~Chapter Thirty~

Don't Go Into the Light

I've been so lost since you've gone.
Why not me, before you?
Why did fate deceive me?
Everything turned out so wrong.

You gave up the fight;
You left me behind.
I know deep inside,
All that's done is forgiven.

~Forgiven, by Within Temptation

Disclaimer: Me No Own; You No Sue.

Haruhi and Kiki exchanged looks, obviously having been left in the dark about the childhood of their older friend. Neither had known that the small blonde girl was afraid of water. Neither of them had known that her father was a soldier, that her mother had been rich heiress before her family disowned her for marrying a commoner, or that she had once been an older sister to an adorable little girl named Sarah. Neither one of them had heard about the accident that ended with the entire family driving through the guardrail on an icy bridge and falling into the cold river that rushed over them without mercy.

But I could say nothing about their ignorance, because not a single one of us had been privy to the pain, guilt, and shame that were burning deep within her heart. Not even me.

Sammy's P.O.V.

Water rushed over my head, dripping down the locks of my blonde hair and over my clammy skin. I could feel the tiny droplets of water clinging to my eyelashes, mingling with the tears that were already collecting along the blonde lashes. The sensation of being at the mercy of the water was so familiar that my heart stuttered to a brief stop. Nonetheless, I tried to move and swipe a hand across my burning eyes; however, my limbs were stiff from the cold, and the damn things refused to obey any of my commands. More water crashed over my quiet, limp, and utterly unresponsive form. It burned my pale skin like a wave of hot fire. So painful…

That was nothing – absolutely fucking nothing – compared to the pain burning in my heart, and my mind. Even now, I could still hear her last words, whispering themselves over and over and over inside my head – like a broken record. Every single word had been spent begging me to save my precious little sister. My mother never mentioned that she would miss me, or that she loved me, or that she would see me again one day, in Heaven.

My father, on the other hand, was already unconscious, due to a nasty collision with the steering wheel. He hadn't been capable of forming a coherent sentence, let along the words, "I love you, sweetie." But it still hurt to know that I would never hear those words again, because the strong and healthy man was already dead at that point. I hadn't been certain of that fact, and no one ever thought to tell me, either. Contrary to popular belief, the truth would not set me free.

"Please, Sammy!" Sobbing, more sobbing, and a desperate scream of – "You have to save her!"

Sarah was still alive, then, but her face had already slackened at the soft call of death. An idiot could tell that the sweet child was going to give up the fight in mere moments. I could see it in her depths of her blue eyes, both of which reflected the very same fear that was shining brightly in my own. But, I couldn't blame her for dying on me. No. That was entirely my fault. I should have told my little sister to hold her breath before the car hit the water. I should have covered her mouth with my hand, or tried to distract her from our impending doom. I should have saved her.

Oh, God. I should have saved Sarah…

However, I'd only focused on saving myself from a watery grave, instead of attempting to help her, too. My stomach twisted uncomfortably – if I had tried to save her, we might both be alive today. Sarah Rebecca Steel would have survived…

"Please, Liebling. You have to save your little sister!"

But I was only a little girl at the time of the accident. I wasn't strong, and it certainly was not in my cowardly nature to risk my own skin to save another person, even if that person was my little sister, Sarah. Besides, those were the qualities of a superhero. Like Batman. And I didn't have a sidekick or fancy technological gadgets to help me in my time of need, either. Good ol' Robin might have come in handy during that ordeal, though the man was a little dense at times. I mean, honestly! Everyone should know by that age that a person must wear a pair of pants over their underwear, and not the other way around.

Of course, those silly little jokes crossed my mind after the fact, and the stupid references were only my way of coping with the trauma of losing everyone in my family in one night. Snuffed out, like the end of a burning cigarette crushed against the ground. Gone.

That day, however, my only thoughts were of ripping my seatbelt from its buckle and swimming away, intent upon reaching the surface of the cold river. For some strange reason, it didn't occur to me to try and save my little sister, in spite of the fact that the younger girl was my other half; she had always been the yin to my yang. Sarah was so important to me, and yet, I had left that poor girl strapped into her car seat, scared and all alone, with only death as her final companion. Unfortunately, that companion was not the merciful vampire, Godric. He might have been able to save that little girl.

