Akihiko shoved through the busy servants, too concerned with his own problems to be polite at the moment. He could almost hear Misaki already having a fit. She-well, he now-would be apologizing for him and then patronizing him for being rude or something. He'd get all flustered and his cheeks would turn red from embarrassment...Akihiko shook the thought from his head. He would have plenty of time to reflect later. Now wasn't the time to daydream. He had things to take care of.

He stopped in front of his father's study, face full of frustration. He hated having to talk to his father, let alone ask him for something. A part of him wanted to just turn on his heel and leave but he knew if he did that, then Misaki would most likely leave. And he didn't want to lose him just because his pride was in the way. The prince grumbled under his breath before pushing open the door. "Father." he called.

The King looked up from his desk, surprised at first but relaxing and scowling slightly. "Akihiko? Don't you have the courtesy to knock?" he asked, setting the quill pen down.

Akihiko resisted the urge to argue. He was already swallowing his pride. Like hell he'd be polite. "I need to talk to you."

"I'm a very busy person. I don't have time-"

"I wasn't asking your permission." he shut the doors behind him and walked forward till he was only a few feet from his desk. "It's about the contestants."

The King frowned, leaning back in his chair and narrowing his eyes slightly. "What about them?"

Akihiko paused, "Who is advancing?"

"That's secret information."

"So you've already chose who is advancing?"

"...Yes."

Akihiko felt his heartbeat quicken slightly but he remained calm. "Who?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"Because…"Akihiko clenched his fists and glared, "Because...I want to know if someone I care about made it." he spit out.

"Huh? You care about one of the girls?" he asked, caught off guard. However he composed himself quickly. "Which one? You haven't talked to a single one, if I remember correctly."

"Father you want me to marry correct? Then don't question."

"You have become more rude since the last time we spoke."

"Father." his voiced raised slightly, "Tell me who made it."

"Tell me who you are so worried about, or you can wait and find out with the rest."

Akihiko growled a bit, "...Mi-Manami Kajiwara."

The King's smug look suddenly faded, looking more resentful. "Miss Kajiwara?" he asked, frowning.

"I said the name, now tell me if she made it." he was losing his temper and wasn't sure he could keep calm much longer.

The King eyed him before speaking. "At first, no. But she has made it on the list."

He nodded and turned to walk away, "That's all I want to hear-"

"You weren't the only one to make sure she made it."

Akihiko stopped dead in his tracks. "...What."

"It seems Haruhiko seems to think Miss Kajiwara is worth keeping here. Despite her ill breeding." he smiled lightly.

Akihiko clenched his teeth before quickly walking out the door and shutting it loudly behind him. Stupid old man. Still, he tried to calm down. Misaki was staying, luckily. He could push that worry out of the way. Now, to actually find the little brat.

"Miss Aikawa...is all this really necessary?" Misaki asked, looking herself over in the mirror. Her dress was a light shade of green with golden vines that decorated the whole dress. She wore a shawl over her shoulders and her hair (it had grown out past his shoulders now) was curled and the bangs were pinned back by a new flower hair pin. Misaki looked nice, but she also felt pretty stiff and not like herself.

"Yes! It's a special occasion. But don't worry, the dress you'll wear to the finals will be even better!" she cooed.

Misaki frowned "Great…" she sighed and walked away from the mirror, letting the other girls check themselves out. She was nervous, but not because of the whole contestant thing. She was nervous because...well she and Akihiko were still on bad terms. She hadn't seen him all day because she had been so busy getting ready. She worried that maybe he really was pissed off and would be glad she left. She bit her lip, feeling her eyes water a bit. "I'll be right back…"

"Wait, Manami-"

Misaki left before she could stop him. He ran down the hall and to the library, stumbling a bit because of his stupid heels and heavy dress. He knew Akihiko wasn't there, and that was fine. He didn't think he'd have the strength to talk to him right now anyways. He went to the secluded part of the library and leaned against the wall, trying to compose himself. This was stupid. He was crying over nothing. But yet he couldn't help himself. Why did he feel so shitty? He had made Akihiko mad before! But then again...he always got over it after a few hours and then they would be back to normal. But maybe Misaki pushed him to far? Maybe he won't care if Misaki gets kicked out? Misaki held back a sob, trying to dab away at the tears. "Damn it...Damn!" he cursed, feeling foolish.

