Sora knew it was only a matter of time before Matt would show up at their door. Or if she was lucky, maybe he would be so offended by her that he'd send someone else to get the ring back for him.

She had put in her letter of resignation at her company so she could focus all of her energy on helping Tai and his foundation work. She was passionate for that mission as well, so it was a great way for the two of them to rebuild their relationship while also doing good in the world.

The first couple of days was strained between the siblings. Tai, of course, was still recovering from the physical and emotional stress of his suicide attempt. All he had ever wanted in his life was to be with his sister, but now that she had promised to do just that, he felt extremely guilty. The note he had written before he swallowed the bottle of pills spelled out how much he realized he was hurting Sora, how messed up he was, and how she would be better off without him. Coming to terms with her now committing herself to him was difficult. On the one hand, this was exactly what he had always wanted, but on the other, he felt that Sora was doing this out of guilt and not because she actually wanted to.

He didn't make any physical contact with Sora unless she initiated, and he certainly never brought up sex or other intimate actions with her. He didn't know what to do. It seemed like the universe refused to let him or his sister ever be truly happy. Even now that he had gotten what he wanted, he still wasn't happy and he knew she certainly wasn't.

Sora had an easier time with the situation. In her mind, Tai was the most important person in the world to her, even more than herself. If he needed her to live his life, then she would be there for him. Deep down, she knew she herself would never be truly happy and free, but she was completely willing to give all of that up for the sake of her brother. His suicide attempt had proven to her that he would never be happy if she wasn't solely committed to him. He was mentally unstable, and so she couldn't and wouldn't risk his life by pursuing her own dreams and happiness. She never blamed Tai, because in her mind, this was a result of their terrible childhood. He needed her, and that was all the reason she needed to cut ties with her own life.

Throughout the week, Sora would make sure Tai knew she loved him by giving him a lot of physical attention. Although they didn't have sex, she would show him many signs of affection with gentle touches on the arms and back, hugs, even small kisses, and every night she would sleep next to Tai in his bed and hold him until he fell asleep to make sure he was ok. He would of course respond to her physical gestures with his own, but she did notice that he never initiated them. She knew he was still recovering, so she never questioned it.

A week had passed since the incident and no word had come from Matt. Or if there were, Sora hadn't seen it.

Tai seemed to physically recover extremely quickly, and soon he was already back to his off-season training schedule as well as working on the foundation. Most days, Tai would go off to practice or his personal training sessions and Sora would stay home and work on the foundation. She didn't feel like going out, at least not yet. She needed to mentally recover from all the stress she had felt over the last year.

One day, as Sora sat alone in the condo working on the foundation, she heard the condo phone ring. Her heart skipped a beat. This could be…

"Hello?"

"Hello, Miss Kamiya, this is Saito at the front desk."

"Hi, Saito."

"There's a man here asking to see you…"

Sora swallowed a lump in her throat. She knew exactly who this man was.

"by the name of Matthieu Illouz."

Hearing his name prompted so many memories to flood back into her mind. She knew this day was coming. Now he was here.

"Um, yes, please send him up," she said as normally as she could.

"Right away."

Sora hung up the phone and went to retrieve the ring box she had been keeping. Soon, she heard a knock on her door. She steadied herself. Time for another round of breaking someone she loves' heart. Slowly, she opened the door.

"Sora!" Matt said breathlessly once he saw her.

"Matt," she returned with a weak smile.

Matt looked a little confused. He wanted to give her a hug, but he managed to refrain at the moment given their current situation. "I, uh," he stammered. "I'm sorry to surprise you like this, but I couldn't reach you."

"Yes, I'm sorry about that," Sora said looking down. "Do you want to come in?"

"Yes, please," he replied and stepped into the condo.

Sora shut the door behind him. She knew Tai wouldn't be home for another few hours so this gave her plenty of time to apologize and return the ring to Matt. But before she could get any words out, Matt suddenly pulled her into a tight embrace.

"M-matt?"

"Sora," he said as he held her closely. "I don't know what's going on, but…I miss you."

Sora pushed him away gently and took a step back, looking down at the floor. "I'm so sorry…for everything," she began. "I never meant to hurt you."

"I just don't understand," Matt said quickly. "I thought everything was going well. I thought we were happy together."

