Author's Note: There is officially THREE CHAPTERS LEFT after this one. Those final three will make an appearance at the same time, and I'm sad to say that On the Line, and thus our adventures with Kimmy and the Harrix Regulars and all our lovely PoT guys will come to an end. It makes me sad, but it's been a long road on the two stories. I had previously found them buried on an old laptop I was about to scrap and, after brief editing on the first story and then rigorous editing on this one, they made their debuts here on FF. I hope all of you have liked them so far and I'm glad to have met many of the fans that came along with these two pieces.

Enjoy, darlings.


Chapter Forty-Four:
Come Back to Me

Serenity Skylar and Eiji Kikumaru
Third Person's P.O.V.

[Come Back To Me- Plain White Ts]

"A puppy!" Kikumaru hugged the adorable little pet to him with a silly grin on his face.

Today was that fateful day Serenity had chosen to finally spend some quality time alone with the hyper Asian boy. Ty had not been opposed in the slightest, but that was because their future was finalized. Of course, that was a matter to be revealed later.

"Eiji look, it's the kittens." She motioned towards the other side of the pet store.

She had chosen this specific location because she knew of the boy's love for animals. It was the calm before the storm, actually. Her secret fears would be realized later at the same place the last two girls had ended up- the city park.

"Serenity! Serenity? Serenity?!" Kikumaru was waving in front of the ebony-haired girl's face.

"Yes Eiji?" She snapped out of her thoughts and stared at the boy.

"Look, isn't she adorable?" He was holding a little black kitten with white paws and a white-tipped tail. Her eyes were a brilliant blue.

"The cutest." She patted the creature lovingly for a moment before grabbing the animal. "Go look at the other animals."

"Alright, you keep Mittens safe!" He scurried off towards the reptiles, leaving the quiet girl with the furry little animal.

"Mittens huh? Already attached Eiji." She chuckled quietly and snuck up to the counter.


:{On the Line}:

An hour later, the pet store had grown old to the female. Serenity was sitting out in her car as Kikumaru finished up his looking, her eyes closed and head pounding. She could sense the unwanted tension in the air.

Too many things were left unsaid.

"I took too long, didn't I?" he asked innocently as he entered the car.

"No, I just got tired of that animal smell," she lied smoothly.

"Oh, okay." He pouted, but then noticed something moving in the floor board of his seat. "What's... huh?"

Out came the adorable kitten from the pet store, the one he had coveted. A bow was attached to the white collar with a little tennis tag hanging off it, the name Mittens scrawled in gorgeous cursive across it.

"Mittens!" He gawked, staring at the back of the name tag. It had To: Eiji noticeably across the surface. "Nya, Serenity-chan! You bought Mittens for me!" He leapt over and hugged her, coddling the kitten at the same time.

"Breathe a little Eiji!" She chuckled softly and pushed him away. "I have to drive now."

"Okies," he remarked while paying attention to the furry little creature.


:{On the Line}:

It was not long till the two arrived at the park, the glowing sun warming up the air to a suitable degree. Serenity was glad she had worn shorts, and apparently so was Kikumaru.

They shared a peaceful walk around the park with some light conversation, occasionally letting Mittens down to play in the grass. To onlookers, they appeared just as they were; two friends out for a walk in the beautiful park.

At last, they decided to stop their long walk, both knowing it was only stalling the inevitable.

Oh yes, Kikumaru knew the reason he had been asked here today. Masaharu and Tezuka both had already endured it, though one was a good trip and the other a bad. He would be the tie breaker.

How cruel was fate going to be to him?


:{On the Line}:

Serenity Skylar
First Person's P.O.V.

We had finally chosen the spot everything would happen at- a set of swings. I knew Eiji would choose somewhere like this to start. It was the child in him showing its pearly teeth.

Mittens was asleep, wrapped in the boy's lap comfortably. I had pulled my long hair into a choppy ponytail, though layers fell into my face with the bangs. It was a hot day, scorching even, and I sorely wished I had shorter or lighter hair.

I was not afraid any longer like I had been just thinking about this adventure. In fact, I felt silly that I had put it off this long. It was not like me to leave my business unhandled, thus why this was so out of character for me.

I had not noticed I was staring off into space again until Eiji waved a hand in front of me. I heard my name being called and immediately looked over at him.

"Serenity?"

"Yes Eiji?" I finally responded.

He coughed slightly, rubbing the bandage he normally kept on his face. "I just was wondering what you were thinking about?"

I sighed deeply; it was time to start this dreaded conversation. "I was thinking about my future and the people in it."

He looked absolutely nervous by this point. "I was also wondering, who might be spending this future with you?"

I gave a very sad smile, turning my swing to look at him. "Eiji, you're one of the closest people I've ever had, even though we were closer in the past. I have something important I want to tell you, but I know it's going to hurt you... a lot."

He gulped, eyes sad and downcast. I felt my heart skip a beat, hammering painfully in my chest. I may be a calm, collected person on the outside, but inside I felt like I was going to explode with different emotions, all of which centered on what I was about to do to this man sitting beside me.

