Yeahhhh. This fic will be the death of me.

If it was a joke it was a terrible one.

Gou raced out of the building. The marriage certificate was clutched in her hand. Vaguely she remembered asking Mikoshiba if she could take it and Mikoshiba saying she could.

She couldn't believe it. Was she really so stupid that she had gotten married while drunk? She had heard stories about people doing that and had always laughed about it. The stupid mistakes people made when inebriated. Now she was one of those people. She had gotten married!

It has to be a joke. A really bad one. It has to be fake. It's a fake.

She unfurled the certificate and studied it again. Well, it certainly looked official. It even had the county's seal in gold on the top right corner. And their names written in scrawling letters.

Seijuro Mikashiba.

I didn't even know that was his first name.

She rolled the certificate back up, panting. What should she do? This was a mistake, a terrible, terrible mistake that Gou had no idea how to deal with. She didn't know anything about marriage. She couldn't be married!

An adult. An adult would know what do. I need an adult.

Goro was still inside with the boys. Which left only one other alternative.

Swallowing down her panic, Gou took off running towards the lodge.

A bit later Gou sat on the floor of the lodge. She had her eyes closed, hands held stiffly in her lap. To her right was Amakata and rolled out on the table in front of them the marriage certificate sat like a student's bad report card.

"W-well." Amakata gave a little cough. She was significantly calmer then she had been when Gou had first burst in the door with the…news. She was at least not exclaiming shrilly anymore. The teacher had been surprised to see Gou home then, once Gou showed her the paper she had in her hand, Amakata had descended into a mini freak out. Gou had barely been able to discern much of what Amakata had been saying during that. The few words she had been to make out were 'what', 'marriage', 'how', 'you' and 'why'. Gou hadn't known if they had been questions or not either. Regardless she wouldn't have been able to answer them anyway.

Amakata cleared her throat again. "I…I know kids like to do reckless and crazy things sometimes but this seems a little uhhh…extreme."

Gou raised her eyes to the ceiling. She grit her teeth.

"I hadn't realize you wanted to get married, Gou-chan."

Gou's head thunked onto the table. Of all the things… "I didn't want to get married!"

"Y-you didn't? Then why did you?"

"I don't know why I got married!" Gou raised her head off the table, rubbing her reddened forehead. "I barely even know him. I was drunk. I literally don't remember any of it, I have no idea why I did it. It was a stupid, horrible, terrible mistake."

"O-h my. Marriage is never a mistake, Gou-chan. Marriage is a beautiful, wonderful thing. As the famous French playwright Moliere said, 'Love is often the fruit of marriage'."

That didn't make any sense. Wasn't it supposed to be the other way around? Wasn't marriage supposed to be the fruit of love? You were supposed to be in love before you got married, right? Gou never understood Amakata's quotes.

"I just wish you had waited for a bit longer than a day to decide to go through with it," said Amakata. Suddenly she buried her face in her hands and shook her head rapidly back and forth. "Oh this is going to look so bad on me as a teacher! The principal will never trust me to take students anywhere anymore!" she wailed. "I was supposed to be in charge of you! They're going to think I'm so irresponsible! I…I could even get f-fired."

As if Gou didn't feel bad enough. Now Amakata's job may be on the line as well. Should she cry? Gou kind of felt like she wanted to. "I'm sorry, Ama-chan." She wringer her hands. "I never meant to cause so much trouble. We were just trying to have a good time-" She grimaced at her word choice. "I never intended for this to happen," she said instead.

"No, no, I know Gou-chan. You're a good girl. I know you wouldn't do something like this on purpppp- while sober. Ahem. Just kids being kids." Her laugh was stiff. She took a deep breath. "Okay, let's just…let's just focus on the task at hand. Worrying about my job is too premature at this point." Another stiff laugh and another deep breath. She leaned forward to look at the marriage certificate. "Who is Seijuro Mikoshiba anyway?"

