A/N: An AU where there are no e-gene holders or EIOs, just our platoon as regular humans. Loosely themed around the song "Need You Now" by Lady Antebellum.

"Uh, Sio-chan—whoa, watch it!" The blonde had barely taken off her shoes before the photo album came hurtling her way, missing by a literal hair. "Jesus Christ, I know you're upset, but I'd rather appreciate it if you didn't bloody kill me in the process as well!"

Actually, upset was more of an understatement, one might say. Jess only had to look at the state of the flat—photos all over the floor, some torn some not, mixed in with random piles of clothing and what appeared to be the remains of a picture frame that used to hang next to the door—to know tonight, her job was going to be a massive undertaking she would wish on nobody. Except maybe her boyfriend, but she knew for a fact Mahesh was currently having his hands equally full with the other, crucial half of this messy equation.

"…Sorry. I, uh, didn't…hear you come in." The petite brunette certainly sounded sorry, though she didn't look it. Her hair was limp and the bags under her eyes suggested she hadn't slept in days. Which was probably true, given the dullness in her usually cheerful voice.

As much as she hadn't liked being nearly decapitated with a scrapbook, the older woman couldn't help but regard her younger friend with pity. "Oh dear, Sio-chan…" Picking her way through the minefield of debris, she gently retrieved the thrown album and set it back onto the coffee table, though half its contents were now scattered who-knows-where. "…You're going to need this for the wedding, remember?"

"Hah—at this point, who can even say…" Sighing, Sio dropped herself onto the couch, not caring in the least about the disastrous state of their flat. Theirs. Or formally theirs. She wasn't even sure who technically owned it now; certainly, neither of its occupants had co-habited together for past two weeks running.

"…You're not…you, didn't…" The blonde breathed in hushed tones, but one look at her friend's hand—"you…don't tell me you actually…called it off?!"

It was an uncomfortable staring match, and for a second Sio wondered just what Jess' reaction would be if she said yes. "…No; but I'd be lying if I said I'm not seriously considering it…" The invitations had already been mailed out weeks ago, and just canceling everything less than a month out…groaning, she rubbed her temples and laid her head on inviting shoulders. "I just…I don't know; I don't know what to do."

"Well, if you didn't call off the engagement, then what happened to your ring?" The girl only gave a single grunt before waving her hand in the general direction of what used to be the hallway.

"'S probably somewhere in there…can't remember exactly where I threw it…"

"In there…" Her friend's voice trailed off as her gaze finally took in the flat's state in its entirety: the floor was littered with a combination of the couple's mail and torn photographs, the formerly smooth hardwood floors now scratched with smashed plates and unswept glass. And that wasn't even counting the scattered piles of clothing and miscellaneous belongings, some thrown unceremoniously onto the floor while others still hung off the back of whatever furniture had been in range.

In short, it looked like World War III had just taken place. And knowing the two of them and how stubborn and prideful they could both be… Shaking her head, Jess simply decided to play the role of morale support for now. She could deal with the hazards of broken glass later, as in preferably when Sio finally decided to pass out. Clicking her tongue, she patted the poor girl's hair, wondering if she should even bother checking in with Mahesh yet.

"So…what happened this time? Or do you just not want to talk about it?"

This time. The most recent. As in, this was definitely not the first incident where some petty little squabble had quickly spun out-of-control into a full-blown screaming match, complete with thrown objects. And as with most of their previous fights, it ended in him storming out in a rage while she buried herself underneath every single comforter she owned and cried herself to sleep.

Except this time, this time…her stomach knotted in a cold fear and the sour taste of bile invaded her tongue as a piece of that violent, fleeting memory replayed itself again and again…

A terrifying crash that normally would have sent her running resounded throughout the flat as the crystal vase met the kitchen floor with a bang. She'd meant to chuck it at his head instead, but it'd been heavier than she thought and so ended up in a million, tiny pieces on the ground instead.

