AN: Part 3 of 3 is here! Thank you for being patient, I've been really busy and hardly had the time to write anything. Plus I struggled yet again with this chapter, so I hope this isn't too bad. With that being said, I hope you enjoy this chapter...it's quite long. :)

P.S. Sorry for any mistakes I may have missed.

Chapter 10: Elastic Heart

"You're beautiful like snow, so pure and cold."

Lelouch leaned his head against the wall as he looked at the gift he had made for C.C. He hasn't been able to sleep since their departing, not like it really mattered anyways. He's actually been struggling to get a wink of sleep since his arrival at the vacation home. Although it appears that when he is with her he could become well rested.

The tall midnight-haired man stood to cover her gift with a sheet reminding himself that he had to re-wrap it since he'd opened it. He strode across the soft carpeted floor to gaze outside the morning world before him.

It was snowing.

The small flakes fell covering the ground in a white sheet.

"C.C.'s like snow." Mumbling to himself, he placed a palm over his beating heart, a beating heart that yearned so very much for the woman he loved for so long. He could remember the moment he fell in love with her so vividly in his memory. She was so enticing and lively that day he felt as if he were looking at an angel, never wanting the moment to end.

The beating of his heart quickened just from the thought of her but didn't last too long when the image of his older brother ruptured his mind.

"If I hadn't been so gutless, would she have made the same decision?" He closed his eyes embracing the cool air that passed through the window from outside and into his room making it feel a thousand times colder than it already was. He walked back flopping onto his bed with a groan only to stare up at the ceiling.

"Like Snow."

The Past

C.C. woke up with a blurred vision, not able to fully grasp her surroundings over the pounding headache. She closed her eyes tightly for a moment before opening them again to a clearer sight. It didn't take long for her to grasp the fact that she was in the hospital, simply by how the room was set up with the TV propped up the wall and the complex medical machines she had no idea what they were called.

She eyed the TV for a brief moment before looking over to the sofa chair where the boy with raven hair slept.

A gentle smile lifted her lips. "Lelouch."

With whatever strength she had she slowly sat up in bed ignoring the dull sharp pain that emitted from the left side of her chest making her sound out a small whimper.

Her small sound was loud in the room and awakened the half-sleeping Lelouch, opening his eyes, he watched her struggle to sit up with the occasional grip on her left chest in pain. His features downcast before leaving the couch to aid his best friend.

"You know C.C., there's a remote to help elevate you." He grabbed the controller to reposition the bed so she could sit up comfortably, setting it down he gazed into her pretty amber eyes.

"Hi Lelouch."

"Hi C.C."

A moment of silence passed between them before he jerked her into a tight embrace.

"I'm so sorry C.C. it's all my fault! If I had called you or left sooner, none of this would have happened to you." Tears lightly flowed down his cheeks.

He blames himself for everything, for her being in the hospital, he couldn't help but worry for her.

After she had lost consciousness his heart pounded with unsettling fear of losing her. He screamed for help over and over again before dragging her limp body with his slacking strength across the dirt road, that was when a car had finally passed by and stopped.

A young couple emerged from the blue car asking him many questions he couldn't answer at the moment. Lelouch couldn't remember what he had told them other than begging them to help her because her life mattered more than his tired state. The young couple took her to the hospital and after that everything was a blur. He remembers seeing his parent's worried faces and taking him home to wash up. Soon after, he was questioned by policemen but during the whole time, C.C. stayed in his mind.

"Lelouch, it's not your fault." C.C. brought a hand up to pat his head bringing him back to the present. "What Mama did, you're not to blame." He pulled away to look into her honest golden eyes. "You don't have to blame yourself because," She gently caressed his cheeks wiping the tears away.

"You saved my life Lelouch."

Lelouch sniffled wiping away the rest of the fallen tears before leaning in to hug her again to which she tightly reciprocated.

"Well, you left me with no choice."

She smiled in the crook of his neck."Thank you, Lelouch."

#

"No C.C., you can't move there."

"Well maybe if you explained clearly, I will be able to play correctly." A little frustrated at the raven-haired boy who's been fussing at her the entire game.

"I already told you C.C., you can only move to either of these places." He pointed to her available moves. Lelouch himself was starting to feel a little stressed, he tried to teach her the basics of chess but she insisted to learn by playing.

He couldn't understand, she was nice yesterday, so why was she being annoyingly stubborn again?

"It was probably the medicine that made her nice." He mumbled to himself.

"What did you say?"

"Nothing, now hurry up and make your move. Just remember that-" He was quickly cut off by the green-haired girl.

"Shush you're annoying me. I can't concentrate when your girly voice is assaulting my ears."

"Girly voice?!" Clearly offended as his voice slightly squeaked. "My voice is not girly!"

"Well, it's not manly either." She began to laugh, holding onto her side from the nagging pain from her wound but was worth seeing his priceless face.

"I don't want to be your friend anymore." He looked away from her yet still haven't moved from his spot on the hospital bed. She reached over to his to pinch his cheeks. "I'm just playing Lelouch."

They held each other's gazes until-

"Am I interrupting something?"

His cool rich voice filled the silence pulling them away from each other to look where he stood in the doorway.

