Hey all! I really appreciate all your reviews and feedback. Oh, and I don't really think you're peasants. That was a joke. This accursed Quick-Edit destroys my precious smileys!

So...this is chapter three. There's a lot of fluff here. Also, there's a few references in this chapter I need to clear up:

In Kogoro and Eri's literature class, they are studying the book 'Kokoro' by Natsume Soseki. This is a VERY famous Japanese novel, and is a very beautiful story about life, choices, friendship, and love, unrequited or otherwise. I have read it, and recommend it to anyone who loves pretty, sad stories. Kogoro talks about a character, whom he refers to as 'Sensei', the Japanese word for teacher. This can be a little confusing. 'Sensei' is never mentioned by any other name in the book, none of the characters are given 'real' names...the narrator is never mentioned by name, and he refers to the other characters by title ('Sensei', 'Ojosan', etc.). It's supposed to be metaphorical, but Kogoro doesn't really read that deeply into the text (as you will see). So yeah, he's not talking about his teacher.

It's also fair to mention that this is uber-fluffy and cute! This chapter doesn't really move the plot along, but I like it because it develops K and E's relationship. I love you all! Enjoy!

They got a wall in China

It's a thousand miles long

To keep out the foreigners they made it strong

And I got a wall around me

That you can even see

It took a little time

To get next to me

-Paul Simon, "Something So Right"

"Are you mad about what happened yesterday, Eri? Because if you are, I said I was sorry, so can you please stop ignoring me?"

Kogoro didn't want to start begging, but if it came down to it, he probably would. After everything that had happened yesterday, cold-shoulder was the last thing he needed.

Eri and he had met before school to walk together, but of course, Eri was acting cold and distant and refused to say anything at all.

"Is it because I skipped?"

"No."

Well, Kogoro thought, At least the barrier of communication has been broken.

"Is it because I was going to the race-track?"

"As highly annoying and irresponsible of you as that is, no."

"Is it because I felt you up?"

"NO."

"Is it because you were embarrassed in front of a bunch of your precious teachers?"

"No."

Kogoro scratched his head. He was running out of things that he had done.

"Is it because I stole your perfect math homework and copied it for my own nefarious purposes?"

"I didn't even know you stole my math homework."

Hehe...whoops.

"That would be because I didn't...I was just testing you!" He rubbed the back of his head and laughed nervously.

What followed was an uncomfortable silence.

"Is it-"

"Were you even planning on telling me about your little 'chat' with Kakashi?" she said, suddenly.

Kogoro stopped dead. Eri was staring determinedly in the opposite direction, but her voice was obviously trembling.

"He...he was th-THREATENING you, and you...you didn't even tell me! I thought we were friends, but I guess you don't even...trust me...enough...Kogoro, it was because of me that he was going to give you all those detentions!"

Eri's eyes filled with tears. Suddenly, she reeled on him.

"You could have been REALLY hurt in there! Why did you even go to that 'meeting', anyway??"

"What was I supposed to do?" Kogoro spat, angrily. "How was I to know the guy was gonna say all those things?? He just asked me to see him after school! And you didn't hear it all, did you?"

She stepped back, slightly surprised.

"I...I heard enough. I think I walked by about half-way through...he was telling you to stay away from me..."

"You didn't hear it all, then!" He yelled. "You didn't have to listen to him going on about your best friend like she was some kind of...of school trophy, or something!"

She was full on crying at this point. Slowly she took off her glasses and gently rubbed them with her handkerchief.

"What did he say?" she sniffled. "I heard those things he said about me...that pervert..."

Kogoro's expression softened.

"Eri...Eri, please don't cry. He's not worth crying over."

"I'm NOT crying about that!" she wailed, "I'm just crying because-oh, you wouldn't understand!"

Kogoro awkwardly stuck his hands in his pockets, and the two continued walking. He snuck a glance at her from the corner of his eye and found her doing the same. Both flushed slightly and looked away.

"So...am I forgiven?"

"Why should I forgive someone who doesn't even say 'sorry'?" She stuck her nose in the air and pushed her glasses up the bridge of it.

"Fine! I'm sorry, okay?? I didn't tell you...I didn't tell you because I knew you'd react this way!" He snapped.

"If I didn't have to eavesdrop to hear these sort of things maybe I WOULDN'T 'react this way'!" she snapped back.

