Ten Years Later (Part Two)

I spent the rest of my days living in bliss. I was married, I was happy and I...was just so happy.

We had been dating straight through high school and college. Off sometimes, on sometimes. But I was reasonably happy.

We went to college together, he with a degree in mechanics and technology for his magic tricks, and I with a degree in teaching and psychology. My students are my pride, my joy, and I hate to say it, my escape from stress.

As soon as Kaito proposed to me, he started to act a little differently. He was always on edge, always around to make a joke or a magic trick at exactly the wrong time. I think he was nervous about what happens after the wedding if you know what I mean.

But he had no need to worry. He was a perfect gentlemen, perfect setting perfect everything. I almost thought it was a dream it was so wonderful. Plush crimson pillows, Louis the whatever furniture and my personal favorite: The view of a river with a name I couldn't pronounce no matter how hard I tried. The room, thanks to his mothers influence, was in a town in Germany and our first stop.

The wedding was reasonably small, but absolutely wonderful. We had a traditional wedding and then a western reception. I carried my dads picture down the aisle because I knew he would have wanted to escort me. He had died a year before Kaito proposed. I miss him a lot and no matter how hard I tried, whenever I thought about him I kinda teared up. But thankfully, I held myself together for the wedding and everything went perfectly. It really was the happiest night of my life.

The two month long trip to travel Europe for the honeymoon? Exhileratlingly perfect. We went to France, Belgium, Greece, Spain, England (We sent a postcard to Hakuba while we were there.) and so many other countries. The sights were beautiful, the nights were filled with love and passion and everything just felt right in the world.

Then it was over. And we were reawakened by reality. I soon got my teaching position at the local middle school a month afterwards and I loved it. I wasn't the most popular teacher among my co-workers, but most of the kids liked me and they often came to me for advice.

I became pregnant with our first child about a year after the wedding. I was so scared and I kept it a secret from Kaito until he noticed that I had gained a little weight. So I broke down and told him.

And he cracked like the nut he is.

He just...burst out laughing uncontrollably for about an hour. I almost rushed him to the hospital he was laughing so much. And when it finally stopped he just scooped me up and asked me the due date.

I was so happy I cried.

The nine months were spent with anticipation and fear. We found out that we were going to give birth to a girl.

And then, three months before my due date I started to have contractions. I panicked, called Kaito and we rushed to the hospital.

I never got to hear my baby's cries. The doctor said that the umbilical cord had wrapped around her neck and as it grew, it tightened.

So I miscarried.

We were emotional wrecks afterwards. I rampaged and threw every baby thing we owned out of the house. Kaito was just silent. He hadn't said a word to me since we got back from the hospital. Everyone we knew visited us, giving us gifts and sympathy.

Until I couldn't take it any more and just stopped answering the door and ignoring the phone calls. I quit my job as a teacher and got a job as a psychologist at the local therapy center. It help me get my mind off things.

I barley ever saw Kaito since I was always drowning myself at work. I didn't have time to think and I didn't want myself to think.

Or else I would just break down.

It happened seven months after the miscarriage. I got off work early after a client canceled an appointment. I opened the door and there stood Kaito, a blank expression on his face.

"Aoko?" He asked. His voice was so hollow I-I cringe just thinking about it. "Can we talk?"

I nodded. "Just let me change into something more comfortable. I'll meet you at the dining room table."

I wondered what he wanted to speak to me about and came up blank since we hadn't talked in over seven months. So after changing into comfortable sweats and a T-shirt, I met him downstairs and prepared myself for his little talk.

And with seven words, my world ended.

"I think we should get a divorce."

My breathing became shallow and I stared at him in anger. "Why?" My voice was wobbly.

He bit his lip. "After everything that happened, I think its best of we just gave ourselves a clean slate. We'll sign the divorce papers and get on with our lives."

As the tears started falling down my cheeks I tore myself from the table and took off running. I listened to him call my name in desperation but I could not permit myself to look back.

If I looked back, I would run back down that street and throw myself into his arms.

He obviously wouldn't want that.

I didn't know where I was going. All I knew was that I had to get away from that house, from him.

My tears wouldn't stop falling.

I don't what I was thinking as I ran out into the streets. All I know is that I heard a honk and my world went black.

I woke up in a usual hospital room with all sorts of needles and strange tubes in my skin. I ached all over and the heart monitor went wild. The room was empty and for some reason, my heart ached.

And then it came crashing down on me.

I could never go back to my house.

He didn't want me there.

He probably started hating me around the time she died. My tears came back with a full force and I curled up into a ball, relieving my loss all over again.

The nurse ran into my room with Kaito behind her.

"Honey are you okay?" She asked. "Whats wrong?"

I couldn't answer her, my sobs drowned out any voice I had. They finally decided to leave me alone after the nurse put a sedative in a bag attached to my arm.

Thats how it was for weeks. I got the story from my nurse. Apparently, I rushed out onto the streets where a truck speeding hit me. I broke my pelvis bone, my collar bone, most of my ribs and a bit of my spine. I couldn't walk. I couldn't feel my legs for a while.

Everyday everyone encouraged me to keep going.

The first day I asked that the hospital just let me go and let me die. Well...those weren't the exact words. I told them it was because of money problems. They didn't believe me so they kept me, saying someone already paid for my stay. I asked who it was but they said it was an anonymous person who wouldn't give his name.