"The Samezuka Academy's swim captain. He's in charge of my brother-" Gou stopped herself, pupils dilating. Oh no. Oh no. How could she not have thought of that? Did her brother know about this? No, no he couldn't have. If he did Mikoshiba would likely be dead and maybe herself as well. He certainly wouldn't be acting as calm as he had when she saw him at the pool anyway.

Brother cannot know about this. If he were to find out…

Gou found she really didn't want to think too much about that. He may act distant towards her and rarely listen to her but she knew for a fact he wouldn't be very happy about this…debacle. Offering congratulations would be the last thing on his mind.

"Oh is he the tall boy with the spiky red hair?" asked Amakata. "He's cute."

Gou made to say something then stopped. Had Amakata just said what she thought she had? "Uhhh…"

Amakata realized it too. "I-I didn't mean it like that." She waved her hand, a light dusting of red coloring her cheeks. "I meant for someone of your age he's cute."

"I…I suppose." This was the last conversation Gou wanted to be having. Cute or not, it didn't make the fact she was married to him any better. She hadn't even known his first name. "Ama-chan I don't know what to do. I don't know how to fix this! I was hoping you might since you're older."

"Oh I'm not that much older, Gou-chan," Amakata laughed then became worried. "Why do I look like I am?"

Don't focus on that, Gou wanted to yell at her. Gou buried her face in her hands. If Amakata wasn't able to help her, what should she do? She could go to Goro but she felt reluctant to. He was an adult male and broaching this subject with him would be less than comfortable. Plus he'd probably freak out worse than Amakata had.

She couldn't go to her brother, that was a definite no-no. All that left was the Iwantobi boys. I guess that wouldn't be so bad. Rei is smart, I'm sure he'd be able to think of something and Makoto would certainly try.

"Gou-chan," said Amakata suddenly. She was frowning down at the certificate. "You don't happen to know what the age of consent in this country is, do you?"

Come to think of it Gou didn't. "No. I know the drinking age is sixteen." She rolled her eyes in irritation at herself. "Why?"

"Well." Amakata picked up the certificate. "If the age of legal consent in this country is higher than sixteen, you can't be legally married without a parent's consent."

Gou's eyes widened. Amakata was right. How had Gou not thought about that before? "In which case if I don't have a parent's consent…"

"Then this contract is null and void."

Gou's shriek would have frightened cats had there been any in the vicinity. "Ama-chan, you're the best!" She wrapped her arms around the teacher's neck, practically bouncing against the older woman. "I knew I could count on you!"

"W-well." Amakata patted her arm. "These are just the things I can do when I set my mind to it I suppose." She leaned back to look at Gou seriously. "Now, Gou-chan, this only applies if the legal age for marriage is older than sixteen. We still need to find that out, don't forget."

Gou nodded. "Right, right. I'm sure it is though. There's no way they could let people that young get married!" She laughed. "But who would know something like that? I don't want to ask a local, they probably think we're strange already…" The answer came to her a second later and she smiled. "I know just the person."

"Who, Gou-chan?"

Gou winked at her. "The smartest person I know."

Rei peered at the marriage certificate like it were a treasure map or a 'Where's Waldo' picture. He held it up to the light then lowered it back down to face level, the sunlight reflecting off his glasses. His gaze and face was so intense that Gou found herself leaning forward in her seat, balancing on the edge with breath held.

Amakata had managed to pry Rei away from the other boys and bring him to their lodge. How she had managed to persuade Nagisa not to come Gou could only assume was because the blond still felt pretty terrible. He had drunk more than anyone. He probably didn't have the energy to argue with anyone.

All things considered, Rei had taken the news of the marriage in stride. He had simply stood there and once Gou had handed him the certificate he had sat down in a chair without a word to inspect it. Nearly ten minutes had now passed since Rei had first started looking at it.

