♦⊱ Chapter 21 - I Love You ⊰♦

This chapter is dedicated to ShyLittleMarshmallow! Happy reading!

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Ruka pov:

The only thing I could hear besides the frightening thunder was the pounding of my heart. My body trembled because of my fear of thunderstorms, my legs almost like jelly and barely aiding my escape from Tomoki. I was freezing cold too, my joints slowly going stiff and tears fell from my eyes uncontrollably. I winced every now and then as protruding stones and tree roots jabbed my feet.

The voices were closing in on me and I was very close to giving up on escaping and just accepting my fate of being with Tomoki. But my overwhelming yearning for Kichiro sama had me pushing forward somehow.

"Kyaahh!" I screamed when another loud thunder blasted through the skies, vibrating the ground with its strength.

I collapsed to my knees trembling, only to gasp and struggled when I felt a tight grip on my upper arm. Looking up, I saw one of Tomoki's men glaring at me. He looked frightening in the dark and with the flashes of lightning behind him. Yet, I struggled.

"Let go of me!" I tried to twist my arm out of his hold but he only gripped my harder.

"You wench! How dare you try to escape!"

I screamed and fell to my knees again at another crack of thunder, my body close to convulsing and my breathing close to hyperventilation. I was caught and I was going to be taken to Tomoki now, and then he would...no! I didn't want it to end this way for me!

The man soon yanked me up only to drag me behind him. In an attempt to escape, I bit his arm as hard as I could. He yelped in pain and shoved me away, giving me the chance to throw mud at his face and to run like my life depended on it...for it did.

Despite feeling exhausted, I pushed on, begging the heavens to give me enough strength to make it to Kichiro sama. Luck was on my side today and I spotted Kichiro sama when I stepped out of some bushes. He was standing with some soldiers, his expression livid as he was giving out instructions. The mere sight of him made me feel like everything was okay now.

I let my guitar fall to the ground with a loud clang that gained Kichiro sama's attention. He looked absolutely furious to see me but tears welled in my eyes more. I sprinted to him only to collide with his body in an embrace, wrapping my arms around his torso and pressing myself against his body that was warm despite being drenched in the rain like me.

I sobbed loudly, happy, relieved and scared all at the same time. "Kichiro sama!" I wailed, "Kichiro sama! Kichiro sama! I was so scared! Kichiro sama!"

He didn't react to my embrace or my words and I pulled out of the embrace to look at his face. He still looked incredibly angry but I didn't care at the moment. I could no longer suppress my emotions for him. Clutching the front of his clothes tightly in my fists, I raised myself to stand on my toes and pressed my lips against his in a kiss. He noticeably tensed at that and shoved me away but it wasn't hard enough to make me let go of his clothes. I was sobbing loudly but shrieked with a tremble at another loud thunder. I pressed myself against Kichiro sama, shuddering and feeling dizzy.

"What do you think you're doing, wench?!" he bellowed over the pitter-patter of the rain.

The way he addressed me hurt but it was far from something I cared about at the moment. Even his apparent anger didn't bother me. I just wanted to see him possessive about me again.

Shaking my head, I leaned my forehead against his chest. I wheezed between sobs, "It's a kiss, Kichiro sama, kissing is what two people share when they love each other! And I love you! I love you, Kichiro sama! I love you! I...love...you..."

My vice faded from screams over the rain and thunder to airy gasps. The dizziness that I had been feeling while I was running increased, tugging at my consciousness ruthlessly. My eyes soon rolled back and I fell into darkness.

Kichiro pov:

No matter what I did, where I looked, I could not find Ruka. It had been three days since she was taken by those b******* of the Red Eagle Organization but I had not been able to find any hints of her whereabouts even after having my soldiers scout the entire forest around the capital. She was hiding well, perhaps glad that she was no longer with me and had been saved by those men who only pretended to kidnap her.

I was furious. I was enraged. And I could not find one reason to calm down.

I had had enough of all the filthy lies! I had had enough of being treated as a fool! I would no longer tolerate even the slightest disobedience!

I had thought that Ruka had changed in the time she had been in the palace. I had thought that she was actually being genuine for once but I had been fooled. That foolish woman had used this as a chance to escape me – I was sure she knew we were going to be attacked and saying that she wished to show me some special place was all just a part of her plan. To think that I had fallen for her filthy lies!

In my rage, I had slaughtered the useless, weak officials in my palace who had bene plotting to overthrow me since a few months. Their progress was pathetically slow and I was sure they wouldn't have been able to do much damage no matter what they did. They were useful enough to keep alive for the time being...but the uncontrollable anger I had felt because of Ruka's betrayal had pushed me to getting rid of all the insignificant rats as well. They didn't deserve to live...and neither did Ruka.