"Hmph!" Kogoro pulled a face and turned away again, chin juttling out sulkily.

"...I heard those things you said about me, you know..."

"NANI?????" Kogoro dropped the box of cigarettes he was trying to discreetly take out of his book bag and place in his pocket. They fell on the ground and scattered everywhere. Kogoro tried to block them from Eri's view, but the damage was done. One had rolled over her foot.

"Hehe...really...it's not what it looks like, Eri..."

Kogoro quickly looked over at Eri, expecting her to be furious (cigarettes were one of her favorite nag topics). She had stopped walking, and much to his surprise, bent down and picked up the cigarettes and placed them carefully back in their box, quite expressionlessly.

"Eri...is something wrong with you?"

She looked up, and Kogoro found her smiling, a faint blush on her cheeks.

"No, of course not."

"Then why-?"

"-Did you mean it?" she interrupted abruptly.

He started nervously. Kogoro had a feeling he might need the cigarettes Eri was holding very shortly and was staring at them longingly.

"Erm...did I mean what?" He asked slowly, feigning ignorance.

"You know." she said, longing expression obvious. "What you said to Kakashi. About me...that you wouldn't ever abandon me-"

"-Unless you asked me to." he finished for her, grinning sheepishly. "Oh, THAT'S what you meant. Well, um, I mean, I had to say something to Kakashi, so I-"

Eri was pleased to note that she was not the only one who blushed.

"You know what's really interesting?" she asked, smiling broadly.

"No, what?"

The smile instantly dropped.

"The fact that you only ever compliment me when you think I can't hear you." Eri answered, flatly. She immediately turned on her heal and continued walking towards the school. Still a bit flushed, Kogoro realized a terrible truth.

She's still got my cigarettes!

"Wait up, Eri! Why d'you-"

"Oh, you want your box of death back, do you?"

Kogoro winced at the return of Eri's usual snippish attitude towards his 'habits'. He was standing at her right side, and she jangled the box in her left hand, just out of reach.

"Come on, Eri! Those are an expensive brand!"

"Your medical bill will be even MORE expensive if you keep it up...so kiss them good-bye!"

With uncanny accuracy she threw them up in the air and straight in the trash. Kogoro had a strong urge to cry. He made a move to run after them.

"Ow! Eri, Eri, that HURTS!"

"Come on, dunce, we're already running late as it is!"

Irritably, she dragged him buy the collar to their classroom. Most of the reason she was irritable was because those damn cigarettes had spoiled a perfectly good romantic moment.

Wait a minute...ROMANTIC??? Yeah, right!...Right?

"Can anyone explain what Soseki-sensei meant by this passage? Anyone? Mouri, what about you?"

Kogoro raised his head slowly to meet his sensei, Tsuori's, stern gaze.

"Were you even paying attention at ALL, Mouri?"

Kogoro stood up and bowed exaggeratedly, hitting his head on the top of his desk. A few seats over, Eri silently rolled her eyes.

"Yes, Sensei. I was merely contemplating the genius of Soseki-sensei and was lost in my thought." He arranged his face in what he thought to be a charming smile.

"Alright then, Mouri...explain to the class the character of...Sensei." Tsuori smirked. He obviously wanted to make a fool of Kogoro.

Or have Kogoro make a fool of himself, Eri thought, worriedly. She thought it was unfair how much the teachers singled Kogoro out when there were plenty of students who slacked off even more then him.

But I have to admit, no one slacks off QUITE as comically as Kogoro.

She inwardly giggled as she remembered many of the dumb things he had done over the years that had made her laugh.

"Kisaki, is there something funny about the character of 'Sensei'?"

She blushed, realizing she had been laughing aloud, thinking about a twelve-year-old Kogoro trying to explain to the science teacher why an experiment involving a racecar, piece of measuring tape, and timer had blown up his desk.

"No, Sensei, there is nothing funny about the character of Sensei. In fact..." she glanced at Kogoro trying to remember 'Kokoro's' characters, "He's a very TRAGIC character." She emphasized the word 'tragic'.

Kogoro's eyes widened and he grinned. Tsuori noticed the small exchange and frowned darkly. Kogoro grinned even more at the frown.

"Oh, yeah, 'Sensei'. The old guy, right? I remem-I mean, I was just thinking of how to word my explanation. So, um...Sensei..."

