THE SLEEPOVER

Chapter 6 "Miscalculations Pt. 2"

Disclaimer: I own nothing. Nothing. Nothing… *fade out*

I've been watching Free! cracks on Youtube all week, man these past few days have been awesome! That's probably the reason why this chapter turned out partiiicuullaaarly funny. Gawwd, I'm choking… I am really, really happy with how this chap turned out. I hope I didn't go too far, I tend to overachieve when I'm under pressure. That unfortunately refers to me trying to cram as much action as possible into one chapter. Please love it!

WARNING: Longest chapter yet! Chaos ahead!

"Why are we stopping here?" asked Haru as they all got off their bikes on a small patch of grass a good 50 meters away from the back entrance to Samezuka, hidden under the shadow of a giant tree and dried bushes.

"We can't park near the gates, we'll be spotted by the night guard," replied Rin as he laid the bike down on its side and covered it with a bunch of dried leaves that were scattered all over the grass.

They all mimicked his actions and once the bikes were effectively hidden from sight, Rin motioned them towards the back entrance, a small dark gate right at the edge of the academy's outer stone wall. Once they reached the gate, the redhead took a good look around before climbing up the iron bars in one swift movement, he crossed his legs over the top one at a time and landed with a soft thud, impressing everyone present.

"Hurry up, the night guard might be back to his post any second now" he whispered to his friends on the other side of the gate.

"Woah, Rin-chan's so nimble," whispered Nagisa as he tried to pull himself upwards, failing miserably. Makoto jumped into save the day and pushed him upwards by the waist, the petite blonde was a little taken aback by the sudden action, faltering once he reached the top, after crossing over with difficulty he lost his balance and landed hard on top of Rin.

"Tsk, dammit Nagisa," groaned the redhead, untangling himself from underneath the shorter swimmer.

One by one they climbed over the gate and once they were all inside the grounds, they ran towards the main building. The moment they found refuge in the darkness cast by the building's shadow, they heard the distinct sound of someone whistling. The night guard appeared to be returning to his post by the gate.

"Last time we were here we just walked in through the main gate," wondered Makoto out loud.

"And whose fault do you think it is that now we've got a night guard patrolling the grounds?" replied Rin bitterly. "This happened right after the last time you losers sneaked in," he added for good measure.

They kept on moving, hiding in the shadows until they reached the back of the building where several windows were left unlocked.

"These are the main locker rooms," whispered Rin as he pushed himself up an opened window about 5 feet high. "They never close these at night, for ventilation."

Nagisa was once again the second to venture up towards the window, this time he was ready when Makoto once again pushed him upwards.

"Nagisa, I swear if you land on me again…" threatened Rin, the short swimmer complied and was extra careful to land on his feet beside the redhead. Rei followed jumping over with definite grace, Haru was next offering a hand to Makoto who came in last. The warmth inside the locker rooms was welcoming and they all sighed in relief.

"Now what?" asked Haru, quickly getting over the echo that rebounded off the walls and casting a look around trying to get his eyes used to the almost absolute darkness.

Rin motioned towards one of the doors at the far end of the room and they all followed silently.

They crossed the threshold and immediately walked into the adjacent room which seemed to serve as both lounge and dressing room. The walls were lined with mirrors, counters, hair-dryers and towel racks, a few dumbbells scattered across the floor. One could tell this was where the swimmers indulged in a little bit of self-praise.

"Well this is disturbing," whispered Rei as he picked up what seemed to be a measuring tape from a marble top vanity mirror. Curiosity getting the best of him, he peered down the different products that were scattered across the counter top. Razors, eyebrow shaping kits, wax stripes, moisturiser, vaseline and several bottles of aftershave. "Why would anyone need all these things?" he asked incredulously but was unable to finish the question when someone pulled him by the shirt and almost dragged him towards the nearest door.

Rin peered down at him while still holding onto the back of his shirt. "The fact that you don't know the answer to that question is proof that you are not a committed swimmer," he whispered lowly. "And I wouldn't touch that if I were you, that's what Mikoshiba uses to measure his-"

"Rin-chan!" Nagisa broke in, "the swimming pool is this way, isn't it?" he asked as he pushed open a particularly heavy door.

