A/N: YAY! I'm sooooooooo glad you guys liked the previous chapter! :D Thanks for all the lovely reviews and following this story! 66 reviews and 70 subscriptions! *dramatic sob* You guys rock!

Speaking of reviews...almost all the reviews for Chapter 9 were about how you guys were hating on Mamoru. Wow XD Poor guy, so many people hate him :P But you guys are right, it kinda is his fault for playing with Usagi's heart. The meanie head.

But don't you worry; he's bound to get jealous sooner or later [;

Sorry this took a while to upload; I'm working on another story that is a one-shot called "Lemon Pies", and that's taking a looooong while!

By the way, in case some of you don't know, "Oyasumi" means "good night". Mamoru says that to Usagi in this chapter, and I wanted to make sure no one got confused with that. Also, "oba-sama" means "Auntie". Usagi still calls Saori "Auntie", but I wanted to write "oba-sama" since it sounded kinder for much reason. Much more kinder than "Auntie". XD

Enjoy Chapter 10! :D I'm 1% confident that you guys will like this chapter ^^''

DISCLAIMER! I DO NOT OWN ITAZURA NA KISS/IT STARTED WITH A KISS OR SAILOR MOON!

Chapter 10

"Are you all right, miss?" A concerned female voice asked, and Usagi's eyes fluttered open. "W-What?" She asked, and sat up, her half-wet-from-the-snow ponytails falling from her face.

A waitress with flaming red, bushy hair and the manager, a partly rounded man, like Uncle Koba, with thick blonde hair and glasses, were staring at her face with great concern, and she looked around, sitting in what seemed like a hospital bed, a soaking wet towel on her forehead. "W-What...?"

"You fainted." A familiar voice spoke, and she turned around to see Mamoru standing in the corner, his arms crossed, not looking at her. "I told you not to have those six cups of coffee in ten minutes, now, didn't I?"

Usagi nodded, and felt her stomach pain gone. "Domo arigato gozaimasu for taking care of me!" She smiled at the waitress and the manager, who grinned back. "I'm sorry for the trouble I've caused!" She hopped off the bed and started to put on her coat, scarf, and bag, ready to leave. She should've known that she couldn't give Mamoru his chocolate today, and that she should've just given up. Perfect Rei, who was amazing in every single way, had probably won his heart by now.

"It's not a problem." The manager said, and then turned to Mamoru. "Mamoru-san, she's an acquaintance of yours, right? You know where she lives?" He asked, waddling over to his employee, and Mamoru nodded, both him and Usagi seeing where this was going. "Why don't you drop her home? To make sure she makes it safely? It's quite a snowstorm out there, and she had just fainted!"

Usagi waved her hands, afraid that she would make Mamoru once again angry with her constant being with him. "It's all right!" She said, trying to stop the manager. "I can get home by myself! It's really close!" She lied, knowing that home was a good twenty minutes away, and then an extra ten minutes to take the train.

"Oh, no, it's all right. Mamoru, your shift for today can end now, and you should go escort this young lady home!" He smiled, and Mamoru sighed. "Fine. Come on, Odango, let's get you home."

Usagi silently followed Mamoru as he took his jacket off the employees wardrobe, and pursed her lips. "Mamoru...?" She asked, scared to finish the rest of her question. "A-Ano, you're mad, aren't you?"

Mamoru sighed. "Did she seriously just ask me that?" He thought, and then turned around, hoping that what he would say would shush her for a while. "Yeah, I'm angry!" He put on an angry face, and Usagi backed away, upset. "I knew it," She thought. "I am just a big nuisance to Mamoru."

She sighed and followed him as they walked out of the restaurant and into the fierce snowstorm, feeling the snow starting to slap her face almost as hard as the glare Rei had given her when she realized her Mamoru was walking out with her ditzy, dumb rival. Usagi was now really scared of her priestess rival.

Mamoru ran towards the sidewalk, trying to wave down a taxi. Usagi watched him struggle in the snow and ran up next to him, trying to help get a ride. Once a taxi stopped in front of their snow-covered vision, Usagi opened the door, but the driver started screaming angrily at them.

"NO!" The driver screamed. "IT IS TOO COLD AND SNOWY ALREADY! SHUT THE DOOR! I'M NOT DRIVING ANYBODY!" He yelled, and drove off as Usagi slammed the door. "FINE!" She yelled, and then shuddered at how cold she felt, despite her heavy snow jacket.

After a few unsuccessful moments of trying to get a taxi, Mamoru huffed, his breath emitting a small puff of hot air into the breeze. "Odango, this is no use. Let's just go to the train station."

"B-But..."

"What?"