I continued my search for her, not ready to give up until I had killed her with my own hands. She would pay for running away, for escaping when I had made it clear that I wouldn't be lenient if she even attempted to escape from me a second time.

I glanced at Kijima who stood a little away from me as I instructed my soldiers to scout the forest again, to search every nook and corner, to not leave even a single stone unturned until Ruka was found. Kijima was against the idea of killing Ruka despite knowing what had happened. He had tried to convince me that she was probably really kidnapped and not acting. But I couldn't bring myself to believe her anymore. I had had enough of the lies and deceit and arrogance and fakeness.

As I reached for my katana that was strapped to the side of my horse, my eyes landed on the bracelet Ruka had put on my wrist just before she was kidnapped. I reached to rip it off in anger but paused when I heard a sharp clang over the noise of the rain. Ruka had emerged from the foliage, drenched in the rain and breathing heavily. I unsheathed my katana as she broke into a sprint, running towards me. However, much to my surprise, she collided with me, wrapping her arms around my torso to press herself against my body.

I momentarily tensed but then gazed down at her trembling form with a glare. She had grasped my clothes tightly in her fists, in turn tugging at a few strands of my open hair. She was whimpering, crying, and being rather annoying at the moment. I brought my blade closer to her so I could put an end to her but paused when she suddenly spoke.

"Kichiro sama!" I wailed, "Kichiro sama! Kichiro sama! I was so scared! Kichiro sama!"

I narrowed my eyes. What was she trying to pull here? What was she scared of? How much more annoying could one person be? Tch!

I was about to do away with her but yet again paused when Kijima put a hand on my shoulder. I glanced at him in annoyance when he shook his head, silently telling me not to kill her. I narrowed my eyes at him in warning and he let go of my shoulder with an inaudible sigh.

I looked into Ruka's watering eyes when she pulled out of the embrace only to clutch the front of my clothes with her fists. Ignoring the deathly glare I gave her, she lifted herself to stand on her toes with her eyes closed to let her lips meet mine. What felt like a lightning bolt hit my body, the shock running down my spine. It was unsettling yet overwhelmingly exhilarating, making me want to feel the intoxication more. For the brief moment her lips were touching mine, I felt dizzy, weak, as if all my senses had gone numb. I felt so vulnerable yet was immensely pleased.

I was startled by her gesture and the reactions I had from it though. I shoved her away with a firm hold on her arms but she didn't let go of me. She held my sleeves, refusing to put enough distance between us. I was so sure now that she was attempting to weaken me and kill me just like that boy had done before – I would not let her mislead me so easily!

"What do you think you're doing, wench?!" I bellowed.

She didn't seem affected by my rage or the loudness of my voice, merely leaning her forehead against my chest. "It's a kiss, Kichiro sama, kissing is what two people share when they love each other!" she wailed loudly. "And I love you! I love you, Kichiro sama! I love you! I...love...you..."

Her voice became softer with every word she spoke, getting silenced by the rain that poured relentlessly. Her grip on my sleeves loosened and it was only mere moments before she slumped against me unconscious. Everything around us fell to silence besides the rain and occasional thunder but her heavy breathing was audible enough to me.

Kijima stepped up to us and touched her forehead. His forwardness angered me and I glared at him. He retracted his hand with a word of apology and said, "Your Majesty, Kichiro sama, we should take her back to the palace quickly. She has been in the rain for too long and seems to have a slight temperature."

I scoffed in irk but mounted my horse with Ruka in my arms. She groaned softly and curled up against me, clutching my kimono in one trembling hand. I stared at her face, the frown etched onto her features as she breathed heavily, while Kijima sent out the whistle signal to recall the men I had sent out as the search party. When they returned, I tugged on the reins so we could return to the palace.

The entire way to the palace, I could not stop from feeling hyper-aware of her body heat and her occasional shuddering. I narrowed my eyes recalling how she had touched her lips to mine – it was a gesture I had never heard of or seen before, I never knew such a gesture existed. I was all the more surprised because Ruka had said that it was a gesture that two people who loved each other shared. And then she had said she loved me...repeating it four times.

What did she mean by that? What was this love she said she felt for me? It made me feel so...unique.

I didn't get the chance to think further about this for we reached the palace. I dismounted in the entrance courtyard with Ruka still in my arms and gazed at her while I walked to my chambers. Kijima rushed me while calling for Ruka's personal maid. She seemed rather worried about Ruka and requested me to leave the room so she could change Ruka's clothes. I didn't see the need for me to leave but after a warning glare to the maid's begging, I left to go to my study.

