Full Metal Panic 1. Tutoring Torture

**When It Rains, It Pours**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own anything.

* * *

**Chapter One: Tutoring Torture**

He stood in front of her apartment door ten minutes before he actually rang the buzzer. His hands gripped the handle of his bag nervously. Quickly, he mentally went through all the weaponry he would need to survive his mission.

_Glock 19 and a clip of rubber bullets, check.__  
_

_Sling and titanium bullets, check.__ Smoke grenades, check._

_Taser and combat knife, check._

_Mini explosives and detonators, check._

He was just about to go through his various types of explosives when he saw the door open in front of him.

"Sousuke, what are you doing?"

Sousuke instantly ended his list to notice Kaname's baffled face as she leaned against the doorframe.

"Good evening, Chidori. I was simply listing the various weaponry I have on me to be sure that I can complete my mission and-"

"Yeah, right, I know all that, but why were you standing outside my door for the last ten minutes? My neighbor just called me because she thought you were some sort of stalker."

"I am not a stalker, I am a specialist."

"Whatever, just get in."

Sousuke followed her into the apartment, and closed the door behind him. A warm smell graced his senses as he noticed that Kaname long hair was pulled back in a pony-tail and that she was sporting a white apron.

"I'm making some dinner for the two of us," she smiled as she walked into the small kitchen. "I figured you'd at least enjoy a dinner that was more than just protein bars and water."

"That is very kind of you, Chidori. Do you need any assistance?"

"NO!" Kaname screamed, remembering the horrors from the last time she had allowed him to help her cook. Her food processor would never be the same. "Just get yourself situated in the living room and I'll be there in a minute, okay?"

Sousuke nodded and did as instructed. He opened his book bag and placed the various textbooks and notebooks onto her coffee table. He enjoyed his tutoring session a great deal, for reasons besides the fact that without them he would defiantly fail every one of his classes. After Kaname sat down and explained things to him, though, everything seemed to click. She was always so sincere and passionate, not to mention her harisen was never in sight. With her guard down, Kaname was a much gentler person, which never ceased to fascinate Sousuke.

It seemed that ever since their ordeal in Hong Kong, he was treading on very dangerous ground with his relationship with the blue-haired beauty. Every time he thought back to intense feelings he had when he thought that Kaname was killed, he became more and more confused. Throughout his life he was never very in-touch with his emotions. He was a solider and was expected to complete his missions in order to survive. Emotions could often cloud one's mind, causing a lack in judgment which nearly always promised death on the battlefield. What good could these new feelings to do than sabotage his mission and put Kaname in danger?

He was ripped from his thoughts by Kaname tapping his head with a wooden spoon.

"Chidori?" he asked dryly as she continued to tap his head. "Why are you hitting me with that spoon?"

"Because you're not listening to me," she growled, emphasizing each word with a rap from her spoon. "I just said that we should get started while dinner is cooking, that way we can get some work done."

"Affirmative," Sousuke nodded and watched as Kaname took a seat next to him. He watched intently as she flipped through her own calculus notebook.

Together they worked intensity, only to take a break when Kaname had to leave and tend to the food on the stove. Sousuke was struck with admiration as she thoroughly and clearly explained each problem to him. Silently he wondered if she even knew what she was saying, or if it was her Whispered-talents speaking for her.

He was just going over the small packet of revision notes when Kaname called him to the small dining area to eat. He closed his book and made his way to the kitchen and noticed how nicely the table was set up and how delicious the food smelt. Knowing it was because he was over, Sousuke thanked Kaname for her hospitality.

"Oh c'mon, it's nothing, really. I just wanted it to be nice for you since..." Her voice trailed off, and her eyes focused intently on the table.

"Since what, Chidori?"

Kaname snapped back into reality, and forced a loud laugh, "Nothing, never mind. Pretend I didn't say anything, okay?"

Reluctantly he nodded, watching her as she quickly sat down in front of her plate, and waited for him to do the same. They ate in a comfortable silence that was only broken whenever Kaname would quickly mention a tip on doing well in Calculus.

"You see, the basics of calculus are the definitions, formulas, and theorems that are introduced in class. Once you memorize that, you'll have a much clearer understanding of it. Your problem is that you're hardly ever in class, so you are always missing a lot of important notes."

"So it seems," Sousuke said with a nod. "However, school is not my first priority."

"What are you talking about, Sousuke?" Kaname nearly shouted, pointing her fork at him dangerously close. "School should be your first priority! Education is the foundation of success in any situation; even a crazed military-nut like you should know that!"

"I am well aware of that fact, and to any civilian a high school education should be their prime concern. Nevertheless, I am a specialist first, a body guard second and a student third."

He noticed Kaname's body stiffen, and for a moment he panicked. Had he said something to upset her? Should he duck underneath the table or were there any other possible escape routes from her temper? However to his surprise, and relief, she did not yell or hit him with anything. Instead, she sat quietly and began to play with her food.

He was just about to ask her if she was alright when she asked, "Which life do you like better, Sousuke, the life of a solider or the life of a student?"

The question took him off guard, but was not an unfamiliar one. It just so happened to be the very same question he had asked himself nearly a thousand times during his mission in Hong Kong. The life of a solider was the only life he had ever known, and it wasn't until the last six months of his life that he realized there was a life besides survival, strategy and sacrifice. He would only be lying if he said the peaceful life of a civilian was not alluring to him. He was learning so many new things about not only society, but about himself as well.

Looking into Kaname's wide, brown eyes, he could only give her an honest answer, "I don't know."

With a single nod, Kaname gave him a small smile before changing her attention to her plate. They continued their dinner in a thick, intense silence.

When Sousuke's plate was cleared, he noticed that Kaname's was far from it. He watched as she absentmindedly pushed her food around her plate in a daze. Frowning, he immediately became concern. Kaname always had a healthy appetite and he had never seen her push any sort of food away before. There was definitely something wrong.

"Chidori...is there a reason you have not finished your food?"

Kaname snapped back to reality and stared at him blankly, "Oh...I guess wasn't as hungry as I thought. I'm just feeling a little tired."

He frowned; sluggishness and lack of awareness were never good signs. His attention instantly switched to Kaname's hand, which she was slowly opening and closing. Could it be that she was suffering from hand paresthesia? He quickly looked underneath the table and noticed that she was also flexing her toes, a sure sign of foot paresthesia as well. Sousuke felt beads of sweat gather on his forehead, knowing full well what was wrong with Kaname.

"Chidori, I need you to answer a very important question for me," he asked, meeting her eyes in an intense stare as he reached and took her hand in his. He noticed her face flush and how warm and clammy her hand was, she must have a fever as well.

"Uh...sure, I guess," she answered slowly. He swallowed a lump in his throat, now her speech was slowing down. He needed to act fast.

"Are you experiencing any sort of constipation?"

"...WHAT?!" Kaname instantly ripped her hand from his, standing up so quickly that she lost her balance and fell over her chair. He instantly ran to her side and helped her up.

"You must not overexert yourself in your condition," he insisted, helping her to her feet. "Victims of Hypothyroidism may experience dizziness due to their lack of nutrition and exhaustion."

"Are you joking? I don't-" she began, but he cut her off.

"I would never joke about your health or well being. It is my duty to keep you safe, and that also includes the safely of your thyroid."

"My thyroid?"

"Yes, Hypothyroidism is the most common form of thyroid disease," he explained, the slowness of Kaname's speech worrying him still. "It occurs when the thyroid does not produce enough thyroid hormone-causing the body use energy more slowly than it should. Now, have you been experiencing increased menstrual flow?"

Kaname's face turned bright red as she kicked Sousuke over the kitchen table with a scream. He tumbled into the wall with a loud crash. She instantly turned away from him and covered her face with her hand, trying to regain composure.

