ix

And surprised Amu was. Before she could even raise her eyebrows, Tadase leaned in and quickly pecked her on the lips. Amu's eyes widened and she gasped softly. Tadase chuckled and gave Amu's hand a gently squeeze before letting go and patting her shoulder.

"Alright, I'm satisfied for the day." he teased, a playful smile on his face. "Alright, bestie, I think we should catch up with the others, don't you?"

As Tadase had started following the rest, Amu remained still, contemplating what Tadase had just done. Was this their first kiss since dating? Tadase kissed her before confessing but... She quickly shook her head and ran after her boyfriend. She could think about this later.

The two caught up to the others fairly quickly, to which Amu apologized for taking so long. She quickly tried to think of a good excuse but thankfully, Tadase beat her to it. Without a second thought, he smiled, bowing slightly as he said, "Sorry, I thought I dropped something and Amu-chan helped me find it."

All the teens just nodded, seemed to believe it without hesitation, and continued walking with Nadeshiko leading the pack. While the group continued walking, Tadase found it hard to keep Amu at arm's length, despite his own decision to behave like ordinary friends. To ensure that he did not display excessive affection toward Amu, Tadase purposely walked alongside Rima, simply watching Amu laugh as Yaya excitedly talked about what sounded like a strange mixture of her favourite candies and how her baby brother was doing.

They arrived at the ice cream parlour shortly after leaving the playground, and Amu offered to pay for the ice cream for everyone. Everyone had no complaints about free food and looked at the menu while sitting in a booth that probably wasn't made for six people. Tadase sat in the middle, wedged between Rima and Amu. That was probably the closest he would be able to get to Amu for the rest of the day. Tadase hoped that Amu didn't feel uncomfortable, since she was basically at the end of the seat.

"Alright, what does everyone want?" Amu asked, looking at her old friends. "Wait, why am I asking you guys? I already know what you all want." She turned to Rima and Tadase. "What do you guys want?"

Tadase hummed. "I'll take…"

"Vanilla?" Amu suggested without thinking.

Tadase laughed, nudging Amu playfully. "As expected of my…best friend. Vanilla is perfect."

"Rima?" Amu looked over Tadase at Rima, tilting her head. "What do you want?"

"I'll get mocha," Rima responded, pointing to the specific flavour on the menu. "It's not available, I'll get whatever you're having, Amu."

Having memorized the order list, Amu nodded and got up to order. When Amu was out of hearing range, Tadase was interrogated by her old friends. Yaya, in particular, though, was asking the most questions. Specifically, questions about him and Amu. She was asking about how they first met, what made Tadase want to be friends with her, and how he managed to convince her to join the student council. In response to those questions, Tadase tried to answer in the most neutral way possible—just enough to convey that he cared about Amu as a 'friend', but not enough to suggest any romantic feelings toward her.

"So, Hotori-kun," Kairi suddenly spoke up, speaking carefully. Tadase was afraid of what Kairi would ask because Kairi was already aware of Tadase's relationship with Amu. "Is there anyone Amu-san is…interested in at her new school?"

Tadase cringed slightly at the question. It was almost as if Kairi was purposely trying to tease Tadase. Even as Kairi asked this question, Yaya seemed eagerly anticipating Tadase's answer, even encouraging the blond. Tadase just coughed slightly. Amu, who had returned just in time to catch the question, nearly tripped and dropped the ice cream all over her friends. Luckily for her, she caught herself before she could make a mess and tried to act normal, going as far as seeming like she hadn't heard the question at all.

"Are you guys interrogating poor Tadase-kun?" Amu asked casually, sliding back into the booth next to him, placing the tray in front of them.

Yaya hummed softly, eyeing up Amu and Tadase. She made a frame shape with her thumb and pointer finger of both hands and centered the frame on the two. "You know…you two would make a cute couple."

Amu laughed nervously and looked from Tadase to Yaya with what she hoped was an incredulous look. "Me? And Tadase-kun? No way! I-I mean we're just friends. Best buds. Like me and Nade were. Right, Tadase-kun?"

Tadase nodded his head vigorously. "Yeah, Amu-chan's my best friend. Nothing more, nothing less."

He playfully nudged Amu with his shoulder without realizing which side her injury was on. After noticing a pained expression that quickly turned to a slightly forced smile, Tadase realized his mistake and glanced at Amu with an apologetic look. Amu dismissed Tadase's expression with a subtle shake of her head.

"Enough of that, Yaya-chan." Nadeshiko chided, playfully hitting Yaya on the arm. "You're making the two of them uncomfortable."

"Anyway, guys!" Amu was itching to change the topic. "Let's eat this ice cream before it melts! Oh right, they didn't have any mocha left, Rima, so I got you what I got; double scoop, one chocolate one strawberry."