The redhead sighed and nodded, letting go of Rei's shirt. As Nagisa pushed the door open, the lounge where they were standing was suddenly illuminated by the purest glistening of aquamarine that bounced off the walls almost instantly. The five swimmers stepped outside into a giant indoor swimming pool, gaping at the magical sight of its undisturbed, perfectly still surface. A second and a splash later Haruka was in the water, its stillness instantly replaced by the ripples the dark-haired youth left in his wake.

"Well I'll be," said Makoto, "this time I didn't even hear him take off his clothes. He's getting better," he finished as he broke into a smile.

"It's like watching a kitten play with string sometimes," Nagisa added, almost giggling. They all nodded, strangely hypnotised.

"Alright," Rin spoke up while stretching, "I don't know about you guys, but I do fancy a swim," he said as he stripped down to his bathing suit. The other three gasped in surprise as they suddenly remembered something very, very important. They weren't wearing their own bathing suits. Why would they? Summer was long over and they weren't swimming on a daily basis anymore. Only people with access to indoor swimming pools, like Rin, or people with a crazy water fixation, like Haru, would be expected to wear their bathing suits at any given point. They turned to look at each other until their lack of movement caught Rin's eye.

"You nerds aren't wearing your bathing suits, huh?" he needlessly asked, sounding as if it were the most obvious thing in the world to do. All three nodded in response.

"Fine," the redhead sighed, "come with me, there's a whole closet full of spares right out that door over there," he motioned towards the door opposite the one they had come in through. "I don't want you swimming naked in my pool, so get crackin'."

"The speedo room-" gasped Rei, horrified.

"Meet me on the other side," Rin added and smirked, right before jumping into the pool, breaking the surface sharp as a razor and swimming towards the other side. The three remaining swimmers started and had to run in order to catch up. They reached the opposite side almost at the same time and Rin pushed himself out of the pool in one swift movement, shaking the water off his hair.

Haru stopped swimming the second he sensed a disturbance in the force, he then turned and saw Rin slicing through the water with all the grace in the world. He sank into the water until only half of his face remained on the surface, eyes peering up curiously as Rin got out on the other side. He could have sworn someone pushed the slow-motion button the second Rin started shaking his head, the muscles on his back flexing with every turn of his neck. He blew bubbles and dove back into the water like a whack-a-mole mole, trying to think of anything without muscles, like shellfish. Or yoghurt. He dove in for a few seconds before heading back out for some air when a sound caught his attention.

"Haru, I'm fucking talking to you!" Rin almost yelled. "I said we'll be right back," he added and the dark haired youth blew more bubbles in response. "If you hear someone coming just… dive back in and hold your breath or something," he finished rather lamely, as the four of them walked out of the swimming pool area and disappeared behind a pair of heavy-looking doors.

This was exactly what he needed, Haru thought, as he dove in and out gasping for air every few seconds, stretching his arms to their limits in order to push himself forwards, faster and faster. His legs kicked to a certain rhythm perfectly in tune with his breathing and the beating of his racing heart, wanting to clear his mind of recent events. Of the fact that, apparently, he wanted to do a whole lot more than simply touch Rin. The past few months had been hard on the raven-haired swimmer, what with aunt Spring and cousin Puberty conspiring against him, resulting in awkward dreams and an impulsivity that most certainly wasn't there before. And right at that moment, the water was the only thing providing him with some sort of release from all the stress and hormonal madness he had been dwelling in ever since Rin had returned, or so he told himself. Yes, this was exactly what he needed, Haru repeated over and over in his mind, taking comfort in the lie. Because truthfully, as much as it pissed Haru to admit it, water wasn't much help against teenage hormones and hours worth of pent-up lust. Six trips to the bathroom in the past hour could vouch for that.

"He's not like water," he bitterly thought to himself as he turned at the pool's edge, kicking off from the wall. "He's just a damn tease." Exasperated, Haru stopped once he reached the edge on the other side and blew a ridiculous amount of bubbles, holding on to the edge and taking deep slow breaths, enjoying the silence and the water all at once.

That was when he heard it, the distinct sound of footsteps echoing through the walls and heading directly his way. Our brave hero did the only thing he could think of, took a deep breath and sank his head under the water hoping to God whoever it was, didn't think much of ripples.

A hooded figure halted the second it entered the swimming pool area. Absolute silence welcomed him and he squinted hard, trying to make out any figures in the dark.

