Just another day.

The redhead sat at her vanity, with her back to the door in her singularly occupied room. Of course, she could see the closed object in the mirror she was using to apply the makeup that would cover the bruises below her crimson hues. Halfway through, she laid down the brush she had been using to put the thick makeup on with. Her hand flexed a few times and she let her head fall back so she was looking to the ceiling. Only a few more days of this and she wouldn't have to worry about covering these anymore. The purple was already fading to a sick looking yellow-green. She hadn't even wanted to leave her room today. But she was hungry.. She hated today. Valentine's Day. It was the most stupid holiday ever.
Zeph's gaze automatically swiveled to the tiny box that was perched on her book shelf. Great. Now she was in an ever worse mood.

The Gael quickly brought her gaze back to the mirror and lifted the brush so she could start working on her other eye. No use dwelling on things that couldn't be. Asami had someone she loved and it was better to just avoid seeing the girl than confront her. Confrontation wasn't something she enjoyed, with words at least. Put a sword in her hand and she was golden. Another sigh parted her lips, showing just how much this was weighing on her shoulders.

Through the door of Zephyra's room, there would be muffled sounds, like someone arguing. Loud, clipped tones with words that one couldn't quite make out. Could it be someone was fighting in the hall? It was enough that some girls were peeking out of their rooms to see just what the commotion was.

"What are you looking at?" barked the lolita at some poor blonde first year, who quickly went back inside. She shoved a student out of the way, a little maid.

"Miss, I don't think she wants to see you,"

"Shut up, what do you know? Get out of my way this instant!"

The little first year scurried along in her maid outfit, trying to dissuade the odler student, who, for as short as she was, seemed to plow right over her.

"I said be quiet, I'm not listening to you and certainly not taking orders. Leave me alone will you? Don't you have somewhere to be? Something to clean? Bugger off!"

The word, "off" would be the loudest and clearest word heard just outside her door, which Asami all but kicked in. It flung open like an explosion, showing the black clad and red faced lolita; and she curtly stepped inside and shut it behind her with a click. If she was't upset enough by the rumors she heard, it was the sight that made her even angrier, plus, she was already fired up from the annoying maid outside.

"What do you think you're doing?" She asked, looking at the bruises and makeup, "No, what do you think I'm doing? I heard the rumor, you know, just how do you think you're justified? Don't act like a dumb little kid, okay, at least find out the truth before you go acting like a fool. I mean what's your problem? You've been avoiding me for days and now this? What's wrong with you?"

Asami was ranting, gesturing at her desk, her face, the makeup, stomping around having a fit before a hand hit Zephyr's desk and she thrust her face right up to the redhead's, "Let me get this straight, huh? You were spying on me, weren't you? Now you've got some weird idea in your head so you think you can act like an idiot. Do you even know what was going on? Do you even have the slightest idea that my friend was dying in there? No. You don't. How dare you. Do you care to tell me exactly where you've been? I've been worried sick," She stood back and crossed her arms with a snort, "I'm waiting." she tapped her foot.

The door slammed open just as recognition fell over her. This was the moment she was dreading but knew it would come eventually. So instead of turning in her seat, Zeph slowly sat the brush down and composed her features so her hurt and anger wouldn't show.

Not even a foot past the door and she was already ranting. This was to be expected. The redhead didn't even spare a glance in her direction as she stared at her reflection and made sure her breathing remained even. She would not let the little lolita get to her and make her raise her voice.

Then Asami was right in her face, sprouting words that settled on her chest with the weight of an anvil. But still she kept her silence and stared blankly at the face before her. When finally the girl stepped back and crossed her arms, waiting, Zeph opened her mouth to speak.

"And I thought they taught manners at this school.. Not even a knock."

She gracefully turned on her stool and let her gaze lock on to Asami's. No running from this anymore, so she would face it head on. Swirling in those red pools were so many emotions that wouldn't, couldn't be expressed on her face.

