NWEOJFWE I'M REALLY SORRY GUYS this chapter took wayyy too long for me to get out but the next one shouldn't take as long. i hope that it was worth the wait though <3 please continue to stay safe and love each other. i know that i'm a little late, but happy pride to everyone!!! anyways, i'll let you all get to the chapter now hehe please enjoy!!! <3

"Y/n-chan... Oi, Y/n-chan! Wake up already!" I was jolted awake by a rough jerk on my shoulder mixed with the fierce whisper shouting of my best friend. I groaned softly, thinking that it was much too early for these kinds of hysterics. I swatted her hand away and snuggled deeper into the warm body that was holding me. "Go away..." My words came out in a slurred mumble as I felt myself slipping back into dreamland. "I will step on you if you don't get your ass out from underneath those covers."

"Haruhi-chan-"

"Imma do it, no regrets!" My eyes opened in a panic to see the brunette holding her foot high above me, ready to stomp me awake if it came to that. I whined childishly, grabbing onto Garou's arm with both of my hands. "Garou! Garou, wake up! Save me from the mean and cruel Haruhi-chan!" Haruhi rolled her eyes as she teasingly lowered her foot toward me. I held my hand above my head in playful panic when I felt Garou's body shift. His hand left my body to snatch Haruhi's ankle, stopping it completely. I glanced up to see his hand gripping her tightly, my friend struggling to get him to let go. Garou didn't even budge as he lazily opened one eye and stared at Haruhi.

The air turned icy cold, shivers running through my body. Haruhi stared back, her face paling slightly. She hardly every was intimidated, so to see this expression on her face was a shock. I didn't blame her, though, as the aura that drifted off of Garou was stifling. It radiated with bloodlust. "Don't touch her." His tone didn't match his sleepy position; instead, he sounded absolutely terrifying. I had only seen this Garou a few times before and each time I did, he seemed to be more and more dangerous. Even though I wasn't the object of his anger, that didn't make it any better.

Haruhi hadn't budged. She was frozen in place, looking back at Garou with genuine fear in her rich brown eyes. Her lips barely moved and nothing but the barest hint of a whisper came from them. She immediately realized and cleared her throat. "I-I understand." Her voice was hoarse and quivering slightly, but Garou seemed satisfied. He released her ankle, making her stumble backwards as she tried to regain her balance. "I'll be waiting for you by the door, Y/n-chan," She mumbled softly before dashing off toward the bathroom. I watched her go, feeling a bit guilty for the actions of my boyfriend. A soft sigh escaped my lips as I turned back to Garou, my eyes scanning his features.

His hand had already curled back around my waist, his eyes closed peacefully, as though nothing had happened. "Garou," I whispered, softly stroking his face. It was hard to believe that he was the same person that was filled with so much bloodlust just moments ago. "Hmm?" He didn't even bother to speak or open his eyes again. All I got was a mere hum of acknowledgement as he pulled me a little closer. "You can't threaten my friends like that,"

At that he opened his eyes, sleepily glaring at me with a small pout on his face. "But she was about to step on you."

"No she wasn't. Haruhi-chan was just joking around-"

"I'm the only one who's allowed to step on you."

I paused at his comment, my face slowly gaining a dark red hue while Garou smirked. "I mean, am I wrong?" He pressed and I glanced away, staring at the pillow he was laying on instead. "We'll talk about this later. I have to go get ready for work," I tried to move only for Garou to pull me closer. "No, you can't. I won't let you." A sigh escaped my lips as I pushed against his chest, trying to get out of his grasp. Per usual, I couldn't even move an inch. I was trapped. "Garou, please."

"No."

I stopped struggling to look at his face, a pout on my lips too. He was being even more stubborn than usual this morning. I put my hands on his face, squishing his cheeks together with a giggle. Garou immediately turned pink and grabbed my wrists, pulling my hands from off of his face. "W-What was that for?!" I just laughed, desperately wishing that I had a picture of his expression in that moment. "Because you wouldn't let me go!"

Garou paused, knowing that I was right, even if he didn't like it. I leaned forward and planted a kiss on his nose. "Let me go. We'll see each other later today."

"Fine, fine," Garou released his grip on me and rolled onto his back with a huff. "I'll let you off the hook this time." I slipped out from underneath the covers, watching him snatch them back and pull the blankets over his body. I had to force myself not to laugh again as to not wake up the other two boys. "You're too kind~" I teased before leaving to get ready.

About thirty minutes later, Haruhi and I were about to head out the door when someone caught my wrist. Garou, who still looked sleepy and disheveled, was standing behind us, leaning against the wall. Haruhi glanced between us before smirking, waving her hand at me. "I'll meet you outside. Take your time~" I blushed at her words, but Haruhi had already disappeared out into the hallway before I could get back at her.

I turned to Garou as he pulled me toward him with a lazy yawn. He wrapped his arms around me, holding me against his chest as he nuzzled into the crook of my neck. "Garou?" My voice was tentative; he usually wasn't so clingy, I couldn't help but worry at least a little bit. "Have a good day at work." His words tickled my skin as he spoke, his breath making that area of my neck feel especially warm. "I'll miss you."

My heart leapt into my throat at the second half of his sentence. I never really thought about it before, but this was the first time that he was saying this to me. Part of my wanted to cry a little, but I held it together. It wasn't even eight o'clock yet. I couldn't let myself breakdown so early in the morning. Even if Garou was tugging at all of my heartstrings. I held onto him a little tighter, thinking about how good he smelled. "I-I'll miss you too..." As we pulled away from the embrace, I felt out hands naturally touch, not quite interlocking, but resting against one another's.

