Phantom K: Aaaahhhh!! School! Nooooooooo.... has an emotional melt-down and is escorted to an insane asylum

Psychologist: Koinu would like to say that she does not own any part of DW and should therefore not be sued. Please- have pity on a case such as herself.

--Chpt 2. "Right back where we started from."

Xiao looked completely disgruntled as she stumbled out of her last class with all the others, and was instantly shoved along through the sea of students so desperate to escape to the comfort of their dorms. Like a rag doll she was tossed about until she came into a sudden and sharp contact with a strong figure, sending her tumbling backwards- the contents of her book-bag scattering over the floor.

"Ouch..." Xiao rubbed her rear as she looked up at the barrier she had come into conflict with. Staring down at her with a rather perplexed expression was Sun Ce.

"Watch your step," he said mildly after a moment, kneeling down to help collect her books. "It's a mad-house in here."

"Er... yeah." Xiao quickly began to scoop up the papers that had tumbled from her bag. Sun Ce, my sister likes you! Her mind screamed, but she did not want to ruin things for Da. After all- romance is such a fragile concept.

As Xiao scraped up her fallen school-supplies, Sun Ce carefully slipped a piece of paper between the first two pages of her history book, making sure his action was not noticed by her. "Here you are..." he handed it to her, and rose again as Xiao stuffed the last of her belongings into her bag.

"Uh... thank you!" And she was off again, her thin frame easily carried along through the crowd.

Finally she found her way to the outer courtyard, and looked around for a moment. She could see the two buildings which contained the male and female dormitories. The green grass lawn was untamed and stirred in the slight breeze. It was a hot summer, and everyone could not wait to get indoors again. Dorm Ho!

But Xiao was looking for someone. Oh Zhou, oh Zhou? Where are you, Zhou? She stood on tip-toe and glanced around. No Zhou Yu.

"Looking for me?" An abrupt voice said right in her ear, and Xiao felt arms lock around her waist. Zhou had her from behind, and Xiao let out something like... well, it could only be described as a kind of high-pitched, happy-little-school-girl squeal as he lifted her clear off the ground for a moment.

"Congratulations, you escaped the class-structure alive!" Zhou continued as he eased his grip and let her free of his embrace.

"Barely," replied Xiao, holding out her book-bag for him. "Here- hold."

He obeyed, slinging the bag over one shoulder as she hugged him again, standing on tip-toe to kiss his cheek. Zhou wrapped an arm around her waist and walked her slowly towards the girl's dorm building.

"So what are you all going to do tonight?" Zhou asked after a while.

"Uh, nothing... why?" Xiao frowned up at him questioningly.

"Da invited Zhen Ji and SS over to your dorm tonight." Zhou always called Sun Shang Xiang 'SS'. It was a kind of a pet name.

"Ohhh! But I'm so tired..." whimpered Xiao, resting her head on Zhou's chest as they walked.

"It could be worse..." Zhou kissed the top of her head with some difficulty. "Come on, you'll have fun."

By this point they were both in front of the girl's dorm building, which naturally had more boys outside the door than girls. The student regulator at the door was picking out the females in the group and letting only them enter. Males were hastily turned away.

"Okay, Zhou-ie, see you later." Xiao grabbed her book-bag from Zhou and gave him a sparkly smile before skipping off through the doors."

For an instant, Zhou stood still as a statue outside the building, even after his beloved had disappeared through the doors of the dorm. Then, slowly, he turned and headed off towards the male dorm building, warm and content.

As he pushed open the doors to the dorm building, the student regulator looked up and him briefly and then back down at the papers in his hand, murmuring to himself.

Zhou jogged up the stairs to the second floor, and pushed open the door that led to the hallway. Room 50 was directly at the end of the hall, literally the last room on the floor, and shared by two people- one of whom was Zhou Yu.

He twisted the knob and found it unlocked. As Zhou entered the sound of running water from the shower met his ears, and he kicked the bathroom door. "Zhang? Zhang He?"

"... Yes?" A voice answered from the other side of the door, mingling with the 'tap tap tap' of the shower water.

"Just wanted you to know I'm back, so don't come waltzing on out with no clothes on." Zhou shifted his own backpack and waited for the reply.

There was a long pause, and then. "Oh come on, you know you'd like it." Came the joking response.

Zhou walked away, and chucked his backpack onto the bed, where it landed with a resounding 'thump'. Sighing, Zhou fished a book out of it, and began to study it intensely- now here was a hard-working student.

After about an hour Zhang He emerged from the bathroom- clean, crisp, and (much to Zhou's relief) clothed. He fumbled around in the drawers of his bed-side table for a moment, and soon was lying on his back on one of the beds shoved against the walls. He slipped on his head-phones and soon Zhou could hear faint traces of 'California' by Phantom Planet.

"How's Xiao Qiao?" Asked Zhang after a moment, staring up at the ceiling. His bed was blanketed in a purple-blue color.

"Why?" Zhou asked, looking up from the book and over at his roomy where he lay on his back. Zhou was never quite sure how to respond to Zhang He- after all, there were so many rumors. Often, various students would approach Zhou. He's you roomy? Oh your poor thing! So tell me, what's it like? Is he really- Zhou sighed.

Shrugging, Zhang He tapped a button on his CD player, and Zhou lost the sound of the song. "I'm horribly bored... just curious."

"Well, it's none of your business, I guess." Zhou replied. "But she's doing just fine... and what's nearly as important: we're doing just fine."

Another short pause, and then- "Allright..."

Nothing more was said, and soon Zhou could here the music seeping out from beneath Zhang's ear-phones again.

"California, here we come

Right back where we started from..."