His Comfort Zone

[nolongeractive]

Alright! This is the first story I'm posting on the forum oh goodness me. I've written a few things before but usually I don't finish them or I just share them with my dear sister. But after two years I worked up the courage to post something ahahaha okay let's see

My story is based on the manga Fruits Basket, where if you haven't read it, here's a little synopsis: Tohru Honda goes to live with the Sohma family after her mother dies. These three consist of Kyo Sohma, who is very hot-headed and gets angry easily, and Yuki Sohma, Kyo's rival and the "prince" of the school - they are Tohru's classmates - and their older cousin Shigure, a writer who loves to bother them. They become closer and more of a family when Tohru moves in; however, they're also cursed to turn into a zodiac animal when they're hugged by someone of the opposite gender or when they're very weak (Kyo is the cat, Yuki is the rat, and Shigure is the dog).

Throughout the early parts of the manga, Yuki does fall prey to a bad asthma attack, which only involves coughing, but in my story he has more of an allergy attack.

This also takes part in the earlier parts of the manga, where everyone is still getting used to living in the same house, so it doesn't really give anything away about the series.

For the most part, I think people who have not read this series can enjoy it, but there might be a few moments in my fic that are lost on you.

Since my sister usually does it, I'll do it as well. Here are images of the people included in the story:

Yuki Sohma: http://www.anime-pla..._sohma_2107.jpg

Kyo Sohma: http://www.cosplayis...9/49569/kyo.jpg

Shigure Sohma: http://img3.ak.crunc...e4eaa0_full.jpg

Tohru Honda: http://images.wikia..../8/86/Tohru.jpg

Uo: http://images.wikia....risa_Uotani.jpg

Hanajima: http://images.wikia....anajima-san.jpg

Hatori Sohma: http://www.absolutea...sket/hatori.jpg

Alrighty so cool! Hopefully I haven't messed up anything really badly. Don't think I have, I think I'm good to go. The story's kinda long so be prepared for that. Otherwise, I hope you enjoy!

EDIT: Added one part in, so if you've already read the story (which I don't think many have yet) you can go back and read it!

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Yuki Sohma stared unfortunately at the open window of his bedroom as the spring breeze hit his face like a wake-up slap, the curtains fluttering teasingly in his direction as he stood in the middle of the doorway. It was bittersweet.

Tohru Honda, his optimistic female classmate, had moved in with the elite Sohma family just a month ago, but had quickly become the mother figure of their residence, as they clearly lacked one before. The bubbly girl had taken on all the cooking, cleaning, and care-taking that needed to be done in the household, and though the others told her she really didn't have to do all that work, she insisted, saying that she owed them something for their hospitality. 'And besides,' she also replied enthusiastically, 'I used to do these activities at home with Mom all the time!' Whenever she brought up her mother, the three men of the house couldn't help but feel pity for the girl and let her do as she pleased. Besides, it was beneficial to them, and Yuki was pretty sure that his cousin Shigure lacked feelings of empathy, and this was really why he let her stay in the first place.

Even though Yuki had originally worried about a girl staying in the house, he was confident that he could keep his secret hidden decently, since he had done so in school ever since a certain… incident. However, it only took a few days for Tohru to find out through experience that when he was embraced by someone of the opposite gender, he took on the form of the Zodiac rat, and Shigure the dog, and his incompetent cousin Kyo, who had also started living with them, transformed into the cat. Though Tohru had at first panicked, he was still shocked to see her quick acceptance of their family's hidden lives. Now it had become not unusual for him to see her in the house, and he no longer even felt uncomfortable knowing she knew about his ability to turn into a rat. However, what still did make him uneasy at times was the realization that a girl in his class was living with him, and he wasn't really sure how he felt about her deep down.

But right now Yuki's feelings were clear as day. He stared at the open window, the fresh green trees and sunlight stinging at his eyes and the inside of his nose from across the unlit room. Then he stared slowly back down at his hand, at the note written in Tohru's pink-pen writing:

"Good afternoon, Sohma-kun! By the time you read this you should be home from school. I'm going out for the evening with Uo and Hanajima today because the weather is so nice! This is also why I left the windows open - after all this cold winter weather I figured the house could use some nice fresh air! But please remember to close them again before it gets dark. There are leftovers in the fridge and rice that you can easily prepare-"

"Mm-chh!" Yuki's eyes squinted tightly shut and he stifled a sneeze before he could finish reading the rest of Tohru's reminder. He sniffed silently, running a finger lightly along his upper lip before crossing the room to close the window. He tried to hurriedly close and lock it, but before he could the breeze just squeezed in to aggravate his already-sensitive nose. "Kchh!"

