I thank you all for the get well soon comments! They charged me up, and I got pumped for another chapter! ENJOY MY READERS ENJOY! (I got all bubbly when I was told, I'm a great author... :3 Made my day, Thanks Cosette :3)

Garry's lips felt like a cloud against mine. Then again, I've never kissed a cloud, but this is probably what they felt like. At first it took me by surprise. Who wouldn't be surprised by that! I've only seen that in movies, books, and listened to it in music! His left hand was placed firmly against my hip, holding me up straight. His right hand cupped my cheek. So soft...

My head was spinning with all the emotions pounding through my head. I was weak in the knees, thankful for Garry's hand around my waist. He started to pull away, but I brought my hand to his face, wrapping my other arm around his neck. This time he pulled my legs up around his waist. He stumbled backwards, cashing into the tiled wall. We broke the kiss, to catch our breath. His head rested against mine, and mine against his. Everything just felt...perfect.

"My...what are we going to do with ourselves, Ib?" Garry chuckled. I bit my lower lip, smiling.

"I don't know about you, but I think I know," I answered. Garry cocked an eyebrow at me, smiling seductively.

"Well, well, when did you become the assertive one?" I blushed. Garry tilted my chin up so I could face him. His eyes were just like still water, serene. As if he was finally at peace. He tilted his head to the side, studying me for a moment. "Ib..."I melted a bit further. The way he said my name, broke off another piece of my heart. Giving it to him.

"G-Garry, I..." He silenced me with his finger, smiling at me.

"There is much to be said. Say it how you want to. Listen to this." He rested his hand over my heart. I sucked in a breath, resting my own hand on his.

"I love you." Those three words tasted like the freshest honey. Felt like the first rays of sun after a storm. In general. It felt like I had been pushed off of a cliff, and caught by a huge fat cloud.

"Well... I figured you two would be close, but intimate?" The walls came crashing back down. Reality washed over me, drenching me in a cloth of harshness. I looked down at our position, while Garry glanced over at the interrupter, standing in the door way. He huffed out a sigh, slowly easing me down, so I could stand on my two feet. "Oh, sorry. I interrupted again. I'll be outside..." Marry chuckled, closing the door slowly. I dared a look at Garry. He was rubbing the back of his neck, smiling embarrassed like. I hadn't noticed, but I was holding his hand. Mine was so small compared to his. They felt strong, but I knew they were gentle.

Garry noticed me staring. He brought my hand to his lips, kissing it lightly. "Maybe we should get going?" he suggested. Every bit of me wanted to say no.

"Uh... Neh... Soooo..." I felt like an idiot. I was kicking myself mentally for my stupidity. Garry chuckled, leaning down to my face.

"Don't worry about it okay?" I raised an eyebrow at him.

"Don't worry about it, my foot." I leaned closer to his ear. "Tonight, be prepared." I smiled coyly at Garry's widening eye's. I started for the door, saying one more thing. "You may want to shower though." I closed the door behind me, feeling shaky in the knees. My breathing was rapid, and my heart was pounding a thousand times a minute. Did I just say that to him? What did I just do? Ib what have you just done? What just happened? All of these questions were running through my head a mile a minute. When I saw Marry's face, my head became even more crammed.

"Soooooo!" She winked at me, "How was it?"

If there was a word to describe what just happened, I'd use it. Ib saying those words to me... I've always known she was stubborn, and once she made up her mind, it was pointless to try to change it... Wait a minute. 'Tonight, be prepared...' I blinked a couple of times, as I pulled the clean shirt over my head. Many images popped into my head. I started to cough, my face heating up immensely. Dear god... Through all of the spinning of my perverted thoughts, and my scrambled ones. I was quite happy. Ib said she loved me back! Earlier it was a feeling, and now... I know!

Phase two of my plan was set in motion. Phase one, was to confess my love to Ib. Phase two: Buy an engagement ring. For a while I debated about it, but Ib and I have known each other for so long, it already feels like we're together. Just not quite married. Which I'm hoping will change.

