Yay! Time for the second chapter! Um...there's not a whole lot that I can think of to say... I'm pretty sure you all get sick of my rants about how I'm sorry I'm such a slacker and all that, because I pretty much do it every single chapter after the first. So I will not rant! Just read and enjoy... Thanks for all the reviews!

~~~~~~I do not own Maid Sama~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"...ki. MISAKI!"

Misaki suddenly snapped out of her trance, looking around to find herself in the locker room of Maid Latte. Erika and Subaru stood next to her, expressions of concern wrinkling their brows and turning down the corners of their mouths as they stared at her. They were already changed into their street clothes, ready to return home from work. Misaki looked down at herself, finding that she was still fully decked out in her Maid Latte uniform with one hand resting against her locker.

"Are you okay, Misaki?" Subaru asked.

"We've been calling your name for a while now." Erika studied Misaki's face, looking for telltale signs of a cold or the flu.

It took Misaki a minute to process the simple things that they were saying to her. "O-oh. No, no! I'm fine!" she gasped, waving her hands back and forth insistently. "Don't worry about me!"

Erika and Subaru glanced at each other uncertainly. Like the manager, they had noticed Misaki's strange behavior the entire night, and they were concerned that something had happened that had upset her. Come to think of it, Usui hadn't been in Maid Latte either. Maybe it had to do with him? But what could be so bad that it made Misaki drop things and drift into a different place altogether?

"Misaki..." Erika played with the strap of her purse nervously. "Did...you break up with Usui? Is that what's wrong?"

"Ohhh," said Subaru knowingly, her brows curving upward in sympathy. "That would make sense."

Misaki's face flushed to a red the color of blood. "N-n-n-no! I've told you before, we don't have that kind of relationship at all!" She whirled around and began to hurriedly change into her other clothes.

Once again Erika and Subaru looked at each other. If it wasn't that, what could it be? It had to do with Usui somehow, even if it wasn't all that was on Misaki's mind. "Misaki...where is Usui?" Erika asked gently.

Misaki froze, her hands at the buttons of her shirt, when she asked. Slowly, Misaki returned to buttoning her shirt and closed her locker with far-off gazing eyes. "I don't know," she murmured.

Subaru and Erika watched sadly as Misaki made her way silently out of Maid Latte. What on earth could they ever say to her to make her cheer up? It was out of their hands-Usui was the only one who could ever make her really come to life and bring her out of her shell. Just as Satsuki had said, she was only her cutest when Usui was around. Without Usui, they didn't even have a prayer of getting through to Misaki. That's why Usui was so good for her: he was the only other person in the world, maybe besides her family, that understood her and what she needed. He would never just abandon her without a backward glance, either. So the most important question of all was this: Where is Usui?

Subaru and Erika sighed and walked together out of the shop. It was in the hands of the gods at that point.

Misaki stared up at the towering face of the classy apartment building, surprised that she had actually brought herself there looking for him. Normally things involving Usui were absolutely taboo, made so by Misaki's determination to prove to everyone else that there was nothing going on between them. But with how things were going lately for Misaki, she wasn't sure of what "normal" even was for her anymore. If her new "normal" involved waking up to find her family gone and her father forced back into their lives, then it was most certainly normal for Misaki to show up at Usui's apartment looking for him.

As she rode the elevator up to his floor, Misaki had to push back the thoughts of confusion that swirled in her brain. What was she even coming here for? What was she expecting from him? It wasn't like he could magically make her dad disappear and bring her family back. He wasn't a miracle worker.

The elevator deposited Misaki on his floor with a smooth, soundless glide of the door opening. She stepped hesitantly into the hall, treading lightly and glancing around herself furtively as if Usui would jump out at any given moment. But no Usui appeared, and she made it to his door in peace. But it was all too peacefully quiet, especially when no response came to Misaki's loud rapping on the door. She frowned. Maybe he's in the shower, she thought to herself. So she waited for a couple of minutes before trying again with a louder knock. He still didn't come. She tried a third time. By then, it had been ten minutes she had been standing outside his apartment, and it was becoming painfully obvious that he wasn't home.