I stared into his hazy yellow eyes, the ones that we still soft from his own drowsiness. "I love you," As I spoke, I felt a natural smile tug at my lips. Garou smiled back at me, almost bashful. "I love you too, Y/n."

"I have to go now."

"Okay."

There was no complaining this time. Instead, Garou leaned down and pressed a soft, sleepy kiss on my lips. His movements were tender and gentle, the kiss lasting for only a moment before we both pulled away in some bittersweet motion. I lingered for only a second longer before shyly waving and dashing out of the apartment.

I let out a breath that I didn't know I had been holding after I closed the door behind me. My heart was beating like crazy and I felt oddly giddy. I covered my blushing cheeks, softly whimpering and giggling at the same time. A stupid, love-struck grin was plastered to my covered face as I replayed the scene that had just happened over and over again in my head. My lips were still tingling from the kiss before. It was anything deep or intimate, but it felt so special. Like Garou and I had moved onto to something greater than just mutual attraction. We weren't so afraid of really caring for one another anymore.

"Are you done yet?" A harsh voice jerked me out of my rose colored fantasy. I looked up from out of my hands to see Haruhi's smug face in front of mine. "That was quite the show you two gave me, but you're reaction now is also pretty good." My blush went from a soft pink to beet red at her words. "Were you watching?! How long have you been here?! How did you even-"

"Peephole, duh." Haruhi gestured to the small glassy like orb that was on every door on the hallway. She then grabbed my hand and began dragging me toward the elevator. "Now c'mon, I don't wanna open the cafe late or else we'll get in some serious trouble." I sputtered back unintelligibly, but there was nothing that I could think of to say back as I tried desperately not to trip over myself as we ran.

Haruhi hopped into her car and I climbed into the passenger seat next to her. She cranked up the engine and the car hummed to life, all the lights on the dashboard coming to life as music poured out of the radio. She joined in, singing off key to the popular song that was playing as she pulled out from the communal garage and onto the street. After that song had finished, she turned down until we could barely make out the lyrics. We were stuck at a red light, the dull silence creating a tense atmosphere between us. I glanced over at my best friend who had her eyes fixated on the road, her jaw tense. "Haru-"

"Who is Garou?" She finally broke the silence, her question making my body feel cold. "What are you talking about?" The light turned blue and Haruhi continued driving, still refusing to look at me. Her grip on the wheel tightened. "I mean, who is he really?"

Again, I didn't quite understand what she was getting at, but I had a sinking suspicion. Did she know about his hero hunting? Had she seen him in the act before. I hadn't really put too much thought into that side of him since my memories had started to come back, but at the same time, I couldn't just ignore it. It was hard and confusing; my moral compass hadn't quite returned to normal since that day and her questions were just making it spin wilder and wilder.

"The only reason I ask is because..." Haruhi stopped at the crosswalk, finally turning to look at me. "Is he a street fighter?! Because I swear I've seen him somewhere before and he gives off that intimidating vibe so I was like 'maybe I saw him in one'! Cause like I end up seeing and betting on a bunch of them so that would be really cool, you know?!" She rambled on, her eyes glittering with childlike excitement.

I let out an inward sigh of relief, trying not to let my emotions show on my face. "Yeah, he is actually!" I just went along with Haruhi's idea, deciding that by agreeing with her, I was necessarily lying. It was a half-truth as Garou, in some sort of twisted way, was a street fighter. She squealed, basically fangirling, as she tried to keep her attention on the road in front of us. "That is just so cool! Wow, Y/n-chan, I never thought that you were into the bad boy type but boy was I wrong!"

"The bad boy type?!" I squeaked, interrupting my friend's fangirl moment. "I do not have a type, period." Haruhi burst out into laughter, her eyes tearing up as she glanced at me, pointing a finger at my face. Her mockery continued for a few more minutes, the brunette gasping for air at the end only to see my face and start laughing all over again. "What?!" I finally shouted as she gave me a smug grin, clearly trying not to burst out into fits of laughter again. "Oh nothing, Y/n-chan... Nothing at all."

I huffed at her blatant lie as Haruhi parked the car in front of the cafe and we both got out, ready to hurry and open the store.

********************************************

The day was fairly normal, yet still busy. People came in boughs for our Sunday brunch so thankfully, neither Makoto or Picho were late and we could have all hands on deck. After three, however, things slowed down and we could focus mainly on cleanup and getting things ready for Monday. The occasional student or elder would trickle in here and there, order a drink, and sit down to read or study, but other than that, it was a slow afternoon.

The four of us were getting ready to close up for the day when I noticed that my phone had fallen out of my bag and onto the base of my locker. I giggled and grabbed it, thankful that I had noticed it before I went home. It would have been both terrifying and annoying if I hadn't.

Everyone said their goodbyes and Picho locked the doors, giving the signal that we were all free to go home. I walked briskly back to my own apartment, wondering if Garou would be there when I got home. It was almost always hit or miss, but ever since we had got him a phone, he'd usually give me a heads up. I checked my texts to see one from him.

Okay, I'll be there

I quirked my head when I read it. What was he talking about. Be where? Had I sent him something earlier that I forgot about? I quickly went to his name on my phone to check the texts but all of the ones before his message had been deleted. I know that I didn't do that. Had someone been going through my phone? Nervous heat began to build up in my throat as I ran back to the apartment. My hands shakily unlocked the door, walking in and hoping that maybe the lights were on and Garou was there and this was all just some big misunderstanding.

But from the second I walked in, I knew that he wasn't there. The lights were dark and everything had been locked up. My heart began beating faster as a sick, nauseating feeling churned in my stomach. My instincts were practically screaming that there was something wrong, that something bad was about to happen. I threw my bag on the floor and grabbed my phone, this time calling Garou.

It rang.

And rang.

And rang.

And rang.

The line had gone dead.