A/N: Well, I guess I'm back with another story! Let me just say, this was a tricky one to write for me as fluff is not exactly my strongest suit. I kind of failed at making it pure fluff, but it's the closest I can get. Ok, enough of my rambling, let's get on with the story!
It had been a fairly silent night. No, more like a silent winter break. School work had been just as calm as the gentle snowflakes swirling around. The air was frosty, but just cool enough for her comfort.
Her parents were not around. Neither was her brother, leaving her to do whatever she wanted in the house.
It was bliss.
She couldn't think of a situation more perfect than this.
Actually, that wasn't a hundred percent correct. It would be heaven if a certain brunet had been beside her...
She had to physically push that thought away. However, it was far too late. Images started pouring into her mind, flashes of what would never be real. She curled up in his strong arms, his scent wrapping around her. The way the world just seems to stop for that very moment, that serene peaceful moment broken by nothing...
She shook her head frantically. It was all just a fantasy. They are just friends and that's all. On her account.
She had never made a decision she regretted more.
At that very moment with her nose pressed against her bedroom window she wished she could turn back time to that very moment, change everything that had happened. Ever since that day she had been wailing with regret in her head about missed opportunities and lost chances.
The doorbell promptly stopped her train of thoughts. She was glad for an intervention. Any longer she would've burst for all the self-loathe.
That was when she caught sight of the clock hanging on the wall. Fifteen to twelve. Her parents wouldn't be coming home until the day after tomorrow, and her brother was still at his sleepover. Who would up this late at night?
The doorbell rang again. For some reason, the sound held a sense of urgency to it. She clambered down the stairs, nearly tripping over her own footing. She reached out for the door knob and came face-to-face with an unexpected visitor.
Out of anyone, it had to be him.
Ulrich.
"What-what are you doing here?" she spluttered out, willing her face to remain placid. "It's almost midnight! And snowing for another thing!"
A guilty expression crossed his face as he looked down to his shoes. "I-I think I left behind a book here from this afternoon. I need it for homework," it was very obvious from his tone that he was lying.
But then again, they do say curiousity killed the cat. She frowned. "Come in before you get a cold then. You're lucky my parents aren't home!"
She ushered him inside. It struck her to see just how fragile he looked under the harsh lights of her living room. In daylight, he had always looked like a prowling lion, confident in everything he was doing. Here, he just looked like a grovelling kitten.
"So what's up?" She crossed her arms, willing to keep him hostage to learn just what had made him trek all the way to her house.
"I just wanted to see you..." he trailed off. A sneeze escaped him.
"Trekking through the snow with no coat no less!" Boys can be so stupid some times. "Wait here."
She grabbed a cup from the kitchen, and started preparing a glass of hot chocolate for him. Honestly, nothing was making any sense. Why would he take the time and effort walking through the chilly neighbourhood for no reason at all?
She slammed the tray of hot chocolate in front of where he was sitting. "Drink," she commanded. She was not going to be the reason why he would miss school.
"Thanks," he muttered under his breath.
For the next few minutes, it was completely silent, save for the occasional clink of a glass. She figured out that he would talk when he wanted to.
He put down his glass, not quite meeting her eyes. "It's much more peaceful here. No Odd to bother us."
She didn't bother acknowledging his feeble attempt at a joke. It was obvious by then something was really bothering him. What else would make him come all the way here?
"You do know that I won't bite your head off, right?"
No response.
"You can tell me what's wrong. I won't tell anyone."
The sakura tree rustled outside. Finally, finally, he spoke up.
"I had a bad dream tonight," he whispered it so quietly that she thought that she had imagined it. She almost burst out laughing. It seemed so illogical that he, Ulrich Stern, would come running to her on the basis of a nightmare. But it had obviously spooked him enough to do just that.
She nodded her head, hoping that it would give him enough confidence to continue.
"Do you-do you remember the XANA attack a couple of weeks ago?"
She frowned, "Which one?"
"You know, the one where you were almost..." He trailed off quickly, his gaze dropping to the ground. It was then she noticed how bloodshot his eyes were.
She knew which one he was referring to now. Only flashes of it came to her, half the time she was diving in and out of consciousness. She barely remembered any specifics, except that one whispered phrase that she wasn't able to grasp fully. The world blurred right after that, a vast infinity of emptiness.
"The snow started all this, especially after the dream I had. It just reminded me of everything! I didn't know whether you were actually fine, I just had to check! The snow, it made me think..." The words just spilled out of his mouth in a rushed manner, getting more and more hysterical.
"Why-" she tried to interject gently.
She was almost knocked off-balance as he flung himself at her, his arms hugging her tightly as if he was scared that if he let go, she would crumble into dust. "I really didn't want to lose you!"
She was frozen for a second, her face blank and expressionless. She was really unsure of how to react to the now sobbing boy in her arms. It didn't help matters that the boy was in question was the normally stoic and snarky Ulrich Stern.
Gently, she returned the hug. "Why didn't you tell one of us? None of us would have wanted you to suffer alone," she whispered softly. To hell with the 'just friends and that's all' rule she made.
"I-I didn't want to worry you guys, you all had your own problems to deal with, not to mention XANA," his response was slightly muffled, owing to the fact that his head was currently nuzzled at the crook of her neck.
Silence followed soon after. His grip on her had not loosened in the slightest. Not that she actually minded. She was perfectly content to remain like this for the rest of the night.
However, he abruptly released himself from the hug. "I'm so sorry, you said that we were just frie-" she quickly cut him off.
"To hell with that."
Their gazes met once more. Something was different however. His held relief and disbelief. To be entirely honest, it looked like he was about to burst out crying again. But it was most likely for an entirely different reason.
"You-you sure?"
"I really missed you, you know. I regret everything I said that day."
He turned away. "I can't do it!"
She was utterly bewildered. It was quite obvious now that the feeling was mutual, yet he was refusing her offer of fixing everything. "Why?"
"All these dreams I had of you, they were all of me failing to protect you! I was always there, unable to save but I could've been able to. What if that actually happens? I can't let that happen, I need you!"
I need you. It felt as if she had solved the world's biggest mystery.
"I need you, wasn't that what you said?"
Even though she couldn't see his face, she was fairly certain his face had erupted into crimson. "I didn't know you heard me."
She's always questioned why she loved this blustering idiot.
She really didn't know what happened after, for one moment he had turned back to look at her and the next had her exploding in sparks as she kissed him.
All she could remember from those frenzied seconds were left in flashes. His wide-eyed surprised look quickly losing all its traces of fear. The taste of his warm lips, mixed in with a little salt. His arms, once so stiff behind his back, became much more obstreperous and clambered for her cheek.
It was nothing compared to his face. His face was ethereal, full of love and hope and new beginnings. And she took it all in as she grasped his shirt. Her eyes were half-lidded in desire, wanting nothing more but to get lost in that moment.
And that was when the clock stopped, at half past twelve, forever marking the moment where Yumi Ishiyama and Ulrich Stern finally broke down the barriers around them.