"There's nothing to be embarrassed about, Chidori," Sousuke calmly explained from his position at the base at the wall. "However, Hypothyroidism is a very serious-"

"My thyroid is fine, Sousuke," she said softly, stopping him mid-sentence. She began to rub her temples slowly. "But I think you should go home, now."

"If you're not feeling well, I want you to tell me. I'll do whatever is in my power to help."

"I have a really bad migraine, and unless you have some magical medicine along with all those guns and bombs you carry around, you're powerless to do anything about it but make it worse."

"Chidori..."

"Look, I'll clean this up and make you a nice, big doggy bag to bring home," she said as she began to clean up the table. "And since we wont be able to go over your Japanese History homework, I want to you go to my room and take my notebook from my desk. Just use it as a reference, alright? So you better not go copying the entire thing!"

"It's not a problem," Sousuke said quietly and made his way to Kaname's bedroom as quickly as possible.

It wasn't often that he was allowed in such a sacred area as Kaname's bedroom, and began to feel anxious the moment he opened the door. After flicking the lights on, he noticed that there were two identical notebooks on her desk. Quickly, he made his way to her desk and took both notebooks into his hands for a quick examination. Just as he was about to open each notebook to inspect the contents, he heard Kaname call his name from the hallway.

He knew that Kaname was already mad, and the last thing he wanted was for her to get even angrier at his incompetence. Still, he knew better than to haphazardly grab any notebook without inspecting its contents. He heard Kaname yell his name once more, and felt himself stiffen with fear of her temper. Going against his better judgment, and military instincts, he rested one of the notebooks back on the desk and quickly left the bedroom.

* * *

_  
And so, my first FMP chapter story begins! I was going to try my best to try to condense this down to one of my usual one-shots, but I decided to test my luck on a longer story. Since classes are over for the summer, I'll do my best to try to get this story finished as quickly as I possibly can. By the looks of it though, it most likely won't be anything long, but you never know!_


	2. Morning Rush

**When It Rains, It Pours **

**Disclaimer:** I do not own anything.

* * *

**Chapter Two: Morning Rush **

Although the morning sun was shining brightly, Kaname's mood was not improved. Sluggishly she brushed her long, blue hair in the mirror and watched as her sleepy reflection stared back at her.

After Sousuke had left the night before, all Kaname could do was crawl into her bed and mope. Her thoughts ran away with her and they all had to do with a certain military nutcase. She had buried her head in her pillow and screamed loudly in her frustration.

Why was it that every time she felt she had made any sort of progress with Sousuke, all he had to do was open his mouth to prove to her wrong? She had truly thought that the ordeal in Hong Kong would have somehow showed Sousuke just how much she cared for him.

Honestly, how many girls would go through perverted old men, deadly assassins, not to mention kiss-stealing-playboys, just bring a boy back to Tokyo?

With a sigh, she had turned to her side a saw a picture Shinji had taken of them all during one of their many beach visits that past summer. Her eyes ignored the faces of her smiling classmates and were glued on Sousuke's sullen features. Staring at the picture, she couldn't help but think of the question that had been floating around inside her head since the two of them had returned from Hong Kong.

Was it all really worth it?

And thanks to those sort of thoughts, Kaname was up nearly the entire night and now looked terribled. She was never a morning person, but even a naturaly pretty girl like herself needed her beauty sleep. After doing all she could with her tired face, she made her way to her desk to pack up her books for school.

As she was packing, she noticed something strange. Her Japanese History notebook was sitting on her desk. She could've sworn she saw Sousuke walk out the door with it the night before, so why was it still in her room?

"He must've taken the wrong book," she mumbled to herself. "Leave it to that moron to be so careless. I wonder what book he..."

The moment the realization hit her, Kaname felt all the air exit her body, as if she had be punched in the chest. Frantically, she began to search her room for the small notebook, hoping and praying that it was just lost and not in the hands of a certain soilder.

Her search came up empty, and Kaname reached for her cell phone and called Sousuke's number.

After four rings, it went to voicemail.

She screamed in frustration and threw her phone at her bed, where it bounced off and fell into her laundry hamper.

She didn't have time to worry, though, as she slipped on her sneaker, grabbed her bag and rushed out of her apartment. She didn't even bother waiting for the elevator, but instead stormed down the staircase. Unlike every other morning, Sousuke was not waiting for her outside her apartment to escort her to the school.

Had he been assigned to another mission, or did he actually read the contents of the book and no longer wished to see her?

As she sprinted to the train station, the mental image Tessa laughing at her with Sousuke by her side flashed through her mind. Kaname shook the images away and made her way to the ticket booth. When she asked for her usual ticket, the vender gave her a strange look.

"Sorry, hon, but that train left a good five minutes ago."

Baffled, she looked at the clock overhead and saw that the vender was right. All that searching for her notebook had caused her to be late and her to miss her usual morning train.

"Is there another train on that route anytime soon?" she pleaded.

The vender shook his head, "The next one isn't for at least another twenty minutes."

Growing even more aggravated at the darkening situation, Kaname looked over her shoulder to see an older couple exiting a taxi. She quickly ran and jumped into the car, just as the couple was paying the driver.

"Jindai Municipal High School," she nearly screamed. "And hurry!"

"Uh...sure," the driver said as he sped away from the station. "It's not a problem."

The phrase struck Kaname's heartstring, a reminder of why she was rushing to school in the first place. She leaned against the seat and thought of how she could explain the contents of the notebook to him. She couldn't tell him the truth, of course. That would be just too mortifying, and besides, if she couldn't tell him in Hong Kong then there was no way she would be able to tell him now.

Or maybe he already knew, but pretended to play dumb to spare her feelings. Could it be that him and Tessa were having some steamy affair on the Tuatha De Danaan? She remembered the little twit slipping to her that she and Sousuke had been alone on a beach together. Images of the two running through waves and splashing each other in raced through Kaname's mind. She began to claw the faux-leather interior of the taxi in anger.

"Ugh! That's such an underhanded move, Tessa!" she screamed, gaining the attention of the driver.

"Ex-excuse me?" he stammered as he looked at her through his mirror.

"Uh...it's nothing." Kaname stammered, feeling her face grow red with embarrassment. "I...uh...thought I saw someone outside the cab that I knew."

The driver raised an eyebrow at her lame excuse, and informed her that they were in front of Jindai High. Feeling even more embarrassed for not noticing, Kaname paid the driver and gave him a nice tip. She exited the cab and ran to the front of the school.

She checked her wristwatch and saw that she still had some time before homeroom started, and frantically made her way to her shoe locker. She was just in the middle of slipping on her right shoe when Shinji entered.

"Shinji!" Kaname called gaining his attention.

"Oh, good morning, Kaname," he greeted, stopping dead in his tracks. "How are yo-"

"Have you seen Sousuke anywhere?" she interrupted, knowing if anyone would know where an arm slave loving nerd was, it would be another arm slave loving nerd.

"I just saw him not too long ago talking to Ms. Kagurazaka. Did he blow something up again?"

"Not really...but, let's just say he has a ticking time bomb in his possession."

"A ticking time bomb?!"

"No, not a real bomb. That was just a figure of speech," Kaname insisted, remembering that when talking about Sousuke one had to be wary of what they said. "He just has something of mine that may cause a lot problems if I don't get it back."

"Oh," Shinji let out a sigh of relief, "Well I saw them in the classroom talking. You can check to see if he's still there, but you should hurry since homeroom is about to start."

Kaname thanked Shinji and hurried to the classroom, lucky that her athletic talents had come through for her. She slid opened the door and saw Sousuke sitting nonchalantly in his desk.

