Summary: Miwa was Kai's best friend. Even though he never actually said those words it was true. Miwa had always been there for him; even during the Reverse. So why did Miwa seem to be avoiding him? It wasn't like the blond would leave him... right? Set right after Link Joker before Legion Mate. NO YAOI.

A/N: This idea has been stuck in my head for a while now and I am finally getting around to writing it out. Who knew that the hardest part of writing is sitting down and writing? Oh well. Best get on with the story. Please keep in mind this is a story about friendship; it is not yaoi.

Just for referance I have chosen to write the characters names the English way ie. first name then family (last) name lest I become confused. For example Kai's name is written Toshiki Kai.

Disclaimer: I don't own Cardfight! Vanguard or this story idea since it came from a LOTR fanfic I read a long time ago and haven't been able to find since.

If You Ever Left Me

"You never know what you have till you've lost it."

Chapter 1

The Day After

Beeeeep!

A soft groan was heard as the brunet raised an arm to cover his eyes. In spite of collapsing into bed right after supper he was still tired and definitely not ready to get up. It didn't help that his bed was so warm compared to the rest of his apartment. Maybe he could sleep a bit longer...

Beeeeep!

... Or not.

Beeeeep!

After a few more loud beeps from his navy blue alarm clock, he decided that he might as well get up. With defeated sigh Kai rolled over and reached out to shut off the alarm.

Beee-

Silence restored, Kai wearily sat up and rubbed his eyes before glancing at the clock. Great. Just great. If he didn't hurry he would risk being late for school. With one fluid movement he rolled out of bed and landed on his feet. After a quick stretch and another yawn he made the bed without even bothering to turn on the light. The jade-eyed boy then turned to snatch up the blue long-sleeved shirt and black pants he had set out the night before and headed for the bathroom. He soon emerged much more awake than he had before and set about making his lunch for school.

The kitchen was small but efficient. In the far left corner was a black refrigerator with a silver stripe down the front. Beside it cabinets with a simple counter top held his pots, pans, and other cooking tools and above that were cupboards filled with dry ingredients and a few dishes to eat from. Across from fridge was a sink for dirty dishes and a small stove for cooking. It wasn't much but it worked for his needs.

Sometimes, when he had the time, he would prepare an elaborate lunch experimenting with new recipes or an unusual combination of foods and flavors but today lunch would have to be simple since he had slept in much later than he usually did. Kai scrounged around not finding much to work with—he would have to do some shopping later—and set what he could find on the counter. The black apron was hanging in its usual spot; it hadn't been moved since he left that morning three weeks ago. The morning he went to see Takuto and ended up accepting the Reverse.

The next three weeks had been the stuff of nightmares—literally. It was hard to believe that this time yesterday he had been preparing to fight Ren and Aichi, Miwa setting a steaming plate of breakfast in front of him encouraging him to eat, reminding him that he need to be at full strength during those important battles. He shivered slightly at the thought of those battles and for a moment memory overtook reality. Aichi's agonized screams echoed in his ears. Burgundy eyes filled with life became dull—almost lifeless—as Void gained control. Kai's hands shook, almost dropping the knife he held.

No, it was over. Aichi had brought him back. With a swift shake of his head he pushed the memories aside. He didn't need to think about that now.

'Just get ready for school.'

Taking a deep breath he felt his body begin to relax again. Lunch was soon finished, placed carefully in his book bag for later, and then he was on his way.

Kai paused in the doorway of his classroom as he glanced around. Sunlight flooded in through the large sparkling windows on the far right side. Simple but efficient desks faced the front in identical straight rows contrasting with the plain white walls and tiled floor. Students huddled in small groups chatting quietly about their weekend or sat at their desks preparing for the day's classes. At the front of the of the room was a small table and lectern for the teachers to use and behind those items was a large blackboard. Had it really been three weeks since he had last been here?

Stepping through the doorway at last Kai made his way to a desk near the back on the window side of the room. The brunet slid into his usual seat and pulled out what was needed for the first class. He inwardly sighed as he leafed through the thick stack of homework he'd found this morning on the table—likely put there by Miwa. After the events the day before he had been too exhausted to even notice it and since he overslept he hadn't had the time to look through it before school. Picking out one of the algebra papers he placed it on his desk then returned the others to his bag which was then placed carefully under the desk. Might as well start on it now during the few extra minutes left then to wait for more to pile up later.

