The flashback has been added :) hope ya like

Chapter 5: The Hidden Secrets

'… Engaged… Engaged…'

The word echoed in Natsuki's head as she stood stiffly in front of the woman who had just pulled her all the way to the back of the house to tell her a bit of news that she had apparently 'forgotten' to mention. Natsuki had to tug on her arm a few times to try and actually make her stop the pointless walking, though it didn't really help much as Shizuru seemed quite determined. Now, Shizuru stood before her with the faintest of smiles on her face.

Natsuki was just trying to bring out the right words to say, or any words for that matter. Her friend's statement had just flipped her mind so suddenly that she was having trouble bringing new thoughts in. "So,… erm," She started, averting her eyes as she was unable to lay them back onto the others that were so unwaveringly upon her. "You're… getting engaged?" As she spoke, her tone seemed to become more serious, as though trying to recollect herself for a reason that was unknown to her.

"Within a month's time, I will be." Shizuru's posture was stoic, but the look in here eyes made it seem as though several different thoughts were running through her head. The tawny-haired girl silently turned to seat herself on the stone bench in the middle of their huge garden-like yard. Natsuki remained silent, and Shizuru could see what she was thinking. "The reason I didn't tell you before was because I feared you would think that my new status would get in the way of enjoying our being together this week."

'Wouldn't it?' Natsuki wondered, looking down for a brief moment. 'I mean, it's a hell of a lot to simply say "I'm engaged" to someone you were about to spend a week with. Wouldn't it make things.. awkward?' She inwardly quirked an eyebrow. 'But then again, I guess it's just like Shizuru to act as if things don't and won't faze her.' After pausing for a few seconds to keep her eyes on the girl next to her, she crossed her arms and switched the weight onto her other leg; she was going to make her pay for springing things on her like that. "So the bottom line is that you tricked me into coming." She stated bluntly, her eyes so focused onto crimson ones that you would think she was trying to stare her down.

In a split-second's time, the wine-red eyes looked away then back to Natsuki's, as though the jade eyes were too intense for her. "I wish you wouldn't say it like that Natsuki." She put on a smile that was supposed to look reassuring but seemed all too cheerful for the moment. "I just simply wanted you with me." The smile stayed until she saw the disappointment slowly rise onto the other girl's soft face. She hated that look, always did, especially when it came from Natsuki. Her eyes fell from the girl in front her to the healthy grass beneath her, fingertips pressed into the hard surface of the bench. "Kanina Natsuki, forgive me. I just feared that you wouldn't want to come, that you knew you would be uncomfortable."

Natsuki was silent as her eyes looked away to the edge of the forest nearby. She let out a large sigh as she unfolded her arms, placed her hands in her pockets and closed her eyes, feeling a need to say what she felt she should say. "I'm sure it'll be awkward for me, to spend time with your parents, and all the while knowing that you going to be married to someone," She raised an eyebrow at the newly realized ideas: she hadn't thought of how she would deal with either until now; how she should handle it.

"But if you had just said, "I'm getting engaged and I would like you with me", I would've come for you." Natsuki opened her eyes and looked back at Shizuru to find the same crimson eyes now on her as well. A smile slowly formed onto her friend's face, making a chain reaction onto Natsuki. There was a small, almost awkward silence until Natsuki shrugged. "Of course some begging might've been required as well.."

Shizuru's smile turned into a grin. "And I would have done so to the best of my ability."

The incredulous eye returned except it held a bit of amusement in it this time. "I've never seen you beg."

As she tried to turn her smirk – caused by Natsuki's comment – into a normal smile, Shizuru gracefully lifted herself from the bench and made sure Natsuki's eyes were locked onto her own. "I would do anything for Natsuki."

Natsuki noticed the purposefully deep voice and intense eyes that Shizuru laid on her. The voice was what made her blush slightly. The eyes were what made her look to the side. "Flattering." She muttered, thinking it was the only word she could find before adding, "Thanks" seconds later.

Shizuru shook her head. "Oh no. Thank you." She added softly though her tone wasn't as deep this time but gentle.

The younger girl cleared her throat quickly before recollecting the courage to look back up. "Anytime." She glanced up several times, noticing that Shizuru's smile never changed.

Shizuru let the silence pass, enjoying the looks and expressions on her friend's face that made her look like she was fumbling for words in her head. What made this so adorable to look at was that this was how a few of her more timid suitors would act while they were out together. She was sure they would be thinking something along the lines of: 'What should I say?' 'What does she want me to do?' 'Should I hold her hand?' 'Does she want me to kiss her?'

Of course, she knew Natsuki wasn't thinking those things (although she had hoped she would someday), but she knew Natsuki was in a similar situation since it was quite obvious to her why she was acting this way: it was very rare for Natsuki, the rebel-girl of school who once thought there was no need to have friends, to talk the way that she had mere seconds ago; so sincerely, so gently.. so comfortingly.

The tawny-haired girl was about to give her friend a break from her most likely rapid thoughts but was a bit surprised when Natsuki finally spoke up first.