"First off, no, I was not spying on you. I was on my way to the practice that I've been going to for weeks. Passing that same place everytime. I happened to spot you and was going to say hello, but found you were liplocked with a girl. So I thought it would be rude to interrupt such an intimate moment. Of course I didn't know the circumstances, but what would you have done? Put yourself in my shoes. Anyway, I didn't know friends kissed on the mouth like that."

Her voice seemed to take on a deeper tone, almost dangerous. "Secondly, I am no fool. This happened because I was thinking of you when I should have been focused on what was happening around me."

The Gael took a deep breath to push down her growing anger. Anger that hid her hurt. Hands that had gripped the hem of her shirt relaxed and instead rested on her lap.

"I did what I thought would be best. Best for myself, that is. I couldn't face you after because I felt like I had, in an offhanded way, spied on you. I saw something not meant for my eyes and I distanced myself from the subject so I could try to ignore it. I don't see why you were worried about me. I can take care of myself."

The last sentence was almost a whisper as she turned back toward her mirror.

"There. You have your explanation. You can leave now. I have things to do."

A complete lie. All she was planning to do was go get food and come straight back to her room. Her hand lifted the brush for the third time and dipped it into the jar of pale cream she had been using to cover the bruises.

She scoffed, a few times, frustrated with the person in front of her, acting all stoic.

"Four years ago there was a fire, okay, Spica caught fire, part of the forest burned down, you heard about that right? Well that girl was there when the lighting hit, she went blind. I cared for her okay? I helped that stupid whiny crybaby get better and then how did she repay me? She goes with me tot eh ball and then not even a month later is hooking up with someone else, like I didn't even exist." She turned around, throwing up her hands to tell her story, "So what did I do? Well I tried to be the sensitive one, fine, fine, let her go off with some tramp and be happy, whatever, not like I had a thousand better things to do than change the bandages on her eyes and stay at her bedside at all waking hours of the god forsaken night in case she had one of her stupid nightmares. But no, she couldn't appreciate any of that. Didn't speak to me once since the ball, not once. After all I did for that brat."

She stopped and from the corner of her eye looked at Zeph, then made her voice louder as she continued,

"But after all that mess, what do I find her doing? She had a bloody razor blade! She was trying to kill herself!" That last part was screamed, completely at the top of her lungs. She was so angry it all balled up in her throat, stung at her eyes and threatened to ruin the black mascara all around them. She clenched her teeth. "I did what I had to do to save her stupid life. Even though she's nothing but an ungrateful, dramatic, horrible...augh," she sniffed and blinked deepening her frown. The truth was, she was still trying to figure out Kendall, what to do with her and how she felt about her, "whatever happened when she met that- that person," she spat it like some kind of dirty word, "She changed, and-" she grunted again, "You wouldn't understand." She paused for only half a second, turning back to her, "You, I met you and thought I could finally get over her. All she did was use me after all, but I wasn't about to stand by and let her slice herself up. And now I can't exactly walk away either. I-if you can tell,"

Her voice was shaking with everything from emotion to unease, "I don't even know how I feel yet. But they were desperate times. And if YOU," she almost yelled the word, making it louder than everything else, "know anything at all you'll get over whatever this is," she swirled a finger at her.

She didn't like that Zeph was jealous, she didn't like Zeph had the wrong idea, not that she was sure it was the wrong idea actually, or any idea about Kendall at all for that matter. She'd wanted to forget her, and yet, she never would. It was impossible to forget your first love after all, more impossible to let them die for the sake of avoiding drama. She kind of liked the first year back, but this was pre-existing, long before she even set foot on campus. Asami hadn't asked to be thrust back in the past, and it certainly wasn't her fault. None of this was.

Finally she stomped over and sat on Zeph's bed, turning her face to look at the window.

"Just...don't hate me okay? It's not like I had a choice."

