Title: No Such Thing As A Guarantee
Fandom: Xiaolin Showdown
Characters: Rai, Kim
Prompt: 010:Years
Word Count: 1,052
Rating: PG-13
Summary: It has been years since Rai saw Kim last.
Author's Notes: Crappy summary. That's all.

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Twenty-eight is a good age. When you are not being faced with all the shit that hit your face. What have I done with my life? Nothing but absolute regret. Really, nothing I could do now can make me forget about everything. From the moment I was born up to this very moment. What I went through and what I did, is nothing compared to what I lost. It's not what you think. No one has died. Well, except for my soul. That died along time ago. When she left.

Cheesy right? Like something from a romance novel. But the difference between this and a novel is that this is real life. There is no happy ending. Sometimes you wish there is, but truly, there isn't. But that really depends on who you are talking to. Say like an eighty year old woman who says she has been married sixty some years. She'll tell you she had a happy life with her kids, grand kids, and even great grand kids. But what can you say about a man that pretty much lost everything? Not so much now huh?

I stood by a lake. Pondering on all this bull shit. As well as thinking about the day she left my life. When I was eighteen. Ten years. Who'd think that time would pass by so fast. Ten birthdays, ten Christmases, ten Thanksgivings, ten New Years, and ten big fat Valentines. All of it alone. In one of the biggest cities in the world. What a great fucking ten years.

I remember that day. When we all left the temple. Clay went back to Texas to take over his dad's ranch, Omi wanted to stay but decided to move to the Northern part of China, and Kimiko... she went back to Tokyo, met some guy, got engaged, married, and has a two year old. You can see why I'm beating myself up now, huh? But as far as everybody is concerned, I went back to Rio, moved to New York as soon as I got citizenship and pretty much lived the bachelor's life in misery. Been in and out of work and tried to make the best out of it. I tried to move on. Got a date here and there, but nothing was serious. What am I saying, every single girl pretty much said 'Fuck you' or 'You scum bag' or, my favorite, 'You're not into this'. How could I not be. My one and only left me for something she thought is a great life. What's really great was when I was fourteen and I laid my eyes on her for the first time. When she was going through her J-pop stage and considered beating me up as a hobby. When she was heavily into her technology and when her dad gave the entire world. Well, almost the world.

I kicked the dirt below my feet and saw the ripples in the water. They formed and disappeared. If Clay were here, he'd make a metaphor out of that. Just at that thought, I made a small smile. But not too long though. It went away as soon as my mind drifted in her direction. What a fucking idiot I turned out to be.

"Hey Raimundo." I turned around and saw this woman. I blinked several times. Was it her? Was it really her? It couldn't be. My eyes are playing tricks on me. They had to be. There was just no way that she was standing before me. With a smile plastered on her face.

"Yes, Raimundo, it's really me," she said. It's like she read my mind.

"W-What are you doing here? How did you find me?" I stammered and going on at ten miles per hour.

"I talked to Clay and I wanted to see how you were doing," she replied simply. "So, how are you doing?"

"Fine, uh, just fine." She walked closer to me and stood by me. "What about you?"

"Fine. It's beautiful here." She added after a long pause.

"Yeah, that's Central Park for you. It's a great place to escape to."

"You come here often?"

"When I need to. It's nice to sit around here and just think."

"Yeah, it is."

"How's Tony?" I asked.

"He's fine."

"What about Kia?"

"She's at home with Daddy."

"Are they here?"

"No."

"Why?"

"I told him I needed to see a friend. I don't know why, but I had this feeling that someone I knew was having a hard time adjusting. Trying to get through life but just can't get over what was. Am I right?"

"You always knew what was going on inside my head, didn't you?"

"No matter how hard your skull is, it doesn't take much to penetrate it."

I let out a snort. She was right about that.

"You know then, huh?"

"Yes."

"For how long?"

"A long time."

"Does he know?"

"Yes."

"And he doesn't mind?"

"He knows who I love." That sunk hard on me, I think she caught that. "What I mean is, he knows I love him but he also knows that there had to be at least another that loves me just the same."

"You didn't answer my question." She looked at me.

"No, he doesn't." I looked down. It was a battle that was already lost. There's no way out now.

We stood like that for a long time.

"Raimundo, the only reason why I came here was to see you. I love you too, but it's too late."

"Never say too late."

"Rai..."

"I mean it, Kimiko. Nothing is ever too late, there's no such thing as a guarantee." She looked at me long and hard, but relaxed her shoulders.

"There's no such thing as a guarantee," she said.

"I'm not going to stop loving you, you know that?"

"I know." I gave her a meaningful look before she diverted her gaze to the ground. "My plane is leaving in fifteen minutes."

"Have a nice flight then."

"Good bye, Raimundo. Good luck."

"The same." She kissed my cheek and started walking off from where she came. I watched her leave. Like she did ten years ago. She left my life and came back in. Looking for closure. I had a smile on my face.