XXII

Despite how excited Amu seemed about the store she spotted, she was also just trying to distract herself from what Tadase had just told her. She'd never heard anything like that before. At least…not from another guy. Even her old male friends had never said something like that. He was so comfortable around her that he never thought about how others thought? Was that a good thing or a bad thing. Amu didn't want to know.

Amu stopped running as they neared the place she had been distracted by and Tadase looked around. She had also let go of his hand, but he tried not to look as disappointed as he felt. He had gotten used to the feeling of Amu's hand in his. He realized in his head immediately how creepy that sounded whether he thought of Amu as just a friend or not.

The place turned out to be a tea house. A very cute, very Amu-like tea house to be exact. While Amu ordered the two of them drinks, Tadase was left to wallow in his thoughts. He found himself staring at Amu as she stood in line, resting his hand on his cheek with his elbow leaned on the table. He couldn't help but think that Amu was incredible, among many other things.

He'd learned today just how brave she was by standing up to her own bully. Most people wouldn't even dream of doing that. She was also talented, funny, and a little bit mysterious at times. Anyone would be lucky to be her friend, let alone significant other. Frankly, he was surprised that she hadn't had a boyfriend at her former school. That was a weird thing to think about, he realized, quickly shaking his head as he averted his gaze from Amu.

"This is different from what I felt with Saaya…" he mumbled to himself, right in time for Amu to come up with their drinks. Hoping Amu hadn't heard, Tadase sat up straight quickly, taking the drink with an awkward smile.

"What was different from who?" Amu asked. Of course, she heard.

Tadase quickly opted for covering his mouth by taking a sip of his milk tea. He swallowed and spoke as casually as possible. "Sorry, I must have been talking to myself! It's…it's nothing!"

Amu tilted her head but shrugged and sat across from Tadase, drumming her fingers against her cup thoughtfully. She chewed her lip, once again thinking about what Tadase had said about them being alone together. Before she could even think enough to stop herself, she asked a stupid question.

"What did you mean by what you said earlier?"

Caught off guard, Tadase looked up from his drink, nearly choking on a tapioca pearl. Did she mean just now or earlier? He coughed slightly before asking for clarification. "W-which part?"

Amu played with the straw of her strawberry tea absentmindedly. "W-when you said…you were comfortable around me and didn't think about what others thought."

Tadase blinked, not expecting that was what she meant. "Oh, well it's pretty straight forward, really… Being around you just makes me feel so comfortable. I don't really pay attention to how others look at us because I'm usually having too much fun with you, be it worrying about if you're okay when you're hurt, since the last few times we've been together involved Saaya or you getting hurt, or even just yesterday.

"I was so busy wondering if you were okay that I even forgot Ikuto-niisan was there with us." he continued with a soft smile that made Amu melt inside. "So I don't really care what other people think about us when they see us together. As long as you're happy and smiling."

Amu's cheeks felt hot and she quickly took a long sip of her tea as if that would make her cheeks cool off. She glanced up shyly, still unsure what Tadase was saying meant. Was this a feeling he had platonically or…?

Tadase also happened to glance at Amu and their eyes met briefly. Amu yelped at the sudden eye contact and averted her gaze, chewing on her straw. Tadase chuckled softly, resting his cheek in his palm as he watched her.

"Say, Amu-chan, can I try yours?" he asked innocently. "It looks really good. What kind of jelly did you put in it?"

"Huh? Oh…j-just aloe jelly…" Amu stammered. Without thinking, she pushed the cup towards Tadase.

"You can try mine too if you want." Tadase smiled, taking the cup in one hand as he pushed his own drink over to her. "It's just basic though so you've probably had it before."

Amu glanced up as Tadase took a sip from her straw, her cheeks immediately flushing as she realized it was technically an indirect kiss. But…she'd let her friends back at her old school share her drinks all the time, even Kukai and Kairi. Why did it matter if it was Tadase? She chewed her lip absentmindedly.

"Wow, this is really good!" Tadase exclaimed. "Not only are you brave, nice, and talented, you also have great taste in drinks!"

Amu flushed more. Once more, she felt compelled to ask something stupid. "Say…Tadase-kun. How do you feel about me…?"

Tadase faltered, the smile on his face fading slightly. The sudden question caught him off guard and this time he didn't know how to answer. Well…he did but not entirely since he himself didn't even know. He tried for a laugh. "Well, I just said I thought you were brave, nice and talented. And earlier I said you were amazing…"

"R-right…I appreciate hearing that…" She absentmindedly took a drink from Tadase's drink, forgetting it wasn't her own. "So…did all that make you want to befriend me?"

