Finally, I'm able to put this chapter up! I always hate taking this long to update, so my apologies. I'm done with school now! So, hopefully updating will be happening a lot quicker. For my other story, I have writer's block right now. So, most likely, this one will be updated quicker than the other. Anyway, this chapter isn't anything special, and it's pretty short, but I couldn't add too much without giving away further chapter. It'll start getting a lot better by the next one, for sure. And I'm gonna be jumping around a lot in this story. Hope you like it!

Disclaimer: I don't own anything, except for the plot.


The Only Promise You Ever Made

Chapter 2-Breaking Down

5 Years Later

"You always seem to make me late, Haruka," Michiru said, rummaging through her drawers to find clothes for work. She let out a frustrated sigh when nothing was good enough before quickly heading to the bathroom and shutting the door.

Haruka laid on their bed, her hands behind her head and a grin on her face. She pulled the sheet up to cover her naked body, laughing all the while at Michiru's expected behavior. This always happened, but it wasn't a surprise. The younger woman couldn't keep herself away from Haruka. She shrugged; she couldn't help how sexy she was.

The violinist came rushing back into the bedroom, picking up miscellaneous items off from her dresser and looking at Haruka in the mirror. The way she laid there, so content and relaxed, as if nothing was wrong. The smug grin on her face caused her to shake her head, before turning to finally look at the blonde.

"We really need to stop doing this, you know," she said, walking closer to the bed.

"You say that all the time."

Michiru sat on the bed. "That's because it's true. I don't want to get fired for being late so many times."

The blonde laughed. "Yeah, well tell that to the woman who insists on continuing."

Michiru hit Haruka's leg, grabbing the sheet in the process and slightly pulling it down. The sight of her body was enough to make her forget about what they were talking about, and she so badly wanted to continue what they had just finished minutes before. The other woman noticed how she was being looked at, but didn't move to cover herself up. It was always fun to tease her lover.

Haruka raised an eyebrow. "Want to go for another round?"

"Yes," Michiru blurted without thinking. She shook her head and shut her eyes. "I mean, no…no, I have to get to work." She sighed and got up off the bed. "You're such a bad influence on me."

Haruka grinned. "It's not my fault you can't keep your hands off of me."

Michiru sighed. "You do have a point there." She leaned over and gave the blonde a kiss before getting up to leave. "What're you planning on doing today?" she asked, fixing her hair and clothes.

"I'm not sure. I'm going to go for a run probably, then just lounge around and watch TV. Or maybe just go for a drive. I'm not too sure yet." Haruka got up from the bed and began to put her clothes back on. It was her first day off in a long time, and she honestly didn't know what to do with herself. When she wasn't on the track, or with Michiru, there was nothing else she thought of ever doing. A run would do her good though, since all she needed was the wind against her face to clear her mind.

"Just try not to leave the TV on like you always do."

Haruka stared at her back. "Yeah…" She stood behind the woman and wrapped her arms around her waist. The violinist stopped what she was doing and leaned back into the warm embrace, savoring the feel of being held by the blonde. "You know, if it was up to me, I'd do you all day."

Michiru smiled, closing her eyes as Haruka kissed her neck. "If you're good, then we'll see what happens one of these days," she said, enjoying the feel of the other woman's lips roaming her neck. "Haruka, I need to go," she barely managed.

Haruka shook her head. "No, you don't," she answered, running her hands under Michiru's blouse.

Michiru turned around, wrapping her arms around the blonde's neck. "Don't you ever get tired?"

"Are you really asking me that question?" she said, running her hands up along Michiru's stomach and back. She pulled her closer, moving her mouth over her neck.

"I guess I'm going to be late after all."

Haruka smiled into her neck, as her hands continued their advancements around the smaller woman's body. It elicited a pleasant smile and moans of approval, allowing her to continue without any doubt or sort of hesitation.

"I love you…," she whispered to Michiru, unclasping her bra to freely run her hands everywhere.

Michiru kissed her cheek. "Always…Ruka."

The blondes grip tightened and the distance between them was non-existent, as she let out the smile only her lover could ever be the source of.

"And forever, Michi."

It was a habit of theirs that couldn't be broken, and one that came about naturally. It began a while after they had gotten married, and was more of a latent promise to each other that had so much meaning in its simplicity of words. Haruka didn't make promises, but this one was indirect more than anything and something that she couldn't resist saying.


