Okay, I know the last chapter wasn't as dramatic as I hoped it would be but this one should make up for it.

A Painful Choice

Todd hopped down the deserted street away from the Brotherhood house. He couldn't believe Pietro would do something like that. It was bad enough he had called him pathetic just because he had kept Serena's pictures. I mean the guy has a collection of pictures of all the girls he had ever dated or wanted to date. He had no right to call him pathetic. And he definitely had no right to burn those pictures. Now how could he ever hope to recover his lost memories?

Todd made his way to the park and hopped along the grass. If only he could just talk to her. But how could he face her after what he did to her? He stopped, crouching on the grass, and sighed. What he wouldn't give to see her face again. He looked up and screamed as he saw a girl flying straight towards him. There was no time to move as the person collided with him sending them both rolling hard onto the ground. When they came to a stop Todd groaned and tried to get up but the girl had landed on top of him. He looked to see who it was and he gasped. The girl lifted her head up and her dark hair slid out of her face. It was Serena.

When she saw him her eyes widened in surprise and she pushed herself off of him and fell backwards. He rolled over onto his back and sat up staring at her not knowing what to say. If the impact hadn't been so painful he would've thought this whole thing was a dream. He opened his mouth to say something but she scrambled to her feet.

"Wait! Don't go!" He said frantically grabbing her hand before she could take off. It was like an electric shock. She felt a jolt go through her as his hand met hers. She slowly turned her head to look at him. She could sense his confusion, worry and irritation - in fact, she felt as if every inch of her body was sensitized to what he might be feeling. He quickly let go of her hand a little embarrassed.

"Sorry." He muttered quietly. "If you don't wanna stay you don't have to." He got up off the ground and walked away not wanting to look at her. Todd walked over and sat on the end of the seesaw. Way to go Toad. You just showed her how pathetic you are. Stupid Toad! Stupid!

Suddenly he started going up and he was so startled he had to cling onto the board to keep himself from falling off. He looked up to see what had caused his ascension. He saw that Serena had climbed onto the other end of the seesaw and was now staring back at him. They just sat there, balanced on the seesaw, staring at each other. Suddenly a tear slowly slid down her cheek. She quickly wiped it away.

It was strange, Todd thought. Her face looked so empty, so emotionless, as if she wasn't feeling anything at all. And yet a tear had somehow found its way out of the mask and revealed what was truly hidden behind that emotionless face. He leaned back so that her side rose up, and his went down. There was a flicker of surprise in her eyes but she made no sudden movements. Todd opened his mouth and spoke the first words he had said to her in a long time.

"So, what are you doing out here?" It was a while before he had gotten an answer. She looked at him strangely as if she was talking to an old friend she hadn't seen in years. Todd waited for her to reply.

"I could ask you the same thing. Why aren't you with the Brotherhood?"

"Why ain't you with the X-Men?"

She lifted an eyebrow. "Why do you want know?" Todd realized that she was challenging him. He decided to take the bait.

"Why won't you tell me?"

"What will you achieve by asking?"

"Do I have to have a reason?"

"Do I have to have to have an answer?"

'She's pretty good.' Todd thought. "I don't suppose you might give me one?"

"Give you what?"

"Don't you know?"

"Should I?"

"Are you just messing with me?"

"What do you think?"

"So you won't answer?"

"Must you be so persistent?"

"You don't wanna tell me?"

"How is it any of your concern?"

"Ain't it enough that I asked?"

"Would that be called a reason?"

"Is that really my place to say?"

"How should I know?"

"Did you know that you're making me angry?"

"Should I care?"

"What is the average speed velocity of an unladen swallow?" Todd said trying to throw her off, though it had little effect.

"African or European?"

"What is your favorite color?"

"Why should I tell you?"

"What is the capital of Wisteria?"

"Where's Wisteria?"

"What color is my underwear?"

"Do I even want to know?"

"Is this ever going to end?"

"Why? Aren't you having fun?"

"Okay, okay! I surrender!"

Her face broke out in a small, jubilant smile. The first true smile she had made in weeks. "About time."

"Dang yo, you're pretty good." Todd complimented.

"You're not half bad yourself."

"Thanks." He gently pushed up from the ground so that he rose up and she went down. "So what were you doing?"

"Just wandering around." She said as she landed on the ground and pushed back up. "What about you? What were you doing?"

"Me? Just thinking."

"What about?" She asked.

"About why the world has it in for me."

"You too?"

"Why? What's happened to you?" He asked curiously.

She rolled her eyes. "The adults think I'm dangerous and are putting me through therapy."