"Look who decided to show up."

"How does he get away with missing so much school? My mom would kill me."

"What do you think he was doing this whole time?"

The jade-eyed boy kept his eyes on his homework, pen scratching across the surface quickly, trying to ignore the stares and whispering of his classmates. Of course they were staring, he couldn't blame the them for that, after all he had been gone for three weeks, unusual even for him. He shifted slightly in his seat, the weight of their curiosity and speculation making him uncomfortable.

Hurried footsteps came from behind and he glanced up to catch sight of Miwa's orange jacket. The blond slid into the empty seat right in right front of Kai just as class began. From the sounds of his breathing he was fairly certain that Miwa had run the entire way to school. He smirked.

"Toshiki Kai."

He looked up to find his teacher staring at him then stood as was expected. "Yes?"

"I understand that your long absence was because of unexpected family issues." Kai blinked. Family issues? His eyes flicked toward the blond in front of him, this must be Miwa's doing. Well, at least now he didn't have to try to figure out a way to explain his long absence. It hadn't even crossed his mind. Suddenly he realized that the teacher was waiting for an answer.

"That's right." He hoped it sounded more convincing than it felt.

The teacher nodded, seemly satisfied. "We are glad to have you back. I trust that you received the homework you will need to turn in by the end of this week." He nodded making a mental note to finish the work by Wednesday just to be safe.

"Good. Now, let's begin..."

It was that way in every one of his classes that morning. The students would be whispering, then the teachers would call him out and either offer a sympathetic smile, likely related to the 'family issues', or send him a look that said they didn't buy it and, of course, a reminder of when the homework was due. By the time lunch break arrived Kai was more than ready to escape the confines of his classroom. Miwa apparently had the same idea as he took off almost before the bell had finished ringing.

'He's probably waiting for me at the usual spot.' Kai sighed as he got up from his seat and stretched his tired muscles. Miwa usually walked with him to the roof but since he hadn't the grey-eyed teen was likely going to talk nonstop since they hadn't spoken all morning. Which wasn't so great for Kai as he already was getting a headache.

Yet when he arrived on the roof there was no trace of the blond anywhere. He frowned slightly. Since he had moved back Miwa had made it a point to have lunch with Kai during school, on the roof whenever the weather permitted or in the hall by the stairs if the weather was bad. Partly as an excuse to make sure that his friend was taking care of himself and as a way to get access to Kai's homemade cooking. It was a rare occasion when the grey-eyed boy missed their "lunch date." Kai had raised an eyebrow when Miwa had first used the phrase.

Miwa just grinned back. "Dont' give me that look. You know what I meant... It's just when we can hang out together like we did as kids."

Kai didn't admit it but he had really missed those times. Maybe that was why he hadn't put up much of a fight or maybe it was because he knew Miwa wasn't likely to give it up. Either way whenever they were both at school they would have their "lunch date". Well, it was Miwa's loss. Kai smirked at the thought.

He found a shady spot near the edge overlooking the tree-lined road and proceeded to eat his meal in quiet peace as no one else had come up to the roof. He watched the cars go by—there seemed to be a lot of red cars today, he noted—and listened to the musical sound of birds singing in the trees. A light breeze caressed his face and played with his chocolate brown hair. Kai leaned back against the small building that provided shade for him and gazed up at the clear blue sky. It was a shame that people had to be cooped up in a school on such a perfect day.

Without quite realizing it his eyes slowly closed and his breathing had just begun to even out when the suddenly bell rang, startling him out of his unintentional doze. Breathing hard he placed a hand over his heart to calm himself and glanced around mind still a bit foggy from the unintentional nap. Kai took several deep breaths and as his mind rapidly cleared he realized that he was late for class. Scrambling to his feet he grabbed his things and rushed back down the stairs through the halls to his classroom.

Mr Oshiro called him out before he even reached his seat but luck seemed to be with him as his teacher just let him off with a warning and short lecture about the importance of coming to class on time. Kai closed his eyes and turned his head away as if he didn't care. Soon his late arrival was forgotten as his teacher warmed to his subject—the first Mongolian invasion—and began his infamous habit of reenacting the battle. Did he think they were elementary students?

