III

School continued normally, luckily for Amu, she had no classes with Saaya. At the end of the day when Amu was back in her homeroom to grab her stuff, Tadase caught her before she could leave. Despite saying she wanted to open up a bit to him, she still put on her 'rebel' act when he approached. It broke slightly when he asked if he could walk her home. She tried to seem reluctant with her response, which Tadase just laughed off. They walked home in a silence that day.

After walking home together for a week, they slowly got to know each other. Saaya had seemed to have backed off…for the moment. Perhaps she was still trying to get over Tadase yelling at her and hitting her. Amu liked the peace. Though people still whispered about her occasionally, having Tadase around really helped calm her down.

"So, Amu-chan…" Tadase said with a hum as they walked home from school about 10 days after Amu had transferred. "Seeing as I've opened up to some of your questions this past week, I'll ask you a couple too." he paused as he thought of one. "Do you have any siblings?"

Amu blinked in surprise at the sudden question Part of her still couldn't believe she'd been walking home with the 'prince' of the school, as she'd learned him as. "Huh? Oh, yeah." She nodded. "I have a little sister."

"Ahh, you're an older sister." Tadase nodded in understanding. "What's her name?"

"Ami. She's almost ten now, but she acts as if she's still four." she sighed a little over-exaggeratedly.

Tadase laughed slightly. "She sounds cute. I take it you don't like her much, though?"

Amu shook her head quickly. "N-no. I like her. She's just annoying as hell sometimes. I'm the only big sister she has, so I can't really fail her."

"And what about her? Does she like you?"

Amu was starting to get awkward talking about only herself, but tried not to show it. She answered the rest of Tadase's questions as briefly as she could just to take the attention off of her. Tadase seemed a bit strange when she mentioned Ami was obsessed with Hoshina Utau, but she didn't try to press.

In truth, Tadase knew Utau. They had a kind of rough past though. He didn't really like thinking about it though. It made Tadase think about…him. He shook his head quickly, pushing the thoughts into the back of his mind as he listened quietly, noticing Amu's explanations getting shorter and shorter.

"Say, Amu-chan…" he said slowly. "Do you want to do something? Not now, because we both need to change, but my parents aren't home so I have nothing to do. If your parents aren't home either, you're free to bring Ami-san."

Amu was taken aback by the sudden invitation. Their friendship had been entirely school oriented until that moment. Nevertheless, she found herself nodding without giving it proper thought. She cursed herself for changing so much in a short amount of time, but somehow found she couldn't help it when she was with Tadase. He was too much of a gentleman to be rude to.

Tadase smiled and said to meet him where they were, in front of a park near Amu's house, in about ten minutes. Amu nodded once again and watched Tadase run in the opposite direction, waving a little awkwardly. She sighed slightly, taking in what just happened. Was this technically a date? Nah, no way. They'd only known each other for less than 2 weeks.

Right as Amu was about to turn and jog towards her house, she was abruptly pulled into a headlock by a mysterious force. She tried to use brute force to get away, but somehow, that only ended up putting her in more trouble as she heard a pocket knife open and soon felt the cold metal near her neck.

"Finally he's gone…" a disembodied voice said from behind her. "If you struggle anymore, my hand might slip and today will be your last day of school." they paused, pressing the knife closer to Amu's skin as if to prove their point. "I've been letting it slide until now, thinking he was just being nice… Remember what I told you about staying away from my boyfriend when you first transferred?"

Amu gritted her teeth, terrified in the inside, but trying not to panic too much on the outside. She knew exactly who this was. Saaya had finally come back for revenge, and this time it was a life or death situation. Only, this time, Tadase wasn't here to help. She had to handle this herself.

"Yamabuki Saaya…!" She gulped slightly, feeling the sharp edge of the knife digging into her skin, thankfully not enough to draw blood. "Didn't you-didn't you hear Tadase-kun? He's no longer your-"

Before Amu could finish her sentence, she was thrown on the hard cement, the knife barely hitting her as she rolled over. Her jacket and blouse were torn at the elbow, and a bleeding scrape throbbed underneath, a small blood stain on the ground where she hit it.

"You better shut up. Or next time I won't miss." Saaya threatened, glowering down at Amu.

Amu tried to lean up on her hands, but fell with a wince. Both of her hands were bloody, blistered, and bruised, making it harder for her to move them. Instead she leaned up on the elbow that wasn't scraped.

"Y-you really are low, Yamabuki Saaya." she stammered, wincing in pain still. "Trying to kill me just because I'm hanging around with your ex-boyfriend?"

Saaya pounced on her, slashing her arm in the process. "Shut up! Why should I tell you my motives?"

Amu yelped in pain, grabbing her arm. "T-Tadase-kun probably doesn't even like me in that way! We've only known each other for a w-week!"

"Tch." Saaya scoffed, pressing the knife against Amu's neck again. "You mustn't believe in a little think called 'Love at First Sight.' There's no way Tadase would protect you with no feeling involved. He's never hit me or yelled at me before. And then when your little tough act broke and he hugged you? You must be blind."

