Author's Note: Yaaaaaay! Last chapter! We made it! I want to thank the ever wonderful Cedareye, my biggest supporter, and I also want to thank those who provided reviews and those who have made it this far in the story. And if you could be so kind as to drop a review once this is all over, I will love you forever!

On another note: Gawd, this one took me a while. I mean, after the first scene. The first scene was easy, and if I remember correctly, I might have finished it before I even finished the previous chapter. After the first scene, well... I kinda had a rough time with certain scenes. Right now we'll call it an issue with inspiration. Also, I had college assignments to deal with, a lack of motivation here and there, and also I ended up with the Sims 4 after waiting forever. After a while, though, it just came down to the sheer length of this chapter and all the different things that I wanted to happen. I am not used to writing chapters this long. So, yeah, if you have been wondering what took so long for an update to come, look at the length.

But no matter, it's finally here! This is the end. Gosh, this story ended up longer than I thought it would be. I always knew it would probably be longer than ten chapters, but it ended up being fourteen chapters and one prologue. Definitely my longest story on this site.

So anyway. Hooray! Last chapter, and it's a long one. Well, long by my standards, certainly. Grab a pillow, grab a drink, and get comfortable.

I just wanna say you're mine, you're mine

I just wanna say you're mine, you're mine

Fuck what you heard, you're mine, you're mine

All I'm really asking for is you

Mai immediately ran to Valon's side as soon as his knees hit the ground. "Valon!" she exclaimed, kneeling next to him and placing her hand on his bicep. "Are you okay? What's the matter?"

Valon did not answer her; instead he remained on his knees, doubled over and clutching his head while he groaned in anguish.

Mai watched on helplessly, wishing desperately that she could do something to alleviate Valon's pain, but all she could do was sit by him while he rode out whatever it was that ailed him.

Valon's body slackened, and Mai was there to catch him and support him. With a lump in her throat and a heaviness in her chest, Mai wrapped Valon in her arms whilst he leaned on her, pressing his face into her shoulder. "Oh, my god, Valon," she murmured, slowly running her hand up and down his back, placing the other hand against the back of his neck. She had to restrain herself from pressing a kiss into his hair; instead she asked him tentatively, "Are you okay?"

Valon finally was able to support his own weight again, and so he straightened himself back up onto his knees, leaving Mai's arms. Finally vertical, his posture slumped and he stared at the floor thoughtfully. "I remember," he whispered. "E-everything. I remember everything, Mai. Us. Erasing you."

Mai was taken aback. "Wait," she said, holding up a hand like a crossing guard stopping traffic. "'Erasing' me?"

Valon frowned and stared down at his hands resting on his knees. Shame colored his cheeks red. "There are these people," he explained. "This company called Lacuna. They—they help you forget..."

Mai waited patiently for him to continue.

"And I... I paid for these people to come in my house during the night and erase all my memories having to do with you."

"Well, clearly they didn't do that good of a job," Mai muttered sardonically, embarrassment making her extra snappish.

Valon shook his head. "No, you don't understand. I'm a part of the two percent."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning I'm one of the few people to regain my memory, Mai. Dr. Curtis—the guy in charge of this branch—he explained that they technically don't erase memories; they block them off because they don't have the technology to completely erase them. He said they have a ninety-eight percent success rate over there at Lacuna."

"And you happen to be part of that two percent."

Valon nodded. "He called it a trigger; he said it would take a powerful trigger to bring back someone's memories."

"And my card was your trigger," Mai concluded. "I've heard about this, how objects, places, phrases, and people have the potential to bring memories back. But why Cyber Harpy Lady? Why her, Valon?"

"I never told you about how many lonely nights I spent looking at that card, how I pulled it out each time I thought about you when I was alone."

Mai swallowed. She wasn't sure how to respond to that. "Well, at least you remember now," she settled on.

Valon nodded again. "Yeah," he said softly. "You've no idea how relieved I am, Mai. That night, during the procedure... The easiest way for me to describe it is that I was inside my own head."

"We've certainly dealt with stranger, haven't we?" Mai asked lightly, smiling uncertainly at him.

A small smile came upon Valon's lips. "I tried to stop them, you know," he explained. "I mean, at first I was happy since they were helping me forget about our breakup, but it didn't take me long to realize that it wasn't worth getting rid of all the good stuff just because the bad stuff hurt."