"Hi Schneizel."

C.C. greeted the older teen bashfully with a small blush on her cheeks to which Lelouch paid close attention to. He doesn't want to say that he's jealous but he does get annoyed by how nice and innocent she became when he was around.

Meanwhile, he gets the rude, selfish, stubborn, and annoying side of her.

"I brought you some flowers." He strolled into the room setting the flowers aside where her other gifts were kept.

"They look really nice, thank you." She clearly beamed in happiness which brought a disgusted feeling in Lelouch's gut.

"Whatever they're just flowers, now focus, we're in the middle of a game." Lelouch grabbed her arm attempting to gain her attention once more.

Schneizel appeared before them.

"You guys are playing chess? Do you mind if I take your place C.C.?"

"No!" Lelouch answered for her out of nervousness, he boasted to C.C. about his skills and many wins in chess but he hasn't told her that he'd never won against Schneizel.

"Afraid of a little challenge Lelouch?" Schneizel taunted. C.C. gaped open her mouth happily, "Oooh, Lelouch are a coward?"

"What? Of course not, what kind of question is that?"

"Then play him."

He darted his violet eyes between the chessboard and Schneizel momentarily. He and his older brother were quite close for the most part, the only thing that strained the brotherly love was their competitiveness in chess.

He felt C.C.'s cold hands touch his arm, looking up, she wore a smile that reached ear to ear. "I know you can do it and if you win I will give you a kiss."

"What the? She's so weird?" He thought but he couldn't help the heat flushing across his face by the idea of being kissed by a girl.

"What happens if I lose?" He questioned his best friend. C.C. opened her mouth to answer him but was cut off, "I'll give her a kiss," Schneizel stated nonchalantly. "So how bout it Lelouch, are you up for a challenge?"

Lelouch clenched his fists in determination to win a kiss from C.C. "Fine you're on, today is the day I'll beat you Schneizel."

The blonde man chuckled in amusement from his brother's will, he placed his palm over his midnight hair ruffling it up a little.

"We'll see Lelouch, now how about we move the chessboard to the table."

As the two brothers settled themselves at the table resetting the chessboard, C.C. couldn't help but bubble with excitement as a deep blush prettily dusted her cheeks that the brothers missed.

"I hope Lelouch wins."

#

"Checkmate."

Schneizel smirked as his brother's eyes widened from loss. He looked over to C.C. who pretty much looked the same but smiled awkwardly shortly after.

"Lelouch, you lost." The green-haired girl giggled bringing a hand to cover her lips.

"Yeah, I think I can see that C.C." He slumped down in his chair glaring at his brother's victory grin. "Well, I guess I'll give C.C. a kiss" He stood from his chair and so did Lelouch. "Wait! You can't kiss her on the lips, that's illegal! You're too old for her."

Schneizel chuckled before lifting C.C.'s hand to his lips.

"I will bestow upon you...a kiss." He kissed her hand lightly making the little girl blush to which Lelouch look away in jealousy.

After that, Schneizel stayed for a little longer to chat before announcing he had to leave for a while but will come back to pick up Lelouch in an hour. Once he left, the two friends sat in an uncomfortable silence. C.C. peered at Lelouch's distant scowl giving her an idea to cheer him up.

She promptly leaned in to kiss him on the cheek.

"What was that for?" Blushing immediately palming the area she kissed.

"To cheer you up." She beamed then laid her head on his shoulder.

"Well, keep your girly cooties away from me." He looked away with a deep blush on his cheeks.

But nonetheless...it worked.

C.C. stayed in the hospital for a few days and as annoying as it was, she was starting to feel a little happy by her newfound freedom. C.C. talked with the investigators and police about what happened that night.

No more lies so she told them the truth.

Her mother had a breakdown and snapped by tearing up the furniture but when the furniture wasn't enough, she took it out on her. She told them truthfully that she doesn't remember much when her mother gashed her and honestly she rather not recall the memory. The nice people told her that they found her mother the next day after C.C.'s arrival at the hospital when they were going to tell her more she told them she didn't want to know.

Following her discharge from the hospital, Aunt Sarah had bought a bigger house nearby for them both to live in. Although she loved her Aunt and no longer had to worry about being abused, she just couldn't settle down in her new living arrangements easily.

#

"C.C. make sure to take your medicines before we leave okay?" Sarah waited patiently for the little girl's response whilst packing her things for the weekend at the Lamperouges' home.

"Okay!" C.C. shouted from the bathroom.

Sarah smiled continuing to pack clothes for her niece. Once she was done and zipped up her bag she looked over to the picture frame that sat on the bedside table. A small smile formed on her lips taking the picture in her hands before sitting down on C.C.'s bed. She traced a long finger over her sister's happy face as she stood next to the late Andrew.

"Don't worry Kat, I'll make sure to keep my promise."

She couldn't help but think back to what happened over the last couple of months.

Poor C.C. was suffering...

Fear had loomed over her with unwanted memories, she rarely slept, ate, and would suddenly fall into hyperventilation as she cried hysterically for not being able to breathe. Sarah was so worried about her niece, she had no other choice but to take her to the doctor.