"Oh, good morning, Chidori," he greeted. "Are you feeling any better?"

Kaname clenched her fist in anger, "To be honest, no, but that's none of your concern."

"Chidori, your well being is always my con-"

"Where were you this morning?!" she demanded.

"I...uh...I was helping Ms. Kagurazaka in the classroom. I am still being punished for dismantling her car, as you remember."

"Oh...that's right." Kaname's voice trailed off, but she soon found her spunk once again. "But then why didn't you answer your cell phone when I called you? What if something bad happened to me on the way to school!"

"Uh...well..." Sousuke began, sweating from Kaname's interrogation.

"I can answer for that," Ms. Kagurazaka said from her desk in the front of the room. "I took away his cell phone because I did not want him to be distracted from his punishment. Now, Chidori, if you would kindly lower your voice. This is classroom, not a sports arena."

"Yes," Kaname said with a bow. "I'm sorry."

The moment Ms. Kagurzaka left the classroom to quickly pick up some papers from her office, Kaname quickly swung around to face Sousuke again.

"Um...Sousuke?"

"Yes, Chidori?"

"Do you have my notebook?"

"Affirmative," Sousuke said with a nod as he reached into his bag and brought out the tiny notebook that had caused Kaname such a stressful morning. "As always, your notes were far superior to mine."

"What?"

"As you requested, I used your notes as reference and I was a little surprised at first. I had no idea that our assignment was actually supposed to be writen as a journal entry, however as I looked over my own assignment I realized that our reading was actually based off the memoirs of Emperor Meijii."

"Uh...well...I..."

"I found that your assignment really showed the personal bond between the Emperor and his military. I was very impressed, Chidori."

Knowing full well that their assignment was not supposed to be written in a journal format, Kaname was torn. It seemed that Sousuke, clueless as always, had taken the notebook to actually be their assignment. Then again, if Kaname was to explain the true reason why her "assignment" was written that way, would also lead to them discussing was actually in the notebook. However, she couldn't just leave him to hand in the wrong assignment, he was already practically failing the class as it was.

If Kaname Chidori had anything, it was a great sense of right and wrong. She knew what she had to do, even though it may prove disastrous in the end.

"Sousuke," she began, quietly. "There's something I-"

She was cut off by the bell sounding and Ms. Kagurazaka quickly entering the classroom.

"Uh...rise," Kaname stammered as she and her classmates rose from their seats as their teacher entered the room. "And...uh...bow."

After the class was seated once more, Ms. Kagurazaka flipped through the papers on her desk.

"Chidori," she asked, as she picked up the paper she was looking for, "Are you feeling alright?"

"Yes...I'm fine."

Ms. Kagurazaka gave her a suspicious look before beginning the class.

"We will now go over your homework from last night. Would anyone be so kind as to volunteer to read their assignments out loud?"

Ms. Kagurazaka looked around the room, and Kaname felt a lump gather in her throat. She knew that if Sousuke was called on, he would not only make a fool of himself, but would share what was in the notebook with their entire class.

Fearing mortification above anything else, Kaname instantly raised her hand.

"I'll read mine out loud, Ms. Kagurazaka."

"Thank you for volunteering, but I think it's time we have someone else in the class read for once," Ms. Kagurazaka said as she tapped her chin with her index finger.

With every tap, Kaname felt herself that much closer to having a mental breakdown.

_'Oh please,'_ she prayed to whatever God was listening. _'Have some sympathy...'_

"Let's see..."

_'I'm a good person, and after all the stress and frusration I go through with him, I deserve something nice..."_

"Who haven't I called on in a while?"

_'And besides, there are nearly twenty kids in this class...'_

"How about you read out your assignment..."

_'Don't let her call on him.'_

"Sagara!"

_'OH COME ON!'_

"Affirmative," Sousuke said as he rose from his desk.

"No," Kaname whispered in a sad attempt to make him stop. He might as well had been aimig a loaded pistol at her, for the moment he read his assignment, her life would be over.

"_'If there is one thing I have learned from all this',_" Sousuke read. "'_Is that there are no better heroes to me than those in the military. I know it sounds strange, but every time I see him in his uniform, I have this strange sense of pride. Because he is protecting me, and no one else. I am his prime concern and my well being is constantly on his mind, and when I remember that I get this wonderful flutter in my heart. Maybe we have some common ground after all, and I am on his mind as often as he is on mine_.'"

Kaname felt as if the ground had crumbled from beneath her and she was in free fall. She felt so many emotions boil and churn within her heart that she swore she felt it burst from emotional overload.

"Um, Sagara," Ms. Kagurazaka said. "Wasn't Chidori supposed to help you catch up on the work?"

"Yes, and she has. Is there a problem?"

"Well, it's just that I don't think you understood the assignment. It was supposed to be about the Imperial Rescript to Soldiers and Sailors issued by Emperor Meijii."

All she could do was feel the gaping hole in her chest where her heart must had exploded. It had to have, there was no other explanation for the pain she was in.

"I am aware of that," Sousuke said, looking over his notebook. "Isn't that what I was just reading to the class?"

The echoing words of Sousuke reading those words, those very private words, to the entire class rang in her ears.

She could never forgive him.

"What you were just reading to the class, you good for nothing military moron," Kaname screamed from her seat. "Was an excerpt from my diary!"

* * *

_Oh Sousuke...bad. Poor Kaname. I think that's every teenage girl's fear that their diary will be read to their entire class. Anyway, it had to be done for the greater good of increasing the plot of this story. Sacrifices must be made, as they say. _

_Thank you _**hottytottie90**_ and _**La Flor del Fuego **_for reviewing, _**PatternGirl **_and _**sippingsodapop **_ for adding the story to their favorites after just the first chapter and lastly _**Jtmscola**_, _**hottytottie90**_, and _**sippingsodapop **_for adding this to their alerts!_

_I'll make sure to update...soon...ish. :P_


	3. Falling Sideways

**When It Rains, It Pours**

**Disclaimer:** I do not own anything.

* * *

**Chapter Three: Falling Sideways**

Sousuke's stomach did flips as he sat in one of the hard, wooden seats in front of the Principal office. It was not his first time in such a predicament; however it was his first one alone. Normally Kaname would be sitting next to him giving him a good scolding (or beating from the halisen, depending on the situation) for his actions. However, the two empty chairs on the opposite sides of him was just another reminder of what he had done.

After Kaname's outburst in the middle of class, everyone went silent, Sousuke felt his hands shake violently and the notebook fall from his hands. Kaname, on the other hand, lost all composure. He could tell from her face that she didn't know whether to scream or to cry. In the end, she did neither, and instead sprinted out of the classroom.

Quickly after her dramatic exit, their classmates began to talk, more confused by the situation than anything else. The force of everyone talking at once seemed to make the small classroom shake. Then again, that could've just been Sousuke shaking.

Ms. Kagurzaka instantly ordered Kyoko to follow Kaname and make sure she was alright. Without a second though, the bispecal girl flew out of the classroom after her friend.

'Sagara!' The teacher fought valiantly to regain control of her class, but to no avail. If anything, the commotion became even louder. Sousuke had never seen her so angry before, even when he completely dismantled her car. She was absolutely fuming. "What is the meaning of this?"

'Uh...' was all he could manage.

'You should be aware that in my classroom there is zero tolerance for bullying or hazing of any kind!'

'Uh...'

'Don't try to smooth-talk your way out of this one, Sagara!'

'Uh...'

'Report the principal's office, now!'

Without hast, he exited the classroom but not before hearing Ms. Kagurzaka resorting to scratching the chalkboard in order to gain her students attention. As he made his way down the long hallways of Jindai High School, he almost felt like he was having an out of body experience. He was still in shock that he, after all these months, had finally done it...