Kijima pov:

Amazing...just truly amazing. I was thoroughly amazed by Ruka sama.

There wasn't one day when I didn't believe that His Majesty would find someone to care for him. In all my years of serving him, everyone had seen him as nothing more than a cruel dictator, wanting everything his way and getting anything he wanted through fear and cruelty towards others. I even believed that Ruka sama would run away from him one day or be killed by His Majesty just like the young boy he had brought for company more than a year ago.

She had tried to run away once and had been the victim of His Majesty's rage. She had become submissive to him after that, not because she wanted to but because she had no other choice. However, after she had heard about his past from me, she had changed somehow.

I didn't have any specific thoughts when I told her about His Majesty's past. In that moment when she had shown curiosity about him, I couldn't stop from telling her about him. Something about her had sparked a sense of hope in me and it had turned to reality.

She had become more cheerful around His Majesty, less hesitant, emanating warmth and compassion in numerous smiles. She had become carefree, making requests to His Majesty when she wanted something, talking to him without worrying about annoying him and, surprisingly, he didn't seem bothered by it. Perhaps I was overthinking it but I was almost sure that he had come to trust her. He had come to trust her as much as he trusted me, or maybe even more.

When she was kidnapped, His Majesty was furious. He had assumed that it was another one of her attempts to escape, a successful one at that. I couldn't disagree with him since all the pieces fit together but a small voice in the back of my head wanted me to believe that Ruka sama wasn't one to have run away after being so genuine with His Majesty. After all, everything she was with His Majesty, even buying matching jewelry for the two of them, was something I knew that she would not have done without any reason.

Unfortunately, I wasn't able to calm His Majesty's rage and he had done away with all the small fry who had been plotting against him. I had informed him about it quite some time back but he had let it pass, solely to give them a chance to back out before he killed them. But Ruka's disappearance had roused his anger to a point beyond control and I couldn't stop him. Much blood had been spilt and the very atmosphere in the palace had become tense.

The last three days were nothing short of torturous for me. No one could speak a word in His Majesty's presence for he would kill them, his temper tipping over the delicate balance it was in. But the minute he had held Ruka and she had kissed him, despite being furious at her, the tense atmosphere around him had immediately dissipated. And I was...overjoyed when she had said she loved him. His Majesty truly deserved love, to be given what he had been denied his whole life. Ruka was the warmest person I had ever seen in my life, the warmest around His Majesty, and I knew that she could be the one to heal his heart.

I stepped into His Majesty's chambers only to find him sitting on his bed besides Ruka sama who was unconscious, watching her silently. Her personal maid, Kyoko san was fidgeting nervously while standing a little away from them.

"Leave," he instructed and Kyoko san left after a respectful bow. She bowed as she passed me as well and I stepped up to His Majesty before giving him a chaste bow.

He didn't acknowledge my greeting in any way and merely continued to stare at Ruka sama. She was breathing heavily, her complexion pale despite the light flush on her cheeks, and she somehow seemed thinner than what she used to be.

"Why did she return? She ran away but returned...why?" His Majesty questioned softly, curiously, and in mild surprise.

"Your Majesty, she told you the reason. She told you that she loves you," I answered, eliciting a frown from him. He reached out to her to touch her cheeks with the back of his fingers. She leaned into his touch with a soft groan.

I felt a little awkward in this situation, at a time when two people were expressing affection towards each other and would prefer to be left alone. However, His Majesty knew nothing of love and had to be helped to understand it from someone – I was sure there was no one besides me who was willing to tell him what he needed to know about the emotion humans desperately thrived on.

His Majesty looked at me, curiosity swirling furiously in his eyes. I was almost certain that I saw a spark of hope as well but it was gone the moment it came. "She loves me?" he asked. "What is...love?"

I suppressed a soft laugh that wished to escape. His curiosity was childlike and adorable, all these surfacing emotions of his new and perhaps frightening to him. I had been his guardian since he was young child and this was the first time he seemed so lost and confused. No matter how strange he found all this to be, I was truly happy for him to finally have someone who made him feel all these emotions.

"Love, Your Majesty, is a very strong form of affection. It's a deep emotion that someone has for another person they care about very much and are happy to be with them. Ruka sama cares for you and is happy to be with you, perhaps even wishes for it very much. So, she loves you."

His frown deepened along with the confusion in his expression. He looked back at Ruka sama and pushed some short strands of her hair out of her face. Yet again, she leaned into his touch and he said, "But what she did before – she called it a kiss – is that something she will do to all the people she loves?"

