A/N: Hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! I'm back now that the holidays are overrr. I really shouldn't be posting at 2:30 AM instead sleeping, but I really missed Seven and MC...sigh. Hope you enjoy this chapter. Some fluff after all the angst.

Luciel was doing his best to avoid going back into the apartment. But, it was nearly midnight and his stomach was beginning to ache. He didn't eat lunch or dinner, and those Honey Buddha Chips from earlier weren't sitting well. For once, he might actually take MC's advice and drink some plain water…or maybe sparkling water.

He put his ear to the door behind him. He bit his lip. This is what got him in trouble last time. He had heard MC talking on the phone with Zen, and for some reason something snapped. He wasn't sure it was jealousy. Not in that way, anyway.

He didn't mind when MC talked to Zen. He knew they were good friends. Zen stopped flirting with her, and she never seemed to encourage him romantically. No…it was the fact that she felt comfortable enough to come to Zen when things were rough. When she was upset, Luciel couldn't be there…but Zen could. That fact alone made his chest throb in pain.

He wanted to be the person she could call at any hours of the night, just to talk or vent. But he couldn't be. He could never be. Still, he had meant to keep those feelings inside, but his frustrations, which were exacerbated by V and the situation with Saeran, got the better of him and he took it out on her. He hated himself for it. He hated that she had gotten to the point where she wanted to leave, despite the danger that could come from it.

Just seeing her sobbing like that…he never wanted to see that again. If he was the one causing it, then he would try to stay away from her.

He sighed in relief when he heard the silence on the other side of the door. She must have gone to bed. He packed up his hacking gear and made his way back into the apartment.

He dropped his things in his usual corner and headed into the kitchen for some water. He nearly spit it out when he heard a whimper from the couch. He peered over into the living room to see a bundle of blankets on the sofa. He hadn't even seen MC underneath it all. Was she still awake?

The bundle squirmed, and MC let out another soft cry. Luciel frowned when he saw a bunch of pill packs spread across the table. He rushed over and began shuffling through them. He pulled the blanket off of MC. He was met with a tangle of hair. He quickly pushed it away, realizing her lack of reaction.

Worry began to wriggle like a knot deep in his stomach. "MC, did you take all these pills?" he said. "MC!" He shook her slightly.

Her eyelids fluttered opened, though they remained half-lidded. "Huh? 'Course not. Took…migraine and…nausea," she slurred.

Luciel returned to the packs on the table. There were two laying apart from the others. He grabbed them and read the labels. One was just an over the counter medicine to help nausea, but the other was a prescription strength pain reliever, probably for her migraine. She must've gotten them from Rika's medicine cabinet. They didn't have any seemingly bad adverse side-effects, so why was MC so pale and aloof?

She moaned and buried her face in the couch. "I can barely feel limbs."

Luciel furrowed his brows. He pulled out his phone and quickly called a pharmacy. He tried to remain calm as he asked them questions about the drugs and their interactions. Not only was MC restlessly moving about, but this was bringing up bad memories. His brother was sick often, and Luciel was the one who ended up getting medicines and calling the pharmacy. As a kid, his town's pharmacy began to recognize him, and some paid for the medicine in their own money since his mother wouldn't.

After the pharmacist reassured him several times that she was probably just overly-sensitive to the drugs, Luciel hung up the phone and set it aside. He shifted on his knees so he could turn her on her back. "MC," he said quietly. She gave a small grunt in response. "You're not supposed to take these at the same time. They have two of the same drugs. You doubled the dose too quickly. And, besides that…why were you taking a prescription medicine! This isn't even yours. You can't just randomly take-"

He stopped when a few tears slipped from her eyes. Why was she crying all of a sudden?

"I'm sorry," she sniffled. "I'm…such a burden."

Luciel assumed it was the medicine talking by how slow and sluggish she spoke. But, the look on her face was tearing his heart in half. He had seen her cry enough for a lifetime. He let out a small huff. "Lucky for you, the pharmacy said it's not harmful. You'll just feel a bit drowsy. Probably won't remember half of what happened in the morning." He cleared his throat. "If you weren't feeling well, why didn't you ask me for help?"

Of course she wouldn't ask you for help, idiot, he thought. He was the one who pushed her away in the first place.

"It was just a headache," she responded a little more coherently this time. "But it got so bad, I don't really remember much."

He picked up the pack and pointed at the red ink on the packaging. "Did you eat anything? You're supposed to eat before taking this."

She sheepishly shook her head. Luciel rolled his eyes and flopped backwards onto the floor. That was a bad idea. The stress of the situation used up his adrenaline. And the silence in the apartment made the temptation to fall asleep so sweet.

"Seven, are you mad?"

His eyes shot open at her voice. When had he even closed them? He slowly sat up. She turned her head to look at him. She seemed less pale, but still out of it as she fiddled with the end of her blanket. "N-no," he replied.

"But you yelled," she mumbled.

"I'm sorry," he said. Without thinking, he reached out and pushed the hair out of her face. It was so soft under his fingers. MC seemed to have a difficult time keeping her eyes open, but still she tried.

"I'm stopping your work again," she said, tearing up. Luciel chuckled despite himself. It seemed that the drugs were making her overemotional, but he couldn't help but think how cute she looked when she pouted like that.