"Yes, I know. I'm sorry that I misled you."

"Misled me?"

Sora nodded her head still refusing to look at him. "I was so caught up with everything that I never actually took the time to think things out," she explained slowly.

"Think what out? I don't understand."

"Matt, I never should have let this get as far as it did. I should've told you the truth, but instead I lied like a coward."

"Lied about what?" Matt reached out to take her hand, but Sora withdrew further.

"You're going to think I'm crazy, but my brother and I…" She paused.

Matt looked intently at her waiting for what she was about to say next.

"I can't be with you because I'm committed to Tai," Sora finally said.

"Committed? What does that even mean?" Matt asked in bewilderment.

Sora sighed in frustration. "Tai and I are lovers, ok?" she said finally looking up at his face.

Silence.

She hoped he would just ask for the ring and be done with her. He probably thought she was disgusting, and he should. He didn't know their past. He would never understand.

"Lovers…"

Sora nodded. "And that's why I should have never let myself be with you." She took this moment while Matt was standing utterly shocked to firmly place the ring box in his hand.

Matt slowly looked down at the box. He was completely stunned. Tai was Sora's brother, was he not? How could this be? "Sora, that's not right," Matt started to say.

"I know it's not right!" Sora suddenly said in an agitated voice. "You wouldn't understand! No one would understand!"

"But I want to understand! Sora, please tell me!" Matt couldn't believe what he was hearing. He loved this woman, but she was sleeping with her brother? What was going on?

"What does it matter?" Sora asked with a pitiful laugh. "I'm in an incestuous relationship with my brother, ok? I'm disgusting! You should be with someone normal. Someone more like you."

"I don't want to be with someone like me!" Matt said earnestly. "Sora, I love you! I want to be with you! I just don't understand-"

"Exactly!" Sora said raising her voice. "Tai and I never had parents who loved us. We were orphaned and we only had each other. I sacrificed everything for him and he did the same for me. Our bond runs too deep, and…and we're so fucked up, we can only be with each other. I don't want you to be involved in our twisted relationship. I'm a terrible person and you deserve better." She couldn't help but start to cry.

Matt looked at Sora as she sobbed. The thought of her sleeping with her brother did disturb him, but he also knew that there must have been some deep trauma that had happened in her life that caused this relationship in the first place. He wanted to help her. "Sora," he began slowly. "I know you. You're not disgusting. You're a beautiful, talented-"

"Stop…"

"amazing woman. And I fell in love with you from the moment I saw you."

"Please, stop…"

Matt stepped closer to her and gently wrapped her in his arms. "I don't care what your past is. I only care about you." He kissed the top of her head.

Sora made a weak attempt to push Matt away, but this time Matt held on firmly. He was not going to let go.

"You don't know me…" Sora whispered as she cried into Matt's chest.

"I do know you," Matt said. "And I want to know more and more about you. You're the only person I've ever met that's made me feel inspired. You make me want to do more good in the world. I want to make this world a better place for you." He lifted her chin so he could see her tear-streaked face. "If you love me, like I know you do, then I don't care if you've been with your brother. Let me help you." He leaned down to kiss her.

Sora quickly turned her head so he kissed her cheek. One side of her was screaming at her to kiss him back and to stop denying herself a normal, healthy relationship with a man whom she loved and who loved her too. The other side was screaming at her to push Matt away and never see him again for Tai's sake.

Matt was not deterred by Sora's actions. He held her close and continued to kiss her from her cheek down to her neck. He wanted her more than anything and refused to believe that she didn't want him any longer. "Sora," he whispered between kisses, "I love you. I want you to be my wife."

"No…I can't…"

"Yes, you can," Matt said and pulled back just enough to look deep into her eyes. "I know you love me. I see it in your eyes." He gently stroked her face with the back of his hand. "Don't push me away."

Sora closed her eyes, causing more tears to fall. She thought she could be strong for Tai. She thought she could handle Matt coming to see her. All she needed to do was ask him to leave. But somehow the words weren't coming to her.

"Please, Sora," Matt said softly. "I want to know everything about you. I don't care what you had to do to survive your past. All I know is that you're a good person and I want to spend the rest of my life with you. I want to know…" He placed a small kiss on her cheek. "Please tell me."