Mai nodded. "I think I can see why you'd want to make yourself forget," she admitted. "I mean, I sure did put put you through a lot of hurt."

Valon didn't reply. How was he supposed to respond to that?

Mai sighed. "What I'm saying is that I guess that I can't really blame you for doing what you could to make it stop hurting," she further clarified.

Valon shrugged. "I dunno," he murmured. "It was stupid of me. And to think, if we hadn't run into each other, and if you hadn't talked to me, I'd still be clueless."

Mai exhaled in disbelief and shook her head in wonder. Now that they sat there in silence, looking at each other somewhat shyly, all she wanted to do was jump on him and kiss all the pain away. But she couldn't do that—at least not yet. She didn't know what it was that Valon wanted, but she figured that even if Valon regretted trying to forget, that didn't exactly mean that he would want to get back together. Since Mai knew that it would be reckless and stupid to presume to know what was going on in Valon's head, she would just have to ask him. "So what now?" she asked. "What do you want to do now? Where do we go from here?"

Valon hesitated to answer; his eyes glazed over as he thought about it. "I don't know exactly what I want," he admitted. "To be honest, I knew that I wanted to make up, but I never really thought about how to go about that. It was kinda just one step at a time there, you know?"

"Well, let me start," Mai offered. "I am sorry, Valon. I treated you very badly just because I didn't know what I wanted, and you didn't deserve it. Mea culpa."

Valon sighed quietly. "I forgive you, Mai," he replied, looking her in the eye. "I guess it just wasn't a relationship with me that you needed."

Mai shook her head emphatically. "No, Valon, no. I don't regret being with you."

"Sure didn't seem like it later on," Valon mumbled, then sighed wistfully.

Mai sighed. "I took you for granted, Valon," she admitted, even though it made her feel very, very low, bottom of the ocean low. "And that was very shitty of me, and now I'm owning up to it. I was missing Joey, and I was under the impression that making him my boyfriend would make up for what had happened between us."

"Boyfriend," Valon echoed, taking a moment to reflect over the word. "Boyfriend, huh?"

Mai nodded. "But that didn't really work; he and I didn't work as a couple, and I understand that now."

Valon paused for a few beats of silence before answering. "I believe you," he told her earnestly.

Mai exhaled and looked down. If she wasn't looking at Valon, then she could more easily resist the urge to crawl onto his lap and kiss him. "I'm sure that this has been a lot to take in," she said, getting to her feet, realizing that it was best that they both took time to think things over after all that had happened. "You must be tired."

Valon smiled wearily. "I do kinda want to collapse in my bed and sleep for five days," he admitted jokingly, "if only to get rid of this headache."

Why not my bed? It's less than five feet away. Mai desperately wanted to ask. Instead she smiled and chuckled. "I'll bet," she said blithely. "I'm sure you'll need time to process all this, hm?"

"Maybe a little," Valon replied, smiling at her. "Hey, can I...can I have your number? I kinda had to get rid of everything having to do with you, so..."

"Oh," Mai responded, surprised but pleased. Asking for her number had to be a good sign. "Oh, of course. Just give me your phone."

"Here ya go," Valon said, handing the device over. "Do you need my number? I mean, I'm sure that you erased it after we broke up, right?"

"Actually, I never did," Mai confessed while she programmed all of her contact information into Valon's phone. "I couldn't bring myself to do it, like I assume you couldn't. I mean, what with you only getting rid of my number for the erasing guys."

"Heh, ya got me there, Mai," Valon responded cheerfully as Mai handed him his phone back.

Mai followed him to the door after she'd given him his phone back. "So I guess you can take some time to think and then we'll see where this goes?"

"That sounds about right," Valon said as she opened the door for him. "Well, I guess that this is so long for now."

"Right," Mai replied, trying to sound lighthearted when all she wanted to do was drag him back into her apartment. She jumped when she got an idea and told him to wait for her.

Mai ran back into her room and located the card on the ground where Valon had dropped it. Exhaling to calm herself, she picked it up and returned to Valon. "Here," she said, offering him the card. Valon took the card that had changed everything, and he stared at it thoughtfully. "You can return it when you're ready to talk again," Mai added. He'd waited for her, and now she'd wait for him. She wondered if it would be more fitting if he instead gave her one of his cards, but he didn't have his deck with him, and Mai ultimately realized that it didn't matter. The intention was still there.

