For once, once in my whole life, I've actually written an outline for the whole freaking fanfic! XD. Well of course not just me but Byaku as well. XD. We got the chapters planned out and everything and stuff. And I'm quite excited to write this all. This is my OTP after all.
(Paiko is a pro now. She's planned her writing out and everything.)
((Yay! I feel so accomplished and magical. This calls for something to celebrate! I know! I can finish the last four lines of my notes! XD))

Mystical Authoress: Well...we were on the same boat about not knowing what a pomelo is. Then Byaku showed me one and I realized I've eaten those before but never liked it. XD
If Lea doesn't survive, then there will be no story. Then I'll get mad and kill him. XD
(Still can't figure out who is who) ((Byaku…*shakes head in disapproval* Red=fire. Blue=moon.))

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts, the characters, nor the song 'Seeing a Sixteen-Day-Old Moon'.

Thanks once again to Byaku who is by far the bestest editor I have ever could have. Then again, I've only had one before her who took 1 month to edit one third of something that took Byaku like...few hours to do the whole thing. So...no competition there. XD

Oh...and I changed the story picture too. It's half complete and missing Lea...I'll change it again later to have both Lea and Isa as soon as I finish it. XD

Part 1: Chapter 2

Waxing Crescent

"They've travelled billions of light years, Still, these lights seem so gently – Why is that?"

-'Seeing a Sixteen-Day-Old Moon', Gumi

Lea

A strong grip wraps around my neck, stopping my breath at my throat and ceasing any further words from leaving my mouth. I gulp, feeling Isa's hands tighten its hold. Is this really how I am going to die, strangled by an attempted friend? People have often told me that I would die from playing with fire or from an ex-girlfriend. Believe me, I've had plenty of girls in other schools that hate me. Not my fault that I like to make friends with other girls. But that just leads to jealousy, then to assumptions of cheating or actual cheating, and you get the whole cycle.

I stare into Isa's aqua-marine eyes that are masked with so much rage that they look not only soulless but murderous. Struggling, I draw in a small gasped breath. I can't die now. After all, I don't think I've achieved my goal of immortality yet.

Taking a step back, I struggle and twist in every way possible to try to escape the monster that is Isa. Unfortunately, I just don't happen to see the empty bucket behind me and end up tripping over it. And that is how I end up slamming the side of my head against the corner of who knows what the janitor keeps in there. I don't know how but Isa still has a vice grip around my throat and is now on top of me, squishing me onto the floor. Something sharp jabs into my back, hard enough so that it brings tears to my eyes. How the fuck is Isa this strong?

Oh look. Stars. At the edge of my vision. They swim towards the center. So pretty. They look like they sparkle. Blazing balls of fire. My chest is burning. It cries for oxygen. But I can't breathe. The stars are too bright. They're getting brighter. Or is the world getting darker? I can't tell. I want to touch the stars. Isa's hands are soft. I vaguely think. If I die, at least the hands are soft. It's a nice feeling to die to. Better than the sharp thing in my back.

Then there is a shriek of pain before the pressure on my throat is gone. The stars drift away with the darkness. After all, stars can't shine when there is no darkness, like the moon can't shine without the sun. Air? I'm breathing again, deep ragged breaths that fill my greedy lungs with the oxygen they have been deprived of. Ah...the air tastes of heaven. No, heaven means I'm dead. It tastes of life.

As soon as the darkness clears, I glance up to see what had happened. Silhouetted at the doorway, I first see someone with a rectangle head. Wait, what?! Squinting and sitting up, I take a closer look. Oh. It's just someone with a big fat book.

"Ienzo?" I murmur as I recognize that small figure. Hard not to recognize him.

Ienzo lets out soft pants as if he just ran a long distance carrying a stack of bricks. Nevermind. He did. After all, his books probably weigh the same amount as bricks. It must hurt to be hit on the head with one of them. Speaking of getting hit with books, I turn to look at Isa who is crumpled on the floor next to me. Before I can think of him as dead, he shifts and lets out a pained moan.

"Ow...what happened?" Isa groans as he sits up while clutching the back of his head. He turns to stare at me, squinting in the darkness to study me. To help us all see, Ienzo flicks on a light switch. It only takes a moment for Isa to realize what happened. "Oh shit. Shit. No. Please tell me I didn't...I...oh shit I'm sorry. Are you hurt? Did I do anything to you? Fuck. Not again...not again...I told you to leave me alone. I told you I didn't want to be friends...you see...this is what happens." His eyes briefly flick over to Ienzo for a second. "Ien...zo…?"

