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This was so unfair. So, so unfair.
He had no right to look so damn concerned, not after everything he’d put her through in the past few months.
“But Kaoru,” he sputtered. “These things aren’t safe!”
“Maybe if you’re a dumb-ass about them,” Kaoru growled, her thighs tightening around the worn leather seat. “You think I wouldn’t be careful?”
Kenshin paused too long to be polite.
“Okay, listen,” she said, waving a gloved hand between the two of them. “It’s been a dream of mine to be able to ride. It was the perfect opportunity, with Sano moving to Aizu. It’s not like Megumi would have let him keep the thing.”
“Kaoru, I don’t think you’re helping your point.” Kenshin sighed, rolling up the sleeves of his navy dress shirt with sharp movements. “If a doctor doesn’t think it’s a good idea to be riding a motorcycle—”
“That’s not it!” she exclaimed. “They’re moving into an apartment, so they don’t have space for it. Sano even sold it for me for dirt cheap.” Her eyes drifted back to the shiny beetle-green of the fuselage, a rogue finger tracing the Yamaha logo longingly. “It’s just so beautiful. “
Kenshin was silent for a moment, tendrils of his short red hair fluffing in the breeze as he looked down at her in disappointment. “You’re going to get hurt, Kaoru. I don’t want a pair of EMTs scraping you off of the pavement when some idiot runs you over.”
He was doing the thing he always did when he thought she was being immature—babying her. She hated being babied. “I can handle it, Kenshin!”
“We need to talk about this. Inside, like normal adults,” Kenshin said, crossing his arms.
“Oh, like we ‘talked’ about you running off to Kyoto to fight some idiot with a God complex?” Kaoru spit back at him, her blue eyes flashing a darker shade of indigo. Kenshin said nothing, just cocked his head to the side and narrowed his gaze in frustration.
“Kaoru, please.”
“You’re not the boss of me,” she shot back, flipping her ponytail over her shoulder.
“No, but I’d like to think I’m the voice of reason,” he said.
“More like the voice of oji-chan,” Kaoru muttered under her breath.
“Kaoru—”
“No!” she snapped. “I bought this bike with my own money, and I’m going to do something I’ve always wanted to do, because I can. You may think I’m a pretty little princess who shouldn’t be shooting down the freeway on a crotch-rocket, but I beg to differ. This isn’t the Meji era, Kenshin.” Kaoru pulled herself up and slammed down on the starter, maintaining eye contact with him like the bad-ass bitch she was as the engine roared to life.
“Where are you going? Come on, we need to talk about this!” he said, raising his voice as she revved the engine in an attempt to drown him out.
“Sorry, can’t hear you over all this autonomy and undignified rebellion!” she shouted back, kicking up the stand and shifting into first gear with one fluid motion. If only Kenshin understood how in-tune she felt with this little guy, rumbling beneath her like a cheetah just waiting to break free. He didn’t get it, not at all.
“Quit being so selfish!” he finally snapped. Kaoru paused for only a moment, but it was more than enough time for Kenshin to get a good look at her irate expression before she sped off, ink-black hair drawing trails in the cool autumn air. Good luck getting her to have a calm discussion when he was calling her names.
“Kaoru!”
His calls faded into the distance as she sped off down the street, in search of a companion who she knew wouldn’t be such a stick in the mud.
____
“Oh my god. It’s beautiful,” Misao whispered as she walked into her garage, the faint echoes of the engine still reverberating through the walls. Her delicate fingers caressed the polished emerald paint, still warm from the ride. “Sano gave this to you for how much?!”
“Dirt cheap. He still owes me for the decade of meals he mooched off of me at the Akabeko.” Kaoru stood proudly by the bike, like she had just taught it its first words.
“I’m so jealous. I can’t believe Kenshin is even letting you look at it, let alone ride it,” Misao joked.
Kaoru bit her lip. After a beat, Misao whipped around to look at her, her black bob swishing. “He doesn’t know, does he?”
