A/N: I won't be able to get on the internet as much from now on. My roommate and I had to move to a new apartment (long story), and well… we can no longer swipe from unsecured servers (because there are none). Very sad, really. So now I can only get on at school and whatnot, until we can financially afford the internet. Anyway, here's the last chapter to the interlude between Fated and Destined. I once again dabbled with a slightly different style--hope no one minds. I'm just trying to find my writing spirit, I suppose. I also apologize for how short this chapter is.

Tortured Minds, Broken Souls

Part Three: Future

"Let him that would move the world first move himself."-Seneca

Rika was worried.

After the incident, Takato had barely let out a peep. Usually he would be chattering away during lunch, smiling and laughing, but now…. It was like Kazu's actions had left more than a bad taste in her boyfriend's mouth. He sat far from everyone, silent and brooding, not even touching his lunch. She had tried to talk to him, but he merely shook his head and turned away.

What was he thinking? What thoughts littered his mind? She could only guess. Most of the time he was as readable as a book; but he could veil his emotions quite well if he tried. He learned from the master, after all.

"Is Takato okay…?"

Oh. Rika turned to the voice, forcing a smile on her face and brushing the question aside with a few meaningless words. A slightly unsure Jeri stared back at her. In an act of desperation, Rika attempted to change the subject ("So, how was your date with Henry?") while picking at the flower to her left. The daisy met its match as she unconsciously tugged at the pale petals until they fell one-by-one. The rest of lunch was spent like this, her friend rambling about her night while the redhead's eyes lingered on Takato, occasionally reaching out and grasping his clammy hand.

Something wasn't right. No matter how hard she tried to sway her thoughts, make herself believe that all would be well in a few days, the same idea ran through her mind. What was wrong? Why couldn't she shake this odd feeling overflowing from her chest? Rika found herself lingering on this throughout the day, well into her choir club practice.

At some point, her teacher's monotonous voice invaded her thoughts: "Nonaka--you're almost two beats behind everyone else." The woman raised a bushy brow in annoyance before adding, "Let's try not to have that happen again."

She cursed her instructor silently, though the snap back to reality did not go unappreciated. Rika sighed. They began once more, from the beginning, piano leading the large group of teens into a flurry of notes and melodies that had taken many meetings to perfect.

The redhead found herself glancing around the room, beyond her fellow students, until she became entranced by a small crack in the light green paint. It was tiny--an old nail hole, perhaps--with no signs of patchwork. Although it wasn't a problem at the moment, what would happen if she began to pick at it every so often…? Soon the crack would be large and glaringly noticeable to scrutinizing eyes; and if not, how big would it grow if left unattended, wounded, crying for help?

The song reached its climax, voices speeding and bouncing around the room, instantly blending together into one harmonious moment. As the chord died down, Rika stepped forward to deliver the ending solo:

"Give me your love--undying, unyielding,

And wait for me… wait for me.

I will grow strong--supporting, caring,

So wait for me… wait… for me."

A few pats on the back shocked her; she turned to the other club members and tossed out a small smirk, crossing her arms like she would any other time. They all chuckled happily, probably thinking: that was Nonaka--a girl to count on when a solo needed done! Of course, no one knew of the emotions swirling inside of her. How would they? Word of the event that morning had been slow, possibly squashed by the teachers, and only those who had been there knew the truth. In the end, her heart just wasn't up to messing around today.

Once the teacher announced that practice was over, Rika scrambled for her things and rushed out the door. It was okay to speed out of there every so often, right? A yawn escaped her lips as she stretched. It was tiring, just standing around for hours at a time. To her right, the window displayed a deep red sunset. Slowly, the shimmering blanket of night would douse the sun's light as it wrapped itself around the heavens. Walking down the empty hallway, the redhead unconsciously adjusted her blue jean jacket.

Takato was waiting for her, even though she'd scolded him to go home, so she had to hurry.