Ienzo stares at the book in his hand, unable to make eye contact with Isa. "I'm sorry...I had to do that…"

"I'm glad you did…" Isa whispers. I can tell he's uncomfortable and nervous. The way his hand shakes slightly and his eyes flit back and forth between everything. "I...uh…" He panics. This time he doesn't try to hide it. It's obvious. And then he shoves Ienzo out and slams the door in his startled face. It's all quiet until we hear Ienzo sigh and the sound of his receding footsteps.

Isa leans against the door, his breathing coming out short and fast. His eyes are closed as if to shut out the world. I think that he forgot that I was even in here with him...I let out a soft cough to alert him of my presence and sure enough he jumps in surprise as he sees me. Talk about distracted.

"Umm...Lea...err…" His eyes are directed at me neck. Aw fuck. Are bruises already starting to show? "I...I'm sorry. Maybe you should...uh...go…" He's looking at me with the same guilt he has in his eyes when he looks at Ienzo.

I scoff and roll my eyes. "And what? Leave you in here?"

"Yeah…"

"You kidding me!? You are in need of serious comfort and you tell me to leave? You're smart in science and all but you really need to work on your life skills. Anyways, I'm staying in here with ya and you can't make me go." After a second I decide to add, "Got it memorized?"

Isa is quiet for a moment. So quiet that it unnerves me. It takes like thirty seconds for him to finally start speaking again and his voice comes out in such a dull tone that it makes me feel kinda nervous. "Fine." Isa reaches up and turns off the light, plunging the both if us into pitch black darkness.

"Why'd you do that, turn off the light?" I ask, feeling around to sit down somewhere. I don't want to sit down on that sharp thing I sat on earlier.

"I like it that way." Isa responds sharply. I decide not to question it. Some things are better in the dark, like stars.

I let my eyes adjust slightly to the darkness, the only light in here coming from under the door. But that light is enough to see Isa's hunched figure in faintly silhouetted in the darkness. I listen to the sound of our breaths in the silence, only to be disturbed by my constant shifting around to get into a better position. Sitting still was never one of my skills. Also, the darkness kinda scares me.

And that is when I hear the barely audible sniffles coming from Isa. Wait...is Isa crying? I've hardly seen him show any emotion other than uninterested, annoyed, and mad and here he is crying.

"Hey…" I murmur softly, reaching out to nudge his foot. "Isa. Are you...crying?"

Isa replies in a cold voice, harsh but filled with grief. "No." His voice cracks at the end. It's a lie. A blatant lie that even a baby wouldn't believe.

So I do the next best thing I can think of. I fish around in my pockets, hoping that I still have some with me. Hmm...paperclips, something that felt oddly disgusting, a broken pen, a scarf, and ah hah! I take out a packet of matches and expertly strike a match in the darkness. The light that illuminates the dark room, chasing the shadows away and letting the brightness shine again relieves me. The tiny flickering flame at the end of the small stick glows a thousand times brighter in the darkness than in the light.

Isa flinches away from the light, wiping his eyes angrily to prevent me from seeing his tear streaked face. Too late. I've already seen it. Light reflects water in a nice way and it's hard to miss it.

"You are crying." I grin, unable to hide my triumph at being correct and proving him wrong. "You liar."

"Shut up." Isa scowls. It's not so scary once you realize how miserable he really looks. And I don't like it. I'd rather see him annoyed at me rather than miserable. But then again, it is probably my annoying behaviour that got him into this mood anyways. And now, more than ever, I feel a rush of guilt and shame for doing this to him. I shouldn't have pushed so hard and now I really need to cheer him up. It's like my duty, my job to make him feel better so I can be forgiven.

"Look...Isa…"

"Why. The. Fuck. Do. You. Have. Matches. With. You!?" Isa interrupts as he stares at the tiny flickering flame that is getting quite near my fingertips. I let it burn dangerously close before shaking the fire out. The darkness draws around us once again.

"Huh? I usually do. I also have a lighter but I like matches better."

"Why do you have them?" Isa repeats, not willing to let the question drop.