"So," She started with a sigh and slipping her hands into her pockets. "Is your.." – she cleared her throat – "fiancée here with you?" She hoped she would hear a "No" but tried to remain impassive; the only time she would agree to spend time with a guy was when it was absolutely necessary.

There was a slight pause. "He's supposedly coming in around three days." Shizuru stated simply, though there was a sort of dullness in her tone.

Natsuki sighed again but this time out of a growing agitation to the news. "Great." She smiled humorlessly. "So I guess this means I eventually have to meet him?"

"It would make sense to do so since I'm going to be spending my time with the both of you." She spoke in her logical tone.

Natsuki looked at her for a moment with a kind of perplexity in her eye. "Wouldn't that be awkward for all three of us, for you to spend time with me during his stay here? Not to mention that while you're off with him, I'll stay up in the mansion of yours while I wait for you?" She could already feel that those days in the house would be boring as hell for her though she wouldn't say it out loud.

Shizuru looked at her for a long moment. Or maybe it just seemed long since all that could be heard was the wind rustling through the trees around them. Shizuru kept her smile as she reached for Natsuki's hand. "Come with me." Her voice was so soft that it could almost be described as a murmur as her fingers wrapped around Natsuki's hand.

Though a little surprised, Natsuki let herself be pulled by Shizuru's guiding hand, which held onto her a little more gently than she had before when she had led her from her mother's office to where they had just stood. Her stride wasn't as urgent as it had been as well.

This calmed Natsuki at least a little, but she still hadn't finished. "You didn't answer my question, Shizuru." She noted flatly. Noticing that Shizuru was leading her towards the forest, Natsuki quirked an eyebrow, puzzled.

"I know." Shizuru replied quickly but brightly as though she was excited about something.

"Are you planning to?" Natsuki wasn't sure why her heart sped up as they passed through the first row of tall trees that marked the edge of the forest.

"Of course I am." The tone remained the same, making her even more nervous. What was this girl planning now?

88

The light of the setting sun dripped lazily through parted leaves onto the blades of tall grass, reflecting off the sifting brooks and creeks, highlighting the petals of scattered wildflowers, and both warming Natsuki's face and gleaming in her eyes. This tranquil atmosphere did not help the cobalt-haired girl's mood, however. In fact, she found herself becoming more and more unsettled and almost annoyingly perplexed as she continued to let herself be guided by Shizuru's hand.

Natsuki noticed that this woman (whose almost self-exulting visage had yet to fade from her face) had either forgotten or refused to let Natsuki's hand slip from her own. The younger girl knew she could always remind Shizuru or just take her hand back, like she had done most of the several times the fair-haired girl had repeated this gesture in their younger years. But, instead, she just simply let out a silent 'why bother?'-like sigh, like she had done for most of the rest of the times that she decided to humor the upperclassman.

The only thing that kept her from turning back was that she was actually genuinely curious of what Shizuru was planning to show her.

"We getting closer to the end of this?" Natsuki asked quickly in a dull, flat tone.

"Almost." Shizuru responded, not at all bothered by Natsuki's tone or the length of time their walk was taking. "It's just underneath that bridge." She pointed out towards a large wooden bridge that had a wide stream passing under it.

"You just wanted to show me a creek?" Natsuki lifted an eyebrow at the area ahead of them. "I always knew you were a little weird, especially when I first met you, but…" She stopped as she heard Shizuru break into a laugh.

"No, no. That isn't it." Placing a hand over her mouth as her light giggles softened. "I've just been saving something for you. I hid it under the bridge." At the confused look on Natsuki's face, she added, "You'll see."

Coming to the edge of the stream, Natsuki noticed that the gap between the bottom of the bridge and the water's surface was fairly large considering this was in the middle of a forest. It looked as though the creek had been dug so that it was a little less than five feet from the elevation level of the grounds they had just walked upon. Although the river was much wider than she had originally guessed, there was a gravel-made shoreline at each side of the river. Perhaps a little over five feet from the edge of the river to the wall of rock they stood upon.

"You may go first if you wish, Natsuki." Shizuru insisted pleasantly.

Natsuki only glanced at the hand gesturing towards the shore below before she thoughtlessly jumped down onto the gravel. Her eyes snapped to the object hidden in the bridge's shadow; she already knew what it was even though it had a worn-green protective cover over it and a glimpse of two tires poking into view underneath. Her eyebrows raised in intrigue.

"Would Natsuki mind helping me down?" The light voice called in such a way that the smile could easily be seen in the mind's eye.

Again, green eyes only glanced up to confirm her theory and she smiled curtly while mentally cursing her naiveté; she should have seen this coming. "Clever, Shizuru. Very clever." Reaching up to the kneeling girl to take her waist between her hands, she complimented humorlessly. She felt Shizuru's hands grab and lean against her shoulders for support. "You always love doing this to me, don't you?" Quirking an eyebrow accusingly, she kept her eyes on the wall of rock and soil Shizuru still hadn't chosen to let her feet leave.

"Doing what to you?" Returned a seemly nonchalant voice.

Natsuki's eyebrows knit together, aggravation resurfacing, 'As if you don't know.' She didn't even want to count all the times this cunning girl tricked her into doing little things that Shizuru secretly loved. Be them gestures, words, or simple blushes.

