Blbs 7 .

Time passed, and the wound under Aizawa's eye healed, though there would always be a ragged scar there.

Elly refused to talk to him.

She blocked his number, had him blacklisted at the apartment complex so he couldn't get in, and ignored the letters he tried writing in a last ditch, desperate attempt to apologize. He even sent her an expensive floral arrangement, a monetary waste when one considered his new budget wasn't that great.

He was now working at a local bookstore, writing only for his personal blog and whatever freelancing he could pick up. Which, at the moment, wasn't a lot due to his reputation. He had been good at getting the job done, but for so long he had failed to see the <i>cost</i>. What had begun as a few sacrifices to his ethics now and then when he needed money had ended up as him selling himself with each new story. In a bitter twist, he'd insinuated she was the whore when it had been him selling out all along. He regretted that, and it had taken the loss of a good woman to start him back on the right track once more.

Although he was desperate <i>not</i> to lose her, it was clear that Elly thought he was gone from her life forever. She released a surprise new song only a few days after their fight. He found out after his shift had ended and hurried to search for a clip of it. There was a video on her official YouTube channel, and he flinched when he watched it, closing his eyes and rubbing at them with a shaky hand.

The song was titled, "<i>Bastard</i>", and it became an instant hit.

It was also very clearly about Aizawa.

The public didn't know this, of course. But what they didn't know, didn't matter. People understood the <i>emotion</i> behind the lyrics. When the music video released, the piece went viral and skyrocketed to the top of the charts. The raw anguish in her voice as she sang was palpable. Many critics commended her makeup artists on presentation. Cheshire didn't look like she was "sad, yet pretty", in distressed makeup that still managed to offset her features.

Oh, no.

In truth, she wore absolutely no makeup at all. It was simply how she arrived to the set that day. She was pale and stricken, her purple eyes a lighter color than usual in her grief. There were dark smudges under those tired, sad eyes and her outfit consisted of a pair of gray sweatpants and an oversized black shirt. Fans deliberated over what it all really meant, but Aizawa recognized the top as one he had left at her place.

Aizawa shook his head in vague disbelief as he played the video again and again in his apartment. Mic had been right; he had hurt her far more than he realized. She had been keeping to herself for these few weeks, avoiding going out in public at all until the song release. Reporters - <i>the type I used to be</i>, he reminded himself bitterly -- were calling her a recluse and hinting that she wasn't doing well.

Because of him.

He felt like the biggest ass in the entire world.

Aizawa gazed into her eyes as she sighed, staring directly into the camera as she ended the song. He could see how conflicted she was, and it wrenched at his heart.

"...and I may hate myself, but I still love you." There was a pause, and then she silently mouthed the word, "<i>Baby</i>", before turning away.

He felt a surge of emotion so strong he had to grip the arms of the chair he was sitting on to avoid falling.

<i>She loved him.</i>

Back in a far more luxurious setting, Mic and Elly were about to have dinner.

"Oh, Mikey, I <i>hate</i> him! Why won't he leave me <i>alone</i>?!"

"You know you don't hate him," Mic murmured regretfully. "It'd be better if ya did, you know."

The two were hanging out at his place. Elly was draped over his kitchen island, groaning while he picked out utensils and plates for their dinner. They ate together at least once a week, though with her not quite feeling great it had been significantly more lately.

"I got one of those 'forever roses' in the mail."

Her friend paused in the middle of grabbing two sets of chopsticks. "Uh, like, the ones that have the lifetime gaurrantee?"

"I guess."

He sighed and came around to her side. "Kiddo, those are seriously expensive for someone not like us. I think he might be legit."

"You're defending him?!" Her tail stiffened and he held one hand up.

"Hear me out, don't freak right away. 'Kay? Listen, I know he hurt you. I don't condone that shit. But people can change ...especially if they lose something important to them." He stared at her meaningfully.

"Bullshit." She scoffed at the idea though he could see her lower lip tremble, and when she spoke next she was near tears again. "I don't know what to do! I have to go to another charity thing tonight and sing that song. It hurts so bad every time."

"I know, Els." He patted her on the back. "Maybe he'll up the ante. You never know."

"These things usually suck, too," she muttered. "I'm gonna be so bored."

Later on as night fell, she realized she'd been wrong. As a change of pace, she wasn't bored this time.

It was far worse.

