Tick tack. Tick tack. Tick… BANG!

Mwu's mind replayed the irritating sounds leading to his broken alarm clock. Why he had gotten one of those vintage non-electronic clocks was far beyond him at this point. All it did was remind him of the time that had passed between his last encounter with Azumi and now.

It had been a week. An entire week since he had talked to her… and she had kissed him. He had made sure someone brought her meals and often asked whoever saw her how she was doing, but he couldn't bring himself to face her. Mwu had never felt so confused in his life and even though his fever was long-gone, he was still unable to sleep. She plagued every last one of his thoughts.

It was clear that he wouldn't have peace until he talked with Azumi and he had to talk with her tonight, or he would go absolutely mad. At least he knew that the Coordinator was tormented by this as well; he had been told that she hardly ate and seemed constantly distracted or lost in thought.

As Mwu set down the corridor to the prisoners' ward, he replayed the speech he had prepared in his mind. He was lucky not to have met anyone on his journey, or he would probably have ended up walking into them. Taking a deep breath, he turned into the corridor leading to Azumi's cell. He felt like an actor about to face a large audience, only this was much more personal.

He found the girl lying in bed, staring at the ceiling, the covers strewn across the floor. She didn't even seem to notice his presence, until he began entering the code to open the door.

"Mwu?" This time, it held no excitement, just a detached curiosity. She had too much pride to look anywhere but into the man's eyes and so their gazes locked, as if in battle, challenging one another to turn away first. Finally, Mwu did.

"Look Azumi, we both know what we have to talk about." Mwu stated as calmly as ever. All memory of his prepared speech seemed to evaporate, no matter how hard he tried to recall it. Luckily for him, Azumi spoke first.

"I'm sorry, Mwu. I shouldn't have. It was stupid." From the emotion in her voice, or lack thereof, he knew Azumi was holding in her real thoughts on the subject.

"But why? Did you mean it at all?" Her calm demeanour was beginning to irritate him. It was as if the confusion and restlessness that kiss had caused him weren't even able to touch her.

"I don't know."

'Whoever said that a person's eyes are a gateway to their soul was gravely mistaken.' Mwu thought bitterly. All Azumi's impassive eyes reflected was the dull light from the lamp.

"Yes, you do. Tell me why! I know you had a reason behind it. What was it, Azumi? Were you hoping I'd help you escape? Or maybe you were just bored? What is it?" Mwu refused to believe that the kiss had meant anything to Azumi. He wasn't sure what he would do if it had. The repetitive throbbing headache only increased his irritation, which was now bordering on anger.

"How could you think that I would sink so low, you jerk?" The betrayal that had stabbed Azumi's heart at Mwu's words was cracking through her protective shell of apathy. They were both standing up now, facing each other.

"That's just it; I don't think you would sink so low, but I can't understand why you kissed me and you're too proud or hard-headed, or whatever to tell me!" Mwu's vocabulary was beginning to fail him, along with his short-lived anger.

Azumi couldn't stand his burning eyes anymore, so she averted her gaze. She had to tell him, she knew. "I… I've just never felt this way… about anyone before." With about 16 years of experience with words, it was surprising just how hard it was for Azumi to say that last phrase. "I don't know if I love you, but it's as close to the feeling as I've ever gotten. I know it's completely wrong, what with us being enemies and all, but I can't help the way I feel, Mwu! I'm sorry if I caused you any trouble."

Mwu's stunned silence brightened her blush by a few extra shades. He hadn't expected her to say it and now that she had, he wasn't certain how to reply. He had thought about Azumi's feelings for him multiple times, but he hadn't spent a moment to reflect on his own feelings for the girl. Well, he was known for taking risks…

He stepped closer to the waiting woman. "Azumi, don't be sorry. I don't regret what happened and neither should you." The words came out in a sort of hoarse whisper, as if his voice hadn't been used in ages. He cupped her chin in his right hand and tilted her head up, so that she was looking at him. Running his thumb across her bottom lip, he knew that his mind was made up. "Just tell me that you want this, Azumi."

She let the words hang between them for a moment, before replying. "I do. I want to be with you, Mwu."

Unable to stand it any longer, Mwu captured the Coordinator's lips in a deep kiss, his arms snaking their way around her waist, bringing her closer to his body. Soon, Azumi's arms were wound around his neck, her fingers running through his golden locks.

It was finally beginning to make sense, to fall together into place. They spent that night in each other's arms, as they would spend many subsequent nights, whispering empty promises in the dark.

Author's note: Ok, so I was informed that Naturals can go SEED, especially if they have Newtype tendencies, and considering Mwu is a Newtype, I guess he did go SEED. Ok, big love scene here (well, not that big, but you get my point). I hope it wasn't too lame. Romance isn't really one of my fortes. xD There's only one chapter left, but I probably won't finish it until next week. Until then, I have nothing stupid left to say, so bye.