One thing lead to another and C.C. ended up going to a Psychologist who diagnosed her with Acute Stress Disorder (ASD). Soon after, she was put on medication to stable her anxiety, insomnia, and had other Antidepressants. Sarah had C.C. go to therapy for a speedy recovery to help prevent her from developing PTSD.

C.C. showed signs of getting better after a month with the occasional panic attacks but for the most part she'd gotten better.

Mainly because of Lelouch, he kept her smiling no matter how bad she was suffering and was there by her side to stop the tears.

And for that she is grateful C.C. has a friend like him.

"I'm ready Aunt Sarah!" C.C. ran in the room and jumped onto the bed.

"You're excited to see the girls again?" She smiled setting the picture back down.

"And Lelouch! Don't forget about Lelouch."

"Oh yeah...the sweet boy you like." She attacked her niece with spontaneous tickling making her laugh hysterically for a while before sparing her. "Do you like Lelouch C.C.?"

"I'm eight, I don't have time for boys... he is cute though."

#

"The King is indefinitely valuable, so as long as you protect him, you'll avoid your chances of being checkmated."

C.C. studied the black and white pieces on the chessboard trying to comprehend all the basic rules Schneizel had just taught her. When she arrived at the home he and Cornelia were the only ones there. Cornelia informed that the others went out to do some shopping so they should be back in a couple of hours, and because she was going to wait, Schneizel took it upon himself to keep her entertained by teaching her how to play chess.

"Okay...well I'm a little confused. Lelouch hardly keeps his King in the corner for too long."

"Really? Well, he hasn't tried that with me yet so I guess he's still practicing." He looked in her innocent eyes. "You should probably ask Lelouch why he does that now that you understand the game a little." He gave her and smile in which she returned.

"You know...you sort of remind me of my Papa." She looked down sadly at her clasped hands.

"How so?" His interest piqued.

"Just the little things-" She smiled looking into the older teen's striking purple eyes. "I asked if he could teach me chess so...I'd like to thank you for teaching me."

The teen gave her a gentle smile. "Of course."

"C.C.!" Lelouch's voice bounced off the walls excitedly. "C.C. where are you?"

"I'm in here Lelouch!" She hopped off of Schneizel's bed to meet her best friend in the world. "Lelouch!" They clashed halfway between Schneizel's doorway for a big hug.

"Lelouch you're here!" She hugged onto him tightly which made him release a small laughter. He peaked into his brother's room and saw Schneizel rising from his chair and moving the chessboard from his bed.

"What were you doing in Schneizel's room?"

She pulled away keeping her arms loosely wrapped around his neck, "Schneizel was teaching me how to play chess."

"What? I tried to teach you how to play but you wouldn't listen." His brows furrowed into a frown.

"Yeah I know...but you failed, just like your loss against him." She laughed as Lelouch pushed her face away with a palm of his hand. "Nevermind C.C., we're going to play tag so let's go." He grabbed her hand in his before leading her downstairs.

Schneizel smiled as the two left his sight.

"Those two are inseparable."

#

After a day's worth that consisted of Clovis's drama, C.C's never-ending antics, and his sisters teasing, the raven-haired boy was worn and tired out. So tired in fact that as soon as he placed his head onto his pillow he was immediately swept away in slumber.

But-

He didn't stay asleep for too long.

The continuous creak of his door being opened aroused him from sleep. He listened carefully as it clicked closed and the sound of shuffling against the carpeted floor made its way to the other side of his bed. It didn't take long soon after to open his eyes when weight could be felt and the blankets were lifted allowing the cool air to evade his warmth.

"Don't tell me..." He peeked over his shoulder annoyed at the sight of green hair poking out from underneath the sheets.

"C.C., what are you doing in my bed?"

She peeped out.

"I'm going to sleep, what does it look like?"

He looked at her in disbelief. "The nerve of this girl."

"C.C. you can't sleep here, this is my room."

"But why not? There's more space in your bed."

"C.C. you just can't now go." He tried shoving his friend away but she fought against his 'rude' advances.

"I want to sleep here, it's crowded with Nunnally and Euphemia."

"No, you can have the whole bed to yourself in the guest bedroom."

They continued to push each other until she found a way to snake herself between his arms stopping his thrashes. She clung onto him like a baby Koala. "I want to stay here with you."

A blush painted Lelouch's cheeks as it burned a little from nerves and embarrassment. Other than the one time he stayed with her until she fell asleep, they've actually never slept together in the same bed. Palming his face dragging it down slowly he'd let out an elongated sigh.

"What will it take for you to leave my bed?"

A Cheshire grin formed on her lips. "For the sun rise."

"I should've seen that one coming."

But this is what she does best so...

"Fine, you can stay for ONE NIGHT only." Emphasizing his demand to the stubborn girl. But his words were nothing but white noise over her excitement. C.C. dug her face into his chest for a short moment before disentangling herself. "Goodnight Lelouch." Sending him a smile before turning her back to him. He stared at her briefly before doing the same in facing away.

"Goodnight C.C."

