Yes! I actually managed to update today! (Just in time too. Here in SA it's almost midnight!) Now I hope you enjoy this chapter cause I have some news for you: Next week I won't be updating on Wednesday. There is a good reason for that! Put the wooden spoons and steak knives down! SugarFox (my best friend) and I are going on an English Festival. We've already asked our teacher if laptops are allowed and he said, "I think you two rather value your laptops. You wouldn't want them stolen now, would you?" Since there's a lot of truth in what he's saying, we've decided to leave our precious metal boxes at home.

So... no update next Wednesday until we get back on Friday. But then I'll probably we dead-tired (We're attending a workshop called "How to be a Zombie for under 50 Rand"!) so I won't update till Saturday maybe. But on Saturday I'm writing a Benchmark test for admission into university which runs from 7am till 5pm... ugh. AND THIS IS IN THE HOLIDAYS! Oh, and on Monday school starts.

Fun, huh? So cut me a little slack, kay? At any rate, enjoy this dramatic chapter!

Title: Logging off Life (Chapter 8)

Author: MeteorLeopard (HoneyBader)

The brunette girl yawned widely as she tottered back towards her dorm room. She'd been out the whole night, patrolling the school grounds to make sure that none of the Night Class or Day Class where about where they weren't supposed to be. There had been no incidents and everything had run off without a hitch. Now she was exhausted and with the first rays of sun peeking over the horizon, Yuuki was ready to collapse into bed.

Zero had been particularly annoying the entire night whenever they met up. He'd kept muttering about something being off and that he could sense that something was up while Yuuki kept assuring him that everything was fine. He'd finally dropped the issue though about two hours ago and left Yuuki in peace. They'd combed the whole school grounds and done their rounds a few times just to be sure but come up with nothing, much to Zero's disappointment.

Now Yuuki was about ready to collapse and as she reached her hand out towards the door of her and Yori's dorm room, she only hoped that she wouldn't wake her friend. It was a good thing that it was early Saturday morning now and Yuuki would be able to sleep in and try to catch up on the entire night's rest.

Slowly, Yuuki stepped into their dorm room, peeking around the door to check if she'd woken Yori. The brunette's eyes widened fractionally as she caught sight of Yori's empty bed, the covers tossed haphazardly to one side and the pillows rumpled. Yuuki frowned and stepped into the room. It wasn't like Yori to be up this early; sure the girl was an early riser but even for her five 'o clock was excessive. Also, the thought of Yori leaving her bed unmade didn't sit well with Yuuki. Yori was always so organised and neat; the crumpled covers almost screamed that something was wrong.

Shrugging once though, Yuuki decided that her friend could be a little untidy every once in a while. So, stretching as she headed towards her bed, Yuuki figured that perhaps Yori had decided to head early to the library to catch up on sorting the large room out or something.

A cool breeze blew over Yuuki's arms then and made a few wisps of her unruly brown hair fly about her face. Frowning, Yuuki's eyes fell upon the widely opened window and then, as though following a predetermined pattern, wandered to the rope fastened to her bedpost.

No.

Rushing to the window, Yuuki felt like someone had punched her in the stomach. The rope was dangling from their opened window and Yori was missing. Perhaps Zero's edginess hadn't been so ungrounded after all.

Dashing back towards the corridor to race along the hall, all weariness forgotten, Yuuki focused solely on finding her best friend, and making sure that she was safe.

Aidou wanted to ram his head against a wall. How could he have been so stupid as to not remember that a human body was not as resistant to cold as a vampire's? Sure, he had been fine with the freezing temperatures but it was a whole other story with the human girl currently lying on the white, linen-covered bed beside him, huddled beneath a thick white duvet and shivering. Her face was flushed with heat yet her body was wracked with cold spasms and she curled in on herself, breath coming raspy from her lungs.

