We reached the pool in a flash. Too worried to be tired, I saw Yuriko struggling in the pool, trying to gasp for breath. Her thin arms swung around wildly in the chloroform-filled water, and I could make out beneath all the splashes that her legs were kicking nonstop. However, despite all her attempts, she still didn't seem to be able to arise from the waters.

I looked around wearily for any sign of Shizuka, and ta-da! I spotted her sitting, well, actually floating, on one of the green bleachers near the side of the pool. She was laughing non-stop, and waved her hands like a conductor does in a orchestra.

Only… she wasn't making beautiful music.

She was trying to kill someone.

Groaning to myself at what I was about to do next, while F4 was staring at Yuriko in shock, I flung off my backpack and pushed it towards Akira.

"Hold this!" I said.

"Wait! What are you goin-…" His sentence faltered as he saw exactly what I was going to do.

Well, I couldn't just LEAVE Yuriko there. It'll go against all that I've learned, and a major deduct from my karma points.

Embracing myself with a huge gulp of air, I dived into the pool and free-styled my way towards Yuriko.

Cold.

That was the first thing that I thought of when I dived.

The second?

How I was SO going to ask for a major raise in my salary after this. Sensei had better get his wallet out and write me a huge, fat paycheck.

It was rather difficult to get to Yuriko, what with her swinging her arms around like a maniac and making giant waves that keeps on pushing me back.

"Dammit, Yuriko!" I bellowed out when I swam to the surface, panting from lack of breath. I was holding her two arms in my hands, trying to pull her up also. However, panicking because of the whole getting-drowned-by-invisible-air thing, she kept on struggling, unable to register anything in her mind. "Stop moving around!"

WHAM!

… You know what she did when I was attempting to help her get to the surface, without any thought about my clothes, my wet, strangled hair, and not to mention my CELLPHONE, which I had stupidly forgotten to take out of my pocket?

Yeah, she KICKED ME IN THE STOMACH.

This helping people thing was SO NOT going well. If everyone I help was going to hurt me and throw away my efforts, hell, I might as well just leave them hanging by their selves. Yeah, I totally should have done that.

Except that there was the little known fact that my conscience was still floating around somewhere in my brain.

DAMN IT.

The kick hurt. How could someone as skinny as her, with absolutely no muscle at all, kick so hard… I do not know. All that I was focusing on right there was trying to get her up, and trying to forget the pain she caused. And then, from the corner of my eye, I saw Shizuka, still laughing her head off.

I widen my eyes. The thought that I couldn't think of the simple idea that I just had thought of was astonishing, and I quickly cursed myself for being stupid and acting recklessly. Something that I definitely have to learn is to remain calm during a crisis.

Something that Sensei always reminded me of…

Guess I can't ask for the raise now.

Biting my lip to prevent myself from yelling at my frustration and my lack of IQ during the times that actually matters, I let go of Yuriko, who I noticed was starting to get weaker and weaker. I swam quickly towards the edge of the pool, and hastily pushed myself up and narrowed my eyes at Shizuka, who by then had stopped laughing, and stared at me.

"Having fun?" I hissed at her in my mind.

"It would be much more enjoyable if you were in the pool also," she replied back and smirked. "Maybe next time, my luck will increase."

"Yeah, and there might not be a next time if I make you vanish for good," I retorted back wearily from the heavy exercise in the pool.

She leered. "Asai Yuriko deserved it. She was hogging around Hanazawa Rui like a little slut, acting as if he belonged to her, flinging her breast into his face and trying to seduce him. His mind, body, soul, and heart is only for one person, and that person is me…"

"Uh… quick check, Toudou Shizuka. You're not a person, you're a ghost," I corrected her.

However, she didn't seem to like me correcting her words at all. "You better be careful, and stay away from Rui. Rui's mine. He's my one and only Rui."

I sprinted up the bleachers and quickly landed a punch into her face, without caring who saw me. They probably thought that I had gone bonkers, hitting the air. But seriously, did I care? They already hated me with my worn down clothes and my "flirtatiousness" towards F4. What's another one to add to the list?

"Tsukushi, what are you doing?" I heard Soujiro calling out at me.

"Nevermind me!" I shouted back. "Go and pull Yuriko up!"

A second later, I heard the sounds of splashes in the water, indicating that Soujiro had done what I told him to do. After all, this was the perfect chance, helping Yuriko as I was distracting Shizuka with punches.

"If you really love him, you'll learn to let him go," I whispered to her as I punched her again.

"I'll never let him go..." she spat out angrily as she started to glide slowly up into the air, glowing. "I already let him go once when I was living, and I've learned my lesson. I won't do it again. I'll never do it again."

I paused, my mind in shock.