Tadase suppressed a laugh as Amu took a drink from his cup instead of her own and returned her drink as he pondered her next question. At least this one was easier to answer truthfully.

"Yes, of course!" he said immediately, confidence brimming his voice. "Well, of course, I didn't know all that until after I got to know you more but…you were so different. Your personality intrigued me I guess." he shrugged slightly.

"But why…me?"

"What do you mean?" Tadase tilted his head in confusion. "I just said you intrigued me, what more do you need?"

"But…you…you're perfect in every way…" Amu mumbled. "You're smart, handsome, outgoing, popular and preppy. I'm…well, me. A punk who secretly loves frills and the colour pink, who gives of an intimidating aura because I'm too afraid of confrontation…"

Tadase almost leaped from his chair hearing Amu's self-deprecation. Intentional or not, Amu was completely wrong. "Don't say that Amu-chan!" he protested. "You're perfect in your own way as well! Everything about you is unique. Your personality, your style. Hell, if I were a girl I'd never be able to pull off your look."

Amu didn't speak for a second. She hummed softly before breaking into giggles at the thought of Tadase wearing her clothing. Tadase looked at her curiously. "I think you'd look cute." she managed between giggles and breaths of air. "I-if you were a girl, of course."

"Maybe as a girl. But as a male…I'd look horrible." Tadase commented, chuckling himself.

Amu's giggling turned into full-on laughter and she had to cover her mouth to not be too obnoxiously loud. "D-don't make me think about that! I might die of laughter."

Tadase laughed along with her, unable to help it as her laugh so contagious. He was glad to see her happy and laughing and smiling after going so long being too anxious to even think about doing anything of the sorts. He watched her fondly as her laughter started to die down, smiling softly as she wiped tears from her eyes from laughing so hard.

"You have a cute laugh," he commented abruptly without really thinking. "And a nice smile too."

Amu's expression quickly turned into that of shock at Tadase's sudden compliment before turning red with embarrassment. Unable to form coherent words, she just nodded her head and smiled bashfully. Tadase smiled again. Her shy and bashful expression was also very adorable.

Tadase checked the time and hummed. "Do you want to walk around for a bit? We can just carry these. I think we have enough time to stop by the park before your parents got too worried."

Amu bit her lip and nodded meekly, sliding off her stool and grabbing her drink. Tadase stood as well and walked alongside her as they headed towards the park. He made sidelong glances every once in a while. It wasn't long before they reached the park, and soon they were maneuvering the paths in comfortable silence.

The mid-spring breeze was warm against their faces and bits of the Sakura trees were visible still despite it being a little late in the season for Sakura trees to still be blooming. For some reason, Tadase was reminded of his weird dream from a while back and it made him feel tense and nervous. Especially now considering he was slowly starting to realize that the dream was a premonition since he was starting to be convinced that he did, in fact, like Amu as more than just a friend.

The cherry blossoms reminded him of Amu's hair. Strawberries also reminded him of Amu now. Slowly, he was collecting little things that reminded him of the pink-haired teen. He wondered if there was any tree that was still somewhat full of those pretty pink flowers.

"Do you want to see if there are any Sakura trees around that we can sit under that still have petals on them?" Tadase asked, a playful smile on his lips. "It's a bit late but I've heard the flowers have been blooming later and later recently."

Amu mirrored Tadase's smile. "I love Sakura! But do you think there will be any trees still in bloom?" she pouted slightly at the thought.

"Only one way to find out right?" Tadase grinned mischievously and took Amu's hand in his before running along the path as best he could with his injured leg.

Amu gasped in surprised but ended up laughing gleefully as she followed behind Tadase. Somehow, they found a tree that was almost completely still intact and in full bloom and Tadase beamed widely, stopping almost too abruptly. Too busy looking at the tree in awe, Amu didn't notice Tadase had stopped and accidentally ran into his back, causing both of them to topple to the ground.

"S-sorry…" she stammered, rolling over slightly, as she had almost landed on top of Tadase and didn't want to cause him any more pain than she already had.

Tadase chuckled and rolled onto his back and looked over at Amu. "It's fine. This is the best way to view Sakura trees anyways." there was a playful, almost teasing tone in his voice.

Amu looked over at Tadase as well, her cheeks dusted a pink hue that of her hair or the Sakura petals slowly floating away in the soft breeze above them. An abrupt yawn escaped her lips and she quickly covered her mouth, somewhat embarrassed that she had done that in front of Tadase. Tadase just chuckled softly.

"Tired?" he asked, rolling onto his side. "It's been a long day, hasn't it?"

