Author's Note

I am back home in Colombia. Luckily I see I will probably be able to write lots more chapters. So maybe this story will end by mid July. Anyway, enjoy!

Sincerely,

Ms. AtomicBomb

"Heaven is a place on Earth with you..."

~Lana del Rey

They stayed there, hugging for a while and then she pulled away from the hug. "Thank you, Gil. Thank you for being a good friend and especially for understanding me. I'm very grateful that you like me, and I am happy that in some way or form I've made you happy. You'll always be someone I treasure, though in a different way."

He chuckled, "Yeah, well…" He was red, beet red and he looked cute and innocent, it was a nice change for him. She liked it very much. "I…I hope we can still be friends."

Jeanne smiled, brightly. "I will always be happy to be your friend."

They hesitantly walked back to the main hall, parting at the door as they went their separate ways, back to those they were accompanied by. They said one last goodbye and Jeanne was afraid that that was how it would end…She would miss him, the friend she made and grew close to in such a short time. Maybe if they had been friends sooner, life and fate would have smiled upon them a little more.

"What did Gil want, Jeanne?" Arturia watched as the young girl sat down at the table next to her. She looked pensive and as if she were pondering, in fact, she had been acting like that for two weeks now.

Jeanne shook her head, slowly, while she picked up the fork from the table, not bothering to look towards Arturia. "Nothing important."

Arturia stood from the seat, smiling over at Dinadan who immediately looked up at her. "Jeanne, can you accompany me to the washroom?"

Jeanne finally looked up from the fork. "Uhm," she nibbled on her cheek, "Y-yeah." She too stood, dress flowing as they excused themselves and headed for the washroom, meeting Guinevere half way.

"So, mind telling us what has you so…secretive these past two weeks?" Arturia leaned towards the sink as she looked at herself in the mirror, as if analyzing her makeup and checking if Guin had not over done her.

"Yeah," Guin agreed, sitting on the counter top where one could put their stuff, "Is it because you haven't seen Cú lately? Or did something else happen?"

"No," she shook her head in response. She was not sure if she should have told them what had happened between her and Gil. Originally, she was going to run straight to Arturia's house and spill the beans right after it had happened, but she felt both guilty and that it was not the best time.

"And, why have you been avoiding Gil?" Guinevere asked, crossing her arms over her chest, recalling that during lunch she would flee the cafeteria once Gil would enter.

Jeanne shrugged. "No reason."

Arturia finally turned towards Jeanne. "You're keeping something from us and although I respect your privacy and space…we also want to make sure you're alright."

Jeanne saw Guin nod in agreement. After making sure that they were alone in the restroom, Jeanne decided it was a good time to tell them—not the best, albeit. "Gil," she looked down at her nails, following the patterns of the painted flowers, "He…"

"What did he do this time?" Arturia clenched her jaw, prepared to throw a punch if need be.

"He, well, he kissed me."

"He what?" Guinevere stumbled off the counter, nearly tripping over her dress. "When?"

Arturia looked shocked—but mostly angry. She was outraged and completely annoyed, one could see it in the way she furrowed her brows and clenched her jaw. "Did you slap him?"

"No, no, gosh no," Jeanne hushed.

"How did—how did it happen?" Guin asked. Part of the reason why she asked was because she was her usual gossip self.

"Well…about two weeks ago, he asked to walk me home—the time I had the student council meeting… We stopped for a bit and he just kissed me, out of the blue."

"Damn," Guin cooed, "classic."

"Guin," Arturia nagged, then went back to looking at Jeanne. "What if he's playing with your feelings again? Can you really trust him? Plus, what about Cú, huh?"

"Look, he, well he just told me…He's serious about his feelings..."

"Gil? Serious about his feelings?" Arturia scoffed.

Jeanne frowned. "He told me he liked me and that he was sorry for the kiss."

"Wait," Guin gasped, "does Cú know?"

She shook her head in reply, "I want to tell him in person."

"Yeah… I think that's best too. How are you going to tell him?"

"I…" Jeanne shrugged, "don't know, not yet at least. I don't want to hurt his feelings or his pride."

Arturia crossed her arms over her chest and seemed to immerse herself in deep thinking. No one talked for a while and then Arturia spoke up. "Is that all that you want to tell us?"