"Cuz for moments when I need them...like maybe now…"

I light another match so I can see Isa's face. He's staring at me with an incredulous look. I don't blame him. It's not everyday you see a student carrying matches and lighters to school in their pockets unless it's one of those druggies who are always stoned and smelling of weed. For me, I just carry them around for reassurance. I feel safe around fire. Ironic since fire burns and kills. To others, it might be a fearsome thing, consuming things in its path and obliterating all with its dancing flames. To me, it's light, heat, and beauty in the way its tendrils of brightness chase away darkness and warms my fingers.

"Why?" Isa asks suddenly as he stares into the flame. I see the orange light reflect off his blue eyes, giving them a strange golden colour, something that would never occur in the daylight.

"Why what? Why I carry matches? Didn't I already answer that..." Well...I didn't really answer it directly.

"Why are you still here? A normal person would have run off while screaming 'monster' or something…he or she would not be still sitting here talking to me."

"Hey!" I pretend to sound annoyed. "Are you saying I'm not normal?!"

"Yes."

Ouch. Real harsh. But I don't mind 'cuz I know he really doesn't mean it. And I'm also a bit glad. Some of the old Isa I knew ten minutes ago is returning.

"Hmph. Some friend you are."

"I'm not your-"

"Blah blah blah. Say whatever you want. I just want to tell you that...well...what I said earlier...er...maybe I didn't completely mean it. I was just...curious I guess you can say. I wanted to see more emotions from you other than your oh-my-god-he's-annoying-and-I'm-bored face...so I decided to annoy you...and...whoops." I let out a sheepish grin and rub the back of my neck self consciously.

Isa studies me carefully through still teary eyes. "So you won't leave me?"

"Nope!"

Isa groans. "Great. Just fucking great. So I'm stuck with a fucking stupid idiot like you..."

I grin. "Heh...Yup."

"You really are carefree...aren't you."

"Uh huh."

We both fall silent once again. I stare at Isa for a brief while, wondering if I have been forgiven. It's at that moment when I realize that the the flame on the match is starting to burn my fingers. I shriek, tossing the match away while furiously shaking my hands to rid of the pain. Isa jumps up in surprise but he can only watch as I do a crazy little dance in this cramped closet.

"Umm...are you okay?"

I wince and try to put on a smile even though he can't see me in the dark. "Y..Yeah. Don't worry. It's just another burn. No biggie."

"Just another burn?" Isa sighs. "You are so hopeless."

I shrug. "Well...are you feeling any better?"

"Better? Huh?"

"Ya know...you were crying like a baby a moment ago."

Isa growls, his stance getting defensive. "I was not!"

"Yes you were."

"No."

"Whatever you say." I laugh. It's kinda hard to take him seriously any more.

Outside, the sound of the bell rings through the hallways. It's the end of lunch already? I didn't even sit down to eat! Speaking of eating, I was starving and where did I leave my lunch again? Oh right. When I dashed off from Isa's mad rage, I had tossed it to the side, I think...or had I just left my stuff in the previous classroom. Wherever it is, the fact that I didn't eat stays the same. To prove my point, my stomach lets out an insanely loud growl.

Isa stares at me, or rather my growling stomach. "Sorry that I made you skip lunch to run away from me."

"Nah. No problem. I'm not too hungry." And then my stomach growls again. "Uh…"

"Sure. Whatever you say." the sarcastic tone is back. "Come on. Let's go before we're late."

He reaches for the doorknob but a sudden impulse within me grabs his arm before he can twist it. Already, I can see the plans of another great idea forming within my mind, weaving together a better idea than to go to the next class.

"Hey, Isa. How about this? We skip class and head out to town."

Even in the dark I can see Isa's dumbfounded gaze. Something tells me he's always been an obedient student and has never even been late to class before. I've done it myself many times, when I've been too lazy or bored to go to any class. Sure this might be my first day at this school, but it's not like I haven't skipped out on first days either. But Isa on the other hand...some persuasion might be necessary.

"No!" Isa's answer is firm and unmoving. Okay, scratch that 'some' persuasion. A whole shitload of persuasion is gonna be needed.

"C'mon...only today. And we only have two more classes left for the day. It can't hurt to skip those classes…"

"Still no."

"You look like shit."

Isa rubs his eyes tiredly. "No duh. I just went batshit insane on you. And might I add that you look just as bad as well with that bruise around your neck." that guilty look again.

