Yay! Two exams down, one to go!

I hope you guys like this chapter! This is rather long, in fact. alalala. lol.

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Disclaimer: Lux-Pain (c) Killaware
Claimer: everything else (c) me

Chapter Four: Day 5 – Breakdown

It had been 4 days since Fumiko had arrived, and both of their feelings for each other deepened, but they managed to conceal it well from each other. The strange, mysterious mind force hadn't bothered Fumiko the entire 4 days, and it raised FORT's suspicions. Atsuki and Fumiko had only dealt with the minor and weaker Silent, but none of the newer and more advanced Silent. In the meantime, Fumiko had been introduced to the other people of Kisaragi City; Yuzi Okura, the owner of the net café; Razzly Portman, a famous reporter that Mika worked with; Kenichi Mido, Akira's father and the owner of Sweet Ring; Shigeru Enokida, the man working at the local post office; Syunichi Inagaki, the guy who owned a huge music store; Yui Yamase, Rui's elder sister who worked at the police department alongside Aya; and Nami Kamishiro and her dog, Melody. Nami was Yayoi's younger 11-year-old sister in elementary school, and she had quickly discovered that Fumiko had powers similar to Atsuki's, and Fumiko learned that Nami had the ability to speak to animals.

The bitter sadness still ate away at Fumiko, thinking that she was doing wrong to both Atsuki and Yayoi because they had the chance to fall in love with each other, but she had interrupted with that delicate process. Everyday hurt, as Fumiko could tell that Yayoi was hurting at her and Atsuki's closeness. Every time Fumiko had the opportunity, she tried to push Atsuki towards Yayoi to allow her to have her chance to tell him.

"Fumiko, really, you don't seem to be okay," Atsuki told her as they walked towards the school. "Ever since the first day after school in Kisaragi, you've been sad."

"I told you, Atsuki, I'm fine, really," she lied, and her Shinen showed it. Even without the use of Σ, Atsuki knew that everything wasn't as okay as she said they were.

He stopped her in her tracks before he turned her towards him, staring deeply into her beautiful azure eyes. "Fumiko," he said to her, his black eyes shimmering with worry, "you need to tell me what's wrong. I'm here to help you, you know that… right?"

She sighed, tearing her gaze away from his. "I know," she replied.

His grip on her shoulders tightened. "Then tell me what's wrong," he demanded.

"I-I can't…" she stammered, pain continuing to flutter through her Shinen. "I-I just… I-I just… I can't."

Atsuki pressed her against his chest, hugging her tightly. "Please… Fumiko…" he begged quietly. "Just what is it that you can't tell me? We've known each other since we were little kids, you can tell me anything."

"I can't," Fumiko began to weep tearlessly, burying her face into his chest as her arms wrapped around his back. "Can't you see I just can't?"

"You and Yayoi have been acting weird for the past 4 days," Atsuki told her. "Nami's been telling me the same thing. She said that both she and Melody have sensed something that's bothering Yayoi, and you."

Pulling away, she reached up to kiss his cheek, offering him a sad smile. "Of course Nami knows," she breathed. "But… let's go." As she pulled away from his embrace and began to walk away, he grabbed her arm and pulled her back against him, pressing his lips against her forehead.

"Why can't you just tell me what's wrong?" he demanded.

"Cause it involves you," she told him, pulling away out of his reach. "Now let's go."

His Shinen twisted with confusion. "What?" he muttered to himself quietly, "Involves me? Don't I have a right to know then?" But she was far from hearing range, and he followed after her, making sure he kept her in his sight.

Before he knew it, they had arrived at the school, where –as she was headed of him, Fumiko was greeted by Hibiki, Mika, Rui and Akira. On two of the days, Mika, Yayoi and Rui had forcefully taken Fumiko away from Atsuki and the four of them went shopping. On another day, Hibiki, Ryo and Akira had taken her around town to visit dozens of places, as well as take her to Sweet Ring for a nice afternoon tea. Meanwhile Atsuki had been dragged on a 'date' with Nami, and they went to the local burger joint.

