AN: Hey, it's up here now ;) , make sure to leave a comment and tell me your thoughts on the story. It really helps me out. It was a lot of fun writing the story. I hope y'all enjoyed it!

Rise ran and ran. The fire soon was consuming the entire building. Kanji would be following soon. Any second, he'd get back up. Of course he would, he was Kanji after all.

As she further descended the building, the smoke made her eyes burn. Step by step, she kept going down the building. The heat of the flame was making her sweat, and the flames themselves were almost blinding. The smoke in combination with the heat of the flames made her eyes water slightly. The crackling flame behind the idol sounded almost like footsteps. Desperately, she appeared behind her. Hoping that Kanji had caught up with her. Yet her hope was dashed by the angry red flames. Almost like a feral dog, the flames chased Rise. They spreaded throughout the entire floor.

It worried Rise that Kanji wasn't there, but he'd show up any second. Of course he would, he was Kanji after all. She continued her descent into the blazing inferno. The heat from the flames came in visible waves, only a story left, then she'd have to get across the lobby. Time seemed to warble between slow and fast, and her vision seemed to come and go like a powerpoint presentation. She could feel the flames, and could hear the building start to crumble around her. It was an older building after all, so it was no wonder the flames were spreading so quickly.

As she reached the bottom of the first floor stairwell, she reached for the door to the lobby. An angry sizzling noise came from from the door, as Rise let out a yelp of pain. The idol quickly looked to her hand, to see it had almost instantly swelled and almost shined a dull red hue. The flames from the top of the floor had begun to get ever closer, and Rise quickly took off her jacket. She used it to grab the handle of the otherwise impassable door. She flung it open, and saw the lobby. It was completely encased in flame, and because of this, a new level of heat hit Rise's entire body. The lobby smoked menacingly, and unlike the stairwell, there wasn't a clear path to follow. Rise took a deep breath, which immediately made her start to cough. The air was thick, and it became hard to breath. Her vision began to blur as her coughing fit continued.

Maybe I can't make it. Maybe…

Then, in a moment of shocking clarity, the idol pictured the Investigation Team. She had been in much worse situations, and she had conquered her inner demons. She helped save the world. Twice. She couldn't stop here. There were people on the other side of this lobby that she had to see. Other things in life that she had to experience.

So, with newfound strength, she efficiently wrapped herself in her coat. She charged through the lobby, flame and all. Her coughs became more raspy and severe, but she continued pressing forward. She couldn't feel her sweat anymore, and she could barely see in front of her. Maybe she was initially right, maybe she wouldn't make it out-

Suddenly, she couldn't feel the heat anymore. Her eyes came in to focus on her surroundings. She was outside, she was at the deconstruction site. She felt like yelling for joy, she made it! Instead of a yell, a dry cough came out of her. It wasn't ideal, but she was happy all the same. It's the kind of happiness one can feel, only when they make it out of a dire situation. The kind of happiness that can make you appreciate life more than you thought you ever would.

Then, almost instantly, that happiness faded as she looked around her surroundings once again. Kanji wasn't there. How could she have been so selfish? She got out of the building with almost nothing wrong with her, but Kanji was still in the burning hellscape of a building. Her frustration built in her lungs, and she felt like screaming, but the only thing that came out of her was a dry cough.

He'll be here any minute.

Of course he will…

He's…

He's Kanji after all.

Yet, Rise heard a dark and foreboding voice in her head. It's sinister whisper was something she could not block out, as it grew louder and louder. It said over and over again:

He isn't going to make it.

Rise attempted to counter the devious voice with her own rethort.

He's Kanji. He's so strong, there's no way he'll burn here!

The voice turned from a whisper to a desperate howl, booming so loudly that Rise had no way of properly ignoring it.

Yes, he is strong… but what if this time he wasn't strong enough?

Rise shook her head furiously.

But Kanji-

Yet before she could even finish next thought, the voice countered.

Maybe Kanji… is dead.

The flames continued to crackle menacingly. The building made a desperate, and dangerous sound. Almost like a hungry wolf to a sheep, the flame was slowly devouring the building. The flame was indiscriminate about all it ate, either it was inanimate. Or even worse, a living organism.

