Ah yes well now that I've been called a "Cliffhangering ho" by my dear onee-chan, I decided I better hurry up and type up this next chapter. So here you go. And thank you Lawful Fic for such a great review. This chapter is dedicated to you!

Disclaimer: I don't own Hana Yori Dango. (Contribute to the fund! I have forty-five cents, only $44.55 till I own the video game!) I also don't own FFVI

Warnings: Please keep reading after this chapter…no matter how painful it can get. Oh and don't mind that dream sequence. I HAD TO DO IT! THE POTATO CHIPS MADE ME!

Never Quite As It Seems

Chapter Sixteen

"If this is what he wants,

And it's what she wants,

Then why is there so much pain?

So here's your holiday,

Hope you enjoy it this time,

You gave it all away,"

            -Stay Together For The Kids, Blink 182

            I was a little surprised by him just sitting there with that look on his face. His eyes were focused on me intently. Of course there could be a thousand reasons as to why he was there. I couldn't really put my finger on one though.

            "What about?" I asked him as I came to sit on my bed next to him.

            "Tsukushi I was listening…to what Sakurako was telling you." Doumyouji finally pronounced slowly.

            "Yeah…I can't believe she was behind that all…" I trailed off as I saw the look in his eyes. He was angry. Not with anyone but with himself.

            "I think I've been kind of selfish." Doumyouji went on. "I didn't really think about the sort of things that could have happened to you because of me. And now…it was my fault."

            "What was your fault?" I inquired. "Any of that stuff wasn't your fault it was just…it just happened!"

            "It's my fault that he…" Doumyouji hit the wall next to him with a fist. I was confused. It wasn't his fault. "It was my fault for starting this whole thing!"

            "It was not! It wasn't your fault!" I insisted. "Why are you saying that?"

            "I'm saying it because it's true!" Doumyouji turned towards me. "I can't cause you anymore suffering! Don't you see how much you mean to me?"

            "But it's not true what you're saying!" I was becoming a little frustrated. What the heck was he talking about?

            Damn this guy is confusing.

            "I'm calling it off." It came from no where I swear. Just all of a sudden it was there. Those words were followed by a silence. Then it dawned on me that Doumyouji had said them.

            "What do you mean?" I asked sharply. Okay if Doumyouji was suddenly going to have a weird-o guilt trip then he could but I was going to snap him out of it.

            "What do you think I mean. It's over." Doumyouji stated and it seemed to like he was straining himself, forcing the words to come out. "We'll call off this whole thing."

            "Why? You're such an idiot; it has nothing to do with you what he did."

            Tell me that wasn't me who just said that…that was wrong to say…

            "I guess I am an idiot aren't I?" Doumyouji stood up. "I bet your glad I'm finally calling it off aren't you?" He looked pissed.

            "Doumyouji I-" I began trying to tell him I hadn't meant it.

            "Your right. It doesn't have anything to do with me does it? You never wanted anything to do with me before did you? Well I guess I just solved all your problems." Doumyouji told me angrily.

            "No you didn't!" I stood up too. "You can't ever listen to other people can you? You don't ever consider anyone else but yourself!" I yelled back at him. If he was going to start accusing me, I was going to start accusing him. That was the way it worked right then.

            "You…you stupid…you stupid bitch!" Doumyouji finally got out. Granted, I've been called a bitch before. But that was just going to freaking far.

            "Yeah well you don't have to worry about this stupid bitch anymore will you?" I pointed towards the door. "Just get out of here right now!"

            "I will!" Doumyouji turned sharply and went out the door. "This is what you want." The words bit into me. Was it what I wanted? I don't really know. I never know.

            We weren't thinking. We both weren't. That wasn't how that should have gone…Why this argument? Why now? Ahhh, shouldn't things be a little less confusing? Now their MORE confusing? Why am I confused? Okay I'm going to stop talking to myself.

            I sat down on my bed deciding that if I was going to fume, I was damn well going to be comfortable while doing it. Of course my situation could not get any worse. Now I was stuck in a house with the person that I had been pretending to go out with who had just confessed their love for me not too long ago and now probably hated me.

