Chapter Twenty-One: Magnetic Affection

"Wow, these are really great!" Asche, the Silk Country vendor, exclaimed when she examined the goods she ordered from Akiko. "I'm never left disappointed when I order from you. You're the greatest!"

"I do what I can," Akiko smiled as she sheepishly shrugged her shoulders, accepting her large payment from her long-time business partner and friend, "but thank you so much for the complement! It's nice to know my customers appreciate what I deliver."

"Anytime. By the way, I'll have the seeds you ordered for summer closer to the end of the season. That won't be a problem, right?"

"No, not at all. I can't do much with them until then anyways."

"This was the last of my orders from you, right? Are you done for the season?"

"Yeah, I had a lot of time to focus on my work recently, so pushing through the last of it was a breeze. Now I have some time to relax."

"You should spend it with your man. He came by yesterday and he didn't look so good."

Akiko flinched slightly.

"O-oh, is that so? He's been working a lot lately, I'm sure he was just a little tired."

"If that's the case, you should help him 'relieve some stress,' if you know what I mean. Well, you take care now, Akiko!"

"I'll see you later!"

Walking away with her head lowered, Akiko's cheerful expression vanished as the thought of Raeger was brought to her mind. A few days ago, he accused her of having an affair with Klaus, and she hadn't seen or spoke to him since she ran out of the restaurant. She convinced herself that it was the fatigue talking for him, but the words still cut her deep.

Since that night, her phone rang a couple of times each night. She never answered it, fearing that it would be Raeger; she wouldn't know what to say if she picked up. Why did you say those things? Do you really feel that way about me? How could you not trust me? Don't you know how much I love you? Do you know how much I'm hurting? The questions would seem endless.

This was the first day she journeyed down from the farm since that night. Practically isolating herself, she was able to finish her last few orders for Silk Country without interruption, but she missed seeing her customers, her friends, and even Raeger. She wished she could feel his comforting embrace, despite how upset she was with him.

Taking a deep breath to soothe her nerves, she lifted her head back up and from a distance, she caught sight of Licorice and Lillie shopping together. As a broad smile appeared on her face, she hastily made her way towards them. When she was only a short distance away, Lillie was the first to notice her.

"Akiko!" Lillie's hand shot up into the air as she shouted out her friend's name. Licorice's attention was caught, turning in the direction Lillie was looking and was more than happy to see her best friend again.

"Where have you been?" Licorice giggled as she gave Akiko a quick hug. "I've tried calling you these last few nights. I was starting to think you were dead!"

"I'm so sorry!" Akiko apologized. "I was just really busy."

"Well, we missed your face!" Lillie smiled. Seeing her friends' bright smiles brought warmth to Akiko's heart. "Listen, I hate to leave so soon, but I really need to get going if I'm to make it to work on time."

"It was good to see you," Akiko gave her a quick hug goodbye before Lillie left on her way towards the city. Licorice waited until she was out of sight.

"I've got loads to tell you!" Licorice's voice was nearly a whisper as she clung onto Akiko's arm. Suddenly, Akiko remembered the break up she had with Fritz.

"You sure do!" Akiko replied sternly, "I didn't think you were going to break up with Fritz so soon."

"Oh, yeah," Licorice didn't really forget about that topic, she just wanted to tell her about her recent kiss with Nadi, "let's talk over here." She led her friend over to a booth for some clothes shopping.

"So, tell me. What gave you the courage to do it?"

"I did a lot of thinking. I really wanted to move on as quick as I could, so I just did it, like a band-aid."

"He didn't take it well, I assume."

"No, he got frustrated. I know he was trying hard and he really is a great guy, but I think I need some time to figure things out."

"Did you tell him about the letters?"

"I didn't have to. He knew it was because of Klaus, but I burned the letters before I broke it off, so they won't be a problem anymore."

"Klaus seems to be the- wait, what? You burned them?!"

"Yup, just tossed them in the fire."

"But you clung to those letters as if your life depended on it."

