~*~

The next few days passed fairly normally.  Kristen and I were avoiding each other (or, at least, I was avoiding her), I spent most of my out-of-class hours in the library doing research or reading, and during my few trips to Starbucks for coffee, I neither ran into Ryuen or Saihitei--or Ayuru, for that matter.  Thus, by Friday morning, I was fairly sure that I'd somehow imagined the entire encounter, which was a pretty easy assumption to make, given how unreal it'd felt, anyway...

...that is, until I logged onto my hotmail account, brought up the uncooperative inbox, and discovered a message there from an unfamiliar email address.  Subject header?  "Party Details."

Just delete it, some frantic part of my subconscious pleaded.  Just delete it, and forget you ever met them, and get on with your life.  You don't need them, for goodness' sake, Doukun!  They're weird! A-And, they...they've probably got horrible study skills!!  Besides, look at all the studying -you- have to do!

I glanced to the pile of books on the edge of my mattress, and realized with a sinking feeling that I had no tests for another three weeks, no homework assignments due that I hadn't already completed, and nothing that could possibly fill my time but a paragraph that I needed to write for my British Literature class on Wilfred Owen.

I sighed.  Well, subconscious?  What now?

My subconscious, apparently, had no response for that, so I turned back to the computer screen, wrapped my fingers over the mouse, and clicked on the email. 

Doukun,

Hey, how's it going??  This is Ryuen, if you couldn't tell. :)  Anyway, sorry it's taken so long to email.  Sai and I've been really busy with stuff and--well, I'll tell you all about it tonight if you want. :)  Anyway, I hope you're still planning on coming!  We've told our friends about you, and they're anxious to meet you--and, actually, I think you know one of them already.  Yuuki Miaka?  She says she had a Home Ec class with you in high school and you were cooking partners!

I broke off in my reading, turned my head to the right and frowned at the wall.  Miaka?  Yuuki Miaka?  What on earth were the odds...?

Anyway, Miaka's really looking forward to seeing you again, and of course Sai and I are, too.  Sooo, the party starts tonight at seven, and we're gonna have it at Sai's because...well, his apartment is huge, and we all practically live there, anyway. :)  Meet me at six forty-five in the Student Union Building (the lobby, underneath the exit sign), and we'll head over there together.  Hope you can make it!    ~Ryuen

I swallowed, skimming over the email one more time before closing out the window and settling back into my chair.

What was wrong with these people??  Why were they so fixated on convincing me to join their little social circle?  And, what if I'd had plans today, huh?  What then?  How did they know that I wasn't some raving socialite who just looked like an introvert?  Hmm?  How did they know?

I sighed, bringing a hand to my forehead and holding it there.

They know.  I don't know how, but...they know.

And, no matter how strange it might be, I knew I was going to go tonight, just because...

I frowned.

Because of what?  Hm, Doukun?  Are you so starved for a social life that you'd go out with complete strangers just because they actually spoke to you in a public place?

...was I? 

I sighed, clicking on the "reply" button and waiting for the blank email to appear.

Yes.  I am.

How sad.

~*~

Six thirty found me in the Student Union building, pacing underneath the exit sign. 

Even though Ryuen--who had called me an hour or so ago to triple-check that I was coming and knew where to meet him--had assured me that this get-together wasn't anything to dress up for, it was the first social outing I'd had for a long time, so I wanted to look nice.  Of course, I also wanted to look like I fit in, so I'd compromised, and was wearing my best khaki pants with a grey and black sweatshirt.  I'd also, in the efforts of looking like I belonged to the twenty-first century, elected to fix my hair like the lady who'd cut it had told me it was supposed to be fixed.  I hadn't used any of the gel since I'd gotten it, and so of course I managed to make a complete mess of the bathroom counter before I actually got any of it into my hair.  I was fairly satisfied with the result, though, but I was also nervous that someone might think it was...a tad out of character for me. 

Doukun, you realize, of course, that only three of the people at this get-together know you at all, one of whom hasn't seen you since tenth grade, while the other two have only met you once before.  How on earth will they know if you're being out of character or not?

I frowned at that, conceding it to be correct, and leaned my back up against the wall by the door.

As the Student Union building had, in the nineteen fifties or so, been a hotel that the owners had eventually donated to the University, the rooms were all very posh and well-decorated.  This one, for example, was only a wide hallway that led to the elevators, the lounge, and the stairwell, but the floors were marble, the walls were made out of dark stone, and the few chairs that leaned against the walls were upholstered in plush red velvet.  Even the information desk seemed fashionable and well-made, the counter built of a smooth blond wood that gleamed in the fluorescent lights--probably varnished, my straining male vocabulary informed me. 

I was frowning at the wood, trying to remember just what it meant when something was "varnished," when I realized that the girl sitting at the information booth--which I was, in fact, standing just beside--had noticed me staring.  I blinked and looked up at her, feeling a flush creeping into my cheeks, and automatically shoved my hands into the pockets of my khakis.

