Samurai's Blossom - A Hakuouki Fanfic [HAITUS]

Chapter 12 - Two Sides

"Jeez, look at you being so shameless," muttered Shiranui san. "I'm leaving. If you need anything, you know how to call me."

He walked out of the room and Amagiri san followed suit soon after, giving a bow to Kazama san and me. Just as they left, a maid walked in carrying food and sake. The low-height table was placed in front of us and while I reached out to the food, Kazama san reached for the sake. I satiated my stomach with the delicious food in silence and Kazama san remained silent as well while he drank his sake slowly. When I was done eating, I remained seated straight and not leaning back against Kazama san.

"Would you pour me some more sake, Sara?"

"No," I responded, flatly and immediately. "You have hands, don't you? You can pour you own sake."

He said nothing to my rude response but placed his sake cup down. He reached for the bottle of sake, poured himself a drink and took the cup into his hand again. He shifted slightly, forcing me to lean against him again despite a little struggling from my end. Once again, I gave up against his obvious overpowering and settled into him like he was a chair before looking out of the window.

I sighed softly. Why was it that I could never be with the people I cared about for an extended period of time? I loved my family but I couldn't bear to stay with them because of their overbearing expectations. I loved working at the hospital but I couldn't stay there because I got dragged into the past unexpectedly. I had just begun to grow deep affection for Harada san and I got ripped away from him by Kazama san. Would I ever get to settle in one place?

Well, Kazama san wanted me to be his mate and it meant being stuck with him for the rest of my life – that was one thing that hinted settling and permanence but it wasn't the kind I expected to end up with. I hadn't ended up with it yet but with the way things were going, it seemed to be a high enough possibility.

All said and done, despite Kazama san's annoying cockiness, he did seem like a decent man. I mean, he had never harmed me on any of our run-ins despite his stubbornness to have me as his mate no matter what. I mean, I had heard that he had been rather rough with Chizuru, punching her in the gut once to force her unconscious so he could kidnap her, but he hadn't been that way to me even though there had been plenty of such chances. Well, I had fought back too so perhaps I had given him less of a chance to be that rough, but still. When he had forced me unconscious before bringing me here, wherever here was, he had only applied pressure on the back of my neck – it wasn't in the least painful. And he was being surprisingly clingy now, gentle even, like he actually had feelings for me.

His clinginess was perhaps to make sure that I didn't escape but, somehow, it also felt immensely protective.

Goose bumps erupted on my skin at that thought. What in the world was I thinking?? Protective?! I can't believe I was feeling charmed by those delusional thoughts! Jeez, something was wrong with me!

"Are you cold?" I heard him ask. He unwrapped his arm from my middle cautiously and proceeded to rub my arm, as if trying to warm me up. I tilted my head up to meet his sharp, scarlet eyes that held curiosity. I watched him silently for several moments, many questions filling my mind.