They say that misery is the loneliest kind of weather, like the lightening; it strikes the least expecting and most vulnerable. The Dojo, so usually filled with cheery laughter and happy hums of joy, was eerily quiet today. The clouds thundered in the sky, black and ominous, ready to pour any second. But the obscurity outside couldn't even compare to the storm that was raging inside.

"You're leaving."

Hillary Tatibana, who was usually so lethal and composed, felt her face crumple as she stared across the table with a gaze so hostile with emotions, it left the entire room in a ghastly silence.

"Tomorrow morning, yes."

A steady pitter-patter of water on the roof was the only thing that spotted the uncomfortable quietness. Kai Hiwatari sighed when he saw Hillary's shoulders hunch at his words. For weeks to come, he'd dreaded voicing the words he just had, delaying them as farthest as possible…but his time was up now.

Remorse, disappointment, resentment…understanding; a diverse range of emotions passed through all of his friends' expressions, but dominant was the all-familiar rage blearing in the ruby-eyes of a certain female friend. It set upon his heart a weight of immense agony when she stood up, eyes filled with tears and hands clenched into fists, and stared at him, unspeaking.

Dark night it was, ominous and obscure. The stars had been shining brightly an hour ago, lightening up the sky till the sinister clouds had blocked their view. The meek sound of the rain against the roof increased to a lucid drawl.

But Kai's attention was intent upon Hillary's figure. In the next few seconds that came, he saw the wild tempest of emotions blare like dancing flames in her eyes, burning down all her walls into ashes. In the next few seconds that followed, he saw Hillary Tatibana break, for the very first time, right in front of him.

II

A vivid night was rare in Bakuten City, and Kai often found Hillary alone outside, when it arrived. She used to lie in the grass for hours and stare up at the small dots twinkling against the sky, and he used to watch her as she did. Over the months, as things changed, he moved from his place behind the window to right next to her in the grass, staring at the twinkles of a very different kind…the ones in her eyes.

Hours and hours and it was no-one but Kai and Hillary, laying next to each other against the wet grass, in a silence that was marred merely by the sound of their relaxed breaths. The only exchange between them was their little, little touches; sometimes, Hillary's fingers would run along his arms and occasionally, Kai would brush away the chocolate-brown strands from her eyes. He'd seen her expressions, had her face memorized better than his own. She'd felt the traces of intimacy, knew the tingle in her skin that only his touch could cause…

Their love was shy, intimate….private. Silent. So, it surprised him when one night Hillary turned herself in his direction, and he heard her voice.
"Do you believe in wishing upon stars?"

It was low, the way she spoke…and Kai smiled. She felt his hand move through the grass, to rest upon hers, felt the blood rush to her cheeks when he turned to look at her.
"I don't know. Do you?"

The wind howled in the silence, pushing her hair into her face and she pursed her lips, taking no notice of the flimsy way Kai's fingers moved to brush the tresses out of her eyes.
"I believe if you believe in something hard enough, it just might come true."

Her words made Kai smile up at her again,

"What do you wish for then?"

For a while, no-one spoke. Hillary lay herself back down against the dewy grass, unconscious of the way her fingers drew small circles on the back of Kai's hands, or the way Kai's amethyst orbs were fixed on her face, trying to read it.

"I'd tell you," She turned over on her stomach and Kai's mind went hazy at the sudden proximity…their breaths mingled, their bodies almost touched. "But I don't want to jinx it."

There was a strange gleam in her eye, their lips touched in a wild fury a mere second later….and Kai didn't need to hear any words to know what her thoughts had been. One thing was for sure, they'd been the same as his.

"What about us?"

Kai stood at the doorway of Hillary's small apartment, drenched to the very bone from chasing Hillary all the way from the Dojo in the pouring rain. The sound of her voice breaking twice in the small question produced a little twinge in his heart, the sight of her pleading made him close his eyes; it took all his will to utter the words he had next.

"There never was an 'us', Hils."

Their love had been a premature, underweight, clumsy little creature, which had grown up a little too fast. It had learned to float before it could even walk, and they'd stood cheering it on, knowing that it wouldn't last the winter. And now that the winter had arrived…it was time to bury it.

"Never should've been."

His eyes opened just in time to see the brokenness in hers. From the countless times they'd lay underneath the sky, he had every inch of her face memorized; every curve and line. And right then, through the pain that swam on the surface, something burned in her expression. Memories of their time together ran through his mind, the subtle little touches, the meaningful little looks, the secretive smiles….every comforting word, every silent exchange, every flimsy little whisper; they seemed to numb his rationality and quicken his already-pacing heart.

"You could stay…"

Drop after drop marred the tiled floor between those two, but the wetness in her red-orbs alarmed him. In her desperation, her gaze flickered behind her, pass the open door, before moving back towards his face.

"Stay…"

A loud noise of thunder and a minute later, the sound of a door slamming shut could be heard….the hallway was left empty, save a small puddle of water outside a front door.

By morning, the rainstorm was still blaring, falling through the window to create a large, wet mess on the floor. But rain wasn't the only thing that was pouring…Crimson eyes had been bloodshot ever since they'd woken up to an empty bed in an empty apartment. A piece of paper lay crumpled in her fists as Hillary stared at the small screen of her cell-phone, a finger just an inch away from the green 'dial' button.

But soon, even she realized that she lacked the strength and gave up.

It was true what they say; misery is the loneliest kind of weather, strikes the least expecting and most vulnerable. It was inevitable. But what they don't tell you, is that it doesn't arrive unaided; there's thunder, there's a little bit of rain, there's dark clouds and there's obscurity. What they don't tell you is that you have to bear the aftermath of the weather, and wait for the rain to dry out before you see the sun again.

Many a stars had to move vast distances to allow them to meet, but now all the stars had lined back into their constellations, the way they were supposed to be. Their story was one of those things in life that end the only way they know how to end; and no amount of wishing upon stars could change that.

AN:

This one-shot was inspired by "Say Goodbye" by Skillet. Awesome song, btw. The idea's been roaming around in my head for months, six to seven to be exact, every single detail, but I never thought of actually putting it down till the last week. I'm glad I did. I'm proud of this. :D :D

While the idea of the fic ending this way might have seemed a bit...awkward, um, it was actually what the song was about...when it went, "Don't say anything tonight, if you're gonna say goodbye"...At least, that was what I THOUGHT it was about...

Aside from that, I've been slow on the updates, I know, and I'm not promising they're going to get fast. I can't write like I used to. Plus, I like to work when 'my moody muses move me'...lol. So, apologies to anyone who might be waiting on my other fics.

Thanks for reading. Signing off.