I'm finally updating! Thank you for waiting, though I'm sorry it took so long. I've actually been updating my other fanfictions and starting a few new ones, so if you keep up with me a bit, you'll see why some of my stories lag. Inspiration is also hard to come by. Thank you so much for still reading and reviewing!

"Get out now!" Snow hisses again, his muscles flexing and ready for action. He remembers getting ready for battle with Lightning, except then they were on the same team. They would join forces and battle the bad guys. But now she was the bad guy to him, to his relationship with Hope. She bends her knees a bit, Snow notices, pure hatred in her eyes. It's so intense that he feels a bit intimidated, like he used to be with her. Before he can think, Lightning has the knife she picked up earlier poised in a stabbing position specifically reserved for Snow, and she's lunging across the table toward him.

Snow's reaction time is within seconds. He can sense Yuj, Maqui, and Lebreau leaving hastily, not wanting to get caught up in Lightning/Snow fighting. Serah stays standing, yelling at her sister to stop. Snow lunges over the table to meet Light in the middle. His body collides hard with hers and he admits to himself that he didn't think this one through entirely. He falls on top of her and she lets out a yelp. Her back lands hard on the wooden table, automatically bruising her shoulder blades. She feels her ribs strain. Snow tries to get up but the table shakes violently. The table cloth warps around them as the wood bends. Snow can feel the cracking of the wood. The table finally collapses. Their bodies fall the ground with a large thud and Lightning lets out one of those heart wrenching screams. Her body is in pure agony, she never really thinks of Snow's size, and how truly superior to her it really is.

Snow slowly gets to his elbows over her, reminds himself of the knife in her hand, and grabs her wrist. She struggles against him; no doubt her body is still hurting. He squeezes her slim wrist.

"Stop it!" She almost cries out.

"Drop it." He says sternly, his chest starting to hurt from the fall. She stares into his eyes and realizes that she won't win this battle.

"Get off me." She says through gritted teeth. He doesn't move. Her pink hair is a mess and her outfit is askew, she looks a wreck. She drops the knife, its blade glistening at it drops to the floor inches below it. He still doesn't move. Snow can tell Light is still infuriated and doesn't plan to release her until she calms down.

Tears soak into Hope's shirt as he wipes his nose again, hands shaking. The room spins around him and his body seems to move on its own. And again. It's only a moment before he realizes that someone is knocking furiously on the door his back is against. He scoots away from the door's reach before weakly welcoming them to open the door. A flushed Lebreau burst through the doorframe, tears in her eyes. He's never seen her this unnerved. He's had her open up to him, nearly cry on his shoulder once, but never has he ever seen her scared. Alarm immediately flashes in his mind.

"What's going on?" Hope asks fast.

"They're fighting." She gasps. Hope is out of the door in less than a second, leaving the brunette behind in his room. He bumps his arm on the doorknob in his haste and curses loudly. He wishes he could say it was the worst kind of pain.

"What the hell happened in the five seconds I was gone?" Hope shouts. Snow turns to face him, abandoning the thought of restraining Lightning. He gets to his feet, feeling his joints ache from the fall. This must look so awful to Hope. A demolished table, his questionable fiancée pinning his once best friend to the ground in rage. It must be a lot to take in.

Snow takes a step toward Hope, and Hope backs away slowly. Snow can feel his heart ache, he wishes he could rewind and never show up to Lightning's house that morning.

"I didn't do anything with her." He points down to Lightning, his eyebrows raised. Hope studies him for a moment, as if he were looking at him for the first time ever. He can feel the rage he once had for him, the time that he almost killed him. It suddenly occurs to him that he's not the only victim. Hope was thinking this whole time that he had suffered from Snow's love for Serah, that all of this was Snow's fault. But he had tried to kill him. His hate caused him to raise a knife to Snow, with intent to kill. He might have been young, but it was no excuse.

Hope steps toward Snow and looks into his eyes and sees the sincerity there, as legible in their depths as if he were reading a large print book. He's never lied to me. I owe him so much. This is nothing compare to what I did. He thinks. How could Hope freak out over an accusation when Snow didn't blame him for attempted murder?

"I'm sorry." They both say at the same time. Hope can see Serah crying at the other side of the room. He's suddenly aware of everything that has lead up to this point. Hope wraps his thin arms around Snow's thick, and still aching, torso and squeezes. Tears run down in his face in hot streaks. He can hear Snow's heartbeat. He buries his face in his chest, really feeling Snow with him for the first time in a while.

"Light, no!" Hope hears Serah's screech. Time seems to slow down, Hope thinks. But he comes to the conclusion that that's not possible. He listens to Snow's heartbeat, and it seems slower. Hope's eyes widen. Time didn't slow down, Snow did. He feels a strained breath leave Snow's body. He begins to go limp and Hope grips the clothing on Snow's lower back, trying to hold him up.

"Snow? Snow!" Hope slouches with the large man, his knees buckling as he descends to the floor. He goes completely limp and Hope searches for a reason. It doesn't take him long to realize that Lightning is standing over them and that Snow's back is red with blood.

A knife sticks out from his back, figuratively and physically. Horror rises in Hope's throat but he can't find his voice to scream. The world actually stands still this time. A million thoughts race through Hope's mind all at once. He feels for a heartbeat frantically, not knowing where to press his fingers. Something that he had wished for so many years ago had finally come true.

And he couldn't feel worse.

I think this chapter was kind of intense. Hope you enjoyed reading! Please review, I love reading what you guys think about the story!