A/N: Hey, back with a second chapter of "From Way Before"! Hope you guys enjoy it! Please review with either positive or negative comments! I really want to hear what you guys think of it!

The warmth of summer soon drew to a close as the leaves morphed from green to rich shades or red and orange and gold. The thin stems broke loose from the surrounding trees in town and floated to the ground, soon being buried beneath layers of snow as winter barged its way in, covering everything in it's midst. Soon enough, the snow melted, making room for flowers to grow and live with the promise of a new spring.

Rhianna had given birth in the fall, nearly two weeks before November 9—Gojyo's birthday—to a healthy little half-breed girl, who she had named Brooke.

"Quite ironic," Priest Genjo Sanzo has commented when he and his follower, Son Goku, had come to see the new arrival at Rhianna's cottage. "Considering what her father was."

Rhianna had simply smiled and looked at her daughter with love, gently fingering the soft curls of red hair. It blew her mind just how her daughter came to be; especially since a half-breed like Gojyo himself was incapable of reproducing. The memory of Gojyo's demon blood taking over still chilled the woman to the bone.

As the seasons changed, Brooke grew and grew, and Rhianna was there every step of the way, not wanting to miss a thing.

Time continued to pass, Brooke continued to grow and Rhianna continued to light a candle every night, leaving it in the window, hoping, praying, that Gojyo might come home one day to her and their child.

Hakkai had moved in—as solely a promise to Gojyo—to help Rhianna with the baby and her; helping her take care of her wants and needs. Those wants and needs had never progressed to the bedroom.

Then one day, after Rhianna had just put Brooke down for a nap, Hakkai was in the kitchen, washing the dishes from lunch when he suddenly looked up and to his left to find Rhianna standing in the doorway to the kitchen.

Her thumbs had hooked themselves through the belt loops on her dark blue jeans, the sleeves of her light pink turtleneck rolled up to her mid-arms. Blue eyes trained on the green-eyed demon.

Hakkai blinked, his right hand clutching the yellow sponge in one hand, the china plate in his left. "Uh, Rhianna?"

"Um…" Rhianna bit her lip and shifted her weight and took a couple of cautious steps to the man. "Can we…talk?"

Nodding, Hakkai placed the dishes and sponge back into the sink. Grabbing the dish towel off the handle of the stove, he dried them. "What's up?"

Rhianna shifted her weight once more, looking rather serious but at the same time, hesitant about asking or saying whatever was bothering her.

"I'm…I want to have sex with you."

That was it; the words were out of her mouth and Hakkai blinked, watching her. A thick awkward silence drifted between the two. The sound of the clock ticking away time resonated through the kitchen.

"Um…I'm sorry, Rhianna." Hakkai coughed lightly. "What did you say?"

Hakkai had, in fact, heard perfectly what Rhianna had said. It was a matter of clarifying what Rhianna had meant, to make sure that the demon hadn't misheard or imagined it.

Rhianna sighed and took a few more steps to Hakkai, moving to rest one hand on the counter. "I'm lonely. I'm tired of being alone."

"Rhi…" Hakkai started before clearing his throat, trying to not let his voice crack. "You…me…"

"Hakkai," Rhianna spoke in a gentle voice, moving so her body was less than a foot away from his. "I miss Gojyo…I miss him, and I love him…but I'm tired of being alone. I need sex. I need to be close to someone. I want to feel loved again."

"But…this is me. I'm not him."

"I know you aren't." The hand on the counter moved a little to lightly rest on top of the male's. "But you were his best friend. You were close to him."

The demon gulped. There just had to be a way out of saying 'no' to his best friend's girlfriend without hurting her any more. She had already lost Gojyo—their child was going to grow up without her real father—and now it seemed that her only hope in feeling loved was to have intercourse with her boyfriend's best friend.

"I really don't think this is a good idea." Hakkai countered.

"But you made Gojyo a promise. You told me that yourself."

That was right; Hakkai had made a promise to the half-breed shortly before his death. Gojyo had begged and pleaded that if something should happen to him, Hakkai was to go back to Rhianna, move in and help take care of her and the baby's every need and want. Hakkai had, at the time, assumed that meant every need and want with the exception of the bedroom. Bedding a woman who belonged to another man—regardless of that man being dead—was a huge 'NO'. It was an unwritten rule; you do not bed another man's woman under any circumstance.

"But—"

"You made Gojyo a promise to take care of my needs and wants. I need sex Hakkai. I haven't had any since you guys left before the resurrection." A few long moments passed, before Rhianna upped the ante. "I'm sure I can find it somewhere else if you aren't willing to put out."

Hakkai frowned, closing his eyes. What to do…what to do…

The man allowed his mind to drift, attempting to fight the internal struggle he was facing. It ultimately came down to bed his friend—take her into the bedroom and have sex with her—or leave her to find other men who would be more than willing to take Gojyo's spot.

If he was the one to dance with Rhianna beneath the sheets, than maybe it wouldn't be so bad later on; both knew each other well, both had the Brooke's best interests in mind (the girl shouldn't have to see different men leaving the cottage at all hours of the day and night, even as young as she was) and it wouldn't exactly be breaking Gojyo's promise, despite the fact that the promise seemed to go without saying that it did not extend to the bedroom.

"Well?" Rhianna tilted her head back a little, her brown ponytail dropping and brushing her shoulder blades, watching the man, who seemed to be deep in thought.

A deep sigh resonated from Hakkai's pink lips and it took another few long moments before he said anything.

"Okay…we'll…do what you asked." Hakkai explained, trying not to be too nervous about this. After all, this was his friend and his best friend's lover. "But on one condition."

"What's that?"

"This is purely sex with no strings attached." Hakkai stared meaningfully into Rhianna's eyes, his eyes boring into hers. "I'm only engaging in this because I took an oath—I promised Gojyo—and that's it. Under any other circumstance, this would never happen."

Rhianna couldn't help the smile play across her lips as if she had been given a new toy, blue eyes lighting up. "Oh, thank you, Hakkai!"

Hakkai watched the young mother, biting back a sigh. Damn…this was a mistake. He was sure of it; this whole arrangement was going to come back and get the both of them in the end.

A/N: Okay, second chapter done. With some twists…please review!!