"Can I help you with anything?" she asked.  There was a slight pause as she studied me, her eyes narrowing a little.  "Doukun, right?  I didn't recognize you with your hair like that."  She smiled.  "It looks nice.  You should wear it like that all the time."

I stared at her with wide eyes, unable for some reason to figure out where I knew her from, or why she had bothered to note my name, or why in the world she...well, was speaking to me--and so nicely!  She was pretty, although not quite so much as Kristen, and clearly no one had informed her that pretty girls were not supposed to be nice to me, that they were supposed to ignore me or pretend they didn't see me or call me "kid" and stomp away.  Even so, this girl--who, I noticed, was wearing almost the same stretchy, collared shirt Ryuen'd had on earlier, except that it was blue and not at all low-cut--was smiling at me pleasantly, her hands pressing against the countertop while she waited for me to answer. 

She was focused on me like Ryuen and Saihitei had been focused on me, I realized with a start.  And she was looking at me like she knew me. 

Well, no kidding.  She called you by name, so she must know you from somewhere.           

Even so, I couldn't say that I knew her, or that I could remember at all where I might have seen her before.  Of course, if it was a class--particularly one of those held in the lecture halls--there was a very good chance that I wouldn't have noticed her, given the sheer volume of students and my devotion to my studies.  But, that still wouldn't explain how she would know me...

Abruptly, the girl straightened, folded her arms over her chest, and lifted an eyebrow at me.  She was still smiling, showing off a little dimple in her cheek, and every now and then, a breeze from the door would hit into her and send her hair--which was honey-blond, and cut so it framed her face--sweeping up over her cheekbones.  "You don't remember me, do you?" she said, not sounding offended so much as amused.  "Well, that's okay; I'm not surprised.  Still, I thought maybe you would." 

Her eyes narrowed a little, and she walked over to the side of the information counter, pushed open a waist-high door cut into the wood, and started to move towards me.  She was a little overweight, I thought, doing a quick height-to-body-size analysis, but I couldn't help but think that that extra weight only made her look softer and prettier, like someone who could be held...

For goodness' sake, stop it!  Haven't you had enough rejection for one week?

Even so, I studied her as she approached me, noting that her skin was pale and very smooth, making her look a little like the porcelain dolls Mom always used to keep on the living room mantelpiece, and her eyes--which I'd been too far away to see before--were actually almost the same shade of green as mine were, except that there were some specks of blue in hers, matching nicely with her shirt.

She smiled again, showing me a row of teeth so straight that I assumed orthodontics had been involved, and leaned against the wall beside me.  "Still not ringing any bells, Doukun?"

I was just about to shake my head and apologize when, abruptly, I had it.  It had been that subtle stress on the word 'bells' that had done it, and even though I was still a little fuzzy as to why it was that she had remembered my name, at least now I knew where I had seen her before.

"Concert band!" I exclaimed, grinning at her in victory.  "Last semester!  You played the bells!"

"Yep," she said, smiling and folding her arms over her chest.  "You know, I could never figure out why they call them that.  I mean, they're not really bells, right?  Just metal rungs that make a sound when you hit them.  But, hey.  No use arguing with band directors about stupid things like that, huh?  So, why'd you quit, anyway?  You were the best saxophone we had!"

I felt my cheeks warming and turned away from her, hoping she wouldn't notice in the poor lighting.  "Ah...well, I was only in band because I needed an extra credit last semester.  It was either that or...take a physical education class."  I shrugged, slipping my hands into my pockets again and wishing I could remember her name.  "After the semester was over, I didn't need that extra credit anymore, so I just...didn't take band."  I cast her a doubtful smile.  "And, I wasn't the best saxophone, although it's nice of you to say so.  Just hitting the notes right doesn't make a person a good musician."

I felt her shrug beside me, marveled for a moment at the warmth of her shoulder against mine.  "Well, that's true, I suppose.  But, still."  She stepped away from the wall, apparently noticing the boy who was waiting at the information desk, and gave me another quick smile.  "If you can't hit the notes right, it doesn't matter what kind of creative genius you are.  No one's gonna wanna listen." 

And with that, she turned and hurried back to the desk, and a few seconds later was smiling kindly at the boy, giving him directions to the library, which was actually probably pretty unnecessary, since there were huge blue "LIBRARY" signs all over campus pointing in the right direction.  Even though she must've known that, she spoke to the boy like it was completely understandable to be confused about the library's location, and by the time she was finished, he was smiling at her and looking like he'd found his true love.

"Hey, thanks so much!" he said when she was done, reaching out a hand to her.  "I'm Steve."

She smiled politely and took his hand, but I couldn't help but notice that some of the warmth was gone from her voice when she spoke.  "I'm Mari," she said, still smiling but not as widely.  "With an i.  It's nice to meet you, Steve."