"Hey Garr-bear!" I shook my head out of my deep thoughts, bewildered by what I was just called. I was standing outside of the bathroom, where Ib and I had our confession. Ib elbowed Marry in the gut, smiling innocently. Kinda scary that look is. I've noted to watch out for it. "What? Isn't it cute? Why don't you call him that?!" Ib shook her head.

"Cause his name is Garry," she answered. I smiled, reaching for Ib's hand, pulling her close to me.

"Alright... Garry! How about you call her Ibby?!" She suggested, beaming at the idea.

"I already have something to call her," I answered. Marry just stared at me.

"You do?" Ib asked, looking up at me. She looked so adorable staring at me like that. I rested my head against hers, smiling.

"Of course I do." I kissed her, before saying, "Lovely Lady Ib..."

On our way down the sidewalk, Marry kept making gagging noises, and noises that were supposed to be cute, but sounded like she was strangling a camel. I hadn't let go of Ib's hand, and she didn't object to me holding it. We passed a couple of stores, never going in. After my experience earlier, I wasn't so sure about entering any shops. I was going to have nightmares for weeks about crazy store clerk ladies with tazers...

As we walked down the strip, I noticed a change in Ib's behaviour. Earlier she was very flustered, and clearly angry about something. I had a pretty good sense of what it was that was troubling her now, but earlier, if she threw a brick at me with a note on it, I still wouldn't have got it.

We strolled down another street, turning the corner, seeing many street performers. Ib was very captivated by what the performers could master. Some were sticking swords down their throats, eating fire, contortions, everything above and beyond. If I tried to do something like that, I'd be in the hospital for months. One of the contortions had pulled me away from Ib and Marry, showing me a trick she could do. I applauded her technique, about to go back to my group, but she grabbed my arm.

"Now you!" She cheered.

"Wh-what!?" Next thing I knew, she was bending my arm behind my back, trying to get it to rotate around. "My arm doesn't bend that way!" She persisted, ignoring my screams of agony. Out of nowhere Ib stepped in, placing a hand on the girls arm.

"He's not very flexible," she smiled, "let me try." The girl nodded happily, pushing me to the side.

"What am I? Chop liver?" Marry patted me on the back.

"Yes... but a very handsome one. Guess that's all you have, looks," she laughed.

"I've got plenty of brains!" I coughed.

"Shut-up and watch your girlfriend!" I rolled my eyes at her, but watched her anyways. I was immediately in awe. Ib had her leg in the air, bent over her shoulder, her eyes downcasted. She then swung her leg down, bending her body in half, forming a bridge. "You are very lucky to have a 'flexible' girlfriend." I punched Marry in the arm, refusing to let her teasing break my mood. Ib was very elegant in her movements, she would swing her legs in big arch's, and rotate her torso while twirling her arms. Before I knew it, she was dancing! Ballet.

When she was done, she bowed to the contortionists, then to the crowd that had gathered. They all applauded her amazing performance, whistling too. She shuffled back over to us, and I scooped her up into my arms. "You were amazing out there. When did you learn how to do that?" I whispered.

"Ballet lessons, and some gymnastics stuff, oh! And some karate," she beamed. I set her back down on the ground.

"Never thought you could do that," I stated, completely surprised.

"Haven't done it in a while! It was quite fun, but I'm going to be sore later." I raised an eyebrow at her. "Gonna have to do something about that." She smiled, while my grin just grew.

As if on que, Marry coughed, and gagged while elbowing me in the gut. "What?" I gasped. She laughed nervously, elbowing me a couple more times.

"You are so funny, Garry!" Her eyes were the size of the moon. It made me step back from her. "Just look around you!"I was still confused, but I did as she said. It was clear as day, but I somehow managed to miss it. Right across the street was a jewelry store. It was quite old, and looked a little run down, but it was the first one we had seen all day, and I wanted to find a ring, before the shops closed. Which were closing pretty quickly, for a celebration of some sort. They had a lot of celebrations in this part of Japan.

