I do not own anything. SO I will be doing Creatures of the Night. I'll begin on that probably this weekend. If not that, probably next week. School's terrors and horrors have come back (aka same ol' slow updates). I'll probably be only able to update on weekends.

Amu's Knowledge Harms a Relationship

"Get to the point, Tsukiyomi. You called me here for Yoru, didn't you?" Despite those red, puffy eyes of hers, Amu was still able to give a mean dagger-glare; Ikuto had to admit. He'd wanted to ask what was wrong and comfort her, but her crabby mood gave a clear disapproval to his affectionate desires. Seated opposite of each other in that small diner, the two exchanged intense gazes to the other, one obviously more loving than the other. The waitress always cringed any time she entered the rosette's range of sight.

"Just a few questions, Amu. You wouldn't mind, would you? The Hinamori Amu wouldn't be scared over such simple questions, would she?" Ikuto teased her. If she didn't want to be held, then he'd at least ease her tense guard.

"This Hinamori Amu is stronger than you think, Tsukiyomi." A part of him died as his name fell from those poisonous, soft lips. "That Amu, who you think you can manipulate with just words and taunts, doesn't exist." His feisty little Amu was still the same… maybe just a bit more paranoid though.

"How are you going to tell Yoru about me—about us?" On a more serious note, Ikuto brought up the question that she had least wanted from him.

"Us?" The clear disdain she had in that word ripped open his wounds from years ago. "We'll tell him you're his father, but there's nothing between us anymore than that."

The corner of his smirk twitched; his confidence was faltering more and more. The words he had given to Yoru just flashed in his mind.

"From then on, I decided that as long as I could protect her, comfort her, treasure her, and love her, I would be able to stay by her side. Remember that, Yoru. When you can ensure her happiness and protection, you are able to stay by her side." Sometimes, the advice you give others is also the same advice you need.

He spoke with a broken heart, "I'm sorry I wasn't strong enough to protect you years ago, but Amu," The love and care he poured into her name moved her and brought the walls of her heart down. To make it even worse, his hand moved over hers, shocking her with waves of desire. "Please, allow me to be at your side. I love you."

The words crippled her into a stunned statue. All the thoughts she told herself to keep him outside of her heart and mind just ceased. Her mind was still with only his words resounding in her whole being. Through his pleading eyes, his meaningful tone, and his gentle touch, she knew he meant it; and that was truly the worst thing of this whole day. Knowing that he loved her and knowing that he still had other women in his bed at the same time left her worse than heart-broken.

"Ikuto, I… I just can't do this." Amu felt impaled by her own words.

"This was the best choice." She'd thought to herself.

"Her words had always been like a different, magical language unlike anything else; but right now, those words with the voice of an angel became a dreadful song that pulled my heart and soul from me." He understood her words and removed his hand from hers.

"When you're ready to tell Yoru about us... I mean about you and me, just give me a call; but don't call me anytime soon. I still need to recover from this heartbreak. I guess I wasn't able to win this one; but it's not like I was ever able to win against you, anyway. I'll see you around, Hinamori-san." He put nothing special or any emotion into her name, and that in itself pulled her back into reality. She was losing him… again.

That Great Guy

"Yoru makes me happy every day. We were watching a movie yesterday, and his laugh brought this spreading joy in me. In spite of that, my heart screams in torture every time when he talks about another girl or when he says we're friends. I know I was the one who told him, but it still hurts. Are you listening to me, Kiseki?" The blue haired girl heartlessly killed any hope of a relationship between her and him. The boy with hair resembling lilacs paused as his cyan eyes searched her oblivious composure for any sadistic signs on her. Days and days of her talking about Yoru this and Yoru that and spending no time with Kiseki had annoyed him into the grump he was at that moment.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I heard you, Miki. Yoru's such a great guy. Do you ever think about how there are other great men?" A bitter tone was evident in his words.

"What's wrong, Kiseki?" Miki, for one of the first times in a long time, directed her attention to him. Yoru had blinded her eyes and corrupted her mind with only thoughts of him.

"You know how much I changed for you. When we were kids, I saw how you looked at Yoru; and you told me that you admired Yoru because he was a great guy. Since I wanted to be the one you looked at, thought about, and admired, I trained myself to be that great guy. When you called me a great guy, I thought you'd run into my arms the next day; but that next day, you told me that the same day you called me a great guy was the same day you were finally able to talk to him." The words just bubbled out of him, and he couldn't stop them. His eyes were gazing into hers deeply.

