a/n yay! at long last, I have come out with chapter seven! I know it has taken me quite some time, and I apologize deeply for that. I hope you can forgive me and enjoy the chapter :)

Chapter Seven--Nighttime at Osaka

Mika felt her breath catch in her throat. What had she gotten herself into? She squeezed her eyes shut and slowly counted to three, hoping once again that it would all disappear when her eyes opened again. She would be back with Yuri and Rio, out shopping, and she never decided that she had to do this now.

However, when she opened her eyes, it was still pitch-black outside, and she was still as a statue in the middle of who knew where while a strange man was approaching her. It looked like he had a dog, too. Mika shuddered as she pictured the dog snarling at her, revealing large, sharp fangs that could go straight through her bones. She closed her eyes again; her whole body was shaking.

Why couldn't she move? Why was she just frozen there like a defenseless little girl. She could do something! She should do something! But what? The man and his dog were getting closer and closer, and it wasn't getting any lighter out.

The man was within reaching distance, and leaning slightly towards her. Mika could see his silhouette, as well as the dog's—the dog was making some sort of noise in his throat; he moved slightly into what Mika assumed was a fighting stance.

"Don't you touch me!" Mika stammered. She was shaking all over as she looked back and forth between the strange figures. Where was the light? If she could see, maybe she'd feel stronger—more empowered. Maybe then she'd be able to move.

"I was--" the man began to say, but Mika interrupted him.

"Don't you talk to me either!" she snapped. Without even realizing what she was doing, she slapped him across the face; there was a resounding SMACK, and Mika knew that it stung. However, he didn't react, just stood there, stunned. Mika felt the ability to move slowly coming back. As soon as it reached her feet, she kicked the predator hard in the shins and then dashed across the street, forgetting in that moment of fear and exhilaration that her ankle was sprained, and she had already exerted herself enough earlier.

Mika looked over her shoulder at the figure, who stood where she had left him, and almost left out a laugh. She had actually defended herself! Sure, it had taken some time, and at first she couldn't move, but she actually defended herself against a sexual predator! She was so proud of herself!

With her head so filled with pride and laughter, Mika forgot what she was doing, and therefore forgot to pay attention to where she was going. So, as a result of this…she tripped.

Leave it to Ogata Mika to trip in her moment of glory.

She groaned loudly and sat up, having landed on her face. Her hands stung; she assumed that, once again, she had scraped them up. Her face also stung a bit, and her body felt a little beat up; she assumed it would be worse in the morning; it always was.

Worst of all, though, was her ankle. She was supposed to be treating it with great care, but all she seemed to be doing was hurting it more and more, over and over again. It got a little repetitive after a while, and she knew that when Dr. Umeda examined it and figured out how it happened, he would not be pleased. She was probably going to get quite an earful.

"Oh, damn it all!" she screamed, banging her fists down on the concrete. The combination of the pain she was experiencing, and the lecture looming ahead had put her into quite a state. It seemed odd for her to think that, not even a full two minutes ago, she had been happy and proud; and before that, so afraid.

Well, if she had learned anything at all over the past few weeks, it was that there was very little you should really be afraid of after meeting Dr. Umeda. He was probably the most frightening human being on the face of the earth—in every sense of the word.

"Oh dear, what will I tell him?" she wondered, her eyes going wide. "Surely, he'll wonder what I was doing out at night—and running, no less. He said I should use my ankle, but he didn't say I should run! Oh, bother! Curse Umeda! Curse this situation! Curse my ankle! And why not curse me as well! It won't change much, but hey, at least it will give me something to blame everything that happens to me on!"

She stifled a sob and buried her face into her knees.

"Um…are you alright?"

Mika's head snapped up, her light brown eyes wide. There stood the sexual predator from before—she recognized his outline…and the dog—but he was no sexual predator. It was Sano Izumi, from Osaka. She had met him just the other day, along with other friends of Kayashima's.

Ugh! I feel so stupid! And embarrassed! She thought. She blushed and held her hot face between her hands, shaking her head.

"Yeah…yeah, I'm alright," she whispered, refusing to look up at him. How mortifying!

He remained silent before asking in a slow voice, "Would you like me to help you up?"

