Chapter Seven
"Festival Cheer"
Hiei woke up that morning to find Jenn gone. Her side of the bed was made up neatly as if she never came in last night. Confused and curious, Hiei slipped out of bed and got dressed in his white tank and sweatpants. He checked his room for a note and didn't find anything. He slowly walked over to his door and stepped outside into the hallway walking downstairs to the second floor. It was incredibly quiet he noticed. He tiptoed over to Botan and Jenn's room and peeked through the half open door. Their beds were made up just as neatly as Hiei's was upstairs. He scratched his head trying to think of where on earth everyone could be. Suddenly he heard some movements from downstairs in the kitchen. Wanting to see if it was her, he walked downstairs and turned around the corner to see Yusuke in the kitchen with Kurama.
"Why, good morning sunshine!" Yusuke called out to Hiei from across the kitchen.
Hiei rolled his eyes and decided to join them in the kitchen. He sighed and walked into the kitchen sitting at the table. "When did you become such a morning person?"
"Morning?" Kurama shut the refrigerator door pulling out some yogurt. "Hiei, it's almost one o' clock in the afternoon."
"You slept in really late, buddy." Yusuke tossed an apple into the air before he caught it and took a big bite into it.
Hiei's eyes widen in surprise. He really had slept in that long? Damn, it felt like it was seven in the morning. No wonder there weren't that many people in the house. Everyone normally developed their own little weekly routine. Keiko and Botan did a lot of things together like shopping, walking, aerobics. Normal girl stuff he assumed. Whatever, he thought. Kurama sometimes took classes at a college so he would be spending a lot of time doing schoolwork and Yusuke would always find something to do. Kuwabara on the other hand….
"Well, how do you think Kuwabara's doing?" asked Kurama. He could sense Hiei's anger rage up behind him when he said Kuwabara's name.
Yusuke plopped down next to Hiei at the table with an annoyed look on his face.
"Who knows, man. We went today and got him a therapist so he's gonna be spending the next couple of months with them and try and get his mind back together. I told him that if he ever pulled another stunt like he did last night that his ass would be out on the street. I don't care if we're close friends; I won't have that shit in our house."
Kurama nodded in agreement motioning to Yusuke to change the subject for Hiei's sake.
"So why the hell were you up so late last night, Hiei?" Yusuke asked.
Last night….
Hiei could remember every single detail of last night just as he was reliving it. She had come into his room looking ravishing. He was unable to tell himself why last night happened but it did. And that was all he knew. He didn't want to think about it anymore than he had to; he didn't even want to think about Jenn anymore. God knows he really didn't want to. However, he had come to a realization finally that he just can't stop thinking about her…. He tried numerous times to try and out his mind on something else, like his misery and all the crap he had been through the past three years but every time he tried to dwell on those things, her face would continue to come into his mind. With those gorgeous honey eyes and that long brown hair and that smile… He couldn't figure out what had come over him yesterday. She had yelled at him about how much he had hurt her and how much she cared about him. And for some reason, it made him feel warm inside. And then when he kissed her the first time in the living room her lips felt amazing against his. And then last night he couldn't let her go when she came into his room. He refused to let her go. He wanted every single ounce of her just as he had given every ounce of himself.
"I couldn't sleep," Hiei lied.
Yusuke and Kurama looked at each other with Hiei in between them smiling at one another.
"You know…." Yusuke began. "Jenn looked really tired this morning too."
Hiei's head perked up at the sound of her name and he looked over at Yusuke. He saw Yusuke's huge grin on his face and became worried. Oh shit, he thought. If Yusuke found out about this he knew he would never let him live it down. It would be the subject of the century.
"You wouldn't know anything about that now would you, Hiei?" He nudged Hiei in the arm and Kurama didn't bother to hide his amused laugh. Hiei clenched his fists irritated as Yusuke continued to shoot him obvious looks.
"So where did she go?" Hiei asked, still curious from earlier.
Yusuke sat back in his chair still smiling bigger than ever. "Ah, she went with Keiko and Botan to their aerobics class. She should be back in around an hour."
"Hn." Hiei stood up from the chair unable to be around Yusuke anymore and began to walk out of the kitchen.
"So, Hiei…." Yusuke called out. Hiei stopped in the middle of the room not turning around to face him. "…. Was it good?"
