Calmer of the Storm: Hey! I'm glad you guys like it! I really hope it's better than before…I really liked the idea, I just don't think that I did a very good job of it the first time…but here it is again!

I'd also like to thank these people for being the first 7 ppl to review!

Cherri88, nekosohojo, Lone Wolf Chick, Animesweetdream, miaow227, claire1308, and flipstahhz!!! Thank you soo much!

"Hikari?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

"I-I love you too…"

I woke up with a start as my alarm went off. I mechanically smacked the snooze button, and just lay in bed. I started thinking, about many things. I was thinking about the play, the new kid, and…my dream. I remember that dream so well, though I never liked how it stuck out so vividly in my mind.

Frustrated, I glanced at the clock, 6:15. I had half an hour before I had to leave, and forty-five minutes to get to the school.

I got, or rather, rolled out of bed, and headed to the shower. I don't usually take them in the morning, but today it was necessary. I hate early morning play rehearsals. Every Monday and Thursday…not fun. But, it's all worth it in the end I guess.

I got out of the shower, and got dressed. I glanced in the mirror, and decided against make-up. I didn't need it-my eyes were dark enough…

I took another quick glance at the clock, 6:30. I had fifteen minutes. I quickly brushed my hair, stuck a clip in it, and made breakfast.

I rushed, and got out the door at quarter to. I closed the door quietly, as not to wake anyone. I sighed, and looked at the scene around me. It was so dark at this time, so dark and gloomy. I hate the dark, I always have and I have a feeling that I always will. It's not that I'm afraid of it; it's just that it's so dreary. And nothing happy ever happens in the dark, at least, not in any of my experiences.

Deciding not to waste any more time, I headed to the school. It was a fifteen minute walk, and I was a fast walker. A precisely five to seven, I entered the front doors.

Quickly, I ran to my locker, and dumped my stuff in. There was no one in this hall in particular, and it was kind of nice. They are usually so crowded and noisy. Two things that I myself am not too fond of.

I closed my locker, and slammed my body up against it, in order to get my lock through. That's usually an interesting task. After, I raced down to the auditorium. Fortunately, I wasn't the last one there. The last one usually had to do clean up or something.

I found Sakura, and sat beside her.

In the play, there were actually a lot of people. There were extras, and even a few people singing songs; for the effect, I guess. Though, there were only about ten to fifteen in the main cast.

We all quieted down as Ms. Seymour began to speak.

"Okay, today we're going to so something different. Instead of just running through the play like we always do, you're going to find someone you share a fair amount of lines with, and run through them. Try a little blocking on your own too, to get into the feel of things." Ms. Seymour informed us.

I really wanted to work with Sakura, as she was the 'snob' we always got a few laughs out of it, though we never really got anything done. However, as we stood to leave, Ms. Seymour stopped us.

"Hikari, I'd like you to work with Takeru. You two share the most dialogue together, and you never seem to be practicing with each other. I'd like for you two to start."

I slowly nodded my head, and Sakura shot a sympathetic look at me. I walked over to where the blonde boy was standing. It's not that I had a problem with it, it's just that I'd rather be with a friend than some guy that I barley know.

I nodded a greeting to him, and we walked off into the little theatre.

"Which scene do you want to do?" He asked me when we got there.

"Hmm....I'm not sure. Why don't we do the meeting scene? I guess it makes sense to start at the beginning."

He seemed to think about it a moment, then shrugged. "Sure, why not"
So, we ran through the scene. I have to admit, it wasn't half bad. He was a good person to work with. He didn't pry into my personal business, though I could tell he knew that something was up with me.

Soon, time ran out, and we went to class. I didn't share any classed with him that morning, so I didn't see him.

Classes dragged on, as they usually do. Finally, the lunch bell rang. I went down to my locker, which was in the basement. Sakura would meet me there.

I stopped and stared angrily at my locker door. I even almost burst into tears. Someone, I can only guess who, stuck a flyer for the Valentine's dance on Friday. This was no accident, it was intended. I ripped it off, crumpled it, and threw it out. That's when Sakura joined me.

"What was that?" She asked me, curious.

"Oh, it was....nothing." I replied. Unfortunatley for me, she knew me well and figured it out.

She sighed, "Look Kari, I'm really worried. Especially because of-"

I cut her off, "I know, I know. I'm fine." I think it was a little too forceful, as she didn't mention it again.

