SHORT SUMMARY: You're stuck with him for a whole day (night), and you still haven't SEEN him. Would you manage to fall in love with him?
FROM AUTHOR: I don't want to spoil the effect, so my note is at the bottom! -May K. Lunnaya :)
DEDICATION: To those who get stuck in elevators with lights switched off.
The Caveman and Woman - The Beginning®
2 HOURS 55 MINUTES AFTER OBSTRUCTION
I stirred slightly in my sleep, lying on a soft pillow; ringing silence was dreading my ears. Where's the traffic?.. And why is it so dark in my room?? The electricity has gone off?
I hastily tried to sit up in my bed, but found an arm lying loosely across my chest.
I gulped.
What I assumed was a pillow was actually the guy's… thighs.
I held my breath, recent memories of the earthquake flooding my mind. He sensed that I was conscious and asked softly, "You okay?"
I tried to reply something but broke off when a few coughs racked my chest, so instead I just nodded. I guess he felt it, because he nodded, too, drawing his hand away and placing it on my throbbing with pain head. "There's a scrape; I suppose you'd hit your head pretty hard," he murmured.
I wasn't paying much attention to his words, an important thought was locked securely in my mind: 'It's so warm… and comfortable… I was such a ditz! Could've been sitting in his lap (agg!!) a long time ago!... Usagi, WHAT are you thinking about?!!' I scolded myself and quickly pulled to a sitting position. This time, he let me go… I perched by his side with my back pressed against the… wall, I guess.
"You know," he drawled, his voice addressing the darkness. "I still… um… don't know your name…"
Gotcha!! Oh, um, I mean… How conceited, huh?
I turned my head away. "Usagi Tsukino."
"Really?" If I'd be able to see, I'd probably have seen twinkles of laughter gleaming in his eyes… because I could feel them in his voice…
"Yes." Why can't I tone my voice when I need to?!..
"Seriously?"
"YES."
He stifled a few giggles. "A rabbit!.. Say, Bunny, have you got some sort of ears on your cute little head?"
Cute little…
This guy keeps getting on my nerves!
"We're not speaking, remember?" I tried to sound angry.
"No problem." He probably grinned…
3 HOURS 20 MINUTES SINCE OBSTRUCTION
"So who're your parents?" I asked just to say something.
"They're parents," he replied stiffly.
"No, I mean, what do they do for a living?" I prodded him.
"Exactly nothing."
"What do you - "
He cut me off. "They're DEAD."
Good going, Usagi! Trying a perfect conversation with a guy, you know?..
"And who're your parents?" He successfully changed the subject.
"Well, my dad's a news' photoman, and mom's a housewife. Oh, and I've got a brother, Shingo - "
"I've heard of him," he pointed out.
The realization dawned on me. "You know, this is all his fault! If he wouldn't dare me to go through the tunnel -"
" - and if you wouldn't be stupid enough to go there…" he finished with a light sarcasm.
Another slap at my face.
"Then what were YOU doing here?!" I scoffed at him.
He gracefully reflected my attack. "I'd just wanted to inspect a chamber, and that's originally what we were here for."
I abruptly exhaled. "WE," I told him, "are NOT SPEAKING." I turned my back on him… which physically had no effect considering he couldn't see me…
3 HOURS 49 MINUTES AFTER OBSTRUCTION
"I wonder how much time's passed," I thought aloud.
"I should've timed the minutes from the start…" His deep sigh reached my ears.
I heard the even tapping of the drop of water, and suddenly an idea struck my head as a hammer: what if -
"Hey! We can check the time with the droplet!" he exclaimed happily. "It falls once per minute!"
I imagined us counting the drops for two days straight…
"No…" he moaned. "We'll be counting those drops for two days in a row…" He was severely disappointed. It seemed to me that he could read my mind, and it was somewhat weird, let me tell you… While I was engrossed in chewing this up, I felt myself absolutely dumb.
"The time! We can tell the time with our watches, for heaven's sake!" I cried out.
"With backlight?" he asked ironically.
"With, uh…? No."
"That's what I'm saying."
"What about yours?"
"Yup. With backlight. Only the batteries are dead; I forgot to change them," he added with melancholy humor.
I slouched in defeat. We'll sit here until our death, listening to the water dripping, clutching the only left link with the outer world - time.
"Wait! Is your watch digital or with hands?" he shouted unexpectedly.
I blinked a few times. "With hands… why?"
"Give me that!" He groped for my left hand, unfastened the belt, and took the watch feverishly. After that, there were some scratching sounds.
"WHAT are you doing with my watch?!" I asked incredulously.
"I can feel the small and big hands to tell the time!" I suppose that he buried his teeth into the poor watch, because I heard a horrible grinding noise at the glass surface.
"It's plastic," I informed him.