They exchanged a glance; one Guinevere did not understand.

"Yeah…" The Frenchwoman mumbled, looking back down at her nails, afraid that her friend would be quick to see through her. Arturia was always so great in catching her in a lie.

Arturia nodded. "Well, then, we should be off. The boys must be waiting on us now." With that, Arturia pushed the bathroom door open, and exited the room.

"Do you…" Guinevere lagged behind with Jeanne, "do you like Gil? You don't have to lie to me, I just want to know."

"What do you mean?" Jeanne's eyes grew. "I have a boyfriend."

"That doesn't answer my question. Do you like him?"

"He's my friend. A good friend."

"Don't get confused, Jeanne," Guin advised, "I know it can get hard, but don't ever let yourself get confused."

They slowly and silently walked back. Originally, they thought prom would be a bright and happy occasion, but for Jeanne, it was starting to get melancholic. They sat down at the table, bright smiles on their faces as if they had not just had a serious revelation and talk. Jeanne would often steal glances at Gil, who seemed to be having fun with another student he had probably asked out to the prom. She wanted him to be happy and hopefully move on to someone better.

Jeanne jumped at the feeling of someone's hands on her shoulders. Gasping, she turned slightly to see her boyfriend. He was dressed tidily and looked professional with a tuxedo. His violet bowtie matched the flowers on her dress and she smiled at how handsome he looked.

"Did I scare you babe?" He laughed, the laugh she missed and had not heard for almost a month.

A smile stretched her pink lips and she immediately stood from her seat. "Cú! I almost thought that you weren't going to make it." He was soon enraptured into a tight hug from her part.

"Aw," he cooed, patting her head slightly, "I missed you too, sweetheart."

Pulling away, he leaned down to plant a kiss on her lips but, without warning, she turned her head and instead he kissed her cheek. Pouting, he took her chin in his hand and gently made her face him. "No kiss for your boyfriend? I just came back from the war." He frowned, puppy eyes kicking in.

Jeanne's heart felt heavy as she gave him a weak smile. "Not right now, sorry."

"Oh," he whistled, "later, got it." He winked down at her and they sat down.

After dinner was served, Cú had asked for permission to step out before the dance floor was opened. It took a lot of convincing from his part to persuade Jeanne to step out with him while he took a smoke.

The night was warm as they waved at the teachers, finding their place a few ways away from the door.

"I…" she knew she had no reason to be upset with him for smoking after she had basically cheated. "Could this be quick?"

He nodded, a smile on his face as he reached into the inside pocket of his suit. "I won't make you wait long, I promise babe."

She nodded.

"So," he wiggled his eyebrows, "did you miss me?"

She punched his upper arm playfully, rolling her eyes. "Of course, I did."

Finally, she watched as, after fishing in his pocket for a while, he pulled something out. Confusion washed over her when she noticed a lollipop in his hand and not a cigarette.

"Is that for me?" She asked, tilting her head.

He blinked, "Well, you could say. I wanted to surprise you."

"Surprise me?"

Stepping closer towards her, he backed her up against the brick wall, caging her with one hand. "The real reason," he tried to sound husky, sexy even, "I left was because…well, yes I needed to stay with my sister for a while but," He leaned in.

Her heart sped up, and she felt as if she needed to tell him the truth before he would kiss her.

"It was super hard, it still is, but I quit smoking, for you mostly." He closed his eyes, expecting a kiss, but instead she hugged him tightly, burying her face in his chest, probably ruining his shirt with her makeup.

"I'm sorry," he heard her voice crack as her grip tightened around him, almost as if she were a snake.

"Jeanne." He slowly hugged her back, getting over the initial shock. "Why are you apologizing?"

She simply clung to him, sniffling and that was when he noticed she was probably crying. "I'm so sorry."

He pulled her away, gently, sliding a hand over her cheek and looking down at her glossed violet eyes. "Babe, what's wrong?"

"While you were gone…" her voice slowly died off.

"What happened?"

Jeanne kept her gaze away from his eyes. She had not intended to start drama, especially on prom night. "Gil and I kissed…"

He furrowed his brows, a smile widening his lips and then he let out a few chuckles. "What?"

