Author's Note: Surprise bitch. I bet you thought you'd seen the last of me... Hahaha just kidding. Hi friends! It's me again. So yeah, I lied when I said in the previous chapter that I was going to be uploading the next chapter (this one) pretty soon. I mean, chapter 8 was published more than a year ago so it's safe to say that I did not make good on that promise. I worked on chapter 9 for a few... I wanna say... days? Yeah, for a few days I focused on chapter 9 until I hit a certain spot and just kind of stopped. Then for the rest of the year I ignored the chapter until I very nearly forgot all about it. It wasn't even that I couldn't get the scenes to go the way I want it was just that I kept putting it off and forgetting it. Sorry.
Well, I doubt there are that many readers of this five-year-old fic left anyway so this update is just for me. I've never finished a multichaptered fanfic before and I want to give this story a shot. Besides, I'm nearly finished with it anyway so why not?
That being said, here's the chapter...

Aoi

I never knew silence could be so loud.

The steady thrum of rain almost enhanced just how heavy the silence was between Yata and me. The bus schedule on the glass pane of the bus stop stated that the next bus won't come by for another hour.

One hour. Sixty minutes. Thirty-six hundred seconds.

Without moving my head too much, I stole a quick glance at Yata who was leaning against the wall, his arms crossed, and his eyebrows perpetually furrowed.

When we first got here, I had invited him to sit down with me on the bench but he just waved his hands around, saying that he doesn't feel like sitting and besides, the bus will be here any minute, right? Even though we had both known by then that it won't. I didn't push the matter. I knew that he just wanted to stay away from me without making it too obvious.

I peeked at my wristwatch. Five minutes had passed. Fifty-five to go.

Before, back when Yata and I still spent time together in my uncle's cafe, the silence that would sometimes fall between us was companionable. There wasn't a weight to it that made me feel uncomfortable nor was there any pressure to break the silence. Sometimes we'd just stop talking for a while and it was alright. It was natural. Now the silence just felt tense and tight, like I could drown in it if I didn't say something soon.

There were a lot of things I wanted to talk to Yata-san about. The weeks that we spent apart were eventful and on many occasions, particularly when things got rough, I had to suppress the urge to call or text him. At the time, I told myself that I wasn't ready, I wasn't fit to talk to him just yet, and I consoled myself with the fact that one day – if I worked hard and didn't give up – I could enjoy his company once more. The problem was, I was fairly certain I still wasn't ready yet here we were, forced to reunite. I felt like I had cheated somehow.

I took a deep breath. No point in ruing the past. What was important was that he's here with me and I should finally – finally – properly apologize for what happened. I just have to-

"I'm sorry!"

I jumped at the sound of Yata-san's voice. I turned to look at him and nearly choked when I saw that he was no longer standing with his arms crossed but on his knees, his head nearly touching the ground. 'Dogeza?!'* I thought, in complete shock.

"I DEEPLY APOLOGIZE FOR ALL THE TROUBLE I CAUSED YOU, AOI-SAN." Yata-san continued without moving from his position.

Once the shock wore off, I leapt from my seat and, without thinking, knelt in front of him. "Wh-what are you doing, Yata-san? I'm, I'm the one who should apologize!" Yata-san finally looked up and was as equally surprised to see me in front of him.

"For what? I was the one who got you in trouble!"

"But you were the one who got injured! So if anyone should apologize..." I said, placing my hands on the ground, ready to bow in apology.

Before I could move, Yata-san quickly grabbed me by the shoulders. "I-idiot! YOU DON'T NEED TO DO THAT."

"Yes I do." My voice broke as I recalled that terrible incident. "Y-you got injured badly, Yata-san. Because of me. I- I wasn't... You wouldn't have gotten hurt if I wasn't so..."

Suddenly I was enveloped in warmth. Yata-san's embrace was awkward at first but it quickly grew comfortable with each passing second. Though I've never been much of a hugger, I couldn't help but melt into his embrace. Being in his arms felt safe and warm and just... right.

"I've fought all my life and getting beat up is normal for me." He said, surprisingly calmly. "Being part of HOMRA guaranteed that I'd have to fight more and get beat up more. I'm used to it. But," Slowly he released me from his embrace, his hands cupping my face gently. "it's my type of life, not yours. Getting you into that situation was selfish of me and I... I should have protected you more."

"But that's just the thing, Yata-san. You shouldn't have to protect me all the time." I placed my hands over his, gripping them slightly. Tears that I hadn't known were building up fell down my face and Yata-san gently wiped them away with his thumbs.

"I want to protect you, Aoi-san."

"But you shouldn't. You already have yourself to protect. Having me around would just put you in danger."

