Yes, Garu was trying to commit suicide. But it's really not all that serious! Then again, try telling that to Pucca, who makes a big deal out of everything. I mean, one would think that she would have gotten used to his whole "Prince of Emo-Darkness" act by now, considering how intelligent she is. But all that aside, here's another brilliant chapter from PPDP!

"You look horrible." I mumbled to him as I walked with him into an empty, warm cavern.

"O-oh y-yeah? W-well let me t-tell you that y-you would p-probably look the s-same way if y-you had just gone th-through what I d-did." he stuttered angrily.

"Yeah yeah." I said. Poor guy. He was trembling so much that I thought that he was hypothermic. His head was rolling as I sat him up against the cavern wall.

"How d-did you f-find me?" he rasped.

"I was looking for you." I stated matter-of-factly, searching for wood around the cave- which there was plenty of- and two compatible types of rocks. I met Garu's eyes and he stared at me with a sort of anger that I couldn't understand. I ignored his glare and dropped my head, concentrating on making a fire.

"Garu…" I started. He looked up at me. "Why would you just let go? Didn't you notice that it was turning into a hurricane out there? Couldn't you have just climbed back up?" Anger and accusation filled my voice as the relief faded. I shuddered at the thought of what may have happened if I hadn't seen him.

"I'm sorry." He muttered. "It was stupid…"

"Yeah, really stupid." I agreed, nodding. "Look." I said. "Do you mind saving the stupid stuff for when I'm around? I won't be able to concentrate if I think that you're jumping off cliffs behind my back… or running away from home." I put in.

He looked down, still shivering. I took out a blanket from my bag and handed it to him.

"Th-thanks." He sighed. "And by the w-way, I d-do m-mind."

"What's that supposed to mean? 'I do mind'?" I asked sharply. He glanced up at me angrily, and then he looked down again with a shudder. "You jumped on purpose." It wasn't a question. He closed his eyes and cussed under his breath. Then, he looked up at me.

"Yes." he whispered to me.

"Why?" I was persistent.

"I… I don't know." He shivered. I scowled at him.

"I just saved your life, and you thank me by not telling me why you decided to put it in jeopardy?" I asked angrily. He looked at me with annoyance.

"Ever stop to think that maybe I didn't want you to save me?" he asked coldly. His cruel words caught me off guard. My hand sliced the rocks in a sharp and blindingly fast motion. Without warning, they caught fire.

"Ow!" I yelled in agony. "Ow ow ow ow OW!" My hand was on fire! Garu ran over and took off his shirt. He rung it out and the extracted water put out the flames. I must have been crying even though I tried hard not to. I bit my lip and winced. My hand was throbbing angrily. Tears rolled down my cheeks. Garu gently took my hand and wrapped it in his still moist shirt.

"Third degree burns…" he mumbled, and when he was done wrapping my wounded appendage, he wiped my face with his hand to free it of tears.

"I'm f-fine." I broke off as my voice choked. I was trying very hard to ignore the pain. Garu's concerned face turned into complete worry.

"Stop acting. I already know that you're good at withstanding pain. If I were you right now, I would be screaming uncontrollably!" he said and pulled me into a comforting hug. I pushed him away.

"Well, you're not me! So shut up…" I mumbled. He rolled his eyes.

"But if I were you, then I would be in Sooga village right now, safe and sound." He said, sternly.

"Well if that were the case and if I was you, well let's see… oh yeah! I'd be dead!" I growled at him angrily. "But I'm not you and you're definitely not me, so just SHUT UP!" I screamed and began to walk out of the cavern.

"Where are you going?" he asked me. The nerve! I didn't answer. "Good. You should go home." he mumbled. I stopped and turned to face him.

"I'm not leaving you here. I'm going wherever you're gonna go, and I don't care what you have to say about it!" I said, sitting down. He didn't reply. "I'm going to sleep. If you leave, you're putting me in danger." I said resolutely.

"And why is that?" he asked nastily.

"Because I don't know the way home." I said casually. It was a really smooth lie, because Garu gave up and lay down on his side. He was silent. Just as silent as three years ago. And that was probably how it would be… for now.

A nightingale twittered beautifully. Her song added extra weight onto my eyelids. As I closed them slowly, a thought crossed my mind. What was Garu trying to escape from? And what was it that made him think that the only way to escape it was death? And why did I decide to get involved in all of this? Well, for the last question, I knew the answer. I was worried, but about all of the wrong things. Little did I know that these very things that I wasn't worrying about were about to get all up in my face.

I woke up in the morning and sighed. I was comfortable and warm. I sat up and realized that I was wrapped in a blanket. I yawned and stood up. Next to me lay a large leaf with two apples, about a dozen or so blueberries, and a banana. I grew worried. Had he left? I squeezed my hands in annoyance, and a sharp jolt of pain came from my hand. I winced. Then I remembered what had happened last night. I lifted my throbbing hand. It had been wrapped up in Garu's shirt, but I now realized that it was wrapped in gauze. I could feel the antibiotic under the bandages tingling, cleaning my burns. I glanced over to my bag. It was open. Of course…he replaced his shirt with the gauze from my first aid kit. I sighed, went over to my bag, and zipped it up. Ugh. Morning breath.

I re-unzipped my bag and pulled out my toothbrush and my toothpaste. I made my way outside. My heart skipped a beat when I saw Garu standing there. He had stayed! I silently rejoiced. I took a few steps towards him. What was he doing? He looked up at me and smiled crookedly. I gasped inwardly. His hair was down and I marveled at the length of it. I reached just about half way between his shoulders and his elbows. His chest was bare and it had a slight gleam to it from the sunlight. He must have had a six… no, an eight pack! I couldn't tell. His eyes were soft and sad, but the color of his irises complemented his features. He was washing out his shirt. He saw me staring at him and raised an eyebrow.

"What?" he asked. I shook my head to clear it. I always thought that he was hot, but now, he was HOT! I blinked twice and hid my face in my hands, pretending to be tired. I was blushing furiously. I feigned a yawn.

"Umm…uh…nothing, nothing at all." I mumbled quietly. He chuckled. "What's so funny?" I asked accusation in my voice. He smiled again with the same smile with which I was greeted.

"Not to be rude or anything, but… your hair -" He broke off into another muffled chuckle. I had totally forgotten about my hair! I flushed and ran to get my hairbrush. I was still blushing while I was brushing my hair and my teeth.

I could still hear him laughing.

See, that's just mean right there...