Her eyes were blurry and she tossed her head a little when her hair stuck to the back of her neck, aggravating her skin. The white towel that the nurse had dunked into chilled water and laid upon her forehead was already warm and the skin beneath it clammy. Carefully, Aidou peeled the saturated cloth away from Yori's skin and instead pressed his own palm against her head, carefully cooling the surface of his skin to a pleasant temperature. Yori stilled for a while as his hand touched her and she turned her blurred eyes onto him.

"Thank you, Aidou."

He gritted his teeth. "Quite frankly you should be mad at me. I should have remembered that hu- you aren't the most resistant to cold."

Luckily for him Yori's mind was either too clouded or delirious to catch on to his slight slip-up. So she merely shook her head a little. "I've never slept better."

Aidou snorted. "Right. And waking up shivering and feverish was just a wonderful way to start the new day."

Yori merely shrugged in reply to his sarcastic remark, making his temper calm as well. He somehow couldn't stay angry at her for very long over something that was his fault to begin with.

Aidou exhaled raggedly as he remembered how soft and feminine she had felt against him, curled up in his arms and resting peacefully… until she began to show symptoms of what the humans called a 'cold'. She'd awoken to him carrying her at inhuman speed through the forest and towards the nurse's office. She'd still been half asleep at that point though and didn't truly register her surroundings until he had already stopped before the infirmary and was banging loudly on the poor nurse's door, determined to wake her up. Yori had tried to protest but upon opening her mouth and finding that her voice came out gravelly and hoarse she'd only blushed at the pointed look Aidou gave her and objected no further when the old nurse sleepily opened the door and beckoned them inside. Aidou had carefully laid Yori down on the bed and proceeded to spin a convincing tale explaining to the nurse the ridiculous hour of the morning and the fact that he, a Night Class student, was carrying in a sick Day Class girl.

Aidou tried to pull a scowl at Yori's lack of vindictiveness towards him but her eyes fluttered closed again and she nudged her head further into his hand, making him press his palm a little harder against her heated face, idly tracing her hairline with his thumb.

The door to the infirmary flew open then, crashing loudly back against the wall. Aidou's head snapped up just in time to catch sight of a frantic Yuuki barreling towards him, her eyes trained directly on her best friend. Wisely taking two very large steps back, Aidou only barely avoided the brunette's dangerous bee-line dash towards Yori's prone figure on the bed.

"Yori-chan!"

Said girl's eyes cracked open slightly, blinking in the light of the sterile room and closing them again. Her face was once more beginning to heat up uncomfortably without Aidou's hand there. "Yuuki…"

The brunette was hovering worriedly over the sick girl's bed, her pretty face lined with concern. "Yori-chan, are you okay? What happened? Did you sneak out? Why are you in the infirmary? Did someone hurt you-"

"Yuuki," Yori cut her friend off with a soft smile. "I'm alright." When Yuuki continued to look worried Yori nodded. "Truly, I'm alright."

Accepting Yori's feint assurances reluctantly, Yuuki turned her head towards where the blonde noble had dodged upon her earlier entry, only to find that the said blonde was no longer in the room. "Gah, that boy always disappears whenever it suits him the most," Yuuki grumbled, turning back to her friend and frowning. "What was Aidou-senpai doing in here anyways?"

Yori was glad in that instant that her face was already red from the heat in her limbs. "He brought me to the infirmary," Yori said quietly so as not to strain her throat. She was repeating the tale that Aidou had spun for the elderly nurse earlier. Yori was glad that he had stuck to the basic facts and omitted certain information.

"I wanted some fresh air last night," Yori continued, "to clear my head. I fell asleep outside though, against a tree. Aidou… Aidou-senpai found me and brought me to the infirmary a few hours ago." She cleared her throat. "Looks like I caught a cold though."

Yuuki's eyes were heavy with suspicion and wariness. The teen's mind was whirling. Why would Aidou-senpai willingly help a human girl who was utterly defenseless during sleep get to safety when he could first…

Yuuki's eyes widened suddenly and with a gasp she darted forward, turning Yori's swimming head to either side and, revealing her neck, the prefect's eyes scanning the flesh there for puncture wounds.

