It was all her fault.

Yahiro's scowl deepened and he took another gulp of the champagne in his hand. The bubbly drink did nothing to soothe his anger. If anything, it made him even more irate. The Saiga heir was extremely ticked off, his eyes not leaving the petite figure surrounded by countless people.

He had asked the female Yamamoto twin to this party on a whim. She was the only available female whose company he could actually stand…and she made him laugh with her innocent and at times childish reactions. Not to mention she was just too easy to tease.

It was supposed to go like any other party he had invited her to, which if he actually paused to think about, were many. She would gorge herself on the buffet table, he would make a bit of small talk with the guests and then he would retire to dance with his 'date', at which time he would tease her to no end. That's how it always went.

But tonight was different.

First, the stupid girl had to go and dress up in that ridiculously beautiful dress that made her look like a goddess from heaven. When she had descended the stairs, he found he couldn't take his eyes off her and he had unfortunately forgotten how to breathe. The white dress hugged her figure, accentuating her slim waist. Her creamy shoulders were exposed and the flowing skirt danced around her legs. Her hair had been done up into a bun, tendrils gently brushing her face. Yahiro had had to remind himself that this was just Megumi…the weird girl who had a hopeless crush on him.

Second, she had attracted way too much attention. He could see her discomfort from here, her soft brown orbs nervously flicking from one person to the other. He temporarily entertained the idea that maybe she was looking for him before discarding it just as quickly as it had sprung up. The most irritating part of her being in such a large group of people was that most of those who surrounded her were men. That irked Yahiro more than he would care to admit. So much so, that he had unconsciously crushed two of his wine glasses in his hand. Luckily, neither of the glasses caused any harm, though the waitresses were worriedly looking over in his direction.

And lastly, he was angry…no scratch that, he was FURIOUS. And he had no idea why…which angered him more. Several of the guests had caught onto his mood and steered clear of him, keeping a respectable distance away. He watched Megumi with almost eerie concentration, glaring at anyone who met his gaze and frightening more than one of the patrons.

His thin veil of patience finally snapped as one of the men in the circle reached out to touch Megumi's hand, tugging her towards the center of the room where various couples were dancing while she frantically shook her head in refusal. With an oppressive and murderous aura surrounding him, the Saiga heir stomped his way over to the Yamamoto twin, ripping her hand from the other male's grasp with one hand and almost crushing the offensive man's with his other one. His violet eyes were blazing with fury, the smirk on his face dangerously feral.

"She's MY date, understand?"

The boy nodded, whimpering softly and cradling his throbbing hand close to his chest. Megumi stared wide-eyed at the Saiga heir as he led them to the dance floor, prompting her to follow his smooth steps as he began dancing. After a few minutes of stifling silence, Megumi chanced a look up at him, finding him glaring at any male glancing their way.

"Yahiro," she mumbled softly, catching his attention, "Are you all right?"

"Idiot…Don't talk," he grumbled, not liking how his heart was doing flips from hearing his name tumble from her rosy lips. She puffed out her cheeks angrily, turning her head away from him. Yahiro couldn't help chuckling at how adorable she looked at that moment, his irritation disappearing instantly. Hearing his chuckle, she snapped her head back towards him, a pout now taking over her features. Yahiro blinked a few times, his heart pounding unnaturally. An inner desire to kiss her, one that he had no idea existed, sprung up within him.

He found himself leaning forward, his violet eyes trained on Megumi's wide chocolate ones. From this close, he could smell her intoxicating vanilla scent and see the tiny flecks of gold in her eyes. Their breaths mingled as he shifted even closer, their noses brushing. Yahiro was confused, his mind unable to grasp what he was doing. He didn't know what was possessing him to bend down towards her lips…there was no ulterior motive to it, apart from the fact that he wanted this.

