Chasing Ghosts [Sho/???]

It seemed extremely odd to him that she was being so openly affectionate to a guy like him, especially after he spoke about himself being a player as he had. Not that he was playing her as he generally did enjoy her company quite a deal. Still, it was usually him who pushed hard to get a girl to open up to him, and to allow him for a moment to be her knight in shining armor. Oddly enough the roles had been reversed this very evening. Tonight, Kirino was his knight in shining armor, and was doing a damn good job of it albeit the concerns he felt about telling her his secrets. He had not once felt the need to overpower his senses with alcohol or to push through some kind of dull conversation to get to the reward at the end of the night. No, tonight he was thinking clearly, and was enjoying just about everything she had to say.

He glanced at her, realizing he had been been spacing out for a few moments there, and was just about to reply when she put her finger to his lips. A brief glimpse of amusement would pass over his face as she told him to hold his thoughts and as her finger left his lips he gave her a seductive smile. She pulled out some kind of phone, Sho's old phone not looking anywhere near as epic as the machine that she pulled out, and he gave her a quick quizzical glance as she pressed her cheek against his. Sho gave his normal smile to the camera as she asked him to give his best smile, only to feel the warmth of her flesh leave the side of his face only to be replaced by the feeling of lips pressing against his cheek.

Now, Sho was many things. A lady's man, a well educated scientist, a kido expert, and at most times an extremely self-composed guy. In fact that composure had allowed him to pass for at least a serviceable person instead of the broken man that he was on most occasions. It had not prepared him for the surprise of her kissing him on the cheek and his face showed that as well. His eyes wide open, mouth half open, a slight smile showing, and his shoulders tense from the instant surprise. His mind ran a mile a minute, her declaration of how handsome he looked fading into obscurity as he sat there for a few seconds. His face would have been flush if not for the tan skin hiding the pink pigment associated with such things. What followed her statement was an awkward silence, one that seemed to be quite palpable even in the club they were in.

He was normally so smooth, so capable of putting the moves on at any given moment, but Kirino had bested him as only a beautiful, intelligent, and respectable lady could do. He felt at a loss, but he would not allow himself to be defeated by a quick peck on the cheek. Sho pulled Kirino closer as he began to idly brush her hair with his hand and he stared into her eyes. This was not the look of the guy she had seen only moments ago, a hurt and weak man had been replaced in a millisecond. What stared into her eyes was a man of passion, a man who saw what he wanted, and would take it without anyone being able to stop him. "I worked under Azure...but that isn't important. What is important is how you make me feel.", Sho uttered with confidence as he grabbed a hold of her hand. Not too forcefully, but enough to grab her attention away from the phone she had only taken pictures on moments ago.

"I've lost a lot of things... my sister, my family, my fellow warriors. It broke me...in a lot of ways, it made me weak and all I could do was try to suppress it all with quick fixes. Drugs, alcohol, women...all of it just to get through my days, to help me forget. Until now...well until now I didn't think I could be fixed or that I even wanted to.", Sho said with absolute honesty as he let out a deep sigh and then closed his eyes for a second to gather his thoughts. "Tonight...I can't explain it really, but tonight you have made me feel more like my old self than I thought I could ever feel. You make me want to be me, not the guy sitting in hotel rooms planning out how to get back at the guy who broke him, but me. What I'm trying to say is... I don't want this to be a one time thing.", he found words hard to form as he was still flustered from her earlier peck on the cheek.

Still, he felt like it was time. He felt like he could finally move on and be somebody like who he used to be. He felt like maybe he didn't have to be chasing a ghost anymore.