Ding-dong.
Jian-wa ran to the apartment door, wondering who could be coming over at this time.
�Can I come in?� asked the green-haired girl in the doorway after he opened the door. He had to do a double-take, as his first reaction was to think it was Mi-chan. But no, this melancholy girl was definitely Neko.
He invited her in without hesitation. Neko had never come over before. Even before, when he was evil and living with Tanzen (he cringed at the thought), she had only once expressed an interest in visiting his house, and he had managed to make up an excuse that was plausible enough that she never questioned it, never again thought of it, in fact.
He couldn�t much blame her for avoiding him for months after he had betrayed her trust. He had tried to kill her, her family, and her girlfriend for crying out loud! No, he was surprised she had ever gotten over that. Yet when she did, she still had never come over. He was surprised she even knew where his oba-san�s apartment was.
Though she was staring at the ground, he could see the stains of tears on her cheeks and knew she was close to tears again. �Neko-chan, what�s wrong?�
�I need a friend, Jian-kun. Can I hang with you for a while?� she responded in a shaky voice.
He gave her a hug. Neko�s natural tendency was to go to Mi-chan or Tenshi when she needed comforting. And with her newfound friendship with that Jasper guy, Jian-wa hadn�t imagined she�d ever come to him for cheering up. So he was more than willing to prove himself worthy of the challenge and make Neko feel better.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
As she had explained the situation to him, Jian-wa found that he really didn�t have any insight into what could be going on. To be truthful, beyond Mi-chan, he had no experience with love. Sure, he was experienced with girls in other ways, but he never had had a real relationship before Mi-chan. In fact, Neko and Tenshi were often his role models in the world of romance. He didn�t have anything to draw upon if they were having a problem.
�I�m sorry,� he started, �demo��
�Jian-wa-chan, I thought you and Michiru-chan could use some cookies and milk,� his aunt interrupted as she entered with a plateful of freshly baked chocolate chip cookies and a couple glasses.
�Oba-san, this is Neko-chan!� he lectured her.
�Oh, sorry, Neko-chan. Want a cookie?� Cooan held out the plate for Neko, who graciously took a couple cookies.
�Arigatou gozaimasu, Ayakashi-san.�
Cooan set down the plate and stood there for a second as the two teens looked uncomfortably at each other. Finally she seemed to realize that they weren�t going to talk in front of her. �Oh, I�ll be in the kitchen if you guys need me.�
Jian-wa focused back on Neko, who had seemed a little more cheered by the warm cookies. But he still didn�t feel he had done what she had asked. He opened his mouth to continue, but she spoke before he could.
�We had sex,� she admitted quickly and quietly. He stared at her in surprise, as she continued, �On Saturday. We had sex, and it�s just I- What if that�s what�s causing this? If that�s why�?�
�Neko-chan, you know Tenshi-kun loves you.� Jian-wa cut her off, speaking calmly and firmly. She looked away and nodded. He knew that there wasn�t really a doubt about it in her mind, that she was just worried about Tenshi.
�What if there�s something really wrong, and Tenshi won�t tell me?� she whispered.
�You can ask her about it the next time you see her then,� he suggested. Apparently, his words seemed to imply that it wasn�t too serious because when she looked back at him, she was beginning to look less concerned. He smiled encouragingly. �Neko-chan, sometimes people just aren�t in the mood to be romantic. I mean, you and Tenshi-kun can�t be lovey-dovey twenty-four/seven, can you? I�m sure she just had other things on her mind.�
If Jian-wa�s words hadn�t influenced Neko�s mood, his tone probably would have. As he spoke, he began to mull over the last date with Mi-chan and how she had completely ignored his efforts. *Maybe it�s not a reflection of our relationship. Maybe she just had too much on her mind to think about romance.* The thought made him more optimistic, which only helped him as he tried to raise Neko�s spirits.
Half a plate of cookies later, when Neko finally left (making him promise he wouldn�t tell Mi-chan), she had seemed much livelier. And Jian-wa had to admit, he was feeling better about his and Mi-chan�s relationship. He just wouldn�t give up, he decided, and someday they might be as romantic as Neko and Tenshi.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Tenshi loved her schedule this year. She had a long break in between her two classes of the day on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Of course, she had four classes on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, and a lab she had to attend Thursday right before her second class. But today was Tuesday, and she had loads of free time. She was completely free as the high school�s second class of the day let out and students began wandering the halls. She stood outside Neko�s second class, Japanese literature, holding a single red rose that she had bought in between her morning class and now.
Neko was chatting with Jian-wa as she left the classroom, but she her eyes brightened to see Tenshi, although Tenshi thought that deep down she looked a little sad too. �Koneko,� she greeted her, as she hurried to Neko�s side, while Jian-wa excused himself and made a graceful exit. �I came to walk you to class. And to give you this.� She handed the deep red rose to Neko, hoping that it�d be accepted as an adequate apology gift. Neko took it and smiled at her, but didn�t say anything, neither agreeing nor turning her down. As Tenshi matched her step on their way to Neko�s locker, she felt she should apologize. �I�m sorry about last night. I really am. I didn�t want to push you away. It�s just�.�
Neko stopped and looked at her expectantly, waiting for a reason. *Go ahead. Tell her about the voices in your head. Well, voice�. But sure, that�ll go over real well. It�ll go a long way towards not looking insane! �Sorry, Koneko, you�re marrying a crazy person!� Uh huh, I�m sure she�ll understand.* People hurried past them as Neko continued to watch Tenshi, and Tenshi continued to figure out what to say. *I�m usually so good at this* she scolded herself.
�Tenshi,� Neko finally said, her voice soft and even. �You don�t have to feel pressured to be romantic all the time. If you need some alone time, that�s fine. You just have to say the word. I love you no matter what, and I know you love me. You don�t have to prove it.�
�Yeah, demo I�� *Take the way out that she�s giving you, baka!* �I�ll keep that in mind.� She checked on the time. �We should get you to class. Ne, do you want me to carry your books?�
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Neko ran out to the track with her pole, hoping she wasn�t running too late. She had stayed behind in choir to congratulate Kimahou, who had just gotten a big solo on one of the songs they were going to sing this quarter.
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