Meanwhile, three swimmers largely unfamiliar with the doors and passageways of Samezuka Academy and one smirking redhead walked into what seemed to be a large equipment room that apparently served as gym and locker room at the same time, judging by several treadmills, scales, weights and other appliances used for hard training, as well as the locker-lined walls.

"Wow…" gasped Nagisa taking in the sight before his eyes as if he had never seen anything like it before. "It's like they're really training you for war or something," he added, not even trying to hide the amazement in his voice.

Rin shrugged and walked towards a door labeled 'swimming equipment'.

Makoto walked in barely a few steps behind them and was equally amazed at Samezuka's blatant display of private funding. He was suddenly brought out of his thoughts by the soft thud of something smacking him in the face as he struggled to catch the bathing suits that Rin had thrown his way.

"Put those on if you wanna swim at all," Rin spoke up, not even trying to conceal his amusement. "You too, Rei. I'll wait outside," he said as he turned to walk back out the door.

Rei sighed, he had to admit it at some point, after watching Haruka-senpai dive in with so much gusto, he did feel like swimming at the moment. Nagisa beamed with excitement, almost ripping off his clothes as he thought of how well his perfect plan was going while Makoto simply smiled at the thought of swimming with his friends once more.

The three teens had effectively stripped down to their underwear and were all in the process of taking off their socks when Rin suddenly ran back into the room, visibly shaken.

"Someone's coming! Hide!" he hissed, diving towards the underside of the nearest weight lifting bench, snatching as many of his friends' scattered garments as he could so as to hide the evidence, hoping to God the darkness could efficiently hide him. Rei made a noise resembling a squeal and would have tripped and landed on his face had it not been for Nagisa who reacted faster than lightning and pulled him towards the nearest door, scrambling into what seemed to be the janitor's closet and shutting the door behind them.

Makoto's brain responded immediately and his eyes began searching desperately for refuge at an inhuman speed. He was far too large to hide in any of the lockers, he wouldn't fit under any of the weight lifting benches, he couldn't hide behind the treadmills, he cursed his muscled frame and kept on glancing around, all of this at lightning speed. He turned his head towards the closet where his two friends had disappeared and barely even considered the possibility of hiding there since he wouldn't have time to reach it before someone walked in on him. These were his thoughts when the door suddenly creaked open and Makoto, finding his feet glued to the spot, did the only thing he could think of. He covered his crotch with both hands and closed his eyes, waiting for the worst.

Seconds seemed to stretch into minutes, Makoto's heart was pounding hard against his ribcage when suddenly a loud gasp broke the silence. The green eyed swimmer ventured to crack open his right eye and was greeted by the anxious gaze of none other than Nitori Aiichirou, Rin's roommate. Makoto recognised him instantly and sighed loudly in relief. He was about to break into hysterical laughter when he was silenced by Nitori's furiously waving arms, beckoning him to swallow his laughter and hold his breath.

"Matsuoka-senpai!" he whispered desperately at no-one in particular, apparently fairly aware that his roommate was also hiding in the room. Rin stuck out his right arm from under the pressing bench and waved frantically, getting the silver-haired youth's attention. He scooted out from under his shelter at an alarming speed, cursing and almost tumbling over, until he was at whispering distance.

"Well?" he asked expectantly. Makoto stood there gaping, glancing from one swimmer to the other.

Nitori seemed to need a second to gather his breath when he almost choked, "The night guard's coming this way!" he hissed back, his voice a lot higher than it should have been. Makoto sweat dropped and yelped, quickly covering his mouth with both hands.

Losing no time, Rin clasped Nitori's shoulders with both hands and leaned in closer, "get Makoto upstairs to the dormitories and hide him in our room, I'll go get Haru and the others!" he whispered loud enough for Makoto to hear. Nitori nodded fervently and grabbed the taller swimmer by the wrist, pulling him away towards the back door. But Makoto's mother hen instinct kicked in right at the moment he was about to walk out the door, he turned around decisively, glancing anxiously at Rin.

The redhead tsk'ed and held his gaze, motioning with his head towards the door, "you agreed!" read his eyes.

Before he even realised, Makoto had been pulled out of the room and started running down a dark corridor, wearing nothing but a pair of white socks and blue orca-patterned briefs.

As soon as he heard the door creak closed, Rin balled up his friends' clothes and slid them under the pressing bench that had effectively hid him just a few seconds before. Thereupon he sprinted towards the closet door where he knew Nagisa and Rei had taken refuge in and leaned in closer, almost pressing his lips against the crack between the door and the wall.

