Well, I'm back. Though I only asked for 2 reviews last chapter, I got 1… I have to say, that really took a HUGE whack at my courage, but oh well. So, for all y'all who were looking forward to the next chapter, you can thank Theswanghost01, as they were the only one that reviewed. I still love everyone that's reviewed, I just hope you know that I don't mind if you review more than once (not for the same chapter, but over time). Oh well, enjoy!

It was a few more weeks until I was able to return to work, and I felt relief about being in the house of the gods once again. My day was spent first with my studies from Dai, and then dealing with problems in the church, as well as taking prayer requests from the public and catching up on the latest news. Thankfully, no one had successfully broken into the church while I was gone, but there were signs of multiple attempts.

I was on my way to inspect one of the doors that had been nearly broken down, when I saw Kiyoshi leaning against the right wall of the hallway. He looked nervous, staring at the ground so that his glasses were continuously falling down his nose, and twiddling his fingers. I approached him with a smile, hoping to find out what was on his mind.

"Hey Kiyoshi, what's wrong?" I asked my closest friend.

He looked up at me just enough so that I could see the scarlet blush that stained his cheeks. I hoped that I wasn't the one making him nervous. "Teru, I've been, um, looking for you."

"Well, I'm here now." I said cheerfully. "What do you want?"

"Oh, well, um…You know how when you turn 18, you have to start looking for a husband?" I nodded in agreement. "And, if you ever liked anyone in the church, you would tell me, right?"

"Of course. You're my best friend Kiyoshi; you know that." I still had no idea where this was going as I answered.

"I do, so I know that that hasn't happened yet. And, I was just wondering, if you don't find anyone you like before then, if you would consider marrying me?" I stopped breathing for a second. Marry Kiyoshi? I tried to process the thought, but he didn't give me the chance. "It's not like I'm confessing to you or anything, I just thought it would be easier. You have to marry someone from the church, and it's not like you have the option of getting married. I just thought, you know, it'd be better to marry your friend, then someone you don't even love."

I nodded again, my eyes glued to the floor. I just couldn't quite bring myself to look at Kiyoshi yet. I could feel his eyes on me though, and I knew that he was waiting for an answer.

"I, um, get what you mean. And you're right, it would be easier." I agreed with what he had said, but that didn't mean I had answered his question yet.

In the back of my mind, a war was raging. Half of me, the more practical side, was pushing me to say yes. Kiyoshi, had just offered me a deal that I couldn't refuse. He was right when he said it would be easier, because it would be.

But then…There was that other side of me, the side that said no. The side that said, but what about…And then stopped there. What about who?

I didn't have time to think about it, because Kurosaki appeared at the end of the hallway then. "Teru!" He called, as he rushed over to me. I was about to ask him what was wrong, when he grabbed my arm and started dragging me away from Kiyoshi. I stumbled forward, my heels rapidly clicking on the stone floor as I tried to regain my balance.

"Wh-what?" I stuttered as I did my best to keep up with him.

"The priestess wants you. It's almost time for us to leave, and you still need to pick up your homework from her." I had to stifle a groan at the thought of homework.

"But, Kiyoshi." I whipped my head around just in time to see the retreating form of my disappointed friend.

I didn't have time to think again about what Kiyoshi had said until the carriage ride home that day. Or at least, really think about it. It flashed across my mind for a moment when Dai asked me if there was something on my mind that I wished to share, and then again when I passed him by on my way out of the church. His proposal was just so unexpected, and though he had most likely been thinking about it for quite a while, it had definitely shocked me.

I didn't know why I hadn't immediately accepted. It felt like if he had asked me before all of this assassin stuff, I would have. But, what would someone trying to kill Dai and I have to do with not accepting a marriage proposal?

"Hey, are you okay?" A gentle voice snapped me away from my thoughts.

I dragged my gaze away from the carriage window to look at Kurosaki. I noticed then how cute he looked when he was curious. Eyes wide and questioning, as well as having mouth turned down slightly at the corners in a small frown.

"Um, it's nothing." I remembered to say after a moment.

He stared at me a few moments more, then turned away to look out the window as well. "Olay, don't tell me then." He said, seeing straight through my lie.

I let my eyes linger on him a bit longer, clear blue eyes and spiky blond hair contrasting so well with his tan skin. I thought again about what I had noticed when I had first met him. Kurosaki was quite handsome, his tall and lean figure only adding to that tribute.