Valon smiled at Mai, evidently touched by her gesture. "Thanks, Mai," he said softly. "I'll see ya later."

"See ya," Mai repeated, smiling while she closed the door. She counted to ten in her head before she leaned back against the door, letting out a controlled stream of air.

Meanwhile, once Valon had stepped into the elevator, he leaned against the wall and sighed as the elevator descended, taking him farther and farther away from Mai.

Valon walked slowly at first on his way home from Mai's apartment. He initially figured that maybe a slower pace than he was used to would help him sort out the jumbled mess of emotions that were his thoughts. This wasn't the oblivious confusion that he'd experienced up until recently because there were holes in his memory in the last year; this was the confusion brought on by an onslaught of memories in a short amount of time and the uncertainty about where to go from here, so maybe taking it slower would be more helpful to him.

He looked back and found that he was still within range of Mai's apartment building, and so he took off running. Never mind. Old habits die hard, Valon mused as he pressed forward.

Valon felt relief, but he also felt unsure. He felt the desire to be with Mai again, but he also felt that he should keep his distance for the time being. After all, he didn't know how recently Mai had broken up with Wheeler, and he learned after all those months of silence from Mai that she needed her time and space after significant events. Plus Valon didn't know if Mai even wanted a relationship at all, never mind with him.

Valon's pace decreased somewhat as this revelation struck him.

Yeah, he didn't even know. One could not assume things where Mai Valentine was concerned.

Valon scowled at himself, roughly shook his head, and gradually slowed down until he was walking again, now that he was far away enough from Mai's apartment building. Panting, he shoved his hands into his pockets. He didn't know what to do at the moment regarding his relationship with Mai because he'd just regained his memories, but he was not going to over think things. He'd take some time for himself, get his thoughts together, and then he and Mai could talk and decide where to go from there.

That was a good idea.

Trying to sleep after an influx of information was no simple task for Valon. Every time he tried closing his eyes and tried to start the process of relaxing and falling asleep, images flashed behind his closed eyelids as a recently acquired memory resurfaced.

"Hey!" each one seemed to say. "Pay attention to me!"

Valon understandably did not get much sleep that first night.

While things became more manageable as days went by, Valon still found himself thinking about Mai a lot, and it made the time he spent alone significantly harder.

He could not eat his meals at the table without staring at the chair opposite of his, nor could he sleep in his bed at night without partially waking up after a muddled dream to reach out for someone who was not there; watching television could not be done without glancing at the empty spot next to his every so often, and brushing his teeth felt awfully lonely since there was not a pair of arms to wrap themselves around his bare torso from behind.

Despite the pleasant domesticity of certain memories following him around during such mundane activities, there was the occasional bad apple in the bunch. Valon was occasionally reminded of when everything started to go to shit. It was downright sinister, those memories suddenly popping up, and it left Valon feeling rotten.

He knew that Mai meant it when she had apologized for the way things had turned out between them, and Valon truly had forgiven her, but forgiving did not mean forgetting. Although Valon had temporarily forgotten about his wounds like one would on morphine, clearly the source of his relief was gone, and now he was left trying to process and confront these feelings. Since Lacuna had been a quick fix to his problems, Valon had never been able to properly deal with his feelings over his and Mai's breakup, and those feelings were the main source of his reservations about immediately going to see Mai.

If it wasn't for that, Valon could have easily returned to Mai once he'd been able to adjust to all of his regained memories, for staying away from her when they had the option to reconnect was difficult. However, the internal dilemma that he was facing in reality was something that had to be dealt with. He didn't want to rush into anything and ruin things before they even began.

Once Valon grew adjusted to his retrieved memories, it was easier to put things into perspective, to start to figure out where everything lined up. Okay. Valon told himself resolutely one slow afternoon at one of his favorite restaurants. Let's think this over.

He knew that Mai was still willing to talk to him after she'd learned that he'd actually paid people to make him forget about her, and he was not going to take that for granted. He wanted to see her, she wanted to see him. That much was clear. He knew that he wanted them to get back together, but he also didn't want to rush things. That just wouldn't be a smart decision, and Valon had made enough dumb ones in his life, especially concerning Mai, so he knew that it was probably better to wait.

