Breaking The Walls (A Brother's Conflict Fan Fiction)

Chapter Nine: The No Touching Zone

"Those are perfect!" Wataru said, pointing excitedly towards the bouquet of roses on display. I gently picked the up and examined them. They were very nice, a good bright red with firm stems. Then I checked the price.

"Holy shit!" I exclaimed.

"What?" he asked,  looking worried. I showed him the price tag that was pinned to the bouquet.

"Oh, that?" he shrugged. "We can still get them, though, right?"

"I'm not sure. I have some money but it's for an emergency. I don't know if this counts as a emergency," I said quietly.

"Aww, but we have to get some!" he whined.

"I'm sorry, Wataru, they're too expensive. Let's try to find a lower price."

"Excuse me," someone said behind me.

I turned and there was a darker skinned man, probably in his early thirties, standing there.
"Yes?" I asked.

"I'm Marco," he said, reaching a hand toward me. I shook it awkwardly.

"Do you need something?" I asked. I was getting a little anxious that some random stranger was talking to me. Wataru and I had come to the market, and Kaname had tagged along to keep us company. Where was he now?

"Nothing," said Marco. "It's just that I overheard your conversation with the boy about the price of those roses."

"Yeah, they're a tad spendy," I mumbled.

"Here," he said. He reached into his jacket pocket, pulled out a fifty dollar bill and handed it to me.

"Huh? I can't take this-" I started.

He just smiled, showing his nearly perfectly straight white teeth, and held a hand up to quiet me.

"Don't worry about it. Fifty bucks is totally worth it for a pretty girl like yourself," he gave me a small wink as he said this. My cheeks flushed red, and I was starting to feel really self conscious. He was pretty attractive, if I'm being honest, and that just made me feel more awkward.

"By the way, here's my number," he said as he stuck a folded paper into the pocket of my bag.

Ummmm...

Right when I thought about throwing the money at Marco, grabbing Wataru and bolting for it, Kaname decided to announce his presence.

"Hey, love," he said, casually throwing his arm around my shoulder. He surprised me by kissing my cheek. Then he turned to face Marco, who looked a little uncomfortable himself. "Do you need something, Marco?"

I could see in his eyes that he didn't like this guy and it made me feel a little scared.

"I was just giving her some money for the roses," Marco explained.

"Well, you can take your money back, Marco. I will take care of my girlfriend," Kaname said sternly.

Girlfriend? Excuse me?

Marco put his hands up and said,  "Look,  just keep the money, I'll leave you alone," before turning and walking quickly in the opposite direction.

Kaname turned and grabbed my shoulders, leaned in close and asked, "Are you okay?"

I didn't say anything but shook my head no. I was trying hard not to have a breakdown again.

"Come," he said, holding my hand, and slipping the fifty from my fingers. He handed it to the little shop owner, grabbed the bouquet, and started heading home with Wataru tagging along behind us, all the time never letting go of my hand.

In fact, he held my hand the entire way home.

"Can I have my hand back now?" I asked quietly. He shook his head and I decided not to question him.

Once we were home, he told Wataru to go tidy up his room for a while so we could have a little chat.

"Aww, come on. I always miss the little chats," Wataru said as he reluctantly went to his room. Kaname pulled me up the stairs.

"Where are we going?"

"Your room," he said.

"Am I being grounded for something?"

He ignored me.

"Well, would you at least loosen your grip? I'm a human being, not a bean bag," I huffed. He complied but said nothing.

Once we were at my door, he tried to open it, but I shoved myself against the door keeping it shut.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" I accused. "I don't take enjoyment in being dragged all over the place and ignored and having the hell squeezed out of my hand. You've got some explaining to do, buckwheat. And also, girlfriend? What's that supposed to mean? You think you can just get away with saying something like that without explaining anything? "

Suddenly he put his hand over my mouth. He leaned really close to me and said, "I believe that's the most I've heard you say in one breath since we met. It's intriguing. Now, if you don't mind, I'll explain myself once were inside your room."

He reached behind me to open then door. The motion brought us closer,  so that our chests were almost touching. I blushed, he smirked, and I cursed. Why, oh why did I have to blush so easily?

I turned around and rushed into my room, climbing into the bed and hiding myself under the covers. Kaname chuckled and sat on the end of the bed, patting my backside through the blanket. I shot out from under the covers and glared at him.

"Don't. Touch. My. Butt," I hissed.

He laughed.

"Why not? It's a very nice one," he teased, attempting to pat my butt again, but I scooted as far away from him as I could. I could feel myself starting to get upset again, and that made me angry.

"If you ever touch me like that ever again, I will kill you."

"Alright, alright. I get it. Butt's the no touching zone."

"No, all of me is the no touching zone," I stated.

"Even here?" he asked, looking my nose.

I nodded.

"What about here?" He poked my cheek, then the side of my neck, then my shoulder, and I tensed up.

"Sorry," he said. "I just... I want to get to know you. I want to know why you react the way you do. I want to know what you think about when you're alone. I want to know what makes you the way you are."

Why did he care? Nobody gave a crap about me besides my mother. Maybe Stan. But generally no one else cared. Or they shouldn't. I wasn't important.

"No you don't," I barely choked out.

"Yes, I do," Kaname said quietly, taking my hand. "I would like to help you."

"I don't need your help," I said, trying to be strong, but it wasn't working.

"Jenna," he said, looking into my eyes and making me blush again. I turned away,  but he placed his palm on my cheek, gently pulling me back toward him as he leaned in close.