Amu blinked, shocked at Saaya's word, but using it as a chance to get a hit in on her, bringing her knee up to Saaya's stomach. "You didn't leave back there." she breathed as Saaya lurched and almost let go of her knife.

"O-of course not." Saaya said in a weak voice, which somehow still screamed 'I'm bragging' "I'm not that dumb. I hid behind a bush. Tadase thought he was being all cool saying he'd protect you from me. But, oh, what's this? He's not here."

Amu growled slightly. "You're just jealous." she pulled her hand away from her arm, both hurting too much for her to handle. "You can't move on from him because you still love him."

Saaya sat up, straddling Amu as she glared down at her. "Of course I still love him! But," she slashed Amu again, but missed, as Amu was lucky enough to escape her straddle and roll away. "I'm not," She slashed again, this time nicking Amu's thigh. "Jealous!"

Amu grunted, but was mentally glad the knife had only nicked her. "If-if you're not jealous, then why bother doing something like this to me?" Blood seeped from her arm, her hands left bloody hand prints on the cement, and she was very much pissed and in pain.

"B-because…" Saaya seemed to take a minute to think of perhaps an excuse. "Because you're a no good, ugly piece of shit."

She tried to slash Amu's face, but Amu, with much effort and pain, grabbed her wrist and twisted it backwards. Those self defense classes she was forced to take part in a few years ago were finally put to use. Saaya growled and leaped up, retreating as she held her wrist, shouting out horrible curses and names, definitely directed towards Amu.

Amu groaned and tried to sit up, but because of her cut up hands from the cement, she fell back, landing on her cut arm, causing her to immediately yelp in pain. Not soon after, she blacked out, perhaps from stress, or from looking over and seeing a pool of her own blood next to her, and all over her. The last thing she remembered was being in a lot of pain, and wishing she'd just offered that she and Tadase went around in their uniforms.

She wasn't sure how long she'd been lying on the ground for, but when she came back to semi-consciousness, she heard a voice urgently calling out her name. At first she thought it might have been an angel. Or maybe a neighbour who happened to be passing by. But then the voice became clearer, and she felt herself being shaken.

"Amu-chan! Amu-chan, please stay with me. You're going to be alright!" the voice sounded familiar, but in her current state of mind, she couldn't be too sure who it was. "Amu-chan! God, am I going to have to use mouth-to-mouth? Wait… mouth-to-mouth is for drowning victims, what am I thinking?"

Amu's eyes just about shot open at the idea of someone giving her mouth-to-mouth, especially if it was a stranger. Unfortunately (or maybe fortunately?) it was someone she probably should've thought of in the first place. She blinked in surprise.

"T-Tadase-kun…?!"

Tadase sighed in relief. "Thank god. I was worried for a second there."

Tadase went to hug Amu, but Amu yelped, her body already aching from being pushed onto the hard concrete, plus being attacked. Tadase quickly let go of Amu when she yelped, looking at her concernedly as he panicked.

"Oh god, I'm so sorry." he said quickly. "I-I should've thought before I acted."

"I-it's fine.." Amu glanced at her hands, which were still all bloody. She gagged mentally.

"Amu-chan…can you tell me what happened?" Tadase asked, trying to stay calm. "Y-you're bleeding all over… Who did this to you?"

If Tadase hadn't have said 'who did this to you', Amu probably would've brushed it off as she fell and scraped her arm on a twig. She sighed, unable to come up with a better excuse and explained what happened after Tadase had left in vivid detail. Tadase stared in shock as Amu spoke.

"S-Saaya…Saaya did this to you?" he repeated.

Amu nodded slowly, for some reason the thought 'love at first sight' coming to mind. She quickly pushed the thought away. Now wasn't the time to think about that. She chewed on the inside of her cheek though, wondering if maybe it was true. Tadase sighed and stood up, holding Amu's arm to try and help her up. Blood was dripping from her thigh, which probably could've looked like something else. Luckily Tadase didn't notice.

"Can you walk?" he asked, still holding on to her arm. "We should probably get those cuts taken care of…"

Amu tried to take a step forward, but her legs felt like jelly. Still, she managed to take a couple steps. "I-I should be fine for a bit."

"I'll help you a bit." Tadase said, already grabbing Amu's arm to wrap around his shoulder and slipping his other arm behind her torso. "If you feel too weak after that, I'll carry you."

Amu chose not to comment on that and focused on her steps (and tried not to focus on Tadase's hand around her waist) making sure not to fall or trip. Tadase kept close eye on her, ready to catch her if she lurched forwards. Around half way to the hospital, she stumbled forward. Tadase gently let go of her and lowered her to the ground.

"I-I cant walk…any further…" she panted. "I might pass out…"

Tadase sighed and crouched next to her. He examined Amu for a second, as if calculating her weight in his brain. Then, he slipped one arm behind Amu's neck and the other under her knees and lifted her up 'bridal style'. This earned a surprise yelp from Amu as she started flailing in an embarrassed panic.

