Author's note: Blah. I have work to do for my exams coming up. Studying sucks. Nonetheless, I've put time aside to work on this chapter. Don't forget to review! I like reviews! ^_^ By the way, I'm so sorry for not warning people about possible spoilers! Please forgive me!
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"Everywhere I go
Every smile I see
I know you are there
Smiling back at me.
Dancing in moonlight
I know you are free
Cause I can see your star
Shining down on me."
~Together Again
Janet Jackson
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Yuna and Auron sat in Yuna's hut, together on a worn sofa. Yuna's head was rested against the sturdy shoulder of Tidus' body, her eyes half-closed in a dreamlike state. It had started to dawn on Auron what predicament he just might get himself into. He couldn't exactly push Yuna off him, yet . . . this was his best friend's daughter! This was the girlfriend of the kid he watched! Plus, he was in love with someone else. Not this girl sitting beside him.
Auron shifted his weight, brushing the blonde strand of hair from his aqua eyes. He was so tempted to get up and find a rubber band or string of some sort and pull his hair back. How could someone live with hair that was constantly attacking the tips of their eyebrows and forehead? In a desperate attempt to stop the tickling, Auron smacked himself in the face. Hard.
Yuna looked up and gasped over Auron's silent whimpering and grunts of pain. She pulled his hand away from his face and gently examined the injury while asking, "Tidus. What'd you do that for?"
"This hair is incredibly itchy!" he exclaimed, his eyes tearing up as a reaction to the pain in his nose. He felt a warm liquid run down his upper lip, falling into the crease between both lips. Auron rubbed his nose with the palm of his hand. When he brought it away from his face, he noticed the red blood smeared within it.
"Oh! You're bleeding!" Yuna cried out, jumping up from her comfy position. Auron smiled, yet it wasn't the one he was used to. It was Tidus' smile, not his. Yet, he worked with it.
"Don't worry about it. I'll be fine." He reassured. Yuna shook her head and started to bustle around, finding cloth and other first aid. No matter how many times he'd try discouraging her to help him; she continued to find supplies and such for his bleeding nose.
Three minutes and much clamor later, she knelt beside him, tipping his head back and wiping blood already on his lips. Auron closed his eyes to avert her eyes but still couldn't escape her presence. Her breath was warm against his neck and cheek, her touch like velvet against his skin. His heart raced and his mouth became dry instantly. It scared him that he was so close to her. But she didn't know. It wasn't her fault.
"It might be broken." Yuna's voice announced to him. He opened his eyes and eyed her without moving his head downward. Her face portrayed worry. But he could tell she just wanted to laugh out loud.
"What's so funny?" he asked.
Yuna brought her fingers to his lips, tracing around the sides of them. Auron brought his head down and gently grabbed her wrist to stop her. She paused and then moved her hand to the sides of his hair, brushing it away tenderly. A shiver passed down Auron's spine.
He felt her hands snake down to the back of his neck as she pulled his face to hers. The next thing they knew was their lips touched.
Auron pulled away quickly at the contact. He shook his head, reaching behind his neck to retrieve her hands that were still gripped around it. He pulled them off him and held them within his own hands. "Yuna . . . I can't. Maybe I'm not used to this yet, but I need time. You understand?" he felt like he was talking to a five-year-old.
Suddenly, his heart stopped. The pained look on Yuna's face brought back the memory of the fight between him and Rikku. It was the same way the fight even got started. Sweat collected on his brow as he became nervous about what could happen next. Would she totally go off on him, like Rikku did?
A draft cooled Auron's midriff, his stomach muscles tightening as the wind wrapped its way around his back and torso. His eyes were drawn back to Yuna's multicolored ones. While her eyes expressed sadness and defeat, the rest of her face was calm and gentle. She looked down on the ground. "I'm sorry. I should have known."
Auron stood up and made his way to the door. He pulled the curtain back, letting in a stream of light. He turned back to her and smiled. Auron still had to be Tidus, no matter what circumstances it came to. And if that meant lying to keep his character in check, then that's what it would have to come to. He sighed. "Yuna, I . . . I still love you." He stated quietly before stepping outside, letting the door fall back into place. Standing by the door and listening to Yuna's stifled sobs hurt him inside, but that was the price to pay.
~*~*~
It was late that night and everyone was gathered around a small bonfire, small talk flying between them. A small celebration was being held for the return of Tidus. Sometimes there would be instances where one person would talk about an old conversation or story that had involved Tidus himself and Auron would have to improvise, sometimes going far enough as to saying he'd completely forgot.