Rise desperately clutched the snow, her burnt hand felt immense relief, yet her heart was in agony. She felt like crying, but nothing came out of her eyes.

All I've been doing is crying.

She looked at the building once more.

Kanji pushed himself so hard, and all I've done is cry!

Rise stood up, and peered into the flames. Her knees buckled slightly at the feral flames before her.

The cold of winter seemed to melt away before the inferno in front of her, as the snow melded into the flames. The fire letting out loud angry hisses at its colder advisory.

Somehow, she needed to get into the building. If Kanji wasn't going to come out to her, then she'd just have to go to him!

Kanji's words came back to her, "I wouldn't be able to go to heaven with that kind of a guilty conscience."

NEITHER WOULD I IDIOT!

The flames once again hissed at the snow, savagely melting the frozen water back into its previous state.

Rise looked desperately at the flames, she had to get in, but she had no clue of how to enter. The flames were too much for her to just walk into the lobby of the building. There had to be some kind of way of getting in. Some way of lessening the impact of the flames. The idol heard the flames hiss once again, and something occurred to her.

Snow is frozen water. Water puts out fire. If this is a deconstruction site-

She looked around herself, and found what she was looking for. Her luck seemed to be overflowing today. Almost directly behind her was a large hose. She quickly grabbed it, and ran as far as she could with it. She was almost on top of the flames. Like a wild animal it seemed to growl at her. Rise could feel her knees buckle once more. A brief fear overtook her as she stared into it. She nearly dropped her hose, until an image of Kanji burning made her grip the hose again. She also forgot the pain in her burnt hand.

It's not an animal, it's a fire.

With her good hand, she turned the hose on. The sound of water came rushing forward. A moment of silence, and then a torrent of water came out of the hose. An instantaneous angry hiss of the flames came in agony over the sound of rushing water.

It's not an animal, it's a fire!

The fire crackled against the water of the hose. Rise got the flames on the floor of the lobby somewhat put out. The industrial hose was quite the tool. It quickly and effectively doused the majority of the flames, only leaving small embers in its wake.

That was good enough, the hot steam coming off of the floor was slightly concerning to the idol. Yet, just as she steeled herself, and was about to rush into the building. She felt a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

Much to her shock and relief, the people standing behind her were Naoto and Yu. Yosuke and Kuma were behind them. Naoto attempted putting on a reassuring smile, yet her attempt failed somewhat. Rise looked at them, her relief souring slightly. She merely pointed to the building, and said "Kanji… third floor... staircase" in a dry croak.

All of them except Kuma seemed to understand instantly. Kuma was more interested in Rise, and was observing the burn on her hand with mild horror.

"Kuma, stay here with her, look after her." Yosuke said alertly.

Kuma nodded his head instantly, and went to Rise's side.

"But-" Rise protested.

"We'll get him back, stay here." Yu said, his voice somewhat severe.

His voice sounded like the time Nanako had been kidnapped. It lacked it's usual kindness to it, and was sharp, yet at the same time commanding. Before Rise could even argue back, the remaining three charged into the building.

The idol crumbled to the ground slightly. Yet again, she was saved by everyone around her. A mix of relief and sadness overcame her. Relief that someone was going to get Kanji, sadness that it couldn't be her after she finally got her resolve.

Kuma remained by Rise's side, not moving an inch.

"How'd… you… find us?" Rise said with difficulty.

Kuma looked apologetically to his friend. "Well, it's kinda a long story. But since we're gonna be here for a while, I guess there's nothing better to do."

Kuma and Rise moved away from the building, and Kuma began to explain how the group found where Rise and Kanji were.

"Well, today was a play day for me and Nana-chan. So, me, Yosuke, Nao-chan, Sensei, and Nana-chan, were all playing at a park. It was a lot of fun! Nana-chan is getting bigger, so we can play more fun games than we ordinarily could've." Kuma said somewhat giddily, almost like he forgot about the fire in front of him. "As we were on our way back, Dojima came out of the house to greet us. He quickly asked us about Kanji, and if we had seen him. We told him that we hadn't, and his face suddenly changed and became more grizzly. He said that he had been spotted in Okina, and that he was in a rush for something." Kuma looked at Rise at this point, his gittyness had been replaced with a serious tone. "Apparently he ran into an old woman named Baba, he nearly knocked her over. She got worried, so she called Kanji's mom, and Kanji's mom called Dojima. As Dojima started heading out, and after we made sure Nanako was safe, we came rushing over here. We headed to the burning building on Naoto's hunch, and here we discovered you."

