Standard Disclaimer.

You told me that everything was going to be okay.

You held me in your arms while whispering comforting lies and stroked my hair as you confessed your undying love for me. You kept telling me that everything was okay even if I didn't believe it, knowing that one day we'd be casualties in a war we didn't choose to fight. You threaded your fingers between my own in public, making me carry my soul in my smile as you stood beside me.

But then things changed... you changed, and that's when you broke away.

You stopped kissing my tears away as I woke up in the middle of the night, frightened by some omen that haunted me in my sleep. You stopped holding my hand as we picked out fruit at the farmer's market. You wouldn't even acknowledge my request for assistance with soil samples, something that was strictly Academy related.

But I knew you had come. I felt your presence linger in the halls; the small sparks of thunder told of everything you were trying to hide.

I slid past the thick doors, and made my way to where I felt you the strongest. My heart stopped as I realized where I was, and I slowly cracked the mahogany doors open.

And that's when I saw you intimate with someone I considered my friend. I felt the tears make their way down my face as it hit me with a single blow.

You were just pretending.

You don't think that I see that look of regret and sorrow in your eyes as you glance at me, but I do. You remember how you left me, and I know you felt that pain from someone who said they loved you in the past. You ask me how do I know, like you buried it under your heart perfectly. I smile gently and put my head in my hands, whispering out, 'I know what you tell yourself in the mirror...'

Then it hits you while you hold the Samurai's hand.

I know you better than you know yourself.

And later on, you force me to the wall and try to dive into my eyes. You can't read them as you used to, they've darkened to your icy glare. Your uneven breath dances on my lips and I try to maintain my nonchalant stare. And you catch me off guard and press your lips forcefully against my own. The tears flow freely and I tried to push you away, but you hold me down and force me to feel what I've missed for almost a year.

'I'm so sorry Dustin... I can finally say goodbye...'

You pull away from me, and I feel myself sliding to the pavement. 'Please don't leave me...' I say as I throw my voice into your mind.

'... Don't leave me like this...'

fin