Till Someone Comes Along Chapter 13. Don't own SM or SLY. Please R&R. Round are way the birds are singin'...sorry, I'm an Oasis fan. (The 'are' is correct, actually.)

It was a huge ruckus the morning we were setting up for the show. I had told Minako that I was going to make the phone call(I didn't explain about a couple of nights before...she might get the wrong idea). Response I was expecting was:

"Great! Now, all we need is a fake voice so your cover isn't blown. Can you do an old lady's voice?"

Response received was:

"It's because of Motoki, isn't it?"

I groaned. "No. I need to get this out, Minako. Maybe we could have her die later."

"How? By eating too much beef?"

"Ha, ha," I said sarcastically.

"All right, all right," she said.

When we had gotten to the serious stuff, she promised that she'd handle the phone call through the magazine. I just had to phone her, and she'd connect me. Then, there was silence.

"Minako? Did you hang up?" I asked tentatively.

"Usagi, I love you hun. You know I do. You know I want to help you do what's right. That's what best friends do. But, hun, are you sure about this?"

"Yes." I sighed. "Motoki had nothing to do with my decision."

"Okay." she said. She giggled. "I saw him. What'd you do, beat him over the head with your rifle?"

"How'd you know I did that piece of art?" I asked, giggling too.

"Cause I know you. And I got him worse."

"No! How?"

So, Minako and I were fine as we chatted about the way she'd beaten him up, and kicked him down the stairs. I just hoped I'd be fine after all of this. Everyone was so busy on the set, and I found myself standing with Setsuna, helping her get ready, and running through her schedule. I took a sneak peak at the audience, and was shocked to see that the seats were packed. PACKED. I didn't feel so good anymore. The frappicino and croissant I had for breakfast didn't seem to want to stay where they had settled. After I rushed the agenda with Setsuna, I sneaked out and ran to my office. I grabbed the phone and quickly called Minako. "What am I going to DO?"

"If it's packed, I could claim I'm your agent, which means agent fee-"

"Minako!"

"Smile, say 'Hi. I'm glad to be on your show.' Answer questions." she said.

"What if I don't know the answers?" I was panicking.

Minako thought for a second. "You know, you're really riled. Maybe we should-"

"I'm not calling it off." I interrupted. She could still hear me hyperventilate.

"Usagi, are you sure?"

"Yes."

"Hold up, Motoki's on the other line. You won't mind that I have to connect you to him, do you?"

"Just do it." I said.

"I'll connect you soon. Just relax. Think of happy thoughts. Chocolate. Peter Pan. Stuff like that."

"Relax. Okay," I said, trying to psyche myself up. I looked to see Mamoru staring at me through the door. He tapped his watch and looked like he wanted to yank me out of the door by my long blonde hair. I held up a finger, meaning 'hold on', put down the phone carefully, and ran to the door.

"I'm making phone calls, Setsuna knows, now go!" I said in one breath. He looked a little confused.

"Whatever," he said. "Are you sure you're feeling well? Your cheeks are a little flushed."

I did feel a little warm - he was so close to finding out, and so close to me...

I took a deep breath. "I'm fine. Really. I've just been running around a lot."

He left, shaking his head, and after he was gone, I ran back to the phone. I took it with me under my desk, and again picked up the receiver. "Minako?"

"I thought you'd hung up!"

"Nope."

"For the absolute last time, are you sure you want to do this?"

I thought for a second. "Yes," I said, after what seemed like hours later.

Minako sighed. "All right. Here she is, Motoki."

There was a clicking sound, then a huge explosion of clapping on the other line. "Hello, Dr. Mason!" Motoki said. Suddenly, the clapping stopped.

"Hello, everyone. Today is an extreme pleasure, because I have with me an extremely important person in my life, as well as most of yours," Setsuna was saying in the background. I was in a daze. Suddenly, it was if my mouth had been injected with novocaine. I nearly dropped the phone.

"Dr. Mason?" Motoki asked.

I pressed the hold button, and held the phone to my chest, breathing heavily. I couldn't. I couldn't. I couldn't. I ran out of my office. The show was broadcast on every TV in the lobby, so I stopped and watched.

"It is my honor to be the only person that this remarkable woman will talk to in public," Setsuna said, gesturing to the huge picture that Minako and I had decided on so long ago, "and to have such a woman who impacted my life on my show. Ladies and gentlemen, in a live telephonic interview, Dr. Anne Marie Mason!"

The audience ruptured into applause. I wasn't so sure if I could do this. My stomach was churning, as if I was going to spill out everything inside of me.

"Hello, Dr. Mason," Setsuna said, holding her earpiece. I bolted to the wing of the stage and grabbed onto Mamoru's arm tightly.

"Wait right here. Don't move," I said solemnly.

He stuck a cigarette in his mouth, looking confused. "Okay, but what's with-"

"No smoking," someone said.

Mamoru turned his head slightly. "Fuck off," he said.

Setsuna, from where I could see, was looking confused at why her hero wasn't on the phone. "I'm not getting anything," she mouthed to Motoki.

As everyone scrambled around, trying to figure this out, I heard Mamoru's headset say, "Go to commercial."

I practically yanked his headset off, and said into it, "She's here! She wants to go on!"

"What?" Mamoru asked.

"What?" Motoki asked.

"What?" Setsuna asked.

"What?" I asked as Mamoru stared at me.

"What do you mean she's here? I haven't seen any senile old bag here," he said.

I handed him my jacket. "Hold this." I rolled my neck, shrugged my shoulders, and said, "You think I'm senile?"