Rise merely nodded mutely. Keeping her eyes on the flaming building.

Please be okay Kanji…

The trio went across the lobby with relative ease. Naoto instructed the other two to put their jackets across their heads. They did as they were told, and Naoto using her clothes opened the door to the stairwell. A burst of heat hit them almost instantly, and almost without any hesitation, Yu ran into the flames. Yosuke eyed the flames for a little bit, and with determination followed. Naoto, found a nearby piece of burnt wood and placed it against the door. She made sure that it would keep it open, and soon followed the other two.

The stairwell was immensely hot, the waves from the heat, combined with the smoke of the flame made it very hard to see. Each step they all took seemed to be agonizingly slow. As Yu was moving forward, the stair he was on made a sickening creak.

"Everyone watch your step, the flames have probably made the building unstable!" Naoto yelled over the sound of the flames.

"Well isn't that just dandy?" Yosuke asked sarcastically.

Progress slowed to a desperate crawl. The sounds the building was making, it told the group that they probably didn't have much time left before the building started caving in on itself.

"We'd better hurry, I don't like those kinda noises." Yosuke said, a brief panic in his voice.

No one blamed him for his panic, everyone felt the same, yet they were able to save face. See, neither of them talked the rest of the trip. So, the fear and panic they felt never made itself known.

Finally, after what seemed like ages, they made it to the bottom of the third floor stairwell. Laying on the ground was their proxy, his eyes closed.

If the situation weren't so dire, one might have made the mistake of calling the scene beautiful. Kanji's face had soot on it from the fire, and the flames danced all around him. His eyes were closed, and most strikingly of all, he had a smile on his face. There was no distress on it from the flame, no fear of what might've happened to him. Despite everything, he looked at peace.

"Kanji!" Yu yelled.

"Kanji, C'mon wake up big guy!" Yosuke also yelled, getting on his knees next to the boy.

Yet Kanji made no response.

"Kanji-kun!" Naoto said, as she moved herself forward to his side.

"His skin is pale, and I don't see any perspiration on him." Naoto thought quietly to herself. "Wait! Don't tell me-" The detective desperately began to pry away the left sleeve of Kanji's hoodie, she placed her hand on his wrist.

"No!" Naoto said, after a few tense seconds.

Yu and Yosuke looked at the detective, neither of them daring to ask what was wrong.

"Kanji-kun… doesn't have a pulse." The detective said desperately, holding the tailors wrist tightly.

The impact of those words were greater than that of a tidal wave.

Yu nearly collapsed to the floor. For all his expression and knowledge. He found that words failed him.

Naoto uncharacteristically trembled and was on the verge of tears.

Yosuke, however, looked rather determined.

"Naoto, do you know CPR?" Yosuke asked calmly.

"Huh?" She asked quietly.

"Do you know CPR." Yosuke asked again, with almost forced calmness.

"Only in theory, why?"

Cooly, the heir of Junes smiled. "That's good enough. When I tell you, pinch his nose and tilt his head backwards."

"Yosuke, do you know-"

Before the detective could even finish, Yosuke raised himself above the tailor. He weaved his hands around each other, his right hand on top of his left. He then placed his hands on Kanji's diaphragm.

"When they taught this at Junes, I laughed and said that I'd never need to use it." Yosuke said to the other two with a brief chuckle. "Guess I was wrong."

Mightily, the brunette began to press against Kanji. Yosuke was counting to a rhythm, and neither Naoto nor Yu dared to interrupt him. A tense minute passed as they both looked in awe. Yosuke had to take his coat off because of how it limited how he moved. He continued to count in rhythm as he performed CPR. Sweat could be seen coming off of his brow, as he painstakingly upheld his pace. Yosuke could feel his arms begin to get tired, he could feel himself begin to slow down. Yet, he refused to give in.