Fumiko sure has managed to get herself pretty popular among my friends, Atsuki thought as he watched them mingle. And she seems to be getting along especially well with Kiryu. I believe he likes her, as implied by his most recent Shinen.

"Hey, Saijo! Come over here!" Akira called, and they all looked at him, including Fumiko.

He saw her Shinen to be the only blue one compared to the other happy ones. But he set on a false smile and join them, as he could tell the expression on her face was false as well.

"Since you're both here now, we wanted to ask whether you both wanted to come with us after school to see a movie." Mika inquired. "It'll be me, Rui, Akira, Hibiki, Ryo, Yayoi, and Shinji."

Fumiko bit her lip, knowing it would be the perfect opportunity to set Yayoi and Atsuki up. "I'm sorry, but I have something to do after school. I'm helping a friend out at his bakery. Atsuki, you should go. You know I promised Adrian that I'd help him out after school."

He very well knew it was a lie, but he knew he wouldn't dare confront her now. It would raise suspicions. "Hey, I promised I'd help too," he argued, also lying, and an angry Shinen rose within Fumiko.

Uh oh… did I step on a land mine or something? He wondered.

"Ugh, you're so stubborn sometimes," she scoffed under her breath, inaudible to all ears but Atsuki's.

"Awww… that's too bad," Rui sighed.

"Definitely next time then," Akira told them.

Mika smiled. "Well… look at the bright side; you guys have a date working at a bakery."

Fumiko couldn't help but laugh, and her Shinen lightened a bit, much to Atsuki's relief. "Not exactly a romantic date, huh?"

As the bell chimed, they looked at each other.

"Well… better get to class before Ms. Aoi scolds us," Hibiki said, and they all hurried off to class.

xXx

45 minutes later, the lunch bell rang, and silently Atsuki and Fumiko sat down on a stone bench in the quad, the surviving flowers still in bloom around them. Their friends at seen them together, and decided not to bother them on their private lunch.

"Fumiko…" Atsuki said quietly, glancing at her. "What are you trying to do? You seem to be constantly pushing me away to be by yourself."

She looked away. "I have my reasons," she told him. "In truth, Atsuki, I think it's best we 'break-up', if only for now."

"Why?" he inquired, confused.

Fumiko forced a bright smile, but it came off as a sad one. "All relationships have to have their rough edges, right?" she replied optimistically, but her voice broke at the end.

"Fumiko, what's wrong? Why can't you tell me what's bothering you?" he demanded in an urgent and confused voice.

"Because I can't, okay, Atsuki?" she uncontrollably snapped, before biting back her tongue as she met his startled expression. She looked away at the ground in front of her, her voice quieter now when she spoke. "I'm sorry," she apologized, "I didn't mean to snap. But I really just can't, Atsuki. I won't recover if she doesn't tell you. Both answers will probably bring me some sort of pain, but I can handle them. But that's only when she decides to tell you, and not a moment sooner."

He looked at her. "Who's this 'she' you speak of?" he asked.

"I can't tell you that either," Fumiko told him. "I'm sorry, but she'll tell you in time. Until then… well… it's best we 'break-up'. I can take care of myself, and I'll keep close contact with Liu so that nothing should happen to me."

Grabbing her lunch, she walked away from him, leaving him alone on the bench to wonder; why?

XxX

Lunch passed slowly for the both of them, as word spread quickly about their painful break-up. Yayoi, Akira and Rui comforted Atsuki in the quad while Hibiki, Ryo, and Mika tried to cheer up Fumiko in the café. Both parties failed.

xXx

After school, Atsuki left the classroom quickly with only a short glance at Fumiko. As their friends watched him disappear, they looked at Fumiko.

"This is terrible," Rui murmured to Mika. "I really wonder what happened between them. They seemed happy together."

Mika glanced back at her friend. "Well… all Fumiko said was that they had gotten into a really bad argument. But she didn't say what."

"Hey Kasugazaki, the movie offer still stands, if you want to come," Akira reminded her, trying to give off a light tone.

She shook her head. "I still promised a friend I'd help him at his bakery, so I can't," she told them quietly. "I'm sorry, maybe just… next time, I suppose. You guys go ahead, you don't want to be late for the movie."

