"I Do... Forever" [open]

[Haruka Yasu]

She could hear his voice at her ear, and it felt like she was surfacing from some thick dark waters that had engulfed her. Floating some where far off and unknown... peaceful. Not a thought tainted her head and for a moment all she knew was blissfulness, feeling safe leaning in someone else's arms. This must be what a baby feels like, her first thought was, once consciousness began to find her. She took a deep breath and tried to open her eyes---she was so tired---and at first she saw nothing, which was strange, and then like her eyes were adjusting dramatically she saw a tiny bit of light, like at the end of a tunnel, and then it grew bigger until she was able to see the full view again.

Her stomach seemed twist and her core tremble, her eyes glanced to her hand, which was involuntarily gripping onto his shirt, and instinctively her hand then flashed to her thigh, where her knife usually was, as she pushed his shoulder away and jumped back against the wall. The blanket'd fallen off her shoulders, since she was no longer holding it there, and without her weapon or generally baggy shirt, she looked so thin and fragile. Besides, her animistic expression crumpled instantly into chagrin once her realization of who he was returned completely to her.

Ashamed, she averted her tear filled violet eyes and fled down the stairs, two at a time, muttering too fast and too low for someone to hear properly, "I've got to get something to eat." Her voice broke and shook.

In her head she was screaming, screaming long and hard for someone to please kill her, please end this, do something, she didn't care, just get rid of this disgrace!

[Emro Deucalion and Elspeth]

Emro was lightly alarmed at her sudden hostile reaction towards him. He knew to himself she wouldn't harm him, or he thought so. Haruka didn't have her knife on her, so Emro's ability to be frightened was drastically lowered

Emro watched as she quickly moved against the wall. Her sudden change in behavior was a bit strange. Haruka had her ups and downs, or what today's society would call "Bio Polarism." But, Emro quickly dismissed such an idea. Haruka was unstable. She was unsure of herself. Low selfesteem would be the better phrase to call it.

Her sudden reaction to him probably scared her. Haruka probably was ashamed of pushing him away. Emro wasn't mad with her or anything. She would have to understand that he doesn't get mad easily. Emro rarely ever showed that expression.

Only Emro's eyes followed her down the stairs. Haruka was fairly thin without her baggy clothing. In one's eyes. they'd call her beautiful. Her flowing lilac hair caught his gaze as she ran down the stairs in a frantic manner. Emro would never admit to her, she'd probably carve out his eyes and feed them to him.

Emro decided to follow her into the kitchen once she had distance. He slid his hands into his pajama pants pockets and slowly decended down the stairs. Inside his head echoed her screams and plees to have someone kill her.

[Haruka Yasu]

She flung open the fridge door and crouched down, just staring into it for a moment with her hands on either side of her face, only her eyes looking around, trying to consider the contents. She reached in to get an apple, but then her brain connected apple to teacher, teacher to Mr. Shermen, and she sprung up and slammed the door shut, going into a cabinet and whipping out a box of oreos, tossing them on the table, and then getting out a copper kettle and turning on the stove, filling the pot with water and then setting it on the burner: preparing for tea.

Haruka was very old fashioned; she still had an oil lamp in her room, refusing to use the light switch because once the light bulb had burst and scared her half to death, and so she didn't know how to make instant meals or use the microwave and whatnot; a big meal would more dutifully satisfy her hunger, but she didn't want to cook one. She didn't consider the frozen dinners in the freezers, because she simply didn't know how to make them.

As she waited for the water to boil, she vigorously opened the oreo packet and stuffed once in her mouth, not even bothering to savior its deliciousness. When Emro came in, she glanced up, and then acted like she hadn't, looking at the table. After she swallowed another cookie she asked as causally as she could, "Since you can hear thoughts, can you hear dreams as well?" She was certain that he was either mad at her for her reaction moments before, or thinking how much of a freak she was because of it---or maybe both. Either way it was expected, and true.

She just didn't understand why he didn't hate her. Without her hate inside her, a little voice kept whispering, in the back of her head, to her that she had deserved what Shermen did to her... that she'd had turned into a monster anyway, and that was the universe's way of punishing her. That, if she ever were to finally free of her memories, it would just happen again... because it was meant to be. Because there was no escape.

She pulled her feet up onto the chair with her, her knees to her chest and her chin resting in them, pinching her own arm underneath the table to try to stop the vulgar images and thoughts of remembrance from flooding her mind once more.

