A/N: I hope those of you who read my story are enjoying it... As much as you can enjoy teenage angst anyway. I just thought that it was perhaps relevant to today's society, because alot of things seem to break up due to superficiality and I hope that by reading this you can possibly understand the way that people see situations differently. Thanks!

Apologies for the misspelling! Thanks to Crewel for pointing it out! Also, thanks to Feral Panda Chick for pointing out the name error! I blame myself for not being as thorough as I should be.


Water, water, every where,

Nor any drop to drink

-S.T. Coleridge



Megumi

As she turned to watch the water break upon the shore she remembered the malice in Tomoe's voice when she talked to Kaoru. "She's just leaving." Megumi had seen the formation of tears in Kaoru's eyes, as she had quietly picked up her gear and walked away, echoing Misao's movement just moments before. Megumi frowned. How could Kaoru let Tomoe get away with it? The defeat in the Kaoru's eyes as she had turned to walk away pierced Megumi's heart. She patted her hair once more, it was a comforting action, to know that she could always look the part. Tomoe ran hot and cold and Megumi was beginning to see the damage that a few words could do. But there were times when she just couldn't understand what was going on in her head. Megumi looked across the lake at the towering dark shapes. The mountains emphasised the distance in between her and the rest of her life and the barrier she was trying to overcome.

"We're so glad you could make it." Megumi and Tomoe were sitting in their usual booth at the local café. The after school rush was settling down.

"You know… At the beginning of the term…" Tomoe had started.

"Where's Misao?" Kaoru noticed that a seat was empty, Megumi was wondering about it too but decided it best not to voice her opinion.

"Let me finish. She's not coming, she's gone to the library." Tomoe said cutting off Kaoru with a stiff smile.

"As I was saying… At the beginning of the term, we were worried that you, you know, wouldn't gel." Tomoe began again whilst picking at her manicured nails. Tomoe nudged Megumi and she realized it was time for her rehearsed lines.

"But you surprised us. After that third week, you suddenly became, well, cool." Megumi announced, almost flinching at her own voice.

"We're so proud of you."

The emptiness of the water reflected the feeling that the girl had experienced back then. She hated the feeling of everyone looking up to her only because she looked the part. She had become the surface of the lake without its depth beneath. She felt shallow, but at least she had friends. At least she thought she had friends. Her life was full of a myriad of people but she was unsure as to what she was supposed to classify them as. They all sat with her, more specifically, Tomoe, who they swarmed to like moths to a flame. They talked to Megumi, but it seemed somewhat forced.

"I heard that Kenshin asked Kaoru out. What's with that Megumi? I thought he and I were… you know…" Tomoe whispered to her in the girl's bathroom in an angry tone, her voice getting louder with each word.

"I don't know, maybe they're just friends," Megumi responded in a hesitant tone, knowing all to well that they were just friends. Kaoru had expressed her worry to Megumi that Tomoe might take their friendship as an insult. Whatever relation people had with Tomoe, it was always hers. Megumi didn't want to appear to be taking sides.

"But they were seen together," Tomoe hissed.

"Look, it's probably nothing…" the reply was carefully sculpted.

"It doesn't look like that…" Tomoe had responded before wiping her hands on her skirt and walking out the bathroom. Megumi sighed. What had she become? The make up, the clothes even the friendships that she had made her feel sick. Why was Tomoe reacting so violently? She turned and quickly walked out as she heard the locks on the other doors open. No doubt the others had heard the same conversation and she didn't want to have to face them. As the door swung back she stepped forward into the present.

The swelling of the lake beneath her gave her a sense of reassurance but the memory chipped away at her making her hands clench into fists. Why was Tomoe so upset? Why hadn't she stuck up for Kaoru more? She had known that they were just friends, but how could she fix something if it wasn't any of her business?

Rumors had been started following the event and although they were only rumours, the damage had been done. The fact that people didn't want to know the truth anymore, that they just wanted the information that made them feel better about themselves, made her feel sick. Mindful of the others on the dock, she quickly wiped the tears from her face and smoothed her hair, disrupted by the wind. She had hidden any emotion she thought could be used against her and only let others see what they wanted to see. She had learned quickly that it was best that she keep her mouth shut and to play the part of the social elite.

Megumi looked down at the weathered wooden planks beneath her and sighed. She felt trapped by her own decisions.

Life, as we know it, has to move forward and change with time. Along with time, people change too. The autumn wind once more pushed past her as if to say 'move on' but she still could not. Without knowing what had gone wrong, she could not fix her past, because, ultimately, it was part of her business, whether she denied it or not. The distance suddenly seemed so close to her. The mountains appeared more pronounced and the water seemed to dance in the grey light. The mountains in the distance were proof that people needed to get over their barriers; she had to find the truth. The lake seemed to sigh at Megumi's fixed determination; the strength of the water's depth taking hold of her concentration.


Reviewer thanks:

gabyhyatt - With Tomoe, you can never be too sure.

Feral Panda Chick - I love S. T. Coleridge! I think his work is brilliant! The best poem he did was 'This Lime-Tree Bower My Prison'. Thanks for your review!

Miharu Kawashi - Thanks for your review, it's interesting to write through memory, i happen to like it.