A/N: Major fluff warning! :)

~Chapter 21~

FINAL

It was already late, and both Navis knew too well that hanging around in the UnderNet at this hour meant nothing but trouble.

So they both floated to one of the highest rock formations they could find in the area, and quickly lowered themselves onto its surface before any other NetNavi could notice.

"Is this where you normally sleep..?" Lei asked, her large blue eyes examining the stiff looking ground below her.

The cloaked Navi stared at her for a few moments in silence.

"I don't have a specific place." He answered, shifting his red eyes to the distance, "I just find a quiet area where no fool would bother me."

Lei said nothing for a while, then sat herself down on the ground.

"I've never slept out in the open like this before." she suddenly admitted, her expression turning excited.

Bass simply stared down at the odd girl next to him for a few moments, then lowered himself down to a sitting position as well, not far from the female Navi.

"It's nothing special." He said, his red eyes fixed on her.

She shifted her gaze to the sky above them, then, lay down with a swift movement, both of her hands resting on her stomach as her long ponytail spread on the ground all around her.

"That can't be true." She started, her blue eyes fixed at the amazing colors above her, which consisted of black, some light-blue, and a faint yellow, "I mean, look at this!" She pointed up.

Bass' brow furrowed as he tried to make sense out of her reaction.

"I've already seen this countless times, stupid." He said, raising an eyebrow at her.

Lei kept silent for a few moments.

Suddenly, she got up into a sitting position, then to her feet, and floated in Bass' direction, lowering herself right next to him. Expressionless, she stared at him for a few moments.

Confused, the cloaked Navi simply watched her actions in silence.

Then, she reached her hands to his chest on both sides of his Navi symbol and pinned him down to the ground with all her strength, surprising him so much his red eyes widened and his cheeks turned red at the sudden, unexpected closeness.

"What the hell are you doing..?" He protested up at her, yet Lei kept silent as she stared down at UnderNet's most fearsome NetNavi for a few seconds.

Smiling down playfully at him, she then quickly rolled to lay on the ground beside him.

"Look properly!" She said, fixing her gaze once again on the sky above them and smiling, "How can you not be impressed with this?"

Bass kept silent for a few moments, then shifted his gaze to the girl laying next to him.

He suddenly remembered she kept saying the same thing about various areas in the UnderNet before as well.

"I'm more interested in what you keep finding so 'amazing' about this place." He said, his red eyes fixed on her.

Lei turned back to face him and smiled wide.

"Well, you have to admit the UnderNet is beautiful." She said.

Bass was silent for a few moments, simply staring at her in disbelief.

'Beautiful? This place?' He pondered to himself.

"How is it beautiful?" He asked, watching her closely.

Trying to find the right words, Lei only stared at the cloaked Navi laying next to her for a few moments.

"I guess it's the fact that it's just so different that makes it beautiful." She started, shifting her blue eyes back to the sky, "I'm used to the city; to everything being exactly as it should be, always on time and never late, always the same and never changing.. "

Bass kept silent, as she continued;

"I love my friends and my job, don't get me wrong, the only time I actually feel free is when I do my deliveries," Lei admitted, wrapping her arms around herself, "But I realized that's nothing compared to what I feel when I visit this place. It's so big, so unexpected.. Nothing stays the same and nothing repeats itself.. To someone like me, that's just amazing."

Lei turned back at his direction and smiled softly.

"I'm really happy that this delivery was given to me." she said, her voice sincere.

Bass was speechless, and he only stared at her for a few more moments in silence.

He had never thought of life at NetCity that way before. If everything in his past hadn't happened to him, he probably would have ended up as something not very far from that. He would have probably kept finding and destroying pathetic bugs in the system, never getting a chance to test his actual abilities in battle and never knowing what he's really capable of.

Suddenly, it dawned on him.

What if just like her, he would have eventually ended up feeling.. Suffocated?

He was finally beginning to understand what she meant.

'How does this girl..' He thought to himself gazing at her, 'Always somehow finds a way to make me realize these things about myself?'