"Well both of us are in no state for school. I know you want to avoid all those questions and people after they saw us both running around the school in your angry roar mode. If you leave with me, then you can avoid them and also have a good time."

I watch Isa carefully. He seems to be considering it since he isn't responding and I'm crossing my fingers and hoping that can persuade him. At last he nods reluctantly and sighs.

"Fine. Just this once, but don't expect me to ever do this again."

I let out a whoop of excitement. "Yes! If you're like this every time you go berserk, then I'll be glad to get you all mad and stuff every day."

"Don't you dare!" Isa growls.

But there is no hint of anger in his growl.

I even hear a hint of joy.

Isa

Why the fuck did I fucking agree to this stupid, insane, idiotic plan of his?! I mean ditching school, really? I have never been late to class before and this is completely going out on a limb. Something is seriously wrong with me now. But then again, I had just gone crazy and attacked Lea. I didn't want to admit it out loud but I had appreciated his presence with me in that dark janitors closet. I am fond and kinda used to the dark since it is the best time to view the night sky, but Lea had made me feel...wanted...something even the darkness couldn't give.

He was the first not to call me a monster. He had been the first to stay with me. He had been willing to comfort me even after I hurt him. I hated that stupidity of his but I was also glad that it was there. Had he been smarter, then probably he wouldn't have stayed. Or maybe...maybe he is smart, smarter than anyone could be and able to pierce through the secrets the anger held.

Either way, I'm just glad he's here...even though he's making me do this crazy plan of ditching school. Judging by the way Lea expertly sneaks through the hallways, this is not his first time ditching school. As for me, I trail behind Lea like a faithful puppy, casting panicked glances everywhere. I don't want to be caught doing this since I do have a reputation after all.

People expect me to be a well behaved, studious, and educated student. I've aced every class I have ever taken, pleasing both my teachers and my father. It has always been my father who pushes me to do well in school. A strict, unyielding man, my father often makes it clear that he does not want me to slack off in my education and is always expecting me to be the top of the class. I make him sound like a tyrant but really he's a nice man who just cares a lot for my future, even though he yells at me a lot and scolds me. I haven't let him down in education yet but I think he's terribly worried about my anger issues. It's my greatest flaw that not even the stars of fate can change.

"Uh...Isa…" Lea suddenly whispers, pulling me out of my thoughts. "I know I told you to stay close behind me...but...I didn't mean this close...and my arms are growing numb."

I suddenly leap away after realizing just how tightly I'm clutching Lea's arm. Had I really been that worried?

Lea gives me a reassuring grin upon noticing my obvious panic. "Don't worry. We're almost out…"

He leads us out the door of the building and to the front gates. Glancing around with those observant eyes of his, Lea checks around for any people. He really is more observant than he looks.

"This school really has a lot less security than I thought…" Lea comments as he casually strolls up to the school gates.

I roll my eyes at Lea. "Hmph. We do have two security guards but during class, they just sit around and do nothing. It's only during passing periods, lunch, and times like that with many people around that they really do their job. There used to be none though...the school had to hire them after...er…" I trail off hesitantly. Most of the time when I do this, people push me to keep speaking and tell them. But Lea gets it. He can tell that I don't really want to say it. And that is why I decide to tell him. "well...after my first...um...how should I say it...angry moments...rage…"

"Berserk mode?" Lea suggests helpfully.

I nod. "I like the sound of that...though it would be nice if we didn't have to think of such a term for my problem. Cus well...going crazy like that is not a good thing." Ugh. I'm totally stalling right now. "Anyways...uh...umm...so...er...that day...you see...well…" Goddammit! I need to stop stuttering!

"C'mon. Let's go first. You can tell me later." Lea drags me along.

One might have seen that as rude that Lea interrupted me. But I know he was trying to help me. It is the first time I have been so open to someone. I don't willingly talk to people like that, not even to my therapists. I think it's maybe the way he didn't leave me alone. But I still wonder, did he do that out of pity or did he really care?

We exit through the front gates. Just like that. A tiny step outside and I just know that my whole life had just flipped around.

Without any warning, Lea breaks into a sprint while I stand there like an idiot as I watch Lea dash around a corner. Few moments later, Lea comes back around and waves at me to hurry up. Breaking out of my daze, I run after Lea, a small yet amused grin stealthily finding its way onto my face.

We run and run, not knowing where we are going as we rush through the streets, our footsteps echoing against the perfectly laid out stone floor. Lea leads the way to nowhereness, running wherever he feels like, and I follow him as he guides me through Radiant Garden.

