Disclaimer: I do not own anything but this chapter is mine.

A/N: Hi everyone! Once again, I would like to thank you guys for your patience with this story. We are almost at the end and I'm very happy that you're all with me on this journey. I'm not keeping you guys here anymore. Read on!

Happy reading!

-A

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-;-

No one was able to know how much pain Ayuzawa Misaki has seen, how much torture she had undergone, and how many deaths she had witnessed.

TWENTY:

Bump!

I was startled into wakefulness when the car hit a bump on the road. Still half-awake and half-stunned, I started looking around and remembered that we are still on the road. Takumi must have noticed how confused I was because he quickly reached out for my hand as if to put me back into ease.

Realizing I was with him, I sank back on my seat and sighed. "How long was I out?"

"Probably more or less two hours."

That long?! I glanced sheepishly at him. "Sorry."

He laughed at the guilty expression on my face. "It's okay. You can sleep some more if you want."

"No. I'm good." Adjusting on my seat once again, and wincing for a bit since I was stuck in a certain position for more or less two hours, I gently stretched my strained legs, arms, and hips and tried to rub sleepiness off my eyes. I looked out the window to see where we are now; realizing we'd reach our destination in more or less an hour. Turning back to Takumi again, I said, "Are you hungry?"

"Just a bit. You?"

"Same. I think we'll pass by a diner around here somewhere. We can eat there before we head off."

"Alright."

He drove for a few more minutes and when I started recognizing the road, I quickly advised him to slow down and turn left once he saw a left turn. He instantly pushed on the signal light and made a left turn when he saw the break on the otherwise straight road. We drove past untouched vegetation and virgin shrubs before he slowed down when he saw the sign for the diner I was talking about.

I pointed out where he could park and when we were finally on a safe spot, we got out and started stretching to rid ourselves of the strains of the long drive.

He looked around, mildly confused before he turned to me. "How do you know about this place?"

Ugh. I didn't want to tell him. "My… grandfather owns this place."

"What?"

"It's near the shrine that my family owns. People would visit the shrine during special occasions so my grandfather decided to build a diner here where visitors can eat and rest before going back to their homes."

"No. That's not it. I wasn't informed that I would be introduced to your grandfather on the way."

Oh. He was worried about that.

"I should have dressed better."

I couldn't help the laugh that escaped my throat when he said that. So, he was worried about that. I took note of how uncomfortable he looked and started imagining how my parents would react once I introduced them to Usui Takumi—my boyfriend. My mom would most probably faint from shock while dad would go defensive mode.

I sighed again. I'm not sure when that day will come—or if ever it would even come—but I'm certainly looking forward to it. And hopefully, things are already normal by then: no more curses, no more century-old enemies, and no more nothing.

"There's no need," I assured him as I fell into steps beside him. And, side by side, we started walking towards the entrance of the mini diner. "You look decent enough."

"I don't want to hear that from you when you're freaking out after meeting my family."

"Hey," I said, already on the defense. "—I was not informed that my boyfriend happened to be a Duke, alright? And that he belongs to a royal family."

Takumi rolled his eyes at that. "Boring."

I wanted to smack him. But in the end, I just ended up laughing. He smiled as well before he reached out for my hand and gripped it tightly. And for a moment, I wondered why I suddenly got nervous at the thought of introducing Takumi to my grandfather.

"Does he know?"

My attention snapped back to him as I got confused over his question. "What do you mean?"

"About your curse?"

Oh. "He is. Everybody in the family is aware. It was never kept a secret."

"If he asks me if I know, how should I respond?"

Hmm. Good question. "Well, I'm pretty sure he'll know. It's the first time I've brought a boyfriend over." when he paused walking, I paused as well. And I got confused when I saw how his expression darkened. "What is it?"

"Does that mean you've got other boyfriends aside from me?"

Oh. "Uh…" Well, shit. Me and my big mouth. I sighed as I turned to him. "I don't want this to become a big deal, Usui."

"It won't be if you'd spit out the truth."

Ugh. And here I thought Shizuko told him everything. "I'm not going to lie. I had one before you but it's not something I like talking about."

"Fine. But where is this person now?"

I froze when he asked me that question. I wasn't expecting that. I sighed. Anyways, it wasn't like this is a topic I could avoid forever. With a depressed sigh, I said, "He died a long time ago."

Takumi froze as well. "What? How?"

Here we go again. "I have no choice but to kill him… because he eventually succumbed to the curse and tried to kill me—and everyone I cared about." Of course, there's no justification for my taking a life. But if I'm going to tell him everything, then I should include even the most horrifying details about me, what I did and why I did it. And that I would not hesitate to do it again if I'm being cornered and threatened. Turning to Takumi, I said, "And you will face the same fate if you as much as tried to kill me."

He simply stared at me. "Is that a threat?"

"I don't do threats. It is going to happen if I've no choices left."

"You always do that."

My forehead creased. "What do you mean?"

"Whenever you're anxious—or scared. You have this tendency to close yourself off and push people away by saying mean things. And then, you'd get uncomfortable after saying all the mean things you didn't want to say."

What in the— "I wasn't—"

"Yes, you are." he cuts me off before stepping forward and in front of me; invading my personal space once more. "You're not very natural when you're trying to be mean, Ayuzawa. You always, always looked guilty—as if you didn't want to say those scathing words that you're very quick to dish out."

