Author's Note: Long chapter alert! Seeing how it's been over a year since my last update, I thought it'd only be fair to give you something that would hopefully be a little time consuming, at least until my next year long update. Just kidding...or am I? Anyways, this chapter might seem a little confusing since I have gone back and "revamped" the story from the beginning. The gist of the plot is still the same, but I thought I'd improve it a bit. But it's mainly Chapter 9: How Cute, Our First Argument, that you might have to reread. Oh, and thanks to all those who reviewed and PM'ed me with all their support and pleas for an update. You gave me the motivation I needed to continue. Now ladies and gents, on with the show...

Gar & Rachel

"I do love youuu..." he sang out of harmony inside the book store. "I doooo..."

A few patrons observed in horror while the rest tried their best to tune out the screeching of his voice. Gar, oblivious to their stares, grabbed at the nearest couple of pencils and began striking at books that lay on the counter like some sort of rock star drummer burning up the stage.

The ding of the bell sounded as someone entered the bookstore. She pushed aside a midnight strand of her short bob, exhaling nervously. There was a certain apprehensive glint in her eyes as Rachel let the door shut behind her. It had taken so much will power to come see him today. The poor girl didn't have to wait long once she heard a musical shriek come from behind the counter.

There he was, reclined in a chair and tending the cash register. She approached the counter as her brain scrambled to come up with an icebreaker, something to ignite a conversation. But all she could do was stare in awe at his childish behavior as he drummed away at his makeshift drums, still failing to notice the quiet beauty.

"Gar," she called softly. His eyes were shut, like a musician deep into his work. Judging from the muffled noise booming through the headphones of his MP3 player, she didn't think she'd be getting his attention anytime soon. "Gar," she tried a little louder. It was pointless feat as his singing grew louder.

"No! You don't know...what I'd do for youuu..."

"Gar!"

His green eyes widened, startled out of his seat. He gasped, "Ra-rachel." How long had she been there?

She sighed and looked behind her to see half the store looking at them, some laughing and others shaking their heads. She turned back to him, watching as he composed himself, his face reddening from embarrassment. "You alright there, hotshot?"

He looked to the pencils in his hand and quickly threw them out of sight. "I-I didn't see you there," he giggled nervously.

She nodded. "Obviously."

"So..." he clicked his tongue, his face returning to a more normal color. "What are you doing here?"

"I come in here all the time, remember?"

"Actually, I did remember. It was just a feeble attempt to try and make you forget about my..." he thought.

"Stupidity?"

"Well, I would have gone for silliness, but I guess that works, too. So what brings you by?"

"I just thought I'd come by to see you."

"Really? I thought after our date, you might've never wanted to see me again."

"Why would you think that?"

"Oh, come on." He sat back in his chair lazily. "I may be a lot of things but blind isn't one of them. You weren't having much fun and I," he sighed, "...well, let's just say I wasn't the smoothest Casanova."

"But that's good, isn't it?"

"Good?"

"Contrary to what you believe, Gar, I actually had a nice time with you. I'm glad you weren't trying to act like something you're clearly not."

"If that's so true, then why haven't you called me since?"

"I could ask the same of you, don't you think?"

Gar shrugged. She had a point.

"The truth is," her voice was low and Gar could tell this wasn't something she wanted to be overheard by prying ears. "I don't really go on many dates." She shuffled her feet nervously. "In case you've failed to notice, I'm not much of a people person. One look at me and they tend to--"

"Scram?" he suggested without letting her finish. A taste of her own medicine.

She looked on, resisting a quick urge to slap him upside the head for his assessment, however accurate it might have been. "Yeah. Something like that."

"A little something I've learned," he rested an elbow on the counter, moving closer to her as if about to reveal a deep secret. She crept closer. "You shouldn't let people's opinion of you dictate who you are, Rachel. Take me for an example. Most people just think of me as an annoying clown who lives on practical jokes and tofu. Now how wrong are they?"

Rachel felt safer not replying to that one.

Gar continued, "But to me, you seem like a totally awesome person. You're intellectual, and you're classy without the need to rub it in people's faces. There's something secretly sweet about you. You're a little judgmental, but only where it counts. I mean, those are just some of the things that I picked up right away, and I hardly know you."

A modest smile graced her lips. "Thank you, Gar."

"No thanks needed. It's only the truth." Rachel could have sworn she saw a hint of rouge on his cheeks. "But..."

Her ears perked up. "But what?"

He grinned like a shy schoolboy. " I'd like to change that. I'd like to get to know you more."

"You would?" Even to Rachel, there was no denying the sound hope in her words. But why did she hope? And could Gar sense it, too?

"Yeah. So what do you say?" he asked a little too eager, his smile brightening. "Could we try another date? Maybe a movie and a bite to eat this time. Like what regular couples do."

Couples? Why did she like the idea of the possibility? Why did she like the idea of him? "I'd like that."

"Stupendo!" he shouted. "How about meeting me here around five tomorrow? That's when I get off work."

"That'll be fine." She heard a slight cough behind her, and what she assumed to be an impatient customer waiting to pay. "I guess I'll let you get back to work." She turned to leave, excusing herself to the customer for taking up his time.

"And this time, Rachel, I promise..."

She turned back to look at him, as well as the stares of the people in the store who had more information about their date than she wished.

"You're going to have a mondo good time, baby!" His eyes widened, going over the what he had called her. "I mean, I'm not calling you a baby." He gulped. What exactly was he trying to say? "Because, well...you're not a baby in the actual sense. But, you're hot and amazing..."

If Rachel could have, she'd have raised her brows to her forehead. Did he actually feel this way about her?

"Wait," he fumbled with words, feeling Rachel could certainly see his nervousness. "I mean--"

"You're killing yourself, man!" came someone from the crowd, hoping he'd stop babbling like an idiot. "Just shut up!"

"And I'm shutting up now," he obeyed, wiping off the tiny tears of sweat off his forehead.

"Thank you!" came the annoyed customer again.

Rachel held open the door, giving him an understanding nod before she left through the door.

Kory

To say she was frustrated was an understatement. Kory's argument with Dick that morning had been the start of a really crappy day and she didn't anticipate things getting any better for the time being.

She grunted in exasperation, letting out a deep breath while wisps of her fiery bangs blew in the process. Now was not the time for her hair to be working against her. "Ugh," she gritted through her teeth.

For the last half hour, Kory had grown tired of the numerous hot rollers fastened in her hair, that when the final wave was set, she was relieved to be rid of them. If only her problems ended right there. With her relationship in shambles, and Silkie's near death experience later that afternoon, not to mention two parents who now lounged around downstairs because they decided to leave their unpacking for tomorrow, she didn't need any more of life's distractions.