Both of us finally come to a stop, panting and gasping for breath from our long run. I don't know why we did that, nor why we stopped here.

"Hey…" Lea gasps through heavy breaths. "You wanna...get...something to...eat?"

It takes a while for me to respond. "I don't think I have any money on me…"

"Don't worry. I'll pay for it all."

"But-"

"You're welcome! So how does ice cream sound?"

"I'll pay you ba-"

"So what flavor you want?"

"Lea…"

Lea sighs and throws his hands up in exasperation. "Look, Isa. Think about it as a treat. You don't need to pay. Or you can buy next time. Got it memorized?"

Really? He thinks there is gonna be a 'next time'? I sigh but give in. "Fine. But no chocolate alright. I hate that flavour."

Lea shrugs. "Fine by me. Any preferred flavour?"

"No."

"Got it. Any flavour but chocolate. Stay right here. I'll be right back."

With that, Lea dashes off, leaving me alone in the middle of the street. And then I panic. My cool, calm, and collected self flakes away and I stand gazing into the clear water of one of the many fountains around town. I stares at my reflection, a look of fear and worry drawn upon it. What if Lea never comes back?

I still hate him. But I do hate him less than everybody else. I grip the edge of the stone fountain nervously, my hands reaching up to brush through my hair every once in a while. Is Lea one who pretends to pity me and then ditches me out here just for laughs? No. He won't do that, right? He's not that type of person. I finger the moon sown onto my blue jacket. But then again, I've only known him for several hours. I can't judge now. With each second that passes, I find myself doubting even more and more that Lea won't come back.

At last, right when I find myself just about ready to give up waiting and crawl into a hole to shut myself away from the world, I hear the sudden sound of water splashing behind me. Immediately following that, wet and cold water splashes my back, soaking my jacket with an uncomfortable wetness.

I whirl around to find myself staring at a laughing Lea.

"Oh my god! You should have seen the look on your face!" Lea laughs while clutching his stomach with his one free hand. His other hands holds a light blue ice cream on a stick.

"What took you so fucking long!?" I growl as I grab Lea's shoulder and shake him out of his mocking laughter.

Lea still laughs. Can nothing make this guy sad? "Chill, Isa. I only took like...what...two minutes?"

"Six you idiot."

"Whatever...close enough." Lea casually sits down on the stone floor next to the fountain. He starts eating one of the ice creams, biting into it with a happy grin still on his face. Glancing at me briefly, Lea holds up an ice cream for me to take.

As I stare at the ice cream, I knew exactly what I had to do. Stepping closer to Lea, I dip my arm into the fountain. With a clean sweep of my arm, I splash Lea, drenching his whole body with water and only sparing the ice creams.

Lea jumps up with a loud yelp and then dances around trying to shake water off his clothing. "Hey! Ewww….I'm all wet now! Gross! Isaaaaaa!"

"You deserved that." I scoff as I shrug off my jacket and set it aside to dry. Pity. I happen to be attached to that jacket. But I'll rather take it off rather than catch a cold.

Lea pouts as he sits back down in his wet clothing. He looked completely hilarious sitting there in a puddle of fountain water while his bright red spikes drip water droplets around him. I would have laughed if it wasn't for the fact that I don't normally laugh at anything.

I take the ice cream but I don't sit down next to Lea. Instead I stay standing next to him. I don't want to get even wetter by sitting in that puddle of water.

"What flavour is this?" I ask while staring at the ice cream suspiciously. I've never seen any ice cream that has ever looked like this before. It's a strange light blue, pale and gentle yet mysterious and alluring.

Lea shrugs. "Some new flavour I think. Sea salt or something."

I frown at the sound of that. "Sea salt? That doesn't sound very good…"

"Try it. I think it tastes heavenly." Lea takes another huge bite out of his ice cream. "Mhh...perfect. Hurry up and eat yours before it melts."

Cautious, I give the tip of the ice cream a small lick and immediately, I know that it's a taste I would never forget. A new kind of sweetness bursts forth. The sweet taste is still there but mixed in, enhancing the sugariness, is a bold flash of saltiness. It's brash and such and alien idea, but it's also beautiful and so divine.

"Prodigiosus…" I murmur. It's the only word that I can say.

