A/N: Ok, well, this is my first attempt at writing a ShizNat one-shot. I reread it a few times and realized how many mistakes there were, but I still might've missed a few. Ahh.. I'm paranoid that I'm missing something here..

Constructive criticism largely appreciated, so don't be hesitant in giving any kind of pointers/remarks/comments/so on.. :D

Warning: The characters might be a bit OOC since I last watched Mai HiME two years ago. Even from reading endless other fics, I'm still not sure if I portrayed them well or not. Please don't flame. :o

Disclaimer: Does it seem like I own Mai HiME and its characters? If I did, Shizuru would sound a lot better in the English version of Mai HiME. I mean, have you HEARD her voice?!

'Til Forever Ends

"Shizuru," called Natsuki in a singsong voice. She was walking towards the kitchen, where her girlfriend was preparing lunch for the two. She heard her shuffling around as she neared the room. Her breath hitched as she stood at the doorway, staring at the sight before her. Shizuru was sitting on the counter with her body half turned, head facing the open cabinet. She was wearing light blue jeans that fit her lower body perfectly and a tan-colored cotton shirt, which was currently settled against her slim stomach, just above her navel. In addition to the fair amount of creamy skin that was revealed, Shizuru's legs were set in a seductive position, which caused Natsuki's jaw to hang open, forming an 'o' shape. She didn't notice when Shizuru closed the cabinet door, resting her head against it.

"Ara, enjoying the view?" she said in a teasing tone.

Natsuki hastily replied, "N-no!"

"Oh, really? Natsuki must've been, since she was drooling. Ara, I wonder what Natsuki was thinking about." Shizuru put a hand to her mouth, covering her sly grin.

"B-baka!" Natsuki said as a blush rose to her cheeks. She wiped her mouth with the sleeve of her navy blue button-up shirt, only to realize that Shizuru had tricked her. She glared at her, receiving only a gentle smile as Shizuru gracefully got off of the counter and walked over to another, where she was preparing her sandwiches, with Natsuki on her heels. As Shizuru added mayonnaise to the younger girl's portion, she felt two strong arms snake around her waist and Natsuki's chin coming to rest on her shoulder. She leaned into the embrace, feeling the other girl's cheek brush up against her neck.

"Extra mayonnaise, please," Natsuki breathed into the older girl's ear, causing shivers to run down her spine.

"You have enough of that stuff. You're lucky enough I'm even letting you have any at all, so be glad."

"But I rarely even ate any ever since you moved in!" the younger girl exclaimed with a pout.

"You ate some with your ramen last night."

"It was only sprinkled with mayo."

"It was slathered," Shizuru said, "Now, if you want any at all on the rest of your sandwiches, I recommend you stop complaining. As long as I'm here, I won't let you have too much of that vulgar substance."

"... It's not vulgar! It's delicious!" Natsuki let out a small growl that didn't come out as fierce as she would've liked.

"Ara, my little puppy must be hungry."

"You bet I am. And I'm not a puppy! I'm a wolf, so you better add some more mayo, or else I'm going to have to find something else to eat."

"Ara, would that 'something' be me? I'd enjoy Natsuki eating me, as much as I would enjoy eating my little wolf," Shizuru threw back, causing Natsuki to turn a dark shade of red. Shizuru let out a small chuckle at the increase in warmth at the side of her neck. "Now, if you don't want me to 'eat' you, you should let go of me so that I can give you these sandwiches you want so much, although I definitely wouldn't mind tasting you." This statement caused Natsuki to quickly retreat to the other side of the kitchen, her face burning.

"Baka! I wouldn't want to eat you, anyway! I rather eat my mayo!"

Shizuru paused where she was and turned around with tears in her eyes. She sniffed a bit, and said, "So, Natsuki likes her mayo more than she likes me?.." Natsuki turned to face Shizuru, causing the two girls' eyes to lock.

