Makoto stood up from her seat and left the room.
"Do you think," Jaedite began to say slowly, "that Makoto is relieved to know I was a great friend of Kunzite's?"
Ami stood up. "Well, Jaedite, I'm sure it put comfort on her shoulders to know that Rei didn't mean it personally. If you weren't friends with Kunzite, rest in peace, I do believe Makoto would be furious at Rei even more than she is now."
"I agree," Minako said cheerful.
Usagi didn't look up at up, yet she directed her attention to Rei. "Just be grateful I didn't snatch your powers completely."
Rei frowned and stomped her feet. "That's exactly why I can't stand you anymore, Usagi! I came back to help and you still hate my guts! Get over you it! You don't have your powers! Too bad!" Rei stomped out of the room and Ami ran after her.
"Rei, wait!"
"What Ami?!" Rei asked, stopping. "What do you want?"
"Please stay, Rei," her eyes were narrow with sorrow.
"No, Ami. I came back. There. It's done. I'm going home," she turned around again, but Ami grabbed her arm.
"But Rei!"
"But Rei nothing! Now all of a sudden you need my help. Five years ago you turned on me and they are still against me and you expect me to just come back like nothing happened? You don't know me, Ami," Rei said, and stomped away.
Jaedite burst from the room and walked after her, Ami stopping to look at him. He stared, Ami stared. She wondered why Rei seemed to love this man more than her own friends. He shook his head and ran, and Ami questioned why SHE wasn't the one who ran after her.
"Because Jaedite is a better friend than me..." she sauntered away back into the quiet room of the house.
---
Rei stomped down the street and Jaedite finally caught up with her. He ran ahead of her and put his hands on her shoulders. "Rei, calm down."
The sky grew darker and darker by the second. Soon, raindrops began to fall from the sky onto Rei's pale cheeks. Jaedite didn't seem to notice. "Jaedite, I can't take it anymore. She is still upset with me! I won't go back and help her with that attitude of hers!"
"You really let down Hotaru," Jaedite said, softly.
"What?"
"When you left, Hotaru looked awfully sad. I think if Usagi wasn't in the room, she would have cried."
Rei looked down at the ground. "Hotaru..."
"She said she's leaving. Going back to Setsuna and the Outer Senshi. She only came back to try and bring the scouts back together."
Rei leaned forward and rested her forehead on Jaedite's shoulder. "Hotaru..."
He patted her back that the rain pounded so hard on. "Let's go..."
---
Rei stared out the window of the apartment house and watched the raindrops fall. They fell silently and slowly, and gracefully slid down the window. Jaedite soon walked into the room and crept behind Rei. The rain from the window reflected off the glass onto Rei's face, so her reflection looked like she was crying.
"Rei?"
She didn't look up. "Yes?"
"What are you doing?"
"Counting the raindrops... and thinking."
He sat beside her. "How many?"
"... lost count."
He laughed set his cup of tea down on the table."Thinking about what?"
She looked over at him and got off the couch. She sat on his lap with her head next to his shoulder and he wrapped his arms across the top of her stomach. "Thinking about Hotaru, Grandpa, Yuuichirou, and Ami."
He ran his hand threw her hair gently. "Yeah?"
She closed her eyes. "Poor Hotaru. I must have crushed her spirit. She looked so happy when I told her I'd come and make up. Grandpa worried about me and eventually gave up on life, Yuuichirou loved me dearly and I wonder how he's doing without me, and Ami, oh Ami, has lost her innocence and spirit. She's like a dead spirit of sorrow. I want my old Ami back. The study freak who got on us for not finishing our homework..."
Jaedite gave Rei a sqeeze. "Why don't you go back to the temple? Find out where Yuuichirou is."
"You wouldn't mind, Jed?"
"I know your feelings for me. I can't forbid you to see someone you care about, Rei, that would be wrong. If you want to see him again, go find him. Maybe that will take the weight off your shoulders so you can concintrate on me," he winked.
Rei laughed; she knew half of it was a tease, half was pain, and the remaining was happiness. And two halves cover it all.
Then Jaedite looked out the window. "Remember that day, before I told you I loved you, when I made you go on a date with me and we got caught in the rain?"
Rei smiled and looked out the window. Of course, she remembered it clearly. Jaedite had just taken her out for pizza when they came out in the rain. He took the complaining Rei by the hand and began to run with her; she still held her Coke in her hand. They ran in the street, dodging any stray car that honked for them to move. They ran, had little children pointing from their windows, and cars honked their horns. Slashing in the puddles, the puddles that came up to their ankles, and soon the whole street was flooded. The water twirled, thunder roared, and lightning zipped past the sky. Jaedite laughed at the frightened Rei and soon, pushed her. She frowned, pushed him back, and soon they went at it, pushing each other until Jaedite grabbed Rei and forced her down into the water. She laughed as tears, or water, rolled down her cheeks, and her brand new jeans were soaked from the flood. Jaedite laughed, bent down, and kissed her. She only closed her eyes; she couldn't see the streetlights beaming anymore, or hear the honking of the cars that zipped by saying, 'those crazy kids..'; just Jaedite's lips against hers and the water that kept swishing, climbing on top of her, and her heart drowned with thumps....