[Emro Deucalion and Elspeth]

Emro walked in casually, like nothing had happened. Mostly because he just didn't care. He opened the fridge and pulled a pitcher of guava strawberry juice and a plate of leftover pizza. Opening a cabinet, Emro withdrew a glass and plate. He took two slices of the cold pizza, each slice making a clanking sound as they hit the plate, and poured the glass full of juice. He absolutely loved juice, and dispised carbonated drinks. Next, the plate was placed into the microwave and punched in some numbers and the microwave hummed.

Emro waited a few minutes as the pizza warmed up. The microwave annoyingly beeped that it was ready. He took the pizza out and walked over to Haruka. "I'm not mad or anything. I totally understand the reason. You were most likely startled to see a guy holding you like that. I didn't want you to fall.

I don't hear dreams. If I look at a person as they dream, I can see their dreams. Watch them as if it was a movie before me. "

Emro took a bite of the warmed up pizza and sat there quietly. He watched Haruka pull up her knees. He switched his gaze to the cup of juice resting on the table. "If you wish to feel more free, and you believe that losing your memories will be the key to it, then I will do it.

I know you choose to believe that getting your memories removed will cause the events to repeat. But you are wrong. I will asure you that it won't happen again. You can protect yourself now. I'll be there to help you. Nothing in this mansion goes silent."

Emro turned his attention back to the two pizza slices on his plate. He quickly devoured the rest of the pizza, and sat there with an empty plate and glass.

He caught a few glimpses of what was going on inside of her mind. Emro really did take pity on this girl.

[Haruka Yasu]

"Can you describe to me... what's it like... hearing thoughts all the time? Do you enjoy having it?" Haruka asked, watching him closely when he looked away, but averting her eyes when he glanced at her.

The water on the stove began to boil and her legs unfolded gracefully and she walked over to the stove, turning off the burner and getting a mug from one of the cabinets. All those tasks were easy, but the hard part was having her back to him. Every single one of her instincts shouted at her not to, she was itching to turn around and make sure he wasn't betraying her, paranoid that he was staring at things he shouldn't; but maybe she was just trying to prove herself, or to get back at herself with this torture, because of her flip out on the second floor, in front of the stairs.

So she kept her back to him, a shaking hand pulling the water into a mug, the same hand picking up the tea bag and stirring it with a metal spoon so that it made a soft ticking sound when it hit the inside of the cup. It was all so quick, so easy; but it was often the simplest tasks that held great meanings to Haruka. Like keeping her back to him, talking without anger, and holding a hand.

Haruka said nothing about the memory business at the moment; she still couldn't decide what to do. If she did it, she would placing her life in this man who is just more then a stranger to her now. Three days ago, she'd screamed she was going to kill him; today, she was holding his hand. What held for her in the other tomorrows? Time was ever changing, forever is impossible; undoubtedly soon, he would loose interest and either create some drama of his own, like Shermen did, or simply leave her, like her father and mother did.

[Emro Deucalion and Elspeth]

Emro smiled at her as he took one of the oreo cookies from the package on the table. Once he swallowed the cookie, Emro answered the question. "At times I enjoy it, and at times I don't. When I am in a crowded area it is hell. The only way I can describe it is having hundred of voices in your head all the time."

Emro sat there watching Haruka pour the tea. He was sure there was a much easier way to make tea, rather than heating up the water with the stove, but Emro realized she was from the 1800's and things take time to change when you're use to old ways of doing things. Emro's generation can adpat much easier than Haruka's.

There was an awkward silence, Emro wondered if she was going to reply to his previous statement. More of her thoughts drifted into his head. Emro smiled and took another cookie. "Haruka, I won't lose interest in you. You're a really great girl to be around. I would like to think of us as friends. You don't have to, but I'm going to."

[Haruka Yasu]

Haruka whirled around as soon as he was finished talking. "How can you be so sure? How you have such trust in me when I act like that---" she gestured wildly to the stairs where she'd almost fallen "---and I, who you've only been kind to, can barely even stand having my back to you? You may be a mind reader, but you can't tell the future. You hardly know what I'm about to do, because I don't know what I'm about to do either. How do you do it? Why do you do it? What's the point of helping me? I know I'm not great---I'm a horrible monster---so you can just stop lying, and tell the truth, because..." she looked down, her bangs playing a shadow across her eyes, "...because I won't be here long anyway," she finished darkly, thinking of the gates.