"I'm ok with that if I could just be with you."

"It's not ok, Yata-san! I'd never forgive myself if you got hurt again because of me." The tears came with earnest this time and I had to pull myself away from Yata-san to cover my pathetic face with my hands. My chest ached from Yata-san's words. He's always so kind to me, so giving. What right did I have to be with him when all I'd be doing is abusing his kindness? I had no doubt Yata-san could protect me but, judging from what happened before, he can't protect himself if he's always looking after me. I'd be a parasite. A worm. A dead weight.

When my sobs ebbed to a whimper, Yata-san finally spoke. "That's, that's why you've been avoiding me? You don't hate me?"

I whipped my head up and immediately felt the tears cease. "Of course not! I could never hate you, Yata-san."

Yata-san tensed and a strange combination of sympathy and relief melted in his face. And were those tears in the corners of his eyes?

"I just..." Guilt gnawed at my stomach when I realized what my actions probably looked to an outsider. "I felt like I couldn't, shouldn't, be able to see you after what I had done."

"But you didn't do anything!" Yata-san gripped my shoulders.

"Exactly. I couldn't do anything – couldn't even run – and you suffered the consequences." I forced myself to look at Yata-san squarely in the eye. Somehow he couldn't understand the gravity of my sin which probably made him feel responsible. "I couldn't help you then, Yata-san. That's why I've been-

I cut myself off when I realized where I was heading. I tried to gracefully cover my mouth with my hand, as if to cough and pretend that I wasn't about to blurt out my secret but, unfortunately, Yata-san noticed.

"You've been what?"

"N-nothing." I said too quickly. Yata-san leaned back and examined me thoughtfully, worry etched on his brows.

"What've you been doing, Aoi-san?" Yata-san asked almost incredulously, his tone that of a person catching on to a hint of something interesting. "Come to think of it, what were you doing outside the arcade? It's not close to your house or to the cafe."

Against the collective common sense of humanity, I blushed and couldn't speak for several seconds. In lieu of words, I made strangled noises that probably conveyed nothing but obvious cover ups and pathetic excuses. Along the way, I somehow stood up and sat right back down on the bench, as if I hadn't moved from my spot at all.

Yata-san sat next to me, at last, but I couldn't feel too happy about it because I knew that I couldn't hide it any longer.

"Aoi-san, it's not dangerous, right? What you're doing?" He asked in that soft way of his that always seemed so out of character for him yet at the same time not at all.

I shook my head. Though I wasn't lying, words still refuse to come to me.

Yata-san's eyes widened. "Does it have anything to do with that blond bas- guy?"

At the mention of Tamaki-san, I sobered up completely. That unpleasant tight feeling in my gut that I had associated with Tamaki-san echoed in me. "No." I said. My succinct answer (and probably the dark look that passed on my face) must have fully convinced Yata-san because he seemed to calm down.

"Then what is it? C'mon, spit it out." The hint of familiar playfulness must have been what did me in because even though I had resolved not to say anything until I saw actual results, I ended up blurting it out to him anyway.

Of course, I say blurted out when I really meant mumbled incoherently into my hand.

"What? What's that?"

"S-self... defence classes." I said clearer this time. At first Yata-san still looked confused but as the seconds ticked by realization hit him and his face started to beam. "B-but it's nothing impressive or anything. It's just, just the basic stuff. Um, where to hit, stamina training, and... freeing from holds..." I drifted off because I got distracted by Yata's face which was a combination of giddiness and pride.

I felt my face heat up even more. "I-it's really not that much, Yata-san. I'm not even good at anything."

"Well not yet. You're still learning, right?" He said, playfully bumping my shoulder with his, the exact way he used to before. "That's already pretty amazing. Wait, hold on, that's where you learned that wrist thing, right? When you whipped your hand away from that bas- guy?"

I hadn't really thought much about it. I had practiced that wrist grab escape technique so many times – escaping from unwanted holds is one of the most important skills for a beginner – that when Tamaki-san grabbed me so suddenly and forcefully, much like how my instructor did in our practices, I did it without thinking. It was an automatic response.

"Uh, by the way, Aoi-san." Yata-san's cheerfulness died down a bit and he was lightly scratching his face with a finger. "That guy, who was he exactly?"

"You mean Tamaki-san?"

Yata-san grimaced. "Yeah, that guy."

"He's, um," I struggled to find an appropriate word to describe Tamaki-san. He's not a friend, I'm sure. No one so inconsiderate and pushy could be considered a proper friend for me. Acquaintance doesn't feel right either since, as hard as he might try, I really would rather not get acquainted with him. But he's not what could be considered a stranger either. "Tamaki-san is just a classmate."