A suffocating feeling descended on Misaki's chest when she concluded that he wasn't home. Where could she go now? Who could she go to? Who would help her? She refused to go home-it was too eerie to be there by herself, and she was scared of imagining a future where her dad returned to live with them. She couldn't get help from Suzuna and Sakura; she didn't know where they lived, and she didn't want to be a bother to them. Although she hated to admit it, Usui was the only constant she was sure of in her life besides her family. No matter what trouble she found herself in, he was always there watching over her, standing right next to her in place of a guardian angel sent to look out for her. And until that moment, Misaki had taken it for granted. With nowhere else to go, Misaki leaned against the door and slid to the floor. She pulled her legs to her chest and leaned her cheek against her knees as a new kind of ache began to throb deep inside her chest, nearly bringing tears to her invincible eyes. With nothing else to do, she closed her eyes, letting herself drop into a place where her troubles were gone.

When Misaki woke she was startled to find herself sleeping on a couch with a blanket spread over her and a pillow resting beneath her head. She sat up quickly, looking around as she tried to figure where she was. But after remembering where she had fallen asleep and taking in the sparsely furnished apartment, she realized there was only one place she could be. And that meant that he-that Usui-was there. The good smell of something cooking coming from the kitchen confirmed her analysis, and suddenly her heart was in her throat for an inexplicable reason.

Before she could prepare herself mentally, Usui had appeared at the door of the kitchen with a plate of food in his hand. He looked like he had just come from a high class party, with black dress pants and a crisp white shirt unbuttoned at the cuffs and rolled up to his elbows. He had taken off his tie, and his brown hair was slightly disheveled. "Ah, you're awake," he observed.

Misaki felt an unwanted heat rise into her cheeks at his appearance. She glanced to the side, away from his eyes. "Wh-when did you get here?" she demanded as she stared at the coffee table next to the couch.

"I could ask you the same thing." Usui went over to the couch, setting the plate down on the table and crouching down in front of Misaki. "I have to say, I never expected to come back to my apartment and find you waiting for me."

Misaki's mouth opened and closed wordlessly as her cheeks burned in embarrassment. There was no way she could deny something as obvious as that.

Usui studied her face, noting the fatigued look in her eyes. "Ayuzawa...did something happen?"

Her head whipped up and she looked straight at Takumi. How he could gauge her thoughts with just one glance was beyond her level of understanding. She stared at him, not knowing what to say to express her troubles. Wasn't that what she had come for? Why was she suddenly tongue-tied?

As Takumi watched her, he let out an inward sigh as he put on a mischievous grin. "Or maybe you just had the overpowering need to see my wonderful face?"

Using the pillow behind her head as a projectile, Misaki lashed out in embarrassed defense. "Don't be ridiculous!" she shouted, doing her best to be angry. She promptly got to her feet, suddenly wanting to take all of her actions back. She couldn't bring herself to drag Usui into her problems again. "Just forget it. I'm going home."

Before she could move to leave, Usui had grabbed her wrist and stared into her eyes, all traces of teasing gone. "Ayuzawa, what's going on?"

Misaki stared down into his prying eyes. He was all serious now, patiently waiting for her answer.

Waiting. He was waiting again. That was what she was always making him do, wasn't it? No matter how she treated him, no matter how long she made him wait, he was always patient. And what did she ever give him in return? Nothing. All those times he had helped her get out of her situations, and she had never truly thanked him. He was probably the best friend she would ever get, and she never reciprocated. She was a terrible person, and here she was wondering what she had done to deserve such misfortune.

"Ayuzawa, you can tell me," Usui said, looking into her eyes earnestly.

When she caught his eyes again, tears suddenly flooded her eyes. Why? Why did he stay by her side when she was so terrible to him?

At the sight of her tears, Takumi became concerned. "What? Why are you crying?"

"I...I don't deserve..." Tears choked back her words.

"You don't deserve what?" Takumi probed gently. But Misaki couldn't say anything. She just leaned her head against his shoulder in response and continued to cry. Understanding filled Usui's mind, and he gave a small smile. "It's okay. You're fine just the way you are. Don't worry about me." He put a hand against her back, holding her to him and letting her cry until she was ready to speak.

Um...wow. This totally didn't end the way I thought it would. She was crying a lot more than I thought she would. :/ She's kinda out of character, but maybe we can let it slide given her circumstances...? Please give me some leniency...I'm being shoved away from the computer. Anyway, reviews are greatly appreciated!