I'm back! After a pretty long hiatus… Maybe a bit too long. Sorry! I just finished school, so this past week was pretty hectic and I had no time… Anyway, here's the long-awaited chapter 17!

Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or Yu Yu Hakusho. I own all of my original characters. I borrowed names for them from various animes, though.

Chapter 17- Part-Time Job

As Rose walked through the door to the café where she worked, she was greeted with utter chaos. Waitresses were running around with plates of tea, coffee, and sweets. Shouts were heard coming from the kitchen, along with customers complaining about their orders at their tables.

"Why can it never be quiet here?" Rose wondered to herself.

"Rose! You're late! Hurry up and get over here!" the manager of the café called.

"Alright!" Rose ran over to the kitchen and picked up and order for Table 7. She rushed over to the table, dodging flying food and plates as she went.

She got the table, and carefully set the tray down. "Enjoy!" Rose smiled cheerfully.

She started to walk off, but a customer tugged her skirt. "Can I get another coffee, please?"

Rose smiled. "Sure. Just a moment."

She ran back over to the kitchen, shouted, "One coffee!" and grabbed another order for another table.

-

With about another hour before closing time, the café had finally calmed down. Only a few waitresses were left, because most of them had shorter shifts. The entrance opened and a bell jingled, and Rose turned.

"Oh! Welcome to the café…" She gasped. It was Kurama.

Kurama blinked. "Rose?"

Rose stared in shock for a minute, but then smiled. "Welcome to the café! Let me get you a table." She led Kurama to a solitary table near the back of the café, where the manager wouldn't see her talking to Kurama.

"Wow Rose, I didn't know you worked here." Kurama exclaimed.

Rose smiled. "Yeah. Gotta pay for my school education somehow."

"You have to pay for your education? Don't your parents do that?" Kurama asked.

Rose blushed. "Um, about that… It's a long story."

"I've got time." Kurama smiled.

Rose sighed. "Alright. But not right now. I'm working. I get off in about an hour. We can go back to my house and I'll tell you the story."

Kurama nodded. Rose smiled. "Now, what can I get you?"

"Just a coffee, please." Kurama tucked a stray hair behind Rose's ear. She blushed.

"Right away." Rose hurried off to the kitchen.

-

Kurama waited patiently outside the café for Rose. The manager of the café had made Rose stay a half-hour late to clean up the café since she had been late. When Rose was finished, she hurried outside.

"Sorry about that." She mumbled.

Kurama gave her a kiss on the cheek. "No problem."

As they walked back to Rose's apartment, they talked about many different topics. As they were talking, Kurama reached for Rose's hand. She took his hand and squeezed it gently.

-

When they reached the apartment, Rose let go of Kurama's hand to lead him up the stairs to her room. Luckily, this time her room's door opened without sticking. They walked in, and Rose told Kurama to get comfortable.

"Do you want anything to eat or drink?" Rose asked, standing in the doorway to the kitchen.

"No, thank you." Kurama shook his head.

Rose nodded. "Okay. Just give me a second to change out of my uniform, and then we can talk." Rose walked into her room and closed the door behind her.

A few minutes later, she walked out wearing a pair of faded blue jeans, a tight-fitting pink sweater, and fuzzy pink socks. She pulled her hair into a ponytail, and sat down next to Kurama on the couch.

Kurama put his arm around Rose's shoulders, and asked, "So, where are your parents?"

Rose rested her head against Kurama shoulder. "In America." She answered.

"Is that it? That's not much of an explanation." Kurama joked, but stopped when he saw the expression on Rose's face. "What's wrong?" He whispered.

Rose sighed, and began her story. "I used to live in America with my parents. But after I graduated middle school, I decided to try to get into a school in Japan. I tried several foreign-exchange programs, but none of them would take me. Finally, my parents decided that they would pay for any expenses to make me a citizen of Japan so I could just take an entrance exam and get into a school that way. All of this happened about a month into my American high school.

"I passed the entrance exam for our school, and then I moved to Japan. I lived here for a few months before they allowed me to start at the school. My parents promised me that they would send me money every month to pay for school, rent, and food, but I'd have to earn money for everything else. But, they eventually stopped coming. So, I got that job at the café to support myself.

"Kurama, I'm scared. What if my parents forgot about me? What if… what if they don't love me anymore?!" Rose sobbed.

Kurama pulled Rose into a tight hug. "That's not true… I'm sure that's not true! And," he looked into Rose's eyes, "even if it is true, I love you. I'll never leave you, Rose. I promise." He took Rose's face in his hands, and gently kissed her.

"Kurama…" Rose sighed. "Thank you!" She hugged him tightly, tears streaming down her face.

"Rose…" Kurama gently held her in his arms.

He held her like this for several minutes, soothing her. Eventually, the two of them drifted into sleep.

-----

Aw… They're so lovey-dovey-zura! Sorry, I had to talk like Uzura from Tutu! I couldn't resist. Anyway, I have two ideas for this story. I can either end it with a kinda sad ending with one last chapter, or I can continue it with some other sweet little chapters, and end it a little later on. Basically, it either a short sad ending or longer happy-ish ending. Please leave a comment and put your choice in it. You'll know what won when I type the next chapter. See you soon!