"Nagisa? Rei?" he whispered almost desperately, hoping to all deities above they were listening as intently as he was.

"It's Rin-chan!" Rin heard Nagisa squeal from inside, immediately he pressed his foot hard against the door, stopping it from being slammed open the second the petite swimmer recognised his voice.

"Shh! Nagisa, listen to me," the redhead hissed back. "The guard is coming this way, just… stay put, ok? I'm taking care of Haru!"

The muffled sounds of things tumbling over and what could only be Rei flinching back in pain suddenly reached Rin's ears.

"No way! Rin-chan! Haru… you can't… you have to… ouch! Rei-chan! Cut it out!" Nagisa squealed behind the closed door and Rin knew he had hit the jackpot. As quietly as he could, he reached out a hand towards a steel chair that was carelessly placed by the wall near the closet door and angled it against the doorknob, hoping its bumper feet could resist the strength of one and a half full-grown teens pushing against it.

"Shh! He's coming!" Rin hissed back, unable to withhold the toothy grin smeared across his face. He then pulled out his phone from his back pocket and typed a few lines before hitting the 'send' button.

Nitori's grasp around Makoto's wrist had not withered as they finally reached the third floor where the third year dormitories were located. Their frantic pace slowed down considerably and Makoto took a few seconds to gather his breath, leaning a hand against the nearest wall for support.

The younger swimmer seemed to share the sentiment as not a word was spoken for the following seconds, the only sound their gasping and occasional soft cursing.

"My apologies, Tachibana-san," spoke Nitori a little too loudly, getting Makoto's undivided attention. "I received a message from Matsuoka-sempai about half an hour ago asking me to patrol the corridors and watch out for the night guard," he took a few seconds go control his breathing once more before continuing. "He told me you were breaking in to use the swimming pool…" he stopped once more. "I'm sorry, please don't worry! Matsuoka-senpai knows this school like the back of his hand, please don't worry about your friends, they're in good hands!" he finished with as much energy as he could muster.

Makoto straightened up and cast an anxious look around. They seemed to be standing in the middle of a corridor consisting specifically of dormitories. He could distinguish the names of several Samezuka students on the doors.

"Where… where are we?" asked the green-eyed swimmer, as if needing a confirmation.

"The third floor, our room is one floor up but we have to walk through this corridor in order to get there, please follow me," Nitori replied as he made his way towards the darker end of the empty corridor. Almost on cue, the sound of a door creaking open just a few meters ahead suddenly got both swimmers' attention, forcing them to freeze on the spot.

"Yeah, yeah… Yamanaka, keep an eye on these two while I get back," a familiar voice all but yelled while a tall silhouette walked out a random door to the left, carelessly shutting the door behind him. The figure stopped on its tracks as its golden eyes focused on the two figures before him. A gasp. A few loud rushed steps followed before the unmistakable grin of Samezuka Academy's swim team captain materialised before the swimmers' eyes.

"Well, hullo!" Mikoshiba Seijuurou beamed, holding out a hand as if it were the most natural thing in the world to run into a junior student and an outsider in the dormitories' corridor way past curfew. "Well, Nitori I'll be damned, if it isn't an almost naked Tachibana standing right next to you!"

It suddenly downed in on Makoto the fact that he was standing there in his underwear, a detail he had completely forgotten and was all but mortified to recall. He hurriedly covered his most sacred parts with his hands while blushing furiously.

Mikoshiba walked closer and patted him heavily on the back, making Makoto almost trip forwards. "Not to worry, my friend! I am not a stranger to illegal randonnees in the moonlight," he grinned madly. "Am I to understand Nanase and the others are hiding somewhere in the building?" he spoke loudly but distinctively facing Nitori, who nodded. "Ah, not to worry! Not to worry! I'm sure Matsuoka is positively avoiding the night guard, that sneaky fellow! Your friends are in good hands, Tachibana! Oh, but of course, blind me…" he interrupted himself while glancing at Makoto's half naked figure up and down. "You must be cold, my friend! Nitori, go fetch Matsuoka, tell him Tachibana's joining us for poker, oh, and do get us some energy drinks from the vending machine on your way back, here's a quarter" he grinned as he tossed a coin at Nitori and grabbed Makoto by the neck, turning him around on his heels.