"That was the problem! How can I expect myself to move on if I can let go of my unrealistic ideals? Hey, do you think this blouse is cute?"

"Yeah, it looks cute. Well, I'm proud of you. I never thought you'd dispose of them. That gives me a bit of courage."

"For what?"

"Well, uhm, Raeger and I got into a fight.."

Akiko proceeded to give Licorice the details of their argument from a few days ago. Stunned, Licorice did the best thing she could do for the moment and just listened as Akiko vented her frustration, even with Klaus. Her friend was a little hurt, and surprised, to hear that Klaus had feelings for Akiko instead of her, but she ignored it since it wasn't important at the moment.

"So, I called him an ass and ran home," Akiko ended with a sigh, succeeding in holding back tears as she looked at new pairs of stockings, her voice tapering off to a softer tone. "I haven't spoken to him since."

"I see," Licorice replied softly, "I suppose that explains why you haven't been answering your phone. You're avoiding him."

"I want to talk to him, but I don't even know what to say. Why would he say things like that? He knows that's something I would never do!"

"Akiko, I've known Raeger for years now. He's a great friend, and from a witness point of view, he's an amazing boyfriend. Before you moved here, he had a girlfriend for a while. He treated her like a queen, gave her anything she wanted whenever she wanted it. And, don't get upset for me saying this, but she was a great girl, at first. I don't know what happened, but she started spending a lot of time in the city, which we all thought was work related. This went on for weeks, and Raeger started getting worried because she started changing. She wasn't as nice as she used to be and she became very materialistic. Turns out, she was going to the city and having affairs with many men. It tore Raeger apart."

Listening intently, Akiko felt her own heart sinking into her chest. She couldn't imagine seeing Raeger so broken. She only wished he would've told her about this sooner.

"What happened to her?" Akiko asked after swallowing a lump in her throat.

"Well," Licorice sighed deeply, "after Raeger broke up with her, she got furious. She moved to a far away city and we haven't seen her since. Lillie says she stays in contact with Elise since they were best friends, but that's all I know."

"Does Raeger.. does he miss her?"

"No, he only wishes he knew sooner. He thinks that would've made it easier. Fritz and I tried setting him up on dates, but he rejected all of them. Eventually, we gave up. A few months later, you moved to town, and when I first saw the way he looked at you, I knew cupid's arrow had hit him before he did."

"But why? When I first moved here, I wasn't that great.."

"Sure you were! You were like a diamond in the rough! Almost everybody in town loved you! And, if I remember right, I think he was captivated by your smile. It was 'brighter than sunlight,' I believe was the term he used. Oh, and let's not forget your gorgeous eyes that set 'his soul ablaze!'"

"Haha, he didn't really say that about my eyes."

"He didn't have to, everyone could see it whenever you two locked eyes with each other."

Akiko blushed as she tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. She remembered the first time she saw him, captivating him with her smile. She admitted that she was struck by how handsome and sweet he was, but their friends could see the early budding of their love before she knew it herself.

"I had no idea he said those things about me back then," she blushed.

"You're joking, right?" Licorice raised a brow. "Don't you remember how much I tried to convince you of the 'spark' you two had with each other?"

"I do remember, I just never thought a guy like him would fall for someone like me."

"I'm sure he thought the same way about you. That's probably why it took you two lovebirds so long to get together."

Akiko could feel her heartbeat racing as she thought back on all subtle flirting she did with Raeger. The feeling pushed out the anger and frustration she felt for him, making her miss him so much it began to ache. Her cheeks turned bright red as a smile spread across her lips.

"Maybe you should go find him," Licorice suggested, catching a glimpse of her blushing face, "I saw him the other day, and he misses you a lot more than you might think."

"You're right, I should go. Thank you for listening!"

With that, Akiko put down the articles of clothing and nearly ran out of the trade depot. Her heart was beating with love for Raeger once again and felt excited that she was going to see his face.

