Naminé couldn't leave someone she had been so close to for so long alone; she couldn't let everything they once had go. "I'll meet you guys in a little while." She attempted a calm, sincere smile, but it was obviously false. Pretending to overlook the entire situation wasn't going to be an easy task.

She pressed through the double doors, already headed for Twilight High, the public high school just down the road from Destiny Prep. Her breaths were short and concerned, her mind teetering on everything Axel had said to her, down to the very last word. How was she supposed to tell Roxas? Should she even bother? She knew it would be far too difficult, but something about the sincerity in Axel's voice told her that there was no other option left, no matter where she looked or what she tried, this was it.

All the thoughts passing through her brain, clouding her actual mind, she hadn't realized she was standing, blank and aloof, in front of the large, cast-iron gates of Twilight High School. A school bang rang in the direction of the building, but it wasn't nearly as sharp or high-pitched as the one in her school. What appeared to be five seconds later, a flow of teenagers poured through the entry ways. She rushed over to the sidewalk across the road as the gates swung wide open, her eyes scanning the crowd for the blonde boy.

A hand rested itself on her shoulder. Startled, she gasped and twirled around, her hair cascading in her face. To her relief, it was the boy she was looking for. He gazed lovingly and cheerfully at her, a bright smile spreading across his face.

"Roxas," she muttered. She didn't know how to begin, or if she even wanted to. Get it out, and then you can explain. "I think, I think we should stop seeing each other. As in, cut all ties."

Distress and anguish flashed across Roxas's face, but it quickly faded to dejection and heartache. "Naminé," he hesitated. "Where, where is this coming from?" He took her hand in his. She waited a moment before retrieving it, wishing she didn't have to.

"A man, he, he told me we were in danger." She averted her eyes, knowing all she wanted was to throw herself into his arms and stay there forever. "He told me that we'd be safer if we were apart."

"What did he look like?"

"He had really bright green eyes, and flame red hair, and," but she stopped talking, noticing the way Roxas was looking at her. "What's wr-?"

She was cut off by his finger pressing gently on her peachy lips, silencing her down to her breath. "We should trust him. Axel knows what he's talking about."

Naminé pulled his finger away and shoved her hands in the front pocket of his red hoodie. She shivered as a chilly wind wound itself through the air and she pressed her blonde head against his chest before speaking again. She tilted her head and admired his eyes with all of her heart. No matter how much her mind was flustered and uncontrolled, her heart always told her she would be alright, but she still couldn't supress the earge to ask, "How do you know?"

He placed his hands gently on her head, pulling her tight and close. "Will you just trust me?"

"Always."

They sat there for a moment, but they both knew they would have to leave, have to forget about each other. Without breathing another word, Naminé kissed Roxas one last time, and simply left. Saying anything else would hurt them too much, good-bye being far too painful to manage to slip from either of them.

xXx

Naminé hadn't touched her mocha, and both Kairi and Xion had taken full notice, filling them with worry and concern. She avoided any eye contact, and she kept her hands folded in her lap as Xion spoke.

"I can't believe our fall break is already over. It seemed so short." The air about her was light and cheery, glad that she had been given a second chance, even though it was far sooner than she had imagined. She wore lacy black gloves, destined to conceal her hands from the heat of her Styrofoam coffee cup, leaving the cardboard sleeve behind to rest uselessly on the counter.

Naminé's arms were folded gently around her head, concealing the pain pulling the strings of her heart, wrenching any focus from her brain. It was as if a haze had centered itself in front of her icy eyes and faded away her surroundings, the present, only letting the past week shine through with love and luminosity.

Kairi snapped her delicate fingers in front of Naminé's face, struggling to awaken her from her trance. "Hello? Please tell me you aren't spaced out to planet Roxas." Kairi rolled her eyes as her pale friend shivered back to reality. Still, the fog lingered around her, and she still felt the emptiness pounding, lurking for more hopes and dreams to erase from her heart.