I tried to run away a few times but they always caught me. I always shouted I didn't want to live and for them to just let me die. They usually forced me to take sleeping drugs and I would wake up the next morning wondering what had happened. And the cycle would continue.

Kaito only ever came when I was asleep. I heard him talking to me a few times but I never really understood what he was saying.

Out of sheer idiocy, I called him up one day and asked for him to meet me at the cafeteria in the hospital to discuss our divorce. I swear I was over-dosed on those drugs.

He was there first. It wasn't hard to find him knowing there was always a crowd wherever he was. I stood back and watched the show. He was magnificent, his expression never straying from mystery and joy. I clutched my heart.

That was the man I fell in love with. Where had he gone these last seven months?

Soon the show was over and he motioned for me to come over. I wheeled myself over to the table and sat down in front of him. The doctor wouldn't let me out of my room without a wheelchair so I had no choice.

"Aoko." He started. "I know you probably want the divorce more than me, but-"

"Do I?" I asked quietly. "Is that what you think?"

"Why wouldn't it be?"

"Have you ever thought to ask what I wanted instead of making assumptions?" My voice was cracked and wobbly but I still went on. "Maybe I don't want this divorce. Maybe I still want to be with the one I love. When our baby died," I sniffed. "I needed you. And you needed me, but we were still both reeling from the loss. I believed that my presence was too strong of a reminder for you. Thats why I switched jobs. I thought you hated me. That you resented me for killing our baby." Tears were running down my cheeks by the time

I finished.

He got up and went over to kneel next to my wheelchair.

"Aoko." He whispered. "I thought the same way. I figured that, as the father of the baby, that I would just bring up bad memories. I thought that with the divorce you could finally be happy. I love you and I always will. But I never thought of you as our baby's killer. It was an accident and I was just acting stupid. And I am so sorry for making such stupid assumptions and getting you into this mess." He gestured to my wheelchair. "I will spend the rest of my life trying to make up for my mistake. Aoko I'm so sorry." He got up and hugged me. I hugged back and I started to cry again.

And this time, I cried because of my happiness.

We sold our old house. There were just to many bad memories that we needed to escape from. We decided to move to a more suburban-like town instead of living in the city. So we moved Kyoto. Our house wasn't as big as it had been when we were living in Tokyo, but it was still nice.

After we moved all of our things into the new house, we decided to have another honeymoon. So this time, we went to Hawaii. The views were even more spectacular than Europe! We drank from coconuts, went to the beach everyday and watched the sunset every night, and went to shows. The owner of a restaurant we went to recognized Kaito and asked him to do a show for him, with me as his assistant.

We were amazing! The crowd just went nuts over all of his tricks. I knew most of them by heart so his tricks were easy to go along with. When it was over, the manger thanked us and gave us tickets to something called Cirque Du Soleil.

We went the next day and had a blast! The tricks were amazing, the shows spectacular and we just couldn't get enough! We were so amazed we talked about it during the nightly walk home.

At first, it had been so awkward during the nights. I knew Kaito wanted to rekindle our love but I was scared. The accident had left a scar on my stomach and I was afraid of him being disgusted by it. When I expressed my concerns to him he asked me to show my scar. So I did.

It was a huge red line that went from my torso to my inner thigh. As soon as he saw it he began to kiss it and soon we were in bed. As the sun rose, he stroked my cheek and whispered, "I wouldn't care if you had a scar on you face. You are still the most beautiful thing in this world to me." And like always I cried.

When we went back to Japan, I decided to quit my job as a psychologist and become Kaito's assistant. We traveled all over Japan doing public performances, private performances and all sorts of things! And at the end of each performance he always gave me and the audience a rose. Our trademark.

About six months after we came back to Japan and started to do shows, I started to feel sick. So I went to the doctor with Kaito. And we were shocked out of our minds.

Yep! You guessed it! I was pregnant again!

This time we took it a little slower and much more carefully. I went to the gym to keep in shape and I started eating a lot healthier than normal. I only ate fried vegetables and a bit of rice, almost no meat except for my cravings, and a lot of fruit. Kaito, being the sweets freak he is, hid a bunch of sweets all around the house where he thought I couldn't reach or wouldn't find.

He really needs to get better hiding places.

Anyway, checked into a hospital when I was five months due for safety. I learned that I was having a boy this time so I really wanted things to go well. Around two days after the due date I started to have contractions.

And then I gave birth to Kuroba Toya.

And this time, I got to hear my baby's first cries. Kaito called everyone and told them about the news. I didn't really care.

All that mattered to me was that I finally got to hold my baby in my arms with the one I love.

I was listening to Surrender by Evanescence, She Had The World by Panic At The Disco, Life Is Beautiful by six: AM, Much Like Falling by Flyleaf, Remedy by Jason Mraz and the Valentine Tango by the Another Cinderella Story album while I was writing this. Surrender was okay, She Had The World and Remedy were kinda stupid, Life Is Beautiful and Much Like Falling are really depressing and The Valentine Tango was really smooth. I don't even know where I got all of these songs!

I don't know if Cirque Du Soleil moves around or just stays in one place. If it just stays then please ignore it!

Let me know is you have any recommendations for song fics that I could write for Aoko, Kaito, Ran, Shinichi, Heiji or Kazuha. I've decided to re-write Strong Butterfly to get more reviews so REVIEW PLEASE!