Rima seemed satisfied as she grabbed the cup of ice cream. However, both her and Tadase seemed aghast at the largest ice cream on the tray; one which Yaya took happily. It was both surprising, yet unsurprising, that Yaya would want every flavour of ice cream. Tadase couldn't help but feel anxious when Yaya picked up the cup and several of the scoops began sliding as if they were going to fall.

The most fascinating part of it all, however, was when Yaya began scarfing the ice cream down no problem. Amu, as well as the other friends on the opposite side of the booth, just laughed it off or rolled their eyes as if they were just used to it. Just thinking about how much sugar Yaya was eating made Tadase sick to his stomach. He picked at his own ice cream slowly. Luckily, it was only one scoop, and vanilla wasn't that sweet.

"So, Amu-chan, how are things treating you at the new school?" Nadeshiko asked, leaning forward to look at Amu as she ate her ice cream.

"Things are…alright." Amu replied slowly. She paused, hesitated slightly before continuing. "There was an incident with a student…But it's fine now."

"Oh no!" Nadeshiko's eyes immediately widened in concern as she reached over the table to touch Amu's hand. "It's nothing we should be concerned about, right?"

Amu just shook her head at Nadeshiko's question and smiled reassuringly. She gently squeezed Nadeshiko's hand. Almost commendably, Amu's expression and actions were believable and genuine. Tadase might have believed her as well if he didn't already know the truth.

"Anyway, enough about me!" Amu said in an effort to change the subject away from herself. "How about you guys? How are you?"

"Just after you left, I had to go overseas." Kairi was the first to speak. "My sister had to go overseas and apparently thought I wasn't capable of taking care of myself. I was able to come back soon after though." he paused, realizing Tadase and Rima might not fully understand his family situations as he continued. "For your information, my sister manages an idol singer."

"A singer?" Rima questioned, leaning forward in intrigue.

"Yes, a very popular one." Kairi nodded, before very nonchalantly saying, "She's the manage of Hoshina Utau."

In an instant, everything clicked into place in Tadase's head as he suddenly realized why Kairi's surname had sounded so familiar when he first heard it. Tadase recalled Ikuto, and perhaps even Utau, referring to someone named 'Sanjou-san'. Tadase was fascinated by the fact that he and Amu had such interesting connections. Tadase's thought were centered on the big question... was this just pure chance or was it something else entirely? Did he dare think it to be...fate?

"Ahh, how could I forget?!" Amu exclaimed suddenly, shaking Tadase from his thoughts. "No wonder I was so shocked when I found out that—"

Before Amu could realize what she was saying, the words were already out of her mouth. Her old friends looked at her in confusion and interest. Even Rima seemed like she wanted to know what Amu was saying. In an instant Amu regretted talking at all. Did she have the right to claim that she knew the brother of Utau, and that both grew up together with Tadase? Amu looked to Tadase for some help. Thankfully, he understood what Amu's look meant and cleared his throat.

"Say, Sanjou-kun, has your sister ever mentioned Utau having a brother?" Ikuto had been like a half-brother to him, so Tadase decided that he ought to be the one to mention him and explain what Amu had abruptly exclaimed.

"I'm not sure… The few times I met Utau-san, she was blabbering to my sister about someone. Was the name...Takuto?" Kairi hummed in thought as he pondered. "I believe his name was something like that; it ended it to, I remember that much."

"Does the name Ikuto ring a bell?" Tadase questioned once more, leaning forward. "Tsukiyomi Ikuto?"

"That's it!" Kairi responded. His expression had lit up slightly, as if he had just had an epiphany. The expression immediately faded, however and he casually adjusted his glasses. "My apologies, I'm bad with names. Especially if they have no real close relation to me." He tilted his head slightly as something seemed to dawn on him. "Wait, how did you know?"

Tadase shrugged nonchalantly. "Ikuto and Utau are siblings, though they don't use the same last name, so you'd never know. I've grown up with them since I was small."

Yaya gasped loudly. "You're related to Hosina Utau!?"

In an instant, Nadeshiko covered Yaya's mouth with her hand as she looked at the younger girl as if she were insane. Amu looked around with wide eyes to make sure no one had heard, sighing in relief when she noticed the place was practically empty. Kairi also let out a sigh in relief, glaring at Yaya as Nadeshiko removed her hand from Yaya's mouth.

"Yaya-san, I don't think it's appropriate to scream about a well known person like Hoshina Utau-san in a public space." he said, crossing is arms as he fnished his ice cream. "I don't think we want any unnecessary attention, especially not of the fandom kind."

Yaya pouted and sank in her seat slightly, mumbling, "Sorry… I got excited…"

Tadase chuckled softly. "To answer your question,Yaya-san, we're not blood related, no. My dad adopted them when I was six or seven, after their mother, a family friend, passed. There was a big custody battle, since their grandfather wanted them, but thanks to something in their mother's will and a look into their grandfather's shady past, custody was delegated to my father, on the condition that one of them use the grandfather's last name."