Wishing they could comfort her, they left quietly, leaving her alone in the classroom as she finished slowly packing up her books. Looking out the window, she sighed, gazing down at her friends as they sadly left the school.

"Well… this wasn't ever part of the plan," she murmured to herself as she left the classroom, making her way down to the quad.

Not to Fumiko's surprise, Atsuki was waiting for her. He had come out of hiding after he saw that the others had left, Fumiko not among them. His dark gaze looked worried, and sad, and she couldn't dare meet his eyes, knowing that she was the cause of his pain. Looking down at the ground, she passed him, and he kept his pace beside her easily.

"Fumiko…" he began quietly. "I can't bear to see you like this. Isn't there anything I can do for you?"

She shook her head silently, and he grabbed her by the shoulders and turned her towards him to look directly in those twin azure orbs filled with pain.

"Fumiko, please… just talk to me," he told her, his voice on the urge of desperation.

This brought tears to Fumiko's eyes, and very gently, she pushed him away, turning the other way. "Dammit," she breathed, her hands tightening into fists, "I-I'm getting too emotionally involved in this."

Atsuki walked over to her and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Fumiko?" he asked worriedly.

"Just… I just need to be alone…" she told him, rubbing away furiously at her forming tears.

"You know I can't allow you to do that," he said quietly. "I have to keep you in my sight. Who knows when you may be attacked? I'll need to be there to protect you."

She turned to look at him, her sad azure gaze meeting his shining black one. "I want you to answer me honestly, Atsuki," she demanded in a monotone. "How do you feel about me?"

He blinked. "What?" he asked, his mind drawing up an immediate blank.

"You heard me," she replied impatiently, "how do you feel about me? Working with you, living with you, whatever. Just… how?"

He blinked, successfully preventing a blush from staining his cheeks. "Well… um… you're special to me. You're the only person left that I have from my past. So I can't help but be a little protective of you. I suppose you're like my closest best friend," he half-lied.

Fumiko's fists tightened, and she looked and turned away. "I see…" she said before pushing her schoolbag towards him before running off in the opposite direction.

"Fumiko, wait!" Atsuki shouted, running after her.

"Just leave me alone!" she yelled, dashing into a narrow and small alley around a hard, fast corner.

Atsuki chased her in, but the girl had vanished. Looking around, there was no sign of her.

"Dammit," he swore quietly, grabbing out his cell phone and calling the FORT. "Nola, I lost her. She ran away from me."

"Hold on, I'll get Natsuki to check on her and locate her Shinen," Nola replied. A few moments later, Natsuki joined on the conversation.

"Hey Atsuki!" she exclaimed. "How are you doing? I'm sorry, but I can't pinpoint Fumiko's Shinen. I guess she must have kicked in her CIA training or something."

He growled quietly before Nola added, "I'll get Liu Yee looking for her too. Maybe after working with her for a year, he might have an idea of where she ran off to. I'll make sure he'll be sure to let us know once he finds her."

"Okay, thanks, Nola. In the meanwhile I'll keep looking. She can't have gotten far on foot," Atsuki said. "Keep me updated."

xXx

Meanwhile, Fumiko had used what spy training she had to climb and jump up the brick wall until she was on top of the building.

I guess that training's still useful after all, she thought, dashing quietly across the roof, as she leapt from roof to roof, until she finally reached a building with a fire escape. Climbing down, she made sure to avoid any contact with any of her schoolmates, and headed over to Rainbow Hill in Area 6.

After she arrived, she sighed, sitting on the grass as she watched the sun beginning to set in the distance, the orange light reflecting on the ocean waters below. She knew there wasn't any way Atsuki would be able to find her, as she had placed a powerful block around her Shinen, shielding her. She hugged her knees to her chest as she indulged herself into her thoughts.

Oh… what am I going to do? She thought depressingly. I can't let my emotions get the best of me. But I don't want to hurt Yayoi's chance of winning Atsuki's heart. It's unfair… to both him, and her. I don't think I can complete this mission with my current cover… I need to talk to the chief about this…

"Hmmm… big surprise to find you here," a male voice spoke with a sarcastic tone in his voice, causing her to jump a bit.

