Hey guys! Here's chapter 2, let see what Taro's gonna do and finally some Budo love! Enjoy!

Hero Simulator

Chapter Two: My Strength

In a flash, he scrambled for his cell phone and whipped the device in front of her face. Her eyes widened, realizing her man was about to throw her to the wolves. His fingers quickly tapped for the police's number, but it was too late. Budo tried to warn Taro of the approaching hand snatching the phone and crushing it beneath her feet. The device snapped on impact and Taro stared at her in horror.

"No one's calling the police." She spoke sternly and kicked the remaining scraps across the rooftop. Taro was now in full panic and scurried further away from her, his hands gripping at his hair.

"Why me? Why me?!" He shouted. "Why'd you have to fall for me? All I ever do is read by the fountain!"

"It doesn't matter." Megami's voice startled the bunch as she tried to stand with aid from the wall. With one hand gripping onto the bandaged wound, the other waved her cell phone in the air. "They are coming regardless. Ayano's killing spree ends here, just as we planned."

"That'll never change what happened. Osana, Amai, Oka…all of them, they'll forever be dead!" Taro leaned his back against the roof's railings and slid down to a seated position.

Faintly in the distance, the sound of sirens echoed through the air as they gradually grew closer to the school. The warm sunset could never mask the blood and tears shed on this Friday afternoon. It wouldn't be long before the police surrounded the school and barged onto the roof, the masses of them dragging Ayano towards her brutal end behind bars. After all the careful planning, stalking, manipulating and killing, she would be stripped from the man who never loved her, let alone noticed her.

She felt a greater force take over and gravitate her towards the lone dagger resting in the center of this madness. Taro remained sobbing in the distance and Megami had returned to her seated position, the loss of blood causing her to feel dizzy and weak. Ayano reached for the knife and stared at the reflection glinting of its blade. For the first time, she saw the eyes of a monster, the monster that had promised her an everlasting life of love and happiness.

"Ayano!"

Her eyes lifted from the blade and met the face of another startled boy, the leader who taught her how to fight. He was the only person who actually instilled within her some sort of worth and strength. Even in this fading moment, she could remember their lessons clearly and his kind words of motivation.

"Strength isn't being the strongest person in the room. True strength is fighting for what's right! It's fighting for the people you love!"

Budo's face emulated the passion in his words and Ayano couldn't help but smile at that. She had someone she needed to fight for and Budo seemed to understand that very desire.

"That is what I hope to gain in the end." She muttered to herself but loud enough for him to hear. Upon joining the club, she only attended to learn the basics of defense in case she fell into a pinch. She never expected to open up to another and feel some sort of bond form between them. Budo treated her different and actually wanted to listen to her. Even if she did find him irritating when it came to the murders and how he tried to play detective. Somehow, she couldn't force herself to hate him, or hurt him.

"I want to be there when that happens." He smiled at her with a warmth that was indescribable. It was real and he truly meant all that he had said.

She sighed, knowing what she had to do.

"Megami is wrong." She looked at Budo and attempted a weak smile. "My killing spree isn't over yet. There still is one last life to end."

Budo followed her gaze over to the dagger and he instantly took a step forward.

"Don't do it! Please!" He watched her slowly turn the blade until the pointed end was hovering over her own heart. The sirens in the distance were now ringing in their ears, signaling Ayano's final moment.

"I have to do it. I have to end this myself. This is my strength." She sighed and shakily pulled the dagger farther away, readying herself for a quick strike.

"Your strength?!" Budo yelled with pain lingering in his voice. Ayano only nodded.

"Yes. My strength to end all I've done." She tried to hold onto the smile but she couldn't stop the battle raging within her. Instead, tears forced their way through once again and her breath grew heavy and shaky. "Why'd it have to be now? Why did I have to realize this now?! All those people I killed, for someone who could never love me. Why at the very end, do I understand the evil I've done?"