"I—I—" I've no words. This was the first time that someone called me out of my bullshit—that someone hit the bull's eye.

Further closing our distance, he said, "You probably have yet to notice but I'm always observing you, Ayuzawa. Didn't you think that I won't notice? When you are surrounded by people, your hackles are always up—your shoulders strained as if you're waiting for someone to hit you. You're always on the defense."

Stunned, I quickly backed away from him; wincing slightly when he grabbed me none too gently by the arm to stop me from escaping. "I-I'm not…"

"You're always trying to escape." he continued, ignoring my discomfort, and grabbed my chin to lift it heavenward. I was aware that he was about to kiss me and, despite being in a public place, I couldn't find the strength to deny him—to push him away. I steadied myself by holding on to his biceps; allowing him to press his body against mine as my mind and heart raced out of excitement for the incoming kiss. "You don't have to be like that when you're with me. I'm not going to hurt you…"

"B-But I… I might hurt…" I was starting to lose my mind when his cool breath fanned my face; an indication that this man truly drives me crazy more than anybody else in the world combined. One hand gripped my chin to prevent me from looking away while his other hand was placed on my lower back; also preventing me from moving my body away from him.

And without fighting back too much, I completely and utterly surrendered to him. I collapsed against him; trying to maintain what little balance I have left while gripping his arm tightly; eager for his lips to pressed against mine. Slowly, I closed my eyes, and the last image of him that registered in my head is face inching closer and closer. And then—

SMACK! "What are you doing to my granddaughter?!"

It took me half an hour to pacify my grandfather after he smacked Takumi with his broom.

And I have been so embarrassed I could barely explain to him what's going on—that it wasn't Takumi's fault. But my grandfather wouldn't hear of it and continued to refuse him from even taking a single step inside the little cafe. I explained to him what was going on—despite my frickin' embarrassment—and my relationship with the man. And when my grandfather finally confirmed that he's not a random pervert who tried to take advantage of his cursed granddaughter, he finally calmed down and apologized for hitting him at the back of his head.

"It's not a new thing that my Misaki gets attacked by random perverts." Old man Miwa says while glaring at his front yard—the witness of my many attacks. "So forgive me, young'un, for being quick into action. The last thing I want to happen on my property is Misaki getting harassed."

Takumi simply nodded. Yet, despite his silence, I could feel the amusement in his eyes. After all, this is the first time that someone actually retaliated against him.

"And he knows about your eyes, Misa-chan?"

Ugh. Go ahead and call me Misa-chan, old man. With a nod, I said, "And very much immune to it, old man." And before I could even avoid the broom, he had been quick to smack it on my head as well. "What was that all about?!"

"You disrespectful child! I told you to call me grandpa! You are so much like your mother!"

Ugh! Come on!

When I didn't respond and simply frowned at him, that damned old man shrugged and turned to Takumi again; giving him a rude head-to-toe. "What a fine man this lad is, Misa. I wonder why it feels like I've seen you before, young'un?"

How come he would not be familiar? He's literally an heir to the throne. Before I could even respond, Takumi managed to beat me to it. "I get that comment a lot, Sir. But I'm just a normal high school student from the same school as Ayuzawa."

"You're not normal if you can resist this child," Grandpa says after throwing me a glance. "I don't know why but I feel like I can trust you with this stupid granddaughter of mine. How did you feel when you first met her? Anything weird? Did you feel like you wanted to strangle her because of how irresistible she looks?"

"Very funny, old man." I was quick to avoid the broom coming in my direction when he tried to smack me again. I glared at him. "Stop asking him weird questions, grandpa! If he'd been affected, did you honestly think I'd bring him here? You're annoying."

He glared back at me. "I just want to make sure that you're staying out of trouble, Misaki. You have truly broken your mother's heart when you decided to leave home. What trying to lift the curse trash are you spouting about? You know it's impossible and you know that all of us have tried doing that in the past. The only thing you can do is live with it and give birth to another child to be passed down to her. That's the only way for you to be completely free."

I felt Takumi stiffen in front of me. And before he could even say something scathing to my grandfather, I had been quick to kick his leg from under the table to stop him from doing anything stupid.

Just let him, I said mentally. I'm used to him anyway.

He frowned. It's not right.

Just leave it. He's one of those relatives who have resigned themselves to the curse. They're afraid of their change and besides, he's an old man. Even his beliefs are archaic.

He was still frowning but I was thankful when he finally decided to let it drop. But I know that he was still pretty much upset about it. I sighed and thanked my old man when he started serving us food. We ate in silence while my grandpa prattled about how useless it was for me to go on a journey to lift the family curse.

I wanted to walk out then and there; regretting the fact that I brought Takumi to a place where nobody believed in me. The lunch had been rushed and after quickly putting money in the tip jar despite my grandpa's refusal, I pulled Takumi back to the car so we could leave right away.

"When are you planning to return, Misaki? Your mother and father miss you so much."

"I'm in contact with them so there's no point missing me. I'm updating them about my day-to-day." That had been a lie. I rarely talk to my parents since they'd only force me to come back home. "We have to leave, grandpa. I'll see you when I see you."

