Warning: Mature Content ahead.
True Confessions
12:
It was turning out to be
a rather humid day and Yankumi wished, for the umpteenth time that she had worn
something lighter. She shouldn’t have listened to those weather men on TV. They
hardly knew what they were saying half of the time anyway. According to them it
was supposed to be cool and cloudy and yet the sun had refused to stop shining.
She was boiling out here!
She must have groaned or
whined or made some small sound of suffering because her companion eyed her
warily. “Are you tired already?” he asked with a small smirk although he
couldn’t help feeling a bit concerned at how flushed she looked. Thankfully,
they were almost to their destination so she could take a break.
“Shut up,” she mumbled
and leaned against him. His arm encircled her waist as they walked. “How much
longer?” she asked, inwardly grateful for his support.
“We’re almost there. I
think it’s this street…” He stopped and eyed the small piece of paper in his
hand before pointing towards the tall structure with the words ‘Amnesty
International’ blazoned across it.
“Wow…this is a volunteer
office?” she asked in awe. “I thought it would be more…”
“Depressing?” Shin
offered as he led her across the busy street. He nodded towards the security guard
and walked through the glass doors and into a blessedly cool lobby. Yankumi
sighed in gratitude at the welcome reprieve from the heat and was tempted to
sit down on one of the many benches stationed around for that purpose.
“The building houses many
other international organizations involved with charity or humanitarian
services,” Shin explained as he eyed the large directory on the wall. Yankumi
leaned in with interest. She always enjoyed listening to Shin talk about things
like these. The young man had obviously been doing his homework and was more
than ready for his journey. It helped that he could speak English relatively
well and they had spent several evenings conversing in the foreign language to
hone their skills. She was going to miss that…among other things.
“Oh…this is where you are
looking for, right?” She pointed at the words ‘Habitat for Humanity’ and Shin
nodded in agreement. “It’s on the third floor.”
“Let’s go.” He held her
hand as they walked past a group of tourists. There were many people who seemed
to be speaking several different languages and Yankumi could only stare
wide-eyed at everything. It dawned on her that there really was a whole other
world to explore out there and that her little yakuza lifestyle was nothing in
comparison to what Shin was bound to face. As they stepped into an elevator,
having to squeeze through a group of other people, she stole a quick glance at
him. He looked calm and collected as he always did but she couldn’t help
wondering if he was afraid deep down inside. He had to be! He was going to a
place where a different people, language and culture awaited him. It wasn’t
going to be easy as he had told her before but he was more than ready for the
challenge.
She lowered her gaze and
then gasped softly as she felt his hand beneath her jaw. She gave a small smile
to his questioning look. She was fine, she mouthed. Just a little tired. He
didn’t look a bit convinced but he squeezed her hand gently in reassurance all
the same. She held on tightly and as the elevator doors opened to the right
floor, they stepped out and walked down the corridor. Yankumi stared at
enormous blown-up pictures of famous humanitarians and the poor and deserving
individuals who had been helped in their times of need. This floor was rather quiet
compared to the chaos of the main lobby and only a few people milled about as
Shin walked up to the receptionist.
“Ah, Mr. Sawada,” the
pretty brunette behind the desk greeted. “Please have a seat. You’ll be called
into Mr. Wellington’s office in a minute.”
“Hello,” she suddenly
greeted in English and Yankumi lowered the magazine slowly. Shin, who had
closed his eyes, opened them to eye the girl. She switched to Japanese just as
easily as she had spoken in the foreign language. “My name is Kusanagi Sakura.
This is my brother, Akira and his best friend Izumi.”
Yankumi and Shin opened
their mouths to reply to the greetings from the trio, but it seemed like Sakura
wasn’t quite finished. “We’re from Team
Yankumi, not knowing what
to say, was spared the trouble as Shin replied. “No, I’m the only one going and
I’m applying for Team Africa too. The name’s Sawada Shin.”
“Awesome!” Akira cried
out suddenly. “That makes a total of…” He counted his fingers. “Twelve so far.