Oh, my God. I was so very, very ashamed of myself for leaving my baby sister there to die, and there was only one thought that continued to circle through my mind. Why did I not save her, too?

Not even the psychiatrists could alleviate the guilt that was slowly crushing me into dust. None of them had the answer to that one question, nor could they explain my sudden fascination with vampires. It was thought by a few of them that this fascination stemmed from my secret desire for my family to live forever, but I assured them that this wasn't the case. I was pretty young at the time, but I understood the circle of life, thanks to countless viewings of Disney's The Lion King. Needless to say, the psychiatrists were at a complete and utter loss for words.

But I'd never told them that the memory of that day still existed in my mind, either. Yes, it was there, hidden in the depths of my mind. The memory of that day was always there. It clutched at my consciousness, almost as though the event had happened only yesterday – and not over seven miserable years ago. In that memory, I could still hear their laughter, and see their smiles, and feel a small hand tightly gripping mine as we watched the latest Harry Potter movie on the big screen. Constant vigilance!

The rest of that day, however, was actually a mystery to me. I could vaguely recall the details, but most of them were as fuzzy as a baby duckling. I mean, the memories of that day – and my old life – were still lingering in the corners of my mind, but the faces of my beloved family were fading. And that scared me.

"Sammy-chan, you have to wake up…"

Go away! I didn't want to wake up, dammit! Because that would mean that it was over – there would be no reason for me to keep waking up each and every single morning. No reason for me to live. And I would most certainly give in to that suffocating blanket of depression once again. That treacherous darkness holding me captive would rush through my body, leak into my heart, and slide through my veins like ink, slowly corrupting me from the inside. Dracula would win again.

And there it was again, that strange fascination with vampires. The image of a lanky man with black hair, a nice suit, and a theatrical cape suddenly flickered to life behind my closed eyelids. I could still see it clearly, that one memory – he had parked his car near ours, followed the four of us into the movie theatre, paid for the same movie, and chose a red seat only three rows behind us. The strange man had stared at my mother with a pair of bright green eyes, so very like her own, and smiled darkly at the back of her blonde head.

The memory shifted, rushing into another without so much as a warning. I continued to watch, horrified, as that same man rammed his expensive car into ours, over and over and over again. Like a black bullet repeatedly piercing the skin of our dirty little mini-van. My eyes widened with fear and darted towards my parents, both of whom were fighting to regain control of the hydroplaning car. Yellow moon, silver guardrails, and black water. There was a scream, one that shattered the empty silence ringing in my ears, and then…

The entire world seemed to fade into darkness.

"Please, don't give up!" There was a faint sniffle, whispers, and then – "If you do, Takashi will never ever be the same again…"

I fought against the onslaught of several different memories pressing down on me at the mention of that one name. Oh, my God… Gray eyes glittered with amusement as a tall teenager watched me slowly construct a paper airplane out of our assigned science worksheet, instead of filling in the correct answers. How could I have forgotten him? Two warm hands lifted my smaller form up into the air, and he carefully pulled me in his lap, chuckling at my squeak of embarrassment. I'm so sorry. A soft kiss was placed on my bruised chin, the first of many easy comforts that were directed towards my clumsiness and its resulting cuts, scrapes, bumps, and bruises.

Takashi-kun…

I smiled faintly at the images darting across my mind, finally remembering that there really was a good reason for me to keep fighting for my life. There were actually several, and Morinozuka Takashi was only the first of many people that were important to me. I loved my boyfriend, but my life now revolved around more than one precious person. My brothers would miss me, too. There were our parents to think about, now, and our friends.

And Caleb Jenkins would probably try to kill me, even if my corpse was never recovered. My childhood friend was a very stubborn man, and the older teenager would go to great lengths to summon me back to the world of the living. He'd probably hire a necromancer, or some other nefarious person, to reanimate my corpse. Like Nekozawa! And then, Caleb would throttle me for being such a pansy and dying without permission. He could really hold a grudge towards the people that had supposedly wronged him; in fact, the damn bastard was much worse than a girl.

Nevertheless, I really wanted to see them all again, even if it was only for a few hours.

I wanted to live.