"Ayano…"

"Shut up!" She cried and raised the knife higher, her arms quivering in the air. "Or I'll kill you too!"

"I won't let you kill yourself!"

Budo's determination startled her, forcing her arms to swing the knife towards her heart. She couldn't let him stop her; this was her final decision.

He couldn't endure this. He couldn't just stand idly and watch her strike her own heart. She was his student; the very girl he'd do anything for. With lightning reflexes, Budo charged himself towards Ayano and threw his hands towards her blade, his fingers covering her own. He was able to pause the knife just before it punctured her skin, and it remained in the air hovering over her heart. Her eyes fluttered open and she tried to pull her hands from his grip but he would not budge.

"Dammit Budo!" She shouted and kicked at him with her feet but he endured every attack. After several attempts, he was able to rip the dagger from her grip and chuck it over the edge of the school roof, the stained blade disappearing from sight. Ayano paused and watched her weapon fall from sight, instilling another idea in her mind. In a dash, she broke free from Budo and bolted towards the edge, readying herself to join the fall.

"You can't do this to me!" He shouted after her and sped towards the girl who was now climbing over the railings. He reached out his hands and wrapped them around her waist, tugging her away from the ledge and into his arms.

"Let me go!" She screamed and punched against his chest but no matter how hard she tried, she could not wiggle free.

"Ayano, listen to me!" He begged and tightened his grip until she agreed to calm down. When her efforts didn't cease, an uncontrollable jolt of anger surged inside him. "Ayano! Stop this!" He hollered with a rage beyond anything she's ever heard, and as if by instinct, she stopped her attempts. Noticing the fear in her eyes, Budo sighed and released her.

"What…" She muttered and looked at him sternly.

"Ayano, I know what it's like to love someone who doesn't love you." He stared at the ground and took a deep breath. "I know what's it like to want to be noticed by that someone. You'd do anything for that person."

"You don't know how I feel," She shook her head but Budo still wasn't giving up.

"No, I do! Maybe not in the same way, but I know that type of pain. I've felt it! I even feel it now. To discover that they couldn't care less about you."

"Don't sympathize with the killer!" Taro's voice echoed from the distance but not even Ayano looked in his direction. She was staring at Budo and trying to decipher the soft smile across his face and how his eyes could look so calm during a time like this.

"There will always be someone to fight for." Budo looked up at her and continued to smile. "Even if the one you loved wasn't meant for you, there is someone out there who is. You can't force them, you can't search for them, and you can't kill for them. If it was meant to be, love will find its way."

Ayano stared at him and tried to blink away at the tears returning in her eyes. What was this? What was this new feeling swirling inside her? She raised her hand to wipe at the falling tears, her mind now focused on someone else. With several cop cars zipping through the parking lot below, Ayano couldn't hold back any longer and allowed the flood gates to open. She ran into Budo's embrace and wrapped her arms around him as she sobbed against his chest. Megami and Taro stared at the display with wide eyes and silent expressions, neither of them knowing how to react.

"You are my strength." Budo whispered in her ear and allowed his own tears to flow freely. He never thought he'd ever find her in his arms though he wished it hadn't happened like this.

He had always meant to tell her his feelings by the cherry tree but he knew she loved someone else. The shadows were where he belonged, never holding her like he longed to, but supporting her as a friend. Now he wished he did tell her sooner, to show her that there was someone who would love her unconditionally. Maybe if she knew this and accepted this, then the murders would've never happened and she could have lived her life like a normal girl. He would have spoiled her and reminded her of his love for her. Even if she was in his arms now, the police would take her away, and he would never see her again. At least, if the story ended that way.

"You were always there," She sobbed against his chest, her grip around him growing tighter. "And now they're gonna take me away from you!"

Her cries made his heart melt as his mind desperately searched for options, anything to make the situation better. He slowly pulled away from their embrace and planted his hands on her shoulders, his loving eyes gazing into her own. How could he of been so stupid? He could've stopped this from happening. If only he caught onto her sooner instead of watching her with those googly eyes. He was so blinded by his own feelings for her that he failed to see the twisted pain aching from within.