"Yuuki?"

There were none and, stunned, Yuuki pulled back, a bashful smile upon her face and a nervous giggle escaping her. "Eh, sorry Yori-chan. I ah… thought I saw a bug crawling there."

Even in her lethargic state Yori was sharp enough to realise that Yuuki was downright lying. As she was drawing breath down her raw throat the door to the infirmary flew open a second time and yet another overly-energetic person bounded up to her bed, flinging their arms out and wrapping them suffocatingly around her. "Oh, Yori-san! I was so worried when Yuuki came running up to me earlier and told me that you were missing! Are you alright?"

Yori was stunned. "Ch-Chairman?"

The exuberant man released her quickly and gave her a critical evaluation, nodding once in satisfaction. "Yori-san, please get better soon." Then he strode from the room and slammed the doors behind him again, leaving the two shell-shocked girls behind in the room.

The door closed quietly behind him as he stepped into his office, the early morning sunlight filtering in through the gap in the heavy curtains currently drawn across the windows. The two occupants already in the room glanced up at the third man's entrance and then followed his progress as he walked towards his desk, brows furrowed in deep thought.

Kain spoke up then from his spot standing beside the large chair. "Well?"

The Chairman reached his desk and idly allowed his palm to rest upon its cold surface. "She wasn't bitten," he said.

The two vampires in the room stiffened slightly at the news. Kain closed his eyes for a moment in relief that his cousin hadn't done something stupid.

"This is a surprising turn of events for certain," the Chairman continued, his finger tapping on the desk. "Aidou has a human girl at his disposal for the entirety of last night and yet doesn't touch her…"

"Does the fact not please you?" Kaname asked. "I was led to believe that the Wakaba girl was someone whom you feel personally responsible for."

"Of course I'm glad that nothing happened," Cross argued, waving aside the comment. "I'm simply puzzled."

"I'm not," Kain said, running a hand through his hair. Catching sight of the two enquiring glances sent his way the noble sighed. "Yesterday evening, after Hanabusa headed out, I went through his drawing pad that he's always sketching in during class." Kaname nodded, knowing what Kain was talking about.

"I've never seen so many pictures of the same person drawn so thoroughly and in detail, that's for certain," Kain told them, averting his eyes and remembering the many different pictures that he'd flicked through only last night. "Hanabusa never once in those drew himself biting the girl."

Understanding dawned in the Chairman's eyes. "So that other picture…"

"Was most likely one that Hanabusa drew but didn't like, making him throw it into the dustbin in the first place." Kain shrugged. "Perhaps he was disgusted by the idea."

"That does not match Aidou's personality, Kain. He has shown no restraint in keeping the Night Class's secret before and showing disgust at the thought of drinking another's blood is most certainly not in his nature." Kaname kept his voice level and composed, though he did offer a valid point.

Kain nodded. "Yeah, but maybe it wasn't… maybe it wasn't the act of taking her blood itself but the thought of taking it from her that made him throw the picture away. Or maybe the thought of not only taking from her, but draining her. Perhaps that disgusted him."

There was a beat of silence in the room as the other two mulled over the suggestion. Sighing, the Chairman stepped around his desk then, crossing his arms in thought. "Those facts aside," he said, "it is more than obvious that, for whatever reason, Aidou intends to have a serious relationship with Yori-san. And however touching the notion is, I have a few problems with it."

Kain lifted an eyebrow. "Really? I thought the whole point of Cross Academy was to bridge gaps between vampires and humans?"

"Oh, the vampire-human difference isn't the problem here, I'm actually ecstatic about that," Cross said, closing his eyes for a second before raising his head again. "It's the fact that Yori-san is not aware of this difference that does not sit well with me."

"Are you implying that you wish for Aidou to divulge the true nature of the Night Class to Wakaba-san?" Kaname asked.

"In a way."

