AGH.

It's finally DONE. x.x

Honestly, this chapter has taken me the longest and been the most uncooperative out of every chapter of this series I've ever written. There were many a time I was sure I would never get it done. O.o

But I did finally, and here it is. Just a warning, my writing might be a little off. I'm still in a sticky war with the dreaded WRITER'S BLOCK, and it's really hampering my skills at this point.

Just...bear with me.

Also, sorry, but no YYH peeps in here. x.x This chapter strictly takes place between Bronwyn and Aiku. Hope you all enjoy!

Disclaimer: Me no own YYH. Me do own Bronwyn and Aiku. That is all. ::click;beeeeeeeeeep...::

-BEGINNING-

'And a thousand words

Call out through the ages

They'll fly to you

Even though we can't see...'

She had no idea where she had picked up the song she was currently singing quietly under her breath...maybe she had heard it while flipping through daytime t.v....maybe she had caught a snippet or two of it from the handheld radio that Shiori had sitting on the kitchen counter...

It didn't matter. The only thing she DID know was that it was lodged deep in her brain and was refusing to leave. Great.

Just-freaking-great.

Bronwyn was situated directly in front of the large mirror in the bedroom, absently running a brush through her hair, brown eyes lazily focused on her identical reflection. She continued to hum the same tune over and over and over again, so many times that it felt as though her head would explode if one more note echoed within her.

It wasn't like she had anything else to do, though. Kurama had that pesky ningen school on the weekdays, Shiori was usually off looking for job interviews in the city, and Aiku...well, he really didn't give a shit about what he did as long as it was around women.

Which meant that most of the time, she was completely alone in the comfortable two-story home, with nothing to do but eat potato chips and watch things called 'soaps' on television.

Not exactly the vision of perfection she had beheld for her newfound ningen life.

It wasn't like she could complain, though...would she rather have been dead? That meant that at this time, her body would be buried under huge amounts of dirt and rock, her skin gradually decaying, allowing all sorts of disgusting bugs to create a new home within it...

Okay...no earthly idea WHY exactly I'm thinking about that...

She silently cursed under her breath as the brush abruptly became caught in a particularly tangled mess of strands. Gritting her teeth, she pulled it as hard as she could, hoping that it would come unstuck so that she could continue on...

Finally, after a few moments had passed, she managed to wrench it out of its prison, allowing a startled yelp to escape her lips as she nearly fell backwards out of the chair, the sudden release of the brush causing her body to rocket back uncontrollably.

And as long as I'm talking to myself...why is everything I do have to be so damn complicated?!? Honestly, one day, I'm going to be taking a bath and a curling iron is going to fall in, mark my words...

She uttered a heavy sigh, deciding to temporarily give up the idea of brushing the huge rat's nest others would call 'hair' in favor of something more interesting.

Like trying to track down Hiei.

She hadn't spoken or even seen him since the 'amusement park' incident, and it weighed down heavily on her mind, for some reason. With Shiori's words still echoing with an immense intensity throughout her head as well, it was practically a miracle she hadn't already tied the poor fire demon up and stuck him in the back of her closet for safekeeping.

She had to admit, even though the mental image was quite amusing, that would be a tad drastic . Best to just calmly explain the entire situation, and hope that he did not think of her as a fool for it.

But to do that, she had to FIND him first...which was not as easy as it sounded, by any means.

I guess that's what I'll be doing today, then...Bronwyn thought to herself as she rose out of the chair, the only thing left to accomplish before she left being to grab the house key. She had already made a promise to Kurama that she would lock the door before leaving at ANY time of the day. Normally, she would of blown him off and done what she pleased, but it hadn't been any ordinary promise...he had forced her to swear on her knife, which was practically sacred in her eyes; a promise she could NEVER break.

He knows me WAAAY too well...

For some reason, the thought caused an amused smirk to play across her pale face as she meandered over to the bedside table. Various items were scattered there...assorted wrappers from food she had managed to sneak up to the bedroom and had been too lazy to hide, loose change she had found on sidewalks and such, pieces of crumpled-up paper where short notes had been hastily scrawled down....

