A reply to Riza and to all the readers: Nope, just to be sure, I've merely read some chapters of Jezebel's works, and I cannot remember anything from the story. I know this sounds harsh, but it's true. I usually don't remember anything from any fanfiction I read because I don't return for more. So you can be sure I didn't steal any ideas from nobody. :D Besides, I came up with this idea while I was talking on the phone with ade5kira, so ask her if you need any confirmation.

I'm sorry!! I know I said I would update on Monday… It's been over two weeks… right? Anyway, I'm very sorry, but I was really busy, and I was sort of stuck because I really didn't know which way the story should go for some time. But I'm back! Well. Chapter 3… Enjoy!

Chapter 3

Lulu stole a glance at her mother, who had sat back down on the armchair, looking smug and pleased with herself. She hated it when her mother acted like a spoilt child who must have everything go according to her plans. This attitude was exactly why Su hated their mother, Lulu mused, slumping back onto her chair; she just had to ruin our lives.

She glanced over to where Ren once sat, and bit her lip. She didn't know why, but all of a sudden, she wished she had switched personalities with Su, not that Lulu wanted to help her, but…

Lulu jumped when she heard a thump from the door, and Takaaki and Kaela sat up, peering eagerly at the door, where Ren stood, alone. Kaela's face fell when she saw that Su was not with Ren as he stepped in without taking off his shoes.

"Err…" He stood awkwardly by the door, but his gaze was steady as he stared straight into Kaela's eyes, "I think...I'm not ready for this engagement yet. It's just too early. Sorry."

Kaela didn't say anything, but turned to stare at Lulu as if it was her fault that things did not work out. Takaaki, however, stepped up, and held a hand out to Ren, who took it, looking rather surprised.

"Thank you for coming, at least," he said pleasantly, "Would you like to have lunch here before taking your leave, then?"

"No, it's alright," Ren said firmly, letting go of Takaaki's hand, "I think I should go now. It's been a…err, pleasure to be here."

Lulu snorted with laughter, but hastily turned it into a hacking cough when Takaaki glanced warningly at her, a small smile on his face.

"Err, Ren, won't you like to say goodbye to Su before you leave?" She asked innocently when her fake coughs died away. Ren stared at her, and smiled slightly. Lulu felt her heart skip a beat.

"It's fine," he said, "I don't think she wants to see any more of me, anyway." He turned to leave, "Tell her I said bye."

"Tell her yourself!" Lulu said indignantly, and Ren turned to stare at her with raised eyebrows, "Tell her yourself if you want to say anything to her. She's at the fields, and I can bring you there if you want! I don't want to be your messenger!" She spat out, feeling a rush of anger within her at the thought of being merely a messenger and communicator between Su and Ren. Then, she bit her lip again, and hung her head.

"Sorry," she muttered, aware that Takaaki was watching her intently. Ren stood motionless for a moment, then said simply, "Fine. Bring me there."

Lulu's head shot up, and she felt a grin slowly spreading across on her face. And then, a queer feeling rose in her throat, a sick, sour feeling that she recognized as…

"What's there to be jealous about?" She thought to herself in disgust as she pulled on her sandals, "He just wants to say goodbye, stupid."

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Su heard the soft rustle of grass, and opening her eyes, she sat up, brushing the green blades off her hair with her hand as she peered curiously around to see who was approaching.

"Pretty acute senses you have, huh."

Ren's voice sounded from behind her, and with a gasp, Su turned, and glared at him.

"What are you doing here?" She asked rudely, as if this plot of land belonged solely to her and no one else was welcomed, "Who said you could come, and how the hell did you find your way here, anyway?"

Ren raised his eyebrows. He'd only said one sentence, and this just girl rattled off as if she was a motor mouth… Correction, maybe she is a motor mouth. He waited for her to continue, but she didn't, so he figured it was finally his turn to talk.

"I'm leaving, and your sister thought it would be more appropriate for me to say goodbye properly before I left." He said simply, "She guided me here."

It took a while for Su to realize what Ren had said, and when she finally caught on, she stared at him in surprise.