However, Valon also realized that hesitating before the pursuing anything romantic with Mai should not mean prolonged silence. Regardless of the label of their relationship, despite contradictory feelings, he knew that, without any doubts or conditions, he wanted Mai in his life. He just wanted to talk to her and spend time with her. He'd lost her more than once, and he did not want to lose her again.

With this in mind, Valon exhaled and pulled out his phone. Setting his jaw, he decided he'd leave Mai a little text message. It wasn't the same as meeting in person, but it was something.

I know that we're taking time for ourselves, but I wanted you to know that I've been thinking about you.

Valon set his phone down next to his plate of food and exhaled slowly to calm himself. Now all he could do was wait.

Mai was having lunch with Téa, discussing their respective plans for the future when she received Valon's text.

"New York is the plan for after graduation," Téa informed Mai between bites. "What about you, Mai? Do you have any big plans?"

Mai's phone chimed right as she was about to respond. Seeing that it was Valon texting her, she'd rather respond to Téa's query and respond to Valon's text at the same time instead of ignoring it. "I don't know," Mai admitted, opening Valon's message while maintaining eye contact with Téa. She allowed herself to look down quickly to read the message and type out a quick response. I could say the same thing about you. She sent her text, placed her phone down, and looked back at Téa. "I'm thinking of getting back into competitions for some side cash."

"You're glowing," Téa noted, smiling excitedly at Mai. "Who was it?"

Mai smiled and replied cryptically, "Oh, you know. Someone special."

"Mai, that's not fair," Téa declared, folding her arms and grinning at Mai challengingly. "Who is it? Is it Joey?"

Mai sighed wistfully, but her discomfort was soon replaced with elation as she remembered her excitement. "No, it's not. I'll tell you later, okay? Now tell me more about New York."

Time went on. Valon and Mai kept in contact with one another through text messages, which was a step up from the silence that had occurred for a while, but it was not as satisfying as seeing one another face to face. Adjusting to the way things had happened previously with Mai was made somewhat easier now that Valon had this new perspective. Still—knowing that he and Mai had a chance to reconnect made it easier.

Eventually Valon grew restless. His wounds had healed considerably, and now it was all just a matter of finding a good time to reunite. However, it was not easy given a conflict of schedules. Going to work and staying put for so many hours when he could be sitting on Mai's couch, eating fruit and just talking with her, put him on edge. So while he put on a smile for his boss, his co-workers, his customers; while he laughed and joked and put out an air of levity, he felt like a wild cat pacing a cage that was much too small for him, muscles tensed as he prepared to jump at the first sign of freedom.

After some time had passed, Valon found the opportunity when he let Mai know that one of his co-workers was having a party on the beach, in case she was interested. Valon had jumped at a chance to attend a party because it seemed like a safe option. If things got weird, they wouldn't have to worry about being alone with each other, what with other guests being around.

"Beach party, hm?" Mai had said on the phone. "Won't the water be cold?"

Valon chuckled. "Well, yeah, since it's not quite summer yet. But it's not that kind of party. There's gonna be a bonfire and a cookout."

"Okay," Mai said brightly. "Sounds fun."

Valon beamed when Mai finally joined the party. He was chatting with Jay, the host, and a group of people that he was getting to know when Valon saw her; he was laughing and grinning along with the rest as their host recounted the time he dealt with a nightmare customer, but his eyes scanned around for Mai, and he was successful in spotting her. Not wanting to interrupt, Valon graciously stepped back and then made his way around the group. He called Mai's name and waved his hand above his head when she finally spotted him.

Mai smiled at him and they made their way towards each other. Valon suddenly realized that he was considerably nervous, as it had been quite some time since he and Mai had last seen each other. Valon wondered how exactly should he greet her as they came closer. Hug? Handshake? Kiss on the cheek? Little wave to go with a comfortable distance?

But when it came to the actual greeting, Valon went in for a hug, which Mai happily reciprocated. Valon was taken aback at the surge of emotions that he felt as he and Mai embraced. He exhaled contentedly and closed his eyes while he felt Mai relax into his touch and exhale happily.

They eventually pulled apart, looked into each other's eyes, and then laughed.

"Whoa," Valon said in amazement. "Hi, Mai."

Mai giggled. "Hi, Valon."

Just as he did the first time they'd met up after she'd left her card with him, he gave her cherished possession back to her.

"Here's hoping that this is the last time that we have to do this," Mai said as she slipped the card into her coat pocket.

