A/N: Disclaimer: Refer back to Chapter 1.

WARNING: DRAMA, FLUFF, WAFF, SUGGESTIVE THEMES

Chapter 11: Choices of Responsibility

Almost a month had now passed since that event. To Argilla, it seemed like it had happened only yesterday. She bit her lip.

Ever since then, she hadn't spoken to Serph.

Well, nothing personal, that is. After all, being her assigned processor, it was impossible for Argilla to proceed with her everyday normal routine without speaking to Serph.

She sighed.

Every time that she would enter her office at the showroom, she just remembered her kiss with him…

She then shook her head. She told no one of that. She didn't tell Heat either. And she hadn't really much time to ponder over it seeing that her job had been demanding. But seeing that the month-end was about to end, she supposed that she could spare a moment or two to reflect upon the events of that month that seemed to her as a speeding bullet train.

She frowned slightly; she knew that Serph didn't mean to kiss her…

He was just lonely.

And it just happened that she had been the only girl who had noticed him and…the only person who actually gave him the advice to…love himself.

She sighed.

But that wasn't the point.

The point was…

Why did she allow him to kiss her…?

Why did she kiss him back…?

What did she feel about him…?

As colleagues? As friends…?

Or maybe more…

'That's…that's crazy…!' she screamed internally, 'I…I love Heat…!'

'Do you?' another side of her suddenly surfaced and asked.

Her eyes widened as she realized that she hadn't an answer.

xxxx

She looked at her watch, carrying the large envelop within her other arm as she leaned on the wall, waiting.

She knew that his duty time was about to end. She knew that she should've called first. But that didn't matter. If she did, he would probably just avoid the topic that she wanted to speak about.

Well, seeing now that their work had ended, she reckoned that an impromptu visit, preemptively, would be the best course of action.

Her musing was cut short as she heard footsteps coming. Her perked her ears and knew that it was him. How? She closed her eyes and shook her head. All had gone already; from the receptionist to the custodian. He had always been the one to leave the last.

She smiled a bit at that thought. If she knew anything about him for real, she knew that his work meant the world to him.

'Eh…?! If that's the case, then where do I fit in!?' she thundered crazily within, balling her hands into fists.

She froze, immediately ceasing her childish and seemingly mad self-musings as she heard the footsteps get louder.

She braced herself and within one moment, the silver-haired young man came round the corner.

Their eyes met and time stood still.

She read his eyes and saw the surprise in them.

"A-argilla…?" he asked, uncertain, "What are you doing here?"

She rolled her eyes and roughly shoved the large envelop towards his chest and arms, "Hmph! Here!"

"Uh…!" he gasped as his reflexive instinct was to hold the load that was pushed into him, "Eh? What is this?"

Again, she rolled her eyes, "What the heck does it look like?! It's work crap!" she thundered, crossing her arms dominantly.

He sweat-dropped at that.

She could be scary…

xxxx

She looked at him as she drank her cup of coffee, sitting on the farthest corner of his large desk. Since she had dumped the workload on him, he had had that uncontrollable obsessive compulsion within him to check the files and ready them for the courier the next day.

"Hm…Uh oh." she heard him say.

A vein popped within her temple as she heard it. She hated it when he would say that…! Groaning a bit, she asked, "What's wrong with it now?!" she asked impatiently.

Chuckling, he turned to her with that heart-warming smile and spoke gently, "It seems that you've inputted the incorrect passport number for the local sponsor of this company."

She growled, "Extra signature, right?"

He chuckled and nodded, "You know it."

At that point, she hastily stood up and paced around the room like a madwoman, furrowing her eyebrows, "Who would've ever thought that giving car loans to people was this complicated?! I mean, can't we just take their docs, give them the car keys and leave!? Why do we have to be so…so precise and crystal clear in everything…!?" she drawled, sarcastically, angrily.

Serph's eyes meandered nowhere and fixated themselves only upon the apple of his eyes. She was still as silly and childish as ever…

He sighed, albeit happily and stood, "You know very well why."

His response earned him a glare from her as she stopped pacing altogether to show him her blazing pink orbs and her protruding temple veins.

He sweat-dropped before coughing slightly, ignoring her as he proceeded, "When things go sour with the customer, and he, heaven forbids, leaves the car and forfeits the loan, then…against litigations, should we catch him, the documents that you have taken along with the contract that he has signed in front of you would be a vital instrument towards the long and not to mention tedious-"

"Aaargghh!! I know why damn it!!" she screamed, accidentally dropping the paper cup in her hands, spilling the coffee on the white tiles.

Serph sweat-dropped. First, she said that she didn't know why their policies were such and then when he would explain it, she would scream at him for doing so and tell him that she knew.

Sheesh! Which one was it anyway?!

Can't she make up her mind?!

"Mm?" he suddenly stopped his ponderings as he heard his companion squeal, "Ack! I didn't do it! Honest!" she said, clearly feigning her innocence.

He looked at her, unimpressed before looking at the black pool just before her shoes, sighing. He supposed that he had to clean that up too…

Turning, he grabbed his tissue box and knelt down, proceeding to clean up the mess that Argilla had made.

Argilla bit her lip in guilt as she watched him. She thought for a moment or two on what she should do. She then nodded; she should help him, shouldn't she? It was her fault after all…right?

'Nonsense! I'm a girl! Girls don't make these mistakes! They're accidents! Accidents…! And he's a guy! He's supposed to clean up that mess!!' her childish and selfish side proudly stated.

She made a face.