"Of course I do. Isn't that obvious?" Natsuki replied in a serious tone, causing shock to flash across Shizuru's eyes, quickly turning into disbelief mixed with pain and sadness. Tears flowed down her porcelain face as she saw no playfulness in the emerald orbs she loved. "I don't like you, Shizuru. I did before, but now it's different. Now, I'll never be able to just like you anymore, I'll only be able to love you more and more every single day we spend together. I'll fall deeper in love with you, with no regrets, no second thoughts. That's how it'll always be, Shizuru. I love you, and I'll always love you. Our hearts and our souls are bound together by our love, so no matter where we go, we'll always be together. Don't you ever forget that."

Natsuki was now holding her beloved in her arms, stroking her hair while tears continued to slide down her beautiful face. Although she was crying, inside the older girl was relieved that Natsuki loved her more than anything else, so happy that she just couldn't keep her mask up any longer. She wanted Natsuki to see and more importantly, love, the real her, not the mysterious Kaichou that everyone saw her as. As her tears of happiness subsided, Natsuki gently pushed her out of the embrace. She lifted her hand to rest on her cheek, brushing the tears away with her thumb.

"I'm sorry if I got you worried there. But I'll never be able to say that I merely like you, because that's definitely not true. I love you, and I'm yours, as you are mine," Natsuki smiled. Happiness practically radiated from the girl in her arms, so the emerald-eyed girl wound her arms around the chestnut haired woman and leaned towards her face. Lips met in a gentle, but loving kiss, moving slowly against each other. Neither one of the pair felt the need to deepen it, as all they wanted was to reassure the other that they'd always be deeply in love, forever and evermore.

Lips finally parted, but the two remained embracing each other, feeling the warmth of their love. Shizuru rested her forehead against Natsuki's as they looked into each other's eyes. "I love you, too, Natsuki," was all Shizuru could think of saying. Natsuki's smile broadened at the simple remark and pulled her love in for another kiss, just as sweet as the one before.

When they parted once again, Natsuki hesitantly said, "I think we should eat now.." And as if on cue, her stomach growled, causing the girl's face to light up in embarrassment.

"Ara, ara.. I'm sorry; I forgot that my little wolfie was hungry. Did you really have to ruin the mood, though? I was just getting started, too," Shizuru chuckled.

"Shizuru.." Natsuki grunted and shook her head, causing Shizuru to giggle in amusement. Natsuki helped Shizuru bring the places into the living room, and set them on the table. They sat down to eat while chatting happily about little things.

And so the two continued with their daily bustle, becoming happier each and every day spent together. Their love for each other only grew as time passed. They did everything together, showing the world what true love is. And although their relationship in the past was once nearly destroyed, they had worked together to mend it, mending their torn hearts at the same time. One being able to love again; the other being able to be loved for the person she was deep down inside of her.

Some people below who looked up to the afternoon sky one day claimed to have seen two faint figures embracing each other, shining brightly, disappearing behind the clouds. They heard whispers of love that they'd always remember..

'Our endless love binds us together, from now 'til forever ends..'

A/N: OMG! I FINALLY MANAGED TO FINISH THIS SOMEHOW! LOL. Many thanks to ManiazAzn and Anakin ffx fan for urging me to continue writing, and for giving me the confidence I greatly needed. Without them, this wouldn't have come to. :)
Also, thanks to crzyxswirls (that's her fictionpress account, since she doesn't have a fanfiction account), who is a very good friend of mine, both online and offline. She helped me decide the last line, which I had trouble on. That also helped me decide the title, which I've changed four times before I settled on the current one.
If you want, check out her stories and drop a review. She'll greatly appreciate it, as will I! -whispers- They're realllyyy good!!

Also, I was debating with myself whether or not to end this after the second kiss, but I ended up continuing it since I didn't want to leave out what happened to the sandwiches! LOL Retarded, huh? XD Anywayy, I'd greatly appreciate it if you left a review. I'd especially like to know whether or not you think the ending was well written, since it felt rushed and a bit stiff to me.

Oh, and I apologize to any readers who may see familiar content. I've read so many stories, that I'm worried that I might have accidently written something similar to something that someone else has written. So, if any of you read something of mine that sounds like your own content, please notify me about it. I'm really sorry if you feel as if I copied your ideas.

Reviews make me happy, so if you may, please leave one for me if you can.
Much love, much thanks to all of you out there. :)