Enter Jamie Cooper, the Anders' kid neighbor of nearly thirteen years, whose birthday Kory would be celebrating tonight with another one of their traditional dinners at the same little eatery in central Gotham, just the two of them. As if Kory was in any mood to celebrate. She wondered just how she was supposed to enjoy herself this evening when everything around her reminded her of him.

She walked up to her vanity mirror to apply some gloss until a simple photo taped to the mirror caught her eye. It was one of those fun photos they took while at the snake booth during their trip to the circus. Her fingers touched it gingerly, almost as if she hoped the touch could be felt by Dick. Even as the oversized boa constrictor snaked around his shoulders, his smile remained bright, his body eager. But the look in his enthusiastic electric blues made her turn away. So different from the look of utter sadness in his eyes when she left him that morning. She just left him standing there, she told herself. The feeling caused her stomach to lurch and her heart to sink faster.

She hated to admit it, but this relationship was beginning to get harder to handle. She knew she would have to face him eventually but just couldn't bring herself to do it now. She could only imagine how he felt. Only she didn't have to imagine it, she experienced with Xavier, which made the idea of hurting him that much worse. Her face slackened ruefully while her emotions waged a war with her mind.

She sighed and walked to the corner of her bedroom where her Victorian floor length mirror stood. The antique didn't really go with the contemporary decor of her room, nor the lilac-painted walls, but it was an heirloom handed down from her grandmother, and she couldn't bear to part with it. Examining herself, she fiddled with the top edge of her strapless maxidress, an ombre print which degraded in shade from a soft gray to a powder blue then to a cream that layered with a thin transparent fabric for a stylish touch. She paired her darling dress with fabulous open-toed taupe heels that once belonged to her mother. Thankfully, Luanne was as much a fashionista as her youngest daughter.

With a pleased look on her face, "Not bad," Kory muttered, raising a satisfied brow at the end results, circling to get a better look at her backside.

"You look fabu!" shrieked a young feminate voice from the other side of her room.

The redhead swung a gaze at the newly teen who was sprawled out comfortably over her bed, too busy on Kory's cell to realize how loud she'd become. Lost into her thoughts, she had forgotten Jamie was there. "Thanks, but I don't--"

"Wait, wait!" Jamie interrupted into the phone, following it with a bust of laughter. "She said what?"

Kory shook her head, a smile breaking onto her lips, remembering how she was once that age. Luckily, she grew out of it, she thought. Jamie was a bubbly teenager whose mouth tended to run a mile a minute. Vibrant, but impressionable, she had long since her preteen days looked up to Kory, which could explain why she had spent much of her childhood hanging around the Anders' household, much to Ryan's headache.

Kory turned back to her reflection, her eyes focusing on the pair of floral taupe dangle earrings before sending them a light tap. "These are so much better for tonight," she said absently to no one but herself, and swayed her face to the left, then to the right.

"Hey, Kory?"

She turned away from the mirror to look at the young teen who seemed a little impatient as she covered the receiver of the phone. "Your phone keeps beeping. Can't I just answer--"

"Jamie, I said no!" Kory was adamant enough that she managed to quiet the girl for a moment, something she didn't think was possible. She did not need a telephone psychic to tell her who was on call-waiting. It wasn't the third time he'd called since their argument. Heck, it wasn't even the tenth.

"Well, it's driving me nuts. Whoever it is has been calling every ten minutes," she huffed before tending back to her previous conversation on the phone.

"There's an easy solution to that." She walked up to her, playfully hitting her with a pillow. "Just get off my phone!" she hollered, wondering if Jamie and her anonymous friend realized how many valuable minutes they were using up on her cell.

"No," Jamie drawled with a whine, evading the pillow's wrath and quickly jolted her away. "Will you hurry up, Kory? We're gonna be late and all the good seats are going to be taken."

"Fine," she said, tossing her pillow aside, defeated. "I'm just about done anyways." She worked in a small amount of styling cream, cursing herself for taking Jamie's advice of styling her long tresses into flowing romantic waves.

Suddenly, there was an impatient knock at her door. "Oh, Kory..." came a voice laced with sweetness from the other side.

Koma, she recognized. "Yes?"

The door opened, and Kory turned in time to see her sister enter. It wasn't hard to see she was up to something, a look of surreptitious cleverness evident on her face. If Koma's sly tone didn't set off her alarm, then her eager smile surely succeeded.

Kory cut her off with a wave of her hand. "You're wasting your time, Koma. I know that look already and nothing good ever comes from it." She turned back to the mirror, finishing up with her hair. "Besides," she nodded in her young neighbor's general direction, "Jamie and I are about to head out for her birthday dinner, so I don't have the time to be suckered into it."

Koma gave a quick glance to the youngster who, still on the phone, smiled widely at her and followed it with a wave. "Birthday?" she wrinkled her forehead. "So what are you now? ...Ten?"

"Thirteen," Jamie corrected, offended.

"Same difference," Koma uttered just under her breath, and directed her attention back to her sister. "It's not that, dear. You have a visitor. A very interesting visitor, indeed."

Kory stopped what she was doing and stared at her sister's reflection through the mirror. "I do?" She looked at the clock on her nightstand to catch a glimpse of the time. It was already late into the evening. "Now?"

Again, Koma grinned, a look of curiosity deepening further across her face. "Oh, definitely."

"Well?" she waited. "Who is it?"

"He didn't say--"

" He?" the two friends said in sync, exchanging looks. Kory knew it couldn't be Gar as her sister wouldn't have made such a fuss about one of his routine visits. He was about as much family as Silkie, and was accustomed to just inviting himself in. But she also knew she wasn't expecting any of her other friends to be showing up tonight. Could it be?

"...but I'm definitely jealous," the older sibling concluded, looking much too happy for a simple visit from a friend. Kory couldn't help but roll her eyes at her sister's confident grin.

"Nice way to control those hormones of yours, Koma. Need I remind you that you've only been with Leon for two weeks."

"So?" Koma crossed her arms as her sister walked past her to reach her vanity, mumbling something under her breath. "As long as I don't touch, I don't see the problem. Besides, it's not like Leon and I are exclusive anyways. We're just testing the waters. He knows that."

Kory groaned, not liking her sister's cavalier attitude. Why couldn't she have kept that same resistance with Donna's ex-boyfriend, she thought. "Fine. Just tell whoever it is I'll be down in a minute."

Koma waited by the door. "Then you might want to hurry it up before Dad gets wind of him. He's sleeping on the couch but he's bound to wake up soon. Mom tells me his interrogative techniques have improved since I've moved out," she reminded with a look of worry before closing the door as she left.