It had all happened earlier:

"I have choir club today," she whispered to him, rubbing his shoulders gently. The room was slowly emptying as their classmates left for home or other activities.

The boy nodded dully, glancing away and muttering something her ears couldn't quite hear.

Cupping his face, she gave him a sharp but loving glare. "Go home," she demanded, firm and clear in her intentions. "I'm quite capable of walking by myself, and I would be much happier if you went and got some rest." Of course, she left out the fact that, before this day, Takato would normally spend his time with the dynamic duo while waiting….

He finally allowed his weak gaze to meet hers; a withered smile formed on his lips. "S'okay," he insisted. "I can wait." Laughing lightly, he gave her a chaste kiss on the nose. "Don't worry about me--I think I brought a book, or maybe my ga--"

"That's not why I'm worried."

Rika studied him silently as he looked away for a moment. He was holding back his pain, and it was only hurting him more. Wasn't he the one who taught her never to do something like that? He finally put on an obviously fake smile and replied, "I… I can't let everything get to me, right?"

----

She tried not to let it bother her. Truthfully, she was a little miffed that Takato refused to confide in her all the troubles tormenting him. He had his reasons, she supposed, but just as he had done for her long ago, she swore to stay by his side (and prod him until he finally did tell her).

The stairs were long and twisted, like the rocky path down a small mountain or hill. Rika found herself skipping down them, passing three or four at a time to speed up. Not even stopping to think her next action through, she leapt to the floor below. She couldn't help but curl her lips upward as she landed on her feet, pleased with her results.

Pushing open the large glass doors of the school, she was greeted by a cool gush of wind; it toyed with the loose strands of hair dangling in front of her face. It was a little colder than she'd expected. The street lights were flickering on, one by one, soft rays of hope in the bleakness of dark. Lost for a moment in night's subtle tranquility, Rika closed her eyes and allowed herself to pause. Sometimes she found the evening to be calming, relaxing.

Deep breath. The girl began to walk forward, but not too quickly. She didn't want to seem like she was in a hurry to get back to him, even though she was. Violet eyes searching, she tried to spot her boyfriend--for some reason, he wasn't where he normally stood (usually he'd be yawning and counting the stars in the sky with a goofy look on his face). She finally came to the gate, peeking out and around, thinking that he might have wanted to relax elsewhere.

Nothing.

Fear flashed through her body for a moment, tugging at her eyebrows and teasing her heart. Where was he? Did something happen to him?! Her head was spinning as various ideas, many highly doubtful but extremely pessimistic, coursed through her. Logic overcame her raging emotions, and Rika thought to herself for a second: 'Maybe he listened to me. Maybe he went home.'

With a chuckle, she chided herself for being such a worrywart. Pulling out her cellphone and dialing the number to the bakery, she rolled her eyes. He tried to put on a tough-guy front around her, but couldn't keep it--huh? Maybe she would go visit him for a while.

"Hello, Matsuki Bakery! How can I help you?"

"Ah, Mrs. Matsuki! It's me, Rika," she cheerily announced, switching the phone to her left ear. "I was just wondering how Takato was doing."

The woman on the other end let out a confused laugh. "What do you mean, dear? Aren't you two walking home together?"

Everything seemed to come to a halt. Her mind raced, Takato wasn't home, Takato wasn't home. All that she had been dreading minutes before came back to taunt her. Takato's mother began talking again, but the words were lost to her. All Rika could think of was where Takato could have gone. Keeping her voice as normal as possible, she said, "Oh, how silly of me! I see him now--the jerk, he was hiding. Well, sorry for bothering you!" And she hung up.

Feet pounding the cement below, Rika ran as fast as she could away from the school. She didn't know where she was going, but she knew she had to go somewhere. It was like before… just like before, when he had disappeared. Back then, she'd been so scared. Scared for him, scared of what would happen. The time flew past as she jogged. The twilight grew darker around her, enveloping her world in a surreal sense of deja-vu that only sent her reeling further.