"Elaborate please," Kaname asked when the Chairman gave no indication of continuing.

"What I mean is… I want for Yori-san to at least know what is really going on." Cross's shoulders seemed to sag a little and he shifted. "This obviously goes beyond the levels of a simple crush; from either party. I have seen for myself how the two interact with one another and can give credit to the fact that Yori-san has divulged secrets to Aidou that she has not even shared with her best friend. Whether this is a trust issue or perhaps just a question of being comfortable around the other, theirs is a relationship that needs to be open. And as such I feel that it would be best for Yori-san to know."

"So you want to be the one to tell her?" Kain asked with skepticism laced through his words. He couldn't imagine even one person who would take pleasure in telling a young girl that she only knew half of the truth about the world for her whole life and that the parts kept secret from her stemmed directly from her worst nightmares.

Cross shook his head. "Of course not."

"I propose that we leave the situation be for the moment," Kaname suggested. "If they continue to grow closer then it would be best for us to allow the Wakaba girl to be informed but until such time I see no further need to divulge any information to her. She is better off ignorant for a little while yet."

It was later that day, just after sunset, when the mattress beside Yori sagged. Opening her heavy eyes, she caught sight of a flash of blonde and allowed a small smile to spread over her lips. She mouthed a greeting, her throat being too dry to allow her to speak.

Apparently realising this, Aidou reached over onto the bedside table and handed the frail girl a glass of water, carefully helping her to sip from it. She gave him a grateful glance. "Thanks."

Aidou just nodded and replaced the glass on the table as before. He stared down at her and brushed his fingers over the cloth on her forehead, shaking his head when he could feel it was warm again. Removing the damp cloth he instead pressed his cooled hand to her skin again, repressing his smile when she turned her head to further the pressure from his hand. Carefully he slipped his second hand behind her overheated neck, surprised at the shiver that coursed through her weakened body at the contact. She seemed to like the coldness of his hands though and closed her eyes again, relaxing into his touch.

Aidou stared down at the tired girl that was so at ease around him. Softly he allowed his thumbs to caress her soft skin and she gave a small, contented sigh, one of her smaller, shaking hands emerging from beneath the clinical white duvet. Aidou watched as she lifted it towards him but, finding that he was too far away, simply beckoned vaguely. He leant towards her as asked and felt his breathing hitch when her clammy hand brushed against his cheek. He felt her dainty fingers reaching further up and thread themselves softly through his blonde hair. It was an incredible feeling; having her soft fingers gently brush across his scalp and for a moment all he wanted was to lie beside her and have her continue to fondle him. His body was becoming lethargic.

He barely even registered when her hand gently began guiding him down until he felt the hard mattress of the infirmary bed press into his side. He remained uncaring though as he merely propped his head up on the pillow beside Yori's and allowed her fingers to continue running through his blonde locks.

Her fingers began to still and Aidou opened his eyes, wanting to ask her to continue. Her touch was beyond description…

But her eyes were closed and her breathing almost evened out, her lips slightly parted as she drew deep, stilling breaths. She'd fallen asleep.

Aidou afforded himself a smirk and gently brushed his hands over her face, trying to relieve some of the heat her body was radiating. As though sensing that the source of the cool presence upon her skin was near, Yori suddenly shifted, burrowing her way forward until her forehead rested on the pillow right beside his head, fitting perfectly into the dip between his neck and shoulder. She exhaled in content as his cool presence began to reduce the scorching heat in her limbs and her hands came up to curl against her chest.

Warily, the noble shifted his arms until he had them loosely draped around the girl beside him. He couldn't quite believe what fortune had decided to thrust upon him; two nights in a row now this beautiful girl had fallen asleep in his arms, completely vulnerable to him yet so at ease at the same time. Staring at her peaceful, porcelain features, Aidou allowed one hand to wander her face, skimming over her cheeks, nose and forehead, threading through her hair. Lastly he focused his eyes on her lips. They were so red and whilst he marveled at their natural colour he allowed his fingers to barely brush across them, noting that they were slightly moist and when she exhaled, warm air feathered across his fingertips.