As I thought about when I had first met him, when the attacks had first started, I suddenly remembered something. Kurosaki had to do with the attacks, because he had come around when they had first started. So, did that mean that he was what was stopping me from saying yes to Kiyoshi? Had he really made his way into my heart so much that my subcontiousness had noticed it before I had?

I turned my head to look back at the country side so that I could think without having to worry about him catching me staring at him. What had made me fall for Kurosaki? Sure he loved to tease me, but at the same time, he could be so sweet. A few weeks ago, when I had snuck out into the forest and he had had to chase after me, true, he had grumbled about it afterwards, but when he held me, he held me close, yet at the same time was careful not to hurt me. When he placed me on the couch, instead of simply dropping me, he slowly lowered me onto the cushions, being so careful, as if I might break.

It was also hard to forget that time when I was in the hospital. Though he had helped me a great deal when my bullet wound limited what I could do, that could have been him just being nice to someone that was hurt. He had blamed himself for not protecting me after all. But, that still didn't justify when he had stroked my hair, of that caring look he had given me when he did it too.

So, I realized then that, though Kurosaki loved to tease me, at the same time, he still acted like he cared about me. He did things that, as my bodyguard, he didn't have to do. Little things, that showed that, just maybe, he cared about me too. I still couldn't decide anything though until I knew that I was right.

As soon as we got home, I decided to start on my homework immediately so that I could spend some time with Onii-chan when he came home from work. At the time, I had gotten Kurosaki to help me study, though it's not as if he had anything better to do anyways.

"So," He said after taking another sip of water, "What does it mean when you drag your fan across your right cheek?"

I did the motion that he had said, sweeping the small wooden fan in my hand across that part of my body. "Yes." I answered his question.

"Okay then, how about dragging it across your left cheek?"

I did the motion and answered with a no, hoping that our study of 'fan talk' would soon be over.

Kurosaki took yet another sip of water before placing the glass on the coffee table which he was sitting on the floor next to. I was standing in front of him, afternoon sun streaming in from the large windows to my right starting to get in my eyes.

"Alright, last one. Pressing a half opened fan to your lips." He commanded.

I did as he said, then mumbles through the thin wood, "Kiss me."

"Good, now just do some math problems I made up for you and you'll be done." He pushed the paper towards me as I sat down at the short table next to him. Though I had to study a great deal, I really was grateful for how extensive the priestesses' knowledge was expected to become. Not many women got to go to school for more than three years; just long enough to learn how to read and write and some basic math skills for most.

I started working on the problem, but at the 3rd one my elbow accidently bumped into Kurosaki's. I noticed then how close he was, so close that our knees were almost touching. The silence that hung over us suddenly became heavy, and I felt myself wanting to break it.

"Um, you know, Kiyoshi asked me to marry him today."

Kurosaki's head whipped around so that he could look at me, a shocked expression on his face. I felt shocked too; I had no idea what had possessed me to say that. I watched as he took a few seconds to try and compose himself, though it didn't really work. "So, what did you say?"

"I haven't said anything yet. I still don't know if I should or not."

He turned away from me to face the far side of the room, the expression on his face showing that he was deep in thought. After about a minute he turned to look at me again, his expression now wary. "If…if I asked you not to marry him, would you?"

Over time our faces had become so close that when he talked I could sort of feel his breath against my face. Because of this, what I said next came out in a soft whisper. "Yes."

After that there was no longer any distance between us. He closed the space in a second, pressing his warm lips against mine. They were soft, and still moist from the water he had been drinking. As he kissed me his arms came to rest around my waist, pulling me closer to him still. My own hands seemed to have a mind of their own as they placed themselves on Kurosaki's chest. I slowly moved them upwards though, not letting them stay in the same place as I itched to knot them into Kurosaki's hair.

I was stopped though from a noise two rooms over. The large front door of the house swinging open and then closed again, followed by my brother's call of, "I'm hooome!"

Kurosaki and I jumped apart as of not to be seen. And though, if he had come into that room at that very second, though he wouldn't have seen us kissing, it wouldn't have been too hard for him to tell that something had been going on, what with our flushed cheeks and speeding heart beats. This is why I was thankful that my fear did not turn into a reality.

I was sure that at dinner that night, I was the only one that felt awkward. I had just become so much more aware of Kurosaki, it felt weird. At one point his foot brushed against my calf, and I felt my face heat up in a blush. I dropped my head so that I staring down at my plate, my shoulder length brown hair hiding my face from the two boys sitting next to me.

