Sorry for the delay guys, I was really busy with Uni. Had my assesment today so have some free time for now. I can't say that the chapter came out as great as I wanted it to, but I don't think it is that bad... Fell free to say what you think and give any suggestions ;)

Chapter 18

Deal

"No"

It took some time before the final answer finally sank into everyone's mind, mine included.

"WHAT?" obviously when it sank, huge noise started and I was not an exception in this commotion.

My mouth was hanging open and eyes wide almost like Reito's who looked like if he got hit by truck. The shock from Shizuru's answer made him speechless; all he could do was to stare at Shizuru while occasionally glancing at the priest. Probably hoping that he would say that it is a bad joke or that Reito was dreaming. Sadly none of it came, priest seemed to be similarly stunned.

Guests jumped on their feet, not knowing how to really react to this news. Everyone seemed to be as shocked as groom. The only one who seemed to be pleased was Nao, saying something about 'Finally the fun part had started'. They were looking at each other, than at Shizuru and Reito, mostly at Shizuru. Everyone wanted to hear her reasons for such sudden decision. Shock was not really enough to describe everyone surprise and confusion. All this time Shizuru and Reito were a happy couple with no problems and disagreements, what could trigger such a response from Shizuru just didn't click in their heads.

I wasn't a huge exception either despite knowing the most about what was really happening. But even I did not see that coming. We seemed to finally agree, that Shizuru would marry him, that her feelings for Reito were not fake and that there was no real future with me. Why is her response now so different from what we had agreed on before? Gaining my speech back, I jumped towards her, shouting:

"What in the world are you doing?"

She ignored me… of all times she decided to ignore me now? Despite the fact that she tried to talk to me in public before?

"Shizuru!"

Taking a deep breath, Shizuru faced Reito and gently took his frozen hands in hers. Feeling her touch, brought some conscious back to him. Still shocked and hurt, he looked at her. His eyes were filled with pain and it was the first time I saw him on the verge of tears. Never have I ever though that it would pain me so much to see him in such state. Despite me disliking his guts in the past, he seriously did not deserve it. If Shizuru had never planned to marry him after gaining her memories, she should have informed him about it earlier, not today in such important moment of his… no, their lives!

"Kanin-na, Reito" Shizuru whispered quietly, everyone became quiet, listening to her excuse "I really am, but I can't marry you" Shizuru's eyes were really sincere and some hurt also could be seen. Seeing those emotions probably gave Reito more confidence since he spoke back.

"Why?" it was the first time that I heard him so hurt and in so much pain. Hearing his voice made Shizuru wince a bit "Did I do something wrong?"

"No…" she whispered quietly, squeezing his hand gently "You were nothing but the sweetest guy towards me. Any other girl would kill on my place to get you. I still can't believe that Tokiha-san did not choose you, not that Yuuichi-san is bad or anything" she tried not to offend Tate who slightly pouted at her despite the seriousness of situation.

"If that's the case… then why are you leaving me as well?" his voice started to crack "What am I doing wrong all the time?"

"Nothing," Shizuru lowered her head "It just…" she looked up again and I could see her heart cracking slightly after looking into those hurt eyes of his "Do you remember…" she began slowly, making me as desperate as everyone else for her to continue "…that nightmare of mine? The one that I didn't want to talk about?"

"Yeh… " he nodded "you looked really broken and desperate back then. You also kept mentioning that Natsuki person"

"That was not a nightmare and Natsuki is real" she answered firmly.

"Shizuru, don't!" I tried to stop her, if she were to tell that she was breaking up with him because of some ghost about whom no one knows, she will get into mad house! I can't allow that!

I tried to cover Shizuru's mouth, make some ruckus and mess but nothing worked. I was left powerless one more time.

"What do you mean?" Reito asked confused.

"I guess you really don't remember her after all…" Shizuru sighed, still ignoring me "Well that's fine…"

"Who is she?" Reito tried to get answers.

"Someone really dear to me" Shizuru's eyes looked very determined now; no sign of doubt was seen. They shone with resolve, piercing right through Reito's soul.

"So… you met someone else?" he tried to take his hands away from Shizuru's but she had strong grip on them.

"In the past… before we started to date…"

Reito seemed to start to get the idea of Shizuru loving someone else, and that someone is Natsuki… me… the girl… Yet none questions about orientation came from his lips.