Something stirred in the pit of his stomach and he hastily removed his fingers from her lips, instead dipping his head down to rest in the crook of her neck, allowing the stray strands of her hair to tickle his face and her incredible scent to flood his senses. His bloodlust was easily controlled though; he'd made sure that he'd taken his dose of blood tablets before coming to visit Yori and had slipped another two into his uniform pocket just in case. If he weren't so wide awake right now her mere warm presence and appeasing scent would have lulled him to sleep too.

But as it was he preferred to remain awake, marveling at the smooth texture of her skin as he let his lips skim lightly across it. It was barely a touch, his lips just hovering, occasionally flitting down to ghost over her warm flesh for long enough to sample the taste of her skin. She tasted slightly sweet, yet that natural flavour was masked by the vague salty tang of the sweat sheen layered on her body. Gradually he skimmed higher, skipping over her pulse point and finally pressing his lips into the dip just below her ear.

Her scent suddenly became too much and his muscles rippled with want to reach out further and pull her flush against him. Aidou realised that he wanted nothing more than to forego caressing her gently and instead really kiss her. The mere notion of pressing his lips against hers made him shudder again. He wanted to know what kissing her tasted like–

He drew a shuddering breath as he fought to remove his lips from her person and control his instincts; both vampire and hormonal. This was no time to take advantage of her.

The look on Yori's face should she wake up right at this particular moment stilled any further advances Aidou's body was begging him to make. Despite the dose of blood tablets, his vampire nature was surfacing. Swallowing and holding his breath, Aidou closed his eyes, reigning in the urge to take from her and shoving any such thoughts to the deepest recesses of his mind. He could not and would not take from Yori. The betrayed, horrified look that would cross her face should he drink her blood easily deterred him from biting her. When he imagined the scenario playing out before him… No, he couldn't do that to Yori. Not to her. Despite the fact that he wanted to, her forbade himself, making her untouchable in his own mind in that respect. His closeness to Yori was too precious to risk over a short pleasure such as drinking from her.

He loosened his grip on her a little, careful not to disturb her sleep, and pulled away, instead resting his head on the pillow, staring at her closed eyes. Idly he let his thoughts wander on safe paths, his hands in precisely chosen, appropriate places. He would not encroach on her honour or safety any further than he already had.

He would not.

It was still a little difficult to breathe but she pushed the thoughts aside, not allowing herself to fall slack because of a little physical trouble. After all, she had a job to do and she was going to finish it. Deep down she did have a stubborn streak and right about now it was surfacing strongly. She would finish this and she would do it well.

Her brows furrowed as her eyes scanned the shelves, trying to find the correct spot that the bright green book was supposed to slot into. Finding it and securing it tightly there, she glanced down at her feet firmly planted on the wooden ladder to make sure that she found the lower rung safely.

A hand slid fluidly into her vision and Yori stopped, a smile spreading across her face as she caught sight of the white blazer sleeve. She easily took his offered hand and allowed the blonde to help her down. Once she was standing on the floor beside him, she lifted her head and offered him a smile. Aidou returned her friendly greeting with a smirk as he released her hand, propping it against his side. "Not going to chase me out today?" he asked in an incredulous voice.

Yori couldn't help her smile growing at little wider at his antics. "There'd be no point," she replied, giving a shrug. "You'd just come back later."

"Exactly," Aidou affirmed, reaching onto the trolley beside him and taking a book from there, glancing at the cover and then handing it to her so that she could slide it onto the right shelf. "Aren't you supposed to be resting?"

Yori knelt down to access the bottom shelf better and shook her head. "The nurse allowed me to go. My fever went down overnight and I'm almost good as new again." She held her hand open for him to place the next book into it. "Besides, I've never been one to just lie still and let the world go by. I like being busy."

Aidou sighed, giving her the book. "You're impossible."

"Yet you still came to look for me," she countered.

