Disclaimer: I do not own Vampire Knight ((besides the first 15 volumes, the art book, the fan book, a cute Zero key-chain, and a sexy sexy wall scroll with our two boys on it)), it belongs to Matsuri Hino-sensei and always will. Also, the songs Between the Raindrops, Kiss Me Slowly, and Sound of Silence belong to their respective artists (Lifehouse/Natasha Bedingfield, Parachute, and Simon and Garfunkel) and I thank them for creating such lovely works of art.

The whole town had been drenched in never-ending rain for the last week. One moment it was sunny and warm, the next, the whole town was soaked in a freak flash thunderstorm that had yet to let up. Most people had been practical enough to stay indoors whenever possible for the last six days. Sometimes the occasion group of kids would venture from their homes to splash around and get each other wet, but eventually they would have to go back inside.

The once bustling town looked like a sad little dump to the residents and it there was not one person who would say that they liked the rain after the week was finished.

The rain pounded on the sidewalk relentlessly, puddles forming where the wear and tear of the day had worn in down slightly. The streets had transformed into rushing rivers with their only outlet being the sewer systems below the pavement. The whole town seemed to have changed over the course of a few days.

The street lights shining above the world, lit up each and every drop of water before it hit the ground and joined its brothers and sisters racing down the rivers. Occasionally, a light from a window would shine down on the bleak world and illuminate the drops rolling down the window pane before the light would disappear and the world was dark once more.

The lone figure walking down the sidewalk was paying none of it any mind. All he saw was his shoes hitting the wet pavement, and the occasion droplet of water coming up and hitting him in the face. He really didn't see any of it though as his mind was in a completely different place. It had wandered back to about an hour ago when he was safe and warm inside his pseudo-home, the library.

1 Hour Prior

He had been curled up with a book, lost then as well, in a world far away from the dreary place that his town was now. The library was completely empty except for him, but that was to be expected considering what was going on outside. He had been so immersed in his book that when his phone rang, he jumped from his seat letting gravity take everything to the floor.

The phone skittered around on the floor due to the violent vibrations telling him he needed to answer it pronto. The screen showed a handsome man in his mid-twenties and he had to smile when he pressed accept.

"Hey what's up?"

"Be quiet and listen to me."

That wasn't his lover's voice… it was a female.

"He needs me to tell you this: it's over."

And then she hung up.

Zero hadn't been able to believe what he had just heard. He had stood, unmoving, his phone still clutched tightly in his hand next to his ear. Surely it had to be some sort of joke on Kaname's part. Or maybe he had accidentally taken the picture for Kaname? After all, Yuuki and Kaname were almost identical if you didn't take in their genders. Figuring that was the case, he had checked his recent calls and confirmed his fear.

It had definitely been Kaname's number.

Feeling his heart tighten, Zero quickly gathered his belongings, his hands shaking just enough for it to become a difficult task, and he ventured out in the pouring rain. He needed to get to Kaname's apartment as soon as possible. He needed to see his lover… or ex-lover depending on how that conversation went.

The rain outside seemed to be falling at an even faster rate than it had when he had first gone into the library to escape the freezing liquid. Somewhere in the back of his mind he was hoping that the rain would soon let up so that he and Kaname could have a date in town without having to be under a titanium umbrella the whole time to stop the damn rain. But it was a fleeting thought because deep down he was terrified that the call was real; deep down he felt that Kaname was leaving him.

The roads to Kaname's apartment were terrible; his shoes kept slipping on the slick pavement and he had almost biffed it twice. It was times like these he was glad to be a vampire—his reflexes had saved his face and the bag full of his stuff. As he hurried along the sidewalk, the fear he'd felt in the library started bubbling over. Kaname and he had of course fought before, sometimes pretty violently, but they always ended up sorting it out and then making it up to each other in a sort of intimate way. But the two of them had never had any sort of confliction that would warrant such a drastic reaction.

In a flash, all the arguments they'd ever had ran through his head. The ones they'd had at the academy were blurry in his mind and the details were vague, but they seemed to be the most bloody and violent. After they had graduated, they had become increasingly less combative and more cooperative. Especially Zero, he had a tough time at the academy dealing with Kaname and his relationship and all that it entailed. All the fights that occurred post-graduation were small compared to the first ones.

Without really getting anywhere in his search for what he'd done wrong, Zero continued his trek through the pouring rain to Kaname's apartment. He was only a block away now and his heart was pounding in apprehension. It usually raced whenever he was near his lover, it was just the effect the pureblood had on people, but his blood didn't hold excitement for what was to come; it held cold fear.

Shivering in the rain and closely resembling a sad, wet puppy, Zero made his way up to the apartment complex that housed Kaname Kuran's penthouse. The doorman waved and smiled at him, ushering him quickly inside and out of the rain.

"Kiryuu-san, would you like a towel to dry off?"

Zero smiled at the old man and shook his head, water droplets falling softly to the floor, "No, that's alright. I'll ask Kaname while I'm up there."

