Killua's eyes darted madly around the tiny hallway as though it were a labyrinth rather than a single, two meter stretch between two thin walls. His sight moved faster than his body, which was trembling in anticipation of escaping.

"Kil', you're shaking," Misaki's voice announced from her temporary bedroom doorway.

His breaths came in shallow, rapid bursts, and the adrenaline seemed to overdose his system to the point that his knees threatened to buckle from under him.

'I have to get out,' was his loudest thought amongst too many others, still amidst the insistence of his flight response.

Her hand, steady and unmarred by the worries which plagued him, rested upon his back slightly to the left of his spine. His heart was pounding dangerously fast, and he could feel it- hear it even, he could have sworn- thumping against the flesh of her palm. Then, he was being guided toward the opening of the doorway.

The deadpan expression gave way to one of slight concern as Misaki said, "Come; let's get you settled."

It wasn't until the door clicked behind him that Killua really understood that he was inside the room. The plum haired girl led him patiently toward the single bed and assisted him to sit on the blanketed edge. She turned and retrieved a plastic cup filled three quarters with water and held it out for him.

"I haven't even so much as sipped it," she promised.

When his shaking hands could not form a respectable grip, Misaki opted to hold the cup up to his lips for him.

"Don't breathe and drink at the same time," she warned him in an oddly maternal tone.

Something soothed him about the combination of the water and her nurturing, and Killua hesitantly took the cup from her on his own. When he stopped drinking and inhaled, he noticed for the first time that the girl's scent was cosmetically sweet. His eyes studied her, and were surprised to register that she was looking far less casual than he had ever seen her before.

Rather than her usual outfit, her denim jean shorts, fingerless gloves, and hiking boots with the coral laces, she was adorned in a pallid yellow halter dress. It was form-fitting until it hit the waist, where it loosened and flared out to just above the knee in a ripple-like fashion. A sparkling silver brooch was fastened to it just below the bust. Then he noticed that the skin on her face was smoothed out and even looking, with her lips slightly rouged and her plum hair worn down. Her nose looked smaller than usual somehow.

On the other side of the room, the dresser top was loaded with cosmetic compacts and tubes and next to them an emptied shopping bag with a paper receipt hanging out.

"Why are you dressed like that?" he asked.

She smiled weakly as she grabbed her brush and ran it through her hair in front of the small vanity mirror.

"I'm going out tonight."

"Tonight? It's only four o'clock…"

"Yes, but it might take me a while to get ready. I've never gone on a real date before, and I don't want to be late leaving just in case."

A real date…

Killua's heart sunk, and for a moment his constant, conflicting inner dialogue ceased altogether before restarting over again, this time with several more persistent thoughts torturing his psyche over the others.

"You're going on a date? With who?" he asked as if he did not already know the answer.

"With-…" she began, stopping abruptly as though remembering something else. "With Yuto."

"That guy is such a jerk!" Killua snapped before he could stop himself.

Misaki chuckled as she rolled the brush through the undermost layers of her hair.

"Yeah, he is," she agreed.

"Then why go out with him at all?"

"Well, he asked me."

Killua was stunned. Was it really that simple? He could have just asked her and then she would have said yes? That was all there was to it?

"So, if um… I asked you…?" Killua questioned awkwardly in a low whisper, trying his hardest to ignore his chattering mind.

'I hurt Gon…'

Misaki strolled over to Killua and planted a small peck on his cheek. The boy felt his face immediately burn in response, and he touched his fingertips to the spot.

"See? This lip stain doesn't even leave a mark," she teased, winking as she pointed to the mirror where he could see that his cheek was still bare.

"Misaki…" Killua murmured.

"Hmm?" she replied, having returned to the vanity in order to apply a peach powder to her cheeks.

'…it's not good for you to get so close to Misaki…'

'If that were true, you wouldn't have felt the need to try and stop us…'

'I'm just worried for you…'

'…You are incapable of friendship…'

"Are you… alright?"

It took Killua a full moment to recognize that the final quote was spoken aloud by Misaki, who was now standing over him with a look of hesitant concern playing on her painted features. He also realized that his nerves were uneasy again, quivering all over, and panic-stricken.

As if his limbs were acting of their own volition, he flung himself at Misaki, hugging to her tightly, desperately, like a helpless infant clinging to its mother. He felt foolish, but could not bring himself to detach from her.

At first her reaction was something reminiscent of a deer in headlights, wide eyed and stiff and stunned, but after a few moments the girl seemed to adjust and slowly brought her arms around him. She softly patted and rubbed his back, occasionally mussing his hair with the opposite hand.

"It's okay, Kil'," she cooed so gently he was scarcely sure he'd heard her correctly.

The progress was dreadfully slow, but eventually he noticed that he was almost entranced by her, and was somewhere between wake and slumber. Lightly, Misaki peeled his limbs from around her and returned him to the bed; reaching for a tissue to dab away the tears he had not realized were already streaming down his cheeks.

Three firm knocks on the bedroom door.

"Misaki, are you ready?"

"I'll be a few minutes yet."

The knob was turning. The door creaked slightly open.

The plum haired girl snatched her umbrella from the carpeted floor and heaved it at the door, slamming it shut.

"I said just a minute. Stay out."

She turned back to Killua, capturing his face in her hands and using her thumbs to stroke away the last of the tears.

"You can stay in here if you like," she said sweetly. "Try to get some rest. Don't wait up."

She kissed his forehead and slipped her fingers through his hair once more. While heading for the door she halted and lingered there for a second or two, glancing back at him with her face expressing more emotion than he had ever seen it do before (despite his admitted uncertainty of which emotion it happened to be displaying). She smiled weakly at him before exiting the room.

Do you think maybe it's a bad idea to follow Misaki around all the time?

'You're right, Gon,' he decided, 'but this time, I really need to.'

Wiping his nose on his sleeve, Killua tip toed to the window and leapt gracefully out, doing his best to fight off his guilt and pain in order to successfully track the woman he only just now realized that he really, truly loved, and could not accept the possibility of losing her to Yuto.

'I'll make things right, Gon,' his overloaded mind promised determinedly. 'I'll make everything right! Just hang in there, you'll see!'

A/N: Wow, two chapters in one day XD Hopefully they were acceptable! Thanks again for the encouraging reviews I've received and for taking the time to read my story! I'm flattered, really.