            The only thing that could have confused me more happened.

            Hanazawa Rui came in and sat on my bed as naturally as if it was his own.

            "Hello." Rui greeted me.

            "Um…hey." I got out.

            Oh boy…what does he want?

            "Remember when I asked you why you were here?" Rui began right away. This was unusual for him to initiate a conversation so I knew something was up.

            "Yeah." I nodded. I had no clue what the point to this conversation was plus I was pissed so I probably sounded pretty snappy.

            "I knew why." Rui's words made me look up in surprise. "I knew why and I wanted to tell you to go back."

            "How did you know?" I asked him. "What does this have to do with anything?"

            "Let me finish." Rui put up a hand as if to silence me. "I knew why you were here and I guess I just didn't really think about it. But then this whole thing with Doumyouji happened."

            "So?" I snapped. "It doesn't matter now."

            "Well maybe it does." Rui put in. "I dunno." He shrugged at this point. "I heard you two arguing."

            "Glad you woke up just for our argument." I shot back. I was venting anger on someone and it might as well be Rui. But then it wasn't exactly fair but when your angry, you don't really think about it.

            "You can get angry all you want but that doesn't really change anything." Rui looked very faraway then. "I was trying to say, is that this Doumyouji thing happened. At first I thought it was just because you were trying to get back at me somehow. Anyone could see that Doumyouji wouldn't have cared. He must have been in love with you since you first yelled at him."

            Not uh! That's not true…or was it? It doesn't matter now does it? Or…Oh dammit why am I thinking about it so hard?

            "Not anymore." I finally got out after my slightly stunned silence.

            "I heard you two. I think he does. You two have hurt each other. Doumyouji might have done it on purpose but you did it to subconsciously drive him away so he wouldn't know how much it hurt you." Rui explained our argument as if it was obvious.

            "What?" I asked.

            "When he called it off, when he wanted to break up with you." Rui went on. "It hurt you."

            "No it didn't!" I hit my fist down on the bed. "Me and him were never going out! It was just an act!"

            "It still hurt you." Rui insisted. "You can choose to acknowledge it or not."

            "What the heck does that mean? What are you even doing in here?" I asked him.

            "I'm trying to explain this." Rui shrugged once more. "I was trying to explain that I felt bad about the whole thing. I know I've been distant since you got here. And I know I shouldn't have gone to you when that incident with Shizuka happened. I shouldn't have taken comfort and walked off. But I did."

            "You're apologizing?" I was completely shocked. Okay, I've heard Rui apologize a couple times but never in his whole life had he ever apologized to me directly. Never.

            "I thought I should." Rui commented as if it were just natural. "I heard the fight and I was thinking about how you've changed. I thought now you were ready for an apology."

            "You heard the fight and then decided to apologize?" I quirked my eyebrow at him. "Okay."

            "I'm probably going to go sleep on the couch now." Rui got up a stretched.

            Damn…this guy is confusing too! DAMMIT!!! Why are they all so confusing?

            "Wow, that's something different for you." I joked weakly. I was trying not to think of my current problem with Doumyouji. "Are Akira and Soujirou playing video games?" As if on cue Akira yelled up the stairs.

            "Come help us play Final Fantasy Six Tsukushi!" Akira's voice sounded. For some reason, while playing Final Fantasy (insert number here) we always did it as a group. One person would play and the others would add stuff in. (In some cases, not so helpful stuff.)

            "Um sure." I decided that it didn't matter, I wasn't changed by this new development between Doumyouji and I at all.

            That's right…I shouldn't even think about it…

*                                              *                                              *

            Which is what I told myself. But that doesn't mean it actually worked. Oh no, I just kept thinking about it. Gah, why can't my mind just pretend to obey once in a while? I say not to think about something and it does it anyway. Every five seconds while watching the boys play FFVI. It kept me up late into the night and I drifted off to sleep on the couch.

            "Dude don't cast that." I could hear Akira saying before I had gone to sleep completely.