"Did she… leave somewhere far away?" he looked to the side "And came back recently?"

"No" the answer seemed to interest him since Reito's eyes were once again staring at her, this time with slight hope in them "She died"

This made me slightly wince, reminder of my death never was a very welcoming thing for me despite saying it myself all the time… 'I freaking hate being dead! Whoever said that death makes things easier, is a moron!'

Reito seemed to be taken aback by the answer and seemed to be more confused than before.

"Dead?" he asked uncertainly.

"Hai" Shizuru continued in the same calm and determined voice. I still couldn't understand what was going on in her head and why she did what she did "She died more than a year ago"

"What happened?"

"She had a cancer and it was too late to heal it"

"So your nightmares are connected to the incident?"

"Hai"

"So what exactly does it have to do with us now?" This time Reito seemed angered, not understanding the meaning behind Shizuru's reasoning made him annoyed, me included.

"I can't go into too much details since you will not believe me… no, let me correct myself" she shook her head "No one will. All I'm going to say is that she is not 100% dead and recently I started to feel her presence again"

"Shizuru…." He started to look at her weirdly and I had to slap myself, the reaction I was fearing to see was coming out with the most horrible timing.

"I'm not mad, if that's what you want to ask" the corners of Shizuru's lips rose a bit in slight amusement.

"That's not freaking funny!" I had to shout at that reaction yet she still ignored me. It was one of the first times that I wanted to strangle her.

"Obviously you may not believe me now as well"

Reito had to shook his head slightly, probably to get his mind back on right track "Let's assume that it is true, why did you have to tell me about it now? At the wedding? Why not before? I could always delay wedding, you know that?" he started to breath faster, he was trying to make sentences and questions as fast as possible, firmly holding Shizuru's hands now.

"I didn't plan to reject you today. I do love you, but I love her more. The delay wouldn't change anything. To suddenly break up out of nowhere also didn't seem right"

"But breaking up during the wedding is fine?" his voice got louder and sharper, I actually had to take step back. Shizuru kept still as a rock, it was making me wonder if maybe she had frozen or something.

"As I said I had no intentions of doing that when I came here. However, several feelings got confirmed in this several last minutes and I had to reject you. We would not be happy if I had agreed"

"What feelings?" this time me and Reito asked in one voice. I really got curious about the answer, it seemed to be closer to the actual truth. Not that Shizuru was actually lying so far, more like avoiding straight answers

Sadly the only answer we got was a small, sad smile and a short "Goodbye…", right before Shizuru rushed out of the church with Reito screaming after her. He tried to chase her, but his way was kept being blocked by guests who still couldn't comprehend what just happened and were starting a commotion one more time.

Ignoring all the mess and sending last sad look at Reito who looked completely heart broken, I ran after Shizuru. When I finally caught up with her, she was sitting into limousine and ordering driver to move. Poor guy… angry, depressed and demanding Shizuru is scary. I know it from my own experience.

Increasing my pace, I jumped into a moving car as well, landing right next to her. She definitely knew that I was sitting right beside her but she didn't give any signs of recognition. Instead she simply stared up ahead with unreadable expression what started to slightly piss me off. I still couldn't believe what had happened and I would be damned if I didn't find out the reason behind those actions. And her statement about feelings still made my head spin without being able to find explanation to that statement.

When I looked out of the window, I saw that we were not going back to Shizuru's mansion. I sent her a suspicious look but she once again ignored me. Sighing, I decided to stay quiet for now and see where we are heading. I really wanted to shout right now, but with driver in front, it didn't seem to be such a good idea especially if Shizuru started to respond. She really would look like a mad woman then.

After some time the car had finally stopped. When I looked through the window, I saw a small hostel. Looks like Shizuru really didn't plan to stay at her place today. Though I could understand the reason why, dealing with her parent who came from England just for the wedding, would be troublesome right now.

Shizuru opened the door without waiting for the driver to do it in her place. Once she was out, she ordered the driver to leave and keep quiet about where she is. If he were to tell, she would deal with him personally. At this statement the color had completely left his face and he started to sweat like a pig before nodding in understanding and leaving.

