Last Chapter

"Hinamori, did you book my flight to Chicago?" Hoshina Kazuomi asked impatiently.

"Yes, Sir. Here's the ticket" Amu handed her boss the plane ticket. Hoshina examined the ticket then frowned.

"Is there anything wrong, Sir?" she asked.

"I told you to book JAL, didn't I?"

"Yes, Sir. But I was told by Lulu that you changed your mind so I booked the different airline"

"Lulu is not your boss, is she?"

"…." Amu bit her lower lip.

"If you only listen to her words why don't you become her assistant?"

"I'm very sorry, Sir"

"Just get out of my way before I lost my temper" he snapped.

Amu quickly bowed and proceeded to the exit room quickly. She noticed Lulu grinning at her with a smile of satisfaction on her face. She was going to snap at her when the dismissal bell rang. She grabbed her belongings hastily then ran to the elevator. She walked passed some fast food restaurants near her office. It has been three years since she graduated from high school. She is now working at a car navigation manufacturer as sales assistant while Ikuto is a university student majoring in violin. She has been staying at the same apartment with him but different room because their parents don't want to have illegal grandchildren.

"Amu"

She turned around and smiled happily at the person in front of her.

"Ikuto, I thought you went to your part time job" she gave him a bear hug.

"Well, it seemed like my name is not listed on the shift board today" he leaned forward and kissed her cheek. Amu could feel both of her cheek burning like crazy.

"Let's go for dinner then, I'm starving" she entwined on arm on his before proceeding to the nearest hamburger restaurant.

"I had a great time, thank you" Amu gave a peck on Ikuto's cheek.

"You eat too much, you know that" he smirked.

"Well, not as much as you did" she stuck her tongue out at him.

He smiled before leaning forward to kiss her fully on the lips. She closed her eyes and responded to his kiss. He pushed her gently to the couch and started to unbutton her blouse. He kissed the crook of her neck then her jaw. She let out a weak moan. He finally realized what he has been doing. Hastily he covered her body with a blanket and stood up.

"I guess I should go back to my room now. It's already late"

He was about to open the front door when he felt her arms circling his waist.

"Would you stay here tonight?. Please…" Amu pleaded.

Ikuto turned around and tilted her chin up. She could see her teary honey gold eyes staring at him.

"We've made a promise to our parents, didn't we?"

"..."

"I'll drive you to work tomorrow morning so be ready at seven. Good night" he gave a quick peck on her lips before closing the door behind him.

The next day

Ikuto glanced at his wrist watch then his cell phone. It's already a quarter pas seven and he has been calling Amu since for approximately thirty times but she didn't answer his call. He grabbed his back and proceeded to the next room then pressed the door chime. But there was still no answer.

After waiting for five minutes he took a key from his pocket and began to unlock the door. She has given him a spare key in case of emergency and this is the first time for him to use it.

He walked in and went straight forward to her room. He froze when he saw her lying weakly on her bed.

"Amu!" he called anxiously.

She opened her eyes and glanced at him tiredly.

"Ikuto…"

"Are you okay?. What happened?"

"My head…. it hurts… and still now"

He placed a hand on her forehead and it was a bit cold. He realized that she was having cold sweat.

"Let's get you to the hospital, can you stand up?" he asked.

Amu winced in pain when she stood up. She lost her balance and was about to fall onto the floor when Ikuto caught her on the waist. She circled her arms on his neck.

"It's okay, I got you so just hold on firmly" he whispered as he lifted her in bridal style.

Ikuto proceeded to the front door then to the parking lot where his black Subaru was parked. He pushed the unlock button of his car, opened the door and seated her at the passenger seat. He set the seatbelt on her and him before he drove his car.

They were about two kilometers from the nearest hospital when traffic jam caught them. Ikuto let out a big sigh and stared anxiously at his girlfriend. Amu was breathing uneasily as she bit her lower lip in hope to ease her pain.

"We'll be there soon so hang on"

"Ikuto, I'm sorry"

Ikuto turned his gaze on Amu and noticed her wet cheek. He pulled the side break then leaned forward to wipe her tears with the back of his hand.

"It's not your fault, Amu" he whispered.

Ikuto lowered the side break when he saw the car in front of him started to move. Suddenly a huge sound of honking horns from some reckless and impatient drivers behind him. Amu closed her ears with both hands and crouched on the passenger seat. Ikuto turned his car to the right direction and entered a hundred yen per hour parking lot. He turned off the car engine, got off the car and rushed his way to the passenger seat door.

"Amu, are you okay?" he asked when the passenger door sprung open.

Instead of answering his question she was coughing continuously. Ikuto hugged her and rubbed her back to calm her down. She clung on his neck and buried her face on his chest. He could feel dampness on the front side of his shirt because of her tears.