Usagi bit her lip, scared that he would get even more pissed off than his murderous look right now. But she couldn't not tell him. "When I came over here by train, they said that the passengers behind me were the last group that they were going to transport, and then they were going to close due to the snow." She looked down at her watch. "They're probably closed by now, since it's been a while since I was last there..."

Mamoru stared at her. "Then how did you plan on getting back home?"

Usagi tapped on her chin with a gloved finger. "Hmm..." She blinked for a moment. "I actually hadn't thought about that..."

Mamoru smacked his forehead. "My God..." He muttered, and then looked around. "Well, if what you say is true, then the bus station is most likely closed, too. I guess then I have no choice." He shrugged, and Usagi cocked her head to the side, one of her ponytails almost dipping into the snow. "What's that?"

"I'll have to take you to my place."

Usagi's face burned a deep red, and she felt that if her face touched the snow, all of it would immediately melt. "W-What? You and me going to where you're living?" Her heart gave a leap, but she felt deeply embarrassed.

"Baka. I mean that I'll take you to my place, and then call my mother to pick you up." He rolled his eyes, and Usagi looked down. "Oh" was all she replied with before she started to follow him towards his residence.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~And she says...~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Usagi looked over to him as they rode in the elevator in silence. Both of them were dripping wet as they entered the lobby and entered the elevator from the heavy snowstorm, receiving many stares from people they passed by, as Mamoru was in too much of a hurry to get to his apartment and call his mother to get Usagi that neither of them had bothered to brush the snow off their coats or their hair. Had it not been for their colorful snow coats and scarves, both of them would end up looking like yeti.

The elevator chimed as it announced their arrival to the sixth floor, and the two got out, remaining silent as Mamoru took out the small bronze key, inserted it into the door of apartment number 612, turned it, and opened the door.

The two walked in, and Usagi stared at how clean it was. "Wahh!" Usagi exclaimed as she looked around, taking notice of how tidy it was.

"Quit gawking," Mamoru simply said as he took off his jacket, but Usagi pouted. "How can I not gawk? It's amazingly tidy!" She started to twiddle her thumbs. "Does Rei-san come and clean it for you...?" She mumbled, and he shook his head. "No, you're the first girl here." He replied.

"R-Really?" Usagi half-whispered, and he nodded. She had to bite her lip from screaming, "HOORAY!", but she just couldn't help herself and brushed her feet playfully against the polished wood flooring, clutching the chocolate she made for him in her bag tightly with her hand.

"How's your stomachache?"

Usagi stopped her dancing. "E-Eh?"

"How's your stomachache?" He repeated, and then she remembered the whole reason as to why she was here. "Oh, it's much better now."

"Don't drink that much coffee that quickly, okay?" He warned, and she nodded. "S-Sorry," She mumbled, and then half-screamed as a soft, purple item was thrown at her. "AHH! MAMORU, SAVE ME!-"

"Baka, it's a towel! Open your eyes!"

Usagi opened her eyes and then felt the item on top of her head. "O-Oh." She stuttered, and then took it off, drying her head with it. "Thanks," She mumbled, and he shook his head, sighing. "I'll go call my mother."

Usagi watched him as he walked over to the telephone and started to dial the Chiba household number. She then held the towel near her face and smelled it, inhaling his scent happily.

"Hello?" He asked, and Usagi could feel her heart sink. "My current happiness'll only last until Oba-sama picks me up, won't it?" She thought, and then sighed.

"Yeah, she came to see me at the restaurant," He spoke into the other of the telephone, and Usagi hoped that she didn't scare Auntie Saori too much with her not arriving home on time. She looked up at him as he continued talking. "Nonetheless, she ended up with stomach pains and fainted."

Usagi could hear loud shrieks emitting from the phone, and Mamoru had to move his ear a few inches away from it so that he wouldn't go partially deaf from his mother's shrill voice. "Yes, yes, she's fine. Ma, please stop yelling!"

But the worried Mrs. Chiba would not stop yelling. She knew no one had any idea as to how scared she had felt for Usagi not returning home, feeling as if the girl she loved like a daughter was somewhere lost in the reckless snowstorm, alone and scared. She started screaming thanks to God that she had been safe all this time with her eldest son, and not lost forever.

"Anyways, she's with me at my apartment, so will you please come and pick her up? I'll give you my address, and-" Mamoru was cut off by Saori's giggling. "W-What? No, Ma, come and pick her up! Wha- What do you mean, you don't feel like it? Hello? HELLO?" Mamoru started yelling into the phone, but was answered by a dial tone. He slammed the phone against the receiver angrily. "DAMN IT! She hung up on me!" He yelled.