Without words, Kaoru pulled her cell from her pocket and unlocked it, revealing six missed calls, two voicemails, and thirteen text messages, all from Kenshin. Misao sucked in a breath. “Oh. He has.”
Misao grabbed two dirty white lawn chairs from the side of the garage and pushed them in front of the Yamaha, motioning for her to sit. “At least tell him where you are. And that you’re in one piece.”
Kaoru plopped down with a sigh and opened a new message, refusing to look at whatever nonsense he had tried to patch her wounds with. “At Misao’s. We’ll talk when I come home,” she wrote, turning the phone to silent mode after her message sent and shoving it deep into her pocket.
“So. Is this an act of teenage rebellion?” Misao asked. “Like, I’m all for teenage rebellion. But you’re twenty-four.”
“You know I’ve always wanted a bike.”
“But now? Only a few weeks after the whole Kyoto thing? A little suspicious,” she mused, still eyeing the motorcycle.
“It has nothing to do with that.”
“So Kenshin runs off to do a little vigilante justice without telling you, almost gets himself killed by the head of the Kyoto syndicate, and you’re ‘chill’ with that?”
Kaoru rolled her eyes.
Misao put her hands up in surrender. “I’m just saying,” she said. “I’d be pissed.”
Kaoru turned her gaze to the polished chrome, looking at her mopey, stretched-out expression. “I didn’t buy the bike to piss him off, Misao.”
“I’m thinking there’s just a tidge of ‘worry-revenge’ sprinkled in there.”
Kaoru raised an eyebrow.
“You know. He made you worry, so now you’re making him worry.”
“Kenshin would worry if I tried to make a pot of rice.”
“I think anyone would be concerned if they saw you in the kitchen trying to accomplish something.”
Kaoru huffed. “You get my point. He called me selfish, Misao.” She flopped her head back, eyes trained on the pipes that criss-crossed the garage ceiling. “Selfish for being risky. Like he’s never done that before.”
“He’s not wrong. I mean, he’s a hypocrite, but he’s not wrong.”
Kaoru felt a pang of betrayal, and she turned to glower at Misao.
“Glare all you want—I’m still going to say it. Motorcycles are pretty risky things to ride. It’s easy to slip, there’s no seatbelt to strap you in, and drivers rarely check their blind spots. I don’t know statistics, but you’d be dumb to say there’s no danger.”
“I’m not saying that.”
“I know. But Kenshin probably called you selfish because you haven’t considered how he’d feel if you got hurt.”
“He’d probably think I got what I deserved for trying to be a rebel,” Kaoru grumbled.
“You and I both know he’d blame himself for not being able to stop you,” Misao replied. “He loves you—of course he’d be worried about you riding a motorcycle, especially if Sano is the one who taught you what you know.”
“He just doesn’t trust that I can take care of myself.”
“Is he all that wrong? I don’t see a helmet, or an armored jacket.”
“I’m still working on that stuff,” Kaoru grunted.
“Uh-huh. Maybe if you work on that stuff a little faster, he’ll warm up to the idea.”
Kaoru hated to admit it, but Misao was right. How did this college sophomore know more about her relationships than she did?
“I mean, if you ask me, you have every right to still be mad about the whole Shishio thing. But if you take the high road, you won’t end up begging his forgiveness too. I’m not saying to stop riding, but… don’t do it out of spite.”
“Fair,” Kaoru whispered, finally pulling her phone out of her pocket to look at the messages that had accrued in the past few minutes. There was only one, a response to her curt update. “I love you,” it read. “Come home safe.”
She bit her lip, an ugly pool of guilt swelling in the pit of her stomach. “I think there’s a strong possibility I’ve been a total idiot,” she said, pressing the lock button on her phone and watching the screen turn to black.
“Nothing new. Come on, I have a pizza on the way to celebrate your new prize. Let’s go inside and veg out before you have to head home.” Misao stood, offering her a hand up. Kaoru doubted the greasy goodness currently en-route would quell her rolling stomach, but she could at least try.