Fumiko sighed, as she had recognized the voice. She had been so lost in her thoughts, that she couldn't sense him approach. She didn't bother to turn around.

"Liu Yee…" she said quietly, "how did you find me? I hid my Shinen."

He sat down next to her, and she stretched out her legs as they began to become numb, looking at him as he answered.

"I've worked with you for an entire year," he answered indirectly. "I've realized that when you need to retreat into yourself, you find a location with a splendid view. The best place in Kisaragi for a view is here on Rainbow Hill."

"Hmm…" she hummed quietly. "Damn… and I thought I would have a moment to myself."

He smiled. "Don't worry, I won't alert FORT, at least… not yet," he told her. "Now… what's on your mind?"

Her azure eyes looked at him in confusion. "Since when did you become my therapist?" she demanded, her voice in surprise. He just looked at her, masked concern in his eyes, and she sighed. "Okay… well… my problem is that I'm torn between my mission, and my heart. Cheesy, I know."

"How so?" he inquired curiously.

"My heart doesn't want to be unfair to Atsuki, but my mission requires me to do so," she told him. "As you know, my cover is his girlfriend, and this forces him to be, perhaps, 'uncomfortably close' to me. Then there's this girl at our school, I've read her Shinen, and she's jealous, because she likes him very, very much. I feel like I've interrupted what might or could have been. That's why I feel a little guilty, which I've been constantly pushing Atsuki away. I want to give her that chance to confess, and if he accepts her, so be it. If not, then I'll return."

Liu nodded slowly. "I see…"

"When we were kids, Atsuki protected me from this large dog that I was terribly frightened of," she said with a soft smile, "After that incident, he promised me that he'd protect me forever."

Liu looked at her, his eyes suspicious. "And how do you feel about Atsuki now?" he asked, "Are you in love with him?"

Fumiko took a deep breath before answering honestly, "Yes, I am."

"You should tell him," he advised. "He cares for you, you know."

She sighed depressingly. "I don't know…" she replied. "I love him a lot, but… I feel like I need to turn a blind eye and not care about my own feelings for a change."

Very gently, Liu took her hand in his, squeezing reassuringly as he stared her deeply in the eyes. "Fumiko, you've always been worrying about others. You need to be selfish for once," he told her.

"But Atsuki's my childhood friend! He's the only one that I actually can really talk to, other than you, Nola, Natsuki, Ray and my brother. But you know my older brother's back at the CIA as an analyst. Atsuki and Drew are the only ones from my childhood…" she trailed off, tears coming to her eyes. "I'm getting too emotional about this… My training has let me down… This is the first time I've ever fallen in love during a mission. And it hurts… so, so much…"

Slowly, he stood up, pulling her up with him. "Why don't you come live with me for a while? Until you can get things sorted, at least," he offered.

"Awww… Liu…" she murmured, touched by his offer.

"You're like a little sister to me," he reasoned. "It's no trouble at all. And it's only until you can get things sorted with Atsuki, right?"

Fumiko took a deep breath and nodded, and he offered her a small smile, taking out his cell phone and calling FORT.

"Liu!" Nola exclaimed, "Did you find her?"

"Yes," he confirmed, "she's with me right now. And Nola… another thing; Fumiko will live with me for the next little while. She will continue her cover at the school, but she will return to my apartment."

Nola was worried. "What? But why?" she inquired. "Did Fumiko and Atsuki get into a fight?"

"You could say that, yes. In any case, Fumiko needs some time away from Atsuki. He can still protect her during school, but after that I will take responsibility for her safety, unless he is around her at the time," he replied. "Don't mention this to Atsuki, as I will tell him myself."

"Very well…" Nola sighed. "I'll let him know that you are taking her back to his apartment, but I won't mention that you're going to be picking up her things. He's been worried sick."

After he hung up, Liu Yee looked at Fumiko. "Let's head to the apartment. I heard that Atsuki's worried about you."

She looked away, rubbing her arm. "Well… that would probably be because I used my CIA training to escape up to the rooftops as I was running away from him earlier," she admitted, which earned a chuckle from the 24-year-old Sweeper.

