Fall for You

AnimeCookie93

Vampire Knight

~o~

"Because tonight will be the night that I will fall for you

Over again

Don't let me change my mind

I won't live to see another day, I swear it's true

Because a girl like you is impossible to find

You're impossible to find."

– Secondhand Serenade, "Fall for You"

-x-

The warm autumn breeze blew through the courtyard of Cross Academy, causing a shiver to course through the petite body of one Yuuki Cross. It was evening-time, and she was running a little late getting to her prefect duty today due to having to stay after class for supplementary classes; it wasn't her fault she fell asleep during today's algebra lecture!

…okay, maybe it was, but it was all in the past now.

When she got to the Moon dormitory gate, Zero was already there, regarding her with one of his signature scowls that didn't quite reach his eyes. "You're running late, aren't you, Yuuki?" his voice was smooth, and she could detect a little teasing in his tone, to which she stuck her tongue out at him- a genius response. "I was beginning to think you were going to ditch on me."

"Oho, you know all about that, don't you, Zero!"

The silver-haired prefect wrinkled his nose at her. "Do you have to bring that up every single-"

Their argument was cut short when the usual swarm of Day class girls – and the Class Rep. – started to bunch and shove at the younger prefect, knowing she wasn't as big a threat as the Kiryuu boy. Shouts of various Night class boys – 'Idol'/Aido and 'Takuma' were the favorites tonight – filled the evening air, and quite honestly, even Yuuki was beginning to tire of their antics tonight. "Get back, everyone! It's time to get back to your dorms!" she announced, but it only resulted in her getting trampled.

As always, Zero's side was behaving with the usual single girl thinking she could get past him if she moved quickly and stealthily enough. Alas, she was scared back when he turned to glare at her, but all in all he was having a much easier time than his partner; a part of him felt bad that she had to be walked all over, but it served her right for gawking as much as they did.

The gates opened at the same time as Yuuki pulling out her whistle and blowing it, and she almost felt excited that the girls were listening to her for once before she turned to see her one and only Kaname regarding her warmly as he started to walk toward her. A shiver shot up and down her spine, and not just from the chilly evening, either.

"Evening, Yuuki," said the Pureblood, who stopped to caress her cheek in a loving gesture. It caused a blush to form on her face before she choked out her greeting. Kaname, satisfied with her response – and with Zero's, as the boy was near the point of shaking with rage while looking to the side – smiled at her and looked to the girls behind her, who surely had hearts in their eyes. "You shouldn't give her so much trouble. The Disciplinary Committee works hard to keep things running smoothly; if you're to give her anything, it should be gratitude," and then, he looked back at her before walking away, pulling his hand away from her face slowly.

And as always, Yuuki was stuck watching him leave with girls screaming his name adoringly from behind her, her eyes a little sad as he walked away from her and toward the school building. After a moment, she turned back to the girls and yelled, "You should all return to your dorms!" and after their usual whines, they all scooted along to their dorms for the evening.

Zero hardly has to say a thing, for he angles his head toward the dorms and clicks his tongue, to which the girls respond by nearly screaming and dashing off to meet the other girls, grumbling at how 'Zero was so mean to them'. When it was just the two prefects, he walks over to her and puts his hand on her head, giving it a little ruffle.

Yuuki doesn't know why, but she smiles at him, though her heart aches. "Come on, let's get to patrols."

-x-

Later in the night, the silver-haired guardian finds his partner sitting on the edge of the fountain, droplets of water falling in her hair and on her shoulders; he knows she's been tired lately, and by the look on her face, she's had a lot to think about over the course of the last couple of hours. The best friend in him screams for him to go to her, but he's hesitant; if he goes, he's setting himself up to feel his heart break a little, because he knows exactly who's on her mind.

Nevertheless, he goes to her, unbuttoning his blazer. When he reaches her, he sets his jacket over her and sits beside her, looking to the ground. She makes no move to greet him or even look at him, and he has to lean a bit forward to even see the shadow of her eyes hidden under her bangs; upon further investigation, Zero notices she's been crying.