_____
Dusk was settling down into the streets as Kaoru biked home, the motor rumbling deep between her strong thighs. In an unusual turn of events, she drove the speed limit the whole way home, looked cautiously at each intersection before proceeding. She was wary of how vulnerable her head was as she putted along, the wind tugging at loose strands and caressing her scalp. She shivered, wondering where her sense of freedom had vanished to. By the time she arrived home, the anxiety in the pit of her stomach had become a limitless abyss. Kaoru had to force herself to grasp the doorknob, turning the cold brass and pushing inward to reveal the soft glow of the home she and Kenshin shared. “I’m home,” she said, automatically, as she closed the door behind her and tossed her keys on the entryway table.
Kaoru was met with silence. Strange. Normally after a fight he would meet her at the door with a warm embrace and an apology, no matter who was at fault. She slipped off her shoes and set her purse down, wandering further into the house. Most of the lights were off, save the entryway and a small lamp that glowed beyond, in the living room. Had he gone to bed? That wouldn’t make sense. He was too much of a worrier to try and sleep when she was off doing something risky.
As Kaoru padded down the polished floorboards and her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she saw a lump of dark red hair smashed down into the keyboard of a laptop, the screen paused on some sort of video. Her heart caught in her throat, until she heard a soft snore reverberate through Kenshin’s lax frame. With a deep breath to calm her nerves, she switched on a nearby lamp, a soft glow filling the room. Kenshin didn’t stir.
With the additional light, it was easy to see what she had missed, lying beside him on the ottoman. It was a shiny black motorcycle helmet, with a full mask and chin guard. Underneath lay a jacket, hefty price tag still attached, with black fabric and a very practical amount of zippers. In a shock-like trance, she reached over to run her fingers down its arm, feeling the lightweight armor-pieces and heavy seams optimized for protection. Had he gone and found all this for her, just in the few hours she had been away? After she had blown him off without so much as hint of discussion?
She looked down at him, trying not to let her lip quiver. There was no way she deserved this man, who always aimed to protect her despite herself. Sure, maybe he needed to know how much his Kyoto excursion had really hurt her, but being reckless was no way to express that. She sat down beside him, wrapping an arm around his shoulder and squeezing gently. “Kenshin,” she whispered. “I’m home.”
“Hmm?” he murmured drowsily, his head rolling to the side and lifting off of the space bar. Suddenly, full-volume dialogue filled the room, making both of them jump.
“Secondly, you always want to make sure cars can see you on the road,” the speakers blared, as a young man in full motorcycle gear leaned against his bike. “Always avoid riding in blind spo--”
Kenshin’s hand slammed down on the keyboard, pausing the video. The title popped up from above, reading “Top Ten Tips for First Time Riders.”
“Oops,” he said, staring groggily at the screen.
“You okay?” Kaoru asked, pulling away just enough to make eye contact.
“Yeah.” His gaze swept over to meet hers. “I’m okay.”
“I was such an idiot,” Kaoru whispered, looking away. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have sped off like that.”
His hand lifted to her cheek and he pulled her in close to kiss her, his touch unbelievably gentle. His lips were soft and warm, and the feel of his breath on her skin made her want to melt into him. “I love you,” he murmured. “I just want you to be safe.”
“And instead, I was selfish.”
“I shouldn’t have called you that. I was being rash.”
“You weren’t wrong.”
“But I wasn’t right, either,” he admitted.
“I should have talked to you before I bought it off of Sano,” she said quietly, arms tight around his waist. “I just—I’ve always wanted one. I knew you wouldn’t like it, because it’s risky, and I wasn’t ready to forgive you yet, for everything that happened in Kyoto. I made it worse.”
His violet eyes shone in the soft light. “I know what I did was stupid—and I’ll promise you as many times as it takes to make you believe I’ll never do it again—but don’t think you need to prove just how much I hurt you. Trust me. Your gaze is enough for me to regret every moment I spent in Kyoto without you. I’m sorry.”
