I realized that I have never written anything sad for them, so here you go. I know I only placed "Romance" for the genre, but I somehow wanted to try writing something like this. Nevertheless, I hope you'll like my take on this angst. This is set in a TYL timeline.

Word Count: 937

Lilac

With a glass of wine in hand, Haru's eyes twinkled with merriment. Vongola celebrations had always been extravagant, lavish, and purely bizarre. And since it was Decimo's birthday, people had gone all out.

"I'm happy you're here, Haru-chan," Kyoko exclaimed, engulfing the brunette into a tight hug. "Things weren't just the same without you."

True. After being away for almost three years, a lot of things had changed. Lambo and I-pin weren't children anymore, and her friends now had their own expertise, officially acquiring different positions in the famiglia.

Her eyes roamed around, and there, she found him talking to Tsuna with his same old funny and charming nature.

Haru wasn't claustrophobic, but the whole room suddenly felt stuffy despite the place being overly spacious. And she thought to herself, this is going to be a long night.

—

The Vongola mansion was way too complex for her, to say the least. Who would've thought she'd actually lose herself in those endless hallways just right after emerging from the powder room?

And then, accidentally running into the person she desperately wanted to avoid just made all things worse. Fantastic.

"Let me guess," Takeshi began, "you're lost?"

Haru scratched her cheek before replying, "Kind of?"

A smile plastered on his face. "I thought so. Let me take you back to the party."

The clicking of her lilac heels echoed through the elegant hallway as they walked together. It was awfully quiet, and Haru was dying to get back to the function room as soon as possible.

"So, how have you been?" Takeshi opened the conversation with small talk.

Haru tried her best to display a smile. "I'm doing really great."

"That's good to know."

The ensuing silence, however, reminded her once more of their awkward status, so instead, Haru busied herself looking at every painting being hung up on the walls.

"Met someone special?" Takeshi asked her out of nowhere, making her tilt her head in surprise.

"Ah, no, I've got no time for that stuff," she said and purposely diverted the topic to him. "What about you? With all those gorgeous girls around, I'm pretty sure you did."

Takeshi let out a chuckle and shook his head. "I never dated someone else ever since we," he paused before continuing in a subdued tone, "parted ways."

At the sudden mention, unpleasant memories resurfaced. Their breakup was a total misery, and the brunette knew it was for her own good — to ensure her safety. Too much involvement with the mafia was getting menacing and dangerous, so Haru accepted the circumstances with a heavy heart. After all the nights she spent crying in her room, her only way of coping was to drown herself with the accumulating office paperwork.

"And you know," Takeshi began, halting his steps, and Haru was on pins and needles when he glanced at her like it had a thousand meanings.

"The worst thing is that even after all of that, I'm still in love with you," he finished.

Don't say that, please. Don't make this even harder.

All of a sudden, his fingers skimmed her cheek and traced her lips. "You've always felt like home."

A moment of silence fell again, and this time, it was a lot more agonizing as they gazed at each other intensely, having an unspoken line between them. It scared her. Haru didn't know whether to pull back or lose herself completely in his caramel eyes. But without hesitation, Takeshi yanked her towards him and kissed her, firm and soulful, and before she knew it, Haru found herself responding. No, it wasn't supposed to be this way.

As he deepened the kiss, his fingers wandered around her short and glossy locks that were once long before. The entire feeling gave Haru a huge nostalgia, and it had almost been forever since she last tasted those lips of his.

Haru's hands were splayed across his broad shoulders, kissing him as if she couldn't get enough.

But at some point, the realization hit her. Despite the reluctance, she pulled away and tried to create a distance between them.

"I'm sorry." Haru exhaled deeply, breath hitching. "Let's stop."

His hand held her wrist to stop her from leaving. He said, "I know you feel the same way."

"No," Haru lied, eyes looking away. "You're wrong."

"Haru, please," Takeshi whispered and cupped both of her cheeks to make their eyes lock on each other, but she purposely removed his hands away.

"Forget me," Haru insisted.

She turned on her heel, walking away from him and the whole mess. A place for some solitude was all that mattered, and Haru couldn't care less to where her feet would drag her. As the door clicked shut of whatever room she walked into, her brave façade was torn down, disclosing her despair. Haru broke down to her knees and cried her heart out — a total wreck she had been, just like before.

Showing up at the party was a huge mistake. The walls she gradually built with an effort over the past few years had easily tumbled down in just one snap.

The saddest part was realizing they could have made it work, but maybe it was the dread, fear, and apprehension that restrained her, screwing up everything.

Waking up next to him, hearing his voice, sharing laughter — it'll only be a mere figment of her imagination, a sad epiphany, and perhaps it was bound to be that way. Wiping her tears, Haru forced up a rueful smile.

They've got no place to be together — melancholically nowhere, not even in a pitch-black void.