We hope to get more members by the end of the week…”
“Our goal is twenty-six,”
Izumi chimed in. “Last year it was brutal! We barely made it in
Shin, now interested and
quite glad he was going to be working with a few Japanese people, leaned
forward to listen to their stories. Apparently, this was their fifth overseas
volunteer mission and they had just graduated from high school! Sakura was
already a first year in college which made her a year older than Shin. She
could speak several languages and was going to become a diplomat when she
finished school while Akira and Izumi planned to become archeologists.
Yankumi listened to their
excited chatter, feeling the cold claws of dread tightening around her heart as
Shin became lost in their conversation. She suddenly felt like an outsider and
wondered what she was doing in here. She longed to butt in and to ask her own
questions but she knew she didn’t belong in their world.
“Hey, aren’t you going to
tell us your name?” Akira asked suddenly causing the others to stop long enough
to finally notice the silent woman.
“Oh! Me?” Yankumi sat up
quickly. “Ah! My name is Yan…Yamaguchi Kumiko. Nice to meet you.”
“So are you like his
girlfriend?” Sakura asked with a teasing wink. “It’s got to be hard having him
leave for so long. You’re staying the full year, aren’t you, Sawada?”
Shin nodded slowly.
“Yes…”
“But it’s fine,” Yankumi
interrupted quickly with a smile that felt too bright. “I know he’ll do just
fine when he goes away and we’ll keep in touch all the time, won’t we?”
Sakura and the boys
exchanged a look before she said softly. “Well…communication isn’t going to be
that easy especially when you’re made to work in locations where there’s no
water or electricity.”
“Yeah, sometimes we don’t
get to talk to our family members for months at a time,” Izumi said with a slow
nod. “But I’m sure it won’t be that bad!” He added quickly, noticing the
stricken look on Yankumi’s visage. “I’m sure he’ll be able to communicate with
you as often as he can, ne, Sakura?”
“Uh huh!” The girl nodded
with a warm smile but the damage was already done. Shin noticed how pale
Yankumi had become and reached out to hold her hand, but she pulled it away
quickly and managed a weak smile in his direction. She wasn’t going to cry. She
couldn’t cry in front of them. She had to be strong. For him.
“I’ll wait downstairs,”
she said hoarsely and before Shin could utter another word, she rose to her
feet and left the room ignoring the concerned looks that came her way. Shin
would have gone after her, but Mr. Wellington had chosen that moment to step out
of his office to greet the new recruits.
Yankumi staggered down
the hallway before sliding to the floor, grateful that no one else seemed to be
around to see her in this state. Two weeks had passed since Shin’s graduation
and each day had seemed to pass by at an alarming rate. Although, he did his
best to spend as much time with her as possible, he had been busy trying to tie
up all ‘loose’ ends in preparation for his trip. There was his apartment for
one thing. His landlord had agreed to rent out the room for the duration of
Shin’s stay abroad with the condition that it would be ready for Shin when he
returned. However, Kuroda had offered a section of his large estate to be used
as Shin’s quarters and needless to say both he and Yankumi had been thrilled at
that prospect.
And there had been the
visit to Toudai a few days ago. Professor Fujiwara – Shin’s self-appointed
counselor – had wanted to meet with the young man to discuss his future.
Despite his trepidations, Shin had made the trip with Yankumi in tow and for
two days they had traversed the large campus, marveling at the great school and
its student body. By the end of their orientation, even Shin had felt a dull
flame of excitement at the thought of coming back to such a place. Maybe his
father had been right after all.
She rose to her feet
slowly and walked into the elevator, hardly paying any attention to the group
of men that filled the small space. Squeezing herself in the middle while
hoping that someone was going to the ground floor, she gave a breathless squeak
of surprise as a hand squeezed her ass gently. She glanced at the two men
beside her and growled softly. If they dared to touch her again…!
“Get your damn hands off
me!” she yelled as she felt it again. She swung out a fist to punch the culprit
in the face, glad that she had finally found someone to vent out her
frustrations.
By the time the elevator
doors opened, those waiting outside were shocked to see all the men – about six
in all – slumped in a corner and an angry looking woman walking out of it with
a toss of her head.
Men, she thought with a snort. They
are all goddamn perverts!