So THAT was the reason why she didn't go. I mean, move on to the afterlife. Everything in the universe was suppose to be in balance… people get born, people live, people die, and people go on to their afterlife, living again… yet forgetting everything they did in their past life. You know, the whole wonderful cycle that can never be changed. The perfect harmony that occurs for the balance in our universe to remain… well, balanced.

Yet, if something holds you back when you die, then the whole balance gets disrupted… and that was what was holding Toudou Shizuka.

Her love for Hanazawa Rui... and the regret that she had let him go.

Let him go exactly HOW, I don't know… but I intended to find out. Because I was already feeling guilty for punching Shizuka… after realizing what was holding her back.

It wasn't jealously. It wasn't hatred. It wasn't revenge. It was… simply love. Pure love.

However, if a ghost continues to stay here… in the living realm, then everything will be chaotic. For the ghost, such as Shizuka, no matter how nice, how wonderful, and how good she was while she was living… will turn evil. The ghost will slowly be consumed by hatred, and not only does it affect the people around it, but if it stays in the world any longer, chances of it going into afterlife will slowly decrease to 0 and once it does, there would be no choice for what the people of Yuui are suppose to do. We'll have to exorcise the ghost, either beating it or using our magic on it until it vanishes for good. And once it vanishes, guess where it goes?

Yeah, down there. The flaming fires of hell where they'll get brutally tortured for all eternity.

… This is something that no one deserves. No one at all. So you see why I have to convince Shizuka to move on? She doesn't deserve torture forever, especially since the main reason she refuses to move on is because of love, her love for one guy.

My thoughts got interrupted of feeling pity for Shizuka was quickly interrupted, however, when she did something that could have easily ended my life right there and then. She pushed me down towards the pool. Fortunately, she wasn't sitting very high up in the bleachers, probably like four or five seats up and the pool was really close, so guess where I fell in?

Yup, a loud splash into the pool told everyone that Makino Tsukushi fell in.

Unfortunately, I think my arm broke… and my head definitely banged into something hard… which caused me to become unconscious.

Again.

For the second time in one day.

On my first day of school at Eitoku University.

In front of everybody.

Including F4, four of the hottest guys I've ever seen.

And since nobody, at least nobody I know of, can see Shizuka… they'll just see me tripping down the bleachers and say "BEHOLD, THE CLUMSY PRINCESS OF POORVILLE!"

…

No comment.

----------

Darkness.

I regained conscious as I heard some voices debating… however, I didn't open my eyes.

My head was pounding like hell, as if someone got a huge iron hammer and started thumping my head with it. My arm felt weird and dislocated, a sort of numbing feeling was coming from there. My breathing was harsh and rapid, and it seemed like I had to try hard to breathe in air.

At times like these, I wish I was unconscious again, just so I wouldn't be able to feel anything.

"You do it!" This voice seemed to be Soujiro's voice.

"Are you kidding me? She already slapped Tsukasa for trying to put a towel on her! What if she wakes up and sees me?" Akira's voice rang out.

"So what?" Soujiro said again.

"So what? What are you talking about? What if she kicks my "place" where the sun doesn't shine?"

I smirked inwardly.

"It doesn't matter! Better you than me. I need mine to please the ladies."

"And I don't?"

"… Fair point. Nevermind then, Tsukasa, you do it then…" I could feel Soujiro grinning, even with my eyes closed.

"What…?" Tsukasa sounded extremely confused.

"Oh yeah… Tsukasa can do it. I mean, if Tsukushi wakes up and kicks you there, it wouldn't matter anyways… since we're still not sure if yours even works, and you're likely to remain a sad, lonely virgin forever anyways…" Akira laughed.

"YOU TWO WANT TO DIE?" Tsukasa yelled out, and I could feel feet scampering around.

A few seconds passed as I continued to lay there with my eyes closed, laughing to myself at what Soujiro and Akira kept on saying about Tsukasa and his virgin being. I mean, they were exchanging secrets! Who knew that the ferocious temper of the leader of F4 is a virgin? Anyways, I didn't even know what they were going to do that would cause me to kick their nuts. My curiosity held me back… so I pretended to still be drifting off in dreamland.

"You know… Tsukushi's probably going to be dead in a few more seconds, so one of us has to do it," Soujiro finally said.

There were a few seconds of pause.

DO WHAT, PEOPLE? DO WHAT?

And then, I felt warm hands on my face and I could feel somebody breathing down on me.

Oooh… so that's what they were arguing about. Who was going to be the one giving me CPR.

… wait….CPR consisted of mouth-to-mouth touching…

My eyes quickly flew open as I felt somebody's lips gently touch mine a little bit, and gathering my what little ounce of strength I had left, I used my arms and pushed back those broad, heavy shoulders away from me. I was SO NOT going to lose my first kiss to some guy I hardly knew.