Haruka groaned as she opened her eyes, the sunlight being too much for her to handle; she was always much more of a night owl than anything else. She stretched her arms over her head, a yawn escaping from her mouth. She turned her head when she heard a grunt. A smile found its way on her lips.

Michiru lay there, her hair falling around her face and an almost content look on her face. If it was up to Haruka, she would lay there and simply watch her sleep, she would simply admire the beauty that belonged to the woman she so hopelessly loved.

She genuinely smiled, a rare sight to those who didn't know her too well. Haruka's hands wrapped around her body and her mouth traced her neck to her cheek, enjoying the softness of her skin. Michiru slightly stirred, but didn't open her eyes. She grabbed Haruka's hand and squeezed, pulling it more over her body to fully encompass herself within the blonde's arms.

Haruka kissed her cheek. "I have to get going, love. I just wanted to say bye."

Michiru shook her head, but didn't say anything. Haruka laughed at her behavior.

"I wish I could stay, but I really need to get to the track."

Michiru grumbled in disapproval, but slowly and hesitantly let go of her arm. Haruka kissed her cheek and whispered into her ear, "Always, love."

She waited for a response, but there was none. She shrugged it off, thinking that she fell right back asleep and didn't hear her. She kissed her cheek once more before finally getting up to get ready.


"Tenoh, I want you to meet somebody."

She turned her head to her manager. A tall girl stood there with dirty blond hair and blue eyes that reminded her of the ocean. She stood there with a smirk on her face and an almost conceited look in her eyes. Haruka didn't like the way she was staring, but she just ignored it for right now.

"Who's this?" she asked, wiping her hands on a rag.

"This is one of your new mechanics. She just started yesterday. Remember I was telling you about her?"

Haruka threw the towel to the side, slightly nodding her head. "That's good and all, but I thought I said I didn't need anymore mechanics?" She turned to her manager.

He scratched his head and laughed. "Well, yeah, but she's really good. And I figured that the help would be welcomed, especially for you."

She quickly glanced at the girl, and she had that same look on her face. It was almost as if she knew something that Haruka didn't, and she didn't like that. She grabbed her manager by the arm and dragged him away. "Excuse us," she said to the girl.

"Kenji, why did you get another mechanic? Did you forget that this is going to be my last race?"

He pulled his arm free. "No, I didn't forget, but I wanted you to meet her. She seems to be really fond of you and I just wanted ya'll to meet, is all."

Haruka turned to find the girl inspecting her car and a cautious feeling came upon her. There was just something about the girl that made her seem suspicious and that she had some sort of ulterior motive than just being a mechanic. There wasn't anything to prove her theory, but that look in her eyes was different. The girl looked at Haurka and grinned before turning her attention back to the car. She decided to ignore the feeling for now but would keep her eyes on this new girl.

"Fine, let her stay." Kenji smiled. "But no more after this! We have enough good and trustworthy mechanics as it is. The last thing we need is a newbie." He nodded his head.


The track was filled with people, making it difficult to even walk through to the stands or the concessions. Michiru made her way along to a private booth that she always used for herself. Haruka didn't want her to sit among everybody else in the stands, thinking she would only be bombarded with paparazzi and fans, not that it was different or surprising, but all Michiru wanted to do was enjoy the race like all the other people there.

She entered the large room, glancing around momentarily at the small amenities and delicacies placed in the room for her. She didn't care much for it as she was only concerned with the race and safety of Haruka. Too many accidents had been happening in the racing world, whether it was competitions or practices, it seemed that somebody was always getting hurt or even killed. Michiru knew Haruka was a skilled driver, but the same couldn't be said about everybody else. Accidents were bound to happen, but she only wished it wouldn't be anytime soon, and especially to Haruka.

Although, something had been bothering her the entire day, and it made her worry. In the back of her head, there was something telling her that this race would be different than all the other ones. She unconsciously touched her stomach when a sudden feeling of nausea came over her. It was the third time that day that she had felt like that. She couldn't understand why, but she just had a bad feeling about the race, like something horrible was going to happen. All the other times before, that had never happened, so she was being mindful of this new experience. When the feeling subsided she took a deep breath to calm her nerves. There was no sense in thinking that something was going to go wrong, since she knew that it was a slim chance it would actually happen. Michiru sat down on a chair set in front of the large, glass window and stared down at the cars. It was almost time for the race to start.