"It's okay, Amu. I'm not gonna leave you alone" he kissed her forehead.

"I…Ikuto, I can't… breathe…" she said.

Ikuto hastily lift her body up and close the car door before running as fast as he could to the hospital.

"Thanks for coming, guys" Ikuto said.

"No problem" Nagihiko replied.

"I wonder what happened to her. She's not the type who gets sick easily" Yaya added.

"Let's just wait until the doctor come" Rima concluded.

"Sorry, I'm late!" said Tadase.

"I didn't remember I called him " Ikuto muttered with a displeased tone.

"Sorry, Ikuto. We were eating lunch together at the college cafeteria when you called me" Kuukai replied.

"Psst!, you speak too loud" Utau complained.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I'm sorry to have kept you waiting" Doctor Nikaido walked into the waiting room.

"Is she going to be okay, doctor?" Ikuto asked anxiously.

"She is asleep now because of the medicine. It seemed like she is suffering from a heavy stress of her working environment"

Ikuto was stupefied by the announcement. He recalled that Amu has been keeping the topic of work away from their conversation every time he asked. But he thought that it was because she thinks of it as a boring topic. He has never thought how much she has suffered.

"I will explain her situation to the human resources department of her office from now. I'll see you guys later" Nikaido said before leaving the place.

Tadase walked toward Ikuto and punched his left cheek. Ikuto was about falling onto the floor but he managed to grab the edge of the bench and supported his body.

"Violence won't solve the problem. Cut it off, gentlemen!" Rima raised her voice.

"Sorry Miss Mashiro but please let say a few words to the irresponsible guy over there" Tadase pointed at Ikuto.

"How come you didn't notice that something is wrong with her when you meet each other everyday?" Tadase glared at his rival.

"I…"

"If I were you I would've noticed and she won't be lying at the hospital bed now. I thought you were the right guy for her but I've changed my mind because, I don't think such an irresponsible person like you has the right to be her boyfriend" Tadase snapped before leaving the place.

"Are you okay, Ikuto?" Utau helped her brother to stand up.

"I'm okay, it's just a small bruise" Ikuto shed the corner of his lips with a handkerchief.

He realized that Tadase has the point and that he may not deserve to be Amu's boyfriend.

Amu opened her eyes and the first thing she saw was Yaya beaming in tears beside her.

"I'm glad you're awake, Amu chan" she said between her sobs.

"Thank you for paying a visit, Yaya" Amu replied while tapping the shoulder of her friend.

"No problem"

"Anyway, did you see Ikuto?. I must thank him because he was the one who brought me here" Amu started to explore her surroundings.

"I'm afraid that he's not here" Yaya replied weakly.

"So, he went back home to get his belongings. Did he tell you what time he will come back here?" she continued with a smile on her face.

Yaya shrugged her head horizontally. A smile on Amu's face replaced with a frown. She placed a hand on Yaya's shoulder anxiously.

"Yaya, would you mind to tell me what happened when I was asleep?"

Yaya nodded and took a deep breath before she started her explanation.

"Tadase kun said that Ikuto kun has no right to be your boyfriend because he didn't realize that you've been suffering of heavy stress from your working environment"

Amu's eyes widened. She fell in silence for a while before she swept her blanket and put her feet in a pair of sandals.

"Wait, Amu chan. What do you think you're doing?" Yaya grabbed an arm of her friend.

"Let me go!. I need to see Ikuto as soon as possible" Amu protested.

"But you don't know where he is, do you?"

"I'll search for him" Amu shook Yaya's hand away then pulled off her drip injection. She winced at the pain but quickly poured a disinfectant then placed a huge band-aid on the bruise.

"Amu chan!" Yaya screamed in panic.

"I'll be back soon so don't worry about me" she grabbed her down jacket and stormed through the exit door. Several nurses who saw her screamed for the security to stop her but she was quicker than them. She used to be the number one middle distance runner back in junior high and she never thought that her talent could be so useful. Amu raised her right hand up and a taxi stopped right in front of her.

"Take me to Musashino Conservatory and please choose the fastest way to arrive there" she ordered while fastening her seatbelt.

"Yes, miss" the taxi driver replied before pushing the gas pedal deeper than before.

Amu glanced at her wrist watch. It is a quarter to three and she knew that Ikuto is engaged in the orchestra practice at that time. She could just hope that he didn't skip the practice.

"Wait for me, Ikuto" she muttered.

"Thank you" Amu said to the taxi driver before closing the car door in front of her.