First of all, before you laugh about me being a 20-year-old girl who has never kissed before, hear me out. After my parent's death and Sensei found me, my mind was too busy into revenging and studying with Sensei to worry about all those love stuff. After that, heavy training had followed at Kijutsu University. It wasn't some regular university with fraternities and parties. It was completely intense… every minute of it was not to be wasted because not only we were learning to save others, but we were also learning to save ourselves. So you see why Valentine's day and Cupid's arrows have never reached me in any way special?

Thankfully, the lips only touched me a little bit, hardly enough to be called a kiss. The person I shoved away from me?

Mimasaka Akira.

"What the HELL were you thinking?" I screeched out.

He blinked at me in surprised and regained his composure. "Well, see… I was trying to perform a little mouth-to-mouth action because you looked all hot, just laying there, motionless. And you're all wet too and pale too. Did you know that just turns me on?" he said sarcastically.

I rolled my eyes. "Ha-ha."

"What were YOU doing, just lying there and not telling us that you're awake?" Tsukasa demanded, once he got over the shock of me suddenly waking up.

"Well, you guys were telling secrets… If I opened my eyes, how would I have known that you're a virgin?" I said casually.

He narrowed his eyes. "If you tell anybody about it, I'll make your life a living hell..." he warned.

"... What are you going to do? Spread your virgin-ness to me?" I smirked.

Tsukasa stared at me and seemed to be in huge shock. "You're not scared of me…? Have you ever HEARD of Doumyouji Corp.?"

"Of course," I said impatiently. "I mean, who hasn't?"

"Then why…?"

"Let's just say that I've encountered much scarier things then… people made of money," I replied wearily.

He opened his mouth, but then stopped himself.

Silence... and then…

"Your bra is showing," Soujiro pointed out.

My cheeks grew hot as I looked down. True enough, because I was wearing a white shirt and it got wet, my dark blue bra was showing clearly.

"Uh… uh…" I stammered, and then quickly used my arms to cover my chest. "Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

Soujiro grinned. "Let's see… the view was great, and we used it to give Tsukasa a little sex education."

I glared at him, marched forward, and whacked him in the head. Right after that, Tsukasa came and hit in there too, in the exact spot.

"OW! I was just kidding!" he exclaimed, holding his bruised spot.

Hmph! I hope that spot grows into a big gigantic lump, and it'll repel every single girl away from him.

What a sex freak…

I could feel somebody putting a coat over my shoulders, and I turned my head around to see Akira. "Hey, thanks…" I smiled.

"No problem. Don't listen to Soujiro, there wasn't really much a view. In fact, there wasn't a view at all. I'm just covering it up so it'll save us the shock of how flat it is," he replied cheekily as he swept his hand over his hair.

And for that, I hit him in the back of the head too. Just then, I realized that there was one person short.

"Hey, where's Hanazawa Rui?" I asked.

Soujiro shrugged. "Probably off sleeping."

"Sleeping?"

"Yeah, he needs at least fifteen hours a day in order to satisfy him."

I bit my lip. I was kind of hoping I could ask Hanazawa Rui about Shizuka, but I guess I'll probably have to wait, just until I'm closer to him. After all, the sooner I get this over with, the sooner Shizuka will be able to rest in peace.

"Well…" I said awkwardly. "It's getting late, so I have to go…"

Akira looked at me, his eyes, I could tell, worried. "You sure you'll be able to get home in this… er… wet thing?"

I nodded and started to go for my backpack. "Oh, and by the way…" I started to say as I was walking away. "If I ever need CPR again, get someone else. By the time you guys are finished arguing with each other on who to give me mouth-to-mouth resurrection, I'd be dead already," I said grimly. "So you can see why I don't want to put my precious life onto either of your hands."

With that, I walked away.

However, I didn't walk to the bus stop, where I needed to go in order to get back to my lovely home with Sensei. I wanted to go to the rooftop, just to make sure that Hanazawa Rui wasn't there. After all, I didn't think anybody could go to sleep, right after the accident with Yuriko.

… Speaking of Yuriko… I wonder how she is…

Walking slowly up towards the rooftop, I pushed open the door, only to find somebody already sitting there on the edge.

"Hanazawa Rui…" I whispered.

Such a strange name as I was whispering it. Hanazawa Rui and Toudou Shizuka. What was the story behind his expressionless face and her angry, yet beautiful face? What had happened that caused him to become this way, a walking dead, yet full of emotion that I could not comprehend? What was hidden deep inside his heart… what does his feelings show… and why hide behind that impassive aloof face? Even though he attempts to show no expression, his eyes betrayed what his mind told him to do. His eyes followed his heart, and that was something that enchanted me towards him… pulled me towards him. What was the story of Rui and Shizuka?

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Meh, finally updated another chapter. It's been a while, neh? Oh, just to let you know, the way I update my chapters is at least 10 reviews per chapter, k? I'm not being stingy; I'd just appreciate some reviews so I'll know that people at least read them… so… anyways, hope you enjoyed this chapter!

S.Y.