I didn't wait for him to respond anymore and quickly ducked into Takumi's car. And Takumi, polite as he was, bid my grandfather farewell before he got in too. We had been on the road once again for no more than ten minutes when he finally spoke.

"What a disaster."

"They've always wanted me to sit still whenever I'd tell them that I want to lift the curse. They're annoying."

"You know better than to pay attention to them."

"It's still annoying though."

"You're not about to let them get under your skin, right?" he says while offering me an encouraging smile. "Come on. Smile for me?"

Ugh! I'm such a simp for this man! I scowled at him, trying to hide my embarrassment. And when he noticed that I'm, once again, red to my roots, he actually had the nerve to chuckle darkly—as if he was enjoying my humiliation. Takumi reached out for my hand and gripped it tightly, eyes still on the road as we drove off to the horizon.

And despite the biting cold, I pushed on a button and rolled the windows down to allow the wind to touch my face. I snapped my eyes shut, tried to absorb the cold December wind biting my face… and slowly released the curse I've been holding back ever since I was released into civilization. I felt Takumi stiffen next to me, his grip on my hand tightened momentarily, and when I glanced in his direction, I caught him staring the same moment his eyes rounded.

"Ayuzawa…"

"I told you I'm a monster," I told him and quickly looked away once again. "And they have very good reasons to confine someone like me. You know it, Usui. You're very much aware that I am a menace to society."

He didn't speak afterward as we drove past thick vegetation covered under a thick, white blanket of snow. When the nav system instructed him to make a left, Takumi quietly followed the instruction and drove up until the road ended. He seemed confused once again when he eyed me; wondering if he made a wrong turn.

Without retracting the curse—allowing it to flow out of my eyes in careless abandon; uncaring if it affects him or not—I unbuckled my seatbelt and got out of the car. He quickly did the same and turned off the engine while silently watching me as I made my way towards an unpaved road. When I found what I was looking for, I turned back to Takumi; slightly hesitant. "From here on, we have to go on foot."

He walked towards me; eyes still glassy. "How far along?"

"Hopefully, not that far for you." I hesitated once again. "We won't get lost if that's what you're worried about."

"Stupid," he says and falls into steps beside me. "I'm only worried about you. You seem pretty upset ever since we met with your grandfather."

"They have that habit to upset me," I responded glumly and accepted his waiting hand. "Anyways, it's not something new. I'll get over it. Are you ready?"

"Where are we going exactly?" he asks as he allowed me to pull him deeper into the woods.

I sighed. Time to reveal the cat. "The family mausoleum."

If he was stunned by my response, Takumi didn't bother to show it. But his grip on my hand tightened and I worried that I finally frightened him to the fiery pits of Hades. I allowed him some breathing room and waited until he was ready. It took him only a few seconds before he nodded and lent his other hand. "Lead the way then."

It was a quiet trek to the family mausoleum.

And in fact, I regretted bringing him to the mausoleum for our first ever date. It was idiotic of me. But then again, there was no way for me to change my plans just because we started dating. Despite holding his hand, I tried to keep a reasonable distance between our bodies. I didn't want to get close to him knowing that anytime soon, I could end up losing control and he could end up succumbing to the curse.

Takumi seemed to have noticed my distance and silence and, if it bothered him, he didn't show it. During the trek, he was mostly silent; assisting me when I needed assistance if the road was too rough or if the roots were too high and sharp for me to climb on to. He made it look so easy when he would lift me past roots, fallen branches, and other debris blocking our path. Snow continued to fall on us but it was nowhere near cold. Since we have been hiking for nearly half an hour now, I was starting to feel sweaty from underneath the thick fabric of my winter garb. I was tempted to remove it but decided not to out of fear that I might freeze to death unknowingly.

It wasn't that far of a walk but the unpaved road made it harder to reach our destination. When I heard him heave out an exhale, I panicked momentarily. "Are you tired? Do you want to rest?"

"I'm good. Unless you want to rest?"

Ugh. Why is he so quiet?! "I'm fine. I'm used to trekking up this place."

"I wonder why you're coming here. This is such a remote place. You could get into an accident and no one would know." when he pulled out his cell to try and check if there's reception, he frowned. He showed the wide screen to me. "See that? You're never coming here again unless you're with me."

I could sense annoyance coming off his skin. But aside from annoyance, I could also sense his worry. He is such a worry-wart. I didn't bother to respond anymore to prevent him from further worrying and continued with our silent trekking. I was certain that we've got ten more minutes of climbing so I've decided to conserve my energy—after all, talking while walking is a sure way to burn what energy I have left.

Takumi assisted me in jumping over a relatively huge branch and when I was finally on a flat surface, I turned to him and reached out for his hand; pulling him with all my might to help him climb back up to where I was standing. He uttered a low thank you and gripped my hand again to pull me towards a much flatter road in front of us. It was getting familiar to me now. And when I saw the rusty gate leading to the private piece of land, I walked towards a familiar pot and lifted a small piece of square Bermuda grass where an equally rusty key was hidden. Usui was watching intently from behind me while I opened the rusty gate leading to the mausoleum and, after pushing it open, I turned back to him and gave him my hand.

He didn't hesitate to accept my waiting hand and after giving him ample time to run off, to leave me behind and forget completely that I've been cursed, I pulled him with me inside the cursed property.