Usagi blinked. "W-What?"

"She said she doesn't want to come out into the blizzard and pick you up."

"S-So what now?" Usagi asked, scared. "Is he going to throw me into the streets?" She thought, but he shook his head. "I guess now you're going to stay here for the night."

Usagi flushed red. "W-WHAT? B-B-But then I-I'll h-have-"

"Yeah, she'd kill me if I left you outside in the cold. Besides, I'll feel bad for anyone who's forced to be with you if I left you outside."

Usagi pouted. "Hey! I'll have you know-"

"So," He cut her off, getting up to walk over to a brown door, pointing to it as she stared at him, shocked that he actually interrupted her. "You go take a shower while I go out to get some food. I'll take out some pajamas for you, too. They're rather big for you since they're mine, but they should be fine for now."

"But I'm not hungry!" Usagi replied, scared of him freezing to death out there. She didn't want him to be frozen, and she didn't want to be alone in this apartment, either. But her stomach started to growl angrily, as if it were disagreeing with her. She angrily clutched it, wishing it would just shut up, but it screamed for food, demanding that Usagi feed it immediately. Mamoru raised an eyebrow, and she shook her head, watching as he took a pair of red and white pajamas and gave them to her.

She pursed her lips as Mamoru shook his head, wearing another jacket that was dry and headed for the door. "No. I'm going to the nearby convenience store to get food. Otherwise, your stomach's growling will keep me up all night, Odango."

Usagi looked to the side, ignoring the tantrum her stomach was throwing, upset and scared that she'd be alone and that he might freeze.

She heard the door close and she sighed as she got up and walked over to the brown door, closing it slowly as she watched the snowflakes gently fall down from the window across the hall.

Meanwhile, fifteen miles away, an ecstatic Mrs. Chiba was dialing a few numbers on her home phone as she giggled madly. She put the phone next to her ear and silently prayed that he would pick up.

"Moshi moshi, Kenji-sama's restaurant. How may I help you?" A familiar voice asked, and Saori nearly jumped out of her seat on the couch happily, thanking the Gods as her bright turquoise eyes gleamed with pure happiness. "Hello? Is this Kou Seiya-kun?" She asked with a sweet voice.

"Yes, this is. Who is this?" Seiya asked, wondering who on Earth was calling him at such an hour.

"Chiba Saori."

"Ah, Chiba's mother. How can I help you?"

"Seiya-kun, does Ken-chan happen to be there?"

"Dad? Oh no, he's rather busy right now."

Saori gritted her teeth at how he called her future daughter-in-law's father "Dad". But she shook her head, deciding to ignore it. "Oh, that's too bad," She said in a sad voice. "Well, can you tell him Usagi-chan's not coming home tonight? He shouldn't worry, though."

"Eh?" Seiya asked, confused. "How can you say that? My poor Usagi! She's probably lost, alone, with nowhere to-"

"No, no, it's all right! She's actually staying over at Mamoru's place tonight, because I don't want her to get stuck in the blizzard on the way over here. So she'll stay there tonight. Will you tell him that?"

There was a brief silence for a moment on the opposite end, and then an ear-piercing, "WHAT DID YOU SAY?" screamed through her phone, which gave in much to her constant giggling.

Back at Mamoru's apartment, Usagi walked out of the bathroom, looking around if Mamoru was back yet. The apartment was quiet except for her beating heart, so she folded up her old clothes and hung them on one of the lounging chairs. "Ahh!" She sighed happily as she gently dried her hair, which was open and not in it's usual odango hairstyle. "I feel so refreshed!" She told herself, and then brushed a hanging golden lock of it behind her shoulder, watching the snow as she did.

Usagi felt warm in the red and white pajamas, smelling Mamoru's scent- a type of rosy yet spicy smell- sneak up to her nose and tease her with its' presence. She sat on the lounging chair and leaned forward towards the window, watching the snowflakes gently dance in the air, as if they had wings, and then finally lay into the ground. She smiled gently as her eyelids lowered a bit and yawned a little, scratching her head as she did. She felt her golden hair fall over her face and she let her eyelids droop downwards, covering her eyes completely. The sudden door opening made her jump in her seat and she turned around, seeing Mamoru holding a bag with some takeout in it. "Oh, thank God! I thought it was someone else!" She replied calmly, and he shook his head. "Baka. I'm the only one with the keys. Who else would come in here, Odango?"

Usagi pouted. "My name is not Odango, Mamoru-baka! How many times must I tell you? My name is Usagi! U-SA-GI. Like a BUNNY!"

"Yet you don't like carrots."

