A new season comes! Ahahaha! Thanks for continuously reading Serendipity. Your reviews make me really happy and eager to finish this piece. I don't intend to make a long one out of this, probably another season more and have to end it. I have to finish and start my other fics too! (I'll probably make another Yui-Hotohori fic soon.)

Anyway, for those who are wondering why Chapter 13 has the contents of Chapter 12, well, I accidentally deleted a scene for Chapter 12 and I realized it was a good scene. When I found it in my files, I added said scene in Chapter 12 and made the first part of the restaurant scene part of another chapter: Chapter 13. Because I made your lives complicated (Sorry Sorry Sorry), here's chapter 14 with my apologies. ^_^

Flowerypetal: Thanks for reading! Hope you like this chapter. Everything will be a little clear here. Hope the two still end up together before the night ends, though.

Fallenmad: Here's the chapter to clarify some things. Ehehe. Hope you still like Hotohori after this chapter. Believe me, he's such a romantic...

XxLadyYuixX: Here's another chapter, more explanatory on Hoto's real feelings. I realized I made some people hate Hotohori in this fic but believe me, he's a good guy here! Hope you read through to the end! Arigatou gozaimasu!

Rowan Rosethorne: Ahaha. Thanks for the review! Yes, let's make Hotohori's life miserable. Kidding. Nakago will come out very soon.

Happy Reading everyone! Hope you like how the fic is developing here. Since I encountered some mix-up, I was thinking of getting a beta. How do you get one? Would someone help me out? Thanks! :)

Disclaimer: FY will never be mine. Ehehe.

Chapter 14: Stop Playing Me

By Slavedriver2008

I blinked. "What?" My heart beat loudly and I became conscious of every movement, every word, every sound he made.

"Do I have to repeat myself?"

I frowned. "Are you drunk?"

Hotohori laughed. "If the three glasses of wine I drank because I'm too nervous to be sitting beside you enough to make me drunk…then yes, I am drunk."

Blood flowed to my cheeks. I slapped his arm and he laughed again, as if it was the most amusing thing in the world. "I'm serious."

"And so am I, Yui, densest girl in the world."

I looked up expectantly at him. "Do you really…?"

"Yes," he said casually and I released a breath I didn't know I was holding.

"Since when?" I asked, I wanted to know everything. I've been continuously getting mixed signals from him. I deserve some explanation, right?

"Since you fell on top of me?" he smiled and I frowned.

"I don't believe you. Stop playing me," I stated. He can't love me then. He didn't know me. He only recognized me when Miaka arrived in my apartment, right?

"I'm not lying," Hotohori said in his deep sexy voice.

"We don't know each other then. I don't know you," I said, unsure if I should push the topic. What more could I ask for? He loved me. Why do I need explanations again?

"Well…I know you. A lifetime is not enough to forget the face of a miko," my eyes widened and he smiled slowly, his hazel eyes gazing down intensely.

"You mean you—Why didn't you tell me? Why didn't you tell Miaka?"

Hotohori sighed and placed his forehead on mine. He closed his eyes. "Look at me, Yui. Tell me, would you look at me if you know I'm Hotohori? We've crossed paths countless times yet you never paid me any attention."

"That's not true…" When we met, he had my full attention. How can I not notice him? I think he was lying but the sincerity in his voice made me feel otherwise. "What about…Houki? You slept with her!"

Hotohori opened his eyes and moved his forehead from mine. "Houki? She's—" Surprise evident in his eyes and then he smiled sheepishly. "Are you jealous?"

"No! Why would I be?" I pulled away, trying to hide the piece of truth he found out.

"You're crying…" His hand brushed my cheek and I looked down. I childishly brushed away the tears from my eyes. He laughed a little and I looked sharply at him.

"I'm not crying! I'm just…I thought…I thought you used me." I looked down again. I couldn't believe I was saying this. He was the one who was supposed to prove himself, not the other way around.

"To what?" Hotohori's voice was calm and soothing.

"I don't know…to forget her? You love her…You—"

"I never used you. We've broken up a year ago," he cut me and pulled me closer. "And I've been watching you ever since."

I blinked. "What?"

