Alright, I SO do apologize for taking almost a month for this update. I have been so incredibly busy. Had to find a new car then I had to look for a new house or apartment. My sister was visiting from out of town with my niece and I finally got to see my baby nephew for the first time. That paired with my promotion at work. I've been busy... then I was afraid my final chapter would be a total let down or something. I hope you guys enjoy the final chapter. It's not much but I had to finish it. Now that things have settled down I've been playing around with an idea for a fantasy story. I've always wanted to write a story based on something similar to the Disney princess stories but with a lesbian twist... so... if you're interested keep an eye out. (Haruka and Michiru again) I wouldn't be able to update as fast I would hope I would though.

Soul Mates

Haruka awoke at the first sign of the morning. She knew last night was the last night she would have been able to stay with Michiru, at least for some time. Dr. Todd had been helping her on getting all the court cases handled between her father and getting Michiru released. Michiru was still sound asleep cuddled close to her. Despite what the nurses kept saying about only one person being in the bed, they constantly disregarded it.

Haruka took the time to watch Michiru while she slept. Michiru always slept with her face buried into the blonde's chest. Her wife had told her how protected she always felt around her. She always viewed Haruka as being strong and she was always over protective of Michiru in the past. Even now, Haruka still felt the same way. She wanted to protect Michiru from everything going on at the moment.

She continued to savor their time alone. After a few more minutes, Michiru shifted a bit and pressed closer to Haruka. "Good morning." Michiru whispered a minute later.

"Good morning." Haruka whispered back and ran a hand through Michiru's hair. "I could get used to this."

Michiru chuckled to herself. "We used to sleep like this all the time." She pulled away from Haruka's chest and looked into her eyes.

"We'll be back together soon." The blonde smiled. Michiru giggled when she looked at Haruka. "What's wrong?" Haruka inquired.

"Your hair is sticking straight up."

"Yeah, downfall of short hair isn't it? Wake up with a morning Mohawk." Haruka tried to push her hair down and failed as it went back up. She looked over to a small clock on the wall. It was still early, about 8:00am. "Why don't we get refreshed now? I don't want to rush around later…"

"Alright."

Haruka kissed Michiru and stood from the bed. The moment she turned she felt a smack on her backside. "Hey!"

Michiru wore a huge grin. "I couldn't resist. I haven't been able to do that in a while."

"Hm." A smile spread across Haruka's face and she turned once again to go to the bathroom. Michiru joined her shortly after and they both refreshed themselves.

Haruka had managed to get her hair to its usual style after a while. Michiru's eyes never left the blonde woman. "What is it, Mich?" Haruka questioned after a moment.

"I don't want to go back." She exhaled slowly.

Haruka took a deep breath and held it for a moment while she was in thought. "I know."

"I hate that place."

"I know…"

Michiru approached Haruka and embraced her. "We'll be back together, right? In our home?"

"I promise we will." The last thing Haruka wanted to think about was being upset. She kissed Michiru's forehead and lightly massaged Michiru's back.

Michiru's response was a kiss.

"How does your hip feel?" Haruka asked.

"I don't feel a thing anymore."

Temptation was running high for Haruka. "Good." She kissed Michiru once more and picked her up, never once parting from her lips.

"You devil." Michiru whispered.

Haruka did not reply, her focus was on something else. She placed Michiru on the small couch and rested on top of her. "Not the best place I guess." Her lips traveled to Michiru's neck.

Through a few grunts and groans Michiru managed to whisper back to her. "Better than some places we've been in."

"You can tell me all about that when we're home." The blonde now began to suck on Michiru's neck, marking Michiru as hers.

"What if someone comes in?"

"Then they can leave or watch." Haruka pulled back and put her finger on the mark she left on Michiru's neck. She then began to bite on her collarbone. Haruka felt Michiru relax under her and soon Haruka's top was gone along with Michiru's gown. The blonde's eyes looked longingly at the bare chest of her wife for a moment. She took a few seconds to lock in the memory of Michiru's body. Michiru produced a few moans when Haruka began to tease her.

"Always the tease."

"But you like it, don't you?"

"I love it. I love you, Haruka."