Her thoughts raced as she turned the corner to head up the stone steps, excitement building up at the thought of him. She could barely wait to speak to him with a clear mind.

Then, wall of pain slammed into her body, and her vision temporarily went dark.

Forcefully opening her eyes, she found herself against the hard stone steps. Her foot had slipped on the edge of a step, causing her to fall into hard edges of stone. Luckily, her forearms came into contact with the ground instead of her face, but in doing so, they felt heavy and numb from the pain. As she tried to stand up, she felt pain flow through her thighs and shins as they also hit the edges of stone.

"Wow, that was great," she groaned as she finally stumbled to her feet. Shaking off the pain she felt in various places, she carefully made her way up the remainder of the stairs, watching every step she took. She was thankful no one was around to see her embarrassing moment, though it failed to make a dent in her newfound confidence.

Reaching the top, she could see the restaurant in the distance. Her heartbeat sped up as her paced quickened, rubbing the edge of her arms that hit the stairs. The closer she got, the bigger her smile became, until she noticed someone standing by the entrance.

It was a woman with hazelnut blonde hair, wearing a tight pink mini skirt in matching pink heels. She was peering into the window of the door, hinting to Akiko that the door was locked. Her eyes wandered a bit to the other window, seeing the obvious closed sign.

'Closed?' Akiko thought. 'At this time? It's not even his day off...' She could feel her confidence drain from her body through her feet as she approached the restaurant, her heart sinking back into her stomach. As she neared the bottom of the stairs leading to the entrance, the woman turned around to face her.

Akiko's face went from defeated to dumbfounded as she observed this woman's outfit. She was wearing very large sunglasses that matched the rest of her outfit as her light pink v-neck struggled to contain her breasts. Taking off her sunglasses to get a better look at Akiko, she caught a glimpse of her gold dangling earrings as her golden bracelets clanged together. Her deep blue eyes stared down the farm girl from atop the stairs.

'She must be from the city,' Akiko thought, referring to the woman's scantily outfit.

"I'm sorry," the stranger's annoyed tone called out, "but do you know when this place is open?"

"Uhm, no," Akiko replied with a cheerful tone, hiding her nervousness, "it's not usually closed at this time of day."

"I see," the woman folded her arms, her polished fingernails sparkling in the hot sun, "do you know where the owner might be, then? I've been knocking on this door for a while now."

'Raeger's not home? Where could he be?'

"I'm sorry, but I wouldn't know that, either."

Akiko's response seemed to upset the woman. She strutted down the steps as her judging eyes observed every bit of Akiko, making her even more unsettled than before. Who on earth was this woman and what did she want?

"Is there anything you can tell me? Anything at all?"

"Uhm, well I-"

"Oh, please, don't even bother. I don't want my time wasted by someone like you."

"Someone like me? Excuse me?!"

Before Akiko had a chance to even give her a piece of her mind, she was already heading down towards the trade depot. Once out of sight, Akiko looked back up at the door to the restaurant, hesitant to even try. Taking in a deep breath, she decided the best plan was to just go home. Her hopeful attitude had already disappeared and her confidence was drained.

On her way up the mountain trail, the words of the stranger echoed through Akiko's mind. She didn't understand why she was so rude and unkind.

"I don't want my time wasted by someone like you!" Akiko imitated the woman's voice, sounding like a snarky imp before muttering under her breath, "Bitch!" Even as she repeated the words, tears started fill the edges of her eyes, but she quickly wiped them away. She wasn't going to let a bully like her kick her while she already felt like dirt.

Finally arriving at her farm, she was already imagining the comforting feel of her mattress for quick nap. Making a quick detour to the edge of the fence, she greeted her horse and a few of her cows, brightening up her face as they nuzzled up to her from her touch. One cow pushed her way into Akiko's face, lovingly nuzzling into her cheek.

"Hey!" Akiko giggled, turning her face to avoid the impact of the push, causing her to look over at the largest tree on her property, noticing that someone was sitting under it.

It was Raeger.