That realization was like a bucket of ice cold water drenching him. He pulled away instantly, his breathing shallow and labored. Megumi stood there, a hurt and confused look shining in her eyes. He ran a hand through his pale pink locks, struggling to come up with a teasing remark to cover up his blunder, but no words came to him. As the silence grew between them, so did the moisture in the brunette's eyes.

"I understand," her voice was a soft broken whisper, "I won't bother you anymore."

With a last tortured look in his direction, Megumi rushed out, tears leaking out onto her pale face. Yahiro stood frozen for a minute before he swore and rushed after her. He had no idea how she had managed to get under all his pretenses and strongholds…had no idea how she had wormed her way into his twisted heart. But somehow she had and he hadn't realized it until this moment just how important she had become to him.

He could see her up ahead, her white gown floating behind her. A vein popped up on his forehead as she took sharp turn after sharp turn in a pointless effort to lose him. With a growl, he sped up, leaving behind a trail of dust and confused people in his wake.

"YOU STUPID BAKA! STOP ALREADY!"

With a final burst of speed, Yahiro caught up to her, firmly grasping her around the waist to make sure she wouldn't run away. She struggled futilely in his arms, her face and neck a deep crimson.

"Stop moving around, you idiot!"

"Let me go, Yahiro! Or else…or else…I'll scream!"

Yahiro clenched his jaw, flipping her around so that she was still in his arms but was now facing him. She was trying to glare at him but was pitifully awful at it, her eyes swimming with tears.

"Stupid! Stop talking!"

"But…"

Yahiro didn't give her a chance to finish, flicking her forehead with one long finger. Megumi puffed out her cheeks again, her brows furrowing in irritation. She stuck her tongue out at him, tears still running down her cheeks. His heart gave a painful thump at seeing her suffering like this.

"You really are hopeless," he sighed, wiping her tears away tenderly. She tensed under his hand, her eyes snapping up to his face. He could see the confusion tumbling around in their brown depths and the smallest flash of hope.

"Yahiro…?"

"You are so annoying…Didn't I already tell you to shut up?"

"How can I when you're just so confusing? I don't understand you, Yahiro! You give me hope at times, only to crush it and push me away! I'm tired of all this, Yahiro! Tired of being your play toy! Of being the backup plan!"

Yahiro felt each of her words cut into him like a sharp knife, each cut deeper than the last. He bent his head, his hair covering up his pained gaze. In a sense, he realized that this was justice. He had toyed with her for so long, taking her love for him for granted.

She was right…He would do things to give her hope, actions that would show his true secret intentions that even he didn't know were real. But then he would become terrified of how important she was becoming to him and would push her away, not wanting her to get closer to him…not wanting her to see his true self, else she also leave him. It was ironic in a way that he had done countless things to get her to leave but deep in his heart, he had never meant any of it…He had wanted to keep her all to himself.

"So…you're tired of loving me? Is that it? You're giving up?"

"Yes! I'm tired of all of it, Yahiro! I've…I've tried so hard…But it's hopeless. You'll never feel the same. You'll never love me, Yahiro. Akira will always be there, in your heart. There's just no space for me. Even though my heart will always belong to you…I can't let it be broken anymore," she ducked her head down, not wanting to let Yahiro see how much it was hurting her to say those words. He was silent, his arms still wrapped tightly around her.

"Y-Yahiro…Let me go," Megumi started wiggling around again but Yahiro ignored her request, having no intention on doing what she commanded. His mind worked feverishly, processing all her words at rapid speed wanting to make sure that he hadn't misunderstood.

"No, I won't," his voice was firm, "I don't want to let Megumi-chan go."

He heard her gasp in surprise and smirked. He raised up his head so he was looking down at her, his usually cold violet eyes were flaring with determination, "You shouldn't assume you know what's in my heart, ME-GU-MI-CHAN."

"You baka," Megumi hissed, struggling even more furiously to escape the male's grasp which only forced him to tighten his hold on her until their bodies were flush against one another. The more she became pressed against him, the more the Yamamoto twin struggled until she was gasping for breath.

"Are you quite done?"