My heart skipped a beat, then two more, and a fourth. It was almost as though something heavy was resting itself over my chest. I struggled to take another breath, but it hurt to fight against the pain crushing my body into the ground and forcing the air out of my lungs. Now, I was about as good as a fish out of water. The bland humor in that statement did not escape my notice, in spite of the fact that my tired body was finally beginning to succumb to death. I was actually going to die – and just when my life had taken a turn for the better, too. Dracula would win again. Well, that just sucked…! No pun intended.

A delicate hand touched my neck, seemingly searching for any semblance of a pulse. "Oh, no…" That person hadn't found one, it seemed, which meant that my heart was probably faltering to a stop.

"No, no, no…!" The other person suddenly began to panic. He was roughly shaking my arms, pinching the clammy skin and demanding, "What are you doing? Don't you dare stop breathing, Sammy-chan!" A slap to the side of my cheek. "Breathe, dammit!"

I was trying to comply with their demands, but it was of no use – my heart would not cooperate, and neither would my lungs. That damn vampire was going to effectively rid the world of my entire family. Man, I had not even gotten the chance to track him down and demand the real reason behind their death, either! Oh, well. At least I'd finally be reunited with both of my parents and my little sister. I would miss my new family, though, and my boyfriend.

Goodbye, Takashi-kun…

Warm lips touched mine, forcing them apart so that a bit of oxygen could pass into my body, in the hopes that it might be revived. He forced the air into my lungs, which caused them to expand yet again. I felt two small albeit heavy hands begin to shove themselves against my unmoving chest, and the air rushed out of my lungs once more, back into the forest. Again, the oxygen was blown into my lungs, and again, it was released. The process continued for what seemed like hours, until finally – there was a light.

Of course, I immediately thought of that old phrase that people liked to mention when discussing the afterlife. I could even hear the clichéd phrase, now. The silly words were echoing painfully in my mind – "Don't go into the light, Sammy-chan!" I blinked tiredly against the strength of the golden light, surprised to find that these words were actually being spoken by my favorite ninja. And I wasn't referring to the sexy Uchiha Itachi, either. Though that would have been really freakin' awesome, right?

"Would you shut the fuck up, Bambi?" I croaked, roughly forcing the words over my tongue and through my swollen lips – oh, my poor virgin mouth! "That hurt, dammit! Man! You are such a stupid little bastard, you know that?"

My classmate merely snorted at this collection of crude and colorful insults. "You're obviously feeling quite a bit better now, aren't you?" Mitsukuni quipped, and he shook his head at me in exasperation.

"Oh, thank goodness!" Kotoko exclaimed, blissfully choosing to ignore my vulgarity. "I am so glad that you are finally awake." She placed a hand on her chest and leaned back, resting her (very, very slight) weight on the base of her heels. "We were so worried about you!"

A pair of brown eyes observed me carefully, watching for any sign of that telltale depression, and Mitsukuni tentatively added, "We didn't think that you would ever start breathing on your own again, Sammy-chan."

"And if Mitsukuni-kun had not known how to perform CPR…" Kotoko brushed a hand through her tangled mass of black hair, before glancing towards the water and quietly muttering, "Well, it would not have ended very well."

It was obvious that the delicate young woman couldn't stomach the thought of death, even if it had been avoided. She fiddled with the decorative green strings sewn on the front of her modest swimsuit, running her thin hands over several beads, clips, and sequins. After another moment, Kotoko turned in my direction and offered me an apologetic smile, clearly feeling guilty for not facing the situation at hand with her head held high. I didn't blame her for avoiding the topic, though, and I hated the fact that the older girl was feeling so uncomfortable because of my stupidity.

God, I should never have tried talking to the damned ninja! This was his freakin' fault! Ugh!

My eyes narrowed at the mere thought of the stupid ninja, and a wave of anger began to glow in their blue depths. There were also several red anger marks pulsing across my sweaty forehead; however, it could have been a very bad case of cystic acne, too. Either way, the red marks were about ready to burst. The strain of reigning in my temper and keeping both of my hands from wrapping themselves around his throat were causing me great distress. So, I banished the thought of strangling the small senior.

Instead, I focused all of my attention on glaring spitefully at Mitsukuni. I cursed him to the fiery pits of the Underworld. Selene had been imprisoned; thus, the supernatural world was currently hosting a rebellion, one that was led by various vampires and werewolves. That crazy world would be the perfect place to dump an evil blonde midget, too. Alas, Haninozuka Mitsukuni remained blissfully ignorant to my accusatory glares, and he did not suddenly vanish in a thick cloud of smoke, either.