The blonde chuckled. "A fool's errand."

"I didn't peg you as a fool, Aidou."

"Obviously not," he said haughtily. "Performing foolish acts does not immediately make one a fool."

Yori allowed herself a smile as she reached back for another book and waited to receive it before replying. "True enough."

There was a companionable silence over them as they continued the monotonous work, sorting the shelves and organizing the library. Aidou noticed that Yori seemed a little more downcast than usual and that her deep, honey-coloured eyes were burdened, but he held his tongue. Pushing her did no good at all, he knew. If he wanted something from her he had to exercise patience, as much as he hated waiting for anything. She'd tell him in her own time, he knew, and as such he wasn't surprised when she began speaking a while later in a hesitant tone.

"Aidou…"

"Hm?" He handed her another book, keeping the routine going and trying to put her at ease.

"I got a letter from Sora this morning," she continued. Aidou forced himself not to tense up as he reached for another book. "He said that Father is furious at me. Apparently he never stopped ranting or fuming on the whole trip home and then the maids had to give him some herbal calming remedies to lower his blood pressure."

Aidou had to stop the snicker from bursting through his teeth. The thought that Yori could infuriate such a large and overbearing man to that extent made pride bloom in his chest. She sure could be a handful when she wanted to be.

"Sora said that he was trying to appease Father but that it wasn't looking too good." She chewed on her bottom lip, lowering the book onto her lap as she knelt on the floor, her shoulders slumped. "He said that Father had been muttering about never speaking to me again."

For a moment Aidou wondered just what was so depressing about the prospect of that horrible man never contacting Yori again. Yori's shoulders shook a little then and Aidou's eyes widened in realization. Yori was a kind girl. She was soft and gentle and cared about the people close to her, whereas Aidou was more easily able to shut others out when he didn't feel like dealing with them. Of course, there were a couple of soft spots in his armour that he just couldn't ignore; Yori being one of them. But Yori was easily affected by others around her that she allowed under her skin and icy façade. Her father, being family, was one of them. Even if he was an insensitive old fart.

Aidou replaced the book in his hands on the trolley and knelt beside Yori, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder. She turned her head towards him and Aidou willed himself to remain calm and composed. His anger at her father could be vented later, he decided. Right now Yori needed to be reassured. "It was a big shock to your father when you stood up to him for the first time, Yori. He was bound to be angry." Yori nodded her head at him words and Aidou continued, encouraged. "Sora is there, isn't he? Your big brother is going to take care of things there as best he can and until you know more there's no point in worrying."

Her serious expression was still on her face though and Aidou decided that he needed to relieve the tension in the air a little. Lightening his own mood, he tapped his forefinger against Yori's nose, making her blink in surprise. "Besides, you'll only get grey hairs by worrying and your hair right now is stunning the way it is." Aidou anticipated the blush spreading across her cheeks and smirked at her embarrassment.

Yori pushed her flush aside and locked her eyes with his, trying hard not to blush harder at the sheer intensity of which his electric blue irises were focused on hers. "So I wouldn't look good with grey hair?"

Aidou couldn't help his small smirk from widening, exposing his gleaming white teeth. Yori was flirting with him. "Oh I don't know." When the red tint on her cheeks deepened he decided that he'd drag this out a little longer. "Though I must admit I rather like your hair the way it is now." To prove his point he lifted his other hand not resting on her shoulder and ran two of his fingers through her silky locks. He leaned forward, determined to darken her blush even further. "It suits you."

He could hear her heartbeat accelerate and he allowed himself a chuckle before pulling away. Her face was flushed and her eyes bright with nervousness. He committed that sight to memory before he handed her another book.

He held her eyes as she took the plain brown volume from his hands. Her eyes were warm once more and when he turned away to reach for another book from the dwindling supply on the cart, he allowed himself a victorious smile. Yori was so easy to cheer up sometimes but the results were spectacular. She'd actually flirted with him. Albeit very subtly but nonetheless; she was responding to his attention.