The cars began to get into their positions along the track, one by one moving along and stopping behind the designated line. The engines were loud, the entire crowd anxiously sitting in their seats for the race to start. Michiru simply sat there, looking down at the scene. She was confident that Haruka would win this race. She found her car in the middle of all the others and she softly smiled. She already knew how the race would end. She didn't come for moral support or because she was curious about the outcome. No, she simply wanted to enjoy the moment where Haruka was happy and proud of herself. She wanted to join Haruka in sharing the happiness that came along with the expected outcome of every race.

The engines roared as the start of the race drew closer, a more than exciting sound to everybody. Suddenly, the cars took off in almost a blur, racing past the audience in a frenzy and deafening noise. The race had finally begun. Haruka quickly claimed and maintained the lead throughout the race, as the other racers couldn't even catch up to her. She raced in her element with speed, grace and an ease that only she could ever have. The wind rushed all around her, and she loved it.

There were only ten laps left, and Haruka stayed in the lead, but three of the other racers caught up, speeding up and trying to gain the lead. Michiru paid close attention to the other racers, noticing their speed and driving methods. They were swerving a lot, trying to get on the sides of Haruka instead of in front. It seemed like they were planning something. Suddenly, that nauseous feeling came back and she quickly stood up. Chills went down her arms and back causing her to shiver and become afraid. There was something wrong, something was going to happen; she knew it. The feeling she got overpowered her body, and she knew that she needed to stop the race at any cost.

She left the room and rushed down to Kenji, Haruka's team manager. She pushed her way through people walking around, ignoring the annoyed stares and yells. Security let her pass, being smart enough not to block her. She grabbed Kenji's arm when she reached him and pulled off his headset.

"You need to get Haruka out of there," she demanded. He pulled his arm away and stared at her.

"What are you talking about?"

"Something's going to happen…something bad, and-"

"You're obviously imagining things here, Michiru. Please, just go back to the room and enjoy the race. It's almost over anyway," he suggested. He placed the headphones over his ears and turned his back to her.

"Michiru…"

She turned around to only stare into a pair of light blue eyes that she hadn't seen in so long. "Yuka…what're you doing here?"

The taller girl smiled and moved closer. "I'm a new mechanic here…I would have never expected to see you here." She touched Michiru's arm.

"I'm…here for Haruka."

The look on Yuka's face changed, and she pulled away. She frowned and her eyes seemed to appear darker. Michiru knew that look, and she knew those eyes; she instantly became afraid. That feeling rushed over her body once again, as she shut her eyes to try to block it out but it was too strong, too real. She turned back to Kenji and grabbed his headset then placed the mic close to her mouth.

"Haruka…Haruka you need to get out of this race right now!"

"What are you doing?! Give that back to me," he demanded, grabbing it from her hands and pushing her away. She tried to reach for it again, but Yuka grabbed her and pulled her away.

"Michiru, you need to calm down!" she demanded.

"You don't understand. Let me go!" She looked up at Kenji. "Listen to me, you need to stop it. Please, I beg you."

"You're crazy!" He paused and turned his head before adjusting the microphone. "Everything is fine, Haruka. No…I don't…no, it's fine. Just keep racing."

He put the headset around his neck before turning to Michiru again. "I don't know what your reasoning for this is, but you better calm down or-"

His words were nothing more but an irrelevant sound to Michiru. The screams and screeching tires caught her attention and she turned her head. She went still, her heart froze and everything around her became a blur. All she could see was Haruka's car being slammed into the wall by another. The other car slowed down, but clipped the back of Haruka's car before speeding up to get around, making it spin uncontrollably. Another car came from behind, too fast to stop and too slow to even think of doing so. He hit the left side of her car at the same time that another stopped right in front, causing Haruka's to flip and roll, parts of the car shattering and pieces flying everywhere. It finally stopped in the grass on its side, and everybody went quiet. The emergency vehicles rushed to the scene, as the other cars slowed down with caution.

Michiru didn't utter a single word as she fell to her knees. Her body was too weak for her to move. She shook her head and tightly shut her eyes, trying to block out the scene she just witnessed, but she only kept seeing it. She finally opened her eyes and looked up to see the emergency crews trying to get Haruka out of the wrecked car. She could only imagine what kind of injuries Haruka suffered from that horrific crash. The hitting, the screeching and the rolling—she could only imagine. But she hoped she would be okay. Nothing could go wrong. Nothing would go wrong. She would be all right. She had to be.