After dinner and dessert, everything died down. Lulu had already gone inside with her baby and Yuna retired to her hut as well. Wakka and Auron lay in the dirt, staring up at the sky dotted with stars.
"Tidus, why are you acting weird around Yuna?" Wakka asked.
As blunt as the question was, it didn't startle Auron. "What makes you think I'm acting weird around her?" he replied with a question.
"Well, Lulu and I aren't exactly blind. We saw how cold you were to her. And she wasn't exactly comfortable around you tonight either."
Auron kept his mouth closed. He couldn't exactly come out and say that it was really him and not Tidus. Who would believe him? Wakka sensed his uneasiness and sat up. He looked over at his friend and shook his head in dismay. Standing up, he took a handful of dirt and scattered it over the already-dying flame in the fire. Darkness settled quickly over the pair.
"I'm gonna go to bed. You get some rest, ya?" said Wakka as he turned to walk away.
"Wait!" Auron called him back, his body unmoving. His red-haired friend turned around and crossed his arms. "Rikku," he chose his words carefully. "Is she anywhere around? I mean, will she visit?"
"Can't say I know. I know she lives in Luca with her father." Wakka waited for a reply but left when he received none. Auron was left in the dark to ponder his own thoughts. He didn't even remember when his eyes fluttered shut and he was thrust in his own dream world.
The next thing he knew was someone's hand on his arm shaking him lightly. Auron felt, not a comfy bed under his body, but the sharp rocks, rough dirt and hard cement against him. He groaned his discomfort and brought a hand to his head, rubbing his eyes.
"Tidus? Is that you?" a voice reverberated through his mind. Slowly, he sat up, keeping his eyes closed. The person's arms helped him sit up and remain upright. "Tidus?"
Instantly his eyes flew open as he was quick to recognize the voice. His head turned and he was face to face to that of a young, teenage girl. Her green, swirled eyes radiated happiness and joy and her face was fresh and delighted. Even though she showed signs of aging a year, she still had the features Auron had grown accustomed to during the Pilgrimage. When she saw Tidus' face turn to her, she smiled happily. "Tidus! You're home!" she cried out.
Auron, though, wasn't pleased. Here he was within arms reach of the girl he'd fallen head-over-heels in love with, yet he couldn't do anything about it. His feelings got the better of him and he embraced her anyway. He could tell that she was surprised because her small being tensing up in his arms. Nonetheless, she hugged him back and laughed.
"How have you been, Rikku?" he asked in his stoic way. Rikku didn't seem to catch it, though.
"I should be asking the same thing. I mean, first you leave and all that. Now you're back here. How did you get back here? Did you make some deal with someone? Oh, how's everyone in the Farplane? Did you find your dad? How'd you keep busy? If it were me, I probably would have gotten bored!"
Auron's head was spinning from the interrogation. "I don't know, no, fine, no, by sitting there and thinking of you." He listed. The funny look on Rikku's face puzzled him. "What? Did I say something I wasn't supposed to?"
She narrowed her eyes. "Well . . . I thought you and Sir Jecht met up after you jumped off the airship. And . . . you were thinking of me?"
His eyes widened. "I didn't say that."
"Yes you did. I just heard you. You said, to keep busy, you'd sit there and think of me."
Quick, think of an excuse. "I didn't mean it like that. You're personality just . . . it was kind of unforgettable, if you know what I mean."
"Oh," she hesitated. "Tidus, I probably shouldn't be asking this but . . . did Auron ever . . . talk about me? Did he miss me?" she asked boldly.
"Of course." He stated with certainty.
Rikku looked on the verge of tears. Auron lifted her chin with one finger and held her gaze. He spoke from his heart in an attempt to appease her. "I'm sure if he were here, he wouldn't want you to cry. It's not the Rikku he fell in love with."
Author's note: This has got to be the worst chapter of any story I have ever written. I don't feel like going back over and rewriting it. Do you know how hard it is to make Auron act like Tidus, yet still keep his enigmatic personality? To those who don't like Aurikku's, don't worry. I used to hate them, too. But, you've gotta love how Rikku's bubbly personality and Auron's stuck-up ways mesh together so well! And am I the only one who can imagine Tidus doing a choreographed dance to the song 'Ignition-Remix' by R. Kelly?!