He had finally broken Kaname Chidori.

And he felt awful about it.

Still, he could not help but wonder why on earth she would ever write such intimate details in such an unsuspecting notebook. Although he knew of many men in the military who kept notes and records of their battle in order to improve, he could not help but wonder why Kaname would. Could it be that she was trying to improve herself and used the journal to take note of her progress?

Sousuke thought back to the entry he had read the night before. Being a man of his word, he obeyed Kaname's order and only read the "assignment" for that night. To him, it seemed that the entry was based around Emperor Meijii's growing understanding and affection for his troops.

"'_If there is one thing I have learned from all this_'," Sousuke had remembered. "'_is that there are no better heroes to me than those in the military_'"

However, since the author of the entry was actually Kaname and not Emperor Meijii, the entry no longer made sense to him. Unless...could it be that Kaname was considering joining the armed forces?

Thinking back, Sousuke remembered seeing Kaname waking up unusually early and taking morning jogs recently. She claimed it was to keep her in shape during the girls basketball's off season, but could it really be basic army training? He also remembered her spending a lot of time with Mao during her last visit. Was it that his superior was giving Kaname tips and information on how to join Milthril? Hadn't she shown some interest in the Arbalest during their visit to the Tuatha De Danaan?

Lost in his own thoughts, Sousuke had barely noticed Kyoko standing in front of the girl's bathroom door. He stopped just in time, avoiding colliding with the girl.

'My apologies, Tokiwa,' he said quickly. 'I was just on my way to the principal's office; I didn't mean to almost run into you.'

'The principal's office is the other way, Sagara,' Kyoko nearly spat, her usual friendliness was lost. 'You should know that by now.'

'Affirmative...I suppose I was not paying attention to what I was doing.'

'That wouldn't be your first time doing that, would it?'

'I don't understand, Tokiwa. I-'

'That's right!" Kyoko had said, stomping her foot in anger. 'You don't understand! You always hurt Kana's feelings, and you never learn from your mistakes! And now look what you've done! You've hurt her now worse than ever before!'

'Tokiwa...I didn't...it wasn't my intention to...I'm sorry, but-'

'Don't say that unless you mean it!" Kyoko nearly screamed, her eyes filling with tears. 'Just...go away.'

Sousuke stood in front of Kyoko, and although he was a good two heads taller than she, he felt incredibly small. After a long silence, he mustered up enough courage to turn around and headed for the principal's office.

After leaving the confrontation with Kyoko, the young operative had spent the next half and hour sitting in the principal's office. The secretary had assured him that it would only be a few minute wait, but then again that had been a good ten minutes ago.

Sitting and waiting in the cold, lonely office the secretary offered him a peppermint candy which he kindly refused. Just as she was placing the basket back on her desk, the principal's office door flew open with a bang. Sousuke quickly aimed his pistol at the figure at the door, while the Secretary smiled unfazed, quite used to Sousuke's behavior by this point. The sedatives she had become custom to taking every morning made sure of that.

"Good Morning, Vice Principal," she said with a bow.

The Vice Principal would have returned the friendly greeting if it wasn't for Sousuke's gun being aimed directly in front of his face.

"Sagara," he growled, staring at the gun. "I see you've managed to land yourself in the principal's office...again."

"Affirmative, sir," Sousuke replied as he lowered his weapon

"That's odd, it seems your partner in crime is not accompanying you this time."

"Excuse me, sir?"

"Ms. Kaname Chidori," the old man said, as he began to use his tie to clean the lens of his old-framed glasses. "She is normally with you during each of your little episodes."

"Actually sir, she is the reason I am here. You see, it seems that I've done a great wrong to her."

"You've done a great wrong, you say," The vice principal's face curled into an almost sinister grin that looked very out of place on his normally grouchy face. He held the door opened for the young solider, "In any case, Sagara, Principal Tsuboi will see you now."

Sousuke thanked the man and made his way into the office, closing the door behind him and accidentally on the Vice Principal's fingers. He heard the middle aged man cursing heavily from the other side of the door.

"Ah, if it isn't my good friend, Sagara," Principal Tsuboi greeted as a warm smile graced her features. "Please come in and sit down."

The teenager nodded and sat in his usual seat in front of Principal Tsuboi's desk. The elderly woman slowly slipped off her glasses and gracefully proceeded to fold her hands on top of her desk. She offered Sousuke a glass of water, which he kindly refused.

"Not this time, ma'am, for it seems that this visit will be much different than my others."

"I can see that, Sagara. Where is Ms. Chidori this morning?"

"She is most likely in the nurse's office with Tokiwa, ma'am."

"She is with Tokiwa? Why, whatever for?"

"Ms. Kagurzaka ordered her to take care of Chidori after she had run from the classroom."

Sousuke explained what had happened in the class that morning to the principal, who nodded and let out a long sigh.

"Oh, Sagara," she said, leaning back in her chair. "What I am to do with you?"

"I wish I knew, Ma'am."

"That would make two of us. Did you mean to hurt Ms. Chidori's feelings when you read that to the class?"

"Of course not, ma'am," Sousuke exclaimed, showing more emotion than the Principal have ever seen from him. "It was never my intention to cause Chidori any harm, considering it is my duty to protect her. I would do anything to protect her, ma'am, even if it cost me my life."

"Your duty?" the Principal was taken by surprise. "Oh my...I never realized that you two were on such intimate terms. Well, actually, now that I think about it, it does seem very obvious that you two are..."

The elderly woman trailed off and pressed a slender finger against her chin in thought. Sousuke, on the other hand, was lost.

"Uh...ma'am?"

"Oh...I'm sorry," Principal Tsuboi snapped back to reality and looked at Sousuke with a warm smile. "Are you truly sorry, Sagara?"

"Yes, Ma'am," Sousuke said, sincerely.

"Would you like if I were to call her into my office so you could apologize to her?"

"Yes Ma'am, I would like that very much." Sousuke said as the principal took the phone in her hand. "Uh...however, could you request that she not bring her halisen with her?"

Principal Tsuboi nodded with a smile and paged the secretary and requested that she call Kaname Chidori to her office.

* * *

_Wow! I checked my mail for the first time after a week and I see that I've got at least 10 alerts for this and not to mention a bunch of new reviews! I was going to hold off on this chapter, but since I have so many new followers, I can't do that to you guys. Thanks everyone!_

_On a different note, have any of you guys played those Ace Attorney games for the DS? The Phoenix Wright ones where you got to go find the bad guys and prove your client innocent? I know it sounds weird, but I'm not kidding you guys, these games are as intense as they are addictive. Within the last week, I've been to the store around three times to buy these games, and I suggest you do too._

_So, if I don't update for while don't blame me, blame Phoenix Wright. _


	4. Get it? Got it? Good

**When It Rains, It Pours**

**Disclaimer:** I do not own anything.

* * *

**Chapter Four: Get it? Got it? Good.**

She knew she shouldn't, especially while working, but what other choice did she have? She couldn't hold it in anymore, her self control could only withstand so much. What was the chance that a costumer would come up to the register right then and there anyway? Besides, it would only take a second.

Leaning against the counter, the maitre'd of the small cafe let out a long, drone, sigh as she collapsed onto the counter.

"I'm sorry," snapped a female costumer, who seemed to of instantly appeared out of thin air. Her faux-tanned, orange skin had received so many facelifts that it seemed to give her a permanent look of discontent. "I didn't mean to bore you."

"Oh no, ma'am," The maitre'd instantly stammered, mentally kicking herself for not listening to her voice of reason. Of course the one time she misbehaves, a costumer would be standing there. "I'm just a little sleepy, that's all."