"That guy's been bothering you?" The way he said it was like a question but also a statement. I hung my head in response anyway. "You should have punched him in the face then!"

I let out a humourless laugh. "No, Tamaki-san, he's... okay. Just a bit pushy."

"You mean an asshole."

"No, just a little too persistent."

"So an asshole."

"Maybe his self-confidence can be a bit off put-

"Aoi-san, he's an asshole."

This time, I giggled quite openly. "That's a bit harsh, Yata-san."

"What? He tried to drag you away! And don't try to deny it. I saw the whole thing." He said, his tone getting aggressive as his face darkened. It occurred to me that, to anyone else, Yata's expression would appear threatening but I knew that his anger wasn't directed at me. "That bastard deserves to be burned."

"H-he does make me uncomfortable but," I paused and considered my words in case Yata-san would get the idea to actually go out and burn Tamaki-san. "He doesn't mean me any harm, I think."

The furrow on his brow softened a bit. "Even if he didn't mean to, he still creeped you out. And he ought to have noticed what he was doing! I tell you, Aoi-san, if he ever goes anywhere near you, you should-

Yata-san stopped so abruptly that I turned to look at him in surprise. The anger and ferocity on his face was instantly replaced with uncharacteristic sheepishness.

"I should, what? Yata-san?"

The light dusting of red on his cheeks grew and Yata-san fixed a determined gaze at the roof. "You should, uh, could just, um, call me or whatever. I could talk to him for you… so, uh, he won't bother you again."

I couldn't imagine Yata-san having a nice but firm chat with Tamaki-san and I had to stifle another giggle. Somehow I couldn't see Yata-san interacting with Tamaki-san unless it involved, well, assault.

"That's a sweet offer, Yata-san, but I don't want to trouble you any more than I already have with, uh, him." I said. "Besides, after today, I think he won't be bothering me too much."

Yata-san scrunched up his face and folded his arms over his chest tightly. "We don't know that for sure so, uh, you better be careful. And…" He ducked his head and mumbled the rest.

"Yata-san?"

"I mean, just, uh, if you want you could just… call me for anything, y'know. Getting that scumbag off your back or whatever, you can call me. If, if you want."

It took me a second to fully comprehend what he intended. When I did, I understood why he seemed so awkward. My heart did an insanely cliched somersault and I absently twiddled with the hem of my uniform blazer.

"I'd like that a lot, Yata-san." I managed to squeak out. "I… I really missed talking to you."

"Oh… yeah?" His face was red - probably identical to mine - and he couldn't seem to stop fidgeting in his seat. "I, uh… same. I mean, I also… y'know… same."

Our eyes met and we simultaneously burst out laughing. I almost forgot how nice and warm his laugh was.

Once our laughter subsided, Yata-san glanced almost worriedly at the digital clock above our heads. "So... the bus is coming, right?"

"Yeah, in five minutes, I think." I replied, shocked that time had flown so fast when it barely seemed to move a while ago.

Yata-san cleared his throat. There was a sense of expectation in the air, one that I felt was prodding me (and maybe even Yata-san) to seize the opportunity while we had it. Without knowing completely what I'd mean to say, I started, "There's something I-"

Just as Yata-san said, "I need to tell you-"

Both of us stopped midsentence at the same time. "Uh, you go first, Yata-san."

"No, I, uh, think you should."

"Mine can wait," I said, actually just hoping for some time to actually figure out what I wanted to say. "You first."

Yata-san opened his mouth to say something but then closed it, biting his lips instead. He scratched the back of his head and looked to his side, a look of determination in his eyes. Somehow, even though it wasn't directed at me, that look sent shivers down my spine.

"I..." He said, letting that vowel hang in the air much longer than normal. He looked straight at me and I felt myself flush from his intense gaze. "I've... never willingly read a book before I met you."

"Wh-what?"

Suddenly, Yata-san leaned closer to me, his hands flat on the bench supporting his weight. I flinched but didn't move away.

"I don't read books, y'know, because I know I've never been good at it. And I probably never will. I'm too dumb for books that's why I don't like them." He took a deep breath. "But then I met you and I got to read this insanely thick book that I was so sure I would hate or wouldn't understand or both but I didn't and that blew my mind."

"Yata-san..."

"I met you and there was like this door that suddenly opened up for me that I didn't even know was there. I've seen things and learned things that I never knew I could. And all of that's thanks to you. What I'm trying to say is," He took a deep breath and I realized that I was holding my own. "I love you, Aoi-san."

A/N: This wasn't how I initially planned on ending it but whatever. Cliffhanger! Reviews are very much appreciated :)