Lei didn't break his eye contact, and they both kept silent for a few more moments.

"I see." Bass eventually said, his voice quiet.

She smiled at him, then shifted to lay on her side, in his direction.

"Nobody knows of what I just told you.. For some reason.. I kept that a secret from everyone." She said, her expression suddenly turning sad, "I'm.. not a good friend."

Bass stayed silent as he shifted his red eyes away from her and raised his arm from inside his cloak to put it under his head for support.

"Neither am I." He said with a confident voice, causing Lei to stare at him for a few moments, then break into a light giggle.

"Thank you, Bass." She said, suddenly feeling extremely tired, as If she had literally just used every bit of energy left in her for today.

Noticing Lei was incredibly quiet, Bass turned his gaze back to her, only to realize the female Navi was already in deep sleep.

He took the opportunity and shifted to lay on his side, facing her as well, as he watched her sleeping figure in silence for a few moments.

He let his red eyes wander all over her features; from her long, brown hair now spread on the surface all around her, to her peaceful expression, long eyelashes, small nose, soft mouth, and eventually to her folded arms and small, gentle hands resting on the ground before her face.

'Really.. This girl is the exact opposite of me.' He thought to himself.

She was so different, that she made him act in ways that he didn't even think were possible for him.

He blinked as he ran the events that occurred only an hour ago through his mind;

What the hell came over him? To suddenly grab her like that.. And do that.. To her..

He just lost himself completely after hearing those three words..

Feeling heat beginning to radiate out of his face, Bass stopped his staring and shifted his red eyes to the distance all at once in a desperate attempt to calm himself down.

Unfortunately for him, Still in deep sleep, Lei suddenly moved her left hand and gently slid it under his arm, grabbing onto his shoulder from behind, while moving closer to snuggle against his chest, causing the cloaked Navi's red eyes to widen in shock, and slightly freeze at her familiar, soft touch.

Processing what had just happened for a few moments, he breathed deep as he bit his lip and wrapped his free arm around her small figure, feeling her tighten her hold and nuzzle even closer to him in response, making him swallow hard and blush completely red.

'Even in her sleep this girl does whatever the hell she wants..!' He thought to himself, staring down at her in disbelief.

It was so quiet now, he could hear and feel her shallow breathing on his scarred chest.

"..Bass..." He suddenly heard his name escape the girl's lips in a small and soft voice.

The cloaked Navi blinked as he felt a surge of warmth spread through his whole body, causing him to let out a deep breath he didn't even know he was holding.

Then, he finally calmed down.

'To think that something like this would make me feel so content..'

"How stupid.." He muttered to himself, letting his red eyes slowly close, until he felt himself drift into deep sleep as well.

Slowly opening her blue eyes, Lei's vision was filled with dark purple.

Confused, she blinked a few times, then looked all around her.

Her cheeks flushed red as she realized she was cuddled up against Bass' chest while holding onto his shoulder, his strong arm wrapped around her body and their legs slightly tangled together.

How.. Did they end up like this..?

She lifted her gaze to his face, her blue eyes widening with surprise.

Bass was sleeping soundly.

Lei kept staring at his face for a few more moments in complete silence.

This was the first time she had ever seen him this peaceful, and it was incredibly hard for her to take her eyes off his calm expression.

'So cute.' She thought to herself, smiling softly up at him.

She released her grip on his shoulder, and carefully slid her hand back from under his arm to rest at her side, then moved it up in the direction of the cloaked Navi's face, stopping a few inches from it.

The female Navi bit her lower lip, as her fingers gently traced one of the purple streaks fused with his skin. She always wanted to do this.

Bass flinched at her sudden touch, then quickly grabbed her wrist, as he slowly opened his red eyes to look at her.

"Morning." Lei said with a soft voice, smiling up at him.

The cloaked Navi stared with half lidded eyes at the girl laying against him for a few moments, neither of them saying a word.

"Don't pet me." He said, releasing her hand and slowly rising into a sitting position, with Lei following quickly after him.

