A/N: This will be the last chapter for now. Hopefully, I'll get a second wind for this story and complete it! Thank you so much for all the support I've gotten for this fic.

Chapter 39 Cabin

"This trip should be nice and relaxing," Juli sighed as they walked into the small cabin.

"Yes, but I'm worried it was expensive to rent," Ema said glancing at Louis. Though the cabin was small, it was in an isolated patch of woods. There was a clearing nearby that would be perfect for watching the meteor shower that was supposed to happen that night.

"It wasn't expensive to rent it just for a night," Louis assured her. "And the best things to spend money on are the ones that lead to memories. There's research showing that the average purchased item only brings the buyer fifteen minutes of happiness. Things like vacations, though, bring happiness that lasts longer because after you have the memories." He smiled. "So, you see spending money on this is more valuable than spending it on something like clothes."

"Okay," Ema gave in. "Thank you, Louis."

"Of course. This was your request for the next trip, wasn't it? Just the three of us?"

"Exactly!" Juli agreed, though he hadn't been around for that conversation. "This is what we should be doing more of. Trips with just the three of us."

"That's rude," Ema chastised Juli. "The other Asahina brothers enjoy these trips as well. You shouldn't be so eager to exclude them, Juli."

Juli pouted. "But trips are supposed to be relaxing. I can't relax with those wolves around."

Ema just managed not to flinch. None of the Asahina brothers had been wolves as he'd predicted, though two of them had confessed feelings for her. Juli had no idea about either confession and Ema planned to keep things that way. He was already antagonistic enough toward all the brothers except Louis. And Masaomi. Masaomi seemed to be growing on Juli. Even the little squirrel couldn't deny what a dependable and reliable man Masaomi was.

"No, these trips are supposed to be adventures," Ema said, emphasizing the word. "The whole point of Louis and I going around Japan, whether we're shopping or traveling, was to have adventures in Japan. This trip is supposed to be relaxing to give us a little break." And because she needed some space. Too much had been going on lately. Some of it good as well as some of it stressful, but it was still a lot.

Juli grumbled something under his breath, but Ema ignored him. She also missed the concerned look Louis gave her.

~.~

"Wow," Juli breathed as he stared up at the night sky. The three of them were lying on a blanket in the clearing as they watched the meteor shower. "You don't see the stars like this in the city."

"Uh-uh," Louis agreed.

Ema was silent, just enjoying the view and being in the company of people she loved. She hadn't seen the stars like this since she'd gone camping with her father in South America. She missed it and him, but watching the stars tonight helped her feel a little closer to him.

It wasn't too long before Ema heard the soft sound of Juli snoring. It made her smile. He never could stay up late much past 10:30. He always fell asleep during her late night gaming sessions.

"So," Louis began, quietly enough that it didn't wake Juli, "You were saying you needed a break?"

The question was asked lightly, as though the answer wasn't terribly important. It was Louis' way of asking the question while being non-intrusive. Ema could answer and relieve her worries, or she could choose not to answer. She knew Louis would be fine either way and she appreciated that.

"A lot's happened in the last little bit," Ema said, after some thought. Traveling with her father, the only ones she'd felt she could confide her worries to were Hikaru and Arisa, but they had both been far away, both had concerns of their owns, and Ema hadn't wanted to make them worry over her too much. Plus, they hadn't actually been there. Having someone there in person who Ema could confide to meant the world to her.

She told him about Azusa being cold to her, and then confessing his feelings. About her anger at Kaname, and then him helping her feel better and overcome something that had been a problem for a long time. And Subaru's confession and how much it upset her, about how it was different from Azusa's because Subaru had tried to push Ema into accepting his feelings where Azusa just wanted to explain his behavior. About getting upset with Natsume.

"That is a lot in a small period of time," Louis said, laying his hand on top of Ema's. "I'm sorry I didn't notice you were upset."

Ema huffed a laugh. "There's nothing for you to apologize for, Louis. Even if you had noticed, I don't know what I would have said. I've felt a lot of emotions over all those things, and some of the emotions, even I'm not sure what they are. Sometimes, you need time to sort through your thoughts before you can talk about them with anyone."