She felt drained of all emotion, exhausted and barely able to stand. She had sung '<i>Bastard</i>' - odd choice for a benefit, but who cared, they wanted it -- and was sitting quietly at a table while others walked around, mingling. She was hardly left alone for a second but as usual when the alcohol began to pour, people started clustering in little groups here and there. After shaking off a rather persistent admirer, she sighed and thought it might be a good idea for a drink. Elly picked her way delicately through the drunk crowd over to the bar, frowning when she saw a man with long, dark hair.

<i>You're pathetic. Everything reminds you of him,</i> she chastised herself. <i>Lots of people have dark hair.</i>

This man's tresses were tied up in a shiny, neat bun with the overflow hanging down. It reminded her of how Mic styled his hair sometimes when he was at home.

"Hi," she said wearily as she approached. "Can I get something sweet but non-alcoholic?"

He turned around to face her, and her heart nearly stopped. Aizawa Shota stood in front of her again, wearing the same outfit he had when they first met in person. Other than the careful amount of time spent on his raven locks, he had fully shaved, and he would have looked a decade younger if not for the sadness in his own eyes. There was a half moon shaped scar under his left, and she cringed at the thought that Mic had given it to him. Her friend told her he confronted him but wouldn't tell her exactly what had happened, even when pushed. There was a fair chance if that was a fresh scar it had come from him.

He mixed her a drink without speaking, and handed her a tall glass filled with bubbly soda and grenadine.

Of course.

Her ears folded back into her hair as she stared at the drink, then at him. She took it with a nod, and sipped to avoid the awkward silence between them.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly.

She met his eyes for the first time and saw he meant it - or thought he did.

"Fuck it," she muttered. "These assholes can mix their own drinks. Come with me, and let's talk."

They slipped out a side door of the ballroom and she led him to a couch in a nearby area of the swanky hotel the event was being held at.

"What's this big party about, anyway?" He asked as they sat, close enough to talk but not comfortably near.

"I don't know. Some teenager youth... thing. That's why they wanted me to sing."

"Oh. That's why the kids were here earlier." He rubbed at the back of his neck.

"Yeah."

"It's a really beautiful song." He coughed lightly. "Haunting. I wish it was happier, though."

Elly flicked her tail once, glaring at him. "Yeah, well, it could've been."

"I know." Aizawa took a deep breath. "So, you don't have to forgive me, obviously, and I don't deserve it. But I wanted you to know I quit."

Her ears perked slowly up. "You what?"

"I quit." He made a face, then admitted, "I'm working at a book store now and freelancing better work on the side. I - I lost my way." He placed an uncertain hand on hers. "Thank you."

Her silence unnerved him and he looked up after a few seconds to see her biting her lower lip, tears falling from her glorious purple eyes.

"Er..! I'm sorry! Here -" Aizawa dug frantically in his pockets and produced a silk handkerchief. "I'm so, so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you, which is a real shifty, stupid sounding platitude but I didn't. I really didn't. I was hurting myself, and it spilled over onto you." She didn't move to accept the silk square, her hands balled onto fists on her knees, so he dabbed gently, wiping her tears away.

"I didn't think you'd try so hard to see me," she said at last. "Did you just want to apologize?"

"I want to make you happy again. If that means apologizing and then walking away, I'll do it. If you want anything, I'll do it. I don't care what it is. But -" He hesitated, then spoke on firmly. "Please give me another chance. To do things better this time. To get to know each other and not just the fu - the, ah. You know. The <i>right</i> way." His hand brushed hers, then picked it up to bring to his lips in a soft kiss.

Elly blushed hard across her cheeks. He sounded sincere, but she was uncertain. "What does it really mean if we try again? Try what?"

"I want to date you. A serious relationship." He cupped her cheek in his free hand and lifted her face so that their eyes met. "<i>Please</i>, Elly," he begged in a shaky voice. The hands holding her were cold and also trembling. "I'm in pain without you, too. I was stupid. I won't fuck up again."

<i>He used my name</i>!

Her heart rate increased and she had to remind herself to breathe. His gray eyes were so close to hers she could see the broken blood vessels and, more importantly, the level of suffering. Yet it was his shakiness that convinced her in the end. In all her time with him she had never heard him so vulnerable, not even while they had sex.

"You - you used my name." The shocked statement fell out from between numb lips.

"If it's too familiar -"

"No," she cut him off hastily. "It's fine. I wanted to hear you say it, Shota."

It was his turn to gasp, his breath hitching ever so slightly as his ears burned red. He caressed her cheek in a silent question, and she moved with him to brush their mouths together in a lingering kiss. It remained somewhat chaste, far more so than other kisses they had shared, but it was the most passionate one of all.