Her face instantly went red as a hard lump in her throat formed. Cautiously approaching the tree, she noticed he had fallen asleep in the shade as he rested near the trunk with his hands behind his head for support. Too afraid to move, she just stood next to him, watching his chest slowly rise and fall with each breath he took, his face relaxed and peaceful. She felt her lips quiver as more tears formed in the corners of her eyes.

'Where is that confidence I had earlier?' she thought as she covered her mouth with her hands to stop the quivering. Lowering her head, she turned around to head inside.

"Please, don't go."

His soft voice froze her legs. Turning back to see him, his position remain unchanged, but his emerald eyes were locked onto her. After staring at each other for what seemed like an eternity, he finally sat up and leaned against the trunk of the tree.

"I've been waiting for you," Raeger spoke softly, still locked onto her amethyst eyes.

"Why?" Akiko responded quietly, averting her gaze to the ground. She already knew the answer, but she was too afraid to say anything else in case the tears would start flowing.

"Because I love you."

Like a magnet, her eyes shot back to his as he offered her a gentle smile. His words sent her heart aflutter as her face turned pink.

"So, will you sit with me?" Raeger asked, patting the patch of soft, cool grass next to him. Without another word, she took a seat next to him, wrapping her arms around her knees and bringing them to her chest. She left a small, but noticeable space, between them, but he casually closed the gap.

"Why won't you look at me?" he asked, his smile disappearing. He desperately wanted to stroke her hair, embrace her, or anything that would give her comfort, but he was worried it might scare her off.

"Because, I-" Akiko couldn't find the words she wanted. She felt conflicted; happy to see him, but still upset. "You hurt me."

"I know, and I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to say any of those things, I just-"

"Then why did you?"

"I don't know. I was angry."

"At me?"

"No, never."

"At Klaus?"

There was a moment of silence. She knew that was the answer. Finally turning her gaze to him, she saw him staring at the ground in front of him with a serious, almost frustrated, expression. Afraid the conversation was going to have the same outcome as a few days before, he decided to steer it into a different direction.

"Klaus is definitely the problem, but right now, my concern is you. I can't stand knowing that I was the reason for the tears in your eyes. That hurts more than anything."

"Raeger-"

"We're better than this, Akiko. I know we are, I just had a moment of weakness."

"That's why you have me."

Caught off guard by her response, he turned to face her again, seeing tears streaming down her cheek. She buried her face in her arms to hide them, but they had already been seen.

"Isn't that what a relationship is?" Akiko's muffled voice was barely audible. "We're supposed to be there for each other so we don't feel weak. We need to make each other feel like... like... not this."

"Akiko, I'm sorry.. I..."

"You need to tell me everything!" Her face shot up from her arms and faced him with fierce eyes. "I need to know when you're struggling! Do you not trust me?"

"What? Of course I trust you!"

"Then will you!"

'This isn't working,' Raeger thought. 'It's going to end up the same.' Cupping her tear-stained face with his hands, he wiped away her streaming tears with his thumbs.

"Akiko," his voice was soft as silk, but he couldn't finish his sentence before his lips locked with hers. She didn't fight him, releasing her knees from her grip, becoming more relaxed, she placed her hands over his, feeling his tongue slip through.

Their passionate kiss went on for several minutes before he finally pulled away, gazing back into her eyes and almost drowning in the passion he saw in them. One of his hands moved to her lower back and pulled her closer to him while the other one remained on her cheek.

"I love you," he declared firmly, "and I'm not going to let something like this come between us. I want us to be close again, like how we used to be."

"Me, too," Akiko responded softy, never breaking away from his eyes. "I love you so much, Raeger, please don't ever forget that."

"I never have," he gently pressed his forehead against hers, a small smile appearing on his face, "so, will you give this poor fool another chance?"

"Of course."

As his heart leapt at her response, his grin grew twice as big as he nuzzled his face against her. Giggling, she felt a wave of warm happiness wash over her.

"I closed the restaurant for the day, so, what do you say about spending some time with me?"