"Y-yes, please," Mika stuttered. She accepted the hand he offered, still refusing to look at him, and stumbled to her feet. "L-look, Sano—you are Sano, right?" she asked, glancing at him briefly, just to double check; he nodded. "Okay, good. I'm sorry for…slapping you…and kicking you just before." Her blush deepened. "I couldn't really see you, since there's no light over there, and I…I was afraid that…I thought you might be a…" She stopped short, shaking her head. It was too humiliating! And besides, he didn't really need to know, did he? She already apologized and explained to him that she hadn't seem him. What other information could he possibly need?

"A…what?"

Mika exhaled, puffing her cheeks out as she did so. "I thought you might have been a sexual predator," she mumbled, ducking her head. Her hair fell like a curtain in front of her face, and she was quite thankful for the length for the first time she could remember.

Sano chuckled. "Well, that's interesting," he remarked. "No girl has even told me that before."

"I'm s-sorry! It was dark, and I really had no cl—AGH!"

She stumbled backwards as the dog, as if just realizing she were there, jumped up on her, licking her face with his long tongue. "S-stop it!" Mika laughed, running her fingers through the dog's fur. "Get off me, sweetie!"

"Yujiro—get down," Sano ordered, tugging gently at the leash. Yujiro whined and obeyed, though he still panted a lot and smiled at Mika.

"So, what are you doing out here?" Mika asked. She was finally getting at least semi-comfortable around Sano. She didn't know if she would ever get completely comfortable around him—he seemed so serious and intimidating—but she was glad she wasn't blushing anymore.

"Walking Yujiro," he answered, as if this were the most obvious thing in the world. Which it was, if Mika thought about it. He was, after all, walking when Mika first saw him, and he was dragging a dog along with him. Mika had a way of not seeing what was right in front of her though. "What about you Mika?"

"Oh." Another thing that she should have seen coming, yet failed to. "I was just…" The embarrassment was back again. It was unavoidable, though, when he was staring at her with those eyes. Did he have any idea how hot he was; how incredibly intimidating?

"Well, to be quite honest," Mika continued, clearing her throat (she decided quickly that honesty was probably the best route to go. Sano would probably see right through her lie anyway. He seemed like a smart guy). "I was headed over to Osaka High. I needed to ask someone something, but I didn't take into account how quickly it gets dark and how slowly I walk due to my…handicap, I guess you could call it." She gestured towards her ankle, a sour expression on her face. "I probably should have waited for tomorrow or something, but I really wanted to ask…today."

Sano's head gave a small nod; Mika wasn't sure if it was in acknowledgment of what she said, or what. Perhaps he was saying he understood? Or maybe he was saying that she should have waited? It could have meant anything, but Mika didn't ask. Speaking to him was flustering, and she just…didn't like it. It wasn't that she didn't like him; she didn't even know him. But talking to him…took too much effort. And it took too much out of her.

"You should go back," he said after a moment; he was very straightforward, wasn't he? He said what he meant with seemingly no hesitation.

"I don't know if I can," the girl whispered, biting her lip. "The gates are open at all hours, but they lock the entrances into the dorms and the school when it gets dark. Sometimes its late, or there's someone there to open the door, but…" Mika sighed. "I suppose I could go to Yuri's house; she'll still be up doing homework…but I'm not really sure how to…get there…from here."

Sano grumbled something, and then shrugged. "I guess you should come back with me, then. Girls aren't allowed in the dorms, though, so we'll have to be careful…" Saying these words really seemed to be killing him.

"Th-thanks, Sano-kun. I appreciate it."

"Humph."

The two started walking back through the darkness to the school. Yujiro walked happily in between them, wagging his tail and occasionally licking Mika on the hand. She laughed and pet him, but then returned to her silent, awkward state. She wasn't used to being around guys; especially not guys like Sano. It would help so much if he would crack a joke or even simply smile! Then Mika could forget the tension and just laugh along with him. She could forget that she was with a guy—a concept she still wasn't used to, thanks Mamma Ogata!—and just feel comfortable.

That didn't seem possible, however, with Sano Izumi, and she quickly gave up on that dream, focusing instead on what she would say to Kayashima when she saw him. If she saw him. What would happen if she couldn't find him? Clearly, Sano knew him, but what if he didn't know where he lived?! She would have gone through all of this terror and awkwardness for nothing.

Where am I going to sleep after I talk to him? Mika suddenly wondered. Her eyes went wide and she stopped in her tracks. Yes, where would she go? She couldn't very well spend the night there, and she couldn't go back to St. Blossom's, either. Maybe, if she thought about it hard enough, she would be able to think of a way to the Iwakura household from Osaka Gakuen. If not, then she could backtrack to St. Blossom's, and then walk over from there. Yes, that was what she would do! She would have to call, first, of course. She wouldn't want to show up there unexpected. Her grandmother would probably end up brutally assaulting her with a broom.