"So?" She demanded, and when he didn't reply, went on. "My personality is cute and jumpy and my odango hairstyle is like bunny rabbit ears! It's not like I have to like carrots, right?"

"You're definitely not cute," He told her as he took out soy sauce from the bag to add into his noodles, ignoring her jaw dropping. "And since you have an odango hairstyle, why not just call you Odango?"

Usagi groaned and then grabbed the other box of food from the box, immediately digging into her sushi as she was too hungry to reply back to him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Meeting the right person is a kind of fate...~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Ahh, that was good!" Usagi smiled as she closed up the box that used to have her food and threw it into the trash can. "Arigatou, Mamoru!" She smiled, and he threw his box away, too, sighing. "Geez. None of this wouldn't have happened if Ma had come to pick you up." He said, and she felt her stomach sink. "Hehe. Sorry." She giggled, and then yawned. "I'm really sleepy..." She murmured, and he nodded, starting to walk towards his bedroom, her feet following his shifting feet the only sound in the whole apartment.

"W-Wait!" Usagi thought, staring at the bedroom, where only one bed sat in the room. "O-One bed only? Didn't he ever think about having guests over?" She sweatdropped, and then shook her head. "I'll be polite." She stepped up to Mamoru as he started to take out two pillows from his closet for Usagi and himself. "Mamoru, I-I'll just sleep on the floor, and you can take the bed." She said as she smiled.

"Of course."

Usagi blinked. "W-What?"

"I only have one blanket, so you'll have to cover yourself with a coat or something." He said, and her cerulean eyes widened in shock. "WHAT?" She demanded angrily, and he turned to her. "You can take your old clothes that were soaked; they're probably dry by now, and you can use those to cover yourself on the floor." He turned around and started to walk towards his bed. "Oyasumi."

"WAIT A SECOND!" Usagi thundered, and he turned around. "What is it?"

"I'm the lady in this scenario!" She replied, her temper rising as she spoke, "As the man, aren't you supposed to say 'I'll sleep on the floor, you take the bed'? That's common sense, isn't it?"

"Why should I do that?" Mamoru demanded angrily, "Why should I give you so much consideration?"

"Because I'm ailing! I'm in poor health; I had a huge stomachache!"

"But you're absolutely fine now, aren't you? You said yourself that you're feeling better, Odango! My God, I've never seen such an ailing person with such a huge appetite!" He said, and she fumed as angry shouts yelled from her lips. "WHY YOU- YOU'RE SO- URGH, YOU'RE SUCH A COLD-BLOODED MONSTER!" were among the many insults and screams that erupted from her mouth.

Five minutes later, Mamoru was laying on the floor with a pillow under his head, one of his still-wet jackets covering him. Usagi sat up on his bed with a warm fleece blanket and was scratching her head. "A-Ano, Mamoru, I feel kinda bad about this. Are you sure that it's okay that you-"

"You've got some nerve asking that after all that yelling and tirade," He replied, sweatdropping. "Just hurry up and go to sleep. I'm turning off the lights." He stretched his arm out towards the lamp and pulled down the switch, hearing a click as the lights went out. "Oyasumi."

"O-Oyasumi." came Usagi's shaky reply, and she looked around in the darkness, scared as to whether she should tell Mamoru about how she didn't like the dark, and how she couldn't see at all. She turned back onto her side, trying to shut her eyes tightly together, but then screamed, "AHHHHH!" once she heard a scary noise. "MAMORU, HELP! THERE'S A SCARY THING!"

"What is it?" Mamoru's grouchy voice came up, and the light turned back on. "It's just the wind!"

"I-I just can't sleep with the light off!" She whispered, and he smacked his forehead with his palm. "Well, I can't sleep unless it's pitch black in the room!" He retorted, and Usagi's lower lip started to tremble. "B-But there are monsters out there! And g-ghosts! And-"

"All right, all right!"

The lights were kept on and Usagi could hear Mamoru grumble as he turned on his side, trying to fall asleep with all the light that helped her sleep. She suddenly felt bad, and she leaned over the bed, facing his back. "Ne, Mamoru." She didn't get a reply. "Mamoru." Still no reply. "Mamoru!"

"What?" He grumbled, and he turned around, his grouchy face facing her concerned one. "Are you cold?" She asked, and he rolled his eyes. "Of course I am!" He replied, trying to stretch his jacket onto himself warmly. She watched him struggle and suddenly felt a bit warm inside. She looked up at the window and saw the moon in its' waxing gibbous form- rather close to the full moon. She looked back down at Mamoru shivering and took off her blanket, handing it to him. "Here," She said. "It's a waxing gibbous outside, so it means it's close to the full moon, so I'll be fine."