Akiko nodded at his suggestion, her sweet smile never leaving her face, but she knew the topic was once again unresolved. She planned on bringing it up later that day, after they both had a chance to cool down. Helping her up to her feet, his gaze never left her sweet eyes.

At last, they headed back down the mountain trail towards town. Their hands naturally found each other and locked fingers.

Back at the Inn, Licorice was just returning from a few hours of shopping. During that time, her thoughts began to develop strange theories as to why Nadi kissed her. Before, she couldn't stop thinking about the way if felt and how fast her heart was beating at the time, but she never considered why he did it. There was no real reason for it.

'Was he just trying to get my thoughts clear?' Licorice thought as she put away her new clothes. 'No, Nadi isn't like that. Handing out kisses like chocolate... right? Maybe he was trying to tell me he had feelings for me...'

Her thoughts were traveling a mile a minute. She wanted to react to the situation correctly, but without knowing his intentions, the fear of making the wrong move began to grow. The curiosity of whether she was really developing feelings for him or if it was just heat-of-the-moment jitters also rose to her mind.

She needed to know.

Clearing her throat as she made sure her hair wasn't a complete mess, she marched out her door and approached Nadi's. Just as her knuckles were about to hit the hard wood of the door, she froze, her nerves getting the better of her.

'Calm down, keep your cool.'

Taking in a deep breath, she continued her knock. The silence that followed was almost painful as she felt the tips of her ears begin to burn. Just as she was about the muster the strength to move her legs back to her room, the door slowly swung open in front of her.

"Yes?" Nadi answered, his face as neutral as ever.

"Uhm," Licorice's voice failed to execute the words her mind was desperately trying to push out, "I was just.. uhm."

"Is everything alright?" his tone was borderline irritated.

"Well," she cleared her throat, "I needed to talk to you about something."

"What is it?"

"That thing that happened the other night... what did it mean?"

"Thing?"

"You know, the kiss."

Nadi's eyes suddenly widened as his face flushed a hue of pink. He turned his gaze away as he struggled to come up with a good answer.

"Oh, that thing," he responded.

"I need to know what you meant by it," she boasted, "I realize that I'm not good at reading signs, so I'm facing it head on."

"Obvious signs," his tone got quieter, "why else would people kiss?"

Licorice blinked rapidly. 'Could he mean what I think he means?'

"You... oh. I see."

Nadi lowered his gaze, embarrassed.

"Look, I'm not good at expressing myself," he finally met her eyes with his, "I gathered up my courage and took a chance. I'll understand if you didn't enjoy it."

"What? No, no! I just... it was really unexpected, is all."

The two stood there in silence, averting their gazes in different directions. Licorice could feel her face burning as she squeezed her fingers. She was at a loss for words, afraid of making the same mistakes she usually made with men.

"So, what do we do?" she asked shyly.

"I'm not quite sure, myself. How does dinner sometime sound? I know it's cliche, but-"

"No, dinner sounds great! Just tell me when!" Licorice backed off a bit, afraid she sounded too eager, but her boastfulness brought a small smile to Nadi's face.

"Will do," his response was cheerful. Returning his smile, she skipped back to her room, leaving him at the door. Shutting hers behind her, she placed her hand on her chest and felt it pounding wildly.

'I can't mess this one up,' she thought to herself as she sank to the floor, the corners of her mouth began to hurt from smiling so big.

Akiko sat on Raeger's couch up in his apartment as he prepared a few glasses of refreshing iced tea. She took in her surroundings, quick flashbacks of her memories with him running through her mind. Sighing deeply, she realized how special their relationship was and didn't want it tarnished with a silly feud.

The sound of glasses being set on the table in front of her snapped her back to reality. Looking up to see Raeger to flash him a quick smile as he leaned over the table only to see his worried expression.

"Akiko," Raeger began in a concerned tone as he stood up straight, "what happened to you?"

She looked down at herself, forgetting that she had fallen earlier. Some of her abrasions on her arm and legs had speckles of blood, but she hadn't noticed.