"Yuuki?" he calls for her, wishing her not to cry, a worried expression in his eyes. I'm right here he wishes to say, but it's harder to get the words out than it should be. Instead, he settles for "What's wrong?"

For a moment, it seems Yuuki's considering her words, trying to say what she wants to without twisting the dagger already in his heart. Cautiously, she answers, "He's… too far away, I can't… I can't reach him."

Confused, Zero reaches out to grab one of her hands, holding it in his larger one. It was a rare act of kindness, as he wasn't one for touching all too often, and he didn't want to make her cry harder if he were to hold her close. "…don't say that." He can't tell her that he isn't, that she can reach him, because while he cares for – thrives for – her happiness, he just couldn't bring himself to say it. His thumb rubs against her soft hands, now cold from the night air and a little wet from stray water dripping from her hair.

Her big eyes look up to meet his, and another tear falls down her cheek. "But it's true, Zero. He's so out of my league, and no matter how hard I try, I can't seem to bring myself up to his standards, I…" Her fingers curl around his hand and she's shivering now, and this time, he knows it's because she's freezing. He scoots toward her and brings her head onto his shoulder, threading his fingers through her hair.

"I'm not good enough for him," she chokes out, bringing their interlocked hands up to her face. "I'll never been good enough."

It takes a moment for the words to sink in, and suddenly, Zero moves from his place beside her to kneel in front of her. Yuuki looks up, confused, her cheeks shining in the moonlight. With a sudden movement, Yuuki's hand is now pressed to his chest, and she can feel his heartbeat. Her eyes widen a little, but mostly because she is unsure what it is her partner is trying to convey by doing this.

After a few moments of just looking at each other, the silver-haired boy finally speaks. "When will you learn that you don't have to change yourself? Stupid girl," his voice is teasing, and there's a hint of a smile to his words and in his violet eyes. "You are perfect, there's nothing about you that needs to change. Do you feel that?" she regards him before focusing on her hand on his chest, finally realizing that his heart is racing. With a nod, she looks back at him, sniffling. "Just by being yourself, you have saved me, protected me, and brought me back to life. You have had the power to make all of that happen. You don't need to make any changes to yourself, because the you that I know is already one of the best people I've ever known."

His words sink in, and in a matter of seconds, fresh tears spill from her face. A smile morphs her lips and she jumps at him, wrapping her arms around his waist, pressing her face into his chest. It seemed that those were just the words she needed to hear. After a moment to process what was now happening, Zero wrapped his arms around her, holding her flush against him as she got the rest of her cries out into his shirt. His blazer lies on her shoulders, protecting her back from the cold as his body protects her front.

Through her sniffles, Yuuki whispers, "Thank you, Zero… you'll always be my number one."

He lays his cheek against her hair, placing a gentle kiss on her head as one of his rare smiles appears on his pale features. After a moment, he feels her body get heavy against him and, by the sound of her finally even breathing, he realizes that she's asleep. Pulling her arms into the sleeves of his blazer, he pulls her up into his arms and carries her back in the direction of the dorms, knowing that after tonight, she could probably use a bit of sleep.

And he relishes in the way she has her arms around his neck, holding onto him as if her life depended on it, because he knows that in these short few hours, she has made him fall for her all over again.

~o~

I haven't worked on this in a while.. sorry?

I've always thought about a scenario like this happening between them- though I can't decide if it should be in the Eternal Bond universe or not. It could be, or we can stick it in any universe. I like my head-canon a little more, to be honest; way less angst. xD;

Review, review, review!

-Cookie-

~~I would also like to thank a reviewer who basically made me cry out of sheer joy. I felt like they should have some sort of recognition for that (so uh, I guess the moral of the story is if you can make the writer cry, you get a mention? xD; ) So, a huuuuuge thanks to FilleDigitale. I'm glad you like the way I write our two knuckleheads (Zero and Yuuki -I use that spelling; doesn't the other mean 'snow'?- namely) and I shall continue to write them that way because I refuse to make Zero be gobbled up by the ice around his heart, nor will I allow Yuuki to be a dunderhead. Hm-hm!~~