AN. So I've spent the last few days in a manga-induced haze of happiness and glee. I got Sailor V and Sailor Moon volumes 1 in the mail and omg. I've forgotten how much I love the Sailor Moon manga. The reprints are so beautiful, and the translations are so well-done.

And Sailor V is too cute. I'm glad I get my Minako fix because she's not in Vol 1 of Sailor Moon yet.

SO HAPPY YOU GUIZE. BUY YOUR MANGA.

Friday

"Try to hit every red light," Usagi was saying, peering out the window of Mamoru's car and wishing that everyone she ever knew would suddenly appear on the sidewalks of Juuban to see her. (Excepting, of course, immediate family members and anyone who would talk to immediate family members).

"There are only two lights between here and your house, Usako," Mamoru was saying, from the driver's seat next to her.

It's true that she was almost home from school, crossing one of the last main crosswalks with Makoto, when a car at the light honked. At first she was furious, screaming about how, hey, she was walking here and she had right-of-way and didn't he see the light was RED! until Makoto managed to choke out the identity of the driver through her laughter.

Mamoru offered them both rides home, but Makoto declined politely, even as Usagi jumped into the passenger seat and was buckling her seatbelt before Mamoru had even finished his sentence.

Usagi couldn't believe her luck to have run into Mamoru every single day since Tuesday. It really was fate, she decided. Come to think of it, hardly a few days passed since their very first encounter on the streets of Juuban when they didn't cross paths in their civilian forms.

It made sense Sailor Moon and Tuxedo Mask would come in constant contact. But the universe seemed to delight in gleefully throwing Usagi Tsukino and Mamoru Chiba together as well. Too bad it also seemed to take just as much pleasure in ripping them apart again... frowning at the new direction her thoughts were taking her, Usagi distracted herself by reaching out and pushing the buttons on dashboard in a random fashion.

"What do these do?"

Mamoru watched in mild consternation as the clock changed to twenty-four hour time, the hazard lights went on (he turned them off again), the air conditioner and heat both roared on, and radio blasted on.

"Today in Northern Ireland, more conflict-" the voice of public talk radio intoned.

"What's this?"

"A radio station."

Usagi gave him a strange look. "Mamo-chan, radio is music." She frowned at the car radio and pressed the second preset button, but it was mostly static.

"That's the college station, it doesn't really come out unless you are close to campus," he explained.

Side-eyeing him, she pressed the third button. More talk.

Fourth. Commercial. "And when this isn't advertising Family Mart, this plays...?"

He sighed. "Not the type of music you like, I bet."

Usagi pursed her lips and turned the dial to her and Minako's favorite station, and an up-beat candy pop song came on. She then turned to him, daring him to say anything. He just smiled. "Go ahead. You can set that up as number five."

Having her own radio preset in his car seemed like an incredibly intimate thing all of a sudden. But...

"Yeah, Mamo-chan, I have no idea how to do that."

He laughed, promising to do it later.

"So, this car is nice," she observed, nodding with an appraising frown.

"Thanks," he said, sounding amused. "It's still pretty new. I bought it the day I turned 18."

"But you need a license-" Usagi paused. "Wait. You passed the test on the first try, didn't you?"

Of course he did. Usagi had no doubt when she took her driving test, she'd fail it who knows how many times before passing. She was pretty sure her father wouldn't even let her behind the wheel even when she turned 18. He'd make her wait until she was 20. Or 35. Or dead. Usagi pouted.

Then another thought occurred to her.

"Hey, are you rich or something?" Usagi demanded. Thinking about it now, she'd been in his apartment and it was pretty nice. Plus the car was pretty flashy. And a private education wasn't cheap, either.

"Well, not anymore since I bought this car."

"Mamo-chan!" She couldn't tell if he was teasing her or not.

A smile was dancing just around his lips. "Hey, so you didn't even ask where I was coming from when I was luckily enough to almost run you over on the crosswalk."

Usagi shrugged a little. "Where were you?"

"I went shopping," he reached behind his seat and handed her a brown paper bag, "Here."

Still feeling a little bit like she was being set-up, Usagi reached in the bag and pulled out a pink helmet. "Well, I know I'm clumsy, but this might be overkill," she joked.

He laughed, "It's so you can ride on my motorcycle with me."

Usagi gaped. "You have a motorcycle, too?" By that time, they had reached Usagi's block and Mamoru pulled the car alongside the road and put it in park. Usagi unbuckled her seatbelt but made no move to exit the car.

"You must be rich." Usagi decided. "Or else are you just trying to impress girls."

"I don't know. Are you impressed?"

She flushed despite herself and turned her attention back to the pink helmet. "This is really sweet," she mumbled. "Thanks."

Usagi went to put it on her head, then stopped and rolled her eyes. "It's not gonna fit over the odango."

With two well-practiced flicks of her wrist, the buns were gone and Usagi shook her fingers through her hair. Embarrassed at Mamoru's wide-eyed stare, she quickly placed the helmet on her head. "So?"

He reached over to adjust the straps under the chin, his fingers grazing her ears and her neck as he did so. Usagi willed her eyes up the roof of the car and steadied her breathing. Thoughtfully, Mamoru pulled an impossibly long strand of blonde hair through his fingers. "All this hair is going to be a hazard," he murmured.

"I'll have to pull it back or something," she said, or thought she said. Usagi realized her mind was pretty fuzzy, because he really was so close. Her one consolation was that she seemed to be having a similar effect on him. His hand moved from her hair to her face, unclasping the helmet and it fell from Usagi's head into her lap. Then, he finally kissed her.

Usagi thought perhaps she should be getting used to the way her heart fluttered in her chest and her stomach filled with butterflies and her skin shivered and every little reaction and response when he kissed her. After all, although it'd been less than a week since they'd been together, they'd actually kissed an impressive amount of times, considering. But she wasn't sure she'd ever be used to the way he made her feel.

Aware that the car presented only the illusion of privacy, Mamoru pulled away after a few moments. They shared an easy smile. Usagi marveled that in such a short amount of time they had gone from awkward to so close. It helped that fate kept throwing them together. It helped that Usagi really was the opposite of shy. It helped that they had a past to build on. It helped that they loved each other.

"So, see you tomorrow?" Usagi confirmed, adeptly twining her hair up into it's usual style, using the sun visor mirror to aid her.

"Yes, I'll meet you in the park. We'll do everything you wanted."

She nodded, having finished with her hair. "Thanks for the helmet! One day soon I'll ride on the motorcycle with you - I mean, when I'm feeling brave."

Mamoru laughed again.

Suddenly, Usagi's blue eyes grew wide at a figure she spotted walking down the street, toward the car.

"Well, I should go!" She darted out of the car, handing Mamoru the helmet back through the open door. "You better hang on to this for me. I don't think I could easily explain to my parents what I'm doing with a motorcycle helmet, you know what I mean?"

He smiled and nodded. She blew him a kiss and waved and ran down the street to meet with her little brother, who was coming home from school. They traded insults and elbows as they walked together toward their home.

Mamoru watched for a second in the rearview mirror. He had the strangest feeling as he watched her walk away into the setting sun...

Shaking his head, he put the car into gear and drove off.

He'd meet her tomorrow and it would a lovely, normal day.

A.N.

And he breaks up with her, like, two days later. Yey. Wait. Not. ha ha. Angst.

Okay, so the next day (Saturday) is actually in the anime (first episode of the R arc) so no need to write it since this is just meant to bridge the gap between the two R arcs. So this fic is officially over!