It would make for the most opportune moment tonight. That's if my plan follows through, and I can get a ring...

"Oh, right! I'm just hilarious!" I laughed back, slamming my hand down on her shoulder. She growled at me, but didn't say anything.

"Uh, are you two okay?" Ib asked, stepping away from us, putting her hands up defensively.

"Peachy!" Marry spat, punching me in the arm. Now it wasn't about getting my attention, rather seeing who would crack first.

"Spectacular!" I said through gritted teeth, slapping Marry on the back. She glared at me, before stomping over to Ib.

"Of all the ungrateful friends..." Marry grumbled, as she pulled Ib away. "Come on! There is a store I want to go to down here! Garry is being a dick, so Nyeh!" She stuck her tongue out at me, dragging Ib down the street. I listened to Ib's protests, and Marry's incoherent words. Waiting till they left.

Once they were out of earshot, I ran across the street. I pushed open the heavy wood door, peeking inside. The air reeked of stale air, and old books. "Hello?" I called. No answer. I closed the door behind me, looking around the shop. There were cases upon cases of rings, necklaces, earrings, anklets, etc. There was a second level, that stored mountains of books. It was... comforting. It seemed like time had been preserved here, and I was thankful for that. Most days it seemed like the world could slow down, and take a step back. There was dust collected everywhere, I was surprised that I could still see inside the cases. Through and archway, led into a reading area, that held more bookshelves, book stacks, and two orange chairs. I heard movement upstairs, through the groaning of the boards. "Hello?" I tired again. Still no answer.

"Who said you could come in!?" I whirled around, to see a short, angry looking woman. By her accent I could tell she wasn't Japanese. "We're closed! Get out, get lost!"

"B-but your sign says open!" I pointed to the sign on the door. She quickly swiped it off the glass, throwing it behind the counter.

"No I'm not! Now get out! Shoo!" She started to push me towards the door. For a short little foreigner, she sure could shove.

"Please! I need to find a ring! I want to propose to my girlfriend!"

"I don't care! It'll end in tragedy anyways!"

"No it wont!" I turned on her, which made her step back from me. Something inside me just snapped once she said that. I've come so close to having Ib, and I wasn't going to let some old Chinese woman stop me. "I've known her for a good chunk of my life! We went through Hell to stay alive! We've told each other everything! We pick each other up when we're down, we hang out, we talk, we laugh, we do the whole shebang! I know it won't end! I love her with my whole heart, and never have loved anyone else!" My shoulders were quaking. The shop lady stared at me with wide eyes, as if she just saw me for the first time. "Please. I love her very much." The lady walked up to me, grabbing my hand.

"I can tell..." she whispered. "I'll try to help you, but I can only give you twenty minutes." I stared at her, as she pulled me along further into the shop.

"Thank you..."

"Baka! I'm only helping you, so I can help this woman you so 'passionately' love!" I could see from here she was blushing. It only made me smile more.

"what about this one?" I asked, pointing to a silver band. She shook her head.

"No, and you love her how much?" I scratched the back of my neck, this was getting annoying. I spent a good fifteen minutes pointing out rings, and then getting shot down. Time was running out, and this dust wasn't helping. I kept sneezing, and it only made it harder to see inside the cases.

"She's never said what she's liked." Chiko rolled her eyes at me. She reluctantly told me her name, after I picked out the thirtieth ring.

"Grandma, why don't you just suggest one for him?" I jumped a bit, not realizing there was someone else here. I turned around, to find a tall young woman standing in the arch way. I recognized her instantly, but she was different. She was like a taller version of Marry! She must've been the one upstairs.

"Nina, I was seeing which one's he would pick out. So then mine would blow his out of the water!" She laughed. My eyebrow twitched at this. I can't win with this woman.

"It's Garry right?" Nina asked, as she leaned against the glass case. I nodded. "Wait a minute! You're that guy! That guy that-" She stopped covering her mouth.