Yuki sighed, running a hand along his forehead in irritation. At least the closing of the window would keep out any more pollen, but the damage was already done to his room, as they had been kept like that all day, and the windows in the rest of the house still remained wide open. Yuki realized he had never mentioned his asthma and allergies to Tohru, seeing as he hadn't thought of any reason to and didn't want to worry her, but he should've known she would do something like this. He had taken some medicine in the morning, sensing this occurrence, and had been fine walking the short distance to school. However, walking home, Yuki could feel the effects of the medicine wearing off and had made his way promptly back in his best effort to avoid an attack. The first-year in high school had naturally thought home would be an escape from all the pollen in the air, now it was trapped throughout every room in the house. There was no hiding from it.

Yuki had been this way for as long as he could remember. His allergies used to bother him more when he was little, whether in coughing fits or sneezing fits. Generally he tried to hold them back, afraid they would weaken him and he would transform, but it was generally hard to resist them. Right now was no exception.

Realizing his lack of avoidance from the irritants made his nose itch possibly worse. He rubbed at it slightly, subtly. He might've worn one of those paper masks people often wore in the spring to keep his breathing normal but his allergies were not something he liked to draw attention to, not in the least. Besides, he knew not only the girls at school would crowd him and panic to see him in that state, but Tohru would panic as well, and that wasn't something he wanted to cause. Not to mention, showing weakness in this household was something he could never do - not with the constant competition looming in every aspect of everyday life. He could never let his guard down before, and now was certainly not the time to do so. He'd simply have to close all the windows, for starters, then take some medicine and try to deal with the seasonal challenge to the best of his ability.

Yuki went on to the rest of the upstairs rooms to close off the other the openings - first in Kyo's room, then Shigure's room, then the hallway's skylight. Then… Yuki hung his head in disgust at himself as he approached Tohru's door, and guiltily and quickly he pushed it ajar and slid himself inside her bedroom. He looked down at his feet as he moved briskly across her carpeted floor in his best effort not to disturb any of her privacy, his stomach lurching at the thought of any one of his fangirls knowing he'd entered a girl's bedroom, even for this purpose. He wanted to get in and get out quickly, mentally apologizing profusely to Tohru even though she was unaware of his actions. Yuki was so anxiously focused on shoving the stuck window closed as quietly as possible that he was caught off-guard by another soft wind that again tickled his nose.

"Hah…" he stammered, reaching up with one hand to rub it away, but by then it was too late. "Keh-cchh!"

Yuki was just able to catch it in a stifle, though he refrained from sniffing and making further the noise. Mentally scolding himself for allowing the reaction to slide forth, he breathed slowly, wanting to rub at his nose after that last unfortunate sneeze, but instead he continued working to close the window without making a sound. The last thing he wanted was -

"Oh my, and what are we doing in here?"

"Ahh!" Yuki cried, losing his composure without meaning to. He whipped around in fear to see Shigure poking his head in with his usual mocking expression . Even though they both knew Yuki wasn't actually up to anything perverse, his cousin never refrained from an opportunity to tease, and Yuki couldn't hide his embarrassment.

"Don't you dare make any strange comments, this is not what it looks like," Yuki started defensively, his throat starting to feel scratchy as he spoke. "My allergies are getting to me and the windows have been open all day, so I'm clo…" He hesitated, with his hand coming towards his face, his eyes fluttering half-closed. "C-Clo… sing… ah…" He felt he was about to release when suddenly the impulse left him, and he himself was left standing dumbly with a vacant expression.

"Are you faking it for effect?"

"N-No, I am not!" Yuki shot back, snubbing his nose to get rid of whatever tickle-y feeling was left and avoid a repeat of his previous reaction. "You know I always get this way in the spring, so don't act like it's news to you just because I'm in Tohru's room…" He cringed upon saying it, then leaned over and closed the window harshly, no longer caring about noise. Upon doing so he quickly walked out and shoved past Shigure. "I'm shutting the rest of them even though the pollen's already all over the house. Promise me you'll keep them closed-"

"Boo, but it's so stuffy in here now-"

"-and don't tell Tohru about this," Yuki hissed firmly, glaring at Shigure in finality. "I'll tell her about my allergies another time, but we don't want to worry her or make her feel guilty about doing something kind." He had said "we" instead of "I" to keep Shigure from further teasing, which thankfully worked this time, though he had also walked off quickly before Shigure could make any more of his remarks.

"I'm going to call Mitchan now about our next chapter, so nobody bother me and try not to make a lot of noise!" the annoying cousin called after him, unsure if his grey-haired cousin could really hear him. Though nobody was going to bother him anyways.

Yuki came down the stairs and turned to the right, stepping down into the kitchen. The windows above the sink were open, and as if that didn't taunt him enough, flowers from the outside trees hung in the windows and inside the house. Yuki felt his face twitch involuntarily; having to smell them was bad enough, the last thing he wanted to do was touch those awful, pollen-filled petals. Frowning at the enemy, he walked towards them, then quickly grabbed at the branches and shoved them outside before shoving the sliding pane closed. He could almost feel the pollen on skin and in the air from those flowers, stirring up and around his nostrils... his head began to lilt back as the familiar reaction overtook him…

"Hey! What'd you do that for??"