"Misaki?" The younger man tensed and looked up. Akihiko was walking down the aisle quickly, however he stopped when he noticed Misaki's current state. "Misaki are you alright?"

Misaki swallowed and straightened up, "I'm fine! I just...got make up in my eye." he argued, turning away. "Why are you here? Aren't you supposed to be in the ballroom?" he grumbled.

"I was looking for you." He took a step closer and put a hand on his head. "Where have you been?"

"Getting ready." he resisted the urge to lean in to the touch, instead smacking the hand away. "Why do you want to know?" he hissed.

"I just said I was looking for you. Are you not listening brat?"

"Shut up I'm not a brat!"

Akihiko smiled but took in a breath, getting serious. "Misaki...I know."

"Know? What do you know?" he mocked, trying to push him away. "I don't have time I need to go to the ballroom-"

"You're not Takahiro's little sister."

"What are you-"

"I read the letter he sent. You're his little brother, aren't you?"

Misaki took a minute to compose himself before frowning and trying to relax, "I-It's rude to read other people's letters you know…"

"You didn't answer my question." he grabbed his wrists and pinned him against the wall. "You are a boy aren't you?"

"...Yes." Misaki looked down but then quickly looked back up, "Don't tell anyone, okay? Are you mad? I'm sorry I didn't mean-" he was cut off as Akihiko suddenly kissed him. His eyes widened in shock. He relaxed after a bit though, leaning in to the kiss.

When he pulled away he smiled a bit. "I'm not mad. In fact I'm happy." He kept speaking before Misaki could question him, "I don't like women. I never have. And so that's why I was fine with you staying around because for me, it didn't matter if you stayed or not. I didn't think I'd feel anything for you. But then, I got to know you more. And I started to fall for you. I denied it at first, because how could I possibly fall for a woman? But now I realize I do indeed love you."

Misaki stared at him with his mouth open slightly, "Usagi I…" Misaki wanted to tell him he had the same feelings, but the words couldn't come out. Still, Akihiko didn't mind. He just leaned down and kissed him again, this time, wrapping his arms around his waist. Misaki closed his eyes and held on to his shoulders, kissing him back- too caught up in it all to really argue at the moment.

However their sweet moment was short lived, for the library doors opened with a bang, making them jump and pull apart. "Akihiko! Manami! Where are you the ball is starting soon! We can't start without you guys where are you?!" Miss Aikawa screamed, running around the place.

Akihiko sighed and was tempted to just ignore her but Misaki pulled away. "We should go, Usagi. Before she destroys the place." he muttered, wiping away the smudged lipstick.

Akihiko cleaned off his mouth too and straightened his clothes, "Fine. But we'll pick this up later. After they call you up with the finalists." he winked.

"Wh-What? Usagi did you-" He stopped when Aikawa found them.

"There you are! Come on!" she grabbed their hands and dragged them out and towards the ballroom.

The two looked at each other and smiled faintly. Things were far from perfect. There were still many things that needed to be taken care of and cleared up. Hell even this whole relationship thing was still pretty confusing. Were they friends or more than that? Misaki wasn't sure but he did know one thing. This is the best he's felt in a long time. And that counts for something, huh?

(A/N: Aaand that took a long time. I had writers block for so long I can't even. Plus I have finals this week but after that I am free to post as much stories as I want. Or as much as my brain will let me lol. Thank you for the kind reviews it means a lot to me. It makes me feel happy. Next chapter should be out by friday or saturday so keep an eye out. Oh btw, I have a poll going on to see which fandom I should write for next. Either this one or a different one. You guys decide. Till next time, enjoy!)