After Usagi's and Mamoru's confessions, they had gone to Motoki's arcade to tell him the good news. He was thrilled, of course, especially on seeing the smiles on the couple's faces. He didn't realize how long it's been since he'd seen either of them smile. He also made sure to threaten Mamoru, saying that he'd better take care of Usagi or else – not that Mamoru would have done any less.

Usagi had also been properly introduced to the four young men with Mamoru. Kunzite, the man who spoke up at Mamoru's order earlier, served as an older brother figure to her love. Despite his seemingly serious demeanor, he was rather protective of the Midnight Rose's leader. Zoicite was as intelligent as his eyes had hinted at. She was pretty sure he could have easily conversed with Ami on those difficult subjects her friend so loved reading about. Jadeite was the short-haired blonde, and Usagi had no trouble believing him to bring humor to the group. He chatted amiably and easily drew laughs from her. Nephrite was the man with the brown hair and eyes. He too seemed highly protective of Mamoru, but he was more inclined to smile and joke around as compared to Kunzite.

Amusingly enough, the four men took to calling Mamoru "Prince". Usagi couldn't really understand why. It could have been due to the wealth Mamoru received from his parents, or perhaps because he was like the son of their previous leader. Whatever the reason, she understood that they used it as a term of endearment more than anything. It was proof to her that they wouldn't let anything happen to him. She knew she could trust them to keep him safe.

With all the events of the previous day, Usagi happily went back to school. Her friends were really worried about her, especially since she had been down in the dumps for weeks on end already. Just as they were about to interrogate her, giving up on the idea of waiting for her to tell them, she came into the classroom as bubbly as she used to. They were surprised at the sudden change in their friend's disposition, but upon seeing the glow they had so come to miss in their companion's aura, they decided to leave her alone and, instead, simply revel in her good mood.

That afternoon, the group of friends decided to celebrate Usagi's return to character by going out for a snack. They had barely turned down the street a block away from Juuban High when hands grabbed out at them from all directions. Members of a nearby gang had decided to accost the girls and have some fun with them. Makoto was the only one who had taken any form of martial arts, but even then, the gangsters outnumbered them and fighting might have risked her friends.

The girls were rather scared, especially as the leader of the group began to move his hand under Usagi's top, but the young girl's eyes immediately brightened upon hearing a familiar deep voice call out from behind her captor.

"Let them go," Mamoru's eyes flashed as he caught sight of the man's hand holding on to Usagi's bare waist.

A second order wasn't needed as all men immediately released the girls and began to move away from the head of Tokyo's most feared gang. "Chi- Chiba-san! Go- gomenasai! We didn't, we didn't know these were your girls!" the leader stammered an apology.

It took no less than a few short strides for Mamoru to grab onto the leader's collar and drag him off the ground. With a cold voice and flashing eyes, he was told never to lay a hand on any of the girls behind them, especially Usagi. Giving instructions to inform all other gangs that death would befall anyone who so much as came within how many feet of Usagi again, Mamoru released him with one last threat as the said man and his cronies scrambled to get away.

Once they were out of sight, Mamoru turned to ask if Usagi was all right, only to have the blonde angel launch herself straight into his arms. "Usako?"

"Mamo-chan, you came," the girl's voice was muffled by his shirt, but he heard her clearly anyway.

"Of course. I promised to protect you, didn't I?" he said gently as he lifted her face to him.

The smile she had on was blinding, and he didn't hold back the urge to kiss her. "Are you all right, Usako? Did they do anything to you?"

She shook her head, "No, you came just in time. Arigatou, Mamo-chan."

It was only until after he kissed her gently once again that both of them remembered her friends who were staring agape at the couple.

"U- Usagi-chan?" Makoto stuttered in askance.

"Um, minna-chan, this is Chiba Mamoru, my boyfriend," Usagi stated warily, seeing the obvious disapproval of her friends.

"Usagi-chan, do you know who he is?" Rei haughtily asked. She was rather jealous at how handsome the man with Usagi was, but she was well aware of his reputation.

Usagi somehow knew she wasn't going to like this conversation one bit. Before answering her friends' questions, she turned to Mamoru and said, "Mamo-chan, I need to talk to my friends. Thank you again for saving us."

The man glanced at the faces of Usagi's friends and didn't like the idea of her facing them alone. He was about to tell her as much when she pulled him into a kiss. As she broke away from him, the look in her eyes could only make him nod in defeat. There was no changing her mind, he knew.

"At least let me walk you to wherever you're going. I wouldn't feel right having you walk on your own after what just happened."

Usagi smilingly agreed. She then turned to her friends and said, "We'll talk, but not here."

Usagi led her friends to the arcade, with Mamoru not letting go of her hand the entire trip there. When they finally reached the building, Mamoru made to head inside with her, but she stopped him.

"Mamo-chan…" She gave him a pointed look, and he sighed.

