Chapter Three:

Chieko walked around the city and was headed towards Raira, wanting to get a look at the school after having been gone all these years. She noticed the time and stared at the school as she walked up to it, smiling. "Oh I missed this place~" she chuckled. She noticed some people leaving, checking the time again. It was late... Class Reps perhaps? She noted that there was almost no uniform difference from when she attended the school and chuckled to herself. It was nice to see her old school again. As she stood there, the pair that walked out seemed to notice her and they both paused.

"Um, Miss?" the boy asked. "Is there someone you're looking for?"

"Hm? Oh no no, I just used to go to this school so I wanted to come see it." she said smiling as always. "Oh but I would like to ask." she pulled a paper from her pocket. "Do you happen to know where this shop is?" she asked, the boy looking at the paper and nodding.

"Would you like us to show you where it is?" he asked, assuming she needed some assistance. "It's along the path we walk to get home so..."

"That would be wonderful, thank you very much~ I'll buy you both a drink as thanks~" she said, introducing herself and learning that her escorts were Mikado Ryugamine and Anri Sonohara. They walked together and chatted a little about the school, Chieko soon learning that they were indeed both class reps. As they arrived at the shop, Chieko thanked them and bought each one a canned drink of their choice and a small snack, not taking no for an answer. As they were about to leave the shop, Chieko held the two students back; A vending machine was thrown their way, a person getting hit as he attempted to flee. Anri and Mikado stood, eyes wide and mouths agape. But Chieko smiled, as the person who was on the other side of the alley turned to leave. The very person she had been looking for all day before she went to be nostalgic at Raira. "Shizuo-kun~" she practically skipped over, latching herself onto his waist and nuzzling against his back. Shizuo tensed visibly, a shiver running up his back.

"Who the hell-?!" he turned his head, only seeing a head of brunette hair, cheeks tinted pink as he suddenly heard Tom speak.

"Chieko?" at that, the blonde froze.

"Tom~" Chieko waved, still attached to Shizuo. "Hi there~"

"Hey, I didn't know you were back in Bukuro. You shoulda' called or somethin'." he said, smiling a little as he caught the embarrassed look on Shizuo's face. "And I think you might want to let go, Shizuo's kind of tense..."

"No." she said simply, nuzzling the blonde again and making him shiver. "I missed him, and I've been looking for him for DAYS. Do you know how hard it was to find him? I had to ask my friend Ayu for so many favors that now I owe her sushi and ice cream for 3 months!" she laughed.

"... Chie..." Shizuo turned to look at the girl, who let go as he did so. "..." he stared at her for a long time, looking both embarrassed and upset. She was here... she was right in front of him. "...Chie, I-"

"Now now." she hugged him again, being shorter by a bit but still smiling and nuzzling him.

"Wh-what are you-?"

"It's okay now~ I'm okay, Shizuo~" he blushed as he said his name so cheerfully. "We can see one another again... Ne?" she looked up at him with that ever present smile, but now it was softer... kinder... the smile she reserved for Shizuo. He covered his face with one hand, trying not to let her see him blushing, feeling his heart racing.

"... dummy..." he grumbled.

"Hehe, still as cute as ever~" she said cheerfully. "I guess I can still make you embarrassed, huh~?"

"U-um...?" Anri and Mikado cautiously wandered over. "Sorry to interrupt... you two know each other?"

"Yes, Ryugamine-kun~ Shizuo and I attended Raira together~ We dated for about 1 year~"

"D-dated?!"

"Really?"

"O-oi, don't tell kids that..."

"Haha, this is funny." Tom grinned, having only seen Shizuo behave like this one time, and that was with Chieko. After Mikado and Anri went home, Chieko stuck with Tom and Shizuo the rest of the afternoon before Tom offered Chieko to come to dinner with the pair.

"Oooh, dinner~? So is this a 3-way date?" she asked, making Shizuo freeze in place again. "Sounds fun~ Let's go~" she said, looking to Shizuo. "Is that okay?"

"... fine." he grumbled, keeping his hands in his pockets. Chieko watched him stalk off, sighing as Tom walked next to her.

"He's so mean... I thought he'd be happy to see me, but he will hardly look at me..."

"I heard that your stepmom was a real bitch to him when he tried to see you in the hospital... maybe he's just worried?"

"Well she's dead so it doesn't matter." Chieko said, smile never leaving her face, Tom pausing for a second. "Besides, she shouldn't have been speaking for me." she added. "Shizuo is and will always be the only man I love..." she stated before turning to Tom, her - eyes glowing in the streetlights. "Anyone who tries to take him from me is in for a nasty shock~" she giggled before turning to catch up with Shizuo and struck up conversation, not making an attempt to hold his hand or anything like Tom expected.

"... Man, she's scary..." he told himself as he walked up to them, Chieko seeming to know boundaries enough to not push Shizuo too far, while still enjoying his reactions to small stuff she did.

As Chieko, Shizuo, and Tom entered the restaurant, across Ikebukuro Ayumi was walking into a cafe. She had been busy all day and until now had yet to eat anything. But when she reached for her wallet to check her cash, she felt it get tugged from her hand, the fur lined sleeve making her tense. She turned slowly to see Izaya standing behind her. "Evening, princess~"

"What do you want?"