            Me and Soujirou walked down the hall of the palace of Figaro, watching the maids and guards bustle by on their way to do various errands. We stepped through the huge double doors leading to the throne room.

            "Your majesty!" Soujirou ran up to the throne where Doumyouji was sitting.

            "Dammit Soujirou, go away." Doumyouji rolled his eyes at the young man. "I don't want to play video games right now."

            "Nah not that, it's the chick I picked up in Narshe. You know the brainwashed magic user?" Soujirou gestured towards me. "Kind of ugly though."

            Doumyouji just crossed his arms and glared at Soujirou.

            "Um, hello." I greeted him.

            "Welcome to Figaro castle. You've met Soujirou, he's an idiot. I'm King Doumyouji." Doumyouji pronounced.

            "I'm Makino Tsukushi…but…wait…aren't you mad at me?" I asked, this coming from no where in the dream.

            "Um…I don't know…am I?" Doumyouji scratched the back of his head.

            "Sir, Kefka is here!" A messenger came in.

            "Oh it's just Rui." Soujirou shrugged. "No big deal, he'll fall asleep in five minutes anyway."

            "There's no couches here." I pointed out. "We need to get to South Figaro before he sets this place on fire." They all looked at me strangely. "I think."

            "Let me grab some phoenix downs and we'll be on our way." Doumyouji nodded his head. Suddenly he turned towards me.

            "This is the way you want it." Suddenly the dream shattered everywhere and we were somewhere else, facing an ugly looking boss. It snarled and it's claws ripped through Doumyouji.

            "CAST CURE!" I screamed as I woke up suddenly. Akira and Soujirou looked at me rather strangely even though they were fighting a boss.

            "Um…kay…" Soujirou cured one of his people.

            "I think she's getting a little too into the game." Akira commented loudly.

            "This coming from you guys?" I asked them incredulously. "I just fell asleep that's all."

            "On the couch? Thinking about taking up Rui's job if he ever decides to move out?" Soujirou asked, not taking his eyes away from the screen.

            "No, I don't think anyone could fall asleep everywhere like Rui does." I put in cheerfully.

            "Nuuu." Rui muttered in his sleep on the other side of the couch.

            "Do you think Doumyouji died in his room?" Akira questioned us, Doumyouji had not left his room all day and small wonder. I was suddenly very quiet.

            "If he did, Tsukushi should go keep him company." Soujirou joked.

            "Um…" I began. "Me and Doumyouji aren't together anymore." Okay so, I guess right then I could have told Soujirou and Akira what was going on but I didn't. Weird huh?

            "NO! YOU GUYS CAN'T SPLIT UP!" Akira yelled as he jumped to his feet. "I'm gonna go talk some sense into Doumyouji, you just stay right here."

            "Akira, sit down." I told the long haired boy. "Stop freaking out. Things like this happen."

            "But…" Akira protested. "But you two were made for each other. Doumyouji's got to be stupid if he doesn't see it."

            What is it National Boys Are Confusing Day? Why do they care so much?

            "Dude, Akira, let's just keep playing." Soujirou gave Akira a look. Obviously it was significant to Akira because he sat down and started to play again. I had no idea what was going on right there. My thoughts drifted back towards Doumyouji who was sitting up in his room right then doing who knows what.

            It's weird…why does it feel like something in me is broken?

*                                                          *                                              *

            Okay so next chapter is the last one. So it's like totally sad right now so how could it be fixed? Oh boy…this is going to be hard. Dun dun DUN as Agent MarbleEyes would say. (Gah, she did it enough times when I was telling her about the six book of TOA…) So yeah…on with the stuff. I think I fixed my big weird giant spaces between paragraphs problem! YES!!!

A little Akugi dedicated to that big long review!

Soujirou: Hey! I'm not acting immature!

Akira: Dude, you are soooooooo immature.

Rui: Meow.

Tsukushi: Jade, you realize you're on crack right?

Jade: ^_^

Doumyouji: Can we end this?

THE END!