"That guy that?" I inquired, raising an eyebrow at her. She waved me off, acting like she didn't say anything.

"Never mind. Grandma, just pick one. I would like to go to the festival tonight!" 'Nina' was also not from around here, but had the looks of a Japanese citizen.

"You and your sister..." She started to mutter something in Chinese, as she searched through drawers, dust flying everywhere. "Ah! Here we are. Take this one." I took the case from her hand, gaping at the tiny ring inside. It had a gold band, that had a pink diamond on top. The band wove around the diamond, making a nice pedestal for it.

"It's beautiful..." I was at a loss for words. THWACK! My face was smashed into the countertop, blood seeping out of my nose. It felt like my skull had been cracked open, and it was surprising that the case hadn't shattered.

"That's all you have to say!? 'Beautiful!?' I'll have you know that there is no others like this!" Chiko stammered.

"Wow grandma... I didn't think you had it in you! Nice job!" Nina praised.

"Uh, excuse me, but you could've put me in the hospital!" I stammered.

"You don't want it? Give it back." I pulled the ring closer to me.

"No way. I'll take this one. How much do I owe you? Honestly..." I pulled out m wallet, grumbling about the service here. She rested a hand on my arm, her eyes gentle.

"No, you take it." I just stared at her.

"What? I've got to owe you something, here." I tried to give her my money, put she pressed in back into my hand.

"You take it. You love this girl a lot, obviously. Love... there is no price you can put on it. Take it." I grabbed Chiko's hands, shaking them.

"Thank you very much."

"Which do you think?" Marry asked, placing one of the dresses in front of her.

"That one," I yawned. Marry just smacked me. "Hey! What did I do?"

"You've got to help me here! Can't just be a couch potato..." I shook my head, focusing on the dresses she ahd in her hands. The one in her right hand was gold printed, with a dragon flying down the fold. It was a very beautiful Chinese style kimono. The other one was a navy blue, that had violet ribbon on the folds. This one wasn't a Chinese kimono, but a traditional Japanese one.

"The blue would bring out your eyes," I stated.

"Do you think?" She asked, placing it over her body.

"You asked for my opinion."

"Meh, I'll go for this one." She tossed the two dresses at me, grabbing one off of the rack. She disappeared into the changing room before I could see it. She quickly emerged, as if she was changing for a Broadway musical. This dress was a Chinese kimono. The back color was a sunset red, with gold swirls all around it. Along the opening on her leg was a gold dragon, flying down to her feet. "What do you think?" she asked me, biting her lower lip.

"It's perfect! Go for that one!" I nodded in approval. She beamed, then slammed shut the door. I sighed, leaning my head back. This shopping wasn't going very well. Not only had I managed not to find a dress, but I tore a hole in my pants from doing those stupid contortions. Garry seemed to like it though. True enough, he did seem to be intrigued.

"Hey! Ib you listening to me?"

"Yeah." Marry emerged from the dressing room, looking at me crossly. "What?"

"You have to find a kimono, now," She stated.

"There is nothing in this store that suits me!"

"Challenge accepted."

"Uh... Marry that wasn't a challenge!"

I bounded down the street, a giant grin plastered on my face. This was going to work out. It will work out. I kept telling myself this, which made me even more pumped. I couldn't take my eyes off of the ring, just marveling it's beauty.

"Hey, watch where you're going!" I stumbled past the guy hollering at me.

"Sorry!" I looked back down in my hand. The ring was gone. Gone. From. The. Box. My eyes widened, about to pop out of my skull. I whipped around, searching the ground for it. It glinted in the light, teasing me. I leapt for it, just missing it. Someone walked in front of my reach, knocking the ring onto the road.

"Watch it!" I hardly registered that, as I searched over the curb for the ring. Nothing. I wanted to scream. Tear my hair out. Claw at the ground until my fingers fell off. I pushed myself against the ground in defeat. Why is it always me? Wait. There was something sitting in the grate. I cautiously reached for it, trying to be careful not to send it down the drain.