"That's true," Louis agreed. "Though it's important to know when you should sort through things on your own, and when you should bring others into help, even if it's just for them to be a listening ear. I don't want you to let your stresses pile up until they're too much, okay? It doesn't have to be me you talk to, but I don't want you to let yourself get overwhelmed because you feel you would be bothering or burdening someone else with your troubles. There's a lot of people among the Asahinas, or your friends at school, who would be happy to hear your troubles."

"Okay," Ema said quietly. Burdening others with her problems wasn't something Ema generally did, but she could see Louis' point. Perhaps if she had told someone about Subaru's confession and how much it upset her, she wouldn't have ended up blowing up at Natsume.

"What about you?" Ema asked, shifting so she could see Louis. "Is everything going okay in your life right now?"

"No complaints," he promised her, turning his head to smile at her. "Everything is going well at the salon right now. I've gained a lot of celebrity clients thanks to Fuuto. He likes to tell his friends how amazing I am at hair."

Ema blinked, surprised Fuuto would praise anyone. "That's really nice of him."

"It is," Louis said. "I know Fuuto can be difficult to get along with, but he does have his good sides."

"He does," Ema agreed quietly, turning back to watch the meteor shower again.

~.~

"This breakfast looks delicious, Chi!" Juli exclaimed as Ema laid dishes before him and Louis.

"It does," Louis said. "Though I'm sorry to make you cook on a trip that's supposed to be relaxing."

"Cooking is relaxing for me," Ema assured Louis. "It's something I enjoy, especially when I'm cooking for people I care about."

"Good," Louis said. "You know, with the three of us staying in the woods in this cabin and you cooking breakfast, it almost feels like we're a little family."

Ema glanced at Louis in surprise, but he was eating his eggs with the same peaceful look he usually wore.

"You said it," Juli emphatically agreed. "I wish it was always like this. Life would be so much simpler."

Ema laughed. With Louis saying it, she didn't have to worry about any hidden meaning behind his words. "It's like we're playing house, like I would do when I was a kid. This cabin is almost small enough to be a playhouse."

"Right!" Juli exclaimed, jumping on the table. "You two are siblings and I'm…er…you're protective guardian of the woods!"

Ema laughed again at the title Juli gave himself. She really had needed this getaway and someone to talk to. She just wished there was something she could do for Louis in return.

~.~

Ema was surprised to find Subaru waiting outside her door when she and Louis got back from their overnight trip.

"You see, Chi?" Juli hissed from her shoulder. "These wolves spring the moment you get back home. They can't even stand for you to be away for a day these guys are too dangerous!"

They were too close to Subaru for Ema to say anything to Juli, so she stayed quiet. She feared Subaru might say something to set Juli off, though. Juli might launch himself at Subaru if he even hinted at having feelings for Ema.

"Hey, Ema," Subaru said, looking awkward. "Did you and Louis have a good time?"

"And what about me, you jerk?" Juli asked. "Don't care if I had a good time too, huh?"

"Um, yeah. The meteor shower was really pretty and we had a good view from where we were staying."

"That's good. I'm glad you had a good time." Suddenly, Subaru straightened and looked Ema in the eye, no longer appearing awkward. "I wanted to apologize for what happened before. You were right that I wasn't respecting your feelings and I'm sorry for that."

Ema was stunned. This certainly wasn't what she'd been expecting.

"Like you said, I want us to still be friends. That relationship is important to me and I don't want something that I did or said to mess it up."

"What?" Juli said looking from Ema to Subaru. "What? What? What on Earth is he taking about, Chi? Still want to be friends? What happened? Did he do something stupid? Did he make a move on you?!"

"If you're feeling up to it, I was wondering if you wanted to go hiking with me and Yusuke today. He seemed really disappointed he wasn't able to go hiking on the trip we took a while ago."

Ema smiled. "I think that's a great idea, Subaru."

She ignored Juli's vehement hisses that it was not a good idea as she put him in her room.