Sora couldn't bring herself to tell Matt to leave. She loved this man. There was no way around that. But she also loved Tai, and for her entire life up to this point, Tai had been everything to her.

"Matt, please, don't make this harder than it has to be," she finally said. "I…I just can't be with you."

She could literally feel Matt's heart sink at her words. She couldn't bear to look at him.

"My brother…he…" Sora pushed Matt gently away from herself. She needed to be strong for Tai. The more Matt held her, the more she felt her resolve disappear.

Matt stood helplessly in front of her. He thought that he'd convinced her, but she was still refusing to accept him.

"Tai needs me," Sora said. "He tried to kill himself when I told him…about you. If he tried to again, I'd…" She wiped her tears from her face and looked up to face Matt. "If something happened to Tai, I'd never be able to live with myself!"

Matt stood silently. His heart was in shambles. It seemed like the woman he had fallen in love with had already chosen her path, and it was one without him.

"I loved you, Matt," Sora said more gently. "I really did, but I can't anymore. Tai has been everything to me for my entire life. No one else has been there for me like he has. He loves me without question or circumstance. He supported me. He saved me from…" Sora cut herself off at that point. No point in telling Matt all the details. "Please try to understand," she ended simply, a look of defeat was on her face.

Matt sighed deeply, his hand gripping the ring box. "So, you don't love me anymore?" he asked looking intently into Sora's eyes.

Sora's breath caught in her throat. It was a gut wrenching question, but she needed him to hear it. "No, I don't love you anymore," she almost whispered.

Her words cut him like a thousand knives. In his heart, he refused to believe her, but even so, hearing her say that she didn't love him was devastating. "Sora, I-"

"Please, just go," Sora pleaded softly. She felt her insides shrivel up, and her heart felt like it had been stabbed. Nonetheless, she held on firmly to her belief that Tai needed her and nothing else should matter.

Matt looked at her one more time, hoping beyond hope that she would change her mind. But the look in her eyes told him that she wouldn't. It was over. He shoved the ring box into his pocket and turned to leave.

Sora watched him head to the door. Everything inside of her begged her to stop him and take back what she had said. She could see that she had completely destroyed his heart. Deep down, she knew that she still loved him. One more lie to end things.

Matt left the condo without another look. Sora knew that he would never come back.

An hour later, Tai returned home. When he opened the front door, he expected to see his sister at one of her usual spots either at the table or on the couch, working on foundation matters. But this time she was nowhere to be seen.

"Sora?" he called out.

No response.

Tai put down his bag and began looking in all the rooms on the first floor. No sign of his sister.

"Sora?" he called again.

Still silent.

He went up the stairs and saw that the door to her room was closed. She must be in there. He knocked gently on the door. "Sor, can I come in?" he asked. There was still no response, but he tried the handle of the door and it was unlocked. He slowly pushed the door open to find Sora sitting as still as a statue on the edge of her bed staring blankly out the window.

Tai knew something had happened. "What's wrong?" he asked beginning to worry. "Something happened today, didn't it?" He walked over and sat next to her on the bed. Now that he was closer, he saw streaks of dried tears on her face. She didn't even look at him.

"Sora…" Although for the last week, he had been very cautious about making physical contact with her, he couldn't help but reach his hand out to touch hers that was resting on her lap.

At his touch, Sora started in surprise. "Tai!" she gasped.

Had she really not known he was there?

"Sora," Tai said worriedly. "What happened?"

Sora's facial expression immediately changed. "Oh, nothing," she said quickly. "Sorry, I was spacing out."

Tai frowned. He knew his sister and he knew she was lying. "Sora, it's obvious something happened today. I don't want you to feel like you have to lie to protect me. I'm fine." He squeezed her hand. He had to admit that it felt good to touch her again.

Sora looked at their intertwined hands. She was tired of lying to people. For the last year, she did nothing but lie. She lied to Tai. She lied to Matt. She lied to herself…and look where it had gotten her. Maybe it was time to just start saying the truth instead of trying to protect people. "You're right," she finally said.

Tai was relieved to hear her say that. "So what happened?"

Sora took a deep breath before responding. "Matt came by," she said simply.

At the sound of his name, Tai tensed up and Sora felt it. "Matt?"

Sora nodded.

