from each other eventually. It’s something that’s inevitable.”

He then took out his key and opened the door. ‘Still…’ Kaoru thought, as he walked inside, ‘Still I…’ He started to go up the stairs. “…Still I want to be with you forever.” Kaoru blurted out loud.

Hearing those words Kenshin stopped, and turned to face her, she was at the bottom of the stairs. Both were shocked and couldn’t say anything. Kaoru, realizing what she had done, started shaking, her face all red.

“Aa… it’s n-nothing! I didn’t mean it like that! Just forget it!” she stammered, rubbing the back of her head, “I’ll, uh, see you tomorrow. Good night, Kenshin.”

Kenshin watched as she rushed up the stairs. He followed, but she had already gone into her room. He stared at the closed door for a long time. ‘Why didn’t I say it? What’s holding me back?’ he thought, walking into his dark apartment

He curled up on the couch. Outside, it had started to rain and there was continual pattering on the windowpane. He watched the raindrops run down for hours. It was now past midnight and he was still wide-awake.

‘I thought that I’d never could get over the past. I thought that even if I got away, I’d still always remembered the pain. Then, I came here and met you.’

At that moment there was a knock on the door. Kenshin jumped up. ‘Is it…?’ He raced to the door and reached for the knob. Taking a deep breath, he opened the door. “Ka-- …”

His words choked back into his throat. Staring with wide eyes, Kenshin saw a woman at his door, her coat soaked from the rain, her suitcase gripped in hand. The air beared the fragrance of white plums.

“Tomoe…”