"You're leaving?" She asked brightly, clapping her hands together in delight and surprise, "You're actually leaving? Now? Really? So what happened to our engagement, huh? Is it canceled?"

Yeesh, what's with her?

"Yeah, it's canceled," Ren said dully, trying not to look too amused, "But is getting engaged with me really so terrible?" he added when Su punched the air in elation and let out a soundless "Yes!"

"It's not you," Su admitted after she finished her small celebration, "I just don't like the idea of settling down. It doesn't seem to suit me, and, no offense, but nor does it really…suit you."

"Really," Ren said flatly, crossing his arms, "Well, at least someone here knows that getting engaged is not my thing."

Su smiled. Now that the engagement is called off, she felt friendlier, and much more amiable than she was feeling just a while ago.

"Maybe we can still be friends, hey," She said cheerfully, "I mean, I'm sorry about how I've acted earlier…I just didn't know how I was supposed to act in front of you…Like, I don't know what you're like, and I don't know what type of girls you like… maybe the crazy bimbos, or the shy types, I don't know… So…."

"Who likes crazy bimbos?" Ren found himself saying with a small grin which he desperately tried to hold back, "And the too shy types are a no-no, too."

What's wrong with me?

"Really?" Su asked with a smile, "I thought boys like the quiet, sweet types. But… whatever." She finished lamely, uncertain of how to continue.

Ren too, seemed to have felt the sudden discomfort, for he turned his back awkwardly on Su, and fell silent. And then, wanting to break the silence, both spoke at the same time.

"(Su)Err, can you find your way out on your own later?"

"(Ren)You know, I think I should get going now!"

Ren blinked in surprise, and Su laughed. "All right, all right, I get it," She said, "Go on, then. Have a safe trip back."

"Thanks," Ren muttered, "I think I shouldn't have a problem getting out."

"That's good!" Su said with another smile, "If you get lost, then just get to the nearest horse you can find around you and tell them to look for Su. They will know where I am, and really, they will be able understand you."

"I won't get lost!" Ren argued heatedly, and Su laughed again.

"If you say so," she said, shrugging and lying back down on the grass, "Bye."

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It was nightfall by the time Su returned home, and, greeted by warning looks from Lulu and Takaaki as she entered the living room, Su knew instantly that her mother was raging about the failed matchmaking and was probably waiting to take it out on her.

"I'm home," She said softly, taking off her shoes and slowly creeping towards her room, "And…I should just… go to bed….now…."

"NO YOU DON'T!"

Kaela yelled from the kitchen as Su placed a hand on the doorknob of her room. Letting out a small shriek, Su pushed opened the door frantically and dashed in. Lulu jumped over the sofa and slammed the door shut for Su, who locked it from the inside, and Takaaki stood up, ready to defend his daughters.

"Where's that wretched girl?" Kaela demanded, throwing her apron, which was wet with soap and water, on the floor as she stormed out from the kitchen, "I'm going to kill her!"

"It's not my fault!" Su yelled from inside the room, "He was the one who decided to cancel the engagement! I didn't do anything, so go find him and murder him if you have to kill someone!"

"AND HOW WOULD I KNOW IF YOU TWO DIDN'T AGREE ON THIS TOGETHER?" Kaela roared. Lulu, who was guarding the door protectively, cringed when her mother yelled into her ears, and from the stifled scream from inside the room, Takaaki knew at once that Su too, got a shock at the impact of her mother's voice.

"HOW SHOULD I KNOW?" Su wailed angrily, "THAT IDIOT WAS THE ONE WHO MADE YOU ANGRY, NOT ME! JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!"

"Shut up, Su," Lulu hissed at the door, "or mum's going to break the door!"

"Kaela, calm down," Takaaki said patiently, "Didn't I already tell you? It's their engagement, not yours. Let them decide what they want and who they want to be with. Maybe it is too early to be doing this, after all."

"Early?" Kaela said incredulously, "early? The last time I wanted to send her abroad to study you said it was still early, and that she was too young to go, so I didn't send her in the end. And now, you're telling me it's too early for her to get married?"