The elevator ride up was quick enough that Zero didn't have time to really think about anything besides what he was going to say when he found Kaname relaxing on his couch, probably in his favorite black robe. He would have no idea what the phone call was about, nor would he care with his wet and shivering lover standing there in the doorway.

The bell dinged, signaling his ride was over. And Zero rushed to the door he had memorized detail for detail, and pulled out his spare key.

"Hey, Kaname, "he called as he removed the key from the lock, "sorry to bug you but I need to ta—"

And that was when his whole sky fell. There, just beyond where all of his lover's shoes were situated neatly, was a sight he never thought he'd come across. Ever. Kaname was pinning their friend Yuuki to the floor, his lips moving intimately with hers. Her hands were buried in Kaname's wavy chocolate hair, pulling his body close to hers. Zero's heart was no longer pumping blood. It just seemed to stop and he couldn't breathe. It was as if all the oxygen had left with his voice.

"—lk."

With his sentence finished, Kaname seemed to realize that he was no longer alone with the girl who had worshipped him while they were in school. His head lifted from Yuuki's and his burgundy eyes met Zero's lilac ones.

"Zero…"

Yuuki's head extended and she glared at the hunter. "Why are you here, D?"

Everything seemed to stop for a split second as his mind struggled to catch up with what was happening. The current situation didn't seem possible in Zero's mind. How could Kaname really leave him after all this time for a girl he'd rejected so long ago? What had he done to make Kaname up and drop him like an outdated toy like this? Had he angered the pureblood somehow? Did Kaname finally realize he had been lying with the dogs, so to speak? What happened?

Zero felt tears form in the corners of his eyes, but something internally stopped them. Why should he cry over this? These damn vampires were screwing up his life, again, and he was just going to sit around at whine about it? No. Not this time. Rage bubbled up inside him and shot past the point of no return.

Without one word, Zero whipped out Bloody Rose and pointed it at Yuuki's head. For some reason, he felt like this was all her fault and not only the hunter in him screamed for retribution, but the Zero that had lived with Kaname for the last three years raged for her pain. The soft look he had once worn for this girl disappeared in an instant and was replaced with the dead hard look that was reserved for his vampire targets.

"What. The hell. Is going on here?" He growled, as he unlocked the safety on his gun. There was no shaking in his hand as he kept the gun trained on the moving vampires. He was tempted to aim it at Kaname as well, but he didn't want to send the wrong message if this all turned out to be a misunderstanding.

"It's none of your business low-life."

Zero's eyes flashed a dangerous blood red at the woman's words. He could feel his instincts kick in as his fangs elongated and his nails grew to claws. The sound of nails scratching against metal resounded as his claws rubbed against Bloody Rose's side.

"The fuck it's not!"

"Zero, don't!"

The gun went off and the air stilled for a moment. Kaname was in front of him, his hand singeing from clutching the anti-vampire weapon. Bloody Rose was pointing up into the ceiling and Yuuki was cringing with her hands positions over her head for apparent safety.

Zero looked at Kaname and felt something die inside of him. Now, as he felt the tears, he didn't stifle them.

"Sorry to have bothered you, Kuran."

And he stormed out

1 hour later

After running for who knows how long, Zero finally stopped somewhere far away from Kaname's penthouse apartment. By this time the rain had thoroughly soaked Zero's clothing, including his boxers and his hair was probably going to be dripping water for the next three days. Now he really felt like a dejected puppy: cold, wet and thrown from his house against his will. Well, not his house, but he basically lived there. His apartment was dingy because the Association paid him jack-squat for a salary and he'd quickly grown accustomed to be lavished with luxury.

He eventually stopped directly underneath a blaring streetlamp. It was like the world was highlighting every flaw, illuminating every mistake he had ever made, the ones with his family, the ones at the academy and every single one with Kaname. Thinking back over them all made his chest constrict and breathing difficult. He hated feeling like he was a failure, like he everything he'd ever done was absolutely worthless. It made him feel weak and he hated feeling weak.

So his solution was to take out the Bloody Rose once more, check the clip for bullets, cock it and fire it at the annoying spotlight. There was a resounding pop from the exhaling of the gasses from the bulb and a flash of last burst of energy before the glass fell exactly where Zero had been standing only a moment before.

Not wanting to stop and think anymore, Zero continued to walk along the flooding sidewalks, his hands shoved inside his coat pockets. His bag was slumped over one shoulder, drenched and heavy with the rain, just like the rest of his body.

Gods he wanted this rain to just go the fuck away, it was depressing him to no end and he didn't like wallowing in misery. He did not like this situation.

He sighed because there was really nothing that he was able to do about it. He could complain and sulk but that wouldn't accomplish anything. He could try and talk with Kaname, but he felt like all that would achieve would be a major shouting match and a perhaps some minor injuries. Zero really couldn't control his temper sometimes.

With all these thoughts running around his mind combined with the drowning sound of the rain pounding on the pavement he didn't hear the frantic footsteps splashing behind him.

"Zero, wait! Please just listen!"