Two Years Later

(10 Years Old)

Out of all the people who were feeling numb in the room, without a doubt, Marianne was suffering the most. It was almost like deja vu all over again. The dark clothing and sad faces, all here for the lost of Clovis. The young 17-year-old had gotten into an accident that involved the drunk driver hitting the young man's side of the car almost killing him instantly on sight. C.C. didn't remember much details about the accident and honestly...she rather not know.

How very tragic.

After his burial, the extended family of the Lamperouge gathered at another relative's home that she didn't really know all too well. Despite that, she and her Aunt had come along to pay their respects for the grieving family.

But it brought back sad memories so C.C. had to step outside for some sense of quietness.

"C.C., what are you doing outside?"

She turned to see the tall man standing on the front porch waiting patiently for her to respond. "I just wanted to swing."

Schneizel studied the young girl before stepping out to seat himself on the next available swing beside her.

"I'm sorry about Clovis." She spoke softly.

The young man didn't know what to say nonetheless what to do with her apology. He's been told that all day long so how come when she apologized...he became speechless?

"I do hope that he's safe and sound in Heaven."

"You believe in Heaven?" Not much of a religious man to begin with.

C.C. turned to him with eyes that began to fill with tears. "Of course I do...that's where my Papa is at. I hope Clovis can find him for me so he won't be alone."

His heart skipped a beat. "That's right, her father had passed away."

Schneizel raised from his swing only to stand before kneeling before her brushing away the small strands of her hair that escaped her ponytail. "You're a sweet girl...you know that right?" The blonde-haired man watched her closely as she gave him a shrug before he pulled her into a hug.

A hug that made her feel secured from the flashes of her past and a great sense of comfort through the despair. She stayed in complete silence as tears flowed gently down her cheeks. Not only crying from reliving the memories of her father's funeral but because she really felt sorrow for Clovis. He made her laugh and smile, he was far too great for this world.

Schneizel patted her back for a while trying his best to hold back his own tears. "You should probably see Lelouch...I think he needs you right now."

C.C. wrapped her arms around him, lightly tugging on his dress shirt burying her face in the crook of his neck.

"Okay."

It was going to take a long time for the family to 'return' to normal.

SUMMER

One day, Marianne had decided to take the young children for a mini vacation home just to pull them away from the same boring scenery and bring them to a refreshing one that will allow them to explore and just be normal kids. No more grieving no more silence...it was time for a breath of fresh air.

Little did C.C. know, they were going to have a new playmate.

Not too long after their arrival a young boy and his father stopped by to talk to the mother before the older man said his farewells to the younger one telling him to be on his best behavior.

"Who's he?" C.C. felt out of the loop as everybody chatted away with him with bright smiles on their faces. He had brown hair and pretty green eyes, C.C. was studying his features so hard she hadn't noticed Lelouch pulling onto her hand to bring her closer to the boy.

"C.C. this is my good friend Suzaku, Suzaku this is my best friend C.C."

"It's a pleasure to meet you C.C." He gave her a slight bow which made her flush a little by the polite gesture. "It's nice to meet you too Suzaku."

"So this is the famous boy everyone boasted about from their trip to Japan."

Suzaku gave C.C. a warm pleasing smile. "I heard a lot about you C.C."

"Really?"

"Yeah, Euphy and Nunnally talked about you all the time but not as much as Lelouch. All he ever did was talk about how annoying yet very funny you were and how amazingly pretty you-"

"Shut up Suzaku!" Lelouch covered his friend's mouth before he said too much. A deep blush stained his cheeks by how close Suzaku had come to revealing Lelouch's feelings for the young girl with green hair.

Lelouch wasn't ready to tell C.C. that he has a huge crush on her.

C.C. giggled as the two boys banter before interrupting their bromance. "How about we play Hide n Seek."

#

"Lelouch."

"What is it?" He fished his hands in the clear pond trying to find the necklace that C.C. had 'dropped' during their game.

"I think Suzaku likes Euphy."

"Euphy?"

"Yeah, your sister with the pink-"

"C.C. I know who Euphemia is, what makes you think that he likes her?" He pulled out a hand for a moment to wipe the beaded sweat on his forehead against his arm. "Look at them...I think they'll make a cute couple."

Lelouch looked into her gleaming eyes before glancing over to find the young Japanese boy playing tag with his sisters. "C.C. they're just playing. It's no different from me and you." A bit in denial of Suzaku's obvious crush on his sister.

"Is Schneizel coming over?"

"I don't know, why should I care? C.C. are you sure you dropped your necklace in here?" He stepped a bit deeper into the water now digging his hands in the yucky mud.

"Yeah, I guess you can say that."

There was a weird pause between them before it was broken by Lelouch.

"Do you like him or something?"

"Maybe..."

Lelouch straightened up immediately giving her a crazy look. "Not like that Lelouch, I think he's a really fun person to be around." The raven-haired boy shook his head crouching over again to resume his search.

"You're still trying to find her necklace?" Suzaku stood next to C.C. trying to catch his breath watching the pristine boy search in the water.

"Yes."

C.C. elbowed Suzaku in the arm to show that she had her necklace the entire time, being mean to Lelouch by putting him to work for no reason. Suzaku let out a laugh before quietly telling her, "You're a mean girl." His wide grin defaulted her into a sly smile. "I think Lelouch needs to cool down don't you agree?"