Again, a voice came from behind and startled him out of his sneeze. But this time, Yuki wasn't anxious, he was piqued. He whirled on Kyo, his pre-sneeze face transforming into his classic, confident half-smile. Despite his constant allergy attack, he knew he would win whatever argument Kyo was ready to pick without showing weakness.

"I'm just shutting the window, in case you couldn't see that for yourself. What do you care so much about?"

"Cause it's humid in here! We need a breeze, so open it up."

"What, you want a little sunshine? How cat-like of you."

"I didn't say that, damn it! You wanna pick a fight, rat?!"

"It doesn't matter to me. I'm just going to win, like I always d-" Embarrassingly enough and to his disbelief, his nose stung him again, harsher, and he couldn't hold back. At first he tried to fight it, then realized he looked sillier trying to do so, and succumbed to the irritation. Unfortunately, the odds were not on his side, and he ended up falling into a small fit of sneezes without meaning to. "Hehh.. hek-chh! Chh! Chhh!"

He had just barely stifled the strong reaction. The disgust he felt in himself for allowing his enemy to see him in a weakened state was at it's peak. However, he knew it was better to stand his ground than run away, even though he preferred the latter. Whichever he chose, he'd have to endure some of Kyo's bullying either way, so he prepared himself for the cat's retorts. Yuki held back a shiver of contempt, and though he forced himself to look the cat in the eye, he was secretly extremely ashamed to do so.

Kyo stared at him strangely at first, unsure of what he was doing. Then suddenly, he burst out with a cocky laugh a few seconds after Yuki finished his fit. The silver-haired boy glared back down at him in his seated position, though this alone couldn't stop his rival from bullying him.

"Hahaha! What was that, rat? You wanted to make a point? You wanna start somethin' when you can't even finish your sentences??" he laughed toughly, jumping up and causing the plates from his early dinner to clatter on the table.

Yuki sighed heavily, folding his arms and trying to look apathetic while masking his shame, as well as the leftover irritation in his nose. "Stupid cat. It was a just a sneeze. I don't even have to finish my sentences and I'm still above you."

"Like hell it was just a sneeze - your allergies are acting up again! And allergies are a WEAKNESS!"

"Don't be stupid."

"Call me whatever you want, rat! A weakness is a weakness and that's why you're closing the windows! You made fun of me about wanting the sunlight, now you can't even take a little fresh air!"

Yuki's eyes narrowed. He KNEW it was a weakness, and he hated it. Why did the stupid cat have to go and irk him like this? He rolled his eyes, still holding onto his tough act.

"Your opinion doesn't mean anything to me. Now don't forget to clean up your plates, Tohru might cook your meals but you have to do some things around here yourself."

"Don't tell me what to do, I'm not an idiot like you-!"

But Yuki had walked out of the room by then; he still knew how to get under Kyo's skin and win the argument. He closed the remainder of the open windows and went upstairs to get his allergy medicine and do his homework for the evening.

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The unfortunate occurrence was almost as bad as walking upstairs to find Tohru's note and his open window. How had he not realized this morning.. that he had run out of his prescription.. He thought about calling Hatori, but knew the doctor would want to give him a full examination if he told him about how bad his allergies were… There was no avoiding the reactions, it seemed.. As he tossed the empty bottle into the trash he felt his eyes water and his nose sting sharply in teasing. He quickly closed the door before the reaction slid forth to keep from being heard by a certain person, then allowed his breath to hitch. The itch in his nose, which he'd tried desperately to stave back until now, seemed to be more than thankful that he was now finally allowing the reaction to slide forth. He had stifled his sneezes up until that moment, which didn't allow for a relieving release. But now, finally… His eyes watered and he let them close gratefully, his head leaning back as he prepared to let out a good sneeze -

"Kyo-kun! Yuki-kun! I'm home!"

"-Guh!" he choked, crushing his nose between his fingers to hold back at the last minute. He had been so close - what was Tohru doing back early? He needed to sneeze, really sneeze, so badly… but he knew if he did he wouldn't be able to stop, and he didn't want to worry her… Yuki rubbed at his nose harshly, but the tickle wouldn't completely subside. He thought maybe he could stifle it and let out a few small sneezes without being heard.. But then he heard a knock on his door, causing him jump and again thwarting his plans of relief.

"Y-Yes?" he called, trying not to stammer, but he couldn't help it.

"It's Tohru! Sorry to bother you, but I bought some dessert while I was out with Uo-san and Hanajima-san and I thought it would be fun to eat together!"

Yuki's heart swelled slightly. He had never experienced much of a family atmosphere before Tohru's arrival, and it's presence still surprised but comforted him. He rubbed at his nose one last time - sneezing could wait a little longer if it meant spending time with Tohru without causing her panic. He opened the door to greet her, smiling naturally down at her brown hair and blue eyes. She looked up at him with her usual tenderness, though he could never tire of it.