“Okay,” she said, squeezing his hand. She glanced over at the helmet and jacket and looked back at him questioningly.
“I should know better than to try and deny you something you want,” Kenshin said, smiling. “Even if it’s riding a motorcycle. Might as well lean into it.”
“You didn’t have to go and buy me all that,” she said. “That stuff’s expensive.”
“It’s less expensive than hospital bills and therapy for all of the panic attacks you’d give me riding without safety gear.”
“Still… It’s sweet. Thank you, Kenshin,” she said. “I’m glad you’re not making me trade in the Yamaha for a tricycle.”
His brows arched. “You’d consider it?”
“Baka,” she grumbled, pushing him lightly. His eyes glimmered with mischief, and he grabbed her wrists, pulling her to him. “Hey!” His chuckle reverberated through his chest as she landed atop him. He nuzzled her head lovingly, accompanied by a tight embrace.
“No more blasting off tonight. You’re all mine.”
“Fat chance,” she mumbled into his shirt. He just laughed, untangling her hair binder with his free hand so he could run his fingers through her dark locks.
“I gotta say, even though it freaked me out, you looked pretty hot on that motorcycle.” His voice was low, vibrating beneath her ear.
“Yeah?” Her face grew warm.
“Yeah,” he replied, his fingers trailing down her neck to her spine. “I don’t think I mind that part.”
A splash of daring hit her, and before she could stop herself, she said: “Would you prefer I ride something else, then?”
He drew a sharp breath in reply, his hand continuing its journey down her back. “For tonight, I might like that.” His fingers finally rounded her curves, capturing her backside with a firm grip.
She raise her head to look at him, biting her lip hungrily at his touch. “I think I could be convinced,” she said cheekily, a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth.
They kissed, with more urgency than before, Kaoru’s hips pressing into his as he hardened beneath her. His breath came shorter with each movement, and endorphins flooded through Kaoru’s veins. When they broke for air, she sat up, light fingertips rippling over his shirt buttons. The desire was evident in his eyes, and she smirked as she let her hips grind down onto him. Her fingers teased the hem of her worn black tee, taking her time as she pulled it up over her head.
“Come on, Kaoru,” he murmured. “Can’t you go faster?”
“I could.” She reached around to unclasp her bra, letting the hooks and eyes snap open with dangerous patience. As soon as she flung it aside, Kenshin’s grip on her ass tightened considerably. She chuckled, leaning forward to start on his buttons. His hands slipped up her bare sides, cupping her breasts. His thumbs brushed over the tips, and she shivered, breaking her cool demeanor. With each button undone his ministrations grew more intense, and by the time the last button had popped free, he was pinching her nipples hard enough that pleasure had sapped half her strength. “Kenshin,” she panted, now grinding down on him more for her pleasure than his.
“That’s more like it.” He sat up swiftly, and was over her in an instant. “I want to make you feel good,” he whispered, leaning down to capture her lips as he rid himself of his shirt. She didn’t know how to reply, and was grateful for his impassioned kisses as he stole all her oxygen. A rogue thumb popped open the button on her jeans and pulled down the zipper, and she barely had time to brace herself before Kenshin’s hand plunged beneath her panties, feeling how wet she was for him. He moved to kiss her neck, and she couldn’t help the low moan that dribbled from her lips. His fingers circled her clit teasingly as she grabbed a fistful of his vibrant hair, whispering his name under her breath. “I can tell how much you want it,” he mused. “Especially when I do this.” He plunged a couple fingers inside of her and watched her squirm, giving it a few pumps before extracting his hand from her pants.
She couldn’t take him teasing her like that, promising relief from the buildup in her system and then yanking it away from her. At this point, what was the harm in playing dirty? She grabbed his near-soaking hand and, with his full attention, slid his pointer and middle finger into her mouth, sucking at what had accumulated in the brief moment he had orchestrated. He almost fell apart then and there, especially when her tongue circled the tips of his fingers. “Dammit, Kaoru,” he swore, eyes glazed over with hunger. “You’re going to be the death of me.”