She ran but suddenly tripped over her feet after five hundred meters. She turned back and saw that one of her sleepers is ripped off. She gave a big sigh before she threw both of the sleepers to the nearest trash can. She noticed people surround her staring at her confusedly from head to toe. Well, she knew that there is no doubt that everyone would be surprised to see a girl walks around in hospital pajamas and bare feet.

She stopped in front of a board showing the general map of the conservatory then proceeded her way to the big concert hall located at the West from main entrance. She sprung the main door opened when she arrived at her destination and screamed out loud.

"Ikuto Tsukiyomi, I need to talk to you as soon as possible!"

The orchestra members stopped their performance and started whispering to each other.

"Amu!" she could see him hastily placed his violin back to the case and rushed his way toward her.

"Stop right there!. I don't want to show you how horrible I look right now" Amu said when Ikuto was about three meters from where she stood.

Ikuto followed her order and stood still.

"Amu…I…."

"No…please…let me begin…" she took a deep breath.

"We were born in totally different environment. Sometimes what you think as usual things are unusual for me but we have agreed to respect our difference and cope with it"

Ikuto moved his look to his own feet.

"You once asked me why I chose you as my partner and whether I regretted my choice"

She bit her lower lip.

"Ikuto, I have promised my Shugo Chara to be honest to my true feeling and to live my life with no regret. I was very sad when you avoided me and to be honest I was scared that the difference we shall respect has begun to tear us apart"

Her vision was blurred by her own tears that she couldn't see his face clearly.

"But I realized that what I'm scared the most is to find out that you are no longer by my side. I want to be the closest one to you. I can't deny the fact that I really feel safe and warm whenever you touched me and showered me with your gentle kisses. I just….I don't think I can't bare the fact of losing you because….I love you…. with all my heart"

Several drops of tears escaped from her eyes. She closed her mouth with both hands fiercely to prevent him from hearing her sobbing noise. He moved closer and gave her a warm embrace.

"I love you too, Amu and I'm sorry for making you upset" he whispered.

"Ikuto…." she muttered between her sobs.

"Come with me" he said while shedding her tears with his thumbs. She nodded and followed him to the main stage where the orchestra members gathered.

"Ladies and gentlemen I would like all of you to become the witness of today's event" Ikuto announced.

Amu stared at him confusedly. The rest of orchestra members stared at them with curiosity. Ikuto smiled then kneeled down on one knee while his right hand holding her left one.

"Amu Hinamori, will you spend the rest of your life by my side until death does us apart?" he asked.

Tears of joy fell from her eyes to both of her cheek.

"Yes, I do" she replied while shedding her tears.

Ikuto stood up and gave her a passionate kiss fully on her lips while the other orchestra members cheered happily at them.

"I need to write the design of the leaflet for the next concert" Amu said while caressing her bulging tummy with her right hand.

"Don't worry about that, honey. Rima and Yaya have been temporarily hired to take care of that. For now you just have to concentrate on giving birth to our twins" Ikuto squeezed the left hand of his beloved wife.

After the dashing marriage proposal event at the university main hall they submitted their marriage application form to the city hall and got approved. Amu quitted her previous job and was hired by Ikuto's orchestra to do the administration stuffs so she is following him and the other members on their music tour around the world. She was pregnant with twins and is going to deliver them today.

"I'm bored of lying vertically for twelve hours" she complained.

"Be patient, love. It'll be over soon" he whispered.

She was going to reply to his words when she felt the contraction. Ikuto pressed the nurse call bell and in less than a minute several nurse and Doctor Nikaido gathered inside the room.

"Begin to push, Miss Hinamori err… I mean Mrs. Tsukiyomi" Nikaido commended.

Amu took a breath and began to push as hard as she could. She winced in pain and several tears escaped from her eyes.

"It's gonna be okay, Amu. Take a deep breath and do the same again" Ikuto said gently.

She followed his advice and did the same. After several hours she finally gave birth to the twins.

"Congratulations!, a baby girl and a baby boy for both of you" Nikaido announced.

"You did a great job back there, Amu" Ikuto said happily then placed a kiss on her forehead.

Several minutes later

"A fresh orange juice after delivery is very soothing" Amu cheered happily after she took a sip of her orange juice.

"Stay still, you have an orange juice smear on your lips" Ikuto leaned forward then licked the smear off her.

Amu flushed in embarrassment. Although several years have passed from their marriage, Amu still found difficulty to get use to her husband's sudden romantic action.

"He looks exactly like you" Amu commented when the nurse placed her baby boy inside her arms.

"And she looks just like her mom" Ikuto added while glancing at his baby girl inside his arms.

"Ikuto" she called him.

"Hmm?"

"Thank you for bringing more happiness to my life" she whispered.

"I'm the one who would like to thank you, Amu. I won't have made this far without you by my side" he caressed her pink locks before placing a loving kiss on her lips.

The End