~*~

The next few days were uneventful, except for the fact it was almost Valentine's Day, which was on the Friday, by the way.

Everyone was excited for it, and as I walked through the halls of my school, I could hear the chatter about it all. The girls were all giddy about who was going with them to the dance, but the guys were all 'too cool' to show any emotions. I could see through it though; they were excited in their own ways.

My mind began to drift, as I remembered the times when I was one of the girls chatting non-stop about my date for the dance. It's too bad that I never even made it there…

~*~

I decided not to go to school on Friday, and nobody questioned that. Everyone knew, and they didn't want me to feel any worse. I just couldn't face it; all the 'lovey-dovey' stuff that goes on. Yeah, I guess if you're part of it, it's all fun and games, but when you finally lose the game, it's not so fun anymore. Besides, it had only been a year, and I knew I wouldn't get any grief from anyone for not showing up.

That night, I went for a walk in the park. It was a cloudy night, just like it was that same night just over a year before then. I must have looked like somewhat of a freak, as I was wandering the park in a zombie-like fashion, and I was alone. This was a big deal, as it was, after all, Valentine's Day. But that didn't matter.

Memories flooded my head as I walked. I was oblivious to everything around me, and wouldn't have noticed if you came up in front of me and started jumping and waving frantically in my face. I guess that's why I didn't notice that a certain blonde boy was following me.

I wandered down to the small pond, and just sat by its edge. I gazed into the murky water, though there really wasn't much to see. I could see my reflection, though it's not like I could see every detail on my face.

I sat there a while, lost in a deep state of thought, still oblivious to the things around me. It was not until I drifted back to reality, that I noticed another face in the water. This knocked me right back into my senses, and I shot around.

There, behind me, was that new kid, Takeru. I was rather shocked that he was there, and almost disgusted that he had followed me. What was worse, was that he stood there, leaning on a tree, looking at me as if he had done nothing wrong.

"You weren't at school today" he stated as-a-matter-of-factly.

I had forgotten that he didn't know, and was silent for a moment. I then came up with the worst comeback in the history of humankind. "Ya, so?"

"I don't know, you don't look sick to me." he said.

"I just decided not to go, okay?!" I said icily.

He put up his arms defensively, "Hey, I was just wondering, that's all."

I glared at him. Then something occurred to me. He wasn't at the dance. This fact confused me, as he seemed to have hit it off well with the female population of Odaiba High. I couldn't think of any legitimate reason that would prevent him from going.

"Why aren't you at the dance?", I asked. I think this came out in a way that one would think that I did not want them around, because he looked slightly hurt, though he said nor did anything about it.

"I just didn't feel like going."

I didn't have to ask my next question, as I'm sure it was written all over my face.

"I can't stand those kinds of things. Throbbing music, people who think they can dance but really can't, and the occasional drunk. Not my idea of the perfect night." he responded,

I thought about that a moment. I can't say that I've ever looked at it that way before, and I could see that he had a point.

"Why are you so secluded?" he asked.

"Why are you so nosey?" I shot back.

He shrugged his shoulders, and backed off. "I was just askin'. There's no harm in that. Besides, everyone is so hush-hush about you and whatever happened, and I feel kind of left out." he paused a moment, and stared out across the pond. "I've always been told that it's good to talk about your problems, and not shut them away."

There was a silence between us, me thinking about what he had said, and him thinking about who-knows-what. I kind of liked having someone here to talk with, because he seemed understanding. There was only one other person who had been like that, and he was gone. Once again, I was broken from my chance at the sight of movement. He was leaving.

"People just don't know what it's like; they don't understand." I said, though I didn't turn around.

I heard him stop, though he didn't come back just yet.

"And you don't want to bother them, or have anyone butt into your business. You don't want to feel the pain and the hurt anymore; you think that if you forget about it and ignore it, it'll just go away."

I turned around, and probably gaped at him. It seemed he did know what was going on. He had his back turned to me, though I saw him peer over his shoulder at me. I quickly diverted my gaze.

"So you've heard rumours." I mused.

He turned fully, and walked over to me.

"Well, that's part of it, but I've just been watching you, and I put two and two together. I really have no clue what's been going on; I can just guess."

"So you've been watching me." this was more of an accusation than anything else.

"I have many classed with you, and I see you almost everyday in play rehearsal. Not to mention your locker is near mine. It's hard not to watch you."

I guess he had a point there.