"So...you're still siblings then? That's so cool!" Yaya exclaimed softly, immediately regaining her bubbly personality. Clearly, she had only listened to part of Tadase's story. "Can you see if you can get Utau-chan's autograph for me? Kairi always says no!" She pouted slightly. "Yaya wishes her brother was as cool as your siblings…"

"Yaya-san, your brother is a toddler." Kairi commented, rolling his eyes. "All he is currently capable of doing is eating, sleeping, and crying. Hotori-san's siblings are young adults with their own careers. And I refuse to get her autograph for you because it's a nuisance."

"Sleeping, eating, crying. Isn't that all Yaya is capable of, too?" Amu joked, causing Nadeshiko to giggle. It got a smirk out of Rima, as well.

"Heyy! Amu-chiii!" Yaya whined, her pout further more proving Amu's point. "Yaya isn't like her little brother at all!"

Amu burst into laughter, reaching over the table to pat Yaya's hand. "I can see nothing has changed. I missed this."

She ended up laughing so hard, that she accidentally bumped her shoulder into Tadase's again. This time, it hurt a lot more than it had when Tadase had bumped it earlier. The laughter stopped abruptly with a small, almost pained squeak. While Amu was struggling to hide her pain, Tadase's anxious gaze fell on her. She forced herself to put on a slightly strained smile as her sudden cry was also noticed by the others.

"Amu-chan?" Nadeshiko eyed Amu worriedly as well, probably sensing the forced expression on Amu's face. "Is something the matter?"

"N-no, no!" she laughed nervously, waving her hands in front of her face. "I must have…pulled a muscle while laughing! Don't worry about me!"

Tadase frowned at Amu, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. "Are you sure you're okay Amu-chan?"

Amu couldn't tell if Tadase was acting like he wasn't aware or if he actually hadn't realized just how hard Amu had bumped shoulders with him. On one hand, he had immediately looked at her in concern after the accident, so he had to have known, right? But still...something about the way he was pressing the topic made it seem like he didn't know.

One thing was for sure, though; her shoulder was really hurting this time. However, she was too afraid to speak up, especially when her old, clueless friends were around. She, instead, put on a neutral expression as she moved Tadase's hand away in a way that seemed 'cool' but also didn't seem too rude.

"Tadase-kun, I'm fine." she insisted, trying to prove it by stretching her body. This only made her shoulder hurt more but she pushed past the pain. "Like I said, I just pulled a muscle. I can handle that much myself."

She sighed and looked at her half eaten ice cream, which was slowly starting to melt. Though her appetite to eat ice cream seemed to have vanished, she forced herself to finish it. She knew that if she didn't finish her ice cream, Yaya would. With Yaya already been hyper, Amu...really didn't want to see her with 15 scoops of ice cream plus her own remaining scoop of ice cream. Sometimes Amu really wondered how Yaya could stomach that kind of stuff.

After she finished her ice cream, she sighed and rested her head on the table. Despite feeling the immediate attention drawn back to her, she couldn't help herself. Tadase especially was concerned, as he already felt guilty about agitating Amu's wounds twice now. Amu felt Tadase touch her hand under the table and glanced over at him. She dismissed his worried expression with a shake of her head.

"Did you get enough sleep, Amu-san?" Kairi inquired, looking at Amu concernedly.

"She slept through most of the ride here," Rima pipped in, earning a subtle glare from Amu. She quickly saved it by adding, "Maybe she has a brain freeze?"

"Ahh, I see…" Nadeshiko nodded her head slowly. "I guess you're right, that makes sense."

Tadase kept his eye on Amu, who just nodded her head, not lifting it from the table. "Rima's right. I'm fine, I just ate my ice cream too fast and got a brainfreeze. No big deal."

Tadase frowned, once again placing his hand on Amu's shoulder. "Amu-chan, can we talk?"

"What for? I said I'm fine!" Amu grumbled, perhaps a bit too agressively than she had intended. "I ate my ice cream too fast, that's all."

Unfortunately, her expression faltered when she saw the look on Tadase's face. She sighed softly, trying to look away, but she couldn't. She couldn't stand seeing such a concerned look on Tadase's face.

"Please?" Tadase pleaded, adding insult to injury by all but giving Amu puppy-dog eyes.

"Ohh~" Yaya cooed, though it was completely ignored by everyone.

Amu sighed and tried to keep herself together, but in the end, gave in. She uttered a (playfully?) annoyed 'fine' before forcing her head up. She stood up and left the booth, Tadase following after. As the two left, Tadase could have sworn he heard Yaya talking, yet again, about how they two of them would be a cute couple. He chose to ignore it, as he had more important matters to think about. Once they were out of sight and earshot of the others, Tadase turned to Amu and placed his hands on her shoulders gently.