Valon smiled warmly at her and chuckled. "I'm sure of it," he said optimistically. He held out his arm for her. "C'mon. Let me introduce you."

After the introductions were made, and after politely joining in the conversation for about ten minutes, Mai and Valon snuck off and decided to walk the beach together, talking about their respective weeks.

"And this guy—this guy, he just doesn't get that you can't get a three day job done in, like, three or four hours," Valon explained, finishing up his story, laughing at the memory of a nightmare customer that he had dealt with earlier in the week. "He thought he could leave to run errands, come back when he was done, and it'd be finished!"

Mai laughed sympathetically and shook her head in disbelief. "It's people like that, people who think that the world was created to serve them, that really bug me," she revealed, kicking at a small rock, sending it flying.

"So," Valon said, looking at Mai and smiling at her warmly, "aside from running around all week for your boss, how've you been?"

"I've been...well," Mai replied.

"Doesn't really sound like it."

Mai hesitated, trying to think up a response that didn't sound lame or hollow.

"People who are doing fine don't really have to think about it," Valon added, looking at her earnestly. "C'mon, Mai. What is it?"

"I mean, Joey and I aren't talking, which means that I don't get to see the others, except for Téa when she and I can squeeze in some girl time, but you know. That's just how it is," Mai replied plainly, shrugging.

"I'm really sorry about you and Joey, Mai," Valon murmured. "I know that he means a lot to you."

"He's just taking some time for himself, what with the breakup and all that mess," Mai muttered, looking off to the ocean so Valon didn't have to see just how upset she felt. "Just like you did, just like I did."

"True," Valon agreed, "but that doesn't make it any more fun."

"No," Mai agreed, looking at Valon. Feeling a little bold, she held out her hand in an invitation for him to grab it. She smiled when he did so. "I will admit, I was pretty restless until we started talking again."

Valon laughed. "Same here!" he proclaimed. "I'm glad that we could finally get together."

Mai smiled affectionately at him. "Me too, Val."

Valon grinned excitedly and gave Mai's hand a friendly squeeze. "It's been so long since I've heard you call me that."

"Well, we haven't seen each other in a while, and you did kind of forget that I existed for a while, sooo..." Mai trailed off airily, smirking at him.

Valon chuckled amiably and bumped his shoulder against hers playfully. "You know what I mean."

"Hey," Mai said, realizing that they'd been walking long enough. "Do you think we're far enough?"

"We probably are."

They came to a stop and turned around to see how far they had walked. The party goers looked like dots from where they stood. It was just the two of them. Mai looked at Valon and smiled. She felt like they could turn back around and just keep on walking. But that would be rude. Mai told herself, so she gently tugged on Valon's hand. "Come on, now. Let's go back."

After they rejoined the other party guests, food was prepared on the beach, and someone had brought a few kites for guests to fly. Valon and Mai chatted with Valon's co-workers and the other party goers, they tried their hands at kite-flying, they took food off each other's plates, and they enjoyed the blaze of the bonfire with everyone else once it was dark enough. Knowing that they both had enjoyed each other's company made them both eager to see more of each other.

Mai and Valon were able to schedule time for each other thanks to their time together at the party being a success. Hanging out had started simple enough, with the two going out for coffee a few times a week, spending their free time at the park, or simply strolling through the city. It was comfortable for them, taking the time to simply enjoy one another's company, now that everything was coming naturally to them, after all the initial worrying of whether they could ever find "normal" again or not.

However, once they were well into the routine of meeting solely in public places, Valon and Mai realized that maybe it would be okay to spend time together in more intimate locations. As a result, they invited each other over for dinner or to hang out on the couch and watch movies or trashy reality TV.

It was pleasant, it was enjoyable, seeing so much of each other and taking things slow to rebuild the shattered remains of trust between them, but after enough time of sitting on the couch with a respectful distance between them, and after enough time of saying tender good nights at their respective front doors before they both went to sleep in their empty beds, they both knew that they had waited long enough.

It was one quiet Saturday afternoon when Valon had arrived at Mai's front door with an armful of groceries for the stew and dessert that Mai had planned for them to make for their dinner. It started out like any other time one of them had come over for a homemade dinner, with pleasant smiles and idle chatter as Mai led Valon to her kitchen. Mai returned to chopping up the greens for their salad while Valon took the food out of the grocery bags and set them on the counter near Mai's prep station.

