I haven't written an only RimaHiko fic in a while. So, here goes. I usually hate stories like this that I read, but whatever. I own nothing, and enjoy!

It is commonly said that there is a fine line between love and hate. The emotions involve similar feelings. Hate is often developed as a result of love, due to breakups. How often is love developed from hatred?

"What the hell do you want?!" Rima Mashiro angrily turned to face the honey-golden eyes of her enemy, her hair flipping behind her. "Can't you just go away?!"

"Wouldn't you like that?" A smirk crossed Nagihiko's face, as he walked closer to her. "I just want to talk to you Rima-Chan."

"Well, I don't. And don't address me so informally," Rima barked, rolling her eyes. Nagihiko sighed. The crowded hallways of the school confronted them, as students shoved through them to head to their lockers. After ninth period was the most crowded time of the day. Students were frantic to go home.

"So, what are you going to do when you go home?" Nagihiko asked, leaning against the locker as Rima knelt down to open her locker.

"Homework," She replied bluntly, struggling with her locker.

"Need help?"

"NO!" Rima barked loudly. There was silence for a moment.

"Homework is not going to take up your entire evening Rima-Chan; I have every class with you, and I am fully aware that we only have that one question for Math," Nagihiko pointed out. "So, you have anything fun planned for the afternoon or evening? Maybe going to see a movie with your family, or..." Nagihiko realized his mistake right after he said it. He opened his mouth to amend his statement, but Rima's death glare stopped him. She grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, struggling to reach, and shoved him against the locker. Nagihiko winced in slight pain. She stood on the top of her toes, getting closer to his size.

"Do you think the fighting between my parents is funny?!"

"N-No I didn't mean to Rima-Chan, I-It wasn't teasing I just..."

"DON'T CALL ME RIMA-CHAN!" Rima's bellows silenced the hall. "In fact, don't call me anything. Don't address me. Go to hell, Fujisaki. I don't want to speak to you ever again. Stay the fuck away from me!"

"Wait Rima...I'm really sorry; I didn't mean..." Rima let go of him, and turned her head from him.

"I hate you Nagihiko Fujisaki. I don't ever want to speak, or even see you again." She glanced at him for a moment. "Have fun cross-dressing for the rest of your freaking life." A huge crowd of kids surrounded them. Nagihiko's face paled. "Guess what? The 'great and perfect' Nagihiko actually cross-dresses. Do you know his 'twin' Nadeshiko? They're actually the same person. He barely knows how to be a boy. He's actually a hermaphrodite and is bisexual."

"That's not even-"

"No speaking!" Rima snapped at him. She faced the crowd again. "The Nagihiko that you all know and love is nothing more than a creep. The reason 'he' always follows me is because he is a pervert and wants to have sex with me. He's nothing more than a slut who has slept with girls and boys alike." Nagihiko's flashed angrily.

"Are you insane Rima?!" Nagihiko yelled at her. "I'm not a pervert and I'm still a virgin, thank you very much. I am not a hermaphrodite and I'm straight. You know what, Rima Mashiro, or whatever you desire to be called? Not speaking to you sounds really nice. I merely wanted to be friends with you and actually understand who you are. I thought there was something more to you than your cold exterior. I'm sorry to see I was vastly mistaken. You're actually nothing more than a cold bitch. Thanks for nothing." Nagihiko turned on his heel, and walked away angrily. Rima's eyes widened out of shock, but then quickly reverted to the anger.

Rima started walking him, ignoring the stares she received from various students. Her hands were stuffed in her pockets. She blinked rapidly, resisting the sudden urge to start crying. She hated Nagihiko. It felt so good to cut all ties with him and say all those things about him, or did it? A sickening feeling bubbled up in her chest, almost like regret. A cold bitch. Surely, a cold bitch wouldn't feel these things, right? Rima shook her head. It was all in her imagination. She loathed Nagihiko, wanted to see his body burn.

"Rima." Rima paused, waiting for her best friend to catch up. Rima could practically see Amu's expression despite not looking at her. It was contained with hurt and anger. "What were you doing!?"

"Cutting ties," Rima bluntly replied.

"Rima, you made up a whole bunch of bullshit about Nagi! Maybe you don't like him, or whatever, but you can't do that!" Rima turned to face her friend.

"Why not? I just did it."

"His reputation is going to be crushed. He might be bullied." Rima looked at Amu in the eye.

"Why do I care?"

"Because, like it or not, you're his friend. He promised us with a secret about his dancing. He entrusted you with it. It was his place to tell the school, not yours." Rima turned her head.