"Garry? What are you doing?" I was a bit startled by the voice. My hand missed the object, sending it down the drain. I groaned in frustration. I just wanted to curl up in a ball and die. I lost the ring. Probably for good. "Garry? You gonna answer me?" I just groaned, curling into a tight ball, hoping to shut out the noise. "Garry? You okay?"

"No..."

"What happened?" Nina asked, kneeling beside me. She rested a hand on my arm, trying to get me out of my ball.

"The ring... It's gone..." She kicked me in the leg, which I barely felt. The feeling of defeat, and dread was much more powerful than pain. I don't have a ring for Ib, and now my plan is going to go down the toilet. Sure there were other days I could get the ring, but nothing could compare to that one. Suck it up and be a man Garry! You've got to pull it together! Get moving! You'll find another ring! I peeked out of my ball, seeing Nina digging around in the drain. I sat right up, staring at her. "What are you doing?"

"I saw it! It's right down there..." I squinted trying to get a look inside. There it sat. On this mountain of filth. I Pulled Nina out of the way, reaching into the dark cavern. "You sure you can handle something this gross?"

"Of course I can!" I huffed, pressing my shoulder against the grate. There was slime that slicked up my arm, making it easier to get in, but I had ruined this shirt for the second time today.

"You know Garry, if you could hurry that'd be very much appreciated."

"Well it's not like it's in the most accessible place."

"Yeah, but those cops over there are staring..." My head shot up at this. Indeed there were cops eyeing us suspiciously.

"Shit."

"Shit." Was all I could manage to say, as I gaped at the reflection. My reflection.

"It's perfect!" Marry chimed, bouncing up and down. It did look perfect on me, which I didn't think was possible. The navy blue brought out my giant ruby eyes, while the purple hue brought life to my skin. It opened at mid thigh, a faint red woven in the stitching. It was sleeveless, that hung on one shoulder. "I told you I could find Kimono that suited you!"

"Yeah.." My smile wavered. Marry rested a hand on my shoulder, her smile touching her eyes. "Thank you so much Marry."

"No problem girl! We sisters gotta stick together, you know?!" She punched me playfully in the shoulder. "Now let's get going! We gotta find your boyfriend." She rolled her eyes, as she spun around. "Probably lost somewhere."

"Since when did my Ibby get a boyfriend?" I froze. Marry went rigged. I knew that voice. I turned to face them. True enough they stood right there, grins on their faces.

"Shit."

"Excuse me sir? I need to ask you to stop doing what you're doing. You are disturbing the peace here," the officer explained. I blinked a few times, looking around me. There were people staring, but other than that, no one seemed to care.

"I 'am?"

"Yes." I looked back into the drain. I was so close to actually reaching the ring, just a bit more and I would have it!

"Uh, I will comply with your request, but I really need to get this out of the drain," I laughed nervously. The officer raised an eyebrow at me questionably. He opened his mouth to speak, when Nina jumped in.

"Do you think, you could remove this grate? Surely a strong muscular man like yourself could," she smiled sweetly. The officer blushed.

"Of course ma'am! I work out every day! Step aside sir!" I scrambled back. The officer huffed as he pulled at the grate. It wasn't going to come off any time soon. He called over to the other deputy, trying the grate again. No dice.

"Uh, if I may?" I stood beside them, latching onto the grate. "On three, ready?" They nodded. "One. Two. Three!" we yanked at the grate with full force, hoping it would budge. Nothing. We tried again. Still nothing. Nina jumped in, along with some stranger. "On three again! ONE! TWO! TH-" The grate came flying off, and us backwards. The grate slid across the road, some of the cars honking, losing control. Before anyone knew it, two cars collided! Then there was even more honking, and angry shouts. "Wonderful..." The police officers straightened themselves.

"There you are madam, if you don't require anything else, we must get back to our duties," they said in scary unison. I could tell Nina was trying to stifle a laugh.