She looked back up at him, her violet eyes tear filled right to the brim and her face sad and sober. "You don't want me as your friend, Emro," she whispered, his name still tasting different on her lips, strange but not dislikable, "I'm a very bad person, and being next to someone as wonderful as yourself just makes me worse, because I don't deserve you." Two tears slipped down her face, one on each cheek, and she looked away and stood still, dead, feeling so cold to the very depths of her soul.

[Emro Deucalion and Elspeth]

Emro stood up and walked towards her as she spoke. She bombarded him with questions, and they seemed to unphase him. He only smiled. The main reason he smiled, was that his mind was taking him back to one of his favorite bands, Papa Roach and their song Tight Rope. Tight Rope was a hidden track, and it fit perfectly to this situation. (Papa Roach- Tight Rope)

I speak of madness, my heart and soul
I cry for people who aint got control
Lets take our sanity, lets take compassion
And be responsible for every action


But when he heard her say she wouldn't he here long anyway, it was as if someone ripped out his heart. Emro was too caring, he was too soft, but it was who he was. No matter how much he hated people, he hated their sloth, their greed, their lust, their pride, their envy, their wrath, and their gluttony, Emro wanted to help them. Fix them.

Emro looked up at her and smiled "Because I'm human. I'm soft. I trust you, because, I want a friend and you're interesting. I may not be able to tell the future, but I can make assumptions based on your thoughts, body language, and background information.

I do it, because I want to help people. Its my passionate in life. You call yourself a monster, because you've been called it. You know what, you may be a monster, but a demon is a lot worse. You've been taking advantage of and went on killing sprees. But I've been beatin, starved, and abdandoned by my own parents. The people who brought me into his world. Then, my own peers would throw rocks at me, keep me from churches, and deny my existence. Just because of my physical appearence. My eyes. My own two eyes. Of course there were other things, like my personal life. Imagine going through your day with people thinking you murdered your own family.

But I had a will to live. You can have your own will to live too. You have two people here that care about you. I'm giving you something, that was given to me. Compassion.

You're only saying that because you aren't used to someone caring about you"

Emro averted his eyes for one quick moment, his eyes then darted back and met her's "I'd be a shame for a girl, as pretty, as interesting, and as fun to be around, to go kill herself. But, if walking through those gates will solve your problems. Go an do it. But remember this, there were atleast two people in the world that cared about you and your stubborness" Emro then turned around and walked back to the table to collect his dishes.

The kitchen was still and quiet. Emro awaited her responce.

[Haruka Yasu]

No one had ever blamed her for the death of her parents, but as far as Haruka saw it, it was connected to her fault... because she was a girl, and they'd wanted a son, so they kept trying for one, but they'd always die, so little, and her mother'd mourn for them, later starving herself, and her father went crazy from missing his wife and thus went insane. Because she wasn't a son. Not good enough.

But they say that witnessing someone else dieing is like experiencing death yourself; and she'd killed a little more then a hundred people. Emro didn't understand the art of murder; how looking back, trying to regretful, but then remembering the feeling of satisfaction once they stopped breathing, recall playing with her victims... asking for help nicely, turning around their trust and killing them, laughing and saying it was their fault for trusting, that they'd basically killed themselves, for it was trust that had hurt Haruka.

But Emro was wronged. But Emro was hurt. And yet here he was, with his back to her, trusting her, caring for her, trying to help. He knew what she was, he knew what she'd done, but still he was trying to give her the help she didn't deserve.

Haruka swallowed and took a hesitant step forward. She wanted to prove to him that she was getting better, that it wasn't just a helpless cause. She wanted him to know that she didn't think he was a demon, that she wasn't going throw his care aside as easily as a step through some gates of death. That she didn't hate him. She took another step and reached toward him, her finger tips lightly brushing his shoulder. The contact sent a violet shiver through her, and images flashed through her mind, making her flinch, but she just bit down on her lip and walked around so that she was in front of him.

She looked up into his eyes and tried to form words, anything, to explain. "I... I'm..." she tried, a worried expression on her face as she didn't know what to say. She squeezed her eyes shut, her face all screwed up like she was physical pain, swallowing again, and then reached forward and blindly wrapped her arms around him and pulled herself close: hugging him.