Jamie paused on the phone for a moment to ask, "Hey, you didn't invite anyone else to our birthday dinner, did you?"

"That's the strange part," she shook her head, "I didn't." Kory picked up the nearest perfume bottle and sprayed herself a few times. Her nerves had begun to unsettle as she prepared to head downstairs to meet this "person".

"Hmm...intrigue." Jamie spoke into the phone again, "Mona, I'm gonna have to get back to you," and hung up the phone before Kory could leave without her. "Hey, wait for me!"

The two descended down the stairs as quickly as Kory's long dress and heels would let them, past the living room where her father laid on the couch in a deep sleep. A loud snore erupted through the living room and Kory had to forcefully shush her friend quiet before her laughter could threaten to awake her jet lagged father.

With anticipation, Jamie reached the door knob first, opening it. Kory could have sworn she heard a soft murmur of "ooh" but chose to ignore it.

Although she wasn't surprised to find him at her doorstep because she was pretty much expecting it, it didn't stop the anxious lump from forming inside her throat as he stood there. She moved behind Jamie, placing a hand on her shoulder while the other held onto the door frame to steady herself. There was an awkward pause as Dick's eyes penetrated through hers.

She tried opening her mouth to say something, anything that wouldn't make her appear like the crazed girlfriend from earlier that morning, but all she could manage was a nervous, "What are you doing here?" At first, he was quiet, though she knew what he was thinking, almost as if the words were screaming at her.

"It's not like you left me much choice." Dick saw as she bit down on her lower lip, a habit he'd come to realize she did when she became increasingly nervous, or felt guilty.

She didn't want to believe Dick was bitter. It just wasn't like him to be sour at her, but his voice was suggesting otherwise. "I didn't know if I was ready so see you or not," she replied, returning the look he gave her.

His face looked worried and his body spent. "You won't take my calls. You won't answer my texts," he urged, pausing for a moment to notice Jamie's presence, but was too tired to object. "Kory, I want to know what's going on with us?"

"Hey, wait a sec," Jamie interrupted, looking over her shoulder at Kory. "This is him?" She pointed to the aforementioned man. "This is the guy you've been moping about all day?" The girl turned back to Dick, eyebrows knitting together. "So genius, what did you do--" Jamie's eyes widened with surprise at the unexpected touch of Kory's hand over her mouth, silencing her further. "What?" came a jumbled mumble through the redhead's fingers before she brought up her hands defensively.

She hunched to Jamie's ear. "Zip it, will you? Don't make things worse for me." She released her hand from her mouth after hearing a grumble from the girl.

"Just trying to help. Sheesh!" With a scowl and shrug, Jaime moved aside, allowing the couple some eye contact.

Dick couldn't help but give the redhead a once over, noticing just how nicely prepped and dressed she was for someone who was supposed to be saddened. He seemed confused. "Moping?" he almost scoffed. "You're so depressed that you look like a million bucks?"

Kory looked down to her own dress, his jealousy dawning on her. Leave it to him to have an avalanche of assumptions. "Dick--"

Both the couple turned to stare at the birthday girl who broke into a gleeful fit of laughter. "Dick?" she echoed, holding a hand to her mouth to stifle her laugh. "Is that seriously your name? What...was Johnson taken," she chuckled again, "or did your parents just hate you?"

Dick's face recoiled at the comment, one that Kory quickly caught. The subject of his parents had always been a touchy one for him, and for that sake Kory felt the overwhelming need to protect him. "Jamie!" she warned with a finger, while an hot berry blush crept onto her cheeks. "Take that back!"

A look of shock crossed his face as her tone even surprised him. Well, not too much since he had already gotten a glimpse of how angry she could become if you struck her the wrong way. But nonetheless, it made him feel slightly better that she cared enough to react in such a way.

The girl's grin quickly faltered under her friend's glare, and she tugged at the hem of her black skirt nervously. "What? He knows I was only joking with him," she looked to Dick for assurance before cowering away from their stares.

Dick rolled his eyes, not allowing himself to be fazed by a pubescent girl. There was only one girl who could rile his emotions, and at the moment he desired an explanation from her. "So all this time that I've spent killing myself trying to find a way to speak to you, just to explain what happened this morning," he smoothed a hand through his mess of hair, generating just how vexed he was, "you've been beautifying yourself? ...And for what? ...A hot date?" he indicated to her attire.

At his words, a wry laugh escaped her. The thought was so idiotic, it was funny. "A hot date? Are you serious?"

"For your information," Jamie interrupted once again, not caring for Dick's tone, "Kory's taking me out for my birthday like she does every year." She crossed her arms, just barely stepping away from the redhead's backside. "Now who looks foolish?"

Dick tightened his lips, sending Kory one of those 'please, do something with her' looks.

Kory agreed they needed to talk intensively about the matter, and without anymore "friendly" interruptions. She circled to face the young interceder, trying to make her thoughts come together. "Jamie, sweetie," she gave her a weak smile, "you're not helping here. Why don't you..." she peered towards the inside of the house, indicating she wanted to be alone with Dick.

Jamie shrugged. "Whatever." She didn't care, as long as they left soon. "I'll be in your room if you need me." She turned away from them, leaving the couple to continue their lover's quarrel in private. "This is why I'm going to stay single forever," she said lowly under her breath, disappearing inside the house.

Kory barely had enough time to turn around when Dick pounced back to their argument. "Why did you just leave like that, Kory?"

Is he serious? She rested her hands on her hips, mildly agitated. "What did you expect me to do, hun? Join you?"

"I expected you to trust me. At least, stay long enough to let me explain what you saw."

"So you're going to explain to me how your mansion has suddenly become clothing optional? Do you have any idea how I felt when I saw you and--" she grimaced at the visual, "and her in nothing but--"

"It wasn't like that at all. I told you what was going on, " he stressed. "Nothing happened between Babs and I." He brought up his hands, "Not last night. Not this morning." He heaved a tired sigh, rubbing at the crook of his nose. "I wish you would believe me," his voice was tired and broke.

"Can you really blame me, Dick? Two weeks ago, you swore you were in love with her." She moved towards him, jabbing his chest with her index finger as her voice grew. "You said your life was miserable without her."

He breathed in hard, remembering the exact words he used at the time. Okay, so she had a valid point. "Yes, I did say that," he admitted, like it was nothing. "And I was. My life was miserable."

She pulled back her finger, taken aback by how easy the words came out of his mouth. Had she truly expected him to admit he still missed his ex-girlfriend? She felt stupid for even asking a question she clearly wasn't ready to hear the answer to.

