Eyes closed tight, tears slowly leaking down the sides. The sickening sound of the zipper seemed to get louder. Bile rose up in her throat.

"I'm gonna enjoy this." A cruel voice whispered in her ear. Hot breath touched her skin. She didn't want to watch as her virginity was stolen. She felt him position himself over her, could feel the weight of his body. He took his time, slowly tracing random parts of her flesh.

"Hurry up Gorou, quit hogging her." A deep voice whined. It was one of the ones holding her arms.

"Shut up. You'll get your turn. This bitch humiliated me and I want to enjoy my revenge." He answered. Mel felt the bile in her mouth. So it was to be a gang rape then. None of them seemed particularly gentle. This was going to hurt. She felt him reach down between them. A moment later, she felt something warm and hard pressed against her thigh. She couldn't suppress the shiver that ran down her spine. They laughed, made a quip about her wanting it. He reached down again, and she knew he was adjusting himself. Apparently he wasn't even going to try to make her wet. She braced herself for the thrust and inevitable pain. She squeezed her eyes tighter, but tried to relax everything else.

Her right arm felt lighter. Then her left. The relaxation must be working. At least she thought that until she heard yelling. She felt the weight mercifully lift off her body, then heard a thud as something hit the wall. There was the sickening sound of bone snapping, and a pain filled wail. Her mind was trying to protect her, by envisioning someone saving her. She allowed herself to indulge in the fantasy, enjoying the sounds of her rapists getting what's coming to them. A hand touched her face, forcing her fantasy to flee.

"Mel?" a questioning familiar voice whispered. Her eyes snapped open. His eyes were wide in fear, the beautiful gray irises sparkling. She always thought his eyes were so pretty. Wait. When did he get here? She stared at him for what felt like an eternity. He was real. He was leaning next to her, his hand cupping her cheek. A movement was heard behind her. She tilted her head back. It hurt, but she needed to see what was happening. Some of the gang stood there. Two held an unconscious Gorou between them. The look in Mori's eyes spoke of the unspeakable horror he was going to release on them. They ran, hoping to escape the unspeakable torment he was prepared to unleash. He got up to give chase, only to have Mel grasp his hand.

His eyes softened as he looked at her. Without a word, he carefully pulled her panties and pants back up. They had destroyed her jacket and shirt, but her bra was intact. He looked into her eyes, tears leaking from his. He kissed her forehead, cheek, jaw, and lips. The thought of losing her was almost too much to bare. His hands held her face, as if he was holding the most precious thing in the world. She winced as he examined her head. When he decided she was ok, he helped her sit up.

They sat against the brick. He took his practice shirt off and wrapped it around her. She leaned onto him, her arms wrapped around his waist. She clung to him, as if he was the tether holding her to earth. His shoulder felt cold, and he realized she was crying.

"How?" a tiny whisper echoed against his skin.

"How what?" he asked.

"How did you know?" she repeated her question, lifting her face to look at him. His heart broke as he saw the worn and broken look. He wanted nothing more than to hold her and make her forget that anything had every happened. He had gotten to her before they had the chance to rape her, but the fear and loathing was every bit as present as if she had been.

"Your never late." He shrugged his answer. A look of confusion crossed her face. He held up his watch. 3:23. He was skipping practice.

"But, training." She murmured, the energy drained from her body. She didn't understand, but desperately wanted to.

"Worried when you didn't show up." He explained. A fresh round of sobs escaped her throat. A look of shock played across his face, before he forced it away. Wrapping his arms around her, he held her tight as the sobs wracked her body. He made comforted sounds, wishing he could do more.

"But, last night." She said, her face still buried in his chest. She felt him shrug.

"Changes nothing." He answered soothingly into her hair. She looked at him. He reached into his pocket, glad he had kept it on him. He presented her a small box. She looked at him confused, but he just offered it again. Removing her arms from his waist, she took the small box. Opening it, she saw a small rectangular silver strip with a thick black silk cord. Her mother's necklace?

On closer observation, it was an exact copy, except for the Kanji. Rather than it being emerald and the sign for hope, it was sapphire and the kanji for strength. She looked at him confused. He summed up everything he had and prepared to make the longest speech he ever had in life.

"You told me that your father chose hope because he said as long as your mother was around, he knew the sun would rise. That dark times would always give way to light. When you are around, I feel something I can't explain. You keep me going when things seem impossible. Just seeing you smile gives me the strength to get through even the toughest days. When the world beats me down, you are the reason I can stand up again. I know you hate my world, and I'm sorry the crap that you are dragged into because of me. But I love you more than you can imagine. I don't want you to feel like you have to marry me. I want you to want it. I can't promise I won't screw up. I can't promise to be perfect. I can promise to spend my life trying to make you happy. Showing you in every way I can imagine how much I love and need you." He took a quick inhale at the end, and waited. He had laid his heart bare, and now the ball was in her court. After a few moments, his heart began to sink. What if Kyoya was wrong? What if she didn't love him? He felt something on his arm, and looked to see fresh tears in her eyes. Before he could say a word, she punched him in the arm.

"Baka." She laughed through the tears. He looked at her, and she repeated her line.

"Would it help if it did it in the American fashion?" he asked. It was her turn to stare at him. He snatched the box away, and stood up. He knelt down on his right knee in front of her.

"Mel Rajjin, will you marry me?" he asked with a laugh. She smiled at him, the life back into her body.

"What took you so long?" she asked through her tears.

"I thought you hated me."

"Never."

"Promise?"

"Promise." She beamed and he returned the smile.

This is not the end of the story. Thank everyone for reading so far, and I hope you have enjoyed it. I will have the next chapter up as soon as possible. Thanks again.