Once the car had disappeared from our view, Shizuru made her way towards hostel. People who were present at that moment looked weirdly at her because of the wedding dress that she was wearing. Ignoring all the stares, Shizuru calmly walked towards the desk and booked a room. Since she obviously didn't take any money with herself, she offered one of her earnings instead which were gladly accepted. After all they cost fortune, more than she actually had to pay.

The Hostel wasn't big so it didn't take us long to find the room, which happened to be on second storage in the corner. The moment we entered the room and the door behind was locked, I finally exploded, all my frustration, irritation and confusion once again were expressed aloud.

"What the hell just happened?" Shizuru quietly laid on to bed "Hey! Don't you dare to ignore me!" I shook my finger at her "I demand explanations, NOW!"

"You were there, I had canceled the wedding" she answered simply like if she had canceled the appointment with dentist instead.

"Don't play with me, Shizuru! Do you even realize how much you have shaken everyone there? Especially Reito? I thought we had discussed it already!"

"We did" she sat up straight "However, despite always urging me to continue with the wedding, you yourself have never accepted it"

I was left speechless I had expected her to say a lot of things but this… me not accepting their wedding? But I herself told her to do it! Why would I do it if I were against?

"I know what you are thinking, Natsuki" she said firmly and came closer to me "You might have accepted it mentally, but you have never accepted it whole heartedly, with your soul"

"Wh-what are you saying?" I finally was able to make out the words.

"Back at the ceremony I felt your doubt, your jealousy, your urge to replace Reito… I felt each of your feelings, like if I could read your mind" she said softly, smiling slightly.

These time my eyes widened in shock and mouth started to open and close in silence, not able to mumble any sound. This new piece of information completely blew my mind away; I never expected our connection to be so close. For her to feel the slightest doubt within myself? Unbelievable! It just couldn't be real!

"Back when we had our last argument, I had finally decided" she took another step closer "If you really wish for me to marry Reito, I'll do it because it is your wish. However, if I were to feel at least slightest doubt within you, I would cancel the wedding. And as I said, I could feel your doubt right before I had to give my final answer"

After some struggle, I tried to make some kind of response: "But Reito…"I breathed out "What about him? You completely destroyed him! I have never seen him so heart broken before and it made me feel really bad despite the fact that I never gave a damn about him when I was still alive!"

"I don't want to put blame on anyone but it was you who started to have doubts in the last moment" Shizuru started to become impatient "And do you really think that I enjoyed rejecting him? Reito was like an angel towards me this whole time, he took care of me, and he loved me! It was really painful to see him like that. If not all the years of practice on how to control myself and hide emotions, I would have instantly fled out of the church without any explanation just not to see this pain in his eyes"

"Then you should not have canceled the wedding in the first place! And what if I were to have doubts later?"

"I would have divorced, no matter how much I might love Reito, Natsuki is more important" her gaze was firm, nothing would waver her decision. I understood that it was useless to argue with her so the only thing left was to sigh in defeat.

However, the moment I did it, a loud voice echoed through the room, making it shake.

"I can not allow it!"

My body froze and if it were possible, I probably would become whiter than I already was. The voice belonged to the last person I wanted to see right now.

"G-God…"

"What?" Shizuru looked at me startled.

"H-He finally has appeared…"

"Natsuki…" the God talked again "I'm very disappointed in you…"

"I tried to convince her to marry Reito, I really did!" I tried to convince him, to do anything so he wouldn't take me away.

"Shizuru's answer was only the last drop of my patience. You have messed up long time ago. Do you really think that I didn't notice how you were gradually getting in Shizuru's life and heart all over again?"

"I didn't mean for it to happen!"

This time Shizuru decided to speak out as well, looks like she was able to hear us clearly: "Don't put all blame on her! I myself was insisting on her attention. If anyone should be blamed, it is me!"

"Natsuki is your guardian angel, a very important position which holds a lot of responsibilities. She knew what it meant when I had given her this position, she should have been able to make the right judgment and know when to stop"

"If you knew that she was doing something wrong, why didn't you guide her? Why didn't you help her? " Shizuru's voice was becoming louder each time.

"Shizuru, please…"I tried to calm her down; we were already in enough trouble.