Gou was getting impatient but she forced herself to wait. Rei would know what to do. Gou was sure of it. He was the smartest person she knew and the only one who had bothered to learn anything about their host country. If anyone might have an inkling about their laws, it was him.

Rei finally lowered the certificate. He coughed lightly into his hand. "I am quite impressed." He adjusted his glasses. "You weren't even in this country for twenty-four hours and you managed to do something like this."

Gou's mouth fell open. She slammed her hands down on the arms of her chair. "T-that wasn't what I was doing! I didn't mean to get married!"

"How does one accidentally get married?"

"I was drunk! I didn't want to get married!"

"If you didn't want to get married then why did you?"

"I don't know! I was drunk, like I said!" She clutched her aching head. "I don't know why I got married!"

"N-now, Gou-chan." Amakata tried to pat her back soothingly. "Don't worry. It'll be fine."

Gou moaned into her own lap.

"Rei," asked Amakata, turning her attention to him, "do you happen to know the age of legal consent in this country?"

Rei's mouth was in a line and Gou could already tell he had guessed what Amakata and she were hoping for. Here comes the disappointment…

"The legal consent for marriage is the same age as the age for drinking."

And there it was. "Ugh." Gou buried her face into her lap once more. This was awful. So awful. How had she gotten herself into this situation? Alcohol. It was the alcohol. I am never, ever touching that stuff again. What was she supposed to do now?

"Wa-wait." Gou raised her head, a flicker of hope alighting in her heart. "What about a divorce?" Her eyes widened. "Or an annulment? We can do that right? I mean it hasn't even been twenty four hours. There shouldn't be any reason why we can't get it annulled."

"Oh Gou-chan that's a great idea!" cried Amakata. "We'll just get it annulled. What a great idea! That's the perfect solution!"

Rei's mouth was still in that line. He made a weird sound in his throat and adjusted his collar, as if it were choking him. "The…the human rights in this country are still being developed, remember," he said. "It isn't until recently that they've really improved, however some aspects have…lagged behind."

Gou stared at him with baited breath. "What are you trying to say, Rei? What does that mean?"

"What I am trying to say that divorce and annulment are currently…illegal in this county."

Gou's heart sank.

"And since you got married in this country," Rei continued, the words like nails in a coffin, "you'll have to abide by their laws while on their soil."

Gou really did cry after that.

"Now, now, Gou-chan." Amakata wiped the cool towel against Gou's cheeks, clearing away her tears. "There's no reason to cry. It isn't the end of the world."

"No, it's just the end of my world!" Gou wailed. She threw her head back. "My life is ruined!"

"I thought it was normally the husband who says that after getting married," muttered Rei and Amakata threw him a dark look that said he wasn't helping.

"Marriage isn't so bad, Gou-chan," Amakata tried to soothe her. "Lots of people are married to people they don't particularly care to be wed to."

Gou wailed even louder and it was Rei's turn to shoot Amakata a dark look. Sighing, Rei patted Gou's shoulder. "Calm down, Gou. I didn't say you could never get divorced. That would be lunacy!" He laughed but nobody laughed with him. "You just can't get divorced while we're in this country is all."

Gou sniffed into the handkerchief Amakata had given her. "So?"

Rei sighed again, as if he were trying to explain physics to a child. "We're only going to be in this country for the next three months," he reminded her. "But after that we'll be returning to Japan, where divorce is legal. Once we return you can get a divorce then."

Gou stilled. He was right. Rei was right. "That's right." She lifted her face, eyes bright. "That's right. Rei, that's right! That means…That means I- I just have to get through these next three months! I just have to get through these next three months and then I can get a divorce once we get back home! I just have to get through these next three months!" She grabbed Rei's arm. "Rei, you're a genius!"

"W-well, I don't…about that." He pushed his glasses further onto his nose, trying his best to hide the grin that was spreading under his hand. "I suppose I am though."

