Hey guys *bows down*please forgive me for taking forever to update. I've read the reviews and no, I'm not thinking about dropping the story. I'm not giving up at all; I just had some extracurricular activities take up my free time. I hope I can be able to get some more chapters out because I have some ideas for this story. Enjoy you guys; I hope that this will be an okay chapter.

((Also, to "the-famous-anon", I know this, and I never said that the Catholic Church was forgiving. I was merely saying things from Shizuma's perspective. I am Christian myself and know that as one of the Protestant religion that even some of us aren't forgiving….next time post using an actual account, it would be better to respond that way^^ Actually I don't really like anon reviews because I can't respond back T_T *might disable them*))

Strawberry Panic-Episode 18:

Tamao was very uncomfortable.

The blue-haired woman looked down at her jeans, her cobalt eyes swirling with many emotions. Her hands clenched, capturing some of the material in her grip. She closed her eyes and squeezed them shut as she heard the loving whispers and soft laughs of Nagisa and Shizuma.

Who knew that car rides could be so painful?

Tamao looked up as Shizuma reached from her place in the passenger's seat to gently touch Nagisa's face. She watched as the redhead colored slightly, a light dusting of pink on her cheeks. The novelist felt her heart tug dreadfully in her chest, her eyes becoming downcast again.

She knew that she had no right to feel that way but she couldn't help it. After all this time, she still held feelings for the redhead. Those feelings weren't strong, no, they were like a disappointment. It felt like someone waved the trophy that you could have won in your face, mocking you because the prize was just out of your reach. The pain of watching someone enjoy what you couldn't have, what you would never have.

Why does it always have to hurt so much? I thought that I had grown past this…

Tanya turned around as she stopped at a traffic light, her stormy gray eyes blank as she watched the scene. The dull ache of loss hit her in full as she watched the two lovers gaze into each other's eyes. She had remembered how she and Amber would do that, and how lost she would become in that woman's eyes.

Her eyes became lidded and her eyes darkened, the dull thud in her chest becoming worse. "Shi, Nagisa…do you mind?"

Though her words were harsh, her tone was soft and emotionless. Either way, Shizuma and Nagisa could feel the icy chill of her words. Nagisa paused mid-sentence, her mouth in a small "o" shape. Shizuma paused also, turning to face the woman with a slightly guilty expression.

"Sorry," the two of them muttered.

Tanya nodded and glanced at Tamao, noticing her shaking hands and broken expression. Her eyes widened considerably before the sound of a horn hit her ears; the light had turned green. She quickly turned around and continued to drive, a lump in her throat.

She could have sworn that she saw small tears trail down Tamao's eyes. Was she…was she hurting too?The rest of the ride uneventful, there was some idle chit-chat but none of the conversation lasted for long. There were always long stretches of silence that weighed heavily on the occupants of the car. The silence was uncomfortable; it was just that no one had the words to disrupt it.

So it was there they sat, as Tanya pulled into Shizuma's driveway, enveloped in silence.

Once the SUV was in park, Tanya turned around flashing a smile. "We're here Tamao-san."

Shizuma also flashed smile, her golden eyes glimmering as she opened the car door and stepped out. She then headed to the trunk to retrieve Tamao's things, her silver hair following behind her. By this time everyone had exited the car, Tanya and Shizuma handling the blue-haired girl's things.

Nagisa took Tamao's hand, leading her to the front door. Once she made it to the door she smiled back at the other woman.

["Welcome to our humble abode, where you'll be staying during your visit in America."]

The redhead unlocked the door and led the way inside, pointing out various places in the house. Tamao followed, her eyes filled with curiosity and interest. Aqua orbs watched took in the house, admiring its beauty.

["Wow Nagisa-chan, this place is really nice."]

Nagisa turned around and smiled warmly, her chocolate eyes glowing slightly. ["Yeah, this place really has a home feel. It's not like the apartment I lived in before."]

A small smiled graced the blue-haired woman's features. She seems really happy here. The last time she was this bubbly…well…we were back in school. I'm glad that's she's so happy…I really am.

"Hey people, what should we have for dinner tonight?"

The two women turned around to face Tanya, who was carrying some of Tamao's bags. The russet-skinned woman sat down the luggage in the hall, moving out of the way so that Shizuma could come through and do the same.

Tanya looked up and smiled, "So, should we cook or order something?"

"I feeling like having pizza," Shizuma said as she closed the door, locking it.

"Pizza sounds good," Tamao muttered.

Nagisa pumped her fist in the air with great enthusiasm, her eyes sparkling slightly. "Then pizza it is!"

"Sounds great," Tanya said with a chuckle. The dark-haired woman smiled at the redhead's enthusiasm, shaking her head slightly. "Make sure you order extra boxes, Nagisa and Shizuma seem to have bottomless stomachs." The woman then strolled into the living room, whistling a tune.

Nagisa nudged Tamao and beamed. "You know Tamao-chan here can eat too!"

The blue-haired woman's pale cheeks colored and she looked away slightly. "I…I don't eat that much…do I?" At least I don't think I do…

"Unless you changed you eating habits…I think not." Nagisa winked at the other, causing Tamao to color more.

["That's an over exaggeration!"]

["Is not~!"]

["Is too!"]

Shizuma stepped in-between the two women, holding her hands in the air. ["Calm down you two, why can't we just come to the agreement that you both eat like monsters."]

Tamao and Nagisa blinked and turned their attention to the silver-haired woman. ["We eat like monsters?"]

Shizuma backed up, feeling the dark vicious vibe that was pouring from the shorter women. The woman continued to back up, slowly moving into the living room. Perspiration began to collect on her forehead and she put her hands up in a defensive position.

["Come on now ladies…." ]

The silver-haired woman looked back as she finally entered the living room. "Tanya, some help here?"

The brunette looked up as she crossed her legs, pulled put a pair of glasses from her pocket and put them on. "Sorry, can't help you…"

Nagisa blinked as he walked in, "I didn't know you wore glasses Tanya."

"Yeah, I do," she replied. "Sometimes…for the most part I wear contacts. I wanted to let my eyes rest for a while." Tanya adjusted her glasses, the lenses flashing with glare. "You think I look funny or something?"

"I think they look nice on you," Tamao blurted out.

Three pairs of eyes all focused on the blue-haired woman, causing the woman to color deeply. Tanya looked up, her ears reddening slightly, the beginning of her blush.

"Um, thanks."

Shizuma smiled and shook her head, "Well at least that changed the subject heehee."

Suddenly Nagisa flung herself at the unsuspecting woman, laughing as the two tumbled to the ground. The women giggled as they began to wrestle around on the floor playfully. Tamao watched sadly, feeling a bout of loneliness tugging at her heart. She sighed, taking a seat next to Tanya.

Tanya looked as if she barely noticed what was going on, her eyes on her cellular phone. The aqua-haired woman opened her mouth to speak, but closed her mouth and looked down at her lap. Her eyes were downcast and gloomy looking for a moment before she felt a nudge. She looked up to see Tanya's smiling face.

"Hey, don't look so blue. A pretty girl should never look so sad."

"Ah, yeah."

Tamao stared into the other's eyes for a moment. Was it her, or were always glowing so bright. She has never seen gray eyes that looked so stormy, yes so calm…if that was even possible.

"Let me order take-out, seeing as those two are so absorbed in each other. And hey, staring in impolite."

Tamao felt as if her cheeks were on fire and she quickly hid her face, missing the teasing grin that crept onto the brunette's features.

That Tamao is a cute one…so fun to tease…