Sitting on the corner of her bed, I watched Charlotte as she paced back and forth across her room in frustration. Her pink lips were pursed in seriousness, and a sigh escaped them as she hung her head in a defeated manner.

"Char, I'm sure you'll be okay," I said trying to reassure her.

" No I won't, KL! He's still over there! What if Shizuka hurts him? I swear, if she lays a finger on him, I'll-"

" You'll what?" I tested. "Go back to her place?" I asked while raising my eyebrow at her and candy coating it with a smile.

She sighed and hung her head in defeat again. Her eyes watered up as she stared at me. "I'm such a horrible friend! How could I just write a note and leave like that?"

"Char, your life was in jeopardy! You shouldn't have even left a note! You're super lucky that Airilice found you. Image where you would be if she hadn't," I said, staring her directly in her face. In shame, she turned away from me and stared at the beige colored wall.

Charlotte then shuddered at the thought, "I'm trying as hard as I can to ignore that reality. To be honest, I probably would've died of starvation. When we found this place, I was going without food for a long while. I just feel horrible about the whole Nicco thing, you know?" she said, turning around with watery eyes. Poor Charlotte seemed so stressed out and frustrated that I wish I could just find a way to comfort her.

Suddenly, an idea struck me." Wasn't he Jagger's friend anyway?" My lips curled into a smirk.

" Who?" She questioned.

" The brother to little miss pink you brought in last night," I said, smiling.

"You know, now that you say it I do think I remember him mentioning something about someone named Jagger. Wonder if that's him?" She asked while wiping her eyes dry.

" I thought so. Why don't you go ask him about it?"

" Really? You think he'll actually answer me?" She sniffled.

As I nodded my head yes towards her, she shot me a cheeky smile. "Just as long as you don't break down like this in front of him."

" I swear, I love you so much!" She said while coming over and wrapping her arms around me. I laughed as she let go of me and then stared her directly in the eye.

" Charlotte?"

"Yeah?"

" Just try not to get your hopes so high with things like this. Unfortunately, sometimes things don't work out the way that we plan."

Her eyebrows cocked in confusion and I tried as hard as I could to say this without tearing her heart to shreds. My heart grew heavy as my chest twisted in an anxious manner.

Biting the inside of my cheek, I continued. "You know, I just don't want to see you heartbroken. I mean, it's bad enough that this is how I'm seeing you after months of not having any contact."

" Yeah...sorry about that. I look like an absolute mess. Since when did I become a damsel in distress?" She asked, throwing herself backwards on the bed as a giant grin plastered on her face. I couldn't help but playfully push her shoulder.

" Look you dork, all I'm saying is don't hold onto something you don't even have yet. I mean, anything can happen between now and then. You could find someone else. You never know what the future holds, Char."

" KL, but you don't understand what I'm trying to say," she said as she rolled over on her stomach. "I know that there was some kind of spark between us. You could just see it in his eyes. The way he looked into my eyes was different than how anybody else has ever looked into them. It was as though he could look through them and see a whole other, perfect world through their reflection. It's as though he could see through the core of my soul and straight into my heart just by looking into my eyes. What's this feeling you ask? Well I wouldn't be able to tell you because I have never felt anything like it in my life before. But whether it's love or just pure foolishness, I do not know. All I know is that I care as much for Nicco as I care for my own being. This knot that is formed in the pit of my stomach is because I hold on to all the short memories that we've made together, hoping that they were not our last." She sat up and stared out of her window , her back toward me while I was still seated on the edge of her bed. By the way that she was speaking, I could tell that she meant every word that she had said. They were words spoken from her heart, from her entire being.

She then continued, " And yes KL, I completely understand what you are saying but when you feel so strongly about something, it's not so easy to just go and give it up like that."

I sent her a warm smile. " I understand, Charlotte. The heart wants what it wants."

"And my heart just wants him to be here standing right next to me," she said. Her voice crackled a bit when she said this. I walked over to her and hugged her." Charlotte, c'mon. I think you need to get some air. Don't break down on me now."

"That might be a good idea," she sniffled. Grabbing for her room key, we left and entered the hallway. Her soft brown eyes looked up at my face with an innocent, child-like expression. " So when do you think I can talk to this Jagger guy?"

" We can look for him now if you want. If I can find him, I'll introduce you guys."

" Thanks so much girly!" She said excitedly, nearly bouncing up and down. Her reaction made me let out a chuckle.

Charlotte and I began to walk down the hallway and as we made a sharp left turn, we coincidentally ran into Jagger with Airilice smiling at his side.

" Jagger," I said, greeting him with a nod and a smile.

He flashed a handsome smile back at me. " Good morning KL. Hello Miss Charlotte. Airi was just telling me about your meeting in the forest."

Airlice smiled towards Charlotte and now that she was cleaned up, I could see that she was very beautiful. Her magenta colored hair fell perfectly around her face, flowing with every step she took. Her magenta eyes really made her light complexion pop out and her long lashes added a super fierce look to her features.

"Yeah, it was a pretty odd way of meeting, but it was just a coincidence. A coincidence that I'm totally grateful for now because who knows where I would've ended up at," Charlotte replied to Jagger with widened eyes.

He smiled to where his eyes turned into little black lines on his face. "Well thank goodness you guys found your way here. Pleasure to meet you."

Charlotte smiled, "You as well." Holding out her hand, Jagger shook it and shot her a sweet smile.

Awkwardly shuffling on her feet, Charlotte hesitated to ask Jagger about Nicco. Shooting her a look, she glared at me and looked away. Jagger, catching on to this, furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "Everything okay?" He asked.

"Go ahead. Ask him," I told her.