"Good," he growled, "plastic." Enraged, he knocked my ill-fated watch at a stone lying nearby. I listened with interest. "I got it!" he announced triumphantly. "I GOT IT!!" Then he swore violently. "It's… six o'clock… Dang. It stopped…"
"[Censored]," I agreed.
4 HOURS 3 MINUTES AFTER OBSTRUCTION
"Boy, I'm SO thirsty…" I moaned.
"I have an idea!" He led me into the darkness, holding my hand. 'To not get lost,' he said. Right, ONLY. Sigh. Too bad. His hand was so warm and large compared to mine… I inwardly beat myself up at the thought. So we walked around the cavern, our ears locked to the sound of the droplet. I don't need to tell how we stood there under a stalactite, waiting for the single drop of water to fall into our mouths. Of course, we didn't kill our thirst, but at least we watered our throats and were able to talk now.
5 HOURS 14 MINUTES AFTER OBSTRUCTION
Now he was singing.
"Uh…?" I questioned.
"I know it's stupid, but what else have we got to do?" he answered. "It's a lullaby that my father loved to sing to me. Strangely, mother never did…" And his rich and low voice began ringing again, somehow soothing my worries.
My normal reaction was to yawn, of course.
He stopped in the middle of a verse. "Maybe you should have some sleep?" he asked gently.
Gently.
I suppose that my silence was too awkward. So, I decided to ask a normal, absolutely ordinary question, "WHERE?"
His hand found mine and patted his lap with it.
A sweatdrop rolled down my nose.
I'M TOUCHING A GUY'S LAP.
BOY. OH, BOY.
Well, actually… No problem!
I scrambled into the position and laid my tired head down on his warm body, curling myself into a ball at the side. "Are you sure you won't feel lonely or anything?"
"Don't worry, I won't." His arm came around my shoulder, and I heard his singing voice echoing in the dark…
"Thanks," I whispered sleepily, closed my eyes, and… was in the world of dreams in just a matter of seconds… not thinking about any guys… or their laps…
8 HOURS 2 MINUTES AFTER OBSTRUCTION
Drop.
Drop.
Drop.
I listened to how the echo of a simple droplet was heard throughout the entire chamber. Then what about my… All right, it doesn't matter; I just CAN'T HOLD IT OFF ANY LONGER! I don't care what he'll think!
I stood up from the place by him, marched up to behind a heap of stones - well, frankly, he won't see me, but that's beside the point - and unbuttoned my shorts.
"Hey, where are you?" His voice was worried.
"Uh - um, I'll be back in a minute!" I crouched down on the floor and heard him getting to his feet.
"Do you need any help out there?"
Yes, I do! Come here and help me to…
I burst out giggling, and it FLOWED… The sound was broadcast over to the smallest crack in the cave's corner. I heard no movement from his side. And it kept going and going… At last when I was finished, I proceeded slowly in his direction. "Um?" I said.
A powerful stream hit the wall, and he started giggling.
I rolled around on the cold ground, trying to suppress the hysterical laughing.
10 HOURS 36 MINUTES AFTER OBSTRUCTION
I woke up to the slight shaking beneath me. I got used to it throughout my life in Japan, and especially during that time in the cavern… The CAVERN! Now fully awake, I found myself on his lap again, surrounded by the same darkness. I heaved a sigh. But, really - what will happen if there will be another obstruction? I mean, it HAS occurred. Twice. What if a rock falls at us?
I hastily glanced upwards. Pitch-dark.
And it started. Even mightier and severer than before. Crashes and rumbles were everywhere. I leaped up and darted to the nearest corner, shrieking frantically something about us dying here like two mice cornered in a hole, it's not fair, and augghhh!!
"Shut up, would you!?" he scolded me. I quieted down to soft sobs. He was about to say something, when there was a hollow knock and his cry. In a few minutes everything died down. From the left I heard his words.
"I think the stone's broken my foot."
I took a shaky gasp of air and crawled over to him. "Does it hurt?" I whispered.
"VERY. MUCH," he gritted out through clenched teeth.
Well, what else could I do? I drew his head to my heart gently.
"Relax, okay?.." I said softly…
"QUIT JERKING MY HEAD!" he shouted into my ear.
I shoved his head at the wall. He moaned.
"Let's just…" he stopped abruptly, taking a shaky breath. "…just get that boulder off my foot, okay?"
There were many yelps and shrieks, but we made it. Then he started feeling his calf and ankle.
"It's broken in two places, isn't it?" I whispered in a tearful and shaking voice.
"NO, it's SPRAINED!!" he hissed. "And you have to place the bone back!"
Lone yelp from my side…
His sweaty and heavy head was lying at my chest. I was stroking my hand through his… whatever color it was hair. I knew it was sweet and soft… like rabbit's fur…
"Please, talk to me…" came his low and husky voice.
"Oh, great… I never was able to think of something to talk about with a guy!.." I muttered to myself.