'But still, it isn't very nice…'

So, letting her conscience reign, she knelt down as well, and helped him.

"Here, let me help you…!" she began.

"No! I'm almost done."

"But I-!"

Both froze as their hands touched.

Serph's silver eyes immediately traveled upwards and saw her pink orbs, fixed on his. He blinked, blushing, "Argilla…" he breathed out.

"Serph…" she whispered, her eyes never leaving his.

The two, letting time and space completely freeze, unconsciously crawled nearer to the other…

"Argilla…" Serph whispered once more, letting her breath tickle his lips as she continued to near him, drew his eyes to a close and let their aching and hot lips finally connect.

Argilla felt him pull her closer as his arms encircled her within its protective embrace, forgetting all about the spilled coffee…

xxxx

The two found themselves seated at their office's meeting room, sitting right across the other; their eyes on the smooth wooden surface of the table that separated them.

"I came here…"

Serph gazed at the woman in front of him as she began to speak.

"…to…to settle this."

He felt a sting of pain on his chest, telling himself to brace himself for what was coming next. 'She probably doesn't want me around her…' he thought bitterly.

"I don't know what exactly is…going on between us." she told him sadly, "I mean…I'm so confused."

He blinked; confused…?

A part of him wanted to smile. Was she confused on what she felt towards him…? Did that mean that perhaps, a tiny part of her heart belonged to him…?

"I can't keep doing this with you." she said sadly, shaking her head.

"It isn't fair to Heat…" she told him, "And it isn't fair to you…" she whispered, emphasizing on the last word.

He cast his eyes downward, "I…"

She looked at him expectantly, half hoping that he would be the voice of reason; like he had always been…

"I…I suppose I really don't care if…if it isn't fair to me…at all." he told her timidly which she knew was a façade. She felt just how compelled he was. She could fell it in his words, in his aura…

"Serph…! You can't possibly…!"

He shook his head and interrupted her, "No…! For once I get to decide about me…! About my feelings…!" he told her sharply, slamming his palms on the table, silver eyes narrowing slightly as he stood up.

She was taken aback by his reaction and she held her tongue.

Serph let out a labored breath as his heart raced. There were a lot of things in him that he wanted to tell her; countless things that he wanted to scream at her. He wanted to shout, yell and at the same time, just breakdown and cry…

Being with her meant the world to him…He felt nothing but bliss just merely by being in the same room as her…To breathe same air…

But then again, as he would remember that she didn't belong to him, all the pain and acrimony, resentment would come flooding back, cascading downwards toward the core of his consciousness, towards the quintessence of his emotions and he would suddenly find himself shrinking…drying up like a prune…

'Being a nobody to her again…' he thought angrily as he gritted his teeth.

"I…want to be with you Argilla…!" he told her sharply, desperation in his voice.

Argilla's heart skipped a beat, "What are you saying?! Serph, we have talked about this…! I can't…I have Heat…!" she protested.

Serph shook his head and strode over to where she sat and knelt in front of her, "If that was true then…then why did you allow me to kiss you? Why…? Why did you return my kiss…? What are you doing here with me now?"

"S-serph…I…"

"Argilla," he began, putting his pal over her hand, "you taught me to listen to my feelings…to my heart."

He sighed.

"Well, I'm listening now. And it's telling me that I want to be with you."

"But I…"

He shook his head, "I…I don't care what you do with Heat…as long as…as long as you promise me that…you'll be with me too."

Argilla's eyes went wide at his proposal. She didn't know what to make of it.

"Serph, I don't think that…"

"Then don't think…" he told her, cutting her off, "Just feel…"

Without warning, the silver-haired man darted forward and engulfed the unsuspecting female into a fiery kiss…

Her hands balled themselves into a fist and tried to push the man from her but he caught her tiny wrists in his hands before they could even come near him and held them down as he continued to mesh their lips together.

"S-serph…"

xxxx

"You're leaving me." he deadpanned, unfazed.

Argilla bit her lip, "I…I think it's the right time to…"

He laughed cynically, "And for whom? For that lovesick processor from Muladhara?!" he spat with utter condescension.

She turned away from him, "Heat…It's not like that."

He laughed darkly and ran a shaking hand through his fiery tresses, "Just don't."

She stopped herself from speaking.

"Just don't give me any more of that crap of yours. I…"

He didn't know why he was so angry. While it was true that he felt strongly for the pink-haired female, he was confident that he would do anything for her happiness. And if that included that she left him, then, by all means, so be it.

However, although he felt the same at that moment, he was surprised to know that letting her go not only hurt him but made him swell with pain, anger…and resentment.

Resentment…?

He sharply turned away from her, seething.

Perhaps it wasn't the fact she was leaving him that was getting into his bones.

Maybe it was…

Perhaps it was whom she was leaving him for.

'Muladharan shit.' he thought malevolently.

Argilla bit her lip and moved over to him and touched his arm, "Heat…I'm really sorry."

Heat then sighed as he felt her touch. Maybe he should forget about the "other guy". It shouldn't really matter to him for whom she had left him for. What should really matter to him was her and her happiness…

After all, when he had been her lover, that was the silent pact that he had made for her; to uphold and cherish her. To do what was important for her…

"Argilla," he spoke.

"Hm…?"

"Just…Well, good luck." he said.

She smiled at that.

"Thank you."

He watched her back as she left his flat. He let out a breath. He knew that the path she had taken was no easy one.

Relationships of those kinds…rarely ever work.

He just hoped that hers would be an exception to the rule.

xxxx