Maria chewed her lip, her hands clenching on the counter as Sojo walked in front of her. She was quiet as he talked, just as always. He never used to talk as much as this in the past...mostly he had listened to her childish babble...this was different...but familiar at the same time. She sighed gently, watching him with the same unreadable expression.<br/><br/>When he started rambling about the demons, and how he was able to stop then, Maria's face turned pale and she rushed over to him, covering his mouth with her gloved hand. "Don't say that out loud." Maria said, shaking her head furiously. "They torture people for hoping that. They'll kill you if they here you say that." Maria said. She didn't want to get her hopes up...even if Sojo did look so hopeful and convinced that what he was saying was true. She realized then how close she was to him, and she pulled her hand away gently, stepping back softly.<br/><br/>Maria flexed her fingers, cracking her knuckles gently before looking back at Sojo as he stepped closer to her.<br/>"Ang..." she started, trailing off as he placed the necklace around her neck. "I..." she didn't know what to say. He had made these for her...Her eyes went wide as he said he loved her, and she looked up at him in amazement and shock.<br/><br/>She ran her fingers through her hair and shook her head gently, forcing herself to take a deep breath lest she start to cry. She backed away for a moment, still shaking her head in disbelief, his words ringing in her head.<br/>"An-"<br/><br/>"Marianna! It's time for dinner." Maria gasped suddenly at the call from her mother. Her eyes went wide and she held her head for a moment.<br/>"I-I'm not hungry!" Maria yelled up the stairs, resting against the railings for a moment. This was turning out to be a hell of a day. Maria rubbed her face, taking a deep breath to calm her racing heart. She half wondered if she was dreaming...maybe it was all just a wonderful dream...She clenched her hands until her nails dug into her palms.<br/>"Oh." Maria murmured softly, looking down at her hand. That had hurt a bit. She wasn't dreaming then. She chewed her lip softly before looking back at Sojo.<br/>"You won't be leaving again....will you?" She asked quietly, trying to keep the emotions out of her voice, make it seem like she was just curious and asking a simple question.