"I love you too, Michiru." Haruka left a few bite marks on Michiru's stomach. Neither woman noticed the knock from the door or the person that entered. It had been two long years since they had last made love, and they let nothing interrupt them. The nurse quickly stepped back out of the room.

"They, uhm, they are still getting ready." The nurse spoke to Dr. Todd that was outside of the room.

"I'll just wait then." The doctor could barely make out some sounds from the room. She knew exactly what was happening and decided to walk away and leave them alone for the time being.

Michiru and Haruka quickly made their way to the small bathroom. Both women were out of breath and either snickering or giggling. "It's been too long." Michiru shared another kiss with Haruka.

Haruka's frown caught Michiru's attention.

"Is something wrong?"

"Well," Haruka looked a bit nervously around the room. "I don't remember last time, or the time before that. I feel like a dummy."

"I don't care if you remember the past. All that matters if that I have you now and we're together."

"We're about to be separated again though."

"Only for a short time, love."

Haruka nodded. She knew shortly Michiru would be headed back to the hospital that had been her home for over two years now. "I'll handle everything while you're in the hospital. I'll have our home ready for when you come home. It will be perfect." Haruka waved her hands in the air while she spoke. "Perfect." She smiled.

"I'm sure it will be."

The couple enjoyed the last small bit of time they had together. Their first priority being to clean themselves of the lovemaking they had just endured. Dr. Todd was still patiently waiting until she decided it was the time to enter the room. A soft knock was heard at the door and the familiar doctor entered the small hospital room.

"Hello ladies." She spoke softly. The tone in her voice was a bit sad.

"Hey Doctor." Haruka shared the same tone.

"I'm sure you know why I'm here."

The couple nodded in unison.

"I wish I didn't have to take you back, Michiru. But I have to. We're working on getting you released soon. I'm estimating a couple months, I'm so sorry."

"Months compared to two years. This time, I know I'm coming home to Haruka. I know she's going to be waiting for me now." Michiru turned and cupped Haruka's cheek in one hand. With her free hand she touched the scar that was ripped across her wife's face. "I'm the happiest I've been in two years." She kissed her scarred cheek lightly and whispered a quiet 'I love you'.

"I love you too." Haruka whispered back.

They joined the doctor in her car. She first dropped Michiru off at the hospital and allowed for the couple a few minutes together before taking Haruka home. While Haruka had been staying with Michiru she had been able to regain access to their bank accounts. The settlement involving their accident a couple years ago had left the couple with a small fortune. Haruka spent a few days finding a new car. She never missed a day to visit her wife in the hospital.

Haruka also visited their neighbor and landlord, Bea. It surprised Haruka to find the woman completely understanding to Haruka and Michiru's relationship. It was nice for Haruka to have a friend to talk to and she found herself visiting Bea quite often.

"I can't believe what your own father did to you two." Bea spoke softly. Haruka had just gotten home from visiting Michiru for the day. "That's just awful, to take advantage of a horrible accident like that."

Haruka nodded and sipped on some tea the woman had made.

"Everything is going well now, I suppose? You're back together. I bet she is happy. She would come over here every day after the accident. She thought she had lost everything." The woman looked down into her cup of tea for a moment. "It was hard to watch her go through that." Bea sniffled a bit. "I'm just glad it's all over and you're really here. She really needed you."

"Soon she will be home with me again. The court is making it more difficult, just as I was told. They don't think I'm ready to take care of her. Mostly because I was just in the hospital myself. Dr. Todd is trying her best on it. On the other hand, things are looking quite bad for my father. He has quite a few charges on him now. Tack on attempted murder among his malpractice and other things." Haruka shook her head and wore devilish grin. "He's getting what he deserves. He will probably be in prison until the day he dies."

"How much longer until Michiru will be home?" Bea swirled her tea around in her cup.

"About a month and a half… it's so hard to sleep at night without her near me. When I looked back at the past few months, the entire situation seems unbelievable."

"Things happen for a reason, I'm sure. In all my life I always welcome the bad times, because I can always look back on the bad times and find myself somewhere good because of it."