"So, who did you need to talk to?" Sano asked. They had passed through the school gates, now, and were headed towards the dormitories.

"Kayashima Taiki," Mika answered hesitantly. She liked the sound of his name; she liked the way it tasted on her tongue even more. It was like a rare fruit—sweet and juicy. It made her smile, despite her awkwardness. Kayashima Taiki. She could get used to saying that. She could even get used to thinking about him…once she got to know him better. Until then, she would continue to find it silly and stupid.

Sano nodded again, then resumed his silent walk. Mika walked along with him, equally as silent. She felt nervous, for some stupid reason. All she was going to do was ask Kayashima the question. It was that simple. And besides—he was a nice guy. It wasn't as if he would laugh at her or anything. Or at least, she assumed he wouldn't. He really didn't seem like the type of guy who would do such a thing.

With great care, Sano led Mika through the dimly lit dormitory, after leaving Yujiro off at his dog house. Most everyone was already in their room for the night, though they did have an encounter with the dorm master…person. Sano quickly backed Mika up into a dark corner and stood in front of her; he was a good deal taller than her, so she was hidden pretty well.

"What're you doing out so late, Sano?" the man asked amiably, as if he were truly curious.

"I was just walking Yujiro," Sano calmly replied; well, it was the truth after all. Why shouldn't he be calm about it?

"Ah, of course! Well, carry on!"

And with one last look at Sano (he was squinting, as if he almost say Mika there) he disappeared to continue his rounds. Sano ushered Mika in front of him, mumbling something under his breath about what he'd gotten himself into, and then once more became silent.

They reached the second floor quickly. The two walked a short distance down the hallway, and then stopped. He rapped his knuckles on the door of Room 203, where, Mika noticed, there was a name plate saying 'Nakatsu Shuichi and Kayashima Taiki.'

Not a minute later, the door was opened, and there stood Nakatsu. He appeared slightly baffled as he looked at Sano.

"Hey, Sano…what's up?" he asked, leaning against the doorframe, his arms crossed over his chest. He was completely oblivious to Mika's presence.

Sano pointed at Mika in response, and Nakatsu's eyes widened. He then grinned mischieviously and jiggled his eyebrows up and down. "Sano, you naughty boy! Sneaking a girl into the dorm at night! Do you want me to as Ashiya over or something? So you two can have some privacy? Is that what you wanted?"

Sano narrowed his eyes and slapped the bleached-blonde boy upside the head.

"Ow! What was the for?!" Nakatsu screeched, rubbing his head and scowling.

"You idiot! It's Mika! Remember…we met her the other day…"

Nakatsu brought his face down to Mika's level and stared at her through narrowed eyes. The female could almost see his brain at work, trying to figure out where he knew her face from. Finally, it dawned on him and he straightened up, grinning ever so slightly.

"Oh, right! Hey Mika! What're you doing here? Come in, come in!"

Nakatsu led Mika into the dormitory while Sano disappeared into the one next door.

"So, what can I do you for?"

Mika looked around slowly, feeling incredibly tense and uncomfortable. This was not a situation she was used to.

"Well, I actually came here to ask Ta--Kayashima something. Is he here?"

Nakatsu, who was now seated quite comfortably in a computer chair, his arms still crossed over his chest, and his legs crossed as well, nodded over to the other side of the room. Mika turned her gaze and, upon what she found there, gave a start.

"Oh! I didn't see him there!" she exclaimed, blushing a furious shade of red. "Is he doing yoga?"

Nakatsu nodded; his face still looked strangely serious. "He does it every night. Says it's to…cleanse his spirit or something." Nakatsu shrugged. "He totally zones everything else out when he's doing it, so you're going to have to wait for a little bit. In the mean time—sit down! Relax. You look so tense!" He laughed, his grin broadening, and Mika immediately felt at ease. How much nicer it would have been if Nakatsu had been the one she stumbled upon on her way over! He was much friendlier and easier to be around, always laughing and talking about something.

"Thanks, Nakatsu-san." The brunette settled onto the floor, leaning against the bed for back support. The throbbing in her ankle was still fierce, but like so many other things in life, she had learned to ignore it in a short period of time.

