I feel like updating this story again. Enough said.

Miranda was under the spotlight again. Even if she was in a different room. She could hear Temari talking to her brothers about the bite mark and the dream. She could pick up on some of the words. Such as "Sexual molestation" and "Social problems", both recently learned words thanks to her dream.

She recalled her dream.

The nightmare reminding her of when her cousin sexually molested her, and how her friends teased her about everything, even the sexual molestation. She wasn't raped, but she was still beyond scarred from the experience. She knew too much about sex at too young of an age. She had her innocence taken away from her, and she never had a chance to be a child thanks to her so called "friends" of the time period. She recalled the face that exploded in her face and shuddered.

"You think you have it bad? Nicole has it twice as worse."

She recalled the moment when her friend had said that to her. Her brother had been taking things out on her again, and Miranda was upset and crying about it. Her brother had been spoiled, and was not nice at all to the young girl. But her friends could care less.

"You think you have it bad? Nicole has it twice as worse."

They insisted that Miranda had a wonderful life compared to them. Thus, Miranda has formed a hate of judging bad things that happen to people. Shit happens. Why rate it? So you can compete and see who's is worse? Miranda thought that that was stupid and childish. Thus bad things happened and the only thing that truly mattered with it was how it affected the person it happened to.

Temari and her brothers disbanded, leaving to wherever they needed to go. Gaara walked into the room and startled Miranda from her thoughts. She didn't expect to see anyone. Let alone the redhead walk through that door.

"Come." Was all he commanded as he left and started to make his way upstairs to the bathroom. Miranda was quick to follow, as commanded by the boy. Soon she found herself alone in the house with Gaara in the bathroom. Temari and Kankuro had disappeared to who knew where.

"Give me your arm." He held out his hand in anticipation, knowing that the girl would follow his instruction.

She put her bandaged arm into his hand, savoring his warmth. Her hands were always cold.

He slowly started to unwrap her arm. It was almost sensual and intimate. His touch was so light, yet so confident. She soon found herself blushing at his touch, glad that the dimmed lights would hide all color on her face. She had quickly come to realization that she had a crush on the infamous redhead.

'It's only natural little one.' Other Miranda reminded the girl. And Other Miranda was right. It was natural to have Crush's on boys her age. Even with her scarred past she still had some "Normal" in her.

She smiled at the thought. Something normal in her life. She soon found herself liking Gaara more and more, loving the feeling of childhood that came with the sensation.

"It's not infected." Miranda didn't know the last word.

"What does that mean?" One of the first phrases she had learned in Japanese.

"It is healthy." Gaara was careful to limit his vocabulary with the girl.

"But it is hurt."

"No, that's not what's hurting." Gaara found the words leaving his mouth before he even realized what he was saying. "Your heart hurts, not your arm."

Miranda stood with her mouth agape at the redhead. He pinned her down exactly and it was unbelievable. Maybe she had good reason to crush on the boy. Gaara had surprised himself honestly. He didn't expect such words to ever pass his lips for anyone, even he had always hoped some like it would. He dreamed of a time where he could be friends with someone and save them as Naruto had saved him.

Perhaps this girl was his chance to save someone from the hopeless abyss called loneliness. He knew she certainly had enough problems, but how would he be able to fix them as Naruto had fixed him? The idea perplexed him and he wondered if he could ever be who Naruto was to him to this girl.

This simple girl with overly complex problems and mind. Apparently she was an ingenious child, as informed by her speech tutor. She was said the fastest learner that the teacher had ever seen and already knew much math and science. Beyond the basics on each subject. This girl had been well educated and was not as hopeless as Gaara and his family first thought her to be. She had the potential to bring new technology to this land, and a new system of government. Miranda had spoke of a government far different from what they currently used, and it was fascinating. Elaborate campaigns held by candidates to be chosen by the people. And her knowledge of science was far beyond what they knew. Her diagram of an atom was intricate and new, and what she spoke of about the universe was amazing. Gaara's people had never bothered to study beyond this world, and here was this girl with knowledge of other planets and stars.

This girl could alter the course of history itself if what they suspected of her was true. She was a genius.

Gaara applied antibiotic to her wound and quickly wrapped it the proper way, the girl had fidgeted with it and had ruined the work that Temari had done.

"Done." Gaara stood up to leave before he was stopped by her timid voice.

"Wait." He looked to see the girl biting her lower lip, blood starting to leak down, mixing with the tears from her eyes.

"I don't want alone." Was all she said before she burst into even more tears, holding her trembling frame with a death lock on her own mid arms, hugging herself dearly.

Gaara froze. Then he held his hand out to the girl. She shied away, but Gaara was persistent and he grabbed her arm, gentle with his touch, knowing the girls paranoia to others touch. He gently pulled her up and toward him, while he reached with his other hand to try and grab one of her hands. Suceeding in grabbing her right hand, the wounded arm, he let them disappear in a whirlwind of sand to the roof, where the both stood in awe of the beauty of the night around him.

Miranda gripped onto his hand, her fear of heights soon kicking in. She sat down to calm to vicious case of vertigo she was trying to pass off as nothing. She was much too sleepy last night to think about just how high up she was exactly, but now, when she was fully awake, everything seemed all too real and frightening.

Then she remembered Gaara. Gaara would catch her if she fell, she knew it. She trusted him.

"I trust you!" she ran from her seat to the edge of the roof, teetering between life in standing, and death in falling, knowing that Subaku No Gaara would never let her fall. Her fear of heights was gone.

She soon felt a wrap of sand around her waist pulling her away from the edge and back onto a safer spot on the roof. She was crying tears of joy now at Gaara's paranoia that she might fall to her doom.

Today was a day filled with crying and tears. And she wasn't so sure if that was such a bad thing or not.

She's fallen for him hard I'd say, but we just need to wait for Miranda to realize that first ;D And what of Gaara? Does he only see her as a chance at redemption and hope? I guess we'll just have to find out. Remember folks, review review review!