"Oh, I fell on the stone steps earlier," she answered smoothly, "I was being careless. It's nothing to worry about."

Approaching the side of the couch, he firmly grabbed her arm and pulled it up closer to him. Examining it with stern eyes, he pressed down on it with a few fingers gently. Her arm flinched slightly, her expression giving away the pain she felt.

"No big deal, huh?" he asked annoyed. "Have you treated these yet?"

"Not yet, I had forgotten about them until now."

"Wait here."

Her eyes followed his figure as it disappeared down the stairs, curious as to where he was going. Gently rubbing the abrasion he had examined, she felt small waves of pain shoot up her arm.

"I didn't think they were that bad," she whispered to herself, looking down at the wounds on her knees. She didn't mean to worry him. It wasn't long until he returned with a small white box in his hands. Kneeling in front of her, he pulled out a bottle with a few round cotton balls.

"Hold still," he instructed, dampening the white fluff with the liquid. Grabbing her arm, he began to dab it. A stinging pain quickly followed each dab.

"Ow!" she winced as she tried to pull her arm free from his grasp, but his grip was firm.

"Sorry," he chuckled as he continued his treatment, ignoring her cry.

"Why is this funny?" she asked, annoyed by his laughter.

"It's not it's just-"

"Ouch!"

"You're just so adorable."

Her eyes grew wide at his comment as her cheeks turned red, intently watching his face. His smile was sweet, even though he was inflicting pain. He moved onto her leg, gripping her from under her thigh. The squeeze sent a strange sensation to her stomach.

"Please don't kick me," he joked, winking at her, dabbing more solution on her scraped knee. Gripping onto the edge of the couch, she toughed out the last bit of stinging, trying hard not to kick him in the stomach as she tightly closed her eyes.

"There," he declared, putting away the bottle and closing the box, "all done."

Slowly opening her eyes, she saw a large band aid on her knee. 'That one must've been really bad if it needed a bandage.'

"Thank you, Raeger," she whispered, fiddling with her fingers.

"Anytime," he smiled at her, taking a seat next to her. "You've taken care of me plenty of times. I needed to return the favor eventually, right?"

"I guess."

He noticed her quiet tone, growing a little worried.

"Is something wrong?"

"Kind of..."

Placing a gentle hand on top of her fiddling fingers, he moved closer to her. She finally met his gaze with a serious look.

"We can't keep pushing away the problem," she said firmly.

"What problem?" he asked, confused at first.

"The Klaus problem."

"Oh, right. What should we do?"

"I think you need to talk to Klaus. If I do it, well, I don't think it will help."

"Ugh."

"I'm serious Raeger, you need to-"

"I know, I know, it's just.."

"Just what?"

"It's just going to be hard not punching him in the face."

Akiko was taken aback by his words. She had never heard such violent things come from him before, let alone about him hurting someone else.

"Why would say that?" she asked, turning her face away from his. She wasn't disappointed in him, just shocked.

"I don't know," Raeger responded, starting to get frustrated as he shrugged his shoulders, "I just don't understand why he can't respect our relationship. It really pisses me off, that's all."

She could feel his grip on her hand tighten as he spoke.

"Raeger, you should calm down."

He took a deep breath.

"Right. I'll go put this away and we'll talk about it."

Getting up from the couch, he grabbed the white box and headed back downstairs, knowing full well that his words made her tense. He needed to think of what to say to make her feel better when he came back, so she wouldn't think that if he were to go talk to Klaus, he wouldn't greet him with a closed fist to the face.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs, he turned the corner to head towards the kitchen, but noticed someone was sitting at one of the tables. Suddenly realizing that he once again forgot to lock the door behind him, he cleared his throat.

"Sorry, but the restaurant is closed today," he called out. The stranger turned around and his eyes widened. "F-Fiona?!"

"Raeger," her voice was overly sweet as she flipped her long hazelnut blonde hair, "I've been waiting out here for a while."

