~Adrian's POV~

I was waiting. For how long I had been waiting I didn't know. It was almost as if time stopped and now ceased to start again. She may not have realized it, but Rose was the one that I loved. She had always thought it was to get her in bed or simply just a school-boy, teenage crush, but it wasn't.

I was truly and irrevocably in love with her. It seemed odd, too because before her I had always hit on girls, including Lissa, but had never really thought much of the girls I hit on until Rose came along.

She was different, different than most at least. She had this kind of fierce beauty that completely drew me in and her passion for life was incredible.

But sadly that passion had drained out a few months ago. And even if you were an idiot, it wasn't hard to see why. She may be the love of my life, but I wasn't hers. Dimitri had been hers. And still was even though he had been turned Strigoi just a few months back.

And, obviously Rose had gone to find him so she could kill him. To honor his wishes. Both he and Rose had agreed it would be better to truly be dead then to be a monster like that. And I agreed.

So Rose was gone. And even though she had said she would give me a chance when she came back, I had a feeling she might not even come back at all, let alone anytime soon.

And that's why I was here, in my apartment, alone. I had dropped out of the academy not too long after she had dropped out so she could go find Dimitri. I had promised myself I would graduate for her, but with her gone it was immensely hard for me to concentrate on my guardian duties or the Moroi.

I buried my head in my hands. "Shit Rose, how could you do this to me?" I laughed quietly, a bit of bitterness laced along the edges of what should have been a happy, wry laugh.

Rose had never realized how much I cared for her. Sure I was a huge flirt, especially around her, but I thought that my affection for her was as clear and bright as the moonlit sky.

Obviously not, since she hadn't realized it herself. But Lissa had. Another laugh built up in my throat. Another bitter laugh. Rose hadn't realized my true feelings for her and yet Lissa, her best friend, had.

I rubbed at my temples. I could feel a headache coming on. But weirdly enough, I also felt a pang in my heart. At first I thought it was because Rose was gone, but when I heard a knock on my door, my heart began to speed up.

Normally I wouldn't have gone to answer the door for anybody, not even Lissa-because what could they have done to take away the pain?-but something in my accelerated heartbeat told me to go answer it.

And when I opened the door my breath caught in my throat. It was Rose! Except she didn't quite look like herself. The rain pouring down had her soaked to the bone and she had a look of such sadness in her eyes that it broke my heart.

Not only that, she was crying, too! The Rose I knew rarely ever cried. And that's how I knew what she had come to tell me.

Before I could even tell her to come in she threw herself in my arms and began to sob into my chest. Using my Moroi skills I closed the door with my foot and at the same time was able to prop her up against my side. The poor thing looked like she would collapse any second now.

I walked with her back into my living room and set her down on the couch, where I sat next to her. "Rose, what happened?" I asked. Though I really shouldn't have asked because I was pretty sure I knew the answer.

Another strangled sob left her throat. "Dimitri…I…I killed him!"

Yup, sadly I had been right. I took her in my arms and began to rub her back as she let the tears out. Sobs wracked her body and it broke my heart yet again to see her so sad when the Rose I knew was defiant and strong and stood up for what she believed in. Where was her fierceness now? Along with Dimitri's soul was where it was. And now that Dimitri truly was gone, not Strigoi anymore but dead, a part of Rose would be forever lost.

"No, you didn't kill him. It's what he would've wanted," I said, trying my best to soothe her. Her sobs only grew more frantic, which frightened me.

"Remember what you and he said not too long ago? That you would both rather die than become Strigoi. You did what he would've wanted, Rose. You saved him," I murmured.

At that, her sobs quieted, but only a little. Now she whimpered, which the sobs still wracking her body in turn made her whimpers come out shaky.

"Why, Adrian why?" she suddenly cried. "Why is it that with Lissa I couldn't get any of the pain at all to go away, but with you the pain is lessening?"

My grip on her loosened, but only for a moment. I was stunned to hear those words. I was making her feel better than Lissa had. Now that was a shock. Those two were undeniably close. But sitting here with Rose now, I felt a closeness of sorts forming between us as well. A different kind of closeness.

"Rose, I know that you loved Dimitri and while some people believed it to be a fake love, I know that you really did truly love him. But you want to know something?"

She looked at me, no sounds coming from her except her soft, but ragged breathing. Only tears fell from her eyes now.

"I know you probably don't want to her something like this now," I started sighing. "But I truly love you, too. You always thought that I flirted with you because I wanted sex and just wanted to have fun with you, but that was never the case. And it still isn't. I love you, Rosemarie…"

Now it was her turn to be stunned. Both at my confession and for me using her full name. Tears began to trickle down her cheeks. "I never knew…I never imagined that you really did love me, Adrian."

I smiled, only a small one, though. "Yeah, well, not many people did."

She sniffed and wiped at her eyes, but I could still see the anguish deep inside her that would, no doubt cause her to break down again later.

"Adrian, I'm sorry, but right now I can't deal with what you just told me. I said I'd give you a fair chance, but right now I just can't. I'm sorry."

I shook my head. "No, it's okay. I kind of had a feeling it would turn out like this. Although I didn't actually think you'd come back to me like you said you would. Because when you said it I somehow knew you might not keep your promise."