Suddenly, there was a nasty sounding crack. Yosuke stopped for a brief second, the realization that the crack wasn't wood, but bone. It was true after all, CPR does break ribs. Kanji was going to hurt like hell when this was finished. Yu and Naoto looked shocked, but they both knew that CPR could break bones. So their shock didn't last long.

Shakily, Yosuke looked to the detective. "Alright Naoto, it's time… little bit further back… that's good."

Yosuke looked at Kanji once more. "You're going to hate me when you wake up Kanji." He said quietly.

Yosuke took a breath to stabilize himself, took another, and then began to blow a steady stream of air into the tailor. There was no response. Yosuke did it again, and was met with the same lack of reply from Kanji's body.

Yosuke's face fell slightly.

He began pounding on Kanji's chest.

"C'mon Kanji, breath damn it!"

He took his sweaty fist once more, and pounded it so hard against Kanji's chest, that there was another sickening crack.

"Breath!"

Then, a miracle happened. Kanji opened his eyes, weakly, and looked around him.

"Oh hey… is this heaven?"

"Kanji!" The three of them exclaimed.

The tailor mutely looked around him. He was slightly surprised, "There's still flames, so maybe I'm in hell?"

"You're not in either." Naoto said quietly to him. "You're still in the world of the living." She said, tightly gripping his fist.

"Oh." Kanji said simply, his eyes barely open. "That's nice."

"That's all you have to say you lug?" Yosuke said, laughing slightly.

"Oh fuck off, little tired right now." Kanji said, exacerbated.

"That's true, he doesn't even feel his broken ribs right now." Yu said calmly.

There was a slight silence.

"My what?" Kanji asked

The flames made the building grow ever closer to its collapse. Now that the trio had compelled their friend back to life, they had another problem to solve. They had a nearly unconscious person, and the building sounded like it was about to come crashing down. Now, they had to take him out of the building without any further damage to him.

Yu took the upper part of Kanji, Yosuke took the lower, and Naoto took the middle. The detective informed the other two that they had to keep him as level as possible so that they could keep his injuries to a minimum. They all did their best, yet Naoto found it hard to keep up with the other two.

The journey down the stairs was much slower than the journey distributed amongst three people, Kanji still weighed a considerable amount. Plus with the group being careful, it took them extra amounts of time getting him down.

They all soon heard a sound that made their hearts sink.

There was a loud crash, and they all turned in time to see what had caused it. Part of the roof caved in, allowing the cold moon to shine through. They all looked momentarily at the rubble that fell to the ground.

"Screw my injuries, get a move on!" Kanji said, suddenly much more awake than previously.

The rest of the group looked at eachother, then nodded in affirmation. They knew that they had to go much faster.

So, they did just that. Their pace increased as the flame and rubble mixed together. The building had finally started to deteriorate. Pieces of the roof started concaving inward, more and more, until the rubble from it all coated the floor. As they descended the stairwell, and finally came to the hotel lobby, they all saw that it was a clear run. The flame was completely gone on this level. They all could see the flashes of an ambulance, or police, or some kind of emergency service. Their pace increased, as fatigue was overtaking them. If they had to continue any further, they might have dropped their quarry. So they all rushed out of the lobby, the cold contrast of the outside hit them all as they looked around. The police were there, and Rise was in a nearby ambulance. Just as the police force there gathered around, Kuma walked up with them.

"That's them! Those are my friends!" He said happily.

One of the older looking ones looked at Kanji, and almost immediately started organizing his younger officers to take him to the ambulance. Naoto, Yosuke, Yu, and Kuma, tried to go with him, but they were stopped by the older officer.

"Detective Dojima called and said that you guys would probably be here. Now, you kids aren't in any trouble, but I need to take your statements at the station."

The boys glanced at Naoto, who gave a brief nod of affirmation.

"I'll try and be quick about it too, if the guy did what Ms. Kujikawa said he did, then he's a damn hero in my books." The officer said, glancing off to the distance, where Kanji was being carted into the same ambulance as Rise.