"I, I'm sorry. I take full responsibility and—"

"Wait," he growled, "this isn't just some cruel joke?"

Clenching her jaw, she shook her head. "We kissed."

He dropped his hands from her shoulders as if they were sharp knives while his face twisted in anger. "What? You kissed? Is that true? Did you two kiss or did he kiss you?"

His voice was harsh, as harsh as an ice storm in the middle of spring. Her cheeks burned, and her heart felt heavy. There was a bottomless pit in her stomach and she was afraid, so very afraid that everything around her would crumble. Everything she knew to this point was in jeopardy; her friendship with Gil was unstable, she was thinking of letting everyone go and now Cú had reason to leave her.

"Jeanne, did he kiss you?" He repeated, anger bubbling up from inside him, but he was trying his best to hold it back.

Jeanne took a deep breath, closing her eyes, preparing for the worst. "He kissed me…"

There was silence, deafening silence and she gulped, ready for what would come next. She did not expect his lips on hers.

He was angry, beyond angry—she could feel it from the force in which it took for him to kiss her. His hands wrapped around her waist and he brought her closer, as if she would run away from his arms.

Her eyes were wide, and it took her a bit to react. She landed her hands on his shoulders cautiously, closing her eyes and sinking into the kiss. This kiss was different than Gil's, starting for the fact that it was rough and sloppy, and filled with anger but forgiveness.

They fell apart from each other, but her hands remained on his shoulders and his arms did not budge from her waist.

"…Why?"

"I'm taking it back, reminding you that I'm your boyfriend." He kissed the corner of her lips, finally letting go of her. "Jeanne," he mumbled, anger slowly dying off, "I'm not letting you go. It wasn't your fault and I like you way too much to have you walk out on me. I'll be here for you, you can trust me."

Her eyes blurred over with tears and she sniffled, "Why are you so nice?"

He laughed, "Because you're so nice."

She hugged him tightly, thankful she hadn't lost him. "Promise me that you won't confront Gil."

His chest rumbled in a laugh. "I can't promise you that. I'm angry, but I won't hit him, grad is coming up and that would be rude of me."

"Hey," Cú pulled the blond boy from the dance floor, pulling him away from the sweaty teenagers and the loud music.

Gilgamesh stood stunned, he was barely able to resist the grip on his arm. "Cú…"

They had made it to the restroom and after checking no one was inside, they leaned against a wall. "I heard." Cú blinked.

Gilgamesh gulped, ready for the fight that would ensue. "About that, I…"

Cú sighed, "Don't. Don't apologize. If you do, I'll get mad." He pushed off from the wall. "Honestly," he chuckled, "I would have done the same if she was your girlfriend. Still, I'm agitated, and don't you dare try it again because I will not be responsible for what happens."

"I promise I won't. I just…"

"Don't," he warned, walking towards the door, "Well, never shall we talk about this again." And, they never did. It went forgotten and never again to resurface.

Arturia sat at the table, sipping at her water glass. The rest of the teenagers, including her date, had gone out to dance and enjoy their time at the prom. Arturia, herself, was not a person to dance all night, she preferred staying home and watching a movie or something; dancing was fun but not her type of fun.

"You look beautiful."

Arturia's lips widened into a bright smile. "You're looking stunning yourself." She looked up at her boyfriend, the real one.

Diarmuid looked spiffy and very handsome. Never had he ever not looked handsome but a man in a suit was always very appealing. She wished she could have kissed him right away, but alas, the whole senior grade did not need to know she was really dating a teacher.

Diarmuid smiled, trying to hide it behind a straight face. "Aren't you going to dance?" He asked.

Shaking her head, she stood from the table. "I do not like dancing, to be honest."

"You should dance. Let your stress out, it'll be fun."

"Well, I would only want to dance with you."

He blushed, laughing it off, "Maybe tomorrow, how about it?"

They were not scared of anyone over hearing them when the music was so loud that it shook the walls. They also enjoyed being in each other's company, in public. The lights were off and only party lights lit them ever so often as they bounced off the walls or the dancing students. It was a nice atmosphere.

"Yes, that would be great." Her smile grew.

"You," he nibbled on his bottom lip, "you should dance with your boyfriend."

She laughed. "Okay, I will."