A/N: HELLLOOOOOOOO~~~~

Just a little reminder, guys: this story is not for the innocent-minded, which is why it was rated T.

This is what happens when you plan to write a Bel-Fran fanfic and ended up with a LalxColonello instead. Woe is me and my life . =.="

There will come a time when a girl will get dumped by a guy whom she really likes. It's actually a natural occurrence, they say, and you're not going to be able to love someone else the right way if you never experienced such a thing. But, even if it's a good thing, dumped girls would sulk around, feeling depressed and would sometimes be suicidal, thinking that there is no more point in living if they can't have the man that they think is their better half.

Well, most girls, anyway.

Lal Mirch is not like that.

Okay, fine. Maybe she is depressed, but, hey, the guy actually convinced her that he likes her back. But for her to wish she was dead was ominously ridiculous. Seriously. It's not enough to end your life.

So, okay, Lal is depressed, and what's a depressed girl like her to do on a depressing evening like tonight? She isolates herself from everything. And by everything, she means everything.

The indigo-haired woman stared at the door, pondering on whether to enter or just forget about it and just sleep it off. No one really stays in that room for it has been rumored that bad things happen to those who enter. Personally, Lal thinks it's ridiculous, but wouldn't entering a supposedly haunted room make her look suicidal? She thought about it for a moment.

Nah.

She's heading right in.

Bring it on, bad-luck-giving force of nature found in this dirty room.

Even if she was reluctant about the whole haunted-room thing, she was kind of expecting a gruesome-looking room with cobwebs, squeaky doors, and coffins (okay, maybe coffins are a little too overboard, but, it will sure add to the effects). However, the room was just normal. A little dusty, yes, but other than that, nothing unusual. The door didn't even squeak, but it did make a loud sound when she closed it. To her surprise, something from inside moved, like it was startled with the thud.

"Who's there?" she cried, involuntarily aiming her weapon at whatever it was.

"Me, kora," came a monotonous reply from the figure.

Lal got a good look at the figure and realized that it was only Colonello . . . and a bottle of vodka.

She stared at the bottle like it was some sort of knife boring through Colonello's head.

"What are you doing here, kora?" he asked, drinking the liquid from a cup. "If you're planning on stopping me with my drinking, then I suggest you leave now before we get into a fight. I'm not in the mood, kora."

"On the contrary," Lal said, walking towards the Italian, sitting next to him. She snatched the empty cup from Colonello. "I'm here to join you. Give me some of that. I need to forget."

Colonello stared at her with disbelief, but, soon enough, a smirk formed in his face as he filled the cup with alcohol.

"Well, well, well," he muttered as Lal forced in herself the vodka. "What's going on with you, kora?"

"I should be asking you that," Lal replied, staring into the cup.

"Ladies first, kora."

"Okay, fine," she said, watching Colonello produce another cup, filling it, drinking it straight, and then making a funny face after. "I'll tell you once my skin stops crawling."

One bottle of vodka later . . .

"Well, that went by a little too quick, don't you think so, kora?" Colonello laughed, banging the table with the empty bottle. He stared at Lal, and laughed even more.

So this is what Lal looks like when she's drunk? Eyes closed, face blushed with different shades of red, and hair messed up from shifting her head from side to side.

Colonello actually thought it was adorable, and therefore decided to spend the night awake, watching her sleep. To his dismay, though, Lal's eyes suddenly fluttered open, glaring weakly at him.

"Bastard," she muttered.

"Huh? Who, kora?"

"You are. All men are." Lal smiled a bit and shifted her head yet again, away from Colonello. "I don't understand why girls even bother trying to give their all for you, when in fact, in the end; you just leave them when you know they've already fallen in love with you." She gave out three tsks and sighed. "Bloody bastards."

"Are we talking about Eric? I mean, you're Eric, kora?"

"Yes, that bloody jerk, alright," she muttered.

"Aww, but wasn't he like 'the perfect gentleman who can make any dreams come true', kora?"

"Oh ha bloody ha," Lal replied sorely, condemning Colonello's failed attempt to re-enact her description of Eric. She can't believe that just a few days before, she indeed was saying the same thing.

Colonello gave a light chuckle as he shifted his eyes forward, spreading his arms across the back of the chair, one encircling around the woman's shoulders, which she really didn't mind.

"Told you he was a jerk," he muttered.

Lal gave a snort as she stared back at him.

"Hey," he said, sounding a little defensive. "Don't make it look like you're the only victims here. We're victims too, kora!"

"On what angle?"

"Well, you complain that men always leave you after they made you feel like they were in love with you too, right, kora? At least, they make you feel that way even if it was for a brief moment. What about you women, kora? You just leave without even giving us a wee bit sign that you appreciate the things we do for you, kora! You just go around talking about how perfect the other guy is and how he's unattainable for us! And then, when that guy burst your fantasy bubble, who do you run to? Us. Just to tell us that all men are bastard just 'cause some bloke did you wrong, kora!"