The ride in the ambulance was somewhat calm. It all flashed by quickly for Rise, as she never took her eyes off of Kanji the entire time. The boy was on oxygen, and was peacefully resting as the paramedics around him attended to him. His face was covered in soot, as was his entire body. It was sad for the idol to see him like this. The ride went quietly, though one of the paramedics was quite keen on making Rise comfortable. He later, as politely as he could, asked if he could have her autograph. Which she agreed to, with a comfortable smile. Even if it was for a few minutes, it was enough to distract her from the boy in front of her.

As they approached the hospital, she watched as Kanji was carried off the stretcher from the ambulance and wheeled into the building. She kept her eyes glued to him as he went further and further away from her, until finally he was completely out of sight.

Rise was led by a nurse, who was talking to her. Rise was listening to her, but she wasn't at all processing what she said. Her mind was too distracted. She felt this abundant tiredness about her, as though she went through a great ordeal.

But it wasn't you, it was Kanji who went through hell.

She felt like she had no right to feel tired, yet to her frustration, she did feel tired.

She was led to a doctor's office, and there was a kind-looking gentleman there. He was tall, blonde, and had bright green eyes. For a brief minute, Rise distractedly wondered why there was an American in the office. Until she realized that it wasn't some random American, it was the doctor.

He gave Rise a general examination, and continuously made sure the girl was comfortable. He made sure that her burnt hand was properly wrapped, and he attended to her bruise. She flinched slightly, he apologized politely, but continued. Rise found it interesting how an American doctor could speak fluent Japanese. She asked about it, her voice still somewhat horse from the smoke.

The doctor smiled kindly, and explained that his parents moved to Japan when he was very young, and that he had been in Japan for almost all his life. After his explanation, his smile faltered slightly as he looked at Rise more closely. He asked her to open her mouth as wide as she could, which she complied to. He peered in, and shook his head slightly.

"Well Kujikawa-san, the damage is rather minimal. There appears to be some damage to your lungs, so you can't put it under stress for a while. It looks like there's some low-level impact from the smoke, which will heal with enough time. You won't be able to sing for a while, so your music career will have to be put on hold." He explained calmly.

Rise nodded.

"You got lucky with your hand as well, majority of it is a first degree burn, with a minor second degree burn at the center." He continued explaining.

"Doctor… would you mind… if I laid down for a while?" Rise asked slowly, in a hushed tone. She didn't want to put any extra strain on her voice.

"Of course you can, try and get some rest." He said kindly.

The very next day, early in the morning, the entire gang had assembled at the hospital Kanji was stationed at. After cleaning themselves up slightly, Yosuke, Yu, Naoto, and Kuma appeared. Yukiko came alongside Mrs. Tatsumi and Grandma Kujikawa. Then of course, there was Rise. Her manager, Inoue, came to the hospital earlier to check up on her. All of them crowded up to Kanji's room, to pay him a visit.

Kanji, however, was sound asleep. The same doctor who checked on Rise, was there with them. He was giving everyone the basic rundown on the damage Kanji had received.

"I'll be honest with all of you" He said, looking rather severe. "It's honestly nothing short of a miracle that Tatsumi-san was able to do all the things he has accomplished." The doctor said, shifting comfortably to make sure everyone could hear him. "He has a grade two tear in both of his hamstrings, which I would guess is from his bike ride. Professional cyclists make the kind of trip he made, and the majority of them are slower than him. There must've been considerable pain for him, but my guess is that he was only able to keep standing from sheer adrenaline." He said, looking very impressed. "Now, he has minor tears in other muscles, but those aren't as major as everything else. Tatsumi-san also has a few fractures, and two of his ribs are completely broken." Yosuke shifted somewhat uncomfortably at the 'broken ribs' part. "One notable fraction to keep an eye on is a hairline fracture to the frontal lobe, while it will heal, any kind of damage to the skull is something to monitor." The doctor finished, looking around the group once more.

"How long will it take for him to recover?" Yukiko asked politely.

"It'll take months at least. With extensive physical therapy. However, he needs to heal up a little bit before he can even take on physical therapy." The doctor responded. "Which reminds me, I have a matter to discuss with Mrs. Tatsumi, I hate to be a bother, but if you all could leave me and her to talk…"

Everyone in the room cleared out, except for the doctor and Mrs. Tatsumi. Everyone, except Inoue, who stayed rooted in his place.