"Oh, nothing special~" he grinned at her. "I just wanted to make sure you're not eating your sorrows away because I didn't invite you to stay the night when we last saw each other~" he smiled, the girl glaring at him.

"Give me back my wallet."

"Only if you let me sit with you~"

"... Fine." she grumbled, making her order. She then turned to Izaya. "Do you want anything?"

"Oh, being nice all of a sudden?" he asked, going right up next to her and ordering something, handing the cashier a card.

"Hey, I can pay for it-"

"No no, your brother would be angry if I let you pay for my food." he said, making her grumble even more as he walked her to an empty table. "So, how has your work been going~?"

"Fine." she mumbled.

"Oh come on, humor me~" he said, tapping the bottom of her shoe with his under the table continuously. "I'm trying to be nice, Princess, just pretend like we're on a date or something~"

"I'll beat your face into the table if you suggest crap like that again." she said, kicking him in the shin and making him laugh. She hadn't been using any force, she just did it to make him stop tapping the bottom of her boot.

"Haha, fiesty fiesty~" he smiled at her. Their food and drink arrived and Ayumi ate in silence with Izaya, the only time she was calm during this ordeal. Once they headed out, Izaya poked at her stomach and teased her verbally until a group of punks stepped infront of them.

"Boss here's the bitch." the man speaking was one that Ayumi had beaten up her first day back in Ikebukuro.

"Goodness Princess, did you cause trouble already?" Izaya laughed. "That's not like you, to be impulsive." he added, the men closing in. "Now now, what's this? You're all ganging up on her? That's not very nice." he laughed.

"Who's the punk?"

"I dunno Boss."

"Kill him then..."

"Kill me? Hah." Izaya grinned, flicking out his knife and disarming the first thug effortlessly. "It's not me you have to worry about, you know." he glanced back at Ayumi as she disarmed a thug with an aluminum baseball bat. "Go ahead, Princess~ Have fun~ I'll back you up~"

"I don't need your help." she stated, adjusting her glasses before she glared at her first victim, striking him in the stomach so hard that he flew against the wall. as the others attacked her, she fended them off, Izaya catching a few that might have gotten to her and laughing like this was a game. When they were done, Ayumi stood over the boss, glaring down at him. "You ever pull crap like this again and you'll be Dragon food, jackass." she knocked him out with the bat before she headed off, Izaya following.

"I haven't heard you use that before~" he smiled, noting that she was walking a little slower. "You've definitely learned to accept that you're not just any princess~"

"Shut up, Izaya." the girl sounded upset. "I don't want to hear that from you..."

"Aww are you mad~?" he grinned, grabbing her hand and turning her to face him, pinning her to the wall and in a split second pressing their lips together, Ayumi;s eyes going wide. Izaya hardly lingered, feeling her fist impact his stomach. He jumped back, expecting the bat to be next. But she did not swing at him. "Did you enjoy that kiss, Princess?" he asked, seeing her covering her mouth with her forearm, cheeks red.

"Go to hell."

"Well, aren't you sweet~" he laughed. "Last time I kissed you was your first. But you're so innocent its like I just stole your first kiss again~" he said, smiling. "I liked it."

"You're a jackass..." she mumbled, tossing the bat into an alleyway before she began walking to her apartment. Izaya followed, much to her surprise. But her heart had been racing when he kissed her, even if just for that moment... Upon arriving in her building and on her floor, she turned to Izaya before opening her door. "Do you want to come in?"

"Oh, you're not embarrassed?"

"I will break your arm if you try anything."

"Haha, alright then~" he smiled, skipping inside as Ayumi unlocked the door, walking around and inspecting everything in sight as the girl removed her jacket and walked into the kitchen.

"Do you eat stir fry, Izaya?"

"Offering me food now? Goodness is this a ploy to get me into bed with you-?" he felt a knife fly by, noting as it landed in the dart board behind his head. "Oooh, you've gotten much better at knife throwing~ Sure I'll eat some of your cooking~" he grinned, watching her as she cooked, occasionally saying something and making her glare at him. But... this was a nice change of pace for the man. Plus, harassing the girl that he knew had a thing for him was amusing. And she didn't even seem to have any intent on really hurting him, despite her threats. But just to be safe, he didn't push too hard with her. He didn't want to piss off the little Princess too much, or her big brother would be on his case.

Mifumi apologized for the 100th time since she and Kasuka had left the studio. They'd been tailed by reporters, and since Kasuka knew Mifumi couldn't deal with reporters alone, he brought her back to his apartment. She apologized about 5 more times as he brought her tea, sighing a little as he sat down. "Stop apologizing."

"..."

"... Mifumi."

"Y-yes?!"

"You're going to spill your tea if you keep shaking." he stated, noting that she was trembling and on the verge of tears. "It's okay, Mifumi..."

"B-but..." Mifumi sniffled. "I-i'm causing you trouble and if they find out that will cause problems for you and Ruri-san..."

"What are you talking about?"

"I-i saw on the news that you two were together, I-i didn't want to get in the way-"

"Mifumi. We aren't."