"Thank you, Aidou," Yori said then, softly, and the young noble was glad that the library was empty. He liked having Yori to himself and especially at this moment he wanted to remain with her alone. He deliberated freezing the door and windows to stop others from interrupting but decided against it. A frozen doorframe would probably attract more attention than just leaving it closed… Also, Yori might freak at the layer of ice suddenly freezing the handle.

Aidou stopped his thoughts there, a frown forming on his face. That's right… Yori didn't know anything about his ice abilities or the fact that he was a vampire. A pang of guilt drove itself into his stomach.

Yori placed so much explicit trust in him and yet he had told her barely anything from his own life. How could he? Sure, she knew the barest of details but they were hardly enough to qualify for anything personal. He couldn't go into detail about anything because Yori was far too bright for her own good and would immediately pick up on even the smallest slip of the tongue.

He could imagine it right now. "Oh yeah, my dad runs a huge corporation, just like yours; has been for the last 300 years. What do you mean he should be long dead? He's practically a spring chicken!"

His ancestry wasn't exactly long either. "See there? That's my granny. Lovely red eyes she has, doesn't she? You know, she used to be best buds with Princess Andromeda of Greece, crazy huh?"

Even the most harmless of questions seemed to suddenly seem threatening. "Favourite desert? I'd have to say O-positive. Those pills are a really crappy substitute for the real thing. Disgusting really."

He suddenly realised that he was stuck in the middle of a stalemate. He wanted to tell her so that she could know more about him. Lying to her felt close to despicable to him and his conscience wouldn't allow such an act. But then he didn't want to tell her because, quite frankly, if she learned that he was a creature that she'd most likely only envisioned in her fantasies he feared that she'd run and be terrified of him. He wasn't sure he could manage to take the pain of her rejection.

The force of his commitment to the girl struck him like a blow to the face. He was stunned.

"Aidou?" Her voice, barely above a whisper, broke him from his musings and made his eyes flick back to hers. He was surprised at the measure of concern in them for him. He turned his head away.

"Sorry, Yori."

He caught sight of her confused expression from the corner of his eye. She was silently asking him to elaborate on his apology. He reached out for her hand then, gently drawing it into his own and beginning to rub distracted circles onto the back of it. "Guess I'm pretty selfish after all."

Her caramel eyes widened at his words. It just wasn't like Aidou to admit to something so easily. It worried her. "Aidou?" she asked again.

"You've been telling me all about your life… and I'm still amazed that you come to me for help when you need it," he gave a humourless laugh. "You know what's funny?"

Yori didn't ask but she was sure he was going to tell her. Aidou seemed to be in a strange, rueful mood and his grip around her hand tightened as though he were afraid she'd pull away.

"What's funny is that you've been telling me so much and I've pretty much told you squat."

Yori's eyes widened as she thought his words over. He was right. All this time she'd been the one telling him things and strangely, the thought had never bothered her. Perhaps the sense of comfort that she derived from his very presence had made her lower her walls without even realising it. Or maybe it was the fact that he listened to her and took the time to make her speak that she trusted him so extensively now. And now he was putting pressure on himself because he felt that he hadn't given enough. She hung her head. "Stop it, Aidou."

He looked up but she kept her eyes focused on where his hand held onto hers. "Sure, you haven't told me much about you or your life… but it's not like I asked you to tell me anything either. You… you listened to me," Yori could feel her cheeks heating up again but she plowed on. "That's enough. You can tell me whenever you want to, okay? And besides, whatever it is that you can't tell me must be important, right?" She lifted her second hand and placed it over the one he was using to hold onto hers. She focused her eyes on their joined hands and nervously licked her lips. "No rush."

She took a steadying breath as she finished talking. Her nerves were wracked. She'd never spoken so openly with anyone before and now that she had she was quivering with stress. She knew he wouldn't laugh at her but even that certainty could not prevent a sliver of irrational fear from slipping through. Unconsciously her hand clenched a little tighter around his.

