Wicked Angel: So… how are u all doing? School's a pain in the ass… I believe everybody knows that. Why do people have to go to school anyway? And why do teachers just oh-so-love torturing students?? Why?

So basically, Ayako's mother, Rukawa's mom and the dean agreed upon something weird. I don't know it either. Do you? Oh well… Well, just don't like, hire a hitman, if this story turned out to be so godawfully unrealistic, okay? Thanks!

Chapter Four

Hitomi angrily dug her fork deep within the poor toasted pancake as she stared hotly at the person eating breakfast in front of her. 'If this is only your damn skin… oh, I would love to have the honor if DIGGING this FORK into YOU…' she darkly thought. Then she took one fatal sweeping downward motion and mutilated the poor pancake in front of her.

Rukawa met her gaze coolly. Then dismissed it without another thought. And gazed on the burnt toasted pancake again. 'This... this is what I'm supposed to eat for breakfast everyday until I'm free of this… this… this psycho?'

"It's quarter to seven. We better get going," Hitomi announced as she stood up and began clearing the table. 'If I'm going to hope that The King of Drool (long live the king!) is gonna have the mind to clear this, I'd better call the mental asylum and have myself admitted there.'

After that, she slung her backpack over her shoulders and headed towards the door. She heard him following her. But before they stepped out of the small apartment, she felt him tap her shoulders. She turned. "What?"

"Where's my lunch?"

In the coolness of the morning, the birds sang sweetly as they welcomed the new day. But a loud noise disturbed them and a shout was heard. "I'M NOT YOU'RE FREAKING MOTHER!!!"

And that's just for starters.

Rukawa felt his head nod and his eyes close as if each of them weigh a ton. Nothing really unusual. A daily routine. When he just have to rely on his amazing sense of direction when unconscious.

Then a sharp thing hit the top of his head. Wha--? "I just hope to God you don't sleep while biking and I just hope to heavens you look where you--- LOOK OUT!!!"

Then his new bike crashed down on a heavy leaning tree. Oh, nothing really unusual. A daily routine. Except you just might another person added to the list.

Rukawa stood up. Hitomi was sprawled on the ground. Rukawa glanced at his bike, at her and sighed. "My poor bike."

People began crowding about them. Students stopped walking or slowed down their pace to whisper to each other. Hitomi blinked. And blinked. And blinked. Then after regaining a few bit of brain cells, she stood up nimbly and dusted her skirt. She then noticed the retreating back of Rukawa, leaving her behind with his destroyed bike. She immediately caught up with him. She opened her mouth to say 'we're supposed to walk together. Why one earth did you leave me there?' But one look at Rukawa's pacified stony face made her shut it again. This is useless, she thought. He could suit himself, I don't care, she added.

"I heard you and Rukawa are supposed to live together for sometime. Ohmigod, you couldn't be so lucky! How on earth did you manage to pull that stunt?" Mumbles began to fill Hitomi's sleeping brain. She slowly raised her head and gave a big yawn. The sight that greeted her made her want to go back to any nightmare in her sleep.

Innumerable girls flocked around her desk. They're so busy firing their queries away they sound like chattering machines with high beeping and intensely annoying voices.

"Can we switch places?"

"What does he say to you? Girl, you couldn't be luckier!"

"Did you see him without his shirt on? Oh, I would kill if I could be you!"

Lalalala. Blah blah blah. It's intensely suffocating and she suddenly became claustrophobic. She immediately stared at them icily. That made them stop their incessant annoying noise. They suddenly started retreating like some plague covered Hitomi's skin.

Better.

I could go back to sleeping.

Hitomi's POV

The day passed by fast and blurry. Nothing really changed except for the fact that I'm chained with Rukawa all day. Not that it really bugs me. It just ticks me off whenever he start drooling and transforming me into his personal hanky. Or when we go home and I have to ride with him on his already deformed bike and we start crashing on every post on every damn street.

