Since their date, they'd gone out more often, but usually the couple tended to spend their time together hanging out in Kite's pet shop. Neferpitou helped out now, feeding the animals and keeping the water in the fish tanks at the perfect chemical balance. She seemed happy occupying herself with such things, but Kite felt something was off. It had nagged him in the back of his mind since the day he'd met her and whatever was off, it wasn't those quirky antics of hers.

"All finished." said Pitou as she returned from the backroom.

"I'll be heading home now. Call me later, okay?" she said.

"I will. See you later."

"Bye!"

"Wait, Pitou…"

Neferpitou stopped in her tracks, her body halfway through the doorway.

She turned slightly and asked, "What is it Kite?"

Kite said, "Um…. Do you want me to walk you home?"

"…"

She smiled and said, "Don't be silly nyah. You can't leave the store unattended. Thank you though."

"Right. Goodnight then."

She nodded and was on her way.

Kite's heart sank through his chest. He felt as if he'd missed an opportunity, the most important opportunity of his life. She was just walking away and yet he felt like that was criminal.

She's such a pain. Even though I'm her boyfriend, she's still keeping quiet about something… no everything. Pitou…. people's lives don't consist of enjoying animals and looking for colleges. I'm such an idiot. I should have insisted on going with her. I should have asked her more about herself.

She couldn't have gotten far. I can still make it.

Kite flipped the store sign to "closed" and ran out the door. He ran down the sidewalk at a brisk pace with his eyes peeled for her slim figure skipping down the road. Kite could see her now. She wasn't skipping though. Neferpitou was walking down the street as if she were a lost traveler stranded in the middle of scorching desert. She stopped moving altogether and began to look up at the clouds.

"Pitou!"

His words echoed for the entire world to hear. And then everything was silent: the sirens of a police car in the distance, the chatty pedestrians on the opposing walkway, and the hum of cars flying past him. They weren't there. There was only Neferpitou.

Her head quickly turned towards him, appearing quite startled. Kite ran up to her before she had time to even utter his name. She felt his arms tighten around her back, pulling her into his chest, nearly lifting her up. He was warm. Her eyes widened with surprise and her arms pulled back. Kite waited for her to embrace him, but what she did was quite the opposite. Pitou pushed him back.

"Sorry," she said, "I don't know why I…"

Kite said, "Sorry, I must have surprised you."

Neferpitou noted his eyes, they looked distant now.

"I shouldn't have done that Kite. Please forgive me-"

"Stop apologizing!" he said. His angry tone caused her to step backwards.

He continued, "I came here because I was worried about you. Even now, you push me away. You won't let me in. You won't tell me why you came to my shop every day. You won't tell me why you walk home alone."

Neferpitou was dumbstruck.

"Don't you trust me?" he asked.

She knew if she answered no, she could lose everything.

But I do trust you. I do. But I can't say it. I don't know how to say it to anyone else, even you.

Neferpitou's wavering eyes suddenly became fierce.

But I must try. I must.

Kite saw her drop her head. Her eyes became obscured by her long grey bangs.

"Kite," said Neferpitou, "the day I came to your shop, I was heartbroken. My friends and I… we were close. Pouf, Youpi, Meruem."

Her eyes became narrow as she said the last name. Beads of water collected on the rim of her eyelashes before under the weight, pouring down her cheeks.

She continued, "We promised we'd be together forever and yet a simple thing like upcoming graduation changed all that. Pouf went to pursue his own career and Youpi wasn't interested in college. Meruem was invited to a top of the line college and accepted the offer. Only a few students ever get to attend it, least of all afford. Even though I got all A's, I wasn't as impressive as him. I couldn't keep up. So we said our goodbyes. I know we'll stay in touch, but… I've known them a since I was a child. I've confided in them for everything: when I was bullied, when I was dumped, when my parents ignored me. It was always okay because I could be with them, I could speak to them. But now they're gone and I feel so alone. I don't know what to do anymore. So I distracted myself. I went see your animals everyday and it kept my mind from the pain in my heart. I'm sorry Kite. I've enjoyed being with you, I really have. But even though I care about you, I still miss them so much."

Wiping her eyes, she managed to say, "I know I'm never going to see them again. If I had just been good enough, I could have stayed with Meruem."

"Meruem…" said Kite, "means the most to you. Do you love him?"

He hated himself for asking such a selfish question when Pitou was pouring her heart out to him.

"Yes."

He hadn't expected such a quick answer.

"I-I see."

Neferpitou's mouth dropped and she said, "No. Not like that. He's my best friend."

Kite rubbed his face and said, "Sorry, I'm acting pathetic here. "

Kite grabbed a hold of Pitou's hands and placed them in the space between them.

He said, "Thank you for telling me. I'm sorry you've had to go so through much. I'm sorry you've been feeling lonely all this time."

He hugged her again and this time she hugged him back. He lay his head squarely on top of hers and shut his eyes.