Looking up to speak her protests, Natsuki stopped before she could even start: pale-blonde hair shined like a halo; porcelain features glowed; burgundy eyes illuminated like marble; all by the cause of the amber-tinted twilight.

Noticing those same illuminated eyes gazing back into her own with a hint of amusement growing in them, Natsuki snapped her eyes back to the wall's edge. Mentally cursing herself for letting herself stare, she healed her bruising pride by quickly muttering, "Such a child…"

After a light chuckle, Shizuru finally leaned over the rest of the way for Natsuki to swing her down onto the ground next to her. Natsuki was the first to quickly take her hands off the person she held and silently followed the other girl underneath the bridge.

In one swift move, Shizuru lifted off the cover to expose what Natsuki had expected: a motorcycle. As the cover was placed up against the wall, green eyes wondered over it, inspecting it, examining it. It was a totally different model of what Natsuki's used to be; the handlebars were higher and the seat was lower, making it the type where you'd have to lean back instead of lean forward as you sit.

It also looked as though it had live through many years. The metal was rusted and scraped in a few places; the leather seat was torn, exposing a little of the spongy cushion underneath; a side mirror was missing and the glass cover of the speedometer was cracked. Overall, the only label Natsuki could give this bike was "Tune-up Job". Those were only a few of the faults that she mentally noted as she circled it once, making sure to keep her head low to avoid bumping her head against the bridge directly above her.

"What are your thoughts on it, Natsuki?" Shizuru asked as she stood out from underneath the bridge.

The blue-haired girl leaned over it to brush off some of dust with her fingers. "It's seen better days." She responded without looking away from it. "At least it still has its kickstand."

"Do you think you can fix it?"

Green eyes circled over the bike again. Nodding with only slight uncertainty, "I might, if I had the right tools. Repairing it will be very different from repairing my own bike, but I think I remember coming across bikes like this at my old job." She stated, memories of working as an auto mechanic flashing in her head. Out of the many odd jobs, being a kind of apprentice auto mechanic was her favorite; it the only one she found peace in doing and managed to have the longest period of employment in before quitting (fired).

Remembering why she was led out here in the first place, Natsuki looked up to the other girl. "But what does this have anything to do with the days you spend time with him?" As she spoke, her puzzled expression shifted to abrupt realization. She looked at the bike then back to Shizuru, noting her expecting yet somewhat hopeful smile which told her that her guess was correct.

A smile came onto Natsuki's face as she looked down and shoved her hands in her pockets. "I see. Trying to keep me occupied, right?" Looking back up, Shizuru's smile remained, as expected. "Isn't this a form of bribery?" She asked curtly as she seated herself against the wall next to the green cover.

Smirking, Shizuru sat herself next to her with her legs tucked underneath. "Perhaps. Although I'm doing this for your benefit, not my own." She continued, "Is this fair for you, Natsuki?" She paused as the cobalt-haired girl remained silent. "…Is it not enough?" Her voice was softer that time, Natsuki noticed.

Natsuki watched as hope and perhaps a glimpse of fear crossed through those crimson eyes. She really had no idea why Shizuru would look at her that way. The looks and expressions in those eyes that had been so good at hiding her deeper feelings, the feelings that didn't want to be discovered, had opened themselves to Natsuki several times that day. That told her something; her friend truly did need her here, and that was enough to make her stay.

Jade eyes stationed themselves onto crimson as Natsuki murmured, "It's plenty."

Shizuru smiled a genuine smile. "I'm glad."

Natsuki's eyes darted away from the smile as a light blush had come across her cheeks for being given that adoring expression from the older girl. To occupy her eyes, they went back to the bike in front of her and its battered state. "It may actually be more than plenty. I don't know if I'll be able to completely fix it before I leave."

Shizuru was silent for a moment then suddenly chuckled, her eyes on the gravel around her feet. "I remember walking to the academy one day and saw you fixing your motorcycle underneath a tree on a street corner. You didn't show up at school for the entire day, from what I can remember. When the day had finally ended, I was walking back home and you were in the same spot, still fixing your motorcycle." Her eyes drifted back to Natsuki, the fond memory still replaying in her head. "If you take an entire school day to fix your motorcycle, I'm sure you'll be able to fix it during the week when I'm not able to be with you."

Natsuki paused, remembering that day which was maybe a week or two after they first met. Trying not to be too caught up by it, she finally spoke. "Yeah, I think I can be able to do it." She took the protective cover and laid it back over the somewhat decrepit bike. "I won't start on it until he comes though, and I'll only work on it when you're with him." She asserted flatly.

There was a two-second pause and Natsuki realized her mistake; she could almost hear the suggestive smile appearing from the person behind her. "Does Natsuki find me more exciting than her motorcycles?" Came the voice that mimicked the smile.

Eyebrows knitting together, Natsuki ignored the question and quickly changed the subject. "Do you have any tools to lend me?"

There was another two-second pause. "I will make sure to collect the few that we have for you." Her answer was more reserved this time, luckily.

"Why is it all the way out here?" Natsuki asked as she finished covering it.

