It was a warm autumn day when Anna found herself in a nice cafeteria across the road to their school, with a pen in her hand, a notebook in front of her, and a blabbering Pirika in a chair across the table.

"So, I told him…"

She had been making her way down the stairs at the entrance of the building when she had been practically assaulted by what some would call her blue-haired friend. They both had a free period and quite honestly, the blonde had been looking forward to an hour of peace and quiet and a warm sip of caffeine as she worked on an essay she had due that week, but destiny seemed to be against her that day.

If she were to be honest, Anna would say that she didn't even know when it was that Pirika actually began to talk to her; the girl hadn't always been as friendly as she was now. But at some point, something had changed, and now she was stuck with her and her never-ending complaints.

She still spent her free period working on her essay and sipping from a cup of hot coffee. Pirika's chatter was drowned in the background with very few responses from her part, but Anna didn't care, because even if the blue-haired girl now came to her whenever she had something to say, she must be well-aware of the fact that she really wasn't interested at all.

"I mean, it wasn't as if…"

She was in the midst of a sentence when her ears picked up the sound of familiar footsteps coming her way; a moment later, a hand was laid on her upper back, fingers tangling in her long, blonde hair. She merely titled her head to the side, knowing exactly who it was. After all, no one ever dared to touch her but him.

"You didn't forget about tonight, did you?" he asked, his voice smooth and permanently cheerful.

In response, she shook her head.

"Okay, then! I'll see you home."

She made a small sound of agreement in her throat, before her pen began to once again scrap against the paper. She never noticed Pirika staring at her, wide-eyed and excited, from across the table.

Until she spoke. "Tonight?" she asked, leaning forward with a grin on her face. "What's going on tonight?"

Anna made the wise choice of ignoring her.

"Are you two going on a date?" she concluded by herself in a mischievous tone.

This time, the blonde rolled her eyes. "Of course not."

"What do you mean 'of course not'?" she laughed. "You say that as if it was natural!"

"Because it is," she replied simply, pointedly, her gaze on her notebook.

"Natural—you know, between fiancées—would be that you'd want to spend most of your time together."

She hummed. "We live together."

Pirika rolled her eyes. "That doesn't count, your house is always full."

"Yoh wants his friends around," she answered with a shrug. "The house is always clean that way, so I don't mind."

"I guess that's true, but don't you want some time alone, too… you know, like a date? You seriously never wish for that?"

"The whole purpose of a date would be to enjoy each other's presence, Pirika," the blonde said.

The other girl barked a laugh. "And you mean to say that you don't enjoy his presence? Come on, Anna, even I notice that you do."

"I didn't say I didn't."

Amused, Pirika rested her chin on the palm of her hand. "You know, talking to you is like trying to decipher a puzzle."

Anna gave her a look that clearly showed she could hardly care less. The Ainu laughed, and she turned the page on her notebook.

"I know you love Yoh," she pressed in a sing-song voice. "We all do. But since you think we're blind and stupid, I promise I won't outright tell anyone if you admit it."

Annoyed, she made eye-contact. "I do love Yoh," she said, not an ounce of hesitance in her voice. "And I don't care who knows."

Her eyes widening, Pirika sat back and sputtered, "Then what is the problem?"

"He doesn't feel the same," she answered with a simplicity that stunned her, her attention already focused back on her notebook.

The blue-haired girl remained silent for at least a minute, and Anna was starting to wonder if the shock had been too much for her brain to handle or if she was trying to find a way to comfort her. She also wondered whether she should gather her belongings and leave before she could open her mouth to speak words she didn't understand as much as Anna didn't need to hear.

The tense atmosphere was broken with a stunned whisper, "Anna, Yoh adores you."

The blonde rolled her eyes. Maybe she should have left, after all. "He does not," she denied. "He's only in this because of his family."

"That is not true!"

"I think I know better than you," she deadpanned, sparing her a look.

"Then if you do know better, what are you still doing with him?"

Anna blinked. "Excuse me?"

"If you're so sure he doesn't love you, why are you still with him?"

"For the same reasons why he is still with me, Pirika," she answered.

Raising her eyebrows, she seemed to attack her as she leaned forward and turned steel-hard eyes on her figure. "So, is it worth it, you say? Sacrificing your happiness to be with a man who doesn't love you, just because his family's imposed it to you two?"

Anna clicked her tongue in annoyance. "I never said I wasn't happy by his side." Placing the cap on her pen, she set it aside on the table as her friend digested the information in silence.

"…So, you believe he will make you happy," she concluded.

The blonde heaved a sigh and shut her notebook. "My happiness is up to me, not him."

