The meditation room. It was late enough that the old monks who were always in here were now gone. Kimiko smiled to herself. Perfect!

She'd always loved this room. It had a wall that was completely glass, allowing for a beautiful and breathtaking view of the forest outside of the Temple. Because it was so late, there were two torches on each solid wall that glowed warmly. Kimko loved the small flames of the torches; fire had always been a source of comfort for her. She had never understood why until she came to the Temple.

She sighed. She knew why she was here. She needed a place to think without the interruptions of her immature friends. Every time she tried to sit and think, it would either be Omi with his unending questions, Clay with his annoying sayings, or Raimundo with one of his pranks.

Raimundo. She narrowed her eyes. He was what she need so desperately to think about. She'd had a small crush on him since she first saw him four years ago when they first joined the Temple. They were both sixteen now and she could no longer deny her unsettling attraction for him. It grew so strong that she could no longer train properly; he was always on her mind and she couldn't concentrate on much else. His deep green eyes were so entracing that she would just stare into them, forgetting about whatever battle she was supposed to be taking part in. His movements were so graceful, like the wind, that she couldn't help but look at him whenever he was fighting, also a distraction. She was getting sick of this; she wanted to just tell him and get it over with.

It was useless, though. She knew he'd never like her. He was always chasing after one of those blonde bimbos they met on their travels, flexing his muscles and showing off with the Shen Gong Wu. It was infuriating; she knew he never even gave her a second look.

She noticed that there were small flames in her hands, growing bigger by the minute. Okay, Kimiko, calm down, she said to herself as she extinguished her flames. You're here to think about this, not to burn the Temple to the ground! She grabbed a prayer mat after making sure that she wasn't aflame and sat down, legs crossed, back straight, eyes closed.

Of course, by closing her eyes, she saw only Raimundo. A series of memories flooded her mind, all having to do with him. He was such a part of her life that the last four years would have been quite empty and boring had he not been there to liven things up. Sure, his pranks were stupid and childish, but she always managed to laugh about it once her rage subsided. Her diary was teeming with stories concerning Rai and his antics.

She needed to get over him.

And fast.

Kimiko really didn't know how much longer she could keep pretending. She wanted to tell him, but she would much rather not have these feelings at all. Unrequited love had always seemed so pathetic to her, so she shouldn't be the one pining over someone she couldn't have.

"AUGH!" she yelled louder then she'd meant to, putting a hand to her head, eyes still closed. "This isn't working!"

"What isn't working?" Kimiko's eyes snapped open, her head spinning toward the doorway. It's Rai. Of course. Someone up there really doesn't like me.

She shook her head. "Nothing. I'm just trying to meditate, but I can't concentrate."

"Well, maybe I can help," he purred in his delicious Brazilian accent. He stode over to her with that annoyingly endearing cocky grin of his. Why me? Why this? Why now?

Kimiko stood, her eyes purposely avoiding his gaze. "No, that's alright, I was just about to call it a night," she chirped as happily as she could muster.

Rai's face fell a bit. Apparently she hadn't must happiness to muster. "Kim, you okay?"

Kimiko forced a grin. "Yes, yes, I'm fine," she stated, her voice quivering a bit. Damn, I hope Rai didn't catch that. His eyes narrowed slightly. Shit, he did.

"Okay, Kimi, what's wrong?" he asked, sounding genuinely worried. Rai stepped closer to her and put his hands on her shoulders from behind.

She jumped under his touch. She hadn't been expecting that. "Nothing, I told you. Now leave me alone." Her voice started to quiver even more as tears gathered in the corners of her eyes.

Rai heard her shaking voice and turned her around to face him, his hands resting on her waist. She pulled back a little, not wanting to get comfortable in his embrace. He took a step toward her, saying, "Kimi, you should know that I know you better than that." He cupped her chin in his hand and forced her to look into his eyes. "Now tell me what's wrong."

Kimiko sat back down on the prayer mat with Rai next to her, his arm around her shoulders. "I...I don't know," she whispered, her tears finally falling. Rai looked pained and wiped one of her tears away as it cascaded down her cheek. "It's complicated."

"You know you can tell me anything," Rai said in a serious tone that she had never heard him use before. She turned her face towards his, seeing his face match his words. Not wanting to look into his eyes anymore than she had to, she lay her head on his shoulder. Rai tensed for a moment, unsure, and then settled a bit, moving his arm from Kimiko's shoulders to her waist.

Silence. Then, "It's a boy." Rai tensed again, moving so that he could see Kimiko's face. She noticed that his face had hardened from the gentle look he had worn so shortly before.

"Oh, really?" he spat. "A boy gets you this worked up? I'm sorry, Kimiko, but that's pretty dumb."

Her eyes narrowed and she gave him a cold glare. "You're right. He's not worth it. He spends all his free time chasing short skirts." She sighed, the anger in her face repalced once again by sadness. "He doesn't even know I exist."

Rai's features contorted in anger. "You mean to tell me," he yelled, "that you're wasting your time mourning a guy who doesn't even DESERVE YOU?" Kimiko looked at him, surprised at his reaction. His whole body was shaking with hate for the boy that Kimiko loved.

Kimiko rolled her eyes, wiping the last of her tears away. "Even so, he's the only somewhat worthwhile guy I know. I can't help it."

Raimundo stood up, a dark look on his face, and walked to the glass wall. Kimiko raised an eyebrow, then followed him, taking his hand as she stood beside him. Rai's face softened for a moment, then became stonier than it had been before. "You're too good for him. Whoever he is."

"Rai..."

"What?"

Kimiko's finger's brushed his cheek, making him turn towards her with a confused look on his face. Her hand came behind his head, drawing circles on the back of his neck. She could feel him shiver beneath her touch. Her fingers embedded themselves in his gorgeous brown hair and, before he could say anything, Kimiko forced his head down, her lips meeting his. Rai's eyes widened in disbelief before closing, his arms encircling her waist once again. She smiled into the kiss; it was her first. Unbeknownst to her, it was Rai's first as well. Even so, he licked her bottom lip, wanting more; Kimiko was surprised, but gladly deepened the kiss. He tastes like the wind, she thought to herself.

Both broke apart reluctantly, silently cursing their small lung capacities. Raimundo smiled, touching his lips lightly. Then his eyes widened in recognition.

"Wait, that guy you like is me?"

Kimiko raised an eyebrow as a smirk appeared on her face. "Raimundo Pedrosa," she laughed, "you're an idiot."

Raimundo furrowed his brow. "No, I'm serious. Do you seriously think I'm some kind of skirt chaser or something?"

Kimiko frowned. "Well, yeah, Rai. You never miss out on n opportunity to show off when some blonde chick is watching."

"The only time I've cared about showing off for a blonde chick is when she'd dyed her naturally black hair that color to go with her outfits," he said, smiling. "Come to think of it, that's the only time I've tried to impress redheads and brunettes, too." Kimiko couldn't help but smile. Rai's hand went to her chin, lifting it to meet his eyes. "I can't believe you came here to cry about me," he said, half-jokingly, half-seriously.

"I didn't come here to cry!" Kimiko cried indignantly. "I just came here to think. I've liked you for such a long time that I wanted to sort out my feelings."

Raimundo kissed her lightly on the lips. "Well, now you don't have to," he smirked. "Now you're stuck with 'em!"