"It's an antique. Mother was going to dispose it, so I moved it before she could do anything with it. My father rode on it frequently before he—before he died."

Natsuki just turned and looked at her for a few seconds, not knowing exactly what to say besides an "Oh" and asked her when he passed.

Shizuru looked down to the gravel as a sad smile flashed on her face. "He died four years ago." She stated lightly, her eyes going back to the bike as if all the memories of him starting up its engine flashed in front of her.

Wordlessly, green eyes laid upon the older girl, 'only a year after she graduated…' Pausing, Natsuki's eyes drifted back to the covered bike. "Oh" she said again then added an awkwardly-muttered "Sorry…" shortly after.

Shizuru smiled again but this time with less sadness. "It's something I try not to dwell on, so Natsuki mustn't dwell on it either." Stating softly, she pushed herself from the wall and stood herself up. "We should return home, dinner should be ready soon." She advised while brushing off the gravel and leaves that clung to her clothes.

The cobalt-haired girl nodded, silently following the other girl back to the wall. Grabbing the edge, she pulled herself back up and brushed her hands as she stood before hearing a light "Ahem" behind her. Not even needing to turn, her shoulders fell and she sighed. "Why did you bring that bike all the way down there if you can't even get over the wall?"

"I simply walked around it." Shizuru stated as her hands wrapped around Natsuki's and let herself be lifted her up until her feet touched the edge.

Natsuki rolled her eyes, thinking there would have most likely been several easier solutions or better places to put a bike. She remained silent for the rest of the walk until they came to the back door of the house. "Would Natsuki like to unpack before or after dinner?" Shizuru asked lightly she opened the door for them.

Natsuki thought for a minute as she stepped inside and let Shizuru lead the way. "I'll probably just do half before and half after, I don't want to look so travel worn at your parent's dinner table."

A slightly surprised yet amused look snapped onto Natsuki's face. "How funny, I always thought Natsuki never cared about what people thought of her. Even if it's just according to appearance." Shizuru smiled at the younger girl's defensive expression on her face.

"I don't care when it comes to strangers who don't know me." Natsuki assured. "But I sometimes do care when it comes to people that I'm about to meet, especially when it comes to your parents. I mean, I don't want to shake people's hands while my hair's disheveled and everything." Her eyes followed the creases of the wooden floors as she spoke, knowing that if she looked up her eyes would only find the burgundy ones upon her and would have difficulty speaking coherently; that was just the kinds of things those eyes could do to you.

"Ah, I see." Shizuru finally looked away. "Then I'll leave Natsuki to her unpacking. I'll come when dinner's ready and show you to the dining room." She turned when they came to a flight of stairs.

"Fine." Natsuki responded flatly as they stopped at a door a small distance from the top of the staircase. Shizuru opened it and stood aside for the younger girl to go in first. Smiling weakly, Natsuki stepped in and tried not to act too surprised by its size. 'I could almost fit my entire apartment inside this…' She thought as her eyes wondered over it, finding her duffle bag laying on a futon the size of a Full-sized bed in the back of the room to the right-hand wall.

A large, embellished rug laid in the gap between the futon and the dresser opposite it. To the right of the futon and to the right wall adjacent it were a pair of windows next to each other. More trees, landscapes and even a few mountains could be seen from the adjacent-wall windows. The windows next to the bed looked out along the side of the house to another window of a room and the side of the roof could be seen two feet beneath the window sill.

"I hope it is to Natsuki's liking." Came the voice from the door.

The girl in question took a few seconds to respond then quickly brought out whatever she could bring into her head. "It's fine. Perfect." "Where's the bathroom?" She asked while looking out the window.

Shizuru, still standing in the doorway, point to her left, away from the stairs. "Go this way, turn down the first hallway and you'll find it behind the second door on your right. The towel pantry is in there as well." She placed her hand on the door. "Is there anything else you need from me, Natsuki?"

Natsuki caught the playful smile the tawny-haired girl gave. Ignoring it, she went to unzip her duffle bag for the purpose of occupying herself. She kept her quick and blunt tone, "No."

After a simple nod, the other girl responded in her cheerful voice, "Then, I will return shortly" and closed the door behind her.

Three seconds after she left, Natsuki closed her eyes and sighed—whatever forces that brought the two of them together had a very strange sense of humor.

Not bothering to sort and arrange until later, she tossed all her shirts, pants, underwear (lingerie) and socks onto the bed and dropped the duffle bag next to the bed. All other objects and items concerning hygiene were placed onto the top of the dresser in front of the mirror. Still too lazy to go through the heap of clothes just yet, she quickly brushed her hair for the dinner then flopped herself onto the bed next to it and let the muscles of her back and legs relax and her thoughts stray to the day.

Shizuru still seemed more or less the same, Natsuki noted, but she still had a strong feeling that Shizuru was hiding other things from her. The way Shizuru looked when she finally told her she was getting engaged bothered Natsuki somewhat; there was a bit of happiness but not a lot of excitement in her eyes, like she didn't desire this.