Nakatsu rambled on about all sorts of things as they sat there, waiting for Kayashima to be finished with his yoga. He spoke of the real Osaka, where he was from; he talked about the food there, and here; his favorite drink was peach juice, and, by the sounds of it, his favorite food was tokayaki. He told Mika all about his parents and their odd relationship. Then he talked about soccer—his all-time favorite sport. Apparently, he was nicknamed the Fiery Lion of Osaka Gakuen because of his extreme soccer skills.

He got so into it, becoming completely energized and thrilled so that his eyes actually lit up. He was smiling like crazy, and laughing, too. Mika felt very comfortable, despite the fact she was in an all-boy's school at night with two people she barely knew. Nakatsu had that sort of affect on people. He was just very easy-going and accepting. He didn't care who you were; so long as you weren't deaf, he would talk to you for hours about anything that was on his mind. He didn't care what people might say about him, because he was very comfortable with himself; he knew who he was. Maybe he was a little different than everyone else, but he was still himself; he was still a person. That was all he needed to know.

"So what about you?" he asked, cutting his latest soccer anecdote short and staring at her.

"Uh…er…what about me?" Mika asked, startled. She hadn't been expecting him to ask her any questions.

"You know…what are your parents like? What do you like? What do you do?"

"Oh. Um…well…" Mika shrugged, feeling her face tinge pink. She opened her mouth to continue, but stopped when she saw Kayashima standing up. Nakatsu followed her gaze and grin.

"Your got off lucky this time; next time, though, you're mine!" Nakatsu joked. With that said, he walked out of the room and headed next door.

"Hello," Mika greeted as soon as the door closed. She smiled gently and gave a small wave in Kayashima's direction. He returned the gesture, though he didn't say anything. Instead, he proceeded to clean up his yoga mat.

Mika watched curiously, fascinated by the great care he took in rolling the mat. If it had been Mika, she probably would have just rolled it up and thrown it in the corner without a second thought.

He passed her by when he went to put it away, and cast her a quick glance. It was impossible to tell what he was thinking by his face, which was completely devoid of any sort of emotion; Mika found that unfair. Even if she kept her face the same way, he would be able to tell what she was thinking because of her aura. She realized then that that was probably what he had actually been looking at.

"You want to ask me a question," the male suddenly declared. He turned and looked at her then, seeming truly curious. "Is that why you're here?"

"Actually, yes; it is," Mika responded. Despite the fact that she knew what he could do, she was a bit surprised that he knew that. Just how much did her aura give away? And how much could he figure out without his abilites?

"It seems such a silly reason to risk getting in trouble, don't you think?" he inquired gently. He took a few steps towards her and then stopped, making himself comfortable on the floor a few feet away from her.

"I suppose so; I didn't know it was going to get dark on my way over though. Otherwise, I would have just stayed at school and waited until tomorrow." She ruffled her bangs and sighed. Then she gasped, her eyes widening suddenly. "You don't mind me being here, do you?"

The corners of Kayashima's mouth lifted slightly, and he shook his head. "No, I don't." He then chuckled. "You got so flustered by that thought."

"Well, I wouldn't want to be a nuisance," she muttered with a blush while wringing her hands. She glanced upwards at him, saw that he had no reaction at all to what she—or her aura—said, so she straightened.

"Anyway! The question I came to ask! Right!" She smiled at him and then took a deep breath. "For my writing class, we have been assigned to write about a person with a special gift or talent or trait. When I heard this, I immediately thought of you. I have never heard of anyone else with a gift like yours, and I am really intrigued by it. So I came here to ask your permission to write about you and your talent."

Kayashima showed no signs of agreeing or disagreeing to this predicament. Mika waited patiently for him to give her a sign, but he remained impassive; unmoving. It barely looked like he was breathing, actually.

Hesitantly, Mika got onto her knees and crawled closer to him. She stared straight into his violet eyes, hoping that she would be able to see some sign of life, or acknowledgement; something. There was nothing. His eyes were so unfeeling, and yet, at the same time, they had more spirit in them then any eyes Mika had ever had seen before.

She reached forward cautiously, then, to press her hand against his chest to listen for a heartbeat. Before her fingers could even brush against his sweater, though, she heard the sound of his heart beating. It was loud and clear, suddenly, pouding against his ribcage.