"Isn't it?" Lulu interrupted, "We're only 17, mum, for goodness' sake, just give us a break! Su's old enough to decide what she wants for herself. If she thinks it's best for her, then so be it! Would you rather she marry Ren and then stay unhappy for the rest of her life?"

At this outburst, Kaela fell silent, at a loss of what to say to Lulu or to Su. Finally, she threw her hands in the air, and stalked away, looking bad-tempered. Lulu watched her mother go without a sense of guilt at speaking to her in such an unruly manner. And deep down within her, she felt secretly relieved too, that Ren and Su will never be together.

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Back at Yoh's home

"What?" Jun exclaimed in disappointment when she heard what Ren had said, "You broke the engagement? Why?"

"I… don't know." Ren said lamely.

"You don't know?" Yoh, Hao, Matilda, Jun, HoroHoro, Manta and Pillica yelled in exasperation, and Ren winced.

"But that's so wasted," Jun mourned, "She is a really good girl…"

"Mari thinks Ren is mean," Marion said ruefully, "Why did he break the engagement with a good girl and hurt her?"

"Her heart wasn't broken," Ren said irritably, "Trust me. She couldn't wait to see me gone, really."

"So she hated you?" Lyzerg asked in amusement. Anna smirked, and Ren scowled.

"Say what you like," he grumbled, "I'm not going to answer your questions anymore."

"You're going to get it from grandpa, I swear," Jun said with a frown, "He was the one overseeing the entire thing…" She sighed wistfully, and Ren looked away, determined not to be wavered by his sister this time, "Mum, dad and I were looking forward to seeing you bring Su home too…"

"Yeah, we thought you'd bring Su back with you," Hao agreed, "What went wrong? Did you insult her in any way?"

"Excuse me?" Ren said incredulously, "Me? Insult her? I think she was the one who was being rude and weird throughout my visit, ok?"

"But according to grandpa, she's a very nice girl," Jun said thoughtfully.

"Aha, see?" Hao said triumphantly as everyone else laughed, "so the problem lies with you, Ren."

"I-DIDN'T-DO-ANYTHING," Ren said through gritted teeth, his hand gripping tightly onto his Kwan Dao, which he had left with Jun during his visit to Su's home, "Don't make me kill you."

"I don't get it… but whatever, details don't matter," Jun said, looking pleadingly at Ren, who blinked and stared at everywhere but at Jun, who said, "Will you just please go back and say you'll get engaged with the girl, Ren? Please?"

"No," Ren said firmly, although he was already hesitating, "I'll look stupid, going back on my word. Besides…"

He trailed off, unable to continue. Su will hate him for life if he changed his mind and went back.

"Oh, come on," Jun pleaded, "or I'll let grandpa know about it this very instance and you'll get it…."

"Ok, ok!" Ren said, harassed, "I get it, alright? I'll change my mind and tell them ok, I'll get engaged with Su, happy? But!"

He added sharply when Jun clapped her hands in delight, "I'm going next week. I want to take a rest first."

"What rest? You're just shy," HoroHoro teased, and Ren burned red, "Admit it, stupid china boy!"

"SHUT UP, BOROBORO!" Ren yelled in agitation, swinging the Kwan Dao blindly and barely missing Yoh's head.

"Swing that thing in this house one more time and I'll kick you to outer space!" Anna said sharply when the Kwan Dao whizzed past her, and knocked down the vase on the table.

"Oh, knock it off!" Yoh said with a laugh, and Ren sat back down onto the chair, still burning red as he placed his Kwan Dao beside him.

The reason why Ren hadn't chosen to go immediately was because he was unsure of how he should face the twins, especially Su, but at that instance when he agreed to go back, he felt sure that he had done the right thing.

Err… Bad ending? Haha! Sorry, I told you I was stuck, so Ren ended up… rather queer and OOC-ish. Well… Never mind, I'm feeling kind of worn out, because I really didn't intend to do up chapter 3 today, but due to some reasons… I did. So here it is, pathetic as it is… Got to study for tomorrow's Geography and Math mid-year examination soon… See you all in chapter 4… I'll try to make it fast. Promise.