"That is all gentleman, I'll see you around," she winked, blowing them kisses. I was already back at the grate, reaching for the ring.

"I'VE GOT IT!" I shouted, tearing it out of the dirt filled hole. It was covered in dirt, and sludge, but at least I managed to get it back!

"Great! Now let's go find Ib!" Nina stated, hauling my ass off of the pavement.

"I can't believe I ruined this shirt again..." I muttered. Nina suddenly turned on me, inspecting the sludge covered arm. She tore at the sleeve, yanking until it came off completely, same with the other one.

"Damn Garry," she whistled, "you've got some muscle." She then continued to drag me down the street.

"What does that mean?!" She didn't answer my question, just continued to haul me along.

We left the store, our kimono's picked, and purchased. I was as stiff as a robot without oil, and Marry could hardly breathe properly. I couldn't believe that they showed up! Of all time's they pick to come waltzing into my life! I looked across the street, hoping not to see Garry, but sure enough I saw him. And... Nina?! What was she doing dragging Garry down the street!? She seemed to have spotted Marry and I, cause she came barreling towards us, Garry having trouble to keep up.

Tears pricked my eyes. It's as if some invisible force was trying to keep us apart! And I swear, once I find this person messing with my life, I will carve them up, and send their remains on a trip to Hell!

That's all I wanted! Was to be with Garry! But no! It seems like an impossible dream! I never gave up on my dreams, and I still don't. So if this was an 'impossible' one, all the more reason to try! I wasn't going to let anyone, or anything try to stop me from being with Garry.

Nina finally released me, and I was practically on the floor, trying to force air into my lungs. "Geez... You trying... t-to... Kill m-me?" I wheezed. Nina just laughed, trying to straighten me up.

"What happened to your shirt Garry?" Ib asked. My eyes focused on her immediately. There was something wrong. Her voice sounded far away, and she was as stiff as a board. Her eyes were sad, her mouth pressed in a firm line. Even Marry was silent. Something obviously happened while I was gone.

"What's going on?" I questioned. Ib looked from Marry, to me, then behind her. There was no-one there from what I could see. Suddenly she had her arms around me, squeezing me as if this was the last time she would see me. "Ib?"

"Don't worry Garry," she whispered, her voice was thick with desperation. "I won't let this happen."

"What are you talking about?" Before I could hug her back, she let go, standing beside Marry again. I reached for her, but she waved me off. I couldn't just stand there! I didn't know what to do! I didn't know what was going on! What does she mean by that!? "Ib... I love you." A tear fell from her eyes. She quickly wiped it away, taking in steady breath's.

"I love you too," she whispered. A lump caught in my throat. What was going on? Suddenly an older couple appeared behind Ib and Marry. One male, one female. The female had brown hair, that was done up in a ponytail, and dressed in a red business suit. The male had brown, greying hair, and was dressed in a black business suit. Who were these people?

"Ib? Are you going to introduce us to your friends?" The female asked. She looped an arm through Ib's, pulling her tightly to her side. Ib's eyes had glazed over, and she looked like she wanted to barf.

"Oh, I recognize this young man here!" The male chimed. his voice held no warmth, but hostility. I could tell his smile was forced, it was also cold. I knew who these people were. That smile brought it all back.

"Who are they?" Nina whispered. My knees felt weak, and I could feel my own eyes glaze over. This would never end.

"Ib's parents."

I hope you enjoyed! I posted this chapter once before, and was told it was rushed. And I wanted to get more into this chapter, so I redid it. Sorry it took so long! I was trying to remember it all, and it hurt my brain, but I got most of it! Another reason it took so long, was I had to go back into the hospital. I just want these hospital trips to end. Its dammed annoying.

Anyway! I hope you enjoyed! I'll try to get the next chapter out soon! Thanks to EasternWindDragon, for helping me pick out the key problem with this chapter! Stupid pacing... Thanks to everybody for sticking with me! Love ya guys! YOU ALL ROCK