He became more serious.

"He's a guy whose had to make some hard choices in his life. I mean, in the last part you learn that he and his best friend were both in love with the same girl, and he had to choose, who's more important, him or his friend?"

Eri choked. She hadn't expected her little hint to go THAT far. Had Kogoro actually READ 'Kokoro' when she told him to? She looked over at Tsuori, who was also very surprised, and kept glancing from her to Kogoro and back very suspiciously.

"He chose himself, and he lost his best friend in the process. So I guess this brings up the point...what's more important, friendship or...love?"

Kogoro and Eri's eyes met for a split second, and he smiled at her. Eri once AGAIN found her face reddening. He closed his eyes and continued, still surprisingly serious.

"He chose love, and he lost friendship. I don't know what I would have done..."

"Tell us what part 'Sensei' plays in the beginning of the book, if you're so clever, Mouri." Tsuori sneered. He obviously thought that Eri was somehow helping Kogoro cheat.

"He basically consuls the, erm...I guess 'young guy'. One thing about this book that I thought was odd was that no one has a name." He sweatdropped and rubbed the back of his head.

Eri sweatdropped.

The 'serious thing' obviously didn't last very long.

"Yeah, so he basically mentors the narrator about, things that he does, making the right choices, I think he doesn't want him to make the same mistakes that he, that is, Sensei, made. Sensei's always asking the young guy why he wants to spend time with an old man like him, which is what I was wondering the whole book, besides why I was reading it. Whenever I wondered THAT I just thought about what Kisaki-san over there would do to me if I didn't and I found the will-power within myself to finish." he mockingly bowed to the class and sat down. A few people clapped, but most people just laughed at what he had said about Eri.

The sensei was fuming, but he didn't comment much.

"...Thank you, Mouri. That was very...interesting. I would like to speak with you and Kisaki after class, if you please."

The two exchanged dark glances.

"That was very a very amusing performance in class today."

Kogoro, always ready to accept a compliment, however heavily barbed, bowed appreciatively.

"I'm not really sure what you're talking about, Sensei, but I'm pleased you were amused, in any case."

Eri rubbed her temples wearily.

"I've had enough of your little charade, Mouri! I know that Kisaki helped you answer my questions somehow!"

Kogoro pulled a face, obviously very disgusted.

"What, you think I'm not capable of answering a question on my own?"

"Kisaki, what do you have to say about this?" Tsuori rounded on Eri.

"I'm just as surprised as you, Sensei." Eri said, flatly.

"Thanks a LOT, Eri." retorted Kogoro, sarcastically.

"You didn't help him cheat?" Tsuori stared her squarely in the eye.

"No." she answered. She returned his stare evenly.

For a long time he stared at the two of them, before saying,

"You may go."

Eri sighed as soon as they were out of the classroom, relieved that she could talk freely again. Kogoro laughed loudly.

"Hahaha! We showed that guy!"

"Showed what? It's not as if either one of us lied." Eri smirked.

Kogoro stopped laughing immediately.

"Geez, Eri, spoil my fun, will ya'? I was just enjoying the delusion that I'd gotten you to help me cheat."

The two walked down the hall to the locker rooms. As they had been detained, they were both late for P.E.

Eri laughed.

"So, spill, Kogoro. You must've read 'Kokoro', to know all that about the character of 'Sensei'."

Kogoro laughed, nervously.

"Well, yeah, I DID read it..."

She narrowed her eyes.

"...Yes?"

"...7 months ago."

"NANI????" she yelled. "Why'd you read it last summer??"

"Well, it was one of the books you gave me. Remember? To 'correct the illiteracy' you believed had 'festered within my brain'? Your words, by the way." he laughed.

"Wait a minute...you actually READ those books?" Eri asked, somewhat surprised.

"Of course, Eri..." He smiled. "I always read books...if you give them to me."

He flushed, after realizing what he had just said.

"...Really?"

Suddenly, Kogoro got VERY uncomfortable.

"Um, Eri, we've got P.E., you know, don't want to be any later-"

With that, he sprinted off to the boys' locker rooms, leaving one VERY emotionally confused Eri Kisaki.

Poor Eri...she's so confused. Sorry, hon, but you're going to be for QUITE a few more chapters...hehehe, maybe I've said too much.

Please R&R!!!!