She huffed irritably and he couldn't help but be amused by her futile efforts to get away from him. He felt as if he could fly right now, his heart soaring. Even when he had loved Akira, he had never felt so alive or so pleased. Megumi had unlocked a deeper feeling within him, one that he found he now couldn't live without. Her earlier words had been at first bitter and painful for him to hear but then she had slipped up. She had disclosed an important fact that healed all the wounds her previous words had caused and filled him with hope.

She had clearly said that her heart belonged to him…Which meant that he still had a chance to make things right and finally get a chance to be truly happy. Impulsively, he bent down and buried his face into Megumi's soft neck, taking a deep breath of her comforting scent. She shifted slightly, a tiny squeak escaping her as he snuggled into her neck.

"Yahiro…?"

"You idiot…How many times do I have to tell you to shut up?"

Yahiro gave her no time to respond to his question before his lips crashed onto hers, desperate and demanding. Megumi was taken aback, gasping in surprise. Yahiro used this to his advantage, deftly slipping his tongue into her open mouth. Megumi's cheeks reddened but her eyes slowly fluttered closed and she began to respond to his kiss, timidly at first but slowly gaining fire. Yahiro would have smirked had he actually been thinking straight. As it was, all he could think about at the moment was why he hadn't done this sooner. And soon, even that thought was erased from his mind and all that occupied it was Megumi…her scent, her lips and body pressed against his and her small hands tangled in his hair.

A small breathless moan escaped her soft lips and he growled possessively, moving from her lips down to kiss her neck. She squeaked when he hit her soft spot, making him smirk against her skin. His name fell softly from her lips, driving him almost over the edge.

"Ya…Y-Yahiro…I don't, I don't understand…"

"Man, you really are an idiot…But you're my idiot now, my little songbird" he chuckled, claiming her lips with his once more in a searing kiss that left both breathless.

Megumi had to take a few breaths before she could speak, "W-What?"

"Are you gonna actually make your beloved say it? Fine," he sighed in fake exasperation, a real smile tilting the corners of his mouth, "You've won, Megumi…You've successfully gotten me to fall for you."

For the second time that night, Megumi cried. But unlike the first time, these tears were of joy. With a happy sob, she brought his face down for a salty kiss, her hands tangling themselves once more in his soft hair. Sure that she wouldn't run away anymore, Yahiro used one of his hands to undo her bun, letting her luxurious hair tumble freely down her back. His other hand was busy holding her to him while his lips gently caressed Megumi's.

When they broke apart once again, Megumi smiled joyfully, "Yahiro, I really love you!"

Yahiro felt his breath catch in his throat, his face reddening. Never had Megumi looked so radiant to him. Her hair was a mess and her lips were swollen but her eyes shone brightly and her expression was that of pure bliss. He cradled her face in his hands, tenderly stroking her cheek. She closed her eyes, leaning into his touch, making a low humming sound deep in her throat. Looking down, he noticed the goosebumps rising on her arms, courtesy of the chill night air. Stepping back, he shrugged off his coat and gently set it on her bare shoulders. She blushed profusely but he noticed the pleased smile on her lips. Shyly, she reached for his hand and threaded their fingers together.

"Come on, let's go to a café and get something to eat," she whispered softly, her eyes still glowing happily. He wondered why he had taken so long to cave in to his feelings, why he'd ignored them and suppressed them when it would have been easier and less painful to give in to what his heart wanted.

"I guess it can't be helped…You are a little piggy…And you're still talking. But I'll forgive you…as long as I'm the only person who gets to kiss Megumi-chan," Yahiro chuckled as she gave him a glare, though the effect was somewhat ruined by her red cheeks and timid smile. They began walking, Megumi's hand a soft pressure against his own.

"Hey, Megumi-chan?"

She turned towards him, cocking her head much like a puppy might. Smirking, he bent down and stole a quick kiss from her lips, smiling when he heard her whimper softly as he moved away.

"I had fun…"