Natsuki lifted her green eyes to the ceiling as she placed her hands behind her head. 'Why wouldn't she want it though?' She wondered. 'I would think that every girl would want to get married eventually.' Distaste flickered across her face. 'Besides me, that is. There's no way I'm going to lose my independence and freedom to some guy, even if I did have feelings for him.' After realizing how alike she was to Nao by those words, she stopped that train of thought and went back to Shizuru.

'What would stop her from wanting it?' Her mind reeled for some possibilities then stopped at one of the first ones that came to her; her heart slowly sunk at the thought. '… still has feelings for me…?' Her gaze on the ceiling softened as guilt rose within her. 'If that was the case, which it may be, I wish it would stop; it makes me feel like I'm holding her back from doing things that would be better for her.'

After a few seconds of silence in her head and more guilt swelling up within her, she closed her eyes and lightly shook her head, trying to free herself from the thoughts. 'But there could be many things that could change her mood about it besides that.' She forced herself to think. 'Perhaps she is happy but has been tense and restless about it; arranging the plans for it and preparing herself for not just his arrival here but just getting married altogether.'

Natsuki absentmindedly nodded, feeling a little more alleviated. 'Or maybe her father's death is what's making her still seem a little depressed. I don't blame her; I know very well what it's like to lose a parent.' She felt herself becoming a little morose at the horrid memories of her own past, which always clung to her like bloodthirsty leeches. But since the end of her own graduation from the academy, she refused to let them control her emotions like they had done several times before, long ago. 'At least he died of natural… then again, I don't remember asking her how he died. I'll have to do that later.' She decided before she carried on with more possibilities.

'Maybe she's getting married to someone she doesn't think she loves enough to call him her husband, or someone she's being pressured into marrying, like an… an…' Natsuki's eyes widened then furrowed in perplexity. "An arranged marriage?" She whispered into the room. Her eyes darted across the ceiling, her mind reeling even more than before. 'It's definitely a possibility, knowing how traditional her family is… but would they, would she, really go that far no matter what the reason may be? It just doesn't seem like her to willingly let herself be-'

Natsuki jumped as a 'click-creak!' from the front of the room abruptly broke the silence and noticed the door open in the corner of her eye. With a hand over her chest to try and settle her rapidly beating heart and steady her breathing, she heard light footsteps and a low yet light chuckle.

Natsuki's brow twitched. "You know," she started, breathing in again. "I would've figured that perhaps by now you might've learned to knock." She looked up to the smirking girl who leaned against the edge of the opened door, arms folded over her chest and head tilted slightly to one side.

"Natsuki, as I told you before, the few times that I walked in on you in the school locker room or in the bathroom were entirely accidental."

Her head flopped back onto the bed as her jade eyes narrowed. 'Yeah, right. Entirely accidental my ass.' Natsuki was about to bring herself back up when she found that the fair-haired girl had soundlessly yet surely elegantly stepped closer to her at the side of the bed. Natsuki found herself to be immobile. Frozen. The way Shizuru looked down at her with a gentle fondness or thoughtfulness made it difficult to actually find her ability to think, much less a reason to move. Discomfort rapidly growing by the lack of conversation and dragging seconds, Natsuki was about to ask what Shizuru was looking at until said person's voice broke in.

"I see your unpacking hasn't progressed very far." Shizuru noted as, only for a second, her gaze flicked towards the mound of clothes next to the younger girl.

Natsuki glanced over to the said pile. "Yeah, well, I told you I would only do half of it."

"This is half?" Shizuru asked, surprised as now her eyes laid fully on the clothes.

Natsuki scratched the back of her head. "Well, no. This is all."

"Would Natsuki like me to help her later?"

Natsuki looked at her for a long moment as though suspicious. 'As long as she isn't helping just so that she can have the chance to take good long looks at my underwear…' "Sure, I suppose."

"Good." Shizuru moved to hold her hands together in front of her. "Dinner's ready, so whenever Natsuki's--"

"I'm ready." Natsuki interrupted as she swung her legs off the bed and waited for Shizuru to lead the way.

888

Forty-five minutes later, Natsuki and Shizuru entered her room again. The younger quietly sighed. After not having a meal since that morning, Natsuki was grateful to be given one that also proved to be the most decent meal she'd had in ages.

The interaction she had with her mother and uncle during the dinner itself was the most exhausting and tensing part of it; the conversation would shift from the mother and uncle just talking to Shizuru and completely ignoring Natsuki; to the mother suddenly asking Natsuki personal questions such as what types of jobs she had done, who she was dating, what college she was studying at, how her and Shizuru met, etc; finally, all was left in complete and awkward silence for the rest of the meal. Never in her life had she felt so much anxiety such from sitting in front of three people.

"Natsuki, is something wrong?" Shizuru asked after she noted that Natsuki had been standing motionlessly in the same place as if she was lost in thought. "You seem a little bothered."

Natsuki looked up at her and shook her head as she walked back to the pile or clothes and began to sort. "No. Just the dinner has left me a little… winded, I suppose."

Shizuru smiled as though humored. "I know. My uncle and mother can seem a little intimidating at times." She made her way next to Natuski and began to pick at the clothes as well. Noticing how so many of them were wrinkled and inside-out, she took the task of folding them for her.