"The next three months." Gou started pacing the room. "That shouldn't be that hard. We'll just pretend like nothing happened! Three months isn't that long. I can do this! Once we get back home we'll just have to do the divorce quietly so no one back home finds out about it. My mom would kill me!"

"Three months," said Rei. "Three months is still a long time to keep something like this a secret. What do you plan to tell the others?"

She paused, considering that. "I…I guess I'll have to tell them."

"Are you sure that's a good idea, Gou-chan?" asked Amakata but underneath her words Gou could hear what she was really trying to say. They're boys. Are you sure you want to tell them?

Gou nodded. She knew if she didn't all that would happen is she would make up a lie and then forget it later and end up contradicting herself, and those three were sharp enough they would catch it rather quickly. They would know something was up. In this case she felt honesty would be the best policy and save her some trouble.

She trusted them to keep her secret besides. Makoto definitely would. Nagisa was loud and energetic but he was the type who would die before ever hurting a friend of his. Haru would likely not even care and not say anything. Either way they would understand the situation and honor her wishes.

"And Coach Sasabe," Gou began but Amakata cut her off.

"I think it would be best if you left him to me." She smiled awkwardly. "He'll be tempted to yell less if he hears it from me."

"O-oh, okay. That sounds good, I guess. Then that just leaves…Mikoshiba." Gou grimaced. The thought of seeing him again made her feel extremely embarrassed and nervous. Even just picturing his face in her mind made her antsy, but she would have to see him again. She would have to tell him what was going on, there was no avoiding that. He was the other half of this messed up equation after all. "I-I'll talk to him later. He'll want to know what's going on."

She would have to meet him elsewhere. She couldn't go to his place and she couldn't bring him here either. That would be too personal. She would meet him somewhere that was a little more public, but somewhere Rin wouldn't be. If Rin stumbled upon them…Well, it wasn't worth thinking about.

As if reading her thoughts, Rei asked, "What about your brother? Aren't you going to tell him?"

Quickly Gou shook her head. "Ohhh no. He can't know. Can't. He must never find out. Ever. Ev-er. You know how my brother is. If he finds out he'll lose it."

Rei's mouth twisted. "He's your family, Gou-chan. You should tell him."

Gou shook her head again. "No. Brother must never find out. We must never tell him. He can't know. You can't tell him." She seized Rei's sleeve in her hand. "Promise me you won't tell him, Rei. Promise me. Please! You have to promise."

Rei leaned as far away from her as he could, his face in a grimace. "I find that's awfully unfair to your brother, in my opinion," he stated, "but I'll do as you ask." He delicately plucked his sleeve out of Gou's hands and smoothed down the abused fabric. "If we are finished here I would like to get some food. I haven't eaten anything since last night's escapade. If my calculations are correct the alcohol will have dissipated from my system enough that I shall be able to eat without regurgitating it back up."

Gou twitched nervously. "You didn't say I promise about not telling my brother."

He sighed. "I promise I won't tell your brother." He turned and made his way towards the door. "But you should."

This has to be the worst house meeting in the history of mankind.

Gou stood with her back to the wall, arms crossed, eyes closed, and eyebrow twitching just a little bit. Next to her stood Amakata, and in front of her seated on the floor were the other members of the Iwantobi Swim Club. The three boys were noticeably confused by this strange meeting that had been called, muttering questionably to each other. Nagisa was looking around a lot too.

Probably for Rei. The blue haired teen was currently running a…errand for Gou. Rei had been none too happy about it but Amakata had coerced the poor boy to do it while they explained the situation to the others. At least Amakata had promised to pay for his food when he returned.

"S-so," Amakata began. She cleared her throat lightly, worrying her hands in front of her chest. "We have had a…delicate situation arise suddenly." She laughed as if trying to make light of the situation. The boys simply blinked at her and Gou ground her teeth painfully. "A-anyway. Ummm you see…" She fell silent then tried again. "Sometimes when people are young they decide to do things that aren't necessarily smart or…or wise. As Thomas Edison said, maturity is often more absurd than youth and very frequently is most unjust to youth! Ha-ha! Ummm."

