It's been a while since I updated this, hasn't it? Well, I thought it was about damn time so I'm doing one chapter. And Yuuma's birthday is coming up this month, right? Gonna have to start planning an update on his, too…

SAKAMAKI KANATO X KAZUKA MAYU = KANAYU!

RATINGS WILL BE KEPT SECRET BECAUSE I KEEP FORGETTING ABOUT THEM ANYWAY.

"Oh dear God," I mumbled, as I understood what I had to deal with. "Does he even want me to pick up his things?"

In Kanato's room, there were all sorts of toys splattered around on the purple floor. That was just how it had always been. No one ever seemed to care about picking them up. There had been one other occasion when I had cleaned Kanato's room while he attended school, and I actually did care enough to clean up all the toys from the floor only to find them back in their wrong place the day after. And yet I'd never seen Kanato play with any of them.

"I'll fucking pick them up anyway."

A red rocking horse, small plastic cars, a ball, building bricks and some sort of big ladybug figure. I picked up all of the damn things.

The faster I finished cleaning, the faster I could go and search for an escape. I didn't dare doing my search first, in case Kanato would come home and find his room dirty and I still hadn't managed to flee yet. That punishment wouldn't be merciful, I bet.

Everyday, as soon as Kanato left, I'd go look. And everyday, I found the doors and windows locked. So trying to get out through them was pretty much useless. I had to find another way, unless I someday got desperate enough to crush a window.

Once scrubbing the floor and dusting off all toys and furniture was done, I headed out with footsteps carrying a quick pace. I had planned to check all the balconies that day to see if there was any was to get down. I wasn't sure, however, how to find these balconies, but I knew very well that they existed.

I walked around. A little bit here and a little bit there. It didn't matter much, as long as it took me somewhere. "I swear to God, if I don't manage to escape today, I'll ask Kanato for a map." Wandering around like I did took up a lot of time, slowing my plans of escape down way too much for my liking.

Near what I think was the eastern part of the mansion, a light tune reached my ears and caused my whole body to freeze in place. It was almost unbearably soft, and almost as if it was a human instinct, my feet turned around ever so slightly and started wandering off toward it. As if I was both hypnotized and conscious, or maybe I just didn't want to admit that I was following it by my own free will. Either one works.

The closer I got, the cleared and less muffled the sound became – until it eventually revealed itself to be a voice. It came from behind an open door, and as I took a step outside on - believe it or not - a balcony, the voice turned out to belong to no other than Kanato.

He was sitting on the stone railing, eyes closed and Teddy kept in one hand right next to him. Slowly swinging his legs back and forth one at a time, Kanato looked truly carefree without one worry in the world as he sweetly kept singing his tune.

"Are you going to Scarborough Fair? Parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme."

It was painfully beautiful the way he sang it, and kept me standing frozen behind the wall. I had finally found a balcony, and yet I couldn't stop observing Kanato from behind the corner. Had school already ended for him? Was he already home? And yet, he hadn't even informed me about it.

"Remember me to one who lives there, for once she was a true love of mine."

Kanato didn't continue after that. It seemed as if the song was over, the way he exhaled calmly and completely in harmony. When he opened his eyes though, I couldn't say that he looked just as filled-with-harmony anymore.

"What are you doing?" he asked, pretty much hissing out the words with a sharp and irritated tone. One completely different from the one earlier. "Having you stare like that, it's unpleasant."

His voice had shot me out of my trance, and I was now looking like an idiot in my hiding place. I took slow, nervous steps out at the balcony, revealing myself with a dorky and big smile, one hand scratching the back of my head. "Ah, sorry. I didn't mean to stare, it just kind of happened."

"'It just kind of happened'? What a funny thing to say, really." Kanato scoffed quietly, returning his gaze to the moon in complete silence.

There was just one thing disturbing me a little. The way he sat recklessly on the railing like that, when we were obviously high up above ground, he must be completely mad. "Hey, Kanato," I called out, not receiving even as much as a little reaction. "Why are you here? Sitting like that, it's really dangerous, you know."

Something made him freeze, every little movement stopping as he stood still in place. He looked stiff, either of shock, fear or maybe something that I didn't know. After maybe a second or two, he loosened up again, but he still didn't swing around his feet or anything alike.

"It's strange," he said, continuing to gaze upon the gleaming ball among the stars. "Just like this, it's exactly like it was back then with her. Everything is the same-" his eyelids and eyes sank in disappointment. "-except for you."

What the hell are you talking about?

"I'm serious. If you were to fall from here, I bet you'd injure yourself, right? So get down from there and go check my cleaning instead. That's safe stuff."

Besides, if I could get him away from the balcony, then I could just maybe continue trying to find out how to get away from there without Kanato seeing what I'm up to.

"This feeling… It sure brings back memories," he murmurs, ignoring me.

"Come on, get down from there!"