Hiei growled under his breath as he walked out of the kitchen hearing the bursting laughter of Kurama and Yusuke in the distance.
"Bastards…"
- - - - - -
"I told you Botan… I'm fine…." Jenn was trying concentrating on her speed and consistency on the bike in the fitness center. She could feel her sweat drenched head pound with a rush she always got when she biked. Botan was biking next to her while Keiko was in the backroom doing her aerobics exercises with the other pregnant ladies. Jenn and Botan were the only girls in the fitness center who were not pregnant, it being Maternity Monday in the gym. Though they couldn't participate with Keiko is the maternity aerobics class they were allowed to work on the equipment in the main room. It made Botan feel really out of place but it didn't bother Jenn. She was just happy she got back up to exercising again. She loved how it made her feel. For a couple of years she got into the habit of running three miles every morning. Most people she knew would run or walk with a group of friends but she preferred to be alone. It gave her a chance to sweat off all of life's problems and to reflect on the road ahead, both physically and mentally.
"I don't believe ya…" Botan was breathing deeply trying to speed up her pace. "You looked pretty flustered this morning."
Jenn focused on her exercising pretending to not pay attention to Botan and her questions. She was in fact a curious girl and not a day went by without her asking about Jenn and Hiei. The timer went off on both of the bikes simultaneously telling the girls their thirty minutes was up. Jenn sighed in disappointment knowing that she had no choice but to listen to Botan ask more and more questions. They slowly came to a stop in their biking and they breathed in the amount of work they just put in.
"You never answered my question, roomie." Botan smiled finally catching her breath and taking a gulp of water from her water bottle.
Somehow, Jenn knew it was going to be a long day. "What do you want to know?" she asked, giving up. She slid off of the bike and walked over to one of the treadmills. Botan followed behind her like a little shadow.
"You and Hiei had the whole house to yourself last night," she began. "Now when we came back home last night, you were both standing awfully close together. And last night I woke up in the middle of the night to get a drink of water and you weren't in bed."
Jenn could feel her heart jump out of her chest when she heard the last sentence. Oh God. She didn't even think about what would happen if Botan had woken up. She looked over at her shocked.
Botan paused before she went on and looked sat Jenn's expression suddenly realizing everything. Her eyes widen and a huge smile came on her face. She bent over closer to her.
"Did you guys……" she asked quietly unable to finish her sentence.
Jenn closed her eyes and took a deep breath hearing Botan's shriek before she could even think of an answer to her question.
"Oh my goodness!! I knew it! I knew this would happen eventually!" she jumped up and down cheerfully. "Tell me EVERYTHING."
"No. WAY." Jenn held up her hand refusing. "Now I don't mind telling you stuff but this I am just not going to talk about."
"Ok, that's fair." Botan shrugged and got on the treadmill beside Jenn's. She had so many questions bottled up inside of her. This was huge! She wanted to know so much more and she was confused as to how this even happened. She began to walk as the treadmill began to move and tried her hardest not to constantly look over at her. Jenn giggled under her breath as she ran, knowing that she was torturing her blue-headed friend by not sharing any details.
- - - - - -
Kuwabara picked up another photo of Yukina and smiled at the beauty of her smile. He sat Indian style on the floor in the middle of his room and pictures upon pictures surrounded him. He was in a good mood today. If he was otherwise, he would not be able to look at once picture without falling apart. Good, he thought. We're making progress. After her death, he couldn't have taken one look at a picture of Yukina without falling apart. After he refused to look at pictures of her for a year, he took out all of the pictures he placed into a dusty box in the corner of his closet and put them all up on his dresser. He felt guilty for keeping them locked up in the dark closet. He felt as though he shut her out of his life for a whole year. As much as it hurt for him to look at pictures of her, it still gave him a sense of peace.
He looked into the photograph of their wedding reception and smiled. She had smothered cake into his face and he grabbed her face and kissed it in revenge. Shortly after, Keiko snapped a picture of them laughing with cake and icing all over their faces. It was a spontaneous thing for her to do at the time. She was always full of surprises. Each and every day with her was like Christmas morning to a young child. A special time where you unraveled a present that brought you so much joy. Except it was an everyday thing, not just once a year. He sniffed and tossed the picture into the pile in front of him and picked up a few more just before he heard a slight knock at his open door.
"Hey, man," he heard Yusuke say softly. "Can I come in?"