"But Kory," he waited only until she looked at him, "...a lot has happened since then. You have to believe things have changed. You have to believe that when I told you I wanted to be with you, it wasn't just something to say. I meant it. Every word."

"But you're still with her!" She slipped her fingers through her hair, stressing the latter.

"What are you talking about? I'm not--"

"Dick, every time I turn around, she's with you. Or she's calling you. Or she's trying to find some way to weasel herself back into your life." Dick sensed the animosity in her tone, but couldn't deny that Babs was guilty of the things she mentioned. "And now she's going to be staying with you? In your home? What am I left to think?"

"That's just ridiculous. You can't honestly think something's going to happen?" The longer she took to answer, the easier his bouts of anger began to multiply inside. He wasn't sure what to make of her argument, though he was sure he was getting tired of her insecurities.

Kory caught herself in the middle of a wry chuckle, but sadly there was nothing funny about her expression. "She's not going to stop until she fools you into going back with her." She crossed her arms, "And it's only a matter of time until you allow her."

Dick's eyes widened with absolute shock. "Is that how you really feel?" he demanded. "Is that how you think I feel?"

Kory sorted through her thoughts and feelings, finally nodding as she was sure of her answer. "Let's face it, gorgeous. I was only the proxy, remember?" There was a certain finality in her tone.

He looked downward, a look of disappointment, but mostly hurt on his face. He shook his head regretfully until his eyes met hers. "Nothing I say is going to change the fact that you have zero trust in me," he frowned, "and in us. I actually believed that--" but shook his head, not bothering to finish his statement. Instead, he rounded and took a couple of steps down the porch stairs.

Wait! Where is he going? Never mind that, why was she still standing there, immobilized? All Kory could do was look on, too shocked to move an inch as he took one step in front of the other and farther away from her. Her hopes of him returning were growing slimmer. Even now, Dick hadn't bothered to gaze over his shoulder to look at her. Not even a peek to see her reaction. No, he was simply walking away, and he showed no signs of stopping.

Was this really happening? Was he just going to disappear out of her life? What about--what about them?

She uncrossed her arms and dropped them to her sides, but was rooted to the floor, despite wanting to follow him before he could leave. Her mouth parted, wanting to call after him, but it was as if she lost the ability to speak. The only movement was her heart as it hammered away inside her chest. It was angry and stinging, cursing her for being so stubborn. She knew she had no one but herself to blame for her heartbreak, and for Dick's departure. But what she didn't understand was why she was allowing herself to repeat this behavior? Why was she giving up on him so easily?

Echoes of his lost words kept replaying in her mind, and Kory was being faced with the crushing reality that he wasn't coming back to her. Suddenly, it was as if her eyes had finally awoken with alarm. "Hey! You! Wait!"

She rushed after him as quickly as her heels would let her. Not such a difficult feat when she noticed Dick wasn't in any real rush to get away from her, but it didn't change the fact that she knew he was still hurt. She reached behind him and was able to drape a hand around his wrist, turning him around. "Stop, Dick. You can't go, okay?"

"Why should I stay? You don't want me. You don't trust me," he said, stopping to look at her. "You've basically admitted as much just now."

"No, that's not true. I do--"

"Then how could you ever think I would do such a thing to you?"

"I--I don't know."

"You don't know?" he echoed with frustration. "Kory," he paused, thinking of the words, "love...it just doesn't work that way."

"I know, I kno--" She moved back a bit, taking a deep look into his eyes. "Wait a minute." She wrinkled her forehead in confusion. "Love? Who's talking about love? All I said was--" but then it hit her like a speeding train, and she stopped short her reply.

Dick's eyes bugged to their fullest. What had he just done? He tried revising what he had just said in his mind, making his heart beat faster. "I don't mean--I wasn't suggesting anything by that." He immediately looked away to hide whatever expression was making its way onto his face.

Alas, she read his slip-up loud and clear. Her lips tricked upwards slowly, "Dick?" She grabbed the sides of his face, turning him so their eyes could meet. "Why would you say anything about love unless you meant something by that?"

He remained quiet, not letting his eyes focus on her but to everything else around him instead.

In a softer tone, she pressed, "Tell me. What did you mean?"

Even as he took his time to come up with an explanation, she waited patiently. "Look, Kory," he cleared his throat as if he was having trouble finding his voice. "Ever since my parent's death, I've been cautious of who I let in. Consider it a defense mechanism, I don't know. But it's always worked for me."

Kory felt a flush of shame and wondered if it was visible on her face. Bringing up his parent's death just made her problem sound all the more trivial. "I know this is hard for you, so you don't have to--"

"I want to," he insisted. "I mean, you deserve to know this." She nodded and he continued. "Babs is one of the few people that I've come to trust. So when I lost her, I thought I was losing another part of my life that I wasn't ready to give up just yet."

Kory braced herself. "But?"

"But I've realized there wasn't anything to be lost with Babs because we'll always be friends." Kory opened her mouth to protest but was cut off by Dick's hand, indicating he wasn't finished. "I realized we're better off that way, even if she hasn't," he added with a stressed smile.

Kory couldn't help but smile, too.

"Kory," he spoke sincerely, "if not for you, I don't know where I'd be right now. You have to understand, it wasn't my intention to fall for you," he admitted. "But I did. You didn't make it easy for me to ignore my feelings and soon I found myself wishing you felt the same." Dick's eyes lit with the same emotion as from their first night together and he raised his hand to stroke her jawline.

Her head snapped at the warm touch of his hand, and she could feel her heart fluttering. She placed her hand over his, gazing into his eyes with the same intensity, with the same glimmer of hope and somehow knew things would be fine between them after all.

"Do you know that I think about you all the time? Every time you leave, I find myself missing you more. If only you knew how much I wanted to be with you, only you," he emphasized, "then you'd know there isn't a time that I would ever let myself hurt you. Not for anyone, anything in this world."

She wrapped her fingers around his face. "You," she kissed his left cheek, "are," then his right, "all," her lips moved to his forehead, "I Want." He puckered his lips playfully, ready to accept his mouth with hers, but contorted his face, surprised when his lips were absent of her touch. "Just you, Dick," she said with an teasing smile before finally grazing her lips with his.

His hands lifted to encase her in his arms, turning her so his chin could rest comfortably on her shoulder. "We'll get through this, but only as long as there's trust between us. I need that much from you," he conceded.

She pressed her back further into his chest, smiling in awe. "Well, you have mine. I mean, completely, gorgeous."

He held on tighter as she let out a playful giggle. "Now what's so funny?"

"It's odd, is all."

"What?" He was thoroughly curious.

"How you can have this way with me. How you can make me forget myself. I just can't explain it."

His lips centered onto the crook of her neck, whispering, "Oh, I can."