We decided to settle down on the unnaturally dry ground with Himemiya's stone perched before us.

It was unnatural to go on a date to a cemetery. But Usui Takumi didn't seem to mind. In fact, he looked comfortable seated on the soft, dry ground while we are surrounded by people—dead people—who used to carry the curse; with the main origin right in front of us.

I was cautious as I watched Takumi while he looked around the empty land and when he caught me staring, he sighed. "I'm not going to run off, Ayuzawa."

"T-That's not it." I stuttered and quickly looked away; obviously caught in the lie.

Takumi rolled his eyes. "You'd always look at me as if you were waiting for me to run off screaming."

Ugh. Fine! "Alright, then. Why aren't you afraid of me? I've given enough reasons for you to be scared. You know that I'm a monster. You even met my grandfather and you know that they wanted to contain me as much as possible. You've seen what I can do."

"It's not something that I can answer, Ayuzawa," he says with a frown. "I don't even know why I'm not afraid of you. But all I know is that I'm not afraid of you—maybe because I'm overconfident that you won't hurt me… and that there's nothing you can do to hurt me."

Ugh. I hate it when people put too much trust in me. I scowled at him. "It didn't occur to you that I could probably end up disappointing you?"

"You might," he says in agreement. "But there's no way I could ever hate you, Ayuzawa. There's no way I could ever think that you'd deliberately hurt me on purpose."

"You put too much trust in me, Usui."

"Let's drop that topic. I want to talk about your ex-boyfriend."

Ugh. I knew he's dying to open that topic. "What about him?"

"You said he's dead."

I nodded cautiously; not sure where he's planning to go with the conversation. "Yes, he is."

"And you said that you killed him."

"I… did."

"Because… he's attempted to hurt you?"

I wondered how I should respond to that without giving away too much scary information. But the reminder of what I've gone through was enough to send shivers down my spine. And I know instantly that it's not enough to fool Usui Takumi.

Noticing my unvoiced fear, he reached out for my hand and gripped it tightly. "Ayuzawa."

I smiled at him but chose to release his hand. I have no confidence holding this hand—not when the hand he's holding has been responsible for so many deaths and injuries. "It's not a… very easy life, Takumi. My parents and me… I've been constantly on the run. And just when we thought that we found peace… I ended up slaughtering the entire town simply because I lost control—simply because I was overwhelmed by anger, guilt… and sorrow. I may not affect you but that doesn't mean you're physically immune to what I can do as well."

"Then show me."

My forehead creased at that. "Show you what?"

Takumi shrugged. "Show me how you can hurt me physically."

Stunned, I was quick to cringe away from him. "Are you crazy?!"

"No. But you keep on warning me off." he was talking like the danger—that danger being myself—meant nothing to him; like it wasn't a big deal. "Of course, I'm not saying that you should fatally injure me because that's going to be too bad. But I need to know—I need to see—the extent of what you can do. That way, I can be prepared."

"Usui Takumi, you are insane!"

"Show me."

"You're crazy to think that I'm going to hurt you on purpose." It was the truth. I wasn't about to do anything that would cause him to shed blood—even if I wanted to do nothing but smack him on his head right now for urging me to harm him physically. I was about to move away from him but he had been quick when one arm shot out to grab me by my elbow. I glowered at him; startled and hurt at the same time. "Usui Takumi."

His eyes narrowed as he moved closer to him; his emerald green eyes getting dangerously darker by the second. "Ayuzawa, show me."

"I am not going to hurt you!" I screamed on his face as I tried to push him. But since he's a guy and literally stronger than me in physique, it felt like I was idiotically pushing against a concrete wall. I smacked my fist against his chest. "I swear, Usui Takumi! I'm not kidding!"

"So am I. I'm not asking you to make it grand. Just hurt me so I can be prepared."

"There is no way you can ever be prepared for situations like that—" but before I could even finish my sentence, he pushed me down the ground and forced himself against me. I glowered at him; stunned, embarrassed, and equally excited and frightened by the very sudden invasion of personal space. "Get the hell out of my face, Usui Takumi."

"Or what?" he says as if to challenge me.

This bastard is really trying me. "Get off me while I'm asking you nicely, Takumi." It was my final warning. The excitement and tension are getting the best of me and another sign of provocation and I'm quite certain that I'm going to end up hurting him—or doing something I'd most likely regret. When he didn't budge, I pushed him roughly off me. "Get off me."

"Since when did I listen, Ayuzawa—"

Controlling the curse is one thing. But controlling my mood—my anger—is what I'm struggling the most with. And that damned curse is feeding off my anger hence, I've always done my best to calm myself as much as possible. But when I'm being provoked like this… I glared at Takumi angrily, mad that he's forcing me to hurt him, and when he winced—and the scent of his blood assaulted my nose—I quickly snapped back to reality. He had been quicker to withdraw, covering his face with one hand as if something had hurt him.

I mentally shrieked, anxious that I unconsciously did some type of permanent and fatal injury. "Takumi, no!"

"Calm down, Ayuzawa," he says, his voice muffled while he was massaging the right side of his face.

I ripped his hand off that part of his face and shrieked once again when I saw a relatively small cut just below his eyes. "I am so—"

"This is all you can do?" he says, amused as if I didn't just cut his face. "I guess you're not that scary."