Kuwabara made a slight nod and Yusuke walked over and sat down in front of his friend as he continued to scan through the piles. He took in a deep breath as he looked around at all the pictures of Yukina. For a moment, he didn't want to say anything. Kuwabara looked at ease for once in the middle of his floor with the photos all around him. He also didn't know what to say to him. He knew how hard it had been for Kuwabara. Yusuke was there for him during the nights he drank himself to sleep in his sorrow. He would go out to bars to relieve his pain on whiskey and karaoke on the weekends and Yusuke followed him to be his designated driver. There had even been times where he got drunk with him just to make him feel like he wasn't alone. However, Keiko didn't like the idea of Yusuke getting drunk in bars so he stopped drinking with Kuwabara for good. They would have a glass of wine in the privacy at the house with the girls but he never did the bar scene again. After a while, he tried to get Kuwabara to meet other women, but that was something that wasn't even worth putting effort into. Kuwabara made it incredibly clear that he would love only one girl in his life. And she was gone.
"She loved taking pictures…" Kuwabara broke the silence between them while he looked at a photo of Yukina, Botan and Keiko making funny faces. Botan was making a cat face, Keiko had her bottom eye lids pulled down and Yukina's tongue stuck out playfully. Even in such poses, she looked adorable.
Yusuke scratched his head. "Yeah, she did, man."
Kuwabara sighed heavily realizing he had looked at each individual picture three times or more. He began to pick them up slowly stacking them in his hand unable to look at Yusuke still.
"Well, I came in here to see if you wanted to go downtown to the Christmas festivities with the gang later tonight," Yusuke said. ."They're having the nativity scene again and a parade and a place where you can but Christmas trees. Kurama said that they even decorated it a lot more than last year."
It was something they had done together as w group since Yukina died. It was always a fun time when they went. Botan and Keiko would always go to the nativity scene and pet the animals while he and the rest of the guys went to get a tree. Then they would sit around a fire drinking hot cocoa and look at the stars about them, unaware of the sorrow they had been through the past few years.
Kuwabara struggled with his answer. He really didn't feel like being around people but he knew he would hear from Yusuke if he stayed in the house.
"Sure, that sounds fine."
"How's therapy going?" Yusuke asked. They knew he had to bring it up sooner or later. And Yusuke hated to beat around the bush.
Kuwabara shrugged. "However it's supposed to go, I guess."
"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"
"It's not my favorite place in the world…. But I think it's more productive than drinking."
"You damn right it is." Yusuke stopped himself before he could continue on. Now was not the time to give Kuwabara another lecture and he knew it. He had lectured him enough about the night before.
"I know, Yusuke, all right?" Kuwabara sat back down with the stack of photos in his hands. "I felt bad enough as it was."
"Did you apologize to everyone?"
"I apologized to Jenn."
"Good."
"I don't know what I was thinking……" Kuwabara took his hand and put it to his eyelids trying to massage away his headache. "I don't know what I would have done had you not stopped me."
Yusuke raised his eyebrows. "Well, I didn't stop you. Hiei did. That little man pounced your ass"
Kuwabara scoffed. "Don't remind me. I don't want to think about him right now. It's a struggle as it is living in the same house with him."
"Don't get mad at Hiei, he was just protecting Jenn."
"Why would he even give a shit about Jenn? He doesn't care about anyone else in this house."
"Well..." said Yusuke remembering his last conversation with Hiei in the kitchen. "He does her."
- - - - - - - - -
Hiei slipped out of the car and into the parking lot tightening his scarf around his neck as he felt the cold night winter air. It wasn't that cold tonight for some reason. It was quite chili but there was not a slight breeze in the air, which kept it for being as cold as it had been lately. He shut the car door behind him and looked around the town. Kurama was right; the streets were highly decorated with Christmas decorations, even more so than last year. The Christmas Festival was always something the town went nuts about. The town was not a large size town but it was big enough to hold an event such as this. The street lamps were covered in Christmas pine and candy canes. The shops were opened for all of the visitors and people had booths opened up on the sidewalks selling all kinds of different things. Food, fruit, hot cocoa, apple cider, homemade candy, caramel apples, jewelry, hand-woven scarves, mittens, etc. There was a stand that had a huge bake sell every year to raise money for cancer patients. They usually had four or five tables covered in pies, brownies, cookies and anything you could imagine. Keiko and Botan always bought something sweet to munch on. Plus their money always went to a good cause, which was good. There were different people dressed up as Santa asking for charity money. A large choir group would stand around one of the fires and sing Christmas carols all night long. They could be heard throughout the entire town it seemed like
Hiei watched Kurama shut his door and locked it. They parked at the library like they normally did because of all of the people walking around the streets. It wasn't far of a walk. Not even half a mile. With the notion of a head, they proceeded to walk down the road to the where the booths were. Kurama didn't get out of his class till later so he told Yusuke that he would catch up with him later. Hiei decided at the last minute to ride with him to the festival. He decided to stay home that night, not wanting to walk around the streets. Then he remembered Jenn would be here. He hadn't seen her since what happened with them last night. But he sure thought about her.