He took it from her, and spread it over himself. "Wow Odango, I didn't know you could tell the phases of the moon." He snorted, but a bit worried about her becoming cold later into the night. She pouted at him. "Mamoru-baka," She whispered softly as she laid back onto the soft bed, and then closed her eyes. Then she turned around to him, seeing him sleeping on the floor. "Mamo-"

"WHAT?" Mamoru's loud voice surprised her, and she jumped in her spot. "A-Are you still cold?" She asked, fidgeting. "Of course I am!" He replied angrily, "I'm sleeping on the FLOOR!"

"Then let's switch spots." She said, ready to get out of the bed, but he didn't budge. "No. Just go to sleep." Usagi thought she heard a bit of pleading in the tone of his voice, but couldn't help it. "But I really feel bad about this..." She looked to the side, and he sighed as he sat up. "Okay, here's what we'll do. We'll both sleep in the bed."

"W-WHAT?" Usagi yelped as he sat down on the bed, covering the covers over her and himself. "Y-You know what? I'll just t-take the floor instead..." Her voice trailed off as she got up to slide off the bed, but he grabbed her arm, his navy eyes looking deeply into hers. "No. Everything'll be resolved if you just stay here. That way, both of us will be warm and we can both sleep soundly." He said, and then let go of her arm, which she swiped away and then, after a few moments of silence, laid back down.

"Could it be that you're nervous?" Mamoru asked teasingly, and Usagi started to sputter. "N-Nervous? No way! I-I'm just-"

"Because you know," He leaned in, his face so close to hers she could almost see her reflection in his eyes. "You're spending the night with me. Things may happen out of the blue." He said, and her face turned bright red. "T-Things?" She stuttered, and he nodded, leaning in closer. "Maybe a kiss?" He asked, and Usagi could feel her breath quickening. "Or maybe even something more than that." His voice added in a whisper, and she could've sworn her heart stopped for a moment.

"But," He turned around, his back facing her red face. "Sorry to say, nothing of that sort will happen tonight."

Usagi sweatdropped. "He's in bed with a girl but he's not going to do anything?" She wondered as she turned away from him too, pursing her lips, her eyes wide in shock. "COULD IT BE THAT HE DOESN'T HAVE THAT...THING THAT GUYS HAVE?'"

She shook her head. "No, no, I'm sure he has...um, that thing. MAYBE HE'S GAY! Wait, no...maybe I'm just not pretty enough..." She immediately thought of Rei, how pretty she was and how Mamoru, of course, would've been attracted to a girl like her. "That's it. I'm just not attractive or beautiful enough for the one I love-"

"Oi, are you disappointed?" His smooth voice asked, and Usagi started to shake her head quickly. "N-No!" She half-lied.

"I just don't want to fall into my mother's trap," He said, and pulled a little bit more of the covers towards him. "I mean, if something were to happen tonight, then she might use this excuse to control my whole life. She'll try to control what I become when I grow up, where I want to shop, all those kinds of things that I might want to think for myself. So you'd better stop hoping and start sleeping!"

Usagi had to admit, he had a point. She could already imagine Auntie Saori exclaiming what she wanted Mamoru to do every moment of every day. She sighed, and pulled a bit more of the covers toward herself as she shuddered. "I thought you were gay." She whispered, and Mamoru sweatdropped. "Really..." He thought, smacking his forehead, and then shook his head. "Just go back to sleep."

Usagi smiled, tucking a golden lock of hair behind her ear as she replayed Mamoru's words in her mind. "I'm so happy," She thought, "He really doesn't hate me! I really don't want to fall asleep, with him by my side..." But with that, she dozed off.

About 8 hours later, Mamoru blinked and felt something kicking his stomach. He blinked and wondered if he should check, and then turned to his side, where Usagi's foot was right at the tip of his stomach as the rest of her body was sprawled across the bed, her hand near his face. He sighed, annoyed, and reached out, taking her light hand and moving it slightly away from his face, towards her chest. He looked up at her and noticed how serene her face looked, despite the fact that her foot was partly kicked into his stomach, the other hanging off the edge of the bed along with her arm, and her other arm buried into her chest, thanks to him. Her golden hair that wasn't in its' usual odango-ponytail style was falling over her face perfectly, her eyelids were covering those energetic cerulean eyes that had so much joyfulness in them, and her pink lips were opened slightly as she gently snored. "How on Earth can she sleep so soundly?" He wondered, and sighed as he turned over on his stomach, trying to get back to sleep not long before his alarm started screaming for him to get up. Usagi's arms started to wave back and forth as she screamed, startled by the sudden noise, and she accidentally smacked Mamoru in the face as he tried to get up. "Watch it, Odango!" He grumbled, and she bit her lip, trying to speak. "G-Gomenasai!" She apologized, and he shook his head and walked away from her. Usagi sighed as she scratched her head. Of course, even after their little chat last night, his feelings wouldn't still change.