'I hate you! You're always like this—it doesn't matter how many times I tell you, it won't change will it?!' She cried, not even bothering to wipe her tears as she viciously slapped him across the face. 'I don't even know how I stuck it out for so long…'

His face was an unreadable mask, though the single emerald was glittering with a cold fire. Sio knew him long enough to know underneath, he was a simmering pit of rage that was just about to explode if she pushed him far enough. And gods be damned, she didn't care if it tore them apart in the process—she just wanted to hurt, to destroy, to make him regret ever turning his back on her again.

'…I don't know how many more different ways I can explain it t' you—'

'—Stop, just stop! I know, yes, it's not something you can control and yes, it's important to you too—but what, so I guess it's more important than me? More important than the person who's about to become your wife?!' Excuses, reasonings, one after another…she was tired of it. Sick of trying to justify her feelings.

'I—' For the first time in a long time he looked truly uncertain, caught between two forces of equal strength yet utterly different in every sense of the word.

She should've known. Had known, going into this and getting herself in deeper and deeper as time went by… "If this is how things are going to be, then I don't know if I'm willing to compromise any longer."

'…Then that's it, isn't it?' His voice, rough and unsteady, cut through her thoughts. 'You've got your answer already…'

'Wha…'

It was like watching a dream seeing him grab his jacket, slip his phone into the pocket and open the door, all without looking at her once. '…'f you wanna call it off, then go ahead; I don't give a fuck anymore.'

And with a final slam he was gone, leaving nothing more than the creaking of the only remaining picture frame before it too, fell onto the floor and like her heart, splintered into countless pieces that could never be put back together again.

That was nearly two weeks ago. Sio swore to herself that enough was finally enough, that no matter how awful or lonely she felt she would not contact him in any way, shape or form. Fucking bastard; he'd left of his own accord, it wasn't like she'd demanded he leave so there was no way in hell she was about to go crawling on her hands and knees, begging for him to come back.

She hadn't predicted just how difficult that task would prove. This was partly the reason she'd finally relented and let Jess come over—and also because her friend hadn't stopped calling her ever since news had traveled (with unsurprising speed) through their little grapevine. Kaoru had already spent a whole week visiting, making sure Sio was still eating and at least getting some measure of rest, but even she couldn't take indefinite leave from her career back in Japan. Before Jess had left her own flat, Sio made her promise that if she tried to do anything stupid like attempting to call him, then Jess had full authority to do everything she could to stop her.

"…I'm sorry; and I know you're tired of hearing it, but don't blame yourself, Sio. The two of you are very different people—disagreements are, inevitable…"

Not that she hadn't known the sketchy outline before she headed over, but there was nothing like actually hearing it in person. Jess wasn't sure who she felt sorry for more—the Japanese exchange student whom she'd somehow become good friends with, or her hot-headed, (ex?)-fiancé whom she'd known since they were teenagers. There was no right answer, she knew this. And yet to not even try and salvage this relationship that she'd had the honor of seeing from the start…

But a promise was a promise, and she'd sworn on her grandmum's grave that tonight, she would not make any mention of who was right or wrong, and be completely, 100% on Sio's side. And if that meant making sure Sio didn't give into the temptation of calling him, then so be it.

"…I'm so stupid." A sniffle, followed by a sob. "I don't know…wh-why, I keep feeling like this…" She gratefully accepted the tissue that was handed to her and haphazardly wiped her tears, though most of them were staining Jess' suit instead. "I-I, can't…I can't—!" In one, illogical misfiring of a neuron, she scrambled to reach for the smartphone that was about to teeter over the edge of the table.

"No—Sio, don't." Before Sio could even touch the iPhone Jess already hauled her out of the way, pocketing the device into her own bag. "You made me promise, remember? That you said you needed to take a break, to really think by yourself? And I completely agree; you need to seriously take a good, hard look at your own feelings and figure out if you really are willing to spend the rest of your life with someone like him." Gently but firmly, she sat the girl back onto the couch. "He'll be fine; hell, I've known that moron since we were in secondary—he can take care of himself. Trust me. You know Mahesh and I won't let anything happen to you two."