"Why not?" She asked, confused by his reaction.

Bass stayed silent for a few moments as he felt the blush spread through his face.

"I'm not used to any of this.. It makes me feel.. Strange." He said, his red eyes fixed on anywhere but the female Navi sitting next to him.

Lei only stared at him for a few moments.

"You don't like it when I touch you?" She asked, her large blue eyes trying to figure him out.

Bass gritted his teeth and faced away from her completely.

"I like it too much, stupid. I don't know what to do.." He muttered, irritated, as his face turned as red as a tomato.

Lei felt her own cheeks get flushed at his words, as she kept silent.

Neither of them spoke for a few more moments.

"I'll take you back now." He suddenly said, finally turning to look at her, his face buried behind his cloak, leaving only his red eyes visible.

Lei blinked, then simply nodded.

'Yeah.. I guess it's time..' She thought to herself.

Then, both Navis floated to their feet.

"Follow me and stay close." He said, his voice demanding, then flew away from the place with Lei right behind him.

Surprisingly, the place in which both of them spent the night at wasn't as far from NetCity as the area in which Bass fought the gang NetNavis, yet the extreme silence made the way somehow seem longer.

'Why is he so quiet..?' Lei thought to herself, confused.

Bass' gaze was fixed at their destination, his hands clenched into fists and his cloak fluttering in the wind.

He didn't look at Lei even once.

After what seemed like forever, both of them reached the entrance to NetCity. They Lowered themselves to the ground below them, as they both remained silent for a few more moments.

Now staring at his back as he stood before her, Lei still couldn't understand his unexplained coldness.

'Was it something I said..?' she wondered to herself.

Suddenly, Bass turned around at her direction.

"Lei." he called her name, his expression unreadable.

The female Navi kept staring at him as he continued;

"I need you to close your eyes and stay very still." He said, his voice firm and his red eyes fixed on her.

Lei kept silent for a few more moments.

"What..?" She asked, her expression confused.

Gritting his teeth, Bass stepped closer to her.

"Close your eyes already." He demanded, his face turning red.

Lei's blue eyes widened at his sudden closeness, then she quickly did as he asked her, and closed them shut.

It was quiet.

'What is he doing..? And why is it taking so long..?' She thought to herself, feeling her patience quickly fading.

Suddenly, she felt both of his large hands cup her face, making her jump with surprise.

Slowly, she opened one eye to peek at what was going on.

Bass was incredibly close, his face completely red and his red eyes opening wide at the fact that she didn't listen to him.

Lei's blue eyes shot open as her face turned completely red as well, and her expression into pure confusion.

"What did I tell you, stupid!" He said and growled, his expression frustrated at the girl in front of him.

"I'm sorry!" She called, quickly closing her blue eyes once again, "But what are you doing?!"

Bass gritted his teeth, then breathed deep.

"Yesterday I completely lost myself, okay?" He said, irritated, "I wanted to.. Remember."

His words caught her off guard.

"You want to.. Kiss me?" She asked, her blue eyes still closed.

'Is this the reason he was so quiet..? Was this.. bothering him..?' She thought to herself.

Bass kept silent for the longest time.

"Don't open your eyes under any circumstances, got it?" He demanded, his hands still cupping her face.

Lei felt the blush spread through her whole face.

"...Okay." She confirmed.

Silence, again.

Then, Lei suddenly felt his mouth press against hers.

Bass' kiss before felt like he was lost in his anger; it was forceful, hurried, rough, like a surge of emotions that he held up inside for too long and couldn't keep under control anymore.

But now it was completely different;

His kiss was calm, slow, as if he was savoring every second of it. Almost as if he was apologizing for the way he acted.

Was he really capable of being this gentle?

She moved her hands up and tugged on his cloak, kissing him back as gently as she could, causing him to move one of his large hands down to her waist as he pulled her closer against him with a swift movement, making her gasp in surprise and pull back from him for a moment, only for his mouth to quickly capture hers once again in another series of sweet kisses.

Somehow, this one felt far more intimate than yesterday's.