After handing her two shirts and a pair of pants to Natsuki for her to put away, Shizuru let the pleased and amused smile graze her lips as she saw a very familiar item: a navy, lightly-padded, demi-style bra. She snuck a peek at the tag on the inside. Her eyebrows raised with intrigue, "My, they haven't grown at all since I last went shopping with you."

Without a word, the bra was snatched from her hands and she turned to see Natsuki glare at her as the cobalt-haired girl grumbled to herself while roughly stuffing it in a drawer with her other undergarments. Shizuru laughed as she turned to continue folding.

"Shizuru?" The lower voice called from the dresser after a few minutes of motionless silence on her part.

"Yes?" Shizuru didn't turn around though her tone was light as she continued her task.

"Is…" Natsuki paused, as if beginning to have second thoughts on asking. She forced herself to continue, as her curiosity was far greater than her cowardice. "Your engagement, is it… planned?"

Shizuru then stopped and turned to look at her inquisitively. "Planned?" She looked as though she had no idea what Natsuki was talking about. "Perhaps you mean the wedding event itself." She continued folding the pair of jeans in her hand and laid them on the other folded pairs of pants.

"No, I mean the engagement." Natsuki's tone was blunt this time as she turned fully to Shizuru, her arms crossed and her footing firm on the ground as though she was standing up against a bully. "Is your marriage arranged?" Shizuru didn't turn, didn't move, and didn't answer. That was all Natsuki needed. "Have you even met this guy? The man you're supposed to marry? Do you even know his name? Do you even have any say in this at all—!"

"Natsuki." Shizuru's voice was a breathy pleading sound as she heard the anger rise in her friend's voice. She knew Natsuki would've most likely reacted this way, and she thought she would react the same way she always had to the other students of Fuuka; pleasantly impassive, imperturbable, always backing her notions with positive comments. The tawny-haired girl soon realized – as she knew she should have before – that Natsuki made things an entirely different story. This was much harder.

"What the hell has happened to you?" Natsuki's eyes were unwaveringly upon Shizuru, they were cold yet baffled. "What happened to the girl who always holds her dignity no matter what? Who gets her way no matter what other people think?"

"Don't make me sound as though I've influenced you or controlled you in some way." Shizuru's tone had not changed while her eyes were finally able to raise to the younger girl's.

Natsuki raised a skeptical eyebrow. "You have, on several occasions, and you and I both know that." She stated pointedly.

Shizuru was silent, then a grin she couldn't help slowly spread across her face as she lightly shrugged. "I've never heard Natsuki protest."

"That's because you always refused to listen!" Natsuki sighed, ignoring the smile on Shizuru's face that refused to fade even after she yelled at her. Realizing they were getting off track with what she was supposed to be doing, Natsuki quickly ran her hand across her face to relief the small headache her friend caused. "But really, why are you doing such a stupid thing? It's like you're surrendering to what other people say you should do! You never surrendered to anything when you were a Student Council President, not even Haruka's howling voice!"

Shizuru shook her head. "That's an entirely different matter." Her smile was gone as she stated this. "That was school. This is family; family is a little more difficult to refuse, especially in this type of a matter."

Just with that statement, Natsuki found herself effectively silenced; having had a very little personal understanding of the meaning for family values and relationships, Natsuki was left without a backing response.

Noticing her error right as she finished her sentence, Shizuru quickly but softly added "I didn't mean to-"

"I know." She looked away as she crossed her arms over her stomach, trying to make herself feel a little less uncomfortable by switching the weight on her legs.

Slightly disconcerted by Natsuki's quick and quiet response, Shizuru kept concerned eyes on her. With all her heart, Shizuru wanted to take Natuki's chin between her fingers and raise those beautiful deep green eyes to her own and look deeper in them. To see what Natuki was really thinking now. If she had seen hurt in those eyes, without a doubt, the first thing Shizuru would do was take her in her arms, stroke her back, and hold her as long as she was allowed to. She hoped she hadn't brought up painful memories for Natsuki. If she did, she'd hate herself for it and she knew it.

Shizuru noticed that Natsuki was beginning to fidget under the older girl's eyes, so she reluctantly let her be. She turned and seated herself onto the edge of the bed, hands in her lap, silent until she finally decided to break it by speaking about the subject she was more reluctant to bring up but should. "Do you know how many suitors I've entertained in the past six months?" As moderately curious eyes turned back to her, Shizuru continued, "Fourteen." She absentmindedly gave a smirk at the look of the other girl's nearly astonished expression – Natsuki didn't know whether or not if that smirk was supposed to look as mirthless as it did. "Some lasted two weeks, others lasted three days. And whether I liked them or not would always be the last reason to give for whether I should marry the suitor or not."

"What do you mean?" Natsuki didn't look as incredulous as her question had sounded, just genuinely confused by Shizuru's last sentence.

Shizuru shook her head as she tried to hide her small but amused smile beneath her locks of hair around her face. "Nevermind. It's a little difficult to explain." Crimson eyes finally raised to jade. The softness in them matched her smile. "Anyway," She started as she leaned back onto the heel of her palm. "Let's not let it get in the way. It isn't a bother to me, not really. I agreed to it anyhow."