"Really?" he inquired softly.
I realized what I'd just said. AUGH!
"But if you won't speak to me, I'll surely die."
I raised my eyes to heaven… I mean, to the upper darkness.
Okay, concentrate; think of something…
NOTHING.
After I was silent for a few minutes, he sighed tiredly. "Well, what can you talk about?" he wondered. "About school, about… What's your favorite class?"
"That's kind of a tough question," I replied carefully.
"Why? I mean - Wait, how old are you?"
I stopped dead in fiddling with his hair. "Uh… fourteen… almost." My ears perked up when his voice spoke up after a pause.
"Back when I was fourteen and in school, my favorite subject was art," he said thoughtfully.
BACK WHEN I WAS IN SCHOOL…
"And… were you good at it?" I ventured.
"If I weren't good, then I'd not like drawing."
Um, yeah, logic.
"And what did you draw?"
"Well, portraits, faces… mostly of the girls I liked…" He became embarrassed. His voice became so adorably hushed and cute…
"So what's your favorite class?" He raised his head slightly to look at me. God, if only there was SOME light…
I hammered my teeth into my tongue. "Um… I don't have a favorite subject…" I muttered sheepishly.
He was motionless for a moment. "You hate school."
I didn't know was he questioning or simply ascertaining the fact.
"Well… yeah," I confessed idly. Maybe I should've lied about that one and said that I'm absolutely in love with, say, English? I mean, he seems sort of… INTELLIGENT, and for heaven's sake, he's out of school!!
"You know, I hate school just as much as you do." Almost sensing the numb question from my side, he shook his head. "I did so but not after my best friend got me interested in genetics, the science which analyzes the human genes and chromosomes to prevent the feasibility of acquiring a disease!" he proclaimed, full of lively enthusiasm.
…
I've got to say something. Preferably something educated and smart… I decided that neutral, "Yeah," would be safe.
So, "Yeah," I said, aiming to sound as hyper and eager as a cat on hot bricks could get.
He remained tongueless. And I can't even see his expression! What if he thinks that I'm dumb now?!
It was time to change the subject. "Um… your genie… I mean… ginitecks…?"
"Genetics," he corrected me softly.
I blushed the color of a boiled lobster. My mom had cooked it once, so I know. "Yeah, right… Who's your genetics friend?"
"Motoki Furuhata. We're childhood friends."
I nearly galloped up in the air, almost knocking Mamoru off myself: MOTOKI!!!!!? The hunk from Crown's arcade?!!
"I know him, too!!!" I cried out happily. "We're very close friends!!!!"
Well, we aren't, frankly. Motoki is an incredibly cute blonde blue-eyed twenty years old guy who works part-time at the game center. He's very nice to me, and he was so caring and understanding when Fumi and I broke up…
Mamoru tensed against me, sharply exhaling. "How close?" he asked warily.
AH-HA!!.. I mean, um… What for am I doing this?!
A tiny voice in my head whispered, 'But it's not gonna hurt, right?'
I cleared my throat. "How close? Well, we see each other a lot…" I felt Mamoru gulping… "…when I come to the arcade he works in to play!"
Mamoru relaxed and murmured under his breath, "Ahh… THAT close… fine…" then in a normal tone, "And what's your favorite game?"
Please, don't laugh, please, just don't…
"Well… actually… it's 'Sailor V'…" I listened for any sounds of snickering from Mamoru. There were none. "But also I ADORE 'Cruis'n' USA'!"
"Why?"
"'Cause you see, I LOVE driving and smashing into electric posts, and they just go, like, CRASH to the side, but you still drive on!"
"That's quite unrealistic," he remarked.
I laughed. "That's the beauty of it!"
A few silly laughs racked his chest. "If we'll get out of here, we could go to the arcade; I'd like to see you play."
"Uhh…"
About two hours later we knew everything about each other, starting from his childhood flu and ending with the recent death of my pet hamster. Now I could think of no topics to discuss, my throat was dryer than a desert could be, and I lost my voice. The only thing that kept coming to my mind was this song about the bunny that's a lunatic. Well, you know, that song that my mommy, and grandma, and daddy had sung to me when I was three years old, and wouldn't sleep and eat, and was driving everybody insane… Anyway, I began singing that lullaby.
Mamoru went limp. "Please, continue the concert…" he murmured groggily and snuggled deeper into my warmth, but I could hear something… different in his usually senseless voice…
In two hours I'd run out of the entire supply of every lullaby and karaoke song I've learned in all the days I've lived. Mamoru was drowsing at my lap; one of my hands was resting at his shoulder, the other was lying by my side. A thought was grazing my mind. What if that's a MAN, like, thirty years old that I've been singing love songs to? What if that's some bearded man or something?
Since he's asleep…
I passed my hand over the line of his jaw. It was strong and straight… And certainly there weren't any traces of a beard…