"I'm glad you decided to come tonight, Hiei." Kurama said among the crowd of people that seemed to grow the closer they got to the main street. They both glanced forward and saw the giant tree. A large colorfully and brightly lit Christmas tree was always placed in the center of all of the festivities. So if you got lost somehow, it was always easy to go back to the center. They knew they were getting closer.
"Hn."
"Well, you know Jenn is around here somewhere." Kurama winked at his short friend.
Hiei didn't respond. Kurama knew about last night and he thought it would be a waste of breath to try and deny it anymore. He tried everything in his power to act cool this past morning but it didn't work. He would just act like her name had no affect on him whatsoever.
"I know that you came because of her," said Kurama
Shit.
"You don't have to say anything, Hiei. And I won't tell anyone if that's what you're worried about."
Hiei looked up at Kurama; it was the first time he looked at him since he got into the car with him. He felt incredibly relieved as if a huge weight had been taken off his shoulders. He didn't want anybody else in the house to know at that moment and he was almost certain that Kurama and Yusuke would go blab to everyone that they had made love. He didn't want that right now, he couldn't take it. But somehow, Kurama had understood this. And he knew that if Kurama would keep quiet about it, Yusuke would too.
They stopped as they came up to the Christmas tree and Kurama looked around and spotted Yusuke and Kuwabara make their way around the corner where they sold the Christmas trees. Hiei saw Yusuke stop in the middle of the sidewalk and wave at Kurama and Hiei. He could hear Yusuke shouting something to them about God knows what but he couldn't make out what he was saying. Kurama waved back at them and they stood there for a moment,
"I'll catch up with you later." Kurama smiled at Hiei and began walking toward Yusuke and Kuwabara.
Hiei watched Kurama disappear in the crowd and began to walk down the streets near the booths to look for Jenn. He hated crowds. He remembered coming to the festival one year and there were so many people, he got bumped in the shoulder every ten minutes. That wasn't the case this year. It was a lot more calming. There were a good number of people here but not enough to where they would invade your personal space constantly. He looked at all of the booths as he passed by them. The sellers looked cold from being outside for hours upon hours but they still had the smiling charm to their faces. Nobody wanted to buy anything from a grouch did they? He passed a booth selling home-made suckers and small children begged for their favorite colors to their parents until they got one. Hiei looked over his shoulders and couldn't find Jenn, or Botan or Keiko for that matter. Maybe they would be at the nativity scene.
Hiei turned around a corner and walked down the hill away from all of the booths and tents remembering that the nativity scene was always held down the hill at the field inside a large white barn. The town was built on a hill and families usually would take their children down the hill for picnics or even a game of softball. They used the land to build a park for families to bring their children but it was owned by the people who owned the barn. After they sold the land to make the family park area, they were going to tear down the barn but offered it to the Christmas festival instead. As he stepped onto the grass he saw fireplaces that various people had built and were roasting marshmallows and making smores. He could still hear the choir loud and clear singing "Joy to the World" when he walked passed the fires and swing sets toward the giant white barn. He heard and saw many children run around in their thick coats and scarves laughing at the sheep, donkeys and lambs inside the warm barn. Hiei always felt uneasy around children, especially the whiny bratty kinds. However, the sound of a child's laughter always gave him a sense of calmness. He walked into the main entrance of the barn and automatically felt the warmth. It was lit by fire lamps and torches set up all around the fences full of animals. He could smell the hay from the donkey's area and began to walk slowly around all of the people. He could feel the hay from underneath his shoes and he watched the younger children pet the animals with the help of the nativity assistants dressed as people from Bethlehem. Hiei suddenly stopped in front of the fence with the lambs unable to move. There she was.