Right then, Natsuki felt like yelling at her, to scold her for seeming so ambivalent yet careless at the same time; so succumb so easily yet act like it's not happening. However, so many words ran through her head and thus she was left to speak none of them. So she could only look at her, dumbfounded.

"Please don't hate me for this." Shizuru spoke softly, almost pleadingly, when she saw the anger flooding the other girl's eyes.

"I don't." Natsuki started as she grudgingly walked closer to the bed. "But I will, I really will, if you ever think that I'm not there for you during this little fiasco you pulled me into." She stopped right in front of Shizuru, making sure that her stern, stone-cold eyes were locked with crimson.

Shizuru looked almost confused yet astounded, then touched, then simply happy, then suddenly playful, which made Natsuki's eyes widen in fear as she knew Shizuru was about to do something. Natsuki's prediction was, of course, correct as Shizuru suddenly leaned forward, wrapped her arms around the younger girl's waist and then pulled her on top of her on the bed. Shizuru giggled. "It's been so long since I've heard Natsuki give such a declaration so passionately!"

"Shizuru!" Natsuki chided as she squirmed in her captor's arms, trying to free herself. 'She's such a little kid sometimes!' She blushed when Shizuru nuzzled her upper chest as she just happened to land a little higher over her. "I'm trying to be serious here!"

"I know." The constricting grasp eased. "And I thank you, for everything. And don't worry, Natsuki, I'll never forget all that you've done for me since the start of our years together." Shizuru's head was still imbedded in Natsuki's shirt, her chin nestled between her breasts, easy breaths caressing and warming the article of clothing. This, along with the softly-spoken words (enhanced by the addition of the Kyoto-ben accent) made Natsuki blush even more.

"G—good." Natsuki muttered after clearing her throat. She raised herself up higher on her elbows against the arms still wrapping around her and bidding her back down again. With a hand on the older girl's shoulder, the cobalt-haired girl gently nudged her away. As much as she hated to admit it, she was reluctant to break away from this girl whose closeness seemed more than just a mere hug; it felt like Shizuru was clinging to her, needing her, not sexually (hopefully), but just emotionally, and that left Natsuki even more wordless than it would if it was sexual.

Natsuki's heart jumped with she looked down to Shizuru; the way her hair spread around her head and face like the halo she had seen earlier that day; the deep wine-red eyes that seemed to dart between her own jade ones. She didn't know why, but it felt like time had stopped just for them at that moment. However this moment was very short-winded when the horrific idea of someone coming in her room unannounced (perhaps to check if Natsuki was settled and accommodated with all she may need during her stay) and see their daughter/niece/ojou-sama and guest in such a position. 'They'd probably get a completely wrong idea and think I'm trying to…'

At that thought, she raised herself straight up without hesitation but tried to regard Shizuru coolly by lamely muttering something like "It's getting late."

Shizuru sat up, her eyes still never leaving the ones that had turned away from her. "Yes. It is." Her eyes then chose to drift away as she slid off the bed. "I would want Natsuki to be in her best of health when we spend the day together tomorrow." She stated while she straightened her skirt. The soft smile that played on her face as she spoke made her seem as though she was already excited and couldn't wait for the morning sun reach up over the trees and touch her windowpane.

Natsuki only nodded as she gazed out into the darkness of the aging night, rich reds painting themselves over the clouds in the horizon. "I will." She crossed her arms over her stomach as she heard Shizuru's footsteps to the door.

"Sweet dreams, Natsuki." The light, gentle voice called through the doorframe.

"Yeah." Natsuki mentally kicked herself for giving such a lame reply. 'I can do better than that!' she scolded herself before she quickly added, "You too." Natsuki glanced at Shizuru's direction only to look away when she saw the look in the other girl's eyes which matched her voice. 'It's interesting,' Natsuki thought, 'that no matter how many times I've seen that very look in Shizuru's eyes, I'm always left wordless and nervous. It never gets old. I wish I knew why.'

When she noticed that Shizuru hadn't moved at all from the doorframe a minute later, Natuki turned to her with a quirked eyebrow. "Something wrong?"

Shizuru smiled and lightly shook her head. "No. I just realized something."

"Oh yeah? What's that?"

Shizuru seemed to give her an impassive look. "I just realized the Natsuki isn't beautiful like I had imagined."

The dumbstruck look returned to Natsuki's face. 'Well, thank you for your opinion, Shizuru.' Her somewhat shocked eyes fell into confusion as she saw the playful grin spread widely across the other girl's face.

The voice became husky. "Natsuki is absolutely stunning."

With that, the door finally shut with a gaping Natsuki motionlessly watching it. 'SHIZURU!'

8888(Flashback)8888

As people passed, odd looks would be given to the girl sitting in the grass and cranking away at her motorcycle with a wrench. Motor oil stained her face, hands, and parts of her uniform. Natsuki wondered why she even wore the uniform at all; she had already decided not to attend school today (like yesterday, and the day before, and the day before…).

Having sat in front of the side of the bike for the last hour and a half, she stretched her back and rolled her shoulders, dropping the wrench to crack her knuckles. The noise around her - the cars zooming past; the constant chatter and footsteps; the dull sound of music from local restaurants and bars – made her feel tranquil, which she figured others might find strange. But noise was good; it stopped her from thinking too deeply about things she didn't want to think about, things that hurt too much to relive.