"No, I won't be quiet! If the almighty God is so great, then he should have done all in his power to prevent this situation from happening!" she shouted into ceiling "How long have you been an angel?" she faced me now "Less than a year? There is no way you would be able to do everything on your own!"

"Jack was there to guide her. As you can see, Natsuki was not able to completely break the bonds with you and remove herself from your life. She will have to take responsibility now"

"Responsibility? Are you going to take her away? "

"Yes"

"I will not allow that!"she stood right before me, like if shielding me "If you do, I'll commit suicide!"

God was quiet for some time before he spoke again "Is your love that shallow?"

I could see how Shizuru's body had stiffened at that statement "What…?"

"Do you think she will be happy to see you commit suicide? She also must have told you that in case you do commit it, you two will never be together again even after death" Shizuru kept quiet "And…" the God continued "I can always remove your memories again"

"You wouldn't dare!" she shouted back, seriously pissed off.

I had to take step back, not sure of whom I was scared more right now. Shizuru was starting to get this weird aura around her once again, same one as during the carnival.

"Would you prefer to suffer like that?"

"I'll better suffer than will have fake memories!"

"You better not make any mistakes" the God said calmly.

"Don't say it like if our argument is over. I'm not handing Natsuki to you. She will stay with me and I know that she wants it too"

"How do you imagine your life like that?"

"It doesn't matter, as long as I have Natsuki by my side I don't care what happens to me. If I am to be locked in a mad house, then be it! As long as I have Natsuki by my side, I'll be fine"

"But I'm not!" I couldn't stay out of the discussion this time "I won't be able to bear to see you treated like a mad woman! I'll better watch over you from the distance, see you have a happy life than you being locked in because of me!"

"Then let's run away" she rushed towards my side "Just you and me, somewhere no one can find us and where no one knows about us"

"It might have worked if you were not Fujino" I said firmly what gained me a surprised look from her "Your family has way too big influence, they will eventually find you. I don't want to see you running and hiding your whole life. And I doubt that your parents will allow that especially after what happened today"

"You never know until you try!"

Before I could reply, God talked first:

"It is decided then"

"What?" we both asked in one voice.

"Shizuru, I give you one week time. If you will be able to come up with a decent idea of how you two could stay together without getting each other hurt and both being satisfied, I will allow Natsuki to stay. If no, you will never see her again" we stood in silence, trying to comprehend what He just said "Just try not to make any more mistakes"

When information had finally settled down in our brains, small smile had lift up on Shizuru's lips.

"Do not worry, one week is more than enough for me to come up with something"

"Good! Natsuki…"

"Yes!" I squealed.

"You are coming with me now"

"But…" Shizuru tried to protest but He cut in.

"You will think of something without Natsuki around, do I make myself clear?"

"It will be hard to concentrate without her around!"

"You should be grateful for even getting a chance. The only reason why allow it is because I can see how strong your feelings are for each other. If not their power, your memories would have never come back. I am breaking an important rule right now, dead should stay dead and not get involved with the living"

"If the rule is so important…"I began, not sure why "Then why are you trying to help us?"

He sighed, and for the first time during today, his voice was filled with love and not anger "As you mortals like to say, rules are there in order to be broken" the room got filled with warmth and was kept like that despite next words coming out in colder tone "However, if she will not be able to come up with good solution to the mess that you two have created, there is nothing I can do. I won't allow you to hurt each other, especially everyone else around you"

"Ookini…"was Shizuru's quiet reply.

"Let's go Natsuki" was His short reply.

"Hai…" I made several steps forward before looking back at the girl I loved "See yah, Shizuru. Just try not to stress yourself too hard…" I smiled at her.

"Natsuki… I promise I will find the way!" she answered with determination.

Giving her last smile, my body disappeared in a bright blue light and Shizuru was finally left alone in the room.

Mini feed:

Natsuki: So God is finally on our side? Shizuru, I believe in you!

Shizuru: Hai, I will do everything in my power to make you stay with me.

Natsuki: Shizuru… –puppy eyes-

Shizuru: Natsuki…

Natsuki: Shizuru…

Shizuru: Natsuki…

Natsuki: Shizuru…

Shizuru: Nat…

Bad One: Just get a room already!

Natsuki: Fine! –pushes Shizuru into the room-

Bad one: Not mine! 0.0

Just a bit more and this story will be finally over!