Ah. She had finally spotted it, nestled beneath an old candy wrapper. Its silvery glint gave it away almost immediately. Found you, you little bastard...

She scooted a few of the useless items off the table onto the carpet, finally unearthing the small house-key. A smile currently adorning Bronwyn's face, she reached forward and laced her fingers around the sides of the item, picking it up off of the table...

....What is that?

The key was not alone. Strangely enough, a slim piece of string had been tied around the small loophole located near its top, and was connected with something even weirder; a folded-up square of notebook paper.

Now obviously confused, Bronwyn only blinked for a moment, chocolate-tinted eyes wide with curiosity before she slowly rose her other hand to the section where the string had been tied to the key. Luckily, it was a simple knot, and she was able to get it undone without much of a hassle.

Why...did someone...who would...

When she had freed the note and had thrown both the key and the string onto the bed, she only fingered the note thoughtlessly for a second before slowly beginning to open it, curiosity overwhelming her.

Is it from Shiori? Maybe another favor she wants me to do...

As she finished unfolding the note, she could catch sight of several hastily scrawled words spread out all over the page. Tightening her grip on both sides of the slice of paper, she slowly allowed her eyes to follow them...

Hey Wyn!

You know, you really should consider putting a lock on your door. And maybe an alarm while you're at it. Anyone could waltz right in...murderers, thieves...good thing it was just me, good ole' loveable Aiku, ne?

A small half-frown slowly crossed her face as she read the last sentence of the first paragraph, suddenly feeling as though she was about to vomit. Just how vain could that bastard BE?? And...what the hell had he been doing in her room?!

Yeah, you're probably wearing that half-frown face you always make when something disgusts you after reading that last comment, aren't ya?

The frown vanished from her face almost immediately.

Thought so. Well, anyway, I better get to the point. You know, it's been a long time since we've actually sat down and talked-

Not long enough...Bronwyn thought bitterly, nails practically digging into the edges of the paper. She continued on, though, only out of mere curiosity as to what the purpose of the note happened to be.

And a lot of things have happened since you've been here. I've had a few...incidents, shall we say...

Now that piqued her interest.

I'll put this bluntly...I've had some bad times. I haven't really told anyone about them, though, and...I just really think I need to get my thoughts out in the open, and since you seem to be the only one available, and since I'm desperate...well, do you just think you could meet me for lunch in town?

Her entire body stiffened. Was he...actually stupid enough to be asking her on a DATE?!?

I know what you're thinking. 'Oh no, oh golly, is he asking little ole' me on a date?' Well, to answer that question, no. Think of it more as a friendly gathering among old friends, if you will...

She managed a disbelieving snort at that one. 'Old friends'.... you just keep living in that fantasy world, Aiku....

Show up if you want. I'll even pay for your food. Believe it or not, I do have a small bit of ningen money. But it won't hurt MY feelings if you decide I'm too much of a bastard to grace me with your presence. I could care less. All I'm doing is asking for a simple favor.

If you do happen to find that little slice of mercy hidden deep down in you, though, just show up in front of the grocery store at around 1:30.

Later.

Aiku.

Her eyes remained locked on the name for a moment or two, an unreadable emotion plastered on her face as she slowly allowed herself to fall down onto the bed.

How could he even consider asking me this?!? And trying to make me feel guilty for the answer he already KNEW was coming?!?! That jerk, that ugly, two-faced, egotistical...

Her anger at his idiotic nature felt so pent-up at that moment that she proceeded to do the only thing available at the time; with a venomous expression resting on her face, she tore the note directly down the middle.

The satisfying sound of paper ripping pleased her, in a strange way, and the look of immense anger melted away, leaving only a malicious smile in its wake. Before she knew it, she had ripped it again, and then again, and then once more, her teeth gritting harder with every echo until finally, the only thing left in her open hands was a multitude of tiny snippets of notebook paper.