"At least you can practice your training," he said optimistically.

Fumiko smiled genuinely at him, and if Liu Yee was able to read Shinen, he would have seen hers light up with yellow. "Yeah, I suppose," she said. "Let's go."

xXx

Atsuki paced around worriedly in his apartment, and he had realized he had fallen deeply in love with Fumiko. He didn't want to lose her; to anything, or anyone. He wasn't going to allow himself to lose the one he loved. He had recently gotten a call from Nola and was told that Liu Yee had found her and was returning with her to the apartment, therefore, he had gone home and was waiting impatiently.

Suddenly, there was a knock at his door, and he composed himself, calmly walking to open the door, where he found Fumiko shyly hiding behind Liu Yee.

"Fumiko, you're okay," Atsuki sighed in relief.

"I'm sorry," she apologized quietly, and Atsuki could tell from her Shinen that she was still sad.

Liu looked back at her. "I found her on Rainbow Hill. She was perfectly fine," he informed her. "Now… we're just here to pick up her stuff."

Atsuki was confused. "What?" he demanded. "Where are you going?"

"She will be living with me for the next little while," Liu answered. "Living with you has pained her heart. She will return to live with you after the dispute is over and you realize your stupidity and apologize for causing her this pain."

"Liu, stop it," Fumiko ordered, her voice breaking on the verge of tears as Liu passed Atsuki to get her suitcase. "It's not his fault, not entirely. Atsuki… forgive Liu for his rudeness… it's not something you should be worrying about."

Atsuki stepped closer to her. "Fumiko, I-… I'm sorry… If I had done anything to hurt you, I'm sorry…" he apologized quietly.

She closed her eyes, facing downwards as a single tear fell from her eyes and rolled down her cheek. "I know…"

"Fumiko…" he murmured, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her tightly against his chest. "I really am sorry."

She hugged him back briefly for a moment before pulling herself away from him, putting a few feet of distance between them as she continued to look down.

"Atsuki… I guess… I'll see you tomorrow at school then," she said as Liu Yee walked out with her suitcase in hand.

"Did you forget anything?" he inquired.

She shook her head. "I placed everything back in my bag afterwards, so no, I don't believe so," she said quietly.

"Goodbye, Atsuki, keep up the good scouting work so far," Liu stated, looking back at Fumiko. "Come, Fumiko. Let's get going. I'll treat you to dinner after you get settled in."

She forced a sad smile. "Okay, thanks Liu. Bye Atsuki… I'll see you tomorrow…"

The both of them walked away, leaving Atsuki pained, confused, and troubled. What had he done wrong?

xXx

"Do you really think this will help your situation, Fumiko?" Liu Yee inquired as they walked to his apartment far in Area 1.

She nodded gravely. "When Yayoi tells Atsuki of her feelings, and when he gives her his answer… this is all I can do for now… I suppose this is for the best…"

"When we get back, would you like some tea? It might help ease your nerves," he offered.

"Sure," Fumiko sighed. "Thanks."

As he walked alongside her, he added, "I must warn you, the décor in the house is all Chinese-style. So you may smell some incents burning."

"Don't worry, I like Chinese décor, and the smell of incents is really calming, that is… as long as it's not that strong," she assured.

Liu chuckled, "Rest assured, it's just right."

xXx

When they arrived, Liu showed her to her temporary room, and went to go make some tea for them both.

"Hmmm…" Fumiko sighed heavily, looking around the simplistic room. There were two large landscape paintings that had been done Chinese-style. One was a beautiful cherry blossom tree, the other tall mountains and waterfalls. "It's very nice… and rather calming… especially with the incents," she murmured, "Hmmm… hopefully I'll be able to sleep a little more peacefully… but probably not…"

She sat down on the large bed, smoothing out the ruffles on the sheets. "At least not until this entire ordeal is over…" she added quietly, lying down to stare up at the ceiling. "Find courage, Yayoi…" she murmured, "this heartsickness will probably eventually become my undoing…"

Aww... It'll be alright, Fumiko-chan... I think... O_O

lolz. we'll see.

Well... things are getting interesting, aren't they. Will Fumiko and Atsuki make up?

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