Four

"Wow, they really must be fighting," Manta said slowly as he watched Ren descending the stairs with his bags.

"No way," Horo said under his breath. He knew the possibility of Ren leaving would be great, but he had always pictured the exit before Yoh would discover his secret.

"YOU ARE A COWARD!" Tamao screamed at him as he reached the last step. Without acknowledging anyone in the room, Ren headed straight for the door and almost came to a jog as he exited.

"Does this mean he's not staying for the wedding?" Lyserg asked timidly.

"Lyserg," Horo sighed, "There might not be a wedding."

---

"Did you just kiss me?" His voice quivered as he spoke. She was holding his face in her hands, watching silently as his body trembled. "I mean, because if you kissed me that would mean…"

She stood abruptly and turned her back to him. The short black dress she was wearing bounced up and down at the hem as she tapped her foot nervously. She remained silent.

"Anna, say something. What was that?" She felt the change in the air as he stood and stepped closer to the door.

"Let's not talk about this again." He could tell in the weakness of her voice she was beginning to cry.

"What are you talking about? We have to talk about this. That wasn't random. It's happened before and I need to know this time." He was inches from the back of her neck.

"It doesn't matter. It was a mistake. You don't have to mention it again."

"People don't normally make the exact mistake over and over again. I need to know what this means."

"What do you want me to say?" She was suddenly yelling at him, "We are not talking about this again. Get out."

"Fine. Eventually we will." As he passed her and reached for the door she grabbed his hand and stopped him.

"Ren?"

"..Yes?"

"Please don't tell Yoh."

---

"Anna, are you listening to me?" Yoh suddenly intruded upon her daydream as he raised his voice.

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" She realized they were still holding hands so she gripped his tighter.

"I said I need time to think. I want us to talk about this, but I'm angry and confused and stuff, and I want to clear my head first." Yoh stopped talking because she wasn't looking at him and seemingly wasn't listening.

"ANNA!"

"I heard you," she said softly, "That's a good idea. I'll give you your space; as much space as you need. Why don't you go back to the house and relax. I'll stay out here and get some fresh air."

"Why don't you go back inside and I can stay out here. I think I need more fresh air than you do right now." Yoh seemed irritated by her suggestion.

"You need to spend some time with your friends. It wouldn't be good for you to be alone and possibly run into Ren right now." He could now sense the desperation in her voice, and she pulled at his arm to move him.

"Whatever."

She heard him say it but for some reason didn't see him jerk away from her. By the time she realized the conversation was over, he was yards away and too far to call back. The slow steps she made toward the lake made her body feel weightless. Beautiful leaves rustled around her feet as the wind carried her to the destination.

"I know you saw me, but why did you come out here?" the male voice resonated from the trees.

"We need to talk, don't we?" Anna spun around and seemed surprised by the luggage bags he had leaning against a tree trunk.

"There's nothing to talk about, remember?" Ren's response sounded much angrier than he felt.

"I need you to stay for a while." Her words astonished him so much he lost his balance slightly and almost fell forward.

"…Why do you want me to stay? You said I'm causing problems and I'm ruining your wedding…" He didn't mean to sound sarcastic but she picked up on the tone and fired back.

"Stop acting like this! You don't have to pretend you hate me. This is your fault; remember? You were the one who told my fiancé you're in love with me, which I still think is absolutely absurd. You made this mess, so you have to fix it! I want you to tell Yoh the truth and make things right." She seemed breathless as she spoke, as if she knew everything she said was empty and vain.

"Who's acting Anna? You've put on the perfect 'oblivion' act ever since I arrived. You can't even admit you at least have feelings for me that are not pure hatred. I'm not talking to Yoh again right now. You have to fix this; not me. Do you really think I wanted to fall in love with you? Yoh is my friend, and I would never want to hurt him. If you want to blame someone, blame both of us. I am so sick of this tug of war with you."

"Yoh is going to think I don't love him anymore because of you. Why did you have to say anything in the first place? At least admit you came here to stop my wedding."

Ren seemed floored. He was suddenly unable to speak and looked into her eyes as if wounded. After a few long seconds of regaining his composure he sneered, "You are unbelievable."

"Oh, and flying all the way to Japan just to ruin your best friend's wedding isn't?" Anna was beginning to hate herself for the words that followed but for some reason, she couldn't help spreading this onslaught of viral malice. "What did you think? Did you honestly think I would call off this wedding? Did you think you would fly here and I would run into your arms and tell you I can't stop thinking about you and can never be without you?"

"Anna," he tried to interrupt her but she was yelling now and couldn't hear him.

"You're full of it if you think you had a chance with me. I'll tell you the truth, since you think I haven't been honest with you. I don't love you. I don't even like you. In fact, Ren, I hate you. I hate you for invading our lives in the first place. I hate you for befriending Yoh and making him feel like he needs you in his life. I hate myself for ever letting you touch me, and I hate that we're here having this conversation. I can't stand to look at you. You shouldn't have come here, and now I have to be sick at my wedding. Get out of our lives; you're not welcome." She was standing two feet in front of him with her hands balled into tight fists at her sides. The wind blew her hair all over her face, and most of the beautiful strands were caught in the stream of tears that were now flowing freely down her cheeks.

"That's impossible," Ren said under his breath.

"What did you say?" Anna choked.

"You don't hate me." His words were too calm, flowing from his lips as if he didn't hear her tantrum.

For the first time, Anna was at a loss for words. She closed her eyes and quickly pulled her hair from her face, turning away from him as if trying to clear her thoughts. As the wind picked up in pace she stumbled slightly and opened her eyes to find herself tightly in his arms.

Ignoring the shock and panic in Anna's eyes, Ren seemed this was a good opportunity to freely express his thoughts. He leaned forward and slowly whispered into her ear, "I don't care anymore. You can be afraid; I'm not. I love you."

He tried to finish his profession but was caught off guard by the sudden caress of her lips against his own.