Disclaimer: I don't own SAO. If I did… let's be honest, Kirito would have actually been killed by Heathcliff instead of Asuna getting in the way. Sounds harsh, but I have my reasons.

Ben's Note of Sheer Awesome: Yeah… this is something I've never done before. A one-shot. Yay. This is a birthday present to my best friend in the universe. I hope she enjoys it…

This takes place a few days after Kirito takes down Gleaming Red Eyes and reveals his dual wielding. To make this work, Asuna doesn't try to take a leave of absence right off. Only way to bend it to how I want.

Also, I'm starting a big One-Shot list. The theme for this one was randomly selected by my best friend, number 13: Life. Let's see where this takes me.

Kirito gave the giant murderous sheep a deadly blow. The sheep screaming in pain as it burst into data and vanish. Kirito looked behind him to see Asuna, who was keeping up with herself. He smiled at her as she killed her own sheep with her quick jabs.

He found it funny. They were in this death game for over two years. They had faced death every day as they tried to take down the bosses on each floor. He had almost died just a few days before.

And yet he couldn't think of a better time to have fallen in love with the girl who didn't like him at first.

Kirito, at the start, was always focused on living. He wanted to live, and didn't care much about what was around him. He just killed whatever monsters that got in his way and moved on. He worked well as a solo player. He didn't care about anything, and nothing cared about him. A perfect match.

But that changed when she came along.

Kirito never really figured out what made her special. Was it her dominance? The thrill of fighting alongside someone as skilled as he was? Her determination to live?

It's probably the fact she can tease me he thought to himself and he chuckled. He knew that was one of the reasons Asuna cared so much for him. But he also knew that she loved him for more than that. Asuna could get under his skin, but actually render him speechless with ideas that were far more complex than his own. And she understood him on a level he was never able to connect to anyone else with. And she loved him enough to risk being alone with him and possibly dying alone with no one but him.

We care enough to die together he thought. It was no longer about living and getting through this death game. It was more now. Kirito wanted to guarantee Asuna lived as much as himself, if not more. And he bet Asuna felt the same.

Asuna killed another sheep and sighed in relief. She looked over and saw Kirito was looking at her. She cocked her head. "What?" she asked.

Kirito jumped back a little and stuttered, "Uh, nothing! Nothing! It's just… I'm just impressed with your fighting, that's all."

Asuna hid a smirk and upturned her nose. "Dummy. You're supposed to help me fight, not watch me. Try on focusing in helping next time, ok?"

"Yes mam," Kirito said with a sigh.

Asuna giggled and looked back at Kirito with a small smile. She had always thought it would only be her. Sure, she joined the top guild and became second in command. But she never thought about having another reason in saving everyone. She wanted to get everyone she could out alive and do anything to do it.

Now, she wanted to get him out.

She never understood why that boy impressed her. He was annoying, unorthodox, and a baby in some situations. But… he knew how things worked. He was able to connect to what they were doing and have knowledge in able to try and save people. And he had this ability to care in areas she never thought possible.

He was a solo player, and he had always claimed he was no hero. He didn't join with people for some unknown reasons to everyone. But when she saw him with the few friends he had, he tried to save everyone. He may have seemed uncaring and annoyed by his friends, but he wanted them to live as much as he did.

He wants to seem like he doesn't care, Asuna thought. Because he knows he'll lose people eventually.

But he never was reserved with her. Sure, he was very socially awkward around her, but he still showed that he was willing to help. He got in the way a lot, but he cared. She smiled a little, remembering back when they first met two years ago and where they stood now.

"Now who's looking at who?" Kirito snarked, making Asuna jump and blush a little. "Come on, we better get going," he said. "About time to turn in for the day."

"Right," she said, nodding. I'm taking a leave of absence for him because I love him, she thought. Do I love him that much? She didn't think on that for long. Yes.

In a game like Sword Art Online, death could come at any time. One could act as Kirito, and try to remain dis attached to people in case they die. Or one could act as Asuna, and try to save everyone by trying to make others more than they are. But eventually, when the right someone comes into life, those two philosophies merge.

You can't live without the other.

And they can't live without you.

Kirito and Asuna were both willing to live for the other, and die if they lost they're perfect half.

BN: Well, how did I do? Like I said, this is a birthday present for my best friend in the universe. I love you girl. You're freaking amazing, and I know you're not a fan of my work, but this is legit the least I can do for all you do for me.

Like? Hate? Meh? Let me know in a review. Or don't, I'm cool with that too.