The woman was not listening, since she decided that it would be the perfect time to call her friend on her cell phone. She handed the maitre'd her check from her meal and her gold credit card, which she rung up quickly on the register.

"Thank you for eating at Cafe Culture," the maitre'd grinned bitterly as she returned the credit card to its owner. "We hope to see you again soon."

The woman simply nodded and turned to exit the restaurant, too engrossed in her phone conversation to notice the rude gestures she was receiving behind her back.

"Kana, you know that's not very nice."

Kaname instantly stopped her antics and turned to see Kyouko standing behind her, holding a large sliver serving tray.

"Yeah I know," she smiled at her friend. "But sometimes people just deserve it."

Kyouko didn't look convinced, "You look tired, Kana. Maybe you should've in call in sick today."

Kaname nearly jumped at the statement. Of course she was tired, after the ordeal in class yesterday; she had a complete emotional breakdown in the girls' bathroom. Kyouko had stood in front of the door, begging for her to come out. Kaname was still too embarrassed to leave or face anyone at that point. Sometime during their exchange, Kyouko began to talk to someone else outside the bathroom. The venom in her voice was frightening, and Kaname pushed her ear against the bathroom door to hear.

'You don't understand!' she heard Kyouko nearly shout. 'You always hurt Kana's feelings, and you never learn from your mistakes! And now look what you've done! You've hurt her now worse than ever before!'

There was a low rumble, but Kaname couldn't hear who it was. However, considering the circumstances, she had a pretty good guess. There was more yelling from Kyouko, which still sounded strange to her considering she had never heard her best friend lose her temper before.

'Just...go away.'

With that, Kaname knew it was over. She could barely make out the low rumbling, before it was replaced by hurried footsteps. After a few moments, she gained enough courage to open the bathroom door a crack.

'Is he gone?'

Kyouko nodded as she tried to whip away some of the stray tears.

With a long sigh, Kaname opened the door and faced her friend who instantly tacked her with a hug.

'Kaaa-_naaaa_-mayyyyy!' she cried, hugging the life out of Kaname. 'I'm sorry...I feel terrible.'

'It's alright, Kyouko," Kaname tried to smile, but it felt strange. It was out of place, but she knew she couldn't worry Kyouko. 'You weren't the one who read my diary out loud, or the one who ran out of the classroom. You didn't do anything wrong.'

'No...But, I'm always making up excuses for Sousuke and telling you that he isn't so bad. But, Kana...what he did today, there wasn't any excuse for. Maybe, he'll never change.'

As much as Kaname wanted to, she couldn't help but agree with Kyouko. It was time for her to be realistic and stop lying to herself.

Sousuke would always be Sousuke.

He was her body guard, and that was all it was between them. He didn't care about her, because he couldn't care about her unless he was ordered too.

'Come on, Kana,' Kaname's thoughts were broken by Kyouko pulling her by the hand and leading her down the hallway. 'Let's go to the nurse's office, maybe she'll let you lay down.'

When the two girls had gotten to the nurse's office, the nurse instantly informed Kaname that she was needed by the principal. Knowing what it was about, Kaname lied and told the nurse that she had already gone and settled everything just before, but was suddenly feeling very sick and light headed due to her allergies and wished to go home early. Noticing Kaname's red eyes and knowing full well she was a model student, she allowed Kaname to leave the grounds early, but informed her that such leniency will not be granted again.

However, that was all in the past, and today was Saturday. Kaname had made up her mind and was not going to let him get to her again. She had successfully avoided him the entire night and that morning on her way to work. If he needed to guard her, then so be it, but there was no rule or regulation that insisted they had to speak or make eye contact.

So with a brave smile she answered Kyouko's question, "Actually, I'm happy I didn't call in sick today. I think a day of work is just the distraction I need. I'm going to be okay."

And she honestly thought that.

Until, of course, _he_ walked in carrying a piece of paper.

"Ah, Chidori," Sousuke said, as he made his way to the register. "There's something I need to discuss with you."

Kaname eyed the paper in his hand, as if it were an atom bomb. She swallowed hard and plastered a fake smile on her face, confusing Sousuke instantly.

"Good afternoon, and welcome to Cafe Culture," she said, still smiling. "Would you prefer to be seated at a table in our smoking area or our nonsmoking area, sir?"

"Chidori, I do not wish to be seated at a table."

"Oh, my mistake. A bar seat it is then."

"Uh…no, I think you are still mistaken. I don't want to sit down anywhere."

"You don't," Kaname pressed a finger on her chin, faking thought. "I don't think we allow our costumers to eat standing up, sir."

"No, what I mean is that I wanted to talk to you."

"I'm sorry, sir," the maitre'd continued to smile, "But as you can see I am very busy, and I don't have time to chit-chat with costumers."

"But I-"

"Sir, if you are not here to eat then I am going to have to ask you to leave for there are many people waiting here who are."

Sousuke's eye's softened, and Kaname saw that he finally realized what she was doing. He bit his bottom lip, crumpled the piece of paper and threw it on her counter before storming out.

When she was sure he was gone, she took the crumpled paper into her hands.

It was a peace treaty.

* * *

_Yuck, talk about a boring filler chapter. There was no fun here, except maybe a little bit of some Sousuke angst and Kaname pretending to not know him. The next chapter is better - or at least I think so - since now we're done with the rising actions and getting to the real meat and potatoes...my creative writing teacher used to say that. I still don't really get what she meant._

_As I'm writing this particular author note I'm also watching Project Runway, and besides the fact that I cannot get over the fact that Swede (who I think is absolutely hysterical simply due to the fact that he speaks in the third person) won the challenge with that hideous tutu-material stripped-dress thing, I noticed that Natalie Portman is the celebrity guest judge. She went to the same high school as me, and she even graduated with my friend's older sister. I just think it's strange because until fairly recently I never really saw celebrities as (sort of) real people, and yet there is an alumni of my high school sitting on this television show telling me this disgusting dress is fashionable and something she'd actually wear. We sat in the same classroom, walked through the same halls, and yet she makes a bazillion dollars for being beautiful and debatably talented, and my friend's older sister is a librarian. It's all just very bizarre where the people you graduate with end up._

_Next chapter up soon...ish. :)_


	5. Back to the Beat

**When It Rains, It Pours**

**Disclaimer**: I do not own anything.

* * *

**Chapter Five: Back to the Beat**

With his hand shoved deeply in his pockets, he circled the perimeter of the cafe. Sousuke thought back to the peace treaty he had ment to show to Kaname. He believed that peaceful solutions were the best solutions, however by Kaname's actions it seemed that she didn't want find a solution. Could it be that her not showing up to the Principal's office was a declaration of war?

Sousuke stopped his pacing and took a deep breath. No, he needed to stop thinking in such military terms, and needed to think in civilan terms. Kaname was not at war with him, she was just extremely upset with him. As hard it was to believe, there was a difference.

The more Sousuke thought about the situation, the less sense it made to him. Wouldn't any reasonable person want to end all fighting and settle things peacefully? Why was it that she was not only giving him the cold shoulder, but now pretended she didn't even know who he was? Why were women so complicated?

He wasn't coming up with an answer, but only more questions. Quickly growing frurated he sat on a nearby bench with a sigh. It was alright for Kaname to make believe she didn't know him, but he could not return the favor. After all he was still her body guard, fight or no fight.

As the minutes crawled by, Sosuke was reminded to the very begining of his mission when he would follow Kaname and guard her from afar. With the memory, there was a strange, but newly familar feeling in his chest. Part of him longed for the time in his life before his feelings for Kaname gew. Things were much more simpiler when he was simply her bodyguard, she was simply his mission and nothing else. Now that she had brought him back to Tokyo, she had also brought back these strange emotions within him. Most of which he didn't know what do with. He felt distant and distracted because of them and couldn't get the thought of Kaname out of his mind. As much as he wanted to - and did for the most part- deny it, deep down he liked the warm feeling he got when he thought of her.