Gou turned her head to glare down the hallway. The boys looked even more confused.

"Sometimes these unwise decisions involve…legal matters that…aren't…easy to get out of. Especially when alcohol is involved some people…make rash decisions."

Gou was scowling and the boys turned to look at each other, dumbfounded. "Did someone get arrested?" Haru asked finally.

"I tried to stop Haru from taking his clothes off," muttered Makoto. "I knew one day he was going to get arrested for indecent exposure."

"Umm…"

Gou sighed. She was going to have to take care of this. Amakata seemed to be at a loss as to how to explain it. "No, no one got arrested or is going to get arrested." She rubbed her aching forehead. She could feel a headache forming behind her eyes and she suddenly remembered she was still hung over. Best to just get it over with quickly, like ripping a band-aid off. Then I can go sleep off this hang over. "Um. D-do you guys remember last night? At all? Anything?"

Haru and Nagisa looked like they didn't – no surprise there - but Makoto was nodding. One was better than nothing Gou supposed.

"Okay well, I…I had a little too much to drink last night, you see. And ummm when I was drunk I…I sort of…" She took a deep breath. Just get it over with. "I sort of...got married. To Mikoshiba."

There was a long moment of silence.

"Congratulations!" cried Nagisa. Behind him Makoto was looking like he had just gotten punched in the sternum.

Gou's mouth dropped. "N-not congratulations!"

"Gou-chan used sexual appeal to get him to marry her!"

"I didn't use sexual appeal!"

"Mikoshiba," said Haru slowly. "He's the captain of Rin's swim team isn't he?"

It was not lost on Gou that he said Rin's swim team and not Samezuka's swim team. "Yes, yes, that's him. He's the tall boy with red hair."

"Ohhh I like him!" cried Nagisa. "The really energetic guy! When's the wedding going to be?!"

"There isn't going to be a wedding!"

"Why would they need a wedding?" asked Haru. "They're already married."

"Wh-what. That isn't-"

"Oh yeah, Haru-chan is right." Nagisa paused, considering, then he brightened. "When's the honeymoon then?!"

Gou's face felt like it was going to burst into flame. They were completely missing the point!

"Now, now," said Amakata, interceding at last. "There won't be any more talk of weddings or…or honeymoons." She cleared her throat once more and stuck her hands together as if clapping, becoming all business. "Gou-chan and I have discussed the matter at length. Unfortunately due to the country's laws we are unable to obtain a divorce at this time. But! Once we get back to Japan we will get this situation rectified as soon as possible. Until then." She fixed the three boys with her most dangerous stare, like the one they had received when talking about placing her in a swimsuit, and leaned towards them. Makoto and Nagisa shrank back. Haru just sat there. "Until then we are going to keep this as quiet as possible," she continued. "We are not going to discuss it or let others know about it. We are going to keep this to ourselves and pretend like it never happened. Is that understood?"

"Y-yes, ma'am," Nagisa muttered.

"Good!" She smiled and leaned back. "I'm glad we are all on the same page then."

"I still would have liked to have a wedding," Nagisa continued under his breath.

Gou rolled her eyes. Nagisa would think about something like that instead of the seriousness of the situation. She envied him a bit, being so carefree and able to giggle his way out of predicaments. If only she could giggle her way out of this one.

She looked up and noticed the look on Makoto's face had not changed. He still looked like he had been punched in the gut, like he was distraught. He hadn't said a word the entire time either. She made a mental note to speak to him later.