I was angry once again but I could barely speak. I was torn in between wanting to shout at him, apologizing, and wanting to smack the living daylights out of him. I settled for the first option. "Usui Takumi, you bas—mmp!"

I glared at him when he covered my mouth with his hands, cutting off whatever I was planning to say before he held my hand and brought it to his lips. "Nothing you do can make me hate you, Ayuzawa."

"But—"

"Shut up and listen," he says rudely; glaring at me and daring me to speak. I've decided to keep quiet to allow him to finish. "You know me. I'm not the type to listen and if ever I did, I would have already listened to you. I'm not aware of the things you did in the past and I will never try to justify any of that. Whatever the things are done against you, you did what you had to do to survive and, at the same time, acknowledge that the things you did are wrong as well. I'm not just someone who is not affected by you, Ayuzawa. I am your other half. Whatever you did in the past, whether you are in the wrong or not, there is no way I could ever judge you. And when I said that I accept you, it means I accept all of you—the good and the bad."

I was quiet after his speech. I wasn't very certain how to respond to that—or how I should accept his words. I have heard those words so many times in my life, I get my hopes up all the time only to get extremely disappointed in the end. But I couldn't have the heart to blow him off—to show him my doubts. Of course, I'm quite certain that he means what he says.

But what if the curse becomes too much even for him? If he walks away… if he gets hurt because of me…

My eyes refocused—and narrowed—on the small cut on his right cheekbone. This is one example of what I can do once I lost control.

Pushing an exhausted exhale out of my throat, I gently shrugged him off before putting one palm over his hurt face. I focused very minimal energy on the small wound before finally releasing his now cut-free face.

Takumi seemed utterly surprised when he touched his face—his cut nowhere to be found. He stared at me in disbelief. "You could heal other people?"

"It will depend on how fatal the wound is. If it's too lethal and if the victim is already in front of Death's door, I can no longer do anything about it."

"Does that apply to you as well?"

"What?"

"Your ability to heal."

I shake my head with a sigh. Somehow, I was aware that he might go for that question. I sank back on the dry ground and stared at the crumbling stone before us. "Not really, no. We could heal other people but not ourselves. After all, it is most likely that we are the ones inflicting the harm."

"Why do you keep saying that you hurt others intentionally when we both know that it wasn't the case? You can't help that they react to your curse, Ayuzawa."

Ugh, dammit. I love it when he calls me by my name. "You give me too much credit, Usui. I'm feeling pressured to keep a good behavior because of your good faith in me."

"Well," he squared his shoulders, finally relaxing as well as he continued his sentence. "—your temper is awful so at least one of us should be clear-minded."

I couldn't help but chuckle over what he said. He was right though. I'm normally calm until thoroughly provoked. Somehow, it felt nice to have someone know how terribly bad things can get… and still be treated with normalcy.

"So, you brought me here," Usui says again after a few seconds of silence. "—did you bring anyone else here?"

Ugh. Why does he have to be always jealous? "No. You're going to be the first." And hopefully the last.

He laughed when I flushed red to my roots and starts looking around the empty place. "Who maintains this place? It's a pretty big land."

"It is, isn't it?" I looked around as well only to end up frowning. It is a pretty big lang, indeed—only to be occupied by dead, cursed people. "I'm pretty sure there's a hired help who maintains this place. I've only ever been to this place very few times so I'm not sure. But whenever I'd come here, the place is always sparkling clean. Too bad only dead people occupies this place."

"So why did you come here? I'm pretty sure you have a purpose."

"Well, I did have different plans before… but then you decided to come with me so I have to improvise. Not that I don't have plans to come here. But it's the only place where I thought I could get answers. But again, that was before you and Umekoji."

He looked momentarily confused.

I shrugged. "I mean, I wasn't expecting that I'd be dating you, Usui Takumi. And I'm even more surprised to find out that Umekoji-san was a direct descendant of the person who cursed my ancestor. Of course, that is bound to change all of my plans, don't you think so?"

"Right." he sighed once again and proceeds with his next question. "If someone asks, I'm telling everyone you're my girlfriend." I stared at him in surprise. He looked back at me with a blank expression and says, "You are, right?"

"You're engaged."

"You know it's against my will. And besides, it's not like I'm planning to go through with it. I'm planning to break it off soon. Just give me time." he paused momentarily and added thoughtfully, "—and I swear I'm not cheating on you. I just didn't want to let you know because I know you'd react that way. But I guess, that was a stupid thing to do as well. I wanted you to tell me everything yet, here I am hiding something important from you."

I wasn't sure how to respond to that. "Aren't you worried about what other people would think of you once it was confirmed that we are dating?"

"Who cares what they think, Ayuzawa? Are you really worried about that?"

Hell yes, I am. But the look on his face made me think twice if I should really voice out my thoughts. In the end, I sighed. Well, if we are going to start a relationship, we should start it off with honesty. "I am. But I am mostly worried about how your family would react to you having an unapproved girlfriend when you're already engaged. I don't really think I meet their standards."

"Well, I'm the son of a Princess, after all." and then, to my surprised, he chuckled darkly. "And you're the villain who bewitched me. Don't you think our situation is too funny?"

