This is a re-uploaded chapter, I had to make some changes. Sorry if you expected a new chapter, this certainly is not one...but chapter 4 is sure to be up by either tonight or tomorrow (: thank you for reading! Oh, and please, if my stories are too wordy, please, do feedback, I wouldn't want to put you through the torture of reading overly redundant material. Thank you! o()o As always, please remember to review, and your hits are always appreciated!

"Over here, Ikki!"

Ikki's head snapped up as he heard Kazu holler. The whole gang was there on the rooftops, including Agito. He was really surprised as it was rather out of character for him-

"IKKI-KUN~~~! Nice to meet you~ Hee hee!" an overly-cheery Akito waved spontaneously, jumping on the spot, pure elation flowing out of his every pore.

Ah. He should have known.

"Hey, I was just about to look for you guys!" Ikki sped up the wall swiftly and landed without as much as a thud. Akito rushed to his side, nuzzling up Ikki…and was ignored. "Hmm…who to ask for advice…" He glanced at Buccha, who was munching on a cold chicken sandwich contentedly. His gaze swept past a steaming Onigiri to Kazu, who, for some reason, was avoiding his gaze. Akito had grinning from ear to ear. He paused on Yayoi and Emily. Yayoi looked like the most suitable candidate to ask for such advice, seeing as Emily was puffing out smoke and had the grin of the Devil.

"Heeyy…Nakayama, come here for a bit." Ikki tried his best to be discreet about it. Though there was no being discreet in front of his boys. Yayoi motioned towards him, but Emily pulled her back. She had a grin that was rather mismatched with the veins peppered on her face.

"You'd better count me in, you thick-headed fool. It's about Ringo-chan, eh?"

"I'm just concerned about her, that's all! I don't mean anything at all." Protesting, Ikki waved his hands in front of his face repeatedly, earning smirks from Emily, even Yayoi. "Well~ WE didn't say anything, did we? Haha, are you starting to realize what a miserable act you are now? You may be the closest to being the King of the Skies, but you sure as hell don't have any hope with being a hit with girls."

The blunt sentence stabbed Ikki in his gut. He really wanted to punch Emily then. This suddenly seemed like a bad idea. Maybe he was overreacting with Ringo. He waved his hand as though he was swatting a fly. "Ah, forget it. I have to go back for detention at 2. See you guys."

An irate hand stretched out and grabbed a tuft of his dark hair. "This is really pissing me off. How can you drag something on for so long? Can't you even see what is happening here? Are you playing dumb, or are you really just stupid?" A now serious Emily screamed, earning a few stares from the people passing by the buildings. "Ca-calm down, Emily! It's not Ikki's fault that he's so stupid!" Yayoi tugged at Emily's arm, and a nonplussed Ikki fell to the cement ground with a hard thud. "Yea, Emily, what's with you? Who're you to be so angry?" Standing up and brushing himself off, Ikki glared at Emily, who was no longer doing monkey faces and puffing; just standing stock-still.

All of a sudden, burning, hot and angry tears came flowing down Emily's cheeks. She pushed back her bangs and spoke harshly. "It's Ringo…I really feel sorry for her. I don't understand why she would waste her time over such a fool!"

Yesterday

A slender finger twirled around crimson locks carelessly. Glazed violet eyes stared at the ceiling, and a sigh came flowing out of her lips every now and then. Emily gazed over with concern. It was not like Ringo-chan to get distracted in class, like alone daydream. She has been like that for the past few days, and even a few classmates were asking of her health. The lunch bell rang, and Emily's attention snapped back to Ringo. The redhead was not at her seat! Emily stood up abruptly, catching Yayoi's attention. "What is it?"

"Ringo-chan…where is she?"

"Isn't she by the window, the one at the extreme end?" Yayoi pointed, and Emily followed the direction with her gaze. True enough, Ringo's slender figure could be seen slouching at the window at the end of the classroom. Emily wandered over surreptitiously, glancing over her shoulder. A lone figure stood at the gate, no, sat by the gate. 'It looks like a blonde dude…familiar even…is Ringo seeing a Caucasian?' Emily touched Ringo's shoulder gently.

"Ringo-chan, what are you doing? Who is that?"

Ringo smiled slightly at her friend's brashness and spoke softly. "Remember a blonde guy who was always carrying around a guitar case? The one we met during Ikki's birthday?" Acknowledging the vigorous nod, she continued. "He's called Kanon. He's my tuner." Emily proceeded to ask the next question cautiously.

"What is he doing there? Is he waiting for you?"