Shin found her, almost
half an hour later, sitting by the outdoor fountain and licking a vanilla
flavored ice-cream. “I thought you said you’d be waiting for me in the lobby,”
he said with a light frown as he walked towards her. “I was looking all over
for you.”
“Do you want an
ice-cream?” she asked, ignoring his accusatory look as she smiled brightly at
him. “There’s a vendor right there and I can go get you one…”
“Cut the bullshit,
Kumiko,” Shin interrupted calmly. “If you’ve got something to say, then say
it.”
She shook her head and
held up her cone. “Would you like mine then? It’s vanilla and I know you like…”
“Kumiko,” Shin began in a
low voice which clearly meant that he was not buying her nice act in the
slightest. Knowing how stubborn he could be, Yankumi sighed and sat back on the
bench. She stared at the few children who were running in and out of the sprays
of water for a moment before replying quietly.
“I don’t want you to go,
Shin.” She lowered head as if ashamed of admitting it and held her breath in
anticipation for his response. But for a long moment, he said nothing and
simply sat beside her. She heard the rustle of papers he had been holding in
his hands and it seemed as if he was reading through them.
“I leave on the
fifteenth, two weeks from now,” he began quietly but firmly. “However, we will
have to be at a three day camp before departure. We have to learn a few skills,
take our shots and…”
“Don’t go…” she whispered
hoarsely, clenching her hands into tight fists on her lap. The cone snapped in
her hand but she barely noticed it. “You can always take volunteer work in…in
She simply couldn’t
imagine a day without him now. Ever since she had walked into Shirokin and had
met his cool gaze in that auditorium, she had known that somehow, he was and
would always be a part of her life. To lose him now even if it was just for a
while was going to be the hardest thing she had ever faced.
“Kumiko, I thought we had
already talked about this…” He began but his words faltered as she tossed the
ice-cream into a nearby trashcan and buried her face against his chest. For a
moment, he wondered if he was hearing things since her voice was muffled
against his shirt. “Kumiko?”
“I said,” she pulled away
just enough to be audible. She wondered why she had never said it till now. It
couldn’t be that hard and yet each time she felt it was the right moment to let
him know, something had come up to ruin it. Maybe this time, she could tell him
and he might change his mind and not wish to go anymore. It was wishful
thinking, she knew, but it couldn’t hurt to try. She lifted her gaze to meet
his bemused ones, her cheeks flushing darkly as she licked her lips slowly. The
sounds of the city around them seemed to melt away and all that was left was
the young man who sat before her. She raised a trembling hand to caress his
cheek gently, staring at every contour and line of that handsome visage as if
to imprint it in her mind forever.
“Shin…Shin I…I lo…”
Feeling as if his heart
would rip a hole right through his chest, her soft confession was effectively
muted by the droning sound of a passing airplane. He groaned and held her
tightly to his body, knowing that she had said them but yet fate had deemed it
necessary to deny him the pleasure of hearing it.
“I love you too, Kumiko,”
he whispered into her hair, caressing her back gently. “But…I’m still going. I
don’t want you to worry too much about me and you know I’ll do my best to stay
in contact as often as I can…”
She stiffened in his arms
and then pulled away quickly, her cheeks still flushed. “So my feelings for you
won’t change a thing!”
He shook his head, trying
to stop himself from smiling at how great she looked when upset. “Nice try,
Kumiko-chan, but fawning all over me isn’t going to help. I’m still
going…ouch!”
She swung her handbag at
him again and he had to lift his hands to shield himself from her punishing
blows. He got to his feet and tried to run away but she began to chase him down
the street, still yelling about his ungrateful and selfish behavior.
“Get back here, you
fool!” she yelled. “Come here and I’ll kick your ass!” And yet to cherish
every moment I have left with you…that is all I can do now, Shin.
A week later, she slammed
the list on the low table between them and grinned widely at him.
“What’s this?” he asked
warily as he picked it up to stare at her scribbled words. “Things to do with
Shin.” He smirked. “Aren’t you missing something here…?”
“Give that back to me,”
she retorted quickly as she snatched the note from his hand while trying hard
not to blush at his insinuation. “These are just some of the fun things we can
do before you leave, you idiot.”