She saw something fall down from the corner of her eye. She turned to find Kenji just standing there with a look of disbelief and fear. The anger came more quickly than she thought before she grabbed the headset and hit him in the face with it.

"Why didn't you listen to me? Why didn't you listen to me?!"

Kenji let her hit him without any real defense for himself. What happened was just too shocking for him to register it in his mind, and the pain that Michiru was inflicting on him didn't bother him. He felt stupid. He felt so stupid.

Yuka finally pulled Michiru away when she realized her manager was just taking the beating, as if he deserved it.

"No, let me go! This is his fault…it's all his fault!"

She fell to the ground again as the tears came in an endless barrage. Her vision blurred and her body felt weak; she felt like she was going to be sick. The sirens blared in the background but she didn't pay too much attention to it. All she could do was pray Haruka was going to be okay…there was no possible way that she could leave her. She promised all those years ago that she wouldn't. She made a promise.

"I'm…I'm sorry."

Michiru looked up at Kenji, and he simply stared at her with guilt and sadness. He seemed broken, but it was nothing compared to the shattered feelings she had at the moment.

"I should have listened to you, but it just seemed so unreasonable. I…don't know what else to say, Michiru."

"I'll never forgive you, Kenji."

"Michiru…don't be too hard on him," Yuka began. "It's not his fault, it's not anybody's fault."

She shook her head. "No, I should have done something. I should have done more." She stood off the ground and turned to Yuka. "I should have gone with this bad feeling and persuaded her not to race. I could have done something about this. Now…she might not be able to race ever again."

"Race again?" Yuka began. "I thought you knew, Michiru."

"Knew what?"

"This…was going to be Haruka's last race ever. She was going to retire after this."

She became confused. "What're you talking about? Racing is her life and she would never-"

"You are her life, Michiru," Kenji interrupted, "You mean everything to her. She was going to retire for good after this race. She just wanted to live happily with you because that was good enough for her. That was all she wanted."

Michiru felt cold all of a sudden. The chill came back and she could only shake her head. How could she have not known about this? "Why…why didn't she tell me this?"

"She wanted to surprise you. I…I'm sorry. But…"

Kenji kept talking, but Michiru wasn't listening to him anymore. His words completely surprised her because she had no idea that Haruka was looking to retiring anytime soon. This was something she loved to do, and for her to give it up was something almost unheard of. But it was all going to be for her…everything Haruka did was always for her. Michiru got up and ran to the exit of the track and to her car. She needed to get to the hospital. She needed to make sure that Haruka was going to be all right.

Yuka watched Michiru run off to the exit, pushing away anybody who tried to hold her back or even slightly get in her way. She ran a hand through her hair before turning around and walking away. She would talk to Michiru when everything was over.

Michiru sat in her car, started the engine and quickly drove off. There wasn't any time for her to waste. She sped through the streets, cautiously ignoring stop signs and down streets where there wasn't a red light. She carelessly wiped at her eyes, trying to get rid of the constant flow of tears. Her vision was becoming blurry, but all she could think about was Haruka.

The crash kept replaying in her mind. The silence of the crowd and the noise of the cars was deafening to her ears. Michiru blinked the tears away; she had to be strong…for the both of them.

She suddenly remembered the last thing Haruka said to her when she was half-awake.

Michiru shook her head to try to calm herself. For the first time in the more than five years that they had been together, she had never forgotten to reply to Haruka with her usual words.

She wiped her eyes again before whispering, "…and forever, Ruka. Forever and ever." She finally reached the hospital just in time to see the paramedics rolling the stretcher through the doors. She caught up to them, quickly walking along with them and holding Haruka's hand.

She forced back the tears that threatened to revels themselves again. Haruka hand was so cold, and her face pale. There were cuts and bruises all over her body, and her lip was busted. One of the medics was trying to stop bleeding coming from the right arm, while the other was tightening a temporary brace to her right leg. There was so much damage that Michiru was afraid of the possible outcome.

A paramedic finally grabbed Michiru and held her back. "I can't allow you in there. You're going to need to stay out here."

Michiru didn't say anything. She just leaned against the wall and slumped to the ground. She stayed there…quiet and still for a long time. She just looked off down the hallway and whispererd, "You promised me you would stay, Ruka. You made me a promise."

For the first ever, Michiru felt like Haruka wouldn't be able to keep her promise.


Well, that's all for this chapter. This Yuka person is going to be an interesting character, so pay attention to her a lot. Review if you'd like. Take care!

-Nightfall5029