Her words seemed to step on her nerves enough for her to drop the act and let out a low growl. "Really, can't you see how much he loves you?"

Anna rolled her eyes and sat back in her seat, taking a sip of her still warm drink. "No, because guess what? He doesn't."

Fire flashed in her friend's blue eyes, and she thought that maybe this was an interesting conversation, after all. It wasn't always that someone managed to get a real rise out of Pirika and it wasn't as if that wasn't amusing to watch.

"And if he really isn't, why don't you do something about it?" she demanded.

Crossing her arms over her chest, she raised an eyebrow. "Something like what?" she seemed to challenge. "And about what?"

"Why don't you… try to win him over? Haven't you ever tried to… I don't know, seduce him?"

"What for?"

"Ugh, I don't know, Anna—to make him fall in love with you, maybe?" she asked, clearly frustrated.

Anna was torn between hissing and continuing to push her buttons. She decided on the second option, as it showed more promise of entertainment.

"What for?" she goaded.

"To have a happy marriage built on love!" she nearly snapped.

"I'd rather have one built on trust."

"Are you sure what would be enough?"

Her answer was firm. "Yes."

While she was clearly taken aback by her straightforwardness, Anna watched as her friend took a deep breath and tried to steel her expression in a calm one; she had no doubt that a different approach was due soon, and her intuition didn't fail her.

"I still think you could… win his heart," Pirika spoke slowly, carefully choosing her words. "Rather easily, I'd say."

Raising her eyebrows, the blonde decided to humor her a bit more. "And how would I do that?"

"By being more… open," she suggested. "By wearing more… revealing clothes. By…"

"By changing," she completed.

Pirika shrugged. "More or less."

Anna huffed. "If Yoh does not love me for who I am now, he will never love me. I refuse—I really do—to change for him. Or for any other man, for that matter."

"And what if he walks out on you tomorrow?" she challenged, chin up and eyes burning with determination.

The blonde sighed. "Then he will walk out on me tomorrow."

"You can't let him do that!" she nearly shrieked.

"Yes, I can," she answered calmly, yet firmly. "I can't stop him."

"Yes, you can!" she argued. "You can do anything. He loves you. But having him show it and actually feeling happiness… that's all up to you, Anna. You've got to let him in."

With that, she slung her bag over her shoulder and rose from the table, brushing past her friend, who simply raised her eyebrows in response to her outburst. Reaching for her last sip of coffee, she grasped her pen and her notebook and slid them both in her own bag.

Her next class was with a teacher that hardly ever tolerated tardiness.

Anna frowned as she looked at herself into the mirror. It was a step she usually skipped in the mornings, save for the few seconds it took to make sure her appearance was decent. She definitely wasn't one of those girls that loved themselves so much they spent hours gazing at their reflections, and for good reason. So the mere moment felt unnatural to her now.

Anna wasn't an insecure person; she had accepted herself just the way she was a long time ago. Once she realized that there was no way she could change her past or the way it had shaped her personality, it had been easy to do so. But there was something about this situation that disarmed her, something about the discussion with Pirika that pulled at a sensitive string of her heart.

It had taken her a total of ten minutes to prepare for the occasion, and now she was wearing a simple black dress and the only pair of heels she owned—a classy-looking, nude-colored pair. Her blonde hair was straight, falling over her shoulders and down her back; it was its natural tendency, so all she had needed to do was run a brush through it. She had done nothing to her face except put on a touch of mascara, but her skin was nice, having always been flawless, and her cheekbones were high enough to make her stand out and even be labeled as pretty—in her opinion, anyway.

The reason why her outfit was black was simple: because she liked black. It was effortless and it contrasted nicely with her pale complexion. It also suited her personality, she supposed. She also liked red, but she didn't have a dress that color. She didn't have many clothes in general, because she hardly ever went out outside of school, and there they had a uniform. She had worn the dress before, but the heels changed it completely. The soft material clung to her body, enhancing her curves, which she had liked when she bought it, and the shoes made her legs look longer and nicer than they actually were.

She looked plain, though. She supposed guys weren't particularly attracted to plain women. At least, that was what everybody said. Although, they were also supposed to like women who were themselves. That was what her rational mind told her. But then again, either she was too rational or the world around her too stupid, because she had found that none of her beliefs actually fit anywhere—everything collided and clashed in the most horrible of ways.

She didn't care, though. She wouldn't change, either way. This was who she was and this was what people got if they wanted her. They usually didn't, but that was also their choice, and one that Anna respected. She was capable of respecting Yoh's decision if he ever made one, too.

With that thought in mind, she squared her shoulders and made her way out of the bedroom with all the confidence she could muster.