There was nothing better than being in the middle of a fast-moving city where no one cared who you were and what you did, skipping another pointless and boring day at school, and spending the entire day fixing her bike. It seemed like a suitable excuse to miss school and it certainly wasn't a waste of her time, like the academy was. Her bike was her best friend; it helped relieve a lot of her stress.

Natsuki looked up towards the crowd, letting her muscles relax a little more before she continued. Her eyebrows furrowed as a girl she recognized all too well coming near her on the sidewalk, schoolbooks hugged close to the chest of council-member uniform.

'Speaking of stress…' Natsuki rolled her eyes, immediately grabbed her wrench, and hid her face beneath the gears and motors of her bike. The woman refused to leave her alone ever since they met by the flowers and gazebo. She regretted ever telling Shizuru her name.

Among the hundreds of footsteps against the concrete, Shizuru's seemed to be the loudest and Natsuki had no idea why. It was like hearing the 'click-click-click' of a grandfather clock, just waiting and anticipating the moment the minute-hand reached the next minute. Natsuki felt like she was ducking her head with each footstep she heard. 'Don't let her see me don't let her see me don't let her see me…!' Natsuki's eye peaked out from the corner of her eye and let out a breath as Shizuru passed her. 'Thank God. One more minute of her goodie-two-shoe-ness and I would've-'

"Natsuki! My, what are you doing here? You're going to be late for school."

'… shit.' Natsuki's shoulders slumped as she turned her head towards the taller girl who stood still on the sidewalk, looking at her inquisitively while other people simply walked around her. Natsuki started to tense as she came closer. "I'm not going."

"You should go, otherwise you'll be held back." Shizuru warned her as stood over the other girl kneeling in the grass. She inwardly smiled at the smudges of oil on Natsuki's forehead and cheek; this girl's adorability just seemed endless.

Natsuki turned back to her motor, placing her wrench back around the particular screw again. "I'll be fine." She stated simply.

Shizuru smirked, humored by the girl's carefree nature. She stayed silent as she watched Natsuki work, which was something that the younger girl didn't at all like and after a few tensing seconds she finally turned back to Shizuru.

"Don't you have school to go to?" She insisted.

Shizuru smirked again. "Yes, I do. Though it sounds like Natsuki is trying to get rid of me."

"What would make you think that?" Natsuki couldn't help the sarcastic tone, which actually only humored the older girl more even though she didn't answer.

"Would Natsuki mind doing something for me?" Shizuru asked in a light, inquisitive tone as she switched her weight onto her other leg and tipped her head slightly onto one side.

Natsuki looked at her somewhat suspiciously. "What's that?"

"Since you're going to be spending the entire day fixing your bike, I'm sure it will be finished by the time the school day has ended, yes?" Her tone had not changed, which made Natsuki even more suspicious.

"Y-yeah, why?"

Shizuru couldn't hold back her smile as she spoke. "I need a ride."

Natsuki looked at her incredulously before quickly turning away. "Get a taxi."

"You're much cheaper, and I'm sure a lot more fun." Shizuru's smile seemed to widen a little bit as she said the word 'fun'.

"No way. That would mean that I would have to show my face at that school." Natsuki stated gruffly, hating the thought.

Shizuru was silent for a minute. "I could sign a slip for you to miss a day."

Now, Natsuki was silent for even longer before she turned to look at her with a quirked eyebrow. "Will you sign a slip for me everyday if I promise to give you a ride from school everyday?"

"No." Shizuru's answer was plain and simple but was still amused.

Natsuki hung her head and sighed; it was better than nothing. "Fine."

"Wonderful." Shizuru had to keep herself from beaming at the thought. "I'll see you after school then."

"Yeah, fine." Natsuki mumbled as she turned back to her bike. She did about four cranks with her wrench before she realized that Shizuru hadn't left yet. She turned back to her. "Anything else?" She asked almost impatiently.

Shizuru grinned. "One more thing," Pulling out a crème-colored handkerchief, Shizuru kneeled down to Natsuki's side, took her baffled face with her hand, and lightly wiped off the oil from her face.

Natsuki found herself frozen for a few seconds under Shizuru's soft gaze and gentle strokes before she finally shook herself from Shizuru's grasp. "W-what are you doing?"

Shizuru laughed within her throat as she stood back up again and tucked the handkerchief back into her uniform coat underneath the ruffling tie. "I'm cleaning Natsuki's beautiful face." She stated pleasantly, thoroughly enjoying the blush Natsuki graced her with. She waved her fingers as she murmured her goodbye then walked back onto the path she originally took.

Natsuki just watched her retreating form, the pink shade never leaving. When Shizuru was finally out of sight, she frantically searched for the more portable form of stress relievers for her. Pulling out the packet, she shoved the cigarette between her lips and quickly lit the tip with her trusty metal lighter. She quickly took a puff and slowly exhaled the white smoke. 'Damn her!' She thought as her eyes peered back in the direction that Shizuru had left.