Understanding what she wanted to happen. "As you wish milady."

C.C. cleared her throat before calling him loudly.

"Lelouch!"

"What?"

He straightened again looking over his shoulder when suddenly he found himself falling over face first into the water drenching him all over. Sitting up, he coughed out before turning to his side to see a perfectly dry Suzaku with a guilty grin on his face. "Suzaku! What did you do that for!?" The brunette only pointed a finger to C.C.

Switching his gaze over to his best friend he couldn't believe the sight before him.

That trickster was holding her necklace.

"Oops...looks like I had it this entire time." She started to laugh and so did his sisters who watched the entire scene unfold, Suzaku was laughing also and Lelouch just couldn't hold in the infuriating anger. Their happy laughter was extremely contagious he couldn't resist laughing with them.

#

"Lelouch."

"Yeah?" He stopped the movements of his brush to look at her. All of five them were currently in midst a competition of, 'Who could paint their favorite animal better'.

"I still haven't shown you the secret place."

"C.C., it's been like two years now...do you even remember where it's at?"

She nodded her head briskly. "There's something I really want to show you. It's not extravagant but it has a lot of meaning."

Lelouch looked over to her stick figured cat that was painted onto her small canvas. He let out a small chuckle before looking over to his work. He didn't really have a favorite animal so he thought he'd just paint C.C.'s favorite animal instead. His painting looked decent so far making all those endless hours of art classes his father had put him finally coming in handy.

"You still want to go?"

"It will mean a lot to me if we go."

She pulled the sleeve of his shirt dirtying it with painted fingers. "Alright, I don't know when will be the next time we can go though." C.C. shook her head. "It doesn't matter when, just as long as you see it." She sent him a smile which made him blush before picking back up her brush and continued on with her painting. He looked at her fondly before doing the same.

"I promise."

C.C. looked over at him, carefully watching as he gracefully brushes the paint against the canvas. Her heart pounded a little fast in her chest sending heat all over by his honest words.

"Lelouch?"

"Hmm?"

"Your painting is ugly."

He smirked not averting his eyes from his work. "Like you're one to talk."

SPRING

(15 Years Old)

It's been seven years since the first day they met and as she sat silently listening to the beautiful music he played elegantly across the piano keys, she couldn't help but be drawn to him even more. This was the first time they'd actually got to attend the same school with each other, so naturally, they spent more time together.

Now that they've also gotten older...there was no way she could deny her feelings for him now.

C.C. has a huge crush on Lelouch Lamperouge.

Her best friend, the one who saved her life, the one who never gave up on her, he was the first person out of the darkness inside to show her the light life and happiness had to offer. He's simply the burning flame in her heart, forever taking it's place inside, he's just himself and treated her as his equal. Not once had he undermine her to the broken girl she once was.

"Thank you, Lelouch." She whispered lowly to herself before laying her head on his shoulder that moved with his playing. He played for a couple more minutes before finishing up the song dramatically.

They sat in silence.

There was no way she couldn't hear the pounding of his racing heart.

The past couple of years he's been feeling really nervous around her in moments like the one that was currently happening. Their touchy-feely had more meaning compared to when they were little. He flushed whenever she held his hand, couldn't breathe when they embraced, and her 'habit' of wanting to sleep in the same bed didn't make things any easier.

There was no denying that the huge crush he had on her since they were little had become something greater.

He and C.C. have their differences but could relate a lot more to the things they shared. Of course, she annoyed him with her laziness, sharp tongue, and the spending of his money over pizza. But he wouldn't have her any other way because the person she turned out to be after such a horrid life, he's happy with and was surprised by how quickly she bounced back.

"Do you still want to be a musician?"

"Not really, I only play now for your entertainment...but whatever I decide to be, it will definitely be known before graduation in a few years."

Her heart began to speed.

"You play piano for me?"

He looked down into her beautiful golden eyes, eyes he could easily get lost in. "Of course I do, you told me once before that you liked listening to me play." She scoffed, "I only told you that to make you feel better." She smirked and he did the same. "Oh yeah? Well why do you always ask me to play for you?"

"I never said that you haven't gotten any better."

His mouth twisted into a smile before it disappeared when he switched his gaze from her eyes down to her lips.

"Should I kiss her?"

His palms were starting to sweat, he's never kissed a girl before nor had a girlfriend so he didn't know what to do exactly. "What if I kiss her and she rejects me? Or what if she stops me halfway and I never get to kiss her?"

"I just have to try." He unknowingly mumbled out. C.C. stared into his Amethyst eyes before glancing down to his lips and back up. "Is he going to kiss me?" Her breaths coming out in shallows waiting for the moment to happen.

To be kissed by Lelouch.

Lelouch met her eyes, their proximity so close, their breaths starting to mingle, he couldn't help the heart that wanted to burst from his chest. He slowly leaned in closing his eyes slightly for the long-awaited spark to happen. C.C. closed her eyes completely leaning in closer to meet him halfway. This was going to happen, they were finally going to kiss, this is going to change everything. Lelouch closed his eyes completely, placing a hand over hers closing off the remaining inches.

