January 1, 2009

Daisuke ignored me all day. On my birthday! He…He promised!

I even went as far as to ask James what to do, since my brother was out with my dad.

"What do I do?" I asked, after explaining what happened. "How can I come clean to him about my ghostly issues if he won't talk to me?"

"First of all, I'm not an issue," James said, half kidding, half not. "Second, he's probably just embarrassed. Maybe you were his first kiss."

"But I didn't think he would stop talking to me!" I exclaimed.

Daisuke came out on the terrace then. "I…thought I heard you talking to someone."

"Go!" I whispered to James, and James flew off somewhere.

"What did you say?" Daisuke said.

"I said 'no!'" I replied, nervously. "I-I wasn't talking to anyone."

Daisuke said nothing, just turned and started to go back inside.

"Daisuke—wait," I said, grabbing his shoulder.

He turned around. "Yes, Kuri-san?"

"Daisuke, I'm sorry about the kiss," I said. "If you want, we can pretend it didn't happen. I know you were just trying to make me feel better. You would never kiss me like that for real. I figure…that's why you ran away."

He paused for a second, a variety of emotions showing on his face. One of sadness, then one of determination.

"N-No!" he exclaimed suddenly. "I-I don't want to pretend it didn't happen! I really do like you!"

"Huh?" I was confused for a moment. "Y-You do? Well…I…like you too!"

I hugged him. A thought passed through his mind. What will she think when she finds out?

I was thinking the same thing, at the same time, about him.

January 2, 2009

Get out of my head, Dark!

I dreamed last night. The lake was frozen, and my cousins were all ice-skating on it. Even the little bitty ones. I was standing in the mud.

"No!" I said. "I won't go!"

I was wearing ice skates, but I wasn't going.

"Come on, it's easy," said a voice from behind me. I was lifted into the air and put back down on the ice. "I won't let you fall."

I turned my head. Dark was holding onto my waist. He was hovering, not skating, and he was sort of pushing me along.

"Dark!" I yelled. "No! Let…go…of me!" I pushed him away, and fell. I scraped my knees.

I got up, irritably. "I thought you said you wouldn't let me fall."

"You pushed me away!" he said.

"Then why didn't you catch me?" I retorted.

"I…I'm sorry," he said. "I…I didn't come here to flirt with you. I came here to tell you-"

I woke up suddenly. Daisuke was standing next to me-he must have been shaking me.

"I-Is something wrong?" I asked him.

"Dark…isn't supposed to do things like that," replied Daisuke in a shocked voice.

"Doesn't he…have to be touching me…to go into my dreams?" I asked.

"Yes," Daisuke replied a bit distracted.

"Well then where is he?" I asked.

"I made him leave…" Daisuke said. I couldn't read him, not his emotions, or his face. It didn't help that James was outside and I was worried that he would do something stupid. He had told me about some kind of human skin he could wear.

"Daisuke," I said to him. "I hope I'm not breaking you and your friend apart."

He didn't say anything.

"Can't you talk to me?" I asked him. "I thought…we could talk about anything…"

"I'm sorry," he said. "I can't tell you now, but I promise I will when the time is right."

"It's just that…" I said softly. "I'm afraid you're going to disappear."

He looked shocked. "Why would I do that?"

"Well…the last boyfriend I had…he…" I began. "…commited suicide. I thought I knew everything about him…I thought he loved me…but then he was dead."

There was no moment in between. Daisuke immediately hugged me. "I…will always be here."

I blinked away the barely formed tears. I hadn't expected him to say that! And his thought that I heard was sweet too: I'll always protect her too

James told me later on today that he has a human form that he can take on whenever I'm ready to tell Daisuke about him. Not right now though. I…don't want to ruin what we have right now…