"Can you now?" she challenged. "Well, do tell."

"It's because you love me, Kory."

His confident words were such a playful whisper that she had to roll her eyes, curious as to when Dick had become so brazen. "Is that so, Mr. Grayson?" She gazed up, batting her thick lashes at him facetiously. He nodded without a care. "Well, looks like I'm going to have to teach someone how to get over their ego--"

"Just the same way that I love you." However, this time his voice was anything but playful. Dick said nothing more, though his electric-blue eyes slowly gazed from her jasmine-scented neck to the deep green of her eyes. It was sudden stillness, and he felt his heart almost skip a beat. Why wasn't she saying anything, he thought.

She was rendered speechless, a serious expression on her face, something only Dick could have done to her. He told me... He loves me... Me? She found her body circling to face him fully, a movement so automatic she hadn't realized she was doing it. She refused to lose her gaze on him, and her lips curled ever so slightly. Before she could question him, Dick's head lowered down to hers, only inches of space available between them.

She felt his breath tickle her insides, closing her eyes. "I do love you, too," she confessed opening her eyes just as Dick moved in to kiss her. He could feel her fingers slide to the back of his neck, intertwining as they clung there while he roamed his hands down to her waist, securing her. He could have held her for a lifetime, he thought. She squeezed tighter around his neck when his kisses crept down to her bare shoulder. Kory could hear him utter something just under his breath.

It was almost eternal, and he could no longer hold back his love for her. "Eşti frumoasă," he said with longing, brushing his lips against her shoulder. Her taste was almost addicting.

She leaned back, pressing a hand against his chest, stopping his flow of kisses for a moment. Wrinkling her forehead, she asked with a smile, "What?"

A childish grin graced his face. "I said, 'Eşti frumoasă'. It's what my father used to say to my mother, and now I'm saying it to you."

"But what is it?"

"It means you're beautiful in Romanian."

Kory shut her eyes for a short moment, loving the sound of his family's native tongue, and how easily his his voice dripped with sensuality when he spoke it. But best of all, he was speaking it about her. "More."

"Mă faci să mă simt iubit."

Her heart beat faster. She had lost all her will to resist him, and raised her green eyes to meet his. "What's that mean?"

He shook his head. "That one you're going to have to figure out all on your own," he teased before leaning in to brush his lips against hers. She held onto his neck as he deepened their kiss. For a moment, it was as if Kory forgot where she was, and why. All she knew was that love didn't look so bad right now.

Grant

"You failed to mention what a looker she is."

Across the street and a few houses down, he'd been staring at the same scene for the past twenty minutes. The last five had been preoccupied on his cell phone as his eyes remained glued to the ongoing spectacle just outside 5010 Tamaran Drive. A smirk flashed across his lips. "No. She's arguing with some punk."

A mumble from the caller resonated through the phone, and Grant did as he was told. He opened the manila envelope that had been resting in the passenger seat since earlier, and brought out a sheet of paper of what appeared to be an enlarged copy of a driver's license belonging to a certain female. He snorted into the phone, "Name, KoryLinn Anders."

"Yes," he answered into the phone, examining the sheet, "but this one was a bit harder to obtain. Fuckin' new laws they've put into effect. It's making my job harder." Skimming through her page, he concentrated on her picture like he'd done hours ago. He studied every texture, every color, that he practically could see her in his sleep.

The couple were still out on front lawn, only they weren't as hostile as before. Quite the opposite, in fact.

Grant repeated into the phone, "Height, 5'7". Hair, red. Eyes, green." He took a glimpse at the girl for a comparison, watching as she swayed in the arms of the punk who held her now, and was astounded to feel an inkling of jealousy fall upon him. Their conversation from earlier reminded him of her jubilant voice. "She's more beautiful in person, you know," he remembered from their chance meeting. What had brought him there at that exact moment when she arrived downtown? No, it wasn't the stupid ferret. Something more brought them together, he thought.

Grant looked down to the copy, his fingers sliding just over her picture. "Something so pure about her, isn't there?" He had to pull away the phone from his ear as a quick scolding gave way. "Now is that any way to talk to your oldest son?"

Getting caught up in the moment, he hadn't registered the boom coming from the other end when he failed to respond. No, Grant eyed the couple, long enough that he lost all sense of his surroundings to the point of forgetting why he was even there in the first place. His mind lay elsewhere.

Indeed, he wanted her, and something stirred within him. The feeling energized him even. Could he break her down? A sinister grin formed on his face at the idea of--

Then something finally dawned on him. His father's sickness, was his sickness. What's the saying again? Like father, like son?

Okay, so he never actually "helped" his father, Joseph, with his...endeavors? But why did it not bother him that his father was a monster? Always so stoic when the news clip would cut to an image of the latest missing person, mainly because Grant knew she would turn up sooner or later, they always did. Usually in a muddy ditch. After time, Grant just stopped pretending. He knew his father was rather "disturbed in some areas" but it couldn't be helped. His mother simply didn't understand his father. Heck, most women didn't even understand him. Joey, on the other hand, didn't like their father's strict demands due to his strong military background, so he rebelled and lied about him relentlessly. It was only a matter of time until it broke up their family.

Grant recalled assisting his father on more than a few occasions during his special operations, but it usually only consisted with the retrieving of intel and infiltrations. Now it was this stuff. Grant wasn't sure when, but somewhere along the way, Joseph's work had managed to take a back seat to his perverse nature.

But this time was different. She was different. Not like the others, and he wanted to learn exactly how different...

"You know, on second thought, Pops," he said with grin, "I think I'll take matters from here." Grant's face contorted into mock shock after the caller shouted into the phone, most of the volume making him wince. Joseph never was one to get shown up, he should know. "I'm not pulling any stunt," he raised his hands defensively. "I just don't see why she can't be my target when I'm the one doing all the work."

"Don't sound be too heartbroken," he interjected innocently. "It's not like she's the first. Most certainly won't be the last."

Suddenly, the humor fell from his face, "I'm not worried. I've learned from the best, after all."

There was a dangerous pause. "Or what?" Grant challenged over the phone. "You're going to fix me, too?" The idea was beyond funny that he laughed. "You forget, I'm not Joey." Nothing more needed to be said and he hung up the phone.

Xavier

Xavier turned the handle of the restroom faucet and began rinsing the lather off his hands. The faucet didn't have much pressure, taking that much longer for him to rid the soap off. He did a quick scan of the place. The last time he'd been in this eatery, he was romancing Kory and finding it harder to keep their relationship hush. A smile crept on his lips at the reminiscence, but he never let it fully form, much like their romance.