"I can't guard her like this," he mumbled as he closed his eyes and rested his face in his hands. "What I am supposed to do?"

He was ripped from his thoughts, though, when he felt someone stumble over his feet. He quickly looked down to see Issei Tsubaki laying facefirst onto the concrete. Quickly, the young fighter was back on his feet and glaring daggers at Sousuke, or he would if Sosuke happened to be the parking meter to his right.

"What's the big idea tripping me like that, you skinny little weakling!" Tsubaki screamed to the parking meter.

"My apologies," Sosuke said from his seat on the bench. "It was never my intention for you to trip over my feet."

"A likely story, pal!"

"Yes, it is."

"Shut up weakling, you sound awfully familar." Tusbaki began to rub his chin in thought. "Yeah, you sound just like another weakling I know. A real arrogant one, who cheats in all his fights. What's your name, anyway, kid?"

"My name is Sousuke Sagera."

"Sagara," Tusbaki continued to yell at the parking meter, causing many civilivans to stop and stare at the boy. "You no good cheat, you must've tripped me on purpose!"

"Negative, I was simply sitting here when you tripped over my feet that were in such plain sight that any other civilian would have known better and avoided them."

"What...are you insulting my eyesight? That's it, I'm going to show you a thing or two!"

Tusbaki then pulled back his arm and sent a dashing punch straight to the parking meter, nearly breaking both the meter and his hand in the process. Sousuke simply resumed his guard of the Cafe.

"That...was a dirty trick, Sagara," Tusbaki groaned as he held his injured hand.

"It was not a trick, Tusbaki. However, if you had put your glasses on you were have seen the parking meter infront of you."

Reluntantly, Tusbaki slipped on his glasses with his good hand, to see that Sousuke was right in the fact that he was just yelling at a parking meter for nearly five minutes. What Sousuke failed to point out, though, were the now many people looking at him with great courisity. Feeling his face flush from embarassment, Tusbaki turned to Sousuke in rage.

"This is your fault, Sagara!" he motioned to the crowd of people surrounding them. "To avenge my honor, I challenge you to a ma-"

Tusbaki's challege was never finsihed, for Sosuke had already shot him in the chest with a rubber bullet. The bang of the gun had caused many of the onlookers to panic and run away. However the hardened fighter still stood and watched in a daze as Sousuke sat peacefully on the bench, his smoking gun still pointed in his direction.

"I win," Sosuke said, his stare never leaving the Cafe.

Gaining back his composotion, Tusbaki ordered another rematch, but was interrupted by a small voice in the cowrd.

"WAIT!" Shinji yelled at he pushed his way through the onlookers.

"Kazama," Tusbaki asked, shocked to see him. "What are you doing here?"

"Sousuke, you know you aren't suppose to fire guns around here!" Shinji said, completely ignoring Tusbaki's question. "Also if Kaname sees this, you're gonna get it for sure!"

Sosusuke instanly felt himself stiffen with fear and the beads of sweat begin to gather on his forehead. He had forgotten about Kaname's reaction, and knew that such actions as this was no way to get back on her good side. Just as he was about to put his gun away, a crash was heard from the front of the cafe as Kaname pushed the double doors opened.

"What the hell is going on out here?" She demanded, her eyes glued to Sosuke and the gun he quickly attempted to hide behind his back. She didn't even notice Tsubaki until she heard his voice crack.

"K-K-K-K..." he studdered, his face growing redder with each stammer that fell out of his mouth. "K-Kaname!"

"Oh, hello Tusbaki," she said pleasantly, her eyes still glaring daggers at Sousuke. "Was this idiot giving you a hard time?"

"Idiot?" Tusbaki asked stupidly, before he remembered Sousuke petrIfied figure sitting on the bench. "Oh, you mean Sagara? Nah, he never gives me any trouble. You know me, I can take care of myself."

"That's good to hear, at least _someone _can."

"Oh thanks, it was really nothing," Tusbaki's face blushed deeper as he began to rub the back of his neck in embarassment. He was too busy gushing over her words of praise to notice that she was no longer paying attention to him.

Sosuke knew he was in for it the moment she started marching towards the bench. In her rage, she pracically threw Shinji as she grabbed a fist-full of his collar and pulled him up to her face. Sousuke could feel her nose nearly touching his, and he began to blush from the intinmacy of how close their faces were. On the other hand, he was also filled with fear since her eyes were now burning passionatly and promised pain.

"Could you do me a favor, Sargant Stupid?"

"A-anything, Chidori."

"Get the hell away from the restaurant," she growled as her grip on his collar tightened. "Before I call the cops on you."

"Chidori...I was just..."

"It wasn't a suggestion, Sargant," Kaname released him from her hold warily, looking away from his face. "It was an order."

* * *

_Yes, I know. I've managed to prey myself away from **Breaking Dawn** long enough to post this update for you all. Thanks for all the reviews and support once again, but until I'm done with this book I wont be able to get up to type the new chapter. I haven't even done any of my summer assignments because of this book, haha._

_Also, what the heck is **Reader Traffic**?_


	6. How Deep Is Too Deep?

**When It Rains, It Pours**

**Disclaimer:** I do not own anything.

* * *

**Chapter Six: How Deep Is Too Deep?**

Shinji was sure that his intervention during Sousuke's would-be brawl with Tusbaki was the best thing he could have done, but he wasn't sure if Sousuke thought that. It took a lot of effort for the young man to pull the his friend from the front of the cafe, but in the end he managed to drag him to some of the shops around town. None of which managed to cheer him up, and the young Sargent looked even gloomier than usual.

After the embarrassing verbal thrashing done by Kaname just an hour before, Sousuke looked just as pitiful. He had barely said a word during their entire outing. Even when the two boys had meet up with their classmate Ono D, Sousuke remained virtually silent. So much, in fact, that it caused Ono D to leave early. He claimed it was because he had to help his mother with dinner, but Shinji knew better. To any social butterfly such as Ono D, Sousuke just seemed like a wet blanket. Not to mention, ever since the Full Monty Bacteria fiasco Ono D seemed to has his issues with Sousuke.

With a sigh, Shinji glanced over his shoulder to see Sousuke still sulking behind him. He knew the reason behind Sousuke's demeter was Kaname, but where the heck was he supposed to go with him when he was so badly hurt? Come to think of it, at this point Shinji was just aimlessly walking through the city and hadn't even noticed that his feet had absentmindedly lead him to the park. Looking up at the grey sky above, Shinji could not deny that it was not the sort of weather for a visit to the local park. The darken skies above mirrored Sousuke's gloomy mood practically promised rain. Not knowing what else to do and not wanting to leave his friend to suffer alone, he sat on one of the empty bench and was no surprised to see Sousuke follow suit.

During all his months at Jindai High it seemed to Shinji that all Sousuke did was follow someone. If he wasn't following Kaname, he was following a teacher - more often than not to the principal's office - but it was a rarity to see the young man by himself. Perhaps it wasn't distraction that his friend needed, but guidance to be his own person. While Shinji probably wasn't the best candidate for the job, the person who would be was currently no longer speaking to the military misfit. With a shaky voice and a heavy heart, Shinji decided to break the up the awkward silence with an even more awkward cough. When Sousuke was not responding to his cough, he decided to try coughing even louder to gain his friend's attention.

"You should stop by the clinic on your way home, Kazama," Sousuke mumbled as he rested his face in his palms. "It could be a sign of Gastroesophageal reflux disease."

"Gastro-what?"

