Okay, I know what I said, that's why I didn't promise that I would get it out that same day.

Midnight: Fine, fine, you have a point, but still.

I mean, I had Writer's Block when I tried to write it before the end of the year and then when I finally sat down to write it, I couldn't stop coming up with ideas.

Midnight: And again, I haven't read this, so I have no idea what to expect.

I think you'll like it.

Despite how long I'd been awake, I couldn't fall asleep.

In all honesty, it felt like I didn't even need to. I just wasn't as tired as one would expect from someone who had been awake for days, possibly weeks.

With how exhausted everyone else clearly had been, I wouldn't have been surprised if they fell asleep the moment they lied down.

Which is why I was surprised when I heard a soft knock at the door.

"Who's there?" I asked. It was clearly late, by the lack of any light shining through the window. Even the moon was dull then.

There was a long pause. I began to think the other person somehow hadn't heard me and started to ask again, but I was interrupted.

"Candice."

There was no doubt about who was on the other side. Knowing exactly how these jokes tended to go, I was nervous about answering. But I mustered up the courage to ask anyway.

"Candice who?"

I tensed in anticipation for the punchline.

"Candice door open or am I stuck out here?"

Despite myself, I let out a laugh. Having been expecting something completely different, that caught me off guard.

"That was the best joke you could come up with?" I meant it in good fun, and I really hoped it came across that way.

"It got you to laugh, so I'd say mission accomplished." Clearly, it did.

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever. The door's unlocked, you dork."

Lukas opened the door. Despite

everything he'd been through, he seemed to be completely awake, the same as I was.

Which gave me the perfect opportunity to question him. "Why aren't you asleep?"

He shrugged, actually being able to, unlike me. "I could ask you the same."

"I'm not tired."

The look on his face clearly said he didn't believe me. He decided that, rather than standing in the doorway like he was lost, he'd much rather sit next to me on the bed.

"Oh, really? What, the cold isn't getting to you this time?" He teased.

"What can I say? Turns out nearly drowning is more tiring than playing a deadlier version of Spleef."

He opened his mouth, and then paused.

"Good point."

"Then again, I can't really complain about that when you're the one who died earlier today."

He tensed, though I probably wouldn't have noticed if he weren't sitting right next to me. For the first time in a while, I actually felt guilty for not thinking before I spoke. His death, however temporary it was, clearly affected him more than I initially expected, and it was a little too soon to be making light of it.

"Sorry, I shouldn't have brought that up…"

He shook his head, relaxing a little. "You don't have to apologize, it's alright."

"But-"

"Midnight."

"I-"

"Midnight."

"You-"

He rolled his eyes with a small smirk, before leaning forward such that our faces were mere inches apart. I could already feel my face heating up, and the irony of the situation hit me as soon as he spoke.

"Midnight, do you remember what you told me back in PAMA's core about not shutting up? Because I do." He knew that I knew exactly what he was talking about. "And it would be fair to assume the other way around also applies, right?"

For about thirty seconds, I was completely stunned. My mind was trying to process what was just said, even though they were basically my own words being thrown back at me.

And in that time, I was able to come up with a response, but there was something I needed to ask first.

"You've been waiting for the chance to say that, haven't you?" There had been no hesitation behind what he'd said, it was only reasonable to assume he was planning it for a while.

"Maybe?" That confirmed it then, if the look on his face didn't.

"You're such a dork." I laughed. "Although, unlike then, we are alone this time… there's nothing stopping you from going through with it."

That caught him off guard. His face turned bright red, and I simply grinned innocently as he struggled to regain his composure.

"You weren't supposed to- Oh come on!"

"This is what happens when you try to use my words against me."

"Maybe I should do it more often, then."

The small distance between us didn't even really bother me anymore, and it obviously didn't bother Lukas. I pondered for a moment on whether or not to close the gap, but he beat me to it.

This kiss was different from the first. It felt more real, more passionate, rather than a heat of the moment kiss. It actually made me a little disappointed when it was over, to the point where I found myself unconsciously leaning forward again. But by that point, he'd already shifted, and my head found his shoulder instead. It was still comfortable enough that neither of us needed to move, though.

"And here I was with so much else to say, but now I don't remember any of it." Although he tried to sound upset, with what just happened it was really hard to.

"Oops." Of course, it was only then that any form of exhaustion began to take hold.

He may have said something else, but I wouldn't have known, given that sleep had finally come for me.

This wasn't something I should've been able to remember.

I could tell mainly by the fact that instead of the room I was used to seeing in my brief glimpses of the past, it instead looked more like a nursery.

Also because I 'woke up' in a crib rather than a bed.

I was left lying there for a few minutes before someone came into the room. As per usual, I couldn't see her face clearly, but I instinctively knew who she was.

"Mama!" I reached out to her, begging to be picked up.

But she froze in the doorway, staring at me for a long moment, as though I were a stranger to her.

"What…What did you say?" Her voice was quiet, though I still managed to hear. This must've been the first time I'd spoken directly to her if this was her reaction.

"Mama!" I called again, but I was clearly growing impatient. The memory was beginning to fade by this point, things slowly growing less and less clear.

She was by my side then, finally fulfilling my request to be picked up. Then we were in a hallway, and she was talking to someone else, another unclear face. I knew him too, though. They must've been trying to get me to talk again, but I was more focused on the fact that I still hadn't been fed yet.

They noticed after a while, as the second person spoke up.

"Maybe she'll be willing to talk more once she's eaten."

It skipped ahead again, another few seconds, when a third voice grabbed their attention.

"Dad!" This one was much younger, barely older than I was. Unlike the other two, I couldn't easily discern who this voice belonged to.

"I'm coming!"

That was it, the memory faded from my mind shortly afterwards.

That was odd…

That had never happened to me before, where a memory faded in the middle of a flashback. But evidently, it was one I wasn't supposed to remember in the first place, I would've been too young.

But regardless, I woke up alone.

Sunlight peeked through the window, confirming the passage of time. Lukas must have left at some point during the night, for he was nowhere to be seen.

What I did see was a small piece of paper left behind on the bed; a note.

'Not tired, huh? Hope you sleep well at least. -L'

I rolled my eyes, before getting up and preparing for the day ahead.

And there is your filler chapter, as promised. A little later than originally planned, but oh well.

Midnight: How come the chapters that aren't part of the game's story are so much shorter than the ones that are?

Because 80% of the time, I have no original ideas to write, as shown by that flashback.

Midnight: But you're still probably going to try and write another filler chapter soon, aren't you?

Most likely. Anyways, happy (late) New Year, and I'll see you all next time!

-LegendEmpress