Mika jumped back in astonishment, nearly banging her head against the bed-frame in the process. This caused Kayashima to also jump up. He took a few short strides towards her and knelt down. "Are you alright?" he asked. His eyebrows were pulled together in concentration—and worry, too, possibly. He was frowning—his lips curved ever-so-slightly downwards—as he waited for an answer.

"Yeah, I'm fine! My head is undamaged!" She laughed, her smile reaching all the way up to her eyes. Kayashima looked slightly relieved—it was, again, hard to tell with him; he was a closed book, never letting anything show on his face long enough for anyone to really be able to tell what was going on. He stood back up and returned to the spot where he came from.

"You're a walking accident, aren't you?" he mused. There was that slight smile again. Mika liked the way it looked on his face.

Mika examined her ankle, and then her hands. "Ha ha! I suppose I am aren't I?" She pressed her hands against her hip-bones and winced. Yes; she was definitely going to feel the results of that trip doubled in the morning. Not exactly something she was looking forward to. "I've probably hurt my ankle twice since I've last seen you. And my hands are scraped up again."

Kayashima stared blankly at her, shaking his head. "You seem proud of this fact…why?"

Mika shook her head. "I'm not proud; I simply accept it. There's a difference, you know."

Kayashima raised his eyebrows. "So there is."

"Yes. But do you know something that there isn't yet?" Mika asked, and immediately regretted it. Perhaps she was being too familiar with him; too pushy; too much of a jerk. "I'm sorry!" she exclaimed, biting her lower lip. "I didn't mean to say it like that! It was rude of me, and impatient, and just--"

Kayashima shook his head. "It's fine. I'm not even absolutely sure of what you're talking about, anyway."

"Oh." Mika appeared stumped. "Oh. Alright! Allow me to rephrase that then." She cleared her throat and tucked her loose hairs behind her ear. "Kayashima-kun, I do not mean to be impatient, but do you have an answer to my question yet?"

"I thought that might be what you were referring to," the aura-boy commented quietly. "But, no; I'm sorry. I do not have an answer yet. Maybe if you could tell me more about it, I would be able to tell you sooner whether or not I am…comfortable with it."

"Oh! Okay! Well, it is supposed to be about a person who has a special ability. It can be of any length, and we can say anything we want about them. He said that, maybe, if we wanted to, after the papers were graded, we could turn it into a contest. Whoever has the best paper—taking into account the length, writing technique, and the person they are writing about—will have their essay published in the school paper…with a picture of the person with the talent--And only if the person who was written about gives permission.

"Now for me, personally, I would want to not only write about your gift, but also you. I don't believe that we should be treating our…topics, for lack of a better word, as if they are in a zoo, you know? I thought it would be nice for everyone to know about the person, not just what they do; what they're capable of doing. Plus, it would prove that you—or whoever I end up writing about—is just like everyone else, really. What do you think? Clearly, I don't know you very well, so I would need to get to know you better, but…" Mika stopped, biting her lip again. She stared anxiously at Kayashima as she awaited his answer. His face remained completely still, all but for his eyes, which were at battle with one another.

Mika resisted the urge to check her watch as she waited for him. She could sense it was getting late, but that would have been rude. She needed to be patient. Clearly, this was something that bothered him. She could tell by the distress in his eyes—something that she wasn't supposed to see, nor was anyone else.

"I would show you what I'd written before I handed it in," Mika added hastily, becoming somewhat impatient as she waited for him to either grant permission or withhold it. "That way you would be able to scan it over for anything you wouldn't want publicized."

When he still didn't answer after that—or even acknowledge that he had heard her—Mika proceeded to braid her long ponytail. She then ruffled her bangs repeatedly and massaged her ankle tenderly, being very careful to avoid damaging it further.

"Alright," he said at last. Mika was surprised at how weakened his voice sounded, as if he really had been battling with himself over that decision. He then smiled at her; and it was the biggest smile she had seen on his face yet. One look at it, and her heart beat against her ribcage. One look at it, and she wanted to hug him tighter than she had ever hug anyone before.

"Alright," Mika replied; she grinned as well. "Thank you, Kayashima-kun!" She held her hands together and bowed to him, which was a bit difficult to do while seated on the floor as she was.

Cool hands touched hers, removing them from their folded position. Mika looked up slowly, her expression unsure. Kayashima was looking at her oddly, his face cocked to the side.

"What are you doing?" he wondered.

"Bowing," Mika stated, returning his odd glance. Had her stance really been that bad. She understood she was sitting, so it was difficult to do, but she thought he would still be able to tell what she was doing.