"I bumped into your injury again, didn't I?" he asked somewhat rhetorically, his eyebrows furrowed in concern. "I'm really sorry…"

"It was my fault." Amu responded, placing her hand ontop of Tadase's. "It really does hurt though. I just…don't want to show it just yet."

Tadase sighed softly, removing his hand from her shoulder and moving to squeeze her hand. "We'll get it checked again when we get back. Until then, let's just have fun, alright?"

Amu smiled slightly and nodded. Tadase gave her a quick embrace, holding her close for a second before parting. The two walked back to the booth casually. Tadase was once again met with the sounds of them arguing about Amu and Tadase being just friends or not. Once Tadase cleared his throat, they immediately fell silent. Tadase and Amu sat back down. Tadase made sure Amu was alright with one final glance, but Amu didn't seem to notice. She dismissed Nadeshiko's concern about earlier and just smiled at her old friends.

"So…what now?" Yaya asked after a somewhat comfortable silence. "Yaya's bored, let's do something!"

"Well it's nice out…why don't we go to the pool?" Nadeshiko suggested.

Amu jolted slightly at the suggestion of a pool. "P-pool?"

"Why don't we just go for a walk?" Tadase jumped in, sensing Amu's panic. "I wouldn't mind a tour of the city. Or at least the areas you guys frequented."

Nadeshiko tilted her head curiously but nodded after a second. "I guess a tour is only fair for Amu-chan's friends. Why don't we go for a walk around the neighbourhood and then stop by the pool after?"

Amu sighed, realizing there was no way she was going to wiggle her way out of this situation. It was inevitable for them to find out about her injury, she just hadn't expected it to happen so soon. Yaya and Kairi were probably the most suspicious, having had to witness and take part in a blood transfusion. Obviously, she wasn't aware that Kairi had been told the situation by Tadase.

"Alright…well…" Amu mumbled, already standing up. "Don't be too shocked though..."

Luckily, her last sentence was barely audible except maybe to Tadase, since he was sat the closest to her currently. Yaya was already celebrating that they got to go to the pool. Amu chuckled a little awkwardly, moving out of the way to let Tadase and Rima out. The other three also left their side of the booth. Then, the six teenagers filed out of the ice cream shop and started walking around the neighbourhood.

Amu didn't really pay too much attention at all to the mini-tour Nadeshiko and Kairi were giving to Tadase and Rima. She already knew this area like the back of her hand. Instead, she was preoccupied thinking about how the others might react seeing her scars. Not only would they see her older scars, but they would also have to see the worst and freshest one yet. Amu didn't want them to see such an ugly, disgusting wound.

"Amu?" Rima's voice startled the pink-haired teen out of her thoughts as she felt a tug on her shirt.

"Huh?" Amu looked around to see everyone had stopped walking and were all looking at Amu expectantly. "Sorry, I must have zoned out."

Nadeshiko smiled warmly. "Don't worry, Amu-chan. We were just discussing whose house we were going to. Since you guys don't have bathing suits, I figured you could just borrow some of ours. Hotori-kun is going to go with Kairi-kun, obviously. Mashiro-san seems like she'll only go whenever you go despite probably fitting Yaya-chan's clothing better."

Amu looked over at Rima in mild surprise. Rima's grip tightened on Amu's shirt in what seemed to be shyness. Amu couldn't help but smile; was this Rima's attempt to open up to her? "I was going to go with you, Nade, since we're about the same size."

The pout on Yaya's face was very visible as she looked as if she had wanted to complain. However, she kept her mouth shut. Amu assumed she didn't want to go back home alone. Regardless, they continued walking and, soon, they were making their way back towards their individual houses, some having to further walk than others. They walked as a group until they had to split up.

When it was time for Amu and Tadase to part ways, Tadase obviously having no choice but to go with Kairi, Tadase couldn't help but glance at Amu from over his shoulder, wondering if she was really okay with having to explain everything already. Even so, there was no backing down now. No matter what choice she made, Tadase would be there to support her, since he knew that's what Amu needed most.

A/N: Here's another chapter of this. A little bit of light-hearted stuff for this and the next chapter, just because there's gonna be some dark shit ahead. Not any time soon, but... it's coming. (And it may or may not hit like a train)

I realize that the friends on Amu's side a slightly different from the first part but...I would have to edit that one again to fix it and I'm lazy. Just...pretend Kukai was on Tadase's side (and as a more minor character). I might have to add (if I haven't already) some bits to tie in with this new storyline between Kairi and Tadase though.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter. I'm partially just finishing this just to finish it but I hope...someone out there is reading it.

Niki, out.