A/N: The theme song for this chapter is by Joshua Radin, and it is the perfect mood music to use while reading this. If you can obtain it, then by all means, DO! LOL. And if you can't find it, "Always & Never" by Coheed & Cambria is also a good song, and so are "Seven Veils" and "Forget Me Not" by Lucie Silvas.

Now, about this chapter: not much happens here, but this is, IMO, the most dramatic and serious chapter in the story. I hope you don't mind, LOL :)

Chapter 5: The Fear You Won't Fall

/ I know you're scared, but I'll soon be over it. That's part of it all. Part of the beauty of falling in love with you...is the fear you won't fall. /

She didn't know he did it.

She never did. And he would never let her.

He did it every night.

It was one in the morning, and she was asleep. His head was propped up on one arm as he faced her. He studied her sleeping form under the dim light of the bedside lamp: her golden hair, fanned out on the pillow, was akin to an angel's, but her eyes had the naughty gleam of a little devil. Her very image was imprinted in his memory, but he treasured these moments where he could just...look at her. He noticed everything, like how the maroon blanket outlined her soft, feminine curves. How wonderfully her moist, cherry red lips glistened under light, and how they felt against his. Her smooth, delicate hands, and how they felt on his body.

He was weak against her, but of course, she shouldn't know that. He knew she was just using him for the time being, but he would do all he could to keep her around. Slowly, he began tracing the outline of her jaw with his finger, but instantly pulled his hand away once she began to stir.

He was a mess. He hated that for once in his life, he felt so powerless against a woman, and yet he loved being around her. As much as he hated to admit it, he was falling in love with Nina.

And the worst part of all was that he knew, they both knew, that it wouldn't last. He knew that she would not be around when he woke up; she never was. One day, she would lose interest in him, make a clean break and move on, and he would be forced to content himself with his old lifestyle of having a different girl every night. But Lee would never be content, because none of those girls were Nina Williams.

She got up at around five in the morning, hurriedly putting on her clothes as she got ready to leave. Before she did, though, she couldn't help but look at him, so peaceful on the bed. One day, she would have to leave him for good. He would tire of her, she was just another girl to him. Though he didn't know it, she dreaded the day when she would have to leave him.

As far as playboys went, Lee sure was a sweetheart. He would bring her breakfast, drive her wherever she wanted, whenever she wanted, give her gifts every now and then, and call her every day. And he was a really good kisser.

No---she couldn't allow herself to fall in love with him. Falling in love was against the rules.

She sighed, pulling on her jacket, and quietly kissed his cheek before finally leaving.

Why do you make it so hard for me to hate you?

The two of them had been talking through the night, and the clock now read 6am. He held her hands in his as they shared a quiet moment. She'd just poured out her history, her baggage to a man she's known for only about a week, but she felt like she could share anything with him. Some men would pretend to listen until the point where they get to make out with her. Others would judge her without being asked to. He, however, really listened to her, and that made her trust him more. She tucked a loose strand of silky black hair behind her ear and smiled at him.

"Get your hands off my roommate!" a voice yelled from behind them. Yes, Nina had returned.

He let go of her hands. "Sorry," they both mumbled at the same time.

"Which one of us were you talking about?" he asked.

"Never mind," Nina sighed, rolling her eyes as she headed towards her bedroom.

Once she was gone, their eyes rested upon each other. He looked at her soft, pink lips, then into her turquoise eyes. He leaned in, closing his eyes. She leaned in. Part of her wanted to forget everything else; all she had was here, and him, and now. Their lips were millimeters apart.

But then, she pulled away. "I can't. My sister means too much to me. I need to earn her trust first."

She expected him to be angry with her, but instead, he simply nodded. "Yes, you do."

They got up. She headed towards her bedroom, but looked back midway and gave him a smile. He smiled back. Another day, things would work out.

"My sister just can't get her hands off of him!"

"Why don't you just...let her have him?"

"Are you crazy? I know she's my sister, but if she breaks his heart there will be hell to pay. Raven is really naive to the whole process, and I don't want him to get hurt."

"You can't stop love, honey. It just sneaks up behind you and takes you captive. Do you really want to be the one to break them apart? Because rest assured, he will be miserable."

Little did Nina know that he wasn't even talking about Raven and Anna that time.