"Well, now," said Amakata. "I have some more unpacking to do" - Still?! Thought Gou – "and you four should go get some food. I think Goro left some hot dogs in the fridge for you that you can grill up…"

It was Haru who cooked the hot dogs surprisingly. And some mackerel to go along with it. Of course. He claimed they went well together but Gou figured he was just trying to have his way with the mackerel. Where he had gotten the fish she didn't know. She wouldn't have been surprised to find out he had gone diving into the ocean and fished for it like a dolphin. It was a good thing mackerel existed in this country. Haru would have had a mental breakdown if they didn't.

It was because of his love for mackerel that he was so good at grilling, Gou figured out. She couldn't help but watch him as he cooked. Haru was a handsome guy, there was no doubt about that, and she found it incredibly intriguing watching him perform something else besides swimming that he was adept at. It was the same as watching him paint, another one of his talents that Gou would never have guessed someone like him would excel at. And he did it all with such a blasé attitude, as if none of that stuff meant anything or mattered.

The only thing that matters to him is swimming. Just like my brother.

They were more alike than either of them wanted to admit it seemed.

Rei finally showed back up when it was nearing dark, aggravated and starving. Gou intercepted him before the others could, asking him about the errand she had sent him on. The news he delivered made her face heat up again. Tomorrow. She would have to deal with it tomorrow.

Better sooner than later I guess. Still she didn't look forward to what an awkward conversation that was going to be.

After they had eaten and when the last rays of the sun were kissing the ocean water, Makoto finally approached her on his own. He looked downright trodden, like a kid that had studied all year for a test and then failed it miserably. When he sat down beside her, Gou blinked at him.

He stared at his hands lying palm open in his lap. "This is my fault."

Oh jeez, he was blaming himself for it. No wonder he had looked like that the entire time. Then again Gou should have known he would. That was just the type of person Makoto was. He would feel responsible for it and blame himself no matter what.

"It's not your fault, it's mine," she said. "I mean I'm ultimately responsible for myself. I was the one who made the stupid decision. I don't remember it but I did…"

Makoto shook his head. "I should never have left you there. I was the only sober one, I should have paid better attention. I should have made you leave with us." He turned to her. His green eyes were incredibly serious. "I'm sorry, Gou-chan."

Gou looked away, feeling even guiltier than she had before. Not only could Amakata possibly lose her job but now Makoto, poor sweet Makoto, was beating himself up over her stupid actions. God I'm such an idiot.

"You don't have anything to apologize for," she said. "If anything I should be the one apologizing. I'm the one who got everyone into this mess. You have nothing to be sorry for."

Makoto smiled a little, but it was a wan smile, and in his eyes he still had that kicked puppy look.

Gou sighed mentally. "Look, its fine," she reassured him. "We just need to get through these next three months and then we'll be back in Japan where we can get a divorce. Problem solved."

We? She had been using that phrase the entire time instead of I, including Mikoshiba into her divorce plans without even thinking about it. Then again she couldn't imagine what reason Mikoshiba would have not to go along with it. No, surely he would agree with her.

"Okay." Makoto took a deep breath, losing some of that saddened look. "I understand. And," he turned to look at seriously again, green eyes bright with determination, "I promise I won't let anything else bad happen to you. I swear it."

"Oh stop it. This isn't that bad-" She stopped herself. "Okay it's bad but it's not your fault. You don't have to promise me anything."

He still did though.

Gou sat in the café, nervously sipping from her straw and whopping her foot against the table leg. Every few seconds she would turn to look outside the large windows in the front, searching. She had been waiting for fifteen minutes. Where the hell was he?

Rei said he would meet me here…

The errand Rei had run for her yesterday. She had him go over to Mikoshiba's place to arrange a meeting. If Rin had seen her at Mikoshiba's place he would flip, but Rei going over there wouldn't be that unusual. Rin would probably assume they were discussing swimming or something.

Gou turned back around. She fiddled with the marriage certificate she had tucked into her jacket. Her stomach was so upset with her edginess she had hardly eaten anything that morning. She could feel it growling. At least she wasn't hung over anymore. She really just wanted this to be over with already.