At first, it's like I want to kill him on the spot. But when I had my senses catching up on me, I realized we're just like each other. I can bear his long silences as he can bear my icy solitude. We probably look weird to people, passing on to each other but never really speaking a word or even wavering the eye to greet.

But it's all fine with me. I really don't care. Whatever suits him as long as he doesn't directly assail me while bathing or use me as his personal pillow when he wants to sleep.

After this, I would be a very happy person to go back to my usual simple, uncomplicated life.

Rukawa's POV

So Shinichi's practically glued to me all day. She's there watching the practice, sleeping on the bench when she can't take the 'monotony' (as she calls it) of it all.

It's really weird at first. She kept on glaring at me, and if circumstances permit, beating me and glaring at me until I come to point that I want to check out the food I eat if she's deranged enough to poison me.

But as the day wore on and we got tired of trying to kill each other, it's pretty okay. She don't bug me and I don't bug her. I can keep my treasured reserve while she can stay inside her stony silences as long as she likes.

One good thing about her though: she is not like any other girl. She doesn't spend one and a half hour in the bathroom with morning rituals and she doesn't swoon or do damsel-in-distress stuff.

After this, I would be a very happy person to go back to my usual, simple and uncomplicated life.

End of POVs

Rukawa stepped inside the room. The shower was working so probably, Shinichi's taking a bath before going to sleep. Whatever.

As he prepared his futon, he noticed a small opened book lying on the top of the night stand. He isn't exactly a nosy person but the book was really out of place in this scanty, sparse room containing two separate futons, two night stand and two small drawers serving as their closets. Sparse but Hitomi kept it clean alright. So the lone, black bounded book was really something the caught his eyes. He proceeded towards it and stopped halfway. He listened to the running water inside the bathroom. Slowly, he took the book and looked at it's cover. It is bounded by black velvet with silver trimming on the side. Other than that, it's plain with rich sheen of silver when the light strikes it. He opened the first page and saw Hitomi's small unformed cursive signature printed on it. What is this? A journal? A diary? he thought. Then the running water stopped and he immediately dropped the book down where he found it. Hitomi stepped out, dressed in oversized blue pajamas, drying her long black hair. Rukawa felt his ears heat up. Why am I embarrassed? I just look at whatever that thing is. I didn't even read it.

Hitomi stared at him hard, as if she's trying to read his mind. He looked away. Hitomi then proceeded and took the book away. "Don't dare read this."

"I didn't read that." He answered back. Hitomi eyed him warily. "Your eyes betray your words. Remember that."

Ayako leaned on the window closer. "Damn, why are they so silent?" she whispered, annoyed. Ryota tapped her back. "Why are we doing this?" he asked innocently. Ayako gave him a look. "Because. Are you that dense?"

Ryota sighed and rubbed his hands together. So far, nothing happened. Three damn dragging hours has passed and nothing even stirred inside the unbelievably silent place. They're just freezing their butts off this cold night.

Ayako gave an exaggerated sigh with matching drooping of shoulders. "This isn't going to work. We better do something." Ayako pumped her fist in the air, her face determined. Ryota looked up, his face full of hope.

"Like going home for instance?"

Ayako gave him a sidelong glance. "No."

"Man…" Ryota mumbled. Am I forever destined to be Ayako's faithful dog forver? "… that… that would probably work." Ayako continued. Ryota was just busy mumbling 'yeahs' without listening at all. If it was just me and Ayako sleeping together in that room and not those two walking talking (but not really) ice blocks… he sighed.

"Ryota? Cmon. I thought you wana go home? Why are you still sitting there?" Ayako's call into his mind. He immediately snapped out from his deep thoughts and saw Ayako a good five feet away from him already.

"Hey… wait up!"

Wicked_Angel: Damn. I'm tired of writing this stuff. At least this chapter. Well that's it for now. I'll continue later.

By the way… thank you for all your kind reviews.

::bows::

::goes away, mumbling to herself:: 'I wonder if I sell this miserable fic. Or at least, give it away. Would anyone want it?'

::hmmm….::