"What did he want?"

"I never got a chance to tell you that…he had proposed to me."

"What?"

"But when he came here, I gave him back the ring," Sora said quickly before Tai could react further. "It's completely over. I don't love him anymore." Her voice choked up.

Tai knew his sister was completely crushed. She had loved this man, and he had taken him away from her. His feelings of guilt had always been there the entire week, but now its weight was almost unbearable. He wanted Sora to be happy. That was the whole reason he had tried to kill himself. He was only standing in her way.

Sora looked at Tai wondering what he was thinking. "Tai, it's over," she said again. "He's never coming back."

"I'm sorry," Tai said withdrawing his hand.

"What? Don't be sorry!"

He shook his head. "No, I ruined your life," he said. "It's my fault."

"No, you didn't ruin anything, Tai," Sora said firmly. "You saved me. You saved us…and you were right all along. We belong together, no one else would understand."

"I…I want you to be happy," Tai said looking at the ground.

"I'm happy when I'm with you," Sora said as she put a hand on his cheek. "You're everything to me."

He shook his head causing her hand to fall off his face. "No," he said and put his head in his hands.

Sora was very sensitive to Tai's emotions especially after what had recently happened. She quickly pulled him into a hug. "It's ok, Tai," she said and kissed him on the cheek. "It's not your fault. None of this is your fault."

Tai couldn't help himself. He loved Sora so badly. He wanted her more than anything. He knew he was being selfish but at this moment, he couldn't stop himself from drawing his sister closer and finding her lips with his.

Sora didn't resist. Even though she still wasn't truly comfortable with a sexual relationship with Tai, she was somewhat relieved at his show of affection after a week of stoicism.

A war raged inside of Tai's mind as he deepened his kiss. He knew she didn't really want this, and he desperately wanted to respect her wishes, but his own desires were winning the battle this time. His hands started wandering all over Sora's body and he guided her down so that she was lying on the bed. He shifted so that he was on top of her and pushed his tongue inside of her mouth.

Sora allowed Tai to explore her mouth with no resistance. She wanted him to be happy, above all else, even at the sacrifice of her own life. She held him closely as he kissed her passionately.

Tai couldn't stop himself any longer. He moved his hands down her body and unbuttoned her jeans, sliding them off along with her panties. He then undid his own pants and soon he was pressing his hot penis against her exposed vagina. He hadn't been with Sora like this for months and he was almost bursting just from feeling her body.

"Sora," he said as he paused before going further. "I-"

Sora put a finger up to his lips. "Sh," she said gently. "Make love to me, Tai."

That was enough to push Tai over the edge. He guided himself with his hand and entered inside her body. She felt so good. He almost came right then and there.

Sora moaned softly and pulled Tai into a kiss, encouraging him to continue.

Tai slowly began to pump himself in and out of her. Every move was the most amazing feeling he had ever felt in his entire life, but with that feeling also came more guilt. She was acting like she wanted him now, but he knew. He knew she didn't want this.

But it was too late now. Tai's primal instincts continued to dominate his mind as he began moving faster and faster. He knew this would be a quick venture as he was incredibly sensitive.

Sora held her brother close as he made love to her. As much as she didn't want to, all she could think about was Matt and how she had hurt him. She loved her brother so much and she couldn't deny that it felt good to be close to him, but she had broken Matt's heart. It was almost too much to bear.

"I can't hold on much longer," Tai panted in Sora's ear.

"Do it, Tai," Sora moaned. "Release yourself into me."

Almost immediately after she said those words, she felt Tai's hot semen flood her. She hadn't orgasmed herself, but she didn't want to. She didn't deserve to.

Tai collapsed onto her, completely out of breath. He knew he didn't make Sora climax so he tried to reach his hand down to pleasure her, even while he was still ejaculating.

Sora caught his hand and shook her head. "Just lie here with me, Tai," she whispered and put his hand on her cheek.

Tai looked at his beautiful sister. How could he be so cruel? She had done everything for him and now he was holding her hostage from her own life. It was such a twisted feeling to still be connected physically while berating himself for being so at the same time.

Sora knew exactly what Tai was thinking. "Don't think, Tai," she said. "Just be..."

Tai put his head next to hers. Just be… He closed his eyes and the two drifted off to sleep.