"I should be on my way home," Rima interrupted, walking away. The tears built up in her eyes, unbeknownst to Amu.

"Rima..." Amu's eyes grew worried. She turned her head, and decided to find Nagihiko.

Nagihiko sat on the roof of his house, with a hood over his head. He was still in disbelief of what just happened. He knew Rima had a cold personality and detested him, but why would she do that? He had made a small mistake while talking to her. He was just prying her open, but the comment happened to slip out. Even so, that didn't provoke Rima to start rumors, and share his most heavily guarded secret. Nagihiko's comment was merely accidental; Rima's was completely deliberate.

Below him, he saw Amu walking onto his property. He knew she would want to talk to him. Amu was someone he always felt comfortable with. He could tell her anything. Although he wasn't in a talking mood, he knew he had no choice. As Amu walked further onto his property, Nagihiko slid down his roof, landing a few feet in front of Amu. She shrieked loudly, covering her mouth quickly. Nagihiko chuckled slightly.

"Nagi!" Amu whined. Nagihiko sighed, and smiled sadly.

"What's up?" He wondered, even though he knew exactly why she was here.

"I think you know," Amu muttered. Nagihiko nodded slowly, sighing softly. He glanced at Amu, and took a deep breath. Even though he was so close with Amu, he knew that she had the same relationship with Rima.

"I didn't mean to. I was just trying to talk to her, but..."

"Nagi, how did it start anyway? I only heard Rima screaming at you those terrible things."

"I was talking to Rima, teasing her I suppose. She was providing me with one word responses. So, I asked her what her plans were after school and I asked if she was seeing a movie with her parents. It was completely unthoughtful of me, and I realized it after I said it. I tried to cover it up, but Rima had already shoved me against a locker, and publicly humiliated me." Nagihiko quickly wiped away a tear, surprised to find one escaping his eye.

"Nagi, it was just a careless mistake," Amu soothed, hugging her friend. "Rima went way too far. I didn't realize it was like that..."

"Did you speak to her at all?" Nagihiko asked, letting go of Amu.

"I tried, but she was pretty blunt with me," Amu admitted. "Her parents are a sensitive topic, but I know your dancing is too. It wasn't fair." Nagihiko sighed.

"Do you think...the kids at school will mock me? I know it's a stupid concern, but..."

"To be honest, I think it might hurt Rima's reputation more. You're really popular Nagi, and they won't believe Rima's lies, even the parts that were truthful." Nagihiko smiled.

"Thanks Amu-Chan. I guess we'll see tomorrow."

"Yeah... Any time Nagi." Amu hugged him one last time, and walked away. She was determined to find out why triggered Rima to say that.

A few weeks had passed. Although Nagihiko was confronted by a few guys that were fans of Rima, he wasn't bullied much. Nagihiko's fan-girls had pestered Rima much more, and she was commonly harassed more than Nagi was. It was pretty obvious to the school that Nagihiko and Rima hated each other. Ever since that day, they had not spoken once. It was ninth period, gym for Nagihiko and Rima. He didn't mind gym, but he remembered Rima complaining about how it was least favorite subject.

"We're picking teams for baseball!" The gym teacher announced, as the kids lined up. "We'll need two captains, and girls pick boys, and vice versa." Two captains were chosen. Once one of Nagihiko's fan-girls was picked and it was her turn to add a player to the team, she chose Nagihiko. Finally, it was Nagihiko's turn to pick a final player for his team. It was between two girls: Rima and Saaya Yamabuki. Nagihiko hated Saaya as well. Last year, Saaya had been bullying Amu for dating her biggest crush, who Amu ironically broke up with after that. They retained their close relationship as friends though. That was one of the only times Nagihiko and Rima got along to help Amu. Nagihiko smiled softly remembering that. He liked working with Rima. That was one of those times where he felt something other than annoyance for her. He was always curious about her as well, but the emotion he felt, it was something that was different. Ever since that day, he had that feeling in his chest whenever he was around Rima, and a sense of happiness. Nagihiko had a feeling he knew what it meant, but he wished that it wasn't true.

"You can't take forever to pick," The gym teacher muttered. A small smile plastered across Nagihiko's face.

"I pick Rima-Chan," He announced, purposefully using the honorific. The whole gym class, including Rima, stared at Nagihiko, in utter bemusement. Saaya looked insulted. Nagihiko didn't look at her. Rima slowly walked to his team, walking right past him. His heart churned slightly, but he ignored it. He couldn't have these feelings for Rima. He hated her. Or, did she just hate him? Nagihiko shook slightly, stunned by himself.