His lips brushed against her's lightly-

"Hey, Lelouch! You'll never believe what just happened." Suzaku barge into the piano room forcing them to separate quickly, blushing red in embarrassment. Noticing how incredibly tense and awkward it got, "Oh umm...did I interrupt something?"

"No.." The raven haired man looked over to C.C. who smiled at him shyly before turning over to face his other friend. "What is it Suzaku?"

As Suzaku started to ramble to them both about what happened at the home soccer game, C.C. was focusing on controlling her breathing and steadying her heart. They were so close to kissing but...

She looked up to the happy brunette who told his story so lively with the constant change in facial expressions and the wave of his arms. "Thanks a lot Suzaku...you sure know how to ruin the moment." Smiling to herself.

#

"C.C. you're such a messy person." He leaned across the table to wipe the pizza grease from her mouth. "I'm a big girl Lelouch, I've been wiping myself clean for a long time now."

Lelouch's face scrunched in disgust. "I really didn't need to hear that." Losing his appetite for his now leftover pizza.

"Get your mind out of the gutter, I didn't mean it like that." The green witch continued to eat her pizza. Lelouch admired her unique features, she was absolutely beautiful. The teen then switched his gaze to the window where it was still pouring down rain. After the almost kiss, and Suzaku had left, he suggested that they'd go to the Pizzeria to eat before going home. Of course, the weather forecast said it was going to be a dry sunny day.

Clearly, it's not.

"It's not going to stop anytime soon isn't it?" His companion talked with her mouth full. Noticing that she was done with a 'happy plate' he swiftly picked up their trash throwing it away before sitting back at the booth.

Lelouch was feeling pretty bummed out by missing his chance to kiss her. Sure there were probably going to be more moments like those but who knows when it will happen again. C.C. observed her gloomy friend, then suddenly, an idea to cheer him up popped in her head.

"Lelouch let's just walk home."

"What? No way, it's not walk in the park from here to my house nonetheless to yours."

"Okay, the bus stop then." He let out a sigh. "Alright, if you don't mind getting rained on."

The duo gathered their belongings before stepping out of the Pizzeria. "Wow, it's raining a lot harder than I thought...it's a good thing the roof is here to keep us somewhat dry." Bumping Lelouch with her shoulder. "Yeah well the bus stop is down there so if we just run- Hey!"

C.C. took off without him. "Come on Lelouch, what are you waiting for?!"

He smirked before following her into the harsh rain. Immediately his hair stuck to his face and clothes became a sopping mess. He actually wanted to wait in the Pizzeria for the rain to calm before running to the bus stop but there's no going back now.

Either she was a fast runner or he was just slow, he trailed behind her with great distance. She splashed small and sometimes large puddles in the wake of her speedy footsteps but then suddenly-

She stopped.

"What is she doing?" He closed the distance to meet her. "Hey, what are you doing?"

She turned to him with a bright smile on her face. "Dance with me Lelouch."

"Ha-ha, now stop playing and let's go."

"Why are you in a rush? The bus won't come for some time and you're already wet."

C.C. gently placed her hand over his that clenched onto his school bag. "Dance with me, Lelouch." He smiled down at her dropping his bag then taking hers to set on the ground with his. "If that's what you want." He took her hands in his spinning her around cutting through the falling rain as her laughter resounded the hard rain. He twirled her around with one hand, her long green hair whisking in wet clumps. His heart raced erratically from her primitive happiness.

This was so dumb yet one of the greatest things ever, right now...it's just the two of them.

After he gave her of a couple of twirls he pulled her body closer to his and they began to waltz profoundly in the rain. Lelouch and C.C.'s laughter reached each other's heart as the want to become much more than friends became too great. A few moments later their momentum slowed down to a stop as the hard rain became nothing more than light sprinkling. Their chest touched, faces extremely close, he looked deeply into her amber eyes and in that moment.

He knew...he was going to love her.

Lelouch's heart swelled with the overpowering feeling, even in the rain past the hair that messily stuck to her face, she left him speechless. He brushed his fingers across her forehead to wipe away her bangs.

"You're so beautiful."

Lelouch confessed softly, C.C.'s breathing hitched and her heart once again thumped against her chest. The raven-haired man leaned in to plant a kiss on her forehead then moving down to kiss her warm cheek lingering just a bit longer before pulling away to admire the vision before him.

The prince made the witch blush heatedly.

C.C. lifted a hand to also brush away his wet hair before keeping it placed on his cheek. "You're not too bad yourself." She smiled before closing whatever little distance they to wrap her arms around his neck in an embrace. He at first kept his hands to his sides before giving into her and wrapping his arms around her waist.

"Cecaniah."

The raven-haired teen pulled away slightly to look at her questionably.

"That's my real name."

She removed her arms from around his neck to wrap them around his torso as he cupped her face bringing her closer to his, Lelouch kissed her alarmingly close to the lips then brushed his lips all the way to her ear giving it a kiss also.

He whispered-

"You're so beautiful, Cecaniah."

She closed her eyes basking in the feel of the way it played off his lips which sent chills down her spine, pleased by how loving and giving it was when he called her name.