She glanced over at her bag and saw the box of chocolate that she had worked so hard on. The red ribbon she had tried to tie delicately on the top, the chocolate she had tried so hard not to burn. She sighed and then took it out of her bag, and placed it underneath the lounging chair. She wanted him to have it, but didn't want to see what he ended up doing with it.

Twenty minutes later, Mamoru left the apartment complex, Usagi following him ecstatically, neither of them realizing the crowd around a certain man who had seemed to be frozen in the snow storm the other night. He seemed completely frozen and a bit hurt, but from his cloud-white lips, the words "My poor Usagi" kept coming out, his dark blue eyes filled with sadness as the crowd kept asking what had happened, and assuring him that an ambulance was coming. "I couldn't save you from Chiba..." were the last things he whispered before he completely blacked out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~I cannot disagree that girls need to know their standpoint...~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"So, you two will be fine together?" Saori's worried voice asked, her turquoise eyes blinking in concern, and Usagi simply waved her hands. "We'll be fine, Oba-sama!" She replied carelessly, and Saori nodded.

Uncle Koba, Auntie Saori, and Kenji were all leaving to go to one of Kenji and Kobayashi's school friend's wedding, leaving Shingo, Usagi, and Luna alone with the house for three days until they came back. Shingo, of course, opposed this idea and wanted Mamoru to come back while the adults were gone, not wanting to be alone with Usagi, as he was too scared that she'd end up burning the house down. Usagi, however, claimed that it was a silly idea (though she wanted to see Mamoru, too), and that she would take care of the three of them carefully.

"All right." Saori nodded, and kissed Shingo on his forehead and hugged Usagi tightly before waving as she reluctantly got into the taxi, which drove off. Usagi turned to Shingo, her eyes shining. "So, Shingo-kun! What do you want for dinner?" She asked brightly, and he bit his lip. "I think ramen." He said, and she pouted. "Don't be silly! Who eats ramen in a cup for dinner? Come on, what do you want?"

An hour later, Shingo was sitting at the dinner table, staring at a plate of-what Usagi called it- chicken stew as Usagi was watching him with a hopeful expression. He blinked and sat motionless as he pursed his lips, wondering whether if he should eat it or not. Then, slowly, he picked up his fork and dug it into the chicken and rice, lifted it to his mouth, opened it, and dumped the food in it. He then closed his mouth and started to chew it, trying to ignore Usagi's hopeful look. "Well?" She asked, her eyes gleaming. "Is it good? Shingo-kun, tell me! Is it edible?"

Shingo swallowed, the taste not that bad. In fact, it was better than the last time she cooked. The chicken tasted a little burnt, but it was actually edible and a bit tasty. "Yes." He whispered, and she jumped up and down, her hands clasped together. "Really? Yay!" She held up a finger to his face, her expression extremely happy. "Then I want you to finish it! All of it! No leftovers, okay?" She asked, walked over to the kitchen to give Luna her cat food, and then started to wash the dishes. "See, I told you, Shingo-kun! My food isn't that bad!" She chimed, and he shook his head as he started to eat the rest. "Why, oh why, was I stuck with her for three days...?"

Once Shingo finished and ran up the stairs, Usagi took his plate and started to wash it, glad that she had, for once, made something delicious and not non-edible. She hummed happily and then set the dishes to dry, turned off the light, and put Luna's blanket on top of her so that the kitty would sleep soundly. "Cute sleeper," She whispered, and then headed up the stairs to Mamoru's-now Shingo's- room. She knocked gently on the door. "Shingo-kun! You can take the shower first, I need to do a few more things!"

When there wasn't a reply, Usagi blinked in confusion. "Shingo-kun, are you ignoring me?" She asked, and there was complete silence. "All right, I'm coming in!"

Usagi pushed the door aside and saw Shingo kneeling on the floor, clutching his stomach in pain as sweat trickled down his face. "SHINGO!" She screamed, and ran over to him, glancing over at the pile of throw-up a few feet away from the two. "What's wrong?" She asked, but he just shook his head. "S-Stomach!" He replied, his face turning a bit red. "It hurts!" He wailed, and fell down, more sweat falling down his forehead.