Her fiancé was waiting for her downstairs, leaning against the wall in the hallway, and gave her his usual, charming grin.

She didn't mind not being noticed. She didn't want attention.

But she couldn't deny the fact that she would like to see, just once, something shift in his eyes at the sight of her.

"Are you certain that this is what you want?"

One of the reasons why Anna hated the Asakura elders so much was because they had the tendency to undermine Kino's decisions. That was the subject at every single meeting. Her. Yoh. Them. Was it right—the choice that had been made? They didn't seem to be so sure, though Anna didn't know what could have happened for her to become the target of their mistrust, since all she ever did was be loyal to the Asakura family. But then again, she never did have a family of her own, so maybe it was that that bothered them? The fact that she was an orphan? Kino hadn't seemed to mind, because she had such incredible powers, but the truth was that Anna didn't know what to think anymore.

So, she usually resumed at not thinking about it at all. It was easy enough, she had more important matters to focus on.

But these meetings were always tense for her, because with all the discussion going back and forth around the table, all the speculations, all the unfounded conclusions, the arguments, the accusations… Yoh could hear them all. And she was scared, because despite what she had told Pirika, she did care if Yoh suddenly spoke up and said he didn't want her. She was expecting it and she would accept it without a doubt, but that didn't make her any less apprehensive, because no matter how he would do it, it still wouldn't feel good.

And she knew that. After all, the blue-haired girl was right. What had she ever done to keep him? He had always been the one to save her, to take care of her… She had trained him, alright, and she had no doubt that Yoh knew she had done it for his own safety, but in the end, that was what she had only ever done, and she had done it for him—not for them.

"Yes."

In the end, whether he said or he proved it, his answer remained the same. And all the emotional rollercoaster was left in the past, disappearing from her system and almost making her forget. Almost, but not quite, because the next time, she knew she would feel it again.

And yet, there was something different about his answer this one time. Something about his hard tone or his serious expression that had her looking up at him with wide, shocked eyes, and walking out of the restaurant with a frown on her face.

"You seemed very… sure of yourself back there," she commented once she was finally unable to help herself anymore.

He came to a stop in front of his car, and she turned around to face him. "What do you mean?" he asked, genuinely confused.

"When they asked you… if that was what you wanted. About the wedding, I mean," she clarified. "You were… confident." She shrugged. "More than I am used to seeing you."

Yoh grinned. "Well, yeah, because… I know what I'm saying. And I'm kind of getting tired of having them contest that. I'm sure—this is what I want. A life with you."

It took a moment for the statement to register in her mind. Her brows furrowed at the same time her eyes filled with tears. "Why?" she breathed out.

He smiled gently—albeit somewhat confusedly. "Because I love you," he said, as though it should have been obvious to her. "Isn't that enough of a reason?"

The breath was literally knocked out of her body when the words reached her ears, and they blocked out every sound that came after that. A tear escaped her eye and trailed down her cheek, unnoticed. Her arms, which were wrapped around her waist, seemed to be the only thing holding her together. She never noticed his form moving closer, never saw his hand reach behind her to open the car door for her.

In the end, his voice was the one that snapped her out of her daze. "Come on," he coaxed. His palm was warm as he laid it on her hip, and her eyes flickered to it before glancing up at him once more. "Get inside. It's cold."

Blinking against the stinging sensation, she tried to find her voice to speak. "I…"

"Come on," he insisted, "Anything you have to tell me, you can do it in the car. It's cold, I don't want you to get sick." With that, he lightly grasped her elbow and guided her inside.

She flopped heavily down in her seat, her movements robotic as she put on her seat-belt. A moment later, the door opened and he slipped in much more gracefully, turning the key in the ignition before imitating her actions. Heat began to blast through the vents as he glanced at her.

"So… what was that?" he asked, genuinely curious.

At the sight of his brown eyes, Anna stopped thinking. Leaning across the center console, she grasped his face into her hands and pulled his lips down to hers.

"I love you, too," she whispered, amber eyes glassy, as she pulled away.

Yoh laughed lightly. Tracing his knuckles over her cheek, he wiped away the tear that had escaped her. "I know that, Anna," he said, his voice gentle and soothing. "I've always known that." Placing his hand back on the steering wheel, he glanced at her one more time. "Are you alright?"

Anna nodded, and barely managed to answer in a whisper, "Yes."

"Alright," he said, still eyeing her with an amused, strange look in his eyes. "Let's go home. I've had enough of my family for a year."

A/N: This is the other one-shot I was telling you about. It took me a while, but here it is! I always found the idea of a more insecure Anna worthy of exploring, and this is what came out on my first attempt.

Outfit on my Flickr account.

Please review if you enjoyed this! :)