Ringo closed her eyes, her smile shrinking to a straight set line. "The Sumida River Fireworks Display is coming up, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it is. What about it?" Yayoi joined in the conversation, sitting on the nearest desk.

"I had wanted to go and watch it, dressed in a kimono or something, you know? I asked Ikki yesterday, but he said that he was meeting up with that girl, Kururu-san. They were going to shop for the latest parts to meliorate his Regalia." Ringo looked down, fiddling with the hem of her skirt. "When Kanon heard about it, he volunteered to go with me." She looked up, her eyes averted and distant. "I…agreed, because I really wouldn't want to miss it, since it is pretty far from here."

Emily grimaced and exchanged glances with Yayoi. That…freaking…idiot…

"Return to your seats, please. We shall begin the lesson now."

A teacher walked in, and silence settled over the class. Everyone shuffled to their seats. Emily and Yayoi moved to their seats, but Ringo tugged on Emily's sleeve.

"Ringo-chan?"

"Hey, Emily, accompany me to the ladies, would you?" Ringo gave her a meek smile, looking up at Emily. She grinned in return, nodding. They asked the teacher to excuse them and walked to the furthest washroom on the level from their classroom. Disconcerted, Emily followed in Ringo's wake.

The washroom was empty, as usual. Ringo strolled to the mirror, gripping the basin beneath it. "She is acting so strangely…what's with her?" Emily wondered to herself.

As if on cue, the girl in subject twirled around to face a stunned Emily. Her cheeks were flushed, and her forehead creased. "E-Emily…a-am I…good-looking?"

"W-wha..?" Emily observed her from head to toe. "If I were a boy, I would-eh-I mean…yes, you are! Why do you ask?"

Tears stung her eyes and she bit her lip. Ringo blurted, "I…I have the feeling that I am not interesting to Ikki. I am aware that you know how I feel for Ikki, right? No matter what I do, it was just as a friend, or as a sister…is a sister supposed to feel like—what am I saying…it's not as if I can expect him to like me, right?" An unsettling giggle escaped from Ringo's lips. "Ah, let's return to class now. I have some homework to do before the cramming session tonight."

Ringo stepped out of the toilet first, followed by Emily. "Ikki is the same to Ringo as Kazu-sama is to me…but what is so attractive about that arse?" she whispered to herself as she looked in the distance. The guy she saw just now, Kanon, was wandering outside their classroom.

Emily did a double take. "FFFUUUU! What's HE doing there?"

Ringo has the same expression on her face as she stared flabbergasted at the lanky figure.

Ringo and Emily ran to the blonde, expecting the worse.

"Excuse me for intruding~. Is there a Ringo Noyamano here~?" What a nice voice, Emily thought to herself. She hated the sight of him though.

Emily glanced at Ringo. Whoa! The girl's face was almost as crimson as her hair. The whole class was staring shamelessly at the subject. She rushed to the entrance and slapped his arm. "What are you doing here?" His face changed from expressionless to a wide smile. "Hey, Ringo-chan~. Where were you?"

"Hey, that's the blonde dude who took Ringo-san's chair the previous time…" some people whispered loudly.

"Is that HER BOYFRIEND?"

"Hey, hey, shut up people! Mind your own business," Emily shouted back. Yayoi nodded vigorously.

"Heehee…no…not boyfriend…yet…" Kanon chuckled at the comment, ruffling his hair shyly. Ringo almost died of embarrassment when she heard him. She shot a look towards her clique. Kazu, Onigiri and Buccha were staring at Kanon and Ringo with different expressions. Onigiri had a particularly disturbing look. Ikki, however, was just…staring.

"I'm so sorry, teacher!" Ringo bowed down, obscuring her reddened face with her hair. "I will-"

"Ka…ka-ka…eh… what are you doing here?" Ikki called from his seat, a dumb look plastered on his face. "Ringo's seat isn't for the taking. We had to pay for it!"

"Oh, not this time, no. I will be taking Ringo-chan herself."

"Oh, that's good. I won't have to pay for anything then. Be my guest."

"…"

Silence reverberated off the walls, settling down on the entire class like goo of doom. Even the teacher was overwhelmed.

"You bastard, Ikki, how could you just say that?"

"That Itsuki is such an asshole…I never did like him…"

"He's sooo mean to Ringo-chan!"

"Minami, how could you disrespect your friend like that?"

"LEMME WHACK THAT BASTARD!"

"NOOOO EMILY-"

"Where's Ringo?"

*mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm*

Huff…huff…huff…

"Stop, Kanon, stop, stop! What are you doing…? Pulling me away like that…" Ringo tossed her hair, sweat running down her neck as she was not wearing her Air Treks. Kanon whistled a mellow tune as he turned away from her. "Ikki-kun said that I could take you away~." She looked at his guitar case, but it held too many memories, so she concentrated on his black shirt. He was not wearing a layered tee for once…

"What made you think like that?" He asked her abruptly, without turning around.

"What made me think like what?" She replied without hesitation, her defense mechanism working automatically. Darnit, she thought to herself. He knows me like an open book. That's why I hate going near him.

"I think you're perfect enough for me~" He turned around, smiling sweetly. "W-what? S-Shut up!" Ringo shouted to mask the embarrassment leaking from her face. "Stop reading me!" She covered his ears with her hands, frowning. Then she shifted them to his eyes because they were boring into her. She finally used one hand to loosely cover his eyes and his left ear.

Ringo stared at his grin. Her forehead was creased as she stared at it intently. It was like he was still reading her, even without his eyes and left ear. She knows. "I knew it. It's Ikki-kun, as usual, right? Really, Ringo-chan, I don't need to be your tuner to figure that one out~."

"…" Ringo wanted to clench her fists or pull on the edge of her school blouse so badly, but she felt obliged to keep her hands where they were.

Kanon's hands moved to where Ringo's were, and pulled them away tenderly. Remarkably, Ringo had no qualms about him touching her, like she would normally. "Would you grant your poor tuner a wish and follow him to a beautiful place?" He then walked over to a bench near them. Plunging his hand into the healthy bush beside it, he squinted as he foraged for , Ringo stared on in wonder.

"Taa-daa~ Your ATs~! I brought you here to pick them up." Kanon held out a baby blue sports bag that she used when she was in junior high. He smiled brightly and presented them to her.

"YOU PUT MY ATs IN AN UNATTENDED, PUBLIC AND COMMONLY FREQUENTED PLACE?" Ringo screeched in disbelief. Kanon winced as he closed his eyes apologetically. "The bush was healthy and inconspicuous, so I thought…" Ringo huffed in exasperation. "How could you do such a thing? You are a tuner, you should be more mindful of such things…" Kanon smiled blissfully and said, "I was so excited at the thought of coming over to see you…"

"You—…" Ringo turned to face him and saw his goofy smile. Suppressing her giggles, Ringo took the bag from his hands, pretending to be cross. "Since when did you learn to talk like that?" She felt something touching her right leg and looked down. Kanon was holding her calf with one hand and her AT in another. "Come on, Ringo-chan, we don't have all day."

*wwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww*

When she had both of her ATs on, Kanon led her to a large rooftop garden. The garden was artfully furnished and the plants were placed strategically, so when the Sun rose or set, the glare would not shine directly on any visitors.

"Aren't we trespassing? Kanon-kun, I think we'd better go." Ringo whispered as though there were people watching them from the trees. Kanon smiled the seventh time since she met him. "This is a building owned by my uncle. It's okay. It's after hours, anyway. We can stay here for as long as we like." He then proceeded to pull her to bench under a canopy. It was facing the setting Sun.

"Ohh…my…it's beautiful…" Ringo breathed as she savored the arresting sight before her. The buildings illuminated by the rays look like blocks of vermillion colored gold. The sky was like a canvas of colors; the blue of the sky was not completely gone, forming a translucent purple when combined with the orange rays. Orange Cirrus Fibratus clouds stretched across the horizon, giving the impression of a flame-colored field.

"Kanon-kun…I…"

RING…RING…

"…!" Ringo's cell phone rang loudly from her bag. 'Thank gods…what was I doing?' Digging into her school bag, she pulled out her wailing cell phone.

"着信コール" (incoming call)

"イッキ"(Ikki)

Ringo's body tensed. She looked at Kanon, but was unable to see his face for he looked to his left.

Ring…

Ring…

Ring…

Ringo stared at the now silent cell phone sitting in the middle of her palm.

"Ikki," Ringo mumbled as she gripped her cell phone loosely. Kanon turned to her, looking at her with an indistinct expression. His eyes widened when he saw that her glazed eyes were glistening. He wiped away a tear before it could roll down her cheek. She blinked, eyes focused. Tears now fell from her cheek like a necklace of broken glass beads.

"Eh..? What..." Ringo wiped her tears away, bewildered that she was crying. Kanon's hands were now brushing those tears away, desperately. His breath become jagged, his brow furrowed. Ringo stared at him in astonishment.