"Lelouch," her eyes started to fill with tears. "You make me so happy."

"You make me happy too."

WINTER

(18 Years Old)

He doesn't really know why he did it but it was starting backfire against everything they'd built.

Three years ago when they almost shared a kiss and danced in the rain, their relationship hadn't really changed other than more teasing and intimate contact like kisses on the cheeks and such, but he didn't know how to handle his overwhelming feelings for her. He wanted to share them with her more than anything but he was just too shy. So he simply brushed away and ignored her feelings to avoid revealing his very own for her, although she usually came back...

This time she didn't.

Last year they were bickering about something dumb and next thing he knew he harshly told her that he didn't have any feelings for her and never will. He didn't mean it and regretted the words immediately but when he tried to apologize she simply brushed him to the side. And so that's how he became the bad guy. The were still friends but his chances with her flushed down the toilet.

Because-

She's been seeing Schneizel more than usual.

C.C. has told him countless of times in the past that she was very fond of Schneizel and that he was so admirable, charming, cool-collected, and a lot of things he didn't want to hear. He was always been jealous of their 'closeness' ever since he was a little boy. Matter of fact Schneizel didn't help either.

He confessed to him that if C.C. was older or if any of the women his age has C.C.'s personality he would date them.

That disgusted Lelouch to the point where he told Schneizel to stop being a creep. His older brother was also aware that he has deep feelings for C.C. Schneizel told him that he would step back for his sake.

Obviously he was a liar.

"I'm just kidding Lelouch…"

"Yeah right.." He mumbled to himself waiting for Suzaku to throw the tennis ball his way since they were playing catch.

"Why the long face Lelouch? Are you still upset about C.C. dating Schneizel?" He laughs tossing the green ball to his friend who caught it. "They're not dating," He tossed the ball back over to Suzaku. "Besides she's 18 and he's 28, that's illegal you know." Lelouch argued opening his hand to catch the ball.

"Actually Lelouch she's 'of age' now. It's legal for them to date now." Suzaku watched as Lelouch caught the green ball.

"You're not helping Suzaku." Lelouch frowned.

"I'm just saying," He waited for Lelouch to toss the ball back. "Do you think my chances with Euphemia are still good?"

Lelouch brows furrowed further as he tossed the ball back faster and harder to Suzaku. "Really Suzaku? I rather not talk about you dating my sister."

"Lelouch!"

The said man turned his head to the side to see C.C. running his way. "C.C.?"

Suzaku saw his chance and tossed the tennis ball a little hard to whack the distracted teen in the head. "Ow, what the hell Suzaku?"

"My bad you should've been paying attention." He laughed to himself.

Lelouch sat on the ground groaning whilst rubbing the spot where he had been hit.

"Ouch, that oughta knock some sense into you!" Suzaku yelled and C.C. laughed making the hurt teen roll his eyes.

"What do you want C.C.?"

"Nothing...I just wanted to say hi, it's been a while hasn't it?"

Lelouch tore his violet eyes away from her golden ones. "That's because you've been spending more time with Schneizel."

The beauty was starting to feel guilty but pushed it away...this was for the best.

"Why do you care Lelouch? You're starting to sound a little jealous if you ask me."

"Well, I'm not."

"Good...because I really do like him."

"...good for you."

She should be happy right? Happy that she's dressed up like some unique pristine doll trapped behind a glass box.

She is...but at the same time, she isn't. This was her way to fall out of love with Lelouch. He made it pretty clear that he didn't have feelings for her and it saddened her. It was very low of her to even consider dating his older brother but if she were honest with herself, she really did have true feelings for Schneizel. Her feelings for him couldn't compare to the way she felt for Lelouch but then again it could be vice versa.

Schneizel is a very calm and collected man that had a great sense of security over her. She felt safe and whenever they spent time with each other he made her feel nostalgic happiness.

He made her feel special and reminded her so much of her father. Obviously they looked different, it was their personalities that meshed almost perfectly together. C.C. admired him for that of course but she really did like the man outside the image of her father. Schneizel was also very different and she fell for his cunning yet very loving persona. He was a man of control and she absolutely liked it.

So her feelings were muddy and conflicting when it came between Lelouch and Schneizel.

As much is displeased her...

Lelouch had to be old news. It's time to move on from him.

The sound of her message tone went off with the opening text from Schneizel.

Schneizel: I'm here, are you ready?

C.C.: Of course :)

C.C. threw her phone into her purse giving one last look in the mirror making sure she looked good. She dressed in a light pink flare dress, her hair in a loose braid, and as expected from the amount of time she spent on it her makeup looked good.

"Okay, you got this C.C." She glanced over to the many prescription pill bottles that sat on her desk. Most she didn't have to take anymore but kept them close by just in case. Locating her anxiety medicine she bit her lip wondering if she would have a random episode tonight. Weighing her options she stuffed the pill bottle in her purse.

"Better safe than sorry."

Walking out of her house after bidding her Aunt a 'see you later' C.C. met Schneizel halfway in the driveway. "You look dazzling." He gave her a kiss on the hand.