"Yeah, I'm going through the same thing with my friends."

"Weird." She said.

It was odd rocking up and down while talking to a girl, that he possibly loved, as if they were nothing more than old friends. He didn't know what to think or how to feel. "Ever feel like you're going crazy?"

"All the time."

"Life just crappy?"

"Yep."

"Don't wanna live anymore?"

"Are you asking me because that's how you feel, or is it because you know that's how I feel?"

"Kinda both."

She gave a small sigh. "I just get tired of all this stuff that's happening to me. Sometimes it just doesn't seem worth it."

"Yeah, I'm going through a rough time and my so-called friends aren't helping any. A pert of me wants to talk to them but another part of me just wants to be left alone."

"Believe me I know exactly how you feel." She said sensitively.

"I feel confused. Everyday it's seems to get more difficult. I don't know how I feel, what to do or where to go. I don't want to feel this way. I wish I could just ignore it. Throw it all away and be in control again."

"But you can't can you?" It was more of a statement than a question. "No matter what you do it's always going to be there."

Todd realized how easy she was to talk to. He had never shared all this with the rest of the Brotherhood. He mostly kept it inside. And yet here he was pouring out his soul to a girl without any thought.

"I want to ask you something." She said intently.

"Shoot."

"Why did you do all that stuff at school?"

He looked at her surprised. "How do you know about that?"

"The X-Men weren't really happy about what you did."

Todd ran a hand through his hair nervously. "Yeah I think I got the whole school mad."

"So why did you do it?" She prompted.

"I don't know. I guess because it made me forget about my troubles for a while."

"But it doesn't last long." She said knowingly. "You have to keep yourself busy in order to keep your mind off of it. If you stop for even a minute it all comes back to trouble you."

Todd nodded. "Exactly. I wish I could find an easier way."

"There is a way. I know because I've experienced it before."

"How?"

"It's easy to forget your problems as long as you have something close to you. Something that makes you feel wonderful. Something that gives you a reason to live."

"Like who?"

"It can be anything, friends, family…"

"…Someone you love." Todd finished.

Serena didn't say anything but she nodded solemnly. Todd felt embarrassed. You idiot! Why did you say something like that? He thought to himself.

"You're not an idiot." She said perceptively.

"Huh? How did you…?"

"It's okay to feel confused. I know this is really weird for you, I feel the same way. You're not sure why you're here, what you're doing, or even what to think. It makes no sense. How could you not remember anything about you and this person sitting right in front of you, when almost everyone else does? You don't think it's fair. You search for answers but you only find more questions. You feel ignorant, naïve, and at a complete loss. You hate the fact that you know something but don't remember anything about it." Todd stared at her in bewilderment. She was reading him like a book. "But don't think you're an idiot just because you don't understand what you're feeling."

"How do you know all this?" He asked taken aback.

"For one thing, it's written all over your face." She smiled wryly. "For another my empathy is a little unrestrained."

Todd grinned. "Aw, that's not fair."

"I can't help it. My empathy is just out of whack."

"Wait a minute, I thought you had water powers." Todd said frowning a little.

"I do, I only have a slight gift of empathy and telepathy." Todd noticed how she said "gift" with contempt in her voice.

"I'm guessing you don't enjoy having it."

"I hate it."

"Is it that bad?"

"Let's just say it's so bad that I can hear anyone's thoughts if they get near me. And when I'm in a crowd of people…"

"Man that's gotta be rough."

"Especially when everyone thinks you're a lunatic."

Todd winced. "Ouch."

Serena knew this was going to be difficult for them both. She didn't want Todd to feel uncomfortable about this whole thing. She wondered how she could make the situation easier for both him and her. Then she was struck by brilliance. She could just act as if this was the first time they had ever met. That way it would be easier for her to talk to Todd, and make everything seem less weird.

"So what do you like to do after school?"

Todd scratched his head. "Um, chill out with my buds I guess."

"I thought you liked to cause trouble."

"Well that too. What about you, yo? What do you like to do?"

Two hours later…

"And then there was one time where Lance and Pietro were digging in the back yard so they could bury this hideous looking statue that Tabitha had gotten one time. Unfortunately she found out about it and had hit Lance over the head with the shovel."

"Oh my gosh, I would've loved to see that!" Serena laughed. "What did she do to Pietro?"

"Well she tried to hit him with one of her bombs but ended up destroying the statue instead. So she replaced his hair gel with pancake syrup."

"Oh no, he must've been ticked off."

"He was. So he decided to get revenge by putting a beetle in her face cream."