Kite said, "You're not alone Pitou."

"I know. I know I have you."

Kite said, "I'm not trying to make you move on. I'm saying it's okay to cry in my arms when you miss them. You don't have to walk home alone anymore."

Neferpitou heard him choke on his last few words. They were painful to here. A lump began to swell in her throat. It made her arms tremble and her vision blurry.

She cried as she said, "I told you I know that. I do. You're here with me. Kite, I'm so glad I stepped into your shop. Thank you for everything."

"I was accepted!" said Neferpitou.

Kite jumped out of his seat. The magazine that had been covering his face went flying into the air and landed on top of the macaw's cage.

As the bird let out an obnoxious squawk, Kite said, "Accepted into where?"

Pitou said, "Lionheart. It's one of the best and only forty minutes away."

Kite ran up to her and hugged her. He said, "That's great! And I'll be able to see you."

"Isn't it?" said Pitou, "Let's go out and celebrate tonight. My treat."

"Sounds good." said Kite.

Neferpitou felt Kite's soft lips crash against hers again. She eagerly kissed him back.

Suddenly, someone the front door opened. In stepped a middle-aged man with a beard.

He said, "Sorry, I know I'm a bit early. Would it be okay if I took a look around?"

Kite said, "That's… go right ahead."

Neferpitou's eyes followed the man as he began to examine the cages throughout the store.

She turned to Kite and said, "Kite, what's going on?"

Kite turned his head away and said, "Sorry. I didn't want to ruin your moment. The store isn't doing so well. I had no choice but to sell off the animals. This man has offered to buy them all and he has the space to hold them."

Neferpitou's eyebrows rose. She said, "I see. I'm sorry Kite. Will you be okay?"

Kite said, "I'll get enough out of this to support myself for a couple of months. By then… by then I'll have a way to make money. And I need to ask you about that."

"Hmm?"

He said, "My friend Rodriguez has asked me to go on a two month expedition with him to Argentina. There are some new areas he wants to explore. I want to go and I'll get decent pay from the funding. But I don't want to be away from you for two-months. We're still early in our relationship."

"When would you be going?"

"In about three weeks. Pitou I…"

"Are you afraid we'll grow distant? Kite, if you want to go, I'm more than happy for you. I'll be thinking of you every day while I'm studying. By the time I have you back, there's no telling what I'll do."

The middle-aged man stood behind them, attempting to fake reading a magazine.

Kite side, "Pitou, we have guests. Though I'll admit I like that."

Neferpitou said, "Our lives are moving forward… together."

Kite said, "You're right. I won't be far off for long and when I get back, I want to hear about how well you've been doing in school."

"Nyah, don't pressure me!"

Kite laughed and said, "If I can find a new job when I get back, maybe you could consider moving in with me?"

As he said it, his hand was clearly covering his face, a pitiful attempt to hide the scarlet smeared across it.

Her own cheeks lightly tinted, Neferpitou looked away bashfully and said, "I'd like that. I'd rather have you as a roommate anyway."

They heard an insincere cough and both turned their heads to the direction of the voice.

The man said, "Your animals look healthy so I'll be heading home now. Goodbye."

"Thank you for stopping by" said Kite.

"Nyah, my stomach's growling. Hurry up and close shop so we can eat."

"As you wish," said Kite.

He made sure the cage lids were shut tight, the water bowls were filled, and all the light bulbs were working. After flipping the door sign to "close", Kite stepped outside and locked the door behind him. Neferpitou stood outside waiting for him.

"This way Kite" she said, "We're trying somewhere new today."

Kite smiled and followed after her, unsure of where she would take him, but ready to find out.

Neferpitou sat in the darkness of her dorm room. Her arms and legs were perched over the chair, as if she was ready to spring forward at any moment. She was staring at her computer screen with a grave expression painted over her face. For several minutes, she simply gazed at the monitor. Her eyes suddenly lit up and she grinned. Now her fingers began to fly across the buttons of the keyboard.

"Dear Meruem, I thought I'd update you on situation. First off, how are you? Are you enjoying the university? Have you made any friends? I'm eager to know.

I miss you even now. But I'm doing okay. I've met someone: a handsome shopkeeper who I hang out with and who is always kind to me. I want to introduce you to him. I think you guys would be great friends.

I'm taking my courses and everything is going smoothly. So don't worry about me. Be sure to sure to respond to this email soon or I'll make you get a phone. Well, take care. :3"

After she clicked the send button, she closed her email, which sent her to her desktop. Her wallpaper was of a familiar white-haired man. Neferpitou leaned forward on her desk, supported by her elbows. She gave a lazy smile as she gazed at the photograph.

"Nyah, I'm waiting for you Kite, so hurry up and come back already."

The End.

Author's Notes: I apologize for how short this story is. It was originally a very long one-shot. That being said, thank you for reading Pet Shop Boy!