It wasn't. But the look on his face was enough for even me to crack a laugh. My hand shot towards him automatically and my balled fists reconnected against his arm for a punch. He laughed even harder at my reaction before he grabbed the hand that punched him and brings it up to his lips for a soft kiss.

"Trust me, Ayuzawa," Takumi says while his mouth was pressed against my knuckles; his sharp eyes a smoldering shade of emerald green as he stared at me in silence. "—please?"

How could I say no to that face? I couldn't. Here I am struggling with the idea of how to keep him safe and alive while he's right here flaunting in front of me how utterly careless he can be around me. I simply stared at him, gauging the seriousness and depth of his eyes and, in the end, completely surrendering myself to fate and to Usui Takumi, I nodded. "Fine."

"Fine?"

"Fine." but before he could even say anything else, I had been quick to cut off whatever absurd expectations he's had of this relationship. "But if you get hurt, the deal's off the table."

Takumi frowned at that. Frickin' adorable. "What does that mean?"

It means if he gets hurt because of me, I'm going away. But of course, I didn't bother to tell him that knowing that he won't leave me alone. Once he finds out that I have plans to go away if he ended up harmed. I ignored the adorable pout forming on his face and, after taking a quick look at the darkening sky above us, I quickly got up and dragged him up with me. "We have to go."

"Already?"

"Night is almost upon us," I told him while distractedly glancing at my wristwatch. "Besides, if we leave now, we'll return to the University just in time the dance ends. We'll have plenty of time to be back in the dorms without getting seen."

"You're right." He dusted invisible dirt off his jeans and gave the eerily quiet place one last look. "The next time we come to this place… I'll make sure that your curse is lifted."

I paused over what he said; stunned by the conviction in his voice. It was the first time he truly acknowledge the idea of lifting my curse and however he plans to lift it is beyond me. Of course, there was still a huge percentage of it being turned into reality impossible but I simply smiled and nodded at him before making our way towards the gate.

If we were quiet on our way up, our descent is a much quieter event. Like before, Takumi helped me if there were stary branches on the way or if the area I'm about to jump off to was unusually high. But unlike when we first started the trek, there was no longer a distance between the two of us. And for the first time in a very long time, I realized that I actually didn't mind being that close to him. When we are finally on a flat surface, he lend out his hand to me—meaning to hold hands while we made our way towards the parked car.

I gave him a small smile and accepted the offer and, in silence, we made our way towards the car in a slow-paced manner.

"Come to think of it," I said before we could even reach the car. "—that person was also buried somewhere near here."

Takumi's forehead creased in equally obvious confusion and interest. "Who?"

"That person." It took him a full minute to realize who I was talking about before his mouth formed to say a silent "oh". I laughed at his reaction because he looked like he wanted to say more but doesn't want to overstep his bounds. I tugged on his hands and continued our pace to the car.

"Don't you want to visit him?"

"Not really," I said after a full consideration of the situation. "I caused his death because I was too blinded by the idea of finding someone who's not affected. At some point, I am to blame for what happened to him—and to all those people, as well. I can't see him—not yet, at least."

"Do you still hold feelings for him?"

"Are you asking me if I still love him?"

Takumi shrugged. "Maybe."

"Well…" I contemplated on my response, wondering how I should word it in a way that he won't misunderstand. But in the end, I was left to do nothing but go for honesty. "—it is weird to say that I love him, honestly. Of course, I still hold feelings for him—but I won't call them love. I'd say… guilt, I guess."

"Guilt?"

"For causing his death… for failing to see that I'm poisoning him… for failing to see that I'm poisoning myself. Now that I think about it, I'm starting to wonder if I've ever truly loved him." I shrugged, trying to look as casual as possible even if talking about that person triggers a lot of bad memories. "I can't help but think that, back then, giving him that kind of attention, maybe I was the desperate one."

"What does that mean?"

"Desperate for love… for attention… desperate to feel even a single ounce of normalcy." the list could go on and on. But there's only one thing that truly matters. When I averted my gaze to Takumi, I saw myself reflected in his emerald orbs… and how utterly inhuman I look standing right before him. "Desperate to be seen and treated like a normal human being—and not the monster I've always been."

He frowned at that. "You're not a monster, Ayuzawa."

"You give me too much credit. If I ended up showing it to you by accident, I'm afraid you'd end up disappointed once you see how bad it could get." I gently tapped him on the face and was about to turn away from him and to the car when he managed to quickly grabbed the hand that touched his face. My forehead creased. "What?"

Takumi didn't say anything. Instead, he just held my hand and gently pressed it to his face; his eyes slammed shut as he relish the certainly uncomfortable cold temperature coming off my skin. "You're not a monster."

Well… when he words it like that, how could I break his heart by still insisting that I am? I smiled at him and nodded. "Thank you. Shall we?"

He gave my hand one last squeeze before he nodded and drags me back to the car. Takumi was silent as he opened the door for me and, as soon as I got in, after making sure that there were no limbs sticking out, slammed the door shut before he jumped into the driver's seat. It was a very quiet drive and as we drive away from the property, I could swear I saw a white silhouette staring at us as if seeing us off.

We were at least twenty minutes away from the Academy when my phone finally picked up reception and started ringing like crazy. And suspiciously, Takumi's phone started ringing as well. We gave each other a confused look and when he nodded at me, I went on to answering my phone to know what's going on.