"Hello, Yuki-kun! Look what I brought home for you!" Tohru held up a plastic package of chocolate, vanilla, and caramel pastries, decked with creams and strawberries. Yuki sniffed silently, grinning pleasantly at her benevolence.

"Those look delicious, Honda-san," he said sweetly, trying to smile without giving her a lopsided expression, though the corners of his mouth and nose twitched slightly. His nose begged for some relief from the terrible irritation, but his willpower held down the tempting reaction, at least for the time being. "I'm glad you had a good time with your friends. Th-Thank you for bringing those back for us, you didn't have to…" His voice wavered and quieted at the end of his sentence; it proved more difficult to keep himself from sneezing while he spoke, especially since he had to stop himself from rubbing at his poor nose or looking desperate while she could see his face. But thankfully Tohru didn't seem to notice his predicament - sometimes it seemed that she was very observant, and other times spacey and naive.

"Which one would you like, Yuki-kun? Shigure already said that he would like the chocolate one, after Kyo did… they seem to be arguing about it now…" Tohru looked down the stairs towards the kitchen, seeming to fret a little. Yuki rolled his eyes; honestly, he lived with a bunch of children… He cleared his throat slightly and swallowed hard, scrunching up his face slightly while she was looking away, then gave the girl a soft smile as she looked back.

"Don't worry about them, Honda-san. And why don't you chose which one you like first? I'll eat whichever is left over." The boy tried to hold his smile and keep a steady tone throughout the torture his nose plagued him with. He couldn't let her know that he hadn't eaten any dinner, that his allergies often caused him to lose his appetite. He really wasn't in the mood for thick, sweet cake… But he would eat it if it meant bringing a smile to her face instead of worry to her eyes.

"Oh? A-Are you sure? I mean they all look good to me, what if I took one that you wanted and then you couldn't eat it? I-I couldn't possibly -" Tohru said quickly, and Yuki was about to reassure her when they heard the clatter of dishes and then a crash coming from downstairs. Tohru cried out in surprise and hurried down the steps - in his annoyance with the two Yuki almost forgot about the little battle he was fighting with his nose and came down after her before he could give himself a chance to let out a few much-needed sneezes.

As he walked into the kitchen, he found now that his nose was not the only part of him that was irritated - in annoyance he watched Kyo yelling and Shigure shedding mock tears at the broken plate on the floor. He saw Tohru darting out of the room to get the dustpan, calling back to them to be careful not to step on any glass and hurt themselves. While she was gone, Yuki took it upon himself to scold the two for their idiocy.

"Look, you two, would you shut up? You made Tohru worry again because of your incompetence," he said coldly, crossing his arms. Oftentimes his air was enough to scare Shigure away from making a scene, but today his words were unfortunately clouded with congestion and his message came across far less strongly. Though they both stopped to stare at him, Yuki felt annoyance stir in his stomach as Shigure let out a small laugh.

"Better be nice, Yuki, or I'll tell Tohru you were in her room today~," Shigure teased, bringing a hand to his face. Yuki's brow furrowed as Kyo whirled on him when he failed to deny what Shigure had said.

"You were in Tohru's room!?" Kyo sputtered loudly, stomping towards the rat, and Yuki flinched nervously, trying not to show his embarrassment. He looked towards the door, then back at the cat.

"Would you be quiet?" Yuki said with a sigh, trying to push the boy away; he was feeling a bit dizzy and wasn't in the mood to pick a fight. "I was only… shutting the window-"

"HA! Because of your allergies, right? You weakling!" Kyo laughed triumphantly, and Yuki instinctively readied himself to give Kyo a hard kick when Tohru ran back into the room, immediately running over and sweeping up the glass strewn across the floor.

"Nobody is hurt, right? Is everyone okay?" she said quickly, glancing between them.

"Not a word to her, don't make her worry, stupid cat," Yuki muttered under his breath, then turned and said cheerily, "We're fine, Honda-san, nothing to worry about." Kyo rolled his eyes, smiling broadly and feeling more like a winner than he had in some time. He put a hand on Yuki's shoulder and spun him around harshly to face him.

"Or what, rat?" he jeered under his breath. "Why don't I tell Tohru about your weakness?"

Yuki glared at him. "You want to worry her that much? You want me to tell her about YOUR weakness, your true form? Hm. You really are a despicable creature."

Yuki knew immediately he had struck a hard nerve; Kyo stared back in shock, unable to speak. He had gone from winner to loser in seconds. Yuki stared apathetically as Kyo was forced to leave the room, then made his way over to Tohru.

"Don't hurt yourself on their account, Honda-san. Shigure, you can pick up the rest of this, can't you?" he said, giving his cousin a cold stare, but the black-haired man simply ignored him and continued to read the paper at the table.