She saw his tall form a mere second before he was next to her. "Yo." He paused. "Are you in disguise?"

She was but apparently it hadn't worked that well if he had recognized her right away. She tore the sunglasses off her face with a touch of annoyance. The baseball cap followed shortly after and she shook out her disheveled hair. So much for that.

"Sorry I'm late." He sat down on the opposite side of the table from her, slouching down with his hands in his pants pockets. "Ueda pulled a muscle in his leg that had to be taken care of."

Taking care of his teammates. She couldn't be angry for him being late because of that. Since he was the swim team captain he was in charge and responsible for them. They would always come first.

Speaking of legs, his long legs took up pretty much the entire space under the table. They were only a mere inch away from Gou's own and she regretted suddenly wearing a skirt. She could feel the warmth of him even through the fabric of his jeans.

"Rei said you wanted to talk to me."

He was using Rei's first name. That was a bit surprising. Did he feel that close to the Iwantobi swimming boys? "Uhhh, yes." Gou glanced around herself then stuck her hand into her jacket. She took out the marriage certificate. When she laid it on the table, she didn't miss the expression in his golden eyes. He looked like he didn't really know what to do with it, as if it were some kind of foreign animal.

Gou rubbed her lips together. "I don't suppose you know much about the laws in this country, do you?"

He looked at her blankly.

She hadn't expected he would. "Soooo." She clasped her hands under her chin. "In this country, as I've come to find out, divorce is illegal. So is the annulment of marriages."

The flash in his eyes was unmistakable. Dismay and anxiety. But he held it together and Gou quickly moved to finish, "But I've talked with some people and we've figured out we can get a divorce when we get back home to Japan where it is legal. Once we get back home we can get a divorce." She leaned back. "However, as I'm sure you know, that isn't for another...three months."

He did not respond for a long moment, appearing to be mulling it over. "You're trying to say that while we're in this country we have to stay married no matter what?"

"Yes," she said. "Well, unless you want to go to jail. I personally don't. I'd hope you agree."

He was silent again. "What do you propose we do for the next three months then?"

"We'll act like nothing happened," Gou said it right away. "We'll act like this never happened and that we didn't do…didn't do this. We'll keep it as quiet as possible so no one will know about it when we get back home. We'll just pretend it never happened and act as normal."

He didn't respond. He picked up the marriage certificate and held it in front of his face. For a minute Gou could only see the paper between them. Finally he lowered it, tossing it lightly to the table top. "Alright," he said. "If that's what we have to do then that's what we'll do." He ran his hands through his hair on the back of his head.

His easy acceptance of the situation annoyed her for some reason. Why wasn't he freaking out like she had been? Then again it had been a day since it had happened. He had likely had some time to think about it and calm down.

"It's definitely not the most ideal situation," he was saying, "and I hate to leave it as it, but it doesn't sound like we have much choice. We'll just have to deal with it and get through the three months the best we can."

Gou sank in her chair. "Yeah." They had no other choice but to deal with it. There was no escaping or fixing their predicament at least not for now. Gou could feel her frustration building up, anger at the situation and herself for the stupid thing she had done. But since she couldn't take it out on herself, she lashed out at the other half that had caused the problem. "Let's have fun, right? Let's go crazy, right?" she said bitingly, throwing his words back at him. Mikoshiba looked up in surprise. "I wouldn't have gone along with it if I knew it was going to be something like this!"

"What are you- I never intended to-" He stopped himself, forcing himself to lower his voice as a waitress walked by. "I never meant for us to go get married! All I wanted to do was show you a good time-" Gou turned red at his wording, "because you were upset about your brother! I just wanted you to have some fun instead of sitting there moping all night. That's all! I never planned on this happening."

"I've never had a drink in my life until I hung out with you! You were the one who invited us to that bar!" She glared at him. "This is all your fault."