I cleared my throat to cover up a laugh that I found very hard to suppress. I smiled wholeheartedly though at the depth in His Majesty's eyes. Despite his confusion, it was so easy for me to see that he cared for Ruka sama and loved her too, though didn't know it himself. He sounded desperate though, hopeful that what I had said about her emotions for him were true.

"No, Your Majesty. The kind of love she has for you is very...unique. The kind of love she has for you is something she can show towards only one person, which means she is willing to give you everything of hers...body and soul. And kissing is done only between people who share this unique kind of love. Doing it with anyone else will make you a cheater, an unfaithful and impure person," I explained, trying to make it as simple as possible so His Majesty could understand. I wasn't sure if I had done it well enough though.

"A kiss," he mumbled, caressing her face again. Furrowing his brows, he leaned down towards her and hesitantly placed his lips on hers.

"You may want to close your eyes, Your Majesty. It will help you feel her love and express your affection for her better," I said, smiling at how innocent he was in the matters of the heart. He might have killed many people and have a temper that would make anyone who stood in his presence wish to be killed instead of tortured, but he was pure at heart and innocent, a wee child desperate for a light to guide him out of the suffocating darkness.

He did as I suggested and even tilted his head sideways a little instinctively to press his lips against Ruka sama's more. I averted my eyes feeling awkward. I was well past the age of first love and had a family of my own – a wife and three children – so, it was awkward for me to watch other people getting close to each other. I had done what I could to help His Majesty and it was time for me to give them privacy. Ruka sama was the one who would be able to help him understand anything further in this matter.

Thinking so, I bowed to him and stepped out of the room. I shut the door behind me and informed the soldiers guarding the door to not allow them to be disturbed by anyone unless His Majesty himself summoned someone. They bowed in acknowledgement and I headed towards my office to complete pending work.

A smile wider than the ones I had spared when observing His Majesty moments ago came to my lips. For the first time in years was I at ease, relieved that His Majesty would no longer be alone. He would no longer suffer loneliness – another emotion he didn't understand but I had noticed that he faced often, becoming irritable and restless because of it – and he would no longer be the only man who had been stripped of love and care that he truly deserved.

I momentarily halted in the hallway and looked back in the direction of His Majesty's chambers. My smile widened when I spoke, "Ruka sama, I leave our young emperor in your warm embrace."

Kichiro pov:

My body felt unnaturally hot, my mind muddled and chaotic as I remained still with my lips touching Ruka's. My eyes were closed, as Kijima had suggested me to do, and I could not hear, sense, think, or feel anything besides the strange physical contact I had with Ruka. I felt just as disoriented and feeble as I had when Ruka had kissed me in the rain and I was sure that she had not tried to harm me in any way then.

I opened my eyes and shifted away from her lips, feeling rather reluctant to do that and my lips burning from the invisible fire that blazed on them. I narrowed my eyes slightly at her unconscious form, recalling what Kijima had said mere moments ago. Ruka loved me, she cared for me, harbored strong, unique emotions towards me, towards only me. And the kiss she had given me was a gesture shared only by the two people who had this unique affection for each other. I was unique to her, the only one she would share this gesture of strong affection with.

I couldn't deny that I had felt warmed when she had held onto me desperately in the rain. I wanted her to hold me like that again, wrap her slender arms around me tightly, desperately, as if she couldn't survive without me. I wanted to drown in that strange feeling again.

A whimper that escaped Ruka's lips broke my train of thought. She furrowed her brows and groaned, shifting slightly as she slept. I averted my gaze from her to stare at the floor, my eyes narrow. I still felt strange because of the contact I had made with her lips moments ago. I was also frustrated though, confused and unable to completely understand what was happening to me. Taking one last glance at Ruka, I left my chambers to go to my study. I didn't sit down to work for I was very distracted, instead stepped to the window to gaze at the courtyard outside.

It was still raining heavily, occasional lighting and thunder striking across the cloudy sky. I narrowed my eyes into the distance, unable to shake off the tingling sensation of my lips and the incomprehensible restlessness I felt. I closed my eyes with a deep sigh and shook my head, clearing the thoughts so I could concentrate on more important matters at hand.

Stepping away from the window, I took a seat at my desk and reached for the documents that required reviewing.

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*SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEE* >w< Ruka confessed her love to Kichiro sama and he's being so darn adorable about it! :'D Can any guy in love be any cuter?

Aren't we all just glad that they've finally reunited? And what do you guys think about the picture? *wiggles eyebrows*

Vote!

COMMENT!

:D