He eyed the chaotic
looking apartment, wondering how and when he had managed to accumulate so much
in a short space of time. There were empty boxes all waiting to be packed with
his items and ready to be taken to his new ‘home’ at the Oedo compound.
“And just when are we
going to do all of this? I’ve still got to organize these things…”
“Which is why we’re going
to finish it all today,” she said quickly. “See? We can go to the park
first…they open at nine and then indoor skating…”
“I don’t skate,” he
mumbled beneath his breath, trying hard to fight his blush as he rose to his
feet. “This is ridiculous, Kumiko. I don’t have the time to do this. I’ve got
things to prepare for…”
“But these are our last
few days together!” she suddenly yelled out causing him to stop in his tracks.
He glanced over his shoulder at her lowered head. “I won’t see you again in
five days,” she continued softly. “I want to be with you for as long as I can…”
Her words were muffled as
he pulled her into a tight embrace. He listened to her soft sobs, knowing that
he was only being this ‘strong’ for fear he would lose his resolve and decide
to stay after all. It was a risk leaving her and, not for the first time, he
wondered if other men (Shinohara being his number one concern) would come into
her life while he was gone. He closed his eyes and inhaled the sweet fragrance of
her hair, knowing that this might be one of the few times he would get the
opportunity to do this.
“Let’s do it,” he mumbled
into her hair. “Wherever you want to go, Kumiko.”
She pulled away, smiling
tremulously through her tears. “Really? Anywhere!”
“Uuum…yeah…?”
“Yes! Then hurry and wear
your shoes!” she ordered quickly as she rose to her feet with a wide grin. He
blinked in surprise at the sudden change of mood and then realized that she had
tricked him into agreeing. Those tears hadn’t been real at all. Damn her!
However, he didn’t protest when she dragged him to his feet. He smiled softly
at her excited and contagious demeanor, somehow glad to know that he could at
least make her happy this way.
Despite
her need to go to the amusement park early, Yankumi had screamed in terror
during most of the rides, so loud in fact that Shin was sure he had gone tone
deaf by the time they left. Her arms were soon filled with stuffed animals he
had won for her but realizing that she couldn’t take them all in the bus, she
had to give them away to some passing children.
At the indoor skating
rink, it had taken almost ten minutes to convince Shin to get on the ice. He
had held onto the side stands cursing out loud as he watched her twirl around
and around in circles. She called him a chicken and weakling and in his attempt
to get back at her, he had faltered and fallen on his ass…several times. He did
manage to skate on his own for all of one minute, but Yankumi had held his
hands through it all and had to laugh at how flustered he looked each time he
lost his footing.
They satisfied their
hunger at a rather fancy restaurant afterwards, failing to tell Shin that one
of her grandfather’s friends owned the establishment. Of course, it didn’t help
that many of the waiters gave it away by calling her ‘Ojou’ on more than one
occasion and Shin had to shake his head and fight back a smile each time she
tried to make them shut up. The four course meal was delicious and although
Yankumi had wanted to have an extra cup of white wine, Shin had declined the
offer and had to drag a protesting woman out of the building.
They stopped to watch a
colorful street performance and danced and clapped along with the others as the
entertainers gave out colorful beads and prizes to the spectators. By the time
they had made their way towards the river, it was dusk and both were extremely
exhausted.
“Look!” She suddenly
yelled out, pointing towards a small photo booth that had been erected along
the road. “Let’s take a few pictures, Shin.”
“I look like crap,” he
protested weakly as he was pulled into the tiny space but was ignored as usual
as Yankumi tried to figure out what background suited them and how much money
it would take.
“All right, I think I
have it set now,” she said as she sat beside him. “Say cheese, Shin!”
He rolled his eyes and
tried to duck, but she caught his chin and then forced his lips to part into
what was supposed to be a smile. She tried several outrageous poses with him –
like grabbing him in a headlock or placing kisses on his cheek or ruffling his
hair or blocking his view at some point.
“I think it’s out of
money, Kumiko,” he said while pulling out the strips of pictures. Even he had
to laugh at the results and she grinned in pleasure at the sound of it. “I
think I’ll take some with me,” he added, tearing out several to stick into his
pocket. She blushed at the gesture and reciprocated his act by peeling off the
old sticker of her face on her cell phone and replacing it with one of both of
them smiling at the camera. Shin approved by giving her a hard kiss and she
nudged him playfully as they made their way out of the booth and back into the
street. They walked towards the river and without saying a word, fell back to
the cool grass to watch the fading sunset in the horizon.