"So how've you been?" Valon asked Mai as he took out a large pot for the stew and set it on the stove.

"Great," Mai replied without hesitation. "Joey and I are talking again, so now I know that he doesn't hate me."

"That's great, Mai," Valon said cheerfully, filling the pot with water. "I'm really happy for you."

Mai smiled appreciatively. "Thanks," she said, scraping her knife along the cutting board to push the greens intoa large bowl. "I'm—I'm really glad that things aren't ruined between us, Joey and me. And for the two of us, you know? Both of you are really import to me."

Valon smiled at her warmly and said, "Hey, I'm still surprised that you wanted to see me at all after what I did." He exhaled in amazement and added, "Hell, I wouldn't blame you."

"You did what you had to do, which countless people would do if they knew that they had the option," Mai responded, setting the knife down, then leaning against the counter. "I don't really blame you, Valon. But all of that doesn't matter, not when you were able to remember."

"Yeah," Valon replied, eyes glazed over as he stared off at nothing in particular.

"What are you thinking about, Valon?"

His eyes focused on her and he chuckled, somewhat bashfully. "It's just... I'm—I... I'm just thinking about how much I want to kiss you."

Mai's heart beat with excitement; she felt like she was floating. "Really," Mai said, with an uncontrollable smile, as they slid closer to each other. Soon they were so close to one another that their lips were almost touching. "Well, that's perfect, because I want to kiss you, too. Is that all you want to do?"

"No," Valon admitted, grinning at her.

"That's what I was hoping you would say," Mai said, smirking triumphantly before they immediately closed the gap between their mouths. All the pent up agitation that both had experienced in the last few months was converted into raw passion and energy as Mai and Valon kissed. Moans escaped their mouths whenever their lips separated long enough; Mai pulled Valon's body closer to hers, gripping his shirt, then his shoulders, then his hair as her hands roamed while Valon grabbed hold of Mai's hips and gave them a squeeze.

Mai went for Valon's shirt, grabbing it from the bottom and slowly lifting it up, taking her time; Valon lifted his arms for her when she got close to his shoulders. They grinned at one another once the shirt was off and Mai simply tossed it a few feet away. Then they were at it again, mouths moving together exuberantly while Mai caressed Valon's chest and abs, slowly tracing the outlines of his muscles, savoring every last moment, as it had been a damned long time since she'd been able to explore Valon's torso.

Off went Mai's vest while Valon's kisses traveled from Mai's mouth, to the curve of her jaw, to her neck in an achingly slow, teasing manner that practically had her screaming for more. She guided Valon's hands to the bottom of her shirt, mercifully a simple tank top this time instead of an affair with laces or hooks, which made removal as simple as slipping the shirt off, like she had with Valon's.

Their mouths met again, and Mai's hands started out resting on Valon's shoulders before slowly trailing down his torso till her figers found his belt. She looped her fingers around the leather belt and pulled Valon closer. As their flushed skin touched, as did their tongues, Mai reached for Valon's belt buckle and quickly opened it, exposing the button to Valon's jeans. Valon, meanwhile, found the zipper along the side of Mai's skirt and slowly pulled it down. Mai undid Valon's button and zipper; Valon slowly started pulling Mai's skirt down. Once Mai was free of her skirt, she returned the favor by sliding Valon's jeans past his hips, down his legs, until they fell down and pooled at his feet.

As for their shoes, they each kicked them off while they fervently kissed each other and let their hands explore.

Valon pulled away long enough to breathlessly ask with one word only, "Bedroom?"

Panting, arms wrapped around him so she could hold him close, Mai looked at Valon through half-lidded, desire-filled eyes, and nodded. "Absolutely," she agreed, and they continued kissing as they made their way to Mai's bedroom, occasionally bumping into things or pausing for either one to push the other against the wall, leaving the forgotten food behind.

The light peeking under Mai's bedroom curtains had grown dimmer as the day made its way toward dusk. Valon and Mai lay close together under the cover of Mai's bedsheets, utterly spent but smiling nonetheless. Valon had his arm around Mai, and Mai had her head on his chest. "Remind me not to forget about the food, okay?" Mai requested, rolling onto her stomach, then placing a sweet kiss on Valon's chest.