Nope. Mitsukuni was still here. Son…of…a…bitch! And that was kinda rude, wasn't it? Cue evil grin.

"You could have died," Mitsukuni solemnly stated. He stared straight into my skeptical eyes, making certain that all of my attention was on him. "That, however, is not what concerns me…"

I said nothing in response to this serious statement, feeling that the best possible explanation for the situation was to offer him none at all, because mentioning my suicidal thoughts to my new friends would only cause them unnecessary pain. Mitsukuni would glare at me in disgust, and the truth about those dark feelings would undoubtedly travel down the accursed club grapevine – to his younger cousin, Takashi. And I did not want my boyfriend to think of me in that manner, nor did I want him to look at me with such pain, pity, or disgust in his silver eyes. No, I didn't want him to hate me. I wanted him to love me.

My classmates were apparently very aware that my lack of response was an answer in and of itself; however, neither one of them appeared to be willing to let the matter drop. Kotoko was staring at me with an understanding gleam in her green eyes, and she was stroking a soft hand through my wet hair. Mitsukuni had his arm wrapped around my shoulders, so as to rub a bit of circulation back into my clammy skin. The two of them continued to sit there in silence, clearly curious about my reasons for giving up the struggle to survive.

It was a pretty hard thing to swallow – and no, perverts, that's not what she said…!

After all, it was hardwired into our systems at the moment of conception to fight for survival. I knew that the two of them were wondering how my mind had bypassed that one simple skill and proceeded into kamikaze mode. But the only answer that came to mind was that my system had apparently short-circuited upon coming in contact with such a large amount of water. It was like dumping a computer in the middle of the ocean, retrieving it from the water depths of doom, and stupidly expecting the machine to continue working properly after being subjected to the horrors of Davy Jones' Locker. That was impossible.

I mean, seriously! Just take a gander at what that particular trip into the ocean blue did to poor (Captain) Jack Sparrow! Of course, that pirate was a little strange to begin with, so that might not be the best example in the entire world…

Nonetheless, I'd survived the wrath of my suicidal episode. And now, I was on my way to a full recovery, during which time my sanity would surely return to me, too – if that supposed sanity ever existed, anyway. One might simply find a peanut in the depths of my noggin, should the person actually dare to brave the inner workings of my mind. I wouldn't know. My status amongst the other members of the club was much worse than the Cowardly Lion, seeing as the badass role of Aslan, the Great Lion, had already been taken.

I sighed wearily, rubbed a tired hand over my face, and muttered, "What is it that the two of you want to know?" Please. Do not let it be in regards to my childhood addiction to the stupid Teletubbies…

The blonde ninja turned his attention to the area just below my collarbone, which was now a mess of purple and blue bruises, thanks to his rather rough treatment. Hesitantly, Mitsukuni opened his mouth and asked, "Why did you stop breathing…?"

"Well, I'm not a doctor; thus, any information in my answer will more than likely have been derived from midnight perusals of Wikipedia," I said, slowly, and with a small grin on my bruised lips. My grin widened. "Or, I might be quoting the omnipotent Dr. Phil!"

"This is no laughing matter, Sammy-chan!" Kotoko exclaimed, "You could've died, and you don't even seem to care!" The angry heiress furiously kicked at a few blades of wet grass and grunted her displeasure. "You really are a stupid girl."

Kotoko curled her tiny hands into fists, before turning away to stare at the merciless river with a pair of sad eyes. Her mouth was twisted into a small grimace, and it appeared to me as though the older girl were biting back a scream of frustration. I watched in surprise as her mask of quiet and calm maturity slowly began to deteriorate, much as my own mask had shattered not too long ago. It was very scary.

Hell! She'd just used a contraction! Actually, there were two in that sentence, which could only mean that the world really was coming to an end. Satan was going to eat our souls, man…

Regardless, I had to amid that it was strange to see the calm young woman acting so differently; however, that was probably to be expected, given the situation. I'd almost died, and people in this world were not given a second chance at life. The Valar were too busy fucking with the people of Middle Earth to care about a bunch of technologically advanced mortals running rampant through an alternate universe.