That would have to be my answer, Aiku....They elegantly drifted down to the cream-colored carpet, hardened chocolate-tinted eyes following them every step of the way.

With an embellished sigh of frustration, she allowed herself to fall backwards onto the bed, tendrils of red hair flowing up around her face as her head hit the pillow.

The nerve of him...he KNEW I would say no....he knew it...

Her eyes drifted up to the ceiling for no apparent reason at that point. Same boring white ceiling. Why couldn't it be a ceiling that....oh, she didn't know, changed colors according to her mood? She had seen rings like that....why not ceilings or walls?

It would sure make life a hell of a lot more interesting....

She turned onto her side, hoping that maybe something more exciting would be in sight. But the first thing she lay eyes on was...the torn remnants of the note.

NO.

She immediately averted her eyes, desperately directing them somewhere else, anywhere else...they finally fell on the lamp resting on her bedside table.

The paint was chipped, the color of the shade was considerably faded...in other words, it wasn't anything terribly exciting. She allowed her gaze to vaguely drift over it for a second before it dropped back down to the carpet....

NEVER. Never in a million years would I ever even CONSIDER....

She allowed her arm to drop down to beside the bed, fingertips barely drifting against the furry carpet...until they abruptly slammed against something else. Closing her fingers in around it, she tried to distinguish its identity just by feel...

It was a torn slice of the paper.

ARGH!!!

In a fleeting moment of immense frustration, she crumpled the small section as hard as she could, though she didn't allow it drop once more.

....He did say free food....

She slowly brought her hand back up, unclenching her grip so as to let it fall onto her chest.

But...NO...

It's NOT a date...

It NEVER WILL be a date...

And of course, free food...

She tentatively rose her hands up to the crumpled piece of paper, and slowly began to open it...

-grocery store at 1:30-

It was a miracle she had even made THAT out, what with his chicken scratch...

She allowed her to head to limply fall to the side so as to see the digital clock....it was a few minutes away from one.

But...but....

A scream of anguish practically flew from her lips as she abruptly grabbed the pillow beneath her head and angrily brought it against her face as hard as she could.

Fine, Aiku, FINE...You and your twisted mind games win this time...

I'll show up.

But I will NOT enjoy one second of it.

I will NOT be the least bit happy.

And...

I'll make sure to order the most expensive thing off the menu.

xxxxxxxx

Bronwyn felt her entire body cringe once again as the grocery store's bell jingled as yet another person entered the store, its tone as merry and bright as ever.

Seriously...a pair of wire-cutters, maybe a mallet....and I'll be freeeeee....

She had been standing outside the damned store for almost twenty minutes now, her only mildly interesting thing to do to pass the time being to watch the humans wander along the street in front of her, each one different in their own unique way...but even that got boring after a while.

Why...why did I allow myself to get roped into this?!?

She hadn't bothered with getting dressed up...instead, she had lazily thrown a pair of old, faded jeans on, along with a blue shirt from the clean laundry pile that had yet to be folded and put away...She had brushed her hair a little more thoroughly...but that wasn't for Aiku, by any means. It was just because she had felt like it.

Raising her hand so as to shield her eyes from the afternoon sun, she warily glanced out at the clock that was situated in the center of the town.

It was 1:40.

He's late.

Or maybe not. Maybe he's not showing up at all....maybe this his way of getting back at me, by making me stand here like an idiot all day waiting for someone who's not even going to-

"Hey."

....show....up....

Her expression having changed into one of dread, she slowly allowed herself to turn around so as to face him, hoping that maybe she was mistaken, maybe it was somebody else, anybody else...

Nope, same ole' Aiku.

An amused smirk flickered across his pale face as he surveyed her, thick black strands of hair hanging in front of his eyes, hands roughly shoved into his pockets. He had strangely acquired different clothes, somehow....his attire merely consisted of a dark-blue jeans jacket which hung loosely off of him, as well as jeans that looked like they had just been bought only mere minutes ago.