"I'm sorry, Ayano. The one time you need me is the one time I can't do anything."

"It's not your fault. I need to pay for what I've done." She blinked back the tears and reached for his face, her hands gently cradling his cheeks. "I'm glad you stopped me."

"Ayano."

Closing her eyes, she tilted his face towards her and slowly closed the gap between their lips. It began with a gentle kiss that quickly escalated into something more passionate. She knew she'd never see him again and allowed all of her longings to take control and create the best goodbye she could give him. It felt great to be loved.

Noises echoed from the stairwell leading to the roof and Ayano knew it was time to pull away. When she did, Budo looked into her eyes as if begging for one last kiss but he knew it was too late. Ayano stepped away and released her grip around Budo. He didn't want her to let go and neither did she. Instead, she braced herself for the downfall that was meant to happen. Her true destiny.

"It's time for you to be the hero." She whispered to him and planted her wrists in his hands as if he had just apprehended her. When he realized what she was doing, he tried to shove aside the tears returning to his eyes. He would have to be the one to apprehend the girl he loved.

The doors to the rooftop were once again kicked open but this time by policemen and teachers. The sound quickly pulled the two back into reality and Ayano revealed a quick smile before playing her role.

"Let go of me!" She hollered and acted like Budo was trying to force her down. He wanted to play along perfectly but his heart was burning from inside.

"Ayano wait," He choked but she shook her head and continued to pull away.

"There she is!" One officer shouted and motioned his men over to the struggling teenagers. The other men nodded and ran towards them while some of the teachers and paramedics hurried over to Megami and Taro.

"Ayano, don't do this to me!" Budo demanded and not even she could hold up the act for long. Before the officers surrounded them, he quickly grabbed her waist and pulled her closer to him until their faces were inches apart. This was his chance to tell her straight out, to get it off his chest and tell her he loved her, but all he could do was look into her eyes and break into more tears. To make sure the situation didn't seem suspicious, he spun her around and pinned her against the railings as if he were capturing her for the police. They took Ayano from him and slapped handcuffs around her wrist, signaling the end of her murder spree.

"Thank you," One of the officers said to him while the two others were dragging her off into the distance. "Now, if you don't mind coming with us, I'd like to—"

His meaningless words flew past Budo as he watched Ayano get dragged further and further away from him. Megami had been placed on a stretcher and brought out in an instance while Taro was being comforted by one of his teachers and an officer. He kept repeating Osana's name, every time with more force and emotion yet all Budo could do was watch Ayano.

As one officer opened the door to force Ayano through, she turned her head back towards Budo, her face now struck with loss and fear. Tears were spilling from her eyes but she still managed a trembling smile, one that pierced Budo's heart. Before she could look away, he mouthed the words he'd been longing to say and she understood. At first, her eyes widened from them but that soon turned into a sincere smile that crossed her face. After their brief moment, she was gone, and the door swung shut behind them.

"Come on, let's get you to the station." The officer gently patted Budo on the back and he nodded slowly, his eyes still fixated on the door. Several others stayed behind to inspect the scene while Budo followed the officer downstairs and towards one of their police cars. He reached for the handle of the vehicle and paused when something caught his eye. In the grass not far from the parked car, the dagger's stained blade glinted under the moonlight.

"Huh, what's the problem?" The officer stared at him and followed his line of sight over towards the stained knife. "Her weapon!" He slammed his open door and approached the spot where it sat. Budo had no intention to look further and silently slipped into his seat. The past hour left heavy scars on his heart and all he felt was pain, regret and loss. In a sense, he almost felt struck by guilt, thinking he could have done something, anything to save her. Options don't exist when time runs out.

Not unless time was in his favor.

Dun, dun, dun...will Budo get his wish? Find out next chapter! Thanks for reading and review! Until next time, CYA!