"K-Kanon-kun, why are you doing this?" Ringo asked as he became more desperate, becoming slightly rougher, as though her tears were causing him mortal injury and he was stemming the wound.

True enough, they hurt him deeply. Each new tear that appeared from those pristine violet eyes was like a blunt object prodding him in his chest.

"Ringo…don't cry…please…" Kanon held her face, his head sinking down. The sun gave a bright burst of light, and Ringo saw drops rolling down his own face. He shut his eyes tightly and bit his bottom lip. "Kanon..! What's wrong?" Alarmed, Ringo gripped his shoulders. Kanon pulled Ringo into a tight embrace, almost crushing her. She, however, found comfort in that.

They remained like that for what seems like eternity. The winds blew through the trees and plants like a lover's whisper. Ringo sighed, breathing in Kanon's scent. He smelled like apples, leather and sports wash. He stroked her hair tenderly, and kissed her forehead.

"How do you manage this..? You know that I would always reject you, but still you…" Ringo whispered into his ear, and he embraced her tighter. He replied, "I'm certainly not managing well now, am I?" His voice dropped to gravelly tones, and the usual tone in his voice was gone, as though it had never existed. "Aren't you the same, Ringo? You pine for Ikki even though he is so far away from your reach. Can't you give anybody else a chance? Don't tell me it's impossible between us."

Ringo buried her face in Kanon's neck, her tears wetting him. She clung onto him as if for dear life. "I don't know…he has known me for so many years, but every time a new girl walks into his life, she would rank above me…like Simca…or Kururu-san," her voice cracked. Sobbing her heart out now, Ringo drew her knees up to the bench, where she hung onto Kanon's neck.

"What do you see in me, Kanon?"

He could not hold back any longer. Instead of the hesitant peck he would always give her, this time, he pressed his lips onto hers. She responded passionately, something that caught Kanon in surprise. He wrapped his arms around her svelte waist carefully, but handled his part of the kiss roughly. This being their first time at this, they were inexperienced and clumsy, but made up for it with vehemence. Strangely enough, they responded to each others' touches as though they were one.

He could feel her heartbeats accelerating, and her breathing heavy as he caressed her, but he was so, so afraid that she would, in a moment of ecstasy, breathe out her beloved crow's name. As his lips brushed across her neck, she breathed in, and he knew that she was going to shout the name he would never want to hear all for the rest of his life, so long as it came from her lips.

"…Kanon …"

"…wha—"

He was so surprised that he actually ceased all activity. Ringo, now lying on the bench, opened her eyes, her lips parted. Her face turned to the most vibrant red he had ever seen, and her heartbeats increased so much all of a sudden that he was alarmed. She rolled out under him, coming dangerously close to the edge of the rooftop garden. He held out his hand in her direction and then realized the fact that it was already night.

"Uhmm…I…" Ringo was back on the bench, on the farthest part away from Kanon as possible. She fanned her crumpled, white, school blouse which was slightly peppered with sweat. Her skirt was folded in many wrong areas, and she tried in vain to iron them out with her hands. "You could always say that we had a tuning session," spoke Kanon into the warm summer night air as he tilted his head back, grinning. Ringo giggled and immediately regretted it, for she was trying to make it seem like his fault for holding her till night. Now, Mikan-nee would kill her for not preparing dinner.

"I have to go now, Kanon-kun," Ringo said as she looked straight into his eyes. Inching closer shyly, she embraced his neck and gave him a lingering kiss. An indiscernible blush appeared on his face. "See you." Quiet as a wind, she got up and took all of her belongings. She turned and gave Kanon a smile before falling off the edge of the building.

Kanon knew better than to check; he was confident that she would ride the wind to her sisters' arms where she would be safest. He hoisted his tuning tool onto his shoulder and stretched. The night sky was as adorned with millions of the most pristine of jewels. "Ah, you can almost hear the stars singing~." He was preparing to glide down the building when he remembered something. Earlier, when they were sharing that intimate moment, he had noticed that she was getting out of touch. Her body was not as in sync as it should be with her Air Treks. "Perhaps we really need a tuning session…ah, and right when I've gotten out of touch as well…it has been so long since we had one."

Ringo skidded to a stop neatly, and she opened the door apprehensively. Soundlessly, she took off her ATs and placed her shoes neatly beside the others. Gathering up some courage, she called out as she walked to the living room. "I'm home. `W-What is…going on?"

Mikan, Ume and Ikki were lying around in different, various positions around the house. The fan that they used for the living room was in pieces, its four plastic blades broken cleanly off the rotating core. The metal cage for the fan was in Ikki's hand, and upon closer observation, he was covered in bumps, cuts and bruises.

