Part 6 is finally up! R&R

When it's raining:

Shinn Asuka always had hated the rain. The way it slapped in your face, beating you down to your very core, till you're cold and raw. Listening to the dismal rhythmic pounding over and over hurt his ears. Today was no exception.

The water was bitter, bleeding through his already soaked jacket. It seeped to his skin, and he cringed from its frozen touch. He scowled up at the sky. The sun showed no intentions of showing through that day with the ominous clouds barring the way, putting Shinn in an even grumpier mood as he was walking home from school, which he was now forced to partake in ever since the military days had come to a halt. His sense of time was drowned in his wandering thoughts. Grumbling all the way, he hadn't even noticed someone calling his name.

"Shinn, Shinn!"

He spun around angrily. "What!?"

Shinn's expression softened when he glanced down at his annoyance only to find it was his own girlfriend angrily glaring with her hands on her hips. Her fuchsia toned hair was sodden with rain, and crystalline droplets of water dripped off her cherry red nose. Shinn bit his lip to keep from smiling.

Whatever resolve Shinn had in his mind right now was washed away by the words that came out of her mouth.

"I called you five fucking times! Are you bloody deaf!?" she screamed.

"Maybe I didn't answer for a reason! Did you think of that?" he retorted just as angrily.

She stomped off. It was pretty rare when she was bad-tempered, and whenever she was Shinn would normally find it pretty amusing, but today was different. Today it was raining.

As he trudged behind Luna, his hands clenching and unclenching, his anger melted away like the rain that poured over him. He immediately resented what he'd said and reached out to Luna's hand. She slapped it away.

"Hey, look Luna I'm sorry! I was just angry," his temper was slowly rising. He fought to keep it under control.

"Hmph! You should be!" was her only reply, and her stride didn't slow.

"Well what about the five fucking times thing! That wasn't needed to be yelled!" he shot back.

He saw her hesitate. Shinn reached out for her hand once more, and this time she let him.

"Look," he said in a much more gentle tone. "I didn't mean it Luna, I was just upset."

Luna turned around. "Why?" she asked, genuinely curious.

Shinn flushed at having to explain his great distaste for rain. It seemed silly when he tried to explain it out loud. "Umm, I got a lot of homework…?"

"Don't lie to me, Shinn Asuka." She crossed her arms and made a face. Ugh, Shinn thought, She looks too cute when she does that!

"I…" he racked his brain for another excuse, but he gave up, out of ideas, and just said it. "Don't like the rain," he finished quietly.

He braced himself, waiting for Luna to start giggling hysterically, but she only stared at him, with an unfathomable expression on her face.

"Uh…Luna? Are you okay?"

She half-smiled. "I love the rain," she admitted. "It reminds me of when I was younger, and my parents would swing me over the puddles, because I didn't want to get my new rain boots dirty. But Meyrin would insist on stomping through every puddle there was, just because it was there." Luna laughed half-heartedly. "It's silly, isn't it?"

Shinn didn't say anything. He looked at her, even though he couldn't see it because the rain molded with her tears, that she was crying. He knew. And he wanted to do something, anything, to ease her pain, even if it was just a little.

She looked up at him through her tears, choking on emotion. "Shinn…I…"

But before she even had time to realize it, his lips were entwined with hers, with a gentle firmness that made her dizzy. His lips moved against hers, his arms encircling her, trapping her in a tender embrace, shielding her from the rain. For a moment, she had to concentrate on remembering how to breathe, and when, ever so softly, he parted her mouth and slid his tongue in, she was utterly and irrevocably lost.

Finally, when Luna managed to come to her senses, her breath came in wild gasps, and she knotted his fingers in his hair, clutching him to her, and kissed Shinn back with such rapture and compassion that he was taken aback. Smirking now, Shinn moved his lips against hers again, with more force this time, and brought his hands up to her face, a trail of burning skin where he touched her.

He whispered her name between their kisses, growing softer; to tell her his lips were for her and her only. He bent to touch his lips to hers one more time, and his lips were gentle, unexpectedly hesitant. It was brief, but very, very sweet. He pulled away, his arms still around her, and looked into her eyes. She stared up at him, her solemn tears replaced by ones of joy. Their gaze locked as Shinn held her, and her only response was an embrace that spoke louder than words ever could.

Shinn smiled. Maybe he could learn to like the rain after all.

Kiss her in the pouring rain.

A/N: Maybe I went a bit over the top with the kissing part, but umm...I don't really know what to say. It's kinda embarassing actually. If you like it anyway, don't hesitate to tell me, reviews are gladly accepted. I would appreciate some healthy criticism as well, I don't know if my writing has gotten better or worse.