Makoto glanced back at Nitori, confusion etched all over his face, before they disappeared behind Mikoshiba's door.

"Fellas! I've got a late contender!" was all Nitori could make out as the door shut behind them.

Nitori waited a few seconds while holding his breath, his body completely tensed. After what he deemed a reasonable amount of time, he exhaled loudly and pulled his phone out of his pocket. He opened the lid and his fingers tapped over the keys furiously.

"Senpai,

The seagull has caught the fish, I repeat, the seagull has caught the fish."

Five whole seconds Nitori stood there, unmoving, when he felt his phone buzz back and clicked the new message open.

"WHT?!"

The silver-haired teen sighed, silently mourning the fact that his 'code' could not be deciphered by his beloved upperclassman.

"I efficiently delivered Tachibana-san to the captain's dorm, he dragged him inside, something about poker."

Somewhere on the first floor, Rin read the newly received message and cursed loudly, slamming doors left and right. Right after effectively locking Nagisa and Rei inside the janitor's closet he had triumphantly walked back into the swimming pool area only to find it completely deserted, no sign of Haru anywhere near sight. In Rin's favour, he hadn't actually planned on locking his friends in the closet, it had just happened. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to kill two birds with one stone, teach his friends a lesson for messing with him and earning a few private minutes with Haru. If only Haru hadn't gone off on his own, probably getting himself lost. He had searched the whole first floor and was currently leaning on the handrail of the stairs that led to the second floor, just seconds before giving up, texting Nitori and commanding him to call things off when he suddenly felt the urge to run upstairs and resume his search. Call it a sixth sense. Or his nose, as he caught a familiar whiff in the air.

Rin ran upstairs and reached the second floor while almost running smack into the locker room doors to his right, now used more as a storage room than anything else. He pushed the doors open and tumbled inside, panting like a madman and sniffing the air expectantly.

"Goddammit Haru!" he yelled, now positively sure his former rival had been in the room.

As if conjured by dark magic, Haru suddenly popped out from behind a stack of old floating boards wearing nothing but his unbuttoned jeans.

Rin had barely even registered the dark-haired swimmer's present state before he exhaled loudly in relief, almost leaning back against the wall behind him. He took a second to gather his breath before closing his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose in exasperation. Even though he had orchestrated the whole 'night-guard' drama, ordering Nitori to jump in at the right time, effectively frightening the pants off his friends, almost literally, he still felt a wave or relief wash over him as he found himself in the same room as Haru once again.

"The hell, I've been looking all over for y-"

He suddenly found himself unable to finish his sentence, not even realising he had been cut off by a pair of moist and eager lips pressed against his own. His eyelashes fluttered in surprise but quickly gave into the disarming sensation of Haru's arms wrapping around his waist, pulling him flush against his dripping wet skin.

"Took you long enough," Haruka whispered, breaking the kiss momentarily, mildly amused by Rin's expression of total surprise. Blue eyes were suddenly filled to the brim with emotion and it was a sight Rin found hard to look away from.

"Eh… yeah, well… Nitori and…" Rin mumbled clumsily, completely taken aback, gesturing with his arms back and forth, apparently unaware of the iron clasp Haru had around his waist. "The fuck are you doing here, of all places?!" he couldn't help but ask the second their kiss broke.

"Got lost," Haruka whispered, leaning in closer and touching their foreheads together. "And shut up. You owe me," he barely managed to spit out before giving into his impulse and capturing Rin's lips in a lustful kiss.

As if a switch had been turned on, the redhead immediately responded to Haru's complaint, and it must have been the fact that it was the first time he had heard him speak in such a husky tone that drove him insane almost instantly. Rin's instincts took control over his body and he clasped his hands on either sides of Haruka's head, pulling his face upwards and applying just enough pressure so the dark-haired teen was forced to bend his knees slightly in order to accommodate the pointy-toothed teen, who immediately took advantage of the situation, leaning over and devouring Haruka's parted lips.

"Nnh," moaned the blue eyed swimmer into the other's mouth, tightening his grasp and digging his nails into Rin's muscled back.

"Haru…" Rin all but whimpered, hands roaming down his former rival's chest, down his stomach and around his back, pulling him closer almost painfully. Unaware of his movements and without breaking the kiss, Rin awkwardly pushed forwards, forcing Haruka to walk backwards a few steps until effectively pinning the slightly shorter swimmer against the tiled wall.