Probably begged money off of Kurama...She thought bitterly as her gaze traveled over him, her frown spreading even farther across her face as he took another step towards her.

"Whoa...never thought you'd actually show up..." He chuckled disbelievingly, emerald-tinted eyes reflecting genuine surprise. Bronwyn only sneered at him, carelessly batting a particularly long tendril of hair away from her face.

"Yep. So, are we gonna go, or what? Cause I'd like to get this over with..." She growled, trying to convince her tone to sound as cruel as humanly possible.

Aiku's expression failed to waver in the least. Instead, he let forth a small laugh under his breath, as though he found the entire situation amusing, before silently gesturing for her to follow him down the sidewalk as he turned away.

Bronwyn only watched blankly as he strolled right into the thick throngs of people doing their weekly shopping, before finally uttering a heavy sigh, beginning to unwillingly follow him into the crowd.

Something told her this was going to be a LONG day....

xxxxxxxxxx

The restaurant that Aiku had chosen for them to dine at had been located only a block or two away, a small, cozy building appropriately named Komakai.

When the two had first entered it, Bronwyn had immediately taken notice of the fact that everyone seemed to be wearing some sort of dressy attire, whether it be a long, flowing dress or a fashionable skirt and shirt or a classy suit...glancing down at her own clothes, she couldn't help but feel a tad out of place.

But when she glanced over at Aiku, he seemed perfectly comfortable in the environment they were now in, wearing a friendly half-smile as he politely rallied off his name to the host, who led them through the multitude of crowded tables to a small section in the back of the restaurant, one that was sparsely populated.

"I read about this place in the newspaper. It's supposed to be nice." He stated nonchalantly as he picked up the menu, holding it up in front of him as he began to study it.

Bronwyn, on the other hand, made no such move to even touch hers, instead staring the front of his open menu with a clearly dumbfounded expression before abruptly reaching up and yanking it down.

"What do you think you're doing?!" She hissed as he looked up at her bewilderedly. "Do you think I'll really just sit here and be all chipper and giddy? Listen, buddy, I didn't have to come here. But now that I did...I think you owe me an explanation for why you invited me."

To her faint surprise, Aiku's expression hardly even wavered in the least bit, his only motion being to calmly place his elbows on the table, hands clasped together firmly.

"Tell me...who do you talk to when you have problems?"

Silence.

The question had caught her completely off-guard, to say the least. Out of everything he could of said to her...she blinked slowly, chocolate-tinted eyes glimmering with curiosity.

Before she could supply an answer, though, he spoke up once more, a small half-smile playing across his face. "You can confide in a lot of people, can't you? You've known these people you call friends for quite a while now...and you feel as though you can tell them anything."

Bronwyn had no earthly idea of what to say in response to that. She had no idea where he was going, where his train of thought was even coming from in the first place. The best choice that seemed available at that moment appeared to be keeping her mouth shut.

"Well...I can't do that. I haven't known these people for more than one week. To put it bluntly...I just don't feel comfortable around them." He seemed to hesitate for a moment, and Bronwyn strangely took notice of the fact that his green eyes seemed to lose a bit of their glimmer as they rose to meet hers. "But...you...I've known you since we were both fifteen, Bronwyn."

The female sitting across the table from him failed to respond, one eyebrow arched as chocolate-tinted eyes peered out at him, faintly wondering where he was going to go with his thought.

"You're the only person who ever seemed to care about me...and...I wanted to share something with you."

Without even waiting for a reaction from Bronwyn, he threw the jacket he had been wearing off of his back in one fluid motion, allowing it to fall onto the seat behind him. As a few fleeting moments of silence passed by, she remained confused, unsure of just what he was accomplishing by doing what he had was...

And then she caught a glimpse of it.

His arms....he slowly brought them back up to the table's surface, allowing them to rest there so that she could get a better look at what adorned them.

Scars.

More deep gashes than she could ever hope to count traveled all over his bronzed skin. There were so many, with each looking incredibly painful in its own way. They were everywhere...