"I'll take a break," he said. He bit his lip. His fingers still ran through her hair. He should probably pull away now, but he was growing addicted to the feeling. She nuzzled her head to his hand. Nope, he wasn't pulling it away yet.

He noticed how her eyes looked puffy. Streaks from dried tears stained her cheeks. Guilt compiled onto him. His stomach twisted even more now.

He forced himself to pull his hand away as he began to stand, but she reached out and grabbed his wrist. She looked up at him with bleary eyes. "I hate to ask you," she said. "But can you stay a little longer. I feel really shaky, and I—"

He sat down almost immediately. He could feel her fingers trembling against his wrist. She slowly let go of him, tucking both hands under her head as she turned to her side. Luciel watched her for a few moments, as her breathing steadied. Still, she would open her eyes and blink a few times, as if to check if he was there.

After a few minutes, it became more and more difficult to keep himself upright. His head fell sideways onto the couch so he was looking right at her. He blamed his own sleep deprivation when his fingers once again found her hair. "You're making this very difficult, MC," he muttered.

Her lips twitched upwards. "What did I do now?" she said in her half-conscious state.

"I want to push you away," he admitted. "I want you as far away from me as possible."

No response. He twirled a strand of her in his fingers. "But you keep being kind. You're the only one who manages to tell me off and make me care about what I'm doing wrong."

She let out a soft sigh and grabbed his hand that rested on her head. She pulled it onto her cheek, before resting her own hand ontop of it. "There, there, Seven," she smiled sleepily, gently patting his wrist. Luciel shook his head. The situation was rather ridiculous—MC being drugged on pain relievers and anti-nausea capsules, and here he was following along with her shenanigans because his own mind was so muddled, he couldn't fight back very well. Still, the gesture and the coolness of her cheek made his heart beat faster.

His eyes burned with exhaustion. He knew he was indulging himself, but he closed them anyway. He allowed himself to doze off for a minutes before forcing his eyes open. He lifted his head and rubbed the sore spot on his face from where his glasses dug into his skin.

Feeling a tiny bit more energized, he turned his attention to MC. Her eyes were closed, and her mouth formed a perfect "o" as she slept. Finally, she had some peace. He knew he had been pushing her to her limit all day. He felt horrible about going too far earlier, but maybe it was a good thing if it could begin to discourage her feelings.

Luciel was about to pull his hand away from her cheek, only to realize it wasn't there anymore. Rather, she held it tightly within her own, their fingers intertwined. When had that happened?

He stared at their hands together, chewing on his lip. He couldn't have forever, but maybe he could have this moment. She was asleep and wouldn't remember anything tomorrow. He could push her away again then. She could get angry with him again. Once this was all over, he would make sure she'd leave him…the RFA…the potential of a dangerous life.

But right now…in the dead of night, with nothing but the sound a few cars driving by outside, it seemed as if reality was so far away. Luciel understood the implications of his job. He also knew what it would take to get his brother back. He didn't want that for her. But maybe he could be selfish…for just a moment.

With shaky hands, he brought her fingers to his lips. Tears stung his eyes. "It's both tragic and good that you'll never hear this," he said in barely a whisper. "You can never know how much I want to give in to you every time you show me care or concern. You can never know how much your words affect me. I'm sorry that I keep hurting you. I don't want to." He pressed another kiss to her hand. A few tears escaped and fell onto her fingers. "I really don't want to."

He squeezed her hand gently, not wanting to wake her. His chest tightened at the thought that he had to let go sometime. He had to go back to reality…back to searching for his brother…back to getting another step closer to pushing her away forever. He wiped his tears on his sleeve and took a shaky breath.

He carefully let go of her fingers and placed her hand onto the sofa. He pushed himself to his knees. Hesitantly, he pressed a kiss to her temple. "I love you," he said quietly. "Just in case…something happens to me after you're gone. I want to know that I said it to you at least once, even if you never knew."

Luciel pulled the blanket off her. He hooked one arm under her knees and the other around her back. He lifted her carefully and placed her in her room. He returned the living room to retrieve the blanket before gently draping it over her.

MC fidgeted slightly before turning to her side once more. "Goodnight," she hummed sleepily.

"Goodnight, MC," Luciel smiled softly. He slowly began closing the door behind him.

"Love you."

Those two words were slurred together, said in a whisper, and barely coherent. Still, they rung in Luciel's ears, hitting him like a wall. His fingers tightened around the doorknob. He forced himself to shut the door before he broke down again. He could barely breathe. For a few agonizing moments, he feared she was awake and had heard him.

Then, he remembered what he had overheard her say to Zen...about love. At the time, he assumed whatever doubts she had of her feelings had dissipated when he snapped at her. If they didn't…maybe…

No.

He had promised himself that he would do everything he could to get her out of this situation safely. Why was he having doubts now? He shut his eyes and took a few deep breaths. This was just a moment to him. A moment outside of reality. A dream. It was over and he had to wake up.

So, he did what he did best. He returned to his reality. He shut out his thoughts, suppressed his feelings, and kept working.

A/N: Yeahhhh, don't ever do what MC did, guys. It's not fun. Always read the labels on medicine! Joking aside, hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'll try to update very soon~ Thanks for reading!