Haruka nodded and drank the last bit of her tea. "I agree. I hate to leave so soon, but I have to be up early. Have a few things to take care of before I go visit Michiru tomorrow. I'm sure you understand. Thanks for the tea again."

"Have a good night, dear."

"Thanks, you too." Haruka left and took the small walk it was back to her home. She sat on the couch quietly and eyed a book on the coffee table. Every night she went home she would open the book, a photo album. Even though she never remembered taking the pictures, it made her feel as though Michiru was closer. She took her time and looked at each photograph. Somewhere in the middle was a small red tulip.

Xxxxxxxxx

Haruka sat quietly in the court room, watching the final outcome of her father's case. A few months had gone by, within a couple more days Michiru would be back home with her. Haruka's gaze never left her father while the jury finished and the sentence was named. Dr. Tenoh glanced at his daughter to find a similar, sinister grin spread across Haruka's face. She winked at him when he stood and was taken away. Haruka then made her way out of the courtroom to visit Michiru and tell her the news. Everything had fallen into Haruka and Michiru's favor. They obtained a second small fortune from her father.

Haruka entered the mental hospital and found Michiru waiting eagerly for her. The trial was all over the local news and in the paper.

"Mich." Haruka scooped her up the moment she was within arm's reach. "Everything is fine now. He's gone."

"I missed you."

"I missed you too. It's only a few more days until you are finally home!" Haruka twirled in a circle from excitement while she still held onto her wife. "Everything is ready for you to come home." She stopped and put Michiru back her own feet.

"I forget what home is like. I've been here so long."

"I know. Everything will be in the past soon and we can go forward again." Haruka brushed the back of her hand on Michiru's cheek and kissed her gently. "I can't wait to sit down with you and have you go through that photo album with me."

"I'm looking forward to it to."

"I only wished it helped me remember things." Haruka sighed, her biggest fear now was never remembering her entire past.

"We're putting the past behind us, right?" Michiru smiled. Haruka nodded.

The couple sat down, away from all the other patients. Never once would Haruka stop smiling. "I was wondering, when we reinstate out vows, where do you want to do it at, love?" Haruka reached for Michiru's left hand and observed the ring.

"You said you remember the place we met. How about we take a trip back to the garden we met in? Just the two of us, something private."

"I'd like that." Haruka continued to stare at Michiru's hand for a few more moments. "I've been wondering something." She cleared her throat. "Was there somewhere in particular we were heading that day, you know, the day of the accident?"

"You were taking me to the air port. I was going to visit my family for a couple of weeks back in Japan." Michiru sat quietly as though recalling the entire scene for a moment. A few tears rolled down her cheek as she remembered the tragic day.

"No, please don't cry." Haruka reached to wipe her tears. "I didn't mean to make you cry."

"It's alright." Michiru sniffled a bit. "It's all in the past." She looked away from Haruka for a moment and remained silent. Haruka watched her closely, she knew something was bothering Michiru.

"Is everything alright?"

After a few more moment of silence Michiru turned back. "Everything is perfect."

"Good." Haruka glanced at her watch. "Visiting hours are almost up. I'll come back tomorrow as soon as I can, just like I do every day I come."

"I know you will." Michiru's smile mixed with the sadness of Haruka leaving.

"Take care, love." Each time they parted for the day, neither woman wanted the embrace to end. "I love you, so much." Haruka whispered and kissed Michiru.

"I love you too." After about a minute Haruka finally parted and walked away. She glanced back at Michiru the entire time she walked away.

Michiru waved and sat quietly. She remembered back to a few days prior to the accident…

Xxxxxxxxx

~Two years ago~

"I can't believe you did that." Michiru was hot and angry with Haruka. "After all we've been through."

"I didn't do it." Haruka crossed her arms across her chest. The women stood in their living room. "I would never cheat on you, Michiru. After everything we've been through and everything we've done. I put up with my father disowning me."

"I think I need some time away from you." Michiru angrily tapped her chin and huffed.

"Mich, I told you exactly what happened. The woman came onto me. I pushed her away the instant it happened." Haruka attempted to calm her wife down with an embrace, but was forced away.