As the game progressed, Rima contributed absolutely nothing to the team. She didn't even swing the bat once, and a couple of times in the outfield, she claimed she missed the ball because she was "too lazy." Nagihiko, on the other hand, constantly scored for his team, seizing the victory. Some of the boys scowled, but the girls (with the obvious exception of Rima) swooned.

As Nagihiko exited the gym, he could hear girls snickering. He turned, seeing a group of girls surrounding Rima.

"You're such a loser. Do you even have any friends, or did they all go to Nagi-Kun?" Rima crossed her arms, pretending to not care.

"How are your parents? Are they in love yet?"

"Is the lack of love between your parents similar to you? Is that why you still are single?" Rima began to shake. Nagihiko could vividly see her on the verge of tears.

"Leave me alone!" Rima shouted. The girls snickered.

"Awww, why don't you go cry to mommy? Oh wait, she's still fighting with daddy." The girls laughed.

"That's enough." Nagihiko revealed himself. The girls looked at him, astonished. Rima looked at the ground, refusing to make eye contact. "Look at her. Don't you have any empathy?! You're terrible. What if someone pointed out your insecurities? How would you feel if you were embarrassed by the school for the things you are ashamed about?!" Rima's eyes widened. The girls glanced at each other, and then Nagihiko.

"Sorry Nagi-Kun!" They whined, scurrying away.

"I didn't need your help," Rima pointed out, uttering the first words since they stopped talking. Nagihiko frowned. She glanced up at him, the tears visible. She tried her best to conceal them. "What you said... it wasn't just directed to them, was it? You meant it for me too..." Nagihiko didn't respond.

"Well, I should be going," Nagihiko muttered, walking away. Rima watched him walk away, but didn't say anything.

Nagihiko opened his locker, and took out all of the necessary books. He didn't have a lot of homework that night, so he only took one binder before closing his locker. When he turned around, he saw the presence of the doll-like girl he supposedly detested.

"Can we talk?" Rima persisted.

"I thought you said you didn't want to," Nagihiko murmured.

"Well, whatever. W-Well, if we're going to talk, not here. I don't want the whole school to watch." Nagihiko nodded, and followed Rima out of the school.

They arrived at the park. They sat down beside each other on a bench. Silence was shared between them, as they watched kids play around in the park.

"I'm only going to say this once," Rima finally said. Nagihiko looked at her. "I'm sorry for publicly humiliating you. I know that what you said was by mistake, and I clearly overreacted." Rima took a deep breath. "A-A lot has been on my shoulders lately, and I guess you just happened to be the person I took out on. To be honest, I-I missed you. I needed you to take my anger out on, and now, it's all just... I-I just..." Tears ran down Rima's cheeks. "That wasn't all you were for. You, I..."

"Shh..." Nagihiko moved slightly closer to her, and placed a hand on her shoulder. Rima looked absolutely stunned. "Start from the beginning. Tell me what has been happening to you. I'll listen." Rima smiled softly, and took a deep breath.

"W-Well, the fighting at my house has gotten worse. It isn't abuse, but I just don't know when it will become that way. They're getting a divorce now. I know it's stupid and childish for wanting them to get back together, but now I know it's impossible. With nearly divorced parents in my house, it's a bit hard to... tolerate. I'm basically completely ignored. If I want something, I have to do it myself. The only times they notice me, it's either to scold me for not correctly doing my chores or something. Lately, my father has been coming home late, and I-I smell alcohol on his breath. He hasn't hit my mother or me yet, but...I'm so scared..." Nagihiko's eyes widened, hearing Rima's story. He knew that it was bad, but he didn't realize how bad. He couldn't even blame her for exerting her anger.

"It's not stupid or childish," Nagihiko reassured. "Rima-Chan, I promise, when they get divorced, it will be better. You won't be ignored or scolded often. Your father is probably stressed out, and he is taking drinking as an excuse. It will be better when it happens, even if your goals of reuniting them are crushed." Rima nodded slowly. Nagihiko wrapped his arms around her shyly and gently. Rima returned his hug, and rested her head on his shoulder.

"I had no right to take my anger out on you," Rima whispered, sighing. "I know you didn't mean what you said. If it means anything to you, I didn't mean anything I said. I don't feel you're a pervert." Nagihiko nodded slowly. "Nagi, there's something else I have to tell you." Nagihiko glanced at him, absolutely stunned she addressed him as Nagi.