A tiny smile graced her lips. "You know me too well, right?" I nodded, a wry smile now making its way onto my face. "Yes I do, Rose. Yes I do."

She sighed and I saw her eyes glaze over again. "I'm sorry Adrian, but I'm not sure if I can love anyone else. I'm not sure if I can love you." I could see these words saddened her because love was a wonderful and painful thing. But the wonder of it was always stronger than the pain.

"At least not yet," she said softly. And surprisingly, she latched onto me at that moment and I stiffened at first, not use to sudden contact like that from her, but slowly relaxed.

"I might be able to love you, Adrian. Might. But it'll take some time, and again that's even if I can fall in love with you."

"I'll wait for you a second time," I said quietly. But knowingly, her Dhampir senses allowed her to hear my almost inaudible words.

"Okay…" she sighed. And I could see the sorrow in her rising up again, but she was not allowing herself to cry a second time in front of me.

So with that, she hurriedly got up and ran out of my apartment and back into the rain.

I sighed, but this time it wasn't because I was upset or sad. It was because I was thoughtful. I had gotten to hold her in my arms for a little bit. Even though it hadn't been for long and it was because she was upset. But still, I had held the girl I loved in my arms. And while it made me happy to know that there was a chance that someday she could love me back, I didn't care. Because all that mattered was her happiness.

I was also happy that she had come to me. She had trusted me enough to come to me when she was hurting, regardless that she went to Lissa first; because she still had come to me.

But I was also still upset. For a different reason, though. I was upset because Rose was upset. And I was upset because she was upset because I loved her.

Nevertheless, though I was still caught in between sadness and happiness, she had kept her promise, which I had a bad feeling when she had made that promise that she hadn't known if she would indeed be back or not.

Though she hadn't returned my love and might not even be able to return it in the future, she had returned. Returned to me. And that was all that mattered.

Okay so that was a little one shot idea that I came up with while reading Shadow Kiss. The ending really hit me in the heart, especially the part where Rose left Adrian, and though I really do love Rose and Dimitri together, I really think that I'm beginning to love Rose and Adrian even more. And this one shot proves that! XD So anyways, I don't own Vampire Academy or the characters. I only own the idea for this one shot. The rest belongs to Richelle Mead. And speaking of me liking Adrian and Rose as a couple, I think I'm also starting to like Rose and Christian! ~laughs~ So you might get a one shot with the two of them in the future. XXD

And one more thing. I would like to thank all the people who give me my inspiration, which would be my friends and that people that review. Without them not a lot of this would be possible. So I'd like to thank:

My mom (because she supports me and I love her dearly.~)

Aviditty (friend in real life and on . She is one of my best friends ever!)

Latemur (met on Quizilla, but I talk to on FF now. Also one of my best friends ever, even though I have yet to meet her in real life! XD)

AlchemikeAlchemist (a YT user who I first met on Quizilla, but I hope she soon gets an FF account so we can talk on here and Youtube! Another one of my best friends even though I also have yet to meet her irl.)

Galaxena1 (also a YT user and another one of my best friends in real life)

And God, of course for blessing me with the ability and talent and love for writing.

I'd also like to thank the FF users whose stories I love and who I also get inspiration from. Because they also make this possible:

Aviditty (she is truly an amazing writer and it is truly a joy to read things that she writes. Whether they be just notes that we passed around in class XD or actual story ideas that she comes up with. We also have a lot of stories that we have to collab on to do, too, Aviditty!~ =D)

ElleWednesday (you rock, especially writing Teen Titans fanfics! =D Can't wait for more Hope on a String!)

Latemur (she has a particular knack, especially for writing Yu-Gi-Oh! Stories and I also love her artwork. Can't wait for you to update, sweetie!~)

AlchemikeAlchemist (now she may not have an FF account yet, but when I read her stories on Quizilla, they filled me with such joy and she is an amazing writer. Hope you get an FF account soon!~~)

Galaxena1 (Aviditty and I are trying to coax her into getting an FF account, too and I hope she does because she can write a lot in a short period of time and just has a talent with writing. Especially when it comes to Sonic the Hedgehog! =D)

A-QueenOfFairys (she is awesome with Code Lyoko! Can't wait for more Survivor!)

Cauryn Terenkey (whose story Under the Skin is truly moving and I can't get enough of it!)

Darkmagiciangirlprincess (I loved her stories back on Quizilla and I still love them!)

Ryhan (can't wait to read more of Card Master Sakura!~)

Twilight-Imp-626 (I love your stories and I can't wait until you finish Reaching for Heaven! You're an awesome writer!)

Twilighthippie1 (she is one of the first friends I made on FF and her writing is unique and she is one of the few people who's reviewed everything I've written. So thanks a bunch, hun!~)

Yohina (who is an awesome writer and has a cool and detailed style! Can't wait for more Rising From The Ashes!)

Lunafy (who hasn't written anything on her FF yet, but is one of my best friends in real life who has let me read her stories and has a great imagination! Hope you're doing well!~)

And then finally I would just like to thank everyone else who is on my friends list, or as it's called on FF, my Author Alert list.

And, obviously Richelle Mead for writing such an awesome book series!~