He brought his second hand up then and Yori saw it heading towards her face. Judging by his flexing fingers, she got the impression that Aidou was also stunned. His voice was a bare whisper, "Yori-"

With a bang the door to the library slammed open and made her jump, her muscles contracting for an instant and her eyes dilating. Her reflex only lasted for a mere second. But it was long enough. When she unlocked her braced muscles she blinked once and realised that she was kneeling on the floor in front of empty space.

Aidou was gone.

"Excuse me? Is anyone in here?" the voice from the front of the library sounded tentative and Yori snapped back to her senses. Aidou had disappeared again within a split-second. He seemed to make flash appearances all the time so it made sense for him to just disappear like that too. She shook her head. She'd deal with figuring out his insane speed later; right now she had a student to help.

"Right here, just a moment," she called back and stood from the floor, finding that her legs were slightly stiff from kneeling so long. She grimaced and then dusted off her black uniform skirt, heading for the front to desk to find another Day Class student waiting for her there. Yori politely took the books that he held out to her, obviously wanting to return them. Nodding once, she began to head over to the other side of the desk, taking a seat in the large chair there and deactivating the screensaver.

As she handed the boy back his library card and plastered a pleasant smile onto her face, Yori came to a conclusion. She'd already opened up to Aidou in so many ways and knew that he was, beneath the obvious, a completely different person to her brother. He was kind and honest (mostly) and about the only person whom she trusted to speak with so openly. Perhaps it was about time for her to trust him completely.

As soon as the door closed behind the Day Class boy Yori took a fortifying breath and stood from her chair, facing the nearest window. "Aidou."

The blonde froze with his hand on the latch, stilling his movements at her voice. He looked back over his shoulder in surprise that she'd anticipated his escape route. What surprised him more was the absolutely determined fire in her eyes that made his breath hitch as she positively stalked over to him.

Hot-

Her steady hand reached up and easily turned his face. Eyes widening, Aidou nearly choked when she swiftly stood on her tiptoes and pressed her burning lips briefly against his own.

Thunder shook his nerves and paralyzed him, leaving him wide-eyed even as her sweet lips withdrew from his.

He barely had time to register her flushed cheeks before the door to the library burst open once more and three girls entered, giggling amongst one another. Aidou was out the window in seconds, landing on the grass without a sound and hurriedly dashing off into the trees back towards the Moon Dorm.

His mind was reeling.

Minutes later he collapsed on his bed, not bothering with the fact that he was being suffocated by his pillow nor caring that Kain was shooting him curious glances.

Kain watched his cousin lie spread-eagled on his bed, head buried in his cushion. Due to the large white object pressing against his face Kain couldn't hear all of what Hanabusa was muttering, save for a few words that had more force behind them then others.

"…no sense… mixed signals… never make up her freaking mind… bothersome… irritating girl…"

Sighing, Kain stood from his chair and walked over to stand beside Aidou's bed. "Hanabusa."

The blonde mumbled a venomous reply into his pillow.

"Hanabusa," Kain tried again. "What happened?"

When Aidou began mumbling into his pillow again Kain grimaced and, grabbing the blonde's shoulder, rolled him onto his side to give him a flat look.

Face scrunched up in irritation, Aidou scowled. "That stupid female kissed me." From the way he said it Kain would have been led to believe that Aidou had just been robbed of his allowance.

Raising an eyebrow, Kain gave his cousin an analytical stare. "And the problem is…?"

"It isn't a problem! She's just confusing the heck out of me!" Aidou wrenched his shoulder from his cousin's grip and rolled onto his back, tossing his arms up above his head and glared at the ceiling. "She's got really bad timing too."

Kain studied his cousin for a moment longer before heaving a defeated sigh and leaving the room. It was obvious that Aidou was in no mood to talk and would rather like to brood in peace.

Perhaps some time to sort his thoughts would do him good.

A/N: Review please! ^_^