A/N: Prompt from a Guest reviewer. Thank you! Please drop a few more, guys, I need some fluffier words, too~ This contains some spoilers.


2

Regret


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He should have told her those three things.

He should have told her.

He should have.

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1.

She's in for a check-up, something she has scheduled three times a month and every other week; it's like a therapy session to make sure her burns are healed and her body is functioning correctly. Ryouga usually takes her, but today - according to her brother - she had wanted to go alone to prove she could be independent.

But despite her wish, someone joined Rio in her assigned room at the Rehabilitation Center this Saturday morning. She is on the second floor in room 205, two rooms over from the elevator entrance. The Burn Unit is semi-connected to the hospital where she had once been residing after the fire. Rio still has to come by so the doctors can be absolutely positive that she's recovered.

For the certain someone visiting her, the place makes him shudder and laugh nervously to himself.

His dark eyes trail the numbers on the doors, one by one, picking out the three-digits he wants. With a quivering hand that he clenches to stiffen, he knocks his knuckles against the flat entryway roughly.

"Yes?"

He pushes it open slowly, muscles aching after the hours he'd spent back home, slamming his fist against the walls and pacing as he tried to make a damn decision. But he was here now; may as well follow through with it.

IV stands before the girl he'd nearly killed that night in the alleyway and gazes at her with a sad, guilty stare - one that's left damaged after his attempt to rescue her. He clasps his hands behind his back politely and takes in the details of her surprised face. She has soft skin and a nice complexion. Her eyes are maroon, much like his own, only a shade lighter. Her hair has grown back nicely, thick and lush.

IV opens his mouth, ready to say it - it's been built up inside of him for so damn long and he can't wait anymore - and is cut off.

"It's alright," Rio whispers, a genuine smile gracing her pink lips. "You don't have to say anything. It's alright."

And he doesn't. The 'I'm so, so sorry...' dies in his throat the moment she tells him he's been forgiven. It's obvious anyway. She understands his regret as the tear escapes his shut lids, sliding down along the scar that dirties his cheek - the one she'd given him while clawing desperately for something to save her.

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2.

They were holding a dinner party for the winners of the World Duel Carnival, and everyone who had participated were invited. About a month late, but hey, Heartland was suffering from the loss of their favorite psychopathic, green-haired announcer.

At first, IV hadn't even wanted to go. Actually, he was still against the whole idea of it, but his brothers dragged him along anyway. Fancy social gatherings were not something IV particularly enjoyed, and he was defiant until the very end, going as far as to anchor himself to the doorway while V pulled him outside.

Naturally, his older sibling went out of his way to look professional. His long, silver hair cascaded down his back in a fashion that IV kinda wanted to poke fun at. III, on the other hand, wasn't all that 'mature -like'. And although he wasn't 'sexy' or anything, he did look admittedly adorable.

But IV - he felt ridiculous.

All three of them wore classic black suits and ties, his own being a deep red color. All he wanted was his signature coat or a pair of jeans but no, he had to be pretty.

So here he is, standing awkwardly by the food table, sipping on some punch and ignoring a trio of fangirls off to the side and Ryouga's scowling at him, watching V interact with that guy Kaito and III make a few new friends while he does absolutely nothing productive. Oh the joy~

"You look like you're having a blast," a tone laced with sarcasm says to his right.

IV nearly leaps out of his skin.

Rio is next to him, pursing her lips and lifting a brow at him while she pores herself a glass of the flavored drink. She smirks at him, adding, "You're rather jumpy tonight."

He frowns, at a loss for words as he clumsily avoids his gaze.

"You look good," Rio says, putting her index finger to her chin thoughtfully. "You clean up well."

It takes a moment for that to register as compliment and IV fumbles over his words. He still has no clue how to act around this lady and his tongue won't form the sentences he wants it to. Rio giggles at his stumble and tries to stifle it, like she feels it's rude.

Then IV stands back to look at her - actually look at her - after he finally thanks her. Rio is wearing an indigo dress that reaches her knees and stops in carefully measured ruffles. The fabric is tighter around her hips, waist, and above, ending in spaghetti straps over her shoulders. He blinks rapidly when he realizes he's being a little creepy and she snickers again.

"Oi, Rio!" The voice belongs to her brother, and Rio immediately turns to pout at IV.

"Sorry, I'll be back later!" And with that, she's off rushing to Ryouga's side, her punch left on the table, forgotten.

IV's hand is outstretched, and he quickly recoils in disgust at himself, regretting as he grinds his teeth. His soft 'You look nice, too' is left for the empty space where she'd once been to heed.

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3.

His fingers couldn't grasp her in time as the portal to the other world opened wide, gaping with an ominous, dim light, and pulled her form into its deep depths of alien atmosphere. His fist had closed, holding nothing but thin air. His heart had frozen over, layered by the ice of her forced pitch and the frigid glint in her eyes.

And only moments before, he'd been embracing her.

"Last I heard, you were in urgent care again."

Rio whips around to stare at him with wide, disbelieving eyes. They're damp and unsure, and he feels the need to wipe the threatening tears away, but he stays a safe distance from her.

"What are you doing here?" IV asks, shoving his hands in his pockets like he couldn't give less of a damn about the withering planet closing in on them.

The girl bites her lower lip, glaring at him dangerously. "Get out of here, IV."

He lifts a brow and smirks, feeling that familiar pang of his scar. "I'll leave when I'm good and ready. I always say a good scene needs a little fanservice, so here I am." Normally she would have laughed at that, but Rio is in a fowl state at the moment.

But then, that's what happens when you find out that your entire life is a lie.

The buildings around them are desolate, empty, crumbling in some places, like ruins from ancient times out of III's deck. It's scary to know that everything they've known, known as a home, is turning into nothing more than a Satellite of decay. IV scratches the back of his head, expression becoming gentler. He knows what it's like to lose everything. So maybe - just maybe - he can relate to Rio a little.

"I'm sorry, IV," she whispers, only barely audible. "But I have to."

"You don't have to say anything," he insists quietly, recalling those same words being spoken to him once. "It's alright."

Hesitantly, he moves over to her, wrapping his arms around her smaller form and pulling her close while she finally lets go of the sorrow she's been suppressing. Her body, with burn remains hiding beneath her clothes (he's seen them, she's lifted her blouse to show him), is wracked with sobs that she tries to smother. He could say a million things to her right now, but only one sticks out in his mind, and he wants to murmur it in her ear, but she's pulling away from him suddenly.

"I don't want to have to hurt you," she gasps harshly, eyes petrifying and still watering. The mask comes over her face, and her appearance alters into something alien. He isn't surprised by this, but it still rattles his core as the Barian backs away from him.

The gateway swirls into view behind her and she begins to step inside.

"Rio!" IV screams, rushing forward and trying to grip her arms. But she's gone now, on a different end of the war, a place where he can't touch her, can't hug her, can't even see her. His lungs seem to contract as the air stops flowing inside him, he can't breathe, his skin is numb, everything feels so out of place, so wrong.

Rio - Merag - hadn't even glanced back.

"You're not a monster!" he shouts into the crackling streets of Heartland - regretful words that no one will ever hear but IV himself.

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~Finish~