"What exactly are you saying, Kiseki?" The girl he always had on his mind remained there in front of him.

"I know that a best friend should be happy for you, but I can't be happy for you. The person I love is you, Miki." He confessed. In that moment, he regretted every word he just said. It wasn't necessarily the words he was saying; it was her reaction. He saw her face contort in horror and dismay at these feelings.

"I-I'm sorry. I spoke too much. I'm really sorry." With that, he gave one last lingering glance and then walked away from her.

Amu's Unexpected Meet with Blondes

In the same dimly lit bar from before, Amu was seated in the same booth she had shared with Hatori. She probably drank a few more glasses than usual, but she did just lose the love of her life. After chugging another glass down, she slammed the glass back down on the table to see Rima and Utau in front of her table.

"See, I told you we might bump into her if we went back to the same bar. Why do you always doubt me, Rima?" The blonde snapped at the shorter blonde, seating herself opposite of Amu.

"If you didn't give me so much good reasons why, I probably wouldn't doubt you as much." Rima gave that childish pout she never grew out of, seating herself right next to Amu. Amu, stunned, just looked at the two with questioning looks.

"You know, Amu, you should have told me you were in town. We could have celebrated properly, but I guess it's all the same, even if we're just joining you on your mope-fest." Rima commented, yelling to the waiter to bring more drinks their way.

"Aren't you mad at me for disappearing on you? Not contacting you all those years? Not attending any of your weddings or birthdays?" Tears welled up in her golden orbs.

"For the first couple of years, I was pretty mad; but as time passed, I realized that you didn't mean to hurt me. You wanted to protect Ikuto. Ever since then, I've decided that the next time I meet you I'm going to act—" Rima was about to continue on, but Amu put her hand on her shoulder when tears were running down Rima's cheeks.

"It's just like you to pretend to be strong. I'm really sorry, Rima." Amu embraced Rima, crying about how they've missed each other. Utau was just opposite of them, clearly annoyed by the lack of attention.

"Hey, Amu, you know Ran's fake crying." Utau stated blankly, sipping on her tequila.

"WHAT?!" Amu instantly let go of Rima in shock. Rima just gave her that "innocent" smile.

"It's your own fault, Amu. You're just glad that you still haven't had a wedding. If you already did, I wouldn't let you off with something like this. Just remember that you can't disappear anymore or I'll tie you up and throw you in a cage for Ikuto. No, he's too soft-hearted. He'd let you out of that cage by the end of the day. You know how hard you're making my life, Amu." Rima glared at her with the smile still in place.

"You're not kidding, huh? Sometimes, I forget how evil you are, Rima." The other blonde sighed in either exasperation or exhaustion.

"I'm just expressing my concern for my dear Amu." Rima feigned hurt. Utau and Amu just shook their heads.

"When I pictured how I'd meet you guys, I pictured something more… well different than this." Amu said, joining in with Utau's sigh.

Ran's Desire to Be Loved

"Thanks, Daichi, for always staying by my side this entire time." The teenage girl in her pajamas spoke into her pink cell. With her back on her fluffy bed, she stared up at her plain white ceiling. Her ruby eyes stripped the tone from the ceiling and replaced it with the picture of that mint-haired boy's idiotic grin.

"If you don't stop being cute like that, I'm not very sure if I can keep this relationship neutral anymore." Daichi chuckled. He made it quite clear that he liked her, but she never knew if he was serious or if he did this to every other girl.

"You walk me to school, you stay with me at school, you hang out with me after school, and you stay on the phone with me until I fall asleep." She pointed out. "Are you really a great guy or a…?" Ran stopped mid-sentence, not wanting to finish her next words. She was still hung up on Yoru, but Daichi was always there to comfort her or distract her. At first, she thought it was suffocating, but after taking a few moments of thought, she found his presence comforting.

"Are you asleep, Ran?" Diachi asked, waiting for the response Ran wouldn't give. "Goodnight, Ran. I like you." Ran had to strain her ears to listen to his last words. She knew how pathetic she was. Pretending to sleep just to hear that confession every night was really embarrassing. She just wanted to feel loved.

Thanks for reading. I probably won't be updating during the weekdays.