For a long time they
remained lost in their thoughts as daylight slowly made way for early evening.
Yankumi sighed softly and then turned on her side to stare at her silent
companion. His eyes were closed and she realized with a soft smile that he had
fallen asleep. Moving even closer to him, she reached out to brush away the
dark locks from his forehead. She traced the outline of his closed eyes, his
nose and his lips tenderly, biting her lower lip to stop herself from getting
emotional again.
“Shin…” she whispered
against his lips. “Don’t you dare forget about me. Not ever.” He mumbled
something unintelligible and she captured it in a soft kiss before laying her
head upon his chest. She reached for his hand and held onto it tightly, feeling
her lashes grow heavy with sleep as she listened to his steady heartbeat. And
as she began to drift to sleep, she silently wished that this wonderful moment
would remain frozen in time…forever.
The next
day, Shin received a phone call from Kuma inviting him and Yankumi to a
designated address. He had been relatively vague with his reasons, but as Shin
and Kumiko approached the meeting place, it was quite obvious what was about to
happen. A surprise party/farewell party for him!
It was Noda who had
somehow managed to gather most of the ex-students of Class 3-D for the farewell
party and even
Shin woke up around noon
with a blinding headache and staggered towards the bathroom to regain some
semblance of normalcy. Once cleaned and sure the world had stopped spinning on
its axis; he managed to eat some of the food Tetsu placed before him without
hurling its contents to the floor. He glanced at his watch and winced. He had
promised to meet Natsumi almost half an hour ago and giving Minoru the message
to let Yankumi know his whereabouts, he all but ran out of the compound and
towards the park.
“I thought you weren’t
going to make it,” the blond girl said with a warm smile as she wrapped her
arms around his neck and hugged him tightly. Usually shying away from such
contact with her, he welcomed it this time and even returned the gesture. He
was soon aware of her soft sobs and he felt a pang of guilt in his heart…again.
Leading her towards a bench, he dried her tears quickly and held her hands
trying to smile at her tearful visage in reassurance.
“Just one more year,” he
said softly. “When I return, you’ll be ready to graduate and then we can be at
Toudai together.”
“What makes you think I
want to go to Toudai?” she teased while sniffling at the same time. “I’m going
to school in the
“And Dad approved of
this?” Shin asked in surprise.
Natsumi shrugged and
looked away. “Well…he doesn’t know yet. But I’ll convince him, you’ll see.”
“Natsumi,” Shin began in
worry.
“Don’t fret,” she said
with a firm nod. “I’m not going to run away again.”
“Good.”
They fell silent and
stared at the people who walked by for a moment before Natsumi spoke up again,
this time with faint amusement in her voice. “So you and that teacher are now
dating, right? Ayumi told me that. How come you didn’t let me know?”
“Because you’re a nosey
girl.”
“Hey!” She slapped his
arm playfully trying to look upset. “If she’s going to be my sister, you might
as well let me know.”
Shin had the grace to
blush. The whole marriage thing was still a long ways away. He didn’t really
want to think about that now although he did have plans to do so eventually.
“Idiot,” he mumbled and ignored her teasing as she noticed his red cheeks.
“She’s nice,” Natsumi
agreed with a nod. “And cool. I’m glad you found someone to make you really
happy, Shin. But…”
She really didn’t need to
finish her question for both siblings knew the foreboding cloud of doubt which
hovered over them. Although Shin had been ‘disowned’, he would still have to
let his parents know his intentions regarding Yankumi someday.
“I’ll worry about that
when the time comes,” he said with a firm nod as he rose to his feet. “But for
now, let’s go have some fun, hmm? Did you bring your camera?”
At her nod of agreement,
he held her hand tightly within his, vowing to himself to continue to protect
her for as long as he could.
“Eight
thousand, four hundred and five miles from
“Is everything okay in
there?” he asked in concern.
“Ye…yes!” she replied as
she fell to her hands and knees to search for the elusive item. “I’ll be out
soon!”