Her small hand, beginning to shake with newfound surprise, slowly rose to her open mouth as her other delicately reached forward toward him, grazing against one gently, almost as though she was checking to make sure she wasn't just imagining things. To prove her query, Aiku grimaced almost involuntarily, a brave smirk appearing on his face as he looked back at her.

"I got them over a year ago, but...they still hurt a little...I'm such a wimp, ne?" He attempted to joke.

Bronwyn's expression of shock failed to change, though. Afer a few more uncomfortable seconds had passed, she finally managed to reclaim her voice.

"Wha...what the HELL happened to you?!" Her voice heightened to a screech, grabbing the attention of a few assorted people sitting near them, who glanced up curiously at the sound of her panicked voice.

Aiku seemed to find her amusing, though, and he chuckled under his breath before finally addressing her question. "I told you...I had a rough time after you left. Zink got really ticked-off at us all...he griped at every little mistake, that bastard..." She could practically hear his teeth gritting from her current position as his green-tinted eyes hardened right before her. "Well, one time...I failed to relay a message because I was really sick and had fallen asleep by mistake."

Was it just her...or could Bronwyn detect a hint of sadness in his voice?

This was definitely NOT the Aiku she had last seen in Makai all those years ago. He had been a conniving, self-centered bastard back then, only looking out for number one, never even casting a second glance at anyone else...but now....he seemed practically human, almost.

It was without a doubt...unnerving.

"Well...he punished me, as you can see." He gestured his head towards his battered arms. "That's when I decided to leave. I just couldn't handle that demon's abuse any longer." His eyes lowered to the surface of the table once again, hands abruptly clenching into fists. "Why...why did I put up with that? Why?!" Bronwyn's eyes managed to widen even further as he slammed one clenched hand down on the table, causing her to jump.

"Aiku..." She stopped herself before she could proceed with her thought. What the hell did she think she was doing? Bastard or not, this was STILL Aiku, the jerk who had tried to KILL her! She couldn't feel sorry for him! He didn't deserve the sympathy! She shouldn't-

"You...you were smart to get out when you did." Her thoughts were abruptly shattered as his voice brought her eyes back to him, only to see that he was warmly smiling at her once again. "I can't tell you how glad I was to hear that you hadn't died from his attack on you. Even though, you might not believe it...I really do care about you, Bronwyn. I want you to be happy."

She flinched uncontrollably as she realized something incredibly warm was slowly sneaking its way onto her hand, which was currently laying on the table in front of her. Glancing down timidly, she confirmed her worst fear; Aiku's hand was now resting on top of hers.

Panic beginning to rise in the back of her throat, she abruptly glanced up again only for a surprised squeak to escape her as she saw that Aiku was now leaning his upper body closer towards her, vibrant green eyes peering out expectantly...

"ARE you happy, Bronwyn? Do you really have everything you want in life? Is everything...to you liking..?"

She wanted to utter some smart retort, some bitter comment...ANYTHING. Every word managed to get caught in her throat, creating a huge lump which grew more uncomfortable with each passing second..and Aiku was moving closer and closer towards her...

"Can I help you?"

Both heads immediately swivelled wildly over to the direction of the voice, only to see a cheerful-looking waitress standing there expectantly, a order pad clutched in her hand, a pen in the other.

"My name is Natsumo, and I'll be your server today! Are you ready to order?"

"....Of course we are..." Aiku said slowly, his voice unusually thick as he immediately brought himself back to his original position, removing his hand from Bronwyn's as he did, causing the red-head to heave a silent sigh of relief.

Why...why didn't I stop him? I should of whapped him the second his hand touched mine...why...why didn't I?

She couldn't help but feel color rising to her cheeks as she fidgeted uncomfortably in her chair, Aiku's polite voice only reaching her ears as faded blurs as he rallied off his order to the waitress. She even failed to notice that he had ordered something for her as well. She was too preoccupied with her own strange behavior to care.