"I-It's alright!" Tohru said quickly, scooping up the last of the pieces and walking over to the trash. "I've already cleaned up anyways. But everyone should continue to be careful, just in case. Now then, would everyone like to eat?"

"Chocolate please!" Shigure finally spoke up childishly, raising his arm in the air. Tohru laughed nervously, but when she noticed Kyo was not fighting back, she began to panic. "Kyo? Where did he go? Oh no, is he okay?"

Yuki immediately regretted what he had said to Kyo moments ago, if only for Tohru's sake. He did hate to worry her… Tohru was about to leave the room to go after him, but just then Kyo walked back in.

"I'm fine, so don't say anything," he grumbled before Tohru could ask, then folded his legs and sat down at the table. He glowered at Shigure, who was busily humming and eating up the chocolate dessert, but instead of sparking another fight he just pulled the vanilla piece towards him and took a large bite. Tohru breathed a sigh of relief, about to sit down herself between Yuki and Kyo, when she immediately jumped again. "That's right, I almost forgot!" She rushed out of the room and went outside, Yuki watching her actions curiously - she certainly always had something to do. But when she came back inside, his stomach immediately dropped.

"Do you like them?" Tohru said merrily, holding out a large bouquet of bright pink and yellow blossoms. "Today certainly is beautiful, isn't it? These flowers were everywhere and I thought I would bring some home for you all!"

"Oh Tohru, you're so thoughtful," Shigure said, and Yuki could swear he was teasing him. The obsessive tickle in his nose, which he'd worked so hard to ignore up until this point, selfishly stung him with the fresh scent of pollen. Yuki grit his teeth - No, he had worked too tirelessly to give in now! But even the sight of the flowers was stimulating his nose in the most uncomfortable way… He watched as Tohru turned to cut the stems and place the flowers in a vase of water, and while she wasn't looking he scrubbed his nose - he knew both Shigure and Kyo had seen and were judging him, but at this point he couldn't let himself be bothered by their reactions, he had to do whatever it took to keep Tohru from seeing him fall prey to the inevitable sneezing fit…

"Mmm, and they smell so wonderful!" Tohru said as she turned back around, and Yuki flinched ever so slightly as she set the vase in the middle of the table for all of those terrible petals and stems and smells to taunt him. The grey-haired boy sniffed silently as he tried not to draw attention to himself and his progressively-reddening nose, but that was proving difficult to do as Tohru immediately started a conversation with him.

"So which would you like, Yuki? Caramel or strawberry?" the girl asked, sitting herself down next to him again and cocking her head at him.

Yuki opened his mouth to respond, but suddenly the persistent, horrible tickle washed over him like a tidal wave. His hand came slowly up to his face but he stopped it; his eyes watering over with the need to release as his body willed him to melt into the sneeze… He knew he wanted it, he wanted it so badly, but he could not allow himself to cease the fight… Worrying Tohru would be significantly worse than having to hold back this need to sneeze… this terrible, debilitating need to sneeze…

"Yuki? Are you alright?"

Yuki blinked rapidly, his tongue rubbing against the roof of his mouth in desperation… He finally willed down the reaction enough to respond. "A-Absolutely, I'm fine." He tried to smile but his face contorted out of his will. He knew he hadn't sounded so convincing, but it was sadly the best attempt he could make. Breathing slowly through his mouth, he managed to force out a "You chose first."

Tohru tapped her chin. "Well… I do know you like strawberry, Yuki. I'm sure you would like this one!" She reached forward and passed the strawberry towards him, then brought the caramel pastry to herself - and, to Yuki's absolute dread, brushed against the flowers, and sent a small wave of bright yellow, horrible pollen right in his direction.

It didn't take long for the terrible substance to reach his nostrils, to crawl up against the inside of his nose and flutter around such sensitive areas, to irritate his sinuses so terribly that he felt himself reeling… The feeling plagued him so deeply now, he was just barely able to keep his eyes open, how much longer could he keep himself from succumbing, in front of everyone, in front of Tohru? He tried to keep his breathing steady, he tried desperately to ignore the feathery, light little tickles that had caused him to suffer so terribly for hours now, but it was just too much for his sensitive sinuses. It was so prominent, just on the lip of his nostril… Though he grit his teeth so harshly and willed his eyes to stay open, he just kept thinking over and over I have to sneeze… I have to sneeze… I have to sneeze…!

It was going to - ! Quickly he shoved a piece of the thick pastry into his mouth and furrowed his brow desperately, forcing his being to focus on the strawberry flavor, the sugary pieces and not on the itch burrowing ever deeper into his sinuses… The taste wasn't bad, but his stomach was not in the mood for something so sickeningly sweet and heavy. Every time the terrible tickle flared and burned, he just shoved down another piece of cake, swallowing hard, anything to keep himself from letting out even a single tiny sneeze… He just kept going and going, reaching for more - until his fork came back empty, and he looked down to realize he had finished off the entirety of the dessert.

