The Heart's Choice

The former Guardians are finally going to middle school, but it seems that it's not going to be as good as it seemed when the student council president has it out for Amu. Meanwhile, Amu finally has to face her hardest decision: Tadase or Ikuto? Utau is coming under stress from work and develops a serious problem that strains her relationship with Kukai. Rima's parents are fighting more than ever and she's isolating herself from Nagihiko. Kairi doesn't know if he likes Amu or Yaya. Yaya is feeling abandoned and left behind while everybody else is dealing with their problems. And that's not all! Something dark is rising, and it's threatening to destroy everything they've worked so hard for...

Chapter Ten - Hurry! Don't be Left Behind!

"So Broken-Eggs also have an effect on the people around them," Kairi mused. "This is troubling."

"The only thing we can do is keep up with the patrols," Tadase replied.

"If that's all, I have to go," Kukai said, glancing down at his watch.

"Alright," Hikaru said. "Dismissed."

The garden was silent as everybody grabbed their things and got ready to leave. Nobody said anything. Yaya pursed her lips, not liking the cold atmosphere that was surrounding them.

"Wait!" she exclaimed.

They turned and stared at her.

"We should do something fun. Let's go to the new amusement park!" she suggested enthusiastically.

Everybody looked at her with extremely less enthusiasm.

"I don't know."

"I think I'm busy."

"Um..."

"We never do anything fun!" she complained. "It's all so serious and sad all the time!"

"Yuiki-san - " Tadase started.

"Tadase-kun!" she whined, stamping her foot on the ground.

"I'll try, Yaya," Amu said. "I think some fun would do us some good."

They all exchanged some looks and then murmured some form of agreement. Yaya beamed and skipped around in a circle.

"Okay, we'll meet there at noon!" she said happily.

SCSCSC

At one o'clock, Yaya was still alone. At first she'd been patiently waiting outside the amusement park, wondering where everybody was. Perhaps they were just late, or maybe they'd forgotten what time it was. Then she'd been getting their calls and texts.

"Sorry, Yaya, I have to babysit Ik - Ami. Maybe another time?" was what Amu had said. Her friend's stutter had confused her, though.

Tadase called saying that they were going out of town.

Rima texted her saying that her parents wouldn't let her.

Nagi called and said that his parents wouldn't let him, either.

Kukai texted her saying simply, "Can't."

Shoji hadn't contacted her at all, but she'd expected that.

Hikaru was busy with his side schooling from his grandfather.

Rikka said she was spending the day with her parents.

The only one she hadn't heard from was Kairi, and by that time she'd just given up hope.

"Nobody cares about Yaya anymore," she muttered to herself, feeling tears come into her eyes. "Yaya's just a baby. Yaya can't do anything right. She can't even get her friends to have a little fun."

She pulled out her cell phone and was about to ask her parents to pick her up when she notied Kairi walking towards her. She stood up and brushed off her pants, then ran towards him.

His eyebrows pushed together in confusion when he saw her running towards him. "Ace - " He was cut off when she hugged him. Awkwardly, he patted her back, not knowing exactly what to do.

"I'm sorry for being late. My sister got lost and we couldn't find the way here. And I lost my cell phone," he said.

She released him and he looked around.

"Where is everybody else?" he asked.

"Not coming," she grumbled, folding her arms and huffing.

His eyebrows raised. "You've been waiting by yourself?"

Her bottom lip quivered for a split second as she nodded.

"I'm sorry, Ace," he said.

She shrugged half-heartedly. He swallowed in the silence that followed. She was obviously down about being alone for an entire hour.

Musashi nudged him and he nodded.

"Ace, would you take me around the amusement park?" he asked.

She looked at him, paused, then took his arm and sprinted to the amusement park.

For the entire day they rode every ride, played every game, and bought almost every single food and drink item there was to buy. They'd forgotten about their Broken-Egg worries, their school stresses, and everything else except being in the moment. It was one of the most fun day Kairi had ever had in his life.

His thoughts began to wander to Yaya and Amu. Amu sparkled with confidence and leadership. She knew how to have fun and how to be serious. Whenever she broke down she recovered soon after with more spunk than before.

Then there was the Ace, who ceased to amaze him. She looked life in the eye with a smile and a wink, refusing to be sad for long. Everything seemed to be so simple: do you want to or not? If you do, then do. If you don't, then don't. That's the way to stay happy.

The sun was setting and they decided to ride the Ferris wheel one more time. It was quiet for a while as they stared at the sunset. Then he voiced his concerns.

"Are you okay?" he asked, noticing yet again the sadness that crept into her eyes every now and then, as if thinking about something far away.

She nodded, but he wasn't convinced.

"Are you sure?" he persisted.

"No," she replied. "Yaya wanted this to be a fun day for the Guardians. There's too much sadness and uncertainty for Yaya. If we had a fun day today, then we would have fun memories. Yaya's had fun making memories with Kairi-kun, but..."

"I understand," he said.

Yaya looked up at him and their eyes met. They smiled gently at each other. In that moment, she realized how alone they were. Her eyes widened slightly and her heartbeat quickened slightly. What was wrong with her? She only ever got this way around Kukai -

Just then, fireworks began exploding in the evening sky.

"Thank you for the memories, Ace," Kairi said.

She began to smile, then frowned and glared at him. He noticed her glare and was startled.

"Wha-?"

"I told you not to call me Ace! And not 'Yaya-senpai' either! Just Yaya!" she yelled, waving her arms back and forth.

"Wah, you're going to tip the cart!" he said.

"I'm not listening!" she shouted, waving her arms even harder.

"Ace, please - I mean - " Kairi tried.

"Lalalalalalalalala!" she yelled.

When the ride was over, she continued not talking or listening to him as they walked out of the amusement park.

Eventually, he just stopped trying. They stood leaning against opposite sides of a light post near the parking lot, waiting for their parents. He frowned, wondering why she was making such a big deal out of what he called her.

Something nudged his arm and he saw Pepe holding a poppy flower. He took the flower and remembered that summer when Yaya had worked so hard to make a big ball that would burst during the graduation. They'd filled it with a thousand poppy flowers.

He turned around and held the flower out to Yaya. She blushed slightly and stared at him with a quizzical look.

"Thank you...Yaya," he said.

Her mouth opened slightly with shock and she hugged him again. This time, he knew what to do, and hugged her back.

A car honked at them and they turned to see their cars waiting for them.

"Bye bye, Kairi!" she called, running to her car.

"Goodbye Yaya," he replied, noticing that she hadn't added the "-kun" honorific. Smiling to himself, got into his car.

"Kairi, you're blushing," Yukari said.

"Am I?" he mumbled, staring out the window. Musashi shook his head, giving up on trying to understand.

Yay, happy chapter! I had fun writing this one and I'm pretty happy about it. I'm working on a picture of the Guardians wearing the middle school uniforms and it actually looks good! So, look forward to that picture soon!

Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Then please review or PM me! Til next time!

~Kicon

Next Episode: Not Again! Misleading Rumors!