The hunter stopped, recognizing instantly whose voice that was. He wasn't sure he would be able to talk with Kaname yet, but he needed to do something besides wander around until he decided to go back to his shit apartment to crash.

The footsteps stopped and the rain continued falling around the two vampires, Zero still not looking at his ex. They stood like for a minute both not wanting to break the tense, vocal silence that surrounded them. There was a flashing streetlight nearby that flickered at regular intervals.

"Zero, I'm sorry you had to see that."

The hunter tensed, not wanting to blow up on the pureblood just yet. He would try a different route this time, the silent but deadly approach instead of explosive and deadly. But that didn't mean that he was confident enough to face Kaname and not break down a little on the inside knowing what he had been engaging in.

"Please Zero, you have to believe me when I say that you didn't see what you thought you saw."

"No Kaname, you have to be truthful with me." Zero turned now since he had the courage to actually speak without his voice cracking, "I—I don't know how I feel besides angry. Extremely angry and empty."

"Zero please let me tell you what happened."

The hunter glared at the pureblood and nodded, slowly, "If I feel like you're not being one hundred percent sincere, I will take off."

Kaname visible relaxed, his breath coming out as a puff of smoke in the cool air.

"For the last week, Yuuki's been calling me at work and on my private cell demanding that I break up with you. That you're not good for me, that you're too far below me."

Zero flinched at the words, knowing that the sweet girl at the academy would never speak about him that way. But she had changed once they'd graduated, physically and mentally. She was awakened as the last pureblood of her family and the human part of her was gone immediately. Zero and Kaname never spoke of it; it was too painful."

"Eventually, I blocked her from my cell and had my secretary ignore the calls that came to my office. The girl's always been resilient and it didn't leave all those years ago. She showed up at my apartment only minutes before you did.

"She looked like she was getting sick and she was drenched so I let her in for a minute to let her dry off. When I came out of the bathroom with a towel for her, she jumped me and demanded the same thing: that I leave you for her. I told her that it wasn't going to happen and that she should go back home, but she wouldn't listen."

Zero didn't know what to believe. He wanted to believe in Kaname's words. He desperately needed to believe, but something was holding him back at the moment. He decided that before he passed judgment, he would allow Kaname the benefit of the doubt and listen to the remainder of his tale.

"I was escorting her—"

"You mean forcibly removing her?"

"—to the door when we heard you unlock the door. She was quicker than me and pulled me down on top of her just as you walked in."

Zero let his words sink in, knowing that in his heart, he'd forgiven Kaname the moment he'd seen them together on the floor. He'd really just needed some time to think, some time to sort out all the jumbled thoughts playing ping-pong in his head.

A flash of lightning had them both gazing into the stormy sky before Zero found himself surrounded by Kaname's wet embrace. His heart pounding to the beat the raindrops set as they hit the ground, Zero buried his face into his lover's chest and soaked up his presence. As they stood on the deserted street, the two vampires felt the rain start to lessen up and glanced at the sky once more before their eyes locked.

Kaname leaned in and claimed Zero's mouth with his own pushing Zero back just enough that he was snug between the light post and his lover's chest. Longing filled the kiss, both feeling the misunderstanding drain away with the rain water. Kaname pushed in closer, deepening their contact, drowning himself in his lover's scent and taste. His tongue found its way to Zero's, the muscles dancing until blood flooded Zero's mouth.

Eyes flashed red and Kaname seized the chance to take control of the kiss, exploring Zero's mouth with practiced ease.

They stood on the sidewalk, under the watchful light, letting the timeless rain wash away everything around them save for each other. Nothing could touch them here, not Yuki, friends, work, and not even real life. Everything was perfect with just the two of them.

The next day the rain was gone and the world was a flooded greenhouse. Kaname pulled Zero into his chest, sighing contently, his eyes closing in fatigue. They had quickly made their way back to the apartment courtesy of Kaname's pureblood speed and had a wonderful morning together before Zero passed out in exhaustion. The sun'd had its coffee and was now wide awake and halfway across the sky, meaning it was high time for all good vampires to be long asleep, but Kaname had thoughts running through his head.

The whole situation with Yuki was, thankfully, over and coincidentally, so was the rain storm. Kaname found it odd that the other pureblood had gained so much power that she had enough control over the weather to create a week-long storm of biblical proportions. He also found it strange that she would give up so easily after bothering him for so long about their non-existent relationship. He was hoping that she had finally gotten it through her thick skull after he literally kicked her out of the building last night before running after Zero.

He sank deeper into the sheets and pulled the shivering Zero down with him. Tonight he would take the hunter out to dinner and shower him with affection and kisses; very publically. He smiled at the thought of Zero's blushing face and his fiery lilac eyes, his lips pulled into an unknowing pout and him demanding, very hushed, that Kaname knock it off.

Yes, tonight I will make Zero believe once more that I love him with all my heart.

Hope you enjoyed a little one-shot until I get the next chapter of Business Terms up. Coming of Age will take longer since I'm a little stuck and the next semester is starting in a couple days. Thanks for reading! *Hearts and Love*