HULLO! I'm too tired to really write anything here… so here you go. :)

Wait… I do have a little something.

HERE COMES THE CHAPTER WHERE YOU LEARN WHY HARU WENT NUTS!

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There's Beauty in the Breakdown

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Mahiru tapped her foot nervously, waiting for the last bell to ring, and then silently begging it not to. Hisa sat on the edge of her desk.

"Callbacks start today, huh?"

Mahiru took a deep breath. "Yeah…" she answered in a small voice.

"Nervous?"

"Yeah."

Hisa patted her head. "You'll be fine, honey. You're the best dancer I know."

"I'm the only dancer you know."

"No, Takara's a dancer."

Mahiru looked up "Exotic doesn't count."

"I do totally count." Takara smiled, holding her books by her stomach, ignorant of the guys ogling her from behind. "Stripping is an art."

Mahiru stuck out her tongue "I thought you quit."

Takara sighed. "I did. Ayame's paying me big money to pose in his catalogue. Apparently he has friends that own shops like his and they all want me too."

"Oh, yes, yes! They want you Takara!" Mahiru slapped Hisa to make her shut up.

"Hey, Chicky," Mahiru turned at Rini's famous nickname for her. "What happened to your lip?"

Mahiru gingerly touched the small cut she had hoped was not noticeable. "I… ran into a door."

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'Waiting rooms need to kill themselves and go die.' Mahiru decided. She was dressed in her tights and leotard, her hair tucked back into a tight ballet bun. She was warming up.

"Kirihara, Mahiru?" 'Oh, God, why can't my name be something less terrifying?' Mahiru smiled and nodded at the woman, and then followed her to the call-back room, where she smiled at a whole new table of people looking at her critically. One of the older women at the end of the table made a semi-quiet comment to the young man to her left about the size of Mahiru's thighs.

'Oh my God.'

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Haru sat at the kitchen table in the Main House, half terrified, and half, well, terrified. He hadn't seen Mahiru since he had gone black on her, but according to Hatori, she had only mentioned it once, right after it had happened. Mahiru hadn't called him, or gone to see him, so he wasn't sure exactly how she felt. He had finally gotten up the courage to go see her, and beg her forgiveness, only to find that she wasn't there. He decided that sitting and waiting was worse than the actual apologizing part, but he still wasn't sure if he could do either.

It had gotten dark, and the ball of dread in Haru's stomach had grown. 'Well, at least I know I never want to be pregnant…' he tried to joke lamely with himself.

He gulped when he finally heard the door open at 9 p.m., slowly standing as Mahiru walked into the kitchen, dropping her bag and shedding her shoes, sighing heavily and getting herself a glass of juice.

And then she saw him.

Mahiru froze completely, her face losing a few shades of color, her grip on her juice turning vice-like. "H…Hello." She stammered.

Haru felt the ball of dread in his stomach turn into pain. "Mah-chan," he said imploringly.

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Haru took a step towards Mahiru, and she involuntarily stepped back. 'Damn it, go hug him or something!' she yelled at herself. 'He's not going to hurt you!' Yet mental pictures of Haru breaking the bench and then running after her, snarling, wouldn't leave her mind.

Haru gave her a strained smile and stepped back a few feet, holding up his hands, gesturing that he didn't want to hurt her. Mahiru couldn't bring herself to step forward. If anything, she was ready to bolt.

"Mah-chan…" he said again, scaring her out of her wits. She looked at him. His eyes were a normal color, if full of hurt. He looked down. "I'm sorry." He dropped his hands and clenched them by his sides. Watching him make fists was not good for Mahiru in her present state of mind, and she backed up a few more paces.

"Mah-chan…" He begged, walking towards her "I'm so sorry…" the tears that had been threatening in his voice slid down his face. Mahiru continued to back up until she was against a wall, the only ways to run into the refrigerator or at the Ox. Mahiru felt herself panicking. Haru caught up to her, his face soaking, and he dropped to his knees, throwing his arms around her legs, pressing his cheek against them. "I didn't mean it…" he sobbed "Please, please don't be scared of me. Please don't hate me."

Mahiru was frozen against the wall, scared to breathe. After a while she reached down and placed a hand against his shoulder, patting it cautiously. "I don't hate you." She said after a while, slowly kneeling to his level. "I was just… confused."

Haru sat in front of her, the odd tear still dripping off his face. "I was so mad."

"It's okay; you don't have to tell me. Let's keep it in the past. We're moving on here." Mahiru replied hastily.

"So mad about Akito… he said that me and Rin couldn't be together. He says that we're not allowed to fall in love." Haru looked at her "And then he finds you and suddenly his rules don't apply to him. He can do whatever he wants, while we're stuck here waiting."

Mahiru gave him a smile "You know what? I'll talk to him. I think I could convince him to let you and Rin be together."

"Are you serious?" Haru's eyes bugged out, but then he shook his head "No. I can't ask you to do that. It's too dangerous."

"He's not the horrible monster you all think he is. He has his off moments, but underneath the whole 'I'm an asshole' thing he's really a good guy."

"He pushed Rin out a window."

"Yeah I know. I don't blame him for that though. NO! No! Bad karma!" Mahiru waved her hands around as though brushing it all away "That was mean." She stood, Haru slowly following. She reached her arms around his shoulders and hugged him. "I was really scared when you went Black on me…"

Suddenly a cold voice cut through the kitchen "The Ox did WHAT?"

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Oh what now! Review please :)