Usagi felt her breath quicken, and didn't know what to do. "I can't run to the doctor's office with Shingo in my arms," She thought to herself, "And he's throwing up. I don't want to leave him so I can go call an ambulance, because that'll take longer, and he may be long gone by then, and I don't know which hospital to go to...oh, God!" She bit her lip as her crazed thoughts and questions raced in her mind madly, and then turned to Shingo, who was throwing up a second pile on his right side. "Wait for a moment, Shingo!" She told him, and then raced out of the room, grabbing the home phone and dialing the phone number that immediately came to her mind.

"Ne, Mamoru-san." A voice called out to Mamoru, and he stopped cleaning the table he was at, turning around to see his boss. "Yes?"

His boss reached out his hand, the phone in it. "There's a girl on the phone for you. She sounded very scared and said it was urgent."

Mamoru nodded, said, "Thanks", and took the phone, walking over to the "Employees only" area as he raised it to his ear. "Moshi moshi, this is Chiba."

"M-Mamoru!" Usagi's worried voice rang throughout the phone, and he was a bit startled at the fact that she was calling him at work. Especially at this hour, when he was about to leave. "What should I do?"

"Usagi?" He asked.

"S-Something's wrong with Shingo!" Her voice stuttered. "W-What should I do? It's a-all my f-fault!"

"Listen to me, calm do-"

"It's all my fault!"

"CALM DOWN!" Mamoru couldn't help but yell, and the other end was silent. He took a deep breath. "Tell me clearly and properly. What happened to Shingo?"

"W-Well, he finished his dinner about half an hour ago, and started to have a stomachache. He's thrown up twice ever since." Her voice started to break even more. "I-It must've b-been the f-food I c-cooked..."

"Did you eat it?"

"Y-Yes..."

"And you seem fine, so it means something else had caused his pain. Tell me his symptoms."

Mamoru listened as Usagi tried to list Shingo's symptoms, and then he cleared his throat. "It may be appendicitis. But listen to me. First, lay Shingo on his side so that none of the vomit gets lodged in his throat or lungs, all right?"

"Y-Yes."

"Then, call an ambulance and tell them to get you to Juuban Hospital. That's where our family doctor is, and so they can look at his medical records and figure out what's wrong with him faster than another hospital. I'll try to get there as soon as I can."

"O-Okay."

"Usagi."

"Yes?"

"Please take care of Shingo."

"I will!" Usagi said, hung up the phone, and raced to where Shingo was.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~You need to aim at the person you want...~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mamoru dashed down the halls and ran into the elevator, slamming the circle that said "5 - Pediatrics" in bright yellow letters, his breath quickening by the second as he thought of what he was told an hour ago. "Had Usagi done what I told her to?" He wondered, a bit scared that something had gone wrong. "Oh God..."

Once the silver doors had opened, he ran out to the front desk, panting heavily. "Excuse me, where is Chiba Shingo?" He asked, and the secretary looked down at the white sheets in front of her, flipping through them as he stared impatiently. "Chiba Shingo...he's in surgery right now."

"WHAT?"

"Yes, on the second floor-"

Mamoru didn't hear the rest, he just dashed back towards the elevators before the doors closed and rammed his fist at the "2 - Surgery" button, wiping the sweat off of his forehead as he watched the arrow turn down to the second floor. When the doors opened again, he ran out towards the front desk again, but no one was there.

He whipped around and saw a nurse carrying a clipboard and ran over to her. "Excuse me, my last name is Chiba-"

"Oh, are you a relative of Chiba Shingo?" She asked kindly, and he nodded frantically. She turned around and gestured that he follow her. "His surgery has already finished. I'll get the doctor who was in charge of the operation to talk to you." She started to head down the hall and he followed her to a small office, where a doctor with black hair and thick glasses sat, reading some papers.

"This is Chiba-san," The nurse told the doctor, "He's one of Chiba Shingo's relatives."

The doctor nodded and turned to Mamoru as the nurse closed the door. "The surgery to clear the obstruction was very successful, so there's no need to worry." He said.

"It was an intestinal obstruction?" He asked, his eyes widening, and the doctor nodded. "But the treatment he received before the ambulance reached his home was very good, and it helped him a lot. But he'll need to stay at least three weeks for recovery."

Mamoru nodded. "Thank you." He said, and the doctor smiled as Mamoru walked out the door. He took a deep breath and then turned to the nurse. "Excuse me, where's the girl who brought my brother?"

"She's taking care of him, in room 202." She pointed at a room down the hall. "She's all alone and must be very anxious."

Mamoru nodded. "Thank you." He said, and walked down the hall to the room the nurse indicated, where "Chiba Shingo" was written on the placard slid inside. He pushed the door aside, revealing a certain odango sitting in a chair, her expression extremely worried, and another laying in the bed, sleeping.

Usagi blinked as if she was almost asleep and looked up to see him standing in the doorway. "Ah, Mamoru!" She exclaimed, and he walked in, looking at his unconscious little brother on the bed. "How's he doing?"

"He's still under anesthesia," She responded as he took the other chair in the room and pulled it up to the bed, watching his brother. "So he's still asleep."

"They told me it was intestinal obstruction. I can't believe it," He said, shaking his head. "For the first time in my life, I didn't know something. It felt...so...weird..."

"It's all right!" He heard Usagi chirp. "There are some things in life we can't always know, Mamoru!"

He turned around, facing her. "You know," He said, smiling a bit. "The doctor praised you a bit just now, saying that the way you treated Shingo before the ambulance came was very helpful."

Usagi blinked, her cheeks turning a bit red. "O-Oh, well, I was just following your instructions, because I didn't know what to do, so the credit is actually yours, Mamoru!" She smiled, and then gasped. "Oh, I still have to inform Oba-sama and the others about this!" She exclaimed as Mamoru noticed her hands trembling. "I'll go and make a phone call!" She turned around to head for the door.

"Usagi." Mamoru got up from his seat, and she immediately froze in her tracks as she checked her pockets and started to wipe her quick tears with her already-drenched sweater sleeve.

"O-Oh no...I forgot the number of where they're staying, and my phone and purse are at home...I really am stupid-"

Usagi silenced at once when Mamoru walked right up to her, put his arm around her shoulders, and leaned forward so that his mouth was right next to her ear. His arm moved up a bit and his hand was right above her head. "Thank you, Usagi." He whispered in her ear, and her eyes widened as more tears welled up in them.

"M-MAMORU!" She turned around and flung her arms around him, hugging him tightly. "I-I was s-so scared!" She sobbed as her face was half-crushed against his chest, wanting a hug so badly. "S-So scared!"

To her surprise, he didn't push her away or yell at her. Instead, he whispered, "Shhh". Mamoru caressed her head gently, trying to calm the sobbing blonde down, "It's all right now." He told her softly.

He continued to calm her down, and Usagi couldn't help but let out all the tears she kept in when she called the ambulance, when the doctor told her that he needed surgery, and when she noticed that Mamoru had arrived.

"This is the first time Mamoru said anything kind to me..." She thought, continuing to cry in his arms. "The first time using his arms to embrace me like this, and at this very moment, all my worries and anxieties have been relieved by it."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~No longer want to wait?/I'll send you my lips and be yours...~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Shingo's eyes twitched for a moment and he blinked, his teal eyes confused for a moment as to where he was. The last thing he remembered was Usagi's crying yet calm face smiling at him, assuring him that they were almost there, and that he would be all right. He briefly remembered her hugging him, too, and he felt a small blush coming onto his cheeks, then shook his head. He looked up and saw Usagi sitting in a chair a few feet away, sleeping. He rolled his eyes. "Careless Odango-baka." He whispered softly, but knew that if it weren't for her, he probably would've been in much more pain.

He took a deep breath and tried to get up, but pain shot through his stomach and he sunk back into his sheets, his half-open eyes watching the lifeless pale-white room. He sighed and let his eyelids sink back down, hearing only his heart beating in the whole room. He turned on his side, sighing. His stomach had been hurting a lot less than before, but he could still feel that awkward feeling he had earlier lurking around in his stomach.

The door suddenly opened, and he heard someone walk in. He heard that person walk by his bed and set something on the table beside his bed. Shingo wanted to see who it was, but didn't want that person to know if he was awake or not if it was a nurse or a doctor. He didn't want to know what was wrong with him, whether it was good news or bad news!

Suddenly, a familiar voice muttered, "The cute, over-worried odango-baka," and Shingo felt his heart leap. Onii-chan!

"On-" He started to turn on his side to face him, but then was immediately silenced as he realized what was happening.

Mamoru was standing, leaning forward towards Usagi. Shingo watched quietly as his older brother bended down towards Usagi and kiss her gently on her lips as she slept, and Shingo's turquoise eyes widened in shock, his jaw dropped. He blinked and his felt his breath quicken a bit, extremely surprised by what was happening.

Mamoru turned around, noticed that Shingo had just seen what happened, and lifted a finger to his lips in a "shh"ing gesture, winking. Shingo could feel his face burn red and he nodded frantically. Mamoru chuckled and sat in the chair next to Usagi as Shingo turned on his side, his mind scrambled by the recent events. "W-What? Did Onii-chan...did Onii-chan just kiss Usagi?"

A/N: YAY! :D More romance and a cliffy~! (: Anyways, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter(: Sorry it's such a short chapter...-_-''

Review pleaseeeeee? :D