"WHOA! Whoa, wait a minute, Usagi! What do you mean by that? YOU-" he said, holding me by the shoulders. He started gaping like a fish. I took his hands off my shoulders and walked on, getting ready for my introduction.

"Well, the reason we can't reach Dr. Mason telephonically is because she's actually here in our studio! Please give a welcome to Dr. Anne Marie Mason!"

I swear, all the members of our audience were not going to be able to speak for months after all the screaming they did today.

Mamoru was still staring at me as the make-up crew was choking me to death with powder and foundation and blush. I swiped at them, and they finally stopped. I walked on calmly, microphone at my collar, ready to tell the truth.

The background music was playing, and Setsuna stood up, all smiles - until she saw me. Her smile quickly dropped to a frown. "Usagi, what's the meaning of this? Where is Dr. Mason?"

Here came the hard part.

I took a deep breath. "I am Dr. Mason."

Setsuna stared. "What?"

I smiled, and shrugged. "I made her up, Setsuna." I wrote the article. I had all that research. It was all during my free time. It was a sick obsession. But, I thought that if the world saw it from an eighty-five year old Ph.D. who had seen the world, well, then it would be regarded as fact. It would be fact. I thought that it had made so much sense."

I sighed, and took another deep breath. "But I was wrong. Incredibly wrong. I thought that he couldn't go back to her because she was an old cow, and he was a bull moving onto greener pastures, This is utter nonsense! Worse than Lewis Carroll! I mean, I was comparing men to animals! Well, most of them are." There were a few giggles and twitters from the audience.

"But sometimes, they're not. And some of them are the diamond in the rough. You can open the hospital door, after she befalls some great tragedy, such as losing a baby, and she can still say she's the most beautiful woman in the world. And you can open the bedroom door, after you start crying so much that you look like Niagara Falls, and your face looks like a deflated balloon, and you feel like finally reaching for the gun to shoot yourself and get it over with, and he can come in, and hold you as your world is being ripped to shreds, and he can be honest. He-he can tell you that everything's going to be okay, and the world will go back together, and the pieces of your heart won't shatter into oblivion, and-and he'll tell you that you're beautiful, and...alive, and that Motoki is not the last man on Earth you are ever going to love. Then...you'll realize that...that you weren't wrong abut your feelings for him..."

I turned around and ran off the stage, ignoring the applause that followed me. "Where's Mamoru?" I demanded." Someone pointed, and I ran. I ran to his office to find it empty. I ran to my office to find it the same way. I grabbed my coat and ran out into the frigid January air, just to see him catch a taxi.

"Mamoru! MAMORU!" I cried, waving my arms. I chased the taxi down the block, where I suddenly lost it in traffic.

That was it. It was over. Mamoru, the only real hope I had left, was gone.

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I don't remember how long I stood there. I really don't even care. All I know is that I turned around, and a taxi pulled up. A familiar head of jet black hair came out of the backseat onto the sidewalk.

"Mamoru..." I said softly.

His look was a hard glare. He just stared at me. No words wanted to come out of him. Then, he said, "You should have told me."

I nodded.

"What you see is what you get?"

I shrugged. "Minus a Ph.D., gray hairs, a bun, wrinkles,"

"Okay."

"A cane, old lady clothes, orthopedic shoes,"

"You're rambling."

"You're making me nervous," I said.

He stared at me, his blue eyes dark and distant.

I took a deep breath. "You didn't hear the whole thing."

He was silent. Finally, "I don't want to," issued from his lips. He turned around and walked away.

"Mamoru! Don't tell me you don't feel the same way!" I cried to his back, almost becoming hysterical. He stopped.

"Ever since I met Motoki, I've had these dreams. You were standing in my office in most of them, and you kiss me like you love me, and you end up having-um..."

It was a very crowded street, so I probably shouldn't blurt out "had sex with you on the floor." I was getting looks anyway. But no matter how many looks, he needed to hear this.

"You were so kind to me," I said. "And, I don't know if it's kind of like foreshadowing our future, but it could be."

He turned his head slightly.

"I know you feel the same way!" I cried. "And I should have told you before, but when?"

He turned around fully, still silent.

"The night-New Year's Eve, remember? You were drunk. And I came. You ran out after me and found me crying on the sidewalk, do you remember?"

He took a few steps towards me.

"You picked me up, and you...you kissed me."

He stood a few inches away from my face.

"I found out that when you're drunk, you tend to be more honest, you know? So, I thought you felt the same way-the way I felt about you. Because instead of turning away, I kissed you...straight back."

His blue eyes were staring straight into mine. I was nervous.

"And during your hangover...when you fell asleep on the couch...I-I kissed you. I couldn't help it."

He was just staring. He looked angry.

I stood, unable to say any more without bursting into tears. It was a silent moment, our eyes locked onto each other like magnets.

"Say something," I whispered. "Anything."

He stood, searching my face with his eyes. Finally, he said, "I wasn't sure."

"About what?"

"You," he said. "Ever since you first moved in, and I got to comfort you, I knew something was going on. It was a feeling I haven't had. Ever. Not even with Mitsune."

I wasn't quite sure what to say or do.

"But, since the night of the cold pizza, it all finally seemed to click, Usagi. It all seemed to make sense. You. You were right in front of me, and I needed you the whole time." He smiled. "I love you."

I smiled, and nodded. I was going to cry if I said a word. He lifted my face up to his, and our lips met in a tender, passionate kiss.

I'd like to say it felt right.

But it didn't.

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Ooh! Cliffhanger! Okay, this is where the movie ended, but I couldn't stop writing. So, there's more. Chapter 14 will be up soon. Thank you for reading, one and all!

EternalSenshi