Standing there, he caught movement out of the corner of his eye and looked to his right to see a young teen, no more than fifteen years using the next sink. "Cool tatts," he heard the him say with more excitement than he thought the boy could muster.

He stopped a beat from washing and gazed down to his hands, realizing the boy was referring to the bold 'X's he had inked just beneath his knuckles. "Thanks," he said and went back to work, finally turning off the faucet when he was satisfied his hands were beyond clean. He reached for a paper towel from the dispenser, but turned back to the boy when he heard him speak again.

"Did it hurt?"

What the kid didn't know was how over time Xavier had become accustomed to pain. A prickly needle piercing through your flesh repetitiously was nothing, if not an easy punishment, compared to a good punch in the face by a drunken intemperate father.

He leaned against the wall, drying his hands while examining the young teen. "Not really, kid." He shook his head and headed towards the door. He stopped short of twisting door handle, instead turning back to the teenager again. His life wasn't one to be followed. "But I wouldn't recommend it," he advised, swinging open the door to the restroom.

He headed down the narrow hall that lead out to the busy tables. The eatery was a bit noisy tonight, not that he was expecting otherwise. It had always been a popular spot, one he always took his dates to if they were lucky enough to get a second invite from him. He reached down to his wallet to grab a couple of dollars for a hot coffee when he heard the sound of a shriek, along with his name being shouted.

"Xavier!"

He looked up to see a girl approaching him, truly excited. She looked familiar, that much he knew but failed to match a name to the face.

"It is you!" After reading his confused expression, "It's me, Jamie."

He wrinkled his forehead, trying to process the last time he'd seen her face. Now he remembered her as being the little girl who constantly lounged around Ryan's house. "Little James?" he indicated with his hand. "Ryan's little admirer?" Xavier's mind drifted back to all the times he would hear Ryan constantly nagging to his mother to send Jamie home already.

Jamie blushed a crimson red. "That was a long time ago, okay. I've grown up a lot since then."

"I can see that," he said, giving her a once over. "So how you been all these years?"

They exchanged a quick hug before she answered with, "I'm good. Just celebrating my birthday with a couple of friends." She waved off to a booth in the distance.

"Today's your birthday?" She nodded. "Well, happy birthday. So how old?"

"Thirteen," she said proudly.

"Really?" His head shook, wondering where the time had gone. "Well, looking good, kiddo."

"I do?" She looked down to her boyish figure, more than sure he was just being his charming self. "You've gotta be lying."

"Now would I say something that wasn't true?"

For someone like Xavier Redd to think she was looking sweet was a big ego boost for her. "Thanks," she beamed from ear to ear. "So what are you doing in town? I thought you and Ryan were living over at the JCU dorms."

"We still are. I just had some things to do in town and--" An odd grumble had caught his attention. He gazed downward to the girl's stomach as her cheeks turned a cherry red. He continued talking as if nothing had happened, wanting to spare her any embarrassment, "...thought I'd drop in for some coffee before I get back on the road." He raised a brow when she continued to grasp at her abdomen. "You alright, James?"

"Uh, yeah," she groaned. Jamie's face began paling and she could feel the remnants of her birthday cake not agreeing with her. "I was just on my way to the girls' room. No thanks to Kory. She just about ordered the whole menu for me," she excused, her cheeks reddening again.

Xavier blinked back and almost lost his breath. "Kory?" he echoed, looking over her shoulder for any sign of red hair. "She's here?"

Jamie nodded. "Yeah. We're in a booth over in the corner there." She tugged at his hand and pulled him a little further down the hall, entering a section where tables and booths crowded the area. "See?" she pointed. And see her, he did. But not alone for right beside her, was him.

His face deadpanned. She brought him here?

"You should come join us."

"Nah," he shook his head. "I don't think that's a good idea."

"Why not?"

He wasn't about to divulge the details of their last argument, so he kept it simple. "Let's just say I'm probably Kory's least favorite person right now."

"Oh, come on. It's my birthday. Plus, it'll be even more fun with you there," she wiggled her dark brows. "You and Ryan were always the life of the party."

"I don't want to in--" but stopped when Jamie raised her palm.

"Hold that thought..." and off she rushed to the girls' restroom, clutching tightly to her stomach.

He watched as she sped past him, down the hall and through the restroom door. He tried his best not to laugh at the poor girl, though his crooked smile faded fast when he turned back to the couple at the booth, whose affection was growing more heated than the burning in his chest. So she's still with Dick, he thought bitterly. But then did he really expect her to not see him just because he said so, especially after he told her he had no love for her?

Despite being a good forty feet across from the couple, he could see Kory's smile light up the room, as well as the vicinity in his heart. Even after all these years, it surprised him to feel this way. His gray eyes shot away from her, continuing down the hall where Jamie had left him. He made his way back to the entrance of the eatery, not wishing to be seen. Judging from the many people scattered about, he doubt she'd notice he was even there anyway.

Xavier stopped just in front of the door, holding it open just enough to feel a night breeze come in from outside. He was in a standstill, debating whether to go through or not. In the back of his mind, he always wondered what would have happened had he told her of his true feelings. Would things have changed? He hated having to pretend she was never on his mind. What if she knew? It was her love alone that kept him from feeling soulless. It was all he had left. He wanted so much for the chance to reveal these things to her.

But now, it was nearly impossible for him to have any sort of contact with her. With him being so busy with college and her living her own life, he was thankful for any moment with her that didn't involve angry brothers, hoity-toity parties or insecure boyfriends.

Come to think of it, Xavier wasn't satisfied with how he and Kory had left things during their last tryst. So naturally he chose to do something about it. He closed the door and turned on his heels, making his way towards the couple. Maybe a quick hello wouldn't hurt.

The closer he got to their table, the more he could see how Dick would caress her hand, then follow it with a 'Don Juan' kiss. The sight alone gave him a sickening feeling. Can't say I blame James for wanting to barf, he thought. Finally reaching the couple, he lightly rapped on their table with his knuckles after they failed to see him standing there.

Heads turned and Dick raised a brow while Kory sat in stock silence. She swallowed hard, not knowing what to make of his presence. "Xavier?" Since their last encounter, she didn't think she'd be seeing him anytime soon.

"Hey, cutie." He turned to Dick, who alone sparked his anger when he wrapped an arm around her shoulder. Was it intentional? Xavier didn't know, nor did he care. "Dick," he greeted with little enthusiasm for the man, their bathroom brawl still fresh in his mind. Xavier took a glimpse at his mouth, hoping to see a scarring on his lip from the blow he delivered. He noticed the cut had begun healing far better than his own bruise.