"Ringo…is that you..?" Mikan growled from the floor, a noxious aura radiating from her. She stretched her twitching fingers out and hoisted herself off the floor. "You-where have you been? Why isn't dinner ready?" Ume whined from her spot and said, "I was looking forward to dinner today…Rika-nee even bought 3-inch steaks…" Ringo bowed slightly and apologized. "I'm sorry, I was held up. Do you want me to cook dinner for you now?" Ume nodded vigorously, smiling, but Mikan sighed and sat up. "Okay, how about we go to our favorite restaurant? I got a bonus today~." Ringo and Ume hugged each other, dancing, and Ikki, revived from the dead, roared and sped up to change his clothes. Ringo and Ume followed in suit, while Mikan went off to get her money.

Ringo entered her room and switched on the lights. Taking out a dark blue, long-sleeved, bare-back blouse and a pair of hot pants, she placed them on her chair after removing the hangers. She was just undoing her third button chest down when Ikki burst into her room. Instinctively, she threw the blouse at him, and it enveloped his head. Redoing her buttons clumsily, she removed the blouse off an extremely dazed Ikki.

"What…? Ringo, what was that for?" A now irate Ikki got off the ground and snapped at Ringo. She glared back at him and replied, "Haven't you heard of knocking? Sheesh! I was changing!" Ikki stared at her and mumbled, "Oh." An awkward silence settled on them like condiments in a drink. "So…what can I help you with?" asked Ringo brightly. Ikki scratched his wild shock of black-blue hair carelessly, pondering over something. "Where were you just now? I tried calling you using my new phone, but you didn't answer…I was so worried." Ringo swallowed and turned around, angry at Ikki for no reason. "I was busy doing something…I don't think I had given you much cause to worry. So, don't."

"I…" Ikki stuttered, at a loss for words when faced with a cold Ringo. She changed behind her curtain seeing as Ikki was frozen on the spot. "Let's go, Ikki, Mikan-nee's waiting." She then turned on her heel and walked out of her room briskly.

"W-Wait…Ringo..! Wait!" Ikki ran to her back and pulled her arm. "What's wrong with you? Why are you so distant—"

Ringo closed her eyes, as though it was painful for her. It was, of course. Ikki had an ability she could never quite fathom; and that was to amplify her current emotions so strongly that it would be overwhelming.

"Hey, Ikki, remember the Gion Matsuri? It is coming up soon, aren't you going to watch it?" Ringo carried her words with a tone that conflicted with her expression. Ikki shook his head, looking up at the ceiling as if remembering something. "I…oh yeah, I am going with Sumeragi to the AT shop that Simca used to work at. She said that some new parts were released, and they would help to boost my speed and maintain my balance while at it. She said that they were expensive, so we were going to split up the price between us!" He smiled brightly, like a child talking about his favorite toy. "But the thing is that she would always be the one paying the most! So I don't really have to worry, hee hee…"

Her heart thudded against her chest, but Ringo would not let it show. She would not want to ruin the moment for him. She smiled a little forcefully, saying, "Ha ha, that's so bad, Ikki. You shouldn't make a girl pay for such things." Especially her.

Ikki grinned boyishly at her, and then he stopped. He pulled her close and hugged her tightly. Completely taken aback, Ringo just went limp in his arms, hers hanging by her sides. "I was really, really, really worried about you, Ringo. I even went around looking for you in your favorite and commonly frequented spots, but you were nowhere to be seen. I thought you were kidnapped or something," Ikki said softly as he hugged her tighter. "I just need to make sure you're here. I have been feeling weird since this morning…" Blinking in surprise, Ringo opened her mouth to speak, but she had nothing to say. Ikki pulled back and she remained motionless. "Man, I should stay off those soft drinks; they always make me feel weird. I even hugged Kazu just now, like I did with you! Isn't it just downright wrong? I mean, going around and hugging people. Ha ha!"

Ikki was laughing when Ringo shoved his chest with all her might. He almost flew across the room. He crashed into her bed, fortunately. Ringo's face was burning and the tears were almost breaking through, but she did not like to cry in front of Ikki, so she would not. Wordlessly, she ran down the stairs, leaving Ikki stunned on her bed.

And the thing that irritated her most was that she knew that he would have no idea what was going on in her head, instead thinking that she was just throwing some stupid little tantrum.

"I really don't know what I see in him." Ringo muttered savagely to herself as she pulled on her shoes with unnecessary force.

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