Lea frowns. "I'm not gonna ask what that means…"

I take another lick and then another, savoring the new taste with every tiny lick. Maybe there can be something else I can love other than the moon…

Lea eyes my half finished ice cream while chewing on the stick. I shoot him a look that clearly states I'm not giving him my half. This makes Lea grin.

"I knew that you were gonna like it."

I blink, tilting my head slightly in curiousity. "How could you know?"

"It was blue like your hair."

I mentally facepalm. This guy's an idiot.

"Anyways, you were talking earlier about what happened from no security guards to two of them?" Oh shit...I forgot all about that. "Unless you don't want to talk about it." Lea adds. How considerate…he knows it's a topic I'm not fond of. Even more, he actually listened to me back then.

I take a deep breath. Might as well talk about it since it has been brought up. I doubt I'll ever get the chance to do this with anyone ever again, not even with therapists. "Well...to keep it brief, I 'berserked' and attacked some students. One had a broken leg. Another had a serious concussion. And one other guy ended up with broken ribs, broken arms, and a pretty bad cut on his back caused by my teeth. He almost died of blood loss too... It was the worst I have ever done...and I was going to get expelled. But luckily…" Hah. Luckily? Depends how I consider it. "...luckily they diagnosed me with anger management issues so I was let off with one week suspension as long as I go to some therapy. It was the first rage I've ever gone into. None of my rages have ever been as bad as that one though...unless…nevermind."

Lea nods, a look of thinking crossing his face. "Hey, Isa...what made you mad at them in the first place?"

I stare at the sky, looking at anything other than Lea. This question I cannot answer. I have racked my brain for the reason ever since I came out of my berserk mode. But I can never remember why. It's strange. I think it's the way the mind protects itself. It was traumatizing, snapping out of my rage to find my hands bloodied and everyone screaming around me. It had taken me a minute or two to uncloud my mind and finally realize what I had done. And I was terrified. And I didn't remember why I was mad in the first place. My mind doesn't want me to remember so now its just a ripped page in my memories, gone and locked away from sight. Ever since then, I've had nightmares. But none ever reveal what happens. It's always right after I snap out of the madness, when I see the blood. Never before it.

"I don't know, Lea...I really don't…" Bad memories. The blood. The pained look on the three student's faces. The screaming of people around me, all of them huddling away from the monster I became. It's coming back...like a nightmare...but when I'm awake. I can't make it stop. Someone...help me...it's all red...a crimson red...stop it… "...make it stop…" I don't realize I've spoken out loud.

Lea grabs my wrists and tries to loosen my tightly clenched fists. "Isa! Calm down! Nothing's here except me…" His voice gets gentler. "It's only me. Whatever you see, whatever you're hearing, it's not real. Come back to me Isa…"

Lea's scarf slips down a bit and I catch a glimpse of the bruises from earlier. I completely lose it. I need to get away...now.

I start running but I don't get far before Lea tackles me to the ground. He's still wet. normally, I should be annoyed but now I just don't care. I just need to get away before I hurt someone else like that again. So I desperately attempt to shove Lea of me but I'm exhausted. I'm tired from the rage I went on earlier, the long run we went on, and from the memories, The only thing fueling me is my fear.

"Stop...please...make it...stop…"

And that's when Lea hits me. Not just a soft punch but a fierce punch to the side of my head, right where Ienzo clubbed me with his book earlier. It hurt like fuck and I see stars dance around in my vision briefly. When the stars fade away, everything is back to normal again. There is no more blood, no more screaming. It's all gone.

Then I hear Lea yelp in surprise and then the weight of him on my body is suddenly lifted away. The next thing I hear is a man's voice, one that I have not heard before.

"Foolish adolescents. Two rather belligerent ones too, getting into such an skirmish in the middle of the road." The man is clearly a scientist. His use of vocabulary and his white lab coat made it quite clear. He's old, maybe in the forties with dirty blonde long hair. He holds Lea up by the back of his shirt who is struggling to wrench himself free from the old man's surprisingly iron grip. "I suggest you stop struggling unless you wish for me to report you to your parents."

Lea mutters something under his breath, something that I can't hear, but he stops struggling. He says something else with a louder voice. "Jeez, old dude, I wasn't attacking him or anything…" How disrespectful…

"Oh really?" the scientist scoffs. "Then I assume there is some other explanation for what I just saw, right?" Oh the sarcasm he has.