Tadase calmed her down and eventually she relaxed, holding her hands close to her chest and looking down. He adjusted his grip on her, his hand accidentally brushing against the nick on her thigh, causing her to almost jump out of his arms as she yelped.

"S-sorry. I didn't see that one…" Tadase said quickly. "Let's get you to the hospital quick."

Amu nodded and Tadase started walking, making sure to be careful not to drop or hurt Amu anymore than she already was. After some time, Amu's breathing slowed down and she started mumbling incoherently. Tadase looked down at her and noticed she had fallen asleep against his chest. He chuckled softly.

"Mm…why…are you…so nice…" Amu mumbled, but her actions suddenly changed. She started thrashing slightly. "W-wait no! Don't…don't touch me! Stop! H-help!"

She shot awake, panicking for a second before realizing where she was and sighing softly, settling back down, chewing on her bottom lip, staying silent for a while, still a little shaken. Tadase's eyes followed her spasmodic actions worriedly.

"Are you okay?" he asked. "It sounded like you were having an awful nightmare."

Amu nodded slowly. "Uh, yeah. Kind of. Don't worry though. I-I'm fine."

Tadase hummed softly, opening his mouth, almost asking what the dream was. He closed his mouth quickly, deciding it wasn't right for him to ask. He sighed softly, making sure Amu wouldn't fall by adjusting his grip again, carefully this time.

"You can go back to sleep if you'd like…" he said instead.

Amu nodded, humming softly in response, placing her head back against Tadase's chest. She was fast asleep as quickly as her head fell. Tadase laughed softly before changing it into a sigh. He couldn't help but feel bad for her. She was only a little over a week into her time here and she was already attacked.

"How could Saaya do that to someone so easily…?" he wondered out loud. "She's totally different from how I remember her… Am I not allowed to greet a new student?"

He sighed again. Amu's arms went from resting against her chest to being wrapped around his neck a little tightly. Luckily not tight enough to choke him yet. He pursed his lips. Saaya was never in her right mind, Tadase knew that for sure. But attacking a new student, even when Tadase was just doing his job as a good class president, was just too much. How could he talk to her about this? Tadase had thought Saaya had given up, since she had been silent for well over a week, but he guessed he was wrong. Tadase let out a final sigh before continuing his trek to the hospital in silence, only listening to Amu's soft breathing.

Finally, Tadase had managed to make it to the hospital without dropping or waking Amu. That being said, she was still fast asleep when they arrived, and he didn't want to wake her up too soon. He decided it would be easier to just carry her in.

"Uhm…" he called awkwardly. "Nurse? Doctor? Anyone? M-my friend…she was assaulted by someone with a knife and needs some help."

Two nurses heeded Tadase's call, rushing towards Tadase and Amu after quickly grabbing a gurney. Tadase carefully placed Amu onto the gurney as the nurses looked Amu over quickly. He waited to see what they would have to say.

"Goodness, poor girl!" one of them said. "Good thing she isn't hurt too badly. Where did you find her, sir? How long was she lying there?"

Tadase shook his head. "I was with her 10 minutes earlier. But when I came back, I found her lying on the ground surrounded by a pool of her own blood…"

"Oh dear! Is she currently unconscious?"

Tadase shook his head. "She was conscious for a bit, talking and able to explain what happened. But on my way here, she fell asleep." under his breath, Tadase muttered, "At least I hope…"

Luckily, neither of the nurses heard the last part and just nodded. "Well, if she's only asleep, waking her would make it easier for us to see how much attention she needs. And she'll be able to tell us what happened."

Tadase nodded as well, touching Amu's shoulder, nudging it gently. "Amu-chan, hey. Amu-chan, wake up."

Amu rolled over slightly, groaning as her eyes fluttered open. She looked around trying to take in the situation. "Hmm…? What?" she managed groggily, rubbing her eyes.

"We're at the hospital." Tadase explained shortly. "These nurses wanted to check on you properly."

Amu shot up like a bullet out of a gun when she realized the situation "OH!"

However, by doing so, she got dizzy and almost fell back down, causing her to slam her hands on the bed. This, in turn, caused her to yelp in pain, the wounds on her hands still ripe and stinging. To make matters worse, her vision was blurred with black spots and throbbed from getting up too fast. Both nurses, as well as Tadase, watched Amu concernedly, but relaxed when Amu raised a bloody hand to say she was fine.

"Don't be too alarmed. But we're going to take you into the emergency room." one of the nurses said after making sure Amu was fine, though examined her hands once more. "We don't know how deep any of your wounds are, so it'd be best to get everything checked on quickly and get you ready to go hopefully in a couple hours."

One of the nurses went off to talk to a doctor, while the other stayed with Tadase and Amu, trying to get as much information about the accident as possible. As the second nurse came back with a doctor, the first nurse recounted how many stitches she'd need and any other important procedures she'd need to take.

A/N: EDIT: So I updated this to make a bit more sense. Previously, everything was in one day, so i figured it would make more sense to add more of a time to it so it wasnt happening so quickly.

Here's another chapter. I'll be posting these randomly so dont expect any kind of schedule until I either feel like I need to be more organized or get more of a following.