Amu rubbed her cheek nervously. "It's been a long 2 weeks,"

"You're right." Tadase smiled. "You can take a nap if you'd like. I'll be here for you and wake you if anything happens."

Amu looked at Tadase with drowsy eyes for a second before eventually succumbing to her tiredness, being lulled to sleep by the sound of the wind. Tadase smiled and watched her for a bit, bringing his hand over to brush some hair away from her face.

"You're so cute…" he whispered softly.

Carefully, he slid his arm under Amu's neck, hoping it was more support than just lying on the ground. He watched her for a little while longer, hoping he didn't seem too creepy.

In the meantime, Amu had started dreaming. The dream started fairly normal. They were in the same park, perhaps even the same place as they were in reality, eating ice cream. They were talking and laughing gleefully, just a normal day. After Amu accidentally dropped some ice cream on her skirt, Tadase stood to find a fountain to wet his handkerchief to help her clean it up. In his absence, things went awry.

Amu, too busy pouting at the stain on her skirt, didn't notice the dark shadow fall on her until it moved. Expecting Tadase, she looked up, preparing her best smile, which immediately fell flat when she saw Saaya. Her lips formed a straight line as she glowered up at Saaya.

"I thought you were grounded," Amu asked, her voice rigid. "Why are you here? Everything is over now."

"You think it's over?" Saaya laughed spitefully, her hands on her hip as she stared down at Amu. "It's not over until I say it's over, Hinamori Amu."

Amu rolled her eyes. "What are you even saying? If you even think of doing anything else, I'll have no choice but to call the cops."

Saaya shrugged. "You can't do that if you're dead!"

Suddenly, Amu realized that the same switchblade was in Saaya's hand. She didn't have time to react and before she could defend herself, a swift kick was given to her stomach, causing her to fall forward in a fit of coughs. Saaya just laughed manically, already feeling like she won.

Tadase, coming back to the situation late, dropped his ice cream and ran over to Amu just in time for Saaya to bring down her knife, the sharp point tearing into the skin of his back. Saaya gasped at what she'd done and quickly pulled the knife out of his back, causing blood to seep out of the wound. Tadase groaned and fell on top of Amu.

"T-Tadase-kun!" Amu gasped, staring at the blood pouring out of Tadase's back. She recalled that she had heard somewhere that if someone was stabbed, it was better to leave the object in their body otherwise they would bleed out before they could help. Luckily, it wasn't anywhere vital so it would take a while but still. She glowered up at Saaya as she held Tadase against her. "Look what you've done!"

Saaya seemed flustered, watching as her seemingly beloved ex-boyfriend bled out in front of her. "W-well…if I can't have him then…no one can!" she said after thinking of an excuse.

"You're delusional." Amu seethed. "Not only trying to kill someone just because they might be interested in your ex-boyfriend but even going as far as to claim that no one can have him, using it as your excuse for probably causing his death?"

Saaya stared at the two of them before groaning and running off, leaving Amu to take care of Tadase. She frowned, helping him sit up. He coughed, blood mixed with saliva coming from his mouth, causing Amu to freak out.

"T-Tadase-kun!" she exclaimed, worry high in her voice. "I-it'll be okay. I-I'll call an ambulance!"

Tadase smiled despite his predicament. "D-don't worry about me…" he coughed up more blood. "I'll be fine. As long as you're okay, I'll always be fine."

Amu shook her head quickly. "If we don't take care of this you…you'll die!"

Tadase was getting weaker and weaker. "No, it's too late…"

Amu looked around at the pool of blood that was surrounding them and seeping into the grass. It was all over his clothing as well as Amu's clothing. Amu felt her eyes sting with tears.

"Before I go…" Tadase stammered, his voice hoarse and his mouth covered in blood. "I just wanted to say… I thin I like…"

Before dream Tadase could finish the sentence, Amu had finally managed to will herself awake because…it had to be a dream. She woke with a start and an audible gasp, only to see Tadase staring at her in confusion and concern.

A/N: Hi, i'd intended for this series to be finished before the New Year and it almost was but then we went out for new years and I didn't have time to finish the last chapter + epilogue I decided to add in so here we are. I have the last chapter finished as well, just need to finish the epilogue and then phew we're finally done this fic! Happy New Year by the way! I'm not sure if anyone reads these anymore but if you do, thank you! I hope you continue to read my works even if I do eventually stop writing Tadamu (it's been like...8 years and that's all I've been posting so I think it deserves a break/retirement haha)

May I remind you guys I do have a poll that hopefully is on my profile about what other stories I should post on here. I'd be happy if you voted so I can decide easily which story/pairing I should post next. Thanks! Have a good new year!