Thank you, God…! I thought to myself, feeling somewhat relieved that this was the case. Er, I mean – thank the Valar!

Kotoko finally turned back to continue glaring in my general direction. The strength of her evil basilisk glare dissipated, however, upon noticing something to my right. She blanched at the odd sight of our classmate, and her skin turned a ghostly shade of translucent white. It reminded me of my first day back at this particular high school, in which my wonderful best friend, Haruhi, chose to imitate Casper, the Friendly Ghost. Give the girl an Oscar!

"Pardon me," Kotoko whispered quietly, "…but, what is wrong with him?" She gestured to the short, deranged ninja with her hands, apparently concerned about the condition of his health.

I glanced in the aforementioned direction and towards our fidgeting classmate. Mitsukuni ran a hand through his blonde hair, pulling at the strands with a strangely dark expression on his cute face. And the short ninja continued to twitch, jerk, and shake like an epileptic, too. The thought suddenly crossed my mind that our horrifying ride through the raging river might have done a bit of damage to the poor little ninja – it appeared that he had finally snapped. Mitsukuni had gone over the edge, instead of just around the river bend, like Pocahontas.

Oh, well. Mitsukuni was a kickass ninja, so he could just suck it up, right? Right!

I chose to pretend that there was nothing actually wrong with him and, with a wide smile, turned back to face my friend. "Well, it's like this, Kotoko," I cheerfully exclaimed, listing the insults on my fingers one by one. "Mitsukuni has a really bad temper, a rotten sense of humor, and he's also very manipulative – even more so than my darling Steve!"

"Oh, yes. That is so very funny," Kotoko muttered, rolling her emerald eyes in annoyance. "I meant that question in regards to his health, Sammy-chan!" Two pink lips curled down into a worried frown. "Or, the lack thereof…"

Nonchalantly, I shrugged my small shoulders and simply said, "He might have swallowed a little too much water, and it might be upsetting his stomach, okay?"

The copious amounts of coconut cake that he'd consumed earlier this afternoon probably weren't doing much for his poor digestive system, either. Mitsukuni might be capable of eating his own weight in dessert, but the small blonde ninja was not like Stitch. That little blue alien could handle a crazy amount of coconut cake – and coffee!

With a dejected sigh, the older girl lifted both of her hands upwards to massage at her aching temples. "I suppose that the three of us can ask Ootori-san," Kotoko drawled, and her green eyes glittered with mirth as the young woman added, "But first, we might have to wrench him away from the clutches of your crazy commoner friend."

Yeah, Kiki was certainly crazy – she had taken a liking to the psychic snake, in spite of the fact that the rich heir was almost a year younger in age. And Kyoya appeared to like her, too.

Even so, Kyoya was rather quick to snap at the older girl for acting like an annoying brat, and he had a nasty habit of trying to draw attention to her oddly thick accent. I'd be the first to admit, however, that the lanky male was infinitely more mature than his crazy counterpart. And that would technically make him the older of the two, which was a weird thought. Girls were supposed to mature faster than boys, you know?

"That is certainly true, mein Freund," I cheerfully agreed. Then, I paused dramatically, staring at her with wide eyes and a severely twisted smile on my pink lips. Channeling my inner Freddy Krueger. "If we ever get back, that is…"

Kotoko continued to massage her temples, shaking her head back and forth, even as she angrily muttered, "Must you always make such stupid jokes about everything that scares you, Sammy-chan?"

I was blindsided by that particularly nasty comment, in spite of the fact that such a cruel response was to be expected. The three of us had been stranded in an unknown land, after all! Lewis and Clark might have been able to survive here, but we were all completely unaware of the dangers lurking in the tall trees, thick bushes, and vast expanse of river. To be honest, though, it had already occurred to me at the start of this little trip that my older classmate was capable of reading between the lines of my jokes and craftily worded omissions.

In fact, the entire Host Club was able to see through my mask and into the eyes of my real self. I was nothing more than a fake, but that was to be expected of a broken little girl. There was only one way for me to survive – the solution to my problems demanded that my mind, my heart, and my soul be hidden from the entire world. Finally, I'd erected a barrier around them, desperately praying to the heavens that it was enough to keep the evil in this world from harming me again.