Yes! He had done it, he had finished everything, and not a moment to soon - that sneeze was simply not going to wait any longer. With nothing left to keep his mouth busy he knew he had to get out of there quickly and up to the comfort of his room. Yuki grabbed his plate, standing up abruptly and walking over to the sink briskly. He thought he might have heard Tohru asking what he thought of this dessert, but at this point his mind was so focused on not sneezing that he hadn't paid attention. Yuki quickly washed his dish and fork in the hot water, the reaction inching ever closer to release… Fifteen more seconds… Ten more seconds… He could make it, he could do it… But then, the unexpected happened.

Yuki felt something brush up against the tip of his nose. He looked up, and saw it.

To his immediate dread, someone had opened the window again. The evening breeze was blowing lightly, and a branch of the blossoming tree had poked its way through the window again, its little white flowers hanging just above the sink and were now resting daintily on the bridge of Yuki's pink nose. And that was simply too much.

Yuki whirled around to get the flower off his face, then saw everyone looking up at him. Shigure, Kyo, Tohru… He felt his face flush deeply, his eyes water, his hands itch and long to snuggle his inflamed nose, which twitched so desperately -

"Yuki-kun, is everything alright?" Tohru asked, standing up quickly at his sudden reaction.

"Heh…" Yuki responded without meaning to, feeling his hands rise slightly at his sides. Tohru came closer to him.

"You don't look very well, your cheeks are so red - and your forehead is kind of warm, too!" Tohru said, reaching forward and pressing a hand to his face. "Shall we get you some medicine?"

"What's the matter now, rat? Feeling weak?" Kyo smirked.

"Heh… Ahh…" Yuki stammered, dizzy, his hands inches away from his face as he tried to back away from Tohru.

"Here it comes," Shigure sighed, used to the sneezing fits by now, just as Yuki finally succumbed to the hayfever and his abused nose took over.

"H-HAHCK-CHYUUH!!" Yuki sneezed into his hands so harshly he shook, the feeling washing over him - but his nose wasn't satisfied yet. "Ha… HackCHUU! Heckchyuuh!! Heh… HeckCHYUHH! Hepchyuuh! HnnnkCHYUH! Hnn… Heh… HEKCHYUH! Hehh… Hehhnnn…" Yuki's eyes were shut tight - he couldn't bare to look at anyone in the room, he knew all eyes were on him, he knew Shigure and Kyo would tease him… He knew Tohru would worry… He hated to worry her… He hated how long his build-ups were when he had to sneeze so harshly like this… "Hehh…. Hah.. Hah-HACKCHYUUH!!"

Yuki sniffled silently, running a finger underneath his nose, his eyes still closed. He felt a last little tickle in his nostril and let out a final quiet "Keh-chhhuu!" before he could stop it. Ah, to be relieved of that awful, tickling feeling, it was heaven itself… But their was still more suffering to come. He knew his cheeks were red, he hadn't felt this humiliated in a long time… and he knew his nose must be even redder… But if he wanted to hold on to any ounce of his pride, he had to open his eyes and pretend he wasn't embarrassed, even if it was so obvious that he was positively ashamed of himself… He opened his eyes slowly…

And immediately regretted it. Though Shigure hadn't seemed to care, Kyo was on his feet, a terrible smile on his face, ready to throw down every possible retort he could think of.. and probably tell Tohru everything, too… and Tohru - he could hardly look at her, he saw the concern in her face, the worry in her eyes - and it was too much. He saw her open her mouth -

"Yuki! Are - "

"P-Please excuse me," he stammered and quickly exited the kitchen, racing up the stairs and slamming the door to his room shut just before the overwhelming feelings of weakness, shame, and embarrassment caused him to transform into his zodiac animal. In his small rat form, Yuki hid underneath the bed, expecting Kyo to come running after him to pick a fight or Tohru to worry and look for him, but to his surprise neither happened… After a few minutes of sitting in fear and shame, he crawled out slowly, changing back into his human form. He walked over to the door and locked it to make sure no one would come in, but it didn't seem entirely necessary - no one was coming after him… Yuki dressed himself back in his school uniform without really thinking about it, then sat down on his bed and sighed.

He was temporarily relieved that he could have some peace and quiet, to finally be alone. Suddenly feeling dizzy and exhausted from having to hold back his sneezes all day, he let out another, smaller fit of sneezes without stifling before laying on the bed, and soon found himself falling deeply asleep.

----------

Knock knock knock.

Yuki stirred from his sleep and sat up abruptly. It was dark outside now, he thought he'd heard something… Had somebody-?

Knock knock knock.

Ah-! Yuki jumped up, then swayed slightly - his body hadn't been prepared for that and he still felt a little weak from the stress of the day. At first his heart beat quickly - if it was Kyo, or Tohru... was he ready to talk to them? But then he came to his senses. Kyo wouldn't have knocked, he would've just tried to burst in, and Tohru's knock would have been softer, kinder... He walked over to the door, unlocked it, and opened it.