Finding it between her
small travel bag and the sink, she stood up again and stared at her pale visage
in the mirror. It was almost eleven at night and they were back in Shin’s all
but empty apartment to pick up a few remaining items – at least that was the
plan.
Shin’s farewell dinner
with her grandfather and the kyodai had been a somber and yet
celebratory one. Kyou-san had launched into a heartfelt speech that left Tetsu,
Minoru and Sawara in tears. On behalf of his henchmen, he had given Shin a
wicked looking dagger which he claimed to have been passed down from generation
to generation in the Oshima family. Of course, Yankumi had asked what Shin was
supposed to do with such a thing while building houses for people, but Shin had
accepted it with grace and genuine pleasure. Kuroda, for his part, had imparted
a few sincere words of advice to the young man and Shin had had to stop himself
from crying through it all. How he wished his real father would have been the
one to see him off, but he was still grateful that at least his second family
cared for him just as well. Prayers had been said afterwards and much to
everyone’s surprise, it was Yankumi who had suggested she and Shin go back to
his apartment to take care of the rest of his things. Since he was leaving for
the camp in the morning – Sakura and the others were going to pick him up –
Shin had figured it would be a good idea anyway. It would save him the trip of
going back to his place the next day.
And now here they were,
alone in his empty apartment with nothing but futons on the bare floor for the
night. He had only one suitcase and a rather large backpack for the trip,
claiming that it was all he could ever need.
“Our last night
together,” she whispered and covered her face with her hands to stop herself
from giving in to the tears she had held back all day. She took a deep breath
and shook her head rapidly before staring at her flushed features with determination.
She couldn’t back out now. She had promised to give him this last gift as a
memory he would never forget and although she had always planned to wait until
her wedding night, she had the feeling that this was as good a time as any.
What would happen if he didn’t come back? Or if he lost his life or a limb or
two over there? What would happen if he outgrew her and no longer found her
attractive or wished to be with another woman? She couldn’t bear to think of
any and all other terrible situations that might occur!
“It’s now…now or never,”
she said with a firm nod of resolution. She eyed the satin blue but simple
kimono, making sure its sash was relatively loose around her waist and that it
fell off her shoulders. She had seen her favorite actress do this in a movie
once and it was supposed to be seductive and enticing to the man. She shook her
long dark hair, allowing it fall over her shoulders and frame her face. She had
only put on a light sheen of makeup and wondering if she smelled nice enough,
she reached for her bottle of perfume and dabbed a bit more on her neck, behind
her ears and wrists.
“There!” She stepped back
and pursed her lips into a pout. She lowered her lashes and practiced her
lines. There was no way Shin could resist her now. Just like in the movies, she
was going to open up the door like this…
She did so ever so
slowly.
She was going to lean
against the doorway with a leg up, revealing her thigh to his gaze in a
seductive pose. She began to do so but unfortunately, forgot that her sash was
rather long. As she tried to raise her leg, it got tangled up with the
doorstopper and consequently sent her sprawling to the floor in a heap that was
anything but seductive.
“Kumiko!” Shin called out
as he ran towards her and fell to his knees. “Are you all right?”
No, I’m not! This was
supposed to be me seducing you, damn it! She allowed him to lift her up and then pushed his hands
away to hide her embarrassment.
“Wow…” he whispered in
awe as he took a good look at what she was wearing. The kimono looked like it
was ready to fall off her body completely and her hair looked dishelved. The
fact that she was glaring at him as if it was all his fault made her even
sexier and before he could stop himself, he placed his hands on her hips and
pressed his face against her flat torso with a low groan of need.
She blushed to the roots
of her hair as she felt his warm breath against her stomach. She barely
protested as he pushed the cloth aside to caress the soft but firm contours of
her hips and down to her thighs. She whimpered as his mouth hovered around her
belly-button and felt her knees tremble as he began to kiss it gently. She
called out his name shakily, her hands sinking into his hair as she allowed him
to pull down the simple white cotton panties she had been wearing.
“Kumiko?” he asked in a
strangled voice. There was a desperate plea in the way he had called her and as
she stared into his darkened depths, she knew she would be unable to say no
even if she tried.
