The next day, Usagi skipped school. Motoki had told her that Mamoru passed by that street during the time she was supposed to be in class, so that he wouldn't bump into her. Knowing that, Usagi purposely didn't go to class to catch him.
As one o'clock rolled around, sure enough, Usagi caught sight of her midnight-eyed love strolling along the street accompanied by a retinue of four other men. One of the men had long dark brown hair and eyes of the same shade. He was tall and definitely looked strong. Another had blonde hair up to his shoulders. His deep green eyes spoke of intelligence. Near the rear stood another blonde man, his hair cropped short. His eyes were clear as he chattered animatedly to the group. Beside Mamoru stood a rather imposing man with long straight silver hair and sharp eyes. These men intimidated Usagi just a bit, but she wouldn't let that stop her from somehow reaching Mamoru.
As the men took a few more steps towards the place where Usagi was hiding, she decided it was now or never. She moved away from her hiding place and quickly rushed up to Mamoru. Before she could even get within a few feet of him, however, the four gangsters immediately moved to block their dark-haired leader from her view. If they seemed intimidating when they were fairly relaxed a while ago, they were definitely more frightening to Usagi now that they had each assumed a cold stance. She knew they were probably just protecting Mamoru, as if he needed to be protected, but she couldn't help but worry if they would hurt her. She just wanted to talk to the man, after all.
Before she could utter a word, a command was spoken from behind the four individuals, "Move."
"But, Prince –" the man with the silver mane started.
"I said, MOVE, Kunzite," Mamoru's voice came out strongly.
Reluctantly, the four men stood aside from their leader, allowing him passage to Usagi and her to him. Now that she could see him clearly, standing but a few feet away from her, she couldn't stop the tears that sprung to her eyes. Mamoru hated to see her cry, but he couldn't let her get hurt, so he tried to get her to once again leave him alone.
"What are you doing here, Tsukino? Don't you have school?" he spoke coldly to her.
Already knowing what he was trying to do thanks to what Motoki had told her, Usagi didn't let his cold tone deter her from her task. Without waiting for him to say anymore, she plunged right in.
"BAKA! Mamoru wa baka! How could you just leave like that after all we shared with each other!? To protect me!? Yeah right! If you were trying to protect me, how does staying away help at all!? If something were to happen to me and you weren't there because you were so busy 'staying away', pray tell how would you protect me!? Don't you know how miserable I've been, thinking I did something to drive you away? Don't you know how lonely I was these past three weeks because I couldn't see you? Don't you know how much I love you? And don't you know that if you really wanted to protect me, you would never leave me, because I always feel safest when I'm with you?" What started out as Usagi shouting at Mamoru ended with her murmuring and tears falling rapidly from her eyes.
Mamoru couldn't believe his ears as he heard each word Usagi said. Each crystalline tear that dropped from her eyes tore at his heart. When he heard her ask what he would do if something were to happen to her while he wasn't around, he felt like he was stabbed in the gut. When she told him how she blamed herself for his absence in her life, the guilt slowly ate away at him. When she told him she loves him and that she felt safest with him, he couldn't control himself anymore. It took all of a few seconds to grab at her and pull her into his arms.
This was what Usagi had been dreaming off ever since she met the dark-haired gangster. She had wanted for so long to feel his arms holding her like this, never wanting him to let go. Her tears didn't stop, but she couldn't have cared less. She tried to bury herself in his chest and arms. It was only when his arms tightened even more around her that she realized he was speaking.
"Usako, I'm so sorry. I never wanted to hurt you; I didn't want you to have to go through such pain. I thought I was doing what was best for you. I'm so different from you. You've got so many people who love you and who would be sad if anything were to happen to you. I couldn't do that to them, to you. You're special. You've always been special to me, ever since I first met you. I was scared to lose you. I'm sorry, so so sorry. I love you so much, Usako." Usagi felt a damp spot near her shoulder and realized Mamoru was crying.
She hugged him tightly before pushing him away so that she could look into his eyes. "You could never hurt me if you're with me, Mamo-chan. I know you'd never let anything happen to me. Even if I were safe, how could I stand it if something happened to you and I wasn't there? I need you, Mamo-chan. Please don't leave me again."
Her clear blue orbs, shining with tears, were his undoing. He couldn't deny her – or himself for that matter – even if he tried. As he promised not to leave her, he also made a promise to himself that he would never let anything harm her.
"I love you, Usako," he said as he looked into her joyful eyes; then, he kissed her.
Behind them, Mamoru's entourage couldn't help the discreet smirks crossing their faces at the actions of their leader. It was about time, if you asked them. They had known there was something bothering Mamoru for some time now; after all, they were his closest friends, sans Motoki. They just never expected his problem to be a girl. They were happy for him. He finally found someone who loved him completely and who he could give all his love.