DISCLAIMER: I own nothing.

—s—t—a—r—t—f—i—c—t—i —o—n—

The both of you stand in the plain, empty room, alone, only vaguely aware of the gang leader laying injured and watched over by the bespectacled boy in the room next to you over the proximity of the other. The room is silent, the only audible sounds being the inhales and exhales of your breathing. You wonder, for a moment, if Ana is feeling the same thing you are; the butterflies in your stomach, the sudden heat of the room.

Suddenly, she grabs your left hand with her own supple-skinned one. "Let's dance," she says, and though the question is abrupt and you have no idea how to go about dancing as you've never really done it before, you nod your head in agreement, knowing you couldn't refuse her if she told you to jump off the top of Mount Itoi.

She snakes her arms around your neck as your hands find their way to her waist, pulling her as close as you dare, and your breath hitches for a moment when she presses herself closer. You don't know what you're doing, and it's obvious, but Ana doesn't seem to mind. She takes it upon herself to begin the swaying motion that goes along with a slow dance such as this. Her motions are fluid and practiced, and you're pleased to find out that this dancing thing comes quite naturally to you. You're able to keep up as she ups the pace, hips and blonde pigtails delicately swooshing from side to side.

Out of nowhere, you become hyperaware of an overwhelming emotion that's rather new to you. You want to cup her face and tell her how beautiful she is, like a fair-haired angel descended from above to grace the world with it's presence, no matter how cliche it would sound. You feel the instinctive need to stay by her side and protect her, perhaps ask her to wait here while you and the two others scaled the mountain and faced the anomaly waiting for you, even though she was quite capable of taking care of herself. You always want to be with her wherever she goes, to spend as much time as possible with her, suddenly pining to prolong this journey of yours so she wouldn't return home to Snowman and forget about you. It's almost like what one feels for family members, but you know it's not the same. It's more...desperate. More intimate.

Ana slows her pace once more, and you find your train of thought completely derailed when she looks at you with those pretty blue eyes of hers, the ones that can make you do anything. She opens her mouth to say something, but hesitates, her expression troubled. "Do...do you love me?"

The inquiry makes you freeze in ecstatic disbelief, but Ana misreads this reaction and averts her gaze, stumbling to a stop herself.

"I just...I knew, when I first met you back in Snowman, returning my hat to me, that you were special. I don't want this to end, for us to have to go back to what were before when this is all over. I want us to he together longer...I don't want to lose you. I love you." She looks up at you once again, her eyes now sparkling with what you knew was the same emotion you were feeling deep inside. "Do you love me, Ninten?"

Time seems to slow for you. Yes, yes, yes, you think! I love you with all my heart and soul! You're beautiful inside and out, and any man on Earth would be blessed to even so much as know you. I thought my life was happy before, but the word I was looking for would have been complacent. Meeting you is by far the best thing that's happened to me so far in my admittedly short life, but I'll be damned if I let you go! I love you more than there are stars in the sky, Ana, and I'm more than proud to say it!

But you, being the ever-silent protagonist, do not say these things aloud. Your hands are suddenly cradling her face, stroking her left cheek with your right thumb softly, and gently, ever so gently, you take her lips with yours, putting everything you know and feel with your heart and soul into this one kiss.

And when she pulls you closer with her arms, yearning for more, you know that this is the beginning of something amazing.

—e—n—d—f—i—c—t—i—o—n—

A/N: First het story. And I am very surprised at the lack of love for this pairing. There are a total of two. SHAME. This is the most canon of all pairings! Needs more attention, definitely.

Reviews are more than welcome. They make smile! C: