Author's Notes: Thanks for keeping up with the story! Hope you'll like the next chapter!

The Other Side of the Fence: (Aqua, Vanitas, Terra, and Ventus side of the story)

Chapter 9: Growing Apart:

Aqua stared down at the white, patio table in front of her as she was surrounded by Terra's and her parents. Their parents around them were laughing. Terra glanced over at Aqua and noticed how she seemed sad. She zoned out of the conversations around her as she didn't feel much like participating.

Across town, Vanitas stood in an alleyway, with his eyes lowered and leaned against the wall with his arms crossed. Some of the boys that were with him were hurting one boy who was on the ground. Vanitas paid less attention to what was going on as his thoughts traveled back to Aqua. Eventually his heart had felt numb.

A few days later, Aqua sat at her desk as she didn't pay attention to much around her. Rikku, Paine, and Yuna noticed that she had been sad more often. "Aqua…" Yuna said softly. She looked away from them. They didn't want to make things worse, but they had to ask.

"Is everything okay?" Rikku asked.

Aqua didn't answer. She glanced back out of the corner of her eye. In the back of the room, Vanitas's desk was empty. Lately, she hadn't seen him much. Whenever she would try to call, he didn't answer. When she tried him at home, he wasn't there. She turned her head away. Yuna reached out for her. "Aqua?"

Soon, class was dismissed. Right away, Aqua stood up and walked from the room. Her friends looked concerned and called for her, but she wouldn't respond or come back. In the hallway, she wondered if there was another way she should confront Vanitas. Then, Rikku, Paine, and Yuna ran out to her. "Aqua!" She looked over at them to see the concerned looks on their faces.

Rikku tried smiling at her. "Hey Aqua…! There's no use being down because the school dance is coming up."

Aqua looked over at Rikku curious. "A dance?"

Yuna grinned. "Yeah! Our school is going to have one this year. It's going to be perfect." Aqua smiled a little to hide her sadness. For her, it wouldn't be.

Rikku looked curious. "So what's got you so down? Problems with the boyfriend?"

Aqua looked off toward the side, disappointed. "I don't think…I have one anymore…"

Rikku and Yuna looked disappointed as Paine crossed her arms. They could understand more about why she was sad lately. Rikku shrugged. "Maybe it was for the best." Aqua looked down. She didn't say anything. She didn't want it to be over. After talking with her friends, she headed for home. She stared down, still thinking about Vanitas.

"Aqua!" She stopped and looked back. Terra caught up with her. "Hey!"

"Hey..." she replied back.

He looked a little concerned. "Are you okay? Rikku said that you weren't yourself."

She smiled a little with her eyes closed. "Yeah. I'm okay."

He smiled a little. "Then…I hope I'm not too late."

Aqua was surprised, but mostly confused. "Too late for what?"

He held out his hand. "I was hoping that, if someone didn't ask you already, I would like to ask you to the dance."

Aqua blinked a few times surprised. "Me? Why?"

Terra rubbed the back of his head. "Well I thought it would be nice to go with someone I know. Someone who's fun to be around. You don't have to see it as a date, but if anything, I rather go with you."

Aqua was still surprised. She looked down toward the ground, thinking about Vanitas. At this point, it seemed that their relationship was starting to fade. If he wasn't talking to her, then she figured that he wouldn't ask her. Then, she looked up at Terra as she smiled gently. "Sure! I would love to."

A smile came on his face, relieved. "We can talk about the details later." Aqua nodded. Afterwards, Terra walked away. Aqua placed her head down. Apart of her thought it was good to get out, but she was still sad about not going with Vanitas. Afterwards, Aqua headed home alone. She stepped onto her front porch when someone called her from nearby.

"Aqua!" Quickly, her head turned. The voice was close enough that she thought maybe it could be Vanitas. When she looked over, she saw Ventus smile at her. Aqua relaxed as she sighed silently. Ventus walked over to the fence. "Hey!"

Aqua forced a smile. "Hi Ven!"

Ventus stood, a little nervous. "So um…?"

Aqua looked curious. She walked over to the fence in front of him. It didn't make it easy to what he had to ask. "Ven?"

Ventus rubbed the back of his head. "Well…I heard that there's a dance coming up. I was just wondering if you…needed someone to go with…"

Aqua looked surprised especially being asked twice in a row. She smiled, apologetic. "Sorry Ven… I would love to, but someone has already asked me and I said yes."

Ventus looked down, disappointed. "Oh…"

Aqua felt bad. She rubbed the top of his head. "Tell you what. Next dance, I'll be your date."

Ventus lifted his head up as he smiled. It was better to ask than not. Ventus nodded. "Okay." Aqua looked down, thinking about asking Ventus about Vanitas. Ventus noticed the stress look on her face. "Aqua?"

Aqua snapped out of her thoughts. "Huh? Oh…! Um…?" Then, she looked concerned. "I haven't seen your brother around lately... Is he home now?"

Ventus shook his head. "No… He hasn't been around lately. I'm not sure where he's been." Aqua looked down disappointed and concerned. She wondered if he was all right. Ventus looked curious. "Aqua?"

"It's nothing Ven, but…" Aqua looked over at him. "If you see him…will you let me know if he's all right?" Aqua headed toward her house. "I'll talk to you later." Ventus wanted to ask, but soon had let it go and headed inside of his house.

Later that night, Vanitas walked through the door of his house. Ventus was sitting in the kitchen, eating. "Hey!" Vanitas didn't respond. There was a tired and irritated look on his face. He was getting ready to head upstairs when Ventus stopped him again. "I heard the school was having a dance. Are you going to take anybody to it?" Vanitas frowned toward him. He thought about it for a second since it was the first time he had heard about it, but realized there was no point to care. He didn't answer again. Soon after, he went upstairs. Ventus got a little upset. "Man! What is up with him?"

A few weeks passed. Still no words were spoken between Aqua and Vanitas. It was night when Aqua's mother called her from downstairs. "Aqua! Your date has arrived!" Soon after, Aqua stepped down, wearing a light blue, strapless dress that was long enough to reach the floor. She wore a diamond necklace around her neck she borrowed from her mother. She smiled at her parents, but mostly at her date that was waiting downstairs. He wore a black tuxedo with a black, long tie. Aqua's mother went to her first once she got off of the stairs "Awe! You look so beautiful!"

"Thank you," Aqua replied quietly. Terra extended out his arm which Aqua walked beside him and took. The two had been talking a lot more since he asked her to the dance.

Aqua's mom stood excited. "I have to take pictures first!" She pulled out her camera and took a few pictures of the two together. "So? Will your parents be getting pictures of you two Terra?"

Terra nodded. "Yes. We're heading back over to my house now. I won't keep Aqua out too late."

Aqua's mother smiled. "Stay out a little later if you need to." Aqua and Terra smiled toward them. The two turned around and left out of the door.

In his room, Vanitas was lying on his bed when his phone rung. After listening, he headed downstairs where Ventus was sitting on the couch. He looked back surprised. "Hey!"

Vanitas gave him an annoyed look. "What?"

"Are you heading to the dance like that?" Ventus asked.

Vanitas looked confused. "What are you talking about?"

Ventus leaned on the edge of the couch. "Tonight's the night of the dance. I told you about this weeks ago." Vanitas looked surprised. He had forgotten all about it. Ventus pointed over in the kitchen. "Mom left you a suit just in case you wanted to go." Vanitas looked over in the kitchen. He wondered if Aqua was going. He was curious to find out. Then, he mentally shook the idea from his head. Before he stepped out, Ventus spoke again. "Oh yeah…" Vanitas looked back serious. "Aqua's been asking about you. She seems really worried."

Vanitas's eyes lowered toward the ground. Inside, it surprised him that Aqua asked about him after all this time. A lot of question came to mind about her, but he decided not to ask. Afterwards, the thought came that maybe she still cared about him. He had some time before his next job would come up so he could find out for sure. "Did she say if she was going?"

Ventus looked surprised. "Yeah, but…" Vanitas walked away before he could finish. He didn't get a chance to tell him that she had a date.

Vanitas walked into the kitchen and grabbed the suit that was left for him. After he changed upstairs, he left his house to go to hers. He thought this would be his chance to see Aqua. He climbed to her window. "Aqua?" Inside, the room was dark so he figured that she must've already left.

At school, there were people around in the gym either standing around, talking on the side or dancing. Aqua stood with her friends Rikku, Paine, and Yuna. Rikku leaned toward Aqua. "This is fun right?!"

When she looked forward, Aqua saw Terra stand next to them. Their eyes met which they smiled at each other. Terra walked over to her. "Care to dance?" he asked. Aqua nodded. He took her hand and they headed further out into the crowd. Slowly, they began to dance in a circle from side to side. The two smiled gently toward each other.

Rikku, Paine, and Yuna smiled as they watched the two of them. They seemed to really get along. "Yuna!" The three of them looked over to see Tidus wave. Yuna smiled and took his hand. He led her to the dance floor as well.

Rikku placed her hands on her hips. "I guess it's just the two of us now." Paine nodded.

As everyone danced, Vanitas stopped at the doorway of the gym. If Aqua was alone with her friends, then maybe he would realize his mistake and he could make up for what he had done. When he searched inside, he saw Aqua and Terra in plain sight as they were near the edge of the crowd. Aqua stared at Terra smiling as he did the same. The two never took their eyes off each other. Her arms were wrapped around his neck as his arms were wrapped around her waist. The sight was almost too much...

"I'm glad that you came out tonight," Terra said.

Aqua nodded. "Me too." She looked down a little. "I didn't think I would have fun tonight, but it really has…been nice."

Terra was happy to hear that. "Then I'm glad you said yes." Aqua smiled a little. Then a feeling came across him in the moment. "Aqua," he whispered. He leaned in closer which her eyes widened in surprised. Before she could say anything, she felt his lips pressed against hers. Vanitas was about to step out toward them determined, but then froze once he saw Terra pressed his lips against Aqua's. No words came to him. He could no longer move. Then, it had finally dawned on him. It seemed that she really had moved on with someone else. What they had was nothing more than a lie. Anger and hurt filled him. Unable to watch any longer, he turned and left.