Jess was right; no, she must not give in to the weakness of her own feelings. But, the hurt—it was the worst she'd ever felt, more than she'd thought possible. "Sorry Jess, you're right…it's just, I-I'm just…I'm so lonely; I miss him so much…" Hurt and anger over a fight was one thing, but until he really left she'd never noticed just how much of a presence in her life he'd become. Even something as simple as just waking up next to a warm body, the comfort and safety of being wrapped in his arms…she choked back another sob as she curled into the other woman's lap.

"Of course you're going to feel lonely, and sad; you've been together for so long, you can't expect to cut off those feelings all at once." Her hand was rubbing soothing circles in the girl's back as Sio lay on her side, still hiccuping occasionally.

"…I miss him. A lot."

"I know."

"…I really want to hear his voice…" Fingers digging into the cushion's fringe, another tremble making its way throughout her body.

"I know." Another pat, pat, through her hair.

"I-I…regret…hurting him…like that…" Hurtling those insults like bullets, one after another—what he'd done wrong, what she wanted him to do right, and how much she hated everything about him…and that wasn't even counting the physical damage she'd wrought. Now that she thought about it, he never once laid a hand on her, though she knew, he probably came dangerously close after that last argument.

"Just because you said or did things you regret, doesn't make you a bad person, Sio-chan." The blonde's voice was deeper, taking a more thoughtful tone as she was no doubt recalling all their past incidents as well.

"I-I mean…a-at the time, I was just so angry; but when it's all over, I always hate myself, for being such a-a, bitch; no matter how many times this happens…I-I feel like, like…I should be better about this by now; I should be more supportive of him, b-be more…patient…" She had to stop because just talking about it made her chest ache, a hole that kept gnawing away at her conscience. "I miss everything about him; I-I don't know why, I…always push him away…"

"Sio dear, look at me." Swollen maroons glanced up mournfully, as if asking how this could ever get better. "I've known you and Adam for a long, long time now; each of you have your own strengths and flaws, but that doesn't mean either of you should have to give up those parts of yourselves in order to become better people. Just the fact that you feel such…heartache over him, means that he's very important to you, right? After all, you only hurt the ones you love the most…"

She nodded sullenly. What the blonde said had been true of course, but why did it always have to come down to something as disastrous as this for her to realize it? In all her years, Sio never thought it would only take one relationship before she started to seriously consider something as formal as marriage; guys never showed much interest in her before he came along, and certainly at first, she'd thought of it as nothing more than a 'practice run', a learning period.

Certainly not falling head-over-heels—hard—for this gruff, sarcastic British man, who preferred his coffee straight-up black (if tea was unavailable) yet would openly indulge in any opportunity with hot chocolate; with his oddly silver hair and the most beautiful green eyes she'd ever seen on any living being. The rate at which her feelings progressed was shocking, even frightening—the first time she realized just how much he meant to her, she locked herself in her room and buried herself under a mountain of blankets, trying to figure out this mess of emotions that scared her to no end, yet could easily set her heart pounding in a most thrilling way.

"I wonder…what he's doing right now…" It seemed like forever since she'd been calm enough to actually feel sleepy, and not the exhaustion that came from the dying fury of a fight. So much for attempting to separate her thoughts from him—who was she kidding, from the moment he slammed the door she couldn't stop thinking about him, what he was doing, what they used to be, and all the memories in between…

A warm coverlet was pulled over her, Jess murmuring something about getting some rest while she started to pick up this mess. She wanted to tell her to not bother, that half the things would probably be trashed anyway but the blonde seemed determined to at least pick up all the broken ceramics and glass. Maybe that was for the better…as if the flat wasn't enough of a peril as is.

As she settled into a sort of doze, she heard her phone rumble just once—a message? Was it from him—no, no it couldn't be—but the urge to just reach out and check, just one look couldn't hurt—

…But no, that would be betraying everything her friend had gone out of the way to do for her. And so she shakily withdrew her hand, pulled the covers over her head and willed herself to drift away.

'You can't, you can't…you said you wouldn't call…'

Even though ironically, the person she needed the most right now was him.