"Gastroesophageal reflux disease, or better known as GERD," Sosuke rattled from memory as if reading it from a medical dictionary. "Refers to reflux, or backward flow, of stomach acid or other contents into the esophagus. If the acid moves backward up the esophagus, reflexes result in spasm of the airways that can cause shortness of breath and coughing. Some reflux can be so severe that substances can be aspirated into the lungs and cause similar symptoms as well as damage to lung tissue, and symptoms can be nothing more than a simple cough."

"Um...thanks, but I think I'm alright," Shinji said with a nervous laugh, "I just had something stuck in my throat, but you sure know a lot of random information."

"Random information is useless information," Sousuke mumbled quietly, but still loud enough for Shinji to hear.

"That's not true all the time."

"It's true enough," Sousuke said, looking up but still resting his chin in his hands. "I don't know anything."

"Nobody knows anything, that's how the world works."

Sousuke shook his head, "You don't understand."

"Yes I do, and probably more than you know," Shinji crossed his arms and leaned against the back of the bench, "You're all in a rut because of what happened between you and Kaname, right?"

Sosuke was silent, and he took that as a yes.

"You think that it's all your fault because you never do anything right because you're socially inept and alway managed to mess up even the seemingly most simple task Kaname gives you, correct?"

He took the continued silence as another confirmation.

"But most of all, this is about you reading her diary to the entire class the other day," Shinji couldn't help but notice the way Sousuke stiffened at the mention of the incident. Bingo.

"It was never my intention to hurt her!" Sousuke exclaimed, giving Shinji his full attention. "I've been trying to make things right between us, but she was locked in the bathroom and Tokiwa wouldn't allow me entry and afterwards Chidori wouldn't even go to the principal's office to schedule a peer-mediation with me, and then at the cafe she completely ignored my offer for a peace treaty which officially makes us still at war with one another..."

Sousuke then trailed off and his attention was changed to his shoes which were now suddenly extremely interesting.

"I know you've been through a lot, but that's because you not only read Kaname's diary, but you've read an excerpt to the entire class. You really hurt her feelings, Sosuke."

"It was an accident" Sousuke said sadly. "She said I could copy her notes, and it was merely a mistake that the dairy came into my possession in the first place. I thought it was her notes, so I only read the entry dating to the night's homework assignment. If I had known it was a notebook consisting of her private thoughts, I would never had even looked. She should know that, and the way she's behaving during all this is just unreasonable."

"Girls are unreasonable, Sousuke, and we both know that goes double for Kaname," Shinji joked in a sad attempt to lift his friend's spirt, but all Sousuke did was shake his head. "It seems that whatever you read that night and said out loud to the class was extremely sacred to her. Have you ever really thought about what the diary entry would have meant to her?"

Sousuke shook his head, the very idea of that stupid notebook brought nothing but knots in his stomach and had tried his best to forget about the entry altogether. However, perhaps Kazama had a point. If there was one thing Sousuke had learned about the enigma that was Kaname Chidori was that the one thing she feared above all else was vulnerability. Closing his eyes, he tried his best to think back to the lines he has read aloud to the class that doomed morning.

_'If there is one thing I have learned from all this, is that there are no better heroes to me than those in the military. I know it sounds strange, but every time I see him in his uniform, I have this strange sense of pride. Because he is protecting me, and no one else. I am his prime concern and my well being is constantly on his mind, and when I remember that I get this wonderful flutter in my heart. Maybe we have some common ground after all, and I am on his mind as often as he is on mine.'_

The feeling of clarity was so abrupt, Sousuke didn't know what do to. It was as if someone had switched on the light in the dark depths of his mind and the answer was sitting there, right in front of him, the entire time.

"Sousuke," Shinji asked when he noticed his friend's shocked expression and that he was not moving, "Are you alright?

There was a crash of thunder and Shinji along with the few other occupants of the park quickly looked up at the overcast sky in unison. There was another low rumble from the clouds before big, fat raindrops began to fall from the sky. Shinji quickly stood and told his companion that it was probably time to leave, but Sousuke wouldn't budge. There was another crash and the sprinkling of the drops intensified, drenching them both.

* * *

_Um...yeah...so it's been a tiny, itsy, bitsy bit of a wait for the this chapter._

_BUT I HAVE AN EXCUSE!_

_  
I had **surgery**! Ah...now you all feel really bad for being mad at me, don't you? But yes, I had to get my wisdom teeth removed and it was terrible. Anyone else who has gotten this done will agree with me, because those teeth are friggin' huge and I have yet to hear anyone go to me an say, "Oh I loved getting my wisdom teeth removed! I wish there weren't only four of them!" Because believe me, four was more than enough. But that's all in the past, and for any of you who are in for getting them removed all I have to say is good luck and have plenty of ice cream on hand because you're gonna need it!_

_But back to this story! So Sousuke's had his "Aha!" moment, and now we're nearing the end to this lovely little fiction. I was hoping to get it finished by now, but life and giant teeth seemed to get in the way of that. But never fear, the last chapter - yes the LAST- should be up...whenever I get to writing it...but sooner or later we'll see what happens._

_Thanks again to everyone who reviews, alerts, and favorites this little brain-baby of mine! You make it all worth while!_


	7. The It Moment

**When It Rains, It Pours**

**Disclaimer:** I do not own anything.

* * *

**Chapter Seven: The "It" Moment**

The ding of the tiny bell, resting on top of the café's front door, ripped her from her trance. Across from her, she saw that her companion was still having his one-sided conversation. She was sure she would feel guilty for not paying attention if she wasn't so numbed from the dullness of whatever it was he was talking about. She nodded along, knowing she at least owed him that, and smiled at times she hoped was appropriate.

He didn't seem to mind, though. If anything, he didn't seem to even notice her sitting across from him. She figured - like usual- he was nervous, but decided that there had to be a better way to spend her break from work than to be babbled at for an hour. She glanced at her watch, noticing that her chatty lunch mate had already wasted a half-hour of her break.

Tsubaki was just in a middle of explaining the foundation of some martial art type when Kaname kindly excused herself to use the restroom.

"Oh, of course," he said, waving her away while laughing awkwardly, "Morihei Ueshiba can wait a few minutes."

Walking past the bathrooms and towards the cashier, the head of Kyouko turned and faced her.

"Are you coming back from break so soon, Kaname?" she asked. "You still have time, you know."

"I know," Kaname said, fiddling with a stray thread from her apron. "But I'm afraid to go back to that booth."

Kaname watched as her friend cranked her neck to see the back of Tsubaki's head. "Is Tsubaki giving you a hard time?"

"No, he's just-"

Before Kaname could answer further, the tiny bell on the door rang as an elderly couple made their way into the restaurant as quickly as they could.

"Yikes," the man said, coming in after holding the door for his wife. "It's really coming down outside."

"The worse storm I've seen in my entire life," the woman said as she adjusted her hat with shaky, manicured hands. "I'm surprised we didn't drown on her way in here from the car."

Kaname walked away from the register and towards the door to close it behind the couple. She glanced outside quickly to survey the weather, but her eyes instant fell upon the figure sitting on a bench across the street.

Instantly she felt anger swell in her, as she clenched her tiny fists together and ripped herself away from the door. She hurried to the back of the café, grabbing her jacket and a spare umbrella, and marched out towards the front of the restaurant.

"Kaname, where are you going?" Kyouko asked after sitting the new costumers to their table. "It's pouring outside, and you still have Tsubaki waiting for you!"

She ignored her coworker and hurried outside, opening her umbrella in a clumsy rush. She briefly looked up and down the street before she ran across to the man sitting on the bench.

"Sousuke, what are you doing out here?"