I sit up, wincing from the pain in my head. "Please, sir. He really wasn't hurting me. He was...helping me."

The old scientist raises an eyebrow in speculation. That look reminded me of a cat. "Helping?"

"Y...yeah. I was just...seeing things that weren't there. A flashback. And Lea was trying to snap me out of it."

Lea grins and flashes me a smile. "And that hit really worked. Sorry if that hurt though, Isa. I had to do it…I figured if it worked when Ienzo hit you with a book to get you out of your berserk mode, then punching that spot would work too."

The scientist suddenly jumps and releases Lea. "Ienzo!? You two are acquainted with him? Do you know of his whereabouts?"

Lea studies the old man. "You his dad or something?"

"What-no! I'm merely his guardian."

"Guardian? Like an angel?"

I stand up and brush the dirt off the back of my pants. Ugh...I'm wet too. What a wonderful way to present myself to public. "Lea, that's not what guardian means. Ienzo's parents died long ago. He just means that he's watching over him in place of his parents." It's probably why Ienzo has such a complex vocabulary too.

The scientist approaches me and grips my shoulder, giving me a firm shake that makes me wince in pain. "Do you know where Ienzo happens to be? I've been searching for a good ten minutes after waiting for him for thirty minutes at the school. I am responsible for that child and if he gets lost…"

I jump in surprise, earning myself a sharp pain in the head. I ignore it. "Wait! School ended forty minutes ago!?"

"Yes. Now if you two-"

"Shit shit shit." I'm a mess. How in the world did we spend so much time running around, eating ice cream, and shit. My father is going to kill me for being home so late…

This is the moment where Ienzo chooses to round the corner, tripping, stumbling, and then flipping headfirst into the fountain of water. All three of us are startled out of our own individual worlds of panic. Ienzo comes up spluttering and wetter than Lea is. Oh look, he managed to splash more water onto my precious jacket as well.

"Ienzo." the old scientist says sharply as he helps the poor boy out of the fountain. "How many times do I have to inform you. If you do not see me at the school, do NOT meander off looking for me. Remain at the school until I arrive."

"Sorry, Even…" Ienzo mumbles as he wrings out his wet clothing. He glances up at me and Lea. "Hello, Isa. Hello, Lea."

Even follows Ienzo's gaze to the two of us while crouching down next to Ienzo. While crouching down, Even is still taller than Ienzo. "Isa? Is this the friend you spoke fondly of when you were younger?" Spoke…past tense.

I take a step back. "Umm...we need to go now. Yeah. Er...goodbye!" I grab Lea and my jacket and start to drag him away, ignoring his protests.

"Wait!" Even grabs Lea, forcing me to come to a stop otherwise we'll be tearing Lea apart. "Isa. Judged on what has been described to me, I think you might have post traumatic stress disorder. I suggest you go get it checked out by a physicist or your doctor."

I scowl. Great. Another fucking problem to add to my disorders. "No."

Even frowns with concern. "No? It can be serious if not treated. But...I am not in charge of you so I cannot dictate what needs to be done. It's for you to decide...but...if things get progressively worse…"

I ignore him and drag Lea away again as soon as Even lets go. "Come on. I need to get home."

"Uh...okay...can you let go of my arm though?"

I let go of Lea's arm with a sigh. "Sorry."

"No worries. Let's get going then!"

Lea skips ahead of me, a fireball of happiness and energy. I'm exhausted, devastated, and in pain. How can he still keep such an optimistic look on his face? It makes me jealous how he can be so happy all the time. But it also makes me crack a small grin as he stumbles into a wall while walking backwards and smiling at me. He's crazy, stupid, and idiotic. I hate him. He's always so carefree, like nothing in the world can make him sad.

I say he is the idiot, the stupid punk who is up to no good.

But in reality, the real idiot is me.

A/N: Whew...that's a good load of Isa's problems in this chapter. Next chapter will have some of Isa's problems but maybe more Lea's. XD. The great question of this story: what happened that triggered Isa's first berserkness. (I have a reason: Isa was having a bad day. He has bad days, just like John. I should stop with the fandom references. They are destroying my mind.) XD I'll reveal it maybe the last chapter or maybe halfway or maybe the chapter before the last chapter. I'll see….
(Spoiler: There are no giraffes involved. I think.)
((who knows. there might be….))

Anyhoo. I like reviews. They make me happy. I give out free hugs. XD