Seconds went by, their kiss only intensifying with every breath. Haru had managed to sneak a leg around Rin's calf, his hands digging into the redhead's butt when suddenly and without planning it, his left hand dove into the scarlet eyed teen's right back pocket. The rustle of paper against his fingers indadvertedly broke his concentration, rolling the offending object between his thumb and index finger, pulling it out curiously and raising his hand right behind Rin's head, glancing at it through the corner of his blue eyes.

Rin took advantage of Haru's sudden lack of restraint, mistaking it for submission, and ventured his right hand down the dark haired swimmer's pants.

"R-Rin?" moaned Haruka, unable to decide if he was moaning out of sheer pleasure or blatant indignation as he reread the name and phone number scribbled across the paper before his eyes.

"Don't… don't hold back," Rin whispered back, completely lost in the moment, grasping Haru's fully erect manhood with his hand, tugging gently while nipping at his jawline.

"Rin…" Haru spoke once again, this time louder. "Who the fuck is Annette?"

The redhead froze on the spot, his entire frame tensing up at the name. He was sure he had heard that name somewhere. A few seconds went by where neither of them moved, afraid to break the spell that had been cast around them when suddenly Rin broke into manic fits of laughter, all while holding onto Haruka's erection, tugging on it as he shook with uncontrollable laughter.

"Nagisa's idea of a joke," he managed to splutter out between gasps for air, finally letting go of Haru's manhood while wiping away a tear. "Probably sneaked the paper when I wasn't paying attention," he continued, almost immediately silenced by Haru's scorching gaze. "Although I could bet my life he didn't imagine in his wildest dreams that this was how we would find out," he finished before once again breaking down into a fit of laughter.

Rin raised his hands in indignation, defending his innocence. "I swear!" he chuckled, and if he hadn't been smiling that smile that melted Haru's heart, the dark haired youth would have probably landed a hard punch on the sharp-toothed teen's face.

A few seconds went by and Haru finally shook his head as if saying 'you idiot'. He then pulled Rin closer by the hem of his shirt, taking his hand in his own and placing it back over his cock.

"Make it up to me," read his eyes, uncharacteristically amused.

Rin smirked and licked his lips.

"Turn around," he commanded, leaning as close as he could towards Haruka's ear, hands slowly sneaking into the blue eyed swimmer's pants.

Woot!

Phew! This one was LONG! Over 5000 words!? What!?

Once again, I can't thank you guys enough for all the reviews and the support I've received over the past few days. I am really touched. Really, really. There is so much I wanna say to you right now! But I figured I better get cracking on this baby and finish up before officially replying to you guys and thanking you one at a time for how LOVED you've made me feel!

I hope this chapter wasn't too much, I know a lot of things went down, hah!

Like I mentioned before, this was originally meant to be one chapter, and when I split it into two and published Part 1, I honestly didn't expect to add anything to the second part. But as I kept rereading it, I just felt like I could still add some more and bwaahahh this is what happened.

Even though I will most definitely reply back to all of you who took some time out of your lives to review my fic, I'd like to take this opportunity to respond to a review that made me particularly happy.

Hillumi: Thank you, thank you. Thank you. I am THRILLED that you pointed out the one thing I've been aiming for all this time. These are indeed the first encounters of two horny teenagers that are just discovering something new. Of course they do have feelings for each other, it just doesn't matter at the moment! It's a sleepover! Agh… thank you… really, thank you!

And thank you ALL! Sharkbait Girl, YaoiYuriFan, ILOVEYOU, TheWorldIsMine, nilifur, clover71, linklover88, pennamesareforfancypeople, vakiromi, azab, Maiden Warrior, maripas, BurningBright222, Lanessa29, Kinkylittlewolf, Twilight Girl, Guest AND FRIEND!, Creature, regulus, loveisfree, MyVioMelody, Kira-can Anime, iMakeMistakes, LOL XD, FREE, Lilly297, Ldrmas, brojaxeh, Lovely Reader, Vega Nighshade, Pyrefly Princess, starstarfairy, maferotaku amiga mia!, OtakuHarunaHimawari, and the rest of the unregistered GUESTS who reviewed! I LOVE YOU ALL, THANK YOU SO MUCH FROM THE BOTTOM OF MY HEART!

And as much as it pains me, the end is drawing near. Not in the next chapter, but soon. Soon…