After a few more moments, they stopped, then moved away while slowly opening their eyes to look at each others flustered faces.

"I can't believe I'm doing this sort of thing.." Bass said with a low voice, quickly releasing his grip on her body and putting his hands back under his cloak.

Lei simply giggled at him.

"It's okay, you're good at it." She said, smiling playfully up at him.

The cloaked Navi's face turned bright red.

"Shut up." He said.

Shifting her blue eyes up to look at the entrance to NetCity, Lei's expression turned slightly sad. She then shifted her gaze back to stare at Bass.

"Promise me you'll stay out of trouble, okay?" She asked, watching him closely.

The cloaked Navi simply stared down at her for a few more moments.

"Again with your unnecessary worrying." He answered her, his mouth breaking into a mocking smile.

Lei crossed her arms at him.

"Bass.. Promise me, please." She pleaded, Her large blue eyes fixed on him, and her expression sincere.

He said nothing for a while, not breaking her eye contact.

Bass won't ever admit it to her, but Lei's genuine worry for his sake made him feel incredibly.. Needed, loved, missed. For a NetNavi who lived only to fight, constantly putting his life on the line without caring about dying as long as it was against a strong and worthy opponent, it was a refreshing change that the cloaked Navi didn't even know he needed, that he somehow forgot about during his almost 11 years of solitude.

It somehow gave his existence a much deeper meaning; As if he now had a new purpose.

"I'll try." He said, shifting his red eyes away from her.

Lei smiled wide at his words.

"I guess I'll be off, then." She said, making him turn his gaze back to her.

"Yeah." Bass answered, watching her closely.

The female Navi then floated up in NetCity direction, only to stop midway and turn her head at the cloaked Navi's direction below her.

"Come visit me sometime! I'll show you my house!" She yelled down at him, smiling wide and waving.

Bass narrowed his eyes up at her.

"Just make sure you don't get lost on your way there, stupid!" He yelled back, smiling viciously up at her.

Lei's expression turned into pure shock.

"That was one time!" She answered him, clenching her hands into fists.

Bass broke into a loud laugh.

"Sure." He teased.

Lei playfully stuck her tongue down at him, then, with a swift movement turned back on her way, her long, thick ponytail flying behind her.

Bass simply watched as the female Navi completely disappeared into the distance. Then, he turned on his heel and flew away in the opposite direction, deeper into the UnderNet.

END

A/N: It's over! *Throws confetti*

Holy crap where do I start?

First of all - Thank you guys so much for supporting my first ever fic, this started as an idea I got stuck in my head after reading the manga and thinking "Aw, Bass needs a happy ending too." Then it developed as the story progressed over the course of like 3-4 months, and I gotta admit, became more serious than I expected it to be. (The genres are also changed to Humor/Romance now.)

I gotta say it was hard as hell to keep myself on the wagon with real life responsibilities and whatnot, but it was super important to me to finish this thing and maintain somewhat of a fixed schedule.

Someday, I'm gonna re-write some of the earlier chapters because in my eyes they're kinda horrendous, and in an extreme need of a renovation.

Once again, thank you! I wouldn't have felt so inspired to keep writing this if it wasn't for all of you guys' positive feedback;

Ai Star, Misfortuned Checkmate, cottoncandyeyes, Nerdy Appulz, Neo .ExE , Orange juice, 1010, Ren7720, raxii, Vinjago, dragonsofthe8elemnts, exelsiorsaga, Valinar, Call, thatnerdwhoreads, animeflunky, Ghost501, the janiter, Skylar, yas bby, tinytoon78, Esther, AlloyMaverick and Guests!

THANK YOU! ^^

Also some answers:

Ai Star - Hahaha xD, she probably would, someday x)

Nerdy Appulz - Good question, I imagine her voice to be really girly and soft but not too high, more clear sounding than anything. When she explains things about her job she gets unnecessarily excited.

Neo .ExE - *Evil laugh* Then you're gonna love this one. ^^

Please review for the very last time guys! :')