Takeru sat himself beside me. "So, you gonna say anything, or are you just going to keep hiding your whole life?"

I sighed. He seemed innocent enough, and there was a part of me that did want to tell him; though other part was saying to run. I didn't want to get attached to anyone; because only bad things happen to the people I care about. I didn't want to relive the pain and the memories. I didn't want to go through it again. Once through Hell is quite more than enough for me. I did not want to experience it another time.

~*~Takeru's P.O.V~*~

I waited for a little, and watched her. She seemed to be thinking, and debating in her mind whether or not she wanted to tell me anything. I guess I really didn't have a reason for asking, except maybe curiosity. I realized that she had every right not to tell me anything. The rumours I heard were, I assumed, just that. Some of them sounded pretty far fetched, and I had a hard time believing them.

She sighed, "I'm sure you've heard many things, but I guess the best way to find out the truth is from me."

I was surprised, but didn't say anything. It seemed like she was actually going to tell me something.

I could tell that she really didn't want to say anything. I could see the pain on her face as she relived the past. This only made me even more curious.

"I was in love with this guy", she started. She was gazing out across the water.

To me it sounded like your average teenage love/angst story. The kind that everyone knows how it's going to end up. Still, I listened.

She continued. "His name was Lance. He was probably the sweetest guy I've ever met. I'm not won over that easily, and even more so now."

I saw a flash of sadness cross her face. Obviously it had been hard on her.

"I don't know what he saw in me, but I guess it was something. We hadn't been dating long, but I knew that I loved him, and that he loved me. The last thing on my mind was that he would break up with me."

Yep, I knew where this was going. Still, I've learned (the hard way) never to interrupt a girl when she's spilling the depths of her soul.

"It was Valentine's Day that day too, last year to be exact. Lance was going to bring me to the dance. I was so excited. I had been to dances, but never actually gone with a guy before.

"Of course, I spent half the night trying to make myself look perfect for him. I'm not usually like that, but there's something about this time of year that brings out a change in everyone. I was just fixing my hair when the phone rang."

I noticed that a tear had started to form in her eye. I could tell that she was doing her best to hold them back. I tried my best not to look bored, for I've heard these stories too many times, and they all turned out the same. The girl meets boy, and falls in love. Boy leaves girl, and breaks girl's heart. I guess deep down she was just like all the other girls. Emotional, and not able to get over things quickly.

She gathered herself, and went on. "It was my brother who had picked up the phone. He called my name, and I immediately dropped what I was doing. I had an idea of who it was on the phone. I greeted with a cheerful voice, thinking it was Lance telling me that he'd be over in a few minutes", more tears spilled from her eyes, "I couldn't have been more wrong."

Here comes the break up part, I thought.

"It was from Lance's house, but it wasn't him. Actually, it was his father. What he said crushed me. He said that Lance was on his way over, to pick me up. He was coming early, because he wanted to surprise me. His car hit a patch of ice, and he lost control of it. The car swerved, and he hit a post. He died on impact."

My mouth hung open in shock. This was definitely not what I had been expecting. I had heard many things, but I guess I just never stuck around long enough to hear the end of the rumours.

Now I understood why this time of year was hard for her. It's not easy losing someone you love.

I tried to comfort her, "Hikari, I'm so sorry."

Finally, the dam broke. She leaned into me, another thing I had not been expecting. Out of impulse, I wrapped my arms around her and just hugged her.

We stood there a moment, the only sound being her broken sobs.

I stroked her head. "You know, you can't dwell on this forever. I know it's hard, but you've got to move on. Everything's gonna be alright", I told her.

She immediately pulled away from me. There was a look of anger and betrayal in her eyes. I then wished I hadn't said that.

"You just don't get it, do you? It was all my fault! If I hadn't forced him to take me to the stupid dance, the one he didn't really even want to go to in the first place, he'd still be alive!" she yelled.

I tried to reason with her, " Hikari, please calm down. You had no control over it, it wasn't your fault. I know how you feel. It's hard to lose someone you love. But you've got to move on…"

~*~Hikari's P.O.V.~*~

I stared at him with disbelief for a moment. How could some guy that barley even knew me, tell me how to live my life? He didn't know how I felt, then and about Lance. He didn't lose the one person that he cared about most in his life.

At that point, I exploded at him. "How can you say something like that? How would you know how it feels to have the world come crashing down upon you?"