Jenn and Botan were petting the sheep down at the other end of the barn. Botan was making faces like the animals and Jenn bent her head back in laughter. Hiei watched her eyes light up as he watched her laugh and mingle with her friend. She looked somewhat different. Her hair was curly and hung all over her shoulders as it fell from underneath her light purple toboggan. She wore a brown wool jacket and mittens that matched the color of her toboggan. For a long moment, all Hiei could do was stand and watch her. He loved to watch her. It wasn't just her heart-stopping beauty but it was the way she interacted with others and the world around her. She talked and played with Botan as if they were life long friends. And Botan loved her. But it wasn't just Botan. Anyone who came in contact with Jenn loved her. That was a fact. She loved everything about the world around her and you couldn't help but get an ounce of that content energy when you were around her. It was something she carried with her wherever she went. Why weren't more people in the world like that?
His heart skipped a beat when he saw Botan hug Jenn and leave her alone in front of the sheep. As Botan disappeared from the barn, Jenn turned around with a smile on her face and saw Hiei watching her from across the barn. She could feel herself begin to sweat as she slowly walked over towards him. Hiei tried to move so he could walk toward her but he was frozen. Move, dammit! She stopped in front of him and looked up at him remembering the wonderful night they had just shared. God, she wanted him. She smiled at him and they locked eyes for a moment.
"Hi," she said quietly.
Hiei tried to say hello back. Instead he leaned forward and kissed her softly on the lips. Jenn smiled greatly and touched her lips with her fingers that were covered with her light purple mittens. It was not deep and passionate like the ones last night. But it was sweet.
"Um... I'm…" Hiei found himself speechless as he tried to apologize for suddenly kissing her….again.
"You don't have to apologize," she said. Hiei sighed in relief. How could she had known what he was trying to say? "I'm happy to see you here! I didn't know you were coming.." She smiled big again. Oh god, that smile.
"Yeah well, um…" Hiei looked down at his feet unable to look at her smile. He was afraid that if he did he would find himself on top of her in the middle of the barn having his way with her. "I came to see you, really."
She blinked her eyes and her smile faded slightly. "You did?"
"Why yes."
"Oh. Okay," she couldn't help but smile. She suddenly wondered if she was smiling too much or not. "Well… I just thought that maybe after last night you would-"
"I would what?" Hiei stepped closer to her interrupting her sentence.
Jenn took a deep breath and paused for a moment before she continues. To Hiei, that pause seemed like eternity.
"I don't really do those kinds of things, Hiei. Like last night.. I got carried away and did some things I really shouldn't have done. It was foolish of me and-"
Hiei held up his hand before she could continue. "Why don't we go for a walk?"
Jenn raised her eyebrows in surprisement. "Are you sure?"
"Yes."
Without another word they began to walk along side each other outside of the barn, dodging all of the mothers and daughters and sons who were just now making their way in. They exited the entrance and stopped for a moment. Hiei looked around trying to decide where it was they could go. He glanced up towards the hill where he came from. There will be a thousand people there, he thought. He didn't want to be around too many people if he could help it. However, there were people everywhere. It would be almost impossible to have privacy this night.
"How about there?" he heard Jenn say and pointed somewhere to the left. He lifted his head and spotted a white gazebo a couple of stores down from the festivities on top of the hill. It wasn't completely private, as he could see come other couples walking by it. But it did have it's own space. It was white and decorated with pine and red bows. He nodded his head thinking it would have to do. He proceeded to walk up the hill and Jenn followed. She had to sprint a little to catch up with him. As they walked up the hill together, she looked up at him speechless. Part of her wanted to run away and never look at him again. She loved last night with him, but she knew it was very foolish of her. She wished she never walked into his room. Even though she got carried away towards the end, she knew what she was doing when she walked in his door. She shook her head to get her thoughts in line. What the hell is the matter with me?! This isn't like me… this skank that flaunts around at other men, I despise those kind of girls! Now look at me! Hiei looked down at her as they stepped onto the pavement of the street and knew she was fighting with herself somehow. He needed to break the silence and he needed to now.