"Oh dear."

"Yeah, it started a huge prank war. But they eventually called a truce."

"They did?" She said surprised.

"Sure, right after Lance threatened that he would collapse the house on them while they were sleeping if they didn't knock it off."

Serena giggled a little. "That does sound like Lance."

"Yeah, Lance is like the big brother of the group y'know? The older, more responsible sibling."

"Yeah I know what you mean. I have an older brother and he has a hard time keeping the twins under control."

"They couldn't possibly be as bad as Tabby and Pietro."

"Would you be willing to bet on that?"

"Are they seriously that bad yo?"

"Definitely." She said as she hopped off the swing. Suddenly a question she had wanted to ask for a long time burst from her mouth before she could stop herself. "Have you ever had a girlfriend before?"

Todd was taken by surprise. "Well, none that I can remember."

"How come?"

"Well look at me. I mean I'm not the best looking guy around."

"What does that have to do with anything?" She asked incredulously. "So what if you don't have the perfect body? You're sweet, kind, considerate."

Todd looked a little embarrassed. "You don't have to say that you know."

"I'm not lying."

"I didn't say you were, it's just, well…" …you're so beautiful. The unsaid words came out loud and clear and Serena blushed a little. Todd realized what must have happened and blushed too.

She looked away shamefully. "I'm sorry."

"You can't help it. What's there to be sorry for?" He said waving it away. "But seriously yo, you must have had tons of boyfriends."

"Quite the contrary. I've actually only had one before." Serena said in a frank tone. "When we were together I was really happy. The happiest I had ever been. My life was perfect. But then something happened that caused my world to crumble, and my heart along with it. My days became a struggle for my sanity. Just trying to continue living seemed like an exhausting effort. Even in my dreams I was haunted by it." Todd had started to tremble. Serena noticed this and looked at him worriedly. "Todd?"

"I'm sorry." He said hoarsely.

"Wha…?" She gasped. "Oh Todd!" She flung her arms around him to stop him from shaking. "No, you're not… this was before I had even met you."

"I know but," Todd choked, "I did the same thing. I only brought you misery."

"Don't say that," Serena told him sternly, "you're nothing like him! When you were around I had a reason to be happy. You were the only guy who ever truly cared about me, who understood me, who loved me."

"But what about when I left you? Did I give you happiness then?" She said nothing. "Didn't think so. All I gave you was hurt, and I hate myself for it."

Serena chose her words carefully. "Well would you rather we picked up where we left off?"

"That's the problem. I don't know where we were. I don't know anything!"

"But that's not your fault! We could always start again," she hesitated, "if you wanted to."

Todd shook his head. "No, I don't want to hurt you again."

"You couldn't possibly hurt me more than I already am." She said in an injured voice.

"Serena, what if the same things happen over again, or worse? I don't want you or me to go through all that again."

"But I can't take it anymore!" She said uncontrollably. "This deficiency, I can't live with it."

"I think it's best if we just stay like we are now." He turned to leave.

"Todd." The moment she saidhis name Todd found he could no longer move away from her.

He could feel his heart beating in his winded chest. He slowly turned around to look at her, not entirely unwillingly, but something was stirring inside him that seemed to be slowly spreading throughout him. Something that wouldn't let him pull away from her. He looked at her and admired the fact that she was beautiful even when she was seconds away from crying. She hesitated before kissing him.

For that split second, Todd thought his heart would explode from the numerous sensations coursing through his body. He almost felt like he was a part of her. He could hear her heart pounding in his head. But what he felt the most was the enjoyment the kiss brought him, and the feeling stirring inside him became a burst of longing to never stop kissing her. When she broke the kiss everything stopped except his own haggard breathing.

"Why did you do that?" He asked breathlessly.

"Cause I knew you wouldn't." she said tenderly. "I know you're afraid, I am too. But please…"

Todd felt a knot in his stomach that had risen all the way up to his throat. He wanted to say yes, he wanted to be with her. But he started having flashbacks, when he had slammed the door in her face, and when she had collapsed in the hallway at school. All that pain she felt was from all of the problems he had caused for her. Everything she had gone through since the day he lost his memory was his fault. He couldn't handle causing her anymore pain. He didn't want that for her.

"I'm sorry." He said painfully. "I can't."

Then he turned and hopped away unable to look at her. He left her standing the alone in the middle of the park, staring after him completely shattered. If only she knew the agony he was feeling that increase with each hop he took away from her. But then again, maybe she did.

Is this really it? Will their love never blossom again? Please Review!