Hi guys! :D So I wrote this rough draft in my Study Hall in an attempt to avoid the people besides me. -_- They ended up bugging me to read my story and kept asking why the top said "Hey guys! :D" It'd be SO much easier if everyone just had a FF. =/= Also, I noticed how in Chapter 1 I wrote down that there was a butcher knife in the scene, and then in Chapter 2 I had the man holding a bloody cleaver. Yeah, that's what I get for not updating in forever. I'm gonna try to take out the part where it says that once my Internet decides to work. ;_;

Ok, now onto the chapter. 8D!

Amu stared blankly at the sunrise beginning to make its way through her window. 3 days had passed since Tadase's death, and Amu had slept a good 3 hours since then.

It wasn't entirely her fault, though. The police thought to make Amu their first suspect when investigating the case. It was stressful for her. She had to spend the rest of the evening of one of her best friends murder in a cold police station, answering questions, taking fingerprint samples, and even going through her phone logs to see if she really WAS on the phone during the time of his death.

She hated it all.

It was unbelievable, in her eyes, that they would even think that she was the one behind this whole mess. Everything they asked her, each time they made her extend her hands in black ink, throughout all the chaos that night, she was dying to break down in front of them. She wanted to shout at every damn question they asked her, "NO! Of COURSE I didn't murder him! Tell me, tell me why would I even think of murdering one of my best friends? Why would I take away the happiness that I took for granted? Let me go home.. let me go home so I can wake up from this nightmare!"

In all truth, the girl hadn't spoken more then she was requested to ever since the day she lost him.

She had missed 3 days of school. She was afraid to face her friends. Who would want to face them? In a way this was all her fault. If she had told that she'd rather study alone, she would've been the victim, not him. She failed to protect him, and she felt ashamed for it.

Her parents hadn't been of much support, either. Honestly, they were just upset that such a thing had happened in their apartment, and her father promised to be home for her the first chance he got a break from his work.

Amu sighed loudly. She knew that sulking in bed from depression and fear wasn't going to bring him back. Then again nothing is. She thought to herself. After having a small mental debate with herself, she finally decided she needed to get up and face her friends.

A pair of footsteps matched with hers.

Gomenasai.

"Did that brat see you outside her window."

"No."

"Did she even look your way?"

"No."

The man scowled, and quickly lashed out his fury on the teen in front of him.

"You better make yourself seen in the next tragedy," he let out a sly smile, "my son."

The boy nodded. He wiped the small trail of blood from his mouth, grabbed a firm hold of the blood-stained cleaver, and made his way towards Seiyo Middle School.

The whispers and stares all lost themselves in Amu's thoughts.

She tried to keep up her "Cool & Spicy" facade, but there were a few problems with that, the big one being that it isn't really appropriate to walk around school being Ms. Cool & Spicy when someone had just been killed in your apartment. The other one was that her persona was less of a spicy one, and more of an emotionless wreck one.

Despite all of that, she somehow made it through half the day. No one talked to her and she talked to no one. Even the teachers refused to call on her, probably knowing her situation all too well.

She knew that lunchtime would be the showdown for her. She'd have to face all of her friends whether she liked it or not.

When noon had approached, she made good-sure that she was last one at the table. She wanted to prove to them that she wasn't scared to face them anymore, that she wasn't sad about this anymore.

She was more than determined to bring back those happy times she thought she'd lost.

Amu arrived at the lunch table with the most confidence in the world. She was ready, ready for them to ask her questions about this, which she'd take the little things and turn them into jokes. They'd laugh at the jokes. They'd talk about something stupid and everything would be back to normal.

The problem was no one said anything. Everything was deathly quiet around her.

The silence was painful. She was dying to know why no one said anything. ANYONE. She thought desperately. SOMEONE. Start the conversation. I'm not taking advantage of this chance again. Anyone. Nagihiko. Yaya, Kuukai, Tada-

She felt her heart skip a beat, and she realized quickly why it was so quiet. Tadase was usually the one that would help start out a conversation. With him gone, no one knew what to say.

Amu's chest suddenly felt hot. No.. Don't think of them. Don't think of what happened before.. the times we'd all just trudge around the park.. that time when Nagi had forced him in a skirt.. his smile, his blush, don't think about it.. It's over now.. he's not coming back, he's really not coming back..

She felt something warm brush on her cheek.

She looked up and saw Yaya stretching over the lunch table, gently brushing off her friends tears. The look that the little baby girl gave you was so heart-breaking, it could probably make the cruelest of all men cry. "Amu-chi.." she said, barely audible.

That was it for her. She couldn't take it anymore. The pain, the remorse, the memories, the sympathy, it was too much for her. She would've broken down right then and there, until she realized something a little alarming to her.

"Where's Saaya?"

As if on cue, an echo was let out in the air, and a bullet grazed Amu's tear stained cheek.

Kuukai's POV:

I stared in horror as the bullet passed by Amu's cheek, and ended up hitting another one of our friends.

I was pissed then. In my eyes, this was all starting to be her fault, even though I knew it wasn't true. My mind kept telling me she was the center of hell, and was bringing it in with us.

I didn't wanna believe that, even as I watched the bullet go through her, I knew it wasn't Amu's fault. She was still innocent and fragile, just like a flower.

To keep from freaking out on her, I kept repeating this phrase in my mind, even as I watched her body hit the floor.

You are not a flower in hell, don't blossom in such a place. Don't blossom there, don't blossom there..

QUICK NOTE: I'm not one to insert random Japanese in a story to try and say "o lok mi I cn sai "wht" ad "cuteee!21" ad "ys" in japense rnt I smrt!1! Lawlz" I'm gonna be using "Gomenasai" (I'm so sorry) because to me, it has more emotion than just saying "I'm so sorry." But hey, that's just me.

I'm gonna make the ending go into one of the character's POV's each time. :3 And then end it with one of my favorite songs 8D. That one is "Naraku no Hana" from the Higurashi Kai Opening/OST :D It's personally my FAVORITE opening video, and favorite opening OST. And btw, Naraku no Hana means "Flower of Hell." I know I wrote flower in hell, but I like that translation the best, so c:

ANYWAYS, I don't think I'm doing a too good of a job of keeping them in character. ;_; The first draft I wrote was TERRIBLE, and I ended up only using like, one or two real lines from that to the final xD. Also, sorry if the ending doesn't really make sense. I'm kinda trying to portray that in Kuukai's eyes, especially when his friend was shot, that Amu's the innocent one in the middle of a war zone, and he doesn't want her to be there. He's trying to convince himself that in an ATTEMPT to stay sane. C:

So waddya think? I love constructive criticism. ;~; I may have overused comma's, but I'm not good when it comes to when to use semi-colons or colons.

Please R&R 8D!