A/N: Hello everyone!! Okay, here's the deal! I'll let out the second chapters of the stories that I will be writing after I finish the three current ones. The reasons why I'm letting out the second chapter are because I'm not finish with the chapter that I am working on now and because some pleaded that I absolutely must give them the second chapter or they might go crazy. I love devoted fans like that.

I do NOT own TMM or the songs I used in my stories. Thank you all for the wonderful reviews before and please keep them coming!! Thank you and please enjoy!!

Ch. 2: He's Still Here

Ring

"Welcome!" Ichigo greets, seeing the new customers coming in.

One of the girls answer, "Hello, table for five please."

"Okay, but you going have to wait. We're a bit full at the moment."

"That's okay. The rest of our party's not here yet."

"Thank goodness. Please sit down and wait for the next table to be ready."

"Thank you."

Then Ichigo goes off to get the next table their order. She's doing all this with a smile on her face and not once has she complained. Even thought Mint is taking up a table by drinking her tea. That was what's weird. Ichigo hasn't been complaining about the work over load for a week. It almost looks like she's using the over work part as a way to distract herself. She just keeps smiling while her friends can tell that she's not really happy. She's not her usual self since Kisshu died and that was a week ago.

Lettuce goes up behind Mint and says, "I'm worried."

Pudding comes up and says, "I'm worried too, na no da!"

Mint puts down her drinking cup and says, "I don't see why you should. She's doing an excellent job. This might be a once in a life time chance of her not having to complain. Get's herself into less trouble."

Then Zakuro decides to join the group. "But is that better than having Ichigo as her real self?" They all look back at her cheery face and she asks, "Do you believe that that smile is real?"

Mint looks down in the tea in her cup sadly. She knows that acting like nothing is wrong isn't helping. Especially when she can clearly see the fake smile on Ichigo's face. Someone else sees that too and he's getting a little irritated with Ichigo's behavior.

"Ichigo!"

All five girls look up at the kitchen doors and they see Ryou motioning Ichigo to come in. "Can I see you in here for a moment?" Confused, Ichigo walks over to Ryou and he opens the kitchen doors for her. He turns to the other girls and says, "I didn't know you're all on break."

"Sorry!" Lettuce lets out before running to go help a customer. Zakuro went to go deliver a tray of sweets and Pudding went off to take orders, running on a ball style. Mint just went back checking out the tea. Ryou just turned around, back to Ichigo. Keiichiro does not like the look of this little meeting and after that small task they took care of, the other four girls look over the doors to see what's going on.

Ichigo asks, "What's up?" Like nothing's wrong.

Ryou got straight to the point. "What's up is anything but your spirits."

"Uh? What do you mean?"

"For the past seven days, you have not complained. Not once!"

"Well I just figured out that every time I complain, you cut my pay by five yen. If I stop whining, then there will be no need to cut my pay. And even if there is another reason why my pay is getting cut, I'll take the tips as the fill in."

"That's not what I mean, Ichigo. You're not yourself and you haven't for seven days."

"Okay, now I know you're wacked up! I've been getting up in the morning, going to school, seeing Aoyama-kun when I can, come to work on time, working my butt off, spending time with family and friends, and you're getting angry at me for no good reason."

"If you don't knock this crap off, there will be a reason for me to completely cut your pay to zero for two weeks."

"You can't do that! You're beyond cruel, Ryou!"

"Well you're acting like someone in mourning!"

That made Ichigo shock and the girls couldn't believe that Ryou just told her that straight on.

He relaxes his anger a bit and tells her, "I know that it's about Kisshu's death and I will admit that his death was honorable in a very weird and confusing way, but you can't let his sacrifice rule the way you live. You're not yourself and it's worrying everyone." Ichigo looks down on the ground after that. She has a guilty and grieving face on and everyone can see it. Then Ryou added. "Look at the bright side of his death. With one alien dead, it means that the battle will soon end and you can have the normal life that you always wished to share with your boyfriend." As true as that is, it made Ichigo crack.

Slap

Everyone stares in surprise of that. Ichigo is glaring daggers at Ryou while he's surprise that he hit her. She yells, "How can you be so heartless, you bastard?!!" Now even the customers can hear them from outside and they're surprise by the Ichigo's cursing. She stomps her feet like a little kid and tell him, "I swear, Kisshu has a better heart than you'll ever have!!!"

After that, she storms out of there. She accidently bangs the doors at her friends and starts glaring at them too for listening in on their conversation. Without another word exchanged, she runs to the dressing room and locks the door behind her. Her friends chase after her as Ryou is wondering what the heck her problem is. Minutes later, Ichigo opens the door and she has her school uniform and her school bag in hand. The girls jump from her sudden opening and she's giving them angry eyes.

Ichigo passes them and sticks half of her body in the kitchen. She yells, "I'm taking a break. A LONG one! I need a vacation from the café for a while." Ryou and Keiichiro are surprise by that as Ichigo is already on her way to the door.

Ryou comes out and tells her, "It will cut down on your pay!"