His brain went into autopilot allowing him to take down notes without really listening. Kai had never enjoyed history and Mr Oshiro wasn't helping that feeling. All he wanted right now was for school to finish up. A few hours later his wish was finally granted and the bell rang once more, declaring freedom for the captive students.

Quickly shoving his books into his bag he stood, and headed out the door. He half-expected Miwa to come up behind him, throw an arm over his stiff shoulders and ask him about spending the afternoon at Card Capital. Not that he had the time for that anyway with all the homework his teachers had piled on him. With that thought he headed back toward his apartment grateful that the blond wasn't trying to hover over him as he normally would. Though his grey-eyed friend would be hovering over him soon enough, of that Kai was certain.

There. The last groceries he had bought to restock his barren refrigerator had all finally been put away. As much as the homework had needed to be done Kai decided that groceries were of a higher priority—after all, the homework had waited this long, it could stand to wait a bit more—and ended up spending most of his afternoon shopping. His headache still hadn't gone away entirely but it had eased up some.

Pulling out the remains of his leftover lunch he sat down cross-legged on the thinly carpeted floor in front his bed. On the small table before him Kai set his plate and the homework he would work on later. Picking up the small black remote he turned on the small satellite TV to catch up on the news while he ate.

"Reports coming in from around the world say that the strange illness that has been affecting a large number of the population mysteriously vanished yesterday afternoon." Images from Europe, the Americas, Africa, and Asia flashed across the screen. Many of them showed cardfighters with dull eyes and twisted grins in the midst of battle. Their opponent's often showed various degrees of rising terror and bleak despair depending on how far into the fight they were.

"The illness had only been effecting cardfighters and appeared cause sudden changes in behavior, short-term amnesia, and extreme exhaustion." The camera focused back in on the middle aged blue-eyed reporter in an grey sweater as he stood outside of a card shop, "Cardshop Wonders". It's bright neon sign contrasted sharply with the silver-haired reporter's words as he continued. "Doctors are stumped by this surprising turn of events and-"

The words hung in the air even after the television blacked out. Kai shakily set the remote down, the food in his mouth rapidly lost its flavor and he swallowed it down hard. What appetite he had had been stolen by the untimely report. He pushed the half filled plate away. Attempting to distract himself from reliving the whole Reverse event he got up, grabbed his homework and set to work at the desk at the end of his bed. Memories were pushed aside and soon his biggest struggle was trying find the correct page in his science book to answer question ten on the corresponding homework. Hours past as his pen scratched at the papers stopping only when he left to get a drink or use the bathroom.

It wasn't until the third yawn interrupted him on his social studies homework that he bothered to glance over at the silver clock set above the TV. Surprised at the time, Kai figured that the rest of the work could wait until morning. He got up and stepped over to a small metal dresser that had been set beside his desk to utilize the limited space of his one person apartment. Rummaging through the drawers the jade-eyed teen wearily found something to change into for the night then took himself off to the bathroom where he showered, dressed and brushed his teeth.

Exiting from there he walked to his desk, plugged in his cell phone for the night—by morning it would be fully charged—then climbed into bed. After pulling up the burgundy covers he turning off the lights leaving only the dim light of his charging phone to push away the darkness that settled around him.

Kai felt himself drifting off fairly quickly, relaxing on the comfortingly soft mattress. His day had been surprisingly peaceful considering the events that had transpired barely twenty-four hours before. Just get up, go to school, do some shopping, eat, work on homework and go to bed. Exciting, right? Not that he was complaining, in fact it really was nice that everything was finally back to normal.

All that was needed was a casual but passionate cardfight or two. Just as he drifted off a nagging thought tickled the back of his mind. He frowned slightly, trying to reach it. There was something he had forgotten but couldn't quite remember. Something about... but the though continued to dance just out of reach before fading away as sleep overtook the brunet.

Perhaps, if he could have reached it things might have been different in the days to come.

A/N: Well, what do you think? Did it seem rather OOC? Coming Soon... Chapter 2 - Silent Avoidence