Kyou stared at the window and sighed. It was raining cats and dogs. He sighed as he touched the cold glass and his eyelids dropped. His lips inclined downwards and his eyelids cringed. His face emitted a sad frown. How he wanted to get away from the pain. He wanted to escape but his memories followed him wherever he went.

He never really hated the rain even though he wasn’t particularly fond of it. He wished he wouldn’t have to care about the taunts and leave it all behind.

He was shunned, blamed and looked down upon by other people. The world wouldn’t accept him but that was okay. But what wasn’t okay was that his parents never accepted him. Never mind that the teacher scowled everytime he entered the classroom. Never mind that his classmates weren’t particularly fond of him. Never mind that his relatives spoke ill of him. But one had to mind when his parents blamed him. When, they showed obvious behaviour of shame about him. He wasn’t loved.

Nobody would accept the cat, nobody.

Kagura crept softly towards his room, making sure she wouldn’t mar this attempt by anything. No, she wouldn’t let it happen.

Tohru-kun was sleeping, Yun-chan was in his secret basement and Shigure was writing porn or as he would like to have called it a romantic novel. Kagura giggled at the memory of her reading a excerpt of his book once when she was 14; she was curious and Shigure was a critically acclaimed writer. Wouldn’t you like having a writer for a cousin? Unfortunately, she came across the wrong piece of work that made Shigure anxious like she had never seen him before. The scene was actually laughable, it seemed as if he didn’t know if he should cry, worry or scold her for coming to his room and reading something she wasn’t supposed to. She sighed as she lay her hand on the doorway frame.

She lay her head on her hand as she wistfully watched him. How she adored him and pined for him everyday and believed that one day he too like the men in the novels would take her in his arms and proclaim his love bravely.

It was a silly childish fantasy and she laughed about it sometimes but she wanted to be loved back. Hadn’t she made it clear that she’d love him no matter what? Hadn’t she made it clear that she accepted him no matter what the others said? Hadn’t she?

Yet, she couldn’t understand what was wrong.

Sure, everyone said her alter ego usually beat the crap out of him but she never really knew. You always hurt the ones you love, don’t you? That was no excuse.

"Kyou-kun!" She screamed cheerfully hopping into his room.

"What?" He spat venomously.

"Don’t talk to me like that!" She yelled.

Kyou’s lip bled from the hard pressure of the punch. She hit again in the face. He winced falling on his knees.

"Kyou-kun?" She asked. She was surprised to find him on his knees. He had put his hand on his stomach while moaned. "Kyou-kun who did this?" She asked frantically falling on the floor. She picked his chin up with her thumb. "I’ll go get ..."

"Why do you do this?" He asked looking into her eyes. He didn’t look very annoyed.

"Do what Kyou-kun?" She asked innocently. Her eyes glistened with tears.

"You know what."

"Why do you do what you do?"

He looked at the floor silently. His mind wondering. He sighed.

"I wish you could take ‘no’ for an answer."

"I can’t." She bit her lip. "I love you so much. I ... I really love you more than anything else. Nobody ... nobody, nobody can care for you the way I do. Why?"

"I love you too."

"Not that way. Why?"

"I just can’t think of you that way."

"Why?" She cried. "Why? I do so much for you ..."

"Don’t think I don’t I don’t know that."

"You still don’t give a damn about me."

"Don’t say that," he murmured softly. "I appreciate you."

"Then why do you keep yelling at me? Why are you always so mad at me?"

"I always cared about you. I know that nobody can love me the way you do. I know you give it a lot of time. It’s not in vain."

"Really!" She yelled cheerfully, throwing her arms around his neck.

A few kind words could do a great miracle. Kyou was never really warm person, but he wanted her to know that though things kept changing, some things always stayed the same; he also didn’t lack the desire to be hit incessantly.

He choked and he let go of him. "Wait there Kyou-kun, I’ll get some first aid!"

She stole his first kiss before rushing out. Kyou blushed, surprised.

She ran out his room enthusiastically, determined to get the first aid no matter what.

‘Someday, someday all that effort is going to pay off. I know I’m close.’