She wasn't sure if she meant that, there might have been ways around it, but whatever. It wasn't fair to brush it off like the kiss didn't mean anything, that wasn't true at all, but Asami was dealing with it the only way she knew how.

Finally it was all too much, both of Zeph's palms slammed down onto her vanity as she moved to her feet. Her hands hit so hard on the wood that the jar of makeup popped up and overturned.

Whatever this was?!

"You have no idea what I understand, Asami! Not one clue. I don't blame you for doing all you could to save her life. That's not what this is about. That is not what I am so upset about. I know there were circumstances I didn't know about, okay? I'm not some idiot that jumps to conclusions so easily."

Her hand slashed through the air as she turned toward the girl. Zeph tried to draw her covering anger in. It would do no good to get into a screaming match. She also wasn't so heartless as to close off her ears and ignore her.

"Would you have even said anything to me? Or would you rather string me along? Letting my feelings grow more until you decided which way your heart leaned? I understand, she needed you, but you had a choice. You always have a choice. That's what life is all about. The choices we make and the paths we walk."

Her hands clenched at her sides as she took in Asami's last words. Tears were pricking her bright hues as she stared at the one that had stolen her heart. Instead of swinging and taking her anger out like she wanted the girl took hold of Asami's shoulders and pushed her back onto the bed as she straddled her waist.

"I love you, Asami, that's why this hurts so much. To see you.. with someone else felt like my heart was ripped out. I didn't and still don't know how to deal with this." Her face hovered over Asami's, her hair circling them and blocking out any sight but their faces.

"How could I ever hate you? You're a part of my heart. I would hate myself if I hated you.."

Zeph bent at the waist so her forehead was resting against her sempai's sternum.

She prepared herself to yell back, argument after rebuttal after argument filled her head and her mouth, ready to come out in full fury, but she was approached instead. Zeph's expression had Asami bracing herself, ready to tell her to back off but then she was on top of her, so close. She forced herself to listen, a love confession? Oh.

Her red face twisted into a frown, to hide how flattered and embarrassed she was, momentarily forgetting her argument. She let the other rest against her, not really wanting to wrestle her off, not that she could. She wasn't very strong.

"I...don't know what I was going to do. But I came here," she breathed, "I couldn't leave you alone or whatever...I at least had to explain myself."

She looked away, trying in vain to hide the blush. She never experienced physical contact like this, aside from her first kiss in the greenhouse recently, never happened to her. It was still new and it made her self conscious, something else she wasn't used to.

"So...erm," For once the barking loli was at a loss for words. How was she supposed to respond here? She'd never been in this situation before. Tenetively she raised her arms and slowly put them around the other, stroking her hair and looking at the ceiling, still blushing rather feverishly, not that she wanted to or anything...she was just you know...shut up.

"Tch..." was the last thing she could manage before her nerves overwhelmed her into silence.

A warm wetness hit Asami's chest and began to slowly grow, but the redhead didn't move a muscle, her shoulders didn't even quiver. Her hands found purchase against the girl's sides and fingers curled to clutch the material of her shirt.

".. I'm sorry Asami. I'm sorry for being so selfish."

It was true she had tried to keep herself from jumping to conclusions, but she also didn't want to face the girl because she was afraid of her rejection. Afraid to hear that she had another. And here she was pinning the girl to her bed. Oh God.. they were sprawled on her bed. A blush spread across her cheeks and she kept her face hidden against her chest for a few more moments.

When Zeph pulled back she reached up and wiped her tears away as she looked the other way. Her last half hour of work was sure to be for not now. She looked back to Asami from her place straddling her hips, both bruises were easily seen now.

Then it hit her, Asami hadn't returned her sentiments and it made her chest tighten once more. She couldn't force her love upon someone, it wasn't right. Entirely improper. Zeph quickly started moving, her embarrassment showing through a bright blush on her cheeks. She had just confessed her feelings without thinking and now they were in an even more awkward situation.