First she was ridged, a whimper escaping her throat, then she trembled, and then, finally, she relaxed. "Thank you... Emro..." she sighed, her eyes still closed, face buried in his shoulder. Her instincts were still screaming at her to run, and the embrace still made goose bumps cover her skin and her heart pound, but this time she didn't consider them. It felt too... good.

[Emro Deucalion and Elspeth]

Emro watched Haruka walk towards him. He wondered what she was up to. His eyes stared into her's. There was a bit of worry in what she was going to do. A chill shot through his body as he felt her fingers touch his shoulders.

Haruka tried to say something, but only managed to say I'm . I'm what? Was she trying to apologize? Something was going on inside of her head. She looked like she was hurting. Mostly emotional. Then Haruka did something he didn't expect. She hugged him. Did he finally make a connection with her. Was she finally understanding.

Emro instinctly wrapped his arms around her, and held her close to him. In a protective way. So she would hopefully feel secure. Emro's heart was racing. This was so...different. He was never used to something like this. Even dreaming of having someone hug him was undreamable. What was going on? His cheeks were flushed pink when he felt her body relax.

"You're welcome Haruka. How about we go to bed. You look exhausted." But Emro doubted she wanted to leave the embrace.

[Haruka Yasu]

Haruka shivered again when he spoke, for she could feel the vibrations of his voice go through her, what with being so close. But Emro was right; she was extremely tired. It was difficult enough not to fall asleep in his arms while they were standing. Only being somewhat alert with him there and cold from her lack of clothing kept her just barely from drifting off.

"Alright," she whispered, pulling back a little and apprehensively glancing up at his face.

At first she only blinked once she realized he was blushing. Then her shoulders gave a little inward jerk and she furiously bit down on her lip, which was twisted in a peculiar way. Next thing she knew---and maybe it was just from the nervousness of hugging him, or the fact that she was so sleepy she felt drunk---but the next thing she knew, she was laughing. Her mouth was so wide it made her now rosy cheeks cause her sparkling lilac eyes to squint. She kept trying to stop, but she couldn't. He was so ridiculous! She shook her head and giggled. "You change in front of a lady like its nothing, then blush when you're hugged?" She laughed again, reaching up and flicking his forehead with pale fingers. "Weirdo," she teased, sticking her tongue out at him and then darting underneath his arm and to the doorway.

She spun around once there, though, her soft gray hair fanning out for a moment before settling mostly on just one shoulder. Her heart was pounding like jack hammer and she wondered vaguely if he could hear from there. However, she ignored it, tilting her head to the side towards the hair and asking, "Won't you walk me to my room?"

Her head was swimming with chaos and she questioned fleetingly why she was feeling so unusually "on beat" ((the correct phrase would be "off beat", but really she was acting more so normal, which is just abnormal to her, creating a paradox of the whole "jumbo shrimp" oxymoron nonsense that the writer would rather not get into)). Like some sort of spell was over her; or drug effect. It was very strange; and slightly familiar. Her stomach was no longer just twisting, but preforming a complex high-level acrobatic form, undoubtedly flaunting off its tricks to her other organs for gold metals of all sorts. But what is a stomach to do with gold metals? That is just a question no one wants to hear an answer for.

Truthfully she didn't really wish to sleep in her room; like said before, it was very dirty and she tended to leave on the oil lamp while she was sleeping, which burned out eventually, but what with all the ruckus it created uneven shadows on the walls that flickered. Plus, in the last three nights, she'd been having a box of kitchen knives by her as she tried to sleep, which she threw on instinct if she ever saw something so much as flinch at the corner of her eye. Most of the time, it was just shadows. Once it was a rat, which she'd hit spot on. That'd left a disgusting smell in her room, so she had to clean that up, but she did a half-ass job so there was still a bit of blood on the wall. She didn't want Emro to see that and assume the worst, but for some odd reason she felt reluctant to leave his side.

Even more so honestly, she didn't even want to sleep. Because she didn't dream, she nightmared. Which is just such a strange word, she thought sleepily, because night if obviously meaning the time of day, but what is mare? I know it means sea in Latin, so what's that got to do with it? It's also a horse... and the dark side of the moon... She yawned, covering her hand with her mouth daintily. She needed to get to bed; she wasn't even making sense in her head anymore.