"Ask me what?" He asked, looking super puzzled at the moment.

Charlotte's face began to take the shade of a tomato, so being the nice cousin that I am, I spoke up for her.

"Well," I began, " Charlotte was curious to know some more about Nicco. He was your best friend when you were in your old group, correct?"

Jagger nodded his head yes. " Yes he was but how do you even know him?" He asked while looking at Charlotte's bright red face.

Looking completely terrified, Charlotte responded." I escaped from Shizuka's organization. She had horrible plans for me and I discovered of them, so I took the chance to run while I could, leaving Nicco behind. But now I regret not taking him with me."

A sigh escaped Jagger's lips. " Figures. Shizuka always has plans up her sleeve." Jagger then changed his demeanor to a more happy one. " Well then, I'd be more than happy to tell you some more about Nicco. Perhaps I could tell you over breakfast? Airilice and I were just heading to the kitchen to get something to eat."

" Sure! I'm hungry anyway," she replied cheerfully, the red draining from her face.

Jagger's emerald eyes then looked into mine. " Would you care to join us KL? You're more than welcome to as well."

" Thanks for the offer Jag, but I actually have something I have to do," I said, motioning my hands down the hallway.

He shrugged, Airilice smiling by his side" Oh,alright. Suit yourself," he replied.

Airilice then spoke up. " Well if you change your mind, you know where to find us."

I nodded my head toward her. " Thank you Airilice."

After we said all of our goodbyes, I was left alone in the vacant hallway. I figured that now would be a good time to check on Shadow, so I decided to make my way to the lab. Drowning in my thoughts, I couldn't help but think that a lot has happened since he had gotten hurt. Making twists and turns through the hallways, I opened the lab door and made sure to keep quiet so I wouldn't attract any more attention than was necessary.

Shadow's lifeless body laid on the cold, metal table as the beeping of machines kept track of his vitals. I moved a circular shaped, pale blue chair next to the table and looked over his body. My lips formed into a slight pout since he had seemed no different than the last time that I seen him.

My heart became heavy with sorrow as I stared at his pale, clammy face. Just as all of the rest of them, I couldn't help but to want him to wake up healthy and full of life again. My heart sunk into my chest as I basked in the empty, overwhelming feeling of desperation. Tears well in my eyes as I shuffled some of his ebony locks out of his face.

" I hope you wake soon Master. You have me and all of the others worried, especially Kratos. I know that he's upset, but he just won't show it. I hope all goes well for both of you. I hope you heal, as well as the scars that he has. He really is a great person, you know. You have a really great student on your hands. He's strong, reliable, and I know that he cares for everyone very much, even if the words never escape his lips. Even though sometimes he can be a bit snippy and hot-headed, I know that he has much respect for you. You're practically all he has. So please Master, I'm begging you to wake up. Not for the sake of me, but for Kratos. He needs you. We need you."

With a heavy heart, I let out a sigh. A teardrop rolled off of my face and onto my arm. Please Master, I have faith in you.

" Goodbye Master," I said while returning the blue chair to its original place in the room. As I walked out of the lab, the patter of footsteps could be heard in a very close proximity. The footsteps were also very heavy, as if the person were wearing some type of boot. I walked at a fast pace down the hall and followed the echoing footsteps around the corner. As my body went around the corner, the footsteps halted but shockingly, nobody was in sight. Standing in the middle of the hallway, a wave of confusion washed over me. It had to be him, but how could he have disappeared just like that? A gasp escaped my lips as I realized that he has most likely heard everything that I had told to Shadow. A knot of nervousness formed within my stomach. I felt like a complete and total fool.

" Kratos," I whispered. His name flew off of my lips and echoed through the hallway, slowly fading away into the atmosphere. Frustrated as I was, a heavy sigh escaped from my stomach and made its way outward through my lips. How was he going to react to what I said? Why did he try to avoid me? Why did he run away and hide? Resisting the urge to scream, I managed to hold in my inner frustration. Watching him continuously run away from people just was frustrating and irritating. He made it so difficult for people to let him in, and honestly I was getting quite tired of this constant behavior.

I hated when he acted like this. Somehow, he always managed to make me question myself and my motives. Before I had a second thought, I dashed off into the forest that was illuminated with sunlight and bright colored leaves. In desperate need of a breather, there was no choice other than to get away from everything that was bothering me at the moment.

Trying to push the thought of him away was unsuccessful because no matter how hard I tried, my anger grew more and more. I just hate the way he acts around me! I hate the way that he avoids me when I question him. I hate how he pushes his emotions away just when I think he is about to break through. Most of all I hate how much I gravitate toward him, almost as if gravity itself continuously pulls me closer and closer to him. He pushes me away, but it's almost as though he wants me to keep trying to break his walls, to unravel his deepest secrets. Why was he acting like this? What good did it do to him to push himself away from everyone?

It feels like he's playing a game and honestly, I don't want to have any part of it. I wish I would have the guts to go up to him and say, 'Don't play with my heart like it's a toy. Don't pretend to be my friend when I know you don't trust me. Stop warming my heart with your smiles, and most of all don't get mad at others who actually make an attempt to be my friend. You put my emotions on the line and I don't like it.' But like always, I have to hide what I feel. Or perhaps I'm just trying to cover up the fact that the thought of this one boy and every single thought that crosses his mind actually may fascinate me. Why does he act the way he does? What drives his motives? I just want to get to know him, but he makes the task so impossible that it can drive people crazy. Even as a Breaker, there is no way to break Kratos. His heart and mind are both carved out of stone, unmovable and impossible to break through. As I felt myself start to get frustrated, I decided to push all of this Kratos talk aside and continue to pace through the trees.

© Lightning_Stryker 2016