"Hatori," he said with a sigh as he saw his doctor standing here, thankfully alone. "It's just you... Um, come in, will you?"

"I was going to come in whether you asked me or to or not," Hatori said in his usual monotone. "It seems you've had quite an evening, haven't you? So tell me, why didn't you just take your medicine?"

"I-I ran out..." Yuki mumbled, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "Who told you to come here? Was Tohru scared? Did I worry her-?"

"Calm down, Yuki, don't exhaust yourself anymore than you have," Hatori said merely, rummaging through his pockets. "Here, take two of these." He handed the boy a bottle of the allergy medication, and Yuki did what he was told.

"Thanks," Yuki said, then sighed. "You don't have to worry about about checking my heartbeat or anything, Hatori, I'm fine now-"

"Of course I do. As your doctor, I'll take responsibility if anything happens to you. Now just hold still." Hatori continued to work as Yuki sat on the edge of the bed, then went on. "If you must know, Shigure gave me a call. He... is always pleased to have a reason to rush me down here."

Yuki laughed slightly. "Heh... That is true. Sorry about that."

"But when I arrived, Tohru was indeed worried for your health," the doctor explained. "When I came in the door, she immediately asked me if you would be alright. She told me that you had a terrible fit before running off to your room?"

The boy looked at his hands. "Th-That sounds about right..."

"Why did you run off?"

Yuki shrugged, feeling his face go scarlet again. "I-I don't know, I mean, I was... I thought I made Tohru scared and... acting weak... in front of..." He cut off shamefully.

"I see. You told me you were scared you worried her - well, I would say you probably did," Hatori went on, then removed his stethoscope. "If you had just told her from the start about your allergies, you probably could have avoided this whole situation. So, why didn't you just tell her?"

Yuki sighed. "I-I guess... maybe I probably should explain it to her..."

"Right," Hatori said, packing up his things. "Well, it seems as though you are fine now, everything is in order. And in the morning, well, it's up to you how you fix things. Now, get some rest. Call me tomorrow."

"Alright," Yuki mumbled as Hatori shut the door behind him. Yuki got up and locked it. As for now, he was still too tired to say anything to those waiting downstairs. Perhaps the morning would be better... But he didn't feel like thinking about it now. With a yawn, he made his way back over to the bed, and found that sleep quickly took him yet again.

----------

When Yuki awoke, he sat upright quickly and looked for the clock. 6:45am… He had managed to fall asleep at 8pm the previous night and slept until then. Yuki stretched and thought to put on his school uniform, then realized he had fallen asleep wearing it. Hmm.. If he could get out of the house before anyone else, perhaps he could avoid interaction… He sighed. He supposed he would have to talk to them sooner or later, but he wasn't sure he was ready yet…

Yuki unlocked his door cautiously, sticking his head out into the hallway and glancing both ways. It seemed everyone was still sleeping… He snuck downstairs to get a little breakfast before school, walking into the room that had caused him so much trouble the night before. He mentally prepared himself to again run and in shut all of the windows.

However, going into the kitchen that day, it had become a completely different place. The plates had been cleaned and were sitting next to the sink on the drying rack. All of the windows were closed, and the flowers that had picked on his nose the day before were no longer present. As Yuki moved towards the table, he saw that a little bottle of allergy medication was placed on the table with a note in Hatori's handwriting - Here's some extra medicine you can carry with you in your school bag, in case you need it. Remember to be more careful from now on.

Slightly flushed, Yuki opened the bottle, shaking one of the pills into his hand and swallowing it. He certainly wouldn't go another day without bringing the medicine with him at all times… Yuki walked out into the hallway and put the pills in his school backpack. When he made his way back into the kitchen, however, he jumped when he saw Tohru standing at the counter preparing lunch.

"Ah-!" he stammered as Tohru saw him, though he wasn't going to run this time even if he was a little embarrassed still. He coughed, trying to gain his composure. Tohru smiled brightly at him and turned fully to face him.

"Good morning, Yuki-kun!" she said. "You're up earlier than normal today. Usually it's hard to wake you up, isn't it?" She laughed sweetly.

"Y-Yes," he said quietly, smiling slightly. She no longer seemed worried… That was a relief…

"Ah! Did you see those pills on the table Hatori left for you?" Tohru asked. "Oh, someone must have moved them -"

"Ah, no, I got them…" he muttered. "Thank you. I'm um, well… I am sorry for what happened yesterday, about that fit and all…"

"You don't have to be sorry at all! It's entirely my fault!" Tohru cried. "I had no idea your allergies were so bad, Yuki… It's my fault that everything happened. I talked to Hatori yesterday because I didn't know what was wrong, and when Shigure explained what happened he came over very quickly, and left the medicine here for you…" Tohru sighed. "I didn't mean to put you in such a bad situation, I'm so sorry. You know, if I ever do anything foolish like that, you can tell me! I certainly don't want to cause you any trouble!"