"Yes, but why?"

"Be-because I'm thanking you. For letting me write about you. It's a sign of respect. I thought…" She drifted off, not entirely sure what it was she thought. It was kind of hard to think straight when he was still holding her fingers gently in his slender hands.

Kayashima seemed to notice this at the same time she did—by the color of her aura, no doubt—and said, "Let's get these hands cleaned up, hm? We wouldn't want them to get infected…"

He nimbly got to his feet and then helped Mika to hers, taking into careful consideration the state of her ankle. He immediately then let go of her hands and walked over to a first-aide kit that hung on the wall. From it he pulled out some sort of wound-cleaning fluid, a cotton ball, and two band-aides.

Kayashima soaked the cotton ball in the mustard-yellow liquid then rubbed it gently on her hands. He let it sit for a moment then, after blowing gently on each of the scrapes, he put stuck a band-aide on them.

"That's as far as my expertise on healing goes, I am sorry to say," he joked as he put his supplies away.

"Oh darn it! I was hoping I could come to you about my ankle instead of Umeda; he scares me!" Mika jokingly replied. Then, in all seriousness, she said, "All that bitter old man does is poke at my ankle and tell me to 'use' it. What's his definition of 'using' it anyway? I ran twice on it today; I don't think that really did it any good. Though, what do I know? My knowledge about medicine is even more limited then yours." She gave a short laugh and shook her head.

Kayashima smiled sadly at her. "I'm sorry."

And that was pretty much it in ways of conversation. Mika's phone vibrated in her pocket; she rolled her eyes and pulled it out. It was a text message from Rio, wondering where she was. Mika sighed, and checked the time. It was late; definitely too late to get back into the dorms, if she was even considering it—which she wasn't.

'I was just about to head over to Yuri's. Getting the answer to my question took longer than I thought it would,' Mika texted back. She sighed again and smiled at Kayashima.

"Well, thanks for everything. I really appreciate you letting me do my assignment on you; and the bandages. My hands feel a whole lot better now." She smiled, deciding not to mention to mention the dull ache she felt pretty much everywhere else. That had been a big trip.

Kayashima looked alarmed. "Where are you going?"

"My friend Yuri's house; it's the only place I can go to sleep now. I won't be able to get into my dorm at this hour." She laughed light-heartedly and shrugged. "I've been meaning to have a sleepover with Yuri anyway!"

"You can't go out alone at night, though!" Kayashima insisted, frowning deeply. "There are too many dangerous beings out at night."

Well, Mika thought wryly, he would know best.

"I'll be alright. I made it most of the way here by myself, didn't I? Besides, it isn't like I could sleep here, so I have no other choice. It's a boys' dormitory, and I don't think that I know you well enough to ask that of you. I would be imposing on you and Nakatsu."

With that and a smile, she walked to the door and grabbed onto the door knob. Just as she was about to turn it, her phone vibrated again. She grumbled something and pulled it out. Quickly, she read Rio's reply, and her face fell in despair.

"What's wrong?" Kayashima inquired, appearing suddenly at her side.

"N-nothing! Just Rio being silly is all! Thanks again, Kayashima! I look forward to seeing you again soon!" She smiled at him again, nodded, and opened the door, disappearing out into the hallway.

X

X

Not even two full minutes had passed; she hadn't even made it to the stairs without freaking out. What if she got caught by the dorm advisor…person?! What if she didn't, and she actually got outside? Either way, what would happen to her.

Reluctantly, she spun around on her heels and made her way back to room 203, remaining as quiet as possible. She took a deep breath and knocked twice on the wooden door. It opened a crack, revealing half of Kayashima's blank face.

"I thought you would be coming back," he remarked. Opening the door wider, he stepped aside and ushered her in.

"How did you know?" Mika wondered, befuddled. "Surely my aura didn't tell you that, too! Seriously, what are the restrictions on this aura thing?!"

Kayashima smiled slyly. "That is something you will find out during our interview."

"Fine, fine! But really, how did you know? Even I didn't."

Kayashima shrugged. "I am observant even without the help of my sixth sense," he answered simply. "Why did you come back though? That I can't figure out on my own, and my sixth sense isn't any help."