“Hai…Shin…”
He rose to his feet and
seized her mouth in a searing kiss, tongues dueling fiercely as he pushed aside
the kimono to let it pool at their feet. Her hands tugged on his sweater
restlessly and he obliged by pulling back a little to take it off completely.
She gasped at the feel of his broad chest, now more bronzed and stronger from
his sparring matches with her and Kyou-san. She wrapped her arms tightly around
his neck and lost herself in his kiss as he lifted her up to lead them towards
her futon. They almost stumbled to the floor in their haste, their breathing
shallow and rough as they realized the enormity of the situation. She moaned
out his name as his lips began to trail hungry kisses along her jaw and neck.
She cried out in pleasure at the tingling fullness in her breasts, toes curling
in response to his expert touch as he fondled and tasted each one with equal
and thorough attention. When his lips began to move lower and towards the
sensitive region between her legs, she flushed in embarrassment and covered her
face.
Shin smiled at her
protests and reminded her of just how beautiful she was. Her intended and
half-hearted insult towards him at his cheesy words; was lost in the choked sob
that escaped her lips as she felt his tongue there. She begged him to stop and
yet to go on, her trembling hands sinking into his hair as he continued to
torture her with each precise stroke. Her entire body arched off the futon and
before long, she felt the low heat rise within her stomach and rush out just as
quickly in an orgasm that had tears of satisfaction springing to her eyes. With
a low groan, she fell back to the bedding limply, arms reaching up to pull Shin
back to her.
“How did that feel?” he
asked between tender kisses as his hands moved to remove his pants. If he
didn’t get any relief soon, he was going to go insane.
Still blushing and trying
to catch her breath, she could only smile shyly at him. “Good,” she finally
confessed. “Very…oooh!” Her eyes widened at the sensation of his hard flesh
against her stomach. She looked down and sucked in a harsh breath in awe. Well,
no one could call him a boy with that!
“Touch me,” he begged
softly, whispering his plea into her ear. He was aware that this might be her
first time and didn’t want to have her running away or worse kicking him down
there again. But he needn’t have worried for her fingers did wrap themselves
around his aching flesh and began to stroke it tentatively.
“Like…that?” she asked,
worried that she might be hurting him, but if his low pants and moans were any
indication, she knew she was doing a good job. She caught his lips in another
kiss and stroked even faster, her fingers getting used to the hot and slightly
sticky organ which seemed to swell in her grip. His groans grew to a fever
pitch and just when she thought he was going to explode, he pulled away
quickly, muttering something about needing protection. She held her breath and
listened to the hasty rustle of paper, flushing as she understood what he was
doing now. However, something flared deep within her again as Shin moved back
to tease the swollen tip against her wet entrance. She had heard that it was
supposed to hurt the first time around and she braced herself for it. She had a
high threshold for pain anyway, so this wasn’t going to be so bad, was it?
“Kumiko?” he asked
softly, looking deeply into her glazed depths. He wasn’t sure he would be able
to stop anyway and her slow nod was all the permission he needed. He hissed
sharply as he thrust as slowly and as carefully as he could into the tight
sheath. He watched her features contour with pain and he stopped moving.
“Are…are you okay?”
“Fine…fine,” she replied
breathlessly. She clawed the sheets and tried to even her breathing to get used
to invasion. He felt so big within her. She felt so tight around him and when
both knew they couldn’t take it anymore; Shin closed his eyes and buried
himself even deeper, listening to her strangled cry as his hands sought for
hers to hold on to. Together they moved, getting used to each other’s rhythm as
they began a dance as old as time. In time, they became one, bodies becoming
covered in a light sheen of sweat as they moved faster and harder to reach
completion.
Yankumi had never thought
she would be able to feel anything this good before. It was simply
indescribable and sharing it with Shin made it all the more intense and even
better. She wrapped her arms tightly around his neck as she felt it again –
that familiar head numbing rush of heat which seemed to creep from the tips of
her toes, up to her hair and down to the pit of her stomach. She lifted her
legs to wrap them around his waist, no longer bothering to stop her cries of
ecstasy as she felt him so deep inside of her it felt as if he had become a part
of her very soul.