I haven't even finished saying my greeting when Sakura's voice came screeching in the background. "Ayuzawa, where the hell are you?! You better get your ass back in the Academy right now—"

"Whoa, whoa, calm down, Sakura," I said; trying my best to maintain my calm even if I was startled by the urgency in her voice. "What's going on?"

"It's the dance today and everybody was expecting Umekoji to arrive with Usui-sama because of their engagement rumors. So when he didn't, people started laughing at her and she started throwing fuss about it. Your name's being thrown around left and right and she started creating a scene about you stealing an engaged man—"

"What?!"

Beside me, Takumi looked confused and kept giving me quick glances as he drove in a hurry to get within Academy premises. "What's going on, Ayuzawa?"

"You guys are still together?!" Sakura screeched once again which hurt my ears.

"Is that Ayuzawa?" Shizuko's voice echoed in the background and, presumably at Sakura's nod, the phone was snatched from her hand and her smooth voice reverberated from the other end of the line. "Where are you right now?"

"Uh… we're about to park the car. What's going on?"

"Umekoji created a scene in the dance hall a little while ago," she says in her usual calm voice. "Listen, I know you and Usui are still together. But I don't think it's a good idea for you two to be seen together. Don't let him drop you off in front of the Academy and, as much as possible, try your best not to be noticed when you return here in the dorm room, got it?"

"Yes, I understand."

"Look, I don't like the situation and I am going to be very honest with you. With Umekoji reacting like that in public and creating a scene, there's a possibility that Usui's family might enter the picture and try to control the situation. I'm sure he knows that's going to happen as well by insisting to involved himself with someone… they don't approve of. So if he has a plan, now's the right time to act upon it."

I wasn't sure how to respond to that so, in the end, I just nodded. "I got it, Shizuko. Thank you. I'll see you in the room."

I turned my phone off and stayed silent when the call was finally over. Takumi was silent beside me as well and we stayed like that even after the car engine has been turned off. And when he couldn't take it anymore, he beat me to breaking the heavy silence. "What's wrong, Ayuzawa?"

"I'm not sure… but I think Umekoji created a scene in the dance when people started pointing out that you didn't come with her. Shizuko thinks it's not a great idea to be seen together."

He exhaled in frustration and washes his hand over his face. "Goddammit, Umekoji."

"I also think it's not going to be a great thing to be seen together—just to be on the safe side. She said your family might try to take control of the situation."

He sighed once again but nodded in the end. "I'll have a talk with my brother tonight."

"Are you going to be all right? I didn't mean to get you in trouble, Takumi."

"I'm the one who insisted that I'll come with you. Gerard knows that I can no longer leave you alone." When he unbuckled his belt, I did the same, too. He turned to me again after a few seconds. "How are you going to return to the dorms without getting seen?"

I contemplated what my response will be for a second before exhaling. "Well, I've no choice but to use this," I said and points out my eyes. When he looked at me in plan confusion, I was forced to explain to him what I'm about to do. "If I can force people to submit to me against their wills, I can also make my presence invisible to everyone. We could be passing by each other in the hallway but you wouldn't notice my presence at all even if I'm standing right in front of you."

"Like going invisible?"

"Well, you could call it that—but not exactly the disappearing aspect."

"If you have that ability, why don't you use it to escape people who are trying to harm you?"

I shrugged. "Why do you think I have this bracelet that controls my curse?" I asked him as I lifted my arm up to show him my bracelet. "Why do you think I have to take a few days off after overusing my curse? Why do you think my eyes glow into an unnatural shade after using it against people? It's because there's a rebound on the curse. The more I use it, the more I'm turning into something else… the more it becomes uncontrollable." I hesitated on my next words but Takumi looked at me as though he was expecting some more. I sighed once more. "Let's say the more I use it, the more I become… unstable."

"You? Not the curse?"

"Yes, me. Not the curse. The curse stays the same—it's always been a powerful force whether I used it or not. But the rebound is on the holder—on the user. If I use it, no matter how insignificantly small energy was utilized, it will come back to me times three."

He stared at me again but, this time, there was hesitation in his eyes.

I smiled at him; aware that he's wondering if he should let me go. "It's going to be fine, Takumi. I'm going to be fine. You don't have to worry about me using it."

"But you said it will come back to you times three."

"Nothing I can't handle," I assured him again before trying to relax on the leather seats of his car and summoning the curse buried deep within. I felt the heat inching up to the surface while Takumi watched me carefully; ready to spring into action just in case I need it. When I was certain I was holding enough energy to not be seen, I turned to him carefully, still shocked to see my inhuman form reflected in his emerald orbs. "—I'm ready to go."

There was still hesitation in his face but, deciding to trust me, he finally nodded. "Alright, Ayuzawa. Call me once you're back safe in your room, okay?"

"I will." I gave him another once over and before I could even change my mind, I quickly jumped out of the car and made my way back inside the dorms. Behind me, I heard him start the car once again and, after giving me a goodbye honk, he sped out of the Academy once again.