Sadness, for Eiji; hope, for my future; worry for Kimmy's guy predicament; fear, for the Junior World Tennis Team and their soon-to-be tour; happiness, at the fact I had one year left in high school; excitement, about getting signed to professional tennis the day I turn eighteen...

"Go... go ahead."

That was all I needed; I lifted his chin up to face me and stared him straight in his beautiful green eyes. I had always thought that, even though he was so childish, he had so much intelligence in that gaze. It was what had drawn me to him in the very beginning. Our attitudes were so different, especially back then, it seemed strange to align myself with Eiji.

I lifted my hand to his line of vision, my left hand. The band had been turned around and the true beauty was shining full force now, where he could see the glittering stones.

He gasped, lightly grabbing my hand and staring at the beautiful diamond ring. It was pure gold with a large diamond and various sapphires scattered around, but that was not the part that shocked him.

It was obvious what sort of ring it was. He was the second to know, right after Kimmy...

"Is this...?"

"Yeah, it is," I whispered softly back. "The day I graduate high school, my future is set. You know me, Eiji, I like to plan ahead. This was just one life change I added up in my future plans."

The tears in his eyes were evident. "Serenity-chan, I wanted to bring you out here to admit something."

"Go ahead. I've shown you the one thing I've hidden from everyone else but Kimmy. It's time you get whatever is bothering you off your chest."

He scratched the back of his head nervously, as if contemplating if he should speak or not about what was on his mind. I sat patiently, staring at him. He was busying himself looking at the animal in his lap, trying to place his words accordingly in his head before he sputtered them out.

"You were my first true love," he murmured at last. "You made me happier than anyone ever had... ever has. I just need to know if my feelings were ever in vain."

I grabbed his chin again. "Eiji, if there was one person that should know better than that, it is you. Before I met you, I was entirely emotionless unless I felt something truly astounding. It was a rather abominable trait I could not rid myself of. That is, until I met you."

"I don't understand." He pouted.

"I loved you, Eiji." I played with my ring absent-mindedly. "More than I had anyone on this planet. You changed me for the better, made me realize how great the world can be. Your childish ways just made everything all the better to me, and I loved every second and more with you."

"Then why-"

"Shh," I stopped him abruptly. "Let me finish. But then we moved back to America. Things were alright at first, but everyone drifted apart. Our school became co-ed, and we were some of the only girls that had experience with the opposite sex. Thus, we became pretty popular pretty fast. We talked with the boys, played with the boys, joked with the boys, and became close friends with various boys. One group was the theater guys you know today, along with some of the jocks that joined our tennis team."

I paused a moment to collect myself. My heart was beating uncontrollably because I was about to completely and utterly turn this boy down. It was going to kill a little piece of my heart I had given solely to him.

'Great... now I'm starting to sound like Kimmy too.'

"One of those guys you know now, probably more than I give you credit for. Ty Rivers was so silly, so childish. At first, he really reminded me of you." I could tell he was a little happier at that. "Then I got to know him more and realized how amazing of a person he truly was. It was astounding how much time I realized I was spending with him. Before long, we were dating. I was one of the first of the girls to get a boyfriend after our Japan trip." I contemplated for a moment, "In fact, I was the first I'm pretty sure. If not, then it was either Paige or Tiffany. Kimmy waited a good while, but couldn't pass up the things she felt for Ryo. A second chance at love, that's what we all thought of it as."

"There's no hope for us, is there Serenity?" His face nearly broke my heart. I had to tell the truth, but how could I hurt that beautiful boy any more. Beautiful in both appearance and soul...

I had to do it, or this weight would never be lifted off my shoulders.

"No, not as anything more than friends I'm afraid." I took both of his hands. "Eiji, I come here to ask you something really important. I want you to be the ring bearer at my wedding. Everyone else has their place in the wedding. Kimmy is my Maid of Honor, the girls are my brides maids, Ryo is the Best Man, and all of us are waiting for someone to give us the binding ties- our rings." I gripped his hands tighter. "Be my best friend again Eiji, I know things won't ever be the same, but we can still be close. I want you to be something to me, and you had grown to be one of the closest friends I had- a brother to me now. Please..."

He bit his bottom lip. "Nya, Serenity I couldn't refuse you anything. If we can still be the greatest friends again, I'd be happier than anything. I know who you've chosen, and I think I knew before I came here today." He eased the grip I had on his hands carefully. "And I would find no other honor than being your ring bearer, yours and Ty's."

I hugged him tightly, wanting to cry but unable to. I had not cried in almost two years, and it was over this same boy. It hurt, knowing he was such a genuine person that he was willing to give me the ties that would bind me to Ty forever at our wedding, despite the love he still carried. God, it hurt…

"Thank you so much, Eiji-kun," I whispered. "Come on, it's getting late."

He picked up Mittens and the two of us hurried out to the car. As we slid into our respected seats, I did not fail to notice the little sparkling drop that trailed down his cheek.