[Emro Deucalion and Elspeth]

Emro laughed a bit at her comment and rubbed his forhead. Underneath all that wrath, she was just a normal 200 year old teenage girl. One a guy would love to date. Now Emro would never come out and tell her that. No. Emro never flirted, he merely said things how they were.

"Well, there is no shame in seeing a body how it is. I'd walk around naked if I wanted to, but I have some respect in myself. And yes, I do blush when my heart is racing a hundred miles per hour." Emro said blaintly.

Emro nodded "Of course I'll walk you to your room." And he followed her out to her room. As he walked along with her, his mind began to drift. Haruka's new playful attitude was ever so strange. She was the first person he changed, and mind wiping was not needed. Haruka accepted him. They both were 'monsters'.

Emro looked into her room. It was rather messy. How could anyone live this way? He on the other hand, had to have everything...somewhat clean. There was really no trace of a lamp anywhere, except for an oil lamp. He'd only seen those in history books. Nobody really used them..why didn't she use lamps...lamps weren't fire hazards. Emro finished looking around at the clutter her room bestowed infront of them.

Emro arched a brow at the thoughts he was receiving from her. It was just a ramble about the word nightmare. Was Haruka just playing a game with him? or was she just serious about thinking deeply about the word nightmare? Sometimes having this ability was annoying.

He also knew that she didn't want to leave his side. How could he approach the idea of spending the night together? They really couldn't sleep in her room, because Elspeth would be worried about waking up alone. (Is he ever going to have time alone?) Maybe Haruka could stay with him. She and Elspeth could take the bed, or they all could take the bed.

"Your room looks...nice. If you don't wanna be by yourself, we could go to my room if you want. I'm sure Elspeth won't mind."

[Haruka Yasu]

"It was just a thank you hug, if it matters," she told Emro hurriedly, "so don't go expecting them all the time." The last thing she needed was to be getting surprise hugs at any and all times of the day; she'd die of a heart attack no amount of mansion curse could ever heal.

Haruka sucked in her breath and held it for a moment; considering. She had to decide which she felt safer with: a dark haunting room, or a male? "I'll have to think about it," she said, stepping inside. "Give me a second to change." She started to close the door, studying him as she did. She realized that she kind of liked his eyes; they were like the sun and moon. The red one was like the sun at its setting and the clearish one was like the full moon at its brightest. Or one was like blood and the other was like pureness. Death and life. An end and a new beginning. It was quite beautiful, once she thought about. Not that she'd ever tell him.

And then she did something she'd thought she'd never do. An instant later she'd promptly slammed the door and locked it, almost having a break down inside. She'd glanced at his lips.

She quickly evaded all thoughts of it from her mind, knowing he would probably hear it. Which gave her another thought; with him right there, if she changed would he see the image of her in his mind? She shook her head, trying not to think about, hoping with all her heart that he wouldn't; exposing his body to people might be nothing to him, but to her it was very very special and should be kept secret, for the sake of honor and pride. Not that her body wasn't attractive, its just that she was sure she'd explode---ruining the body---if someone were to peep at her. Besides, then she'd have to kill him; and right now that wasn't really in her best interest to do so.

Running a hand through her soft hair, she hunted around the cluttered room for something to wear. Shirts and skirts were everywhere, but she had difficulty finding pants. Finally, though, after she'd gotten on her hands and knees and searched underneath her bed, she found some navy blue baggy sweat pants---three sizes, but looking five sizes, too big for her; but they'd do. She pulled them up, but they slipped right back down, so she yanked the string around the waist as tight as it would go and knotted the ends together. She glanced in the mirror; she looked like she had something to hide, which just made her laugh nervously. She took off her shirt and switched it with a black baggy sweat shirt---quickly and not looking at herself, least Emro be 'watching'---six, maybe eight, sizes senior to her. She shrugged though, not even bothering to roll up the sleeves. So what if she looked ridiculous, she didn't need to impress anyone, right? It was so much warmer then what she was previously wearing anyway. And that was all that mattered.

She opened the door and peered through a gap. Shit, she thought. Against her all her pep talks, she was embarrassed. But she looked like a penguin with elephant skin on, how could she not be?

Still, she refused to change, and opened the door all the way and quickly did a fancy bow to show that she didn't care, and just maybe that she liked this outfit too. Acting like she purposely was looking like that guy from the Subway commercial in his old clothes, just for old times' sake. But then, obviously to her surprise and not on purpose, the baggy pants... fell down.