She slowed to a stop in front of a railroad track, panting and wiping her forehead; her bangs stuck to her face, jutting out in awkward angles. Why was she worrying herself like this? That was something--one thing--that happened long ago. There was no way something like that would happen again, right? Holding a hand to her chest, the redhead could only pray that she was correct.

There was no sign of a train, so Rika crossed cautiously. There was only one place Takato would go, only one place she could think of that would be comforting to him at a time like this. She hastily made her way to the park.

----

The park was beautiful at night. Small lamps lit the pathways, creating looming shadows that beckoned to the weary traveler from behind the trees. As she wove her way through the foliage, she ran her fingers on the bark of one larger tree and glanced at it fondly. When she was younger, Rika had climbed that tree and fallen off, breaking her arm. Somehow, it became her favorite spot to hide, though she hadn't visited it in quite a while.

The area opened up before her, revealing a small playground shining in the moonlight. The swing set, the jungle gym--everything was still the same as so long ago, welcoming her like an old friend. But that wasn't what caught her amethyst eyes. There, off to the right, sat Takato, hugging his knees close. He looked so frail, shuddering slightly in the cold. Why didn't he have his jacket…?

After what seemed like hours, Rika's voice shattered the silence: "You really like to try my nerves, don't you?" No response. Though he tired, ignoring her did no good. Smiling weakly, she tiptoed across the sandbox and took a seat beside him. "Soo…," she drawled, "mind telling me what's wrong?"

Takato averted his eyes, but leaned into her open arms. He was like an icicle, barely melting in her warm embrace. Running her hands through his messy brown hair, Rika whispered a soft, "It's okay…," and kissed his forehead. An ominous feeling suddenly crawled over her, and she withheld a sob. What was that? For some reason, she wanted to cry….

"He chased me here."

"W-what?" Her attention shifted back to the boy in her arms.

With a sniffle, he muttered, "Kazu. He chased me here; and his lackies took my backpack. I think it's in the creek."

A growl rumbled in her throat. "Those bastards…." But before she could put her anger to good use, Takato held her closer and began to cry. Salty tears ran down his rose-dyed cheeks as he bawled, each howl lashing deeper into Rika's heart. So this was what he had been holding back….

"I hate them!" he screamed through sobs. "I can't wait to get out of here--to go to a college where people don't pick on each other or play stupid pranks. I… I can't stand it, can't stand any of it!" So he yelled and wept until sleep overcame him, cheeks splattered with cold tears of anguish. Sadly, even then he was not granted peace; his brows remained furrowed in agony, sadness, pain.

Rika was taken aback by the intensity pouring from his words, unable to do anything but hold him. After wiping his face gently with her sleeve, she looked out to the dark sky. What was going on…? Had the day been so terrible that he now wanted to… to what? Go away? But why?

The redhead closed her eyes and clutched the boy tightly. He wanted to move on, right? Grief streamed down her face in rivulets, catching a ride on the blowing wind as it passed by. It happened so quickly…. In but a moment, he had decided on his future. Something he would work hard for, something she believed he could achieve.

…but where did she fit in that picture?

----

A/N: My favorite line: Slowly, the shimmering blanket of night would douse the sun's light as it wrapped itself around the heavens. Don't ask me why. Anyway, so we have the end of the interlude between 'Fated' and 'Destined.' I suppose Takato's choice is partially affected by the headaches he's currently enduring. Let's see… there are a few major factors that will play an important role in upcoming chapters: Takato's dream; the fight between Takato and Kazu; and Rika's thoughts on the future. I hope everyone will stick with me, seeing as I'm actually writing again. I swear I won't disappear, but school does seem to have a way with me, making me forget anything else that needs done. So forgive me if I take a while. I have the first few chapters of 'Destined' done, but I must edit them and try to flesh them out some. Until then, please review and tell me what you thought!--Angel-Chan