Mikoshiba leaned back, rolling his eyes away and exhaling sharply, his hand gesturing slightly to the marriage certificate as if to say, 'my signature isn't the only one on that document'.

Well, he did have a point there. Gou sobered, feeling her anger dissipating after letting some of it out. "You didn't…tell my brother did you?"

He gave her a lofty look that she was unable to discern. "No. I haven't told anyone."

He hadn't needed an adult to confide in like Gou had. Then again had Samezuka even brought any teachers with them? She didn't believe they had, it seemed like Mikoshiba typically handled everything on his own without an adults help. He was the type of person who could handle anything thrown at him on his own without anyone else's help. Gou envied him a bit for that.

"Good," said Gou. "We can't tell him. Seriously. He can't know. If he finds out he'll kill you."

Mikoshiba grinned a little. "I already figured as much." Of course he had. With the way things were now he probably knew her own brother better than she did. He spent a lot more time around him than she did currently. "I don't intend to tell him," said Mikoshiba.

Gou was relieved. Having Mikoshiba on the same page as her when it came to her brother made her life so much easier and less stressed. If Mikoshiba had insisted on telling Rin she didn't know what she would do. Running away to Mexico would have likely been the best plan in that case.

"Hey, um, by the way." Gou twisted her fingers together. She swallowed. "Do you…do you remember anything? I mean from that night."

He shook his head. "I remember being at the bar but I don't remember anything after that. I don't even remember leaving."

Gou was turning red again. She forced the words out. "We didn't…I don't think…We didn't…."

Mikoshiba eyebrows creased in confusion at what she was getting at.

Gou's face was flaming. "We didn't…y'know."

He understood then. He looked away again and Gou was surprised to see a faint dusting of red across his cheeks. "I-I don't think so."

Was it possible that Mikoshiba was a virgin? She had never thought about it before but his flush now made her think it. Honestly she sort of expected for him not to be. He was a good looking guy after all and older than she was.

What had he thought when he woke up that morning, she wondered. He had been in nothing but his underwear after all, while she had at least been fully clothed when she awoke. He must have realized she had been there. Had she…touched him? Oh god. Had she seen…it that night and just not remembered it? It wouldn't have been hard to considering his state of clothing, or lack thereof. I have to stop thinking about this.

"Did we ummm…Did we kiss?"

Mikoshiba's face was definitely red. He closed his eyes and rubbed the back of his neck. "I don't know. We must have had to when we got married."

When we got married. This situation was so damn bizarre."O-oh." Gou lowered her eyes. Had they kissed at all outside of that? If they kissed when they got married it might have just been a quick peck. That didn't count as a real kiss. Did it?

My first kiss and I don't even remember it. She wanted to wail. This whole situation is horrible.

There was a strange sound and Gou looked up to see Mikoshiba pulling out his phone. His phone? So he had gotten one in this country already. Gou still needed to do that. With everything that had been happening she had totally forgotten she needed a new phone.

Mikoshiba frowned down at the screen. "I have to go. Our hosts need to figure out our schedule for our stay here."

"O-oh." Why did she feel disappointed suddenly? "Okay…"

He motioned to the marriage certificate still sitting on the table. "Are you going to hold onto that?"

"A-ah yeah." It was for the best that she did, she figured. If Mikoshiba had it there was no telling if Rin might stumble on it. It was safer with her, where she could keep it among people who already knew about it.

Mikoshiba stood, tucking the phone back into his pocket. He wasn't looking at her again. Maybe he didn't know how to handle the situation, which had now turned awkward. Neither did Gou.

He coughed. "I'll see you later, I suppose." He gave her a slight wave and then headed out of the café. He didn't look back, his focus already on other things. Gou watched him leave, and wondered why she felt cheated.

A big thank you to everyone who has reviewed, followed, favorite, or reed this! Seriously I am very surprised at the reception this fic received considering it has like no plot.

Other pairings will be traditional ones but they will be kept in the background.

Now sleep time!