"Haruka." Michiru rubbed her forehead. "I just don't like the idea of someone else touching you and kissing you."

"I called you and told you the instant it happened. I have nothing to hide from you."

"I still need to get away for a couple of weeks. I haven't seen my parents for a while."

Haruka took a seat on their couch. "Why are you so mad at me?"

Michiru continued to rub her forehead. "I'm not really mad at you. I'm mad at the situation you found yourself in. It's so easy for someone to just come in and ruin everything in our lives."

"I would never let anyone come between us. You know that. Hey, I'll drive you to the airport, alright?"

Michiru stood quietly without a response.

"Am I sleeping on the couch tonight?"

Xxxxxxxxx

~Present time~

Michiru remembered clearly the argument they had a few days prior to the accident. Thinking back on it, she was not sure why she had gotten so worked up about it. She took a deep breath and slowly exhaled. Two years ago she would not have pictured her life being where it is now. She smiled to herself when she thought of how things had played out with Haruka recently. They had already made plans to fly out to a few places together and see new things.

"Three more days." Michiru whispered to herself and headed to her room. In three more days everything would just seem like an awful nightmare.

Xxxxxxxxx

Haruka was finishing the final touches in house before she went to pick up Michiru and bring her home. She had bought a few decorations and bought a vase of red tulips. Her landlady helped her with a few ideas as well.

"Alright, I'm going to go pick her up!" Haruka tried to hide her excitement when she spoke to Bea.

"Oh, this is going to be great. I'm so happy for you! Just, drive carefully! We don't want everything to happen all over again!" Bea waved her finger at Haruka whom was ready to burst with excitement.

"I know, I know! I have to go!" Before Bea was able to speak another word Haruka had taken off.

When she finally arrived in the hospital, Michiru was waiting with a small bag packed. She was tapping her fingers together in anticipation. "Haruka." Michiru ran the instant the blonde appeared in the room.

"Let's go home." Haruka picked up Michiru in a bear hug.

Haruka turned to the staff member at the desk. "Thanks for everything. We won't be back!" She grinned at the woman who smiled and nodded.

"I hope everything works out for you two as you hope it will."

"It will!" Haruka took Michiru's bag and they left the hospital.

"I never thought I'd get out of that place." Michiru took one final look at the old building.

"You'll never go back. I won't let it happen."

"I know you won't." The couple arrived at the car and began their short journey home.

Michiru stared out of the window deep in thought. Haruka noticed her silence and placed a reassuring hand onto Michiru's hand. "Everything is okay now." Haruka whispered.

"It is." Michiru whispered back. "When do you want to fly out to reinstate our vows? I want to go soon. I don't want to put it off."

"I can take care of all of that tomorrow if you want me to."

"I'd love it."

When they arrived at the house Michiru gasped. "I can't believe I'm finally home."

"Come on, I have a surprise for you." Haruka led Michiru into the house with her eyes covered. "I hope you like it." She dropped her hands from Michiru's gaze and put arms around her waist.

Michiru observed the living room. "You bought new furniture?"

"I noticed a few rips and stuff in the old couch. A few bumps and scratches on the table. And the TV was so two years ago."

"I love it." Michiru looked down at the coffee table where the vase of flowers sat and a small card next to it.

"I wrote you something." Haruka picked up the card and sat on the couch. She motioned for Michiru to sit next to her.

Michiru sat down and leaned into Haruka's shoulder. She opened the card and read it slowly.

-Michiru, my love

I may not remember the past and may never, but one thing is clear, I never forgot how I felt about you. No matter what life may throw in our direction, I know nothing could ever come between us. I am lucky to call you mine. I'll never let you go. The odds were against us and we found each other again. How many people are lucky enough to find their soul mate twice in one life?

-Yours forever,

Haruka

"We are lucky, aren't we?"

"We are." Haruka kissed Michiru's cheek and reached for the photo album on the small table next to the couch. "I've been waiting for the moment we could look at this together."

Michiru opened it to the first page and pointed to the first picture. It was a picture of Michiru sitting down at a small shop, sipping on what looked like coffee. "You took this picture of me a week after we started dating."

The End