"Wh-wha?" the girl looked up at him as he turned on the TV to a news report about Ruri making the announcement from the morning time.

"Yuuhei and I are not seeing one another." she stated simply. "The time that was filmed when heading into his apartment, I was sick."

"Then why did he lean in and kiss you?!"

"He didn't. He leaned his forehead against mine to check for a fever." she replied simply, reporters flinging questions at her. "I was unaware that you all thought we were dating until today, when a co worker told me..."

"Unaware, huh?" Kasuka sighed. "Only Ruri could say something like that and get away with it..." he turned to Mifumi who had started crying again. "... Mifumi..."

"I-i'm sorry... I-i always misunderstand everything." she sobbed. Kasuka sighed again and let her cry on his shoulder, knowing how fragile she was about these things. "I'm so sorry, Kasuka-kun..."

"Don't cry..." he mumbled, gripping her jacket a little. He didn't like seeing Mifumi cry, but he didn't get why. She was the only one... when Shizuo's girlfriend was injured, he didn't flinch at the glasses girl crying, but with Mifumi when she found out her friend had been hurt, he was so affected by her crying that he stayed with her all night until she calmed down. Once Mifumi was calm, she pulled away and apologized again. "If you apologize again I'm going to kiss YOU in front of those papparazzi cameras."

"N-no please don't!" she shook her head. "H-haru-nee would have to deal with them too, if they found out where I lived!"

"Then no more crying." he wiped her tears away. "My next co star is such a cry baby... No wonder they cast you for the roll." he said, making her blush.

"I-i didn't mean for them to..."

"Well they did." he stated, leaning back on the couch. "You shouldn't be sorry for everything... especially if its out of your hands or not your fault." he added, glancing at her. "... Mifumi."

"Y-yes?"

"Are you going to be able to handle kissing me on camera?"

"Wh-wh-wh-whaaaa?!"

"... You need to learn then." he stated, sitting up and facing towards her. "Stage kissing." he pulled her closer and leaned in. "Camera is on your stage left, looking straight at us." he leaned in and pressed his lips gently against her cheek, turning his head to pretend like he was kissing her, the girl's eyes going wide. "See?"

"... O-okay..." she was in a daze as they practiced, not understanding why he was taking the time to do this with her, but appreciating it and trying not to faint. "K-kasuka-kun?"

"Mm?" Kasuka pulled back from her and stared at her. "You need to learn to give not so hesitant hugs... like you used to." he stated. She blushed bright red again, but nodded. Kasuka opened his arms to her in a hug before she met his embrace, squeezing tight. "Good... like that." he said, leaning in and nuzzling her shoulder. "It's a good thing you can handle being around me like this... or you'd have to reject the role." he said, petting her head as a "reward" of sorts. "You still scared of being too close to guys?"

"U-unfortunately, yes..." she nodded, looking sad. She always had this fear of being in intimate proximity to men, she had no idea why. Miharu said it was because she was raised in a house of girls, not an older man in sight. She could only handle boys around her age and lower, no older than 10 years above or she freaked out and sometimes fainted. She had to have female teachers all through school, her condition only told to the teachers she was in the classes of and the principals. "B-but it's slightly better now..." she added, smiling weakly. "I-i can talk to older men, I just can't be too close, is all."

"... well that's better at least." Kasuka said, petting her head again, making her smile. "... Do you still like me?"

"E-eh?" Mifumi looked up at him. "... Y-yes... I do..."

"... Would you want to try getting over your fear then?"

"... I... I can try but I doubt I'd handle it well..." she said, looking apologetic. "But if you'd be willing to help, I would be forever grateful, Kasuka-kun." she bowed her head, Kasuka assuming he hadn't put enough emotion into what he was saying to get his point across.

"Okay." he nodded simply as her phone went off.

"M-mifumi speaking... Oh, Haru-nee!... Y-yes I'm with him now... E-eeh?! Th-the reporters are crowding outside?... O-okay, I can try... O-oh alright." she handed the phone to Kasuka. "Haru-nee wants to talk to you."

"... Hello?"

"Kasuka. Give Mifumi something to wear so she can leave the building inconspicuously." Miharu said. "I'm on my way now, you have 20 minutes."

"... Right." he stated before handing the phone back to Mifumi and going to get something from his closet for her. He could hear Mifumi arguing with Miharu in hushed tones over what they'd been doing in the apartment together, Mifumi panicking. He soon returned as she hung up the call, carrying some clothes for her. "It's a little big, but we can pin it back." he said, letting her change and waiting for her to come back out before he helped her pin the clothes to fit, giving her a sweater and putting it over her shoulders. "Give this back at the studio tomorrow, okay?"

"O-okay!" she nodded as he let her leave the room in disguise, the girl heading to meet her sister in the parking lot before being driven home.

"Oooh, isn't that the sweater he's always wearing? He let you borrow it, you two are still so close~" Miharu teased her little sister.

"Sh-shush, Haru-nee!"

((Next chapter~ I hope you like it ; v ;'''

Next time, flash backs~ o v o See how these lovely pairs got closer before the girls left Ikebukuro~ Until next time~

-Winter Cheshire))