"I'm sorry, I really have to go." Naminé stood up from her tall, iron seat, gliding from the table with a screech against the marble tiling on the floor of the small java shop. She mustered a tender smile for the two uniformed girls as she headed out the door and up Market Street and towards her home.

xXx

Days passed, each and every one as dark, lonesome, and repetitive as the other. At school, Naminé sat with her friends, did her work, but never seemed to understand anything. Lately, she hadn't remembered any of her dreams or felt the need to draw or paint. But, tonight, she lay in her bed, pencil firmly in hand, images scrawling across her brain. Also, the images were accompanied by voices. She wrote and sketched without thinking, just copying the things scrolling through her vision. The images themselves made sense, but they didn't flow together, and she couldn't understand anything she had done. Exhausted from the scattered thoughts and shredded sequences, she drifted into a deep, intent sleep where she lost all reality and found herself piecing together everything she had just created.

xXx

"He's interfered with our plans, he must be eliminated." The voice that was speaking was close to a deep growl, like a wolf fighting for dominance.

Another voiced snapped, regaining authority. "No, our plans have not been ruined. If we eliminate him, then the superior will become suspicious." It rumbled back down, still filled with the hatred and cockiness it had held from the first word.

The original roar arose again, only to say, "This is true."

A new voice, one Naminé had never heard, even in her dreams, spoke. The sound was soothing, youthful, and calm, unlike the others who were course and gravely. "I'll make sure all they have is each other, even if it's just an illusion."

After the words had faded out, leaving only blackness and silence. Naminé could feel herself awakening. She rolled over to check the time on her digital alarm clock, but something was wrong, whether it was the display or the time, she did not know, but she knew something was wrong. She knew it because it read 13:13. She watched for what seemed like forever, but it never changed.

Perplexed, she stood up and unplugged it, yet its vivid blue numbers stayed illuminated. What's happening to me? Am I going insane?

Tears came to Naminé's gentle, blue eyes, though she tried to hold them back. Her mind was corrupted, just like someone else had found their way inside of her and was pulling at her until the seams holding her together came completely undone. Those last three words rippled through her, making a bigger and bigger impact as every time she thought about them. Just an illusion. What could it mean? She needed to think, to escape. Luckily, Saturday had finally arrived, which meant the rest of the day was hers. Quickly, she slid into her favorite plain, white dress and a navy pea coat. She tugged the trusty, grey boots that basically lived on her feet back on and she wobbled awkwardly out the door to her crisp, clean white room. Why she had never bothered to put any color in it, she didn't know, but it was of little importance to her now.

"I'm going out!" she called out exasperatedly as she took the stairs two at a time.

Her mom, who was blankly flipping a burning pancake over the stove in the pale aqua kitchen, replied with a sigh, "When aren't you?" Naminé could see the sting in her mother's forlorn, empty eyes, but she was couldn't bring it upon to stay in the house with the family that fell apart, piece by piece, as the days dragged on. "Remember, we move out tomorrow."

Taken aback by the remembrance of the move, she stopped in her tracks. The entire move had escaped out of her mind, unnoticed and definitely not missed. Caught up in the thoughts of packing all her clothes tonight and making sure her furniture was cleared out, she nearly missed the blonde boy standing patiently, even motionless in the distance.

"Roxas!" She began to sprint towards the boy, but clumsily tripped over her own foot, only to go tumbling forward. When she looked up, he was gone, out of sight. One word, and one word only, was left to dangle from her open lips as her heart raced, checking back on the other events of the morning. "Roxas?"

Wow, has it been way to long or what? I hate not being able to read or reply to reviews either, I hate not having time. ;b but, alas, the weekend is almost here, which means tons of time to write write write! I still do try hard to read everything possible, so reviews stilll rock my socks. (: thanks for reading, I appreciate your input greatly.

Stop! Question time! What is your favorite subject in school?
Elective: Theater. Core Clas: Math.