"I don't want to have you do this alone, Usako."

She smiled up at him, "I'll be fine, I promise."

Unable to do anything, he nodded, spared a wary glance towards her friends, then proceeded to scoop her up for a kiss before letting her go. "I love you, Usako."

She could only reply, "I love you too" as she watched him walk away.

Once she could no longer see him, she shook her head to get rid of the haze that settled there after his kiss, then turned to her friends and led them inside the establishment.

Motoki had seen the short exchange between the couple before Usagi entered the arcade with her friends. He had also taken note of the wary glance Mamoru gave them. Feeling a bit wary himself, Motoki forced himself to keep his greeting cheerful as he waited for Usagi to make the first move.

"Konnichiwa, Motoki-niisan," Usagi smiled, "May my friends and I take a booth today?"

"Of course, Usagi-chan. Can I serve you anything?"

"Just a couple of milkshakes and maybe some fries, if it's not too much trouble," was her reply.

"No problem. Go ahead and take a seat. I'll bring it over."

"Arigatou gozaimasu, 'niisan."

With that, Usagi staked out a booth and plopped down, followed by her still silent friends. She knew they wouldn't be too silent for long. It was only a few minutes when Motoki came over with their order. He looked carefully at her after he put down the food and drinks, but she waved him off with a slight assurance. He nodded and left her to deal with the fall out.

It was Makoto who started the conversation. "Usagi-chan, what do you mean Chiba Mamoru is your boyfriend?"

Usagi sighed. At least that was a start. "I mean just that. We've been seeing each other for almost two months now, had a break for about three weeks, and yesterday, we confessed and I became his girlfriend and him my boyfriend."

"Do you even know who Chiba Mamoru is?" Rei asked angrily.

"Do you mean that he's the one person who makes my heart beat fast and makes me feel protected in his embrace? Or that he's the sweetest man I know and he always keep me safe?" Usagi didn't mean to act dense, but she wanted her friends to see him as more than just the gang leader the rest of Tokyo took him for.

"He's the infamous leader of Midnight Rose, Usagi-chan! They're a dangerous gang who are known to be ruthless and kill others without hesitation!" Ami remarked fearfully.

"Only those who try to hurt other people," Usagi defended.

"Usagi-chan, can't you see!? He's all wrong for you! You're sweet and innocent, but he can totally break you if he wanted to! Is he the reason you've been depressed those past weeks!?" Minako exclaimed.

"Of course he can break me – because I love him! How is it so wrong, huh!? Just because he's a gang leader, is that it? Because everyone's too busy being afraid for themselves, they don't try to understand how the members of Midnight Rose are people too!? Did you guys even know that the Midnight Rose is the one who keeps other gangs from hurting innocent people? Did you know they help the police with cases that are too dangerous and risky? Did you know that Mamo-chan protected me even before he knew who I was, when there was that shooting on the streets months ago!?

"I thought you guys would understand. You're my friends, after all. I thought you'd be happy that I've found someone who loves me so much, he'd do anything to protect me. I thought you'd see how much I love Mamo-chan, how much I need him! Yes, he's the reason I was depressed, because he tried to stay away from me to protect me. But, I can't bear to be apart from him. I love him so much! You guys saw how I was without him, and still you tell me to stay away from him!? You guys just don't understand; you don't understand at all!"

With a frustrated sob, Usagi ran away from the arcade and from her friends. They tried to call out to her, but she was too far away for her to hear.

The four teenagers looked worriedly at each other. They were unsure of what to do about the situation and were planning to leave when Motoki came up to them.

"I probably don't have any right to say anything, but I figured I'd just go ahead and say it anyway. I've known Usagi-chan her whole high school life. I consider her my little sister. I've also known Mamoru for a long time. When I first saw the two of them together, I was surprised. They come from such different worlds, after all. When I saw them arguing and talking, I figured it wouldn't hurt for me to let them be. Then, Mamoru told me he had to stop seeing Usagi-chan because he was afraid that she'd get hurt. I agreed and thought it the best course of action. Unfortunately, we both forgot to take Usagi-chan's own feelings into consideration.

"After three weeks of witnessing Usagi-chan more depressed than I'd ever seen her, I finally decided to confront her about it. She told me how much she loved Mamoru, how much she needed him. Somehow, I couldn't help but agree. As much as I didn't want her to get hurt, I wanted more to see her happy. So, I told her how to talk to Mamoru again. Now, they're together, and they've never been happier, let me tell you. Knowing that, I can say I was able to make the right choice.

"I can understand that, as her friends, you're all worried about her, but would you rather she be safe but sad, or that she's happy? And, if it's any consolation, like I said, I know Mamoru. He would rather die than let anything harm Usagi-chan."

With those parting words, Motoki left each girl to her thoughts. He only hoped they'd make the right choice like he did. He knew how much Usagi treasured her friends.