"What is it?" He asked carefully.

"I...I think I know why I hated you." Nagihiko smiled softly, noticing she used hated as the past tense. "I was jealous of you. It all started when you and Amu grew closer again. I didn't want to share my best friend. Honestly, I-I thought...think you are perfect. You have everything going for you; you're kind, likeable, athletic, intelligent, attractive, and have loving parents- and I'm just broken." Nagihiko froze slightly after she said attractive. He shook it off quickly, and hugged her tighter.

"Rima, I'm not even close to perfect," he whispered softly. "I admit, I've been wanting to find out what the inner you was like. I think I just found her." Rima smiled softly. "You are kind and likeable also. You may seem cold to others and intimidating when first acquainting yourself with someone, but it takes you a long time to warm up to someone. Rima-Chan, you are extremely intelligent. You receive one of the highest grades in the entire grade."

"I'm the seventh highest, and you're first," Rima grumbled.

"Seventh out of what, two-hundred in the grade? That's amazing." Rima blushed slightly. Nagihiko noticed, and smiled softly. "Who cares about being athletic anyway? And loving parents... My mother forced me to dance my entire life, and my father left my family. I don't think that's too loving." Rima looked astonished.

"Y-Your father left?!" Rima exclaimed, shocked. Nagihiko nodded sighing.

"I don't really tell too many people," He admitted dryly. "Can you keep that a secret for a bit?" Rima nodded slowly.

"I won't embarrass you again," Rima promised. "Nagi, don't take this the wrong way, but I like you more now that you have flaws. I mean, I'm sorry, but you seem more...human, and not so godlike. I wouldn't mind trying that whole friend thing again," Nagihiko smiled.

"I'd love that," He whispered. "Rima-Chan, there was one more thing you described me as."

"There was?" Rima glanced up at him. "I thought you got it all?"

"You called me attractive." Nagihiko's heart was beating rapidly, and he was certain that with Rima's head lying on his shoulder, she could probably hear it. Her face turned various shades of red.

"I-I said that out loud?!" Rima exclaimed.

"It's alright. I personally don't see how I am, but it's flattering. You don't really have any right to call me that, since you're the prettiest girl I know." It was impossible for Rima's face to redden any more. Nagihiko's face was the same color. He placed his hand over hers. He looked her in the eye.

"Well, um..."

"Rima-Chan, there's something I need to tell you now."

"I know what you're going to say, and there's really no point, because I reciprocate it," Rima pointed out shyly. "How long, for you?"

"Well, I've always had a little crush on you when we were guardians. I guess as we went through middle school to now, it only evolved. You amazed me, and I guess that was a lot of the reason I was so curious about you. How about you?"

"I don't really know," Rima admitted. "Maybe that's another reason I hated you; because I loved you." Nagihiko squeezed her hand gently, his skin tone as red as a tomato.

"What are we now?" Nagihiko asked.

"A couple?" Rima wondered shyly. Her voice was soft.

"I'd like that."

"This progressed rapidly." Nagihiko laughed.

"Yeah, it did," Rima agreed. They faced each other for a moment. Nagihiko placed his other hand on her cheek, and caressed it. Rima closed her eyes and relaxed. She opened them briefly afterward, and leaned toward him, kissing him and surprising them both. Nagihiko returned it without questions asked. They broke apart after a couple of minutes, and smiled brightly.

"Care to restore our friendship over dinner?" Nagihiko asked.

"I can't tonight, but I'm down for tomorrow." They smiled at each other.

"Hey guys!" Both of them looked up and immediately separated as they faced Amu. She smiled. "What are you guys doing?"

"W-We, um, well, w-we w-were working on a project!" Rima bluffed.

"I-It was about conversational techniques!" Nagihiko added. "We were forced to partner up."

"Uh-huh." Amu seemed unconvinced. "I don't think typical conversations contain kissing." Both of them turned dark red.

"We may or may not be dating now," Nagihiko murmured. Amu beamed, and hugged them both.

"I have been wanting you guys to get together for so long!" Amu squealed. "I thought it was impossible, but I'm happy I was wrong!" She let go. "Oh, I'll give you some privacy! Bye-bye!" Amu ran off, leaving just the two of them.

"That's my car. See you later Nagi," Rima muttered. She kissed his cheek. "I don't mind sharing Amu," she whispered. Nagihiko chuckled lightly. Rima walked away. Nagihiko smiled, excited for his new relationship.

xx