Aqua grabbed onto Terra's shoulders. After her shock, she was finally able to pull herself away. Terra looked surprised. Had he made a mistake? "Did I do something wrong?"

Aqua separated herself from Terra, worried and stunned. "I'll be right back." He watched her, worried he had gone too far. She walked away and sat at a table. What happened was unexpected. She reached into her purse when suddenly she felt something. She pulled out the necklace with the ring on the end that Vanitas had given her. She stared at it surprised. She hadn't worn it for a while and forgot where she had put it. She stared at it and wondered if she had made a mistake for not trying to make things work. She remembered that she had also promised him to keep him out of trouble. Both of them had broken their promises. Realizing she had to go back, she rushed over to Terra. "Terra. I have to go."

He looked surprised. "What?"

"I'm sorry." She took off running.

He reached his hand out. "Wait! Do you need a…ride…?" It was too late, she was already gone.

Aqua went back to Vanitas's house and knocked on the door as much as she could before Ventus answered. His eyes widened in surprised. "Aqua?"

She stepped inside. "Have you seen Vanitas?"

Ventus looked confused. "He didn't come back. Last I saw him, he went to the school. I don't know where he is now." Aqua looked surprised. She wondered if Vanitas had seen her there with Terra. Why else would he have gone and then left without a word? Ventus looked around her neck and seen the necklace that Vanitas gave her. "Hey! Where did you get that from?" Aqua looked down and grabbed onto the necklace around her neck. She looked at it and wondered where Vanitas could be now.

Across town, a guy ran out of the alley scared. Lexaeus caught the boy with his hand and threw him against the wall which knocked the air out of him. Demyx frowned as he looked over at Vanitas. "Look at this guy…" Vanitas leaned against the wall with a bottle of alcohol in his hand. His head was down as his bangs covered over his eyes. He waved his hand. "I still can't believe he gets to work under Master Xehanort even after he just up and left the organization!"

Xigbar smirked beside him. "Well… what are you going to do? It's what he wants." He headed closer toward Vanitas. "So? What's got you so down…?" Vanitas didn't move, much less answer. Xigbar bounced his gun against his shoulder. "Let me guess… Girl problems huh?" Afterwards, he noticed Vanitas's slip reaction of parting his lips. Xigbar shook his head. "She was out of your league anyway! She was probably just using you to piss her parents off. They have a funny way of doing that."

Vanitas tossed the empty bottle which broke against the ground. He turned and started walking away. "I'm going to get more…"

Xigbar smirked. "Tell you what? I know a way you can feel better…" Vanitas looked back as he frowned. "You'll forget all about it."

Later that night, the four sat in a hideaway. A woman approached Lexaeus who kept his frown on. Before she could get close, he pushed her away. Xigbar smirked over at him. "Come on big guy! You need to relax."

Lexaeus crossed his arms. "We should get back."

"Come on! Just for a few minutes. We're trying to cheer the kid up!"

Two girls cuddled next to Demyx as he grinned with his sitar in hand. "I'm already feeling a lot better!"

Xigbar looked up at one woman standing nearby. "Our friend down there needs a little cheering up. He just lost his girlfriend."

The older woman walked over to Vanitas who was leaning over with his arms on his legs, staring down. He seemed out of it. The woman kneeled down to look him in the eyes. "What's wrong sweetie? You got your heart broken?" She placed her hand against his chest and pushed him back against the chair. "I know how to make you feel better…" Her hand rubbed against his chest when she noticed something in his pocket. When she tipped the pocket, she saw munny inside. Her hand slipped further down. She loosened his belt and unbuttoned his pants. Snapping out of his haze, Vanitas placed his hand against her forehead and pushed her away. She fell back on the floor as she let out a grunt. Vanitas stood up as he grabbed the bottle of alcohol on the armrest and walked away.

Xigbar looked over curious. "Where are you going?" Vanitas walked out of the empty building without answering. He made it into the alleyway stumbling and bouncing from wall to wall. Memories flashed through his mind of happier times with Aqua and him that he just wanted to forget. Then, he leaned against the wall beside a dumpster. It wasn't long before he fell asleep.

The next morning, Vanitas opened his eyes. His eyes winced as he leaned over and noticed the sun getting through. He placed his hand against his head that pounded in pain from his hangover. Memories of last night flooded back to him mainly when he saw Aqua with Terra. His eyes lowered. He had lost her. Now that she was gone, he had nothing left to lose.

"Hey! There you are!" When he looked over, he saw Xigbar head toward him. "Kind of a cliché isn't it? A bum sleeping in the gutter." Vanitas looked down. He was in no mood. "Forget about that girl. That's why you're back isn't it?" Vanitas looked off to the side. Xigbar started walking away. "Come on. The boss wants to see us. Hopefully you can stand." Vanitas struggled a little to sit up as he slid up against the wall. Afterwards, he followed Xigbar. After some time had passed, things were back to the way they used to be.

Thanks for reading! I'll be back to update soon!