I look at you and see a friend
I hope that's what you wanna be
Are we back now where it all began?
Have you finally forgiven me?

— The Perishers, Sway

He had known it would be awkward when she came back, he hadn’t realised just how awkward. The way she glanced at him and blushed with the memory of those moments they’d spent together on his bed, rediscovering what they’d lost. The way her voice shook when she greeted him, the way his fingers trembled as he took her suitcase from her and they walked up the stairs side by side.

“I didn’t know if you’d come back,” he said, trying to keep his tone even.

“I couldn’t miss Small Lady’s birthday,” she answered, equally quiet.

“You could have.” He put the suitcase on the bed and turned to her, slipping his hands into his pockets so that he didn’t fiddle with his hair or clothes. “I wouldn’t have blamed you.”

“Zoisite…”

“You left,” he said, proud of the way his voice remained strong. “I took that to mean it was just for one night. And I didn’t think you’d want to come back and face…”

“If you can face me, I can face you.” The words were sharp but she put a hand over her mouth, wishing them back. He only smiled.

“Touché. Putting it against that, you didn’t really do much, did you? But what I mean is… I was hoping that meant we were friends again. Of a sort.”

“Friends?” she repeated faintly. “Why?”

“Because we slept together, Ami-san,” he said, enjoying her wince. “And not just once, either. And I wasn’t the only one who wanted it. Do you really want me to remind you?”

“No,” she muttered, opening her suitcase, since it gave her an excuse to look away from him, from those wide green eyes that acted on her like whirlpools.

“So we’re not friends,” he said, watching her unpack, making no move to leave. “It was an aberration and everything is as it was before? Because, you can’t really do something like that and expect to have everything as it was before.”

“Look who’s talking.”

“I didn’t expect anything,” he pointed out. “You were the one who wanted to come in. You were the one who lay down on the bed. You were the one who… well, I don’t really need to go on, do I?”

“What do you want?” she said, turning to him, looking so tired that he felt guilty for a moment, a feat if she’d known it.

“I want to know if what happened in Paris means anything. I want to know if you’ve finally forgiven me or if we’re going to pretend it didn’t happen and barely speak to each other.”

She sighed. “I don’t know, Zoisite, I… I’ve been trying to figure it out ever since that night and I haven’t managed it. I want to forgive you but I don’t know if I can…”

“You wouldn’t have been able to let me touch you if you hadn’t forgiven me.”

It was such a logical statement that for a moment, Ami couldn’t accept it. Her mind spun crazily. She stared at him. It was so simple and so clear. Why hadn’t she seen it?

Because she hadn’t wanted to see it. She put her hands over her face and then she felt his arms wrap around her. “Don’t,” she said weakly, but he ignored her and she was glad of it.

“Let’s try again,” he said, stroking the small of her back. “How does that sound?”

“Only if we start as friends,” she stipulated, gazing up at him, feeling the pull of his eyes again.

“I can handle that,” he assured her with an innocent look.

“I’ll believe it when I see it,” she answered, stepping back. He took her hand and kissed it with a smile, watching as she blushed. Then he straightened and left the room, still smiling. This was going to be fun.

Ami sank onto the bed. Yes, he could handle friendship… she had no doubt of that. The question was, could she?

“Yes,” she murmured. “We really are right back where we started.”


DISCLAIMER: Neither of these characters belong to me, they belong to Naoko Takeuchi. The song belongs to The Perishers, of course.