"Just let him love her, Nina."

"An ugly ending is inevitable, I can see it coming. I'm just trying to protect him -- she's not the type who sticks around for long."

"Don't we know it," Lee laughed. "Well, I think he's more than you give him credit for. You should learn to trust him."

"I guess I should...maybe I'm just being overprotective."

"Anyway, I miss you, Nina."

"But it's only been six hours," she giggled.

"I just can't get enough of you. I want you to be with me all the time."

"And I'm like, what, the hundredth girl you've told that to?"

He merely laughed in reply, but in truth she was the only girl he ever told that to.

"You know we're not going to last, right?"

"Yes," he sighed.

"You'll miss your old ways. I'll get old and fat and wrinkled and you won't want me anymore; you'll invariably want someone younger, Lee, and I can't stop you."

"I think you're wrong."

"I know I'm right. Men like you are all the same."

"Oh, so you're judging me now?"

"I have since day one, baby," she laughed into the phone. "What the hell made you like this, anyway? Did some chick break your heart back in high school?"

"Nope." He'd never told anyone what he was about to tell her, but he didn't keep any secrets from her. He didn't feel the need to. "It was...my father. My real one, I mean. We grew up poor, and it was just him and I because my mother left him for another man. Right before he died, Dad told me to focus on success, and success only. He said that women are just a distraction."

"Oh. So that's what women are to you, Lee? Distractions?"

"Yes."

"I guess that's going to make me another statistic, then."

"You know, I hate to quote that gay Brokeback movie, but Nina...I don't know how to quit you."

Through the open window of her SUV, the wind blew at her long blonde tresses. Her shades blocked out the bright sunlight. She had a smile on her face, and she was tapping her fingers on the steering wheel to the beat of a Jack Johnson song.

Yes, life was good for Nina Williams. She'd devised the perfect way to have her cake and eat it too. And if Lee wanted to send her gifts? She wouldn't stop him, it was his choice. If he wanted to call her up just to talk? She wouldn't turn him away; after all, she was beginning to enjoy their daily five-hour conversations.

He was not her boyfriend, he was her fuck buddy, and she liked it that way.

She parked in front of the dojo and stepped out. Indeed, she didn't plan on winning the tournament itself, but she'd decided that she could use the extra training from the following matches. Should she ever face Raven, she would forfeit instead, because she knew that he had more noble reasons for entering the tournament.

Crouching down, she rummaged through her bag for a water bottle when a shadow moved over her. She looked up.

There was a young man of about twenty-one standing in front of her, the noonday sunlight illuminating the ends of his long, flame-red hair and outlining his figure. He had a charming smile, one that could melt you if you stared too long.

"Can I help you?" she asked warily.

He extended his hand down to her. "Hey, I'm Hwoarang."

"And so?"

"Well, I watch the other matches and I've seen you around. Great moves."

She took his hand and got up. "Thanks. See you around!"

"Wait!"

He watched her blonde hair glisten in the sun as she stopped without so much as turning around to face him. "Yeah?"

"Look, that's not really why I approached you." He scratched the back of his neck and looked down at the floor. "It's just that I...think you're very beautiful...and I...aw, heck, I don't usually get tongue-tied like this..."

She slowly turned around to catch him...blushing? Normally, she would have cut him off like she did with Lee the first time they met, but today she kept quiet. This boy was different from all the others. He was shy. Sweet.

"Anyway, if it won't bother you too much, it would mean the world to me if you'll let me take you out," he gushed, smiling coyly. "We can go have lunch after my next match, if you're free."

"Who's your opponent?"

He quickly rifled through the pockets of his jacket for a slip of paper. "Uh," he stammered, unfolding it. "Nina Williams. Yeah, I'll beat her and then take you out for a victory lunch!"

"Well, you can," she laughed. "But I'm Nina Williams, honey."

His face fell, and Nina could practically feel her heart sink upon seeing him like that. "Oh, you know what? I'll just forfeit, and then we can head out for lunch. How's that sound?"

"Aww, no, I couldn't make you do that."

"It's alright," she assured him with a smile. "I was just sticking around for fun anyway. Let's go!" Hell, Lee and I are non-exclusive. He won't mind.

Yes, Hwoarang was the perfect way to make her forget all about silly, shallow Lee.