"Um, excuse me sir, but I have to ask that you leave." The doctor once again emphasised.

"I assume this has to deal with payment for the treatment Mr. Tatsumi has to undergo. In which case I have to stay here." He said, not moving.

Ignoring the doctor completely, Inoue went over to Mrs. Tatsumi and held out his hand. "Mrs. Tatsumi? I'm Inoue, the manager of Rise Kujikawa."

"A pleasure to meet you Inoue-san." Mrs. Tatsumi said quietly, slightly confused at what was happening.

"I'll skip right to the point then." Inoue said, also addressing the doctor. "Kujiwawa-san is rather important to the agency I represent. When I heard of the heroism your son displayed, I knew it couldn't be ignored. Especially in the state that he's in. So, as a formal thanks on behalf of the Risette team, we will be paying any and all rehabilitation fees." He said, a gentle smile on his face.

Mrs. Tatsumi was so shocked that she didn't even say anything at all. Her eyes wide with disbelief.

"T-thank you-" She started.

"No, I should be thanking you. Thank you, for raising such a wonderful kid." Inoue said, still with the same smile plastered on his face.

The rest of the day was mostly spent around Kanji. Grandma Kujikawa, Kuma, and Yosuke were the first to leave. All of them having a business that needed attending. Inoue followed shortly afterward, but not without addressing some stray paparazzi who managed to snoop their way into the building. About an hour after Inoue left, Naoto, Yu, and Yukiko also left. Leaving only Rise and and Mrs. Tatsumi. Rise was on a stool next to Kanj's bedi, and Mrs. Tatsumi was right next to her on a comfortable couch.

"Why are you still here dear?" Mrs. Tatsumi asked politely, motherly concern across her face.

"I… I don't want to leave him here." Rise said faintly.

"I see." Mrs. Tatsumi responded. "Perhaps you'd like to sit in something a little more comfortable?" She said, patting a seat next to her.

"It's okay, I'm comfortable here." Rise lied. In truth her butt went numb thirty minutes prior, but she wouldn't allow herself to move.

"Are you now?" Mrs. Tatsumi asked, her eyebrows raised in disbelief.

Rise turned to see her, she gave a short smile and nodded her head.

There was a comfortable silence, as Rise turned back to face Kanji.

"I know you're lying dear." Mrs. Tatsumi said, getting up slightly.

Rise was about to lie once more, but as she turned to face Mrs. Tatsumi once again, words failed her.

"I know that you're lying, because I did the same thing as you are currently doing."

"What do you mean?" Rise asked.

"When Kanji's father was in the hospital, I could only think about him. I couldn't tear my eyes away from him, or stop worrying about him. So, I sat in a stool, and watched him mindlessly for hours." She said, quietly stepping to Rise's side.

Rise didn't talk, but she knew that Mrs. Tatsumi was correct.

"Now there was a reason why I did it." Mrs Tatsumi said gently, placing a warm hand on Rise's shoulder. Rise turned her head to face her. "I did it because I loved my husband. So let me ask you Rise-chan… Do you love my Kanji?"

The question came so quickly, so rapidly, that Rise didn't even have time to brace herself. She just looked shocked at what Mrs. Tatsumi had just asked her. She could feel her face go bright red, and she could feel her eyes widen slightly. She turned herself fully to Mrs. Tatsumi, and gave a slight nod.

"Oho, I knew it." Mrs. Tatsumi chuckled. "Never doubt the knowledge of an old woman."

Rise, who still didn't know what to say or do, just smiled awkwardly.

"I know my boy better than anyone on this planet. I know that if he put himself through this to save you, that you must be someone pretty special to him as well." She said peacefully.

Just then, an alarm went off on Mrs. Tatsumi's phone. She quickly checked it, and let out a tired sigh. "Well, it looks like you're saved by the bell, dear. I have to head back to cook for dinner." She said, picking up her purse. "I understand being worried about him, but do try and get some rest." She said gently as she walked out the door.

Then there were two.