When the waitress had finally scribbled everything down and vacated their table, though, the two were drenched in silence for a moment or two before Aiku finally cleared his throat conspicuously. "Well, where was I..." He pondered outloud before speaking up once more. "Oh, yes...well, after I left Zink, I didn't really have anywhere else to go. I slept under trees and in caves, hunted and killed animals with my bare hands...it wasn't fun, I'll tell you that..." He joked half-heartedly.

Bronwyn could only stare as he spoke.

What had just happened? It was almost like he had shifted back to an earlier conversation, completely forgetting what had been going on only a few moments ago. Had he done it on purpose? Or had he just...forgotten...?

"But...I...I started having bad dreams." The sudden quivering in his voice managed to catch Bronwyn's attention, and she glanced back up at him as he continued. "I couldn't forget everything that happened...between us...when I tried to kill you..."

He was shaking...she took notice of that almost immediately. He hugged both of his shoulders tight, head bowed so that his eyes remained on his knees, as though he was ashamed...

"You must understand that I wasn't myself that night...dark 't change..." He stuttered, beginning to rock back and forth slightly, seemingly trying to comfort himself.

Bronwyn only watched him, obviously confused. What is he talking about? What dark images? What couldn't he change?

"But...I was just scared. Scared of myself..." Tucking a thick strand of black hair neatly behind his ear, he abruptly glanced back up at Bronwyn, causing her to stiffen up.

His eyes...they looked so sad...so...intense...

In fact, his gaze made her feel so uncomfortable that the spoon she had been holding in her grasp thoughtlessly was abruptly released, causing it to clatter over the edge of the table and onto the floor. Seizing this as the perfect chance to get away, at least for a second's time, she eagerly hopped off her chair and bent down to retrieve it...

...only to helplessly watch as Aiku managed to scoop it up first, having jumped down onto his knees so as to beat her to it. He now held it between his fingers thoughtlessly, green eyes glimmering with undeciphered emotion.

"Do you understand?" His voice was nothing more than a mere whisper, haunting in its very tone.

"...What...?" Involuntary shivers were relentlessly running down her back. She felt so scared...so confused...

And then....it all happened so fast.

She hadn't even realized that Aiku had moved until his body was already shoved up against hers, his arms wrapped around her small figure tightly.

He was hugging her.

Her breath abruptly caught in her throat as she came to realize something else...her shoulder was beginning to feel extremely damp.

Was he..crying?!

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry for everything!" He cried out between anguished sobs. "Do you think you could ever forgive me?!"

She didn't answer for a moment, chocolate-tinted eyes as wide as humanly possible as she gawked at the mane of wild black hair resting on her shoulder. His entire body was shaking, his sobs echoing through her ears with a force that...she had never felt before...

Maybe he WAS still a little two-faced twit...

Maybe he HAD made some bad decisions in his life that resulted in her pain...

Maybe he DID try to kill her once...

But right now...none of that mattered anymore...

And all she could see now was a child. A frightened child with nowhere to go, no one to turn to. He had been all alone...and now...

Oh, Aiku...even though we're the same age, you seem so much more insecure, so afraid of the world...I just wish I could help you now...more than anything...

She tentatively rose her own limp arms up and brought them over his shaking body, allowing her palms to gently rest on his back.

"I...I forgive you, Aiku..." She whispered in his ear soothingly, a warm smile playing across her face as she tried to comfort him as best she could. "I don't want you...to cry anymore..."

She listened as his sobs finally began to subside after a more moments had passed, and he weakly allowed his head to raise so as to meet her warm gaze...

It hit her.

Actually, it was more like it SLAMMED into her. The entire reality of the situation had abruptly crashed down on top of her, and the feeling wasn't pleasant.

She was sitting on the floor of a fancy restaurant. With Aiku, her EX-boyfriend. And they were hugging.

What the hell...do I think I'M DOING..?!

Her eyes immediately flew over to the various people staring strangely at the two on the floor, an abrupt feeling of disorientation overtaking her.

She couldn't breathe; gasps of air kept getting lodged in her throat. And Aiku's limp body pressed up against hers in an uncomfortable position wasn't really helping much.