Steve, who I was beginning to think wasn't confused about where the library was at all since he had the look of a sophomore or junior--and it was second semester, after all--didn't let go of her hand.  "Yeah, it's great to meet you, too.  Really great.  So, ah...when do you get off work?  Anytime soon?  Because, you know, they just opened up this great little place down the street, and I was, ya know, thinking that maybe you'd wanna go there with me or something...you know...and maybe after that, we could, ah...go back to my place--watch some movies, maybe, ah, have a little fun?"

Have a...have a little FUN?

Anger boiled inside of me, and I very nearly rolled up the sleeves of my sweatshirt, stomped over there, and gave Steve a piece of my mind. 

...unfortunately, as I was pretty sure that that would result in him giving me a piece of his fist, since he was at least a foot and a half taller than me and probably twice my weight, I reconsidered fairly quickly.  But I wanted to help, and I resolved that--if Steve didn't back down--I was going to go over there anyway, and hope that perhaps campus security would come in time to carry me over to the Student Health Center.

To my surprise, though, Mari didn't look like she needed any help.  She just calmly peeled her fingers from his, gave him a cool smile, and shook her head.  "Thank you for offering, but I'm not really interested.  I'm afraid I already have plans tonight, and...well, frankly, I'm already seeing someone."

Steve shrugged and stepped back, looking a little put-off but not all that angry, and shoved his hands into his pockets.  "Okay," he said easily.  "Okay.  Well, ah...have a good night, then, I guess.  But, hey, if you and whoever-he-is ever break up and you're lookin' for a good time--"

"I'll be sure to let you know," she promised, in a tone that suggested very little chance of that actually happening.  "Have a good evening."

I shook my head, just tensing my muscles to go over there and tell her just how impressed I was with how she'd handled him, but just at that moment, the door beside me swung open, and Ryuen walked in.  A quick glance at the clock told me that he was at least eight or nine minutes early, but as I'd come fifteen minutes early, it didn't seem a prudent thing to mention. 

"Hey, Doukun!" Ryuen exclaimed, grinning and hurrying over to me.  "You made it!"

I smiled, marveling again at how much energy this one person seemed capable of projecting.  "Hi."

Ryuen, who looked somehow incomplete without Saihitei standing beside him, was wearing a black tank top with a purple dress shirt over it, the buttons only fastened to about the middle of his chest.  The shirt matched eerily with his hair, which he'd plaited into a loose braid and let hang down his back, and the fabric rustled a little while he moved, the noise somehow bringing up the image in my mind of brightly-colored skirts, whispering against each other like autumn leaves...

I snapped out of the reverie when I felt something against my head; I glanced up to see Ryuen's fingers touching experimentally at my hair, his lips twisting up into a smile.  "Hey, your hair looks great!  The spikes really suit you."

Flushing, I tried to take a step back and realized I was leaning against the wall.  The result was that I stumbled and almost fell, and from the brief snicker that sounded from my right, Mari had witnessed it. 

Wonderful.

"Anyway," Ryuen went on, smiling almost apologetically and now keeping his hands to himself, "are you ready to go?  It's going to be a bit of a walk, I'm afraid, but at least it's warm out.  Oh, and Saihitei would've come along, but since it's his apartment, he thought it'd be better to stay there.  No one's there yet, but he was worried that Miaka might show up early, since she likes to get a head start on the snacks, and so he decided to stay."

From the scattered memories I had of Miaka in home ec, I was inclined to agree that this had been a wise, wise decision.  Smiling and feeling a little more comfortable, mostly because of Ryuen's warm personality, I cast one brief farewell nod at Mari, then turned and started to walk towards the door.  Ryuen followed, but not before spending a long moment staring back at Mari, frowning like he was trying to figure something out.

"Do you know her?" he asked me when we got outside, falling into step beside me.

I glanced at him, surprised at the note of confusion in his voice, and spent a few seconds considering my answer before speaking.  "Ah...well, sort of.  We were in concert band together last semester."  There was something in his voice...  I frowned.  "Do you know her?"

"I don't...think I do," he replied, sounding truly puzzled.  "But she feels like..."  He trailed off, then shook his head and flashed me a quick grin.  "Probably just seen her around campus.  Anyway, I'm glad you decided to come.  I have a feeling you're going to fit right in."

"Why do you say that?"

"Well," he said slowly, "it's just...a feeling I get."  He smiled.  "Come on, we'd better walk a little faster.  If we don't hurry, there won't be anything left to eat by the time we get there."

Shrugging and sliding my hands into the pockets of my sweatshirt, I followed. 

~*~

AN:  Sorry for the lonnnnnnnng delay between the second and third chapters. ^^;;  I actually had the first part of this written immediately after the second part was finished, but the rest of it was a little slower in coming.  Anyway, thanks to all who have reviewed and will review; I'll do my best to keep the updates coming with more regularity in the future!