A/N: Thank you so much for all the love you gave Build a Home! (Over 1000 views in the first week!) I cannot express how truly happy I am to have someone else read and actually like my work; it made my day every time I opened my inbox and read one of your reviews. I will certainly keep writing - and hopefully as fast as I've been doing so too. This is To Live in Forever, the continuation and end of Miku and Kaito's story (Not to worry! I still have RinxLen and GakuxLuka to do!). As before, the plot may start out kind of slow, but if I jumped into life changing dramatic romance without any kind of lead in or relationship building, I have the feeling it would be very unrealistic and unsatisfying.

Stick with me and keep reading! I'm sure soon you'll love this just as much as Build a Home!


Chapter 1: Mint

Her eyes flash open for the fourth time that night. Just barely stifling the scream that threatens to burst from her mouth, she breathes heavily, unevenly, and clutches the sheets of the sofa bed.

Every night it's been like this; awakening up in a cold sweat hour after hour. She had thought that perhaps being here, sleeping in a new environment, things would change. But they haven't. Her dreams are still filled with pain and darkness, her nocturnal waking hours only confusion and fear.

A groan escapes from her mouth and she clutches her shoulders tightly as if she could hold herself together by physical means. She bites the fear back, the stress, trying so hard to just this once calm herself. But after only a few moments she falls apart, tangling in the sheets and curling in on herself, gasping for breath that won't come.


A paper is plopped down in front of Kaito as he works on his mathematical problems. Glancing at it, he realizes that it is the grading sheet for the house project everyone had turned in a while ago. 97%. Not bad at all. With a triumphant grin, he turns to the pink-haired girl next to him and waves it her. She gives an irritated pout, showing him her own paper which is marked with an 89%. He laughs and turns back to his math paper, finishing it by the time the lunch bell rings.

"Are you going to eat with us today?" Luka asks as they collect their things. Kaito had been somewhat successful in assimilating Miku into the lunchroom where they would all sit at the same table, chatting, like any other group of friends. Miku usually seemed to be at a tentative ease, however, there were some days when she just wasn't up to it. On those days Kaito and she ate by themselves in the library or courtyard.

"I don't know." he admitted. "I haven't seen her yet today so I haven't had the chance to ask." The two of them had not run into each other on the way to the college grounds and they had no classes together at all. Shrugging, he begins walking out the classroom and down the hallway to the class Miku should be coming out from.

He waits by the door until the small girl steps out. He calls her name and she turns and looks at him. She straightens up and strides over with a keenness that surprises him. Looking her over, he frowns. The dark circles under her eyes seem to have expanded, leaking into her cheeks like a shadow at sunset. If possible, she appears even paler than usual, and despite the way she seems to have been soothed when she saw him, there seems to be a sort of stiffness in her, as if every muscle is tensed.

"There you are," He smiles down at her. "Everyone was just wondering what you wanted to do for lunch." The girl quickly ducks her head and looks at the ground, fingers fidgeting with the strap of her bag. "It's okay if you want to be alone today. I just have to go tell them." He assures her and she lets out a low sigh, nodding her head. He gestures for her to follow him.

Trodding through the corridors, Kaito searches through the crowd for a familiar face. He catches sight of Len exiting a classroom and waves to him, walking over. The blonde boy inclines his head upwards to the taller man. "Hey Kaito. What's up?"

"Ah, Len," Kaito speaks "Can you tell everyone we won't be there today?" Len looks around Kaito, who follows his gaze to the empty space beside him. Kaito raises his eyebrows but Len just sighs good-naturedly and pats him on the arm.

"No problem." he reassures Kaito "Tell her I said hi, alright?" The blue haired man nods awkwardly and rushes off to retrace his steps and find wherever Miku went to. He only has to backtrack around the last corner until he discovers her leaning against a wall.

It wasn't unusual for her to disappear when he had to tell one of his friends something regarding her; perhaps it's embarrassing to have people fuss over her? Holding her bag tightly, she looks extremely guilty and nervous. He smiles at her, trying to convey that she hadn't done anything wrong.

"Where do you want to go?" he asks her. She shrugs apathetically. Thinking for a moment, a grin spreads across his face. "Let's try someplace new. Outside campus." He proclaims, striding quickly towards the lobby. There's a small shuffle from behind him as the girl removes herself from the wall and follows. "If we hurry we can get back before classes start."


"Is this place open?" Miku questioned, staring at the bistro in front of them. Kaito nods enthusiastically.

"All year around." He assured her and stepped forward. The door gave off a shop-bell jingle as they entered. The café in which they arrived was decorated in a calm Italian style, as if it had used to be a pizza place. The walls were white plaster with grapevines painted across them; the floor a green and cream checkerboard. However, the most conspicuous fact about the room was that most of the space was dominated by large coolers filled with ice cream. A clerk watched them indifferently from behind a counter.

"What's your favorite flavor?" Kaito asked. Miku's expression was priceless; she looked as if he had just told her that the ocean was yellow and made out of old chewing gum. Looking at the vats of frozen desserts to Kaito and back again, she raised an eyebrow and grew a disbelieving expression.

"You want to have ice cream for lunch?" She questioned, her small smile feeling like a wave of relief over Kaito. When was the last time he had seen her smile? Had he ever?

"If you could have your favorite food for lunch, wouldn't you want to?" He chuckled, gliding over to the display. She seemed to think on this as she joined him there, observing the myriad of flavors. The clerk drifted over and impassively asked what they wanted.

Kaito hastily noted all the flavors and made a random choice – it didn't really matter what he chose. He'd love anything. – Miku blinks a couple times and then blankly squeaks out 'vanilla'. The worker moves away without a word, filling their cones and returning. Kaito pays the man and turns back to Miku.

"Inside or out?" She glances once around the place and then to the sitting area outdoors. They pick the exterior and sit in the chilly January air, enjoying their unorthodox meal. Kaito suddenly remembers the grade he had received earlier and pulls out the paper, holding up for Miku to see.

"It's for our project." he explains as she takes it out of his hands. "Looks like we did pretty well." Miku reads intently through the grading rubric while slowly whittling away at her dessert with small precise licks. As she silently ruminates, Kaito turns back to his own ice cream.

"I've never had this kind before." he murmured, observing the minty green sweet-cream and chocolate chips. Miku glances at him confusedly. "The ice cream," he clarifies. "I don't think I've ever had it before." She blinks at him.

"Do you like it?" Kaito turns to her thoughtfully, holding the cone a little in front of him. From its position, the mint-green of the cream seems to match and blend into the green of her hair. Mint-green. He had never thought of the color as that. He smiles.

"Yeah, it's good."


They dash back into the main building just as the bell rings. Far off voices begin to filter out of the cafeteria and into the passages and stairwells. Kaito swings his bag over his shoulder as they reach Miku's classroom. She pauses by the door and looks up at him, an almost invisible grin - like a pinprick of sun between storm clouds – appearing.

"I liked that." She spoke ponderingly. Kaito laughed quietly.

"What's not to like?" The hallways are beginning to empty of people and he glances around, determining how much time he has left before class. "We can go again if you want." She nods and Kaito shifts his bag before raising a hand in farewell.
"I'll see you soon," he promises, "class is about to start." She waves as well, but only slightly. As Kaito walks away and turns around the corner, he swears he sees the girl – who was smiling so contentedly a while ago – quietly deflate, becoming smaller and weaker every second.


P.S.: The titles have an actual meaning; Build a Home To Live in Forever. Just want to make sure everyone got that :)