"But…" Yuki rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "You do get very worried when I mention anything about not feeling well… and I really don't like worrying you… so…"

"Eh? But, that's okay!" Tohru explained quickly. "We're a family! We're supposed to know this stuff about each other, even the bad stuff! And well, you know, you're not weak for having allergies, really! People get sick like that all the time! And if you tell me, then, I can help you when you need it and not do foolish things like keep the window open!"

"Oh…" Yuki said dumbly. He supposed they were a family now… Was that how most families acted? "I guess… Yes, I can do that if it will be easier for you." Yuki cleared his throat. "Um, in that case, I should let you know that I have very bad allergies."

Tohru laughed. "Well, I know that now! Bless you, by the way. How are you feeling today?"

"Ah, thank you. And I'm fine now," Yuki said, smiling honestly. And he was. He was glad to hear Tohru feel confident enough to call their strange group a family. He wasn't sure how he felt about having Kyo be a part of it, but like it or not, they were all living together under the same roof. Like his allergies and sneezing fits, it was just an annoying part of life he would have to accept.

______________________________________________________________________________________________

(please comment and tell me what I can fix or tell me if you liked it! Thanks bunches for reading!!)

Edited April 30, 2012 by The Cracked Egg

[Natto]

Awww! Fruits Basket used to be one of my favorite series, and I still have a soft spot for it. I always thought it would make sense for Yuki to have allergies--after all, he does have asthma, and those two disorders often walk hand in hand. Good thing he's not allergic to cats or dogs or anything...or rats. XD; Anyway, I loved your story. Everyone was perfectly IC--from Shigure's being intentionally irritating to Kyo turning everything into a challenge to Yuki's self-consciousness to Tohru's motherliness, it was all spot on. And you really managed to build tension with Yuki's impending sneezing fit--like you gave actual narrative reason why it mattered if he sneezed or not. Of course, it matters to us here, but it's nice when there's a reason for it to matter to the characters, too.

Excellent job, and thanks for sharing!

[cupkake]

Fruits Basket was my obsession for a good year, and Yuki was always my favorite. I always hoped someone would write something about him but I could never find anything, this was perfect, honestly the only thing I didn't like was that it wasn't longer. You wrote all the character's very well and this could've (should've) been a scene in the manga. You got Yuki's sneezes down really good, and the last fit scene was fantastic, like I made that fangirl face and everything. Brilliant job for the first fic you've posted here

[Spoo]

What a wonderful throwback. Fruits Basket was my life from 2004 to early 2007. Hatori Sohma is the reason I wear a seahorse pendant around my neck. This was excellent! I loved the characterizations, and the writing was amazing. Thank you so much for putting this up!

[nolongeractive]

Oh man, I feel great getting this feedback! Honestly, thanks to all of you for giving me such great commentary. I was starting to worry it would be too long to enjoy but I feel much better about it now. It seems we all have the same past-passion for Furuba. xD I'm so glad you enjoyed it, and again thanks so much!!!

Edited May 1, 2012 by The Cracked Egg

[NameTaken]

Omg Furuba! Like everyone else here, it seems, I was obsessed with this adorable series.

Yep, characterisation, plot, writing style, sneeze spellings- wonderful! I really loved it.

[EmeraldThread]

Yes!! A Fruits Basket fic! I LOVE this series so much - it was one of the first I watched years ago, and it's stuck with me as one of my favorites ever since. think you got their personalities down pretty well, and I love the anticipation before Yuki's fit. The spellings are fantastic! Honestly, I can't remember seeing a Fruits Basket fic on here, ever, and I'm soooo happy you wrote one! I'd thought of it myself, but yours is really good. I hope you decide to post more stories in the future!

[melonbun]

I loved this. I just finished re-watching the entire series pretty recently (Fruits Basket is one of my favourite animes). As others have already said, your characterization was spot on and the plot was great. I also really like your writing style.

[Kawaii-Kushami]

O-oh my god... that was wonderful... * V *

It was indeed very IC, and Yuki is my favorite Fruits Basket character...

Anyways, I seriously loved this~ It has a nice plot and fits are always nice~ xD

[K.Matsuri]

I am melting everywhere. EVERYWHERE. I was also "Team Yuki" back in the day and just...gah! You make me want to draw things. Simply lovely <3

[LeapYearKisses]

Ah, this brings back so many good memories! I used to be SO into Fruits Basket years ago, and Yuki was always my favorite. Pretty boy. XD Thank you for sharing this! His sneezes are so cute. :3

[Vongola Undicesimo]

Okay, you Miss have turned me into a Yuki person. He wasn't my fave before, but now...Sigh, Yuki...<3.

[nolongeractive]

Okay I love you all, these were better responses than I could have imagined for my first on-topic story posted. Thanks so much everyone!!

[Maus_17]

I'm melting! I love this!

[YouAreHawTCHEW!]

So cute! <3