"You're not so bad yourself." They laughed a little and like the gentleman he is, he opened and closed the car door for her then entering after. "Legend has it that a crazed green-haired woman only feasts on pizza." He joked to which C.C. smirked. "So they say but that's only a myth," She leaned in closer to him. "I hope you can surprise me."

The older man turned his head just a few inches separating them.

"I'll keep you interested."

#

"I can truly say that you just keep surprising me Schneizel."

"I hope to keep up the streak in the near future."

C.C. blushed a little in the cool night air as they walked hand in hand around the area. Earlier that night he had taken her out to a very nice restaurant and later surprised her by taking her to a Broadway show she wanted so see that had been sold out for months.

Schneizel was very pleased with his date with C.C. It wasn't their first date but tonight was going to be extra special. He really likes her sarcastic personality more than he realized initially. There was no denying that she was extremely beautiful and even though he knew his younger brother had a thing for her he couldn't care any less. His logic was 'If Lelouch cared for her that much, then he would make his move.' He gave Lelouch three years to confess his feelings for the young woman and by what C.C. had told him, it sounded as if Lelouch made it clear that he didn't have feelings for her.

So why waste the opportunity to date the young lady who was equally interested and had captivated his attention throughout the years. He hadn't looked at her romantically until recently but she had always piqued his interest right from the very moment they made eye contact when Lelouch brought her home cut and bruised up.

And although their age difference is 10 years, he hoped that it wouldn't hinder them from moving forward.

He really does like her but this is also his silent revenge towards Lelouch. He's sorry but not sorry. He missed his chance.

"You know C.C.," she looked up at the tall man as he halted their walk. "It's a full moon tonight."

She looked to the sky. "Hmm, I can see that and your point is?"

He gently cupped her cheeks pulling her closer to him. "They sometimes call it the Lover's Moon."

"That's for people who believe in fairy tales." Her heart started to pace faster by their closeness. "That's right, you don't believe in that." He leaned in a little closer.

"C.C., do you want to be my girlfriend?"

C.C.'s heart felt as if it had been stopped when the memory of her and Lelouch in the music room all those years ago flashed in her mind.

"Why am I thinking of him?"

C.C. cleared her mind giving the man in front of her a sly smile. "Of course." Schneizel smirked before leaning in to kiss her on the lips. He wasn't a bad kisser but she was feeling nervous and giddy since this was her first kiss but she didn't feel anything kissing him.

There was no spark...Nothing at all.

AN: There was a lot more I wanted to add at the end regarding Lelouch's heartbreak but I'll keep that in my back pocket for later. So I thought if I had to end it, it would end when C.C. and Schneizel got together. I struggled with what should or shouldn't stay in this chapter, so I hope that some questions were answered regarding Schneizel's and C.C.'s past. I purposely left out Katherine's whereabouts since that will come along later. I hope you guys somewhat got the idea as to why C.C. attached herself to Schneizel. I've rewritten this chapter at least four different times, it was driving me insane because I was unsatisfied every time. Maybe I'm just being hard on myself. Feel free to let me know what you think, comment, ask questions, review, etc. Until next chapter! :)

P.S.S. From here on out I will be updating bi-weekly. It's really hard for me to juggle with writing/updating 4 stories on time with my busy schedule. So every other Friday if you want to see it that way I will be updating. The next update will be on Feb. 3rd

Thank you for reviewing!

Adri-ojousama: I absolutely love your reaction! I'm glad that I left you feeling speechless. I hope that this chapter is to your liking. As I mentioned in the Author's Note I struggled writing this chapter but do hope that this is good enough for now. I added a lot of Lelouch & C.C. moments in the past to convey just how strong their bond became throughout the years. It was really hard to write a moment between Schneizel and C.C. without him coming across as a pederast. Their relationship is a bit more complicated than I anticipated so minus the things I will have explained in other chapters if there is anything that left you confused let me know. I really do like young Lelouch and C.C. and I hope you like them too. I apologize if this chapter was a bust but I hope that you will enjoy the next few chapters. Thank you for reading and reviewing the last chapter and thank you for being committed, you are awesome. Hopefully, I will see you next chapter.

Guest 1: Thank you for being such a committed reviewer! You are awesome! I received two reviews from you that were almost exactly the same, at first I had them both in the reviews but I took one of them down because I felt weird having both on there. I hope you don't mind. Anyways! Slave C.C. was also the only way I could picture her being so broken and hurt like that. I'm happy that you were moved by Lelouch and C.C.'s moment (they are so cute!) but I'm thrilled that you felt what Lelouch was feeling when he saw and did his best to save C.C. I hope this last background chapter answered some of your questions. I just couldn't fit everything in the past and other things I purposely left out but if you are confused or have more questions you can ask. :) As for Katherine, sadly she did attack and gashed C.C. I tried to make sure in the beginning of the chapter that she didn't want to know of her mother's whereabouts. But soon...you'll find out as to what had come of her. Let me give you a hint for upcoming chapters: Katherine plays a bigger role in C.C.'s darkness that not even Lelouch knows about...not even C.C. herself, in the present, is fully aware of it. Sorry if this chapter was a miss in the hit or miss game and I hope that the next one will be a whole lot better. Thank you for reading and reviewing!

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