Fourth and final chapter.  Enjoy.

Disclaimer:  ...

Rose Truth

Jounouchi's POV

"Tell me!" I jolted out of my dream-like state to notice that snow was already started to fall.  I shook my head and rubbed the temples.

"I had another dream." I muttered getting up, and letting the rose on my lap to fall onto the sidewalk.  I stood there for a moment, thinking what the dream meant all together.  Then I thought of it.  The gift!  I never opened the last gift I received from Mai!

I ran down the path at full speed and tried to remember where I put it.  See, I never opened the gift.  I never wanted to.  But now, I realized I have to.

I got to the front door of my house and blew right in.  My mom was in the kitchen, just hanging up the phone.  She saw me and asked, "Jounouchi, where have you been?!  Your school just called and-"

"No time, Mom, sorry!"

I ran passed her, and up the stairs, into my room and shut the door.  I looked around, trying to remember where I put it.  The desk?  No.  Under the bed?  No.  Inside the clo-.  What a minute!  I literally dove under the bed and threw everything from under there into daylight. 

"AH-HA!!!" I yelled triumphantly. "Found it!"

It was a rectangular box, averaged sized with the, once silver-blue wrapping paper, now faded blue-gray.  I carefully tore the paper that revealed a wooded type jewelry box with a gorgeous carving of the Red-Eyes Black Dragon.  I smiled and placed the box on my lap.  There, I opened it and found something I wasn't expecting: a note and a...

Red rose.  Beautiful and still smelling as fresh as it bloomed.  I picked it up and realized that the rose was made of red leather and the smell was real rose oil.  I placed it up to my nose, and let my senses be filled with the sweet smelling aroma.  I sat there in a trance for a moment until I remembered the note.  It was folded four times, causing the edges to be yellowed and the creases to be deep.  I opened it carefully, not wanting to rip it, and read:

Jounouchi,

My love for you will die once this rose does.

Mai

I sat there for the longest time reading and re-reading the last thing that Mai ever said to me.  I stared at the rose, and then realized what she meant.  She got me a fake rose, seeing how these last, literally, forever.  I smiled with courage, stood up and walked to the window.  The snow was falling even more heavenly, as I leaned my head on the sill.  There, I cried.  I cried for myself; I cried for the snow.  I cried for the rose, but most importantly, I cried for Mai.

                              "Despite all the deaths and blames it receives, snow still has the courage to fall."

                                                                                                                                             -Anonymous

The End

My very first finished fanfiction.  Well, how did you like it?  Sorry, for the short chapter.  I take no credit on the quote.  I found it on a website site that featured famous quotes by not-so-famous people.  Unforchately, I never will know who wrote this.  Hence the name, "Anonymous".  Oh, well.  Review, please.  By the way, I'm writing another Mai/Jounouchi song fic soon.  Not that I'm hinting anything.  Which I'm not.  ^_^