"What are you doing here?" He set the first aid kit down on the counter.

"Isn't it obvious?" Slowly standing up from her chair, she made her way towards him, strutting in her tight pink mini skirt. "I'm here to see you. I want to talk to you."

Fiona stopped in her tracks when she noticed Raeger taking a few steps back as she got a little closer.

"That's too bad," he responded, his face serious and stern, "I have no need to talk to you. You need to leave."

"Don't be like that, baby," she did her best to flirt, pushing her chest out. "Just listen to me, it will be the same as it used to be."

"What?" Raeger was shocked, then let out a small laugh. "You really think I would ever take you back? After seeing how fake you are?"

"That's not nice, baby."

"Don't call me that. Now leave."

"But-"

Before she could finish, she heard footsteps pace down the wooden stairs from across the room, cutting off her words. Her expression changed from innocent to irritated, curious as to who it was up in his apartment. Then, Akiko appeared around the corner.

"Raeger," Akiko's face was concerned, then she caught sight of Fiona, "is everything- you!"

"You know her?" Raeger turned to face her, a stunned expression taking over his face.

"What do you think you're doing here?" Fiona's tone turned sour at the sight this other girl.

"Me?" Akiko ignored Raeger. "I have every right to be here."

"What right?" Fiona demanded.

Silence filled the room as the two girls glared at each other, which was finally broken by a loud sigh by Raeger.

"Akiko, this is Fiona," he apathetically introduced, "my ex-girlfriend. Fiona, this Akiko, the woman I'm in love with." Akiko was touched by the way he introduced her, but then it hit her.

'Fiona?' she thought. 'Don't tell me she's the one who...'

"Wow, Raeger," Fiona chuckled, "I didn't know you started keeping trash in your home. That's not really healthy for you." Akiko felt rage build up in her chest.

"Who the hell do you-!" Akiko shouted, but was cut off when Raeger held out his arm in front of her, motioning her to stop.

"That's exactly why I dumped you," he retaliated, "and if you think you can trespass onto my property and insult Akiko, then it seems you've forgotten your place next to the dumpster."

Fiona's face became livid, but was left speechless by Raeger's harsh words. Her eyes darted between him and Akiko, whom he guarded so chivalrously. Overwhelmed with jealousy, she struggled to find her next words.

"I just need to talk to you," she quietly spoke, trying give him innocent eyes. "Preferably alone."

Raeger's eyes narrowed angrily, but he calmly took a few steps forward, his hands clenched into fists.

"You know damn well that you are not welcome here," his tone was assertive as he eyed her down, "So, I'll say it again since you seem to be hard of hearing. Leave. Now."

Shaken by intimidation, Fiona tried to compose herself as she made her way towards the door, flashing Akiko a quick death glare as her heels clicked against the linoleum floor. Slamming the door behind her, Raeger quickly locked it. His forehead made a loud thud against the door, as he took deep breaths.

"Raeger?" Akiko approached him, gently grabbing his arm. He turned towards her with a reassuring smile and pulled her into an embrace.

"I'm sorry you had to see me like that," he apologized, resting his cheek against her soft hair, taking in the sweet lavender scent it gave off, relaxing him. She had no response for him as she returned his embrace, nuzzling her face into his chest. Pulling away from him, she looked into his eyes.

"Listen to me," he spoke sternly, "you should stay away from her."

"You don't have to tell me," she responded.

"How did you know her, anyway?"

"Oh, well, funny story. She was standing in front of the restaurant earlier. She was asking for you, but-"

"What were you doing at my restaurant? I thought you were avoiding me?" He gave her a teasing tone.

"Yeah, well, I missed you! Anyways, it turns out you were waiting for me at my farm, so-"

Raeger's laughter interrupted her story, pulling her back into another embrace. For some reason, Akiko started to laugh with him.

The topic of Klaus had faded away, but they both knew it had to be dealt with quickly. For the moment, they just wanted to enjoy this small bit of happiness and laughter.