"Why do you regret last night?" he asked, surprised at his forwardness. He didn't want to just come out and ask it like that but it was the biggest thing he wanted to know. He looked down at Jenn as she tried to gather her words together.
"I don't regret it. I just regret how it happened."
"What do you mean?"
"I'm not that kind of girl, Hiei. The girl who flaunts herself all over the place to get someone in bed. The girl who plays with a guy's emotions, takes advantage of him and then leaves it at that….You know?"
Hiei could see the gazebo peek its way in between the stores. He looked down at her unable to figure out a right answer. "I guess so."
Jenn sighed in frustration, not knowing how else to explain it. She continued walking beside him as she saw the gazebo get closer and closer. As they got closer, they could hear music being played. Soft band music and when they looked to their right, they saw a stage with a small orchestra. And around the stage were couples sitting, dancing, and holding each other. Some were standing, some were sitting on the benches, and some were sitting on blankets on the pavement. Even though there were a lot of people there, there was a peace about the place. Everyone wasn't wrapped up in the music or with the present buying, they were wrapped up in the person they were with. And in a few moments, all that Hiei and Jenn could do was just stand and look at everyone. After a long and silent pause between the two of them, they looked up at each other and then glanced toward the gazebo as they made their way towards it. It was even more peaceful up close than it was from the distance. There were candles along the edges of the white painted wood. Jenn stepped up inside onto the steps. Within every step inside, it smelled more and more like pine. The light was dimmed inside, the only real light source came from the candles circled along the edges. Hiei looked around inside the gazebo and saw that there were two benches, one on the left and one on the right. He raised his eyebrows at Jenn and she sat down on the bench on the right side. He sat down next to her. He wanted to say so much to her. He had no clue where to begin.
"I didn't regret being with you, Hiei, if that's what you're worried about," Jenn beat him to it. He looked up at her unable to speak as she continued.
"I just don't want you to get the wrong impression of me. I don't want to make love to someone and not have it mean anything. And I don't want to do it as something casually; I want it to mean something. Not just to me, but to you even more. You've been through a lot in the past few years and I don't want to make things harder on you. That's why I feel bad about what happened…..But… last night."
"Was incredible." Hiei looked up at her eyes. Those gorgeous honey eyes. "Last night was incredible. You were incredible."
Jenn could feel her face become red as she began to blush. "Yes, it was incredible…. But… I don't want to do that again for a long while, if that is ok with you. It was great last night, but I don't want to get carried away with it. I want to know more about you on a personal level, and not a physical level. Does that sound ok?"
Hiei was speechless. The fact that she wanted to invest her time, her care into him made him unable to speak. Why is someone as wonderful as her wanting to know more about him? Him of all people? There were so many other guys in the world she could get to know more, but she wanted to get to know him. Wow, he thought. He smiled and nodded slightly still unable to speak. His heart melted whenever a bright smile came upon her face. A smile of relief, that he agreed with everything she said. They sat there for a moment until the band began to play "I'll Be Home For Christmas". Jenn's head popped up and glanced over to the band slowly swaying her body back and forth to the beat of the music.
"I love this song," she whispered.
Hiei stood up without even thinking and extended his hand out toward her. It took her a moment to realize what he was asking. She smiled slightly and took his hand in hers. His hands were so warm as he pulled her up and puller her waist closer in with him. She put her hand around his shoulder as they began to move with the beat of the music gently. Hiei's heart raced as they locked their eyes once again. She was a fabulous dancer. Though they weren't doing anything extraordinary with their moves, they were together. And he was holding her close to him.
"How do you do it?" he asked softly.
"Do what?" she smiled.
"Live the way you do."
She it her lip and looked down at their feet before she went on. "Because I owe it to myself and to everyone around me. Wouldn't you say so?"
"It's just that…."
"Just what?"
"You see….. beauty in everything. Even the things that are bad, you find something beautiful in it. How?"
She pulled herself closer towards him and his knees became weak.
"It's easy to see beauty. Especially when it's right in front of you."
Hiei closed his eyes as she laid her head on his shoulder. He wrapped his arm further around her waist as they continued to dance to the next song, and the next. Finally, they both lost track of time. But they didn't care. He didn't care. The whole world was invisible around them. He felt like through the whole universe the only thing that existed was them dancing together under the stars.
I'm sorry it took forever to post this. Hope the long chapter made it worth the wait. Please comment!