“Shin…Shin…” Over and
over she called out his name, knowing she would never get a chance to call him
this way for a long time to come. Her name came out in a choked sob from his
lips as he stiffened within her. It was a chain reaction of events that had
them both clutching each other tightly as they finally came together. Bodies
quaking with the thrilling aftermath of their orgasm, they seemed to fall back
to earth in a boneless heap with limbs still entangled intimately. Yankumi
could still feel Shin within her and she wanted to hold on to this feeling for
as long as she could. She kissed his shoulder tenderly, tasting the salt of his
sweat as her arms caressed his back gently. It wasn’t until Shin moved away
gently that she realized that she had been crying and for quite sometime it
seemed.
He brushed away her tears
gently, resting his forehead against hers and finally feeling for the first
time in a few days, that this was really the end. He stole a quick glance at
the clock beside them on the floor and realized that they had less than five
hours till his departure.
“I love you, Shin,” she
whispered thickly, curling into his warmth. “You won’t forget me…will you?”
He cupped her face gently
within his hands and smiled tenderly into her flushed visage. “Forget you? I’d
rather die, Kumiko. I’ll always be with you in spirit you know that.”
Shin…
She buried her face
against his chest and didn’t try to stop her tears from falling even harder. He
continued to speak to her softly and when they made love again, it was with a
feeling of tenderness and yet heartfelt desperation. Her body was his temple
and he made sure he worshipped it for as long as he could.
She
opened her eyes slowly and blinked at the bright sunlight that greeted her. She
was still lying on the futon, but had been covered with a blanket which had
kept her warm and also made her sleep so soundly. She tried to move and winced
in pain, the memories of last night rushing back to her mind quickly. Blushing
darkly, she closed her eyes, unable to believe that they had actually done it,
but the feeling was quickly lost as she realized with a pang in her chest that
there was now a distinct cold and empty feeling in the room.
She sat up slowly and
brushed away her hair from her face. The other futon which had been for him was
no longer there. There was nothing in here besides her small travel bag, her
kimono draped over a single chair and the faint but lingering smell of his
cologne and the musk of their coupling. There was nothing but the sound of the
small clock ticking beside her which filled the silence and she knew then
without a doubt that he was really gone.
Good bye…Kumiko…
The tears came again and
she slapped her hands over her face to stop them. For a while she remained that
way, her sobs filling the empty room. “You idiot,” she sniffled softly. “You
could have at least woken me up to let me know you were going.”
She wiped her eyes and
finally noticed the card that had been placed within the folds of her gown.
Picking it up slowly, she had to take a deep breath to read what it said. She
recognized his neat handwriting in an instant as she began to read softly.
My dearest Kumiko,
I thank you for the
greatest gift you could have ever given me last night. I know I will cherish
those moments with you as I go through the next few months. Even though we will
be thousands of miles apart, I meant what I said by me always being with you in
spirit. As you begin your new school year, I know you will be faced with as
much challenges as you had when teaching us but, I have faith in you, Kumiko.
You taught me the most important lesson in life and that is love and trust and
I am sure your new students will learn to appreciate that valuable lesson in
time.
Just remember that if
you ever feel you can’t go on or that there’s too much pressure for you to deal
with, take a look at that back seat in the classroom and you’ll always see me
sitting there, cheering for you…always.
Until the day I
return, I’ll always remains yours...
Shin.
“Idiot,” she whispered
thickly as she lay back on the futon and held the letter to her chest. She
closed her eyes and for the first time, she felt a warm glow of happiness fill
her heart as his words continued to ring in her mind. It was going to be a long
twelve months, but with his words of comfort and support, Yankumi knew that she
could tackle anything with even more confidence this time around.
“Hurry back home to where
you really belong, Shin,” she said with a warm smile of content. “I’ll be
waiting…for as long as it takes.”
The End
Author's Notes: I thank you for taking the time
to read this story. This was my first effort/foray into Gokusen fiction after
being a fan for so long. My sincere apologies to those who might have read and
have now been spoiled with some scenes/ideas from the Drama, but all in all, I
hope you enjoyed the story as much as I had fun writing it. Thank you again for
reading and your wonderful and encouraging feedback!