"Do I have to repeat myself again?" My brows creased and Hotohori laughed. "I've been…I've been watching you skate for a year now." I blinked at him, shocked. He smiled. "The Akagis are family friends and they always invite us to the stadium. I saw you skating in one of those visits, without a care in the world, hurting. It was probably a few years after…the book happened."

Silence fell between us. He saw me years back? I remembered how I first landed in the Akagi stadium. I smiled sadly, looking down. My fingers brushed through his coat. "Taka appeared. And my seishis did not." Hotohori brushed my hair, my head leaned to his chin. It was comfortable having him this close. I felt like I could tell him everything, knowing he would listen. "I was…sad. I…they never came back for me."

"I'm here for you."

"If you recognized me then, why didn't you look for Miaka?" I wanted to slap myself for always putting Miaka between us. Do I always want to be compared to her? Or do I simply want Hotohori to choose between us? I'm stupid.

"That was the initial plan." I raised my head, my eyes questioning. "I came to watch you train everyday, waiting to be recognized. But you never looked up, Yui. You always had that faraway look in your eyes, like you're somewhere else." He kissed my forehead, warmth spread through my body. I closed my eyes and when I opened them, he smiled slowly. "I don't know what happened, I came everyday to see you, rather than to see Miaka through you."

"I'm not buying this." I walked away from his arms. I had to get away for a while. I needed to breathe. I can't take everything as easy as drinking water. It was not simple, especially since I knew I have been stupid all along. I was too focused on what I felt that I never paid attention to…things.

How can I be loved and not realized it?

"You don't know how happy I was me when you fall on top of me and when you ended up in my house, looking for a job." His eyes followed me across the room and I felt the fire in it, even with the distance between us. He won't give me the space just yet. And I became scared. "You don't know how my chest wanted to explode when I was finally able to kiss you and you kissed me back." He smiled and another tear fell to my cheek, remembering those little incidents. "And how afraid I was when you called me Hotohori that night."

He walked towards me. "I never told you about Miaka because I don't want her to come between us." He raised a hand and brushed the tears from my eyes. "I don't want to be Hotohori. I want to be Sai. I just want to love you without another life holding me back. I want to be yours, Yui."

"I'm sorry…" I whispered. Yes, it was my fault all along. "I didn't know…I was selfish…" he smiled. "I thought you don't want me because you have Miaka and Houki." He kissed me gently on the lips and I closed my eyes. I was brimming with happiness and I kissed him back with everything I have. His arms wrapped around my waist and lifted me up, closer to him, closer to his lips. And I gave in to the emotion that was filling us.

Sai loves me. And I love him.

It was…liberating.

We were panting when we parted. "I love you…" I whispered slowly, meaning each word. His eyes brightened and he let out a laugh. Everything suddenly felt so light. "And yes, I was jealous…How can not? She came from your room wearing your robe, what am I supposed to think?"

Hotohori laughed again. "She fell on the pool," he said and my brows creased. I snorted, earning another laugh from him. "She accidentally slipped from one of Boshin's pencils and plunged to the pool." I laughed at the thought. "She went to my room to change and when you came, you saw her in that state. Nice timing, ne?"

I looked up to him, frowning. "What do you mean nice timing?"

A laugh erupted from him and I blushed. "If you hadn't seen her, you wouldn't have been jealous and we wouldn't have been confessing now." He smirked and my face grew hot. "Law of relativity."

"Whatever. You still haven't repeated it yet," I said, trying to divert the conversation. I was more than happy, I was ecstatic.

Hotohori smirked. "I'm not saying anything more. My lips are sealed." I frowned and he laughed. "If you want to hear it…" his eyes glistened. "…you have to force me…"

"Yeah? How am I supposed to do that?" I breathed out and a naughty grin spread on his face. Heat spread throughout my body, realizing what he meant. I was about to answer him when my stomach growled. He laughed again.

"Come on, let's eat before going home," he laced his fingers into mine and pulled me softly outside the room.

"What do you mean…?" I asked, my face still red. He looked back and winked, making me blush all over again. Thoughts of what would happen between us after dinner suddenly appeared in my thoughts. He can't be serious…can he?

"It's my place after dinner," he smiled widely. "To be sure nobody bothers us."

A/N: What do you think? I initially said I'd pull Nakago into this chapter but the conversation between Hotohori and Yui ended up too long! Oh well, the third part of this life-changing dinner will come out in a few days! Please leave reviews!