She let his fingers slip out of her mouth, slick with her saliva. “Wouldn’t have it any other way.”
He kissed her again, yanking down her pants and underwear in one go. Usually this would have migrated to the bedroom by now, but Kenshin seemed so enraptured by her tonight that the couch cushions were the least of his worries. She helped him shed her pants completely, and with a short exclamation from Kaoru, he yanked her to the edge of the couch. His face was down between her legs before she could protest, and he pressed a teasing kiss to her labia. “Kenshin...” Kaoru breathed. “Please, for the love of--” His tongue swirled around her clit, cutting her off. Oh no. He was going to do that thing he did when he completely and utterly unraveled her.
It didn’t take long for him to have her in pieces, alternating between licking and sucking with an extra hum for good measure. There were no sheets for her to grip, so she settled for tangling her fingers in his hair as waves of pleasure crashed down on her. “Oh my God,” she groaned, as a particularly strong pulse rippled through her. Kenshin doubled down, wrapping his arms around her upper thighs as she writhed. It was all too much, and her muscles were millimeters away from shattering her to pieces. “I’m-- I’m gonna--” she exclaimed.
Suddenly, everything stopped. It took her a moment, but she pulled herself together enough to look down at him, taking in his smirk and the gentle caress of his fingers on her thighs. “Bastard,” she growled. “That’s just cruel.”
He kissed his way up her stomach and to her lips, laughing the whole way. “But you still love me,” he murmured.
“That might change depending on what happens next,” she grumbled.
“I think you know what happens next,” he whispered into her ear, his voice husky. The electricity was back, her sex still pulsing from his mouth. His belt jangled, and his pants were as good as gone. She could feel the hot velvet of his cock on her inner thighs, and as he grinded against her skin-to-skin, he kissed her.
“I can’t take it anymore,” she lamented between kisses, longing for orgasm.
“Hmm… what can’t you take, Kaoru-hime?”
She shuddered with desire at the feel of his cock at her center. “Kenshin...”
“I want to hear you say it,” he whispered, his golden eyes gazing deep into hers.
“I wanna cum,” she said. “I want you inside me. Please, Kenshin.”
He lined himself up with her entrance and pushed in, taking his time as Kaoru moaned. She was so wet from all of his mischief that she had no problem accommodating him, but Jesus fuck, she was so sensitive she was already fit to burst. When he started moving, it was all she could do not to fall apart. She gasped his name a million times, and he hers, as he finally took her as his own. His thrusts grew harder and harder, matched by her hips, and after what felt like a torturous century, she hit her climax, spasming and panting and swearing. He came in tandem with her, his last impassioned pulses accompanied by her name. They clutched one another, sweaty, shuddering, and exhausted, as the aftershocks thrummed through them.
When she finally regained her breath, Kaoru whispered, “God, I love you,” embracing him tightly. Kenshin kissed her forehead, tucking her under his chin as he held her close.
“I love you too. That was… wonderful.”
“I thought I was going to explode.”
“Me too. I don’t think I can keep my hands off you.”
“So don’t,” Kaoru giggled, nuzzling closer to him. “I won’t object.”
He smiled, running his fingers through her now-tangled hair. “If this is how we end every discussion on motorcycles, I don’t think I’ll ever be able to object. Though next time we should, uh, save this for the bedroom.”
Kenshin and his home furnishings… “Really?” she said. “I was thinking the kitchen table next.”
He looked horrified. “We eat there!”
Kaoru raised an eyebrow. “And what else have you ‘eaten’ tonight?”
Kenshin flushed, looking away.
Kaoru smiled, looking back towards the ottoman where her new helmet and sleek jacket lay, undisturbed. “Hey Kenshin… how do you think that jacket would look with some lingerie?”
He groaned, burying his head in the hollow between her head and her shoulder. “You’re gonna kill me, Kaoru. You, and that motorcycle.”