Mika sighed, slumping into a heap on the ground. "It's just because I don't always listen when my friends are talking to me. Or I'm not listening hard enough to remember it later." She pulled her phone from her pocket, cleared her throat, and read the text message Rio had sent her out loud. "Why would you do that? Yuri's sleeping over at our dorm tonight! Remember?! We discussed this when we were shopping earlier! And besides, her parents go to bed super-early, so they wouldn't be able to let you in. WHERE ARE YOU?!'" She shut her phone and stuffed it back into her pocket. "That's why I came back. It was either here or the streets. Both are as dangerous, but it's more comfortable here." She grinned broadly at her joke, though Kayashima's face remained is still as a statue's.

"I really am sorry. I should have waited until tomorrow to come over."

Kayashima shook his head. "It's alright."

"No it isn't. What if someone finds me here? You and Nakatsu could get into serious trouble. I don't know you guys well enough to be comfortable being the cause of that. Now give it a few more days, and if we have this situation again, I might feel better about it."

Kayashima smiled appreciatively at her joke, then turned and went to go get her something to sleep in. He liked the fact that she already felt so comfortable around him. Some of his friends didn't even feel this comfortable around him, yet here she was joking around and acting as if they had known each other for years, rather than just weeks. What he liked even more, though, was the fact that he felt comfortable around her. She was a good person and was truly interested in him; she wasn't just making fun of him. He didn't need to read her aura to tell that; all he needed to do was look at her smile.

He returned to her was a pair of pajamas in his hands. "Here. I'll set up a bed while you get changed."

"Thanks, Kayashima-kun!" She gladly accepted the pajamas and went into the bathroom to change. She had just been beginning to feel comfortable with this situation, but that quickly disappeared as it hit her. She was going to be sleeping in a room with two teenage guys who she didn't know with no girls anywhere nearby. The only good thing coming out of this was that the shirt Kayashima had given her to wear was awesome. It was a forest green muscle shirt with the Ghost Busters insignia in the middle of it, with the English words 'Who ya gonna call? Ghost Busters!' written on it.

She laughed, thinking about the irony of this, as she slipped it over her head. Then she shimmied into the flannel pajama pants which had been lent to her and collected her things, holding them close to her as she stepped out into the dormitory.

"Um…is there anywhere I can put my stuff?" she mumbled, avoiding his gaze. It was weird to be in his clothes, and sleeping at his dorm; his scent was all around her; his things; him. It wasn't as if she was just realizing this, but it was hitting her hardest just then, as she stood before him, completely surrounded by it all.

He nodded, returning to his silence, and went to retrieve a bag for her.

"Thanks," the female muttered. She carefully folded each item of clothing and then threw it into the bag so that it all came undone. She then placed it in a corner so that it was hidden but she wouldn't forget it, and sat down on her bed.

"Again, thanks," she said. She couldn't help but laugh. She had so much to thank him for, and yet she barely knew him.

The shadow of a smile flickered across his face in response, and then he disappeared into the bathroom. By the time he came back out, Mika was already fast asleep on her makeshift bed, curled up into a ball with nothing covering her.

Kayashima clicked his tongue and shook his head, then grabbed the blanket off his bed and spread it over her.

"Thank you, Taiki-kun," she whispered groggily.

Kayashima stared at her for a moment, entranced by the way her hair fell across her face, and how thick her lashes were. Then, coming to his senses, he shook his head and mumbled a quick, "You're welcome," in response.

She smiled.

Kayashima sighed and settled into bed. He didn't turn off the light; Nakatsu still hadn't returned. And Nakatsu would need the light so make his way to the bathroom without tripping over their guest—whom, when he did come back, he screeched in fright at the sight of—or anything else he had left thrown about.

Kayashima Taiki frowned, staring at the ceiling above him. Then, with a sigh, he turned onto his side and stared down at Mika's sleeping figure. At once, his restless soul felt at ease, and he could sleep.

a/n so, what did you think? I thought that this chapter was kind of cute. I was worried though, as I wrote it, that I may have gotten Sano or Kayashima out of character. Did anyone else get that feeling? Also, is Mika seeming too perfect? I am going to try very hard to incorporate more flaws into her system, especially in the rewriting of chapters two through six, which I can start now--thank the lord! I won't have to deal with thoughts of those horrid chapters anymore! Yay!

Ha ha.

So, anyway! Please give me feedback :) I always appreciate it!

xoxxx

StEpPiNg StOnEs

Ugh, I just realized that ALL of the italics I had in word don't show up on here / grrr! I'm just too lazy and tired to fix that right now though(I have good reason; it's 3 in the morning). Or ever. Oh well. At least my version will have it right :P