Lal stared deeply into his eyes for a moment, understanding everything he said. After a few moments, she opened her mouth to speak.

"You're drunk," she said.

Colonello suddenly barked with laughter.

"Says the girl with a face as red as a blood-filled tomato, kora!"

Lal pouted a bit, but smiled at least.

"I'm not drunk," she argued. "Just drank a little. You're the one who's drunk, moron. Now, go home and get some sleep."

"Not if you do first, kora!"

"I'm not drunk!" she cried, playfully pushing her former student to stand up.

"Neither am I, kora!" he replied between laughter. "And I'll prove it, kora!"

He immediately stood up and tried to pull Lal to stand up as well. The latter refused, though, causing Colonello's knees to buckle from dizziness, falling on top of her. They both laughed.

"I told you you're drunk," Lal teased.

"That was a foul, kora! You were pulling me and-" He stopped all of a sudden; fixing his eyes upon his former commander's smiling face. Lal noticed that, and felt somewhat uneasy.

"Okay, Colonello, you've made your point. Now get off of me."

"You're really pretty, Lal," he muttered.

"So are you, now get off."

"I want to kiss you, Lal."

"Look who's talking nonsense here. You're drunk, alright? Get off of me and go to sleep."

"Can I kiss you, kora?"

"Wait, what? No! Colonello, you are freaking me out. Get off!"

"Sorry, Lal," he muttered, and, much to the failed arcobaleno's surprise, he pushed her down to the chair, pulled off his jacket, and began kissing her neck. Lal found that she couldn't push him off, and she didn't know why. She could feel his lips move around her neck, and she couldn't help but shriek, even though no one was there to hear her.

"GET OFF! GET OFF! GET OFF!" She tried kicking him, hitting him with her hands, and, although this might seem out of character, pleading. But, Colonello didn't listen; therefore, he did not stop. Luckily for Lal, she was able to free her arms from his grasp and push him away. It was then that Colonello stopped.

"What the hell do you think you're doing, imbecile?" she cried.

"What I should have done years ago, kora!"he replied, and tried to get another shot with her, but she regained enough strength to push him away, and slapped him. Colonello's head turned back on her, and Lal could see something glimmering form his eyes. Tears.

"What in the world is going with you?" she asked a little gently, sitting up.

"I LOVE YOU, ALRIGHT?" he bursted, closing in on her to get a hug, but Lal involuntarily stopped him with her arm. Colonello did. He just reached for her hand, kissed it gently, and placed it to his swollen cheek.

"I'm sorry," he muttered again and again, putting all his affection towards her hand.

Lal didn't know what to say. She knew that when a person apologizes, the right thing to say was, "it's okay", but it wasn't okay. He just scared her half to death.

"C-Colonello?" she whispered. Colonello opened his eyes from rubbing his cheek to her hand to stare at her. Lal's heart suddenly sank from pity.

"D-did you really mean what you said? The part about you loving me?"

Colonello nodded.

"I-I didn't know . . ."

"Typical, kora," he said. "Why else do you think would I follow you around, trying to protect you?"

"I thought that's the kind of person you are."

Silence.

Colonello didn't reply anymore. He just sat there, bawling his eyes out, his tears rolling through her hand. Lal felt somewhat embarrassed for not realizing that this man- who is actually the one with the longest history with her-had really special feelings for her. For Lal Mirch, who abused him, beaten him to a pulp, and took him for granted. It's a wonder why he never averts his attention to another girl who can love him the way he's supposed to be loved.

"I'm sorry, then, if that's the case," she muttered. Colonello stopped crying enough to smile at her, telling her that it was okay. Lal smiled too, lifting her other arm towards his shoulder, pushing him towards her for a hug. Colonello leant forward, wrapped her body with his trembling arms, and rested his head on her chest.

Lal kissed his head, and rested her chin on it. She didn't know whether it was because she was under the influence lf alcohol or something more addicting, but somehow, she felt warm. Warmth that a cold woman like her enjoyed.

"So this is what you're like when you're drunk," she chuckled.

"So this is what you're like when you're drunk, kora," he replied.

"Touché."

They both giggled, enjoying this moment, for they know that tomorrow, it'll all be different. At least now, they both know that they loved each other. Tomorrow, they might not remember, but, hey, so what?

The next day was already different. Lal's head hurt like hell, and Colonello's head spun like a roller coaster, but amidst their hangovers, they still shared a secret smile while drinking coffee next to each other.

-FIN-

Tell Lal Mirch I still see her with honor. Colonello too.

Thanks for reading!

LoveLots~3