Pretending not to have heard, he pulled his hood over his head, closed his eyes, and pushed his hands deeper into the pockets of his jacket.

"Don't ignore me, I'm talking to you."

He opened his eyes quickly before raising an eyebrow to her. "Permission to speak?"

"Granted!" She nearly hissed, "Now, what are you doing here?"

Sousuke looked up at Kaname, through his soaked hair and the drops of rain, he realized he had no idea how to even start his apology. He knew he didn't want to seem dense, but being blunt would only dilute what he needed to say. Suddenly he thought back to basic interrogation tactics, and remembered the age old trick of reverse physiology.

"Better yet," Sousuke said motioning to the bench with a hand. "What are you doing here, Chidori?"

"I asked you first."

"I asked you second."

"Damn it Sousuke, you know how I hate it when you play games like this!"

He shrugged and went back to his silence, which probably annoyed her more than his evasiveness. He watched as she took a deep breath, obviously hoping to calm herself, before letting it out slowly.

"I'm not taking back what I said before," she said slowly. "So if you're here to charm me, it wont work."

"Why do you always have to think I'm up to something?"

Kaname was taken aback; it wasn't like Sousuke to flat out say anything. Unless, of course, it was how to dismantle a nuclear warhead or escape from a flaming cargo plane, those he had no problem with.

"Well, I mean," Kaname mumbled as she twirled her hair nervously. "You always are up to something. And usually it's something that's going to blow up and cause mass hysteria."

"Alright fine," he said. "But why can't a guy just sit on a bench and relax without there being anything weird about it?"

"In a middle of a downpour?"

"It was hot out before."

"It's April, Sousuke, how hot can it get?"

"In Egypt, Chidori, April onwards temperatures are usually around 100 to 120 degrees Fahrenheit."

"We aren't in Egypt."

"Whatever," he turned away from her again, "You never understand me anyway."

"Maybe that's our problem."

An uncomfortable silence washed over them, only broken when a car would pass. Kaname alternated what hand held the umbrella, and looked down to see Sousuke looking up at her.

"Chidori," he asked. "Aren't you cold?"

"Aren't you wet?" she replied.

They sat in silence again before Sousuke once again decided to break it, "I wanted to talk to you, but I felt odd walking into the restaurant considering you told me never to step foot in there again."

Kaname turned to him, "Why did you want to come and talk to me, Sousuke?"

"Because you were obviously emotionally distressed, so I believed the best form of action would be to figure out the cause and –"

"You figured out what the notebook meant, didn't you?"

Sousuke's mouth instantly shut and his eyes quickly looked away.

"Sousuke," Kaname shook her head as she spoke. "In life, there are things called "It" moments. An accident happens, you get sick, your dog dies…there's a life before "It" and a life after "It". What happened in class…what you read…the way we acted about it…that was an "It" moment. Whatever happens now, we can't go back to where we were before. "

"Chidori…"

"Now that you know how I feel…it's too different now."

"I know…but perhaps there was a reason for that. It could be that the way we were before was not sufficient enough, or strong enough." He paused, trying to put his emotions into words. "I am not going to deny that what I read and understand now isn't a turning point, but what if this change in our relationship wasn't for the worst, or even anything at all?"

"What are you asking?" Kaname's grip on her umbrella tightened. Her eyes locked onto Sousuke's as he stood from the bench. "To ignore what I feel and act like nothing happened? You want us to just move on? I can't just pretend something isn't there when it is, Sousuke. I spend every day lying to my friends and family about being a human fountain of do-it-yourself-weapons-of-mass-destruction. I can't ignore this particular big pink elephant, too."

"Negative, Chidori."

"Then what do you plan to do, Mr. Problem Solver?"

"I want to do the opposite," he replied, the edges of his mouth curved downwards sternly. Drops of rain quickly flowed down his face, pooling into the corner of his mouth. "I want to remember, and to learn from it. I want us to be a different than we were two days ago, I want to be after the "It" moment. I want to try this new way, instead of fumbling in vain to go back to how we were. As hard as people try, they'll never be able to go back to how things were, and often time is just wasted by trying. And you and I both know that time…is not something we have to spare. "

Kaname shook her head, "Sousuke…"

"I want to do something else…I..." he paused; his gray-blue eyes met her gaze. "I want to work with the now, not the then."

She fell silent, and Sousuke mustered up enough courage to put his hands on her shoulders, "Please Chidori…let's try this."

"I'm not sure…what you're asking to do…it's a bit of a big step. What if it doesn't work…if you get reassigned and we're separated again? I couldn't handle it before when you left, but if we're…"

A flash of lighting burst through the sky and was quickly followed by a roar of thunder. The rain was falling harder.

"Is what you wrote in that notebook the truth?"

The skies answered his question before she could with another deafening crash of thunder.

"What was that?" Kaname yelled over the rumble. "I can't hear you over the thunder!"

"Is what you wrote the truth?!"

The thunder continued, growing louder.

"THE TOOTH?!"

"NO! TRUTH!" he yelled louder, over the storm. "T-R-U-T-H!"

"SHUT UP, SOUSUKE, I CAN FRIGGIN' SPELL!"

"IS IT?"

"YES, I MEANT IT ALL!" she paused before asking, "WHAT ABOUT YOU?"

"WHAT? TWO?"

"NO! YOU!"

"I CARE ABOUT YOU VERY MUCH!"

"HOW MUCH IS VERY MUCH?"

"MORE THAN I CAN DESCRIBE IN A SETENCE BEING SCREAMED OVER A THUNDER STORM WHILE STANDING ACROSS THE STREET FROM YOUR PLACE OF EMPLOYMENT!"

"WHO'S A PLACE OF ENJOYMENT!?"

"NO! I SAID EMPLOYMENT!"

"WH-" Kaname's yells were stopped by Sousuke pulling her towards him and crushing his lips to hers. He kissed her roughly, whether it was from his irritation of their miscommunication or him actually showing her his feeling was unclear to her, but frankly she didn't care. His lips molded to her in a warm, almost familiar feeling. Kaname had kissed only a few boys in her life, but this one felt bizarrely right.

Kaname's umbrella dropped from her hands, falling onto the sidewalk and rolling towards the abandoned bench. Sousuke hand gripped tightly around the back of her neck and the other wrapped securely around her waist with confidence. Kaname noted how his lips were slightly chapped – apparently even militarily nutcases could get chapped lips. She smiled into the kiss, realizing, liking how human such an inhuman idiot like Sousuke could be. Feeling her smile, Sousuke quickly broke away from the kiss, staring down at her beaming face with a puzzled expression.

Still trapped in his embraced, she looked up at him, with a strange daze expression. Sousuke didn't know whether or not to let her go just yet, for he knew that the moment she was free a deadly blow from the harisen was guaranteed.

They stood in silence, until Sousuke cleared his throat nervously.

"Uh… Chidori?"

"Yes, Sousuke?"

"Was that a…uh… "It" moment?"

She nodded.

"Was that a…um… negative "It" moment?"

She shook her head.

"Permission to repeat?"

After a momentary pause, Kaname lifted herself on her toes; he could feel her hot breath on his lips.

"Affirmative, solider."

* * *

_Done._

_And by that I mean more than my hiatus, this story is officially done. Hope you enjoyed this _

_I actually had the draft sitting on my laptop for months and but I just kept putting off updating this thing for…well…a few months. Life gets in the way…but now I'm officially going to college so I have no excuse. _

_I'm sorry for doing that, I'm terrible to you guys and I'm so sorry. And you all still read and reviewed and put me on your alerts…what blind faith you all had in me. It's so beautiful that I may just cry all over my keyboard!_

_I love you, but you should still review because you love me too. _


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Full Metal Panic, Humor, Romance