Rise could feel her face still was bright red, but the stiffness of her back made her want to get up from the stool. Somehow, Mrs. Tatsumi's words had made her calmer. She stretched slightly, and got up from her stool. Observing the room around her. It had been a full day since she had eaten anything, and her stomach was quick to remind her of that. Inoue had said that there was a sandwich shop around that had a pretty good variety. She made up her mind, and left the room to get some food. The trip took a short time, almost fifteen minutes there and back. She quietly ate her food in Kanji's room.

With her stomach stuffed, she took a seat on the couch, and found it increasingly hard to stay awake. So, despite the occasional jerk back to consciousness, she found herself falling asleep.

It was almost another full day before Kanji woke up. His mother had visited him a little beforehand, but he was still asleep then. Rise had gone out to grab another sandwich, and when she had come back, the doctor who was assisting both Kanji and Rise walked out of the room. He gave her a smile and a wink, and told her to go in to see him. Which she did immediately. As she entered the door, Kanji was sitting on his bed (propped by some pillows) and was looking out of the hospital window. Only after Rise shut the door did he notice her.

"Hey." He said quietly, a warm smile across his face.

Rise didn't speak, she only rushed to his side and threw her arms around him. A stream of hot tears poured down her face.

Kanji returned her embrace, his smile growing larger.

The two of them talked for almost an hour. Rise had told Kanji about what happened after she got out of the flame, and Kanji told her about all the things he'd be going under for recovery.

Then, in a brief silence, Kanji turned to Rise.

"So… uhhh… there's something I'd like to ask you about." He said quietly. "There's this feeling I have every now and again. This something that I've felt. I felt it when you were around, and I really felt it when you got kidnapped. I don't know what it is, but it's… warm. It's actually a pretty pleasant thing, and for some odd reason it's nostalgic. Like I've felt it before with-"

"Naoto" Rise interrupted.

"Huh? I guess…" Kanji said, scratching his head. "Yeah, I guess you could say I felt this before with her-" Then he stopped dead in his tracks.

With Naoto it was because he… but could it be the same with Rise? It couldn't be… yet maybe it was.

"Wait, this feeling… is it? No, it couldn't be…" Kanji said, deep in thought. He finally turned to the idol. "Do I love you?" He asked, his confusion blatantly apparent.

Rise had an amused look on her face, halfway between judgement and holding back laughter. "I don't know. Do you?" She asked, hiding the fear on her face with a smile. The swirl of emotion, both fear and joy and anticipation, made her smile awkwardly. Yet her eyes reflected her fear of possible rejection.

However, her question threw off Kanji. He spent a moment, quietly observing her, repeating her question repeatedly in his mind.

She's Rise, it would be weird to fall in love with Rise. It would be weird to want to hold her tiny hands in his, or to caress the back of her head lovingly. It would be weird to want to make meals for her, or to cuddle with her. It would be weird...

But he wanted all of it.

Kanji knew his answer, he finally knew what this something was. He was in love with Rise. His eyes filled with newfound determination, he swallowed his fear, and began to speak.

"Ri-I-se." His voice cracked.

Rise who had been anticipating every moment finally broke out in laughter.

"H-hey, stop that. I'm nervous-"

But she couldn't stop laughing, all of her stress and fear was leaving her body.

"Fine, fuck it. Here goes…" He said quietly to himself. "Rise Kujikawa, I love you."

For all her laughing previous to this moment, she was in stunned silence. She felt her face go completely red. Kanji also finally understood what he said as well, and soon followed suit.

The two tomatoes looked desperately around the room for anything to talk about. Until Rise finally sighed.

"I-I-I love you too." She said very quietly.

But as it was a quiet hospital room, Kanji could hear her just fine.

Kanji, unsure of if it was the right thing to do, held out his hand slightly. Rise took it, and held it tentatively. Her eyes were wide with the realization that the two of them had just confessed to each other.

"So, what now?" Kanji asked, his voice was notably higher than it usually was.

"I, uh, don't know." Rise admitted, looking back at him.

Kanji laughed awkwardly, and his grip on her hand was tightening. Finally his laughter subsided, and he looked very serious for a moment.