Valon laughed at the reminder. "Oh, right! The food. Yeah, wouldn't want to leave it out all night."

"Mm," Mai murmured in response, gazing at the tattoo on Valon's ribcage. She started tracing the initials with the pad of her index finger, which caused Valon to twitch and laugh.

"Hey!" Valon cried. "That tickles."

Mai chuckled and kissed the tattoo. "I'm sorry, babe," she replied, then settled back down next to him.

Valon was silent long enough for the intake and outtake of five breaths before he rolled onto his side, propped himself up on his elbow, and asked her, "So this means that we get to start over, right?"

"Of course," Mai replied softly. "We did not wait all this time for something casual, did we?"

Valon grinned joyfully. "No, we did not," he agreed.

"I—I really missed you, Valon," Mai said earnestly. She'd missed his presence, his warmth, his touch, but she didn't want to get too sentimental. Besides, she knew that he knew, and she knew that he felt the same.

Valon smiled at her warmly. "Missed you, too, Mai," he replied softly, lying back down. "Even when I had no idea who you were, I know I still did."

Mai smiled in amusement. "How does that work?" she asked with genuine curiosity.

"Deep down, I knew that there was something missing in my life, even if I couldn't figure out exactly what that was," Valon explained. "But now everything is better. I feel...complete."

A surge of emotions overcame Mai as she gazed at Valon, and she moved even closer to him. "Oh, Valon," she murmured, then pressed her lips against, allowing herself to melt into the kiss while she and Valon held onto one another.

"I love you, Valon."

"I love you, Mai."

Valon stretched his legs in his living room while Mai made sure that there would be cold water and the ingredients for breakfast waiting for them once they had returned from their run. It had been a few months since they had rekindled their romantic relationship, and now everything felt normal again. Mai finally decided that she wanted to join Valon on his morning run a month ago, and now found the exercise easier since she was adjusting.

Mai joined Valon in the living room once she was ready, clad in her workout clothes like he was, and wearing her hair in a high ponytail, which Valon always played with when he had the chance. "So I've been thinking," she informed him, reaching down and touching her toes.

Valon had his legs spread wide and had the palms of his hands touching the floor. He looked up at her and grinned. "Thinking 'bout what, Mai?"

"Well, things have been going well with Joey and me," Mai started out casually, now performing a lunging stretch. "I've been spending time with him and the others with no problem for a while now."

"Uh-huh," Valon responded to let her know that he was listening. "So now what?"

"Well, I would really, really like it if I could bring you along, now that everything has settled down," Mai replied. "I mean, I would just prefer to to have my boyfriend and my friends get along."

Valon grinned delightedly. "Boyfriend," he echoed. He chuckled his disbelief and shook his head in wonder. "Sometimes I can't believe it. I just have to remind myself that this is reality."

Mai smiled peacefully and dipped her head in agreement. "I know, Val. Sometimes I can't believe it either." She sat down, set her legs apart so they resembled a V, and waited for Valon to follow suit. He sat down close enough to her, his legs set apart in the same V shape, and made sure that their shoes touched. They adjusted themselves so their thighs got a good stretch. Mai grabbed onto Valon's hands and leaned back, pulling him forward. "But tell me what you think," she insisted.

"It's a good idea, Mai," Valon replied as they moved back into an upright position. He leaned back and pulled her forward. "I'm up for it if they are. I just don't think it'll be a good idea to expect me and Joey to be alone in the same room without it being extremely awkward."

Mai chuckled. "Of course not," she agreed. "I wouldn't dream of it."

They continued their stretches in a comfortable silence, and once they were sure that their legs were thoroughly warmed up, they made their way for the door. Valon took his keys while Mai stepped outside and took in a breath of fresh air. Mai started walking while Valon closed and locked the door, then joined her by her side.

"Ready?" she asked him.

"Ready," he confirmed.

They took off at a steady pace, jogging off side by side.

Author's Note: Well, there it is. My longest and my favorite Conquestshipping story that I've written. I've been writing this pairing for years, even before I started uploading on here, and I've always wanted to write a big, long story for them. And now I have, and now it's done. I want to thank the readers who have stuck with the story to see it through to its ending and have reviewed it. That's what helped me get to this point in the story, knowing that people were reading and enjoying.

So anyway. "Eternal Sunshine" is now over, and I'm ever so grateful for the support.

And as always, reviews are appreciated.