It didn't work. That precious mask was apparently made of a very thin and fragile glass. And I had merely stood there as it was shattered by the very people that scared me the most. However, I could not even find it within myself to care that the mask was slowly falling away. I'd always wanted someone to help me pick up the pieces of my life, even if that desire was a treasured secret, one that was never voiced to the people around me.

I wanted to be happy.

"I'm so sorry, Kotoko-chan," I whispered, taking her hands in mine and gently squeezing her fingers in apology. "I know that it annoys you, but my jokes are the only way for me to keep a handle on my emotions sometimes."

Two green eyes silently considered my apology. "I forgive you," Kotoko softly said, allowing her anger to fade away. "I am curious about something, though." She slowly raised a hand to touch the side of my tearstained face, almost as if the answer to her next question was already there. "Why are you so afraid of the water?"

It was rushing over my head, pulling me under again, with the strength of a monster. There were hard chunks of cold ice traveling through the river, and I couldn't seem to swim through them. Oh, God. I was cold, so very, very cold…

My eyes closed briefly, in an attempt to stifle the memory of almost drowning – not just once, but twice. I'm sorry, Sarah.

"Well, I had a very bad experience during my childhood," I cautiously began to tell the real story behind my fears; although, it was more like a summary. "My parents, my sister, and I…" My eyes began to water. "We were driving home one night, and the bridge was pretty icy, so…"

I suddenly found myself in a very tight embrace, one that threatened to break my already bruised ribs in half. And my words threatened to break, as well. The story was stuck inside of me, and it was lodged firmly under the lump in my throat, where it had existed for the last eight years. No one had been able to remove them from their hidden alcove, with the exception of Hikaru and Kaoru. I'd not allowed either one of the redheaded devil boys to comfort or touch me, because the wounds were still much too fresh. Kotoko had surprised me with that kind hug, however, so my next words were easily forgotten in that moment of unexpected tenderness.

The ice was cold, so cold…! I blinked back a fresh wave of tears, cursing myself for finally giving in to the memories that were threatening to consume me. And yet, I'm so warm now that it doesn't even matter anymore.

Kotoko choked on a sob, clutched harder at my shoulders, and mumbled, "Oh, Sammy-chan!"

Even Mitsukuni was caught off guard by the brief explanation. It had probably never occurred to the small senior that my laughter, smiles, and crude jokes were merely a disguise created to hide the scared little girl that existed within me. Desperately, that little girl was still crying inside of me, begging her dead family to take her with them – please, don't leave me alone!

With a sad pair of brown eyes, the older male turned to face me and sighed. "That is the reason for your decision, isn't it?" Mitsukuni whispered hoarsely. "That's the reason that you suddenly gave up." He released a humorless laugh, then. "You wanted to die."

I flinched at this accusation, embarrassed, even though it was true. "Yes…" I slowly exhaled, but this was done without taking my eyes from either one of the two people that were standing in front of me. "I really did want to die, Mitsukuni-kun."

"But, if you were that determined to end you life, how is it that you responded so well to the resuscitation?" Kotoko queried. Her eyes glittered with suspicion, almost as if she expected me to attempt lying to her face once again.

Those words caused a flash of understanding to flicker over the face of our classmate. "Did you hear the two of us calling to you, Sammy-chan?" Mitsukuni demanded, whirling around to stare at me in amazement, as this was the only plausible explanation, in spite of its absurdity.

Slowly, I nodded my blonde head in the affirmative and revealed, "The two of you sounded so sad, too. It reminded me of the fact that there are still so many wonderful people in this world that love me." I smiled up at them through a fresh wave of tears, though these tears were of happiness. "I've my friends and my new family to keep me here."

"Yay~!" Mitsukuni cried, throwing his tiny hands up in the air in apparent celebration. "We saved our friend!" To which Kotoko smiled widely in response.

The two seniors hugged each other and released a sigh of relief; now, it was obvious to them that this was the truth. Mitsukuni took the opportunity to happily place his face against the breasts of our classmate, snuggled closer, and he muttered that we should all take a quick nap to regain our strength. Kotoko, however, appeared to be waging a war within herself – she had a crush on our small classmate, but the modest young woman was also clearly uncomfortable with him touching her in such a familiar manner. At the moment, it appeared as though Kotoko was fighting the urge to slap the older (and shorter) male.