I didn't find the need to use my ability much more than necessary. There weren't many students littering the dormitories around that hour. And I deduced it on the fact that, maybe, it's because it was almost curfew and most of them were tired from the dance. I made my way in silence to the elevator and punched on my floor. It was a very quiet, uneventful ride. Regardless, my thoughts were filled with nothing but Usui Takumi and the events that happened today.

It might not be completely down but I'm quite confident to say that most of our walls are down. The situation was still a bit complicated but I know that we somehow have an understanding of the current situation. We are dating, obviously. And obviously, the situation we're in was a very complicated one. I wouldn't have it this way but there's no room for me to be choosy especially when most of the issues are from my end.

When the elevator pinged to my floor, I stepped out as quickly as I could and almost dashed to our room. I was in a hurry to get in and nearly slammed the door shut when I got inside. Shizuko was the first to greet me when her head popped out of her room as if to check who entered our dorm room. She was already out of her Christmas dance outfit and dressed casually in cotton pajamas. Sakura stepped out of her room too while frowning, clearly bothered by the events during the Christmas dance.

"Is everything okay?" I asked them while unwrapping the scarf off my neck and hanging my coat on the rack. "I mean, I know there was this thing about Umekoji but I hope you guys were fine."

"She's such a bitch." Sakura says as they follow me to the living room. "I've never seen someone spin webs of lies while wearing a crying face. She knows that Usui-sama is not even the least bit interested in her. Is she crazy?!"

"Stop screaming like a banshee, Hanazono." Shizuko says, also frowning. "It's not like the situation would change if you react that way." and then, she turned to me. "Where's Usui?"

"He said he'd have a talk with Gerard."

"Tonight?" When I nodded, she sighed. "I don't think that's a good idea."

"Well, I tried to stop him. But he said it has to be tonight. Maybe, he's planning to pacify his brother over what happened at the dance tonight." I sank back on the leathered couch in our living room and started massaging my aching foot—realizing quite too soon that the hiking activity that we did is finally taking a toll on me physically. "What else happened tonight?"

"Umekoji is out of control," Shizuko says while frowning. "I'm not sure what's going to happen on Monday but you should be on the lookout for possible bullying… and do your best not to use your ability on other people."

She tried to say it as carefully as possible, obviously doing her best to not offend me. I nodded in acknowledgment over what she said and continued massaging my aching ankle. "I understand, Shizuko. You know I'm not really going to use it to harm anyone."

"Even if they try to harm you, Ayuzawa." she says while frowning. "We can't be there 100% of the time… but we'll try to be. So if you need help, come find us."

I appreciated what she said because it truly meant something to me—to be treated like a true friend. I smiled at her and nodded again while looking down on the floor.

Shizuko sighed. "Well, how did your day with Usui went?"

I shrugged. "It was okay." I paused momentarily, wondering if this is going to be a good time to announce the news. I was about to chicken out but decided to just do whatever. "We're dating."

This time, it was Sakura who frowned. "Thought you guys were already dating weeks ago."

"I mean, today, we've decided that if someone asks, we'd confirm it."

"Oh…" the three of us gave each other awkward glances before Sakura broke the silence. "—well, congratulations. I mean, the timing isn't right… but I'm happy for the two of you."

"It's not like there's a right timing when it comes to Usui Takumi." Shizuko says with a roll of her eyes. "But I'm glad that the two of you were able to finally settle things and talk about the current situation."

"Thanks."

Another wave of awkward silence washed over the three of us. I cleared my throat, trying to act normal while Sakura pretended as if something in the vase caught her attention. Shizuko cleared her throat as well and started backing off to her room. "Well, it's been a long day. You're probably tired. Just go rest and we'll see each other in the morning."

"Right." After one last roll of my ankle, I jumped off my seat too and made my way to my bedroom. We bid each other good night and got into our respective rooms to settle for the night.

I washed quickly to remove the traces of my outside activities and to relieve myself from the fatigue and exhaustion of covering the ground. When I was done washing, I change into comfortable sleeping clothes, turned the lights off, and left only the night light before settling on my comfortable bed. I scanned my phone real quick for any messages and left Usui a message that I'm planning to settle in for the night before placing my phone back to its charging station by the lamp desk.

I was aware that he wouldn't be able to respond since he's probably going to be very busy talking with his brother regarding the Umekoji situation. Of course, I was curious about what's going to happen but I know that I have to be patient since he asked me to wait. I sighed, trying my best to relax as I sank deeper on my bed—the day's activities finally getting to me.

I thought about Usui some more and the things I revealed to him. It's going to be hard lifting the curse especially when Umekoji wasn't participating… but now, at least I know that there's a way to lift. I just have to figure out what without needing Kaon's help since it's quite obvious she doesn't have plans to help.

Dammit.

Finally feeling the exhaustion of today's events, I've decided to just clear my head and start over tomorrow. I'm not racing against time here. In fact, I have so much time left to figure out what I need to do to lift it. There's no need to rush. I'm only seventeen. I need to be level-headed about this.

I pictured Takumi's face mentally and tried to relax once again, not bothering to count sheep since they only ever keep me awake. Outside, the winds were unusually strong as it hit and rattle my windows. I pushed the noise out of my head and tried to empty my mind.

It was an exhausting night. I didn't even realize when I've fallen asleep.

Hope you like the update and don't forget to tell me your thoughts by leaving a review!

-TGP