"Xavier," he greeted with equal enthusiasm as he sunk further into the booth. He was visibly bothered by the boxer's interruption, but tried putting on his best smile. "What'a nice surprise. I didn't know you'd be here."

"Ditto," Xavier shrugged carelessly. "But I guess Kory can tell you, I have impeccable timing." With a satisfied grin, he looked to her then back to Dick, who didn't share his humor at his sexual innuendo. "Okay, bad joke. Actually, I ran into Jamie who squealed. I couldn't leave without telling my best girl a quick hello."

Kory leaned her back into the booth, giving a side-glance to her boyfriend when she heard the low tightening of his jaw, no doubt due to Xavier's comment. There was a nervous glint in her eyes and she knew matters were soon on their way to getting worse. She turned to Xavier. "What are you doing here, X?"

He wondered what was running around in her mind. Was she still angry with him? Was she hurt? Her face showed neither emotion. "I had to come back to Gotham and take care of some things. Thought I'd grab some coffee before heading back home. Ran into James," he thumbed a finger towards the direction of the restroom, "who told me you were here. Bada-bing, bada-boom, we're all caught up to speed."

"Well, please," Dick replied, "don't let us keep you."

He wasn't expecting any less from Dick, and ignored him. "Actually," Xavier drawled, holding on to the edge of the table. His eyes concentrated on the redhead before him. "Now that I'm here, I kinda needed to talk to you."

Kory drew back slightly. "Now?"

"Why not?" He glanced around the room, "Now's a good a time as any."

Kory looked to Dick, who remained eerily still in his seat. "Maybe now isn't such a good--"

"It won't take long."

But Dick replied for her instead, "I don't think she wants to."

Xavier tore his gaze away from her and his head snapped to Dick's, not crazy about his meddling. "Well, I don't believe I was talking to you."

Dick began rising out of his seat, placing his hands on the edge of the table as well, but in a more hostile manner. "Well, I am talking to you..."

Across the room, diners had caught wind of their little spat and quieted down.

"You two, just stop it now!" Kory intervened, shaking her head as she put herself in the center of the two. She seesawed her gaze between both men."You're both acting like two little boys in sandbox. This problem has gone on long enough."

Xavier brought up his hands defensively, "Chuckles is the one with the problem."

"Call me that one more time--" Dick threatened through gritted teeth.

"Keep acting like a straightedge prick, and I will--"

"Stop, please," Kory stressed, fearing how far the two would take their quarreling. "I won't have you both ruining Jamie's birthday dinner. We're not having a round two tonight, especially here." Their stare down didn't let up until Kory tapped Dick's arm. "Let me just see what he wants," she whispered into his ear.

Dick's blue eyes shot up to Xavier, a feeling of defeat coming over him. He hated this feeling. Kory sensed how he wasn't thrilled with the idea but saw as Dick still slid out of the booth, standing up to let her pass.

The distance between the two men narrowed down to a couple of feet, close enough that he could almost feel Xavier's gray eyes burning a hole in the back of his head. Kory slid out and took Dick's hand as he helped her out of the booth. She kissed his cheek before sidling past him and through the narrow aisle to reach the doors of which they first entered. Xavier followed behind her, much too close for Dick's taste. With reason, he watched him like a hawk. Just as he was about to sit back down, he noticed as Xavier paused, only long enough to send a snarly stare his way.

Oh, yeah. This guy definitely hates my guts, Dick thought.

*****

Once outside, Kory inhaled a breath of fresh air, hugging herself against the cool night wind that had swept at her hair and bare shoulders. She looked up to the sky at the thousands of glowing stars that beamed down. It was a beautiful night, she thought and found herself smiling, until she heard the subtle sound of Xavier's boots slapping the pavement behind her.

She circled, "Well?"

Xavier stopped in his tracks. Just the sight of her caused some of those old feelings to resurface. Her bare shoulders stiffened at the chilly wind and Xavier regretted that he had no jacket to offer her. He swallowed down the bout of nerves that remained caught in this throat, even as his eyes moved over her hungrily. How she could manage to spark all these feelings and set them off like dynamite, he'll never know. These feelings he taught himself to bury over the years, or so he thought. "You're not going to make this easy on me, are you?"

"Any reason why I should?"

Ouch. "Babe, I get that you're still angry with me. I don't blame you. I acted like an asshole. But..." he sighed.

She looked on, showing no signs of relenting anytime soon.

"But something's been eating at me. Something I told you back at the beach."

She looked away, ashamed. The last thing she wanted was to be reminded of how piteous she appeared back at the beach, or of her flat out rejection.

"The thing is, you deserve to know the truth."

Kory raised an eyebrow, "What truth?"

He thought of the best way to say it. He wasn't known as the soft and sensitive type, after all. You'd have an easier time pulling his teeth, before getting these words out of him. "When you asked me if I loved you..." he paused, "well, I didn't know what to say." Xavier looked down to his palms, surprised to find them clamming up.

She crossed her arms. "You sounded pretty clear to me. You said you didn't."

"I know what I said, but the thing is," his lips tightened, the words edging to come out. Would they? "I lied. Miserably."

For a second, she lost the ability to say anything at all. She blinked back, "What?"

"I lied to you." He looked back down to the ground, not able to bring himself to look at her with what he was about to tell her. "I've always loved you."

Her eyes grew, "You love me?"

"Yes, very much." There they were. The words his love had longed to hear for so long. However, he was surprised to see her shaking her head in disbelief. Grinning, he moved closer. "I know that this--"

"No," Kory uttered. "No, this is...all wrong."

"What?" His smile faded as he walked a couple of steps towards her. "I'm being completely honest with you, babe."

"No!" she pointed to him. "You said you did not love me. And then you left, Xavier," her voice rising. "You just left me there to cry! Like..." she was so angry, "like I was nothing! Less than nothing!"

"Because I couldn't handle it." It was pitiful excuse, but it was the truth. "You telling me that you loved me was not something I was prepared to face." Xavier stepped forward again, making a reach for her, but Kory stumbled back, bringing her hands up.

"Don't."

What the heck was going on? This wasn't the reaction he was anticipating, further proving his point that their relationship had somehow been scarred by his stubbornness. His voice softened, "Don't push me away, Kory. Not now."

"Why would you lie to me?" She still maintained her distance. "Why are you telling me this now?"

He rubbed the back of his neck. Why, she asks? Things suddenly felt tense, and uncomfortable. This wasn't how Xavier had foreseen things going. He was confessinig his love for her, damn it! Things weren't supposed to be tense and uncomfortable! "Because I need you, okay. I don't like what I'm becoming." He moved towards her, but she backpedaled, still in shock it appeared. Now this was getting ridiculous. Why did she keep retreating from him? He held back the need to get angry at this point. Isn't this supposed to be the clichéd fairytale that women always complain about wanting?