She wasn't doing anything wrong...but then...why did she feel so dirty?

She had no earthly idea. The only thing she did know was that she had to get out of there and away from him.

NOW.

"I-I'm sorry...I...I h ave to go..." She stuttered, unable to hide the panicked tone in her voice as she roughly shoved Aiku backoff of her, jumping to her feet and immediately swiveling around wildly in a search for the nearest exit. She had to get far away...as far away as she possibly could..

Aiku, needless to say, looked exceptionally bewildered as he watched the girl twit around like a scared chicken. Rubbing the last few tears gathered in his eyes away, he rose to his feet as well, placing a wary hand on her shoulder. "But we haven't even eaten yet-"

"DON'T TOUCH ME!!!" She even surprised herself with how loud she could scream, abruptly cocking her head so as to flash a purely venomous look in the boy's direction, bitter tears threatening to spring from her eyes. "I HATE YOU, AIKU! I WILL ALWAYS HATE YOU!"

Aiku slowly blinked, tenderly removing his hand from her shoulder and taking a step back. "Are you so sure of that?" He finally asked after a few seconds had slowly passed, eyes glinting expectantly.

"N-No! I mean...YES, I AM sure!" A anguished cry of frustration escaped her as both hands flew to her head. So many different thoughts whirring around her head...her brain felt as though it was about to explode.

And before she even knew what was happening, she was running as fast as her feet would carry her towards the front door of the restaurant, shoving it open with all the force she could muster up. Without even glancing back to see what the reactions of workers and customers alike were to her abrupt dash, she immediately rounded the corner of the building, entering a narrow alley, littered with trash cans.

Uttering a loud cry of unabashed relief, she slumped down to her knees, heavy panting echoing from her. I almost...I couldn't...I thought that maybe...

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry for everything!"

"Do you forgive me?"

"I just want you to be happy."

Inexplicably, her hand slowly traveled up to her sleeve, its palm gently pressing down on the damp area that had been created only moments ago...

His tears...he really cried...for me...

Her hand abruptly tensed up, squeezing the loose material thoughtlessly.

NO. No matter how much it seems...and no matter how much I wish him to...

He will never change.

Never...

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"If you don't mind me asking, what happened? You two seemed so happy when I took your order..."

Aiku managed to flash a polite smile at the young waitress fidgeting uncomfortably in front of him. She had overheard the entire fiasco and thinking assistance was needed, she immediately rushed over.

"Just a little argument. Everything's alright." He chirped. "If you don't mind, I'll just clean up the mess here and be on my way."

The woman nodded obediently before scurrying off to another location in the restaurant, leaving Aiku to his now-abandoned table. He calmly began to scoop up various pieces of silverware into a neat pile, an content expression resting on his face.

Anyone watching him at that moment would only see a kind, well-mannered young man, cleaning up the small mess that his rash lunch date had left behind in her sudden exit.

But under his breath, so quiet that one even a single foot away couldn't detect it...Aiku was laughing. Laughing about his ingenious ideas, laughing about how Bronwyn had practically lost her head in a public place over him...and laughing about how delectably well things were proceeding.

Everything is going according to plan...

-END-

I must tell you, this chapter was PAINFUL to write. Not because of WB, but because of Aiku. ::stabstabstab!: Though he may be cute, he's still a bastard in my opinion. I may even hate him more than I do Zink, and trust me, that a LOTTA hate. O.o

And next chapter...the REAL fun starts. Muahahaha....MUAHAHAHAHA!!!

::coughcough:: Erm...ignore that.

Oh, and if anyone hasn't looked at my author profile lately...I've kept forgetting to mention that I have a Livejournal! Usually, I have information about upcoming stories, when updates will occur, yada yada yada...

The journal IS friends-only, though...but don't worry...I'll friend pretty much everyone who asks. The link is on the bottom of my author profile.

Let's see, what else...Peace on earth, much love to readers if they REVIEW....

Nope, that's about it. Ciao!