Disclaimer: Haha, yes. I own Maria-sama ga Miteru. Haha. How funny is it that I own it and I'm still writing fanfiction for it. Haha. Obviously I'm being sarcastic here.

Title: Pining and Healing

During the ride, the conversation between the two ladies kept Sachiko focused on the current happenings as she slowly forgot about the call that Yumi had not picked up. As the posh limousine turned around the final corner, Sachiko caught sight of the grand hotel which she assumed to be the one that she and her deputy, Kanako, would be living in. True enough, the clear voice of her deputy reached her ears soon after, describing some of the details about the beautiful hotel.

"Here we are, Ogasawara-sama. This is the famous Trianon Palace where you would be staying at while you remain here. The Trianon Palace's history dates back to 1910 and its design and structures are birthed from the architect Rene Sergent. This belong to the same family of classical architecture which you are most fond of. In addition, the expenses here that we use are fully covered by our host, Minazuki Tsubasa, who is the husband of the important stakeholder that you are scheduled to dine with in the evening."

With eyes appraising the hardworking deputy who did her research well, Sachiko felt eased that she had a competent helper in this war of business. However, there was the point of her formal tone to Sachiko which she felt was unnecessary.

"This is truly a great city, don't you think so? Besides, haven't I been telling you since a long time ago to call me Sachiko? You've been my deputy and friend for a long time already. Ogasawara-sama is simply too formal for this relationship of ours. Anyway, what is my schedule for the day other than meeting with Miss Felis for dinner?"

"It wouldn't be proper, Ogasawara-sama. There is little for you to do today as Miss Felis wished for you to rest before resuming business. After all, there is ample time for Miss Felis and you to sort out the details about the collaboration."

Giving a sigh at her stubbornness, the elegant woman stepped demurely out of the limousine as she took the offered arm of the chauffeur. As the hotel attendants tended to her luggage, she turned to Kanako who was still exiting the well maintained car. Due to a misstep, Kanako stumbled out of the car awkwardly as she tried not to fall flat on the man who was attending to her. Seeing this little incident, a sudden flashback made its way to Sachiko's head as she recalled the similar antics of Yumi for the first time when she had gone to a prestigious restaurant with her.

Yumi…

Unconsciously, she let out a giggle at the memory.

"Ogasawara-sama, am I really that funny? I'd half expected you to scold me unceremoniously for this ungainly entrance that disgraced you."

"Everyone makes mistakes every now and then, Kanako. There's no reason for me to chide you for such a small matter, we're both adults."

Yumi… You're just temporarily angry with me… aren't you? You wouldn't leave me, would you? I'm sorry for the harsh words I'd said to you; I'm sorry for the insensitivity I've shown to you ever since we were married…

"Oh… right, why didn't I think of it that way? This shows that I've still have much to learn from you, Ogasawara-sama."

"To learn such things just takes more time and practice."

When I get back… when I get back… I'll treat you better…

"I will do just that, Ogasawara-sama. Shall we continue to our rooms then?"

Just don't leave… not before we have a good talk with each other… Give me some more time, Yumi.

"Ogasawara-sama?"

"Sorry, it must be the summer's heat getting to me. Let's go."

Sitting on the bed and typing furiously away at the laptop as she tried to organize her new documents, Sachiko reached out for her usual cup of tea that was placed on the bedside table. Cupping the glass cup in her hand, her fingers found the unfamiliar contours slightly disturbing. Bringing the cold tea to her lips, she took a sip and grimaced as the bitter taste flooded her senses.

Cold tea was always much more bitter than the warm ones Yumi brewed…

Staring at the blinking red light of the answering machine which contrasted greatly with the dark background, Sachiko took little comfort in the cool environment of the room that she was staying in. Turning away from the distracting light, her eyes found the plain white ceiling painted grey by the lack of light. As shadows from the silhouette of the tall trees outside moved synchronously on the painted cement, the numbing fact that Yumi wasn't beside her boomed loudly in a disconcerting melody through the luxurious walls of the room and into her sense of being. Stroking the brown plush bear beside her fondly, she pretended that it was Yumi whom she was caressing.

I miss you.

"Why not call her? It's been days since we'd settled in and you haven't called her once yet."

"Kanako-san?"

Kanako stepped into the co-joined room through the door, holding on to her matching mug and toothbrush as she proceeded to the shared washroom. With the pale glow emitting from the room behind her blurring her outline, she resembled a spiritual guide sent by the gods to help Sachiko.