I gleefully watched the pair interacting with one another, thankful that the two of them seemed to like each other in this sense, especially since it would bother the others to see them acting like Kiki and Kyoya. The small reprieve was a welcome one, as well. I was tired, sore, and hungry, so the break was nice. Plus, I missed my crazy little brothers, my sarcastic best friend, and my wonderful boyfriend.

The three of them were probably thinking that we had been dragged into the river by a vicious Kelpie. Then again, that was more along the lines of something that the stupid French Fry might imagine in his creepy inner mind theatre. Actually, I missed the blonde drama queen – and his exuberant antics, too. Yeah, that's a bit of a shocker, isn't it?

"Everybody into the bushes, girls, and do your best not to make a sound, okay?"

Of course, that reprieve ended rather quickly, as it always did when we were taking a break from the chaotic events of the Host Club. The small senior had suddenly ushered the two of us into a collection of thick underbrush growing beneath a nearby tree. Mitsukuni motioned with a wave of his hand for us to remain silent, before subtly pointing to a group of men running through the tropical forest, their eyes intent upon a scene further down the dirt trail. As a good rich girl, Kotoko obediently followed his commands for silence. I, however, chose to sneeze.

"Possible sighting of target confirmed!" A large man – and by large, I meant twice as muscular as my boyfriend – barked the new information into his walkie talkie. "The small boy is being accompanied by two strange young women."

Miss Prim and Proper immediately balked at this description, exclaiming, "We are not strange!" There was a brief pause. Then Kotoko dryly added, "Well, I am relatively normal. The blonde young woman to my left, however, is severely lacking in that department…"

"Hey!" I protested, actually annoyed, and my lips jutted outwards in a really obvious pout that indicated said annoyance. Looked kinda like a blowfish.

The soldier saw this (mostly) benign argument as an opportunity to rush forward and attempt to detain us. Mitsukuni grabbed a green vine and flitted away like a little hummingbird, apparently forgetting the fact that he was leaving behind two defenseless girls that could not really defend themselves from psychotic mercenaries. By some miracle, Kotoko and I managed to dodge the blitz attack, taking the chance to duck behind a palm tree. The two of us were so scared that we resorted to clinging to each other. And Kotoko whimpered faintly at the sound of a supposed warning shot being fired into the sky, er – glass dome. Ricochet, anyone?

I was trying to remain calm and count my blessings. After all, the soldier had yet to find the two of us. Mitsukuni had vanished, though, and there was no way that either one of us would be able to fight against the hold of a strong and healthy adult male. Kotoko was a rich heiress. And I hadn't had any training in this sort of thing. Now, if there was a computer to be hacked – call me, beep me, if ya wanna reach me!

"I have them in sight, sir!" The soldier impatiently began to tap the butt of his (big, huge, large, gigantic, or enormous – take your pick) machine gun against the ground. "What would you like me to do?" There was a pause, in which the other guy, presumably his boss, answered him. "I will do as you say, sir, and eliminate them."

Kotoko bit back a startled gasp. I could feel all ten of her recently manicured nails digging into my shoulders, in part because her grip had tightened to the point of a stranglehold. Now, Kotoko slowly turned to stare at me, mouthing this morbid response with a suitably terrified expression on her pale face. I shared that feeling of despair, but instead of displaying itself in the form of sharp talons, that despair was burning through my stomach in the form of hot bile. And it was impossible to fend off an attacker with projectile vomiting, so…

Oh, shit. We were going to be eliminated!

***Author's Note***

The Twins: This is an old chapter, you stupid girl!

Shadowsammy: Oi! I'll have you know that it's been edited, added to, and...yeah.

The Twins: Right. ^^; Well, the next chapter better be up soon, or people might get mad.

Shadowsammy: I'll post the next one on Monday, okay?

Hikaru: Didn't you already promise...

Kaoru: ...to post it on Sunday?

Shadowsammy: I had to take an extra set of shifts at work, dammit! -_-

Anyway, I'll have the next chapter - a new one - posted late Monday. On one condition! I want to see about 280 reviews for this chapter. Please read and review, whilst answering the following question...

"If you had these choices, which would you choose - Takashi and Sammy going on a date to see the animals at a circus or zoo, or seeing a movie together?"

P.S. This story is now over 100,000 words in length! Woohoo~!