"Remember that, Rei?"
Rei looked up at the ceiling. "It was pouring..."
---
Rei walked down the abandoned streets with her purse dangling from her hand. Jaedite convinced her to return to the Hikawa Temple after the rain stopped. She didn't know why he suggested she should, but she listened anyway. She sighed, hoping she wouldn't run into any of the Senshi, especially Ami.
"I don't know," Rei thought aloud. "I just don't want to see Ami anymore. Ami makes me sad." She looked up blankly into the horizon and remembered those ice cold eyes. Ami was always full of life and a posstive attitude, and seeing her full of sorrow didn't help Rei get over the fact that it could have been her fault.
It lightly began to rain now, so Rei quickened the pace. Thoughts of Yuuichirou suddenly popped into her head; she was going to the Temple, anyway. She remembered those days when he would listen to every word she said, like he worshipped her, and he would even check on her during the middle of the night, due the inncident when a droid attacked late one night. He never forgot about that, and woke himself up every night just to check on her. Rei remembers how cute that would be.
She hopped up the stairs to the Temple and casually walked inside. This time she noticed how dirty the floors were, so she instantly dropped her purse and reached a broom that sat dusty in a corner. "I have to clean this up before Grandpa sees!" she said without thinking, and after a few sweeps, she froze, and dropped her broom. She stood there, blank for a minute, waiting for Yuuichirou to come in and ask, ' what's the matter?', but when he didn't come, she ran down the hallway with her face duried in her hands.
She sat on the mattress of the bed and looked out the window of her old bedroom. The cherry blossom trees where still there, but they looked dead and forgotten, just like the Temple itself. Then, like an illusion, she saw herself outside, wearing the red priestess kimono, and chasing after Yuuichirou with the rake. He laughed nervously and ran in circles; his sandles clicking to match the beat and the leaves from the tree fell and swayed, as if nodding. Pretty soon, Grandpa Hino stepped outside and folded his arms. "What are you two doing? Get back to work!" she could hear him say, so clearly, it gave Rei chills. "Sorry Grandpa," Rei whispered at the same time as the illusion said it, and she watched them go back to work and they slowly began to fade...
She sighed and looked down at her shoes. To her surprise, she felt no tears form in her eyes, and no heat rise to her heart. "There's no use trying to cry," Rei said to herself, "my eyes don't cry no more..."
She aimlessly wandered around the Hikawa Temple until it was sundown. She got up from her sitting posision, took one look at the fire, threw her scroll in, and left. "I better get home," she said as she closed the door to the chamber, "but it sure felt good to meditate for an hour." She walked over to the exit and stood on the porch, then reached for her purse to find it wasn't there. "Damn, I must have left it in my room," she thought as she retraced her steps. Before she left, she saw a shadow making its way up the tower of the stairs, but payed no attention.
"Got it," she said as she put her purse on and took one last look at the casablanca that sat on the dusty table. She cocked an eyebrow and walked back in front of it. "How could... my casablanca still be alive after all these years of no water?" She watched it glow a slight red, then it stopped.
"Rei?!"
She turned around when she heard a voice that was so familiar, it scared her. Brown hair, brown eyes, tall, and without a doupt, in love. She pandered and pandered as she stared at the face of this boy, who seemed familiar in every way except his hair. Then she realized it and heart skipped a beat. "Yuuichirou?!"
He smiled and nodded. "What... are you doing here? I mean, shouldn't you be with Jaedite? Or did you just want to visit? Did you hear what happened to Grandpa? Did you know I quit the rock band?"
This was Yuuichirou alright, she thought as she listened to him continue to ask questions. He was blushing red now and was stuttering over his words, afraid to say something wrong. When he finally stopped, she just stared at him. All those memories and feelings of Yuuichirou vanished, as if she couldn't believe, and she just stared.
"This is a surprise," Yuuichirou finally said calmly. "I didn't expect to see you here. How's Jaedite?"
You stupid fool, she thought, ask about me, not about Jaedite. "He's great. I think he's annoyed at me for talking about you and Grandpa so much."
Yuuichirou blushed a deep red, then jammed his sweaty fists in his jacket pocket. "I can't believe it's really you. I'm sorry."
Then she remembered the day she left and saw the look in his eyes. He was on Usagi's side that day, wasn't he? And all this time, he was just looking out for her, and she never put him on equal sides as Usagi, but instead, wanted to see him again. The old Yuuichirou. The one who hums rock songs and is always dropping things; the one whose heart fell for Rei. "It's okay."
He stared, smiled, and took his hands from his pockets. "Um," he reached his arms out, "I can't believe... it's really you."
Rei stared at him. He wanted a hug, she thought, the hug he never recieved when he truely loved her. She stepped up, grabbed his hands, and hugged him tightly. She rested her head on his shoulders and closed her eyes. "Yuuichirou..."
Aww. She finally found Yuuichirou. But don't worry, everyone, she isn't cheating on Jaedite. If you saw someone you haven't seen in years, I bet you'd hug them too! Well, on to the next chapter! Reviews are welcomed.