She blinked a second and then fell to her knees and started laughing her head off, almost to the point of tears. She almost couldn't breathe, her face all red and shaking, the pants like a navy blue puddle around her ankles. She held her sides and leaned against the door frame, trying to hold it in but unable to.

Some things just cannot be stopped.

[Emro Deucalion and Elspeth]

Emro gave a nod, signaling that he understood what she ment. He wasn't one that really gave hugs. There was an underlining truth to that, there wasn't anyone he would really ever hug. Emro was more of a distant person when it came to affection.

The question about staying in his room really made Haruka think. He knew this to be true, because thoughts were running through her mind. Did she feel more safe: alone, or with him? Why did he do these things to people? Why did he force them to think? Why did he put them in situations where they had to slow down and collect themselves? At times, Emro thought of himself as the lesser (stress the lesser) form of Jigsaw. Now Emro would never become that kind of person. His traps, would be your fears.

The door slammed loudly, causing Emro to snap out of his own thoughts and jump. The sound of the door locking made him arch a brow. Not that it offended him in anyway, he was way too understanding of how people worked and their reasons for doing things. Emro waited there patiently for Haruka to reopen the door.

The thought Haruka had of him seeing her changing through her mind made him laugh softly. No, he could not see her changing through her mind. "Haruka, I'll reassure you that I cannot see you changing through your mind. But if you picture yourself changing, then I can. But I wouldn't peer through your memories just so I can see you naked. I'm not that kind of person." Emro then realized all the crime that can come with this ability. Seeing passowords, seeing credit card numbers, lock combinations, atleast he could be trusted with this ability...until the darkside of things swept over him.

Emro smiled seeing the door open and Haruka stept out wearing the most baggy of things. It was...odd, but he remembered from her past memories, that she wanted to wear baggy things to hide her body from males. Yet, that was the old Haruka, maybe in do time, she would sidestep her old baggy clothing. Haruka looked like her clothing was trying to swallow her, because they were so big.

Emro shook his head seeing Haruka bow. Looking back up at her, he watched the pants slide off of her body. This caused his face to turn red out of embaressment for her, and seeing the pants slide off. He badly wanted to laugh, but strained to keep it in. Emro did not want to laugh at her until she started laughing; if Haruka would even stiffle a laugh. He couldn't recall hearing her laugh. Well, Emro wasn't really good at remembering things anyway from constantly having thoughts in his head.

Then the unexpected happen. Haruka feel down laughing. Her face was bright red. Emro started laughing and couldn't fathom why such a simple thing like pants falling down were so amusing to someone. He clutched his sides as they were hearting from laughing so hard. Tears began sliding down his face. There was never a time in his life he laughed from something as hard as thing. He slid down next to Haruka as he strained to breath.

Sometimes, the simple things in life get to you.

[Haruka Yasu]

Seeing Emro laugh only made her laugh even harder; it was like it was contagious. Every time she thought she had it under control she'd glance at him and it'd start again. God, it was torture! "My spleeeeeen!" she wailed between giggles, toppling from her sitting position onto the floor. Jesus, sweet Jesus, it hurt so much! But she just couldn't stop!

Luckily she wasn't drinking anything; it would've been out of her nose ages ago.

"One second," she gasped, wiping at her eyes, "just give me a second." And she stood up, but tripped on her pants, making her have another laugh attack, and then crawled back into the room and closed the door behind her with her foot. She laughed on the floor for a second, and then got the strength to stand and go to her dresser, taking off her sweat shirt and switching it with a regular, white nightgown this time. It went just barely to her knees and had a circle neck cut with buttons going half way down it and lace at the bottom. She felt strange wearing it, she hadn't worn it since... well, she just hadn't worn it. Generally she just slept in baggy shirts, nothing else.

Stepping back into the hallway shyly, she bit the insides of her cheek to stop from smiling. It was very difficult, she felt like laughing for no apparent reason again when she saw him. The white of her gown clashed strangely with her skin tone and the lights, making it look like she was glowing slightly. Her heart was pounding again and she fiddled with the sleeve nervously. She couldn't help herself, though. She glanced up through her lashes at him and asked quietly, her petal lips still smiling a little, "Is this better?"