"Come on, babe. I don't understand why you're acting like this. It's what you've been wanting to hear. Well, I'm finally saying it. I'm in love with you. I always have been, and I'm ready to be with you. No matter what the costs." His lips rose upwards as he moved towards her again, wanting more than anything to feel her touch, her warming skin. "You said I'd always be the one for you. Remember? And like I said, nothing's changed."

"I just c-can't," she croaked, bringing her face into her hands. "Everything's so confusing."

Why was this harder than he originally thought? "What's confusing?" he questioned her, frustrated. Xavier truly couldn't understand what the problem was. "I love you and you love me." He extended an arm to the eatery, "He's no one. Just go and tell him we want to be together. Or should I?"

Kory said nothing, she didn't even move. Still, there was something so sad about the expression on her face. She had peeled her eyes away from the ground to look inside the building at Dick, then back to her ex-lover. "No," she proclaimed. "I won't."

Xavier stopped for a moment, her words hitting him hard. It wasn't until realization dawned on his face that he realized something. Truly realized something. What he had hoped to find was no longer there. Xavier lowered his head and took in a deep breath as his heart pressed painfully inside his chest. He'd already lost her.

"Do I have it all wrong?" He turned upwards to glare at her. "Am I no one then? You've moved on already? Is that it?" Xavier looked back into the eatery where Dick sat, still conversing with the birthday girl. "So you love him now? Is that it, KoryLinn?" he said through clenched teeth.

Kory had to admit, she was intimidated, enough that she flinched when he called her by her full name. It never happened. "You told me you didn't love me, Xavier." There was a shift in her tone, more saddened. "What was I supposed to think? You hurt me--"

His lips tightened, "That's not what I asked."

Kory studied his face, then gazed back inside the eatery. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest at the slightest glimpse of Dick as he sat with Jamie. It was in that moment that he smiled that modest smile of his, oblivious to the ongoing dispute outside, and Kory's love for him surged inside her. She knew it. She felt it. And she found she could no longer hold back her feelings for him, nor did she want to. Dick deserved that much.

"Yes. I'm in love with him."

A pang of hurt struck him hard and after what seemed like an eternity of wait, Xavier lifted his eyes off the ground and to her.

His eyes alone caused her shoulders to droop. "I mean, I do love you, Xavier but--" she struggled, not sure the best way to explain her feelings for him. "it--it's just not the kind of love we had."

Unexpectedly the anger he had been holding back had risen through his chest and made its way onto his face. "What the hell does that mean?" he said icily. "Not the kind of love we had?"

Kory brought up a hand to shield her eyes from the tears that threatened to spill. Growing nervous, she couldn't give him an answer that he'd be willing to accept. Not to mention, his stare was intimidating enough to silence her.

"Answer me!"

She shifted out of place. It was like something inside him snapped; his anger reminiscent of their argument at the beach. Her mouth trembled as she removed her hand from her eyes. "It's just not the kind of love I share with Dick. It's not the same. I'm sorry," her voice began breaking. "Things could have been different--"

"I don't get it. It's always been me," he snarled, pointing a finger at his chest. Xavier could see her fearing him again, but was too mad to care at the moment. "I'm the one who's always been there for you. Waiting for you. Doing everything I could to make you happy. And now when I need you, when I finally build up the courage to tell you how I feel," he shook his head angrily, "you blow me off."

"That's not what I'm doing," she tried reasoning with him.

"Right," he drew out the word, scoffing as if it was the most idiotic thing she could have said in this situation. "Why am I even be surprised? It's not like it'd be the first time I've found myself alone."

"What does that mean?"

"It means I was stupid for letting my guard down. Even stupider for thinking that I could trust you to be there for me."

"That's not fair, Xavier. I've always been there for you. I've always cared for you, and you know it!" But he had already began walking away from her, not wanting to hear her excuses. She followed behind him. "I mean, what did you expect me to do? Wait forever for you? Would that have been fair?"

Now wasn't a time for reasoning, he felt too much like a fool. "What was it, Kory?" He tried to control his condescending laugh, emotions coursing through him. "Were you just playing me along all this time? Gross pity for your brother's friend because his father used to beat the shit out of him?" he mocked her. Who would've known his father had been right all along?

"No! How could you even suggest something like that?"

But he rounded, anger flashing in his eyes as they met with hers. "You know what?" He tightened his jaw at the sight of her. "Go," he said in a deep growl, pointing back to the eatery. "Go back to your fabulous boyfriend. Wear his fabulous ring. Enjoy your fabulous mansion with your fabulous 2.5 kids. Live your fabulous lives together. I don't need you."

She frowned. "You don't mean that."

"The hell I don't," he stated coldly, a determined look on his face.

"No, you don't. I know you, " she stated louder, her eyes welting. "We still need each other."

He scoffed. "You think I need you?"

"Yes, and I need you."

She had some nerve patronizing him, especially at this low point in his life. "You know," he slowly neared her, "growing up, I learned to defend myself because I had no choice." He was a bit too close now, and could see the smoke of air from the cold as she panted. "From my father, from everything and everyone that was out to hurt me. So I've learned how to deal with pain. With the bruises and the scarring. Those were easy. But you--" Now he was only inches away from her, his tone still a growl. "My father might not have been much of an excuse for a man, but the arrogant prick was right about one thing."

Her green eyes shot up with wonder when Xavier casually pushed back a lock of hair behind her ear. Such an eerie gesture, she thought as he swallowed down a gulp of anger. Kory had expected to feel his hot breath as he whispered a little something into her ear, instead she felt him place a hand firmly behind her neck, forcing her closer. "What would I need with a whore like you?"

Out of the corner of his eye, he could see how Kory's face blanched, her eyes shiny from a tear that had fallen. Her mouth hung open, too shocked at what he called her to say anything.

Just as the words had left his lips, his stomach lurched, but it was too late. He'd scarred his love.

Finally she spoke, her voice broken and weary. "What did you call me?"

But Xavier simply let go of her and turned away, walking, then rounding the corner of the building until he was out of sight. It wasn't worth the answer.

Alright, everyone. It's late, I'm tired from work, and I've got a headache. If this chapter sucks as in stupid and clichéd, blame it on either one of my lame excuses :) I'm more than sure there are plenty of punctuation and grammatical mistakes, so I'll probably go back and correct them later. Please review what you thought of this chapter, or didn't like. It helps me to plan ahead as I'm always getting ideas for this story. Oh, and someone commented on the idea that since I hadn't updated in forever, they thought I was dead.

Well, no. I'm not dead...just very, very lazy. Okay, sleep calls...