She was already half way to the door by then and some of the girls are scared of her. Ichigo turns to Ryou and tells him in a cool, angry voice, "I can care less about my pay now, you slave driver." Then she goes to the door and slams it on her way out. Everyone is surprise by her attitude.

Ichigo walks straight home and not with a pleasant attitude. Not even the walk home calmed her attitude. She stomped her way home. But when she saw the familiar building, she was able to relax a bit. But her aura is angry, dark, and scary. When she enters the house, that was the first thing her parents notice.

Her mom asks, "Ichigo honey, what's wrong? You're home early."

"And upset," her father says. "What happened? Ichigo?" Ichigo just went up the stairs but her father asked the question when she started.

She answers, "A boy ruined my day." Then thing went silent while she continues her way up the stairs and down the hallway to her room. All the while, her father is throwing a fit down stairs with his wife.

"See! I told you that that boy is nothing more than a trouble maker to Ichigo! I should kill him for making my little girl upset!"

"I highly doubt that it's Aoyama-san's fault that she's upset, honey. Try to calm down."

The rest of the conversation died out while Ichigo enters her room and closes the door behind her; muffling the voices so that she won't hear and end up getting angry with her father. She leans on the door a little bit longer and stares at the ground. After a bit, she starts chanting with a singing voice.

"Come out, come out, where ever you are," she starts, dropping her school bag on the ground and starts walking to the bed. "I know you're here, you can't hide from me." She sits down on the edge of the bed. "Come out, come out, where ever you are."

Then she felt arms coming out behind her and she hears from a familiar, teasing, carefree voice, "Here I am!" Ichigo looks to her shoulder and sees her hugger; Kisshu. He smiles at her and says, "Thanks, koneko-chan. For getting me out so early. I've missed you, my little kitten." Then he kisses her cheek.

Hard to believe but it's Kisshu. He's really here with her on her bed, hugging her with his arms circling around her neck and leaning on her left shoulder. However, it's not a live Kisshu. This Kisshu is a bit transparent and only Ichigo can see him. Even though she can feel his arms around her and his lips on her cheek, she can only feel his touch; not his warmth. Nor can she push him away. Her hand just goes right through.

After the Kisshu tells her, "Take a nap! I'm bored and I want to play cards since I can't hold anything in the real world."

Ichigo answers, "Not yet. I just feel like talking right now." He's confused as he pulls his arms off her.

He asks with a face full of sincere and concern, "Kitty, what's wrong?"

While Kisshu remains sitting down on the bed, Ichigo gets up and turns to him. That was when she starts venting. She walks back and forth, left to right as she's yelling on how Ryou made her upset and how her friends are being a bit irritating with just watching her during walk hours, not saying anything and just listening in on conversations. Kisshu is just fascinated on how she started off with a matter-of-fact voice and then went to angry voice. He actually tells her that when she stopped to pant.

After he asked, Ichigo glares daggers at him and asks, "Do you want me to slap you when she's taking a nap."

He's not scared at all. He tells her with a matter-of-fact-voice, "No, but I still want you to sleep."

Ichigo lets out a sigh and gives in. "Fine, I'll take a nap. The real world is too tiring anyway." Then she walks to the bed.

"That's my good little kitty," Kisshu calls her with a sweet voice. She really wishes that he stops that because it's annoying and it used to freak her out. By now, she's used to it but still annoyed.

Ichigo walks back to the bed and he gets off to hover over her while she lays on the bed and closes her eyes. Kisshu watches her as Ichigo starts drifting off to sleep thanks to her cat genes.

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"Reverse Revolution," Ichigo calls.

Kisshu growls at that. "How the hell?!" he asks. Ichigo just giggles at his frustration and grins in victory.

They're both in Ichigo's dream and they're playing Rich Man, Poor Man. They're playing in a beautiful setting that consists of green luscious trees, healthy grass, a crystal clear river on the side, blue skies, and a deck of cards. Kisshu is losing bad while Ichigo is winning big. She seems to be in a better mood now that she's creaming him.

Kisshu yells, "After this, I demand a new game!! Something I can actually win in!"

She laughs at him. "Sore loser," she calls him.

While she's laughing, he tries to calm down. Then he smiles at Ichigo's laugh. He points out, "You're not angry anymore." She stops laughing then, surprise by that. That's right, she's not anymore. Then he tells her, "Thanks by the way. For sticking up for me." His free hand reaches for her cheek and he starts stroking it. She's surprise by the touch. In the dream world, she can feel his warmth like he really is alive. Then he leans towards her and kisses her forehead. She can even feel the small warmth of his lips on hers. She turns red while he looks down in her eyes and smirks. "I knew you always like me more than that school boy." Then he closes his eyes to try and kiss her lips.

She on the other has better sense. She stops him by placing her middle finger and her index finger on his lips and smirks. He's confused with his eyes open as she says, "Nice try, Kisshu."

He sits back down and pouts. "Fooey!" She just shakes her head in disappointment with a smirk on her face. But then he smirks and tells her, "You know that your resistance only makes you more desirable."

"And you were going to kiss me because then once innocent me gets into it, you'll peak at my cards." Now Kisshu is surprise of that.

He pouts even more and says, "Damn, she's right."