"Ogasawara-sama, I'm sure that Yumi-san is lonely without your presence too. Trust me."

"I… No… Maybe I'll do that tomorrow. She's probably sleeping right now."

"Okay. Have a good night sleep, Ogasawara-sama. We have a busy day ahead of us tomorrow again."

With that, Kanako closed the door behind her and continued her activities as she prepared for bed.

She's right… you're probably feeling lonely like me too…

Hugging the bear tightly, a lone tear managed to escape from her teary eyes before she dabbed it away with the blanket.

With Sei staring at her, Yumi punched in the number for Sachiko's mobile again. Listening to the monotonous tone while the lines were being connected, she darted a glance to see if Sei was still holding on to her precious limited edition 'Forever Friends' mug with that look of hers. As grey eyes caught her peeking, the blonde girl grinned as she lifted the mug and mimed the motion of smashing the cup on the floor to her. Giving a sigh, she resigned to fate.

Oh man… I should have been more aware about my facial expressions… I put my favourite mug in danger just because I didn't want to call Sachiko and was moping around it… Or at least I shouldn't do that in her house…

When the phone finally clicked as someone picked it up, Yumi inquired politely even though it was Sachiko's private phone.

"Moshi-moshi? Sachiko, is that you?"

"Who the heck are you? I told you that I don't know any Sachiko! It's a WRONG number!" screamed a gruff voice in French, "and don't call back again!"

Yumi winced as the man hung up for the second time. Turning to Sei, she gave her a confused look.

"How was it Yumi?"

"The same man said that it was a wrong number… but it isn't! I took extra care not to press the wrong number this time!"

Handing the cup back to Yumi, Sei patted her shoulder reassuringly as she tried to calm the younger girl down.

"Here, here, take your precious mug back. Relax, Yumi. It's probably the telephone service that screwed up. You're calling overseas and that's always harder to process than local calls."

"It's probably that… right? She wouldn't happen to be in any danger would she?" Muttering more to herself than to the older girl, Yumi continued despondently, "then again… could she have diverted the call to some unknown number instead? No way, Yumi… she wouldn't do that to you…"

Giving an extra loud laugh of triumph to jerk the brunette out of her musing, Sei tried diverting her attention by grabbing her mug again.

Moving sneakily out of the room, she shouted from the corridor, "Hehheh… You should have a tighter grip on your cup. It's mine now Yumi!"

Yumi blinked a few times before registering the fact that her precious treasure was in peril again. She rolled her eyes heavenwards at her childish behavior before she pursued the crafty woman. As she was halfway down the stairs, sounds of Sei yelping reached her ears. As she neared the source of noise – the kitchen – she was highly amused to see Youko whacking Sei on the head with a cucumber. Grinning from ear to ear at the scene, Yumi entered the kitchen and snatched her mug back while the older girl was busy with maneuvering herself out of the way of the deadly cucumber that was meant to be part of the salad.

"Hey! Ouch, ouch! Woman, stop it already! I'm sorry, sorry! I didn't mean to knock into you while I was running from Yumi!"

Huffing slightly from the exertion, Youko gave Yumi a sly smile before she continued making the potato salad for dinner.

"Really, woman… must you whack me with food whenever I walk a little faster into the kitchen while you're cooking?"

Not looking up, Youko sliced the aforementioned cucumber into pieces as she answered bossily, "if that was considered walking a little faster, then your run would've a chance to break the world records already, Sei. Now go set the table, we've got a guest today."

Grumbling a little at how mean Youko was in regards to kitchen rules, she grudgingly put out plates and utensils on the table with Yumi's help. Soon, Youko served the tempting dishes and the three of them settled down for dinner. In the fuzzy atmosphere of Sei's house, Yumi felt a little better about the next few months ahead. Silently, she thought that it was indeed a good decision to camp here instead of her parent's house.

At least there are more things for me to distract myself with in this household… I could play with their baby if I'm really bored too.

"Sei, is the baby crying?"

"What? Not again…"

"Sei. Baby. Now."

Curving her lips in a slight smile, Yumi watched the happy couple.

Giving an innocent plea that didn't work with the short-haired woman, she accepted her fate.

Yes… there's always the baby to play with… when she doesn't cry of course…

A/N: Reviewers get sweets cos I'm in the sharing mood now! xD Anyway, hope you've enjoyed this chapter!