After a moment, I peeked through my curtain of hair to see if Onii-chan had noticed my random reaction, and was thankful when I saw him talking normally with Kurosaki. My eyes fell on the other man at the table then, and after a while he must have noticed my staring at him, because he turned his head to catch my eye. Traces of my previous blush must have still been evident on my face, because his soft lips then curved into a smirk, showing that he was satisfied by my reaction to his simple touch.

After that, diner became even more difficult to sit through, what with the blond haired man sitting across from me constantly touching me with the sole purpose of his own amusement. Most of the time he was rubbing our feet together, but every now and then he would brush his ankle against my calf, the ski on skin contact nearly driving me crazy as I had to continue to hold down any emotions that I may show. I was exhausted by the time the meal was over due to constantly having to keep myself in check, though I couldn't say that I was relieved when it ended, as I knew the heart racing feeling that he gave me wasn't necessarily bad, and I missed it once it wasn't there anymore.

I spent the remaining moments of daylight that were left over after super reading in the small library in our house, forcing my eyes to strain in the dull light. As soon as I was no longer able to make out the small print anymore, I realized that I had forgotten to bring a candle with me, meaning that I would have to walk to my room, located on the other side of the house, with no light to guide my way.

Sighing with impatiens, I dragged my fingers along the hallway's wall using it to help guide me in my trek through the dark house. There were no windows in the hall, and even if there were, the sun had long since dipped below the horizon, its only light coming from the reflection that it cast upon the moon. I held my hand in front of my face, just to test the level of darkness that I had been thrown into, and wasn't able to make out even the outline of the object, for everything had been shrouded in pitch black.

Suddenly, a light came alive in a room a few feet away, illuminating it and a small portion of the hallway. It soon began to move out of the room and in to the corridor, slowly making its way towards me as it remained suspended in the air. It wasn't until it got closer to me though that I could see who was holding the candle.

"Hi," I breathed as Kurosaki stopped in front of me, a brief smile lighting up his features before it was dropped, a different look coming on to his face.

"We need to talk." He said in a low voice, and though I told myself I was imagining it, it was as if it was laced with a hint of sadness. I inclined my head slightly, motioning for him to continue. "I've been thinking, and well, what I did…was wrong. What we did, was wrong."

"Wh-what are you talking about?" I stuttered slightly, "You mean…you regret kissing me?"

I watched as the blond heaved a sigh, the candle light reflecting off of his eyes to show a somewhat pained look. "I do, but only because it makes what I need to say so much harder." I held my breath as I waited, while Kurosaki closed his eyes, looking as if he was trying to harden his resolve. "We can't do this…this relationship. We both know that it's against the rules, and I won't let you get in trouble because of me."

"What do you mean because of you?' I asked in a sharp tone, not letting him continue. "I chose to kiss you just as much as you chose to kiss me. We're both at fault here, so don't start blaming yourself. Besides, we're not breaking the rules yet. I'm not supposed to start looking for a husband until I'm 18, so we have two more years until that happens. Don't start worrying yet, just enjoy the time that we have together while we have it. Don't spend it worrying on things to come." I reached up and ran a soothing hand through his hair then, trying to qualm his feelings of guilt. He leaned into my palm as it trailed down to his cheek, deep blue eyes fixated on the floor.

"I see your point, but I still feel like I'm corrupting you or something." He mumbled his pointless fears.

I gave a small laugh, "It's not corrupting if I chose to let you corrupt me." With that I raised myself on to the tips of my toes so that I could place a small kiss against his lips. "Good night." I whispered with a smile, the same words being repeated back to me before I walked off to my room, hoping that there I would dream of the man that I had just left behind.

Well, that chapter took WAY longer than it should have. To all the people reading this story, I'm SO sorry this chapter took me so long to put up. First I wasn't around a computer for a long time, then my notebook that the story's in got taken away by my friend for a few months , THEN I lost ,my flash drive…..it's been horrible

But over the time that I haven't been writing this story, my writing style has changed quite a bit, which I can tell from the amount of editing I just did, so that also contributed to why it took so long. It makes me want to go back and rewrite a lot of this story though when I read over it, that may not happen, but if it does, it will happen after I finish it, don't worry.

So yea, I didn't stop the story, I just took a really long break. Once again, sorry, but hope you enjoyed.