He snaps back to reality, turning his head to look at me with curious purple eyes.

"If you really want me to get down so badly," he smiles, eyes narrowing. "then give me a kiss."

Now, that was the last thing I'd thought he'd say. I was not ready for it at all, and had my breath cut off so suddenly that it almost sent me coughing. He didn't really expect me to just go along with it, right? But he looked like he was really eager for my answer, not just a little curious.

"I won't kiss you," I assured, crossing my arms as I approached him with a serious expression.

He watches me get closer, and even though it's gotten a little smaller, the smile is still there. "If you give me a kiss," he stubbornly continues – almost as if I hadn't refused just a second ago. "I will be happy to get down."

I didn't answer him. Returning his uncomfortable glare was difficult enough

"If you can't do that," he adds, turning his face away shortly after to proceed observing the clouds pass the moon. "then leave me alone and get lost."

I didn't approach him any further. He was acting really childish, and if he was that stubborn to have his way, then I'd be glad to give it to him.

"Fine," I agree, the word coming out a lot more as a scoff than I intended. "I'll leave right away."

I turn on my heel, grumpily taking quick steps toward the already-open door. Taking one foot into the mansion, I'm interrupted.

"You're really nothing like her after all," Kanato says in a mix of a sigh and a mumble.

I take my foot back from the inside, placing it down onto the stone floor once again. The talk about some 'her' was really getting on my fucking nerves, as I couldn't understand shit. "Who are you talking about?"

Wow, my voice really showed how bitter I was about it. Hope he doesn't mistake me to be jealous.

I knew that he heard me, and yet he continues to ignore everything I have to say. "Say, Mayu-san," he begins and slowly gets down from the stone railing. "When we first found you, you had a really strange scent. However, the day after, that scent had disappeared and been replaced by your current one."

Kanato begins to walk toward me, and the way he's so calm and slow worries me way too much. He stopped right in front of me, and I wished so badly that I had just turned around and run when I had the chance. "Hey, why is that? Where did it go?"

Hey, Kanato," I nervously try to smile, voice cracking a bit as I try to calm him down. "Did something happen? You're acting really strange today."

"That doesn't matter, now does it? Come on, answer my question." Kanato's tone was somewhat sweet and his eyebrows were creased in a way that made him look like something close to worried.

But I didn't know what to answer him. I had no answer to his question. Heck, I didn't even know what he was talking about. I couldn't smell my own scent the way vampires could, so I didn't know if it changed or not.

"Didn't I tell you to anSWER MY QUESTION!"

Kanato's hand was pushed against my throat, forcing me into the wall with a sudden, choking gasp. His eyes were open wide, glinting with an insane twist, and his teeth were gritted hard against each other.

My head felt like it was boiling and about to pop. I grabbed his hand, trying to push it away before my eyes would fly out of my scull. I couldn't get any air, and I began feeling desperate when I couldn't make his hand move even an inch.

"Ggh… I-I can't… uuh.. bre…athe…!"

Good thing you're wasting up all your air on trying to talk. Nicely done, Mayu.

"Even when being strangled, why are you looking at me with eyes like that!? Do you want me to gouge out your eyes, you worthless human!?"

Kanato waited until I was drooling, pleading and crying with pain and desperation for air. Calming down only after I was at the very verge of fainting, he finally let go of his grip and let my weak body fall down into a heap on the ground, coughing heavily enough to feel like it would kill me as well.

He watched me catch my breath with cold eyes, face back to expressionless.

"I really hate you, Mayu-san," he said and bent down to my eye-level. "If it weren't for your scent that first day, I would've definitely killed you right now. Remember that."

I sat still facing the floor, not even having the courage to breathe in his presence even though it was most definitely needed in my state. I was on both hands and knees, while he was simply crouching down on one knee.

"That's why you should do your best to try and satisfy me in the only way your pathetic self can." Kanato lifts up my face, brushing away all the red, puddle-curly strands of hair from my shoulder. "Stay still and let me suck your blood."

He sinks his teeth down into my right shoulder, and I don't even have the energy to try and stop him. It stings terribly where he bites, and I contain a whimper as he pulls his teeth out to once again brush away some hair that had gone back to getting in his way.

"Your hair is really pretty, Mayu-san," he compliments, with a touch of sweet admiration in his voice being overwhelmed by a small disappointment. "If only you'd taken care of it. You could've been so cute."

He licks up the blood escaping from the new bite marks, and then smoothly sinks his teeth back into them. It causes a massive pain, worse than when he usually makes new bite marks.

"But after all," Kanato pulls his teeth out again and sighs, displeased. "You'll never be her."

Thank you for reading this chapter! Two updates in one week is pretty nice, maybe I'll do it more often.

THANK YOU ALL FOR READING AND I'LL SEE YOU SOME OTHER TIME. IF YOU WANT AN UPDATE THOUGH, YOU GOTTA ASK FOR ONE.