"In the fire, I thought I was going to die. So, I said my goodbyes to everyone in the group. I don't really want to do that again. Also, when I heard you were kidnapped, I was really scared. I was scared that I would lose you." He said quietly.

Rise said nothing, but simply held his hand as he spoke. She began to rub it soothingly.

"When I think back to how scared I was, and compare it to how happy I am now. It's really off putting. I mean, I'm so happy I could probably kiss you." He said, chuckling slightly. His chuckles stopped, however, when he realized the impact of what he said. He turned to Rise quickly, his face flashing red once more. "Sorry." He apologized quickly.

"My, we're moving quickly aren't we?" Rise said casually, and just as casually as she spoke, she leaned in. She moved quickly, and placed a brief peck on Kanji's cheek.

Kanji's face was so red, it would've put Rudolf to shame. "Y-yeah, I guess we are." He paused, and smiled. "Hardly a bad thing."

"Yeah, well you better be ready to deal with a ravenous fanbase." Rise laughed.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Kanji asked briefly.

"Oh if you think I'm going to stay quiet about my boyfriend you're dead wrong. If push comes to shove I'll proudly tell the whole world who I'm dating." Rise said giggling madly.

"Well, I'm in no rush to get back into this hospital, so let's hope that question doesn't get asked any time soon." Kanji countered happily.

The two of them talked for hours after that, happy to be in each other's presence. Time stood still, and somehow the air around them had become sparkly and wonderful.

Aftermath:

YO! It's Chie here. I missed out on this whole adventure, so I'm going to fill you guys in on how it ends. First thing's first. Kanji couldn't avoid the press, and was asked several times to give an interview about his story. Which he finally caved in (wuss) and gave the press the scoop. Pretty soon, his big old mug was printed on every paper from Tokyo to Osaka. The title of the paper was "From punk to hero: Kanji Tatsumi''. Now of course we couldn't let him live that one down. The especially weird thing about Kanji is that he's super close to Rise now. The two of them seem to be talking to each other much more than they should. Honestly, they should get together already. I asked Kanji about it, but he just said something about sowing lesions, which wouldn't surprise me. Yet, I can't help but feel there's something more to it…

Oh well.

On another note, Tatsumi textiles sored as a business. Because of the hero stunt Kanji pulled, they had completely sold out of their stalk, and actually had to close down for a week to order new supplies. Naoki's new perfume "Saki" also bolstered Kanji's business, and soon became a nationally recognized product. Sold exclusively by Junes, it became the product of the year in some fashion magazines. Funny how it's the beginning of the year and it's already being listed as the "number one product". Honestly, this is why fashion confuses me.

Speaking of confusion matters, Jin Takeo. Jin was able to lead the police on for quite a while. He had evaded us all the way until he made it to Tokyo. A joint operation of Inaba and Tokyo police tracked him down. That operation was of course led by Dojima, but the credit for catching him goes to yours truly… okay, Naoto helped a bit. When Jin got caught, he couldn't stop laughing, and it actually kinda scared me. In interrogation, he told the police how he had been stalking Kanji and Rise. How one night he had just happened upon an abandoned building that wasn't very hard to break into. He also gave in full detail his plan to get back at the gang that had abandoned him. Since he wasn't an adult, his identity was never revealed to the public. Since Dojima was the one who trained me before I went off to Tokyo, I know him pretty well. I've never seen him so shaken, as when he finished the interrogation with Jin. I don't blame him. I was behind the glass, and I felt scared. The way he just calmly talked about "getting rid of his problems" isn't something I'd think a seventeen year old boy capable of saying.

After a few months, Kanji was able to walk again on his feet. I remember sitting in on one of his physical therapy appointments. He screamed in agony, and his face was all covered in sweat. Yet, he still kept going. Honestly, it's scary how determined he can get. The one thing that Kanji is really good at is surprising someone. Anyone can see that. I mean, who would've thought that the guy in a textile shop was a former punk. Or that he saved the world. Or that he saved famous pop idol Rise Kujikawa. No one would've thought that essentially a tailor would be able to do those things.

Hm… the tailor…. It's got a nice ring to it. If I could write a story involving him, that'd definitely be the name.

Anyway, this is Chie. Signing off!

THE END